04092021 first india New Delhi edition

www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
NEW DELHI l SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2021 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNITITLE NO.DELENG/2021/19840 lVol 1 l Issue No.6
OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR, AHMEDABAD, LUCKNOW & NEW DELHI
New Delhi: Industrialist
Mukesh Ambani said on
Friday that his Reliance
Industries (RIL) would
“establish and enable” at
least 100 GW of solar en-
ergy by 2030 -- over a fifth
of the government’s tar-
get of 450 GW of renew-
able energy capacity
.
Ambani, addressing
the International Cli-
mate Summit 2021, out-
lined a roadmap for New
Energy business, calling
it the “next big value
creationengine”forReli-
ance and India.
RelianceIndustries,he
said, is fully committed
to realizing the vision of
Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi to fuel India’s
green economy using
clean energy
.
The efforts include the
Dhirubhai Ambani
Green Energy Giga com-
plex, which aims to be
amonglargestintegrated
renewable energy manu-
facturing units in world.
India can produce
1K GW solar
energy on 0.5%
of land, believes
Mukesh Ambani
SAFFRON SURGE IN 4 OUT OF 5 STATES, BJP TO RETAIN
POWER IN UP, UTTARAKHAND, GOA & MANIPUR
First India Bureau
New Delhi: Uttar
Pradeshisscheduled
to go to Assembly
elections next year
along with states of
Uttarakhand, Goa,
Punjab, and Ma-
nipur.Thecontestfor
UP is crucial given
its strategic impor-
tance. The ABP-
CVotersurveyispro-
jectinga4-1scoreline
in favour of the BJP
in the five states go-
ing to the polls in
early 2022.
BJP is ahead of the
pack in UP
, Uttara-
khand, Goa and Ma-
nipur while the Aam
Aadmi Party is cur-
rently leading as the
single largest party
inPunjab.Incidently
,
AAP has emerged as
a principal challeng-
er or a close third
party in Goa and Ut-
tarakhand. The Con-
gressisfacingsevere
infighting across all
the state units with
PunjabandManipur
being the worst-hit
states.
In Uttar Pradesh,
the BJP is slated to
comfortably cross
the majority mark
with a projected 263
seats. This number
is 62 less than its
2017tally
.Chief Min-
ister Yogi Adity-
anath is the most
popular leader in
thestatewith40%of
thosesurveyednam-
ing him as the pre-
ferred CM choice.
While AAP is set
to emerge as single
largest party in 117
Seat Punjab Assem-
bly
. The ruling Con-
gress is expected to
slip at number two
with 38-46 seats. In
popular CM face
opinion, 18% want
to see Captain Ama-
rinder Singh, 22%
Arvind Kejriwal,
19% Sukhbir Badal,
16% Bhagwant
Mann, 15% wants
Navjot Singh Sidhu
and 10% are looking
for others leaders.
In Uttarakhand, he
ruling BJP may re-
tain power by win-
ning 44-48 seats,
Congress to get 19-23
seats, AAP to get
max of 4 seats. In
Popular CM face
opinion 30% want
Harish Rawat, 23%
Pushkar Singh Dha-
mi and 19% Anil
Baluni.
In Goa out of 40
assembly seats BJP
can retain power in
Goa by winning 22-
26 seats, Congress to
get 3-7 seats, AAP 4-8
seats and others to
win 3-7 seats. While
in Manipur, the BJP
may retain power
with 32-36 seats,
Congress may win
18-26.
ABP-CVOTER SURVEY
Kabul: Amid India’s
concern that Afghani-
stan territory might
be used for anti-India
activity under the Tal-
iban regime, the ter-
ror group has said that
it has the right to raise
its voice for Muslims
anywhere including in
Kashmir. However, it
added that the group
does not have the poli-
cy to raise arms
against any country
.
In an interview with
BBC Urdu, Taliban
spokesperson Suhail
Shaheen said: “We
have this right, being
Muslims, to raise our
voice for Muslims in
Kashmir, India, and
any other country
.”
“We will raise our
voice and say that
Muslims are your own
people, your own citi-
zens. They are entitled
to equal rights under
your laws,” he added,
according to Geo
News.
Shaheen’s remarks
are in contrast with
the group’s earlier
statements on Kash-
mir. Days after taking
control of Kabul, the
Taliban had said Kash-
mir is a “bilateral and
an internal matter”.
Tokyo: Avani Lekhara
clinched a historic sec-
ond medal at the Tokyo
Paralympics, winning a
bronze in the 50m Rifle
3 Positions SH1 event
on Friday. She has now
become the first Indian
woman to win two Para-
lympic medals.
The 19-year-old had
earlier won the gold
medal in 10m Air Rifle
Standing SH1 event.
vani had finished sec-
ond in the qualification
for the event, and made
a slow start in the final
with scores of 9.8 and
9.7 in the first two shots.
However, she gathered
momentum with a
strong finish in the re-
maining three shots of
the first series (10.1, 10.9
and 10.3).
TALIBAN STRIKE
KASHMIR CHORD
Avani wins bronze
TALIBAN SPOKESPERSON SUHAIL SHAHEEN IN AN
INTERVIEW: We have this right, being Muslims, to raise our
voice for Muslims in Kashmir, India, and any other country
HUNTED BY MEN
THEY JAILED, AF’S
WOMEN JUDGES
SEEK ESCAPE
PRESIDENT, V-P NAIDU, PM MODI
CONGRATULATE AVANI LEKHARA
PM CONGRATULATES PRAVEEN
KUMAR FOR CLINCHING SILVER
TALIBAN NEW
CABINET TODAY,
BARADAR TO
LEAD GOVT
Kabul: Afghanistan’s 250
women judges fear for
their lives, with men they
once jailed now freed by
the victorious Taliban
to hunt them down.
While some women
judges were able to flee
in recent weeks, most
were left behind and are
still trying to get out,
said judges and activists
working around the clock
to help them escape.
New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind, Vice Prez M
Venkaiah Naidu and PM Narendra Modi congratulated
Avani Lekhara. Kovind praised Lekhara for an
outstanding feat at such a young age and lauded her
consistency and commitment to succeed. Naidu also
praised Lekhara for her exemplary performances that
reflect her hard work and determination.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to
Praveen Kumar and congratulated him on winning the
Silver medal. He also lauded his hard work as well as
the support he received from his coach and parents.”
Following this, Kumar thanked the PM for best wishes.
Kabul: The Taliban
are all set to form
a government in
Afghanistan on Saturday
even as preparations
are in the final stages
to announce the new
cabinet. “All the top
leaders arrived in
Kabul,” said a Taliban
official. Some media
reports claimed that
Taliban co-founder
Mullah Baradar will
lead the new Afghan
government.
MUJAHID: CHINA MOST IMPORTANT
PARTNER, READY TO INVEST IN AF
Peshawar: Describing China as its “most important
partner”, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid
has said it looks to Beijing to rebuild Afghanistan
and exploit its rich copper deposits as the war-
ravaged country faces widespread hunger and
fears of an economic collapse. “China is our most
important partner and represents a fundamental and
extraordinary opportunity for us because it is ready
to invest and rebuild our country,” said Mujahid.
TOKYO PARALYMPICS
SHE HAS NOW BECOME THE FIRST INDIAN
WOMAN TO WIN TWO PARALYMPIC MEDALS
Ministry of Information and Culture began the
process of putting up slogans on the walls and
hoisting flags in the city to announce the cabinet.
SCputsbrakeonKeralaClass11physical
exams,callsCovid-19situation‘alarming’
New Delhi: Terming
the Covid-19 situation
in Kerala “alarming”,
the Supreme Court Fri-
day put an interim stay
on the state govern-
ment’s decision to hold
Class 11 examinations
physically from Sep-
tember 6.
The apex court
pointed out that “cases
in Kerala are about 70
per cent cases of the
country.
“Prima facie we find
force in submission
made by petitioner
that the state govern-
ment has not seriously
considered the pre-
vailing situation be-
fore having a physical
exam proposed to be
conducted in Septem-
ber this year,” said a
bench of Justices A M
Khanwilkar, Hrishi-
kesh Roy, and C T Ra-
vikumar.
WHY THE DELAY IN
DEATH CERTIFICATE
GUIDELINES?: SC
New Delhi:
The Supreme
Court on Friday
criticised the
Centre for the
delay in framing
guidelines to issue death
certificates to the families
of those who died due to
Covid-19 and ordered a
compliance report to be
submitted by Sept 11. P8
Amit Shah to honour Olympic silver
medallist ASP Mirabai Chanu today
New Delhi: Union
Home Minister Amit
Shah will felicitate
Olympic silver medal
winner Mirabai Chanu
onSaturdayforbringing
laurelsforthecountryin
weightlifting.
The 27-year-old sport-
sperson, appointed as an
Additional Superinten-
dent of Police in her
home state Manipur af-
ter her recent win, will
be honoured during the
51stRaisingDaycelebra-
tions of the Bureau of
Police Research and De-
velopment (BPRD), a
central government
think tank.
“This is a small ges-
ture by the BPR&D to
welcome her (Saikhom
Mirabai Chanu) to the
fraternity on behalf of
the Indian police,” an of-
ficial statement said.
CORONA CATASTROPHE
NEW DELHI
INDIA
45,352
new cases
366
new fatalities
39
new cases
00
new fatalities
Mumbai: The Sensex closed at 58,129.95, up 277.41 or 0.48%, while the Nifty
was at 17,323.60, up 89.45 points, or 0.52%. Banks, financials , FMCG were
top drags. Sensex, Nifty closed over 0.48% higher on Friday. Indian shares hit
all-time highs on Friday, boosted by Reliance Industries and a jump in Exide
Industries following the sale of the battery maker’s insurance unit to HDFC Life.
New Delhi: India-Russia friendship had “stood the test of time,” PM Narendra Modi
asserted on Friday while virtually addressing the Far Eastern Economic Forum 2021,
currently underway in the Russian port city of Vladivostok. Modi’s remarks came days
after Russia abstained from a crucial Afghanistan and terrorism-related resolution at
the United Nations Security Council, where India served as President for August. P6
SENSEX CLOSES
AT NEW HIGH
OF 58,130, NIFTY
AT 17,324
INDIA-RUSSIA
FRIENDSHIP HAS
STOOD TEST OF
TIME: PM MODI
Uttar Pradesh Dy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya met Union Home
Minister Amit Shah on Friday at his residence on a personal visit.

CAPITOL
NEW DELHI | SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2021
02
New Delhi: The national capital recorded zero
Covid deaths on Friday, according to the latest bul-
letin issued by the health department. The national
capital saw 35 new coronavirus cases during this
period, pushing the tally of COVID-19 cases to
over 14.37 lakh, with a positivity rate of 0.05 per
cent. This is the 22nd time since the start of the
second wave of the pandemic that the national
capital has not seen any deaths in a day. —PTI
DELHI REPORTS 35 NEW COVID-19
CASES, ZERO DEATHS
CRUCIAL READ
SPICEJET EMPLOYEES HOLD STRIKE
AT DELHI AIRPORT OVER SALARY
New Delhi: Around 150 ground staff of SpiceJet
on Friday held a protest at Indira Gandhi Interna-
tional Airport in New Delhi
demanding “full salary.”
Employees claimed that
Spicejet has alleg-
edly deducted salaries for
unknown reasons for the
past many months. An
employee told ANI that, However, SpiceJet claimed
that flight operations are functioning normally. —ANI
MAN PROCURES PISTOL FROM
ALIGARH TO KILL WIFE; ARRESTED
New Delhi: The Delhi Police have arrested a 36-year-
old man for procuring a pistol to kill his wife so that
he could marry his girl-
friend. The arrested man
has been identified as Ka-
mal Sehgal. The police had
received an information on
August 31 that Sehgal was
carrying to weapons and
was on the way to Vikaspuri. On the basis of this tip-
off, the police laid a trap and arrested Sehgal.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday was
informed by the Delhi police that a minor girl who
had gone missing from Uttar Pradesh since July
8 has been traced to Kolkata and her kidnapper
has been arrested. A Supreme Court Bench was
informed by Additional Solicitor General RS Puri,
appearing for the Delhi Police, that as per Court’s
direction Uttar Pradesh (UP) Police handed over
case files to Delhi Police. —ANI
MISSING MINOR GIRL RESCUED,
KIDNAPPER HELD, POLICE TELLS SC
Delhi University releases
dates for Entrance Tests
The examination will be conducted in computer-based test mode
First India Bureau
New Delhi: The Nation-
alTestingAgency(NTA)
has released DUET 2021
exam dates. The Delhi
University Entrance
Test will be conducted
on September 26, 27, 28,
29, 30 and October 1,
2021, for UG, PG and
M.Phil/Ph.D courses.
Candidates can check
the official notice on the
official site of NTA
on nta.ac.in.
The examination will
be conducted in com-
puter-based test mode
only. The entrance
exam will be conducted
in three slots- the first
slot from 8 am to 10 am,
the second slot from
12.30 pm to 2.30 pm, and
the third slot from 5 pm
to 7 pm on all days, as
per the official notice.
The scheme of exam-
ination for UG courses
includes 2 hours exam
duration, multiple-
choice questions in the
question paper, 100
questions, and 4 marks
for each correct re-
sponse. Negative mark-
ing will be there for in-
correct responses. The
paper will be set in the
English language only.
For PG courses, the
number of questions
will be 50/100 and for
M.Phil/Ph.D. courses
the number of ques-
tions will be 50. Apart
from this, all the other
details will remain the
same as for UG courses.
The registration pro-
cess for DUET 2021 was
started on July 26 and
ended on August 21,
2021. The admit card
will be released by the
Agency in due course of
time.
Notably, the Univer-
sity has received a total
of 2.87 lakh applica-
tions for admissions to
its undergraduate (UG)
courses, down from 3.53
lakh applications last
year.
Following the trends
of the previous years,
nearly 80% applicants
are from the CBSE
(Central Board of Sec-
ondary Education), and
around 40% of them are
from Delhi.
CUT-THROAT COMPETITION
Greater Noida
Authority slaps `3L
fine on polluters
Greater Noida: The
Greater Noida Au-
thority has imposed
penalties of Rs 3
lakhs on private con-
tractors and other en-
tities that were found
violating guidelines
and rules to combat
air pollution, officials
said on Friday
.
The amount of fine
has been asked to be
deposited within a
week. The authority
has also warned of
doubling the amount
of fine if the mistake
is repeated. “A penal-
ty of Rs 3 lakhs was
levied on four entities
which were found vio-
lating National Green
Tribunal’s guidelines
on air pollution,” the
authority said.
On the instructions
of Narendra Bhush-
an CEO of Greater
Noida Authority, a
campaign is being
run against polluting
units. A penalty of Rs
50,000 was levied on
Anand Builder, HS-II
plot in Sector 3 of
Greater Noida for
leaving the construc-
tion material in an
open plot. —ANI
THE DRIVE
ON THE RIGHT TRACK
A railway worker inspects railway track at New Delhi Railway Station, in New Delhi on Friday.
First India Bureau
New Delhi: A tunnel-
like structure was dis-
covered at the Delhi
Legislative Assembly
on Thursday
. Delhi Leg-
islative Assembly
Speaker Ram Niwas
Goel said that the tun-
nel connects the legisla-
tive assembly to Red
Fort and was used by
the Britishers to avoid
reprisal while moving
freedom fighters.
“When I became an
MLA in 1993, there was
hearsay about a tunnel
present here that goes
till Red Fort and I tried
to search for its history
.
But there was no clarity
over it,” he stated.
“Now we have got the
mouth of tunnel but we
arenotdiggingitfurther
asallthepathsof tunnel
have been destroyed due
to Metro and sewer pro-
jects,” he added.
Goel further said that
the Delhi Legislative
Assembly, which was
used as Central Legisla-
tive Assembly after
shifting of capital from
Kolkata to Delhi in 1912,
was turned into a court
in 1926 and Britishers
used this tunnel to
bring freedom fighters
to the court.
“We all knew about a
gallows room here but
never opened it. Now in
the 75th year of inde-
pendence and I decided
to inspect that room. We
intend to change that
room into a shrine of
freedom fighters as a
tribute,” he said.
Tunnel connecting Delhi Assembly-Red Fort found
HISTORICAL DISCOVERY
Light to
moderate
rains likely
over NCR
New Delhi: Amid con-
tinuous incessant rain-
fall in the national capi-
tal, the Indian Meteoro-
logical Department yet
again predicted light to
moderate intensity
rains over isolated
parts of Delhi and other
adjoining areas.
The weather forecast
said that South-East
Delhi, East Delhi, and
Preet Vihar areas of
Delhi to receive rainfall
during the next 2 hours.
“Light to moderate in-
tensity rain would like
to occur over isolated
places of South-East
Delhi, East-Delhi, Preet-
vihar, Panipat, Safido,
Karnal, Kaithal, Fate-
habad, Adampur, Bar-
wala, Narwana (Hary-
ana) etc, ” IMD said in a
tweet. —ANI
Honey Singh appears in court in domestic violence case
New Delhi: Bollywood
singer and actor Yo Yo
Honey Singh physically
appeared before Delhi’s
Tis Hazari court on Fri-
day, in connection with
a domestic violence
case filed by his wife
Shalini Talwar.
Earlier on August 28,
Honey Singh’s counsel
told the court that the
singer could not appear
before the Court as he
was not well.
The court was hear-
ing a complaint case
filed against the Bolly-
wood singer by his wife
under “the Protection
of Women from Domes-
tic Violence Act”.
Singh’s counsel
moved an application
under section 16 for an
in-camera hearing. The
same is to be argued on
the next day of hearing.
Metropolitan Magis-
trate Tania Singh called
Honey Singh and his
wife in her chamber for
counselling. The judge
counselled the parties
in chambers at length.
After having an inter-
action with Honey Sin-
gh and his wife for one
and half an hour, the
Court recorded in its
order that “It is mutu-
ally decided between
the parties that the peti-
tioner shall visit the
matrimonial home with
her lawyers and the pro-
tection officer on Sun-
day 5 September. —ANI
The case has been filed by Honey Singh’s wife Shalini Talwar.
Delhiriots:HCsayscopscan
notlodge5FIRsin1incident
New Delhi: The Delhi
High Court has held
that police cannot lodge
five FIRs for the same
incident and quashed
four of them registered
for the alleged offences
of looting and setting
on fire a compound dur-
ing the Delhi riots last
year. There cannot be a
second FIR and fresh
investigation for the
same cognizable of-
fence, the court said.
While maintaining
one FIR, the court
quashed other four
lodged against the same
accused in March last
year at Jaffrabad Police
Station and all proceed-
ings emanating there
from.
“It cannot be said
that the incidents were
separate or the offences
are different. As stated
earlier, a perusal of the
charge sheets filed in
the respective FIRs
show that they are more
or less identical and the
accused are also same,”
Justice Subramonium
Prasad said.
The court’s order
came while allowing
four petitions filed by
accused Atir, facing
prosecution in five FIRs
lodged by Delhi Police
on complaints by differ-
ent members of the
same family that when
they reached their
home in Maujpur area
on the evening of Feb-
ruary 24, they saw their
house was set ablaze
which caused a loss of
articles worth Rs 7-10
lakh.
Advocate Tara Naru-
la, representing Atir,
argued that all FIRs
were in respect of same
dwelling unit and even
the same fire-brigade
had come to extinguish
the inferno. —PTI
Decision to retire
constable right: HC
First India Bureau
High Court has upheld
the CRPF’s decision to
compulsorily retire
from service a constable
who, in 2017, had shared
a defamatory message
about a senior officer on
his WhatsApp group.
The division bench
of Justices Manmohan
and Navin Chawla said
that the constable, with
an intention of lower-
ing the name, image
and reputation of a
company commander,
had circulated the mes-
sage among two hun-
dred CRPF staff mem-
bers, without any veri-
fication and without
asking the authorities
to investigate its au-
thenticity
.
The message, with
which the constable
also intended to send
photos, was a caption
stating that it was a
photo of the company
commander with a “call
girl” at a hotel.
DIAL to offer excess
baggage delivery
First India Bureau
International Airport
Limited (DIAL) has an-
nounced the launch of
an excess-baggage de-
livery service, called
‘Avaan Excess’.
This service will al-
low passengers to get
excess baggage deliv-
ered to their doorsteps
at affordable rates.
Passengers can book
the excess baggage for
delivery at the ‘Avaan
Excess’ counter at Ter-
minal 3. The passenger
will have the option of
having it delivered by
air or by road.
“DIAL’s partner for
this unique service,
Avaan Excess, which is
powered by GATI, one
of India’s premium lo-
gistics companies, will
deliver the baggage
within 72 hours by air.
If a passenger chooses
delivery by road then
the baggage would
reach the destination
within four to seven
days. The booked bag-
gage would be insured
by the concessionaire,”
said a DIAL spokesper-
son in a statement.
The cost of delivery
by road is Rs 101 per kg
(up to 7 kg) and Rs 67
per kg (up to 15 kg)
whereas the cost of de-
livery by air is Rs 236
per kg (up to 7 kg) and
183 per kg (up to 15 kg).
In February 2020, riots broke out in North East Delhi. —FILE PHOTO
THE DEFENCE
A tunnel-like structure is discovered at Delhi Legislative Assembly which connects to the Red Fort.
—PHOTO
BY
ANI

INDIA
03
MIZORAM ALLEGES ASSAM POLICE OF
KIDNAPPING ITS WORKER
Kolasib: Mizoram’s Kolasib District Deputy Commis-
sioner Dr H Lalthlangliana has alleged that a worker
involved in road construction was kidnapped at a
gunpoint by the Assam Police on Wednesday. Lalth-
langliana said, “It has been brought to my notice that
this afternoon at Aitlang in Pu Lalngaisanga’s land
where road construction connecting jhum land is
undertaken by the farmers using Excavator JCB Reg.
No MZ05 A 4464, the Assam Police went to and
damaged the door of the Excavator and snatched
the keys from the JCB operator Pu Lalnarammawia.”
—ANI
IN LADAKH, LT GEN MENON REVIEWS
SNOW LEOPARD BRIGADE’S PREPS
Ladakh: 14 Corps commander Lieutenant General
PGK Menon on Thursday reviewed the operational
preparedness of the Snow Leopard Brigade.”Lt Gen
PGK Menon, GOC #FireAndFuryCops reviewed the op-
erational preparedness of #SnowLeopardBrigade on
@02Sep21 through Integrated Manoeuvre and Live
Fire Exercise in #SHAA of #Ladakh”, said an official
tweet from PRO Defence Srinagar. Lt Gen PGK Menon
took over as the new commander of the Leh-based 14
Corps, also known as the Fire Fury Corps October
13, 2020, replacing Lt Gen Harinder Singh. —ANI
CRUCIAL READ
RAKUL PREET SINGH REACHES ED OFFICE
IN CONNECTION WITH DRUGS CASE
Hyderabad: Actor Rakul Preet Singh on Friday arrived at
the Enforcement Directorate (ED) Hyderabad zonal office
in connection with a drugs case. Earlier on Tuesday, film
director Puri Jagan-
nadh reached the En-
forcement Directorate
office in Hyderabad
to appear before the
agency officials in
connection with the
drugs case. The case is
related to the busting
of a drug racket in 2017. The Enforcement Directorate
has summoned several other film personalities of Tol-
lywood in connection with the case. —ANI
NIA FILES CHARGE SHEET IN ANTILIA,
MANSUKH HIRAN DEATH CASES
Mumbai: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on
Friday filed the charge sheet in the sensational twin
cases of planting a gelatin sticks-laden Scorpio near the
residence of industrialist Mukesh Ambani and subsequent
death of SUV owner Mansukh Hiran. Dismissed contro-
versial police officer Sachin Vaze is the main accused,
while a retired encounter specialist Pradeep Sharma is
among the other accused in the case. The recovery of the
abandoned SUV with the 20 gelatin sticks and a threat
note in February followed by Hiran’s body in early March
had sparked off a nationwide furore. —ANI
JK DGP: Will
review restore
internet in
Kashmir valley
Baramulla (JK): As
the situation in Jammu
and Kashmir is under
control, the police will
review and restore the
internet soon, said Di-
rector-General of Po-
lice (DGP) Dilbag Singh
on Friday
.
“Situation is abso-
lutely under control.
Not even one incident
occurred in the last two
days. People cooperat-
ed, security forces are
working with great re-
straint. I congratulate
people. They have faith
in peace.” said the DGP
when asked about the
security situation in
Jammu and Kashmir
after the death of for-
mer Hurriyat leader
Syed Ali Shah Geelani.
“We will soon have a re-
view and I think we will
restore it soon,” he said
while replying to re-
porters on internet
shutdown.
The restrictions and
internet shutdown were
imposed on Kashmir
valley after the demise
of formerHurriyatlead-
er Syed Ali Shah Geela-
ni on September 1. —ANI
Over 4.36 crore
Covid19 vax
doses are still
unutilised
New Delhi: More than
4.36 crore balance and
unutilised COVID-19
vaccine doses are still
available with the states
and union territories to
be administered, the
Ministry of Health and
Family Welfare said on
Friday
.
Over 65 crore vaccine
doses have been provid-
ed to states and union
territories so far
through all sources and
a further 1,20,95,700
doses are in the pipeline
of supply
.
“More than 65 crores
(65,00,99,080) vaccine
doses have been provid-
ed to States/UTs so far
through Government
of India (free of cost
channel) and through
direct state procure-
ment category
. Further,
more than 1.20 Crore
doses (1,20,95,700) are in
the pipeline,” it said.
—ANI
Centre utilises 26.3% of 35K cr
package, procured 124 cr doses
New Delhi: The Centre
has spent 26.3% so far
from the budget of Rs
35,000 Cr allotted for the
Covid-19 immunisation
to procure 124 crore
doses from three manu-
facturers, union health
ministry said in a reply
to a query asked under
RTI.
The ministry said
that Rs 9,229 cr was
spent to procure the
doses from three vac-
cine manufacturers be-
tween March and July
2021. According to the
RTI reply by Ministry
of Health and Family
Welfare (MoHFW), Rs
4,410 cr were spent on
the procurement of 21
crore doses of Cov-
ishield manufactured
by Serum Institute of
India (SII) and seven
crore doses of Covaxin
developed by Bharat
Biotech between March
and May
.
The union govern-
ment has procured both
the vaccines at the rate
of Rs 157.50 per dose be-
tween this period, the
RTI said. The expendi-
ture of Rs 9,229.31 crore
also includes the partial
payment of Rs 1500
crore as an advance or-
der for 30 crore jabs at
the rate of Rs 50 per
dose of Corbevax vac-
cine by Hyderabad
based pharmaceutical
firm Biological E.
The health ministry
informed that expected
time of arrival of doses
is between August to
December. —Agencies
HEALTH MIN FROM
WHO TO DISCUSS
COVID AND HEALTH
New Delhi: Health min-
isters of member coun-
tries of World Health
Organizations (WHO)
South-East Asia region
will meet next week
to deliberate upon the
ongoing covid pandemic
and measures to rebuild
essential health cover-
age. The 74th Regional
Committee Session of
WHO South-East Asia
will be attended by WHO
director-general Tedros
Adhanom Ghebreyesus,
regional director Poo-
nam Khetrapal Singh, in
Nepal from Sept 6-10.
NO CASE OF MU
VARIANT IN INDIA,
KEEPING EYE: CENTRE
New Delhi: First
identified in Colombia
in January, the MU
strain of coronavirus
was classified as a
‘variant of interest’ by
the WHO on August
30. The organisation
has warned that new
variant, shows signs of
possible resistance to
the vaccines. Luckily,
no cases of MU variant
have been detected so
far in India, according to
the Union government
the ICMR’s Director is
closely monitoring the
new coronavirus variant.
In the era of social
media,voices are
suppressed: Rahul
New Delhi: Rahul Gan-
dhi on Friday released a
video about how his late
father and former PM
Rajiv Gandhi used to
meet people, but now in
the era of social media,
the people’s voices are
suppressed, he alleged.
He said, “So the tragedy
of politics of today is
that, in a world of me-
dia, in a world of What-
sApp, Twitter Face-
book, voice is basically
suppressed.”
In the second video
released within two
days, he showed the pic-
ture of Rajiv Gandhi,
where he can be seen
talking to people, “This
picture here. He’s lis-
tening. Right, so it was
constantly listening
and he would make
these connections, he
would be in this crowd,
listen and then sudden-
ly, he would say okay
this can be transformed
with this instrument,”
he said.
“There is this tre-
mendous voice here,
but it is struggling to
speak. it’s been magni-
fied today but it’s not
being allowed to speak,
and it is being crushed
with authoritarian sys-
tem,” he alleged.
MODI GOVT
DANGEROUS FOR
EMPLOYMENT
After reports of job
losses in August,
former Congress
Prez Rahul Gandhi on
Friday said that the
Modi government was
‘dangerous for em-
ployment’. He Tweeted
“Modi government is
dangerous for em-
ployment. He does not
promote or support
‘friendless’ business
or employment, but is
snatching jobs from
the employed. And the
people are expected to
be self-reliant.”
Retd HC CJ Manjula to head SIT probe in WB
POST-POLL VIOLENCE
lll
A seven member
committee set up
by NHRC had
earlier looked into
the West Bengal
post poll violence
recommended
a court monitored
Central Bureau
of Investigation
probe
Kolkata: Retired Cal-
cutta High Court Chief
Justice Manjula Chel-
lur will head the SIT
constituted by High
Court to probe the post-
poll violence cases re-
ported during the as-
sembly polls in the state.
Earlier, on August 19,
the Calcutta HC had or-
dered a court-moni-
tored Central Bureau of
Investigation (CBI)
probe into the incidents
of post-poll violence in
the state. The court has
ordered a Special Inves-
tigation Team (SIT) for
investigation and sen-
ior officers from the
West Bengal cadre will
be a part of the team.
Meanwhile, a Special
Leave Petition has been
filedchallengingtheCal-
cutta High Court order
intheSupremeCourt. A
seven-member commit-
teesetupbytheNational
Human Rights Commis-
sion (NHRC) had earlier
lookedintotheincidents
of violencefollowingthe
West Bengal Assembly
elections and recom-
mended a court-moni-
tored CBI probe.
On the other hand,
the Central Bureau of
Investigation (CBI) has
also registered a total
of 21 FIRs in connec-
tion with the case so far.
Several incidents of vi-
olence have been re-
ported at various places
after the announcement
of the Assembly poll re-
sults on May 2, after
which a four-member
team deputed by the
Ministry of Home Af-
fairs also visited the
post-poll violence-af-
fected areas. —ANI
India is pluralistic, home of
almost all faiths: Punjab CM
Chandigarh: Punjab
Chief Minister Captain
Amarinder Singh on
Friday said that India
continues to be a plural-
istic country that has
the unique distinction
of being home to almost
every faith in the world.
Addressing a special
session to commemo-
rate the 400th Prakash
Purab of Sri Guru Tegh
Bahadur at the Punjab
Legislative Assembly
today, the Chief Minis-
ter said, “India has
unique cultural tradi-
tion. When we call Indi-
anness, this is the idea
of India. Our ancient
texts have expressed
the idea of ‘Vasudhaiva
Ku t u m b a k a m ’ - t h e
world is one family’. In
Sikhism, we have a con-
cept of ‘Sarbat da bha-
la’ meaning welfare of
entire humanity
.”
“It was to uphold the
right of people of this
land to peacefully fol-
low the faith of their
choice, that Guru Sahab
(Guru Teg Bahadur)
gave his ‘shahadat’. By
doing so he set a unique
example in the history
of sacrificing his life,”
he said. —ANI
India continues to be a
pluralistic country that
has the unique distinc-
tion of being home to almost eve-
ry faith in the world. This is what
gives India its richness and cul-
tural diversity.
—CAPTAIN AMRINDER SINGH,
CM PUNJAB
India Russia’s Friendship
Stood Test Of Time: PM Modi
PM addressed Eastern Economic Forum where he emphasised importance of bilateral ties
New Delhi: Underscor-
ing the importance of
bilateraltieswithRussia,
dra Modi on Friday said
that India will be a relia-
blepartnerof Moscowin
realising its vision in de-
veloping the country’s
Far East region.
Speaking at the East-
ern Economic Forum,
PM Modi said, “I am de-
lighted to address East-
ern Economic Forum
and thank President
Vladimir Putin for this
honour.”
While recalling his
2019visittoVladivostok,
PM Modi praised Pu-
tin’s vision for the devel-
opment of the Russian
Far East. “In Indian his-
tory and civilization,
‘sangam’ has a special
meaning. It means con-
fluence or coming to-
gether of rivers, people
and ideas. In my view,
Vladivostok is truly a
‘sangam’of Eurasiaand
Pacific,” he said.
During a 2019 visit to
the Far Eastern port
city of Vladivostok, PM
Modi had announced
that New Delhi would
provide a USD 1 billion
loan to aid the region’s
economic development.
He had also signed a
memorandum to estab-
lish a direct maritime
corridor between Chen-
nai and Vladivostok.
“I applaud President
Putin’s vision for the de-
velopmentof theRussian
Far East. India will be a
reliable partner for Rus-
sia in realising this vi-
sion. In 2019, when I had
visited Vladivostok to at-
tend the forum, I had an-
nounced India’s commit-
ment to enact Far East
Policy
,” said PM Modi.
During his brief
speech, Prime Minister
announced that India’s
biggest shipyards will
partner with Zvezda for
the construction of
some of the most im-
portant commercial
ships in the world.
“Today I’m delighted
that one of India’s big-
gest shipyards, Mazagon
docks limited will part-
ner with Zvezda for the
construction of some of
the most important com-
mercial ships in the
world,”hesaid.PMModi
emphasised the impor-
tance of the bilateral re-
lationship and said the
India-Russiaenergypart-
nership can help bring
stability to the global en-
ergy market. —ANI
Telangana CM K Chandrashekar Rao called on PM Narendra Modi, in New Delhi on Friday.
FUNDING AND
MORE: KCR
REQUESTS TO PM
New Delhi: Telangana
CM K Chandrashekar
Rao today requested
dra Modi to increase
the number of IPS
officers for the state
in view of creation of
more districts. Rao,
who met PM in the na-
tional capital on Friday,
also sought 100 per
cent funding for con-
structing road networks
in the Maoist-affected
areas keeping aside
60:40 ratio (state 60
per cent and Centre 40
per cent) as the internal
security issues are of
national importance.
“The allocation will
help the posting of IPS
officers as Commis-
sioners/ Superinten-
dents of Police/ Zonal
DIGsP/Multi Zonal IGsP
in various territorial
units. At present these
territorial units have
no sanctioned Cadre
posts,” Rao said. —ANI
WB’S PLEA FOR APPOINTING OWN DGP
WITHOUT UPSC DECLINED BY SC
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday declined
to entertain a plea of the West Bengal government
seeking permission to appoint its own Director
General of Police (DGP) without the Union Public
Service Commission’s (UPSC) involvement. The
Bench of Justices LN Rao, BR Gavai and BV Naga-
rathna said the state had filed a similar application
in the past too which had been rejected.
CR PATIL DEDICATES E-RICKSHAW AT
KEVADIA TO COMBAT POLLUTION
Kevadia: BJP state unit president CR Patil dedicated
an e-rickshaw at the Kevadiya and Statue of Unity
Development Area, which is now going to be turned
into a “zero-pollution” area. With him is BJP MLA
from Majura constituency Harsh Sanghvi.

l Vol 1 l Issue No. 6
l RNI TITLE NO. DELENG/2021/19840
Printed and published by
Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of
First Express Publishers. Printed at
Impressions Printing and Packaging
Limited, C-21, 22 Sector-59,
Noida-201301. Published at G-20,
3rd Floor, 309, Preet Vihar, New
Delhi-110092. Phone 011-49846474.
Editor-In-Chief: Jagdeesh Chandra.
Editor: Anita Hada Sangwan
responsible for selection of news
under the PRB Act
SPIRITUAL SPEAK
Approach those who have
realized the purpose of life and
question them with reverence
and devotion; they will instruct
you in this wisdom.
—Bhagavad Gita
IN-DEPTH
Dharmendra Pradhan
@dpradhanbjp
Our higher education institutions are
key catalysts for promoting socio-
economic development and for realising
aspirations and national goals. Our
universities should popularise India’s
rich linguistic cultural heritage and
promote learning in Indian languages.
Piyush Goyal
@PiyushGoyal
Deliberated with top textile exporters
on measures required to boost
manufacturing expand the industry
horizons globally. The focus is to
enable a conducive environment
for ‘Local Goes Global’ as India of
India emerges as a reliable partner in
textiles value chain.
TOP TWEETS
EVEN YOUTH
SHOULD TAKE
CARE OF THEIR
HEARTS HEALTH
iddharth Shukla’s
death at a young age
of 40 years has
sparkedconcernover
rising cases of heart
attacks in young adults. Before
Shukla, a popular TV star, it was
film-maker Raj Kaushal who
died due to cardiac arrest at the
age of 49. Not much is known
about Kaushal’s lifestyle but
Shukla was said to have been a
fitness freak. One has also heard
several footballers dying due to
heart attack. It is therefore im-
portant to ask why do the young
fall victims to cardiac arrests?
Lifestyle is one major factor,
cardiologistssay
.Thepressureof
work doesn’t allow time for exer-
cisingandpooreatinghabits.The
fast food popular with the pre-
sent-day youth is an even bigger
culprit. Genetic predisposition is
another cause. What is required
is a change in the attitude of
youngsters towards their health,
especially that of the heart. Car-
diologists recommend regular
heart check-ups for those above
the age of 35. Most people ignore
this advice at their own risk.
S
elhi Police’s bi-
ased investiga-
tion in the com-
munal riots
which rocked the
national capital in February
2020 has been flagged by the
Supreme Court, the Delhi
High Court and, now in the
latest development, by Addi-
tional Sessions Judge Vinod
Yadav. Judge Yadav slammed
the Delhi Police for “colossal
waste of the hard-earned
money of tax-payers, without
there being real intent of in-
vestigating the matter”. The
judge discharged Shah Alam,
the brother of former AAP
councilor Tahir Hussain, be-
sides Rashid Saifi and Shad-
ab, in a case of alleged loot of
a shop during Northeast
Delhi riots. What irked the
court was the unnecessary
delays when most of the cas-
es were an “open and shut
case”. Out of 750 cases relat-
ed to riots, charges have been
framed in only 35 cases re-
sulting in the incarceration
of a large number of people.
In March this year Justice
MuktaGuptaof theDelhiHigh
Court called a vigilance in-
quiry report submitted by the
Delhi Police against a Jamia
MilliaIslamiastudentas“half-
baked, useless piece of paper”.
Last year in February Su-
preme Court’s Justices KM
Joseph and Sanjay Kishan
Kaul called the Delhi riots
“unfortunate”. They ex-
pressed their opinion orally.
Citing the example of the
UK, Justice Joseph said,
“Look at how police act in the
UK. If somebody makes an
inflammatory remark, they
swing into action. They don’t
wait for orders…”
The Delhi Police obviously
prefer strong remarks/fine
from courts but won’t work
independently, without
“looking here and there” for
orders. That in fact is true of
police in all the states, in-
cluding those with the police
commissionary system..
POLICE CAN’T WORK
INDEPENDENTLY
The Delhi Police
obviously prefer
strong remarks/fine
from courts but won’t
work independently,
without “looking here
and there” for orders
D
To combat ISIS-K, the West may
have to ally with the Taliban
he decades-long conflict in
Afghanistan was always far
more than a simple case of
the Taliban versus the Af-
ghan government, or a Unit-
ed States-led “war on terror”.
This is because Afghanistan
is not a single country in the
sense of a legitimate system
accepted by the vast majority
.
Beyond the capital Kabul, it
is more a mosaic of local ar-
eas with factions – among
them the Taliban – seeking
rule and profit.
The suicide bombing of the
crowd outside Hamid Karzai
International Airport by the
Islamic State Khorasan Prov-
inceonAugust26,killingupto
170 Afghans and 13 US troops,
highlightsthethreatspresent-
ed by these armed groups.
The Taliban will try to es-
tablish a national govern-
ment. With their radical in-
terpretation of Islam and
politics, they are likely to
continue violence, repres-
sion and denial of rights to
many sections of Afghan so-
ciety
. But as demonstrated by
the ISIS-K violence, the Tali-
ban’s control of Kabul and
also other parts of Afghani-
stan is not secure.
To understand that lack of
control – and the instability
and insecurity that are likely
to persist – one has to begin
with the relationships be-
tween the Taliban and other
groups, including ISIS-K and
the Haqqani network.
ISLAMIC STATE
KHORASAN
The Islamic State’s lightning
advance across Iraq and Syr-
ia in 2014 – and its declara-
tion of a “caliphate” –
spawned affiliates. These
groups promoted the ideo-
logical line of, and received
assistance from, the core of
ISIS – but developed from lo-
cal conditions.
One was ISIS-K, estab-
lished in January 2015 and
naming itself after “Kho-
rasan”, part of an Islamic
empire which stretched from
Iran to the western Himala-
yas from the 6th century
. The
group consists of local mili-
tants and former Afghan and
Pakistani Taliban, pushing
an even more radical ideolo-
gy and implementation, as
well as some former al-Qaeda
members. Spanning the Af-
ghan-Pakistan border, ISIS-
K’s centre is in eastern Af-
ghanistan in the Nangarhar
and Kunar provinces.
While the Taliban sought
to take control of Afghani-
stan, through military opera-
tions and then political talks,
ISIS-K has sought to recruit
members by generating pub-
licity through deadly attacks
on civilian targets. Their tar-
gets have included protest
rallies, schools providing
education for girls, and a Ka-
bul maternity ward.
Afghan security forces and
US aerial operations, includ-
ingthe“motherof allbombs”
in April 2017, crippled ISIS-K.
And beyond Afghanistan, the
US killing of Islamic State
leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi
in northern Syria in October
2019 was a further blow. By
2020, ISIS-K’s estimated
membership was reduced to
between 1,500 and 2,200.
But a new commander,
Shahab al-Muhajir, energised
the group with operations
such as an August 2020 attack
on a prison in Jalalabad,
some 100km west of Kabul,
which freed hundreds of
fighters. There was also as an
assassination attempt on vice
president Amrullah Saleh,
which left ten people dead.
AL-QAEDA
AND HAQQANI
When western media and
pundits report on the Taliban
takeover of Afghanistan,
they often unsurprisingly in-
voke the spectre of al-Qaeda.
A UN report in June said al-
Qaeda members are active in
15 of 34 Afghan provinces.
But in both operational sig-
nificance and political au-
thority, the organisation is a
shell of its 2001 version.
Soon after 9/11, al-Qaeda
was pushed into northwest
Pakistan, with Osama bin
Laden finally killed by US
special forces in 2011. Other
senior leaders have been
slain or captured. While bin
Laden’s successor Ayman al-
Zawahiri is thought to be in
Afghanistan, he is muted
and said to be in poor health.
In contrast, the Haqqani
network is at the heart of Af-
ghanistan’s contest for power.
Hailing from southeast Af-
ghanistan, Jalaluddin Haqqa-
ni established the group in
the 1980s, soon receiving as-
sistance from the Reagan ad-
ministration and Pakistani
intelligence to fight Soviet
forces.
After the Taliban rose to
power in 1996, Haqqani ac-
cepted a cabinet post as min-
ister of tribal affairs. The
US-backed overthrow of the
Taliban in 2001 forced the
network to regroup in Paki-
stan, but it soon pursued
cross-border operations. It
intersected with al-Qaeda,
both in ideological position-
ing and in training camps.
ENEMY OF ENEMY
ISIS-K’s bombing on August
26 was not just an attack on
US forces. It was also a chal-
lenge to the Taliban, asking:
“Where is your authority?
Where is your security?”
It reconfigured the Afghan
mosaic, pushing Washington
and other countries to recal-
culate their political and
military approach. Biden’s
war on terror response: “We
will hunt you down and
make you pay”, poured ur-
gency on that recalculation.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
T
SCOTT LUCAS
The writer is a Professor of International
Politics, University of Birmingham
A UN report in June said
al-Qaeda members
are active in 15 of 34
Afghan provinces.
But in both operational
significance and
political authority, the
organisation is a shell of
its 2001 version
The Taliban will try to
establish a national
government. With their
radical interpretation of
Islam and politics, they are
likely to continue violence,
repression and denial of
rights to many sections of
Afghan society. But as
demonstrated by the ISIS-K
violence, the Taliban’s
control of Kabul and also
other parts of Afghanistan
is not secure
PERSPECTIVE
04

NEWS
05
COURTESY MEET
Jaipur: MP Diya
Kumari met Uttar
Pradesh Chief
Minister Yogi
Adityanath in
Lucknow on Friday.
During the meeting,
construction of the
Ram temple was
discussed in detail.
The Rajsamand
MP said effective
administration of
the Yogi government
has controlled the
criminal activities
in the state. She
extended her good
wishes for the
construction of
Ram temple. UP CM
presented MP Diya
Kumari a framed
image of Guru
Gorakhnath.
First India Bureau
Kevadia: A political
resolution passed on the
second day of the Guja-
rat BJP’s executive
meeting here hit out at
the Congress and “pseu-
do-secular” elements on
issues such as Article
370,andalsocondemned
the post-poll violence in
TMC-ruled West Bengal
on Thursday
.
State BJP president
CRPatillatertoldreport-
ers that the party has
entered “election mode”
ahead of the Assembly
polls slated to be held in
Gujarat next year.
The meeting was also
attended by Union de-
fence minister Rajnath
Singhand Environment
and Forests Minister
Bhupender Yadav.
“Congress and pseu-
do-seculars are spread-
ing lies and trying to
misguide people about
the land on which Ram
Temple is coming up in
Ayodhya.This executive
condemns such acts,”
the resolution said.
It also alleged that
though people have ac-
cepted the abrogation
of Article 370 in Jammu
and Kashmir and the
Citizenship Amend-
ment Act, “opposition
parties are still trying
to incite people over
those issues”.
Jammu and Kashmir
was moving ahead on
the path of peace and
harmony, but “Con-
gress,thosebelongingto
the Tukde-Tukde Gang
and some leaders hav-
ing a soft corner for Pa-
kistan are demanding
restoration of Article
370..,” the resolution
said.
It also claimed that
“TMC-sponsored” polit-
ical violence in West
Bengal after the Assem-
bly polls there had
claimed the lives of over
60 BJP workers so far.
“Congress and pseu-
do-seculars who other-
wise create uproar on
all fabricated incidents
have maintained a com-
plete silence over this
violence in West Ben-
gal, which is also a
criminal offence,” said
the resolution.
Guj BJP executive meet slams Cong, ‘PSEUDO-SECULARS’
BJP state unit president CR Patil, flanked by Pradipsinh Vaghela on his left, along with the team at
Kevadia, after the executive meeting concluded on Thursday.
Party has entered
‘election mode’
ahead of next
year’s Assembly
polls by 2030
Centre government working to
sell national assets, says Shukla
Jaipur: Senior Con-
gress leader Rajeev
Shukla targeted Centre,
saying that the govern-
ment is working to sell
national assets.
He said that people
should teach a lesson to
the BJP.
“Running from re-
sponsibility, selling the
country’s assets, rising
inflation... People
should oust such a cen-
tral government, they
should teach them a les-
son,” Shukla told re-
porters at a press con-
ference here.
He said, “people
should teach such a les-
son to BJP that they are
not able to show their
face.”
Shukla criticised the
National Monetisation
Pipeline (NMP) scheme
of the Centre and said
that suddenly the Cen-
tral Government an-
nounced that the gov-
ernment assets would
be handed over to the
private hands and the
government would earn
Rs 6 lakh crore from it.
Sr Congress Leader Rajeev Shukla addresses media during a
press conference at PCC HQs in Jaipur on Friday. Also seen here
is PCC President GS Dotasra. —PHOTO BY SUMAN SARKAR
Alwar: In a daylight
robbery bid, armed da-
coits struck at Muthoot
Finance Company of-
fice located on the Sta-
tion Road near the Pow-
er House intersection
of Alwar city on Friday
morning. The loot was
averted as an employee
sounded a siren. The ac-
cused took five employ-
ees and guards hostage
at pistol point. Gold
worth Rs 9 crore was
kept in the company
, the
police said.
Meanwhile, an em-
ployee smartly locked
himself in the cabin
and sounded the siren.
The dacoits fled from
there as soon as the si-
ren sounded. They at-
tacked a guard and two
employees. All three
were injured. The en-
tire incident was cap-
tured in the CCTV. As
soon as the information
was received, SP Vikas
Sangwan reached and
inquired on the spot.
Two armed accused
came on a bike. They
entered the office by
showing Aadhaar card
at around 10 am.
Robbers bid
dacoity at
Muthoot’s
Alwar office
NPCC project manager caught
red-handed with `1 lakh bribe
BRICS: India discusses
digital health challenges
New Delhi: India at
BRICS Digital Health
Summit on Friday dis-
cussed challenges and
opportunities during
the COVID pandemic.
At the BRICS Minis-
terial Conclave, Union
Minister of State for
Health and Family Wel-
fare Dr Bharati Pravin
Pawar represented In-
dia and addressed the
panel on India’s priori-
ties towards full adop-
tion of digital health
technologies at all lev-
els and BRICS’s strate-
gy in building a cadre
of competent health
informatics profession-
als using a standard-
ized curriculum across
BRICS countries, read
Ministry of Health and
Family Welfare.
India’s expectations
from the development
of a repository of evi-
dence-based digital
technologies and inno-
vations for health sys-
tems (under BRICS)
and India’s strategic ap-
proach to sustaining
the gains from the use
of digital innovations
during COVID-19 in a
sustainable manner to-
wards building health
systems resilience was
also discussed.
First India Bureau
Jaipur: The Anti-Cor-
ruption Bureau (ACB)
on Friday caught the
project manager of Na-
tional Project Construc-
tion Corporation Lim-
ited (NPCC), Amritlal
Meena, red-handed
while accepting a bribe
of Rs 1 lakh at the Na-
tional Institute of Ayur-
veda (NIA) on Amer
Road in Jaipur.
The investigation
was being done by ASP
Narottam Verma, un-
der the direction of
ADG Dinesh MN.
Amritlal Meena had
also kept his temporary
office in NIA. He came
there on Friday and
called the contractor
there with the money
and was caught by the
team. The accused had
demanded the bribe in
lieu of passing the bill
of a contractor, said
ACB Director General
BL Soni.
Meena hails from
Mandavari in Sawai
Madhopur district.
The contractor said that
he got the construction
work done at the NIA
near Zorawar Singh
Gate on Amer Road for
which bill of Rs 24.27
lakh was generated.
Stop illegal mining near Girnar: Guj HC
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: The High
Court of Gujarat has
directed the relevant
authorities to take ac-
tion and stop illegal
mining activities in an
eco-sensitive zone near
Bhesan. The directive
came after the petition-
er submitted a video as
proof of illegal mining
in support of the public
interest litigation.
“We can’t compro-
mise on wildlife and en-
vironment.Theyhaveto
be protected against any
illegal activity that puts
their existence in dan-
ger. Anyone found re-
sponsible for illegal ac-
tivitiesshouldbebooked
as per the law,” the court
observed orally
. It has
also sought an action-
taken report before the
next hearing in the case.
The petitioner,
throughadvocateGirish
Das, submitted that ille-
gal mining was ongoing
until a week ago, when
the video was recorded.
“It has now stopped, but
it needs to stop forever,”
the petitioner said.
Thecourtappreciated
theeffortof thepetition-
er to protect the envi-
ronment and wildlife
from illegal activities.
The Court has previ-
ously directed: “As on
date, if any such illegal
mining or crushing ac-
tivities are going on
within the eco-sensi-
tive zone, then steps
shall be taken at the
earliest to stop such il-
legal activities.”
The bench reminded
the state that the notifi-
cation was issued with
the long-term protec-
tion and conservation
of Asiatic Lions and
also the rare and endan-
gered biological diver-
sity. It is necessary to
conserve and protect
the area around the pro-
tected area of Girnar ,
the notification stated.
New Delhi: Congress
General Secretary Pri-
yanka Gandhi Vadra on
Friday addressed cam-
paign to train its office
bearers under the par-
ty’s ‘Prashikshan Se
Parakram’ programme.
The address was
made as the training
camp continued for the
ninth consecutive day
and was held in Praya-
graj, Gangapar, Bhado-
hi, Shravasti, Gorakh-
pur, Rampur, Kannauj
and Sambhal districts.
So far, 63 districts have
been covered under this
programme.
Addressing the cam-
paign Gandhi said,
“Congress is fighting
not only to win elec-
tions in Uttar Pradesh
but also to save democ-
racy
. Today our workers
are leading in every
fight to save democra-
cy.” The Congress gen-
eral secretary appreci-
ated the leaders and
workers engaged in the
‘Jai Bharat Mahabhi-
yan’ assembly election
campaign. She said that
the Gram Sabha unit is
the foundation of politi-
cal organisation and
party workers will have
to complete the Con-
gress Mahabhiyan in
every village with full
strength.
‘Cong fighting not
only to win polls but
also save democracy’
Central varsities should work to fill
6,000 vacant posts by Oct: Pradhan
New Delhi: Union Edu-
cation and Skill Devel-
opment Minister Dhar-
mendra Pradhan on
Friday encouraged the
Central Universities to
work on mission mode
to fill up the 6,000 va-
cant posts by October
and urged them to cre-
ate a framework for
alumni endowment.
Pradhan held a meet-
ing with Vice Chancel-
lors of Central Univer-
sities through video
conferencing. Minister
of State (MoS) for Edu-
cation Subhash Sarkar,
Secretary of Higher
Education Amit Khare,
Chairman UGC Prof D
P Singh and senior of-
ficials of the Ministry
and UGC attended the
meeting.
Addressing the par-
ticipants, Pradhan said
that our universities
are cradles of creativi-
ty, innovation and op-
portunities. “The New
Education Policy (NEP)
will play a crucial role
in placing India at the
top of the emerging
new world order and, as
custodians of India’s
destiny, our universi-
ties should fulfil their
responsibilities out-
lined in the NEP,” he
said.
He stressed on mak-
ing education a lot more
vibrant and holistic and
establishing India as a
knowledge superpower
through NEP.
Earlier, chairing a
virtual meeting with
the Steering Committee
constituted for organ-
izing the RD fair of all
Indian Institute of
Technology (IIT), Prad-
han said that Research
andDevelopment(RD)
fair will create an ena-
bling environment for
cutting-edge research
across the areas envis-
aged in the National
Education Policy (NEP-
2020).
The minister said
that the RD fair of all
23 IITs is scheduled to
be held in the second
half of November 2021
in commemoration of
the 75th year of Indian
independence under
the aegis of the ‘Azaadi
ka Amrit Mahotsav’ ini-
tiative.
He further said the
fair will lead to better
understanding and cre-
ate awareness among
Indian industry on the
capabilities and the
high technology readi-
ness levels in the IITs.
Pradhan suggested
prioritising the focus
areas for thematic ses-
sions on energy sys-
tems, communication
tools, waste manage-
ment, integration of
traditional knowledge
in structural and archi-
tecture,spatialresearch
etc.
Ten themes have
been identified in fo-
cused areas and 72 pro-
jects brought out by 23
IITs on these themes
will be shortlisted by
the Committee.
After due scrutiny,
these projects will be
presented before the au-
dience in the 2-day
mega event. —ANI
SPEAKS ON NEP
Dharmendra Pradhan addresses the virtual meeting with the V-Cs
of 45 Central Universities in New Delhi on Friday

BIHAR: EOU RAIDS AT SUSPENDED COP
TANVEER AHMED’S PREMISES
Patna (Bihar): Economic Offences Unit raided
suspended police officer Tanveer Ahmed’s residence
in Patna and Bettiah. Ahmad was a DSP of Paliganj,
Bihar who was suspended from his post by the
Bihar government on July 15 for being allegedly
involved in an illegal sand mining case. He is under
investigation in the case of disproportionate assets
after his involvement in illegal sand mining, the EOU
informed. The unit has found evidence of nexus with
the sand mafia against the suspended DSP and raids
are further going on at many places he is involved.
NEWS
06
India has potential to become Global
Green Hydrogen Hub: Jitendra Singh
New Delhi: India has
the potential to become
Global Hub of Green
Hydrogen in near fu-
ture, Union Minister of
State (Independent
Charge) Science
Technology, Dr Jiten-
dra Singh on Frida.
He said, Prime Minis-
ter Narendra Modi has
accorded highest prior-
ity to clean and green
energy and accordingly
announced Hydrogen
Mission a fortnight ago
during the 75th Inde-
pendence Day Speech
from the ramparts of
the Red Fort.
The Minister was
speaking at the ‘Inter-
national Climate Sum-
mit 2021: Powering In-
dia’s Hydrogen Eco Sys-
tem’ as chief guest in
New Delhi attended by
a galaxy of representa-
tives from Central Min-
istries, Industry bodies,
academia, energy ex-
perts and Diplomatic
Missions.
Dr Jitendra Singh
said, with the rapid in-
troduction of biofuels,
renewable energy and
green Hydrogen, India
is well poised to take a
leadership role towards
Carbon neutrality and
reiterated the commit-
ment of the Govern-
ment to achieve ‘Net
Zero’ level by 2050.
He informed that the
Government is already
encouraging adaptation
of Hydrogen fuels and
technology for the mo-
bility sector and many
industries like Steel,
Cement, and Glass
Manufacturing Indus-
tries have already start-
ed using Hydrogen for
heating requirements.
Dr Jitendra Singh
said, India has set a tar-
get of renewable energy
at 450 GW and is well on
the path of achieving it.
He said, due to the low-
est cost of renewable
energy, India definitely
stands at a better foot-
ing to produce Hydro-
gen at the lowest cost
compared to the other
countries and there-
fore, India is poised for
a Hydrogen Export
Hub.
The Minister said, by
2030, global annual ex-
port potential for green
hydrogen is expected to
be 10.4 million tons to
East Asia and EU,
amounting to nearly 20
billion USD market. He
said, Government is
ready to provide sup-
port to all the stake-
holders to realize this
goal.
The Minister said
that in the last 7 years,
the World has seen that
how Prime Minister
Modi has championed
the cause of Green
Technology to fight the
challenges of Climate
Crisis. He said, even in
his Independence Day
address, Shri Modi un-
derlined that Science
and Technology will
play a lead role in next
25 years, when India
turns 100. He said, the
ultimate aim of all tech-
nological innovations is
to bring “Ease of Liv-
ing” for common man.
New Delhi: In order to
have protection against
drone attacks, all the
three defence forces in-
cluding the Army, Navy
and Air Force have
signed contracts for ac-
quiring DRDO-devel-
opedanti-dronesystems.
The deals for buying
the anti-drone systems
was signed on August
31, which was the last
date for completing
deals under the emer-
gency contracts allowed
by the Defence Ministry
.
“Indian Army
, Indian
Navy, Indian Air Force,
sign contract with BEL
for the supply
of DRDO technology-
based anti-drone sys-
tem. The Drone Detect,
Deter and Destroy sys-
tem (D4S), developed
by DRDO and manufac-
tured by BEL, is the
first indigenously de-
veloped anti-drone sys-
tem to be inducted into
the Indian Armed Forc-
es,” government offi-
cials told ANI.
The need for acquir-
ing these systems under
the emergency proce-
dures was felt after the
Jammu terror attack, in
which two to three
small drones were used
to drop explosives at the
Jammu airbase.
The contract was
signed in the presence
of senior Armed force
officers and DRDO rep-
resentatives. Indian
armed forces have pro-
vided consistent sup-
port and have led in the
joint development of
the anti-drone sys-
tem with the DRDO and
BEL.
Defence forces to induct DRDO-made anti-drone system
COMBAT DRONE ATTACK

The deals was
signed on
August 31-- the
last date for
completing
deals under the
emergency
contracts
allowed by the
Defence
Ministry.
RENEWABLE ENERGY AT 450 GW AIMED
With the rapid introduction of biofuels, renewable energy and green Hydrogen, India is well
poised to take a leadership role towards Carbon neutrality and reiterated the commitment of
the Government to achieve ‘Net Zero’ level by 2050.
—Dr Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science Technology
Min to AWW : Set
up Poshan Vatikas
at all centres
New Delhi: The Union
Minister of Women and
Child Development Sm-
riti Zubin Irani on Fri-
day addressed the An-
ganwadi Workers
across the nation as
part of the ‘POSHAN
Maah’ celebrations be-
ing observed through-
out the month of Sep-
tember under the ‘
Azadi
Ka Amrit Mahotsav’.
At the onset, Irani
thanked all the Angan-
wadi Workers (AWWs)
for their determined
and tireless efforts, es-
pecially during Pan-
demic, ensuring overall
betterment of women
and children and urged
them to send their
views and suggestions
which can be incorpo-
rated in POSHAN 2.0.
She encouraged all
the AWWs to ensure
that ‘Poshan Vatikas’
(Nutrition Gardens) are
set up at all the Angan-
wadi centres during the
month-long celebra-
tions of POSHAN
Maah, especially in all
the aspirational dis-
tricts in the country
.
Irani assured all pos-
sible help from the Gov-
ernment and asked the
AWWs to work in tan-
dem with the officials to
give fresh impetus to
the Poshan Vatikas.
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science
Technology, Dr Jitendra Singh
TAKING STOCK
Jammu and Kashmir DGP Dilbag Singh visits
Baramulla on Friday. —PHOTO BY ANI
India, US sign pact
for air-launched
UAV: Def Ministry
New Delhi: India and
the United States had
signed a Project Agree-
ment (PA) in the end of
July for Air-Launched
Unmanned Aerial Vehi-
cle (ALUAV) under the
ambit of the Defence
Technology and Trade
Initiative (DTTI), the
Defence Ministry said
on Friday
.
The PA was signed
between the Ministry
of Defence (MoD) and
US Department of De-
fence (DoD) by the co-
chairs of the Joint
Working Group (JWG)
on Air Systems, under
the DTTI on July 30.
“The PA outlines the
collaboration between
Air Force Research Lab-
oratory, Indian Air
Force, and Defence Re-
search and Develop-
ment Organisation to-
wards design, develop-
ment, demonstration,
testing and evaluation
of systems to co-devel-
op an ALUAV proto-
type,” a Ministry state-
ment said.
It fell under the Re-
search, Development,
Testing and Evaluation
Memorandum of Agree-
ment between MoD and
US DoD. It was a signifi-
cant step towards deep-
ening defence technolo-
gy collaboration be-
tween the two nations
through co-develop-
ment of defence equip-
ment, it stated.
JAMMU AIRBASE
CRUCIAL READ
WOMEN ONLY PINK BUSES IN INDORE TO
HAVE WOMEN DRIVERS, CONDUCTOR
Indore: The Pink (City) bus intended exclusively for
women in Indore will be driven by women and have
women conductors. Two
women drivers are trained
and started conducting trials
on their routes. Atal Indore
City Transport Service Limited
(AICTSL), in charge Sandeep
Soni said that the training has
been given to two women who
will drive the pink bus on BRTS. “The pink (city) bus
is women-centric, where the passengers will be only
women who can avail this bus service.
NAQVI TERMS AKHILESH’S REMARK ON
WINNING 400 SEATS AS ‘FANTASY’
New Delhi: Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi termed
Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav claim of
winning over 400 seats in the upcoming UP polls a
“fantasy”. “Nobody has
problems with reality, but this
is a fantasy. In the next 20
years, there will be no change
in UP or at the Centre. Such a
misunderstanding is detrimen-
tal to political health,” said the
Naqvi in an interview with ANI.
Addressing a press conference on Thursday in Lucknow,
Yadav claimed that the Samajwadi Party would win over
400 out of 403 assembly seats in the upcoming polls.
‘India aims to increase
textile exports three times’
New Delhi: During an
interaction with leaders
of the textile industry,
UnionMinisterforCom-
merce and Industry Pi-
yush Goyal said on Fri-
day that the nation must
aim to increase textile
exports three times
from the present value
of 33 billion dollars to
100 billion dollars at the
earliest.
“We must all collec-
tively resolve to reach
the target of 44 billion
dollars of exports in
2021-22 for textiles and
apparel including hand-
icrafts,” he added. Goyal
said that the Textile
Ministry is working
closely with the Minis-
try of Finance to resolve
the issue of old dues on
incentives for exporters.
40 pc hike in
US-India goods
trade in June
New Delhi: The US-In-
dia trade in goods
showed an increase of
40 pc in June 2021, and is
on way to surpass pre-
pandemic highs. “2021
#US-India Trade data in
goods through June
show increases of over
40 per cent in US-India
and India-US trade from
2020, on-track to sur-
pass even pre-pandemic
highs,” tweeted the US
Embassy in India.
Economy will reach pre-Covid
levels by Dec: Sanjeev Sanyal
New Delhi: Sanjeev
Sanyal, Principal Eco-
nomic Advisor to the
Ministry of Finance, on
Friday said that the In-
dian economy would
reach pre-Covid levels
by the third quarter of
October to December
this year.
His remarks came af-
ter the government data
released on August 31
showed that India’s
GDP grew by 20.1 pc in
the April to June quar-
ter as compared to Q1
FY21.
Speaking to ANI,
Sanyal said, “We are
seeing demand coming
back quite strongly, we
can see that not only do-
mestic demand but ex-
ports are doing particu-
larly well.”
It was signed between
the MoD and US DoD
by the co-chairs of the
JWG on Air Systems
Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal.

TALKING POINT
07
F
ertility rates in the United
States have plunged to re-
cord lows, and this could be
related to the fact that more people
are choosing not to have children.
But just how many “child-free”
adults there are has been tricky for
researchers to pin down.
National fertility data provided
by the U.S. Census and Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention
lump together all adults who aren’t
parents, making it difficult to un-
derstand how many people identify
as child-free.
As social scientists, we think it’s
important to distinguish child-free
individuals from those who are
childless or not yet parents. People
who are child-free make the con-
scious decision not to have kids.
They’re distinct from childless indi-
viduals – adults who want children
but can’t have them – and from peo-
ple who plan to have children in the
future.
In a recent study of 1,000 people,
we found that over 1 in 4 Michigan
adults did not want biological or
adopted children and were, there-
fore, child-free. This number was
much higher than those reported in
the few past national studies that
have attempted to identify child-free
people, which placed the percentage
between 2% and 9%.
CHILD-FREE BY
CHOICE
Although we can’t be sure why we
identified more child-free people in
our study, we suspect it may have
something to do with how we deter-
mined who was child-free.
Past studies that attempted to es-
timate the prevalence of child-free
individuals often focused only on
women and have used criteria based
on fertility. These studies left out
men, older adults and biologically
infertile people who nonetheless
didn’t want children.
In our study, we used a more inclu-
sive approach. We looked at both
women and men, asking three yes-
no questions that allowed us to de-
termine who was child-free based on
the desire to have children, rather
than fertility:
 Do you have, or have you ever had,
any biological or adopted children?
 Do you plan to have any biological
or adopted children in the future?
 Do you wish you had or could have
biological or adopted children?
Those who answered “no” to all
three questions we classified as
child-free.
JUST LIKE
EVERYONE ELSE?
In addition to examining how many
child-free people there are, we also
examined whether child-free people
differed from parents, not-yet-parents
and childless individuals in life satis-
faction, personality or political views.
We found that child-free people
were just as satisfied with their lives
as others, and there were few per-
sonality differences. However, child-
free people were more liberal than
parents.
Although child-free people were
pretty similar to everyone else, we
did find that parents were less warm
toward child-free people. This find-
ing suggests that child-free individ-
uals may be stigmatized in the Unit-
ed States.
LOOKING AHEAD
Our study suggests that the number
of people who choose not to have
children may be larger than previ-
ously thought. Although our study
focused on Michigan residents, the
state’s population is similar to the
overall U.S. population in terms of
age, race, income and education. So
we’d expect to see similar numbers
of child-free people in other states.
We hope to continue our research
by collecting data over time across
the country to determine whether
it’s becoming more common to be
child-free – and to understand how
and why people make the choice not
to have children.
JENNIFER WATLING NEAL
Associate Professor of Psychology,
Michigan State University
ZACHARY NEAL
Associate Professor of Psychology,
Michigan State University
SOURCE:
THECONVERSATION.COM
The study found that child-free
people were just as satisfied with
their lives as those with kids.
—ALEKSANDR FAUSTOV/EYEEM
VIA GETTY IMAGES
Child-free
people were
more liberal
than parents,
the study found.
Past studies that attempted to estimate the prevalence of child-free individuals
often focused only on women and have used criteria based on fertility.
CHOOSING AN
CHOOSING AN
EMPTY NEST
EMPTY NEST
Far more
Far more
adults don’t
adults don’t
want children
want children
thanpreviously
thanpreviously
thought, new
thought, new
study says
study says

08
2NDFRONT
Everyday we choose to spend the
day in being a better person and
learning something new or to
waste it!
—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO Editor-in-Chief, First India
Mahesh Sharma
New Delhi: The world
will recognise the Tali-
ban, the world’s most
dreadedterroristorgani-
sation because USA
wants this and therefore
preparations have start-
ed globally
. The resolu-
tion prepared on Af-
ghanistan in the United
Nationsisanexampleof
this and it seems that
this is just the begin-
ning! Taliban’s name
was earlier in this pro-
posalbutnowithasbeen
dropped. The resolution
was approved on August
16, in which the Taliban
was named stressing
thatitwouldnotsupport
terrorist activities.
But 10 days later a sec-
ond resolution was
adopted, in which the
Taliban’s name was
missing.Boththeresolu-
tions have been signed
by TS Tirumurti, the
representative of India
aschairmanof theSecu-
rity Council. In a state-
ment issued on August
16, a day after the Tali-
ban’s capture of Kabul,
the UN Security Council
warned that Taliban or anyAfghangrouporany person should not coop-
eratewithterroristspre-
sent inside another
country
. 10 days later, on
August 26, a new resolu-
tion was approved,
which said no Afghan
group should cooperate
with terrorists. When
asked about the US rec-
ognising the Taliban,
WhiteHousespokesman
Ned Price refused to an-
swer. Exactly the same
reaction is of India’s Ex-
ternalAffairsMinisterS
Jaishankar who said
that India has not yet de-
cided its Afghan policy
stressing that India’s
goal is to bring back it’s
people trapped there.
Therefore the ques-
tion is whether India
will also recognise the
Taliban? This is a mil-
lion dollar question and
the answer to which will
not be available immedi-
ately
.
India’s stand on this
issue will be clear after
elections in five states
includingUttarPradesh.
Before that, Taliban will
not be recognised, but
after that, if the coun-
tries of the world recog-
nise Taliban, then India
can also follow suit.
Will Modi govt embrace Taliban? Depends on outcome of 5 Assembly polls!
New Delhi: The Su-
preme Court on Friday
granted yet another op-
portunity to the Centre
to formulate uniform
guidelines for issuance
of death certificates
with regard to those
who succumbed to
COVID-19.
A two-judge bench of
the Apex Court, headed
by Justice MR Shah and
also comprising Justice
Aniruddha Bose today
granted 10 more days
time to the Union of In-
dia (UOI) to frame and
formulate uniform
guidelines for issuance
of death certificates
with regard to those
who succumbed to COV-
ID-19. SC also asked
Centre to file a compli-
ance affidavit latest by
September 11 and fixed
the matter for further
hearing on Sept 13.
Anita Hada
New Delhi: In Punjab,
the state Congress
president Navjot Singh
Sidhu is becoming a
villain in the tussle
that broke within the
party
.
Almost all other
Congress leaders have
united and started tar-
geting Sidhu, who is
accompanied by a few
people like Tript Bajwa
or Pargat Singh. While
on the other side are all
the senior leaders of
the state Congress.
Chief Minister Cap-
tain Amarinder Singh
has taken under his
wings those handful of
leaders who were con-
sidered to be in anti-
Captain camp before
Sidhu had stepped in.
Sidhu has only faith
in the power of the
Congress High Com-
mand and with that
confidence a few peo-
ple are seen supporting
him. Due to Sidhu be-
ing an outsider, he is
not getting much sup-
port in the Congress.
Congress MP from
Punjab and former Un-
ion Minister Manish
Tewari, who was al-
readywithCaptain,has
opened a front against
Sidhu and has become
more outspoken.
Meanwhile, Captain
has taken the initiative
to increase friendship
with his opponent Ra-
jinder Kaur Bhattal.
Earlier, both did not see
eye to eye but after Sid-
hu took over as presi-
dent at the state Con-
gress Committee, he
did not give much re-
gards to Captain but
touched Bhattal’s feet.
Recently, Captain
met Bhattal at the lat-
ter’s home and it is
now believed that Bhat-
tal has sided with the
Captain.
The biggest oppo-
nent of the Captain in
the Punjab Congress
was Pratap Singh Ba-
jwa. Congress leader
Rahul Gandhi had
made him the state
president and he was
continuously forming
a second camp.
Later, when he was
removed from the post
of state president, Ra-
hul sent him to the Ra-
jya Sabha. It is report-
ed that Bajwa’s attitude
has changed after Sid-
hu became the state
president.
Bajwa has stopped
opposing Captain. It is
also reported that Cap-
tain Amarinder Singh
has also spoken to him,
after which Sidhu is
also on his target.
So, Captain Ama-
rinder Singh, Manish
Tewari, Rajinder Kaur
Bhattal, Pratap Singh
Bajwa are all target-
ing Sidhu.
SIDHU: ‘ENEMY NUMBER 1’ IN PUNJAB!
Sidhu has only faith
in the power of the
Congress high
command and with
that confidence a few
people are seen
supporting him. Due
to Sidhu being an
outsider, he is not
getting much support
in the Congress.
Captain Amarinder Singh Navjot Singh Sidhu
CBI WORKINGIN FULL SWING TO FIND
‘TRUTH’ BEHIND BENGAL VIOLENCE
Mohd Fahad
New Delhi: The Cen-
tral Bureau of Investi-
gation (CBI) has been
working in ‘full swing’
in West Bengal. A large
team of CBI sent from
Delhi has camped in
the state, after the or-
der of the Calcutta
High Court, to help the
state officials and many
officers of the head-
quarters are present in
Kolkata.
After the Assembly
elections got over and
the results came out, the
CBI team visited those
districts where there
have been news of vio-
lence and so far it has
registered a total of 31
FIRs for murder, at-
tempt to murder and
rape.Thespeedatwhich
CBI officials have been
working is interesting
to note and their ‘activ-
ism’ has not been seen
in the recent decades.
However, on one
hand, ruling Trinamool
Congress (TMC) main-
tainsthatfiveof theBJP
and more than 10 of its
people were killed in the
post-poll violence. The
BJP, on the other hand,
claims that more than 30
of its workers have been
killed. The manner in
which the CBI is filing
these FIRs, it seems that
there will be equal num-
ber of cases as claimed
by the BJP
. Since the in-
vestigation is being
done by the orders of
the court and the court
is also observing the de-
velopments, it cannot be
said that the agency is
doing any discrimina-
tion, but the TMC alleg-
es that CBI sleuths are
going to the villages
with BJP leaders and fil-
ing cases accordingly
.
Whatever it is, but
three months after the
violence stopped, sud-
denly stories related to
political violence have
started coming out from
West Bengal. A victim
has claimed that his was
theonlyHindufamilyin
the entire area and on
the day of election re-
sults, Muslims attacked
and killed his son. Oth-
ers claim of sons being
killed in front of their
parents while many oth-
ers reveal horrific sto-
ries of rape in front of
the family members.
Many tales of houses
being burnt down and
desecration of house
are also being heard.
But in all thse ‘stories’,
the villains are Mus-
lims. The CBI is only
registering cases as of
now. But what will hap-
pen when the investiga-
tion starts, people will
be interrogated, testi-
monies and arrests will
be made? If CBI arrests
a large number of Mus-
lims after investigation,
what will be the atmos-
phere in the next three-
four months?
Syed Umar
New Delhi: Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) has
managed to include its
ally Janata Dal (United)
of Bihar in the Central
government. The Saf-
fron party had been try-
ing for this since long,
but due to lack of con-
sensus on the number
of ministers, the matter
was postponed.
This time also there
was no consensus, but
BJP leaders managed
to get JDU leader RCP
Singh, inducted in the
government. It was his
personal ambition,
due to which he is in
the government and it
is being said that JDU
Supremo Nitish Ku-
mar is not particularly
happy with this devel-
opment. But now that
a major part of JDU
has been brought into
the government, the
BJP is eyeing the YSR
Congress and BJD.
It is being said that
BJP leaders have spo-
ken to YSR Congress
leader Vijay Sai Reddy.
Just like JDU’s RCP
Singh, who was eager
to become a minister in
the Centre, many lead-
ers of YSR Congress
too are also getting rest-
less. But Chief Minis-
ter Jagan Mohan Reddy
is avoiding joining the
BJP directly because of
his minority vote bank.
On the other hand, BJP
is feeling that if YSR
Congress joins the gov-
ernment, it will in-
crease the govern-
ment’s majority in the
Rajya Sabha and sec-
ondly, will pave the way
for coordination in
Andhra Pradesh, which
will give the BJP a
chance to establish a
foothold there.
Andhra Pradesh is a
state, among southern
states, where the BJP
has no allies and no base
of its own. To make the
base, the party has even
made former Congress
leader D Purandesh-
wari the party’s general
secretary
, but it is not of
much use. Once it fights
election along with a
party like YSR Con-
gress, it will be easier
for BJP to establish it-
self there.
BJP looks for an ally in YSR!
Rakesh Ranjan
NewDelhi:TheChhatis-
garh administration
aimsatattracting$50bil-
lion investment in the
state through a Global
Investors Meet in Janu-
ary 2022 nicknamed “In-
vestgarh Chhattisgarh”.
For this purpose, the
Chhattisgarh Commerce
and Industry Depart-
ment has hired an inter-
national consultancy
firmEduvisionIndiaPri-
vate Limited which has
coined the brand name
‘Viexpoindia’.
The state administra-
tion wants to attract in-
vestments in agricul-
ture,mining,heavyengi-
neering and fabrication,
green energy as well as
pharmaceutical and au-
tomobile sectors. In this
context,Australia’sHigh
Commissioner to India,
Barry O’Farrell, met
ChhattisgarhChief Min-
ister Bhupesh Baghel to
discuss the possibilities
of mutual cooperation
in the socio-cultural sec-
tor and also talked about
investment,especiallyin
mining, infrastructure,
steel, forest products,
and environmental pro-
tection. Australian am-
bassador showed keen
interest in the schemes
being implemented by
the Chhattisgarh gov-
ernment.
Rakesh Ranjan
New Delhi: As antici-
patedbyFirstIndiainits
report on August 31, the
Appointments Commit-
teeof theCabinetheaded
by PM Modi on Friday
,
cleared the appointment
of threeseniorIRSCCE
officers to the post of
Member, Central Board
of Indirect Taxes and
Customs (CBIC). The
newly appointed mem-
bers of CBIC are; DP Na-
gendra Kumar, IRS
(CIT:1985), Principal
Chief Commissioner,
CGST,Bengaluru;Balesh
Kumar, IRS (CIT:1987),
General, Directorate
Generalof RevenueIntel-
ligenceandRajivTalwar,
IRS (CIT:1988), Chief
Commissioner, Nhava
Sheva, Customs Zone-Il,
Mumbai.
Taliban fighters take control of Afghan presidential palace. —FILE PHOTO
SC to Govt: Form
guidelines to
issue Covid death
certs by Sept 11
Kolkata: Bypolls in sev-
en constituencies in
West Bengal has now
become the latest politi-
cal flashpoint between
ruling Trinamool Con-
gress (TMC) and opposi-
tion Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) who have
locked horns over the is-
sue with the latter at-
temptingtopostponethe
pending elections.
Speaking to ANI, BJP
State President Dilip
Ghosh said, “It is not the
right time to hold by-
polls in Bengal as COV-
ID situation has not im-
proved. Moreover, our
experts have given the
warning of the COVID
third wave. Take the ex-
ample of Uttarakhand,
he stepped down be-
causetheelectionscould
not be conducted due to
the COVID situation.”
Pending by
polls: TMC, BJP
at loggerheads
Jagan Mohan Reddy
Investgarh Chhattisgarh
to be held in Jan 2022
Govt appoints 3 new
members of CBIC
New Delhi: The Su-
preme Court on Friday
stayed another FIR
against Opindia edi-
tors- Nupur J Sharma
and founder Rahul
Roushan, in connec-
tion with certain write-
ups published last year
with respect to alleged
Telinipara commu-
nal riots. A bench of
the Supreme Court,
headed by Justice
Sanjay Kishan Kaul and
also comprising Jus-
tice M M Sunderesh,
today stayed the FIR
registered against
Sharma and Raushan.
The FIR was registered
on June 10, 2020, and
pertained to reports
published in OpIndia
in relation to Telinipara
communal riots. —ANI
New Delhi: Delhi High
Court on Friday issued
a notice to Delhi Police
on a bail plea of Preet
Singh, one of the main
organisers arrested
in connection with
alleged objectionable
sloganeering near
Jantar Mantar. Bench
of Justice Mukta Gupta
sought response of
Delhi Police and slated
the matter for Sep-
tember 15. Advocate
Vishnu Shankar Jain
representing accused
Preet Singh submitted
that the meeting was
held in a very peaceful
atmosphere. “Every
speaker from the
dais delivered speech
only on the topic of
protest. Not even a
single speaker said
anything against any
person or community,”
said the advocate.
He further added that
after function ended,
the organisers left the
place of the meeting at
Jantar Mantar. —ANI
New Delhi: Supreme Court On Friday
refused to grant interim bail to former
Member of Parliament (MP) and Con-
gress leader, Sajjan Kumar, convicted and
sentenced to life imprisonment for his role
in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots case, after noting
that his medical condition is stable and
improving. —ANI
COMMUNAL RIOTS: SC STAYS
FIR AGAINST OPINDIA EDITORS
JANTAR MANTAR: HC NOTICE TO
COPS ON BAIL PLEA OF ORGANISER
SC REFUSES TO GRANT INTERIM
BAIL TO SAJJAN KUMAR IN
ANTI-SIKH RIOTS CASE
IN THE COURTYARD

NEW DELHI, SATURDAY
SEPTEMBER 4, 2021
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia
facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09
ity First engaged in a tête-à-
tête with Sansrati Awasthi,
where she spilt the beans
about her career, life and
what excites her to wake up
every morning!
Q: What was your journey like?
A: I started my modelling journey
from scratch. Like any other aspiring
model, I started giving auditions, a
lot of auditions every other day. I
prepped myself up for these selection
rounds of shoots with hopeful eyes
and decided to always give my best,
no matter what.
Q: How did your family react to
your decision of taking up model-
ling as a career?
A: Initially, they were totally against
my decision. However, with time they
realised that I was doing well and al-
lowed me to continue.
Q: What struggled did you face
when you stepped into this field?
A: When I started out, I faced a lot of
struggles because I belong to a very
small town. I had never experienced
something so big before.
Q: Who is your inspiration?
A: Kylie Jenner is my biggest inspira-
tion. Apart from her, looking at
other models walk the ramp
also pumped me up!
Q: Tell us the funniest, most
exhilarating incident that has
happened with you since you
became a model.
A: Once, when I was very raw and
walking the ramp for the first time
ever, I was about to fall off. Some-
how, I managed myself, kept my
composure and maintained the bal-
ance but, as soon as I reached back-
stage, I burst into laughter.
Q: What has been the most monu-
mental moment of your career so
far?
A: I got very excited when I came on
the news for the first time in my life.
Q: What excites you to wake up
every morning to a new day?
A: I think about what could make
this day exciting, what could I
do for myself and the
others around me
to make them hap-
py. I also look for-
ward to having a
partner with whom I
share my highs and lows.
OF HARD WORK, PERSISTENCE AND STRUGGLES,
SANSRATI’S IS A JOURNEY FULL OF IMPEDIMENTS. FROM
HER DAYS OF STRUGGLE TO THOSE OF UNFETTERED
POWER, SHE HAS TRULY MADE HER MARK IN THE
GLITTERING WORLD OF MODELLING
LIVING
HER
POORVI SINGHAL
cityfirst@firstindia.co.in
C

10
ETC
F
A
C
E
O
F
T
H
E
D
A
Y
ANISHA, Model
LEO
JULY 24 - AUGUST 23
A new deal is likely to come
through and give you a
taste of success. Those
fond of travelling may get
their chance soon. This is the time
when you enjoy yourself with a new
group of friends or colleagues. A
change of job is likely to give you
better salary and perks.
LIBRA
SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 22
Your reputation is likely to
boost your image on the
social front. On the work
front, you will manage to
keep your superiors in good humour.
This is an excellent day to spend time
with family.Good planning will see
you complete a task at work in
record time.
ARIES
MAR 21 - APR 20
A business trip is indicated
and will achieve much.
Your strategy to promote
yourself on the
professional front will bear fruits.
You may need to speed up things on
the academic front to remain ahead.
On the social front, the day finds you
in your element.
SAGITTARIUS
NOV 23 - DEC 22
Your happiness is in your
hands today. Your
performance at work will be
commendable. Spouse may
need her space, respect that. This is a
favourable day for completing pending
jobs. Financially, no problems are
foreseen. It is best to avoid outside
food. Fun is in store on the social front.
GEMINI
MAY 21 - JUNE 21
Some favourable
developments on the social
front are foreseen. Buying
new furniture or a major
appliance is possible. With good
networking, a prized posting can be
yours Those trying to get back their
money will succeed. A healthy phase
of life begins for some.
AQUARIUS
JAN 21 - FEB 19
Good luck promises to
brighten your day. Some
positive changes can be
expected on the home front.
This seems a good day for job seekers.
New avenues for earning open up as
you get more determined. Fitness
through extra efforts is assured for the
deskbound.
TAURUS
APR 21 - MAY 20
A celebration can find you
in your element. Praise and
honour are likely to greet
you in something that you
have managed to achieve. You will be
a pillar of strength to a friend or
associate. A good day at work is
foreseen as you make your mark in
front of those who matter.
CAPRICORN
DEC 23 - JAN 20
Your desire for an exciting
time on the social front
may be fulfilled. Those
looking for buying a house
can get a good bargain. Appreciation
is in store for some homemakers. A
professional victory is yours if you
play your cards well. Those in
business may maintain good earning.
VIRGO
AUG 24 - SEP 23
Outstanding opportunities
may knock at your door.
Professionals will be able
to give their best in a new
situation. Financially, this day may
prove lucky for you, so go ask for the
raise that is keeping you on
tenterhooks. Don’t take any chances
with your health today.
CANCER
JUNE 22 - JULY 23
You are set to enjoy a great
time in a family get-togeth-
er. Remaining on the good
side of those who matter
on the academic front will help you
achieve much. Good tidings of your
well wishers will keep you going on
the professional front. A family elder
may look up to you for guidance.
PISCES
FEB20 - MARCH 20
Your professionalism in
handling problem areas
will be appreciated. Tenant
troubles are foreseen for
some house owners. You will find
family life fulfilling. A senior is likely
to put in a good word for you to the
higher ups. Financially, you will be
able to consolidate your position.
SCORPIO
OCT 23 - NOVEMBER 22
You may get busy
organising something on
the social front. You may
need to put your ideas into
action. A party may be thrown in
your honour at work. Your good
performance is likely to be noticed by
higher ups. Past investments start
giving good returns.
YOUR
DAY
Horoscope by
Saurabbh Sachdeva
inal Arora, with her
IT background and
holistic healing
practice, establishes
a logical connection
between science and
life force energy.
Her vast and diverse experi-
ence in healing people from
all walks of life, entitles her
to a unique perspective to-
wards life and relationships.
She is a Serenity Surrender
(SS) therapist and a mentor
who passionately conveys
her learning of life and heal-
ing through her workshops.
'Infinity' is the under-
standing of the eternal cycle
of evolution that a soul trav-
erses and will continue to,
while on its path to self-real-
ization on this planet we call
'Earth'. It is a complete guid-
ed account of the evolution
of souls in human form, as
conveyed by the goddess her-
self, through a series of
guided messages. The book
carries infinite wisdom to
understand the human life
cycle from our spirit's per-
spective. It unfolds the pris-
tine path to recognizing the
boundless potential for self-
empowerment as offered by
virtue of being human.
Minal Arora has used her
experience from client thera-
pies to untangle complex re-
lationship scenarios and
other life situations to reach
the root cause. It explains
the conflicts of the mind,
body, emotions, money, rela-
tionships, past lives, karma,
ego, disease, nirvana and
much more. Complex emo-
tions such as transforma-
tion, depression, expecta-
tion, guilt, ego are deftly
handled and elucidated in
simple terms.
'Infinity' demystifies the
soul. Human reincarnation,
Karmas of our past life,
soul's rendition, are de-
scribed with interesting an-
ecdotes and real-life exam-
ples for proper understand-
ing. This book is a riveting
and enlightening guide to
heal oneself and become one
with it. It simplifies the vast-
ness of human beings and
our connection with the uni-
verse. All that happens in
our life, the emotions that we
experience, is meant to hap-
pen with a purpose. There
are no coincidences or acci-
dents.
The existence of the five
elements of Air, Water,
Earth, Fire, and Space in cor-
relation with our physical
existence has been beauti-
fully illustrated, as are the
seven Chakras, followed by
the aura and our subtle bod-
ies. Minal goes on to eluci-
date different laws of nature
- Death, Opposites, Eternity,
Uniqueness, Oneness, Truth,
Love. Each is dealt with sepa-
rately in chapters with self-
explanatory illustra-
tions.
The cover of the
book is most
c a p t iva t i n g
a n d
m y s -
t e r i -
o u s .
It de-
picts
a UN-
A L O M E .
It is an an-
cient sym-
bol that
r e p r e -
sents one's
journey to
self-recogni-
tion. In Hindu-
ism, the Unalome
symbol charac-
terizes the third
eye of Lord Shiva.
He sits
on top of
the hier-
archy, as
he watch-
es over
the uni-
v e r s e
a n d
transforms
eve r y -
thing in it as he wishes. The
knots and spiral represent
the different spiritual mile-
stones as one struggles
through life's problems. The
flower represents perfection-
ie Moksh- Enlightenment -
liberation from the cycle of
birth and death.
In Buddhism, the Unalome
is symbolic of each individu-
al's transcendence. It embod-
ies our existence on this
earthly plane. Our path
begins at the centre of
the Spiral. It exhibits
our weakness, fear,
uncertainties,
suffering, as
we get fur-
ther trapped
into the infi-
nite Loops of
our existence.
It motivates us to
learn as well as
to keep moving
forward and
overcome the cy-
clic repetition of
mistakes. The pur-
suit of enlightenment
is what straightens
out the lines of the
Spiral.
The Lotus repre-
sents the purity of the
body, expression and mind as
if floating above the muddy
waters of one's limitations.
As the Lotus blossoms, it re-
flects the flowering con-
sciousness of the human
mind, thus recognizing its
true potential.
The dot at the end signifies
the point of Oneness, where
one's experience of self per-
fectly aligns itself with the
universe. One might choose
to call it the state of 'En-
lightenment.
'Infinity' is an unlimited
and inexplicable entity. It
has limitless wisdom encap-
sulated in limited pages. It
conveys how abundance can
be lived rather than only
sought. It unveils practical
techniques to connect with
one's higher self and live a
guided and graceful life. The
ease with which the book un-
folds the pristine path to
self-recognition leaves the
reader empowered with a
new perception of life. If
you are looking for spiritual
upliftment, seeking answers,
need an understanding of
the root of your problems....
read this book.
DEEPAK
deepaklifemusings@gmail.com
M
INFINITY
INFINITY
DEEPAK’S CORNER
Minal Arora

I
amsureeveryonewould
agree with me that the
king of romance before
Shah Rukh Khan en-
teredtheworldwastheone
and only Rishi Kapoor, be
it Khel Khel Mein, Kabhie
Kabhie or Sargam. We
have loved hime for his
breakthroughrolesandwe
have loved him as Rauf
Lala in Agneepath. There
was no role indeed which
hecouldn’tconquer,which
is exactly why everyone
still misses him on his
birth anniversary
. City
First paid a tribute
to this great leg-
end who have
entertained us
for more than
fifty years
bringing back to us the
memories of various
roleswhichstillcontin-
ues to astonish
us. One of the
most re-
membered
one being
Mera Naam
Jokerin1970.
A
ctor Sidharth Shuk-
la was cremated as
per the Brahmaku-
mari norms on Friday.
The actor’s funeral took
place at the Oshiwara cre-
matorium in the pres-
ence of his family
membersandclose
friends. Sid-
harth’s mor-
tal remains
w e r e
t a ke n
from
Cooper Hospital to the
cremation ground on Fri-
day noon in a decorated
ambulance. Rahul Ma-
hajan revealed that an
electric cremation was
held for the actor.
Shehnaaz Gill is report-
edly shattered after hear-
ing the news of Sidharth’s
death as her father said in
a statement, “Shehnaaz
ka ro rokar bura haal hai.
Usne mujhse kaha ‘papa,
usne mere haathon mein
dum toda hai. Mere
haathon mein woh is dun-
iya ko chhodkar gaya. Ab
main kya karungi kaise
jeeyungi?”. —Agency
A
LTBalaji seems to have got
the Midas’ touch. After two
massive hits in a row with
Broken but Beautiful 3,
Puncch Beat 2, the streaming plat-
form is all set for another block-
buster. Their recent release Cartel
has been making the wave not just
amongst the masses but also
among critics.
We recently watched the thriller
entertainment and here’s what we
think of the series. As the genre
suggests, Cartel is an entertaining
thriller. The story is about a fiction-
al family – The Angres, who rule
the city and are touted as the first
family of Mumbai. When the head
of the family – Rani Maai, played
by the versatile Supriya Pathak,
faces a fatal attack, the world of
the Angres and other cartels
turns upside down. —CITY FIRST
A
ctor, producer and champion for
nature, Dia Mirza has fond memo-
ries of working in Rajkumar Hi-
rani’s modern classic, ‘Lage Raho
Munna Bhai’. In a media interaction, Dia
stated, “A film like ‘Lage Raho Munna
Bhai’ always remains relevant because
of its theme. It is very rare that a film
addresses really complicated societal is-
sues in such a simple yet profound way
.
The questions that the film tackled in
2006 are still meaningful. The film
shows how easy it is to bring people to-
gether, dissipate ignorance and create
synergy, harmony and peace even in
the most contentious situations. This
is how we won our independence; with
extraordinary resilience and idealism.
These values are timeless and can
never be obsolete. Terms like ‘Gandhi-
giri’ and ‘Get well soon’ are now part
of the popular lexicon forever because
of this film.” —Agency
K
anye West’s new album Donda seems to be a personal one and
fans have noticed how the rapper sings about the breakdown
of his marriage with Kim Kardashian and more in it. As per
recent reports, West’s Hurricane song seemingly hints at
his infidelity
. The rapper reportedly sings about cheating on Kar-
dashian after their first two kids together. The Hurricane track
from Kanye’s Donda album featuring the lyrics, “Here I go actin’
too rich / Here I go with a new chick / And I know what the truth
is / Still playin’ after two kids / It’s a lot to digest when your life
always movin” is being considered the one where he seemingly
sings about cheating on Kim. —Agency
ETC
11
truggling for life, acid at-
tack survivor Bala has
found a new hope as star
actor Deepika Padu-
kone has extended a
helping hand to save her
life. The acid attack
survivor, who is suffering from
a life-threatening kidney ail-
ment, urgently needs a kidney
transplant to survive. After
the word reached Deepika,
she donated a generous
amount of Rs 10,00,000 to the
‘Save Bala’ campaign. Bala is
a real-life star who was also
featured in the Deepika
Padukone-starrer movie
‘Chhapaak’, directed by
Meghna Gulzar, besides ap-
pearing on ‘The Kapil Sharm
Show’. Her condition is dete-
riorating every day due to the
failure of both her kidneys
and she’s somehow surviving
on dialysis. —Agency
S
DP’S
NOBLE
DEED
YE CHEATER HAI?
What’s
brewing?
J
ennifer Anis-
ton has re-
cently taken
to her Insta-
gram account to
post some super
aesthetic pictures
of herself flaunting
her wavy hair and
curls while posing
for some pictures in
what seems to be a
photoshoot setting.
Taking to her social
media platform, the
Friends star, clad in
all black, won sev-
eral hearts with her
recent gorgeous
pictures. Aniston’s
post has already
garnered more
than 900k likes.
Captioning the post
as, “something’s
coming,” Jennif-
er made sure to
keep her fans
on their toes
about her new
project.
—Agency
DIA MIRZA’S
TWO CENTS
CARTEL:
ALTBALAJI'S
POWERFUL
NARRATIVE
Sidharth Shukla last rites
Deepika Padukone
Kim Kardashian
Dia Mirza
Jennifer Aniston
Late Sidharth Shukla
Decorated ambulance taking Sidharth’s body
Hoarding outside Sidharth’s apartment
Shehnaaz Gill at Shukla’s last rites
OM SHAANTI OM
SUSHMITA AIND
sushmita.aind@firstindia.co.in
Akbar in Amar Akbar anthony
Murad Ali in Mulk
Amarjeet in Kapoor and
Sons
Rauflalla in Agneepath
Monty in Karz

04092021 first india New Delhi edition

04092021 first india New Delhi edition

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04092021 first india New Delhi edition