First india ahmedabad edition-15 june 2020

CORONA
ALERT
AHMEDABAD l MONDAY, JUNE 15, 2020 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208 l Vol 1 l Issue No. 200
22°C - 34°C
OUR EDITIONS:
JAIPUR & AHMEDABAD
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COVID-19
UPDATE
GUJARAT
1,478
DEATHS
23,590
CONFIRMED CASES
RAJASTHAN
286 DEATHS 12,532 CASES
INDIA
3,32,739
CONFIRMED CASES
9,514
DEATHS
MAHARASHTRA
3,950 DEATHS 1,07,958 CASES
TAMIL NADU
UTTAR PRADESH
DELHI
1,327 DEATHS 41,182 CASES
WORLD
4,33,904
DEATHS
79,39,941
CONFIRMED CASES
Reshuffle in BJP state unit likely soon after Rajya Sabha Polls
Haresh Jhala
Gandhinagar: The re-
organization of the
state unit of the
Bharatiya Janata
Party, originally slat-
ed for last December,
might finally take
place after the Rajya
Sabha polls on June
19. This would give
the incoming team
ample time to take
the reins ahead of the
civic body and Pan-
chayat polls, sched-
uled to be in Decem-
ber this year.
Sources say that the
while everyone had be-
gun to believe that Par-
ty national leaders in-
cluding Prime Minister
Narendra Modi and Un-
ion Home Minister
Amit Shah had decided
to continue with the
present team until after
the local body elections.
However, last week
there were hints from
Delhi that it is plan-
ning a reshuffle after
June 19. This was con-
veyed to one of the
state leaders in a re-
cent meeting.
It is a necessity of
time as the state unit
reorganization is pend-
ing; so is the reorgani-
zation of city and dis-
trict units.
If the state-level
names are cleared and
BJP is ready for the
civic and panchayat
polls, it has to reconsti-
tute local organizations
so that they can gear up
for elections.
The party selects can-
didates for the state
president post based on
a person’s organization-
al capacity, ability to
understand poll mathe-
matics and caste equa-
tions, and to communi-
cate it to party top brass
effectively.
Over and above this,
themostimportantcri-
teria is this: Does the
person come from a
caste which has a large
vote share and how
loyal is the caste to the
party? On these two
counts, two communi-
ties--the Patels and the
OtherBackwardClass-
es (OBCs)--have strong
chances. If the party is
considering a Patel
candidate then vice-
president Gordhan
Jadafiya or General
Secretary KC Patel are
frontrunners for the
post. Patels have some
14% vote share in the
state. Jadafiya is from
Saurashtra and Patel
from Patan in North
Gujarat. Keshubhai
Patel and RC Faldu
were Patel leaders who
headed the state unit.
Turn on P6
Timing set to give the incoming team
ample time to gear up for civic body and
panchayat polls later this year; Patel,
OBC & Rajput community eyeing posts
BJP K C Patel BJP I K Jadeja BJP Haribhai Chaudhary
New Delhi: The peak
stage of COVID-19 pan-
demic in India has been
delayed by the eight-
week lockdown along
withstrengthenedpublic
health measures and it
may now arrive around
mid-November during
which there could be a
paucity of isolation and
ICU beds, and ventila-
tors,accordingtoastudy.
The study conducted
by researchers from an
Operations Research
Group constituted by
ICMR said the lock-
down shifted the peak
of the pandemic by an
estimated 34 to 76 days
and helped bring down
the number of infec-
tions by 69 to 97 per cent
thereby allowing time
for the healthcare sys-
tem to shore up resourc-
es and infrastructure.
In the scenario of in-
tensified public health
measures with 60 per
cent effectiveness after
lockdown, the demand
can be met until the first
week of November. Af-
ter that, isolation beds
could be inadequate for
5.4 months, ICU beds for
4.6 and ventilators for
3.9 months, projections
by the health research-
ers showed.
However, this short-
fall is estimated to be 83
per cent less than what
it could have been with-
out the lockdown and
public health measures.
With sustained gov-
ernmentstepsatincreas-
ing the infrastructure
anddifferentpaceof epi-
demic in different re-
gions, the impact of un-
metneedcanbereduced.
If the coverage of public
health measures can be
increased to 80 per cent,
theepidemiccanbemiti-
gated, the researchers
stated. Turn on P6
New Delhi: Amid ris-
ing concern over the
rapid growth of the
novel coronavirus cas-
es, Union Home Min-
ister Amit Shah on
Sunday held a meeting
with Delhi LG Anil Bai-
jal, CM Arvind Kejri-
wal, Union Health Min-
ister Harsh Vardhan
and others to discuss
the situation in Delhi.
Shah said Centre and
Delhi government
would have to work in
tandem to make the
country as well as the
national capital healthy
and coronavirus
Turn on P6
Notoveryet!
Corona peak in India may arrive mid-Nov,
paucity of ICU beds, ventilators likely: Study
India won’t compromise
on national pride: Singh
New Delhi: Amid a
standoff with China on
Ladakh border, Defence
Minister Rajnath Sin-
gh said on Sunday that
Indiawillnevercompro-
mise on its ‘national
pride,’ asserting that its
security capability has
risen and it is no longer
a “weak” country.
Speaking at a virtual
‘Jan Samvad’ rally for
J&K, Singh also assured
the Opposition that Cen-
tralgovernmentwillnot
keep Parliament or any-
one in dark about devel-
opments on border. “I
want to assure that we
will not compromise
with national pride un-
der any circumstance.
India has become strong
in its national security.
Indiaisnolongeraweak
India. Our strength has
risen. But this strength
is not meant to frighten
anyone. If we are in-
creasing our strength
wearedoingsotosecure
ourcountry,”Singhsaid.
P5
A doctor in PPE suit collects swab sample for COVID-19 testing at
PHC, in Gurugram. —PHOTO BY ANI
‘Centre, state will have to work
jointly to tackle Corona in Delhi’
Union HM Amit Shah on Sunday ordered immediate
transfer of four IAS officers to Delhi govt and attachment
of another two from the Centre to help the national capi-
tal fight the coronavirus pandemic. These are Awanish
Kumar & Monica Priyadarshini, Gaurav Singh Rajawat &
Vikram Singh Mallik. Two other senior IAS officers are
SCL Das and SS Yadav from the central government.
SHAH TRANSFERS 4 IAS TO DELHI
EARTHQUAKE OF MAGNITUDE 5.5 STRIKES NEAR
BHUJ IN GUJARAT & 2.9 IN KATRA IN J&K
Ahmedabad: An earthquake of magnitude 5.5 struck near Bhuj in
Kutch district in Gujarat on Sunday evening. The National Center
for Seismology said the epicentre of the earthquake was 118
km north-northwest (NNW) of Rajkot at 8:13 pm. No injuries or
damage to properties have been reported so far. Minutes later,
a 2.9 magnitude tremor was recorded 90 km east of Katra in
Jammu and Kashmir, according to the NCS. P8
SPITTING IN PUBLIC PLACES INCREASES RISK OF
COVID-19 SPREAD: HEALTH MINISTRY
New Delhi: In order to spread awareness regarding COVID-19,
Union Ministry of Health on Sunday asked people not to spit in
public places as it increases the risk of spread of the fatal virus.
“Spitting in public is dangerous to health as it can amplify the
risk of COVID-19. Do not spit in public places,” the Ministry
tweeted. Earlier, some of the states had made spitting
prohibited while imposing fines.
GONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONE
2 1 J A N U A RY 1 9 8 6 - 1 4 J U N E 2 0 2 0
Sushant Singh Rajput
Hum haar jeet,
success failure mein
itna ulajh gaye hai ...
ki zindagi jeena bhool
gaye hai ... zindagi
mein agar kuch sabse
zyada important hai
... toh woh hai khud
zindagi
—Sushant’s dialogue
from Chhichhore TOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOON
GONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONEGONE
TOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOON
GONEGONEGONEGONEGONE
TOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOONTOO SOON
Television-turned-Bollywood
actor, Sushant Singh Rajput’s
sudden and untimely death
came as a shock on Sunday.
The actor was found dead at
his Mumbai residence. Con-
firming suicide, the police said
no suicide note was found.
The actor was 34. According
to reports, it is believed he
was suffering from depres-
sion and was consulting a
psychiatrist for the last six
months. His death shows the
importance of mental health
and why it needs to be taken
more seriously. Bollywood
and sports fraternity, politi-
cians and fans from across
the country mourned the
demise of the versatile actor,
who graced the silver screen
with a variety of commend-
able performances. PM Modi,
HM Amit Shah, CM Ashok
Gehlot and other politicians
condoled Sushant’s demise.
More on City First P4

NEWSAHMEDABAD | MONDAY, JUNE 15, 2020
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Haresh Jhala
Ahmedabad: For the
past few days, former
Chief Minister Shan-
kersinh Vaghela has
started advocating
that Prohibition be
lifted in the state.
This is not the first
time he has raised the
issue either. He has
been vocal in his de-
mand that the govern-
ment either imple-
ment Prohibition ef-
fectively--so that not
even a single drop of
IMFL or country liq-
uor is available in the
state--or it should lift
the ban altogether.
He had considered
liberalizing alcohol
during his short tenure
as chief minister, and
had even had surveys
conductedtogetasense
of the people’s mood.
The report of the sur-
veys, which were done
privately, followed his
line of his thinking but
he did not put it into
practice.
It was not even the
first time the state
government had
thought of lifting
Prohibition.
Prof. TD Lakdawa-
la of the Sardar Patel
Institute for Social
and Economic Re-
search in
Ahmedabad had
conducted the first
study on Prohibition
back in 1965. In 1978,
Prof. Vidhyut Joshi
had conducted a sim-
ilar survey in Surat
district. Both surveys
supported the lifting
of Prohibition. Both
times, the govern-
ment lacked the spine
to implement the
change, fearing back-
lash from people.
In the run-up to the
2017Assemblyelection,
youngsters from
Ahmedabad after con-
ducting a survey had
planned to launch a
party called Smart Par-
ty, which would make
lifting Prohibition
an election
plank. The
party had
even consid-
ered lifting all
Prohibition-
related cases.
On the one hand, the
state is implementing
the Prohibition law
more strictly, even in-
creasing liquor permit
feestoshowitscommit-
ted to the ban. At the
same time, the same
government has re-
laxed a few norms in
the name of attracting
industrial investments
and promotion. In the
last two decades, the
state has indirectly re-
laxed Prohibition. Per-
mits are now issued for
business meetings or
seminars, and--while
the medical board that
approves liquor per-
mits on health grounds
has been reduced from
26 to just six--the num-
ber of permit holders
has risen to 70,000.
These permit holders
can buy alcohol from 66
permitshopsacrossthe
state.
Vaghela is well
aware that, if the is-
sue is raised, it will
garner good support
base among young-
sters and non-Gujara-
tis--segments that to-
gether constitute 35-
40% of votes in the
state.
In the 1990s, police
officer-turned IPS Jas-
pal Singh had alleged
on the floor of the
House that as much as
Rs700 crore of liquor
was smuggled and
sold in the state at the
time. More recently,
another former IPS of-
ficer, Rahul Sharma,
stated liquor is avail-
able anywhere in the
state for those willing
to pay for it.
He is also aware that
opposing Prohibition
or calling it a farce, is
the prerogative of an
opposition party. Tradi-
tionally, the party one
inpowerwilldefendthe
policy, whether it is the
Congress or the BJP.
If Vaghela or any
other leader or politi-
cal party is really in-
terested in knowing
if people are in fa-
vour or against Pro-
hibition, why isn’t
anyone demanding a
referendum?
They will not do it,
not for fear of losing
the referendum it-
self, but for fear of
losing the votes of
women and 40-plus
men. This is also why
despite making Pro-
hibition law stricter
in the state, Prime
Minister Narendra
Modi has not yet act-
ed on Bihar Chief
Minister Nitish Ku-
mar’s 2016 demand to
ban liquor across the
nation.
Ratherthanallowing
people to drink spuri-
ous country liquor and
get killed in another
“hooch tragedy”, or
having them resort to
overpriced IMFL, it is
time the state goes for a
referendum. But will
either the ruling party
or the opposition risk
asking the people what
they think?
New Delhi: Prime Min-
ister Narendra Modi on
Sunday invited sugges-
tions from the people for
his monthly radio ad-
dress ‘Mann ki Baat’
which is scheduled to
take place on June 28.
“This month’s
#MannKiBaat will
take place on the 28th.
Though 2 weeks away,
please keep the ideas
and inputs coming!
It’ll enable me to go
through the maxi-
mum number of com-
ments and phone
calls. Am sure you’ll
have much to say, on
fighting COVID-19
and topics in addition
to that,” he wrote on
Twitter.
The Prime Minister
also gave a number for
the people to record
their messages, and
urged them to post their
suggestions on the
NaMo app and other fo-
rums like MyGov.
In the last few epi-
sodes of “Mann Ki
Baat”, PM Modi has
primarily focused on
India’s fight against
the coronavirus pan-
demic, highlighted
the work of frontline
workers and shared
experiences of people
who have recovered
from the disease. In
May, the address came
a day after the govern-
ment announced a
phased exit from the
lockdown.
With relaxations an-
nounced on travel and
commercial activities,
PM Modi had urged peo-
ple to strictly adhere to
social distancing, wear
masks at all times and
frequently wash their
hands with soap.
Since then, the num-
ber of day-on-day fresh
coronavirus cases has
jumped from about 8,000
a day to almost 12,000
cases a day, with the na-
tional tally touching 3.2
lakh.
He had also exhorted
people to adopt yoga and
gave examples of how
people across the world,
including international
leaders, were turning to
ayurveda and yoga to
boost their immu-
nity. —PTI
New Delhi: Prime Minister Nar-
endra Modi on Sunday greeted
the people of Odisha on “Raja
Parba”, hoping that the festival
strengthens the spirit of broth-
erhood in society.
Raja Parba is a three-day-long
festival. The second day sig-
nifies the beginning
of the solar
month of
“Mithuna” marking the begin-
ning of rains, according to the
Odisha tourism website.
“Greetings on the very special
festival of Raja Parba. May this
occasion strengthen the spirit of
joy and brotherhood in society,”
Modi tweeted in Odiya and Eng-
lish. “I also pray for the good
health and well-being of my
fellow citizens,” he said. —PTI
PM GREETS ON RAJA PARBA FESTIVAL
Greetings on the very special
festival of Raja Parba. May
this occasion strengthen the
spirit of joy and brotherhood
in society.
‘You’ll have much to say’: PM invites ideas for Mann ki Baat
The state government in a memorandum
to the 15th finance commission in 2018
has demanded Rs9,864 crore as compen-
sation against the revenue loss annually
because of Prohibition.
State government memorandum
The one thing most deplorable next to
untouchability is the drink curse.
Mahatma Gandhi’s views
on alcohol consumption in 1925
Our prohibition
policy is full of hy-
pocrisy. On paper,
it is prohibited and
on the ground, it is
available--whether
it is country liquor
or IMFL. At some
places, it has
grown into a
tiny industry. So, it is in the interest
of the state and the society that pro-
hibition should be lifted.
Khumansinh Vansiya, former Vaghela associate
If the state is serious about
implementing Prohibi-
tion strictly, then it
should seal the state
borders. If it is not do-
ing so, that means money
is reaching somewhere at the
top in the system.
Paresh Dhanani, LoP
TIME FOR A TIPPLE?ISSUE COMES UP AHEAD OF ELECTIONS, AGAIN
Politicians fear backlash even
if they think liberalization of
liquor is a good idea
Man carries a carton of beer out of a permit
shop in Ahmedabad.
People lined up to buy alcohol at permit shops in
Ahmedabad on Day One of Unlock 1.0. —FILE PHOTO
Gargi Raval
Ahmedabad: Lead-
er of the Opposi-
tion Paresh Dha-
nani on Sunday
told the people of
Abdasa that the
party had been in a
hurry to select a
candidate ahead of
the 2017 Assembly
elections. He, Ar-
jun Modhwadia
and other Congress
leaders are cur-
rently touring re-
gions left without
an elected repre-
sentative in the
wake of the recent
resignations of
party MLAs. Ab-
dasa in Saurashtra
had been the con-
stituency of Prady-
umansinh Jadeja,
who resigned in
March.
“We want to tell
you that the entire
Congress party is by
your side. So, al-
though you don’t
have elected repre-
sentatives during
this time of crisis,
you are not alone,”
he said, adding, “In
2017, the candidate
was nominated in a
hurry without dou-
ble-checking.”
Likening Jade-
ja’s nomination to
buying a pot with-
out checking it, he
said, “Our pot was
not checked prop-
erly. So even though
you filled it with
your love and
warmth, it broke.
We will make sure
to double-check
our pot now.”
He said the party
welcomed sugges-
tions for “a better
pot” and added, “We
are sure that you will
fill the pot with love
in the upcoming by-
election.”
Dhanani also
said, “This is the
misfortune of the
democracy. Those
who we nurture
with blood and
sweat and make
them leaders and
MLAs then deceive
the mandate. In
truth, they are de-
ceiving the people
and not the party.”
He further took a
swing at Jadeja
personally saying,
“Once upon a time,
a Jadeja would give
or even take life for
a promise. But this
person has sold the
dreams of people
for money.”
He pointed out
that while the by-
elections will not
bring a change in
government at either
the national or state
level, the people’s
mandate would help
“revive democracy”.
Will be careful
while making
candidate’s
selection: LoP
Says the Congress party nominated
Pradyumansinh Jadeja for 2017
Assembly elections ‘in a hurry’
Paresh Dhanani

First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: The Con-
gress party has
termed the recent
fuel price hike as,
“nothing but profi-
teering by the ruling
party”. The opposi-
tion also alleged that
the BJP was execut-
ing an economic
strike on people.
Expressing his con-
cern about the effects of
the fuel price hike, lead-
er of opposition Paresh
Dhanani said, “In the
last six years of BJP
rule in the Centre, fuel
prices have seen a rise a
total of 12 times. The
people who proclaimed
to put end to inflation
have looted Rs17 lakh
crore from the public by
increasing the tax on
fuel. A constant fall has
been witnessed in the
international crude oil
price but, that has not
benefitted the people at
all.”
“In the last month it-
self, the prices have
been increased seven
times. The constant
hike is a testament to
the government’s cal-
lous attitude towards
the welfare of the pub-
lic. In fact, this is dou-
bly unfair because due
to COVID-19, many peo-
ple have been left with-
out jobs,” he added.
Dhanani also claimed
that the price hike was
an attempt by the cen-
tral government to loot
citizens, instead of pro-
viding them with relief.
“People should receive
some benefits from the
tax they pay to the gov-
ernment.But,leadersof
the ruling party have
not been doing that. At a
time, when it should be
all-hands-on-deck, most
BJP leaders have gone
underground,” he said.
Govt profiting from fuel price hike, says Congress
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: As pre-
dicted by the weather-
man, the city received
two inches of rainfall
accompanied by thun-
der and lightning in
the early hours of
Sunday morning. The
monsoon showers left
as many as 62 spots
waterlogged and up-
rooted more than 220
trees across the city. A
wall also collapsed
near Mithakhali un-
derpass and as a pre-
cautionary measure,
the underpass was
kept shut to the public
on Sunday.
Interestingly, Mayor
Bijal Patel, who has out
of the public eye for
nearlythreemonths,ap-
preciated the efforts of
the elected wing offic-
ers. On the other hand,
leader of opposition in
the civic body Dinesh
Sharma insisted that
the system has not been
effectiveenoughtotack-
le the pre-monsoon
preparations.
“I think the mayor is
happy to see that the
pre-monsoon prepara-
tions have failed and
new contracts for re-
pairs would be given. It
is a mutually beneficial
relationship between
the officers and the rul-
ing party. The latter
knows that the former
will help them in the
upcoming election.
And, the officers know
that they will keep re-
ceiving a percentage of
commission for the
work,” he said, adding,
“Hatkeshwar, SP Ring
Road, Bapunagar, Gota
are among the places
most prone to waterlog-
ging during monsoon.
Why are the officers not
resolvingtheproblem?”
Meanwhile, the In-
dian Meteorological
Department (IMD) has
predicted “heavy to
very heavy” rainfall in
several districts in
South Gujarat and Sau-
rashtra over the next
five days. Central Guja-
rat and Saurashtra-
Kutch region will like-
ly receive light to mod-
erate rainfall with
thunderstorms.
The Met office also
said that the mon-
soon has advanced to
cover the South Guja-
rat region till Surat.
Ahmedabad, Gandhi-
nagar, and Valsad,
and the Union Terri-
tory of Dadra and
Nagar Haveli re-
ceived heavy rainfall
in the last 24 hours.
2 inches of rain in 2 hours leaves several areas of Ahmedabad waterlogged and 220 trees uprooted; 5 more days of heavy rain likely
A man rides his two-wheeler through a flooded street in Dharnidhar area of Ahmedabad.
An AMC worker watches as water drains into an open manhole. A hoarding ripped off its frame flew across the road in Satellite.
State mortality high at 6.25% but
Unlock 1.0 to continue unabated
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: Guja-
rat might claim to be
handling the COV-
ID-19 crisis well, but
its mortality rate re-
mains a high 6.25%.
And Chief Minister
Vijay Rupani has gone
on record to quash ru-
mours that the state
may be planning to
reimpose lockdown.
BJP councillor at the
Ahmedabad Municipal
Corporation Gayapras-
ad Kanojiya, who died
on Sunday, is the third
member of his family to
succumb to the disease,
which has also claimed
two of his brothers.
Ahmedabad has a
mortality rate of 7.2%.
As of Sunday morning,
the city had 3,282 active
cases. It has seen a total
of 15,762 positive cases
and 1,141 deaths, 25 of
which were reported in
the preceding 24 hours.
Ahmedabad rural
has reported 29 cases:
14 from Dholka, five
each from Daskroi and
Viramgam, and one
each from Bavla, De-
troj, Dhandhuka, San-
and and Mandal talu-
ka. With this, total
positive cases in rural
areas has touched 571;
128 are still active.
With three more deaths
reported on Sunday,
the death toll is 38.
Meanwhile, in Va-
dodara, 67 patients are
on oxygen and 26 are
on ventilators. There
are, in all, 411 patients
receiving treatment
for COVID-19.
In Surat, four front-
line warriors have test-
ed positive: a doctor and
a nurse from SMIMER,
the medical officer of
the Urban Health Cen-
tre and a private doctor.
All four are now under
treatment.
Four persons, all
with a history of travel-
ling to or from Mumbai,
have tested positive in
Rajkot’s Upleta town.
Four Dahod
minors drown
during bath in
local reservoir
Five private
facilities now
COVID-19
hospitals: SMC
First India Bureau
Dahod: Four minor
girls drowned while
taking a bath in the
Pata Dungri reser-
voir in Gungardi vil-
lage of Dahod district
on Saturday evening.
The victims, who
were all related to each
other, have been identi-
fied as Payal Bhambhor
(12), Mital Bhambhor
(11), Jyotsana Bhamb-
hor (10) and Nilam
Bhambhor (8). The girls
had gone to the out-
skirts of the village for
cattle grazing, when
they decided to take
bath in the reservoir,
said an official from
Garbada police station.
When one of the girls
was drowning due to
the depth of water in
the reservoir, the other
three tried to save her.
However, all four start-
ed drowning and died
while trying to save
each other,” said police
sub-inspector Yogesh
Rathwa.
Local divers later
fished out their bodies
late at night, which
were sent to a local com-
munity health centre
for post-mortem. The
bodies of the girls were
handed over to their
families after the post-
mortem for final rites.
First India Bureau
Surat: The Surat Mu-
nicipal Corporation
(SMC) has declared
five private hospitals
in the city as COV-
ID-19 hospitals.
These hospitals will
treat patients infected
with Sars-CoV-2 and
that too at charges as
outlined by the govern-
ment. If patients re-
ferred from Civil and
SMIMER hospitals are
treated at any one of
these five medical cen-
tres, the rates will be
issued by local civic
body SMC and the state
government. Even if a
patient infected with
novel coronavirus
seeks treatment at
these hospitals then
the same charges will
be applicable.
The private hospitals
designated as COV-
ID-19 hospitals include
Sparkle Hospital for
Varachha-Katargam
zone, Venus Hospital,
Prannath Hospital and
BAPS Hospital for pa-
tients of Adajan-Rand-
er zone and Mahavir
Super Speciality Hospi-
tal for patients of Ath-
wa-Nanpura-Vesu zone.
Around 50% beds at
these hospitals will be
reserved for patients
referred by the SMC.
BJP MP trolled
on social media
First India Bureau
Vadodara: Chhota
Udepur BJP MP
Geetaben Rathwa re-
ceived warm birthday
wishes on her Face-
book page on Sunday.
Just 36 hours prior,
Rathwa was trolled
on social media by
her alleged followers
who had asked her to
share her stance on
tribal reservation.
On Friday, the MP
had posted photographs
of herself distributing
ukala (hot drink) to vil-
lagers in Dabhoi taluka.
Commenting on a pic-
ture, a person named
Ashok Rathva said that
the state government
and judiciary were act-
ing as if they were go-
ing to scrap the tribal
reservation. He also
asked Geetaben about
her stance on the issue
and whether she will
support them or not.
In turn, Geetaben told
Rathva to do social ser-
vice work in his village,
rather than talk about
what she should be do-
ing. This led to more
trolling with some com-
mentors reminding her
thatshehadbeenelected
to a reserved seat.
When one troll
pointed out that she
was elected because
of his vote, she re-
plied, “`Don’t vote for
me now.”
A health worker sanitizes the Paldi crematorium. —FILE PHTOTO
GUJARATAHMEDABAD | MONDAY, JUNE 15, 2020
As rainwater flooded the streets, Ahmedabad’s Hatkeshwar area,
which faces waterlogging on a regular basis, began to resemble
an island. —PHOTOS BY NANDAN DAVE
A city signboard was no match for the winds
that whipped across Ahmedabad’s Bima
Nagar area on Saturday night.
A constant fall has been seen
in international crude oil
prices but, that has not ben-
efitted the people at all.
Paresh Dhanani, Leader of the Opposition
RAIN SPELLS
TROUBLE

G Vol 1 G Issue No. 200 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 | MONDAY, JUNE 15, 2020
hat if you never
had to return to
work? Never
had to return to
work at the of-
fice, that is.
You’d be able to juggle
kids on school holidays.
You wouldn’t need to navi-
gate traffic jams. Your em-
ployer might gain in-
creased productivity, lower
turnover and lower lease
costs. But there are less ob-
vious downsides.
It seems like a grand
idea…
Studies find working
from home cuts commuting
times and associated fa-
tigue, transport congestion,
andenvironmentalimpacts.
Worldwide, an increasing
numberof employersareal-
lowing it in order to attract
and retain staff.
Employees value it as a
way to maintain a work-life
balance, in particular mil-
lennials.
And the office has be-
come a nightmare for some.
A tide of research finds
many employees working
in modern open-plan offic-
es are so distracted by noise
and interruptions they
can’t concentrate.
In my research on the
workplace, employees fre-
quently tell me they have to
work from home to get
work done.
Other research supports
these findings. A two-year
study using randomly as-
signed groups found a 13%
productivity increase. It
also found turnover de-
creased by 50% among
those working at home and
that they took shorter
breaks and fewer sick days.
And the company saved
around US$2,000 (A$2,784)
peremployeeonleasecosts.
It’s enough to make em-
ployers allow working
from home for everyone
who can. But a key finding
from the same study
sounds a cautionary note.
More than half the vol-
unteers that worked from
home felt so isolated they
changed their minds about
wanting to do it all the time.
…until you try it
It’s not just isolation and
loneliness.
Research shows working
from home is far worse for
team cohesion and innova-
tion than working in the
office.
In 2013 Yahoo chief ex-
ecutive Marissa Meyer
banned working from
home, saying that in order
“to become the absolute
best place to work, commu-
nication and collaboration
will be important, so we
need to be working side-by-
side. That is why it is criti-
cal that we are all present
in our offices.”
Since then, other large
corporates including Bank
of America and IBM have
followed suit.
Contrary to what we
might think, research
shows that as the availabil-
ity of laptops and other
remote work devices in-
creases, proximity has be-
coming more important.
One study showed that
engineers who shared a
physical office were 20%
more likely to stay in touch
digitally than those who
worked remotely. Employ-
ees who were in the same
office emailed four times
as often to collaborate on
shared projects than staff
who weren’t in the office.
The result, for these sorts
of projects, was 32% faster
project completion times.
Other research finds
face to face interaction is
essential for identifying
opportunities for collabo-
ration, innovation and de-
veloping relationships and
networks.
Another study of home
workers from 15 countries
found 42% of remote work-
ers had trouble sleeping,
waking up repeatedly in
the night, compared to
only 29% who always
worked in the office.
FOR FULL REPORT LOG ON TO
WWW.THECONVERSATION.COM
Working from home has surprising downsides
W
More than half
the volunteers that
worked from home
felt so isolated
they changed
their minds about
wanting to do
it all the time
In separateness lies the
world’s greatest misery; in
compassion lies the world’s
true strength —Buddha
Spiritual
SPEAK
Top
TWEET
Piyush Goyal @PiyushGoyal
From a ‘fragile 5 economy’ to the
world’s fastest-growing major
economy, India under PM @
NarendraModi ji’s transformational
reforms has grown unprecedentedly.
#NewIndiaNewEconomy is
evolving continuously to be globally
competitive & reliable.
Dharmendra Pradhan
@dpradhanbjp
Visited the Baghjan blowout site to
review the situation on the ground. I
was accompanied by Hon’ble Chief
Minister, Assam, @sarbanandsonwal
ji and Shri @cmpatowary ji during
the visit. We also took stock of the
ongoing operation to control the ﬁre
and cap the well.
he current political scenario
prevailing in the State is fo-
cused on numbers available
to Congress for RS voting.
The voter list includes six
MLAs elected on BSP tickets
but being shown as Congress
MLAs. Six BSP MLAs if sub-
jected to disqualification un-
der Schedule X, could not be
lawfully shown as members
of INC in the list which may
render the list as illegal and
also disturb the number
game to a great extent.
Schedule-X of the Consti-
tution prescribed that MLA
belonging to any political
party shall be disqualified
for being a member of the
House if he has voluntarily
given up his membership of
such political party. The BSP
MLAs have voluntarily given
up their membership in BSP.
The para 4 of the schedule X
provides that where the
original political party
merges with another po-
litical party and MLA
claims that he and any
other members of his orig-
inal political party have
become members of such
other political party, A
member of a House shall
not be disqualified. The
schedule further provides
that “original political par-
ty”, in relation to a member
of a House, means the politi-
cal party to which he belongs
and merger of the original
political party of a mem-
ber of a House shall be
deemed to have taken place
if, and only if, not less than
two-thirds of the members
of the legislature party
concerned have agreed to
such merger. On a previous
occasion also, to come out of
the clutches of the disquali-
fication, the subterfuge of
the merger of the entire BSP
legislative party into Con-
gress was created.
The constitutional man-
date thus declares that Until
the original political party
(Parent party) merges itself in
the other political party and
until not less than two-thirds
of the members of the legisla-
ture party concerned have
agreed to such a merger, there
is no legally acceptable merg-
er. The Constitution has re-
spected the popular man-
date so much that even the
merger of the parent party
is inconsequential if not
supported with the consent
of not less than two-thirds
of the party’s MLAs in the
State. The party affiliations
of winning BSP MLAs were
duly notified in the Gazette
on 12.12.2018. However, all
BSP MLAs reportedly joined
Indian National Congress in
September 2019/ January
2020 without their original
political party BSP getting
merged in the INC. Hence,
the disqualification incurred
by voluntarily giving up the
membership of BSP is well
proven and attracted disqual-
ification. Hon’ble Speaker ac-
cepted such abrupt snapping
of affiliations of six BSP
MLAs with their party, and
freshly described as INC
MLAs was placed on records
of Vidhan Sabha. Thus, the
popular mandate of concern-
ing constituencies was sub-
jected to a calculated change,
though under a pretense of
legality. However, many of
the self-appointed crusaders
for preserving the democracy
and moral values in public
life preferred to keep silent
on this violence with the Con-
stitution, that was smoothly
executed and the illegality
exists as on date also.
The catch further lies in
the provisions of schedule X
whereby if any question aris-
es as to whether a member of
a House has become subject
to disqualification under this
Schedule, the question shall
be referred for the decision of
the Speaker of such House
and his decision shall be fi-
nal. Again, Hon’ble Speaker
would feel “constrained” to
drag the decision on a peti-
tion seeking disqualification
till the last day of the govern-
ment in power and the Courts
would be keeping their hands
off because first, the judg-
ment has to come from the
Speaker. In this vicious jug-
gernaut, the Constitution of-
ten addressed as the supreme
Lex, slips into oblivion. In
Mayawati v Markandeya
Chand and Others Supreme
Court expressed that every
Speaker must fix a schedule
in the relevant rules for dis-
posal of the proceedings for
disqualification of MLAs or
MPs and all such proceedings
shall be concluded and orders
shouldbepassedwithinthree
weeks from the date on which
the petitions are taken on the
file. Another grey area is that
the vigilant members of the
public, who may challenge
the illegality by preferring
disqualification petitions are
shown the gate on the ground
that the petition ought to be
submitted by a member of
the House.
The glaring question,
therefore, proposes whether
the popular mandate of a
particular constituency
could be allowed to be
changed overnight by the de-
fecting legislative party or
MLAs by an “enacted merg-
er”? As a necessary corollary,
the legality of the exercise of
power to directly overturn
the notified result of the elec-
tion by way of an administra-
tive order of the Speaker is
also to be examined as it is
not traceable to any statutory
or another source of power.
The writing of a well-defined
act of violating the constitu-
tional mandate is though
clearly visible on the wall,
and Speakers and Courts
may approve it based on any
reasons bearing a semblance
of justice having been done,
but does such a situation
pass the litmus test of moral-
ity in public life? Is there no
legal respite or remedy for
the hapless ordinary voter,
who is left high and dry due
to a sudden change of elec-
tion results at the hands of a
party which was voted out by
them in the election that was
held in that constituency?
There may not be a more ex-
plicit example of practising
such a “clear fraud upon the
constitution, democracy and
the public” and committing
violence with morality in
public life, which inciden-
tally also suggests, though
sadly enough, the silent ac-
ceptance by all concerned
including Constitutional
courts. It will be only appro-
priate to say that the voice of
popular mandate gets muz-
zled and the Speakers of As-
semblies, all over the coun-
try, irrespective of the party
they belong to, have largely
disowned the pious expecta-
tions of being fair and judi-
cious as laid upon their
shoulders by Schedule X.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
THE ‘X’ FACTOR
CONUNDRUM IN RS POLL
T
Schedule-X of
the Constitution
prescribed that
MLA belonging
to any political
party shall be
disqualified for
being a member
of the House if he
has voluntarily
given up his
membership of
such political
party. The BSP
MLAs have
voluntarily
given up their
membership in
BSP. The para 4
of the schedule X
provides that
where the
original political
party merges
with another
political party
and MLA
claims that he
and any other
members of his
original political
party have
become members
of such other
political party
THE GLARING QUESTION, THEREFORE, PROPOSES
WHETHER THE POPULAR MANDATE OF A
PARTICULAR CONSTITUENCY COULD BE ALLOWED
TO BE CHANGED OVERNIGHT BY THE DEFECTING
LEGISLATIVE PARTY OR MLAS BY AN “ENACTED
MERGER”? AS A NECESSARY COROLLARY, THE
LEGALITY OF THE EXERCISE OF POWER TO
DIRECTLY OVERTURN THE NOTIFIED RESULT OF
THE ELECTION BY WAY OF AN ADMINISTRATIVE
ORDER OF THE SPEAKER IS ALSO TO BE
EXAMINED AS IT IS NOT TRACEABLE TO ANY
“STATUTORY OR ANY OTHER SOURCE OF POWER”
HEMANT
NAHTA
Advocate, Rajasthan
High Court

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New Delhi: Accusa-
tions against police
over its probe into the
northeast Delhi vio-
lence could be ‘motivat-
ed’ and are also direct-
ed at the court of law,
the chief of the force,
SN Shrivastava, has
said.
In February, the
northeastern parts of
Delhi were rocked by
violence that claimed at
least 53 lives and in-
jured many people.
The police have been
criticised for their han-
dling of the investiga-
tion in various quar-
ters, including by stu-
dent activists, filmmak-
ers and civil society
groups, who have ac-
cused the force of car-
rying out a “witchhunt”
at a time when the coun-
try is battling the coro-
navirus pandemic.
“You can also expect
many such accusations
to be motivated & com-
ing from people who
may have reasons to
make false accusa-
tions.” Probe has been
carried responsibly, he
said. —PTI
INDIAAHMEDABAD | MONDAY, JUNE 15, 2020
5 DEAD, 3 MISSING AS LANDSLIDE
SWEEPS HOUSES IN WEST NEPAL
Kathmandu: Five bodies
have been recovered
from debris after a
landslide swept at least
three houses in Kushma
Municipality-3 of Parbat
district in Western Nepal.
However, three people are
missing since the land-
slide which was triggered
by incessant rainfall since
Saturday, a local official
confirmed. “Five bodies
have been recovered from
the debris, they are from
the same family. However,
three others are still miss-
ing since the landslide
which swept the houses
at around 9 pm yesterday.
The District Administra-
tion Office has sent more
forces and equipment to
aid search and rescue op-
eration in the area, Chief
District Officer confirmed.
2 MEN, BJP LEADER, HELD FOR
SUPPLYING TRACTOR TO NAXALS
Dantewada: Two people, including local BJP lead-
er Jagat Pujari, have been arrested for allegedly
supplying tractor to Naxals, the police said. “We
got to know through informers that Jagat Pujari
was active in this and meets the Naxals. A few
days ago, we got to know from informers that
these people were buying a tractor with the help of
Jagat. He has been supplying things to Naxals for
the past 10 years,” said Superintendent of Police
Abhishek Pallav. Pallav informed that investigation
is underway & more suppliers will be nabbed soon.
SOCIAL DISTANCING NORMS
FLOUTED DURING BJP EVENT
Sagar: Amid COVID-19 pandemic, social distanc-
ing norms were allegedly flouted during a party
joining programme of the Bharatiya Janata Party
in Sagar district on Saturday, informed a few
sources from the Saffron party. State Minister
Govind Singh Rajput was also present at the
event. According to the data released by Union
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, there are
10,641 COVID-19 cases in Madhya Pradesh, out
of which 2,817 are active, 7,377 have been cured/
discharged/migrated and 447 have died.
8 MIGRANT WORKERS INJURED IN
ACCIDENT IN UP’S SAMBHAL
Sambhal: Eight per-
sons were injured after
a car carrying migrant
workers rammed into a
truck in Gunnaur town
of Sambhal district on
Sunday, officials from the
Department of Police said
while informing about the
incident. A team of Police
officers reached the spot
where the mishap took
place. The injured people
have been admitted to a
hospital, said a few reli-
able sources from the De-
partment of Police.“Eight
people were injured in the
accident. In which five
people have been dis-
charged and three people
have sustained serious
injuries and are undergo-
ing treatment,” said Circle
Officer (CO), Gunnaur
district, Dr KK Saroj.
New Delhi: The fate
and picture of Jammu
and Kashmir will
change in the years to
come under PM Modi’s
leadership, defence
minister Rajnath Singh
said while addressing
the ‘Jammu Jan Sam-
vad rally’ via video con-
ferencing on Sunday.
The minister said
that, under PM Modi’s
leadership, Jammu and
Kashmir will touch
great heights and “peo-
ple from the Pakistan
occupied Kashmir
(PoK) will wish they
were part of India”.
“Just wait, soon peo-
ple of PoK will demand
that they want to be
with India and not un-
der the rule of Paki-
stan, and the day this
happens, a goal of our
Parliament will also be
accomplished,” he said.
The minister said
that earlier in Kashmir,
protests demanding
‘Kashmir azaadi’ were
held and flags of Paki-
stan and ISIS were seen.
“Now only Indian flag is
seen there,” he said.
“Many landmark de-
cisions were taken un-
der PM Modi’s leader-
ship and the abrogation
of Article 370 was one
of them,” Singh said.
The Defence Minister
talked in detail about
the abrogation of Arti-
cle 370 and described
the move in tune with
the development and
progress of Jammu and
Kashmir. He said that
the development of the
region is among the top
priorities of the Modi
government.
“Our promise as a
party back in the days
of Jan Sangha was ful-
filled right after we
formed the government
with a thumping major-
ity last year. Article 370
and 35A were removed
within 100 days of form-
ing government at the
Centre,” Singh stated.
Singh said that PM
Modi has bolstered In-
dia’s footing interna-
tionally. Global powers
respect & laud the coun-
try, he said. “Earlier, at
international plat-
forms, most countries
used to side with Paki-
stan over the matter of
Kashmir and Article
370, that isn’t the case
now,” he noted. —ANI
Mumbai: Admitting to
‘issues’ within the coa-
lition government in
Maharashtra, Congress
leader Ashok Chavan
blamed bureaucrats for
creating a rift among
Maha Vikas Aghadi
(MVA) and added that
his party will soon take
up the matter with Shiv
Sena chief and Maha-
rashtra CM Uddhav
Thackeray.
“Yes there are some
issues (between MVA
allies and Bureaucracy)
We are trying to meet
him and then we will
discuss all our issues
with him in detail. We
expect a meeting in the
next two days,” Chavan
said.
Earlier, state Con-
gress chief and minis-
ter Balasaheb Thorat
also commented on the
same and said, “We
have some issues which
willberesolvedthrough
dialogues among MVA
partners but we want to
say that Congress must
be given its due in the
decision-making pro-
cess of the govern-
ment.” RPI leader Ram-
das Athawale also ad-
vised Congress to re-
think about giving sup-
port to government.
“Congress is the party
on whose support this
government is function-
ing. If the party is not
valued in alliance then
they should rethink
about being ruling alli-
ance,” he had said. —ANI
New Delhi: An Army
personnel was killed
and two others were in-
jured after Pakistani
troops opened fire and
resorted to shelling
along the LoC in Poonch
district of J& K.
This is the third fatal-
ity this month due to
Pakistani firing and
shelling on forward
posts and villages in the
twin districts of Poonch
and Rajouri.
The firing, officials
said, took place in Shah-
pur-Kerni sector on Sat-
urday night, prompting
the Army to strongly
retaliate.Three Army
personnel were injured
and were immediately
evacuated to hospital,
where one of them suc-
cumbed to injuries, the
officials added.
The officials also said
that the casualties suf-
fered by the Pakistani
Army in the retaliatory
action were yet to be
clarified.
Three days ago, an
Army soldier was
killed and a civilian in-
jured in Mendhar sec-
tor after Pakistani
troops resorted to un-
provoked mortar shell-
ing and small arms fire
at various places in Ra-
jouri and Poonch dis-
tricts. Army PRO Lt
Colonel Devender
Anand said. —PTI
‘Fate of J&K will change’Development of the region is among the top priorities of Modi govt, said Defence Minister Rajnath Singh
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh addresses the J&K Jan-Samvad virtual rally at BJP HQs on Sunday.
The violence broke out in Northeastern parts of Delhi in February
this year, which claimed 53 lives and injured many people.
Ashok Chavan
Just wait, soon people of PoK will
demand that they want to be with
India and not under the rule of Pa-
kistan, and the day this happens, a goal of
our Parliament will also be accomplished.
—Rajnath Singh, Defence Minister
BUREAUCRATS BEHIND RIFT
NORTHEAST DELHI VIOLENCE
PRASHANT KISHOR ATTACKS NITISH KUMAR
Congress leader
Chavan admits to
‘issues’ within MVA
Army jawan
killed, 2 injured
in Pak firing in
Poonch district
Charges against police over incident
probe can be‘motivated,’ says Top Cop
‘With over 6k cases, Bihar
discussing polls, not virus’
Patna/ New Delhi:
Election-strate gist
Prashant Kishor at-
tacked Bihar Chief
Minister Nitish Kumar
for launching poll cam-
paign in the state,
where assembly elec-
tions are due later this
year amid the country’s
battle against coronavi-
rus. Last week, Ku-
mar’s Janata Dal Unit-
ed and its ally, the BJP,
went into election mode
in the state, where polls
are due in October-No-
vember. Amit Shah had
held a virtual rally
while Kumar held a se-
ries of interactions
with his party’s district
chiefs.
“Despite the lowest
testing rate, 7-9 %posi-
tive case rate and more
than 6,000 cases, Bihar
is discussing elections
instead of coronavirus.
Nitish Kumar, who had
confined himself to his
home amid coronavirus
fears, thinks people
won’t be exposed (to
COVID-19) if they step
out of their homes to
participate in the elec-
tions,” Prashant Kishor
tweeted in Hindi.
The attack by Kishor
is the latest in a series
of tweets he posted
against Bihar’s re-
sponse to coronavirus.
Kumar, 69, has probably
been one of the few
chief ministers in the
country who did not
hold a vc for journalists
or people on the pan-
demic after lockdown
wasannouncedtocheck
the spread of Corona in
March. —Agencies
Brace for possible flood
challenge: Nitish to officials
Patna: Amid fore-
casts of monsoon
reaching Bihar in a
couple of days, CM
Nitish Kumar
stressed on the need
for dealing with
floods, which may
follow the downpour,
without neglecting
the measures in
place for containing
the spread of COV-
ID-19. At a high-level
meeting that he
chaired, Kumar di-
rected officials to
make arrangements
so that those dis-
placed by floods are
relocated at camps
without compromis-
ing on social distanc-
ing norms. “I wish
that floods do not rav-
age north Bihar this
year. But, we must
need to be prepared,”
he told the officials,
referring to the natu-
ral calamity which is
known to strike al-
most every year.
Bihar CM Nitish Kumar
Prashant Kishor
TAKING STOCK...
Visited the Baghjan
blowout site to
review the situation
on the ground. I
was accompanied
by Hon’ble Chief
Minister, Assam, @
sarbanandsonwal
ji and Shri @
cmpatowary ji during
the visit. We also took
stock of the ongoing
operation to control
the fire and cap the
well.
Dharmendra Pradhan
@dpradhanbjp

New Delhi: The SC
granted interim protec-
tion from arrest till July
6 to journalist Vinod
Dua in a sedi-
tion case filed
against him
following a
complaint by a
local BJP lead-
er in Shimla
over his You-
Tube show.
In a special
hearing, a
benchcompris-
ing Justices U U Lalit, M
M Shantanagoudar and
Vineet Saran refused to
stay the investigation
but ordered the
Himachal Pradesh Po-
lice to give him 24 hours
time to join the probe.
The order came after
Dua filed a plea seeking
quashing of the sedition
case.Dua has been
charged under sections
124A (sedition), 268
(public nuisance), 501
(printing matter known
to be defamatory) and
505(statements
conducive to
public mis-
chief) on the
basis of a com-
plaint last
month by
BJP’s Mahasu
unit president
Ajay Shyam.
The BJP leader
claimed that
Dua made bizarre alle-
gations on his 15-minute
YouTubeshowonMarch
30. The complainant
has alleged that the
journalist accused P M
Narendra Modi of us-
ing “deaths and terror
attacks” to get votes.
Police in Shimla had
summoned Dua for
probe over a complaint
by a local BJP leader.
INDIAAHMEDABAD | MONDAY, JUNE 15, 2020
New Delhi: The na-
tional capital will soon
receive random testing
kits to enhance COV-
ID-19 testing. The Un-
ion Home Secretary
and senior officials
from the Central gov-
ernment, along with
Delhi government, will
decide the road map on
facilities to be im-
proved in the city to
deal with COVID-19 cri-
sis, sources said.
All agencies have
been directed to work
together along with the
local government and
civic bodies to deal
with coronavirus,
sources added.
The decisions were
taken at a COVID-19
review meeting
chaired by Union
Home Minister Amit
Shah along with Un-
ion Health and Family
Welfare Minister Dr
Harsh Vardhan, which
was also attended by
Delhi LG Anil Baijal
and Chief Minister
Arvind Kejriwal.
This was the first
round of meeting which
lasted for 75 minutes.
The meeting was also
attended by Union
Home Secretary Ajay
Bhalla, Health Secre-
tary Preeti Sudan, Di-
rector AIIMS Dr Ran-
deep Guleria and Mem-
bers of NITI Aayog
apart from other senior
officers. —ANI
RandomkitstoenhancetestingThe national capital, New Delhi will soon receive these kits to improvise various health facilities
An ambulance for COVID-19 patients stands parked at LNJP Hospital in New Delhi. —PHOTO BY PTI
New Delhi: In a re-
lease, the Health Minis-
try said that five of
these have also entered
into an agreement with
Gilead, a biopharma-
ceutical company,
which had applied to
CDSCO, for import and
marketing of Remdesi-
vir on May 29. After
due deliberations, per-
mission under Emer-
gency Use Authoriza-
tion was granted on
June 1 in the interest of
patient safety and ob-
taining further data.
“The applications of
these six companies are
being processed by the
CDSCO on priority and
in accordance with the
laid down procedures.
The companies are at
various intermediate
stages of inspection of
manufacturing facili-
ties, verification of
data, stability testing,
emergency laboratory
testing as per protocol.
Being an injectable for-
mulation, testing for as-
say, identity, impurities,
bacterial endotoxin test
and sterility become
very critical for patient
safety and this data
needs to be provided by
the companies,” the re-
lease read. —ANI
6 firms seek CDSCO’s permit to
manufacture Remdesivir drug
SC grants interim
relief from arrest
SEDITION CASE AGAINST DUA
New Delhi: Congress
leader Priyanka Gan-
dhi Vadra attacked the
Yogi Adityanath-led
government in
Uttar Pradesh
after cases of
people using
forged docu-
ments to se-
cure jobs were
reported from
the state and
said that the
gover nment
“tolerates cor-
rupt practices”.
“Is the education
minister not aware of
such big frauds that are
happening in the state?
Did the Chief Minis-
ter’s office not even
know about it? Surpris-
ingly, those who talk
about zero tolerance are
tolerating corrupt prac-
tices,” she tweeted
(translated from Hindi).
This comes in the back-
drop after an FIR was
lodged against a teach-
er, Anamika Shukla,
who had alleg-
edly with-
drawn over Rs
1 crore in sala-
ry for over a
year from 25
d i f f e r e n t
schools. Shuk-
la was alleged-
ly working as a
teacher in 25
schools for 13
months and was with-
drawing salary from all
of these.
Earlier in the day, in
the Anamika Shukla
case, a woman identi-
fied as Anita Devi was
arrested from Main-
puri by the Ambedkar
Nagar police for using
forged documents to
secure a teaching job at
a school. —ANI
‘UP Govt tolerates
corrupt practices’
Mumbai: Union Minis-
ter Nitin Gadkari said
India is not interested
expansionism, in land
“either from Pakistan
or China”. The country
only wants “peace and
amity”, he said at the
BJP’s virtual ‘‘Jan Sam-
vad’’ rally in Gujarat,
amid a face-off with
China over its trans-
gression in Ladakh.
Speaking of the work
by the Narendra Modi
government -- which
recently completed the
first year of its second
term -- Mr Gadkari
said its biggest achieve-
ment was bringing
peace by dealing with
matters of internal
and external security.
“Whether it is about
almost winning over the
Maoist problem or se-
curing the country from
Pakistan-sponsored ter-
rorism...Wewantpeace,
not violence,” he said
via video-conference
from Nagpur, adding
these are things that
can be established only
by the strength. —PTI
Indian wants peace & amity not
land of Pak or China: Gadkari
Chandigarh: The Pun-
jab Police on Saturday
said it has arrested the
third Lashkar-e-Toiba
(LeT) operative, after
two were arrested ear-
lier this week, for at-
tempting to smuggle
weapons into the Kash-
mir Valley for carrying
out terror attacks.
The two LeT opera-
tives arrested earlier
from Pathankot, along
with weapons, have
beenidentifiedasAamir
Hussain Wani and
Wasim Hassan Wani.
The third accomplice
was arrested while at-
tempting to flee to Kash-
mir, according to the
Punjab police. —ANI
Pb police arrests
third accomplice
of LeT terrorists
ANAMIKA SHUKLA CASE : PRIYANKA SLAMS
New Delhi: In the wake
of COVID-19 pandemic,
the Centre has digitally
launched a web-based
solution for the health-
care supply chain por-
tal ‘Aarogyapath’, to
provide real-time avail-
ability of critical
healthcare supplies for
manufacturers, suppli-
ers and customers.
The Council of Scien-
tific and Industrial Re-
search (CSIR) launched
the portal on June 12.
According to the Min-
istry of Information &
Broadcasting, the inte-
grated public platform
can help customers in
tackling a number of
routinelyexperiencedis-
sues like dependence on
limited suppliers, time-
consuming processes to
identify good quality
products, limited access
to suppliers etc.
It will also help the
manufacturers and sup-
pliers to reach custom-
ers efficiently like near-
by pathological labora-
tories, medical stores,
hospitals, etc.
CSIR is expecting the
portal to fill a critical
gap in last-mile delivery
of patient care within
India through improved
availability of health-
care supplies.It will also
create opportunities for
business expansion due
to an expanded slate of
buyers. As per Health
Ministry, India has wit-
nessed its highest-ever
spikeof 11,458cases,tak-
ingthetallyto3,08,993in
the country so far. —PTI
‘Aarogyapath’
healthcare supply
chain portal launched
BJP state...
However, if the party
wants to make more in-
roads in the OBC vote
bank--where the Con-
gress still has a good
hold--then the front-
runners would be
Shankar Chaudhary
and Haribhai Chaud-
hary. In the past, OBC
leaders like Shan-
kersinh Vaghela,
Kashiram Rana, and
Vajubbhai Vala have
led the party.
The party may also
decide to explore its
third option by
choosing a leader
from the Rajput com-
munity. Although the
community only has
a 4% vote share,
someone with good
organization skills
can head the state
unit, as Rajendrasinh
Rana has in the past.
Currently in the run-
ning are vice-presi-
dent IK Jadeja and
Minister of State for
Home Pradipsinh
Jadeja. For
Pradipsinh, the issue
will be whether or
note the party will
allow him to resign
from the cabinet to
be party president.
Not over...
According to the mod-
el-based analysis for
COVID-19 pandemic in
India, with the addi-
tional capacity which
has been built up for
testing, treating and
isolating patients
during the lockdown
period, the number of
cases at the peak
would come down by
70 per cent and the cu-
mulative cases may
come down by nearly
27 per cent.
In terms of COVID-19
mortality, approximate-
ly 60 per cent deaths
were prevented and
one-third of this mor-
tality prevention is at-
tributed to the reduc-
tion in unmet need for
critical care as a result
of the intervention, the
analysis showed.
The researchers said
the management of
COVID-19 will involve a
dynamic review of pol-
icies and significant
strengthening of the
healthcare system.
“While lockdowns
will delay the onset of
peak and will give the
much needed time for
the health system to re-
spond, strengthening
the health system re-
sponse in terms of test-
ing, isolation of cases,
treatment and contact
tracing, as is being
done currently, will
have to be the mainstay
to reduce the impact of
the pandemic in India
until vaccine becomes
available,” it said.
The overall economic
health system cost of
this pandemic is esti-
mated to be 6.2 per cent
of India’s gross domes-
tic product (GDP).
The ministry on June
9 said coronavirus re-
lated health infrastruc-
ture in the country has
been strengthened with
the availability of 958
dedicated COVID-19
hospitals with 1,67,883
isolation beds, 21,614
ICU and 73,469 oxygen
supported beds.
Also, 2,313 dedicated
COVID Health Centres
with 1,33,037 isolation
beds, 10,748 ICU beds
and 46,635 oxygen sup-
ported beds have also
been operationalised.
Moreover, 7,525 COVID
Care Centres with
7,10,642 beds are now
available to combat
COVID-19inthecountry.
‘Centre, state...
free under the leader-
ship of Prime Minister
Narendra Modi.
“To be able to do con-
tact mapping well in
Delhi’s containment
zones, a comprehensive
health survey of every
person will be done
from house to house.
The report will come in
one week. Aarogya Setu
app will be downloaded
in every person’s mo-
bile,” he tweeted.
The Centre, too on
Sunday announced a
slew of measures to con-
trol the spread of coro-
navirus in Delhi, which
included carrying out a
comprehensive door-to-
door health survey in all
containment zones, dou-
bling of tests in next two
days followed by a three-
fold increase within a
week’s time.
Unable to keep up
with the rising number
of coronavirus cases,
the Delhi government
had asked the Indian
Railways to allocate iso-
lation coaches for
Covid-19 patients of the
national capital. At
least, 500 railway coach-
es with a capacity of
8,000 beds have been al-
located for Delhi. Pri-
vate hospitals, too, have
been told to earmark
60%of bedsforCovid-19
affected patients at less-
er rates. The Centre has
also promised to pro-
vide the Delhi govern-
ment with all necessary
medical resources like
oxygen cylinders, venti-
lators, and all other
equipment to fight the
Covid-19 pandemic.
“Testing for the infec-
tion will be doubled in
the next two days in the
capital and tripled in six
days,” he added. —ANI
FROM PG 1
AWAITING RAINS...
A man walks on a path as Monsoon clouds hover in the skies in Nadia district of West
Bengal on Sunday. —PHOTO BY PTI
New Delhi: India’s
COVID-19 recovery
rate crossed 50 per
cent today even as
the country logged
the biggest single-
day jump of 11,929
new infections in
the last 24 hours,
the government
data said.
The recovery
rate is 50.60% at
present, indicating
that of all the cases
of COVID-19,
half of them have
recovered.
Even though In-
dia recorded more
than 11,000 new in-
fections for the sec-
ond consecutive
day, recoveries con-
tinued to outnum-
ber the rise in ac-
tive cases. The ac-
tive number of
cases in the coun-
try at present is
1,49,348 while
1,62,378 patients
have been cured of
the highly conta-
gious disease with
8,049 recoveries in
a day, the health
ministry numbers
showed. —ANI
‘More than
half of India’s
patients have
recovered’
U’KHAND @1,816
THE USEFULNESS

TALKING POINTAHMEDABAD | MONDAY, JUNE 15, 2020
Antibiotic resistance
is key to preventing
the next pandemic
The risk is higher in countries with inadequate basic
water, hygiene and sanitation infrastructure
I
f a two-year-old
child living in pov-
erty in India or
Bangladesh gets sick
with a common bacte-
rial infection, there is
more than a 50%
chance an antibiotic
treatment will fail.
Somehow the child has
acquired an antibiotic
resistant infection –
even to drugs to which
they may never have
been exposed. How?
Unfortunately, this
child also lives in a
place with limited
clean water and less
waste management,
bringing them into fre-
quent contact with fae-
cal matter. This means
they are regularly ex-
posed to millions of
resistant genes and
bacteria, including po-
tentially untreatable
superbugs. This sad
story is shockingly
common, especially in
places where pollution
is rampant and clean
water is limited.
For many years,
people believed antibi-
otic resistance in bac-
teria was primarily
driven by imprudent
use of antibiotics in
clinical and veterinary
settings. But growing
evidence suggests that
environmental factors
may be of equal or
greater importance to
the spread of antibi-
otic resistance, espe-
cially in the develop-
ing world.
Here we focus on an-
tibiotic resistant bac-
teria, but drug resist-
ance also occurs in
types of other micro-
organisms – such as
resistance in patho-
genic viruses, fungi,
and protozoa called
antimicrobial resist-
ance or AMR. This
means that our ability
to treat all sorts of in-
fectious disease is in-
creasingly hampered
by resistance, poten-
tially including coro-
naviruses like SARS-
CoV-2, which causes
Covid-19.
Overall, use of anti-
biotics, antivirals, and
antifungals clearly
must be reduced, but
in most of the world,
improving water, sani-
tation, and hygiene
practice – a practice
known as WASH – is
also critically impor-
tant. If we can ensure
cleaner water and saf-
er food everywhere,
the spread of antibi-
otic resistant bacteria
will be reduced across
the environment, in-
cluding within and be-
tween people and ani-
mals.
As recent recom-
mendations on AMR
from the Food and Ag-
riculture Organisa-
tion of the United Na-
tions, the World Or-
ganisation for Animal
Health, and World
Health Organisation
suggest, to which Da-
vid contributed, the
“superbug problem”
will not be solved by
more prudent antibi-
otic use alone. It also
requires global im-
provements in water
quality, sanitation,
and hygiene. Other-
wise, the next pandem-
ic might be worse than
Covid-19.
Industrial ndustrial
wastes, hospitals,
farms, and agriculture
are also possible sourc-
es or drivers of antibi-
otic resistance. For ex-
ample, about 10 years
ago, one of us, David,
studied metal pollution
in a Cuban river and
found the highest levels
of resistant genes were
near a leaky solid waste
landfill and below
where pharmaceutical
factory wastes entered
the river. The factory
releases clearly impact-
ed resistance levels
downstream, but it was
metals from the landfill
that most strongly cor-
related with resistance
gene levels in the river.
There is a logic to
this because toxic met-
als can stress bacteria,
which makes the bacte-
ria stronger, inciden-
tally making them
more resistant to any-
thing, including antibi-
otics. We saw the same
thing with metals in
Chinese landfills where
resistance gene levels
in the landfill drains
strongly correlated
with metals, not antibi-
otics.
In fact, pollution of
almostanysortcanpro-
mote antibiotic resist-
ance, including metals,
biocides, pesticides,
and other chemicals en-
tering the environ-
ment. Many pollutants
can promote resistance
in bacteria, so reducing
pollution in general
will help reduce antibi-
otic resistance – an ex-
ample of which is re-
ducing metal pollution.
Hospitalsarealsoim-
portant, being both res-
ervoirs and incubators
for many varieties of
antibiotic resistance,
including well known
resistant bacteria such
as Vancomycin-resist-
ant Enterococcus and
Methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus.
While resistant bacte-
ria are not necessarily
acquired in hospitals –
most are brought in
from the community),
resistant bacteria can
be enriched in hospi-
tals because they are
where people are very
sick, cared for in close
proximity, and often
provided “last resort”
antibiotics. Such condi-
tions allow the spread
of resistant bacteria
easier, especially super-
bug strains because of
the types of antibiotics
that are used.
Wastewater releases
from hospitals also may
be a concern. Recent
data showed that “typi-
cal” bacteria in hospi-
tal sewage carry five to
10 times more resistant
genes per cell than com-
munity sources, espe-
cially genes more read-
ily shared between bac-
teria. This is problem-
aticbecausesuchbacte-
ria are sometimes su-
perbug strains, such as
those resistant to car-
bapenem antibiotics.
Hospital wastes are a
particular concern in
places without effective
communitywastewater
treatment.
Another critical
source of antibiotic re-
sistance is agriculture
and aquaculture. Drugs
used in veterinary care
can be very similar –
sometimes identical –
to the antibiotics used
in human medicine.
And so resistant bacte-
ria and genes are found
in animal manure,
soils, and drainage wa-
ter. This is potentially
significant given that
animals produce four
times more faeces than
humans at a global
scale.
Wastes from agricul-
tural activity also can
be especially problem-
atic because waste
management is usually
less sophisticated. Ad-
ditionally, agricultural
operations are often at
very large scales and
less containable due to
greater exposure to
wildlife. Finally, antibi-
otic resistance can
spread from farm ani-
mals to farmers to food
workers, which has
been seen in recent Eu-
ropean studies, mean-
ing this can be impor-
tant at local scales.
These examples
show that pollution in
general increases the
spread of resistance.
But the examples also
show that dominant
drivers will differ
based on where you
are. In one place, re-
sistance spread might
be fuelled by human
faecal contaminated
water; whereas, in an-
other, it might be in-
dustrial pollution or
agricultural activity.
So local conditions are
key to reducing the
spread of antibiotic re-
sistance, and optimal
solutions will differ
from place to place –
single solutions do not
fit all.
Locally driven na-
tional action plans are
therefore essential –
which the new WHO/
FAO/OIE guidance
strongly recommends.
To understand the
problem of resist-
ance, we must go back to
basics. What is antibiotic
resistance, and why does
it develop?
Exposure to antibiotics
puts stress on bacteria
and, like other living
organisms, they defend
themselves. Bacteria do
this by sharing and acquir-
ing defence genes, often
from other bacteria in their
environment. This allows
them to change quickly,
readily obtaining the ability
to make proteins and other
molecules that block the
antibiotic’s effect.
This gene sharing pro-
cess is natural and is a
large part of what drives
evolution. However, as
we use ever stronger and
more diverse antibiotics,
new and more powerful
bacterial defence options
have evolved, rendering
some bacteria resistant
to almost everything –
the ultimate outcome
being untreatable super-
bugs.
Antibiotic resistance
has existed since life
began, but has recently
accelerated due to human
use. When you take an
antibiotic, it kills a large
majority of the target bac-
teria at the site of infection
– and so you get better.
But antibiotics do not kill
all the bacteria – some
are naturally resistant;
others acquire resistance
genes from their microbial
neighbours, especially in
our digestive systems,
throat, and on our skin.
This means that some
resistant bacteria always
survive, and can pass
to the environment via
inadequately treated faecal
matter, spreading resist-
ant bacteria and genes
wider.
The pharmaceutical in-
dustry initially responded
to increasing resistance
by developing new and
stronger antibiotics, but
bacteria evolve rapidly,
making even new antibiot-
ics lose their effectiveness
quickly. As a result, new
antibiotic development has
almost stopped because
it garners limited profit.
Meanwhile, resistance to
existing antibiotics con-
tinues to increase, which
especially impacts places
with poor water quality
and sanitation.
This is because in the
developed world you def-
ecate and your poo goes
down the toilet, eventually
flowing down a sewer to
a community wastewater
treatment plant. Although
treatment plants are not
perfect, they typically
reduce resistance levels by
well over 99%, substan-
tially reducing resistance
released to the environ-
ment.
In contrast, over 70% of
the world has no commu-
nity wastewater treatment
or even sewers; and most
faecal matter, contain-
ing resistant genes and
bacteria, goes directly into
surface and groundwater,
often via open drains.
This means that people
who live in places without
faecal waste management
are regularly exposed to
antibiotic resistance in
many ways. Exposure is
even possible of people
who may not have taken
antibiotics, like our child in
South Asia.
Antibiotic resistance is
everywhere, but it is
not surprising that resist-
ance is greatest in places
with poor sanitation be-
cause factors other than
use are important. For
example, a fragmented
civil infrastructure, politi-
cal corruption, and a lack
of centralised healthcare
also play key roles.
One might cynically
argue that “foreign” re-
sistance is a local issue,
but antibiotic resist-
ance spread knows no
boundaries – superbugs
might develop in one
place due to pollution,
but then become global
due to international travel.
Researchers from Den-
mark compared antibiotic
resistance genes in long-
haul airplane toilets and
found major differences
in resistance carriage
among flight paths, sug-
gesting resistance can
jump-spread by travel.
The world’s current ex-
perience with the spread
of SARS-CoV-2 shows
just how fast infectious
agents can move with
human travel. The impact
of increasing antibiotic
resistance is no differ-
ent. There are no reli-
able antiviral agents for
SARS-CoV-2 treatment,
which is the way things
may become for cur-
rently treatable diseases
if we allow resistance to
continue unchecked.
As an example of anti-
biotic resistance, the “su-
perbug” gene, blaNDM-1,
was first detected in India
in 2007 – although it was
probably present in other
regional countries. But
soon thereafter, it was
found in a hospital patient
in Sweden and then in
Germany. It was ulti-
mately detected in 2013
in Svalbard in the High
Arctic. In parallel, variants
of this gene appeared
locally, but have evolved
as they move. Similar
evolution has occurred
as the Covid-19 virus has
spread.
Relative to antibiotic
resistance, humans are
not the only “travellers”
that can carry resist-
ance. Wildlife, such as
migratory birds, can also
acquire resistant bacteria
and genes from contami-
nated water or soils and
then fly great distances
carrying resistance in
their gut from places
with poor water quality to
places with good water
quality. During travel, they
defecate along their path,
potentially planting resist-
ance almost anywhere.
The global trade of foods
also facilitates spread of
resistance from country
to country and across the
globe.
Resistant bacteria are
not the only infectious
agents that might be
spread by environmental
contamination. SARS-
CoV-2 has been found in
faeces and inactive virus
debris found in sewage,
but all evidence suggests
water is not a major route
of Covid-19 spread –
although there are limited
data from places with
poor sanitation.
So, each case differs.
But there are common
roots to disease spread
– pollution, poor water
quality, and inadequate
hygiene.
TYPES OF WASTES
BACTERIA UNDER STRESS SPREADING THROUGH FAECES
SOURCE: THE CONVERSATION
CONCEPT: DIVYA HEMNANI
DESIGN: ABHISHEK GUPTA

We have to stand up and face up
to troubles. There is no place we
can run away to, troubles have a
way of reaching there first and will wait
for us. Best to face and solve, now!
—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO & Editor, First India
AHMEDABAD | MONDAY, JUNE 15, 2020www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
08
2NDFRONT
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: From
propagating stay-at-
home messages in
Dubai, providing con-
tactlessdeliveryinWu-
han, China, to washing
streets in Ahmedabad,
droneshavebecomein-
tegral to the unending
fight with the Covid-19
pandemic.
Asresearchersraceto
develop an anti-corona
vaccine, questions re-
main over its quick dis-
tribution and who will
get it when the time
comes. Industry experts
say drones can provide a
last-mile solution in ru-
ral areas to deliver life-
saving treatment or pre-
ventive inoculation.
At DJI, the world’s
biggest drone-maker
based in Shenzhen, Chi-
na, with about 70 per
cent of global market
share, Covid-19 has “fur-
therprovedthepotential
of drones, especially in
for public safety”, Rais-
sa Mendes, the compa-
ny’s regional manager
for Latin America, the
Middle East and Africa,
told Abu Dhabi-based
The National daily.
“In a crisis such as
Covid-19, drones are
proving to be essential”
like during the lock-
down or under social
distancing protocols.
They could be vital
whenavaccinebecomes
available. Some infec-
tious disease experts be-
lieve that “hundreds of
millions of doses of vac-
cine might be ready for
roll-out by the end of
2020” but their distribu-
tion and administration
need to be worked out”,
according to a recent as-
sessment of Covid-19
vaccines under develop-
mentbymedicaljournal
The Lancet.
Drones to be last-mile Covid-19 vaccine delivery solution?
Sundaytemblorbringsalive
2001nightmareforGujaratis
First India Bureau
Rajkot: Harrowing
memories of the Janu-
ary 26, 2001, Gujarat
earthquake came alive
on Sunday evening
when a temblor measur-
ing at least 5.5 on the
Richter scale some 118
km north-north west of
Rajkot city shook sever-
al parts of the State,
with thousands of peo-
ple as far away as in
Ahmedabad experienc-
ing the tremors.
According to the Na-
tional Center for Seis-
mology, it was a 5.5 in-
tensity earthquake on
Richter scale with its
epicenter located at
118km NNW of Rajkot
and 10 km below the
ground.
Official sources said
the epicentre of the
quake was near
Bhachau in Kutch dis-
trict. Following the re-
ports of tremors, Chief
Minister Vijay Rupani
spoke to the District Col-
lectors of Rajkot, Kutch
and Patan districts to
take stock of the situa-
tion. “Chief Minister
Vijay Rupani had an im-
mediate telephone con-
versation with the Col-
lectors of Rajkot, Kutch
and Patan districts fol-
lowing the tremors in
the state and got infor-
mation about the situa-
tion there,” Gujarat
Chief Minister’s Office
(CMO) stated in a tweet.
There were no immedi-
ate reports of any loss
of life or property.
Though there were no
reports of any damages
to buildings and other
infrastructure or inju-
ries to anyone, the trem-
ors sparked off a major
panic across the Sau-
rashtra region and oth-
er parts of Gujarat.
Thousands of people
rushed out of their
housing colonies and
apartment complexes
out of panic, amid mem-
ories of the 2001 devas-
tating earthquake also
with an epicentre in
Kutch that had claimed
a staggering 20,000 peo-
ple. The tremors of this
quake were also felt in
parts of northern India,
Bangladesh, Nepal and
Pakistan. The intensity
then was 7.1 on the Rich-
ter scale. Similar fears
were aroused on Sunday
even as countless phone
calls and WhatsApp
messages about people
checking on their near
and dear ones flew thick
and fast. The earth-
quake today evening in
particular was felt at
several places on the
fourth floor of buildings
to the first floor of bun-
galows in Ahmedabad.
Every year, on an av-
erage 500 such tremors
are felt in rural Gujarat,
particularly in North
GujaratandSaurashtra.
Twosuchincidentshave
also been reported from
Upleta and rural Patan.
Besides the most dev-
astating Kutch earth-
quake, Gujarat has wit-
nessed two major earth-
quakes in the past with
another in Anjar (also
Kutch district ) in 1956
and an earlier one in
1918 in the Rann of
Kutch.
Hundreds of people ran out of their homes in panic after tremors in Ahmedabad on Sunday.
NO LIVES LOST, NO DAMAGE; CM RUPANI EXPRESSES CONCERN
HISTORY REPEATS?
Now, cops to fine
people sans masks
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad : With a
view to ensuring strict
implementation of
wearing of masks by
people amid increas-
ing Covid-19 cases in
Gujarat, the State
Government has now
entrusted the police
department with the
responsibility to im-
pose fine on those vio-
lating this directive
instead of the civic
bodies.The Gujarat
Government has is-
sued on Saturday a
circular to this effect.
“Instead of the mu-
nicipal commissioner,
the district collector,
municipalities and local
self government bodies,
the fines will now be col-
lected by the Police
Commissionerate and
District Superinten-
dents of Police in their
respective jurisdic-
tion,” the State Govern-
ment circular stated.
The Ahmedabad Mu-
nicipal Corporation
had on Saturday said it
was using CCTV cam-
eras under the Safe and
Secure Ahmedabad pro-
ject of Smart City
Ahmedabad Develop-
ment Limited to inter-
cept people moving
about in public places
withoutwearingmasks.
The fine for not wearing
masks when in public is
Rs 200 in the state. It
was being collected so
far by the municipal
corporations and other
local bodies.
The AMC has is-
sued 280 e-challans so
far violation of this
rule with the use of
technology, according
to civic officials.
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar : Union
Minister Nitin Gadkari
on Sunday stated that
the Covid-19 crisis will
not last long and scien-
tists and experts have
been burning midnight
oil to find a vaccine for
the deadly virus.
“The corona crisis
will not last long. Our
scientists and scien-
tists in other coun-
tries are working day
and night to develop
the vaccine. I am con-
fident that we will get
the vaccine very
soon,” Gadkari said
while addressing the
‘Gujarat Jan Samvad’
rally via video confer-
ence today.
Speaking on the Sino-
Indian crisis, he said
India wants peace and
non-violence. “Pakistan
is on one side of our
country, China on the
other. We want peace
and non-violence.”
The union minister
went on, “We never
tried to snatch the
land of Bhutan or
Bangladesh. We don’t
want the land of Pa-
kistan or China ei-
ther. The only thing
we want is peace.”
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: The
Gujarat Secondary
and Higher Second-
ary Education Board
(GSEB) has an-
nounced that the re-
sult of 12th Arts and
Commerce stream ex-
ams will be declared
at 8 am on Monday.
The board will de-
clare the result
through online mode
on its official website,
gseb.org.
The board concluded
the Class 12 examina-
tions for all the streams
by March-end and some
5.25 lakh students had
appeared. However, the
coronavirus pandemic
and the lockdown de-
layed the process of
evaluation and declara-
tion of GSEB Class 12th
Arts and Commerce re-
sults. GSEB will notify
the students about the
dates for distribution of
mark-sheets, pass cer-
tificates and revalua-
tion and re-verification
to the students shortly.
The Board had already
declared the Class 12th
Science stream result
on May 17.
Corona won’t last long, we’ll have
vaccine soon: Nitin Gadkari
Finally, 12th board general stream
exam results to be declared today
First India Bureau
Bharuch: The
Bharuch police on
Sunday detained
nine people for al-
legedly taking out
a celebration pro-
cession of a man
who was released
from jail on Sat-
urday.
A purported vid-
eo of the incident
that took place in
Sherpura village of
Bharuch went viral
on social media, fol-
lowing which po-
lice launched an
investigation.
Police said Moh-
sin Patel (33) was
booked on April 18
earlier this year af-
ter he allegedly as-
saulted a police of-
ficer who was on
lockdown duty and
tore off his uni-
form. Patel was ar-
rested under vari-
ous sections of the
Indian Penal Code
and under relevant
sections of the Dis-
aster Management
Act and the Epi-
demic Act.
9 detained for
celebrating
man’s return
from jail
Five rescued after rickety house collapsesDG BSF reviews security along
India-Pak border in Gujarat First India Bureau
Vadodara: Thanks to
alert neighbours, five
personsof afamilywere
rescued after a slab in
their dilapidated house
in Wadi area collapsed
early Sunday morning.
According to the fire
brigade, the slab in the
house of Suresh Soni
collapsed around 6 am
when the family was
asleep. It is believed that
the structure of the
house could have weak-
ened due to heavy rains
in the city since early
morning.
The residents in the
neighbourhood, who
were awakened by the
loud noise, called the
fire brigade to bring
the family out. Fire
department said that
staff from Dandiya
Bazaar, Panigate and
Gajrawadi fire sta-
tions were involved in
the rescue operations.
“The slab of the first
floor came down and the
family was sleeping on
the ground floor,” said
fire officer Amit Chaud-
hari of Panigate fire sta-
tion. He said the build-
ing is several decades
old due to which it is
quite weak.
Fire officials said that
Soni, his wife Kajal and
their two children Neela
and Harsh did not suffer
any injuries. But Soni’s
70-year-old mother
Bhagwati had to be tak-
en to the hospital as she
received injuries.
Bhuj: Border Security
Force (BSF) Director
General (DG) SS Deswal
and other BSF officials
visited Harami Nala
creek area, close to In-
dia-Pakistan border in
Gujarat to review the
border security.
During his two-day
visit on Friday and Sat-
urday, DG BSF inter-
acted with jawans at the
border and appreciated
them for their dedica-
tion and devotion. “BSF
is guarding the interna-
tional border of India
with dedication and en-
thusiasm and ready to
take on any situation
that may develop. The
DG also mentioned that
we are constantly up-
grading the force in
terms of technology
and infrastructure be-
sides training,” the BSF
said in a press confer-
ence.
“DG BSF also carried
out boat patrolling in
Harami Nala up to BP
No. 1166,” said BSF in a
statement. Further DG
BSF along with other
officers inspected the
whole area from Border
Outpost (BOP)1175 to
BOP Lakhapat, about
30 km distance on foot
at night. Enroute, DG
BSF took stock of the
security scenario, it
added. —ANI
Police ensuring people wear masks in Gujarat.
SPECIAL CARE NEEDED
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari
Police watch as a drone is ready to take off in Gujarat.
An old dilapidated house collapsed in Vadodara's Wadi area.

#UNFAIR &
LOVELY!
rom Madhubala
to Aishwarya Rai
Bachchan, Bolly-
wood has had so
many beauties
who have dignify-
ing the Silver
Screen. Considering the
fact that there are so
many of them in the
B’Town, the ones with a
dusky skin always stand
out from the crowd. But at
the end, they turn out to
be one of the best, and
City First rounds up some
of the most-loved dusky
beauties who have made a
mark in the industry, and
are admired for their
beautiful complexion.
Priyanka Chopra Jo-
nas, Miss World 2000 has
conquered the modelling
world, and when she en-
tered in Bollywood, it did
not take long for her to
win the hearts of the au-
dience. Her dusky com-
plexion and unique voice
have established her sta-
tus as an adored actress.
Deepika Padukone has
one of the most speaking
pairs of eyes in Bolly-
wood, and a rich skin-tone
which gives her an au-
thentic Indian look. Her
chic fashion sense and
graceful mannerism add
up to her on-screen ele-
gance.
Shilpa Shetty Kundra,
one of the sexiest women
in Bollywood has beauti-
ful and expressive eyes, a
dazzling smile and the
perfect figure which
makes her stand out from
the crowd.
Talking about Chitran-
gada Singh, whether it’s
her acting skills or dance
moves, her desi charm is
incomparable. She has an
impeccable figure and
quirky dressing sense,
which sets her in the top
list of “the most fashion-
able dusky beauty.”
Sushmita Sen, who is
renowned for her beauty,
started her career with
modelling and won the ti-
tle of Miss Universe in
1994. Tall, charismatic
and talented, Sushmita
Sen has earned herself
the title as one of the most
successful Indian mod-
els. Her rich skin tone and
an enigmatic smile lights
up the screen.
Kajol dominated the sil-
ver screen for almost a
decade, and her uni-rows
adds on to the unique
beauty, which distinguish-
es her from others.
Bipasha Basu, the long-
legged beauty who has
the best bikini-body in
Bollywood, is also a mod-
el-turned-actress and is
known for her dusky
complexion and effortless
sultry appeal. She al-
ways sets the screen on
fire with her talent.
The natural beauty and
Desi charm of these dusky
beauties make them per-
fect for roles in the Hindi
Cinema. With their envia-
ble figures, effortless cha-
risma and star qualities,
these ladies are some of
the most desirable ac-
tresses in the industry.
F
ISHIKA DHABHAI
ishika.dhabhai@firstindia.co.in
AHMEDABAD, MONDAY
JUNE 15, 2020
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia
facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09
City First brings you the dusky beauties of B’Town,
who have been ruling the Silver Screen!
(Top) Sushmita Sen;
(Above) Bipasha Basu
Deepika Padukone
Chitrangada Singh
Shilpa Shetty Kundra
Priyanka Chopra Jonas

OSSIP GIRL, based
on Cecily-von-
Ziegesar’s best-
selling book series
of the same name,
follows the exploits
of privileged
young people from Manhat-
tan’s wealthy Upper East
Side as they hook up, party,
and play out adult-sized dra-
mas. At the heart of the ac-
tion are best friends Serena
van der Woodsen (Blake
Lively) and Blair Waldorf
(Leighton Meester). These
two beautiful, rich girls rule
the social scene, though
they sometimes end of
scheming against each oth-
er. Serena and Blair’s
friends, largely drawn from
the elite private high school
they attended in the early
seasons of the show, include
Dan (Penn Badgley) and
Jenny Humphrey (Taylor
Momsen), siblings with a
more middle-class back-
ground, the extremely
wealthy Chuck (Ed West-
wick) and Nate (Chace
Crawford), whose well-to-do
family has fallen on hard
times. The series is narrat-
ed by the titular Gossip Girl,
an anonymous blogger who
keeps track of all the popu-
lar kids’ actions (secrets
travel fast when delivered
by mass text messages).
This addictive adolescent
drama is filled with kids,
and grown-ups, gone bad.
The sophisticated, label-
savvy characters have no
problem getting served
martinis at fancy hotels or
smoking marijuana during
walks in the park. Their
parents are rarely good in-
fluences, either, since many
are self-centered and fo-
cused on their own prob-
lems. The mothers seem
particularly jealous of
their young daughters: One
even tells her teen that
she’ll never be as beautiful
or as thin as she is now, so
she should make the most
of this time.
It’s all very titillating and
addictive, but teens will
surely get confusing mes-
sages from the show. Back-
stabbing is portrayed as a
social sport; characters
spend money like crazy,
drinking, smoking, and do-
ing drugs in limos and
clubs, and generally having
a great time with few reper-
cussions. It’s not the real
world, but it sure looks al-
luring. It’s campy, soapy fun
that may not be prudent
viewing for tweens, and es-
capist schlock for teens.
Were it presented with a
wink and a laugh, it would
be far more interesting; as
it is, it takes itself a little
too seriously.
Parents need to know
that this over-the-top teen
soap, based on a best-selling
book series, focuses on a
group of extremely wealthy,
privileged, label-obsessed
young people who like to
drink, take drugs, have sex,
and treat each other badly.
While some characters
mean well, many are super-
ficial and emotionally cruel
or distant, and they often
take advantage of their so-
cial and financial position
to get what they want, often
at the expense of others.
Characters play dirty tricks
on each other and other-
wise try to undermine,
backstab, and hurt those
who are supposed to be
their friends. Suicide, eat-
ing disorders, rape, infidel-
ity, casual sex, and more are
all part of the story, but
they’re rarely addressed in
constructive or realistic
ways.
Source: https://www.commonsense-
10
ETCAHMEDABAD | MONDAY, JUNE 15, 2020www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
FACEOFTHEDAY
HEMLATA RAWAL, Model
YOUR
DAYHoroscope by
Saurabbh Sachdeva
LEO
JULY 24 - AUGUST 23
You will get plenty of time
today to relax and take
make others around you to
chill a bit. Your
achievements speak for you and you
never fails to keep your promises. You
will taste the success today in your
new venture and remember you kids
are very lucky for you.
LIBRA
SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 22
Overseas business is on
cards for some. You will
find some hidden treasure
or some sudden benefits
will come your way or you may also
get a property inheritance, something
that you never knew about. You have
a female luck supporting you today
as per your stars.
ARIES
MAR 21 - APR 20
Your saving habit is
benefiting you each day in
term of financial prospects.
You will manage to save
the firm you work for from a big loss
and you shall be rewarded for the
same. You will fine that dream job for
which you have been waiting for a
long time.
SAGITTARIUS
NOV 23 - DEC 22
You will have an awesome
time in your educational
institution as learning will
finally become the fun for
you. You don’t trouble yourself with the
worries of tomorrow and you live for
the day. Today you will spend the day
working very hard not by force because
you are motivated.
GEMINI
MAY 21 - JUNE 21
A family is where you feel
heaven and you exactly
have that one. Your team in
office will be a big support
to you in a very important official
project. You enjoy luxury no matter
how. Your spiritual self will
encourage to do something big for
good. Life will bring joyful moments.
AQUARIUS
JAN 21 - FEB 19
You will get some kind of
assistance from your sibling
even when you didn’t ask for
it. You will be whole day
involved in doing preparation for some
family party. You must refrain from
provoking you boss as he or she may
in some understandable mood. You will
work hard today.
TAURUS
APR 21 - MAY 20
All the businessmen who
have been facing downfall
will see the sun rising now
as your business will pick
up. You are a fit person and people
get inspired from you because of
which you may consider fitness as
your career. You may be too busy
today to attend a social affair.
CAPRICORN
DEC 23 - JAN 20
Don’t be impulse from it
come to investments as
you need to clearly see
your options and study
about them at first. Your dedication
in your business will make you a
successful business men/women one
day. You will sign a great deal today
though you may not see the profit.
VIRGO
AUG 24 - SEP 23
You will be appreciated for
some deeds and criticised
for others but don’t let that
effect your spirit. You like
to be lonely sometimes but make
sure its not a permanent feeling. You
spouse is always there for you
mentally in the time of distress. Your
kids adore you.
CANCER
JUNE 22 - JULY 23
You are great in budgeting
and this is one of your
strengths which will help
you both on professional
and personal front. You will spend
the whole day feeling light and happy.
You will see a rise in sale if you are in
buying-selling business. An elder in
family will feel very emotional.
PISCES
FEB20 - MARCH 20
On professional front, a
sudden change of job is on
cards and for all the good
reasons. People may
sometimes call you miser as you
tend to hoard money but its alright to
sometimes open your heart and
spend a little on the happiness of
those who matters.
SCORPIO
OCT 23 - NOVEMBER 22
You are a very smart
persona and you have a
great initiative power when
it come to judging people.
Your persuasive power will make
your spouse agree on things that
they have been rigid about. You may
not be in the mood to roam around a
lot so you will be at home.
G
XOXO, GOSSIP GIRL!

S
onam Kapoor Ahuja on Saturday shared
her glamorous picture and dazzled the In-
stagram with the major throwback snap.
The ‘Raanjhanaa’ star put out on Insta-
gram, capture from a past photoshoot
that the diva in a classy avatar as she
sports a black dress and acces-
sorised it with a long pearl bead-
ed necklace while sitting at the
driving seat and posing as she
looks into the camera. Along
with the picture she wrote,
“Going for a drive no
where...”
The post on the photo-
sharing platform gar-
nered more than 2 lakh
likes from fans and celeb-
rity followers including
Swara Bhasker.
Maheep Kapoor also
chimed in the comment
section and left a smiling
face with heart-eyes and a
fire emoji.
Meanwhile, Sonam has been sharing updates on
her activities on her social media handles by shar-
ing pictures and videos.
Earlier, the ‘Veere Di Wedding’ star shared a
childhood picture which shows that she was a
‘bookworm’ even then. —ANI
B
illie Eilish didn’t
think twice before
trolling the New
York Police Depart-
ment after its commission-
er claimed that they were
being shamed after George
Floyd’s death. Mocking the
police department, Billie
Eilish posted a mashup vid-
eo done by writer and civil
rights activist Shaun King,
on her Instagram story
showing incidences of po-
lice brutality that has oc-
curred over the past couple
of weeks, contrary to what
Commissioner Dermot
Shea was trying to explain.
“LMAOOO goo goo ga ga
cops feeling hurty,” Billie
Eilish wrote over the video.
The Grammy winner has
been very vocal about her
stance in the matter of
George Floyd’s death. Billie
Eilish has been joining the
protests for the Black Lives
Matter movement that
started after George Floyd’s
death in Minneapolis.
—Agency
BEING VOCAL!
S
inger Taylor
Swift is
‘’sick’’ of the
monuments
of racist historical
figures in Tennes-
see. “As a Tennesse-
an, it makes me sick
that there are monu-
ments standing in our state that cele-
brate racist historical figures who did
evil things. Edward Carmack and
Nathan Bedford Forrest were DES-
PICABLE figures in our state his-
tory and should be treated as
such,” she tweeted.
“Taking down statues isn’t go-
ing to fix centuries of systemic
oppression, We need to change
the status of people who per-
petuated patterns of racism to
‘villains’. And villains don’t
deserve statues.” —Agency
Talking out loud
J
ust like the rest of the world, Ange-
lina Jolie is on quarantine mode
due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The 45-year-old actress, who re-
cently celebrated her birthday on June
4,2020,isquarantiningwithhersixchil-
dren- Maddox Chivan, Pax Thien, Zaha-
ra Marley, Shiloh, twins Knox Léon and
Vivienne Marcheline. In a recent inter-
view, Angelina spoke about life amidst
COVID 19 as well as touched upon the
Black Lives Matter movement, which is cur-
rently rampant in the US. While talking
about racism in America, Angelina stated
how it’s intolerable that there’s a system that
might protect her but not protect her daughter,
Zahara, or any other man, woman or child based
on their skin colour. Jolie stressed on the fact that
they need to progress beyond sympathy and good
intentions and move on to laws and policies that
actually address structural racism and impunity.
On what advice she teaches her children regard-
ing race and racism issues, the ‘Maleficent: Mis-
tress of Evil’ star revealed, “To listen to those who
are being oppressed and never assume.” —Agency
THE HEART
WARMING NOTE
A
s actor-turned-politi-
cian Kirron Kher
rings in her 65th birth-
day today, her husband
Anupam Kher shared heart-
warming birthday wishes
along with throwback pic-
tures to make the day
special.
The ‘Hotel Mumbai’
actor put out an ador-
able post on Twitter
wherein he shared
throwback pictures
with the actor. The
post showcased a
picture of the cou-
ple Kirron and Anu-
pam Kher and also
featured an article
titled ‘to stardom
from Chandigarh
stage’ that summa-
rised the acting
journey of Kirron.
In one of the mon-
ochromatic pic-
tures shared in
the post, Kirron
is seen in her
younger days,
as she holds a
script in
her hand
as she
p o s -
e s
for the camera. The post also fea-
tured another family picture
which shows Kirron and, Anu-
pam Kher along with their son
Sikander Kher who is seen as a
kid.
Along with the post, the ‘Dil-
wale Dulhania Le Jayenge’ actor
wished for his wife’s long and
healthy life and noted, “Happy
birthday my dearest #Kirron!!
May God give you all the happi-
ness in the world. May you have
a long & healthy life. Sorry, you
are on your own in #Chandigarh
& both @sikandarkher& I are
not with you. But we miss you.
Love@KirronKherBJP.” Recent-
ly, the actor released his popular
autobiographical play ‘Kuch
Bhi Ho Sakta Hai’. —ANI
ETCwww.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia AHMEDABAD | MONDAY, JUNE 15, 2020
11
Historical Racism
onakshi Sinha on
Saturday delighted
her fans with a
stunning side-view
mirror picture
from one of her old
photoshoots.
The ‘Dabangg’ girl took
to Instagram to post the
picture in which she is
seen sitting in a sky blue
coloured car and posing
beautifully while staring
into its side-view mirror.
In the picture, the
33-year-old actor is seen
wearing a yellow col-
oured full-sleeved top which she paired with a matching
elliptical eye glares.
“Mud Mud Ke Na Dekh, Mud Mud Ke...side view mir-
ror hai na,” Sinha wrote in the caption. The picture is
being appreciated by her fans all over and has also re-
ceived scores of comments. —ANI
Treating Fans
onakshi Sinha on
Saturday delighted
her fans with a
stunning side-view
mirror picture
from one of her old
The ‘Dabangg’ girl took
to Instagram to post the
picture in which she is
S
#THROWBACK WEEKEND
Angelina Jolie
Billie Eillish
... her post
Sonakshi Sinha
... her post
Sonam Kapoor Ahuja
Taylor Swift
Kirron Kher in
Anupam Kher’s post
... her post

First india ahmedabad edition-15 june 2020

First india ahmedabad edition-15 june 2020

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First india ahmedabad edition-15 june 2020