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?=B Q =4F34;78
Why has the draconian
sedition law, which was
used by the British to silence
people like Mahatma Gandhi,
not been repealed in
Independent India despite its
gross misuse, is the question
the Supreme Court posed to
the Centre on Thursday.
The apex court agreed to
examine the pleas filed by the
Editors Guild of India and a
former Major-General, chal-
lenging the constitutionality
of Section 124A (sedition) in
the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
A Bench headed by Chief
Justice NV Ramana said its
main concern was the “misuse
of the law” and issued a notice
to the Centre.
The non-bailable provi-
sion makes any speech or
expression that “brings or
attempts to bring into hatred or
contempt or excites or attempts
to excite disaffection towards
the Government established
by law in India” a criminal
offence punishable with a max-
imum sentence of life impris-
onment. “Mr Attorney
(General), we want to ask some
questions. This is a colonial era
law and the same law was used
by the British to suppress the
freedom movement. It was
used by the British to silence
Mahatma Gandhi, Gokhale
and others. Is it still necessary
to keep this in statute even after
75 years of Independence?”
asked the Bench which also
comprised Justices A S
Bopanna and Hrishikesh Roy.
Observing that the provi-
sion on sedition has been put
to “enormous misuse”, it also
referred to the alarming misuse
of Section 66 A of the
Information Technology Act
even after the top court set it
aside long ago and observed: “It
can be compared to a carpen-
ter who has been asked to cut
some wood, cutting the entire
forest.”
“A factionist can invoke
these types of (penal) provi-
sions to implicate the other
group of people,” the CJI said,
adding that if a particular party
or people do not want to hear
a voice, they will use this law to
implicate others.
The Bench wondered at the
continuance of the sedition
law in the statute book for the
last 75 years and said: “We do
not know why the Government
is not taking a decision. Your
Government has been getting
rid of stale laws.” The Bench
said that it was not blaming any
State or Government, but
unfortunately, the executing
agency misuses these laws and
“there is no accountability.”
In a hearing, conducted
through video-conferencing,
the Bench said that if a police
officer in a remote village
wants to “fix” a person then he
can easily do so by using such
provisions.
Moreover, said the Bench,
the percentage of convictions in
sedition cases was very low and
these are the issues which must
be decided.
?=BQ =4F34;78
Even as stand-offs persist at
the Line of Actual Control
(LAC) in Ladakh, the Chinese
have ramped up their military
effort in Sikkim region by con-
structing permanent concrete
buildings to lodge their troops.
This activity on their side of the
LAC will enable the Chinese to
deploy their soldiers quickly at
the border.
These permanent struc-
tures will ensure that the
Chinese soldiers remain close
to the LAC even during the
harsh winter months, sources
in the security establishment
said here on Thursday. Earlier,
the Chinese used to go back to
their posts a few kilometres
back during the winter months
and undertake patrolling occa-
sionally.
The new lodging facilities
are well-provided for, in order
to withstand the winter months
and the Chinese have ensured
security by building fortified
bunkers around the campus.
Giving details here, officials in
the security establishment said
some such structures were
detected close to the Naku La
(pass) in North Sikkim recent-
ly. These buildings are linked
with all-weather roads to pro-
vide crucial logistical back-up
in case of any emergency, they
said adding such installations
were also constructed in the
Chinese territory in Eastern
Ladakh and Arunachal
Pradesh.
This development comes in
the backdrop of China already
activating several helipads and
some airfields in the Tibet
region in the past two years
since the stand-offs began in
Ladakh. Also, the entire
Tibetan region is well-con-
nected with a high-speed rail
network providing an edge to
the Chinese in terms of logis-
tical support.
As regards construction
activities in Sikkim region,
sources said one such complex
for troops was located at a short
distance from the Naku La.
Incidentally, this region wit-
nessed a brawl between the
Indian and Chinese soldiers
early last year before the face-
offs erupted in Ladakh.
With these structures now
functional, the Chinese have
not gone back to their posts in
the rear areas in the winter
months in Ladakh and some
inaccessible regions of
Arunachal Pradesh, sources
said. At present more than one
lakh troops from both the
sides are deployed at the LAC
in Ladakh with stand-offs still
on at three friction points.
Given this situation, the
Indian Army last year built
specialised huts in forward areas
of Ladakh region, Sikkim and
Arunachal Pradesh. These huts
are centrally heated with all
modern facilities to protect the
soldiers from the harsh cold
with temperature dipping to
below minus 20 degrees at
many places. Moreover, winter
clothing and boots were pro-
vided to the troops deployed all
along the 4,000 km LAC stretch-
ing from Ladakh in the west to
Arunachal Pradesh in the east.
=8:00;8:Q 270=3860A7
The crisis in Punjab
Congress has worsened. At
a time when the internal strife
was heading for a resolution,
unconfirmed reports of the
cricketer-turned-politician
Navjot Singh Sidhu being
made the State party president
and Chief Minister Captain
Amarinder Singh threatening
to resign in protest surfaced,
resulting in political turmoil in
the State.
Despite Amarinder Singh’s
camp clarifying that the Chief
Minister had not offered to
resign and would lead the
Congress to victory in the
forthcoming Assembly elec-
tions, pandemonium reigned
with a series of separate meet-
ings being held by rival camps.
As the Congress high com-
mand is planning a bigger
role for Sidhu, Amarinder
seems to be in no mood to
budge. Even as the available
information suggested that the
move to elevate Sidhu as the
State party chief has
Amarinder’s consent,
Thursday’s developments indi-
cate to the contrary.
It has been learnt that
Amarinder conveyed his
protest to the Congress inter-
im president Sonia Gandhi on
Thursday over the decision to
make Sidhu president of the
State unit. Sources said the
Chief Minister has made it
clear to the party high com-
mand that the decision was
“not acceptable” to him, and he
would not contest the
2022 polls under Sidhu’s cap-
tainship.
At the same time,
Amarinder’s media adviser
Raveen Thukral took to
Twitter to clarify that the Chief
Minister has neither quit nor
offered to do so.
?=BQ =4F34;78
The United Nations
Children’s Emergency Fund
(UNICEF) on Thursday said
India has the highest number
of under-vaccinated or unvac-
cinated children worldwide at
3.5 million, an increase of 1.4
million from 2019, amid the
Covid-19 pandemic outbreak.
It also noted that over 3 million
of “zero-dose children” in 2020
lived in India.
At nearly 4.4 million, South
Asia recorded the highest num-
ber of children having failed to
receive any routine vaccination
in the past ten years, in 2020.
“More than 3 million of these
‘zero-dose children’ in 2020
lived in India,” the UNICEF
said in a statement.
Globally, the UNICEF said
the data shows that just 10
countries account for 62 per
cent of all under- or unvacci-
nated children globally. “India
- particularly hard hit by the
Covid-19 pandemic - had the
highest number of unprotect-
ed children worldwide at 3.5
million, an increase of 1.4 mil-
lion compared with 2019, when
the number of unprotected
children was 2.1 million,” the
children’s body said.
B0D60AB4=6D?C0Q :;:0C0
The National Human Rights
Commission probing post-
poll violence in Bengal has
submitted a damaging report in
the Calcutta High Court
underscoring the “politico-
bureaucratic-criminal nexus”
in Bengal. The NHRC recom-
mended an investigation to be
carried out by a Special
Investigation Team of the
Central Bureau of
Investigation.
A five-judge Bench of the
Court hearing a PIL had earli-
er directed the NHRC to inves-
tigate the alleged post poll vio-
lence. The panel conducted a
20-day investigation visiting
311 spots of alleged occur-
rences.
Submitting a 50-page
report, the seven-member
NHRC team has named a bevy
of senior Trinamool Congress
leaders, including Ministers
and legislators, in its list of
“notorious criminals” — who
directed and orchestrated
attacks on Opposition sup-
porters and voters.
Referring to a relevant
quote from Tagore (“where
mind is without fear â ¦”) the
report concludes that Bengal
is a perfect manifestation of
“law of ruler” instead of “rule
of law.”
Chief Minister Mamata
Banerjee summarily rejected
the report as a “burning exam-
ple of BJP’s vendetta politics”.
Among the senior TMC
leaders indicted in the report
are a Minister from North 24
Parganas, MLAs from North
and South 24 Parganas,
Kolkata, Birbhum, former
MLAs and senior leaders from
Cooch Behar,Nandigram and
other places.
BC055A4?AC4AQ =4F34;78
Two men, including an Army
man, have been arrested
on the charges of spying for
Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI)
of Pakistan under the Official
Secrets Act by the Crime Branch
of Delhi Police.
Police said that Army head-
quarters has confirmed that
the documents in their posses-
sion were classified.
The 41-year-old vegetable
supplier, Habib-ur-Rehman, at
the Pokhran Army base camp,
was held for allegedly getting
sensitive documents, on which
“confidential” and “restricted”
was found clearly written in
bold, from an Army man for
money and providing them to
the ISI.
“The Army man identified
as Paramjit was the link man in
the crime”, saidPraveerRanjan,
the Special Commissioner of
Police.
BC055A4?AC4AQ =4F34;78
Amid potential threat of an
imminent third wave,
schools in Delhi will not be
openingyet,DelhiChiefMinister
Arvind Kejriwal announced on
Thursday. The Chief Minister
said the Government had no
plans for reopening of schools in
the national Capital as of now.
“Like we are seeing trends
internationally that there will be
athirdwaveofCovid-19.So,until
the vaccination process is com-
plete we would not like to take
risks with children. So there
aren’tanyplanstoreopenschools
as of now,” Kejriwal said. The
news comes despite a dip in the
Covid positivity rate in the
national Capital.
The CM was responding to
aquestionaboutwhetherschools
in Delhi will begin to reopen like
in other States. The announce-
ment came amid the easing of
Covid-19 norms this month.
?=BQ =4F34;78
Days after securing a bail
from Dominica High
Court, fugitive diamond busi-
nessman Mehul Choksi has
landed in Antigua and
Barbuda, where he has been
staying as an Antiguan citizen
since 2018 after fleeing India.
Choksi’s return to Antigua
comes after 51 days of custody
in neighbouring Dominica for
illegal entry, according to
Antiguan media reports.
Choksi, 62, was given bail
by the Dominica High Court
on Monday to travel back to
Antigua for seeking medical
treatment from a neurologist
based there.
On Monday, the
Dominican High Court Justice
Stephenson granted the special
bail and ordered that upon
arrival in Antigua, the fugitive
businessman will consult
Antiguan neurologist, Dr
Hayden Osborne, at the Mount
St. John’s Medical Centre. He
must inform the court of any
change of specialist.
After depositing bail
amount of EC Dollars 10,000,
Choksi flew back to Antigua in
a chartered plane, Antiguan
media outlet Antigua News
Room reported.
?C8Q E0A0=0B8
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi on Thursday inaugu-
rated and laid foundation stones
of multiple development pro-
jects in Varanasi worth more
than Rs 1,500 crore at the IIT-
BHU ground. After reaching
Varanasi, his constituency, Modi
inaugurated various public pro-
jects and works, including a
100-bed MCH wing in BHU,
multi-level parking at
Godauliya, Ro-Ro vessels for
tourism development on river
Ganga and a three-lane flyover
bridge on the Varanasi-
Ghazipur highway.
The Prime Minister also
inaugurated projects worth
around C744 crore and laid
foundation stones of several
projects and public works worth
about C839 crore. These include
the Centre for Skill and
Technical Support of Central
Institute of Petrochemical
Engineering and Technology
(CIPET), 143 rural projects
under the Jal Jeevan Mission
and mango and vegetable inte-
grated pack house in
Karkhiyanv. Uttar Pradesh
Governor Anandiben Patel,
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath
and State Ministers were also
present on the occasion.
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi praised the Uttar Pradesh
Government for its handling of
the Covid crisis and said the way
it had controlled the second
wave of the infection was
“unprecedented”. Describing the
efforts of the Government in
combating Covid-19 as “com-
mendable”, the Prime Minister
said, “The way in which UP has
controlled the second wave of
corona and stopped its spread is
unprecedented.” Modi also
inaugurated the International
Cooperation and Convention
Centre, Rudrakash which has
been constructed with Japanese
assistance. Addressing a gath-
ering after the inaugurating of
the International Cooperation
and Convention Centre-
Rudraksh, Modi said, “Kashi is
the oldest living city of the
world. From Lord Shiva to Lord
Buddha, Kashi has for eons pre-
served art, culture along with
spirituality.”
“A number of art forms
developed on the ghats of the
Ganga, knowledge reached its
peak and serious deliberations
over humanity took place on
this soil. Hence, Banaras can
become a very big global cen-
tre for music, religion, spiritu-
ality, knowledge and science,” he
said.
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BC055A4?AC4AQ =4F34;78
Chief Minister Arvind
Kejriwal on Thursday
sought that the country's high-
est civilian award, Bharat
Ratna, be given to noted envi-
ronmentalist Sunderlal
Bahuguna who is known for his
pioneering role in the chipko
movement in Uttarkhand.
Bahuguna died on May 21 this
year.Kejriwal also presented a
cheque of C1 lakh to the fam-
ily of Bahuguna in honour of
the vast legacy he has left
behind and said Bahuguna’s
fight will not just be remem-
bered by Uttarakhand and
India but the entire world.
The Chief Minister said he
will write a letter to Prime
Minister Narendra Modi in
this regard. He made the
remarks at an event at the
Delhi Legislative Assembly to
pay condolence to Bahuguna.
“His fight and struggle
along with his dedication to
giving back to society will not
just be remembered but it will
continue to motivate and
inspire generations and gener-
ations of citizens of not just
Uttarakhand or India but the
entire country,” he added.“I
want to appeal to the Central
Government to houour
Bahuguna with the Bharat
Ratna.
This will inspire the youth
of our country to realise the
struggle he undertook in his
life,” he said.Addressing the
gathering, Deputy Chief
Minister Manish Sisodia said,
“It is an honour for us to have
installed the portrait of
Bahuguna in the Smriti
Gallery.”
Ram Niwas Goel, the
Speaker of Delhi Legislative
Assembly, said, “Whatever one
says about Bahuguna, it would
not be able to suffice the vast
legacy he has left behind.
Bahuguna had a farsighted
vision to take up the cause of
environmentalism through the
Chipko movement that later
made waves globally.
He made the entire world
realise how essential it is to pro-
tect the environment.”Started
by Bahuguna at the foothills of
the Himalayas in 1973 in
Uttarakhand, then a part of
Uttar Pradesh, the Chipko
movement was a forest con-
servation movement in India.
It later became a rallying point
for many environmental move-
ments all over the world.
BC055A4?AC4AQ =4F34;78
The Delhi Government on
Thursday announced that
no child shall be denied admis-
sion in Government schools
due to unavailability of the
Transfer Certificate (TC).
The Directorate of
Education shall directly secure
the TC from concerned private
schools in case they do not
issue TC after the provisional
admission of a child in
Government school.
It was also decided that
students who could not apply
online for admissions in Class
VI to IX, can apply in the sec-
ond round between July 23 and
August 6.
Last date for online appli-
cation for admission for Class
XI will be issued after 10th
board results.Taking care of
Right to Education to every
child, the Delhi Government
has cleared that no child will be
denied admission in any class
of Government schools if par-
ents are unable to produce TC
if private schools do not issue
it.The decision came after sev-
eral parents approached
Deputy Chief Minister Manish
Sisodia with complaints that
private schools are not issuing
TC of their wards as they had
not paid pending fees.Sisodia
said, “If any child of Delhi
wants to leave a private school
and take admission in a
Government school, s/he will
not be denied admission due to
lack of a TC.
“This decision of the Delhi
Government is set to provide
relief to thousands of parents
who are keen to move their
child from private to
Government school, he added.
Explaining the matter, he
said some private schools are
holding back Transfer
Certificates to students and
asking parents to deposit the
full fee first. For this
reason, many parents
are unable to get their
children out of private
schools and take admis-
sion in Government
schools.“Taking cog-
nizance in this regard
after receiving such
complaints from many
parents, the Directorate
of Education has been
asked to ensure that
provisional admission is
granted to students allotted
schools and that the officers of
DoE should directly secure
the TC from concerned private
schools.
Parents need not worry
about TC anymore,” he
added.So far, the Delhi
Government has received
28,000 applications for Nursery,
KG and Class I for admission
in Delhi Government's
Sarvodaya Schools. Admission
list will be issued on July 20.
Further, about 90,000 applica-
tions have been received for
Classes VI to XII (except Class
XI). Process of school alloca-
tion is currently underway.
µ?`TYZ]UdYR]]SVUV_ZVU
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BC055A4?AC4AQ =4F34;78
The Delhi Chief Minister
Arvind Kejriwal on
Thursday said a Cabinet meet-
ing has been called under the
pressure of Lieutenant
Governor Anil Baijal on Friday
to decide whether Delhi
Government or Centre’s
lawyers will fight the farmers’
agitation case.
Kejriwal and Home Minister
Satyendra Jain held a virtual
meeting with L G and conveyed
that a panel of lawyers was con-
stituted by Delhi Government
to ensure a fair trial of the cases
registered against the farmers
protesting against the con-
tentious agricultural laws.
Pertinently, Delhi Police
who are investigating the case
registered against the farmers,
want to appoint a panel of its
own lawyers.
Taking cognizance of this,
CM Kejriwal called an imme-
diate meeting alleging the
Central Government openly
has come out against farmers in
the Farm Bill Movement.
“Delhi L-G refuses to let Delhi
Government’s lawyers from
appearing in the farmers’ agi-
tation court case,” Kejriwal
said, “Central government
pressurizing Delhi government
to make Center’s own lawyers
fight court cases related to the
farmers’ agitation,” he added.
“The Lieutenant Governor
of Delhi has refused to let the
panel of lawyers constituted by
the Kejriwal Government to
appear in the cases related to
the farmer’s bill movement
this Thursday, LG has asked
Delhi Government to put cab-
inet's approval on the panel of
lawyers suggested by the Delhi
Police,” a statement from Chief
Minister’s Office (CMO) quot-
ed. It may be noted, according
to CMO statement, Jain reject-
ed Delhi Police’s proposal of
appointing lawyers of their
favour. In view of this decision,
the L-G has asked the Delhi
government to call for a cabi-
net meeting and has pressured
the government to take a deci-
sion in favour of Delhi Police’s
lawyers.
:TYaXfP[_aTbT]cbRWT`dT^UC [PZWc^UPX[h^U1PWdVd]P
3T[WX2PQX]Tcc^STRXSTfWTcWTa
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BC055A4?AC4AQ =4F34;78
Delhi recorded 72 fresh
Covid-19 cases while the
positivity rate stood at 0.10 per
cent on Thursday, according to
health bulletin shared by the
health department of the Delhi
Government.
As per the bulletin, out of
13450 available beds in hospi-
tals, 362 are occupied while the
rest are vacant. At least 69212
tests, including 69212
RTPCR/CBNAAT/TrueNat
tests, were conducted in the last
24 hours, it said.
According to report, as
many as 88 patients recovered
in the last 24 hours, it said. The
national capital has recorded a
total of 14,35,353 coronavirus
cases since the pandemic began
last year. So far, over 14.09 lakh
patients have recovered, the
health department bulletin said.
“There were 671 active
Covid-19 cases in Delhi and
230 people are under home iso-
lation while the number of
containment zones stood at
439,” it said.
The single new fatality
reported on Thursday has
pushed the death toll in the city
to 25,022, according to the lat-
est bulletin. On Wednesday,
Delhi had recorded 77 cases
and one death, while on
Tuesday the daily infection
tally was 76 with two deaths.
On February 16, ninety-four
people were diagnosed Covid
positive while the daily tally was
96 on January 27, according to
official figures. The Health
Minister Satyendar Jain on
Tuesday stressed that even
though the cases have come
down sharply following Covid-
appropriate behaviour and wear
masks is essential in order to
prevent the onset of a third
wave.
To detect new variants of
the coronavirus and ascertain
their severity, Delhi Chief
Minister Arvind Kejriwal
inaugurated state-of-the-art
genome sequencing facility
in Institute of Liver and Biliary
Services (ILBS) on Thursday.
BC055A4?AC4AQ =4F34;78
Lieutenant Governor Anil
Baijal on Thursday chaired
the governing body meeting of
Unified Traffic and
Transportation Infrastructure
(Planning and Engineering)
Centre with Tarun Kapur ,Vice
Chairman, Delhi Development
Authority (DDA) and other
senior officials of stakeholder
departments. Various propos-
als after detailed deliberations
approved.
Walk plans of INA market,
metro station, ITO Junction;
Hauz Khas-IIT Delhi; Delhi
University (North and South
Campus); proposals of devel-
opments of Kamla Nagar and
Lajpat Nagar approved aiming
to improve walking infra-
structure in these areas.
Other proposals, for
instance - Multi Modal
Integration (MMI) Plans of
Nawada Metro Station; Uttam
Nagar West Metro Station and
Janakpuri East Metro also
approved. Status of imple-
mentation of other projects
earlier approved by the
Governing Council was also
reviewed.
During the meeting,
Officials of various agencies
and departments were advised
to ensure time bound com-
pletion of projects as per laid
down timelines by way of
regular monitoring .
=82_Z]3RZ[R]TYRZcd
^VVeZ_X`_f_ZWZVUecRWWZT
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]_bUTUQdXY^Qcd$Xbc
BC055A4?AC4AQ
6DAD6A0
The Gurugram district
Health Department has
planned to vaccinate the dis-
trict's villages in turn. The
process will begin from two
villages of the district on Friday.
According to
the health officials,
this drive will be
started from
Aklimpur and
Hasanpur villages
which falls under
the Tigra Primary
Health Centre
(PHC) at these vil-
lage 100 per cent of the eligi-
ble persons will be vaccinated.
This drive will be done under
the Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR) collabo-
ration with British Airways
cooperation. The officials
informed that this campaign
will be launched by the district
Civil Surgeon Dr Virender
Yadav at 10:30 in village
Aklimpur. In the camps of
both villages, the first and sec-
ond doses of the vaccine will be
made to those eligible persons.
The Health Department
has set a target to vaccinate all
the eligible citizens of the vil-
lage. Simultaneously, Civil
Surgeon has instructed the
Health Department team that
after the successful organising
of this special camp on Friday,
similar special vaccination
camps will be organised in
every village of the district,
Deputy Civil Surgeon, Dr MP
Singh told.
7µWbQ]fYQWUcd_RUfQSSY^QdUT
Y^deb^ccQicXUQdX_VVYSYQc
?=BQ 347A03D=
Uttarakhand has great
potential in the field of
organic farming which can be
used to double the income of
farmers. The Central govern-
ment has also been emphasis-
ing on organic farming using
modern tools rather than using
chemical fertilisers in agricul-
ture.
The centre is working to
make Uttarakhand a progres-
sive and prosperous state too.
This was stated by the vice
chairman of NITI Aayog, Rajiv
Kumar during his recent visit
to the Nainital district. During
his inspection of apple orchards
at Dhanachuli and Kasialekh in
the district, Kumar empha-
sised on organic farming in the
state. He also interacted with
local farmers who shared their
issues regarding farming in
the district. Kumar said that
organic farming is the future
and is currently being done in
several states of the country. He
stated that he has recently met
chief minister Pushkar Singh
Dhami and talked about
encouraging organic farming in
the State.
He added that he will also
make Prime Minister Narendra
Modi aware of the situation of
the farming in the State and
will prepare a report to apprise
him of the potential of farming
here.
?=BQ 347A03D=
Former Member of
Parliament (MP) and chair-
man of Uttarakhand war
memorial Tarun Vijay was
elected on Thursday to the gov-
erning body of Institute of
Defence Studies and Analyses
(ISDA) which is a defence
think tank of the country.
In the election Vijay
received double the support
received by his opponent, G
Balakrishnan. Other members
of IDSA executive council
include Defence minister
Rajnath Singh, Foreign secre-
tary Harsh Vardhan Shringla,
Defence secretary Ajay Kumar
and retired ambassadors and
armed forces veterans.
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- 1. 20?BD;4 0A<H?4=B58A405C4A ?0:@D032?C4AB?CC43 9Pd) CWT0ahUXaTS^]P ?PZXbcP]X`dPSR^_cTaPUcTaXc caXTSc^eT]cdaTX]c^cWT8]SXP] cTaaXc^ahP[^]VcWT;X]T^U 2^]ca^[;^2WTaT^UUXRXP[ b^daRTbbPXS^]CWdabSPh 6EC8BBD4B3A05C AD;4B5ADB8=63A=4B =Tf3T[WX) CWTX]Xbcah^U2XeX[ 0eXPcX^]WPbXbbdTSSaPUcad[Tb c^T]bdaTTPbT^UdbX]VSa^]Tb X]8]SXP^]cWTQPbXb^U°cadbc bT[URTacXUXRPcX^]P]S]^] X]cadbXeT^]Xc^aX]V±P]^UUXRXP[ bcPcTT]cbPXS^]CWdabSPh 24=CA4A4;40B4B C$:2ACBC0C4B =Tf3T[WX) CWT6^eTa]T]c WPbQ^aa^fTSP]SVXeT]c^cWT BcPcTbC$Ra^aTc^PZT d_U^acWTbW^acUP[[X]cWTXa aTeT]dTbQTRPdbT^UcWT6BC X_[TT]cPcX^]CWT5X]P]RT X]XbcahX]PbcPcTT]cbPXScWT P^d]caT[TPbTSXbPQ^dcWP[U^U cWTC $([PZWRa^aT ?=B Q =4F34;78 Why has the draconian sedition law, which was used by the British to silence people like Mahatma Gandhi, not been repealed in Independent India despite its gross misuse, is the question the Supreme Court posed to the Centre on Thursday. The apex court agreed to examine the pleas filed by the Editors Guild of India and a former Major-General, chal- lenging the constitutionality of Section 124A (sedition) in the Indian Penal Code (IPC). A Bench headed by Chief Justice NV Ramana said its main concern was the “misuse of the law” and issued a notice to the Centre. The non-bailable provi- sion makes any speech or expression that “brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards the Government established by law in India” a criminal offence punishable with a max- imum sentence of life impris- onment. “Mr Attorney (General), we want to ask some questions. This is a colonial era law and the same law was used by the British to suppress the freedom movement. It was used by the British to silence Mahatma Gandhi, Gokhale and others. Is it still necessary to keep this in statute even after 75 years of Independence?” asked the Bench which also comprised Justices A S Bopanna and Hrishikesh Roy. Observing that the provi- sion on sedition has been put to “enormous misuse”, it also referred to the alarming misuse of Section 66 A of the Information Technology Act even after the top court set it aside long ago and observed: “It can be compared to a carpen- ter who has been asked to cut some wood, cutting the entire forest.” “A factionist can invoke these types of (penal) provi- sions to implicate the other group of people,” the CJI said, adding that if a particular party or people do not want to hear a voice, they will use this law to implicate others. The Bench wondered at the continuance of the sedition law in the statute book for the last 75 years and said: “We do not know why the Government is not taking a decision. Your Government has been getting rid of stale laws.” The Bench said that it was not blaming any State or Government, but unfortunately, the executing agency misuses these laws and “there is no accountability.” In a hearing, conducted through video-conferencing, the Bench said that if a police officer in a remote village wants to “fix” a person then he can easily do so by using such provisions. Moreover, said the Bench, the percentage of convictions in sedition cases was very low and these are the issues which must be decided. ?=BQ =4F34;78 Even as stand-offs persist at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh, the Chinese have ramped up their military effort in Sikkim region by con- structing permanent concrete buildings to lodge their troops. This activity on their side of the LAC will enable the Chinese to deploy their soldiers quickly at the border. These permanent struc- tures will ensure that the Chinese soldiers remain close to the LAC even during the harsh winter months, sources in the security establishment said here on Thursday. Earlier, the Chinese used to go back to their posts a few kilometres back during the winter months and undertake patrolling occa- sionally. The new lodging facilities are well-provided for, in order to withstand the winter months and the Chinese have ensured security by building fortified bunkers around the campus. Giving details here, officials in the security establishment said some such structures were detected close to the Naku La (pass) in North Sikkim recent- ly. These buildings are linked with all-weather roads to pro- vide crucial logistical back-up in case of any emergency, they said adding such installations were also constructed in the Chinese territory in Eastern Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh. This development comes in the backdrop of China already activating several helipads and some airfields in the Tibet region in the past two years since the stand-offs began in Ladakh. Also, the entire Tibetan region is well-con- nected with a high-speed rail network providing an edge to the Chinese in terms of logis- tical support. As regards construction activities in Sikkim region, sources said one such complex for troops was located at a short distance from the Naku La. Incidentally, this region wit- nessed a brawl between the Indian and Chinese soldiers early last year before the face- offs erupted in Ladakh. With these structures now functional, the Chinese have not gone back to their posts in the rear areas in the winter months in Ladakh and some inaccessible regions of Arunachal Pradesh, sources said. At present more than one lakh troops from both the sides are deployed at the LAC in Ladakh with stand-offs still on at three friction points. Given this situation, the Indian Army last year built specialised huts in forward areas of Ladakh region, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. These huts are centrally heated with all modern facilities to protect the soldiers from the harsh cold with temperature dipping to below minus 20 degrees at many places. Moreover, winter clothing and boots were pro- vided to the troops deployed all along the 4,000 km LAC stretch- ing from Ladakh in the west to Arunachal Pradesh in the east. =8:00;8:Q 270=3860A7 The crisis in Punjab Congress has worsened. At a time when the internal strife was heading for a resolution, unconfirmed reports of the cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu being made the State party president and Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh threatening to resign in protest surfaced, resulting in political turmoil in the State. Despite Amarinder Singh’s camp clarifying that the Chief Minister had not offered to resign and would lead the Congress to victory in the forthcoming Assembly elec- tions, pandemonium reigned with a series of separate meet- ings being held by rival camps. As the Congress high com- mand is planning a bigger role for Sidhu, Amarinder seems to be in no mood to budge. Even as the available information suggested that the move to elevate Sidhu as the State party chief has Amarinder’s consent, Thursday’s developments indi- cate to the contrary. It has been learnt that Amarinder conveyed his protest to the Congress inter- im president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday over the decision to make Sidhu president of the State unit. Sources said the Chief Minister has made it clear to the party high com- mand that the decision was “not acceptable” to him, and he would not contest the 2022 polls under Sidhu’s cap- tainship. At the same time, Amarinder’s media adviser Raveen Thukral took to Twitter to clarify that the Chief Minister has neither quit nor offered to do so. ?=BQ =4F34;78 The United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) on Thursday said India has the highest number of under-vaccinated or unvac- cinated children worldwide at 3.5 million, an increase of 1.4 million from 2019, amid the Covid-19 pandemic outbreak. It also noted that over 3 million of “zero-dose children” in 2020 lived in India. At nearly 4.4 million, South Asia recorded the highest num- ber of children having failed to receive any routine vaccination in the past ten years, in 2020. “More than 3 million of these ‘zero-dose children’ in 2020 lived in India,” the UNICEF said in a statement. Globally, the UNICEF said the data shows that just 10 countries account for 62 per cent of all under- or unvacci- nated children globally. “India - particularly hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic - had the highest number of unprotect- ed children worldwide at 3.5 million, an increase of 1.4 mil- lion compared with 2019, when the number of unprotected children was 2.1 million,” the children’s body said. B0D60AB4=6D?C0Q :;:0C0 The National Human Rights Commission probing post- poll violence in Bengal has submitted a damaging report in the Calcutta High Court underscoring the “politico- bureaucratic-criminal nexus” in Bengal. The NHRC recom- mended an investigation to be carried out by a Special Investigation Team of the Central Bureau of Investigation. A five-judge Bench of the Court hearing a PIL had earli- er directed the NHRC to inves- tigate the alleged post poll vio- lence. The panel conducted a 20-day investigation visiting 311 spots of alleged occur- rences. Submitting a 50-page report, the seven-member NHRC team has named a bevy of senior Trinamool Congress leaders, including Ministers and legislators, in its list of “notorious criminals” — who directed and orchestrated attacks on Opposition sup- porters and voters. Referring to a relevant quote from Tagore (“where mind is without fear â ¦”) the report concludes that Bengal is a perfect manifestation of “law of ruler” instead of “rule of law.” Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee summarily rejected the report as a “burning exam- ple of BJP’s vendetta politics”. Among the senior TMC leaders indicted in the report are a Minister from North 24 Parganas, MLAs from North and South 24 Parganas, Kolkata, Birbhum, former MLAs and senior leaders from Cooch Behar,Nandigram and other places. BC055A4?AC4AQ =4F34;78 Two men, including an Army man, have been arrested on the charges of spying for Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) of Pakistan under the Official Secrets Act by the Crime Branch of Delhi Police. Police said that Army head- quarters has confirmed that the documents in their posses- sion were classified. The 41-year-old vegetable supplier, Habib-ur-Rehman, at the Pokhran Army base camp, was held for allegedly getting sensitive documents, on which “confidential” and “restricted” was found clearly written in bold, from an Army man for money and providing them to the ISI. “The Army man identified as Paramjit was the link man in the crime”, saidPraveerRanjan, the Special Commissioner of Police. BC055A4?AC4AQ =4F34;78 Amid potential threat of an imminent third wave, schools in Delhi will not be openingyet,DelhiChiefMinister Arvind Kejriwal announced on Thursday. The Chief Minister said the Government had no plans for reopening of schools in the national Capital as of now. “Like we are seeing trends internationally that there will be athirdwaveofCovid-19.So,until the vaccination process is com- plete we would not like to take risks with children. So there aren’tanyplanstoreopenschools as of now,” Kejriwal said. The news comes despite a dip in the Covid positivity rate in the national Capital. The CM was responding to aquestionaboutwhetherschools in Delhi will begin to reopen like in other States. The announce- ment came amid the easing of Covid-19 norms this month. ?=BQ =4F34;78 Days after securing a bail from Dominica High Court, fugitive diamond busi- nessman Mehul Choksi has landed in Antigua and Barbuda, where he has been staying as an Antiguan citizen since 2018 after fleeing India. Choksi’s return to Antigua comes after 51 days of custody in neighbouring Dominica for illegal entry, according to Antiguan media reports. Choksi, 62, was given bail by the Dominica High Court on Monday to travel back to Antigua for seeking medical treatment from a neurologist based there. On Monday, the Dominican High Court Justice Stephenson granted the special bail and ordered that upon arrival in Antigua, the fugitive businessman will consult Antiguan neurologist, Dr Hayden Osborne, at the Mount St. John’s Medical Centre. He must inform the court of any change of specialist. After depositing bail amount of EC Dollars 10,000, Choksi flew back to Antigua in a chartered plane, Antiguan media outlet Antigua News Room reported. ?C8Q E0A0=0B8 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday inaugu- rated and laid foundation stones of multiple development pro- jects in Varanasi worth more than Rs 1,500 crore at the IIT- BHU ground. After reaching Varanasi, his constituency, Modi inaugurated various public pro- jects and works, including a 100-bed MCH wing in BHU, multi-level parking at Godauliya, Ro-Ro vessels for tourism development on river Ganga and a three-lane flyover bridge on the Varanasi- Ghazipur highway. The Prime Minister also inaugurated projects worth around C744 crore and laid foundation stones of several projects and public works worth about C839 crore. These include the Centre for Skill and Technical Support of Central Institute of Petrochemical Engineering and Technology (CIPET), 143 rural projects under the Jal Jeevan Mission and mango and vegetable inte- grated pack house in Karkhiyanv. Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and State Ministers were also present on the occasion. Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the Uttar Pradesh Government for its handling of the Covid crisis and said the way it had controlled the second wave of the infection was “unprecedented”. Describing the efforts of the Government in combating Covid-19 as “com- mendable”, the Prime Minister said, “The way in which UP has controlled the second wave of corona and stopped its spread is unprecedented.” Modi also inaugurated the International Cooperation and Convention Centre, Rudrakash which has been constructed with Japanese assistance. Addressing a gath- ering after the inaugurating of the International Cooperation and Convention Centre- Rudraksh, Modi said, “Kashi is the oldest living city of the world. From Lord Shiva to Lord Buddha, Kashi has for eons pre- served art, culture along with spirituality.” “A number of art forms developed on the ghats of the Ganga, knowledge reached its peak and serious deliberations over humanity took place on this soil. Hence, Banaras can become a very big global cen- tre for music, religion, spiritu- ality, knowledge and science,” he said. µHYjZdT`]`_ZR]dVUZeZ`_ ]RhZ_fdVZ_WcVV:_UZR0¶ 6WRH[DPLQH SOHDVTXHVWLRQLQJ FRQVWLWXWLRQDOLW RI6HFWLRQ$ P01T]RWWTPSTSQh2WXTU9dbcXRT=EAPP]PbPXSXcbPX]R^]RTa]fPbcWT°XbdbT^UcWT[Pf±P]SXbbdTS P]^cXRTc^cWT2T]caT PCWT]^]QPX[PQ[T_a^eXbX^]PZTbP]hb_TTRW^aTg_aTbbX^]cWPc°QaX]Vb^aPccT_cbc^QaX]VX]c^WPcaTS^a R^]cT_c^aTgRXcTb^aPccT_cbc^TgRXcTSXbPUUTRcX^]c^fPaSbcWT6^eTa]T]cTbcPQ[XbWTSQh[PfX]8]SXP± PRaXX]P[^UUT]RT_d]XbWPQ[TfXcWPPgXdbT]cT]RT^U[XUTX_aXb^]T]c P°a0cc^a]Th6T]TaP[fTfP]cc^PbZb^T`dTbcX^]bCWXbXbPR^[^]XP[TaP[PfP]ScWTbPT[PffPb dbTSQhcWT1aXcXbWc^bd__aTbbcWTUaTTS^^eTT]c8cfPbdbTSQhcWT1aXcXbWc^bX[T]RTPWPcP 6P]SWX6^ZWP[TP]S^cWTab8bXcbcX[[]TRTbbPahc^ZTT_cWXbX]bcPcdcTTeT]PUcTa$hTPab^U 8]ST_T]ST]RT.±PbZTScWT1T]RWfWXRWP[b^R^_aXbTS9dbcXRTb0B1^_P]]PP]S7aXbWXZTbWA^h 3/$SUHSDULQJIRU ORQJKDXODORQJ/$ 3fZ]UZ_Xde` YV]aec``ad deRjafeZ_ YRcdYhZ_eVcd ,QWHQVHSROLWLFDOFKXUQLQJ VKDNHV3XQMDERQJUHVV 4RaeDZUYfY`]U dVaRcReV^VVeZ_Xd W`ceYV_Vie a]R_`WRTeZ`_ @gVc$^Z]]Z`_`W µkVc`U`dVZUd¶ Z_#!#!]ZgVUZ_ :_UZRZedRjd 8]SXPWPbWXVWTbc]dQTa ^Ud]ePRRX]PcTSRWX[SaT] f^a[SfXST)D=8245 2c^j^R_ RccVdeVUW`c dajZ_XW`c AR¶d:D: =7A2X]SXRcbC2 [TPSTabU^a1T]VP[ _^bc_^[[eX^[T]RT R^ReRcV[VTed aR_V]¶dcVa`ce TR]]dZeµgV_UVeeR a`]ZeZTd¶Sj4V_ecV 2W^ZbXU[XTbQPRZ c^0]cXVdPPUcTa 3^X]XRP72QPX[ 0RGLODXQFKHVC.FUSURMHFWVLQ9DUDQDVL AcRZdVdJ`XZ8`geW`cYR_U]Z_X 4`gZUdVT`_UhRgVdfTTVddWf]]j ?`a]R_de` cV`aV_dTY``]dZ_ 5V]YZRd`W_`h dRjdV[cZhR] ?aXTX]XbcTa=PaT]SaP^SXVaTTcbD?2WXTUX]XbcTaH^VX0SXchP]PcWSdaX]VcWTX]PdVdaPcX^]P]SU^d]SPcX^]bc^]T[PhX]V RTaT^]h^Ud[cX_[TSTeT[^_T]c_a^YTRcbX]EPaP]PbX^]CWdabSPh ?C8 /CWT3PX[h?X^]TTa UPRTQ^^ZR^SPX[h_X^]TTa 7`]]`hfd`_+ fffSPX[h_X^]TTaR^ X]bcPVaPR^SPX[h_X^]TTa ;PcT2Xch E^[ $ 8bbdT ( 0XaBdaRWPaVT4gcaPXU0__[XRPQ[T ?dQ[XbWTS5a^ 34;78;D2:=F 17?0;17D10=4BF0A A0=278A08?DA 270=3860A7 347A03D= 7H34A0103E890HF030 4bcPQ[XbWTS '%# 51,1R5HJQ877(1*5(*'1R8$'2''1 347A03D=5A830H9D;H %!! *?064B !C! @A:?:@?' 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- 2. ]PcX^]! 347A03D=k5A830H k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·VZLOOQRWEHKHOGUHVSRQVLEOHIRUDQNLQGRIFODLPPDGHEWKHDGYHUWLVHUVRIWKHSURGXFWV VHUYLFHVDQGVKDOOQRWEHPDGHUHVSRQVLEOHIRUDQNLQGRIORVVFRQVHTXHQFHVDQGIXUWKHUSURGXFWUHODWHGGDPDJHVRQVXFKDGYHUWLVHPHQWV BC055A4?AC4AQ =4F34;78 Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday sought that the country's high- est civilian award, Bharat Ratna, be given to noted envi- ronmentalist Sunderlal Bahuguna who is known for his pioneering role in the chipko movement in Uttarkhand. Bahuguna died on May 21 this year.Kejriwal also presented a cheque of C1 lakh to the fam- ily of Bahuguna in honour of the vast legacy he has left behind and said Bahuguna’s fight will not just be remem- bered by Uttarakhand and India but the entire world. The Chief Minister said he will write a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in this regard. He made the remarks at an event at the Delhi Legislative Assembly to pay condolence to Bahuguna. “His fight and struggle along with his dedication to giving back to society will not just be remembered but it will continue to motivate and inspire generations and gener- ations of citizens of not just Uttarakhand or India but the entire country,” he added.“I want to appeal to the Central Government to houour Bahuguna with the Bharat Ratna. This will inspire the youth of our country to realise the struggle he undertook in his life,” he said.Addressing the gathering, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said, “It is an honour for us to have installed the portrait of Bahuguna in the Smriti Gallery.” Ram Niwas Goel, the Speaker of Delhi Legislative Assembly, said, “Whatever one says about Bahuguna, it would not be able to suffice the vast legacy he has left behind. Bahuguna had a farsighted vision to take up the cause of environmentalism through the Chipko movement that later made waves globally. He made the entire world realise how essential it is to pro- tect the environment.”Started by Bahuguna at the foothills of the Himalayas in 1973 in Uttarakhand, then a part of Uttar Pradesh, the Chipko movement was a forest con- servation movement in India. It later became a rallying point for many environmental move- ments all over the world. BC055A4?AC4AQ =4F34;78 The Delhi Government on Thursday announced that no child shall be denied admis- sion in Government schools due to unavailability of the Transfer Certificate (TC). The Directorate of Education shall directly secure the TC from concerned private schools in case they do not issue TC after the provisional admission of a child in Government school. It was also decided that students who could not apply online for admissions in Class VI to IX, can apply in the sec- ond round between July 23 and August 6. Last date for online appli- cation for admission for Class XI will be issued after 10th board results.Taking care of Right to Education to every child, the Delhi Government has cleared that no child will be denied admission in any class of Government schools if par- ents are unable to produce TC if private schools do not issue it.The decision came after sev- eral parents approached Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia with complaints that private schools are not issuing TC of their wards as they had not paid pending fees.Sisodia said, “If any child of Delhi wants to leave a private school and take admission in a Government school, s/he will not be denied admission due to lack of a TC. “This decision of the Delhi Government is set to provide relief to thousands of parents who are keen to move their child from private to Government school, he added. Explaining the matter, he said some private schools are holding back Transfer Certificates to students and asking parents to deposit the full fee first. For this reason, many parents are unable to get their children out of private schools and take admis- sion in Government schools.“Taking cog- nizance in this regard after receiving such complaints from many parents, the Directorate of Education has been asked to ensure that provisional admission is granted to students allotted schools and that the officers of DoE should directly secure the TC from concerned private schools. Parents need not worry about TC anymore,” he added.So far, the Delhi Government has received 28,000 applications for Nursery, KG and Class I for admission in Delhi Government's Sarvodaya Schools. Admission list will be issued on July 20. Further, about 90,000 applica- tions have been received for Classes VI to XII (except Class XI). Process of school alloca- tion is currently underway. µ?`TYZ]UdYR]]SVUV_ZVU RU^ZddZ`_Z_8`gedTY``]d¶ +RQRXUDFWLYLVW%DKXJXQD ZLWK%KDUDW5DWQD0 BC055A4?AC4AQ =4F34;78 The Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday said a Cabinet meet- ing has been called under the pressure of Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal on Friday to decide whether Delhi Government or Centre’s lawyers will fight the farmers’ agitation case. Kejriwal and Home Minister Satyendra Jain held a virtual meeting with L G and conveyed that a panel of lawyers was con- stituted by Delhi Government to ensure a fair trial of the cases registered against the farmers protesting against the con- tentious agricultural laws. Pertinently, Delhi Police who are investigating the case registered against the farmers, want to appoint a panel of its own lawyers. Taking cognizance of this, CM Kejriwal called an imme- diate meeting alleging the Central Government openly has come out against farmers in the Farm Bill Movement. “Delhi L-G refuses to let Delhi Government’s lawyers from appearing in the farmers’ agi- tation court case,” Kejriwal said, “Central government pressurizing Delhi government to make Center’s own lawyers fight court cases related to the farmers’ agitation,” he added. “The Lieutenant Governor of Delhi has refused to let the panel of lawyers constituted by the Kejriwal Government to appear in the cases related to the farmer’s bill movement this Thursday, LG has asked Delhi Government to put cab- inet's approval on the panel of lawyers suggested by the Delhi Police,” a statement from Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) quot- ed. It may be noted, according to CMO statement, Jain reject- ed Delhi Police’s proposal of appointing lawyers of their favour. In view of this decision, the L-G has asked the Delhi government to call for a cabi- net meeting and has pressured the government to take a deci- sion in favour of Delhi Police’s lawyers. :TYaXfP[_aTbT]cbRWT`dT^UC [PZWc^UPX[h^U1PWdVd]P 3T[WX2PQX]Tcc^STRXSTfWTcWTa 3T[WX6^ec^a2T]caTb[PfhTab UXVWccWTUPaTabPVXcPcX^]RPbT BC055A4?AC4AQ =4F34;78 Delhi recorded 72 fresh Covid-19 cases while the positivity rate stood at 0.10 per cent on Thursday, according to health bulletin shared by the health department of the Delhi Government. As per the bulletin, out of 13450 available beds in hospi- tals, 362 are occupied while the rest are vacant. At least 69212 tests, including 69212 RTPCR/CBNAAT/TrueNat tests, were conducted in the last 24 hours, it said. According to report, as many as 88 patients recovered in the last 24 hours, it said. The national capital has recorded a total of 14,35,353 coronavirus cases since the pandemic began last year. So far, over 14.09 lakh patients have recovered, the health department bulletin said. “There were 671 active Covid-19 cases in Delhi and 230 people are under home iso- lation while the number of containment zones stood at 439,” it said. The single new fatality reported on Thursday has pushed the death toll in the city to 25,022, according to the lat- est bulletin. On Wednesday, Delhi had recorded 77 cases and one death, while on Tuesday the daily infection tally was 76 with two deaths. On February 16, ninety-four people were diagnosed Covid positive while the daily tally was 96 on January 27, according to official figures. The Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Tuesday stressed that even though the cases have come down sharply following Covid- appropriate behaviour and wear masks is essential in order to prevent the onset of a third wave. To detect new variants of the coronavirus and ascertain their severity, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal inaugurated state-of-the-art genome sequencing facility in Institute of Liver and Biliary Services (ILBS) on Thursday. BC055A4?AC4AQ =4F34;78 Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal on Thursday chaired the governing body meeting of Unified Traffic and Transportation Infrastructure (Planning and Engineering) Centre with Tarun Kapur ,Vice Chairman, Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and other senior officials of stakeholder departments. Various propos- als after detailed deliberations approved. Walk plans of INA market, metro station, ITO Junction; Hauz Khas-IIT Delhi; Delhi University (North and South Campus); proposals of devel- opments of Kamla Nagar and Lajpat Nagar approved aiming to improve walking infra- structure in these areas. Other proposals, for instance - Multi Modal Integration (MMI) Plans of Nawada Metro Station; Uttam Nagar West Metro Station and Janakpuri East Metro also approved. Status of imple- mentation of other projects earlier approved by the Governing Council was also reviewed. During the meeting, Officials of various agencies and departments were advised to ensure time bound com- pletion of projects as per laid down timelines by way of regular monitoring . =82_Z]3RZ[R]TYRZcd ^VVeZ_X`_f_ZWZVUecRWWZT 4UXYbU`_bdc'^Ug S_b_^QfYbecSQcUc_^U ]_bUTUQdXY^Qcd$Xbc BC055A4?AC4AQ 6DAD6A0 The Gurugram district Health Department has planned to vaccinate the dis- trict's villages in turn. The process will begin from two villages of the district on Friday. According to the health officials, this drive will be started from Aklimpur and Hasanpur villages which falls under the Tigra Primary Health Centre (PHC) at these vil- lage 100 per cent of the eligi- ble persons will be vaccinated. This drive will be done under the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) collabo- ration with British Airways cooperation. The officials informed that this campaign will be launched by the district Civil Surgeon Dr Virender Yadav at 10:30 in village Aklimpur. In the camps of both villages, the first and sec- ond doses of the vaccine will be made to those eligible persons. The Health Department has set a target to vaccinate all the eligible citizens of the vil- lage. Simultaneously, Civil Surgeon has instructed the Health Department team that after the successful organising of this special camp on Friday, similar special vaccination camps will be organised in every village of the district, Deputy Civil Surgeon, Dr MP Singh told. 7µWbQ]fYQWUcd_RUfQSSY^QdUT Y^deb^ccQicXUQdX_VVYSYQc ?=BQ 347A03D= Uttarakhand has great potential in the field of organic farming which can be used to double the income of farmers. The Central govern- ment has also been emphasis- ing on organic farming using modern tools rather than using chemical fertilisers in agricul- ture. The centre is working to make Uttarakhand a progres- sive and prosperous state too. This was stated by the vice chairman of NITI Aayog, Rajiv Kumar during his recent visit to the Nainital district. During his inspection of apple orchards at Dhanachuli and Kasialekh in the district, Kumar empha- sised on organic farming in the state. He also interacted with local farmers who shared their issues regarding farming in the district. Kumar said that organic farming is the future and is currently being done in several states of the country. He stated that he has recently met chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and talked about encouraging organic farming in the State. He added that he will also make Prime Minister Narendra Modi aware of the situation of the farming in the State and will prepare a report to apprise him of the potential of farming here. ?=BQ 347A03D= Former Member of Parliament (MP) and chair- man of Uttarakhand war memorial Tarun Vijay was elected on Thursday to the gov- erning body of Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses (ISDA) which is a defence think tank of the country. In the election Vijay received double the support received by his opponent, G Balakrishnan. Other members of IDSA executive council include Defence minister Rajnath Singh, Foreign secre- tary Harsh Vardhan Shringla, Defence secretary Ajay Kumar and retired ambassadors and armed forces veterans. 1,7,$DRJWRDSSULVH30RI IDUPLQJSRWHQWLDOLQ8 NKDQG FYZQiUUSdUTd_dXY^[ dQ^[_^TUVU^SUcdeTYUc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
- 3. dccPaPZWP]S 347A03D=k5A830H k9D;H %!! ?A8B8=6BC0AC CWTX_TRRPQ[T_^[XcXRP[PcdaXch P]SPSX]XbcaPcXeTPbcdcT]Tbb bW^f]QhcWTh^d]VRWXTUX]XbcTa ?dbWZPaBX]VW3WPXX]cPZX]V STRXbX^]bWPb`dXRZ[hT[TePcTSWX c^cWT_^bXcX^]^UcWT_^bcTaQ^h^U cWTbPUUa^]_PachX]cWT7XP[PhP] bcPcT0UcTaQTX]VWP]S_XRZTSQh cWT19?WXVWR^P]SX]P bda_aXbT^eTU^acWTR^eTcTS RWPXa^U23WPXX_aTbbTS TeTah^]TX]cWTP]]TaX]fWXRW WTb^^cWTScWTUaPhTS]TaeTb^U bT]X^a[TPSTabP]SX]XbcTabfW^fTaT^QeX^db[hWdacQhWXb^dc^Ucda] _a^^cX^]7TU^[[^fTSXcd_fXcWbfXUcbWd]cX]V^dc^U_^fTaUd[ ?aPZPbW^dcUa^cWT_^bXcX^]^UWTPS^UQdaTPdRaPRhP]SP]^X]cTSBB BP]SWdX]WXb_[PRTfW^fPbWTPSX]VP_[dPbbXV]T]cd]STa=XcX] 6PSZPaXPcRT]caTCWXbPRcX^]^UWXbWPbQa^dVWcRWX[[bS^f]cWTb_X]T^U QdaTPdRaPRh^UcWTbcPcTfWXRWXb]^c^aX^dbU^aQTX]V^QbcX]PcTX] RWPaPRcTaP]SSTb_^cXRX]PRcX^]3WPX³baTUdbP[c^P[[^f:P]fPSHPcaP Pbb^RXPcTSSTT_[hfXcWaT[XVX^dbbT]cXT]cb^U7X]SdbX]DccPaPZWP]S cWXbhTPaTb_TRXP[[hPUcTaP_Tab^][XZTH^VX0SXchP]PcWWPSVXeT]PVaTT] bXV]P[c^XcWPbP[b^aTRTXeTSfXSTb_aTPSP__aTRXPcX^]U^aWXbaTb^[eT^U ]^caT_TPcX]VcWTUPcP[XbcPZTR^XccTSSdaX]VcWT:dQWX]7PaXSfPa 0=0;6H102:58A43 0bW^RZX]VbcPcTT]cVXeT]QhP[^dS^dcWTSb_^ZTb_Tab^]^UcWT00? 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He would interact with the media persons on the issue of price rise at head office of Uttarakhand Congress on the day. Pilot would also hold discussions with the party leaders on various issues. Informing about the visit of Pilot, secretary of All India Congress Committee (AICC) Qazi Nizamuddin said that senior leaders of Congress party would address press confer- ences in 23 places across the country on the issue of price rise on Friday. He said that the party would corner the gov- ernment on spiralling prices of general commodities and uncontrolled prices of diesel and petrol. Pilot would be accompanied by the in charge of Uttarakhand Congress Devendra Yadav and other senior leaders of the party. 6DFKLQ3LORWWRODQGLQ'HKUDGXQWRGD ?=BQ 347A03D= Taking the ruling BJP to task for changing rules in its favour, the Uttarakhand Congress has said that land use was changed in gross violation of norms to facilitate construc- tion of the party office of BJP. The spokesperson of Uttarakhand Congress, Garima Dasauni said that initially the rulebook was thrown into the dustbin during the foundation stone laying ceremony of the building for the head office of the party and now an escape door was opened in the recent cabinet meeting. She said that the Cabinet in its meeting held on Wednesday had provided relief to the political parties in the ‘Dehradun Master plan 2025’ for construction of their offices. She said that the BJP is determined to construct a high tech and luxurious office in the state by any means at a time when a large number of people have lost means of livelihood due to the pandemic of Covid- 19. “The proposed party office would have 55 rooms, four halls, a digital library and other modern facilities. It is like rub- bing salts on wounds of people of the state reeling under the onslaughtofpandemic.Itwould have been better had the pre- rogativeofCabinetbeenusedfor any welfare measure,’’ she said. 2^]VPccPRZb19?U^aT]SX]V ad[TbU^a^UUXRTQdX[SX]V 2^]V[TPSTafX[[ PSSaTbbTSXP^] b_XaP[[X]V_aXRTb ?DA=8018B7CQ 347A03D= Though it is always difficult for an individual to come out as a transgenderperson,this process is harder for transgen- der men due to various factors including patriarchy in society. Many are still not aware of the difference between a transgen- der man and a transgender woman which must be changed in order to make society more acceptable towards the trans- gender community. This was stated by trans woman from Dehradun, Natasha Negi who works for the welfare of the LGBT community in Uttarakhand. She said that it is disappointing how many asso- ciate transgenders with Kinnars (eunuchs) due to a lack of edu- cationandawareness.According to her, many do not even know the difference between a trans- gender man and a transgender woman. Transgender man is a person who born as a female and a transgender woman is a person who was born as a male butbothdonotidentifywiththe assigned genders. I think such topics should be taught in schools so that children can know about these things since their childhood rather than being confused or misinformed later, said Negi. She also revealed that it is harder for transgender men to come out because they are identified as a female since their birth and due to the societal pressure on women in society, they do not speak openly about their gender identity.Womenaresuppressed more in the patriarchal society and due to family pressure, many transgender men hide it. This is the reason one will find a handful of trans men in the society, stated Negi. Talkingaboutacceptanceof transgenders in the State, Negi said that the people of Uttarakhand are more support- ive of the transgender commu- nity than many other states in the country as per her experi- ence. She said that earlier, many families used to abandon their children if they come out as a transgender person but now families are accepting them. However,sheadded,itisnotthat simple for everybody. When people, especially teenagers, comeoutastransgendersbutdo not get the support from the family, they go through depres- sion and sometimes fall into the company of wrong people. Manyevenstartusingdrugsthat destroy their life. This is why family support is very crucial when a family member comes out as transgender, said Negi. She also asserted that Uttarakhand government has been quite supportive of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans- gender) community. Negi, who is secretary of the organisation Prayojan Kalyan Samiti that works for the LGBT communi- ty stated that the government recently started issuing identity cards to transgender people which has made their life quite easy in various ways. She explained, The transgender people have to explain them- selves at places like banks, tick- et counters etc, especially those who have gone through gender transitioning process as most of their identities and documents have name and photograph before the transition. Now due to the identity cards issued by the social welfare department, nobody has to explain them- selves. Besides this, it will also help in other fields that are meant to benefit the transgen- dercommunity.Itis certainlyan empowering move for the community by the government here. Informing about the gender transitioning process, Negi explained that this process is mainly done by transgenders to connect with the internal sense of being a man or a woman rather than the gender with which they were born. Many transgenders use medical treat- mentsandprocedureslikebreast implantsorhormonestherapyin the gender transition process. She said, Such treatments are available in government hospi- tals of various states of the country. I hope the govern- ment here also starts to provide this facility to facilitate the tran- sitioning process which is most- ly expensive and unaffordable for everyone. Negi disclosed that her organisation is also planning to releaseahelplinenumbersothat those who feel lost or confused about their gender identity can contact the organisation for counselling and suggestions. She also informed that most of the transgenders are not edu- cated here so they have also approached the government to provide vocational training to make them financially inde- pendent. “The response of govern- ment officials was positive and the training session will prob- ably start in the next few months,” disclosed Negi. 2^X]V^dcXbWPaSTaU^acaP]bT]cWP]U^acaP]bf^T] ?=BQ 347A03D= The State Health Department reported 55 new cases of the novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) and 62 recoveries from the disease in Uttarakhand on Thursday. Death of one patient from Covid-19 was reported on the day by the department. The cumulative count of Covid-19 patients in the state has now increased to 3,41,362 while a total of 3,27,314 patients have recovered from the disease so far. In the state 7354 people have lost their lives to Covid -19 till date. The recovery percent- age from the disease is now at 95.88 and the sample positivity rate is at 5.78 per cent in the state. The authorities collected 23,940samplesindifferentparts of the state on Thursday. Thedepartmentreported17 newpatientsfromDehradun,12 from Haridwar, six from Uttarkashi, five each from Pithoragarh and Rudraprayag, four from Udham Singh Nagar, three from Tehri and one each from Bageshwar, Chamoli and Pauri on Thursday. No new cases of the disease were found from Nainital and Almora dis- tricts on the day. Death of one patientofthediseasewasreport- ed at HNB base hospital Srinagar on Thursday. The state now has only 692 active patients of the disease. Dehradundistrictisattopofthe table in the list of active cases with 272 cases while Haridwar in the second position with 72 active cases. Pauri has 47, Chamoli 43, Tehri 30, Champawat 37, Uttarkashi and Nainital28each,Almora13and Bageshwar only three active cases of the disease. The state reported no new cases of Mucormycosis (Black fungus) on Thursday. However three patients were reported dead from the disease on the day. In the ongoing vaccination drive, the health department vaccinated 63,385 people in 535 sessions held on Thursday. A total of 10,94,257 people have been fully vaccinated so far in the state while 39,87,778 have receivedthefirstdoseofthevac- cine in the state. RYLGQHZSDWLHQWV UHFRYHULHVLQ8¶NKDQG ?=BQ 347A03D= After witnessing violations of Covid-19 guidelines at var- ious tourist spots, the Dehradun districtadministrationhasstart- ed taking stringent actions against the offenders. Besides penalising people in tourist spots, the administration has also started penalising people in other cities of the district too. In the past four days, vari- ous teams of the administration have penalised about 1,000 peo- pleacrossthedistrict.According to the district magistrate Ashish Kumar Srivastava, it is crucial to stay cautious and for both the locals as well as tourists to observe Covid guidelines in all places. The DM has directed the sub divisional magistrates (SDMs) to run intensive check- ingcampaignsacrossthedistrict to check the following of Covid norms. He has instructed the teams to especially check the places like marketplaces, railway stations, bus stations and pop- ulartouristdestinationsonareg- ular basis where people tend to violate the covid norms the most. Srivastava even directed the officials concerned to use loudspeakersoranyothermeans to raise public awareness and issuewarningsfortheoffenders. During the past four days, the teams of administration have imposed penalties in areas like Chakrata, Kalsi, Tyuni, Vikasnagar, Doiwala, Dehradun city, Rishikesh and Mussoorie. Till now, the teams of the administration have fined about 400peopleinDehraduncityand around 70 people in Rishikesh and Mussoorie each. Besides this, about 100 people have been fined in Chakrata, Kalsi and Tyuni area and over 45 peo- ple were penalised in Doiwala. Srivastava asserted that the administration will continue to raise awareness across the dis- tricts besides taking action against the offenders as the risk of Covid contagion has not vanished yet. He also appealed to the public to speak against people who do not follow Covid norms and ask them to wear masks properly and maintain physical distancing in public places as according to the DM, the pub- licinvolvementandcontribution in the implementation of the issued guidelines is the most important factor in reducing Covid scare. 4YcdbYSdQT]Y^VY^Uc QR_ed! `U_`UV_b fY_QdY^W3_fYT^_b]c ?=BQ 347A03D= The Health Minister of Uttarakhand Dhan Singh Rawat has claimed that marked improvement would be visible within three months in the health services in the moun- tainous areas of the state. He gave this assurance while inter- acting with the MLAs of Pauri, Rudraprayag and Chamoli dis- tricts on Thursday. The minis- ter had invited the MLAs of these districts in the review meeting of the officers of the health department he took at the Vidhan Sabha auditorium on the day. The MLAs of these districts complained about a severe shortage of specialist doctors and technicians in the health centres and hospitals located in their areas. The minister informed that the department would soon take measures to appoint specialist doctors, nurses and techni- cians. The MLA specifically informed about shortage of Radiologists, Gynaecologists, Cardiologists and X- Ray tech- nicians in their areas. They also demanded that their Primary Health Centres (PHC) should be upgraded and said that the ultrasound and MRI Machines should be installed in the district hospi- tals. The minister also claimed that all the chief medical offi- cers (CMO) have been direct- ed to take appropriate measures to prevent the probable third wave of the pandemic of Covid-19. Rawat said that the CMOs have been asked to increase the number of ICU beds and beds in PICU, NICU and oxygen supported beds and ensure proper arrange- ment of medicines. He said that ten health camps would be organised in every assembly constituency and the authori- ties have been asked to increase the pace of vaccination drive in the state. The meeting was attended by Rudraprayag MLA Bharat Chaudhary, Kedarnath MLA Manoj Rawat, Tharali MLA Munni Devi Shah, Lansdowne MLA Dilip Rawat, Pauri MLA Mukesh Koli, Yamkeshwar MLA Ritu Khanduri, health secretary Pankaj Pandey and others. 7TP[cWbhbcTX]^d]cPX]^dbPaTPb c^X_a^eTX]^]cWb)X]XbcTa ?=BQ 347A03D= During his second tour of the nation- al Capital within a week, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami met two Union Ministers and the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) on Thursday. He dis- cussed various impor- tant issues of the State with them. Meeting the Union Minister of Railway, Te l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n , Electronics and Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnav, Dhami discussed various rail- way projects in detail. He requested that considering the Rs 296.67 contributed by Uttarakhand so far for the Roorkee-Devband project as adequate, the Ministry and Uttar Pradesh Govt should finance the remaining works. Considering strategic interests and for development of border districts, survey of Tanakpur- Bageshwar broad gauge line instead of narrow gauge should be conducted. Dhami request- ed approval for final location survey for this and construc- tion of Rishikesh-Uttarkashi rail line. Repeating the request of his predecessors, he sought approval for construction of a diversion line at Raiwala rail- way station for direct rail link between Doiwala and Rishikesh along with approval for Rs 1,024 crore DPR for dou- bling of Haridwar-Dehradun railway line. The Union Minister directed the depart- mental officials to take neces- sary action on both these pro- posals. Regarding the develop- ment of infrastructural facilities for Rishikesh-Karnprayag line, Dhami suggested that the pos- sibility of solar energy genera- tion should be considered as part of the infrastructure. During his interaction with the Union Tourism minister G Kishan Reddy, Dhami informed him about tourism development works in Uttarakhand. He sought approval soon for the plan to develop IDPL, Rishikesh into a special tourism zone. He informed that a biodiversity party, international conven- tion centre, resort, hotel and wellness centre are proposed in 600 acres at IDPL, Rishikesh. Thanking Reddy for Rs 55 crore approved for works in Gangotri and Yamunotri, Dhami invited the Union min- ister to visit Uttarakhand. Reddy assured him of all pos- sible assistance from the min- istry. The Chief Minister also met the chief of defence staff, general Bipin Rawat and National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) chief Anil Dhasmana. General Rawat and Dhami discussed devel- opmental aspects of Uttarakhand, especially devel- opment of border areas. Citing strategic importance consider- ing borders with China and Nepal, Dhami sought priority for Uttarakhand in border area development programmes. He stressed on the need for work- ing on schemes to mitigate migration from border areas. The chief minister also sought resumption of recruitment ral- lies stalled due to Covid-19. General Rawat assured of all possible cooperation in devel- opment of the border areas. NTRO chief Anil Dhasmana said that full assis- tance will be provided for development of drone tech- nology in Uttarakhand. 5YR^ZUZdTfddVdDeReVZddfVd hZeYF_Z`_Z_ZdeVcd45D
- 4. ]PcX^]# 347A03D=k5A830H k9D;H %!! A094B7:D0AQ =4F34;78 Dedicated corridors to drone taxis to simplified rules abolishing the need for a pletho- ra of approvals are all part of the draft of Drone Rules 2021 issued by the Ministry of Civil Aviation, replacing the Unmanned Aircraft System Rules, 202, notified on March 12, 2021. The Ministry has invited suggestions and public objections by August 5. As per the draft rules, no pilot licence is required for small drones (that weigh up to 2 kg) being used for non-com- mercial use and security clear- ance will no longer be required before any registration or licence issuance. There will be no restriction on drone operations by foreign-owned companies registered in India. The Centre has come out with a draft rules weeks after the drone attack on the Indian Air Force base in Jammu. The number of forms to be filled to seek authorisation before oper- ating a drone has been reduced from 25 to six. The maximum penalty under new rules will be capped at Rs one lakh. The draft rules say the Central Government may, with- in 30 days of the date of notifi- cation of these rules, publish on the digital sky platform, an air- space map for drone operations segregating the entire airspace of India into red, yellow and green zones, with a horizontal resolution equal or finer than 10 metre. According to the draft rules, approvals for the unique autho- risation number, unique proto- type identification number, cer- tificate of conformance, certifi- cate of maintenance, import clearance, acceptance of existing drones, operator permits, autho- risation of RD organisation, student remote pilot licence, remote pilot instructor autho- risation, drone port authorisa- tion, etc have been abolished. Also, the government will be developing adigital skyplatform that will have an interactive air- space map dividing the country into four zones — green, yellow, and red zones. While most drones will need a unique identification number, a certificate of airwor- thiness, a remote pilot licence for the person controlling the drone and prior permission, no such approvals will be required for drones used for research and development by entities and educational institutions recog- nised by the Central govern- ment, State governments or Union Territory Administrations, start-ups recognised by Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade and drone man- ufacturers having a Goods and Service Tax Identification Number. The draft policy says there will be a minimal human inter- face on the Digital Sky platform and most permissions will be self-generated. It also proposes to reduce fees to nominal levels and not link the fee with the size of the drone. “Safety features like ‘No permission - no take-off (NPNT), real-time tracking beacon, geo-fencing etc to be notified in future. A six-month lead time will be provided for compliance,” it further said. Unlike the previous rules, which required drone operators to have a principal place of busi- ness within India, and the chair- man and at least two-thirds of its directors were required to be citizens of India, in the new pro- posed rules there are no such restrictions for foreign-owned companies registered in India. However, import of drones and drone components will be reg- ulated by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade. Drones will also not need secu- rity clearance before registration or licence issuance. *RYWUHOHDVHVGUDIWUXOHV IRUQHZGURQHSROLF ?=BQ =4F34;78 Aday after India proposed a three-point way forward for peace in Afghanistan, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) has said the activities of terrorist outfits remained a key factor of insta- bility in the country and called on all parties concerned to refrain from actions that could lead to unpredictable conse- quences. While suggesting the way out from the present turmoil in the strife-torn country, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had also said at the SCO con- clave the future of Afghanistan cannot be its past and the world is against seizure of power by violence and force. Thejointstatementafterthe two-day SCO conference in Dushanbe, Tajikistan in the backdrop of the Taliban con- trolling many parts of the coun- try called for increased cooper- ation of all interested states and global organisations under the central coordinating role of the UN for the “stabilisation and development” of Afghanistan. At the meeting on Wednesday, the foreign minis- ters of India, China, Pakistan, Russia and other member coun- tries of the eight-nation group- ing carried out a detailed delib- eration on the deteriorating securitysituationinAfghanistan as the US withdraws its forces from the country. The SCO also reaffirmed its position that there is no alter- native to settling the conflict in Afghanistan through political dialogue and pitched for an inclusive Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process, a position that is similar to that of India’s. “We condemn the ongoing violence and terrorist attacks in Afghanistan, whose victims are civilians and representatives of State authorities, and call for their early cessation. We note that the activity of interna- tional terrorist organizations remains a key factor of insta- bility in that country,” the SCO said. The conclave of foreign ministers took place under the framework of the SCO- Afghanistan Contact Group. “We are deeply concerned by the growing tension in Afghanistan’s Northern Provinces caused by the increased concentration of var- ious terrorist, separatist and extremist groups. We consider it important to step up joint efforts by SCO member states to counter terrorism, sepa- ratism and extremism,” the SCO said. The SCO offered to assist Afghanistan in becoming a country free of terrorism, war and drugs. “The SCO member states confirm their readiness to fur- ther develop cooperation with Afghanistan in combating secu- rity challenges and threats in the region, above all terrorism and drug-related crime in all their forms and manifestations, and to jointly confront ‘double standards’ in addressing these tasks,” according to the state- ment. The SCO said it respects the Afghan people’s autonomous choice of their own path to development and was convinced that the intra- Afghan negotiation process must take into account the interests of all ethnic groups represented in the country. EVcc`c`feWZedVjWRTe`cd Z_2WZ_deRSZ]Zej+D4@ ?=BQ =4F34;78 Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday said the fourth edi- tion of engineering entrance exam JEE-Main has been postponed to August 26-September 2 to give aspirants a four-week gap between two sessions of the crucial exam, The fourth edition of JEE (Main) was earlier scheduled to be held from July 27 to August 2, the sched- ule which was announced by former MoE Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank a day before he resigned from the Modi cabinet. “In view of the persistent demand from the student community andto enable the candidates to maximise their performance, the National Testing Agency has been advised to provide a gap of four weeks between session three and four of the JEE(Main) 2021 exam. “Accordingly, the JEE (Main), 2021, session four will now be held on August 26, 27 and 31, and on September 1 and 2. A total of 7.32 lakh can- didates have already regis- tered for JEE (Main), 2021, session four,” Pradhan tweet- ed. The minister said that registration for the JEE-Main session four is still in progress and dates for regis- tration will be extended up to July 20. #cWTSXcX^]^U 944PX]TgPb _^bc_^]TSc^ 0dVdbc!%BT_c! ?=BQ =4F34;78 The Lok Sabha Secretariat on Thursday issued letters to MPs Sisir Adhikari, Sunil Kumar Mandal and K Raghu Rama Krishnam Raju in response to petitions received under anti-defection law. They have been asked to respond to the letters within 15 days of their receipt, sources said.Both Adhikari and Mandal had switched sides to the BJP from the Trinamool Congress (TMC) ahead of the 2021 West Bengal assembly elections. YSRC MP Raju, on the other had, has been allegedly involved in anti-party activities, leading to the party chief whip in the Lok Sabha requesting Speaker Om Birla to disqualify him. The YSRC alleged that Raju was elected on the party ticket, but he was indulging in anti-party activi- ties.Similarly in June, the TMC had requested the Lok Sabha Speaker to initiate action on the petitions filed by the party, seeking disqualification of Mandal and Adhikari. Mandal, an MP from the East Burdwan seat, had joined the BJP in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah in December last year. Adhikari, who joined the BJP in March this year, is an MP from Contai in East Midnapore dis- trict. His son Suvendu had defeatedChiefMinisterMamata Banerjee from the district’s Nandigram seat by nearly 2,000 votes. ?=BQ =4F34;78 The country’s first world class railway station Gandhinagar Capital Railway Station with facilities and amenities like five star hotels, spa, shopping centres and more will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday. The redeveloped Gandhinagar Capital Railway Station project was done in partnership with the Gujarat state government and the Ministry of Railways through Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation (IRSDC). “The station is future ready, and the concourse will be used for departing passengers when the footfalls increase at the sta- tion. However, in the near future, it is planned to open retail, food and entertainment outlets in this area to serve the demands of the passengers as well as the local population,” said Chairman Railway Board and CEO Indian Railways Suneet Sharma at a curtain rais- er Press conference. Resident Commissioner Gujarat Arti Kanwar was also present at the media conference. The station is equipped with modern facilities like ample waiting spaces, through columnless roof to provide protection against sun/rain etc, air conditioned multipurpose waiting hall, baby feeding room, improved signages and modern toilets, interfaith prayer room for the common man. Other amenities like the art gallery, theme facade lighting, etc will provide additional attractions which will not only enhance passenger satisfaction but will also prove to be a mat- ter of pride for all as this sta- tion can boast of many firsts in the country. Without the concourse, the redeveloped station has been designed to handle 1,500 pas- sengers in peak hour. With the concourse, the capacity will go up to 2,200 passengers in the peak hour. “Market players such as Big Bazaar and Shopper’s Stop have also shown interest in opening their mini outlets making it con- venient for the passengers and local population to shop at the station. The redeveloped station will function like a ‘city centre rail mall’ where travel will be one of the several functions that it will serve,” said a statement by Ministry of Railways. An official statement said that work on the redevelopment of 125 stations is underway. “Out of this, IRSDC is working on 63 stations, and Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA) is working on 60 sta- tions with two stations being taken up by zonal railways. The total investment for the redevelopment of 123 stations along with real estate develop- ment is more than Rs 50,000 crore,” said Sharma. The Habibganj station in Bhopal and the Sir M Visvesvaraya Terminal (SMVT) at Bengaluru have also been recently redeveloped. Work at the Ayodhya, Bijwasan (Delhi), Gomtinagar (Lucknow), Delhi Safdarjung and Ajni (Nagpur) stations are also under progress. Beaides, Modi will also inaugurate the new Railway projects like the gauge convert- ed and electrified Mahesana – Varetha line, and the newly elec- trified Surendranagar – Pipavav section. This section will be integrated with the Dedicated Freight Corridors and is equipped to handle double- stack containers. The PM will also be flagging off the two new trains on the occasion. Redevelopment of Gandhinagar Capital railway station will act as a city boost- er and create investment cycle, job opportunities and in general uplift the economy of Gandhinagar, which is the cap- ital of the state of Gujarat. This is first of its kind pro- ject in India and will pave the way for similar development in land stressed cities like Mumbai and Bangalore. ^SXc^d]eTX[bcPcT^UcWTPac6P]SWX]PVPaA[hBcPcX^]c^SPh ;BBTRaTcPaXPc XbbdTb[TccTabc^? BXbXa0SWXZPaX! ^cWTabd]STa P]cXSTUTRcX^][Pf ?=BQ =4F34;78 Just as India’s foodgrain out- put witnessed a record surge despite challenges posed by Covid-19, the country’s horti- culture production too is like- ly to touch an all-time high of 329.86 million tonnes (MT) in 2020-21 , which is nearly 2.93 percent more than the pro- duction in 2019-20. The pro- duction of fruits is expected to be around 102.08 million tons while vegetables will be 196.27 million tons in 2020-21. Even the production of aromatic and medicinal plants registered a growth of 6.11 percent despite COVID pan- demic. According to the second advance estimates of horticul- ture released by the agriculture ministry, area under horticul- ture was also projected to rise 27.23 million hectare in 2020- 21 against the previous year of 25.66 million hectare. Similarly, total horticulture production is estimated at 329.86 million tons which is an increase of 9.39 million tonnes (2.93%) in comparison to 2019-20. “ This is the result of farmer-friendly policies of the government, hard work of farmers and research of scientists”, said Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Thursday. The minister said the pro- duction of fruits is estimated to be 102.76 million tonnes this year as compared to 102.08 million tonnes achieved in the year 2019-20. The production of vegetables is estimated to be 196.27 mil- lion tonnes (growth of 4.42 per cent) as compared to 188.28 million tonnes in the previous year. The production of onion is estimated to be 26.92 million tonnes as compared to 26.09 million tonnes achieved in the year 2019-20. Similarly, potato production is estimat- ed to be 53.69 million tonnes (an increase of 10.55%) as compared to 48.56 million tonnes in the year 2019-20. Tomato production is report- ed to be 21.00 million tonnes as compared to 20.55 million tonnes in the year 2019-20. Similarly, aromatic and medicinal crops have regis- tered a growth of 6.11% with estimated production of 0.78 million tonnes this year as compared to 0.73 million tonnes in the year 2019-20. The production of plantation crops has increased to 16.60 million tonnes from 16.12 million tonnes in the previous year. 8_bdYSedebU`b_TeSdY_^ c_QbY^WTUc`YdU3_fYT ?=BQ =4F34;78 Several Opposition leaders and civil society activists on Thursday hailed the Supreme Court for asking the Centre whether the sedition law was still needed 75 years after Independence and expressed hope that it would be “thrown out”. Reacting to the Supreme Court terming the sedition law colonial and asking whether it was still needed 75 years after Independence, for- mer Congress chief Rahul Gandhi said, “We welcome this observation by the Supreme Court.” Some leaders, including Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra and Swaraj India president Yogendra Yadav, pointed out that about 100 farmers in Haryana were charged with sedition, among other charges, in connection with an attack on the state deputy speaker’s car during a farmers’ protest. Moitra said she was final- ly hoping “this archaic law misused by GoI will be thrown out. 2SSKDLOV6¶VWDNH RQROGVHGLWLRQODZ ?=BQ =4F34;78 Job applications of around 70 per cent of Gen Z aspi- rants, or those below 24 years, were rejected during the Covid- 19 pandemic. According to a Linkedin survey ‘Career Aspirations Gen Z India’, 72 per cent students and 65 per cent Gen Z Indians were professionally impacted during the second wave of COVID. The trend points to higher youth unemployment in the country. India is witnessing a steep increase in joblessness since the outbreak of the pan- demic in the country last year as economic growth took a beating and employers retrenched millions from work, both in the formal and informal sector. LinkedIn commissioned research firm GfK to conduct the survey, which was done in June. It focuses on insights of 1,000 Gen Z students and pro- fessionals in the age group of 18 to 24 years. The surveys said around 90% of Gen Z job applicants are demotivated after job offer rejections. And at least 51% of Gen Z Indians want employers to make skill- based hires today, as work experience remains a chal- lenge. The study claimed “Gen Z Indians cited fewer opportu- nities, followed by ‘slower recruitment’ and ‘higher com- petition’ as the top three rea- sons affecting their job search today. Other barriers in pur- suing job opportunities include lack of guidance for skilling and increased familial respon- sibilities due to Covid-19”. Around 72 per cent of the students stated that intern- ship opportunities had also greatly reduced during the pandemic’s second wave. 9^QP__[XRPcX^]b^UPa^d]S ^U6T]IPb_XaP]cb aTYTRcTSSdaX]V2^eXS HQWUHUHYLHZVRYLG SUHSDUHGQHVVZLWK6WDWHV ?=BQ =4F34;78 The Union Health Ministry on Thursday reviewed preparations under ‘India Covid-19 Emergency Response and Health Systems Preparedness Package : Phase II’ scheme with all States and stressed the need to ramp-up Covid testing, tracking, treat- ing and isolating strategy. It has directed State govern- ments to scale-up bed strength including for paediatric care and makeshift hospitals in sub-district levels. They’ve been also urged to send their expenditure proposals at the earliest to enable expeditious approval from Centre. The Ministry reviewed the ECRP-II entailing C23,123-crore with Health Secretaries and senior officials of all States/Union Territories through a video conference. “In the meeting, stakeholders were also asked to ensure availability of critical drugs, testing kits and PPEs besides enhancing oxygen availability and strengthening home and village/community isolation centres/ COVID care cen- tres,” said the Ministry. The Cabinet approved the new scheme for financial year 2021-22 on July 8. This pack- age aims to accelerate health system preparedness for immediate responsiveness for early prevention, detection and management with a sharp focus on health infrastructure development, including pae- diatric care and with measur- able outcomes. The States were advised to conduct a quick gap analy- sis for various infrastructure components under the sec- ond phase of the ECRP, including their IT infra- structure readiness. The focus on the need for ramping up test, track, treat and isolate strategy, requirement for scal- ing up testing capacity, addi- tional beds, including for paediatric care and makeshift hospitals in sub-district lev- els, ensuring availability of critical drugs, testing kits and PPEs, enhancing oxygen availability and strengthening home and village, communi- ty isolation centres and Covid care centres were highlighted during the meeting. The final year MBBS stu- dents, UG interns and PG residents may be utilised under the supervision of the faculty as per the National Medical Commission Guidelines for providing ser- vices of mild Covid manage- ment through tele-consulta- tion, the states and UTs were told. Similarly, final nursing graduates may be utilised for full-time Covid nursing duties at government facilities under the supervision of a senior faculty as per the Indian Nursing Council Guidelines and support of remuneration and incentives to these human resources for health under the ECRP-II may be leveraged by states effectively in the times of need, the Centre said. It was also pointed out that procurement of drugs for effective Covid management is an essential component of ECRP-II; guidelines on pro- curement and buffer stocks have already been shared with states, which may be adopted for this purpose. Guidance can be tweaked to local needs and states must come up with their own assessments based on stocks and costs involve. ?=BQ =4F34;78 As Pfizer and Johnson and Johnson have not applied for the licence in India, the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) has urged both the pharma companies to apply for emergency use authorisation for their Covid- 19 vaccine so that application is processed well in time. Apart from Covishield, Covaxin and Russia’s Sputnik V, Moderna’s mRNA Covid- 19 vaccine has also received emergency use authorization (EUA) from the DCGI. The Union Health Ministry on Thursday said that over 40.31 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses have so far been pro- vided to states/UTs in the country and more than 1.92 crore balance and unutilised jabs are still avail- able with them and private hospitals. DCGI has written twice to these two pharma compa- nies but they have not applied. Sources in the gov- ernment said the indemnity clause has emerged as a point of contention in the talks with Moderna and Pfizer. US vaccine makers Moderna and Pfizer have been insist- ing on an indemnity clause before committing to sup- plying their Covid-19 vac- cines to India. As DCGI approved Moderna, Cipla will import the vaccines from the US but there has been no decision on legal indemnity so far. In a statement, the min- istry said 83,85,790 more doses are in the pipeline.”More than 40.31 crore (40,31,74,380) vaccine doses have been provided to s t a t e s / U n i o n Territories (UTs) so far through all sources, and a further 83,85,790 doses are in the pipeline. Of this, the total consumption, including wastages, is 38,39,02,614 doses (according to data available at 8 am Thursday),” the ministry said. More than 1.92 crore (1,92,71,766) balance and unutilised Covid vaccine doses are still available with the states/UTs and private hospitals to be administered, it said. The new phase of uni- versalisation of COVID-19 v a c c i n a t i o n programme commenced from June 21. Under the nationwide vaccination drive, the Government of India has been supporting the states/UTs by providing them the vaccines. ?UXiTa9^W]b^]P]S9^W]b^]PbZTSc^ P__[hU^aTTaVT]RhdbT]^SU^acWTXaYPQb
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- 6. (decency) or tamaddun (cul- ture)? Despite all their pre- cautions, many a boy was vic- timised. To offer a quick glance at the world situation, today the planet has 8 billion people, which since 1900 AD has grown from 2 billion. In other words, in 120 years, the plan- et’s population has quadru- pled. At some point in num- bers, we must halt this human multiplication. I remember our Prime Minister saying that India can enjoy a popu- lation dividend. He was right, provided the young Indians of today are able to become truly educated and realise their potential. To educate and empower so many people would be a Herculean task. The way UP is going, leave alone education, there would be no space to even stand before long. Already, there live about 10,000 people per sq km and yet on televi- sion, Opposition spokesper- sons have been asking whether Yogi has a “commu- nal” motive of introducing this two-child law. In fact, we should all get together and spread this initiative across the country. On the one hand, many of us are crying aloud about a change but none of us feels anxious about a change in cli- mate resulting in, from time to time, a failure of crops and, thereby, food shortages. I feel it is essential to insure our- selves schematically against a drop in food production. On an average, an animal yields a kilo of meat by eating approximately nine to ten times of vegetarians. Non- vegetarian food, therefore, is clearly a huge drain on the planet’s flora and fauna. For people of the world to turn vegetation is to economise on the amount of food con- sumed directly or indirectly. Uttar Pradesh is one of the lesser industrialised States in the country. Its Chief Minister feels that it is the Government’s duty to fill up the lacuna and thus create a bigger base for increasing employment and, at the same time, enlarge the economy by increasing the GDP. This can be achieved either by control- ling the population or finding the wherewithals for creating new industries, more tourism, service sector et al. All this would require more invest- ment to vastly increase the skills required. I suppose all this is possible, but it would be a long journey. Population control certainly is a much easier and quicker process. The other path just described would appear a pipe dream to many. What is not a dream is what climate can do to coun- tries. With this stupendous increase in world population, we occupy, more or less, the same land area. We cultivate about the same area of land. Is it surprising that the climate is changing towards the unpredictable? The earth is getting warmer. Imagine parts of Canada are experiencing 50°C temperature. As a result, the sea level would rise and drown the coastal areas of many a country. Our neigh- bour Bangladesh has been predicted to lose to drowning 17 per cent of its coast in about 30 years. (The writer is a well- known columnist, an author and a former member of the Rajya Sabha. The views expressed are personal.) =9CC973855B5D8EC91C=1DD?;I? Sir — For the first time in the history of Olympics, no fans will be allowed at the TokyoOlympicsscheduledforlateJulyand early August. A COVID emergency has been declared in Tokyo. Sadly, the fastest manandwomanintheworldwillgettothe finishlinewithoutthespectators’applause and cheer. It is sad that the opening parade of nations, where the smallest to the largest contingentwavetheirflagswithpride,will turntheirheadsandlookatemptystands. TheimpactofCOVID-19onsportsvaries fromregiontoregion.Indiahadtosuspend even a fanless IPL due to the second COVID wave while Euro 2021 took place amidst roaring audiences. Japan has vac- cinated only 15 per cent of its population. SarahGilbert,whohelpeddevelopthe Oxford/AstraZenecavaccine,wasgivena standingovationattheWimbledonrecent- ly by a large number of unmasked people. Onewonderswhatisthepurposeofsports without spectators and enthusiasm? True, Olympics means setting new records, breaking old ones, achieving excellence,entertainmentandsolidarity.We will miss the excitement and thrill at the Tokyo Olympics. Venu GS | Kollam ;1G1BI1DB19EDD1B1;814E@ Sir — The Uttarakhand Government must be lauded for cancelling this year KanwarYatra,aneventthatdraws120lakh devotees from different parts of India. Earlier, super-spreader events like the Haridwar Kumbh had aptly demonstrat- ed how dangerous it is to throw caution to the winds, which was well document- ed to have claimed several lives owing to the callousness of both the Government and the citizens. The recent spate of tourists thronging hill stations without following necessary COVID-appropriate behaviour also high- lights that people have become careless. It is naive to assume that the virus will not replicate.Moreover,thePrimeMinisterhas alreadyaskedthepublictoremainextracau- tious ahead of the imminent third wave, whichcanbemoreseverethanthesecond. Both the Government and general public have to play an important role in tackling this crisis. It would be in public interest if the UP Government can show a similar gesture as allowing such events to take place is inim- icaltopeople’shealthandlives.Itistimeto learnvaluablelessonsandexerciserestraint to curb the onset of the third wave. It can costthecountrydearly.Atpresent,disallow- ingsuchlargegatherings isthebestwayto keep the virus at bay. Vijay Singh Adhikari | Nainital 6BCD1CG1=IµC451D89C=EB45B Sir — The death of tribal rights activist FatherStanSwamyasanundertrialprison- erintheBhima-Koregaonviolencecasehas led to widespread indignation across the country. It is highly unfortunate that in a countrywherethejailsareoverflowingwith undertrial prisoners, an 84-year old man with frail health was picked up and made an accused on charges that were not even examinedbyanycourt.(‘Anaugustrequiem for Father Stan Swamy’, July 15). Inspiringly, even as his health deterio- ratedinsidetheprison,thepriest’sthoughts andprayerswerealwayswithco-prisoners. In fact, Swamy even told the court that he didn’texpect tolivelongandwishedtodie amongsthispeopleinRanchi.Butdistress- ingly, even his simple request could not be metbyourjudicialsystem.Itisoutrageous that for his age and ill-health, Swamy was putinprisoninthefirstplace,andthattoo during the time of the pandemic. Stan Swamy’sdeathisajudicialmurderinwhich everyagencyofthecriminaljusticesystem is complicit. Ranganathan Sivakumar | Chennai A 2 A 6 C H : E 9 A 2 D D : @ ? gggTQYi`Y_^UUbS_] UPRTQ^^ZR^SPX[h_X^]TTak /CWT3PX[h?X^]TTak X]bcPVaPR^SPX[h_X^]TTa 347A03D=k5A830H k9D;H %!! % BT]Sh h^daU UTTSQPRZc c^) [TccTabc^_X^]TTa/VPX[R^ 8]cWT[Pbc !hTPabcWT_[P]Tc³b_^_d[PcX^]WPb`dPSad_[TS0cb^T _^X]cX]]dQTabfTdbcWP[ccWXbWdP]d[cX_[XRPcX^] C74F0H DCC0A?A034B7 8B68=6;40E4 0;=4 43D20C8= C74A4FD;314 =B?024C 4E4=BC0=3 145A4;=6 0;A403HC74A4 ;8E401DC ?4?;4 ?4AB@: ;4CC4AB CC C74438CA @B16E 6A0380 2 WXTU9dbcXRT^U8]SXP=EAPP]PWPbaPXbTS cWT`dTbcX^]fWTcWTacWTbTSXcX^][PffWXRW XbPR^[^]XP[[TVPRhXb]TRTbbPahPUcTa$ hTPab^U8]ST_T]ST]RT8c³bP`dTbcX^]cWPcfT PbP]PcX^]]TTSc^P]bfTafXcWb^TdaVT]Rh C^SaXeTW^TcWTTgcT]cc^fWXRWcWTbTSXcX^] [PfXbP]SRP]QTXbdbTScWT298WPbR^ _PaTSXcc^P°bPfX]cWTWP]Sb^UP]^eTaiTP[ ^dbRPa_T]cTa±P]h_T^_[TWPeTWPSc^bdU UTaPUcTaQTX]VUP[bT[hRWPaVTSd]STacWTbTSX cX^][PfCWThPaTc^^P]hc^R^d]ccWTQd[Z ^UfWXRWPaTPRcXeXbcb_^[XcXRP[SXbbT]cTabP]S Y^da]P[Xbcb ATRT]c[h bTSXcX^] RWPaVTb fTaT b[P__TS^]:TaP[PY^da]P[XbcBXSSX`dT:P__P]P]S ;PZbWPSfTT_UX[PZTa0hTbWPBd[cWP]P7^f R[XPcTPRcXeXbc3XbWPAPeXfPbQ^^ZTSU^abTSX cX^]U^aWTabd__^acc^UPaTab³_a^cTbcbXbbcX[[ UaTbWX]^daT^ah7PabWcaTPcT]cfPbTcTS ^dcc^BcP]BfPhXcR[PXTSWXb[XUTQTRPdbT WT fPb PRRdbTS ^U bTSXcX^db PRcXeXch CWT STUT]STa^UWdP]aXVWcbQTRPTPRPbdP[chc^ cWTbTSXcX^][Pf CWTRWX[[X]VTUUTRc^UcWTbTSXcX^][PfP]ScWT UTPa^UQTX]VQ^^ZTSd]STaXcXbcWTaPXb^]S´T caT U^aaTcPX]X]VXcX]cWT8?2=PcdaP[[hXcbRPaTb _T^_[TfWT]cWThPaTRWPaVTSd]STaBTRcX^] !# 0^UcWT8?2STP[X]VfXcWcWT^UUT]RT^UbTSXcX^] CWT[PfcWPccWT1aXcXbWdbTSc^_d]XbWUaTTS^ UXVWcTabXb]^fQTX]VdbTSc^_d]XbWcW^bTfW^ aTUdbTc^bX]V_PTP]bc^cWTad[X]VSXb_T]bPcX^] C^QTSXbPUUTRcTSfXcWcWT6^eTa]T]c^UcWTSPh XbP[TVXcXPcTaXVWcX]PST^RaPRhBcX[[cWT8?2 T`dPcTb°SXbPUUTRcX^]c^fPaSbcWT6^eTa]T]c± fXcWbTSXcX^] 0b_^X]cTS^dcQhcWT298cWTR^]eXRcX^]aPcT X]bTSXcX^]RPbTbXb]TV[XVXQ[TFT]^fSaPfcWT W^_TcWPcXcXb]^f^][hPPccTa^UcXTQTU^aT cWTR^d]cah³bc^_R^dacad[TbcWTbTSXcX^][Pf d]R^]bcXcdcX^]P[P]SbcaXZTbXcS^f] 63PeXSX[c^]| :P]hPZdPaX DY]Ud_cSbQ`dXUcUTYdY_^Qg :KLWLVQHFHVVDU WRFRQWUROSRSXODWLRQ U ttar Pradesh has a lit- tle over seven per cent of India’s land area, but 17 per cent of the country’s population. In other words, the State’s people live cheek by jowl. The second largest State, Maharashtra, in comparison, has 9.3 per cent of the country’s land area and only 9.28 per cent population. Unlike UP, no other State in the coun- try has such an adverse man- land ratio. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has apparently realised the adversity of the sit- uation and has taken action in the form of a proposed law which, in a sense, amounts to hum do hamare do. A family planning law was brought in by Indira Gandhi in the 1970s for the entire country. In principle, her proposal did not provoke any great protest; actually, none at all. Its implementation by her bureaucracy, being somewhat ham-handed, drew opposition, which was muted because the Emergency was in force. When campaigning for the 1977 gen- eral elections began, protests by the Hindus in UP, where I spent a fortnight to observe the elec- tioneering, broke out. One Shyamlal Tiwari, who was kind enough to join my friend Raju and I in the course of the morning at Prayagraj (then Allahabad) happened to tell us that he was a 56-year-old widower with four children. Yet, the police dragged him to a nasbandi (sterilisation) centre and forced him to undergo a vasectomy. Later, Tiwari took us to a colony where mainly Muslims resided. That was an experience; the protests were so vociferous. There were quite a few ladies who said that never again would they vote for the Congress. The party did not even know that our Holy Prophet has ordained us to bring forth more children. The Congress regime’s Government servants chased their young sons to force them to undergo nasbandi. In order to protect them, the womenfolk would get up at 3 am, cook what they could and send the boys away with their food into the fields and farms for the day, and not come back till after dark. 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- 7. 9LVLWRIWKH'HOLPLWDWLRQ RPPLVVLRQWR- . E0228=4B7AC064B0A470?4A8=63A8E4B4E4= 8=BC0C4B5A84=3;HCC74386E4A=4=C 14B834BC7B46E4A=431HC74??B8C8= °2=6A4BB;4034A 908A0A04B7 ?;8C8280=B0:8=68B;4038=624=CB=443 C8=CAB?42C©C74H0A4=C0F0A4503E0=24 8=5A0C8=A460A38=6E0228=4BD??;H °D=8=740;C78=8BC4A 0=BD:70=30E8H0 T he successful completion of the all-party meeting held by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi has rung the bell for the resumption of the political process in Jammu Kashmir. Modi told the atten- dees: “Our priority is to strengthen grass- roots democracy in JK. Delimitation has to happen at a quick pace so that polls can happen and JK gets an elected govern- ment that gives strength to JK’s devel- opment trajectory.” Both he and Home Minister Amit Shah appealed to the par- ties to participate in the delimitation process. The delimitation has been necessitat- ed consequent to the reorganization of the state into two union territoriesunder the JK Reorganization Act, 2019 (referred to as the Act) which also increased the number of assembly seats by seven to a total of 90 seats. The JK Delimitation Commission came into existence under provisions of Part V of the Act, passed by both houses of Parliament in August 2019. The delimitation is to be based on Census-2011. Political parties and social organizations have since woken up from deep slumber.The Delimitation Commission started immediate action. To begin with, the response of the Kashmir-based political parties has been lukewarm to the extent that three asso- ciate members of the Commission belonging to the National Conference (NC) announced a boycott of the body. They claimed that they are against the Act and have appealed to the Supreme Court against it. Thus, any action taken under the provisions of the Act was “unconsti- tutional” till the Court gives its verdict. The other members of the Gupkar Alliance echoed the same sentiments. But the PM’s appeal to the Kashmiri leaders at the meeting appears to have had a mag- ical effect with all parties except Mehbooba Mufti’s PDP coming on board and agreeing to cooperate with the Commission. There are many voices in the Valley claiming to be legal experts, stating that there is no correlation between delimitation and elections. They demand full statehood followed by elec- tions and delimitation thereafter. The demand does not hold ground because the erstwhile assembly of JK was based on the Constitution of JK which has become redundant after the revocation of Article 370. The State was further divid- ed into two UTs with JK having a leg- islative assembly with an increase in its strength. Hence, delimitation of fresh ter- ritorial constituencies before holding elections is necessary. Their narrative has possibly been built to add confusion and avoid further alien- ation of the vast majority of the Kashmiris from them. The latter are already disil- lusioned with the constituents of the Gupkar Alliance for their frequent shift- ing of goalposts. 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