First india ahmedabad edition-05 october 2020

Cong MLA announces retaliation march against atrocities on girls
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: Amid the
rising atrocities on mi-
nor girls, Congress
MLA Naushad Solanki
has announced a Prati-
kar Yatra (retaliation
march) from Kocharb
Ashram to Gandhi
Ashram on Wednes-
day. Making the an-
nouncement after a
marathon meeting
with several leaders,
Solanki said it was an
effort to create a safe
environment for girls.
He also said he would
invite Chief Minister
Vijay Rupani to march
alongside him as a sign
of solidarity with the
state’s “daughters”.
Gujarat has seen
9,433 incidents of rape
over the past five years-
-an average of 1,886 in-
cidents per year, or five
incidents per day--ac-
cording to the National
Crime Records Bureau.
Solanki expressed
shock over the gang
rape in Hathras in Ut-
tar Pradesh and high-
lighted the need for
safer spaces for wom-
en, especially minors.
“These days, a par-
ticular thought process
is ruling the country. As
a result, some people
have an advantage over
other castes and com-
munities. So, they think
that they have free rein
to conduct any crime
without fear of conse-
quence. It’s a sad time
we are living in,” Solan-
ki told First India.
Heattributedtheris-
ing number of atroci-
ties and assault cases
against girls/daugh-
ters to the low rate of
conviction. “Some peo-
ple are allowed to com-
mitcrimesjustbecause
they have a tilak on
their forehead. The
state is unsafe for girls
because of the lethar-
gic attitude of the po-
lice,” he said.
Clarifying that that
march was not just
about atrocities on Dal-
its, he said, “Identifying
victims on the basis of
caste and religion will
water down sensitivity
to the incident. My
march is not for Dalits,
this is about injustice
against daughters.”
Healsocalledoutthe
police for their laxity
in registering missing-
persons cases when it
comes to girls. “The po-
lice are reluctant to
even register FIRs in
the case of missing
girls. Their knee-jerk
reaction is to suspect
that they ran away.”
Solanki also took
shotsatthegovernment,
saying, “These days, op-
position members and
leaders are not allowed
to demonstrate or hold
protests or rallies, so we
may be interrupted in
our mission. As a socie-
ty, we have been divided
by caste and religion.
The ruling party sup-
presses voices of dis-
sent. So, in addition to
the chief minister, I am
also going to ask the po-
lice commissioner to
support the cause.”
Naushad Solanki. —FILE PHOTO
Will invite CM Vijay Rupani to take
part in solidarity with daughters
WOMEN’S SAFETY
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AHMEDABAD l MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2020 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208 l Vol 1 l Issue No. 310
PLAN TO COVER 25 CR BY
NEXT JULY, SAYS HEALTH
MINISTER ON COVID VACCINE P6
MIDDLEMAN FOR MIDDLEMAN:
JAVADEKAR TO OPPOSITION
OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR & AHMEDABAD
P5
CHINKS IN ALLIANCE?
LJP won’t contest polls
under Nitish in Bihar
New Delhi: The Lok
Janshakti Party (LJP)
on Sunday virtually
walked out of the Na-
tionalDemocraticAlli-
ance in Bihar ahead of
the state Assembly
polls,sayingthatitwill
not fight the election
under JD(U) president
and CM Nitish Ku-
mar’sleadershipof the
ruling alliance in the
state,LJPsourcessaid.
An LJP parliamen-
tary board meeting
chaired by its presi-
dent Chirag Paswan
instead passed a reso-
lution in favour of an
alliance with the BJP
and said its MLAs will
work to strengthen the
hand of Prime Minis-
ter Narendra Modi.
The BJP has al-
ready announced that
the NDA will fight the
polls under Turn on P6
Party will not contest seats where BJP would be
contesting and work to strengthen hands of PM Modi
Ram Vilas Paswan
undergoes heart surgery
Cong states to hold spl Assembly sessions to defer Farm Laws
New Delhi: Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan
underwent heart surgery in a Delhi hospital,
according to his son and LJP chief Chirag Pas-
wan on Sunday. Chirag tweeted, “For the last
many days dad is getting treated in a hospital.
Due to some sudden developments yesterday
evening, an operation of his heart had to be
conducted in the late night. If the need arises,
then possibly after a few weeks another opera-
tion might be conducted. Thanks to all for
standing by me and my family in this hour.”
New Delhi: Congress-ruled states are expected to hold special Assembly sessions to pass a bill to defer imple-
mentation of the three controversial farm laws that were cleared by the centre last month and which have trig-
gered massive protests across the country. A draft version of the bill, which has been drawn up by the party’s
central leadership and sent to states that it rules, outlines two provisions. The first allows the state government
to decide on date of implementation of the centre’s laws. The second ensures contract farming between the
farmer and any company, or aggregator, cannot take place below a minimum support price (MSP).
Standoff with China: Army,IAF
prepare to fight wars jointly
Leh, Ladakh: Ten
months after the crea-
tion of the post of Chief
of Defence Staff and at
a time when two Na-
tional Defence Acade-
my coursemates are
heading the Army and
the Air Force, the two
forces are preparing to
fight a war jointly
against the Chinese
forces opposite Eastern
Ladakh sector.
“The instructions
from the top at Air
Headquarters are clear
that whatever require-
ments are projected by
the Army and other se-
curity forces here have
to be fulfilled. The re-
sults are here for every-
body to see,” a senior
Air Force commander
posted in the Ladakh
region told ANI about
the combat support
missions being carried
out by his service.
Turn on P6
Patna: Bihar Police
have registered an FIR
against six people in-
cluding leader of state’s
Opposition Tejashwi
Prasad Yadav, Mahua
MLA, Tej Pratap Yadav,
senior RJD leader Anil
Kumar Sadhu and three
unidentified assailants
in connection with
murder of former sec-
retary (SC/ST cell) of
state unit of RJD Shakti
Mallik on Sunday.
Purnia SP Vishal
Sharma said “On the
basis of the complaint
of the wife of the de-
ceased Khushboo Devi,
an FIR against 6 has
been lodged in connec-
tion of murder of the
leader. A probe is un-
derway to ascertain the
involvement of the
leaders in this inci-
dent.” Mallik, 35, was
shot dead on Sunday
morning. —Agencies
New Delhi: A day after
meeting the family of
the Hathras incident
victim, Congress Gen-
eral Secretary Priyanka
Gandhi Vadra on Sun-
day demanded the re-
moval of the district
magistrate (DM) and a
probe into his role in
the entire matter.
“According to the ag-
grieved family, the
worst treatment meted
out to them was by the
district magistrate.
Who is trying to save
him? He should be im-
mediately suspended,
and his role in the en-
tire matter should be
probed. When the fam-
ily is demanding a judi-
cial probe, then why is
noise over CBI probe
and SIT probe is going
on,” Priyanka tweeted
in Hindi.
“If the Uttar Pradesh
government has even
slightly woken up from
its slumber, it should
listen Turn on P6
Priyanka demands removal &
probe into role of Hathras DM
Modi, Shah attend BJP’s CEC meeting
New Delhi: The BJP
centralelectioncommit-
tee met on Sunday to
deliberate over the Bi-
har assembly polls and
finalise the party’s can-
didates, as the ruling
National Democratic
Alliance suffered a set-
back with Union minis-
ter Ram Vilas Paswan’s
LJP deciding to go solo
in the state.
Prime Minister Nar-
endra Modi, Home
Minister Amit Shah,
Defence Minister Ra-
jnath Singh, party Na-
tional President JP Na-
dda, Nitin Gadkari and
Madhya Pradesh CM
Shivraj Singh Chouhan
were present in the
meeting to finalise the
name of the candidates
for the first phase of
Bihar polls.
Earlier in the day,
BJP leaders, including
Home Minister Amit
Shah and Nadda, held
long deliberations
over the unfolding po-
litical situation in the
state where the saffron
party has declared
JD(U) president and
Chief Minister Nitish
Kumar as the leader of
the alliance for the
three-phase polls.
—Agencies
Tejashwi, Tej named in FIR in
murder of ex-RJD leader
Congress workers stage a protest, demanding transfer of Hathras
DM Praveen Kumar Laxkar in Lucknow on Sunday.
GIVE ‘Y’ SECURITY
TO VICTIM’S
FAMILY: BHIM ARMY
VICTIM’S FATHER
FALLS ILL, VISITING
SIT REQUESTS DOC
New Delhi: Bhim Army
chief Chandrashekhar
Azad visited family of
Hathras gang-rape victim
on Sunday and demanded
‘Y’ security cover saying,
“I demand ‘Y security’ for
the family or I’ll take them
to my house, they aren’t
safe here. We want probe
be done under supervision
of a retired Supreme Court
judge.” P5
Hathras: Father of Hathras
woman fell sick on Sun-
day, on a day SIT, visited
their residence to record
statements. The SIT soon
requested a medical team
to check on him. CMO,
Hathras, said SIT had
called for medical team af-
ter the man fell sick. “His
BP and other vitals were
checked, but he was not
tested for coronavirus.”
PM Narendra Modi along with Home Minister Amit Shah during
BJP Central Election Committee meeting, in New Delhi on
Sunday. —PHOTO BY ANI
—PHOTOBYPTI
Aditi Nagar
Moga (Punjab): Con-
gress leader Rahul
Gandhi hit out at the
Centre on Sunday over
the three new agricul-
ture laws, asking why
were the farmers agi-
tating if these were
meant for them.
“PM says laws are be-
ing framed for farmers.
If the laws are being
made for farmers, then
why didn’t you debate
in Lok Sabha and Rajya
Sabha?” Gandhi asked.
“And if farmers are
happy with these laws,
then why are they agi-
tating across the coun-
try? Why is every farm-
er of Punjab agitating?”
Meanwhile, Rahul
can visit Rajasthan in a
few days after his Pun-
jab rallies. Turn on P6
Rahul’s Roar: Cong will revoke
farm laws if voted to power
Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, party’s state chief Sunil Jakhar take part in tractor yatra from
Badhni Kalan to Jattpura as part of the party’s ‘Kheti Bachao Yatra’, in Moga on Sunday. —PHOTO BY ANI
Slams Centre
over farm laws
at Punjab rally

NEWSAHMEDABAD | MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2020
02www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
Haresh Jhala
Rajkot: About one
lakh farmers have
filed their registra-
tions forms for
groundnut procure-
ment by the state gov-
ernment. However, it
has not been smooth
sailing. On Day One
of the registration,
village computer en-
trepreneurs went on
strike, leaving many
farmers in the lurch.
When the state tried
to rope in talatis to fill
the gap left by strik-
ing VCEs, talatis in
Rajkot went on strike
to protest the uncoop-
erative behaviour of
the deputy mamlat-
dar. In Jamnagar, dis-
trict authorities have
had to rope in com-
puter-literate princi-
pals and teachers
from primary schools
to fill online forms for
farmers.
Several APMCs also
halted the procurement
process on Thursday
and Friday after traders
complained that farm-
ers were bringing in
wet groundnut, which
are considerably heavi-
er and thus cause losses
to traders.
APMC market
yards in Saurashtra
finally saw some ac-
tion on Saturday as
trading resumed.
Farmers brought in
about one lakh bags
(weighing 50kg each)
of groundnut for sale.
The crops fetched
Rs600-1,036 per
20kg—considerably
less than the state
government’s mini-
mum support price of
Rs1,055.
Civil Supplies Minis-
ter Jayesh Radadiya
has said that he expects
about five lakh farm-
ers—a slight increase
from last years’ 4.7 lakh
farmers—to get regis-
tered to sell their crops
to the state. The state is
targeting to procure
more than five lakh
tonnes of groundnut.
Avoiding the VCE
strike and hiccups in
the online registra-
tion process, Radadi-
ya said that the state
would not hesitate to
extend the deadline
for registration if
needed. As of now,
the deadline for farm-
ers to get registered is
October 20, since the
state has announced
that it will start pro-
curing groundnut
crops on October 21.
Cotton too has start-
ed flowing into Sau-
rashtra market yards,
which have so far re-
ceived about 2,100
tonnes for trading. The
Botad market yard
alone has seen 900
tonnes as of late Satur-
day evening. Farmers
have been receiving
rates ranging from
Rs680 to Rs1,020 per
20kg of cotton.
Traders predict
that the rain forecast
for the next two to
three days could halt
the inflow of cotton.
This year’s cotton cul-
tivation is 14% lower
than it was last year.
While the state’s cot-
ton-procession capac-
ity is 96 lakh bales,
this year, domestic
production is likely to
be in the vicinity of
80 lakh bales. How-
ever, ginning and
pressing mills will
not face a shortfall of
cotton, since the state
still has around five
lakh bales of raw cot-
ton leftover from last
year’s stock and
neighbouring states
are expected to send
in at least 10-12 lakh
bales for processing.
POLL-WARY BJP TO MEET, ASSESS
SCENARIO, PREPARE CANDIDATES LIST
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: The
Bharatiya Janata
Party’s parliamenta-
ry board is set to meet
on Monday, when it
will assess reports
from party observers
and even private
agencies to get a bet-
ter idea on exactly
where it stands ahead
of the upcoming by-
elections. The meet-
ing will also increase
the pressure on the
BJP’s Gujarat unit
chief CR Patil, who
still seems undecided
on whether to field
party loyalists or
newer members who
recently jumped ship
from the Congress.
In a statement to the
press, the BJP said that
Monday’s meeting will
be chaired by Patil, who
will also play host to
Chief Minister Vijay
Rupani and Deputy
Chief Minister Nitin
Patil who will be special
guests. Union Textile
Minister Smriti Irani
will also be in Gandhi-
nagar on Monday to
meet party leaders, the
statement added.
The party had ap-
pointed two observers
for each of the eight
Assembly seats being
contested in the up-
coming bypolls. These
observers have been
meeting with local
leaders to get on-
ground feedback on
support for Congress
turncoats. Their re-
ports will be dis-
cussed on Monday,
after which the state
parliamentary board
will send a list of pro-
spective nominees to
the party’s national
parliamentary board
for approval.
SourcessaytheBJPis
very likely to give tick-
ets to former Congress
MLA Pradyumansinh
Jadeja for Abdasa,
BrijeshMerjaforMorbi,
JV Kakadia for Dhari,
and Akshay Patel for
Karjan and Jitu Chaud-
hary for Kaprada.
However, there is
still a chance that it
might shortchange
Jadeja and field dis-
trict committee presi-
dent Keshubhai Patel
or Shailendrasinh
Jadeja in Abdasa.
Similarly, former
MLA Kantilal Amri-
tya still has a shot at
the Morbi seat. The
BJP also has several
options—including
Balubhai Tanti, Hiren
Hirpara and Kaushik
Vekariya—for the
Dhari seat. The party
is not keen on former
Congress MLA Soma-
bhai Patel, who had
resigned the Limbdi
Assembly seat in the
run-up to the Rajya
Sabha elections, and
may field seasoned
leader Kiritsinh Rana
for this constituency.
In Karjan, Akshay Pa-
tel is likely to be the
BJP’s sole choice. How-
ever, the Dang seat is
likely to be problematic
for the party. Mangal
Gavit—the former Con-
gress MLA—has not re-
ceived much support
fromwithintheBJPand
his former colleagues in
the Congress will no
doubt fight tooth and
nail to ensure his defeat.
l Party likely
to field two
old guards,
still not clear
if it will keep
promises made
to turncoats
A BJP meeting to chalk out a plan for party programmes. —FILE PHOTO
DECISION TIME
Gargi Raval
Ahmedabad: Working
president of the Guja-
rat Pradesh Congress
Committee Hardik
Patel is confident that
his party’s focus on
local issues will help
it win in all eight con-
stituencies where by-
elections will be con-
tested next month.
The Assembly seats
in question have been
lying vacant since
eight Congress MLAs
resigned in the run-
up to the run-up to
the Rajya Sabha elec-
tions earlier this year.
“This is not a state-
level election, so we are
focusing on local issues
in each constituency.
These are different
from one to the next.
From agricultural is-
sues to roads and street
lights, the needs of peo-
ple in rural and urban
areas are different,” he
told First India.
He said the party
plans to show the peo-
ple in these constitu-
encies that their re-
spective areas can
become models of de-
velopment. He said,
“In Gujarat, only
four major cities see
any development,
while the remaining
areas are always ne-
glected. We want to
show people and want
to give them a model
where even Morbi or
Karjan can become
ideal towns in their
own right.”
Patel said that al-
though the party is con-
fident of winning all
eight seats, it will be
extra careful while de-
ciding its candidates in
these elections. He also
said the party will con-
test the election as a
unified unit.
He then added that
the government un-
der the Bharatiya Ja-
nata Party is ex-
tremely biased. “At a
time when we are all
fighting the novel
coronavirus, BJP
members are blatant-
ly violating social dis-
tancing norms while
the Congress is not
even allowed to pro-
test. We are raising
our voice to give a
platform to public
grievances, but are
not allowed to raise
issues that concern
the people,” he said.
Focused Cong sure of
bypoll win, feels Hardik
Hardik Patel —FILE PHOTO
STATECOTTONHARVESTLIKELYTOBEAROUND80LAKHBALES—14%LESSTHANLASTYEAR
FOR GROUNDNUT PROCUREMENT AT MSP
1L FARMERS REGISTER

GUJARATAHMEDABAD | MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2020
First India Bureau
Patan/Ahmedabad:
Deputy Chief Minis-
ter Nitin Patel joined
irate citizens to re-
buke Deesa MLA Sha-
shikant Pandya on
his public procession
on Saturday, in which
hundreds of people
participated—most
without masks.
“People have great
expectations from
their representatives.
People’s representa-
tives are expected to
behave in manner that
sets an example in so-
ciety. No one should
take COVID-19 proto-
cols for granted. Satur-
daday’s events in Dee-
sa were the result of
over-excitement and
should not have hap-
pened,” Patel said on
Sunday.
Pandya’s procession
had followed the laying
of the foundation stone
for a district road in
Deesa’s Dedol village.
Images from the event
had shown no concern
for social distancing
and few masks. In addi-
tion, popular Gujarati
folk singer Kinjal
Dave—who has been
asking the public to fol-
low COVID-19 protocols
on behalf of the govern-
ment—had also partici-
pated in the event.
Pandya has defended
the procession, on the
excuse that he was visit-
ing a temple.
Despite his com-
ments, Patel did not ad-
dress the question of
whether the local ad-
ministration would be
instructed to take ac-
tion against the sitting
MLA, or even if the
party would ask him for
an explanation.
Insiders say it is a
Catch-22 situation for
the party. Had it de-
fended Pandya, the
party would have
come under criticism.
Had any party leaders
criticized Pandya,
they would have had
to face uncomfortable
questions regarding
the Saurashtra and
North Gujarat tours
by the BJP’s state unit
president CR Patil.
However, netizens
were not so forgiving—
especially since they are
likely to have to forego
the customary Navratri
festivities this year.
One Twitter user,
who goes by the handle
@Dhruwillsm stated:
“Thousands of people
gathered for BJP Neta
Shashikant Pandya’s
birthday celebrations.
Are politicians are
above law? If this ac-
ceptable, then what is
wrong with Garba?”
Another user RJ De-
sai, who tweets at @
DESAIRjd demanded
that Pandya be arrest-
ed. He wrote, “Arrest
Shashikant Pandya
and Kinjal Dave for cre-
ating a threat to doc-
tors’ and nurses’ lives.”
Meanwhile, Nehal
Shah (@nehal1111) said,
“The robust efforts
made by you (Narendra
Modi and Vijay Rupani)
are going in vain due to
Shashikant Pandya
from your own team in
Gujarat. Strong disci-
plinary action is re-
quired. Together, all of
us can beat #COVID19.”
It is to be noted that,
a few days ago, netizens
demanded a fine from
Ahmedabad Mayor Bi-
jal Patel who was seen
without a mask when
she attended a general
board meeting amid
more than 100 people.
People’s representatives should act with responsibility: DyCM Nitin Patel
MAJOR BACKLASH
Shashikant Pandya and Gujarati singer Kinjal Dave, surrounded by a sea of people. —FILE PHOTO
Furious netizens took to social media to
lambast Deesa MLA Shashikant Pandya for his
public procession that ignored nCoV guidelines
ThecaseswerereportedinMahisagar,ChhotaUdepurandVadodara;StateWomen’sCommissionhassoughtareport
First India Bureau
Vadodara: Three rape
cases have been regis-
tered at three differ-
ent police stations in
Central Gujarat.
In the first case, San-
trampura police arrest-
ed two persons in con-
nection with a gang
rape, in which the ac-
cused were allegedly
also blackmailing the
victim.
According to the
complaint lodged at the
Santrampur Police Sta-
tion, the accused main
accused lured the vic-
tim to his house, where
he clicked compromis-
ing photographs, which
he then used these pho-
tos to blackmail her and
rape her. His friend also
took advantage of the
victim. When she at-
tempted to get back at
him, they threatened to
kill her children and
raped her. Finally, the
victim gathered enough
courage to file a crimi-
nal complaint and po-
lice arrested both the
accused.
Leelaben Ankoliya
of the State Women’s
Commission has
sought a report from
the Mahisagar district
superintendent of po-
lice in this regard.
In another incident, a
woman lodged a com-
plaint against Dhruv
Kamaliya and his par-
ents at the Bodeli police
station in Chhota Udep-
ur district. In her com-
plaint, she said that she
came into contact with
and became friends the
accused Dhruv via so-
cial media. One day, he
invited her to his resi-
dence and raped her.
She alleges that his par-
ents did not protect her
even though they were
in the house at the time
of the incident. Dhruv
is then tried to pressure
the victim into a rela-
tionship. When she re-
fused, he hacked her
Facebook page and up-
loaded her nude photos.
She said she deleted the
pictures as soon as she
discovered them, and
filed a criminal com-
plaint with the police
on Saturday.
The third case
emerged from Va-
dodara’s taluka police
station on Sunday
morning. A woman has
accused one Abhishek
Thakkar of forcing
himself on her against
her wishes multiple
times. She has alleged
that Thakkar had estab-
lished a physical rela-
tionship with her after
promising to marry her.
However, on September
13, he threw her out of
the house that they had
shared for two years.
Black Sunday: Central Gujarat
sees 3 rape cases in 24 hours
3 arrested for gang rape of
a 17-year-old in Jamnagar
40% posts vacant
in fire department
State data says just 9 deaths in 24
hrs,local info tells a different story
First India Bureau
Jamnagar: Taking
swift action, the
Jamnagar police
arrested three per-
sons for the gang
rape of a minor.
One accomplice is
still absconding.
The Deputy Super-
intendent of Police
AP Jadeja told the
mediaonSunday,that
the 17-year-old victim
was in a relationship
with one of the ac-
cused, who lured her
to the city’s Ma-
hadevnagar area on
September 28. There,
she was allegedly
drugged and raped by
the four accused
while sedated.
The four then fled.
The victim and her
family approached
the Jamnagar C-divi-
sion police station
and lodged a crimi-
nal complaint
against four accused
on October 2. The girl
was admitted at the
civil hospital for a
medical check-up,
and the police swung
into action. They ar-
rested three of the
accused late on Sat-
urday night. The vic-
tim confirmed that
the three men appre-
hended had raped
her, DSP Jadeja said.
The complaint is
lodged under section
4, 5, and 6 of the POC-
SO act, and IPC sec-
tion 376. A woman
Inspector is investi-
gating the case. Po-
lice have formed four
teams to hunt for and
arrest the fourth ac-
cused.
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: As
many as 40% of posts
are vacant in fire de-
partments across the
state, says Gujarat
Pradesh Congress
Committee’s chief
spokesperson, Man-
ish Doshi. He alleged
that the High Court’s
directions were not
followed by the state
government, which
recently issued noti-
fications stating that
all municipal corpo-
rations will fall with-
in the purview of The
Gujarat Fire Preven-
tion and Life Safety
Measures Act, 2013.
Doshi further al-
leged that the eight ma-
jor cities of the state
are not well-equipped
to handle fire out-
breaks. “The existing
fire system and staff
cannot save all people
if a major fire takes
place in the state. Main-
ly the fire services
across the state are
running with less man-
power. Around 40% of
posts are vacant at dif-
ferent fire offices,” he
said.
“In a so called devel-
oped state like Gujarat,
around 170 municipali-
ties do not have basic
fire systems. It is also
said that the govern-
ment’s announcement
for the safety and fire
regulations are only on
paper, and are very dis-
tant from the ground
reality,” he added.
Citing the example
of the Ahmedabad Mu-
nicipal Corporation,
Doshi said that the civ-
ic body’s data itself in-
dicates the grieving
reality of fire services.
“The ratio of fire-
man per population is
not maintained here.
The city might have a
population around 7 to
8 million and the city
has expanded its limit
every five years, but
there has not been an
upgrade in the fire ser-
vices,” he further said.
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: In yet
another example of
the state’s clever data
management, the
health department
bulletin on Sunday
said there are been
just nine deaths—the
lowest single-day fa-
talities so far—across
the state. However,
seven persons were
buried or cremated in
keeping with COV-
ID-19 protocols in Ra-
jkot alone, according
to local dailies there.
They say the govern-
ment’s tactic of not
counting comorbid
deaths in the list
COVID-19 fatalities
has again resulted in
fudged numbers.
According to one
analysis, the state has a
fatality rate of is 2.5%—
the third highest in the
nation after Punjab
(3%) and Maharashtra
(2.6%). The state health
bulletin says that, till
date, 3,499 patients have
died due to COVID-19.
In the past 24 hours,
the state government
has tested 56,700 sam-
ples, of which 1,302
came back positive.
There are now 16,386 ac-
tive cases with 87 pa-
tients on ventilators.
Surat accounted for
four of the nine deaths
on Sunday, while
Ahmedabad had thee
and Rajkot and Va-
dodara had one each,
the bulletin said.
Surat reported
the highest cases with
283—181 in the city and
102 from rural areas.
Vadodara saw another
133 cases emerge on
Sunday, and Rajkot saw
152 cases.
Fresh cases were
also reported in
Ahmedabad (201), Jam-
nagar (92), Gandhina-
gar (60), Mehsana (53),
Junagadh (33), Bhavna-
gar (31), Amreli (23),
Bharuch (22) and Pa-
tan (22).
IN
PROTEST
NSUI members held
a protest against
Education Minister
Bhupendrasinh
Chudasama and
the government’s
decision to waive 25%
of school fees this
year, at Hatkeshwar
Crossroads in
Ahmedabad on
Sunday.
—PHOTO BY
HANIF SINDHI
WILDLIFE BIOLOGY AMONG 12 NEW COURSES AT GU
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: Gujarat
University on Satur-
day decided to intro-
duce Wildlife Biology
and Cyber Security as
well as 10 other new
courses this academic
year.
The university will
also issue special certifi-
cates in research, pat-
ents, and publications to
its staff and professors.
It has also been de-
cided to set up a Gujarat
University Online
Teaching and Learning
and Communication
Centre. Courses on nat-
ural farming, farmer
training, supply chain
management, and value
addition will be intro-
duced. Chancellor
Himanshu Pandya,
Vice-Chancellor Dr Jag-
dish Bhavsar, the Regis-
trar and Syndicate
members attended Sat-
urday’s meeting.
The Congress says the state does not care about ﬁre safety.
The victim has identiﬁed three of her assailants.
1,302 cases, nine
deaths take state tally
to 1,42,700 cases and
death toll to 3,499
A health worker sanitizes a hearse. —FILE PHOTO
—FILE PHOTO

G Vol 1 G Issue No. 310 G RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208. Printed and published by Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of First Express Publishers. Printed at Bhaskar Printing Planet Survey No.148P, Changodar-Bavla Highway, Tal. Sanand, Dist. Ahmedabad.
Published at D/302 3rd Floor Plot No. 35 Titanium Square, Scheme No. 2, Thaltej Taluka, Ghatlodiya, Ahmedabad. Editor-In-Chief: Jagdeesh Chandra. Editor: Anita Hada Sangwan responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act
PERSPECTIVEAHMEDABAD | MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2020
hereas Nero fa-
mously fiddled
while Rome
burned,USPres-
ident Donald
Trump has famously hit the
links at his money-losing
golf courses while Califor-
niaburns–andasmorethan
200,000Americanshavedied
of COVID-19 – for which he
himself has now tested posi-
tive. Like Nero, Trump will
undoubtedlyberemembered
as an exceptionally cruel,
inhumane,andpossiblymad
political figure.
Until recently, most peo-
ple around the world had
been exposed to this Ameri-
can tragedy in small doses,
through short clips of
Trump spouting lies and
nonsense on the evening
news or social media. But
in late September, tens of
millions of people endured
a90-minutespectacle,billed
as a presidential “debate,”
in which Trump demon-
strated unequivocally that
he is not presidential – and
why so many people ques-
tion his mental health.
To be sure, over the past
four years, the world has
watched this pathological
liar set new records – log-
ging some 20,000 falsehoods
or misleading statements
as of mid-July, by the Wash-
ington Post’s count. What
kind of debate can there be
when one of the two candi-
dates has no credibility, and
is not even there to debate?
When asked about the re-
cent New York Times ex-
posé showing that he had
paid just $750 in US federal
income tax in 2016 and 2017
– and nothing for many
years before that – Trump
hesitated and then claimed
without evidence that he
hadpaid“millions.”Hewas
clearly offering whatever
answer he thought would
movethingsalongtoamore
comfortable topic, and
there is no good reason why
anyone should believe him.
Even more disturbing
was his refusal to denounce
white supremacists and
violent extremist groups
like the Proud Boys, whom
he instructed to “stand
back and stand by.” Com-
bined with his refusal to
commit to a peaceful tran-
sition of power and persis-
tent efforts to delegitimize
thevotingprocess,Trump’s
behavior in the run-up to
the election has increas-
ingly posed a direct threat
to American democracy.
When I was a child grow-
ing up in Gary, Indiana, we
learned about the virtues of
the US Constitution – from
the independent judiciary
and the separation of pow-
ers to the importance of
properly functioning checks
and balances. Our forefa-
thers appeared to have cre-
ated a set of great institu-
tions (though they were also
guiltyof hypocrisyindeclar-
ing that all people are creat-
ed equal so long as they are
not women or people of
color). When I served as
chief economistattheWorld
Bank in the late 1990s, we
would travel the world lec-
turing others about good
governanceandgoodinstitu-
tions, and the United States
was often held up as the ex-
emplar of these concepts.
Not anymore. Trump and
his fellow Republicans have
cast a shadow on the Ameri-
can project, reminding us
justhowfragile–somemight
say flawed – our institutions
andconstitutionalorderare.
Weareacountryof laws,but
it is the political norms that
make the system work.
Norms are flexible, but they
are also fragile. George
Washington, America’s first
president, decided that he
would serve only two terms,
andthatcreatedanormthat
would not be broken until
the presidency of Franklin
D. Roosevelt. After that, a
constitutional amendment
codified the two-term limit.
Over the past four years,
Trump and his fellow Re-
publicans have taken
norm-shattering to a new
level, disgracing them-
selves and undermining
the institutions they are
supposed to defend. As a
candidate in 2016, Trump
refused to release his tax
returns. And while in of-
fice, he has fired inspectors
general for doing their jobs,
repeatedly ignored con-
flicts of interest and prof-
ited from his office, under-
mined independent scien-
tists and critical agencies,
attempted outright voter
suppression, and extorted
foreign governments in an
effort to defame his politi-
cal opponents.
SOURCE: PROJECT SYNDICATE
The Republican threat to the republic
W
Those who cannot renounce
attachment to the results of
their work are far from the
path. —Bhagavad Gita
Spiritual
SPEAK
Top
TWEET
Piyush Goyal
@PiyushGoyal
Now, time taken to travel from
Phoolbagan to Salt Lake Sector-5
by Metro will only be 16 minutes,
as against more than 1 hour taken
by road. Movement from one part
of Kolkata to another is now going
to be faster & convenient with
enhanced connectivity.
Adhir Chowdhury
@adhirrcinc
Modi ji used to remain Vocal in
each and every issue from Local
to Global but still remains mute
on the heart wrenching incident
of Hathras, What is happened
to u Modi ji? Where is your
“Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikash Sabka
Viswash?” Hypocracy has been
exposed after Hathras.
hile the global community
was glued to the Eastern
Ladakh and the South China
Sea as flashpoints that may
endanger global peace due to
growingChinesebelligerence
because of the dissension at
home faced by the all-power-
ful Xi Jinping, another flash-
point has emerged in the Cau-
casus region. This region lies
between the Black Sea and
the Caspian Sea mainly occu-
pied by Armenia, Azerbaijan,
Georgia, and parts of south-
ern Russia. The region is the
lifeline of oil supply to the
neighbouring countries with
the major oil pipelines pass-
ing through the area. It also
serves as the border between
Asia and Europe.
On Sunday, 27th September
2020 a long-simmering con-
flict in the south Caucasus
once again burst into open
clashes between Azerbaijan
and Armenia. The cause of
the ongoing battle which soon
may erupt into an all-out war
since both nations have de-
clared martial law is the dis-
puted enclave of Nagorno-
Karabakh, the control of
which was ceded to Armenia
in 1994 after a bloody separa-
tist conflict leading to a large
number of deaths and dis-
placements. Universally, Na-
gorno-Karabakh is accepted
as part of Azerbaijan. Both
countries have been fighting
each other since then at ir-
regular intervals. The latest
provocationdatesbacktoJuly
this year when Armenia
killed a general and other of-
ficers of Azerbaijan’s mili-
taryinamissilestrikeleading
to a big uproar in Azerbaijan
which swore to take revenge
soon. Azerbaijan was buoyed
by the immediate Turkish of-
fertopreparefortheresponse.
Nagorno-Karabakh proper
has an area of about 4,400
square kilometers (1,700
square miles) — but Arme-
nian forces occupy large
swaths of adjacent territory.
Long-simmering tensions
between majority Christian
Armenians seeking union
with Armenia and mostly
Muslim Azeris began boiling
over as the Soviet Union be-
gan to disintegrate in its final
years. USSR collapsed in 1991
and the republics became in-
dependentnations.Inlate1991
majority of Armenian inhab-
itants declared independence
from Azerbaijan with Arme-
nia’s support. It led to the
emergence of the Republic of
Artsakh, which to date re-
mains unrecognised. The ef-
forts of Azerbaijan to reim-
poseitsauthorityledtoafight
for ownership converting into
the bloodiest war between the
two neighbours. The war saw
atrocitiesonbothsides.A1994
cease-fire left Armenian and
Azerbaijaniforcesfacingeach
other across a demilitarized
zone, where clashes are fre-
quently reported. The region
has since been under the con-
trol of Armenian forces,
though it is still internation-
ally recognised as part of
Azerbaijan, as stated earlier.
International mediation in-
cluding UN resolutions have
failed to resolve the crisis.
The new flashpoint has one
thing in common to the other
two and that is the expansion-
ist ambitions of another ul-
tra-nationalist leader the
Turkish President Recep
Tayyip Erdogan who ever
since his ascendancy to pow-
er has embroiled Turkey mil-
itarily in neighbouring coun-
tries like Iraq, Syria, and
Libya including tensions in
EasternMediterranean.Heis
on the opposite side of Russia
in both Syria and Libya lead-
ingtoregionalrivalry.Turkey
is also pressing territorial
claims in disputes with
Greece and Cyprus thus cre-
ating an alarm among its
NATO allies. Turkey has a
powerful military which has
also led Erdogan to view him-
self as the future leader of
Muslim world displacing the
traditional royal house of
Saud like Xi Jinping who is
dreamingtobetheworldlead-
erreplacingtheUSpresident?
He is also preparing a non-
Arab Muslim alliance with
theactiveconnivanceof Paki-
stan. Erdogan’s growing as-
sertiveness in the region has
changed its power dynamics.
While all other nations like
India, China, USA, France,
Iran, and European Union
have asked both countries to
refrainfromafull-fledgedwar
and return to the negotiating
table to resolve the issue
through dialogue, Turkey and
Pakistan have offered open
support to Azerbaijan and
egged it to carry on to liberate
the disputed enclave from Ar-
menian control. French Presi-
dent Macron has warned Tur-
key to refrain from sending
Jihadists as mercenaries to
the troubled area. It has also
been reported that Pakistan
has already sent Al Qaeda and
Taliban jihadists to the area
along with about one unit of
regular soldiers. Pakistan
known as the fountainhead of
terror wants to convert this
region into another epicenter
of jihadist terror like Afghan-
istan. This has caused grave
concernsincetheareahasthe
potential of turning into a re-
ligious conflict between the
Muslims and the Christians.
The majority jihadists being
Sunnis are willing to fight
alongside the Shiite Azeris
against Armenians because
they consider it as jihad, a
holy war between the Mus-
limsandtheChristians.While
the Vatican has also called for
restraint both Pakistan and
TurkeyareencouragingAzer-
baijan to continue the fight
and expressed their solidarity
towards the Muslim brother-
hood. Pakistan is also keen to
develop the area into another
zoneof Muslimliberationlike
Palestine and Kashmir. Does
thishavethecovertsupportof
China is not yet clear but both
Turkey and Pakistan enjoy
goodrelationswitheachother.
Geo politics of the region is
very complicated. Turkey and
Pakistan have military alli-
ances with Azerbaijan, while
Armenia has a similar treaty
with Russia which has a mili-
tary base in Armenia. Russia
alsoenjoysgoodrelationswith
Azerbaijan and is its major
arms supplier. Russia, France,
and the USA jointly chair the
Minsk Group, which was
founded in 1992 by the Confer-
ence on Security and Coopera-
tioninEuropeisnowknownas
the Organization for Security
and Cooperation in Europe
(OSCE)totrytofindapeaceful
solution to the Nagorno-Kara-
bakhconflict.Allthreenations
enjoy close relations with Ar-
menia.Turkeyisanimportant
member of the NATO, an im-
minent crack has appeared
with France and USA inclined
towards Armenia. Armenia
hasalsorespondedtothepeace
called by the Minsk Group but
Azerbaijan’s response is not
yet known. Israel is a major
arms supplier to Azerbaijan
but with Turkey openly sup-
porting Azerbaijan and its
newly formed good relations
with Muslim nations in the
MiddleEast,ithasputIsraelin
a Catch 22 situation. Iran
shares borders with both and
is also friendly with both the
nations but in case of a reli-
gious war it would have to de-
cide to support Azerbaijan or
stayneutral.Withglobalterror
outfits moving into the area
and more Muslim countries
backing Azerbaijan the situa-
tion is getting polarised. India
also has a stake in the region.
The North-South Corridor
linkingMumbaitoMoscowvia
Chabahar passes through
Azerbaijan. India will not like
the region to become another
jihadist terror hub.
Azerbaijan is reported to
have initiated the current
clashes with the full support
of Turkey. The fear is that
Azerbaijanisnowbentontak-
ing back the entire enclave
sensing it as the best opportu-
nity to undo the wrongs of
1990-1994. This is a more seri-
ous escalation, much better
prepared, with more troops,
and happening simultane-
ously on all parts of the front
line. In addition to heavy
weaponry and infantry, heli-
copters and drones are being
employed extensively. The
clashes threaten to spill over
into civilian areas. Outright
war could put key pipelines at
risk. Armenia has termed it
as an existential threat noth-
ing less than a struggle for
survival and linked it to 1915
ArmeniangenocidebytheOt-
toman Empire especially in
wakeof theTurkey’sunequiv-
ocal support for Azerbaijan.
Thus, both sides appear to be
uncompromising though Ar-
menia has responded to the
call of the Minsk Group.
Any direct involvement by
Turkey will push Russia also
into the war. France has al-
ready warned Turkey. Arme-
nia fears a direct assault
through Nakhichevan, a part
of Azerbaijan inside the Ar-
menian territory. Any direct
attack on Armenian territory
would invoke its defence pact
with Russia and draw the
same into the conflict. In case
of the Muslim versus Chris-
tian war, many more coun-
tries including the EU are
likely to join splitting NATO.
This would have repercus-
sions beyond the region as
well. If China decides to join
its friends Pakistan and Tur-
key,wellmayleadtotheThird
World War. But with China
tied down in a confrontation
withIndiaandUS-backedTai-
wan, it is less likely.
The success of efforts of
the UN and the Minsk Group
to broker a ceasefire will to a
large extent depend on the at-
titude of Erdogan. In any
case, a ceasefire would only
be a temporary solution with
both sides unwilling for a
compromise solution. The in-
ternational community will
have to wait anxiously and
watch the happenings of the
next two-three weeks to deter-
mine if 2020 will end peace-
fully or not. World peace is on
the verge of destabilisation.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
CAUCASUS ON THE BOIL AGAIN
BATTLE OF NAGORNO-KARABAKH
W
On Sunday, 27th
September 2020 a
long-simmering
conflict in the south
Caucasus once
again burst into
open clashes
between Azerbaijan
and Armenia. The
cause of the
ongoing battle
which soon may
erupt into an all-
out war since both
nations have
declared martial
law is the disputed
enclave of Nagorno-
Karabakh, the
control of which
was ceded to
Armenia in 1994
after a bloody
separatist conflict
leading to a large
number of deaths
and displacements.
BRIG VETERAN
ANIL GUPTA
The author is a Jammu
based veteran, political
commentator, columnist, security
and strategic analyst

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INDIAAHMEDABAD | MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2020
1 KILLED, 3 INJURED IN LANDSLIDE
AT TAFIL VILLAGE OF SIKKIM
Gangtok: At least one
person was killed and
three others were injured
after heavy rains triggered
a landslide at Tafil village
in West Sikkim district, an
official said on Sunday.
Personnel of the National
Disaster Response Force
(NDRF), State Disaster
Response Force (SDRF)
and police conducted
rescue operations to trace
a person who is still miss-
ing after Friday’s land-
slide, Block Development
Officer Ranjan Raj said.
Initially two persons were
missing but the rescuers
could pull out the body
of 62-year-old Narmith
Lepcha from under the
debris, the official said.
The injured have been
referred to Namchi district
hospital in South Sikkim.
J&K: PANCHAYATS TO BE NEW
MODEL OF EQUITABLE GROWTH
Bandipora: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha
said that Panchayats in J&K will be a new model
of equitable development and growth. “I want
the socio-economic growth of J-K to become an
example, a benchmark, for other states of the
country. It is my promise, and I will work day and
night to ensure that J-K becomes a shining ex-
ample of equitable growth,” Sinha said as per the
tweet by Department of Information and Public
Relations (DIPR), J-K. No hollow announcements
will deliver what I promise,” he said.
BJP TO PROTEST AGAINST TMC
GOVERNMENT IN BENGAL TODAY
Kolkata: West Bengal BJP
president Dilip Ghosh
said it will “gherao” block
development offices in
10 districts on Monday in
protest against the “cor-
ruption” of ruling TMC in
distribution of relief ma-
terials to those affected
by cyclone Amphan.
“None other than the
TMC supremo and Chief
Minister Mamata Baner-
jee admitted there was
corruption in distribution
of relief materials. But, is
mere admission enough?
Taking disciplinary ac-
tion against the corrupt
partymen will not change
the condition of the poor
cyclone-hit villagers as
well,” he said. Thousands
of BJP activists will
demonstrate outside BDO
offices in 160 blocks.
J’KHAND: MAN RAPES 7-YEAR-OLD
IN SEARCH ON TO ARREST HIM
Ranchi: A case has been filed after a man
raped a seven-year-old girl near Sukhdev Nagar
area in Ranchi, the police said while informing
about the horrific incident. Superintendent of
Police of Ranchi Saurabh said the police have
registered the case under relevant sections of
the Indian Penal Code and the under Protection
of Children from Sexual Offences Act. The SP
further added that the accused is missing and
raids are being conducted at variopus places in
the city to arrest him.
New Delhi/ Hathras:
Bhim Army Chief
Chandrashekhar Azad
met the family of the
20-year-old woman
who died in Delhi after
alleged gang rape and
torture in UP’s Hath-
ras. The Bhim Army
chief marched for
about five km after he
was stopped by the po-
lice for the first time
when he was on his
way. He was stopped
again when he entered
Hathras and was told
“not all the people ac-
companying him could
go along”.
Demanding Y-Plus
category security for
the family, Chan-
drashekar Azad this
evening said: “When
Kangana Ranaut can
be given Y-plus securi-
ty, meetings are being
held to back the ac-
cused... I demand that
the government ar-
ranges Y-Plus category
security for the vic-
tim’s family. We have
all seen that the CBI
follows the govern-
ment’s orders.”
“Under present lead-
ership, the CBI is being
used only to scare peo-
ple. We want a probe
monitored by a retired
SC judge,” he added.
BHIM ARMY CHIEF, STOPPED
TWICE, MEETS VICTIM’S FAMILY“We want a probe monitored by a retired Supreme Court judge,” Chandrashekhar Azad said
I demand ‘Y security’ for the family or I will take them to
my house, they are not safe here. If actor Kangna Ranaut
can get a Y level security, why can’t they? We also want an
inquiry to be done under the supervision of a retired Su-
preme Court judge. —Chandrashekhar Azad, Bhim Army Chief
HATHRAS INCIDENT
When Kangana Ranaut can be given Y-plus security, meetings are being held to back the
accused...,” Bhim Army Chief Chandrashekhar Azad said.
MAYAWATI SLAMS UP GOVT
OVER ‘MYSTERIOUS SILENCE’
UP GOVT SUBVERTED JUSTICE;
SUGGESTED CBI PROBE: KARAT
‘RAPE CAN BE STOPPED WITH SANSKAR’
Lucknow: Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief
Mayawati on Sunday hit out at the Uttar Pradesh
Government over its
“mysterious silence” on
the Hathras incident as the
victim’s family has made
several serious allegations
of intimidation against the
District Magistrate. “The
victim family of Hathras
gang rape case has made
many serious allegations
of intimidation etc. against the DM. Neverthe-
less, the mysterious silence of the Uttar Pradesh
government is sad and very worrying,” Mayawati
tweeted (translated from Hindi). She further raised
apprehension over a fair probe into the matter in
presence of the District Magistrate.
New Delhi: CPI (M) Polit Bureau member Brinda
Karat alleged that the Uttar Pradesh government
“subverted justice” in the
Hathras incident and then
recommended a probe by
the CBI into the matter.
“They (UP government)
have subverted justice in
this case. Now, they have
given it to the CBI. What is
the credibility of the entire
investigation? I think it is
extremely important that it should be a court-mon-
itored investigation,” Karat said over the Hathras
incident. Speaking about the Allahabad HC’s stand
in the case, she said. UP government does not
want to serve justice to victim’s family, she said.
Ballia: Amid massive outrage over the alleged gang rape of a 20-year-old
woman from Uttar Pradesh’s Hathras, who died in Delhi on Tuesday, a BJP MLA
from UP’s Ballia has said: “It’s the duty of all mothers and fathers to imbibe
good values in their daughters and bring them up in cultured environments.”
“I am a teacher along with being an MLA. Such incidents (like rape) can be
stopped only with sanskar (culture), not with shasan (good governance) or tal-
war (referring to sword or might),” the BJP’s Surendra Singh said on Saturday.
New Delhi: For the
first time in its history,
the annual conference
of the country’s top po-
lice brass will be held
virtually next month
amid the coronavirus
pandemic, officials said
on Sunday.
About 250 officers in
the rank of DGP and
IGP from all states, Un-
ion Territories and
Centre will take part in
the two-day virtual
meeting to be attended
by Prime Minister Nar-
endra Modi, Union
Home Minister Amit
Shah, NSA Ajit Doval
among others.
The key role played
by police during a disas-
ter and pandemic, new-
age crimes like cyber
terrorism, radicalisa-
tion of the youth and
the Pakistan-sponsored
militants in Jammu
and Kashmir will be
discussed during the
conference, to be held in
multiple sessions, a Un-
ion Home ministry of-
ficial told PTI.
The conference will
be held in the last week
of November, the offi-
cial said.
As the role of police
during the ongoing
pandemic came under
praise from all quar-
ters, the meeting is ex-
pected to discuss how
to enhance their
knowledge and capa-
bilities to handle natu-
ral disasters and such
health crisis, the offi-
cial said.
The state police
chiefs will share their
experiences in han-
dling the pandemic and
how the police have
helped the distressed
people and the migrant
workers during the na-
tionwide lockdown.
The prime minister
is likely to make special
mention about the ex-
emplary work done by
the police personnel
while fighting the coro-
navirus, the official
said. —PTI
7th India-China
military commanders’
meet on October 12
New Delhi: The sev-
enth round of Corps
Commander-level talks
between armies of In-
dia and China is expect-
ed to be held on October
12 with a specific agen-
da of firming up a road-
map for disengagement
of troops from the fric-
tion points in eastern
Ladakh, people familiar
with the developments
said on Sunday.
At the talks, the two
sides are also expected
tolookintofurthersteps
to maintain stability on
the ground and avoid
anyactionthatmaytrig-
ger fresh tension in the
region where troops
from both sides will be
facing difficult condi-
tions in the next four
months due to harsh
winters, they said.
Following the last
round of military talks
on Sept 21, the two sides
announced a slew of de-
cisions including not to
send more troops to the
frontline. —ANI
Panaji: Union Minister
Prakash Javadekar on
Sunday alleged that par-
ties opposing the newly
enacted farm laws were
acting as “middlemen
for middlemen”.
Talking to reporters
on the second day of his
visit to Goa as part of
the ruling BJP’s initia-
tive to create awareness
about the farm laws,
Prakash Javadekar said
the actual situation is
that farmers earn less
for their products and
customers have to buy
it at higher rates.
The middlemen hike
the prices and the farm
laws deal with this prob-
lem by eradicating these
middlemen, he said.
“Sometimes I feel the
opposition parties have
become middlemen for
middlemen,” he alleged.
Claiming that the agi-
tation against farm laws
will die out on its own,
theministersaid,“False-
hood has limited life
whiletruthlivesforever.”
“Congress and NCP
launched their cam-
paign to protest against
the farm bills. I am go-
ing to ask them to look
at their manifesto. For-
mer prime minister
Manmohan Singh has
spoken about such (ag-
ricultural) reforms in
his speeches. But, the
Congress has now done
a u-turn,” he said.
He alleged that the
opposition parties were
spreading a “myth”
that APMCs (agricul-
ture produce market
committees) will be
shut down under the
new laws, and the gov-
ernment will stop pur-
chasing the produce or
the MSP would be
stopped. “All these are
lies,” Prakash Ja-
vadekar said.—PTI
Middleman for Middleman:
Javadekar to Opposition
Dhakad
moves SC
over agri laws
New Delhi: After sev-
eralpoliticiansknocked
the doors of SC chal-
lenging the constitu-
tional validity of the
three new agriculture
sector reform laws, the
farmer leader from
Madhya Pradesh DP
Dhakad has also ap-
proached the top court
against the Acts.
The petition said that
the Farmers’ Agree-
ment of Price Assur-
ance and Farm Services
Act, 2020, the Farmers’
Produce Trade and
Commerce Act, 2020,
and the Essential Com-
modities Act 2020, are
‘discriminatory and
manifestly arbitrary’
and will expose mar-
ginal farmers to exploi-
tation by big corpo-
rates. The Acts are an
attempt to invade into
lawmaking territory of
State governments,
stated the plea. —ANI
‘File FIR if over100
assemble in rallies’
Gwalior: The Gwalior
bench of the Madhya
Pradesh High Court has
allowed registration of
an FIR against a politi-
cal party by anyone if
more than 100 people
assemble in any elec-
tion rally.
The court’s direc-
tions come ahead of the
Assembly by-polls
which are scheduled to
be held in the State.
It was hearing a Pub-
lic Interest Litigation
(PIL), filed by advocate
Ashish Pratap Singh,
which sought a ban on
political events in the
State in the wake of
Covid-19 pandemic. The
Gwalior Bench of the
Madhya Pradesh HC
had earlier issued no-
tices to the Chief Secre-
tary, District Collector
and Superintendent of
Police and asked them
to submit replies by
September 28.
The HC had also ap-
pointed three lawyers
as Nyaya Mitras to keep
a watch on the political
activities in the state
and in case of any
breach of protocol, they
would have to report
the matter to the court
through its registrar.
Advocate Ashish
Pratap Singh, who had
filed the PIL on Septem-
ber 11, said the political
parties were holding
rallies, which attracted
huge crowds, increas-
ing the risk of disease
spread.—Agencies
PM, Shah to
attend virtual
DGP, IGP meet
Prakash Javadekar speaks to media during his Goa visit.
Narendra Modi Amit Shah
LADAKH STANDOFF

New Delhi: Seeking to
make the procedure to
opt for postal ballot
more convenient for
those above 80 years of
age and people with dis-
abilities, the Election
Commission has come
out with a set of new
instructions.
The form required to
opt for the postal ballot
would be delivered at
the residence of all
those above 80 years of
age and people with dis-
abilities by the booth
level officer under his
polling station.
It would be up to
these two category of
voters to opt for postal
ballot.
“If he/she opts for
postal ballot, then the
BLO will collect the
filled-in form 12-D
from the house of the
elector within five
days of the notifica-
tion and deposit it with
the returning officer
forthwith,” according
to the October 3 letter
sent by EC to all state
chief electoral officers.
These instructions
have been issued based
on the feedback the poll
panel received from
civil society and media
during its visit to poll-
bound Bihar last week.
The Election Com-
mission said the fresh
instructions would be
applicable to all elec-
tions and by-elections,
including the bypolls
announced last week to
56 assembly and one
Lok Sabha seat.
INDIAAHMEDABAD | MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2020
Rahul’s roars...
Addressing a public
meeting in Badhni Ka-
lan in Punjab’s Moga
district, Gandhi assert-
ed that the contentious
Acts would be revoked
if the Congress was vot-
ed to power. He won-
dered what was the
“hurry” and need to im-
plement these legisla-
tions amid the coronavi-
rus pandemic. Earlier,
Gandhi arrived in Moga
for leading tractor ral-
liesacrossthestatefrom
Sunday till Tuesday in
protest against the laws.
Chief Minister Ama-
rinder Singh, Finance
Minister Manpreet Sin-
gh Badal, state Congress
president Sunil Jakhar,
party’s Punjab incharge
Harish Rawat and other
leaders were present.
Former minister and
MLA Navjot Singh Sid-
hu, who had been stay-
ing away from all Con-
gress activities,was also
seen at the public meet-
ing. The tractor rallies,
which have been named
as ‘Kheti Bachao Yatra’,
will cover more than 50
km over three days. —PTI
LJP won’t...
the leadership of Nitish
Kumar. As such, the
LJP resolution makes
the party’s break up
with the NDA in the
state inevitable.
LJP will not be con-
testing the upcoming
Bihar elections in alli-
ance with Janata Dal
(United) due to ideologi-
cal differences, an-
nounced its National
General Secretary Ab-
dul Khaliq on Sunday.
“At the national level
and during Lok Sabha
elections, BJP and LJP
have a strong alliance.
Owing to ideological dif-
ferences at the state and
alliance level with JDU,
LJP has decided to con-
test elections separate
from the alliance. There
could be ideological dif-
ferences with JDU on
several seats so that the
public can decide which
candidate is better for
Bihar’s interest,” said a
statement by Khaliq, re-
leased soon after the
party’s Central Parlia-
mentaryBoardmeeting.
“There is no bitter-
ness between LJP and
BJP. After the election
results, all LJP MLAs
will work on the devel-
opment path shown by
Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi and the com-
bine of LJP-BJP will
form government. LJP
is of the view that like
Centre, in Bihar too the
government should be
formed under the lead-
ership of BJP,” the
statement added. The
latest developments is
significant because the
LJP has said that while
it would field candi-
dates against JD(U), it
would not do so in seats
where the Bharatiya Ja-
nata Party (BJP) is con-
testing. —Agencies
Priyanka demands...
to the point of view of
the family,” she said in
another tweet.
On October 1, Hath-
ras District Magistrate
PK Laxkar had denied
“negative rumours”
about the rife between
him and the family of
the gangrape victim.
While talking to ANI,
Laxkar said that he has
been regularly interact-
ing with the family. “I
met with six family
members of the victim
yesterday and we spoke
for about an hour and a
half. I met with them
again today to see their
point of discontent. I
deny the negative ru-
mours which are rife
about my interactions
with them,” the DM had
said. Congress leaders
Priyanka and Rahul
Gandhi had met the
family of the victim on
Saturday. —ANI
Standoff with...
Army Chief Gen Manoj
Mukund Naravane and
Air Force chief Air
Chief Marshal RKS
Bhadauria are course-
mates from NDA days
and have been thick
friends since then.
An Army officer de-
ployed in a forward
area said the fact that
these days, the Chief of
Defence Staff Gen Bi-
pin Rawat and the
chiefs of two services
meet often to discuss
and plan the action
against the Chinese
forces is also helping at
the field level where the
two forces have been
operating jointly.
The Army, which is
deployed in eyeball-to-
eyeball situations
against the Chinese, is
also regularly updating
the Indian Air Force on
the actual position on
the ground to enhance
their domain awareness
and they have also
planned some opera-
tions jointly in case the
situation worsens fur-
ther on the LAC, he said.
“Thanks to the lift ca-
pability of our helicop-
ters, we are in a position
to lift and shift the con-
tainer habitat to wher-
ever it is required to be
placed at very short no-
tice,” 14 Corps Chief of
Staff Maj Gen Arvind
Kapoor had told ANI
during a visit to a pre-
fabricated shelter for
troops in Eastern
Ladakh. —ANI
FROM PG 1
New Delhi: The gov-
ernment plans to re-
ceive and utilize 40-50
crore Covid-19 vaccine
doses to cover 20-25
crore Indians by July
2021, Union Minister of
Health and Family Wel-
fare Harsh Vardhan
said on Sunday.
“The Centre is also
working on plans for
building capacities in
HR, training, supervi-
sion, etc on a massive
scale and roughly esti-
mates to receive and
utilise 400-500 million
doses covering approxi-
mately 20-25 crore peo-
ple by July 2021,” he
said, while responding
to questions asked by
social media users said
on the fourth episode
of his ‘Sunday Sam-
vaad’ today. The union
minister said that the
Health Ministry is cur-
rently preparing a for-
mat in which states
will submit lists of pri-
ority population
groups to receive the
vaccine, especially
health workers en-
gaged in the manage-
ment of COVID19, and
this exercise is target-
ed to be completed by
the end of this October.
He further informed
that the Government is
also keeping an eye on
immunity data with re-
gard to COVID-19 dis-
ease while finalizing
these plans.
The Health Minister
further informed that
there is a high-level
committee under the
chairmanship of Niti
Aayog Member (Health)
VK Paul is drawing up
the entire process.
“Vaccine procure-
ment is being done cen-
trally and each consign-
ment will be tracked
real-time until delivery
to ensure it reaches
thosewhoneeditmost,”
he said.
On a question regard-
ing Phase 3 Clinical
Trial of Russia’s “Sput-
nik-V” vaccine in India,
Harsh Vardhan clari-
fied that the matter is
still under considera-
tion, and no decision
has been taken as yet on
the Phase 3 trials.—ANI
Upto25crIndiansexpectedtobe
inoculatedforCOVID-19byJuly2021‘PrioritywouldbegiventohealthworkersengagedinCOVID-19managementingettingthevaccine’
‘Indiascalesuptesting
capacityfrom1inJan
toover77mninOct’
New Delhi: The testing
capacity in the country
has been ramped up at
a significant pace to
reach over 7.7 crores in
October from just one
in January this year, ac-
cording to the MoHFW
on Sunday.
The MoHFW also
said that the increased
pace of testing has led
to “early identification,
prompt isolation, and
effective treatment of
COVID-19 cases. These
have eventually result-
ed in a sustained low
Fatality Rate.”
“India has scaled up
its testing capacity
from one in January to
more than 7.7 cr in Oc-
tober. With progressive-
ly falling positivity rate,
testing has worked as
an effective tool to limit
the spread of COVID-19
infection,” a tweet by
the MoHFW read.
As per the MoHFW,
7,78,50,403 tests for
COVID-19 were con-
ducted in the country
on October 3 which
marks a new high.
Further the positivi-
ty rate in the country is
at 8.32 per cent current-
ly, as per the Health
Ministry. With an in-
crease of 1,069 deaths
reported on Saturday,
the COVID-19 toll sur-
passed 1 lakh in India.
Vienna: India and
South Africa want
the WTO to waive in-
tellectual property
rules to make it easi-
er for developing
countries to produce
or import COVID-19
drugs, a letter to the
WTO shows.
In their letter dated
October 2 the two
countries called on
the global trade body
to waive parts of the
Agreement on Trade-
Related Aspects of
Intellectual Property
Rights (TRIPS),
which governs pat-
ents, trademarks,
copyright and other
intellectual property
rules globally.
“As new diagnos-
tics, therapeutics and
vaccines for COV-
ID-19 are developed,
there are significant
concerns (over) how
these will be made
available promptly, in
sufficient quantities
and at (an) affordable
price to meet global
demand,” the letter
posted on the Geneva-
based WTO’s website
says.A draft General
Council decision text
submitted with the
letter says the waiver
should last an as yet
unspecified number
of years and be re-
viewed annually.
India and South
Africa ask WTO
to waive rules
EC said the fresh instructions would be applicable to all elections and by-elections
New Delhi: The Patna
district administration
has identified 47 open
grounds and 19 halls
where political parties
can schedule their pub-
lic meetings during the
Bihar Assembly elec-
tions, a top state govern-
ment official said.
The number of par-
ticipants, however, can-
not exceed 100 people at
such rallies till October
14, irrespective of the
size of the ground.
“The district admin-
istration has, so far,
identified 47 grounds
and 19 halls in the dis-
trict where election
meetings or rallies
could be held for cam-
paigning in the assem-
blypolls,”PatnaDistrict
Magistrate Kumar Ravi
told on Saturday. Voting
for 243 assembly con-
stituencies in the state
will be held in three
phases -- October 28 (71
seats), November 3 (94
seats) and November 7
(78 seats). The counting
of votes will take place
on November 10.
PATNA ADMIN IDENTIFIES VENUES
FOR HOLDING POLL MEETINGS
LESS THAN 10 LAKH ACTIVE CASES FOR
13TH CONSECUTIVE DAY IN COUNTRY
Shooter Shreyasi
Singh, daughter of for-
mer union minister late
Digvijay Singh, joined
the Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) in pres-
ence of party leader
Bhupendra Yadav at
BJP headquarters in
New Delhi on Sunday.
Singh, gold medallist
at the 2018 Common-
wealth Games in Gold
Coast, Australia and a
silver medallist at the
2014 Commonwealth
Games in Glasgow,
Scotland, is expected
to be the party’s
candidate either from
Amarpur (Banka) or
Jamui, depending on
the seat sharing with
alliance partners.
SHOOTER SHREYASI SINGH
JOINS BJP AHEAD OF ELECTION
Election Commission tweaks postal
ballot procedure for upcoming polls
Washington: President
Donald Trump’s condi-
tion is improving as he
is being treated for COV-
ID-19 at a military hospi-
tal, and he could return
to the White House as
early as Monday, the
doctors leading his
treatment said on Sun-
day. That word came the
day after a series of con-
tradictory messages
from the White House
about Trump’s condi-
tionscausedwidespread
confusion.
“The patient contin-
ues to improve. He has
remained without fever
since Friday morning,
his vital signs are sta-
ble,” Dr. Sean Dooley
told reporters at Walter
Reed National Military
Medical Center.
Donald Trump’s
Covid-19
condition
improving
Pending redress
dues to be thorny
issue at GST meet
New Delhi: With the
states requiring
funds to meet their
expenditureattheon-
set of the second half
of the financial year,
pending compensa-
tion dues to the tune
of over Rs 2 lakh
crore are expected to
be the contentious is-
sueinthediscussions
with the Centre in the
upcoming 42nd GST
Council meeting slat-
ed for Monday.
While some of the
21 states which have
alreadyagreedforthe
option 1, involving
borrowing of Rs
97,000crorethrougha
special window, have
asked for expediting
of the borrowing pro-
cess and extension of
the levy of compensa-
tion cess beyond the
five-year transition
period ending June
2022, Opposition-
ruled states are still
in disagreement with
the options offered by
the Centre to bridge
the compensation
gap.
Bihar’s Deputy
CM Sushil Kumar
Modi in a letter to
Union Finance Min-
ister Nirmala Sithar-
aman on Saturday
said that the Centre
should act fast in the
matter and enable
those states who have
listed their choice to
borrow. The Centre
had enlisted support
of 21 states and Un-
ion Territories for
option 1 under its
borrowing plan to
meet this year’s com-
pensation deficit.
Harsh Vardhan
Nirmala Sitharaman
Donald Trump

TALKING POINTAHMEDABAD | MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2020
LESSONS FOR THE WORLDFROM GREEN TRANSITIONS IN INDIA, CHINA AND BRAZIL
CHINA, INDIA, AND BRAZIL WERE THE FIRST, FOURTH AND SIXTH LARGEST
PRODUCERS OF RENEWABLE ELECTRICITY. THESE THREE COUNTRIES –
THE LARGEST EMERGING ECONOMIES – ARE NOW AT A CRUCIAL
JUNCTURE, FACED WITH IMMENSE POTENTIAL TO BECOME MAJOR
INNOVATORS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF CLEAN ENERGY TECHNOLOGY
1. PUBLIC SECTOR ENTERPRISES
ARE CRUCIAL
3. R&D THAT UNITES ACADEMIA
AND INDUSTRY
In all three cases
businesses with
significant equity
owned by govern-
ments played a cru-
cial role. In India, a
joint venture of four
public-sector utili-
ties called EESL
bought energy-effi-
cient LED bulbs in
bulk, reduced prices
using competitive
bidding, ran national
marketing cam-
paigns, and sold the
bulbs to customers
through new distri-
bution channels.
In China, public
sector enterprises
provided venture
capital investments
and loans that ena-
bled rapid expansion
of private sector so-
lar startups. In Bra-
zil, the leading public
oil company bridged
the gap between eth-
anol production and
consumer point-of-
purchase by buying
ethanol from mills,
providing storage
and transport, and
distributing fuel
through the coun-
try’s largest network
of fuel pumps.
Finally, engage-
ment between
industry and uni-
versities and public
sector research in-
stitutions is essen-
tial. For example,
Brazil could develop
the technology to
make ethanol com-
pete on cost with
gasoline only be-
cause of strong
links between pub-
lic sector research
institutes and in-
dustry, including
the government-
funded “Sugarcane
Genome Project”.
Our analysis
shows that it is
possible for emerg-
ing economies to be-
gin from a techno-
logically and eco-
nomically disadvan-
taged position and
yet successfully
accelerate the tran-
sition to clean ener-
gy technologies.
These lessons pro-
vide good news,
since success or fail-
ure in this endeav-
our will have long-
term energy and
climate consequenc-
es for all.
Based on these unexpected clean-energy transitions, we have
identified three insights relevant across emerging economies.THREE LESSONS FOR THE REST OF THE WORLD
SOURCE: THE CONVERSATION CONCEPT: DIVYA HEMNANI DESIGN: CP SHARMA
2. DOMESTIC CHOICES IN A GLOBAL ECONOMY
Second is the need
to reinforce com-
plementary links
between the global
economy and domes-
tic technology choic-
es. For example, In-
dia was able to accel-
erate its LED market
because its bulk pro-
curement and bulb
distribution policies
complemented ac-
cess to China’s large
scale low-cost LED
m a n u f a c t u r i n g .
Equally, China’s ear-
ly domestic support
for export-oriented
hi-tech manufactur-
ing complemented
the growing demand
for solar cells in
Germany.
BIOFUELS IN BRAZILINDIA’S REMARKABLE
TRANSITION TO LEDS
Athird success story is
that of Brazil’s long-
term growth to become the
largest producer, exporter
andmarketforethanolbio-
fuel made from sugarcane.
Ethanol-run vehicles in-
creased their share of Bra-
zil’snewcarsalesfrom30%
in1980to90%in1985.After
ethanol stagnated in the
1990s,biofuelswererevived
by the introduction of flex-
fuelvehicleswhichuseany
mix of gasoline and etha-
nol. Their share increased
from negligible in 2003 to
85% of new cars sold just
five years later – and has
remained constant since.
Therearesomeenviron-
mentalandsocioeconomic
impacts. These include de-
forestation for sugarcane
plantations, soil erosion,
air and water pollution,
and the consolidation of
land ownership among
large ethanol producers.
But when you look at the
full lifecycle of sugarcane
ethanol fuel, from crop to
car, its greenhouse gas
emissions are lower than
those from gasoline or
corn ethanol.
First is India’s 130-fold
expansion of its mar-
ket for light emitting di-
ode (LED) bulbs in just
five years. LED bulbs are
more energy efficient and
last much longer than in-
candescent bulbs, tube
lights, and compact fluo-
rescent bulbs. In India
they are primarily being
used for residential light-
ing and street lamps.
India’s LED transition
is estimated to save more
than 40 terawatt hours
(TWh) of electricity each
year – roughly enough to
power 37 million average
Indian households or the
whole of Denmark for
one year. In three years,
the country grew from a
negligible share of the
global LED market to
about 10%.
CHINA, INDIA, AND BRAZIL WERE THE FIRST, FOURTH AND SIXTH LARGESTCHINA, INDIA, AND BRAZIL WERE THE FIRST, FOURTH AND SIXTH LARGEST
PRODUCERS OF RENEWABLE ELECTRICITY. THESE THREE COUNTRIES –PRODUCERS OF RENEWABLE ELECTRICITY. THESE THREE COUNTRIES –
THE LARGEST EMERGING ECONOMIES – ARE NOW AT A CRUCIALTHE LARGEST EMERGING ECONOMIES – ARE NOW AT A CRUCIAL
JUNCTURE, FACED WITH IMMENSE POTENTIAL TO BECOME MAJORJUNCTURE, FACED WITH IMMENSE POTENTIAL TO BECOME MAJOR
INNOVATORS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF CLEAN ENERGY TECHNOLOGYINNOVATORS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF CLEAN ENERGY TECHNOLOGY
TRANSITION TO LEDSTRANSITION TO LEDS
FFket for light emitting di-ket for light emitting di-
ode (LED) bulbs in justode (LED) bulbs in just
five years. LED bulbs arefive years. LED bulbs are
more energy efficient andmore energy efficient and
last much longer than in-last much longer than in-
candescent bulbs, tubecandescent bulbs, tube
lights, and compact fluo-lights, and compact fluo-
rescent bulbs. In Indiarescent bulbs. In India
they are primarily beingthey are primarily being
used for residential light-used for residential light-
ing and street lamps.ing and street lamps.
SOLAR ENERGY
SOARS IN CHINA
An equally re-
markable tran-
sition occurred in
China, which has
become the top
manufacturer and
largest market of
solar photovoltaic
(PV) cells and mod-
ules, accounting for
69% of global pro-
duction. In the past
40 years, solar panel
costs have declined
by more than 99%,
driven recently by
low-cost manufac-
turing in China.
Between 2014 and
2018, China added
about 158 gigawatts
of solar PV – about
the same as the to-
tal power genera-
tion capacity of
Brazil.
I
f the world is to transition
to a climate-compatible fu-
ture, much will turn on
new innovations in clean
energyandwhethertheycanbe
deployedatalargescale.Thisis
especially critical for emerging
economies, which are develop-
ing their infrastructure and
undergoing economic growth
and urbanisation at an unprec-
edented scale and pace, yet still
often lack the support for tech-
nological innovation found in
wealthier countries.
Six of these emerging econo-
mies – Brazil, China, India, In-
donesia, Mexico and South Af-
rica – contributed more than
40%of theglobalCO emissions
in2019.That’s1.5timesthecom-
bined emissions from the US
and Europe. Yet at the same
time China, India, and Brazil
were the first, fourth and sixth
largest producers of renewable
electricity. These three coun-
tries – the largest emerging
economies–arenowatacrucial
juncture, faced with immense
potentialtobecomemajorinno-
vators in the development of
clean energy technology.
In a new paper we explored
how fast-growing countries can
not only develop their own sus-
tainable systems but provide a
source of learning and knowl-
edge to influence global trends.
Wedidthisbyinvestigatingspe-
cific clean energy success sto-
ries in the three countries.

Don’t try to solve all your life
issues at one go, solve one small
point and add one good thing ,
daily. One at a time.
—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO & Editor, First India
AHMEDABAD | MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2020www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
08
2NDFRONT
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: The
Gujarat State Human
Rights Commission
(GSHRC) has slapped
notices on the Nar-
mada Collector and
District Development
Officer (DDO) seeking
their explanation as
to why a pregnant
woman in an Adivasi
area had to be carried
to a hospital on a
sling tethered to bam-
boo shoots.
A pregnant woman of
Mathasar village in
Narmada district’s De-
diapada taluka was tak-
en to a hospital by her
relatives in a makeshift
stretcher since her vil-
lage gets marooned dur-
ing monsoons. Sources
in the area claimed
there were 22 other
women whose deliver-
ies are expected this
week.
Alarmed by this,
Gandhinagar-based
NGO Ground Reality
Foundation moved the
GSHRC called it a viola-
tion of the expectant
woman’s rights, health
and her dignity.
The GSHRC chief
RR Tripathi issued
the notices on Sep-
tember 23, stating,
“Under Clause 17 (1)
of the Protection of
Human Rights Act,
1993, you are re-
quired to furnish a
detailed report with-
in 20 days of receiv-
ing this notice.”
“If you fail to do so,
the GSHRC will carry
out due legal proce-
dures against you. It
should also be noted
that instead of sending
a report by a subordi-
nate officer, we want
you to send a detailed
report signed by you.”
“Even after 70 years
of Independence, ex-
pectant women and
otherpatientsareforced
to shift to hospitals in
this most inhumane
and primitive manner.
The village doesn’t have
a medical facility nor a
pucca road, due to
which the woman was
carried on a sling on her
relatives’ shoulders,”
the NGO’s convenor
Pankaj Buch asserted.
“I appreciate the
notice issued and
hope that strict puni-
tive action will be
taken against the
Narmada officials for
violation of human
rights,” he added.
Here, pregnant tribal women are taken physically to hospital
STUDY IN CONTRAST!
Gujarat
Human
Rights
Commission
questions this
lack of access
in notices to
Narmada
Collector
The NHRC recently asked all States to expand the reach of National Food Security Act
Haresh Jhala
Gandhinagar: Days
after the National Hu-
man Rights Commis-
sion issued advisories
to all the States, Un-
ion Territories and
Central Government
to expand the reach
of NFSA and include
more families, the Vi-
jay Rupani Govern-
ment on Sunday de-
cided to include 10
lakh families under
the National Food Se-
curity Act.
These families or 50
lakh people would get
rations at concessional
rates, the government
announced.
The advisory had
stated that the Public
Distribution System
(PDS) currently covered
only about 60% of the
population while it was
required to benefit 67%
people under the Na-
tional Food Security
Act (NFSA), 2013.
The NHRC asserted
that the coverage must
be expanded immedi-
ately to be compliant
with the NFSA norms.
Chief Minister Vijay
Rupani stated that this
decision was taken to
ensure all the needy
citizens got foodgrains
at concessional rates.
“As a result of this
people-centric deci-
sion”, in all 50 lakh
people would be able
to get foodgrains at a
concessional rate eve-
ry month. “Not only
this, these 50 lakh
people would also get
all the benefits of
NFSA,” he said.
Accordingly, the ben-
eficiaries would receive
atotalof 5kgfoodgrains,
including wheat at Rs 2
per kg and rice at Rs 3
per kg from government
approved fair-price
shops, Pandit Deenday-
al Grahak Bhandar.
The Chief Minister
has stated that as of
now, as much as 50 per
cent of Gujarat’s total
population, which
means more than 3.5
crore people, are being
provided foodgrains at
concessional rates eve-
ry month under NFSA.
The Chief Minister
said his compassionate
government had also in-
cluded differently-abled
people of the State, wid-
owed mothers and sis-
ters and old age pen-
sioners under this
scheme.
Not only this, Rupani
has “for the first time in
the history” of the State
decided that rickshaw
drivers, drivers of mini
tempo vans and daily
wagers living in towns
and villages would also
be given foodgrains at
concessional rates.
It may be recalled
that the State Govern-
ment had distributed
12.50 lakh metric
tonnes of foodgrains
free of cost to some 64
lakh people between
the months of April
and June during the
coronavirus-induced
lockdown.
After NHRC rap, Guj to cover
10L families under food law
Unlock 5.0 revives garba
hopes in Gujarat: DyCM
First India Bureau
Patan: Days after he
ruled out permissions
to any large commer-
cial garba events, Depu-
ty Chief Minister Nitin
Patel on Sunday said
now with new guide-
lines under Unlock 5.0
permitting gatherings
up to 200 people the
State Government may
evaluate the possibility
of allowing the celebra-
tions.
The Deputy Chief
Minister dropped this
hint during an official
function in Patan in
North Gujarat, though
he insisted that the gov-
ernment had not made
up its mind on allowing
Navratri celebrations
as yet.
He said the new
guidelines permitted
gathering of 200 people
for social and religious
events. This has revived
Navratri hopes again.
Patel had on Wednes-
day told reporters that
therewasnoquestionof
permitting big Navratri
venues in view of the
surging Covid-19 cases,
which are now inching
closer to 1.5 lakh with
nearly 4,000 deaths.
The Deputy Chief
Minister had pointed
out that the Gujarat
Government had al-
ready cancelled the Vi-
brant Navratri festival
that it organised every
year and that many oth-
er event organisers too
had followed suit.
He stated that the
medical fraternity had
advised the State that it
would not be wise to
permit big garba events
and gather hundreds of
people.
However, Patel had
indicated that the gov-
ernment would wait for
the Centre’s guidelines
for Unlock5.0, and
would then decide
whether to permit
street garba (sheri gar-
ba) if gatherings of
more than 100 people
were allowed.
He also said the gov-
ernment might think of
permitting street garba
(sheri garba) because
of the severe pressure
from quite a few Hindu
organisations and pop-
ular folk artistes on cul-
tural grounds and also
that their annual in-
come depended on
Navratri events.
With Unlock5.0, hopes of Navratri celebrations have revived. —PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI
Chief Minister Vijay Rupani on Sunday announced 10 lakh more families would be included under the
National Food Security Act. —FILE PHOTO
Mandaviya says Oppn
misleading farmers
A’bad cops nab Rajasthan
teenager with illicit liquor First India Bureau
Surat: Union Minister
of State for Chemicals
and Fertilisers Man-
sukhMandaviyaonSun-
day accused the Opposi-
tion parties of mislead-
ing the farmers over the
recent controversial
farm legislations.
Mandaviya, who was
in Surat, explained vari-
ous“positiveaspects”of
the agriculture reforms
bills to insist that the
new amendments would
eventually benefit and
empower the farmers.
The union minister,
who belongs to Gujarat,
said the farm legisla-
tions were based on the
Swaminathan Commit-
tee report and intended
to make farmers “atma
nirbhar” (self-reliant).
Mandaviya said
when the Citizen
(Amendment) Act was
enacted, the Opposition
had claimed minorities
would lose their citizen-
ship in the country.
“The Act has been
implemented. I want to
ask how many people
belonging to minority
committees in Gujarat
lost their citizenship.
The Opposition was
misleading the people.
Similarly, the Opposi-
tion is misleading the
farmers on these farm
legislations,” he said.
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: Bootleg-
gers in Gujarat seem to
have adopted a new mo-
dus operandi of using
teenage boys to smug-
gle in their stuff, as was
revealed with the Naro-
da police on Saturday
arresting a 14-year-old
boy from Rajasthan
with a haul of liquor
bottles.
Use of young boys is
effective in escaping
any suspicion by the po-
lice. This was after the
Naroda police received
an alert that liquor bot-
tles were found in the
possession of 2 young-
sters in a car near Gan-
gotri Society.
When a team of cops
reached the spot, they
found this boy and re-
covered as many as 32
bottles of beer from the
bag of the 14-year-old.
The haul was worth Rs
4,800, while the police
also seized a mobile
phone of Rs 5,000 from
him.
Police said the boy
belonged to Piplai vil-
lage in Anandpuri
tehsil of Rajasthan’s
Banswara district. It
was found that one Vi-
jay Thakore from
Ahmedabad’s Kuberna-
gar area was the key
handler with the Ra-
jasthan teenager.
Both brought these
bottles from Rajasthan.
However, Vijay gave the
slip to the police and es-
caped before they
reached the spot.
UNUSUAL SIGHTINGS!
Hundreds of Cormorant birds have often been recently spotted in the Sabarmati river near
Vasna in Ahmedabad. —PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI
Tribals in remote tribal villages in Narmada district have to physicall carry pregnant women in
makeshift stretchers.
More than
50% of
Gujarat’s
population or over
3.5 crore are being
provided
foodgrains at con-
cessional rates un-
der National Food
Security Act.
—Vijay Rupani,
Gujarat Chief Minister
COVID-19
UPDATE
GUJARAT
3,499
DEATHS
1,42,699
CONFIRMED CASES
RAJASTHAN
1,501 DEATHS 1,37,476 CASES
DELHI
WORLD
10,39,541
DEATHS
3,52,48,330
CONFIRMED CASES
INDIA
66,05,751
CONFIRMED CASES
1,02,326
DEATHS
MAHARASHTRA
38,084 DEATHS 14,43,409 CASES
TAMIL NADU
KARNATAKA

AHMEDABAD, MONDAY
OCTOBER 5, 2020
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia
facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09
Na umr ki seema ho, na janam ka ho bandhan
Jab pyaar kare koi, to dekhe keval man
Tum haar ke dil apna, meri jeet amar kar do…
Raj Babbar crooned this and many echoed and a few
took it to heart! Traditionally and historically the
man is older to the woman in a relationship, City
First celebrates some couples who have broken this
old fashioned idea and proven that age is irrelevant
when you are in love!
Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas got hitched in
December 2018. Nick is younger to Priyanka
by 10 years, and the couple even faced quite
a bit of flak for the age difference. But the
couple has shown time and again that they
don’t care about what the world thinks and
keep sharing loved-up pictures and videos of
them together on social media
Abhishek Bachchan is two years younger to
Aishwarya Rai. The couple married in 2007 and
have a daughter named Aaradhya. Supposedly,
there were astrological issues to their love
marriage and certain outdated rituals were
performed at the time to woo the stars
Kunal Kemmu is five years younger
to Soha Ali Khan. They were in
a live-in relationship before their
marriage. Kunal popped the question
to Soha in Paris and both tied the
knot on January 25, 2015. The couple
became proud parents to
daughter Inaaya Naumi Kemmu on
September 29, 2017
Shirish Kunder is eight years younger to
choreographer-filmmaker wife Farah Khan.
The two met on the sets of ‘Main Hoon Na’.
They got married in 2004 and have triplets -
two daughters and a son
Footballer David Beckham is
one year younger to wife
Victoria Beckham. The couple
tied the knot in 1999 and have
four children
The French President Emmanuel Macron
and his wife, Brigitte, 24 years his senior
and his former drama teacher are one of the
world’s most intriguing political couples. The
taboo-breaking, generation-spanning
romance between them has captivated
people across the globe
Karan Singh Grover is three years
younger to Bipasha Basu. They
met on the sets of their erotic-
thriller Alone in 2015. The couple
got married in 2016 and are
inseparable ever since
Sunil Dutt married a year older co-star Nargis after they
met on the sets of Mother India. During the making of the
film in 1957, a massive fire took place and Sunil Dutt saved
Nargis from the flames. The two married a year later, and
had three children - Sanjay, Priya and Namrata

10
ETCAHMEDABAD | MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2020www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
FACEOFTHEDAY
SHAURYA SANADHYA, Content Creator
YOUR
DAYHoroscope by
Saurabbh Sachdeva
LEO
JULY 24 - AUGUST 23
You sometimes take your
luck for granted and thats
where things go wrong,
respect what you gifted
with. You may be in the need of loan
but this is not the time to expect
anything like that rather focus on
spirituality and you may find a way
out that you never expected.
LIBRA
SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 22
Be brave when it comes to
doing something, against
which the whole world is
talking. Have patience, you
will get into many business ventures
and you will make progress stay rest
assured. This is the time to focus on
health, set a daily routine and excise
everyday. You may feel unwanted.
ARIES
MAR 21 - APR 20
You are philosophical and
people love to hear you say
about about something in
particular. You will get
surprisingly good returns from an
investment that you made in the past
and forgot about. You can expect a
job offer or an appointment letter,
don’t doubt your fate.
SAGITTARIUS
NOV 23 - DEC 22
You are going to get in
touch with someone new
and the nature of
relationships will change.
You may have rightly predicted the
outcome of an investment and this
quality can really benefit you. You have
to wait for sometime before someone
decided to finance your project.
GEMINI
MAY 21 - JUNE 21
You may all of a sudden
feel the need to see
someone close just
because you may feel
lonely at that particular moment.
Hours spent on something will not
go waste therefore don’t loose
patience till the very end. You will
earn what you deserve.
AQUARIUS
JAN 21 - FEB 19
Just keep trying if you really
love someone more than
what people can see as you
won’t give up easily anyways
. Keep paying your outstanding dues if
you can, so that you can relax in future.
Don’t poke your nose in anyone’s
matter so that you are not held
responsible for anything.
TAURUS
APR 21 - MAY 20
You are very busy in your
own life and you have no
time to handle anyone
else’s problems. Times are
tough but it doesn’t mean that it will
always be the same, you time will
come when you will fly high and
higher than anyone around. You are
blessed with good intuition.
CAPRICORN
DEC 23 - JAN 20
You are brilliant but you
aren’t aware of your
potentials, thats where
things go wrong. Your
spending habit will change for good.
Don’t get into office politics just do
you work religiously and ear your
living, these are trial times and even
must do their best to sustain.
VIRGO
AUG 24 - SEP 23
You are very straight
forward with people whom
you don’t like. There will be
many opportunities in
future for now focus on enhancing
your skills. You must have a
balanced diet and you must work out
regularly if you want to reach your
desired goal.
CANCER
JUNE 22 - JULY 23
Words is changing fast but
that does no where mean
that good times are gone
too, be hopeful. You will be
handling some prestigious projects
and make sure to nail it, even if you
are working from home. You are
financially secure for now but you
must find more avenues to earn.
PISCES
FEB20 - MARCH 20
You are going to try lots of
therapies to heal your inner
wounds, until you find the
right one. Those on the
quest of getting desired body must
have an exercise regime as you will
not find any time better than this.
Own your mistakes if you have made
any, it will only build your image.
SCORPIO
OCT 23 - NOVEMBER 22
Sometimes too much of
your attitude problem gets
difficult for people to
tolerate, so ease out. You
will get an excellent opportunity on
professional front, yes even during
this trial times. Working from home
can prove a bit tiresome and so make
sure to eat energy giving food.
Mariam
Abuhaideri
ne never re-
ally knows
how these
days dedicat-
ed to some-
thing are in-
stituted, how
they become globally
viral, and then tradi-
tion! Do
you mull over how
there seems to be a day for
everything? I recall buy-
ing roses for my teachers
on Teacher’s day, weaving
friendship bands to tie
around the wrist of my
friends on a day dedicated
to friendship, and making
greeting cards for my
mom and dad on Mother’s
and Father’s day.
For causes, however,
these days take on a more
serious form of celebra-
tion. They are not hall-
mark holidays; rather
they offer an opportunity
to call attention to differ-
ent dimensions of the
cause in question and to
call for action.
Yesterday the world cel-
ebrated World Animal
Day. A big day for animal
activists, not-for-profit or-
ganizations, and the ani-
mal rights lobby. Yet not
much is known about it
outside this circle and
t h i s
itself
speaks
volumes
about our
problematic
and archaic edu-
cation system and
the general interest of
the public and media. So
this is me telling you what
you have not learned in
your textbooks and what
you need to know simply
because we are inheriting
a messed up world from
our parents, and it is us
who must bear the burden
of fixing it. Sorry parents
if that hurt, but you can-
not deny that you had a
hand in messing up the
world for us because for
you it was more impor-
tant that your ward be-
come a renowned doctor
or engineer. You didn’t
raise us to be good human
beings; you raised us to
earn good money. Dis-
claimer: As is the case
with everything else there
are exceptions to this
statement too.
So where the textbook
has failed, the internet
fills in. The first World
Animal Day event, attend-
ed by more than 5,000 peo-
ple took place on March
24, 1925, in the Sports Pal-
ace in Berlin, Germany.
Heinrich Zimmermann,
animal activist and au-
thor of Mensch und Hund
(Man and Dog) founded
the day. But it was only 4
years later in 1929, that
World Animal Day was
celebrated for the first
time on October 4, the
Feast Day of Francis of
Assisi, the patron saint of
ecology and animals.
Francis of Assisi believed
that nature was the “mir-
ror of God.” And while I
don’t patronize the idea of
religion, I do believe that
there is a power that is re-
sponsible for the creation
of all magnificent life-
forms on earth.
And in animals, I truly
feel the oneness with the
divine. Try it for yourself:
Gaze into the tiny eyes of
a captive elephant and
you will instantly see the
life of solitude and pain it
has lived. Watch the wag-
ging tails of the street
dogs you just fed and you
will experience gratitude.
When your cat sleeps on
your chest, you feel com-
fort in knowing that it
trusts you.
History presents us
with an understanding of
why things are the way
they are today. But history
is not the Bible. It can and
should be challenged! An-
imals have been used to
transport humans and
building material and in
wars. Animals have been
hunted down, gifted to
royal families, and
skinned to make clothing,
bags, and footwear! We
have only thought of our
comfort- not realising the
consequences of our ac-
tions. We would look for-
ward to our visit to the
zoo. It was exciting to ride
elephants and camels. We
have all been there and
done that. We have dis-
carded garbage and plas-
tic on the roads and in
oceans not realising how
we are hurting our cows
and fish. But just because
it was done in the past
does not mean it is ethi-
cal. And while the situa-
tion has improved consid-
erably for animals thanks
to the generation of ani-
mal activists, the animals
deserve more. And just as
the past has given us the
present, the present must
give to the future. And
what is the future of our
country’s animals? A di-
vorce from the not-so
pleasant parts of our her-
itage and habits I hope!
All About Life
World Animal Day
O
Mariam Abuhaideri

First india ahmedabad edition-05 october 2020

First india ahmedabad edition-05 october 2020

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