First india ahmedabad edition-25 november 2020

Aditi Nagar
New Delhi: Prime Min-
ister Narendra Modi on
Tuesday cautioned
states and union terri-
tories against any laxi-
ty in fighting the COV-
ID-19 pandemic and
called for reducing posi-
tivity and fatality rates
by focusing on curbing
virus transmission.
Interacting with
chief ministers, PM
also called for more
RT-PCR tests, even as
he underlined that In-
dia’s COVID-19 situa-
tion is more stable
than other countries in
terms of recovery and
fatality rates. Modi
asked them to work to-
wards bringing down
the positive rate to
nearly 5% and the fa-
tality rate to under 1%
and called for more RT-
PCR tests.
“We need to speed up
our efforts to reduce
transmission of the vi-
rus. Testing, confirma-
tion, Turn to P6
BRING COVID FATALITY RATE
UNDER 1%: PM TELLS CMsOur priority is to make vaccine available for all; States should put
in the necessary mechanism including cold storage, said Modi
‘RUSSIA’S
SPUTNIK V HAS
EFFICACY OF
OVER 95%’
New Delhi: The Russia-
developed Sputnik V
vaccine against coronavi-
rus has been found to be
over 95 percent effec-
tive, CEO of the Russian
Direct Investment Fund
(RDIF) Kirill Dmitriev said
on Tuesday. In a virtual
conference from Moscow,
he said Sputnik V is not
only one of the most
effective but also among
the affordable vaccines
in the world. The vac-
cine has been developed
by Gamaleya National
Research Center of Epide-
miology and Microbiology
and RDIF. RDIF CEO said
the vaccine can be stored
in temperatures ranging
from 2-8° Celsius which
is a very important factor
in facilitating easy dis-
tribution. The efficacy of
the vaccine is over 95%
which is a great news for
all, Dmitriev said.
PRIME MINISTER’S VIDEO CONFERENCE WITH CHIEF MINISTERS OF 8 STATES
Rajasthan triumphs
on all parameters in
Corona war: Gehlot
Kartikey Dev Singh
Jaipur: With a spike
in Corona cases sud-
denly due to onset of
winters, recently con-
cluded festive season
and weddings, Prime
Minister Narendra
Modi on Tuesday held
a video conference
with the Chief Minis-
ters of 8 states includ-
ing Rajasthan regard-
ing Corona manage-
ment. The Prime Min-
ister spoke on man-
agementparameters,
on which the perfor-
mance of Rajasthan
has been excellent.
The Prime Minister
said that bringing the
death rate below one
percent from the co-
rona should be the
main goal of all states.
“The cause of death
of patients should be
analyzed. It should be
the effort of the states
to keep the positivity
rate below 5 percent
while increasing the
number of investiga-
tions and making the
society more aware to
protect against Cov-
id,” Modi emphasised.
Informing about co-
rona situation and
management in Ra-
jasthan, Chief Minis-
ter Ashok Gehlot in-
formedthatRajasthan
has been at the fore-
front on all the param-
eters stated by the
Prime Minister in the
matter of winning the
battle against Corona
and is in a better posi-
tion than other states.
Turn to P6
Naming Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu as only two
states carrying out the reliable RT-PCR tests, Gehlot
suggested to Modi to ask other states to follow suit
Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot speaks during a meeting of
PM Narendra Modi with Chief Ministers of States over the
COVID-19 situation, through video conferencing in New Delhi
on Tuesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
THE ATTENDEES
The meeting was also attended by Union
Home Minister Amit Shah and Health
Minister Harsh Vardhan, while the chief
ministers who participated in the virtual
interaction include Delhi’s Arvind Kejriwal,
Rajasthan’s Ashok Gehlot, West Bengal’s
Mamata Banerjee, Maharashtra’s Uddhav
Thackeray, Chhattisgarh’s Bhupesh
Baghel, Telangana’s K Chandrashekhar
Rao and Gujarat’s Vijay Rupani.
We need to speed
up our efforts to
reduce transmis-
sion of the virus. Testing,
confirmation, contact
tracing and data must be
given top priority.
—Narendra Modi, PM
13°C - 32°C www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
AHMEDABAD l WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2020 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208 l Vol 2 l Issue No. 1
P5
ABDULLAHS’ HOUSE BUILT ON
ENCROACHED LAND: JAMMU &
KASHMIR ADMINISTRATION LIST
OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR, AHMEDABAD & LUCKNOW
1ST ANNIVERSARY OF FIRST INDIA
GUJARAT EDITION TODAY
Guj has 45K isolation beds for nCoV patients: CM
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: In a vir-
tual meeting conducted
on Tuesday, Chief Min-
ister Vijay Rupani ap-
prised Prime Minister
Narendra Modi of the
COVID-19 situation in
the state. Other state
government officials
such as Deputy Chief
Minister Nitin Patel,
Chief Principal Secre-
tary to the CM K Kailas-
hnathan, Chief Secre-
tary Anil Mukim were
also a part of the inter-
action. Rupani assured
PM Modi that the state
was equipped to handle
the pandemic and help
patients. The PM
chaired the meet with
chief ministers of vari-
ous states via video con-
ferencing to take stock
of the pandemic status
in the country.
The CM presented
relevant data about
health facilities for
nCOV patients and stat-
ed that out of 55,000 iso-
lation ward beds, 45,000
were available for pa-
tients, which accounted
for 82% of all isolation
beds in the state.
Commenting on the
accessibility to a COV-
ID-19 vaccine, Rupani
stated that when a via-
ble one is made availa-
ble, the government’s
priority will be to en-
sure that it is adminis-
tered to medical and
para-medical staffers.
TheCMalsoinformed
the prime minister that
the state government
had increased the num-
ber of health teams for
general and community
surveillance. He also
spoke about the efforts
of the 108 ambulance
services and Dhan-
vantri Raths that have
been instrumental
Turn to P6
In a virtual conference with PM Modi,
Rupani assured that COVID-19
warriors will be priority for vaccination
(L to R) Additional Chief Secretary (Forest and Environment) Rajiv Gupta, Chief Minister Vijay
Rupani, Chief Secretary Anil Mukim and Additional Chief Secretary (Revenue, incharge of Home
and Health) Pankaj Kumar
New Delhi: The gov-
ernment on Tuesday
blocked access to 43
more Chinese mobile
apps, including Aliba-
ba Workbench, AliEx-
press, Alipay Cashier,
CamCard and WeDate,
for being prejudicial to
the sovereignty, integ-
rity and defence of the
nation. The Ministry
of Electronics and IT
has issued the order
for blocking the access
of these apps by users
in India based on the
comprehensive re-
ports received from
Indian Cyber Crime
Coordination Center,
Ministry of Home Af-
fairs, an official re-
lease said.
Sources, meanwhile,
said these apps have
Chinese links.
“Government of In-
dia today issued an or-
der under section 69A
of the Information
Technology Act block-
ing access to 43 mobile
apps. This action was
taken based on the in-
puts regarding these
apps for engaging in
activities which are
prejudicial to sover-
eignty and integrity of
India, defence of India,
security of state and
public order,” the re-
lease said.
43 MORE CHINESE APPS
BLOCKED BY INDIA
Shia cleric
Maulana Kalbe
Sadiq dies at 83
Lucknow: Prominent
Shia cleric and All In-
dia Muslim Personal
Law Board vice presi-
dent Maulana Kalbe
Sadiq died in Lucknow
on Monday. He was 83.
Maulana breathed
his last at around 10 pm
at a private hospital
here, his son Kalbe
Sibtain said. He was ad-
mitted to ICU on No-
vember 17.
80TH ALL INDIA PRESIDING
OFFICERS CONFERENCE
Constitution
reinforces our
democracy: Birla
Aditi Nagar & Jyoti Rawat
Gandhinagar: Lok
Sabha Speaker Om Bir-
la, who arrived in
AhmedabadonTuesday,
enroute to attend the
80th All India Presiding
Officers Conference in
Kevadia from 25 to 26
November, informed
that the Conference will
be inaugurated by Pres-
ident Ram Nath Kovind
on 25 November at 11
am and will be attended
by Vice President and
Chairman of Rajya Sab-
ha M Venkaiah Naidu.
“The Presiding Offic-
ers of all State Legisla-
tive Assemblies and
Legislative Councils
have been invited to the
Conference and 27 have
confirmed their partici-
pation. Secretaries of
State Legislatures and
other senior officials
are also expected to
join,” Birla said.
Speaking on Consti-
tution Day, falling on
November 26, Birla ob-
served that it is an im-
portant date in India’s
democratic history, as
this day is celebrated as
Constitution Day.
Observing that our
Constitution reinforces
our democracy and
thereby strengthens
people’s faith in parlia-
mentary democracy,
Birla said that Legisla-
tures are the supreme
fora to raise the issues
that affect the masses.
Full report P2
Lok Sabha Speaker, Om Birla addressing a Press Conference in
Gandhinagar Tuesday.
Vishal Srivastav
Lucknow: In a water-
shed moment for Yogi
Adityanath-led govern-
ment in Uttar Pradesh,
Cabinet approved a draft
ordinancetodealwithre-
ligious conversion for the
sake of marriage, which
couldlandviolatorsinjail
for up to 10 years.
The Cabinet gave its
nod to the ordinance at
its meeting chaired by
Chief Minister Yogi
Adityanath in Lucknow
on Tuesday. In recent
weeks, BJP-run states
like Uttar Pradesh, Har-
yana and Madhya
Pradesh have revealed
plans to enact laws to
counter alleged at-
tempts to convert Hin-
du women to Islam in
the guise of marriage,
which Hindu activists
refer to as love jihad .
“The way in which
religious conversions
are done using deceit,
lies, force and dishon-
esty is heart wrenching,
and it was necessary to
have a law in this re-
gard, Cabinet minister
and UP government
spokesperson Sidharth
Nath Singh said.
He said that the pun-
ishment under the new
law is a jail term from
one and five years, and
a fine of Rs 15,000. But
if the woman involved
is a minor or belongs to
a Scheduled Caste or a
Scheduled Tribe,
Turn to P6
Yogi’s masterstroke against
‘Love Jihad’ gets Cabinet nod
Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi
Adityanath

NEWSAHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2020
02www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: The de-
fection of eight MLAs
in the Gujarat Legis-
lative Assembly from
Congress to Bharati-
ya Janata Party (BJP)
earlier this year had
sparked a discussion
on legal loopholes for
people’s representa-
tives. “Defection is an
issue and even though
there is anti-defection
law in place, people's
representatives take
advantage of loop-
holes. In order to plug
such loopholes, the
Lok Sabha has consti-
tuted a committee
headed by Rajasthan
Legislative Assembly
Speaker CP Joshi that
will recommend rele-
vant solutions and
submit a report to the
central government.
It will suggest steps
to amend the anti-de-
fection law which will
help incorporate
them into the existing
law,” said Om Birla,
Speaker of the Lok
Sabha .
Talking about the ap-
pointment of a deputy
speaker in the Gujarat
legislative assembly,
Birla said that each
state assembly is gov-
erned by its own set of
rules. A deputy speaker
has not been elected in
the state assembly for
almost two decades and
the candidate is usually
nominated by the oppo-
sition bench.
Meanwhile, an All
India Presiding Offic-
ers’ conference slated
to be organized at Ke-
vadia will be inaugu-
rated by President
Ram Nath Kovind on
Wednesday. The
event, which will be
held on November 25-
26, will also be at-
tended by Vice Presi-
dent and Chairman
of the Rajya Sabha, M
Venkaiah Naidu, Lok
Sabha Speaker Om
Birla, who will also
serve as the chairper-
son of the conference.
Dignitaries from the
Gujarat government
including Chief Min-
ister Vijay Rupani,
Governor Acharya
Devvrat, among oth-
ers will also partici-
pate in the confer-
ence.
The event will also be
graced by 27 presiding
officers of all state leg-
islative assemblies and
legislative councils
along with secretaries
of state legislatures and
other senior officials.
Marked as the Con-
stitution Day, Novem-
ber 26 is an important
date in India’s demo-
cratic history. This
year is also being cel-
ebrated as the cente-
nary year of the Pre-
siding Officers’ Con-
ference, which was
started in 1921. The
conference has prov-
en to be a platform for
government officials
to share their experi-
ences, ideas and
thoughts for strength-
ening the democratic
process.
The theme for this
year’s conference is
‘Harmonious Coordina-
tion between Legisla-
ture, Executive and Ju-
diciary- Key to a Vi-
brant Democracy.’ The
two day conference will
conclude with an ad-
dress by Prime Minis-
ter Narendra Modi on
Thursday.
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: The
working president
of Gujarat Pradesh
Congress Commit-
tee (GPCC) Hardik
Patel took to a so-
cial media platform
to express his con-
cern about the state
government’s com-
petency to handle
the ongoing COV-
ID-19 pandemic.
Attacking the gov-
ernment, Patel said
that there was no dif-
ference in the num-
ber of cases reported
in the initial months
of the outbreak and
those coming in now.
“The numbers of
cases are the same so
why the need for a
curfew? Why wasn’t
a curfew imposed at
that time? Are the
statistics wrong or
the government’s de-
cisions?” he ques-
tioned.
He further added
that figures in the of-
ficial data released
by the government
show marginal rise
and fall in number of
cases. “I believe that
something is jum-
bled up. The state as
well as central gov-
ernment (both run
by the Bharatiya Ja-
nata Party) has
served lies to the pub-
lic during the pan-
demic. Gujarat is one
of the worst affected
states and the case
numbers are rising
but no concrete steps
are being taken by
the government.
Even health facilities
and services such as
doctors, hospitals,
COVID-19 centres,
among others, have
not been upgraded by
the government,” he
alleged.
On the other
hand, Patel also
stated that the Con-
gress party and its
workers will accept
the decisions made
by the government
to curtail the virus.
“The government
needs to take strong
action. An all-party
meeting must be
called to discuss
possible solutions.
A blueprint needs
to be drawn up en-
listing steps to
make Gujarat
nCoV-free.”
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: As the
city rides the second
wave of the ongoing
COVID-19 pandemic,
hospitals are receiv-
ing a high influx of
patients for treat-
ment. As a result, pri-
vate designated COV-
ID-19 hospitals are
running short of
beds. According to
data released early
on Tuesday, local civ-
ic body Ahmedabad
Municipal Corpora-
tion (AMC) has desig-
nated 80 private hos-
pitals for admitting
novel coronavirus
patients. As per its
estimate, currently
there are 2,800 beds
allocated but only 143
beds remain vacant.
Despite adding more
beds to its repertoire,
the number of vacant
beds designated by the
civic body have always
hovered around 150. Ac-
cording to the
Ahmedabad Medical
Association (AMA),
there is a waiting list at
city hospitals for ad-
mission.
“If the current sit-
uation persists, then
there will be short-
age of beds for all cat-
egories of patients.
There are very few
beds available that
are equipped with
ventilators,” said one
of the doctors work-
ing at a private hospi-
tal.
With 143 vacant beds,
it is for the first time
that the number of
empty beds at private
hospitals in
Ahmedabad has fallen
below the number 150.
Currently, there are
1,056 patients admitted
in isolation wards at
private hospitals with
only 62 beds unoccu-
pied.
Similarly, 981 pa-
tients are admitted in
the High Dependency
Unit(s) (HDUs) which
has left only 59 beds
vacant. The Intensive
Care Unit(s) (ICU)s
reported 388 patients
without ventilators
with only 11 bed va-
cancies. Additionally,
168 patients have
been admitted to the
ICU with ventilator
support, leaving 11
beds unoccupied for
further intake.
Shortage of COVID-19 beds at private hospitals in Ahmedabad
PANDEMIC WOES
The number of vacant beds, which
has always hovered around 150, has
lowered to 143 amid surge in cases
Medical staffers fear city may run short of beds soon. —FILE PHOTO
Hardik Patel
Hardik Patel
questions Guj
govt’s ability
to curtail nCoV
The speaker of Lok Sabha
made the announcement
ahead of the All India
Presiding Officers’
conference in Kevadia today
CP Joshi committee to recommend
remedies for political defection: Om Birla
The conference is slated to be held at Kevadia, home to the Statue of Unity.
Lok Sabha
Speaker Om Birla
with President
Ram Nath Kovind.

GUJARATAHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2020
Gargi Raval
Kutch: Barely two
months after the
southwest monsoon
gave Kutch 300% of
its annual average
rainfall, salt pan
workers here are
struggling for water.
Around 3,000 mem-
bers of the Agaria
community made their
annual trip to the
Kharaghoda pocket of
Kutch to begin work in
the state’s celebrated
salt mines. And, like
every year, they are
now waiting for the
state government to
provide them with wa-
ter for drinking and
bathing.
“We usually carry
enough rations and
water for two months
when we arrive. Then,
the state government
supplies us with tank-
ers. These are meant to
arrive before Diwali,
but usually get de-
layed. This year, it is
particularly bad. We
are still waiting,” one
member of the Agaria
community told First
India, adding, “We
have to walk for kilo-
metres to quench our
thirst. Our daily work
includes hours of
standing in mud and
sand. And despite
working in the dirt all
day, we cannot bathe
due to the water scar-
city. We hardly have
water to drink, so bath-
ing has become a luxu-
ry we cannot afford.”
Ambu Patel, a social
worker from within
the Agaria community,
said, “Work in the salt
farms has been on for
more than two months,
but there is no water
supply from the gov-
ernment. This is every
year’s saga. Last year,
around 100 workers
had protested at the
Patdi revenue office,
and sent formal re-
quests to the Gandhi-
nagar office. Even af-
ter these protests, it
took the government
three to four days to
even reach out to these
people.”
Salt pan workers left parched despite plentiful rainfall
A woman labourer rakes salt in a Kutch salt farm. —FILE PHOTO
ANNUAL STRUGGLE
Kutch received 300% of its annual
average rain this monsoon, but people
do not have water to drink here
TESTING THE WATERS
Pakistan’s marine securities conducted exercise along the International Maritime Border line on Sunday and Monday.
NO ENTRY: Commercial vehicles
banned in Ahmedabad during day
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: Police
Commissioner San-
jay Srivastava on
Tuesday issued a no-
tification prohibiting
the entry of light and
heavy commercial ve-
hicles into areas un-
der the city limit
from 8 am to 9 pm in
an effort to curb road
accidents and air pol-
lution. However,
these vehicles may
visit the Regional
Transport Office be-
tween 10 am and 6
pm, the notification
clarified.
This means that
trucks and private bus-
es a capacity of 50-60
seats will not be al-
lowed in the city limit
area during the day
time for commercial
purposes but mini bus-
es with a 30-33 seat ca-
pacity remain unaf-
fected.
In addition, light
commercial vehicles
carrying essential com-
modities such as milk,
vegetables, fruits, pet-
rol and diesel can ply in
the city from 9 am to 1
pm and from 4 pm to 9
pm. While the notifica-
tion is meant to be in
the interest of the pub-
lic, it is likely to ad-
versely affect small
transporters whose
livelihoods are depend-
ent on plying commodi-
ties, fast-moving con-
sumer goods, industri-
al raw materials and
raw materials for the
real estate sector.
There is also some
confusion on the spe-
cificities under the no-
tification. Tractor op-
erator Bharat Vanjara
told First India, “There
are at least 50 such Van-
jara families here in
Memnagar area ferry-
ing sand for the real-
estate sector and dis-
posing of waste. We are
now uncertain whether
we can continue opera-
tions. Is the ban only
from entering the city?
Will vehicle registered
at the Ahmedabad RTO
also face problems?”
Another small trans-
port owner, Bharat
Bhati, says his primary
business is connected
with the wood and mar-
ble sector. He operates
a light truck, the Tata
407, and says his main
concern is that he and
other similar operators
will now have to pay
huge bribes to the traf-
fic police, or face living
hand-to-mouth.
Private buses with a capacity of 50-60 seats will no longer be allowed in Ahmedabad during the day.
Light and heavy commercial vehicles prohibited in the city from 8 am to 9 pm to curb road accidents, air pollution
3 held for running
virtual sex call
centre in Vadodara
20 gamblers
arrested at
hotel owned
by BJP leader
Police detain man for raping
60-year-old woman in Deesa
First India Bureau
Palanpur: Personnel
from the Deesa Rural
police have detained
a 30-year-old man for
allegedly raping a
60-year-old woman at
knifepoint on Sunday
night. She has been
sent for a medical
check-up.
In her complaint, the
woman told the police
that Dhakhubha Dar-
bar had first attempted
to molest her on Sun-
day evening. However,
she managed to escape
from his clutches. She
took shelter at a neigh-
bour’s house and called
her son. The family
then decided to file a
complaint on Monday
morning.
That night, after her
son returned to their
home in the village, the
woman went to sleep
near the well in their
field, as is her custom.
Later that night, she
said in her complaint,
Darbar returned to her
farm. When her hus-
band—who suffers
from night blindness—
tried to intervene, Dar-
bar beat him up and
dragged her to a small
room on the farm. He
held a knife to her
throat, raped her, and
then fled. Thereafter,
the woman sought help
and also called her son.
The police, who were
informed of the crime
on Monday evening,
have picked up Darbar
and are now awaiting
the results of a COV-
ID-19 test in order to ar-
rest him.
NO LOCKDOWN AS STATE CROSSES 2-L MARKFirst India Bureau
Gandhinagar: ACS
(Home) Pankaj Ku-
mar on Tuesday night
reiterated that the
state will not be going
into lockdown again ,
even as more than
1,500 cases were re-
ported, taking the Gu-
jarat past the two-
lakh-mark in terms
of COVID-19 cases.
This includes 48 em-
ployees of the state
High Court who have
tested positive for the
virus in the past few
days.
Kumar’s announce-
ment comes on the
same day that the
Ahmedabad Municipal
Corporation added 350
beds in private hospi-
tals, 150 beds in Covid-
care centres and eight
new hospitals for the
treatment of COVID-19.
The sixth floor of the
AMC building has been
sealed due to a high
number of cases.
The state saw double-
digit deaths for the sec-
ond consecutive day,
with Ahmedabad re-
porting 12 fatalities. Su-
rat witnessed three
deaths and Botad, one.
Ahmedabad contin-
ues to lead in the num-
ber of cases with 346
new cases being report-
ed in 24 hours. Surat
follows with 286, Va-
dodara, with 181, Ra-
jkot, 128, Gandhinagar,
74, Banaskantha 47, Pa-
tan 46, and Mehsana
with 43, among others.
Surat mayor Dr Jag-
dish Patel has tested
positive and urged peo-
ple to get tested as well.
Gujarat now has
14,044 active cases,
with 94 patients on
ventilator support.
First India Bureau
Vadodara: City police
arrested three per-
sons in connection
with an adult live chat
website on Monday
evening and seized
Rs6.63 lakh of goods
including 11 laptops,
two web cameras, one
mobile phone, two TV
sets, two routers, two
sex toys and a car. The
site has now been
blocked, and an inves-
tigation is underway.
According to JP Road
Police Inspector JP Gos-
ai, the main accused
Nilesh Gupta had devel-
oped the website which
offered free adult web-
cam,livesexandfreesex
chatandamateurvideos.
The site was being op-
erated out of a residen-
tial property in Va-
dodara’s Akota area.
Gupta’s partner, identi-
fied as Ami Parmar, is
absconding, but police
have arrested Gupta and
two other women in a
raid.
Inspector Gosai told
the media that Ami was
in charge of recruiting
and training the “girls”.
The modus operandi
was simple. The wom-
en would begin by chat-
ting with visitors and
then direct those inter-
ested in a more “per-
sonal” interaction to a
payment gateway.
Once payment was
made, the caller would
receive a token num-
ber, which was to be
presented to the girl.
With payment out of
the way, the caller was
then given access to a
private video chat,
where they received
varying degrees of
adult entertainment.
The women were
paid Rs18,000-20,000
each while Gupta and
Parmar netted Rs50,000-
60,000 per employee. In
the past two years, they
have hired as many as
30 women “telecallers”
and earned approxi-
mately Rs1.75 crore by
exploiting them. There
are currently eight
women working at the
call centre—six from
the city, one from Surat
and another from Uttar
Pradesh.
First India Bureau
Junagadh: The Juna-
gadh Special Opera-
tion Group (SOG) on
Monday evening raid-
ed a hotel and arrest-
ed 20 persons includ-
ing two women gam-
bling in a hotel owned
by a BJP leader.
Acting on informa-
tion that someone had
been running a gam-
bling den at the Essel
Park hotel situated
near the Sakkarbaug
area, police raided the
hotel and found 18 men
and two women gam-
bling there. The police
also seized Rs14 lakh
cash and other goods,
including cars, worth
an estimated Rs35 lakh.
The hotel—owned by
Karshan Dhaduk, for-
mer city president of
the Bharatiya Janata
Party—is closed to cus-
tomers. However, the
office and part of com-
mercial the complex
was functional.
The gamblers were
from Junagadh as well
as Rajkot, Jamnagar,
and Devbhumi Dwarka.
Police have lodged com-
plaints against all 20
persons at the Juna-
gadh B division police
station under the Guja-
rat Gambling act and
other IPC sections.
EXCEPTIONS
Cops seized 11 laptops, two web cameras, one mobile phone, two TV
sets, two routers, two sex toys and a car in the raid.
1,510 cases, 16
fatalities take state
tally to 2,00,409
cases, toll to 3,892
As many as 48 High Court employees have tested positive for nCoV.
The accused beat up
her husband, held a
knife to her throat,
and fled after the rape
—PHOTOBYHANIFSINDHI

G Vol 2 G Issue No. 1 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, NOVEMBER 25, 2020
There is no fear for one
whose mind is not filled
with desires. —Buddha
Spiritual
SPEAK
new report
from the In-
ter national
M o n e t a r y
Fund says that
COVID-19 will increase
income inequality in
emerging markets and
developing countries,
“further widening the
gap between rich and
poor” and increasing the
urgency for “investment
in retraining and reskill-
ing programs [that] can
boost reemployment
prospects for adaptable
workers whose job du-
ties may see long-term
changes as a result of
the pandemic.” For
many years, these coun-
tries have been chal-
lenged by disaffected
youth along with “wide
inequality in education,
and large gaps remain-
ing in economic opportu-
nities for women.”
The report further
warns that “COVID-19 is
expected to make inequal-
ity even worse than past
crises since measures to
contain the pandemic have
had disproportionate ef-
fects on vulnerable work-
ers and women.” Even be-
fore the pandemic, grow-
ing income inequality had
become a stubborn feature
of global economies, but
that doesn’t mean we
should accept it — or the
social devastation it’s like-
ly to cause.
TRAGIC RISE IN
INEQUALITY
The rise in inequality
isn’t just tragic for the
millions who are directly
affected. We see it re-
flected in the growing al-
lure of authoritarian-
ism, in the fearmonger-
ing directed at lower-in-
come groups, and in the
despair and hopelessness
of those who feel left out
and left behind. The ac-
celerating increase in
inequality is dangerous
for the future of socie-
ties and for the planet.
Ironically, the two groups
who have fared best in re-
cent decades are the very
poor and the very rich. The
global decline in extreme
poverty is one of the most
important developments of
recent times. Between 1990
to 2015, the extreme poverty
rate dropped from nearly
36% to 10%. At the other
extreme, the very rich have
done quite well. In the last
10 years, the number of bil-
lionaires around the world
has nearly doubled. In 2018,
the 26 richest people in the
world held as much wealth
as did the entire bottom
half of the global popula-
tion — some 3.8 billion peo-
ple. More to the point, from
1990 to 2015, the share of
income going to the top 1%
increased in four out of five
countriesaroundtheworld.
This massive redistri-
bution of wealth means
that the world can no
longer be neatly sorted
into “developed” and
“developing” countries.
The global distribution
of wealth is now more of
a continuum. But the
good news ends there,
and the trend is inescap-
ably clear: Wealth ine-
quality is growing
around the world. In the
United States, it’s rising
not just because the rich
are getting richer, but
because since 2000, in-
comes at the lower end
of the scale have stag-
nated or fallen. Inequal-
ity in the US is the high-
est among the G7 coun-
tries, and the wealth gap
between America’s rich-
est and poorest families
more than doubled from
1989 to 2016. Between
2007 and 2018, median
income in black house-
holds fell from 63% to
61% of median white
household income.
COVID-19 has worsened
things considerably. The
pandemic has hit poor
countries particularly
hard, with experts estimat-
ing that as many as 115
million people could fall
back into extreme poverty
in 2020 alone. Unemploy-
ment in most countries
has risen the most for peo-
ple in lower-paid jobs. In
the US, unemployment
among those with less than
a high school diploma
reached 21.2% in April,
while for those with a post-
secondary degree it peaked
at 8.4%. According to the
World Economic Forum,
the impact of COVID-19 on
workers with lower levels
of education will be even
worse than the global fi-
nancial crisis of 2008.
SOURCE: FAIR OBSERVER
‘Human work’ is the key to ending income inequality
A
Top
TWEET
Dr Harsh Vardhan
@drharshvardhan
Black small squareTidal wave
of about to 1-1.5m likely to
inundate low lying areas of
north coastal districts of Tamil
Nadu & Puducherry. Black small
squareExtremely Heavy rainfall
expected in pockets of Tamil
Nadu, Puducherry & southern
Andhra Pradesh & Telangana over
next 24-48 hours
Jagat Prakash Nadda
@JPNadda
Veer Lachit Borphukan was a
General of Ahom army whose
unparalleled heroism & bravery is
an inspiration not only to Assam
but to whole India. He also played
a crucial role in protecting Assam
Culture. I pay homage to the
valorous General on his jayanti.
IN-DEPTH
GUPKAR ‘GANG’ LEADERS
NOW ‘LAND-GRABBERS’
he Gupkar Alliance will find it difficult to
contest the District Development Council
elections after Farooq Abdullah’s name
emerged in the Roshni Land scam, de-
scribed as J&K’s biggest. A CBI inquiry
wasorderedintothescam,estimatedtobearoundRs
25,000 crore, by the state high court in October. The
JammuandKashmirStateLands(Vestingof Owner-
shiptotheOccupants)Act,alsocalledtheRoshniAct,
was passed by the state government headed by Ghu-
lam Nabi Azad in 2001. The Act aimed at “conferring
20.55 lakh Kanal of state land to the occupants”. The
ActwasrepealedbythethenGovernorSatyaPalMa-
likin2018asitfailedtorealisethedesiredobjectives.
The J&K administration has in a list named Fa-
rooq Abdullah, who heads the Gupkar Alliance,
and his son Omar Abdullah as the biggest benefi-
ciaries of the Roshni Act and declared their Jam-
mu residence was built over illegally possessed the
land. Abdullahs have denied the charge. Several
other leaders, including former PDP leader Haseeb
Drabu, from different regional political parties,
have also been named in the list.
The naming of these leaders in the land scam
comes at a time when they are preparing to jointly
contest the District Development Council elec-
tions. They have been called the Gupkar ‘gang’ and
have been accused of seeking help from China to
resolve the Kashmir issue. With the new epithet of
“land-grabbers” against their names, the Gupkar
leaders have to fight, along with the DDC polls,
another battle for survival. A weakened Gupkar
Alliance will leave the poll field open for the BJP.
T
PM TAKES CHARGE OF
COVID-19 SITUATION
s the race for a vaccine to fight the coro-
navirus enters the final lap sending
hopes of a cure soaring, Prime Minister
Narendra Modi made a few things clear
to the chief ministers of several states
in a video conference on Tuesday. The important
point made by the prime minister was that as of
now he had no idea about the vaccine’s price (an
expensive vaccine may be unaffordable for the
masses) or how many doses would be required to
be administered for developing antibodies.
The other issue concerning the vaccines has
been about its distribution. Who should be vacci-
nated first, frontline warriors like doctors and
other medical staff or senior citizens and others
in the more vulnerable category?
According to Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Ru-
pani, Mr. Modi outlined a plan as per which the vac-
cine will be given to frontline health workers, who
number around one crore in the first stage. In the
second stage, it will be given to police personnel and
sanitary workers and those above 50 years of age
will be covered in the third stage. People with co-
morbidity will get the vaccine in the fourth stage.
The prime minister called the vaccination pro-
gramme a national commitment and urged the
states to send a detailed action plan explaining
how the vaccine will reach the lowest denominator.
India has a good record in executing vaccina-
tion programmes, be it the anti-polio drive or uni-
versal immunisation for child survival and safe
motherhood. The Covid vaccine distribution
could prove to be more challenging but not really
impossible to handle.
A
he current era of a pandemic
has witnessed unprecedented
turmoil in the socio- economic
environment. It has not only
slowed down the economy but
alsohasbeenacatalystinbring-
ing about systemic changes. My
concern here as a soldier is re-
garding the diabolical changes
being made in the basic struc-
ture and ethos of established
Defense practices which some-
how or the other are detrimen-
tal and de- motivating to the
glorious honor of the soldier.
Currentlystrangeproposalsare
being talked about Armed forc-
es at a time when India faces
Military challenges on two
fronts, Pakistan and China.
It appears from the financial
measures being adopted, that
it’s only our Armed forces who
are responsible for the econom-
ic slowdown of the country. Our
policymakers feel that the Mili-
tary power of a country flows
out of its economic strength. It
is a misnomer. If parallels are
an index of observations and
hypothesis, I would refer to Chi-
na that attained independence
two years later than India and
at the time of the Korean war
was no match to the American
economy. Yet, it used its man-
power to flex its military mus-
cles and send cold sweat down
American spine. It was its poli-
cies as well as the motivational
drive for their mammoth Army,
that ensured the growth of its
economy from nowhere to $15
trillion. While India still strug-
glestoreachthe$3trillionmark
after 72 years of independence.
The Defense Forces today are
facing a severe crunch on the
very basic needs for its war ma-
chine to be well lubricated.
And therefore, as a nation, we
have to decide on our priorities
of loan waiver to farmers, sub-
sidies, financial packages to
rich industrialists and writing
off lakhs of crores of NPA in
banks vis--vis the expenditure
on our national security.
In my personal opinion, the
next war will be fought by the
soldier depending upon his per-
ception of how his country re-
spects the Veterans (sooner or
later he shall stand in line with
them) The authorities must re-
member, that it’s not just the
weapons and equipment that
makes a dependable Army but
the honor and respect of the
man behind the war machine.
WhenthePMFandpoliceforces
in a country becomes more lu-
crative and financially viable
options, India will find it diffi-
cult to get the right leadership
for its defense forces.
Paradoxically, more than the
external forces of political
masters and bureaucracy, it is
the elements within the Armed
forces who are doing damage to
soldiers’ motivation and mo-
rale. May I say, somewhere, it’s
Army’s higher echelons re-
sponsibleforproposingstrange
measures to mobilize funds for
modernization of the force at
the very cost of Army itself.
The dissatisfaction amongst
serving officers and soldiers to-
day is noticeable and alarming.
DMA under CDS instead of tell-
ing the present day govt that it’s
their responsibility to arrange
funds for national security has
proposedascaled-downpension
and retirement policy. Cutting
down on CSDs, Officers Messes
and manpower will do nothing
except cutting down on the tra-
ditions,ethos,andcultureof the
fighting machine that gave us
victory in all wars and that held
the nation’s head high in natu-
ral calamities as well, when all
other institutions failed.
I clearly remember as a young
Capt. I would walk into govt of-
fices with confidence and elan.
But over the years, I have seen
diminishing respect for the forc-
es due to undue politicization of
the Army. Here, I would like to
quote history: When General
MacArthur was Chief of US in
1931, President Roosevelt had
proposedtocutdownthedefense
budget…When General did not
agree, Roosevelt dismissed him
and that’s when the General got
up from his chair and said “Mr.
President, in the next war when
an American soldier with the
enemy bayonet piercing his ab-
domen spits out his last curse, I
do not want the name to be Mac-
Arthur but Roosevelt.” Needless
to say, the president reversed his
decision! Alas, India after
Manekshaw has never seen a
Chief with such courage of con-
viction and mettle.
How true are the worlds of
Sun Tzu when he says “I’m not
scared of an army of Tigers
lead by a sheep but an Army of
sheepledbyaTiger”.So,friends
It’snottheturnof theArmybut
the civil society at large to de-
cide, what National Security
they desire and therefore, what
Role, Respect and Honor be be-
stowed upon THY SOLDIERS.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
T
The
dissatisfaction
amongst serving
officers and
soldiers today is
noticeable and
alarming. DMA
under CDS
instead of telling
the present day
govt that it’s their
responsibility to
arrange funds
for national
security has
proposed a
scaled-down
pension and
retirement policy
PARADOXICALLY, MORE
THAN THE EXTERNAL
FORCES OF POLITICAL
MASTERS AND
BUREAUCRACY, IT IS THE
ELEMENTS WITHIN THE
ARMED FORCES WHO
ARE DOING DAMAGE TO
SOLDIERS’ MOTIVATION
AND MORALE
RETD. COL
ANUPAM JAITLY
Defence expert, Motivational
speaker & Corporate Trainer
THY
HONOUR
SOLDIER

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INDIAAHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2020
RAM TEMPLE: VHP TO LAUNCH
DRIVE TO COLLECT FUNDS
New Delhi:The Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh
(RSS)-affiliate Vishva Hin-
du Parishad (VHP), along
with Shri Ram Janmb-
hoomi Teerth Kshetra
Trust, is set to launch a
nationwide campaign to
collect funds for the con-
struction of Ram temple
in Ayodhya. The VHP will
embark on the ambitious
campaign to crowdsource
funds for the temple
construction, on January
15 and will continue till
February 27. To review
the preparations of soon
to be launched mega
campaign, members of
Shri Ram Janmbhoomi
Teerth Kshetra Trust are
set to meet RSS chief
Mohan Bhagwat in Patna
in the first week of De-
cember.
25 PAK PRISONERS INCLUDING
20 FISHERMEN REPATRIATED
Attari: As many as 25 Pakistani prisoners,
including 20 fishermen returned home from the
Attari-Wagah border after being released by the
Indian authorities on Tuesday. Arunpal Singh,
Protocol Officer said, “These fishermen had en-
tered India mistakenly and have completed their
imprisonment. They are being handed over to
Pakistan.”Mohammad, a fisherman from Karachi
said, “I am going back to Pakistan after around
four years. I would like to requests both the gov-
ernments to send back the remaining fishermen.”
GANJA WORTH RS 1.3 CRORE
SEIZED IN JABALPUR; 3 HELD
Bhopal: The Narcotics Control Bureau has ar-
rested three persons from MP’s Jabalpur district
for allegedly smuggling 879.53 kg of ganja from
Odisha, an official said. Based on a tip-off, a
truck was recently intercepted in Jabalpur district
and contraband, which was concealed in the
rear of the vehicle, was seized, director of NCB’s
Indore-based regional office Amit Ghawate said.
According to officials, the value of the consign-
ment is estimated to be around Rs 1.3 crore in
black market. Further probe is underway.
INDIA TEST-FIRES LAND-ATTACK
VERSION OF BRAHMOS MISSILE
New Delhi: India on
Tuesday test-fired a
land-attack version of
the BrahMos supersonic
cruise missile from the
Andaman and Nicobar
Islands. “The target of the
missile was on another
island there. More details
awaited,” reported ANI.
“The supersonic cruise
missile was testfired
at 10 AM today and it
successfully hit its target.
The test was conducted
by the Indian Army which
has many regiments of
the DRDO-developed
Missile system. The strike
range of BrahMos missile
has now been enhanced
to over 400 km.” This
development comes amid
reports India will carry
out “multiple live tests” of
the supersonic missile.
Chronology samajhiye: RaGa’s dig at
Centre over RBI proposal for banks
RBI panel has also recommended raising cap on promoters’ stake in pvt sector banks to 26%
New Delhi: Congress
leader Rahul Gandhi
asked people to under-
stand the “chronology”
of the measures pro-
posed to reshape the do-
mestic banking indus-
try in another swipe at
the Centre. Gandhi was
using a phrase by Union
home minister Amit
Shah to explain the
BJP’s plans to imple-
ment a nationwide Na-
tional Register of Citi-
zens. Shah had use “aap
chronology samajhiye
(understand the chro-
nology)” last year.
“Chronology sama-
jhiye: First, karz maafi
for few big companies.
Next, huge tax cuts for
companies. Now, give
people’s savings direct-
ly to banks set up by
these same companies.
#SuitBootkiSarkar,”
Gandhi wrote on Twit-
ter.
The former Congress
president’s tweet comes
in the backdrop of an
internal Reserve Bank
of India (RBI) panel’s
proposal to allow large
corporates to act as pro-
moters of banks after
necessary amendments
to the Banking Regula-
tions Act,1949 “to deal
with connected lending
and exposures between
the banks and other fi-
nancial and non-finan-
cial group entities”.
The RBI panel has also
recommended raising
the cap on promoters’
stake in private sector
banks to 26%.
The central bank had
constituted an IWG on
June 12 this year to re-
view extant ownership
guidelines for Indian
private sector banks.
The committee’s report
was made public last
Friday and RBI has
sought comments by
January 15, 2021, “be-
fore taking a view in the
matter”.
Well run large NBF-
Cs with an asset size of
Rs 50,000 crore and
above, including those
owned by a corporate
house, may be consid-
ered for conversion into
banks. —Agencies
Pralhad Joshi slams
RaGa’s ‘PR driven
media strategy’ jibe
New Delhi: Union
Minister Pralhad
Joshi slammed Con-
gress leader Rahul
Gandhi over his com-
ments on the Centre’s
handling of China,
stating that “if we
have lost our land to
China before it is be-
cause of Congress
party and its wrong
policies from 1962”.
“At least Rahul Gan-
dhi and Congress
should not raise this
issue.
If we have lost our
land to China before
it is because of Con-
gress party and its
wrong policies from
1962. They should
first sort their party
matters and then
talk,” Joshi told ANI
on being asked about
Rahul Gandhi’s tweet
over the issue. —ANI
Rahul Gandhis’ tweet comes in the backdrop of an internal RBI panel’s proposal to allow large corporates
to act as promoters of banks after necessary amendments to the Banking Regulations Act,1949.
THE ISSUE
Abdullahs’ house built
on encroached land:
JK administration list
Jammu: Former CMs-
Farooq Abdullah and
Omar Abdullah have
been named by the J&K
administration in a list
which alleges that their
residential house in
Jammu is built over il-
legally-possessed land,
a charge denied by the
father-son duo. The ad-
ministration of the un-
ion territory as directed
by the Jammu and
Kashmir High Court to
make public land given
under the controversial
Roshni land scheme,
since scrapped by a
court, came out with
the list of beneficiaries.
On Tuesday, it came out
with a list of those who
had allegedly en-
croached land other
than those given under
the scheme.
The list also high-
lighted the headquar-
ters of their National
Conference in both Sri-
nagar and Jammu were
legalised under the con-
troversial Roshni Act.
Reacting to the fresh
list, party vice presi-
dent Omar Abdullah
said, “The news attrib-
uting to sources that Dr
Farooq Abdullah is a
beneficiary of the Rosh-
ni Act is completely
falseandisbeingspread
with a malicious intent.
Both his houses at Jam-
mu and Srinagar have
nothing to do with the
said Act. —PTI
Guwahati: Leaders
from various political
parties and citizens
paid their last respects
to the mortal remains
of former Chief Minis-
ter of Assam Tarun Go-
goi at his Guwahati
residence on Tuesday.
“We will take former
CM Tarun Gogoi’s body
from his residence to
Congress headquarters
at Rajeev Bhawan in the
city. We will also take
his body to Assam Sec-
retariat and State As-
sembly. Subsequently,
we will take his mortal
remains to the Sriman-
ta Sankaradeva Kalak-
shetra,”AssamPradesh
Congress Committee
(APCC) secretary Bhu-
pen Bora told ANI. “The
cremation will be con-
ducted on November
26,” he added.
Gogoi, 84, died on
Monday evening at
Guwahati Medical Col-
lege where he was on
ventilation after suf-
fering a multi-organ
failure. He had tested
positive for COVID-19
in August. —PTI
Farooq Abdullah interacts with son Omar Abdullah during an all-
party meeting in Srinagar. —FILE PHOTO
Leaders, citizens pay last respects
to former Assam CM Tarun Gogoi
Janata Bhawan staff pays last tributes to Tarun Gogoi in Guwahati.
IN THE COURTYARD
New Delhi : The SC y
rejected the plea filed
by dismissed BSF con-
stable Tej Bahadur
against the election of
PM Narendra Modi
from Varanasi LS con-
stituency in UP. A three-
judge bench of the apex
court, headed by CJI
Sharad Arvind Bobde,
rejected the plea. The
apex court had, on No-
vember 18, reserved its
verdict after hearing
from the respective par-
ties.
Lawyer Pradeep Ya-
dav had made all the
detailed submissions
for the petitioner Tej
Bahadur, whereas sen-
ior lawyer and legal ex-
pert Harish Salve had
argued for PM Modi be-
fore SC. The dismissed
BSF constable had filed
an appeal before SC,
challenging the Alla-
habad HC, which had
dismissed his appeal on
the ground that neither
he is a voter from Vara-
nasi constituency nor
he had represented
himself in the election
against PM Modi. —ANI
Sacked BSF jawan’s plea challenging
PM Modi’s election inVaranasi quashed
New Delhi: The SC ob-
served that it is contem-
plating issuing notice to
Maharashtra Assembly
Speaker while hearing
a plea by Republic TV
editor Arnab Goswami
challenging the show-
cause notice issued by
the Maharashtra Legis-
lative Assembly for ini-
tiation of breach of
privilege motion
against him. The notice
was issued for Goswa-
mi’s reporting in con-
nection with case of
death of actor Sushant
Singh Rajput.
Senior advocate Harish
Salve, representing
Goswami, submitted be-
fore a bench headed by
CJ SA Bobde that a no-
tice should be issued to
the Speaker in matter.
On Nov 6, top court had
asked Maharashtra
Legislative Assembly
asst secy to show cause
in two weeks why con-
tempt proceedings
should not be initiated
against him for his Oc-
tober 13 letter to Gos-
wami for showing As-
sembly notice in court.
PAYING OBEISANCE
President Ram Nath Kovind along with First Lady Savita Kovind offers prayers at the Sri
Venkateswara Swamy Temple in Tirumala on Tuesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
Mumbai Police files charges
against 12 in fake TRP scam
‘Amrapali’s Anil Sharma
hasn’t deposited `250 crore’
Mumbai: The Mumbai
Police on Tuesday filed
a charge sheet in a court
here in the alleged TRP
(Television Rating
Points) rigging scam.
The charge sheet was
submitted before a mag-
istrate’s court by the
police’s Crime Intelli-
gence Unit (CIU), which
is conducting a probe
into the case, an official
said. The crime branch
has so far arrested 12
persons, including Re-
public TV’s distribu-
tion head and owners of
two other channels, in
connection with the
case, he said.
The fake TRP scam
came to light last month
when rating agency
Broadcast Audience Re-
search Council (BARC)
filed a complaint
through Hansa Re-
search Group, alleging
that certain television
channels were rigging
TRP numbers.
Hansa had been
tasked with installing
barometers, which re-
cord viewership data
(which channel has
been watched and for
how long) at sample
households.
TRP is important as
the advertising reve-
nue of channels de-
pends on it. —PTI
New Delhi: Amrapali
home buyers apprised
SC that real estate
group’s promoter Anil
Sharma has not depos-
ited Rs 250 crores as per
directions of top court.
“More than Rs 250
crores siphoned money
was required to be de-
posited by him as per
the judgment of July 23,
2019, but the same has
still not been done,”
Amrapali home buyers’
advocate ML Lahoty
submitted to the apex
court bench, headed by
Justice Uday Umesh
Lalit.
The court has taken
this on a serious note of
submissions made by
Lahoty and also reject-
ed all bogus defenses on
behalf of Amrapali &
directed that needful be
done after the dues are
verified by receiver and
forensic auditors. —ANI
SC mulls issuing notice to Maharashtra
Assembly Speaker in a letter to Arnab

INDIAAHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2020
WHO WILL BE NEW CHAIRMAN
OF NHRC?
Who will succeed Justice H L Dattu as Chair-
man of the National Human Rights Commission
(NHRC) next month. Latest grapevine has it that
former CJI Justice Arun Mishra may be new
Chairman of the NHRC. If Justice Mishra is not
appointed Chairman then the post will remain
vacant for four months till the superannuation
of present CJI Justice S A Bobde.
SUBODH JAISWAL TO BE DG NSG?
Maharashtra DGP Subodh Jaiswal is being
tipped to be new DG of the NSG.
SHAMBHU NATH SINGH
REPATRIATED TO PARENT CADRE
Shambhu Nath Singh, Special Director, In-
telligence Bureau (IB), has been prematurely
repatriated to his parent cadre, in relaxation of
the IPS Tenure Policy.
LT. GEN. SANJEEV SHARMA MAY
GET NEW POSTING
Lieutenant General Sanjeev Sharma, General
Officer Commanding, 11 Corps, Western Com-
mand, is likely to get new posting orders soon.
INTER-CADRE DEPUTATION OF
RANJLT KUMAR SINGH EXTENDED
Inter-cadre deputation of Dr. Ranjlt Kumar Singh,
from Gujarat to Bihar cadre, has been extended
for a period of two years beyond January 7, 2021.
He is a 2008 batch IAS officer of Gujarat cadre.
INTER-CADRE DEPUTATION OF
ARCHANA PATNAIK EXTENDED
The inter-cadre deputation tenure of Ms Arch-
ana Patnaik - from Tamil Nadu cadre to Odisha
cadre - has been extended for a period of two
years beyond December 17.2020. She is a 2002
batch IAS officer of Tamil Nadu cadre.
SEVEN-YEAR DEPUTATION TENURE
OF ADITYA JOSHI ENDS
Seven-year central deputation tenure of Aditya
Joshi, working as Director, CVC, has come to an
end. He is a 1995 batch IRAS officer.
SHORTAGE OF IPS OFFICERS IN AP
There is a shortage of 29 IPS officers in Andhra
Pradesh. Instead of the sanctioned posts of
144, there are presently only 115 IPS officers in
the state.
WHO WILL BE NEW CMD OF FCI ?
D V Prasad, IAS, KN(‘81), presently the Chair-
man and Managing Director of Food Corpo-
ration of India (Central PSU under Ministry of
Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution)
is due for superannuation on November 30.
P N PANDEY PROMOTED TO
COMMISSIONER OF CUSTOMS AND
CENTRAL EXCISE GRADE
Pashupati Nath Pandey has been empanelled
for promotion to the grade of Commissioner of
Customs and Central Excise in the Indian Reve-
nue Service (Central Board of Indirect Taxes and
Customs). He is an IRS officer.
SINGH TO JOIN FINANCIAL
SERVICES, FINANCE MINISTRY
Sushil Kumar Singh is set to join the deptt of
financial services in the ministry of finance as
Director, He is a 2006 batch IDAS officer. He will
join his new assignment next month.
ADDITIONAL CHARGE TO PURWAR
EXTENDED FOR SIX MORE MONTHS
The DoT has extended the additional charge of
the post of CMD, MTML to P K Purwar , CMD,
BSNL to six more months till April 14, 2021.
POWERGallery
By arrangement with: http: //
whispersinthecorridors.com
Highseverityof third waveofCOVID-19in
capitalduetomanyfactors:Kejriwal toPM
Coronavirus pandemic & air pollution is a major issue in Delhi
New Delhi: At a meet-
ing with Prime Minis-
ter Narendra Modi,
Delhi Chief Minister
Arvind Kejriwal on
Tuesday said the high
severity of the third
wave of COVID-19 in
the national capital is
due to many factors,
pollution being an im-
portant one, sources
said Kejriwal told the
PM that Delhi saw the
peak of 8,600 coronavi-
rus cases on November
10 during the third wave
and since then, the
number of cases as well
as the positivity rate
are steadily decreasing.
The CM hoped that the
trend would continue in
the national capital.
Pollution is an impor-
tant factor. At the meet-
ing with the prime min-
ister, Kejriwal also
sought the reservation
of the additional 1,000
ICU beds in the central
government-run hospi-
tals in Delhi for corona-
virus patients till the
third wave of the infec-
tion lasts in the city.
A health worker collects swab samples of a man for the COVID-19 test, in New Delhi on Tuesday.
Delhi schools not opening
anytime soon: Delhi deputy
CM Manish Sisodia
New Delhi: Delhi
deputy chief minster
Manish Sisodia
called on all govern-
ments to come to-
gether as a “team” to
fight the double
whammy of the rise
in coronavirus cases
and air pollution.
Manish Sisodia said
that it is a problem
that plagues the
whole of North India
and not just Delhi.
Manish Sisodia also
ruled out any possi-
bility of schools reo-
pening anytime soon
saying that as a par-
ent he would not
send his kids to
school unless he was
sure they would be
safe. “States need to
forget their politics
and come together as
a team,” Manish
Sisodia said Address-
ing an issue that’s on
top of every parent’s
mind, Manish Siso-
dia that he does not
think the time is
right to reopen
schools. Delhi has re-
corded over 5.34 lakh
cases since the pan-
demic began. Of
these, more than
8,500 are deaths
linked to virus. The
active caseload is
currently over 37,000.
New Delhi: The Prime
Minister Narendra Modi
warned that COVID-19
vaccine could lead to
side-effects in some peo-
ple, as even popular med-
icines do, and that the
government would only
go by science in finalising
one for the country. The
comments came ahead of
the possible launch of the
Oxford-AstraZeneca vac-
cine by early next year in
India, the country with the
world’s second-highest
number of Covid infec-
tions after the US . “Even
medicines popular for 20
years & used by hundreds
of thousands of people
lead to reactions in some,
even today,” PM said in a
video conference with the
chief ministers.
PM Modi warns
India for possible
side-effects of
Covid-19 vaccine
Cyclone Nivar: Section 144 in
Puducherry till November 26;
PM Modi assures full support
New Delhi:The govern-
ment of Puducherry to-
day imposed Section 144
of Criminal Procedure
Code in the Union Terri-
tory. Puducherry’s dis-
trict magistrate Purva
Gargsaidtheordershall
come into force from 9
pm on November 24 and
will remain in effect till
6 am on November 26.
PM Modi said he had
spoken to Tamil Nadu
CM E Palaniswamy &
Puducherry CM Naray-
anasami. “Assured all
possible support from
the Centre. I pray for the
safety and well-being of
those living in the af-
fected areas,” he tweet-
ed. 30 teams of the Na-
tional Disaster Re-
sponse Force (NDRF)
have been pressed into
action across Tamil
Nadu, Andhra Pradesh,
and Puducherry as Cy-
clone Nivar moves to-
wards the southern
coast of India, NDRF
informed. Nearly 12
teams of disaster relief
body have been de-
ployed, while 18 are on
standby across the re-
gion, monitoring the
situation.
Fishing boats are placed on land as the Bay of Bengal
sea is rough ahead of Cyclone Nivar to cross the state, at
Patinambakkam beach in Chennai on Tuesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
Rahul Gandhi appeals to Cong
to offer assistance to people
New Delhi: Former
Congress Party Pres-
ident and a Member
of Parliament Rahul
Gandhi has appealed
to his party mem-
bers, on Tuesday, to
provide assistance to
people in battling Cy-
clone Nivar that is
approaching Tamil
Nadu, Andhra
Pradesh and Puduch-
erry. Rahul Gandhi
took to Twitter and
said, “Cyclone Nivar
is making its pres-
ence felt in Tamil
Nadu, Puducherry
and parts of Andhra
Pradesh. Please fol-
low all safety meas-
ures. I appeal to all
Congress workers to
provide assistance to
those in need. Stay
indoors, stay safe.”
IMD said that the cy-
clone has a wind
speed of 100-110
kmph and gusting to
120 kmph.
DoT accepts
proposal on
‘0’ prefix for
all calls
New Delhi: Callers
will soon be required
to add ‘0’ prefix for
making calls from
landlines to mobile
phones in the coun-
try, with the telecom
department asking
telcos to make neces-
sary arrangements
by January 1 to im-
plement the new sys-
tem. The department
has accepted sectoral
regulator Trai’s rec-
ommendation for
having the ‘0’ prefix
for such calls, a move
that will create suffi-
cient numbering
space for telecom ser-
vices. The Depart-
ment of Telecom
(DoT) in a circular
on `modification of
dialling pattern
from fixed line num-
bers to cellular mo-
bile numbers’ said in
order to ensure ade-
quate numbering re-
sources for fixed line
and mobile services,
Trai’s recommenda-
tions dated May 29,
2020 have been ac-
cepted by the De-
partment.
Delhi deputy CM Manish Sisodia
Army Chief reviews
security situation in
North East region
Dimapur: Chief of
Army Staff (COAS),
General Manoj Mukund
Naravane, arrived at Di-
mapur, on Monday, on a
three-day visit to review
the security situation in
North East Region. Ac-
cording to an official
press release, “On ar-
rival at Dimapur, the
Army Chief was briefed
by Lieutenant General,
Anil Chauhan; General
Officer Commanding in
Chief, Eastern Com-
mand and Lieutenant
General R P Kalita, Gen-
eral Officer Command-
ing (GOC) Spear Corps
on operational prepar-
edness along the North-
ern borders as well as
operationsinhinterland
of Assam, Nagaland,
ManipurandArunachal
Pradesh. On November
24, the COAS visited
various Army and As-
sam Rifles Headquar-
ters in Nagaland and
Manipur to make a first-
hand assessment of the
ground situation. The
COAS interacted exten-
sively with the troops
deployed in the remote
areas and appreciated
their state of operation-
al preparedness, morale
and conduct of people
friendly operations. Lat-
er in the evening, Gen-
eral Naravane called on
the Governor of Naga-
land, RN Ravi and CM,
Neiphiu Rio to discuss
prevailing security situ-
ation in the State and as-
sured the wholehearted
support of the Army
and Assam Rifles in
maintaining peace and
tranquility in the state
and ensuring security
along the Indo-Myan-
mar border. As part of
Indian Army’s efforts in
contributing towards
the development and eq-
uitable opportunities to
all sections of the socie-
ty, a new residential fa-
cilitytoberunbyAssam
Rifles will be inaugurat-
ed by the COAS on No-
vember 25 prior to his
return to New Delhi.
General Manoj Mukund
Naravane
Bring Covid...
contact tracing and
data must be given top
priority,” he said.
Modi said the govern-
ment is keeping a close
watch on the develop-
ment of vaccines and is
in contact with Indian
developers and manu-
facturers, along with
global regulators, gov-
ernments of other
countries, multilateral
institutions and inter-
national companies.
He added that it will
be ensured that the vac-
cine for citizens will
meet all necessary sci-
entific criteria.
He underlined that
just like the focus in the
fight against COVID-19
has been on saving each
and every life, the prior-
ity will be to ensure that
the vaccine reaches ev-
eryone.
A massive network of
testing to treatment is
running well in the en-
tire country and it is
being regularly wid-
ened, the prime minis-
ter said.
Modi has held several
rounds of virtual meet-
ings with states over
the coronavirus situa-
tion so far.
The latest high-level
meeting to review the
status and prepared-
ness of COVID-19 re-
sponse and manage-
ment had a special em-
phasis on eight high fo-
cus states, Haryana,
Delhi, Chhattisgarh,
Kerala, Maharashtra,
Rajasthan, Gujarat and
West Bengal.
The modalities of
COVID-19 vaccine deliv-
ery, distribution and
administration were
also discussed during
the meeting. —Agencies
Rajasthan
triumphs...
“Due to the efforts of
the state government,
the death rate in the
state has remained con-
sistently below one per-
cent, at only 0.89 per-
cent. A detailed analy-
sis of the causes of
death in Rajasthan has
been arranged from the
earliest times in Coro-
na,” Gehlot said.
Gehlot suggested to
the Prime Minister that
RTPCR tests are the
most reliable in the
world.
“Like Rajasthan in
all states of the country,
100% test should be
done by RTPCR method
instead of rapid anti-
gen test.
Rajasthan and Tamil
Nadu are the only two
states in the country
where 100 per cent of
the investigations are
being conducted using
RTPCR method.
About 42 lakh investi-
gations have been done
from RTPCR in Rajas-
than. The case positivi-
ty rate is 5.8 percent in
the state, which is much
better than the national
average of 6.89 percent.
Guj has...
in ensuring timely pro-
vision of healthcare to
affected patients, with-
out any delay. He stated
that the sample testing
for novel coronavirus
had been increased by
the state with over
70,000 tests conducted
on November 23.
Talking about the ‘San-
jeevani Corona Ghar
Seva’ initiative for pa-
tients under home isola-
tion in Ahmedabad,
Rupani said that nearly
3,000 calls are received
each day and necessary
treatment is provided
through 700 Sanjeevani
Raths deployed by the
state. “A large number
of tests are also being
conducted at railway
stations, commercial
complexes, highways,
among other places.
Nearly 11 lakh tests
have been conducted in
Ahmedabad till date,”
he said. In conclusion,
while assuring the PM
about the state’s pre-
paredness to tackle the
pandemic, Rupani said
that curfew had been
implementedinAhmed-
abad, Surat, Rajkot and
Vadodara to aid the
fight against the virus
and curtail the number
of cases.
Yogi’s
masterstroke...
“The way in which reli-
gious conversions are
done using deceit, lies,
force and dishonesty is
heart wrenching, and it
was necessary to have a
law in this regard, Cab-
inet minister and UP
government spokesper-
son Sidharth Nath
Singh said.
He said that the pun-
ishment under the new
law is a jail term from
one and five years, and
a fine of Rs 15,000.
But if the woman in-
volved is a minor or be-
longs to a Scheduled
Caste or a Scheduled
Tribe, the jail term
would range from three
to 10 years, he said. The
fine would increase to
Rs 25,000.
In the case of mass
conversions, the pun-
ishment is from three
years to 10 years and a
fine of Rs 50,000 on the
organisations which in-
dulge in it,” the minis-
ter told reporters.
Singh said if anyone
wants to change reli-
gion after marriage,
then he or she can do so.
FROM PG 1

he role children,
and consequently
schools, play in
the COVID-19
pandemic has
been hard to work
out, but that puz-
zle is now finally starting
to be solved.
The latest research
shows infections in chil-
dren frequently go unde-
tected, and that children
are just as susceptible as
adults to infection. Chil-
dren likely transmit the
virus at a similar rate to
adults as well.
While children are
thankfully much less like-
ly than adults to get seri-
ously ill, the same isn’t
true for the adults that
care for them. Evidence
suggests schools have
been a driver of the sec-
ond wave in Europe and
elsewhere. This means the
safety of schools needs an
urgent rethink.
IT’S HARD TO DETECT
COVID-19 IN CHILDREN
Infections with SARS-
CoV-2, the virus that caus-
es COVID-19, in children
are generally much milder
than in adults and easy to
overlook. A study from
South Korea found the ma-
jority of children had
symptoms mild enough to
go unrecognised, and only
9% were diagnosed at the
time of symptom onset.
Researchers used an an-
tibody test (which can de-
tect if a person had the
virus previously and re-
covered) to screen a repre-
sentative sample of nearly
12,000 children from the
general population in Ger-
many. They found the ma-
jority of cases in children
had been missed. In itself,
that’s not surprising, be-
cause many cases in adults
are missed, too.
But what made this
study important, was that
it showed young and older
children were similarly
likely to have been infect-
ed.
Official testing in Ger-
many had suggested
young children were much
less likely to be infected
than teenagers, but this
wasn’t true. Younger chil-
dren with infections just
weren’t getting tested. The
study also found that near-
ly half of infected chil-
dren were asymptomatic.
This is about twice what’s
typically seen in adults.
BUT CHILDREN DO TRANSMIT
THE VIRUS
We’ve known for a while
that around the same
amount of viral genetic
material can be found in
the nose and throat of
both children and adults.
But that doesn’t neces-
sarily mean children will
transmit the same way
adults do. Because chil-
dren have a smaller lung
capacity and are less like-
ly to have symptoms, they
might release less virus
into the environment.
However, a new study
conducted by the US Cent-
ers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC)
found children and adults
were similarly likely to
transmit the virus to their
household contacts.
Another study, of more
than 84,000 cases and their
close contacts, in India,
found children and young
adults were especially
likely to transmit the vi-
rus.
Most of the children in
these studies likely had
symptoms. So, it’s unclear
if asymptomatic children
transmit the virus in the
same way.
But outbreaks in child-
care centres have shown
transmission by children
who don’t show symptoms
still occurs. During an
outbreak at two childcare
centres in Utah, asympto-
matic children transmit-
ted the virus to their fam-
ily members, which re-
sulted in the hospitalisa-
tion of one parent.
TALKING POINTAHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2020
School’s out,
forgoodreason!
Children may
transmit the
novel
coronavirus at
the same rate
as adults
ZOË HYDE
Epidemiologist, University of Western Australia
T
WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT OUTBREAKS IN
AUSTRALIAN SCHOOLS
z Schools didn’t appear to be a major
driver of the epidemic in Victoria,
although most students switched to
remote learning around the peak of
the second wave.
z However, schools did contribute to
community transmission to some
extent. This was made clear by the
Al-Taqwa College cluster, which was
linked to outbreaks in Melbourne’s
public housing towers.
z When researchers analysed cases
in Victorian schools that occurred
between the start of the epidemic
and the end of August 2020, they
found infections in schools mirrored
what was happening in the commu-
nity overall. They also found 66% of
all infections in schools were limited
to a single person.
z Most students in Victoria switched
to remote learning at the peak of the
second wave. Shutterstock
z This might seem encouraging, but
we have to remember this virus is
characterised by superspreading
events. We now know that about
10% of infected people are respon-
sible for about 80% of secondary
COVID-19 cases.
z Two major studies from Hong Kong
and India revealed about 70% of
people didn’t transmit the virus to
anyone. The problem is the remain-
der can potentially infect a lot of
people.
z What happened in Victorian schools
was entirely consistent with this.
z The risk associated with schools
rises with the level of community
transmission. The picture interna-
tionally has made this clear.
WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT OUTBREAKS IN
SCHOOLS, INTERNATIONALLY
z After schools reopened in Montreal,
Canada, school clusters quickly outnum-
bered those in workplaces and health-
care settings combined. President of the
Quebec Association of Infectious Disease
Microbiologists, Karl Weiss, said
z Schools were the driver to start the
second wave in Quebec, although the
government did not recognize it.
z A report by Israel’s Ministry of Health
concluded school reopening played
at least some role in accelerating the
epidemic there, and that schools may
contribute to the spread of the virus
unless community transmission is low.
In the Czech Republic, a rapid surge
in cases following the reopening of
schools prompted the mayor of Prague
to describe schools as “COVID trading
exchanges”.
z The opposite pattern has been seen
when schools have closed. England just
witnessed a drop in new cases, followed
by a return to growth, coinciding with
the half-term school holidays. This was
before any lockdown measures were
introduced in the country.
z These observations are consistent with
a study examining the effect of imposing
and lifting different restrictions in 131
countries. Researchers found school clo-
sures were associated with a reduction in
R—the measure of how fast the virus is
spreading—while reopening schools was
associated with an increase.
z The risk has been spelled out most
clearly by the president of the Robert
Koch Institute, Germany’s equivalent of
the US Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention. Last week, he reported the
virus is being carried into schools, and
also back out into the community.
WHAT WE NEED TO DO
It won’t be possible to control the pan-
demic if we don’t fully address transmis-
sion by children. This means we need to
take a proactive approach to schools.
At a minimum, precautionary measures
should include the use of face masks by
staff and students (including primary
school students). Schools should also
improve ventilation and indoor air qual-
ity, reduce class sizes, and ensure kids
and staff practise hand hygiene.
School closures have a role to play
as well. But they must be carefully
considered because of the harms as-
sociated with them. But these harms
are likely outweighed by the harms of
an unmitigated epidemic.
In regions with high levels of commu-
nity transmission, temporary school
closures should be considered. While
a lockdown without school closures
can probably still reduce transmis-
sion, it is unlikely to be maximally
effective.
Source: THECONVERSATION.COM

I congratulate the First India
team on completing one
successful year of the Gujarat
edition. A year of credible journalism
which has made a mark. Keep it up!
—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO & Editor, First India
AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2020www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
08
2NDFRONT
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: The Spe-
cial CBI Court on
Tuesday discharged 2
police officers in the
controversial alleged
fake encounter case of
Sadiq Jamal for want
of adequate evidence.
CBI Court’s Special
Judge Bharat Dave ex-
onerated Ramjibhai
Laxmanbhai Mavani
and Ajaypalsingh Siyar-
am Yadav from all the
charges in the case.
Discharging them,
the Court observed,
“Looking at the com-
plete record of the
case and going
through the docu-
ments submitted here,
this Court finds that
there is no sufficient
ground for proceed-
ing against the pre-
sent applicants.”
“There is no ground
forpresumingthatthese
applicantshavecommit-
ted an offence” under
various sections of the
Indian Penal Code, in-
cluding for criminal
conspiracy, the court
said.
A complaint was filed
againstSadiqJamaland
6 others in 2003 accusing
them of committing se-
rious offences like
hatchingaconspiracyto
wage a war against the
Central Government as
well as to assassinate
the then Gujarat Chief
Minister, Narendra
Modi, and other politi-
cal leaders.
According to com-
plainant Jaysinh G. Par-
mar, on January 12,
2003, he had received
information that Sadiq
Jamal was coming from
near Galaxy Cinema in
Naroda area at 23:30
hours to meet a col-
league. He and other of-
ficers had kept a watch
in civvies and spotted
Sadiq coming by foot
around 1:15 hours.
Just as constable Ya-
dav lunged forward to
catch him, Sadiq
opened fire from his
revolver. Parmar and
police inspector Sai-
yed fired back from
their service revolvers
in self defence, result-
ing in Sadiq’s death.
Court frees 2 cops in Sadiq Jamal encounter
CONTROVERSIAL GUNFIGHT
Youngster Sadiq was accused of plot-
ting to assassinate the then Gujarat
CM, Narendra Modi, in 2003
Covid-19 protocol puts Hardik
visit to Ajmer dargah in trouble
First India Bureau
Ajmer: Gujarat Con-
gress working presi-
dent and maverick
Patidar leader Hardik
Patel’s visit to the fa-
mous dargah of Kh-
waja Moinuddin
Chishti in Ajmer on
Sunday has triggered
a controversy after
objections were
raised about his offer-
ing chadar and flow-
ers at the mausoleum.
Worship material
like flowers are banned
at all religious places
across Rajasthan in
view of the spread of
the corona infection.
The police have filed
a case against the kha-
dim, who facilitated Pa-
tel in offering Ziyarat
under the Rajasthan
Epidemic Diseases Act.
However, the khad-
im Faizal Niyazi has
claimed that he did
not make the chadar
and other items avail-
able to the Congress
leader.
Police said that there
was a ban on offering
flowers and other
things while worship-
ping to help check the
viral infection but
these were used when
Patel visited the dar-
gah and so a case had
been registered against
the khadim.
He claimed that he
had no idea as to who
provided Patel the
chadar and flowers
and the police should
have stopped him at
that time.
“It is possible that
some party supporter
provided the chadar,
flowers etc. and then
put it on the head of
Hardik Patel in keeping
with the Sufi tradition.
But I did not provide
such material,” he in-
sisted.
Faizal said it was
disappointing that de-
spite a Congress Gov-
ernment in place in
Rajasthan, a case was
being filed regarding
the ziyarat of Hardik
Patel.
Waqf Board Chair-
man Khanu Khan Bud-
hwali and his support-
ers were also present
during Hardik Patel’s
visit. Other khadims
have criticised the
“overreaction” of the
Ajmer dargah.
The police action
assumes significance
as a large number of
pilgrims are visiting
the dargah every day
and such offering of
flowers and chadar by
one visitor may en-
courage others to do
the same too.
Congress leader Hardik Patel visited famous Ajmer dargah on Sunday.
SPECIAL FAVOUR?
Tata Capital recovery agent
hits debtor with cricket bat
Intense screening, testing
at public places by RMC
SMC staff attempts
suicide after
threats by lender
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: A recov-
ery agent of a pri-
vate company hit a
debtor with a cricket
bat after his recov-
ery attempts failed.
According to a com-
plaint with the Anand-
nagar police station,
the recovery agency of
Tata Capital hit the
debtor, who had got a
personal loan from the
company and failed to
pay the interest, with a
bat.
Jagdev Kori, 40, a
resident of Krushnad-
ham Avas in Vejalpur,
works in a marketing
firm in Shilaj. In 2017,
he took a personal loan
from Tata Capital to
tide over a financial
problem.
He had paid the in-
terest on the loan for
over a year. Later, he
was unable to pay
the interest and San-
jay Desai, the recov-
ery agent, often har-
assed him on the
phone. On Monday,
Sanjay and an un-
known person
reached Kori’s home
and demanded mon-
ey. He told them that
he did not have the
money and that he
would reach a settle-
ment with the com-
pany over the loan.
After this, Sanjay hit
him with the bat.
First India Bureau
Rajkot: With an aim
to break the chain of
coronavirus spread,
the Rajkot Municipal
Corporation (RMC)
started the screening
and testing of people
at the railway station,
bus station and air-
port from Tuesday.
This is one of the var-
ious actions, along with
erecting testing booths,
movement of Dhanvan-
tari rath, Sanjivani
rath, 104 rath seva, Cov-
id-19 testing vehicle and
free corona check-ups at
various health centres,
initiated by RMC to en-
sure early detection of
Covid-19 cases, especial-
ly caused due to travel-
lers entering the city
from other places.
The corporation has
also set up health check-
up camps, especially in
areas where a large
number of hawkers
gather. Such camps
were conducted at
Laxminagar hawkers’
zone and Mangalwari
bazaar area on Tuesday.
Here, the RMC health
team firstly conducts
primarytestingthrough
Thermal screening and
Pulse Oximeter, and
upon diagnosing Covid
symptoms further test-
ing is conducted on the
spot.
Rajkot city report-
ed 95 and 48 positive
cases on Monday and
Tuesday respectively.
The corporation fined
people who were
found without masks.
There were a total 41
cases and Rs. 41,000
were collected as fine.
First India Bureau
Surat: A trainee at
the Surat Municipal
Corporation (SMC)
attempted suicide on
Tuesday due to the
severe financial cri-
sis he was facing. He
had taken a loan
from a private money
lender at 10% inter-
est. He had returned
Rs 24 lakh in the past
one year and had to
pay Rs 13 lakh more.
Anil Kailash was
working at Udhna zone
office for the past 20
months. On Tuesday
noon, he tried commit-
ting suicide by con-
suming excessive
sleeping pills. His
friends witnessed him
vomiting and soon
called 108 emergency
services. He was sent
to SMIMER medical
college for treatment.
Anil’s wife in-
formed in her state-
ment that previously
the lender had
agreed that only Rs
15 lakh remained to
be paid.
They sold their
house for Rs 13 lakh
to repay the remain-
ing money. However,
the money lender
threatened Anil
when his cheque of
Rs 30 lakh bounced,
resulting in his tak-
ing the extreme step.
Patel was given chadar, flowers to offer in violation of health safety norms; FIR filed against dargah
2 Scottish varsities,
A’bad Univ to work
on climate change
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: Two
Scottish universities
St Andrews and Aber-
deen have joined
Ahmedabad Univer-
sity to investigate new
approaches to the
management of coast-
al wetland habitats in
India following re-
search funding from
the Royal Society of
Edinburgh (RSE)
Scottish Asia Partner-
ships Higher Educa-
tion Research Fund.
Their project, ‘Sus-
tainable Coastal Habi-
tats, Blue Carbon and
the Challenges of Net
Zero’ will focus on In-
dia’s coastal wetlands
and mangrove forests as
important blue carbon
systems which can de-
liver sustainable man-
agement solutions for
coastal environments
and their communities.
It is led by the School of
Geography and Sustain-
able Development at St
Andrews.
The fund is a new
grant scheme to en-
hance the existing in-
ternational research
partnerships between
Scottish universities
and partners in India,
Japan and Pakistan.
The university said,
“Mangrove forests are
unsustainably exploited
in many of India’s un-
protected coastal wet-
lands, due to factors in-
cluding pressures from
land-use change and
deforestation. Man-
grove forests provide
livelihoods to India’s
rural people, along with
important ecosystem
services like nursery
grounds for coastal fish-
eries.”
The research team
will investigate nature-
based solutions that
point to a sustainable
future for highly threat-
ened coastal habitats in
India and demonstrate
their ability to contrib-
ute to the implementa-
tion of an emissions in-
ventory for national
greenhouse gases, and
deliver new opportuni-
ties for emerging cli-
mate change and green
recovery plans in India.
“Our project offers
the opportunity to help
meet the global health
and challenges caused
by Covid-19.”
Three varsities sign MoU for joint study. —FILE PHOTO
RMC steps up screening of people for Covid-19.
Surat Municipal Corporation
COVID-19
UPDATE
GUJARAT
3,892
DEATHS
2,00,409
CONFIRMED CASES
RAJASTHAN
2,200 DEATHS 2,50,482 CASES
DELHI
WORLD
1,408,289
DEATHS
5,98,14,258
CONFIRMED CASES
INDIA
92,15,929
CONFIRMED CASES
1,34,661
DEATHS
MAHARASHTRA
46,683 DEATHS 17,89,800 CASES
UTTAR PRADESH
KARNATAKA
11,695 DEATHS 8,76,425 CASES

CITY FIRST HAS PUT TOGETHER A GUIDE TO FIND OUT HOW YOU CAN FOLLOW THE
COWGIRL FASHION, AND ACE THE LOOK IN YOUR OWN SWEET WAY!
CHIC COWGIRL FASHION
ost of the women
have been tomboys
in their early child-
hood, and that’s
probably their ulti-
mate comfort zone.
May it be the peer
pressure of the surround-
ings or the group or the sud-
den change in the personali-
ties, these tomboys eventu-
ally start dressing up way
more than usual. But at the
end of the day, dressing up
comfortably and decently is
what they also opt for, and
theCowgirlFashionissome-
thing that is a total comfort
zone, come what may!
When it comes to cowgirl
fashion, the first thing that
pops up in the head is den-
im and boots, right? Well,
that is the best way to com-
bine everyday western fash-
ion with high fashion. This
kind of fashion also doesn’t
fail to showcase the wom-
an’s personality and her
love for the culture.
With the flood of western
outfits across the globe, this
kind of fashion includes
clothes that are classic,
yet follow an individual
style.
City First has put to-
gether a guide to find out
how you can follow the
cowgirl fashion, and ace
the look in your own
sweet way!
GO DENIM: One of
the most common
things needed in cow-
girl fashion is a denim
outfit. You can either opt
for a denim shirt or denim
jeans, or you can also go
denim-on-denim.
APT BOOTS: A woman’s
boots fit way differently
than men- the boots for
women have a slightly lifted
heel to shape the legs. Make
sure to pick out just the
right and appropriate one,
and you’ll be good to go.
MATCHING HAT:
Based on the kind and col-
our of the outfit that you
are opting for, get a hat of a
contrasting colour. This
would make your outfit look
even more appealing, and
give you a classy look.
SHIRTS: Button-down
shirts are something that
would never compromise on
your look. These look as
classy as ever, and would up
your fashion game on the go.
CLASSY BELT: One last
thing that would top
the cowgirl fashion
look is a classy
belt. There are so
many kinds of
belts available on
e-commerce plat-
forms- all you have
to do is select the
best one to ace
the look.
NEHAL NAYAR
nehal.nayar@firstindia.co.in
M
AHMEDABAD, WEDNESDAY
NOVEMBER 25, 2020
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia
facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09

10
ETCAHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2020www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
FACEOFTHEDAY
TANNY BHATTACHARJEE, Health Influencer
LEO
JULY 24 - AUGUST 23
Chances of winning a deal
become bright through
your efforts on the
business front. You are
likely to resolve to come back in
shape and start an exercise regimen.
Family will be supportive and look
after your needs. Someone you are
working closely with may attract you.
LIBRA
SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 22
Some of you are set to add
to your wealth. You will
find people acknowledging
your skills and talents at
work. Those unwell are set to show
remarkable recovery. Your plans for a
new business are likely to
materialise, so get ready for the new
beginnings on its way.
ARIES
MAR 21 - APR 20
A happy reunion of sorts is
in the offing on the family
front. Regular workouts
and eating right is your
mantra for keeping fit. A piece of
immovable property can come to you
through a will or gift. You will put in
the required efforts on the
professional or academic front.
SAGITTARIUS
NOV 23 - DEC 22
You will be in a happy state
as far as finances are
concerned. Marketing
people are likely to be at
their selling best. A peaceful domestic
environment will help you unwind.
Someone is likely to spoon feed you on
the academic front. Those feeling left
out should take time to introspect.
GEMINI
MAY 21 - JUNE 21
Focus on health will
become your priority and
will have a positive
outcome on your fitness.
Family support will be crucial against
those who are trying to tarnish your
image on the social front. Initiative
taken on the property front is likely to
benefit.
AQUARIUS
JAN 21 - FEB 19
Monetary condition is set to
improve as money comes to
you from various sources.
Your confidence is likely to
win the day for you on the professional
front. Something is likely to happen on
the academic front which may go in
your favour. Life will surprise you in a
beautiful way.
TAURUS
APR 21 - MAY 20
This is the time to muster
all your resources for
tackling something
complicated on the work
front. A new line of treatment for an
old ailment is likely to work wonders.
A family event may keep you
entertained. You are likely to benefit
from a property related matter.
CAPRICORN
DEC 23 - JAN 20
Your confidence is likely
to win the day for you on
the professional front.
Some of you can strike a
friendship that may turn into
something serious. Those pursuing
sports may find themselves in
excellent.Legal issues involving prop-
erty are likely to be in your favour.
VIRGO
AUG 24 - SEP 23
Some of you will resolve to
come back in shape and
may even join a gym.
Financially, it is advisable
to remain tight fisted. A long-winded
project is likely to near completion.
Family will bestow its love, as you
continue to excel in your field. Some
urgent issues may be addressed.
CANCER
JUNE 22 - JULY 23
Stringent cost-cutting
measures may find you
growing financially strong.
Not much is likely to be
achieved on a business trip, but it
may open new opportunities.
Devoting some time for physical
fitness is indicated for some and will
help keep them fit.
PISCES
FEB20 - MARCH 20
You will manage to remain
regular in your fitness
schedule. Guidance of your
near and dear ones will
prove a great help. This is a good
time to sell an asset as you are likely
to get a good price for it. Those
preparing for competitive exams are
likely to find the going easy.
SCORPIO
OCT 23 - NOVEMBER 22
You are likely to resolve to
come back in shape and
start an exercise regimen.
Taking a ride with your
near and dear ones will be fun.
Someone is likely to become your
mentor and help you out of a
situation on the academic front.There
is a possibility of a suitable match.
YOUR
DAYHoroscope by
Saurabbh Sachdeva
s a young boy when I
used to travel for the
Summer holidays to any
of the overseas destina-
tions with my parents. I
was always fascinated by
neon design and signs
which were visible in various
restaurants, hotels and malls. I
felt there was a vacuum for such
designer lights and signs in our
city!
Since I wanted to start up my
venture and I thought I could try
my hands-on making and deliv-
ering these kinds of fun and
funky lights!
We light up your life we de-
sign aesthetic neon signs. We sell
a Mood rather than a product.
Our designs and customized
signs are made from high quality
LED materials making them
cost-effective, durable and safer
than traditional glass neon’s
while still providing an incredi-
ble visual impact.
Lazerbeam Magic
ADHIRAJ SINGH RATHORE
ADHIRAJ IS A 17 YEARS OLD
STUDENT OF JEYASHREE PERIWAL
INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
A

J
ennifer Lopez‘s
2020 American
Music Awards
performance has
been raising some eye-
brows. The 51-year-old
entertainer gave a super
sultry performance with
Maluma during the
awards show on Novem-
ber 22. While perform-
ing Pa’ Ti and Lonely
from their upcoming
movie Marry Me,
Jennifer rocked a
black, skintight bod-
ysuit, while sporting
short, wet-looking
hair. Shortly after her
performance, fans took
to Twitter to compare
Jennifer‘s performance
to Beyonce‘s perfor-
mance. —Agency
M
ichael B. Jordan
is joining the
masses and sign-
ing up for Only-
Fans. The 33-year-old ac-
tor, who was just named
People‘s Sexiest Man
Alive, opened up about his
reason behind joining the
explicit site, and it turns
out, it’s for a noble cause.
“I’m actually going to
start one, but like all the
proceeds I want to go to-
wards a barber school be-
cause during the quaran-
tine, you know, there’s
been so many businesses
and schools that shut
d ow n , ” Michael shared
with Jimmy Kimmel dur-
ing his recent appearance,
as they were talking about
his new moustache.
The facial hair, which
he dubbed Murphy, was
born out of quarantine. “I
never had time to actually
sit in one place and grow
my facial hair
where I didn’t
have to get it
groomed,”
h e
shared.
—Agency
K
im Kardashian
is telling an un-
known story
about husband
Kanye West‘s song, Lost
In The World. The
40-year-old reality star
revealed that the song
was actually based off
a poem Kanye had
written her for her
30th birthday. “For
those that don’t know
the story of Lost In
The World on My
Beautiful Dark
Twisted Fantasy…
Kanye couldn’t come
up with some lyrics and
then realized he had
them, it was what he
wrote me for my 30th
birthday card,” Kim
shared on Instagram this
morning.
She added that he had
taken “the poem he wrote
me and made it the song.
Happy 10 year anniversa-
ry MBDTF.” In the follow-
ing story, Kim also showed
off the birthday card with
Kanye‘s handwritten
poem which became the
first verse of the song.
—Agency
ETCwww.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2020
11
RED CARPET...egan Fox just made her
official red carpet debut
with boyfriend Machine
Gun Kelly! The two
stepped out for the 2020
AmericanMusicAwards
on November 22, which
took place at the Microsoft Theat-
er in Los Angeles. Although Meg-
an and Machine Gun Kelly have
been spotted out in Los Angeles
together, this is their first official
red carpet event together.
Later on in the night, Megan
also supported her man! The
34-year-old actress took to the
stage at the 2020 American Music
Awards to introduce boyfriend‘s
performance. “Once in a lifetime,
magic can happen. But this next
performer, we’ve all been under
his spell since his debut in 2012,”
Megan said before the 30-year-old
rapper took the stage.
—Agency
M
Megan Fox
14 YEARS OF
‘DHOOM 2’
‘DELHI CRIME’
AWARDED
A
s the 2006 action-thriller
‘Dhoom 2’ clocked 14 years
on the horizon of Indian cine-
ma, choreographer Shiamak Davar
shared his experience making the
two megastars Aishwarya Rai and
Hrithik Roshan groove to hit num-
bers from the superhit. Davar shared
that he had two of the best dancers
of the industry Hrithik and Aish-
warya in Yash Raj Films’ blockbuster
‘Dhoom: 2’ and he created magic
with the two. “In Dhoom: 2, I had
Aishwarya Rai and Hrithik Roshan.
Being probably the coolest dancers
ever, it wasn’t very difficult for me to
make them look cool because they
are cool and I love the fact that I was
given a chance to work,” said Davar.
—ANI
I
n what comes as a proud moment
for India, Netflix web series
‘Delhi Crime’ has won the ‘Best
Drama Series’ award at the 48th
International Emmys. The Interna-
tional Emmy Awards Twitter handle
announced the news of the major
achievement. It read, “The Inter-
national Emmy for Drama Series
goes to “Delhi Crime” produced
by @NetflixIndia, #India! #iem-
mys #iemmyWIN.” The Netflix
series is based on the horrific
2012 Delhi gang-rape. The cast
of the web show comprised
Shefali Shah playing the lead
as Deputy Commissioner Vartika
Chaturvedi. It also starred Abhilasha
Singh, Rasika Dugal, Rajesh Tailang,
and others in key roles. —ANI
A
lia Bhatt has been
spreading positive
vibes all around over
social media. In her
recent post on Tuesday, the
actor shared a video recalling
her childhood. Recalling her
childhood, the ‘Kalank’
star shared a heart-
warming video of
her playing with
two abandoned
kids. The adora-
ble video pic-
tures the star
with a cheerful
smile, donning a
casual pastel
pink tee, play-
ing stone paper
scissors with
the kids. A day
before the fol-
lowing day, the
star posted a
video with the
same theme in
which she is
wearing a pas-
tel blue dress,
t w i r l i n g ,
jumping, and
playing with
the kids.
With the
video, the ac-
tor quoted,
“Childhood!
A time when
the world
feels like
your play-
g ro u n d , ”
w i t h
emoticons
of earth
a n d
g r e e n
heart.
—ANI
Reminiscing
Childhood Days
S
haring a glimpse of
what she terms as
‘crazy’ fun, actor
Taapsee Pannu who
seems to be on a picture
sharing spree from her up-
coming sports drama
‘Rashmi Rocket’ on Tues-
day treated fans to ‘the boot
camp-like schedule’ she
went through for the film.
Talking about the best
unwinding after complet-
ing the ‘boot camp schedule
1’, the ‘Thappad’ star in the
caption hinted that she is
running towards the shoot-
ing of her next flick ‘Loop
Lapeta’, (an Indian adapta-
tion of Tom Tykwer’s 1998
German hit Run Lola Run).
She noted in the caption,
“The boot camp like sched-
ule 1 gets done, now
running towards the lola
family.” —ANI
CRAZY FUN
Lost In The World
For a noble cause
PerformancewithMaluma
...her post
...still from Jennifer Lopez’s performance
Taapsee Pannu’s post
Michael B Jordan
...still from Delhi Crime
Kim and Kanye West
Alia Bhatt
...still from Dhoom 2

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