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Delhi’s unified MCD formally comes into existence
Delhi’s unified MCD formally comes into existence
New Delhi (PTI): The
unified Municipal Cor-
poration of Delhi
(MCD) formally came
into existence on Sun-
day as IAS officers
Ashwani Kumar and
Gyanesh Bharti as-
sumed charge as the
new civic body’s special
officer and commis-
sioner, respectively
.
The MCD was trifur-
cated in 2012 during
Sheila Dikshit’s tenure
as the chief minister. It
is now reunified by
merging three civic
bodies -- North, South
and East Municipal
Corporations.
According to munici-
pal officials, Kumar
will be the top authori-
ty handling the civic
affairs till a new House
is elected.
He said providing the
best of civic amenities
to the public and im-
provement of sanita-
tion services will be
among his top priori-
ties.
“Sanitation is a basic
and obligatory function
of any civic body and
its impact is always
clearly visible on
ground. So, my priority
will be to further im-
prove sanitation ser-
vices in the city,” Ku-
mar told PTI.
Kumar’s appoint-
ment as the special of-
ficer of the unified
MCD is considered
significant as he is ex-
pected to play a vital
role in the functioning
of the unified munici-
pal corporation,
months before the civic
elections.
A 1992-batch IAS of-
ficer of the AGMUT
cadre, Kumar was the
chief secretary of Pu-
ducherry. He had re-
cently been transferred
to Delhi by the Central
government and was
awaiting posting.
He assumed the
charge of the special of-
ficer at the Civic Centre
the MCD headquarters
on Sunday
.
He had also served as
the principal secretary
of the Public Works De-
partment in the Delhi
government in 2017.
Bharti, a 1998-batch
IAS officer also of the
AGMUT cadre, was the
commissioner of the
South Delhi Municipal
Corporation prior to
this assignment, and he
was the senior-most
among Delhi’s erst-
while three municipal
commissioners.
“My priority will be
to provide the best mu-
nicipal services deliv-
ered to the people of
Delhi in a transparent
manner,” Bharti said.
 More on P2
BJP Lok Sabha
MP from WB
Arjun Singh
joins TMC
Kolkata: Days after
criticising the Centre
over its jute policy
and upset over not
being able to work
freely in Bengal, BJP
MP from Barrack-
pore Arjun Singh
returned to the
Trinamool Congress
on Sunday. Singh
joined the party in
presence of TMC’s
National General
Secretary Abhishek
Banerjee at his
Camac Street office
in Kolkata.
Sanitation is a basic
and obligatory func-
tion of any civic
body. My priority
will be to im-
prove city’s
sanitation
services.
My priority will be
to provide the best
municipal services
delivered to the
people of Delhi in a
transpar-
ent man-
ner.
Gyanesh Bharti,
Commissioner,
Unified MCD
Ashwani Kumar,
Special Officer,
Unified MCD
NEW DELHI l MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI TITLE NO. DELENG/2021/19840 l Vol 1 l Issue No. 263
OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR, LUCKNOW, NEW DELHI  MUMBAI www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
Cheteshwar Pujara has made a comeback to India’s Test team while
youngsters like Umran Malik and Arshdeep Singh have received an India
call-up as selection committee on Sunday named the squads for the
upcoming five-match T20I series against South Africa beginning June 9.
UMRAN MALIK
GETS CALL FOR
INDIA T20 SQUAD
AGAINST SA
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Sunday said all the temples destroyed
in the past must be rebuilt. He said that in his state, he had made budgetary
allocations for renovating temples destroyed by the Portuguese. Sawant said
the state government was promoting spiritual and cultural tourism in the state.
GOA CM: WHEREVER
TEMPLES WERE
DESTROYED, THEY
SHOULD BE REBUILT
First India Bureau
Namsai: Taking a pot-
shot at Congress leader
Rahul Gandhi, who is
currently in the UK, Un-
ionHomeMinisterAmit
Shah on Sunday said the
Wayanad MP must take
off his Italian glasses
and look at the develop-
ment work done by
Prime Minister Naren-
draModiandChief Min-
ister Pema Khandu in
Arunachal Pradesh.
Shahinauguratedand
laid the foundation of
development projects
worth ₹ Rs 1,000 crores in
the Namsai district.
Speaking on the occa-
sion, Shah said, “Con-
gress leaders ask what
happened in eight years,
these people are awake
with their eyes closed.
Rahul baba must take
off his Italian glasses
and look at the develop-
ment work done by PM
ModiandChief Minister
Pema Khandu.”
Earlier today, Amit
Shah visited Golden Pa-
goda in Namsai district.
AMIT SHAH JABS RAHUL GANDHI
‘TAKE OFF ITALIAN GLASSES
TO SEE VIKAS IN INDIA’
Rahul Gandhi, while Amit Shah was addressing event in Arunachal,
had tweeted about the cut in excise duty to slash the fuel prices
Maha, Kerala
reduce VAT on
petrol, diesel
after Centre
cuts excise duty
Jaipur: Maharashtra
and Kerala have de-
creased VAT on petrol
and diesel after Finance
Minister Nirmala Si-
tharaman’s call to pro-
vide further relief to
consumers following a
cut in excise duty by the
Centre, though some
other states appeared re-
luctant citing their ina-
bilitytotakemorestrain
on revenue.
Rajasthan Chief Min-
ister Ashok Gehlot said
with the Centre an-
nouncing cut in excise
duty
, the state-level VAT
by Rs 2.48 per liter on
petrol and Rs 1.16 per
liter on diesel will also
come down.
TheMaharashtragov-
ernment slashed the
VAT on petrol by Rs 2.08
per litre and diesel by Rs
1.44 per litre.
The Left Democratic
Front government in
Kerala had on Saturday
promptly announced a
cutinthestatetaxonthe
prices of petrol and die-
sel by Rs 2.41 and
Rs 1.36 per litre respec-
tively
. However, the
DMK-led government in
Tamil Nadu said that it
is neither fair nor rea-
sonable to expect states
to reduce their taxes.
Flip-Flop on
Qutub Minar
Excavations at monument:
Union Cultural Ministry
deny giving ASI any order
The Union
Ministry of
Culture officials
rubbished reports
stating that it had
ordered the
Archaeological
Survey of India to
conduct
excavations at
Qutub Minar
Earlier, reports
had stated that
the order was given
after Hindu deity idols
were reportedly
discovered at the
site, and claimed that
the site was
constructed by Raja
Vikramaditya, a Hindu
emperor
1 2
l A petition was
recently filed in Delhi’s
Saket court, requesting
that Hindu deities be
restored and wor-
shipped in the Quw-
wutul Islam Mosque,
which is part of the
Qutub Minar complex
l According to the
petition, Muhammad
Ghori’s general, Qutu-
buddin Aibak, demol-
ished 27 temples and
used this material to
construct the Quwwat-
ul-Islam mosque on
the site. It will be
heard on Tuesday
l The controversy
erupted after ASI’s for-
mer regional director,
Dharamveer Sharma,
recently claimed that
Raja Vikramaditya, not
Qutub-ud-Din Aibak,
built the Qutub Minar
to study the direction
of the sun
l Later, reports
claimed that the ASI
was asked by the
ministry to submit
excavation report
of the site
Congress leaders ask what
happened in eight years, these
people are awake with their eyes
closed. Rahul baba must take off
his Italian glasses and look at the
development work done by PM
Modi and Chief Minister Pema
Khandu. The work that has been
done in the last eight years had not
been done in the last 50 years
PM Modi has visited the northeast
region multiple times during his
tenure and gave directions to the
ministers to do the same. This is
the 14th time I am visiting. You
can estimate the kind of priority
that’s being given to the region.
The northeast - that once was in
headlines due to terrorism - is
today in spotlight due to culture
—Amit Shah, Union Home Minister
Farmers can change govts:
Telangana’s KCR in Punjab
Chandigarh: Telanga-
naCMKChandrasekhar
Rao, who visited Punjab
to pay tributes to the sol-
diers killed in the Gal-
wanValleyclashandthe
farmerswhodiedduring
the anti-farm law stir
last year, appealed to
farmers’ leaders to con-
tinue their agitation
against the Centre until
they get guarantees on
support prices for crops.
“Farmers can topple
governments, it’s not a
big thing,” he said while
exhorting them to unite
for a nationwide agita-
tion which he said he
willjoinalongwithAAP
.
 More on P7
CENTRE WANTED TO JAIL FARMERS
IN STADIUMS DURING STIR: KEJRIWAL
The BJP-led Centre wanted Delhi stadiums to be con-
verted into makeshift jails to house farmers marching
into Delhi to protest against the new farm laws, recalled
CM Arvind Kejriwal at an event to honour farmers. “Even
I have come out of an andolan, Anna andolan. And the
same was done to us at that time...they used to keep us
in stadiums. I too have stayed in stadiums for days. I
understood that it’s a ploy to end kisan andolan,” he said.
PM HOSTS PROUD FACES!
Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Union Minister for Youth Affairs  Sports Anurag Thakur and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma,
poses for a photograph with the Indian badminton contingent for Thomas and Uber cup, during their felicitation ceremony, in New Delhi.
Triple suicide,
chilling note
rock Delhi
New Delhi: A woman in
her 50s and her two
daughters turned their
south Delhi flat into a
chamber of poisonous
gas and suffocated to
death in a shocking case
of triple suicide, Delhi
Police have found.
Suicide notes recov-
ered from the flat in the
posh Vasant Vihar area
have revealed their
spine-chilling plan.
Police found all doors,
windowsandventilators
packed with a foil-like
substance, apparently to
ensure smoke does not
escape the room and no
one can see within.
Policefoundthatcook-
ing gas cylinder’s knob
wasturnedonandacoal
fire was left burning.
“Too much deadly
gas... carbon monoxide
inside. It’s flammable.
Please ventilate the
room by opening the
window and opening the
fan. Do not light match,
candle or anything!! Be
careful while removing
the curtain because
roomisfullof hazardous
gas. Do not inhale,” the
chilling suicide note in
English read.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah during a rally in Arunachal Pradesh’s Namsai on Sunday. Arunachal
Pradesh CM Pema Khandu and Union Minister Kiren Rijiju are also seen.  —PHOTO BY PTI
Telangana CM
K Chandrasekhar
Rao at an event in
Punjab on Sunday.
In despair after hus-
band’s death due to
COVID-19, a woman
along with 2 daugh-
ters committed suicide
by online ordering
insulating material
and turning house
into a gas chamber
CAPITOL
NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022
02
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The new Act reduces
the number of wards
in the city to 250 from
existing 272, which
means the MCD will
have to undergo a
delimitation exercise.
New Delhi (PTI): With
the unified MCD getting
its special officer and a
new commissioner, the
exercise to reshuffle
and reorganise the mu-
nicipal staff will begin.
The erstwhile North
and East Delhi Munici-
pal Corporations were
severely hit by fund
crunch as they were un-
able to pay their staff a
regular salary
. The situ-
ation was slightly better
in the South Delhi Mu-
nicipal Corporation.
Making the unified
MCD financially stable
will be among the key
challenges before Ku-
mar and Bharti, accord-
ing to sources.
The three civic bodies
have been merged into
one MCD through the
Delhi Municipal Corpo-
ration(Amendment)Act,
2022. A bill to unify the
threecivicbodieswasap-
proved by the Lok Sabha
on March 30 and by the
Rajya Sabha on April 5.
The bill became an Act
afterPresidentRamNath
Kovind gave his assent to
it on April 18.
The Act reduces the
number of wards in the
national capital to 250
from the existing 272,
which means that the
MCD will have to un-
dergo a delimitation
exercise before the
election. The Centre
will form a delimita-
tion commission to
carry out the demarca-
tion of wards.
Now, exercise
to reshuffle
civic body’s
staff will begin
MakingMCD
financially
stablewillbea
keychallenge
A panel will
be formed for
demarcation
of wards
HOW WILL UNIFICATION
PROCESS BE EXECUTED?
The first administrative step for the
proposed unification of the MCDs
would be to nullify their boundaries,
which could be the “easiest task” in this
process. The next step would be to bring
the employees of the three corporations
under one umbrella. While the number of
the lower-rank staff will not change much,
the numbers of higher-rank posts could
decrease by a third. For example, there
will be one director for each department
such as horticulture, sanitation, educa-
tion, health, hospital, etc. in the unified
corporation instead of the existing three
directors, one for each of the three MCDs.
The same will apply to commissioners,
committee heads, and mayors.
HOW WILL UNIFICATION
IMPACT MCS’ FINANCES?
All three corporations are currently
gripped by financial crises, even
though the East and North MCDs are
worse affected than the South MCD. The
combined budget deficit of the East and
North MCDs exceeds Rs 2,000 crore.
The South MCD was solvent until a
couple of years ago, but it too has come
under financial stress now — and has a
budget deficit of Rs 500 crore, a senior
south corporation official said. The total
annual income of the three corporations
from their own revenues is around
Rs 6,700 crore, while the total annual
salary and pension expenditure for their
combined 1,60,000 employees amounts
to Rs 8,900 crore.
HOW WILL IT IMPACT
POLITICAL SCENARIO?
The trifurcation of the erstwhile civic
body in 2012, when the Congress
ruled Delhi, was intended to “decentralise”
the mammoth MCD. However, it was also
a political move to fix civic body bound-
aries in such a way that the Congress
could make inroads into the MCD, which
had become a BJP bastion. Ten years
later, it appears to be deja vu. While the
BJP continues to rule the MCDs now, it
sees political gains in consolidating their
boundaries. The BJP-run MCDs have
claimed they have been starved of funds
by the AAP-led Delhi government. In the
BJP’s calculation, this could help it put up
a fight against the resurgent AAP in the
civic body elections.
The appointment of a Special Officer, alongside the amendment that makes the civic body answerable to
the Centre alone, is also being seen as a way for the Centre to exercise more control in Delhi.
IN CENTRE’S
CONTROL?
WHAT WILL CHANGE WITH RE-UNIFICATION OF MCDS
New Delhi (PTI): Del-
hiites buying e-cycles
will soon get incentives
as the Kejriwal govern-
ment is expected to roll
out operational guide-
lines for subsidy pay-
ment in the coming
week, government offi-
cials said on Sunday
.
Last month, the Del-
hi government had an-
nounced a subsidy of
Rs 5,500 each for the
first 10,000 e-cycles
sold in the city.
“The operational
guidelines for payment
of subsidy on purchase
of e-cycles will be
launched in the com-
ing week. The guide-
lines will have details,
including brands cov-
ered under subsidy
scheme and ways to
avail the incentives,” a
senior Delhi govern-
ment official said.
The first 1,000 buy-
ers of passenger e-cy-
cles will also be given
an additional subsidy
of Rs 2,000 under the
Delhi Electric Vehicle
(EV) Policy, Transport
Minister Kailash Gahl-
ot had said.
The government has
also approved a subsidy
of Rs 15,000 each for the
first 5,000 buyers of
heavy duty cargo e-cy-
cles and e-carts for com-
mercial use.
Earlier, the subsidy
was provided to indi-
vidual buyers of e-
carts, but now, a com-
pany or corporate
house buying these ve-
hicles will also be given
a subsidy of Rs 30,000,
the officials said.
The government has
planned to promote e-
cycles to help reduce
pollution levels in the
city. The incentives
will be paid to Delhi
residents having AAD-
HAAR Cards.
Delhi govt soon to roll out op guidelines for subsidy
E-CYCLE PURCHASES
lll
These
guidelines will
help people with
making a choice
as good quality
e-cycle prices
range from
around
` 25,000-
` 30,000
Noida:Firemock
drillsseelessthan
10%participation
Noida (PTI): At least
600 incidents of fire
have been reported in
GautamBuddhNagar
in just four months,
butthepublicturnout
for awareness cam-
paigns and mock
drills in residential
societiesacrossNoida
and Greater Noida
has been dismal, offi-
cials said.
The Fire Service
department has held
more than 100 cam-
paigns in these re-
gions to educate peo-
ple about safety
equipment and pre-
ventive measures,
but the attendance
has “not even been 10
per cent” of the total
number of residents,
they said.
Private security
personnel, too, “do
not know much
about fire safety” in
several societies,
they lamented.
In 2022, 626 inci-
dents of fire have
been reported in
Gautam Buddh Na-
gar from January till
April end. There
were 1,372 fire inci-
dents in 2021, 1,246 in
2020, 1,729 in 2019 and
2,017 the preceding
year, according to of-
ficial data.
“Most of the fire
incidents are report-
ed in April and May.
A majority of them
are related to elec-
tricity issues at
homes or commer-
cial spaces, while
burning of stubble,
farm fires, blaze in
bushes and dry
leaves, etc., also con-
tribute to bulk of
the incidents,”
Chief Fire Officer
Arun Kumar Singh
told PTI.
Nearly 600 fire incidents occurred in Noida in last 4 months.
WAKE UP CALL
Himachal,UP‘backout’fromgivingextra
watertoDelhi;Haryananotkeeneither
New Delhi (PTI): Uttar
Pradesh and Himachal
Pradesh have “backed
out” from plans to give
extra water to Delhi,
while Haryana is not
keen to pursue a water
exchange proposal with
the national capital, ac-
cording to officials.
Proposals involving
Himachal Pradesh and
Uttar Pradesh were be-
ing pursued since 2019.
The two states pulled
out around six to eight
months ago, they said.
Delhi had a plan to
exchange 140 million
gallons a day (MGD) of
treated wastewater for
freshwater from UP.
“UPsaiditcouldshare
270 cusecs of water from
the Ganga through the
Murad Nagar regulator
and Delhi had promised
to release an equal
amountof treatedwaste-
water to UP from Okhla
for irrigation purposes.
“After multiple meet-
ings and field inspec-
tions, Uttar Pradesh
wrote to us around six
months ago that the
idea has been dropped,”
an official said on con-
dition of anonymity
.
The Centre was in fa-
vour of the proposal but
UP denied it. They did
not give any reason for
doing so, he said.
Delhi also held delib-
erations with Haryana
on a proposal to share 20
MGD of treated waste-
water for irrigation
through Jaunti and Au-
chandiregulatorsinlieu
of freshwater through
Carrier Lined Canal
(CLC) and Delhi Sub
Branch(DSB).“Haryana
hasnotagreedtothepro-
posal yet. There is a very
slimchanceof ithappen-
ing now,” he said.
Another official said
the proposal for a water
exchange with Haryana
is pending at the level
of the Upper Yamuna
River Board.
Delhi generates
around 770 MGD of
wastewater. The 34 sew-
age treatment plants
located at 20 locations
across the city treat up
to 570 MGD of sewage.
Around 90 MGD of
treated wastewater is
being utilised for horti-
culture in parks and
forests, irrigation and
DTC depots. The capital
is obligated to release
267 MGD of treated
wastewater into the Ya-
muna to maintain the
environmental flow.
A recent file photo shows people collect drinking water from a
tanker on a hot summer day, at Sanjay Camp, in New Delhi.
WATER WOES
CRUCIAL READ
DELHI SEES DIP IN COVID CASES, REPORTS 365
NEW INFECTIONS IN LAST 24 HOURS
New Delhi (ANI): The national capital on Sunday witnessed a
drop in COVID-19 cases as Delhi logged 365 new infections
in the last 24 hours, as per the health bulletin issued by the
Delhi Health Department. 479 COVID cases were reported
yesterday. With this, the active COVID cases in Delhi stand at
1,912. According to the bulletin,
as many as 530 COVID patients
recovered from the disease in
the last 24 hours taking the total
number of recoveries since the
onset of the pandemic in the city
to 18,75,381. One patient died
due to the disease. With this, the death toll in the city rose to
26,201. A total of 18,543 COVID samples were tested in the
last 24 hours in the national capital. As far as the vaccination
is concerned, 35,710 beneficiaries were jabbed with COVID
vaccines taking the total number of vaccine shots adminis-
tered so far to 3,40,44,950.
3 OF DELHI FAMILY KILLED IN ROAD ACCIDENT IN
RAJASTHAN’S ALWAR DISTRICT
Jaipur (PTI): A couple and their 12-year-old daughter
were killed in a road accident in Rajasthan’s Alwar district
on Sunday they were returning home in Delhi after a trip
to Sariska, police said. Another
person was injured in the
accident near Bhindsu village
on the Alwar-Bhiwadi road.
The vehicle in which they were
travelling rammed into a tree
after the driver lost control of
it. Police said the accident took place when the family was
returning home in Delhi after a trip to the Sariska Tiger
Reserve. The deceased were identified as Dharmendra
(40), his wife Monika (36) and their daughter Shiva (12).
—REPRESENTATIONAL
PIC
—FILE
PHOTO
INDIA
NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022
03
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Thiruvananthapuram
(Agencies): The cam-
paigning for the Thrik-
kakara by-election to be
held on May 31 has
gained momentum with
all three major fronts —
CPM-ledLeftDemocratic
Front (LDF), Congress-
led United Democratic
Front(UDF)andtheBJP-
led National Democratic
Alliance(NDA)areoutto
woo voters.
The election to Thrik-
kakarawasnecessitated
following the demise of
sitting MLA, PT Thom-
as. Now his wife Uma
Thomas is contesting on
the UDF ticket. Practic-
ing cardiologist at a
leading private hospital
at Kochi, Dr Jo Joseph
is contesting as a CPI-M
candidate while a for-
mer RSS pracharak and
state Vice President of
the BJP, AN Radhak-
ishnan is contesting as
the NDA candidate.
Thrikkakara has a
large population of
Christian community
and all the candidates
arevisitingthechurches
to woo the voters.
While CPI-M brought
in Dr Jo Joseph as a sur-
prise candidate to capi-
talise on the upper class
nature of the constitu-
ency, things at present
seem to favour Uma
Thomas in a tradition-
ally UDF bastion. Kera-
la Chief Minister
Pinarayi Vijayan who
had announced to cam-
paign by staying in the
constituency for some
time has quietly left for
the state capital giving
an opportunity to the
UDF to say the Chief
Minister has no hope
here and hence a quite
retreat.
Campaigning heats up for Thrikkakara bypoll in Kerala
POLL BATTLE
Kochi (PTI): The People’s Welfare Alliance (PWA)
in Kerala, a new alliance formed by the AAP and
Twenty20, a political party promoted by a prominent
business group here, on Sunday announced that it
will not support any fronts in Thrikkakara assembly
bypoll. The PWA asked its followers to assess the
current political and social scenario of the state and
the country, and cast their vote accordingly.
AAP  TWENTY20 ALLIANCE NOT
TO SUPPORT ANY FRONTS
QUAD IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO
DISCUSS INT’L MATTERS: PM
PM Modi to meet new Australian PM Anthony Albanese on sidelines of Quad summit
New Delhi (Agencies):
The second in-person
Quad Leaders’ Summit
in Japan will provide an
opportunity for leaders
of four countries to re-
view the progress of the
grouping’s initiatives
and exchange views on
developments in the
Indo-Pacific as well as
global issues of mutual
interest, Prime Minis-
ter Narendra Modi said
on Sunday
.
In his departure
statement ahead of his
visit to Japan from May
23-24, Modi said during
his visit he will also
hold a bilateral meeting
with US President Joe
Biden, where they will
discuss further consoli-
dation of the multi-fac-
eted bilateral relations.
“We will also contin-
ue our dialogue on re-
gional developments
and contemporary glob-
al issues,” Modi said.
He said he will be
visiting Tokyo at the
invitation of his Japa-
nese counterpart Fu-
mio Kishida, and noted
that in March 2022, he
had hosted Kishida for
the 14th India-Japan
Annual Summit. “Dur-
ing my visit to Tokyo, I
look forward to con-
tinuing our conversa-
tion further, with an
aim to strengthen the
India-Japan Special
Strategic and Global
Partnership,” Modi
said.
In Japan, Modi said,
he will also participate
in the second in-person
Quad Leaders’ Sum-
mit, which will provide
an opportunity for the
leaders of the four
Quad countries to re-
view the progress of
Quad initiatives.
“We will also ex-
change views about de-
velopments in the In-
do-Pacific region and
global issues of mutual
interest,” Modi said.
The Quadrilateral
Security Dialogue com-
prises India, the US,
Japan and Australia.
Modi also noted that
the newly elected Aus-
tralian Prime Minister
Anthony Albanese will
be joining the Quad
Leaders’ Summit for
the first time.
New Delhi: Prime
Minister Narendra
Modi and US Presi-
dent Joe Biden will
hold bilateral talks
on the sidelines of
the Quad summit in
Tokyo on May 24.
During their meet-
ing, the two lead-
ers are expected to
hold a “constructive
and straightforward
dialogue”, which will
also touch upon the
ongoing situation
in Ukraine. Notably,
the meeting comes
on the day when the
February 24 Russian
invasion of Ukraine
will enter its fourth
month. Ahead of
his two-day visit
to Japan, PM Modi
said that he will hold
a bilateral meet-
ing with President
Biden, where they
will discuss further
consolidation of the
multi-faceted bilateral
relations between the
two nations. “We will
also continue our
dialogue on regional
developments and
contemporary global
issues,” the Prime
Minister added.
ON UKRAINE, ‘STRAIGHTFORWARD’
TALKS BETWEEN MODI AND BIDEN
Prime Minister Narendra Modi emplanes for Tokyo, in New Delhi. 
China-Pak FMs say
‘critical to resolve
disputes’ in S Asia
Beijing (PTI): Paki-
stan’s newly appointed
Foreign Minister Bilaw-
al Bhutto Zardari held
talks with his Chinese
counterpart Wang Yi on
Sunday in Guangzhou
cityandemphasisedthat
“it is critical to resolve
alloutstandingdisputes”
in South Asia in view of
the challenges faced by
thepeopleduetothepan-
demic, soaring commod-
ityprices,climatechange
and poverty
.
This is Bilawal’s
maiden visit to China
after he took over as for-
eign minister following
the fall of the Imran
Khan-led government
last month.
While reaffirming
their strong support for
each other’s “core inter-
ests”, both sides reiter-
ated that a peaceful and
prosperous South Asia
was in the common in-
terest of all parties, said
a joint statement issued
at the end of their meet-
ing held in the southern
Chinese city of Guang-
zhou as Beijing is cur-
rently under semi-lock-
down to contain the fast-
spreadingOmicronvari-
ant of the COVID-19.
“Given the challeng-
es faced by the peoples
of the region, due to
global pandemic, soar-
ing commodity prices,
climate change and pov-
erty, it is critical to re-
solve all outstanding
disputes to promote re-
gional cooperation and
advance the goals of
lasting peace, stability
and shared prosperity,”
Pak media said.
Ramban tunnel collapse: Centre forms
3-member panel to investigate cause
New Delhi (Agencies):
The Centre has consti-
tuted a committee of 3
independent experts to
investigate the reasons
for recent collapse of a
part of under-construc-
tion tunnel in Ramban
on Jammu-Srinagar
highway and suggest re-
medial measures.
State-owned National
Highways Authority of
India (NHAI) has al-
ready initiated process
to handle such emer-
gency situation and
also taking all possible
measures to avoid such
incidents in future, an
official statement said
on Sunday
.
”A committee of 3 in-
dependent eminent ex-
perts has been consti-
tuted by the central gov-
ernment which has al-
ready moved to the site
to investigate the rea-
sons for slide/collapse
and remedial measures
thereof… Further ac-
tion will be taken based
on report of commit-
tee,” it said.
Indo-Pacific
strategy ‘bound
to fail’: China
ahead of Quad
Beijing (PTI):
China on Sunday
launched a broad-
side against the
Indo-Pacific strat-
egy of the United
States ahead of the
summit of Quad
leaders in Japan,
saying that it is
“boundtofail”asit
is vigorously pro-
moted by Washing-
ton to “contain”
Beijing.
The “Indo-Pacif-
ic strategy” is
causing more and
morevigilanceand
concern in the in-
ternational com-
munity, especially
in the Asia-Pacific
region, Chinese
Foreign Minister
Wang Yi said in the
southern Chinese
cityof Guangzhou.
The Asia-Pacific
should become a
plateau for peace-
ful development,
rather than a geo-
political arena. At-
tempts to turn the
Asia-Pacific into a
bloc,NATOorCold
War will never suc-
ceed, Wang said.
Nitish dodges query about CBI
raids on houses of Lalu, Rabri
Patna (PTI): Bihar
Chief Minister Nitish
Kumar on Sunday
dodgedaqueryaboutthe
recent CBI raids on resi-
dences of his arch-rival
Lalu Prasad and the lat-
ter’s wife Rabri Devi.
The JD(U) leader
was replying to queries
of journalists about
the allegation by the
RJD, founded and head-
ed by Prasad, that the
raids were “politically
motivated”.
“I have no informa-
tion,nothingtosay
.Only
those involved in the
matter can comment,”
said Kumar, who runs
his government in alli-
ance with the BJP
.
The RJD accused the
CBI of acting upon “in-
structions from political
bossesintheBJP”which
rules the Centre. Many
RJD leaders have been
alleging that the latest
CBI case and the subse-
quent raids were intend-
ed to warn Nitish Ku-
mar, who recently went
to attend an Iftar party
held at Rabri Devi’s
house and walked her
son Tejashwi Yadav to
his car when he visited
JD(U) office to attend a
similar feast.
Interestingly
, in front
of the RJD office, situat-
ed right across the street
fromtheJD(U)premises,
a poster has been put up
accusing the Modi gov-
ernment of misusing
probe agencies.
62 booked for
pro-Pak slogans
at election victory
rally in Jharkhand
Hazaribag (PTI): As
many as 62 people, in-
cluding a newly elected
panchayat samiti mem-
ber, have been booked
for allegedly raising
pro-Pakistan slogans at
a panchayat poll victo-
ry procession in
Jharkhand’s Hazaribag
district, a senior police
officer said on Sunday
.
A video clip of the
procession outside
Bazar Samiti, where
several people were
heard shouting ‘Paki-
stan Zindabad’, went
viral on social media,
following which the po-
lice swung into action
and registered a case in
the matter, Hazaribag
Superintendent of Po-
lice (SP) Manoj Ratan
Chothe said.
No arrest has been
made so far as the police
are still verifying the
authenticity of the clip,
Chothe explained.
MHA warns officers: Join at
Lakshadweep or face music
New Delhi (Agencies):
The Union Home Minis-
try has warned of disci-
plinary action “without
any further reference”
against six DANICS of-
ficers, working with the
Delhi Government, if
they fail to join the Lak-
shadweep Administra-
tion “immediately”.
The fresh order came
on May 20, immediately
after the Central Ad-
ministrative Tribunal
(CAT) bench headed by
chairperson Manjula
Das ruled that there
was “no merit” in the
applications of the six
DANICS officers chal-
lenging the decision of
the ministry to transfer
them to Lakshadweep.
No differences with Siddaramaiah: DK
on MLC candidates’ recommendations
Bengaluru (PTI): Kar-
nataka Congress presi-
dent DK Shivakumar
on Sunday rejected re-
ports about differences
between him and Con-
gress Legislature party
leader Siddaramaiah
regarding the recom-
mendations made by
the state unit on candi-
dates to the party high
command for the up-
coming MLC polls.
With May 24 being
the last date to file nom-
inations for the polls to
seven seats of the Kar-
nataka Legislative
Council to be elected by
MLAs, he said the state
unit has sent its recom-
mendations on candi-
dates to the party high
command and the deci-
sion will be out soon.
“The tradition in the
Congress party is, we
share our opinion (with
the high command).
Over 100 aspirants had
applied or desired, few
others did not apply
but have the required
qualification,” Shiva-
kumar said.
EIGHT BODIES
DISPATCHED TO
HOMETOWNS
Banihal (PTI): Two local
labourers, who were
among the 10 killed
after a landslide hit an
under-construction tun-
nel here, were laid to rest
in their native Ramban
district in Jammu and
Kashmir, while the mortal
remains of eight others
were dispatched to their
hometowns outside the
union territory, officials
said on Sunday.
Bihar CM Nitish Kumar
There is no Shivling
inside Gyanvapi
mosque: SP lawmaker
Lucknow (PTI): Sam-
ajwadi Party MP
Shafiqur Rahman Barq
on Sunday claimed that
there was no Shivling’
in Gyanvapi mosque in
Varanasi and the word
was spread about it to
stoke sentiments for the
upcoming 2024 parlia-
mentary elections.
“All these circum-
stances are being creat-
ed due to 2024 elections.
If you go into the histo-
ry there was no
‘Shivling’ and nothing
else in the Gyanvapi
mosque. All this is
wrong,” Barq, an MP
from Sambhal, told re-
porters outside the Sa-
majwadi Party office.
Barq was here to
meet SP chief Akhilesh
Yadav.
On Ayodhya, Barq
said, “Though a Ram
temple is being con-
structed, I still say that
there is a mosque
there”.”Ye takat ke bal-
boote pe ho raha” (This
is purely a display of
power).”
“We are being target-
ed. Mosques are being
attacked. The govern-
ment doesn’t run like
this. Government
should run with hones-
ty and rule of law. There
is a rule of Bulldozer,
not of law,” he alleged.
Gyanwapi Mosque in Varanasi
SP MP Shafiqur Rehman Barq
PERSPECTIVE
NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022
04
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
l Vol 1 l Issue No. 263
l RNI TITLE NO. DELENG/2021/19840
Printed and published by
Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of
First Express Publishers. Printed at
Impressions Printing and Packaging
Limited, C-21, 22 Sector-59,
Noida-201301. Published at G-20,
3rd Floor, 309, Preet Vihar, New
Delhi-110092. Phone 011-49846474.
Editor-In-Chief: Jagdeesh Chandra.
Editor: Sharat K Verma
responsible for selection of news
under the PRB Act
Narendra Singh Tomar
@nstomar
Tributes to the founder of Brahmo
Samaj, the pioneer of mass awakening
and social reform movement, the great
social reformer who got rid of the
practice of Sati, child marriage before
independence and Raja Rammohan
Roy, who made a special contribution
in the field of education.
Smriti Z Irani
@smritiirani
Gas cylinder subsidy will greatly benefit
over 9 crore female beneficiaries of
Ujjwala Yojana, enabling ‘Ease of
Living’ for their families.
SPIRITUAL SPEAK
Resolutely train yourself
to attain peace.
—Buddha
IN-DEPTH
UP ASSEMBLY
TAKES A GIANT
TECH LEAP, LEAVES
OTHERS BEHIND
ttar Pradesh Assem-
bly has become the
second legislature
after Nagaland to go
paperless. While Na-
galand attached a tablet to the
desk of each of its 60 members
in the House, UP has given a
technological makeover to its
403-member House. The Assem-
bly has provided 416 tablets for
MLAs and also some MLCs. In
terms of size UP is far ahead of
Nagaland in implementing the
E-Vidhan Bhawan under the na-
tional E-Vidhan Application
project. The first Assembly ses-
sion using paperless technology
will be launched on Monday
. As
some legislators might take time
to learn, paper documents will
be allowed in the initial few ses-
sions. Experts from the National
Informatics Centre are involved
in training the legislators.
The introduction of technol-
ogy will not only give a new look
to the UP Vidhan Sabha, but it
will also require good behaviour
from the legislators. No more
rowdy conduct will be allowed
as a damaged tablet will not be
replaced.
TOP TWEETS
U
elangana Chief
Minister K Chan-
drashekar Rao is
out on a mission--
-that of forging
opposition unity
. KCR is mak-
ing sustained efforts in that
direction but is scrupulously
keeping the Congress out of
the loop. The other day he
was in New Delhi where he
met Samajwadi Party presi-
dent Akhilesh Yadav and
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind
Kejriwal. After the meeting
he said that “there will be a
sensation in the country”.
What “sensation” was the
Telangana Rashtra Samithi
chief talking about? Will
there be a “sensation” if he
succeeds in stitching an alli-
ance or in announcing a new
political narrative? KCR him-
self said, “Let us see what
happens as we go forward.”
That suggests some develop-
ment is afoot in the opposi-
tion camp which is preparing
to take on the BJP not only in
2024 but also in the Presiden-
tial election and also the up-
coming state elections.
Early this year KCR held
parleys with Uddhav Thack-
eray
, the Maharashtra Chief
Minister, and his West Bengal
counterpart Mamata Baner-
jee. KCR has also had a meet-
ing with poll strategist
Prashant Kishor. Taking ini-
tiative to put up a credible al-
ternativetotheBJPandPrime
Minister Narendra Modi may
beeasy
,buttosucceedinitwill
be a tall order. Recently Modi
exhorted his party leaders to
fix goals for the next 25 years.
The narrative of religion
which the BJP espouses gives
Modi the confidence to set
long-term targets. The oppo-
sition, so far, has no alterna-
tive narrative. Leave narra-
tive aside, the issue of leader-
ship is still not settled. Oppo-
sition unity is still a work in
progress.
The other day he was in Delhi where he met
SP president Akhilesh Yadav and Delhi CM
Arvind Kejriwal. After the meeting he said that
“there will be a sensation in the country”. What
“sensation” was the Telangana Rashtra Samithi chief
talking about? Will there be a “sensation” if he
succeeds in stitching an alliance or in announcing a
new political narrative?
T
MOODINESS
THE COMMON COLD
OF THE MIND
Engaging in activities that
bring pleasure like
shopping, playing games,
cooking a favourite recipe,
surfing the net, browsing
through a book store,
dining out, reading, even
putting together a puzzle,
can be a ready medication
for ‘down / blue’ days.
Rather than confusing the
illness with the individual,
making efforts to
understand, can help one to
treasure the beautiful
person behind the
moodiness. Successfully
fighting mood changes
requires having a balanced
view of our own worth.
False pride, ignoring our
limitations and
perfectionism, are all an
overestimation of ourselves.
Resisting these tendencies
and also avoiding the other
extreme can dispel
gloominess and lead to
cheerfulness
e is just impossible. When
something goes bad, he takes
things out on anyone for no
good reason…” This is a
widespread complaint about
people from all walks of life.
Some are moody, grouchy
and unpredictable. A moody
person’s emotions change of-
ten. One day, they are happy
and trusting. The next day,
they are down and critical.
As confusing as it may
seem, almost everyone goes
through different moods
from time to time. Often a
bad mood is due to illness,
poor diet, fatigue and exhaus-
tion because of unrelenting
pressures. A moody person is
difficult to live with. Some
say that moods are beyond
our control, being governed
by chemicals in the brain.
Whether that is true or not,
feelings are contagious. We
can either be cheered up or
depressed by those around
us. One can ask, “how do I
react when I’ve had a bad day
or when I’m feeling under a
lot of pressure?” Do I some-
times get grumpy or irrita-
ble? Am I touchy, sullen or
uncommunicative?
There is nothing to be
ashamed of if we suffer from
an emotional illness – any
more than suffering from a
physical illness. Being alarm-
ingly common, moodiness
has been termed as “the com-
mon cold of the mind.” Just
about anyone can get it. It is
all-pervasive and affects eve-
ry aspect of one’s life. It cor-
rodes one’s confidence, self
respect and ability to think
straight and make decisions.
Often a person weeps for no
reason due to an overwhelm-
ing sense of loneliness and
pain, despite having family
and friends.
Most of us know what it is
like to experience a wave of
sadness. With time, the feel-
ing subsides, but the de-
pressed feel the ups and
downs, twists and turns as if
on a speedy train not know-
ing when or how to get down.
Mood swings are an indi-
cator of an underlying dis-
ease. Lack of sleep, stress,
weaknesses or habits in life
style, a break up of a close
relationship, dark indoor
work space, cloudy cold cli-
mate, genes or adverse life
experiences can trigger
moodiness and depression.
What one eats can also
make a difference. Eating a
lot of sweets and junk food is
detrimental to one’s mood.
Exercises and eating healthy
are a real mood up lifter.
Amoodypersoncanbecome
self absorbed. Death can be
preferredtolifewhenonefeels
trapped in one’s situation. By
recognizingdistortedthinking
patterns and mentally ques-
tioning their validity
, one can
maintain an optimistic atti-
tudeandnotallowthemoodto
dominate one’s life.
Some of our emotional
problems may be rooted in
the past especially if we have
been victims of unjust treat-
ment. It is better to forgive
and forget than destroy our
life by dwelling on what can-
not be undone.
By putting one’s feelings
into words is a healing pro-
cess that prevents the mind
from trying to deny the real-
ity of the problem. We should
not allow an ‘undaunted by
adversity’ appearance to in-
hibit us from taking help
from others.
Using few simple words
that manifest interest, con-
cern and affection can do
much good to the moody one.
Lending a hearing ear is fun-
damental to soothing others.
This can make the afflicted
one share his / her fears.
Commendation empowers a
depressed individual for a
personal fight against feel-
ings of disappointment or
rejection.
Some keep their melan-
cholies to themselves be-
cause of which they are in a
constant dreary mood.
Whether feelings are shared
or not, regaining cheerful-
ness, depends to a large ex-
tent upon one’s frame of
mind and outlook.
Music can create various
kinds of moods in us. Listen-
ing to the right type and for
the right duration, can do
wonders in raising the spir-
its and instilling a happy at-
titude.
It is hard to fight a sullen
mood. But directing our at-
tention and energy to do
something for others will be
of immense help in nourish-
ing a good mood.
Engaging in activities that
bring pleasure like shopping,
playing games, cooking a fa-
vourite recipe, surfing the
net, browsing through a book
store, dining out, reading,
even putting together a puz-
zle, can be a ready medica-
tion for ‘down / blue’ days.
Rather than confusing the
illness with the individual,
making efforts to under-
stand, can help one to treas-
ure the beautiful person be-
hind the moodiness.
Successfully fighting mood
changes requires having a
balanced view of our own
worth. False pride, ignoring
our limitations and perfec-
tionism, are all an overesti-
mation of ourselves. Resist-
ing these tendencies and also
avoiding the other extreme
can dispel gloominess and
lead to cheerfulness.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
Mood swings are an
indicator of an
underlying disease.
Lack of sleep, stress,
weaknesses or habits in
lifestyle, a break up of a
close relationship, dark
indoor workspace, cloudy
cold climate, genes or
adverse life
experiences can
trigger moodiness
and depression
“
H
REKHA KUMAR
The writer is a personal
development skills facilitator
WHAT ‘SENSATION’ KCR’S TALKING ABOUT
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INDIA
NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022
05
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First India Bureau
New Delhi: Despite
Sarva Shiksha and Beti
Padhao Beti Bachao
Abhiyan, thousands of
children in the nation-
al capital are living in
garbage dumps with no
future in sight.
These children run
their homes with gar-
bage. While they may
stand explained by the
Utilitarian principle,
it is the apathy of the
government towards
this class that is hol-
lowing out a progres-
sive society.
This issue, however,
is not new. In the past,
many incidents of fire
in landfill sites of Del-
hi have made head-
lines. Amid poisonous
gases emanating from
trash burning for sev-
eral days together, not
only are the people liv-
ing in surrounding ar-
eas are troubled, but
those working at these
sites have little idea of
the magnitude of haz-
ard they are exposed to.
It is mostly children
who work at these land-
fills, picking up plastic,
iron and other metal
pieces, and anything
else of any value in the
market. This is a
means of livelihood for
these children and
their families. Delhi
has 3 large litter ‘hills’
at Okhla, Bhalswa, and
Ghazipur landfill sites
around which, slums
have been built.
There are 40-50 huts
near each garbage hill
which is home to chil-
dren that work in these
landfills. As the saying
goes, the finest steel
has to go through the
hottest fire, but the fu-
ture of these children
in this fire has no end
in sight.
Wiltering childhood in garbage dump
DELHI’S LANDFILLS
New Delhi: The Indian
government is consid-
ering spending an addi-
tional 2 trillion rupees
($26 billion) in the
2022/23 fiscal year to
cushion consumers
from rising prices and
fight multi-year high
inflation, two govt offi-
cials told.
The new measures
will be double the 1 tril-
lion rupees hit govern-
ment revenues could
take from tax cuts on
petrol and diesel the fi-
nance minister an-
nounced on Saturday,
both the officials said.
India’s retail inflation
rose to an eight-year
high in April, while
wholesale inflation rose
to at least a 17-year high,
posing a major head-
ache for PM Modi’s govt
ahead of elections to
several state assemblies
this year. The govt esti-
mates another 500 bil-
lion Indian rupees ad-
ditional funds will be
needed to subsidise fer-
tilisers, from the cur-
rent estimate of 2.15
trillion rupees, the two
officials said.
The govt could also
deliver another round
of tax cuts on petrol and
diesel if crude oil con-
tinues to rise that could
mean an added hit of 1
trillion-1.5 trillion ru-
pees in the 2022/23 fiscal
year started on April 1,
the second official said.
India to spend additional $26
billion to fight inflation: Report
The new measures will be double the 1 trillion rupees hit government revenues could
take from tax cuts on petrol and diesel the finance minister announced on Saturday
New Delhi: Senior Cong leader P. Chidambaram on May 22
wondered whether the States can afford to give up revenue
from VAT on petrol and diesel unless
the Centre devolves more funds or
gives them more grants, likening
their situation to being between “the
devil and the deep sea”. The former
finance minister’s remarks come a
day after the government announced
8 per litre cut in excise duty on petrol and 6 reduction on
diesel.”The notification on reduction of duty on Petrol and
Diesel is now available. FM used the words ‘Excise Duty’, 
but the reduction is in Additional Excise Duty which is not
shared with the states.
New Delhi: Finance
Minister Nirmala
Sitharaman on Sunday
rebutted the Op-
position’s criticism
of excise duty cut
impacting share of
states in central taxes,
saying the Rs 8 a litre
cut in petrol and Rs
6 reduction in diesel
have been done in road
and infrastructure cess
levied on the two fuels,
collection on which
was never shared with
states.First, former
union finance minister
P Chidambaram and
then other Opposition
leaders stated that the
reduction in excise duty
announced on Saturday
evening would reduce
the share of states in
central taxes.Taking to
Twitter, Sitharaman said
she is sharing some
useful facts on levies on
petrol and diesel for the
benefit of all.
FM REBUTS
OPPOSITION
FLAK ON
EXCISE DUTY
—PICTURE FOR REPRESENTATION
Union Minister of Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia.
BEING BETWEEN ‘DEVIL AND DEEP
SEA’: CHIDAMBARAM ON EXCISE CUT
Bengaluru: Union
Minister of Civil Avia-
tion Jyotiraditya Scin-
dia on Saturday said
that India has upheld
the democratic princi-
ples in worst global sce-
narios. He further stat-
ed that India would
emerge as a world lead-
er by 2047. He was ad-
dressing a special key-
note Session at the “In-
dia@2047” conclave in
Bengaluru.
Scindiafurtherstated
that India has always
upheld economic and
democratic order. India
is determined to work
towards attaining a
steadygrowthpathfrom
“Aatmanirbhar Bharat
to Bharat Par Vishv
Nirbhar” and thus
emerge as a world lead-
er by 2047, he said.India
has redefined the old be-
lief that democracies
arealwaysaccompanied
by low levels of dev and
high level of inequality
.
In fact, if democracies
are prospering around
the world, some credit
also comes to India, he
said. “Now, the common
terminology of Asia-
Pacific has changed into
Indo-Pacific, it is a testa-
ment to her (India) rise.
‘Indiawouldemergeas
world leader by 2047’
She (India) al-
ways protected
her territorial
integrity, but never in the
form of an aggressor.
That speaks of Indian
history not only from
1947 but from 5,000
years India has never
been aggressor but has al-
ways been an assimilator.
—Jyotiraditya Scindia,
Union Civil Aviation Minister
New Delhi: The Serum
Institute of India (SII)
has sought permission
from the country’s drug
regulator to conduct
Phase-3 trial to evaluate
the safety and immuno-
genicity of its COVID-19
vaccine Covovax as a
booster dose in children
aged two to 18 years, of-
ficial sources said on
Sunday
.
The Drugs Controller
General of India (DCGI)
had granted permission
in March for conduct-
ing Phase-3 clinical tri-
al of Covovax as a
booster dose in adults.
In an application, SII
Director for Govt and
Regulatory Affairs
Prakash Kumar Singh
has sought permission
to conduct the Phase-3,
observer-blinded, ran-
domised, controlled
study in children aged
two to 18 years in India
who have already re-
ceived primary vacci-
nation against COV-
ID-19 with Covovax at
least six months ago.
Dharamsala: Tibetan
spiritual leader the
Dalai Lama has writ-
ten to Australian
Prime Minister-elect
Anthony Albanese to
congratulate him on
his party’s victory.
“Beginning with my
first visit to Australia
in 1982,” His Holiness
wrote, “I have had the
privilege to visit your
beautiful country quite
regularly, mostly at the
invitation of education-
al institutions and or-
ganisations committed
to peace.”His Holiness
concluded his letter by
wishing the PM every
success.
Shimla: The Himachal
Pradesh govt has
launched a Rs 8.5 crore
c o m m u n i t y - b a s e d
structured breeding
programme for the ge-
netic improvement of
indigenous sheep and
to double the produc-
tion of wool, Animal
Husbandry Minister
Virender Kanwar said
on Sunday
.
The state govt has im-
ported 240 Merino
sheep, 40 males and 200
females, with an outlay
of Rs 6 crore under the
National Livestock Mis-
sion so that superior ex-
oticgermplasmcouldbe
infused to achieve the
target of 3,000 tons qual-
ity wool production by
nextfiveyears.Thestate
has recorded wool pro-
duction of around 1,482
tons in 2020-21. Chamba
is the top wool produc-
ing district with annual
production of around
425 tons, followed by
Kullu and Shimla.
New Delhi: Delhi Po-
lice busted an IPL bet-
ting racket in Chander
Vihar, Phase-III, Nihal
Vihar on Sunday and
arrested six persons en-
gaged in it.
“Acting on a specific
input, received by Spe-
cial staff on May 15, a
team of Delhi Police ar-
rived at the premises
with the informer and
raided the buiding
where they found six
persons gambling on
IPL matches using lap-
top and other electric
devices,” the police
said.From the spot,
they also recovered
74,740 in cash, 10 Mobile
phones, two laptops,
three internet routers,
two LED TVs, voice re-
corders, All the six per-
sons have been arrested
by the police and a case
has also been registered
under the section 3,4, 9,
55 of Gambling Act.
Mussoorie: The por-
tals of Hemkund Sahib,
one of the most revered
shrines of the Sikh
community, opened for
devotees amid religious
chants on Sunday
Morning in Chamoli
districtof Uttarakhand.
The Hemkund Sahib
Yatra was affected due
to the Covid 19 pandem-
ic for the past two years
but this time it is start-
ing with a cap on the
daily pilgrim influx.
Only 5,000 pilgrims are
permitted to visit Hem-
kund Sahib in a day
.
New Delhi: Observing
that multiplicity of pro-
ceedings was not in
larger public interest ,
the SC has exercised its
special power and al-
lowed consolidation of
multiple FIRs, the con-
sequential trial to one
court in Greater Noida
in relation to the multi-
crore rupees alleged
Bike Bot’ and “Grand
Venice Mall” scams.
Over 100 FIRs were
registered against sev-
eral persons in UP and
one FIR in Delhi in con-
nection with the Bike
Bot scheme scam.
According to the
probe agency, more
than two lakh people
were allegedly cheated
of about Rs 15,000 crore
on the false promise of
lucrative returns on in-
vestments in a bike
taxi service scheme.
Around 46 FIRs were
registered against sev-
eral persons .
Shillong: A portion of
the newly constructed
Meghalaya Legislative
Assembly building col-
lapsed but there was no
reported injury, offi-
cials said on Sunday
.
The 70-tonne dome of
the Rs 177.7 crore build-
ing constructed by a
UP-based UPNRNNL
collapsed at around
12:30 am last night, they
said. According to an
Executive Engineer of
PWD (Building) over-
seeing the construc-
tions, the collapse could
have been triggered by
a design fault.
“The weight of the
steel dome was perhaps
too much for the col-
umns and the beams to
bear. This resulted in
the entire structure
coming down,” PWD
Executive Engineer
Ransom Sutnga told. He
said it would take an-
other two weeks to clear
the debris. The engi-
neer who rushed to the
site early morning said
that it would take at
least another 8 months
to raise a new structure.
Lucknow: In order to
boost horticulture and
food processing indus-
try
, the UP Govt plans to
set up excellence cent-
ers and mini excellence
centers or hi-tech nurs-
eries in all the 75 dis-
tricts of the state in the
next five years. A govt
spokesman said here on
Sunday that hi-tech
nurseries set at Bahra-
ich, Ambedkar Nagar,
Mau, Fatehpur etc.
Himachal aims
to double wool
production
Portals of
Hemkund Sahib
open for devotees
UP to set up hi-
tech nurseries to
boost horticulture
SC consolidates multiple FIRs
in Grand Venice Mall scam
SII seeks phase-3 trial permission for Covovax
as booster dose for children aged 2-18 years
Lama congratulates
new Australian PM
IPL betting busted in Delhi:
6 held, mobile phones recovered
Steel dome of newly constructed
Meghalaya Assembly collapses
India on Sunday saw a
slight decrease in its daily
Covid tally after 2,226 infec-
tions were reported in the
last 24 hours, according to
the health ministry’s dash-
board. Sixty-five patients
died and 2,202 recovered
from the viral infection
during the same period.
With Sunday’s figures, the
total number of cases in
the country has climbed
to 4,31,36,371 includ-
ing 5,24,413 deaths and
4,25,97,003 recoveries.
INDIA LOGS 2,226
FRESH COVID-19
CASES, 65 NEW
FATALITIES
—PICTURE FOR REPRESENTATION
SHAH’S DINNER WITH FORCES!
Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Arunachal Pradesh CM Pema Khandu and Union Minister
Kiren Rijiju having dinner with security personnel, in Namsai, Arunachal Pradesh on Sunday.
BIZ BUZZ
NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022
06
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PNB earns `645
cr through ATM
transaction
New Delhi (PTI):
Public sector lender
PNB has said it
earned over `645
crore by levying ATM
transaction charges
on customers during
the financial year
2021-22. Revenue
earned by PNB from
ATM transaction
charges stood at
`645.67 crore in
financial year 2021-
22. Besides, the
country’s second
largest lender
collected `239.09
crore in the form of
penalty imposed on
customers who failed
to maintain minimum
balance or quarterly/
monthly avg balance.
Mcap of 3 of
top-five firms
rise `1.78 L cr
New Delhi (PTI):
Three of the top five
valued firms together
added `1,78,650.71
crore to their market
valuation last week,
led by Reliance
Industries. Last
week, benchmark
BSE Sensex climbed
1,532.77 points or
2.90%. While RIL,
HDFC Bank and Hin-
dustan Unilever were
the gainers from the
top-five pack, Tata
Consultancy Services
and Infosys emerged
as the laggards.
The market valuation
of RIL rallied by
`1,31,320.8 crore to
reach `17,73,889.78
crore.
MFs collect
`1.08 L crore
via 176 NFOs
New Delhi (PTI):
Riding on intense
retail investors’ inter-
est and a sharp rally
in equity markets,
asset management
companies (AMCs)
launched 176 new
fund offerings
(NFOs) in 2021-
22, garnering a
whopping `1.08 lakh
crore. According to
the data compiled by
Morningstar India,
there were 176 new
fund offers (including
closed-end funds and
ETFs) in 2021-22.
These managed to
collect a staggering
`1,07,896 crore
during their inception
stage.
Cost overruns
of `4.83 L cr
impact 425 proj
New Delhi (PTI): As
many as 425 infra-
structure projects,
each entailing an
investment of `150
crore or more, have
been hit by cost
overruns of more
than `4.83 lakh
crore. According to
Ministry of Statistics
and Programme
Implementation,
which monitors infra-
structure projects of
`150 crore  above,
out of 1,579 projects,
425 projects reported
cost overruns and as
many as 664 projects
were delayed.
New Delhi (PTI): As
the unrelenting heat
wave sweeps across ma-
jor parts of the country
,
demand for cooling
products such as refrig-
erators, air condition-
ers, coolers and fans
has shot up and sales
have more than dou-
bled this summer sea-
son, according to a re-
port by Tata group con-
sumer electronics
goods retailer Croma.
As per Croma’s ‘Un-
boxed Summer 2022’
report, sales of refrig-
erators have shot up
more than 100% over
2021, while those of air
conditioners (ACs)
jumped by three times.
“For the more value
conscious, room cooler
sales have witnessed a
2.5 times jump in de-
mand with the highest
sales this summer com-
ing from Pune,” it said,
adding that fan sales
have doubled in 2022
over 2021, with 1 out of
5 consumers coming
from Bangalore.
When it comes to the
size of ACs, cities like
Mumbai, Thane, Pune
and Kolkata saw the
maximum off-take of 1
ton ACs, while cities in
the north and central
India with mostly high
rise buildings wit-
nessed more interest in
1.5-ton ACs due to larg-
er average home sizes
and accounted for 60%
of all ACs sold, it add-
ed.
In terms of energy
efficiency products, the
Croma study found that
the highest proportion
of 5-star ACs were sold
in Hyderabad, Delhi-
NCR, Bangalore, while
in Mumbai,
Ahmedabad, Surat,
Chennai, Vadodara, In-
dore over 50% buyers
bought 3-star ACs.
Interestingly, 50% of
portable ACs were pur-
chased in just four cit-
ies – Mumbai, Banga-
lore, Hyderabad and
Pune, it added.
On the other hand,
consumers in Delhi-
NCR seem to be getting
ready for winters with
62% of Hot and Cold
ACs sold during sum-
mers in the region, the
survey found.
When it comes to
technology, Croma said
inverter-based refrig-
erators accounted for
60% of all purchases,
while in refrigerators
the single biggest sell-
ing model was direct
cool fridge with a ca-
pacity of 300 litres, in-
dicating many first-
time buyers entering
the market.
Apart from the sum-
mer products, the Cro-
ma study also found
that sales of micro-
waves have also grown
80% over 2021.
Cooling items in hot demand; refrigerator, AC sales jump
New Delhi (PTI): The
GST Council is likely to
consider modification
in summary return and
monthly tax payment
form, GSTR-3B, in its
meeting next month,
with a view to check
fake input tax credit
claims and expedite set-
tlement of genuine
ones, an official said.
According to offi-
cials, the modified form
will provide clarity
with regard to gross in-
put tax credit (ITC) due
to the taxpayer, the
amount claimed in a
particular month and
the net amount left in
the taxpayer’s ledger.
A meeting of the
Goods and Services Tax
(GST) Council is likely
to be held next month.
The modified form
will help in checking
bogus ITC claims and
ensure that honest tax-
payers are able to time-
ly avail the ITC benefit.
“The law committee
of the GST Council is
looking at streamlining
the GSTR-3B so that
there is further clarity
on ITC disclosure. The
modified GSTR-3B is ex-
pected to be put up be-
fore the Council in its
next meeting,” the offi-
cial said.
GSTR-3B, which is a
summary statement
and monthly GST pay-
ment form, is filed in
staggered manner be-
tween 20th, 22nd and
24th of every month for
different categories of
taxpayers. AMRG  As-
sociates Senior Partner
Rajat Mohan said the
changes in monthly tax
payment form would
help identify taxpayers
who are claiming ineli-
gible tax credit.
“The new form would
bring in changes in the
reporting of gross tax
credit by financial insti-
tutions, including
banks and NBFCs, com-
panies in the oil and gas
sector, extra neutral al-
cohol manufacturing,
public transportation
services, healthcare
and educational servic-
es,” Mohan said.
Precise reporting of
the gross tax credit
would also iron out the
delays in the distribu-
tion of tax revenues be-
tween the Centre and
states, he added.
GST COUNCIL MAY CONSIDER
MODIFICATION IN GSTR-3B
Taxpayers
can now
seek refund
of IGST
New Delhi (PTI):
Taxpayers who
have paid GST on
‘Ocean Freight’ on
imported goods
will be entitled to
claim refunds, fol-
lowing the SC ver-
dict, provided they
have not claimed
input tax credit.
Giving its rul-
ing in the Mohit
Minerals case, the
SC held that since
the Indian import-
er is liable to pay
IGST on the ‘com-
posite supply’,
comprising of
supply of goods
and supply of ser-
vices of transpor-
tation, insurance,
etc in a CIF con-
tract, a separate
levy on the Indian
importer for the
‘supply of servic-
es’ by the shipping
line would be in
violation of ... The
CGST Act.
MODIFIED FORM
` 500-cr projects to
route through NPG
New Delhi (PTI): All
logistics and connec-
tivity infrastructure
projects, entailing in-
vestment of over `500
crore, would now
route through the net-
work planning group
(NPG) constituted un-
der the PM GatiShakti
initiative with the fi-
nance ministry issu-
ing the necessary in-
structions and crea-
tion of the national
master plan digital
platform,an official
said.
According to an of-
fice memorandum of
the department of ex-
penditure dated April
28, a revised format
has been issued for
Public Investment
Board (PIB)/Delegat-
ed Investment Board
(DIB) project propos-
als.
“The revised format
of the PIB/DIB memo-
randum...Will apply to
all the PIB/DIB pro-
posals for new projects
submitted on or after
April 28, 2022,” it has
said.
As per the revised
format, proposals
should include wheth-
er the project has com-
ponents of logistics or
infrastructure connec-
tivity; and whether it
has been examined by
NPG for convergence
and integration at the
conceptualisation or
feasibility study stage.
The PM GatiShakti
plan was announced
last year with an aim
to break departmental
silos and bring in
more holistic and inte-
grated planning and
execution of projects
with a view to address-
ing the issues of mul-
ti-modal and last-mile
connectivities.
PM GATISHAKTI
MORE THAN 100%
Demand for cooling products has shot
up and sales have more than doubled
this summer season: Croma report
FPIs withdraw
`35K cr from
equities in May
New Delhi (PTI): Exo-
dus of foreign money
from the Indian equity
markets continues una-
bated with FPIs pulling
out over `35,000 crore so
far this month on con-
cerns over the pros-
pects of more aggres-
sive rate hike by US Fed
and appreciation of the
dollar. With this, net
outflow by Foreign
Portfolio Investors
(FPIs) from equities
reached `1.63 lakh crore
so far in 2022. FPI flows
continue to remain neg-
ative in the month of
May till date and have
dumped equities worth
`35,137 crore during
May 2-20, data with de-
positories showed.
Global trends and
FII trading key to
markets: Experts
New Delhi (PTI): Glob-
al factors and trading
activity of foreign insti-
tutional investors are
expected to guide do-
mestic market senti-
ments this week, while
equity benchmarks
may face volatility amid
monthly derivatives ex-
piry, analysts said.
Indian markets have
been witnessing vola-
tile trades for the past
several trading ses-
sions. However, the Nif-
ty managed to break its
five-week losing streak
and ended with a decent
weekly gain of 3%, said
Santosh Meena, head of
research, Swastika In-
vestmart Ltd.
Inflation and slow-
down in the global econ-
omy means stagflation
is a key concern for the
global equity markets,
“therefore, we are see-
ing relentless selling by
FIIs (Foreign Institu-
tional Investors). How-
ever, Indian markets
are in a better position
due to support from do-
mestic investors,” he
added.
Inflation 
slowdown in the
global economy
means
stagflation is a
key concern for
global equity mkt
Govt receives 10 applications for
PLI Scheme for specialty steel
New Delhi (PTI):
The government’s
ambitious PLI scheme
for specialty steel has
received just 10 appli-
cations, even as the
last date to submit in-
terest under the
scheme was extended
twice, after certain
concerns were raised
by steel makers.
The last date to sub-
mit applications un-
der the PLI Scheme
for specialty steel is
expected to be extend-
ed again for the third
time, a senior govern-
ment official said.
Initially, March 29
was the last date for
manufacturers to ap-
ply for the benefits
under the PLI scheme
for speciality steel. It
was later extended till
April 30 and again to
May 31, 2022.
Replying to a ques-
tion on the number of
applications received
by players under the
scheme, he replied 10
applications and 58
registrations have
been received so far
by players. When
asked about the ra-
tionale behind ex-
tending the last date
again, the official in-
formed “the ministry
is yet to come out with
the modified scheme.”
EXPORT DUTY HIKE ON STEEL ITEMS TO HIT
PROJECTS UNDER PLI SCHEME: ISA
New Delhi (PTI): Imposition of export duties on steel
products will send a negative signal to investors and
adversely impact capacity expansion projects under PLI
scheme, steel industry players said. The government on
Saturday waived customs duty on the import of some
raw materials, including coking coal and ferronickel,
used by the steel industry, a move which will lower the
cost for the domestic industry and reduce the prices.
New Delhi (PTI):
Tata Motors expects
the domestic passen-
ger vehicle industry
to surpass the peak
sales number of 34
lakh units achieved
in FY2019 this fiscal
on the back of robust
demand and less
COVID-related dis-
ruptions that were
witnessed in the last
two years, according
to a top company of-
ficial. The company
expects a better busi-
ness environment
this fiscal even as
chip shortages con-
tinue to making it
challenging to cater
to the enhanced de-
mand.
PV industry to
surpass FY19
volumes: Tata
The modified form will help in checking
bogus input tax credit (ITC) claims
The modified form will provide clarity
with regard to gross input tax credit
NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022
07
NEWS
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CETforrecruitmenttoNon-Gazettedpostsbyyear-end:DrSingh
First India Bureau
New Delhi: MoS (Inde-
pendent Charge) Dr
Jitendra Singh said on
Sunday that there will
be Common Eligibility
Test (CET) for recruit-
ment to Non-Gazetted
posts from this year,
and the first such test
is being scheduled to
be conducted before
the year end.
Chairing the joint
meeting of all the six
Autonomous Bodies
under the Department
of Personnel  Train-
ing (DoPT) at North
Block here, the MoS
said, the National Re-
cruitment Agency
(NRA) under DoPT is
gearing up to conduct
computer-based online
CET for recruitment to
Non-Gazetted posts by
the year end. This will
be a game-changer pro-
viding ease of recruit-
ment to the job aspir-
ants, with at least one
exam centre in each
district of the country
.
He said, the Com-
mon Entrance Test is a
path-breaking reform
carried out by the
DoPT to bring about
“Ease of Recruitment”
for young job aspirants
and it will prove to be
a major boon for youth,
especially those living
in far-flung and remote
areas. He said the his-
toric reform will pro-
vide a level playing
field to all the candi-
dates, regardless of his
or her background or
socio-economic status.
There will also be a
huge benefit to women
and Divyang candi-
dates and for those
who find it financially
unaffordable to appear
for multiple tests by
travelling to multiple
Centres.
Initially the test will
be conducted in 12 lan-
guages including Hin-
di and English and will
later on add all the lan-
guages mentioned in
the 8th Schedule of the
Constitution, the Min-
ister added.
Dr Singh said, PM
Modi introduced the
“whole of Govt” con-
cept which has not
only removed silos but
also facilitated an inte-
grated holistic ap-
proach in governance
with all the different
Ministries, Depart-
ments and agencies of
the government collec-
tively addressing each
issue, without one leav-
ing it to the other.
Union Minister for State says the
historic reform will provide a level
playing field to all the candidates
Dr Jitendra Singh chairing the joint meeting on Sunday.
PATH-BREAKING
PLOYTO‘TRAP’MNSWORKERS
INTOLEGALHASSLES:THACKERAY
First India Bureau
Pune: MNS chief Raj
Thackeray on Sunday
claimed that political
developments around
his proposed Ayodhya
visit were a ploy to
“trap” his party work-
ers into legal tangles
and hence, he decided
to defer his trip to the
Uttar Pradesh city
.
He reiterated that the
MNS workers will re-
sume agitation if loud-
speakers atop mosques
do not follow the noise
rules. Thackeray had
earlier asked his party-
men to play ‘Hanuman
Chalisa’ outside
mosques where loud-
speakers play ‘azaan’.
Amid the controver-
sy over an AIMIM lead-
er's recent visit to
Mughal ruler Aurang-
zeb's tomb in Aurang-
abad city of Maharash-
tra, the MNS leader ap-
pealed to Prime Minis-
ter Narendra Modi-led
Centre to change the
name of Aurangabad to
Sambhaji Nagar and to
bring the Uniform Civil
Code.
Taking a swipe at
NCP chief who had ad-
dressed a rally braving
rain before the Maha-
rashtra Assembly polls
in 2019, Thackeray said,
“We were planning a
gathering in an open
space, but considering
the possibility of rain,
we decided to hold it in-
doors. Also, there are
no elections nearby to
stand in rain for giving
a speech.”
On Maharashtra
Chief Minister Uddhav
Thackeray recently
slamming the BJP’s
“fake Hindutva”, the
MNS president said,
“The CM claimed their
Hindutva is real. Are
they talking about a
washing powder, like
who's detergent is bet-
ter than the other?”
MNS chief Raj Thackeray.  —FILE PHOTO
MNS chief clailms he deferred his Ayodhya trip as developments
around his proposed visit were a ploy to “trap” his party workers
SHIV SENA SLAMS RAJ'S REASONS
FOR DEFERRING AYODHYA VISIT
Mumbai: Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Sunday
slammed MNS chief Raj Thackeray’s claim that
he had deferred his visit to Ayodhya in UP as
there was ploy to “trap” his party workers into
legal issues, and
said such com-
ments were made
out of frustration.
“Who can stop
you from going to
Ayodhya? What
conspiracy can
be there?” Raut
sought to know while talking to reporters here. It
was a “BJP-sponsored” visit, the Shiv Sena’s chief
spokesperson claimed, while noting that UP is
governed by the saffron party. “If there is opposi-
tion from one BJP MP, defy that opposition and go
ahead. Who will trap you? All such comments are
made out of frustration. There is a need for coun-
seling and treatment,” the RS member said.
CM Kejriwal hosts lunch
for KCR; discusses
political,federal issues
New Delhi (PTI): Delhi
CM and AAP convener
Arvind Kejriwal on Sun-
day met his Telangana
counterpart K Chan-
drashekar Rao, at his of-
ficial residence here and
discussed a range of is-
sues, including the cur-
rent political and federal
issues, sources said.
The meeting between
Kejriwal and Rao, head-
ing two regional outfits
— Aam Aadmi Party
and Telangana Rashtra
Samithi — respectively,
assumes significance
in the wake of building
political equations
ahead of the 2024 Lok
Sabha polls to chal-
lenge the BJP.
The two chief minis-
ters had lunch together
and discussed various
issues, including the
current political situa-
tion in the country. Lat-
er, they left for Chandi-
garh, officials in the
Delhi government said.
“Hon’ble Chief Minis-
ter Shri @ArvindKejri-
wal hosted Hon'ble
Chief Minister of Telan-
gana, Shri K. Chan-
drashekar Rao at his
residence for lunch, to-
day,” the Delhi CM’s Of-
fice tweeted.
The two CMs also dis-
cussed states’ contribu-
tions in the country's
growth during the hour-
long luncheon meeting,
sources in Telangana
government claimed.
CM Arvind Kejriwal with K Chandrashekar Rao on Sunday.
K’taka govt
forms 8 task
forces for
devpt works
Bengaluru (PTI):
Karnataka Chief
Minister Basa-
varaj Bommai on
Sunday constitut-
ed a task force
headed by a Minis-
ter for all the eight
zones in the city to
monitor develop-
mental work and
take necessary de-
cisions in their re-
spective jurisdic-
tions whenever
there is any emer-
gency like heavy
rains. The decision
comes in the back-
drop of flooding
witnessed in sev-
eral areas that
lashed Bengaluru
on Tuesday night
and incessant
rains thereafter.
Basavaraj Bommai
AZAM, SHIVPAL
MISSING FROM
SP LEGISLATIVE
PARTY MEET
First India Bureau
Lucknow: Senior
SP MLA, Mohd
Azam Khan, his
son Abdullah Azam
and Shivpal Singh
Yadav stayed away
from the Samajwa-
di legislative party
meeting held here
on Sunday, ahead
of the UP Assem-
bly’s budget ses-
sion which begins
on Monday.
While Azam
Khan and his son
Abdullah were in
Rampur, Shivpal
was in Lucknow
but did not attend
the meeting.
The develop-
ment is a clear in-
dication of the fact
that fissures with-
in the SP are grow-
ing deeper.
BSP’s Mayawati asks states to
immediately cut VAT on petrol
First India Bureau
Lucknow: With the
Centre slashing the ex-
cise duty on petrol and
diesel, BSP chief
Mayawati on Sunday
said it was the duty of
not only Uttar Pradesh
but also of other states
to immediately an-
nounce a cut in VAT on
fuel. Mayawati said the
Central and state gov-
ernments, while sacri-
ficing their political
interest, should pay at-
tention to national
problems, which are
becoming serious day-
by-day, so that life can
normalise.
Petrol price has been
slashed by Rs 8.69 a li-
tre and that of diesel by
Rs 7.05 per litre follow-
ing the government's
decision to cut excise
duty on auto fuels, giv-
ing relief to consumers
battered by high fuel
prices that had pushed
inflation to a record
high.
Ajay Devgn-like car stunt
lands Noida man in jail
Noida (PTI): A 21-year-
old man has been ar-
rested in Noida for cre-
ating nuisance after a
video showing him
standing on two moving
SUVs on a city road
went viral, police offi-
cials said on Sunday
.
The man had got the
video shot for posting it
on social media. The
two SUVs used for the
stunt have been im-
pounded, they said.
The stunt of balanc-
ing oneself on two mov-
ing motorcycles had be-
come famous with Ajay
Devgn’s debut movie
‘Phool aur Kaante’. He
performed the stunt
again ‘Golmaal 3’ using
two cars. Officials said a
video had surfaced on
social media Saturday,
purportedly showing a
young man balancing
himself on two moving
SUVs on a Noida road,
prompting the local po-
lice to take action
against him under the
Motor Vehicles Act for
creating a nuisance with
the dangerous stunt.
Tel Aviv (AP): Israeli
authorities say they
have detected the
country’s first case of
monkeypox in a man
who returned from
abroad and were look-
ing into other suspect-
ed cases.
Israel’s Health Min-
istry said late Satur-
day the man was in a
Tel Aviv hospital in
good condition. It
called on anyone re-
turning from abroad
with fever and lesions
to see a doctor.
Sharon Alroy-Preis,
the head of public
health services at the
ministry, told Israeli
Army Radio Sunday
that medical teams
were investigating oth-
er suspected monkey-
pox cases.
Israel’s case ap-
peared to be the first
identified in the Middle
East.
Uzmi Athar
New Delhi: On an aver-
age, 29 children in Mad-
hya Pradesh and 14 in
Rajasthan went missing
every day in 2021, ac-
cording to a new report
of child rights NGO
CRY, which revealed
that there was a signifi-
cant increase in the
number of missing chil-
dren cases in four major
states of north India.
Also, five children
went missing per day in
Delhi in 2021 in eight po-
lice districts, according
to the “Status Report on
Missing Children” re-
port of Child Rights and
You (CRY), which also
said on an average, eight
children — six girls and
twoboys—wentmissing
per day from 58 districts
of Uttar Pradesh.
The report revealed
that the number of miss-
ing girls in Madhya
Pradesh and Rajasthan
was reported five times
higher than that of boys
in 2021. While 8,751 cas-
es of missing children
were registered in Mad-
hya Pradesh and 3,179 in
Rajasthan.
‘29 kids in MP, 14 in Raj went missing per day in 2021’
CAUSE OF CONCERN
lll
Also, five kids
went missing
per day in Delhi
in 2021 in eight
police districts,
child rights NGO
CRY said in a
report
Techie dies at
rave party in
TN; four booked
Chennai (PTI): A 22
year old employee of an
information technology
firm allegedly died due
to excess consumption
of alcohol during an il-
legal rave party held in
the city last night, police
said on Sunday. The po-
lice after coming to know
about the conduct of the
event 'The Great Indian
Gathering' raided the
bar which was function-
ing on the third floor of
the mall without the
mandatory license.
Proportion of girl
children rose
from about 65 %
in 2016 to 77 %
in 2020 at the
all-India level.
ISRAEL REPORTS
FIRST CASE OF
MONKEYPOX
Centrestate
govtsshould
payattention
tonationalproblems,
whicharebecoming
seriousday-by-day.
—Mayawati
 BSP chief
The most difficult resource in a
business is time—which has to be
managed perfectly for anything
else to be managed at all.
—Jagdeesh Chandra,
CEO  Editor-in-Chief, First India
NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022
08
2NDFRONT
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
	
z The Congress held
the ‘Nav Sankalp
Chintan Shivir’ amid
much pomp  show.
But there are asper-
sions about Chintan
Shivir being a failure
politically. Was it so?
Jagdeesh Chandra:
Yes, it has been a failure
as the Congress leader-
ship failed to sort out
the leadership issue. Ra-
hul Gandhi continues to
be an ‘extra-constitu-
tional’ power centre tak-
ing all decisions with-
out any responsibility
and from behind the
curtains. This camp can
be called a ‘superhit
show’ only administra-
tively that too courtesy
Ashok Gehlot who en-
suredexcellentarrange-
ments. However, politi-
cally no major decision
was taken. Everyone
was expecting the an-
nouncement of Rahul
Gandhi as the party
president or perhaps
someone else if not him,
but that did not take
place. So, politically it
was a flop show.
	
z Why couldn’t Con-
gress stop Hardik
Patel from leaving
the party?
This is another
tragedy that hap-
pened within 48
hours of Chin-
tan Shivir.
This clearly
shows that
the party
is con-
fused, it
does not
take mat-
ters seri-
ously and issues keep
getting stalled and then
people leave it. Hardik
leaving the Congress is
a major blow to the par-
ty
, then may accept it or
not but that’s a fact. Es-
pecially when they say
they will promote
youth. A renowned
youth leader left you
and has said in his letter
that there is a lack of
seriousness at all levels.
It was known that he
could leave the party as
he was supporting the
Ram Mandir move and
the Abrogation of Arti-
cle 370. But why didn’t
anyone take cognizance
of it and speak to him
about the issues? So no
one is ready to take di-
rect responsibility. So
the next question is as
to whose responsibility
is it? Now Congress
leaders are spinning
that he left since Naresh
Patel is being brought
in the party. Then they
claim he used to stay
busy in business activi-
ties and also the state
government had tight-
ened the screws around
the cases against him.
Well, this is bound to
happen. It is politics
and part of life. The bot-
tom line is that you
could not stop him from
leaving. In fact, he has
laid accusations which
have been laid on Rahul
Gandhi in the past too,
like when they go to
meet Rahul he keeps
busy on mobile and
doesn’t take things seri-
ously
. I remember Him-
anta Biswa Sarma had
claimed long back that
when he was in Con-
gress he had gone to
meet Rahul who was
busy playing with his
dog Pidi and did not
meet Sarma and there
was no other chair. This
is unfortunate, such
things should never
happen. Similarly, a
Punjab leader went to
meet him and Ra-
hul was busy in
Yoga. Such
things spread
from word of
mouth and
they seri-
ously dam-
age Rahul
G a n d h i ’ s
credibility.
So in
a nutshell,
Hardik Pa-
tel’s leaving
has washed
away any
success of Chin-
tan Shivir. Mark
my words, anoth-
er youth leader is
on a cusp of leav-
ing the party and
he is Sachin Pilot.
You need to settle
him and if you do
not do that, then
next headline
would be his. It is
nothing to feel bad
about since this is
the reality. When he
rebelled, the high com-
mand should have had
the courage and convic-
tion to let him go, but
they did exactly the op-
posite of it. This result-
ed in Gehlot being
heartbroken and
Sachin is seated with-
out any power. Now
there are so many unde-
cided aspects, Pilot sup-
porters are waiting for
something to happen
but now elections are
round the corner, so
they must take a con-
crete decision. And
most of all when the
Chintan Shivir hap-
pened why didn’t the
high command declare
that Ashok Gehlot will
remain the Chief Min-
ister for the remaining
termandelectionwould
be fought under his
leadership. This was
the most appropriate
platform and yet you
left hope for Pilot sup-
porters and it is only
human to think that
their leader would take
the mantle. Therefore, it
p a i n s
me to
say that the
camp has
beenafailure.
	
z How different was
Udaipur’s Chintan
Shivir than the ones
held in the past?
See Congress has held
such contemplation
camps in 1974 during In-
diraGandhi’stime,then
it happened in Pach-
marhi, Shimla and then
inJaipur.Thedifference
among these is that in
thethreeChintanShivir
heldinRajasthan,Sonia
Gandhi was at helm
with Gehlot in state,
which is a proven team
of the party
. This time
around the program
was organised beauti-
fully and its conduction
was also done in a good
manner. But devoid of
any leader it did not
have as much colour as
was needed, but it was
bettermanagedthanthe
previous ones.
	
z This Chintan Shi-
vir was organised on
the ‘Now or Never’
mood of the Con-
gress. But what was
its agenda and has it
completed agenda?
India Today has given
an exact situation of
Congress ‘Now or Nev-
er’. This means that
Congress knows it is
sinking, but before it
drowns, let us make one
last effort. There is no
doubt that a serious ef-
fort was put in to reor-
ganise the party
. As far
as putting things on pa-
per that such and such
thing has happened,
Udaipur was a hit show.
But the issue is of lead-
ership. If Rahul is still a
reluctantbride,thenput
aside everything and
make Sonia Gandhi the
Party president. She is
most acceptable person
among Congress lead-
ers. This time around
she was as always in
command despite her
illness and yet she had
the power to say that the
party will come back.
On the contrary, if you
see Rahul’s address, it
was a strong speech, but
there was no connectiv-
ity
. So it was good that
they took decisions, but
unless and until there is
someone to execute
them, they are just
words on paper.
	
z What do you think,
has Rahul Gandhi
agreed to take the
party presidency, or
is he still not keen?
No, it is my assessment
over the past 3-4 years
that he is a brilliant per-
son, secondly
, he is dedi-
cated to the party third-
ly
, he is aggressive in his
political approach and
takes direct confronta-
tion with Narendra
Modi even if he has to
run from one court to
another, everything is
there. But as far as lead-
ership is concerned, he
is no systematic and al-
though everyone is say-
ing that he will become
president after Septem-
ber, but I doubt it.
	
z But do you think he
will be made presi-
dent in August-
September?
There is only one way
left that Sonia Gandhi
uses her veto and gets
Rahul declared as presi-
dent on gun point. In
the last Chintan Shivir
at Jaipur, Sonia had
cried in Rahul’s room
that power is poison
and asked him to stay
away from it. But now
situation is changed.
	
z Acharya Pramod
had suggested that if
Rahul Gandhi is not
keen on becoming
President, Priyanka
should be given the
responsibility. Do you
agree with his pro-
posal?
Absolutely there is no
other option or solution
because Congress ka
jeena marna Gandhis ke
saath hai. That much is
certain. If he is not
ready to become Presi-
dent then there are two
options. One being So-
nia Gandhi but it is not
possible for her due to
her health issues, so
Priyanka is the only
choice but as of today
she also appears help-
less. After the humiliat-
ing defeat of the party
in UP, she is only the
principal PRO of the
party where the dis-
gruntled lot reaches and
is pacified by Priyanka.
	
z How do you see the
entire Priyanka mat-
ter in light of Chin-
tan Shivir? Do you
think she is being
mishandled?
Of course! Priyanka
factor is being mishan-
dled for the past 15
years. Party could not
decide and mother’s
heart is all for the son
Rahul. Several times
the need to play ‘Priyan-
ka Card’ was raised and
at times it was said that
she would campaign on
152 odd seats, then she
got constricted to 50 odd
seats and then Rahul
Gandhi said she is my
sister she will go where
she wants. Ultimately it
so happened that she
was restricted to just 2
seats — Amethi and Rai-
bareli. So your weapons
has lost its edge and as a
result when she went to
carry out a rally at India
Gate, she had merely
100 people. That is a vir-
tual political death of
Priyanka in public life,
and who is responsible
for it, none other than
Gandhis. They should
have taken the appro-
priate decision at the
appropriate time. They
instead stayed in the mi-
rage of Rahul and he
has not said yes to the
role till now. So, Priyan-
ka factor has been mis-
handled, and sorry to
say she is not a factor
today. And suppose if
Priyanka is made the
chief it will take her
years to become a
stronghold of Congress,
politically speaking and
this, Rahul Gandhi
knows and hence he
says that the fight is for
the years and so he asks
to fight with him. But
the problem really is
that today he may ask to
fight with him shoulder
to shoulder, but then the
next day onwards no
one would know where
he is or what is mood is
like. In front of Naren-
dra Modi  Amit Shah,
she is no factor at all.
	
z You mentioned Am-
ethi just now. Those
close to Rahul Gan-
dhi claim that he will
rise to power in Ame-
thi once again...
It is a good dream pro-
ject. The world lives on
hope. Perhaps he may
get inspiration there
and now when he walks
on those streets and
someone comes up to
him for help, he will
not ask them to email
the problems. Till the
time even the basic
functioning of Rahul
Gandhi’s office is
changed, Amethi will
remain a dream. There
is no fight for 2024, and
I have already said the
fight is for the 2029 elec-
tions. It is almost im-
possible to take back
Amethi from Narendra
Modi, Amit Shah and
Smriti Irani. Almost.
	
z It is said that even
in Gandhi family
there are ideological
differences between
Rahul and Priyanka
which have surfaced
recently. What are
these issues over
which siblings, who
have been so close,
are not on one path?
See it is human nature.
When Priyanka sees
how the party is per-
forming poorly and the
brother is unable to
‘take off ’ and is not
even accepting or hear-
ing what she has to say,
so there are differences
and it is obvious to have
differences. Like on the
issue of Prashant
Kishor, there was a se-
rious difference be-
tween the two. Priyan-
ka wanted that PK
should come in the
party fold and perhaps
both Rahul and Sonia
did not want him in the
party, so there is a dif-
ference. She left for US,
perhaps for some work,
but the message that
went to the masses was
that she was angry so
she left for America.
And secondly, Rahul
Gandhi announced the
one family one ticket
rule so where will Pri-
yanka go? So they will
have to take out a way,
like the five-year rule
etc. So there are serious
differences and at the
end of the day how the
party is falling down,
how long will she con-
tinue to see all this but
now she is a mere audi-
ence. Differences are
there but they meet and
share food together and
support each other too.
	
z But do you think
that perhaps 10 years
down the line they
both may go their
separate way?
See nothing is ruled out.
Although I do not imag-
ine Priyanka Congress
versus Rahul Congress.
This will not happen till
the time Sonia Gandhi
isthere.Butwhatwillbe
situation after her, will
Congress even be in ex-
istence. Perhaps Modi
and Shah’s dream of
Congress-Mukt Bharat
would be realised then.
So if differences are
there and what shape
they take in future, it
can’t be ascertained ful-
ly as of now.
As Congress looks to rebuild itself
post Chintan Shivir,
Editor-in-ChiefofFirstIndia,
JagdeeshChandra in The New JC
Show says that Sonia continues to
be the tallest Congress leader and
Ashok Gehlot gets laurels for his
excellent arrangements (Part—I)
Chintan Shivir, a politically flop show
as Congress fails to resolve leadership issue!
Jagdeesh Chandra with Shweta Mishra,Aditi Nagar, Poonam Sharma Solanki,Tanu Choudhary
and Sudhanshu Mathur at the New JC Show.  —PHOTOS BY MUKESH KIRADOO
During the show
#JConRahulGandhi
trended top All-India
on Twitter
TO BE CONTINUED...
Jagdeesh Chandra
during the show.
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirst-
india facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09
NEW DELHI, MONDAY,
MAY 23, 2022
escribe yourself,
and what would
you say are some
vital skills or
characteristics
to have to make
it in the model-
ling world?
First and foremost to be-
lieve in ourselves. They
are different and that’s
their strength. There is a
place for everybody in this
industry and that void can
be filled only by them. So
be confident and take
care of themselves, their
skin, physique.
If you could go in future
and tell yourself one
thing about your career
what would it be?
I would tell myself
that everything will
make sense one day.
So keep working
hard, researching is
the key, keep work-
ing on yourself, pol-
ish your skills and
dare to dream and
shine the brightest
when your “The
Day” come.
What inspired
you to find the
Supermodel in
you. Share
some insides
of your jour-
ney.
I saw Femi-
na miss In-
dia on TV for the first
time in 2014 and right
then I could clearly pic-
ture myself wearing
that crown. I wanted
to be on that same dice
all fearless and unstop-
pable. That zeal and vi-
sion to see myself wear-
ing that crown are what
fueled me.
What was the biggest
rookie mistake you made
when just starting out?
Trusting everybody
. We
need to understand
that not everybody
in this industry is a
good wisher so we
need to inspect the
ground thorough-
ly prior to each
step and make
sure we are in
safe sur-
roundings I must say
no platform can be better
than First India for that.
What has been the most
memorable or rewarding
moment in your career?
When I had gotten the
chance to meet Miss In-
dia 2014 Koyal Rana, the
same girl whom I saw on
TV shining brighter than
the stars. She is so hum-
ble, it was a dream come
true. She is the lady who
later trained me. Learn-
ing from my Idol is the
most memorable moment
of my life. It was a dream
come true for me.
D
UTTKARSHA SHEKHAR
cityfirst@firstindia.co.in
EXQUISITE SOUL
EXQUISITE SOUL
NIVEDITA
NIVEDITA
MY IDEA OF A SUPERWOMAN IS SOMEONE
WHO SCRUBS HER OWN FLOORS. NIVEDITA
DHARIWAL, A STUNNING DIVA FROM NOIDA,
SPOKE CANDIDLY WITH CITY FIRST ABOUT
HER INSPIRING CAREER AS A MODEL
10
ETC
NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
SHIVANGI
VERMA,
Actress
FACE
OF
THE
DAY!
Aries
MARCH 21 - APRIL 20
Getting quality time at
home will help in
focussing on activities
that appeal to you. Your
efforts at work will be
richly rewarded by getting noticed by
those who matter. A balanced diet will
be the first step in achieving good
health, so stick to it. Help people out as
much as you can as monetarily.
Gemini
MAY 21 - JUNE 21
Praise of a family
member by someone
will make you proud.
Getting unwell due to
changing weather
cannot be ruled out for some. You may
need to monitor your finances closely.
You are likely to win the day on the
professional front by your original
ideas.
Leo
JULY 24 - AUGUST 23
Some of you may feel
the home environment
serene and restful.
There is a fair chance of
some property getting
allotted to you. Good opportunities are
likely to appear on the academic front.
Good health is assured through own
efforts. A healthy bank balance will
allow you to buy a major item.
Libra
SEPTEMBER 24 - OCTOBER 22
You may find it difficult
to convince a family
member regarding
something you want to
achieve. Clarity of
mind and retentive power will help you
forge ahead on the academic front.
Some of you can safely say goodbye to
depression, as positivity enters your
life once again.
Sagittarius
NOVEMBER 23 - DECEMBER 22
Things are likely to
move favourably on the
professional front.
Health may become a
concern. You will need
to muster all your persuasive powers to
swing a deal in your favour. Good
negotiating skills are likely to bring a
lucrative deal within your grasp on the
professional front.
Aquarius
JANUARY 21 - FEBRUARY 19
Someone close may
pay you a visit and
brighten your You will
get the opportunity to
acquire new property at
a good price. Health may become a
concern. Think twice before investing
in anything big. A healthy debate with
someone in the knows is likely to open
up your mind to the possibilities.
Taurus
APRIL 21 - MAY 20
Your performance may
leave you feeling good
today on professional or
academic front. A diet
plan adopted recently
will suit your system well. Maintain
confidentiality regarding a property deal
being negotiated by you. A chance for
an outing with lover finally arrives. Luck
favours you on the academic front.
Cancer
JUNE 22 - JULY 23
A new health routine
may start giving health
benefits right away. You
gel well with a new
acquaintance.
Opportunities to further your career
will come only if you make efforts.
Self-discipline may help you achieve
peak physical fitness. Financial scene
is likely to stabilise.
Virgo
AUGUST 24 - SEPTEMBER 23
A new plot, house or
apartment can be
acquired by some.Be
more assertive in
dealing with workplace
issues, otherwise you can be taken for
granted by others. Joining an online
exercise routine is indicated and will
prove beneficial. Those trying to boost
income may figure out newer ways.
Scorpio
OCTOBER 23 - NOVEMBER 22
Positive steps may be
required to be taken to
restore perfect health. It
will be in your interest
to speed up a financial
transaction. You will come out with
flying colours in a competitive situation
on the academic front. Appreciation for
the work done on the professional
front is in the pipeline for some.
Capricorn
DECEMBER 23 - JANUARY 20
Your initiative will help
mend fences with
someone you were not
in talking terms.
Academic pursuits will
be fruitful. Taking up a regular fitness
routine will help you get into shape.
Increase in household expenditure is
possible, so take all steps to cut it
down.
Pisces
FEBRUARY 20 - MARCH 20
Do not misunderstand
the motives of someone
trying to help you. A
friendly bet with a friend
or a colleague may turn
into a fight, so be careful. Will power,
will be your key to remain in shape. An
exciting time lies ahead as travelling
with friends is foreseen. You are set to
grow professionally.
ROME WAS NOT BUILT IN
ROME WAS NOT BUILT IN
A DAY NEITHER DOES ART
A DAY NEITHER DOES ART
t's been 5 years of being
a charcoal artist, I've
learnt the art form from
Kalaneri Art Academy,
one of the most re-
nowned and prestigious
academies in Jaipur.
Charcoal art is to develop a
pieceof artusingrawcharcoalor
charred (burnt) sticks of wood.
This is performed on varieties of
sheets but handmade sheets are
exceptional in respect to the out-
come of a portrait or painting.
Charcoal on a handmade
sheet is the most challenging
and the artist needs to be cau-
tious throughout as there is no
way to rectification of a mis-
take, or else the sheet gets dam-
aged. To perform the art on such
sheets the artist needs to have a
high degree of focus, patience
and well versed in techniques
involved in this medium as the
creation of large size paintings
takes several months to com-
plete. Charcoal comes in differ-
ent forms like brick sticks, pen-
cils, powder or raw sticks.
This art form has often been
misinterpreted as fire art, How-
ever, both of them are complete-
ly different as fire art uses per-
manent impression by balanc-
ing the burning chemicals over
a chemically protected sheet
whereas charcoal is creating art
by using a burnt piece of wood
(raw charcoal) over the paper.
The main characteristic of
charcoal as a medium is that,
unless it is fixed by the applica-
tion of some form of gum or
resin, it is impermanent, easily
erased or smudged and the fix-
ing process can only be done
once the painting is completed
so the artist has to be careful
while making an art piece.
The Artist community faces
many challenges to earn from
this profession. Customers ap-
preciate and are desirous of
such art pieces, but are reluc-
tant to pay for the efforts and
hard work an artist put into cre-
ate such unique and brilliant
work. We shall not only embrace
but also endow an artist.
I
MAHIMA TEWARI
CHARCOAL ARTIST
Charcoal art by Mahima Tewari
Charcoal art by Mahima Tewari
YOUR DAY Horoscopeby
SaurabbhSachdeva
Whatsapp Subscription
Subscribe “First India” Daily
E-News Paper For Free On Whatsapp
To Receive the Most Exclusive News from
the Power Corridors of Rajasthan  Delhi.
ETC
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022
11
HONOURING
LIFESAVERS
Some more glimpses
from Rajasthan
Healthcare Summit
and Doctor’s Award,
which was organised
at Hotel Ramada on
Wednesday May 18.
During the ceremony,
many prominent
doctors and medical
facilities of the State
were felicitated with
distinguished awards
for their impeccable
work in their field of
interests. Total 13
distinct awards
ranging from ‘Best
Tertiary Care
Hospital’, ‘Best
Multi--speciality
Hospital’, to
‘Inspiring Icon of
Pharma Industry’,
‘Appreciation on
Ayurveda’, ‘Award for
excellence were
awarded.
Sudhanshu Mathur welcoming the Special guest Mamta Bhupesh
Surbhi Mathur and Aadesh Srivastava of MEDOCI recieving the award Manjeet Grover of Fortis Hospital receiving the award Lt Col Manan Mukul of Surya Hospital receiving the award
Piyush Rastogi of Narayana Hridyalya Hospital receiving the award
Sudhanshu Mathur, Dr Subash Garg,
Prasadi Lal Meena and Dinesh Mathur during the lamp lighting Neeraj Dhawan of Vrozart Diagnostics receiving the award
Mamta Bhupesh addressing the audience.
Also seen are Dr Subash Garg, Parsadi Lal Meena and Sudhanshu Mathur
Shaan, Ashish, Vishal, Dinesh, Dr Deepak Agarwal, Aditya Raj Santosh, Mahendra, Dinesh, Naveen and Sarish
Tanvi, Dr Bharat Rajpurohit,
Dr Naresh Somani, Dr Sunanda Dadich,
Ravi, Dr Jitendra, Dr Kapil and Jitesh Rawat
Lt Col Manan Mukul, Ayush Jain,
Shivpal Ranwa and Prabhu Gujar with a guest
Navin Jindal, Dr Suhasani Jai, Sachin Singh and Rahul Mathur
S K Mathur, Nandita and Shubhi
Dinesh Sharma, Mohan Sharma,
Neeraj Gupta, Aadesh Srivastava, Neeraj Dhawan and Sunil Sakina Hussain Khadiza, Charu Kulshrestha, Shoba Arya and Pragya Bhatt
KC Bansal,Dr Subash Garg,
Parsadi Lal Meena and Sudhanshu Mathur
Sudhanshu Mathur and Ashok Singh
Shweta, Pari and Dimple
Prasadi Lal Meena, Health Minister addressing the audience. Also seen are Dr Subash Garg and Sudhanshu Mathur
—PHOTOS
BY
SANTOSH
SHARMA

MUKESH
KIRADOO
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23052022_ First India New Delhi.pdf

  • 1. Delhi’s unified MCD formally comes into existence Delhi’s unified MCD formally comes into existence New Delhi (PTI): The unified Municipal Cor- poration of Delhi (MCD) formally came into existence on Sun- day as IAS officers Ashwani Kumar and Gyanesh Bharti as- sumed charge as the new civic body’s special officer and commis- sioner, respectively . The MCD was trifur- cated in 2012 during Sheila Dikshit’s tenure as the chief minister. It is now reunified by merging three civic bodies -- North, South and East Municipal Corporations. According to munici- pal officials, Kumar will be the top authori- ty handling the civic affairs till a new House is elected. He said providing the best of civic amenities to the public and im- provement of sanita- tion services will be among his top priori- ties. “Sanitation is a basic and obligatory function of any civic body and its impact is always clearly visible on ground. So, my priority will be to further im- prove sanitation ser- vices in the city,” Ku- mar told PTI. Kumar’s appoint- ment as the special of- ficer of the unified MCD is considered significant as he is ex- pected to play a vital role in the functioning of the unified munici- pal corporation, months before the civic elections. A 1992-batch IAS of- ficer of the AGMUT cadre, Kumar was the chief secretary of Pu- ducherry. He had re- cently been transferred to Delhi by the Central government and was awaiting posting. He assumed the charge of the special of- ficer at the Civic Centre the MCD headquarters on Sunday . He had also served as the principal secretary of the Public Works De- partment in the Delhi government in 2017. Bharti, a 1998-batch IAS officer also of the AGMUT cadre, was the commissioner of the South Delhi Municipal Corporation prior to this assignment, and he was the senior-most among Delhi’s erst- while three municipal commissioners. “My priority will be to provide the best mu- nicipal services deliv- ered to the people of Delhi in a transparent manner,” Bharti said. More on P2 BJP Lok Sabha MP from WB Arjun Singh joins TMC Kolkata: Days after criticising the Centre over its jute policy and upset over not being able to work freely in Bengal, BJP MP from Barrack- pore Arjun Singh returned to the Trinamool Congress on Sunday. Singh joined the party in presence of TMC’s National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee at his Camac Street office in Kolkata. Sanitation is a basic and obligatory func- tion of any civic body. My priority will be to im- prove city’s sanitation services. My priority will be to provide the best municipal services delivered to the people of Delhi in a transpar- ent man- ner. Gyanesh Bharti, Commissioner, Unified MCD Ashwani Kumar, Special Officer, Unified MCD NEW DELHI l MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI TITLE NO. DELENG/2021/19840 l Vol 1 l Issue No. 263 OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR, LUCKNOW, NEW DELHI MUMBAI www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia Cheteshwar Pujara has made a comeback to India’s Test team while youngsters like Umran Malik and Arshdeep Singh have received an India call-up as selection committee on Sunday named the squads for the upcoming five-match T20I series against South Africa beginning June 9. UMRAN MALIK GETS CALL FOR INDIA T20 SQUAD AGAINST SA Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Sunday said all the temples destroyed in the past must be rebuilt. He said that in his state, he had made budgetary allocations for renovating temples destroyed by the Portuguese. Sawant said the state government was promoting spiritual and cultural tourism in the state. GOA CM: WHEREVER TEMPLES WERE DESTROYED, THEY SHOULD BE REBUILT First India Bureau Namsai: Taking a pot- shot at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who is currently in the UK, Un- ionHomeMinisterAmit Shah on Sunday said the Wayanad MP must take off his Italian glasses and look at the develop- ment work done by Prime Minister Naren- draModiandChief Min- ister Pema Khandu in Arunachal Pradesh. Shahinauguratedand laid the foundation of development projects worth ₹ Rs 1,000 crores in the Namsai district. Speaking on the occa- sion, Shah said, “Con- gress leaders ask what happened in eight years, these people are awake with their eyes closed. Rahul baba must take off his Italian glasses and look at the develop- ment work done by PM ModiandChief Minister Pema Khandu.” Earlier today, Amit Shah visited Golden Pa- goda in Namsai district. AMIT SHAH JABS RAHUL GANDHI ‘TAKE OFF ITALIAN GLASSES TO SEE VIKAS IN INDIA’ Rahul Gandhi, while Amit Shah was addressing event in Arunachal, had tweeted about the cut in excise duty to slash the fuel prices Maha, Kerala reduce VAT on petrol, diesel after Centre cuts excise duty Jaipur: Maharashtra and Kerala have de- creased VAT on petrol and diesel after Finance Minister Nirmala Si- tharaman’s call to pro- vide further relief to consumers following a cut in excise duty by the Centre, though some other states appeared re- luctant citing their ina- bilitytotakemorestrain on revenue. Rajasthan Chief Min- ister Ashok Gehlot said with the Centre an- nouncing cut in excise duty , the state-level VAT by Rs 2.48 per liter on petrol and Rs 1.16 per liter on diesel will also come down. TheMaharashtragov- ernment slashed the VAT on petrol by Rs 2.08 per litre and diesel by Rs 1.44 per litre. The Left Democratic Front government in Kerala had on Saturday promptly announced a cutinthestatetaxonthe prices of petrol and die- sel by Rs 2.41 and Rs 1.36 per litre respec- tively . However, the DMK-led government in Tamil Nadu said that it is neither fair nor rea- sonable to expect states to reduce their taxes. Flip-Flop on Qutub Minar Excavations at monument: Union Cultural Ministry deny giving ASI any order The Union Ministry of Culture officials rubbished reports stating that it had ordered the Archaeological Survey of India to conduct excavations at Qutub Minar Earlier, reports had stated that the order was given after Hindu deity idols were reportedly discovered at the site, and claimed that the site was constructed by Raja Vikramaditya, a Hindu emperor 1 2 l A petition was recently filed in Delhi’s Saket court, requesting that Hindu deities be restored and wor- shipped in the Quw- wutul Islam Mosque, which is part of the Qutub Minar complex l According to the petition, Muhammad Ghori’s general, Qutu- buddin Aibak, demol- ished 27 temples and used this material to construct the Quwwat- ul-Islam mosque on the site. It will be heard on Tuesday l The controversy erupted after ASI’s for- mer regional director, Dharamveer Sharma, recently claimed that Raja Vikramaditya, not Qutub-ud-Din Aibak, built the Qutub Minar to study the direction of the sun l Later, reports claimed that the ASI was asked by the ministry to submit excavation report of the site Congress leaders ask what happened in eight years, these people are awake with their eyes closed. Rahul baba must take off his Italian glasses and look at the development work done by PM Modi and Chief Minister Pema Khandu. The work that has been done in the last eight years had not been done in the last 50 years PM Modi has visited the northeast region multiple times during his tenure and gave directions to the ministers to do the same. This is the 14th time I am visiting. You can estimate the kind of priority that’s being given to the region. The northeast - that once was in headlines due to terrorism - is today in spotlight due to culture —Amit Shah, Union Home Minister Farmers can change govts: Telangana’s KCR in Punjab Chandigarh: Telanga- naCMKChandrasekhar Rao, who visited Punjab to pay tributes to the sol- diers killed in the Gal- wanValleyclashandthe farmerswhodiedduring the anti-farm law stir last year, appealed to farmers’ leaders to con- tinue their agitation against the Centre until they get guarantees on support prices for crops. “Farmers can topple governments, it’s not a big thing,” he said while exhorting them to unite for a nationwide agita- tion which he said he willjoinalongwithAAP . More on P7 CENTRE WANTED TO JAIL FARMERS IN STADIUMS DURING STIR: KEJRIWAL The BJP-led Centre wanted Delhi stadiums to be con- verted into makeshift jails to house farmers marching into Delhi to protest against the new farm laws, recalled CM Arvind Kejriwal at an event to honour farmers. “Even I have come out of an andolan, Anna andolan. And the same was done to us at that time...they used to keep us in stadiums. I too have stayed in stadiums for days. I understood that it’s a ploy to end kisan andolan,” he said. PM HOSTS PROUD FACES! Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Union Minister for Youth Affairs Sports Anurag Thakur and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, poses for a photograph with the Indian badminton contingent for Thomas and Uber cup, during their felicitation ceremony, in New Delhi. Triple suicide, chilling note rock Delhi New Delhi: A woman in her 50s and her two daughters turned their south Delhi flat into a chamber of poisonous gas and suffocated to death in a shocking case of triple suicide, Delhi Police have found. Suicide notes recov- ered from the flat in the posh Vasant Vihar area have revealed their spine-chilling plan. Police found all doors, windowsandventilators packed with a foil-like substance, apparently to ensure smoke does not escape the room and no one can see within. Policefoundthatcook- ing gas cylinder’s knob wasturnedonandacoal fire was left burning. “Too much deadly gas... carbon monoxide inside. It’s flammable. Please ventilate the room by opening the window and opening the fan. Do not light match, candle or anything!! Be careful while removing the curtain because roomisfullof hazardous gas. Do not inhale,” the chilling suicide note in English read. Union Home Minister Amit Shah during a rally in Arunachal Pradesh’s Namsai on Sunday. Arunachal Pradesh CM Pema Khandu and Union Minister Kiren Rijiju are also seen. —PHOTO BY PTI Telangana CM K Chandrasekhar Rao at an event in Punjab on Sunday. In despair after hus- band’s death due to COVID-19, a woman along with 2 daugh- ters committed suicide by online ordering insulating material and turning house into a gas chamber
  • 2. CAPITOL NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022 02 www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia The new Act reduces the number of wards in the city to 250 from existing 272, which means the MCD will have to undergo a delimitation exercise. New Delhi (PTI): With the unified MCD getting its special officer and a new commissioner, the exercise to reshuffle and reorganise the mu- nicipal staff will begin. The erstwhile North and East Delhi Munici- pal Corporations were severely hit by fund crunch as they were un- able to pay their staff a regular salary . The situ- ation was slightly better in the South Delhi Mu- nicipal Corporation. Making the unified MCD financially stable will be among the key challenges before Ku- mar and Bharti, accord- ing to sources. The three civic bodies have been merged into one MCD through the Delhi Municipal Corpo- ration(Amendment)Act, 2022. A bill to unify the threecivicbodieswasap- proved by the Lok Sabha on March 30 and by the Rajya Sabha on April 5. The bill became an Act afterPresidentRamNath Kovind gave his assent to it on April 18. The Act reduces the number of wards in the national capital to 250 from the existing 272, which means that the MCD will have to un- dergo a delimitation exercise before the election. The Centre will form a delimita- tion commission to carry out the demarca- tion of wards. Now, exercise to reshuffle civic body’s staff will begin MakingMCD financially stablewillbea keychallenge A panel will be formed for demarcation of wards HOW WILL UNIFICATION PROCESS BE EXECUTED? The first administrative step for the proposed unification of the MCDs would be to nullify their boundaries, which could be the “easiest task” in this process. The next step would be to bring the employees of the three corporations under one umbrella. While the number of the lower-rank staff will not change much, the numbers of higher-rank posts could decrease by a third. For example, there will be one director for each department such as horticulture, sanitation, educa- tion, health, hospital, etc. in the unified corporation instead of the existing three directors, one for each of the three MCDs. The same will apply to commissioners, committee heads, and mayors. HOW WILL UNIFICATION IMPACT MCS’ FINANCES? All three corporations are currently gripped by financial crises, even though the East and North MCDs are worse affected than the South MCD. The combined budget deficit of the East and North MCDs exceeds Rs 2,000 crore. The South MCD was solvent until a couple of years ago, but it too has come under financial stress now — and has a budget deficit of Rs 500 crore, a senior south corporation official said. The total annual income of the three corporations from their own revenues is around Rs 6,700 crore, while the total annual salary and pension expenditure for their combined 1,60,000 employees amounts to Rs 8,900 crore. HOW WILL IT IMPACT POLITICAL SCENARIO? The trifurcation of the erstwhile civic body in 2012, when the Congress ruled Delhi, was intended to “decentralise” the mammoth MCD. However, it was also a political move to fix civic body bound- aries in such a way that the Congress could make inroads into the MCD, which had become a BJP bastion. Ten years later, it appears to be deja vu. While the BJP continues to rule the MCDs now, it sees political gains in consolidating their boundaries. The BJP-run MCDs have claimed they have been starved of funds by the AAP-led Delhi government. In the BJP’s calculation, this could help it put up a fight against the resurgent AAP in the civic body elections. The appointment of a Special Officer, alongside the amendment that makes the civic body answerable to the Centre alone, is also being seen as a way for the Centre to exercise more control in Delhi. IN CENTRE’S CONTROL? WHAT WILL CHANGE WITH RE-UNIFICATION OF MCDS New Delhi (PTI): Del- hiites buying e-cycles will soon get incentives as the Kejriwal govern- ment is expected to roll out operational guide- lines for subsidy pay- ment in the coming week, government offi- cials said on Sunday . Last month, the Del- hi government had an- nounced a subsidy of Rs 5,500 each for the first 10,000 e-cycles sold in the city. “The operational guidelines for payment of subsidy on purchase of e-cycles will be launched in the com- ing week. The guide- lines will have details, including brands cov- ered under subsidy scheme and ways to avail the incentives,” a senior Delhi govern- ment official said. The first 1,000 buy- ers of passenger e-cy- cles will also be given an additional subsidy of Rs 2,000 under the Delhi Electric Vehicle (EV) Policy, Transport Minister Kailash Gahl- ot had said. The government has also approved a subsidy of Rs 15,000 each for the first 5,000 buyers of heavy duty cargo e-cy- cles and e-carts for com- mercial use. Earlier, the subsidy was provided to indi- vidual buyers of e- carts, but now, a com- pany or corporate house buying these ve- hicles will also be given a subsidy of Rs 30,000, the officials said. The government has planned to promote e- cycles to help reduce pollution levels in the city. The incentives will be paid to Delhi residents having AAD- HAAR Cards. Delhi govt soon to roll out op guidelines for subsidy E-CYCLE PURCHASES lll These guidelines will help people with making a choice as good quality e-cycle prices range from around ` 25,000- ` 30,000 Noida:Firemock drillsseelessthan 10%participation Noida (PTI): At least 600 incidents of fire have been reported in GautamBuddhNagar in just four months, butthepublicturnout for awareness cam- paigns and mock drills in residential societiesacrossNoida and Greater Noida has been dismal, offi- cials said. The Fire Service department has held more than 100 cam- paigns in these re- gions to educate peo- ple about safety equipment and pre- ventive measures, but the attendance has “not even been 10 per cent” of the total number of residents, they said. Private security personnel, too, “do not know much about fire safety” in several societies, they lamented. In 2022, 626 inci- dents of fire have been reported in Gautam Buddh Na- gar from January till April end. There were 1,372 fire inci- dents in 2021, 1,246 in 2020, 1,729 in 2019 and 2,017 the preceding year, according to of- ficial data. “Most of the fire incidents are report- ed in April and May. A majority of them are related to elec- tricity issues at homes or commer- cial spaces, while burning of stubble, farm fires, blaze in bushes and dry leaves, etc., also con- tribute to bulk of the incidents,” Chief Fire Officer Arun Kumar Singh told PTI. Nearly 600 fire incidents occurred in Noida in last 4 months. WAKE UP CALL Himachal,UP‘backout’fromgivingextra watertoDelhi;Haryananotkeeneither New Delhi (PTI): Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh have “backed out” from plans to give extra water to Delhi, while Haryana is not keen to pursue a water exchange proposal with the national capital, ac- cording to officials. Proposals involving Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh were be- ing pursued since 2019. The two states pulled out around six to eight months ago, they said. Delhi had a plan to exchange 140 million gallons a day (MGD) of treated wastewater for freshwater from UP. “UPsaiditcouldshare 270 cusecs of water from the Ganga through the Murad Nagar regulator and Delhi had promised to release an equal amountof treatedwaste- water to UP from Okhla for irrigation purposes. “After multiple meet- ings and field inspec- tions, Uttar Pradesh wrote to us around six months ago that the idea has been dropped,” an official said on con- dition of anonymity . The Centre was in fa- vour of the proposal but UP denied it. They did not give any reason for doing so, he said. Delhi also held delib- erations with Haryana on a proposal to share 20 MGD of treated waste- water for irrigation through Jaunti and Au- chandiregulatorsinlieu of freshwater through Carrier Lined Canal (CLC) and Delhi Sub Branch(DSB).“Haryana hasnotagreedtothepro- posal yet. There is a very slimchanceof ithappen- ing now,” he said. Another official said the proposal for a water exchange with Haryana is pending at the level of the Upper Yamuna River Board. Delhi generates around 770 MGD of wastewater. The 34 sew- age treatment plants located at 20 locations across the city treat up to 570 MGD of sewage. Around 90 MGD of treated wastewater is being utilised for horti- culture in parks and forests, irrigation and DTC depots. The capital is obligated to release 267 MGD of treated wastewater into the Ya- muna to maintain the environmental flow. A recent file photo shows people collect drinking water from a tanker on a hot summer day, at Sanjay Camp, in New Delhi. WATER WOES CRUCIAL READ DELHI SEES DIP IN COVID CASES, REPORTS 365 NEW INFECTIONS IN LAST 24 HOURS New Delhi (ANI): The national capital on Sunday witnessed a drop in COVID-19 cases as Delhi logged 365 new infections in the last 24 hours, as per the health bulletin issued by the Delhi Health Department. 479 COVID cases were reported yesterday. With this, the active COVID cases in Delhi stand at 1,912. According to the bulletin, as many as 530 COVID patients recovered from the disease in the last 24 hours taking the total number of recoveries since the onset of the pandemic in the city to 18,75,381. One patient died due to the disease. With this, the death toll in the city rose to 26,201. A total of 18,543 COVID samples were tested in the last 24 hours in the national capital. As far as the vaccination is concerned, 35,710 beneficiaries were jabbed with COVID vaccines taking the total number of vaccine shots adminis- tered so far to 3,40,44,950. 3 OF DELHI FAMILY KILLED IN ROAD ACCIDENT IN RAJASTHAN’S ALWAR DISTRICT Jaipur (PTI): A couple and their 12-year-old daughter were killed in a road accident in Rajasthan’s Alwar district on Sunday they were returning home in Delhi after a trip to Sariska, police said. Another person was injured in the accident near Bhindsu village on the Alwar-Bhiwadi road. The vehicle in which they were travelling rammed into a tree after the driver lost control of it. Police said the accident took place when the family was returning home in Delhi after a trip to the Sariska Tiger Reserve. The deceased were identified as Dharmendra (40), his wife Monika (36) and their daughter Shiva (12). —REPRESENTATIONAL PIC —FILE PHOTO
  • 3. INDIA NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022 03 www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia Thiruvananthapuram (Agencies): The cam- paigning for the Thrik- kakara by-election to be held on May 31 has gained momentum with all three major fronts — CPM-ledLeftDemocratic Front (LDF), Congress- led United Democratic Front(UDF)andtheBJP- led National Democratic Alliance(NDA)areoutto woo voters. The election to Thrik- kakarawasnecessitated following the demise of sitting MLA, PT Thom- as. Now his wife Uma Thomas is contesting on the UDF ticket. Practic- ing cardiologist at a leading private hospital at Kochi, Dr Jo Joseph is contesting as a CPI-M candidate while a for- mer RSS pracharak and state Vice President of the BJP, AN Radhak- ishnan is contesting as the NDA candidate. Thrikkakara has a large population of Christian community and all the candidates arevisitingthechurches to woo the voters. While CPI-M brought in Dr Jo Joseph as a sur- prise candidate to capi- talise on the upper class nature of the constitu- ency, things at present seem to favour Uma Thomas in a tradition- ally UDF bastion. Kera- la Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan who had announced to cam- paign by staying in the constituency for some time has quietly left for the state capital giving an opportunity to the UDF to say the Chief Minister has no hope here and hence a quite retreat. Campaigning heats up for Thrikkakara bypoll in Kerala POLL BATTLE Kochi (PTI): The People’s Welfare Alliance (PWA) in Kerala, a new alliance formed by the AAP and Twenty20, a political party promoted by a prominent business group here, on Sunday announced that it will not support any fronts in Thrikkakara assembly bypoll. The PWA asked its followers to assess the current political and social scenario of the state and the country, and cast their vote accordingly. AAP TWENTY20 ALLIANCE NOT TO SUPPORT ANY FRONTS QUAD IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO DISCUSS INT’L MATTERS: PM PM Modi to meet new Australian PM Anthony Albanese on sidelines of Quad summit New Delhi (Agencies): The second in-person Quad Leaders’ Summit in Japan will provide an opportunity for leaders of four countries to re- view the progress of the grouping’s initiatives and exchange views on developments in the Indo-Pacific as well as global issues of mutual interest, Prime Minis- ter Narendra Modi said on Sunday . In his departure statement ahead of his visit to Japan from May 23-24, Modi said during his visit he will also hold a bilateral meeting with US President Joe Biden, where they will discuss further consoli- dation of the multi-fac- eted bilateral relations. “We will also contin- ue our dialogue on re- gional developments and contemporary glob- al issues,” Modi said. He said he will be visiting Tokyo at the invitation of his Japa- nese counterpart Fu- mio Kishida, and noted that in March 2022, he had hosted Kishida for the 14th India-Japan Annual Summit. “Dur- ing my visit to Tokyo, I look forward to con- tinuing our conversa- tion further, with an aim to strengthen the India-Japan Special Strategic and Global Partnership,” Modi said. In Japan, Modi said, he will also participate in the second in-person Quad Leaders’ Sum- mit, which will provide an opportunity for the leaders of the four Quad countries to re- view the progress of Quad initiatives. “We will also ex- change views about de- velopments in the In- do-Pacific region and global issues of mutual interest,” Modi said. The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue com- prises India, the US, Japan and Australia. Modi also noted that the newly elected Aus- tralian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will be joining the Quad Leaders’ Summit for the first time. New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US Presi- dent Joe Biden will hold bilateral talks on the sidelines of the Quad summit in Tokyo on May 24. During their meet- ing, the two lead- ers are expected to hold a “constructive and straightforward dialogue”, which will also touch upon the ongoing situation in Ukraine. Notably, the meeting comes on the day when the February 24 Russian invasion of Ukraine will enter its fourth month. Ahead of his two-day visit to Japan, PM Modi said that he will hold a bilateral meet- ing with President Biden, where they will discuss further consolidation of the multi-faceted bilateral relations between the two nations. “We will also continue our dialogue on regional developments and contemporary global issues,” the Prime Minister added. ON UKRAINE, ‘STRAIGHTFORWARD’ TALKS BETWEEN MODI AND BIDEN Prime Minister Narendra Modi emplanes for Tokyo, in New Delhi. China-Pak FMs say ‘critical to resolve disputes’ in S Asia Beijing (PTI): Paki- stan’s newly appointed Foreign Minister Bilaw- al Bhutto Zardari held talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on Sunday in Guangzhou cityandemphasisedthat “it is critical to resolve alloutstandingdisputes” in South Asia in view of the challenges faced by thepeopleduetothepan- demic, soaring commod- ityprices,climatechange and poverty . This is Bilawal’s maiden visit to China after he took over as for- eign minister following the fall of the Imran Khan-led government last month. While reaffirming their strong support for each other’s “core inter- ests”, both sides reiter- ated that a peaceful and prosperous South Asia was in the common in- terest of all parties, said a joint statement issued at the end of their meet- ing held in the southern Chinese city of Guang- zhou as Beijing is cur- rently under semi-lock- down to contain the fast- spreadingOmicronvari- ant of the COVID-19. “Given the challeng- es faced by the peoples of the region, due to global pandemic, soar- ing commodity prices, climate change and pov- erty, it is critical to re- solve all outstanding disputes to promote re- gional cooperation and advance the goals of lasting peace, stability and shared prosperity,” Pak media said. Ramban tunnel collapse: Centre forms 3-member panel to investigate cause New Delhi (Agencies): The Centre has consti- tuted a committee of 3 independent experts to investigate the reasons for recent collapse of a part of under-construc- tion tunnel in Ramban on Jammu-Srinagar highway and suggest re- medial measures. State-owned National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has al- ready initiated process to handle such emer- gency situation and also taking all possible measures to avoid such incidents in future, an official statement said on Sunday . ”A committee of 3 in- dependent eminent ex- perts has been consti- tuted by the central gov- ernment which has al- ready moved to the site to investigate the rea- sons for slide/collapse and remedial measures thereof… Further ac- tion will be taken based on report of commit- tee,” it said. Indo-Pacific strategy ‘bound to fail’: China ahead of Quad Beijing (PTI): China on Sunday launched a broad- side against the Indo-Pacific strat- egy of the United States ahead of the summit of Quad leaders in Japan, saying that it is “boundtofail”asit is vigorously pro- moted by Washing- ton to “contain” Beijing. The “Indo-Pacif- ic strategy” is causing more and morevigilanceand concern in the in- ternational com- munity, especially in the Asia-Pacific region, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in the southern Chinese cityof Guangzhou. The Asia-Pacific should become a plateau for peace- ful development, rather than a geo- political arena. At- tempts to turn the Asia-Pacific into a bloc,NATOorCold War will never suc- ceed, Wang said. Nitish dodges query about CBI raids on houses of Lalu, Rabri Patna (PTI): Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Sunday dodgedaqueryaboutthe recent CBI raids on resi- dences of his arch-rival Lalu Prasad and the lat- ter’s wife Rabri Devi. The JD(U) leader was replying to queries of journalists about the allegation by the RJD, founded and head- ed by Prasad, that the raids were “politically motivated”. “I have no informa- tion,nothingtosay .Only those involved in the matter can comment,” said Kumar, who runs his government in alli- ance with the BJP . The RJD accused the CBI of acting upon “in- structions from political bossesintheBJP”which rules the Centre. Many RJD leaders have been alleging that the latest CBI case and the subse- quent raids were intend- ed to warn Nitish Ku- mar, who recently went to attend an Iftar party held at Rabri Devi’s house and walked her son Tejashwi Yadav to his car when he visited JD(U) office to attend a similar feast. Interestingly , in front of the RJD office, situat- ed right across the street fromtheJD(U)premises, a poster has been put up accusing the Modi gov- ernment of misusing probe agencies. 62 booked for pro-Pak slogans at election victory rally in Jharkhand Hazaribag (PTI): As many as 62 people, in- cluding a newly elected panchayat samiti mem- ber, have been booked for allegedly raising pro-Pakistan slogans at a panchayat poll victo- ry procession in Jharkhand’s Hazaribag district, a senior police officer said on Sunday . A video clip of the procession outside Bazar Samiti, where several people were heard shouting ‘Paki- stan Zindabad’, went viral on social media, following which the po- lice swung into action and registered a case in the matter, Hazaribag Superintendent of Po- lice (SP) Manoj Ratan Chothe said. No arrest has been made so far as the police are still verifying the authenticity of the clip, Chothe explained. MHA warns officers: Join at Lakshadweep or face music New Delhi (Agencies): The Union Home Minis- try has warned of disci- plinary action “without any further reference” against six DANICS of- ficers, working with the Delhi Government, if they fail to join the Lak- shadweep Administra- tion “immediately”. The fresh order came on May 20, immediately after the Central Ad- ministrative Tribunal (CAT) bench headed by chairperson Manjula Das ruled that there was “no merit” in the applications of the six DANICS officers chal- lenging the decision of the ministry to transfer them to Lakshadweep. No differences with Siddaramaiah: DK on MLC candidates’ recommendations Bengaluru (PTI): Kar- nataka Congress presi- dent DK Shivakumar on Sunday rejected re- ports about differences between him and Con- gress Legislature party leader Siddaramaiah regarding the recom- mendations made by the state unit on candi- dates to the party high command for the up- coming MLC polls. With May 24 being the last date to file nom- inations for the polls to seven seats of the Kar- nataka Legislative Council to be elected by MLAs, he said the state unit has sent its recom- mendations on candi- dates to the party high command and the deci- sion will be out soon. “The tradition in the Congress party is, we share our opinion (with the high command). Over 100 aspirants had applied or desired, few others did not apply but have the required qualification,” Shiva- kumar said. EIGHT BODIES DISPATCHED TO HOMETOWNS Banihal (PTI): Two local labourers, who were among the 10 killed after a landslide hit an under-construction tun- nel here, were laid to rest in their native Ramban district in Jammu and Kashmir, while the mortal remains of eight others were dispatched to their hometowns outside the union territory, officials said on Sunday. Bihar CM Nitish Kumar There is no Shivling inside Gyanvapi mosque: SP lawmaker Lucknow (PTI): Sam- ajwadi Party MP Shafiqur Rahman Barq on Sunday claimed that there was no Shivling’ in Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi and the word was spread about it to stoke sentiments for the upcoming 2024 parlia- mentary elections. “All these circum- stances are being creat- ed due to 2024 elections. If you go into the histo- ry there was no ‘Shivling’ and nothing else in the Gyanvapi mosque. All this is wrong,” Barq, an MP from Sambhal, told re- porters outside the Sa- majwadi Party office. Barq was here to meet SP chief Akhilesh Yadav. On Ayodhya, Barq said, “Though a Ram temple is being con- structed, I still say that there is a mosque there”.”Ye takat ke bal- boote pe ho raha” (This is purely a display of power).” “We are being target- ed. Mosques are being attacked. The govern- ment doesn’t run like this. Government should run with hones- ty and rule of law. There is a rule of Bulldozer, not of law,” he alleged. Gyanwapi Mosque in Varanasi SP MP Shafiqur Rehman Barq
  • 4. PERSPECTIVE NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022 04 www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia l Vol 1 l Issue No. 263 l RNI TITLE NO. DELENG/2021/19840 Printed and published by Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of First Express Publishers. Printed at Impressions Printing and Packaging Limited, C-21, 22 Sector-59, Noida-201301. Published at G-20, 3rd Floor, 309, Preet Vihar, New Delhi-110092. Phone 011-49846474. Editor-In-Chief: Jagdeesh Chandra. Editor: Sharat K Verma responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act Narendra Singh Tomar @nstomar Tributes to the founder of Brahmo Samaj, the pioneer of mass awakening and social reform movement, the great social reformer who got rid of the practice of Sati, child marriage before independence and Raja Rammohan Roy, who made a special contribution in the field of education. Smriti Z Irani @smritiirani Gas cylinder subsidy will greatly benefit over 9 crore female beneficiaries of Ujjwala Yojana, enabling ‘Ease of Living’ for their families. SPIRITUAL SPEAK Resolutely train yourself to attain peace. —Buddha IN-DEPTH UP ASSEMBLY TAKES A GIANT TECH LEAP, LEAVES OTHERS BEHIND ttar Pradesh Assem- bly has become the second legislature after Nagaland to go paperless. While Na- galand attached a tablet to the desk of each of its 60 members in the House, UP has given a technological makeover to its 403-member House. The Assem- bly has provided 416 tablets for MLAs and also some MLCs. In terms of size UP is far ahead of Nagaland in implementing the E-Vidhan Bhawan under the na- tional E-Vidhan Application project. The first Assembly ses- sion using paperless technology will be launched on Monday . As some legislators might take time to learn, paper documents will be allowed in the initial few ses- sions. Experts from the National Informatics Centre are involved in training the legislators. The introduction of technol- ogy will not only give a new look to the UP Vidhan Sabha, but it will also require good behaviour from the legislators. No more rowdy conduct will be allowed as a damaged tablet will not be replaced. TOP TWEETS U elangana Chief Minister K Chan- drashekar Rao is out on a mission-- -that of forging opposition unity . KCR is mak- ing sustained efforts in that direction but is scrupulously keeping the Congress out of the loop. The other day he was in New Delhi where he met Samajwadi Party presi- dent Akhilesh Yadav and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. After the meeting he said that “there will be a sensation in the country”. What “sensation” was the Telangana Rashtra Samithi chief talking about? Will there be a “sensation” if he succeeds in stitching an alli- ance or in announcing a new political narrative? KCR him- self said, “Let us see what happens as we go forward.” That suggests some develop- ment is afoot in the opposi- tion camp which is preparing to take on the BJP not only in 2024 but also in the Presiden- tial election and also the up- coming state elections. Early this year KCR held parleys with Uddhav Thack- eray , the Maharashtra Chief Minister, and his West Bengal counterpart Mamata Baner- jee. KCR has also had a meet- ing with poll strategist Prashant Kishor. Taking ini- tiative to put up a credible al- ternativetotheBJPandPrime Minister Narendra Modi may beeasy ,buttosucceedinitwill be a tall order. Recently Modi exhorted his party leaders to fix goals for the next 25 years. The narrative of religion which the BJP espouses gives Modi the confidence to set long-term targets. The oppo- sition, so far, has no alterna- tive narrative. Leave narra- tive aside, the issue of leader- ship is still not settled. Oppo- sition unity is still a work in progress. The other day he was in Delhi where he met SP president Akhilesh Yadav and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal. After the meeting he said that “there will be a sensation in the country”. What “sensation” was the Telangana Rashtra Samithi chief talking about? Will there be a “sensation” if he succeeds in stitching an alliance or in announcing a new political narrative? T MOODINESS THE COMMON COLD OF THE MIND Engaging in activities that bring pleasure like shopping, playing games, cooking a favourite recipe, surfing the net, browsing through a book store, dining out, reading, even putting together a puzzle, can be a ready medication for ‘down / blue’ days. Rather than confusing the illness with the individual, making efforts to understand, can help one to treasure the beautiful person behind the moodiness. Successfully fighting mood changes requires having a balanced view of our own worth. False pride, ignoring our limitations and perfectionism, are all an overestimation of ourselves. Resisting these tendencies and also avoiding the other extreme can dispel gloominess and lead to cheerfulness e is just impossible. When something goes bad, he takes things out on anyone for no good reason…” This is a widespread complaint about people from all walks of life. Some are moody, grouchy and unpredictable. A moody person’s emotions change of- ten. One day, they are happy and trusting. The next day, they are down and critical. As confusing as it may seem, almost everyone goes through different moods from time to time. Often a bad mood is due to illness, poor diet, fatigue and exhaus- tion because of unrelenting pressures. A moody person is difficult to live with. Some say that moods are beyond our control, being governed by chemicals in the brain. Whether that is true or not, feelings are contagious. We can either be cheered up or depressed by those around us. One can ask, “how do I react when I’ve had a bad day or when I’m feeling under a lot of pressure?” Do I some- times get grumpy or irrita- ble? Am I touchy, sullen or uncommunicative? There is nothing to be ashamed of if we suffer from an emotional illness – any more than suffering from a physical illness. Being alarm- ingly common, moodiness has been termed as “the com- mon cold of the mind.” Just about anyone can get it. It is all-pervasive and affects eve- ry aspect of one’s life. It cor- rodes one’s confidence, self respect and ability to think straight and make decisions. Often a person weeps for no reason due to an overwhelm- ing sense of loneliness and pain, despite having family and friends. Most of us know what it is like to experience a wave of sadness. With time, the feel- ing subsides, but the de- pressed feel the ups and downs, twists and turns as if on a speedy train not know- ing when or how to get down. Mood swings are an indi- cator of an underlying dis- ease. Lack of sleep, stress, weaknesses or habits in life style, a break up of a close relationship, dark indoor work space, cloudy cold cli- mate, genes or adverse life experiences can trigger moodiness and depression. What one eats can also make a difference. Eating a lot of sweets and junk food is detrimental to one’s mood. Exercises and eating healthy are a real mood up lifter. Amoodypersoncanbecome self absorbed. Death can be preferredtolifewhenonefeels trapped in one’s situation. By recognizingdistortedthinking patterns and mentally ques- tioning their validity , one can maintain an optimistic atti- tudeandnotallowthemoodto dominate one’s life. Some of our emotional problems may be rooted in the past especially if we have been victims of unjust treat- ment. It is better to forgive and forget than destroy our life by dwelling on what can- not be undone. By putting one’s feelings into words is a healing pro- cess that prevents the mind from trying to deny the real- ity of the problem. We should not allow an ‘undaunted by adversity’ appearance to in- hibit us from taking help from others. Using few simple words that manifest interest, con- cern and affection can do much good to the moody one. Lending a hearing ear is fun- damental to soothing others. This can make the afflicted one share his / her fears. Commendation empowers a depressed individual for a personal fight against feel- ings of disappointment or rejection. Some keep their melan- cholies to themselves be- cause of which they are in a constant dreary mood. Whether feelings are shared or not, regaining cheerful- ness, depends to a large ex- tent upon one’s frame of mind and outlook. Music can create various kinds of moods in us. Listen- ing to the right type and for the right duration, can do wonders in raising the spir- its and instilling a happy at- titude. It is hard to fight a sullen mood. But directing our at- tention and energy to do something for others will be of immense help in nourish- ing a good mood. Engaging in activities that bring pleasure like shopping, playing games, cooking a fa- vourite recipe, surfing the net, browsing through a book store, dining out, reading, even putting together a puz- zle, can be a ready medica- tion for ‘down / blue’ days. Rather than confusing the illness with the individual, making efforts to under- stand, can help one to treas- ure the beautiful person be- hind the moodiness. Successfully fighting mood changes requires having a balanced view of our own worth. False pride, ignoring our limitations and perfec- tionism, are all an overesti- mation of ourselves. Resist- ing these tendencies and also avoiding the other extreme can dispel gloominess and lead to cheerfulness. THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL Mood swings are an indicator of an underlying disease. Lack of sleep, stress, weaknesses or habits in lifestyle, a break up of a close relationship, dark indoor workspace, cloudy cold climate, genes or adverse life experiences can trigger moodiness and depression “ H REKHA KUMAR The writer is a personal development skills facilitator WHAT ‘SENSATION’ KCR’S TALKING ABOUT
  • 5. To Receive Free Newspaper PDF Daily Whatsapp: http://bit.ly/whatsappdelhi Telegram: https://t.me/firstindianewdelhi Click the above link☝ subscribe us on your preferred platform.
  • 6. INDIA NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022 05 www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia First India Bureau New Delhi: Despite Sarva Shiksha and Beti Padhao Beti Bachao Abhiyan, thousands of children in the nation- al capital are living in garbage dumps with no future in sight. These children run their homes with gar- bage. While they may stand explained by the Utilitarian principle, it is the apathy of the government towards this class that is hol- lowing out a progres- sive society. This issue, however, is not new. In the past, many incidents of fire in landfill sites of Del- hi have made head- lines. Amid poisonous gases emanating from trash burning for sev- eral days together, not only are the people liv- ing in surrounding ar- eas are troubled, but those working at these sites have little idea of the magnitude of haz- ard they are exposed to. It is mostly children who work at these land- fills, picking up plastic, iron and other metal pieces, and anything else of any value in the market. This is a means of livelihood for these children and their families. Delhi has 3 large litter ‘hills’ at Okhla, Bhalswa, and Ghazipur landfill sites around which, slums have been built. There are 40-50 huts near each garbage hill which is home to chil- dren that work in these landfills. As the saying goes, the finest steel has to go through the hottest fire, but the fu- ture of these children in this fire has no end in sight. Wiltering childhood in garbage dump DELHI’S LANDFILLS New Delhi: The Indian government is consid- ering spending an addi- tional 2 trillion rupees ($26 billion) in the 2022/23 fiscal year to cushion consumers from rising prices and fight multi-year high inflation, two govt offi- cials told. The new measures will be double the 1 tril- lion rupees hit govern- ment revenues could take from tax cuts on petrol and diesel the fi- nance minister an- nounced on Saturday, both the officials said. India’s retail inflation rose to an eight-year high in April, while wholesale inflation rose to at least a 17-year high, posing a major head- ache for PM Modi’s govt ahead of elections to several state assemblies this year. The govt esti- mates another 500 bil- lion Indian rupees ad- ditional funds will be needed to subsidise fer- tilisers, from the cur- rent estimate of 2.15 trillion rupees, the two officials said. The govt could also deliver another round of tax cuts on petrol and diesel if crude oil con- tinues to rise that could mean an added hit of 1 trillion-1.5 trillion ru- pees in the 2022/23 fiscal year started on April 1, the second official said. India to spend additional $26 billion to fight inflation: Report The new measures will be double the 1 trillion rupees hit government revenues could take from tax cuts on petrol and diesel the finance minister announced on Saturday New Delhi: Senior Cong leader P. Chidambaram on May 22 wondered whether the States can afford to give up revenue from VAT on petrol and diesel unless the Centre devolves more funds or gives them more grants, likening their situation to being between “the devil and the deep sea”. The former finance minister’s remarks come a day after the government announced 8 per litre cut in excise duty on petrol and 6 reduction on diesel.”The notification on reduction of duty on Petrol and Diesel is now available. FM used the words ‘Excise Duty’,  but the reduction is in Additional Excise Duty which is not shared with the states. New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday rebutted the Op- position’s criticism of excise duty cut impacting share of states in central taxes, saying the Rs 8 a litre cut in petrol and Rs 6 reduction in diesel have been done in road and infrastructure cess levied on the two fuels, collection on which was never shared with states.First, former union finance minister P Chidambaram and then other Opposition leaders stated that the reduction in excise duty announced on Saturday evening would reduce the share of states in central taxes.Taking to Twitter, Sitharaman said she is sharing some useful facts on levies on petrol and diesel for the benefit of all. FM REBUTS OPPOSITION FLAK ON EXCISE DUTY —PICTURE FOR REPRESENTATION Union Minister of Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia. BEING BETWEEN ‘DEVIL AND DEEP SEA’: CHIDAMBARAM ON EXCISE CUT Bengaluru: Union Minister of Civil Avia- tion Jyotiraditya Scin- dia on Saturday said that India has upheld the democratic princi- ples in worst global sce- narios. He further stat- ed that India would emerge as a world lead- er by 2047. He was ad- dressing a special key- note Session at the “In- dia@2047” conclave in Bengaluru. Scindiafurtherstated that India has always upheld economic and democratic order. India is determined to work towards attaining a steadygrowthpathfrom “Aatmanirbhar Bharat to Bharat Par Vishv Nirbhar” and thus emerge as a world lead- er by 2047, he said.India has redefined the old be- lief that democracies arealwaysaccompanied by low levels of dev and high level of inequality . In fact, if democracies are prospering around the world, some credit also comes to India, he said. “Now, the common terminology of Asia- Pacific has changed into Indo-Pacific, it is a testa- ment to her (India) rise. ‘Indiawouldemergeas world leader by 2047’ She (India) al- ways protected her territorial integrity, but never in the form of an aggressor. That speaks of Indian history not only from 1947 but from 5,000 years India has never been aggressor but has al- ways been an assimilator. —Jyotiraditya Scindia, Union Civil Aviation Minister New Delhi: The Serum Institute of India (SII) has sought permission from the country’s drug regulator to conduct Phase-3 trial to evaluate the safety and immuno- genicity of its COVID-19 vaccine Covovax as a booster dose in children aged two to 18 years, of- ficial sources said on Sunday . The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) had granted permission in March for conduct- ing Phase-3 clinical tri- al of Covovax as a booster dose in adults. In an application, SII Director for Govt and Regulatory Affairs Prakash Kumar Singh has sought permission to conduct the Phase-3, observer-blinded, ran- domised, controlled study in children aged two to 18 years in India who have already re- ceived primary vacci- nation against COV- ID-19 with Covovax at least six months ago. Dharamsala: Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama has writ- ten to Australian Prime Minister-elect Anthony Albanese to congratulate him on his party’s victory. “Beginning with my first visit to Australia in 1982,” His Holiness wrote, “I have had the privilege to visit your beautiful country quite regularly, mostly at the invitation of education- al institutions and or- ganisations committed to peace.”His Holiness concluded his letter by wishing the PM every success. Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh govt has launched a Rs 8.5 crore c o m m u n i t y - b a s e d structured breeding programme for the ge- netic improvement of indigenous sheep and to double the produc- tion of wool, Animal Husbandry Minister Virender Kanwar said on Sunday . The state govt has im- ported 240 Merino sheep, 40 males and 200 females, with an outlay of Rs 6 crore under the National Livestock Mis- sion so that superior ex- oticgermplasmcouldbe infused to achieve the target of 3,000 tons qual- ity wool production by nextfiveyears.Thestate has recorded wool pro- duction of around 1,482 tons in 2020-21. Chamba is the top wool produc- ing district with annual production of around 425 tons, followed by Kullu and Shimla. New Delhi: Delhi Po- lice busted an IPL bet- ting racket in Chander Vihar, Phase-III, Nihal Vihar on Sunday and arrested six persons en- gaged in it. “Acting on a specific input, received by Spe- cial staff on May 15, a team of Delhi Police ar- rived at the premises with the informer and raided the buiding where they found six persons gambling on IPL matches using lap- top and other electric devices,” the police said.From the spot, they also recovered 74,740 in cash, 10 Mobile phones, two laptops, three internet routers, two LED TVs, voice re- corders, All the six per- sons have been arrested by the police and a case has also been registered under the section 3,4, 9, 55 of Gambling Act. Mussoorie: The por- tals of Hemkund Sahib, one of the most revered shrines of the Sikh community, opened for devotees amid religious chants on Sunday Morning in Chamoli districtof Uttarakhand. The Hemkund Sahib Yatra was affected due to the Covid 19 pandem- ic for the past two years but this time it is start- ing with a cap on the daily pilgrim influx. Only 5,000 pilgrims are permitted to visit Hem- kund Sahib in a day . New Delhi: Observing that multiplicity of pro- ceedings was not in larger public interest , the SC has exercised its special power and al- lowed consolidation of multiple FIRs, the con- sequential trial to one court in Greater Noida in relation to the multi- crore rupees alleged Bike Bot’ and “Grand Venice Mall” scams. Over 100 FIRs were registered against sev- eral persons in UP and one FIR in Delhi in con- nection with the Bike Bot scheme scam. According to the probe agency, more than two lakh people were allegedly cheated of about Rs 15,000 crore on the false promise of lucrative returns on in- vestments in a bike taxi service scheme. Around 46 FIRs were registered against sev- eral persons . Shillong: A portion of the newly constructed Meghalaya Legislative Assembly building col- lapsed but there was no reported injury, offi- cials said on Sunday . The 70-tonne dome of the Rs 177.7 crore build- ing constructed by a UP-based UPNRNNL collapsed at around 12:30 am last night, they said. According to an Executive Engineer of PWD (Building) over- seeing the construc- tions, the collapse could have been triggered by a design fault. “The weight of the steel dome was perhaps too much for the col- umns and the beams to bear. This resulted in the entire structure coming down,” PWD Executive Engineer Ransom Sutnga told. He said it would take an- other two weeks to clear the debris. The engi- neer who rushed to the site early morning said that it would take at least another 8 months to raise a new structure. Lucknow: In order to boost horticulture and food processing indus- try , the UP Govt plans to set up excellence cent- ers and mini excellence centers or hi-tech nurs- eries in all the 75 dis- tricts of the state in the next five years. A govt spokesman said here on Sunday that hi-tech nurseries set at Bahra- ich, Ambedkar Nagar, Mau, Fatehpur etc. Himachal aims to double wool production Portals of Hemkund Sahib open for devotees UP to set up hi- tech nurseries to boost horticulture SC consolidates multiple FIRs in Grand Venice Mall scam SII seeks phase-3 trial permission for Covovax as booster dose for children aged 2-18 years Lama congratulates new Australian PM IPL betting busted in Delhi: 6 held, mobile phones recovered Steel dome of newly constructed Meghalaya Assembly collapses India on Sunday saw a slight decrease in its daily Covid tally after 2,226 infec- tions were reported in the last 24 hours, according to the health ministry’s dash- board. Sixty-five patients died and 2,202 recovered from the viral infection during the same period. With Sunday’s figures, the total number of cases in the country has climbed to 4,31,36,371 includ- ing 5,24,413 deaths and 4,25,97,003 recoveries. INDIA LOGS 2,226 FRESH COVID-19 CASES, 65 NEW FATALITIES —PICTURE FOR REPRESENTATION SHAH’S DINNER WITH FORCES! Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Arunachal Pradesh CM Pema Khandu and Union Minister Kiren Rijiju having dinner with security personnel, in Namsai, Arunachal Pradesh on Sunday.
  • 7. BIZ BUZZ NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022 06 www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia PNB earns `645 cr through ATM transaction New Delhi (PTI): Public sector lender PNB has said it earned over `645 crore by levying ATM transaction charges on customers during the financial year 2021-22. Revenue earned by PNB from ATM transaction charges stood at `645.67 crore in financial year 2021- 22. Besides, the country’s second largest lender collected `239.09 crore in the form of penalty imposed on customers who failed to maintain minimum balance or quarterly/ monthly avg balance. Mcap of 3 of top-five firms rise `1.78 L cr New Delhi (PTI): Three of the top five valued firms together added `1,78,650.71 crore to their market valuation last week, led by Reliance Industries. Last week, benchmark BSE Sensex climbed 1,532.77 points or 2.90%. While RIL, HDFC Bank and Hin- dustan Unilever were the gainers from the top-five pack, Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys emerged as the laggards. The market valuation of RIL rallied by `1,31,320.8 crore to reach `17,73,889.78 crore. MFs collect `1.08 L crore via 176 NFOs New Delhi (PTI): Riding on intense retail investors’ inter- est and a sharp rally in equity markets, asset management companies (AMCs) launched 176 new fund offerings (NFOs) in 2021- 22, garnering a whopping `1.08 lakh crore. According to the data compiled by Morningstar India, there were 176 new fund offers (including closed-end funds and ETFs) in 2021-22. These managed to collect a staggering `1,07,896 crore during their inception stage. Cost overruns of `4.83 L cr impact 425 proj New Delhi (PTI): As many as 425 infra- structure projects, each entailing an investment of `150 crore or more, have been hit by cost overruns of more than `4.83 lakh crore. According to Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, which monitors infra- structure projects of `150 crore above, out of 1,579 projects, 425 projects reported cost overruns and as many as 664 projects were delayed. New Delhi (PTI): As the unrelenting heat wave sweeps across ma- jor parts of the country , demand for cooling products such as refrig- erators, air condition- ers, coolers and fans has shot up and sales have more than dou- bled this summer sea- son, according to a re- port by Tata group con- sumer electronics goods retailer Croma. As per Croma’s ‘Un- boxed Summer 2022’ report, sales of refrig- erators have shot up more than 100% over 2021, while those of air conditioners (ACs) jumped by three times. “For the more value conscious, room cooler sales have witnessed a 2.5 times jump in de- mand with the highest sales this summer com- ing from Pune,” it said, adding that fan sales have doubled in 2022 over 2021, with 1 out of 5 consumers coming from Bangalore. When it comes to the size of ACs, cities like Mumbai, Thane, Pune and Kolkata saw the maximum off-take of 1 ton ACs, while cities in the north and central India with mostly high rise buildings wit- nessed more interest in 1.5-ton ACs due to larg- er average home sizes and accounted for 60% of all ACs sold, it add- ed. In terms of energy efficiency products, the Croma study found that the highest proportion of 5-star ACs were sold in Hyderabad, Delhi- NCR, Bangalore, while in Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Surat, Chennai, Vadodara, In- dore over 50% buyers bought 3-star ACs. Interestingly, 50% of portable ACs were pur- chased in just four cit- ies – Mumbai, Banga- lore, Hyderabad and Pune, it added. On the other hand, consumers in Delhi- NCR seem to be getting ready for winters with 62% of Hot and Cold ACs sold during sum- mers in the region, the survey found. When it comes to technology, Croma said inverter-based refrig- erators accounted for 60% of all purchases, while in refrigerators the single biggest sell- ing model was direct cool fridge with a ca- pacity of 300 litres, in- dicating many first- time buyers entering the market. Apart from the sum- mer products, the Cro- ma study also found that sales of micro- waves have also grown 80% over 2021. Cooling items in hot demand; refrigerator, AC sales jump New Delhi (PTI): The GST Council is likely to consider modification in summary return and monthly tax payment form, GSTR-3B, in its meeting next month, with a view to check fake input tax credit claims and expedite set- tlement of genuine ones, an official said. According to offi- cials, the modified form will provide clarity with regard to gross in- put tax credit (ITC) due to the taxpayer, the amount claimed in a particular month and the net amount left in the taxpayer’s ledger. A meeting of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council is likely to be held next month. The modified form will help in checking bogus ITC claims and ensure that honest tax- payers are able to time- ly avail the ITC benefit. “The law committee of the GST Council is looking at streamlining the GSTR-3B so that there is further clarity on ITC disclosure. The modified GSTR-3B is ex- pected to be put up be- fore the Council in its next meeting,” the offi- cial said. GSTR-3B, which is a summary statement and monthly GST pay- ment form, is filed in staggered manner be- tween 20th, 22nd and 24th of every month for different categories of taxpayers. AMRG As- sociates Senior Partner Rajat Mohan said the changes in monthly tax payment form would help identify taxpayers who are claiming ineli- gible tax credit. “The new form would bring in changes in the reporting of gross tax credit by financial insti- tutions, including banks and NBFCs, com- panies in the oil and gas sector, extra neutral al- cohol manufacturing, public transportation services, healthcare and educational servic- es,” Mohan said. Precise reporting of the gross tax credit would also iron out the delays in the distribu- tion of tax revenues be- tween the Centre and states, he added. GST COUNCIL MAY CONSIDER MODIFICATION IN GSTR-3B Taxpayers can now seek refund of IGST New Delhi (PTI): Taxpayers who have paid GST on ‘Ocean Freight’ on imported goods will be entitled to claim refunds, fol- lowing the SC ver- dict, provided they have not claimed input tax credit. Giving its rul- ing in the Mohit Minerals case, the SC held that since the Indian import- er is liable to pay IGST on the ‘com- posite supply’, comprising of supply of goods and supply of ser- vices of transpor- tation, insurance, etc in a CIF con- tract, a separate levy on the Indian importer for the ‘supply of servic- es’ by the shipping line would be in violation of ... The CGST Act. MODIFIED FORM ` 500-cr projects to route through NPG New Delhi (PTI): All logistics and connec- tivity infrastructure projects, entailing in- vestment of over `500 crore, would now route through the net- work planning group (NPG) constituted un- der the PM GatiShakti initiative with the fi- nance ministry issu- ing the necessary in- structions and crea- tion of the national master plan digital platform,an official said. According to an of- fice memorandum of the department of ex- penditure dated April 28, a revised format has been issued for Public Investment Board (PIB)/Delegat- ed Investment Board (DIB) project propos- als. “The revised format of the PIB/DIB memo- randum...Will apply to all the PIB/DIB pro- posals for new projects submitted on or after April 28, 2022,” it has said. As per the revised format, proposals should include wheth- er the project has com- ponents of logistics or infrastructure connec- tivity; and whether it has been examined by NPG for convergence and integration at the conceptualisation or feasibility study stage. The PM GatiShakti plan was announced last year with an aim to break departmental silos and bring in more holistic and inte- grated planning and execution of projects with a view to address- ing the issues of mul- ti-modal and last-mile connectivities. PM GATISHAKTI MORE THAN 100% Demand for cooling products has shot up and sales have more than doubled this summer season: Croma report FPIs withdraw `35K cr from equities in May New Delhi (PTI): Exo- dus of foreign money from the Indian equity markets continues una- bated with FPIs pulling out over `35,000 crore so far this month on con- cerns over the pros- pects of more aggres- sive rate hike by US Fed and appreciation of the dollar. With this, net outflow by Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) from equities reached `1.63 lakh crore so far in 2022. FPI flows continue to remain neg- ative in the month of May till date and have dumped equities worth `35,137 crore during May 2-20, data with de- positories showed. Global trends and FII trading key to markets: Experts New Delhi (PTI): Glob- al factors and trading activity of foreign insti- tutional investors are expected to guide do- mestic market senti- ments this week, while equity benchmarks may face volatility amid monthly derivatives ex- piry, analysts said. Indian markets have been witnessing vola- tile trades for the past several trading ses- sions. However, the Nif- ty managed to break its five-week losing streak and ended with a decent weekly gain of 3%, said Santosh Meena, head of research, Swastika In- vestmart Ltd. Inflation and slow- down in the global econ- omy means stagflation is a key concern for the global equity markets, “therefore, we are see- ing relentless selling by FIIs (Foreign Institu- tional Investors). How- ever, Indian markets are in a better position due to support from do- mestic investors,” he added. Inflation slowdown in the global economy means stagflation is a key concern for global equity mkt Govt receives 10 applications for PLI Scheme for specialty steel New Delhi (PTI): The government’s ambitious PLI scheme for specialty steel has received just 10 appli- cations, even as the last date to submit in- terest under the scheme was extended twice, after certain concerns were raised by steel makers. The last date to sub- mit applications un- der the PLI Scheme for specialty steel is expected to be extend- ed again for the third time, a senior govern- ment official said. Initially, March 29 was the last date for manufacturers to ap- ply for the benefits under the PLI scheme for speciality steel. It was later extended till April 30 and again to May 31, 2022. Replying to a ques- tion on the number of applications received by players under the scheme, he replied 10 applications and 58 registrations have been received so far by players. When asked about the ra- tionale behind ex- tending the last date again, the official in- formed “the ministry is yet to come out with the modified scheme.” EXPORT DUTY HIKE ON STEEL ITEMS TO HIT PROJECTS UNDER PLI SCHEME: ISA New Delhi (PTI): Imposition of export duties on steel products will send a negative signal to investors and adversely impact capacity expansion projects under PLI scheme, steel industry players said. The government on Saturday waived customs duty on the import of some raw materials, including coking coal and ferronickel, used by the steel industry, a move which will lower the cost for the domestic industry and reduce the prices. New Delhi (PTI): Tata Motors expects the domestic passen- ger vehicle industry to surpass the peak sales number of 34 lakh units achieved in FY2019 this fiscal on the back of robust demand and less COVID-related dis- ruptions that were witnessed in the last two years, according to a top company of- ficial. The company expects a better busi- ness environment this fiscal even as chip shortages con- tinue to making it challenging to cater to the enhanced de- mand. PV industry to surpass FY19 volumes: Tata The modified form will help in checking bogus input tax credit (ITC) claims The modified form will provide clarity with regard to gross input tax credit
  • 8. NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022 07 NEWS www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia CETforrecruitmenttoNon-Gazettedpostsbyyear-end:DrSingh First India Bureau New Delhi: MoS (Inde- pendent Charge) Dr Jitendra Singh said on Sunday that there will be Common Eligibility Test (CET) for recruit- ment to Non-Gazetted posts from this year, and the first such test is being scheduled to be conducted before the year end. Chairing the joint meeting of all the six Autonomous Bodies under the Department of Personnel Train- ing (DoPT) at North Block here, the MoS said, the National Re- cruitment Agency (NRA) under DoPT is gearing up to conduct computer-based online CET for recruitment to Non-Gazetted posts by the year end. This will be a game-changer pro- viding ease of recruit- ment to the job aspir- ants, with at least one exam centre in each district of the country . He said, the Com- mon Entrance Test is a path-breaking reform carried out by the DoPT to bring about “Ease of Recruitment” for young job aspirants and it will prove to be a major boon for youth, especially those living in far-flung and remote areas. He said the his- toric reform will pro- vide a level playing field to all the candi- dates, regardless of his or her background or socio-economic status. There will also be a huge benefit to women and Divyang candi- dates and for those who find it financially unaffordable to appear for multiple tests by travelling to multiple Centres. Initially the test will be conducted in 12 lan- guages including Hin- di and English and will later on add all the lan- guages mentioned in the 8th Schedule of the Constitution, the Min- ister added. Dr Singh said, PM Modi introduced the “whole of Govt” con- cept which has not only removed silos but also facilitated an inte- grated holistic ap- proach in governance with all the different Ministries, Depart- ments and agencies of the government collec- tively addressing each issue, without one leav- ing it to the other. Union Minister for State says the historic reform will provide a level playing field to all the candidates Dr Jitendra Singh chairing the joint meeting on Sunday. PATH-BREAKING PLOYTO‘TRAP’MNSWORKERS INTOLEGALHASSLES:THACKERAY First India Bureau Pune: MNS chief Raj Thackeray on Sunday claimed that political developments around his proposed Ayodhya visit were a ploy to “trap” his party work- ers into legal tangles and hence, he decided to defer his trip to the Uttar Pradesh city . He reiterated that the MNS workers will re- sume agitation if loud- speakers atop mosques do not follow the noise rules. Thackeray had earlier asked his party- men to play ‘Hanuman Chalisa’ outside mosques where loud- speakers play ‘azaan’. Amid the controver- sy over an AIMIM lead- er's recent visit to Mughal ruler Aurang- zeb's tomb in Aurang- abad city of Maharash- tra, the MNS leader ap- pealed to Prime Minis- ter Narendra Modi-led Centre to change the name of Aurangabad to Sambhaji Nagar and to bring the Uniform Civil Code. Taking a swipe at NCP chief who had ad- dressed a rally braving rain before the Maha- rashtra Assembly polls in 2019, Thackeray said, “We were planning a gathering in an open space, but considering the possibility of rain, we decided to hold it in- doors. Also, there are no elections nearby to stand in rain for giving a speech.” On Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray recently slamming the BJP’s “fake Hindutva”, the MNS president said, “The CM claimed their Hindutva is real. Are they talking about a washing powder, like who's detergent is bet- ter than the other?” MNS chief Raj Thackeray. —FILE PHOTO MNS chief clailms he deferred his Ayodhya trip as developments around his proposed visit were a ploy to “trap” his party workers SHIV SENA SLAMS RAJ'S REASONS FOR DEFERRING AYODHYA VISIT Mumbai: Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Sunday slammed MNS chief Raj Thackeray’s claim that he had deferred his visit to Ayodhya in UP as there was ploy to “trap” his party workers into legal issues, and said such com- ments were made out of frustration. “Who can stop you from going to Ayodhya? What conspiracy can be there?” Raut sought to know while talking to reporters here. It was a “BJP-sponsored” visit, the Shiv Sena’s chief spokesperson claimed, while noting that UP is governed by the saffron party. “If there is opposi- tion from one BJP MP, defy that opposition and go ahead. Who will trap you? All such comments are made out of frustration. There is a need for coun- seling and treatment,” the RS member said. CM Kejriwal hosts lunch for KCR; discusses political,federal issues New Delhi (PTI): Delhi CM and AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal on Sun- day met his Telangana counterpart K Chan- drashekar Rao, at his of- ficial residence here and discussed a range of is- sues, including the cur- rent political and federal issues, sources said. The meeting between Kejriwal and Rao, head- ing two regional outfits — Aam Aadmi Party and Telangana Rashtra Samithi — respectively, assumes significance in the wake of building political equations ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls to chal- lenge the BJP. The two chief minis- ters had lunch together and discussed various issues, including the current political situa- tion in the country. Lat- er, they left for Chandi- garh, officials in the Delhi government said. “Hon’ble Chief Minis- ter Shri @ArvindKejri- wal hosted Hon'ble Chief Minister of Telan- gana, Shri K. Chan- drashekar Rao at his residence for lunch, to- day,” the Delhi CM’s Of- fice tweeted. The two CMs also dis- cussed states’ contribu- tions in the country's growth during the hour- long luncheon meeting, sources in Telangana government claimed. CM Arvind Kejriwal with K Chandrashekar Rao on Sunday. K’taka govt forms 8 task forces for devpt works Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Basa- varaj Bommai on Sunday constitut- ed a task force headed by a Minis- ter for all the eight zones in the city to monitor develop- mental work and take necessary de- cisions in their re- spective jurisdic- tions whenever there is any emer- gency like heavy rains. The decision comes in the back- drop of flooding witnessed in sev- eral areas that lashed Bengaluru on Tuesday night and incessant rains thereafter. Basavaraj Bommai AZAM, SHIVPAL MISSING FROM SP LEGISLATIVE PARTY MEET First India Bureau Lucknow: Senior SP MLA, Mohd Azam Khan, his son Abdullah Azam and Shivpal Singh Yadav stayed away from the Samajwa- di legislative party meeting held here on Sunday, ahead of the UP Assem- bly’s budget ses- sion which begins on Monday. While Azam Khan and his son Abdullah were in Rampur, Shivpal was in Lucknow but did not attend the meeting. The develop- ment is a clear in- dication of the fact that fissures with- in the SP are grow- ing deeper. BSP’s Mayawati asks states to immediately cut VAT on petrol First India Bureau Lucknow: With the Centre slashing the ex- cise duty on petrol and diesel, BSP chief Mayawati on Sunday said it was the duty of not only Uttar Pradesh but also of other states to immediately an- nounce a cut in VAT on fuel. Mayawati said the Central and state gov- ernments, while sacri- ficing their political interest, should pay at- tention to national problems, which are becoming serious day- by-day, so that life can normalise. Petrol price has been slashed by Rs 8.69 a li- tre and that of diesel by Rs 7.05 per litre follow- ing the government's decision to cut excise duty on auto fuels, giv- ing relief to consumers battered by high fuel prices that had pushed inflation to a record high. Ajay Devgn-like car stunt lands Noida man in jail Noida (PTI): A 21-year- old man has been ar- rested in Noida for cre- ating nuisance after a video showing him standing on two moving SUVs on a city road went viral, police offi- cials said on Sunday . The man had got the video shot for posting it on social media. The two SUVs used for the stunt have been im- pounded, they said. The stunt of balanc- ing oneself on two mov- ing motorcycles had be- come famous with Ajay Devgn’s debut movie ‘Phool aur Kaante’. He performed the stunt again ‘Golmaal 3’ using two cars. Officials said a video had surfaced on social media Saturday, purportedly showing a young man balancing himself on two moving SUVs on a Noida road, prompting the local po- lice to take action against him under the Motor Vehicles Act for creating a nuisance with the dangerous stunt. Tel Aviv (AP): Israeli authorities say they have detected the country’s first case of monkeypox in a man who returned from abroad and were look- ing into other suspect- ed cases. Israel’s Health Min- istry said late Satur- day the man was in a Tel Aviv hospital in good condition. It called on anyone re- turning from abroad with fever and lesions to see a doctor. Sharon Alroy-Preis, the head of public health services at the ministry, told Israeli Army Radio Sunday that medical teams were investigating oth- er suspected monkey- pox cases. Israel’s case ap- peared to be the first identified in the Middle East. Uzmi Athar New Delhi: On an aver- age, 29 children in Mad- hya Pradesh and 14 in Rajasthan went missing every day in 2021, ac- cording to a new report of child rights NGO CRY, which revealed that there was a signifi- cant increase in the number of missing chil- dren cases in four major states of north India. Also, five children went missing per day in Delhi in 2021 in eight po- lice districts, according to the “Status Report on Missing Children” re- port of Child Rights and You (CRY), which also said on an average, eight children — six girls and twoboys—wentmissing per day from 58 districts of Uttar Pradesh. The report revealed that the number of miss- ing girls in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan was reported five times higher than that of boys in 2021. While 8,751 cas- es of missing children were registered in Mad- hya Pradesh and 3,179 in Rajasthan. ‘29 kids in MP, 14 in Raj went missing per day in 2021’ CAUSE OF CONCERN lll Also, five kids went missing per day in Delhi in 2021 in eight police districts, child rights NGO CRY said in a report Techie dies at rave party in TN; four booked Chennai (PTI): A 22 year old employee of an information technology firm allegedly died due to excess consumption of alcohol during an il- legal rave party held in the city last night, police said on Sunday. The po- lice after coming to know about the conduct of the event 'The Great Indian Gathering' raided the bar which was function- ing on the third floor of the mall without the mandatory license. Proportion of girl children rose from about 65 % in 2016 to 77 % in 2020 at the all-India level. ISRAEL REPORTS FIRST CASE OF MONKEYPOX Centrestate govtsshould payattention tonationalproblems, whicharebecoming seriousday-by-day. —Mayawati BSP chief
  • 9. The most difficult resource in a business is time—which has to be managed perfectly for anything else to be managed at all. —Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO Editor-in-Chief, First India NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022 08 2NDFRONT www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia z The Congress held the ‘Nav Sankalp Chintan Shivir’ amid much pomp show. But there are asper- sions about Chintan Shivir being a failure politically. Was it so? Jagdeesh Chandra: Yes, it has been a failure as the Congress leader- ship failed to sort out the leadership issue. Ra- hul Gandhi continues to be an ‘extra-constitu- tional’ power centre tak- ing all decisions with- out any responsibility and from behind the curtains. This camp can be called a ‘superhit show’ only administra- tively that too courtesy Ashok Gehlot who en- suredexcellentarrange- ments. However, politi- cally no major decision was taken. Everyone was expecting the an- nouncement of Rahul Gandhi as the party president or perhaps someone else if not him, but that did not take place. So, politically it was a flop show. z Why couldn’t Con- gress stop Hardik Patel from leaving the party? This is another tragedy that hap- pened within 48 hours of Chin- tan Shivir. This clearly shows that the party is con- fused, it does not take mat- ters seri- ously and issues keep getting stalled and then people leave it. Hardik leaving the Congress is a major blow to the par- ty , then may accept it or not but that’s a fact. Es- pecially when they say they will promote youth. A renowned youth leader left you and has said in his letter that there is a lack of seriousness at all levels. It was known that he could leave the party as he was supporting the Ram Mandir move and the Abrogation of Arti- cle 370. But why didn’t anyone take cognizance of it and speak to him about the issues? So no one is ready to take di- rect responsibility. So the next question is as to whose responsibility is it? Now Congress leaders are spinning that he left since Naresh Patel is being brought in the party. Then they claim he used to stay busy in business activi- ties and also the state government had tight- ened the screws around the cases against him. Well, this is bound to happen. It is politics and part of life. The bot- tom line is that you could not stop him from leaving. In fact, he has laid accusations which have been laid on Rahul Gandhi in the past too, like when they go to meet Rahul he keeps busy on mobile and doesn’t take things seri- ously . I remember Him- anta Biswa Sarma had claimed long back that when he was in Con- gress he had gone to meet Rahul who was busy playing with his dog Pidi and did not meet Sarma and there was no other chair. This is unfortunate, such things should never happen. Similarly, a Punjab leader went to meet him and Ra- hul was busy in Yoga. Such things spread from word of mouth and they seri- ously dam- age Rahul G a n d h i ’ s credibility. So in a nutshell, Hardik Pa- tel’s leaving has washed away any success of Chin- tan Shivir. Mark my words, anoth- er youth leader is on a cusp of leav- ing the party and he is Sachin Pilot. You need to settle him and if you do not do that, then next headline would be his. It is nothing to feel bad about since this is the reality. When he rebelled, the high com- mand should have had the courage and convic- tion to let him go, but they did exactly the op- posite of it. This result- ed in Gehlot being heartbroken and Sachin is seated with- out any power. Now there are so many unde- cided aspects, Pilot sup- porters are waiting for something to happen but now elections are round the corner, so they must take a con- crete decision. And most of all when the Chintan Shivir hap- pened why didn’t the high command declare that Ashok Gehlot will remain the Chief Min- ister for the remaining termandelectionwould be fought under his leadership. This was the most appropriate platform and yet you left hope for Pilot sup- porters and it is only human to think that their leader would take the mantle. Therefore, it p a i n s me to say that the camp has beenafailure. z How different was Udaipur’s Chintan Shivir than the ones held in the past? See Congress has held such contemplation camps in 1974 during In- diraGandhi’stime,then it happened in Pach- marhi, Shimla and then inJaipur.Thedifference among these is that in thethreeChintanShivir heldinRajasthan,Sonia Gandhi was at helm with Gehlot in state, which is a proven team of the party . This time around the program was organised beauti- fully and its conduction was also done in a good manner. But devoid of any leader it did not have as much colour as was needed, but it was bettermanagedthanthe previous ones. z This Chintan Shi- vir was organised on the ‘Now or Never’ mood of the Con- gress. But what was its agenda and has it completed agenda? India Today has given an exact situation of Congress ‘Now or Nev- er’. This means that Congress knows it is sinking, but before it drowns, let us make one last effort. There is no doubt that a serious ef- fort was put in to reor- ganise the party . As far as putting things on pa- per that such and such thing has happened, Udaipur was a hit show. But the issue is of lead- ership. If Rahul is still a reluctantbride,thenput aside everything and make Sonia Gandhi the Party president. She is most acceptable person among Congress lead- ers. This time around she was as always in command despite her illness and yet she had the power to say that the party will come back. On the contrary, if you see Rahul’s address, it was a strong speech, but there was no connectiv- ity . So it was good that they took decisions, but unless and until there is someone to execute them, they are just words on paper. z What do you think, has Rahul Gandhi agreed to take the party presidency, or is he still not keen? No, it is my assessment over the past 3-4 years that he is a brilliant per- son, secondly , he is dedi- cated to the party third- ly , he is aggressive in his political approach and takes direct confronta- tion with Narendra Modi even if he has to run from one court to another, everything is there. But as far as lead- ership is concerned, he is no systematic and al- though everyone is say- ing that he will become president after Septem- ber, but I doubt it. z But do you think he will be made presi- dent in August- September? There is only one way left that Sonia Gandhi uses her veto and gets Rahul declared as presi- dent on gun point. In the last Chintan Shivir at Jaipur, Sonia had cried in Rahul’s room that power is poison and asked him to stay away from it. But now situation is changed. z Acharya Pramod had suggested that if Rahul Gandhi is not keen on becoming President, Priyanka should be given the responsibility. Do you agree with his pro- posal? Absolutely there is no other option or solution because Congress ka jeena marna Gandhis ke saath hai. That much is certain. If he is not ready to become Presi- dent then there are two options. One being So- nia Gandhi but it is not possible for her due to her health issues, so Priyanka is the only choice but as of today she also appears help- less. After the humiliat- ing defeat of the party in UP, she is only the principal PRO of the party where the dis- gruntled lot reaches and is pacified by Priyanka. z How do you see the entire Priyanka mat- ter in light of Chin- tan Shivir? Do you think she is being mishandled? Of course! Priyanka factor is being mishan- dled for the past 15 years. Party could not decide and mother’s heart is all for the son Rahul. Several times the need to play ‘Priyan- ka Card’ was raised and at times it was said that she would campaign on 152 odd seats, then she got constricted to 50 odd seats and then Rahul Gandhi said she is my sister she will go where she wants. Ultimately it so happened that she was restricted to just 2 seats — Amethi and Rai- bareli. So your weapons has lost its edge and as a result when she went to carry out a rally at India Gate, she had merely 100 people. That is a vir- tual political death of Priyanka in public life, and who is responsible for it, none other than Gandhis. They should have taken the appro- priate decision at the appropriate time. They instead stayed in the mi- rage of Rahul and he has not said yes to the role till now. So, Priyan- ka factor has been mis- handled, and sorry to say she is not a factor today. And suppose if Priyanka is made the chief it will take her years to become a stronghold of Congress, politically speaking and this, Rahul Gandhi knows and hence he says that the fight is for the years and so he asks to fight with him. But the problem really is that today he may ask to fight with him shoulder to shoulder, but then the next day onwards no one would know where he is or what is mood is like. In front of Naren- dra Modi Amit Shah, she is no factor at all. z You mentioned Am- ethi just now. Those close to Rahul Gan- dhi claim that he will rise to power in Ame- thi once again... It is a good dream pro- ject. The world lives on hope. Perhaps he may get inspiration there and now when he walks on those streets and someone comes up to him for help, he will not ask them to email the problems. Till the time even the basic functioning of Rahul Gandhi’s office is changed, Amethi will remain a dream. There is no fight for 2024, and I have already said the fight is for the 2029 elec- tions. It is almost im- possible to take back Amethi from Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and Smriti Irani. Almost. z It is said that even in Gandhi family there are ideological differences between Rahul and Priyanka which have surfaced recently. What are these issues over which siblings, who have been so close, are not on one path? See it is human nature. When Priyanka sees how the party is per- forming poorly and the brother is unable to ‘take off ’ and is not even accepting or hear- ing what she has to say, so there are differences and it is obvious to have differences. Like on the issue of Prashant Kishor, there was a se- rious difference be- tween the two. Priyan- ka wanted that PK should come in the party fold and perhaps both Rahul and Sonia did not want him in the party, so there is a dif- ference. She left for US, perhaps for some work, but the message that went to the masses was that she was angry so she left for America. And secondly, Rahul Gandhi announced the one family one ticket rule so where will Pri- yanka go? So they will have to take out a way, like the five-year rule etc. So there are serious differences and at the end of the day how the party is falling down, how long will she con- tinue to see all this but now she is a mere audi- ence. Differences are there but they meet and share food together and support each other too. z But do you think that perhaps 10 years down the line they both may go their separate way? See nothing is ruled out. Although I do not imag- ine Priyanka Congress versus Rahul Congress. This will not happen till the time Sonia Gandhi isthere.Butwhatwillbe situation after her, will Congress even be in ex- istence. Perhaps Modi and Shah’s dream of Congress-Mukt Bharat would be realised then. So if differences are there and what shape they take in future, it can’t be ascertained ful- ly as of now. As Congress looks to rebuild itself post Chintan Shivir, Editor-in-ChiefofFirstIndia, JagdeeshChandra in The New JC Show says that Sonia continues to be the tallest Congress leader and Ashok Gehlot gets laurels for his excellent arrangements (Part—I) Chintan Shivir, a politically flop show as Congress fails to resolve leadership issue! Jagdeesh Chandra with Shweta Mishra,Aditi Nagar, Poonam Sharma Solanki,Tanu Choudhary and Sudhanshu Mathur at the New JC Show. —PHOTOS BY MUKESH KIRADOO During the show #JConRahulGandhi trended top All-India on Twitter TO BE CONTINUED... Jagdeesh Chandra during the show.
  • 10. www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirst- india facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09 NEW DELHI, MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022 escribe yourself, and what would you say are some vital skills or characteristics to have to make it in the model- ling world? First and foremost to be- lieve in ourselves. They are different and that’s their strength. There is a place for everybody in this industry and that void can be filled only by them. So be confident and take care of themselves, their skin, physique. If you could go in future and tell yourself one thing about your career what would it be? I would tell myself that everything will make sense one day. So keep working hard, researching is the key, keep work- ing on yourself, pol- ish your skills and dare to dream and shine the brightest when your “The Day” come. What inspired you to find the Supermodel in you. Share some insides of your jour- ney. I saw Femi- na miss In- dia on TV for the first time in 2014 and right then I could clearly pic- ture myself wearing that crown. I wanted to be on that same dice all fearless and unstop- pable. That zeal and vi- sion to see myself wear- ing that crown are what fueled me. What was the biggest rookie mistake you made when just starting out? Trusting everybody . We need to understand that not everybody in this industry is a good wisher so we need to inspect the ground thorough- ly prior to each step and make sure we are in safe sur- roundings I must say no platform can be better than First India for that. What has been the most memorable or rewarding moment in your career? When I had gotten the chance to meet Miss In- dia 2014 Koyal Rana, the same girl whom I saw on TV shining brighter than the stars. She is so hum- ble, it was a dream come true. She is the lady who later trained me. Learn- ing from my Idol is the most memorable moment of my life. It was a dream come true for me. D UTTKARSHA SHEKHAR cityfirst@firstindia.co.in EXQUISITE SOUL EXQUISITE SOUL NIVEDITA NIVEDITA MY IDEA OF A SUPERWOMAN IS SOMEONE WHO SCRUBS HER OWN FLOORS. NIVEDITA DHARIWAL, A STUNNING DIVA FROM NOIDA, SPOKE CANDIDLY WITH CITY FIRST ABOUT HER INSPIRING CAREER AS A MODEL
  • 11. 10 ETC NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022 www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia SHIVANGI VERMA, Actress FACE OF THE DAY! Aries MARCH 21 - APRIL 20 Getting quality time at home will help in focussing on activities that appeal to you. Your efforts at work will be richly rewarded by getting noticed by those who matter. A balanced diet will be the first step in achieving good health, so stick to it. Help people out as much as you can as monetarily. Gemini MAY 21 - JUNE 21 Praise of a family member by someone will make you proud. Getting unwell due to changing weather cannot be ruled out for some. You may need to monitor your finances closely. You are likely to win the day on the professional front by your original ideas. Leo JULY 24 - AUGUST 23 Some of you may feel the home environment serene and restful. There is a fair chance of some property getting allotted to you. Good opportunities are likely to appear on the academic front. Good health is assured through own efforts. A healthy bank balance will allow you to buy a major item. Libra SEPTEMBER 24 - OCTOBER 22 You may find it difficult to convince a family member regarding something you want to achieve. Clarity of mind and retentive power will help you forge ahead on the academic front. Some of you can safely say goodbye to depression, as positivity enters your life once again. Sagittarius NOVEMBER 23 - DECEMBER 22 Things are likely to move favourably on the professional front. Health may become a concern. You will need to muster all your persuasive powers to swing a deal in your favour. Good negotiating skills are likely to bring a lucrative deal within your grasp on the professional front. Aquarius JANUARY 21 - FEBRUARY 19 Someone close may pay you a visit and brighten your You will get the opportunity to acquire new property at a good price. Health may become a concern. Think twice before investing in anything big. A healthy debate with someone in the knows is likely to open up your mind to the possibilities. Taurus APRIL 21 - MAY 20 Your performance may leave you feeling good today on professional or academic front. A diet plan adopted recently will suit your system well. Maintain confidentiality regarding a property deal being negotiated by you. A chance for an outing with lover finally arrives. Luck favours you on the academic front. Cancer JUNE 22 - JULY 23 A new health routine may start giving health benefits right away. You gel well with a new acquaintance. Opportunities to further your career will come only if you make efforts. Self-discipline may help you achieve peak physical fitness. Financial scene is likely to stabilise. Virgo AUGUST 24 - SEPTEMBER 23 A new plot, house or apartment can be acquired by some.Be more assertive in dealing with workplace issues, otherwise you can be taken for granted by others. Joining an online exercise routine is indicated and will prove beneficial. Those trying to boost income may figure out newer ways. Scorpio OCTOBER 23 - NOVEMBER 22 Positive steps may be required to be taken to restore perfect health. It will be in your interest to speed up a financial transaction. You will come out with flying colours in a competitive situation on the academic front. Appreciation for the work done on the professional front is in the pipeline for some. Capricorn DECEMBER 23 - JANUARY 20 Your initiative will help mend fences with someone you were not in talking terms. Academic pursuits will be fruitful. Taking up a regular fitness routine will help you get into shape. Increase in household expenditure is possible, so take all steps to cut it down. Pisces FEBRUARY 20 - MARCH 20 Do not misunderstand the motives of someone trying to help you. A friendly bet with a friend or a colleague may turn into a fight, so be careful. Will power, will be your key to remain in shape. An exciting time lies ahead as travelling with friends is foreseen. You are set to grow professionally. ROME WAS NOT BUILT IN ROME WAS NOT BUILT IN A DAY NEITHER DOES ART A DAY NEITHER DOES ART t's been 5 years of being a charcoal artist, I've learnt the art form from Kalaneri Art Academy, one of the most re- nowned and prestigious academies in Jaipur. Charcoal art is to develop a pieceof artusingrawcharcoalor charred (burnt) sticks of wood. This is performed on varieties of sheets but handmade sheets are exceptional in respect to the out- come of a portrait or painting. Charcoal on a handmade sheet is the most challenging and the artist needs to be cau- tious throughout as there is no way to rectification of a mis- take, or else the sheet gets dam- aged. To perform the art on such sheets the artist needs to have a high degree of focus, patience and well versed in techniques involved in this medium as the creation of large size paintings takes several months to com- plete. Charcoal comes in differ- ent forms like brick sticks, pen- cils, powder or raw sticks. This art form has often been misinterpreted as fire art, How- ever, both of them are complete- ly different as fire art uses per- manent impression by balanc- ing the burning chemicals over a chemically protected sheet whereas charcoal is creating art by using a burnt piece of wood (raw charcoal) over the paper. The main characteristic of charcoal as a medium is that, unless it is fixed by the applica- tion of some form of gum or resin, it is impermanent, easily erased or smudged and the fix- ing process can only be done once the painting is completed so the artist has to be careful while making an art piece. The Artist community faces many challenges to earn from this profession. Customers ap- preciate and are desirous of such art pieces, but are reluc- tant to pay for the efforts and hard work an artist put into cre- ate such unique and brilliant work. We shall not only embrace but also endow an artist. I MAHIMA TEWARI CHARCOAL ARTIST Charcoal art by Mahima Tewari Charcoal art by Mahima Tewari YOUR DAY Horoscopeby SaurabbhSachdeva Whatsapp Subscription Subscribe “First India” Daily E-News Paper For Free On Whatsapp To Receive the Most Exclusive News from the Power Corridors of Rajasthan Delhi.
  • 12. ETC www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia NEW DELHI | MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022 11 HONOURING LIFESAVERS Some more glimpses from Rajasthan Healthcare Summit and Doctor’s Award, which was organised at Hotel Ramada on Wednesday May 18. During the ceremony, many prominent doctors and medical facilities of the State were felicitated with distinguished awards for their impeccable work in their field of interests. Total 13 distinct awards ranging from ‘Best Tertiary Care Hospital’, ‘Best Multi--speciality Hospital’, to ‘Inspiring Icon of Pharma Industry’, ‘Appreciation on Ayurveda’, ‘Award for excellence were awarded. Sudhanshu Mathur welcoming the Special guest Mamta Bhupesh Surbhi Mathur and Aadesh Srivastava of MEDOCI recieving the award Manjeet Grover of Fortis Hospital receiving the award Lt Col Manan Mukul of Surya Hospital receiving the award Piyush Rastogi of Narayana Hridyalya Hospital receiving the award Sudhanshu Mathur, Dr Subash Garg, Prasadi Lal Meena and Dinesh Mathur during the lamp lighting Neeraj Dhawan of Vrozart Diagnostics receiving the award Mamta Bhupesh addressing the audience. Also seen are Dr Subash Garg, Parsadi Lal Meena and Sudhanshu Mathur Shaan, Ashish, Vishal, Dinesh, Dr Deepak Agarwal, Aditya Raj Santosh, Mahendra, Dinesh, Naveen and Sarish Tanvi, Dr Bharat Rajpurohit, Dr Naresh Somani, Dr Sunanda Dadich, Ravi, Dr Jitendra, Dr Kapil and Jitesh Rawat Lt Col Manan Mukul, Ayush Jain, Shivpal Ranwa and Prabhu Gujar with a guest Navin Jindal, Dr Suhasani Jai, Sachin Singh and Rahul Mathur S K Mathur, Nandita and Shubhi Dinesh Sharma, Mohan Sharma, Neeraj Gupta, Aadesh Srivastava, Neeraj Dhawan and Sunil Sakina Hussain Khadiza, Charu Kulshrestha, Shoba Arya and Pragya Bhatt KC Bansal,Dr Subash Garg, Parsadi Lal Meena and Sudhanshu Mathur Sudhanshu Mathur and Ashok Singh Shweta, Pari and Dimple Prasadi Lal Meena, Health Minister addressing the audience. Also seen are Dr Subash Garg and Sudhanshu Mathur —PHOTOS BY SANTOSH SHARMA MUKESH KIRADOO