27032022_First India_Ahmedabad.pdf

First India Bureau
Vadodara: In a remark-
able feat in the field of
municipal financial
governance, bonds is-
sued by Vadodara Mu-
nicipal Corporation has
been subscribed 10
times over at the lowest
interest rate of 7.15%.
Chief Secretary Pankaj
Kumar of the state gov-
ernment led by Chief
Minister Bhupendra
Patel provided the nec-
essary guidance to the
VMC in the entire pro-
cess of issuance of the
bond, which will be
listed on the Bombay
Stock Exchange on
March 30.
Vadodara Municipal
Commissioner Shalini
Agarwal has already re-
ceived 36 bids worth
Rs1,007 crore for the
Rs100 crore bond issued
by the local civic body
under the ‘Amrut’ mis-
sion.
The bond issue was
opened Thursday at 11
am for online subscrip-
tion on the BSE’s elec-
tronic platform. The fi-
nancial bond was sub-
scribed 4.52 times in the
initial seconds of the
issue. CM Patel provid-
ed continuous guidance
to the Corporation dur-
ing the entire process
of issuance of this bond
of Rs100 crore.
Municipal corpora-
tions across the country
can issue financial
bonds through the Se-
curities and Exchange
Board of India (SEBI)
under the Atal Mission
for Rejuvenation and
Urban Transformation-
Amrut Scheme to gain
capital.
As the VMC has suc-
ceeded in raising capi-
tal through bonds be-
fore March 31, it is also
eligible for an incentive
of Rs13 crore from the
Government of India.
VMC’s bonds have
been given A+ / STA-
BLE rating by India
Ratings & Research Pvt
Ltd. and CRISIL Rat-
ings Ltd, officials said,
adding that the finan-
cial bond will give a
new impetus to the
city’s civic infrastruc-
ture development.
 CM Patel-led state government
provided all guidance to Vadodara
civic body on the issue
CM Bhupendra Patel addressed organ donors at an event organized by the multispeciality hospital CIMS
in Ahmedabad on Saturday.
FINANCIAL GOVERNANCE
VMC’s `100 cr bond oversubscribed 10-fold
STUDENT IN HIJAB OFFERS
NAMAZ AT UNIVERSITY
IN MP; PROBE ORDERED
CBI TEAM REACHES
BIRBHUM, BEGINS
INVESTIGATION
A video that shows a Muslim
student in hijab offering namaz in
Dr Harisingh Gour Sagar University
classroom has led to a controversy.
After complaint from right-wing out-
fit, the university said it has ordered
an investigation.
A CBI team reached Bogtui village
in West Bengal’s Birbhum district
to probe violence that claimed eight
lives earlier this week. 20 mem-
bers, went inside the house where
charred bodies of seven people
were found.
AHMEDABAD l SUNDAY, MARCH 27, 2022 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/79050 l Vol 3 l Issue No. 120
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Gandhinagar (PTI):
The BJP’s “massive”
victory in four states is
the testimony to the ac-
ceptance of policies and
projects undertaken by
Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi to make India
safe, prosperous and
powerful, Union Home
Minister Amit Shah
said here on Saturday
.
Shah also said Con-
gress is virtually fin-
ished in these four
states- UP, Goa, Ma-
nipur, and Uttara-
khand.
The Union minister
was addressing a gath-
ering at Bhoyan Moti
village.
“The victory in Uttar
Pradesh, Goa, Manipur
and Uttarakhand
showed the trust that
people have in the lead-
ership of the prime
minister. And in all
these four states, Con-
gress is finished, it is
nowhere to be seen,”
the Home Minister said.
‘INDIA TRUSTS
PM MODI’
VICTORY IN
POLLS SHOWS
PEOPLE’S TRUST
IN PM MODI’S
LEADERSHIP;
CONG WIPED
OUT: AMIT SHAH
PM Modi provided electricity, drinking water, toilet, gas
cylinder, health services, and also ensured that people
received both doses of COVID-19 vaccines, which helped the
country tide over the third wave, whose impact was limited
—Amit Shah, Union Home Minister
Ring bells, drums
at 11 am on
March 31: Cong’s
Mehngai Mukt
campaign
New Delhi (Agencies):
Announcing a nation-
wide protest on Thurs-
day, the Congress today
attacked the Centre
over the hike in petrol
and diesel prices and
said that the “shame-
less fleecing” of the
public must stop.
“On 31st March at 11
am, people will protest
outside their homes
and public places with
garlanded gas cylinders
and beat of drums-bells,
other instruments to
draw the attention of
the deaf BJP govern-
ment against the insur-
mountable increase
in prices of gas, petrol,
and diesel,” Congress
spokesperson Randeep
Surjewala said at
a news conference in
Delhi.
The party’s campaign
appeared to draw inspi-
ration from the one that
BJP conducted during
the nationwide Covid
lockdown. Petrol and
diesel prices were
hiked by 80 paise a li-
tre each on Saturday.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah meets students at Sola Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad on Saturday.
No criminality if something said with a
smile: HC on Delhi riots hate speech case
New Delhi: The Delhi
High Court bench said
on Friday, “If you’re
saying something with
a smile, then there is
no criminality, if
you’re saying some-
thing offensive, then
definitely
.” The bench
was hearing a plea to
initiate criminal pro-
ceedings against Un-
ion Minister Anurag
Thakur for “hate
speech”. The bench re-
served its verdict on
the plea. The single-
judge bench was pre-
sided by Justice Chan-
dra Dhari Singh who
continued saying that
“check and balance” is
needed before filing
FIRs over political
speeches as there is a
difference on what is
said during elections.
50 mins from
Imran’s party
go ‘missing’
Islamabad (Agencies):
As the no-confidence
motion against Paki-
stan PMImran Khan
comes closer, at least 50
ministers belonging to
the ruling Pakistan
Tehreek-e-Insaaf are
not being seen in pub-
lic, Pak media reported.
At federal level, Paki-
stan Prime Minister
Imran Khan still enjoys
the support of its min-
isters. Meanwhile, after
the no-confidence mo-
tion against Khan was
adjourned to March 28,
Pakistan Tehreek-e-In-
saf is wooing its allies.
Warsaw (Agencies):
Amid the heightening
tensions between Rus-
sia and Ukraine, US
President Joe Biden
met with Ukraine’s For-
eign and Defence Minis-
ters at the Marriott Ho-
tel in Poland’s Warsaw.
During the meeting,
Biden was seated along
with US Secretary of
State Antony Blinken
and Defence Secretary
Lloyd Austin.
Ukraine’s Defence
Minister Reznikov stat-
ed that they discussed
current issues and co-
operation in political
and defence directions.
Biden meets Ukraine foreign,
defence ministers in Poland
President Joe Biden participates in a meeting with Ukrainian
Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and Ukrainian Defense Minister
Oleksii Reznikov in Warsaw on Saturday. (Right) President Biden
eats pizza with with members of 82nd Airborne Division.
UKRAINE’S LVIV HIT BY ROCKETS,
BIDEN CALLS PUTIN “BUTCHER”
Kyiv: At least 5 people were injured as rocket strikes
hit Ukraine’s Lviv. Authorities reported three powerful
explosions and urged residents to take shelter. Mean-
while, Biden addressed Russian President as ‘Butcher’.
MILLION
MILLION
BLOOMS
BLOOMS
1.5
1.5Asia’s largest tulip garden on the foothills
of Zabarwan Mountains in Srinagar
overlooking the famous Dal Lake with over
one million blooms was thrown open to
the public on March 23. The garden was
thrown open to the public by J-K chief
secretary Arun Kumar Mehta. The idea of
the garden, spread over 30 hectares in the
foothills of the snow-clad Zabarwan range,
was conceived to advance the tourism
season in the valley by two months. The
garden houses 1.5 million flowers of
tulips, daffodils, hyacinths and muscari.
The flowers include 68 varieties of tulips.
The average lifespan of tulip flowers is
three to four weeks, but heavy rains or
too much heat can destroy them. The
Floriculture department plants tulip bulbs
in a phased manner so that the flowers
remain in the garden for a month or more.
Till now, most of the tourists have been
from outside the Union Territory, which is
a good sign for tourism in the Valley. This
year, the department has made provisions
for online ticket sales as well to avoid the
rush at the ticket counter.

NEWS
AHMEDABAD | SUNDAY, MARCH 27, 2022
02
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First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: Delhi
Education Minister
Manish Sisodia has
sent a formal invite to
his Gujarat counter-
part Jitu Vaghani
asking him to visit a
government school in
Delhi, a day after
challenging him to an
open debate about the
education system, a
Gujarat AAP leader
said here on Saturday
.
A delegation of Aam
Aadmi Party (AAP)
members visited the
state Secretariat dur-
ing the day to meet Va-
ghani and hand over
the invitation letter,
but was told that the
minister was not avail-
able in his office.
The party said it will
make another attempt
on Monday next week to
meet the minister and
hand over the invite.
Speaking to reporters
here, Gujarat AAP pres-
ident Gopal Italia said
Sisodia had invited Va-
ghani, other BJP lead-
ers, ministers and
MLAs to visit any
school in any of the 70
Assembly constituen-
cies in Delhi with full
protocol.
The Delhi minister
had challenged Vagha-
ni to a public debate on
education, but the lat-
ter did not accept the
challenge, Italia said.
“We took the BJP’s
opposition regarding
education positively,
and Sisodia threw an
open challenge for a de-
bate, so that people of
the country could know
what the two govern-
ments were doing in
the field of education,”
the AAP leader said.
Unfortunately, or
rather expectedly, Va-
ghani did not accept
the challenge, he said.
“We are still looking
forward to the debate,
and hence, Sisodiya has
sent a formal invitation
for Vaghani to visit gov-
ernment schools in Del-
hi with full honour and
protocol,” he said.
The invitation comes
a day after the two par-
ties sparred on Twitter
about the performance
of the two states in the
field of education.
Official Twitter han-
dle of Gujarat BJP
BJP4Gujarat came out
with a series of tweets
criticising the policies
of the Arvind Kejri-
wal-led government in
Delhi.
Sisodia tweeted, chal-
lenging Vaghani for a
debate on the education
system in Gujarat and
Delhi “at the place and
time of his choosing”.
In his response, Va-
ghani said that the BJP
respects election re-
sults, and there are
many open grounds (for
debate) in a democracy
.
“Whatever they have
to say
, they should put it
before the people of Gu-
jarat. Let us see if peo-
ple believe them or not.
Campaigns built on lies
are exposed here,” Va-
ghani had said.
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: Union
Home Minister Amit
Shah on Saturday inau-
gurated the College of
Audiology at the Sola
Civil Hospital in
Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
“Inaugurated ‘Anna-
kshetra’ and newly
built ‘College of Audi-
ology’ at Sola Civil
Hospital, today. While
on the one hand, the
relatives of the pa-
tients will get free food
from the Annakshet-
ra, on the other hand,
the youth of the area
will get a better educa-
tion and the public
will get the benefit of
better health facilities
from the college,”
Shah said in a tweet on
Saturday.
He also spent some
time interacting with
the students of the
medical college.
Shah also visited the
residence of a party
worker in Gandhina-
gar earlier in the day
.
The Assembly elec-
tions are due later this
year in the state.
Shah inaugurates Audiology College at Sola Civil Hospital
DELHI-GUJARAT TUSSLE ON
STATE EDUCATION HEATS UP
AAPsendsformalinvitetoGujeduministerJituVaghanitovisitgovtschoolinDelhi
Delhi education minister Manish Sisodia. —FILE PHOTO
Umang Singhar
BM Sandeep
Virender Singh Rathore
Ramkishan Ojha
New Delhi (PTI): A
day after revamping its
Gujarat unit, the Con-
gress on Friday ap-
pointed Umang Sing-
har, Virender Singh
Rathore, BM Sandeep
and Ramkishan Ojha as
new AICC Secretaries
for the state.
The Congress has re-
moved Biswaranjan
Mohanty and Jitendra
Baghel as AICC secre-
taries for Gujarat.
“The Congress presi-
dent has assigned the
responsibility of AICC
secretaries attached
with in-charge Gujarat
to the following AICC
secretaries, relieving
them from their respec-
tive current duties, with
immediateeffect:Umang
Singhar, Virender Singh
Rathore and B M Sand-
eep,” an official party
communication said.
The Congress presi-
dent has also appointed
Ramkishan Ojha as
AICC Secretary at-
tached with in-charge
Gujarat, it stated.
“Biswaranjan Mo-
hanty and Jitendra
Baghel have been
thankfully relieved
from their current re-
sponsibility as AICC
secretaries,” the party
also said.
While BM Sandeep
Kumar was earlier
AICC Secretary for Ma-
harashtra, Umang Sin-
ghar was for Jharkhand
and Virender Singh
Rathore was AICC Sec-
retary for Bihar.
Gujarat goes to the
polls later this year
and the party is look-
ing to replace the BJP
in power.
Poll-bound Guj
gets four new
AICC secretaries
First India Bureau
Vadodara: Dabhoi po-
lice have registered a
case against three BJP
leaders under the
Atrocities Act, follow-
ing allegations that
they made casteist re-
marks against striking
sanitation workers.
Chhayaben Harijan
and other sanitation
workers at the Dabhoi
nagarpalika have been
protesting for the past 2
days since their sala-
ries have not been paid
the past few months.
Further, some have
been hired on a contrac-
tual basis and say their
services have not been
regularized.
They have refused to
collect the town’s gar-
bage until their due
salaries are paid and
services regularized.
On Friday
, when they
were protesting at the
Nagarpalika office,
Chhayaben and the oth-
ers learned that stand-
ing committee chair-
man Vishal Shah,
standing committee
member Biren Shah
and Sanjay Dulani, the
husband of the Dabhoi
Nagarpalika president,
had hired a cleaning
agency
.
The protesters
rushed to Vadodari
Bhagol, where the tem-
porary cleaners were
sweeping and appealed
to them to support their
fight for their rights.
At this time, the three
leaders who had hired
the crew made casteist
remarks against Chhay-
aben and other protest-
ers and threatened to
terminate their servic-
es altogether.
Hurt by the remarks,
Chhayaben lodged a
criminal complaint
against all three leaders
under the Atrocities
Act and relevant sec-
tions of the Indian Pe-
nal Code. The case is
being investigated by
Deputy Superintendent
of Police KV Solanki.
3 BJP leaders booked under Atrocities Act
They
allegedly
hurled
casteist slurs
at protesting
sanitation
workers
Gargi Raval Patel
Ahmedabad: Things
were bound to get in-
teresting as the state
inches closer to the
state Assembly polls
slated for this year. For
now, highly placed
sources in the Con-
gress say that former
Union minister and
Gujarat Congress
president Bharatsinh
Solanki has been try-
ing to re-establish
himself within the
party with an eye to
being named the oppo-
sition’s candidate for
chief minister.
Solanki on Friday or-
ganized a meal for lead-
ers and workers of the
party
, but may have giv-
en away his real inten-
tions by plastering a
massive poster of him-
self at the venue. The
presence of a dais at a
“simple meal” could not
have helped either.
Those present at the
event say that Solanki
asked Gujarat Congress
in-charge Raghu Shar-
matogiveaspeechatthe
event, which was also
attended by Gujarat
Pradesh Congress Presi-
dent Jagdish Thakor,
and Leader of the Oppo-
sition Sukhram Rathva.
“Sharma turned him
down since it was just a
dinner party and not a
political event, and left
soon after, followed by
other senior leaders,” a
person who attended the
event said.
Interestingly
, Solanki
who currently holds no
official post in the party
,
has also come up with a
slogan for the upcoming
polls: Be Hazar Bavish,
Congress Lavish (rough-
ly
, 2022 will bring the
Congress).
While his aides be-
lieve the party’s perfor-
mance was at its best
under Solanki, others
are not convinced.
“How can he declare a
election slogan at a din-
ner party? This shows
his desperation. Do Ra-
ghuSharmaandJagdish
Thakor endorse this?”
asked political observer
Maulin Shah.
Solanki’s waves
come amid rumours
that three-time Con-
gress MLA Ashwin
Kotwal from Khed-
brahma may jump
ship to join the Bhara-
tiya Janata Party next
month.
Hewasabsentatapro-
test on Friday
, and for
most of the Budget Ses-
sion. Once chief whip of
the Congress Legisla-
tureParty(CLP),Kotwal
was named one of six
CLP spokespersons in
February but has not
been active in that role
either, adding fuel to the
fire. Kotwal could not be
reached for comment.
Bharatsinh aims to stand out amid rumours of Ashwin Kotwal’s exit
PRE-POLL GAMES
lll
Insiders say Guj
Cong veteran
Solanki is trying
to re-establish
himself within
the party with
eye on CM
nomination, but
isn’t having
much luck so far
Bharatsinh Solanki. —FILE PHOTO

GUJARAT
03
IMPREGRANATED IN GANGRAPE,
DHABHOIWOMANKILLSHERSELF
First India Bureau
Vadodara: A 19-year-
old girl Sangeeta (name
changed) from Dabhoi,
dies by suicide by
jumping into the Nar-
mada canal. The girl
was gang-raped three
months ago by an auto-
rickshaw driver and
his friend at Banaj vil-
lage, but she com-
plained to the Mumbai
police station after
knowing she was three
months pregnant. The
case is transferred to
the Dabhoi police sta-
tion, which has started
investigations.
As per officials, San-
geeta was working in
Mumbai as a house
help and three-months-
ago had visited her par-
ents in Dabhoi. That
time on the pretext of
giving her a lift home,
an auto-rickshaw driv-
er took her to Lingstha-
li village and raped her
along with his friend.
Fearing the rape news
would tarnish her fam-
ily’s image, she did not
file a complaint and re-
turned to Mumbai,
continuing with her
work.
As her health dete-
riorated, she was taken
to a hospital where she
got to know she was
three-month-pregnant
(12-week old foetus).
She then went to a local
police station in Mum-
bai and complained
about two unidentified
people. The Mumbai
police transferred the
case to the Dabhoi po-
lice station.
But before the police
could begin investiga-
tions, Sangeeta died by
suicide by jumping in
the Narmada canal
near Kurali village.
DySP Dabhoi Divi-
sion, Kalpesh Solanki
said, “We have started
investigating the case
and are getting data,
CDR, and mobile loca-
tions of people known
to the girl to trace the
two accused.”
Social activists
and concerned
citizens held a
candlelight vigil
at IIM Crossroads
in Ahmedabad on
Saturday, to mark a
month since Russia
invaded Ukraine.
They carried
placards bearing
anti-war slogans,
prayed for peace
and expressed
solidarity with the
millions of affected
Ukrainians.
—PHOTO BY
HANIF SINDHI
19-year-old recently found out she was 3-months
pregnant, filed police complaint in Mumbai 19-yr-oldfoundhanging;
rape,murdersuspected
First India Bureau
Vadodara: Rural po-
lice are investigat-
ing the possible rape
and murder of a
19-year-old whose
body was found
hanging from a tree
in Karjan on Friday
afternoon.
According to the
case filed by the wom-
an’s father, she disap-
peared after going to
attend nature’s call
while harvesting the
family’s castor crop in
a leased field in Man-
dala village on Thurs-
day evening.
Karjan is about
30km from Mandala.
Police have sent
the body for post-
mortem and have
launched an investi-
gation.
While the cause of
death will be re-
vealed in the post-
mortem, they say
there are indications
that she was raped—
possibly by more
than one person—be-
fore being murdered.
It is likely that she
knew at least one of
her assailants since
she did not scream
for help while leav-
ing the area. The ini-
tial investigation has
thrown suspicion on
the woman’s brother-
in-law. It is believed
that the two were en-
gaged in an extra-
marital affair. The
man had been pres-
suring the woman to
marry him and may
have committed the
crime when she re-
fused, officials said.
“We will only know
for sure if she was
raped or gang-raped
once the post-mor-
tem results come in.
However, our initial
investigation indi-
cates that she may
have have been raped
and murdered on
Thursday evening,
and her body strung
up on Thursday
night,” the Dabhoi
police station officer
told First India.
Another heatwave
likely in state this
weekend, says IMD
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: The
India Meteorologi-
cal Department has
issued another
warning of a heat-
wave in parts of
the state over the
next three days.
“Heat wave condi-
tions very likely to
prevail at isolated
pockets in districts
of the North Gujarat
region, namely
Ahmedabad, Gandhi-
nagar, Banaskantha,
Sabarkantha, Patan
and Mehsana, in ad-
dition to Kutch dis-
trict,” it said in its
bulletin.
The department
also warned that
while the heat will
largely be “tolerable”
for the general pub-
lic, but could pose
“moderate health
concerns” for vul-
nerable parts of the
population, includ-
ing infants, the elder-
ly and people with
chronic diseases.
It has suggested
that people avoid
heat exposure, and
wear lightweight,
light-coloured, loose,
cotton clothes to pro-
tect themselves from
the heat.
Heat wave is con-
sidered if maximum
temperature of a sta-
tion reaches at least
40 °C in the plains, 37
°C or more for coastal
stations and at least
30 °C for hilly re-
gions. Heat wave is
also announced
when the actual tem-
perature reaches or
exceeds 45 °C and se-
vere heat wave for 47
°C or more.
Ahmedabad on
Saturday saw a max-
imum of 41.2 °C, five
degrees above nor-
mal, and a minimum
of 23.2 °C, two de-
grees above normal.
First India Bureau
Vadodara: A city-
based real-estate de-
veloper launched
their 22-storied tall-
est building in Va-
dodara, keeping in
mind environ-
ment-friendly facili-
ties, the safety of
customers and the
city’s skyline view.
Alembic Real Estate
launched its new proj-
ect, the Veda II, a
22-storied green build-
ing, the tallest in the
city.
Director of Alembic
Real Estate, Udit Amin
said, “The Alembic
Veda has over 367 plus
flats, one refuge flat for
emergency escape.
Certain features of the
building reduce car-
bon footprints and
make the building a
green building.”
The developer has
constructed a dual
plumbing system,
where the first system
is for the local civic
body’s water supply
while the second sys-
tem will supply water
that is treated, puri-
fied and can be used in
daily activities like
flushing toilets and
watering gardens.
The treated water is
also useful to maintain
lush green surround-
ings in the apartment
premises.
The entire project
has a rainwater har-
vesting system, which
will help store the
rainwater and main-
tain water levels of the
premises. It also has
solar infrastructure
installed for street
lights inside the prem-
ises. They have used
Fly Ash in construc-
tion, thus, contribut-
ing towards the con-
servation of the envi-
ronment.
In addition, the
building will also have
a fire hydrant system,
a sprinkler system on
the stilt floor for car
parking at each tower
and, importantly, in
each apartment.
V’dara gets first 22-storey green building
SUSTAINABLE
A computer-generated image of what the building will look like.
Builders say key objective is to provide environment-
friendly facilities that will help reduce carbon footprint
Daily-jump rises slightly, but
new cases firmly under 20
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: Guja-
rat registered 17 new
COVID-19 cases in the
24-hour period ended
5 pm on Saturday—a
slight increase from
Friday, when it added
13new cases—the
state health depart-
ment said in a state-
ment. With the day’s
additions, Gujarat’s
total case tally has
risen to 12,23,862
since the pandemic
first hit the state in
March 2020.
There were no new
fatalities attributed to
the novel coronavirus
through the day
, leaving
the death toll un-
changed at 10,942 for
another day, the health
department said.
Gujarat now has 276
active cases, with four
patients on ventilator
support. Another 23 pa-
tients were discharged
from hospitals around
the state throughout the
day, taking the total
number of recoveries
up to 12,12,644.
The state adminis-
tered 1,15,372 doses of
the vaccine on Satur-
day, taking the total to
10.58 crore since the in-
oculation drive began.
12,12,644
TOTAL RECOVERED
23
RECOVERED
IN A DAY
12,23,862
TOTAL CASES
17 CASES
IN A DAY
10,942
TOTAL DEATHS
00 DEATHS
IN A DAY
276
10 MAX
CASES IN
A’BAD
ACTIVE CASES
COVID-19
UPDATE
PROTEST FOR PEACE
PROTEST FOR PEACE
Initial probe
throws
suspicion on
her sister’s
husband with
whom she
may have had
an affair

PERSPECTIVE
04
Vol 3 Issue No. 120
RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/79050.
Printed and published by
Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf
of First Express Publishers.
Printed at Bhaskar Printing Planet
Survey No.148P, Changodar-
Bavla Highway, Tal. Sanand, Dist.
Ahmedabad. Published at D/302
3rd Floor Plot No. 35 Titanium
Square, Scheme No. 2, Thaltej
Taluka, Ghatlodiya, Ahmedabad.
Editor-In-Chief: Jagdeesh Chandra.
Editor: Haresh Jhala
responsible for selection of news
under the PRB Act
Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
Let’s talk stress free exams yet
again! Calling upon the dynamic
#ExamWarriors, their parents and
teachers to join this year’s Pariksha Pe
Charcha on the 1st of April. Pariksha
Pe Charcha is interactive, light hearted
and gives us all the opportunity to
talk about different aspects of exams,
studies, life and more...
Kiren Rijiju
@KirenRijiju
Learn about the Extraordinary
Inspiring Journey of Hon’ble PM Shri
@NarendraModi ji, narrated by his co-
travellers. Everyone must experience
http://modistory.in. A volunteer driven
initiative @themodistory, in which you
can share your story about PM too.
SPIRITUAL SPEAK
The one in whom no longer
exist the craving and thirst
that perpetuate becoming;
how could you track that
Awakened one, trackless, and
of limitless range. —Buddha
IN-DEPTH
PANDEMIC-HIT
LANKAN TAMILS
SEEK REFUGE IN
TAMIL NADU
ri Lanka, like Paki-
stan, is facing an eco-
nomic crisis but of
far bigger propor-
tions. Skyrocketing
prices of foodgrain triggered by
economic mismanagement, the
crisis is forcing Lankan Tamils
to seek refuge in India. They
have started trickling in small
numbersalongChennai’sshores
for refuge and livelihood. Last
time the huge influx of Lankan
Tamils in Tamil Nadu was due
to the war unleashed by Sri Lan-
ka to crush the demand for Ta-
mil Eelam. It all ended with the
assassination of former Prime
Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
The Sri Lankan economy is
heavily dependent on tourism
and export of tea. Both have
taken a hit due to Covid-19.
Tourism also suffered due to at-
tacks on Christians during East-
er in 2019. The twin blow led to
Sri Lanka’s foreign exchange
reserves falling drastically, the
country was unable to buy food
items and other goods. India has
offered a billion dollar credit
line to bailout its neighbour
which needs $22 billion to pay
for its imports.
TOP TWEETS
S
ndian establish-
ment has devel-
oped a spine
which was not vis-
ible over the last
couple of decades. Look at the
manner in which China’s for-
eign minister Wang Yi ar-
rived unannounced to meet
the External Affairs Minister
S Jaishankar and National
Security Advisor Ajit Doval.
Wang, reportedly, also want-
ed to meet Prime Minister
Narendra Modi but was po-
litely told that was not possi-
ble. He invited Jaishankar
and Doval to visit Beijing but
both insisted on normalisa-
tion of situation along border
first. China was directly
blamed the “disturbed” situ-
ation for the “abnormal” re-
lationship. To look China in
the eye and put things
straight wouldn’t have been
possible a decade back as Bei-
jing flexed its muscles.
More recently a visit of a
UK trade delegation led by
House of Commons speaker
had to be called off as India
refused to entertain any sug-
gestion regarding its pro-Rus-
sia policy. Even PM Boris’s
telephonic conversation with
Modi did not cut ice. Delega-
tion was to discuss an Indo-
UK free trade agreement but
agenda changed after Rus-
sian invasion of Ukraine. Ind
is in talks with Russia for
making payments in Indian
rupee. That would effectively
leave any American sanction
on Russia meaningless and
push the US dollar out of Ind-
Russia bilateral trade.
US Prez Biden’s efforts to
bulldoze India also backfired
after Delhi told Americans to
mind their business. Wheth-
er it is India’s importance as
a global market or growing
strategic clout because of
Chinese manoeuvres in Indo-
Pacific, Delhi is able to tick
them off whenever needed, a
refreshing change.
AFTER EAM’S STRAIGHT
TALK, WILL CHINA BLINK
Wang, reportedly, also
wanted to meet Prime
Minister Narendra Modi
but was politely told that
was not possible. He
invited Jaishankar and
Doval to visit Beijing
but both insisted on
normalisation of situation
along border first
I
SORRY STATE OF
WAR-HIT UKRAINE
ost of human kind felt re-
lieved with the demise of the
USSR in 1991. Mr Vladimir
Putin was at the time a KGB
agent serving in East Ger-
many. 10 years later he was
the most important man in
Russia. For 22 years he is at
the helm in Russia. No rivals,
no attempted coup. Mr Putin
has visited India several
time. Bilateral relations have
been cordial since 1955. We
import most of our military
hardware from Russia.
On Kashmir the USSR and
later Russia have supported
us. Our non-alignment was
fully understood (However
our-alignment did tilt to-
wards the USSR and Russia).
At the UN without Moscow’s
support we would been at the
mercy of the Western block
headed by the United States
of America.
On February 24 we saw the
RussianleaderinhisStalinist
Avtar. Granted that Ukraine
President Volodymyr Zelen-
skyy had been repeatedly de-
claring that Ukraine wished
tobecomeamemberof NATO.
This was not acceptable to Mr
Putin.Insteadof holdingtalks
with his Ukrainian counter-
part he invaded Ukraine. Mr
Putin mistakenly believed
that Russia would demolish
Ukraine in a few days.
Mr Zelenskyy has dis-
played immense courage, in-
spired his people by his fear-
lessness and determination.
Once a comedian he will go
down in history as a military
and political hero. History
will not spare Mr Putin. He
will, unfortunately for him,
be bracketed with ruthless
leaders who are not subject to
reason and not open to advice
given by friendly leaders like
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi, who has spoken to the
Russian President thrice. Mr
Putin has ignored his advice.
Mr Putin erred catastroph-
ically on several scores. He
underestimated the will, pat-
riotism and above all the bat-
tleworthinessandprodigious
nationalism of Ukraine’s
armed forces. The Russian
army is not faring well. In
some areas it is taking a beat-
ing. Nonetheless, having
thrown humanism out of the
Kremlinwindowhehasrazed
to the ground large parts of
democratic Ukraine, dis-
placed 10 million Ukrainians.
Nearly 3.1 million Ukraini-
ans have become refugees,
who have been welcomed by
Poland, Romania, Hungry,
Slovakia. Canada and USA
will take in several hundred
thousand in the days to come.
The men are fighting the
Russians,whilechildren,teen-
agers, their sisters, mothers
andgrandmothers(andwives
of soldiers) live in cramped
camps and school buildings,
with terrible sanitation.
What happens to them af-
ter one year. Poland cannot
give 2.5 million refuge for all
time. Some might wish to re-
turn to Ukraine, but their
homes have disappeared. The
total unity of the west has
surprised Mr Putin and the
World. Even Mr. Putin cannot
take on the USA and Europe.
The sanctions are beginning
to bite.
Are the Russian people
aware of the destruction of
Ukraine and the plight of the
people. No, they are not. One
fact stands out. Not one Rus-
sian diplomat has defected. 2
days ago the G7, NATO and
European Union leaders met
in Brussels under the Chair-
manship of President Biden.
There was complete unanim-
ity
. This will give no comfort
to Mr Putin.
The foreign minister of the
People’s Republic of China
arrived in New Delhi on
March 24. Apparently, our
government is not too en-
thused by Mr Wang Yi’s visit.
The Radio and TV remained
silent about the visit.
Before coming to New Del-
hi Mr Wang Yi attended the
meeting of the Organisation
of Islamic States- OIC in La-
hore. There he said, that Chi-
na had the desire as its Is-
lamic friends on the issue of
Kashmir and China will con-
tinue to support the people of
Palestine and Kashmir in
their “just freedom strug-
gle”. The spokesman of the
External Affairs Ministry
gave a befitting reply to the
Mr Wang’s offensive observa-
tion on Kashmir, “Matters
related to the Union Territo-
ry of Jammu and Kashmir
are entirely the internal af-
fairs of India. Other coun-
tries, including China have
no locus standi to comment.”
On March 25, speaking in the
Rajya Sabha the exception-
ally able, experienced and
unostentatious External Af-
fairs Minister spoke on our
policy on Ukraine. He told
the Rajya Sabha that our
Ukraine policy was, “Stead-
fast and consistent”. Emi-
nently wise. But is Moscow
listening.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
M
Before coming to New Delhi
Mr Wang Yi attended the
meeting of the Organisation
of Islamic States- OIC in
Lahore. There he said, that
China had the desire as its
Islamic friends on the issue
of Kashmir and China will
continue to support the
people of Palestine and
Kashmir in their “just
freedom struggle”. The
spokesman of the External
Affairs Ministry gave a
befitting reply to the Mr
Wang’s offensive
observation on Kashmir,
“Matters related to the
Union Territory of Jammu
and Kashmir are entirely
the internal affairs of
India. Other countries,
including China have no
locus standi to comment”
History will not spare
Mr Putin. He will,
unfortunately for him, be
bracketed with ruthless
leaders who are not
subject to reason and not
open to advice given by
friendly leaders like
Prime Minister
Narendra Modi, who
has spoken to the
Russian President
thrice. Mr Putin has
ignored his advice
K NATWAR SINGH
The author is Former Minister
of External Affairs of India
 Immediate cessation of hostilities
 Return to dialogue and diplomacy
 Respect for international law
 Sovereignty and territorial integrity
 Access to humanitarian assistance
 India’s own aid to Ukraine and
initiative to remain in touch with the
leadership of both
EXTERNAL AFFAIRS MINISTER SAID UKRAINE
POLICY IS BASED ON 6 PRINCIPLES...

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INDIA
05
Hyderabad (Agencies):
Almost seven years af-
ter it first gave a gender-
neutral graduation cer-
tificate to a student on
request, Hyderabad’s
National Academy of
Legal Studies and Re-
search (Nalsar) has
started designating
spaces gender-neutral
as part of a first-of-its-
kind trans policy the
university is finalising.
Vi c e - C h a n c e l l o r
Faizan Mustafa said
that the university
aimed to create a safe
and inclusive campus.
The ground floor of the
GH-6 building has been
designated as a gender-
neutral space with
rooms allotted to stu-
dents self-identifying as
members of the LG-
BTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bi-
sexual, transgender
and queer plus) commu-
nity, with plans to move
towards a gender-neu-
tral hostel in due
course. The washroom
on the academic block’s
ground floor is also gen-
der-neutral.
The university al-
ready has an interim
policy in place to ad-
dress inclusivity con-
cerns of the LGBTQ+
community and a final
policy is in the works.
The GH-6 building
houses a hostel, which
may later fully become
a gender-neutral hostel.
In June 2015, a
22-year-old BA LLB stu-
dent requested not be
identified by gender in
the graduation certifi-
cate. The university
promptly accepted the
request and used the
neutral prefix of “Mx”.
It was the beginning of
the institution’s efforts
to make it inclusive.
The university is
working to designate
more areas as gender-
neutral, Mustafa said.
“We have requested stu-
dents to identify them-
selvesandbasedontheir
preference, we are creat-
ing safe and inclusive
spaces for everyone. As
per the trans policy that
we are adopting, there
will be more changes on
the campus,’’ he said.
The “Policy on Inclu-
sive Education for Gen-
der and Sexual Minori-
ties’’ has been drafted by
the university’s trans
policycommittee.Asper
thedraftpolicy
,self-iden-
tification requiring no
more than a written self-
attested declaration will
be the basis for recogni-
tion of gender identity
and sexual orientation.
Hyd law varsity creates gender-neutral spaces, drafts trans policy
lll
A student
requested not be
identified by
gender in
certificate. The
university
promptly accepted
the request and
used the neutral
prefix of ‘Mx’
TWO FACES OF THE SAFFRON PARTY
DESPITE HIGH COMMAND’S ‘FAVOUR’, DHUMAL’S LUCK
RAN OUT WHERE DHAMI AND MAURYA’S DIDN’T!
Shashikant Sharma/
Kartikey Dev Singh
New Delhi: Seldom
does it happen that a
sitting Chief Minister
or a deputy CM looses
an election, and per-
haps it has never been
seen before that even
after loosing election,
they are ‘reinstated’ to
their ‘old glory’. But
this is exactly what has
happened in Uttara-
khand and Uttar
Pradesh respectively,
where the sitting CM
and Deputy CM lost the
election, but have yet
again found them-
selves in their former
offices, carrying out
the roles they had, pri-
or to the poll.
The Chief Minister
of Uttarakhand, Push-
kar Singh Dhami is
perhaps more lucky
than his colleague
from the neighbouring
state as Maurya does
fit into the over all po-
litical ‘scheme of
things’ for the BJP
since he is a respecta-
ble OBC leader. But
Dhami does not have
that political ‘need’ for
the BJP, perhaps be-
cause he commands a
comparatively less po-
litically charged state
with lesser population
than UP and lesser
area too. Yet, he has
been given preference,
just like Maurya, and
seated in the CMO as a
result of which, ob-
serves say that he is
quite lucky in compari-
son to the former Chief
Minister of Himachal,
Prem Kumar Dhumal.
A political observer
from Dehradun stress-
es that despite the de-
feat in the assembly
elections, he was put
on the chief minister’s
chair by the BJP high
command, whereas in
Dhumal’s case, about
four years ago, the par-
ty had refrained from
taking such a decision
and Dhumal had be-
come one of the few
unlucky politicians
whose political life was
ruined due to party’s
stand. In the assembly
elections held in
Himachal in 2015, BJP
contested the election
by declaring Dhumal
as the CM candidate.
Earlier BJP was follow-
ing the strategy of con-
testing elections with-
out declaring any lead-
er but later when it
started realising that
victory is not sure
without Dhumal’s
name, the party de-
clared him as future
CM. This announce-
ment was made by the
then BJP President
Amit Shah himself at
an election rally
.
But unfortunately,
Dhumal lost the elec-
tion while fielded from
the new electoral con-
stituency Sujanpur
Tehra. People believed
that Dhumal was de-
feated under a well
thought out conspiracy
.
This was the reason
that when the party
won despite his defeat,
like Dhami, there was
a strong demand to
make Dhumal the
Chief Minister.
But Dhumal’s luck
ran out where Dhami’s
didnt. The party decid-
ed that the CM would
be elected from among
the elected MLAs and
thus Jai Ram Thakur
was made the CM.
However, in 2022, the
party has decided to
continue with Dhami,
perhaps thinking that
he can not be made a
scapegoat since he was
in the chair for only a
few months. What ever
be the reason, Dhami’s
luck has abetted him,
but now he will have to
work with twice the
viguor to continue at
the post, or else he may
also meet the fate of
his predecessors! But
even before that, Dha-
mi will have one more
chance to regain his
electoral honour, as in
absence of a Legisla-
tive Council, Dhami
will have to contest
election and come out
victorious within 6
months, else he may
have to loose his place.
However, the situa-
tion around UP Depu-
ty CM KP Maurya is
quite different. He
does not have to con-
test any election as he
is still a MLC. Second-
ly, he is more accepta-
ble and stronger lead-
er among other back-
ward castes as com-
pared to other leaders.
Therefore, a large sec-
tion of party leaders
have lobbied for his
inclusion in the gov-
ernment and also ad-
vocated delegating
greater responsibility
to him, which even the
high command agrees
upon. Now that he has
been appointed as
DyCM, the reason be-
hind his inclusion is
simple. BJP central
leadership knows that
to continue its stay in
Delhi, the party will
have to bring the OBC
and Dalit votes to its
kitty and therefore,
leaders like Maurya
give that platform to
the party where,
through them, the par-
ty and the union gov-
ernment can be pro-
jected as sharing pow-
er with the OBCs and
other such community
groups. It is certain
that in view of his im-
portance in the con-
text of next Lok Sabha
elections, the party
can not and has not
sidelined him.
Prem Kumar Dhumal, Former
CM, Himachal Pradesh
Pushkar Singh Dhami, Chief
Minister, Uttarakhand
Keshav Prasad Maurya,
Deputy CM, Uttar Pradesh
AKHILESH TO LEAD OPP CHARGE IN UP
AFTER QUITTING AS LOK SABHA MP
Aim is to come face-to-face with Yogi Adityanath in the Assembly, and to create ground for 2024 LS polls
Lucknow (PTI): Sama-
jwadi Party (SP) chief
Akhilesh Yadav was
elected as the leader of
the SP legislative party
duringameetingof new-
ly elected party MLAs in
Lucknow on Saturday
.
The party also decided
that Akhilesh would be
made the leader of the
opposition in the Uttar
Pradesh Assembly
.
On Tuesday, Akhile-
sh had decided to retain
Karhal Assembly seat,
giving up his Lok Sabha
membership from the
Azamgarh constituen-
cy instead.
After the meeting of
SP MLAs on Saturday,
state party president
Naresh Uttam Patel
said, “Akhilesh Yadav
has been elected as the
leader of the SP Legis-
lative Party. The pro-
posal to elect him was
floated by senior SP
MLA Awadhesh Prasad
and it was supported by
all elected MLAs.”
SP’S FIGHT AGAINST
MODI MUST BEGIN
FROM LUCKNOW
RATION SCHEME
EXTENSION 1ST MOVE
OF YOGI’S 2ND TERM
Lucknow: In his first
cabinet meeting after
taking oath as UP CM,
Yogi Adityanath on
Saturday announced
his government’s deci-
sion to extend the free
ration scheme by three
months. The scheme
had found mention
in Prime Minister
Narendra Modi’s elec-
tion speech as “Modi
ka namak” and was
a hit among people,
especially women vot-
ers. This scheme was
supposed to expire in
March 2022.
Lucknow: Both in
personal and political
terms, the decision to
stay put in Lucknow
rather than to chase the
illusion of ‘national im-
portance’ in New Delhi
bespeaks the making of
a new leader. Because
UP remains so crucially
central to the Modi-Shah
dominance, it is only by
challenging the Hindutva
crowd in this akhara that
Akhilesh can possibly
hope to become the
catalyst for re-alignment
of progressive forces for
the 2024 battle.
BJP’s Ritu Khanduri
first woman speaker of
Uttarakhand Assembly
Dehradun (ANI):
Bharatiya Janata Par-
ty’s(BJP)RituKhanduri
waselectedastheSpeak-
er of the Uttarakhand
LegislativeAssemblyon
Saturday, becoming the
first woman Speaker of
the state Assembly
.
Kanduri was elected
as the fifth Speaker of
the Uttarakhand Legis-
lative Assembly. She
succeeded BJP’s Prem-
chand Aggarwal,
whose term ended on
March 10. Uttarakhand
Chief Minister Push-
kar Singh Dhami con-
gratulated Khanduri
and said that under her
leadership, the state
Assembly would create
“new history”.
“She will run the
House well and our As-
sembly will create new
history under her lead-
ership,” Chief Minister
Dhami told media.
Samajwadi Party supremo and Karhal MLA Akhilesh Yadav.
Ritu Khanduri, first woman speaker of Uttarakhand Assembly.
JK Police says will attach property of
those who‘wilfully’ shelter militants
Srinagar (PTI): Days
after warning that prop-
erties of people provid-
ing shelter to militants
or their associates will
be attached under the
Unlawful Activities
(Prevention) Act
(UAPA), Jammu and
Kashmir Police on Sat-
urday said action will be
taken only if the house
owner “wilfully har-
boured terrorists” and
there was no duress.
However, the police
said, the onus of prov-
ing duress is on the
house owner.
In a statement, SSP
of Srinagar Rakesh Bal-
wal said there has been
misinformation, ru-
mours floated by cer-
tain quarters about in-
formation provided by
Srinagar Police on ini-
tiation of attachment
of properties used for
terrorism purpose.
It is clarified that Sri-
nagar Police is well
aware of the difference
between wilful har-
bouring of terrorists
and one done under du-
ress, he said.
JK: SPO shot dead, brother
injured in terrorist attack
Srinagar (Agencies):
Terrorists late evening
on Saturday fired upon
an SPO in police and
his brother in ther Bud-
gam district of central
Kashmir.
IGP Kashmir said,
“Terrorists fired upon
the two brothers Ishfaq
Ahmad Dar (26) posted
as SPO in Budgam and
his brother Umar Ah-
mad Dar (23), who is
said to be a student.
Later, SPO Ishfaq suc-
cumbed to his injuries
on the way to hospital.
Theareahasbeencor-
doned off and a search
operation has been
launched in the area to
nab the attackers.
Delhi’s ‘Rozgar
Budget’ has
promise of
20 lakh jobs
New Delhi (PTI):
Delhi Finance min-
isterManishSisodia
onSaturdaypresent-
ed a Rs 75,800-crore
“Rozgaar Budget”
for 2022-23 with a
major focus on job
creation and mar-
kets to boost the eco-
nomic growth and
recover from the
damages caused by
the Covid-19 pan-
demic and the sub-
sequent lockdown.
The upcoming fi-
nancial year’s
Budget has seen an
increase of about
13.3 per cent as com-
pared to the revised
estimates of the
previous year’s
Budget which stood
at Rs 67,000 crore.
Congress general secretaries,
state in-charges meet in Delhi
New Delhi (PTI):
Congress general sec-
retaries and party in-
charges of various
states met on Saturday
to discuss the party’s
membership drive and
the current political
situation.
Congress general
secretary (Organisa-
tion) K C Venugopal
chaired the meeting at
the party headquar-
ters here and dis-
cussed the progress of
the ongoing member-
ship drive and future
agitational pro-
grammes.
Among prominent
leaders of the party
who attended the meet-
ing were Priyanka
Gandhi Vadra, Oomen
Chandy, Mukul Was-
nik, Tariq Anwar, Ran-
deep Surjewala, Ajay
Maken and treasurer
Pawan Kumar Bansal.

INDIA
06
New Delhi (Agencies):
During Chinese For-
eign Minister Wang Yi's
visit to Delhi, Beijing
had called for a meeting
between him and PM
Narendra Modi, but
that was ‘politely’ re-
jected. On a surprise
visit after two years,
Wang Yi’s request to
meet PM Modi was po-
litely but firmly turned
down by New Delhi.
Wang, who met Ex-
ternal Affairs Minister
S Jaishankar and NSA
Ajit Doval amid a lack
of progress in talks on
the border standoff in
Ladakh, was not able to
meet Modi as the latter
had gone to UP for Yo-
gi's swearing-in as CM.
Wang argued for both
sides taking a long-term
view of the relations be-
yond the boundary dis-
pute and conveyed to
Jaishankar China's de-
sire to return to nor-
malcy in its ties with
India.
New Delhi ‘politely’ turns down
China’s call for Wang-Modi meet
WangwasnotabletomeetPMaslatterhadgonetoUPforYogi’sswearing-in
EAM S Jaishankar meets Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, at
Hyderabad House, in New Delhi on Friday. —FILE PHOTO
Amritsar: The Indian
government released
three Pakistani prisoners
and a baby and sent them
back to their homeland on
Saturday. The Pakistani
prisoners were identified
as Samira, Ahmad Rajaa
and Murtaja Ajgar Ali,
according to Arun Pal, the
Protocol Officer. He said
that all the three prisoners
were sent to Pakistan via
Attari Wagah Border.
Kathmandu (ANI):
Nepalese Prime
Minister Sher Baha-
dur Deuba will visit
Varanasi during his
official visit to India
from April 1 to 3. A
s per the itinerary,
he will meet Prime
Minister Narendra
Modi on April 2. This
will be his first visit
to India after becom-
ing Prime Minister of
the Himalayan nation
in July 2021. He has
visited India in each
of his four earlier
stints as PM. His last
visit to India was in
2017. This visit is a
part of the tradition
of periodic high-level
exchanges between
the two countries. It
will give an opportu-
nity to both sides to
review relations.
New Delhi (PTI): External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will be visiting Mal-
dives and Sri Lanka for bilateral meetings and the signing of several agree-
ments. Jaishankar’s visit to Colombo comes at a time when the island nation
is facing a massive economic crisis, with power blackouts and shortage of es-
sential goods leading to protests. The situation is driving its nationals to seek
refuge in India. A statement from the ministry said Jaishankar will visit Addu in
Maldives this weekend on the invitation of Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mal-
dives, Abdulla Shahid. “EAM would be visiting Addu city in Maldives (26-27
March), during which EAM will call on President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and
hold discussions with the Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulla Shahid.
INDIAN GOVT
RELEASES THREE
PAK PRISONERS
NEPALESE PM SET
TO VISIT INDIA
NEXT WEEK
JAISHANKAR IN MALDIVES, TO VISIT
LANKA NEXT FOR BILATERAL TALKS
New Delhi: Prime Min-
ister Narendra Modi on
Saturday announced
the extension of the
free ration scheme till
September 30 this year
at a cost of Rs 80,000
crore, as it looks to con-
tinue providing support
to vulnerable amid a
rebound in the Covid-19
pandemic. The decision
was taken in the Cabi-
net meeting chaired by
PM at his residence.
The scheme, which
started when India
went into stringent
lockdown two years
back, was to end on
March 31. In March
2020, the Centre had
launched the scheme —
Pradhan Mantri Garib
Kalyan Anna Yojana
(PM-GKAY) — to pro-
videfree5kgfoodgrains
per person per month to
over 80 crore benefi-
ciaries covered under
the National Food Secu-
rity Act (NFSA) to re-
duce the hardships of
people during Covid.
In keeping with the
concern and sensitivity
towards poor and vul-
nerable sections of so-
ciety
, the Union Cabinet
has extended the PM-
GKAY scheme for an-
other six months i.e, till
September 2022 (Phase
VI), an official
statement
said.
Centre extends free
ration scheme till Sept
PRIME MINISTER TO ATTEND
BIMSTEC SUMMIT VIRTUALLY
New Delhi: Prime Minister Nar-
endra Modi will attend a vir-
tual summit of the seven-
nation BIMSTEC grouping
on March 30, which is
expected to focus on
expanding economic
engagement.
New Delhi (PTI): A
portal, modistory.in,
has been launched
to bring together
“inspiring” stories
related to Prime
Minister Narendra
Modi from those who
have interacted with
him during his life
journey over the dec-
ades. “Announcing
the launch of MODI
STORY, a volunteer
driven initiative to
bring together inspir-
ing moments from
Narendra Modi’s life,
as narrated by his
co-travellers. Inaugu-
rated by Smt. Sumitra
Gandhi Kulkarni,
granddaughter of
Mahatma
Gandhi,”
the portal
tweeted
from its
Twitter
handle.
PORTAL
LAUNCHED TO
SHARE STORIES
OF PM MODI
First India Bureau
Siliguri: Airborne
drills were carried out
by the Indian Army on
Thursday and Friday,
officials informed on
Saturday
.
Around 600 para-
troopers of the Indian
Army’s Airborne Rapid
Response teams carried
out the airborne drill
near the sensitive Silig-
uri Corridor in north-
ern Bengal.
The exercise involved
advanced free-fall tech-
niques, insertion, sur-
veillance.
The Army drill also
included target prac-
tice, and seizing of key
objects by going behind
enemy lines, said Indi-
an Army officials.
Indian Army conducts airborne rapid
response exercise near Siliguri corridor
SC BARS TRIPURA POLICE FROM ACTING
AGAINST 4 WHO TWEETED ON VIOLENCE
New Delhi: The Supreme Court has restrained
Tripura Police from taking any action against four
students who had posted
on social media against
the alleged communal
violence in the state last
year. A bench of justices
DY Chandrachud and Surya
Kant passed the order in
four separate petitions filed
by these people and tagged
all of them with the pend-
ing petitions in the matter.
Pending further orders, there shall be a stay of
further proceedings in Case No…dated November
3, 2021, West Agartala Police Station, Tripura, the
bench ordered on Friday.
IN THE COURTYARD
New Delhi (ANI): A special court of Delhi has
issued notice to the Central Bureau of Investi-
gation (CBI) on the
bail plea of former
managing director and
chief executive officer
of National Stock Ex-
change (NSE) Chitra
Ramkrishna in con-
nection with the NSE
co-location case. CBI Judge Sanjeev Aggarwal on
Friday sought the response of the investigation
agency within two weeks in the bail petition and
fixed the matter for April 8, 2022, for detailed
arguments. Chitra Ramkrishna is presently in
judicial custody in the matter.
DELHI COURT NOTICE TO CBI ON
CHITRA’S BAIL PLEA IN NSE SCAM
New Delhi: Chief Elec-
tion Commissioner Su-
shil Chandra on Satur-
day said that while the
participation of women
in Parliament is still
much less than desired,
the 33 per cent reserva-
tion guaranteed by the
Constitution to women
in the local bodies has
given rise to many
grassroot women lead-
ers and brought about a
visible change in their
communities.
Addressing the pres-
entation ceremony for
Sansad Ratna Awards
hosted by Prime Point
Federation, Chandra
appreciated how EC’s
special efforts to in-
crease the participation
of women had ensured
that the female voters’
turnout exceeded male
voters’ turnout in four
of the five states that
recently went to polls.
New Delhi: Petrol, die-
sel prices were hiked
again on Saturday,
across metro cities for
the fourth time in the
last five days. The rise
was necessitated due to
the increase in raw ma-
terial costs, oil market-
ing companies said. Pet-
rol and diesel prices
were hiked by 80 paise
each in New Delhi.
Overall with Saturday’s
hike, petrol and diesel
prices have gone up by
Rs 3.20 a litre in the last
five days.
Petrol now costs Rs
98.61 a litre in the na-
tional Capital, while
diesel is being sold at Rs
89.87 per litre.
In Mumbai, petrol
prices were hiked by 84
paise and it now costs
Rs 113.35 per litre. Die-
sel prices too were
raised by 85 paise and it
now costs Rs 97.55 a li-
tre there.
Fuel prices are the
highest in Mumbai
among the four metro
cities. Prior to the hikes
which began from this
week, fuel prices had
been on a freeze since
November 4, 2021 for a
record 137 days. During
this period, 2022 Assem-
bly elections were held
in five crucial States of
India.
New Delhi: Accusing
the BJP of doing poli-
tics over the issue of
Kashmiri Pandits’
exodus, Delhi Chief
Minister Arvind Ke-
jriwal on Saturday
asked how many of
the displaced people
have returned to the
Valley since the party
came to power at the
Centre.
Asthewarof words
between Mr Kejriwal
and the BJP over ‘The
Kashmir Files’ film
intensified, the Aam
Aadmi Party chief
Arvind Kejriwal
again suggested that
the movie be put on
YouTube and pro-
ceeds earned from it
spent for the welfare
of Kashmiri Pandits.
New Delhi: A joint fo-
rum of central trade
unions has called for a
nationwide strike on
Monday and Tuesday to
protest against Central
government policies
that affect workers. The
banking sector will be
joining the strike, the
All India Bank Employ-
ees Association said on
Facebook.
The call for a nation-
wide strike was taken
after a meeting on
March 22, 2022. After
taking stock of prepara-
tions in various states,
the unions announced a
two-day all-India strike
against “the anti-work-
er, anti-farmer, anti-
people and anti-nation-
al policies” of the cen-
tral government.
The bank unions are
participating in the
strike to protest against
the government’s plan
to privatise public sec-
tor banks. The State
Bank of India has is-
sued a statement in-
forming customers that
banking services may
be impacted on March
28 and 29.
MSD’S HEROICS GO IN VAIN
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) edged past Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by 6 wickets in the opener
of Indian Premier League (IPL) in Mumbai on Saturday. Put into bat first, CSK riding on MS
Dhoni’s 50* (38) managed 131/5. KKR chased down the target with 9 balls to spare.
India records 4,100 Covid deaths in
24 hours as Maha backlog added
New Delhi (PTI): The
number of COVID-19
deaths in India climbed
to 5,20,855 with 4,100 fa-
talities recorded in a
day and Maharashtra
reconciling the number
of deaths caused by the
viral disease in the
State, the Union health
ministry said today
.
A total of 1,660 fresh
cases have pushed the
Covidtallyto4,30,18,032,
while the number of ac-
tive cases has fallen be-
low 20,000, according to
the ministry’s data.
The number of active
cases of the infection
has declined to 16,741,
the lowest in 702 days
and accounting for 0.04
per cent of the total
caseload. The Covid-19
recovery rate was re-
corded at 98.75 per cent,
the ministry said. Ma-
harashtra reported a
high death count be-
cause of the inclusion
of non-Covid fatalities
reported till Friday
.
Govt considering
booster dose for
Indians
travelling
overseas for
edu, jobs and
business
New Delhi (PTI): With the conclusion of the
Assembly elections in five States, including Uttar
Pradesh, the Centre plans to resume publishing
the photograph of Prime Minister Narendra Modi
on vaccination certificates in these states. PM
Modi’s photo was removed from the vaccination
certificates in the five States — Uttar Pradesh,
Goa, Uttarakhand, Punjab and Manipur — on
January 8, after the announcement of poll dates.
POLLS OVER, PM’S PHOTO TO RETURN
ON ALL VAX CERTIFICATES: REPORT
Fuel prices
hiked for 4th
time in 5 days
Participation of women in Parliament
less than desired, says CEC Chandra
HOW MANY KPs RELOCATED IN
8 YEARS, KEJRIWAL ASKS BJP
Bank ops may be hit on Mon,
Tue due to unions’ strike
The Army drill
also included
target
practice, and
seizing of key
objects by
going behind
enemy lines
Paratroopers of the Indian Army during excercise.

BIZ BUZZ
07
Promoted by
AU Small Finance Bank
FINANCIAL HACKS
foryoungIndianinvestors
There has been a remarkable increase in the number of young investors in the age group of 18-30
years into the Indian markets ever since the pandemic broke. This group of investors is the biggest
beneficiary of staying invested for the long term and reaping the benefits of compounding returns.
ENDING NOTE
These few hacks can be utilized to optimize the investment
process for young investors. They need to take the leap and start
investing their accumulated money. Investing wisely right from
the start will help earn returns on investments and build sound
financial health over time. It is important to think about the long
term and not fall into traps. Controlling greed and not going after
quick and easy money is paramount during the investing journey.
Some investments may seem too good to be true and hence it is
important to seek advice and undertake necessary research before
investing. As rightly said by Mr. Warren Buffet – “Someone’s sit-
ting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long
time ago.”
AVOID DEBT
Credit cards are a very enticing instru-
ment, they allow people to spend more
than they earn. Young people gener-
ally believe in “instant gratification”
and “living in the moment” and often
choose to indulge in overspending by
paying through credit cards. Soon, the
debt piles up and it becomes difficult
to pay off. Avoiding debt is the best
policy, EMIs should not be a major
part of the paycheck for an individual.
Frugality comes in handy as it helps
one to live within their means. Frivo-
lous expenditure on luxuries should
be curbed as much as possible so that
one has sufficient surplus to invest in
wealth generating options. Investors
who avoid debt and stick to their budg-
ets are better off since they do not have
to worry about outstanding payments.
Debt taken to improve quality of life is
good to an extent, after which it adds
to the financial burden and diminishes
investment ability.
Here are some
basic rules and
hacks that all
young investors
must know before
they take the
plunge into the
investing world.
Compounding
returns is a
simple yet
powerful concept
where you earn
returns not just
on your principal
amount but also
on the
accumulated
interest that you
have earned over
time. However,
most young
investors on the
contrary start
their investing
journey in search
of quick money
and are often not
patient enough to
adopt a buy-and-
hold strategy.
Moreover, young
millennials are
also overwhelmed
by all the
information and
advice that is
available to them.
DON’T WAIT TILL
YOU HAVE EARNED
ENOUGH TO
INVEST
Young millennials often
refrain from investing as
they believe they do not have
enough money to invest.
Ideally, you do not need a
significant amount to start
investing and can start with
as little as Rs. 500. It is more
important to get started and
invest in a disciplined man-
ner to enjoy the benefits of
compounding returns.
PREPARE A BUDGET
Millennials must be aware of their earnings and
their expenditures before they start investing.
Budgeting helps you keep track of all your incomes
and expenses so that you know the amount of sur-
plus you have with you to invest. Budgeting also
helps you cut unnecessary expenses. A smart sav-
ing plan would be to opt for the 50/20/30 method
where 50% of the money covers necessary
expenses, 20% covers luxuries, and 30% forms
savings. It is advisable to divide these savings into
two parts. One as an emergency fund to cover
any unpredictable shortfalls. The other should be
invested in instruments like mutual funds, ETFs,
and equity, through SIPs where a regular payment
reduces risk and financial burden.
INVEST IN LOW-COST ETFS
Exchange-traded funds or ETFs are passive funds that are
similar in many ways to a mutual fund except the fact that they
can be purchased and sold on a stock exchange. The underly-
ing investment funds are generally invested in stocks passively
mirroring the composition of indices. ETFs are particularly
suited for young investors who can take exposure in equi-
ties through this passive investment strategy. ETFs are also
very cost effective and can be traded on the exchange (unlike
mutual funds). ETFs also offer diversification benefits through
exposure to stocks from various sectors and market
capitalizations.
SEEK
PROFESSIONAL HELP
It can be overwhelming for seasoned investors to navigate
the markets so it is only natural that new entrants feel confused.
It is advisable to seek help from SEBI registered advisors who
provide unbiased investment advice. This can help avoid
mistakes in the early stages and help build confi-
dence for young investors.
DIVERSIFY
INVESTMENTS
You should not put all your eggs
in one basket. Similarly, you
should not invest all your money
in one asset class even if you
believe that it will generate good
returns for you. Diversification
of investments based upon your
risk appetite helps to balance
returns as well as risk of the
portfolio. A diversified portfolio
can offer stable returns even if
some of the investments are
underperforming.
INVEST IN LOW-COST ETFS
Exchange-traded funds or ETFs are passive
funds that are similar in many ways to a
mutual fund except the fact that they can be
purchased and sold on a stock exchange. The
underlying investment funds are generally
invested in stocks passively mirroring the
composition of indices. ETFs are particularly
suited for young investors who can take
exposure in equities through this passive
investment strategy. ETFs are also very cost
effective and can be traded on the exchange
(unlike mutual funds). ETFs also offer diversi-
fication benefits through exposure to stocks
from various sectors and market capitaliza-
tions.
WHAT ARE
MILLENIALS
IN INVESTING
FOR?
Source:
A large purchase
18.2%
Avoid Debt
Invest in
low cost
ETFs
Don’t wait
until you
have
earned
enough
Prepare a
budget
Diversify
Investment
Seek
professional
help
BASIC
RULES
AND
HACKS
An emergency
18.2%
College
5.1%
Retirement
51.5%
A special event or a trip
7.1%

COVID-19
UPDATE
WORLD
61,44,270
TOTAL DEATHS
41,46,39,290
TOTAL RECOVERED
5,94,10,552
ACTIVE CASES
48,01,94,112
TOTAL CASES
INDIA
5,20,885
TOTAL DEATHS
4,24,80,436
TOTAL RECOVERED
16,711
ACTIVE CASES
4,30,18,032
TOTAL CASES
08
2NDFRONT
First India Bureau
Rajkot: A 25-year-
old man committed
suicide on Friday
night, hours after
admitting to have
lost a whopping
Rs60 lakh in the
share market in the
span of a week.
Officials said that
Rohit Gordhan Raya-
ni’s father had recent-
ly sold land worth
Rs80 lakh to pay for
the youth’s wedding.
After paying for the
ceremony
, the older
Rayani had kept the
remaining money
,
about Rs67 lakh, in
cash at home.
Rohit’s father had
left town to visit their
natal village of Gun-
da for a week. During
this time, Rohit in-
vested in the stock
market—and lost—
heavily
. When the fa-
ther returned home
and found the money
missing, he asked his
son about it.
Rohit then admit-
ted to having lost the
money
. Hours later,
his family found him
hanging in his room.
Emergency servic-
es were called, but to
no avail.
Local police have
registered a case and
are investigating fur-
ther. So, far they have
foundthatheinvested
in four places.
Patil to play witness to
101 couples tying knot
First India Bureau
Rajkot: Gujarat BJP
chief CR Patil will re-
main present in the
city to attend an all-
community mass
marriage ceremony
at the Racecourse
Ground, where as
many as 101 couples
from different reli-
gions will tie the knot
on Sunday.
The event will be at-
tended by both Patil and
former Gujarat chief
minister Vijay Rupani,
those familiar with the
event said.
Political differences
between Patil and Ru-
pani are well known. In
the past, during Patil’s
visit to Rajkot, Rupani
had avoided coming
into the forefront. Sun-
day’s event will be just
the second time the two
leaders have shared a
stage. The last time Pa-
til and Rupani were to-
gether was at the Dhar-
ma Sammelan organ-
ised by the Hindu Dhar-
ma Sabha in the city
.
Apart from mass
marriage, a blood do-
nation camp has also
been organised, where
around 1,000 youth are
expected to come, to do-
nate blood. The event
has been organised by
the Sagar Foundation
and supported by the
Laadli Foundation, the
latter being owned by
folk singer Kirtidan
Gadhvi. Asish Jariya
and his team will sing
marriage songs for the
occasion. The brides
will be given 136 items
as kariyavar (gifts giv-
en to a bride on the day
of marriage) by the or-
ganisers.
Patil and Rupani share a dais at the Dharma Sammelan
organised by the Hindu Dharma Sabha in Rajkot. —FILE PHOTO
25-yr-old loses `60L in
stock market, kills self
‘Discount’ on luxury car costs former V’dara councillor `20L
Deepak
Srivastava
entrusted an
A’bad-based
couple with the
money for an
MG Gloster, but
got cheated
First India Bureau
Vadodara: The son of
a lawyer from
Ahmedabad and his
wife cheated former
Vadodara councillor
Deepak Srivastava of
Rs20 lakh after prom-
sing to get him an MG
Gloster, which retails
at around Rs35 lakh,
at a discounted rate.
Panigate police have
registered a case of
fraud and are investi-
gating the matter.
As per the First Inci-
dent Report (FIR), Wag-
hodia—who is the son
of Waghodia MLA Mad-
hu Srivastava—was in-
troduced to Kirtan
Bharat Rao, a resident
of Heritage Enclave,
Thaltej, Ahmedabad,
last year.
When he learnt that
Deepak had wanted to
purchase the luxury
SUV
, Kirtan told him he
had good relations with
the company and could
get him the car directly
from the firm’s godown
at Udaipur, Rajasthan.
He added that booking a
car through his wife Bi-
jal’s firm Microcosm
LLP could help get a
good discount.
So, Deepak deposited
Rs20 lakh with the firm
intwophases,butKirtan
gave him a receipt for
just Rs50,000 apparently
paid as the booking
amountpaidtoChambal
Motors Pvt. Ltd in
Udaipur. He then prom-
isedtohavethecardeliv-
eredinthreedays.When
the car failed to arrive,
Deepak asked for the re-
ceipt again but Kirtan
made excuses. Kirtan
also stopped answering
Deepak’s calls when he
begantoaskforhismon-
ey back, he said.
5 teenagers
drown in
lake in
Amreli dist
First India Bureau
Amreli: Five teen-
ageboysdrowned
in a lake in Am-
reli district of
Gujarat on Satur-
day afternoon,
police said.
The incident
took place at Dud-
hala village when
the victims ven-
tured into the
Narayan Sarovar
lake for a bath, an
official from Lathi
police station said.
A search opera-
tion was launched
with the help of lo-
cal divers and the
bodies were fished
out after nearly
two hours, he said.
The victims
were identified as
Vishal Mer (16),
Naman Dabhi (16),
Rahul Jadhav (16),
Mit Galathiya (17)
and Haresh Mori
(18), all residents
of Lathi town.
The bodies have
been sent for post-
mortem.
Guj BJP chief and
ex-CM Vijay
Rupani and Patil
will bless the
newlyweds at the
all-community
mass marriage
The Gloster retails for about Rs35 lakh in A’bad. —FILE PHOTO
NO LOVE LOST?
Adversity not only introduces a
man to himself but also to his
true friends.
—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO Editor-in-Chief, First India
WHY SWATANTRA
DEV AND ASIM ARUN
COULD NOT BECOME
DEPUTY CM?
This time in UP, the
politics of balance,
harmony and mutual
renunciation is being
seen in saffron court-
yard. Talking about the
formation of Yogi cabi-
net, in list which Yogi
had submitted to the
high command on his
behalf, three names
were given as Deputy
CM. Swatantra’s name
was given as an option
to Keshav Prasad Mau-
rya. Yogi had named a
Brahmin face Brajesh
Pathak instead of
Dinesh Sharma for his
deputy number two.
For deputy number
three, Yogi had suggest-
ed the name of a Jatav
officer, Aseem Arun. At
the same time, the three
names included in the
list from Delhi for
Deputy CM were Kes-
hav Prasad Maurya
(Backward), AK Shar-
ma (Bhumihar) and
Baby Rani Maurya
(Dalit). Then the politi-
cal juggernaut of bal-
ancing reconciliation
started. This time too,
BJP got the backward
votes in bulk only be-
cause of Maurya. Then
the draft of the agree-
ment was decided and
both the parties agreed
that one would be from
the list of Yogi and the
other from the list of
Delhi. Since Shah was
standing like a rock be-
hind Maurya, Yogi
chose Brajesh’s name
from his list of stakes.
HOW WERE SIDDHARTH
AND SHRIKANTH LEFT
OUT?
One thing is certain
in this new BJP of
the new era that the
more a leader is vis-
ible, the lesser are
chances for eleva-
tion. That is, the
leader who will be
more high profile
or who will have
more hunger
for media
headlines,
is sidelined. The 2 shin-
ing faces of the Yogi
cabinet who were lit by
the aura of Delhi, the
lamp of their journey
was extinguished in
Lucknow. Both Shri-
kant Sharma and Sid-
dharthnath Singh were
discharged. These 2
faces were very popu-
lar for TV and newspa-
pers. They were given
the responsibility of
media briefing from
state govt. Shrikant
Sharma is considered
very close of a promi-
nent BJP leader, so it is
believed that he can get
some important re-
sponsibility in the par-
ty organization.
SANGH BUSY IN
IMAGE MAKEOVER!
The RSS, which is
one of the largest
social organizations of
country, is now busy in
its image makeover. Re-
cently, when the meet-
ing of Pratinidhi Sab-
ha of Sangh was con-
vened in Karnavati,
Gujarat, it is believed
that two major agendas
of this meeting
emerged. One, Sangh is
going to turn 100 in
2025 and there was a
discussion on starting
different programmes
across the country. The
second, Sangh wants to
expand in villages as
such the Sangh chief
openly called on his
volunteers that now
the Sangh’s branches
should be established
in from village to vil-
lage. The big leaders
of the Sangh also
threw light on the fact
that the Sangh has to
come out of its stereo-
typed image so that it
can make its way into
today’s youth. Under
this, there was talk of
making appearance of
the Sangh more liber-
al, rational and expe-
dient.
AAP’S CHALLENGE
IN PUNJAB!
The AAP’s govern-
ment has occupied
Punjab riding on the
noise of drums and the
boom of people’s expec-
tations. But soon after
assuming the power,
AAP has started facing
the fear of empty treas-
ury
. Recently, the newly
elected CM of Punjab,
Mann has demanded a
financial package from
Modi at the rate of Rs
50,000 cr/year for two
years. Mann says that
Pb govt is already im-
mersed in a debt of Rs
3L cr. The annual budg-
et of the govt is about
Rs 1.5L cr. In its popu-
list election promises,
AAP had an-
nounced free
electricity (up
to 300 units)
for the public and Rs
1,000 per month to eve-
ry woman above age of
18 years in her account.
The number of such
eligible women in Pun-
jab is around 1 crore,
that is, AAP govt will
only need Rs 1,000 crore
per month for women.
The party has also
promised to open 16,000
mohalla clinics in the
state and free education
for children. Regular
and free electricity to 35
lakh houses is an insur-
mountable task. Any-
way
, 20% of total budget
of the state goes only in
paying interest on the
loan. In Pb with a popu-
lation of 3 crore, every
person already has a
debt of Rs 1 lakh, which
is due to previous govts.
WILL BMC POLLS BE
POSTPONED
IN MAHA
TOO?
In Maha-
rashtra
too, the
elections
to the
Greater Mumbai Mu-
nicipal Corporation
are on the verge of be-
ing postponed. Sources
reveal that the BMC
elections can also be
postponed till October-
November. Keep in
mind that the term of
the BMC mayor ended
on 7 March itself. For
the first time, an ad-
ministrator has been
brought in BMC by
changing the rules.
Iqbal Singh Chahal has
got this responsibility,
who will take charge of
BMC as administrator
till the first meeting of
the new term of the
municipal corpora-
tion. The reason for
postponing the elec-
tion is being due told to
Corona and then due to
the Census.
WILL THERE BE A RE-
VERSAL IN BIHAR?
JDU leader and Bi-
har CM Nitish came
at Yogi’s swearing-in
ceremony. He greeted
Modi on the stage by
bowing at 45 degrees in
such a way that the
state’s main Opposition
party RJD spoke reck-
lessly, “Now just lying
on the soil and holding
the feet is left”. This
taunt has political
meaning. In fact, since
all the three MLAs of
the VIP party have
joined the BJP, the BJP
has become the largest
party in the state with
77 MLAs. After this
comes the number of
RJD which has 75 MLAs
and Nitish’s JDU has
only 45 MLAs left. A ma-
jority of 122 MLAs is
needed to form the gov-
ernment here. That is,
Nitish’s chair is cur-
rently only on the mer-
cy of the BJP, but if the
BJP shows more eyes to
Nitish, then he can also
join hands with Tejash-
wi. But after Presiden-
tial polls, there can be a
big reshuffle in Bihar.
...AND FINALLY
After the massive
victory in Pun-
jab, the sight of the
Aam Aadmi Party is
now fixed on the Guja-
rat elections. It wants
to put its full force in
Haryana and Himachal
also. If sources are to
be believed, AAP is
sending a large team
of its IT experts to
Ahmedabad in Gujarat
in the month of April.
This can give a tough
challenge to the digital
and social media team
of BJP.
FIRST INDIA SUNDAY SPECIAL
BY TRIDIB
RAMAN
The author is a journalist
and political commentator
and views expressed are
his personal
Swatantra Dev Asim Arun Iqbal Singh Chahal
Bhagwant Mann
Nitish Kumar
Siddharthnath Shrikant

ife is too short to
be spent finding
faults. The same
spirit and pas-
sion towards her
dreams was
seen in the
s t u n n i n g
m o d e l ,
K h u s h i
Verma.
W h e n
asked to speak a
little about herself, the
diva said, “I am a girl
who aims for the uni-
verse. I belong to Delhi
and work as a profession-
al model who lives to rep-
resent my love and pas-
sion for the ramp.”
Everyone has future
aspirations and
dreams for them-
selves. She further
added, “I think
two decades is a
lot of time. I am
aiming to
achieve what
I have always
dreamed of
in the next
five years. I
don’t want
to stop in my life
because I live for
my dreams. I will
one day become a well
educated and unstoppa-
ble individual who
spreads kindness and in-
spires others.” Every suc-
cessful person starts
somewhere.
Talking about her jour-
ney she said, “I have al-
ways been inspired by
Aishwarya Rai and her
Miss World Journey. I
started dancing at the age
of 6 and have always
loved to perform since.
My journey finally began
with my first crown, Star
Miss Teen India in 2021.
The battles I fought were
endless, but I am grateful
to them because they
made me who I am today.
Sometimes, I struggle
with is balancing my aca-
demics and my profes-
sion. They’re both time-
consuming and some-
times it is difficult to
manage time.”
Speaking about her
achievements, this gor-
geous model said, “I am
an international level
dancer and have train-
ing in several dance
forms along with theatre
and acting. I am the first
runner-up for Star Miss
Teen India (2021) and the
second runner-up for
Miss Queen of Cosmos
India (2022).
I also performed for
special children with a
Delhi based NGO. Other
than that, I’m also a men-
tor for Star Miss Teen
India (2022) as well as a
jury member at the Delhi
auditions.”
When asked what ad-
vice she’d like to give to
the models who are aim-
ing for beauty pageants
and fashion industry, the
beauty said, “I would al-
ways wish and hope
strength and right deci-
sion making power for all
women, especially the
models. Confidence is the
key. One should carry
herself well and never be
scared to speak their
hearts out, to take a stand
for the right and not only
focus on their dreams but
work towards it.”
AHMEDABAD, SUNDAY,
MARCH 27, 2022
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia
facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09
ALLURING
ALLURING
BEAUTY!
BEAUTY!
KHUSHI VERMA, AN
ASPIRING ACTRESS,
MODEL AND NATIONAL
LEVEL DANCER FROM
NEW DELHI, IN AN
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
WITH CITY FIRST SPOKE
ABOUT HER JOURNEY,
HER DREAMS AND
ASPIRATIONS!
DEVANSHI MUDGAL
cityfirst@firstindia.co.in
L

rom birth to
the end of the
first year the
stools of the
baby keeps
changing a lot
in its charac-
ter by days and even
hours. This leads to a
lot of parental anxie-
ty. Here are some of
the facts that will help
detect the parents de-
tect abnormal pat-
terns of stool.
A newborn baby
passes very dark green
to black, sticky and
tar-like stool called
M e c o n i -
um in 1st
three days
usually. Passing
it within 24 hours of
life is indicative of a
normal intestine
working in a neonate.
1. After breastfeeding
the stools normally
turns light green-
ish on day 3-4 and
then becomes yel-
low, watery, and has
a slightly fruity
smell. Sometimes,
the baby passes
stool after every
feed as they do not
mature intestines
to hold the stools
after intake of
breastmilk.
2. After breastfeeding
the stools normally
turns light greenish
on day 3-4 and then
becomes yellow, wa-
tery, and has a
slightly fruity smell.
Sometimes, the baby
passes stool after
every feed as they do
not have mature in-
t e s -
tines to hold
the stools after
intake of
breastmilk.
3. After intake of for-
mula the colour of
the stools changes
to dark green,
brown or at times
greyish, there is a
worse, stingy odour
and they are usual-
ly very hard in con-
sistency and diffi-
cult to pass by the
small babies.
4. Once the infant has
been started on a
semisolid diet other
than milk the stool
again may show a
change in consist-
ency (harder at
times constipation),
colour ( similar to
the colour of food
intake) and fre-
quency ( lesser). At
times the baby
also passes undi-
g e s t e d
food items in the
stool which is per-
fectly normal.
5. Green stools may
happen due to ex-
cess flow of the
breastmilk, more
intake of only the
initial part of moth-
er’s breast milk and
even due to change
in the temperature
or teething.
6. Some abnormal pat-
terns of babies’
stools need to be
identified early
may lead to early
diagnosis of prob-
lems by the child
doctor so try and
look out for these.
a. Loose motion-
When motions are very
watery and too large or
passed with a lot of
force then this is abnor-
mal and can lead to loss
of water from the ba-
by’s body very rapidly.
b. Hard stools / Con-
stipation- When mo-
tions are very hard (
stony or like pellets )
and very dry and the
baby feels very uncom-
fortable while passing
them along with the ab-
domen becoming firm
they need evaluation by
a child doctor
.
c. Chalky white or
clay coloured stools –
This type of repeated
pattern indicated some
disorder in the liver
function and it needs at-
tention and visit and
tests as suggested by
Paediatrician.
d. Blood in stools due
to hard stools, infection
or allergy to food is an
emergency sign and
needs a visit to the emer-
gency room. Only if the
mother has cracks on
nipples and the baby
takes that maternal
blood while drinking
milk, is this problem
not acute and will re-
solve on its own.
10
ETC
F
A
C
E
O
F
T
H
E
D
A
Y
SHEFALI SHUKLA, Model
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 do well to take
some time to think over a proposal.
LIBRA
SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 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. Stars are strong for buying a
house or constructing one.
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. Something that had been
worrying you in the past is likely to
get resolved.
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. Volunteering
for a cause on the social front is
likely to give you an immense sense
of satisfaction.
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. Help in household
chores will be forthcoming. You can
acquire new property.
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.
Something that you had wanted to
initiate on the home front may face
delays. It is a good idea to listen to
spouse before taking a decision.
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 any decisive step regarding a
property.
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 - NOVEMBER 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.
YOUR
DAY
Horoscope by
Saurabbh Sachdeva
DR SATYEN K
HEMRAJANI
(Senior Consultant – Neonatologist
and Pediatrician, Fortis Escorts
Hospital, Jaipur)
YOUR BABY STOOLS CAN
YOUR BABY STOOLS CAN
TELL A LOT ABOUT YOUR
TELL A LOT ABOUT YOUR
BABY’S
BABY’S
HEALTH!
HEALTH!
F

nce again, rumours regarding Alia Bhatt and Ran-
bir Kapoor have hit the headlines and this time, they are
stronger than ever. A recent report claimed that Ranbir
and Alia are all set to marry each other in the month of
April and it has made them the talk of town. Amid all
the buzz about their April wedding, a photo of Ranbir
and Alia with the CEO and Designer of a Saree couture
brand has surfaced on social media. It has led fans to specu-
late that the couple may have kicked off shopping for their
wedding. —Agency
ETC
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facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
11
A magnificent piece
T
he film
is a fic-
t i o n a l
tale of
two revolution-
aries Ram (Ram
charan) and
Bheem (NTR Jun-
ior). It is a period film
that has all the factors
which any commer-
cial film would de-
mand. The story
takes you back to the
British raj when the
brown skin was treat-
ed worse than animals
by the British men.
RRR has a very simple
plot with a lot of enter-
tainment factors. Ra-
maraju (Ram Charan)
a police officer is like
“fire”, who is tough
and is with the British
force for a reason.
Then there’s ‘water’ –
sweet, simple, inno-
cent Bheem (Jr NTR)
whohasbrutestrength
but uses it only when it
serves his purpose.
He’s a Gond tribal who
has come to the city to
rescue a young girl
called Malli, who was
taken away by Lady
Scott (Alison Doody),
to be the singing doll
‘on (her) mantelpiece’.
It is when the paths of
these two characters
cross with similar mis-
sions and they come
out with full force
against the British.
Director S.S Ra-
jamouli has once again
nailed this one with
his over the top direc-
tion. Rajamouli knows
the art of making even
a simple thing Grand.
For the viewers, it is
undoubtedly a visual
treat. As far as the ac-
tors are concerned it
can be considered one
of the best perfor-
mancesof RamCharan
and NTR Junior.
Overall with great
music, great direction
and great acting this
one is a GRRRAND
ROARRR from the
RRR team.
L
ovebirds Katrina Kaif and Vicky Kaushal
never fail to grab the headlines. Ever since
their marriage in December last year, fans
have been going gaga over the couple and
their loved-up pictures on social media. Moreo-
ver, their chemistry is undeniable as and when
they are spotted together in the city. Speak-
ing of which, tonight, Katrina and Vicky
were papped as they arrived at Farhan
Akhtar’s residence in the Bandra neigh-
bourhood of Mumbai. Needless to say,
the couple made quite a fashionable
appearance together. —Agency
H
rithik Roshan has been grab-
bing a lot of eyeballs on the
personal front these days
courtesy of his growing prox-
imity with actor-singer Saba Azad.
The rumoured couple have been dat-
ing each other for quite some time now
and while they are keeping their
relationship under the wrap,
Hrithik and Saba’s frequent
hangouts and their social me-
dia banter narrate the entire
story of their love affair. Inter-
estingly, Saba and Hrithik are
once again making headlines
today as they had made their
relationship official on social
media. —Agency
T
iger Shroff’s fans are in
for a treat this Eid. After
all, the actor is coming
up with the first release
of the year as Heropanti 2. Helmed by
Ahmed Khan, the movie happens to be the sequel
of Tiger’s debut movie Heropanti and is said to
be a complete action entertainer. Heropanti 2
will be witnessing a box office clash with Ajay
Devgn, Amitabh Bachchan and Rakul Preet
Singh starrer Runway 34 which is also slated
to release on April 29. “I can’t compare to such
major superstars like Ajay sir and Amitabh
Bachchan sir. I have way too much respect and
fan to be spoken about in the same breath as
them,” Tiger said. —Agency
BIOPIC
W
hile a biopic
based on her life
is not yet in the
works, Avril Lav-
igne has already decided
who should portray her
and it’s Spencer actress
Kristen Stewart. On the
red carpet at the iHeartRa-
dio Awards on Tuesday
, the
38-year-old singer was
asked who she’d want to see
portray her in a biopic.
As per Daily Mail, while
the singer paused to consid-
er the question, she soon
landed on Stewart at the red
carpet at the Shrine Audito-
rium. “Oh... I’m trying to
think... umm, like Kristen Stew-
art would be cool, to play me
in a film,” Lavigne an-
swered. —Agency
B
ritney Spears is
in a good mood! In
a Friday social me-
dia post, the pop
sensation praised Euphoria,
detailing how it has helped
her with her mental health.
The “Lucky” singer, 40, shared
a clip of Zendaya playing her
characterRueBennettinseason
one of the HBO show and wrote,
“For MENTAL AWARENESS
WEEK a little while ago I watched
this insane amazing show @eu-
phoria”
Britney further wrote, “Good
God it’s too good. I’m a little be-
hind anyways. Watching this
and being entertained by these
crazy plots I suddenly felt all my
anxiety go away … the show was
like meditation. ” The singer add-
ed that she also in-
tends to “give people
hope” and that she
knows she’s “lucky
to be present and ex-
ist today
.” —Agency
D
oja Cat wants to quit music. Doja posted on her
Twitter announcing that she is done with music
and wants to quit after she was dragged by fans
for not apologising to the ones who waited for her
performance in Paraguay during the Asunciónico Fes-
tival where she was a headliner at the show. Although
the show being cancelled was not the Say So singer’s
fault in any case since the authorities themselves
stopped the performances due to flooding at the concert
grounds, the fans are still disappointed that Doja did
not apologise for not being able to perform as opposed
to other headliners like Miley Cyrus who tweeted her
regret with a video and Machine Gun Kelly who took
matters into his own hands in Paraguay and did a mini-
concert in front of his hotel for fans. —Agency
KAVITA CHAUHAN
kavitachauhan3@gmail.com
S.S RAJAMOULI
Abhishek Sharma
CAST CREW
Ram Charan, Jr NTR, Olivia
Morris, Alia Bhatt, Ajay Devgn
RRR
RATING:
Wedding bells?
Wedding bells?
O
Doja Cat
Doja Cat
quits music
quits music
Heropanti clashes
Heropanti clashes
with Runway
with Runway
PARTY TIME! Spears lauds
Euphoria
Euphoria
B-wood friendships
I
n Bollywood, rarely do
friendships last long.
But, when it comes to
Sonam Kapoor and
Rani Mukerji, this does
not hold as they just cele-
brated 20 years of friend-
ship. On Saturday, Sonam,
who is pregnant with her
first child, shared photos
with Rani Mukerji from
the latter’s recent visit to
Anil Kapoor’s house on
Sunita Kapoor’s birthday. With her special
post, she celebrated her and Rani’s 20 years-
long friendship. The soon-to-be-mom also sent
a belated birthday wish to Rani. —Agency
Relationship Alert!
Relationship Alert!
Doja Cat
Tiger Shroff
Ajay Devgn
Alia Bhatt
Britney Spears Saba Azad
Kristen Stewart
Sonam Kapoor and
Rani Mukerji
Ranbir Kapoor
Hrithik Roshan
Katrina Kaif and Vicky Kaushal

he FDCI x
L a k m é
F a s h i o n
Week show-
cased the
e x q u i s i t e
collections,
Quintessential, The
Rise and WAH
USTA, WAH by re-
nowned, award-win-
ning designers,
Varun Bahl, Swatti
Kapoor, Aisha Rao
and Jaajabor at the
Dhyan Chand Stadi-
um on Saturday
.
Varun Bhal’s
Quintessential was
an ode to the change-
making Indian
queens of history
and celebrated the
aspirational mile-
stone in an Indian
woman’s life, her
wedding when she
deserves to look and
feel like a queen. Us-
ing abstraction and
juxtaposition, Bahl
expresses himself
through design. His
collection is about
curvilinear lines
and forms with a
vivid explosion of
colour and the soft-
ness of delicate
shapes and lay-
ers.
Swatti Ka-
poor’s collection
“The Rise” was in-
spired by a hand
painted silk scroll
inscription and
Poem named – “Aus-
picious Cranes” by
Emperor Huizong of
the Northern Song
Dynasty. Pin-tucks,
pleating, block print-
ing, hand embroi-
deries and other
kinds of fabric ma-
nipulation were seen
in her line of cloth-
ing.
Jaajabor’s line
“WAH USTA, WAH”
aimed to share the
story of the last of
Usta brothers and
their exquisite art
form. The essence of
Usta art shines
bright in the label’s
line.
Kiniho’s collec-
tion was inspired by
a Khasi folktale of
“Sier Lapalang”. The
garments bring forth
of this folktale on
Eri silk fabric in-
tending to achieve
c o n t e m p o r a r y
looks by blending lo-
cally known tech-
niques with modern
cuts.
Aisha Rao’s col-
lection is a tran-
scendental escape to
an earth-friendly
dreamland imagined
with fantastical
prints, textures
mood-boosting col-
ours. All the ensem-
bles, thus, lead to a
showstopping ward-
robe that masters
impeccable con-
struction.
12
CITY BUZZ
GET VACCINATED
STAY MASKED
ESCAPEFROMPAK
CITY FIRST
A
uthor Deb-
ora Ann
Shea pre-
sented an
episode from her
bestselling book
‘Escape from Paki-
stan’ on Friday in
New Delhi fol-
lowed by music
and a SALSA per-
formance. Brought
to life by seasoned actors, the
theatrical representation
transported the audiences to
the time when Debora’s father
Commodore Jack Shea managed
his way out of the neighbour
country saving precious lives
while jeopardising his own.
On the day of the event, the au-
thor Debora Ann Shea ex-
pressed, ‘I am honoured that my
book has received such an over-
whelming response from audi-
ences and it urges me to enable
them to view live perfor-
mance for an unforgettable
experience and become part of
the untold story of Commodore
Jack Shea. I also want to take
this opportunity to mention that
nothing comes for free; even our
freewill today has cost many pre-
cious lives, whether celebrated
or never unleashed. I’d also take
this occasion to pay tribute to all
martyrs and brave hearts of this
country.” India owes greatly to
these warriors.
SPOTTED! SOME MORE GLIMPSES OF THE MINI RAJ!
The star cast of
Attack film, John
Abraham, Rakul
Preet, Lakshya
Raj Anand and
Jacqueline
Fernandes were
spotted in New
Delhi at Radisson
hotel on Saturday.
COMPLEMENTING
FLAWLESS BEAUTIES
SHUBHANSHI PATHAK
cityfirstdel@gmail.com
T
City First brings to you some more glimpses from the ongoing Rajasthan Utsav being held at Bikaner House on
Thursday to commemorate Raj Foundation Day. The Rural Nonfarm Development Agency set up more than 50 stands
of Rajasthani artists during the fair, where art and handicraft objects representing Rajasthani art and culture were
displayed. People liked the Rajasthani-themed cultural activities, as well as the cuisine and the state’s culturally
rich heritage. —PHOTOS BY MANOJ KESHARWANI
Designer Swati Kapoor takes a bow
Jaajabor
Mira Rajput Kapoor and Aisha Rao
From Varun Bhal’s
collection
From Aisha Rao’s collection
Masoom Minawala and Varun Bhal
Kiniho
Author Debora Ann Shea with the performers
From Swati Kapoor’s collection
—PHOTOS
BY
SHAZID
CHAUHAN
From Varun Bhal’s
collection From Aisha Rao’s collection
From
Jaajabor’s
collection
—PHOTOS
BY
MANOJ
KESHARWANI
AND
SHAZID
CHAUHAN

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