First india ahmedabad edition-23 december 2020

13°C - 29°C www.firstindia.co.in | www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia | instagram.com/thefirstindia
AHMEDABAD l WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2020 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208 l Vol 2 l Issue No. 29
OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR, AHMEDABAD & LUCKNOW
Mystery’ blast kills 2, brings down 2 houses in Kalol of G’nagar dist
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: Almost
half of the Kalol town
in Gandhinagar dis-
trict was shaken out
of its sleep on Tues-
day morning when a
mystery blast ripped
through a housing
colony leaving 2 per-
sons dead and one in-
jured. Officials be-
lieve the reason to be
gas leak but a conclu-
sion is yet to come.
Around 7.30 a.m., a
loud blast at the Garden
City Society jolted out
people from their sleep
even as two houses col-
lapsed and window
panes of others were
shattered by the impact.
Twopersonswerekilled
on the spot and one per-
son was wounded.
An investigation
was launched simul-
taneously by a foren-
sic science team and
the Gandhinagar po-
lice as well as Sub Di-
visional Magistrate.
District Collector
Kuldeep Arya and Gan-
dhinagar Inspector-
General of Police Ab-
hay Chudasama told
the mediapersons that
primarily it appeared a
gas leakage could have
caused the blast. But
they said the final con-
clusion would come
only after the report
from the Forensic Sci-
ence Laboratory.
Union Home Minis-
terAmitShahinquired
about the incident
fromthelocaladminis-
tration and also asked
officials help those af-
fected by the blast.
Two leading public
sector companies Oil
and Natural Gas Corpo-
ration and Sabarmati
Gas company denied
operating any gas pipe-
line there. It is yet not
clear whether the resi-
dential society was
built on an under-
ground gas pipeline or
was it passing nearby.
Residents of the
housing society told
mediapersons that one
house was locked for
long since its owners
were not living here,
but another house was
occupied. It is also un-
clear how many people
were in the house when
the blast occurred.
Local and neigh-
bouring fire brigade
teams as well as offi-
cials from ONGC
Ahmedabad Asset
were dispatched for
rescue operations.
District Collector
Arya said a detailed re-
port would be submit-
ted to the State Govern-
ment. Turn to P6
District and police authorities believe
gas leak to be the cause but, actual
reason yet to be ascertained
Emergency services personnel and police at the Kalol blast site —PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI
MODIREACHESOUTTO
Muslims with New India call
M Hasan
Aligarh: Prime Minis-
ter Narendra Modi on
Tuesday called upon
the Muslim community
to join the efforts of the
Central government for
the overall development
and growth of every
section of the society.
Reaching out to the
community within and
outside the country
through the significant
platform of Aligarh
Muslim University
(AMU) while address-
ing online centenary
celebrations, the PM
said the NDA govern-
ment had been striving
for balanced growth ir-
respective of “religion,
caste and creed”.
It was after a long gap
of 56 years that a Prime
Minister was address-
ing the AMU fraternity
torecogniseitsvitalrole
in the nation-building.
In December 1964 the
then Prime Minister Lal
Bahadur Shashtri had
addressed the universi-
ty’s convocation func-
tion. Setting at rest all
the misgivings prevail-
ing in the AMU campus
and outside about the
NDA government, Modi
said that the centre was
committed to institu-
tion’s progress and
would generously ex-
tend all help solve its
problems. The Prime
minister also released a
postal stamp commemo-
rating 100 years of insti-
tution which had tried
to transform the Mus-
lim community from its
rigid traditionalism to
modernism. Turn to P6
Aligarh Muslim University represents ‘mini-India’ and has to
its credit 100 glorious years of excellence in education: PM
Top US honour
‘Legion of
Merit’ for PM
New strain
not seen in
India so far,
says Centre
New Delhi: After being
conferred the prestig-
ious Legion of Merit
from US President Don-
ald Trump, Prime Min-
ister Narendra Modi
said he was deeply hon-
oured by the award,
adding that it recognis-
es the efforts of India
and the US to improve
bilateral relations be-
tween the nations.
Taking to Twitter,
PM Modi said that the
award reflected the bi-
partisan consensus of
both countries about
the Indo-US strategic
partnership. “I am
deeply honoured to be
awarded the Legion of
Merit by @POTUS @re-
alDonaldTrump. It rec-
ognises the efforts of
the people of India
Turn to P6
New Delhi: A mutated
and more aggressive
strain of the novel coro-
navirus-whichwasfirst
identified in the United
Kingdom in September
- has not been seen in
India so far, the govern-
ment said Tuesday.
Thenewstrain-initial
datasuggestsitisatleast
70 per cent more easily
transmitted-hassparked
concern worldwide,
amid surging infection
rates in the UK and fears
the first lot of vaccines
may not be as effective
against the mutation.
“The new strain or
mutationof (the)corona-
virus in the United King-
dom has not been seen in
India,sofar,”DrVKPaul,
a member of govern-
ment think-tank NITI
Aayog, said. Turn to P6
New Delhi: Union
Home Minister and BJP
leaderAmitShahwould
be frequently visiting
the poll-bound West
Bengal from January
onwards ahead of 2021
Assembly polls. Sourc-
es informed that Shah
would be visiting West
Bengal for a week every
month from February.
This was communicat-
ed by Shah in an inter-
nal meeting with the
leaders of the state on
his recent visit.
The senior party lead-
ers in BJP said that
there are two dates that
are being finalised by
Shah’s office for his next
visit. While there is the
possibility of him visit-
ing the state on January
12 which is the birth an-
niversary of Swami
Vivekananda, the other
date that is under con-
sideration could be
around January 23, the
birth anniversary of
Subhash Chandra Bose.
“Post January 20 is a
possibility,” is what a
top leader of the state
said when asked about
Shah’snextvisit.Shah’s
visit and the pressure
on the state govern-
ment because of his
presence would grow
intense, informed a sen-
ior party leader.
“He told us that Feb-
ruary onwards he
would be spending al-
mostaweekeachmonth
in the state till Assem-
bly elections. His pres-
ence boosts the party
cadre that is reeling
Turn to P6
Shah’snextBengalvisitinJan,
tospendmoretimefromFeb
Union Home Minister Amit Shah during a roadshow in Birbhum in
West Bengal. —PTI FILE PHOTO
Mumbai: Thirty four
persons including crick-
eter Suresh Raina and
BollywoodcelebritySus-
sanne Khan were held
afteraraidataposhclub
near the Mumbai air-
port on Tuesday for vio-
lating social distancing
norms, police said.
Thirteen women who
were among those held
were allowed to leave
after being served no-
tices while the men
were shown as arrested
and granted bail later,
police said.
The raid took place at
the Dragonfly Experi-
ence club near the
Mumbai international
airport at around 3 am,
police said, adding the
34 also included seven
staffers of the club.
They were booked
under sections 188 (Dis-
obedience to order duly
promulgated by public
servant), 269 (whoever
unlawfully or negli-
gently does any act
which is, and which he
knows or has reason to
believe to be, Turn to P6
Raid in Mum club:Raina,
Sussanne,32 others held
Wasn’t aware of timing, protocol: Raina
FAROOQ & MEHBOOBA
MAKE A COMEBACK
BUTAFTERHYD,NOWSAFFRON
EMERGENCEINSRINAGAR!
Kavita Pant
Srinagar: The BJP
seems to be on a roll as
was depicted in Tues-
day’s results of Dis-
trict Development
Council elections in
Jammu and Kashmir.
The Saffron party
showed a dramatic im-
provement in its posi-
tion in Kashmir al-
most immediately af-
ter making a mark in
the Municipal polls in
Hyderabad. The party
on Tuesday won an
election for the first
time from any seat in
Kashmir while facing
regional heavyweights
like the National Con-
ference and the PDP.
The DDC elections
hold significance as it
was the first major
electoral exercise in
the Valley since the ab-
rogation of Article 370
last year in August.
The People’s Alli-
ance for Gupkar Decla-
ration (PAGD), an
amalgam of seven po-
litical parties, includ-
ing the NC and the PDP
won over 90 seats while
the BJP emerged as the
single largest party
winning 65 seats as of
now. Counting of votes
for the 280 DDC in J&K
is still underway. Nota-
bly, as many as 39 seats
were bagged by Inde-
pendent candidates,
while the Congress
party won 20 seats.
Lotus bloomed in
Kashmir as the people
of the Valley exhibited
theirfaithintheleader-
ship of Prime Minister
Narendra Modi, said
local party leaders.
Turn to P6
BJP supporters dancing in jubilation as Ajaz Hussain of BJP won DDC election from Balahama
area in Srinagar on Tuesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
PM Narendra Modi addresses the centenary celebrations of
Aligarh Muslim University via video conferencing, in New Delhi,
on Tuesday. —PHOTO BY PTI
No Board exams till
February,final dates
soon: Pokhriyal
New Delhi: Union edu-
cationministerRamesh
Pokhriyal said on
Tuesday that the board
exams will not be held
in January or February.
“No board examina-
tions will be conducted
in January or February.
A decision on the con-
duct of examinations
will be taken later,”
Pokhriyal said during a
virtual interaction with
teachers.
He also said that it is
not possible to conduct
the board exams in on-
line mode.
The Central Board of
Secondary Education
(CBSE) had earlier this
month announced that
board exams in 2021 will
be conducted in written
mode and not online.
Schools across the coun-
trywereclosedinMarch
to contain the spread of
the Covid-19 pandemic.
They were partially reo-
pened in some states
from October 15.
However, a few states
have decided to keep
them closed in view of a
spike in the number of
infections.
Not possible to
hold exams
online: Min
A delegation of Congress leaders, led by
former party chief Rahul Gandhi, will meet
President Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday
to submit around 20 million signatures col-
lected from across the country in the past
three months seeking repeal of three farm
laws. Congress general secretary in-charge
of organisation KC Venugopal said the party
had launched a nationwide campaign in
September for collecting memoranda of
appeals addressed to the President signed
by farmers, farm labourers and other stake
holders opposing the three new farm legis-
lations. He said around 20 million signatures
have been collected till now.
RAGA TO MEET PREZ
WITH 20 MM SIGNATURES
AGAINST FARM LAWS

First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: On a
day when people will
celebrate Christmas
(December 25), the
Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) will commemo-
rate the birth anniver-
sary of former Prime
Minister Late Atal Bi-
hari Vajpayee, by ob-
serve it as Good Gov-
ernance Day, said BJP
state unit president CR
Patil on Tuesday. Mean-
while, Prime Minister
Narendra Modi will be
transferring Rs18,000
crore in the accounts
of farmers on Friday.
Patil conducted a vir-
tual meeting with state
leaders to chalk out a
plan for the upcoming
civic body elections
that are likely to be
held in February next
year. He appealed to
party leaders to set the
record straight about
the new farming laws
passed by the central
government. In a span
of just three days, par-
ty leaders, Chief Minis-
ter Vijay Rupani, Depu-
ty Chief Minister Nitin
Patel and Union Minis-
ter of State for Pan-
chayati Raj, Agricul-
ture and Farmers Wel-
fare Parshottam Rupa-
la have addressed farm-
ers in the state. And,
BJP leaders have ad-
dressed over 100 gath-
erings.
Prior to announce-
ment of the election
dates of local bodies,
nagarpalikas, district
and taluka panchayats,
the party has com-
menced its prepara-
tions for polls. The par-
ty recently activated
electoral page commit-
tees, a move that has
garnered support of the
party workers and
could result in a good
turnout at the polls.
“Union Home Minis-
ter Amit Shah, Chief
Minister Vijay Rupani,
Deputy Chief Minister
Nitin Patel becoming
electoral page commit-
tee presidents has
boosted the morale of
party workers, which
will help the party in
the long run,” said Patil.
He added, “It is our
duty to take forward
the developmental pro-
jects undertaken by
the central and state
government, especial-
ly when it comes to
policies and pro-
grammes launched
and successfully run
for farmers and people
engaging in agricul-
tural activities.”
NEWSAHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2020
02www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
BJP COURTING FARMERS
AHEAD OF LOCAL BODY POLLS
BJP state unit president CR Patil at a farmers’ rally in Bardoli last week. —FILE PHOTO
BJP Matar MLA rues
Kheda SP’s ‘transfer
action’ of police officers
First India Bureau
Kheda: An incum-
bent Bharatiya Jana-
ta Party (BJP) MLA
has alleged that Khe-
da superintendent of
police (SP) has been
transferring police
sub-inspectors from
the district for failing
to achieve their COV-
ID-19 violations fine
collection targets.
An audio clip that
has been popularly
shared on social me-
dia platforms in Khe-
da district, Matar
MLA Kesarisinh
Solanki can be heard
demandingthattheSP
refrain from behaving
like that, or it could
impact the outcome of
the upcoming local
body elections.
Solanki accused the
superintendent of po-
lice of transferring
the Matar police sub-
inspector and then the
Limbasi police inspec-
tor. When the MLA
inquired about the
transfers, the SP re-
sponded that both had
been individual trans-
fers, as the officers
had failed to achieve
the COVID-19 viola-
tion fine collection tar-
gets set for them.
According to Solan-
ki, the police superin-
tendent may be har-
assing officers just to
stay in the good books
of senior officers oper-
ating from state capi-
talGandhinagar.“But,
he does not know that
such actions can have
an adverse impact on
the upcoming local
body elections. At the
end of the day, it is the
MLA who is held ac-
countable by the par-
ty,” he said.
The MLA can also
be heard offering a de-
duction of Rs70,000
from his salary and al-
lowances, to transfer
to district fund as fine
collection. Expressing
his dissent for the SP’s
reasoning to transfer
police officers, Solan-
ki asserted that he
would never under-
stand the challenges
faced by an MLA.
He also added that
if such ‘harassment’
continues, it may po-
tentially affect the
outcome of the taluka
panchayat elections
likely to be held in
February next year.
Party leaders and workers
have been working in
tandem to “set the record
straight” on three new
agricultural laws
Used medical waste found strewn
near Vasna barrage in A’badFirst India Bureau
Ahmedabad: Amid tall
claims that Ahmedabad
is on track to becoming
a zero-waste city in a
few years, a large pile of
used Personal Protec-
tive Equipment (PPE)
kits, gloves and masks
were found abandoned
near Vasna barrage in
the city.
This suggests gross
negligence on the part
of the Ahmedabad
Municipal Corpora-
tion (AMC) in the dis-
posal of COVID-19
medical waste. While
the number of cases
of novel coronavirus
has decreased in the
state, the virus has
not been eliminated
and careless disposal
of such waste may po-
tentially put thou-
sands of lives at risk.
The question that
arises here is: who
dumped the waste
near the Vasna bar-
rage? Since, it includ-
ed PPE kits the waste
may have come from a
place where COVID-19
patients may be un-
dergoing treatment.
With the surrounding
area occupied by a
small population that
lives in makeshift
huts, they may be-
come infected with
the virus owing to the
disposal of the medi-
cal waste.
According to COV-
ID-19 safety guidelines,
medical waste has to be
disposed of scientifi-
cally and in a proper
manner. But, the litter
near the Vasna barrage
is proof that AMC
needs to pull up its
socks and ensure that
careless disposal of
medical waste is avoid-
ed at all costs.
Matar MLA Kesarisinh Solanki
Medical waste including PPE kits, gloves and masks at Vasna barrage in Ahmedabad. —FILE PHOTO
Congress pays tribute to ‘fallen’ farmer martyrs of ongoing agitation
IN MEMORIAM
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: State
leader of the Congress
party paid tribute to 22
farmers who lost their
lives in the ongoing
farmers’ movement on
Tuesday, while protest-
ing against three new
farming laws intro-
duced by the central
government.
With the farmers’
agitation on the Delhi-
Singhu border ending
its 27th day, several pro-
testors have joined the
movement. A press con-
ference was organized
by the Congress party
at the district level to
oppose the agriculture
laws. In Rajkot, leaders
tore up the legislation
and also observed a two-
minute silence for the
farmers who died in the
agitation. Congress
leader Naresh Rawat
said, “Calling our farm-
ers pro-Pakistan and
terrorists is a common
agenda for the BJP.”
Rawat further stated
that BJP was trying all
hacks to curtail the
farmers’ movement.
“The BJP has had no
success in this regard
so far. The Gujarat
Pradesh Congress Com-
mittee (GPCC) and the
All India Congress
Committee (AICC) have
always been supporters
of farmers, a fact that
farmers are gradually
realizing. We must de-
cide whether the gov-
ernment should with-
draw these “black” laws
or not,” he added.
Meanwhile, Congress
leaders in Navsari dis-
trict levelled serious al-
legations against the
government in protest
of the central govern-
ment’s agricultural re-
forms. The district Con-
gress demanded that
the laws were intro-
duced by the govern-
ment without taking
farmers into confi-
dence. They also paid
tribute to farmers who
died in the agitation.
Leader of Opposition
Paresh Dhanani also at-
tended a similar pro-
gramme in Amreli.
Despite having inter-
nal disputes regarding
local issues, the Con-
gress party seems to be
suddenly showcasing a
united front to protest
the new farming laws.
Cong leaders at the Navsari gathering. Leader of Opposition Paresh Dhanani at the Amreli event.

GUJARATAHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2020
Stategets988newCOVID-19
patients,7 deaths in 24 hours
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: As the
case numbers fell be-
low the 1,000- mark in
the state, seven pa-
tients succumbed to
novel coronavirus on
Tuesday, five of whom
werefromAhmedabad
city. With one death
each reported in Surat
city and Botad, the
pandemic death toll in
the state now stands at
4,248.
Meanwhile, former
agriculture minister
DilipSanghaniandhis
wife tested positive for
COVID-19.Sharingthe
news on his social me-
dia account, Sanghani
asked people with
whom he came in con-
tact with to get them-
selves tested and self-
isolate for a few days.
The state added 988
new cases in the past
24 hours, taking the
infection tally to
2,37,247 cases. At least
1,209 patients were
also discharged from
across the state. So far,
over 2,21,602 patients
have recovered from
the infection across
Gujarat.
At 209 cases,
Ahmedabad reported
the highest number of
cases in the state on
Tuesday.Atleast201of
these cases were re-
ported from urban ar-
eas and only eight
from rural parts.
Surat, too, recorded
around 160 fresh cases
— 128 from the city
and 32 from rural are-
as.
Among the four dis-
tricts that reported
more than 100 new
cases were Vadodara
(137) and Rajkot (132).
Currently, there are
11,397 active cases
across the state, of
which, 64 are on venti-
lator support. Gujarat
so far has conducted
91.62 lakh tests.
Around 246 passengers and 22 crew members were screened for the virus at airport
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: Five pas-
sengers who arrived in
the city from London
on Tuesday have tested
positive for COVID-19.
Around 246 passengers
underwent the RT-PCR
test, after alighting
from their flight and
stayed at the terminal
for eight hours, until
results of their tests
came through. After a
new mutation of novel
coronavirus was found
in the UK, the Indian
government has barred
flights to Britain and
taken steps to ensure
that passengers who
entered the country
from that region un-
dergo requisite testing.
Changing strains of
the virus in European
countries, including
Britain, have made it
even more deadly. This
has led to cancellation
of flights from India to
London. Although Air
India flight AI 1172
from Ahmedabad to
London slated to take
off on Tuesday was
cancelled, the Air India
flight AI 1171 from Lon-
don to Ahmedabad
touched down at Sard-
ar Vallabhbhai Patel
International Airport
on Tuesday morning.
As per the govern-
ment’s order, all 246
passengers on the flight
were instructed to stay
at the airport terminal
until the mandatory
RT-PCR tests were per-
formed. Passengers
were allowed to head
out of the airport after
a negative test report,
said an airport official.
Separate arrange-
ments for RT-PCR test-
ing and lunch had been
made for passengers at
the Terminal 2 build-
ing at the airport. All
passengers were in-
structed to remain un-
der strict home quaran-
tine under the supervi-
sion of state govern-
ment doctors for at
least the next seven
days.
If any of the incom-
ing passengers are
found to be nCoV posi-
tive, they will be rushed
to a government hospi-
tal for treatment.
Five people on London-A’bad
flight test positive for nCoV
Masuma Bharmal Jariwala
Rajkot: In yet anoth-
er instance of lions
moving beyond their
known habitats, at
least 10 of them were
spotted by forest de-
partment officials in
the Jetpur taluka of
Rajkot on Monday.
Despite the forest de-
partment being
aware of their loca-
tion, 10 cows were
killed by the lions at
a gaushala (cowshed)
in the Arabtimbdi vil-
lage.
According to offi-
cials, some of the lions
even dragged away two
of the cows. State forest
department officer Jet-
pur Tripti Joshi con-
firmed the news and
told First India, “Based
on the radio collars, 10
lions, including cubs,
were spotted by the for-
est team at Piparva vil-
lage. While the search
for the animals was on,
the lions reached
Arabtimbdi village
and entered a gaushala
at around 2 am on
Tuesday to prey on
cows. Two were
dragged to some re-
mote place. We have
yet to trace the loca-
tion of the carcasses”.
The news has
spread fear among
the locals in the ta-
luka, as this is not
the first instance of
lions being spotted in
the area. Many locals
said that while lions
have been spotted in
different villages in
this region over the
past two months, the
forest department
has done little about
it.
“During Diwali, a
few lions were spotted
in Thana Galol village.
Jetpur is close to the
Gir Sanctuary so lions
are bound to cross over
into ‘human’ territory.
We are taking all possi-
ble measures to ensure
that people remain
calm about the situa-
tion by organizing a
‘public sabha’,” Joshi
added. Forest depart-
ment sources say that
arrangements are be-
ing made to send the
lions back to their es-
tablished habitats in
Gir.
Meanwhile, three
lions had been spot-
ted by the forest de-
partment 10 kilome-
tres away from Ra-
jkot, a few days ago.
Forest department
sources believe that
lions are moving out
of their known habi-
tats due to a surge in
their population. Ac-
cording to the last
2020 census, the Asi-
atic lion population
in Gir was 674, which
was 29% more than
the 2015 census.
State forest department spots 10 young lions in Jetpur taluka
ON THE PROWL
PRECAUTIONS
Declared dead,
girl found to be
alive, dies again
104 houses
demolished on civic
body land in Surat
First India News
Surat: A two-year-old
girl, who was pre-
sumed dead only to be
found alive, has died,
officials said. Armi,
the daughter of
Arvind Pandav, fell
down from stairs at
her residence in Shas-
tri Nagar on Saturday
and was admitted to
Kiran Hospital in crit-
ical condition.
After initial treat-
ment, the doctors at the
hospital referred the
girl to SMIMER Hospi-
tal and the family of the
girl signed a Discharge
against Medical Advice
(DAMA) document.
However, the family
members took her to
CivilHospitalwhereshe
died after treatment.
According to officials,
Civil Hospital medical
officer, Dr Vaidarbhi Pa-
tel, checked the girl’s
heartbeat and discov-
ered that she was alive
at 11:20 pm on Saturday.
However,thegirldiedon
a ventilator half an
hour later.
Dr Patel said the
way the staff at Kiran
Hospital detailed her
case papers was be-
yond her comprehen-
sion. The girl’s father
has accused Kiran
Hospital of not in-
forming him about
the DAMA document.
Dr Mehul Panchal of
Kiran Hospital stated
that the girl had been
revived after CPR.
Due to financial rea-
sons, she was referred
to SMIMER Hospital.
First India Bureau
Surat: The Surat Mu-
nicipal Corporation
(SMC) on Tuesday
razed 104 houses on
land owned by the
civic body in Ambed-
kar Nagar in Limbay-
at area of the city un-
der police protection.
The demolition of
property has sparked
outrage among local
residents. A demand
for alternative shel-
ter arrangement un-
der the Slum Reha-
bilitation Scheme and
Public Private Prop-
erty (PPP) has been
put forth by them.
Suresh Sonwane (for-
mer SMC standing com-
mittee member) said,
“These people were
evacuated from the Sa-
hara Darwaja in 1980
and shifted to Ambed-
kar Nagar in Limbayat.
After calling this area
their home for 40 years,
these people are being
moved again. The BJP
government wants to
throw these people out
of their homes and
move them somewhere
without any facilities.
We demand that these
people be shifted to the
158 vacant houses in
Dumbhal Tenement.”
He added, “The resi-
dents were ordered to
vacate their homes
overnight. We strongly
condemnthisincident.”
A JCB machine razing a home in Ambedkar Nagar, Limbayat.
The wild animals went on to kill
10 cows at a gaushala in Arabtimb-
di village on Tuesday morning
A man undergoes testing for nCoV at a testing centre in A’bad.
Passengers of London-Ahmedabad ﬂight coming out of the airport terminal after undergoing tests.
—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI
A’bad reported 209
cases; 201 were
from urban areas, 8
from rural
Tired of wife’s expensive lifestyle
demands, man files for divorceFirst India Bureau
Vadodara: In an unu-
sual situation, a man
from the city has ac-
cused his wife of har-
assing him, police of-
ficials said. The man
also claims that he
has been forced to file
for a divorce, after
just 11 months into
his marriage.
In his complaint,
Umang (name changed
to protect identity) stat-
ed that the behaviour of
his wife and her family
changed after their
wedding in January
last year. He said that
hailing from a well-to-
do family, his wife Un-
nati was used to living a
very lavish lifestyle, a
fact which he came to
know when he started
cohabiting with her in
his family home.
Umang added that his
wife would constantly
demand costly things
such as a new car for
personal use and an air
conditioner for their
bedroom. He even ac-
cused his wife’s family
of instigating fights be-
tween them.
According to the
complainant, Unnati
had been insisting on
living in a separate
home like a nuclear
family, and not in the
joint family set up they
had been living in.
Even during lock-
down, when salaries
were not paid on time,
she demanded unrea-
sonably large sums of
money from him, he
added. She required a
monthly pocket mon-
ey of Rs5,000. When
Umang tried reason-
ing with her or re-
fused to indulge her
expensive whims, she
used to taunt him. He
alleged that one night
she even went so far
as to state that he
should have let her
sleep with 10 men on
their wedding night,
if he couldn’t provide
her with adequate
amounts of money.
Vadodara district court.
LIFE IS
GOOD
A ﬂock of black-winged
stilt birds was seen
enjoying the winter
breeze post their
morning meal, in the
middle of the Sabarmati
River in Ahmedabad on
Tuesday.
—PHOTO BY
HANIF SINDHI
Frequent attacks by lions have been reported in the state lately.
—FILE PHOTO

G Vol 2 G Issue No. 29 G RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208. Printed and published by Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of First Express Publishers. Printed at Bhaskar Printing Planet Survey No.148P, Changodar-Bavla Highway, Tal. Sanand, Dist. Ahmedabad.
Published at D/302 3rd Floor Plot No. 35 Titanium Square, Scheme No. 2, Thaltej Taluka, Ghatlodiya, Ahmedabad. Editor-In-Chief: Jagdeesh Chandra. Editor: Anita Hada Sangwan responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act
PERSPECTIVEAHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2020
ven after Asia’s
e c o n o m i e s
climb out of the
COVID-19 re-
cession, Chi-
na’s strategy of frenetical-
ly building dams and reser-
voirs on transnational riv-
ers will confront them with
a more permanent barrier
to long-term economic
prosperity: water scarcity.
China’s recently unveiled
plan to construct a mega-
dam on the Yarlung Zangbo
river, better known as the
Brahmaputra, may be the
biggest threat yet.
China dominates Asia’s
water map, owing to its an-
nexation of ethnic-minori-
ty homelands, such as the
water-rich Tibetan Plateau
and Xinjiang. China’s ter-
ritorial aggrandizement in
theSouthChinaSeaandthe
Himalayas,whereithastar-
geted even tiny Bhutan, has
been accompanied by
stealthier efforts to appro-
priate water resources in
transnational river basins
– a strategy that hasn’t
spared even friendly or pli-
antneighbors,suchasThai-
land, Laos, Cambodia, Ne-
pal, Kazakhstan, and North
Korea. Indeed, China has
not hesitated to use its hy-
dro-hegemonyagainstits18
downstream neighbors.
The consequences have
been serious. For example,
China’s 11 mega-dams on
theMekongriver,Southeast
Asia’s arterial waterway,
have led to recurrent
drought downriver, and
turned the Mekong Basin
into a security and environ-
mental hot spot. Mean-
while, in largely arid Cen-
tral Asia, China has divert-
ed waters from the Illy and
Irtysh rivers, which origi-
nate in China-annexed Xin-
jiang. Its diversion of water
from the Illy threatens to
turn Kazakhstan’s Lake
Balkhash into another Aral
Sea, which has all but dried
upinlessthanfourdecades.
Against this back-
ground, China’s plan to
dam the Brahmaputra
near its disputed – and
heavily militarized – bor-
der with India should be no
surprise. The Chinese com-
munist publication Huan-
qiu Shibao, citing an arti-
cle that appeared in Aus-
tralia, recently urged In-
dia’s government to assess
how China could “weap-
onize” its control over
transboundary waters and
potentially “choke” the In-
dian economy. With the
Brahmaputra megapro-
ject, China has provided an
answer.
The planned 60-giga-
watts project, which will be
integrated into China’s
next Five-Year Plan start-
ing in January, will report-
edly dwarf China’s Three
Gorges Dam – currently the
world’s largest – on the
Yangtze River, generating
almost three times as much
electricity. China will
achieve this by harnessing
the power of a 2,800-meter
(3,062-yard) drop just before
the river crosses into India.
What the chairman of
China’s state-run Power
Construction Corp, Yan
Zhiyong, calls an “historic
opportunity” for his coun-
try will be devastating for
India. Just before crossing
into India, the Brahmapu-
tra curves sharply around
the Himalayas, forming
the world’s longest and
steepest canyon – twice as
deep as America’s Grand
Canyon – and holding
Asia’s largest untapped
water resources.
Experience suggests
that the proposed megapro-
ject threatens those re-
sources – and China’s
downstream neighbors.
China’s past upstream ac-
tivities have triggered
flash floods in the Indian
states of Arunachal and
Himachal. More recently,
such activity turned the
water in the once-pristine
Siang – the Brahmaputra’s
main artery – dirty and
gray as it entered India.
SOURCE: PROJECT SYNDICATE
WILL CHINA TURN OFF ASIA’S TAP?
E
nthesky,thereisnodistinction
of east and west; people create
distinctions out of their own
minds and then believe them
to be true. —Buddha
Spiritual
SPEAK
Top
TWEET
Ravi Shankar Prasad
@rsprasad
It is a matter of great pride and
honour for India that our Prime
Minister @narendramodi Ji has been
awarded the ‘Legion of Merit’ by the
President of USA. His charismatic
leadership and contributions have
elevated the India-US strategic
partnership to greater heights.
K C Venugopal
@kcvenugopalmp
A delegation of @INCIndia leaders
led by former Congress President
@RahulGandhi will submit a
memoranda of appeal signed
by around 2 crore farmers from
across the nation to Hon’ble
Rashtrapati ji on 24th December,
2020 urging his intervention to
annul the black anti-farmer laws.
he old order changeth, yield-
ing place to new’ has proved
true in respect of the Union
Territory (UT) of Jammu &
Kashmir with the successful
completion of first ever third
tier elections of District De-
velopment Councils (DDCs).
A challenging and mammoth
task executed brilliantly by
the newly formed State Elec-
tion Commission (SEC) with
the help of vigilant and dedi-
catedmembersof thesecurity
forcesandJKPolice.Afterthe
election of the DDC Chair-
men and formation of the se-
lect committees and District
Planning Commission, the
DDCs will become fully func-
tional and work in unison
withtheothertwotiers,Halqa
Panchayats and Block Devel-
opment Councils (BDCs), to
ensure that Panchayat Raj In-
stitutions (PRIs) are fully bed-
ded in the UT ushering Naya
Jammu & Kashmir.
With the PRIs fully func-
tional, the centre of power in
the UT will shift from the high
profileGupkarRoadtothevil-
lages and towns with the ac-
tual stakeholders planning
and executing the local area
development. It was for this
very reason that the Kashmir
based political leadership
which remained at the helm
for the last seven decades was
unwilling to promote the Pan-
chayat Raj because it went
against the tenets of Dynastic
Rule. For the Gupkaris self-
interestandpreservation/pro-
motion of dynastic rule was
always the paramount consid-
eration since devolution of
power would have meant the
empowermentof thecommon
man considered as an existen-
tial threat by the Gupkar elite.
It is therefore not surprising
that despite huge amounts of
central assistance the com-
monmenarestillyearningfor
thethreebasicamenities;con-
nectivity,waterandelectricity.
TheGupkarisexcelledinemo-
tional exploitation of the peo-
plethroughloftyslogans,false
promises and manufactured
narratives spin doctoring his-
torical facts to suit their nar-
ratives. The successive gov-
ernments in New Delhi were
treated as “milch cows” by
these leaders while at the
same time widening the rift
between the people and New
Delhi. It was all fine as long as
New Delhi submitted to their
demands and pressures but
moment it adopted a different
approach or squeezed liberal
flow of funds, New Delhi was
portrayed as the enemy of the
Kashmiris. Even New Delhi
hardly ventured to establish a
direct contact with the people
and hence failed to read the
pulse of the people.
Behind the shield of Arti-
cles 370 and 35A, the Kash-
miri leadership began to feel
indispensable and invinci-
ble. They even began to hold
New Delhi at ransom de-
manding greater autonomy
legitimising exclusivity
which had resulted due to
mass exodus of indigenous
Kashmiri Hindus and other
minorities gradually con-
verting Jammu & Kashmir
with a distinct identity of
Muslim majority state enjoy-
ing special status of a “state
within a state”. This trend
needed to be reversed before
it became irreversible.
The epoch making decision
takenbyModigovernmenton
05 August 2019, which ulti-
mately reversed the trend,
has now become a part of his-
tory of Naya Jammu & Kash-
mir. The three decades of vio-
lence also needed to be con-
trolled and ultimately
brought to an end. Father of
the nation Mahatma Gandhi
had said, “When the panchay-
at raj is established, public
opinion will do what violence
can never do.” With J&K fully
integrated with the idea of
One India One Nation, it was
a matter of time before the
panchayat raj was introduced
and made functional like the
restof thecountryinthenew-
ly formed UT as well. The pro-
cess in fact had begun earlier
after the application of the
President’s rule under the
governorship of Satya Pal
Malik who successfully con-
ducted the elections to the
first tier of halqa panchayats
and urban local bodies. The
concept was nascent hence
took time to mature and gath-
ered full steam only post 05
August 2019. J&K entered
2020 with rays of new hopes
and aspirations.
Things were moving pretty
when the deadly pandemic
engulfed the entire world in
the beginning of 2020 itself.
In the UT, its impact began to
be felt from March onwards.
Undeterred by the pandem-
ic UT administration realised
thatitwasracingagainsttime
since it had something to
prove. The administration be-
gan to take many steps to
strengthen the nascent Pan-
chayat Raj Institutions (PRIs)
through their financial em-
powerment through direct
funding and delegation of
powers in keeping with the
73rd and 74th Amendments
which had not been imple-
mented earlier due to Article
370. The elected representa-
tives were given training un-
der the centrally sponsored
scheme of Rashtriya Gram
SwarajAbhiyanforthecapac-
ity building to enhance capa-
bilities of Panchayats for in-
clusive local governance.
Much needed protocol status
wasaccordedtotheChairman
of Block Development Coun-
cils (BDCs) to enable them
function with authority. The
centre’sflagshipe-governance
programme for rural govern-
ance, the e-panchayat project
toautomatethefunctioningof
the panchayats has also been
implemented. Local govern-
ance through devolution of
power to PRIs is the key to ru-
ral development, the area in
which the UT lacks woefully.
The highlight and major
achievement of the year has
been the conduct of local bod-
ies’ elections in November-
December. A major gamble
whichhasprovedtobeagame
changer. In keeping with its
intent of promoting Panchay-
at Raj, the administration an-
nounced elections to the
DDCs. A very big challenge
since the elections were to be
held on an adult franchise ba-
sis. The newly introduced
DDCs were to replace the ear-
lier District Development
Boards which were nominat-
ed as against the DDC which
will be an elected body.
The Peoples’ Alliance for
Gupkar Declaration (PAGD)
also referred to as Gupkar Al-
liance, formed by the leaders
of six mainstream Kashmir
based political parties to
fight for status quo, also par-
ticipated in the elections de-
spite initial theatrics and
gimmicks.
Allayingallfearsandappre-
hensions,theelectionsproved
a great success. The gusto
with which people of all ages
came out of their houses ig-
noring the challenges of bad
weather,harshwinterandter-
roristthreatprovedtheirfaith
in the Panchayat Raj system.
The participation in Kashmir
hassurprisedmanyincluding
the Gupkar Alliance. It has re-
corded massive increase
across all ten districts in com-
parison to the 2018 Panchayat
elections and 2019 Parliamen-
tary elections. An achieve-
ment beyond expectations.
The election also had many
firsts to its credit; no boycott
call, first electoral exercise of
the new UT, first elections un-
der newly formed State Elec-
tion Commission, West Paki-
stan refugees, Valmikis,
Gorkhas exercised their fran-
chise for the first time in local
elections, reserved seats for
STs and newly formed politi-
cal party JK Apni party mak-
ing its maiden electoral fray.
The ballot has ultimately
emerged victorious over the
bullet and grassroots democ-
racy has begun to take firm
roots in the UT. The people of
J&K also need to be compli-
mented for their wholeheart-
ed participation in this car-
nival of democracy. Political
parties will interpret the
election results based on the
narrative they want to set
post elections and claim vic-
tory but one thing is certain
that democracy has already
emerged victorious. The peo-
ple have also given a befitting
reply to those who were mak-
ing loud noises like the com-
plete loss of faith of the peo-
ple in Indian democracy. The
message is loud and clear
that no place for “sub-nation-
alism” exists in Naya Jammu
& Kashmir.
2020isendingonahighnote
of successful resumption of
the political process with peo-
ple pinning high hopes on
their new leaders and the pan-
chayat raj system. They hope
thatthenewsystemwilldawn
aneraof changewithfocuson
mitigating their problems
through effective planning at
grassroots level and judicious
use of resources. The attempt
by the Gupkar Alliance to use
the new system for forced ver-
ification of their retrograde
ideology of return to status
quo will have to be curbed by
the people lest the entire exer-
cise is hijacked away from its
main aim by the vested inter-
ests. Nothing is static in this
dynamic world. Change is the
law of nature. Sooner the
change is accepted by the sta-
tus quo lobby, the better it
would be for the future.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
NAYA J&K EMBRACES PANCHAYAT RAJ
WINDS OF CHANGE
T
With the PRIs
fully functional,
the centre of
power in the UT
will shift from the
high profile
Gupkar Road to
the villages and
towns with the
actual
stakeholders
planning and
executing the
local area
development. It
was for this very
reason that the
Kashmir based
political
leadership which
remained at the
helm for the last
seven decades
was unwilling to
promote the
Panchayat Raj
because it went
against the tenets
of Dynastic Rule
THE HIGHLIGHT AND MAJOR ACHIEVEMENT OF THE
YEAR HAS BEEN THE CONDUCT OF LOCAL BODIES’
ELECTIONS IN NOVEMBER-DECEMBER. A MAJOR
GAMBLE WHICH HAS PROVED TO BE A GAME
CHANGER. IN KEEPING WITH ITS INTENT OF
PROMOTING PANCHAYAT RAJ, THE ADMINISTRATION
ANNOUNCED ELECTIONS TO THE DDCS
BRIG VETERAN
ANIL GUPTA
The author is a Jammu
based veteran, political
commentator, columnist, security
and strategic analyst

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INDIAAHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2020
591 PASSENGERS FROM UK LAND
IN MUMBAI IN THREE FLIGHTS
Mumbai: As many as
591 passengers landed in
Mumbai in three flights
from the UK on Tues-
day, a civic official said,
adding none of them has
been found symptomatic
so far. While 299 have
been sent to various
hotels for the mandatory
quarantine, 292 are at the
airport, the official said.
“With reports of distinct
phylogenetic cluster of
coronavirus detected and
rapidly growing in UK, all
flights originating from
UK to India have been
suspended temporarily
as per orders of GoI,” the
BrihanMumbai Municipal
Corporation tweeted.”In
order to prevent spread of
the new mutant, BMC has
issued orders to follow
quarantine of seven days.
CONG WILL BOUNCE BACK: GOA
CHIEF AFTER ZP POLL LOSS
Panaji: Days after Con-
gress was trounced
in Zilla Parishad polls
in Goa, the party’s
state in charge Dinesh
Gundu Rao said it
would bounce back.
BJP won 32 out of
49 seats while the
Congress was left with
just four, less than the
seven won by Inde-
pendents. “I don’t think
ZP polls are a signal
towards Assembly
polls. We have seen so
many elections for lo-
cal bodies, that should
not be the barometer.
We have lot of work to
do & convince people
about our work.”
INDIAN ARMY, BOB SIGN MOU
FOR MILITARY SALARY PACKAGE
New Delhi: Ministry of
Defence said that the
Indian Army and Bank
of Baroda have entered
into an MoU for Baroda
Military Salary Package
under which services
will be offered to serv-
ing and retired person-
nel of Indian Army
through the bank’s
network of over 8,200
domestic branches
and around 20,000
business correspond-
ent touchpoints. The
MoU was signed by Lt
General Ravin Khosla,
DG and Vikramaditya
Singh Khichi, Execu-
tive Director, Bank of
Baroda.
RUPEE SETTLES 5 PAISE LOWER AT
73.84 AGAINST US DOLLAR
Mumbai: The rupee pared
most of its initial losses
and settled for the day
5 paise lower at 73.84
against the US dollar on,
tracking a rebound in
domestic equities. At the
interbank forex market,
the domestic unit opened
at 73.95 against US dollar
and witnessed an intra-
day high of 73.82 and a
low of 73.95. The local
unit finally closed at 73.84
against the American cur-
rency, registering a fall of
5 paise over its previous
close. On Monday, rupee
plunged 23 paise to end
at a two-week low of
73.79 against US dollar.
Meanwhile, the dollar in-
dex, which gauges green-
back’s strength against a
basket of six currencies,
was trading 0.29%.
IN THE COURTYARD
Resources of country belong
to every citizen, says PM ModiPolicies which are being framed today are reaching all without discrimination, he said
New Delhi: Prime Min-
ister Narendra Modi on
Tuesday said that re-
sources of the country
belong to every citizen
and every one of them
should benefit from it.
“Jo desh ka hai woh
har deshvaasi ka hai
(Resources of the coun-
try belongs to every
citizen). Everyone
should benefit from it,
that’s the spirit our gov-
ernment is working
with,” PM Modi said
“The policies which are
being framed today are
reaching every section
without discrimination
on the basis of religion.
Bank accounts of over
40 crore poor were
opened without any dis-
crimination. Without
discrimination, more
than 2 crore poor were
provided pucca houses.
More than 8 crore wom-
en got gas connections
without discrimina-
tion. 50 crore people got
free medical treatment
up to Rs 5 lakh under
Ayushman scheme
without any discrimi-
nation,” he said.
“The country is on
the path where every
citizen should rest as-
sured about their con-
stitutional rights &
their future. The coun-
try is on the path where
no citizen would be left
behind because of their
religion and everyone
would get equal oppor-
tunities so that every-
one can fulfil their
dreams. Sabka Sath,
Sabka Vikas, Sabka
Vishwas is the mantra
behind it,” he said.—ANI
New Delhi: A forum of
women lawyers, social
Group of Lawyers of
Delhi High Court have
decided to fast on
Wednesday in solidari-
ty with the ongoing
“Satyagrah” by farmers
demanding to roll back
the recently passed
farm laws.
Lawyers associated
with the forum demand-
ed to repeal the three
farm laws on December
23, the day which is ob-
served as Kisan Diwas.
“It is our belief that
while the issue of the
Constitutionality of the
farm laws being enact-
ed by the Centre when
agriculture is a state
subject is subjudice be-
fore the Supreme Court
and the issue of the le-
gality of the enactment
by a voice vote in the
Rajya Sabha is also be-
ing heard by the Su-
preme Court, imple-
mentation of irreversi-
ble and far-reaching
farm laws would render
these petitions infruc-
tuous and could cause
irreparable damage to
the farm sector in In-
dia,” the forum said
The forum includes sen-
ior advocates Indira
Jaising, Mahalakshmi
Pawani, Biswajit Bhat-
tacharyaMohan Katar-
ki, Anand Grover and
advocates Shadan Fara-
syat, Prashant Pad-
manabham, Ritu di-
wan, etc. It also includes
members Shweta Ka-
poor, Zeba Khair & Iram
Majid among others.
Delhi HC’s women legal
forum to observe fast today
JetAirways’promoter:
Closurereportaccepted
Sister Abhaya murder:
Priest, nun found guilty
Bengal ahead of other states on all
development indices: CM Mamata
New Delhi: PM Narendra Modi
praised the Aligarh Muslim
University and said it has worked
to strengthen India’s relations
with many countries of the world.
“The way AMU has helped society
during the coronavirus crisis is
unprecedented - free tests, build-
ing isolation wards, plasma banks
and contributing a large amount
to the PM CARES Fund shows
the seriousness of fulfilling your
obligations to the society.”
PM LAUDS AMU FOR
STRENGTHENING TIES
New Delhi: PM Narendra Modi
said that dropout rate of Muslim
girl students has reduced due
to government policies. “School
dropout rate among Muslim girls
was more than 70% and this situ-
ation persisted for 70 years. In
these circumstances, the govern-
ment started Swachh Bharat Mis-
sion, built toilets in villages and
toilets for school-going girls. Now
the dropout rate from 70 per cent
has fallen to nearly 30 per cent.
New Delhi: PM Modi re-
leased a postal stamp as part
of centenary celebrations of
Aligarh Muslim University
(AMU). Chancellor of the
University Syedna Mu-
faddal Saifuddin and Union
Education Minister Ramesh
Pokhriyal Nishank were also
present on the occasion.
PM RELEASES POSTAL
STAMP TO MARK
AMU’S CENTENARY
‘DROPOUT OF MUSLIM
GIRL STUDENTS REDUCED’
Farmers sit on the road as they block Delhi-Meerut Highway
during an ongoing protest against the new farm laws, at the
Ghazipur border in New Delhi on Tuesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
PM Narendra Modi addresses during the centenary celebrations of Aligarh Muslim University via VC.
Kolkata: Slamming
Union Home Minister
Amit Shah for “deliber-
ately trying to project a
dismal and gloomy pic-
ture” of West Bengal,
Chief Minister Mamata
Banerjee on Tuesday
contended that the state
has fared well on all de-
velopment indices.
Issuing a point-by-
point rebuttal to asser-
tions made by Shah
against her dispensa-
tion, during his visit to
Bengal last week, Ba-
nerjee cited NCRB data
to state that political
killings and other
crimes have decreased
in the last ten years un-
der the TMC rule.
“When the home
minister of the country
says something, it
should be backed by
data, facts and figures.
Bengal is ahead of oth-
er states on all develop-
ment indices. But Amit
Shah ji deliberately
tried to depict a gloomy
and dismal picture of
the state. I was chal-
lenged... here is my re-
ply,” Banerjee said at a
press meet here.
Kolkata has twice been
accorded the ‘safest city’
taginthecountry,shesaid.
“According to NCRB
data, political killings, oth-
er incidents of crime and
rape cases have decreased
during the TMC rule. —PTI
Srinagar: PDP youth
president Waheed Para,
who is in custody of the
NIA for alleged links
with militants, won the
District Development
Council (DDC) elections
from Pulwama district
in J&K. Para defeated
BJP candidate Sajad
Ahmad Raina.
PDP president Me-
hbooba Mufti said she
was proud of her par-
ty’s youth leader to reg-
ister a win. Para was
arrested by the NIA on
November 25, a few
days after filing nomi-
nation papers as a
PAGD candidate. —PTI
New Delhi: A fall in
minimum temperature
by 1 to 3-degree Celsius
is likely over the plains
of northwest and cen-
tral India during the
next three days, the In-
dia Meteorological De-
partment (IMD) pre-
dicted on Tuesday.
“Fall in minimum
temperature by 1-3°C
over some parts of
plains of northwest In-
dia and central India
during next 3 days. No
significant change in
minimum temperature
over some parts of west
India during next 2 days
and rise by 2-3°C there-
after for subsequent 3
days,” the IMD said.
Himachal Pradesh,
Uttarakhand, Bihar,
Punjab, Haryana, Chan-
digarh, Delhi and West
Uttar Pradesh will most
likely witness cold wave
conditions at isolated
pockets today, while se-
vere cold wave condi-
tions will prevail on
December 23 and 24 in
some parts.
The same is likely
over Odisha, East Uttar
Pradesh, Gangetic West
Bengal, Chhattisgarh
and Telangana today.
Dense fog will be seen
in the morning over
Punjab, Haryana, Chan-
digarh and Delhi on De-
cember 23, and dense to
very dense fog will be
seen at isolated pockets
from 24th to 26th De-
cember. —ANI
COURTESY MEET
Army Chief Gen MM Naravane calls on Union Minister Nitin Gadkari at his residence in
New Delhi. —PHOTO BY PTI
Thiruvananthapuram:
Twenty eight years af-
ter the mysterious
death of Sister Abhaya,
an inmate of St.Pious
convent at Kottayam in
Kerala, a CBI special
court here on Tuesday
held it was a case of
murder and found a
priest and nun guilty of
killing her.
Special CBI Judge K
Sanal Kumar, while pro-
nouncing the verdict,
said the murder charg-
es against the two will
stand.
The court held that
Fr Thomas Kottoor and
Sister Sephy of the-
Catholic Church were
guilty of murder under
Sections 302 and 201 of
the IPC. It also found
Father Kottoor guilty of
offence under Section
449 of the Indian Penal
Code.The court will
pronounce the quan-
tum of sentence on
Wednesday. —PTI
‘Cold wave conditions prevail over North India’
Mumbai: A metropoli-
tan court accepted the
closure report filed by
Mumbai police in a
cheating case against
Jet Airways, which has
been grounded since
April last year, its pro-
moter Naresh Goyal
and his wife.
The order came a day
after theBombay High
Court rejected a plea of
ED, which is also prob-
ing the case, to inter-
vene into the matter.
Earlier, a similar
plea by ED had been re-
jected by the metropoli-
tan court and a sessions
court here. The MRA
Marg police here in
February this year reg-
istered a case against
the Jet Airways, Goyal
and his wife on charg-
es of cheating and
criminal beach of
trust, on a complaint
filed by city-based Ak-
bar Travels India Pri-
vate Limited. —PTI
CHILLA, GAZIPUR BORDERS TO REMAIN
CLOSED FOR TRAFFIC, INFORMS DTP
Jailed PDP
youth leader
Waheed Para
wins DDC polls
A train runs slowly on its tracks during a foggy winter morning.
Mamata Banerjee

INDIAAHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2020
Modi reaches...
Modi was all praise for
the role played by AMU
founder Sir Syed Ah-
mad Khan.
Top US...
& the US to improve bi-
lateral ties, reflected in
the bipartisan consen-
sus in both countries
about the Indo-US Stra-
tegic Partnership,” he
tweeted.
In another tweet, the
Prime Minister said
that the Indo-US rela-
tionship can leverage
the vast potential of the
people to provide global
leadership for the ben-
efit of the entire hu-
manity.
“The 21st century
presents both unprece-
dented challenges as
well as opportunities.
The India-US relation-
ship can leverage the
vast potential of our
people’s unique
strengths to provide
global leadership for
the benefit of entire hu-
manity,” he tweeted.
The Legion of Merit
Medal is a five-rayed
white cross, edged with
red, resting on a green
wreath with a blue cen-
tre containing 13 white
stars. —ANI
Farooq & ...
BJP won four seats in
Kashmir including that
of Srinagar. Kakpora-
Pulwama, Tulel-Bandi-
pora, Gurez-Bandipora.
The saffron brigade is
also leading in two seats
in Kupwara and Anant-
nag.
Senior BJP leader
and Union minister
Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi
had campaigned for the
BJP candidate in the
predominantly Shia
area of Balahama in the
Srinagar district pe-
riphery. The BJP also
put up a good fight
against the regional
parties in the valley
who had come together
on a single platform --
Peoples Alliance for
Gupkar Declaration.
Meanwhile, the re-
sults saw People’s Alli-
ance for Gupkar Decla-
ration (PAGD) winning
the majority of the
seats in Kashmir valley
as the Centre backed
Jammu and Kashmir
Apni Party failed to
make a mark. Mean-
while, in accordance
with expectations, the
BJP is leading in the
Jammu division. The
party has also won two
seats in Kashmir val-
ley– one in Srinagar
and one in Tulail seat in
Bandipora district.
Shah’s next...
under the oppression
by the state for quite
some time now,” stated
a senior BJP MP from
West Bengal.
Sources said Shah
would be camping in
the state for two days.
Shah has set a target
of 200 seats in the elec-
tions for 294-member
West Bengal Assembly.
He has recently re-
turned from a two-day
visit to the state. —ANI
New strain...
“(And) as of now, it has
no impact on the poten-
tial of vaccines being
developed in our coun-
try and (which) are
available in other coun-
tries,” he added.
Eight passengers
who arrived last night
on two separate flights
from London have test-
ed positive for the vi-
rus. Those on a British
Airways flight that
landed in Delhi today
were tested but found
negative.
Raid in...
likely to spread the in-
fection of any disease
dangerous to life), and
34 (Acts done by several
persons in furtherance
of common intention)
of IPC, police said.
“Suresh was in
Mumbai for a shoot
which extended to late
hours and was invited
by a friend for a quick
dinner post the same
prior to him taking
his flight back to Del-
hi. He was not aware
of the local timings
and protocols,” a
statement on behalf
of Raina said.
“Once pointed out,
he immediately com-
plied with the proce-
dures laid out by the
authorities and re-
grets the unfortunate
and unintentional in-
cident. He always
holds rules and laws
laid down by govern-
ing bodies with the
highest regard and
will continue to do so
in the future as well,”
it said.—PTI
‘Mystery’ blast...
He said there was one
unutilised gas pipeline
of ONGC, but he was
not sure if that gas pipe-
line caused the blast.
Kalol MLA Baldevji
Thakor had recently
drawn attention of the
district administration
about illegal construc-
tions on gas pipelines
and nearby areas. He
wanted the district ad-
ministration to look
into the issue and take
action if illegal con-
structions were on or
near gas pipelines. Be-
fore the administration
looked into these allega-
tions, the blast oc-
curred.
FROM PG 1
EMPANELMENT FILE OF 1989 IAS
BATCH REACHES CVC
File of the names of 1989 batch IAS officers who
figure in the empanelment list for the post of Sec-
retary in the GoI has now reached to the CVC.
ABOUT 40 IRS (IT ) OFFICERS OF
1988 BATCH TO BE EMPANELLED?
According to informed sources, 35 to 40 IRS (IT)
officers are being promoted to the rank of Chief
Commissioner.
FIRST JS OF LATERAL ENTRY RESIGNS
Arun Goel, who was appointed on lateral entry as
Joint Secretary, has resigned from the govern-
ment service. He joined the Commerce ministry
last year and looking after e - commerce. He had
come from Shopeclus.
WILL AN OFFICER IN ED GET
LONG EXTENSION?
Rumour mill says, one senior officer of ED is likely to
get long extension - say two to three years. The said
officer’s term is going to complete in few months.
DR. AJAY KUMAR CONTINUES
AS PS TO DHARMENDRA PRADHAN
TILL JULY 2024
Dr. Ajay Kumar will continue working as Private
Secretary to Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan
till July 2024. He is a 2006 batch IAS officer of
Gujarat cadre.
SBI TO GET TWO NEW MDS NEXT WEEK!
File of Swaminthan Janakiraman and Ashwini Ku-
mar Tewari for the two posts of Managing Director
at the State Bank of India has reached to the DoPT.
Official announcement is likely next week.
KAPIL PATIDAR APPOINTED DEPUTY
SECRETARY, ECONOMIC AFFAIRS
Kapil Patidar has been appointed Deputy Sec-
retary, Department of Economic Affairs. He is a
2011 batch IES officer.
MOU SIGNS BETWEEN HUDCO AND
MOHUA
HUDCO has signed a Memorandum of Under-
standing (MoU) with the Ministry of Housing and
Urban Affairs (MoHUA) for setting key targets for
the financial year 2020-21. The MoU was signed
between Durga Shanker Mishra, Secretary, MoHUA
and Kamran Rizvi, Chairman and Managing Director,
HUDCO in the presence of M Nagaraj, Director(Cor-
porate Planning) and D Guhan, Director(Finance).
SIX SPS OFFICERS AWARDED IPS
CADRE IN BIHAR
Six officers of Bihar State Police Service have
been appointed to the Indian Police Service and
allocated Bihar cadre. The officers are: Rakesh
Kumar Dubey, Sanjay Bharti, Chandra Shekhar
Prasad Vidyarthy, Hari Mohan Shukla, Sheela Irani
and Baliram Kumar Choudhary.
10 COMMISSIONERS OF CUSTOMS,
GST & CENTRAL EXCISE GET NEW
ASSIGNMENT
As many as 10 officers in the grade of Principal
Commissioner/Commissioner of Customs, GST &
Central Excise have been transferred. Accordingly,
Nirmal Kumar Soren has been posted to Directorate
of Logistics, Delhi and K Ashi Khieya wais shifted to
Dimapur GST &CX and Abhai Kumar Srivastav will
join Bhopal GST & CX. Similarly, S K Vimalanathan
was shifted to Mumbai-II Nhava Sheva-II Cus; Nit-
ish Kumar Sinha to DGGI Hqrs. Delhi; Anice Joseph
Chandra to DG Vigilance, Delhi Hqrs-III; Manas
Ranjan Mohanty to Authority of Advance Ruling for
Customs, Mumbai; Vijay Singh Chauhan to Author-
ity of Advance Ruling for Customs, Delhi; Yogendra
Garg to DG NACIN. COE. Delhi and Hardeep Batra
was posted to . Ludhiana (Audit) GST & CX.
POWERGallery
By arrangement with: http://
whispersinthecorridors.com
New Delhi: The num-
ber of daily new corona-
virus infections report-
ed in the country was
recorded below 20,000
after nearly 6 months
while the COVID-19 ac-
tive caseload fell below
3 lakh, as per the Union
Health Ministry data
updated on Tuesday.
India’s COVID-19
caseload rose to
1,00,75,116 with 19,556
new infections being re-
ported in a day.
The death toll in-
creased to 1,46,111 with
301 new fatalities, the
data updated at 8 am
showed.
The number of peo-
ple who have recuper-
ated from the disease
surged to 96,36,487
pushing the national re-
covery rate to 95.65 per
cent, while the COV-
ID-19 case fatality rate
stands at 1.45 per cent.
The COVID-19 active
caseload has fallen be-
low 3 lakh. There are
2,92,518 active coronavi-
rus infections in the
country which compris-
es 2.90 per cent of the
total caseload, the data
stated. India’s COV-
ID-19 tally had crossed
the 20-lakh mark on Au-
gust 7, 30 lakh on Au-
gust 23, 40 lakh on Sep-
tember 5 and 50 lakh on
September 16. —PTI
Virusweakensaslowestone-dayrise
innewcasesrecordedinsixmonths
COVID-19: Number of daily new infections reported in the country was recorded below 20,000
Members of NITI Aayog Dr.Vinod K. Paul along with the Secretary, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare,
Rajesh Bhushan during a press conference on the updates on COVID-19, in New Delhi on Tuesday.
New Delhi: The Union
health ministry on
Tuesday issued a set of
standard operating pro-
cedures (SOPs) for pas-
sengers arriving from
the United Kingdom
(UK) amid the detection
of a new variant of the
novel coronavirus dis-
ease. On Monday, the
Centre had announced
a temporary ban on
flights from the UK into
India which would con-
tinue till December 31.
Several other coun-
tries have also an-
nounced travel bans to
and from the UKwith a
view to prevent the
spread of the new vari-
ant (B117), which is said
to be 70 per cent more
transmissible, as esti-
mated by the European
Centre for Disease Con-
trol. As per the SOPs is-
sued by the health min-
istry, all international
travellers will be re-
quired to declare their
travel history of the last
14 days and fill up a self-
declaration form to be
screened for Covid-19.
Centre releases SOPs
for flyers from UK
‘HOPEFUL OF PROTESTING UNIONS
RESUMING TALKS WITH GOVT SOON’
New Delhi: As farmers’
agitation against three
farm laws entered its
27th day, Agriculture
Minister Narendra Sin-
gh Tomar said on Tues-
day he is hopeful that
protestingunionswould
soon complete their in-
ternal discussions and
resume talks with the
government to resolve
the crisis.
He met two more
peasants’ bodies from
Delhi and Uttar Pradesh
that extended support to
the legislations.
“Representatives of
different farmers’ bod-
ies had come to tell that
the laws are good and
are in the interest of
farmers. They had
cometourgethegovern-
ment not make any
amendments to the
laws,” Tomar said after
meeting the two groups.
“I am hopeful they
(protesting farmers’ un-
ions) will soon complete
their internal discus-
sions and come forward
for talks. We will be
able to find a solution
successfully,” the min-
ister said. Agriculture
Ministry had written to
the protesting groups
on Sunday, urging them
to specify their con-
cerns on the govern-
ment’s proposal and fi-
nalise a date for the
next round of talks to
end the protests. At
least five rounds of for-
mal talks have failed to
break the deadlock as
the agitating unions
have not agreed to any-
thing less than repeal
of the laws. —PTI
Panaji: A Congress
leader from Karnataka
appealed to the Naren-
dra Modi government to
ban the export of beef,
saying such move would
ensure that cow are not
slaughtered. These re-
marks of MLA Dinesh
Gundu Rao, who is the
Goa desk incharge of
the Congress, came
against the backdrop of
shortage of beef in the
coastal state due to sup-
ply crunch from neigh-
bouring Karnataka.
"Let PM Narendra Modi
ban the export of beef.
If that happens, cows
will not be slaughtered,"
he told reporters. —PTI
‘Ban export of beef if
you think for cows’
LARGEST CENTRE TREATING 59 PATIENTS
Kochi: Cochin Carnival,
the biggest year-end
celebration in Kerala
cancelled in a wake of
the coronavirus situa-
tion in the state, said
the founding chair-
man of the Carnival
KJ Sohan. He said the
Carnival which used to
held at the Vasco da
Gama Square in Fort
Kochi every year has
been cancelled.
COCHIN CARNIVAL
CANCELLED DUE
TO COVID SCARE
COVID CURBS
New Delhi: The eco-
nomic loss due to pre-
mature deaths & mor-
bidity from air pollu-
tion was Rs 2,60,000
crore or 1.4 % of the
GDP in India in 2019,
as per new scientific
paper. It also said that
1.7 million deaths
(18% of total deaths)
in the country were
attributable to air pol-
lution last year. As
per the scientific pa-
per on health and eco-
nomic impact of air
pollution published
in Lancet Planetary
Health on Tuesday,
household air pollu-
tion decreased in In-
dia resulting in 64 %
reduction in the death
rate attributable to it
from 1990 to 2019. —PTI
Air Pollution killed 1.7
million Indians in 2019
PROTESTING FARMERS SHOW
BLACK FLAGS TO HARYANA CM
INDIAN-CANADIAN SINGER
JAZZY B JOINS PROTEST
Ambala: A group of farmers protest-
ing against the Centre's new agri
laws on Tuesday showed black flags
to Haryana Chief Minister Mano-
har Lal Khattar when his convoy
was passing through Ambala City,
sources said. Some of the farmers
allegedly tried to block Khattar's
motorcade but police managed to
provide a safe passage to the chief
minister, sources said. The farmers
waived black flags at CM’s convoy.
Singhu Border: Indian-Canadian
singer Jaswinder Singh Bains a.k.a
Jazzy B addressed agitating farmers
at the Singhu border. In his address,
Jazzy B said that the farm protest has
united farmers from all over the coun-
try. "This protest has united all the
farmers from the country. The farmers
from Punjab, Haryana and many
other states are coming out from their
areas. I am thankful to the youth who
came to support them ," Jazzy said.
A poster of Bhagat Singh is seen during a protest against the new farm laws at Singhu border in
New Delhi on Tuesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
KISAN DIWAS: Thousands of farmer protesters gather at Delhi’s borders
—PHOTOBYANI

TALKING POINTAHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2020
Peter Isackson
B
ritish daily
The Guardian
unearthed a
storyfromthepastthat
throwsanobliquelight
onthepresent.Itbegan
with an odd couple and
led to the creation of a
real one. The odd cou-
ple is the American ac-
tor George Clooney
and the current UK
Prime Minister Boris
Johnson.Theirconflict
aired in public at the
time marks the origin
of the making of a real
couple: Clooney and
his future bride, the
human rights lawyer
Amal Alamuddin.
In 2014, Clooney
made a public state-
ment about a contro-
versy that had been
ragingfordecadesover
thepresenceinLondon
of what are called the
Elgin Marbles or, more
properly, the Parthe-
non Sculptures. These
are a collection of an-
cient Greek statues
and carvings removed
from the most famous
monument of ancient
Athens by the Scottish
aristocrat, Thomas
Bruce, earl of Elgin.
This transfer of an-
cient artwork took
place at the beginning
of the 19th century,
when the Ottoman Em-
pire controlled Greece.
Lord Elgin was Brit-
ain’s ambassador to
the Ottoman Empire,
who clearly was more
interestedinGreekhis-
tory and art than the
Ottomans themselves.
He requested permis-
sion to sketch the re-
mains of what had
beenleftinpartialruin
and even obtained
weakly formulated
permission to “to take
away any pieces of
stone with old inscrip-
tions or figures there-
on.”
He employed artists
to do the sketching but
took on board person-
ally the business of
taking away the pieces
with inscriptions and
figures. As traditional
Muslims,theOttomans
were not merely icono-
clasts, but aniconists,
denouncing the repre-
sentation of sentient
beings. They may have
felt relieved that some
of the“gravenimages”
were being removed
from a territory they
controlled. Bruce duti-
fully collected what in-
terested him and sent
them to England,
where for nearly two
centuries they have
been on display in the
British Museum.
Whilepromotingthe
releaseof hisfilm“The
Monuments Men,”
about the Nazi theft of
great European art-
work, consistent with
the theme of the movie
Clooneyvoicedhissup-
port for the Greek
claim that the artwork
should be returned to
Athens. Clooney’s re-
marks drew the atten-
tionof London’smayor
at that time, a certain
Boris Johnson. Boris
felt very strongly that
the town over which he
presided should be rec-
ognized as the rightful
ownerof theGreekart-
work.
Summoning up his
patented talent for
stale puns and person-
al put-downs, Johnson
told The Telegraph:
“Someone urgently
needstorestoreGeorge
Clooney’s marbles.”
This turned into a pub-
lic scandal as Johnson
went further, accusing
Clooney of “advocat-
ing nothing less than
the Hitlerian agenda
for London’s cultural
treasures.”
BRITAIN’S COMMITMENT
T
he Guardian
notes that
Drax “is prob-
ably the wealthiest
landowner in the
House of Commons,
with 5,600 hectares
of farmland and
woodlands. The es-
tate’s finances are
largely opaque to
the public gaze and
involve at least six
trusts and other dis-
connected financial
entities.” With such
resources, Drax has
had plenty of time
to reflect on the log-
ic of history and to
develop an under-
standing of his own
position in it, both
as the scion of a co-
lonial family and a
legislator in a mod-
ern democracy.
Drax explains the
state of his under-
standing: “I am
keenly aware of the
slave trade in the
West Indies, and the
role my very distant
ancestor played in it
is deeply, deeply re-
grettable, but no one
can be held respon-
sible today for what
happened many
hundreds of years
ago. This is a part of
the nation’s history,
from which we must
all learn.” With his
repeated “deeply,”
Drax appears to
echo the Lewis Car-
roll’s Walrus feast-
ing on the oysters
he had earlier be-
friended.
By “we must all
learn” Drax appears
to be suggesting
that, despite his
deep, deep regret,
If there is a reck-
oning to be had, it
should be shared by
all and not attribut-
ed to those who
thrive today thanks
to the crimes of
their forebears. The
fact that the wealth
he enjoys today de-
rived from a histori-
cal crime, the conse-
quences of which
are felt by the vast
majority of de-
scendants of slaves,
has no importance.
No one can accuse
him of having slaves
today, though it
might be interesting
to review the em-
ployment condi-
tions of his servants
and the workers on
the existing planta-
tion in Barbados.
In a separate and
lengthier article,
Lashmar and Smith
provide a detailed
description of
Drax’s wealth and
current posses-
sions. Reviewing
the Drax family’s
history in the West
Indies, dating back
to the 1620s, they re-
mark that his enter-
prising ancestor ac-
quired a reputation
as an innovator by
creating a success-
ful model for a com-
mercial sugar plan-
tation that was imi-
tated elsewhere in
the Caribbean.
Though the compar-
ison is purely
anachronistic, the
MP’s 17th century
ancestor appears to
have been the Elon
Musk of colonial
slavery.
Musk’s own occa-
sional statements
concerning how to
treat regions around
the world with ex-
ploitable resources
(“We will coup who-
ever we want! Deal
with it”) under-
scores a certain cul-
tural continuity
with the Drax clan.
They seem to share
a similar mindset.
The article cites
Beckles’ estimation
“that as many 30,000
slaves died on the
Drax plantations in
Barbados and Ja-
maica over 200
years.” In its ef-
fects, that sounds
somewhat similar
to the kind of “Hit-
lerian agenda” that
Boris Johnson, the
leader of Drax’s po-
litical party, ac-
cused George Cloon-
ey of having for dar-
ing to suggest a
crime of the past
might require a ges-
ture of reparation.
And so, the most
powerful Tory and
the wealthiest Tory
seem to share the
same approach not
only to contempo-
rary politics, but to
history itself. Can’t
these eternal com-
plainers like Beck-
les and Clooney just
let bygones be by-
gones?
Contextual Note
Historical Note
S
ince those
events in 2014,
several things
have happened. John-
son eventually be-
came Britain’s prime
minister, thanks pri-
marily to a series of
shambolic episodes
surrounding the still
ongoing dog-and-po-
ny show Boris put to-
gether in 2016, known
as Brexit. Clooney
married later that
year.
The actor explained
to The Observer that,
after Johnson’s out-
burst, he needed to be
briefed on the status
of the controversy
surrounding the Par-
thenon marbles. He
accordingly arranged
to meet the lawyer
who was pleading the
case for the return of
the artwork. The law-
yer’s name was Amal
Alamuddin. Without
Johnson’s denuncia-
tion of an American
interloper in Lon-
don’s business, the
now happy couple
might never have
met.
In the same edition
of The Guardian, a
casual reader could
have happened upon
another article, with
the title “Wealthy MP
urged to pay up for
his family’s slave
trade past,” which is
also about the British
habit of plundering
the riches of other re-
gions of the world in
the days of empire.
The authors, Paul
Lashmar and Jona-
than Smith, recount
how Richard Drax,
the Conservative MP
for South Dorset, re-
cently inherited a
plantation in Barba-
dos that owed its pros-
perity in former
times to the brutal
exploitation of Afri-
can slaves.
Modern voices, in-
cluding the Barbadi-
an historian of slav-
ery, Sir Hilary Beck-
les, are now demand-
ing “reparatory jus-
tice” for the crimes of
Drax’s ancestors.
Beckles reminded
Drax of the historical
truth that “Black life
mattered only to
make millionaires of
English enslavers and
the Drax family did it
longer than any other
elite family.” The
Guardian notes that
Drax recognizes these
facts from his fami-
ly’s past. But like
many Britons, he has
been taught to think
of history as a subject
of study that serves
primarily to fascinate
schoolchildren with
inspiring stories of
heroism from the
past.
Serious people, as
the MP clearly under-
stands, must focus on
the issues of the day.
Brexit for instance,
which Drax has con-
sistently voted for, as
well as aggressive
Britain’s military
combat operations
overseas. After all, all
modern combat en-
gaged by Britain, es-
sentially in the Mid-
dle East, aims at tell-
ing darker-skinned
people who is the
boss. It’s in his fami-
ly’s tradition.
SOURCE: FAIROBSERVER.COM
Amal and George Clooney
I weep for you,’ the Walrus said:
I deeply sympathize.’
With sobs and tears he sorted out
Those of the largest size.
UK’s most powerful as well as the wealthiest Tory seem to share the same
approach not only to contemporary politics, but to history itself
to Retaining the
Spoils of History
Elgin Marbles, Parthenon Galleries, British Museum, London, UK
—NICHOLAS ECONOMOU/SHUTTERSTOCK

An individual’s happiness is
always dependent on the outside
and the within and the within
has a bigger role.
—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO & Editor, First India
AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2020www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
08
2NDFRONT
So far things are moving as the BJP wishes, but this election would test efficacy of its Hindutva in the conquest for the East
By Prashant Saxena
Kolkata: Defection,
disinformation/mis-
information and in-
ducing fear of defeat
are among the essen-
tial instruments of
statecraft, which po-
litical parties love to
settle scores with
their adversaries.
Something of this
sort is very much in
evidence in West Ben-
gal where Assembly
polls are due in about
three months from
now.
It is here the cut-
throat politics would
test the larger efficacy
of BJP’s Hindutva in
its conquest of the east.
So far, so good for
BJP by all indications
-- the grandstanding
has paid off: starting
from the activist Gover-
nor to projecting the
rancorous Trinamool
Congress Chief Minis-
ter Mamata Banerjee, it
all seems to add up to
saffron calculations.
When Suvendu Adhi-
kari switched sides
along with a sitting MP
and nine MLAs besides
others, including local
Muslim leaders, at a
public rally last week,
the perception in the
saffron camp was south
Bengal is more or less
won.
Didi, the once stormy
petrel, isn’t a pushover.
She struck back on
Monday, leaving the
BJP MP from Bishnu-
pur in Bankura dis-
trict, Saumitra Khan,
in tears. Though the
MP has vowed to di-
vorce his wife Sujata
Mondal Khan for join-
ing the “enemy” TMC,
Mamata again looks
menacing enough to
put the BJP in its place.
The battle of percep-
tion has begun in ear-
nest.
Mamata then sum-
moned her poll strat-
egist Prashant Kishor
to do some plain-
speak: the BJP won’t
cross the double-digit
figureinthe294-mem-
ber Assembly else
he’d quit Twitter! On
her part, the CM
spoke to NCP boss
Sharad Pawar and
tried to win his sym-
pathy over the al-
leged attempts by the
Centre to destabilize
o p p o s i t i o n - r u l e d
states.
There are two other
fronts where TMC and
BJP would try to outdo
each other: the ‘Gorkha-
land’ politics of Dar-
jeeling hills in the east
and the Muslim factor
that holds the key
across the state in over
100 Assembly seats.
The Gorkha Janmuk-
ti Morcha has resur-
faced with the emer-
gence of Bimal Gurung,
who had been under-
ground for over three
years after a violent
clash with the state au-
thorities in 2017. Ex-
cept around over a doz-
en seats where the
Gorkhaland demand
matters, the rest of
Bengal is against the
statehood.
Rather than arrest-
ing him for several
pending cases, Mamata
has already extended
an olive branch to Bi-
mal by allowing him to
hold a rally. For BJP,
there is a clear opportu-
nity: “It is, say, 15 ver-
sus 280 seats. The TMC
can now easily be ac-
cused of soft-pedaling
the Gorkhaland issue.
For us, we’ll go with the
rest of Bengal,” said a
BJP leader.
On Muslim votes, the
AIMIM of Asaduddin
Owaisi has staked its
claim. In a state where
the Trinamool is hard-
pressed to corner the
minority vote in the
face of Congress strain-
ing every nerve to sew
up an alliance with the
Left Front, the prospect
of vote division looks
eminently clear.
WEST BENGAL: The battle of perception begins
West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee fighting toughest battle on home turf.
Guj Govt reduces number of
std 9 to 12 classes in its schools
Gir lions maul teenage girl
to death in Vanthali forestsFirst India Bureau
Ahmedabad: The
State Education De-
partment has reduced
the number of classes
in schools for stand-
ard 9th to 12th for the
current academic
year of 2020-21, as the
pandemic has not
only led to poor re-
sults of 10th standard
but also affected the
admission process ad-
versely.
According to the ear-
lier resolution, the min-
imum number of stu-
dents required in a
class were 36 in urban
areas and 24 in rural ar-
eas. But now, a class of
std 9th to 12th will re-
quire minimum 25 and
18 students in urban
and rural areas respec-
tively.
The number of stu-
dents should now be
maintained at maxi-
mum 42 and mini-
mum 25 in urban ar-
eas while the corre-
sponding number in
rural areas are 42 and
18. School classes
with fewer students
than this will be
closed. Also, around
900 vacancies of
teachers will be elim-
inated.
The department has
acknowledged that the
main issue of govern-
ment schools is lower
admissions of students.
Government schools
with fewer children
than the prescribed
number have already
been closed or merged.
On the other hand,
the State Government
has recognized 1,157
private primary schools
in the past 3 years. This
hints that private
schools are being en-
couraged more at the
expense of government
schools.
First India Bureau
Junagadh: A teenage
girl of Vanthali talu-
ka in Gujarat’s Juna-
gadh district was at-
tacked and killed by a
couple of lions when
she went out to re-
lieve herself on Mon-
day night, police said.
Bhavnaben Deepsinh
Babaria, a resident of
Dhanfulia village, came
across the felines be-
tween 9 pm and 10 pm
on Monday when she
left her home along
with her younger sister.
While the younger
sibling jumped into a
water tank and saved
herself, Bhavnaben was
trapped. The lions at-
tacked and mauled her
to death. The wild ani-
mals ate parts of her
lower limbs, sources
said.
Bhavnaben’s family
hadmovedfromGodhra
to Vanthali in order to
search for some work at
the farmhouse of one
Jerambhai Nanjibhai
Chavda.
Vanthali Range For-
est Officer Arun Kumar
said, “Right now, I am at
the spot and we are in-
vestigating.” He refused
to elaborate on the case
any further.
People living in
Vanthali area have
been complaining
about lion attacks for
the last 6 months. Ac-
cording to sources, at
least 2 prides of Gir
lions inhabiting in
the area had preyed
on the cattle and oth-
er livestock of villag-
ers. But this was the
first case where a hu-
man was attacked
and killed by lions.
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: The Gu-
jarat High Court on
Tuesday expressed its
annoyance with the
State Government
and the WildLife
Board for not reply-
ing to a suo moto peti-
tion about its decision
to divert land from
the Gir Lion Sanctu-
ary to lay oil pipe-
lines, optical fibers
and railway lines.
Asking the respond-
ents to file a reply, the
court has scheduled the
next hearing for Janu-
ary 11, 2021.
The court’s notices
followed a suo moto ap-
plication based on a PIL
seeking directions to
the State not to allot 150
hectares of land from
the Sanctuary to rail-
ways for broad gauge
conversion and track
electrification projects,
as also for oil pipelines
and optical fibers.
The application stat-
ed that such activities
in the sanctuary area
was a hindrance to the
Asiatic lion population
in and around Gir for-
ests and should be
heard in subordinate
courts on a fast-track
basis. It claimed that
the government had al-
ready approved the di-
version of the sanctu-
ary land to lay lines for
oil and optical fibers.
A member of the
State Board for Wildlife
had objected to the
broad gauge railway
line since this would
mean trains running at
not less than 50 km per
hours, posing grave
risk to the lions. Such
an incident was report-
ed near Pipavav in De-
cember 2018. Similarly,
oil leaks could cause
huge fires in the forests.
Gir and surrounding
areas have 674 lions, up
from 523 in 2015 and
their spread expanded
from 22,000 sq km to
30,000 sq km by 2020, oc-
cupying large areas out-
side the sanctuary.
HC ANGRY GUJ GOVT IGNORED ITS NOTICE
ON LAYING OIL LINES, OFC IN GIR FORESTS
IN THE COURTYARD
KEY ISSUES
GUJ CHURCHES TO GO
VIRTUAL FOR CHRISTMAS,
NEW YEAR THIS TIME
Criminal proceedings against
NCP MLA Jadeja quashed
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: The Gu-
jarat High Court has
quashed proceedings
against NCP MLA
Kandhal Jadeja in a
case where he is ac-
cused of providing a
weapon to an ac-
cused in a 1998 Por-
bandar case.
Jadeja, who had de-
fied his party’s whip
in the Rajya Sabha
elections this year to
vote for BJP candi-
dates, has 15 criminal
cases pending against
him. He has been ac-
quitted in two cases.
The high court
dropped the proceed-
ings against Jadeja
for lack of evidence.
The case pertains to a
man, an accused in a
case, who was caught
with a gun, and dur-
ing interrogation, he
told police that the
gun was given to him
by Jadeja.
An FIR was lodged
against the accused
by the Udyognagar
Police Station in 1998.
Porbandar Judicial
Magistrate took cog-
nizance of the inci-
dent and proceedings
were initiated against
Jadeja.
Earlier in 2011, a
Porbandar court had
rejected his criminal
revision application.
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: Chris-
tians in Gujarat will
join the annual mid-
nightChristmasmass
online amid the Cov-
id-19 pandemic and
night curfew, with
virtual liturgical cel-
ebrations and a sym-
bolic physical church
service in the even-
ing.
St Xavier’s church
in Ahmedabad has
sent out an invitation
to its parishioners to
“register” for the
physicalservicesince
the open ground,
known for the biggest
midnight Christmas
gathering with a ca-
pacity of 500, will al-
low only 150 regis-
tered participants.
“All those who have
registered are given a
number. The sitting
area is divided into
zones and the seat
number is stuck on
the benches and
chairs. Those who
have not registered,
will not be allowed to
come in,” said Father
Vinayak Jadhav,
spokesperson for the
Roman Catholic
Church in Gujarat.
Masks are manda-
tory and tempera-
tures of the partici-
pantswillbescreened.
COVID-19
UPDATE
GUJARAT
4,248
DEATHS
2,37,247
CONFIRMED CASES
RAJASTHAN
2,634 DEATHS 3,00,716 CASES
DELHI
10,329 DEATHS 6,18,747 CASES
WORLD
17,15,207
DEATHS
7,80,03,474
CONFIRMED CASES
INDIA
1,00,97,540
CONFIRMED CASES
1,46,438
DEATHS
MAHARASHTRA
48,876 DEATHS 19,02,458 CASES
UTTAR PRADESH
8,224 DEATHS 5,76,824 CASES
KARNATAKA
12,016 DEATHS 9,10,241 CASES
NCP MLA Kandhal Jadeja
—FILE PHOTO
—FILE PHOTO
—FILE PHOTO
Gujarat High Court. —FILE PHOTO

AHMEDABAD, WEDNESDAY
DECEMBER 23, 2020
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia
facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09
THE FINALISTS OF MISS OCEANWORLD 2020 FROMTHE
TOP 11 COUNTRIES ABSOLUTELY ACED IT INTHE
‘NATIONAL COSTUME ROUND’HELDVIRTUALLY!
FLAUNTING THE
NATIONALITIES
n international beau-
ty pageant, Miss
Ocean World 2020
which began earlier
this month, recently
held a ‘National Cos-
tume Round’ for all
the finalists competing for the
title. Participants from a total
of 11 countries were a part of
this round, where they flaunt-
ed the traditions and values
of their respective countries.
After this round, a total of 7
finalists will be shortlisted for
the Interview Round, which is
to be held on the 28th of this
month. Renowned people
from the fashion world will be
a part of the interviewer pan-
el, to make the competition
more interesting.
Yogesh Mishra from Jaipur,
who is the host and the inter-
national director of this beau-
ty pageant has been working
extremely hard and making
the Pink City proud with his
achievements. From organis-
ing beauty pageants at the
state level to going interna-
tional, Yogesh has come a re-
ally long way. The pageant
Miss Ocean World is
ranked as #17
in the world
of inter-
national
pageantry, which is an ex-
tremely proud moment for
our country.
Talking about being the
host of the pageant this year
and for the next two years, Yo-
gesh Mishra stated, “Being a
host of this esteemed beauty
pageant is a really great op-
portunity for me. It is the very
first time that I am organising
a pageant virtually, but it is
definitely a great and inter-
esting experience altogether.”
Something that makes this
pageant unique from the oth-
ers is the fact that it acted as
a great opportunity for the
women who were of a bigger
age, and not married.
“We believe that everyone
must receive an equal chance,
and that is the reason why we
didn’t focus much on the age
this time- all we required
were the other criteria to be
fulfilled by the participants,”
said Yogesh.
He added, “This year, the
theme of the pageant is
‘Clean Ocean’. Since there
are hardly any activi-
ties dedicated to
the oceans in
the pageants,
a great buzz
was created
across the
g l o b e
once people found out about
the theme. We will be spread-
ing awareness to save the
ocean and keep it clean.”
The grand finale of Miss
Ocean World 2020 will be held
virtually on 30 December.
NEHAL NAYAR
nehal.nayar@firstindia.co.in
A
Uganda
Tanzania
Peru
India France
Nigeria
Venezuela
Spain
United Kingdom Chile
Yogesh Mishra
Egypt

10
ETCAHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2020www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
FACEOFTHEDAY
RIDHI SHARMA, Model
LEO
JULY 24 - AUGUST 23
Don’t be hasty in paying up
for something without
getting all the details. A
health initiative promises to
keep you fit and on the go. Forging
cordial relations with those you meet
at work will be in your favour. Your
moodiness may cause friction at
home.
LIBRA
SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 22
You will succeed in
enhancing your earning. A
business deal may have to
be executed on a different
date. An outdoor activity is likely to
give you a chance for sweating out.
Family would be supportive for those
trying to settle at a new place. Devote
few hours to meditation.
ARIES
MAR 21 - APR 20
At this time, you can be at
your penny-pinching best.
It may appear tough to
please a workplace senior
as he/she expects more from you.
Devoting time to family will provide
immense happiness. Adopting a
better lifestyle is indicated for some
and will keep them fit and healthy.
SAGITTARIUS
NOV 23 - DEC 22
Health remains excellent.
Arrears or back payments
are likely to be received. Day
proves favourable for those
holding responsible positions.
Someone’s proximity on the domestic
front is likely to keep you contented.
Those spiritually inclined will be able to
set out on a pilgrimage.
GEMINI
MAY 21 - JUNE 21
New avenues of earning
will help secure the
financial front. You will
manage to nip a medical
problem in the bud and save yourself
from problems. Your decisions on
the professional front will turn out to
be correct. Your hands will be full in
entertaining demands of youngsters.
AQUARIUS
JAN 21 - FEB 19
You are apple of your
parents eyes. A property
issue you are apprehensive
about is likely to be settled
amicably. Your attempts to gain
popularity on the social front are likely
to meet with partial success. An ego
clash on the work front cannot be ruled
out for some.
TAURUS
APR 21 - MAY 20
Although expenditure rises,
you will manage things
well. This is not the right
time to disclose your
business intentions; keep your
competitors guessing. A perfect
understanding with spouse will help
in gauging moods and pre-empting
showdowns. is quite indicated.
CAPRICORN
DEC 23 - JAN 20
Good returns are foreseen
on an investment. Only a
professionally sound
strategy will succeed in the
kind of competitive environment that
you are in. Peace and quiet prevails
on the home front for you to rest and
recoup. Addition or alteration to
existing property is foreseen.
VIRGO
AUG 24 - SEP 23
Keep control over
expenditure. Sticking to
your exercise regime will
begin to show positive
results. Avoid being lazy on the
professional front. Family will be
most caring and they will do a lot to
make you comfortable and happy. Be
patient towards them.
CANCER
JUNE 22 - JULY 23
You can expect the
financial situation to
improve substantially.
Successfully completing an
assigned job will give you the edge at
work. Your dogged determination will
keep you fit. Keeping a positive
outlook will help in spreading
positivity at home.
PISCES
FEB20 - MARCH 20
You can become money
conscious and come into
the ‘saving’ mode. A
colleague can prove a great
asset in helping settle pending tasks.
You are likely to please the family
members by taking them to their
favourite haunt. Legal help regarding
a property matter will be beneficial.
SCORPIO
OCT 23 - NOVEMBER 22
Whatever you earn today is
likely to be spent. Chances
of getting a new job look
bright for young profes-
sionals. Home environment will
encourage you to relax and let your
hair down. Those who have applied
for a house or plot may get a step
closer to acquiring it.
YOUR
DAYHoroscope by
Saurabbh Sachdeva
KISAN KUMBH
n our ancient Hin-
du culture, a great
festival & pilgrim-
age takes place
every 12 years at
Prayagraj, on the
confluence of the
holy Ganga, Jamuna & the
mythical Saraswati rivers.
The attendees are from all
sections of Hindu life, and
they assemble in the larg-
est numbers known to man-
kind. It is a 48-day Mela
(festival). It is the KUMBH
MELA. It is believed that
when the gods were carry-
ing the Kumbh (pot) con-
taining the Elixir of im-
mortality, some drops fell at
this site. Thereafter, any-
one who bathes here wash-
es away all the sins of his/
her life.
Today we are witnessing
a far bigger phenomenon in
numbers and inclusive-
ness. We are becoming part
of History in the conflu-
ence of all castes, regions,
religions and races. The
sins of strife between these
sections are being sani-
tized in this KISAN
KUMBH to form a single
Bhartiyata (Indianness).
Starting as a small agita-
tion in the heart of Punjab,
it has already snowballed
into a festival of an ancient
civilization waking up to
its ideals. The world has al-
ready taken note.
This miracle started to
unfold from the day the
water-cannons and tear gas
shells were greeted with
folded hands and serving
of food, milk, tea & fruits to
the policemen. The pall of
aggression evaporated into
a peaceful brotherhood. Af-
ter all, 90% of these police-
men were from rural stock
too. With subtle connivance
they let the farmers remove
the barricades and dance &
sing to the Delhi borders.
Then the hugely popular
Punjabi singers joined in
and lifted the sky of the
spirit high. Singing Live
from atop tractors and
makeshift stages, they mo-
tivated the farmers by ap-
pealing to their bravery
and history of their fight
against injustice.
If UNESCO had called
Kumbh Mela as an “Intan-
gible Cultural Heritage of
Humanity” in these lofty
words, I am sure many in-
tellectuals must be scurry-
ing around to define this
phenomenon. If anyone
thinks these millions were
“organised” to demon-
strate, he must be living in
an illusion. People from
across India have started to
move voluntarily towards
Delhi as if drawn by a mag-
net. They are sensing His-
tory being created in a tan-
gible form and deeply long
to be part of this festive
revolution.
The sceptical and cynical
urbane urban were brought
up to think of these sons &
daughters of the soil as vil-
lage bumpkins. Now they
are surprised by common
sense and general knowl-
edge voiced by the sun-
kissed farmers in front of
mikes thrust at them by the
farm-illiterate paparazzi.
To further fox everybody,
they haven’t nominated
just one single leader to
lead them, lest he/she be
manipulated via duress,
money or guile of the pow-
ers that be. The sagacity
and grip over their subject
were evident when the
three dozen Union Leaders
sat patiently for long hours
across smug Govt officers
and ministers and meticu-
lously weeded out all the
glaring anomalies in the
Farm Bills. The Govt
agreed to amend those er-
rors and unwittingly made
their “farmer-friendly”
Bills look devious and in-
fructuous. The KISAN
KUMBH is here to push In-
dia’s civilization onto a
unifying train that will
steamroll all political she-
nanigans that “fooled all
the people, all the time”.
Any farmer worth his salt
and guilty of tolerating the
callousness of various Gov-
ernments will surely em-
bark on this pilgrimage to
the KISAN KUMBH to
cleanse the soul of Bharat
Varsh.
RAINU SINGH
cityfirst@firstindia.co.in
I

lliot Page
came out as
transgender
on Insta-
gram and
was met
with an over-
whelming response
filled with love and
support for The Um-
brella Academy star.
Weeks later, Page
took to IG yet again to
share his first hand-
some selfie along
with a heartfelt mes-
sage to his fans and
everyone else
who showed their af-
fection towards the
33-year-old actor’s
brave decision.
“From the bottom
of my heart, thank
you. Your love and
support has been the
greatest gift. Stay
safe. Be there for
each other. If you are
able, support @
transanta and
@ t r a n s -
lifeline. See you
in 2021. Xoxo El-
liot,” Elliot
penned.
—Agency
E
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
11AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2020
ETC
SEE YOU
IN 2021...
A
dam Brody is opening up in
his new interview with WSJ
about the upcoming Gossip
Girl revival. The new HBO
Max series is a revival of the televi-
sion show that his wife, actress
Leighton Meester, starred in on the
WB in the early 2000s. However, it
doesn’t look like they will personally
be watching the revival of the show,
which isn’t a reboot. “I highly doubt
we’ll watch it front to back,” Adam
shared. “I don’t think we’re the audi-
ence, but I’m sure we’ll dip our toes
in.” Adam did reveal the things
that he and Leighton had been
watching though. “We just
finished The Reagans, I
enjoyed that,” he
shared. “We watched
Mank, the Fincher
movie, last night.
We watched The
Crown, The Vow,
[and] Moonbase
8, which I
thought was
kind of sweet,
lovely.”
—Agency
HIGHLY REBOOT
Y
ami wrapped up shooting for
the first schedule of her
forthcomingfilmBhootPo-
liceacrosslocationsinthe
state where she stayed for almost
a month. The actress informed
that she has just commenced
shootingforherremainingpor-
tions of the horror-comedy
flick in Mumbai. “As I com-
mence the Mumbai sched-
ule of ‘Bhoot police’ cannot
help but think of our shoot
inHimachal.Pandemichas
hit us all & everywhere but
the security that your home-
town gives you is amazing.
Home is where is the heart
is... #shootdiariesofHi-
machal #dalhousie,”
she wrote on Insta-
gram. Directed by
Pavan Kirpalani,
the horror-com-
edyfilmalso
stars Saif
Ali Khan,
J a c q u e -
line Fer-
nandez, Ar-
jun Kapoor
and Jaaved
Jaaferi.
—Agency
E
ven in the Earth’s
final moments,
peoplewillstillbe
mixing up Katy
Perry and Zooey De-
schanel! In the music
video for Perry’s Not the
End of the World, which
the pop singer dropped
Monday morning, a
spaceship full of benev-
olent blue-skinned al-
iens abducts Deschanel
thinking she’s Perry,
whom they revere and
wish to rescue before
our exhausted planet
comes to its untimely
demise. Ever the quick
thinker, the New Girl
star plays along, trying
on Teenage Dream-era
costumes and props in
hopes that she and her
fellow space travellers
can save Earth.
—Agency
A
ctor Arjun Ram-
pal has opened
up on shooting
for his upcom-
ingfilmNailPolishamid
the ongoing pandemic,
describing the experi-
ence as challenging. “It
was extremely challeng-
ing -- everything from
production teams hav-
ing to be on top of their
game, to actors being
vulnerable, to Zee5 tak-
ing a huge risk, to 9co-
stars) Manav (Kaul) and
Anand (Tiwari) getting
Covid, to shoot coming
to a halt for three
weeks,” Arjun said. He
added, “Re-gathering
ourselves and braving
the situation, we had all
the experiences. The
best feeling was fighting
through all these times
and finishing what we
had started.” —Agency
NOT THE END
OF THE WORLD
ENGAGED! BIG ANNOUNCEMENT
A
riana Grande just an-
nounced her engage-
ment to boyfriend Dal-
ton Gomez!
The 27-year-old
thank u, next su-
perstar posted a
series of photos
with her luxury
real estate agent
boyfriend to
her Instagram
on Sunday (De-
cember 20). “for-
ever n then
some,” she cap-
tioned the set of
photos. In one pho-
to, she showcases a
massive ring on her
left ring finger.
“congrats to these two amaz-
ing souls. Ari we love you and
could not be happier for you.
Dalton you are a lucky man,”
manager Scooter Braun com-
mented.
The two were first spotted
together hanging out around
Valentine’s Day, and re-
ports surfaced that they
were dating by March.
They have also been
quarantining to-
gether amid the
pandemic.
—Agency
V
ersatile ac-
tor Ayush-
mann Khur-
rana has re-
cently shared a cute
selfie on his Insta-
gram page to an-
nouncehisnextfilm
Doctor G. The actor
can be seen posing
with the script in
the picture. He has
also shared details
about his next cam-
pus comedy-drama
with Junglee Pic-
tures. After his hit
films like Bareilly
Ki Barfi in 2017 and
Badhaai Ho in 2018,
this is his third col-
laboration with
Junglee Pictures.
As per the title,
Ayushmann will
portray the role of a
doctor. It will be
helmed by Anubhu-
ti Kashyap. While
sharing the selfie,
Ayushmann wrote,
“Opening for con-
sultation soon
#DoctorG.” —Agency
ARJUN’S NAIL
POLISH
“During my
childhood, I
only watched
movies starring
Amitabh Bach-
chan and Dhar-
mendra at
home. I loved
the fight
scenes. The
only movies
apart from
these two stars
that I watched
were of Ra-
jinder Kumar.
I’ve always
had a strong
connection
to hill sta-
tions and
that’s the
reason I
chose movies
by Rajinder
Kumar,” he re-
called. “There was
a point in my life
when I didn’t do any-
thing except practise
music. Working in a fac-
tory was my backup op-
tion,” he added. —Agency
DILJIT
DOSANJH
REVEALS
YAMIFEELSSECURED
A
ctress Taapsee Pannu
has been dropping
jaw-dropping glimps-
es of her physical
transformation over the past
few weeks as she shoots for
Rashmi Rocket and fans have
been gushing over the star.
From nailing workout at the
gym to acing races on the
track, Taapsee has been win-
ning the hearts of her fans
with the amount of hard
work and dedication she has
been putting in for her film,
Rashmi Rocket.
She shared an inspiring
photo from the track. Seeing
the star’s toned muscles and
her determination to reach
the finish line, fans could not
help but laud her talent. Not
just this, with her photo, Taap-
see revealed that she was gear-
ing up for the last race of
Rashmi Rocket.
—Agency
RASHMI ROCKET’S LOOK
Ayushmann Khurrana
...his post
Ariana Grande
Yami Gautam
Arjun Rampal
Diljit Dosanjh
Katty Perry
Elliot Page
Leighton Meester
Taapsee Pannu’s post

First india ahmedabad edition-23 december 2020

First india ahmedabad edition-23 december 2020

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