First india ahmedabad edition-01 may 2020

IN GUJARAT
DISTRICT TOTAL TOTAL NEW
CASES DEATHS DEATHS
AHMEDABAD 3026 149 12
VADODARA 289 17 1
SURAT 614 25 3
RAJKOT 58 1 0
BHAVNAGAR 47 5 0
ANAND 74 4 1
BHARUCH 31 2 0
GANDHINAGAR 48 2 0
PATAN 17 1 0
PANCHMAHAL 34 2 0
BANASKANTHA 28 1 0
NARMADA 12 0 0
CHOTA UDAIPUR 13 0 0
KUTCH 6 1 0
MAHESANA 11 0 0
BOTAD 20 1 0
DAHOD 5 0 0
PORBANDAR 3 0 0
JAMNAGAR 2 1 0
MORBI 1 0 0
SABARKANTHA 3 0 0
ARAVALLI 19 1 0
MAHISAGAR 11 0 0
KHEDA 6 0 0
GIR SOMNATH 3 0 0
VALSAD 5 1 0
TAPI 1 0 0
NAVSARI 6 0 0
DANG 2 0 0
SURENDRANAGAR 1 0 0
TOTAL 4395 214 17
9.85 lakh govt staff, pensioners to get timely April payouts
First India News
Gandhinagar: More
than five lakh state gov-
ernment employees and
roughly four and a half
lakh pensioners will re-
ceive their April sala-
ries and pensions by the
end of the first week of
May. The amounts will
be transferred into
their accounts, the gov-
ernment announced.
Deputy Chief Minis-
terandFinanceMinister
Nitin Patel announced
on Thursday that the
state government will
disburse salaries and
pensions despite income
having almost come to a
standstill.
He said there are
5.28 lakh government
employees including
Panchayat employ-
ees, whose monthly
salaries amount to
Rs2,600 crore. Simi-
larly, the state has
4.57 lakh pensioners,
whose monthly pen-
sions cost the excheq-
uer Rs1,400 crore. So,
in total, the state will
pay out Rs4,000 crore,
as usual.
Patel added that the
lockdown has halted
trade and industry for
the whole month, pet-
rol and diesel sales
have dropped to by
95%, and there is negli-
gible income from
Goods and Service Tax,
as well as from VAT on
petrol and diesel.
On the other hand,
the regional committee
of the Gujarat Chamber
of Commerce and In-
dustry has demanded
thatthestateallowtrade
and businesses outside
cluster containment ar-
eas in the four major cit-
ies to resume operations
at the earliest. Their
grievance is that there
are huge stocks at vari-
ous nodes along the sup-
ply chain, which need to
be disposed of at the ear-
liest to avoid interest
burden and losses.
In addition, this
committee has re-
quested that the state
include mobile phone
repairs as an essential
service and allow such
shops to operate. They
have also pleaded that
the state scrap the 1%
registration charge
for revenue docu-
ments as heavy charg-
es are making real-es-
tate deals nonviable,
and so fewer sale deals
are taking place.Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Nitin Patel. —FILE PHOTO
With the lockdown halting trade
and industry for a month, petrol
and diesel sales are also down 95%
PM Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah during comprehensive meeting to discuss
strategies on boosting investment in India on Thursday. —PHOTO BY ANI
Attracting moolah PM’s priority!
MODI DISCUSSES STRATEGIES TO ATTRACT MORE FOREIGN INVESTMENTS WHILE
RAHUL GANDHI & RAGHURAM RAJAN TALK IMPACT OF PANDEMIC ON ECONOMY
New Delhi: Prime Min-
ister Narendra Modi on
Thursday held a “com-
prehensive” meeting to
discuss strategies to at-
tract more foreign in-
vestments into India as
well as promote local
investments to boost
the economy against
the backdrop of the
COVID-19 pandemic.
An official statement
said various strategies
to bring investments
into India on a fast-
track mode and to pro-
mote Indian domestic
sectors were discussed
in the meeting.
Finance Minister Nir-
mala Sitaraman and
Commerce Minister Pi-
yush Goyal, besides oth-
ers,attendedthemeeting.
Detailed discussions
were also held on guid-
ing states to evolve their
strategiesandtobemore
proactive in attracting
investments, the state-
ment said.
Reform initiatives
undertaken by the vari-
ous ministries should
continue unabated and
action should be taken
in a time bound manner
to remove any obstacles
which impede promo-
tion of investment and
industrial growth, the
statement said citing
the discussions.
The meeting also dis-
cussed that a scheme
should be developed to
promote more “plug
and play” infrastruc-
ture in the existing in-
dustrial lands, plots or
estates in the country
and provide necessary
financing support.
During the meeting,
Modi directed that ac-
tion should be taken for
a more proactive ap-
proach to “handhold”
the investors, to look
into their problems and
help them in getting all
the necessary central
and state clearances in
a time-bound manner.
Later in a tweet, Modi
said the meeting dis-
cussed ways Turn on P6
Lockdown exit: ‘Journo’ Rahul grills Rajan!
New Delhi: India should
be “cleverer” in lifting the
lockdown and should
open up its economy in a
“measured way” soon to
save jobs, former RBI gov-
ernor Raghuram Rajan
said on Thursday, under-
lining that Rs 65,000 crore
should be spent to support
the poor amid the crisis.
In a first of its kind dia-
logue broadcast on Con-
gress’ social media han-
dles this morning, Rajan,
who was in the US, delib-
erated on the economic
impact of the COVID-19
pandemic with Congress
leader Rahul Gandhi.
Interaction through
video conference lasted
for about 30 minutes. “We
have to be cleverer about
opening up...We need to
open up in a measured
way but as fast as possible
sothatpeoplestarthaving
jobs,” he said.
Full report P5
NO SEPARATE
PASSES NEEDED
FOR TRUCKS: MHA
New Delhi: To ensure
uninterrupted supply of
goods, MHA Thursday
made it clear that no sepa-
rate passes were required
for inter-state movement
of trucks during the
ongoing Covid-19 induced
lockdown. It said a valid
licence of truck driver was
required for ferrying goods
between states. P5
Rahul Gandhi and Raghuram Rajan.
4 S E P T E M B E R 1 9 5 2 - 3 0 A P R I L 2 0 2 0
A debonair
ROMANTIC!ishi Kapoor had the
longest run in Bolly-
wood as a romantic
lead from the 1970s to
the late 1990s. And at a
time, when Bollywood actors
were playing angry young
men or tragic heroes, Ri-
shi’s youthful vivacity and
on-screen chemistry with
his heroines enthralled
the audience!
Rishi Kapoor, Bolly-
wood’s ‘forever youth-
ful’ heartthrob, after
fighting a long bat-
tle with cancer,
passedawayin
Mumbai on
Thursday
at the age of 67. Mesmerising
audience with his performances
over the years, the actor never
minced words when it came to
speaking on various issues. He
displayed a similar candour and
honesty when talking and writ-
ing about his life.
“There is an image of me from
the1970sor80sasaromanticstar,
a jersey-clad, tune-humming,
cocky Casanova, with a guitar in
one hand and a girl in another,”
Kapoor wrote in his biography!
The Kapoor family issued a
statement on Thursday, “Our
dear Rishi Kapoor passed away
peacefully at 8:45am IST in hos-
pital today after a two-year bat-
tle with leukaemia. The doctors
and medical staff at the hospital
said he kept them entertained to
the last.” Rishi was admitted to
Turn P6, More on City First
President of India
@rashtrapatibhvn
Rishi Kapoor’s untimely demise is
shocking. An evergreen personality
with an always smiling face, he
was so full of life that it’s difficult to
believe that he is no more. A huge
loss for the entertainment industry.
Let us pray for his soul. Condolences
to his family and friends.
Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
Multifaceted, endearing and lively...
this was Rishi Kapoor Ji. He was a
powerhouse of talent. I will always
recall our interactions, even on
social media. He was passionate
about films and India’s progress.
Anguished by his demise.
Condolences to his family and
fans. Om Shanti.
Amit Shah
@AmitShah
Pained to know about the passing
away of legendary actor Rishi Kapoor
ji. He was an institution in himself.
Rishi ji’s demise is an irreparable
loss for Indian cinema. He will always
be remembered for his exceptional
acting skills. Condolences to his
family & followers. Om Shanti.
R
CORONA
ALERT
AHMEDABAD l FRIDAY, MAY 1, 2020 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208 l Vol 1 l Issue No. 155
28°C - 44°C
OUR EDITIONS:
JAIPUR & AHMEDABAD
www.firstindia.co.in
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COVID-19
UPDATE
WORLD
2,31,247
DEATHS
32,71,295
CONFIRMED CASES
INDIA
34,780
CONFIRMED CASES
1,151
DEATHS
GUJARAT
214
DEATHS
4,395
CONFIRMED CASES

First India News
Valsad: Esteemed Gu-
jarati author Kundani-
ka Kapadia passed away
at Nandigram in Valsad
district early on Thurs-
day morning. She was
93. Her death has left
many of her fans and
even contemporary
writers in shock.
Her novel ‘Saat Pagla
Aakash Ma’, a story
about women’s struggle
and empowerment had
put her on the map of
Gujarati literary cir-
cuit. One of her ardent
fans Janki Bhatt shared
her experience of read-
ing the book, “The char-
acter of Vasudha echoes
thevoiceof eachwoman
belonging to a middle-
class family,” she said.
Author Kusum
Chopra wrote, “It (the
book) came perhaps
much before its time.
Now, the story is being
told and retold in so
many different ways
and contexts.”
The book’s story and
characters invoked a
range of responses. It
attracted controversy
as well as made her a
popular figure and a
revo l u t i o n a r y
writer.
Kapadia was
born on 11 Janu-
ary, 1927 in
Limbdi town
of Suren-
d r a n a -
gar district. She com-
pleted her primary and
secondary education in
Godhra and did her
graduation from the
Bhavnagar’s esteemed
Samaldas Arts College
in history and politics.
She went on to pursue
her MA in politics from
Mumbai School of Eco-
nomics and tied the
knot with Makrand
Dave in 1968, before she
finished it.
The husband and wife
duo founded ‘Nandi-
gram’, an ashram near
Vankal village in Valsad
district. She was fondly
called ‘Ishama’ by eve-
ryone at the ash-
ram.Shestarted
her literary ca-
reer with edit-
ing work for
‘Yatrik’. She
penned down
a novel titled
‘Agni Pipasa’ in 1972, but
it was her second novel
‘Sat Pagla Aakashma’ in
1984thatgotherthecriti-
cal acclaim and elevated
her to one of the best Gu-
jaratiwritersof hertime.
Other works penned
by Kapadia include
‘Premna Ansu’, ‘Param
Samipe’, ‘Vadhu ne
Vadhu Sundar’, ‘Kagal-
ni Hodi’, Java Daishu
Tamane’, among others.
Chief Minister Vijay
Rupani took to his Twit-
ter handle to express his
condolences on her
death. “Saddened by the
demiseof Gujaratinovel-
istSmtKundanikaKapa-
dia. I pray for the depart-
ed soul, My condolences,
Om Shanti,” he tweeted.
NEWSAHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 1, 2020
02www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
‘SUU’ CHE? PM MODI DISCUSSES
COVID CRISIS WITH MYANMAR LEADERNEW DELHI ASSURES YANGON OF ITS READINESS TO PROVIDE ALL POSSIBLE
SUPPORT IN HEALTH, FINANCIAL ISSUES FOLLOWING CORONA MENACE
rime Minister
N a r e n d r a
Modi had a
t e l e p h o n i c
conversation
with Daw Aung San
Suu Kyi, State Coun-
sellor of the Republic
of the Union of Myan-
mar on Thursday.
The leaders dis-
cussed the evolving
COVID 19 scenario in
the domestic and re-
gional contexts and up-
dated each other on the
steps being taken to
control the spread of
the pandemic.
Underlining the im-
portance of Myanmar
as a vital pillar of In-
dia's Neighbourhood
First policy, PM Modi
conveyed India's readi-
ness to provide all pos-
sible support to Myan-
mar for mitigating the
health and economic
impact of COVID 19.
PM assured all possi-
ble support by GoI for
Myanmar citizens pre-
sent in India, and
thanked State Counsel-
lor for the cooperation
being extended by My-
anmar authorities to
Indian citizens there.
Theleadersagreedto
remain in touch and
work together to ad-
dress the present and
futurechallengesposed
by COVID-19. —Agencies
P Govt continuously
taking steps to benefit
farmers: PM Modi
New Delhi: Assert-
ing that India was
proud of its farm-
ers, PM Modi said
the government
was continuously
taking steps to en-
sure the interests
of those “who feed
the entire country”
were protected. He
also said his gov-
ernment was com-
mitted to protect
the rights of these
‘anndataas’.
“India is proud of
its food providers.
The government is
committed to protect
the rights of those
who feed the entire
country, and is taking
steps to take care of
their interests,” Modi
tweeted.
Modi posted these
remarks on Twitter
along with a video
link of a press con-
ference of Union
Agriculture Minis-
ter Narendra Singh
Tomar.
The country’s farm
sector is functioning
smoothly despite the
COVID-19 lockdown,
and there will not be
much impact on its
growth in the current
fiscal unlike other
sectors, Tomar said
at the press confer-
ence.
Agriculture GDP
was at 3.7 per cent
during last year. I
am confident that
this growth in fu-
ture will not be im-
pacted much,” the
minister added.
—Agencies
Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, State
Counsellor of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar. —FILE PHOTO
Morbi balm on miffed migrants,
urging them to stay put
Celebrated Guj author Kapadia passes away
First India News
Morbi: With the state
government arranging
transportation for mi-
grant workers to help
them return to their na-
tive states, two officers
in the labour dept of
Morbi dist have taken a
different approach. Dr
Deesa Kanani and Me-
hul Hirani of the Morbi
district administration
have taken to visiting
migrant workers to un-
derstand their griev-
ances and address
them. Talking about the
task assigned to them
by the dist administra-
tion, Dr Kanani told
First India, “There are
around 10,000 units in
the district with ceram-
ic units accounting for
the majority of them.
They are followed by
ploy plastic, small engi-
neering parts, weaving
and coal sector units. Dr
Hirani and I have visit-
ed at least 50 units in the
district to help counsel
migrant workers.”
She added, Out of the
10,000 units in the dis-
trict, 700 have resumed
operations.
A migrant worker at a ceramic factory unit in Morbi district.
Rupani govt appoints 16 nodal officers to help stranded persons
First India News
Gandhinagar: After
setting the wheels in
motion towards getting
the state economy back
on track, Chief Minis-
ter Vijay Rupani’s gov-
ernment now aims to
bring home Gujaratis
stranded in other states,
over the next 15 days. To
this end, it has appoint-
ed 16 nodal officers to
liaise with other states
and Union Territories.
Over the past week,
about 46,000 workers
have been given jobs
under the Sujalam
Sufalam Jal Abhiyan
project, which has in-
creased water conser-
vation capacity by
4.69 lakh cubic me-
tres in just one week.
In addition, 1.11 lakh
workers have been
given employment in
various projects un-
der the Mahatma
Gandhi National Ru-
ral Employment
Guarantee Act (MGN-
REGA), with work be-
ginning in at least a
dozen districts.
The appointment of
nodalofficersfollowsthe
Union Home Ministry’s
decision to allow trans-
portation of stranded
persons to their native
states.
Information and
Broadcasting Secretary
and Secretary to the
Chief MinisterAshwani
Kumar, who made the
announcement, said
that only medically fit
persons without any
symptomsof illnesswill
be allowed to leave the
state. Individuals and
groups will have to ar-
range for vehicles on
their own.
It will be the re-
sponsibility of the
Nodal officers to en-
sure that those leav-
ing Gujarat for their
native states do not
face any problem
while crossing state
borders. They will
also help Gujarati
students, pilgrims,
tourists and even
workers stranded in
other states to return
home.
Those wishing to re-
turntotheirhomestates
will have to fill a form
online, seeking permis-
sion from the respective
district collectors.
The district collec-
torates of Anand and
Kheda have even
asked NRGs and NRIs,
and Gujaratis on for-
eign trips to fill up
forms if they wish to
return to the state.
So far, 2,720 Guja-
ratis stranded in oth-
er states have been
brought back to the
state.
Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and Deputy Chief Minister
Nitin Patel in a meeting.
STATE WISE LIST OF OFFICERS
State/Union Territory State Nodal Officers
Orissa M Thennarasan, IAS
Nirja Gotru Rao, IPS
Bihar and Jharkhand Anu Anand, IAS
KK Ojha, IPS
Uttar Pradesh Lochan Sehra, IAS
and Uttarakhand Vinod Mall, IPS
Delhi, Punjab, Himachal Roopwant Singh, IAS
Pradesh, Haryana, Jammu, Anil Kr Pratham, IPS
Kashmir and Ladakh
MadhyaPradesh,Rajasthan Rajesh Manjhu, IAS
and Chhattisgarh Archana Shivhare, IPS
West Bengal and the Harshad Patel, IAS
North-Eastern States Wabano Jamir, IPS
Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra P Bharathi, IAS
Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala V Chandrashekhar, IPS
Maharashtra Rakesh Shankar, IAS
Hasmukh Patel, IPS
ONE LAKH WORKERS GOT GET
EMPLOYED IN MGNREGA PROJECTS
ACROSS A DOZEN DISTRICTS

GUJARATAHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 1, 2020
First India News
Ahmedabad: In an ex-
ample of hoping for the
best but planning for
the worst, the state gov-
ernment has made a list
of 100 private hospitals
that can be converted
into dedicated
COVID-19 hospitals, in
case of a rapid rise in
the number of positive
cases.
Ahmedabad Medical
Association President
Dr Mona Desai told
First India that, based
on a request from the
government, doctors
andtrustsfromasmany
as 100 private hospitals
have given consent to
convert their hospitals
into dedicated
COVID-19 facilities.
“These will only come
into play if the number
of patients increases
suddenly and govern-
ment hospital beds are
occupied. If these hospi-
tals are converted into
dedicated hospitals,
their staff too will be
summoned on duty,” Dr
Desai explained.
She also pointed out
that planned non-emer-
gency surgeries have
been on hold for more
than 35 days. “We have
requested the state gov-
ernment to allow us to
conduct these surger-
ies. It is difficult to post-
pone surgery for long,”
she said, adding, “Even
if the government per-
mits surgeries, all pa-
tients will be tested for
the virus.”
100 pvt hosps may be converted to COVID-19 ones
LOOKING AHEAD
First India News
Ahmedabad: In a live
session on social media
platform Facebook, Gu-
jarat Pradesh Congress
Committee president
Amit Chavda raised
several questions re-
garding the state gov-
ernment’s response to
the ongoing novel coro-
navirus outbreak.
“There is no coordi-
nation among the lead-
ers of the ruling party
andtheofficers.Itseems
that only two or three
officers are running the
show. After the chief
minister announced a
relaxation for business-
es during the lockdown,
four municipal commis-
sioners announced that
the relaxation would not
be enforced in their re-
spective cities. This
clearly shows the offi-
cers are not on the same
page as the state govern-
ment,” he alleged.
He added, “The sec-
ondlockdownisaboutto
end. What does the gov-
ernment has to show for
it? With more than 4,000
cases, the state’s recov-
ery rate is the lowest in
the country. The state
has failed to save lives
despite the lockdown.”
‘State Govt response
to outbreak lacking’
First India News
Gandhinagar: Gujarat
continues to witness a
steady rise in the num-
ber of COVID-19 cases
in the state, even after
six weeks in lockdown.
Again, Ahmedabad ac-
counted for a large
chunk--249--of the 313
new cases reported
across the state in the
past 24 hours. With this,
the state’s tally is at
4,395, and the death toll
has reached 214 with 17
more fatalities in the
past 24 hours.
Interestingly, a list
released by the Ahmed-
abad Municipal Corpo-
ration (AMC) showed
379 positive cases from
Ahmedabad, against
the state’s 249. When
this was pointed out to
AMC officials, the civic
body released another
list with the “extra” 130
cases removed, leading
to murmurings that the
state is indeed fudging
data.
The number of recov-
ered and discharged pa-
tients has increased to
613. The 313 new cases
come from 10 districts,
while the 17 new fatali-
ties come from districts.
Ahmedabad with the
highest numbers of
positive cases still con-
tinues to remain on top
of the list. With an offi-
cial 3,026 positive cases,
Ahmedabad now ac-
counts for 68% of the
state’s total cases. With
149 deaths, it accounts
for 69% of total fatali-
ties in the state.
A schoolteacher in
the city was confirmed
as being infected with
Sars-CoV-2. She had
been assigned the door
to door survey.
Meanwhile, Surat’s
Civil Hospital will not
admit any new patients
for next 10 days, as the
hospital is being run
with just 10% staff. Ac-
cording to sources, a
few medical officers
and staff have got in-
fected with Sars-Cov-2,
leading to panic which
has resulted in some
staff members not com-
ing in to work.
No stanching the flow as 313
cases take Guj tally to 4,395Ahmedabad accounts for 68% of the state’s total cases and 69% of the total fatalities
A medical team bags and tags samples at Ahmedabad’s Dhal ni Pol on Thursday.
First Inda News
Ahmedabad: Commis-
sioner Vijay Nehra of
the Ahmedabad Munici-
pal Corporation (AMC)
on Thursday said that
the COVID-19 case dou-
bling period of the city
hasimprovedfromthree
to four days to the cur-
rent period of nine days.
Also, the growth rate of
active cases has also fall-
en from 10% to 8%.
In his briefing, the
municipal commission-
er also said that the civ-
ic body had roped in two
private hospitals to of-
fer free COVID-19 treat-
ment facilities. ISA
Foundation-run Lokha-
ndwala Hospital near
Dariyapur Darwaza
and Chandkheda-based
SMS Hospital along
with its medical college
will now function as
COVID Health Centres.
Lokhandwala Hospi-
tal has a 50-bed facility
which will offer pa-
tients two meals a day
and services of medical
and paramedical staff
for free. By doing so, it
will become the first
private hospital to offer
medical and other facil-
ities free of cost to
COVID-19 patients.
On the other hand,
the SMS Hospital has a
100-bed facility, which
will be stocked with
medicines, PPE kits,
masks with the support
of the AMC. While
Lokhandwala Hospital
will commence its ser-
vices from tomorrow,
SMS hospital will join
the bandwagon from
next week.
Nehra also said that
the state government
was in talks with the
Gujarat Cancer Society
to encourage them to
enlist their cancer hos-
pitals as care centres
for COVID-19 patients.
Meanwhile, in a
meeting Nehra held
with private doctors in
walled city areas, he
asked them to work as a
fever clinic. He also as-
sured AMC’s full sup-
port in provisioning
supply for the clinic.
Doublingratebetter,pvt
treatmentfree:AMC
Commissioner Vijay Nehra at a Samras Hostel. —FILE PHOTO
No tests for 20 sent back
after a day at Haj House
NGOwantsinclusivelabourpolicyforallsectors
First India News
Ahmedabad: Gujarat
Social Watch, a non-gov-
ernmentalorganization
(NGO) has questioned
the state’s labour policy
in a letter to Chief Min-
ister Vijay Rupani. Ac-
cording to the NGO, the
state lacks an inclusive
labour policy, since
each sector has a differ-
ent policy. Therefore,
the norms of compensa-
tion vary for various
sectors when accidents
occur.
The organization is
of the view that the
state’s an inclusive la-
bour policy on the same
lines as the industrial
policy should be on the
government. Activist
Mahesh Pandya, who is
a member of the organi-
zation, has raised the
issue of injustice meted
out to workers of sever-
al sectors due to the
lockdown.
Citing examples, the
NGO also shared infor-
mation from the state
assembly session ques-
tion hour, the state gov-
ernment collected
Rs2,880 crore from the
real-estate sector for the
Building and Other
Construction Workers
Welfare Board as a cess.
Of that amount,
around Rs559 crore and
Rs305 crore in 2018 and
2019 respectively was
transferred to the Guja-
rat Shramyogi Kalyan
Board.
In another example,
it cited the compensa-
tion amount paid to the
kin of industrial acci-
dent victims. A total of
five workers had died in
industrial accidents in
Mehsana district in
2018 and 2019 and the
compensation amount
paid to all of them add-
ed up to Rs37.37 lakh.
Gargi Raval
Ahmedabad: The Haj
House, which has been
converted into a shel-
ter-cum-treatment cen-
tre for COVID-19 pa-
tients, currently houses
36 patients who have
been given accommoda-
tion by the Ahmedabad
Municipal Corporation.
On Tuesday, around
20 people were taken to
the Haj House on a
BRTS bus for sample
collection. “They stayed
overnight with the pos-
itive patients and then
were taken back to their
homes on Wednesday.
No check-ups were con-
ducted or samples were
collected from them,”
said Johar Vora, gener-
al secretary of the Guja-
rat Pradesh Congress
Committee.
He added, “Those 20
people stayed with
COVID-19 positive pa-
tients and now they are
back in their respective
homes. They have not
been provided with any
kind of medical treat-
ment not their samples
have been collected.
They are at risk and
may also infect their
family members.”
According to Vora, all
20 people belonged to Ja-
malpur area and pre-
sented symptoms like
cough and cold. ST Mal-
han, superintendent of
SVP Hospital could not
bereachedforcomment.
Police to get
drones with
night vision
Heatwave likely in
city, rain in Saurashtra
First India News
Gandhinagar: To
catch people who are
violating lockdown
norms under the cover
of darkness, the state
police plans to deploy
mounted police and
thermal drones with
night vision, Direc-
tor-General of Police
Shivanand Jha said on
Thursday. In addition,
police will also be pa-
trolling in private ve-
hicles.
Police have booked
four persons for as-
saulting on corona war-
riors, one each in
Ahmedabad and Meh-
sana, and two in Kutch
under the Prevention of
Anti Social Activities
Act (PASA). Till date, 18
such cases have been
filed under PASA, and
44 persons have been
booked in these cases.
In the past 24 hours,
the police have filed
4,105 cases and arrested
5,222 persons for violat-
ing public orders, quar-
antine norms, and oth-
er Acts.
As many as 590 cases
have been filed and
1,170 persons arrested
for spreading rumours,
false information and
hatred on social media.
First India News
Ahmedabad: The tem-
perature in the city is
expectedtohoveraround
45 degree Celsius for the
next two days. However,
somepocketsof thestate
may receive thunder-
storms, according to the
IndiaMeteorologicalDe-
partment.
While heatwave con-
ditions are very likely in
isolated pockets of
Ahmedabad, Gandhi-
nagar, Banaskantha, Va-
dodara, Rajkot, Suren-
dranagar and Kutch
districts, thunder-
storms and lightning
accompanied by gusty
winds are very likely at
isolated parts of Surat,
Navsari, Amreli, Val-
sad, Bhavnagar, and Gir
Somnath.
OnThursday,Gandhi-
nagar recorded the
highest maximum tem-
perature in the state at
44 degree Celsius.
Labourers at a construction site. —FILE PHOTO
Sterling is one of a few hospitals already roped in to treat COVID-19 patients. —FILE PHOTO
Growth rate of
active cases has
fallen to 8 per cent
BACK-UP PLAN
KEEPING BUSY
—PHOTOBYNANDANDAVE
LOCKED IN HISTORY
A youngster sits at the door of a house in a heritage pol in Ahmedabad’s Dariyapur area on Thursday.
—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI

G Vol 1 G Issue No. 155 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: Jagdeesh Chandra, responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act
PERSPECTIVEAHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 1, 2020
A LOGISTICAL
NIGHTMARE TO
BE PULLED OFF
fter hundreds trudged thou-
sands of miles to reach their
homes with many falling be-
fore they could make it, the
Central government has finally
woken up to a humanitarian crisis of epic
proportions. With lakhs of migrant work-
ers, students, tourists and pilgrims
stranded far away from their homes with-
out food and little or no money, stories of
their plight were told and retold several
times to draw the attention of the Union
ministry of home affairs (MHA). It is
only now that the mandarins have asked
states to put in place a logistic mecha-
nism to bring back individuals of their
respective hometowns by buses.
Inafreshsetof guidelinestheMHAsaid,“All
states to designate nodal authorities and de-
velopstandardprotocolsforreceivingandsend-
ing such stranded persons. Stranded migrant
workers, pilgrims, tourists, students will be al-
lowed to move with conditions during the lock-
down.” This prompted Rajasthan chief minis-
terAshokGehlottotweet,“Aftermucheffortby
state government, migrants of Rajasthan will
soon be returning home from other states.
Thesepeoplesufferedalotduringlockdown…”
A team of 19 IAS and IPS officers has been cho-
sen to co-ordinate with other states and facili-
tate the return of those stranded. Other states
like Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar
also began the process of setting up their re-
spectivenodalauthorities.Maharashtra,which
has about 35 lakh migrants from Bihar and 8-10
lakh from Uttar Pradesh alone, has also set up
a panel to work out the nitty-gritty with other
states. The Uddhav Thackeray government is
treading cautiously as a rumour nearly caused
a stampede among migrant workers and a na-
tional uproar. Delhi, where chaotic scenes at
Anand Vihar bus station after the sudden an-
nouncement of lockdown, was also fine tuning
the modalities for the return of those stranded.
Ferrying close to one crore individuals
by buses with standard operating proce-
dure in place will be quite a Herculean,
rather an impossible, task. With the onus
of bringing back the stranded migrant
workers and other individuals being on
the state of their origin, not every state
may be equipped for the task. Social dis-
tancing norm will make their job more
onerous as it will allow fewer passengers
on a 60-seater bus. Will the Centre allow
trains, nobody knows yet.
Even a bigger problem will crop up once this
joblessmigrantforcereturnstotheirrespective
states. A sudden influx of 30-40 lakh people
wouldrequiresubstantial,if notequal,number
of jobs. How do states create those many jobs
when economic activity in the country is at a
standstill?UttarPradeshgovernmenthasprom-
isedtocreatefivelakhjobs,Rajasthanandother
states have increased working hours but these
may not be enough. For that reason experts are
foreasinglockdownbutthegovernment’smind
will be known only on May 2 or May 3.
IN-DEPTH
A
r. Sushil Kumar, a young man
had a chest pain at home while
watching TV. He did not go to
hospital emergency because he
was too afraid of going to hos-
pital, he believed that he would
be suspectable to catching Cov-
id-19. After a few days, his pain
overrode his fear and he came
to the hospital where doctors
found out that his one major
artery was totally blocked and
they opened that artery imme-
diately but Mr. Kumar was left
with a weakened heart due the
initial delay.
This Covid-19 pandemic
has created a warlike situa-
tion killing and affecting so
many people across the
globe directly or indirectly.
A Heart specialist in Ameri-
ca has revealed that a 50% or
more drop in the number of
people receiving emergency
treatment of heart attack.
New York emergency depart-
ment’s most recent figures of
cardiac attack occurring at
home are striking. They no-
ticed 1990 cardiac arrest
calls from March 30 - April
05, 2020 which was four
times higher than same time
period last year. Out of those
1429 could not be revived
which showed eight times
increase over 2019. It is pos-
sible that some of these pa-
tients may have died due to
Covid-19 effect, but some of
them may die from blockage in
heart vessels. At the moment,
it is nearly impossible to know
who is not showing up in emer-
gency rooms, and why.
Doctors of Lombardy re-
gion, Italy found that ap-
proximately 70% down in
emergency heart attack cas-
es and according to them if
symptoms are not too bad
patients don’t call the ambu-
lance because they are
afraid to go into hospital.
Cardiologist from Spain have
noticed drop of 40% in heart at-
tack patients. They speculated
that people are terrified at
home so they are not showing
up in the emergency depart-
ments, which are totally occu-
pied with Covid-19 patients.
Researchers in Austria esti-
mated that in March 2020, 110
citizens died from untreated
heart attack, compared with 86
who died of Covid-19.
Cardiac emergency depart-
ment in Hong Kong noticed that
there was significant increase
in delay in reaching the hospi-
tal after first symptom of heart
attack.In2019symptomonsetto
the first medical contact was 82
minutes and it has increase to
318 minutes since late January
2020. It suggests that patients of
heart attacks are initially reluc-
tant to go to hospital.
India is also not different
from rest of the world, the
trend in India shows approxi-
mately 40% decline in number
of patient with heart attack
and 70% decline in patients
with unstable angina reporting
to emergency services. At
Eternal Hospital, Jaipur, we
treated 45 heart attack pa-
tients in the month of Janu-
ary, in February there were
32 and in March 12. In April
it has come down to just 8.
Some physicians speculate
that this reduction in number
of heart patients being record-
ed in hospitals could be due to
the fact that people are eating
healthy, exercising more and
under less stress and of course
less pollution. However other
experts have noticed that peo-
ple are eating more in this lock-
down, doing less exercise and
they are in hidden stress and
on the other hand studies have
failed to find any immediate ef-
fect on short-term life style
changes on heart attack rates.
Most experts believe that
virus has overwhelmed
emergency services and has
also been a constant part of
dinner table conversations
and the news resulting in
people thinking about the
fear of the corona virus.
They believe that patients are
not reporting their symptoms
and don’t want to go to the hos-
pital in fear of catching corona
virus. This fear is leading peo-
ple with life threatening emer-
gencies like heart attack to stay
home when ordinarily they
would have rushed to the emer-
gency room and this delay can
lead to serious consequences
and even death.
In this difficult and uncer-
tain time we, cardiac specialist
should reach out to the commu-
nity and assure them that rapid
response to heart attack symp-
toms still matters and the hos-
pital are prepared to keep peo-
ple safe and treat them rapidly.
Cardiologists can also sug-
gest to their patients to seek
video consultations, which
various doctors and hospi-
tals are providing if their
cardiac symptoms worsen.
It’s very much true that staying
home is the best and safe ap-
proach in this pandemic situa-
tion, but medical emergencies
like chest pain or any other
symptoms of heart attack
should be taken seriously and
treated as before by reaching
hospital at the earliest.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
CORONA CRISIS - WHERE
ARE THE HEART ATTACKS?
India shows approximately 40% decline in number of patient with heart attack
M
Covid-19
pandemic has
created a
warlike
situation killing
and affecting so
many people
across the globe
directly or
indirectly. A
Heart specialist
in America has
revealed that a
50% or more
drop in the
number of
people receiving
emergency
treatment of
heart attack
DR AJEET
BANA
AT ETERNAL
HOSPITAL, JAIPUR,
WE TREATED 45
HEART ATTACK
PATIENTS IN THE
MONTH OF JANUARY,
IN FEBRUARY THERE
WERE 32 AND IN
MARCH 12. IN APRIL
IT HAS COME DOWN
TO JUST 8
The writer is a doctor at
Eternal Hospital, Jaipur
herearebillions
of mobile
phones in use
around the
globe. They are
present on every single con-
tinent, in every single coun-
try and in every single city.
Wereviewedtheresearch
on how mobile phones car-
ry infectious pathogens
such as bacteria and virus-
es, and we believe they are
likely to be “Trojan horses”
that contribute to commu-
nity transmission in epi-
demics and pandemics.
This transfer of patho-
gens on mobile phones pos-
es a serious health concern.
The risk is that infectious
pathogens may be spread-
ing via phones within the
community, in workplaces
includingmedicalandfood-
handling settings, and in
public transport, cruise
ships and aeroplanes.
Currentlymobilephones
are largely neglected from
a biosecurity perspective,
but they are likely to assist
the spread of viruses such
as influenza and SARS-
CoV-2, the novel coronavi-
rus responsible for the
COVID-19 pandemic.
WHAT THE
RESEARCH SHOWS
We reviewed all the studies
we could find in peer-re-
viewed journals that ana-
lysed microbes found on
mobile phones. Our conclu-
sions are published in the
Journal of Travel Medicine
and Infectious Disease.
Therewere56studiesthat
met our criteria, conducted
in 24 countries around the
worldbetween2005and2019.
Mostof thestudieslooked
atbacteriafoundonphones,
and several also looked at
fungi. Overall, the studies
found an average of 68% of
mobilephoneswerecontam-
inated. This number is like-
ly to be lower than the real
value, as most of the studies
aimedtoidentifyonlybacte-
ria and, in many cases, only
specific types of bacteria.
The studies were all
completed before the ad-
vent of SARS-CoV-2, so
none of them could test for
it. Testing for viruses is la-
borious, and we could find
only one study that did test
for them (specifically for
RNA viruses, a group that
includes SARS-CoV-2 and
other coronaviruses).
Some studies compared
the phones of healthcare
workers and those of the
general public. They
found no significant dif-
ferences between levels of
contamination.
HEALTH AND
BIOSECURITY
Contaminated mobile
phones pose a real biosecu-
rity risk, allowing patho-
gens to cross borders easily.
Viruses can live on sur-
faces from hours to days to
weeks. If a person is infect-
ed with SARS-CoV-2, it is
very likely their mobile
phone will be contaminat-
ed. The virus may then
spread from the phone to
further individuals by di-
rect or indirect contact.
Mobile phones and other
touchscreen systems –
such as at airport check-in
counters and in-flight en-
tertainment screens – may
have contributed to the
rapid spread of COVID-19
around the globe.
PHONES ARE OFTEN
CONTAMINATED
Phonesarealmostidealcar-
riers of disease. We speak
intothemregularly,deposit-
ing microbes via droplets.
We often have them with us
while we eat, leading to the
deposit of nutrients that
help microbes thrive. Many
people use them in bath-
rooms and on the toilet,
leadingtofaecalcontamina-
tion via the plume effect.
And although phones
are exposed to microbes,
most of us carry them al-
most everywhere: at home,
at work, while shopping,
on holidays. They often
provide a temperature-con-
trolled environment that
helps pathogens survive,
as they are carried in pock-
ets or handbags and are
rarely switched off.
On top of this, we rarely
clean or disinfect them.
Our (unpublished) data
suggests almost three-quar-
ters of people have never
cleaned their phone at all..
FOR FULL REPORT LOG ON TO
WWW.THECONVERSATION.COM
Disinfect your mobile phones daily
T
Whatever action is performed
by a great man, common men
follow in his footsteps, and
whatever standards he sets by
exemplary acts, all the world
pursues. —Bhagavad Gita
Spiritual
SPEAK
Top
TWEET
Dharmendra Pradhan
@dpradhanbjp
Delighted to interact with my young
friends from @nitrourkela through
‘MyOrg360’, a video conferencing
tool developed by them. Built with
basic resources, this app can be
a great indigenous tool of digital
communication, especially during
the #COVID19 time.
Piyush Goyal
@PiyushGoyal
PM @NarendraModi ji’s vision for
development and welfare of farmers
amid COVID-19 pandemic is being
realised.Minister @NSTomar ji has
taken a great initiative by launching
the ‘Kisan Rath’ App to aid farmers
in transporting their produce.

INDIAAHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 1, 2020
New Delhi: India’s cor-
onavirus recovery rate ,
the share of people,
who have been dis-
charged from hospital
after treatment, has
risen to 25.13%, a sig-
nificant improvement
over 13% reported 14
days ago, the Health
Ministry said on Thurs-
day. The doubling rate
of COVID-19 cases has
also improved to 11 days
from 3.4 days before the
nationwide lockdown,
they said.
A total of 8,324 pa-
tients have recovered,
officials said. In last
24 hours, 1,718 new
cases of COVID-19 re-
ported, taking total
number of cases to
33,050 including 1,074
deaths, they added.
The current fatality
rate is 3.2 per cent for
COVID-19 in India with
65 per cent of those
dead males and 35 per
cent females, the Health
Ministry said.
Health officials say
the ongoing nationwide
lockdown since March
25 has prevented an ex-
plosive surge of infec-
tions that would have
crippled the country’s
health care system.
“Our analysis finds
that the rate of growth
in positive cases and fa-
talities has been con-
sistently lower - linear
but non-exponential,”
said Amitabh Kant,
chief executive of the
government think tank
Niti Aayog.
PM Narendra Modi
is expected decide soon
whether to extend the
shutdown beyond May
3. Government sources
say restrictions will
continue in the worst-
hit districts while they
may be eased in areas
where there are no cas-
es. The big cities of
Delhi, Mumbai and
Ahmedabad - which
are also India’s eco-
nomic growth engines
- top the list of cases
and there are no signs
of the pandemic abat-
ing there, Health Min-
ister Harsh Vardhan
said. Still, the scale of
outbreak is dwarfed by
the US or large
western European
countries. —Agencies
‘COVID recovery rate improves to 25.19%’Health officials say the ongoing nationwide lockdown since March 25, has prevented an explosive surge of infections
A healthcare worker collects swab sample for COVID-19 test from swab collection booth in Srinagar.
New Delhi: The Union
Home Ministry clari-
fied that no separate
passes are required for
inter-state movement
of trucks, those carry-
ing goods or returning
after delivery, during
the nationwide corona-
virus COVID-19 lock-
down and a valid li-
cence of the driver is
enough.
Asking States and
Union Territories to en-
sure uninterrupted
movement of trucks,
Union Home Secretary
Ajay Bhalla said there
have been reports that
at inter-state borders in
different parts of the
country, movement of
trucks is not allowed
freely and local authori-
ties insist upon sepa-
rate passes.
Bhalla asked states to
allow movement of all
trucks and other goods
carrier vehicles with
two drivers and one
helper subject to the
drivers carrying valid
driving licences. “Ac-
cordingly, all states and
UTs shall ensure that
district authorities and
field agencies are in-
formed of the instruc-
tions so that there is no
ambiguityattheground
level, and movement of
through traffic of
trucks and goods carri-
ers, including empty
trucks is allowed with-
out any hindrance,”
MHA order said. —PTI
Chandigarh: Punjab
Police S-I Harjeet Sin-
gh, whose hand was
chopped off in a brutal
attack by a group of ‘Ni-
hangs’ in Patiala over a
fortnight ago, was dis-
charged from PGIMER
following a successful
surgery reattaching the
severed limb. Before be-
ing discharged from the
PGIMER, Punjab Police
chief Dinkar Gupta
handedovertoSinghhis
son Arshpreet’s appoint-
ment letter as a consta-
ble in the force. The
50-year-old Singh, who
was an assistant Sub-In-
spector of police at the
time of the brutal
incident, has been pro-
moted to the rank of
Sub-Inspector. —PTI
Ensure steady movement of
trucks, says MHA to States
Pb cop,whose
hand severed in
attack,discharged
Mumbai: Bombay HC
issued notices to Maha-
rashtra government
and CBI on a petition
seeking a CBI probe, a
fast track court trial
and compensation in
the Palghar mob lynch-
ing incident. A single-
judge bench of Justice
Ujjal Bhuyan issued
the notices and sought
a reply from the re-
spondents on the peti-
tion within a period of
two weeks.
The petition, filed by
SC lawyer Alakh Alok
Srivastava, sought di-
rections to transfer the
investigation in the in-
cident from CID-Crime
to the Central Bureau
of Investigation or al-
ternatively constitute a
special investigation
team (SIT) monitored
by the court to prove
the incident. The peti-
tion also sought direc-
tions to conduct the
trial in the case by a
fast track court in an
expeditious and time-
bound manner, and a
compensation of Rs 1
crore to the family of
the driver who was
killed in the incident.
The plea said that
there are serious allega-
tions of commission
and omission on the
part of the local police
personnel themselves
in the brutal crime and
added that it is in the
interest of justice to get
the investigation of the
case done by any inde-
pendent agency. “Direc-
tions in the nature of
Mandamus to the State
of Maharashtra to initi-
ate stringent discipli-
nary action as well as
penal action under In-
dian Penal Code (IPC)
by way of registration
of FIR, against the con-
cerned policemen,
whose acts and omis-
sions led to the afore-
said brutal lynching,”
the plea said.
“The brutal lynching
of the old aged spiritual
leaders has sent a
wrong message to the
society at large and
thus it is in the interest
of justice to direct for
speedy and expeditious
trial of the instant
case,” it said. — ANI
New Delhi: The SC de-
clined to entertain a
plea, challenging the
treatment of COVID-19
patients with hydroxy-
chloroquine (HCQ) and
antibiotic azithromycin
(AZM), saying that the
apex court “is not an
expert on the issue”.
A bench headed by
Justice NV Ramana and
comprising Justices
Sanjay Kishan Kaul and
BR Gavai, taking up the
matter through vc,
asked the petitioner an
NGO, PBT, to make a
representation before
the for its considera-
tion. Ohio-based Indi-
an-origin doctor and
PBT President Kunal
Saha contended before
the bench that he has
not challenged the line
of treatment for COV-
ID-19, instead the use of
HCQ and AZM combi-
nation has side effects,
and these proving fatal
on the people.
The bench noted that
there is no medicine for
the viral infection and
doctors are trying dif-
ferent ways, and if a
treatment is being fol-
lowed or not, it has to be
decided by the doctor.
“If particular type of
treatment has to be giv-
en, it is for doctors’’ to
decide”, said the bench.
When, Saha contend-
ed warning has been
issued regarding the
side effects by an Amer-
ican heart institute,
which should be taken
into consideration,
Justice Ramana said,
“Can a court say use
this type of treatment?
Are we experts?”
The bench asked
Saha to take this peti-
tion as a representation
before ICMR, which can
examine the sugges-
tions made. The bench
asked Solicitor General
Tushar Mehta, repre-
senting Centre, to pro-
vide petition to ICMR.
The PIL contended
that use of HCQ and
AZM was recommend-
ed for most serious
COVID-19 patients by
Health Ministry, which
was primarily based
on anecdotal evidence
and not as a specific
therapy. —Agencies
Bombay HC notice to Maharashtra
govt on plea seeking CBI probe
Not expert on treatment of corona
patients, doctors best judge: SC
Mumbai: The SC dis-
missed the petition
seeking appropriate di-
rections to the Bar
Council of India (BCI)
to assist and help law-
yers facing difficulties,
especially financial
help, during the lock-
down imposed due to
Coronavirus.
Pawan Prakash
Pathak, the lawyer who
filed the petition con-
tended that those law-
yers practising inde-
pendently have been
left with no source of
income, therefore the
Supreme Court should
pass appropriate orders
and or directions to the
BCI to help these law-
yers. The petitioner
cited that there is an
Advocates Act 1961, and
Section 5 of the Act re-
quired that if they need
any help, a direction
can be passed for them.
A three-judge bench
of the apex court, head-
ed by Justice NV Ra-
mana, refused to pass
any order to the BCI af-
ter hearing a petition
filed by lawyer Pathak.
Justice Ramana said
that some state bar
councils have already
taken up the cause. Jus-
tice Kaul, one of the
judgesinthethree-judge
bench, asked how can
this be part of a direc-
tion under Article 32 of
the Indian Constitution.
“It is for bar council to
take a call. Please ap-
proachbarcouncil,”Jus-
tice Kaul said. “The
whole country is suffer-
ing, and advocates are a
partof it,”headded.—ANI
New Delhi: The nation-
al carrier Air India (AI)
has asked its pilots and
cabin crew details to
prepare to resume op-
erations post lockdown,
probably by mid-May
this year. An internal
mail, which was sent to
operation staff, seeks
crew availability and
details for transport se-
curity passes for domes-
tic and international
operations. “Dear All
concerned, There is a
probability to com-
mence 25 per cent to 30
per cent operations
post-lockdown in mid-
May 2020. You are re-
quested to ensure the
following: Total No. of
Cockpit / Cabin Crew
residing outside mu-
nicipal limits of the
bases,” the communica-
tion read. —ANI
New Delhi: The SC re-
fused to stay the Central
government’sprojectfor
theredevelopmentof the
Central Vista in the na-
tional capital.
A bench of the apex
court, headed by CJI
Sharad Arvind Bobde,
refused to stay the Cen-
tral vista project after
hearing a petition filed
by Rajeev Suri challeng-
ing the decision to no-
tify a change in land use
regarding the redevel-
opment plan. “During
this COVID-19 crisis,
nobody is going to do
anything. There is no
urgency,” the bench said
while refusing to stay
the project. SG Tushar
Mehta, told the apex
court that the Parlia-
ment is being construct-
ed and asked why is
there a problem? —ANI
Might resume partial services
by mid May 2020:Air India
Delhi Supreme Court refuses
to stay Central Vista project
PleaseekingdirectionstoBCIdismissed
Kolkata: The West
Bengal government is
considering a Rs 1.52
lakh crore economic
rehabilitation plan to
tackle the situation
caused by the Covid-19
pandemic, according to
Chief Minister Mama-
ta Banerjee.
“The economic reha-
bilitation plan is to be
rolledoutforsixmonths
and involves Rs 1.52
lakh crore,” she said,
here on Thursday.
The plan has been
formulated by the task
force on economy, set
up by the Chief Minis-
ter in view of the busi-
ness and industry tak-
ing a big hit due to the
lockdown enforced to
contain the disease,
which has claimed
1,081 lives in the coun-
try, including 22 in
West Bengal. The task
force is headed by the
Finance Secretary. The
plan is being examined
by the state govern-
ment. —Agencies
WEST BENGAL government studies
1.52L cr economic rehabilitation plan
IN THE COURTYARD
THE UPDATE
Kolkata: Expressing
pain over West Bengal
CM Mamata Baner-
jee’’s remark that the
opposition parties
were behaving like
‘’vultures waiting for
the dead,’’ Governor
Jagdeep Dhankhar,
here on Thursday,
asked her to shun
‘’petty politicking’’.
“Appeal all parties
to be in sync in com-
bating Covid-19.
Pained @MamataOf-
ficial opposition be-
having like ‘’vultures
waiting for the
dead’’. We are in
‘roof falling’ situa-
tion & must shun
petty politicking,”
Dhankhar tweeted.
He also accused the
Banerjee government
of ‘muzzling’’ the me-
dia. “Concerned @
M a m a t a O f f i c i a l
warning to media ‘’be-
have properly’’ have
noticed, felt muzzling
and control of media
by varied means. Why
put media in fear?
“There should not
be anything to hide.
Independent media is
spine, essential ele-
ment of democracy.
Why stress this as-
set,” the Governor
tweeted. —Agencies
Shun petty politicking: Dhankhar to Didi
PALGHAR MOB
LYNCHING
Mumbai: Bombay
HC has said the gath-
ering of hundreds of
migrants near Ban-
dra station earlier
this month was a
one-off incident, and
refused to pass ur-
gent orders in a plea
seeking deployment
of adequate security
personnel in the city.
Justice B P Colaba-
walla made the ob-
servation on April 27
while hearing a peti-
tion filed by one
Shankar Pai and two
others, who claimed
to be residents of
suburban Bandra,
Khar and Mahim and
said they were direct-
ly aggrieved by the
April 14 incident.
The petitioners
said such gatherings
would increase the
chance of the spread
of COVID-19.
The plea sought a
direction to the Ma-
harashtra govern-
ment to make an as-
sessment if military
could be deployed in
such vulnerable
spots. Justice Colaba-
walla said, One inci-
dent does not make
out an urgency.
These are extraor-
dinary times and
the government and
civic authorities are
doing their best to
keep things under
control.” —PTI
HC junks plea for
assessment to deploy
Army in Mumbai

INDIAAHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 1, 2020
SHARAD KUMAR TO CONTINUE
AS VC IN CVC?
Acting Chief Vigilance Commissioner Sharad Ku-
mar will continue as VC till attaining the age of 65.
He is 1979 batch IAS officer of Haryana cadre.
EX ANDHRA BANK CHIEF SURESH
N PATEL ASSUMES CHARGE AS
VIGILANCE COMMISSIONER
Former Andhra Bank MD & CEO Suresh N Patel
has assumed charge as Vigilance Commissioner
on Wednesday.
KS SREENIVASA RAJU RELIEVED
TO JOIN TELANGANA CADRE
K S Sreenivasa Raju has been relieved to join the
Telangana cadre on inter cadre deputation. He is
a 2001 batch IAS officer of AP cadre.
MOHANTY TO JOIN NSC
Satyajit Mohanty, ADG, System, will join National
Security Council (NSC) Secretariat as JS for six
months. He is a 1999 batch IRS-C&CE officer.
AMIT KHARE TAKES OVER
AS SECRETARY I & B
The PMO has reposed faith in Amit Khare to
handle the sensitive and most difficult Ministry
as Secretary I& B along with HRD. This is for
the second time that 1985 batch IAS officer of
Jharkhand cadre has taken over as Secretary I&B.
A LOW PROFILE POST - RAVI KANT
TO JOIN ON MAY 1
Ravi Kant will be taking over the charge as
Secretary, Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare,
Ministry of Defence on May 1, 2020. He is a 1984
batch IAS officer of Bihar cadre.
SANJEEV RANJAN TO TAKE OVER AS
SECRETARY, SHIPPING ON MAY 1
Sanjeev Ranjan will be taking over the charge as
Secretary, Ministry of Shipping on May 1, 2020.
He is a 1985 batch IAS officer of Tripura cadre.
Has the Minister agreed on his name ?
PAWAN KUMAR AGARWAL NOW TO
JOIN AS SPECIAL SECRETARY,
LOGISTICS ON MAY 1. ANY REASON?
Pawan Kumar Agarwal, who was Secretary
Consumer Affairs, will now be taking over the
charge as Special Secretary (Logistics), De-
partment of Commerce on May 1, 2020. He is
a 1985 batch IAS officer of West Bengal cadre.
Has this change something to do with PM’s
Garib Kalyan Yojana ?
CHOICE OF PMO-TARUN KAPOOR TO
JOIN AS SECRETARY, PETROLEUM &
NATURAL GAS ON MAY 1
Tarun Kapoor will be taking over the charge as
Secretary of the high profile Ministry of Petro-
leum and Natural Gas on May 1, 2020. He is a
1987 batch IAS officer of HP cadre. In fact name
of Tarun Bajaj was in circulation but finally the
name of Tarun Kapoor was approved. Mainly he
is the choice of the PMO.
ARVIND KUMAR SHARMA TO JOIN
AS SECRETARY, MSME ON MAY 1
Arvind Kumar Sharma ho remained with PM
Narendra Modi for almost 20 years will be taking
over the charge as Secretary, Ministry of Micro,
Small and Medium Enterprises on May 1, 2020.
He is a 1988 batch IAS officer of Gujarat cadre.
People may say anything about his posting from
the PMO to MSME one thing is certain PM has
sent him with a Special task in making India.
FIVE AMBASSADORS APPOINTED
On April 29, 2020, the PMO cleared the first
list of appointment of five diplomats. Accord-
ingly-TS Tirumurti, presently Secretary in the
Ministry, has been appointed as the next Am-
bassador/Permanent Representative of India to
the United Nations at New York.he is an Indian
Foreign Service officer of 1985 batch. Namrata
S Kumar, presently Joint Secretary in the Minis-
try, has been appointed as the next Ambassador
of India to the Republic of Slovenia.She is an
Indian Foreign Service officer of 1997 batch.
Jaideep Mazumdar, presently Ambassador of
India to the Republic of Philippines, has been
appointed as the next Ambassador of India to
Austria.He is an Indian Foreign Service officer
of 1989 batch. Deepak Mittal, presently Joint
Secretary in the Ministry, has been appointed
as the next Ambassador of India to the State of
Qatar.He is an Indian Foreign Service officer of
1998 batch. Piyush Srivastava, presently Joint
Secretary in the Ministry, has been appointed as
the next Ambassador of India to the Kingdom of
Bahrain. He is an Indian Foreign Service officer
of the 1998 batch.
RAKESH MAKHIJA
RE-APPOINTED INDEPENDENT
DIRECTOR OF AXIS BANK
AXIS Bank has re-appointed Rakesh Makhija as
an Independent Director of the Bank for his sec-
ond term from October 27, 2020 up to October
26, 2023.
POWERGallery
New Delhi: In a veiled
attack on the Central
government over the
handling of COVID-19
situation, Congress
leader Rahul Gandhi
said that there is too
much centralisation of
power and conversa-
tions are stopping.
“Don’t you think
there is a crisis of cen-
tralisation? There is
too much centralisa-
tion of power taking
place and the conversa-
tions are stopping. Con-
versations would help a
lot of these problems
that you are talking
about. But it is break-
ing for some reason,”
Rahul said in his inter-
action with former Re-
serve Bank of India
(RBI) Governor
Raghuram Rajan via
video conference. Re-
sponding to this, Rajan
said that decentralisa-
tion is important both
for bringing more local
information to work
but also about giving
empowerment to the
people. “What you see
across the world is a
great sense of disem-
powerment. Decisions
are being made else-
where, but not by me,”
he said.
“I have a vote but that
elects somebody in a
far-off place. My local
panchayat, State gov-
ernment has less power.
They don’t feel they can
have a voice in any-
thing. So they become
prey to a different set of
forces,” he added.
When the economist
asked Rahul about Pan-
chayati Raj, the former
Congress chief said:
“It’s had a huge effect,
but I’m sorry to say it
is in retreat. So, lot of
the forward movement
that had taken place on
Panchayati Raj, we are
sort of moving back to
this bureaucratic, DM-
bureaucrat based
structure.”
Rahul said that the
South Indian states are
doing a better job be-
cause they are more
decentralised. The
Congress leader said
that there is a new mod-
el out, which is the au-
thoritarian model and
questioning the liberal
model.
He said that India has
a high level of
unemployment and that
is now going to be
massive.
Rajan said that pan-
demics like COVID-19
rarely have positive ef-
fects for any country
but there are ways
countries like India can
take advantage of the
situation. —ANI
‘Too much centralisation of power’South Indian states are doing a better job because they are more decentralised, the Gandhi scion said
New Delhi: Former Re-
serve Bank of India
(RBI) Governor
Raghuram Rajan in a
video talk
with Con-
gress lead-
er Rahul
G a n d h i ,
streamed
by the par-
ty, said that an amount
of Rs 65,000 Crore is re-
quired to turn the situ-
ation around and feed
the poor amist the Coro-
navirus crisis.
“Rs 65,000 crore is
needed to feed the poor
and India can afford it
as the GDP is Rs 200
lakh crore,” adding that
“Social harmony is a
public good and we can-
not afford to have our
houses divided at the
time when challenges
are big”.
He said that there
should be efforts to give
money to the poor
through DBT, MGNRE-
GA, old age pension and
alsosupportingthrough
PDS.There are ways
country can take advan-
tage but I think there
will be no positive im-
pact of this situation as
there may be rethink-
ing in global economy.”
“There will be strate-
gic change but these
types of pandemic have
rarely any positive ef-
fects in general,” said
Rajan in first of the
video series started by
former Congress presi-
dent Rahul Gandhi with
the hashtag “Rahul
Shows The Way.”—ANI
`65,000 Cr needed to feed India’s
poor: Raghuram Rajan to RaGa
New Delhi: Congress
leader Mukul Wasnik
was appointed as the
p a r t y ’ s
G e n e r a l
Secretary,
in charge
of Madhya
P r a d e s h
following
the resignation of Di-
pak Babaria from the
post. A press release
from the All India Con-
gress Committee states,
“Congress President
has accepted the resig-
nation of Dipak Babar-
ia from the post of Gen-
eralSecretary,incharge
of MP on account of his
ill health.” —ANI
Wasnik is Cong
Gen Secy, in-
charge of MP
Srinagar: In a major
development in the
tainted DySP Davinder
S i n g h
case, the
NIA said
that it has
ar rested
an alleged
terrorist
Tariq Ahmed Mir for
providing logistic sup-
port to terrorists in
Jammu and Kashmir.
An NIA official
related to the probe
told, “We have arrested
Mir for his alleged
role in providing logis-
tic support to terror-
ists in Kashmir for
long. —Agencies
NIA arrests one
more in ex-DSP
Davinder’s caseNew Delhi: The stimu-
lus package for the in-
dustry hit by a lock-
down of more than a
month when economic
activity has ground to a
halt is expected to be
announced soon. The
package has been in the
works for a while and
top government offi-
cials have indicated
that rather than one big
package, the govern-
ment is rolling out
packages specifically
targeted at important
constituencies.
Acuite Ratings esti-
mates that the govern-
ment should opt for a
stimulus package of
`11.2 lakh crore ($150
billion), the economic
loss that is already set
to be recorded for the
current lockdown peri-
od and that will tanta-
mount to 4.8 per cent of
FY20 GDP.
Acuite Ratings has es-
timated that it may not
be feasible for all states
to share the debt burden
of the stimulus given
their respective fiscal
position. Therefore, a
few relatively stronger
states with lower fiscal
deficit levels may vol-
unteer to take up
around `3 lakh crore of
additional borrowings.
“We suggest a group
of six states i.e. Karna-
taka, Gujarat, Tamil
Nadu, Maharashtra,
Haryana and Telanga-
na where the current
fiscal position is rela-
tively better vis-à-vis
other states with an av-
erage state fiscal deficit
of 2.4 %, it added.
Given the extraordi-
nary nature of the glob-
al economic and health
crisis sparked by Cov-
id-19, Acuite Ratings
said there is adequate
justification to raise
debt or finance the defi-
cit directly from RBI at
this juncture albeit
within specified limits.
There will be a growth
in balance sheet of RBI
by 47%. —Agencies
Govtmightannouncestimuluspackage
Don’t you think there is a crisis of
centralisation? There is too much
centralisation of power taking
place and the conversa-
tions are stopping. Con-
versations would help a
lot of these problems
that you are talking
about. But it is breaking
for some reason.
—Rahul Gandhi, Cong Leader
New Delhi: Minister of
Heavy Industries and
Public Enterprise
Prakash Javadekar
held a meeting with the
auto industry leaders
where they suggested
ways to restart the in-
dustry after the COV-
ID-19 lockdown gets
over.
“All the auto industry
captains were present
in a meeting via video
conferencing. The auto
sector is a mass employ-
er & contributes maxi-
mum GST amongst all
sectors. This industry
has a significant contri-
bution to the GDP of
the country. Last year,
the industry suffered
because of a planned
migration from BS-IV
to BS-VI compliant ve-
hicles. This was one
change which made the
customers postpone
their purchases,” Ja-
vadekar told media the
meeting. —ANI
Javadekar seek expert
suggestions on
rebooting auto industry
Minister of Heavy industries Prakash Javadekar during the vc.
THE PLAN
‘TRICOLOUR ON
ROOFS ON MAY 1’
A SCATHING
ATTACK
Chandigarh: Accusing
the Centre of discrim-
inating against non-
BJP-ruled
States in
extending
support in
the fight
against
COVID-19, Congress has
urged people in Punjab
to raise Tricolor from
the rooftops of their
homes on May 1 as a
mark of protest. The idea
was mooted by State
Congress president Sunil
Jakhar at a vc with party
MLAs.
New Delhi: Senior BJP
leader Gopal Krish-
na Agarwal termed
Congress leader Rahul
Gandhi’s conversa-
tion with former RBI
Governor Raghuram
Rajan as “futile”. Agar-
wal said that Gandhi
should have asked
pointed questions to
Rajan. “Rahul should
have asked Mr Rajan
who was RBI Governor
when loans were dis-
bursed to Nirav Modi,
Mehul Choksi and
Vijaya Mallya during
Congress regime.’
Rajan spoke as
an independent
economist, cyni-
cism is natural
in an era where
Akshay Kumar
interviews Modi
@Pawankhera
Attracting moolah...
to boost investment, both
international and do-
mestic. “Issues relating
to India’s reform trajec-
tory were also discussed
so that growth can be
accelerated,” Modi said.
“It was discussed that
a scheme should be de-
veloped to promote more
plug and play infrastruc-
ture in the existing in-
dustrial lands/plots/es-
tates in the country and
provide necessary fi-
nancing support. During
the meeting, the PM di-
rected that the action
should be taken for a
more proactive approach
to handhold the inves-
tors, to look into their
problems and help them
in getting all the neces-
sary central and state
clearances in a time
bound manner,” PMO
statement said.
The meeting by PM
Modi, which was attend-
ed by finance minister
Nirmala Sitharaman,
home minister Amit
Shah, commerce and in-
dustry minister Piyush
Goyal and minister of
state for finance Anurag
Thakur, discussed vari-
ous strategies to bring
investments into India in
a fast-track mode and to
promote Indian domestic
sectors. “Detailed discus-
sions were held on guid-
ing states to evolve their
strategies & be more pro-
activeinattractinginvest-
ments,” the statement
added. —Agencies
A debonair...
Sir HN Reliance Founda-
tion Hospital in Mumbai
on Wednesday morning
aftercomplainingthathe
was not feeling well.
President Kovind, PM
Modi, Home Minister
Amit Shah, politicians
took to Twitter to con-
dole Rishi’s demise. Ri-
shi’s death, took Bolly-
wood by shock, a day af-
ter the demise of actor
Irrfan Khan. The film
industry took to social
media to mourn his
death with disbelief.
FROM PG 1
Patna: Bihar Deputy
CMSushilKumarModi,
appealed to Centre to al-
low special trains to
bring back migrants
from distant places to
the state.
“I appeal GOI to al-
low special trains to
bring migrants from
distant places. #Wel-
comeBihar,” Sushil
Modi tweeted. He had
expressed happiness
that Centre has accept-
ed the demand to allow
stranded people to re-
turn to their homes.
“Over 20 lakh people
of Bihar are in differ-
ent States & want to
return home. We are
happy that Centre has
allowed people to re-
turn to their homes.
People will be thor-
oughly screened at the
place of departure and
arrival,” he said. —ANI
‘Run non-stop trains to bring
back students & labourers’
Around 20 lakh resi-
dents of Bihar, stuck
in other parts of
country, have applied for assis-
tance and a majority of them
including labourers and stu-
dents are at distant places. A
bus will take at least six to sev-
en days in bringing them back.
—Sushil Modi, Dy CM, Bihar

TALKING POINTAHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 1, 2020
T
heabovescenariorais-
es several questions
regarding prevention
and treatment of COVID-19.
Because the majority of peo-
ple recover from coronavirus
infection, it is likely that a
vaccine that triggers neutral-
izing antibodies and T cells to
block the virus from getting
into the cells and replicate is
likely to be successful. The
key to an effective vaccine is
that it doesn’t trigger exces-
sive inflammation.
Additionally, in patients
who transition to a more se-
vere form such as ARDS and
cytokine storm, which is of-
ten lethal, there is an urgent
need for novel anti-inflam-
matory drugs. These drugs
can broadly suppress the
cytokine storm without
causing excessive suppres-
sion of immune response,
thereby enabling the pa-
tients to clear the coronavi-
rus without damage to the
lung and other tissues.
There may be only a nar-
row window of opportunity
during which these immuno-
suppressive agents can be
effectively used. Such agents
should not be started at an
early stage of infection when
the patient needs the im-
mune system to fight the in-
fection, but it cannot be de-
layed too long after ARDS
development, when the mas-
sive inflammation is uncon-
trollable. This window of
anti-inflammatory treat-
ment can be determined by
monitoring the antibody and
cytokine levels in patients.
With COVID-19, then, the
“fittest” are individuals
who mount a normal phase
1 and phase 2 immune re-
sponse. This means a strong
immune response in phase 1
to clear the primary corona-
virus infection and inhibit
its spread in the lungs. Then
this should be followed by
an optimum phase 2 re-
sponse to prevent excessive
inflammation in the form of
“cytokine storm.”
SOURCE: THE CONVERSATION CONCEPT: DIVYA HEMNANI DESIGN: CP SHARMA
CHARLES DARWIN POPULARIZED THE CONCEPT OF SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST AS A MECHANISM
UNDERLYING THE NATURAL SELECTION THAT DRIVES THE EVOLUTION OF LIFE
WHAT DOES ‘SURVIVAL
OF THE FITTEST’ MEAN?
h a r l e s
D a r w i n
popular-
ized the
c o n c e p t
of survival of the fit-
test as a mechanism
underlying the natu-
ral selection that
drives the evolution
of life. Organisms
with genes better
suited to the envi-
ronment are select-
ed for survival and
pass them to the
next generation.
Thus, when a new
infection that the
world has never seen
before erupts, the
process of natural
selection starts all
over again.
In the context of
the coronavirus pan-
demic, who is the
“fittest”?
This is a challeng-
ing question. But as
immunology re-
searchers at the Uni-
versity of South
Carolina, we can say
one thing is clear:
With no effective
treatment options,
survival against the
coronavirus infec-
tion depends com-
pletely on the pa-
tient’s immune re-
sponse.
We have been
working on how the
immune response is
a double-edged
sword – on one hand
helping the host to
fight infections,
while on the other
hand causing signif-
icant damage in the
form of autoim-
mune diseases.
he immune
response is
like a car. To
reachadesti-
nation safely,
you need both an accel-
erator (phase 1) and a
brake (phase 2) that are
functioningwell.Failure
in either can have sig-
nificant consequences.
An effective immune
response against an in-
fectious agent rests in
the delicate balance of
two phases of action.
When an infectious
agent attacks, the body
begins phase 1, which
promotes inflammation
– a state in which a vari-
etyof immunecellsgath-
er at the site of infection
to destroy the pathogen.
This is followed by
phase 2, during which
immune cells called
regulatory T cells sup-
press inflammation so
that the infected tissues
can completely heal. A
deficiency in the first
phase can allow uncon-
trolled growth of the
infectious agent, such
as a virus or bacteria. A
defect in the second
phase can trigger mas-
sive inflammation, tis-
sue damage and death.
The coronavirus in-
fects cells by attaching
to a receptor called the
angiotensin-converting
enzyme 2 (ACE2), which
is present in many tis-
sues throughout the
body, including the res-
piratory tract and car-
diovascular system.
This infection triggers
a phase 1 immune re-
sponse, in which the
antibody-producing B-
cells pump out neutral-
izing antibodies that
can bind to the virus
and prevent it from at-
taching to ACE2. This
inhibits the virus from
infecting more cells.
During phase 1, the
immune cells also pro-
duce cytokines, a group
of proteins that recruit
other immune cells as
well as fight infection.
Also joining the fight
are killer T cells that
destroy the virus-infect-
ed cells, preventing the
virus from replicating.
If the immune sys-
tem is compromised
and works poorly dur-
ing phase 1, the virus
can replicate rapidly.
People with compro-
mised immune systems
include the elderly, or-
gan transplant recipi-
ents, patients with au-
toimmune diseases,
cancer patients under-
going chemotherapy
and individuals who
are born with immuno-
deficiency diseases.
Many of these individ-
uals may not produce
enough antibodies or
killer T cells to counter
the virus, which allows
the virus to multiply
unchecked and cause a
severe infection.
C
THE TWO PHASES OF THE
IMMUNE RESPONSE
THE IMMUNE SYSTEM’S BALANCING ACT
LUNG INJURY RESULTING FROM INFLAMMATION
T
ncreased replication
of SARS-CoV-2 trig-
gers additional com-
plications in the lungs
and other organs.
Normally, there is a wide
range of microorganisms, both
harmful and benign, that live in
harmony in the lungs. However,
as the coronavirus spreads, it is
likely that the infection and the
inflammation that ensues will
disrupt this balance, allowing
harmful bacteria present in the
lungs to dominate. This leads to
development of pneumonia, in
which the lungs’ air sacs, called
alveoli, get filled with fluid or
pus, making it difficult to
breathe.
This triggers additional in-
flammation in the lungs, leading
to Acute Respiratory Distress
Syndrome (ARDS), which is seen
in a third of COVID-19 patients.
The immune system, unable to
control viral infection and other
emerging pathogens in the lungs,
mounts an even stronger inflam-
matory response by releasing
more cytokines, a condition
known as “cytokine storm.”
At this stage, it is also likely
that the phase 2 immune re-
sponse aimed at suppressing in-
flammation fails and can’t con-
trol the cytokine storm. Such
cytokine storms can trigger
friendly fire – destructive, corro-
sive chemicals meant to destroy
infected cells that are released by
the body’s immune cells which
can lead to severe damage to the
lungs and other organs.
Also, because ACE2 is present
throughout the body, the killer T
cells from phase 1 can destroy
virus-infected cells across multi-
ple organs, causing more wide-
spread destruction. Thus, pa-
tients that produce excessive cy-
tokines and T cells can die from
injury not only to the lungs but
also to other organs such as the
heart and kidneys.
I

A new month, a new start. Best
wishes for all humanity...may
the month of May bring good
health to all. Peace with you.
—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO & Editor, First India
AHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 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 News
Surat : The situation
of the migrant workers
stranded here is turn-
ing worse by each pass-
ing day. Most (read all)
of the workers don’t
even have money to
provide for two squares
of meals a day but their
misery doesn’t end
here.
Recently when the
administration plied
busesforUttarPradesh
(UP) and Odisha, all
the stranded got hope-
ful but were immedi-
ately disappointed
when they came to
know that the buses
were charging exorbi-
tant fares back home.
Each seat is priced for
Rs 2500 for UP while
the charges for a sleep-
er is Rs 4000. This sim-
ply means at least Rs
12500 for a family. This
amount id beyond the
means of majority of
the migrants as they
have been spending
theirsavingseversince
the lockdown began.
Now most are borrow-
ing money even for
daily food.
Consider the second
picture where the ad-
ministration is not yet
ready to give permis-
sion to most applica-
tions. Two days ago MP
CR Patil and Collector
agreed and plied buses
for Odisha and UP. Af-
ter this there has been
application for another
23 buses to the RTO.
But with such exorbi-
tant fares nobody is
sure of actual people
ready to board the bus-
es as the fare will be
charged once the board-
ing happens.
If one confronts
the bus operators
they deny overcharg-
ing and say that they
aren’t plying uses in
such conditions for
profit but they at
least deserve the ex-
penses. Pappu Singh,
resident of Sid-
dharth Nagar (UP)
who had the permit
to ply bus from Surat
to Siddharth Nagar
said that he had
charged each passen-
ger Rs 1500 which is
genuine.
With 5-7 lakh strand-
ed workers around Su-
rat alone, hundreds of
buses will be needed.
The urgent need is to
run passenger trains
which will be afforda-
ble, comfortable, fast
and also carry sizeable
number in each trip.
The issue needs imme-
diate attention and co-
ordination of all con-
cerned departments
which seems really dif-
ficult at this hour.
‘HungryTide’ofmigrantworkersdon’thavemoneyforbusfare
First India News
Rajkot: Lockdown has
all the temples,
mosques, churches and
gurudwaras closed. It
also bans all celebra-
tions and the brunt is
being borne by the col-
ourful flowers and their
farmers.
Flowers don’t have
a voice but these
farmers say they
have lost thousands
of rupees as the de-
mand of flowers has
dipped due to the clo-
sure of all the reli-
gious places and ban
on public gatherings
put in place to stem
the spread of the le-
thal infection. Now,
these 500-odd farm-
ers have appealed to
the Central Govern-
ment to provide them
relief packages to
help them tide over
these testing times.
“Nobody is buying
our flowers. All the
yield is getting wast-
ed. The government
should announce a
relief package and
help us,” said Mavji
Bhai, a farmer. A cou-
ple of weeks ago, the
Centre extended the
nationwide lockdown
till 3 May.
The worst part is that
the farmers of the tra-
ditional crops are being
supported via MSP pur-
chases but flower grow-
ing farmers have no
respite.
This is is serious
blow to one of the
most coveted plans of
PM Modi of doubling
the farmers’ income
by 2022. From feed-
ing a population dis-
placed, dislocated
and frozen in its
tracks, to ensuring
farmers stay afloat in
the coming months,
the government has a
tough job on its hands
to which it will have
to respond quickly
and generously.
Farmers are in deep
distress after the
lockdown caused dis-
ruptions in the food
supply chain, scarci-
ty of labour and re-
sulted in a decline in
demand.
The situation in
horticulture and flo-
riculture sectors
should be a concern
for the govt, as fruit,
vegetable and flower
growers are unable
to find markets due
to restrictions in
movement and fall in
demand. Farm prod-
ucts like flowers have
a real small shelf life
and mostly their pro-
duction is done with
market already in
mind.
LOCKDOWN LEADS TO FROWNED
FARMER FACES AS FLOWERS DECAYDemand for flowers at an all-time low with the lockdown closing down God’s doors, farmers in distress
Complaint to
PMO against state
minster Kanani
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Hospital
installed with 20 KL LMO capacity
First India News
Ahmedabad: Amdavad
Municipal Corporation,
working on war footing,
has installed a 20 KL ca-
pacity Liquid Medical
Oxygen (LMO) tank at
the Sardar Vallabhbhai
Patel (SVP) Hospital.
SVP has is the med-
ical facility where al-
ready 2200 patients
have undergone Cov-
id-19 treatment.
There has been an in-
crease in demand of
medical oxygen sup-
ply recently. So to
meet that demand, a
tank with capacity of
20 kilolitre liquid
medical oxygen was
constructed on war
footing.
This tank will help
not only coronavirus
patients who may
need oxygen support
but it will also make
the hospital self suf-
ficient going forward
in terms of oxygen
supply.
The cost of con-
struction of the tank
was approximately
Rs 1 crore.
First India News
Surat: The state minis-
ter for health Kumar
Kanani was spotted not
only violating lock-
down guidelines but
also flouting imposed
section 144.
To make matters
worse he wasn’t alone
but was accompanied
by 50 supporters. The
violation becomes
more serious in the
light of the informa-
tion that a two year old
child was diagnosed
corona positive only on
Wednesday in the Vish-
nunagar society where
Kanani resides.
Vandan Bhadani of
Singanpore has
filedan online com-
plaint against to both
PMO and CMO alleg-
ing that minister Ku-
mar Kanani was spot-
ted ner Shangrilla
building with 50 sup-
porters and was
roaming freely near
Mota Varacha. The
complaint states that
the act is gross viola-
tion of not only lock-
down guidelines but
also an infringement
of section 144. It de-
mands legal action
against the minister
and his supporters.
Noteworthy that
there have been 31 co-
rona cases reported
from Rander area in-
cluding a doctor.
HIGH TARIFFS
GREAT GUJARAT DAY GRAND LAUNCH
Gujarati film industry has come together to celebrate Gujarat Day through a special video song. CM Vijay Rupani will launch
the song today, which features artistes like Hitu and Naresh Kanodia, Malhar Thakar, Aarohi Patel, Sairam Dave, Chetan
Daiya, Netri Trivedi, Maulik Nayak has been sung by Praful Dave.
ACP tests
positive for
Covid-19 in
Ahmedabad
COVID-19 patient
escapes,found dead
Daughterofex-BJP
MLAcommitssuicide
No summer
vacation for
Gujarat HC
First India News
Ahmedabad: Assistant
Commissioner of Po-
lice Divya Raviya of ‘N’
Division tested positive
for dreaded coronavi-
rus on Thursday. Eight
of her colleagues were
immediately quaran-
tined and her charge
was handed over to ACP
MN Patel.
Divya resides at
Bombay police lines.
Police Sub Inspector
Sanjay Desai of
Crime Branch also
tested positive there-
fore people working
with him were also
quarantined. till 23
April, 35 police per-
sonnel were infected,
seven have recovered,
rest are under treat-
ment and their condi-
tion is stable.
The level of the shock
in the police depart-
ment can be judged
from the fact that none
of the seniors were sure
of the exact number of
cops under quarantine.
First India News
Surat: A 50-year-old
novel coronavirus pa-
tient, who allegedly ran
away from the COVID
ward of New Civil Hos-
pital in Surat two days
ago, was found dead on
a bench outside the
medical facility’s post-
mortem room on Thurs-
day morning.
“Preliminary in-
quiry and CCTV foot-
age of the hospital in-
dicate that the man
did not go outside the
hospital campus locat-
ed in Khatodara area,
for the last two days,”
said a police official.
He added that the
man ‘secretly’ walked
out of the COVID-19
ward on the night of
April 28 and disap-
peared. Although the
police tried to search for
him at every possible lo-
cation,hewasnotfound.
“As of now, we don’t
know why he ran away
in the middle of his
treatment, where he
went and how he died.
We are carrying out a
thorough investiga-
tion into the matter,”
said Vidhi Chaudhari,
deputy commissioner
of police.
First India News
Jamnagar. Daughter
of former BJP MLA
Meghji Chavda from Ka-
lavad constituency com-
mitted suicide by hang-
ing herself. Sources say
that deceased Riddhi
was mentally wrecked
due to not able to go to
Canada for studies be-
cause on ongoing lock-
down which was her
long standing dream.
Chavda was nit at his
residence when the inci-
dent took place. Police
are yet to ascertain the
actual cause of the sui-
cide. Sources confide
that Riddhi (24) had just
finished her B.E. and
was all set for higher
studies in Canada with
her fees deposited at the
overseas college.
First India News
Ahmedabad: Gujarat
High Court will contin-
ue its present system of
hearing fresh and ur-
gent matters through
video conferencing due
to coronavirus pandem-
ic even as it cancelled
its summer vacation
whi chwere due from 11
May to 7 June.
The HC premises was
shut soon after the na-
tionwide lockdown was
announced to contain
Coronavirus on March
25. Since then, High
Court judges have been
hearing cases through
videoconferencingfrom
their residences.
By cancelling the va-
cation the High Court
has given in to the de-
mand of Gujarat High
Court Association. “At
present, one division
benchandasmanynum-
ber of single benches
are required, depending
on the workload, to sit
through video confer-
encing to deal with ur-
gent matters. It is decid-
ed that the current ar-
rangementbecontinued
till further orders and
situation may be re-
viewed periodically as
andwhenneedarises,”a
notification by the High
Court Registrar said.
Labourers going to Siddharth Nagar by bus, (inset) Labourer
Suresh with his family.
Gujarat Flower farmers appeal to Centre to tide over losses due to COVID-19 lockdown.
TROUBLED TIMES
Kumar Kanani

EKDEEWANATHACity First pays a tribute to Rishi Kapoor, who left for his heavenly abode on Thursday morning. From his movies,
songs, to his eclectic presence in the past few years on the social media, Chintu will be missed for everything
ne of the finest ac-
tors of the country,
Rishi Kapoor passed
away on Thursday
morning at the age
of 67. Known for his
great contribution
to the Indian cinema, the vet-
eran actor died after a two-
year-long battle with cancer.
The actor was admitted at the
H N Reliance hospital, where
he took his last breath. The
news was confirmed by his
brother Randhir Kapoor. “He
is no more. He has passed
away,” he told one of the news
wires. Not only his family, or
the entertainment industry,
but the whole nation is grief-
stricken by this sad news.
Born on 4 September 1952,
the star was born in one of
the most prestigious families,
the Kapoor family. Being the
second son of the ace actor-
film director Raj Kapoor and
grandson of actor Prithviraj
Kapoor, Rishi had acting
skills in his blood. The actor
has a large Punjabi family
with most members includ-
ing, son Ranbir Kapoor, wife
Neetu Kapoor, his brothers,
Randhir Kapoor, paternal
uncles, Shashi Kapoor
and Shammi Kapoor
working in the film
industry.
Helandedhisfirst-
ever role in his fa-
ther Raj Kapoor’s
movie Shree 420 at
the age of 3 and first
actual role in 1970,
again in one of his
father’s blockbuster
flicks, Mera Naam
Joker. While all these
were under the shad-
ow of his father, Rishi
was cast as the main
leadoppositeDimpleKa-
padia in Bobby in the
year 1973 which
was a block-
buster.
While most of us know him
as the star, who delivered sev-
eral chartbuster movies, the
truth is he gave around 40 flop
films out of 51 films in which
he was the solo lead hero. He
also battled depression due to
the flops. The list of his hit
flicks includes his debut film
Bobby, Laila Majnu, Rafoo
Chakkar,Sargam,Karz,Prem
Rog, Nagina, Honeymoon,
Chandni, Heena etc.
Chintu Ji made even the
supporting roles look like the
main character. There are
many super hit films that
couldn’thavebeenturnedout
to be a great success as it is
without his powerful sup-
porting character. He
switched from playing
the lead character to
supportingsomewhere
around the 2000s. He
was reunited on-
screen with his wife
Neetu Kapoor in the
film Do Dooni Chaar
in 2010. He was also
seen playing some pow-
erful negative roles. His
role as Rauf Lala in Ag-
neepath remains a clas-
sic. 102 Not Out, a come-
dy-drama film directed
byUmeshShukla,turned
out to be his last film.
The chocolate boy of the
Indian cinema was con-
ferred with several awards
during his long Bollywood
career. One of the biggest
achievements of his career
was receiving the Filmfare
LifetimeAchievementAward
in 2008.
Rishi Kapor tied the knot
with actress Neetu Singh in
1980 by throwing a grand
wedding at the prestigious
Bombay Presidency Golf
Club in Chembur on January
22. The couple, have two chil-
dren Riddhima Kapoor and
Ranbir Kapoor. This duo was
a celebrated Bollywood cou-
ple considering that the love
and passion of Rishi and
Neetu was as good on
screen as was off it.
They both worked to-
gether in around 15
films, including
Kabhi Kabhie,
Amar Akbar Anthony, Doos-
ra Aadmi, and many other
projects. The veteran actor
and Neetu Singh’s love story
dates back to 1974 when they
were cast opposite each other
for the first time in Puttanna
Kanagal’s Zehreela Insaan.
Rishi and Neetu did not have
a fairy tale marriage and
worked hard at it, He agreed
once in an interview that he
used to be Male Chauvinist
and was rather over fond of
his drinks. Rishi and his son
Ranbir also share a turbulent
but loving relationship. The
bond between them only im-
proved after the veteran fell
sick and was diagnosed with
cancer. Sources reveal that
Rishi called Ranbir to his
bedside on Wednesday night
during his last conscious mo-
ments.
O
Rishi’s wife Neetu Kapoor shared the post
that read, “Our dear Rishi Kapoor passed
away peacefully at 8.45 am IST in hospital
today after a two-year battle with leukaemia.
The doctors and medical staff said he kept
them entertained to the last.
He remained jovial and determined to live to
the fullest right through two years of treat-
ment across two continents. Family, friends,
food and films remained his focus and
everyone who met him during this time was
amazed at how he did not let his illness get
the better of him.
He was grateful for the love of his fans that
poured in from the world over. In his passing,
they would all understand that he would like
to be remembered with a smile and not with
tears.
In this hour of personal loss, we also rec-
ognise the world is going through a very dif-
ficult and troubled time. There are numerous
restrictions around movement and gathering
in public. We would like to request all his fans
and well-wishers and friends of the family to
please respect the laws that are in force.
He would not have it any other way.”
Riddhima Kapoor Sahni posted “Papa I love
you I will always love you - RIP my strongest
warrior I will miss you everyday I will miss
your FaceTime calls everyday! I wish I could
be there to say goodbye to you! Until we meet
again papa I love you - your Mushk forever.”
Lata Mangeshkar posted a picture of Rishi and
wrote,“Kuch samay pehle Rishi ji ne mujhe
unki aur meri ye tasveer bheji thi. wo sab
din,sab baatein yaad aarahi hain. Main shabd-
heen hogayi hun.”
Rishi Kapoor
The extended Kapoor family
Rishi Kapoor with Neetu, Ranbir, Riddhima and Samara
AHMEDABAD, FRIDAY
MAY 1, 2020
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia
facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09
... with Neetu Kapoor
... with Lata Mangeshkar
... with Riddhima Kapoor Sahni

CITY FIRST
rominent political lead-
ers across party lines
remembered veteran ac-
tor Rishi Kapoor, who
died on Thursday in
Mumbai after a two-
year battle with leukae-
mia, as an “evergreen” and “mul-
tifaceted” personality. The death
of the 67-year-old veteran actor
comes a day after the sudden de-
mise of versatile actor Irrfan
Khan. Rishi Kapoor and Irrfan
co-starred in 2013 film “D-Day”.
Vice President Venkaiah
Naidu also paid homage to the
veteran actor, recalling how he
essayed many roles with aplomb
and was popular for his roman-
tic films.
Defence Minister Rajnath
Singh said as an actor, Rishi Ka-
poor was able to create a special
place in the hearts of the audi-
ence with “his inimitable style
and performances”. Referring to
the deaths of Rishi Kapoor and
Irrfan, Finance Minister Nir-
mala Sitharaman said that she is
saddened by the loss of two
“iconic actors”.
Prakash Javdekar tweeted,
“The sudden demise of actor Ri-
shi Kapoor is shocking. He was
not only a great actor but a good
human being. Heartfelt condo-
lences to his family, friends and
fans. Om Shanti.”
Congress leader Rahul Gan-
dhi said it was a “terrible week”
for Indian cinema with the loss
of Rishi Kapoor and Irrfan while
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said Ka-
poor’s demise was an irrepara-
ble loss for Indian cinema.
Maharashtra Chief Minister
Uddhav Thackeray also con-
doled Rishi Kapoor’s demise and
the veteran actor was the torch-
bearer of an illustrious legacy
whose contribution to the film
industry is unparalleled.
Former Jammu and Kashmir
chief minister Omar Abdullah
said Rishi Kapoor’s film have
been an “integral part” of his
childhood.
The veteran actor re-
turned to India last
September after un-
dergoing treat-
ment for his
cancer in
the US
for al-
most a year.
Amitabh Bachchan was the
first to announce the demise of
the 67-year-old with whom he
worked in blockbusters like
‘Amar Akbar Anthony’ and
‘Coolie’. He said, “He’s GONE .. !
Rishi Kapoor .. gone .. just passed
away .. I am destroyed !”
Salman Khan took to Twitter
and shared a tweet praying for
the family of the late star. He
tweeted, “Rest in peace chintu
sirrr, kaha suna maaf , strength
, peace n light to family n
friends...”
Vicky Kaushal took to Insta-
gram and shared that he feels
shattered and heartbroken to
hear about the demise of Ka-
poor, and wrote, “ Absolutely
shattered and heartbroken to
wake up to the news of the loss
of Rishi Kapoor Ji, one of the
liveliest persons amongst us.
The last time when I met him in
NY, he was fighting the battle
like a boss, with Neetu Ma’m by
his side and a smile on his face.
This is utterly tragic and in-
comprehensible. My con-
dolences to Ranbir,
Neetu Ma’m and the
entire family.
May his soul
be resting
in peace
a n d
raising a toast to a life well lived
with the Gods in heaven.”
Reminiscing the memories
with his ‘Chintu uncle’, Varun
Dhawan shared a picture from
2012 flick ‘Student Of The Year,’
that captured a moment in be-
tween Varun, Rishi and Sid-
dharth Malhotra. Along with the
picture, he wrote,” I was just in
awe facing him in a scene. Sid
and I would always discuss that
we shouldn’t mess up our lines.
He was a professional and al-
ways loving rip Chintu uncle.”
Rishi’s ‘Student of the Year’
and ‘Kapoor and Sons’ co-star
Siddharth Malhotra
took to Instagram, ex-
pressing the pain of
losing ‘the gem of
an actor.’ The
picture shows Rishi and Sid-
dharth engrossed in a conversa-
tion. Along with the picture, he
wrote,” Indian cinema has
lost a gem today. I’m just
heartbroken. Rishi Ji’s
warmth & zest for life
will be remem-
bered by all of
us who have
had the
privilege
to work with
him. I will for-
ever treasure our
post-shoot chats. My
prayers are with the
Kapoor family in this
tough time.”
Sonam Kapoor Ahuja
shared a heart-touching throw-
back picture with her ‘Bewa-
koofiyan’ co-star pecking a kiss
on his
c h e e k .
Along with
the picture.
She wrote, “Rest
in peace Chintu un-
cle.. All my love to you.
I’msosorryweallcouldn’t
say bye properly.”
Raj Bansal from Jaipur,
who was a very dear friend of
Rishi Kapoor expressed, “Woke
up to the most terrible news this
morning. I am devastated by the
sad news of my dearest friend &
elder brother Rishi Kapoor s
death. I still can not believe this.
I had met him in Mumbai after
his return from New York & he
was full of life. We spent over 4
hours together laughing & party-
ing. He was very emotional &
caring. My friendship with him
goes to the mid-’80s. He will be
missed a lot. Rest in peace mere
dost, mere Bhai.”
on his
c h e e k .
Along with
picture shows Rishi and Sid-
dharth engrossed in a conversa-
tion. Along with the picture, he
wrote,” Indian cinema has
lost a gem today. I’m just
heartbroken. Rishi Ji’s
warmth & zest for life
privilege
to work with
him. I will for-
say bye properly.”
Raj Bansal from
who was a very dear friend of
Rishi Kapoor expressed, “Woke
up to the most terrible news this
morning. I am devastated by the
sad news of my dearest friend &
elder brother Rishi Kapoor s
death. I still can not believe this.
we shouldn’t mess up our lines.
He was a professional and al-
ways loving rip Chintu uncle.”
Rishi’s ‘Student of the Year’
and ‘Kapoor and Sons’ co-star
Siddharth Malhotra
took to Instagram, ex-
pressing the pain of
losing ‘the gem of
shared a heart-touching throw-
back picture with her ‘Bewa-
koofiyan’ co-star pecking a kiss
NY, he was fighting the battle
like a boss, with Neetu Ma’m by
his side and a smile on his face.
This is utterly tragic and in-
comprehensible. My con-
dolences to Ranbir,
Neetu Ma’m and the
entire family.
May his soul
said Rishi Kapoor’s film have
been an “integral part” of his
The veteran actor re-
turned to India last
September after un-
dergoing treat-
ment for his
10
TRIBUTEAHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 1, 2020www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
FACEOFTHEDAY
HARLEEN SETHI, Travel Enthusiast
YOUR
DAYHoroscope by
Saurabbh Sachdeva
LEO
JULY 24 - AUGUST 23
You are great when it come
to money management and
you have a big heart for
others. You will
successfully complete the project,
which kept you occupying for long.
Today is a very auspicious day for any
kind of inauguration. You will be
involved in lot of charity.
LIBRA
SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 22
You may feel financially
secure but your ambitions
have take away your sleep
of the night, try and relax
and sometime take it easy. Travel
only if your health allows. You will
soon meet a friend who can
understand you and whose company
will make you happy.
ARIES
MAR 21 - APR 20
You must avoid eating
outside on frequently
basis. You may find
yourself in a very
perplexed position when it comes to
money, unable to decide whether to
spend money on fun to have an
image in your circle or to be an odd
one out.
SAGITTARIUS
NOV 23 - DEC 22
Money is flowing into your
life from all directions and
your spouse is your lucky
charm. You must not be a
part of any controversies and you know
someone close to you involved then
guide them and show them a way out.
A new vehicles is on cards, may also
come as a gift from parents.
GEMINI
MAY 21 - JUNE 21
You will be involved in a lot
of outdoor activities. You
will feel very refresh and
energetic today. You worry
without any reason so relax and
enjoy what you have. You may get an
unexpected career call that will
change your life forever. Your spouse
will pamper you in many ways today.
AQUARIUS
JAN 21 - FEB 19
Your new business is doing
good but you need to have
some patience when it
comes to profit. Your child
may need your serious counselling so
show them you are there. You make
take your family along on a work trip.
Its time to take your love life to next
level.
TAURUS
APR 21 - MAY 20
You are on with your
fitness regime and you will
surely get the results you
desperately desire. Going
abroad for settlement is on cards and
you must start with your
preparations. On domestic front, you
will be quite in demand and lots of
things will keep you busy.
CAPRICORN
DEC 23 - JAN 20
You may feel challenged on
work front but its an
healthy competition which
will help you realise your
true potential. On domestic front, do
not indulge in any kind of argument
with your parents just for the sake of
it, sometime you need to understand
their concern.
VIRGO
AUG 24 - SEP 23
You are an outstanding
home maker and you take
care of your kids like no
one can. You are very close
to your parents and may visit them
frequently going forward. On
professional front, you will get the
break that you have been expecting.
You may attend a social gathering.
CANCER
JUNE 22 - JULY 23
Those involved in export
and import business will
see a hike. You will
complete all your pending
task today and may devote extra time
in office. You will managed to sustain
a peaceful environment at home. You
will be very busy today, as you can
expect some guests today.
PISCES
FEB20 - MARCH 20
On professional front, you
have already proved your
metal and your career is
going great. Your friends
may be helping but can also
manipulate you sometimes so be
careful. Those who matters will
always understand you and those
you don’t, you should not care.
SCORPIO
OCT 23 - NOVEMBER 22
Pick your bags as you are
soon moving abroad for
the settlement. You are
very jovial and kind hearted
person. You are a very nice parent
and always understand your kids but
you must know when to stop
pampering. You may bring a pet to
your house.
P ‘EVERGREEN
CHOCOLATE BOY’
TRIBUTES
POUR IN
FOR THE

First india ahmedabad edition-01 may 2020

First india ahmedabad edition-01 may 2020

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First india ahmedabad edition-01 may 2020