police brijesh kumar shrivastava said prof ... he did not offer specifics, such as the time frame or...

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The Covid-19 has spread toPresident’s Estate and the

Lok Sabha Secretariat .Residents of 115 houses inPocket 1, schedule “A” area atthe President’s Estate havebeen quarantined as a pre-ventive measure after a sani-tation worker’s relative testedpositive for coronavirus.

A housekeeping worker inthe Lok Sabha secretariat hasalso tested positive and wasadmitted to the Safdarjunghospital.

The Rashtrapati Bhawanon Tuesday issued a statementsaying no employee of thePresident’s House has been

detected with Covid-19.“It may be clarified that

till date no employee of thePresident’s Secretariat hastested positive for Covid-19and the secretariat along withthe local administration istaking all the preventive mea-sures under the guidelines,” itsaid.

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Even as three more DelhiPolice personnel were

found Covid-19 positive in onTuesday, thus raising the totalnumber of coronavirus cases inthe national Capital to 2,081 onTuesday, Gautam Budh NagarDistrict Magistrate ordered thesealing of Delhi-Noida borderas a preventive measure tofight coronavirus.

The national Capital saw78 fresh cases and two deathson Tuesday, according to Delhi

Government authorities. The number of contain-

ment zones in Delhi increasedto 84, with eight new onesbeing added, the authoritiessaid. The West Delhi districthas the highest number ofcontainment zones in the city,they said.

Police said the cops weredeployed at the Central dis-trict’s Nabi Karim police sta-tion. Earlier, eight policemenin the Chandni Mahal policestation of the same districthad tested positive for coro-navirus. A total of 20 police-men have been tested positivefor coronavirus till date acrossDelhi.

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India’s total count of positivecoronavirus crossed 20,000-

mark with the addition of1,461 new cases and the deathcount stood at 641 with thecountry recording 49 casualtyduring the last 12 hours as on10 pm on Tuesday.

Maharashtra remained onthe top among the worst-hitStates logging 552 new Covid-19 positive cases as the totalcount reached 5,218 amid 251deaths with addition of 19casualty during the last 24hours alone.

Mumbai and Puneremained two of the worst-affected districts in the Statewith 2,455 and 591 cases apieceas on Tuesday 10 pm.

Gujarat raced to the secondspot behind Maharashtra as theState recorded 239 cases for atotal of 2,178 cases. This is thefirst time Gujarat emerged asthe second most badly affect-ed State, a position constantlyheld by Delhi which slipped tothe third spot with 2,156 cases.On Tuesday, Delhi recorded 75

new cases.Rajasthan remained on the

fourth spot with 1,659 vases,adding 83 on Tuesday, whileTamil Nadu was on the fifthslot with 1,596 total cases.Madhya Pradesh continued tooccupy the sixth spot with thetotal count of 1,552, whileUttar Pradesh was at the sev-enth place with a tally of 1,337cases, adding 153 new cases onTuesday.

After a brief lull in regis-tering new cases, Kerala wasback in the news on Tuesdaywith the State registering 19new cases, taking the totalnumber presently under treat-ment to 117. The State’s cumu-

lative total, including thosecured, stands at 426.

“It is after a long while wehave had this many new cases.Today there are 36,335 peopleunder observation at homesand 332 at various hospitals inthe State,” Chief MinisterPinarayi Vijayan said.

Kannur on Tuesday saw 10new cases taking the total pos-itive cases to 104.

The number of Covid-19cases in Telangana crossed 900with as many as 56 more peo-ple testing positive on Tuesday. the total number ofcases rose to 928. No death wasreported and thus toll remainedat 23.

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An Allahabad universityprofessor has been arrest-

ed along with 29 persons,including 16 foreign partici-pants of Tablighi Jamaat meetat Nizamuddin in New Delhi,an officials said on Tuesday.

City Superintendent ofPolice Brijesh KumarShrivastava said ProfMohammed Shahid was arrest-ed on charges of arranging theshelter for Indonesians among

the foreigner Tablighi Jamaatmembers in a mosque and notinforming police about them.

One of the Indonesianshad earlier tested positive forcoronavirus and had under-gone treatment for it at KotwaBani in Allahabad, he said.

Shrivastava said otherarrested included nineThailand nationals, one eachfrom Kerala and Bengal besideseleven linked with Abdullahand Hera mosques in the city.

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The World HealthOrganisation said on

Tuesday that rushing to easecoronavirus restrictions willlikely lead to a resurgence of theillness, a warning that comes asGovernments across the worldstarted rolling out plans to gettheir economies up and run-ning again.

“This is not the time to belax. Instead, we need to readyourselves for a new way of liv-ing for the foreseeable future,”said Dr Takeshi Kasai, theWHO regional director for theWestern Pacific.

He said Governments mustremain vigilant to stop thespread of the virus and the lift-ing of lockdown curbs andother social distancing mea-sures must be done graduallyand strike the right balancebetween keeping people healthy and allowingeconomies to function.

Despite concerns fromhealth officials, some US Stateson Monday announced aggres-sive reopening plans, whileBoeing and at least one otherUS heavy-equipment manufacturer resumed pro-duction.

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US President Donald Trumpsaid that he will sign an

executive order “to temporar-ily suspend immigration intothe United States” because ofthe coronavirus.

“In light of the attack fromthe Invisible Enemy, as well asthe need to protect the jobs ofour GREAT American

Citizens, I will be signing anExecutive Order to temporar-ily suspend immigration intothe United States!” Trumptweeted late Monday.

He did not offer specifics,such as the time frame or thescope of who would be affect-ed. White House PressSecretary Kayleigh McEnanyissued a statement on Tuesdayechoing Trump’s past com-ments about immigration. Sheprovided no details on what theexecutive order would entail.“At a time when Americans arelooking to get back to work,action is necessary,” she said.

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As early as mid-March,World Health

Organization (WHO) headTedros Adhanom Ghebreyesushad said, “We have a simplemessage to all countries — test,test, test,” but India is yet to fol-low the advice.

An analysis of the globaldata shows that India has oneof the lowest Covid-19 testingratios compared to other first20 worst-affected countries,suggesting that infection con-tainment measures may not beadequate because of this.

India has conducted only291 tests per million popula-tion as of April 21, comparedto 12,186 in the US, 23,122 inItaly, 14,682 in Russia and20,629 tests per million popu-lation in Germany.

In just a week, alarmingly,India has also climbed threespots up to 17th positionamong the 20 Covid-19 worst-hit countries, according to thedata available from theWorldometer.

Experts said testing morepeople will only help earlydetection and hence earlytreatment. More so when theasymptomatic persons are alsofound to be the carrier ofvirus that has claimed over 600people and infected over18,000 people.

Worldwide, 2,505,433 havecome in the grip of the Covid-19 while 171,851 people have

succumbed to the contagion.Radha Rangarajan, Chief

Scientific Officer,HealthCubed, called for moreCovid-19 testing.

“So far, testing has beengreatly restricted but as weemerge from the lockdown,there will be an increasedneed to test more and morepeople. It is amply clear thatthe current test — RT-PCR —will not scale for India’s needs,given the complexity of thistest, need for sophisticatedequipment and poor avail-ability of kits. Hence, we needto rethink the testing strategy,”it said.

The Indian Council ofMedical Research (ICMR) onTuesday has already put onhold the much-touted Chinesemade rapid test kits after theywere found to give inaccurateresults as complained by Stateslike Rajasthan, one of theworst-hit by the Covid-19.

States too feel that moretests will help them to managethe virus better. Steps likelockdown are just being seenas short-term measures.

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��*�� !� ��Kochi: Dr Simone Hercules, a55-year-old neurosurgeon anddirector of Chennai’s NewHope Hospital, who died ofcoronavirus, was refused aproper burial by locals whoprotested at the cemeterywhere his body was taken onSunday night.

Dr Hercules breathed his lastlate on Sunday in a corporatehospital in the city battlingcoronavirus for almost twoweeks.

He was infected by thevirus while attending topatients in his own hospital.

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The Indian Council ofMedical Research (ICMR)

on Tuesday asked the States tostop using the newly-distrib-uted Chinese rapid testing kits(RT-PCR) meant to detectcoronavirus for the next twodays amid reports of inaccurateresults from Rajasthan andthree other States.

India procured five lakhrapid antibody testing kits fromtwo Chinese firms last weekand these were distributed toStates for the districts with ahigh burden of the infection. Asper the ICMR, variation inaccuracy of results ranges from6-71 per cent. It will be send-ing expert teams on fields totest the new RT-PCR kits.

“We received a complaintof less detection from oneState. So we spoke to threeStates and found a lot of vari-ation is there in the accuracy oftest results of positive samples,in some places it is 6 per centwhile others it is 71 per cent,

“We have decided tolaunch field studies for valida-tion into the quality of rapidtest kits. We will convey ourguidance to States in two days.Until then States are advisednot to use rapid kits,” head ofEpidemiology andCommunicable Diseases atICMR Raman RGangakhedkar said at a Pressbriefing here.

Replying to a query he

said if the kits are found faulty,replacement process would beinitiated.

“This is not a good thingbecause when such a hugevariation is seen we need toinvestigate further even if it isthe first generation of the test.This disease is only 3.5-month-old so all technologieswill be refined over time butwe can’t ignore these findings,”he added.

He added that over thenext two days the ICMR willbe sending eight expert teamson the field to validate theresults.

The ICMR also said it willraise an issue with the manu-facturer of the kits if resultscontinue to be faulty.

Earlier on Tuesday, theRajasthan Governmentstopped using the China-maderapid testing kits for coron-avirus after they deliveredinaccurate results.

The Union HealthMinistry said 705 people hadbeen cured between Mondayand Tuesday — the highestsingle-day rise in cured cases.

Additionally, there arenow four previously affecteddistricts that have not report-ed any case for 28 days, saidLav Agarwal, Joint Secretary inthe Health Ministry.

These are Mahe inPuducherry, Kodagu inKarnataka, Pauri Garhwal inUttarakhand and Pratapgarhin Rajasthan.

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Chief Minister BhupeshBaghel in a letter on

Tuesday requested PrimeMinister Narendra Modi toprovide financial assistance of�30,000 crore to the State in thenext three months for relief andwelfare schemes in view of theCovid-19 pandemic.

Baghel also requested theCentral Government to relaxeconomic activities related torevenue generation in the state.

In his letter, the chief min-ister has requested the PM toimmediately release �10,000crore so that financial assis-tance can be extended to to

industries, businesses, serviceand agriculture sectors.

The CM also requested forexemption for opening of sweetshop, sale of properties, show-rooms of vehicles, constructionwork in cities, showrooms ofdomestic appliances, repair-ing works and all retail outletsin the green districts

Baghel in his letter said thatexemption should be given toopen sweets shops, so thatdairy farmers can sell milk.

The CM said that due tothe long period of the lock-down, revenue collections havecome down to almost zero inthe state.

In the current economic

scenario, there is also a bigreduction in the amount thatthe state receives from centraltaxes, the CM said and addedthat the state government will

need additional resources forthe livelihoods of the 56 lakhpoor and needy families of theState, who have no means ofincome left.

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Pointing to the alarmingresource gap between the

state’s anticipated receipt andcommitted expenditure,Punjab Chief Minister CaptAmarinder Singh on Tuesdaydemanding interim compen-sation to the tune of �3000crore for the month of April onaccount of the Covid-19national disaster, along with immediate release of �4,400 crore of pending GSTarrears.

Capt Amarinder, in a letterto Union Home Minister AmitShah, asked for expediting therelease of the state’s GST arrearsof �4400 crore for the last fourmonths, to help the State over-come its resource constraint.

Citing the lockdown thathad substantial fiscal conse-quences for all states, CaptAmarinder said that theCentral Government shouldcompensate Punjab for its lossof revenue due to Covid-19.

“While �3000 crore forApril was an estimate, detailedassessment of loss and require-ment of funds for relief andrehabilitation will be submittedin due course.

However, the Centre

should provide interim assis-tance so that fight againstCovid-19 is not allowed toweaken in any way,” he said.

The Chief Minister saidthat Punjab was facing a hugestress on State exchequer onaccount of required health andrelief measures that are beingcontinuously scaled up, “withhardly any revenue receiptsaccruing to the State duringthese days due to near completeshutdown of trade, businessand industry”.

The state government hadmade a provision of revenuereceipts of �3,360 crore forApril 2020 in the State Budget2020-21, including GST – �1,322 crore; VAT on Petroleumproducts – �465 crore; StateExcise Revenue – �521 crore,Motor Vehicle Tax – �198crore; Electricity Duty – �243crore, Stamp duty – �219 crore,and Non-tax revenue – �392crore.

“However, these receiptsare expected to decline sharplyas most economic activities in

the State remain closed onaccount of lockdown.

The receipts on account ofSGST, IGST, VAT, Excise,Stamp Duty and Motor VehicleTaxes are almost negligibleand reduced electricity con-sumption has resulted in adrop of 60 percent of expectedrevenue from electricity duty during April 2020,” henoted.

He added, “In addition, theGST compensation of approx-imately �4,400 crore for the lastfour months – from December2019 to March 2020 – was alsopending for disbursement bythe Union Government.”

On the other hand, hepointed out that state’s com-mitted expenditure, that is debtservicing, pensions, salaries,relief measures for Covid-19,healthcare and infrastructureetc, is budgeted at �7,301 crorefor the month of April 2020,resulting in huge resource gapbetween the anticipatedreceipts and committed expen-diture.

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To regulate and guard safetyand well-being of frontline

workers engaged in war againstCovid-19, Punjab HealthDepartment on Tuesday issueddetailed advisory for all StateGovernment offices askingthem to install thermal scannersat entry gates wherever feasibleto screen any symptoms besidesa direction to encourage ‘workfrom home’ and mandating useof hand sanitizers and masks asmust for all times.

“Only such staff, required inperson for essential reasons,should be asked to attend theoffice. The comprehensive planwith regard to such staff whohas been specifically called bedrawn up which shall includesitting arrangement by keepinga minimum distance of onemetre amongst the employees,flexible timings of reportingfor duty, flexible timing of leav-ing the office, flexible timings oflunch and tea breaks in betweenwith an objective to avoid clus-tering and cluttering of thestaff,” said an official spokesper-son.

Spokesperson said that theadvisory further asks thedepartments to ensure avail-ability of alcohol-based sanitiz-er (minimum 70 percent ethylalcohol v/v) to be mounted atthe entrance wall of the officefor the staff to sanitize theirhands before entering thepremises besides mandatingwearing of cloth masks at alltimes immediately from leavingthe house till the entry back intothe house.

In case of multi-storiedoffices where the elevators areto be used, sanitizers shall bemounted near entry door of ele-

vator at each and every floor, theadvisory read adding that handsanitizing stations should beinstalled in office premises andnear high contact surfaces.

Underlining the process todisinfect the office spaces, hesaid that it has been advised thatindoor areas, including confer-ence rooms, should be cleanedevery evening after office hoursor early in the morning beforerooms are occupied.

If contact surface is visiblydirty, it should be cleaned withsoap and water prior to disin-fection. Prior to cleaning, thecleaner should wear disposablerubber boots, gloves (heavyduty), and a cloth mask.

Spokesperson added that allindoor areas such as entrancelobbies, corridors and staircas-es, escalators, elevators, securi-ty guard booths, office rooms,meeting rooms, cafeteria shouldbe mopped with a disinfectantwith one percent sodium

hypochlorite or equivalent dis-infectants.

Urging the employees toscrupulously adhere to healthprotocol, the advisory asks themto voluntarily report any symp-tom for early treatment besidesexhorting to not indulge ingossip/rumors with regard toCovid-19 without verifying thefacts.

In case an employee is diag-nosed as corona positive andsuch an employee has attendedthe office, the Department shallimmediately inform the helplineno 104 or State Control Roomat 01722920074 or 8872090029along with all the facts aboutemployee and contacts he or shemight have during the atten-dance in the office, said thespokesperson adding that theemployer shall therefore main-tain a complete and properrecord of all employees attend-ing the office on any particularday.

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Pointing to the state’s critical fiscal situation, Chief MinisterCapt Amarinder Singh on Tuesday sought the Centre’s per-

mission to allow sale of liquor, in a phased manner, to mop upVAT and excise revenue.

“Union Home Ministry should allow the State to take a con-scious decision to allow the sale of liquor in certain areas in aphased manner with strict social distancing and other measuresto prevent Covid-19,” he said in his letter to the Union HomeMinister Amit Shah.

“This would help the State immensely in its efforts to scaleup the relief and healthcare measures to combat Covid-19 andmeet some, if not all, of its committed liabilities and other day-to-day expenses,” he added.

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In the wake of repeated viola-tions of the curfew clamped to

stem the spread of Covid-19 inChandigarh, the UT Police hasdeployed drones, as a key sur-veillance instrument, to identi-fy and arrest those roaming inthe city defying curfew orders.

At present, three drones arebeing used by the UT Police. Theunmanned aerial vehicles havebeen pressed into service torecord videos and keep a tab onpeople’s movement and preventany gathering.

These drones have beendeployed for surveillance afterthe directions of PunjabGovernor and UT AdministratorVP Singh Badnore. The curfewwas imposed in Chandigarh onMarch 24 onwards to ensuresocial distancing and combat thespread of Covid-19.

While talking to ThePioneer, UT Superintendent ofPolice Roshan Lal, who isincharge of the drones surveil-lance said, “Three drones havebeen deployed in the city. Whileone was deployed earlier formaking announcement regard-ing Coronavirus and asking peo-ple to ensure social distancing,two more drones have now beenpressed into service for surveil-lance purpose.”

“The drones give us a bird’seye view of a particular area.These drones use hexa and quadcopter technologies to carry apayload of upto 5 kgs. An aeri-al surveillance for 20 minutes canbe done in a single round fromthese drones. Videos are record-ed and monitored by police

teams. In case of any violation,the SHO concerned will takeaction,” the SP said.

“On Tuesday, drones weredeployed in Manimajra, colonynumber 4, Sector 15, nearTribune colony and Sector 25 tokeep a check on curfew viola-tors,” he said.

“These drones are beingused during early morning andevening hours to keep surveil-lance over morning or eveningwalkers who visit parks andother areas. During relaxationhours, social distancing norms inmarket areas and food distribu-tion centres are also being mon-itored,” he added. SSP NilambariJagadale also monitored theworking of drones on Tuesday.

From Delhi to Tamil Nadu,the police authorities are deploy-ing drones to identify and takeaction against people violatinglockdown or curfew orders amidCoronavirus pandemic.

Earlier, the ChandigarhPolice had used drones forvideography of impounded vehi-cles kept at Police Lines Sector26, Children Traffic Park inSector 23 and Industrial TrainingInstitute in Sector 28.

Apart from this, the UTAdministration has alsodeployed a drone to spray dis-infectant in grain market andother areas in the union territo-ry. This drone can cover three tofour acres of area within 10 min-utes.

Notably, the union territoryof Chandigarh has been declaredas “containment zone” to stop thespread of Coronavirus. 15 out oftotal 38 outer borders of the cityhave been closed till furtherorders.

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Virtually launching an aus-terity drive during the days

of Covid lockdown, the Punjabgovernment on Tuesday decid-ed to steer clear of additionalexpenses by cutting down onpetroleum expenses by 25 per-cent of all but key Covid front-line departments as interimmeasure, besides approving �1,625.87 crore budgetary cutsof admin departments.

Punjab, in the absence ofany support from the Centre, isstruggling to meet Covid bat-tle costs, and thus announceda series of cost-cutting mea-sures including immediate 25percent reduction in existingentitlements for petroleumproduct expenses of allGovernment departments,except Health, MedicalEducation, Police, Food andAgriculture.

“The reduction will remainin force till FinanceDepartment resubmits its pro-

posal to review vehicle entitle-ments, vehicle models andPetrol or Diesel limits for theChief Minister’s consideration,”said the spokesperson afterthe decision was taken at avideo conference meeting ofSub-Committee on Finance,chaired by the Chief MinisterCaptain Amarinder Singh.

The Chief Minister stressedthe need for an exit strategy,pointing out that the Statecould not be kept under lock-down indefinitely. The reportof the 20-member expert com-mittee working on the strategyis expected this week.

Amid serious concernsexpressed by Finance MinisterManpreet Badal over criticalfiscal situation in the State inlight of all revenue receipts dry-ing up, the meeting decidedthat tough decisions needed tobe taken, as an interim mea-sure, to help the state tide overthese difficult times.

The meeting also decidedthat norms and expenditure on

security of people, not holdingpublic office any longer orhave never held public office,would be reviewed by May 15to decide on possible cuts onthis count.

Notably, the security ofseveral protected persons in theState, including the ChiefMinister, has already been cutdown to divert police person-nel to the much-needed curfewenforcement and Covid reliefduties.

In another step to generatemuch-needed revenue for thestate, all AdministrativeDepartments in the State havebeen asked to deposit balancesavailable with the Societiesunder them in the StateTreasury by April 30, afterretaining two months of oper-ation and maintenance expen-diture of the Society.

There are around 40 suchsocieties functional in variousdepartments, said thespokesperson.

The meeting also approved

budgetary cuts or deferments,amounting to � 1625.87 crores,suggested by the variousAdministrative Departments,subject to a review again inJune 2020.

A formal approval was alsogiven to the Chief Minister’searlier announcement thatdependents or legal heirs of anemployee of the StateGovernment, who contractsCovid-19 infection in the lineof duty, would be paid an ex-gratia of � 50 lakhs.

Meanwhile, the ChiefMinister has asked the HealthDepartment to prepare a com-prehensive budget for Covidrelated expenditure. It wasdecided that FinanceDepartment, after meetingrequirements of Health andMedical EducationDepartments, as also therequirements of relief and reha-bilitation, would provide forcommitted liabilities only tillJune 30, 2020, and the fiscalposition of the State would be

reviewed again in the firstweek of June 2020.FIND WAYS TO BOOSTTEST: CAPT

Capt Amarinder expressedconcern over the inadequatenumber of testing kits availablewith the State Government,and asked the concerneddepartments to find ways andmeans of boosting the tests.

TO ENSURE COVID-FREESMOOTH WHEAT PRO-CUREMENT

To ensure that the pro-curement process continuessmoothly, without any hassle orpayment delays for the farmers,it was decided that theDepartment of Food, CivilSupplies and Consumer Affairswould get the issues with theCentral Government on vari-ous components of cost sheetsresolved before the beginningof kharif marketing season2020-21, so that no cash cred-it limit (CCL) gap accrues tothe State.

It was decided that theDepartments of Food and CivilSupplies and Agriculture wouldtake every possible measure toensure Covid-free smooth pro-curement of wheat.

The issue of stubble burn-ing was also discussed duringthe Video Conference, with theChief Minister directing allministers to ensure strictimplementation of the stategovernment’s directives on thiscount, in order to check suchburning.

PUNJAB TO SEEK COM-PENSATION FOR REV-ENUE LOSS

Chief Minister CaptAmarinder directed RevenueDepartment to prepare a com-prehensive memorandum tothe Central Government forcompensation of loss onaccount of Covid-19.

It was decided that if it wasnot possible to assess the com-plete loss to the State immedi-ately, an interim memoran-

dum may be submitted to theCentral Government, seekingcompensation for loss of State'srevenue and other require-ments for relief and rehabilita-

tion for the first quarter end-ing June 30, 2020. Thereafter,a complete final memoran-dum would be sent to Centreby end June 2020.

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Tested positive for Covid-19,Punjab Police Sub-

Inspector Arshpreet KaurGrewal on Tuesday urged the

police personnel to stay strongand take precautionary mea-sures, while expressing herdesire to join the duty afterrecovering from deadly virus.

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Haryana Chief Secretary,Keshni Anand Arora on

Tuesday reviewed the progress ofopening of industries for pro-duction and procurement ofcrops in a review meeting withthe Deputy Commissioners of alldistricts of the State, officers ofthe Departments of Industries,Agriculture and Health alongwith other senior officersthrough video conferencing.

She said industries in theState have started opening due towhich workers have started get-ting employment, directing theofficers concerned to monitorindustries. She said work hasstarted under MGNREGA butmore and more people should beprovided employment andMGNREGA labourers should beengaged more in water conser-vation, and irrigation relatedtasks.

Arora said efforts should bemade to provide work to themigrant labourers at locationsnear their workplaces and thepolice should be informed abouttheir movement from one placeto another once they get work.She also directed to start con-struction projects and brick kilnsas per directions.

Additional Chief Secretary,Health and Family WelfareDepartment, Rajeev Arora said

if any Asha worker is on duty inthe containment zone then thefull protection kit will be pro-vided to them along with gloves,masks and sanitizer for theremaining duties. He said thatcivil surgeons can also appointretired doctors and Paramedicalstaff who are up to the age of 69on contractual basis for oneyear. Additional Chief Secretary,Industry and CommerceDepartment, T.V.S.N. Prasaddirected all the DeputyCommissioners and officers ofthe Department of Commerce toextend all possible help to theindustrialists so that they do notface any difficulty in startingtheir industry.

Additional Chief Secretary,Food, Civil Supplies andConsumer Affairs Department,P.K. Das said that where wheatis not being procured by thearthiyas, the concerned agencieshave been directed to makedirect procurement. AdditionalChief Secretary, Agriculture andFarmers’ Welfare Department,Sanjeev Kaushal said that theamount of commission will besent to the account of thePanchayat or FPO who will playthe role of middleman in pro-curement of wheat. If any personor agency applies for a license forcommission, then the DeputyCommissioner can issue licenseto them as per rules.

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With five new cases report-ed from Rajpura town of

Patiala district, including thatof a doctor, Punjab’s tallyreached at 251 on Tuesday. Thesilver lining is that during past24 hours, as many 11 patientshave recovered and dischargedacross the State, including fivefrom hotspot Jawaharpur vil-lage in Mohali district and

daughter of Padma Shri Covid-19 casualty Nirmal SinghKhalsa.

In late night developments,five more cases were reportedpositive in Jalandhar, which areyet to be included in the state’sofficial record. With this, thestate’s tally would be 256.

Among the five fresh cases,a doctor, who was consulted bythe corona-positive woman,was tested positive in Rajpura.

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Haryana Health MinisterAnil Vij on Tuesday said

that the rate at which the num-ber of coronavirus cases inHaryana was doubling is 13.15days as against the nationalaverage of 7.5 days.

The reports of UnionHealth Ministry revealed thatthe rate at which the number ofcorona virus cases in the coun-

try was doubling in the last oneweek has slowed to 7.5 days, asagainst 3.4 days before thenationwide lockdown wasimposed. Vij tweeted,“Doubling of #Covid-19 cases

in Haryana is in 13.15 days asagainst 7.5 days in the country.”He also said that Haryana wasfast moving towards normalcy.“With 56.7 per cent recoveryrate against 16.38 per cent of allIndia rate of #coronaviruscases, Haryana is moving fasttowards normalcy,” he said.

“There are 108 active#Covid-19 patients as of todayin #Haryana. Death rate in

Haryana is 0.79 per cent against3.15 per cent of the country.

Tests per million of popu-lation in Haryana are 548against all India average of304,” he said. In another devel-opment, the Health Ministersaid that the State governmenthas taken all the possible mea-sures to check Covid-19 out-break.

He said that PersonalProtective Equipment (PPE)kits will be given to doctors andhealth workers, sanitationworkers battling the Covid-19outbreak in containment zonearea.

Vij said, “The team ofhealth workers engaged in sur-vey and screening of patientswill be provided PPE kits in theContainment Zone.”

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RAIPUR | WEDNESDAY | APRIL 22, 2020chhattisgarh 03

Selective resumption of economic activities was permitted in the districts that have been identified as green zones from April20. The panchayat department has resumed work under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act toensure livelihoods to daily-wage earners in the rural areas of the state. Pioneer Photo

STAFF REPORTER nRAIPUR

The Nehru Yuva KendraSangathan, Raipur along

with the UNICEF on Tuesdaytrained more than 300national volunteers of thestate.

During the training,prevention of Covid-19, itsawareness, facts and myths,and misconceptions werediscussed, a release by theorganization said.

The training session wasconducted by the officials ofthe organisation and expertsfrom the UNICEF.

The objectives of thetraining were to create astrong working team tocontrol the spread ofcoronavirus in the rural area,said Shrikant Pandey, state

director, Nehru Yuva KendraSangathan.

“When the lockdown willbe lifted, we will have to bemore vigilant so that effectivemeasures can be taken to pre-vent the virus from spreading

again in the community. Insuch a scenario, a team oftrained youths will prove tobe very useful,” he said.

Abhishek Singh, anexpert from the UNICEF,while addressing the young-

sters, said that the personalcleanliness is the first andforemost.

He shared the effectivetechnique with the partici-pants how to wash and sani-tize hands through a video

presentation.He also them that it was

not necessary to wash handswith hand wash or sanitizer,hands can be washed withany soap or detergent for atleast 40 seconds.

More than 23 lakhCovid-19 cases have beenreported across the world, ofwhich 15,000 cases have beenreported in India so far, saidDr Gajendra, an expert fromthe UNICEF.

However, out of the 36cases in Chhattisgarh, 24patients have been recoveredwhereas 12 patients are stillunder treatment, he said.

Arpit Tiwari, districtyouth coordinator, NehruYuva Kendra, Raipur, advisedyoungsters to stay away fromfalse news and misconceptionsprevalent on WhatsApp and

other social media platforms.Dr Chitra, a specialist of

the UNICEF motivatedyoungsters to stay healthyand stay safe.

Explaining the impor-tance of Yoga to them, Chitrasaid that they themselvesshould practice Yoga toencourage their familymembers and acquaintances.

Many activities are beingcarried out by the NehruYuva Kendra at differentlevels such as writing wallgraffiti, distribution of masks,and awareness campaign onsocial media platforms, saidNitin Sharma, Durg districtyouth coordinator.

Himanshu Gupta, Anjaliand other district officials ofthe organisation were alsopresent at the trainingsession.

Nehru Yuva Kendra contributes in fight against Covid-19

KONDAGAON n (PTI)

A heavily-pregnant womanhas emerged as a leading

corona warrior in Naxal-hitKondagaon district.

She has been workingtirelessly to ensure peopleremain indoors and stay pro-tected from the coronavirusoutbreak.

Santoshi Manikpuri (38),who is already a mother of afour-year-old daughter, wasgiven the title of 'champion ofchange’ last month by theKondagaon district adminis-tration, is an auxiliary nursemidwife (ANM).

At present, she is postedat the health and wellnesscentre (HWC) in Kerawahivillage of the insurgency-hit

Kondagaon district in tribal-dominated Bastar division.She has been in the post forthe last five years.

"There are very fewinstances in life where you getan opportunity to serve peo-ple at a crucial time. I couldhave taken leave. But, I lis-tened to the call of my soul

that I should fulfill my duty asa health worker,” Santoshitold PTI over phone.

The ANM and two otherstaff members from theHWC, not only handlepatients in the OPD, but afterfinishing their work, they gofrom village to village to makepeople aware about social dis-tancing and personnelhygiene.

"Being a senior ANM, it ismy responsibility to be onduty. Officials had asked meto take leave if I need, but Iwant to work till I can,” saidSantoshi, whose child is duenext month.

"We are continuouslymonitoring the situation inour area and have asked peo-ple to inform when anyone

comes from other states orfrom abroad," she said.

So far, members from 50families, mostly migrantworkers, who returned herefrom the other coronavirus-affected states, were quaran-tined at their homes and theyhave completed their obser-vation period, she said.

"We also hold meetings of'mitanins' (community healthworkers), who are helping inthe awareness drive andinform us about sick people,to keep them informed aboutthe government's guidelinesin this regard," she said.

In her endeavour,Santoshi has received supportfrom her husband, who is tak-ing care of their four-year-olddaughter at home.

9-month pregnant woman leadingfight against corona in Kondagaon

She is posted at thehealth and wellnesscentre (HWC) inKerawahi village ofthe insurgency-hitKondagaon districtin tribal-dominatedBastar division

STAFF REPORTER n RAIPUR

Chief Minister BhupeshBaghel on Tuesday direct-

ed the Bijapur collector toprobe into the death of a 12-year old girl from Aded villagein the district and submit areport on the incident.

The minor girl JamloMadkam died from suspecteddehydration after walking formore than 100 km fromTelangana to Chhattisgarhamong with 11 other peoplefrom her village.

The group had gone to theneighbouring state for pluck-ing chillies, reports said.

Baghel has also hiked thecompensation amount from `1lakh to `5 lakh.

Earlier on Monday, thechief minister expressing deep

grief over demise had sanc-tioned `1 lakh as immediaterelief to the next of kin fromthe Chief Minister’s ReliefFund. A

Meanwhile, the stategovernment is providing allassistance to the workers in thestate during the lockdownperiod.

Under the MNGREA, col-lection of tendu leaves and workin gauthans have restarted togenerate employment to a largecross section of rural people.

The state government hasprovided food and boardingfor more than 1.85 lakhmigrant workers within thestate and from other states.

The state government hasconstituted a team for constantmonitoring of relief tostranded workers.

CM directs Bijapur collector to probe into minor girl's death

STAFF REPORTER n RAIPUR

State labour secretary cumlabour commissioner and

nodal officer Sonmoni Borahon Tuesday permittedindustrial and agriculturalactivities across the state,except in Covid-19 contami-nation zones and hotspots.

The permission willprovide relief for migrantworkers in industries,agriculture, construction andother work, other employ-ment generating units bymaking them operationalunder the Standard OperatingProcess (SOP), an officialorder said.

It will also pave way forthe transport of workers fromrelief camps to their working

places.Raipur collector Dr S

Bharatidasan, however, said thatthe relaxation will not beenforced in the district’s hotspotsand contamination zones.

All migrant workersstaying in relief camps orother accommodations will beregistered based on their voca-tion by the district adminis-tration, the collector said.

Based on the capability,these workers will be providedemployment through place-ment in the district level indus-tries and other employmentgenerating activities, he said.

“If they are interested towork in places of earlieremployment, it will bearranged. After healthcheck-ups of the workers, if

they are found to be healthy,then only they will be allowedto move to other districts,” thecollector said.

The migrant workers willbe allowed to travel within thedistrict or inter-district limitsbut within will not be allowedto travel out of the state, theorder said.

Vehicles to transport work-ers will have to be fully sani-tized and social distancing willhave to be maintained, it said.

Food and pure drinkingwater will be provided to theworkers by the localadministration while they aretravelling. All coronavirusprotocols issued by the Centreand the state government willhave to be strictlyimplemented, the order said.

ABHIJAT SHUKLA n KORBA

Katghora town inChhattisgarh’s Korba

district, is among the 170hotspots across the country,which has been earmarked asa ‘Red zone’.

The town of Katghorahad until now contributedexactly 75% or 27 out of the36 people stricken by theCovid-19 pathogen inChhattisgarh and 10 of theactive patients who are stillbeing treated at the All IndiaInstitute of Medical Sciences(AIIMS), Raipur.

Notably, a hotspot or ared zone is earmarked to mapthe local transmission of thedisease and prevent thecontagion from spreading.

On one hand, a complete

clampdown has beenenforced in the town and itsoutskirts, on the other, thehealth department hasramped-up screening of eachand every person inKatghora.

Strict restrictions on themovement of people andgoods to and from the townhave been put in place in theentire area to prevent anyfurther spread of the virus,Korba district magistrateKiran Kaushal told ThePioneer.

She further informed that“to monitor the movement ofpeople closely, two separatewar-rooms have been set-upin the district--one in the dis-trict collectorate at the dis-trict headquarters, while theother is at the containment

spot of Katghora,” she said.“We conduct electronic

surveillance, like checkingmobile phone locations onGPS and check the footages

of CCTV cameras installedinside the confined area,” thedistrict magistrate said.

Special vigil is put at thePurani Basti neighbourhood

of Katghora, which hasbecome an epicenter after a16-year-old boy, linked toTablighi Jamaat congregationwas detected as the firstCovid-19 positive person onApril 4, the district adminis-trative chief said.

Soon after the boy testedpositive for the virus, 26 otherpeople who had been in con-tact with him also tested posi-tive for Covid-19, she said.

The DM further said:“Electronic surveillance wasalso being used to ensurethat the primary radius of 3km in the infection epicenterof Purani Basti area, is sealedround the clock with a dronemonitoring system to ensureno one steps out from theirhomes at all”.

To a question if she was

facing any resistance from thesymptomatic and quaran-tined people for testing, theDM said:“Nothing much,which is worth mentioning.”

Meanwhile, a health bul-letin issued by the state healthdepartment, said that healthteams have been deployed forscreening each and every per-son in Katghora to identifysymptomatic people who willbe further monitored tocontain the outbreak.

Followed by the guide-lines from the Indian Councilof Medical Research (ICMR),Chief Minister BhupeshBaghel had ordered for rapidantibody tests of all the resi-dents of Katghora who are atpresent being tested withfast-track kits.

C’garh races to contain Covid-19 in Katghora hotspotApps and maps helping to monitor proliferation

Pioneer Archieve

STAFF REPORTER n KORIYA

Two labourers who werereturning home on foot

due to the coronavirus lock-down, were killed after beingrun over by a freight train inKoriya district on Tuesday,police said.

The mishap took placearound 8 am betweenUdalkachhar and Darritolarailway stations underMandendragarh police stationlimits in Koriya, they said.

As per preliminary infor-mation, the victims, KaleshwarRajwade (21) and GulabRajwade (20), along with twoother workers left fromPendra-Marwahi-Gaurela dis-trict on Monday to reach theirnative villages in Surajpur dis-trict, located around 130 km

from Pendra, by walking alongthe rail tracks, a police officialsaid.

All the four men wereundergoing training in manu-facture of fertilizers in Pendra,but it was suspended due to thelockdown.

As no transport servicesare available due to travelrestrictions, they decided towalk along the rail route, theofficial said.

After an overnight jour-ney, they reached a spotbetween Udalkachhar andDarritola stations on theAnuppur-Ambikapur railwayline, located around 80 kmfrom Pendra, where the twovictims sat on the track to havebreakfast while the two otherworkers went to fetch water.

Labourers killed onrailway track whilereturning home

Partial industrial,agricultural activitiespermitted in stateSTAFF REPORTER n

RAIPUR

State agriculture and waterresources minister

Choubey on Tuesday saidunder the guidance of ChiefMinister Bhupesh Baghel,special attention is being paidto agriculture and allied activ-ities during the lockdown.

Addressing mediapersons through video con-ference he said strengtheningthe rural economy, the stategovernment is continuouslyworking for the developmentof villages, the poor and thefarmers.

Choubey further saidthat under the crop insuranceand Pradhan Mantri KisanYojana, an amount of `900crore has been transferred totheir accounts so far during

the lockdown.The state government has

also ensured the sale of theirproduce along with discountsfor farming.

Choubey said the pay-ment of Rabi crop insuranceto the farmers has also start-ed.

An amount of `2 crore 59lakh has been released to

2668 farmers of Kabirdham,Mungeli and Balrampur dis-tricts of the state, he said.

Farmers of other districtsof the state will also be paidthe insurance amount of Rabicrops soon, he said andadded that the Union petrole-um ministry permitted thefood corporation of India tomake bio-ethanol from food

grains and Chhattisgarh isexpected to get permission tomanufacture bio-ethanolsoon.

A provision of `5,300crore has been made underthe Rajiv Gandhi Kisan NyayYojana launched in the statefor the benefit of farmerswhich will be distributedfrom next May to all the

farmers, who sold paddy atthe minimum support pricein the state, he said.

With the aim ofemploying villagers in on alarge scale, the work of thewatershed mission has alsobeen started by the stateagriculture department.

The minister further saidthat in view of the upcomingkharif season, the prepara-tion has been started by theagriculture department.

Adequate quantity ofseeds has been stored, he saidand added food grain andother commodities havebeen stored in the state.

Care is being taken toensure that the farmers donot face any problem in thefarming during the lockdownperiod and the upcomingkharif season, he said.

Payment of `900 Cr to farmersduring lockdown period: Minister

‘A provision of `5,300crore has been madeunder the Rajiv GandhiKisan Nyay Yojanalaunched in the state forthe benefit of farmerswhich will be distributedfrom next May to all thefarmers, who sold paddyat the minimum supportprice in the state’

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President Ram Nath Kovindand Prime Minister

Narendra Modi on Tuesdayhighlighted the role of civil ser-vants in the country’s fightagainst the coronavirus pan-demic as India reported morethan 18,000 infections andnearly 600 deaths.

Modi conveyed his greet-ings to the civil servants as wellas their families on CivilServices Day. "I appreciate theirefforts in ensuring India suc-cessfully defeats COVID-19.They are working round theclock, assisting those in needand ensuring everyone ishealthy,” PM Modi tweeted.

The Prime Minister alsopaid tribute to SardarVallabhbhai Patel and sharedhis speech form Civil ServicesDay in 2018.

Kovind said civil servants“have played a key role inimplementing policies andprograms for public welfare”.

“In the present times too,the steel frame of our country,the civil service, has shown itsstrength and resolve in han-dling COVID-19 situation,with sensitivity and profes-sionalism. Confident that ourcivil services will continue toserve in the best traditions ofpublic service,” the Presidenttweeted.

Vice President M VenkaiahNaidu also lauded the civilservants of the country fortheir spirit of service to the peo-ple and their stellar role in thenation’s ongoing battle againstcorona virus. On the occasionof Civil Services Day today, heurged the people to supportand stand by the civil ser-vants.

In his message posted onFacebook on the occasion,Naidu referred to the role beingplayed by the civil servants bybeing in the forefront of thefight against the virus witheffective coordination with allothers concerned and by beingat work even as the people areconfined to homes due to lockdown.

Union home minister AmitShah also extended his “warmgreetings” to all civil servantsand their families on CivilServants Day.

"They have played a pio-neering role in India’s progress.Today at these challengingtimes their dedication, com-mitment and efforts to defeatCOVID-19 are truly apprecia-ble,” Shah tweeted.

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Concerned over the prospectof a shortage of tuberculo-

sis (TB) medicines in India asits production has been impact-ed due to the ongoing nation-wide Covid-19 lockdown, theUnion Health Ministry hascalled for a ban on its exports.At the same time, it has alsoasked the State Governments toensure transportation of sup-plies of the finished productwithin the country and enableofficials, labourers or workersto reach the manufacturingplants so that the much-affect-ed production of the drug canbe ramped up.

Sources said, a decision onwhether or not to ban theexport of anti-TB drugs couldbe taken soon even as theGovernment would go for tak-ing measures to bring its pro-duction back on track.

"In view of the emergencymeasures undertaken, theavailability of limited numberof manpower and material tothe pharmaceutical industry,the production capacity of theleading anti-TB drugs manu-facturers of India has beenaffected," Union Health

Secretary Preeti Sudan wrote toParameswaran Iyer, the Head ofthe Empowered Group forFacilitating Supply ChainManagement and the DrinkingWater and Sanitation Secretary.

"The TB drugs are essen-tial for the treatment of TBpatients under National TBElimination Program (NTEP)and delay in production andreceipt of supply may causeacute shortages of these drugsin the field. Such a situationwill worsen the treatment ofthe TB patients within thecountry," she said.

Due to the coronaviruspandemic and resultant coun-trywide lockdown to curb itsspread, leading manufacturersMacleods Pharmaceuticalsand Lupin Limited have toldthe government that there isa shortage of materials, labourand transport, the Secretarycited in her letter adding themanufacturers have commu-nicated that there could be adelay in the supplies.

State governments inGujarat, Himachal Pradesh andDaman and Diu, where the fac-tories are located, have beenasked to ensure that trans-portation services are available

for the pharma companies andworkers and materials are ableto reach factories.

The Health Secretary askedthe Empowered Group todirect the Departments ofCommerce andPharmaceuticals andCommerce Ministry to inter-vene in the issue and prohibitthe export of the anti-TB drugsso that the patients in India donot face any difficulties and theNTEP is also not adverselyimpacted.

India, where 4.5 lakh per-sons die annually due to thescourge of TB, plans to wipeout the menace in the countryby 2025. Hence, the unhin-dered continuance of the NTEPholds the key to India gettingrid of the tag of one of the mostTB-burdened countries glob-ally.

India had initially bannedthe export of anti-malaria drughydroxychloroquine drug butrescinded it on humanitariangrounds after several coun-tries like the US urged it to. TheUS and Brazil are among thecountries which are using HCFin their anti-Covid fight. Atpresent, India is exportingHCF to 55 countries.

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In just four months since thefirst case of Covid-19 was

reported, the pandemic isalready adversely impactingcountry’s private healthcaresector including small hospitalsand clinics, especially in Tier-II and III cities, which havebeen forced to close downtheir operations since theircash flows have dried-up,according to a joint report byFICCI and the EY, a global enti-ty engaged in tax, transactionand advisory services.

Yet, private hospitals andnursing homes, that constitutemore than 60 per cent of beds at8.5-9 lac, 60% of inpatients and80 per cent of doctors in India,have been investing heavily overthe past month in additionalmanpower, equipment, con-sumables and other resources toensure 100% preparedness forsafety in the healthcare facilitiesand eventual treatment ofpatients, if needed, said thereport.

Dr Sangita Reddy, President,FICCI and Joint ManagingDirector, Apollo HospitalsEnterprises, said, “the privatehealthcare sector in India hasstood besides the governmentfirmly to contain the virus and

is deeply committed to the waragainst COVID-19.

“However, there is an urgentneed to consider the healthcareindustry’s triple burden viz. lowfinancial performance in pre-COVID state; sharp drop in out-patient footfalls, diagnostic test-ing, elective surgeries and inter-national patients across the sec-tor is impacting cash flow; andthe increased investments due toCOVID-19; which has impact-ed the hospitals and laboratorieslike never before.”

Dr Alok Roy, Chair- FICCIHealth services Committee andChairman, Medica Group ofHospitals added, “the financialdistress accentuated by Covid-19lockdown has forced severalstandalone and small nursinghomes in tier II and III cities todown the shutters. Many othersare at high risk of closing downsoon since their cash flows havedried up, due to steep decline inpatient footfalls, and they are fac-ing liquidity crisis for even sus-taining their staff salaries.”

The stakeholders have rec-ommended Government sup-port through Liquidity infusionfor financing of the operatinglosses through short term inter-est free/ concessional interest rateloans to address the liquidity gapto the tune of � 14,000 -24,000Crore, besides tax waivers.

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As India battles an unprece-dented crisis due to the

outbreak of Covid-19, there aremany good samaritans andNGOs doing their bit to pro-vide succour to those in need.

Some are offering cookedfood or handing over dry rationto those in distress or need

while many others are engagedin providing services liketelemedicine consultation anddistributing medical suppliessuch as masks, hygiene kits tothe jobless, hapless and helplessindividuals including elderlypersons and disabled who areat the receiving end due to thelockdown.

If Bengaluru-based

Caremongers is focusing onprioritising senior citizens, thephysically challenged, andthose with medical conditionsand expectant or new motherswho are not able to go out toprocure essentials, Pune-basedSpherule Foundation haslaunched COVID-19 Helpline+91 9172272336 where any-body can call for help for food,

Corona self-assessment test,doctors’ advise on symptoms,mental health and counsellingor for any other support. App-based cab aggregator Uber'sservices are now available forfree for public hospitals likeSafdarjung, Sir Ganga Ramand Dr Ram Manohar LohiaHospital in the national capi-tal.

Similarly, Delhi-basedNGO, Women Initiative forLiberation, Growth andAdvocacy (WILGA) is reach-ing out to meet basic needs ofthe poor families in far flungareas of States like Assamthrough its members whileAshirwad Foundation of India,which is running a school formentally challenged children in

the national capital, is distrib-uting cooked food, ration andsanitary kits to the migrantslabours and poor. TheAshirwad Foundation has alsotaken up cudgels to createawareness about the impor-tance of social distancing tohelp curb the spread of thevirus whereas WILGA has dis-tributed face shields and hand-

made masks among healthcareprofessionals in RML and LNJPhospitals.

WILGA and SpheruleFoundation are also providingbasic ration bags containingone month’s supply of items ofdaily need such as cereals,cooking oil, salt, spices, soapand sanitary napkin to those inneed..

Crowd-funding platform'Milap' has opened a windowfor those daily wagers affectedby COVID-19 while Delhi-based 'Goonj' has initiated'Rahat Covid-19' programme toensure that comprehensivefamily kits of essentials, includ-ing dry ration and personalcare material reach the migrantlabourers.

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The Supreme Court Tuesdaydismissed a plea seeking

direction to the Centre, allStates and Union territories toprovide free of cost treatmentfor coronavirus infection tillCOVID-19 pandemic is con-tained, saying it is for theGovernment to take a call onit.

"Government has to decideon who to give free treatment.We do not have any funds withus," a bench headed by JusticeN V Ramana said.

"Do not create publicityinterest litigation," the bench,also comprising Justices S KKaul and B R Gavai, said.

The bench, which heardthe matter through video-con-ferencing, observed thatGovernment hospitals acrossthe country are giving freetreatment to coronavirusinfected patients.

"We think this case shouldclose," it said.

The top court was hearinga plea filed by Delhi-basedadvocate Amit Dwivedi whohad sought a direction to theauthorities and others, includ-ing health care facilities, to"conduct tests, all subsequenttests, procedures and treat-ments in relation to COVID-19disease free of cost for all citi-zens of India" till the pandem-ic is contained.

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Union Minority AffairsMinister Mukhtar Abbas

Naqvi on Tuesday appealed toMuslim community to holdprayers, iftar and performother rituals at home during‘Ramzan’ in the wake of coro-navirus outbreak as he alsourged all to unitedly counter“fake news” and “conspiracy”theories spread by profes-sional rumour mongers.

In the backdrop ofOrganisation of IslamicCooperation (OIC) statement,Naqvi said “secularism andharmony” is not “political fash-ion” but “perfect passion” forIndia and Indians. “This inclu-sive culture and commitmenthas united the country with fab-ric of unity in diversity”, said theminister.

He said rights of minoritiesin India were guaranteed by theConstitution of India.

“Traditional and profes-sional bogus bashing brigade”are still active in conspiracy tospread misinformation” he saidand sought caution against

“such evil forces” spreading“misinformation and propa-ganda” which he said should bedefeated “ unitedly”.

The OIC had on Sundaycondemned what it called the“unrelenting viciousIslamophobic campaign” inIndia “maligning Muslims” forspread of Covid-19 and urgedIndian government to containthe “tide of Islamophobia”.

The Minister said ‘Ramzan’commences on April 24 and allreligious leaders, religious andsocial organisations havetogether decided and made anappeal to the Muslim commu-nity to hold prayers, Iftar andperform other rituals at homeitself while maintaining socialdistancing.

“The Muslim communityhas itself taken this decision,

just like they did during Shabe-Barat,” Naqvi said.

He said over 30 WaqfBoards have agreed to createawareness about “social dis-tancing” and need to defeatCoronavirus by adhering tolockdown guidelines.

He said most of the Muslimcountries have also bannedmass gathering at mosques andother religious places duringRamzan and have askedMuslims to pray at home.

He said Wakf Boards woulddemolish fake news andrumours about quarantine andisolation camps and oversee thestrict implementation of lock-down procedures duringRamzan.

On April 16, MukhtarAbbas Naqvi had directed statewaqf boards to ensure strictimplementation of lockdownand social distancing guidelinesduring the holy month ofRamzan. These Waqf boardsrun or oversee administrationof over seven lakh mosques,imambadas, Idgadhs and otherbuildings pertaining to reli-gious, cultural or social affairsof the community.

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The Ministry of food andSupplies on Tuesday said

that the Food Corporation ofIndia (FCI) has transported8,250 tonnes of PDS food-grains to Andaman & Nicobar(A&N) and Lakshadweep, viasea route, during the lock-down period.

During the 27 days of lock-down, 1,750 tonnes of food-grains have been moved toLakshadweep from Mangaloreport which is almost thrice thenormal monthly average of600 tonnes, it said in a state-ment.

The remaining 6,500tonnes of foodgrains have beenmoved from Kakinada Port toPort Blair, and different publicdistribution centres situated atdifferent islands of A&N, whichis more than double the normalmonthly average of 3,000tonnes, it added.

FCI transported foodgrainsin two ship vessels to A&N, andin seven small vessels toLakshadweep Islands since theimposition of lockdown onMarch 24 to combat the coro-navirus pandemic, it said.

A&N as well asLakshadweep have very uniquelogistical challenges as theseareas cannot be accessed byroad/rail from mainland, andsea route is the only option formovement of foodgrains, itsaid.

According to the state-ment, about 1,100 tonnes offoodgrains have already beendistributed via PDS shops inLakshadweep, while 5,500tonnes have been distributed inA&N during the lockdown."Considering the high depen-dence on PDS in these islands,it is of utmost importance toensure that foodgrains reachevery island well in time," theministry said.

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Following the Governmentand Courts, the Legislature

also on Tuesday decided toconduct panel meetingsthrough video conferencing.The decision was taken in thevideo conferencing betweenthe Lok Sabha Speaker OmBirla and Speakers of the StateAssemblies across the country.Addressing the Speakers of theAssemblies, the Lok SabhaSpeaker urged that Assembliesand Parliament must adopttechnology for functioningmore effectively.

Birla told the StateAssemblies to explore the fea-sibility of extensive use of dig-ital technology in legislativeand financial work and forother routine tasks such asmeetings and file movementsso as to make sure that strin-gent social distancing normsare followed in their respectivestates.

He also called upon all thestate assemblies to setup a

control room for real timeinformation exchange betweenthe various State Assembliesand Parliament, which wouldallow MLAs and MPs to dis-charge their duties in a moreeffective manner in order tofight the challenge posed byCOVID 19.

“In his interaction withSpeakers of the StateAssemblies, Birla was informedthat many states have takenproactive measures with regardto providing relief to affectedpeople. He was informed thatmany state MLAs have active-ly contributed to COVID 19relief funds, both at the centralas well as State level. Manystates have also extended direct

relief to the people throughcash transfers in bank accountsof the intended beneficiaries.Birla was informed by a num-ber of Presiding Officers aboutthe plight of stranded workersin many parts of the country,he was also informed that alarge number of students havebeen left stranded in the edu-cational Hub of Kota, whichalso happens to be Birla’s con-stituency.

He assured the PresidingOfficers of taking all the req-uisite steps to make sure thatthe stranded students andworkers are provided with allnecessary assistance,” said LokSabha Secretariat in a state-ment.

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Continuing his tirade againstthe Centre, former Congress

chief Rahul Gandhi on Tuesdaysaid that the poor were dying ofhunger and the Governmentwanted to make sanitisers for therich.

He also sought explanationfrom the Government why itwas not reducing the prices ofpetrol and diesel in the countrywhen crude oil rates haveplunged to record lows.

The Congress has also con-vened a Congress WorkingCommittee on Thursday to dis-cuss further the Covid-19 pan-demic and lockdown situation.This is the second CWC in thismonth besides the few rounds ofmeetings via video conferencingwith state Congress units andChief Ministers of party-ruledstates.

Reacting to reports that theCentre has decided to use addi-tional rice in stock to makeethanol, which could be used formaking sanitisers, Rahul said ina tweet, "When will the poor ofHindustan wake up, you aredying of hunger and from yourshare of rice they are going tomake sanitisers for the rich."

The Congress has beendemanding free ration tillSeptember 20 and party chiefSonia Gandhi has also written tothe Prime Minister on this.

Rahul has also appealed tothe government to issue emer-gency ration cards to themigrants and the poor, who arenot getting rations through thePDS.

His reactions came afterreports suggested that the Centrehas allowed the FCI to convert

the surplus rice into ethanol toensure adequate availability ofsanitisers to fight COVID-19.

The decision was taken bythe National Biofuel CordinationCommittee chaired by UnionPetroleum MinisterDharmendra Pradhan as per theNational Biofuel policy of 2018.

The ethanol produced willalso be used in production ofethanol-blended petrol.

The policy of 2018 allowssuch conversions of surplusfoodgrains to into ethanol.

Rahul also asked whenwould this government listenand reduce the prices of petroland diesel, which continued tosell at �69 and �62 per litrerespectively in India.

"Prices of crude oil have fall-en to unexpected levels in theworld, yet why is petrol in ourcountry sold at � 69, diesel at �62. It is good that prices havefallen in this disaster. When willthis Government listen," Rahulmentioned in a tweet.

Congress in statement saidMonday was a "historicalmoment" that saw unprecedented fall in the inter-national crude oil prices, asmanufacturers have no storagecapacity left.

Congress General SecretaryK.C. Venugopal said, "A meet-ing of the CWC will be held onThursday through video con-ferencing to discuss the currentCovid-19 pandemic and lock-down situation. All CWCMembers, Permanent andSpecial Invitees, CMs ofCongress-ruled states will takepart in the meeting, he said.

The Congress president hasalso constituted a consultativecommittee to discuss Covidpandemic which met onMonday headed by formerPrime Minister ManmohanSingh met on Monday anddemanded � 7,500 cash transferin all Jandhan and pensionaccounts of widows, disabledand aged people.

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Government officials onTuesday cited the

National Policy on Biofuels,which allows the conversionof surplus foodgrain intoethanol, to back the decisionof converting extra rice toethanol even as they assert-ed that hand sanitisers werethe need of the hour for the

poor too.They pointed out that

India, at present, has threetimes the quantity of ricethan was needed.

And as per the policy,there was nothing illegal inthe conversion. " Rampingup production of ethanolwill bring down the cost ofsanitisers and make themavailable to the poor aswell."

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The CRPF has appointed aCommandant for its bat-

talion deployed in Sopore inJammu & Kashmir where threejawans were killed in anencounter with the terrorists onFriday. The post ofCommandant of the battalionwas vacant for some time.

In an order approved bythe Director General of CentralReserve Police Force (CRPF)on Monday, the paramilitarytransferred Rabish KumrSingh, Commandant,Directorate (Works) to the bat-

talion deployed in Sopore withimmediate effect.

"The officer should joinnew place of posting immedi-ately without availing joiningtime," reads the order issuedby the CRPF headquartershere.

In view of lockdown dueto COVID-19, requested toprovide one good conditionvehicle for movement of theofficer from present place ofposting to the battalion inSopore. Required protectionparty for officer may also bedetailed. While moving, theofficer should ensure all pre-

cautionary measures, socialdistancing and travel adviso-ry in view of COVID-19 andmake required halt at a saferplace possibly at CRPF camps,added the order.

Three CRPF men were

killed and two otherssustained bullet injuriesin an encounter with theterrorists. The threekilled included HeadConstable RajeevKumar (Vaishali, Bihar),Constable CB Bhakare( B u l d h a n a ,Maharashtra) andParmar Satyapal Singh

(Sabarkantha, Gujarat). Theinjured jawans areConstable/Driver JavidAhmed Amin and BiswajitGhosh who have been report-ed to be medically stable aftersurgery.

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The Centre Tuesday told theSupreme Court that it

would not be possible to evac-uate Indian citizens stranded inthe US due to travel restrictionsamid the coronavirus pan-demic and bring them back atthis stage.

Taking note of the sub-mission, the top courtobserved that it would passany order for the evacuationnow.

The Government, whichplaced a status report beforethe apex court and apprised itof steps taken by the Centre,said that representations couldbe made within two weeksregarding "specific vulnera-ble people" stranded in USA tothe designated officers as men-tioned in the list attachedwith the report filed by theMinistry of External Affairs.

A bench of Justices N VRamana, S K Kaul and B RGavai observed that the USgovernment was extendingvisas of stranded Indians, whoare spread across America,and it would be difficult for thecourt to pass direction forbringing them back at thisstage.

"In reply to prayer made inthe instant petition preferredunder Article 32 of theConstitution of India, adetailed status report has beenfiled, setting out the stepsalready taken by theGovernment of India, showingits proactive approach," thebench noted in its order.

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Mumbai: In a major course cor-rection measure taken in viewof the non-compliance of lock-down norms by the people, theMaharashtra Government onTuesday withdrew its lockdownrelaxation norms for Mumbaiand Pune regions, the twoworst-affected areas in the state.

In line with his earlierannouncement that the stategovernment would do awayrelaxation in norms if the peo-ple failed to comply with thenorms, chief minister UddhavThackeray ordered withdrawalof lockdown relaxation normsfor Mumbai and Pune regionsand asked the authorities toenforce the lockdown normssternly in the two regions.

In another measure, thestate government revised itslast week's guidelines prohibit-ing door-to-door delivery ofnewspapers and magazines inthe state. The new norms per-mit the newspaper vendors /boys to deliver the newspapersand magazines door to door bywearing masks, using sanitisersand following the social dis-tancing norms. However, theban on door to door delivery ofnewspapers will continue in

the jurisdictions of Mumbaiand Pune MunicipalCorporations and also contain-ment zones.

In its notification issued onApril 18, the state governmenthad prohibited door-to-doordelivery of newspapers andmagazines across the state evenwhile saying that the printmedia is exempted from lock-down norms from April 20.The move had invited criticismfrom print media houses andalso the opposition BJP.

Lockdown relaxationnorms for Mumbai and Puneregions have been withdrawn inview of a large number of peo-ple found stepping out of homesand commuting on April 20.

In its Tuesday order, thegovernment said that otherlockdown relaxations, meantfor select activities, will not beapplicable in the MumbaiMetropolitan Region (MMR)and the Pune MetropolitanRegion (PMR).

The government said thedecision has been taken in viewof a large number of peoplefound commuting because ofcertain relaxations which cameinto force on April 20. PNS

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Ahead of the begining of the holymonth of Ramzan, the local resi-

dents living along the Line of Controlin Poonch are a worried lot.

On one hand ,ongoing lockdownhas restricted their movement in theirareas and on the other hand, continu-

ous shelling by Pakistan Army, for longhours, on daily basis, is making theirlives miserable.

In the absence of adequate numberof bunkers these border residents arestruggling to survive the firepowerunleashed by the Pakistan Army in theforward villages.

On Tuesday, shelling continued

for several hours triggering panic in theresidential area close to the line of con-trol.

Local media teams , who visited theforward villages reported, Pakistanarmy has started firing heavy calibreweapons to target the villages deepinside the Indian territory.

Defence PRO Lt- Col Devender

Anand in Jammu said, the first incidentof unprovoked ceasefire vioaltion wasreported in Kirni sector of Pooncharound 11.20 a.m and later heavyshelling started in the Qasba and Kirnisector around 5.20 p.m. Defence PROsaid, Indian side retaliated the firingappropriately and effectively on both theoccasions.

Hyderabad: Engineer and for-mer Member of Parliament,Konda Vishweshwar Reddy onTuesday claimed to have devel-oped a ventilator for Covid-19patients.

The rapidly manufac-turable Indian COVIDVentilator or ICo-Vent is aCOVID-19 specific ventilatorthat is expected to address theshortage of ventilators in theworld.

Reddy, also an entrepre-neur and inventor who hadheaded digital healthcare armsof General Electric and Wipro,said the lifesaving ventilatorscan be speedily made availablefor treating the thousands ofcritically-ill Covid-19 patientswho require mechanical venti-lation.

Reddy, who was elected toLok Sabha from Chevella con-stituency in Telangana in 2014,claimed that ICo-Vent meetsglobal specifications forCOVID-19 specific ventila-tors. He has already applied fora patent for the technology andfunction.

“Today, the world needs amillion ventilators and withcurrent manufacturers unable

to keep up with the supply, weare sure that the ICo-Vent, thefirst rapidly manufacturableCOVID-19 specific ventilatorwill help to bridge the shortfall.It is the need of the hour andmy focus is to ensure thisinvention benefits humanity,”he said.

The unprecedentedCOVID-19 episode exposedthe inadequacies of healthcaresystems worldwide. Being avirus that affects the respirato-ry system resulting in ARDS(Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome), govern-ments and healthcare systemsthe world over suddenly foundthat they needed a lot moreventilators than they had totackle the COVID situation,but not every ventilator workson COVID-19 positivepatients. This led to a globalrace to design and build ven-tilators, he observed.

UK, Canada and othergovernments have come outwith a set of specificationsdefining the minimum clini-cally accepted criteria for arapidly manufacturable venti-lator to address the COVID-19situation. India is also in the

process of coming out with asimilar set of specifications.

“The ICo-Vent addressesthe shortcoming of the con-ventional ventilators used inICUs for critically ill patients.Most of the other ventilatorsespecially those based onmechanized ambu bags provide no clinical benefits foruse on COVID-19 patients,on the other hand, they canpotentially cause ventilatorinduced lung injury and alsoput healthcare professionalsunder great risk as their oper-ation can lead to the release ofa huge viral load into the ICUatmosphere. Many healthcareworkers in other countrieshave succumbed to this viralload,” said Reddy, who is hus-band of Apollo Hospital’s JointManaging Director SangitaReddy.

The ICo-Vent allows theintensive care specialist or thepulmonologist to order a pre-cise volume of air and oxygenat a precise inspiration pressureand a precise expiration pres-sure considering the compli-ance or the elasticity of thelung.

IANS

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Tamil Nadu’s destiny withcoronavirus continued

unabated on Tuesday as 76 per-sons were tested positive tillevening making the number ofCovid-19 patients in the Stateto 1,596.

According to the medicalbulletin issued by the TamilNadu Health Secretary, 178patients who were cured of thepandemic were dischargedfrom various hospitals in theState on Tuesday. This is thehighest number of persons tobe discharged on a single dayin this month. On April 17, theState saw 107 persons comingout of the hospitals all cured.

Chennai, Coimbatore andTirupur occupied the top threepositions in the table of districtsfeaturing the maximum num-ber of coronavirus patients.There are 358 patients inChennai district undergoingtreatment for COVID-19, whileCoimbatore has 134 patients.

Kerala, which has beenexperiencing a decrease in thenumber of persons afflictedwith coronavirus till Mondaysaw a hike in the number ofpositive cases on Tuesday. ChiefMinister Pinarayi Vijayan, inhis daily press briefing said that19 persons were tested positivefor corona virus on Tuesday.This took the number of per-sons undergoing treatment for

coronavirus in the State to426.

The chief minister said thegovernment would be strictwith the lockout laws andrestrictions in the backdrop ofthe spurt in the number ofcases . “Half of the persons test-ed positive for coronavirus arethose who came to Kerala fromoutside. This is an indicationthat we should be more strictwith the border districts in theState,” said Chief Minister.

�� 432

With the Centre havinggiven it go-ahead with

certain conditions for carryingout rapid Covid-19 test, theMaharashtra Government willundertake 75,000 such tests inthe State and as a precaution-ary measure, distributeHydroxychloroquine tablets atsome places in Mumbai topeople showing symptoms ofCoronavirus.

Announcing this, StateHealth Minister Rajesh Topesaid: “Doctors in Maharashtraare conducting Covid-19 testsas per the protocol prescribedby the Indian Council ofMedical Research (ICMR).After laying down certain con-ditions, the Centre has per-mitted us to carry out rapid

Covid-19 tests. After comply-ing with the conditions, weintend to undertake 75,000rapid tests in the state”.

Tope said that sinceHydroxychloroquine increasedimmunity in the body, “As aprecautionary measure, weintend to distributeHydroxychloroquine tablets atsome places in Mumbai to

people showing symptoms ofCoronavirus. But, the tabletswill not be given to people withheart ailments or those wereaged above 60 years or below15 years of age”.

While addressing the peo-ple across the state through“Facebook”, the minister saidthat if the Coronavirus wereincreasing in Maharashtra, it

was because maximumCoronavirus tests were beingcarried out in the state. “Whilecarrying out the tests, we arefollowing the ICMR guide-lines. In addition, we are car-rying out door-to-door healthsurveillance in the state. Thereare currently 6359 surveillanceteams. There is absolutely nocompromise when it comes tohealth surveillance,” theMinister said.

The Minister said that theearlier periodicity of doublingof the Coronavirus cases wasreceding now in the state.“Earlier, the cases used to dou-ble in two days. Now, the dou-bling of cases happens one inseven days. After 20 to 25 daysof the outbreak of Covid-19,the trend should give us somesatisfaction”.

“We are also laying empha-sis on setting up Oxygen sta-tions at various hospitals whereCoronavirus patients are beingtreated currently. Our plan is toset up a mechanism where thepatient is made available oxygenmasks near his or her cot. Wehave also requested companiesproviding medical oxygen toincrease production,” he said.

Among other things, theminister said: “The districtswhere there are more than 15infected patients, we are declar-ing them as red zones. If inthose districts where is noincrease in the number ofinfected cases in 14 days, we aredeclaring them orange zones. Ifthere is no increase in thenumber of infected cases in 28days, we are declaring them asgreen zones”.

�� 432

Aday after BJP’s nationalspokesperson Sambit Patra

released a video and indirectlyaccused leaders of the twomajor Opposition parties ofbeing behind the much-dis-cussed Palghar lynching inci-dent, the CPI(M) on Tuesdayslammed him, his party’snational general secretary SunilDeodhar and others with adefamation suit, while the NCPasked the ruling party at theCentre to stop “misleading”the people and “politicising” theissue.

Upset by efforts by Patra

and other leaders of his party tolink the two parties to theApril 16 Palghar incident inwhich two Sadhus and a driverwere lynched by a large mob ofpeople at Gadhchinchale villagenear Kasa town inMaharashtra’s Palghar district,both the CPI (M) and NCPresorted to a counter-attack,saying that the BJP ruled the vil-lage where incident happenedand indirectly holding it square-ly responsible for the incident.

It may be recalled that onthe night of April 16, three per-sons were lynched by a 200-strong mob of villagers nearKasa town in Maharashtra’sPalghar district on suspicionthat they were thieves.

The villagers first hurledstones at the van, prompting thedriver to stop the vehicle. Later,they pulled three persons out ofthe vehicle and beat them todeath in Gadhchinchale villageon Dabhadi-Khanwel road,

with sticks and rods.The deceased —identified

as two Sadhus Chikne MaharajKalpavrukshagiri (70),Sushilgiri Maharaj (35) anddriver Nilesh Telgade (30) weretravelling from Mumbai toSurat.

Acting sternly against theculprits behind the ghastlylynching incident, theMaharashtra police on Mondayarrested 101 persons, whilechief minister UddhavThackeray ordered the suspen-sion of two policemen, trans-ferred the case to the CrimeInvestigation Department(CID) and deplored the effortsto communalise the crime.

On Monday, Patra had putout two tweets – in one ofwhich he had demandedanswers from the NCP andCPI(M) on what were the lead-ers doing in the unruly crowdthat indulged in inhumanlyact at Palghar, alleged that the

ruling alliance partners inMaharashtra were trying toput the sins of each other underthe carpet and wanted to knowif it was a murder or a conspir-acy.

He had also released thevideo of the incident and thepeople in Maharashtra couldrecoginise as to who were in thevideo.

In his response tweet, BJP’snational Secretary in-charge ofTripura and Andhra PradeshSunil Deodhar had said that thepeople in the video belonged tothe NCP and CPM and identi-fied them.

In retaliation, NCP’sMaharashtra unit presidentJayant Patil tweeted: @sam-bitswaraj Stop misleading.Gadchinchale Gram Panchayatin Palghar is ruled by BJP andthe Sarpanch ChitraChaudhari,was present at thetime of incidence.NCP has noinvolvement in the incident.

Party worker had gone to venueon the police request. Stoppoliticizing the issue”.

The NCP’s response to theBJP came a day after chiefminister Uddhav Thackeraydeplored the efforts to com-munalise the crime. Withoutnaming the BJP, Uddhav hadtaken a dig at the BJP leaders.“Currently, we are waging a waragainst Coronavirus. Some peo-ple are using the incident to viti-ate the atmosphere over socialmedia. Though two Sadhuswere among the three lynchedin the incident, please do notgive a communal colour to theincident”

During the course of hisaddress to people across thestate, Uddhav had also said: “Ihave spoken to both UnionHome Minister Amit Shah andUP chief minister YogiAdityanath. There is absolute-ly no religious context to theincident. It is wrong for the peo-

ple to give communal colour tothe incident. The mob attackedeven the policemen who hadrushed to the scene. They alsodamaged their vehicle”.

Meanwhile, the CPI (M)said that it had decided tolaunch legal proceedings againstall the above, for defamationand rumour-mongering.

In a statement issued here,CPI (M)’s Maharashtra statesecretary and party’s CentralCommittee member NarasayyaAdam said: “Once again wecondemn the Palghar incident.The Gadachinchle village wherethe killings took place has a BJPgram panchayat for the last 10years. It is the base of the BJP.The present Sarpanch is of theBJP.”

“In this background, towhom /are the ringleaders ofthe killings connected? Whowas spreading rumours in thisarea for the last several days?These and other matters will

become clear in the policeinvestigations,” Adam said.

“Realising that the situationis turning against them, somepeople have begun a con-demnable attempt on the socialmedia to defame the CPI(M)for no valid reason. SambitPatra and Sunil Deodhar of theBJP have made statementsdefaming the CPI(M) withoutany basis whatsoever,” Adamsaid.

“On some WhatsAppgroups and on Facebook, postsgiving some names as the mainaccused and falsely allegingthat they are CPI(M) activistsare being put up. Prakash Gadehas written such posts. On theFacebook page of I Devendraalso, such false posts have beenput up,” the CPI (M) state sec-retary said.

“In the FIR of this case, fivenames have been given as theaccused. None of them is amember of the CPI(M),” he

said.“We have begun the

process of preparing a list thatincludes Sambit Patra, SunilDeodhar, Prakash Gade, theadmin of the I DevendraFacebook page and other BJPsupporters who are forwardingsuch posts on variousWhatsApp groups and onFacebook,” Adam said.

The CPI(M) has decidedto begin legal proceedingsagainst all the above, fordefamation and rumour-mon-gering,” the CPI (M) state sec-retary said

“The CPI(M) reiterates itsdemand for a thoroughenquiry and stringent actionagainst the guilty in the Palgharcase. Our Party also demandsthat strict action be takenagainst all those who use thisincident for increasing com-munal tension, despite theappeal made by the ChiefMinister,” Adam said.

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The saying is that the Son ofthe God took birth in this

world to liberate us from all oursins. But we the thankless peo-ple were so cruel to Him. Hedied on the Cross for us.Chennai and Tamil Nadu stoodsilent witness to the death of yetanother Son of the Lord whosedead body was humiliatedbecause of ego clashes and theturf war between various sects.

Dr Simone Hercules, a 55-year-old neurosurgeon anddirector of Chennai’s NewHope Hospital breathed his lastlate Sunday in a corporate hos-pital in the city battling coro-navirus for almost two weeks.He was infected by the viruswhile attending to patients inhis own hospital.

When it was time for thelast journey, Dr Hercules’friends and relations wereinformed by Chennai CityCorporation officials deputedto facilitate the burial that thebody could not be taken toKilpauk cemetery due to stiffresistance by the faithful. Theytold his associates that morethan 300 persons have gatheredin front of the cemetery andwere against burying DrHercules’ body there.“Daughter of Dr Hercules isalso undergoing treatment forcoronavirus and it was mewho came forward to carry thebody to another burial ground,”said Dr K Pradeep Kumar, thelate doctor’s friend for a decade.

Dr Pradeep Kumar tookthe body in an ambulance toa crematorium at Velangadu,some ten km away from theKilpauk cemetery where theywere met by another crowd of200 perosns.

Though the police chasedthe mob away, some 50 to 60persons objected our entryinto the crematorium and start-ed pelting stones. The wind-shield of the ambulance wasshattered and glass splintersand stones hit even the mortalremains of Dr Hercules. Theambulance driver was injuredand we had to put some fourstitches on his head to stopbleeding. I myself took thewheels of the ambulance anddrove back to the hospital.Later a heavy posse of police-

men escorted us to the samecrematorium where we dug a12 ft pit with an earthmoverand interred the doctor. DrHercules deserved a betterfarewell,” a sobbing Dr PradeepKumar told The Pioneer.

While the cemetery offi-cials or representatives of theChurch remained incommu-nicado, a section of the peopleassociated with the deceaseddoctor blamed the caste hier-archy in the Church as the rea-son for the deprivation of adecent funeral for a person whohad dedicated his life to servethe mankind.

“It is a matter of shame forentire Tamil Nadu. This is aviolation of human rights also,”said Narayanan Thirupati,spokesman of Tamil Nadu BJP.The Madras High Court whichtook up a suo motu publicinterest litigation petition,warned the local residents whohad objected to the burial of DrHercules in Kilpauk cemetery.

The bench which heard thepetition reminded the peoplethat the fundamental right tolife guaranteed under the con-stitution included the right todecent burial or cremation.

“It prima facie appears thatas a consequence of the abovesaid alleged acts a person whopracticed a noble profession asa doctor and breathed his lasthas been deprived of his rightsto have a burial in a cemeteryearmarked for that purpose,”said judges M sathyanarayananand M Nirmal Kumar in theirorder.

Hyderabad: Amid the spike innumber of domestic violencecases in and around Hyderabadduring the ongoing lockdown,Rachakonda police on Tuesdaycame to the rescue of a house-wife.

A 28-year-old woman, res-ident of Hayatnagar, approachedthe police through Whatsappand informed that she is suffer-ing from domestic violence byhusband and in-laws.

According to RachakondaPolice Commissioner MaheshBhagwat, ‘She’ team’sVanasthalipuram divisionincharge Karunakar Reddyreached the victim’s house.

She, however, was not will-ing to lodge the complaint andinstead requested for counseling.

The victim, her husbandand in-laws were counseled atSakhi Counselling CentreVanasthalipuram through pro-fessional family counselors.Police said the husband and in-laws admitted their guilt andcompromised. The Rachakondapolice commissioner appealed toall women suffering fromdomestic violence to dial 100 orWhatsapp control number9490617111 for immediate help.

IANS

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As the total number of Covid-19 cases are inching closer to

cross 400 mark, theJammu&Kashmir Governmenton Tuesday announced that outof twenty, five districts have beencategorised as ‘hotspots’ while atotal number of 92 areas havebeen classified as red-zonesacross the Union territory.

Out of these five districts,four districts of Srinagar,Bandipora, Baramulla and

Kupwara fall in Kashmir divi-sion while Jammu district alonefigured in the list.

Spokesman of the Jammuand Kashmir Government,Rohit Kansal, while addressinga press conference in Jammusaid, at least 80 per cent of theactive cases inJammu&Kashmir have beenreported from these five districts.

Kansal said by puttingstrict restrictions we are goingto further enhance our testingin these areas so as to further

contain the spread of coron-avirus.

Sharing details of activecases, Kansal said, “ 12 newscases were added in the tally, 11from Kashmir while first casewas reported from Hiranagararea of Kathua district”. InKashmir, a junior doctor post-ed in GMC, Baramulla testedpositive while one of the resi-dents of Chan Khatri area ofHirangar tested positive onTuesday. He recently arrivedfrom Mumbai and was quar-

antined in a local health cenreafter his travel hisotry wasreported by the local villagers tothe health department team.

Meanwhile, the total casesat present in Jammu andKashmir stood at 380. Out ofthese 294 are active cases. 256from Kashmir and 38 fromJammu.

Kansal said, so far 81patients have recovered and dis-charged from different hospi-tals. He said it is some cause forcheer adding there was no

room for complacency as yet.Meanwhile, taking another

important decision, theDivisional Commissioner,Kashmir, Pandurang K Pole,Tuesday directed owners ofPrivate Hospitals, DiagnosticCenters and other health insti-tutions to start normal func-tioning within a week andwarned that any institutionfound violating the directionsregarding the essential servicesrules, will be strictly dealt withunder relevant laws.

0�(��" ��"��#"�1� ��#��2�"��"��!�34� Chennai: In a humane deci-sion, Greater Chennai Policeon Tuesday have decided toask policemen aged 55 andabove to be at home as a pre-caution against corornavirusinfection.

According to PoliceCommissioner A.K.Viswanathan the decision isapplicable to all vulnerableofficials.

The decision comes aftera 55-year old Sub-Inspectorgot infected with coronavirus.

As per the new instruc-tions, policemen aged above55 need not come to work andthey need not be called forduty. Policemen aged between50 and 55 will look after workat police station and will notbe deployed outside as a pre-cautionary measure.

Viswanathan has alsoasked policemen to weargloves and masks and strictlymaintain social distance whileinteracting with public andothers.

And inside the police sta-tions, social distancing shouldbe maintained. IANS

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In Europe, Spain, with a population of46 million, is closely following the foot-steps of Italy in terms of COVID-19fatalities. It has suffered more deaths permillion inhabitants than any other

nation with the death toll crossing 20,000 onApril 17. There were more than 9,000 newcases on March 31 and 950 deaths on April2, the biggest daily death figure. These hor-rific statistics were provided by the SpanishGovernment’s top scientific advisor on thepandemic, Fernando Simon. ImmunologistAlexander Edgar of the University of Readingsaid, “A lot of the spread had happened beforepeople realised. Most of them assumed thatthe problem was elsewhere — Wuhan, whichwas shut off since January.”

This is analogous with Myanmar’s HealthMinister saying in Yangon when it claimedzero COVID-19 that “Hubei was 1,200 milesaway from the country though it shares a1,900-mile border with China.” The threemain reasons for the high fatality rate in Spainare the country’s slow response; demographyand social behaviour; and low testing capac-ity. This, despite the country having an excel-lent healthcare system and not to forget thehigh-life expectancy in Europe due to itsMediterranean diet. But Spain’s ageing pop-ulation has been shrinking since 2010 due torecession and migration. More people diedin 2018 than were being born here and thepandemic started with the elderly contract-ing it first, like in Italy where social and cul-tural behaviour matches that of Spain’s.

On a holiday in Spain months before theoutbreak of the Wuhan virus, one had heardof the Spanish flu and influenza pandemic thatoccurred in 1918-1919 duringand after WorldWar I, where one in three human beings wereinfected and around 17 million to 100 mil-lion perished across the world. Calling the fluSpanish is a misnomer: It started in Kansasat Fort Riley when the US was preparing tojoin the war. Others say it started in the con-gested trenches of Europe, which at that timewere filled with young men and laterAmerican soldiers. The Spanish flu was real-ly bad as it came in three waves and reachedacross the world, including Africa andAustralia. Medicine, too, was not extensive-ly developed.

The holiday was memorable. EthiopianAirlines describes Madrid as the city of greatmonuments. I would add museums and PlazaMayor to that list. It has just one cathedral andthat, too, constructed in the mid-20th cen-tury as the Archbishop of Toledo, the old cap-ital of Spain, would not allow it. Madrid sitsastride Rio Manzanares with gentle slopes onboth sides of the river connecting the twoparts of the capital with a blend of ancient andultra-modern bridges, marvels of architecturereflecting the extraordinary vision of theSpanish rulers building six-lane bridges in16th century.

On both sides of the river are walkways,partly covering the Madrid marathon cyclingtracks. Spaniards ride bicycles whenever and

wherever they can. September isa great time to arrive in Madrid’snew and a design wonder airportwhere immigration officials tookjust four seconds to stamp mycongested passport. But immi-gration rules will change now.

Madrid has one palace, onecathedral, more than 50 muse-ums, 46 art galleries and 23concert venues. All of these wererenovated for the 400th anniver-sary of the Plaza Mayor, whichrecords Madrid’s heartbeat withits ancient square and adjoiningfood and wine markets.

I am not a connoisseur ofwine but Spanish rioja is excel-lent at 3 to 4 euro per bottle. InMadrid, in the grocery shops, Icould find only Spanish wine. Abottle a day is bound to keepspirits high, ideally with freshstrawberries, ham and cherries.Bar Nakama, a hole in the wall,is run by the solitary English-speaking barman Robert.Nakama, he explained, meant“friend” in Japanese, though wenever saw a Japanese in here. Inhis bar one could buy a glass ofreasonable wine for 2 euro,which is accompanied by plen-tiful snacks and gratis. Excellentespresso coffee and Spanishbeer were available, too.

All roadside cafes charge 1 to2 euro extra for service except thechain 100Mantidelos, where selfservice rules, which is pronto.Madrid is not expensive likeLondon and Paris or evenBrussels and Amsterdam.Though museums charge an

average of 7 to 10 euros, many arefree between 7 and 9 on somedays and gratis all times for EUand Latin American nationals.

September is also the monthfor art, music and theatre festivalsorganised by DCode, supple-mented by exhibitions and con-certs by Arte Madrid andAppertura. World class bands,including Team Gallagher andOasis, Broadway musicals,English theatre artistes, flamen-co dancers, singers and gui-tarists, all perform here. Bullfighting happens only betweenApril and June but Spain standsdivided on whether the sportshould stay or be banned alto-gether. Madrid boasts of a threeMichelin-star restaurant CairellaBistro that has a Valencian chef.The most famous landmark isthat of a male Spaniard, leaningon a balustrade near CalleAllemedine and Calle MayorJune. Most tourists mistake thebronze life-size statue for real andbrush past it whispering inanitiesand rubbing its bottom for goodluck. They call him the goodbum. Toledo is a world modeltourist attraction. On a Sunday,it was bursting with human kindwith tour guide-led columnscrawling like ants. It takes an hourto reach the old capital of Spain,which is surrounded on threesides by River Tagus. From themoment one alights the bus, oneis elevated to Plaza de Zocodoveron a series of escalators rising 500feet to reach the panoramicheights of the old city famed for

a blend of three cultures. Over a period of time,

Christians, Moors and Jews livedtogether peacefully (not quite liketoday in West Bank inJerusalem). A 10th centurymosque, preserved for two cen-turies before it was turned into achapel, is in good shape. Toledo’scathedral, built in the 13th cen-tury contains El Grecho master-pieces of de-robing Christ. Thebell in the tower weighing 30,000kilos apparently rang only onceas it caused a minor earthquakein which a 90-metre high clockhad one of its needles disappear.A 14th century synagogue is wellpreserved in the Jewish quarter,next to El Grecho’s recreatedhouse. Toledo is an experience ofa lifetime. Equip yourself with atourist map, the Es Madrid mag-azine and mucho gracias foryour travel whenever you canplan one in the future.

Fast forward, Prime MinisterPedro Sanchez said on Mondaythat current measures of lock-down will extend beyond April25 and schools will be closed tillSeptember. Like elsewhere inEurope, he has announced a sec-tor by sector opening of the econ-omy. Sunday saw the smallestone-day death toll, 410, sinceMarch 22, which means thecurve is bending.

(The writer, a retired MajorGeneral, was Commander IPKFSouth, Sri Lanka and foundermember of the Defence PlanningStaff, currently the IntegratedDefence Staff.)��

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Sir — As we celebrate the EarthDay today, Percy Bysshe Shelley’squote, “Away, away, from men andtowns; to the wildwood and thedowns — to the silent wilderness;where the soul need not repress;its music lest it should not find;an echo in another’s mind; whilethe touch of nature’s art har-monises heart to heart,” comes asa tight slap on the face of human-ity. Earth Day is an annual eventcelebrated around the world onApril 22 to demonstrate our sup-port for the environment.

Every year, we come up withmany resolutions to save planetearth but this year, the latter hasitself found ways to rejuvenate.This year we celebrate this daywhen the Coronavirus pandemichas wreaked havoc in our lives andseverely disrupted economiesacross the world. The outbreak ofthe virus has taught us that weshould anticipate, evaluate andplan to deal with potential threats.If there was ever a time in whichhumanity should finally recognisethat we belong to one connectedfamily on earth, this should be it.

Srishti MathurUjjain

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Sir — The Modi Governmenthas sought to look at an entireera prior to 2014 through differ-ent prisms — one of negation ofpolicies and ethos of gover-nance and the other by suspect-

ing the decisions made by theprevious Government. If theformer clouded the socio-polit-ical canvas, the latter disruptedthe economic base.

The approach that worked forthe Government during the fairrun of the economy, not to speak

of electoral dividends, is nowproving a millstone. If the post-demonetisation period was notenough, the spread of Coronavirushas made matters worse.

For three years now, PublicSector Units (PSUs) have enoughliquidity but officials went into a

shell when it came to lending. TheFinance Minister, who hadexhorted the PSUs to lend with-out any fear of inquisition, has notsince followed up on this withclear directives.

Ministers, Secretaries and offi-cials continue to be under relent-less eyes for the decisions taken bytheir offices. Add to this the ongo-ing extraordinary course of theeconomy, which demands a spurtin lending across sectors, big,medium, small and at the individ-ual level. Clouds of suspicion arenot known to bear rains.

R NarayananNavi Mumbai

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Sir — It was good to learn thatlabourers, who are stranded dueto the ongoing lockdown, will beallowed to go to their respectiveplaces of work within a State. Indoing so all social-distancingnorms must be followed. Busesmust be sanitised to avert any fur-ther spread of the disease.

Prerna AgrawalVia email

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The Tablighi Jamaat (society of preachers)was founded by a Deobandi Islamic schol-ar, Muhammad Ilyas al-Kandhlawi, in

Mewat, India, in 1926 with the objective of estab-lishing a group of dedicated preachers as aMuslim revivalist society, who could reclaim“true” Islam, which he felt was not being prac-tised by many Muslims across the world.

The slogan Kandhlawi coined for his neworganisation captured the essence of its activi-ties — “O Muslims, become true Muslims.” Bythe mid-1930s, the Tablighi Jamaat had a pro-gramme of belief, which included, beyond thefive pillars of Islam and Islamic doctrinal tenetsthe following: Islamic education; modest Islamicdress and appearance; rejection of other religions;high regard for Muslims (yet allowed to operatein India since 1947); propagating Islam; self-financing of Tablighi trips; lawful means of earn-ing a living and strict avoidance of divisive andsectarian issues.

The Tablighi Jamaat is often consideredextremely orthodox in its interpretations of Islam,with the ability to convert Muslims into radicalbelievers. They believe that the ProphetMohammed has commanded all Muslims to con-vey the message of Allah to the world and theTablighis take this as their solemn duty.

They divide themselves into small jamaats(societies) and travel frequently across theworld to spread the message of Islam to Muslimhouses. During this travel, they stay in localmosques. This free spread and the access to theremotest part of the country with ease hasenabled them to meet vulnerable and deprivedsections of the non-Muslim population in India.

Some fringe groups within the organisationare backed by the power of petro-dollars, the InterServices Intelligence’s (ISI) dirty money machine,the vast network of underworld don DawoodIbrahim and other anti-national entities. Theseelements have converted a large section of thepopulation in the last 70 years with ease and with-out coercion.

Radicalism and its role in acts of terror:Some Tablighi Jamaat followers have worked asallies of jihadi and sectarian organisations.However, once they joined militant organisations,they cut off their links with the Tablighis.However, over the years, the terror groups haveused some of the Tablighi Jamaat congregationsas recruitment camps. Some fringe elements inthe Tablighi Jamaat have been sympathisers andsupporters of jihadi organisations such as theHarkat-ul-Mujahideen (Hum), the Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami, the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), the Al Qaeda and theTaliban.

As per WikiLeaks, “Some of the 9/11 al-Qaeda suspects detained by the US inGuantanamo Bay had stayed in the TablighiJamaat headquarters in Nizamuddin West, NewDelhi years ago.”

According to Pakistani security analysts andIndian investigators, HuM members, involved inthe hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight 814 in1999, were members of the Tablighi Jamaat.

The 2011 US investigation reports suggestthat the Tablighi Jamaat had supported membersof the Al-Qaeda to get visas and funds to trav-

el from Pakistan. Saad, the new Khalifa: Born on

May 10, 1965, Maulana MuhammadSaad is the Amir (chief) of the TablighiJamaat. He is the grandson of MaulanaMuhammad Ilyas, who founded theJamaat. Maulana Saad became thechief of the Tablighi Jamaat onNovember 16, 2015 and claims to have100 crore followers in 214 countries.

This huge number includes almostthree-four crore converts in westernUttar Pradesh (UP) that the Jamaat hassuccessfully targetted in the last 70 yearsin connivance with the so-called sec-ular political parties.

The Tablighi Jamaat has changedthe religious landscape of UP, Bihar,West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Telangana,Kerala and Maharashtra extensively bytargetting vulnerable and marginalisedsections of the non-Muslim populationallegedly aided by the secular rulingelite of India by creating a votebank forsecular parties and in return, convert-ing millions of citizens by exploitingweakness of Article 25(1).

This Article guarantees to everyperson and not merely to the citizensof India, the freedom of conscience andthe right freely to profess, practise andpropagate religion.

The Tablighi Jamaat used itsweapon extensively for the last 70years by inviting many radical preach-ers and import of petro dollars to facil-itate the growth of the Muslim popu-lation from less than seven per cent in1947 to 14.5 per cent in 2011 to likely16.8 per cent in 2021.

Furthermore, there are indeedsome links between the fringe elementsin the Tablighis and the world of jihad.

First, there is evidence of indirectconnections between the group and the

wider radical/extremist Deobandinexus composed of anti-Shiite sectar-ian groups, Kashmiri militants and theTaliban. As per Intelligence reports,Rohingyas residing in camps in differ-ent parts of the country have a directlink with the Tablighi Jamaat.

The Coronavirus pandemic 2019-2020: Amid the Coronavirus lockdown,patients from Nizamuddin were testedand found to be positive for the virus,which resulted in the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi Government registering anFIR against Kandhlawi for arranging aTablighi Jamaat programme despiterestrictions on such gatherings afterMarch 16 at the Nizamuddin Markaz.The Tablighi Jamaat congregation tookplace between March 13 and15 but over2,000 people stayed back in the Markaz.They had sought help from authoritiesfor vacating the premises on March 25.On March 31, an FIR was filed againstKandhlawi and others by the DelhiPolice Crime Branch under Section 3(the penalty for offence) of theEpidemic Diseases Act, 1897 andSections 269 (Negligent act likely tospread infection of disease), 270 (malig-nant act likely to spread infection of dis-ease), 271 (disobedience to quarantinerule) and 120b (punishment of crimi-nal conspiracy) of the IPC.

Later the police slapped the 304charge (punishment for culpable homi-cide not amounting to murder) whilethe Enforcement Directorate has fileda money laundering case and the ITdepartment is scanning the bankaccounts and suspicious transactions ofthe Tablighi Jaamat.

Why Tablighi Jamaat antago-nised their defence: Spitting and pelt-ing stones have almost become weaponsof war for the Tablighis. It makes one

question as to what can be the reasonfor this kind of deplorable behavior?According to some news reports, therehave been protests against medical staffand resistance against going to hospi-tals is not related to COVID-19. Someof the issues cited by them are theCitizenship Amendment Act, theNational Register of Citizens, TripleTalaq, Babri Masjid and so on.

Unfortunately, some parts of thecommunity are still focussing on pol-itics and discrediting the Governmentat any cost while the entire nation iscombatting the national health emer-gency. The country must take thethreat of the Tablighis as an eye-open-er for future planning that must includea ban and seizure of assets. We mustidentify ancillary units of the TablighiJamaat so that they can be stopped fromoperating under different names. Wemust punish the traitors of COVID-19,immediately amend Article 25(1) sothat the money and preachers from out-side the country can be restricted intheir operations (it is a national secu-rity threat), set up an expert commit-tee to re-examine provisions underArticle 25-30 in the Indian Constitutionand give additional power to the policeto identity and book anti-nationals. Itis important that Deoband, Barelvi,Salafi ideologies managing the networkof mosques in India must be broughtunder Government supervision andcontrol just as the temples of India aresupervised under the ReligiousEndowment Act, 1873. An absolutefreedom in the name of religion and atthe cost of the nation must be imme-diately curbed.

(The writer is Editor-in-Chief,Opinion Express and regular columnistwith The Pioneer)

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The time has come forState chieftains to showtheir leadership quali-

ties in handling theCoronavirus pandemic afterthe lockdown ends and thecountry starts going about itsbusiness as usual.

The days ahead are crucialfor the economy of the coun-try as well as for our fightagainst the virus but there is ahealthy competition amongthe Chief Ministers to excel indealing with these issues.

It is heartening to note thatmost States have risen to thechallenge and each ChiefMinister is trying to tackle thepandemic in his/her unique

way. Their response has beenquick and positive and they areleading from the front.

For instance, West BengalChief Minister MamataBanerjee has set up a commit-tee of experts, including someNobel laureates, to advise heron the relief measures to betaken in her State.

Similarly, Rajasthan ChiefMinister Ashok Gehlot hasshown that his “Bhilwaramodel” could be emulated byother States to contain thepandemic. The “Kerala model”,too, has won praise from allaround the country.

There are others like theKarnataka Chief Minister BSYediyurappa, Telangana’sChandrashekhar Rao, Punjab’sCaptain Amarinder Singh andOdisha’s Naveen Patnaik whohave done a good job of han-dling the Corona crisis.Interestingly most of thenon–NDA Chief Ministershave done quite well.

The Centre, too, has

realised the importance ofsome lockdown relaxations insectors like agriculture andconstruction.

Prime Minister NarendraModi has also left it to theStates to decide about furtherrelaxation of the shutdownguidelines as most of the ChiefMinisters had told him duringa video-conference with themthat there was a need for a stag-gered lockdown exit as theeconomy was suffering.

The Chief Ministers willface huge challenges in theirrespective States after the lock-down ends in May. For them itis a double whammy. On onefront they have to contain thepandemic and on the otherthey have to find resources todeal with the situation.

At the April 11 videocon-ference with the PrimeMinister, most Chief Ministersof Opposition-ruled Statesexpressed grave concern overlack of resources and depletingrevenues, as well as the huge

slide in the economy. A calibrated exit from the

lockdown is needed becausethe revenues of the Centre andStates have collapsed due to theshutdown and its extension. Infact, most States claim that theywill not be able to meet theirsalary bills beyond April. Theyhave sought special assistancefrom the Centre to sustain thebattle against the Coronavirus.

For instance, MamataBanerjee has demanded anational package of aroundsix per cent of the GrossDomestic Product (GDP) tocounter the pandemic’s impactand as relief for the micro,small and medium enterprises(MSME) sector.

The Punjab Chief Ministerhas demanded a three-monthcrop loan waiver. Gehlot hassought a Central relief packagefor his State’s tourism and hos-pitality industry, MSMEs andall the weaker sections of soci-ety. Tamil Nadu has sought�4,000 crore for augmenting

health services. Others havedemanded their Goods andServices Tax (GST) shareimmediately.

Pending Central assistance,some Chief Ministers havegone ahead and started to lifttheir States out of the mire withtheir own resources.

Kerala took the lead byannouncing a �20,000 crorepackage to kick-start the econ-omy. Uttar Pradesh ChiefMinister Yogi Adityanath wasone of the first to assure a guar-anteed income to daily-wagelabourers.

In Odisha, Naveen Patnaikhas set up three fully-equippedCOVID-19 hospitals and inChhattisgarh, Bhupesh Baghelhas ensured extra rations for all.The list of initiatives goes on.

On its part, the Centre hasthe big problem of findingresources to deal with theunprecedented crisis. The slidein the economy is a big worryas almost all the sectors, includ-ing civil aviation, manufactur-

ing, agriculture, infrastructure,travel and tourism have beenimpacted and it will need ahuge stimulus to uplift theeconomy.

The Centre has to pump inat least four to five billion dol-lars urgently into the economy.It has so far provided only 0.8per cent of the GDP as a stim-ulus and part of this is appro-priated from existing Statefunds linked to constructionlabour and mineral develop-ment.

The Coronavirus hasshown how unprepared Indiawas to tackle a pandemic likethis. Many States do not haveadequate hospitals, enoughhealthcare personnel, medicalequipment and testing kits.

By and large most Statesare depending on the Centrefor the supply of testing kits andthey can perform their dutieswell only when they get theequipment. Hence, improvingthe health sector is very impor-tant and must be done on a war

footing if we are to win thisCorona war.

Then there is the agricul-ture sector. The Centre hasrelaxed the lockdown for farmlabourers. But the States thatare depending on the migrantlabour from Bihar, UttarPradesh and other States willhave to ensure that they canretain the workers for the har-vest season. Meanwhile, Punjabdoes not have gunny bags topack the harvest in and Singhhas written to Mamata to sendthem over speedily. This willbenefit West Bengal’s jute farm-ers and weavers.

On the whole, while theChief Ministers function asgenerals, the Prime Ministerremains the supreme com-mander. The bottom line is thatunless they show their leader-ship qualities, they will not beable to win the next elections.The jury is out on their perfor-mance rating.

(The writer is a senior journalist)

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Every year during Ramadan,the Light of Muhammad

Mosque sets up long tables onthe street and dishes up freemeals at sunset for the poor tobreak their daily fast. It’s a char-ity that many rely on in thisimpoverished district on theedge of the Egyptian capital.

But it’s too dangerous inthis era of the coronavirus —in Egypt and in many Muslimcountries, such “Tables of theCompassionate” have beenbarred.

So the mosque, which likeothers in Egypt had to shut its

doors as a precaution againstthe virus, will use the funds thatwould have gone into the freecommunal tables to distributepacked meals and cash to thosein need.

“We hope this could easetheir suffering,” said SheikhAbdel-Rahman, the muezzin ofthe mosque in the district ofBahtim.

As Ramadan begins withthe new moon later this week,Muslims around the world aretrying to maintain the cher-ished rituals of Islam’s holiestmonth without further spread-ing the outbreak.

At the heart of Ramadan is

the sunrise-to-sunset fast,meant to instill contemplationof God. But alongside the hard-ship of abstaining from foodand drink for hours every day,the month sweeps everyone upinto a communal spirit.Families and friends gatherfor large meals at sunset,known as iftars. In some coun-tries, cafes and cultural eventsare packed late into the night.Worshippers go to mosques forhours of evening prayers, or“taraweeh.” Many devote them-selves to charity.

Muslims now find them-selves cut off from much of whatmakes the month special as

authorities fight the pandemic.Many countries have closedmosques and banned taraweehto prevent crowds. Prominentclerics, including in Saudi

Arabia, have urged people topray at home. Governments aretrying to balance restrictionswith traditions.

Geneva: The World HealthOrganization (WHO) said onTuesday that all available evi-dence suggests the novel coro-navirus originated in animalsin China late last year and wasnot manipulated or producedin a laboratory.

US President DonaldTrump said last week that hisgovernment was trying todetermine whether the virusemanated from a lab in the cen-

tral Chinese city of Wuhan,where the coronavirus pan-demic emerged in December.

“All available evidence sug-gests the virus has an animalorigin and is not manipulatedor constructed in a lab orsomewhere else,” WHOspokeswoman Fadela Chaibtold a Geneva news briefing. “Itis probable, likely, that thevirus is of animal origin.”

It was not clear, Chaib

added, how the virus hadjumped the species barrier tohumans but there had “cer-tainly” been an intermediateanimal host. “It most likely hasits ecological reservoir in batsbut how the virus came frombats to humans is still to beseen and discovered.”

She did not respond to arequest to elaborate on whetherit was possible the virus mayhave inadvertently escaped

from a lab. The WuhanInstitute of Virology has dis-missed rumours both that itsynthesized the virus or

allowed it to escape.Chaib, asked about the

impact of Trump’s decision lastweek to suspend funding to the

UN agency over its handling ofthe coronavirus pandemic, said:“We are still assessing the situ-ation about the announcementby President Trump ...and wewill assess the situation and wewill work with our partners tofill any gaps.”

“It is very important tocontinue what we are doing notonly for Covid but for many,many, many, many other healthprogrammes,” she added, refer-

ring to action against polio,HIV and malaria among otherdiseases.

She said that the WHO was81 percent funded for the nexttwo years as of the end ofMarch, referring to its $4.8 bil-lion biennial budget. TheUnited States is the Geneva-based agency’s biggest donor.Other big contributors are theGates Foundation and Britain.

Agency

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South Korean officials report-ed no unusual activity in

North Korea on Tuesday fol-lowing unconfirmed mediareports that leader Kim JongUn was in fragile health aftersurgery.

But the possibly of high-level instability raised trou-bling questions about the futureof a nuclear-armed state thathas been steadily building anarsenal meant to threaten the

U.S. mainland amid stalledtalks between Kim and U.S.President Donald Trump.

South Korea’s presidentialoffice said Kim appeared to behandling state affairs as usualand that it had no informationabout rumors regarding hishealth. But many will be watch-ing closely for any signs oftrouble in North Korea, andwhether it will address thereports — something it has notyet done.

The United States and

North Korea appeared to bebarreling toward war in 2017,with the countries tradinginsults and threats of destruc-tion. The next two years saw asurprising series of summits,including three between Kimand Trump, as Kim pursueddiplomacy in hopes of endingcrippling economic sanctionsand obtaining security guaran-tees. But through it all he main-tained his right to a nucleararsenal, and most diplomacyhas stalemated since.

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The United Nations GeneralAssembly has adopted a

resolution by consensus callingfor global cooperation toensure “equitable and fair”access to medicines, vaccinesand medical equipment for allnations and to prevent anyundue stockpiling of essentialmedical supplies as they battlethe Covid-19 pandemic.

The Mexico-drafted reso-lution, which was adopted onMonday, recognised the impor-tance of international cooper-ation and effective multilater-alism in ensure that all Stateshave in place effective nation-al protective measures, accessto and flow of vital medicalsupplies, medicines and vac-cines, in order to minimisenegative effects in all affectedStates and to avoid relapses ofthe pandemic.

The resolutions “encour-ages member states to work inpartnership with all relevantstakeholders to increase researchand development funding for

vaccines and medicines.It also encourages to lever-

age digital technologies, andstrengthen scientific interna-tional cooperation necessary tocombat Covid-19 and to bolstercoordination, including withthe private sector, towards rapiddevelopment, manufacturingand distribution of diagnostics,antiviral medicines, personalprotective equipment and vac-cines, adhering to the objectivesof efficacy, safety, equity, acces-sibility, and affordability.”

This is the second resolu-tion adopted by the 193-nationUNGA on the Covid-19 pan-demic. Earlier this month, theGeneral Assembly had unani-mously adopted a resolution,co-sponsored by 188 nationsincluding India, on Covid-19,calling for intensified interna-tional cooperation to defeat thepandemic that is causing“severe disruption to societiesand economies.

The resolution also calledupon member states and otherrelevant stakeholders to imme-diately take steps to prevent,

within their respective legalframeworks, speculation andundue stockpiling that mayhinder access to safe, effectiveand affordable essential medi-cines, vaccines, personal pro-tective equipment and medicalequipment as may be requiredto effectively address Covid-19.

It also urges Secretary-General Antonio Guterres,working with other multilater-al organisations, to identifyand recommend options,including approaches to rapid-ly scaling manufacturing andstrengthening supply chains.

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Over 2.5 million people havebeen confirmed to have

contracted the coronavirusworldwide, with 80 per cent ofcases in Europe and the UnitedStates. The coronavirus pan-demic has killed more than1,70,000 people globally. In total,1,74,573 people have died fromthe virus around the world,including 1,06,737 in Europe.

US: The coronavirus deathtoll in the United States — thecountry with the most fatalitiesin the pandemic — has climbedby 1,433 in the past 24 hours toreach 43,558, the latest tallyfrom Johns Hopkins Universityshowed.

The US has recorded morethan 8,03,018confirmed casesof COVID-19 since the start ofthe global health crisis, accord-ing to the Baltimore-baseduniversity. New York is the epi-centre of the US outbreak,though it seems the state mayhave endured the worst of thecrisis.

Governor Andrew Cuomoannounced on Monday that478 deaths had been recordedin the previous 24 hours, thelowest total in more than twoweeks.

UK: A total of 17,337 peo-ple in hospital with coron-avirus have died in Britain, newhealth ministry figures showedon Tuesday, an increase of 828on the previous day. The dailyincrease in deaths, whichexcludes those in care homes,is a significant increase onMonday’s tally but numbers arealways lower at the start of theweek due to reporting delaysover the weekend.Coronavirus-related deathswere about 41 per cent higherin England and Wales than theGovernment’s hospital-onlyfigures in the week up to April10, according to official datareleased here on Tuesday. Thelatest figures, which wasreleased by the UK’s Office forNational Statistics (ONS),shows that there were 1,662deaths involving the coron-

avirus in England and Walesregistered up to April 10 thathappened outside of hospitals.

Meanwhile, US PresidentDonald Trump and BritishPrime Minister Boris Johnsonagreed on the need for a coor-dinated international responseto the coronavirus pandemic,Downing Street and the WhiteHouse said in separate state-ments on Tuesday.

Spain: New deaths attrib-uted to the new coronavirus inSpain are slightly up again onTuesday, with 430 fatalitiesthat bring the total death toll to21,282 from a 4-week low of399 daily deaths on Monday.Spain is reporting nearly 4,000new infections to a total of2,04,178, a 2% day-to-dayincrease in line with the aver-age for the past four days,health ministry data shows.

The Government is assess-ing already how to roll back oneof Europe’s strictest lockdowns,starting from next Monday byallowing children to go outonto the streets for brief periods.

Spain’s center-left Cabinet isdiscussing details on how themeasure will be implementedduring Tuesday’s weekly meet-ing.

Italy: Italy is likely to starteasing its coronavirus lock-down from May 4, though thelong-awaited rollback will becautious and calculated, PrimeMinister Giuseppe Conte saidon Tuesday. The country hasbeen one of the hardest hit inthe world by the Covid-19 pan-demic, with more than 24,100people killed since the conta-gion first emerged in February.

Looking to contain thespread, the government intro-duced sweeping curbs in March,telling Italians to stay at homeand shutting schools, business-es and industries nationwide.The restrictions have put amajor strain on the euro zone’sthird-largest economy but withthe number of new cases grad-ually slowing, Conte said hewould unveil by the weekendGovernment plans to loosen theshutdown.

Geneva: The number of peoplefacing acute food insecuritycould nearly double this year to265 million due to the economicfallout of COVID-19, the UnitedNations’ World FoodProgramme (WFP) said onTuesday.

The impact of lost tourismrevenues, falling remittancesand travel and other restrictionslinked to the coronavirus pan-demic are expected to leavesome 130 million people acute-ly hungry this year, adding toaround 135 million already inthat category.

“Covid-19 is potentially cat-astrophic for millions who arealready hanging by a thread,”said Arif Husain, chief econo-mist and director of research,assessment and monitoring atthe World Food Programme

(WFP).“We all need to come

together to deal with thisbecause if we don’t the cost willbe too high - the global cost willbe too high: many lost lives andmany, many more lost liveli-hoods,” he told reporters at a vir-tual briefing in Geneva.

Husain said it was critical toact quickly in order to preventpeople already living hand-to-mouth, such as food vendors inKenya, from selling their assetsas it could take them years tobecome self-reliant again.

In some cases, such as whenfarmers sell their ploughs oroxen, it could have knock-oneffects for food production foryears to come, he added.

“These were the people wewere concerned about - thosewho were OK before COVID

and now they are not,” he said,adding he was “really worried”about people living in countrieswith little or no governmentsafety nets.

“Acute food and livelihoodcrisis” is category three of fiveUN phases meaning a “criticallack of food access and aboveusual malnutrition”.

Category 5 means massstarvation. UN officials did notgive a geographical breakdownof the growing needs, but saidthat Africa was likely to behardest hit. WFP expects to need$10-$12 billion to fund its assis-tance programmes this yearcompared to a record $8.3 bil-lion raised last year, Husainadded. It plans to pre-positionfood stocks over the comingmonths in anticipation of grow-ing needs. Agency

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Pakistan Prime MinisterImran Khan on Tuesday

warned that mosques will beforced to shut down during theupcoming month of Ramzan ifpeople did not follow the offi-cial directives issued to containthe spread of the coronaviruspandemic that has infectedover 9,000 people in the coun-

try. Khan’s warning came daysafter the government allowedcongregational prayers inmosques during the month ofRamzan after the clerics agreedto follow the governmentguidelines on social distancingwhile praying in mosques.

According to the agree-ment, people above the age of50, minors and those sufferingfrom flu will not be allowed to

enter the mosques.The worshippers must

maintain a distance of six feetwhen praying and peopleshould wear face masks andavoid shaking hands orembracing others. The primeminister said that Pakistandecided to keep mosques openin Ramzan because “we are anindependent nation and takedecisions according to our own

situation”.Khan made the comments

while addressing the mediaalong with his key team of advi-sors about the country’s fightagainst the pandemic.

He, however, urged peopleto pray at home and thoseattending mosques should fol-low official guidelines. Hewarned that the governmentwould be forced to shut downmosques if it was found thatofficial directives on the mat-ter were not followed.

“I don’t want that policearrest people who want to prayin mosques,” he said.

London: The UK Governmenton Tuesday announced a 20 mil-lion pounds funding for aUniversity of Oxford projectworking on developing a vaccineagainst the novel coronavirus,which is now ready for acceler-ation as it begins human trialsfrom Thursday.

UK Health Secretary MattHancock told the daily DowningStreet briefing that theDepartment for Health was“throwing everything” at tryingto find a vaccine because it is acritical aspect of the Covid-19pandemic fight and lifting thestrict lockdown measures inplace to curb its spread.

Another 22.5 millionpounds is being made availableto Imperial College London tosupport its phase-two clinical tri-als for them to begin the work ona very large phase three trial.“Normally it would take years toget to this point,” said Hancock.

“The UK is at the forefrontof the global effort – we’ve put inmore money than any other intothe global search for a vaccine.Nothing about this is inevitable.Vaccine production is a matterof trial and error. But the UK willthrow everything it has at tryingto find one,” he said.

The announcement came asBritain had another major dailyleap in the hospital death tollfrom coronavirus, up by 823 tohit 17,337 on Tuesday. But theCabinet minister said the gov-ernment’s plan to control therapid spread of the virus and pre-vent the state-funded NHS frombeing overwhelmed is workingas the number of hospitalisationswith Covid-19 was showing adownward trajectory. PTI

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New Delhi: With ‘work fromhome’ turning into the newtrend in corporate sector amidthe coronavirus crisis, a surveyhas found that around 83 percent companies have said thatthey are considering revision oftheir ‘work from home’ policy.

The ‘COVID-19 IndiaReadiness Survey’ by WillisTowers Watson finds that 83 percent of organisations plan toreview their work-from-homepolicy, and 46 per cent indicat-ed that they would reimburseemployees the expenses incurredfor setting up their home inter-net for work purposes.

“Employers are also takingseveral measures to keepemployees engaged in the newscheme of things. Theseinclude team-based virtual orsocial engagement initiatives,regular company-wide ordepartment level communica-tions, and town halls organisedto address employee concerns,”said the report.

Further, amid the growingconcern over Covid-19, around57 per cent of companies inIndia expect a moderate tolarge negative impact on theirbusiness in the next six months,it said. The report said that 46per cent expect this to last overa 12-month period.

“Signalling the long-termbusiness impact of the coron-avirus, 19 per cent expect suchan adverse impact to last overa two-year period,” said thereport by the advisory, brokingand solutions company. IANS

Mumbai: As part of theGovernment’s initiative to restartoperations in a phased manner,Reliance Infrastructure hasresumed toll operations at itsroad projects from midnight ofApril 20. “All precautionary mea-sures have been taken by‘Reliance Infrastructure RoadsDivision’ to ensure a safe work-ing environment for its person-nel and travellers under the pre-vailing circumstances,” the com-pany said in a statement. IANS

New Delhi: Western Coalfields Ltd has launched a roadmap toachieve beyond 75 million tonnes of output by FY its contribu-tion towards the ambitious 1 billion tonnes target of parent firmCoal India. The roadmap — Mission 100 Days — was startedon Monday. In a tweet Western Coalfields Ltd (WCL) said, “Our#CoalWarriors are committed to defeat corona & energize Indiarelentlessly. WCL kick-started #Mission100Days roadmap on20.04.2020 prioritising initiatives for achieving beyond 75 MTcoal production by FY 2023-24 as its contribution towards ambi-tious 1BT target of Coal India.” IANS

New Delhi: All road projectsare likely to get extension inconstruction span for lock-down period under forcemajeure political event, ratingagency Icra said on Tuesday.

There are 181 projectstotalling 13,670 km with atotal project cost of �2.20 lakhcrore awarded under publicprivate partnership (PPP)route, which are under con-struction, it said.

“All road projects will like-ly get extension in constructionperiod for lockdown periodunder force majeure politicalevent. In addition, these pro-jects will also get reimburse-ment of cost escalation whichcovers both inflation linkedincrease in construction costand interest payments on debt due for the period oflockdown,” Icra said in a statement.

It said as on December 31,2019, there are 181 projectstotalling 13,670 km with atotal project cost of �2,20,294crore awarded under PPP routewhich are under construction(this excludes projects forwhich appointed date has notbeen announced). PTI

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AGovernment think tank isworking on a policy paper

with recommendations to thegovernment on what tech-nologies should be adopted tosupport the economy hit by thecoronavirus pandemic rebootquickly.

The policy paper, beingprepared by the TechnologyInformation, Forecasting andAssessment Council, anautonomous body under theDepartment of Science &Technology, would focus main-ly on strengthening Make inIndia initiatives, commerciali-sation of indigenous technolo-gy, developing a technology-driven transparent PublicDistribution System, efficientrural healthcare delivery,reduction of import.

It would also suggest waysfor adoption of emerging tech-nology domains like AI,Machine Learning and DataAnalytics. Pradeep Srivastava,the executive director ofTIFAC, said the paper will bepresented to the PrimeMinister’s Office, the NitiAayog and the Department ofScience and Technology.

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Indian stock market wit-nessed a freefall on Tuesday

with both the BSE Sensex andthe Nifty50 closing below thepsychological levels of 31,000and 9,000, respectively.

The Sensex lost over 1,000points by the end of the day’strade. Weakness in the domes-tic indices was in line with thebear run across the global mar-kets, after crude oil prices in theUS in an unprecedented devel-opment fell below zero andturned negative.

Rahul Sharma, ResearchHead at Equity99 said: “It wasa very nervous day for mosttraders today as benchmarkindices broke key support lev-els today on concerns of a his-

toric fall in international crudelast night where US crudeprices nosedived below the $0a barrel mark for the first timeever on fears of a supply glut.”

He said that dealers andanalyst now fear that the muchtalked about the global reces-sion is very close which willhave serious impact on theglobal equity markets too in thecoming days.

According to Sharma, mar-ket will continue to trade in thenegative zone in the next fewdays and the upcoming earn-ings reports and economicdata will also keep investorscautious.

Deepak Jasani, Head ofRetail Research at HDFCSecurities noted that on theBSE, the top sectoral gainers

were the BSE Telecom andHealthcare indices, while themajor losers were the BSEBanking index, Metal, Autoand Oil and Gas indices.

Major Asian markets haveclosed on a negative note.European indices like theFTSE, DAX and CAC haveended lower, he said.

On technical front, traderswill need to watch if Nifty canbounce back from the imme-diate supports of 8,821, Jasanisaid, adding that, otherwise the intermediate down-trend may continue that couldtake the Nifty towards the next downside targets of8,360-8,055.

On Tuesday, the Nifty50 on

the National Stock Exchangeclosed at 8,981.45, lower by280.40 points or 3.03 per centfrom its previous close.

The Sensex closed at30,636.71, lower by 1,011.29points or 3.20 per cent from theprevious close of 31,648. Ithad opened at 30,836.19 andrecorded an intra-day high of30,900.12 and a low of30,378.26 points.

The historic plunge in theWTI crude oil prices in the USwas the major factor for therout in global equity markets.

Due to high supplies andlower offtake amid the coron-avirus crisis and the worldwidestandstill, the US has run outof storage for the commodityposing a major challenge forthe market.

Currently, the May con-tract of WTI crude on theNYMEX is at -$4.47 per barrel.

Nitin Shahi, ExecutiveDirector, Findoc FinancialServices Group said that thetimeline of the impact on crudeprices is directly related to thelength of the lockdown.

“Storage capacities world-wide for crude are nearly full.If the lockdown continues for

longer period of time, there isa higher possibility that outputcutbacks will take place and the

smaller oil producers wouldhave to shut off their oil tapfirst,” Shahi said.

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The rupee depreciated onTuesday to close at a

near-record low level of 76.83per dollar.

The weakness in Indiancurrency came on the back ofthe crash in the US oil pricesand slump in the domesticstock market, analysts said.

It depreciated 29 paise toclose at 76.83 per US dollar.The record low level of rupeeis 76.87 which it touched lastThursday.

Financial and commoditymarkets off late have been ona free fall globally amid the

coronavirus crisis.The historic plunge in

crude oil prices is a major fac-tor for the weakness in rupeeon Tuesday. On Monday, forthe first time ever, WTI crudefell below zero and reached anall time low of -$40.32 per bar-rel due to a supply glut anddeclining storage capacity inthe US.

The May contract of WTIcrude is still in the negativezone and currently is trading at-$8.10 per barrel.

The Indian stock marketalso slumped on Tuesday withthe BSE Sensex losing over1,000 points.

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Indian Oil Corp and BharatPetroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL)

are among the state-owned oilPSUs which on Tuesdayresumed work on select pro-jects after the governmentallowed partial relaxation in thenationwide lockdown.

In separate statements,Indian Oil Corp (IOC) andBPCL said they have resumedstalled activities on projectswhile maintaining strictcronovirus-related health andsafety hygiene.

State-owned oil firms havedecided to resume as many as 511 projects involv-ing over �42,000 crore ofinvestment with immediateeffect.

These projects are either inrural areas or have in situlabour for the resumptionof work.

The Government had lastweek allowed makers of infor-mation technology hardware,farmers and industries in ruralareas to resume operations asit looked to revive the econo-my that got stalled because ofthe outbreak of coronaviruspandemic.

New Delhi: Amid the growing concernover Covid-19, 57 per cent of organi-sations in India expect a moderate tolarge negative impact on their businessin the next six months, while 46 percent expect this to last over a 12-monthperiod, a survey revealed on Tuesday.

About 19 per cent of the respon-dents said they expect such an adverseimpact to last over a two-year period,according to the survey by WillisTowers Watson, a leading advisory,broking and solutions company.

Only 5 per cent of organisationsexpect a positive business impact with-in the next 12 to 24 months, said the“COVID-19 India Readiness Survey”.

“The tough economic conditionsand anticipated business impact coulddrive organisations to consider work-

force optimisation,” Rohit Jain, Head ofIndia, Willis Towers Watson, said in astatement.

“Employers should take an emphat-ic and considerate approach and eval-uate options such as staff redeployment,reduced working hours/days, long ser-vice leave, sabbatical, furlough, hiringfreeze and voluntary pay cuts, beforeany serious consideration of a work-force reduction,” Jain added.

The survey conducted from March20-31 involved 103 organisations inIndia. Data was collected from nearly417,000 employees working across sec-tors such as financial services, healthcare,IT & telecom, manufacturing, public sec-tor & education and wholesale & retail,with the survey results presented in anaggregate approach. IANS

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Oil’s chaotic collapse deep-ened, and stocks around

the world dropped on Tuesdayas markets remain upsidedown amid the economic car-nage caused by the coron-avirus pandemic.

A day after oil futuresplunged below zero for the firsttime, traders in one corner ofthe U.S. crude market were stillclose to paying others to takeit off their hands. That’s amarket quirk created by a glutof oil, which has traders run-ning out of places to store it inthe near term.

Prices remain well abovezero for oil elsewhere in theworld and for deliveries furtherinto the future, which analystsconsider to be closer to the“true” price of crude. But theyalso slid sharply Tuesday onthe same ultimate concern: Aglobal economy incapacitatedby the virus outbreak doesn’tneed to burn as much fuel.Airplanes are parked, cars aregaraged and factories are idledwith millions of workers losingtheir jobs every week.

The crumbling oil marketdragged on stocks, and energyproducers around the worldsank sharply fromConocoPhillips in Texas toTotal in France. The S&P 500was down 2.7%, as of 11 a.m.Eastern time, following similarlosses across Europe and Asia.

The Dow Jones IndustrialAverage fell 538 points, or2.3%, to 23,104, and theNasdaq was down 3.4%.

In another sign of theworry washing over markets,Treasury yields fell further.The yield on the 10-yearTreasury dropped to 0.55%from 0.62% late Monday,meaning investors are willingto get paid even less to get thesafety of owning a U.S. gov-ernment bond. At the start ofthe year, before economiesworldwide went on lockdownto slow the spread of the virus,

investors were getting paidabout 1.90% to own a 10-yearTreasury.

Even with all the chaos inthe oil markets, some signs ofeconomic activity on the hori-zon were poking through else-where. The Senate’sDemocratic leader said nego-tiators reached agreement ona nearly $500 billion proposalto provide more loans and aidto small businesses and hospi-tals. Georgia’s governor, mean-while, announced plans lateMonday to allow gyms, hairsalons and other businesses toreopen as early as Friday.

Rising optimism amongsome investors that parts of theeconomy could reopen as infec-tions level off have helped stocksrally recently, and the S&P 500is up more than 23% since hit-ting a low in late March. Therally got its start after the FederalReserve and Congress promisedmassive amounts of aid for theeconomy.

But the data coming in onthe economy in the here andnow continues to be dismal,and pessimists say the market’srally has been overdone. Areport Tuesday showed thatsales of previously occuppiedhomes in the United States felllast month to its steepest dropsince 2015.

Companies are alsodescribing the hit to earningsthey’re taking due to the out-break, with many pulling theirfinancial forecasts for the yeargiven all the uncertainty abouthow long the impending reces-sion will last. Coca-Cola saidTuesday that its sales were ontrack to hit financial targetsthrough February, but that allchanged when stay-at-homeorders became widespread inMarch. It said it’s hopeful thatimprovement could arrive inthe second half of the year.IBM on late Monday withdrewits guidance for 2020 resultsand said it will reassess at theend of June.

The economic pain is per-haps most clear in the oilmarket. A barrel of U.S. oil tobe delivered in May costsabout the same as a gallon ofmilk: $3.81. It was at negative$1.48 just before stocks begantrading in New York Tuesdayand had settled at negative$37.63 on Monday.

Because of the collapse indemand, storage tanks for oilare close to the brim at a keyenergy hub in Oklahoma. Thathas traders willing to pay oth-ers to take delivery of that oilin May, so long as they alsotake the burden of figuring outwhere to put it.

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The Central Board of IndirectTaxes and Customs (CBIC)

on Tuesday extended the facil-ity given to businesses to importand export goods without fur-nishing bonds to the Customsauthorities till May 15 in viewof the extension of the lockdownperiod till May 3.

Earlier this month, theCBIC had extended similarrelaxation till April 30.However, with subsequentextension of lockdown, it wasfelt that the relaxation neededto be longer to facilitate trade.

As per the revised circularissued on Tuesday, the CBICsaid that importers and

exporters will need to furnishan undertaking to the Customsauthorities, which is requiredduring customs clearance, tillMay 15. Consequently, the dateof submission of proper bondin lieu of which the undertak-ing is being temporarily accept-ed is extended till May 30,2020,the circular said.

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In a bid to support universities, engi-neering colleges and the teacher-stu-

dent fraternity across India in these try-ing times of the COVID-19 globalpandemic, Manipal Group’s CoemptEdu Teck Pvt. Ltd — as part of itsCorporate Social Responsibility —brings for students a three-month freeaccess (beginning April) to engineeringe-learning courseware covering over 165subjects and more than 700 practical e-lab experiments it has developed usingsuch multimedia components as ani-mation, voiceover, text and pictures.

Interested students can log inthrough their PCs or laptops using the

Internet to access Coempt’s courseware.They can create their unique login IDsby filling in a brief registration form toaccess this e-learning platform.

This will help reduce the academ-ic load and related stress that studentsare going through while regular class-es are suspended. It will also ensure thatstudents can use this time productive-ly by positively engaging with their stud-ies while preparing for their exams fromthe comfort of their homes.

Coempt’s courseware, covering amajority of the syllabuses that technol-ogy universities follow from the firstyear to the fourth year, is available forthe entire duration of study of all BE/B.Tech. courses.

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During the currenttime, it is likely

that you would find itdifficult to maintainyour productivity byvirtue of being stuckat home, and once theboredom and monot-ony sets in, you maywant to start lookingaround for options tokeep yourself engaged.

Here, we look atsome of the bestonline sessions thatcan help you add

more skills to yourportfolio.

Designed byInstitute of Laser andAesthetic Medicine,an institution thatprovides training inCosmetology &Aesthetic Medicinehas started online livesessions of experts likeDr Ajay Rana and DrMonica Kapoor. Thesessions include lasers,dermal fillers, botu-linum toxin, chemicalpeel, PRP and manymore.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, thenation is under lockdown, which

has been extended till May 3. The sec-ond session of JEE Main (AprilSession) which was scheduled to beconducted from April 5 to April 112020 has been postponed until furthernotice. While the expectations are thatit may be conducted by the end of May,aspirants have an extended preparationtime available which shall be put toeffective utilisation. Students must staypositive and need to focus on revisionand analysing their weaknesses.

As per the previous schedule,most of the aspirants must have gonethrough the complete syllabus andmust be in revision mode now. Theneed of the hour is to utilise the extratime productively and effectivelywith plan in place to make the bestof it.

Make a viable schedule: Thisphase should be effectively utilisedfor quick run through short notesand formulae and concepts at aglance of all chapters of the three sub-jects in a phased planned mannerwith equal time to each subject. Theidea is to strengthen the concepts andtheir application by solving mocktests and past years papers. Learning

as against mugging is the rule of thegame.

Consult online classes: Onlineplatforms are available that providea virtual classroom ambience withcomplete notes, expert opinions,online classes and mock tests for beststudent preparation.

Follow three tier revision: Thestage has arrived where revision is themost important aspect of the prepa-ration process and the best way totackle the challenge is to have a well-structured and organised revisionstrategy. Three tier revision method

suggests that students should firstrevise the topic on the same day, thenafter three days and then revise thesame topic at the end of the week.This way, you will be able to getstrong hold on topics and subjectswhich stay in your memory forlonger period. If you revise a topic thesame day when you study it, you findit easy to revise and grab; while onthe other hand if you revise that top-ics after few days of studying it, itbecomes difficult to understand andrevise and consume more time.

Study and application of impor-

tant formulae: It is important toperuse and conceptually apply for-mulae in JEEM type questions evenat the time of revision. This will helpyou in solving the questions withina short time in the exam.

Take regular mock tests: Mocktests play an important role in mak-ing familiar with strong and weakareas. To test and analyse your prepa-ration, students are advised to takemock tests.

This extra time must be wiselyutilised to perfect the ability to solveproblems with a deep perception ofconcept involved, improving thetime needed to solve the given prob-lem, identifying the weak spots andcorrecting them. By taking regularmock tests and solving of past papers.

Speed and accuracy must beincreased.

Right strategy and time man-agement play a vital role in decidingthe rank for an aspirant. The remain-ing weeks should be wisely used forrevision, increasing speed and accu-racy to solve problems,

Finally, it is the relative perfor-mance that will matter on the examday.

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The world is going through anextra-ordinary crisis of unpar-alleled dimensions and naturally

the education sector is no different.Some 540 million students from ClassI to the highest Masters and researchlevels in India are studying or tryingto study from home. Given the factorthat there is uncertainty about theduration of this period, we must getused to this new normal and get our-selves on to the task of teaching learn-ing online through various digital plat-forms. The following are top sugges-tions for effectively doing so todaywhen we are home-locked in the col-lective interest of all.� First, just as we wear a shirt, atrouser and a footwear to be at homeor go outside, we invariably need asmart phone with data, a stable wifi-connection and a laptop with camerainbuilt. Many cannot afford these,many will not have a great connec-tivity in their locality, and there maybe troubles in getting these just now.However, whether you have, or loan,or buy online, these are simply mustfor a digital learning experience of agood quality.� Second, for digital learning, youmust have an active habit of browsingportals, being an active member ofsocial media. This will help you toattend FB and YouTube live sessionson knowledge issues as well. � Third, you must be on Gmail, onGoogle platform, with access toGoogle Drive and if possible, paid

access to G-Suite of Google. These willgive you an opportunity to interactwith others, store good content of allvariety, and be part of Google Classby mentors or use Google Spreadsheetand attend or address GoogleHangouts on specific themes, apartfrom co-creating a document onGoogle with peers. � Fourth, you should be conversantin attending Zoom sessions for liveclass or webinar experience, and evenbetter, if you can generate Zoom ses-sions which are free upto 40 minutes.Though a maximum of 100 peoplecan attend a Zoom session, it is bestorganised with 30 to 40 participantsat a time. � Fifth, you must develop an emailetiquette to address the recipientproperly, end the mail properly, givea body-copy to your communication,and write briefly in bullet pointsalmost identifying the core issues ofyour problems or learning needs.Similarly, there is a web-discussion eti-quette of not speaking out of turns, notspeaking over someone, muting one’sspeaker phone when someone talks,and raising hand to make a point andwaiting for the chance to speak calm-ly.

� Sixth, you must be able to downloadvideos, watch minutely while listen-ing to academic discussions on videos,noting down key points, and ideallyrepeat watching a second time to cap-ture points missed out the first time. � Seventh, you must know basics ofAdobe Premier and may be iVideo orWeVideo to create short explanatoryvideo or statement of understandingof a subject discussed digitally, apartfrom knowing how to make a goodvisually rich power-point presentationand an excel sheet as needed. � Eighth, you must be good in record-ing video and audio, use whatsapp toshare files even after compression, andconduct co-created collaborative studyresources digitally. Even videos, pod-casts (audio content), ppts, pdfs etccan be shared on whatsapp individu-ally or to a group. While usingWhatsapp, special care must be takento avoid false content, doubtful con-tent and defamatory videos etc.� Ninth, you must prepare separatefolders for each course, and saveppts, pdfs, videos, podcasts etc of thatcourse chronologically in order of thechapters or units in the syllabus in thefolder so that there is no time lost toget the same when needed and dur-

ing course revision. � You must space your time suitablyfor not less than eight to ten hours aday, dividing time between listening,reading online, attending Googleclass, a zoom session (or MicrosoftMeets, Webex meets or GoToMeetingsas the case may be), watching videos,filing and preserving, and preparingyour notes based on all inputs youhave got. � Digital learning also needs that youtake a 10 minutes break after everyhour, stretch yourself, have a littlewalk, or a cup of tea or juice or a fruit,and may even jog around in yourhome or corridor or go up and downthe stairs. This will help you avoid anybody pain, neck ache or getting fataccumulated. While you must mini-mum three good meals a day withsmall breaks of tea, juice or fruits, nomeal should be heavy while staying athome and studying.

Take the lockdown as a time gift-ed to you by nature to reboot yourself,set your ethical and professionalcompass right, re-prioritise, introspect,plan, and take a leap in life and workthereafter. ��!��"�� =��/

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To contain the spread of thecoronavirus and avoid com-

munity transmission, companiesacross the country have imple-mented telecommuting. For a lotof people, working from home isan exciting prospect. No longcommutes, no one staring overyour shoulder, and the comfort ofworking at your own pace defi-nitely make it appealing. For oth-ers, it can be quite intimidating —particularly if you have kids to takecare of, distractions, or are unfa-miliar with working remotely.With the right mindset andequipment, working from homeworks like a charm. Let us take alook at a few things to pull this off.

Find a workspace: Even if youdo not have an office, setting asidea place to do work can help keepdistraction at bay. It is importantthat you find a space where you cancarry on your work without wor-rying about interruptions. It mighttake some time and tinkering tofind a setup that resembles youroffice setup as much as possible. Itdoes not necessarily have to be aprivate room. A designated area farfrom the couch and bed will do.

Plan your day: Make a to-dolist and prioritise your tasks. Not

only will it help you stay focusedand keep you from procrastinating.Review the list as you start yourday, and keep referring to it peri-odically. Evaluate the progress atthe end of the day, and prepare alist for the next day. Make sure youstick to your schedule.

Dress up: Even if you do notwant to wear formal clothes, it isrecommended you do not work inyour pyjamas. It might sound a lit-tle odd to you, but even wearingshoes in addition to jeans and acomfortable shirt will help youseparate work from leisure.

Keep your kids occupied: Itcan be quite distracting to workpeacefully when you also have toshoulder the additional responsi-bility of taking care of your kids.Make sure you organise their dayaround your work time so that youare not interrupted. Divide yourkid-duty with your spouse basedon your work calendars. Be upfrontwith your coworkers so that theyare more understanding of yoursituation.

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:)�� $�� Prof Anu Singh Lather, Vice

Chancellor, AUD in herattempt to ensure that theteaching-learning process con-tinues for the students inthese extraordinary circum-stances initiates a series ofwebinar (faculty developmentprogramme in the form ofwebinar) for AUD facultymembers to understand thenew ways to engage with thestudents. The focus of webinaris to understand and facilitatethe online teaching-learningand assessment, availabilityof various IT tools, software,

online teaching learningresources and virtual meetingplatforms.

In this series of webinarfaculty will learn how one canbest use the online teachinglearning tools. The objective ofthe webinar is to ensure unin-terrupted studies duringCOVID-19 and best use oftechnology and social mediaplatform for learning out-comes. AUD faculty has beencontinuously conductingonline teaching learning withstudents in this lockdownperiod and the above series of

webinar is further towardsmore understanding the var-ious technologies and IT toolsavailable and enhancing skillstowards safe and effectiveonline teaching and learningprocess.

First among the series,Google meet and google class-room was held on April 18,2020. The session was takenby Prof Asmita Kabra, Schoolof Human Ecology, AUD. Thesession covered in detail thefeatures of Google Meet, howit integrates with G Suiteapplications such as Google

Calendar and Gmail. ProfKabra further elaborated howit can incorporate the featuresof a traditional class room likemarking attendance, address-ing the queries of the students.

The next webinar onMoodle and online learningtools was scheduled on April20, and Opportunities andResources for Online Teaching& Learning scheduled fortoday. AUD is receivingrequests from faculty mem-bers of other universities toallowing them also to partic-ipate in these webinars.

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The TIME test-prep institute announces online courses amidnationwide lockdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The

spread-out has impacted every aspect of life, including the prepa-ration for entrance exams.

The idea behind these online classrooms are to sit, click andlearn from the comfort and safety of the aspirant’s home. Thespread-out has impacted the preparation for entrance exams andhence India’s largest test-prep institute took up the call in thisdifficult situation with actionable solutions for their aspirants.

As soon as the lockdown was implemented, the instituteannounced its online classes for various courses, and within threedays, launched online classes for different courses — CLAT +IPM, BBA and CAT.

Sai Kumar Swamy, Centre Director, TIME Delhi shares hisconcerns: “We value the health of our future aspirants & theexperts given the current circumstances and are happy toannounce our online classes. This mode has brought us great suc-cess and are being highly appreciated by thousands of enrolledstudents who are using them to learn and prepare for variousentrance exams and stay ahead of the competition!”

“The online classes are designed to help you prepare in thebest way to crack the toughest of entrance exams as the onlineClasses cover every aspect of entrance test preparation — basics,exercises, and discussions”, he further added.

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Cactus Communications, aglobal scientific communi-

cations and technology com-pany, on April 21, 2020announced the launch ofcovid19.researcher.life, a plat-form that leverages Cactus’s AIand concept extraction capa-bilities, along with its large edi-torial team and network ofsubject specialists, to offerresearchers a single — and theworld’s largest — platform forall COVID-19-related research,insights, commentary, andexpert recommendations. Thesite not only offers researchersaccess to the latest research andinformation on COVID-19 butalso allows them to collaborateand share potential hypothesesand challenges with researchersfrom other disciplines.

With an exploding volumeof research in different disci-

plines being added on a dailybasis, the scientific communi-ty working on this global crisisis desperately in need of help inprocessing this information —and now they have an AI-powered solution that canprocess high volumes ofresearch output every day andpresent insights in a mannerthat can be consumed byresearchers across disciplines.

The COVID-19 platformwill help researchers from var-ious disciplines easily access anddigest this information, sup-ported by expert opinion. Theplatform collates research anddatasets from different coun-tries, irrespective of the lan-guage in which they were pub-lished; allows researchers toask questions and posehypotheses to other researchers;and curates expert-driven edi-torial content that simplifies andexplains the latest research.

In these fast changing times,there is a dire need for studentsor working executives to choose

the right PGDM/executive MBA(ex-MBA) course that will helpthem in enhancing their careerprospects. These courses provideenormous career opportunities inthe corporate world. In an era ofconstantly emerging trends andrapidly changing business dynam-ics, there's a need for upgradingand sharpening of skills to stay rel-evant. Companies in every indus-try are exploring fresh ways todevelop business leaders to expandand grow their organizations.

The PGDM/ex-MBA courseshelp groom students in multifacets of business. It introducesyoung minds on the intricacies ofmanagement; inter personal skills,presentation skills and also socialetiquette which are so important intoday's business environmentwhere we consider, the world to bea global village. Students doingsuch courses have a brighter chanceof being picked up from MNC'sand large corporate houses, asthey generally scout for studentspassing out from such education-al institutes.

A PGDM and ex-MBA coursewidens the horizon of a profes-

sional providing him with an arrayof career options to choose inwhichever field he desires to enter.The advantages for students aremulti-fold and multi-dimensional.

One of the most importantbenefits of taking up these cours-es is that it makes you corporate-ready. It becomes difficult to enterthe corporate world without hav-ing management education. Inevery PGDM course, be itMarketing Management orInternational Business, you learnabout other business spheres aswell, like human resource man-agement, finance, marketing, entre-preneurship, statistics, economics,etc. This helps in grooming andpreparing the professional tobecome corporate ready and pur-suing a rich and rewarding career.

On the other hand, we haveseen a trend wherein workingexecutives find themselves in needof upgrading their skill sets to stayrelevant in the business. Withadvances in technology, it's easy tofind yourself falling behind. Hence,it is necessary to analyse your skillsand areas that need developmentand then look for programs thatmatch your skill needs.

Whether it is negotiation,finance, technology or HR, mak-

ing sure the program is relevant towhat you want to learn is vital.Today, various business schoolsoffer executive education alongsidestandard MBA, undergraduateand postgraduate degrees andmany of them are accredited byprofessional organisations. Most ofthe business schools across Indiaoffer a wide range of courses forexecutive students. They aredesigned to enable you to choosefrom options that best suit yourrequirements.

Professional developmentbecomes necessary to familiarisewith strategic thinking and mak-ing an effort to stand out. This iswhere executive education comesinto play. In simple words, if youremployer wants you to take on big-ger responsibilities, they maysponsor you to take a course inmanagement or leadership or evenfrom other institutes offering thesame. And these courses prepareyou for a new role in a variety ofcompetencies for a new role. Butwith the abundance of custom-designed executive education pro-gramme, the trick is in choosingthe right option.

Achieving a higher level ofexecutive education need not be anall-or-nothing scenario. Several top

tier schools offer a range of optionsfrom online courses to open-enrollment classes. Understandingwhich format suits you the best isthe key. Open enrollment pro-grams bring leaders and profes-sionals from different companiestogether to take classes and customprograms.

This helps the professionals togain new perspectives on strategicproblems such as changingdynamics, more demanding cus-tomers or new competitors. Aftershort-listing of programs suitablefor your role, it is a necessity to dothorough homework on programstructure, background, school'spedagogical approach and class-room experience most resonatewith you.

Finally, before choosing theright course, the student shouldcheck if the educational institutehas a trusted legacy. Also, tie-upswith reputed organisations thatprovide cutting edge certificationfor enhanced skills, will lead to bet-ter employability. Executive edu-cation is a credential that is carriedwith you for the rest of your careerand the program's reputationholds the key.

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In recent years, technology has trans-formed the way we perceive the real-ity of our world. Be it connecting with

people across the world on social media,shopping clothes from an online store orhaving groceries delivered without us hav-ing to step out of our homes, today, humansurvival sans technology is simplyunimaginable.

Through the years, science fictionauthors, futurists, and movie makersalike have also been predicting the amaz-ing (and sometimes catastrophic) changesthat will arise with the advent of wide-spread artificial intelligence (AI) perceivedas the next step in human evolution.Those not entirely familiar with artificialintelligence may envision a future riddledwith robots that behave like humans.However, in truth, AI is nothing butadvanced algorithms assisting machinesin imitating human behaviour, especial-ly in redundant tasks across industries.With so broad an impact, education is sureto be touched by AI. The question is, how?

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prominent part of what technology canprovide us with, has made inroads intoour lives and is transforming the way wehave been executing the simplest of ourtasks. Based on user history, experiencesor current usage patterns displays, AI canfulfill a myriad of demands for multipleusers. It rests heavily upon profoundlearning principles and natural languageprocessing techniques, wherein, machinescan read vast amounts of data and processit to produce appropriate output.

AI involves the sophisticated appli-cation of smart algorithms to provideresults and even, the ability to read theuser intention for future implementation.Some critical aspects of AI are expert sys-tems, speech recognition, and machinevision, apart from deep learning and NLP.Resultantly, it has emerged as the mostcapable choice to automate several admin-istrative tasks

�� AI is offering robust support for even

deeper application in the educationindustry. It has the power to evolve theway education is being imparted. From

classroom teaching and textbook-basedsyllabus along with the simple gradingsystem, AI can overhaul the individuallearning journeys and turn them morepersonalised, predictive, efficient andeffective.

The penetration of AI will help in set-ting necessary expectations on teacher’saccountability in improving learners’knowledge. It will suggest appropriateways to gain knowledge depending uponstudents’ abilities and breaking awayfrom the traditional teaching approach ofone size fits all.

It will become larger than life by theyear 2025, as its application in the learn-ing and education sector will increase byaround 47%. From efficient tutoringmethodologies to turning teaching tech-niques highly impactful, efficient andgoal-oriented, AI surely has a moreprominent role to play.

Considering the global shift towardstechnological dependencies, newer chal-lenges in learning and human limitationswill further amplify the scope of AIthroughout the world. Aritif icalIntelligence will help bring the global edu-cation industry under a single umbrellafor all learning needs.

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The University ofBristol invites appli-cants for the Phyllis

Mary Morris Bursaries forthe academic session 2020-21. The PMM programmesare open to the applicantswho have applied to start aqualifying one-year, full-time taught the postgraduateprogramme at the university.

Eligibility: You canapply if you: Are classed asan overseas student for feepurposes; have applied tostart a qualifying one-year,full-time taught the post-graduate programme at theuniversity.

Benefits: Six bursariesworth £2,000 each. Theawards can be used towardsliving costs.

How to apply:Applicants must need toadmission in a postgraduatedegree at the university. Youcan submit an applicationfor the Phyllis Mary MorrisBursary using the interna-tional awards online applica-tion form.

Application deadline:June 14, 2020.

The KingstonUniversity invites applica-tion for internationalawards for high-potentialstudents in the UK. Awardsare awarded to undertake

UG and PG degree pro-grammes.

Eligibility: Applicantscan apply for an award ifthey: You can apply for an

International Scholarship.You are an international

student (classified as ‘over-seas fee status’).

You have an offer tostudy an Undergraduate orPostgraduate degree course(September intake only).

Eligible countries:International students areeligible to apply.

English languagerequirements: Studentsfrom outside the UK need tomeet Kingston University’sEnglish language require-ments — these depend onthe course they are applyingfor.

Students need to submit:A copy of your offer letter.An academic reference letter.A copy of your academictranscript/worksheet. A copyof your Academic IELTS orTOEFL result (where applic-able).

Award: internationalawards each worth £2,000per year of study.

How to apply: Themode of applying is online.You apply for the interna-tional scholarship via ouronline system and you’llneed electronic copies of thedocuments mentioned in theabove section.

Application deadline:The last date to apply is May31, 2020.

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Talented Canadian teenager AlphonsoDavies says it is a “dream come true”

to extend his Bayern Munich contractuntil 2025.

Davies is the latest Bayern star offeredan extension after Mueller and Flickboth recently signed new contracts until2023.

Davies, 19, was originally signeduntil June 2023, but the versatile teenag-er has impressed this season, both on theleft wing and at left back.

“I’m very happy. Bayern Munich isone of the best clubs in the world, and forme it’s a dream come true to play here,”Davies said in a statement.

“I want to win as many titles as pos-sible with this club.

“The mentality of always wanting towin everything is in FC Bayern’s DNA.”

He joined the German giants fromVancouver Whitecaps in 2019, but hasmade the breakthrough to Bayern’s firstteam this season by starting 17 ofMunich’s 25 league games and made hisChampions League debut.

“Alphonso has developed very well atFC Bayern and has earned this contractextension with his impressive perfor-mances,” said Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge.

“We are happy that he will remain inthe long term.”

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Young India opener Prithvi Shaw onTuesday said ‘idol’ Sachin Tendulkar has

advised him to always play his natural gameand stay calm off the field.

In an Instgram Live chat with hisIndian Premier League franchise DelhiCapitals, the 20-year old who is theyoungest Indian to score a Test centu-ry on debut, said: “He has had a biginfluence on me. I first met him whenI was eight. He always tells me to playmy natural game and according to thesituation. Off the field also, he askedme to stay calm.”

Shaw, who was part of thetwo Tests in New Zealandrecently where he openedthe batting with MayankAgarwal in the absence ofRohit Sharma, saidTendulkar had once askedhim not to change hisgrip.

“I am bottom-hand play-

er and Sachin sir had asked me not tochange my grip. I was young and I used tochange my grip as per coaches’ advice. Butafter Sachin sir told me, I did not changemy grip.”

In September 2017, at 17, Shaw becamethe youngest player to score a century onDuleep Trophy debut, a record previously

held by Tendulkar.Commenting on the contsant

comparison with the legend, Shawsaid: “There is pressure when peo-

ple compare me to him. But I take itas a challenge. I try to play like him.

He is the God of cricket.”Commenting on his

experience of workingwith BCCI PresidentSourav Ganguly who wasearlier mentor with DC,Shaw said: “There havebeen experiences to behonest and he helped alot as he knew how tomotivate youngsters in

the team. It was great.”

�� 437&016"3

Barcelona will raise money forthe fight against coronavirus

by selling the naming rights totheir Camp Nou stadium nextseason for the first time in theclub’s history.

The income generated fromthe re-naming of Barca’s 99,000-seater home for one year will beput towards “research projectsand other projects involved in thebattle against the effects ofCOVID-19, both at a local andinternational level”.

The stadium will keep ‘CampNou’ in its name while alsoincluding the new sponsor.

The club have previouslyadvertised UNICEF children’scharity for free on their shirts.

In a statement on Tuesday,the club said the process of find-ing a buyer will begin “in the nextfew weeks”.

“The income generated willcreate a fund that will be divid-ed in the following way: a partwill go towards a project onCOVID-19 driven by the spon-sors themselves and the rest willbe shared out amongst other pro-jects that are being developed inparallel,” the statement added.

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Former Pakistan speedster ShoaibAkhtar has said he doesn’t see crick-

eting activities taking place for the next12 months as the entire world battles withCOVID-19 pandemic.

“If you ask me honestly, I don’t knowfor how long the coronavirus outbreak willlast, until and unless it is not known thathow many people are infected, one can-not go ahead with any kind of cricket any-where,” Akhtar said on his YouTube

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Cricket Australia CEOKevin Roberts hasexpressed the board’s

desire to host a five match Testseries against India later this year.India’s tour of Australia current-ly consists of four Tests and threeODIs, however, Roberts hashinted that there could be anadditional Test in the serieswhen Virat Kohli and companyreach their shores in November.

Terming their relationshipwith the Board of Control forCricket in India (BCCI) as‘strong’, Roberts said a five matchTest series is a possibility but nota certainty at this stage.

“There’s no certainty aboutthat (five match Test series) forthe coming season, but what Ican say is that the relationshipbetween the BCCI and CricketAustralia is really strong,”Roberts told reporters on avideo call.

“We’ve discussed a shareddesire to evolve to five matchTest series between Australia andIndia in the future.

“It’s something we’ve bothcommitted to in principle in thefuture, the big question iswhether or not we can bring thatin before the next future tourscycle in 2023.

“We don’t know whatprospect there is of that next sea-

son, but certainly with a chang-ing landscape...we won’t rule outa possibility of that until we getcloser to the time,” he added.

Roberts also revealed theboard is looking at the prospectof hosting all the matches at asingle venue in their bid to keepthe players and staff safe amidcoronavirus pandemic.

“We won’t rule anythingout in terms of the Indian series.Along with the BCCI and Indianplayers, we want to stage a

series that inspires the cricketworld, whether or not there arepeople in the stands,” Robertssaid.

“We need to face into allpossibilities. Fortunately, wehave a little bit of time to workout the scenarios,” he added.

DEFENDS PAY CUTCricket Australia CEO

Kevin Roberts also defended thesalary cuts of staff as he high-lighted the precarious financial

position the board is currentlyin due to the coronavirus pan-demic.

With no cricket beingplayed, Roberts stated pay cutsare necessary to keep CA finan-cially stable.

“In pre-coronavirus world,we were already projecting thatour cash and investments wouldreduce to about $40 million atthe start of September this year,”Roberts told journalists.

“The unfortunate reality

of that is that we’re estimatingthat we’ve taken a $20 millionimpact thus far. We have toanticipate that there will bemore risks than that $20 mil-lion.

“If you contemplate theprospect of the internationalseason, in particular, beingaffected, we have an issue ofhundreds of millions of dollarson our hands,” he added.

�� 3,72,�

The SpanishFootball League

(LaLiga) and theSpanish FootballFederation (RFEF)have announced anagreement to tryand finish the cur-rent league season,which has not seenany games sinceMarch 8 due to thehealth crisis trig-gered by the coron-avirus pandemic.

The two orga-nizations held an8-hour meeting at the offices of the Spanish gov-ernment’s Superior Sports Committee on Mondayand have agreed to return to training “when thesanitary conditions permit, and under stricthealth protocols.”

Spanish media reports state that dependingon government guidelines and permission, play-ers could return to individual training in the mid-dle of May, with group sessions a week or twoweeks later. All players would be tested for thecoronavirus.

The aim is then to restart the competition oneither the last weekend in May, or the first week-end in June and attempt to play two matches aweek.

The matches would be played in empty sta-diums with no supporters allowed and there is alsoa chance that some clubs may opt to hold their fix-tures in their training grounds.

Marca and Diario AS both report that RealMadrid are considering playing their matches atthe Alfredo Di Stefano Stadium at their Valdebebastraining complex in the outskirts of Madrid.

Monday’s meeting also saw the RFEF andLaLiga agree to set up a contingency fund of 10million Euros to help smaller clubs which couldneed financial aid because of the crisis.

�� 16",6"

Former Liverpool mid-fielder Jamie

Redknapp fears arch-rivals Manchester Unitedare set to beat his formerclub for the signing ofBorussia Dortmund for-ward Jadon Sancho.

The 20-year-oldEnglishman is current-ly one of the mostsought-after playersin European foot-ball andRedknappb e l i e v e sSancho willend up in PremierLeague sooner thanlater with the RedDevils in pole position

to snap the hot shotwinger.

“I think it is a matterof time with JadonSancho coming to the

Premier League. Weare talking about agenuine superstar.

A player thatcan doincrediblethings withthe ball.Played 70

odd games int h e

B u n d e s l i g a ,scored 27 goalsfrom a wide

area which isvery good,”Redknapp told

Sky Sports.

“We have missed outon the likes of theNeymars in the PremierLeague but he can comeand really light it up.Personally I would call it.He will be a great signingfor whoever he goes to.

“I would like to seehim at Liverpool, but Ithink he is going to endup at United though,” headded.

Since making themove to Bundesliga fromManchester City in 2017,Sancho’s rise has beennothing but meteoric. Inthe last two seasons forDortmund, Sancho hasscored 20 goals andassisted 28 times for theGerman giants.

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In a bid to reduce the effectof coronavirus crisis on

world cricket, former Indiacaptain Sunil Gavaskar hascome up with a solution withrespect to the T20 World Cupthat is scheduled to be held inAustralia later this year.

“At the moment, as we allknow, Australia has barredforeigners from entering thecountry till the 30th ofSeptember. The tournament isstarting from mid-Octoberor the 3rd week of October, soit’s looking a bit difficult at themoment,” Gavaskar was quot-ed as saying by India Today.

The legendary Indiaopener suggested that Indiacan host the T20 World Cupin 2020 while Australia canhost the next edition, which isoriginally slated to be held inIndia next year. This is contin-gent to coronavirus threat

being minimalist in the India“If it can be done... next

year’s T20 World Cup is inIndia. If it can be done...where India and Australiacome to an agreement... incase the curve in India flattensout and India and Australiaswap... so the T20 World Cupis in India in October-November this year andAustralia in October-November next year, then itcan happen,” he said.

Gavaskar also batted forthe 13th edition of the IndianPremier League (IPL) to beheld just before the T20 WorldCup, so that players getenough match practice beforethe multi-national event.

“If it is going to happenthat way, then maybe what canhappen is the IPL can be heldjust prior to the T20 WorldCup so that it’s enough prac-tice for the players to have T20World Cup,” Gavaskar said.

0�H��!3��#�� R�1�� 0�� South Africa bowl-ing coach Charl Langeveldtbelieves there have been somedecent players who have pro-gressed through the ranks overthe past season, highlighting thefact that talent was evidentwithin the domestic structures.

The likes of Anrich Nortjeand Janneman Malan enjoyedbreakthrough performancesduring a challenging summer inwhich the national team wentthrough a serious transition inthe form of a new coaching set-up, as per a report on CricketSouth Africa official website.

Graeme Smith, the recent-ly appointed full-time Directorof Cricket, brought in a newTeam Director in MarkBoucher and a whole newcoaching team back inDecember on the eve of theirmarquee tour against England.

“It’s been an interestingtime coming back fromBangladesh,” he was quoted assaying by www.cricket.co.za.

“It’s always nice to coachyour country. I think when itcame to making the deal backthen, Jacques Faul (ChiefExecutive Officer) and GraemeSmith were brilliant behindthe scenes making it possiblefor the transfer to come throughto South Africa. TheBangladesh Cricket Board(BCB) were also excellent andthey were brilliant in releasingme.

“It was never going to easy.We (the new coaching staff)started with the Test seriesagainst England in Decemberand we didn’t have enoughtime as a team to gel.

“England being Englandand having a settled team withguys who have played a lotmore Test cricket together thanus, we had a lot of youngsterscoming into the team and intothe set-up, that was really hard.

“The guys played well inpatches but as a unit we justcouldn’t get it together. We gotbetter in the limited-overs tours.Lungi Ngidi was excellent,Temba (Bavuma) and Quinny(Quinton de Kock) were alsogood. Against Australia, Lungi

again with the ball was fantas-tic and then Janneman was out-standing. Overall we were a lotbetter.”

Langeveldt was broughtinto the set-up from his posi-tion as Bangladesh bowlingcoach.

Despite opting to restsenior players in the white-ballcontests, South Africa still man-aged to pull their weight andcompete, something that for-mer Proteas quick Langeveldtrelished.

“I really enjoyed how wecompeted as a young bowlingattack at an international level,”he beamed. Anrich, Lungi,(Lutho) Sipamla, (Tabraiz)Shamsi, they all stepped up verywell.

“All-round everyonechipped in. Where we camefrom starting in December andwhere we ended up,I thinkCSA can be really proud ofwhat they did on a domesticlevel to get these playersthrough. That’s where theseplayers come from and theyshowed a lot of maturity whichis a big plus for us going for-ward.”

Langeveldt added that thereis plenty more potential in thedomestic cupboard, somethingthe national coaching teamwere meant to explore duringthe final weeks of April.

However, with COVID-19striking, that has been placed onhold. “We are looking aroundfor the up and coming fastbowlers,” the coach added. “Wewere supposed to have a campstarting on April 19 for six days,but that had to be cancelledbecause of the virus, but we aredefinitely looking because youalways have to have replace-ments. There have been a fewnames that have popped up,Lifa Ntanzi, Gerald Coetzee,there’s Glenton Stuurman,Stefan Tait and then obviouslyLutho Sipamla, whose beenbrilliant in the national set-up.

“So there’s a few out thereand these are the guys that willbe the back-up for the nation-al team and they are the ones wewant to see.” IANS

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%��5�5��>��;��4�=%7�0�� UEFA vice president Sándor Csányisays playoffs to decide the last four places in thepostponed European Championship could beplayed in October or November.

The 16-nation playoffs have twice been post-poned because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Csányi tells Hungarian media that Octoberand November are options while there is uncer-tainty about when football can resume in Europe.All 55 UEFA member countries are currentlyscheduled to play Nations League games inOctober and November.

Hungary was drawn to play at Bulgaria in thesingle knockout Euro 2020 playoffs. The winnerwill host either Iceland or Romania with a placein the final tournament at stake. AP

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channel.“I do not see cricket being

played for at least a year due tothe coronavirus. I see the virustroubling us for one year, theseare troublesome times and I justhope we come out of thisstronger,” he added. TheRawalpindi Express is also off theview that whenever cricketresumes, use of saliva for shin-ing the cricket ball should not beallowed so as to stop the spreadof the virus.

“I don’t think that one can

apply saliva on the ball now, weas bowlers apply saliva on theball to make the ball shinier, theball goes in the hands of every-one on the park, I saw a reportof the ICC which said bowlerswould not be able to apply sali-va on the ball, Akhtar said.

“Cricket is a game whichrequires contact, if ICC is think-ing about passing the law relat-ed to applying saliva on the ball,then I welcome the decisionkeeping coronavirus in mind,”he added.

police brijesh kumar shrivastava said prof ... he did not offer specifics, such as the time frame or...

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