Prime Minister Narendra Modi stands at the entrance of the strategically important all-weather Atal Tunnel after inauguratingit, at Rohtang in Himachal Pradesh on Saturday.

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HYDERABAD, SUNDAY OCTOBER 4, 2020; PAGES 12 `3

HYDERABADWEATHER

Current Weather ConditionsUpdated october 4, 2020 5:00 PM

ALMANAC

TODAY

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6

Trump was rightabout our Covid-19 count

2

India can be globalplayer in many sectors: Goyal

OBTUSE ANGLE

Hear cases on MPs/MLAson day-to-day basis: HCINKESHAF AHMEDn HYDERABAD

The Telangana High Court onSaturday directed subordinatecourts to conduct day to dayhearing of all cases pendingagainst MLA and MPs as perthe Supreme Court directive.

In a notification, it directedthe Metropolitan SessionsJudge at Hyderabad, SpecialJudge for trial of cases againstMPs/MLAs, Court of theSpecial Judge under thePrevention of Corruption Actfor Speedy Trial of Cases ofEmbezzlement of ScholarshipAmounts in Social WelfareDepartment, Principal CBIjudge at Hyderabad andPrincipal ACB judge here to

take up the cases on a day today basis, as directed by theapex court. The matter relatesto a petition filed by BJP leaderAshwini Kumar Upadhyay inthe Supreme Court in 2016.

The Telangana High Courtorder will mean that various

cases pertaining to AP ChiefMinister YS JaganmohanReddy, YSRCP MP V VijayasaiReddy, Telangana Minister PSabita Reddy and several otheraccused in the disproportion-ate assets case of Jagan will betaken up for hearing.

The orders have paved theway for the trial in the dispro-portionate assets case againstJagan by the Special CBI courtat Hyderabad

AP MLA DharmanaPrasada Rao and others arealso facing charges in the case.The case was last heard inFebruary this year.

The High Court decided toextend the physical hearing ofcases in Adilabad, Karimnagar,Khammam, Mahbubnagar,Medak (except in district head-quarters of Sangareddy),Nalgonda, Nizamabad,Rangareddy and WarangalJudicial Districts till November6 following the Standard oper-ating Procedures (SoP).

Rahul, Priyanka meet Hathrasvictims, vow to fight for justicePNS n LUCKNOW/HATHRAS

Congress leaders RahulGandhi and Priyanka GandhiVadra on Saturday eveningmet the family of the Hathrasvictim, declaring they willfight for justice to the Dalitwoman who died after beingallegedly gang-raped.

"We will fight against injus-tice, and fight till justice isdone," Priyanka Gandhi toldreporters after the meetingthat lasted about 45 minutes.

Rahul Gandhi said no powercan stifle the voice of the fam-ily.

Uttar Pradesh authoritieshad scuttled an earlier attemptby the two leaders to travel toHathras, detaining them andseveral party workers inGreater Noida outside Delhion Thursday.

Theatre owners ready to go with half capacityNAVEENA GHANATE n HYDERABAD

Representatives of theTelangana Theaters Associationhave said that, though the gov-ernment has allowed reopeningof cinema halls, the audiencewere not so keen to come to the-aters.

Members of the TelanganaTheater Owners Association,who met at Sudarshan Theaterin Hyderabad on Saturday, saidthat they would be happy if even

half the seats were filled. The Central Government

has allowed cinema theaters toopen from the 15th of thismonth, as part of Unlock 5measures, though they need to

ensure social distance with only50 per cent of the audience.

Vijayendra Reddy, presidentof the association, said that theCentre had given permission toopen theaters and hoped that

the Telangana governmentwould follow suit. He said thatthe association had decided toopen theaters. He urged thegovernment to allow them tocollect parking fees and hopedthat the government wouldcooperate "in all possible ways".

The delegates made it clearthat the movie theater industrywould not survive if the stategovernment subsidised it.Speaking to media persons inHyderabad, the union represen-tatives expressed their displea-

sure at hefty power bills for cin-ema theaters. They urged thegovernment to give power tar-iff subsidy for the lockdownperiod.

Reddy said that all precau-tions would be taken to ensurethat the audience does not getinfected. Steps would be takento ensure that members of theaudience do not touch the tick-ets. Theatre owners would becareful to prevent the membersof the audience from congregat-ing during the break.

Centre speaking 99% lies,TRS will win MLC polls: CMPNS n HYDERABAD

Going ballistic against theCentre, Chief Minister KChandrasekhar Rao is under-stood to have observed onSaturday that the BJP-led Uniongovernment "is speaking99 percent lies".

"The Centre says oneand does another," KCRcommented, while slam-ming it for not helpingTS, though the TRS hadextended its supportto GST and demon-etization bills.

The ChiefMinister madethese commentsat meeting hehad at Pragati

Bhavan with the Ministers,MPs, MLAs and MLCs fromthe districts in which electionswould he held for twoGraduates' constituencies of thestate Legislative Council—N a l g o n d a - K h a m m a m -

Warangal and Hyderabad-R a n g a r e d d y -Mahabubnagar.

Sources said KCR toldhis party men that,though he had received

calls from several 'bigwigs' seeking TRS'

support to farmBills in

Parliament,he had cho-sen tooppose themeasures as

well as the Electricity Bill. "TheCentre had brought the newElectricity Bill only to helpAdani Power projects, but notfor the sake of people," hereportedly commented. KCR isexpected to have a meeting withKarimnagar, Adilabad,Nizamabad, Medak MLAs aswell as MLCs on Monday.

'TRS sure to win Graduates'MLC seats'

Armed with the findings ofan internal survey, the TRSsupremo exuded confidencethat the pink party would reg-ister handsome victories in theupcoming elections to twoGraduates' constituencies of theState Legislative Council.

PNS n HYDERABAD

In view of the COVID-19 pan-demic, the TelanganaGovernment has taken a deci-sion to conduct a special examfor the benefit of those candi-dates who had tested COVID-19 positive during August 17 toSeptember 14 and hence couldnot take the TS EAMCET-2020 for Engineering stream.

The JNTUH authorities stat-ed:"This is a one-time chancegiven to candidates who testedCOVID-19 positive during thesaid period and could notattend the exam. Candidates

who fall in the above categorymust submit the filled-inUndertaking Form COVID-19Positive Candidates, availableon the official website, alongwith the COVID-19 Positivereport, corresponding COVID-19 Negative report, and a copyof candidate's hall ticket to theEmail id:convenertseam-cet2020a@jntuh.ac.in or con-venertseamcet2020b@jntuh.ac.in by October 5."

The date, time and examvenue of this special session forEngineering stream will beintimated in due course oftime.

Special Eamcet forCovid-hit students

DURGA PRASAD SUNKUn HYDERABAD

Around 25 police officers, whohad been suspended due totheir alleged links with slaingangster Nayeem, have beengiven clean chit in the sensa-tional 2016 'encounter' case inwhich a total of 173 personswere charge-sheeted. Therewas not a single conviction inthe case, response to a queryraised by the Forum for GoodGovernance under the Right toInformation (RTI) Act hasrevealed.

The Forum has nowdemanded a CBI enquiry intothe case.

It may be mentioned herethat a Special Investigation

Team (SIT) was formed toinvestigate the ramifications ofthe Nayeem case in which thenames of several politiciansand police officials, besidesthose of gansters, figured. It

was then alleged that Nayeemhad left behind a Rs 4,000 crempire, spread over Telanganaand Bengaluru, with the namesof several 'big fish' mentionedin his diary.

In retrospect, the life ofgangster MohammedNayeemuddin (a naxalite whohad surrendered), to someextent, resembles that of VikasDubey, who died in a recent'encounter' with the Uttar

Pradesh police. Several human rights activist

were suspicious that the twogansters were pawns at thehands of their political masters,who dumped them after hav-ing used them to their ownadvantage or to settle scoreswith their rivals.

With the 'encounter' deathsof both the gangsters, humanrights activists decried that agood opportunity to expose thepolice-politician-criminalnexus has been lost.

This fact has now been rein-forced by the contents of theRTI reply from Y. Nagi Reddy,Inspector General of Police,Special Investigation T,Hyderabad.

25 police officials let off in Nayeem case

Sushant death‘a case ofsuicide': AIIMS PNS n NEW DELHI

The AIIMS' medical boardhas ruled out murder in thedeath of actor Sushant SinghRajput, terming it "a case ofhanging and death by sui-cide," the premier institute'sforensic chief Dr SudhirGupta said on Saturday.

The TS HC ordermeans thatvarious casespertaining toYS Jagan andseveral otheraccused will betaken up forhearing

n RTI query yields shocking infoabout sensational 2016 case

n Deadly combo of politicians,gangsters and cops'

n Forum for Good Governancedemands CBI probe now

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Telangana State PrisonsDepartment is going to releaseas many as 141 prisoners under‘special remissi-on’ on the occa-sion of Gandhi Jayanthi.According to sour-ces, 14 pris-oners from Chanchalguda, 19from Charlapally, 26 fromOpen Air Jail, 20 fromWomen’s Prison, 39 fromWarangal, three from Sang-areddy, six from Karimnagar, 7from Nizamabad, 4 fromKham-mam, one each fromNalgonda, and Miryalagudaprisons have been released.

141 prisoners to be freed to markGandhi Jayanthi

Hyd zoo toreopen fromOctober 6PNS n HYDERABAD

The Nehru Zoological Park,which has remained closedsince March 15 due toCovid-19 and subsequentlockdown, will reopen forvisitors from October 6.

Accordingly, the zoo hascome up with measures toensure the safety of visitors,zoo employees, and the ani-mals. It is mandatory for allvisitors to wear face masksand undergo thermalscreening. Any visitor withhigh temperature will notbe permitted to enter thezoo premises, the zooauthorities said in a pressrelease.

The Centre hasallowed theatersto open from the15th of this month,as part of Unlock 5measures

Yogi orders CBI probe into Hathras case LUCKNOW: Uttar Pradesh ChiefMinister Yogi Adityanath onSaturday recommended a CBIprobe into the death of a 19-year-old Dalit woman who wasallegedly gangraped in Hathras,officials said. The development

comes within hours of AdditionalChief Secretary (Home) AwanishAwasthi and Director General ofPolice H C Awasthi meeting thevictim's family at her home.

12

A TRENDSETTERIN THE

REAL SENSE

2

22 2

2

2

The Finance Ministry on Saturday said September has exhibitedcredible signs of economic growth towards normalcy and the

government is not averse to taking any furthermeasures to ameliorate the suffering of people. Itsaid during the last six months of Covid-19 crisis,while pushing the fiscal stimulus and packages toboost recovery of the economy it has taken everypossible measure to address the concerns of allstakeholders and citizens and has exte-ndedhelp on both the demand and supply side tobring the economy back on track.

SEPT DATA SHOWING CREDIBLESIGNS OF ECO GROWTH: FINMIN

GRAND ALLIANCE ANNOUNCESTEJASHWI AS ITS CM FACE IN BIHAR

The Indo-American Chamber of Commerce (IACC) has presented thelifetime achievement award to business icon Ratan Tata as part of its

recent global leadership awards. The IACCleadership bestowed the IACC Lifetime and GlobalExcellence Awards to Tata on Friday at a closed-door meeting, owing to the ongoing Covid-19crisis, according to a statement. Tata, who grew therevenues for India's largest conglomerate 'TheTata Group' to nearly USD 100 billion by 2011-12, remains an influential industrialist, philant-hropist and humanitarian to the day, IACC said.

US President Donald Trump was shifted to amilitary hospital where he was givenRemdesivir therapy following treatment withan experimental drug after testing positive forCovid-19, a development that upended hiselection campaign just weeks before thepresidential polls. Trump, 74, and his wifeFirst Lady Melania Trump, 50, testedpositive for Covid-19 on Friday."Going well, I think! Thank you to all.LOVE!!! Trump tweeted on Saturday.

TRUMP ‘DOING WELL’, UNDERGOINGREMDESIVIR THERAPY AT HOSPITAL

The opposition Grand Alliance in Bihar sought to steal a march overthe ruling NDA on Saturday when it announced its seat-sharing

formula as part of which the RJD, spearheadingthe coalition, will contest on 144 seats.Thecoalition members also endorsed RJDs TejashwiYadav as its face though a minor constituent ofthe multi-party formation announced a suddenexit alleging betrayal. Yadav announced thenumber of seats assigned to theCongress, the CPI(ML), the CPI(M)and the CPI.

IACC PRESENTS LIFETIMEACHIEVEMENT AWARD TO RATAN TATA

Printed and published by B Krishna Prasad for and on behalf of CMYK Printech Ltd., Phone: 040-23322341, Hyderabad Office: F-502, Diamond Block, Lumbini Rockdale, Somajiguda, Hyderabad - 500 082. Telangana. Printed at Sree Seshasai Enterprises, Plot No.19, IDA Balanagar , Hyderbad-500037, Medchal -Malkajgiri District, Telangana. Chief Editor: Chandan Mitra. Resident Editor: B Krishna Prasad, AIR SURCHARGE of Rs 2.00.

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(IN HYDERABAD)

US President DonaldTrump, now in a mili-tary hospital for treat-

ment of Covid-19, causedresentment when he bracket-ed India with Russia andChina for not giving a straightcount of coronavirus deaths.While his remarks on the pan-demic were never taken seri-ously, a gap undeniably existsbetween reality and the gov-ernment-curated informationabout infections and deaths.

The Lancet, in an editorial,urged Indian leaders to respectscientific evidence and notprovide false optimism amidthe raging crisis. It alsoreferred to Indian Council of

Medical Research DirectorGeneral Balram Bhargava'sletter to medical institutions inJuly asking them to fast- trackall approvals for clinical trialsto enable launching of thevaccine by August 15.

Western scientists have beensceptical from the beginning ofthe figures handed out by theIndian medical establishment,given the country's poor healthinfrastructure and high popu-lation. India, they opined,would soon go the US way.And it did with a death tolltouching one lakh and theinfections exceeding 63 lakhs.

Our own institutions havethemselves felt unconvinced.The Telangana High Courtexpressed doubts on the deathcount when the administrationput the number of fatalitiesbetween eight and 10 a daysince March. The Court calledfor a detailed report and

warned that the ChiefSecretary would be summonedif the data was wrong.

At another level, theTelangana government waslocked in a long tussle overCovid-19 testing with theHealth Ministry and ICMR.They have been relentlesslypressing the State to step uptesting. It took an amusingtwist last week when ICMR'sdocuments reportedly showedthat Telangana conducted awhopping 2.62 lakh tests onSeptember 24. The Telangana

government was embarrassedas it had conducted only57,621 tests.

Similarly, ICMR's numbersfor Andhra Pradesh (1.87 lakhtests) were at variance withthose of the State government(69,429 tests) for the same day.Something is badly amissbecause tests have to be report-ed to the ICMR and an OTPgenerated every time the labconducts the test.

Western perspectives haveperhaps been shaped by thenegative consequences of the

implementation of the lock-down in March and spread ofthe virus during the unlockphases. The strict implemen-tation of the lockdown washailed until it triggered ahumanitarian crisis when mil-lions of migrant workerstrekked countless miles in thesummer heat to return to their

villages.Rural areas, largely

untouched initially, beganreporting a spurt in Covid-19cases. This forced patients torush back to towns and citiesin search of hospitals. Analystsrightly concluded that in theabsence of optimum testing,the lockdown would only post-pone the peak and not bringthe pandemic under control asin Europe.

Nevertheless, the postpone-ment had a highly positive out-come. It facilitated researchersto better understand thepathogenesis of the disease. Inturn, this helped in findingeffective treatment protocols,improving the recovery rate,and reducing the death toll.

At the end of the day, Indiahas the highest daily rise innew cases and deaths. It lagsbehind the US only in respectof the overall number of cases

(75 lakhs vs 64 lakhs) andcumulative deaths (2.12 lakhvs 1 lakh). Telangana accountsfor about 1.95 lakh cases and2,220 deaths, while the corre-sponding figures for Andhraare 7 lakh cases and over6,750 deaths.

Unlocking the economy hascaused a sense of smugness inhealth administrators and thepolitical executive. It has alsoengendered carelessnessamong people, going by thewidespread reluctance to wearface masks and maintain phys-ical distancing.

The latest sero survey con-ducted by the ICMR-NationalInstitute of Nutrition inJangaon, Kamareddy andNalgonda districts shows thata large unaffected populationin Telangana is still suscepti-ble to SARS CoV-2 infection.

At the national level, the sec-ond sero-survey by the ICMR

showed that around 7 percent of India's adult populationmay have been exposed to thecoronavirus. This representsnearly a ten-fold jump in thenumbers from the first sero-survey, when only 0.73 percent of adults - or about 6.4million - were likely to havebeen infected, against 62 mil-lion now.

Campaigning for electionsto the Dubbak Assembly andto three Legislative Councilseats is sure to make a mock-ery of social distancing norms.Thousands of people withoutmasks are flocking the recent-ly inaugurated cable-stayedbridge across DurgamCheruvu, which has turnedinto a tourist attraction.

The coronavirus pandemichas not been conquered. Untila vaccine is mass-producedand hits the market, we cannotafford to let our guard down.

S NAGESH KUMARFormer Resident Editor,

The Hindu

Western scientists have been sceptical from

the beginning of the figures handed out by

the Indian medical establishment, given the

country's poor health infrastructure and high

population. India, they opined, would soon

go the US way

‘ALL ANDSUNDRY’

TRUMP WAS RIGHT ABOUT OUR COVID-19 COUNT

PNS n HYDERABAD

Though not to the extent ofRiver Ganges, pollution is like-ly to cause disaster to RiverGodavari. Even thoughGodavari is considered a sacredriver after Ganges, the river hasbeen polluted and is not suit-able for even taking bath insome of the areas. Many feelthat taking bath in Godavari issacred and they can get rid oftheir sins after taking a holy dip

The drainage water fromBasara, Dharmapuri,Mancherial, Ramagundam,Manthani and Bhadrachalam isbeing released into the riverwithout processing. In spite ofcautioning by Chief Minister KChandrashekhar Rao againstreleasing untreated drainagewater into the river and sugges-tion to set up sewerage treat-ment plant, there was no let upin the situation.

The state government hasbeen indulging in reversepumping of river waterthrough lift irrigation scheme.Ramagundam MunicipalCorporation releases 32 millionlitres of drainage water intoGodavari River without treat-

ing it. The 4MLD capacitysewerage treatment plant builton the outskirts ofRamagundam went out oforder.

Similarly, the Malkapur STPis supposed to treat 14 MLDsewer water. But it also wentout of order. The constructionof Sundilla STP being builtwith a capacity to treat 14 MLDof sewer water got stalled in thehalf way. Funds allotted for theproject have gone waste. In fact,18 million litres of waste watergenerated by the Ramagundamcity, plastic waste and otherhazardous substances are beingreleased into the river.

The proposal to build 21MLD STP in NTPC at a cost of

Rs 90 crore did not progressbeyond the proposal stage.The Malkapur sewerage treat-ment plant is facing threat ofinundation due to reversepumping of water fromKaleswaram LI scheme.Therefore, it is proposed tobuild another plant at a cost ofRs 15.80 crore. The proposalsalso did not progress.

Ramagundam municipalcommissioner P Uday Kumarsaid that tender process isunderway for construction of8 MLD STP in Ramagundamand 21 MLD plant on the out-skirts of Malkapur. Daily 11tonnes of wet and dry garbageis being disposed of in the riverbehind Government Degree

College here. The garbage isbeing generated by 64 residen-tial colonies polluting the river.

Barring the temple town ofBhadrachalam, other villages inBhadrachalam mandal weremerged with Andhra. In fact,lands belonging toBhadrachalam temple are alsogeographically located in AP.Therefore, there is no suitablesite for dumping yard in thetemple town. Efforts to set upa dumping yard in sarapakapanchayat of Burgampahadmandal met with no result asresidents of Sarapaka vehe-mently opposed the dumpingyard.

Pinapaka MLA Rega KantaRao opposed the proposal to

locate dumping yard inSarapaka panchayat at theBurgampahad Mandal PrajaParishad meeting. Therefore,Bhadrachalam panchayat isdumping the garbage in theriver. When Kothagudemincharge executive engineer BSankar Babu of the pollutioncontrol board was approachedfor his clarification, he said thatsuitable action would be takenagainst Bhadrachalam villagepanchayat after inspection.

As if it is not enough,Pioneer Liquor Factory inDharmabad in Nanded districtof Maharashtra, borderingTelangana, used to release thefactory waste into the riverwhen the government liftsBhabli project gates. The 3MLD STP at Mancherial is outof order. Therefore thedrainage water is reaching theriver through drainage canals.Dharmapuri town also lets itssewerage water into the river.Proposals to set up a STP at acost of Rs 18 lakh are still pend-ing. Similarly, drainage waterfrom Peddapalli, Mandhani,Bhadrachalam towns is direct-ly being released intot he riverwithout treating it at all.

Godavari River reeking of pollutants State's daily Coronaviruscount drops below 2,000PNS n HYDERABAD

The daily Covid-19 count inTelangana dropped below2,000 on Saturday while therecovery rate crossed 85 percent. The state reported 1,718new cases, taking the tally to1,97,327. This is the first timein several weeks that the caseshave dropped below 2,000 onweekdays. Every weekend thestate reports less than 2,000cases due to fewer tests. Morerecoveries were recorded thanthe new positive cases duringthe last 24 hours. As many as2,002 recovered from the infec-tion, taking the total numberof recoveries so far to 1,67,846.The state's recovery rateimproved to 85.05 per centagainst the national average of83.8 per cent. Eight more suc-cumbed to the virus during thelast 24 hours, pushing thedeath toll to 1,153. The fatali-ty rate stands at 0.58 per centagainst the national average of1.6 per cent.

Officials said the percentageof death due to Covid-19 was44.96 while the remaining55.04 had co-morbidities. Thestate now has 28,328 activecases including 23,224, who arein home/institutional isola-tion. Of the fresh cases, 285were recorded in GreaterHyderabad. For the sixth dayin a week, the daily countdropped to below 300 in the

state capital. Rangareddy dis-trict recorded second highestnumber of cases at 129 fol-lowed by Medchal Malkajgiri(115), Karimnagar (105),Nalgonda (103), Khammam(79), Siddipet (76) andSuryapet (60). During the last24 hours, 49,084 tests wereconducted. With this thecumulative numbers have goneup to 31,53,626.

Seventeen government-runlaboratories, 44 private labora-tories and 1,076 Rapid Antigentest centres are conductingthe tests. According to a mediabulletin from the office of thedirector of public health andfamily welfare, out of 49,084samples tested during the last24 hours, 21,597 were prima-ry and 5,890 were secondary.Samples tested per millionpopulation ratio improved fur-ther to 84,729. The daily test-ing target for the state is 5,600per day as per the World

Health Organisation (WHO)benchmark of 140 per millionper day. Out of 1,97,327 totalpositive cases so far, 70 per cent(1,38,129) were asymptomaticwhile the remaining 30 percent (59,198) were sympto-matic.

The data also shows that64.13 per cent of those testedpositive are in the age group of21-50 years while 22.76 areabove 51 years of age.

Those below 20 years are13.13 per cent. Officials said64.28 per cent of those testedpositive were male while theremaining 38.72 per cent werefemale. Officials said only 25per cent of the beds in govern-ment-run Covid hospitals areoccupied. A total of 62 govern-ment hospitals have 8,868beds, of which 6,703 arevacant. A total of 231 privatehospitals treating Covidpatients have 9,267 beds, ofwhich 6,328 are vacant.

Drainage waterfrom Basara,Dharmapuri,Ramagundam,Manthani andBhadrachalam isbeing released intothe river withoutprocessing

Continued from Page 1

Jaw-dropping detailsemerged from the RTI reply,which surprisingly states thatonly a sum of Rs 3.74 crore wasrecovered and 173 charge-sheets were filed, though a totalof 243 cases were registeredagainst Nayeem. Not one ofNayeem's victims was compen-sated. All the police officers,against whom there were alle-gations, were let off and noneof them was named as accusedin the SIT's list.

The RTI reply has raisedsome questions. For instance,two counting machines werereportedly used to countmoney that recovered fromNayeem's house. For countingRs3.74 crore, it takes only anhour at the most. So, where isneed for two countingmachines?

"We suspect that Rs 100 ofcrore was recovered and notaccounted for," saidPadmanabhan Reddy, secre-tary, Forum for GoodGovernance.

Reddy added that around240 cases were registered afterthe death of Nayeem. It wasstated that in all 173 charge-

sheets were filed. Yet, even afterfour years, not a single case hasbeen brought to its logical

conclusion. Besides, 25 policepersonnel, from constable tosuperintendent of police, were

said to have been associatedwith Nayeem in his criminalactivities.

Yet, no action has beentaken against the police officerswho were booked.

Alleging that several vitalpieces of evidence were beingsuppressed and police officersas well as politicians who hadcolluded with Nayeem andamassed wealth had been letoff the hook, Reddy observed:"It is a case of a deadly combi-nation of police, politicians andgangster coming together andcommitting atrocities on inno-cent people, their landsgrabbed; and, if there was anyresistance from people, theywere murdered. Unless theinvestigation is completed fair-ly and quickly without leavingany person involved in thecriminal activities of the slaingangster, however big he maybe, such nexus between crim-inals, politicians and policewould continue and the com-mon man will lose faith in thedemocratic system of the gov-ernment, leading to anarchy."

Reddy and urged TelanganaGovernor TamilisaiSoundararajan to direct CBIprobe to investigate the case.

25 police officials let off in Nayeem case

Continued from Page 1

All the released prisonersshould sign in the local policestation every two months. Inaddition to that, the prisonershave to give an affidavit stat-ing that they did not violatethe remission conditions.

Continued from Page 1

The court, in a separatenotification, said it extendsthe present practice of virtu-al and physical hearing ofcases till November 6.

The HC has also asked theunit heads of metropolitansessions judge and CBI courtsat Hyderabad to continuethe present practice of virtu-al hearing till November6,2020 this year.

Continued from Page 1

In its conclusive medico-legal opinion to the CBI, thesix-member team dismissedthe claims of "poisoning andstrangling", with Dr Guptasaying the panel did not findany trace of poison and drugsin the viscera. "It is a case ofhanging and death by suicide.We have submitted our con-clusive report to the CBI," DrGupta, who is also the chair-man of the forensic medicalboard, said.

There was no injury on thebody other than that of hang-ing. Also, there was no markof struggle and scuffle.

The doctors' panel did notfind any trace of poison anddrugs in the viscera, Dr Guptatold PTI, but refused todivulge any further detailsstating the case is subjudice.

Rajput, 34, who made hissilver screen debut in the crit-ically acclaimed 'Kai Po Che'seven years ago, was founddead in his apartment inMumbai on June 14.

Rahul, Priyanka meet Hathrasvictims, vow to fight for justiceContinued from Page 1

On Saturday, the Congressstaged another demonstrationat the Delhi-Noida border,where Congress workers scuf-fled with police and wereallegedly lathi-charged.

When a delegation ofCongress MPs and other lead-ers reached the barricades,the Noida police said theywill allow only five party rep-resentatives to meet the fami-ly at their village in Hathras,

about 150 km away.The 19-year-old woman was

allegedly gang-raped onSeptember 14 in an assault byfour men that left her critical-

ly injured. She died at a Delhihospital last Tuesday.

Villagers gathered outside asthe Congress leaders enteredthe family's home.

Yogi orders CBI probe into Hathras case Continued from Page 1

"Chief Minister Yogi Adityanathhas ordered that a probe shouldbe done by the CBI into thecomplete Hathras case," Yogi's

office tweeted.Reacting to the

announcement, the familymembers of the victim said theywant a Supreme Court-monitored inquiry.

Centrespeaking 99%lies, TRS...Continued from Page 1

He asked them to ensure theparty's victory in these elec-tions at any cost. He warnedthem against taking the pollseasy.

KCR wanted his party mento give a befitting answer todetractors who had beenspreading canards that govern-ment employees and youthwere against the TRS.

Public representativesbelonging to the party mustparticipate actively in theenrolment of graduate voters;hence, the focus should be onyouth who had completedtheir degree after 2014.

The Chief Minister men-tioned that a survey done intwo Graduates' constituencieshad pointed to clear victoriesfor TRS. Besides, the partywould get favorable results inDubbak and GHMC elec-tions.

At the meeting, KCRsought to know about publicfeedback on the Revenue andMunicipal Acts as well asLRS. Sources said the ChiefMinister asked the Ministers,MPs, MLAs and MLCs toclear people's 'doubts' and'myths' about these measures.

He said the governmentwas thinking of reducingLRS fee further to ensure thatpeople were not burdened.He wanted the party leadersto create awareness amongpeople so that they furnishdetails of their assets to offi-cials for entry into Dharaniwebsite.

Hear cases onMPs/ MLAs onday-to-day...

KCR shielding copsin Nayeem case: CongPNS n HYDERABAD

Former Minister MohammedAli Shabbir has strongly con-demned the StateGovernment for giving cleanchit to 25 police personnelwho allegedly maintainedlinks with Gangster Nayeem.“It is shocking to learn thatthe Special InvestigationTeam (SIT) had given cleanchit to all 25 police personnelwho were earlier accused ofallegedly having links withslain gangster Nayeem. Thoseofficials included two ASPs, 7DSPs, 13 CIs, two HeadConstables and one constable.The State Government shouldclarify as to why the SIT firstnames these officials in thecase and why were given aclean chit,” he demanded.

Quoting different reports,Shabbir Ali said that as manyas 250 cases were registered inconnection with illegal activ-ities of Gangster Nayeem. Hedemanded that the StateGovernment disclose thedetails of the status of thosecases and also explain as towhy investigation was stillpending in more than 25 percent of those cases. The SIThas deposited net cash of Rs2.08 crore and Rs 4.30 lakhalong with 1.944 kg of goldand 2.482 kg of silver in thecourt at Rajendranagar. Landdocuments pertaining to1,015 acres were also deposit-ed in jurisdictional courts invarious cases. The govern-ment should also give detailsof how a gangster accumulat-ed so much of wealth.

141 prisoners to be freed to mark...

PNS n HYDERABAD

Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) ofHyderabad Customs hasdetected gold smuggling onSaturday at GIA. The officialshave recovered about 21 kgsof yellow metal worth Rs 9crores. AIU acting on specif-ic intelligence intercepted thecargo and found the gold par-cel bound to Mumbai.

Customsofficials detectgold smuggling

Sushant death ‘a caseof suicide': AIIMS

HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | OCTOBER 04, 2020 hyderabad 03

IN BRIEFIN BRIEF

The students arefulfilling the dreamof establishment of

FCRI Hyderabad atMulugu by the ChiefMinister of Telangana.The Banarus HinduUniversity entranceexamination for admi-ssion in to M.Sc. Agroforestry is topped by the Venkateshwar Reddyby securing the first rank. All together 23 seats out of which four arefrom the FCRI Hyderabad.Banaras Hindu University is a Central Univ-ersity which is established exactly 100 years before the FCRI establi-shment in 2016. The first batch of students completed their degreerecently and are doing well in all the entrance examination conductedso far. Two students have already got their admission in to Universityof Alabama USA with scholarship and tuition fee waived off.The year2020 admissions will be open from 5th of October for undergraduateand graduate courses in Forestry. The civil services examination 2020is to be attempted on 4th October by our students and advance wish-es to all from the FCRI fraternity.

Apollo Hospitals joint managingdirector Dr Sangita Reddy onSaturday said that the world has

been facing a severe pandemic andafter the Covid-19 crisis the spirit ofthe humanity should be used to builda better world. She was addressingthe 'Thank You Plasma Angels'programme being held by Telangana

Plasma Donors Association, being headed by Gudur Narayana Reddy,to falicitate the plasma donors. Sun Shine Hospital Chairman AVGurava Reddy, and TPDA president Gudur Narayana Reddyparticipated in the programme. About 50 plasma donors have beenfelicitated on this occasion. About 800 donors have donated Plasmathrough TPDA. In her address Sangita Reddy said that the Covid hasbrought out the humanity among the people as they have taken careof others. She said that the Plague has led to renaissance in Europeand people realised the importance of humanity, sharing ofinformation and other virtues. The Covid crisis would also help in thesame way to bring the world together. Citing the comments of LancetEditor, Sangita Reddy said that the Covid-19 has been described asTridemic as it led to three types of epidemics.

FCRI students top BHU All India entrance exam

Plasma donors felicitated

Lieutenant General TSANarayanan, Commandantof Military College of EME,

Secunderabad has beenelected as the 69th ColonelCommandant of Corps ofEME. According to a Defencestatement on Saturday, Lt.Gen. Narayanan wascommissioned into the Corps of EME on December 24, 1982 from theIndian Military Academy, Dehradun. The General Officer has anillustrious career spanning 37 years in which he held variedRegimental, Command, instructional and staff appointments. AsCommandant of MCEME, he has reviewed the training philosophy,paying way for establishing new norms for conduct of online trainingespecially during the current scenario of the COVID-19 pandemic. Thisyear has been a landmark achievement for MCEME, notably winningthe prestigious National awards such as Golden Peacock NationalAward and AICTE Uttkrisht Sansthan Vishwakarma Award. Keeping inline with tradition, the General Officer laid a wreath at the EME WarMemorial, Secunderabad and pledged support to all ranks andveterans alike.

Two senior faculty members ofthe School of Chemistry at theUniversity of Hyderabad (UoH)

have been chosen for the IndianChemical Society Awards. ProfAnunay Samanta will receiveAcharya JC Ghosh MemorialAward and Prof KD Sen will bepresented with Prof Suresh CAmeta Award for the year, 2019 in recognition of their researchcontributions in Chemical Sciences. They will receive these awardsand deliver the endowment lectures at the 57th annual convention ofChemists of the Indian Chemical Society at a later date. The IndianChemical Society (ICS), a premier Scientific Society of India, wasfounded in 1924, as National Forum for the community of chemistsand members of allied disciplines in the country. Sir Prafulla ChandraRay, the doyen of Indian Chemists, was the first President of ICS.

Two UoH faculty chosen for theIndian Chemical Society Awards

Narayanan is 69th Colonel Commandant of EME Corps

Stay determined and youwill win, says Navin MittalNAMRATA SRIVASTAVA n HYDERABAD

The Coronavirus is unsparing.Recently when Navin Mittal,Commissioner, CollegiateEducation and TechnicalEducation was tested positivefor Covid, he kept himselfmotivated by directing hisenergies towards working.

He shares, "I had high feveron September 11, and when Igot tested we found that I wasCorona positive. Myinflammatory mark-ers were a bit con-cerning, thus I hadto be admitted onSeptember 13. Iwas feeling a littlelow when I hadfever, but soon mytemperature was fine andI was feeling alright. Evenwhen I was in hospital, I hadnothing much to do. As mostof my work could be doneonline, I decided I won't stopworking. Also, I didn'tencounter any issues, so I keptcontributing to work."

Talking about his isolation athome, Navin adds, "I cameback home after five days andwas home quarantined there-after. When I had fever myappetite was less. But, other-wise I made sure my foodintake was nutritious. I fol-

lowed the guidelinesgiven to me by thedoctors to the T. Myfamily was a big sup-

port. My wife hadsome symptoms initial-

ly, but she was tested nega-tive."

He adds, "I didn't do yoga orexercise much as well when Iwasn't feeling good. I was feel-ing a little weak when I cameback home from hospital. So,I didn't want to exert my bodytoo much."

The bureaucrats also sharesthat the disease should not bestigmatised. "It's unfortunatethat people are stigmatising aproblem which is killing somany worldwide. I think thatwe all should be very cautiousand make sure that if we get

infected we should take prop-er precautions to make surethat others are not infected dueto us. That is very necessary.Also, I see that people are stillscared of it. As a survivor, Iwould like to share that if youare tested positive, just staydetermined and you will getbetter."

With more and more peoplestepping out for work now,Navin shares that people willhave to stay extra cautious. "Wecan't keep holding up thework. We have to step out ifour work demands our phys-ical presence. However, beextra cautious. Make sure youfollow the three golden rules -maintain social distancing, al-ways have a mask on and keepthe sanitizer close. That wouldhelp you and others a lot."

COVID

WINNER

SPEAKS...

‘Stay cautious if going to theatres'PNS n HYDERABAD

As the theatres and bars in thecountry gear up to open busi-ness from October 15, thehealth experts suggest thatpeople should take extra pre-cautions while going out.

Dr Ramana Prasad, a seniorpulmonologist from the city,shares that these places havehuge potential to spread thevirus.

"The vitality of the virus hasdecreased in the city. However,we have seen an increase in thenumber of asymptomatic infec-tions. With theatres the issue isthat people will be sitting in aclosed, air conditioned roomfor about two-and-a-half hour.That can be dangerous. Even ifone patient, who is asympto-matic is inside the whole pop-ulation will be at risk. I wouldsuggest that people firstly avoidgoing there. But, if they wantto then stay extra cautious andnever remove the mask, evenafter taking their seats."

The specialist is a little more

concerned about people goingto bars however. He adds, "Thebars will be trickier. People gothere to drink, smoke and eat,and you can't wear a maskthere. I think people shouldavoid the place at least for some

more time.While the Telangana gov-

ernment is yet to take a call onopening theatres, the ownersare ready to take every pre-caution possible. VL Sridhar,Vice President, Telangana Film

Chamber Of Commerce,shares "There will be propersanitiser procedure of all themovie-goer. We will checkevery person's temperature. Inaddition, we will make surethat the people have their

masks on all the time and aresanitised even while going out.Before and after each show theseats will be disinfected thor-oughly. I think that should real-ly help. I feel people won't wantto eat in theatres as yet.However, we will make sure ifthey want to carry popcorn orsoft drink, we sanitise thecounters as well."

Cops bust flesh trade racket; 3 organisers held PNS n HYDERABAD

Malakpet Police busted aprostitution racket and rescu-ed two women on Saturday.

The accused persons wereidentified as P Kranthi, 28,and B Bhoge, 28, who col-luded with the main accusedJanardhan. After receiving atip off, police conducted adecoy operation at Flat No102 of Sravana Apartment inDilsukhnagar and appre-hended three organisers.

According to the police,Janardhan took the flat forrent and started the business.He employed Kranthi andBhoge to run the brothelhouse.

The accused used to con-nect to the customer usingsocial media and lure themwith pictures of women. Theyused to collect Rs 2,000 fromeach customer. The accusedused to hire female sex work-ers from West Bengal andbrought them to Dilsukh-nagar by inducing them theycan earn quick buck atHyderabad.

As the theatresand bars gearup to openbusiness fromOctober 15, thehealth expertssuggest thatpeople shouldtake extraprecautionswhile going out

Cops bust fake police profiles scamDURGA PRASAD SUNKUn HYDERABAD

In the recent times the fraudsof using police personnel pic-tures to cheat public by creat-ing fake social media profileshas been a cause of worry inthe Telangana PoliceDepartment. Many of thepolice officers from rank ofAdditional Director General ofPolice to Inspector becamevictims in the last one month.

Perhaps, Nalgonda Policeare the first ones to crack thecase. Nalgonda Police whotook it as a challenge, crackedthe case by arresting a gang offour cyber criminals fromBharatpur, Rajasthan for cheat-ing public impersonatingpolice personnel.

Some of them includeAdditional Director-Generalof Police Women Safety WingSwati Lakra, Deputy InspectorGeneral AV Ranganath hold-ing charge of SP and others.

The arrested persons wereidentified as Mustaqeem Khan,Shahid, Saddam Khan includ-ing a minor from Ketwadamandal in Bharatpur district ofRajasthan.

The probe revealed that theaccused created fake socialmedia accounts of 350 policeofficers including 81 from

Telangana. AV Ranganath said, "The

accused were involved in high-way robberies. Further theystated indulging in OLX fraudsby impersonating as army per-sonnel and cheated publicunder the guise of selling orbuying items and transferringmoney through digital wallets.

As the awareness regarding theOLX frauds has increased theywere trying new ways to cheatthe public and came up withfraud of creating fake profilesof police personnel."

Investigation revealed thatthe accused arranged the Bankaccount and SIM cards on dif-ferent names by paying themRs 3,000.

"Initially the accused creat-ed fake profile of police per-sonnel and sent request to thepeople who are already in thefriends with the original policepersonnel. Later they ask formoney under the pretext ofemergency needs. Once thevictim falls for it and transferthe money, the accused stopsconversation and won't eventake the calls from the victimand switch off his mobile,"Ranganath added.

Further police urged to becautious about such fraudsand take necessary precau-tions.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana Governor DrTamilisai Soundarrajan hasappreciated GCOT for comingforward with a global decla-ration called "ReimaginingIndia for the New WorldOrder". She said she is proudto say that it's a New Swadeshimovement. The governor hasparticipated in the virtualmeeting being conducted byGramodaya Chamber ofCommerce and Technology(GCOT) and delivered heraddress on Saturday.

"I am extremely happy tojoin you all in celebrating the150th Mahatma GandhiJayanthi Utsav, being orga-nized by "GramodayaChamber of Commerce andTechnology" (GCOT). It givesme immense happiness thatGCOT has awarded 150 emi-nent personalities and unsungheroes with "GramodayaBandhu Mitra Puraskar".

The vision, mission, andvarious activities of GCOTreinforce by belief and show-case the power of Alumni of

any institution coming togeth-er for a cause and workingtogether to fulfil the "GramSwarajya" dream of the Fatherof the Nation.

"GCOT's efforts in under-standing various challengesvillages are facing and evolv-ing a model called, "VillageMonograph'' is highly com-mendable. The father of ournation strongly believed andadvocated that India is in itsVillages. I am also happy tonote that GCOT is workingclosely with PJTSAU to set upan Incubation Centre,Promote Telangana Sona Rice,and several other initiatives.Vice Chancellor Praveen Rao'seffort in guiding and sup-porting GCOT team inachieving their objective isappreciable," she said.

Transport workersplan to move courtPNS n HYDERABAD

The transport workers inTelangana have been protest-ing against paying taxes dur-ing the pandemic for at leastfive months now. With no pos-itive results, the workers arenow planning to approachthe High Court.

M Rajender Reddy, Telang-ana Lorry AssociationPresident said, "We haveapproached everyone fromthe officials to the ministers,no one helped us out. We haveno choice but to ask the courtto help us. Right now, the asso-ciation has not finalised on it.We will have a meeting soonand take further action."

The transport workers, whowere till September 30exempted to pay the road tax,have to pay it now. However,the government is also levyingpenalty on these taxes.

Shaik Salauddin, StatePresident of Telangana FourWheeler Drivers' Associationsaid, "We requested the gov-ernment to extend the periodtill December 31 to pay thetaxes. In fact, we also request-ed them for a tax waiver. But,they have already started col-lecting the taxes. The drivershaven't had a steady incomefor six months and don't evenhave the money to run theirkitchen, how will they pay thetaxes and penalty?”

Guv: This is a newSwadeshi movement

STOCK MARKET FRAUD

2 held for cheatingman of Rs 7 croresPNS n HYDERABAD

Two white collar criminalswere arrested by the CentralCrime Station sleuths for che-ating an investor to the tune ofRs 7 crores on Saturday.

The arrested persons wereidentified as Anil Karkala, 53,an agent and Rajdeep ManojJaveri, 27, Director of ManojJaveri Stock Broking Pvt Ltdand Conard Securities Pvt Ltdof Mumbai.

According to the police,the accused lured an investorPradeep Yarlagadda and hisfamily members to invest instock market. During the peri-od from 2017 to 2019, Pradeeppaid Rs 7 Crores with ManojJaveri Stock Broking Pvt Ltdand Conard Securities PvtLtd of Mumbai.

However, the accused ratherthan purchasing the stocks,they diverted the money totheir personal accounts."Theaccused persons violated theSEBI rules without purchasingany stocks on the name ofcomplainant and his familymembers," said Hari Krishna,Assistant Commissioner ofPolice C-Division, CCS.

Based on the complaintfrom Pradeep, police investi-gated the case and arrested theaccused in Mumbai andbrought them to city in tran-sit warrant.

Eatala: Corona turned everyhouse into Ayurvedic centerPNS n HYDERABAD

Health Minister EatalaRajender has said that due toCoronavirus pandemic everyhouse has turned intoAyurvedic Center.

The Minister said that all thenecessary steps should betaken to bring the formerglory to the ancient Indianmedical system. A compre-hensive review meeting washeld on Saturday at the officeof the Indian Institute ofFamily Welfare in Vengal RaoNagar with the officials of theMedical Health Department.The Minister said that AYUSHmedicines which increaseimmunity should be mademore available.

He expressed dissatisfactionover the non-implementation

of several key decisions takenin the past after lengthyreviews on the AYUSH depart-ment. "Like allopathy, we havea responsibility to ensure thatstudents in the disciplines atAYUSH are recognised andrespected after studying for fiveyears," he said.

Rajender directed the offi-cials to fill teaching posts inAyurveda, Unani,Homeopathy, Naturopathy &

Yoga immediately. AYUSH Dispensary Centers

have been directed to be con-verted into Wellness Centers.Currently 440 government dis-pensaries and 394 NRHM dis-pensaries are functioning. Hesaid all the dispensaries whereinflow of patients is less shouldbe shifted to primary healthcenters. He also asked to seethat there are AYUSH units inthe PHCs. It was suggested thata task force be set up for thedevelopment of AYUSH and afull report be prepared.

He directed officials to makeregulations which do not cre-ate problems in the promotionchannel. He said a decisionwould be taken in consultationwith Chief Minister to fill thevacant posts by the MedicalBoard once every 6 months.

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Cyberabad SpecialOperations team caught red-handed a cricket betting gangand arrested three persons atUpparpally in Rajendranagarhere on Saturday. Policeseized Rs 5.6 lakh, mobilephones, two bikes and othermaterial from them.

The arrested persons wereMahendra Kumar, 39, anautomobile businessmanfrom Ramkoti, RajeshMasnaji Surya, 23, fromSiddiamber Bazaar andKuldeep Singh, 24, a residentof Jummerat Bazaar. Threesuspects, Chandra PaulSingh, Amith and NareshSingh, are absconding.

According to the SOT offi-cials, the gang was organisingbetting on the ongoing IPLmatches by collecting betsfrom punters.

Following a tip-off, thepolice caught them whilethey were exchanging thebet amount.

They were handed over tothe Rajendranagar police forfurther action.

Cricket bettingracket busted,Rs 5.6 L seized

She Teams register 41 plaints PNS n HYDERABAD

Cyberabad SHE Teams arecatering to the needs ofincreasing number of womenwho are coming forward toregister complaints.

As many as 10 teams areworking in Cyberabad to caterto the needs of more numberof women and children. Apartfrom this, SHE Teams keep asharp eye on the miscreantscausing nuisance in publicplaces.

As many as 161 complaintswere received from womenvictims through different

means like WhatsApp, email,Hawkeye, direct walk and oth-ers. Of them, 41 cases havebeen registered out of which 27are criminal cases and 14 arepetty cases.

Decoy operations were con-ducted at various places such

as bus stops, shopping malls,railway stations, tutorials andcolleges.

Counselling session washeld at Women and ChildrenSafety Wing, Cyberabad whichwas attended by respondents.As many as 28 respondentshave attended the counsellingsession conducted by Cybera-bad SHE teams, at the Com-missioner office, Gachibowli,along with their family mem-bers. Most of the women vic-tims have sent messages toWhatsApp and appreciatedthe good work done by SHETeams.

I was feeling lowwhen I had fever,but my temperature

was fine. Even whenI was in hospital, I had nothingmuch to do. As most of mywork could be done online, Idecided I won't stop working.Also, I didn't encounter anyissues, so I kept contributingto work.

NAVIN MITTAL

Commissioner of Technical Education

Police arrested theaccused in Mumbaiand brought them tocity on transit warrant

HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | OCTOBER 4, 2020 hyderabad 04

Vijayawada Division of the South Central Railway has completed a record 9.57 km of track renewal by recourse to singlePlasser Quick Relaying System (PQRS) in the month of September.

‘TRACK’ RRECORD

PNS n HYDERABAD

In Covid times, agriculturehas emerged as the major dri-ver of the Indian economy.States across the country haverealised the value of agriculturein getting their economy backon track. In Telangana, the stategovernment is pushing for-ward on its efforts to make theregion the 'Seed Bowl of theWorld' in order to multiplyfarm earnings. Seed produc-tion on a large scale canincrease farmer profits by 400per cent.

Telangana currently holdsthe unofficial title of 'SeedBowl of India'. With favourableagro-climatic conditions,skilled manpower, infrastruc-ture and logistics for qualityseed production and storage,the state meets more than 60per cent of India's seed require-ment. Hyderabad boasts ofmore than 430 seed companies,and the state exports seeds to18 nations.

Country exports seeds ofvarious crops worth Rs 2,000crore annually. The exportedseeds include tomato, chillies,

and watermelon and maizevarieties too. This would meanoverseas seed companies inpartnership with farmers hereproduce seeds for export mar-kets. Currently, Rs 200 croreworth such seeds are beingproduced in Telangana foroverseas markets.

The seedsmen associationsays that the exports fromTelangana will multiply at leastby four times provided the stategovernment gives all sorts ofencouragement in marketing ofseeds, seed certification andsubsidy on seeds. The associ-ation says that it would bene-

fit the farmers of Telugu states.Telugu states have emerged asthe seed bowl of the countrybecause of favourable climac-tic conditions, availability ofsuitable soils and encourage-ment to farmers to produceseeds by the government. TheAP and Telangana share of theseeds produced in the countrywas put at 60 per cent.

The share of Telugu states inproduction of maize and cornseeds was put at 90 per cent,while the share of the paddyseeds is 60 per cent. The shareof the two states in productionof cotton seeds was put at 50

per cent. The value of the veg-etable seeds being produced inTelugu states was put at Rs 200crore. The SeedsmenAssociation said that over 10lakh farmers in Telugu statesare involved in seed produc-tion, according to associationpresident YagantiVenkateswarlu. Because of lossof jobs, the youth returned tothe villages. They have focussedon practising agriculture.Moreover, there is ample rain-fall in the country. The seedsproduction has registered an

increase of 5 per cent inVanakalam season. The sale ofseeds during rabi wouldincrease by 20-25 per cent,according to Raasi Seeds COOASN Reddy.

He said that the tell tale evi-dence shows that the areaunder seeds cultivation hasincreased. During the past twoand half decades, production ofvegetables has increased by atleast three times, says East-West Seeds MD Dilip Rajan.Compared to other states, theimpact of Coronavirus inTelugu states is very lessbecause of the quick responseby the state governments.

The seed industry in thecountry achieved an annualturnover of Rs 30,000 crorewith an annual growth of 5-10per cent. The share of the veg-etable seeds in this would be Rs3000 crore. Over 2000 seedsprocessing companies areinvolved in seed production.Of them, 500 work at thenational level. The research anddevelopment department ofthe seed production companiesattracted investments up to Rs5,000 crore.

‘TS aims to be seed bowl of world’With favourableagro-climaticconditions,skilledmanpower thestate meetsmore than 60per cent ofIndia's seedrequirement

K VENKATESHWARLU

n HYDERABAD

The battle lines are drawn forthe Dubbak by-election forwhich the ElectionCommission sounded the pollbugle. The TRS is raring to bet-ter its 62,600 votes majority toconsolidate its grip on theconstituency while theCongress and the BJP aresharpening their weapons inthe armoury for the big fighton November 3.

The TRS is already on thegravy train as it has several fac-tors working in its favour. Theby-election has been necessi-tated by the death of incum-bent S Ramalinga Reddy.However, the two main polit-ical parties - TRS and Congressare facing troubles in selectingcandidates for the by-election.

The ruling TRS has almostfinalised Solipeta Ramalinga asits candidate. However, theparty now is in dilemma asCheruku Muthyam Reddy'sson Cheruku Srinivas Reddy isalso demanding ticket fromDubbaka constituency. In thisbackdrop, the TRS party pres-ident and Chief Minister KChandrasekhar Rao hasreportedly changed his mindset and is considering givingticket to Siddipet districtCollector P VenkatramaReddy.

According to sources, evenCongress too approachedCheruku Srinivas Reddy tocontest Dubbaka by-election

from Congress party asMuthyam Reddy's family has asolid vote bank in the con-stituency. However, SrinivasReddy is yet to respond to theoffer, it is said. On the otherhand, the Congress party lead-ership is hesitant to announcethe party candidate as theleaders from Dubbaka con-stituency are not so confidentin their approach, it is learnt.With this, the Congress is hes-itating to finalise the candidatefor Dubbaka by-election.

On the other hand, TRSleaders are surprised as theparty leadership is yet toannounce candidate thoughthe Election Commissionannounced the schedule.Generally, the pink poarty isahead of others in announcingcandidates. The leaders areconfused whether the party isin dilemma or are sidelining

both Solipeta RamalingaReddy's family and CherukuMuthyam Reddy's family bynot giving them by-electionticket. One of the leadersopined that it's not a big thingfor the party to convince onefamily by giving ticket toanother if it takes the issue seri-ously. Some leaders say thatSolipeta family itself diluted itsopportunities by their atti-tude.

Meanwhile, SiddipetCollector Venkatrama Reddy'sname is coming onto the scenefor the Dubbaka by-election. Itmay become a real shock forboth the families-Solipeta andCheruku, if the pink partygives ticket to VenkatramaReddy. It is learnt that the TRSleadership is of an opinion tofield the Collector. More so,Collector Venkatram Reddytoo is interested in politics. Itmay be recalled that ChiefMinister K ChandrashekharRao, on several occasions,praised Venkatram Reddy forhis work. Reddy tried forHusnabad Assembly ticket inthe past. Even VenkatramaReddy's name cropped up forMalkajgiri Lok Sabha ticketagainst Congress candidate ARevanth Reddy. However, thattoo didn't materialise. Thistime, Venkatrama Reddy maynot miss the ticket as the situ-ation is turning in his favour.On the other hand, BJP held ameeting to discuss the partycandidate for Dubbaka.

Parties hesitant to namecandidates for by-election

PNS n HYDERABAD

In the 12 years of the imple-mentation of smoke free rules,more than Rs 37 crore has beencollected as fines from peoplefor violating the no-smokingrules. A total of 26.16 lakh peo-ple were fined during the peri-od 2007-08 to 2020-21 (uptoJune 2020).

Smoking was banned in allpublic places in the countrywith effect from October 2,2008. Section (4) of theCigarettes and Other TobaccoProducts (Prohibition ofAdvertisement and Regulationof Trade and CommerceProduction, Supply andDistribution) Act COTPA 2003prohibits smoking in all pub-lic places.

'Public Place' is defined asany place to which the publichas access whether as of rightor not and includes all places

visited by general public.Boards containing the warning"No Smoking Area- SmokingHere is an Offence" has to bedisplayed prominently at theentrance of public places.India's national law, theCigarettes and other TobaccoProducts Act (COTPA) hasbeen effective in certain areas,there are still many aspects that

need to be amended andstrengthened. Such amend-ments would further to align itwith our global commitmentsunder the FrameworkConvention on TobaccoControl (FCTC) and moreeffectively protect India's pop-ulation from the dangers oftobacco use.

"The implementation of the

no smoking rules shows theGovernment's commitmenttowards tobacco control, how-ever COTPA 2003, presentlyallows smoking in certain pub-lic places (restaurants, hotelsand airports), in the form ofdesignated smoking areas. Irecommend that we should

abolish all designated smokingareas in hotels and restaurantsand even airports to ensure a100 per cent smoke free envi-ronment since most of thesedesignated smoking areas arerarely compliant as per COTPArequirements and are actuallyputting our public at greathealth risk from exposure tosecond hand smoke," Dr HaritChaturvedi, Chairman of MaxInstitute of Cancer Care.

Nalini Satyanaraya, a passivesmoking victim and healthactivist said, "Exposure to pas-sive smoking happens in eater-ies specifically hotels, restau-rants, bar & restaurant, pubsand clubs, risking lives of thou-sands of non-smokers byexposing them to the smoke ofcigarettes. Designated smokingarea that are set up are non-compliant to law and seep thecigarette smoke to non-smok-ing or common area.

12 YEARS OF ‘SMOKE-FREE RULES'

Rs 37 crore collected as fines from violators Rs 37 cr has been

collected as fines

from people for

violating the no-

smoking rules. A

total of 26.16L

people were fined

during the period

2007-08 to 2020-

21 (upto June

2020)

PNS n HYDERABAD

IT and Industries MinisterKT Rama Rao's novel initiative'Gift a Smile' continues toinspire several leaders andindividuals. As part of the ini-tiative, three MLAs from erst-while Warangal district donat-ed three ambulances, whichwere flagged off here onSaturday. The ambulances arefitted with ventilators andoxygen cylinders.

Panchayat Raj MinisterErrabelli Dayakar Rao,Woman and Child WelfareMinister Satyavati Rathod,Government chief whipDasyam Vinay Bhaksar,

Warangal Mayor GundaPrakash Rao, MahabubabadMP Maloth Kavita, MLAsSankar Naik, Aruri Ramesh,Nannapaneni Narender andothers were present on theoccasion.

Speaking on the occasion,KTR said that Ministers andMLAs of erstwhile Warangaldistrict came forward todonate him ambulances for hisbirth day to benefit the people.KTR asked the MLAs andMinisters put the ambulancesto good use to serve the peo-ple of their constituencies.The MLAs and Ministersthanked KTR for flagging offthe ambulances.

TRS leadersdonate ambulances

PNS n KARIMNAGAR

BC Welfare and Civil SuppliesMinister Gangula Kamalakarinformed that recovery per-centage of Covid-19 cases inthe district is in between 98 to99 per cent. It materialisedwith the cooperation of MLAs,public representatives and gov-ernment officials.

Speaking after inaugurat-ing a liquid oxygen plant indistrict headquarters hospitalhere on Saturday, the Ministerappreciated medical staff forproviding treatment to patientsperfectly. People tested positivefor the virus have been provid-ed treatment by isolating themin their houses. It has yieldedgood results. Only one per centof people suffering from otherchronic diseases died, he said.Asking the people not to

neglect Covid-19, he advisedthe people having symptoms toundergo testing either at thedistrict headquarters hospitalor primary health centers(PHCc).

In order to provide oxygenfacility to corona patients, a liq-uid oxygen plant was estab-lished at a cost of Rs 85 lakh indistrict headquarters hospi-

tal. 400 beds in the hospitalwould get the oxygen facility.Per day, it was possible to sup-ply oxygen to 2,630 since thecapacity of the plant is 21,000liter. There would not be anyshortage for oxygen in thenext 20 years. AfterHyderabad, Karimnagar wasthe second in the state, to havean oxygen plant, he informed.

Don't neglect Coronavirus,Gangula cautions people

PNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana Pradesh CongressCommittee (TPCC) presidentN Uttam Kumar Reddy andTPCC working president andMalkajgiri MP A RevanthReddy on Saturday accompa-nied AICC former ChiefRahul Gandhi and partyleader Priyanka Gandhi Vadrawho met the family of the 20-year-old Dalit woman whowas allegedly gang raped andmurdered last month in UttarPradesh's Hathras.

The All India CongressCommittee (AICC) on Fridaynight asked all MPs and CLPleaders to come to Delhi in

regard to visit Hathras rapevictim's family. Uttam andRevanth Reddy went to Delhiand from there they accompa-nied Rahul along with otherCongress MPs. TelanganaCongress Affairs in-chargeManickam Tagore also went toDelhi along with Uttam andRevanth Reddy.

Uttam, Revanthaccompany Rahul

PNS n HYDERABAD

Union Minister of State forHome Affairs G Kishan Reddyon Saturday said that BJP is theonly alternative to the rulingTRS. He said that the party hasappointed senior leader APJithender Reddy as the in-charge of Dubbaka by-election."The party would assignresponsibilities of mandals inDubbaka by-elections to for-mer Ministers and formerMLAs," he said.

Speaking on the occasion,AP Jithender Reddy said thatthe party leader RaghunandanRao's name is in considerationfor the Dubbaka by-election.However, the party willannounce the candidate'sname after consulting the the

national leadership. "The partyhas been receiving goodresponse from the people inDubbaka constituency.Raghunandan Rao is lookingforward to contest from theconstituency once again," hesaid.

The party held a meeting onDubbaka by-elections onSaturday at BJP state office.Party senior leaders G Kishan

Reddy, DK Aruna, Dr KLaxman, AP Jithender Reddyand others participated. It maybe recalled that the BJP lead-ers, especially RaghunandanRao had started campaignimmediately after demise ofDubbaka MLA SolipetaRamalinga Reddy. It is learntthat the party national leader-ship is in favor ofRaghunandan’s candidature.

PNS n ADILABAD

Sleuths of a Task Force teamand foresters jointly arrestedsix persons for allegedlysmuggling team timber indifferent villages ofTalamadugu and Tamsi man-dals on Saturday. Teak timberworth Rs 2.25 lakh and afour-wheeler were seizedfrom their possession. TaskForce Inspector EChandramouli said that theaccused were GuggillaPosetti, Guggilla Dharmarajuand Koyarkar Vaman, anative of Ghotukari in ofTamsi mandal, SriramojuvariKishtanna, a resident ofPippalkoti in Jainanth andNalganti Ganganna fromAdilabad town and KumraRavi belonging to Jhari.

PNS n KHAMMAM

Kothagudem and Khammamdistrict administrations aregearing up to distributeBathukamma sarees - theState government's gift towomen on the occasion ofDasara. KothagudemCollector MV Reddy said asmany as 3,48,418 sarees weresanctioned to the district andthere were stored at godownsin Aswaraopet, Bhadrachalam, Kothagudem, Manugur,Julurpahad and Yellandu withproper safety measures.

An action plan has beenprepared by constituting vil-lage-, mandal- and con-stituency-level committeesto monitor the distribution ofsarees to beneficiaries fromOctober 9. The sarees wouldbe transported to the village-and mandal-level points fromthe constituency-level points.Tahsidars and MandalParishad DevelopmentOfficers were instructed tofollow the Covid-19 guide-lines thoroughly.

PNS n HYDERABAD

AICC former ChiefRahul Gandhi show-ered praises on MuluguCongress MLADanasiri Anasuya aliasSeethakka. While participatingin the Congress party SocialMedia Team Xoom meeting,

Rahul praised the ser-vices of Seethakka."Seethakka has beenstriving hard and follow-ing every party pro-gramme. Seethakka isvery hard working

MLA. I am proud of havingan MLA like Seethakka inCongress party," he said.

Rahul all praise for Seethakka

Officials gearup to distributesarees

BJP only alternative toTRS, says Kishan Reddy

Six held forsmugglingtimber

HATHRAS VISIT

KCR consideringto give Dubbakby-electionticket toSiddipetCollectorVenkatramana

PNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana BJP chief BandiSanjay Kumar on Saturdayalleged that Chief Minister KChandrasekhar Rao hasaddressed a letter to the Centreas part of conspiracy thoughthe state has been facing injus-tice for the last 7 years inregard to water sharing.

The Karimnagar MP ques-tioned the Chief Minister toreveal as to why he didn'tspeak on this issue all thesedays. "KCR should reveal thehidden agenda behindaddressing a letter before theApex Council meeting. ChiefMinister made the Centrepostpone the Apex Councilmeeting in the name of

Cabinet meeting," he said.Addressing the media

through Zoom on Saturday,Bandi Sanjay alleged that ChiefMinister is opposing Centre'snew Farm laws with a selfishmotive. "Chief Minister isopposing farm laws as he is notinterested in farmers' develop-ment. KCR joined the list ofCongress and Communists.

KCR should change his poli-cies as the Centre's new lawswill give liberty to the farmersto sell their produce anywhereacross the nation," he said.

Thanking Prime MinisterNarendra Modi on behalf ofTelangana farmers for intro-ducing new Farm Acts, Sanjaysaid that these laws were thefirst one brought for the sakeof farmers. He said that theparty will explain the facts onthe benefits of laws to the peo-ple from booth level.

"The Centre had introducedthese laws for the welfare offarmers and development. Thefarmers have attained real free-dom on September 26 on theday the Centre introducedfarm bills” he said.

Bandi lashes out at KCR

Combing opsintensified inKothagudemPNS n KOTHAGUDEM

There have been movementsof dalams of Maoists and itsaffiliated organisations in thedistrict, stated SP Sunil Dutt.In a statement here onSaturday, he said the policereceived inputs on the naxaldalams movements onTelangana and Chhattisgarhborders and also onKothagudem-Mulugu districtborders. In view of theincreasing naxal presence onthe district borders, combingoperations have been inten-sified. Huge police forceshave been engaged in searchoperations in the forests tocheck the Maoist violence, henoted.

HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | OCTOBER 4, 2020 nation 05

IN BRIEFIN BRIEF

Over 2,500 student groups andresident welfare associationsacross the city have been making

eco-bricks out of discarded plasticwaste under a new campaign. An eco-brick is a plastic bottle packed tightwith used plastic to make a reusablebuilding block. The "Why Waste"campaign, launched on the occasionof Gandhi Jayanti by non-profit organisation United Way Delhi and itscorporate partners, aims at reducing and reusing plastic andupcycling the non-biodegradable plastic waste generated at homeand communities. RWAs are to dispose of home-generated plastic inthe form of eco-bricks which will be collected by campaign partnersand recycled into usable items.

APIL has been filed in theSupreme Court seeking"gender and religion

neutral" uniform grounds ofmainten ance and alimony forall citizens keeping with thespirit of the Constitution andinternational conventions. The

plea filed by BJP leader and advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyayseeks directions to the Union home and law ministries to takeappropriate steps to remove the prevailing anomalies in the groundsof maintenance and alimony and make them uniform for all citizenswithout discrimination on the basis of religion, race, cast, sex orplace of birth.The petition, filed through advocate Ashwani KumarDubey, said that despite the eloquent provisions in the Constitution,the central government has totally failed to provide even gender-neutral, religion-neutral uniform grounds of maintenance andalimony for all citizens, it said.

The CBI has arrested itsrecently retired superintendent of police NMP

Sinha in connection with analleged bribery case, officialssaid on Saturday. Sinha,who retired in August thisyear, was SP in the economic offence wing of the CBI,they said. Sinha, who wasonce part of the team thatprobed the fodder scam in Bihar, was arrested in the Rs 25-lakhbribery case, they said. They said Sinha is likely to be producedbefore a court on Saturday afternoon.

Uttar Pradesh Congress presidentAjay Kumar Lallu on Saturday saidhe had been put under house arrest

in order to "stop" him from going toHathras and fight for justice for the Dalitwoman who died after she was assaultedand allegedly gang-raped. Congressspokesperson Anshu Awasthi allegedthat the step had been taken to prevent

Lallu from joining party leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka GandhiVadra, who are again headed towards Hathras in another effort tomeet the family of the victim. "I'm under house arrest. I am beingtreated as a criminal," Lallu told PTI. "This is only to stop me fromgoing to Hathras and fight for justice for the gang-rape victim." "Thisshows how scared this government is. Is it wrong to fight for thevictim or meet the family members?" he asked. The state Congresssaid Lallu, district heads and more than 500 workers had beenplaced under house arrest. "Yogi ji, don't stop those who fight forjustice. Stop the crimes," it tweeted.

Over 2.5k student groups make eco-bricks under ‘Why Waste'

PIL in SC seeks uniform groundsof maintenance for all citizens

Retired CBI officer arrested byagency in Rs 25 L bribery case

Nobel laureate KailashSatyarthi has appealed toPrime Minister Narendra

Modi to end the “crisis of justice”for women and children, sayingwhat is happening to "ourdaughters" across India is amatter of “national shame”.Reacting to the Hathras incident and other cases of sexual assaultson women in the country, Satyarthi said he implores the primeminister to lead the “war on rape”. “What is happening to ourdaughters across India is a matter of national shame. It is my humbleappeal to our Hon'ble Prime Minister - the nation looks to you - toend this crisis of justice for our women and children. I implore you tolead the war on rape. Our daughters need you, and we are all withyou," he said Calling for a people's movement to break "this mindset"of violence, Satyarthi said “we need both compassionate political willand people's action” to bring an end to the culture of rape.

Satyarthi appeals to PM to end‘crisis of justice' for women

UP Cong chief under‘house arrest’

PNS n NEW DELHI

State of mind to commit aparticular crime "must bevisible" to determine the cul-pability for offence of abet-ment, the Supreme Courthas said while setting asidethe conviction of a man whowas accused of abetting hiswife's suicide in 1997. Theapex court said that ingredi-ent of "mens rea" (intention)cannot be assumed to beostensibly present but has tobe "visible and conspicuous".A bench headed by Justice NV Ramana said this while set-ting aside the March 2010order of the Punjab andHaryana High Court whichhad upheld the trial court'sverdict convicting the manfor the offence under section306 (abetment of suicide) ofthe Indian Penal Code.

The top court said that inorder to prove mens rea,there has to be something onrecord to establish or showthat the man had a guiltymind and in furtherance ofthat state of mind, abetted thesuicide of his wife.

The bench delivered itsverdict on a plea filed by theman against the order ofhigh court which had dis-missed his appeal and upheldthe four-year jail term award-ed to him by the trial court inthe case.

PNS n NARSINGHPUR (MP)

A policeman has been arrest-ed in Madhya Pradesh'sNarsinghpur district forallegedly not registering a Dalit"rape victim's" complaint forfour days, following which sheended her life, a top officer saidon Saturday. The arrest wasmade after Chief MinisterShivraj Singh Chouhan tookserious cognisance of thealleged lapse and ordered thata case be registered against thelocal police official. Two seniorofficials were also shunted outas per the orders. The woman,who was allegedly raped bythree men four days ago, com-mitted suicide on Friday, policesaid.

An official in Bhopal saidthat Chouhan had ordered onFriday night that AssistantInspector of Police (ASI)

Mishrilal Kodapa of Gotitoriyapolice outpost in Gadarwaratehsil, some 50 kms fromNarsinghpur district head-quarters, should be booked andarrested for not registering thevictim's complaint of gang-rape. Besides, as per the orders,Additional Superintendent ofPolice (ASP) Rajesh Tiwariand Gadarwara Sub Divisional

Officer of Police (SDOP) S

R Yadav were shunted outfrom Narsinghpur, he said.

"A case was registeredagainst Kodapa and he wasarrested under 166 (c) (publicservant failing to record infor-mation) of IPC on Fridaynight," Jabalpur Zone Inspector

General of Police BhagwatSingh Chauhan told PTI.

The ASP and the SDOPhave been transferred from

Narsinghpur, he added.Kodapa had been suspendedon Friday after a video wentviral in social media, in whichthe husband of the deceasedwoman accused the police-man of not registering a com-plaint of rape, police said.

The man was purportedlyheard saying in the audio-visual clip that instead of tak-ing action in the case, he washeld based on a complaintlodged by the accused and hadto cough up Rs 50,000 as abribe for his release.

"Three men identified asArvind and Parsu Choudhary,who belonged to the samecommunity as the victim, andanother accused Anil Rai,allegedly gang-raped the 32-year old woman on Monday.They trio has been arrested,"Narsinghpur SP Ajay Singhsaid.

PNS n SOLANG VALLEY (HP)

Taking a swipe at the opposi-tion's protest against farmreform laws, Prime MinisterNarendra Modi said onSaturday those parties alsohad the same idea but lackedthe courage to implement thesemeasures because theyfocussed on elections while hisgovernment looked at thecountry's and farmers' wel-fare.

Addressing his second pub-lic meeting after inauguratingAtal Tunnel in Rohtang inHimachal Pradesh, Modi saidthose protesting against thelaws wanted farmers to live inthe previous century, and arenow jolted by his government'sattack on middlemen.

The ruling BJP has cited theCongress manifesto for the2019 Lok Sabha polls to assertthat the opposition party had

also promised the same lawswhich the Modi governmenthas enacted to allow farmers tosell their produce outside state-controlled 'mandi' but is nowcriticising them for politicalreasons. Modi also spoke ofthe benefits of new laboursector laws and said reformswill continue as his govern-ment works to realise its goalof "Aatmanirbhar Bharat" (Self-Reliant India), asserting that

regulations of the previouscentury will not work in a newcentury.

Our reforms have troubledthose who have always workedfor political benefits, he said,adding that new labourreforms have given womensame salary and opportunitiesas men had so far.

Their mindset remained thesame while the centurychanged, he said, attacking the

opposition. "You cant enterthe next century with themindset of the past century," hesaid.

Modi said his government'sreforms, including digitisationof services and direct transferof money, have saved timeand money while rooting outcorruption.

The government is con-stantly trying to reduce prob-lems of the masses, he said.

PNS n AGRA (UP)

Scores of Valmiki communitymembers who were protestingagainst the Hathras incidentclashed with the police here onSaturday.

The protesters pelted stonesat the policemen and officialvehicles. Police personnel weredeployed at the clash site out-side a municipal corporationoffice in Kothi Meena Bazaararea of the Taj city, officialssaid. Some visuals purported-ly showed that thee Valmiki

community members fromRajnagar in Lohamandireached the municipal corpo-

ration office and pelted stonesat the civic body's garbage col-lection vehicles at around 12

noon. Later, dozens of police-men, some of them in anti-riotgears, reached the site and theagitated crowd started peltingstones at them, too, even astraffic on the road remainedobstructed during the clash,they showed.

“Adequate police force has

reached the incident site withsenior officials. Efforts areunderway to restore normalcyand law and order,” a statementby Agra police said. The inci-dent wherein a 19-year-oldDalit woman was allegedlyraped in Uttar Pradesh'sHathras by four men onSeptember 14 has been wide-ly condemned across the coun-try. The agitation by Balmikiscame even as police conduct-ed flag marches in parts of thedistrict for creating awarenesson coronavirus.

Valmiki community members clash with police

Previous govts lacked courageto effect farm reforms: Modi

Modi said hisgovernment's reforms,including digitisation ofservices and directtransfer of money,have saved time andmoney while rootingout corruption

PNS n BALASORE (ODISHA),

India on Saturday successful-ly test fired its indigenouslydeveloped nuclear capablehypersonic missile 'Shaurya'with a strike range of around1,000 km from a test range inOdisha, defence sources said.'Shaurya', which is the landvariant of Indias K-15 missile,has a strike range of 700 km to1000 km and is capable of car-rying payloads of 200 kg tO1000 kg, the sources said.

The surface-to-surface tac-tical missile was blasted offfrom a canister strapped to theground launcher from launchcomplex 4 of the IntegratedTest Range (ITR) in the APJAbdul Kalam Island around12.10 pm and covered thedesired range, they said.

It is 10 metres long, 74 cmin diameter and weighs 6.2tonnes. Its two stages use solidpropellants. Describing thetrial as successful, the sourcessaid that the state-of-the-artmissile performed a manoeu-vre in the closing stages of itsflight and hit the impact pointin the Bay of Bengal with pre-cision and accuracy.A gas gen-

erator at the bottom of thecanister pushed the missile outit. Its first stage ignited thenand fell off.

The second stage went intoaction after this, a DefenceResearch and DevelopmentOrganisation (DRDO) offi-cial said. During the test flight,the missile was tracked by ari-ous telemetry stations andradars and performed well, hesaid.

DRDO officials rateShaurya as one of the top 10

missiles in the world in itsclass with its high perfor-mance navigation and guid-ance systems, efficient propul-sion systems, sophisticatedcontrol technologies and can-isterised launch," sources said.

The missile can be launchedfrom silos and canistersmounted on a truck and fixedon the ground, they saidadding that it can be easilymoved around. A truck itselfcan become a launching plat-form. "Shaurya" missiles cankept in locations where theenemies would not be able todetect them. Besides, it cannotbe detected by satellite imag-ing, the sources said.

India successfullytest-fires ‘Shaurya'

PNS n PATNA

The BSP of Mayawati which ispart of a three-party allianceheaded by Upendra Kushwahaof RLSP for Bihar polls, suf-fered a setback on Saturdaywhen its state unit presidentBharat Bind quit and joinedRJD.

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadavgave membership of the partyto the BSP leader. Yadav relea-sed a picture admitting Bindinto the party on his twitter

and also the party's socialmedia platform. Yadav wroteon his twitter handle that theBahujan Samaj Party Biharpresident joined them to lendsupport in making a new Biharand remove anti-youth NDA.After being spurned by theNDA and discarded by theRJD-helmed mahagathband-han, Kushwaha has forged analliance with the BSP and anon-descript Janatantrik Partyfor elections. Mayawati hasalso announced that her party

would be supporting Kushw-aha as the "Chief Ministerial"candidate in Bihar, an assertionwhich is being ridiculed at bythe NDA well as the grandalliance.

Mayawati's party had faceddesertions in Bihar in 2010 toowhen its three MLAs hadswitched sides to Lalu Prasad'sparty after cross-voting forthe then RJD-LJP nomineesfor Rajya Sabha election-Ramvilas Paswan andRamkripal Yadav.

Bihar BSP president joins RJD

MP cop held after death of rape victimThe police officer hasbeen arrested forallegedly notregistering a Dalit"rape victim's"complaint for fourdays, following whichshe ended her life.

‘State of mind tocommit crimemust be visibleto prove offence’

PNS n NEW DELHI

Actor-producer PriyankaChopra Jonas' long-awaitedbook debut, "Unfinished", willbe launched on January 19,2021, publisher PenguinRandom House Indiaannounced on Friday.

The "thoughtful and reveal-ing" memoir will take readersthrough Priyanka's childhoodin India, her teenage years inthe US Living with extendedfamily in the Midwest, Queens,and suburban Boston, whereshe endured bouts of racism; toher return to India, where sheunexpectedly won the nation-al and global beauty pageants(Miss India and Miss World)that launched her acting career.

"I am a product of tradition-al India and its ancient wis-dom, and modern India and itsurban bustle. My upbringing

was always an amalgamation ofthe two Indians, and, just asmuch, of East and West,"Priyanka said.

Through her memoir, read-ers will get a glimpse into herjourney to success in theIndian film industry as well asan honest account of the chal-lenges the actor faced whilenavigating her career, both in

India and Hollywood."...And so, while you'll def-

initely learn about how Ibecame me during the 'inbetween' of what you haven'tseen, I also hope you'll walkaway with the confidence ofknowing that IT'S OK to pickup, walk away, leave things #unfinished..." Priyanka tweeted.

She won the Miss Worldpageant in 2000 and latermade her Bollywood debutwith "The Hero: Love Story ofa Spy".

She followed it up withmovies like "Aitraaz","Fashion", "Barfi", "Mary Kom"and "Bajirao Mastani" amongothers. After spending adecade in Hindi film industry,Priyanka headed to the Westwith ABC series "Quantico".She made her Hollywood fea-ture film debut in DwayneJohnson's "Baywatch".

PNS n NAGPUR,

Maharashtra Home MinisterAnil Deshmukh on Saturdaysaid the CBI should soonmake public its inquiry reportinto Sushant Singh Rajput'sdeath so that people knowwhether it was a case of sui-cide or murder.

Talking to reporters here,the minister said theMaharashtra government waswaiting for the CBI probereport in the case.

Deshmukh said, "We havenot received any officialinformation regarding that. Itwon't be appropriate to com-ment on it until we get offi-cial information."

PNS n NEW DELHI

RJD MP Manoj Jha hasmoved the the Supreme Courtchallenging the constitution-al validity of the newly enact-ed three agriculture laws, say-ing they are "discriminatoryand manifestly arbitrary" andwill expose marginal farmersto exploitation by big corpo-rates.

Parliament has recentlypassed the three Bills -- theFarmers' (Empowerment andProtection) Agreement ofPrice Assurance and FarmServices Act, 2020, theFarmers' Produce Trade andCommerce Act, 2020 and theEssential Commodities(Amendment) Act 2020.These have came into effectfrom September 27 afterPresident Ram Nath Kovindgave his assent. Jha, a Rajya

Sabha member of theRashtriya Janata Dal (RJD),has filed the plea in the topcourt through lawyer FauziaShakil.

Besides Jha, Congress LokSabha member from KeralaTN Prathapan and DMKRajya Sabha member fromTamil Nadu Tiruchi Siva hadmoved the top court againstthe farm laws.

Jha, in his plea, said, "Theimpugned legislations corpo-ratise agriculture and ushersin an unregulated andexploitative regime. A farmerwould not have the knowl-edge to negotiate the bestterms with a private compa-ny. This leads to unequal bar-gaining position in negotiat-ing the farm agreement withcorporates would lead to cor-porates monopolising theagriculture sector."

PNS n NEW DELHI

In a relief to individual bor-rowers and medium and smallindustries, the Centre hasagreed in the Supreme Courtto waive compound interest(interest on interest) chargedon loans of up to Rs 2 croresfor a six-month moratoriumperiod announced due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.

It said the government willseek due authorisation fromparliament for making appro-

priate grants in this regard and“the endeavour shall be overand above the support of Rs 3.7lakh crore to MSMEs, Rs70,000 crore for home loansetc. already extended throughthe Garib Kalyan and AatmaNirbhar packages announcedby government earlier”. In anaffidavit filed by Union financeministry on behalf of the Union of India, it said that the reliefto all borrowers in respect ofcompounding of interest dur-ing the period of moratorium

would be admissible to the cat-egories specified irrespective ofwhether the borrowers had availed the moratorium or not.

“The government has decid-ed that the relief on waiver ofcompound interest during thesix-month period shall be lim-ited to the most vulnerable cat-egory of borrowers. This cat-egory of borrowers, in whosecase, the compounding ofinterest will be waived, wouldbe MSME and personal loansof up to Rs 2 crore,” it said.

CBI should makepublic probereport in Sushantcase: Deshmukh

RJD MP moves SCover new farm laws

Priyanka's tell-all memoir tohit stands in January 2021

PNS nTHIRUVANANTHAPURAM

Union minister V Muraleedharan on Saturday slammedthe opposition for its "vicious"campaign against the Farmbills and said the Congressand the Left parties wereplaying with the lives andlivelihood of farmers.

The Narendra Modi gov-ernment ensured a betterfuture to farmers by reform-ing the agriculture sectorand passing two legislationsthat empowerfarmers andstrengthens supply chains,he told a press conferencehere.

"The Modi governmentrelieved farmers from thelimitations on sale-pointsand created a farmework toensure assured returns onfarm produce.

Union Minister slams Cong, Left parties

The protesters pelted stones at the policemen andofficial vehicles

Centre agrees to waive compoundinterest on loans up to Rs 2 crores

HATHRAS INCIDENT

HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | OCTOBER 4, 2020 money 06

IN BRIEFIN BRIEF

Tata Starbucks on Fridaysaid it has introduced anew seasonal whole-

bean coffee, StarbucksDiwali Blend, to customersacross India and selectglobal markets ahead of thefestival season. The newexquisite blend is hand-selected and sourced fromTata estates in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, and Celebrates India'sCoffee Heritage. Starbucks Diwali Blend is a tribute to the region'scoffee heritage and expertise, made with hand-selected coffee fromValparai, Jumboor and Suntikoppa estates in the verdant hills, itadded. Commenting on the development, CEO Navin Gurnaney said:"This new annual offering is inspired by India's cultural dynamics andrich coffee heritage, and Tata Starbucks remains committed toproviding our customers with a unique, unparalleled Starbucksexperience that celebrates India's coffee culture".

Apparel exporters bodyAEPC on Saturday said itstraining arm ATDC has

tied up with 77 manufacturingunits in Tamil Nadu for aWorld Bank funded skillingproject. Apparel ExportPromotion Council (AEPC)Chairman A Sakthivel saidATDC (Apparel Training andDesign Centre) will impart three-month classroom training to 240apprentices in five different courses followed by 12-month on-the-jobtraining. "We have received support letters from 77 factories based inTirupur and Chennai apparel cluster for World Bank funded SkillsStrengthening for Industrial Value Enhancement (STRIVE) project," hesaid in a statement. He added that courses were designed afterconsulting the industry so that they can have an upgraded workforce."While the apprentices will earn a stipend of Rs 4,500 to Rs 9,000 permonth during the 12-month training period, they stand a goodchance to get absorbed in the same factory," Sakthivel said.STRIVE is a World Bank funded project under the Ministry of SkillDevelopment and Entrepreneurship with a total cost of Rs 2,200crore (USD 318 million) aimed at improving the productivity atMSMEs in various industrial clusters, he said.

Dr Reddy's Laboratories onSaturday said it haslaunched in the US market

a generic version of SapropterinDihydrochloride tablets that areused to bring down bloodphenylalanine (Phe) levels inpatients. "We are pleased tolaunch this generic version ofSapropterin DihydrochlorideTablets, for oral use, illustrating our continued commitment to bringaffordable generic medicines to market for patients," Dr Reddy'sLaboratories Chief Executive Officer, North America Generics, MarcKikuchi, said in a statement. This product demonstrates that thecompany is actively expanding the breadth of its portfolio with atreatment for a rare disease, he added. "We are pleased to providefinancial support to patients by offering a co-pay card program foreligible patients, details will be available on our website," Kikuchi said.The Hyderabad-based company said its Sapropterin Dihydrochloridetablets in 100 mg strength were available in bottle count sizes of 120.

Tata Starbucks launchesseasonal whole-bean coffee

ATDC ties up with 77 factories for skilling project: AEPC

Dr Reddy's launches genericversion of Sapropterin tablets

Audi opens bookings forupcoming SUV Q2

German luxury car makerAudi on Saturdayopened bookings for its

upcoming SUV Q2 in Indiawhich will be launched in themarket in the second halfthis month. The Audi Q2,which will be the company'sfifth product launch this yearin India, can be booked with an amount of Rs 2 lakh online throughthe company's website or at the nearest Audi India dealership, AudiIndia said in a statement. The company said it is offering anintroductory 'Peace of Mind' benefit that comes bundled with a 5-yearservice package with 2+3 years extended warranty and 2+3 yearsroadside assistance. "...The Audi Q2 is an extremely importantproduct for India as it opens up a new segment of buyers for thebrand. It is a luxury all-rounder that is big on features and extendsthe successful Q-family," Audi India Head Balbir Singh Dhillon said.The company will be targeting younger first-time luxury segmentcustomers apart from its existing ones who are looking for areplacement or additional cars for the family.

PNSn NEW DELHI

The IT ministry is looking touse artificial intelligence foraddressing problems such aslanguage barrier that are facedby Indians in communicationand expects to get Cabinetapproval in a month to launchprogrammes based on the nextgeneration technology, seniorgovernment officials said onSaturday.

Niti Aayog CEO AmitabhKant said that India is organ-ising a conference on AI,RAISE 2020, which will beinaugurated by Prime MinisterNarendra Modi on Mondayevening.

National e-Governance

Division (NeGD) and MyGovCEO Abhishek Singh said thatthe Meity will soon approachthe Cabinet for a policy tolaunch AI-based programmes.

Kant said that details of theproposal cannot be discussednow but he expects the policyto be in place within sixty days.

"It will not be appropriate totalk at length at this stagebecause it is going to theCabinet but hopefully weshould have approval within amonth or so. We have already

got approval of the expenditurefinance committee and min-istry of information technolo-gy (Meity) will drive the pro-posal. Give us another 60 days,"Kant said.

Meity Secretary AjaySawhney said that the AI willbring tremendous opportuni-ty for India if the talent poolthat the country has is used tosolve various problems byusing the technology.

He said that there are 22regional languages and peoplewho know only a particularlanguage are unable to commu-nicate with others.

"This is one of the manyother problems that artificialintelligence can address,"Sawhney said. Singh said thatAI will be used for natural lan-guage processing which canend the problem of communi-cation by ending the languagebarrier.

Meity to seek Cabinet approval for policyAmitabh Kant said thatIndia is organising aconference on AI,RAISE 2020, which willbe inaugurated byPrime MinisterNarendra Modi to day

PNSn KOLKATA

Commerce and IndustryMinister Piyush Goyal said onSaturday that India has thecapability to become a globalplayer in many sectors andneeds to scale up its manufac-turing activities.

Speaking at a webinar organ-ised by EXIM Bank, he saidsectors which have potentialsto become globally competitiveare required to be identified.

"There is no need to segre-gate between products for

exports and domestic sector.We require quality, good tech-nology and scale, though somesupport may be needed attimes," Goyal said.

Exports will definitely hap-pen automatically if productsare "good and competitivelypriced", the minister said,

adding that the industriesshould not expect that subsi-dies will be the "only solution".

Speaking on the free tradeagreements (FTAs), he said,"We have to foster such collab-orations with the developedcountries which have large

markets, and not nations likeChile and Peru." India cansurely be part of the global sup-ply chain and also a reliablepartner, Goyal said, addingthat "building capabilities, scaleand good manufacturing prac-tices are the need of the hour".

EXIM Bank ManagingDirector David Rasquinha saidIndia's manufacturing andexport sectors have to become

globally competitive."Despite the growing privateconsumption demand, India'sGVA has decreased. EXIMBank has commissioned astudy on the policy constraintsfaced by some sectors like tex-tiles, apparel, automobile, elec-tronics and pharmaceuticals,"he added.

India can be global playerin many sectors: Goyal

“We have to fostersuch collaborationswith the developedcountries which havelarge markets, and notnations like Chile andPeru,” Goyal said

PNSn COLOMBO

Sri Lanka has repaid a billionUS dollar international sover-eign bond (ISB) that was duefor settlement this week, theCentral Bank said on Saturday.

The ISB repayment onFriday came days afterMoody's on Monday down-graded Lanka's sovereign cred-it rating by two notches, say-ing the South Asian nationwould be hard-pressed tosecure funding to service itshuge foreign debt.

Sri Lanka was pushed downfrom "B2" (high credit risk) to"Caa1" (very high credit risk),as the coronavirus pandemiccompounded the economicwoes of the island nation.

"This settlement reconfirmsthe government's unwaveringcommitment to honour itsforeign liabilities, thereby bol-stering investor confidenceand dispelling any concernsforeign investors may have inrelation to the government'sability and willingness tomaintain its unblemished debtservicing record,” the CentralBank said in a statement.

"The domestic foreignexchange market has alreadyreacted positively to this set-tlement and other recent pos-itive developments in the Sri

Lankan economy."With the envisaged inflows

to the domestic foreignexchange market supported byproactive measures taken bythe government and theCentral Bank of Sri Lanka, themarket sentiment is expectedto further strengthen in theperiod ahead,” it said.

The Sri Lankan govern-ment said with the settlementof the one billion dollar ISB,the country now has no largedebt payments before July2021.

The government had dis-missed the downgrade byMoody's as premature andunfair.

The government defendedits ability to meet its debtrepayments, citing a currencyswap with India's RBI (ReserveBank of India) and anticipat-ed Japanese and Chinesebonds, in addition to a syndi-cated loan from China.

The Moody's had said SriLanka only had limitedsecured funding sources tomeet its material external debtservice payments over thecoming years. FollowingMoody's downgrading ofLanka's sovereign credit, theOpposition parties called forurgent economic reformsthrough collective efforts.

Sri Lanka repaysbillion US $ bond

PNSn NEW DELHI

State-owned RINL onSaturday said it has suppliedover 8,500 tonne of steel for theall-weather Atal Tunnel whichreduces the distance betweenManali and Leh by 46 kms andtravel time by four to fivehours.

Prime Minister NarendraModi inaugurated the tunnelon Saturday along withDefence Minister RajnathSingh. The 9.02 km long tun-nel connects Manali to Lahaul-Spiti valley, ensuring connec-tivity throughout the year. Thevalley was earlier cut off for

about six months every yeardue to heavy snowfall.

In a statement, RashtriyaIsapt Nigam Ltd (RINL) said ithas contributed to the megaproject by supplying morethan 8,500 tonne of TMT steel.

"Cutting through the mightyPir Panjal range, the tunnel willreduce the travel time fromManali to Leh by 4-5 hours,enhance connectivity inremote border area ofHimachal and Ladakh, savecrores of rupees in transporta-tion costs and bring in newopportunities in the region,"Steel Minister DharmendraPradhan was quoted as sayingin the statement.

RINL CMD PK Rath saidthe company joins the nationin thanking the Prime Ministeron inaugurating the engineer-ing marvel at a height of morethan 10,000 ft.

PNSn NEW DELHI

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani'sReliance Industries Ltd onFriday announced to raise Rs7,350 crore from two investors-- Singapore's sovereign wealthfund GIC and Global alterna-tive asset firm TPG -- by sell-ing a stake in group's retailarm.

Through two separate deals,Reliance Industries will sell1.63 per cent stake in RelianceRetail Ventures Limited(RRVL).

GIC will invest Rs 5,512.5crore to buy 1.22 per cent sharein RRVL, the Indian firm saidin a statement.

It said TPG will invest Rs1,837.5 crore to buy 0.41 percent stake in RRVL.

The investments valueReliance Retail at a pre-moneyequity value of Rs 4.285 lakhcrore.

In less than three days,

Reliance Industries has enteredinto five deals to sell stake inRRVL.

Earlier, On Thursday, RILhad announced Abu Dhabi-based sovereign wealth fundMubadala Investment Co willinvest Rs 6,247.5 crore to buya 1.4 per cent stake in its retailarm.

On Wednesday, global pri-vate equity firm GeneralAtlantic picked up a 0.84 per

cent stake in the company forRs 3,675 crore. Also, US PEinvestor Silver Lake made asecond investment of Rs 1,875crore, taking its total fundinfusion in Reliance Retail toRs 9,375 crore for a 2.13 percent stake.

KKR had previously taken a1.28 per cent stake in the firmfor Rs 5,550 crore.

Commenting on the devel-opment Mukesh Ambani,

chairman and managing direc-tor of Reliance Industries, said:“I am delighted that GIC, withits track record of close to fourdecades of successful long-term value investing acrossthe world, is partnering withReliance Retail in its mission totransform the Indian retaillandscape. GIC's global net-work and track record of long-term partnerships will beinvaluable to the transforma-tion story of Indian Retail.”

“This investment is a strongendorsement of our strategyand India's potential,” he said.

GIC Chief Executive OfficerLim Chow Kiat said: “GIC ispleased to partner withReliance through this newinvestment, which will enablethe company to positionReliance Retail for the strongsecular growth in India's retailmarket.”

The transactions are subjectto regulatory and other cus-tomary approvals.

PNSn NEW DELHI

Walmart-owned Flipkart onSaturday said it will host itsannual 'The Big Billion Days'sale from October 16-21.

The six-day event will focuson delivering its promise of awide range of products withgreat value propositions toexisting and new consumers,while providing growthopportunities to MSMEs andsellers across the country, astatement said.

Flipkart rival, Amazon.in isexpected to announce its saledates next week. Value-focussed e-commerce mar-ketplace Snapdeal will hold itsfirst sale in mid-October tocoincide with Navratri festiv-ities. Its next two sales will runin late October and earlyNovember. E-commerce com-panies see a large chunk oftheir business coming in dur-ing the festive sales and theymake significant investmentsahead of time to ramp up their

capacity to be able to handlethe spike in orders. Festive sea-son sees players holding mul-tiple sale events, timed aroundDussehra and Diwali.

Electronics, fashion andhome furnishing are some ofthe categories that see a hugedemand during the festiveseason. A report by RedSeerestimates that festive sales thisyear are expected to almostdouble and touch USD 7 bil-lion in GMV as compared toUSD 3.8 billion in the sameperiod last year.

Flipkart said it has enablednew and convenient paymentofferings on its platform topave the way for an inclusiveand consumer-centric shop-ping experience.

It will make available no-cost EMIs through offers fromBajaj Finserv EMI cars andother bank credit and debitcards, while its partnershipwith Paytm will offer con-sumers assured cashback, itadded.

PNSn BENGALURU

India Indian Institute ofTechnology Jodh pur (IITJ)today announced the installa-tion of two NVIDIA DGXA100 systems at the CentralComputing Facility for stu-dents from all departments,including the School of AI andData Science, making IITJ thefirst Academic recipient of thisindustry-leading AI platformin India. The DGX A100 infra-structure will be an integralresource for every departmentand curriculum at IIT Jodhpursince AI and analytics are

essential curricular compo-nents across programs of IITJodhpur.

NVIDIA DGX A100 is theuniversal system for all AIworkloads, offering unprece-dented compute density, per-

formance, and flexibility inthe world's first 5 petaFLOPSAI system. NVIDIA DGXA100 features the world's mostadvanced accelerator, theNVIDIA A100 Tensor CoreGPU, enabling enterprises to

consolidate training, inference,and analytics into a unified,easy-to-deploy AI infrastruc-ture.

IIT Jodhpur currently hasstrong academic programs inBiosciences/Bioengineering,Computer Science andEngineering., Chemical Engineering, Civil and InfrastructureEngineering, ElectricalEngineering, MechanicalEngineering, Metallurgy andMaterials Engineering,Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics, Management andEntrepreneurship, Humanitiesand Social Sciences.

PNSn NEW DELHI

Sonalika Tractors, one ofIndia's leading tractor manu-facturers and the No.1 Exportsbrand from India, has brokenall of its previous monthlysales records as well as outper-formed the tractor industrysales performance in Sept'20.Strong positive domestic sen-timents coupled with a healthydemand from overseas mar-kets has led Sonalika to regis-ter highest ever overall sales of17,704 tractors in Sept'20.

Collectively, Sonalika hasachieved its highest ever H1sales of 63,561 tractors and26,530 implements. Mr.Raman Mittal, ExecutiveDirector, Sonalika Group, said,“We at Sonalika have regis-tered 17,704 overall tractorsales in Sept'20 breaking allour previous monthly recordsand mark the highest eversales in a month. Our cumu-lative (Apr-Sept'20) overallsales stands at 63,561 tractors,which is also highest ever H1tractors sale.”

PNSn NEW DELHI

A Delhi court has dismissedthe bail plea of former LaxmiVilas Bank Vice PresidentPradeep Kumar in a case relat-ed to alleged misappropriationof funds at Religare FinvestLtd.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Vijeta SinghRawat said as per the chargesheet there was prima facieincriminating material againstKumar. During the period ofthe alleged offence committedin 2019, Kumar was the VicePresident and RelationshipHead of North Regional Office(Delhi), of Laxmi Vilas Bank(LVB). Kumar was chargesheeted in the case by theEconomic Offences Wing ofthe Delhi police for allegedlyabusing his position and con-

spiring with the then manage-ment of RFL, RHC Holdi ngLtd, and Ranchem Ltd, tomisappropriate a sum of Rs791 crore.

The court said in its orderpassed on September 30, "There is no 'just and proper' rea-sons or 'any other special rea-son' emanating from the sub-missions made and materialon record to consider givingbail to the accused/applicant(Kumar) in the present case.

"As per the charge sheetthere are prima facie incrim-inating material qua theaccused / applicant who wasan official of the bank. By facil-itating siphoning off of Rs 791Crores, the economic fabrichas been corroded and theimplication has to be borne bythe public shareholders ofREL (Religare Enterprise Ltd).”

Flipkart to host ‘BigBillion Days' sale

It said TPG willinvest Rs 1,837.5crore to buy 0.41 percent stake in RRVL.The investmentsvalue Reliance Retailat a pre-money equityvalue of Rs 4.285lakh crore

Supplied 8,500 tonne of steelfor Atal Tunnel: RINL

The DGX A100infrastructure will bean integral resourcefor every departmentand curriculum at IIT Jodhpur

Sonalika salesbreak records

AI-BASED PROGRAMMES

Reliance raises Rs 7,350 cr from GIC, TPG

IIT Jodhpur receives NVIDIA DGX System

Bail plea of PradeepKumar dismissed

special 07HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | OCTOBER 4, 2020

Asix-month long Coronavirus-forcedvacation is coming to an end for manychildren. Unlock 5 is here and with abrand new set of guidelines. Although

the Coronavirus curve is nowhere near flatten-ing, almost everything has been opening up to givea boost to the drooping economy. Under the freshset of guidelines, the schools and colleges areallowed to reopen in a phased manner fromOctober 15, 2020. However, attendance wouldn’tbe mandatory and that online education will stillbe the preferred mode of education.

The idea, however is receiving mixedresponse. While many think that it is high timefor students to start attending schools and colleges,since education has already suffered a lot, someare still of the opinion that sending children toschools is not that great of an idea.

“The fact that physical classrooms are the bestis undebatable. But having said that, keeping inmind the raging fury of Coronavirus, it doesn’tseem to be a good option to send our children toschools. We would prefer our child to learn onlineand make the best use of technology in the cur-rent time,” Seema, a mother of two daughters, tellsyou.

Alka Kapur, Principal, Modern Public School,Shalimar Bagh, New Delhi, agrees with the par-ents and tells you that children’s safety comes first.

“Safety comes first. Also when we take thefeedback from the parents they are reluctant tosend their children to school. As it is in Delhi, thecurve doesn’t seem to flatten anytime soon. In fact,there has been an exponential rise in cases in thepast few days and it is like every other person isinfected with the virus. Even if a school like ourswhich has ensured maximum security and safe-ty inside the premises, can’t ensure anything oncethe child steps out of the campus. Children willbe commuting to and from the school andthings are crazy outside, so no one could take thatresponsibility. As a school, we would be abidingby the Government’s order, but we don’t think thatthere will be much footfall in the school,” Kapurtells you.

She adds that one can’t expect much from chil-dren once they are out in the open. “Children arechildren. The biggest concern raised by few par-ents is that it has been months since their chil-dren are cooped up in their houses. And now ifby the will of their parents they are allowed to goto school, they may take advantage of the situa-tion and the norms can go for a toss. There arechances they may take the situation lightly.Though inside the school we are following prop-er measures because our concern is not just thestudents but the safety of the staff also. We maytry to implement the guidelines very rigidly butit may not happen with all the schools because oflack of infrastructure and funds,” Kapur says.

Not only online classes, but online examsis also a thing. However, Kapur feels thatthere is no way that the essence of examscan be retained online.

“The reason is that parents take pridein marks rather than in the process. Theyneed to understand that they have to be therewith their children during the exam andmake sure that their child doesn’t cheat. It istheir responsibility, but I don’t know howmany of them will take it seriously. Theschools are doing their best, but cer-tainly the quality and the essenceof exams will be lost online,” shesays.

The brick and mortar class-es, she says, is the best mode ofeducation. “While online class-es are equally important intoday’s time, the brick andmortar classes remains thebest. In a 45 minutes or anhour’s online session, it isnot possible for teachersto take attendance, domeditation and eyeexercise and teach 40or 45 students. Also aface-to-face interac-tion with the teachers

make the students understand the concepts bet-ter and get their queries answered then and there,”Kapur says.

Ritesh Rawal, Founder, Dudes & Dolls — TheCosmic School and Adhyay School, says that toopen schools, it is important to evaluate the readi-ness of all the stakeholders, which are the parents,administration, the teaching staff, and the schoolmanagement and the center point of the school,which are the students.

“All the stakeholders are of the opinion thatschools should be open but without compromis-ing on the health and safety of the students. Soschools will automatically be ready to welcomeback children whenever the students are at norisk,” Rawal says.

He adds that the current situation demandsa lot of self-discipline and self-control on the partof children.

“While colleges have students who are a lotmore independent than the school goingchildren and may take care of themselves

and others while they are on the campus,the task lies with students studying inearly classes. Such students may not beable to follow all the precautions at alltimes and even if they do the risk of get-ting infected remains. Hence, going to

school during this time is not advis-able, however colleges can be

opened up for importantactivities with proper pro-tocols in place,” Rawaltells you.

Rawal adds that bothphysical and online edu-cation is important asthey both have theirunique space and objec-tive. “While physicalclassrooms setup providea lot of opportunities todevelop a children’s over-all personality, online

education can provide anextremely good supple-mentary support. A blendof both utilised correctly isthe best option,” he says.

Dr RL Raina, Vice

Chancellor, JK Lakshmipat University, Jaipur, tellsyou that the universities are well prepared to wel-come students after the break.

“The universities and colleges are ensuring allprecaution on campus. Higher education institutesfor PhD and engineering students who are pur-suing science and technology stream requires lab-oratory and experimental works, therefore all suchinstitutes have to follow the strict standards of pro-tection norms including masks, gloves, six feet dis-tance between students and teachers and propersanitisation facility. Having said that, asking stu-dents to attend compulsory classes is not a goodidea. Even, as per the guidelines also, the physi-cal classrooms are opening up, the online or dis-tance learning will continue and would rather be“the preferred mode of teaching,” he says.

Looking at the arrangement done by theMinistry of Home Affairs (MHA), for studentswho wish to rejoin the institutes, the written con-sent of parents is mandatory. “Further, the min-istry has asked the education institute to notenforce the compulsory attendance rules and thedecision of a student attending physical classesmust depend entirely on parental consent,” heexplains.

He tells you that online can’t be the way for-ward and that for all the students who wish torejoin the college, the universities will provide flex-ibility to students through hybrid education.“Online can’t be the way forward. But it will goalong as a hybrid mode. What we stronglybelieve is that to manage space hybrid will be theway forward for sometime.We at JKLU, have cre-ated bio bubble for airspace. The universities alongwith other things can also create secure space inresidential campuses, with flexibility in class tim-ings and multiple slots to access facilities,” Rainatells you.

Now that the institutes are all set to reopen,Dr Ramakrishnan Raman, Director, SIBM Pune,tells you that the challenge ahead for colleges isto make education seamless. “The challenge aheadfor colleges and universities is to make the expe-rience seamless for students. Everyone is new tothis scenario and hence there are no text bookrules which can be followed for a meticulous faultfree implementation. There are some genericguidelines that can be followed to make the expe-rience of ‘returning back to campus’ safe and

memorable. It must be ensured that the students‘feel safe’ and ‘are safe’ when they are back to cam-pus,” Raman says.

He lists out some measures that can help.“First, rapid test for COVID. All students whoreturn to campus must be asked to get themselvestested for COVID-19 and this must be done twodays before they return to campus. This willensure that all students who return to the cam-pus are not asymptomatic,” he explains.

Second, quarantine first. All the residentialinstitutions must insist on compulsory quarantinefor 15 days on arrival at campus. This needs goodplanning, as the available infrastructure must beput to use in an intelligent fashion which can helpquarantine the students. Meticulous planning andscheduling of the student’s arrival in batches canmake this happen.

Third, sanitisation of class room and hostels.“All premises must be sanitised regularly and thedate of sanitisation must be displayed to all. Thiswill bring trust of being safe among students whoreturn to the campus. Cleanliness and hygienemust be given very high-level priority andprocess changes must be made for meticulousimplementation,” he says.

Fourth, option to attend the session online.Classes which are conducted in the classroommust also be available online in two-way synchro-nous mode. This could be done using online livestreaming. This will help in ensuring that theclassrooms are not crowded and also will help stu-dents who are abroad — who can’t return to cam-pus — not to miss out on the academic sessions.

Fifth, all facilities must ensure social distanc-ing and safety. All processes including use of messfacility, tuck shop, the photocopying facility, recre-ation facility, etc must ensure social distancing.Use of masks and hand sanitisers and checkingof temperatures before entering and leavingclassroom and hostels must be made mandatory.The same process must be followed at the canteenand mess. Automatic thermal scanners can beinstalled to keep a check on those who have highbody temperature.

“In short, meticulous planning and continu-ous monitoring of processes with investment inmanpower and technology would be necessary forensuring safety of students when they are back onthe campus,” Raina tells you.

Under the revised

guidelines for Unlock 5,

the Government has

allowed schools and

colleges to reopen from

October 15, though in a

graded manner.

MUSBA HASHMI speaks

to stakeholders about

their preparedness to

welcome children back

after a long break and

whether it is a risky option

THE CHALLENGE AHEAD FORCOLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIESIS TO MAKE THE EXPERIENCE

SEAMLESS FOR STUDENTS.EVERYONE IS NEW TO THIS

SCENARIO AND HENCE THEREARE NO TEXTBOOK RULESWHICH CAN BE FOLLOWEDFOR A METICULOUS FAULT

FREE IMPLEMENTATION.THERE ARE SOME GENERIC

GUIDELINES THAT CAN BEFOLLOWED TO MAKE THE

EXPERIENCE OF RETURNINGBACK TO CAMPUS SAFE AND

MEMORABLE— DR RAMAKRISHNAN RAMAN

DIRECTOR, SIBM, PUNE

Ritesh Rawal, Founder, Dudes & Dolls —The Cosmic School and Adhyay School

TO OPEN OR NOT TO OPENSCHOOLS

This week you are in full mind to set resolutions forhealth and follow them religiously. Planned diet,exercise, adequate rest, and spirituality are all beingtaken care of. To those feeling spiritual discomfort, nowis a good time to examine what excites you. Creativepass-times will be satisfying and bring happiness inlife. On the career front, you should take time torestructure your life according to moral principles. Itwould be in your best interest to explore other points ofview. There may be issues of justice and equality. Onthe relationship front, it is important to know that thereis never only one person that you can be with and havea soulful, happy and meaningful relationship. There istime to find a real soulmate.

Lucky number 10Lucky colour Off-WhiteLucky day Monday

ARIES March 21-April 19

This week you are at ease. You will enjoy the freshness,purity and innocent energy of a child. Be sure to knowwhere you are going. Positive thought is important andshould come easily to you. You feel the healing andrejuvenating energy around you. On the career front, youare creative, original, and free from restrictions imposedby ideas. In terms of work, you may be your own worstenemy. How you speak your mind is as important aswhat you say. There may be some unfairness at play inyour work world. Be sure that your behaviour isimpeccable. In terms of love, it’s possible that you aretempted to go too far or that someone is pressuring youthat way. Either way, communicate as best you can aboutyour boundaries and preferences.

Lucky number 30Lucky colour GreenLucky day Thursday

TAURUS April 20-May 20

Others will find you physically attractive this week. Withregard to health, listen to your body and take care ofyourself. See a health care practitioner, if needed. Onthe work front, you will acquire great deal ofaccomplishment in a short period. This is a verypositive week for your career. For those looking forwork, a woman may be instrumental in helping youfind employment. You may get a promotion or behonoured for your accomplishments. On the personalfront, relationships will be complicated. Accusation,misunderstandings between the married couples couldmake life miserable. You can be lazy in makingcommitments and taking the emotional relationshipseriously.

Lucky number 13Lucky colour BlueLucky day Thursday

GEMINI May 21-June 20

This week you need to avoid mental tension and anxietyas this can lead to health problems. Balance andmoderation are the keys to keep. Ensure you are eatingwell, sleeping well, playing and working enough. Look atwhere you might be out of balance and then cure this.Moderation is the way to good health right now. On thecareer front, some fear and mental tension might prevail.Your confidence and energy will be low, you feeldemoralized and doubtful about your future. This is thetime when you need career counselling, to seek advicefrom the seniors. On the relationship front, emotionsand sentiments are high and you feel romantic by heart.Married couples will spend quality time with yourpartner. Expression of your gut feelings and gettingcloser to your partner/ lover is likely.

Lucky number: 3Lucky colour: PeachLucky day: Wednesday

CANCER June 21-July 22

You need to look after your health this week. There areindications that you are either low in energy or faceseasonal ailments due to your casual attitude. Getyourself checked. Create a positive environment aroundyou. Stay away from negative people. On the professionalfront, unexpected may happen. If you are waiting forpositive results or a promotion, you are likely to facedisappointment as the procedure might get delayed foran uncertain period. On the personal front, yourdetermination and honesty will help you to stayconnected with your partner. You will forgive the faultsand mistakes committed by your partner and accept him/her open-heartedly. You could be a big support to yourfamily too and make them feel proud of you.

Lucky number 2Lucky colour PinkLucky day Sunday

VIRGO Aug 23-Sep 22

This week you may experience low energy and have tocope with heavy workload. Try not to exert yourself. This isthe time to take rest, restore energy and recharge yourcells. A positive mindset is yet another tool for you togrow healthier and stronger. Work-wise, you need to bringbalance in your professional and personal areas of life. Ifyou are too occupied with your personal and domesticaffairs, you are likely to face a warning by your seniors fora job not being done properly. Follow the rules andregulations of the organisation you are working with.Relationship wise, your efforts on this front may notfructify. The time is wasted in tackling moody and difficultpeople. This may be the time to end your illusions and livein reality.

Lucky number 13Lucky colour Rose GoldLucky day Tuesday

LIBRA Sep 23-Oct 22

This week you will have the ability to respond towhatever comes in life. There is happiness in abundancein all areas of life that bring smile on your face. Youspread the smile wherever you go. People around youwill be impressed and feel motivated and elated in yourcompany. You are full of energy and vitality with verypositive physical and mental wellbeing. On the careerfront, the scene is excellent. Your efforts made in thepast will pay you rich dividends now. Those who haveappeared for an interview, may get a job call by thisweek. Those who want to switch their job; it is the timeto fulfil your ambitions. Monetary gains are on the cards.In the matters of the heart, you will feel lucky, the personyou love will reciprocate your feelings.

Lucky number 1Lucky colour IndigoLucky day Friday

SCORPIO Oct 23-Nov 21

Pay very close attention to your emotions this week.Positive thinking and balanced behaviour are veryimportant now. Eating right, sleeping enough, gettingproper exercise, and drinking adequate fluids are allthat you need. On the professional front, a prestigiousproject brings out your creative potential. Your self-discipline, maturity, learning experience will go a longway in your career. People will admire you andacknowledge your potentials. Your name could berecommended for the higher post. You are in the goodlist of your seniors. On the personal front, there may bea celebration of childbirth, marriage or get together inthe family. This is the time to celebrate, share yourexperiences and enjoy the union with a loved one.

Lucky number 9Lucky colour OrangeLucky day Saturday

AQUARIUS Jan 20-Feb 18

This week you may feel a slight reduction in stress andstrain. Things may not be perfect, but they are going toget better than in the recent past. You feel at ease withyour blood pressure and stomach related problems. Onthe career front, some challenges have to be faced thisweek. You need to put your hundred per cent to get thework done. Things are not as smooth as they seemed inretrospect. Your focus and perseverance will win you thesituation this is definite. So, don’t give up. Businessmatters may take time to resolve, be patient andpersistent. On the personal front, you need to take timeout for your partner/spouse this week. Spend eveningswith close friends and family. The situation may turnaround otherwise.

Lucky number 11Lucky colour WhiteLucky day Monday

PISCES Feb 19-March 20

This is a great period for you. You enrich your life andthose around you by sharing your wisdom. There may bea celebration of your own or someone who you careabout. In general, things are going well. You can lookforward to a fast recovery from an ailment you have beenlong suffering. Workwise, you make professionalcommitments with sincerity. Career graph rises and youfeel proud of your success and achievements.Relationships with friends, seniors, and colleagues willprosper. Realise your potential and utilise it. On thepersonal front, you need time and space to analyse yourrelationship. You seem to have lost trust with yourpartner. Don’t ignore your gut feelings. If you feel thatsomething in your relationship is unhealthy, pay heed.

Lucky number 22Lucky colour RedLucky day Wednesday

CAPRICORN Dec 22-Jan 19

You must focus on leading a balanced and disciplined lifeto stay in good health. Don’t ignore, or even try tocompromise on the health front. Fast food, pollution, andalcohol could prove bad for your health. Those sufferingfrom serious ailments, need to be under constantobservation of the specialist. Pay attention to the signalsyou body sends out. On the work front, you are likely toconsider leaving your job, even if it’s a good one becauseyour heart is no longer in it. You are being called to followyour dream, no matter what it is. On the personal front,you need to count your blessings and be contented withwhat you have. Anything else that comes to you is abonus. Now is the time to share what you have for someother’s benefits.

Lucky number 13Lucky colour TurquoiseLucky day Friday

LEO July 23-Aug 22

You will be sensitive, emotional and temperamental thisweek. Take care of your mood swings, as they are likelyto cause harm to your health. Avoid liquor, and any kindof addiction. Positive mindset would help you overcomemost of the tough times, without damaging your physicaland mental wellbeing. On the career front, you might faceuncertainty and confusions. You may feel that you aregoing nowhere and are indecisive about what course ofaction will suit you at this point in time. The dilemma willprevail this entire week. On the personal front, starsfavour you in managing your most difficult relationshipsthis week. The situation is under your control now. Therewill be intense and cherishable moments with the lovedone.

Lucky number 10Lucky colour SilverLucky day Saturday

SAGITTARIUS Nov 22-Dec 21

YYOOUURRWWEEEEKK

AHEADMADHU KOTIYA

sundaymagazine

tarot 8LIVE SIMPLY. DEEPEST JOY ISLIKE A FLOWER....BEAUTIFUL

IN ESSENCE— TONY SAMARA Hyderabad, October 4, 2020

The ongoing pandemic, has vindi-cated beyond doubt, the relevanceof ancient India’s concept of

“Vasudhaiva kutumbakam”. The importof this phrase is that wellness of thewhole world is a precondition to secureindividual wellbeing. For, the manifestworld, with all its enormity and diversi-ty, is at the core level a unified organism,where no individual has a reality, inde-pendent of the whole. In fact, all exis-tences are set into an interdependentstructure, in a way that collective effortsof all carry on the life cycle.

The concept has been beautifullyexplained in Kathopanishada through theimagery of an inverted Asvat tree(Banyan tree). With root of the treeassigned to unseen dimension of the cos-mos, it has its trunk, branches, and twigswith all the leaves thereon turned down-wards, symbolising the manifest world.Without the root, there will be no tree.Here again, if any component of the treeis ever separated from the main body, itwill turn lifeless. They carry meaning tillthey remain an integral part of the maintree. Of late, even the science fraternityaffirms this view. Paul Davies, anAustralian Physicist says: “For a naïve

realist, the world is a collection ofobjects. For a quantum physicist, it is aninseparable web of an vibrating energypatterns, where no individual componenthas a reality independent of the entirety,included in that entirety is the observer.”

In such an integrated framework,the wrong doing or irresponsible con-duct of even a few could unsettle thewhole world. See, how the virus thaterupted in Wuhan state of Chinabecause of irresponsible conduct of afew has engulfed the whole world. It hasspared none. Almost 1 million peopleare dead by now. That makes it incum-bent upon us to be conscious about ourcollective obligations and conductresponsibly. We all have to ensure well-being of our collective existence. Whatplays a spoiler in the whole game plan inthis human dominated world is thatevery being is born unique. Each carriesvarying desire and mind-trends, and allare driven by individualistic sense ofego. See, how varying perceptions ofthose at the head of nations have failedto arrive at the consensus necessary tocombat the pandemic. Truth, however,remains that whether we like it or not,we have no choice than to be in accord

with each other to secure our healthyexistence. The same model will work atthe level of nations as well as in our uni-tary family setup.

Coming down to family life, all mar-ried couple are unique, each carryingvarying attributes and vulnerabilities. Toensure a harmonious life, they need tobe conscious about their collective oblig-ations, which helps them being inaccord, overriding their limitations.They then will care for each other’s con-cerns and sensibilities. The paradox,however, is that more often caught up intheir own aspirational urges, egotisticalwhims and fancies, the couple forgetabout their collective obligations. Theythen try to impose their will on theother, which often leads to dispute.

A feuding couple after being coun-selled, work upon themselves and thenlive in peace for a while thereafter. Theirold habits again overtake their mind,when they begin fighting on trivialissues. After a while, when sense of rea-son dawns on them, they again come forcounselling. Let us look at their habittendencies.

Both husband and wife are basicallywell meaning people, coming as it mayas benevolent Jupiter having its imprint

on their lagna sign. But husband’s lagnabeing Aries, with its lord Mars placedadverse to mind indicating Moon,makes him aggressive, impulsive, irrita-ble. He wishes to live in a demandingmode. Moon being in emotive signCancer and placed adverse to Venusmakes him too much touchy and sensi-tive, who gets overexercised even ontrivial issues. The sun placed adverse toSaturn, brings in a sense of insecurity. Incase of wife, Mars conjunct Mercury,both placed adverse to Saturn, makesher restless. That doesn’t allow space toobjectively look at the issues in hand,and she gets into fighting mode. If thatwould not be enough, Moon placed inVirgo sign is conjunct headless Ketu.That instils a sense of “I am the onlyright person syndrome’ which makes herblame others for all the wrong happen-ing. And the result is there to see.Should they invoke their Jupiterianinfluence in right earnest, they may beable to relate well, overlooking theirindividual weaknesses. Their life maythen turn into a pleasant experience.

The wwriter iis aan aastrologer, vvastu cconsultant and sspiritual ccounsellor. CConnect wwith hhim aat

Tel: 991-111-99818037273/9871037272Email: bbharatbhushanpadmadeo@gmail.com

ASTROTURFBHARAT BHUSHAN PADMADEO

Madhu Kotiya is a tarot card reader, spiritual healer, and Founder, MShezaim Institute of Tarot and Divination. Contact details: madhu@indiatarot.com, www.indiatarot.com, M: 9873283331

Of collective obligations

TEAM AGENDA DESK > NAVNEET MENDIRATTA, CONSULTING EDITOR | H LAYOUT AND DESIGN > SATISH CHANDRA JAKHMOLA, SENIOR EDITOR (CREATIVE)

NNooww yyoouu ccaann wwrriittee ttoo uuss aatt aaggeennddaappiioonneeeerr@@ggmmaaiill..ccoomm

sundaymagazine

Need for a sustainable CSR fundThe resulting financial losses incurred

by companies during pandemic havepushed down their CSR spending

F R O M T H E I N S I D E

You don't come intothis life wanting to beanything other than

happy— Demi Moore

‘I am neither

satisfied nor unhappy

professionally’

HYDERABAD, October 4, 2020

SUPERFOODS DELIVERCONCENTRATED — EXTRA-LARGE DOSES OF VITAMINSAND MINERALS —NUTRIENTS ANDANTIOXIDANT THAT AREGOOD FOR YOU. EVERY FOODHAS SOME GOODNESSINHERENT IN IT, BUT SOMEFOODS DELIVER THEM ENMASSE, IN LOADS. THEY ARESO NUTRIENT DENSE, THATTHEY ARE ALMOST LIKE AMEDICATION, ASUPPLEMENT. BUT OFCOURSE, FAR BETTER

So what categorises food as a super-food? The whole idea of superfoodsis a little vague. I have a simple defi-nition/way for them. But first, weneed to understand why we need to

include them in our diet.I believe and always have that when you

begin putting the right food on the plate (byright food, I mean food that does somethinggood for you), then calories take care ofthemselves, and your weight issues get tack-led on their own.

So when you think nutrition and notweight loss — you get both. Whereas whenyou think just weight loss, then you knowwhat happens right? You lose some and thengain that back and more! So no good comesout of it.

This is where superfoods come in. Thetruth is that we are in general overfed, butour diet is completely inadequate.Superfoods help fill that gap. Even thoughthere is no agreed definition and very oftenit is simply used as a marketing term, andmisused, but still, it is not that difficult toidentify the actual superfoods. They mustmeet certain conditions.

So what are superfoods? These foodsdeliver concentrated — extra-large doses ofvitamins and minerals — nutrients andantioxidant that are good for you. Now everyfood has some goodness inherent in it, butsome foods deliver them en masse, in loads.They are so nutrient dense, that they arealmost like a medication, a supplement. Butof course far better. Once you have identifiedthem, the next step is the draw the best outof them. This book is an attempt to help youdo that easily. Sharing an excerpt from thechapter:

RADISH

When my mother is staying with us, themenu automatically changes for the better.Suddenly, all the healthy, forgotten dishesstart getting cooked. The regular dishes —dal chawal and those same two or three sub-zis cooked by rotation get replaced by inter-esting, super-healthy, and sometimes slightlyunusual dishes. And the best news is thatradish (mooli) makes an appearance on ourplates more often. For example, mooli kaparantha wolfed down with dhania-amla-mint chutney and beaten curd, and mychildhood favourite mooli bhurjee with theleaves, relished with missi roti… and moresuch dishes. I don’t know anyone else (likemy mom) who can eat radishes with somuch joy! She loves them! And thankfullythat seems to have passed on to me too.

NUTRITION PUNCH

A winter staple, radish is very good forus. This slightly bitter root is amazingly lowin calories (100 gm of radish gives less than

20 calories), is loaded with vitaminC, and is rich in folate, Vitamin B6,riboflavin, thiamin and minerals likeiron, magnesium and copper.

A WEIGHT WATCHER’S FRIEND

Radish is high in roughage, con-tains a lot of water, and is low on theglycemic index too (keeps blood sugar sta-ble), so it is a great food even for those whoare watching their weight or sugar levels.

ANTIOXIDANTS AHOY!

Radish is a great source of anthocyanins,a type of antioxidant that is great for ourheart and displays anti-cance and anto-inflamatory properties. In fact, the folic acid,vitamin C and anthocyanins in radish makeit a very effective cancer-fighting food.

HEART-FRIENDLY

Eating radishes regularly keeps choles-terol levels in check, and the potassium in itkeeps blood pressure low.

YOUR COLD WEATHER FRIEND

Radish is fabulous for winter months asit naturally decreases the congestion of therespiratory system, cuts the irritation of thenose, throat and windpipe, and decongeststhe lungs — symptoms that accompany fre-quent colds, infections, allergies and othercauses common during these months.

So, a mooli parantha or a radish salad,when in season, is undoubtedly a no-brainerto keep winter ailments in check.

EAT THE LEAVES TOO

Why radish leaves, you ask? That’sbecause the leaves are even more nutrient-dense than the radish. They deliver lots ofiron, which helps cut fatigue, preventanaemia and boost the haemoglobin level.They are a good source of vitamin C (asmuch as six times more per serving than theradish itself), which boosts immunity bigtime and delivers some vitamin A, thiamine(vitamin B1), pyridoxin (vitamin B6), folicacid (vitamin B9), calcium and the hard-to-find phosphorous. In fact, the high level ofpotassium, iron, vitamin C and dietary fab-ric found in radish greens help strengthenthe heart and keep our cholesterol levelssorted.

ANTI-AGEING

Radish greens display an impressiveantioxidant capacity too, ranking right upthere with other big shots like broccoli andkale. This means they can help fight againstoxidative stress and chronic diseases in thebody. They, in fact, have some uniqueantioxidants called sulforaphane indoles andanthocyanins, which are known for theircancer-prevention abilities. Having enough

antioxidants in thediet is actually great news for

our skin too, as they help theskin to stay young and alsoreduce the appearance of blem-ishes and scars.

BEAT BLOATING

The best news though is thatradish leaves are a natural diuretic —perfect for those who suffer from waterretention and feel bloated all the time. Thevitamin B6 in them even helps dissolve kid-ney stones and improves liver function.

PREVENT CONSTIPATION

These leaves also demonstrate strong lax-ative properties as they stimulate peristalticmotion and prevent a number of gastroin-testinal problems. Thus, they naturally helpease constipation and a bloated stomach, andkeep our gut smiling by improving its nutri-ent-absorption efficiency.

THE RAD ROOT

The radish is high in fibre (100 gm radishgives a whopping 4 gm fibre), so it helps youfeel-and-stay full for longer. This will helpyou keep a check on your cravings betweenmeals and curb over-eating. It is high in fibreand has a low glycemic index, so it’s a fabu-lous food for diabetics too and helps keepblood sugar level under control.

EASY TIPS TO EAT RADISHES

Make one radish part of your saladevery day. In fact, if you need some crunchin your salads but want to keep it healthy,add radishes instead of croutons. Cookmooli subzi, or use radishes to make sambarand chutney like they do in the southernpart of our country. You can even pickle and

eat them with your regular meals, or roastthem with garlic and add to pastas, sand-wiches and salads.

Try this salad: In a salad bowl, combinesliced radishes and cucumbers, and choppedgreen onions. To make the dressing, whisktogether equal parts yoghurt, sour cream,chopped garlic, a little bit of olive oil, and saltand pepper to taste in a mixing bowl. Add the

dressing to the salad; mix well, chill andenjoy.

Also never throw the leaves —cook them with some radish (or carrot)pieces in mustard oil with just salt, asafoetida,carom seeds, ginger and green chillies. Youcan also add them to salads, sandwiches anddals. You can even make a side dish by justwilting them and adding some butter andlemon juice, or mix them up with potatoesand onions and make a nice soup.

Or try a radish green pesto (myfavourite): Mix some radish leaves with fresh-ly grated parmesan cheese, garlic, olive oil,almonds and walnuts (or sunflower seeds).Spread over a cracker or a toast and have it.

The peppery, earthy taste of radish and itsleaves takes a little getting used to, but it’stotally worth the benefits.

AT A GLANCE

The benefits of eating radish include:l Acting as a natural detox l Keeping your blood pressure tamed l Easing constipation and a bloated stomach l Reducing blemishes and scars l Preventing winter congestion

Fun Fact: Radish was so highly regardedin ancient Greece that its gold replicas werepresented to their god, Apollo!

Excerpted with permission from Fix it withFood by Kavita Devgan, Rupa, `295

DISH UP THE

RADISHRADISH

Backed by research, Fix it with Food by

KAVITA DEVGAN has easy-to-follow advice as

she explains how eating certain superfoods can

improve your energy, help prevent the common

ailments and kick-start weight loss. In her book, she

offers not just nutritional information, but practical

tips and easy recipes to help make these foods

a part of your daily diet. An edited excerpt:

10 11

sundaymagazine

India&world 10Hyderabad, October 4, 2020

SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE HAVE ASOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY TO MAKETHE WORLD A BETTER PLACE AND

NOT JUST TAKE FROM IT— CARRIE UNDERWOOD

There is no circumventing thefact that this year has beenquite taxing upon the human

experience of being alive — a pan-demic, natural disasters, worseninggeopolitical feuds and mass unem-ployment do not a pleasant yearmake, by any means. While it isunderstandable to be caught up inall of this; perhaps we should alsobe cognizant of the fact that thisyear has been incredibly strenuousupon the natural world, too — andthe animals that live in it.

Indeed, it has only beenaround seven months since thedeadly Australian fires, the largestof their kind — killed over half abillion animals, and caused histori-cal damage in their wake. It mayfeel like eternities ago that the blaz-ing pyres blackened out the skiesand brightened headlines; but thereality is that fires follow a simple,almost rudimentary path ofdestruction, one that can be under-stood. The human arbitrationsinvolved in perpetuating a culturalsystem of violence towards animalshowever, is anything but simple;and it is only fitting that it isaddressed on World Animal Day,celebrated around the world annu-ally on 4th October.

At the heart of this culture liesa clear issue — that of what ani-mals are classified as vermin ornot, which subsequently decidesthe level of legal violence that is notonly normalised, but also deeplyaffects the cultural perception ofsaid animal. We are all aware of thehorrifying death of Saumya, theelephant; and while the anger andbacklash is welcome; the aspect ofthe story that goes under discussedis that the explosive fruit was des-tined for another animal — andthe sympathy comes from the acci-dent, as well as the favourable per-ception of elephants. Had thatexplosive snared pineapple madeits way to a wild boar’s mouth, itwould be not be a story — for suchmethods of ‘dealing’ with verminare ‘acceptable’ and occur everyday.

Vermin animals are dealt with

in exceedingly inhumane waysacross the world — mass culling,live burials (such as rabbits inAustralia) and of course, food trapsare some of the more widely prac-ticed ways. In India, ThePrevention of Cruelty to AnimalsAct applies to all animals; but thereis a catch — the vermin exceptionto animals protected under theIndian Wildlife Act allows for aglaring oversight that feeds thiscycle of violence. To be clear, theseanimals do cause tangible andmaterial damage to businesses,especially farmers; but just becausethey are deemed as economicallyuseless doesn’t mean they deserveto be exterminated in abhorrentways.

While not a perfect compari-son by any means (for a multitudeof factors don’t translate directly),but think of us humans for amoment — do we view fellow peo-ple in society that are unable tocontribute economically in such areductionist view? Do we value lifeonly if it manages to materiallyprovide us with something? And— forget value — do we set out todestroy economically ‘unfeasible’lives because of this very drive?

The truth is that the issuedeserves deep examination whichmust be followed by reform. Asthings stand, under Section 62 of

the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972,states can provide a list of wild ani-mals to the Centre requesting it todeclare them vermin for selectiveslaughter — meaning there is noconsensus even, on what is classi-fied as vermin. Nilgai and wildboars are considered vermin inBihar and even some parts ofRajasthan, and in 2016 RhesusMacaques were given vermin statusin Himachal Pradesh, for the thirdtime. Not only does this highlightthe degree arbitration — forMacaques exist in Rajasthan inhealthy populations too, and arealmost marketed as a part of somecities’ (Jaipur, Jodhpur) intrinsiccharm; but it also gives way to awindow of sustained cruelty that ishard to ever close again.

The issue of vermin animalsversus farmer’s produce CAN besolved through policy change andinvestment in innovative andhumane methods, of which thereexist many — sterilisation pro-grams, visual markers to driveaway crop invasion (think scare-crows but with tact and sciencebehind it) and so forth. If we aren’teven willing to start the discourseof scientific and financial invest-ment towards ways of optimallymanaging wildlife, then we contin-ue to fuel this almost primalinstinct to harm other living beingsin horrifying ways, driven by eco-nomic motives.

As long as people are legallyfree to kill animals under the arbi-trary umbrella of ‘pests’ and ‘ver-min’, countless animals will diehorrific deaths like Saumya’s on adaily basis, and will continue to doso in the distant future. Perhapsthese deaths won’t go ‘viral’ —indeed, thousands don’t, but deathdescends upon these creatures thesame. And unlike in the case of theall-consuming, simple fire, thereexists no rhyme, no reason and noway to extinguish human whimsy.

The writer is the ExecutiveDirector of the Federation of Indian

Animal Protection Organisations(FIAPO), India’s apex animal pro-

tection organisations

Over the past two months, theteam at Sustain Labs hasbeen pouring over the finan-cial reports of over 200 com-panies in India so as to find

India’s most sustainable companies. Indoing so we found that 43.8% companieshave reported losses in Q1 of FY 2020-21 — the first quarter of the currentfinancial year corresponds to the periodof the meteoric spread of the Coronavirusfrom 2,280 cases on April 1 to 2,20,546cases on June 30 in India. In fact sever-al Indian companies who were profitablein Q4 2019-20 have now reported loss-es in Q1 2020-21.

While the pandemic has evidentlyrubbed off on the economy, the result-ing financial losses incurred by compa-nies then pushed down their CSR spend-ing.

The amendment notified in theCompanies Act, 2013 requires companieswith a net worth of INR 5 billion or more,or an annual turnover of INR 10 billionor more, or net profit of INR 50 millionor more, to spend 2 percent of their aver-age net profits of three years on CSR.

This means that CSR might be leasteffective at a time now when private sec-tor contribution to society is needed themost. This is an example of why corpo-rates need to contribute to society, inways that go beyond CSR.

One way to do so is via buildingrobust public private partnerships inIndia. For this, there is first a dire needto build state capacity to be able to struc-ture such viable partnerships. There is adearth of technical skills to do so.Further, culture of simply seeking CSRfunds from companies is so embedded inthe system that often there is hardly anyeffort made by the government to part-ner with the private sector in a way thatis mutually conducive for both parties.

Apathy to the private sector alsolends itself to the way government, soci-ety, and private sector are not able to suc-cessfully work together. For example dur-ing the early stages of the spread of thepandemic, the Brihanmumbai MunicipalCorporation forcibly took over a 22storey building in DB Realty’s OneMahalaxmi project to quarantine high-risk people who came in contact withCOVID-19 patients under the provisionsof Epidemic Diseases Act 1897.

There were more instances of assetsbeing forcefully taken from the privatesector for the government’s COVIDrelief work. This coercion was unneces-sary if a policy had been established bythe government to offer credit TDR equal

in value to that of the property they tem-porarily hand over for the centres, for thesubsequent project developed by thebuilder.

Such a public private partnershipwould incentivise the builder to give uphis property now to the government freeof cost, and also incentivise him to kick-start economic activity sooner by devel-oping his next project. This policy pro-posal was part of a plan I had drafted totransform vacant buildings in to tempo-rary COVID hospitals, and submitted tothe Prime Minister’s Office, clearly to noavail.

Later, a member of the local govern-ment in Delhi told me that this was too

difficult a route when it is easier to coerceprivate hotels to give up their banquethalls for the purpose. I am sure there areseveral more ways to structure partner-ships between the government and theprivate sector, but for which a pre-req-uisite is a desire of all parties to work onmutually beneficial and respectful terms.

Further, both the government and theprivate sector needs to learn to work bet-ter in partnership with universities inIndia. Many innovations for resource effi-ciency and smart ways of structuringpublic private partnerships come from avastly under utilised set of people whoare on the cusp of practice and research.These innovations indeed need the sup-

port of the private sector and the govern-ment for implementation, and so are sim-ply perceived as commercial vendors bythose holding public office.

In my experience, even when a pri-vate sector company and a researchinstitution has come together to offer astate government the funds as well as aviable innovative solution that has alreadybeen tried and tested elsewhere to pro-vide COVID recovery facilities topatients, it is likely to fall on deaf ears.It requires immense effort to get the gov-ernment to implement a proven innov-ative idea even when it is fully funded.It is baffling how difficult it is to help thegovernment.

So far CSR contributions are per-ceived by the government and the pub-lic as the primary means for corporationsto contribute to the benefit of society. IfCSR is complimented by the government,private sector, and society, workingtogether in partnership mode all yearround in ways that are mutually benefi-cial to all parties, then we can hope forthe private sector contribution to soci-ety to be more sustainable.

The writer is CEO of Sustain Labsand Adjunct Professor at SciencesPo

Paris. She is also a columnist andauthor of the 2019 bestseller IndianInstincts — essays on freedom and

equality in India

While the Covid-19 pandemic has evidently rubbed off on theeconomy, the resulting financial losses incurred by companieshave pushed down their CSR spending

STILETTOS

MINIYA

CHATTERJI

NEED FOR A SUSTAINABLE CSR FUND

As long as people are legally free to kill animals under the arbitrary umbrella of ‘pests' and‘vermin', countless animals will die horrific deaths like Saumya's on a daily basis, and willcontinue to do so in the distant future, writes VARDA MEHROTRA

IT REQUIRESIMMENSE EFFORT TO

GET THEGOVERNMENT TO

IMPLEMENT APROVEN INNOVATIVE

IDEA EVEN WHEN IT ISFULLY FUNDED

World Animal Day, 2020:Of mice and men

Interesting to watch

n What was your reaction when you wereoffered the role of MaharajaKrishnadevaraya?

This show is special to me. I grew upreading Tenali Ram comics. I knew aboutthe character of Tenali Ram and RajaKrishnadevaraya. For those who don’tknow much about Tenali Ram and therelationship he had with RajaKrishnadevaraya, it is the southern-counterpart of Akbar-Birbal stories that wegrew up listening to or reading about. I wasexcited when this role came my way.When you grow up reading about acharacter and years later, one ends upplaying one of the pivotal roles, I was oncloud nine.n Did you have any apprehensions if theviewers would accept you in this role?

Once you have played Lord Shiv,everything else is below that. It also meansthat people will accept you in anyrole that you play be it Vishnu,Krishna or any king for thatmatter. The most difficultcharacter to play is Lord Shivaand for people to accept youplaying that role because to playthis God is tough. He is a personwho doesn't wear regular clothes,he has a serpent wrapped aroundhis neck and he has long hair eventhough he is clean-shaven. If onecan pull this off, everything else is abreeze. And for Raja Krishnadevaraya,I get to wear such beautiful costumes,if I had my way, I would take themhome.n How is the role of RajaKrishnadevaraya differentfrom what you have done inthe past?

I have been part ofmany comic shows. Theonly other role that I havedone is Police Factor onSony SAB. My role was amodern take on RajaKrishnadevaraya — everyonearound me is goofy whereas Iam the serious kind. Here also,as the Raja, I am a seriousperson. For comic relief thereis Tenali Rama, tathacharyaplayed by Pankaj Berry andmy younger wife. Peoplerelate to my character morebecause they feel I am theregular person and notsomeone doing buffoonery.It is tough to keep a pokerface when everyone aroundyou is doing stupid things.n Did you have to prepfor the role?

Yes, I had to. I hadto get the languagecorrect. My Hindi isgood because I havedone so manymythological shows. ButI had to get the body

language and the mannerisms of RajaKrishnadevaraya right. The creative teamwas very particular about how a king shouldbehave, talk and walk. I had to work on this.The character was on a sabbatical, peoplehad forgotten how Manav Gohil played therole I had to start from scratch. I had to bedifferent and yet be accepted. Due to myprevious roles, I was used to speaking in acertain manner but the team had other ideasand had to correct myself to break the mold.n How was the relationship with the co-stars?

The three people that my characterinteracts with are Tenali Rama; he is a verydown to earth person. He is very hardworking. His Hindi is really good. I finallyget to meet someone whose Hindi is as goodas mine. Then there is Priyanka Singh asTirumalamba, my second on-screen wife.She is a fantastic actor. Third is Pankaj Berryas Tathacharya. He is a senior actor and onegets to learn so much from him. He also hasso much energy on the sets, it rubs you off.n Was it tough to get your first break?

It was not so difficult. Unfortunately, onTV, people don’t see if you can act or not.The first thing that they see if you look thepart or not. Initially, I was a very bad actor.All I could do is deliver my dialogues sinceI could memorise them well. I didn’t knowmuch about how to get the expressionscorrect. But slowly, when I started working,I asked some people how they had honedtheir skills. They told me that they werefrom the theatre. So, I joined the theatre. Iworked on my skills after I became an actor.n You have played leads and donenegative roles. Is there a character youloved playing?

It has to be Chanakya inChandragupta Maurya (2018-19) onSony Entertainment Television. This roleis very close to my heart. The first thingthat Siddharth Kumar Tewary asked mewas if I would go bald. For an actor itis a big decision to be for one-and-a-half years. I immediately agreed. Iwanted to play this character so muchthat I would have fought Tewary forthis role. I lived this role and gave it mysweat and blood literally since I felldown 40 feet during the shoot. Thenthere is the role of Mahadev andRavana in Devon Ke Dev... Mahadev.Another role – a negative one – wasthat of Thakur Tejawat in Rang Rasiya

on Colors TV.n What next?

Films, I can’t plan. If they come myway, I will take them up like Dishoom

happened after I got a call from RohitDhawan’s office. I thought the role wouldbe small but that was not the case. My roleas Inspector Saeed was pretty big. After thatI got a lot of offers but I don’t want to bepart of big films and do small roles.n Would you say that professionallysatisfied?

I can’t say I am satisfied and I can’tsay I am unhappy. I see myself doing so

much more in the near future.

HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | OCTOBER 4, 2020 films & tv 11

‘I am neither satisfied nor unhappy professionally’TARUN KHANNA, who has replaced Manav Gohil on Sony SAB’s Tenali Rama,

speaks with SHALINI SAKSENA about how he got onboard the series, his camaraderie

with his co-stars and how he gave his sweat and blood for playing Chanakya

HOME THEATRE

SERIOUS MEN Netflix*ing: Nawazuddin Siddiqui,Shweta Basu Prasad, Nassar,Aakshath Das Rated: 6/10

Almost all of us lie aboutsomething or the other —either to get out of a tight

situation or because we feel thatthe other person is not receptiveor open to listen to the truth. Butwhat happens when someone’sentire life becomes a lie? Weknow that the truth has to comeout sometime. And that is the timewhen it rocks our world andeverything around us comescrumbling down.

Directed by Sudhir Mishra,

Serious Men is based on the bookby Manu Joseph. It is a beautifultake on the ageold class divide —upper and the lower caste. Thisdivide has been told ratherbrilliantly by NawazuddinSiddiqui’s character Ayyan Mani,who works as a personal assistantin a research institute.

While Siddiqui’s outwardpersona doesn’t make it possiblefor him to fit the mould of theBollywood hero but his sheerbrilliance as an actor makes itpossible for him to exploredifferent characters while playingthe lead protagonist.

Ayyan, in the office issubmissive but outside, he haslearnt to fight the society and theinjustice that comes his way

because of his caste. Outside he isout there to dominate.

Therefore, willing to dowhatever it takes to ensure that hewill never allow the same thing tohappen with his son. He knowsthat to achieve this, he must makesure that his son gets a hugekickstart in life.

To play these two roles,Siddiqui has reiterated what agreat performer he is onscreen.His expressions, his body languageand dialogue delivery keep youengrossed in a story that is simpleand yet hard-hitting.

Mishra, through Ayyan takesus on a journey that has wit andsatire. A movie that makes for agreat watch.

— Shalini Saksena

Nawazuddin helmsthis brilliantly

BAHUT HUA SAMMANDisney+Hotstar*ing: Sanjay Mishra, Raghav Juyal, Abhishek Chauhan Rated: 5.5/10

It is high time that we should move on from making films on engineers.The way Bollywood is going, it appears that there is no other programmeto pursue. And when you do, you end up at the bottom of the chart. So

much so that one ends up resorting to thieving. If this was reality, mostengineering colleges would empty out in a day. Which parent sends their kidto get an engineering degree and the kid takes to stealing? Definitely somethingseriously wrong with our education system or to be more precise the film. Also,if profanity puts you off, stay away from this one.

We are living in an era where the audience loves to find a connection withthe characters, in Bahut Hua Samman, the life of its protagonists is way beyondimagination. Another film on similar lines was Yaariyan where the studentsabout to be expelled from the school are sent to save it from permanent closure.But if one can manage to get past this strange notion, one can sit back andenjoy this film since all is lost in Bahut Hua Samman.

The film does give us gyan about what democracy means and capitalismis the ill of the society. Sanjay Mishra who plays Baba who has not left the campusgrounds for over 25 years looking for a revolution to prevent capitalism sunkits teeth deep into the society is amazing to watch. One can say that he singlehandedly carries the film forward. He is funny and keeps you entertained.Raghav Juyal and Abhishek Chauhan shine bright. Ram Kapoor. A thinnerversion of him, as an assassin does manage to look menacing enough.

All through, the film manages to keep one engrossed with funny dialoguesand dig at the political scene in the country. Be a comrade, not a sheep is themantra here.

Over all, the film is interesting and entertaining even if the beginning startson shaky ground and takes 20 minutes to be where it should have started from.

— Shalini Saksena

NISHABDHAMAmazon Prime*ing: R Mahadevan, Anushka Shetty, Anjali, Shalini Pandey,Michael Madsen Rated: 5.5/10

It is not very often that Indian cinema is able to make a murder-mysterythat is gripping and keeps you on tenterhooks till the very end.Nishabdham directed by Hemant Madhukar set in the US, gives the

viewers a great start and takes you back to 1972 with a dual murder whichremains unsolved and the house is deemed haunted and shut for 46 yearstill it is sold and the doors open with another murder.

In 1972, the police may have given up and the people declared itthe work of a ghost, in 2019, that is not the case. And so Nishabdhamspins the story of a billionaire, in the era of filthy rich men, two orphangirls, one of them extremely talented and catches the eye of thebillionaire. Definitely a fairy tale. Unfortunately, the billionaire endsup dead and so do a whole slew of women from across the country.Obviously, the two have to be connected.

That is where the film starts to lose its character and the 125minutes of run time make it a bit tedious. We do know it can’t be thehand of a ghost since 50 per cent of the plot is revealed mid-ways.After that is it just one wanting to know the answer to the questionwhy. Though if one was paying attention, one would get the answerto the why much earlier.

This is what ails this movie. A murder- mystery thriller is supposedto keep the viewer guessing till the very end so that then the murderedis finally unveiled, there is a gasp. Movies like Khamosh and Drishyammanaged to do this beautifully. But not all is lost here. Anushka Shettyand R Mahadevan give a good performance. Also, while the movieis in Telugu, the English subtitles make it possible for the non-Teluguspeaking people to follow this movie.

Over all, Nishabdham is a movie that starts off rather well onlyto disappoint as it ends.

— Shalini Saksena

Promise of a treat that falls flat

In Bigg Boss styleBigg Boss is much more than just the contestants. It is also about the house

itself. As the Season 14 flagged off yesterday, MUSBA HASHMI speaks with

OMUNG KUMAR, the man behind the beautiful sets and fresh themes

As much as we want toknow about the manbehind the enchanting

Bigg Boss’ voice, we also wouldhave wondered about the manwho designs this much sought-after house with the sameexcitement, if not more. Theman who brings the house tolife while adhering to theunique themes of every season.

Meet Omung Kumar, afilm director and productiondesigner, who has beendesigning the BB house allthese years.

Ask Kumar what it takes todesign the house and he isquick to answer — lots ofthinking and days of hardwork.

“While we were designingthe theme for this year, thedisaster that has gripped theworld made us apprehensiveabout everything. That’s whenit hit us, that it is the future thatwe talk about in films ordramas — no one on the roadsand so on. And that the futureis here. We shared the ideaswith the creatives and theyloved it. That’s how the themefor this year — Futuristic — gotfinalised. Then the creativeshelped us in realising what arewe longing for in the currenttime and without a secondthought it is visiting a mall orgoing to a spa or movie theatre.That’s how we put this alltogether,” Kumar, who hasdirected films like Mary Kom,Sarbjit and Bhoomi, tells you.

Everything in the house isgiven a futuristic look. Take forexample the movie theatre thathas been like a spaceship.

“The whole house isdesigned like a web. There arecurved walls at most of theplaces, the dining area, themost common place forbitching, has been given thelook of a cafeteria. So there arefour separate tables instead ofthe usual long one. The fourtables can be joined to makeone. Also the hall wherecontestants interact withSalman Khan on weekends isvery near to the bedroom areathis time. So from the hall itself,people can see the activitieshappening in the bedroomduring Weekend Ka Vaar. Andthis time we have given lots ofsitting areas,” he explains. Thecolours too has been chosen

wisely — metallic and acryliccolours are used everywhere todo justice with the theme.

To redo and revamp thehouse every year, Kumar says,is like challenging yourself.

“Redesigning the place isdifficult. One has to change thecomplete orientation. Andthat’s where the excitementlies. In all these years, wheneverthe first episode goes on air,messages pour in from bothfamily and friends telling usthat the house is better thanever. And that’s what we, Vanita(wife) and I, want to hear. Evenif for once if anybody said thatthis year the design isn’t goodenough, we’ll fail that verymoment.

Our efforts is to redo thedesign and house in a way thatit looks fresh and lively. And tomake sure this happens, wehave to imagine ourselves ascontestants each and everytime and then designaccordingly. We put ourselvesinto their shoes and thinkwhich corner will be the mostimportant one for us. Thisway we can do justice to ourjob. Also along with thecontestants, the house also

becomes the hero of the show,hence we put out all thecraziness on the walls or whereever possible. We need to givecontestants something to talkabout,” Kumar says and tellsyou that it usually requiresaround 60 days to complete thedesigning.

Out of all, the most excitingpart of designing the house forKumar is to see people’s facesafter the process is done. “Weusually prop up the house twodays prior to the grand finale.That day no one from thecreatives or from the channel isallowed inside the house. Thisadds to the excitement becausewe have the full liberty todesign the house in our way,the channel and the wholeteam supports us. And aftereverything is done like thebedsheets, the pillows and thecrockery is set, we have ourdinner at the dining table.That feeling cannot beexpressed in words. It is asense of satisfaction after a jobis done. And when the finaleepisode has to be shot and thecast and crew enters the house,their jaws drop in awe and theyalways ask how can I do this

transformation in two days.Seeing this expression on theirface is the most exciting thingfor me,” Kumar tells you.

His least favourite part is todecorate and design thestoreroom. “The reason beingbecause it is the most messyplace in the house. Thecontestants just throw in theirclothes and suitcases and whatnot in the area.

I feel very irritated when Isee the area messed up on TV.So much so that I startmessaging the creatives and tellthem that Bigg Boss should yellat these contestants for keepingthe area so untidy. It just reallybothers me a lot,” he says.

Not to mention the feelingthat Vanita and Kumar havewhenever the contestantsdamage the property.

“It is so annoying. BiggBoss is like our baby. We havealways worked on it the way wewould take care of our house.So whenever a contestantbreaks anything Vanita getsangry and she shouts: ‘Isnemera table toda, aise kaise todsakte hain samaan ko’. We bothare extremely possessive aboutthe house,” Kumar says.

Initially, I was a verybad actor. All I could

do is deliver mydialogues since I couldmemorise them well.

But slowly, when Istarted working, I

asked some peoplehow they had honedtheir skills. They told

me that theywere from thetheatre. So, I

joined theatre. Iworked on my

skills andthen became

an actor

HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | OCTOBER 4, 2020 12

Considered to be among one of theinspirational women in India, K Sujatha Rao,the first woman IAS from undivided AndhraPradesh has donned many hats throughout

her life, but still says she is not ambitiousenough. This is despite launching the first-ever

national programme for non-communicablediseases, initiating the process for establishing

critical regulations for medical education,drug, and medical device fields. Sujatha Rao

was also engaged in helping revitalise thecountry's primary healthcare system by

introducing concepts such as performance-based financing. She served as the Director-

General of the National AIDS ControlOrganisation in India, where she increased its

institutional capacity and scaled upimplementation that ultimately helped in

halving the rate of HIV infections. A formerUnion Secretary of the Ministry of Health andFamily Welfare, Sujatha Rao has represented

India on boards of the WHO, Global Fund andUNAIDS. If that is not enough, she is also

someone with passionate interest in classicaldance, an avid reader and writer — having

already penned a book while another one is onher bucket list. Sujatha Rao speaks to THEPIONEER's K RAMYA SREE about her

journey to IAS, desire to become aprofessional dancer, childhood,

future plans and more.

Happy childhood...

was born in Vijayawada but was brought up inDelhi where my father was working. Those weredays when there were very few Telugu families inDelhi. Durgabai Deshmukh started the AndhraSchool to ensure Telugu children do not forget theirmother tongue. All Andhra families were

asked to send at least one child to that school. Iwas that one child from my family. It was a goodschool but I was not happy with it since mysiblings were fluent in English. So Irefused to go to that school and was thenadmitted to the Delhi Public School. Iattended college in Miranda House,Delhi University. I had a very happychildhood growing up in Delhi. Itwas a beautiful and safe city. Asthere was no TV, a major part ofmy childhood went in outdoorgames and reading.

Privilegedupbringing...

My father was a civil engineer.He later got into politics andbecame a Minister in Nehru’sand Indira Gandhi’s Cabinet. SoI had a very privileged upbring-ing. Besides, as quite a fewmembers of our family wereinto politics, we always got a lotof people coming from Andhrawho were freedom fighters. Wewould hear from them aboutAndhra, Gandhiji and the free-dom struggle. Those weredays of great patriotism, afeverish desire to serve thecountry and optimism.Very, very different fromtoday.

No ice cream,no school...

I was, what onewould probablysay, a good child.I was not mis-chievous, quiet,studious andhappy. I loved icecream and would not go toschool if I didn’t havemoney to buy it. We had agood routine - woke up by6, reached school by 7;return home by 1.30; slept foran hour; then homework followed by play-time with friends from 4 till about 6 or so.Dinner and off to bed by 9. Being theyoungest of five siblings, I was generally quietand more observant of what was going on. I hadtwo older sisters and two older brothers. One sis-ter and one brother were very mischievous and Iused to enjoy their pranks a lot.

Wanted to be a professional dancer... At school, I was keen on sports and by the time I

reached high school level, I was in the school basketballteam. I used to swim. At home, I started learning Carnaticclassical music but was more interested in going outsideto play. But I took to Bharatnatyam and practised it forabout 10 years… By the time I reached college I was veryinterested in Bharatanatyam and I wanted to do researchand be a professional dancer. I learnt a bit of Kuchipudias well and was exposed to a lot to Odissi.

Voracious reader...Dance practice took away a lot of my leisure time. In addition, I used to

read a lot too. My eldest sister was a voracious reader and she exposed me togood literature when I turned 11. So from Enid Blyton, I went straight to clas-sics and never went through the usual Mills & Boons phase of a teenager. Thanksto my sister I developed very good reading habits. I used to go for dance andmusic performances and it is this passion that I believe kept me away frommovies. I was not much of a movie buff. And of course, I had great friends —in school and college.

When we had some free time, we would go around window shopping andsnacking! There was a time in my life when I was into yoga also — going formy yoga lessons at 4.30 in the morning.

Joining IAS...Right from when I was about 12, I wanted to be an IAS officer. I think that

was partly because I heard about an IAS officer who helped fire victims wherea lot of the poor suffered due to loss of homes and so on. I did not know muchabout the IAS but if anyone would ask what I wanted to do, I would say IAS. It’s strange as my father did not think much about Civil Services and wanted us all to be engineers like him or doctors or study science as he feltthat national development required doctors and scientists. He had a poor opinion of the IAS. By the time I finished college and it was time to take the IAS exam, I had changed plans — I was more into classical dance and keen to do PhD and pursue dance. But then fate willed otherwise and I joinedthe IAS. Belief that IAS officers could work for betterment of the society, servethe country in a neutral non-political and a just manner drove me towardsthis. These were vague notions of public service.

I must confess that I did not really have a great idea of the service or any-thing.

Being the first Andhra woman officer...There were 25 women officers in my batch of 1974, including IFS and

IAS. I was the first from Andhra. For years the proportion of women officerswas less than 10 percent. I personally never felt any discrimination or differentiation. That was partly because of the state I was posted to. Andhra Pradesh is quite an evolved state where gender discrimination is comparatively lesser than in northern states. In the southern states, there isalso much greater respect for authority and IAS officers denote prestige. In ser-vice matters… discrimination, if you can call it that, is there, but very subtle.Say making a woman a Cabinet Secretary.. seventy years on and we still don’thave a woman as a cabinet Secretary. For very many years we had no womansecretary in certain male-dominated areas like Finance, Industry etc. Women were l always posted in Women & Child Development, Health or Education etc. It’s only when political focus started shifting to health andeducation, that men started competing for those posts as well.

First joyful experience... I have many good memories, but one of my earliest was when I was a sub-

collector in Vizianagaram. One day, some Dalits came to my office and saidthat the land that had been assigned to them by the government had beengrabbed by the local landlord and asked if I could help them. I got the file andstudied the 10-year-old case.

Every year, when the sowing season started, the landlord would block theDalits from entering the land. Any attempt to evict him would result in a stayfrom the higher-ups. I visited the village and confirmed that the landlord wasindeed grabbing the land given to the Dalits. When I asked him to remove hiscrop, the landlord looked at me with amusement mixed with defiance. So Iasked the Dalits to remove the crop. They did not stir… scared as they were.So then I went into the field and uprooted the crop. Within two minutes theentire stretch of some fifty acres was ripped out. The landlord was shell-shockedeven as the Dalit families burst into joy. Subsequently, the landlord approachedcourt after court, but could not win the case. That joy on those faces is some-thing that I still remember vividly... That was my first experience where I sensedthe joy and satisfaction that one gets when one uses the immense power givento us for social good.

Exposure to feudalism...When I joined the IAS, there were broadly two types of officers — one, the

usual lot that looked at the civil service as the true inheritors of the IndianCivil Service — competent, hard working, neutral. The other type that AP hada very significant number of — the type that saw IAS as a social catalyst, a meansto further the social development of the country towards achieving theConstitutional ideals of equity, secularism, and social justice. Early in my career,I happened to be posted under the second group and was mentored, exposedand taught to see the evils of inequality, caste and social discrimination, exploita-tion of the poor and the unjust social structures that prevailed and so on. SoI learnt not to merely reiterate rule positions but interpret them in favour ofthe poor, the weak or the ones being unjustly treated.

So in every assignment, I tried to be fair, and help as much as I could. Havinghad a privileged upbringing in the cocoon of Delhi, this exposure to the cru-elties of feudalism in rural India was a huge, huge eye-opener. It was very com-pelling.

Secular thought…I do belong to that narrow majority of women who have had the privilege

of higher education and being able to get into leadership positions throughthe civil service. To my sisters I would like to just say that they must study andgrab every opportunity they get to do something that they like and enjoy andstand on their own feet.

The greatest gift I got was a secular upbringing…never made to feel I wasa girl with my future in a secure marriage — the stereotype of a girl. That free-dom to study, read and think are extremely precious and women must fightto get that freedom. Especially so when patriarchy and regressive systems threat-en to resurface as one increasingly hears of keeping women at home and con-fining them to homely duties. We must not let go of the freedom we have gotand not allow regressive social forces to push us back through intimidationand threat.

Want to pen another book...After seeing the wonderful success I had with my book Do We Care? India’s

Health System I feel emboldened to write one more. It’s a lot of hard work and I wonder if I have that energy but I do hope to get down to it. I wouldalso like to get engaged with movements or enterprises that could be of socialvalue where I can contribute through my experiences of all these years. And finally go back to reading as much as I can, picking up more knowledgeof music and catching up with what’s happening in the field of dance and widenmy horizons. There is so much to see and do…time is such a constraint.

Two decades in the health sector...I spent nearly two decades in the health sector — I joined the Ministry

of Health in 1988 and over the years grew from the post of Director, to Joint Secretary, Additional Secretary, Special Secretary and Union Secretary— I was also a member Secretary of the National Commission ofMacroeconomics and Health and while there went to Harvard University twice — once as a Mason Fellow where I did my MPA and the second time as a Takemi Fellow in the Harvard School of Public Health. So I had a very rounded experience in the Health sector and though I am retired, I continue to understand the nuances of public policy with much greater clarity than what might normally be the case. I still read and keep myself updat-ed all the time on healthpolicy issues.

A TRENDSETTER IN THE

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REAL SENSE

RAPID FIRE:

Describe yourself in three words: Driven,curious and not ambitious enough.

What do you dislike the most in others:Hypocrisy

How do you deal withanger/anxiety/stress: Pray. I stronglybelieve in the power of prayer.

Favourite holiday destination:Recently went to Spain…loved it.

A city you wish to visit: Delhi, my home

Getaway with family: Anywhere in theHimalayas

Favourite book: Like to read biographiesor politics..not too keen on novels.

Definition of bureaucracy: Powerful withscope to do a lot of good and make adifference

Most inspired by: Vivekananda andGandhi greatly influenced my thinking when Iwas growing up.

One thing on your bucket list: Listeningto music

What do you admire the most? Selflesscommitment

Biggest addiction: Seeing my inabilityto reduce I guess it must be food!

There were 25 women officers in my batch of 1974,including IFS and IAS. I was the first from Andhra.For years the proportion of women officers was lessthan 10 percent. I personally never felt any

discrimination or differentiation. That was partly because of thestate I was posted to. Andhra Pradesh is quite an evolved statewhere gender discrimination is comparatively lesser than in northern

states.