TMC hits back at Dilip Ghosh over Mamata‘saree' comment

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OUR EDITIONS:
JAIPUR, AHMEDABAD
& LUCKNOW
‘MISOGYNY, BRAZEN’
Kolkata: Trinamool
Congress leaders on
ThursdayhitoutatWest
Bengal BJP chief Dilip
Ghosh for again making
disparaging comments
on Chief Minister
Mamata Banerjee.
“Mamata Banerjee is
the Chief Minister of
Bengal. She should re-
spect Bengal’s culture. A
womaninasareeisshow-
ing her legs repeatedly is
not Bengal’s culture,”
Ghosh said during cam-
paigning on Thursday
.
The BJP chief’s com-
ments come a day after
he had mocked Mamata
for“displaying” Turn to P6
Jaipur: BJP has fielded
the daughter of former
minister Late Kiran
Maheshwari on Ra-
jsamand assembly seat
which is among three
assembly constituen-
cies going to bypolls in
Rajasthan next month.
The party declared
Deepti Maheshwari,
former MLA Ratanlal
Jat and former minister
Khemaram Meghwal
as the party candidates
from Rajsamand,
Sahada (Bhilwara) and
Sujangarh (Churu) seats
respectively BJP national
general secretary Arun
Singh released the list in
New Delhi on Thursday
after approval from the
parliamentary board
of the party. Deepti
Maheshwari, a new
face in the politics, is
the daughter of Kiran
Mahehwari who was the
MLA from Rajsamand
and died due to corona
infection in November
last year. Ratanlal Jat
is former chairman of
Rajasthan Seeds Corpo-
ration Turn to P6
BYPOLLS: BJP FIELDS KIRAN
MAHESHWARI’S DAUGHTER
FROM RAJSAMAND
Mumbai: Nervousness
in the Chinese market,
coupledwithasteeprise
in the daily Covid-19 in-
fections back home
along with monthly ex-
piry of the derivative
contracts, turned mar-
kets volatile on Thurs-
day
. Even though bulls
triedtowrestlebackand
took the benchmark
Sensex647pointshigher
from the day’s low, bears
had the last laugh.
Among the key indi-
ces, the BSE barometer
of 30 shares ended at
48,440 levels, down 740
points or 1.5 per cent.
On the NSE, the broader
50-share index ended at
14,348 levels, down 201
points or 1.4 per cent.
Maruti Suzuki, Bhar-
tiAirtel,HindustanUni-
lever, Bajaj Finance,
ONGC, UltraTech Ce-
ment, and Reliance In-
dustries were the top
laggards on the Sensex,
while Indian Oil Corpo-
ration, Hero MotoCorp,
Coal India, Eicher Mo-
tors, and Britannia were
the additional losers on
the Nifty
. These stocks
were down between 3
per cent and 4 per cent.
On the upside, Tata
Steel, ICICI Bank, L&T,
HDFC, and Dr Reddy’s
Labs were the top gain-
ers on the indices,
Turn to P6
Sensex ends
740 down at
48,440 points
CONGRESS LEADER HARISH
RAWAT AIRLIFTED TO AIIMS
DELHI DAY AFTER HE TESTS
POSITIVE FOR CORONAVIRUS
Dehradun: Former Uttarakhand chief minister and
senior Congress leader Harish Rawat who tested
positive for Covid-19 on Wednesday, was airlifted
to the All India Institute
of Medical Sciences, New
Delhi, on Thursday in an air
ambulance. Jasbeer Singh,
a close aide of Rawat said
that the Congress leader
had gone to the Dehradun
Government Hospital on Thursday morning for a CT
scan. “As he is 72 years old and has comorbidities
like diabetes, doctors there advised that he be shift-
ed to AIIMS Delhi for treatment. Accordingly, he
was airlifted to AIIMS Delhi. He has been admitted
there for proper treatment,” he said.
FARMER UNIONS’ CALL:
BHARAT BANDH TODAY
New Delhi: New Delhi:
Rail and road transpor-
tationservicesarelikely
to be affected and mar-
kets may remain closed
in parts of the country
on Friday as farmer un-
ions protesting against
the three agri laws have
called a complete
‘Bharat Bandh’, even as
it will not be observed in
four poll-bound states
and Puducherry
.
According to the
Samkyukta Kisan Mor-
cha, the nationwide
shutdown will start at 6
am and it will be in
force up to 6 pm across
the country on March
26 which marks four
months of the farmer
agitation at Delhi’s
three borders -- Singhu,
Ghazipur and Tikri.
In a video message,
SKM leader Darshan
Pal said that supplies of
vegetables and milk
will also stopped by the
protesting farmers.
The Samkyukta
Kisan Morcha, an um-
brella body of protest-
ing unions, appealed to
protesting farmers to be
peaceful and not get in-
volved in any kind of
illegitimate debate and
conflict during the
‘bandh’.
“All shops, malls,
markets and institu-
tions will remain closed
under complete Bharat
Bandh. All minor and
big roads and trains
will be blocked. All ser-
vices will remain sus-
pended except for am-
bulance and other es-
sential services. The
effect of Bharat Bandh
will be observed inside
Delhi as well,” SKM
said in a statement.
Senior farmer leader
Balbir Singh Rajewal
said that road and rail
transport will be
blocked, claiming that
markets will also re-
main closed.
The Morcha said that
the ‘bandh’ will also be
observed in the nation-
al capital. Turn to P6
Three soldiers burnt alive, five
critical as vehicle catches fire
First India Bureau
Sriganganagar:Three
soldiers, including a
subedar, were killed
and another five in-
jured on Thursday
whentheArmyvehicle
they were travelling in
overturned and caught
fire in Sri Ganganagar
district, police said.
CM Ashok Gehlot,
former CM Vasundha-
ra Raje and several
otherleadersexpressed
grief over the incident.
The accident occurred
inRajiyasarareainthe
border area adjacent to
the Indo-Pakistan bor-
der on the early hours
of Thursday
, they said.
Turn to P6
The ill-fated jeep.
DILIP GHOSH DEFIANT, SAYS SHOWING LEGS
IN A SAREE NOT BENGAL’S CULTURE
Bengal BJP chief Dilip Ghosh, shredded by political
leaders over his shocking comment that CM Mamata
Banerjee should wear Bermuda shorts if she wished to
display her legs, remained defiant. It is inappropriate for
a sari-clad woman to show her legs, he told the media.
All shops, malls, markets and institutions will remain
closed under complete Bharat Bandh. All minor and big
roads and trains will be blocked. All services will remain
suspended except for ambulance and other essential services.
The effect of Bharat Bandh will be observed inside Delhi as well
—Samkyukta Kisan Morcha
6 AM TO 6 PM
TMC hits back at Dilip Ghosh
over Mamata‘saree’ comment
The Bandh will not be observed in four poll-bound states and Puducherry.
JAIPUR l FRIDAY, MARCH 26, 2021 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI NO. RAJENG/2019/77764 l Vol 2 l Issue No. 289
A HOLI MILAN TO REMEMBER!
RAJPUROHIT, GURJAR COMMUNITIES
THANK ‘SENSITIVE’ GEHLOT!
Naresh Sharma
Jaipur: Chief Minister
Ashok Gehlot, while ad-
dressing a delegation of
Rajpurohit society at
his residence on Thurs-
day, said that on the le-
gitimate demand of Ra-
jpurohit community,
the government has
taken a quick decision
and has recommended
to get the Manohar Ne-
tra case investigated by
the CBI. “The govern-
ment will provide its
utmost cooperation in
this case with utmost
sensitivity. Action will
be taken on every legiti-
mate demand of the
community,” Turn to P8
Mahamandleshwar Nirmaldas Maharaj, Shishupal Singh Nimbara
and Mahaveer Singh Sukarlai giving letter of thanks to Chief
Minister Ashok Gehlot at CMR on Thursday.
NOW CORONA
COMPENSATION
TO SCRIBES &
OTHERS
The Ashok Gehlot gov-
ernment has extended
the scope of giving
compensation of Rs50
lakh in case of death
of corona warriors to
accredited journalists
& ration delaers. The
state finance dept issued
orders for the same
Thursday.
(Above): Govind S Dotasra lighting the lamp in the presence of (from left) Bhajan Lal Jatav, Lal Chand Kataria, Vaibhav Gehlot,
Jagdeesh Sharma, Jagdeesh Chandra, Niranjan Arya, Rafiq Khan and Ramlal Sharma during the Holi Milan Samaroh hosted by
First India on Thursday evening at Hotel Marriott. (Top Right): BD Kalla, Pratap Singh Khachariyawas, Amin Kagzi and Jagdeesh
Chandra during the event. (Bottom Right): Mamta Bhupesh, Rafiq Khan, Satish Poonia, BL Soni and Jagdeesh Chandra.
Dr Subhash Garg, Pramod Jain Bhaya, Mahesh Joshi, Ravi Jain, Jogaram, Prahlad Krishniya, Antar Singh Nehra, Ashok Parnami,
Mahant Kailash Sharma, Rajeev Arora, Sangeeta Beniwal, Dr Somya, Archana Sharma, Suman Sharma, Rukshmani Kumari, Ved
Prakash Solanki and others attended the event and appreciated the initiative by First India. Full Report P7
—PHOTOS BY SUMAN SARKAR & SANTOSH SHARMA

First India Bureau
Jaipur: Petrol and die-
sel prices were cut on
Thursday for the sec-
ond straight day as in-
ternational oil prices
cooled fell on prospects
of speedy recovery in
consumption getting
clouded by second wave
of COVID-19 cases.
Petrol price was cut
by 21 paise per litre and
diesel by 20 paise, ac-
cording to a price notifi-
cation of state-owned
fuelretailers.Petrolnow
costs Rs 97.31 per litre in
Jaipur and a litre of die-
sel comes for Rs 89.98.
Rates have been re-
duced across the coun-
try and vary from state
to state depending on
the local incidence of
taxation (VAT). Prices
were reduced by 18 pai-
se a litre on petrol and
17 on diesel in the first
reduction in six months
on Wednesday
.
Aishwary Pradhan
Jaipur: Leader of
Opposition Gulab-
chand Kataria
on Wednesday said
has there would be
no impact of the
bandh call given by
Sanyukt Kisan Mor-
cha tomorrow.
“This bandh is not
going to have any ef-
fect because there is
no ordinary farmer
involved in the move-
ment,” he said.
“Only those work-
ing among some so-
called peasants and
those associated
with political par-
ties attended the
mahapanchayat. In
the name of Sany-
ukt Kisan Morcha,
such Kisan Ma-
h a p a n c h a y a t s
were held at many
places before but
it did not have any
considerable ef-
fect,” he said.
First India Bureau
Alwar: A contract
worker working at the
medical store at the
Government Janana
Hospital in Alwar, Man-
ish died by suicide after
hanging in his house on
Wednesday evening.
Manish was married
only 9 months ago and
his wife gave birth to a
boy four days ago.
When Manish went
to meet his child in the
hospital, the in-laws did
not allow him to meet
his newborn child and
assaulted him. The po-
lice have registered a
case and started an in-
vestigation.
Manish, a resident of
Charoti Pahad, was
married to Pinky
, a resi-
dent of Hirabas, in Al-
war city on 29 June
2020. After having a
quarrel between the
two, Manish’s wife
came to her parents
about four months ago.
First India Bureau
Jaipur: To extend the
date of the REET for one
week, Poonam Chand
Bhandari, the convenor
of Sanyukt Jain Samaj
Sangharsh Morcha, and
his wife Namrata
Bhandari are on a hun-
ger strike for the second
day
. Their son Abhinav
Bhandari also fasted on
Thursday
.
The exam is sched-
uled to be held on Ma-
havir Jayanti. There
was a slight decline in
Bhandari’s health on
Thursday, however, the
doctor said that there
is a slight weakness
due to fasting, but
there is nothing to wor-
ry about.
Bhandari informed
thatonThursdayAshok
Jain (co-convenor), Dr
Himanshu Jain (co-con-
vener) and others sat on
dharna.
RAJASTHAN
JAIPUR | FRIDAY, MARCH 26, 2021
02
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
First India Bureau
Jaipur: A friendly
cricket match between
the office bearers of Ra-
jasthan Cricket Associ-
ation (RCA) and jour-
nalists was played at
the RCA academy here.
Journalist XI decid-
ed to bowl first after
winning the toss. RCA
XI played first and
scored 146 runs in the
scheduled 20 overs.
Mahendra Nahar
scored 55 runs for RCA,
while RCA president
Vaibhav Gehlot con-
tributed 11 runs.
Akshay and Ashutosh
Sharma, Sachin Shar-
ma and Lalit Verma
from Journalist XI took
one wicket each. Jour-
nalist XI made a bril-
liant start while chas-
ing the target, Captain
Aditya Atre played the
innings of 49 runs.
Journalist XI chased
the target and made 144
runs in 20 overs. RCA XI
won the thrilling match
by 2 runs. While Ratan
Singh took 2 wickets for
RCA, Amin Pathan, Ab-
hinav Jain got 1 wicket
each. RCA captain Vai-
bhav Gehlot bowled
brilliantly. Mines min-
ister Pramod Jain
Bhaya gave the trophy
to the winning and run-
ners-up team.
RCA XI trounces Journalist XI by two runs
FRIENDLY CRICKET MATCH
Promoted by
Shree Cement Limited
Gurjars warn against tweaking MBC reservation
COMMUNITY LEADERS DEMANDED ACTION IN DEATH OF VIJAY GURJAR WHO THEY CLAIMED DIED IN POLICE ASSAULT
First India Bureau
Bharatpur: Gurjar
community members
on Thursday gathered
at the Gurjar dharam-
shala near Bus Stand
in Nagar town of
Bharatpur and protest-
ed against any attempt
to tweak the MBC res-
ervation and against
the death of a youth
Vijay Singh Gurjar al-
legedly by after beat-
ing of cops in Langra
police station.
Gurjar leader Vijay
Singh Bainsla said that
73 Gurjars died for res-
ervation and it is due to
the unity of the Gurjar
community that they
received reservation.
“If now someone fid-
dles with it and takes
away our right, then it
will not be acceptable to
us. If MLA Wajib Ali
had to raise demand for
reservation for Mus-
lims then he should
have raised a demand
not from MBC and we
would have supported
them. If the Gurjar res-
ervation through MBC
is changed, then its con-
sequences will have to
be faced,” Bainsla said.
Vijay had died when
police were chasing his
tractor on Tuesday
evening. Villagers al-
leged he died of police
beating. Former MLA
Anita Singh and former
minister Jawahar Sin-
gh Bedam also con-
demned the incident.
Gurjar community
members accused MLA
Wajib Ali of shielding
the accused.
POONIA, RAJE EXPRESS ANGUISH, SEEK COMPENSATION
BANDH ON APRIL 10
Petrol-dieselpricesreduced
for second consecutive day
There will be
no impact of
Bharat bandh,
says Kataria
New father dies by suicide
REET: Bhandaris on
fast for date change
Six independents file
nominations for by-polls
GIRL WANTS TO JOIN
POLICE AS CHILD
MARRIAGE ANNULLED
KhachariyawaswritestoGadkariovertransporttaxes
First India Bureau
Jaipur: To cancel the
proposed lump sum tax
system on commercial
vehicles by the centre,
state Transport Minis-
ter Pratap Singh
Khachariyawas has
written a letter to the
Union Road, Transport
and Highways Minister
Nitin Gadkari putting
forth the Rajasthan gov-
ernment’s views about
the new system.
Khachariyawas met
commercial tour vehi-
cle operators on Thurs-
day and he termed the
Centre’s proposed lump
sum tax policy on com-
mercial vehicles in-
cluding taxis, car and
tempo travellers as
against the common
people. Vehicle opera-
tors Youth Congress
members burnt effigy
of Nitin Gadkari at col-
lectorate circle.
Under this policy,
whether commercial
vehicles travel be-
yond the boundaries
of the state or within
the boundary, the
owner has to pay a
lump sum yearly tax
of the vehicle.
He said given the
troubled circumstances
due to corona, the cen-
tre should have re-
frained from levying
such anti-people poli-
cies which will have
grave implications on
lakhs of taxi and com-
mercial vehicles, own-
ers and staffs.
Social worker Rupmati Deora helped Chhota Devi in filing the case.
Commercial vehicle operators burnt effigy of Nitin Gadkari at collectorate circle on Thursday.
Vaibhav Gehlot, Pramod Jain Bhaya & Amin Pathan with the winning team on Thursday.
Jawahar Singh Bedam addressing the gathering where Vijay Singh Bainsla,Anita Gurjar, Bhura Bhagat,
and other Gurjar leaders were present on Thursday.
First India Bureau
Jaipur: Five inde-
pendent candidates
on Thursday filed
nomination papers
for assembly bypolls
in Rajasthan.
Dinesh Kumar
Sharma filed nomi-
nations in Sahada
(Bhilwara), Mohan
Lal, Giriraj Kumawat
and Nerruram Kapri
filed nominations in
Rajsamand while
Trilokchand Meghw-
al filed nominations
inSujangarh(Churu)
today
. The nomina-
tion started on Tues-
day and so far only
six candidates filed
nominations, Chief
electoral officer
Praveen Gupta said.
Last date of filing
nomination is March
30, scrutiny of nomi-
nation papers will be
held on March 31 and
nominations can be
withdrawn by April
3. Polling will be held
on 17 April from 7 am
to 6 pm and counting
will take place on
May 2. Gupta in-
formed that candi-
dates who have crim-
inal cases against
them will have to get
its information pub-
lished in print media.
First India Bureau
Jodhpur: A family
court in Jodhpur has
annulled a child mar-
riage that took place 7
years ago.
The girl who was
married off at the age
of 14 years has attained
adulthood and her mar-
riage could be annulled
with the efforts of so-
cial worker Rupmati
Deora. Nyay Mitra Ra-
jendra Kumar Soni
fought her case for free.
Born in the year 1999
in Silari village of
Pipar tehsil of Jodhpur
district, Chhota Devi
was married in the year
2013 to Mahendra Siyag
of Khejdla. At that
time, Chhota studied in
class ninth. In 2016, the
girl was sent to her hus-
band under ‘Gauna’ but
she returned to her par-
ents after staying in the
in-laws’ one day only
. She
said her husband was a
drugaddictanditwasdif-
ficult for her to spend her
wholelifewithhim.Apart
from this, she wanted to
complete her studies and
get a job in police.
कारायालर आबकारी आरुक्त, राजस्ान उदरपुर
देशी मददरा, दिदेशी मददरा एिं बीरर की कमपपोदजट ररटेल ऑफ दुकानों के
अनुज्ापत्र हे्तु आिेदन एिं ई-नीलामी आमंत्रण बाब्त सूचना फेज-IV
क्रमांक : प.32(बी)(1)आब/एल/2021-22/2529 दिनांक :25.03.2021
1. सर्वसाधारण को सूदित दकया जाता है दक दरत्ीय रर्व 2021-22 के दलए राजय में आबकारी बनिोबसत
हेतु िेशी मदिरा, राजस्ान दनदम्वत मदिरा (RML), भारत दनदम्वत दरिेशी मदिरा (IMFL) एरं
बीयर की ररटेल ऑफ िुकानों (कमपोदजट िुकानों) के अनुज्ापत्र जारी करने के दलए आबकारी नीदत
2021-22 के अनुसार भारत सरकार के उपक्रम एम.एस.टी.सी. दलदमटेड के माधयम से ई-नीलामी
(ई-बोली) आयोदजत की जा रही है। फेज-I में पांि दिरसीय ई-नीलामी दिनांक 10.03.2021 फेज-
II में िो दिरसीय ई-नीलामी दिनांक 19.032021 एरं 20.03.2021 एरं फेज-III में एक दिरसीय
ई-नीलामी दिनांक 24.03.2021 को समपन्न हो िुकी है।
2. फेज-IV में दनम्नदलदित दतद् अनुसार ई-नीलामी (ई-बोली) आमंदत्रत की जाती है
क्र.स. नीलामी की ददनांक आिेदन करने की अंद्तम द्तद्
1 01.04.2021 31.03.2021
नीलामी का समय पूरा्वनुसार प्ातः 11.00 बजे से सायं 04.00 बजे तक रहेगा। नीलामी एक काय्व
दिरस में नयूनतम पांि घणटे की होगी एरं उसके पशिात् जब तक बोली लगती रहे तब तक दमनट
के अन्नत दरसतार (Indefinite extension) तक जारी रहेगी।
3. आिेदन: फेज-IV के दलए आरेिन की प्दक्रया दिनांक 26 माि्व 2021 को प्ातः 11:00 बजे से प्ारमभ
है त्ा दनधा्वररत नीलामी की दिनांक से एक दिन पूर्व को रात 11:59 पी. एम. तक िालू रहेगी।
4. यदि आरेिक द्ारा दिनांक 12.02.2021 के पशिात् https://www.mstcecommerce.
com पर पंजीकरण कराया है तो उनहे पृ्क से पंजीकरण कराने की आरशयकता नहीं रहेगी। पूर्व
में आरंदटत यूजर आई.डी. र पासरड्ड के माधयम से ई-नीलामी हेतु आरेिन कर सकते हैं। यदि पूर्व में
पंजीकरण नहीं कराया है तो https://www.mstcecommerce.com पर जाकर दनःशुलक
पंजीकरण करा सकते हैं।
5. सफल बोलीिाता H1 के दकसी कारण से बैंकआउट होने पर दद्तीय उच्चतम बोलीिाता H2 को
सफल बोलीिाता H1 द्ारा प्सतादरत रादर्वक गारनटी रादश पर उस मदिरा िुकान को लेने हेतु अरसर
दिया जायेगा त्ा दद्तीय उच्चतम बोलीिाता H2 द्ारा सहमदत िेने पर पूर्व में उललेदित प्दक्रया
अनुसार रादश जमा कराने पर उसके पक्ष में अस्ाई अनुशापत्र की सरीकृदत जारी की जारेगी।
H2 द्ारा उपयु्वकत अरसर के बाि सहमती नहीं िेने पर उसे उसकी सरयं द्ारा बोली गई कीमत H2
पर मदिरा िुकान िेने का अरसर दिया जारेगा। यदि इस कीमत पर भी H2 द्ारा मदिरा िुकान नहीं
ली जाती है तो उसकी अमानत रादश जबत कर H3 को क्रमश: H1 एरं H2 द्ारा प्सतुत प्सतादरत
रादर्वक गारनटी रादश पर उस मदिरा िुकान को लेने हेतु अरसर दिया जायेगा।
तृतीय उच्चतम बोलीिाता H3 द्ारा सहमदत िेने पर पूर्व में उललेदित प्दक्रया अनुसार रादश जमा
कराने पर उसके पक्ष में अस्ाई अनुज्ापत्र की सरीकृदत जारी की जारेगी। H3 द्ारा उपयु्वकत अरसर
के बाि सहमती नहीं िेने पर उसे उसकी सरंय द्ारा बोली गई कीमत H3 पर मदिरा िुकान िेने का
अरसर दिया जायेगा। यदि इस कीमत पर भी H3 द्ारा मदिरा िुकान नहीं ली जाती है तो उसकी
अमानत रादश जबत कर ली जायेगी।
6. अनय शतते पूर्वरत रहेगी।
उपयु्वकत के संबंध में दरसतृत दिशा-दनितेश, शत्व त्ा अनुज्ापन हेतु उपलबध िुकानों की दनधा्वररत सूिी मय
दरररण दरभागीय रेबसाईट https://wwww.rajexcise.gov.in एरं एम.एस.टी.सी.दलदमटेड
की रेबसाईट https://www.mstcecommerce.com पर उपलबध है।
आबकारी आरुक्त
राजस्ान उदरपुर
MALE FOETUS
FOUND IN A
PUBLIC URINAL
First India Bureau
Dungarpur: A three-
month-old foetus was
found in a drain of a
public urinal at the
Haridev Joshi general
hospital on Thursday
. A
sanitation staffer no-
ticed the foetus and af-
ter which the police was
called. A team from Kot-
wali police station took
the fetus to a morgue
and have started an in-
vestigation to trace the
origin of the foetus. Ac-
cording to the police,
the doctors said the foe-
tus is of a boy and
seemed to have been
thrown there on
Wednesday night.
Poonam Chand Bhandari on
fast in Malviya Nagar.
—PHOTO
BY
SUMAN
SARKAR

PILOT GETS JAB, TO CAMPAIGN
IN ASSAM ON MARCH 28
Jaipur: Former Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot got
vaccinated on Thursday at the IDH centre of SMS Medi-
cal College under the supervision of Principal Dr. Sudhir
Bhandari. Pilot visited the IDH Centre after vaccination
and praised the facilities. “I feel perfectly fine & urge
everyone to remain vigilant as Covid cases are begin-
ning to rise once again,” he tweeted. Pilot is scheduled
to visit Assam on March 28 for election campaign. He
will reach Silchar City by special aircraft on March 28
morning and after a roadshow he will reach Karimganj
in the afternoon for another roadshow.
MAN GAVE COVID NEGATIVE
REPORT FOR `200, HELD
Sikar: The police arrested a computer operators
on charges of preparing Corona negative reports
of people visit Khatu Shyam ji mela in Sikar dis-
trict. The accused was charging `200 per report,
police said on Thursday. The Covid-19 negative
report is mandatory for those attending the annual
Lakkhi fair of Baba Shyam ji. ASI Chhaganlal said
the accused Hariram was arrested and is being
further questioned about how many fake reports
he prepared and issued.
Sachin Pilot getting the jab
COVID-19: SLACK SCREENING
DUE TO LESS MANPOWER
STATE RECORDED 715 FRESH CASES ON THURSDAY OF WHICH 77 ARE FROM JAIPUR
First India Bureau
Jaipur: The health au-
thorities on Thursday
started checking Cov-
id-19 test reports of pas-
sengers reaching from
other states even as the
number of fresh cases
spiked to 715 of which
77 were reported in
Jaipur. The exercise,
however, turned out to
be a mere ritual at the
railways station and the
bus stand due to lack of
the teams.
The state govern-
ment has made it man-
datory to bring a corona
negative report, of not
later than 72 hours, on
entry into the state.
Random checking of
passengers was done at
the airport. About 4,800
passengers deboard at
Jaipur from 43 flights
daily
.
At railway station, a
team was present at just
one gate while passen-
gers left without check-
ing from other gates. On
Thursday, about 8,500
passengers arrived at
Jaipur Junction, but
samples of only 400
were collected.
Health staff checking Covid-19 test reports of passengers coming from other states at the Jaipur
railway station on Thursday. —PHOTO BY SUMAN SARKAR
715 CASES, NO DEATH
RAJASTHAN
03
�तन कसर मुँह गला व थायरोइड कसर आहार नली कसर गे� ो
ऑ�कोलॉजी लीवर एवं अ�नाशय कसर यूरो ऑ�कोलॉजी गायनी
ऑ�कोलॉजी बोन एवं सॉ�ट �ट�यू कसर पेन ��ल�नक जाँच एवं
�नदान डे क
े यर क मोथेरेपी
सु वधाएँ
नांगल क
� सर हॉ पटल एवं रसच� इं ट ूट
बीकानेर स
ं भाग म� क
� सर रोिगयों क
े सुलभ ईलाज हेतु
समि �
प�त सभी अ ाधुिनक सुिवधाओं से यु त अ पताल
ीमती ऊमा देवी भतमाल मैमो रयल
ट�ेिफक थाने क
े पास, आदश� कॉलोनी, मेिडकल कॉलेज रोड, बीकानेर, राज थान
3 held for raping mentally
challenged woman
First India Bureau
Udaipur: The police
solved the case of gang
rape of a mentally chal-
lengedwomaninGogun-
da town of Udaipur on
Thursday and arrested
three persons. The vehi-
cle used in the crime has
alsobeenseized.District
Superintendent of Po-
lice Rajiv Pachar said
that after the incident,
the police formed sepa-
rate police teams.
He also said that the
biggest challenge be-
fore the police was no
mobile connectivity in
the forest area where
the incident took place.
The teams formed by
the police worked day
and night, while on the
other hand, many piec-
es of evidence were col-
lected by the FSL team.
Police teams tried to
make arrests by raiding
liquor shops, hotels, etc.
Meanwhile, an inform-
er revealed that a per-
son named Laxman
may be involved in this
case. When the police
questioned him in cus-
tody, he confessed and
gave information about
his two companions.
Man robbed of `10L
meant for marriage
First India Bureau
Jhunjhunu: Robbery
of Rs 10 lakh outside a
bank in broad daylight
has been reported from
Jhunjhunu. The ac-
cused snatched the
money from a retired
armyman Banwari Lal
person who had come
to the bank to withdraw
money for marriage of
his daughter on April 2.
The police reached the
spot after getting infor-
mation about the inci-
dent and the accused
are being identified.
The incident oc-
curred near Saho Ka
Kuan in the Kotwali
police station area of
the city. Banwarilal
hailing from Bagad
came out of the SBI
Bank after withdrawal
of `10 lakh. He kept the
money in the side bag
of his bike. Meanwhile,
the two accused came
on the bike and robbed
the money. The police
are scanning the CCTV
cameras to identify the
accused.
Pregnant woman,
one more
‘hit’ by police
First India Bureau
Jhalawar: Two women,
including a pregnant
one, were allegedly as-
saulted by a team of po-
liceof theAsnavarpolice
station in the Jhalawar
district who had gone to
capture the gamblers on
Thursday
. When the po-
lice went to apprehend
thegamblers,apregnant
woman was walking
withhersister.Asthepo-
lice started beating her
familymember,thewom-
en went to save him and
were assaulted.
Four killed in
separate
accidents
First India Bureau
Baran: Fourpeopledied
in three different road
accidents in the Baran
district on Thursday
. A
biker and his minor girl
were killed when the
bike hit a roadways bus
that applied sudden
brakesatNationalHigh-
way27,nearKishanganj
town.AnelderlyMohan-
lal Meena died in a car
collision near the Balaji
site. Meanwhile, a wom-
an died in a bike acci-
dent near Kelwara Poly-
technic College.
Currency burnt:
MLA Bharat
seeks dismissal
of tehsildar
First India Bureau
Kota: In the matter of
burning of currency
notes by tehsildar
Kalpesh Jain in Pin-
dwara,SirohionWednes-
day
, Congress MLA from
Sangod Bharat Singh on
Thursday wrote a letter
to CM Ashok Gehlot ap-
pealing to consider the
matter as the rarest of
therareanddismissJain
from service immediate-
ly without giving any
notice and opportunity
of hearing.Hesaidburn-
ing currency notes is a
crime in itself.
Jain had locked him-
self in his residence at
Pindwara tehsil office
premises and put bun-
dles of notes on fire on
Wednesday night while
ACB team waited out-
side. ACB had trapped
RI Parvat Singh with
bribe of `1 lakh and he
confessed taking bribe
for Jain. On Thursday,
accused were produced
in a court.
The burnt currency notes
National Games to be held in
Rajasthan: Ashok Chandna
First India Bureau
Jaipur: In a meeting
with State Sports Fed-
erations on Thursday,
Sports Minister Ashok
Chandna assured that
National Games would
be organized in Ra-
jasthan. He said he
would talk to everyone
concerned in this re-
gard even if it involves
going to Delhi. Besides,
a high power committee
will be constituted for
organizing rural Olym-
pic games, talent search
scheme, accountability
of trainers and develop-
ment of sports.
Chandna, while ad-
dressing the officials of
the sports associations,
said that there is no
shortage of good play-
ers and sports grounds
in Rajasthan. He
thanked CM Ashok Ge-
hlot and said that it was
only possible with his
efforts that the players
of Rajasthan were ap-
pointed in state service.
He informed the CM
made a provision of Rs
40 crore in the budget
for Sports School, out of
which Rs 16 crore has
been given for Rehabili-
tation Centre, where
free treatment will be
available to players of
all sports.
Ashok Chandna being felicitated
by Tejaswi Gehlot and Ramavtar
Jakhar on Thursday.
FOR QUICK TRAVEL
Ramcharan Bohra seeks
Delhi-Jaipur bullet train
First India Bureau
Jaipur: BJP MP from
Jaipur Ramcharan
Bohra on Wednesday at-
tracted the attention of
the House in the Lok
Sabha for running a bul-
let train from Delhi to
Jaipur. Thanking Prime
Minister Narendra Modi
for the award of the bul-
let train project on the
Delhi-Ahmedabad route,
Bohra said said that
Jaipur is a major centre
of tourism where not
onlydomesticbutforeign
tourists visit every day
.
Today many indus-
trial units are estab-
lished in Jaipur, mainly
handicrafts, dyeing-
printing, sculpture, dia-
mond-gems etc. Entre-
preneurs have to travel
tomanycountriesof the
world for the promotion,
exhibitionandexportof
their products, he said.
To save time for com-
muting, one has to come
to Delhi frequently by
air route. As such only
the domestic but foreign
tourists, handicrafts
workers, entrepreneurs
associated with dia-
mond-gems and dyeing-
printing will get conven-
ience in traffic if and a
bullet train is provided
on the route, he said.
He thanked PM
Modi for bullet train
project on the Delhi-
Ahmedabad route
Ramcharan Bohra

PERSPECTIVE
04
Vol 2 Issue No. 289 RNI NO. RAJENG/2019/77764. Printed and published by Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of First Express Publishers. Printed at Bhaskar Printing Press, D.B. Corp Limited, Shivdaspura, Tonk Road, Jaipur.
Published at 304, 3rd Floor, City Mall, Bhagwan Das Road, C-Scheme, Jaipur-302001, Rajasthan. Phone 0141-4920504. Editor-In-Chief: Jagdeesh Chandra. Editor: Anita Hada Sangwan responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act
OPPOSITION
CRIES FOUL AS
PARL. PASSES
NCT BILL
he Rajya Sabha on Wednesday
passed a Bill to bestow the Lieu-
tenant Governor (LG) of Delhi
with greater powers by taking
away the right of elected repre-
sentatives. The Bill, which was passed by the
Lok Sabha on Monday, seeks to amend the
Government of NCT of Delhi (NCTD) Act,
1991. It was enacted “to supplement provi-
sions of the Constitution relating to Legisla-
tive Assembly and a Council of Ministers for
the National Capital Territory of Delhi”.
Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge
of the Congress asked that if the LG has to be
in-charge, “what is the point of holding elec-
tions”. Abhishek Manu Singhvi described the
National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amend-
ment) Bill was “coercive federalism” by the
Central government. Union Minister of State
for Home G. Kishan Reddy defended the Bill
and refuted the charge that the amendment is
intended to curtail the powers of the elected
government. The amendments, he said, were
on “technical” grounds alone.
Reddy’s refutation is not convincing if one
looks at the amendment being made to the
term“Government”.“TheexpressionGovern-
ment referred to in any law to be made by the
Legislative Assembly (of Delhi) shall mean
the Lieutenant Governor,” the Bill states. The
Billprovidesthat“beforetakinganyexecutive
action to exercise powers of Government, the
opinion of Lieutenant Governor shall be ob-
tained on all such matters as may be specified
by the Lieutenant Governor.” Doesn’t that
undermine the powers of the chief minister
and his council of ministers?
Theseamendments go against the2018judg-
ment by a five-judge Bench of the Supreme
Court which defined the powers of the Lieu-
tenant Governor. In Government of NCT of
Delhi versus Union of India, the SC had ruled
that according to Article 239 AA of the Consti-
tution of India, Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor
didnothaveanyindependentdecision-making
powers and had to follow the “aid and advice”
of the chief minister-led council of ministers
of the Government of Delhi on matters which
the Delhi legislative Assembly could legislate
on…TheSupremeCourtalsosaidthat“theLG
has not been entrusted with any independent
decision-making power. He has to either act on
the aid and advice or is bound to act on the
order of the President if a matter is referred
to him”. And that was to be the exception.
The Opposition argued that the Bharatiya
Janata Party, which has been out of power in
Delhi for the last about 20 years, wants to
grab power through the Lieutenant Governor
and asked if the Central government will
bring about similar changes in Pondicherry
.
The Bill would mean that the people of
Delhi will not have an effective representa-
tion in the Assembly
. A representative of the
Union government, whom the people cannot
oust from power, will decide their fate.
IN-DEPTH
T
aving spent the
early months of
2021 exiled from
social media,
Donald Trump
may be set to make a re-
turn, circumventing his
Twitter ban by creating a
social media platform of
his own. Jason Miller, the
Trump aide who an-
nounced the news, has said
the platform could be ready
in “two or three months”.
Whiletheannouncement
might seem ambitious,
building a social media
platform is actually rela-
tively easy
. In 2004, a rudi-
mentary form of Facebook
was developed in just two
weeks. Since then, advanc-
es in software development
and cloud computing have
made it far easier to create
a social media platform in a
short space of time.
But keeping the new plat-
form online after its release
could prove difficult. It’ll
havetoavoidthefateof “free
speech” social media plat-
forms favoured by Trump’s
supporters. One such plat-
form, Parler, found itself
droppedfromappstoresand
forced offline after being ac-
cused of hosting content
linked to the violence at the
January 6 Capitol riot.
The platform will also
likely become a target of
hackers and “trolls” op-
posed to Trump’s brand of
politics, who may look to
find ways to shut it down
or cause disruption.
Trump’s new social media
platform may well go live
in two to three months –
but keeping it online and
free from disruption will
be the real challenge.
TRUMP
DEPLATFORMED
Trump’s plan comes after
Twitter and Facebook de-
cided to “deplatform” him
in response to the January
6 Capitol riot. Twitter’s
Trump ban is permanent.
Facebook’s ban is current-
ly under review.
Along with the suspen-
sion of Parler, these moves
have forced millions, in-
cluding many Trump sup-
porters, onto a smattering
of niche social media plat-
forms. Many of these peo-
ple are likely to flock to a
platform created by
Trump, guaranteeing it a
large user base at the very
least. As Miller empha-
sised in his statement: “It
is going to be big.”
BUILDING A
PLATFORM
Technically speaking, the
new social media platform
could be built and launched
in a matter of weeks. Soft-
waredevelopershaveaccess
to easy-to-copy coding tem-
plates that mean it needn’t
be built from scratch.
But to support millions
of potential users, the new
platform will require the
infrastructure to scale
quickly
. If the correct infra-
structure isn’t in place to
support growth, Trump’s
platform will simply crash
under the strain of new us-
ers after its launch. The
cloud computing infra-
structure necessary to
avoid crashing is typically
provided by tech giants like
Amazon’s AWS, Microsoft’s
Azure, or Google’s Cloud.
Trump’s platform may
be developed as a smart-
phone app that features in
app stores, a website acces-
sible through web brows-
ers, or both. An app would
be especially vulnerable to
the whims of leading app
stores – those run by Goog-
le and Apple – which could
refuse to host the app if
activity on it was seen to
violate their terms of use.
One of the biggest chal-
lengesforTrumpiswhether
all these providers, who are
essentially the gatekeepers
of theweb,willagreetosup-
port his platform. Even if
they do, the Parler prece-
dent could see them with-
draw their hosting at any
time if users’ violent rheto-
ric goes unpoliced.
SOURCE: THE CONVERSATION
Trump is building a social media platform
H
Words have the power to
both destroy and heal. When
words are both true and kind,
they can change our world.
—Buddha
Spiritual
SPEAK
Top
TWEET
Dharmendra Pradhan
@dpradhanbjp
Pursuant to our intervention, in
2020, Odisha Government had
accorded clearance to project
proposal which was filed by NTPC
in 2017. This project is crucial
for the livelihood and economic
development of the region and
ensuring sustained availability of
low-cost reliable power.
Prakash Javadekar
@PrakashJavdekar
Kerala is witnessing the worst kind
of hypocrisy; what is the State
Government’s stand on entry of
women in Sabarimala temple. Both
LDF and UDF are synonymous.
Promoted by First India
News International Pvt. Ltd.
he word, cancer, sends an eerie chill
down everyone’s spine, or cascading
gunfire in one’s mind. In medical
terms, cancer is a group of cells, usu-
ally derived from a single cell that
has lost its normal control mecha-
nism. The consequence is unfettered
cell growth. Cancer can begin almost
anywhere in the body. While cancer
cells from the primary — or, initial
— site can spread, or metastasise,
throughout the body
, the disorder per
se represents a group of more than
one hundred different diseases — all
of them highlighted by uninhibited,
anomalous growth of cells. Cancer
also spreads to and affects the lymph
nodes — the tiny bean-shaped struc-
tures that filter the flow of lymph, an
important part of the body’s immune
system. Clusters of lymph nodes are
sited in different parts of the body —
the neck, groin, and armpits.
Trying to ‘crack’ what causes can-
cer is synonymous with searching for
a needle in a haystack. The factual
cause of cancer is subject to conjec-
ture. One may, for the sake of con-
venience, think of substances, or
carcinogens, that are known to cause
cancer — for example, nicotine.
Sounds simple; actually, it is not. Be-
cause it’s often easier said than done
to prove what substances cause can-
cer, most clinicians acquiesce to the
fact that the treacherous disorder
results from the complex interaction
of genetic and environmental fac-
tors, not just solitary threats.
Such factors may be external and
internal. The former includes life-
style indiscretions — smoking, chew-
ing tobacco, alcohol overuse, obesity,
and so on. Environmental factors
that may have a say in cancer are ex-
posure to chemicals and radiation
— including viral and bacterial infec-
tions that can injure cells and wilt
our immune system. Most important-
ly, the basis of cancer may be related
to our genes — this is inherited. One
may also blame genetic mutations
and hormonal contexts — e.g., oestro-
gen — for the onset of the dreadful
disease, including genes getting dent-
ed by microorganisms, chemicals,
sunlight, or tobacco abuse. Such ge-
netic modifications, or acquired mu-
tations, are slow in their onset. It
takes more than a few years before
full-scale cancerous cells ‘explode.’
Cancer can lead to a composite
amalgam of symptoms. Symptoms
may be subtle and apparent. Some
symptoms — or, what are often called
cautionary clues — are best identi-
fied by a specialist. Besides, there are
symptoms that develop only after the
disease progresses. They are not
helpful in the early detection of can-
cer, although one would do well to
quickly evaluate symptoms like un-
explained nausea, loss of appetite,
fatigue, diarrhea, and vomiting, as
possible warning signs, or conse-
quences of treatment. While some
symptoms occur with almost all can-
cer types, there are others that are
specific, especially when the disease
is mounting. It is, therefore, essential
to summon screening programmes
for the early detection and diagnosis
of cancer. The reason is simple and
insightful — the earlier the disease is
detected, the more effective the treat-
ment.
Cancer cells develop from healthy
cells. The process — called transfor-
mation — is as complex as the disease
itself.Thefirststep,wherecancercells
grow from healthy cells, is called as
initiation. A change in the cell’s ge-
netic material, especially in the DNA,
and at times in the chromosomal
structure, propels the cell to become
cancerous. This may happen instinc-
tively;itisalso,contextually
,triggered
by genetic mutations and/or carcino-
gens — chemicals, tobacco, viruses,
radiation, and sunlight. All the same,
there are no set rules for the progres-
sion of cancer. Also, not all cells are
vulnerable to carcinogens. What
makescellsweakisageneticfault,not
to speak of prolonged physical abnor-
mality
.Therestisdisasterepitomised.
Well, despite all the gloom, it is yet
plausible to ‘prevent’ cancer, though
its incidence differs from one popula-
tion to the other. In Japan, for exam-
ple, there has customarily been a
high occurrence of gastric cancer,
unlike the US, where the frequency
of colon cancer is high. It is also iron-
ic that Japanese immigrants have
seen a dramatic change in the pat-
tern. This is purportedly because of
a change in diet and lifestyle prac-
tices — from soya to the Western diet
— although not necessarily genetics.
Well, there’s no failsafe plan to pre-
vent cancer, although one real way of
doing it, imaginably, is by asking the
cells in our body not to divide. This
isn’t possible. Studies, therefore, sug-
gest that it would be useful to take
good care of one’s health, eating a
balanced diet, with 4-5 daily servings
of fruits and vegetables, taking ap-
propriate nutritional supplements,
doing regular exercise, also medita-
tion, and most importantly giving up,
or not smoking, and avoiding alcohol.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
T
Trying to ‘crack’
what causes cancer
is synonymous
with searching for
a needle in a
haystack. The
factual cause of
cancer is subject to
conjecture. One
may, for the sake
of convenience,
think of
substances, or
carcinogens, that
are known to cause
cancer — for
example, nicotine.
Sounds simple;
actually, it is not.
Because it’s often
easier said than
done to prove what
substances cause
cancer, most
clinicians
acquiesce to the
fact that the
treacherous
disorder results
from the complex
interaction of
genetic and
environmental
factors, not just
solitary threats
CANCER CAN LEAD TO A
COMPOSITE AMALGAM OF
SYMPTOMS. SYMPTOMS
MAY BE SUBTLE AND
APPARENT. SOME
SYMPTOMS — OR, WHAT
ARE OFTEN CALLED
CAUTIONARY CLUES — ARE
BEST IDENTIFIED BY A
SPECIALIST. BESIDES, THERE
ARE SYMPTOMS THAT
DEVELOP ONLY AFTER THE
DISEASE PROGRESSES
RAJGOPAL
NIDAMBOOR
WELLNESS PHYSICIAN,
INDEPENDENT RESEARCHER
AND AUTHOR
THE GENESIS
PREVENTION
PREVENTION
IS
THE GENESIS
THE GENESIS
CANCER

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INDIA
05
EYEWITNESSES RECOUNT PANIC
DURING GTB HOSPITAL SHOOTOUT
New Delhi: When I heard
gunshots, I got scared
and sat down inside my
food stall from where I
could see people running
for their lives, said a
shopkeeper near the GTB
hospital here where a
gunfight broke out on
Thursday between the
police and those who had
come to aid the escape
of a notorious criminal.
The fierce gunfight
left one assailant dead
and triggered chaos
with patients and their
relatives running for
cover, officials said.
While the criminal
escorted by the police
managed to flee, the
police nabbed one of his
six associates who was
injured in the gunfight,
they said.
CANDIDATES SPICE UP
CAMPAIGN FOR TN POLLS
Chennai:Amusing spectacles unfold everyday
with candidates attempting a variety of things
from donning the role of a chef to washing clothes
to woo voters, spicing up the campaign for the
April 6 Assembly polls in TN. Amid laughter and
claps, AIADMK candidate from Royapuram here, D
Jayakumar filled a pot fully with water for a woman
by manually operating a roadside handpump. Also,
the Fisheries Minister Jayakumar dons the signa-
ture ‘MGR’ cap sometimes and goes around his
constituency on a cycle-rickshaw to seek votes.
MAHA TOPS IN VACCINATION
DRIVE, SURPASSES RAJ
Mumbai:Maharashtra has emerged as the leader
in the COVID-19 vaccination drive as it has
administered vaccine doses to 43,42,646 people,
an official said. The state surpassed Rajasthan
in the vaccination drive on March 24, he said.
Rajasthan now ranks second as it has vaccinated
43,27,874 people, the official said. “Maharashtra
tops the list of states in the country in terms of
the number of COVID-19 vaccine doses admin-
istered,” Dr Pradeep Vyas, principal secretary of
Maharashtra Public Health Department, said.
KHAJURI KHAS ASSAULT: MAIN
ACCUSED ARRESTED
New Delhi: The main
accused in the alleged
assault of a man in north-
east Delhi was arrested
on Thursday, police said.
In a video widely shared
on social media, Ajay
Goswami was purport-
edly thrashing the man at
Khajuri Khas and telling
him to say “Hindustan
zindabaad” and “Pakistan
murdabad”. Goswami,
a resident of Old Garhi
Mendu village in Shah-
dara, was arrested and a
case registered against
him under relevant sec-
tions of the Indian Penal
Code, police said. The
person who was record-
ing the video has been
identified as Deepak
Baisala, who is on the
run. Action will be taken
against him, police said.
IN THE COURTYARD
Kangana gets partial
relief in defamation case
SC quashes FIR against Shillong Times journalist Patricia
New Delhi The Su-
preme Court on Thurs-
day quashed the crimi-
nal case registered
against Editor of
Shillong Times Patricia
Mukhim, in relation to
a Facebook post by her
decrying violence
against non-tribal peo-
ple in the State.
The judgment was de-
livered by a bench of
Justices L Nageswara
Rao and Ravindra Bhat
on a plea filed by Mukh-
im, against the Megha-
laya High Court’s order
dismissing her plea to
quash criminal pro-
ceedings.
The criminal pro-
ceedings pertained to a
Facebook post pub-
lished by Mukhim seek-
ing action by the State
against an attack on
some non-tribal boys in
Meghalaya.
A case was filed
against Mukhim alleg-
ing the commission of
offences under Sections
153-A (promoting en-
mity between different
groups on grounds of
religion, race, place of
birth, residence, lan-
guage, etc), 500 (punish-
ment for defamation)
and 505 (statements
conducing to public
mischief) of the Indian
Penal Code.
BJP faces tough
challenge from oppn
in upper Assam
SC directs
Army to grant
PC to officers
Dibrugarh: Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) is
facing a tough fight
from the Opposition in
the upper Assam re-
gion where 47 seats will
go on polls in the first
phase on March 27.
BJP is banking on
Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi to pull off a
victory in upper Assam
where he has held five
rallies so far whereas
Congress has promised
to stop the implementa-
tion of the Citizenship
Amendment Act (CAA)
and increase wages of
tea workers.
Assam BJP presi-
dent Ranjit Kumar
Dass has exuded confi-
dence that his party is
going to sweep the elec-
tions polls in the state.
He has said that the
party will soon imple-
ment the BJP if it is re-
elected to office. He fur-
ther claimed that the
CAA is not an issue in
the upcoming Assem-
bly elections in the
state as people will vote
logically, not emotion-
ally.
Around 260 candi-
dates are in the fray out
of which 101 are crore-
pati candidates and 41
candidates have de-
clared criminal cases
against them. —ANI
Mumbai: The Andheri
court in Mumbai has
granted bail to Bolly-
wood actor Kangana
Ranaut on Thursday
after she moved the
court for the cancella-
tion of the bailable war-
rant that the court is-
sued against her in the
defamation case,
brought against her by
lyricist Javed Akhtar.
She has been granted
bail upon furnishing a
surety of 15,000 and a
cash surety of 20,000,
Bar and Bench report-
ed. On March 1, the
court ordered a bailable
warrant against the ac-
tor as she failed to re-
spond to the summons
issued by the court.
Delhi water supply: SC
directive to Punjab, Haryana
New Delhi: The Su-
preme Court order the
Punjab and Haryana
governments and
Bhakra-Beas Manage-
ment Board (BKMB) to
maintain the status quo
on the water supply to
Delhi till Friday
. The di-
rective came after the
Delhi Jal Board said the
water supply could be
reduced in the city by
25% because of closing
of canal gates for repair.
Notices have also
been issued to the gov-
ernment of Punjab,
Haryana and BBMB on
DJB’s plea against the
curtailment of supply
of water to Delhi.
“Respondents are di-
rectedtomaintainstatus
quo regarding the sup-
ply of water to Delhi”,
ordered the apex court
bench. The bench, head-
ed by Chief Justice of
IndiaSABobde,alsosaid
that it would hear the
caseonFridayasthereis
“urgency” in the matter.
New Delhi: The Su-
preme Court on Thurs-
day directed directed
the Army to consider
the grant of the perma-
nent commission for
women officers within
a month and allow the
permanent commis-
sion within 2 months
after following the due
process. A bench of the
Apex Court passed the
judgment on hearing a
batch of petitions filed
by many women offic-
ers for permanent
Commission in the In-
dian Army,.
1st phase: Campaigning ends in
WB, Assam voting on Saturday
New Delhi: The high-
voltage campaign for
the first phase of the
poll in Assam and Ben-
gal came to an end on
Thursday evening. A
total of 77 assembly
constituencies (47 in
Assam and 30 in Ben-
gal) will go to the polls
on March 27.
In Bengal, the 30 seats
are spread across tribal-
dominated Purulia,
Bankura, Jhargram,
Purba Medinipur (Part
1) and Paschim Medin-
ipur (Part 1) districts
which were once con-
sidered the citadel of
the Left in the state.
The campaign for the
seats saw high profile
leaders of BJP, which
has emerged as the
main opposition to the
ruling TMC, addressing
poll rallies in Purulia,
Jhargram and Bankura
districts.
In Assam, where the
fate of 264 candidates
hang in balance, the
hectic campaign wit-
nessed the presence of
several national leaders
including Modi, Union
HM Amit Shah, BJP
president JP Nadda,
Congress’ Rahul and
Priyanka Gandhi, who
crisscrossed the state to
garner support for their
respective parties.
Sachin Waze’s custody
extended till April 3
Mumbai: A special
court extended the NIA
custody of suspended
police officer Sachin
Waze, arrested in con-
nection with the recov-
ery of explosives-laden
vehicle near industrial-
ist Ambani’s house, till
April 3. He had nothing
to do with the crime
and had been made a
scapegoat, he told the
special NIA court.
Waze (49), an assis-
tant police inspector
with Mumbai crime
branch, was arrested on
March 13 by the Nation-
al Investigation agency
.
The NIA, which has
invoked the stringent
provisions of Unlawful
Activities (Prevention)
Act (UAPA) against
Waze, sought his custo-
dy for another 15 days.
“I have been made a
scapegoat and have
nothing to do with the
case,” Waze told judge
P R Sitre during the
hearing.
“I was investigating
officer of the case for
one and a half days, and
didwhatever I could in
that capacity
. But there
was suddenly change in
some plan somewhere. I
went to the NIA office
on my own and was ar-
rested,” the police of-
ficer said, adding he
had not confessed to
anything. —PTI
State tops in
FB political
ad spend
over others
Kolkata: Among the
four states and one
union territory that
are going to polls
from March 27, West
Bengal emerged as
the topper in spend-
ing for political ad-
vertisements on Fa-
cebook this year, ac-
cording to data avail-
able with the social
media platform. Be-
sides West Bengal,
assembly elections
will be held in three
other states Assam,
Kerala and Tamil
Nadu and in the un-
ion territory of Pu-
ducherry.
The Facebook ad
spend of the Trina-
mool Congress which
seeks to return to
power in West Ben-
gal for the third con-
secutive term, ex-
ceeds that of the BJP,
the main rival of the
Mamata Banerjee-
led party, in 90 days
till March 22, the
data revealed.
EC NOTICE TO TIWARI
FOR MANIPULATING
MITHUN LEADS MEGA ROADSHOWS IN BENGAL
SHARAD PAWAR TO
CAMPAIGN FOR DIDI
Kolkata: BJP candidate from Pand-
abeswar Jitendra Tiwari was issued
a show-cause notice by the Election
Commission (EC) for promising voters
a free trip to the temple of Lord Ram
in Ayodhya if elected, officials said.
Mr Tiwari made the remarks twice
-- while speaking at a public meeting
in Haripur on March 21, and later at a
party meeting. The Trinamool Con-
gress lodged a complaint with the poll
body on March 22 over the issue.
Keshiary: Bollywood superstar Mithun Chakraborty led two mega roadshows
in the Jungle Mahal region of West Bengal in support of the BJP candidates.
Chakraborty, who was in a white kurta with a long saffron scarf loosely
wrapped around his neck, led the first roadshow in Saltora in Bankura, while
the second one was in Keshiary in the Paschim Medinipur district. Amid chants
of ‘’Jai Shri Ram’’, Chakraborty greeted the enthused supporters people
went atop their houses and gathered near Chakraborty’’s car to have one look
at the superstar. “The overwhelming response, the emotion of the people show
change is inevitable and irreversible in Bengal,” he told reporters in Keshiary.
New Delhi: Nationalist Congress Party
(NCP) chief Sharad Pawar will travel to
West Bengal to campaign Chief Min-
ister Mamata Banerjee in the state As-
sembly polls, said NCP spokesperson,
Mahesh Tapase on Thursday. “NCP
chief Sharad Pawar will campaign in
West Bengal in support of Mamata
Banerjee. He will be on a three-day visit
to the state from April 1, to hold vari-
ous rallies, press conferences and meet
Mamata Banerjee and TMC workers.
ANIL DESHMUKH WRITES TO
PROBE CORRUPTION CHARGES
‘NOBODY HAD
HAND IN
TRANSFERS’
BJP SLAMS
SANJAY RAUT
FOR RALLYING
Mumbai: Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Desh-
mukh informed that he has written a letter to CM
Thackeray to investigate the corrupt malpractices
allegations levelled against him by former Mumbai
Police chief Param Bir Singh. Taking to his Twitter
handle, Mr Deshmukh shared the letter written to
Thackeray. “I have asked the CM to inquire into
the allegations made against me by (former Police
Commissioner of Mumbai) Param Bir Singh to
bring out the truth,” he tweeted in Marathi.
Mumbai: The “phone tap-
ping” by the intelligence
department evoked angry
reactions in the meet-
ing of the Maharashtra
cabinet, housing minister
Jitendra Awhad said. NCP
leader Mr Awhad alleged
that then Commissioner
of Intelligence Rashmi
Shukla intercepted calls
without permission.
Mumbai: Maharash-
tra BJP leader Pravin
Darekar on Thursday hit
out at Shiv Sena leader
Sanjay Raut for his re-
fusal to seek state Home
Minister Anil Deshmukh’s
resignation despite “seri-
ous” allegations levelled
against him by former
Mumbai police chief
Param Bir Singh.
Athawale
demands
President’s
rule in Maha
Mumbai: Union Minis-
ter Ramdas Athawale
on Thursday said that
he had met President
Ram Nath Kovind and
demanded President’s
Rule in Maharashtra.
“The situation in Ma-
harashtra is out of con-
trol. The government is
not able to control the
surge in COVID-19 cas-
es in the state. They are
not able to handle the
law and order of the
state,” Athawale told.
Referring to the alle-
gations of the former
Mumbai Police Com-
missioner Param Bir
Singh over the involve-
ment of home minister
Anil Deshmukh’s in-
volvement in severe
“malpractices”, he said,
“No inquiry can take
place until the Maha-
rashtra government is
removed.”
Athawale had earlier
sent a letter to the Un-
ion Home Minister
Amit Shah, demanding
President’s Rule in Ma-
harashtra. —ANI

INDIA
06
New Delhi: Congress
leader Rahul Gandhi on
Thursday said it is not
right to call the RSS and
its associated groups
‘Sangh Parivar’ as a
family has women, re-
spect for elders, com-
passion and affection,
and the organisation
has none of these.
Gandhi’s remarks
come a day after he said
the alleged harassment
of nuns belonging to a
Kerala-based congrega-
tion in Uttar Pradesh
was a result of the
Sangh Parivar’s “vi-
cious propaganda” to
pitch one community
against another and
trample on minorities.
In a tweet in Hindi on
Thursday, he said he
will no longer refer to
the Rashtriya Swayam-
sevak Sangh as ‘Sangh
Parivar’, united family
.
“I believe it is not
right to call the RSS and
associated organiza-
tions Sangh Parivar --
there are women in the
family, there is respect
for the elderly, a sense
of compassion and af-
fection -- which is not
there in the RSS,” he
said on Twitter. —PTI
Karnal: The Bharati-
ya Kisan Union leader
Rakesh Tikait on
Thursday said the agi-
tating farmers were
prepared for a long
haul and will relent
only when their de-
mands are met. Tikait
reiterated that the
Centre must withdraw
the new farm laws and
provide a legal guar-
antee on MSP.
He said the farm laws
were not only adversely
affecting the farmers
but will impact other
sections as well. “This
fight is not just of farm-
ers but it is also for the
poor, small traders,”
said Tikait while ad-
dressing a farmers’
‘mahapanchayat’ at As-
sandh in this district.
Asserting that farm-
ers were prepared for a
long haul, he said, “This
agitation will go on for
long. We have made
preparations till No-
vember-December.”
Referring to his late
father Mahender Singh
Tikait, he said, “Tikait
sahib used to say that
when Haryana stands
in support of an agita-
tion, govt shivers. —PTI
FEAROF2NDWAVECONTINUESIN6STATES
With another 53,476 fresh new coronavirus cases, the nation saw the biggest single-day jump in total infections in nearly five months
New Delhi: Nearly 81
per cent of the new cor-
onavirus cases record-
ed by India in the last 24
hours were reported
from six states - Maha-
rashtra, Punjab, Kerala,
Karnataka, Chhattis-
garh and Gujarat, the
government said today.
Of these, Maharashtra
and Gujarat recorded
the biggest single-day
jump in total infections
ever since the pandemic
hit India.
As India logged the
highest number of cas-
es in a single day since
October 23 with 53,456
new infections, Maha-
rashtra, the worst-hit
state by the pandemic,
recorded 31,855 cases
in the last 24 hours
taking the total num-
ber of infections in the
state to 25,64,881. So
far, over 53,000 people
have died of coronavi-
rus in the state.
India’s financial cap-
ital Mumbai reported
5,185 new coronavirus
cases in 24 hours - the
city’s biggest ever sin-
gle-day spike, and a
nearly 48 per cent in-
crease from the preced-
ing period. The city
has banned celebration
of Holi - which falls on
March 28 and 29 - in
public or private spac-
es. Authorities will
also carry out random
Rapid Antigen Tests
(RAT) of people in pub-
lic spaces.
Meanwhile, in Guja-
rat, 1,790 fresh cases
were recorded and the
tally rose to 2,92,169.
In a statement,
Health Ministry today
said ten states - Delhi,
Tamil Nadu, Chhattis-
garh, Karnataka, Hary-
ana, Rajasthan, Maha-
rashtra, Gujarat, Pun-
jab and Madhya
Pradesh - are showing
an “upward trajectory
in daily cases”.
Three states, Maha-
rashtra, Kerala and
Punjab, account for
74.32 per cent of total
active cases in the coun-
try -3,95,192. Maharash-
tra alone accounts for
62.91 per cent of the to-
tal active cases in the
country
.
Across India, 251 peo-
ple died of coronavirus
in the last 24 hours, the
government said. “Six
states account for
78.49% of daily deaths.
Maharashtra saw the
maximum casualties
(95). Punjab follows
with 39 daily deaths and
Chhattisgarh reported
29 deaths in the last 24
hours,” the Health Min-
istry statement further
read. —Agencies
New Delhi: India is wit-
nessing an increase in
the daily new cases of
COVID-19 since Febru-
ary, “clearly indicating a
second wave”, a report
by the State Bank of
India (SBI) said. The
second wave may last
up to 100 days, when
counted from February
15, it said.
Based on trends till
March 23, the total
number of coronavirus
cases in India in the
second wave is ex-
pected to be around 25
lakh, the forecast said.
The 28-page report
said localised lock-
downs or restrictions
have been “ineffective”
and that mass vaccina-
tion is the “only hope”
to win the battle against
the pandemic.
“Considering the
number of days from
the current level of daily
new cases to the peak
level during the first
wave, India might reach
the peak in the second
half of April,” it said.
Focusing on the
economic indicators,
the SBI report said
the business activity
index, based on high
frequency indicators,
has declined in the last
week, adding that the
impact of the lock-
down or restrictions
imposed by certain
states might become
visible next month.
The report also calls
for an increase in the
pace of vaccination
across states. Increas-
ing daily vaccination
from the current 34
lakh to 40-45 lakh per
day would mean that
inoculation of citizens
over 45 years can be
completed in 4 months
from now. —PTI
CURRENT WAVE COULD PEAK IN 2ND HALF OF APRIL: SBI REPORT
NEARLY 36,000 NEW COVID CASES IN MAHARASHTRA
NEGATIVE RT-PCR REPORT MUST FOR ALL PASSENGERS ARRIVING IN BENGALURU
Mumbai: Maharash-
tra reported 35,952
new coronavirus
cases on Thursday,
its single-highest
surge in 24 hours
since the beginning of
the pandemic, along
with 111 deaths.
The country’s finan-
cial capital Mumbai
too logged 5,504 new
infections - crossing
5,000 for the second
day in a row - to post
a new single-day high.
Maharashtra had
logged 31,855 new
cases a day before
while Mumbai re-
ported 5,185.
The rate at which
infections in Mumbai
are doubling now
stands at 75 days
- a worrying figure -
and it is decreasing
rapidly, experts said.
Authorities ordered
people indoors
in some towns in
western India as the
number of new coro-
navirus infections
hit 53,476 infections
overnight, the high-
est in five months,
data showed earlier
in the day.
Cases have surged
across several states
in since late February,
following a near-full
reopening of the
economy and flouting
of safety measures
such as the wearing
of face masks and so-
cial distancing, health
officials say.
More than half
the new infections
were reported from
Maharashtra, home
to financial capital
Mumbai, where mil-
lions have returned
to work in offices and
factories. The local
government imposed
a full lockdown for ten
days in the worst-af-
fected towns Nanded
and Beed following a
cabinet meeting, an
official said.
New Delhi: Karnataka
health minister K Sudha-
kar said that all passen-
gers travelling to Ben-
galuru, from any state,
will have to produce an
RT-PCR negative report.
Addressing reporters,
the minister said that
this guideline will ap-
ply only to the Bruhat
Bengaluru Mahanagara
Palike limits. For the rest
of the state, an RT-PCR
negative test report is
mandatory for those
arriving from Punjab,
Chandigarh, Maharash-
tra Kerala. He said that
a decision was taken to
expand these regulations
to all travellers since
Bengaluru has been
reporting the highest
number of cases in the
state. Stating that 60 per
cent of cases have an
interstate travel history,
Sudhakar said that the
government is planning
to revive the stamping of
hands of those who have
to undergo home isola-
tion. “Many youngsters
who are supposed to
undergo home isola-
tion are freely walking
around because they are
asymptomatic. We need
to curb this,” he said.
People flouting norms of social distancing throng at Sadar Bazar Market ahead of Holi Festival in New Delhi on Thursday. —PHOTO BY ANI
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi
Farmer unions...
Rajewal said that trade
unions from organised
and unorganised sec-
tors, and transport and
other associations have
extended their support
for the ‘Bharat Bandh’
call of farmer organisa-
tions on March 26.
“Farmers will block
rail tracks in various
places. Markets and
transport services will
be closed during ‘Bharat
Bandh’,” Rajewal told
PTI.
He said that however,
emergency services like
ambulance and fire will
be allowed during the
nationwide shutdown.
Thousands of farm-
ers, mainly from Pun-
jab, Haryana and west-
ern Uttar Pradesh, have
beencampingatSinghu,
Tikri and Ghazipur de-
manding a complete re-
peal of the three farm
laws and a legal guaran-
tee for the minimum
support price on their
crops.
Confederation of All
India Traders, which
claimed representation
of eight crore traders in
thethecountry
,saidthat
markets will remain
open on March 26 as it is
not participating in the
‘Bharat Bandh’.
“We are not going to
participate in ‘Bharat
Bandh’ tomorrow. Mar-
kets will remain open in
Delhi and other parts of
the country
. The ongo-
ing deadlock can be re-
solved only through dia-
logue process. There
should be discussions
on amendments in the
farmlawsthatcanmake
existing farming profit-
able,” CAIT’s national
general secretary
Praveen Khandelwal
told PTI.
Sensex ends...
up in the range of 0.35
per cent to 3 per cent.
Pain in the broader
market was even more
severe. The SP BSE
MidCap and SmallCap
indices closed 2.22 per
cent and 1.85 per cent
lower, respectively
.
The overall market
breadth remained titled
towards bears with 2,224
stocks ending the day in
the red as against just
684 stocks that ended in
the green on the BSE.
‘Misogyny, brazen’...
her bandaged leg to peo-
ple, and advised her to
wear bermudas instead
of a sari so that her leg
can be seen “clearly”.
Reacting to Ghosh’s
comments, Kolkata
Mayor Firhad Hakim
tweeted on Thursday,
“If the only sitting fe-
male CM in the country
can be disrespected so
brazenly, am afraid to
imagine what they can
say about our daugh-
ters!”
Three soldiers...
“The Gypsy overturned
and caught fire. Five in-
jured soldiers managed
to come out of the vehi-
cle but three were
trapped inside it and
died,” Station House Of-
ficer (SHO) Vikram Ti-
wari said.
After the accident,
the army gypsy was
completely gutted. The
eight army personnel
were carrying out some
manoeuvers when the
accident happened. The
deceased personnel
were from the 47-AD
unit of Bathinda.The
police suspect gunpow-
der or some other flam-
mable material was
kept in the vehicle
for military exercise
due to which it caught
fire but the exact cause
is being probed. The in-
jured soldiers were ad-
mitted to the Army Hos-
pital in Suratgarh, said
Army spokesman Col
Amitabh Sharma.The
villagers extinguished
fire by pouring water
on it.
Bypolls: BJP...
and a prominent Jat
leader in Bhilwara
while Khemaram
Meghwal has been the
minister of state for
mines in the first ten-
ure of former chief
minister Vasundhara
Raje.
These two leaders
have worked with Raje.
Rajsamand was the
only seat among the
three seats which was
held by BJP. Rest two
seats, Sahara and Su-
jangarh, were held by
the ruling Congress.
Sahara and Sujan-
garh (SC) seats were
represented by Con-
gress MLAs Kailsh
Trivedi and Master
Bhanwarlal Meghwal.
While Master Bhan-
warlal Meghwal, who
was the social justice
and empower minister
in Ashok Gehlot cabi-
net, died due to brain
stroke in November,
Kailash Trivedi was
suffering from covid-19
and died because of the
infection in October.
The polling will be
held on 17 April from 7
am to 6 pm and count-
ing will take place on
May 2.
Filing of nomination
is already going on and
the last date of filing
nomination is March
30, scrutiny of nomina-
tion papers will be held
on March 31 and nomi-
nations can be with-
drawn by April 3.
FROM PG 1
‘Will no longer call
RSS Sangh Parivar’
Farmers prepared for
a long haul: Tikait
Don’t foresee anymore lockdowns, GDP
growth forecast remains 10.5%: RBI Guv
Mumbai: The rising
COVID-19 infections
across the country are
a matter of concern,
but it may not impact
the ongoing economic
revival as one does not
foresee lockdowns, Re-
serve Bank Governor
Shaktikanta Das said
today
.
The economic re-
vival will continue
“unabated”, Mr Das
said, asserting that
there is no need for a
downward revision of
RBI’s 10.5 per cent
GDP growth forecast
for FY22.
Speaking at Times
Network’s India Eco-
nomic Conclave 2021,
Mr Das said, “We have
‘insurance’ to protect
economic revival like
a fast-paced vaccina-
tion drive, greater
ability among people
to follow COVID proto-
cols”, and one does not
see lockdowns as well.
“The renewed surge
in COVID cases in
many parts of the
country is a matter of
concern,” the gover-
nor said.
“I would feel that
the revival of econom-
ic activity, which has
happened, should con-
tinue unabated going
forward. My under-
standing and our pre-
liminary analysis
shows that the growth
rate next year the 10.5
per cent which we had
given would not re-
quire a downward re-
vision,” he added.
It can be noted that
India reported over
50,000 new COVID-19
infections on Wednes-
day with states like
Maharashtra report-
ing newer highs, and a
new strain of virus
has also been found.
Some pockets of the
country have already
resorted to stricter
lockdowns in the face
of the rising infec-
tions. It can be noted
that a nationwide
lockdown last year led
to a deep economic im-
pact and the GDP is set
to contract by over 7
per cent in FY21.
“...at this point of
time, one does not for-
see a kind of lockdown
that we experienced
last year. Last year, it
cameasahugeshock,”
Das said.
Governor affirmed
the central bank’s
commitment to use all
its policy tools to fa-
cilitate the economic
revival from the de-
bilitating impact of
the pandemic while
ensuring price and fi-
nancial stability
. —PTI
Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das.
Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait

NEWS
07
Phoolon Ki HOLI
Aur Aapka Saath!
BD Kalla, Pratap Singh Khachariyawas, Rafiq Khan and
Jagdeesh Chandra
Pramod Jain Bhaya and Jagdeesh Chandra
Niranjan Arya and Jagdeesh Chandra Govind Singh Dotasra, Lal Chand Kataria, Bhajan Lal Jatav, Niranjan Arya, Vaibhav Gehlot and Jagdeesh Chandra.
L-R: Rafiq Khan, Mamta Bhupesh, Dr Mahesh Joshi, BL Soni and Ved Pratap Solanki enjoying the performance by artists during the
Holi Milan Samroah at Hotel Marriott on Thursday.
Ravi Jain and Jagdeesh
Chandra
Prahlad Krishniya and
Jagdeesh Chandra
Archana Sharma and Jagdeesh Chandra with the artists during phoolon ki holi. Mamta Bhupesh flanked by Sangeeta Beniwal and Rukshmani Kumari during phoolon ki holi.
Dr Subhash Garg and Jagdeesh Chandra
L-R: Jagdeesh Chandra, Suman Sharma, Rafiq Khan, Mahant Kailash Sharma, Dr Mahesh Joshi, Ashok Parnami Ved Pratap Solanki
and Dr Somya enjoying the performance by artists during the Holi Milan Samroah at Hotel Marriott on Thursday.
Antar Singh Nehra and Jagdeesh Chandra
Satish Poonia, Archana Sharma play phoolon ki holi
Rajiv Arora, Jagdeesh Chandra Niranjan Arya
Mamta Bhupesh and Suman Sharma
BD Kalla and Satish Poonia exchange greetings and repartee as
Jagdeesh Chandra looks on.
Jogaram and Vimal
Katiyar.
Jagdeesh Sharma
Anita Hada
Jaipur: First India
hosted a Holi Milan Sa-
maroh on Thursday
evening at Hotel Marri-
ott. The magical even-
ing replete with the fla-
vour of Holi was beauti-
ful in every sense. The
flowers showered
across were a symbol of
the spirit of together-
ness imbued in every
minute of the show.
The special guests in-
cluding BD Kalla, Go-
vind Singh Dotasra,
Pratap Singh Khachari-
yawas, Bhajan Lal Jat-
av, Mamta Bhupesh, Dr
Subhash Garg, Pramod
Jain Bhaya, Lal Chand
Kataria, Dr Mahesh
Joshi, Satish Poonia,
Ramlal Sharma, Rafiq
Khan, Ameen Kagzi,
Niranjan Arya, BL
Soni, Ravi Jain, Jogar-
am, Prahlad Krishniya,
Antar Singh Nehra,
Ashok Parnami, Ma-
hant Kailash Sharma,
Rajeev Arora, Vaibhav
Gehlot, Sangeeta Beni-
wal, Dr Somya, Archa-
na Sharma, Suman
Sharma, Rukshmani
Kumari, Ved Prakash
Solanki, Jagdish Shar-
ma and others attended
the event and appreci-
ated the initiative by
First India.
Jagdeesh Chandra
welcomed the guests
and greeted them on the
festival of Holi.
Various dance perfor-
mances by Attraction
Dance Company under
the direction of Vivek
Mudgal and choreo-
graphed by Arpit Shar-
ma around the theme of
Holi were showcased
during the event, set-
ting the mood for this
festival of colours and
joy. The much-awaited
performance of ‘phoo-
lon ki holi’ captivated
the audience by sheer
energy and beauty of
the dance sequence.
The shower of flowers
and the love of Lord
Krishna accompanied
by traditional songs
made it a memorable
occasion forever. A
highlight of the even-
ing was the poster
launch of another ini-
tiative by Jagdeesh
Chandra, the First In-
dia Lucknow Khadi
Show, to be held in Luc-
know on April 17 at Ho-
tel Taj, which will be
curated by Gaurav
Gaur.
Holi special snacks
like Gujiya, malpua,
thandai, dahi bade, pa-
koras, dal kachori, kan-
ji vada etc made the
evening a perfect one!
—PHOTOS BY
SUMAN SARKAR
AND SANTOSH
SHARMA.
MORE COVERAGE
IN CITY FIRST ON
SATURDAY

If you want your relationships
with others to be strong and grow
stronger then instead of being a
critic become an encourager.
—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO Editor-in-Chief, First India
08
2NDFRONT
POSTAL REG NO. JPC/010/2019-21
First India Bureau
Jaipur: Chief Secre-
tary Niranjan Arya has
instructed the officials
to ensure effective de-
livery of services to the
people within the stipu-
lated time frame. For
this, he asked the offi-
cialstoconductaweekly
review in order to bring
pendency to zero.
Chairing a meeting of
the committee consti-
tuted for proper imple-
mentation of the Ra-
jasthan Guaranteed De-
liveryof PublicServices
Act-2011 and Rajasthan
Right to Hearing Act-
2012, Arya issued neces-
sary directions to offi-
cials for ensuring prop-
er and timely execution
of the acts.
Arya said that good
work has been done in
disposing off old cases,
but officers need to take
more effective action in
this direction. He also
directed officials to
strengthen the system
of inspection and moni-
toring of pending cases.
Ashwini Bhagat,
Principal Secretary-
Administrative Re-
forms Department, Di-
rector of Public Servic-
es Harjilal Atal and
other officers were pre-
sent in the meeting.
Ensure effective timely service delivery to people: CS
GOOD GOVERNANCE
‘Community is thankful for your just action’
From Pg 1...
Gehlot said. Gehlot,
while informing the
delegation of the budg-
etary announcements,
appealed to the general
public to be vigilant.
On this occasion,
Shishupal Singh Nim-
bara, former Vice-
Chairman of the Cen-
tral Board of Child
Labor, said that the
honorable Chief Min-
ister, while showing
sensitivity, immediate-
ly accepted this de-
mand of the society
and recommended for
CBI investigation.
“The community is
thankfulforyourjustac-
tion,” Nimbara said.
Moreover, Mahant
Nirmdas Maharaj also
thanked the Chief Min-
ister and said, “we are
convinced of your jus-
tice and you are worthy
of piety
.” Meanwhile,
another delegation, this
time from Gurjar com-
munity, called on CM
and thanked him for
strongly advocating in-
creasingthereservation
threshold from fifty per-
cent and giving 5% to
MBC. The delegation
thanked Gehlot for op-
posing the 102 amend-
ment in the Constitu-
tion. Notably
, the delega-
tion has sought Gehlot’s
timeforFridaytoowant-
ing to ‘properly thank
the chief minister’.
Members of Rajpurohit community honouring CM Ashok Gehlot.
Mobile towers to be set up on
commercial lands: Govt
Its‘Dillichalo’forRohit,IAS
unlikelytoreturntoRaj!
Started my career from
Jodhpur: Srivastava
First India Bureau
Jaipur: Lands used for
installing mobile tow-
ers will now be consid-
ered as commercial
land in Rajasthan. State
Finance Department
has issued a revised no-
tification in this regard.
Sources said that
land use will have to be
changed from residen-
tial to commercial if
towers have to be in-
stalled on rooftops of
houses residential
properties.
Rajendra Chhabra
Jaipur: Senior IAS Ro-
hit Kumar Singh has
been appointed as Ad-
ditional Secretary in
Ministry of Culture.
Orders in this regard
were issued by the Cen-
tral DoPT on Thursday
.
The 1989 batch Ra-
jasthan cadre IAS, Ro-
hit Kumar Singh had
returned to the home
state in August 2018 af-
ter deputation and upon
his return, he was kept
APO for 38 days.
For sometime there-
after, he served as CMD
of Metro and in Decem-
ber 2018, he was hand-
ed over the reins of
Medical and Health De-
partment. With the on-
set of Covid-19 in state,
Rohit showcased exem-
plary handling of af-
fairs of the department
till July 2020.
However, his stint in
the Home Department
was merely that of 47
days. His sudden trans-
fer from the department
was the talk of the town
as the state government,
afterremovinghimfrom
apowerfulHomeDepart-
ment, posted him in a
lack-lustre Rural Devel-
opment and Panchayati
Raj Department as Ad-
ditional Chief Secretary
.
Singh was reportedly
not too happy with this
posting and since then
had been making efforts
to return to Centre on
deputation. When the
State government did
not provide NOC for the
same, a senior officer of
theCentralGovernment
called Chief Secretary
Niranjan Arya for pro-
viding the NOC to Rohit.
Singh will retire in
March 2024 and it is be-
lieved that he will not
return to Rajasthan
since he might get pro-
moted to the post of Sec-
retary in the Centre.
Rajiv Gaur
Jodhpur: Dhiraj Sriv-
astava, the Commis-
sioner of Rajasthan
Foundation, who was
posted as SDM in Jodh-
pur after entering the
Rajasthan Administra-
tive Service, was at
Jodhpur for five days.
During his visit, he re-
freshed his old memo-
ries as well as partici-
pated in various pro-
grammes.
During his visit to
Jodhpur, Srivastava
also visited Jalore, Siro-
hi and Barmer, and held
necessary discussions
with the Collectors
about the new works
done to keep the expa-
triates connected. On
Thursday, Srivastava
also released the poster
of a district level senior
Chess competition at
Circuit House which is
going to be held in Jodh-
pur on March 26 and 27.
“I have always had an
emotional connect with
Jodhpur and this is the
place from where my
career began. The
young generation
should participate in
sports as it would bring
their talent to the fore.
When I was in school,
Chess and badminton
were my favourites,” he
said.
Srivastava said that
the far-sighted thinking
of Chief Minister
Ashok Gehlot has
formed Rajasthan
Foundation, which has
led to a new beginning
of contact and coordi-
nation with the expatri-
ates. He said that it is
necessary to support
the District Collectors
to connect and work
with the migrants.
First India Bureau
Jaipur: The State
government has ex-
tended the suspen-
sion period of the
then SP of Dausa,
Manish Agarwal by
120 days. Agarwal
was suspended af-
ter being arrested
on February 2, in a
case of bribery
.
The committee,
headed by Chief
Secretary Niranjan
Arya, had reviewed
the matter and rec-
ommended exten-
sion of suspension
as Agarwal is still in
judicialcustody
.The
suspension was ex-
tended from March
24. Principal Secre-
tary of Personnel
Department, He-
mant Gera is also in
the committee.
Agarwal was ar-
rested on February
2 and was suspect-
ed after he re-
mained in the ACB
custody for more
than 48 hours. Agar-
wal is accused of
indulging in brib-
ery while being the
SP of Dausa dis-
trict. The ACB had
arrested him after
interrogation and
investigation from
some middlemen
arrested in the case.
Bhanwar S Charan
Kota: UDH Minister
Shanti Dhariwal has in-
structed the contractors
that if the construction
period of the major de-
velopment project slips
by a single day
, strict ac-
tion will be taken and in
such cases, the contrac-
tor should be ready to
pay the fine. During his
visit to his hometown
Kota, Dhariwal took
stock of the various de-
velopment works being
carried out in the city
.
Collector Ujjwal
Rathore, UIT Secretary
Rajesh Joshi, OSD UIT
RD Meena along with
various engineers ac-
companied Dhariwal.
During this period,
Dhariwal also visited
his dream project,
Chambal River Front,
which is being built on
the banks of the River
Chambal at a cost of Rs
750 crore. Prior to this,
he also inspected the
work of Adalat Chora-
ha, Vivekananda Circle,
Antaghar Bypass and
Oxygen Park Projects.
Earlier, while inspect-
ing the construction
work at Vivekananda
Circle, the UDH Minis-
ter instructed to install
lights at the four-wall
construction towards
Mayur Cinema and put
up railing around trees
near footpaths. He in-
structedofficialstocom-
plete work while not
compromising with
quality
. After inspecting
the Chambal River
Front, the UDH Minis-
ter also instructed to ar-
range for early drainage
of the main gate and to
build a parking lot near
Nayapura culvert.
IPS Manish
Agarwal’s
suspension
extended
Dhariwal inspects devp
projects during Kota visit
Dhiraj Srivastava
Rohit Kumar Singh
CS Niranjan Arya chairs the meeting of the officials of Rajasthan Guaranteed Delivery of Public Service Rules, 2011 and Right to
Hearing ACT-2012 via video conference. Principal Secretary of Administrative Reforms Department Ashwini Bhagat and Director of
Public Services Harjilal Atal were present on the occasion.
Onus to preserve folk art culture lies with artists:Guv
First India Bureau
Jaipur: Governor
Kalraj Mishra on Thurs-
day
,saidthataconducive
atmosphere should be
created in the society for
the preservation and de-
velopment of folk arts.
The Governor, while
addressing an award
ceremony organised by
West Zone Culture Cen-
tre of Udaipur, suggest-
ed that more opportuni-
ties should be given for
artists’ presentations
by the documentation
of traditional arts.
He said that folk art-
istshavetheresponsibil-
ity to preserve and pro-
mote folk art and cul-
ture. The governor also
pointed out that the
work and contribution
of folk artists inspire
newgenerationstolearn
from them. In the cere-
mony
, he presented
KomalKothariLifeTime
AchievementAwardsfor
the year 2020 to noted
folk artist Vinayak Vish-
nu Khedekar of Goa and
Kanta Kashinath Ga-
vade, a folk musician
and dancer from Goa.
Governor Kalraj Mishra virtually addresses the Dr Komal Kothari Life Time Achievement Folk Arts
Awards ceremony for Western Zone Cultural Centre in Udaipur from Raj Bhawan on Thursday.
First India Bureau
Jaipur: In a major bu-
reaucratic develop-
ment, the Union Minis-
try of Personnel issued
orders announcing ap-
pointment of Rajasthan
cadre IAS - ACS Rohit
Kumar Singh - as Addi-
tional Secretary in Min-
istry of Culture. A total
of 26 IAS have been ac-
corded posting on the
position of Additional
Secretary of which, Ro-
hit is one. It is believed
that the state govern-
ment will relieve Rohit
in the coming days,
off his current assign-
ment after which the
senior IAS would head
to New Delhi.
Jaipur: Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Thursday,
condemned the attack on (CRPF) personnel in Jammu
Kashmir. Two CRPF personnel were killed and two
jawans sustained injuries in the attack that took place in
Lawaypora area on the outskirts of Srinagar.“Condemn
the terror attack on CRPF personnel in Lawaypora,
JK. Salute the martyrdom of personnel, who made the
supreme sacrifice. Heartfelt condolences to bereaved
family members,” Gehlot tweeted. —PTI
Ashok Gehlot@ashokgehlot51
Saddened to learn of an accident in Surat-
garh, Sri Ganganagar in which three army
soldiers have lost lives and five are injured.
My heartfelt condolences to the bereaved fami-
lies. May they find strength in this difficult time. Prayers
for speedy recovery of those injured.
ACS ROHIT K
SINGH TO BE
DEPUTED AS
ADDL SECY
GEHLOT CONDEMNS ATTACK ON CRPF
PERSONNEL IN JAMMU KASHMIR
First India Bureau
Jaipur: The budget ses-
sion of the Lok Sabha
ended on Thursday
with the productivity
touching 114 percent.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om
Birla has been continu-
ously making records
one after the other and
has showcased how to
run the Lower House of
the Parliament, more
than the stipulated
time. Another 'talent'
displayed by Birla has
been his ability to end
lockjams in the House.
It was entirely due to
Birla's abilities to get
opposing parties on
same footing that the
House could function
till late in the hour.
The budget session
went on for an extra 48
hours and 23 minutes
and Birla has come out
as the 'Hero of Zero
Hour'. Interestingly,
whiletwentyMPsareal-
lowed to speak on an is-
sue during Zero Hour,
Birla allows them to
complete their speeches
andavoidsbindingthem
in time. Interestingly,
this is why Parliamen-
tary Affairs minister
has termed Birla 'Hero
of Zero Hour'.
Birla: Hero of Zero Hr

JAIPUR, FRIDAY
MARCH 26, 2021
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia
facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09
A
ctor Abhishek Bachchan is
again in the headlines after
his next film titled The Big
Bull trailer released star-
ring Ileana D’cruz and Nikita Dutta.
The film is inspired by the life of
Harshad Mehta and the famous scam
of 1992. The makers dropped the teas-
er of the first song ‘Ishq Namazaa’.
Abhishek Bachchan had also tweeted
about the song and also gave a glimpse
of the romantic number. The full song
has released on Thursday
. Taking it to
his official Twitter handle, Abhishek
Bachchan wrote,“Aur jabse mile hain,
gumshuda hain saara jahan Multiple
musical notes #IshqNamazaa, song
out now”. The song is a compilation
of how their love journey, mar-
riage, and life. The
lyrics are very
soothing and
will soon
tug with
y o u r
heart.
—Agency
I
nterior designer Sussanne Khan is quite ac-
tive on social media and on Thursday neti-
zens went crazy with a response from ex-
husband Hrithik Roshan. Recently
, Sussanne
dolled up in smart casuals to head out in the
town, she clicked a mirror selfie and gave fans
a glimpse of her look. While the photo surely
was stunning and Sussanne looked gorgeous, it
was her hilarious caption that evoked a re-
sponse from ex-husband Hrithik Roshan. Sus-
sanne wrote, “Sometimes in my head.. I think I
am a boy
...” The gorgeous designer left fans in
complete awe of her look. However, Hrithik
chimed in and shared his take on her look in a
comment. He could not stop laughing at the cap-
tion but wrote, “Hahaha nice pic” with a clap-
ping emoticon. —Agency
I am a boy!
A
fter Aamir Khan
tested positive
for COVID 19,
fans have been
praying for his recovery.
Now, as per a report, Ki-
ara Advani will have to
undergo a COVID 19 test
again as she was shooting
with Aamir for an ad
film. Earlier this
week after Kartik
Aaryan tested COVID 19 pos-
itive, Kiara had undergone a
test too. Now, as per a report
by Filmfare, the actress was
apparently filming an ad film
with Aamir and director
Nitesh Tiwari. A few days
back, Kiara had shared a
photo on social media with
director Nitesh Tiwari and
hinted at shooting something
big with him. —Agency
R
icha Chadha is currently filming Six Sus-
pects, the screen adaptation of Vi-
kas Swarup’s acclaimed novel
of the same name. Keen to
familiarise herself with the gritty
universe of the murder mystery,
the actor devoured the book be-
fore reporting to the shoot with
co-star Pratik Gandhi. Her ef-
forts to become one with the
character got a boost when the
diplomat-author dropped in on
the set of the Tigmanshu
Dhulia-directed web se-
ries in Mumbai on
Wednesday.“Vikas is
such an amazing
writer, and that
shows in his work.
When I met him in
person, I truly
understood his
nuanced vi-
sion, and by
extension, my
role better.
Meeting him
on the set fur-
ther helped me
do justice to
this character,”
said Chadha,
who plays one
of the prime
suspects in the
murder of a poli-
tician’s son, who
was in turn ac-
quitted in the mur-
der case of a Delhi
bartender. —Agency
f there is one actress in Bollywood who has
managed to leave everyone in awe of her looks
as well as style, it is Katrina Kaif. Not just this,
she is known to be a fitness lover and often
shares a sneak peek into her workout regimen
via her social media handles. From sweating
it out at Pilates class to dancing it out, Katrina
uses various ways to stay fit and fans always are
intrigued to know the secret behind her fit body.
Katrina strongly believes that her fitness not just
comes from her exercising but her healthy routine
that she never fails to follow. Undoubtedly the ac-
tress leaves her fans drooling. —Agency
I
Fitness Freak
COVID 19
TEST AGAIN
SIX SUSPECTS
Bunty Aur Babli 2
BIG NEWS
T
here has been a rise in the cases of
Coronavirus cases across the coun-
try
. In some parts, the lockdown has
been announced. And seeing the
pandemic situation getting worse, Aditya
Chopra’s Bunty Aur Babli 2 which was
slated to release on April 23 has been
pushed till further notice. “Aditya Chopra
is playing the big game of making theatri-
cals make a huge comeback and he is ex-
tremely confident that Bunty Aur Babli 2
will entertain the whole of India. The film
is a popcorn entertainer that the entire
family can watch and enjoy. He wants to
hold the film. —Agency
B
ollywood superstar Shah Rukh
Khan is all set to return to the big
screen after a long gap. He will be
next seen in director Siddharth
Anand’s much-awaited action-packed mov-
ie Pathan. The shooting has already begun
in full swing. Musical duo Vishal Dadlani
and Shekhar Ravjiani will be reuniting
with Shah Rukh Khan and will create mu-
sical magic for the film. The news was con-
firmed by Vishal Dadlani on his Twitter.
—Agency
I
t has been a tough few days for the In-
dian Film Industry as several stars
f r o m
showbiz
have tested
positive for
COVID 19.
On Wednes-
day this
week, Aamir
Khan had
tested posi-
tive for the
novel Coro-
navirus and was in-home quarantine. His
3 Idiots co-star, actor R Madhavan also an-
nounced in a post on Twitter that he tested
positive for COVID 19. However, he an-
nounced with a 3 Idiots twist. —Agency
TOUGH WEEK
‘Ishq Namazaa’ Out
Katrina Kaif
Saif Ali Khan and Rani Mukerji
Vishal Dadlani and Shekhar Ravjiani
R Madhavan’s tweet
Ileana D’Cruz
Richa Chadha
Kiara Advani
Hrithik Roshan and Sussanne Khan

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