First india ahmedabad edition-01 december 2020

India looking to be self
reliant in vaccine production
New Delhi: India is
looking to be self-reliant
in the development and
production of COVID-19
vaccine as the world
races to develop a vac-
cine against the disease.
While at least five
pharmaceutical compa-
nies of India are en-
gaged in vaccine devel-
opment,SerumInstitute
in Pune has been chosen
for mass production of
Covishield vaccine de-
veloped by Oxford -As-
tra Zeneca. A total of 10
vaccine candidates have
been supported by De-
partment of Biotechnol-
ogy so far at both aca-
demia and industry and
as on date, five vaccine
candidatesareinthehu-
man trials stage.
A PMO release said
the government has ini-
tiated a robust COV-
ID-19 vaccine manufac-
turing and delivery eco-
system to meet the de-
mand.
It said Prime Minis-
ter Narendra Modi has
been personally moni-
toring the progress of
vaccine development in
India.
He visited facilities of
Zydus in Ahmedabad,
Serum Institute in Pune
and Bharat Biotech in
Hyderabad on Saturday.
ThePrimeMinisterheld
a virtual review of the
progress of indigenous
vaccine development
undertaken by Gennova
Biopharma of Pune and
Biological E and Dr Red-
dy’s Laboratories in Hy-
derabad today.
PM Modi asked the
companies to come out
with their suggestions
and ideas regarding the
regulatory processes
and related matters. He
also suggested that they
should take extra ef-
forts to inform people
in simple language
about the vaccine and
related matters such as
its efficacy. Matters re-
lating to logistics, trans-
port, cold chain in re-
spect of delivering the
vaccines were also dis-
cussed. —ANI
AHMEDABAD l TUESDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2020 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208 l Vol 2 l Issue No. 7
19°C - 33°C
www.firstindia.co.in
www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/
twitter.com/thefirstindia
facebook.com/thefirstindia
instagram.com/thefirstindia
OUR EDITIONS:
JAIPUR, AHMEDABAD
& LUCKNOW
HYD MC POLLS TODAY
The Greater Hyderabad
Municipal Corporation, the
fifth largest metropolitan city
area in the country, will go to
polls today. The polling will
begin at 7 am and close at 6
pm and will be held using
traditional ballot papers.
Varanasi: Tearing into
the opposition over the
protests against the
new agri-marketing
laws, Prime Minister
Narendra Modi on Mon-
day said those who have
a history of deceit were
playing tricks again on
farmers. The attack
comes when thousands
of farmers are gathered
at the entry points of
the national capital,
seeking the repeal of
the three laws.
“The farmers are be-
ing deceived on these
historic agriculture re-
form laws by the same
people who have misled
them for decades,” he
said, in an apparent ref-
erence to parties which
are now in the opposi-
tion but not directly
naming them.
The prime minister
was addressing a public
meeting in his Lok Sab-
ha constituency Vara-
nasi, where he spent
several hours.
He dedicated to the
nation the six-laning of
a 73-km highway to Al-
lahabad at the cost of Rs
2,447 crore, took part in
televised prayers at the
Kashi Vishwanath tem-
ple, reviewed the temple
corridor project and
took a ride along the
ghats on a cruise boat.
As dusk fell, he wit-
ness the spectacle of
Dev Deepawali in which
rows of lamps were lit
on the river bank. In an-
other speech that fol-
lowed, Modi skipped
any reference to the
farmer’s protest but
took a dig at dynastic
politics. He said for
some the family’s lega-
cy mattered more than
the country’s heritage.
In his first address,
he strongly defended
the farm laws which de-
regulate the sale of
crops but have also trig-
gered apprehensions
that the minimum sup-
port price (MSP) system
is being dismantled.
He reiterated that
farmers who wanted to
follow the old system of
trading referring to the
mandis’ where they can
get the MSP are still
free to do so. Turn to P6
New Delhi: It has been
over four days since
farmers from Haryana
and Punjab started a
protest march against
the three farm laws in-
troduced by the central
government in Septem-
ber. Delhi and sur-
rounding areas have
witnessed violent clash-
es between the agitat-
ing farmers and police
as the former was ini-
tially denied entry into
the national capital.
Upon being allowed
by Delhi Police to carry
out peaceful demonstra-
tions and maintain law
and order, the farmers
have been camping at
the Singhu (Delhi-Hary-
ana) border and the
Tikri border for the
past three days. The po-
lice had also offered the
Sant Nirankari ground
for the farmers to con-
tinue their agitation.
Addressing a press
conference at Singhu
border, the farm union
leaders said they have
not received any call
from the union govern-
ment to hold talks. “ We
will appear for discus-
sion with government
after they freed our
farmers sitting at Bu-
rari ground. Butta Sin-
gh has only received
phone call from Home
Minister Amit Shah,”
the leaders said at the
press conference.
Delhi Police placed
concrete barriers
Turn to P6
Scrap farm
laws or will
rethink ties with
NDA: Beniwal
First India Bureau
New Delhi: Nagaur MP
Hanuman Beniwal’s
Rashtriya Loktantrik
Party, that partnered
with the Bharatiya Ja-
nata Party in 2019, on
Monday told Home Min-
ister Amit Shah that his
party would reconsider
its partnership with the
BJP if the Centre did
not withdraw the three
farm laws.
Beniwal also de-
manded that the Centre
implement the recom-
mendations of the Swa-
minath Commission
and hold dialogue with
farmers in Delhi in the
right spirit. Turn to P6
Farmers’conditionfortalks:
‘FreeourmenatBurari’
MEDICAL CAMP AT SINGHU
BORDER DUE TO COVID
In view of the coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak in
the country which has infected over 9.4 million
people, a medical check up camp has been set
up at the Singhu Border where the farmers are
continuing with their protests against the three
farm laws. “We should conduct Covid-19 test here.
If there’s any possibility of a super spreader, the
disease might spread to other people which will be
disastrous,” a doctor told ANI.
Oppnusingtrickstooppose
AGRI REFORMS: PM MODI
Even in pandemic, economic
growth is uninterrupted: Shah
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: Inaugu-
rating two flyovers in
Ahmedabad via video
conferencing on Mon-
day, Union Home Minis-
ter Amit Shah said that
the development was a
step towards creating
the nation’s second ma-
jor road that would be
devoid of any junctions.
Once all 11 flyovers
planned for the Sarkhej-
Gandhinagar (SG)
Highway are function-
al, the commute be-
tween Ahmedabad and
the state capital would
be halved to 20 minutes.
The two new flyovers-
-one at Sanand Cross-
roads and the other at
Pakvan Crossroads-
-have been constructed
at a cost of Rs71 crore.
During his address,
Shah assured the state
that the Central govern-
ment would stand
strong in support of Gu-
jarat and its people.
“COVID-19 has affect-
ed the world’s economy,
but Gujarat’s economy
is healthy and will soon
bounce back to the pre-
pandemic growth rate,”
he said.
Pointing out that
electricity consump-
tion in the state has re-
turned to the level seen
in February, he said this
indicated that industri-
al activities are return-
ing to normal, thus in-
creasing industrial pro-
duction and employ-
ment, said the Home
Minister. Turn to P6
Birla appoints
Utpal Kumar as
LS Secy Gen
PM’s all-party
meet on Dec
4 over Corona
New Delhi: Lok Sabha
Speaker Om Birla ap-
pointed Retired IAS Ut-
pal Kumar Singh as the
new Secretary General
of the Lok Sabha for a
period of one year and
Lok Sabha Secretariat
in the rank and status
of Cabinet Secretary
with effect from Decem-
ber 1. Singh will suc-
ceed Snehlata Shrivas-
tava. Singh earlier
served as Secretary, Lok
Sabha Secretariat.
Associated with the
management of World
Bank projects during
his 34-year service, the
former 1986-batch Utta-
rakhand cadre officer
has served in both cen-
tral & state govts.
New Delhi: The Union
government has called
an all-party meeting to
discuss the COVID-19
pandemic situation on
December 4, with Prime
Minister Narendra
Modi expected to inter-
act with floor leaders of
various parties from
both houses of parlia-
ment, official sources
said on Monday.
The Parliamentary
Affairs Ministry is co-
ordinating the meeting
and has extended invi-
tation to all parties,
they said. Floor leaders
of all parties from Lok
Sabha as well as Rajya
Sabha have been invit-
ed for the meeting,
which will be held vir-
tually on Friday from
10.30 am onwards and
PM will chair it.
This will be the sec-
ond all-party meeting
called by the govern-
ment to Turn to P6
Union Home Minister Amit Shah virtually inaugurates various
developmental projects in Gujarat via VC in New Delhi on Monday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi offers prayers at Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi on Monday.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was also present on this occasion. —PHOTO BY ANI
A large number of farmers protest against the farm laws, at
Singhu Border in New Delhi on Monday. —PHOTO BY ANI
Hanuman Beniwal
Union Home
Minister Amit
Shah inaugurated
two flyovers in
Ahmedabad on
Monday via video
conference
Left: Kedar Ghat decorated with earthen lamps on the occasion of
‘Dev Deepawali’ festival, in Varanasi on Monday.
Top: Prime Minister Narendra Modi participates in Dev Deepawali
festival, in Varanasi on Monday. —PHOTOS BY PTI
PM MODI’S DEV
DEEPAWALI IN KASHI

NEWSAHMEDABAD | TUESDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2020
02www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
First India Bureau
Bhavnagar: Onion
sowing in Bhavnagar
district has grown ex-
ponentially over the
course of a week,
with the area under
the crop almost dou-
bling from 4,300 hec-
tares to 8,000 hec-
tares.
Across the state,
farmers have now sown
onion crops in a total of
about 21,500 hectares.
Bhavnagar, which tra-
ditionally contributes
about 37% of the state’s
onion crop, looks set to
maintain its pole posi-
tion this season as well.
So far, farmers in
Bhavnagar have sown
crops across 39,100 hec-
tares, with 19,100 hec-
tares being sown just
this past week.
Even wheat cultiva-
tion has been encourag-
ing this Rabi season,
with the grain having
been sown on 9,100 hec-
tares. Chana has been
sown across 5,900 hec-
tares, vegetables, across
1,900 hectares, and fod-
der is being cultivated
on 7,700 hectares.
The Bhavnagar’s ag-
riculture department
had been hoping that
the ample quantity of
water available to farm-
ers for irrigation would
result in good sowing
district.
While Bhavnagar has
seen cereals being culti-
vated on 6,000 hectares
and, in Junagadh, they
are being sown on 4,400
hectares, Bharuch leads
the state with cereals
being cultivated on
37,800 hectares of agri-
cultural land.
In 2019-20, onion
was cultivated across
57,260 hectares and
the total production
was 14,22,262 metric
tonnes. Yet, the state
has been witnessing a
steep rise in the price
of onions since Sep-
tember, which is now
likely to fall once the
Rabi crop comes to
market.
NO MORE TEARS: ONION SOWING DOUBLES IN A WEEK
First India Bureau
Morbi: The local ce-
ramic industry here
sees an average of
Rs20-30 crores worth
of exports on a daily
basis. However, it is
currently unable to
meet global orders-
-which have seen a
considerable rise
since lockdown was
lifted--due to a short-
age of containers to
ship products.
“Our hands are
tied,” Morbi Ceramics
Association (Wall tiles
Division) President
Nilesh Jetpariya told
First India, “Post lock-
down, the industry
has seen a massive
jump in demand. How-
ever, we are now una-
ble to meet export or-
ders since we do not
have enough contain-
ers. If the industry is
provided enough con-
tainers to dispatch
products, daily ex-
ports could go as high
as Rs35 crore.”
As of now, 500 con-
tainers are loaded
from units in and
around Morbi.
There are 800 ce-
ramic units in the
area, with about 20
new units being add-
ed each year. In 2019,
Morbi’s ceramics in-
dustry exported
products to 163
countries. In the last
calendar year, the
sector’s annual turn-
over was Rs45,000
crore, with Rs12,000
crore products being
exported and a total
production of 55,000
cubic metres.
In 2018, the ceramic
industry here pro-
duced 2.32 million
tonnes. However, this
fiscal, production
dropped to just 16,300
tonnes from April to
July--a whopping 76%
fall from the same pe-
riod last fiscal. Fur-
ther, exports for the
April-July period this
fiscal were recorded at
$357 million, accord-
ing to a report pub-
lished by a care rating
agency.
However, since
lockdown was lifted,
export windows have
reopened and the de-
mand has grown ex-
ponentially. Unfortu-
nately, though, im-
ports at the Kandla
and Mundra ports
have dropped by
30%, leading to a re-
duction in container
inflow. This has re-
sulted in a shortfall
in the number of
containers available
to the industry, Jet-
pariya said.
He also said the is-
sue can easily be
solved if the Central
government’s ship-
ping ministry chips in
to sign an MOU with
container lines such
as 2M Alliance of MSC
and Mersk and Con-
cord, to increase sup-
ply of containers at a
cheap rate.
Union Minister of
State for Shipping
Mansukh Mandavi-
ya was not available
for comment, de-
spite several efforts
by First India.
Container shortage hobbles
ceramic industry in Morbi
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: The Con-
gress party’s plan to an-
nounce its list of new
office bearers has been
put on hold after the
death of veteran leader
Ahmed Patel. The an-
nouncement was due in
the first week of De-
cember.
Patel usually had
the the final say in
the deciding appoint-
ments to any post or
position in the state
unit. As a result, local
party leaders had pre-
pared a list of possi-
ble appointees with
an eye towards the
upcoming local body
elections and had
been waiting for Pa-
tel’s final approval.
This means that par-
ty chief Amit Chavda
and Leader of the Op-
position in the state As-
sembly Paresh Dhana-
ni--who had both ten-
dered their resigna-
tions after the by-poll
debacle--might have
another chance.
“Their resignation
will not be accepted at
this time. So, it is likely
that they will keep their
posts even after the cen-
tral leadership appoints
a new party president
here,” a source within
the Congress told First
India.
“Both Chavda and
Dhanani were ap-
pointed by Rahul
Gandhi, former presi-
dent of the party. So,
they are likely to be
retained. The new
state unit will be
formed only in late
January,” added the
source.
It is to be noted that
the Gujarat Pradesh
Congress Committee
was dissolved more
than a year ago.
Cong will take time to
re-form organization
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: Con-
gress leader Arujn
Modhwadia has ques-
tioned the state gov-
ernment’s motiva-
tions in keeping data
on the human cost of
the ongoing pandem-
ic. This comes barely
a day after MLA Im-
ran Khedawala called
officer in charge of
Ahmedabad’s COV-
ID-19 efforts Rajiv
Gupta “dictatorial”
for refusing to share
the “real” number of
cases and deaths
caused by the novel
coronavirus in the
state.
A former president
of the Gujarat Pradesh
Congress, Modhwadia
has challenged the
state government to
stop misleading people
and has demanded that
it reveal the real pic-
ture of COVID-19.
In a scathing in-
dictment of the BJP-
run government, he
demanded that the
state stop following
the example of its of-
ficers in the matter
of “hiding cases”.
“Only 14 of the 210
private-quota ventila-
tors in Ahmedabad’s
private hospitals are
available. Yet, the gov-
ernment says that only
86 patients across the
state are on ventilator
support,” he said.
Modhwadia said
that, based on data
released by the Indi-
an Council of Medi-
cal Research, Guja-
rat is the second
worst-hit state after
Bihar. “The state is
doing more tests
than before but the
positive cases are
still the same. This
means actual figures
are being hidden,” he
asserted.
Modhwadia also
said, “Even if we talk
only about
Ahmedabad, in ICU
wards of private hos-
pitals, only 30 of the
total 440 beds with-
out ventilators are
vacant, while of the
210 beds with venti-
lators, only 14 are
vacant. According to
government records,
only 82 patients are
on ventilators.
“The city used to
show 300 new cases a
day back when the
state conducted just
4,000-5,000 cases a day.
Now, while testing has
shown a manifold in-
crease, there is no in-
formation as to how
many of the tests being
conducted are actually
Rapid Antigen Tests.
The government is also
hiding fatality figures.
Going by data from cre-
matoriums and grave-
yards, the death toll
seems to be eight to
times higher than what
the state says,” Modh-
wadia added.
Further, he said
the government
should not follow the
path of officials,
since it is the govern-
ment that has to an-
swer to the people,
even if the officials
do not.
‘DON’T BE LIKE YOUR OFFICERS’ArjunModhwadiachallenges
govttostopmisleading
people,revealrealnCoVdata
Many
units
have
export
orders,
buthave
nowayof
sending
their
products
across
Chavda,
Dhananilikely
toretain
positionsfor
theforeseeable
future
Promise of good output allays
fears of continued shortage
A field of onions. —FILE PHOTO
There are 800 ceramic units in the area, with about 20 new units being added each year. —FILE PHOTO
The body of the Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee was dissolved more than a year ago.
Arujn Modhwadia

GUJARATAHMEDABAD | TUESDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2020
First India Bureau
Surat: Work on the
six lakh square me-
tre biodiversity park,
which began back in
2018, has fallen by
the wayside due to
the effects of the
novel coronavirus,
according to sources
in the Surat Munici-
pal Corporation. It
will now take anoth-
er six months to get
completed.
The pilot project has
been completed and
the DPR has been sent
to the two-member
team of observers, this
person said. The ob-
servers will now go
over the DPR and dis-
cuss it with the rele-
vant departments be-
fore approving any
grants for the park.
The project aims to
rejuvenate the existing
wasteland of Kankara
Khaadi, which runs
from across the Nation-
al Highway towards the
west of Surat and on to
south Surat, and create
Gujarat’s largest “ur-
ban forest”.
The first phase of the
Khaadi development
project started with the
National River Conser-
vation Plan (NRCP) 2,
under which walls and
embankments were
constructed from rub-
ble and RCC on both
sides of the Khaadi.
The embankments
were also made motor-
able for light vehicles.
One-way stormwater
flood gates were con-
structed as well. The
long-term plan is to set
up Wild Valley Biodi-
versity Park, which
will house more than
1.2 lakh native trees
and 50,000 shrubs, and
give city-dwellers the
feeling of being in a
forest while never leav-
ing the diamond city.
Pandemic delays work on state’s biggest urban forest by 6 months
Wild Valley
Biodiversity
Park, being built
by the SMC
on 6,00,000
square metres of
land at Althan,
is expected to
house 1.2 lakh
native trees and
50,000 shrubs
BRAKES ON
The project aims to revitalize the city’s stormwater drains.
The new addition will increase the hospital’s oxygen capacity to 31,000 litres
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: The Civil
Hospital campus in
Ahmedabad’s Asarwa
area houses Asia’s
biggest general hospi-
tal and a 1,200-bed fa-
cility dedicated to the
treatment of COV-
ID-19. The recent
spurt in the cases of
Sars-CoV-2 infection,
has brought a propor-
tionate increase in the
demand for medical
oxygen. To meet this
demand and to ensure
that no patient dies
because of an oxygen
shortage, the state is
installing another ox-
ygen tank, which will
increase the capacity
to 31,000 litres.
At present, the hospi-
tal’s oxygen demand is
being met by a 20,000-li-
tre tank installed on
the premises. An oxy-
gen tanker is connected
with the installed tank
at all times to ensure
that there is no short-
age of oxygen. The can-
cer hospital, located on
the same campus, has
its own oxygen 2,800-li-
tre tank.
Since the Diwali
weekend, the state has
seen a substantial in-
crease in the number of
cases being reported on
a daily basis. Many of
these new patients have
been arriving at the hos-
pital in a serious condi-
tion. As a result, the de-
mand for oxygen sup-
port has also risen.
Currently, the state’s
demand for oxygen is
about 225 tonnes per
day--almost as high as
the 240 tonnes per day in
September, when the
number of cases was at
its highest. Interesting-
ly, the demand for oxy-
gen had dropped to 135
tonnes per day at the
start of October.
11KlitreO2tanktohelp
CivilHospbreatheeasier
PATIENT DIES DESPITE 2 -VE REPORTS
The Ahmedabad Civil Hospital houses a 12,000-bed COVID-19 facility. —FILE PHOTO
Wait for
Pal-Umra
bridge over
after 4 yrs
First India Bureau
Surat: With the
municipal corpo-
ration all set to
take possession
of the land, the
long wait for the
Pal-Umra Bridge
is finally over af-
ter four years.
Around 95% of the
bridge work has
been completed;
the remaining 5%
of the work was on
hold as the land on
the approach was
unavailable to the
civic body. The
owner of the land
had brought the
matter to the high
court.
Municipal Com-
missioner Banch-
hanidhi Pani said
that in 2018, the
civic body asked
landowners to
hand over the land
but only 10 did so
The remaining
went to court,
which gave them a
deadline of No-
vember 29 to hand
over their land to
the SMC.
14 doctors test +ve for
nCoV in govt-run hosps
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: As
many as 14 doctors
at government-run
hospitals in
Ahmedabad have
tested COVID-19
positive as the num-
ber of cases contin-
ue to climb in the
city. The adminis-
tration has decided
to take precaution-
ary measures by
adding more hospi-
tal facilities to man-
age the increasing
number of patients,
sources said.
Seven doctors from
SVP hospital and sev-
en doctors from Sola
Civil Hospital tested
positive for COV-
ID-19. In SVP hospi-
tal, medical superin-
tendent ST Malhan,
hospital superinten-
dent Bhavesh Dave
and five medical stu-
dents were infected
with the virus.
It should be noted
that more than 90 doc-
tors had been infected
before Diwali, three
of whom had suc-
cumbed to the virus.
Many cases have also
been registered in LG
Hospital and the hos-
pital was closed for
five days.
“Two doctors have
been infected again.
Even in private hos-
pitals, the doctors
and paramedical
staff have been in-
fected with the vi-
rus. In all, more
than 20 doctors have
been infected just
after the Diwali fes-
tival,” said a senior
officer in AMC.
The medical superintendent of SVP Hospital,Dr ST Malhan has contracted COVID-19.—FILE PHOTO
20 die as Gujarat sees
1,502 new nCoV cases
No fees, no online
education: Pvt schools
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: While
1,410 COVID-1 pa-
tients were dis-
charged on Monday,
Gujarat added anoth-
er 1,502 new cases of
Sars-CoV-2 infection,
taking the total tally
to 2,09,780 cases.
Twenty fresh fatali-
ties took the death
toll to 3,989. Of these,
13 deaths occurred in
Ahmedabad, while
Surat reported two
deaths, and Gandhi-
nagar, Mehsana, Mor-
bi, Rajkot, and Va-
dodara each lost one
COVID-19 victim.
Ahmedabad district
witnessed 302 new cases
of infection in a 24-hour
span, while Surat had
266, Vadodara had 187,
Rajkot had 140,
Mehsana saw 70, Gan-
dhinagar saw 59, Kutch
had 33 and Mehsana
district added 31 cases.
The state’s ‘recovery
rate’ inched forward by
0.01%toreach90.96%on
Monday, according to
data provided by the
state’s health depart-
ment, which added that
65,876 tests were carried
out through the day.
A local councillor in
Ahmedabad’s Chand-
kheda, Rajshree Kesri
told the media that her
society has more than 30
cases, but the state has
only reported 12.
Masuma Bharmal Jariwala
Rajkot: In a major de-
cision, the Self-Fi-
nanced School Man-
agement Association
has announced that it
will suspend online
classes from Decem-
ber 15 for students
whose parents have
not paid the fees for
the academic year.
Even after the state
government instruct-
ed schools to cut an-
nual school fees by
25% for 2020-21, a
large number of par-
ents are “intentional-
ly”delayingpayments.
Speaking to First In-
dia, association presi-
dent Bharat Gajipara
said, “Major schools in
Gujarat face the issue
of fees not paid by the
parents despite stu-
dents attending regular
online classes. In most
cases, it is the affluent
parents who have not
paid fees.
“Schools have repeat-
edly asked parents to
come forward and rep-
resent their matter in
case there are any fi-
nancial issues. Yet there
are parents who have
turned a blind eye to the
issue. So, instead of
solving the problem at
school level, the associ-
ation has decided unan-
imously to discontinue
online education for
students whose parents
have not approached
school authorities if
they have not paid
school fees,” he added.
A worker disinfects an ambulance which is being used as a hearse.
The issue of school fees has been a thorny topic ever since schools
were closed due to the pandemic.
With Dev Diwali and Guru Nanak Dev Ji Jayanti
falling on the same day, the Sikh and Hindu
faithful were seen thronging the Gurudwara
Gobind Dham (above and left), and Laldarwaja
Bhadra Temple (below) in Ahmedabad on
Monday. While kirtans and worship were the
order of the day at the Gurudwara, the temple
saw bhajans being sung and pujas being
performed inside, even as hundreds of devotees
waited outside as they sought the blessings of
Maa Ambe. --PHOTOS BY HANIF SINDHI
FAITH ACROSS LINES
Before Diwali, 90
doctors had been
infected, three of
whom lost their lives
1,502 cases, 20
fatalities take state
tally to 2,09,780
cases, toll to 3,989
—FILEPHOTO

G Vol 2 G Issue No. 7 G RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208. 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: Anita Hada Sangwan responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act
PERSPECTIVEAHMEDABAD | TUESDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2020
FARMERS REJECT
PM’s ASSURANCE
ON NEW AGRI
LEGISLATION
evelopment being his main plank,
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
inaugurated the six-lane, 73-km
Varanasi-Prayagraj National
Highway in his constituency to
improve connectivity in the entire eastern Ut-
tar Pradesh. The widened section of NH 19
has been built with an outlay of Rs. 2,447 crore
and is expected to reduce the travel time be-
tween the two cities by about one hour. The
prime minister was in Kashi, believed to be
Lord Shiva’s abode, for a mega development
push and to review the progress of the Rs
600-crore Kashi Vishwanath Extension and
Beautification project. The infra projects are
part of prime minister’s ambitious plan of
developing Varanasi on the lines of Kyoto.
Although Ganga is not yet pollution-free,
the famous ghats of Varanasi have become
cleaner and more picturesque. The develop-
ment, the PM said, will boost tourism to the
city. This is his first visit to the city during
the pandemic.
In line with his initiative to make India
aatmnirbhar (self-reliant), the prime minis-
ter pitched for local products as he asked the
crowd to complete his slogan “vocal for” by
adding “local” and told them that the prefer-
ence for local products during Diwali should
be made a daily affair.
The thrust of the prime minister’s address,
however, was the farmers’ agitation. Insist-
ing that the farmers should have access to the
bigger markets, he said “reforms have given
agriculturists new options and legal protec-
tion”. He asked if the farmers should not get
freedom to sell his produce directly to those
who give them better prices and facilities.
He attacked the Opposition for “cheating
farmers” in the name of loan waivers and
minimum support price and fertilisers.
While reminding farmers that his govern-
ment kept its promise of giving them 1.5
times more MSP as per the M.S. Swamina-
than’s report, he said “The farmers are being
misled on these historic reforms by the peo-
ple who have misled them for decades.
The prime minister did not appear agreea-
ble to the agitating farmers demand for repeal
of the new agri-marketing legislation. He
charged the Opposition for creating apprehen-
sions in the minds of the people and instigat-
ing protests over “what has not happened, or
was never going to happen”. Farmers doubted
the government’s intentions because of the
lies being fed to them and assured the farming
community of clearing all their doubts.
But the farmers have refused to budge. The
All-India Kisan Sangharsh Co-ordination
Committee called the PM’s statement an “in-
sult” to their hopes of their concerns being
addressed by the government. In farmers’
view the legislation is about “freedom to the
corporate, opportunities to the corporate and
income for the corporate”. Farmers reiter-
ated that no political party was behind their
agitation as they braved the winter chill.
IN-DEPTH
D
ost businesses
perish not be-
cause of strong
competition or
adverse macro-
economic conditions but
because of cracks within.
One such failing is weak
corporate governance. For
publicly listed companies,
this often translates to con-
trolling shareholders or
“promoters” pursuing poli-
cies and practices in their
owninterestsattheexpense
of minorityshareholders.It
turns out that companies
with such promoters are at
greater risk of crises and
near-death moments in bad
economic cycles. Those
companies with better gov-
ernance, where promoters
act responsibly in the inter-
estsof shareholders,tendto
do better during adversity.
In fact, savvy investors now
treatgoodcorporategovern-
ance as an intangible asset.
This can be best seen in
India’s banking sector. In
general, private sector
banks have practiced bet-
ter governance than state-
owned ones. Consequently,
their financial and operat-
ing metrics also tell a story
of profitable growth with
less asset quality issues
than their public sector
peers. No wonder that pri-
vate sector banks trade at a
higher valuation than pub-
lic sector ones.
Higher valuation puts
these banks into a virtuous
growth cycle. They are able
to raise capital cheaply
with less dilution. This re-
inforces their already high
return ratios, which in
turn continue to support a
higher valuation. This self-
perpetuating cycle has led
to long-term compounding
of shareholder returns.
State-owned peers have
fared much worse.
Despite a large number
of state-owned banks, the
majority of credit growth
in India is led by private
sector banks. In fact, state-
owned banks are strug-
gling and the government
is forced to merge them to
ensure their survival. The
success of well-run private
banks demonstrates how
good governance can lower
a company’s cost of capital.
That is not all. The result-
ing higher valuation also
gives such companies im-
mense pricing power in
corporate transactions and
talent management, widen-
ing their economic moat.
MULTIPLE ISSUES
India boasts of the oldest
stock exchange in Asia,
which is also the region’s
largest. However, corporate
governance in India still
lags behind many other
places like Singapore or
Taiwan. India must under-
stand that good corporate
governance is the founda-
tion of a lasting business. It
builds investor confidence
and has other benefits. In-
dia is short of capital and
needs to earn investors’
trust. Without an infusion
of capital, the Indian econ-
omy will fail to thrive.
There are multiple is-
sues that plague corporate
governance in India. First
is the lack of accountabili-
tyamongcontrollingshare-
holders. For example, pro-
moters get away with ap-
pointing their friends, ex-
employees and business-
school classmates as inde-
pendent directors with no
one raising an eyebrow.
Often, statutory auditors
are given only one-year ex-
tensionstopressurizethem
to “comply” with manage-
ment demands. Compliant
auditors tend to persist for
too long, developing far-too-
cozy relationships with the
very people they are sup-
posed to keep an eye on.
With no strong checks and
balances, promoters are in
effect incentivized to take
advantage of minority
shareholders.
Second is the slow and
selective enforcement by
the Securities and Ex-
change Board of India
(SEBI), the country’s mar-
ket regulator. Cases against
the management’s mis-
steps take years to resolve.
SEBI generally hands out
warnings or mild punish-
ments. This could be be-
cause SEBI does not have
enough resources to deal
with a large number of
cases, or it could be a lack
of authority or compe-
tence. In certain cases, pro-
moters are extremely pow-
erful and politically con-
nected. Given that regula-
tors are political appoin-
tees, it is far from easy for
them to ignore pressure
from politicians, remain
impartial, punish the pow-
erful and deliver justice.
FAIROBSERVER.COM
What Ails Corporate Governance in India?
M
“In whom there is no
sympathy for living beings:
know him as an outcast.”
—Buddha
Spiritual
SPEAK
Top
TWEET
Jagat Prakash Nadda
@JPNadda
Today, on the auspicious
occasion of Prakash Parv,
sought blessings by praying at
Shri Bangla Sahib Gurudwara
and prayed for the happiness
and prosperity of all.
Prakash Javadekar
@PrakashJavdekar
Do not misunderstand the
Farm Law. Punjab farmers
sold more paddy in the market
on #MSP than last year. MSP
is also alive and market is alive
and government procurement
is also happening.
hile zeroing in on a mutual fund
as an investment opportunity,
variousmeasurescancomeinto
play. Some of the widely known
measures assess the mutual
fund performance based
on risk assumed and returns
generated. A more comprehen-
sive way to analyze both the fac-
tors simultaneously is to look at
thefund’srisk-adjustedreturns.
RETURN MEASURES
1. Historical Performance: The
most important yardstick that
lets an investor shortlist a
mutual fund is its historical
performance. While historical
returns do not guarantee future
performance, the returns do
indicate the fund’s appeal and
competence when compared
with other funds within the
same category.
2. Attribution Analysis: Attribu-
tion analysis is a detailed pro-
cess of understanding whether
the fund’s return adheres to
the fund philosophy and is
directly influenced by the fund
manager’s strategy. Attribution
analysis is understanding the
source of returns, which can
be one of the three: Alloca-
tion to sectors, Specific stock
selection, and/or an interaction
of the two.
RISK MEASURES
1. Standard Deviation: Standard
Deviation (SD) is a measure of
risk that measures the devia-
tion of returns from the mean
returns. SD of the mutual
fund lets the investor under-
stand the expected volatil-
ity in the fund’s returns. For
example, if a fund has an SD
of 5 percent and an expected
return of 15 percent, the actual
returns may vary between 10
percent and 20 percent.
2. R-Squared (R2): R-squared is
a statistical measure of the per-
centage of fund’s returns that
can be explained by the move-
ments in the fund’s bench-
mark. R-squared determines
the similarity between the fund
and the fund’s benchmark.
R-squared can be used by
investors to:
n Create a well-diversified portfo-
lio of mutual funds by reducing
the repetition of exposure to
sectors.
n Review existing funds for any
style drift toward that of the
benchmark. An actively-man-
aged is supposed to outper-
form the benchmark and not
mimic the performance of the
benchmark. Therefore, if the
R2 measure is high, it means
the returns of a fund are highly
correlated to that of the bench-
mark essentially reducing the
fund’s ability to create alpha.
3. Up and Down-market capture:
Up-market and down-market
captures are to mutual funds
what a beta is to stock. Market
captures measure the fund’s
sensitivity to index or bench-
mark movements. A higher
up-market ratio and a lower
down-market ratio makes a
fund attractive. The higher the
ratio, the more the outper-
formance of the fund.
RISK-ADJUSTED
RETURNS
Risk-adjusted returns incorporate
the theory of risk-return trade-off
in that a higher degree of risk
demands higher returns. Risk-
adjusted returns use a measure
of volatility to specify the risk
undertaken. Popular risk-adjusted
return metrics are:
1. Sharpe Ratio: Sharpe Ra-
tio measures the excess return
generated by the fund for every
additional unit of risk. Excess
return is defined as the fund’s
return over the risk-free rate of
return. The unit of risk is the
standard deviation. The higher
the Sharpe ratio, the greater
the fund performance.
2. Sortino Ratio: Sortino ratio is
similar to the Sharpe ratio in
that the Sortino ratio also is
a relative measure and uses
excess return as one of its
inputs. The key difference is
that the Sharpe ratio uses the
total volatility as a measure of
risk whereas the Sortino ratio
uses downside deviation as
a measure of risk. A higher
Sortino ratio is favorable and
signifies a lower probability of
an adverse movement in the
mutual fund value.
FUND-SPECIFIC FACTORS
n Style Analysis and Drift: Style
analysis involves determin-
ing the investment style of
the fund manager. Investment
styles can be of varied types
and depend upon the market
capitalization and valuation of
the stocks. The most common
forms of styles are growth
investing and value investing.
Growth investing is focused
on stocks to gain momentum
in the near-term owing to
above-average growth in earn-
ings. On the other hand, value
investing is focused on stocks
that are undervalued relative
to their fundamentals and re-
quired the fund manager to be
invested for a longer-term.
n Turnover Ratio: The turnover
ratio is an indicator of how
often a fund manager buys and
replaces securities for a fund.
Turnover ratio is the number of
securities replaced expressed
as a percentage of the total
number of stocks that the fund
invests in. The turnover ratio is
typically high for actively man-
aged funds and low for index
funds.
n Total Expense Ratio: TER
includes management fees,
administrative fees, brokerage
costs, and legal costs. The
expense ratio reduces the net
return available to an investor.
HOW TO SELECT BEST
PERFORMING MUTUAL FUNDS?
W
The most
common forms
of styles are
growth
investing and
value
investing.
Growth
investing is
focused on
stocks to gain
momentum in
the near-term
owing to above-
average growth
in earnings.
SOME OF WIDELY
KNOWN MEASURES
ASSESS THE MUTUAL
FUND PERFORMANCE
BASED ON RISK
ASSUMED AND
RETURNS GENERATED. A
MORE COMPREHENSIVE
WAY TO ANALYZE BOTH
THE FACTORS
SIMULTANEOUSLY IS TO
LOOK AT THE FUND’S
RISK-ADJUSTED
RETURNS

To Receive Free Newspaper
PDF Daily
Whatsapp:
http://bit.ly/whatsappahm
Telegram:
https://t.me/firstindiaahmedabad
Click the above link☝ & subscribe us on your
preferred platform.

INDIAAHMEDABAD | TUESDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2020
WILL DECIDE SOON ON POSSIBLE
ENTRY TO POLITICS: RAJINIKANTH
Chennai: After meeting with
district secretaries of Rajini
Makkal Mandram, megastar
Rajinikanth on Monday said
that he will take a decision
as soon as possible regard-
ing his entry into politics. “In
today’s meeting district sec-
retaries and we exchanged
views. They assured to sup-
port me in whatever decision
I take. I will take a decision
as soon as possible,” Actor
Rajinikanth told reporters
in Chennai. Earlier in the
day, Rajinikanth greeted
supporters after a meeting
with district secretaries of
Rajini Makkal Mandram at
Raghavendra Hall in the
city on Monday. He left his
residence in Chennai to
hold a meeting with the
district secretaries of Rajini
Makkal Mandram at Raghav-
endra hall.
KARNATAKA LOCAL BODY POLLS
TO BE HELD IN 2 PHASES
Bengaluru: Local body elections will be held in
two phases on December 22 and 27 in the state.
According to the Karnataka State Election Com-
mission, the counting of votes will take place
on December 30. Speaking on the announce-
ment of poll dates, Karnataka Congress chief
DK Shivakumar said: “Karnataka Congress filed
a petition before the High Court. We wanted
this election to be held. They were trying to
postpone the elections. The High Court was in
favour of the elections.”
EXPANSION OF MP CABINET IS
CM’S PREROGATIVE: SCINDIA
Bhopal: Ahead of his meeting with MP CM
Shivraj Singh Chouhan, BJP leader Jyotiraditya
Scindia said that there will be no discussion on
the expansion of state Cabinet with him. “I am
meeting with the Chief Minister on issues of
development and schemes related to it. There will
be no discussion on the expansion of the state
Cabinet. It is the Chief Minister’s discretion,”
Scindia told reporters here. BJP registered a
crucial victory in the fiercely contested Madhya
Pradesh by-polls winning on 19 seats.
BABA AMTE’S GRANDDAUGHTER
SHEETAL AMTE DIES BY SUICIDE
Mumbai: Sheetal Amte-
Karajgi, the granddaughter
of social worker Baba
Amte, allegedly died by
suicide after a family feud
in Maharashtra’s Warora.
39-year-old Sheetal Amte
was a doctor as well as the
CEO of the Maharogi Seva
Samiti (MSS), a social ser-
vice organisation founded
by her grandfather Baba
Amte. She allegedly took
her life after a long-drawn
public feud with her family
over the running of the
organisation. On Monday,
Sheetal Amte was found
dead in Anandwan at her
residence in Maharashtra’s
Chandrapur district. While
police have yet to confirm
the cause of death, local
reports have suggested
that she injected herself
with a lethal dose.
2G SPECTRUM SCAM CASE
NewbenchtohearCBIappeal
againstacquittalonDecember1
New Delhi: A different
bench of the Delhi High
Court will hear on De-
cember 1 an appeal filed
by the Central Bureau
of Investigation (CBI)
against the acquittal of
all accused including
former telecom minis-
ter A Raja in the 2G
spectrum scam case.
A single-judge bench
of Justice Yogesh Khan-
na will now hear the
matter on December 1,
as the case was trans-
ferred to him since Jus-
tice Brijesh Sethi, who
was hearing the appeal
so far, is set to retire on
November 30.
Last week, Justice
Sethi has rejected sev-
eral petitions of acquit-
ted accused against
sanctions granted by
the Central government
for CBI to file an appeal
against their acquittal.
The High Court had
also rejected the plea of
individuals stating that
CBI had filed the appeal
against their acquittal
without placing on re-
cord the mandatory ap-
proval by the Central
government.
Justice Sethi released
the appeals against 2G
verdict from his board
as he is set to retire on
November 30. The ap-
peals will now be listed
before another Judge
on December 1, he had
said.The court has also
said the 2018 amend-
ments in the Prevention
of Corruption Act
would not apply to
crimes committed prior
to the amendment. —ANI
AIpilotsseek
‘urgentmeet’with
Purioverwagecuts
New Delhi: Two pilots’
unions on Monday
wrote to Union Minis-
ter of Civil Aviation
Hardeep Singh Puri
seeking an urgent meet-
ing with him to discuss
the “indefinite and uni-
lateral” salary deduc-
tions faced by the pilots
of Air India.
The two unions -- the
Indian Commercial Pi-
lots’ Association and
the Indian Pilots’ Guild
-- wrote a letter to Puri
informing him that
workers of Air India,
Air India Express and
Alliance Air pilots are
facing wage cut of up to
70 per cent and sought
his immediate inter-
vention.
“The frontline work-
ers of Air India, Air In-
dia Express and Alli-
ance Air pilots continue
to be shackled with an
indefinite and unilat-
eral wage cut of up to 70
per cent while the indif-
ferent company top
management contrib-
utes a namesake 10 per
cent,” the letter said.
It said the unions,
through their represen-
tations and meetings,
had shown how Air In-
dia management’s cost-
cutting is mala fide and
disproportionate and
asked why barbaric
austerity measures ap-
ply only to Air India pi-
lots.
“Sir, you have ex-
pressed confidence that
air travel would reach
pre-COVID levels by the
end of the year. In our
meetings in the month
of September 2020, you
had given us an assur-
ance to look into our
grievances positively,”
the letter said.
“Kindly note that
while the other airlines
are rolling back the aus-
terity pay cuts for their
pilots, the wage cut for
Air India pilots further
increased from October.
This is completely di-
vorced from market re-
ality and equally unfair
to pilots of Air India
and its subsidiaries,” it
added. The unions, in
their letter, also said the
airline’s top manage-
ment has let the pilots
down tremendously
and that they have ex-
pressed their displeas-
ure and are extremely
troubled by this unwar-
ranted ordeal. —ANI
Vice President chairs meeting of SCO councilNew Delhi: Vice Presi-
dent Venkaiah Naidu
on Monday chaired the
19th meeting of Shang-
hai Cooperation Organ-
isation (SCO) council of
heads of government.
According to the
spokesperson, Ministry
of External Affairs, “In-
dia is privileged to be
chairing the 19th Ses-
sion SCO Council of
Heads of Government
in the virtual mode to-
day and has proposed
several new initiatives
to give a momentum to
the trade, economic and
cultural agenda of the
organisation.”While
chairing a virtual meet-
ing Naidu said, “India
has bravely fought glob-
al pandemic and has
shown remarkable resil-
ience in fighting the vi-
rus as well as ensuring
economicstability.India
has kept its COVID19
death rate at the lowest
level in world. India’s ef-
forts have found global
recognition.”It is the
first time that summit-
level meeting is being
held under India’s
chairmanship since the
country gained full-
membership of organi-
sation.
On June 9 2017, India
and Pakistan officially
joined SCO as full mem-
bers.
Condemning cross-
border terrorism, the
VP said, “The most im-
portant challenge faced
by us is terrorism; par-
ticularly cross-border
terrorism...India con-
demns terrorism in all
its manifestations. We
are particularly con-
cerned about states that
leverage terrorism as
an instrument of their
state policy.”Discussing
about the relationships
between the country
and SCO region Naidu
said, “Relations be-
tween India and SCO
region have flourished
uninterrupted for thou-
sands of years. By 2025,
India’s GDP is expected
to reach 5 trillion. It
will be youngest nation
with an average age of
29 years.””During the
chairmanship of our
tenure, we’ve proposed
to create a special work-
ing group on start-ups
and innovations. India
has created robust dy-
namic environment for
start-ups. India made
an offer to annually
host special working
group for start-ups,” he
said. —ANI
V-P RECEIVES
TWO ACTION
TAKEN REPORTS
FROM PARL PANEL
New Delhi: Vice Presi-
dent and Rajya Sabha
Chairman M Venkaiah
Naidu on Monday re-
ceived two action taken
reports from Jairam
Ramesh, Chairman of
the Department-related
Parliamentary Standing
Committee on Science
and Technology, Environ-
ment, Forest and Climate
Change.”Chairman
Rajya Sabha, M Venkaiah
Naidu received two ac-
tion taken reports from
Jairam Ramesh, Chair-
man of the Department-
related Parliamentary
Standing Committee on
Science and Technology
and Environment, Forest
and Climate Change,”
Vice President of India,
the official account of the
Vice President, tweeted.
Rahul, Priyanka urge people to join
‘Speak Up for Farmers’ campaign
RAISING THE ISSUE, PRIYANKA GANDHI VADRA ALLEGED THAT THE
INTERESTS OF FARMERS WERE IGNORED IN NEW AGRICULTURAL LAWS
New Delhi: Congress
leader Rahul Gandhi
and Priyanka Gandhi
Vadra on Monday urged
people to join the
“Speak Up for Farm-
ers” campaign, amid
farmers’ protests
against the Central gov-
ernment’s new farm
laws.
“Modi government
tortured farmers- first
they brought in black
laws and then used
force/lathi-charged
farmers. But they for-
got that when farmers
raise their voice then it
resonates across the
country. Join us
through the #SpeakUp-
ForFarmers campaign
against the exploitation
of our brother farm-
ers,” read Rahul’s tweet
Raising the issue, Pri-
yanka Gandhi Vadra al-
leged that the interests
of farmers were ig-
nored in new agricul-
tural laws.
Farmers have been
protesting at various
places in Delhi and Har-
yana and have rejected
the central govern-
ment’s offer to hold
talks on December 3
saying that imposing
conditions for starting
a dialogue is an insult
to them.
Union Agriculture
Minister Narendra Sin-
gh Tomar said that the
Centre is ready for talks
with farmers’ unions
on December 3. —ANI
‘Farmers
should talk to
Centre to clear
confusion’
Patna: While farmers
in the country are on
the roads, Bihar Chief
Minister Nitish Kumar
said that
t h e y
s h o u l d
talk to the
Centre to
sort out
the confu-
sion over the new agri
bills.
Farmers mainly from
Punjab and Uttar
Pradesh are on the
roads against the farm
bills passed in Parlia-
ment.
Kumar was speaking
at the inauguration of
Patna’s longest 12.5 km
Digha-AIIMS Patna el-
evated road on Monday.
“The Central govern-
ment is repeatedly ask-
ing them to talk. There
is no question of pro-
curement being affect-
ed due to these bills. In
Bihar, we removed the
Agriculture Produce
Market Committees
(APMC) in 2006 soon af-
ter I took over as CM of
Bihar. Since then, we
are doing procurement
of Kharif and Rabi
grains by ensuring MSP
to farmers. They can
sell their produce any-
where in the country.”
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra
@priyankagandhi
“Name is farm law, but
only billionaire friends
get all the benefit. How
can farm laws be made
without consulting
the farmers? How can
farmers’ benefits be
ignored? The government
has to listen to farmers.
Come, let us raise our
voice in support of the
farmers together.”
RAGA URGES CONG WORKERS TO PROVIDE
FOOD, HELP TO PROTESTING FARMERS
New Delhi: Slamming the
Central government over the
new farm laws, Congress
leader Rahul Gandhi on
Monday, appealed to his par-
ty workers to provide food
and help to farmers protest-
ing against the new laws.
He asked why are farmers
protesting if these “reforms”
are in their interest. Taking to
Twitter, the Congress leader
said that farmers have come
to Delhi in the cold against
the “black” agricultural laws,
leaving their homes and
fields. “The farmers of the
country have come to Delhi
in the cold against the black
agricultural laws, leaving
their homes and fields. With
whom do you stand in the
battle of truth and untruth
annadata farmer or PM’s
capitalist friend? #SpeakUp-
ForFarmers,” he tweeted.
He also tweeted a video in
which he urged Congress
workers to stand by farmers.
The country’s strength is
farmers. —ANI
RAHUL MEETING
LEADERS OF POLL
BOUND STATES
New Delhi: Former
Congress president
Rahul Gandhi has be-
come proactive in the
party activities these
days by participating
in important meetings
for poll preparedness
in the states going
for elections next
year. Rahul Gandhi
is scheduled to meet
virtually with senior
leaders of Assam and
Tamil Nadu units of
the party on Monday.

INDIAAHMEDABAD | TUESDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2020
KEY ARMY POSTINGS LIKELY EARLY
NEXT YEAR
Some more transfers and postings at the level of
GOCs are likely to be effected early next year.
WILL SWAGAT DAS MOVE FROM IB ?
Grapevine has it that Special Director in the IB
Swagat Das is either moving to some other CPO
or returning to the parent Chhattisgarh cadre as
DGP. He is 1987 batch IPS officer of Chhattisgarh
cadre.
EXTENDED TENURE OF ABHAY
KUMAR SINGH ENDS ON DEC 3
The extended deputation tenure of Abhay Kumar
Singh working as Private Secretary to the Minister
for Law and Justice, Electronics and Information
Technology and Communications is coming to an
end on December 3, 2020. He is a 2004 batch IAS
officer of Bihar cadre.
WHO IS SCUTTLING THE CP SYSTEM
IN UP ?
If sources are to be believed, an attempt is being
made to scuttle the Commissioner of Police system
in UP which was introduced in Lucknow and Noida
in January this year. Some retired IPS officers
termed it an attempt to weaken the Yogi govern-
ment in the state. They blamed the bureaucracy
behind this game.
SUSHIL KUMAR SINGH TO JOIN AS
DIRECTOR, FINANCIAL SERVICES ON
DEC 3
Sushil Kumar Singh will be taking over the charge
as Director in the Department of Financial Services
on December 3, 2020. He is a 2006 batch IDAS
officer.
DY ELECTION COMMISSIONER,
SUDEEP JAIN TO RETURN TO
PARENT CADRE IN DEC !
The central deputation tenure of Sudeep Jain
working as Deputy Election Commissioner, Election
Commission of India, is coming to an end on
December 21, 2020. Jain, who is a 1994 batch IAS
officer of Tamil Nadu cadre, was granted six-month
extension in June, 2020.
SC COLLEGIUM YET TO CLEAR
TRANSFER OF HC JUDGES !
Supreme Court Collegium, yet to clear the transfer
of about 16 High Court Judges, is expected to meet
in December.
MURLI DHAR EMPANELLED TO HOLD
DIG LEVEL POST
Murli Dhar has been empanelled to hold DIG and
equivalent level post at the Centre. He is a 2005
batch IPS officer of West Bengal cadre.
MS. ROLI KHARE RELIEVED TO JOIN
AS DIRECTOR, HEALTH
Ms. Roli Khare has been relieved to join as Director
in the Department of Health & Family Welfare, on
deputation basis. She is an IRS-IT officer.
RUCHIKA KATYAL SHIFTED TO GOA
Ms. Ruchika Katyal has been shifted from GNCTD
to Goa. She is a 2013 batch IAS officer of AGMUT
cadre.
RAJ CADRE IPS AKSHAY MISHRA
EMPANELLED TO DG POST
With only five months left for his retirement, 1987
batch IPS officer from Rajasthan cadre - Akshay
Mishra - was empanelled on Monday for positions at
par with the rank of Director General. Overall, fifteen
IPS officers were empanelled on Monday of which
Mishra is one. Currently posted on deputation as
Special Director in the Intelligence Bureau, Mishra
will now be eligible for the post of DG if any vacancy
appears in any branch.
POWERGallery
By arrangement with: http://
whispersinthecorridors.com
Gap between recoveries and active
cases increasing: Health ministryNew Delhi: A total of
45,333 new COVID-19
recoveries has been
registered across the
country in a span of 24
hours as against 38,772
new infections report-
ed during the same pe-
riod, leading to a net
reduction of 6,561 cases
from the active case-
load, the Union Health
Ministry said on Mon-
day. The total recover-
ies have surged to
88,47,600.
“The gap between COV-
ID-19 recoveries and ac-
tive cases, that is stead-
ily increasing, pres-
ently stands at 84,00,648
i.e 19.8 times the active
cases,” the ministry
said. The contraction
of India’s active COV-
ID-19 caseload to
4,46,952 comprises just
4.74 per cent of the to-
tal coronavirus infec-
tions reported so far in
the country. “The dif-
ference in new recover-
ies outnumbering new
cases of COVID-19 has
also improved the na-
tional recovery rate to
93.81 per cent as on
date,” the ministry
said, adding that In-
dia’s coronavirus case
fatality rate has fur-
ther dipped to 1.45 per
cent. India is one of the
countries with the low-
est deaths per million
population globally
(99.4 at present), the
ministry said. Karna-
taka, Maharashtra,
Kerala, Tamil Nadu,
Andhra Pradesh have
reported the highest
decline in active cases
in the past one month,
while Madhya Pradesh,
Himachal Pradesh,
Delhi, Haryana & Ra-
jasthan are reporting a
rise in active caseload,
it underscored. —PTI
Thiruvananthapuram:
A ‘red alert’ has been is-
sued in Kerala’s south-
ern districts of Thiru-
vananthapuram, Kol-
lam, Pathanamthitta
and Alappuzha, and
‘orange alert’ in Kot-
tayam, Idukki and Er-
nakulam districts till
Thursday owing to pre-
dictions of inclement
weather conditions.
Kerala has also
banned all fishing ac-
tivities starting Mon-
day midnight. The
Kerala State Disaster
Management Authority
action follows develop-
ment of a low pressure
area over south Anda-
man Sea and adjoining
areas of south-east Bay
of Bengal that is likely
to concentrate into a de-
pression in the next 36
hours.
Less than a week af-
ter the landfall of Cy-
clone Nivar, the south-
ern part of India will
once again experience
heavy rainfall this week
due to a depression
forming over the Bay of
Bengal and it is likely to
intensify further into a
deep depression and
bring widespread rain-
fall over Tamil Nadu,
Kerala and south coast-
al Andhra Pradesh
from December 1, the
India Meteorological
Department said. —PTI
IMDissuesredalertinKerala&TamilNadu
ascyclonicstormbrewingoverBayofBengal
Naidu, and 13 TDP
MLAs suspended
‘Tiger state’ Madhya Pradesh lost
290 big cats in 19 years: Official
Bhopal: Madhya
Pradesh has lost 290 ti-
gers over the last 19
years but the central
Indian state still has
more than 675 tigers,
including 125 cubs, in
the designated reserves
and in the wild, a top
Forest department offi-
cial said on Monday.
Claiming that the
population of tigers has
actually “gone up”, he
said Madhya Pradesh
will continue to remain
the “tiger state of In-
dia”. The official said
only 5% of the deaths
of big cats had occurred
due to poaching or in
man-animal conflicts.
Most of the deaths of
the tigers occurred ei-
ther in territorial fights
or due to natural caus-
es, he added. “Madhya
Pradesh has lost 290 ti-
gers so far since 2002,”
Principal Chief Conser-
vator of Forests (Wild-
life) Alok Kumar said.
However, there are
550 big cats in tiger re-
serves in Kanha, Band-
havgarh, Pench, Satpu-
ra, Panna and Sanjay
Gandhi reserve and in
the wild, he said, add-
ing that there are 125
cubs in the parks. —PTI
Amaravati: As many
as 13 Telugu Desam
Party (TDP) MLAs, in-
cluding party’s floor
leader N Chandrababu
Naidu, were suspended
for one day from the
Andhra Pradesh As-
sembly after they cre-
ated a ruckus during a
discussion on help to
farmers worst affected
by Cyclone Nivar. After
being suspended from
the House, the legisla-
tors led by Naidu sat on
the steps outside the As-
sembly in protest
against the YS Jagan
Mohan Reddy-led gov-
ernment. “Telugu Des-
am National Party pres-
ident Sri Nara Chan-
drababu Naidu sat at
the entrance of the AP
Assembly in protest
against the AP Govern-
ment’s apathy towards
thousands of farmers
who have lost their eve-
rything due to #Cy-
cloneNivar,” TDP said
in a tweet. TDP MLAs
and MLCs organised a
protest rally near the
Andhra Pradesh assem-
bly on the first day of
the session, demanding
immediate compensa-
tion to the farmers ad-
versely affected by Ni-
var cyclone. —ANI
Raipur: The Chhattis-
garh government on
Monday appointed
Amitabh Jain as the
state’s chief secretary
in place of Rajendra
Prasad Mandal who re-
tired from service.
Jain, a 1989-batch
IAS officer, was cur-
rently additional
chief secretary (fi-
nance) along with ad-
ditional charge of wa-
ter resources depart-
ment. The state gov-
ernment also issued
fresh postings for 13
other bureaucrats, in-
cluding 11 IAS offic-
ers. —PTI
Pune: A “child-friend-
ly” police station set up
in accordance with
guidelines laid down by
the National Commis-
sioner for Protection of
Child Rights was
launched in Pune on
Monday. It has come up
in the premises of the
Lashkar police station
and is aimed at giving
children in conflict
with law as well as mi-
nor victims a friendly
environment, officials
said. Pune police have
worked with Hope for
Children Foundation to
set up this. —PTI
Kolkata: To help save
lives of road accident
victims by taking them
to nearby hospitals as
quickly as possible, the
West Bengal govern-
ment will soon start a
free-ambulance service,
a senior official of the
state health department
said. Starting with at
least 150 ambulances,
the government is set-
tingupadetailedmapof
theaccidentpronezones
& the nearby hospitals.
This service will pri-
marily work on GPS sys-
tem as government will
have to bear a cost of
around Rs 30 crore.—PTI
Amitabh Jain
appointed as
new chief secy
Child friendly
police station
set up in Pune
No ambulance
service cost
in WB soon
The Union Health Min-
istry has asked states
and Union Territories
to upload data of health
care workers on its
application Covid-19
Vaccine Intelligence
Network (COVIN) who
would receive Covid
vaccination on prior-
ity basis. The Covin
App, developed by the
central government,
is a key part of India’s
Covid-19 vaccine roll-
out plan.
Union Health Minister
Harsh Vardhan said
that up to 30 crore In-
dians would be inocu-
lated against COVID-19
by August 2021 as per
central government’s
plans. However, he
reiterated the need
to follow appropriate
protocols. “In the first
3-4 months of 2021,
there is a possibility to
provide vaccine and by
July-August, we have
a plan to provide vac-
cines to around 25-30
crore people as we are
preparing accordingly,”
Mr Vardhan said.
New Delhi: The Arvind
Kejriwal government
on Monday ordered all
private laboratories to
reduce the price of RT-
PCR tests in the nation-
al capital to Rs 800 from
Rs 2,400.
Health workers to receive
vaccination on priority
30 cr to be vaccinated by
August 2021, says govt
Delhi govt new
RT-PCR test
price at ` 800
Ajay Maken
@ajaymaken
Although, the
Rajasthan government set
the rates of Covid test Rs
1200 on September 14. It
was still Rs 2400 in Delhi.
This is the heights of
corruption and this man
@ArvindKejriwal claims
that he is here to remove
corruption.
—FILE PHOTO
—FILE PHOTO
—FILE PHOTO
Scrap farm...
The Jat leader’s threat
to consider exiting the
NDA is seen to indicate
the discomfort within
the regional party over
theproteststhaterupted
against the three farm
laws enacted by the BJP-
led coalition at the Cen-
tre that change the way
India’s farmers do busi-
ness by creating free
markets, as opposed to a
network of decades-old,
government-controlled
agricultural markets.
In a string of tweets
that he followed up with
a letter to Amit Shah,
Beniwal said his party
would be forced to re-
consider its alliance if
prompt action is not
taken since farmers and
the youth formed the
core support base of his
party.
In a video message
earlier, Beniwal said the
RLP had protested the
three farm laws through
social media and on the
streets. “Today, I have
written to Shah that if
the laws aren’t with-
drawn, then we will re-
consider our alliance
with NDA,” he said.
“We are with the
farmers and if required
will march to Delhi. The
PM and Shah should
hold dialogue with
farmers, and provide
space to hold dharna in
the capital. If any kind
of ill-treatment is done
with the farmers, then
the farmers of the en-
tire country will be on
streets to gherao Delhi,”
he said.—With Agency inputs
Oppn using...
But the three laws gave
them new options to sell
for more, he said. He
said whenever new laws
are enacted questions
are bound to be asked.
But presently a new
trend is being seen in
the country. The pro-
tests are based on creat-
ing doubts through mis-
information, Modi said.
We must remember
that those doing so are
the ones who had for
decades deceived farm-
ers, he claimed. The
MSP used to be declared
but very little procure-
ment was done on it, he
claimed. Farmers have
faced deceit on MSP,
loan waiver schemes,
urea and productivity
for a long time in the
past, he said.
He claimed that it is
because of this long his-
tory of deceit that farm-
ers are again wary as
they are seeing the new
move in the same man-
ner. He asked why his
government would
spend so much to mod-
ernise the mandis if it
planned to dismantle
the MSP system. He also
paid tributes to fallen
soldiers, indirectly re-
ferring to Pakistan and
China.—Agencies
Farmers’
condition...
and enhanced security
at the Ghazipur-UP bor-
der as the number of
protesting farmers
swelled there while
thousands more stayed
put at the Delhi-Hary-
ana border for the fifth
day Monday to protest
against the Centre’s ag-
ricultural reform laws.
But the farmers re-
fused this offer and
asked for Ramlila Maid-
an instead and further
announcedtheywillGh-
erao Delhi by blocking
three highways which
connect the national
capital to Ghaziabad,
Faridabad and Guru-
gram.Securityhadbeen
beefed up on the Burari
ground with police add-
ing that basic are being
provided to farmers
who are currently pro-
testing on the ground.
‘Even in...
Speaking on the occa-
sion, Chief Minister Vi-
jay Rupani said that in-
frastructure develop-
ment in cities is making
the state a model state.
At the top of the list in
terms of Foreign Direct
Investment (FDI), Guja-
rat attracts 52% of the
nation’s FDI, he said.
PM’s all-party...
discuss the COVID-19
situation since the out-
break of the pandemic.
The first meeting was
held on April 20 amid a
nationwide lockdown to
curb the spread of the
virus.
The top brass of the
government including
Defence Minister Ra-
jnath Singh and Home
Minister Amit Shah be-
sides Health Minister
Harsh Vardhan and Par-
liamentary affairs min-
ister Pralhad Joshi will
also attend the meeting,
they said.
The government is
likely to brief the parlia-
mentarians about vari-
ous steps it has taken to
deal with the pandemic
and may also touch
upontheadvancesbeing
made in vaccine devel-
opment and distribu-
tion.
The floor leaders of
different parties include
Adhir Ranjan Chowd-
hury and Ghulam Nabi
Azad of the Congress,
Sudip Bandyopadhyay
and Derek O’ Brien of
the Trinamool Con-
gress, Midhun Reddy
and Vijayasai Reddy of
the YSR Congress
among others. —PTI
FROM PG 1

SOURCE: FAIROBSERVER.COM
TALKING POINTAHMEDABAD | TUESDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2020
WHO ARE THE MEN HOPING TO
SUCCEED ANGELA MERKEL?
Kiran Bowry
T
he decision of who will follow
Angela Merkel to become Ger-
many’s next chancellor is still
up in the air. Due to the COVID-19 pan-
demic, the Christian Democratic Union
(CDU) party conference to elect a new
leader has been postponed until Janu-
ary next year. Merkel’s approval ratings
have skyrocketed during the pandemic.
Recent polls show that 72% of Germans
are either satisfied or very satisfied with
her performance. The last time Merkel
enjoyed such high popularity was in
January 2015, shortly before the refugee
crisis, which saw her approval ratings
plummet. The refugee crisis divided Ger-
man society and eroded trust in demo-
cratic institutions and the political class.
Recovery from this, at least during Mer-
kel’s tenure, appeared unlikely. But it
seems another crisis was needed to reig-
nite the love between the German public
and the chancellor, a relationship that is
entering its 16th—and final—year.
Since Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer
announced her intention to resign as
party leader in February this year, three
potential successors have been waiting
in the wings. They will find it hard to
live up to Merkel’s qualities that en-
deared her not only to the German, but
also the global, public. Merkel’s unagi-
tated, unpretentious and clear-headed
governing style that proved particularly
effective during the pandemic threatens
to overshadow the three men itching to
succeed her.
L eading the polls
among the three
candidates is Friedrich
Merz, a lawyer and for-
mer supervisory board
chairman of the asset
managing firm Black-
rock. He comes from the
economically liberal
and conservative wing
of the CDU, endorsing
less state regulation of
the economy. In 2000, be-
fore Merkel ousted him
as CDU whip in Germa-
ny’s parliament, the
Bundestag, Merz de-
manded a so-called
“German leading cul-
ture” as a counter-
weight to the model of
multiculturalism. Even
today, he proposes cuts
to social benefits for im-
migrants.Furthermore,
he set off controversial
intra-party debates dur-
ing CDU regional con-
ferences in 2018 by ques-
tioning the individual
right to asylum.
His appeal: Despite
losing to Annegret
Kramp-Karrenbauer
in his first attempt to
become the CDU leader
in 2018, Merz is a popu-
lar figure among party
members and has a de-
vout group of support-
ers. He is a good speak-
er and can draw large
crowds. Merz comes
across as authentic
and a straight talker.
Furthermore, he em-
bodies the times of the
1990s and the early
2000s, when the world
seemed less complicat-
ed. That could give him
an advantage, especial-
ly among older male
voters.
His Achilles heel:
Merz is an old foe of An-
gela Merkel and hasn’t
occupied political office
for almost 18 years.
Hence, he cannot count
onmuchsupportamong
senior party figures in
the CDU, which is vital
to securing the leader-
ship. He recently under-
lined his intra-party
role as a divisive lone
warrior by stating that
the cancellation of the
conference on Decem-
ber 4 was the latest part
of a concerted effort to
prevent him from be-
coming party leader.
How he has fared
during the pandemic:
Without a government
position and after
catching COVID-19 in
March, Merz struggled
to get much public at-
tention during the first
few months of the pan-
demic. That has not
changed despite his at-
tempts to initiate a de-
bate about the post-cor-
onavirus economic re-
covery. Only his recent
accusations around the
delay of the party con-
ference caught atten-
tion, probably not to his
advantage.
M erz’s closest ri-
val, Armin
Laschet, is the minis-
ter-president of Ger-
many’s most populous
state of North-Rhine
Westphalia. He repre-
sents a continuation of
Merkel’s policies and is
known for defending
her controversial
stance on refugees and
migration policy. Con-
cerning national is-
sues, Laschet tends to
strike a moderate rath-
er than conservative
tone. Nonetheless, he
has shown to be capa-
ble of appealing to the
conservative wing of
the party by buckling
down on crime in his
home state.
His appeal: Laschet
is a candidate for cos-
mopolitan, left-leaning
swing voters. Also, he
has an ace up his sleeve:
Laschet has teamed up
with Health Minister
Jens Spahn, whose con-
servative profile ap-
peals to voters in rural
Germany. This double
ticket, which speaks to
a broad voter base, and
the support of the larg-
est and influential CDU
state association from
North-Rhine Westphal-
ia, make him a favour-
ite to win the leader-
ship.
His Achilles heel:
Laschet’s attributes of
being a unifier and
striking moderate
tones has its flipside.
He is not a charismatic
leader who can capture
people’s hearts, which
might be a disadvan-
tage in the final weeks
of the leadership race.
How he has fared
As head of a state gov-
ernment, the COVID-19
crisis was a chance for
Laschet to get an ad-
vantage over his com-
petitors. He failed to
seize it. In his attempt
to take a more light-
hearted approach to
the virus, Laschet ex-
uded nervousness. It
came across as a des-
perate attempt to dis-
tinguish himself from
his adversary, the Ba-
varian Minister-Presi-
dent Markus Söder,
who implemented
more rigorous meas-
ures to fight the pan-
demic. But with time,
as people become wea-
ry of constraints, his
strategy might come to
fruition.
N orbert Röttgen,
chairman of the
Foreign Affairs Com-
mittee in the Bunde-
stag, represents the
left-wing of the CDU.
After the Fukushima
nuclear disaster, he in-
stigated the phasing
out of Germany’s nu-
clear power as federal
environment minister.
He also favours a yet
unprecedented coali-
tion between the CDU
and the Greens on a na-
tional level. Regarding
foreign policy, he de-
mands a more decisive
and self-assured role
for Germany in inter-
national affairs.
His appeal: As a for-
mer member of Mer-
kel’s cabinet, Röttgen
was referred to as
“Muttis Klügster”—
Mother’s Smartest. His
strength is a profound
knowledge of policy,
coupled with rhetorical
skills that allow him to
come across thoughtful
and precise.
His Achilles heel:
Röttgen has no note-
worthy supporter
group within the party
and is having trouble
distinguishing himself
from the other two can-
didates. On the one
hand, his policies re-
semble Laschet’s too
closely while also not
appealing to conserva-
tive party members. He
is the clear outsider in
the race.
How he has fared
Not very well. Without
inhabiting any political
office, Röttgen was
hardly visible during
the pandemic.
R
egardless of
how the leader-
ship race un-
folds, Markus Söder, the
party leader of the
CDU’s Bavarian sister
party, the Christian So-
cial Union (CSU), is
touted as Germany’s
next chancellor. Most
Germans would prefer
him over the three can-
didates running for the
CDU’s party leadership.
According to opinion
polls, 37% of the Ger-
man electorate would
choose Söder as chan-
cellor over potential
competitors from the
Greens and the Social
Democratic Party
(SPD). Despite being the
second choice among
CDU members after
Friedrich Merz, 53% of
the membership re-
gards Markus Söder as
the candidate with the
highest chances of win-
ning a general election.
Söder’s rising popu-
larity is nothing short
of unexpected. In his
younger years, Söder
came across as an over-
ambitious agitator and
a vain self-promoter.
But he has masterfully
used the COVID-19 cri-
sis as a stage to demon-
strate a statesmanlike
demeanour with a sup-
posedly firm grip on
things. Remarkably,
above-average coronavi-
rus case numbers and
failures in Bavarian
testing centres have not
affected his high ap-
proval ratings. But
Söder himself has re-
mained tight-lipped
about his ambitions.
When asked whether he
rules out running for
chancellor, he typically
replies with the phrase,
“My place is in Bavar-
ia.” Until now, this non-
committal strategy has
proved to be shrewd.
While the three candi-
dates might wear them-
selves out in petty skir-
mishes, he can enhance
his idealized self-image
of the caring and reso-
lute Bavarian chief
minister.
Nevertheless, his op-
portunity to run for
chancellor is dependent
on the outcome of the
leadership race. An
equally ambitious fight-
er, Friedrich Merz
would hardly give the
chancellorship a miss if
elected party leader.
Only a victory for
Laschet or a surprise
candidacy of his run-
ning mate, Jens Spahn,
would open a clear win-
dow of opportunity for
Söder.
The delay of the party
conference has added a
new dimension to the
race. It has given candi-
dates in public offices
like Laschet and Söder
more time and opportu-
nity to shine. In con-
trast, other candidates,
particularly Friedrich
Merz, are scrambling
for the limelight. That
has led to resentment as
Merz sees the delayed
party conference as a
plot to thwart his chanc-
es. He might have a case.
The longer Annegret
Kramp-Karrenbauer re-
mains party leader, the
more she can pull
strings toward a more
favourableoutcome.Itis
an open secret that she,
as well as Angela Mer-
kel, would prefer
LaschetoverMerz.Also,
Kramp-Karrenbauer
warned against possible
surprise candidacies to
avoid a “ruinous compe-
tition”. Rumours sug-
gest that Jens Spahn,
who is increasingly
popular among CDU
members as well as vot-
ers, could enter the race.
As the infighting in
the party commences,
the CDU should not for-
get why the leadership
race is taking in the
first place. The CDU is
at a crossroads and un-
der severe pressure
from the right. As the
pandemic continues to
create problems for An-
gela Merkel’s govern-
ment, her party has to
decide whether it wants
to win back conserva-
tive voters from the far-
right Alternative for
Germany party or stay
on a liberal course set
by Merkel.
The delay of the CDU conference
due to the COVID-19 pandemic
has added a new dimension to the
party’s leadership race.
WHO ARE THE MEN HOPING TOWHO ARE THE MEN HOPING TOWHO ARE THE MEN HOPING TOWHO ARE THE MEN HOPING TO
SUCCEED ANGELA MERKEL?SUCCEED ANGELA MERKEL?
FRIEDRICH MERZ ARMIN LASCHET
NORBERT RÖTTGEN
WHAT ABOUT MARKUS SÖDER?
MERKEL’S ANTITHESIS MERKEL’S MAN
MERKEL’S SMARTEST
Merkel’s unagitated, unpretentious and
clear-headed governing style that proved
particularly effective during the pandemic
threatens to overshadow the three men
itching to succeed her.
Norbert Röttgen —Photo by Raimond SpekkingArmin Laschett —Photo by Olaf Kosinsky
Markus Söder —Photo by FABRIZIO BENSCH/POOL/AFPFriedrich Merz —Photo by Olaf Kosinsky

First India Bureau
Varanasi. Jammu and
Kashmir Lieutenant
Governor Manoj Sin-
ha arrived in Vara-
nasi on a private visit
on Monday. The LG
attended a wedding
function of his friend
Suresh Singh where
he reached at around
11 am after his spe-
cial flight landed at
the Babatpur airport
here.
What stood out
though during his visit
was the fact that he co-
incidently met two local
BJP leaders MLA Vara-
nasi Pindra Dr Avdhesh
Singh and MLC
Yashwant Singh. Sinha
will attend some more
functions on Tuesday.
On the flip-side, it is
a matter of discus-
sion in the political
spectrum that even
though PM Modi and
CM Yogi’s pro-
grammes were made
public, LG’s arrival
had got no ears at all.
There is a difference between
doing things quickly and with
haste! One is a habit which will
have good results and the other may lead
to problems.
—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO & Editor, First India
AHMEDABAD | TUESDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2020www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
08
2NDFRONT
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: Explod-
ing the myth that the
Anti-Corruption Bu-
reau (ACB) often
picked the lower level
staffers and glossed
over serious corrup-
tion by senior officials,
the Gujarat ACB has
registeredcasesof pos-
sessing disproportion-
ate assets (DA) against
29 State employees in
the last 11 months.
Among these employ-
ees, 3 are class-1 offic-
ers, 8 class-2 officers,
while the rest 18 are
class-3 employees, ac-
cording to an official
release issued on Mon-
day.
The cumulative mar-
ket value of the alleged
DA, including land and
residential properties,
is estimated at Rs 40.47
crore, the ACB said,
adding that it has
launched a special drive
to unearth benami and
ill-gotten properties.
Eight of the accused
were earlier employed
with now-defunct Guja-
rat Land Development
Corporation,therelease
said.
Other accused were
attached with depart-
ments of Urban Devel-
opment, Revenue, Pan-
chayat, Irrigation,
PWD, Gujarat Pollution
Control Board, Police,
Education, Forest and
Environment, Health,
and Mines and Miner-
als, it said.
They were booked un-
der provisions of the
Prevention of Corrup-
tion Act and under the
Prohibition of Benami
Property Transactions
Act, the release said.
Meanwhile, the ACB
on Monday booked one
Kalubhai Ram, a retired
class-3 engineer of state
Irrigation department,
for allegedly possessing
disproportionate assets
worth Rs 1.38 crore,
which are 97.71 per cent
more than his known
sources of income.
Ram, who retired a
few years back, had
deposited Rs 22 lakh
in his bank accounts
during his service be-
tween 2005 and 2013,
said the release.
ACB uncovers illegal assets of `41 cr in 11 months
BIG CRACKDOWN
CONGRESS SAYS GOVT SHIELDING OFFICIALS FOR LACK OF FIRE SAFETY AT HOSPITAL
Masuma Bharmal Jariwala
Rajkot: The Rajkot Po-
lice on Monday even-
ing arrested 3 doctors
in Friday’s fire at a
Covid-19 hospital
here, even as the ac-
tion raised the hack-
les of the Opposition
Congress which al-
leged that they were
being “singled out”
though investigations
revealed gaping holes
in the fire safety sys-
tem there.
Dr Prakash Modha,
chairman Gokul Life
Care Pvt Ltd, which
runs the Uday Shi-
vanand hospital, Dr.
Vishal Modha and Dr
Tejas Karmata, consult-
ant intensivist, were ar-
rested. A case was also
lodged against Dr.Tejas
Motivaras and Dr.Digvi-
jaysinh Jadeja. The fire
claimed 5 lives.
Senior Congress lead-
er and reputed neuro-
surgeon Dr Hemang
Vasavada has asserted
that the doctors, who
have been charged with
culpable homicide in
the fire, have been made
“soft targets” by the po-
lice -- and by implication
the State Government.
On Sunday, a Special
Investigation Team
(SIT) made a startling
disclosure that there
was no emergency exit
at the hospital, no venti-
lation in the ICU, sani-
tizer was found in ex-
cess quantity, only 4 feet
staircase was there for
movement, there were
no fire sign boards or
any reflectors for emer-
gency exit, the ICU door
was just 3 feet 4 inch
broad.
Besides this, the med-
ical staff was not pro-
vided training of fire
fighting and emergency
rescue by hospital au-
thorities and fire extin-
guisher was not used for
want of training, the
hospital had no evacua-
tion plan, no automatic
sprinkler facility and
guidelines of NBC &
NABH had been flouted.
“Why are only the
doctors targeted, when
there were glaring loop-
holes in the fire safety
system? Why was the
fire NOC issued or per-
mission granted by the
Collector? The authori-
ties should be equally
held responsible along
with the company that
supplied the ventilors,”
Vasavada asserted. He
asked why didn’t the
SIT wait for the FSL and
power department re-
ports.
“I am also surprised
that the Indian Medical
Association is silent.
This only shows IMA is
in the hands of BJP doc-
tors,” Vasavda alleged.
The State Govern-
ment has also set up a
separate judicial com-
mission, besides the
SIT of Rajkot police.
‘3docsheldinRajkotfiremade
villains,butbigfishslipby!’
Guj laggard in Covid vaccine
cold chain infra, others better
Good news for Surat diamantaires,
they can now courier gems abroad
First India Bureau
Surat: A long-unful-
filled demand of jewel-
lers in Surat to permit
them to use courier ser-
vices for exports of dia-
monds and jewellery
has finally been grant-
ed by the Union Finance
Ministry.ww
The Gems and Jewel-
lery Export Promotion
Council (GJEPC) had
demanded that the Cen-
tralGovernmentshould
grant them permission
to use courier services
for small-scale export
of diamonds and jewel-
lery to expedite sup-
plies and help cut over-
heads.
The permission has
been given by the gov-
ernment under Elec-
tronic Declaration and
Processing Section
2010, with various
terms and conditions.
It has been projected
that this will increase
the profit margins for
small unit owners. This
is likely to immensely
benefit the small-scale
players of diamond and
jewellery business. Ear-
lier, businessmen used
to send jewellery and
diamonds through car-
go, which is costlier
than courier service.
The local business-
men are pleased with
this decision as it will
not only decrease the
transport costs but also
the time consumed. The
long waits for customs
clearance will be elimi-
nated now. Earlier the
exporters used to pay 65
to 100 US dollars for ex-
porting diamond-stud-
ded jewellery to the Eu-
ropean and US markets,
while it cost 3.5 to 5 US
dollars sending the
same parcel via China.
First India Bureau
New Delhi: Even as
various States have
begun preparations
for distribution of
Covid-19 vaccines and
submitted their re-
quirements to the
Centre, Gujarat has
been found to be lag-
ging behind several
States in its cold
chain management.
Officials have indi-
cated that every State
has its own weak areas,
but Gujarat may need to
expand its cold chain
infrastructure. Its vac-
cine storage capacity,
along with in-line and
deep freezers, can ser-
vice only 25 lakh to 30
lakh beneficiaries an-
nually. Experts say this
is woefully short.
Gujarat Chief Minis-
ter Vijay Rupani has
said the vaccine will be
distributed in four stag-
es: Beginning with
frontline health work-
ers; then the police,
sanitation workers and
other agency workers;
then people aged above
50; and then “seriously
ill” people.
With around 2,200
cold chain points for
storing and distribut-
ing the vaccine, Gujarat
is lagging behind states
such as Karnataka
(2,855) and Maharash-
tra (3,150). However, it is
ahead of Bihar (674), a
relatively smaller State.
Anish Sinha, immu-
nisation expert and fac-
ulty at the Indian Insti-
tute of Public Health,
said, “We do not antici-
pate a big problem in
states like Bihar and
Jharkhand but Gujarat
may have to either ex-
pand the cold storage
capacity a bit or defer
the timeline by a couple
of months for adminis-
tering the vaccine.”
Unlike Bihar and
Jharkhand, which
have primary health
centres at block level
that serve popula-
tions of 100,000-
200,000, states like
Gujarat and Maha-
rashtra have primary
health care centres
even for populations
of 30,0 00, making
cold storage available
for remote popula-
tions.
—FILE PHOTO
NEW CHAIRMAN
Huge fire at Uday Shivanand Covid-19 Hospital in Rajkot claimed 5 lives on Friday. —FILE PHOTO
BJP Rajsamand
MLA Kiran
Maheshwari
dies at 59
First India Bureau
Gurugram: SeniorBJP
leader and MLA from
Rajsamand Kiran Ma-
heshwari, who had test-
ed positive for coronavi-
rus, died at a hospital in
Gurgram. She was 59.
Maheshwari, a three-
time MLA from Rajsa-
mand and also a former
MP, was undergoing
treatment at Medanta
hospital for the past few
days. She passed away
late Sunday night.
She is the second
MLA in Rajasthan who
hasdiedduetoCovid-19.
Last month, Congress
MLA from Sahara con-
stituency (Bhilwara)
Kailash Trivedi had
succumbed to the virus.
Maheshwari’s funer-
al will be conducted on
Tuesday, the BJP said.
PM Narendra Modi,
BJP president JP Na-
dda, Lok sabha Speaker
Om Birla, Rajasthan
Chief Minister Ashok
Gehlot, Assembly
Speaker CP Joshi and
several other leaders
condoled her death.
J&K LG Manoj Sinha reaches
Varanasi on a private visit
COVID-19
UPDATE
GUJARAT
3,989
DEATHS
2,09,780
CONFIRMED CASES
RAJASTHAN
2,312 DEATHS 2,68,063 CASES
DELHI
WORLD
14,69,495
DEATHS
63,320,727
CONFIRMED CASES
INDIA
94,62,727
CONFIRMED CASES
1,37,648
DEATHS
MAHARASHTRA
47,151 DEATHS 18,23,896 CASES
UTTAR PRADESH
KARNATAKA
11,778 DEATHS 8,84,897 CASES
—FILE PHOTO

BeingShe
Universe 2020City First shares a few glimpses of the finale of an
international beauty pageant,‘BeingShe Universe 2020’,
that took place in the United Arab Emirates recently!
n international
beauty pageant, Be-
ingShe Universe
2020 was organised
in the United Arab
Emirates recently,
and it was a big hit.
Founded by Aparna Bajpai, it
is an international platform
to inspire, initiate, innovate
and ignite, encourages wom-
en to define themselves, and
unleash their potential to live
their dreams. BeingShe Uni-
verse is an international
fashion and talent show for
women of all age groups and
nationalities.
In this, all women were eli-
gible to participate and com-
pete. What this means for
changing a standard in the
beauty industry is that
change starts with the con-
testants. The event focussed
on having a body type that
the participant feels comfort-
able in and proud of, and not
fitting a certain mold. There
was no sort of height or
weight requirement to enter
this show.
Participating in this com-
petition calls for courage, and
this means stepping out of
one’s comfort zone. “We get
exposed and get to dig deep
and search for our potential,
discovering who we are and
what we are capable of in the
process,” said Aparna.
This pageant offered a lot
of benefits to the finalists,
like a high profile individual
photoshoot, international
networking opportunities,
CSR initiatives, diamond and
luxury gift hampers, assured
Netflix and Bollywood pro-
jects, advertisement shoots
and endorsements, inter-
views on various platforms,
and much more.
Lokesh Sharma, the show
director stated, “It was ex-
tremely amazing being a part
of this pageant. Everything
was very well organised,
and all the safety proto-
cols were followed.”
The trophy hold-
ers during the
pageant are as
mentioned:
1. BeingShe
U n i v e r s e
2020 Winner –
Lorevie Rexie
Carrascal
2. BeingShe Universe
2020 1st Runner Up – Dima
Alhaj
3. BeingShe Universe 2020
2nd Runner Up – Rebecca
Lilley & Nasiha Siraj
4. BeingShe Universe Elite
2020 – Gulnaz Khan
2020 1st Runner Up – Deep-
ika Sekhon
2020 2nd Runner Up – Na-
diya Albishchenko
Brand Ambassador – Ma-
rina Savic
Best Talent – Alessandra
Gomez Gutierrez.
NEHAL NAYAR
nehal.nayar@firstindia.co.in
A
Show Director Lokesh Sharma with the participants of ‘BeingShe Universe 2020’
AHMEDABAD, TUESDAY
DECEMBER 1, 2020
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia
facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09

10
ETCAHMEDABAD | TUESDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2020www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
FACEOFTHEDAY
KOMPAL KAPOOR, Influencer
LEO
JULY 24 - AUGUST 23
Taking your own decisions
at work will be in your
interest. If you are a
working mother, you may
find it difficult to balance home and
office as of now, but this will be a
temporary phase. A property deal is
likely to be sealed, as you are able to
complete all the formalities.
LIBRA
SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 22
Good earning promises to
keep you in an upbeat
mood today. Worries
regarding a health issue
are likely to disappear, as you make
quick recovery. Do not
misunderstand the motives of
someone trying to help you. Enjoy
togetherness with your partner.
ARIES
MAR 21 - APR 20
Doing up the house is
likely to give immense
fulfillment to some
homemakers. Don’t think
twice in taking outside help. Your
initiative will help mend fences with
someone you were not in talking
terms. You can join your friends or
family in undertaking a trip.
SAGITTARIUS
NOV 23 - DEC 22
Your effort to keep in touch
with everyone will come in
for appreciation by all on the
social front. Don’t disclose
information regarding property to
anyone. A good turn done to someone
is likely to be returned with interest.
Luck favours you today both personally
and professionally.
GEMINI
MAY 21 - JUNE 21
Initiatives taken on the
social front are likely to be
appreciated. Some of you
may want to opt for a
break from the monotonous routine.
This is the best time to forge your
own path, as there are opportunities
galore. You remain on a safe wicket
on the financial front.
AQUARIUS
JAN 21 - FEB 19
An excellent time is foreseen
for those taking a break
from the daily grind. A
match-making process may
get underway for the eligible. You will
find yourself much more active on the
social front and will make efforts to
remain in touch with all. You will be
able to buy property.
TAURUS
APR 21 - MAY 20
You will spend the day in
being grateful for all that
you have. An ancestral
property is likely to come
in your name. Luck favours you on
the academic front. Career wise, you
are likely to fare well as per the
expectations of your seniors. You will
need to get a hang of things.
CAPRICORN
DEC 23 - JAN 20
A fun time is foreseen for
those planning to invite
people over to their place.
Good command over a
particular subject may find you
amongst the top positions. You are
likely to discharge all your domestic
responsibilities to the satisfaction of
all. A good beginning will be made.
VIRGO
AUG 24 - SEP 23
Money from an unexpected
source may delight you, so
keep your fingers crossed!
Academic front looks
promising. Some of you are set to
enjoy a trip out of town. Setting up a
new house is on the cards for some.
Money well spent may give you inner
satisfaction.
CANCER
JUNE 22 - JULY 23
You make all the right
moves on the social front
and manage to retain your
popularity. A property may
finally come into your name, as the
paperwork is slated to get over soon.
Bank balance of the salaried will
remain in a healthy state, despite
rising costs.
PISCES
FEB20 - MARCH 20
A change in lifestyle will
help some come back in
shape. Success is foreseen
for those playing the
stocks. Intelligent application on
even unfamiliar territory on the
academic front will keep your flag
flying high. A windfall can be
expected on the property front.
SCORPIO
OCT 23 - NOVEMBER 22
Someone’s advice may
prove of immense help to
those aspiring to study
abroad. You will succeed in
asserting your authority on the social
front by having your way. A property
issue gets resolved amicably. You are
likely to enjoy an outing with family
today. You will manage expenses.
YOUR
DAYHoroscope by
Saurabbh Sachdeva
t pains me immense-
ly when people come
to me and say that
they have taken par-
acetamol for a fever
just as low as 99.5 or
many times every
lower. Surprisingly, many
medical and paramedical
professionals also suggest
this medicine even when the
rise in body temperature is
minuscule. I strongly advo-
cate widespread public
knowledge about fever.
Fever, in itself, is not a dis-
ease. It is your body’s re-
sponse to some invading bac-
terium or virus. The culprit
is the pathogen, not the fever.
While you should plan the
eradication of pathogens
from your body you, instead
of that, are putting unneces-
sary efforts to bring down
your raised body tempera-
ture which is actually a
friend of yours who is trying
to help your body to eradicate
the pathogenic onslaught.
Studies indicate that high-
er body temperature acti-
vates human immune cells to
produce more antibodies
which travel faster to infect-
ed areas and eradicate the
pathogen. You must have no-
ticed that your pulse rate
goes higher whenever you
have a fever. It is because the
body defense wants to circu-
late more and more blood so
that higher and higher num-
bers of the antibodies can
reach all over the body at a
faster rate and eradicate the
invading pathogens. This
highly sophisticated system
is your immune system.
So, whenever you have a
fever, don’t take any fever-
reducing drug at least during
the first few hours. Allow
your body temperature to
climb higher and higher till
it reaches 103 degrees Fahr-
enheit before you plan to in-
gest a fever-lowering medi-
cine. This sharp rise in body
temperature activates the
rapid generation of white
cells and antibodies which
try to eradicate the invading
pathogen.
I would like to bring one
interesting thing to your no-
tice. The human brain is ful-
ly equipped to control the
rise of body temperature
caused by infection from get-
ting higher than 105 or 106.
For the body to get damaged
the body temperature needs
to reach 108 but these circum-
stances are rare and excep-
tional. It is very uncommon
to detect body temperature
above 104F.
Fever is the first indicator
that tells you that there is
something wrong with your
body. It is, thus, a warning
messenger.
Your body needs to rest
when it is sick. Fever forces
you to take much-needed
rest. This helps you recover
early.
A warm body is always a
stronger body.
Fever is an important
guide to the progression of
the disease. If fever starts
subsiding without the use of
paracetamol or a related
drug, that means the infec-
tion is coming under control
and chances of the patient
recovering early are very
high.
Should we use
paracetamol to
control fever?
I
personally would not like to use paraceta-
moloranyanti-fevermedicineif thepatient
cooperates, I would like to allow the fever to
run its natural course and would use its be-
haviorpatterntomakeaprovisionaldiagnosis
of the underlying pathology and then try to
cure the cause of fever. Once the cause of fever
is controlled and cured, the body temperature
willcometonormalbyitself withoutanydam-
age to the patient’s body systems. Painkillers
and anti-fever medicines aren’t that safe as
they are perceived to be, they should be used
as infrequently as is possible.
The better way to bring down body tem-
perature is by sponging with lukewarm or tap
water. The water-soaked sponge or hand tow-
els shouldn’t be placed on the forehead as is
the common practice. Your forehead doesn’t
have any large blood vessel running under its
skin and any feeling of coldness will be elu-
sive. Place the sponges on the neck and front
sides of both elbows where major blood ves-
sels are placed. Remember, you have to bring
down blood temperature, not the skin tem-
perature. Avoid using ice water or very cold
water- it is uncomfortable to the patient, con-
tracts blood vessels, thereby, reducing blood
supply and evaporates slowly hence, causing
a delay in bringing down the temperature.
Finally, I’ve seen people and doctors under
immense panic during this Covid-19 pandem-
ic and gulping down paracetamol with tem-
peratures as low as 99 F. Such a habit actually
prolongs your sickness and may even threat-
en your life as it interferes with the onset of
your immune response. Learn to trust your
body and its innate strength to survive. The
best you can do is to rest and have nutritious
food to strengthen your body and in most in-
stances, you shall be the natural winner.
Medicines, used judiciously, are of signifi-
cant help but the final saviour is your own
immune system and inherent self-healing
system of the body. Fever is a friend who ap-
pears at the time of some crisis, understand
the reason for its arrival, not beat it down
with medicines.
FEVER:AFRIENDBEATENBADLY
DR RAMAWTAR
SHARMA
cityfirst@firstindia.co.in
I
‘DOCTOR WITH A DIFFERENCE’

First india ahmedabad edition-01 december 2020

First india ahmedabad edition-01 december 2020

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

What's hot

What's hot (20)

Similar to First india ahmedabad edition-01 december 2020

Similar to First india ahmedabad edition-01 december 2020 (20)

More from FIRST INDIA

More from FIRST INDIA (20)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (7)

First india ahmedabad edition-01 december 2020