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VIJAYAWADA, SATURDAY AUGUST 22, 2020; PAGES 12 `3

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RNI No. APENG/2018/764698

*Late City Vol. 2 Issue 291*Air Surcharge Extra if Applicable

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VIJAYAWADA DELHI LUCKNOW BHOPAL RAIPUR CHANDIGARH

BHUBANESWAR RANCHIDEHRADUN HYDERABAD

The Pioneer wishes itsreaders, advertisers,suppliers and agents a happyGanesh Chaturthi. As ouroffices will remain closedtoday (22-8-2020), there willbe no issue of the Newspapertomorrow (23-08-2020).

— RESIDENT EDITOR

India to see gasshare rise to 10pc by 2025:GAIL

8

Pranab remainsstable, on venti-latory support:Hospital

5

US experts doubt plasma therapy, approval blockedPNS n WASHINGTON

A group of top US health offi-cials have sought more researchinto usage of blood plasma forCovid-19 treatment, sayingthat the emerging data on thetreatment was too weak.

Their argument has effec-tively put on hold emergencyauthorisation for such treat-ment by the US Food and DrugAdministration.

An emergency approvalcould still be issued in the nearfuture, said H. Clifford Lane,the clinical director at theNational Institute of Allergy

and Infectious Diseases.The view of the health offi-

cials — Dr Francis S. Collins

and Dr Anthony S. Fauci — isin stark contrast to the USPresident Donald Trump, who

has hailed plasma treatment. Thus far, donated by people

who have survived the disease,antibody-rich plasma has beenconsidered safe.

However, the health expertsargue that clinical trials have

not proved whether plasma canhelp people fighting the coro-navirus.

Several top health officials —led by Dr Collins, the directorof the National Institutes ofHealth; Dr Fauci, the govern-ment’s top infectious diseaseexpert; and Dr Lane — urgedtheir colleagues last week tohold off, citing recent datafrom the country’s largest plas-ma study, run by the MayoClinic. They thought thestudy’s data to date was notstrong enough to warrant anemergency approval.

Their argument haseffectively put on holdemergencyauthorisation for suchtreatment by the USFood and DrugAdministration.

CH PRADEEP KUMARn VIJAYAWADA

The Andhra Pradesh High Courton Friday served notices to 16entities in connection with thealleged phone tapping scandal.

The 16 entities that noticeswere served to include theDirector of Central Bureau ofInvestigation, the SP of CBI atVisakhapatnam, the CEO ofJio-Reliance Jio Infocomm,Mumbai, the CEO of Airtel,Hyderabad, the CEO of BSNL,New Delhi, the chairman ofVodafone-Idea, Mumbai andto the president of InternetService Providers Associationof India, New Delhi. Thenotices were returnable in fourweeks to show cause as to why

the writ petition submittedbefore the High Court shouldnot be admitted in the circum-stances stated in the petitionand the affidavit.

The High Court served theshow cause notices beforeadmission of the writ petitionfiled by Nakka Nammi Grace,who contended that the phones

of some of the judges of the courtand advocates, who are appear-ing to defend the cases againstthe State government, are putunder surveillance in contraven-tion to the Telegraph Act.

The petition also allegedthat such surveillance wasagainst the guidelines issued bythe Supreme Court in the caseof People’s Union for CivilLiberties vs. Union of India.

A Division Bench of the HighCourt heard the arguments ofcounsel for the petitioner JadaSravan Kumar, AssistantSolicitor General of India NHarinath, additional AdvocateGeneral Ponnavolu SudhakarReddy, and special governmentpleader C Sumon before direct-ing to serve notices.

The petition alsoalleged that suchsurveillance wasagainst theguidelines issued bythe Supreme Court inthe case of People’sUnion for CivilLiberties vs. Union of India.

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Leader of the Opposition NChandrababu Naidu onFriday appealed tothe people of all the13 districts of theState to join theAmaravati protestson Sunday.

Reminding thatthe Amaravati JAChas been staging protestsfor the past 248 days withouta break seeking continuation

of Amaravati as the only cap-ital of the State, Naidu said that

Sunday would mark the250th day of the agi-

tation. Heappealed to peo-ple of all sec-tions of societyto express soli-darity with the

protesters inAmaravati by stag-

ing protests in theirrespective areas.

AP records 9,544fresh cases, 91 deaths PNS n VIJAYAWADA

The rapid spread of coron-avirus contagion is showing nosigns of abating with AndhraPradesh adding 9,544 morecases, pushing the State’s over-all tally to 3.34 lakh on Friday.

The state also added 91fresh Covid-19 casualties inthe last 24 hours, taking theaggregate toll to 3,092.

With the new cases comingin hordes daily, the state gov-ernment decided to increasethe number of Covid-19 hos-pitals from 138 to 287 to caterto the enhanced caseload.

Chief Minister YSJaganmohan Reddy, whoreviewed the latest situation onFriday, directed the authoritiesto recruit required healthcareprofessionals to ensure prop-er treatment to the virus-infected patients.

The mortality rate has beenkept steady at 0.92 per cent,about one per cent less thanthe national average.

The health officials claimedthat the recovery rate in thestate now crossed 72 per cent,though less than the nationalaverage of over 73 per cent.

The latest bulletin, mean-while, said 8,827 patients gotcured and discharged from

hospitals in the last 24 hours,taking the overall total to 2.44lakh so far.

The number of activeCovid-19 cases increased to87,803.

PNS n NAGAR KURNOOL

In a freak mishap, nine per-sons were killed when fireerupted past midnight onThursday in the first unit ofthe Srisailam Left Bank hydelpower plant at the remoteDomalapenta village inAmrabad Mandal ofNagarkurnool, with the resul-tant fumes engulfing the entireunderground power genera-tion station in no time.

According to authorities ofthe Telangana State PowerGeneration Corporation(TSGenco), 17 people wereengaged at the powerhousewhen the mishap took place.However, eight of them man-aged to come out, thanks tothree emergency exits in theplant. Otherwise, the trappedpersonnel, who were not car-rying mobile phones (no net-work as it is an undergroundunit) could not even be con-tacted by rescue personnelwho managed to enter thepremises about 10 hours afterthe fire broke out. A short- cir-cuit is suspected to havecaused the fire.

Six bodies have been recov-ered so far. The rest weretrapped in a thick blanket ofsmoke that had engulfed thehydro-electric power plant,hampering rescue efforts thatcould begin only past noon onFriday. Search is on for threemore persons who could notescape.

Rescue personnel earliersaid that they could not enterthe premises even through theemergency exits because of thesmoke.

The deceased include fiveengineers of TSGenco. Thedeceased were identified asSrinivas Goud (DeputyEngineer), Venkata Rao(Assistant Engineer), MohanKumar (Assistant Engineer),Uzma Fathima (Assistant

Engineer), Sundar (AssistantEngineer), Ram Babu (Plantattendant), Kiran (Junior plantattendant). Two employees ofAmara Raja Group—VineshKumar and Mahesh Kumar—were also killed in the inci-dent.

A police official said six per-sons have been admitted tolocal hospitals for treatmentfor suffocation.

Nine dead in fire atSrisailam power plant

Jagan cancels visit to Srisailam PNS n AMARAVATI

Chief Minister YSJaganmohan Reddy on Fridaycancelled his scheduled trip toSrisailam following the fireaccident in the left bank powerhouse on the neighbouringTelangana side late Thursdaynight.

He was supposed to con-duct puja for the newRayalaseema Lift IrrigationScheme.

Jaganmohan Reddy wasscheduled to reach Srisailamat 11 am and conduct an

inspection of the project site.A review meeting with

Water Resources Departmentofficials was also planned.

A CMO release said theChief Minister cancelled thetrip following the fire mishapin the left bank power house.

Expressing grief over theincident, he directed the APofficials to extend all requiredassistance to their Telanganacounterparts to handle the sit-uation.

President, PM, Shahconvey their anguishNEW DELHI: Expressing their anguish over the fire mishap at theSrisailam hydroelectric plant that claimed the lives of nine people,President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi andHome Minister Amit Shah said they were pained by the loss oflives in the tragedy. The fire broke out late on Thursday nightwhen at least 17 people were inside the hydroelectric plant andeight of them managed to come out, officials said. "Pained by theloss of lives in the tragic fire accident at Srisailam hydroelectricplant in Telangana. In this hour of grief, my thoughts are with thebereaved families. I wish speedy recovery for the injured," Kovindtweeted. Modi described the tragedy as "deeply unfortunate" andhoped that the injured recover at the earliest. "Fire at the Srisailamhydroelectric plant is deeply unfortunate. My thoughts are withthe bereaved families.

JEE Main, NEET to be heldas per schedule in SeptemberPNS n NEW DELHI

The Joint Entrance Examination(Main) and the NationalEligibility cum Entrance Test(NEET-UG) will be conductedin September as scheduled,officials in the Ministry ofEducation said on Friday.

In a statement, the ministry'sNational Testing Agency(NTA), which conducts theseexams, said over 6.4 lakh can-didates have downloaded theiradmit cards for the engineer-ing entrance exam, JEE-Main.

It said 6,49,223 candidateshave downloaded their admitcards, so far, against a total of8,58,273.

"The NTA is happy to sharewith the JEE (Main) 2020 can-didates that it has been able tooffer the first choice of prefer-ence of centre cities to 99.07 percent of the candidates," it said.

The statement said that "142

candidates have, subsequentlyrequested for a change in theirallotted centre city due to var-ious reasons, and the NTA isconsidering these requests pos-itively.”

It said as far as, NEET (UG)-2020 is concerned, again for thefirst time, candidates of thisexamination were given oppor-tunity five times to change

their choice of centre city.A total of 95,000 candidates

availed the same and theyhave been accommodatedagainst their revised choices,the NTA said in the statement.

Ministry officials assertedthat the JEE (Main) and theNEET exams will be conduct-ed in September as scheduled.

There have been demandsfrom several students and par-ents to further postpone theentrance exams in view ofincreasing coronavirus cases.

The Supreme Court onMonday dismissed a plea seek-ing postponement of JEE(Main) April 2020 and NEET-Undergraduate examinations,which are scheduled to beconducted in September, amidspurt in number of Covid-19cases, saying precious year ofstudents "cannot be wasted"and life has to go on.

Naidu calls state-wideprotests for Amaravati

Khel Ratna for Rohit;Ishant, Deepti toreceive Arjuna AwardsPNS n NEW DELHI

India vice-captain RohitSharma was named as one offive Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratnaawardees by the SportsMinistry on Friday. Hebecomes the fourth Indiancricketer to be conferred withthis award after SachinTendulkar, MS Dhoni andVirat Kohli.

Indian cricketers IshantSharma and Deepti Sharmawere named among the 27Arjuna Awardees.

Telcos, investigators get HCnotices in phone tapping case

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Number of Covid hospitalsto go up to 287 VIJAYAWADA: Beside hikingsalaries of sanitary workers, theAndhra Pradesh government willsoon increase the number ofCovid hospitals from 138 to 287and also appoint doctors andspecialists. Chief Minister YSJaganmohan Reddy, who chaireda review meeting on the prevailingCovid situation in the State, toldofficials that the strength of Covidhospitals should be increased to287 with an addition of 149 morehospitals and doctors andspecialists should be madeavailable as soon as possible.

Former Finance Secretary Rajiv Kumar has been appointed ElectionCommissioner, the Law Ministry said in notification on Friday night.

Mr Kumar will take charge the day Election CommissionerAshok Lavasa leaves his office on August 31. Theoutgoing EC is joining Asian Development Bank as itsvice president. Rajiv Kumar is a retired IndianAdministrative Service officer of the 1984 batch fromJharkhand cadre. While Sunil Arora is the CEC, theother EC, apart from Ashok Lavasa, is SushilChandra. Kumar will join this team of seniorofficers when Lavasa leaves after 10 days.

CBI IN MUMBAI, QUESTIONS SUSHANTSINGH RAJPUT'S STAFF, MEETS COPS

EX FIN SECRETARY RAJIV KUMARAPPOINTED ELECTION COMMISSIONER

UNCONDITIONAL APOLOGY BY AUG 24:APEX COURT TO PRASHANT BHUSHAN

Amember of Sushant Singh Rajput's staff was questioned in Mumbaitoday by the CBI, which has launched investigations into the case

following a Supreme Court order on Wednesday. A man wearing a blackmask and dark shirt was seen with CBI officers in a video.The CBI's Special Investigation Team, led by officer NupurPrasad, arrived in Mumbai late last night to start inquiriesinto the Bollywood actor's death on June 14, which leftthousands of his fans in shock and fueled massivespeculation, controversies and conspiracy theories.Forensic experts from the Central Forensic ScienceLaboratory (CFSL) are part of the 10-member team.

Health authorities in China's capital Beijing have removed arequirement for people to wear masks outdoors, further relaxing

rules aimed at preventing the spread the novel coronavirus after the cityreported 13 consecutive days without new cases. Despite the relaxedguidelines, a large proportion of peoplecontinued to wear masks in Beijing onFriday. Some said the mask made them feelsafe, while others said social pressures towear the masks were also a factor. "I think Ican take off my mask anytime, but I'll needto see if others accept it.

BEIJING TO GO MASK-FREE ASCOVID CASES HIT NEW LOWS

Lawyer-activist Prashant Bhushan, held guilty of contempt for histweets on Chief Justice of India SA Bobde and the Supreme Court,

told the top court today that he was "pained" at being "grosslymisunderstood" and that he considered his tweets an attempt todischarge his highest duty. After a sharp back-and-forthduring a two-hour hearing over whether his tweets hadcrossed the line, the Supreme Court gave the 63-year-old lawyer two-three days "to reconsider" his statementand sought an unconditional apology by August 24."We have given time to the contemnor to submitunconditional apology, if he so desires.

}CHIRU ASSIGNSLUCIFER REMAKE

TO VINAYAK

Page 12{

HYDERABADWEATHER

Current Weather ConditionsUpdated August 21, 2020 5:00 PM

ALMANAC

TODAY

Month & Paksham:

Bhadrapada & Shukla Paksha

Panchangam

Tithi : Chaturthi: 07:56 pm

Nakshatram: Hasta: 07:11 pm

Time to Avoid: (Bad time to start

any important work)

Rahukalam: 09:11 am – 10:45 am

Yamagandam: 01:52 pm – 03:26 pm

Varjyam: 02:29 am – 03:57 am

Gulika: 06:04 am - 07:37 am

Good Time: (to start any important work)

Amritakalam: 01:45 pm – 03:12 pm

Abhijit Muhurtham: 11:53 am – 12:43 pm

FFoorreeccaasstt:: CloudyTemp: 27/22Humidity: 81%Sunrise: 06.00 amSunset: 06.36 pm

Printed and published by B Krishna Prasad for and on behalf of CMYK Printech Ltd., Printed at Sree Seshasai Enterprises, D.No. New 3-88, Old 3-22, Chandra Theatre, Gosala, Penamaluru Mandal, Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh - 521 151, Resident Editor: B Krishna Prasad, AIR SURCHARGE of Rs 2.00.

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VIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | AUGUST 22, 2020 vijayawada 02

EGG

RATES

` 55,450 (10 gm)

` 110

GOLD

` 67,800 (1kg)

` 11,150

HYDERABAD 375

VIJAYAWADA 407

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RREETTAAIILL PPRRIICCEE `̀44..3300

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BULLION RATES

`̀//110000

CHICKEN

RATES

Dressed/With Skin `158

Without Skin `180

Broiler at Farm `109

`̀//KKGG

(IN VIJAYAWADA)

Pawan Kalyan is vocal forlocal this Vinayaka ChaturthiPNS n VIJAYAWADA

Stating that VinayakaChaturthi is one of the impor-tant festivals for Hindus, JanaSena president Pawan Kalyanon Friday urged people toavoid imported material anduse only locally made goods.

“It is the festival to pray toLord Vinayaka to preventVighnas (obstacles) for any workwe initiate. I pray to Lord VighnaNayaka to protect all the peopleof the country from a dangerousVighnam called Corona,” theactor-politician said.

He said Vinayaka Chavithiwill be celebrated by all theIndians irrespective of casteand creed. “In fact, the festivalis celebrated to promotenational unity and patriotism.Let us all reflect on patriotismduring the festival this time,”Pawan Kalyan said.

He said foreign goods havebecome a part of our life with-

out our knowledge, we couldnot find a market for productsproduced by our workersusing their hard labour.“Foreign puja material is tak-ing a lion’s share in ourVinayaka puja. We shall avoidforeign goods at least fromthis puja onwards. Let us useonly the goods produced in

our soil,” the Jana Sena chiefsaid. “Let us celebrate the fes-tival using only environmental-friendly puja materials whichare produced in our land. Onthis occasion, I extend VinayakaChavithi greetings to all thepeople of the country and allTelugu people on behalf ofJana Sena,” Pawan Kalyan said.

MEIL quotes Rs 4,509cr for Zojila tunnel, is lowest bidder PNS n NEW DELHI

Megha Engineering &Infrastructure Ltd (MEIL)emerged as the lowest bidderfor the prestigious Zojila Passtunnel to provide all-year con-nectivity between Jammu andKashmir and Ladakh unionterritories, the NationalHighways and InfrastructureDevelopment Corporation Ltd(NHIDCL) said on Friday.

Among the three bidders inthe race including Larsen &Toubro and Ircon InternationalJV, the Hyderabad-headquar-tered company had quoted thelowest Rs 4,509.5 crore for thetunnel project, stuck for oversix years now.

The project holds strategicsignificance as Zojila Pass is sit-uated at an altitude of 11,578feet on the Srinagar-Kargil-LehNational Highway and remainsclosed during winters due toheavy snowfall.

“MEIL has emerged as thelowest bidder by quoting Rs4,509.5 crore for the Zojila Passtunnel project," an NHIDCLofficial said.

Road Transport andHighways Minister NitinGadkari last month had saidthat the work on the projectwill start soon.

Prime Minister NarendraModi had in May 2018 laid thefoundation stone for the Rs6,800 crore project, billed as

Asia's longest bi-directionaltunnel, in Jammu and Kashmir.

However, barely monthsafter the foundation, theNHIDCL on January 15, 2019terminated the contract award-ed to troubled IL&FS groupcompany IL&FSTransportation after it aban-doned the project citing finan-cial problems.

Earlier this year, the Ministryof Road Transport andHighways through NHIDCL

had invited bid for "construc-tion of 14.15 km long tunnelacross Zojila Pass on Sonmarg-Kargil section of NH-1between union territories ofJ&K and Ladakh along withapproaches" through an engi-neering, procurement and con-struction (EPC) contract.

"MEIL has become L-1 inZojila Pass tunnel in JammuKashmir-Ladakh in Himalayanregion. NHIDCL has openedthe bids on Friday, and MEILtopped the list by quoting lessthan other companies. ...theZojilla tunnel is to be built in

horseshoe shape of 14.15 km asa two-road lane of 9.5 metreswide and 7.57 metres high.This project will have to carryout innovatively in the mostcritical conditions," MEIL saidin a statement.

The company said the pro-ject is in a complex hill and itscompletion schedule is 72months. "This whole projecthas to be executed in twoparts. The first part is 18.50kilometres of road, and the sec-ond part is 14.15 kilometres asa tunnel...", it said.

Gadkari had said that the

tunnel for all-year connectivi-ty between Leh and Srinagarmay undergo some designchanges to prevent cost escala-tion.

The cancellation of theaward in January last year wasthe second time NHIDCL hadscrapped the contract for the14.15-km tunnel project.

The corporation had earliercancelled the bid of IRBInfrastructure. IL&FSTransportation in 2017emerged as the lowest bidder inthe rebidding process.

Unveiling a plaque for com-mencement of work for thetunnel, Modi had said, "Zojilatunnel is not a mere tunnel buta modern day marvel."

The Cabinet on January 3,2018 had approved the Zojilatunnel project with ParallelEscape (Egress) tunnel betweenBaltal and Minamarg on theSrinagar-Leh section of NH-1Aat a total cost of Rs 6,800 crore.

The project holds strategicsignificance as Zojila Pass is situatedat an altitude of 11,578 feet on theSrinagar-Kargil-Leh National Highwayand remains closed during wintersdue to heavy snowfall

Flood level in river Godavari rises PNS n AMARAVATI

The flood in river Godavarirose once again on Friday afterfalling significantly on August20 as the level inched closer tothe third danger mark at SirArthur Cotton Barrage in EastGodavari district of AndhraPradesh.

On the other side, riverKrishna too received copiousinflows bringing the Srisailamreservoir closer to its full capac-ity, consequent to which over4.96 lakh cusecs of water wasbeing discharged downstream.

After dropping to 14 lakhcusecs on Thursday, the floodflow swelled to over 17.23 lakhcusecs at Cotton Barrage atDowaleswaram on Fridayafternoon, according to WaterResources Department data.

The increased flood flowkept tens of villages in East andWest Godavari districtsmarooned for the sixth day ina row.

More than 10,000 people

have been sheltered in floodrelief camps while village volun-teers have been supplying essen-tial commodities to householdsin many flood-hit villages.

Both agriculture and horti-culture crops were the worst hitin the two districts as thefields in hundreds of hectaresremained inundated.

After touching a high of 4.17lakh cusecs, the inflow intoSrisailam on river Krishnadropped to 3.93 lakh cusecs onFriday evening but 4.96 lakhcusecs was being let outthrough 10 crest gates.

Srisailam reservoir still hasa flood cushion of 8.77 tmc ftafter 207.04 tmc ft of water was

impounded.In Nagarjunasagar down-

stream, 2.98 lakh cusecs ofwater flowed in while 58,584cusecs of it was being dis-charged into the Dr KL RaoSagar at Pulichintala.

As it still has a flood cush-ion of over 20.26 tmc ft, nowater is being released from the

Dr KL Rao Sagar.The Prakasam Barrage

downstream in Vijayawadareceived an inflow of 1.27 lakhcusecs as flood from theMuniyeru rivulet was beingdischarged.

Authorities have opened theBarrage gates to let out onelakh cusecs into the Bay ofBengal.

After touching ahigh of 4.17 lakhcusecs, the inflowinto Srisailam onriver Krishnadropped to 3.93lakh cusecs onFriday evening but4.96 lakh cusecswas being let outthrough 10 crestgates.

1 dead, 3 hurt as ambulance rams culvert

Governor grievesloss of lives inSrisailam mishap

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

A man died while three oth-ers were injured when theprivate ambulance they weretravelling in met with anaccident near Kethanakonda,30 km from Vijayawada onFriday morning.

According to a report, thevictims were identified asGrandi Ranga Nayakudu (67).

Nayakudu, his wife andthree others were reportedlybeing shifted to a Covid-19hospital in Hyderabad fortreatment. The private ambu-lance hit the railing of a cul-vert and toppled over to theroadside.

On getting information, theIbrahimpatnam police rushedto the spot. The injured wereshifted to a government hos-pital in Vijayawada. case hasbeen registered and a probe isunderway. It has not beenconfirmed who the Covid-19patient was.

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Governor BiswabhusanHarichandan has expresseddeep sorrow and anguish atthe major fire accident whichoccurred in the undergroundhydel powerhouse at theS r i s a i l a mProject onT hu r s d aynight due toa short cir-cuit.

The Governor, in a mes-sage, expressed his grief oncoming to know that at leastsix employees who weretrapped inside the power-house lost their lives andcould not be rescued.

He said that he prayed forthe early recovery of the 15employees who were rescuedand are being treated in ahospital. The Governorexpressed his heartfelt condo-lences to members of thebereaved families.

L VENKAT RAM REDDY

n HYDERABAD

It is sheer miracle that at leasteight persons managed toescape Thursday midnight'sblaze at the undergroundSrisailam power plant thatclaimed the lives of nine otherpersons. What is painful tonote is that these nine personsdied of asphyxiation because ofstoppage of power and dys-functional exhaust fans whichought to function regardless ofpower supply. The victimsapparently struggled in vain togrope their way out amid pitchdarkness.

This apart, flawed rescueefforts and utter lack of coor-dination between governmentagencies as well as power util-ities complicated matters.

Although the state energydepartment and Nagarkurnooldistrict administration offi-cials were at spot in the weehours of Friday, their helpless-ness as well as the shockinginability of the fire and otherpersonnel to immediately go tothe rescue of those trappedinside the plant speak vol-umes about the absence of aneffective action plan post dis-aster as well as the woeful lackof appropriate fire-preventionand fire-control equipment.

Normally a wide range offire protection systems aremade available at such facilities.These include fire pumps,hydrants, fire extinguishersand systems using

sprinkler/water spray, drychemical, halon, halon alterna-tive, carbon dioxide and detec-tion/alarm devices.

Going by the fact that it tookseveral hours to control the fireand thereafter wait for theblanket of smoke to dissipate,it is clear that such equipmentwere either not there at all orwere dysfunctional. For, evenexhaust fans were dysfunc-tional and the back-up systemsfailed to perform, reports sug-gest.

Going by circumstantial evi-dence, the persons trappedinside could not get any helpfor over 10 hours after the firebroke out. Lack of coordination

among various departmentsand agencies also contributedto ineffective rescue opera-tions.

Although Power Minister GJagadish Reddy, Transco,Genco CMD D

Prabhakar Rao and other topofficials from fire, policedepartments andNagarkurnool district admin-istration reached the accidentspot quickly, they were cluelesson directing, let alone super-vise, the rescue operations in aswift and effective manner.

Valuable time was lost intaking decisions to call rescueteams from the NationalDisater Response Force and

Singareni Collieries Ltd, whoare deemed to be experts inhandling rescue operations insuch risky fire mishaps thatoccur underground. Due tothis, there was criminal delayin the arrival of competent res-cue teams at the spot. By thetime, the Singareni rescueteams reached the spot onFriday, it was all over. They hadto carry out operations mere-ly to trace the dead bodies,instead of rescuing the trappedpersons as it was too late bythen.

The abrupt stoppage ofpower supply at the accidentsite also led

o loss of lives as rescue

operations were hit due todarkness. Lack of visibility dueto huge smoke, darkness due topower stoppage and suffoca-tion in the underground plantled to death of nine persons.Despite there being three emer-gency exits, some of thetrapped persons could notcome out due to lack of visibil-ity.

The trapped persons, amidbreathlessness and suffocation,died with little or no hope ofhelp.

The state government hasconstituted a probe committeeto find out the reasons for thefire mishap and death of thetrapped persons. The panelwould do well to look intothese criminal lapses in theunderground power plant so asto prevent such fire mishapsand loss of lives in the future.

n Caught in pitch darkness amidst suffocating smoke with dysfunctional exhaust fans

Victims died of asphyxiation, a ‘miracle’ for 8

Normally a widerange of fireprotection systemsare made availableat such facilities.These include firepumps, hydrants, fireextinguishers andsystems usingsprinkler/waterspray, dry chemical,halon, halonalternative, carbondioxide anddetection/alarmdevices.

Heart attack riskdespite lowcholesterol: ExpertsCH. PRADEEP KUMAR

n VIJAYAWADA

In the past 25 years, India haswitnessed a sharp rise in theoccurrence of heart attackincidences.

While in the western world,only 23 per cent of deaths dueto heart disease occur beforethe age of 70 years, this num-ber is 52 percent in India, saidDr N Anil Kumar, ConsultantInterventional Cardiologist,Vijayawada.

The prevalence of heartattack, ischemic heart diseaseand stroke has increased byover 50 per cent from 1990 to2016.

This burgeoning burden issurging unabated in India andcan be explained by theincreased prevalence of coronaryrisk factors such as elevated low-density lipoprotein (LDL), thebad cholesterol, he says.

“High cholesterol is closelyrelated to increased risk ofheart attack. Even people withideal cholesterol may also haveunderlying heart attack risks.Also, not all patients with“normal” cholesterol have thesame exact risk for developingheart disease. The key toreduce risk is your preventionefforts. It’s important that eventhe healthiest people take stepsto promote better health. Thiswill significantly reduce theheart attack risk,” said Dr Anil

Kumar.To have a strong heart one

should exercise regularly thatmakes the heart musclesstronger and it works moreefficiently.

According to the AmericanHeart Association, exercising30 minutes a day five days aweek will improve your hearthealth.

Maintaining a healthy bodyweight will reduce CV risk.Check your BP at regularintervals and try to maintainyour BP below 140/90 mm Hg.Take medicines such as bloodcholesterol lowering drugs asprescribed by your doctor.Don’t stop taking these with-out checking with your doctorfirst.

D Ratna Sarojini, dieticiansays test your blood sugarregularly. Consult your health-care provider for A1C test andkeep blood sugar levels undercontrol.

Also “pay attention to whatyou eat. Eat home-cookedfood that is rich in nutrition.A diet low in saturated fats andsugars will help lower choles-terol levels and reduce yourchance of having heart disease.Select lower fat dairy productsand poultry (skinless). Limitsugar-sweetened beveragesand red meat. Along with thisa good regular exercise willhelp,” said Dakavarapu RatnaSarojini, a dietician.

20 workers fall ill after gas leak in private agro products unitPNS n AMARAVATI

At least 20 workers, a major-ity of them women, fell ill aftera leak of ammonium gas lateon Thursday night in a dairybelonging to a private agroproducts firm in Putalapattuconstituency in AndhraPradesh.

While three of the victimswere shifted to Ruia Hospital

in temple town of Tirupati,five were admitted to theCMC hospital in Vellore inneighbouring Tamil Nadu.

The others were undergoingtreatment in the governmenthospital in Chittoor, policesaid.

Chittoor district CollectorNarayana Bharat Gupta andSuperintendent of PoliceSenthil Kumar visited the

dairy unit and supervised therescue operation.

According to the Collector,the gas leak occurred whilesome welding work was beingcarried out in the unit.

"We have ordered aninquiry and the exact cause ofthe mishap will be revealedonly later. The possible humannegligence angle will also beprobed," Gupta said.

SPB 'stable', says hospital PNS n CHENNAI

Veteran playback singer S PBalasubrahmanyam, battlingCOVID-19 and on ventilatorand ECMO support, was 'sta-ble', the hospital treating himsaid on Friday.

The 74 year-old actor-singer "continues to be onventilator and ECMO sup-port in the Intensive CareUnit (ICU)," Dr AnuradhaBaskaran, Assistant Director-Medical Services, MGMHealthcare said in a bulletin.

"His condition currently isstable.Our multi-disciplinaryteam of medical experts iskeeping a very close watch onthe vital parameters and hasbeen constantly updatingThiru S P Balasubrah-manyam's family regardinghis clinical status andprogress," Baskaran said.

His son SP Charanthanked all for the prayersand pointed out his fatherwas 'stable' today though hewas 'critical' on Thursday.

VIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | AUGUST 22, 2020 vijayawada 03

Cash reward on doc is YSRCPvendetta, says ChinarajappaPNS n VIJAYAWADA

The Telugu Desam Party onFriday objected to the announce-ment of Rs 1 lakh reward forinformation of the whereaboutsof Dr P Ramesh Babu, manag-ing director of Ramesh Hospitals.

Former home minister andTDP MLA NimmakayalaChinarajappa alleged thatYSRCP government is treatingdoctors on par with terroristsand was harassing Dr RameshBabu for the unfortunate firemishap that ravaged the HotelSwarna Palace and left 10 peo-ple dead.

Chinarajappa recalled thatearlier, the YSRCP governmentharassed Dr Sudhakar Rao, aDalit, for demanding face masksfor health workers and put himbehind bars by registering falsecases.

The former minister addedthat later too, YSRCP leadersharassed another Dalit womandoctor Anitha Rani and lodgedfalse complaints against her.

“Now, the YSRCP is targetingDr Ramesh Babu as part of its

politics of vendetta,”Chinarajappa said.

He claimed that RameshHospitals operated a Covid CareCentre in the Swarna Palace afterobtaining all necessary permis-sions, but now the governmentwas harassing Dr Ramesh Babufor the unfortunate fire mishap.

Objecting to the announce-ment of Rs 1 lakh reward on DrRamesh Babu, Chinarajappa

termed it as a vindictive act. Heopined that harassing doctorswho were frontline warriorsagainst pandemic Corona wasnot justifiable.

Chinarajappa appealed toChief Minister YS JaganmohanReddy to stop harassment ofdoctors and TDP leaders and toconcentrate on improving facil-ities in government hospitals tosave people from Coronavirus.

YSRCP will fulfil its housingpromise, vows Jogi RameshPNS n VIJAYAWADA

Stating that the YSRCPGovernment will implement itspromise to provide housing forall homeless poor “despite thehurdles being created by Leaderof the Opposition leader NChandrababu Naidu and hiscompany” by moving court onflimsy grounds, MLA JogiRamesh on Friday said that theruling party will overcome allobstacles.

Speaking to the media here,the TDP leaders have createdhurdles in 30 lakh women ofweaker sections getting housesite pattas by approaching court.

“Naidu has come to be knownas a corruption king and he andhis son are unable to bear thegood work being done by theYSRCP government under theleadership of Chief Minister YSJaganmohan Reddy,” Rameshsaid. He said that Naidu has noright to speak against the ChiefMinister as he had done noth-ing for the people during his 14-year tenure.

“It is now from CM to CM(Common Man) as nearly Rs59,000 crore has been directlydisbursed to the weaker sections

in one year of the YSRCP com-ing to power. Where is the cor-ruption Naidu keeps on shout-ing about,” Ramesh asked.

He said despite Covid-19pandemic, ward and village vol-unteers were providing all ben-efits to the poor.

He challenged Lokesh to con-test against even a YSRCP wardmember or a village volunteerand be prepared to lose the elec-tion. Ramesh said that TDP hasbecome a ‘Telugu Diwala Party’as it has lost terribly at the hus-tings. “While TDP complaintsare typed in English, Naidu isfighting against English beingintroduced at the primary schoollevel by the YSRCP govern-ment,” the YSRCP MLA said.

TDP reduced to doingstreet politics: BJP V-PPNS n VIJAYAWADA

BJP state vice presidentVishnuvardhan Reddy onFriday accused the TeluguDesam Party of resorting tocaste-based politics.

Addressing media personshere on Friday, VishnuvardhanReddy said that the TDPMLAs, leaders and activistsshould change the way theyspeak about Prime MinisterNarendra Modi, BJP MPs andother party leaders.

He said that TDP supremo NChandrababu Naidu writes tothe PM praising him whiledirecting his party cadre topounce on BJP leaders in thestate and spew venom on them.

Vishnuvardhan Reddyalleged that earlier, Naidu usedto do politics using the mediafavouring him, and was nowdoing the same through socialmedia. “The TDP has failedmiserably as the mainOpposition party. I am warningTDP leaders not to target PMModi, state president VeeraRaju, MP GVL Narsimha Raoand others,” Vishnuvardhan

Reddy said. He claimed that thepeople of the state were close-ly observing the propagandabeing unleashed by Naidu andother TDP leaders.

Vishnuvardhan Reddy criti-cised Naidu for claiming thatTDP is a national party as itindulges in “street politics”.

“People have forgotten TDPin the state as the party is con-fined to statements in print andelectronic media channels.Nadu is resorting to conspira-cy politics since the party wasformed by NT Rama Rao.People know why Naidu isconfined to Hyderabad,”Vishnuvardhan Reddy said.

He added that TDP leaderBuchaiah Chowdary was danc-ing to the tunes of Naidu andmaking baseless comments.

Vishnuvardhan Reddyadvised the TDP to take BJPas an example of fighting forthe problems of the people inthe state.

He lashed out at the TDP forposting comments on unautho-rised websites and social mediaand said that Naidu and Lokeshwere spending lakhs of rupeeson propaganda alone.

MHA is derelict, AmaravatiJAC complains to PresidentPNS n VIJAYAWADA

Prof Dr GVR Shastri, chairmanof the Joint Action Committeeof the Amaravati ParirakshanaSamiti, in a letter to PresidentRamnath Kovind, stated thatthe stand adopted by the HomeMinistry before the AP HighCourt on the proposed trifur-cation of capital of the Statewhich ex facie amount to dere-liction of Constitutional dutiesand mandate for effective func-tioning of a federal nation likeIndia.

Prof Shastri stated that thiswas a serious matter of consti-tutional impropriety, and volun-tary cessation of the powerand the role of UnionGovernment, relating to the tri-furcation of capital which as acustodian of the Constitution,the President must take appro-priate steps to maintain the con-stitutional balance of powersbetween Union and the States.

He recalled that the HomeMinistry on August 6, filed a

duly sworn affidavit beforethe High Court making itabundantly clear that theCentre has no role in the selec-tion of Amaravati as the capi-tal of Andhra Pradesh and it isits sole discretion.

Prof Shastri appealed to thePresident to note that theseblanket statements in the con-text of the proposed trifurca-tion will have disastrous andfar reaching consequenceswhich will be irreversible andwould become a fait accompli

if immediate corrective actionis not taken. “As a constitution-al expert and a legal luminary,the President can see that theaforesaid affidavits and thestand taken by the HomeMinistry on the trifurcation isagainst the Constitution andflies in the face of variousArticles of the Constitutionwhich empower the President/Union Parliament/CentralGovernment to actively partic-ipate and decide on issuesrelating to States reorganisa-

tion, establishment and shift-ing of State Capitals, establish-ment and shifting of HighCourts and others,” Prof Shastriwrote.

He appealed to the Presidentto kindly look into the matteron utmost priority so that thismay not become a constitu-tional precedent which createspractical difficulties for peopleand doesn’t destroy peace andorder in Andhra Pradesh inparticular and all other Statesin general.

Hearing on doc'sbail petition putoff to August 24PNS n VIJAYAWADA

The Fifth Additional Districtand Sessions court here onFriday adjourned hearing onthe anticipatory bail petitionfiled on behalf of Dr PRamesh Babu, chairman andmanaging director of RameshHospitals to August 24 afterthe assistant public prosecu-tor sought time to file the casediary and other papers to thecourt.

It may be recalled that DrRamesh Babu filed for antic-ipatory bail after a criminalcase was filed against him onvarious charges in maintain-ing the Covid-19 centrewhere a fire mishap occurredresulting in the death of tenpersons recently.

The petition came up forhearing before the FifthAdditional District andSessions judge here on Friday.

The Judge adjourned thehearing to August 24th afterthe assistant public prosecu-tor informed the court that hewas not ready for presentingthe arguments.

“People have forgott-en TDP in the state asthe party is confinedto statements in printand electronic mediachannels. Nadu isresorting to conspira-cy politics since theparty was formed byNT Rama Rao. Peopleknow why Naidu isconfined to Hydera-bad,” VishnuvardhanReddy said

Continued from Page 1

Naidu accused the YSJaganmohan ReddyGovernment of playing a risky,‘3-cards poker’ gamble withthe people of Andhra Pradeshby trying to split the StateCapital into three.

He termed it as grossbetrayal by Jagan and anattempt destroy Amaravati forwhich he had announced hiscategorical and whole-heartedsupport on the floor of theAssembly prior to 2019 elec-tions.

Naidu asserted his party’ssolidarity with the protesters inthe larger interests of the State.

“All the people in 13 dis-

tricts should come forwardand make the anti-Capitalshifting protests a success,” theformer chief minister said.

He stated that the time hascome for all sections of peo-ple to rise above politicalaffiliations and join the agi-tation. He requested that allpolitical parties, people'sorganisations and all walksof life should express theirsolidarity and take an activepart.

The TDP chief concludedby demanding that the rul-ing dispensation shouldunconditionally honour theagreements reached betweenthe Amaravati farmers andthe previous Government.

Naidu calls state-wide protests...JEE Main, NEETto be held asper schedule...

Continued from Page 1

The NTA said it has madeelaborate arrangements tosanitise centres before andafter the examinations, andgive fresh masks and handgloves. The NTA has also pre-pared a comprehensive advi-sory regarding Covid-19 for allfunctionaries for centre man-agement, the testing agencysaid. In order to solicit supportof states for maintaining lawand order, power supply, facil-itation of movement of candi-dates and exam functionaries,crowd management in front ofexam centres, we have alsowritten to the state chief sec-retaries, DGPs, and DMs/ SPsof the concerned cities , theNTA said.

US experts doubt plasma therapy...Continued from Page 1

“The three of us are prettyaligned on the importance ofrobust data through randomisedcontrol trials, and that a pandem-ic does not change that,” Dr Lanesaid. The drafted emergencyauthorisation leaned on the his-tory of plasma’s use in other dis-ease outbreaks and on animalresearch and a spate of plasmastudies, including the MayoClinic’s programme, which hasgiven infusions to more than66,000 Covid-19 patients thanksto financing from the US feder-al government.

An FDA spokeswomandeclined to comment, but Trump

reacted angrily, suggesting thedecision was politically motivat-ed.

“You have a lot of people overthere who don’t want to rushthings because they want to doit after November 3,” he saidreferring to Election Day, as heproclaimed without evidencethat convalescent plasma helped“way over 50 per cent” of Covid-19 patients infused with it.Plasma, the pale yellow liquidleftover after blood is stripped ofits red and white cells, has beenthe subject of months of intenseenthusiasm from scientists,celebrities and Trump, part of theadministration’s push for coron-avirus treatments as a stopgap

while pharmaceutical compa-nies race to complete dozens ofclinical trials for coronavirusvaccines. Emergency authorisa-tions, which do not require thesame level of evidence as a fullFDA approval would, have beena fraught subject for the govern-ment during the pandemic.

The agency gave one to themalaria drugs hydroxychloro-quine and chloroquine only torescind it months later after thedrugs were found to be ineffec-tive against the coronavirus, andpotentially harmful. An emer-gency authorisation for bloodplasma would most likely easethe clerical burdens on hospitalsin conducting infusions.

Continued from Page 1

Rohit, who has been recog-nised for his brilliance with thebat in the India colours, how-ever has his eyes firmly set ondefending the IPL title withthe Mumbai Indians in UAE.He is the most decorated IPLcaptain till now as Mumbaihave won the trophy fourtimes under his leadership.

Named the ICC ODICricketer of the Year for 2019,Rohit became the first playerin the history of the game toscore five ODI centuries in oneedition of the World Cup.

He is also the first batsmanto score four T20I centuriesand is the first player to havetwin centuries in his maiden

appearance as a Test opener.His teammate and Arjuna

Awardee Ishant has played 97Tests and 80 ODIs for India,grabbing over 400 internation-al wickets. In the women's cat-egory, all-rounder DeeptiSharma was BCCI's pick forthe Arjuna for her consistentshow in both ODIs and T20Isin the past three years.

Earlier in the year, Deeptihad played an all-round role inthe 2020 Women's T20 WorldCup and was instrumental inIndia beating ultimate cham-pions Australia in the openinggame of the competition withher knock of unbeaten 49 inthe lower half of the innings.She finished with 116 runs inthe tournament.

Khel Ratna for Rohit;Ishant, Deepti to receive...

Nine dead in fire at Srisailam power plantContinued from Page 1

Chief Minister KChandrasekhar Rao monitoredthe rescue work through hiscabinet colleague and TS Gencoauthorities. Union Minister ofState for Home, Kishan Reddysaid he had asked NDRF to jointhe rescue efforts. TelanganaEnergy Minister JagadishReddy said personnel fromPolice, Fire and EmergencyServices departments wereinvolved in the rescue opera-tions. Jagdish Reddy and TSTransco, Genco CMD DPrabhakar Rao were at the site,supervising relief measures.

Two teams comprising 20members, including three offi-cials of Singareni CollieriesCompany Limited, were alsoinvolved in the rescue efforts."The teams are experts in res-cuing people trapped in irres-pirable conditions. We haveequipment that can allow ourpersonnel where there are poi-sonous gases and no oxygenalso. The teams can go even ifthere is dense smoke," SCCLGeneral Manager (Rescue) SVenkateswarlu had claimed

when the teams were dis-patched. Yet, the rescue effortswere not smooth.

Nagarkurnool DistrictCollector L Sharman, going bypreliminary information, saidshort-circuit appeared to be thecause of the fire. The fire wasbrought under control beforethe early hours of Friday, butthe thick blanket of smoke pre-vented immediate rescueefforts. Although three fireengines were engaged, smokecontinued to emanate from theplant's premises until eveningon Friday.

"There is huge smoke andbecause of it we are not able toenter into the plant premises.By 11 am (on Friday) we expectto enter the plant," Sharmantold the media late onThursday night. "Our maintarget is to rescue them...We arenot able to contact thembecause they are not carryingmobile phones and there is nomobile network," he had said,indicating the challengesinvolved in rescue efforts.

The plant is located in a one-km-long tunnel on theTelangana-Andhra Pradesh

border.The fire is suspected to have

broken out at the service bayarea in the Main ControlRoom, a Fire Department offi-cial said. Fire-fighting person-nel had a tough time battlingthe fires for hours together. "Wewere not able to reach the siteas dense smoke engulfed thearea. As of now we are tryingto put off small patches of firehere and there at the trans-former area," the official saidduring the fire-fighting efforts.

Built on the Krishna river,the Srisailam Left Bank powerstation, about 200 km fromHyderabad, is operated byGENCO. The plant has sixunits with a combined capac-ity of 900 MW (6X150). Powergeneration was in full swing inthe unit, following incessantrains over the past few days.Power generation has beensuspended following themishap.

Deeply unfortunate: Modi Expressing his condolences,

Prime Minister Narendra Moditermed the incident “deeplyunfortunate” and said histhoughts are with the bereaved

families. Modi on Friday tweet-ed, "Fire at the Srisailam hydro-electric plant is deeply unfor-tunate. My thoughts are withthe bereaved families. I hopethose injured recover at the ear-liest."

Chief Minister KChandrasekhar Rao expressedshock over the accident andordered CID probe into theissue. "The CM is elicitinginformation on the accident ona regular basis.

The CM wants all thosewho are trapped in the plant tocome out safely," a press releasefrom his office said earlier.

Kishan Reddy said:"Saddened by the fire accidentin the Hydel Power GenerationUnit on the left banks ofSrisailam, Telangana, late night.Prayers for early recovery of theinjured" he said in a statement.

Telangana BJP in a statementdemanded the government toput to use all resources to pro-vide medical support to theinjured immediately, andensure the rescue and relief areundertaken on war-footing tofind those who are still stuckinside the plant.

Continued from Page 1

I hope those injured recov-er at the earliest," the PrimeMinister said in a tweet.

Amit Shah also expresseddeep anguish over the loss oflives. "Deeply anguished to

learn about the loss of livesdue to the tragic fire accidentat the Srisailam hydroelectricplant in Telangana. My deep-est condolences are with thebereaved families. May theinjured recover at the earli-est," Shah tweeted.

President, PM, Shahconvey their anguishContinued from Page

1

East Godavari con-tinued its top streakadding 1,312 fresh caseswhile its neighbourWest Godavari toogrossed 1,131 in the last24 hours, followed byChittoor 1,103.

Kurnool added 919,Prakasam 797, SPSNellore 761,Visakhapatnam 738 andAnantapur 704 newcases.

Chittoor reported 16coronavirus fatalities forthe second consecutiveday, followed by WestGodavari 13, SPSNellore 12 and EastGodavari 11.

According to govern-ment data, 71.66 percent of the deceasedwere male and the restfemale.

AP records 9,544 fresh cases...

Number of Covid hospitalsto go up to 287

Continued from Page 1

The pay of temporary staffrecruited for sanitary workshould be increased and thehospitals should have the basicinfrastructure and rating shouldbe given as per the performanceof the hospitals.

In the 287 hospitals, all facili-ties should be available and med-ical staff should be present in therequired number and the stan-dards in the hospitals should beregularly monitored, the ChiefMinister said. Covid Call Centresand Help Desks in hospitalsshould function efficiently, theofficials were told.

“Hygiene should be main-tained in the hospitals and nutri-

tious food be provided to thepatients. Care should be taken ofthose who are in home quaran-tine and those coming underAarogyasri should be taken careof well,” Jagan said.

Referral protocol should be fol-lowed and implemented from vil-lage and ward clinic level. A CallCentre to register complaints onAarogyasri services should startand the toll-free number shouldbe displayed prominently at allhospitals, he said.

Officials should consider thepossibility of handing over thecash incentive for women whiledischarging her after delivery, theChief Minister said.

Officials of the departmentsconcerned were present.

Buy Rs 15L ticket, take busto London, see the worldPNS n NEW DELHI

A private tourist company basedin Gurugram has announced abus service from Delhi toLondon where the travellers willcover 18 countries and 20,000km in 70 days.

Adventures Overland onAugust 15 announced the “first-ever hop-on/hop-off bus servicebetween Delhi and London",named "Bus to London".

People taking this tour willtravel through Myanmar,Thailand, Laos, China,Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan,Kazakhstan, Russia, Latvia,Lithuania, Poland, CzechRepublic, Germany,Netherlands, Belgium andFrance.

A special 20-seater bus,equipped with business classseats, is being built for this trip.Apart from the 20 passengers,there will be a driver, an assistantdriver, a guide and a helper. Theguide will change at regularintervals during the trip.

The company will also takecare of the visa arrangements ofthe passengers.

The trip will be divided intofour categories and passengerscan choose different destinationsaccording to their liking and con-venience while they will have topay as per the particular pack-age.

However, if they avail of thewhole trip from Delhi to Londonit will cost them Rs 15 lakh perperson.

The idea materialised aftertwo travel enthusiasts, TusharAgarwal and Sanjay Madan,took a road trip to London in2017, 2018 and 2019.

Agarwal told IANS, "Weplanned this trip after a lot of

people passionate about travel-ling expressed their wish for aroad trip to London. This wasannounced on August 15 and wehope that the first bus to Londonwill be flagged off in May 2021.We have not started registrationsdue to the coronavirus spread.The registrations will start aftertaking stock of the coronavirussituation in all the countries."

"All the facilities will be pro-vided during the 70-day trip.

Arrangements for stay will bemade in 4-star or 5-star hotelsand passengers will also be pro-vided Indian food in all thecountries," he added.

He recalled that theHome Ministry onAugust 6, filed a dulysworn affidavit beforethe High Courtmaking it abundantlyclear that the Centrehas no role in theselection ofAmaravati as thecapital of AP and it isits sole discretion

VIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | AUGUST 22, 2020 04

SHORT READS

Army jawan kills selfin PoonchJAMMU: An Army jawanposted in a forward area alongthe LoC in Jammu andKashmir's Poonch district shothimself dead with his serviceweapon Friday, official sourcessaid. After he shot himself inMankote sector, other soldiersrushed to find him in a pool ofblood, they said, adding he wasdeclared dead on arrival bydoctors at an area hospital. Hewas serving with the 39Rastriya Rifles. Police said theyhave registered a case andstarted investigation.

Three of family killed,rain blocks severalroads in Uttarakhand

Fire breaks out incommercial building,some people trapped

MUMBAI: A few persons weretrapped inside a commercialbuilding, where a fire broke outon Friday afternoon, the city firebrigade said. The seven-storeybuilding is located outsideMasjid Bunder station (east) insouth Mumbai, it said.According to the fire brigade,the blaze erupted around 2 pm,trapping a few people inside thecommercial building, but nocasualty has been reported sofar. Fire tenders have reachedthe spot, where an evacuationprocess was underway, anofficial said.

‘Ailing' minister'sportfolios given tocabinet colleagueMUMBAI: Maharashtra ministerBalasaheb Patil will beunavailable for some days dueto medical reasons and theadditional charge of hisportfolios will be given to hiscabinet colleague Jayant Patiltemporarily, the state govern-ment has said. NCP leaderBalasaheb Patil holds Coopera-tion and Marketing portfolios inthe Uddhav Thackeray-led MahaVikas Aghadi (MVA)government. Jayant Patil, who isalso state NCP chief, heads thewater resources department.Balasaheb Patils office had lastweek issued a statement, sayinghe had tested positive forCOVID-19.

PITHORAGARH: A man and histwo children were buried alivewhen their house collapsedfollowing rains in Pithoragarhdistrict on Friday, an officialsaid. Intermittent rains lashedvarious parts of Uttarakhandblocking several roadsincluding those leading to theHimalayan temples. The oldhouse collapsed followingshowers at around 3 am inChaisar village of Pithoragarhdistrict, killing its owner KushalNath, his four-year-old sonDhanajay and two-year-olddaughter Nikita, besidesleaving his wife injured,Pithoragarh District Magistrate,VK Jogdande, said. The 27-year-old Nath had recentlybought the house, the DMsaid. SDRF and policepersonnel have extricated thebodies from the rubble of thehouse and rescued Nath's wife,Jogdande said.

Won't forget Floyd daughter's‘Daddy changed the world': Bidenn WASHINGTON

Calling on Americans to com-bat racism, Democratic presi-dential candidate Joe Biden hasrecalled one of the most impor-tant conversations he had dur-ing the campaign with GeorgeFloyd's 6-year-old daughter,whose words "Daddy changedthe world" burrowed deep intohis heart.

Biden, 77, officially accept-ed the presidential nominationof the Democratic Party on thefinal day of the four-day virtu-al convention of the party onThursday night.

During his address, Bidensaid that his campaign was —among other things — about“winning the heart, and yes,the soul of America … forthose communities who haveknown the injustice of the‘knee on the neck.'”

It was a reference to Floyd,a Black man killed by aMinneapolis police officer inlate May.

Biden said “one of the most

important conversations” hehad during the campaign waswith Floyd's young daughterGianna, the day before hisfuneral.

“She was incredibly brave,”Biden said.

“I'll never forget. When Ileaned down to speak with her,she looked into my eyes andsaid, ‘Daddy changed theworld.' Her words burroweddeep into my heart," he said.

Floyd was killed during thearrest after allegedly passing a

counterfeit USD 20 bill inMinneapolis. A white policeofficer, Derek Chauvin, knelton Floyd's neck for nearlyeight minutes, choking him todeath.

After his death, protestsagainst police violence towardBlack people quickly spreadacross the United States andinternationally against racism.

“George Floyd's death wasthe breaking point” for thecountry to wake up to racismin America, Biden said.

“America is ready in John'swords to ‘lay down the heavyburden of hate' and do the hardwork of rooting out systemicracism,” Biden said.

Biden picked CaliforniaSenator Kamala Harris as hisrunning mate this week.

Harris, 55, has become thefirst-ever American of Indianand African descent to bepicked by a major party for thetop post as vice president of theUnited States.

IPL QUARANTINE

Confined to hotel room,players use balcony to interactn DUBAI

Restricted to their rooms for sixdays, players who have landed inthe UAE for the IPL, spent theiropening day talking to eachother through 'balconies' besidesfollowing a fitness plan handedout by the teams' trainers.Rajasthan Royals and Kings XIPunjab players arrived in Dubaion Thursday evening whileKolkata Knight Riders landed inAbu Dhabi in the night.

While Royals' squad complet-ed its day 1 testing as per BCCI'sStandard Operating Procedure(SOP) at the airport itself, KXIPwent for a repeat test on Friday.

As per the BCCI SOP, testingwill be done on day 1, 3 and 6and after that teams can starttraining for the league, beginningSeptember 19.

Since no one is allowed to stepout of the room in the six-dayisolation period, players madefull use of their dedicated bal-conies to speak to each other butfollowing all social distancingguidelines.

The Royals have demarcatedthe outdoor area which a play-er cannot use if his next doorteammate too is outside.

"The players can use the out-door area alternately. For exam-ple, I can't be in the balconywhen the player next door too isoutside but I can be out with theplayer in the following room," ateam source said.

KXIP players can talk totheir immediate neighbourwhile using the balcony but theheat in Dubai would ensure

they do it in daytime. Royalspacer Jaydev Unadkat alsoposted a video on social media,covering his first morning inDubai. Going by the video, hehas an air cycle in his room tokeep him in shape and he usedthe outdoor area for his Yogasession.

Chennai Super Kings, RoyalChallengers and MumbaiIndians left for UAE on Friday.Delhi Capitals and SunrisersHyderabad players will leaveIndia over the weekend.

Contact tracing apps may be ineffectivefor reducing Covid spread: Studyn LONDON

Contact tracing apps are unlike-ly to contain the spread ofCOVID-19 without proper pub-lic health control measures suchas physical distancing and closureof indoor spaces, according to areview of studies.

The systematic review, pub-lished in the journal LancetDigital Health on Thursday,shows that evidence around theeffectiveness of automated con-tact tracing systems is current-ly very limited. The research sug-gests that large-scale manualcontact tracing alongside otherpublic health control measures-- such as physical distancingand closure of indoor spacessuch as pubs -- is likely to berequired in conjunction withautomated approaches.

The researchers fromUniversity College London(UCL) in the UK found 15 rel-evant studies by reviewing morethan 4,000 papers on automat-ed and partially-automated con-tact tracing.

They analysed these to under-stand the potential impact these

tools could have in controllingthe COVID-19 pandemic."Across a number of modellingstudies, we found a consistentpicture that although automat-ed contact tracing could supportmanual contact tracing, the sys-tems will require large-scaleuptake by the population and

strict adherence to quarantineadvice by contacts notified tohave a significant impact onreducing transmission,” said leadauthor Isobel Braithwaite fromUCL. In total, 4,033 paperspublished between January, 2000and April, 2020 were reviewed,which allowed researchers toidentify 15 papers with usefuldata.

HC says no to stay on fundtransfer from temple trustPNS n MUMBAI

The Bombay High Court onFriday refused to grant anyinterim stay on transfer of fundsfrom the Siddhivinayak Templetrust here to the Maharashtragovernment for fight againstCOVID-19 and also for a sub-sidised food scheme for the poorin the state.

The court, however, made itclear that if any irregularitiesrelated to the funds were foundlater, it would direct the govern-ment to refund the amount.

An advocate, Leela Ranga,had filed a petition in the HCchallenging three GovernmentResolutions (GRs) dated March19, June 25 and July 25, 2020,that accorded sanction to thetemple trust committee todonate Rs 5 crore each for thestate's 'Shiv Bhojan' food schemeand to the Chief Ministers Relief

Fund to fight the COVID-19pandemic. Rangas counselPradeep Sancheti argued that theresolutions were "illegal andimpermissible" under provi-sions of the Shree SiddhivinayakGanpati Temple Trust(Prabhadevi) Act, 1980.

The trust manages the famousSiddhivinayak Temple atPrabhadevi here. Sanchetisought the court to grant aninterim stay on any transfer ofmoney from the temple funds tothe government.

Uproar in Rajasthanassembly over issue ofCovid managementPNS n JAIPUR

The Rajasthan assembly onFriday witnessed uproar duringa debate on COVID-19 manage-ment and economic impact oflockdown leading to repeatedadjournment of the proceedings.

Health Minister RaghuSharma opened the debate andhighlighted the management ofCOVID-19 done by the stategovernment and efforts tostrengthen health infrastruc-ture. Speaking on the debateafter the minister, BJP MLAKalicharan Saraf accused theCongress government of distrib-uting ration and food kits amongits supporters.

The charge invited a sharpreaction from Parliament AffairsMinister Shanti Dhariwal.

The House saw heated argu-ments between TransportMinister Pratap Singh andLeader of Opposition GulabChand Kataria.

Amid the uproar, the Housewas adjourned for 30 minutes.When the House reassembled,the uproar continued andChairperson Rajendra Pareekadjourned the House for anoth-er 15 minutes.

Indian couple sentenced tojail for abusing maid: reportn SINGAPORE

An Indian couple here has beenjailed and fined up to 15,000Singapore dollars after beingfound guilty of abusing theirdomestic helper from India, amedia report said on Friday.

Farah Tehseen was sen-tenced to 21 months while herhusband Mohammed Tasleemwas sentenced to four monthof jail for abusing AmandeepKaur from the very startingday after hiring her inNovember 2016, The StraitsTimes reported.

During the initial hearing ofthe case on June 9, the prose-cution said Farha and Tasleemlashed out at Kaur as they sawher as a "poor performer" who"did not meet their standards".

Farha repeatedly assaultedKaur in November andDecember 2016 and also threat-ened to beat the maid with astick, the paper reported.

Tasleem punched andkicked the maid on two sepa-rate occasions, the court heard.

According to the court doc-uments, Farha also accused themaid of possibly having anaffair with her husband.

Deputy Public ProsecutorHouston Johannus said that onone occasion, Kaur climbedout of a living room windowand perched herself danger-ously on a ledge.

A foreign worker namedMani Manoharan, who wasdoing some painting works in

the estate, later spotted themaid and used a gondola to takeher down. Following her rescue,Kaur was placed in the care ofthe Good Shepherd Centre,which provides shelter to peo-ple such as abused women.

A medical report later stat-ed that she had injuries such asmultiple bruises in placesincluding her left arm.

n WASHINGTON

Taking a dig at Donald Trump,Democratic Party's presiden-tial nominee Joe Biden tookout a moment to thank BarackObama for being a great pres-ident who the children couldand did look up to but said thesame cannot be said about thecurrent occupant of the WhiteHouse.

Biden made the remarks ashe formally accepted the pres-idential nomination of theDemocratic Party on the finalday of the four-day virtualDemocratic NationalConvention on Thursdaynight.

In his nomination accep-tance speech, Biden said,"speaking of president Obama,a man I was honoured toserve alongside for eight yearsas vice president, let me takethis moment to say somethingwe don't say nearly enough."

"Thank you, Mr. President(Obama). You were a great

president, a president our chil-dren could and did look up to.No one's going to say thatabout the current occupant ofthe White House," Biden said.

"What we know about thispresident is if he's given fourmore years, he'll be what he'sbeen for the last four years: apresident who takes noresponsibility, refuses to lead,blames others, cozies up todictators and fans the flamesof hate and division," Bidensaid, attacking Trump, aRepublican.

Biden thanks Obama;says he was a great prez

Harris' dual identities quizAmerica's race labelsn WASHINGTON

It was just 20 years ago that theUS census began to allowAmericans to identify as morethan one race.

And now, the country is onthe threshold of seeing the nameof Kamala Harris — prouddaughter of a Jamaican fatherand Indian mother — on thenational ballot.

Harris' historic nominationfor vice president on theDemocratic ticket is challengingmulticultural, race-obsessedAmerica's emphasis on labels.

While her dual heritage rep-resents several slices of theminority experience in America,many have puzzled over how todefine her — an issue people ofmultiracial backgrounds havelong had to navigate.

Harris has long incorporatedboth sides of her parentage inher public persona, but also hasbeen steadfast in claiming herBlack identity, saying her moth-er — the biggest influence on her

life — raised her and her sisteras Black because that's the waythe world would view them.

"My mother instilled in mysister, Maya, and me the valuesthat would chart the course ofour lives," Harris said in aWednesday night speech at theDemocratic NationalConvention to accept her party'snomination.

“She raised us to be proud,strong Black women. And sheraised us to know and be proudof our Indian heritage.”

A 2015 Pew Research Centerstudy found that multiracialpeople in the US were growingat a rate three times faster thanthe general population.

n NEW YORK

COVID-19 is causing signifi-cant dilation of the blood ves-sels of the lungs, contributing tothe very low oxygen levels seenin patients with respiratory fail-ure, according to a new researchthat may help provide bettertreatment to those who areseverely affected by the disease.

The pilot study of 18patients, published in theAmerican Journal ofRespiratory and Critical CareMedicine, helps explain howCOVID-19 behaves different-ly than classic acute respirato-ry distress syndrome (ARDS)in which lung inflammationleads to leaky blood vessels inthe organ.

In ARDS, the study notedthat the leaky blood vessels inthe lungs flood the organ withfluid and make it stiff, impair-

ing oxygenation. According to the scientists,

including those from theMount Sinai Hospital in theUS, many patients withCOVID-19 pneumonia expe-rience severely low levels ofoxygen in the blood that ismarkedly out of proportion tothe degree of lung stiffness.

In the current study, the

researchers assessed whetherthe mechanisms leading tolow blood oxygen, or hypox-emia, in COVID-19 differfrom those in classical ARDS.

They used a robotic probe toperform a "bubble study,"which is a non-invasive andpainless scanning techniqueusing very high frequencysound waves.

"The benefit of using thisparticular system was thatautomated monitoring allowedproviders to assess cerebralblood flow while minimisingthe potential for exposure toCOVID-19," said study co-author Alexandra Reynoldsfrom Mount Sinai Hospital.

During this study, theyinjected salt solution with tinymicrobubbles into the patient'svein and used the robotic scandevice to determine if thosemicrobubbles appear in theblood vessels of the brain.

Under normal circum-stances, the scientists said thesemicrobubbles would travel tothe right side of the heart, enterthe blood vessels of the lungs,and ultimately get filtered bythe pulmonary capillaries sincethe diameter of the bubbles isbigger than the diameter of thetiny blood vessels in the lungs.

We don't grant huminity tofemale characters: Swara BhaskerPNS n NEW DELHI

Actor Swara Bhasker saysthe portrayal of women infilms and other visual mediumdiffers vastly from their malecounterparts who are given thespace to be complex, whilefemale characters, stuck asthey are in the “perfect hero-ine” image, are denied thesame humanity.

Swara is one of the fewactors who has constantly chal-lenged this norm by taking uproles where women are notnecessarily the “goody-two-shoes” characters that oneencounters on screen.

The actor said her role of anangry female cop in humantrafficking drama “Flesh”, herthird web show after "It's Notthat Simple" and "Rashbhari",is an attempt to show an“empowered female figure”.

“My character is dynamic.

She is no goody-two-shoes.Even as a cop, she is complicat-ed and you could have a prob-lem with her. It is just trying toshow that she can be as flawedas anybody else as a humanbeing,” Swara told PTI in a tele-phonic interview.

Asked whether her foul-mouthed ACP Radha Nautiyalwill appear offensive to somepeople, especially on socialmedia where the actor's frankpolitical views often attract

trolls, Swara said it was abouttime that female characterswere seen as humans firstbefore being judged as women.

Also, the idea that womendon't abuse is a complete myth,she said.

"Who says women don'tabuse? Have we not heard ourgrandmothers abusing? Iremember my ‘nani' gettingfrustrated and giving somenice choice ‘gaalis' (abuses),"she argued.

“The problem is that wedon't look at female charactersas human beings, we look atthem as women. This is why,for the longest time in cinemaand visual media, we were okwith men having all kinds ofshades -- grey, angry youngman, angsty and the alcoholicDevdas. We have an under-standing about flawed malecharacters but female heroinesare shown as perfect,” she said.

Scientists decode how severe COVID-19patients develop low blood oxygen levels

The researchers fromUniversity CollegeLondon (UCL) in theUK found 15 relevantstudies by reviewingmore than 4,000papers on automatedand partially-automa-ted contact tracing

“I'll never forget.When I leaneddown to speakwith her, shelooked into myeyes and said,‘Daddy changedthe world.' Herwords burroweddeep into myheart," he said

During the initialhearing of thecase on June 9,the prosecutionsaid Farha andTasleem lashedout at Kaur asthey saw her as a"poor performer"who "did not meettheir standards"

VIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | AUGUST 22, 2020 nation 05

SHORT READS

Insurance coverextended to pvt doctorswho die of CovidTHANE: The Maharashtragovernment has extended Rs50 lakh insurance cover toprivate doctors who die ofcoronavirus infection during thepandemic, an official said onFriday. In a circular issued onThursday, director of stateHealth Services Dr SadhanaTayde said the insurance cover,which is being given to doctorsin government and semi-government services, has nowbeen extended to privatemedical practitioners whosuccumb to the infection.Referring to a letter dated April9 about the Pradhan MantriGarib Kalyan Package -Insurance Scheme for healthworkers fighting COVID-19, shesaid the provisions of the samebe followed for private doctorsas well. Welcoming the move,president of the Indian MedicalAssociation's Thane chapter DrSantosh Kadam said it hadbeen a long-standing demandto extend the insurance coverto private doctors.

27 employees testpositive for Covid;DRM office closed

2 arrested, 2.40 quintalof cannabis seized:Bulandshahr PoliceBULANDSHAHR: TheBulandshahr police on Fridayarrested two alleged narcoticsmugglers after they werefound carrying 2.40 quintal ofcannabis valued at Rs 12.50lakh in a goods carrier. Thepolice also impounded thevehicle and cannabis, an officialsaid. The police identified thearrested accused as Aligarhresidents Satya Prakash andChhote Lal. The arrests weremade early Friday from a trafficintersection near BrahmanandCollege in Bulandshahr by aKotwali Dehat police teamwhich had a tip off that the duowould be passing throughBulandshahr on way to Delhifrom Aligarh in their vehiclecarrying the narcotic.

DHANBAD (JHARKHAND): TheDhanbad Divisional RailwayDivisional Manager's (DRM)office has been closed forthree-days till Sunday forsanitisation after 27 employeestested positive for COVID-19,an official said on Friday.Assistant personnel officer(APO) Neeraj Kumar issued anorder for closure of the DRMoffice (barring control room)from August 21 to 23 forcomprehensive sanitisation. "Inthe wake of 27 staff testingpositive, the divisional officehas been completely closed tillSunday. All staff would workfrom home and makethemselves available on mobileor electronics communicationduring duty hours. HoweverRailway Control Room wouldremain open", the APO said inhis notice. An official saidsamples of 497 staff of theDRM office were tested forCOVID-19 of which 27 werefound positive.

PNS n NEW DELHI

The Delhi High Court Fridayasked Delhi Police to show thevideos of a member of PinjraTod group, a women's collec-tive, allegedly making instigat-ing speeches during the com-munal violence in northeastDelhi early this year.

The police, however, saidthey do not have the videos ofthe time when the group'smember Devangana Kalita, aJNU student, was allegedlymaking instigating speechesduring the riots incident.

The police said it has thevideos of her allegedly instigat-ing people before the riots tookplace on February 24 and 25 andalso of February 22 and 23when a large gathering was sit-ting and protesting outsideJafrabad metro station in north-east Delhi against the CitizenshipAmendment Act (CAA).

While hearing the argu-ments on Kalita's bail plea ina case related to the commu-nal violence in Delhi duringprotests against the CAA,Justice Suresh Kumar Kaitsaid, “Show me any portion ofthe speech recorded by themedia or anyone else whichshowed that Kalita instigatedthe mob to commit the crime.”

During that period, the

media was everywhere andrecording everything, the courtsaid. “I want to know what shesaid which instigated the mob,”the judge said.

Additional Solicitor General(ASG) S V Raju, appearing forthe police, said there was nomedia on February 25 when theincident happened and the wit-ness accounts showed Kalita'srole in instigating the mob.

DELHI RIOTS

COVID-19 recovery rate inIndia rises to 74.30%PNS n NEW DELHI

India's COVID-19 recoveryrate soared past 74 per cent onFriday with a record 62,282patients having recuperated anddischarged in a day taking thetotal recoveries to 21.5 lakh, theUnion Health Ministry said.

The COVID-19 case fatalityrate has dropped further to1.89 per cent as on date.

With more patients recover-ing and being discharged fromhospitals and home isolation,the total recoveries have surgedto 21,58,946 and exceeds activecases of coronavirus infection by14,66,918 as on date.

India's COVID-19 recoveryrate has risen to 74.30 per centwhich is further bolstered by33 states and UTs reportingrecovery rate more than 50 percent, it said.

From 52.8 per cent on June17, the recovery rate improvedto 63.24 pc on July 16 and fur-ther to 74.30 pc as on date.

There are 6,92,028 activecases of coronavirus infectionwhich is the "actual caseload" ofthe country and comprise 23.82per cent of the total casespresently. All are under activemedical supervision.

A sharpened focus onimproved and effective clinicaltreatment in hospitals, super-vised home isolation, use ofnon-invasive oxygen support,improved services of ambu-lances for ferrying patients,

upgradation of clinical skills ofdoctors treating COVID-19patients by active technicalguidance through tele-consulta-tion sessions of AIIMS, NewDelhi etc., have together led topoint-to-point and efficientpatient management, the min-istry said.

"This has ensured that India'scase fatality rate (CFR) is main-tained below the global average.It is on a continuous positiveslide and currently stands at 1.89

per cent," the ministry said.Delhi has the highest recov-

ery rate of 90.10 per cent, fol-lowed by Tamil Nadu at 83.50pc, Gujarat 79.40 pc,Telangana 77.40 pc, Rajasthan76.80 pc, West Bengal 76.50,Bihar 76.30 pc and MadhyaPradesh 75.80 pc.

A total of 8,05,985 sampleswere tested on Thursday foridentification of the diseasewhich has taken the cumulativetests to 3,3,467,237.

ED questions Sushant's sisterin money laundering casePNS n NEW DELHI

The Enforcement Directorate(ED) on Friday questioned andrecorded the statement ofPriyanka Singh, elder sister ofSushant Singh Rajput, in connec-tion with a money launderingcase probe linked to the actor'sdeath, officials said. The state-ment of Priyanka Singh wasrecorded under the Preventionof Money Laundering Act(PMLA) in Delhi, they said.

It is understood that the EDwants to obtain informationrelated to Rajput's finances, per-sonal and professional deals thatPriyanka Singh was privy to, inorder to take its investigation for-ward into the allegations ofmoney laundering and allegedfinancial irregularities perpe-trated on the actor. The 34-year-old actor had starred in many hitHindi movies including thebiopic of former Indian cricketteam captain M S Dhoni.

The ED had earlier recordedthe statements of Rajput's fatherK K Singh and another sister

Meetu Singh. The actor, foundhanging at his sea-facing flat inMumbai's Bandra area on June14, has four sisters.

On Thursday, the agency hadalso recorded the statement offilm maker Rumi Jaffery inMumbai. The director, accord-ing to sources, was questionedwith regard to his reported plansof directing a movie with the lateactor and the finances involvedin this upcoming project.

The ED case stems from anFIR filed by Rajput's father onJuly 25 with the Bihar Police inPatna against his son's friend andlive-in partner Rhea

Chakraborty, her parents --father Indrajit Chakraborty andmother Sandhya Chakraborty -- brother Showik, the actor'smanager Samuel Miranda andShruti Modi and unknown per-sons accusing them of cheatingand abetting his son's suicide.

The ED has till know quizzedRhea Chakraborty, Showik,Indrajit Chakraborty, Rajput'sbusiness managers, charteredaccountants, house workers,accountant Rajat Mewati, hisfriend and flat mate SiddharthPithani in the case and theirstatements have been recordedunder the PMLA.

Researchers developing kit that willrecognise various types of covidPNS n NEW DELHI

With the support of theDepartment of Science andTechnology (DST), researchersare developing an aptamer-based affordable diagnostickit that will differentiate vari-ous types of coronavirus infec-tion, a statement said onFriday.

The Birla Institute ofTechnology, Mesra, Ranchi,with the support of the Scienceand Engineering ResearchBoard (SERB), a body underthe DST, has initiated a researchwith the detection of a targetprotein using bioinformaticstool against which the diagnos-tic kit has to be developed.

This study has taken a spe-cial domain of spike protein inconsideration for the develop-ment of the diagnostic kit.

"The researchers are devel-oping an aptamer-based diag-nostic kit for detection ofSARS-Co-V2 infection. Theirstudy will first ensure thedetection of coronavirus infec-

tion, while subsequently the kitwill also differentiate the var-ious types of coronavirus infec-tion (SARS Co-V1, MERS),including COVID-19 infec-tion," the statement said.

The general coronavirusinfection may be detected onthe basis of a conserveddomain present in all the threecoronavirus infection (SARSCo-V1, MERS & COVID 19),while the differential kit will bedeveloped on the basis of acombination of conserved and

non-conserved domain pre-sent in SARS-CoV2 virus,SARS-CoV2 virus and MERSvirus, respectively.

The development of thediagnostic kit will be done atthe Birla Institute ofTechnology, Mesra lab whiletesting of kit will be conduct-ed at the Institute of LifeSciences (ILS), Bhubaneswar,the statement added.

The aptamer-based tech-nology is a relatively new tech-nique.

Framed in accessibility: Elite art spacesdemocratised as galleries, museums go onlinePNS n NEW DELHI

As art shows move from gallerywalls to laptop screens andexhibitions take the shape ofwebinars, the famously closedart circle seems to have beenbreached with art finally becom-ing more accessible.

What were once closed doorsoirees -- confined mostly tothose with money to invest orthe clout to be part of the exclu-sive guest list of the who's whoof society -- are now globalonline events attended by thou-sands of art enthusiasts.

The pandemic has compelledstakeholders to think of waysother than private openings toreach out to their patrons, andthe internet has been a kindfriend.

Though the art market hasbeen hit with incomes shrink-ing and buying receding in thelist of priorities, the access toonline art has expanded theaudience many folds, say indus-try insiders.

According to India Art Fair

director Jagdip Jagpal, the newmode of interaction with art hasopened up engagement oppor-tunities for not just existingpatrons and connoisseurs, butalso for those who might bepotential art enthusiasts.

Jagpal said there has been aspike in digital engagement andactivity. “More and more collec-tors are becoming accustomedto online viewing rooms andauctions, while art enthusiastsare reaping the benefits of diver-sity of content — exhibitions,

talks, conversations, films andmore — made available in real-time and archived on gallery andmuseum websites and socialmedia platforms.

“Artist profiles, too, are receiv-ing high traffic, with audiencesshowing greater appetite inlearning more about the behind-the-scenes life and studios ofcreatives they love and admire,”Jagpal said.

She added that the lockdownand the restricted exposure tothe outside world has also made

available avenues for people tolook at art as both a tool forentertainment and therapy. Forinstance, DIY (do-it-yourself)art has become a trend, withboth children and adultsdemonstrating interest andcuriosity.

“While all these are but smallsteps toward expanding audi-ences in the arts, it is likely tobenefit the sector in a post-COVID world,” Jagpal said.

Over the last few months, gal-leries, museums, auction hous-

es as well as artists have becomemore active and visible on socialmedia platforms like Facebookand Instagram, while makingtheir websites more interactive.

That the art world is gradu-ally embracing the transition toonline can be seen across theglobe.

It started with internationalart fairs, including Art Basel'sBasel and Hong Kong editionsas well as Frieze, New York,launching online viewing roomsafter the physical events had tobe called off due to the spreadof COVID-19.

In India, the uncertaintyamong gallerists, curators andartists was conspicuous. The artworld seemed to have fallensilent in the first couple ofweeks after the lockdown wasannounced in March, until somestakeholders took the lead.

The Kiran Nadar Museum ofArt (KNMA) was one of them.KNMA used the tools at its dis-posal — social media -- to keepthe conversation around artgoing.

HC asks police to show videos of PinjraTod member making instigating speeches

PNS n NEW DELHI

Fourteen passengers who trav-elled from Delhi to Hong Kongon an Air India flight on August14 have tested positive forCOVID-19 till Thursday, theHong Kong government said.

Due to this incident, AirIndia's passenger flights havebeen barred from landing inHong Kong till August-end, itadded on Friday.

A passenger from India canarrive in Hong Kong only if heor she has a COVID-19 negativecertificate from a test done 72hours prior to the journey,according to the rules issued bythe Hong Kong government inJuly.

In a statement to PTI onFriday, a spokesperson of theDepartment of Health of theHong Kong government said, "Aflight operated by Air India(AI314) arriving Hong Kongfrom India on August 14 had 11

passengers confirmed to haveinfected with COVID-19."

As a result, the departmentinvoked the "Prevention andControl of Disease (Regulationof Cross-boundary Conveyancesand Travellers) Regulation (Cap.599H) on August 17 to prohib-it landing of passenger flightsoperated by Air India for twoweeks from August 18 to 31 inHong Kong", the spokespersonnoted. "As of August 20, a totalof 14 passengers on that flightwere confirmed to have infect-ed with COVID-19," he added.

The statement did not elabo-rate if these 14 passengers hadCOVID-negative certificateswith them from the tests done 72hours prior to their journey, asrequired by the aforementionedrules.

Besides India, a pre-flightCOVID-19 negative test resultcertificate is mandatory for allpassengers coming fromBangladesh, Indonesia,Kazakhstan, Nepal, Pakistan,the Philippines, South Africa andthe US, according to the HongKong government's rules.

14 Air India passengers havetested positive: Hong Kong govt

Pranab remains stable, onventilatory support: HospitalPNS n NEW DELHI

There was no change in the con-dition of former presidentPranab Mukherjee and heremains haemodynamically sta-ble and on ventilatory support,the hospital said on Friday.

Doctors attending to himsaid his vital parameters arebeing maintained. According tothe doctors, a patient is haemo-dynamically stable when theblood circulation parameters -blood pressure, heart and pulserate, are stable and normal.

Mukherjee was admitted onAugust 10 and was operated forremoval of a clot in the brain. Hehad also tested positive forCOVID-19. Thereafter, hedeveloped a lung infection andis being treated for the same. His

health parameters are beingclosely monitored by a team ofspecialists at the hospital.

"The medical condition ofShri Pranab Mukherjee remainsthe same. He is being treated forlung infection and continues tobe on ventilatory support. Hisvital parameters are being main-tained and he is haemodynam-ically stable," the hospital said ina statement.

KCET 2020; documentverification, counsellingto be held onlinePNS n BENGALURU

The Karnataka ExaminationsAuthority (KEA) on Fridaydeclared the results for KCET2020 and said document verifi-cation and counsellingprocess for the profes-sional courses will beheld online in view ofthe COVID-19 pan-demic. The KarnatakaCommon Entrance Testwas held on July 30 and 31in 497 examination centres at127 locations, and 1,94,419 can-didates had applied for it, out ofwhich 1,75,349 candidatesappeared for the test.Announcing the results, Deputy

CM C N Ashwath Narayan,who is also incharge for HigherEducation department, saiddespite outbreak of COVID-19this time, exams were held suc-cessfully and students have "done

well". "... the numbers showthe performance is better

and the results havebeen announced in arecord 21 days time," hesaid. Recalling that 63

COVID-19 infected stu-dents had appeared for the

exams, the Deputy CM point-ed out that special arrangementswere made for them as well asthose who had symptoms andfor students who had comefrom containment zones.

SC extends term of 3 membersof Armed Forces TribunalPNS n NEW DELHI

The Supreme Court has extend-ed the term of threeAdministrative Members of theArmed Forces Tribunal for aperiod of two months. A three-judge bench headed by ChiefJustice of India S A Bobdepassed the order after noting thatconnected matters were postedfor hearing in the next month.

“The term of three adminis-trative members of the ArmedForces Tribunal was extended fora period of one month by anOrder of this Court dated July 16,2020. “As all the connected mat-ters are scheduled to be listed forhearing on September 9, 2020,we deem it appropriate that theterm of three administrative

members of the Armed ForcesTribunal is extended for a peri-od of two more months,” thebench said. According to section5 of the Armed Forces TribunalAct, the tribunal shall consist ofa Chairperson, and such num-ber of Judicial and

Administrative Members as theCentral Government may deemfit. A person shall not be quali-fied for appointment as theChairperson unless he is a retiredJudge of the Supreme Court ora retired Chief Justice of a HighCourt, as per the Act.

Maha policerecords over300 newCovid casesPNS n MUMBAI

Over 300 personnel of theMaharashtra police tested pos-itive for coronavirus, while fivedied of the infection in the last24 hours, an official said onFriday. The latest casualtieshave taken the death toll in thepolice force to 136, whichincludes 14 officers, the officialsaid. With 62 deaths, Mumbaipolice had recorded the high-est number of casualties in theforce due to the pandemic, headded. At least 303 personneltested positive for coronavirusinfection the last 24 hours, ris-ing the tally in the departmentto 13,180, the official said. Ofthe 13,180 personnel, including1,387 officers, 10,655 haverecovered from the disease sofar, he said. Currently, 2,389personnel are undergoing treat-ment at various facilities in thestate, the official said.

India's COVID-19recovery rate hasrisen to 74.30 percent which isfurther bolsteredby 33 states andUTs reportingrecovery ratemore than 50 percent, it said

“Artist profiles, too,

are receiving high

traffic, with

audiences showing

greater appetite in

learning more about

the behind-the-

scenes life and

studios of creatives

they love and

admire,” Jagpal said

Felling a tree is murder. Felling anentire forest is genocide. Peoplehave argued that India has sufficientland under forests and there is noharm in felling some of them to

make way for development, particularlywhen forests can be regrown elsewhere. Theyare grievously wrong. First, plants are feel-ing, communicating, mutually caring andbenevolent living beings that need to be treat-ed with respect and not cut down to suithuman convenience. Second, planted forestscan never be the same as the ones existingover the ages.

As to the first, Sir Jagadish ChandraBose, who made path-breaking contributionsto remote wireless signalling and micro-waveoptics, also made pioneering and revolution-ary contributions to the understanding ofplant physiology and psyche. In a landmarkdevelopment, he demonstrated that plantshad feeling. He did it through an experimentat the Royal Society, London, in 1901, show-ing a plant quivering frantically under theimpact of poison before dying. Bose, wholaid the foundation of what has come to beknown as plant neurobiology, also showedthat plants had, like animals, a central ner-vous system with nerves radiating to differ-ent parts of the organism and capable of elec-trically coding stimuli and transmittingimpulses from a nerve centre to terminalmotor organs.

Bose held that plants were fully cog-nisant of changes in their environment andresponded visibly to stimuli, includingslight fluctuations in light caused by pass-ing clouds. Also, the transmission of nervousimpulses determined functions like growth,respiration and motor activity. He alsoobserved spontaneous pulsatory move-ments in plants like heart beat in animals.Indeed, in his seminal paper titled, “JagdishChandra Bose & plant neurobiology” in theIndian Journal of Medical Research, PrakashNarain Tandon cites Bose’s speech inGuildhouse in London on June 30, 1929, inwhich he says, “In many other ways we areable to find that plant has a heart that beatscontinuously as long as life remains.”

Other researchers and scholars fol-lowed the trail Bose had blazed and plantneurobiology came to encompass the studyof forests in different parts of the world. AsPradeep Krishen points out in his introduc-tion to Peter Wohlleben’s The Hidden Life ofTrees, leaf tissues transmit electrical signalswhen nibbled — just as humans do whenhurt — to summon defensive compoundsfrom within themselves and release chem-ical signals in the form of scent moleculesto warn other plants of the impending dan-ger and enable them to take defensive mea-sures. Wohlleben himself cites the exampleof umbrella thorn acacias in the AfricanSavannah which did not like giraffes feed-ing on them. In “mere minutes,” they start-ed pumping toxic substances into their leavesto rid themselves of the herbivores, which

got the message and moved on,but to trees about 100 yardsaway. The reason? The acaciasemitted ethylene gas that sig-nalled to neighbouring trees ofthe same species that danger wasat hand.

Wohlleben further pointsout that trees “communicate bymeans of olfactory, visual andelectrical signals.” Trees aresocial beings. Those belongingto the same species communi-cate with one another throughan intricate network of fungalthreads connected to their rootsystems by means of whichthey exchange carbon and othernutrients among themselves.This, Wohlleben says, “leads tothe conclusion that forests aresuperorganisms with intercon-nections, much like antcolonies.”

Wohlleben then asks: “Whyare trees such social beings?Why do they share food withtheir own species and some-times even go as far as to nour-ish their own competitors?”Saying that the reasons are thesame as in the case of humancommunities, he writes, “Thereare advantages of workingtogether. A tree is not a forest.On its own, a tree cannot estab-lish a consistent local climate. It

is at the mercy of wind andweather. But together manytrees create an ecosystem thatmoderates the extremes of heatand cold, stores a great deal ofwater and generates a great dealof humidity. And in the protect-ed environment, trees can live tobe very old. To get to this point,the community must remainintact, no matter what. If everytree were looking out only foritself, quite a few of them wouldnever reach old age.”

Besides what forests do forindividual trees they comprise,they contribute in critical waysto human survival. They inducerainfall. They capture carbondioxide from the atmosphereand transform it into biomassthrough photosynthesis andaccumulate it in the form of bio-mass, deadwood and litter andin forest soils. Deforestationand harvesting fires, besidesrespiration and oxidation,release carbon from forests andincrease atmospheric pollution.Further, deforestation destroysthe habitats of wild animals,which not only enhances the rateof extinction of species — whichstands roughly at an alarming3,000 of them every year glob-ally — but increases human-ani-mal conflicts.

The argument that all thelosses listed above can be com-pensated for by the planting ofnew forests does not hold. Thelinks among trees that can leadto mutual nurturing can only beestablished in undisturbedforests. The roots of planted treesare irreparably damaged, which,Wohlleben points out, seems to“make them almost incapable ofnetworking with one another. Asa rule, trees in planted forestsbehave like loners and sufferfrom their isolation.” In hisintroduction, Pradeep Krishencites the example of sal trees,which are known as gregariousbecause they grow together inlarge numbers and die in isola-tion, unable to communicatewith others of their group.

In her chapter, titled“Ancient Forests and SacredGroves” in the anthology CriticalThemes in the EnvironmentalHistory of India edited by RanjanChakrabarti, Nanditha Krishnawrites that recognition of the“importance of trees and forests’go back “to India’s earliest civil-isation.” She further states thatthe Rig Veda’s Oshadhi Suktaaddresses plants and vegetablesas, “O Mother” and says“Hundreds are your birthplacesand thousands are your shoots.”

The Rig Veda, she points out,very specifically states thatforests should not be destroyed(8.1.13). The Yajur Veda speaksof the ill-effects of deforestation.

In the ChhandogyaUpanishad, the sage UddalokaAruni asks Svetaketu, who wantsto know about the self, to bringthe fruit of a Nyagrodha(Banyan) tree and then asks himto break it. That done, the fol-lowing dialogue ensues, “Whatdo you see?/Some seeds,extremely small, sir/Break one ofthem/ It is broken, sir?/What doyou see?/Nothing, sir.”

Uddaloka Aruni continued,“The subtle essence that you donot see in that is the wholeessence of the Nyagrodha tree.Believe me, my son, that whichis the subtle essence — in thatall things have their existence.That is the truth. That is the Self.And that, Svetaketu, THATART THOU.” (Translated bySwami Prabhavananda andFrederick Manchester). Sincethe subtle essence of all is thesame, all are manifestations ofBrahman, the supreme being,the universal consciousness, allthings and beings, includingtrees, shrubs and forests.

The relevance of all that hasbeen written above has to beseen in the context of the draftof the new Environment ImpactAssessment Notification, someof whose provisions have beencausing serious concern. One ofthese lays down that projects canreceive clearance post-facto, ie,a project operating in violationof the EPA can now apply forclearance. This is despite aSupreme Court order on April1, clearly stating that such clear-ances are contrary to law. Alsoworrying is the listing of anumber of projects as being out-side the purview of the EIA,including any the Governmentmay label as “strategic.” Not justthat, the draft says that no infor-mation on “such projects shall beplaced in the public domain.”The list of exempted projectsalso includes all concerninginland waterways and nationalhighways. The concern trig-gered by this is matched by theprovision that construction pro-jects of up to 150,000 squaremetres in area shall be outsidethe EIA’s bounds.

It is good that UnionMinister Prakash Javadekar saidon August 10 that the “thou-sands of suggestions” received inrespect of the EnvironmentImpact Assessment (EIA) noti-fication would be consideredbefore the final draft is made.One hopes that the processleads to the shedding of someprovisions which have sentalarm bells ringing.

(The writer is ConsultantEditor, The Pioneer, and author)

When Harley-Davidson arrived in India justabout a decade ago, there was muchfanfare surrounding the iconic American

motorcycle manufacturer. After all, the “Hog,”as the motorcycle is fondly referred to, was asymbol of Americana. But now the companyis thinking of shutting down its assembly oper-ations in Haryana and reducing its sales here.

What makes this even more peculiar is thatUS President Donald Trump made import tar-iffs on Harley-Davidson his signature agendaitem when it came to trade talks with India. While

he had a point when it came to the ridiculous curbs India imposes on importedcars and motorcycles, Harley-Davidson had established an assembly plant justto work its way around the worst of tariffs. Though not affordable for the mass-es, relatively speaking, Harley was not very expensive for a rich enthusiast. Veryrecently, the firm got an effective endorsement from none other than the ChiefJustice of India when he was seen astride one of the famous Hogs in Nagpur. Sowhy with such popularity among enthusiasts — some of whom count themselvesas among the most influential people in this country — did the manufacturer feelthe need to shut shop? Some might find it convenient to blame the Government,thanks to making life difficult for foreign investors, and tepid economic growthmaking for low demand for expensive products such as Harleys. But while bothare certainly causative factors, the main reason is a bit more mundane. Harleyjust did not appeal even to the more enthusiastic Indian motorist. It has no mid-range products, quite unlike rivals Triumph and BMW. In fact, Harley’s entry intothe Indian market is seen by some as having inspired Indian manufacturer RoyalEnfield to up its game and produce new twin-cylinder engine variants that havewon awards across the world. This actually helped the Indian manufacturer stealHarley’s thunder in many global markets. Indian consumers might have found theAmerican motorcycle iconic but not it did not suit their desires and their condi-tions. Other foreign manufacturers have seen success in India, and it is churlishof some to blame anything, but Harley failed us.

Of course, elections and governments can-not be delayed indefinitely and polls mustbe conducted within feasible limits even

in pandemic times. There are precedents, too,with South Korea, Singapore, Poland and neigh-bouring Sri Lanka overseeing them withhygiene and social distancing discipline andreporting no cluster outbreaks. But Bihar, whichwill be the first State to conduct elections underthe shadow of COVID-19, poses a far biggerchallenge and runs the risk of becoming a super-spreader event, considering the virus is expect-

ed to spiral in the State in October and its infectivity could be difficult to contain.The situation has been further complicated by widespread floods and river refugees.If the Election Commission (EC), which is expected to spend ̀ 625 crore on safe-ty protocols, protective gear and more polling booths, succeeds, it would havemanaged a logistical impossibility. If not, it risks its credibility. But its hands aretied at the moment because elections must be held before the term of the cur-rent Assembly ends on November 29. It has to at least notify the schedule beforeit can exercise extraordinary powers to defer voting should the situation so demand.Politically, however, each party in the State is prioritising its own survival in thename of public health and is either in favour or against the polling in October, depend-ing on which side of the divide each is on. Chief Minister and Janata Dal (United)leader Nitish Kumar wants elections on time before he is swamped by the bar-rage of criticism on handling the pandemic, flood management and the returneemigrants. If this continues for long, his credibility as a leader would take a furtherhit. He may be in alliance with the BJP but the latter, while acknowledging him aschief ministerial candidate, is still as ambitious about becoming the voters’ firstchoice. It hasn’t helped that he has lost out in ratings to his Uttar Pradesh coun-terpart Yogi Adityanath in crisis management, the appreciation damagingly com-ing from his own people, mostly labourers and students. Any delay in polls couldlead to President’s Rule in Bihar after November and the administrative powerswould shift out of his hands to the Central Government. The BJP would undoubt-edly encash that intervention to solidify its political presence and further exposeNitish as an incapable administrator, play up the Narendra Modi card and side-line him. Already, the EC’s decision to allow voters aged 65 years and above, aswell as those under institutional or home quarantine, to cast their votes throughpostal ballot has raised hackles. Opposition leaders fear this would lead to depen-dencies on intermediaries and could lead to manipulation of the mandate and foulplay by those controlling “resources.” Therefore, for a desperate Nitish, electionsneed to happen now. It is because of his dipping fortunes that the BJP has stayedaway from the “postpone polls” debate, leaving it to the EC to hold them now ordefer them. Now or later, it doesn’t stand to lose anything and is sitting pretty. Ithas even begun its virtual rallies before other parties can figure out strategies.

The Opposition alliance, comprising the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD),Congress and others, are calling for postponement of polls, not so much out ofconcern for people but to gather fodder for pulling down Nitish. They are alreadycalling him “power-hungry” at a time when the State is reeling under the twin bur-dens of disease and natural disasters. If polls are held now, their attack on Nitishcould be blunted without a corresponding spike in their fortunes. The Lok JanshaktiParty (LJP) has its own agenda ever since Nitish refused to consider its repre-sentatives for Legislative Council seats under the Governor’s quota. Now thereare reports that he doesn’t want to let go of as many Assembly seats for the LJPat BJP’s behest though it won six Lok Sabha seats last year. Its leader Chirag Paswanis going hammer and tongs against him everyday, particularly after HindustaniAwam Morcha (HAM) founder and former Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, alsoa Dalit, left the Opposition bloc to join the ruling alliance. Paswan doesn’t wantany drift in the votebank now. According to the 2011 census, the Scheduled Castesare 15 per cent of Bihar’s population. The Mahadalits constitute nearly 16 per centand though cultivated by Nitish, are now swerving towards the RJD, which hasthe core traditional votes of the Muslims and Yadavs. Nitish is also poaching RJDMLAs but he has burnt bridges with fellow socialists so badly that he has no otheroption but to be with the BJP and keep himself relevant there. His performancegraph over the last couple of years — Patna floods, the Muzaffarpur encephali-tis deaths, the pile of prohibition-related cases in courts and the State’s dismalrank in the Sustainable Development Goals Index — had anyway diluted his appeal.Unfortunately for him, Bihar’s infrastructure, bedevilled by apathy and funds crunch,has been badly torn apart by the pandemic and the floods. And his famed sav-iour aura is all but gone now. Now he is another politician in the numbers game.

Is Bihar poll-ready?

Legendary vocalist

Sir — The demise of the maestro,Pandit Jasraj, will be mourned byfollowers of Indian classical musiceverywhere. He belonged to theMewati gharana and was widelyregarded as one of India’s great-est vocalists. He infused life intothe most complex ragas and mes-merised the audience with hisunique style. Jasraj also made amark for himself as a mentor tomany noted vocalists. He receivedseveral honours over a careerspanning 80 years, including thePadma Vibhushan and theSangeet Natak Akademi Award.His loss will leave a deep void inthe cultural sphere.

Ramesh G JethwaniBengaluru

Ensure a fair probe

Sir — This refers to the editori-al, “For Sushant’s sake” (August21). The Supreme Court hasdone justice to Sushant SinghRajput’s family by ordering aCentral Bureau of Investigation(CBI)-led probe into the myste-rious death of the actor. It isunfortunate though that what

should have been a routine mat-ter to be handled by the policeturned into a political slugfestbetween two State Governments,their police forces and politicalsupporters. Now, the CBI has itswork cut out. Precious time has

already been lost. It is also fearedthat crucial evidence has beendestroyed. Yet the CBI has theability to dig out the buried mat-ter. It only needs a free hand.

ReshmaVia email

Be humane

Sir — Be it a bridge collapse, abuilding fire, a major road/railaccident or a fatal bomb blast,people flock to accident spots in

droves, clicking pictures or self-ies to announce “I was there” andpost them on social media tocount the number of “likes.” This“modern fashion” ofdark/black/grief voyeurism is notonly vulgar, it poses a great hin-drance to relief efforts, too.

Residents of Malappuramdistrict of Kerala are, perhaps,still backward in this respect. Assoon as an Air India Express air-craft crashed amid heavy rainfall,they rushed to the wreckage sitein hundreds, ignoring allCOVID-19 consequences theymight have had to face or the riskof an explosion from leaking fuel.The next morning, the sameresidents queued up in varioushospitals to donate blood.

Yes the residents ofMalappuram reinforced our faithin humanity. We must learn fromthese bravehearts about love,compassion and empathy.Perhaps, the new dawn of civili-ty and kindness would, at last,enlighten this society plagued asit is by the poison of hatred andintolerance.

Kajal ChatterjeeKolkata

P A P E R W I T H P A S S I O N

www.dailypioneer.comfacebook.com/dailypioneer | @TheDailyPioneer | instagram.com/dailypioneer/

op nionVIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | AUGUST 22, 2020

06

Importance of forests

HIRANMAY KARLEKAR

It is good that the Government is mulling over the suggestions of the EIA draft notification.

Hopefully it will then shed some provisions that have sent alarm bells ringing

It is an irony that politicalactivities have been put onhold owing to the rise in thenumber of Coronavirus casesbut nothing is being done todelay the Bihar elections.

Former Union Minister—Yashwant Sinha

If you dream of one day becom-ing a hero or a heroine, in filmswith five dance numbers, thenthat is what you deserve.There’s a long queue of actorswanting to do those films.

Actor—Nawazuddin Siddiqui

It will be the work of the nextPresident to restore the promiseof America to everyone. And Iam not going to have to do italone. I will have a great Vice-President at my side.

Democratic Party leader—Joe Biden

S O U N D B I T E

L E T T E R S T O TT H E E D I T O R

Harris can make a difference

Both US President Donald Trump and DemocraticParty candidate Joe Biden know that winning thepresidency of the world’s oldest democracy is not

just about action, efficiency or record. Inherent charis-ma is an indisputable factor as also the spoken wordsand how effectively they are said. Then there is that “run-ning mate”, who can spring a surprise in terms of allur-ing the voters to a particular issue, thereby pushing his/hermate to a position of advantage. But Trump does not real-ly require a mate because he is both, literally. Vice-President Mike Pence has nothing to do but look on.

It is Kamala Harris, the mate of Democratic candi-date Biden, who is making all the news as of now. Awoman of Jamaican and Indian origin, her profession-al record is not great, as observers aver. But her person-al stance and skin “colour” may matter because of therecent events in the US that led to the killing of GeorgeFloyd and the subsequent unrest among the Blacks. Aprosecutor, her oratory skills can be a huge plus. ButBlacks, traditionally supporters of the Democratic Party,have to come out to vote if Biden has to upset the apple-cart of the redoubtable President in a close contest thatcan go either way. Following the Floyd tragedy, the Blacks'antipathy to Trump has unfolded like never before. Can

Harris be the catalyst that can propel the community tovote en bloc for Biden? It's not that simple but there isno doubt that Harris has added a spring in his step.

As for India, the euphoria seen with Biden’s selec-tion of Harris as his vice-presidential running mate isamusing. But we must not expect any special place inher heart for us. She is of Indian origin but first and fore-most she’s an ambitious American politician who’ll like-ly do what she deems best for her political future.

Ganapathi BhatAkola

Send yyour ffeedback tto:letterstopioneer@gmail.com

Dead HogThe US is today India’sbiggest trading partner, butthe real potential of thetrade relationship is yet tobe reached.

Indian Ambassador to the US —Taranjit Singh Sandhu

Nitish wants elections despite the pandemic for credibility.Opp wants them delayed to make him look power-hungry

American motorcycle manufacturer Harley-Davidson justcouldn’t crack the world’s largest two-wheeler market

Marry skill with education

I AM PAINED TO HEAR THAT I AM HELD GUILTY OF

CONTEMPT OF COURT. I BELIEVE THAT OPEN CRITICISM IS

NECESSARY TO SAFEGUARD DEMOCRATIC VALUES.

—LAWYER-ACTIVIST

PRASHANT BHUSHAN

FREEDOM OF SPEECH IS NOT ABSOLUTE TO ANYONE...

TO ME... TO THE PRESS. THERE’S NO PROBLEM BEING

AN ACTIVIST BUT WE HAVE TO SAY THIS IS THE LINE.

—SUPREME COURT JUDGE

JUSTICE ARUN KUMAR MISHRA

POINTCOUNTERPOINT

The New Education Policy (NEP) 2020 marksa paradigm shift in terms of focussing onskilling. However, its success will lie in prop-

er implementation. The NEP emphasises the roleof higher education in promoting individual andsocietal well-being. The policy envisions the devel-opment of an enlightened, knowledgeable andskilled nation that can find and implement robustsolutions to its own problems. This will be donethrough changes in higher education and impor-tantly, by focussing on integrating skill with edu-cation. This is a most contemporary and relevantdeparture from earlier policies on education thatcould lead the country into the 21st century andthe fourth industrial revolution.

The current scenario: The present skill gap isa quagmire for both the individual and the indus-try. In the present scenario, India has a large pop-ulation of unemployable youth. On one hand, wehave highly-educated graduates with expensive,State-funded degrees who cannot be employedbecause they do not have the right skills. On theother hand, we have highly-skilled individuals whoare not eligible for jobs because they do not havethe knowledge of the three Rs (Reading, Writingand Arithmetic).

The industry complains of the paucity of prac-tical training by the universities during undergrad-uate and postgraduate programmes. The academiacomplain of non-cooperation by the industry forstudents’ internships and project works. And thecountry bears the brunt of it all.

The 12th Five-Year Plan (2012-17) estimatedthat less than five per cent of the Indian workforcein the age group of 19-24 years received formal voca-tional education. This is in contrast to developedcountries like the US, Germany and South Korea,where vocational education is much more common,at 52 per cent, 75 per cent and 96 per cent respec-tively.

The causes leading to this situation are multi-farious. Vocational training and skilling are notplaced at par with the regular streams of educationin our society. The general perception is that voca-tional education is inferior to mainstream educa-tion. Students aiming to do well academically pre-fer mainstream colleges and vocational training cen-tres are considered second-rate.

This spills over into academics as well, to theextent that even students joining professionalcourses do not possess market-oriented practicalskills. The mushrooming of engineering collegeswithout adequate quality checks over the last twodecades has only worsened the situation. In this sce-nario, many B.Tech students get a lower pay pack-age than those passing out of polytechnics and ITIs.It is a matter of serious concern and needs to be dealtwith by a complete re-imagination of how vocation-al education should be offered to students.

The NEP aims to overcome this flawed percep-tion by focussing on imparting skills. This is a stepin the right direction. However, the success will liein its proper implementation, when we integratevocational programmes into mainstream education.This can be done in all educational programmes ina phased manner.

The NIFT experience: The experience of ourleading national institutions provides valuableinsight on how we may achieve success in ourendeavours. The National Institute of FashionTechnology (NIFT) has already taken an initiativein this direction. India has a rich heritage of hand-loom and handicrafts and there are hundreds of clus-ters of weavers and artisans across the country. A

three-week attachment with a cluster wasintegrated into the regular NIFT curricu-lum in 2010-11, with weightage in the col-lege credit system. Students are requiredto visit one cluster for 21 days, stay withthe locals and learn their skill. After theattachment, they prepare a diagnosticreport along with a SWOT (Strengths,Weaknesses, Opportunities, Strengths)analysis of the trade.

This exercise has proved to be extra-ordinarily beneficial for the students.Students pick practical tips right from thefield and understand the nuances of eachart and craft. They learn soft skills likedealing with impediments and forgingprofessional relationships. They get achance to practise management andmarketing skills in real-life situations. Asubsequent scrutiny by the institute andpeer group hones their analytical skills,where gaps in supply chain and marketlinkages as well as technical inefficienciesare identified, deliberated and addressed.

Over the last one decade, NIFT stu-dents have looked at spinning wheel,loom, dye casting, weaving, melting,moulding and welding in clusters acrossthe country. They are now in touch withthe sources for procuring niche productslike Kani, Patola, Paithani, Phulkari, Ikat,Chikan, Brocade, Batik and Ajrakh tex-tiles and the best of products in wood,metal, bamboo and terracotta handicrafts.They know the difference between hand-loom and powerloom, handspun andmachine spun cloth and organic andchemical dyes. They are also aware of theground realities and hardships of thecraftsmen.

The process has led to a windfall forthe weavers and artisans as well. Now theylook at the colour palette and can use thevarious hues of green and blue differen-tially. They have improved their technol-ogy, design and product mix. The gaudy

Maheshwari saree has been converted intodesigner evening wear, thus widening theconsumer base. Maheshwar cloth is alsobeing used for fancy curtains, cushioncovers and home decor, bringing diver-sification in the trade.

A Jhabua doll, earlier being sold for`2 in the village market, now fetches 50times that as earrings, keychains andimaginative napkin holders. In additionto becoming conscious of environmen-tal issues and sustainability, the artisanshave also become familiar with the inter-net and e-marketing techniques. Ordersflow to Beawar-Khas and Benares fromDelhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad.

The success model of NIFT can beadapted and replicated by professional col-leges. Universities need to signMemoranda of Understanding (MoU)with the industry, trade and commerceorganisations. Regional engineering col-leges need to enter into agreements withlocal Micro, Small and MediumEnterprises (MSMEs) that they will part-ner with professional colleges, give spe-cial inputs and also hire apprentices.Classroom study in college needs to beregularly supplemented by supervised,hands-on work experience. This will bea symbiotic relationship and a win-win sit-uation for all.

The millennials will be able to bringtheir diverse thinking into the mainstreamin a protected environment. Theirstrengths in terms of customised use oftechnology and innovation will add valueto industrial products. This will also givethem space to grow by applying theirknowledge to practical problems. It willsharpen their thought process and makethem more aware of their own inclina-tions, thus better preparing them for thefuture.

Moving forward: Uttar Pradesh(UP) is contemplating essential industry

attachment and internship programmesin every year of professional courses. TheState universities can take a cue from thecurricula being followed by manufactur-ing giants like Germany. Students can havean internship with the industry for oneto two months in the first two years of aprofessional course, three months in thethird year and six to nine months in thefinal year. This internship need not onlybe with big business houses but shouldalso, and preferably, be with small andmedium enterprises spread across theState in the organised and unorganisedsectors. This skill training needs to bebacked up by a robust credit system thathas due weightage for this vital hands-onexperience. This will not only help in pro-moting vocational skill but also increasethe social signalling for skilling.

UP has recently come up with a Start-up Policy. This encourages innovation andentrepreneurship in higher education. Itsuggests a leave period of one year dur-ing an undergraduate or postgraduatecourse if a student wishes to start an enter-prise in between. This will be brought insync with the exit and re-entry provisionin the NEP.

The policy also suggests permittingthe start-up as the final year project of thestudent. Universities in the State are tak-ing steps to formalise these suggestions.They are also working towards setting upincubation hubs, providing financialknowledge and promoting entrepreneur-ship among students.

If vocational skilling and educationare properly integrated, the country’sdemographic dividend can be harnessedinto a huge set of skilled professionals. Thejourney is tough but the fruits will besweet.

(The author is currently AdditionalChief Secretary, Higher Education, in theGovernment of UP.)

The NEP marks a paradigm shift in terms of focus on skilling. We need to integratevocational programmes with mainstream education in a phased manner

analysis 07F I R S T C O L U M N

Tech-savvyfarming

ASHWANI RAWAT

GIS is an effective tool for mapping naturalresources and has become vital in grasping spatial

and temporal factors that influence crop growth

MONIKA S GARG

WE NEED TOFOLLOW THESUCCESSFUL

TEMPLATE OF NIFT.UP HAS RECENTLYCOME UP WITH A

START-UP POLICY.THIS ENCOURAGES

INNOVATION ANDENTREPRENEURSHIP

IN HIGHEREDUCATION. IT

SUGGESTS A LEAVEPERIOD OF ONE

YEAR DURING ANUNDERGRADUATE

OR POSTGRADUATECOURSE IF A

STUDENT WISHESTO START ANENTERPRISE. THIS WILL BE

BROUGHT IN SYNCWITH THE EXIT AND

RE-ENTRYPROVISION IN THE NEP

Agriculture is the primary source of livelihood for about 58per cent of the country’s population and accounts for almost15.4 per cent of India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The future growth in this sector must come from new technolo-gies which are not only user-friendly and cost-effective but arealso in conformity with the climatic regime of India. They mustprovide better data for improved research, better results and sus-tainable planning; continued genetic improvement for better seedsand yields; for bridging the gap between knowledge and prac-tice; judicious land-use resource surveys, efficient managementpractices and sustainable use of natural resources.

This is where the use of Geographic Information System (GIS)technologies comes in. Their use in the farm sector over the yearshas helped farmers increase production, reduce costs as wellas manage land resources in a more efficient manner.

GIS has not only emerged as an effective tool for mappingof natural resources but has also become quintessential in under-standing various spatial and temporal factors that influence cropgrowth. Solutions like agricultural mapping play a vital role in themonitoring and management of soil and irrigation of farmlands.

By utilising spatial, spectral and temporal resolutions, GIScan be used for creating resources such as crop mapping foryield estimation; assessment of crops and their health; mappingof irrigated landscapes; amendment analysis of soil and irriga-tion; suitability assessment studies; identification and remedia-tion of erosion; agricultural mapping for detailed vegetation coverand monitoring; change-detection studies and developing cropmodels; assessment studies on damage and land degradation;elevation models for efficient drainage and management of pes-ticides. GIS technology along with other technological innova-tions can help in creating a complete ecosystem of dynamic ser-vices for the agriculture sector, resulting in more accurate andreliable crop estimates that can help in reducing uncertainty inthese trying times.

Precision farming is one such result of the integration of var-ious technologies into a single system that is operational at a farmlevel with sustainable effort. Managing agriculture at small, site-specific crop areas means that the identification of each field loca-tion is essential. Precision agriculture hence can be implement-ed by improvising and improving upon traditional farming prac-tices and then deriving maximum benefits with the help of GISand Remote Sensing (RS) technologies.

Usage of geo-positioning devices, which could range fromsimple smartphones to other hand-held devices, can help in map-ping of fields and enabling farmers in getting site-specific, pre-cise solutions for the challenges being faced by them. With thehelp of GIS and RS, spatial content related to other web-basedapplications has now become available, which is a really pow-erful tool for the monitoring of crop stages, disease-management,yield-estimation, soil-mapping, weed-mapping, hotspots for dis-ease incidences and so on.

With the proliferation of technological advancements in thefield of agriculture, through the aid of spatial decision supportsystems, various applications that can look at potential sites, cropsimulation models, pest-management, food and security analy-sis and so on, are now available. The increased necessity of shar-ing information over the internet has led to online, web-basedreal-time applications now replacing traditional standaloneapplications. These go on to provide a major advantage in theform of spatial libraries that can be referenced by millions of users.This further results in easily accessible information that can alsobe used for policy-making and implementing new strategies thatcan aid in improved agricultural practices.

Leveraging GIS technologies when it comes to the farm sec-tor is quite essential for getting accurate information regardingvarious landscapes. Hence, GIS can play an important role in theindustry by aiding growers in increasing production, improvedunderstanding of farming areas, promotion of agriculture devel-opment and also assisting in identification of handling issues thatare essential for strengthening the agricultural sector further.

A platform to develop agriculture-related applications likechange detection, water bodies identification, crop health mon-itoring using multispectral satellite imagery and crop yield esti-mation is required. Such a platform can be used to disseminateinformation to the public and can also gather Internet of Thingsdata feeds for real time modelling. GIS on cloud will boost thesector with more innovative solutions in times to come and willprovide farmers with more accurate information and help theGovernment to monitor the status on the ground.

(The writer is Co-Founder and Director of an agritechcompany)

There is no other kind of tradingin India but the insider variety,”remarked a former president of

the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) in1992, whereas Arthur Levitt,Chairman of the US SecuritiesExchange Commission (SEC), viewedit as one with no place in any law-abid-ing economy. Between these ends ofthe spectrum lies the debate on insid-er trading. Although India was not latein recognising the detrimental impactof insider trading on the rights ofshareholders, corporate governanceand financial markets, the legal regime,including the enforcement mechanismrelating to its prevention, remains ina nascent stage. The Securities andExchange Board of India (SEBI),

Prohibition of Insider TradingRegulations, 2015 (PIT Regulations)prohibit insider trading while in pos-session of Unpublished Price SensitiveInformation (UPSI) subject to certainexceptions. Rule four of the PITRegulations contains provisions apro-pos trading when in possession ofUPSI. Trades carried out by a personwho has UPSI would be presumed tohave been motivated by the knowledgeand awareness of such information andthey shall be held guilty of insider trad-ing. Simply put, any abuse of positionor power by insiders for personal ben-efits, monetary or otherwise, is afraud committed on public sharehold-ers, who expect unbiased managementof the company’s operations in theirinterest. The 2020 amendments to thePIT Regulations aim at bolstering thelevel of compliance and mitigating thedefects plaguing them. Prior to theamendment, there was considerableconfusion with respect to the handlingof UPSI by intermediaries.Notwithstanding the FAQs released bythe SEBI to address the same, specif-

ic details regarding the maintenance ofthe digital database by such entitiescontinued to remain shrouded inuncertainty. Further, the list of trans-actions under Schedule B of theRegulations, exempting them fromtrading window restrictions, was notamenable to additions. This prohibit-ed reasonable expansion of the sameto include transactions of a like nature.Lastly, there was also the issue of lackof adherence to the code of conductunder the PIT Regulations.

Recent amendments to insidertrading: Through a previous amend-ment that came into effect on April 1,2019, the SEBI had mandated everylisted entity, intermediary and fiducia-ry to maintain a structured digital data-base, which would have the name andPAN details of a person with whom theUPSI was shared. This was done toensure that there was a trail of infor-mation whenever the SEBI needed toinvestigate the sharing of UPSI. Now,through an amendment in July, theSEBI has mandated that the nature ofthe UPSI and the details of the person

sharing it must also be recorded in thedatabase. Moreover, maintaining sucha database has to be done internallyand cannot be outsourced. The data-base should store data for the previouseight years at any given time.

The second most notable amend-ment is that the trading windowrestrictions would no more apply to“offer for sale” (OFS) and “RightsEntitlement” (RE). Schedule B of thePIT Regulations mandates that thereshould be a closure of the trading win-dow for designated people and theirrelatives as it can be reasonably expect-ed that they possess UPSI. However,through another notification in July,the SEBI allowed selling of promoters’holding by way of OFS and exercisingRE during the period of closure of thetrading window.

The SEBI also specified that list-ed entities, intermediaries and fiducia-ries are now mandated to promptlyand voluntarily report any Code ofConduct violation under the PITRegulations in the prescribed formatto the bourses and any amount recov-

ered from the defaulter shall bedeposited in the Investor Protectionand Education Fund.

Analysis and impact: The prima-ry benefit of the amendment that man-dated a structured digital database isreduced information asymmetry whilethe SEBI investigates matters of insid-er trading. In cases relating to it, dis-tinguishing the insider who conveyedthe UPSI, in any case, turns out to beprogressively significant for narrowingdown expected guilty parties and tofollow the data trail. This was one ofthe pertinent issues in the ongoing“WhatsApp spill” case wherein afterextensive investigations, the SEBI hadpunished certain people for spillingdata identified to be price-sensitive.However, since WhatsApp messagesare typically ensured through end-to-end encryption, the SEBI could notefficiently recognise the entitiesinvolved in the trade, thus setting analarmingly low standard of proof insuch cases. It is hoped that the new,organised and structured digital data-base may help and forestall such

cases. The second amendment thatcuts a special exception to the tradingwindow is in the light of the ongoingendeavours by the SEBI to facilitateeasy routes of raising capital. This ismuch needed and will give morechances to listed entities to raise fastcapital. Lastly, the mandatoryannouncing of infringement of thecode of conduct would make a morestrong system of compliance.

Regulatory solutions: With eachof these amendments, while the SEBIhas chalked out additional responsi-bilities for intermediaries and fiducia-ries, as well as streamlined its regula-tory powers with bourses, the overallimpact on the market hygiene remainsto be seen. While there seem to be con-cerns regarding the degree and extentof control that may be exercised bystock exchanges over unlisted entities,the same will depend on the success-ful implementation of the PITAmendment and issuance of furtherclarifications and circulars by SEBI.

The requirement of maintainingan enhanced digital database is in line

with the SEBI’s probe and surveillanceprocedure. However, it may lead toparticular operational challenges andissues for the listed firm, intermediaryor fiduciary, because in addition tomaintaining more data for a moreextended period, the entity is nolonger permitted to outsource the taskof keeping the database.

Market conduct regulation ispoised at a critical threshold in India,where a combination of nuanced lawsand efficient enforcement can indeedbe transformative. When understoodin their true spirit, these amend-ments are capable of engendering abehavioural shift across corporates,their Board and other key stakehold-ers, in terms of how we balance com-mercial interests with accountability forinformation access. As the marketpractice evolves on this, one can onlyhope that we can achieve that fine yetfirm balance, amply aided by even-handed regulatory practices and judi-cial momentum.

(The writer is Managing PartnerKS Legal and Associates.)

India strengthening insider trading laws at lastWhile the SEBI has chalked out more responsibilities for intermediaries and fiduciaries, as well as fixed its regulatory powers, the impact remains to be seen

SONAM CHANDWANI

VIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | AUGUST 22, 2020

www.dailypioneer.com

PNS n MUMBAI

The Reserve Bank is at the endof its rate cut cycle as inflationis unlikely to decline material-ly from the current level, andthe onus of economic recoveryhas now shifted to the govern-ment, economists at SBI saidon Friday.

The comments come a dayafter the release of the minutesof the latest meeting of RBI'sMonetary Policy Committee,where high inflation was citedas the prime reason for theunanimous decision to holdrates.

The Reserve Bank of India(RBI) had cut rates by 1.15 percent in two moves since theonset of the pandemic inMarch this year in order topush economic growth, butsurprised many by holding onto rates at the August review asinflation overshot its target.

"Fiscal policy should play adecisive role, if we have to nur-ture any hopes of a fast-pacedrecovery," economists at SBIsaid.

"We now believe that we areat the end of the rate cut cycleand expectations of large ratecuts must be anchored as infla-tion is unlikely to declinematerially from current level,"the SBI economists said, hint-ing that at best there can be a0.25 per cent more of rate cutsin offing.

If RBI continues withunconventional policy mea-sures it would help the finan-cial markets because it has

been significantly able toreduce the long and variablelags of monetary policythrough successes like fastestrate transmission and restoringfinancial stability, it said.

With no rate cuts on thetable, the other monetary pol-icy alternative could be toreduce the width of the asym-metric policy corridor orincrease in reverse repo ratewhen the pandemic subsides,they opined.

VIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | AUGUST 22, 2020 money 08

CAPSULE

Exporters in Tirupurwelcome ESIC'sdecision on wagesNEW DELHI: Tirupur Exporters

Association (TEA) on Fridaythanked the Centre for theESIC (Employees StateInsurance Corporation)decision to pay 50 per cent ofthe average wages of theemployees for a maximum of90 days of unemployment dueto the pandemic. The decisionwould be helpful to theworkers as it can also help inovercoming their difficultiesduring the period ofunemployment, TEA presidentRaja M Shanmugham said in apress release here. In the firstfour months of this financialyear, knitwearexports from Tirupur clockedRs 4,325 crore and TEA washopeful of an improvement inthe exports in the comingmonths, the release quotedShanmugham of saying.

SBI to raise Rs 8,931cr by issuing BaselIII compliant bondsNEW DELHI: The country'slargest lender SBI on Fridaysaid its board has approved aproposal to raise Rs 8,931crore by issuing Basel IIIcompliant bonds to investors.The committee of directors forcapital raising at its meetingheld today accorded itsapproval to allot 89,310 BaselIII compliant non-convertible,taxable, redeemable,subordinated, unsecured, fullypaid-up debt instrumentsaggregating to Rs 8,931 croreto bond subscribers onAugust 21, 2020, SBI said in aregulatory filing. The bonds inthe nature of debenturesqualifying as tier 2 capital ofthe bank have face value of Rs10 lakh, bearing a coupon of6.80 per cent payable annuallyfor a tenor of 15 years. StateBank of India said the bondscome with a call option after10 years or any anniversarydate thereafter to bondsubscribers.

APL Apolloregisters net profitof Rs 168 mn NEW DELHI: The followingpress release comes to youunder an arrangement withNewsVoir. PTI takes noeditorial responsibility for thesame.) Despite theunprecedented challengesthrown by the pandemic, APLApollo has maintained itsdominant leadership instructural steel tube industrtyNew Delhi, Delhi,India(NewsVoir Bucking the COVID-19induced downturn in theindustry, APL Apollo TubesLimited (APL Apollo), India'sleading branded structuralsteel tube manufacturer hasregistered considerable netprofit of Rs. 168 mn in April-June quarter of FY-21.

‘Govt needs to play decisiverole for eco recovery’

With no rate cuts onthe table, the othermonetary policyalternative could beto reduce the widthof the asymmetricpolicy corridor orincrease in reverserepo rate when thepandemic subsides,they opined

Over 75 per cent of delivery partners back, says SwiggyPNS n CHENNAI

Food ordering and deliveryplatform provider Swiggy onFriday said most of the deliv-ery executives have resumedduty and were serving 95 percent of the city as of Thursday.

"Over the last couple of days,we have had a positive dialoguewith our partners to explain therevised pay-outs and assuagetheir concerns," a companyspokesperson said.

Following the positive dis-cussion with them, the officialsaid over 75 per cent of thepartners were back to deliver-ing and were serving 95 percent of the city as of August 20.

"We are glad that our partnerswere able to understand therevised service fee. We under-

stand the efforts put in by ourdelivery partners in makingSwiggy accessible to consumersand maintain an honestapproach in enabling a sustain-able service fee," he told P T I.

According to the companyofficial, between March andJune, the company supportedclose to 40,000 delivery part-ners to the tune of Rs 18 crore.

"This was in the form of

earnings guarantees to pre-vent partners from bearingthe brunt of the dip in ordervolumes," he said.

With the expansion ofSwiggy Genie and 'Grocery'categories across Tier-I and IIcities and uptake in food ordersas the festive season approach-es, Swiggy delivery partnershave a unique advantage ofgenerating additional incomethrough these avenues, he said.

Meanwhile, DMK Chief MK Stalin called upon the stategovernment to hold discus-sions with the delivery execu-tives to amicably solve theissue.

"With the employees drop-ping their plans to continuestrike, I request the govern-ment to hold discussions andreach a solution in paymentissues," he said in a statement.

He also requested Chief

Minister K Palaniswami's per-sonal intervention on the issueconsidering the services ren-dered by the delivery executivesduring the lockdown.

Meanwhile, a couple ofdelivery executives who tookpart in the strike, said they haveresumed duty so that theywere receiving some kind ofpackage instead of full benefit.

"I am working since I am notable to earn money as it was inthe past. But something I canearn. I hope the situationimproves as the time goes by,"the executive told P T I on con-ditions of anonymity.

Another delivery partnersaid he recently lost his full-time job at a shop and joinedSwiggy even though the strikewas on.

"Over the last couple of days, we havehad a positive dialogue with ourpartners to explain the revised pay-outs and assuage their concerns," acompany spokesperson said

PNS n NEW DELHI

State-owned power giantNTPC on Friday said it hasreceived the approval of NitiAayog and Department ofInvestment and Public AssetManagement to set up a whol-ly-owned company for itsrenewable energy business.

Now, NTPC will move toform a subsidiary firm forrenewable energy business, asit has requisite approvals forthe purpose.

"...concurrence had beenobtained from NITI Aayogand Department ofInvestment and Public AssetManagement (DIPAM),Ministry of Finance for forma-tion of a wholly-owned sub-sidiary for NTPC RenewableEnergy Business," the powergiant said in a BSE filing.

The wholly-owned sub-sidiary will be incorporatedunder the provisions of theCompanies Act, 2013, itadded.

The development assumessignificance because theNTPC targets to generatenearly 30 per cent or 39 GWof its overall power capacityfrom renewable energysources by 2032.

This is also consistentwith India's ambitious targetof having 175GW cleanenergy by 2022. NTPC isplanning to have 10GW ofsolar energy by 2022, which

entails an investment ofaround Rs 50,000 crore.

Since the decks arecleared for separate arm forRE business, it would beeasier to achieve its goals topush clean energy in thecountry.

NTPC has planned to bea 130 GW company by 2032with diversified fuel mixand a 600 BU (billion unitsper annum) firm in terms ofpower generation.

The company is aiming tohave 30 GW of solar andtwo GW of other renewableenergy sources based powergeneration capacity by 2032.

NTPC gets Niti Aayog,DIPAM nod to set uprenewable energy biz arm

Now, NTPC willmove to form asubsidiary firmfor renewableenergy business,as it hasrequisiteapprovals for thepurpose

PNS n NEW DELHI

India may see the share of nat-ural gas in its energy basketrise to 10 per cent by 2025 asa result of massive investmentpush in the creation of infra-structure to take the environ-ment-friendly fuel to con-sumers, GAIL Director(Marketing) E S Ranganathansaid on Friday.

Currently, natural gas makesup about 6.2 per cent of theentire energy consumption inthe country.

Prime Minister NarendraModi has set a target of rais-ing the share of natural gas inthe energy basket to 15 percent by 2030 to cut carbonemission in the economy.

"With gas demand (growingat) CAGR (of) 8 per cent, gasis expected to account foraround 10 per cent of India'sprimary energy supply by2025," Ranganathan said at aPHDCCI webinar. CAGRstands for compound annualgrowth rate.

India is making investmentsworth billions of dollars toexpand pipeline network aswell as build import capacitiesto meet growing gas demandin the country. Also, city gasdistribution networks arebeing expanded to raise theshare of gas as a transportation

fuel as well as kitchen fuel.Ranganathan said the gov-

ernment has over the pastfew years taken several policymeasures to enhance explo-ration and production of oiland gas in the country includ-ing liberalised licensing regimeand giving pricing and mar-keting freedoms.

"The number of reformsenvisaged by the governmentwill be instrumental in realis-ing India's vision on megainvestments on LNG (liquefiednatural gas) terminals, gaspipelines and CGD infrastruc-ture in a move towardsincreasing the share of natur-al gas from 6 per cent to 15 percent in the energy basket," he

said.Currently, the total natural

gas pipeline network in Indiais about 17,500 km, of which12,500 km is operated byGAIL.

"Developmental work ofnational gas grid is being car-ried out aggressively," he saidadding that augmentation ofthe existing LNG import ter-minal capacity has been takenup.

With the commissioning oftwo new liquefied natural gas(LNG) terminal (one in theeast coast and another in thewest coast of India), regasifi-cation capacity of India hasreached 39 million tonnes perannum.

"This capacity is expected tocross 60 million tonnes in thecoming years with anotherfour greenfield LNG terminalswhich are currently underconstruction and plannedexpansion in Dabhol termi-nal," he said.

There had been a hugethrust from the governmenton the development of the nat-ural gas market in the easternand northeastern regions inIndia, he said.

Ranganathan said theIndian gas market had takenan unprecedented hit from therecent COVID-19 pandemiccrisis.

"Impact on commercial,transportation, manufactur-ing, and industrial activitiesled to a substantial decline inoverall gas consumption. Withthe unlocking measures, nor-malcy is expected in the majorsegments such as fertiliser,power, and refinery."

With gas demand(growing at) CAGR

(of) 8 per cent, gasis expected to account foraround 10 per cent ofIndia's primary energysupply by 2025

— RANGANATHAN

GGAAIILL DDiirreeccttoorr ((MMaarrkkeettiinngg))

TRAI mulls show cause notice against Vodafone Idea on priorityPNS n NEW DELHI

TRAI is considering issuing ashow cause notice to VodafoneIdea over the priority planissue, as the telecom regulatoris not satisfied with theresponse given by the compa-ny on the matter so far, accord-ing to a source.

Airtel -- which has stoppedonboarding new customers onits platinum offering after anearlier TRAI directive -- maynot be served a show causenotice.

A regulatory source saidthat Vodafone Idea has notbeen able to satisfactorilyrespond to many of the issues

raised by TRAI, including twomajor concerns on how thecompany will ensure priorityservices and speeds to selectcustomers who opt for thepremium offering, and how thepriority plan will not adverse-ly impact services and experi-ence of non-premium users.

The source said that thecompany, despite severalrounds of questioning, has notbeen able to offer clear anddirect answers to the issuesraised by the TelecomRegulatory Authority of India(TRAI).

The decision on issuingthe show cause will be takenin a day or so, and Vodafone

Idea will be given a fewdays to respond to the showcause notice and explain itsposition, the source added.

TRAI's decision will bebased on safeguarding inter-est of mobile consumers,the source added.

A mail sent to VodafoneIdea on the issue did notelicit a response.

TRAI is currently probingVodafone Idea's priorityplan RedX and Bharti AirtelPlatinum Offering to see ifnetwork preference to spe-cific customers leads todeterioration of services forother non-premium sub-scribers or violates anynorms.

The regulator had earliershot off questions to thetwo operators asking themto explain their position onthe controversial issue andprovide relevant data to sub-stantiate their claims.

Sensex ends 214 ptshigher; Nifty tops 11,350PNS n MUMBAI

Domestic equity benchmarkSensex jumped 214 points onFriday, led by buying in index-heavyweights HDFC twinsand Asian Paints amid arebound in global markets.

After rallying 359 pointsduring the day, the 30-shareBSE index ended 214.33 pointsor 0.56 per cent higher at38,434.72. The NSE Nifty rose59.40 points or 0.53 per centto close at 11,371.60.

NTPC was the top gainer inthe Sensex pack, rallying

around 5 per cent, followed byPowerGrid, Asian Paints,HDFC Bank, Sun Pharma,Nestle India, SBI and AxisBank.

On the other hand, ONGC,Bharti Airtel, Tata Steel andReliance Industries wereamong the laggards.

P-notes investment continues tosoar, climbs to over Rs 63k crPNS n NEW DELHI

Investments through partic-ipatory notes (P-notes) in thedomestic capital marketsoared to Rs 63,288 crore tillJuly-end, making it the fourthconsecutive monthly rise.

P-notes are issued by regis-tered foreign portfolioinvestors (FPIs) to overseasinvestors who wish to be partof the Indian stock marketwithout registering themselvesdirectly. They, however, needto go through a due diligenceprocess. According to Sebidata, the value of P-noteinvestments in Indian markets-- equity, debt, hybrid securi-ties and derivatives -- stood at

Rs 63,288 crore till July-end,while the same was at Rs62,138 crore at the end of June.

Prior to that, investmentlevel was at Rs 60,027 croreand Rs 57,100 crore at the endof May and April, respective-ly. The investment level hadfallen to an over 15-year-lowof Rs 48,006 crore at the endof March. The figure at March-end was the lowest level ofinvestment since October2004, when the total value ofP-note investments in theIndian markets stood at Rs44,586 crore. The lower figurein March came amid signifi-cant volatility in broader mar-kets on concerns over coron-avirus-triggered crisis.

Gold falls Rs 94 onglobal cues, silverup by Rs 782PNS n NEW DELHI

Gold prices declined by Rs 94to Rs 52,990 per 10 gram inthe national capital on Fridayfollowing selling pressure ininternational market, accord-ing to HDFC Securities.

In the previous trade, theyellow metal had closed at Rs53,084 per 10 gram. Silverprices, however, rose by Rs782 to Rs 69,262 per kg fromRs 68,480 per kg in the pre-vious trade. In the interna-tional market, gold was quot-ing lower at USD 1,938 perounce, while silver was trad-ing flat at USD 27.19 perounce. "Gold prices paredearly gains on Friday as dollarindex recovered from the day'slows. Gold prices also tradedunder pressure on the news ofresumption in US-China tradetalks" HDFC Securities SeniorAnalyst (Commodities) TapanPatel said.

India's exportuptick led by EastAsian economiesPNS n MUMBAI

The massive improvementin the country's export num-bers in July is led by a full 78per cent spike in shipments toChina and other Asianeconomies which had suc-cessfully contained the pan-demic, constituting 16 percent of the overall exportsbasket, says a report.

The pace of exports declineslowed to -10.2 per cent inJuly from a massive -60.2 percent in April when the nationwas under a strict lockdowndue to the COVID-19 pan-demic.

Since then the pace of con-traction has been steadilydeclining as the economybegan to open up.Contraction in shipmentsimproved to 50 per cent inMay and 30 per cent in June.

"While July shipments toChina jumped a full 78 percent, the same to Malaysiajumped 76 per cent, Vietnamand Singapore,. Most of theseeconomies had flattened thepandemic caseload curve inthis period. East Asianeconomies constitute 16 percent of our export basket," aCrisil report said on Friday.

“Exports growth in thepandemic-dominated worldis inversely related to therise in the pandemic case-loads in its export destina-tions. Stated differently,exports are flowing back toeconomies that have checkedthe affliction.”

TRAI's decisionwill be based onsafeguardinginterest of mobileconsumers, thesource added.A mail sent toVodafone Idea onthe issue did notelicit a response

India to see gas share riseto 10 pc by 2025: GAIL

Need to curb aluminiumimports, says FIMIPNS n NEW DELHI

Miners' body FIMI on Fridaysaid the country needs to curbaluminium imports and facil-itate tapping of "rich andalmost inexhaustible" domes-tic resources by local players inline with the government'sself-reliance vision.

The domestic consumptionof aluminium is expected toreach 10 million tonnes (MT)by FY2031-32 and to meet thefuture demand, India needs toincrease bauxite productionfrom 23 MT in FY19 toapproximately 70 MT by thattime and corresponding alumi-na production from 7.4 MT to20 MT, the Federation ofIndian Mineral Industries(FIMI) Vice President R LMohanty said at a webinar.

India is "favourablyendowed with rich and almostinexhaustible resources ofbauxite", which is the main rawmaterial for the production ofaluminium, he added.

"However, despite havinghuge domestic demand andsufficient domestic aluminiumcapacity, 60 per cent of theIndia's consumption is being

imported, resulting in forexoutgo... Rising imports of alu-minium need to be restrictedin order to promote domesticproduction," Mohanty said.

Along with this, to facilitatethe mining regime for bauxite,the allocation of coal blockscan be ensured to alreadyoperating aluminium industryin the country, he said duringthe webinar on 'LeveragingIndian bauxite and aluminiumindustry for AatmanirbharBharat'.

India has a significant pri-mary aluminium capacity of4.1 million tonnes per annum(MTPA) with downstreamprocessing capacity of 3.9 MT,

which lays a conducive plat-form for scaling up and lever-aging the country's naturalresources, Mohanty said.

The Indian aluminiumindustry has made huge invest-ments to the tune of Rs 1.2lakh crore to enhance domes-tic production capacity from 2MTPA to 4.1 MTPA to cater tothe country's growing alu-minium demand.

Most resources of bauxiteare concentrated in the EastCoast Bauxite deposits inOdisha and Andhra Pradeshfollowed by other states likeMadhya Pradesh, Gujarat,Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra andJharkhand.

Most resources ofbauxite areconcentrated in theEast Coast Bauxitedeposits in Odishaand Andhra Pradeshfollowed by otherstates like MadhyaPradesh, Gujarat,Chhattisgarh,Maharashtra andJharkhand

here’s a protectiveand nurturingcover to our healththat our elders andparents provide uswith when we are

rocking in the cradle. Andsince then, they have alwaysbeen the strongest supportsystem. However, in return,most senior citizens in oursociety do not necessarilyenjoy the same attention thatthey had blessed us with.After decades of hard work, itis one’s right to desire a lifefilled with protection. But ata time when they are mostvulnerable, elderly are devoidof such things. On the occa-sion of World SeniorCitizens’ Day, why not con-sider giving them a healthcover to ensure a secure andhappy life?

With the world agingrapidly, it is more likely thatthe number of senior citizensin need of health cover isonly going to rise. As per arecent study published in theLancet, it is estimated that bythe end of the century, theworld will have 2.37 billionindividuals older than 65years and 1.70 billion indi-viduals younger than 20years.

Similarly in India, various

studies in the past decadehave reported that 20 per centof the Indian population willbe older than 60 years by2050, which as per the gov-ernment can be as high as 34crore people. At a time whenIndia is struggling to dealwith the challenge of popula-tion explosion, makinghealthcare accessible to thegrowing number of senior cit-izens is a daunting concern.

There are numerous rea-sons why a good health insur-ance cover is essential for theelderly and why it is anurgent need that should bemet. Senior citizens facemany challenges includingfinancial struggles, increasingdependency, need for spe-cialised infrastructure, lack ofsocial support and so on...Then there comes healthcareissues as well. They are alsomost vulnerable to diseasesand are at a higher risk ofhospitalisation. Over theyears, people develop severalnon-communicable diseases(NCD). Elderly people aregenerally patients of comor-bidities and degenerative ail-ments. They suffer from aweaker immune system too.The cost of treatment for anyof NCDs or conditions is gen-erally high. Even before

admission into the hospital,the OPD and monthly med-ical bills become a major con-straint. The long-term cost torecovery can be a huge drainon the financial and mentalhealth of the senior peopleand their families.

With the recent outbreakof COVID-19, the risks ofhospitalisation haveincreased as it’s a generallyaccepted fact that elderlypeople and those withcomorbidities are more vul-nerable to contracting thevirus. Therefore, it becomeseven more imperative forthem and their families toinvest in health insurance soas to ensure that the cost ofquality healthcare is covered.

The ongoing global pan-

demic has witnessed a sud-den spike in the demand forhealth insurance policies,which has caused panic buy-ing. Although it has becomean absolute necessity for thesenior citizens to have ahealth insurance policy, it isequally important to carefullyevaluate your purchase.

A modern-day healthinsurance policy may coveran older individual, his orher spouse and even theentire family. The senior citi-zen health insurance schemesare packed with unique bene-fits for them including cash-less hospitalisation, no pre-policy medical check-up,short wait-period for pre-existing diseases cover, annu-al health check-up and day

care expenses. If you areplanning to get a healthinsurance or gift your parentsor grandparents a healthcover, here are some of thevery basic things to look for:

AIM FOR THE HIGHERSUM INSURED

This is of utmost impor-tance. A young person maynot need coverage of a higheramount. However, elderlypeople have pre-existing con-ditions. Their response totreatment is longer and theyneed more critical care. So itis better to opt for thoseinsurance policies that offerhigh coverage.

TYPE OF PLAN

Is it a family floater plan,

an individual, a cashless orreimbursement plan?Knowing these features arevital for informed decisionmaking. It is recommendedto choose a policy that offerscashless treatment and cov-ers post-hospitalisationexpenses. Some policiescover a policy holder’sspouse as well within thesame plan. Other plans pro-vide free annual healthcheckups at any time of theyear.

TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT WHAT'S NOTCOVERED

When you choose a policy,it is wise to choose the onewhich provides a wider cov-erage. Insurance may cover

core treatment costs but maynot cover other costs includ-ing OPD expenses, ambu-lance charge and consum-ables.

COVERAGE

It is wise to go with aninsurance policy that coverspre-existing diseases. Itshould cover all issues andchallenges that come with oldage. Basically, the plans needto be age appropriate. Theones which cover associatedmedical expenses, pre- andpost-hospitalisation chargesshould be preferred.

CONSIDER THE WAITING PERIOD

Carefully learn about therules relating to the waiting

period, especially those thatare applicable to pre-existingailments because it can goupto four years. A policywhich ensures cover in ashorter duration is the onethat should be considered.

CO-PAYMENT

This means that theinsured person will be bear-ing the cost of treatmentalong with the insurancecompany. The less the co-payment, the more viable thepolicy.

NETWORK OF HOSPITALS

An insurance policy with alarge network of hospitalscan be a life-saver. It isimportant to check whetherthe network of hospitals spanacross India if you’re a fre-quent traveller.

DISCOUNTS AND ADDITIONAL BENEFITS

Do understand discount,top-ups, additional benefitsand such aspects of policiescarefully. A good package canreally make a difference.

It is a natural truth thataging brings its challenges,but we are a species knownfor defying age. On WorldSenior Citizens’ Day, let’sresolve to support those whohave nurtured us to defytheir age and give them someof the best years of life, full ofhealth, care, security andhappiness.

(The author, Ajay Shah, isthe Director and Head —Retail Business, Religare

Health Insurance.)

T

ndia, with over 1.3million deaf andmute citizens,should make theIndian SignLanguage (ISL)

the 23rd official languageunder the IndianConstitution, said VaibhavKothari, a deaf and muteentrepreneur, engineer andmotivational speaker at awebinar — WinningChallenges — hosted byKolkata-based social and cul-tural activist SundeepBhutoria. Vaibhav, who wasthe guest speaker, used signlanguage and an interpreterto communicate with thosewho joined in from differentparts of the world.

Vaibhav’s fervent appeal tothe Indian Government camein response to a questionposed by conversationalistSundeep Bhutoria — “Howimportant do you think it is

to promote the Indian SignLanguage (ISL) by incorpo-rating it in the list of existing22 Scheduled Languagesunder the Constitution ofIndia?”

Vaibhav called upon theGovernment to listen to itsmillions of deaf and mute cit-izens and empower them bypromoting the Indian SignLanguage (ISL) to gain high-er education and effectivelycontribute to the nation-building. “Just as India pro-motes and preserves ourancient Sanskrit language,which is one of the 22 sched-uled languages under theIndian Constitution, there isa need to incorporate thenewly-evolved Indian SignLanguage (ISL) into the listof scheduled languages. Thiswould immensely empowermillions of Indians sufferingfrom hearing impairment toachieve higher education and

catch up on missed opportu-nities,” Vaibhav said.

Lauding the NewEducation Policy for takingcognizance of the sign lan-guage Vaibhav said that indi-viduals and organisationshave been fighting for this forover thirty years. Vaibhavfully endorsed the suggestionof conversationalist SundeepBhutoria that oneParliamentary seat should bereserved for a deaf person toarticulate and represent thedemands of their world orthe “deaf eco-system”.

Sign languages are full-fledged natural languageswith their own grammar andlexicon. Though home to oneof the largest numbers of thehearing-impaired population,India still does not have aformally recognised sign language under theConstitution. As per the 2011Indian Census, there are 1.3million people with hearingimpairment but on the otherhand, India’s NationalAssociation of the Deaf esti-mates that 18 million peopleor close to 1 percent of theIndian population are deaf orsuffer from hearing loss.

“India’s hearing-impairedcommunity has facedimmense difficulties duringthe Coronavirus lockdownunable to access notices, clar-ifications, or call helplines.Under the new online educa-tion system, deaf children areunable to study as most par-ents don’t know the IndianSign Language (ISL). The

New Education Policy musteducate Indians on ISL andmake it an official language.We are living in an unprece-dented time, but in uncer-tainty lies the power to influ-ence the future, and VaibhavKothari is the perfect exam-ple. I decided to have thisintimate conversation per-sonally with Vaibhav to high-light an important issue per-taining to the cause of thedeaf and mute that is under-reported and under-served inIndia,” said Sundeep Bhutoriawho has successfully cam-paigned with theGovernment to rectify socialissues of national impor-tance.

The Indian Governmenthad set up the Indian SignLanguage Research andTraining Centre in NewDelhi in 2015. In March 2018the first Indian SignLanguage dictionary waslaunched. India now has itsown sign language in place.There are over 130 sign lan-guages in the world with dif-ferent countries evolvingtheir own system.

Vaibhav Kothari’s life is anordinary boy’s extraordinaryachievement. He learned theAmerican Sign Language(ASL) and got his MBA andengineering degrees from theUnited States. He is a suc-cessful entrepreneur spear-heading his family businessOm Metals Infra Projects andOm International LLC. Healso hosts a talk showOMVAI and is a motivational

speaker who inspires millionsto overcome their physicaldisabilities to strive tobecome achievers. He hasalso directed a short filmhighlighting the plight of thedeaf.

Higher education remainsa major roadblock for thehearing impaired in Indiasince very few colleges andinstitutions avail interpretersor lecturers who can teach insign language. The studentsthus have to turn to othersources which most cannotafford. According to thePersons with Disability Act1995, one percent of jobs ingovernment and privateagencies are reserved forthem. But those jobs haveconditions like having degreecertificates from known uni-versities across India.

Sundeep Bhutoria, aKolkata-based social andcultural activist, author,columnist, and blogger whohas successfully campaignedwith the Government tochange policies that inconve-nienced parents to take theirinfants to the passport office;or very recently to save thechildhood of kindergartenersfrom the onslaught of onlineclasses. His appeal to thePrime Minister to providesupport to the folk artistesand craftsmen of India fac-ing immense hardship due tothe COVID-19 pandemicprompted swift action by thegovernment to enlist thosecraftsmen who were earlierleft out.

I

‘Indian Sign Languageneeds official recognition'

How important do you thinkit is to promote the IndianSign Language (ISL) byincorporating it in the list ofexisting 22 ScheduledLanguages under theConstitution of India? Readon as Vaibhav Kothari, adeaf and mute entrepreneur,engineer and motivationalspeaker explains to us itsimportance

A GIFT OFHEALTH

On the occasion of World SeniorCitizens’ Day, why not consider

giving them a health cover toensure a secure and happy life?

SaturdayAugust 22, 2020

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@TheDailyPioneer

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ext exchangesbetween actorRhea Chakra-borty and film-maker Mahesh

Bhatt have beenshared online. It is

being reportedthat Rheamoved out ofactor SushantSinghRajput’shouse onJune 8, andtextedMaheshBhatt.Sushantdied bysuicide onJune 14.

In mes-sagesaccessed by

India Today,Rhea told the

filmmaker,“Aisha moves

on..sir..with aheavy heart and

sense of relief .”Aisha is the name of

her character in thefilm Jalebi, produced by

Mahesh. She added, “Ourlast call was a wake up call.

You are my angel You werethen And you are now.”

He replied, “Don’t look back.Make it possible what isinevitable. My love to your

father . He will be a happyman.” Rhea responded, “Havefound some courage,and whatyou said about my dad tht dayon the phone pushed me to bestrong for him. He sends youlove and thanks you for alwaysbeing so special.”

The filmmaker wrote, “Youare my child. I feel light,” towhich Rhea replied, “Aaaah nowords sir. The best emotions ifeel i feel for u.” Maheshthanked her “for being brave.”

“You ve again unclipped mywings, twice in one life isalmost God like,” she wrotefurther along in the conversa-tion. On Rhea’s birthday onJuly 1, she received a messagefrom the filmmaker. “I willmake you proud,” she wrote tohim, to which he replied, “Youalready have. Truly. I takes gutsto do what you did. Don’t look

back.”Mahesh has been questioned

by the Mumbai police in con-nection with Sushant’s death,along with more than 50 oth-ers. In interview to Times Now,Mahesh’s producer brotherMukesh Bhatt had said that hecould tell Sushant was ‘dis-turbed’ and remembered hav-ing a conversation about thiswith Mahesh. He said, “I start-ed my career way back withParveen Babi, she was also avictim of schizophrenia. Iremember telling my brother,that I am afraid he is also goingthe Parveen Babi way. I am notshocked, because I saw thiscoming.”

Sushant’s family has accusedRhea of abetting his suicide,siphoning off his funds, amongother allegations. The case isbeing investigated by CBI.

10

Vijayawada Saturday August 22 2020 what’s brewing?

FUN

Rules

ARCHIE

GARFIELD

SUDOKU

REALITY CHECK SPEED BUMP CROSSWORD

GINGER MEGGS

NANCY

CALVIN AND HOBBES

l Each row and column cancontain each number (1 to 9)exactly once.

l The sum of all numbers inany row or column mustequal 45.

Yesterday’s solution

It has takenover adecade for

Kangana Ranaut to joinsocial media, and the actress

opened up on Friday on why shehas finally taken the step. She sayspeople have taken advantage of herabsence from the platform in thepast.

Kangana, who tweets from theverified handle named @kan-ganateam, has shared a video on themicroblogging site, where she talks

of the power of social media.“It has been almost 15 years since I

have been working in films. In these 15years, there have been many chances

when there have been moments of pres-sure to join social media. Agencies and sev-eral brands know that I have let go deals

worth crores where there was just oneclause that I should be on social media,”Kangana said in the video in Hindi.

She added, “I have been called a ‘chu-dail’ (witch) and it has been said merepair ulte hain (my feet are twisted).People have taken advantage of the factthat I am not present on social media.But I still did not take to social mediaas I never felt any distance from myaudience. I have always felt that if I

had to say anything, why should Ido so in a rudimentary way? I

have said so much throughmy films on ‘women

empowerment’and

nationalism. Iwould rather use anartistic way to communi-cate. This has been my view.”

“But this year I saw the powerof social media and how the entireworld came together and fought forSushant Singh Rajput and achieved success. I have some expec-tations now with this. I feel that if we allcome together, we can raise our voice for new India and initiate reforms.”

“This is the only reason I joined socialmedia this month. For the first time I am onTwitter and I am excited. I want your continuedsupport. I am looking forward to this journeywith so many amazing people, getting to knowthem and beginning new relationships. Thankyou for this opportunity. I look forward to greattimes being here.”

On Thursday, Kangana recently commentedon the alleged past relationship between lateBollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput and hisKedarnath co-star Sara Ali Khan on her Twitterhandle.

The news that Kangana talked of pertainsto Sushant’s friend Samuel Haokip, whoposted on his verified Instagram accountabout the alleged relationship betweenSushant and Sara earlier on Thursday.

However, she drew flak from HrithikRoshan fans later the same eveningwhen she tweeted about her pastrelationship with the actor, inconnection with the Sush-ant-Sara conversationon her verifiedaccount.

Kangana joinsTwitter, says people tookadvantage of her absence

Akshay Kumar’s episodeof Bear Grylls’ Into the Wildto premiere on Sept 11

he special episode ofBear Grylls’ Into theWild, featuring actorAkshay Kumar as aguest, will premiere onSeptember 11 on

Discovery+, the actor hasannounced. Recently, the BritishTV host has featured everyonefrom Prime Minister NarendraModi to actor Rajinikanth on theadventure show.

“You thinking I mad… but madonly going into the wild,” Akshaywrote on Twitter, sharing a teaserfor the episode, which sees theactor and the host in a jungle

environment, swinging towardseach other on ropes.

The actor reportedly shot forthe episode earlier this year atMysuru’s Bandipur Tiger Reserve.A Bollywood Hungama reportquoted a source as saying,“Akshay Kumar makes for an idealguest on Man Vs Wild. He’s agile,energetic and quite fit as we allknow. He can easily roam aroundin the difficult terrain of the forestand make for great company withBear Grylls. Akshay hopes tolearn the survival techniques fromBear. The British adventurer toohopes to imbibe some of his

admirable qualities. We assure it’llbe an episode to watch out for!”

Among the celebrities that havefeatured on the show are actorsKate Winslet and Julia Roberts,tennis player Roger Federer, bas-ketball star Michael Jordan andPresident Barack Obama.

Akshay is currently in the UK,where he has commenced theshoot of his upcoming spy film,Bell Bottom, which also starsHuma Qureshi and Lara Dutta.The actor’s next release will beLaxxmi Bomb, slated to debut onstreaming service Disney+Hotstar.

T

Rhea's chat with Mahesh Bhatt revealed,

texted him the day she left SSR’s house

T

AP n SOUTHAMPTON

Zak Crawley was on the vergeof posting his first test cen-tury as England reached

tea on 184-4 on the opening dayof the third and final Test againstPakistan at the Rose Bowl onFriday.

Crawley was on a career-besttest score of 97 and sharing anunbeaten 57-run partnership withJos Buttler (24) after England lostcaptain Joe Root (29) and OlliePope (3) after lunch.

Root edged a beautiful deliv-ery from paceman Naseem Shahthat seamed away, with wicket-

keeper Mohammad Rizwan tak-ing a flying catch to his right.

Pope lasted 15 balls before hewas bowled by Yasir Shah tryingto play the legspinner off the backfoot, leaving England 127-4.

Playing his eighth Test match,Crawley’s previous best score was76 against the West Indies at the

same ground in Southamptonlast month. He has hit 11 fours ina 165-ball knock.

Buttler is also seeing the ballwell, striking four boundaries.

Yasir has 2-60 off 19 oversafter coming into the attack early.

England leads 1-0 and islooking to clinch a first series vic-

tory over Pakistan in 10 years, aswell as a second of the summerafter beating the West Indies 2-1.

Fast bowler Jofra Archer wasrecalled by England in place of

Sam Curran in the only changefrom the drawn second Test onthe same ground in Southampton.

Pakistan selected anunchanged team.

11VIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | AUGUST 22, 2020

SPEZIA PPROMOTED TTO SSERIE AA FFOR 11ST TTIMEMilan: Spezia was promoted to Serie A for the firsttime despite losing 1-0 to Frosinone in the second legof the Serie B playoff final, which finished 1-1 onaggregate. However, Spezia was promoted on thetiebreaker rule of having finished higher in the table inregular season. Spezia finished third and Frosinoneeighth. The other promoted teams are Benevento,which won Serie B by 18 points, and Crotone.

INDIAN CCHALLENGE OOVER AAT PPRAGUE OOPENPrague: The Indian challenge came to an end at theATP Challenger Prague Open with the defeat of allthree players competing in the doubles event. Topseeded Divij Sharan and Robin Haase lost theirquarterfinal 3-6, 6-7(8) to Jiri Lehecka and TomasMacHac. N Sriram Balaji and his partner KimmerCoppejans were also defeated in straight sets, goingdown 4-6, 3-6 to Steven Diez and Blaz Rola. AlsoSumit Nagal and Ilya Ivashka lost 2-6, 4-6 to Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Arthur Rinderknech.

MCKENZIE SSTEPS DDOWN AAS BBATTING CCOACH Dhaka: Former South African batsman NeilMcKenzie has stepped down from his position asBangladesh's batting coach, citing family reasons.The 44-year-old, who was appointed as Bangladesh'swhite-ball batting consultant in July 2018, wrote tothe country's board about his decision on Thursday.

WHITE RRETIRES, TTO FFOCUS OON CCOACHING Melbourne: Former Australia all-rounder CameronWhite on Friday announced his retirement fromprofessional cricket, bringing down curtains on acareer which spanned almost two decades. The 37-year-old, who played four Tests, 91 ODIs & 47 T20Isand also captained Australia seven times in limitedovers cricket, said he will focus on coaching now.

PERRY FFINDS PPLACE IIN AAUSSIE SSQUAD Melbourne: Star all-rounder Ellyse Perry,recovering from a hamstring injury, was on Fridaynamed in an 18-player Australian women squad forthe T20I and ODI series against New Zealand inSeptember but her participation will be subject tofitness. New Zealand will travel to Australia for threeODIs and as many T20 Internationals.

BISTA LLIKELY TTO PPLAY FFOR UUTTARAKHAND Mumbai: Promising opener Jay Bista has been givena No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the MumbaiCricket Association for a likely move to Uttarakhand.“We have issued him the NOC on Friday afternoonafter he had applied for it earlier this week. But in theNOC, he had not categorically mentioned about theother state which he is joining,” a senior MCA officialsaid on Friday. A source close to Bista said that theopener had an offer from Uttarakhand, which is nowcoached by domestic stalwart Wasim Jaffer andhence he applied for the NOC.

KOEMAN NNAMES LLARSSON AAMONG AASSISTANTSBarcelona: New Barcelona coach Ronald Koemanhas chosen former Sweden striker Henrik Larsson asone of his assistant coaches alongside Dutch coachAlfred Schreuder. Larsson, 48, had a brief butimportant spell at Barca and played a crucial role in2006 Champions League final win. He has been anassistant and first team coach in Sweden since 2010,his last job being with former club Helsingborgs.Schreuder, 47, joins Barca after being sacked as headcoach of German side Hoffenheim in June.

NARINE SSTARS AAGAIN IIN TTKR VVICTORY Tarouba: Sunil Narine's all-round display whichincluded a second straight half- century propelledTrinbago Knight Riders to the top of the Hero CPLtable with a comfortable seven-wicket victory overJamaica Tallawahas. In another rain affected game StLucia Zouks beat Barbados Tridents by seven wicketscourtesy Duckworth Lews method.

NABI AAPPOINTED MMEMBER OOF AAFGHAN BBOARD Kabul: Afghanistan all-rounder Mohammad Nabi hasbeen appointed as a member of the country's cricketboard. Nabi is still an active international cricketer andis among four new members who have replaced theoutgoing members of Afghanistan Cricket Board'snine-member panel. AGENCIES

SINGLES

PTI n NEW DELHI

Exactly 13 years after heimpressed with his incisive

swing bowling in the U-19World Cup and the inauguraledition of IPL, left-arm seamerPradeep Sangwan will now be adesignated “net bowler” forDelhi Capitals in the UAE alongwith five others.

Apart from Sangwan, whoplayed for Delhi Daredevils,Mumbai Indians, Gujarat Lionsand KKR in these years, anoth-er left-arm seamer Pawan Suyal,who has played for MI, is also inthe list of net bowlers that eachteam is taking.

Delhi all-rounderPranshu Vijayaran,Railways left-arm spinnerHarsh Tyagi along withtwo unheralded young-sters — left-armwrist spinner RajatGoel and pacerBobby Yadav —complete the list.

“ Y e s ,Sangwan andSuyal are travel-

ling as net bowlers. Pranshu isthe third guy and even Harshwho now plays for Ranji Trophyis our boy as he representedDelhi during his India U-19days. Rajat is a local club crick-eter while Bobby is from UP,” asenior DDCA official said.

For Sangwan, who was heroof India’s U-19 World Cup tri-umph under Virat Kohli back in2008, it’s like life coming to a fullcircle 13 years after he playedalongside Mohammed Asif andGlenn McGrath before being thefirst Indian cricketer to bebanned by BCCI for failingdope test in 2013.

“Sangi (as his nickname is inDelhi circle) has suffered a lotdue to injuries in past fewyears. So has Suyal, who hasnow cut down his run-up

consistently after stressfractures and back

injuries. Hope bowl-ing in IPL nets help

them,” the official,who has trackedboth since theiryounger days,said.

PTI n NEW DELHI

Veteran Sri Lankanpacer Lasith Malinga

is likely to be unavailablefor the first few games ofMumbai Indians in theupcoming IPL due topersonal reasons.

According to areport in ESPNcricinfo,the 36-year-old Malingawill not be travelling to

the UAE, as his father hasnot been keeping well forsome time and mayrequire surgery in thecoming weeks.

The seasoned fastbowler, who has pro-duced match-winningefforts for both Sri Lankaand his IPL franchise,wants to be around hisfather while training inColombo.

KOLKATA: England & Australiaplayers, who will be busy in thelimited overs series that con-cludes three days before the IPLopener, could well be availablefrom the start of the T20league, KKR CEO and MDVenky Mysore said on Friday.

Mysore’s comments comeafter RCB chairman SanjeevChuriwala on Thursday saidthe England and Australiaplayers will not need to under-go the mandatory six-day quar-

antine in the UAE as theywould be already coming froma bio-secure environment inthe UK.

“Can’t say anything specif-

ic. IPL is doing everythingthey can to put a process inplace so that those players areavailable to play. KKR are veryhopeful,” Mysore said.

The players include KKR’sstar acquisition this season,Australian pacer Pat Cummins,who was bought for a record`15.5 crore. KKR also have2019 World Cup winning skip-per Eoin Morgan, Tom Banton,Chris Green and Harry Gurneyin their roster. PTI

PTI n DUBAI

Restricted to their roomsfor six days, players who

have landed in the UAE forthe IPL, spent their openingday talking to each otherthrough ‘balconies’ besidesfollowing a fitness planhanded out by the teams’trainers.

Rajasthan Royals andKings XI Punjab playersarrived in Dubai onThursday evening whileKolkata Knight Riders land-

ed in Abu Dhabi in thenight.

While Royals’ squadcompleted its day 1 testing asper BCCI’s StandardOperating Procedure (SOP)at the airport itself, KXIPwent for a repeat test onFriday.

As per the BCCI SOP,testing will be done on day1, 3 and 6 and after thatteams can start training forthe league, beginningSeptember 19.

Since no one is allowed

to step out of the room in thesix-day isolation period,players made full use oftheir dedicated balconies tospeak to each other but fol-lowing all social distancing

guidelines.The Royals have demar-

cated the outdoor area whicha player cannot use if his nextdoor teammate too is out-side. “The players can use the

outdoor area alternately. Forexample, I can’t be in the bal-cony when the player nextdoor too is outside but I canbe out with the player in thefollowing room,” a teamsource said.

Royals pacer JaydevUnadkat also posted a videoon social media, covering hisfirst morning in Dubai.Going by the video, he has anair cycle in his room to keephim in shape and he used theoutdoor area for his Yogasession.

PTI n NEW DELHI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi dis-tinctly remembers Suresh Raina’s

elegant cover drives during the epic 2011World Cup quarter-final against Australiain Ahmedabad, something that, he feels,the all-rounder’s fans will miss after hefollowed Mahendra Singh Dhoni intointernational retirement.

The 33-year-old Raina, a member ofthe 2011 World Cup winning India team,announced his retirement on August 15,minutes after Dhoni decided to call itquits internationally.

“I do not want to use the word ‘retire-ment’ because you are too young andenergetic to ‘retire’,” PM Modi, who alsowrote a letter of appreciation to Dhoni,said in a two-page note to Raina, which

he posted on his Twitter page on Friday.“During your cricketing career, you

sometimes faced setbacks includinginjuries but every time you overcamethose challenges, thanks to your tenaci-ty,” he said.

Raina, on his part, thanked thePrime Minister.

“When we play, we give our blood &sweat for the nation. No better appreci-ation than being loved by the people ofthis country and even more by the coun-try’s PM. Thank you @narendramodi jifor your words of appreciation & bestwishes. I accept them with gratitude. JaiHind,” the cricketer tweeted.

In the letter, Modi recollected howmuch he enjoyed Raina’s most famousinnings of 34 not out in a tricky run-chaseagainst a formidable Australia in the 2011

World Cup quarter-final at Motera.“India can never forget your inspir-

ing role during the 2011 World Cup espe-cially during the later matches. I saw youLive in action at the Motera Stadium inAhmedabad, during the Quarter Finalagainst Australia. Your anchoring inningshad a big role to play in our team’s vic-tory. The PM also described Raina as theperfect team-man who enjoyed others’successes.

“...Suresh Raina will always be syn-onymous with team spirit. You played notfor personal glory but for the glory ofyour team and the glory of India.

“Your enthusiasm on the field wasinfectious and we could all witness thatyou would be among the first and mostanimated players to celebrate the fall ofopposing team’s wicket,” the PM wrote.

PTI n NEW DELHI

Set to be conferred with theArjuna Award, Indian men’s

doubles player Chirag Shetty onFriday termed it a “silver lining”amid the Covid-19 pandemic,while his partner SatwiksairajRankireddy said the recogni-tion will fuel their Olympicdreams.

For the first time, six peo-ple will be conferred with thenational award in badminton.Besides Chirag and Satwik,

coach Gaurav Khanna, who hasbeen the reason behind themeteoric rise of Indian para-

badminton, has been chosen forthe Dronacharya Award (regu-lar category).

Also Pradeep Gandhe,Trupti Murgunde andSatyaprakash Tiwari will begiven the Dhyan Chand Award.

“I see it as a silver lining inthese tough times. It’ll definite-ly motivate us to win big andwork harder to bring backmore laurels for the country.Also I think it couldn’t havecome at a better time,” Chiragsaid.

PTI n SOUTHAMPTON

Teenage tearaway pacerNaseem Shah was on Friday

included in Pakistan’s 17-membersquad announced for the threeT20Is against England beginningon August 28.

The 17-year-old, who hasplayed six Tests so far, is yet tomake his white-ball debut forPakistan.

Besides Naseem,Pakistan also included 19-year-old batsman HaiderAli, who performed well inthe U-19 side, first classcricket and PakistanSuper League.

Babar Azam,who lead the teamto a T20 series winagainst Bangladeshearlier this year,will continue to cap-tain the side in theupcoming series whichwill conclude onSeptember 1.

Former captainSarfaraz Ahmed, a

wicket-keeper batsman, has alsobeen named in the squad.

Experienced pacersMohammad Amir, who had with-drawn from the tour due to thebirth of his second child, andWahab Riaz also return to theside, along with batsman FakharZaman.

All-rounder Shoaib Malik,who arrived in England on

August 12, has also beennamed in the squad and willbe joining his colleagues afterclearing the Covid-19 tests.

Squad: Babar Azam (cap-tain), Fakhar Zaman,

Haider Ali, HarisRauf, IftikharAhmed, ImadWasim, KhushdilShah, MohammadHafeez, MohammadH a s n a i n ,M o h a m m a d

Rizwan, MohammadAmir, Naseem Shah,Sarfaraz Ahmed, ShadabKhan, Shaheen ShahAfridi, Shoaib Malik andWahab Riaz.

3rd Test. Day 2Live from 3:00pm IST

SONY SIX NETWORK

Naseem earns T20 call-up

Zak crawls to maiden hundredCrawley helps England post 332-4 on Day 1 of 3rd Test

England's Zak Crawley raises his bat to celebrate scoring fifty runs during the first day of the third Test; (right) Stuart Broad receives memento before the start of 1st day play AP

Sangwan, Suyal to travelas practice bowlers

KKR hopeful of Eng, Aus players' availability from the start Malinga likely to missfirst few games

Raina never played for personal glory but India’s: PM ModiArjuna Award will fuelOlympic dream: Satwik

IPL qquarantine: CConfined tto hhotel rroom, pplayers uuse bbalcony tto iinteract

Scientists racing to save the northern white rhino fromextinction have harvested 10 more eggs from the last two

females alive, which they hope will help create viable embryosthat can be incubated by other rhinos acting as surrogates.Neither of the remaining northern white rhinos on Earth - amother and her daughter - can carry a baby to term, soscientists want to implant the embryos into southern whiterhinos instead. The last male northern white rhino, namedSudan, died in Kenya's Ol Pejeta Conservancy in 2018. Thenorthernwhite rhinooncewanderedthrough eastand centralAfrica but, aswith otherrhinospecies, itsnumbersplummeteddue to heavy poaching. Northern white rhinos - now the world'smost endangered mammal - have hairier ears and tails, areshorter and stockier and have different genes than their southerncousins. Scientists first harvested eggs from the females a yearago, as part of a team from the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, KenyaWildlife Service, Italian-based Avantea Lab.

Woman's earrings foundafter 20 years by worker

Scientists harvest eggsfrom white rhino

Cop gets stuck inhandcuffs in training

In an incident that would not seem out of place in a slapstickcomedy, a police officer got stuck in handcuffs while showing

new recruits how to use them. The incident occurred in the UKwhen the Northamptonshire Police officer was demonstrating theuse of the hinged handcuffs, reports the BBC. Scott Renwick, acore training sergeant with Northamptonshire Police, had to callthe fire service after getting trapped in the faulty pair of handcuffs,according to Birmingham Live. He was forced to walk to the firestation, where firefighters used pedal cutters to free him. Thetraining sergeant thankedNorthamptonshire Fire andRescue Service for rescuinghim from the cuffs and latertweeted a picture. "Well thatwasn't a good start to theday. Thanks to@northantsfire for cutting meout of some broken cuffs," hewrote in the microbloggingplatform while sharing animage of the handcuffs. Thefire department also tweetedabout the incident - whichhas become a source ofamusement from Mr Renwick's colleagues as well as Twitterusers. "Hope you are not too traumatised and received a traumateddy for being so brave," one Twitter user said in jest.

Narayani velyamma* had lost her gold earring in a paddyfield outside her home 20 years ago. She lived in

Edampooradi in Bedadka panchayat of Kerala's Kasargoddistrict, and had bought it after giving away three paras ofpaddy (one para is roughly equivalent to eight kilos) manydecades ago. She searched high and low, but it was not to befound. However, luck, or the work of women farming in thefield 20 years later, saw the elderly lady get back her earring,now worth ten times its value in the year 2000. "A few women- workers under theMahatma GandhiNational RuralEmployment GuaranteeAct (MGNREGA)scheme - wereploughing the fields aspart of the SubikshaKeralam project. That'swhen one of themcalled Baby unearthedthe earring. It wascovered in mud butthey realised it was gold. One of the women with Babyhappened to be Narayani's daughter Malini. She recognisedthe earring as the one her mother had lost," said an official. In2000, when she lost it, gold was priced at Rs 4,400 asovereign. Today, it is valued at Rs 40,000.

Greenland ice sheet lost1m tn of ice per minute

NEW

S

MostRead T

he Greenland ice sheet lost a record amount of ice in 2019,equivalent to a million tonnes per minute across the year,

satellite data shows. The climate crisis is heating the Arctic atdouble the rate in lower latitudes, and the ice cap is the biggestsingle contributor to sea level rise, which already imperils coastsaround the world. The ice sheet shrank by 532bn tonnes last yearas its surface melted and glaciers fell into the ocean and wouldhave filled seven Olympic-sized swimming pools per second. Thesatellite data has been collected since 2003. The 2019 loss wasdouble the annualaverage since then of255bn tonnes.Almost that amountwas lost in July 2019alone. Scientistsknew that ice lossfrom Greenland hadbeen acceleratingfast in recentdecades and thatthere had been highrates of melting in2019. But thesatellite data accounts for new snowfall and allows the net loss tobe calculated. The researchers said the scale of the 2019 loss wasshocking and was likely to be the biggest in centuries or evenmillennia.

riter-director P Sunil KumarReddy haswrapped up thefilming of hisnew venture,

Valasa, which deals with thehuman exodus of middle

and working class peopleafter the union govern-ment announced lock-down earlier this sum-

mer as a measure to pre-vent COVID-19 outbreak.

“India announced lock-down because of health

emergency and the middleand working class who havebeen living in the urbanareas doing low wage dailyworks suffered, losing theirlivelihood for monthstogether. Resultantly, theystarted migrating to theirnative places on foot, sinceall types of transport wasbanned. Valasa has takenthis social theme and basedon the real experiences ofthe people who have under-taken this human exodus inthe lockdown period, we’ve

narrated a real story,” saidthe makers on Friday.

Produced by YakkaliRavindra Babu underSravya films in associationwith Kalakar Productions,the film, with music byPravin Immadi, featuresMonaj Nandam and VinayMahadev, while Tanusha,Tulasi Ram, Manisha, FMBabai, SamudramVenkatesh, Nalla Sreenu,Mallika, Chinnari, Sajid,Raman and Vasu haveplayed supporting roles.

Sunil Kumar Reddy’s next on thehuman exodus due to COVID-19

ctor Allu Sirish isall set to return toshooting in a fewweeks.

Sirish shared aboomerang video

of his make-up trials onInstagram. In the clip, he sitsbefore a large mirror andgets his make-up done.

“Preparing to shoot in afew weeks from now #make-uptrials,” Sirish wrote on theimage.

However, he did not sharedetails about the shoot.Sirish,who made his acting debutin 2013 with the filmGouravam,was lastseen onscreenin theTelugufilmABCD:AmericanBornConfusedDesi.Directedby

Sanjeev Reddy, the film alsostars Rukshar Dhillon.

The actor has been vocalfor local, and recently saidthat there is a lot of stigmaassociated with the idea ofendorsing Made In Indiaproducts. He feels everyoneneeds to work towardsbreaking the perception.

In sync with his thoughts,the actor sent hampers withlocal made products onIndependence Day to hiscelebrity friends. He hassent the hamper to RamCharan, LakshmiManchu, RanaDaggubati, AkhilAkkineni, Varun Tej,Rakulpreet Singh andSaina Nehwa amongstothers.

y nowit’sestab-lishedthatRun

Raja Run direc-tor Sujeeth Sign isout of Lucifer remakeafter his changes did-n’t amaze MegastarChiranjeevi. We’venow learnt that theMegastar has assignedthe remake task to hisbrother-figure VVVinayak. Both theactor-director duo in

the past collaborated forsuper hits like Tagore and

Khaidi No 150, both ofwhich incidentally wereremakes of Tamil hitsRamana and Kaththi respec-tively.

A source confirms us thatVinayak and a team of writ-ers are working on tailoringthe Malayalam script to suit

Chiranjeevi image. Plus, itseems the actor met Vinayakrecently and enquired aboutthe script developments,especially the political anglethe film will take. “In anothermonth or two, Vinayak willbe ready with the final draft.He is trying to give it a com-plete new spin,” adds thesource.

Released last March, theoriginal, directed by actor-turned-director PrithvirajSukumaran, told the story ofthe political vacuum thatarises when the leader of theruling party breathes his last.In the inevitable power suc-cession squabble, his adoptedson, the mysterious Stephen(played by Mohanlal), stepsin and faces challenges in allspheres of life. NV Prasad isattached to the Telugu ver-sion as a producer alongsideKonidela ProductionCompany.

— NG

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Vijayawada Saturday August 22 2020tollywood

Chiru assignsLucifer remake

to Vinayak

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eviating himselffrom the familygenre, SatishVegesna will bemaking his next asa youthful enter-

tainer, featuring MeghamshSrihari and Sameer Vegesna(introducing). “The projectsthat you thought of makingnext had to be put on thebackburner due to the pan-demic. So, in the meanwhile,I wanted to try my hand at ayouthful entertainer and feltMeghamsh and Sameer arethe best bet to shoulder thestory. Plus, I’ve been brandedas someone who makesfamilial films. So I felt ayoung film would be arefreshing change for me as afilmmaker,” he tells us.

He continues, “The filmwill be a confusion comedybetween two couples. Whilethe first half, set inVisakhapatnam, will have alot of young at heart flavor,the second half, to unfold ina picturesque village, willfocus on family ties and emo-tions. The film will have amuhurat ceremony onDasara and we will go tofloors immediately afterward.The idea is to wrap it up in50-55 working days.”

Vegesna admits to be

under no pressure to make itcount as he is launching hisson Sameer as a lead with thefilm. “I’m seeing Sameer justas a character, so the questionof pressure doesn’t arise.Also, he won’t be ticking anyhero boxes as such, as thefilm is the story of boys-next-door. He honed his actingskills under the late DevadasKanakala and later gainedpractical experience of film-making by assisting the direc-tion department of my earlierfilms, Srinivasa Kalyanamand Entha ManchiVaadavuraa. He is good to go as a lead,” the directornotes, smiling.

Speaking about SrinivasaKalyanam and Entha ManchiVaadavuraa, both the filmsfailed to cast a spell on theaudiences like ShatamanamBhavathi. He reflects, “Asfilmmakers, we believe in astory and proceed aboutdirecting it. Sometimes itconnects to the audience andat times, it won’t. SrinivasaKalyanam couldn’t resonatewith youth but the Hindidubbed version crossed 120million views on YouTube.Generally, North audiencesdon’t encourage dubbed filmsdevoid of action sequencesbut Srinivasa Kalyanam was a

major draw with them. Inthe comments section, peoplesuggested north filmmakersto learn from south filmmak-ers on how to tell stories thatreflect our culture. A majori-ty of them also opined that itwas the right film for ourtimes.”

He somewhere feels theenormous success ofShatamanam Bhavathi andthe national recognitionmade him to deem makingsuch movies rather than delv-ing into other genres.Resultantly, he points out, hemade a film on marriage(Srinivasa Kalyanam) andanother one in which thelead actor, an orphan,assumes multiple identities tobond with unrelated peopleto give them hope in theirmost desperate times (EnthaManchi Vaadavuraa). “Guess,the people felt I was lecturingthem,” he laughs wide,adding that he wants to tryout all genres as he comesfrom a writing backgroundand has stories belongingto diverse genres.“This time around,I felt the need totarget youthwith emphasison entertain-ment.”

The director reminds usthat he started his directingcareer-after working as awriter with the great EVVSatyanarayana for films likeThotti Gang, Kithakithalu,Attili Sattibabu and BenduApparao — with a comedyentertainer Dongala Bandi.“Before Gabbar Singh (hepenned the film’s screenplayalong with Ramesh Reddy), Iwas familiar as a comedywriter in the industry circles.My next will possess all I’velearned from EVV garu. As Iwas branching out to direc-tion, I remember EVV garutelling me, ‘Cinema shouldn’tbe differentiated as a small-budgeted one or big-budget-ed one. Once a guy purchasesa ticket and enters the cinemahall, he will look at whatunfolds on the big screen. Ifhe likes it, the small film willbe a big one. It is the reasonwhy I was striking a balancebetween making AlludaMajaka and Aame,” Vegesna

ends.

I WANT TO TRYALL GENRES ASA DIRECTOR: SV

The filmmaker will bemaking his next as ayouthful entertainer,featuring Meghamsh

Srihari and SameerVegesna (introducing),

finds NAGARAJGOUD

D

Satis

h Ve

gesn

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ork hard and chillharder is the mantraactress Ileana D’Cruz follows.

Ileana, who keepsentertaining her

fans and followers with herworkout pictures andvideos on social media,took to Instagram, andshared a stunning pictureof her toned legs. Thebackdrop has a view of thesky. She captioned the pic-ture,“Work

hard, chill harder.”The actress recently

drew a hilarious compari-son between expectationand reality in her post.

She shared a video and apicture. The video is takenfrom a song featuring theactress, where she is seendancing in a thigh high slitdress. The second is a pic-ture in which Ileana lies inthe bed and yawns.

“Weekend mood:Expectations vs Reality,”she wrote.

The actress, who some-time back made her Telugucomeback with Ravi Teja-starrer box-office turkeyAmar Akbar Anthony, willnext be seen in AjayDevgn’s productiontitled The Big Bull, afilm reportedly basedon India’s biggestsecurities scam of

1992. The film alsostars Abhishek

Bachchan.

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WORK HARD, CHILL HARDER ISILEANA'S MANTRA

Allu Sirish gearsup to shoot in afew weeks

W

ctor Prabhas, who willbe playing Lord Ramain his next withTanhaji: The UnsungWarrior director OmRaut, will be undergo-

ing archery training as a part ofhis prep for the part. “Prabhas isworking on his transformation.He has to attain an archer’sphysique, which is dramaticallydifferent from that of a warrior.We have begun consulting severalexperts. He will also begin learn-ing archery soon,” Raut toldMumbai’s leading tabloid mid-dayearlier this week.

Titled Adipurush, the film is ascreen adaptation of a chapterfrom Indian epic Ramayana andrevolves around the triumph ofgood over evil. In what is a joyousstatement to the legion of Prabhas’fans, Raut added that the only

actor that came to his mind toplay the protagonist was Prabhas.

To be shot in Hindi and Telugusimultaneously and later dubbedinto Tamil, Malayalam, Kannadaand other foreign languages,the film, a 3D action-drama,high on visual effects, willbe a joint productionventure betweenBhushan Kumar,Krishan Kumar, OmRaut, Prasad Sutarand Rajesh Nair.Presently in pre-pro-duction phase, it willhave the camerasrolling next year, witha 2022 big screendebut. According tosome unconfirmedreports, Raut is plan-ning to wrap it up in 70days.

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PRABHAS TO LEARNARCHERY FOR ADIPURUSH