25052022_First India_Mumbai.pdf

LOBBIES OF IAS BATTLE FOR MAHA SUPREMACY
Renni Abraham
Mumbai: Maharashtra
has imported IAS offic-
er Asheesh Sharma, a
1997 Maharashtra-cadre
officer from New Delhi,
and appointed him as
the Additional Munici-
pal Commissioner
(AMC) in the Brihan-
mumbai Municipal Cor-
poration (BMC). The
civic post was previous-
ly held by BMC officer
Suresh Kakani, who re-
cently retired.
Orders for Sharma’s
induction into Maha-
rashtra were issued by
General Administra-
tion Department (GAD)
secretary Sujata Saunik
here on Tuesday, with
the buzz in the corri-
dors of the state secre-
tariat being that it has
strengthened the
Saunik-led faction with-
in the IAS community
officed at Mantralaya.
As reported by First
Indiaearlierthismonth,
Shiv Sena Chief Minis-
ter Uddhav Thackeray’s
Sarkar has over the last
two-and-a-half years
consolidated its hold
over the bureaucracy
with officers close to
erstwhile CM Devendra
Fadnavis having slowly
made their way towards
Central-deputation
posts out of Maharash-
tra.
One IAS officer told
First India, “While it is
true that factions of IAS
officers exist in Mantra-
laya, it is also true that
some officers get caught
in the crossfire of per-
ceived proximity to one
faction or another. This
is often detrimental to
more conscientious IAS
officials who suffer due
to mistaken perceptions
and fabricated associa-
tions attributed to
them.”
The IAS faction—“A
company”—that rules
the roost in the state
secretariat now is be-
lieved to be helmed by
former Chief Secretary
Ajoy Mehta, advisor to
CM Thackeray and
headed by a woman IAS
officer who enjoys the
confidence of the
Sarkar aka Uddhav
Thackeray
.
Such is the power
wielded by the A com-
pany, that even minis-
ters in the MVA govern-
ment, including NCP’s
Jayantrao Patil and
Congress Minister Ni-
tin Raut were unable to
get their preferred sec-
retaries appointed to
their respective depart-
ments after being stone-
walled by the GAD.
Meanwhile, the “B
company”—comprising
serving bureaucrats at
Mantralaya—is be-
lieved to be to led by an-
other CM advisor, who
is also a former CS that
helps maintain the bal-
ance of power at Man-
tralaya, where the seat
of power is firmly con-
trolled by Sarkar.
MNS accuses Sharad Pawar of Ayodhya plot against Raj Thackeray
Renni Abraham
Mumbai: Maharashtra
Navnirman Sena (MNS)
chief Raj Thackeray’s
decision to defer his
planned Ayodhya visit
on June 05 was allegedly
taken after he learnt of
a conspiracy being
hatched against him
based out of Maharash-
tra.
“The Ayodhya visit
(to seek the blessing of
Lord Rama) was an-
nounced by Raj Saheb
over a year and a half
ago.Therewerenoques-
tions asked or demands
raised since then. It is
only after his public
rally on Gudi Padwa day
where he cited NCP
leader Sharad Pawar
thattheobjectionsto the
proposed Ayodhya visit
first emanated from Ut-
tar Pradesh,” MNS lead-
er Sandeep Deshpande
told First India.
“The demand for the
apology was made by
Brij Bhushan Sharan
Singh only after Raj Sa-
heb cited Pawar Saheb
in his public rally
. It is
quite simple to under-
stand if you read be-
tween the lines; Maha-
rashtriansareverywell-
versed with political
machinations and are
capable of reading be-
tween the lines,” he
added.
“We have authentic
information about MP
Brij Bhushan Singh
having met with Sharad
Pawar and Shiv Sena
MP Sanjay Raut. The po-
litical conspiracy, in all
likelihood, was hatched
in New Delhi, where
this meeting took place.
The BJP MP has been
looking to revive his
flagging political image,
conscious of the fact
that, despite serving
multipletermsasMP
,he
has not made the cut to
find a place in Narendra
Modi’s cabinet,” anoth-
er MNS leader said but
asked not to be named
for fear of professional
blowback.
As reported earlier by
First India, MP Singh’s
challenge to Raj Thack-
eray
, daring him to visit
Ayodhya, is in contra-
diction to the official
party line of the BJP as
PM Narendra Modi and
UP CM Yogi Adityanath
have categorically stat-
ed that no obstructions
may be created for any-
body visiting the Ram
temple in Ayodhya.
Persons in the BJP
privy to the develop-
ments say Singh may
face consequences for
his political grand-
standing against the
party line and may even
lose the chance to con-
test the 2024 Lok Sabha
elections on a BJP tick-
et.
“Even his own son
was elected as an MLA
in the recently conclud-
ed state assembly elec-
tions of Uttar Pradesh
that was fought using
the face of PM Modi and
UP CM Yogi. Yogi had
planned to host Raj
Thackeray at the Ayod-
hya government guest-
house even before Sin-
gh’s protests. There are
always consequences to
such political grand-
standing that contra-
dicts the party leader-
ship,” a senior BJP
leader said.
Party leader cites Thackeray’s
Gudi Padwa speech against Pawar
as cause for latter’s ‘conspiracy’
with BJP MP to trap MNS Chief
Raj Thackeray Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh Sharad Pawar
New Delhi import Asheesh Sharma
takes charge as Additional Municipal
Commissioner at BMC
KEJRIWAL’S
1ST
KILL
IN PUNJAB
GETS SACKED, ARRESTED
HIS OWN HEALTH MINISTER
ON CORRUPTION CHARGES
VijaySingla
senttopolice
remandtill
May27
Chandigarh: Punjab
Chief Minister Bhag-
want Mann on Tuesday
said he has shunted out
Health Minister Vijay
Singla from the state
Cabinet. Singla has
been arrested by Anti-
Corruption cell of the
Punjab Police.
Singla was taken to
the Phase VII police sta-
tion in Mohali. An FIR
number 65 under Sec-
tions 7 and 8 of the Pre-
vention of Corruption
Act has been registered
against Vijay Singla. He
was later presented be-
fore the court of
Ravtesh Inderjit Singh,
which sent him to a
3-day police remand till
May 27.
PROUD OF YOU
BHAGWANT
‘AAP HAS ZERO-
TOLERANCE
AGAINST
CORRUPTION’
New Delhi: AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal
on Tuesday said he is proud of Punjab
Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann for sacking
Punjab Minister Vijay Singla over corruption
allegations. “Proud of you Bhagwant. Ur action
has brought tears to my eyes. The whole nation
today feels proud of AAP,” Kejriwal tweeted.
Chandigarh: The
Punjab Chief Minister
Bhagwant Mann said
that the Aam Aadmi
Party (AAP) has a
zero-tolerance policy
against corruption.
He said that he has
sacked Singla from
cabinet and directed
Police to register a
case against him.
According to Punjab
CMO, Singla was de-
manding 1% commis-
sion from officials for
contracts and he also
confessed to it.
Vijay Singla has been arrested by Anti-Corruption cell of the Punjab Police on Tuesday.
CHINA & RUSSIA’S MESSAGE FOR QUAD
TU-95MS & Xian H-6
bombers fly over Japan Sea
...as PM Modi, President Biden and
other leaders held Quad Summit
Tokyo: Russian fighter
jets carried out joint
flights over Sea of Ja-
pan and East China Sea
on Tuesday. Russia de-
fence ministry in its
statement claimed that
exercise lasted 13 hours
over the Japanese and
East China seas & in-
volved Russian Tu-95,
Chinese Xian H-6 stra-
tegic bombers. “Aair-
craft of both countries
acted strictly in accord-
ance with provisions of
int’l law. No violations
of foreign airspace re-
ported,” statement said.
(From right) Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Japanese Prime
Minister Fumio Kishida, US President Joe Biden, & Australian
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, issue a joint statement after
convening the Quad Summit in Tokyo on Tuesday. More on P6
The strategic
relationship
between
India and the US is
truly a “partnership
of trust” and the
friendship will
continue to be a
“force for good” for
global peace and
stability.
—Narendra Modi,
Prime Minister
Committed to
making America’s
partnership with
India among the
closest on earth,
saying there is
so much that the
two countries
can and will do
together.
—Joe Biden,
USA President
Japan, the United States, India and
Australia plan to invest at least $50
billion into infrastructure projects in the
Asia-Pacific region
—Fumio Kishida, Japanese PM
Our relationship with India is a very
important one and it was a great honour
to meet with Prime Minister Modi.
—Anthony Albanese, Australian PM
CRUCIAL READ
PROTEST OVER
RENAMING DIST
AFTER AMBEDKAR
Patiala: Fierce clashes and
arson broke out in AP’s
Amalapuram city on Tuesday
as protesters rallied against
the government’s move to
rename the newly created
Konaseema district after Dr B
R Ambedkar. The protesters
set fire to the house of
ruling YSRCP MLA from
Mummidivaram, P Satish,
police said. More on P6
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/mumbai I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
MUMBAI l WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2022 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI TITLE NO. MAHENG/2022/14652 l Vol 1 l Issue No. 19
OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR, LUCKNOW, NEW DELHI MUMBAI
COAL INDIA TO OPEN BIG, NEW MINE THIS YEAR TO FIGHT
POWER CRISIS: OUTPUT FROM NEW SIARMAL MINE IN ODISHA
WOULD RISE GRADUALLY, REACHING CAPACITY OF 50 MN
TONNES IN ABOUT 5-7 YEARS, VINAYAK JAMWAL, SPOKESMAN
FOR COAL INDIA UNIT MAHANADI COALFIELDS SAID
BJP’S TOP LEADERS AND MINISTERS
WILL MEET TODAY AND PLAN FOR THE
EVENTS TO MARK 8 YEARS OF THE
NARENDRA MODI-LED CENTRAL GOVT
HUSBAND OF VISMAYA, A STUDENT WHO
HANGED HERSELF IN KERALA’S KOLLAM
DISTRICT IN 2021 WAS SENTENCED TO 10
YEARS IN JAIL FOR DOWRY DEATH
JK COP KILLED,
DAUGHTER HURT
IN SRINAGAR
Srinagar: A JK policeman
Saifullah Qadri, died on
Tuesday when terrorists
opened fire in Srinagar’s
Soura area. His 9-year-old
daughter also got injured.

NEWS
MUMBAI | WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2022
02
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Accusing
the state govern-
ment of not bring-
ing down fuel prices
from its end, Maha-
rashtra Leader of
Opposition Deven-
dra Fadnavis on
Tuesday claimed
that it is the state
government that is
behind the higher
rate of petrol and
diesel. He said that
while the state
charges Rs30 as ex-
cise duty on a litre
of petrol, the Centre
imposes only Rs19.
“After the Union
government intro-
duced cuts on excise
duty; the Central and
state taxes on a litre
of petrol stand at Rs19
and Rs30 respectively
.
Please tell me who is
now behind the high-
er rates of petrol and
diesel,” Fadnavis said
at a state-level meet-
ing of Bharatiya Ja-
nata Party (BJP) lead-
ers.
In an attempt to
control retail infla-
tion, the Union gov-
ernment had reduced
excise duty, resulting
in a drop in retail pet-
rol price by Rs9.50 per
litre and Rs7 per litre
in the case of diesel.
The BJP has since
been mounting pres-
sure on Maharashtra
government to slash
state excise duty fur-
ther to offer relief to
consumers.
Fadnavis further
claimed that though
there has been a con-
cern at the interna-
tional level about in-
flation, Prime Minis-
ter Narendra Modi
took the decision to
reduce excise duty to
offer some relief to
the common man.
“The Centre did not
touch the share of the
state government that
it earns from higher
excise duties. The
Centre will bear a loss
of Rs2.20 lakh crore
annually from these
cuts,” Fadnavis
claimed.
The former chief
minister also called
out the state govern-
ment over its failure
to obtain a quota for
the Other Backward
Classes (OBCs) in the
local bodies’ election.
First India Bureau
Nagpur: Maharash-
tra Higher and Tech-
nical Education Min-
ister Uday Samant
on Tuesday said the
upcoming examina-
tions of non-agricul-
ture universities in
the state will be held
offline, as decided by
vice-chancellors of
the institutions.
Talking to reporters
in Nagpur, Samant
said, “Students must
understand that exams
had earlier been can-
celled and later also
conducted online in
the wake of the COV-
ID-19 pandemic wave.”
“If we keep conduct-
ing the exams online,
it would raise a ques-
tion mark on whether
the industry will ac-
cept such students.
Hence, the examina-
tions will now be con-
ducted as per direc-
tions of the universi-
ties and in offline
mode,” the minister
added.
He said the decision
to hold the exams of-
fline was not taken by
the state government,
but by the vice-chan-
cellors of 13 non-agri-
culture universities.
The minister was re-
plying to a query about
a few students demand-
ing exams through the
online mode.
On April 02 this
year, the Maharash-
tra state government
had lifted all COV-
ID-19 pandemic-re-
lated restrictions,
including the wear-
ing of face masks in
public places.
‘Exams of Maharashtra’s non-agri universities to be held offline’
BACK TO NORMAL
lll
Higher
Technical Edu
Minister Uday
Samant said
that the
decision was
taken by vice-
chancellors of
13 educational
institutions Move comes despite demand by few students to hold exams online.
First India Bureau
Mumbai: In a snub to
former Rajya Sabha
MP
, Chhatrapati
Sambhajiraje, Shiv
Sena Chief Spokes-
person, Sanjay Raut,
on Tuesday an-
nounced the party’s
decision to field Kol-
hapur district Pres-
ident Sanjay Pa-
war as the second
candidate in the
upcoming Rajya
Sabha polls.
The Shiv Sena will
contest two Rajya Sab-
ha seats and ensure vic-
tory in both, asserted
Raut, whom the party
has given a fourth con-
secutive term in the Up-
per House of Parlia-
ment.
“Sanjay Pawar is
Shiv Sena’s mavala (sol-
dier) and (Sena chief)
Uddhav Thackeray has
decided to give him can-
didature. But the offi-
cial announcement will
be done soon,” said
Raut.
Six Rajya Sabha seats
from the state will go to
polls next month, with
the Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) having the
numbers to get two of
its candidates elected.
The Shiv Sena, Na-
tionalist Congress Par-
ty (NCP) and the Con-
gress-- who comprise
the ruling Maha Vikas
Aghadi in the state--
have enough votes to
secure one win each.
While together, they
can win the sixth seat
as well, for which the
Sena has thrown its hat
in the ring.
However, Chhatrapa-
ti Sambhajiraje, a de-
scendant of Chhatra-
pati Shivaji, decided to
contest as an independ-
ent candidate.
He had approached
the Sena last week and
sought its support. The
Sena assured him sup-
port provided he joined
the party, a proposal de-
clined by Sambhajiraje.
Taking a dig at him,
Raut said on Tuesday,
“Kings are kings be-
cause of soldiers.”
Asserting that the
chapter for the sixth RS
seat is now over, Raut
said, “We respect him
(Chhatrapati Sambhaji-
raje), his family and the
throne, which is why we
asked him to join the
Shiv Sena so that he can
contest as the sixth can-
didate for the polls.
Mumbai (PTI): The
Maharashtra State
Election Commission
(SEC) on Monday
wrote to commission-
ers of 13 municipal
corporations about
holding ward reserva-
tion lottery ahead of
polls in these civic
bodies.
The 13 civic bodies
are Navi Mumbai, Va-
sai-Virar, Kalyan-Dom-
bivali, Kolhapur, Thane,
Ulhasnagar, Nashik,
Pune, Pimpri-Chinch-
wad, Solapur, Amrava-
ti, Akola and Nagpur.
As per guidelines,
civic bodies have to is-
sue a notification for
reservation of wards
for women from Sched-
uled Caste (SC), Sched-
uled Tribe (ST) and
open categories on May
27, while lottery selec-
tion for such reserva-
tion will be held on May
31.
“After the lottery, the
civic bodies have to pub-
lish the proforma of
ward-wise reservation
on June 01. After the
forms and objections
are considered, the final
ward-wise reservation
list will be published in
the gazette on June 13,”
said an official.
First India Bureau
Mumbai: The city of
Mumbai on Tuesday
reported 218 COV-
ID-19 cases, which
was a substantial rise
from the 150 cases
registered a day ear-
lier, taking the tally
in the metropolis to
10,63,276. Its death
toll remained un-
changed at 19,566,
said a civic official.
Meanwhile, Maha-
rashtra recorded 338
COVID-19 cases, the
highest since March 09,
taking the tally in the
state to 78,83,348, while
one death put the toll at
1,47,857,
Mumbai accounted
for 218 of the new cases,
while the lone death
was reported in Kalyan
Dombivali Municipal
Corporation limits in
Thane district.
It was also the eighth
consecutive day when
the addition to the
Mumbai case tally was
above the 100-mark.
The state health de-
partment data showed
that Nandurbar, Dhule,
Jalna, Latur Hingoli,
Buldhana, Yavatmal,
Wardha and Gondia
had no active cases.
EXPRESSING DISSENT
Nurses of the Maharashtra state government-run JJ Hospital continued their protest against privatization for the second
consecutive day, in Mumbai on Tuesday. —PHOTO BY BHUSHAN KOYANDE
Women’s poll ward
reservation lottery
schedule announced
Hike in Mumbai nCoV
cases; accounts for
218 of 338 in Maha
Mumbai: Keeping
in line with the
party's resolu-
tion of 'one per-
son one post', Ma-
harashtra Con-
gress working
president Naseem
Khan resigned as
head of the par-
ty's Mumbai cam-
paign committee
on Tuesday.
Khan, a former
minister in the Ma-
harashtra govern-
ment, informed in
a statement about
quitting the party
post in Mumbai.
The move comes
a day after the state
Congress unit held
meetings with its
top leaders. It was
also decided to im-
plement the ‘one
person one post’
rule, as decided at
the 'Chintan Shivir'
held in Udaipur
earlier this month.
Naseem
Khan resigns
from Cong’s
Mumbai post
SHIV SENA SNUBS SAMBHAJIRAJE
RAJYA SABHA POLLS
KOLHAPUR UNIT CHIEF SANJAY PAWAR TO BE
FIELDED BY PARTY AS SECOND CANDIDATE: RAUT FadnavisslamsMahagovt
overhighexcisedutyonfuel
The Cen-
tre did
not touch
the share of the
state government
that it earns from
higher excise du-
ties. The Centre
will bear a loss of
Rs2.20 lakh
crore annually
from these cuts.
—Devendra Fadnavis,
Maharashtra Assembly LoP
Kings are kings because of soldiers. We respect him (Chhatra-
pati Sambhajiraje), his family and the throne, which is why
we asked him to join the Shiv Sena so that he can contest as the
sixth candidate for the polls. But, he wants to go to the Rajya Sabha
polls and contest as an independent for which he will need 42 votes.
—Sanjay Raut, Shiv Sena Chief Spokesperson
TRADITIONAL CEREMONIES TO BE HELD
AT CONVOCATIONS FROM NEXT YEAR?
Samant on Tuesday
also said that con-
vocation ceremonies
will be conducted as per
Maharashtrian tradition
in universities from next
year.The state minister
for higher and techni-
cal education made the
statement during the
convocation ceremony at
Government Polytechnic
in Nagpur. Addressing the
gathering, Samant said
convocation ceremonies
should be conducted as
per Maharashtrian tradi-
tion (marathmola) and
not in the colonial way.
Convocation ceremonies
are generally so long that
many people literally go
to sleep. Besides, the
pin-drop silence during
such events does not look
good, he said. Starting
next year, convocations
will be conducted as per
Maharashtrian tradi-
tion (Marathmola) with
enthusiasm and fanfare,
Samant said.
Sanjay Raut Chhatrapati Sambhajiraje
Naseem Khan
—FILE PHOTO

MAHARASHTRA
03
Trekker who went
missing in Lonavala
forest found dead
First India Bureau
Pune: A search team
on Tuesday discov-
ered the body of a
24-year-old tourist
who went missing
while visiting Lonav-
ala four days ago sev-
eral feet deep in a
gorge, officials said.
“On Tuesday, we
found the body at a
depth of 500 ft in a gorge
near the Duke’s Nose
point,” an official said.
Police recovered the
body with the help of a
dog squad later in the
day and sent it for post-
mortem.
Delhi-based engineer
Farhan Serajjuddin had
been on a sightseeing
trip to Lonavala, located
around 65km from Pune
city. He lost his way
when he went to the
Duke’s Nose, a view-
point popular with trek-
kers, they said.
He had initially man-
agedtocontacthisbroth-
er and some friends on
his mobile phone to in-
form them that he had
losthiswaybutthephone
was later inaccessible.
Serajjuddinhadbeenun-
traceable since then, po-
lice had said earlier.
Personnel of the Na-
tional Disaster Re-
sponse Force (NDRF),
INS Shivaji naval sta-
tion in Lonavala, Pune
rural police and some
local groups were
searching for the man
since the last three
days.
READ
crucial
crucial
2 ARRESTED FOR KILLING MAN
ON SUSPICION OF MOBILE THEFT
RAIL TRAFFIC AFFECTED DURING PEAK
HOURS AS TRAIN RUNS OVER CATTLE
Maharashtra
Maharashtra
TWO DIE AS BOAT CARRYING TOURISTS
CAPSIZES OFF SINDHUDURG COAST
Mumbai: Two people died after a boat carrying
tourists capsized in the Arabian Sea off the Malvan
coast in Sindhudurg district on Tuesday, police
said. The boat carrying nearly 20 tourists who
were returning after scuba-diving capsized mid-
sea, officials said. On being alerted, police and
rescue teams rushed to the spot and rescued the
tourists from the water. The visitors were rushed
to a rural hospital in Maval where two of them
were declared dead before admission, the official
said, adding that another person was in a serious
condition. The deceased persons hailed from
Akola and Pune, he said.
Palghar: Police have arrested two persons for alleged-
ly beating to death a 32-year-old man on suspicion of
stealing their mobile phones here in Maharashtra, an
official said on Tuesday. The incident took place on the
intervening night of Saturday and Sunday. The body
of Pradeep Mejasar was found near a railway track
in Nallasopara area of Palghar district on Sunday, an
official from the Mira Bhayander-Vasai Virar police
control room said. After the post-mortem, the police
registered a case under Indian Penal Code Section
302 (murder) and arrested the two persons, Udayban
Prasad (20) and Omprakash Pawar (21), from Achole
village in Nallasopara area, the official said.
Mumbai: Local train services were disrupted on the
mainline of the Central Railway after some cattle were
run over on the tracks by a local train going towards
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) around
5.15 pm, said Shivaji Sutar, chief public relations of-
ficer of Central Railway. Trains operating from Karjat
towards Kalyan were affected, and since the incident
occurred during the peak hours, the operations
of local and long-distance trains were delayed, he
said. However, rail traffic was restored after one
and half hours. Earlier in the day, the suburban
services on the Harbour Line of the Central Railway
were hit due to power issues during the morning
peak hours.
ED probe unearths Nawab
Malik’s links with D-company
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Nationalist
Congress Party (NCP)
leader Nawab Malik
has had links with fu-
gitive gangster Da-
wood Ibrahim’s D-
company, an investi-
gation of the Enforce-
ment Directorate
(ED) against him in
connection with a
money laundering
case, has revealed.
The ED has filed a
prosecution complaint
(chargesheet) before
the Special PMLA court
in Mumbai. It elabo-
rately mentioned Ma-
lik’s alleged link to the
D-company, and pur-
ported conspiracy to
“usurp” the Goawala
building compound in
Kurla West in 1996.
Dawood Ibrahim’s
nephew Alishah Parkar
was questioned by ED
officials in Mumbai on
Monday, regarding the
gang’s activities in
Mumbai and other are-
as of the country.
Alishah is the son of
Dawood’s sister, Hasee-
na Parkar, who died in
2014 after suffering a
heart attack.
Alishah Parkar has
given a statement to ED
under Section 50 of the
Prevention of Money
LaunderingAct(PMLA),
2002 during the investi-
gationof thecaseagainst
Malik. He has claimed
that until her death, his
mother (Haseena) was
involved in financial
transactions with Da-
wood Ibrahim for a long
time. He also mentioned
SalimPatel,whowasone
of his mother’s associ-
ates. Salim Patel was an
oniontraderanddabbled
in property dealings
with Haseena.
Alishah further stat-
ed that Haseena Parkar
and Salim Patel had set-
tled the dispute over the
Goawala building and
took over part of the
compound by opening
an office there.
She sold a portion of
the Goawala building
controlled by her to
Nawab Malik, he added.
He was not aware of the
money paid by Nawab
Malik to his mother and
Patel, the chargesheet
pointed out.
A special court on
Friday took cognizance
of the Enforcement Di-
rectorate’s chargesheet
against Malik and said,
“There is prima facie
evidence to indicate
Malik was directly and
knowingly involved in
the money laundering
and criminal conspira-
cy with others to usurp
Goawala compound in
Kurla.” The court has
issued a process against
him and the 1993 bomb
blast case accused Sard-
ar Shahwali Khan.
Dawood’s
nephew Alishah
Parkar reveals
info about sale
of Goawala bldg
portion to NCP
leader
REVELATIONS
Nationalist Congress Party leader Nawab Malik
Lashkar-e-Taiba ‘recruiter’
arrested by ATS from Pune
First India Bureau
Mumbai/Pune: The
Maharashtra Anti-
Terrorism Squad
(ATS) on Tuesday
arrested a 28-year-
old man from Pune
for his alleged role
in the recruitment
of terrorists for the
banned outfit
Lashkar-e-Taiba
(LeT) from various
states, a senior offi-
cial said.
The accused, iden-
tified as Junaid Mo-
hammed Ata Moham-
med, was nabbed
from Pune’s Dapodi
area and produced in
a court in that city
which remanded him
in the ATS custody
till June 3.
The suspect was in
touch with active
members of Pakistan-
based LeT’s terror
network through so-
cial media platforms,
the official said.
Though originally a
native of Khamgaon
village of Buldhana
district in the Vidarb-
ha region, Junaid Mo-
hammed had been
working in Pune in
western Maharash-
tra, around 200km
from Mumbai, since
the last few years, he
said, but did not dis-
close his profession.
He was apprehend-
ed by the ATS Pune
unit after his alleged
connection with LeT
members came to
light, he said.
Junaid Moham-
med was assigned the
task of recruiting
new members for the
LeT from various
states, the official
said, adding as part
of his mandate he
tried to take fresh re-
cruits to Jammu and
Kashmir to train
them to carry out ter-
ror activities in the
country.
Suspect was in touch with active members
of LeT’s terror network through social media
platforms; was assigned the task of
recruiting new members for the organisation
Farhan Serajuddin had gone to
the Nagphani area for a hike
and lost his way in the forests.
UP man sends obscene pictures to female doctor, held
First India Bureau
Mumbai: A 24-year-
old man from Uttar
Pradesh has been ar-
rested for allegedly
sending obscene pic-
tures to a female doc-
tor employed at a hos-
pital in the western
suburb of Bandra.
Based on a complaint
lodged by the 35-year-
old doctor from civic
body-run Bhabha Hos-
pital, the police on Mon-
day apprehended Krish-
na Singh Jai Kumar
Singh from Ballia in
Uttar Pradesh, said an
official of Bandra po-
lice on Tuesday
.
The police are on the
lookout for Singh’s ac-
complice identified as
Prince, a former ward
boy of the hospital.
The doctor had ap-
proached the police last
week alleging that some-
onewassendingobscene
pictures to her mobile
phone from an unknown
number. During the
probe, the police found
that Prince had been ar-
rested for committing a
similarcrimeinthepast,
and this time around he
had done so along with
Singh, said the official.
City police reached
Singh’s native place and
found that he was using
his younger brother’s
phone to send obscene
pictures to the doctor
and he was subsequent-
ly nabbed with the help
of the local police.
The accused has been
arrested under section
509 (word, gesture or act
intended to insult the
modesty of a woman) .
Shafali, Wolvaardt dazzle as Velocity beat Supernovas
Pune (PTI): The
swashbuckling Sha-
fali Verma blazed
away at the top before
Laura Wolvaardt’s un-
beaten half-century as
Velocity overhauled a
stiff target to get the
better of Supernovas
by seven wickets in
the Women’s T20
Challenge on Tuesday
.
Set a target of 151 af-
ter opting to field, Ve-
locity completed the
chase with 10 balls to
spare.
After Shafali’s breezy
knock of 51 in 33 balls,
Laura Wolvaardt (51 off
35 balls) and Deepti
Sharma (24 not out) saw
their side home com-
fortably
.
Chasing a challeng-
ing target, Velocity lost
Natthakan Chantham
(01) early but the big-
hitting Shafali decided
to go all guns blazing as
the team raced to 60 for
the loss of only one
wicket by the time the
six Powerplay overs
came to an end.
Shafali reached her
half-century in quick
time, needing only 28
runs to get to the land-
mark. She did so in
style, pulling Deandra
Dottin for a boundary
over midwicket.
Though she managed
to score only 17 off 13
balls, Yastika Bhatia
scored runs when the
team needed it the most.
Earlier, skipper Har-
manpreet Kaur top-
scored with a blistering
51-ball 71 runs as Super-
novas posted 150 for five.
The Velocity team
opted to bowl after win-
ning the toss and their
bowlers did a decent job
before Supernovas’
Harmanpreet’s on-
slaught.
SHAFALI TO THE AID
CAREFREE DAYS OF SUMMER
CAREFREE DAYS OF SUMMER Youngsters play in
the water as dark
monsoon clouds
hover in the sky
at Badhwar park,
Colaba in Mumbai
on Tuesday.
—PHOTO BY PTI
Laura Wolvaardt
and Deepti
Sharma led their
team to a seven-
wicket win.

PERSPECTIVE
04
l Vol 1 l Issue No. 19
l RNI TITLE NO.
MAHENG/2022/14652 Printed
and published by
Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of
First Express Publishers. Printed
at Dangat Media Pvt Ltd, No.22,
Dighe MIDC, Vishnu Nagar,
TTC Industrial Area, Dighe, Navi
Mumbai-400701. Published
at Plot No. 3 Scheme C of
Manglorean Garden Home, CHS
Limited, Survey No. 5, 6C (Part)
Ville Parle East, Mumbai 400057.
Editor-In-Chief: Jagdeesh Chandra
Editor: Anita Hada Sangwan
responsible for selection of news
under the PRB Act
SPIRITUAL SPEAK
Resolutely train yourself
to attain peace.
—Buddha
IN-DEPTH
Amit Shah
@AmitShah
Kartar Singh Sarabha was such a
brave fighter of the freedom movement
who, with his courage and patriotism,
awakened the spirit of Independence
not only in the country but also among
the Indians living abroad. Salute to
him on the birth anniversary of such
an immortal martyr who laid down his
life for the freedom of the motherland
at a young age.
Piyush Goyal
@PiyushGoyal
A pleasure to meet my friend @
ThaniAlZeyoudi, Minister of State
for Foreign Trade, UAE. With
#IndiaUAECEPA operationalised
Start-up Bridge launched, discussed
how the deal can further translate
into quick gains by facilitating deeper
engagement between businesses.
TOP TWEETS
EVEN AS RUSSIA
BATTLES UKRAINE,
JOE BIDEN WARNS
CHINA OVER TAIWAN
s the 77-year-old
American President
Joe Biden, described
by Barack Obama as
a “lion of American
history” bent on changing his
country’s nuanced stand on Chi-
na vis-à-vis Taiwan? With the
next Presidential elections due
in 2024, Biden is adopting a more
aggressive posture against Chi-
na than witnessed earlier. In Ja-
pan for the Quad meet, Biden
warned China of “militarily”
helping Taiwan. He likened Tai-
wan with Ukraine to raise the
hackles of Beijing which claims
Taiwan to be part of its territory
.
This was not the first time that
Biden vowed to defend Taiwan.
Thechangeinhistonehasdrawn
the attention of analysts, al-
though the White House denies
anydeparturefromWashington’s
earlier policy on China. Biden
also stated that the US policy to-
wards China “has not changed”.
In the long term the US ap-
proach will hinge on the out-
come of the Russia-Ukraine war.
If sanctions have the desired
effect on Russia, China may
probably stop “flirting with dan-
ger” even in the Indo-Pacific.
I
upreme Court’s la-
ment on judges be-
ing subjected to
assault should be
viewedinconjunc-
tion with Chief Justice of In-
dia NV Ramana and Justice
Surya Kant’s earlier observa-
tion that besides CCTV “there
needs to be something effec-
tive on ground” to prevent
“terrorismandattackonjudg-
es”. Justice had also observed
that in the light of increasing
cases on intimidation and at-
tacksonmembersof judiciary
a special protection force for
judges was required and em-
phasised the state’s obligation
to protect them. In fact recent-
lytheCJIregrettedthatjudges
were not a priority for investi-
gative authorities who ignore
their complaints.
The latest lamentation has
come from a Bench headed
Justice DY Chandrachud and
Justice Bela Trivedi pointedly
mentioned Chennai and Uttar
Pradesh where the practice of
casting aspersions on judges
and making frivolous allega-
tions against them was ram-
pant. Echoing Justice Rama-
na’s observation, the Bench
remarked, “Judges are as-
saulted.Thereisnoprotection
of judges across our district
judiciary
, sometimes not even
a lathi-wielding policeman.”
The Bench stated that it has
now become fashionable to
castaspersionsonjudges.“The
stronger the judge, the worse
theallegations.Itishappening
in Bombay
, rampant in UP and
Madras,” said the judges.
The practice of threatening
judges is truly rampant in dis-
trict courts but higher court
judges also face unsubstanti-
atedallegations.Whilethereis
“a class of lawyers who are
completely incorrigible”,
sometimes litigants too resort
tothreatsorquestionajudge’s
integrity
. The insecurities of
judges should be promptly ad-
dressed before an errant law-
yerassaultsthemorapolitical
activistblackensajudge’sface.
THE FASHION OF
ATTACKING JUDGES
Echoing Justice Ramana’s observation, Bench remarked,
“Judges are assaulted. There is no protection of judges
across our district judiciary, sometimes not even a
lathi-wielding policeman.” Bench stated that it has now
become fashionable to cast aspersions on judges. “The stronger
the judge, the worse the allegations. It is happening in Bombay,
rampant in UP and Madras,” said the judges
S
nother day
, another defection.
Since May 2021 till date…
seven MLAs and two MPs
from BJP have defected to
TMC bringing the total num-
ber of defections to a whop-
ping 9 in less than 12 months!
The recent case in hand is
that of heavyweight neta Ar-
jun Singh who was denied a
TMC ticket in 2019 and had
switched over to BJP in the
same year and in a close con-
test, defeated the TMC candi-
date from Barrackpore.
But ever since his victory,
there were a number of
clashes in the region and Ar-
jun Singh, of late, had been
expressing his unhappiness
over not being allowed to
work freely in the BJP and
was not quite unhappy with
the response of Union minis-
ter Piyush Goyal when he
met him over the imbroglio
in the jute industry
.
Singh had even expressed
his willingness to join an agi-
tationtosavethejuteindustry
evenif amovementwasspear-
headed and supported by the
TMC! Singh had given several
hints of his unhappiness dur-
ing his stint in the BJP
.
Addressing a press confer-
ence, Singh also alleged that
the saffron party’s graph was
on the decline as it was trying
to‘controlBengal’throughFa-
cebook, instead of getting on
the ground. Hours after Singh
returned to TMC, the BJP
, on
Sunday
,saidthat“suchpeople
keep coming and going”.
Dilip Ghosh said resigna-
tion is a “personal choice”
and a single candidate leav-
ing “does not have any effect
on the party
.” What surprised
many was when he went on
to say, “It is normal in Bengal
politics to make bombs.”
Lashing out at Singh, Ghosh
said, “those who don’t prac-
tise politics based on princi-
ples” will find it difficult to
stay in the BJP.
Reporters were quick to
remind him of his allegation
in the past that Arjun Singh
makes bombs and questioned
why he had taken him into
the BJP in the first place, if
that was true.
“We have inducted a lot of
people. In politics, making
bombs is a normal thing in
Bengal,” Ghosh said.
“Whoever comes from the
Trinamool will be like this
only
. The law is there to deal
with it. The place where he is
from, either he creates trou-
ble or others create trouble
to target him. When he came
to the BJP, the torture
against him increased. This
we have seen. I have taken up
his complaints in Parliament
as well. He could not adjust,
that is his problem,” the BJP
leader added.
The BJP’s fortunes wit-
nessed a massive slide in a
few months. After Sukanta
Majumdar took over as presi-
dent of the West Bengal BJP
unit from Dilip Ghosh, he
wanted a massive overhaul
of the party’s organizational
structure. However, this
move reportedly ended up
angering many MPs and par-
ty leaders, who quit the par-
ty’s WhatsApp groups and
expressed their unhappiness
after they were left out of the
state committee. Majumdar
took a stern step and dis-
solved all departments and
cells of the state unit and also
expelled some dissenters.
But the rebels grew stronger
and the voice of protest grew
shriller by the day
.
Bongaon’s MP Shantanu
Thakur, who belongs to the
influential Matua communi-
ty was among the unhappy
lot. It is riding on his political
clout that the BJP had gained
a foothold in South Bengal.
Meanwhile, the Matuas were
also upset with the Saffron
party for the delay in CAA
implementation.
Soon after the TMC’s vic-
tory in the assembly elec-
tions last year, when there
were reports of massive post-
poll violence, grassroots cad-
res felt that the state top
brass needed to do more.
Kailash Vijayvargiya, in-
charge of the BJP in Bengal,
hasn’t returned to the state
since May 2021’s disastrous
poll outcome which may have
obviously irked grassroots
workers.
It is high time for the cen-
tralleadership…UnionHome
Minister Amit Shah and the
party’s national president JP
Nadda should be doing the
needful to boost the morale of
the workers who are watch-
ingthecontinuousdefections.
The Saffron party at the
Centre should realise that
with the current state leader-
ship not much can be expect-
ed. BJP in Bengal is badly in
need of an unanimously ac-
ceptable face who can stall
tall amid the ruins and pick
up the party from the ruins
like a phoenix.
The party’s occasional de-
pendence on central leaders
sends out a message to the
voters that the party is in
dearth of local leaders who
would stand by the workers
in the hour of crisis.
The central leadership
ASAP needs to take a more
aggressive step in instilling
people’s faith… especially
keeping in mind that the Lok
Sabha is in 2024 and West
Bengal has 42 seats.
In a high during the 2019
Lok Sabha, the BJP managed
to bag 18. However, going by
the current scenario, the BJP
must go back to the drawing
boardconsideringthefactthat
in the entire east and north-
east,WestBengalhasthehigh-
estnumberof LSseatsandthe
party can’t take it lightly
.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
Central leadership must take
note of defections in Bengal BJP
WICKET AFTER WICKET
A
Addressing a press
conference, Singh also
alleged that the saffron
party’s graph was on the
decline as it was trying to
‘control Bengal’
through Facebook,
instead of getting on
the ground. Hours
after Singh returned
to TMC, the BJP, on
Sunday, said that “such
people keep coming
and going”
The central leadership ASAP
needs to take a more
aggressive step in instilling
people’s faith… especially
keeping in mind that the Lok
Sabha is in 2024 and West
Bengal has 42 seats. In a high
during the 2019 Lok Sabha,
the BJP managed to bag 18.
However, going by the current
scenario, the BJP must go
back to the drawing board
considering the fact that in
the entire east and northeast,
West Bengal has the highest
number of LS seats and the
party can’t take it lightly
ROBIN ROY
The writer is Senior Associate Editor,
Free Press Journal, Mumbai and former
Managing Editor, First India

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05
INDIA
Kolkata (Agencies):
Governor Jagdeep
Dhankhar on Tuesday
summoned West Bengal
Chief Secretary HK
Dwivedi to seek clarifi-
cation on the appoint-
ment of Kaustav Roy, a
local businessman with
a debated background,
as chairman of the state
government’s Pro-
gramme Monitoring
Committee.
The committee is
meant for planning and
monitoring of welfare
and development
schemes of the state
government.
On April 20, a state
government notifica-
tion stated that the West
Bengal government has
formed this committee
with Roy as its chair-
man. The appointment
was made ignoring the
facts that Roy
, a Kolkata-
basedbusinessman,was
involved in multiple sec-
tors like computer, soft-
ware and media. In
March 2018, he, as the
director of RP Infosys-
tems, was arrested by
the Central Bureau of
Investigation (CBI) in
connection with a Rs 515
crore bank fraud scam
involving a consortium
of banks, including
Punjab National Bank
and Canara Bank.
Dhankhar summons CS, seeks clarification
TAINTED BIZMAN’S APPOINTMENT TO GOVT PANEL
lll
In September
last year, a
Bengali channel
owned by Roy,
received a
caution of
cancellation of
license from the
IB Ministry
BJP names candidates for K’taka
MLC polls, no ticket to BSY’s son
After party denies ticket, BY Vijayendra asks supporters to stay calm
Bengaluru (Agen-
cies): The BJP high
command on Tuesday
picked three new faces
and a former deputy
chief minister as its
candidates for the June
3 polls for seven seats to
the Karnataka legisla-
tive council, choosing to
ignore the recommen-
dation to nominate for-
mer Karnataka chief
minister BS Yediyurap-
pa’s son BY Vijayendra.
After delaying the
announcement of its
candidates until Tues-
day morning, the last
day for filing nomina-
tions, the BJP picked
former deputy chief
minister Laxman Sa-
vadi, a Lingayat, Chala-
vadi Narayanswamy, a
Scheduled Caste mem-
ber, Hemalatha Nayak,
a Scheduled Tribe
member, and S Kes-
havaprasad, a member
of an OBC community
.
As anticipated, the
BJP ignored Vijayen-
dra, the son of Lingay-
at strongman Yedi-
yurappa. Vijayendra’s
name was among the 15
proposed by a core com-
mittee of the state BJP
unit earlier this month.
The BJP had indicated
last week that Vijayen-
dra’s candidature was
in conflict with the
BJP’s stand against dy-
nastic politics and he
would not be consid-
ered for the MLC polls.
The BJP is expected to
consider Vijayendra
for a legislative assem-
bly ticket next year
when the state polls are
held and his father is
expected to retire from
active politics.
Karnataka BJP chief Nalin Kumar Kateel (centre) with BJP candidates for MLC polls in Bengaluru.
SON’S APPEAL
WBSSC RECRUITMENT SCAM
CBI seeks I-T help for details
on assets of 2 TMC Ministers
KCR to avoid meeting PM again;
Modi in Hyderabad on Thursday
Kolkata (Agencies):
Determined to make a
watertight case in the
probe in the West Ben-
gal School Service Com-
mission (WBSSC) re-
cruitment scam, the
Central Bureau of In-
vestigation (CBI) has
approached the Income
Tax department to seek
details of the assets and
properties held by two
ministers, alleged to be
involved in the case.
These two ministers
are—aformerstateedu-
cation minister and cur-
rent state commerce
industries minister, Tri-
namool Congress secre-
tary general Partha
Chatterjee, and West
Bengal Minister of state
for education Paresh
ChandraAdhikari.Both
ChatterjeeandAdhikari
have been grilled by the
CBI in the recruitment
irregularities scam.
Highly placed sources
said once the details
from the Income Tax de-
partment are available,
the CBI will tally the
same with the details of
the income tax return
files of the two minis-
ters as well as the docu-
ments about their asset
details that they have
submitted to the CBI.
The CBI has also sought
details of the assets and
property details of the
family members of the
two ministers.
Hyderabad (Agencies):
For the second time in
less than four months,
Telangana Chief Minis-
ter K Chandrasekhar
Rao will avoid greeting
Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi when he ar-
rives in Hyderabad on
Thursday to attend 20th
annual celebrations at
the Indian School of
Business (ISB).
Eyeing a key role in
national politics, Rao is
scheduled to be in Ben-
galuru on that day to
meet former Prime Min-
ister and Janata Dal (S)
leader H.D. Deve Gowda.
KCR, who returned to
Hyderabad on Monday
from Delhi after a four-
day visit to the national
capital and Chandi-
garh, is likely to leave
for Bengaluru on
Wednesday evening.
As per the schedule
alreadyannounced,KCR
will reach Bengaluru on
May 26. He will call on
former Prime Minister
Deve Gowda and former
Karnataka Chief Minis-
ter HD Kumaraswamy
.
Telangana CM KCR Prime Minister Narendra Modi
DRONES
PROHIBITED
AROUND ISB
HYDERABAD
Hyderabad: The
Telangana police
Tuesday banned flying
remote-controlled
drones within a 5 km
radius of the Indian
School of Business
(ISB) in Gachibowli,
Hyderabad, and
also the Gachibowli
stadium, from noon
on May 25 to 6 pm on
May 26, in the wake
of Prime Minister Nar-
endra Modi’s visit to
the business school.
State Education Minister
Paresh Chandra Adhikari
Trinamool Congress secretary
general Partha Chatterjee
BENGAL EDU MIN’S DAUGHTER SACKED
Gandhinagar (Agen-
cies): Patidar leader
Hardik Patel, who re-
cently quit the Con-
gress, on Tuesday hit
out at the party leader-
ship for their “hatred
towards Hindus and
Lord Ram”.
Patel took to Twitter
to slam a former Guja-
rat Congress president
who allegedly said dogs
had urinated on bricks
being used for building
the Ram temple in Ayo-
dhya. Patel’s attack
seemed to be targetted
at Bharatsinh Solanki,
a former Union min-
ister, who reported-
ly said at a gather-
ing that people
had been de-
ceived in the name of
Ram and that dogs were
urinating on stones col-
lected for the contem-
ple in Ayodhya.
Patel, who is yet to
make his next move of-
ficial amid claims of
his joining the BJP,
wrote in Hindi, “I had
said this earlier too
that the Congress party
works to hurt the senti-
ments of the people,
always trying to dam-
age the
faith of
the Hin-
du reli-
gion.”
West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar. —FILE PHOTO
All units of AIMIM in Surat dissolved
after Owaisi’s public meet in State
Ahmedabad (Agen-
cies): In a sudden move,
Gujarat president of All
India Majlis-E-Ittehadul
Muslimeen(AIMIM)has
dissolved all the units of
thepartyinSurat,sourc-
es said on Tuesday
.
The development
came soon after party
leader Asaduddin Owai-
si addressed a public
meeting in the Limbayat
area of Surat city in
South Gujarat.
Within 24 hours of his
visit, the state unit presi-
dent dissolved Surat city
and district committees,
women committees and
youth wing.
According to Wasim
Qureshi, Surat city com-
mittee president of
AIMIM, no reason has
been given in the letter
by the state unit presi-
dent for dissolving com-
mittees. He further said
he is taking legal advice
on the issue following
which, he will come out
with his version.
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi. —FILE PHOTO
Guj: Ex-Cong MLA’s
son joins BJP along
with supporters
Gandhinagar (Agen-
cies): Keval, son of
former Congress
MLA Anil Joshiyara,
joined BJP along
with around 1,300
supporters in Bhilo-
da of Aravalli dis-
trict Tuesday in the
presence of Gujarat
party president C R
Paatil.
Joshiyara was a
veteran Congress
leader who was
elected as MLA five
times from the trib-
al belt in North Gu-
jarat. He passed
away in March this
year at a Chennai
hospital while bat-
tling with post-Cov-
id complications.
Also present on
the occasion were
BJP general secre-
tary Rajni Patel,
health minister Ru-
shikesh Patel, tribal
development minis-
ter Naresh Patel,
higher education
minister Kuber Din-
dor, MP Deepsinh
Rathod and former
MLA from the Khed-
brahma seat Ashwin
Kotwal. Kotwal was
a Congress MLA and
has recently joined
BJP after resigning
from the Gujarat As-
sembly.
Speaking on the oc-
casion, Keval said
that he joined BJP
after being inspired
by the leadership of
Prime Minister Nar-
endraModiandparty
chief Paatil. Keval
added that he would
try to fill the vacuum
created by the demise
of his father.
He also appealed
to the people of Bhil-
oda to shower their
blessings on him the
way they did on his
late father.
Kothiyal, AAP’s CM candidate for Uttarakhand, joins
BJP, cites ‘feelings of soldiers’ in letter to Kejriwal
Dehradun (PTI): The
Aam Aadmi Party’s
(AAP) chief ministeri-
al candidate for the re-
cently concluded As-
sembly election in Utta-
rakhand, retired colo-
nel Ajay Kothiyal
joined the Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) in
the presence of CM
Pushkar Singh Dhami
in Dehradun.
Kothiyal had re-
signed from the Arvind
Kejriwal-led party last
week. The former army
officer had announced
his decision to quit the
party on Twitter and
even posted his resigna-
tion letter on the micro-
blogging site.
“I have been a mem-
ber of the Aam Aadmi
Party from April 19,
2021, to May 18, 2022.
Keeping the feelings of
ex-soldiers, ex para-
military personnel,
the elders, women,
youths and the intel-
lectuals, I am sending
you my resignation on
May 18,” Kothiyal
wrote to Kejriwal.
In March this year,
the ruling Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) re-
turned to power in Ut-
tarakhand as it bagged
47 seats.
Hardik says Congress
hurts Hindus’ sentiments
Gujarat BJP chief CR Paatil welcomes former Congress
MLA Anil Joshiyara’s son Keval to the party.
‘In 15-18 yrs age group, over
80% jabbed with first dose’
New Delhi (PTI): Over
80 per cent of people
aged between 15 and 18
years have received the
first dose of Covid vac-
cine, Union Health Min-
ister Mansukh Man-
daviya said on Tuesday
.
The total number of
Covid vaccine doses ad-
ministered in India ex-
ceeded 192.52 crore till
Tuesday 7 am, accord-
ing to a provisional re-
port.
The COVID-19 vacci-
nation for the age group
12-14 years was started
on March 16 and so far
more than 3.30 crore
adolescents in this age
group have been admin-
istered the first dose.
India began inoculating
thoseintheagegroupof
15-18 years from Janu-
ary 3. Till now, 5.92 crore
beneficiaries in this age
group have been given
the first dose.
Ajay Kothiyal joins the BJP in the presence of CM Dhami.

06
INDIA
New Delhi:Steeringthe
party post-Udaipur
Chintan Shivir, Con-
gress president Sonia
Gandhi on Tuesday
named leaders to three
crucial panels – the Po-
litical Affairs Group,
Task Force 2024 to strat-
egiseforLokSabhapolls
andaplanninggroupfor
Bharat Jodo Yatra –
with the surprise inclu-
sion of election strate-
gist Sunil Kanugolu.
POLITICAL
AFFAIRS GROUP
Rahul Gandhi, Mallikar-
jun Kharge, Ghulam
NabiAzad,AmbikaSoni,
Digvijaya Singh, Anand
Sharma, K C Venugopal
and Jitendra Singh.
TASK FORCE-2024
P Chidambaram,
Mukul Wasnik, Jairam
Ramesh, K C Venugo-
pal, Ajay Maken, Pri-
yanka Gandhi Vadra,
Randeep Singh Sur-
jewala and Sunil Kanu-
golu.
3 teams, 1 mission
CONGRESS CHIEF SETS SIGHTS ON 2024 LS POLLS
Prashant Kishor’s ex-associate, two G-23 leaders in list

❍ QUTUB MINAR
Court reserves
order on plea to
restore temples
New Delhi: A Delhi
court on Tuesday ob-
served that the funda-
mental question to ask
in a plea seeking resto-
ration of 27 temples
within the Quwwat-Ul-
Islam mosque located
inside the Qutub Minar
complex was ‘what was
character of building’.
Additional District
Judge Nikhil Chopra
reserved his order in a
plea which challenged
a lower court’s order
dismissing an applica-
tion filed by Hindu de-
ity Lord Vishnu, Jain
deity Tirthankar
Rishabh Dev.
GYANVAPI CASE
AICC General Secretaries Priyanka Gandhi Vadra KC Venugopal
with senior Congress leaders P Chidambaram and Jairam Ramesh
during the first meeting of Task Force 2024 on Tuesday.
Buildingcollapsekills11;
mayor,othersdetained
District court to decide on
maintainability on May 26
Tehran: Rescuers dug
through debris on Tues-
day of a building col-
lapse in southwestern
Iran that killed at least
11 people, fearful that
many more could still
be trapped beneath the
rubble as authorities
arrested the city’s may-
or in a widening probe
of the disaster.
The collapse on Mon-
day of an under-con-
struction 10-story tower
at the Metropol Build-
ing exposed its cement
blocks and steel beams
while also underscor-
ing an ongoing crisis in
Iranian construction
projects.
Lucknow: The Vara-
nasi district court,
hearing the civil suit on
the Gyanvapi mosque-
Kashi Viswanath tem-
ple complex dispute,
will hear on May 26 the
Order 7 Rule 11 applica-
tion by Muslim side
seeking to reject the
civil suit of Hindu side
seeking claim on Gyan-
vapi mosque. Mean-
while, judge has sought
objections on the advo-
cate Commissioner sur-
vey report of Gyanvapi
mosque from both the
Hindu and Muslim
side. The court was to
deliver the order Tues-
day on whether to in-
vite objections on sur-
vey or conduct hearing
on Order 7 Rule 11 ap-
plication of Masjid
panel first.
Rescue crews work at the site of building collapse in Iran.
New Delhi (Agencies):
BJP leader and lawyer
Ashwini Upadhyay on
Tuesday moved a PIL
seeking directions for
‘Vande Mataram’, a
poem which had played
a historic role in the
struggle for India’s free-
dom, to be “honoured
equally” with ‘Jana
Gana Mana’ and be giv-
en “equal” status.
The petitioner also
sought direction to re-
spondents,includingthe
Centralgovernmentand
Delhi government to en-
sure that ‘Jana Gana
Mana’ and ‘Vande Mata-
ram’ are played and
sung in all schools and
educational institutions
on every working day
.
The plea stated that
‘Vande Mataram’ is the
symbol of our history,
sovereignty, unity and
pride. If any citizen by
any overt or covert act
shows disrespect to it, it
would not only be an
anti-social activity but
it would also spell doom
to all our rights and
very existence as a citi-
zen of a sovereign na-
tion. Every citizen must
therefore not only re-
frain from any such ac-
tivities but also do his
best to prevent if any
miscreant tries to show
any disrespect to ‘Van-
de Mataram’.
“We must be proud of
our Nation, our Consti-
tution, National An-
them and National Flag
and put national inter-
est above our personal
interests and only then
will we be able to pro-
tect our hard-earned
freedom and sovereign-
ty. It is the duty of the
executive to frame a na-
tional policy to promote
and propagate ‘Vande
Mataram’,” it read.
PIL seeks equal status for ‘Vande Mataram’
LIKE ‘JANA-GANA-MANA’
‘INDIA STANDS FOR THE DIPLOMACY PATH’
PM REITERATES INDIA’S STAND
ON UKRAINE AT QUAD SUMMIT
Tokyo (Agencies):
Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi on Tuesday
highlighted India’s
consistent and princi-
pled position on the
need for cessation of
hostilities, resumption
of dialogue and diplo-
macy, at the second in-
person Quad Leaders’
Summit in Tokyo.
PM Modi, along with
leaders of the Quad na-
tions took part in the
fourth interaction of
the leaders, which saw
criticism of Russian
military action in
Ukraine, from Austral-
ia, Japan and the Unit-
ed States.
India on several bi-
lateral and multiracial
forums has said that it
stands for the diploma-
cy path amid the
Ukraine conflict that
has led to heavy casual-
ties on both sides and
largescale humanitari-
an crisis in Europe.
During the summit,
the leaders reiterated
their shared commit-
ment to a free, open
and inclusive Indo-Pa-
cific and the impor-
tance of upholding the
principles of sover-
eignty, territorial in-
tegrity and peaceful
resolution of disputes.
They exchanged per-
spectives on develop-
ments in the Indo-Pa-
cific and the conflict in
Europe.According to
the Ministry of Exter-
nal Affairs (MEA), the
leaders reiterated
their desire to combat
terrorism, denounced
the use of terrorist
proxies and empha-
sized the importance
of denying any logisti-
cal, financial, or mili-
tary support to terror-
ist groups which could
be used to launch or
plan terror attacks, in-
cluding cross-border
attacks. Reviewing
Quad’s ongoing efforts
to combat the COV-
ID-19 pandemic, the
leaders welcomed the
enhanced manufactur-
ing capacity of the Bi-
ological-E facility in
India and called for the
expeditious grant of
EUL approval by the
WHO so that delivery
of vaccines can com-
mence.
“The leaders wel-
comed the gift of
525,000 doses of Made
in India vaccines by In-
dia to Thailand and
Cambodia in April 2022
under the Quad Vac-
cine Partnership. They
will continue to pursue
a holistic approach to
pandemic management
by addressing last-mile
delivery and distribu-
tion challenges, aug-
menting regional
health security
through cooperation in
genomic surveillance
and clinical trials, and
bolstering global
health security archi-
tecture,” the MEA said
in a statement.
OVER RENAMING ANDHRA DIST
Min’s house set ablaze,
Section 144 imposed
Amravati (Agencies):
Section 144 was on
Tuesday imposed in
Andhra Pradesh’s
Amalapuram town af-
ter arson broke out
when police resorted to
a lathi charge at people
who were protesting
near the district collec-
tor’s office against the
proposed renaming of
the newly-created Ko-
naseema district as B R
Ambedkar Konaseema
district. Over 20 police
personnel have sus-
tained injuries as the
mob pelted stones dur-
ing the violence.
A police vehicle and
an educational institu-
tion’s bus were set on
fire. Mob also attacked
the residence of state
minister P. Viswaroop
and vandalized the
property. The minis-
ter’s family members
escaped unhurt as the
police had shifted them
to a safe place. Apart
from this, the house of
an MLA Ponnada Sat-
ish was also torched by
protestors in Konasee-
ma district.
State Home Minister
Taneti Vanitha has al-
leged that some politi-
cal parties and anti-so-
cial elements apparent-
ly instigated the arson.
On April 4, the new
Konaseema district
was carved out of the
erstwhile East Goda-
vari.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Quad Leaders Summit. —PHOTO BY ANI
QUAD LEADERS AGREE TO HOLD NEXT
YEAR’S IN-PERSON SUMMIT IN AUS MULTI-COUNTRY MARITIME
TRACKING NETWORK LAUNCHED
PM MODI GIFTS INDIA’S ART,
CULTURE TO HIS COUNTERPARTS
PM DEPARTS FOR HOME AFTER
‘FRUITFUL’ QUAD SUMMIT IN JAPAN
Tokyo: Quad member
countries have agreed
to hold the next in-
person summit in 2023
which will be hosted by
Australia, said a Joint
Quad Leaders’ statement
today.The Quad Summit
which was held today
was hosted by Japan in
Tokyo. The summit was
an opportunity for the
Leaders to exchange
views about develop-
ments in the Indo-Pacif-
ic region and contem-
porary global issues of
mutual interest.
New Delhi: The four-nation group Quad on Tuesday
launched a new initiative, in which multiple maritime
tracking agencies would be integrated to keep an eye
on illegal fishing activities and tactical movements
in the Pacific Islands, Southeast Asia, and the Indian
Ocean region. The network will allow tracking of “dark
shipping” and other tactical-level activities, such as
rendezvous at sea, besides improving the partner na-
tions’ ability to respond to humanitarian crises.
New Delhi: From
Sanjhi art and box with
handcarved Rogan
painting to Pattamadai
silk mats and Gond
art painting, Prime
Minister Narendra
Modi gave a glimpse
of India’s rich herit-
age and culture as he
presented gifts to his
counterparts and dig-
nitaries from the four
Quad nations. PM Modi
arrived in Japan on a
two-day visit to attend
a summit of the Quad
leaders.
Tokyo: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday
departed for home after attending a productive Quad
Leaders’ Summit in Tokyo and having forged stronger
partnerships with Australia, Japan, and the U.S.
“Leaving Japan after a fruitful visit in which I attended
various bilateral and multilateral programmes. Glad
to see the Quad emerge as a vibrant forum to further
global good. Also had excellent bilateral meetings with
all the Quad leaders,” PM Modi tweeted.
JK: SHEIKH ABDULLAH’S IMAGE
REMOVED FROM POLICE MEDALS
Jammu: Political parties in Jammu Kashmir on
Tuesday expressed outrage over the Lieutenant-
Governor-led administration’s decision to replace
the image of National Conference (NC) founder and
the first elected Prime Minister of the then princely
State of JK, Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah, with
the national emblem, in police medals from this
year. Scores of NC leaders posted with the hashtag
“ShereKashmirliveson” on Twitter to protest against
the L-G administration’s move to drop senior Abdul-
lah’s name and face from the police medals.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court Collegium headed by
Chief Justice NV Ramana has approved the proposal for
the appointment of 10 Additional Judges as Permanent
Judges of the Allahabad High Court. The Collegium in
a meeting held on May 21 took the decision and the
resolution was uploaded on the apex court website on
Tuesday. The names recommended for elevation are —
Justices Sanjay Kumar Pachori, Subhash Chandra Shar-
ma, Subhash Chand (Presently working in Jharkhand
High Court on Transfer), Saroj Yadav, Mohd. Aslam, Anil
Kumar Ojha, Sadhna Rani (Thakur), Syed Aftab Husain
Rizvi, Ajai Tyagi, and Ajai Kumar Srivastava-I. Besides
the CJI, Justices U U Lalit and A M Khanwilkar are part
of the three-member Collegium which takes decisions
with regard to the high court judges.
SC COLLEGIUM OKAY’S 10 JUDGES OF
ALLAHABAD HC AS PERMANENT JUDGES
NEWS DIGEST
Quad has
gained a sig-
nificant
place on the world
stage in a short span
of time, and it is
moving ahead with a
constructive agenda
for the Indo-Pacific
region which will
further strengthen
its image of a “force
for good”.
Narendra Modi,
Prime Minister of India
SC: Decide
maintainability
of PIL for probe
against Soren
Ranchi (Agencies):
The Supreme Court on
Tuesday asked the
Jharkhand High Court,
which is hearing a PIL
seeking investigation
against Chief Minister
Hemant Soren for al-
leged irregularities in
thegrantof miningleas-
es and also on transac-
tions of some shell com-
paniespurportedlyoper-
ated by his family mem-
bers and associates, to
first hear preliminary
objections on the main-
tainability of the peti-
tion. The Jharkhand
government has moved
the top court against the
orders of the high court.
New Education Policy supplements
StartUp ecosystem: Dr Jitendra
Hoshiarpur (Agen-
cies): Union Minister of
State (Independent
Charge) Ministry of Sci-
ence and Technology;
Minister of State (Inde-
pendent Charge) Minis-
try of Earth Science;
MoS of Prime Minis-
ter’sOfficeandMinistry
of Personnel, Public
Grievances Pensions,
Atomic Energy and
Space, Dr Jitendra Sin-
gh today said that the
new National Education
Policy (NEP-2020) sup-
plements StartUp eco-
systemwiththepromise
to open new career and
entrepreneurship op-
portunities for students
and youth in India.
“North India and par-
ticularly Punjab must
comeforwardfasttopro-
mote StartUps as alter-
nate source of liveli-
hood,”theMinistersaid.
KHALI VISITS MIN JITENDRA SINGH;
‘JOINED BJP DUE TO PM’S IDEOLOGY’
Dalip Singh Rana aka
The Great Khali who
joined the BJP three
months ago met Union
Minister Jitendra Singh
and said that he joined
the party after being
impressed by PM Modi’s
ideology. Khali came
to meet Union Minister
Jitendra Singh, who
was also present during
Khali’s BJP induction
programme. Khali further
said that he is proud of
joining the saffron party.
“I came to meet Dr
Jitendra Singh. Now, I
am going back. I came to
meet him as he belongs
to the hilly region and I
too. It was just a regular
meeting,” Khali said.
WITH WORLD CHAMPION
Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports Anurag Thakur poses
for a photo with World Champion boxer, Nikhat Zareen during a
felicitation ceremony, at Indira Gandhi Stadium in New Delhi.

BIZ BUZZ
07
‘Foodinflationmanageable,govtopenforsupport’
Davos (PTI): Com-
merce and industry
minister Piyush Goyal
on Tuesday said that
India’s overall food in-
flation is in managea-
ble levels and the gov-
ernment is ready and
open to look at the sup-
port necessary to fight
inflation for businesses
to sustain and grow.
However, at a session
on Strategic Outlook
on India at the ongoing
WEF in Davos, he also
said that taking too
many steps on the mon-
etary side would not be
in the interest of busi-
ness in the long run.
“Challenges are
there and they contin-
ue to remain. We are
conscious that it is
something we have to
sort out. Wherever the
need arises, we are
ready and open to look
at what support is nec-
essary for businesses
to sustain, continue to
grow,” he said.
“As regards overall
food inflation, it is still
very much in manage-
able level,” Goyal said,
adding that rice has
not seen any signifi-
cant inflation while
wheat has seen some
inflation but it is as yet
“not very disturbing”.
The minister said
that prices of fruits
and vegetables such as
tomatoes every year
this month, go up but
they haven’t gone up as
much as they went last
year and now started
coming down.
“Onion and potato
which are two sensitive
items- our production
this year is expected to
be good, indications
are alright and prices
are at the lower end,”
Goyal said. “My sense
is that the packaged
food industry will
make a buck or two ex-
tra with people willing
to pay for it but at the
lower end, the common
man will not feel the
pain in food inflation,”
he said.
Exports rises
21% to $23.7
billion in May
New Delhi (PTI): The
country’s exports
rose by 21.1% to
$23.7 billion during
May 1-21, on
account of healthy
growth in various
sectors, such as
petroleum products,
engineering, and
electronic goods.
During the second
week of this month,
the exports grew by
about 24% to $8.03
billion, the official
added. Petroleum
products, engineer-
ing, and electronic
goods’ exports
during May 1-21
expanded by 81.1%,
about 17% and about
44%, respectively.
India cuts June
domestic coal
supply by 11.1%
New Delhi (PTI):
India has slashed
domestic miners’
coal supply targets
to power plants for
June by 11.1 per
cent on Tuesday, ac-
cording to a ministry
sources. The power
ministry asked power
plants which have
not yet begun blend-
ing imported coal
with local supplies to
ship in 15 per cent
of their require-
ments until October
2022, according
to the letter dated
24 May (Tuesday).
The Indian govt had
earlier asked utilities
to import 10 per cent
of its total needs.
India’s crude oil
production falls
1% in April
New Delhi (PTI):
India’s crude oil
production fell 1% in
April after lower out-
put from fields op-
erated by the private
sector wiped away
gains by state-owned
firms such as ONGC,
official data showed
Tuesday. India pro-
duced 2.47 million
tonnes of crude oil
in April, down from
2.5 million tonnes
in the same month
last year, according
to data released on
Tuesday.
Commerce Minister Goyal says govt open to look at support necessary to fight inflation for businesses to sustain and grow
Challenges are
there and they
continue to re-
main. We are conscious
that it is something we
have to sort out. Wher-
ever the need arises, we
are ready.
—Piyush Goyal, Union Minister
...IT WILL BE GOOD FOR ECONOMY: GOYAL
Piyush Goyal said inflation is something that has
serious impact on the wheels of economy leads
to interest rates going up, currency weakening and
slowing economic growth. “Therefore, there are times
when serious and impactful measures need to be
taken. Overall, it will be good for the economy,” Goyal
said added that there is a need to look at value add-
ed exports rather than raw materials leaving country.
Davos (PTI): India was
on Tuesday ranked at
the 54th place in a glob-
al travel and tourism
development index,
down from 46th in 2019,
but still remained on
the top within South
Asia. Japan has topped
the global charts, fol-
lowed by the US, Spain,
France, Germany
, Swit-
zerland, Austraila, UK,
Singapore and Italy in
the top ten.
The World Economic
Forum’s biennial trav-
el and tourism study
also showed a recover-
ing sector following
pandemic lows, though
the recovery has been
uneven and challenges
remain.
“COVID-19 shut-
downs have re-empha-
sised the important
contribution travel and
tourism makes to many
economies around the
world,” Lauren Uppink
said.
While overall inter-
national tourism and
business travel is still
below pre-pandemic
levels, the sector recov-
ery has been bolstered
by greater vaccination
rates, return to more
open travel, and grow-
ing demand for domes-
tic and nature-based
tourism.
Many businesses
and destinations have
adapted to these shift-
ing demand dynamics.
According to esti-
mates, the difference in
international tourist
arrivals between Janu-
ary 2021 and January
2022 is greater than ar-
rivals growth in all of
2021. Other than the
US, the top-10 scoring
economies are high-in-
come economies in Eu-
rope or Asia-Pacific.
The Travel and Tour-
ism Development In-
dex 2021 is a direct evo-
lution of the Travel
Tourism Competitive-
ness Index, which has
been published bienni-
ally for the past 15
years, WEF said.
India drops 8 ranks in WEF’s tourism index
Japan has
topped the
global charts,
followed by the
US, Spain and
France
Sensexfalls236pts,Niftybelow16,150
Mumbai (PTI): Equity
indices failed to hold on
to morning gains on
Tuesday, with the
Sensex falling 236 points
amid a sell-off in IT
stocks and weak trends
from global markets.
The 30-share BSE
benchmark opened
higher but could not
carry forward the mo-
mentum and declined
236 points or 0.43% to
settle at 54,052.61. Dur-
ing the day, it hit a low
of 53,886.28 and a high
of 54,524.37.
The broader NSE Nif-
ty dropped 89.55 points
or 0.55% to end at
16,125.15.
In the Sensex pack,
Tech Mahindra, Hindu-
stan Unilever, HCL
Technologies, Asian
Paints, NTPC, Tata
Steel, Infosys, Axis
Bank and Bajaj Finserv
were among the biggest
laggards.
In contrast, Dr Red-
dy’s, HDFC, PowerGrid,
Kotak Mahindra Bank,
HDFC Bank and Nestle
were among the major
gainers.
` SLIPS 4 PAISE TO
CLOSE AT 77.59
AGAINST US $
Mumbai (PTI): The
rupee slipped by 4
paise to close at 77.59
(provisional) against the
US dollar on Tuesday,
weighed down by a neg-
ative trend in domestic
equities and unabated
foreign fund outflows.
At the interbank foreign
exchange market, the
rupee opened lower at
77.56 against the green-
back, and finally settled
at 77.59, down 4 paise
over its previous close.
During the trading ses-
sion, the rupee touched
an intra-day low of 77.67
and a high of 77.51.
Divisiveness,polarisation harming
foundations of India’s growth:Basu
New Delhi (PTI): For-
mer World Bank chief
economist Kaushik
Basu on Tuesday said
that even though the
fundamentals of the
Indian economy are
strong, the rise in divi-
siveness and polarisa-
tion in the country is
damaging the ‘founda-
tions’ of the nation’s
growth.
Basu further said In-
dia’s big challenge is
unemployment and
joblessness as youth
unemployment in In-
dia is over 24%, which
is among the highest in
the world.
“A nation’s growth
does not depend on
economic policy alone.
There is mounting evi-
dence that trust among
people is a big determi-
nant of a nation’s eco-
nomic success,” he told
PTI.
“The rise in divisive-
ness and polarization
in Indian society is sad
not just in itself but
because it is damaging
the foundations of the
nation’s growth,” the
eminent economist
added.
According to Basu,
India has strong funda-
mentals - a large entre-
preneurial class, high-
ly skilled workers, and
though it has been fall-
ing over the last few
years, high investment
to GDP ratio.
Kaushik Basu
853 FDI proposals
disposed of in 5 years
New Delhi (PTI): As
many as 853 foreign di-
rect investment propos-
als have been disposed
of through the foreign
investment facilitation
portal in the last five
years, the commerce
and industry ministry
said on Tuesday
.
The Foreign Invest-
ment Facilitation Por-
tal (FIFP) was devel-
oped after the abolition
of FIPB in May 2017.
The Department for
Promotion of Industry
and Internal Trade
(DPIIT), under the min-
istry, was made the nod-
al department. It said,
“853 FDI proposals have
been disposed of
through FIFP since
abolishment of FIPB.”
FDI proposals are
now required to be filed
onlyontheportalwhich
is managed by the DPI-
IT. The DPIIT secretary
reviews the pendency
of all FDI proposals on
a monthly basis.
Since the beginning
of the new clearance
process, not only the
foreign investment has
increased but also “the
number of countries
bringing in FDI into In-
dia”, it added.
In 2014-15, FDI inflow
in India stood at $45.15
billion, which has in-
creased to $83.57 billion
in 2021-22.
In 2021-22 FDI has
been reported from 101
countries. In 2020-21, it
was reported from 97
countries.
Government’swheat
procurementdown
by53%to182lakhtn
New Delhi (PTI):
The government’s
wheat procurement
fell by 53% to 182
lakh tonnes so far
in the current 2022-
23 marketing year
compared to the
year-ago period on
aggressive buying
by private players
for export purposes.
The rabi marketing
year runs from
April to March but
the bulk of procure-
ment ends by June.
An all-time high of
433.44 lakh tonnes
of wheat was pro-
cured in the previ-
ous marketing year.
State-owned Food
Corporation of In-
dia (FCI) and state
agencies undertake
procurement at the
minimum support
price to meet the re-
quirement under
the public distribu-
tion system (PDS)
and other welfare
schemes.
The wheat pro-
curement target
has been revised
downward to 195
lakh tonnes for the
current year from
the earlier 444 lakh
tonnes due to a fall
in wheat output and
increased exports.
Indian data centres may get up
to `1.2 L cr investment in 5 yrs
New Delhi (PTI): Data
centres capacity expan-
sion in India by both
foreign and local firms
is expected to add in-
vestments to the tune of
Rs 1.05 lakh to 1.2 lakh
crore over the period of
next five years, credit
rating agency ICRA
said on Tuesday
.
The Indian data cen-
tres market is witness-
ing a healthy growth
primarily driven by
large hyper-scalers like
Amazon web services,
Google, Microsoft, Face-
book, IBM, Uber, Drop-
box etc who are out-
sourcing their storage
needs to third party
data centre providers,
ICRA said.
Indian corporates
like the Hiranandani
Group, Adani Group,
foreign investors which
include Amazon, Edge-
Connex, Microsoft, Cap-
itaLand, Mantra Group
have started investing
in Indian data centres.
“Along with them, ex-
isting players like NTT,
CtrlS, Nxtra, STT India
are also expanding
their capacities. Over-
all, 3900-4100 MW of ca-
pacity involving invest-
ments of Rs 1.05 – 1.20
lakh crore are likely to
get added in the next
five years,” ICRA said.
The industry’s reve-
nues are expected to in-
crease at a CAGR of
around 18-19% during
financial year 2022-2024
from 24% CAGR growth
between FY 2018-2021.
OPs MARGIN
Govtlikelytocapsugar
exportsto10mntons
Davos (PTI): The gov-
ernment is likely to re-
strict sugar exports to
10 million tonnes for
the first time in six
years in order to main-
tain enough domestic
supply and prevent rise
in prices, according to
official sources.
Mills have contracted
for export of 9 million
tonnes of sugar so far
in the 2021-22 marketing
year (Oct-Sept). Out of
which, 7.5 million
tonnes of the sweetener
has been exported, the
sources added. “A noti-
fication on sugar export
restrictions will be is-
sued in a day or two,”
the sources said.
Also, India’s priority
is first to meet the do-
mestic requirement,
keep prices under check
and allow export only if
there is surplus quan-
tity, the sources said.

08
2NDFRONT
The strength of the powerful lies in
the smallest things, the bigger ones
happen on their own then!
—Jagdeesh Chandra,
CEO Editor-in-Chief, First India
Maha attracted more FDI than Guj
when BJP was in power: Fadnavis
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Maharash-
tra saw a greater in-
flow of Foreign Di-
rect Investment (FDI)
than Gujarat under
his govern-
ment, senior
BJP leader and
former chief min-
ister Devendra Fad-
navis said on Tues-
day.
Speaking at an in-
dustry meet, he
said the current
MVA dispensation
must continue his
policies to ensure
the state keeps
attracting robust FDI.
“Before 2014, Guja-
rat was on top in terms
of attracting FDI,
while Maharashtra
used to be in fifth place.
We took Maharashtra
to top spot in the FDI
list between 2015 and
2019,” Fadnavis, who
was CM from 2014 till
2019, said.
“However, the
groundwork laid by us
to bring in FDI has now
become shaky. States
like Gujarat, Karnata-
ka and Delhi are mov-
ing ahead of Maha-
rashtra. Between 2015
and 2019, there were
two years when Maha-
rashtra attracted 47%
and 42% of the coun-
try’s total FDI. In these
two years, we got more
FDI than what was re-
ceived by Gujarat, Kar-
nataka and Delhi put
together,” Fadnavis
claimed.
He said this feat was
achieved as the BJP
government under him
created a conducive eco-
system, adding that a
Deutsche Bank report
released in 2019 showed
that 49% of all big-tick-
et projects in the coun-
try were located in Ma-
harashtra.
Maha investments hit `80K crore with 24 companies at Davos
Davos: The Maha-
rashtra government,
in Davos at the World
Economic Forum An-
nual Meeting 2022,
has signed over
Rs80,000 crore in in-
vestment with 24
companies and 2
MoUs of strategic co-
operation. Renew
Power will invest
Rs50,000cr alone in
power generation in
the state with a gen-
erating capacity of
10,000 to 12,000 meg-
awatts.
The Maharashtra
government delegation
is led by state Environ-
ment Minister Aaditya
Thackeray, Industries
Minister Subhash De-
sai, and Energy Minis-
ter Dr Nitin Raut.
Investments coming
to the state are from
countries such as Sin-
gapore, Indonesia, the
USA, and Japan in di-
verse sectors including
Pharmaceuticals and
Medical devices, IT,
Data Centers, Textiles,
Food Processing, Pack-
aging, Paper Pulp,
Steel, etc. Additionally,
the state government
signed an MoU with
Byju’s for introducing
digital content in the
remote areas of the
state and municipal
schools in Mumbai.
This cooperation will
be extremely helpful for
lacs of students in the
Government schools in
the state.
Furthermore, the
state also signed a stra-
tegic cooperation agree-
ment with the World
Green Building Council
for knowledge sharing
and helping the state
achieve its net zero-
emission targets and
for the capacity build-
ing of state authorities
in Environmental Sus-
tainability Governance.
The Magnetic Maha-
rashtra 2.0 program
was conceptualized un-
der the leadership of
Chief Minister Uddhav
Thackeray for strength-
ening the resilience of
the state’s economy. In-
cluding today, a total of
10 editions of these pro-
grams have been organ-
ized.
Investments are from Singapore, Indonesia, USA, and
Japan in diverse sectors including Pharmaceuticals and
Medical devices, IT, Data Centers, Textiles, etc.
Industries Minister Subhash Desai with founder and chairman of
Vedanta Resources Ltd Anil Agarwal at Davos.
Aaditya Thackeray with Aditya Mittal, of Arcelor Mittal.
WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM
State sanctions `81 cr addl
funds for Wardha ashram
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Maharash-
tra government on
Tuesday sanctioned
additional expendi-
ture of Rs81 crore as
part of the Rs244-
crore revised devel-
opment plan for Ma-
hatma Gandhi’s
Sewa Gram Ashram
at Wardha.
Chief Minister Ud-
dhav Thackeray, who
chaired the meeting at
Sahyadri Guest House
in South Mumbai, di-
rectedofficialstoensure
that the works are com-
pleted within the
plannedtimelinesof the
project. Deputy Chief
Minister Ajit Pawar,
Public Works minister
Ashok Chavan, Animal
Husbandry Minister
Sunil Kedar, Chief Sec-
retary Manukumar
Srivastava,Chief Minis-
ter’s Advisor Sitaram
Kunte, Wardha District
Collector Prerana
Deshbhratar, among
otherswerealsopresent.
The government ap-
proved a new project,
‘Father of the Nation
Mahatma Gandhi—An
Experience’—whichwill
include a library and re-
sourcecenter,expansion
of the heritage trail on
Gandhiji’s thoughts, an
interactive exhibition
with 3D imaging, multi-
media technology to
showcase Gandihiji’s vi-
sion on the economy
, re-
ligion, caste, gender for
the younger generation.
MAHITI BHAVAN TO
COME UP IN NAVI MUMBAI
The state government on Tuesday said it will set
up Mahiti Bhavan (information complex) to house
the Directorate of Information and Public Relations
(DGIPR) offices at Nerul in Navi Mumbai at the cost
of Rs2.58 crore.
CM Uddhav Thackeray was present at signing of
MoU between DGIPR and CIDCO, the planning
authority for Navi Mumbai, on Tuesday. DGIPR
Principal Secretary Deepak Kapoor, CIDCO manag-
ing director Sanjay Mukherjee exchanged the MOU.
Minister of State for Information Aditi Tatkare was
also present. This CIDCO building would be handed
over to DGIPR soon to set up the complex.
CM said that new Mahiti Bhavan would have facili-
ties like state-of-the-art studio, state-level media
training centre, press room for journalists, digital
library with a separate section for rare collection of
audio-visual content,hall for press conferences.
CM Uddhav Thackeray and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar release coffee table book on Sewa Gram Ashram.
BMC’s wheeler-dealer
contractor rules the roost
Renni Abraham
Mumbai: As long as
taxpayers keep
Mumbai’s civic cor-
poration well-fund-
ed, contractors are
laughing all the way
to the bank. Even af-
ter being blacklisted
and booked for sup-
plying low-grade
bomb disposal suits
to the Maharashtra
police, one such con-
tractor, Biman Agar-
wal, is believed to
still be the go-to-man
for major contracts
of the Brihanmum-
bai Municipal Cor-
poration.
Home Minister Dilip
Walse Patil on Tuesday
feigned ignorance about
the contractor when it
was his own NCP col-
league--and then Home
Minister--RR Patil who
in March 2012 ordered
the withholding of pay-
ments to Agarwal’s
company Techno Trade
Impex India for supply-
ing 82 sub-standard
bomb disposal suits to
the police. A high-level
probe by then Addition-
al Director General of
police Sanjeev Dayal
had submitted a report
on the scam perpetrated
by Agarwal.
Back in August 2011,
another of Agarwal’s
firms was implicated
in a scam brought to
light by then-ADG PK
Jain who informed
then-BMC Commis-
sioner Subodh Kumar
about the corruption
being perpetrated by
this contractor.
Two distinct govern-
ment agencies--the
state police depart-
ment and the BMC-
-purchased identical
imported multi-utility
waist belts to house a
gun, baton, and many
other accessories but
were charged vastly
different prices.
The issue came to
light when then civic
chief Subodh Kumar
received a missive from
Jain, who pointed out
that while the police fi-
nalized its tenders for
the belts at a cost of
Rs1,980 each in March
2010 through the firm
Diamond Traders oper-
ated by Biman Agarw-
al, he also sold the same
belts to the BMC in Sep-
tember that year for a
whopping Rs10,740
each.
Jain also wrote to
then-ACS Home
Umesh Chandra Sa-
rangi on the issue.
According to Jain’s
missive the belts were
available from China
for as little as Rs700,
making the police de-
partment’s procure-
ment rate of Rs1,980 per
belt also very high as it
was a bulk purchase.
Jain, who was the
vice-chairperson and
managing director of
the Maharashtra State
Security Corporation
(MSSC) had pointed
out that similar dis-
crepancies in costing
existed in the other
items provided by
Agarwal as well.
Hemant Karkare
RR Patil
Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil
COSTLY MISTAKE?
Biman Agarwal
was booked for
corrupt deals
with Maha police
and BMC over a
decade ago
Left parties week-long protest against
price rise, unemployment begins today
First India Bureau
New Delhi: Attack-
ing the BJP-led
Central govern-
ment over price rise
and unemployment,
the Left parties at
the national level
have proposed a
seven-point de-
mands charter and
given a country-
wide call for mas-
sive actions for a
week from May 25
to May 31.
Speaking to the me-
dia, Politburo Mem-
ber Ashok Dhawale
said that the Modi-led
BJP government’s
policies are leading to
unbearable price ris-
es and unemploy-
ment. To divert the
attention of the peo-
ple from these burn-
ing issues, the RSS,
BJP, and the Sangh
Parivar are taking re-
course to crass com-
munal polarisation,
he added.
“On May 23, an on-
line meeting of the
leaders of the Left
parties in Maharash-
tra was held. It de-
cided to hold largely
united protest ac-
tions at the district
and tehsil levels on
these issues. It also
expressed intense
dissatisfaction at the
very nominal recent
decrease in petrol
and diesel prices by
the central govern-
ment” Dhawale told
media.

rt is a line
around your
thoughts and
every artist, be-
ginner or profes-
sional, will need
a little pick-me-up once
in a while, to get over a
bad piece of work
they thought would
turn out well or
to overcome art-
ist’s block. Jy-
oti Sharma,
an art stu-
dent from
INIFD gives
a sneak peek
about her journey as
an aspiring artist
Describe yourself, and
what would you say are
some vital skills or
characteristics to have
to make it in the model-
ling world?
I would describe myself
as someone who is high-
ly motivated and very
resourceful at the same
time. I am an ambitious
and driven individual
who isn’t afraid to face a
challenge. I’m always
proactive about seeking
new opportunities to de-
velop and grow in my
role. Integrity and au-
thenticity are important
to me. I absolutely love
meeting new people and
want to work in a chal-
lenging environment.
If you could go in fu-
ture and tell yourself
one thing about your
career what would it
be?
A Must have the ability
to see the world differ-
ently like draw whatever
they see, think, or imagi-
nes. One more vital
skill is to have is
just a willing-
ness to try new
things to try
again without any
fear.
To express ideas in
unique ways and from
diverse perspectives
What inspired you to
find the Supermodel in
you. Share some in-
sides of your journey.
An Inspiration to be-
come an artist comes
from the passion and in-
terest of that person, my
dad has always inspired
me to paint more and I
love it.
What really inspired
me to become an artist
was the beauty of the
natural world, the
fascinating variety of
shapes and colours,
and the joy I feel when
working on some-
thing that will end up
being much more than
the sum of its indi-
vidual parts.
When I was 4, really
young, my father
taught me to draw
scenery and after
watching my drawing
he said he loved it and
that made me feel good
and inspired me to
draw more. In school, I
loved art classes. I
could sit and draw for
hours.
What was the biggest
rookie mistake you
made when just start-
ing out?
Procrastination is my
biggest rookie mis-
take, I didn’t have any
complete projects to
show my skills, only a
folder of endless works
in progress that was
my biggest mistake.
Plus I used to focus all
of my time and energy
on subjects and ne-
glect the background
and fear of making
mistakes
MUMBAI, WEDNESDAY,
MAY 25, 2022
www.firstindia.co.in I https://firstindia.co.in/epapers/mumbai I twitter.com/
thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09
THE PRINCIPLE OF TRUE ART IS NOT TO PORTRAY BUT TO EVOKE, JYOTI
SHARMA, A SUPER TALENTED ART STUDENT FROM INIFD, JAIPUR SPOKE
CANDIDLY WITH CITY FIRST ABOUT HER INSPIRING CAREER AS AN ARTIST
UTTKARSHA SHEKHAR
uttkarsha.shekhar@firstindia.co.in
A
JYOTI:
JYOTI:
SOUL
SOUL
A COLOURFUL
A COLOURFUL

10
ETC
www.firstindia.co.in I https://firstindia.co.in/epapers/mumbai I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
e all know what
soil is. Soil is
the great con-
nector of lives,
the basis of sur-
vival for all hu-
man beings.
Soil consists of many
layers, consisting of min-
erals, broken rocks, water,
and organic matter. Top-
soil is the most critical
layer of soil where we
grow our food.
Do you know there are
more living organisms in
one tea-
spoon of soil
than there are people
on Earth?
The living organisms in-
side the soil are very help-
ful in improving the qual-
ity and longevity of
the soil. Their physical
movement inside the soil
helps to keep the soil well
aerated. Soil is the basis
of life. No living organ-
isms on this planet can im-
agine survival and life
without soil.
IMPORTANCE OF SOIL
The soil is essential for
healthy plant growth,
healthy crop production,
anddifferenttypesof farm-
ing, human nutrition, and
water filtration. Soil helps
to regulate the planet's cli-
mate. Soil filters water and
regulates the discharge of
excess rainwater prevent-
ing flooding. It is capable of
storing large amounts of
organic carbon.
LET’S TALK ABOUT THE
SOLUTION
Improving the organic
content in the soil: By
bringing back at least 3%
- 6% of the organic content
in the soil we can improve
soil health.
Policies should be for-
mulated in every country
to improve soil health. We
must speak about soil. Our
voice is important in a
democratic nation.
SAVE SOIL MOVEMENT
By 2045 we will be produc-
ing 40% less food than
what we are producing
now. With less food, people
will fight over food and the
situation will be more hor-
rific than ever.
We are talking about
other ecological problems
but we are not talking
about soil. Soil is the most
important aspect of life for
all the life on earth. It is the
basis of our survival. The
depletion in the organic
content of the soil leads to
the destruction of this
planet. We have only 40 to
50 years of agricultural
soil left. The food shortage
may arise sooner than we
expect, leading to war
across the world. If we re-
move all the organic con-
tent from the soil, it will
become sand. In most
countries, more than 50%
of the topmost soil has al-
ready gone.
Save Soil Movement has
been started by Sadhguru,
who is the founder of the
Isha Foundation. He is 65
years old and he's riding a
bike for 30,000 kilometres
across 24 nations to acti-
vate support to Save Soil
from governments of dif-
ferent countries.
Soil is a living thing and
it is dying. It is our planet.
Saving the soil is our re-
sponsibility
. The good part
is, that we can still reverse
the damage if timely ac-
tion is taken.
All the countries all over
the world should come to-
gether. Each one of us
should understand the im-
portance of soil.
Only with the support
from each one of us, we
can make it happen.
F
A
C
E
O
F
T
H
E
D
A
Y
NANDINI RAMOLA DAS, Blogger
LEO
JULY 24 - AUGUST 23
Carelessness at work can
get you on the wrong side
of a senior. A family
gathering is likely to
provide you a chance to meet
everyone. Someone is likely to help
you in getting a good property deal.
Those eligible may take some time to
think over a marriage proposal.
LIBRA
SEPT 24 - OCT 22
You will need to adhere to
strict dietary control to
keep good health. On the
professional front, you
may find sharing someone’s
workload a bit distasteful, but you
will keep up the façade of a willing
worker. Avoid risks on the road
today. Stars are strong for you.
ARIES
MAR 21 - APR 20
You are likely to take a
break from your hectic
work schedule just to get
in touch with your inner
self. Your actions may arouse
suspicion and get parents on your
back. You are likely to benefit from a
property related matter. Pending
matters will resolve.
SAGITTARIUS
NOV 23 - DEC 22
Some of you may get a step
closer to coming back in
shape. Despite your efforts,
a decision regarding
property may not go in your favour.
Marriage is on the anvil for the eligible.
You can have a soft corner for
someone you feel attracted to at
workplace.
GEMINI
MAY 21 - JUNE 21
Suitable accommodation is
likely to be taken on rent
by those looking for one.
Blaming someone else for
your mistakes on the work front may
show you in a bad light. Those
staying separated from the family are
likely to get a chance to visit home.
Overall a decent day for you.
AQUARIUS
JAN 21 - FEB 19
Starting something new on
the professional front is
likely to have better financial
prospects. Encouraging
developments on the career front are
foreseen for some. A family issue may
require urgent attention. You may
remain in celebratory mood on the
social front.
TAURUS
APR 21 - MAY 20
Satisfaction on the
professional or academic
front may elude you, but it
will not deter you to
perform well. Disturbances at home
will need to be curtailed to retain a
peaceful environment. Don’t give any
information about a property deal to
those you don’t know well.
CAPRICORN
DEC 23 - JAN 20
You will be able to
effectively curb expenses
by taking some drastic
measures. You will have to
put your trust in people, if you want
to establish yourself on the
professional front. Acquiring new
property is on the cards. Help in
household chores will be needed.
VIRGO
AUG 24 - SEP 23
Disinterest will be apparent
in a task assigned to you
on the professional front.
Much caring and sharing at
home is likely to keep you happy and
contented. Something that you had
wanted to initiate on the home front
may face delays, but will ultimately
be done.
CANCER
JUNE 22 - JULY 23
A chance to become part
of a prestigious organiza-
tion is on the horizon for
some. Some domestic
responsibilities will have to be
discharged promptly to keep the
domestic boat from rocking! Don’t
take decision regarding a property as
it can prove unfavourable.
PISCES
FEB20 - MARCH 20
Financial position will
remain satisfactory, but
overspending should be
guarded against. A
satisfying day is foreseen for
professionals. A marriage proposal
for the eligible in the family can be
received. Property acquired recently
promises to give good returns.
SCORPIO
OCT 23 - NOV 22
You will find things moving
the way you want them at
work today. Your focus can
be health at this juncture
and taking up an exercise regimen
just to come back in shape cannot be
ruled out. Tensions on the family
front cannot be ruled out. A property
issue is best left untouched today.
YOUR
DAY
Horoscope by
Saurabbh Sachdeva
SAVE SOIL
SAVE SOIL
ESHITA SINGH
cityfirst@firstindia.co.in
W
SOIL IS DYING
52% of the agricultural soil is already degraded. The
carbon content in the soil is decreasing. Carbon is
the main component of soil. It helps the soil in im-
proving its water retention capacity and its fertility
.
Soil with less than 0.5% organic carbon is mostly in
desert areas. Carbon also improves soil aeration,
oxygen in the soil, water drainage and retention. It
also reduces the risk of soil erosion. It helps to retain
the nutrients in the soil.
Poor soil health leads to other problems as well:
Depleted soil cannot absorb and regulate water
flows leading to drought and floods.
There is a constant decrease in the nutritional
value of the food produced. Poor nutritional value in
the food produced leads to nutritional deficiencies
and diseases.
Thousands of farmers are suffering due to the de-
pletion of the soil. Their livelihood is directly de-
pendent on the health of the soil. With dying soil,
farmers are also committing suicide.
Sadhguru

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