#WW3 trends on the internet as Trump vs Iran ensues

CIRCULATED THROUGH : TORONTO, MARKHAM, SCARBOROUGH, RICHMOND HILL, VAUGHAN, WOODBRIDGE, ETOBICOKE, NORTH YORK, MALTON, REXDALE, BR AMPTON, MISSISSAUGA, OAKVILLE, HAMILTON, MILTON, STONEY CREEK, BURLINGTON

WATCH CHANNEL Y ON ROGERS 857, BELLFIBE 828, TELUS 2418 & ONLINE AT SOUTHASIANDAILY.COM

"HAD ABHINANDAN VARTHAMAN BEENFLYING RAFALE...": EX-AIR CHIEF

#WW3 trends on the internet as Trump vs Iran ensues

Mumbai: Referring to the row over the purchase of Rafale fighter jets,former Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa onSaturday said that such controversies slowdown defence acquisitions, affecting thearmed forces' capabilit ies. "Had WingCommander Abhinandan Var thamanbeen flying a Rafale instead of a MiG21 during the India-Pakistan stand-offpost the Balakot strike, the outcomewould have been different," he said. I CONTD. ON PAGE 12

INDIAN RAILWAYS SET TO ROLL OUT 44IMPROVED VANDE BHARAT TRAINS; 5 COOLFACTS ABOUT THE NEW 160 KMPH TRAINS

Indian Railways all set to roll out 44 new improved 'Make in India'Vande Bharat Express trains! In a move that will transform passengerexperience on the Indian Railways network, Piyush Goyal-led RailwayMinistry has given its nod for the production of 44 more Vande BharatExpress trains. I CONTD. ON PAGE 12

CANADA BACK IN TOP 10 ECONOMIES, INDIAGETS 5TH POSITION : REPORT

Canada has found a place among the world’s 10 largest economiesas a new repor t forecasts continued economic growth powered inpar t by immigration over the next decade. The latest edition of theWorld Economic League Table placed Canada on 10th position basedon its GDO wor th $2.251 trillion in 2019. I DETAILS ON PAGE 9

JAIPRATAP SIDHU ACCIDENT : TEEN DRIVERFACES CHARGES OF CRIMINAL NEGLIGENCEPeel Regional Police has said a 17 year old driver of a single-vehicle crash inBrampton that claimed the life of Jaipratap Sidhu, nephew of Rana Sidhu, has beencharged with criminal negligence. Emergency crews were called to the intersec-tion of McVean Drive and Da Vinci Avenue, southeast of Countryside Drive, inNovember with repor ts a BMW had crashed into a tree. Thecar recorded extensive damage as it was seen in a ditchwith par ts scattered across the road. The passenger, 17year old Jai died at the scene. A spokesperson said thevehicle’s driver was taken to a trauma centre by para-medics in serious but non-life-threatening conditions. In-vestigators have now charged the 17 year oldmale with criminal negligence causing death.

Funeral for Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani saw thousands floating inin Tehran on January 6, further bolstering Iran's wrath towards theUS and President Donald Trump. A US drone strike effectively killed

Soleimani, a long-time leader of Iran's paramilitary Quds Force of theIslamic Republican Guard Corps. The move has been condemned andcalled “unwitting” by several countries. It came at a time when Americastands at dangerous crossroads in the Middle East. Following the strike,Tehran has vowed “harsh revenge” and declared complete withdrawalfrom a 2015 agreement to suspend uranium production.The world is currently at a standstill as the attack prompts fear ofescalating retaliatory actions between Iran and the US. In a chain reaction,the Iraq government has begun to weigh new parameters for the American

military in Iraq as lawmakers voted 170-0 on Sunday in favor of expellingAmerican troops from their country.Brig. Gen. Abdul Karim Khalaf, military spokesman for Prime MinisterAdel Abdul Mahdi said the troops will be limited to “training and advising”Iraqi forces, however, will not be allowed to move off their bases orto fly in Iraqi airspace. The statement came at a time when thesaid troops plan for depar ture. Trump and his administration maintainthat Gen. Soleimani was in the midst of planning attacks on US troops.However, no solid proof has been presented to back the statements.Taking a hard stance on the situation, Trump doubled down in his threatsto attack Iranian cultural sites and warned of a “major retaliation” if theIranian government makes any move.

SAVE MAX ANNOUNCES NEW CORPORATE STRUCTURE

I DETAILS ON PAGE 4

25 YEAR OLD SIKH MAN SHOT DEAD IN PESHAWAR JUST DAYS AFTERGURDWARA NANKANA SAHIB ATTACK. AFTER DEATH, MAN CALLS FAMILYAND CLAIMS RESPONSIBILITY. PARVINDER SINGH WAS BROTHER TO THEFIRST PAKISTANI SIKH TELEVISION ANCHOR, HARMEET SINGH.

PRIME MINISTER JUSTIN TRUDEAU MEETS DEFENCE MINISTER HARJIT SAJJAN, CHIEF OF DEFENCE STAFF GENERAL JONATHAN VANCE,AND DEPUTY MINISTER OF DND JODY THOMAS TO WEIGH THE CURRENT SITUATION OF CANADIAN TROOPS IN IRAQ.

I DETAILS ON PAGE 15

“As nations remain concerned about the increasingly volatile face-off between the United States and Iran, Canada troops have begun tomove out of Iraq to Kuwait. Chief of Defence Staff General Jonathan Vance said the move came as a temporary measure intended toensure their safety and security. ““In an open letter to the families of 500 Canadian soldiers in Iraq, Gen Vance said the safety of the

troops was his top priority and that security measures were being “considered,reassessed and modified as required on a daily basis.” The letter, which was

posted on Twitter, said, “Over the coming days, and as a result of Coalitionand NATO planning, some of our people will be moved

temporarily from Iraq to Kuwait. Simply put, we are doingthis to ensure their safety and security.” ““Calling thewithdrawal temporary, he added, “Naturally, the workwe are doing on these missions, and the future of

operations in Iraq, remain conditional on maintaining asufficiently secure and productive operational environment.”

CANADA TROOPS IN IRAQ TEMPORARILY RELOCATED TO KUWAIT

BRAMPTON TEEN DIANNA MANAN DIES IN HIT-AND-RUN. VICTIM'SMOTHER SAVI LAKERAM SAYS SHE WAS A GRADE 11 STUDENT ATAURORA HIGH SCHOOL BEFORE SHE MOVED TO TORONTO TO LIVEWITH HER GRANDMOTHER IN SEPTEMBER. "WHATEVER HAPPENEDTO HER, SHE DIDN'T DESERVE TO BE THROWN LIKE AN ANIMAL ORSOMETHING. EVEN ANIMALS DON'T DIE THAT WAY."

2 MidWeek MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

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BUMP PROMOTIONS NYE CELEBRATION A GRAND HITEXCLUSIVE MEDIA PARTNER, Y MEDIA WAS PRESENT IN THE REVELRY. Y MEDIA HAS FOUR MAJOR PLATFORMS: RADIO –

SOUTHASIAN PULSE, TV – CHANNEL Y, WEBSITE – SOUTHASIANDAILY.COM, AND NEWSPAPER – MIDWEEK.


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TUESDAY, JANUARY 07, 2020 s p e c i a l r e p o r t

Y MEDIA GROUP EDITOR AND CEO YUDHVIR JASWAL WELCOMES VARINDER SINGH AS ASSOCIATE EDITOR, ON BEHALF OF THE TEAM. SINGH HAS AN IMPECCABLE REPUTATION AS SPECIALCORRESPONDENT OF THE TRIBUNE IN CHANDIGARH, INDIA. HE HOLDS EXTENSIVE KNOWLEDGE AND HAS OVER 20 YEARS EXPERIENCE COVERING INDIA , PUNJAB, AND INTERNATIONAL NEWS. THESENIOR JOURNALIST HAS ALSO BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH INDIA'S NATIONAL BROADCASTER – DOORDARSHAN AND IS AN EXPERT COMMENTATOR ON POLITICAL AND CURRENT AFFAIRS.

TRILLIUM HEALTH PARTNERS WELCOMES ITS FIRST BABY OF THE DECADE

THE BIRTHING SUITE AT TRILLIUM HEALTH PARTNERS – CREDIT VALLEY HOSPITAL DELIVERED ARYAN, ITS FIRST BABY OF 2020, TO PROUD MOM ANU AND DAD SIMRAN. THE BABY BOY ARRIVED JUST 50SECONDS AFTER 12 A.M. ON NEW YEAR’S DAY, WEIGHING 8 LBS. 2 OZ. WE ARE HAPPY TO REPORT THAT BABY AND MOM ARE HEALTHY AND DOING WELL. CONGRATULATIONS TO THE WALIA FAMILY!

Top Canadian CEO’s made an average worker’sannual earnings by morning January 2

A news report released today has revealed that Canada’s 100 high-est-paid chief executives were paid record amounts in 2018, in com-parison to the employees beneath them. The Canadian Centre forPolicy Alternatives said the average CEO at a top publicly traded

company would have made as much money as the average Canadianworker will make in a year as of 10:09 am on January 2, Thursday.The centre said the CEOs made 227 times more than the averageworker made in 2018, which is up from 197 times average workerpay in 2017. Repor t author and CCPA senior economist DavidMacdonald said, “Growth in the vast gap between excessive CEOcompensation and average incomes is an indicator of Canada’s in-come inequality juggernaut. Wealth continues to concentrate at thevery top while average incomes barely keep up with inflation.”The repor t also revealed that 79 per cent of the average CEO’s pay in2018 came from bonuses related to company stock prices, even insome cases where companies were losing money. The top-most paid100 CEOs, working for firms on the S&P/TSX Composite index made$11.8 million on average in 2018. Also, while the average worker’spay rose a measly 2.6 per cent between 2017 and 2018, top CEOs sawtheir pay rise by 18 per cent during the same period.

2020 NEW YEAR’S BABY ARRIVES ATETOBICOKE GENERAL HOSPITAL

Etobicoke General Hospital welcomed its first baby of this decade earlyon January 1, at 1:27 a.m. Lala Traore of Toronto, delivered a baby boynamed Tidiane, who weighed in at 7 pounds, 7 ounces. Tidiane hasthree other siblings, Bakary, Aminta and Moussa. With the best wishesof William Osler Health System (Osler), the family received warmcongratulations and a large gift basket of baby items that was gener-ously donated by Shoppers Drug Mart Store at 1376 Westwood Mall, inEtobicoke. Osler is comprised of Etobicoke General Hospital, BramptonCivic Hospital and Peel Memorial Centre for Integrated Health andWellness. Osler’s labour and delivery program is one of the largest inOntario. Last year, Osler delivered more than 7,800 babies.

CANADA BACK IN TOP 10 ECONOMIES, INDIA GETS 5TH POSITION : REPORTCONTD. FROM PAGE 1The annual table published by UK-based Centre for Economics and Business Research had previously predicted that Canada would drop outof the top 10, however, failed to foresee its return. As of 2016, the centre was expecting Canadian economy to continue to slip down the ranking.“Countries that are successful in attracting skilled migrants tend to grow faster,” said a press release accompanying the repor t. It alsoweighed several factors pressing on Canadian economy, including what it sees as high unemployment, a minority government potentially facing roadblocks toimplementing its agenda, and the federal debt load.Meanwhile, India is expected to over take Germany to become fourth-largest economy in 2026. The repor t said India is set to reach a GDP of $5 trillion by 2026, 2 yearslater than the Narendra Modi-led government’s target. It said, “India has decisively over taken both France and the UK to become the world’s fifth-largest economy in 2019.It is expected to overtake Germany to become four th largest in 2026 and Japan to become the third largest in 2034.”The report forecasts Pakistan's annual rate of GDP growth to an average of 4.2 per cent, between 2020 and 2025. It said that the south Asian country had a PurchasingPower Parity (PPP) adjusted GDP per capita of $5872 in 2019, making it a lower middle-income country. It said Pakistan economy has carried forward the momentumfrom last year, with GDP set to have risen by 3.3 per cent in 2019, down from 5.5 per cent in 2018. “This growth coincides with the country's clear objective of cutting downpolitical corruption, increasing overall confidence of the country's economic future. The unemployment rate remained steady at 6.1 per cent in 2019. The weakness ofthe labour market stands in contrast with the strong performance of the overall economy and suggests that successfully drawing down the rate of unemployment couldhelp to transition the country onto an even higher growth path,” the repor t said.It brought to notice that the country's per capita income has increased steadily over the last few years, with the robust rate of economicexpansion twinned with a low rate of population growth, averaged just 1.9 per cent per year from 2014 to 2019.


TUESDAY, JANUARY 07, 2020s p e c i a l r e p o r t

Mayor Patrick Brown's 2020 New Year’s Levee

KEEPING IN ACCORDANCE WITH AN AGE-OLD TRADITION IN BRAMPTON CITY, THE BRAMPTON MAYORPATRICK BROWN'S 2020 LEVEE TOOK PLACE ON JANUARY 2, THURSDAY, FROM 4 TO 7 PM IN THECITY HALL ATRIUM. RESIDENTS AND ATTENDEES SAW A PIPER LEAD THE MAYOR AND COUNCILLORSIN A PROCESSION, AND HEARD A WELCOMING FROM THE TOWN CRIER.



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Ontario Reduces Taxes for Small BusinessesReducing costs for small business part of government’s plan to fuel job creationOntario has fulfilled its promise to cut the small business CorporateIncome Tax (CIT) rate by 8.7 per cent by reducing the rate to 3.2 percent effective January 1, 2020. Suppor ting small businesses is par tof the government's plan to attract investment and enable entrepre-neurs and risk takers to grow their businesses and create high-pay-ing, good quality jobs."Ontario has tremendous oppor tunity and potential, and we are work-ing to create the conditions for job creators to grow and succeed. Animpor tant par t of our plan is to reduce the tax rate for small busi-nesses, as they play a vital role in the economy," said Rod Phillips,Minister of Finance.This tax cut will deliver up to $1,500 in annual savings to more than275,000 businesses - from family-owned shops to innovative star t-ups. Overall, Ontario's small businesses are saving $2.3 billion in

2020 through government actions such as cancelling the cap-and-trade carbon tax, suppor ting Workplace Safety & Insurance Boardpremium reductions, providing Ontario income tax relief and othermeasures. To date, the government has also taken over 100 actionsto cut red tape for businesses. These and other expected measureswould save businesses $400 million in compliance costs."A lower small business tax rate is a welcome way to kick off the newdecade," said Julie Kwiecinski, Director of Provincial Affairs forOntario at the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. "Themove will help make doing business in Ontario more affordable,providing extra money for job creators to use where it 's mostneeded." To continue to build on these steps, the government isconsulting with industry and business leaders to inform its SmallBusiness Success Strategy.

NEW ANIMAL WELFARE SYSTEM NOW IN FORCE IN ONTARIOThe Provincial Animal Welfare Services (PAWS) Act came into force on January 1, creating the first fully provincial government-basedanimal welfare enforcement system in Canada. Ontario now has the strongest penalties in Canada for people who violate animalwelfare laws."People care about the welfare of animals and so does our government," said Solicitor General Sylvia Jones. "We committed tocreating a strong, new system to protect animals, and we have delivered on that promise."Effective January 1, 2020, Ontario will:1) Implement the new model with more inspectors to provide province-wide coverage, including those with specialized exper tise inlivestock, zoos, aquariums and equines.2) Enable cour ts to impose the highest financial penalties for offenders in Canada.3) Update prohibitions and obligations, such as barring the return of dog fighting equipment to a person convicted of an offence andharming or attempting to harm a service animal or one that works with peace officers.4) Establish new oversight of inspectors that offers increased transparency and accountability, as well as a one-window complaintsmechanism for the public.5) Establish a multi-disciplinary advisory table made up of a wide range of exper ts, including veterinarians, agriculture representa-tives, academics, animal advocates and others to provide ongoing advice to the ministry.6) Transitional regulations have been put in place to ensure animals are protected while long-term regulations are developed throughconsultation, including through the multi-disciplinary table.The province has established a toll-free number, 1-833-9-ANIMAL (264625) for people to repor t concerns about animal distress orabuse. This call centre is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Mother of Ontario Premier Doug Ford, and late Torontomayor Rob Ford, died Sunday night at the age of 85, sur-rounded by family. The Premier's office confirmed the newsin a statement revealing the cause to be cancer. The state-ment read, “Ms Ford was an active member of her com-munity who suppor ted numerous charitable causes. Butmost of all, she was the rock of her family, especially her10 grandchildren.”It added, “The Ford family is extremely grateful for theoutpouring of suppor t from members of the community inrecent weeks. The family would also like to thank MrsFord's caregivers for their compassionate care.” Dianemarried Doug Ford Sr. In 1956 and had four children, two ofwhom went on to highlight themselves in the provincialpolitical scenario.Often seen in the background of her family's business orpolitical ventures, she had offered up her Etobicoke homeas a gathering place for her sons' campaign events. DianeFord’s youngest son, Rob Ford, was elected as mayor ofToronto in 2010 after serving as city councillor for EtobicokeNor th for 10 years. Diane continued to host Ford Fest andother events for Doug Ford as he campaigned to be themayor of Toronto af ter his brother’s passing in 2016.She was also seen by his side in 2018, when he won theprovincial election and became Premier of Ontario.

Toronto man dies in hospitalfollowing December stabbingA Toronto man who was stabbed last month succumbed tohis injuries this month. Police officials said the stabbingtook place in the city's northeast area on December 19.The victim was taken to a hospital, however, he died onJanuary 2, Thursday. He has been identified as MuhammadWaqar Alam, 31.Suspect Sahand Norouz Zadeh, 19, who was initiallycharged with attempted murder, now faces a charge ofsecond-degree murder. He was rearrested on January 4,and appeared in cour t on Sunday.

BRAMPTON HIT-AND-RUNTEEN VICTIM DIES IN HOSPITALThe Peel Regional Police has revealed that a 16 year oldgirl has died in a hospital following a hit-and-run inBrampton on Sunday morning. Officials responded to thearea of Gore Road and Queen Street around 12.30 am aftera passerby located the victim on the road.Peel Police officials said the victim, identified as DiannaManan from Toronto, had extensive trauma to her body andwas transpor ted to the hospital in life-threatening condi-tion. Investigators are treating the incident as a fail-to-remain and urge anyone with information to contact themajor collision bureau.Media official, Const. Akhil Mooken said, “The time of day,especially given that it was after midnight, really has lim-ited the number of motorists that have come forward sowe believe there may be additional motorists in the areathat may not have yet had the oppor tunity to speak withour investigators.”

PLANE FROM TORONTOSLIDES OFF RAMP IN HALIFAXA passenger plane slid off the runway at the Halifax StanfieldInternational Airpor t. WestJet flight 248 attempted a land-ing on early Sunday afternoon, only to slide off the runwayinto the grass. 179 passengers onboard the plane sat idlefor almost an hour as emergency crews arrived to help.Staff authorities of the airpor t and WestJet inspected theplane, which had ar rived from Toronto, before getting thepassengers onto shuttle buses and bringing them into theairpor t.No injuries were repor ted for tunately, and the runway wasimmediately closed by airpor t staff. Sunday pegged haz-ardous weather conditions outside of the airport area aswell, as winds swept over 60 km/h through most of NovaScotia.WestJet meanwhile, cancelled three of its flights, includ-ing both incoming and depar ting flights.

Diane Ford dies at 85

CANADIAN TROOPS IN A SOUP AS IRAQ CALLS FOREXPULSION OF FOREIGN PERSONNEL

Prime Minister Justin Tr udeau met with Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan, Chief of Defence General Jonathan Vance, and Deputy Ministerfor DND Jody Thomas to discuss the latest developments in Iraq. The meeting came after Iraq Parliament called for the expulsion offoreign troops from the country. Sajjan spoke with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg to discuss the NATO Mission Iraq torecognise the situation of Canadian troops in the country.Tweeting about his talk with Stoltenberg, Sajjan said, “We are committed to a stable Iraq, the fight against Daesh & to resume trainingwhen the situation allows. During the temporary pause, our focus is on the safety of those who serve.” He also tweeted, “Canadaremains engaged with our international par tners who are committed to defeating Daesh. This morning, the UK Secretary of State forDefence, (Rt. Hon Ben Wallace MP) & I agreed that we need to focus on de-escalation. We will continue to work to promote regionalstability.”Iraqi lawmakers approved a resolution on Sunday asking the government to end an agreement under which American and alliedforces have been in the country for over four years to help fight against terror outfit Islamic State.Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs François-Philippe Champagne released a statement of his conversation with Iraqi counterpar tMohammed Ali al-Hakim. The statement read, “Minister Champagne spoke to his Iraqi counterpar t, Mohammed Ali al-Hakim. TheMinister reiterated Canada's on-going commitment to a stable and united Iraq and ensuring the enduring defeat of Daesh. The twoMinisters agreed that a de-escalation in tensions is necessary as peace and stability are key to pursuing the political and economicreforms underway in Iraq.”It added, “Canada is deeply engaged in development, humanitarian, military and diplomatic effor ts to support Iraq. Minister Cham-pagne pledged to continue to work with the government of Iraq to achieve the peace, stability and prosperity that the people of Iraqwant and deserve.”NATO's Stoltenberg had recently defended the training mission that includes 250 Canadian soldiers and a Canadian general. Followinga meeting with NATO ambassadors in Brussels, he said, “We have suspended our training mission now because of the securitysituation on the ground, but we are ready to restart the training when the situation makes that possible.”

Toronto on top of list of 25 Canadian cities with major bed bug problemsA repor t published by extermination company Orkin Canada has placed Toronto on top of a list of the worst locations in Canada for bedbugs. The list in total features 25 Canadian cities with the worst bed bug problems in 2019. It weighed the amount of bed bug treatmentsin each city throughout the year.14 of the 25 cities are in Ontario, and several of them from around the GTA. Cities include Ottawa at 5th place, Oshawa at 8th, Sudburyat 9th, and Hamilton at 10th. Toronto is first on the list, followed by Winnipeg, Vancouver, and St. John's. Also taking the lead are Halifax,Edmonton, and Montreal.Orkin released tips to avoid picking up bed bugs if you travel. Its website read, “Do not put your clothing or luggage directly on the bed.If bed bugs are present in the bed, they can climb into bags, suitcases or any laundry left on the bed.”It added, “Hotels aren’t the only bed bug travel threats. Bed bugs thrive in dark, cool places with long-term access to humans. They canalso be found on airplane and train seats, buses or in rental cars. It’s rare but it is possible to pick up bed bugs in places like these.”

City of Brampton and Ryerson University signmilestone agreement on Innovation Zone

The City of Brampton and Ryerson University have signed anagreement to establish the Ryerson Innovation Zone in Down-town Brampton, an exciting milestone for postsecondaryeducation in the city. “ “The Ryerson-led Brampton InnovationZone is modelled after and connected to Ryerson University’sworld-recognized Zone network. These spaces are designed tobring people together to brainstorm, kickstart projects, and helptake star tups from early-stage incubated companies to estab-lished thriving businesses. The new Innovation Zone will focuson the development of scalable businesses in Brampton,building and suppor ting high potential entrepreneurialteams.““The Innovation Zone will:““• Provide thought leader-ship and access to national and international markets, and builda reputation of excellence“• Extend business infrastructure bysuppor ting the growth of new businesses and fostering innova-tion in existing industries; such as creative industries, digitalhospitality, intelligent transpor tation, and technology-enabledhealth services“• Suppor t the Brampton 2040 Vision throughbuilding a City of Oppor tunities“• Develop, attract and retainlocal talent“• Create and nur ture a network of influencers fromall sectors in business, academia, and government throughpar ticipating par tners““Brampton is putting all the necessarypieces in place to suppor t a robust innovation ecosystem. TheInnovation Zone will open in early 2020 and will be a new

addition to Brampton’s Innovation District, which includes:““•Rogers Cybersecure Catalyst“• Brampton Entrepreneur Centre(Ideation and Co-working space)“• Ryerson-Brampton Innova-tion Zone (Star t-Up Incubator)“• The site for the City’s futureCentre for Innovation“• A scale-up incubator““Brampton MayorPatrick Brown said, “This is an exciting moment for Bramptonand our continuing par tnership with Ryerson University. ThisInnovation Zone takes us one step closer to a fully developedInnovation Ecosystem, which suppor ts entrepreneurs at everystage of their journey. We are committed to working on allpossible options and par tnerships to address the needs ofBrampton students, entrepreneurs and the future workforce. Wehave a great par tner in Ryerson University and are thankful fortheir collaborative spirit. We look forward to many more yearsof the same.”““Mohamed Lachemi, President and Vice-Chan-cellor, Ryerson University, said, “We are looking forward tobringing our experience and exper tise with star t-ups andincubation to Brampton’s innovation district and I’d like to thankthe City of Brampton for their commitment to this vision. TheRyerson Innovation Zone in Brampton will help foster ideas andconnect entrepreneurs with various organizations in the region,while equipping them with the critical thinking and problem-solving skills needed to succeed and thrive in the moderneconomy.”


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US-Iran conflict won’t leave India unscathed

INDIA HAS SIGNIFICANT INTERESTS IN THE PERSIAN GULF REGION, BUT IT APPEARS TO HAVE DEALT ITSELFOUT OF THE GAME BY TAMELY SKEWING ITS MIDDLE EAST POLICY IN FAVOUR OF THE INFORMAL US-SAUDIARABIA-ISRAEL COALITION. IRAN WAS GIVEN SHORT SHRIFT AS NEW DELHI WENT ALONG WITH TRUMP’S‘MAXIMUM PRESSURE’ POLICY ON IRAN. NEW DELHI’S MOTIVES MAY HAVE BEEN PRACTICAL.“

Even though US President Donald Tr ump referred to New Delhias one of the sites of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani’salleged terrorist activities, India was clearly not on the priority list of nations that the US called after assassinating him

last Friday.Over the next two days US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke toPakistan Army Chief Qamar Javed Bajwa, Chinese State CouncillorYang Jichei, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, the British For-

eign Secretary, the French and German Foreign Ministers and AfghanPresident Ashraf Ghani. So, finally, on Sunday, India’s External AffairsMinister decided not to stand on ceremony and called Pompeo andhis Iranian counterpar t Javed Zarif.India has significant interests in the Persian Gulf region, but it ap-pears to have dealt itself out of the game by tamely skewing its MiddleEast policy in favour of the informal US-Saudi, Arabia-Israel coalition.Iran, which was one of the three pillars of India’s regional policy inWest Asia, was given shor t shrift as New Delhi cravenly went alongwith Tr ump’s ‘maximum pressure’ policy on Iran. New Delhi’s mo-tives may have been practical.First, given the draconian nature of US sanctions, India would havehad to be very courageous in challenging the US, and the blunt factis that India is no longer brave when it comes to Uncle Sam.There was a time when Indira Gandhi could stand up to RichardNixon and Henry Kissinger and lead a war to split Pakistan andachieve what has been India’s greatest military victory since In-dependence.Second, Prime Minister Modi, who had made successful foraysto the UAE and Saudi Arabia, probably calculated that getting in-vestments from these oil-rich kingdoms was equivalent to thebird in hand, over a bird in the bush, like Iran. So, he loosenedIndia’s traditional and successful policy of maintaining a balancedrelationship with Iran, Saudi Arabia and Israel.India had been one of the few countries that did not profit from theIran-Iraq war (1980-1988) and has been widely respected in theMiddle-East. Gulf countries are an impor tant source of oil for thecountry, but as of last year, India terminatedits impor ts from Iran because of the US sanctions.In the narrow and immediate perspective, India’s relationship withthe Saudi peninsula is much more impor tant than Iran. Sevenmillion Indian nationals work in the region, sending back an esti-mated $40 billion to the country. The UAE is India’s third largesttrade par tner and also a major investor. Modi has targeted theSaudi and UAE sovereign wealth funds for promoting infrastruc-ture construction in India. They see India’s growing economy as amajor destination for investment, but though tens of billions ofdollars have been talked of, as of now, Gulf investments in Indiaare moderate.Iran does not have that kind of spare wealth and nor is it a desti-nation for the Indian diaspora. Its value does lie in its vast oil and

gas resources as well as its geopolit ical location and marketpotential. It provides the route through which India, blockaded byPakistan, can fulfill its Eurasian ambitions. The Chabahar projectprovides a route to Afghanistan and Central Asia, while the Inter-national Nor th South Transpor tation Corridor (INSTC) gives usoverland access to Russia and Europe. In many ways, it can beour own Belt and Road Initiative.There is political congruence, too, between New Delhi and Teheran in ourhardline position against the Taliban in Afghanistan. In the 1990s, Iran andIndia joined hands in helping Ahmed Shah Massoud and the Nor thernAlliance against the Pakistan-backed Taliban.Today, as the US readies for a pullout there, the Islamist groupand its mentor Pakistan appear poised to once again become thedominant force in Afghanistan. That would explain just why Pompeofelt the need to call Bajwa, and not any Indian leader. You have togrant it to the Americans — when the push comes to shove, thereis little time for niceties, only a relentless focus on self-interest— which in this case lies in getting a fig leaf to cloak their depar-ture from Afghanistan.Tr ump’s action against Soleimani is yet another instance of trash-ing international law, the first being the wrecking of the UN-ap-proved I ran nuclear deal that triggered the current situation. The USclaims that Soleimani, who was their ally against ISIS, was a terrorist.Actually, as a member of the IRGC, he was par t of the official military ofa sovereign country. His counterpar ts in the US, Israel or anywhere elsewould have planned and executed similar kinds of operations that he did.So, merely designating him terrorist means little.The US has escalated things hugely and this has implications for thewider region. Though exper ts discount the danger of war and say thatneither the US nor Iran wants one, there is always the danger ofmiscalculation. As in the case of Iraq and Afghanistan, the US cancer tainly devastate Iran. But though the Iranians will lose, the US andits allies will not be unscathed. We know how ambiguous the US‘victory’ in Iraq and Afghanistan has been.In all this, we in India will be collateral casualties. The disruption ofoil supplies and possibly large-scale destruction in the region willhave a direct impact on our economy.We rode out the Islamism unleashed by the US-Saudi jihad in Af-ghanistan, as well as the ISIS fallout in Syria-Iraq. But given ourdomestic climate today, a new wave of Islamism could well have adifferent outcome.

MANOJ JOSHI

Distinguished Fellow, ObserverResearch Foundation, New Delhi



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 07, 2020 c a n a d a

General Accounting & Bookkeeping

Data released by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)on January 1, 2020, reveals India set a major record for the mostnumber of babies born worldwide on New Year ’s Day. According tothe organisation, 67,385 were born in India on January 1, of theestimated 392,078 born around the world. The country was fol-lowed by China (46,299), Nigeria (26,039), Pakistan (16,787),Indonesia (13,020), and the United States of America (10,452)among others. “The beginning of a new year and a new de-cade is an oppor tunity to reflect on our hopes and aspira-tions not only for our future, but the future of those who willcome after us,” UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Foresaid. “As the calendar flips each January, we are remindedof all the possibility and potential of each child embarking onher or his life’s journey—if they are just given that chance.”

INDIA RECORDS MOST BABIES BORNON NEW YEAR’S DAY

Former Toronto pastor sentenced to 15 years in drowning of pregnant wifePhilip Grandine, a former Toronto pastor has been convicted in the death of his pregnant wife and sentenced to 15 years behind bars. Thesentence came almost a year after jurors found him guilty of manslaughter in the drowning of his wife Anna Grandine. He faces around12 years in prison with credit for time spent in custody before his trial and later on strict bail.Anna was 29 years old and 20 weeks pregnant when shedrowned in the couple's bathtub in 2011. Lorazepam, orAtivan as it is known was later found in her blood despitenot being prescribed. A judge ruled in November that Philipdeliberately and secretly sedated his wife so she wouldn'tstand in the way of his extramarital affair and love of por-nography.Ontario Superior Cour t Justice Faye McWatt rejected thedefence's argument that the victim had taken the drug her-self as she was depressed about her husband's infidelity.This was Grandine's second trial in connection with thedeath of his wife. In the first, he was charged with first-degree murder but found guilty of manslaughter and sen-tenced to 15 years in prison.

2020 New Year’s Baby Arrives atBrampton Civic Hospital

Brampton Civic Hospital welcomed its first baby of thisdecade early on January 1, at 1:15 a.m. Marwah Hanahodyof Caledon del ivered a baby gi r l named Maret ta, whoweighed in at 6 pounds, 4.9 ounces. With the best wishes ofWilliam Osler Health System (Osler), the family receivedwarm congratulations and a large gift basket of baby itemsthat was generously donated by Shoppers Dr ug Mart at 834Springdale Square, in Brampton.

The City of Toronto’s proposed Electric Vehicle (EV) Strategy, a firstfor the City, will be considered on January 9 by members of the Infra-structure and Environment Committee. The strategy identifies a rangeof actions to suppor t the adoption of electric vehicles in Toronto andthe achievement of a key goal in the City's TransformTO climate ac-tion strategy to have 100 per cent of transpor tation use zero-carbonenergy by 2050. Vehicles generate more than one-third of the green-house gas (GHG) emissions in Toronto.With a focus on the electrification of passenger vehicles such ascars, vans, trucks and SUVs, the proposed strategy identifies 10actions and four key objectives: increase charging availability ,address cost and convenience barriers, increase public aware-ness and education, and create oppor tunities that will benefit thelocal economy. Passenger vehicles generate 79 per cent of trans-por tation emissions.The strategy was informed by municipal best practices and devel-oped with extensive consultation with residents and more than 100stakeholders including: automakers and manufacturers, EV charginginfrastructure suppliers, EV technology companies, other municipali-

ties and levels of government, non-governmental organizations, oiland gas companies, electricity system operators, building owners,property managers and developers, educators, and business groups.This is one of several City initiatives underway to suppor t sustainabletranspor tation, including transpor tation and land use policies, pro-grams and infrastructure that promote walking, cycling and publictransit.Toronto Mayor John Tory said, “The electrification of transpor tation iskey to our TransformTO climate action strategy and our goal to have100 per cent of transpor tation powered by zero-carbon energy by2050. Vehicles are the second largest source of greenhouse gas emis-sions in Toronto and we must act now to ensure that Toronto is wellpositioned to meet our TransformTO transpor tation goals."Councillor James Pasternak (Ward 6 York Centre), Chair of the City'sInfrastructure and Environment Committee, said, “The City's ElectricVehicle Strategy is an impor tant step to help Toronto residents andbusinesses transition to zero-carbon vehicles and a low-carbon city.Toronto must remain a leader in creating an environment that is readyfor new technologies and the benefits that derive from them.”

Toronto’s first Electric Vehicle Strategy to beconsidered by City committee this week

Toronto Mayor Tory welcomes students back to schoolat Toronto's new Canoe Landing community facility

Mayor John Tory with City of Toronto and school board officials welcomed elementary students at two new schools in downtown Torontotoday. Students returned to school from winter break to Bishop Macdonell Catholic Elementary School and Jean Lumb Public School atthe new Canoe Landing multi-use community facility.Joining Mayor Tory were Deputy Mayor Michael Thompson (Ward 21 Scarborough Centre), Chair of the Economic and CommunityDevelopment Committee, Councillor Joe Cressy (Ward 10 Spadina-Fort York), Toronto District School Board (TDSB) chair Robin Pilkey,trustee Stephanie Donaldson and education director John Malloy, and Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB) vice-chair AngelaKennedy and trustee Norm Di Pasquale.The City owns the Canoe Landing site and par tnered with the TDSB and the TCDSB to develop the multi-use facility. The two schools arethe first areas of the facility to open. Each school will serve about 550 children from kindergarten to Grade 8. Notable features includea shared gym, library and learning commons, outdoor play areas for each age group. The St. Stephen’s Canoe Landing before and afterschool programs will also be available to attending students.Design and development of Canoe Landing was guided by the City’s Parks and Recreation Facilities Master Plan, which represents a$2.2-billion investment to serve population growth over the next 20 years. Construction of this community-focused facility was led by theCity and funded primarily through development levies, development charges and Section 37 funds. Official ground-breaking for this sitetook place in fall 2017 and it is anticipated that the community recreation centre and the child-care centre will be completed this spring.When completed, the multi-use facility complex will include two schools, a community recreation centre, community space and childcare centre within a modern, three-storey structure. Many of the spaces within the buildings are shared, such as the school andcommunity centre gym as well as the ar tificial turf field in the adjacent park. The design maximizes the available green space in thedowntown site with an ar ticulated green roof that spans a large part of the complex's footprint.Mayor Tory said, “We're taking action to ensure Toronto's current and future residents have access to recreation services they need andwant. Facilities like Canoe Landing exemplify the multi-use community focused spaces and par tnerships we’re looking to build andleverage as par t of our $2.2-billion investment in parks and recreation facilities to suppor t the city’s growing and changing populationover the next 20 years.”

TORONTO REMOVESHOMELESS CAMPS INROSEDALE VALLEY DESPITECOMMUNITY PUSHBACKCrews demolished a homeless encampment in Toronto'sRosedale Valley despite facing stringent criticism fromseveral anti-pover ty advocates. Workers with the City ofToronto were seen clearing the area early Tuesday morning,placing various items into garbage bags from underneaththe Rosedale Bridge.Toronto had announced its intentions to clear out theencampment, last month, citing health and safety concerns.Occupants were given 15-day notice to relocate. TorontoMayor John Tory supported the move. Addressing the presson Monday, he said, “It is not safe and it is not appropriate tohave people l iv ing in encampments, so we go aboutdismantling those in a very orderly fashion. The decisionsare made by professional public servants and there is a lotof notice given.”He added that there is “space specifically set aside inshelters adequate to house all the people that will bedislocated by the dismantling of the encampment.” However,the move faced flak from advocates of people experiencinghomelessness. They pointed out that shelters in the city arealready over flowing.





MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 07, 2020 i n d i a

THE MOTHER OF THE DECEMBER 16 RAPE VICTIM WITH LAWYERS AFTER A COURT ISSUED DEATH WARRANTS AGAINST THE FOURCONVICTS IN THE CASE, OUTSIDE PATIALA HOUSE COURTS IN NEW DELHI.

Convicts’ hanging will restore faithof women in law: Nirbhaya’s motherNew Delhi: The hanging ofNirbhaya convicts will restorethe faith of women in law, hermother Asha Devi said onTuesday. Four convicts in thesensational 2012 Nirbhayagang rape and murder casewill be hanged on January 22at 7 am in Tihar jail, the cour tsaid. Nirbhaya’s mother saidthat January 22 will be a bigday for her when the convictsare hanged. The order waspronounced by AdditionalSessions Judge Satish KumarArora who issued deathwarrants against them. Thefour death row convicts areMukesh, Vinay Sharma,Akshay Singh and PawanGupta.

‘Hope who misbehave with women will learn’: CM?Kejriwal

on execution order for Delhi gang-rape convictsA trial cour t in Delhi issued ablack warrant against the fourmen accused of gang-raping a 23-year-old physiotherapy student in2012. The court ordered the fourmen to be hanged on January 22,at 7 am. Here are some of the re-actions after the cour t verdict:Asha Devi, mother of the Delhigang-rape victim: My daughterhas got justice. Execution of the 4convicts wi l l empower thewomen of the country. This deci-sion will strengthen the trust ofpeople in the judicial system.Badrinath Singh, father of theDelhi gang-rape vict im: I amhappy with the cour t’s decision.The convicts will be hanged at 7am on 22nd January; This deci-sion will instil fear in people whocommit such crimes.Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi Chief Min-ister: Welcome the death warrantissued against the four convictsin the December 16 gangrapecase. This will act as a deterrent.I hope people who misbehavewith women learn from this that

they will not be spared.Manish Sisodia, Delhi Deputy ChiefMinister: Whole country had beenwaiting for this (hanging of Nirbhayaconvicts); it is a victory of law. SwatiMaliwal, Delhi Commission forWomen chief: Strongly welcome thisdecision. It is a win for all the‘Nirbhayas’ living in this country. Isalute Nirbhaya’s parents who foughtfor 7 long years. Why has it taken 7

years to punish these people? Whycan’t this time period be reduced?Susmita Dev, Congressspokersperson: I feel justice delayedis justice denied. After changing somany laws, af ter the Verma com-mittee repor t, still it took sevenyears. I heard somewhere that thegovernment has said it will re-move the right to appeal in a seri-ous heinous crime. I feel right to

appeal should not be totally doneaway with...but even in appellatejurisdiction in a serious crime likeNirbhaya, i t should be t imebound. Manisha Gulati, PunjabWomen Commission chairper-son: It is a very good decision andI respect i t . Now the soul ofNirbhaya will rest in peace. To-day every daughter in the coun-try has got justice.

64% Maharashtra ministershave self-declared criminalcases against them: ADR

Sixty-four percent of the newly-appointed ministers inMaharashtra – 27 out of 42 – have criminal cases pendingagainst them, according to a repor t by election watchdog Asso-ciation for Democratic Reforms (ADR). The repor t by the non-profit organisation is based on an analysis of self-sworn affida-vits filed by the ministers with the Election Commission ofIndia ahead of contesting elections to the state legislature.The list of 42 ministers does not include chief minister UddhavThackeray, who has not yet contested any election. At 64%,Maharashtra has the fifth highest share of ministers with de-clared criminal cases – after Kerala, Bihar, Telangana andAndhra Pradesh – among 25 states for which data of ministersin their latest government has been released by ADR. Also, 18ministers or 43% in the Maharashtra government have a crimi-nal case of ser ious nature against them. This makesMaharashtra the state with the second-highest share of minis-ters with serious criminal cases, af ter Telangana where 47% ofministers had serious criminal cases. At 43%, Delhi is at parwith Maharashtra on this count – three of Delhi’s seven minis-ters had serious criminal cases against them. To be sure, thesereports have been released immediately after the formation ofthe latest governments in these states and hence do not ac-count for any changes in ministerial ber ths made in the statesthereafter. ADR has not released a similar repor t for the latestgovernment in Karnataka, Jharkhand, Sikkim, Tripura andPuducherr y, whereas Jammu and Kashmir does not have anelected government at present. The share of ministers withcriminal and serious criminal cases in Maharashtra has notchanged compared to the previous Bharatiya Janata Par ty-ShivSena coalition government formed in 2014.

December 16 gang rape case:Evidence SC relied upon to upholddeath penaltyIn April 2016, the Supreme Cour t began hearing the pleas of thefour men sentenced to death for raping a paramedic in a bus inDelhi on December 16, 2012 and a year later upheld the deathsentence. The woman died of her injuries in a Singapore hospitalon December 29, 2012. Here are the main evidence the apexcour t had taken into account to decide that the four convicts de-served the gallows.1. In its judgment on May 5, 2017, the top cour t found the evi-dence of the lone witness who was the victim’s friend, to beunimpeachable. It said the statement cannot be disbelieved sim-ply because there were cer tain omissions that the defence hadflagged. 2. The cour t also relied on the victim’s dying declarationand said such a declaration recorded on the basis of nods andgestures is not only admissible but also possesses evidentiaryvalue. Of her three dying declarations that were recorded, the lastone was in gestures. 3. It also took into account the prosecution’scharge that the rape was brutal and inhuman because the ac-cused inser ted an iron rod into the victim’s vagina and took outher internal organs causing serious injuries that led to her deathless than two weeks later. 4. DNA profile from the blood stainsfrom the rod showed it had the victim’s blood. The rod was recov-ered at the instance of another accused Ram Singh – who com-mitted suicide within a few months of the crime while he waslodged in Tihar jail.

PM discusses job creation with India IncNew Delhi: Prime MinisterNarendra Modi on Mondayappealed to the corporate sectornot to be pessimistic by thecurrent slowdown and insteadfocus on expansion by creatingworld -class products. “Makingof a $5-trillion economy wasjust a milestone, our dreamsare much bigger with thegovernment’s focus on makingbetter business environment forIndia Inc. The focus is on reformwith intent and per formancewith integrity. This environment

has given the country thecourage to set big goals, andachieve them on time,” the PMsaid while at the centenarycelebration event of KirloskarBrothers. Earlier, he held discus-sions with the country’s topindustrialists — Ratan Tata,Mukesh Ambani, Gautam Adani,AM Naik, Anand Mahindra, SajjanJindal, Mukesh Ambani, SunilMittal, N Chandrashekaran andVenu Srinivasan. The meetingsaw the PM discussing jobcreation with India Inc.

Convicts in Nirbhaya case to hangon January 22, says Delhi courtNew Delhi: Four convicts in the sensational 2012 Nirbhayagang rape and murder case will be hanged on January 22 at 7am in Tihar jail, a Delhi cour t said on Tuesday. The order waspronounced by Additional Sessions Judge Satish Kumar Arorawho issued the death warrants against the four death rowconvicts—Mukesh (32), Pawan Gupta (25), Vinay Sharma (26)and Akshay Kumar Singh (31). During the hearing, the pros-ecution said there was no application pending before any cour tor the President right now by any of the convicts and the re-view petition of all the convicts was dismissed by the Su-preme Cour t. While urging the court to issue the death war-rants, the prosecution said, “In between issuance and execu-tion of death warrants of the convicts want to file curativepetitions they can do so.” The counsel for two of the convicts— Mukesh and Vinay — said they were in the process offiling curative petition in the Supreme Cour t. The trial courthad earlier directed Tihar jail authorities to seek within a weekresponse from the four death row convicts as to whether theywere filing mercy pleas against their executions with the Presi-dent of India. It was hearing the applications moved byNirbhaya’s parents and the prosecution (Delhi Government)seeking issuance of death warrant against the convicts. TheSupreme Cour t on December 18 had dismissed the plea ofAkshay seeking review of its decision, saying review petitionis not “re-hearing of appeal over and over again” and it hadalready considered the mitigating and aggravating circum-stances while upholding the death penalty. The 23-year-oldparamedic student, referred to as Nirbhaya, was gang rapedand brutally assaulted on the intervening night of December16-17, 2012 inside a moving bus in south Delhi by six personsbefore being thrown out on the road.


TUESDAY, JANUARY 07, 2020i n d i a

PEOPLE HOLD PLACARDS AT A PROTEST AGAINST INCIDENTS OF RAPE, IN HYDERABAD. (REUTERS PHOTO).

"HAD ABHINANDANVARTHAMAN BEEN FLYINGRAFALE...": EX-AIR CHIEF

CONTD. FROM PAGE 1Speaking at an event at IIT- Bombay, former Air Chief Mar-shal Dhanoa said that the Supreme Cour t gave a "fine judg-ment" on the Rafale issue (giving a clean chit to theNarendra Modi government)."I have always personally maintained that if you politicisethe defence acquisition system, the whole system goesbehind," he said."All other files also start moving at a slow pace becausepeople star t becoming very, very conscious," he said. TheBofors deal too got mired in controversy despite the guns"being good", he noted.At the same time, people have the right to ask questionsabout prices of the aircraft as tax payers'' money is atstake, the former air chief said."The fact is, because of creating a controversy out of it, theslowing down of defence modernisation later affects you,"said BS Dhanoa, who retired in September last year."Like the prime minister made a statement. People aresaying it is a political (statement) but the fact is that thestatement he made is correct." "If we had Rafale, thequestion would have been totally different," he said.

CONTD. FROM PAGE 1Indian Railways all set to roll out 44 new improved ‘Make inIndia’ Vande Bharat Express trains! In a move that will transformpassenger experience on the Indian Railways network, PiyushGoyal-led Railway Ministry has given its nod for the productionof 44 more Vande Bharat Express trains. The self-propelled en-gine-less train sets, introduced earlier this year, mark a techno-logical shif t for Indian Railways and offer world-class comfor t topassengers. Learning from the experience of the first two VandeBharat train sets, the 44 new train sets will have even moreadvanced features based on RDSO’s specifications.Recently, the Integral Coach Factory (ICF), Chennai has pub-lished the tender for supply of electrical equipment and otheritems for as many as 44 Vande Bharat Express trainsets of 16coaches each. All coaches will be Chair Car type for day travel,equipped with automatic plug doors with retractable footsteps,automatic intercommunication door, speakers, side destinationboards, mobile and laptop charging sockets in the passengerseats, CCTV cameras, emergency talk back units with networkingsystem. The new Vande Bharat coaches will boast of features suchas diffused lighting for luggage racks, mini pantry with modularequipement, continuous LED lights and GPS antenna.New Vande Bharat Express train sets: 5 special featuresThe trainsets will be of light weight and energy efficient. They willsuppor t a ride index of less than 3.5 against the earlier value ofless than 4. This feature will improve passenger comfor t evenfor longer train journeys. Moreover, they will be suitable for op-erations in Jammu and Kashmir.A residual acceleration value of 0.1 ms2 will allow the trainset toreach the top speed of 160 km per hour in maximum 140 sec-onds. With this, around 20% journey time will be saved and theywill also be suitable for flooding conditions.The interior of these trainsets will have improved fire safety asper EN 45545 HL2 and improved electrical protection. Also, theywill boast a well-defined protection scheme for High Voltage roofcable as well as automatic fire detection and alarm.The trainsets will be equipped with light weight, explosion-prooflithium-iron-phosphate batteries to provide back up for durationof up to three hours. Also, they will have state-of -the-art alu-minium body roof mounted packaged unit type AC units withthermal comfort based Microprocessor controller. The newtrainset’s propulsion system will have a peak efficiency of atleast 87 per cent. With this, Indian Railways is aiming for effi-cient, robust and reliable systems in the Vande Bharat trains.The new trainsets will have basic units with four coaches. Thesecan be attached or detached from the train, as the need arises. Withthis feature, it will be possible to replace the basic units in case ofdefects, or augment the train length up to 24 coaches in case thedemand increases. This is a key learning from the existing VandeBharat train sets which do not have this feature. As a result, the entiretrainset becomes ineffective in case of any defect in a coach.

INDIAN RAILWAYS SET TO ROLL OUT44 IMPROVED VANDE BHARAT

TRAINS; 5 COOL FACTS ABOUT THENEW 160 KMPH TRAINS

UNDER FIRE, MUMBAI WOMAN SAYSSORRY FOR ‘FREE KASHMIR’ PLACARDMumbai: Facing flak from vari-ous right-wing groups and activ-ists for carrying a placard ‘FreeKashmir’ at a protest near theGateway of India, a Mumbaiwoman claimed it was “intendedfor peace in Jammu and Kash-mir”, and apologised for the mis-understanding it created, here onTuesday. The placard seen in herhand on Monday evening duringthe protests in Mumbai to con-demn the v io lence on theJawahar la l Nehru Universi tycampus two days ago triggered apolitical controversy. BJP Leaderof Opposition Devendra Fadnavisdemanded to know what the pro-test was exactly about and whyslogans of ‘Free Kashmir’ wereraised there. “How can we toler-ate such separatist elements inMumbai? ‘Free Kashmir’ sloganby Azadi gang at 2 kms from theCMO? Uddhavji are you going totolerate this ‘Free Kashmir’ anti-India campaign right under yournose???” Fadnavis tweeted onTuesday. Responding to the BJP

charges, Shiv Sena MP SanjayRaut made it clear that it wouldnot tolerate if anyone talked offreedom of Kashmir from India.“I read that those who held the‘Free Kashmir’ poster clarifiedthat they wanted to be free of re-

strictions on Internet services,mobile services and other issues.It doesn’t mean that they advo-cate freedom from India,” Rauttold media. Nationalist CongressPar ty minister Jayant Patil repliedto Fadnavis that the ‘Free Kash-

mir’ poster was intended for free-dom from all restrictions and dis-crimination. The woman identi-fied as Mehak Mirza Prabhu, aMumbai-born who works as a‘story-teller’, said though she hadno agenda or motive, she wastaken aback by the reactions onsocial media to the poster. “Thepicture created by social mediacame as an absolute shock to me.The placard meant ‘freedom toexpress themselves, freedomfrom the Internet lockdown whichmany people have been voicingfor’. I was voicing my solidarityfor basic constitutional right. Noother agenda or motive whatso-ever,” said Prabhu. Reiteratingthat she was a Maharashtrian,born and brought up in Mumbai,she said: “I am (an) ar tiste whobelieves in basic human compas-sion. By being naive in under-standing the impact it would have,and in the process create this stir,I apologise.” Prabhu urged all tolet the ‘power of love overcomehate’, even as Mumbai BJP ac-tivist-lawyer Vivekanand Guptashot off a message to the Com-missioner of Police demandingher arrest.

Maharashtraundertrial slapslawyer in court;

lawyers go on strikeThane: An under trial prisoner al-legedly slapped an advocate ata cour t in Maharashtra’s Thanedistrict, a police official said onTuesday. The incident took placeat Chopda cour t in Ulhasnagartown on Monday following whichlawyers went on a day-long strikein protest, he said. The accused,Rahul Tak, was brought to the cour tfor a case hearing, inspector RK Kotesaid. While standing in a corner,Tak called advocate RajendraBhalerao, who had defended himin earlier cases, towards him tosay something, the official said.As the advocate went to the ac-cused, the latter allegedly usedabusive language and slappedhim, Kote said.

UP Bhajan singer’s death: Rs 2lakh, jewellery, weapons recoveredfrom accused’s homeMuzaffarnagar: ASpecial Invest i-gation Team prob-ing the death of aBhajan singer andhis fami ly inShamli district ofUttar Pradesh hasfound Rs 2 lakh incash, jewel leryand other valuables from the accused’s home in Delhi, policesaid on Tuesday. Three sharp-edged weapons were also foundat the home of the accused, Himanshi Saini, Superintendent ofPolice Vinit Jaiswal said. The singer, Ajay Pathak, his wifeNeha (36) and their daughter Vasudhra (12) were killed with asharp-edged weapon at their home in Punjabi Colony in thedistrict on December 31. The body of their 10-year-old son wasfound the following day in a car in Haryana’s Panipat, some 40km away from Shamli, with burns. Saini confessed to havecommitted the ghastly crime over some monetary dispute withPathak, according to police. The SIT was formed on Friday afterlocals protested against delay in solving the case.



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TUESDAY, JANUARY 07, 2020 i n d i a

ABVP MEMBERS DISPLAY PLACARDS AND RAISE SLOGANS DURING A PROTEST AGAINST JNU VIOLENCE, IN NAGPUR ONTUESDAY. (ANI PHOTO)

MODI SPEAKS TO TRUMP; EXPRESSES DESIRE TO ENHANCE

COOPERATION IN AREAS OF MUTUAL INTERESTNew Delhi/Washington: PrimeMinister Narendra Modi spoke toUS President Donald Trump andexpressed his desire to continue

to work with him to enhance co-operation in areas of mutual in-terest, a PMO statement said onTuesday. Modi conveyed his NewYear greetings to the US Presi-dent, the Prime Minister’s Office(PMO) said. During the conver-sation, the Prime Minister notedthat India-US relations, which arebuilt on trust, mutual respect and

understanding, “have grown fromstrength to strength”, it said. Modihighl ighted the signi f icantprogress made in deepening the

strategic par tnership betweenthe two countries in the previousyear and expressed his desire tocontinue to work with PresidentTrump for enhancing cooperationin all areas of mutual interest, thestatement said. Trump wished thepeople of India prosperity andprogress in the New Year. He ex-pressed sat isfact ion at the

achievements in the relationshipin the last few years and reiter-ated his readiness for fur therdeepening bilateral cooperation,according to the statement. InWashington, the White House re-leased a readout of the telephonicconversation between the twoleaders. “Today, P resident

Donald J Trump spoke with PrimeMinister Narendra Modi of Indiato exchange New Year ’s greet-ings,” the White House said in areadout. “The leaders discussedways to fur ther strengthen the UnitedStates-India strategic partnership in2020, and they also reviewed the re-gional security matters,” it said.

Maha CM likens it to 26/11 attack

Cong-ruled states to decideon NPR after process startsNew Delhi: Terming theCitizenship AmendmentAct (CAA) and the Na-tional Population Regis-ter (NPR) exercise mis-chievous, the Congresstoday said the stateswhere it is in power wouldtake a call on supportingthe NPR process or otherwise when the Centre sends the related order to thestates. Former Home Minister P Chidambaram said, “We oppose the CAAand the NPR exercise. No instruction have yet been issued to states on theNPR exercise. We will see when we come to it.” The Congress leadertermed CAA discriminatory and unconstitutional, saying, “The CAA ispatently discriminatory. While three neighbouring countries have beenincluded, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Bhutan have been excluded. Why?While six religious groups have been included, Muslims have beenexcluded. Why?”According to P Chidambaram, “The National Regis-ter of Citizens is a sinister and mischievous plan to divide India.”

Mumbai: Maharashtra ChiefMinister Uddhav Thackeraytoday likened Sunday’s at-tack on students and teach-ers of Jawaharlal Nehru Uni-versity to the 26/11 terror at-tack in Mumbai. “The vio-lence at JNU reminds me ofthe November 26 terror attacks in Mumbai.... The cowardswho hid their faces behind masks to beat up students andteachers should be arrested and punished,” Thackeray toldreporters at a press conference at Matoshree. The CM’s re-marks came in for sharp criticism from the Opposition BJP.“No can support the attack on students at JNU. But compar-ing Sunday’s violence with the 26/11 terror attacks is aninsult to those who lost their lives,” BJP leader Ashish Shelartold reporters here. Meanwhile, Thackeray refused to speculateon whether the JNU attacks were sponsored by any politicalparty. “The attacks should be investigated properly. Then every-thing will gradually become clear. The government should orderan investigation into the matter,” he said, adding that the stu-dents in Maharashtra had nothing to fear.

Banking services may be hit due totrade unions’ strike on January 8

New Delhi: Banking services at public sector banks arelikely to be hit on Wednesday due to a nationwide strikecalled by 10 central trade unions. Most of the lenders havealready informed stock exchanges about the January 8strike and its impact on banking services. Various bankemployee associations, including AIBEA, All India BankOfficers’ Association (AIBOA), BEFI, INBEF, INBOC andBank Karmachari Sena Mahasangh (BKSM), have ex-pressed their willingness to par ticipate in the strike.Banking services like deposit and withdrawal, chequeclearing and instrument issuance are expected to beimpacted due to the strike. However, services at privatesector banks are unlikely to be impacted. Nearly 25 crorepeople are likely to take par t in an all-India strike onWednesday to protest against the government’s “anti-people” policies. Trade unions INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU,AIUTUC, TUCC, SEWA, AICCTU, LPF and UTUC, along withvarious sectoral independent federations and associations,had adopted a declaration in September last to go on anationwide strike on January 8. “The Ministry of Labourhas failed to assure on any of the demands of workerswhich called a meeting on January 2. The attitude of thegovernment is that of contempt towards labour as weconstrue from its policies and actions,” the 10 CTUs saidin a joint statement. “We expect participation of not lessthan 25 crore of working people in the for thcoming Na-tional General Strike on January 8, to be followed by manymore actions seeking reversal of the anti-worker, anti-people, anti-national policies of the government,” it said.


TUESDAY, JANUARY 07, 2020w o r l d

WOMEN HOLD PICTURES OF IRANIAN MAJOR-GENERAL QASSEM SOLEIMANI, HEAD OF THE ELITE QUDS FORCE, WHO WASKILLED IN AN AIR STRIKE AT BAGHDAD AIRPORT, DURING A FUNERAL PROCESSION AND BURIAL AT HIS HOMETOWN INKERMAN, IRAN.(VIA REUTERS)

BRAVING SUB-ZERO TEMPERATURE,INDIAN-AMERICANS HOLD RALLY INBOSTON IN SUPPORT OF CAAWASHINGTON: A group of Indian-Americans held a rally insuppor t of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in Boston,community members said.Braving sub-zero temperature, members of the Indian-American community from in and around Boston area gatheredat the historic Harvard Square on Sunday to par ticipate in therally, a press release issued by the organisers stated onMonday. Displaying posters and banners reading ‘We suppor tCitizenship Amendment Act’, ‘Indian-Americans Suppor t CAA’and ‘CAA provides citizenship to persecuted minorities’, theparticipants thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi andParliament for the enactment of the Act.According to the CAA, members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain,Parsi and Christian communit ies who have come fromPakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan till December 31, 2014fol lowing re l ig ious persecut ion there wi l l get Indiancitizenship. “The rally was attended by people from differentwalks of life and by all age groups. The rally was aimed toshow suppor t to the Act and also educate the people aboutthe Act, counter misinformation and myths about the Act,”the organisers said.

IRAN CONDEMNS TRUMP AS 'TERRORISTIN A SUIT' AFTER ATTACK THREAT

Dubai: Iran condemned DonaldTrump on Sunday as a "ter roristin a suit" after the US Presidentthreatened to hit 52 Iranian siteshard if Tehran attacks Americansor US assets in retaliation for theki l l ing of mil i tary commanderQassem Soleimani. "Like ISIS,Like Hitler, Like Genghis! They allhate cultures. Trump is a terroristin a suit. He will learn history verysoon that NOBODY can defeat 'theGreat Iranian Nation & Culture',"Information and Telecommunica-tions Minister Mohammad JavadAzar i-Jahromi tweeted.Soleimani, Iran's pre-eminentmilitary commander, was killedon Friday in a US drone strike onhis convoy at Baghdad airport, anattack that has taken long-runninghostilities between Washingtonand Tehran into unchar ted ter ri-tory and raised the spectre ofwider conflict in the Middle East.Soleimani was the architect ofTehran’s overseas clandestine

and military operations as headof the Revolut ionary Guards’Quds Force. Giving no indicationof seeking to defuse tensions af-ter the strike he ordered, Trumpissued a stern threat to the Is-lamic Republic. In a series oftweets on Saturday he said Iran"is talking very boldly about tar-geting cer tain USA assets" toavenge Soleimani's death. Trumpsaid the United States has "tar-geted 52 Iranian sites" and thatsome were "at a very high level& impor tant to Iran & the Iranianculture, and those targets, andIran itself, WILL BE HIT VERY FASTAND VERY HARD." He said the52 targets represented the 52Americans held hostage in Iranafter being seized at the U.S. Em-bassy in 1979 during the country'sIslamic Revolution. Iran's armychief, Major General AbdolrahimMousavi, was quoted by statetelevision on Sunday as sayingthe United States lacked the cour-

age for military confrontation withIran. "In a potential conflict in thefuture, which I don't think they(Americans) have the courage tocarry out, there it will becomeclear where the numbers five andtwo will belong," he said. Trumpsaid on Friday Soleimani had beenplotting "imminent and sinister"attacks on U.S. diplomats andmilitary personnel. Democraticcr i t ics said the Republ icanpresident's action was reckless

and risked more bloodshed in adangerous region. Thousands ofmourners turned out to pay re-spects to the slain commander onSunday after Soleimani's bodywas returned to Iran, the officialIRIB news agency repor ted.Fear of war with superpowerWhile many Iranians have ralliedin to show grief over the death ofSole imani, regarded as thecountry’s second most power fulfigure after Supreme Leader Aya-tollah Ali Khamenei, others worrythat his death might push thecountry to war with a superpower.On F riday, Khamenei promisedharsh revenge and declared threedays of mourning. Soleimani'sbody was flown to the city ofAhvaz in southwest Iran. IRIBposted a video clip of a casketwrapped in an Iranian flag beingunloaded from a plane as a mili-tary band played. Thousands ofmourners dressed in blackmarched through the streets ofAhvaz beating their chests in livefootage aired on state TV.Iraqi angerBritish foreign minister DominicRaab said on Sunday he hadspoken to Iraq's prime ministerand president to urge effor ts torel ieve tensions in the regionfollowing the U.S. strike. Raab,who described Soleimani as a"regional menace" and said hewas sympathetic to the situa-tion the United States found it-self in, said he also planned tospeak to Iran's foreign minis-ter. "There is a route throughwhich allows Iran to come infrom out of the internat ionalcold," he told Sky News. "Weneed to contain the nefariousactions of Iran but we also needto de-escalate and stabilise thesituation." Friday's US air strikealso ki l led Iraqi mil i t ia leaderAbu Mahdi al-Muhandis. Iraq'sparliament was set to convenean ex t raord inary sess ion onSunday where lawmakers toldReuters they would push for avote on a resolution requiringthe government to request thewithdrawal of US troops fromIraq. "There is no need for thepresence of American forces af-ter defeat ing Daesh ( Is lamicState)," said Ammar al-Shibli, aShi'ite lawmaker and member ofparliament's legal committee.

Ghosn snuck onto bullettrain in escape from TokyoTokyo: New repor ts emergedMonday on how fugitive formerNissan boss Car los Ghosnjumped bail in Japan, as thecountry's justice minister saidborder controls would be bol-stered after the escape. The 65-year-old executive skipped bail nearly a week ago, fleeing Ja-pan where he was awaiting trial on multiple counts of financialmisconduct that he denies. The details of his escape remainspotty, with Japan saying it is still investigating how he slippedpast strict security measures imposed as par t of his bail condi-tions. Citing sources close to the investigation, public broad-caster NHK said Monday that Ghosn left his residence by him-self on the afternoon of December 29 and met two men at aTokyo hotel. The three then boarded a "shinkansen" bullet traintogether from Tokyo's Shinagawa station to a station in westernOsaka, arriving around 7:30 pm. The trio then checked in at ahotel near Kansai Airpor t, but only the two men accompanyingGhosn were caught on security camera leaving the hotel later inthe evening, NHK said. They were carrying "two big boxes"which were not checked by customs staff at the airpor t, therepor t added.

Pak National Assembly passesbill to meet FATF requirementIslamabad: The Paki-stan National Assembly(NA) has passed a cru-cial bill—for exchangeof information andcriminals with coun-tries—to meet a re-quirement of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). The oppositionparties on Monday initially tried to block the passage of the bill bychallenging Speaker Asad Qaiser's ruling on a voice vote allowing Min-ister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Muhammad Khan to move thebill, but af ter a 87-83 vote defeat it par ticipated in the process and movedfour minor amendments, repor ts Dawn news. As soon as the ministertook the floor to present the Mutual Legal Assistance (Criminal Matter)Bill 2019, parliamentary leader of the Pakistan Peoples Par ty (PPP)Syed Naveed Qamar termed the legislation against the fundamentalrights of the citizens of Pakistan, claiming that after its passage, thegovernment would be able to seek information from foreign countriesand extradite its own citizens on the demand of the other nations evenwithout signing a treaty. Qamar said presently the countries did notenter tain any request from the Pakistan government to hand over anywanted person to it because of the perception that cases were filed on apolitical basis in Pakistan.

TRUMP WARNS IRAQOF ‘BIG SANCTIONS’

Washington: President Donald Trump on Monday threatened to impose"very big" sanctions on Iraq after its Parliament called on the US military toleave the country for assassinating top Iranian General Qasem Soleimaniin a drone attack in Baghdad. The Iraqi Parliament on Sunday voted to expelthe US troops from its territory which have been there to help the Iraqdispensation fight the Islamic State terror group. Some 5,000 US soldiersare in Iraq as par t of the international coalition against the IS terror group.Iraq's move comes in response to the killing of Maj Gen Soleimani, 62, thehead of Iran's elite al-Quds force and architect of its regional security appa-ratus, in a US drone attack on a convoy that was leaving the BaghdadInternational Airpor t early on Friday. The strike also killed the deputy chief ofIraq's powerful Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary force Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.Soleimani's killing was the most dramatic escalation yet in spiralling ten-sions between Iran and the US, already hit by serious differences overTehran's ambitious nuclear programme.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 07, 2020 w o r l d

U.S. PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP HAD TWICE WARNED THAT HE WOULD HIT IRANIAN CULTURAL SITES IF IRAN RETALIATESAGAINST THE U.S.(REUTERS).

CONTD. FROM PAGE 1In a tweet on Sunday, he wrote that the US has selected 52Iranian sites, some at “a very high level & impor tant to Iran &the Iranian culture”. The tweet prompted Iranian Foreign Minis-ter, Mohammad Javad Zarif, to say that “targeting cultural sitesis a war crime.”Speaking to repor ters, Trump said, “They're allowed to kill ourpeople. They're allowed to tor ture and maim our people. They'reallowed to use roadside bombs and blow up our people. Andwe're not allowed to touch their cultural site? It doesn't workthat way.” In response, Iran President Hassan Rouhani tweeted,“Those who refer to the number 52 should also remember thenumber 290.” The tweet was made in reference to the number ofpeople killed when an Iranian passenger plane was shot downby an American warship in 1988. He added, “Never threaten theIranian nation”.World urges to de-escalate situation ; Saudi scrambles to main-tain peaceMoving to ease tensions in the Middle East as fears that Irancould retaliate for the murder of the General, Saudi Arabia'spower ful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is set to sendhis brother and Deputy Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman toWashington to urge peace and restraint.Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan addressed re-por ters on Monday and said, “We are very keen that the situa-tion in the region doesn't escalate any fur ther. It's cer tainly avery dangerous moment, and we have to be conscious of therisks and dangers, not just to the region but to wider globalsecurity, and therefore we hope that all actors take all the stepsnecessary to prevent any fur ther escalation and any provoca-tion.” Meanwhile, Indian Foreign Minister Dr S Jaishankar spokewith his Iranian counterpar t Javed Zarif and US Secretary ofState Mike Pompeo. He expressed deep concern for the tensionin the region. He tweeted that India remains concerned aboutthe levels of tension.Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said the coun-try would not be dragged into any conflict between the US andIran, urging both sides to lower tensions. It needs to be pointedout that Pakistan shares a 997 kilometre border with Iran andhas been stuck trying to balance ties with both Tehran and Washington, fordecades. Speaking in the Parliament, Qureshi said, “We will not becomepar t of any effor ts to light a fire, nor will we allow our soil to beused against any other state as par t of our policy to preventinstability in the region.”

#WW3 trends on the internetas Trump vs Iran ensues

other caption on the page read inwhite text on a black background.The killing of Soleimani in a dronestrike in Iraq early Friday broughta furious vow of revenge fromTehran. Described as the second

most power fu l man in I ran,Soleimani oversaw wide-ranginginterventions in regional powerstruggles. Tr ump has saidSoleimani was planning an “im-minent” attack on US personnel

Washington: A group claiming tobe hackers from Iran breachedthe website of a little-known USgovernment agency on Saturdayand posted messages vowing re-venge for Washington’s killing oftop military commander QasemSoleimani. The website of theFederal Depository Library Pro-gram was replaced with a pagetitled “Iranian Hackers!” that dis-played images of Iran’s supremeleader Ayatollah Ali Khameneiand the Iranian flag. “Mar tyrdomwas (Soleimani’s)... reward foryears of implacable efforts,” reada graphic depicting US PresidentDonald Tr ump being punched bya first emanating from Iran asmissiles fly by.“With his depar ture and withGod’s power, his work and pathwill not cease and severe revengeawaits those criminals who havetainted their filthy hands with hisblood and blood of the other mar-tyrs,” it said. “This is only smallpar t of Iran’s cyber ability !” an-

‘IRANIAN HACKERS’ CLAIM BREACH OF USGOVERNMENT WEBSITE

Arrest warrant issued againstBangladesh’s 1st Hindu ChiefJustice for alleged graftDhaka: An arrest warrantwas issued againstBangladesh’s f i rst Hinduchief just ice SurendraKumar Sinha on charges ofembezzling 40 million taka,cour t officials said on Sun-day. Sinha, 68, who lives inthe US, has been described as a “fugitive” by the Anti-CorruptionCommission (ACC) in its charge sheet. Judge KM Emrul Kayeshof Dhaka’s Senior Special Judges’ Cour t took cognizance of thegraft charges brought against Sinha and 10 others by the ACC.“The judge ordered his (Sinha’s) arrest along with 10 others asthe ACC accused him of misappropriating and laundering about 4crore taka (USD 4,71,993) in 2016,” public prosecutor TaposhKumar Pal told reporters. The rest of the accused are formersenior officials of the Farmers Bank, including its ex-managingdirector. The ACC in its charge sheet described all the 11 to be“fugitives”. It alleged that Sinha and 10 others embezzling 40million taka from the Farmers Bank, which was later renamed asthe Padma Bank Limited, Pal said. The development came nearlythree months after the ACC said it found evidence of fraud involv-ing transactions of 40 million taka borrowed with fake docu-ments by two businessmen from the bank while the amount wasdeposited in Sinha’s account. Sinha, who is said to have soughtasylum in the US, served as the 21st Chief Justice of Bangladeshfrom January, 2015, to November, 2017.

HUGE CROWDS IN IRANMOURN GENERAL KILLEDBY US DRONETehran: A sea of black-clad Ira-nians on Monday mourned thetop commander killed in lastweek’s US drone strike that in-flamed tensions across WestAsia, as NATO was set to dis-cuss the spiralling crisis. Iranians clutching “Down with USA” signsand portraits of their hero Qassem Soleimani massed as supremeleader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei presided over prayers for the slain headof the Revolutionary Guards’ Quds Force. The targeted killing of 62-year-old Soleimani ordered by US President Donald Trump saw theIslamic republic vow “severe revenge” before Tehran also took a fur-ther step back from the already tattered 2015 nuclear accord with worldpowers. In an escalating war of words that has heightened internationalconcern and rattled financial markets, Trump threatened yet more “ma-jor retaliation” if Tehran hits back, including strikes on Iranian culturalsites. Meanwhile, Iraq’s parliament demanded the government expelthe 5,200 American troops stationed in the country in response to theBaghdad drone attack which also killed top Iraqi military figure AbuMahdi al-Muhandis. Trump has warned that a forced departure of UStroops would prompt sanctions against Iraq that would “make Iraniansanctions look somewhat tame”. NATO ambassadors were to holdan extraordinary meeting at Brussels headquarters to “address thesituation in the region,” said an official of the alliance, which hasbeen forced to suspend its training mission in Iraq.

in Baghdad. The president haswarned that Washington is target-ing 52 sites in Iran and will hitthem “very fast and very hard” ifthe Is lamic republ ic at tacksAmerican personnel or assets.

Al-Shabaab militantsattack US-Kenya

military baseNairobi: Jihadists from Somalia’sAl-Shabaab group on Sunday at-tacked a military base used byUS and Kenyan forces in Kenya’scoastal Lamu region, a govern-ment official said. “There was anattack but they have been re-pulsed,” Lamu CommissionerIrungu Macharia told AFP. He saidthe attack took place before dawnat the base known as CampSimba, and that “a security op-eration is ongoing”, without say-ing if there had been casualties.“We are not sure if there are stillremnants within,” he said. Al-Shabaab claimed responsibilityfor the attack in a statement, say-ing they had “successfullystormed the heavily fortifiedmilitary base and have nowtaken effective control of par t ofthe base.” The group said therehad been both Kenyan andAmerican casualties, howeverthis could not be immediatelyverified. Al-Shabaab said the at-tack was par t of its “Al-Quds(Jerusalem) shall never beJudaized” campaign—a term itfirst used during an attack on theupscale Dusit hotel complex inNairobi in January last year thatleft 21 people dead. The Somalijihadists have staged severallarge-scale attacks insideKenya, in retaliation for Nairobisending troops into Somalia in2011 to fight the group, as wellas to target foreign interests. De-spite years of costly efforts tofight Al-Shabaab, the group onDecember 28 managed to deto-nate a vehicle packed with ex-plosives in Mogadishu, killing 81people.



SONAM WARNS AGAINST‘FAKE PROPAGANDA’, TROLLASKS HER TO TELL THIS TO

BOLLYWOOD

THE TRAILER OVERALL HAS A HIGH RAVING VIBEAND IS FULL OF A HIGH ADRENALINE RUSH THAT

WILL LEAVE THE FANS WANTING FOR MORE.

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HAPPY HARDY AND HEER STARS HIMESHRESHAMMIYA IN A DOUBLE ROLE FOR THE

FIRST TIME AND JOINING HIM AS THE LEADINGLADY OF THE FILM IS SONIA MANN.

P20

SONAM KAPOOR TOOK TO TWITTER TOWARN HER FANS TO NOT FALL FOR FAKEPROPAGANDA ON SOCIAL MEDIA. ONETWITTER USER ASKED HER TO SEND

THIS MESSAGE ON ALL HERBOLLYWOOD GROUPS.

People start their career at 27-28, mineended at that age: Irfan Pathan

'MALANG' TRAILER WILL GIVE YOUAN ADRENALINE RUSH!

'HAPPY HARDY AND HEER'TRAILER: HIMESH'S DUAL AVATAR

IS HILARIOUSLY FUN!

Katrina Kaif is so Shaadi-ready, at least hergorgeous ethnic avatars say so!

Much like her male counterpart and fellow actor, Vicky Kaushal, who is almost the unofficial eligible bachelor of Bollywood, b-towndiva Katrina Kaif is the hottest single lady in Bollywood right now. Though rumours are rife about the diva dating the handsomebachelor, nothing has been made official and till that happens, all you single men can very well dream about Katrina. While she maybe single in real life, her recent back to back ethnic avatars give out a different picture. Try having a look at her Instagram pictures and you'll know whatwe are talking about. From slaying in a sari to rocking a lehenga, Kat is clearly giving out Shaadi-ready vibes already adn if there is one actress we would wantto see all dolled up like a bride, it has to Katrina. Only recently, Katrina wore a nine-yard beauty by ace designer Anita Dongre. The printedred sari was the Harisha sari from Dongre's sari collection. It featured motifs inspired by the magical forests of Ranthambore.Lightweight and perfect for an evening soiree. Katrina teamed up the elegant sari with a plain blouse that was more of a croppedspaghetti top. Katrina accessorised the sari with pearl drop earrings and a tiny red bindi. And, boy she did look like a new bride.

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MALAIKA ARORA: YOU CAN’T PREDICTTHINGS LIKE MARRIAGE

Malaika Arora has become an example of what a modern-day womancan achieve on her own terms. Apar t from becoming an entrepreneur, aTV show judge, model and star ting a number of yoga studios and expand-ing her fashion and clothing line, she also made news for the dramaticand romantic turn her life took. Her beau, actor Arjun Kapoor and sheopened up on their relationship and publicly acknowledged their love foreach other, but denied rumours of tying the knot with each other. When wemet Malaika recently and asked what her vision for 2020 is and whethermarriage features on the ‘to do’ list, she told us, “We have a lot of plans.I have to work with my team to expand my business. I really want that togrow and get bigger and better. I have learnt that we have to grab oppor-tunities as they come by. Complacency has no place in today’s schemeof things. Year 2019 was good to me because I was not only recognisedas a businesswoman but also as a brand. That was big. As for marriage,these are not things you can predict. We will go one step at a time. Wehave been very honest about where we stand, and as and when thingsmove, we will speak about it.”

MUMBAI: "People start their career at 27-28, mine ended when I was27 and that is the only regret," lamented Irfan Pathan af ter announc-ing his retirement from all forms of cricket on Saturday.A 19-year-old Pathan made his India debut against Australia in 2003 and his lastinternational appearance was during the 2012 World T20 in Sri Lanka. "Peoplestar t their career when they are 27-28 and then go on to play till 35. When I was 27,I had taken 301 international wickets, so that was it. That is the only regret I have,"said Pathan, now 35. Pathan featured in 29 Tests (1105 runs and 100 wickets), 120ODIs (1544 runs and 173 wickets) and 24 T20 Internationals (172 runs and 28wickets). "I wish I would have played more and could have taken that tally to 500-600 wickets and scored more runs, but it did not happen," he said. "A 27-year-old Ir fan Pathan, at the peak of his career, should have got moreoppor tunities but it did not happen for whatever reasons. No com-plaints but looking back, there is regret." I CONTD. ON PAGE 23

HARDIK PANDYA JOINS NATASA STANKOVIC’SFAMILY FOR DINNER, SHE SHARES ADORABLE

SELFIE WITH CRICKETER

TV actor and dancer Natasa Stankovic, who got engaged to cricketer HardikPandya on the New Year’s Day, went on a dinner outing with him and herparents ahead of the eve of Or thodox Christmas. Natasha and Hardik alongwith her parents were spotted at a suburban restaurant in Mumbai on Mon-day night. Natasa also shared a picture from the day in her Instagram stories,showing her leaning on Hardik’s chest while looking towards the camera. Shealso wished her fans and friends “Happy Or thodox Christmas” and wrote “Trust inthe Lord with all your hear t and do not lean on your understand.” Hardik had sharedpictures from his romantic proposal to Natasa on Instagram, with the caption, “Maitera, Tu meri jaane, saara Hindustan. 01.01.2020 #engaged.”

SAINI, THAKUR SPARKLE IN CONVINCING INDIA WIN

NAVDEEP SAINI EXULTS AFTER GOING THROUGH DANUSHKA GUNATHILAKA'S DEFENCEINDIA 144 FOR 3 (RAHUL 45, IYER 34, KOHLI 30*) BEAT SRI LANKA 142 FOR 9 (KUSAL PERERA 34, THAKUR 3-23, SAINI 2-18) BY SEVEN WICKETS


TUESDAY, JANUARY 07, 2020b o l l y w o o d

Rukshar - Sunny shine in thisordinary Sneha Taurani dramedy!

CAST: SUNNY KAUSHAL, RUKSHAR

DHILLON, SHRIYA PILGAONKAR

DIRECTION: SNEHA TAURANI

RATING - 2.5/5

Sunny Kaushal and Rukshar Dhillon's debut film and Sneha Taurani'sdebut Bollywood directorial 'Bhangra Paa Le' is finally here. So let'ssee how the dance-off between Jaggi and Simi goes!Bhangra Paa Le is the story of Jaggi (Sunny Kaushal) and Simi(Rukshar Dhillon) who are crazy for the Punjabi folk dance form'Bhangra'. They belong to rival colleges and both desperately want towin Amritsar's biggest inter-college bhangra competition for theircollege.Simi, Amritsar's best female Bhangra dancer is a competitive onewhereas a small towner Jaggi has emotional values attached toBhangra which brings these two together. Simi is more inclined to animproved form of Bhangra and Jaggi on the other side is someoneattached to his roots and the folk form of Bhangra.Both become rivals and soon are hell-bent on defeating each other towin the international Bhangra Battle in London but this competitivespirit soon turns into mutual affection and makes these poles apar tcharacters fall for each other and how their journey concludes is thestory of Sneha Taurani's film.In her debut comedy-drama film, Sneha Taurani puts a sparkly cin-ematic experience on your screen which is enjoyable as the filmmostly keeps you enter tained but in terms of story, the film is predict-able and has nothing new to offer.The screenplay runs two parallel timelines together and keeps shift-ing between them. One is set in the World War 2 era and the other intoday. Sunny Kaushal delivers an impressive per formance as a small-town guy Jaggi who is trying to fulfill his dreams and make a name forhis family, he fits per fectly in the skin of a local Punjabi lad but still

fails to match the energy of his counterpar t Rukshar.Yes, the leading lady of the film Rukshar Dhillon is wearing the pantshere. She oozes charm and confidence as an urban - modern girl Simiand steals the show in every frame and just her presence lights up thescreen. Her expressions are so natural and effor tless that it leavesyou in her awe and she looks adorable as Simi overshadowing Sunny.The cinematography of the film is what makes it more attractive andthe credit for that goes to Jitan Harmeet Singh, the cinematographerof the film for capturing the raw, natural and innocent side of Punjab.The music of the film is groovy and peppy and here the film scoreshigh. But the real downside of the film is the romantic and competitivechemistry of the Jaggi and Simi which is weak and lacks the heft. Itfails to engage you and hook your eyes to the screen and that's wherethe film loses most points as the whole idea of 'Bhangra Paa Le' isbuilt around the competition between the leading characters whichlacks the oomph.Interestingly, Sunny seems to have better chemistry with his WorldWar' era love interest 'Nimmo' (Shriya Pilgaonkar) who has formi-dable screen presence and does a good job as Nimmo. Sneha Taurani'sdebut film shows that she has a lot to improve as the most impor tantpar t of the film 'the chemistry' has been overlooked by her and thelengthy runtime makes the film loses more points.The choreography which is undoubtedly one of the most impor tantelements in a dance film is not up to the mark here and the 'wow'factor is totally missing.All said and done, Bhangra Paa Le boasts of praisewor thy perfor -mances from its star cast and some good and pumping music foryour ears but ultimately what makes this one just an average dancefilm is the ordinary storyline and a weak plot.

M O V I E R E V I E W

'MALANG' TRAILER WILL GIVE YOU AN ADRENALINE RUSH!Ever since the characters posters for Disha Patani and Aditya Roy Kapur's Malang were released, the hype for the movie has increasedtenfold and now, the makers of Malang have finally dropped the trailer of the movie and it looks like a complete mysterious and pimpedup package of action, enter tainment, and drama.Even with the trailer, the makers of the movie have managed to keep the intrigue and mystery of the movie high with bits and pieces ofinformation that will certainly increase the buzz more than it already has. The trailer overall has a high raving vibe and is full of a highadrenaline rush that will leave the fans wanting for more.Sharing the scintilating trailer of the film, the makers 'Luv Films' took to their social media and shared, Ùnleash The Madness,#MalangTrai ler Out Now. ht tp:/ /b i t . ly/MalangOff ic ia lT ra i ler @Ani lKapoor#AdityaRoyKapur @DishPatani @kunalkemmu@mohit11481 @MalangFi lm @luv_ranjan@gargankur @itsBhushanKumar@jayshewakramani @TSeries`.Aditya Roy Kapur looks menacing and mysteriousas ever and his pairing with Disha Patani couldeasily be touted as the hottest couple in B'-Townright now. Anil Kapoor and Kunal Kemmu, both haveunique characters with little detail revealed aboutthem. Director of the film, Mohit Suri shares, Ì amexcited to share the trailer of Malang with the audi-ence today. With this movie, I am essentially re-turning to a space that I enjoy the most, which isintense, edgy and mad. I hope it is as thrilling and exciting an experience for the audience as it has been for each of us.Èarlier today, the makers of the movie released yet another poster of all four major characters in the movie and it was the per fect set upfor the high-on-energy and full of mystery and madness trailer.Malang is directed by Mohit Suri. Produced by T-Series' Bhushan Kumar, Krishan Kumar, Luv Films' Luv Ranjan, Ankur Garg, andNor thern Lights Enter tainment's Jay Shewakramani, the film will release on 7th February 2020.

Disha Patani on getting hotterwith each film, 'All thanks to the

director's vision'

Disha Patani has started 2020 with a bang as the trailer of herupcoming next 'Malang' was recently released and has beenloved by viewers all over. At the trailer launch event, the actresswas asked about how she felt getting hotter and hotter with eachmovie, to which the actress replied, "Whatever and however Iam looking in the film, Thanks to the director it is the director'svision. Whatever I am it is his creation. the kind of movies that Ido, somebody's vision is always behind it I just pour my self intotheir vision." Disha surely knows how to woo the audience withher acting skills and her fitter and hotter-than-most-body. Everytime Disha has graced the silver screen she has set the screenson fire be it with her 'Slow Motion Song' from Bharat or herperfect body in 'Malang'.The actress had all eyes on her at the Malang trailer launchevent as she was dressed up in a green body con and lookedgorgeous as ever.Owing to her humongous fan base, the actress is famous for herbrave choices of films. The actress is not only loved and adoredby her fans but film-makers also. She is the face of severalinternational brands and the constant sneak peeks of her danceand fitness videos are a treat to the fans all across. The actresson the work front has a superb line up with Mohit Suri's Malanghitting the theatres on 7th February 2020, teaming up with SalmanKhan again the Disha will be romancing Salman Khan on the bigscreen with Radhe and then there is Ekta Kapoor's KTina.

Katrina Kaif: ‘I feel extremelygrateful and blessed to have had

the audiences’ support’

Back in 2005, when she tasted her first big commercial success[with Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya?], not many must have imagined thatKatrina Kaif would go on to become a household name for the next15 years (and counting). But she kept moving ahead rapidly whilealso proving her naysayers wrong. And now, as she readies for abusy new year – with Rohit Shetty’s Sooryavanshi co-starring AkshayKumar lined up next – the actor is gung-ho. “This year is going to bean exciting one with a variety of films and genres that I would bedabbling with,” says Katrina. Excerpts from an interview:2020 sees you complete 15 years in Bollywood since your break-through film, Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya? Do you feel great that audi-ences continue to love you a lot?Acting in movies has given me an incredible amount of satisfaction.For me, the most wonder ful place to be in is a film set and that’sprimarily because I just love the process of exploring a characterand being part of films which are going to be forever. It’s somethingwhich is indescribable and an intrinsic par t of me as well. I think onething that I have continuously tried to do is not to have any set, rigidformula, and to respond instinctively to what I do.So, despite all the success and fame, at the core, you still remaininstinctive. Right?See, vis-à-vis work, the simple idea is to try and not have anyconcrete plan as such. I think your choices have to be instinctiveand ought to come from the heart. Especially, in the last few years,the joy that I have found in playing characters in films such as Zeroor Bharat has given me an incredible sense of fulfilment. And I reallyenjoy that process of building a character.Over the years, you have constantly – and successfully – rede-fined yourself with changing times. What’s the mantra behind it?For starters, I think it’s very impor tant to not take yourself too seri-ously and to just enjoy every moment. You should relish the processof being on a film set, enjoy the work that you do as well as everymoment, and just let the outcome follow. When I’ve to say yes [to afilm] or when I am in the middle of it, the way I judge things is this: ‘howhas the process been for me?’, ‘have I felt connected on the set with thecharacter, my director and co-stars?’, and ‘has the process been onewhere I felt we have all – creatively – put in our complete best.?’As we step into the new decade, how do you look at thetimes ahead?In terms of 2020, I am extremely excited about a few very interestingprojects that I am currently in discussions for. I am making sure thatI do things, or put myself in spaces where I feel challenged, inspiredas well as excited. The idea is to maintain a mix and balance ofdifferent kinds of stories as well as genres that excite me.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 07, 2020 b o l l y w o o d

SONAM WARNS AGAINST ‘FAKEPROPAGANDA’, TROLL ASKS HER TO TELL

THIS TO BOLLYWOODAt a time when WhatsApp messages are wrongly believedto be the gospel truth, Sonam Kapoor warned her Twitterfollowers about the evils of ‘fake propaganda’ on socialmedia. She tweeted, “Beware of fake propaganda. Socialmedia can be poison. It will kill you slowly but surely withits hate.”In another tweet, she said that social media was somethingof a double-edged sword. “Social media is just a tool. Youcan either use it build or destroy. Just like a hammer,” shewrote.One Twitter user asked Sonam to educate her own col-leagues from the film industry about it. “Copy paste thismessage in your bollywood groups,” read the tweet. Theactor replied, “I’m sure they are reading this on Twitter.”Meanwhile, Sonam has strongly condemned the attack onthe students and teachers of Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru Uni-versity on Sunday night.On Sunday night, students and teachers of the universitywere brutally beaten up by masked assailants armed withi ron rods and hockey st icks. The campus was alsovandalised.Sonam had two releases in 2019 – Shelly Chopra Dhar’s EkLadki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga and Abhishek Sharma’s TheZoya Factor. While the former received a lukewarm responseat the box office, the latter tanked. While she has not yetannounced her next film, repor ts suggest that she will beseen in a film based on Anuja Chauhan’s bestselling novel,Battle For Bittora.At the trailer launch of The Zoya Factor, Sonam said that shewas unsure about whether she would star in the film. “Battlefor Bittora, we got the rights three years ago. It will happennext year. I don’t know if I will be a par t of it or not as anactor. It depends on how it is written,” she said.

Sunny Singh- Sonnalli Seygall's 'Jai Mummy Di'

all-new poster is out now!The excitement of the audience has been at its peak ever since thetrailer of Sunny Singh and Sonnalli's Seygall starrer 'Jai Mummy Di'came out. The makers, building more to the vibe have unveiled an-other poster and this one will totally tickle your funny bone, embed-ded in the backdrop of a wedding. Making us ask- wedding bells? JaiMummy Di is all set to releases on 17 January, 2020.The makers, Luv Films took to their social media and shared,`Mummy Aur Phoolon Ki Ladi Ne Pyaar Ki Laga Di! 10 Days To Go For@jaimummydi! In Cinemas on 17th Jan! #JaiMummyDi@mesunnysingh @sonnal l iseygal l #SupriyaPathak@poonam_dhillon_ @navjotgulati #LuvRanjan @gargankur82@bhushankumar @tseries.official @tseriesfilms`.A day before the trailer launch of Jai Mummy Di, the makers unveiledthe first official poster featuring the two leading actors. Interestingly,the poster also has Supriya Pathak and Poonam Dhillon, their moth-ers who are holding their respective children over their shoulders. Inthis one par ticularly, the mothers have strangled their kids with gar-lands. All are decked up in wedding attires.Inching towards its release in just ten days, the team is all set to giveaway their quirky fun-filled madness to the audience. The recentlyreleased songs from the movie have already made i t to thechar tbusters namely, Daryaganj, Lamborghini, Mummy nu pasand.Jai Mummy Di is a light-hearted family comedy that will show howconflicting dynamics between the mothers lead to muddled chemis-try between their own children and other members of both families'.The film is written and directed by Navjot Gulati. It is presented by T-Series' Bhushan Kumar and Krishan Kumar, and produced by LuvFilms' Ranjan and Ankur Garg.

CHHAPAAK'S NEW MOVIE POSTER IS

WINSOME AND LOVEABLE!Director Meghna Gulzar is all set to take us through the inspiringjourney of an acid attack survivor in her upcoming film "Chhapaak".Deepika Padukone who depicts the role of 'Malti' in the movie droppedthe latest poster of this much-awaited saga and it is something youshouldn't miss.As far as the poster does, this one is pretty adorable. I guess! Per fectcloudy background, classic pose. It's Deepika and Vikrant standingclose to each other gazing at the surroundings and gives us sneak-peek into their Nok Jhok blossoming into love. Deepika's accompa-nying caption for the poster reads:"Jitni zyaada ladaai, Utna zyaada pyaar... Nok Jhok se hui ekkhoobsoorat love story ki shuruaat...?Dekhiye #Chhapaak iss Friday!"Chhapaak brings into light the journey of an acid attack survivor anddifferent phases of her struggle. Deepika as Malti is definitely goingto deliver top-notch performance and we will see her in a never seenavatar before. Being a keen observer and having an eye forminimalistic details, both Meghna and Deepika have tried to incul-cate and deliver as many facts and the reality they could have. Thehard-hitting trailer has already triggered a lot of heavy emotions withinpeople and they are looking forward to what the movie holdsHelmed by Meghna Gulzar, produced by Fox Star Studios, DeepikaPadukone's KA Production, Meghna Gulzar & Govind Singh Sandhu'sMriga Films, written by Atika Chohan and Meghna Gulzar, Chhapaakis set to hit theatres on 10th January 2020.

With 'Malang' trailer, Disha Patani's bikini lookrakes up the heat like never before

When it comes to flaunting and owning her per fect body, thereis no one who can beat Disha Patani. The trailer of 'Malang' isa testimony enough to hail the 'hottest actress' as unparal-leled. From the blazing entry that the actress makes in thetrailer, spor ting a tangerine bikini to the swimsuit she dons-Disha wins over her contemporaries and how!While we have seen Katrina Kaif spor t a two-piece in BaarBaar Dekho and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, bikini-clad in Dhoom2, it is a treat to see Disha rock the bikini in Malang's trailer.Cer tainly so af ter looking at the appreciating flowing in, theactress makes a statement and wins the game amongst all.Disha who has a way with a two-piece, looking absolutelystunning in that chiselled body and exuding oomph is every-thing that makes us believe in the wonder that 'Malang' is allset to offer. The actress knows how to swoon the audiencewith her acting skills and her fitter and hotter-than-most-body.Every time Disha has graced the silver screen she has set thescreens on fire be it with her 'Slow Motion Song' from Bharator her per fect body in 'Malang'.The actress had all eyes on her at the Malang trailer launchevent as she marked her attendance in a green shimmerbodycon and looked absolutely stunning. The face of an Inter-national brand, Disha is known for being the hottest in theindustry.With her humongous fan base, the actress is famous for herchoices of films. The actress is not only loved by her fans butfilm-makers as well. Known for her presence as a fitnessicon and her dance moves in her previous hit 'Bharat', Dishahas won over with her looks in Malang yet again.The actress on the work front has a stellar line up with MohitSuri's Malang hitting the theatres on 7th February 2020, team-ing up with Salman Khan again the Disha will be romancingSalman Khan on the big screen with Radhe and then there isEkta Kapoor's KTina.

KABIR KHAN ON NOT ATTENDING PIYUSHGOYAL’S CAA MEETING: ‘IF GOONS CANENTER UNIVERSITIES, WHAT ARE WE

EVEN DISCUSSING?

Filmmaker Kabir Khan has explained why he did not attend ameet on Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) with Union ministerPiyush?Goyal in Mumbai on Sunday. He said that while therewere larger issues that needed to be discussed, dinner meet-ings could happen later.In a repor t in Mid Day, Kabir Khan said he did not go “becauseI was busy”. “If goons can enter premier universities of thecountry and hit students and teachers, then what are we evendiscussing? The visuals of those goons laughing and [attack-ing them] break your hear t. These are the larger issues that weneed to [address urgently]. We can always have dinner meet-ings later.”Kabir, who has been a sharp critic of CAA, defended his standand said, “Getting religion into politics and our social affairs istragic.” He is among a few Bollywood film personalities whohas spoken out against the controversial Act. However, he isquick to defend Bollywood stars who have maintained a si-lence. He was quoted as saying, “It’s their choice. How do weknow what their fears are? [In the past], those who have spo-ken up have been attacked and no one was there to defendthem. If you can’t defend them, don’t push them to talk. Toomuch is being made of why Bollywood is not reacting.” Sinceearly December, India has been rocked by protests, startingwith Assam. It soon spiralled into places like West Bengal,Delhi, Aligarh and other par ts of Uttar Pradesh.


TUESDAY, JANUARY 07, 2020b o l l y w o o d

hollywoodDisha Patani and Aditya Roy Kapur get thetemperature soaring in 'Malang' new posterDisha Patni and Adi tya RoyKapur 's upcoming romant ic-thriller movie 'Malang' is one ofthe most talked-about films of theyear and this is the first time thatthe duo will be seen sharing thescreen space together. After re-vealing the first look posters ofall the characters yesterday nowthe producers have revealed anew poster of the f i lm whereDisha Patani and Aditya RoyKapur are seen raising the heat.Yes, the poster features DishaAditya completely lost in eachother as Disha is seen kissingAditya sitting on his shoulders.The poster is super hot and itseems that Mohit Suri is definitelygoing to bring something extraor-dinary through this film whosetrailer will be out on January 6thi.e. Monday. Disha wrote whilesharing the poster "Two WildSouls ... One Love ... MALANG!Along with Aditya Roy Kapur andDisha Patani Malang also starsAnil Kapoor, Kunal Khemu, AmritaKhanwilkar, Angela Krislinzki, andShad Randhawa in impor tantroles. Directed by Mohit Suri, thef i lm is produced by BhushanKumar, Kr ishan Kumar, LuvRanjan, and Ankur Garg and willbe released on February 7th,2020.

'HAPPY HARDY AND HEER' TRAILER: HIMESH'S DUAL AVATAR IS HILARIOUSLY FUN!The trailer of Himesh Reshammiya's much-awaited romantic-comedy film 'Happy Hardy and Heer' has finally been released. The filmwas initially supposed to be released on January 3rd this year but then it was pushed again to the end of the month. Happy Hardy andHeer stars Himesh Reshammiya in a double role for the first time and joining him as the leading lady of the film is Sonia Mann.This film is the story of 'Happy' and his friend 'Heer'. Happy is in love with Heer but Heer has him friend-zoned and she soon falls inlove with a famous singer and star Hardy aka 'Harshvardhan Bhatt'. But Happy is not one of those who give up easily and then beginsthe battle of love between Happy and Hardy in which you have to go to theaters to see who wins.'Happy Hardy and Heer' is directed by Raka and the film is produced by Deepshikha Deshmukh and Sabita Manakchand. Along withHimesh Reshammiya and Sonia Mann, the film also stars Naresh Suri, Manmeet Singh, Deep Mandeep, Ashwin Dhar, Sejal Shah,Trupti Khamkar, David Shaw and Nazar Abdullah Ahmed in impor tant roles. Happy Hardy and Heer will be released on January 31st.

Ahead of the trailer launch makers share

THE LATEST POSTER OF SHIKARATaking to his directorial hat, Vidhu Vinod Chopra is all set with hisupcoming project, 'Shikara'. Shikara has been hailed as one much-awaited project and the trailer will be out today in the presence of themusical maestro AR Rahman.Ahead of the trailer launch, the makers of Shikara shared the latestposter of the film and the excitement raises the bar as the film istouted to be as the most anticipated film of 2020.While sharing the latest poster makers took to their social media andshared the poster and they write, "1990, Kashmir - an entire commu-nity was made homeless. 30 years later, they still can't return to theirhomes. Watch as the story of the Kashmiri Pandits finally comes tolight #Shikara trailer out today at 1 PM".The trailer launch event will mark special as AR Rahman to have aspecial per formance during the event.'Shikara' is the director's tribute to his mother. Recently sharing aspecial video and taking us back to the valley of 1999 when the con-flict began, Vidhu Vinod Chopra has chronicled the journey of hismother's life and family.With the interest and excitement of the audience at its peak, 'Shikara',a film by Vidhu Vinod Chopra will be hitting the screens on 7th Febru-ary 2020. Presented by Fox Star Studios. Produced by Vinod ChopraProductions and co-produced by Fox star studios.

ON BIPASHA BASU’S BIRTHDAY, HUSBAND KARANGROVER WISHES HIS ‘MONKEY PRINCESS’

Actor Bipasha Basu turned 41 on Tuesday and wishing her on her bigday was her husband Karan?Singh Grover. He took to Instagram topost a warm wish.He wrote: “Wish you a very very very happy bir thday my darlingsweet little baby bumbi pie monkey princess! @bipashabasu Maythe universe shower you with infinite abundance, joy, love and suc-cess!!! Be the bright shining light that you are and shine brighter withevery passing day! You are god’s gift to all of us especially me! Thankyou so much for being born my love!” He also posted two pictures ofBipasha to go with the post.Bipasha replied to the post, saying: “Thank you for making me feelspecial every day of every year.” Other film personalities such asSagarika Ghatge Khan and Neelam Kothari Soni too wished Bipasha.Sagarika dropped a message in the comments section saying “Happyhappy happiest bir thday Bipasha” while Neelam wrote, “Happy bir th-day Bipasha. Have a super bir thday. Lots of love.”Bipasha and Karan of ten posts pictures together and of each other.Bipasha posted a couple of video clips as her Instagram stories,where she is sitting and swaying to the beats of Ghungroo song fromHrithik?Roshan’s War.Ahead of New Year, the couple jetted off to an undisclosed destination

to ring in the new year and, as it appears now, to celebrate Bipasha’sbir thday as well. Bipasha was last seen in the film Alone in 2015. Shewill be seen next in Aadat?Diaries. Karan Singh Grover was in newswhen he made a comeback in Ekta Kapoor’s Kasautii Zindagii Kay asRishabh Bajaj.

Bloodshot Trailer: The actionand adventure at its best!

The long-awaited action and comic movie from the campof Fast and Furious is yet to be released.Bloodshot is an adventurous movie with a wonder ful storyline you can't afford to miss. Vin Diesel and wife afterbeing murdered and resurrected by a team of scientistwhere he actually lost his memory and could not remem-ber his past is made to become a superhuman and abiotech killing machine.As Vin Diesel star ts training with his fellow super-sol-diers, he star ted gaining back his lost memory and re-membered the man who killed his wife, he breaks out ofthe facility to get revenge only to discover that there'smore to the conspiracy than he could ever thought of.Bloodshot will be premiered on Netflix and Amazon Primeon the 20th of February,2020. Directed by Dave Wilsonand Bloodshot stars Vin Diesel, Sam Heughan, EizaGonzalez, Toby Kebbell, Talulah Riley, Lamorne Mor ris,Guy Pearce and Johannes Haukur Johannesson.

Lady Gaga finally confessesof her fake love romance with

Bradley Cooper!

Lay Gaga has finally admitted to her false romanceinformation concerning she and Bradley Cooper.She made the confession during the talk show `Titan'sfirst stop` on Oprah's 2020 Vision.Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper actually cooked up thefalse love romance information and she stated that` Wedid really good job at fooling everyone,` so finally thelong heated romance rumors between her and Cooperwhich have been rotating around for the past two yearshas finally come to an end.

POST MALONE ENTERED2020 IN STYLE WITH A NEW

TATTOO ON HIS FACEIt's not the first time the 'rock star' singer has used hisface to make a statement through tattoos. He has numeroustattoos over 50 on his body but he's still adding more.Recent one is the biggest among all he has on his face.Pictures below shows the tattoo and comments from fansand other celebrities as well. From the recent posts seemslike fans like it. He is posing for pictures to the public,showing off his new tattoo.

Kris Jenner: Four years in arelationship, but still no plans

of getting married

It's been 4 years of dating for Kris Jenner (64) and CoreyGamble (39) and they are not planning of taking anotherhuge step. It seems like Kris Jenner wants to take timesince her previous marriage didn't go well.She had a tragic break-up when Bruce Jenner the exhusband confessed to be transgender woman and changedhis contact information including his name to Caitlyn.Kris is content with the life she's having with the boyfriendand doesn't need any label (marriage) to define it.Seems like marriage is not par t of the plan for these twoat the moment, despite the age difference of 25 years,they are still dating and no one knows up to when.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY


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KABIR SINGH 235.72 CR

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b o l l y w o o d

Pooja Batra, Nawab Shah attend Golden Globesafter-party, share photos from red carpet

Priyanka Chopra was not the only one representing India at the GoldenGlobes 2020, it has now emerged. Actor Pooja Batra and husband NawabShah were also at the 77th edition of the awards ceremony, albeit the after-party.Pooja and Nawab took to Instagram to share their Golden Globes experience.Dressed in a high-neck kurta with a trail, Pooja looked beautiful and was accom-panied at the event by her husband in a classic tuxedo.Pooja shared a photo of her look for the night, and wrote, “Thank you@hbo for an awesome evening @goldenglobes.” Sharing an earlierphoto, she wrote, “Going All Golden for the Globes.” Nawab shared aphoto with The Dictator actor Sacha Baron Cohen and wrote: “Dictator

blues.” Pooja and Nawab got married in July this year in a quietceremony in Delhi. Nawab later said in an interview, “I proposed toher in front of my family. It wasn’t planned at all and it just happened.It was overwhelming for the two of us. When you know he or she isthe right person, you are excited and motivated to live life. I keeptelling her that we have less time as we have to grow together andalso have babies. We need to travel, we both love reading and writing,and as we say, ‘Zindagi chotti hai’ so why not do things that we like.”Pooja Batra was last seen in the film Mirror Game in 2017 whileNawab Shah recently appeared in Salman Khan’s Dabangg 3.

Deepika Padukone walked the crowded Mumbaistreets as Chhapaak’s Malti to see people’s reactions

Actor Deepika Padukone conducted a social experiment with the teamof her upcoming film Chhapaak to really understand how people reacton seeing an acid attack survivor in their midst. In a new video sharedby the actor, she is seen walking the streets of Mumbai, flea marketsand grocery stores while hidden cameras follow her.“Whenever Deepika steps out, people recognise her. Sometimes Iwant to hide,” she says in the beginning of the video and steps intoher trailer to put on her prosthetics from the film. When she steps out,she is dressed like her character from the film, Malti and is joined byother acid attack survivors who also feature in the film.First, she steps into a cell phone store where she is greeted by theshopkeeper. She asks woman to click a selfie with them and she

happily obliges. A few men look at the girls but no one gets rude.They then walk into a grocery store where some people flat out refuseto help the girls and give them disgusted looks. A few, however, re-spond to them with kindness and smiles. At a jewellery store, the girls meet awoman who laughs and talks with them but at the flea market, the response wasa lot different. A woman hides her child from the girls and another screams rudelywhen they ask for help. At the end of the video, Deepika says, “What I havelearnt through the day is that somethings are right in front of your eyesbut you don’t realise it. It’s impor tant to change your perspective,”she says. Chhapaak is inspired by the real life story of Laxmi Agarwal,who was attacked with acid at the age of 15. The film is directed byMeghna Gulzar and will release on January 10.

SHILPA SHETTY BEGINS NEW YEAR WITH GRAVITY-DEFYINGMAYURASANA, SAYS ‘IT MAY NOT BE AS EASY AS IT LOOKS’As soon as she is done with the holiday and par ty season, ShilpaShetty is back to her workout and how! Being the fitness freak thatshe is, the actor keeps experimenting with new Yoga asanas ev-ery now and then. And the latest in her list is the Mayurasana,which the actor has nailed with per fection.Shilpa took to Instagram on Monday to share a video of her per-forming the Mayurasana. She captioned it, “The FIRST Monday ofthe year deserves something special! So, I decided to post theasana I found most difficult to do in 2019. A lot of consistent prac-tice and effor t. All wor th it... Nailed the Mayurasana YESSSSSS(or the Peacock pose) this morning.”Informing about the benefit of the asana, the actor fur ther wrote: “Itis an advanced Yoga asana that improves digestion and focus. Italso enhances wrist flexibility and blood circulation, while strength-ening the arms. When you can star t balancing your entire bodyweight on your palms, it helps build your self-confidence too!”Shilpa also challenged her fans to try and per form the difficultasana: “It may not be as easy as it looks, but practice makes usper fect, doesn’t it? Which was the toughest asana that you con-quered? Do share with me in the comments! Throwing the chal-lenge over to you. All those who do it, do tag me, the best 3 I willrepost. C’mon guys. Set a goal and conquer i t .#SwasthRahoMastRaho #MondayMotivation #GetFit2020 #yoga#mayurasana #yogisofinstagram”.Shilpa Shetty spent the Christmas and New Year in London with

her husband Raj Kundra, son Viaan and sister Shamita Shetty andhas just returned to India. On the work front, she is gearing up forher comeback film Nikamma which hits theatres on June 5. Thefilm will also star Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota actor Abhimanyu Dassaniand YouTube singer Shirley Setia..

Swara Bhasker slams DreamGirl director Raaj Shaandilyaafor distasteful comment, he

says ‘think before you speak’

Swara Bhasker slammed filmmaker Raaj Shaandilyaa ashe allegedly posted a distasteful comment against her onFacebook. Shandilyaa, who directed Ayushmann Khurrana-starrer Dream Girl this year, apologised on social mediawhile adding that Swara should “think before she speaks”.Swara shared a screenshot of the Facebook post, whichread, “Sasti cheezo pe dhyan na dein. “Swara Bhaskar” semehenga “Dainik Bhaskar” bikta hai (Do not pay attentionto cheap items. Dainik Bhaskar is sold at a higher price thanSwara Bhaskar).” She posted it on Twitter with her reply,“Next time, before offering a role and sending messagesrequesting to share your film’s trailers, you also think againabout committing ‘cheap acts’. :) Good luck @writerraj sir!”Replying to Swara’s post, Raaj replied on Twitter, “If you didnot like my statement, I am wholeheartedly sor ry. But thereis a request, you should also think before you speak any-thing about anyone, whether its the country, people or aparticular person. And talking about myself, I will definitelyoffer you a role next time as I have no objections to youbeing an actor.”Swara was among several Bollywood celebrities who gath-ered at Gateway of India in Mumbai on Monday night toprotest against the violence on JNU campus in Delhi onSunday evening. Swara, whose mother Ira Bhaskar is aprofessor at the JNU, took to Twitter on Sunday night toappeal to the people on social media to reach the campus“to pressure the government and Delhi Police” to controlthe violence. She later tweeted, “My mom is safe. JNU ispeaceful for now & the gates are open! Eternal gratitude tothe citizen protestors of Delhi who showed up at JNU maingate earlier tonight- you saved JNU! Thanks to the mediaand reporters who risked their own safety & showed uswhat terror was unleashed today.”

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No Justin Langer, Australia to have new head coach for India seriesAfter a triumphant and unbeaten summern, Australia head coach Jus-tin Langer will be taking a shor t break when his side travels to Indiafor the upcoming three-match ODI series. In his absence, senior as-sistant Andrew McDonald will be taking over the top job for the threeODIs. This will be the former all-rounder’s first assignment as headcoach of the national side.“He’s an excellent coach, we’ve got other excellent coaches to backhim up,” Sydney Morning Herald quoted Langer as saying.“I’m so confident in our coaching staff now with the cricket side ofthings. A lot of the time now I think about the cricket 30 per cent of thetime, the rest of the time all the other stuff that goes with it: the biggerpicture, the cultural stuff,” Langer added.Under Langer’s watch, Australia smashed Pakistan 2-0 and then wenton to New Zealand 3-0 in the two Test series. However, they will bechallenged in India by the hosts, who are currently involved in alimited overs series.“Whenever you play India, it’s a tough series because they’re a verytough opposition. They’ve got great batters and bowlers, so it’s goingto be a challenge,” Marnus Labuschagne, who was the star with thebat in the Test series, was as quoted as saying by Cricket Australiawebsite. “But as a player you always want to test yourself against thebest opposition in the toughest conditions, and there’s nothing tougherthan India in India.”He has already toured India with an Australia A side in 2018 and saidthat he would pick brains of his teammates who have travelled to thatcountry for IPL and many international tours. “If I get an oppor tunitythat’d be great. Luckily I have a wealth of experience there with AaronFinch, David Warner, Steve Smith … to continue to learn from thoseguys is great.” Labuschagne further added.

India vs Sri Lanka: Jasprit Bumrah andYuzvendra Chahal locked in engaging

battle to break R Ashwin’s T20I record

Jasprit Bumrah’s comeback was washed away by the rain in Guwahati, but the pacer will take control ofthe ball in Indore where India and Sri Lanka will lock horns for the second T20I. The right-arm pacer wasruled out of the series against South Africa, Bangladesh and West Indies due to a stress fracture last year,but has regained fitness to find a spot in the T20I squad against Sri Lanka. As has been the norm with thefast bowler, he is on the cusp of a massive T20I record on Sunday. The 27-year-old has 51 wickets in T20Isat the moment. If he manages to take two more wickets, he would surpass R Ashwin and YuzvendraChahal to become the leading wicket-taker in the shor test format for India. Ashwin and Chahal arecurrently tied at the top spot as the leading wicket-takers for India in T20Is with 52 wickets each. Chahal,who is in the squad for the series, could also be a par t of India’s playing XI, and break Ashwin’s record tobecome the sole-holder of the record. He needs just one wicket to do so. “Because the tournament (WorldT20 2020) is in Australia, you will need these many options and back-ups to be able to take firstly yourstrongest squad and have those back-ups in place who also can come in and do the job. It’s good thatwe’ve identified five or six guys and it will be priority based on who goes and back-ups will be in place forfast bowlers. Small niggles can happen now and then, so we’re pretty sor ted in that regard. Not a worr yat all,” captain Virat Kohli wants the other bowlers in the squad to step up and make their presence felt.

INDIA’S PACE BATTERY EVERY BIT AS GOOD ASOURS: TIM PAINE ON INDIA CHALLENGETheir confidence soaring high af ter five Test wins in a row, Australia skipper Time Paine says theycan’t wait to host India for a “mouth-watering” series later this year but revenge is cer tainly not ontheir minds. Australia had suffered their first ever Test series against India at home in the summerof 2018-19 when they missed prolific batsmen Steve Smith and David Warner, who were servingbans following a ball-tampering scandal that shook world cricket. Australia has taken long stridessince then with young batsmen rising to the occasion, their fast bowlers doing much better andSmith-Warner pair getting back to the fold. As a result, Australia humbled Pakistan in both theTests inside four days and scored dominant victories over the Kiwis. A sense of confidence hasreplaced desperation as Paine spoke of India’s tour which is still a year away. “If we go toBangladesh and play well and get some wins over there, then we come back to Australia playingIndia, and that’s a pretty mouth-watering series for players and for fans,” Paine said.

‘RISHABH PANT IS A SPECIAL TALENT’ - SOURAVGANGULY BACKS WICKETKEEPER-BATSMAN

India wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant has been on the receiving end of criticism due to his poor formwith the bat and behind the stumps. With Sanju Samson knocking on the selector’s doors afterspectacular per formance in domestic cricket last year, the pressure is on Pant to cement his placein the team. The left-handed batsman showcased signs of form in the limited-overs series againstWest Indies, when he smashed 71 runs in 69 balls in the first ODI, and then followed it up with a 16-ball 39 in the 2nd ODI. But he failed to carry the form in the third ODI, in which he was dismissedfor a duck. Despite recent struggles, the BCCI President and former India captain Sourav Gangulybacked Pant and described the hard-hitting batsman as a special talent. Speaking in an interviewto Times of India, the former cricketer said: “These are selection matters which are dealt byselectors. But Rishabh (Pant) is a special talent and we saw how he played well in the twomatches he played against West Indies.”The 47-year-old added that decision to pick or drop Pant lies in the hand of the selectors. “Hisrecord in Test cricket has been good but the end decision would be lef t to the selectors,” he said.Meanwhile, India will play Sri?Lanka in the 2nd T20I on Tuesday, and Pant is expected to feature inthe playing XI. He was a par t of the team in the 1st T20I, but did not get a chance to redeem himselfwith the match getting abandoned due to wet pitch without a ball being bowled.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 07, 2020 s p o r t s

SPORTS CALENDAR 2020

People start their career at 27-28, mine ended at that age: Irfan PathanCONTD. FROM PAGE 17Pathan said in 2016 he got an idea that he would never get to play for India again."I knew af ter 2016 that I am not going to make a comeback when I was the highest run scorer in Mushtaq Ali trophy. I was the best all-rounderand when I spoke to selectors, they were not very happy with my bowling."When you know they are not happy (things don't happen). But after the 2016-17, I kept pushing myself. Some league offers came my way, andI am glad I took it. It was J and K cricket, I was playing and mentoring, and I am glad I did this for them," said Pathan, who remains a mentorto the Jammu and Kashmir side.Looking back at his India career, Pathan fondly recalled the moments when he delivered for the team.Playing against Pakistan brought the best out of him, whether it was the hat-trick in 2006 Karachi Test, a match-winning spell in the ODI seriesdecider in Lahore or the man-of-the-match per formance at the 2007 World T20 final in Johannesburg.Not just competing against the arch-rivals, Pathan loved travelling to Pakistan, starting from his under -19 days when he picked up nine wickets,including a hat-trick, against Bangladesh in an Asian event in Lahore back in 2003.In his own words, it was the moment when he realised he could play at the highest level.One of his best per formances came on the tour of Pakistan in 2006 when Ir fan became the second Indian after Harbhajan Singh to take a Testhat-trick, removing Salman Butt, Younis Khan and Mohammad Yusuf in the first over of the match held in Karachi.However, India ended up losing that game in Karachi and that is why Pathan doesn't like to boast about it much."It was a memorable event but personally I don't speak about that hat-trick because we lost the match. I speak proudly about the matches inwhich I have even taken one wicket," said Pathan."When I took the hat-trick, I didn't know how big it was. That was in 2006, but people still talk today about it, and they do because the way ballswung, it doesn't swing like that every-day."Besides Pakistan, the 35-year-old loved the challenge against Australia, a team against which he made his Test debut in 2003.His sensational spell of swing bowling in the Sydney Test of 2004 is still fresh in the memories of Indian cricket's keen followers.Due to injury and form issues, Pathan only ended up playing 29 Tests. Among his last three appearances was the man of the match per formancein 2008 when he excelled both with bat and ball, helping India to a memorable win in Per th.The Baroda-born cricketer still doesn't know exactly why he was sidelined from the longest format shor tly after that per formance at the WACA."People talk about the Per th Test and if people know the whole stats, it was my second last Test (third last actually) and I was the Man of theMatch and after that I did not get the oppor tunity. Even in my last game against South Africa, I was playing as an all-rounder, I was batting atnumber seven," he said."An all-rounder's job is not to take wickets but to score runs as well. And I remember, being not out in both the innings. And af ter that I did notget selected for Test matches and I got a hint there, that something is going on which is not in my control and it is fair enough, it happens andyou have to move on," he recollected.Pathan said he could have played more for India if he had the suppor t system that the current players have."Like how the workload is managed for the Indian team. A lot of boys come, they don't play good, but they are taken back. (Wridhiman) Sahais a big example, he did not play for a year, but was given a chance," he said."If there was a suppor t system, it would have been better. If everything could have been managed properly, I could have been able to managemy injuries better. I used to bowl and bat a lot and did not rest and then did not pay attention to injuries."

India cricket, badminton, tennis, football fixtures and major global eventsFROM OLYMPIC GAMES TO T20 WORLD CUP, SPORTS FANS IN THE COUNTRY WILL HAVE A LOT TO

LOOK FORWARD TO IN 2020. A PACKED CALENDAR WITH LOTS OF ACTION AWAITS ALL OF YOU

While India ended 2019 with several hits and misses as a sporting na-tion, there is a lot to look forward to at the star t of the new decade in 2020.The biggest multi-spor t event -- the Olympic Games -- will be held inTokyo from July 24 and India will be eyeing a decent show after severalbreakthrough per formances in the last few years.For cricket fans, there is a lot in store as well. The women's team willplay the T20 World Cup in Australia from February while Virat Kohli-ledmen's team will take a trip Down Under for the T20 World Cup in October andNovember. India will also play Australia in a Test series at the end of the year whilethere is a lot to look forward to in the Indian Premier League 2020 as well.While badminton brings with it the regular set of major tournaments, alleyes will be on the big tourneys, including All England Championships, inthe Olympic year.Indiatoday.in has prepared a detailed list of major spor ting events in 2020.Major global eventsWomen's T20 World Cup in Australia - February 21 - March 8Euro 2020 in 12 host cities - June 12 - July 12Olympics in Tokyo - July 24 - August 9Paralympics in Tokyo - August 25 - September 6Men's T20 World Cup in Australia- October 18 - November 15India Men's Cricket ScheduleJanuary 5-10: 3 T20Is vs Sri Lanka - homeJanuary 14-19: 3 ODIs vs Australia - homeU-19 World Cup 2020 in South Africa - January 17 - February 9January 24-March 4: 5 T20Is, 3 ODIs, and 2 Tests vs New Zealand - awayMarch 12-18: 3 ODIs vs South Africa - homeMarch-May: Indian Premier League (IPL)September: Asia Cup - awayOctober-November: ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2020 in AustraliaNovember-January: India's tour of Australia - awayIndia Women's Cricket ScheduleJanuary 31-February 12: T20I Tri-series (India, England, Australia) inAustraliaFebruary 21-March 8: T20 World Cup in AustraliaFootballChampions League final - May 31Indian Super League - Final match day - March 8

I-League - Final match day - April 5La Liga 2019-20 - Final match day - May 24Serie A 2019 - 20 - Final match day - May 24Premier League 2019-20 - Final match day - May 17World Cup Qualifiers (India)vs Qatar - March 26vs Bangladesh - June 4vs Afghanistan - June 9Hockey (Pro League - January 18 - June 28)India vs Netherlands - January 18, 19India vs Belgium - February 8, 9India vs Australia - February 21, 22Germany vs India - April 25, 26India vs New Zealand - May 23, 24Argentina vs India - June 5, 6Spain vs India - June 13, 14Tennis (Major tournaments)ATP Cup - January 3 to January 12Australian Open - January 20 to February 3Roland Garros, French Open - May 24 to June 7Wimbledon, The Championship - June 29 to July 12US Open - August 31 to September 13Laver Cup - September 25-27Davis Cup Qualifiers - India vs Croatia - March 6-7Davis Cup Finals - November 23-29BadmintonMalaysia Masters (Super 500) - January 7 - 12Indonesia Masters (Super 500) - January 14 - 19Asian Team Championships in Singapore - February 11 - 16All England Open 2020 (Super 1000) - March 11 - 15India Open (Super 500) - March 24 - 29Malaysia Open (Super 750) - March 31 - April 5Singapore Open (Super 500) - April 7 - 12Thomas and Uber Cup Finals - May 16 - May 24Thailand Open (Super 500) - June 9 - 14Indonesia Open (Super 1000) - June 16 - 21Tokyo Olympic Games Badminton - July 25 to August 3

Korea Open (Super 500) - September 8 to 13China Open (Super 1000) - September 15 - 20Japan Open (Super 750) - September 22 - 27World Junior Championship - October 5 - 11Denmark Open - October 13 - 18French Open - October 20 - 25Fuzhou China Open - November 3 - 11Hong Kong Open - November 10 - 15World Tour Finals - December 9 - 13Formula OnePre-season Testing 1, Barcelona - February 19-21Pre-season Testing 2, Barcelona - February 26-28Australian Grand Prix - March 15Bahrain Grand Prix - March 22Vietnamese Grand Prix (debut) - April 5Chinese Grand Prix - April 19Dutch Grand Prix - May 3Spanish Grand Prix - May 10Monaco Grand Prix - May 24Azerbaijan Grand Prix - June 7Canadian Grand Prix - June 14French Grand Prix - June 28Austrian Grand Prix - July 5British Grand Prix - July 19Hungarian Grand Prix - August 2Belgium Grand Prix - August 30Italian Grand Prix - September 6Singapore Grand Prix - September 20Russian Grand Prix - September 27Japanese Grand Prix - October 11USA Grand Prix - October 25Mexican Grand Prix - November 1Brazilian Grand Prix - November 15Abu Dhabi Grand Prix - November 29WrestlingAsian Championships in New Delhi - February 18 - 23Asian Olympic qualifier in China - March 27 - 29

‘The batsmen will start thinking...’:Sachin Tendulkar explains problemswith proposed four-day TestCricket icon Sachin Tendulkar has weighed into the ragingdebate regarding the proposed four-day Test. A recent repor tin ESPNCricinfo stated that ICC’s cricket committee plans torecommend trimming Tests to four days from five for the 2023-2031 World Test Championship cycle. Tendulkar, however,gave his thumbs down to the idea and stated the format shouldnot be tinkered with and must be played in the manner it hasbeen for so many years. “From a purist’s point of view and being anadmirer of Test cricket, I don’t think it should be tinkered with. The formathas to be played in the way it has been played for so manyyears,” Tendulkar was quoted as saying by PTI. “The bats-men will star t thinking that it is a longer version of limitedovers match because the moment you bat till the second daylunch, you know that there’s only two and half days to go.That changes the thinking and dynamics of the game.”

‘HE WILL BAT AT NUMBER 4 FORYEARS TO COME’: ROHIT SHARMABACKS YOUNG PLAYER TO NAIL SPOT“It’s been one of the best years for Indian cricket, to be hon-est, apar t from playing the cricket that we played for half anhour in the World Cup. I think apar t from that it’s been a beau-tiful year for us. We’ll keep chasing that ICC trophy, it’s some-thing that this team deserves, it’s something that I feel shouldbe accumulation of all the hard work we’ve done in the lastfew years, and we’ll keep chasing it,” Indian captain Virat Kohli saidabout 2019 and how his side will keep going after that coveted ICC title.For vice-captain Rohit Sharma, though, this extended drought (India’slast ICC title came in 2013) is nothing to be too flustered about. Hebelieves India have the young players to come in and stamp theirauthority over the game and this could then be the corner-stone for a next ICC title.



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