Expedite Palamuru-RR project to stop migration: CM KCR...Jan 24, 2021 · 3 Petrol, diesel prices...

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any important work)

Rahukalam: 04:39 pm – 06:03 pm

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SUNDAR PICHAI, TIM COOK APPLAUDJOE BIDEN'S IMMIGRATION REFORMS

WHO CHIEF THANKS INDIA, PM MODI FOR‘SUPPORT TO GLOBAL COVID RESPONSE’

ANAND GIFTS SUVs TO SIX INDIANCRICKETERS AFTER TEST SERIES WIN

INDIA SAYS IT DOESN'T SUPPORT TREATYON PROHIBITION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS

US IT sector and business groups, includingtechnology giants Google and Apple, have

applauded President Joe Biden's steps toinitiate immigration reforms, underlining thatthe move would boost American economy,create jobs and attract and retain the besttalent from across the world. On day one ofhis presidency on Wednesday, PresidentBiden sent a comprehensive immigration billto Congress which proposes major overhaulsto the system, including granting legal statusand a path to citizenship to tens of thousandsof undocumented immigrants and other groups and reduce the timethat family members must wait outside the US for green cards.

The World Health Organisation has thankedIndia for "continued support" in the fight

against the COVID-19 pandemic. India has beensending vaccines to countries in the South Asianneighbourhood and to others like Brazil andMorocco. South Africa will also get the vaccinesoon. "Thank you #India and Prime Minister@narendramodi for your continued support to theglobal #COVID19 response. Only if we#ACTogether, including sharing of knowledge, canwe stop this virus and save lives and livelihoods,"WHO director general Tedros AdhanomGhebreyesus tweeted. Thank you #India and Prime Minister @narendramodifor your continued support to the global #COVID19 response.

Team India players, after scripting one of themost memorable overseas wins in the recent

Test series in Australia, received a rousingreception as they returned home from DownUnder. India were forced to make lots of changesin their playing XI throughout the four-matchseries due to injuries and unavailability ofplayers. The Test series saw the visitors handingdebuts to as many as five players. Despite theconstant chopping and changing in the XI andfielding an inexperienced side, India managed towin the series 2-1. On Saturday, Anand Mahindratook to Twitter to announce that he will gift six SUVs to the Indian cricketerswho played their first Test in Australia and stood up to challenge.

As the first-ever treaty to ban nuclearweapons entered into force, India said on

Friday that it does not support the treaty andshall not be bound by any of the obligationsthat may arise from it. The Treaty on theProhibition of Nuclear Weapons was approvedby the United Nations General Assembly in2017, but none of the nine countries known orbelieved to possess nuclear weaponssupported it and neither did the NATO alliance.The treaty came into force on Friday. In astatement, the Ministry of External Affairs saidIndia continues to attach high priority and remains committed touniversal, non-discriminatory and verifiable nuclear disarmament.

SUPER MOM, SUPER WOMAN, SUPER SRIJANA

WARS OVER WATER

Will KCR and Jaganmeet again?PNS n HYDERABAD

Although India has seen manyinter-state water disputes sinceIndependence, the ones thathave cropped up between theTelugu states post bifurcationare somewhat different andmay have far-reaching conse-quences. For, central to thepresent disputes between thetwo states on the sharing ofKrishna and Godavari watersis the improper implementa-tion of the Andhra PradeshReorganization Act-2014passed by Parliament, mainlywith regard to the distributionof assets and liabilities of pub-lic sector organizations andgovernment undertakingcompanies.

Observers are concernedthat the present 'cold war'between the two states, despitefour rounds of meetingsbetween the present ChiefMinisters of AP andTelangana,

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Hyderabad SchoolParents Association (HSPA)has urged the state govern-ment to simplify the processof Class X examination bylimiting the syllabus to 50 percent, (instead of just 30 percent as decided by the author-ities) and provide study mate-rial in the form video lessons,exercises and Q&A types tostudents.

Welcoming the Telangana

government's decision to con-duct Class X exams on May27, 2021, the HSPA demand-

ed the government to issuestrict guidelines,

Parents urge the govt toreduce Class-X syllabus

Muthoot Fin robbers nabbed by Cybd copsPNS n HYDERABAD

Eight members of an armedgang, who had robbed goldand cash from a MuthootFinance Limited branch atHosur of Krishnagiri district inTamil Nadu on Friday, werearrested on the outskirts ofHyderabad on Saturday. Thegang had robbed 25,091 gramsof gold jewellery worth around?7.5 crore and ?96,000 cash in

broad daylight from thebranch.

The armed gangsters werenabbed by the Cyberabadpolice within hours of the jew-

ellery heist.The mastermind of the heist,

Rup Singh Baghal, 22, wasnabbed by police, along withother accused. It was theirsecond vain dacoity attempt,after a similar bid in MuthootFinance's unit in Ludhiana,Punjab failed in October.

The other arrested accusedwere identified as ShankerSingh Baghal, Pavan KumarVishkarma, Bhupendhar

Manji,Vivek Mandal , TeakRam, Rajiv Kumar and LulyaPandey.

Three months back, RupSingh Baghal, along withanother accomplice Amit,landed in Bangalore to selecttheir target to commit robbery.Finally, in the first week ofJanuary they zeroed in ontheir target -- Muthoot Financebranch in Krishnagiri.

Stop politicking,Kishan tells TRS

APSEC ignores Govt pleas, goesahead with poll notificationC PRADEEP KUMARn VIJAYAWADA

The State ElectionCommission on Saturdayignored the fervent appeal byChief Secretary AdityanathDas communicated by a letteron Friday and issued the noti-fication for conduct of elec-tions to gram panchayats inAndhra Pradesh, the firstphase of which will be heldhere on February 5.

Making it clear that theGovernment will have to facethe consequences “if anythingdoesn’t go well” State ElectionCommissioner NimmagaddaRamesh Kumar issued thenotification.

In the first phase, grampanchayats under 146 revenuemandals in 11 districts will go

to polls, according to the noti-fication.

The SEC called the grampanchayat elections 'historic',given the circumstances underwhich they were being held.

“People are very enthusias-tic to take part in the electionprocess.

Govt staff refuseto cooperateS

tate Election CommissionerNimmagadda Ramesh

Kumar continued to faceobstacles on Saturday in hisquest to conduct the grampanchayat polls. The SECcalled a video conference withdistrict officials from acrossthe state immediately afterannouncing the electionnotification, but was met witha blank screen since no officerwas “available” for theconference from any of thedistricts. It may be mentionedhere that on Friday, ChiefSecretary Adityanath Das hadwritten to the SEC,

TRS all set to give a big shocker to BJPPNS n GODAVARIKHANI

The Telangana Rashtra Samiti,in what is seen as a thermaltadaka, may reduce in the coalbelt the firepower of theBharatiya Janata Party, whichhas been on the ascendant in thestate since the DubbakAssembly bypoll, by pinchingthe latter's 'Singareni siren' toboost its own chances in theupcoming Singareni-recognisedtrade union elections.

The TRS has extended aninvitation to SingareniCoalmines Karmika Sangh(BMS) old horse Kengarla

Mallaiah, regarded as Singarenisiren, asking him to quit theunion affiliated with BJP andreturn to his parent organisationviz. Telangana Boggu GanulaKarmika Sangh (TBGKS). He islikely to return to TBKS soon.In that eventuality, it would beshocker to the BJP.

Mallaiah was with theTBGKS right from its inception.He ran the activities of thesangh single-handedly. Hecarved a niche for himself in all11 mining areas of the SingareniCollieries Company Limited.He served as its president andgeneral secretary. Mallaiah led

the TBGKS from the front for16 years since 2003. He quit hisparent organisation in 2019 tojoin the Singareni Coalmines

Karmika Sangh, following dif-ferences with the leadership. Hequit the organisation as he hadno assurance from the TRS.

Malliah subsequently joinedthe Singareni Collieries KarmikaSangh and became its president.Although tasked with leading

the BMS to victory in the forth-coming SCCL recognised tradeunion elections, he has beenseething with anger for lack ofproper 'recognition' in BMS. So,he has kept himself away BMSactivities for the past threemonths.

Technical glitches in CoWINaffecting the vax programmePNS n HYDERABAD

Glitches in CoWin mobileapplication have resulted inslow uptake of the vaccinationprogramme.

In Mahabubnagar district,the names of 300 people whohad registered their names inthe mobile application havegone missing. In Jadcherla,the CoWIN app failed toopen. In Medak district, themobile application did notrespond due to problems inservers. These are just someof the technical impediments.

Some of those who hadregistered their names viathe mobile application, inresponse to mobile messagesreceived, went to the desig-nated vaccination centres onlyto be disappointed. To theirsurprise, their names havebeen listed for vaccination ina centre other than the one towhich they had been assignedand informed via the mobile

message. Names of some oth-ers have not been found inany of the vaccination centres.Names of some of the appli-cants were found in a differ-ent district.

The mobile application hasno feature to trace the names.Even if the messages are beingsent to the mobiles, some ofthe messages are not going tothe intended mobiles.

Errors in surnames andaddresses as well as lack ofcoherence in details on the

identify card and the detailsfurnished to the mobile appli-cation, discrepancies in agesand designation have beenposing problems, causingconfusion among those whointended to get vaccinatedagainst the virus.

Avian fluconfirmed in9 states: GovtPNS n NEW DELHI

The Centre on Saturday saidbird flu in poultry has beenconfirmed so far in ninestates of Kerala, Haryana,Madhya Pradesh,Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh,Uttarakhand, Gujarat, UttarPradesh and Punjab.

The avian influenza hasbeen confirmed in 12 statesfor crow/migratory/wildbirds.

"Till January 23, 2021, out-breaks of Avian Influenza(Bird flu) have been con-firmed in nine states (Kerala,Haryana, Madhya Pradesh,Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh,Uttarakhand, Gujarat, UttarPradesh and Punjab) forpoultry birds," Ministry ofFisheries, Animal Husbandryand Dairying said in a state-ment.

Bird flu has been con-firmed in 12 States -- MadhyaPradesh,

Larry King,broadcastinggiant, dies at 87

Full report in page 10

Mallaiah led the TBGKS from the front for 16 yearssince 2003. He quit his parent organisation in 2019 tojoin the Singareni Coalmines Karmika Sangh,following differences with the leadership. He quit theorganisation as he had no assurance from the TRS

PNS n HYDERABAD

Chief Minister KChandrashekhar Rao hasinstructed the officials con-cerned to ensure that thePalamuru-Rangareddy Project,aimed at supplying water forirrigation to the combinedMahbubnagar district (referredto as 'Migration district' becausepeople in large numbers migratefrom the district) and thedrought-stricken Rangareddydistrict, is completed cent per-cent by the end of 2021.

The Chief Minister wantedthe works on the Dindi project,which would supply irriga-

tion water to fluoride-hit,deficit-rainfall regions likeMunugode, Devarakonda inNalgonda district, to be expe-

dited and completed within sixmonths. He said funds forthese two projects would notbe a constraint and budgetary

allocations would be made incoming Budget too.

Expedite Palamuru-RR projectto stop migration: CM KCR

‘Encourage people to drinkBhagiratha water’

Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao exhorted officials toencourage people to drink the pure, safe water beingsupplied under Mission Bhagiratha of the Telangana Stategovernment. Since Mission Bhagiratha water was beingsupplied also in bottles at all levels -- from Gram PanchayatOffices to the State Secretariat, it should be used. All therequired minerals were present in adequate quantities inMission Bhagiratha water, he said.

Names of yet someothers have beenfound in a differentdistrict. The mobileapplication has nofeature to trace thenames. Even if themessages are beingsent to the mobilemessages, themessages are notgoing to theconcerned mobile

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PNS n HYDERABAD

Union Minister of State forHome Affairs G KishanReddy has refuted ITMinister KT Rama Rao'sreported remarks that the"Centre has been lookingdown upon south India".

Addressing media personshere on Saturday, Kishanadvised the TRS governmentto stop unnecessary politick-ing for its own benefit.

Even before KTR couldrequest the Centre, the UnionGovernment had allotted theNational CooperativeDevelopment Corporation(NCDC) to Hyderabad, hepointed out and added that thestate government should allotsuitable land for the corpora-tion. The Centre had in factcome forward to set up manymore organisations in thestate, but the state governmenthad not been allotting suitablelands for them, he alleged.

‘Water Resources Department empowered, deliver by end of 2021'

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hyderabad 02

EGG RATES

` 50, 130 (10 gm)

` 170

GOLD

` 71, 350 (1kg)` 50

HYDERABAD 380

VIJAYAWADA 516

VISAKHAPATNAM 505

RREETTAAIILL PPRRIICCEE `̀33.. 8800

SILVER

HYDERABAD

BULLION RATES

`̀//110000

CHICKEN RATES

Dressed/With Skin `123

Without Skin `140

Broiler at Farm `85

`̀//KKGG

(IN HYDERABAD)

HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | JANUARY 24, 2021

DURGA PRASAD SUNKU n HYDERABAD

A 27-year-old stone cutterShaik Azaruddin contested forSarpanch post of Kashagudemvillage of Ranga Reddy districtwith a hope to develop his vil-lage. However, he couldn't asthe funds for the village devel-opment remained on papers.Likewise, many youngsterscontested and won the grampanchayat elections unani-mously.

After repeated requests andtrying all sort of things to getthe funds released went vain,he decided to mortgage theornaments of his wife andtook hand loans to spend onworks like development ofgrave yard, plantation of treesand others in his village.

However, neither he could-n't get back the mortgagedornaments not repay his debts.Depressed over the same, hetook the extreme step of com-mitting suicide. This is not justone odd case, the situation ofall gram panchayats is sameeverywhere in the state.

Local self governance bod-

ies are facing fund crunchsince two years and it hasbecoming a hurdle forsarpanches to fulfill their assur-ances and develop their villagesthrough self governance. Inview of the same, Forum forGood Governance (FGG)urged state government torelease the funds.

State governments should

release Rs 10 lakhs to grampanchayats for the develop-ment works at grassroot levelwho elected their sarpanchunanimously. Elections wereheld previously in 2019. In thestate of Telangana electionswere held for 12,680 grampanchayats. Of them sarpanch-es in 1,935 gram panchayatswere elected unanimously.

The secretary of Forum forGood Governance (FGG)Padmanabha Reddy said,"Before the elections, govern-ment announced an incentiveof Rs 10 lakh to each gram pan-chayat where unanimous elec-tions will be held. Added to it,Minister for MunicipalAdministration KT Rama Raoannounced that another Rs 15

lakhs from MLA funds(Assembly ConstituencyDevelopment fund) will bereleased to gram panchayats,where unanimous electionswill be held."

However, these incentiveshaven't been released by thestate government yet. Due towhich many sarpanches whohave been elected unanimous-ly had to face a tough time.

Reacting sharply on the laps-es in releasing the incentive,Padmanabha Reddy said,"Several gram panchayats espe-cially in remote and tribalareas which are starving forfunds have unanimously elect-ed the entire body of gram pan-chayat. So far, the promisedincentive is not released, withthe result the unanimouslyelected sarpanchas are put tolot of difficulties."

The Forum for GoodGovernance requests theGovernor Dr TamilisaiSoundararajan to direct thestate government to releasethe promised incentive fundsof Rs 25 lakhs (10+15) to grampanchayats for developmentworks.

With dearth of funds to gram panchayats, sarpanches suffer

Continued from Page 1

Kishan appealed to theTRS government to handover the AIIMS building atBibinagar on the outskirts ofHyderabad to the Centreimmediately.

He asked the state govern-ment to release funds tosuper speciality hospitals atAdilabad and Warangal.

The Union Ministerdenied ever having problemsin coordinating with the statein implementing the vaccina-tion programme.

In the second phase, over30 crore people would be vac-cinated against the pandem-ic, he mentioned.


It is, of course, a major chal-lenge for the commission toconduct the polls against theodds," Ramesh Kumarremarked.

Panchayat elections are notbeing held in the first phase inVizianagaram and Prakasamdistricts. The elections will beheld on apolitical basis.

Addressing a press confer-ence, the SEC said it was theresponsibility of the State gov-ernment to ensure that theelections are conducted in asmooth manner. “Ultimatelythe government will have toface the consequences if any-thing doesn't go well," heobserved.

Ramesh Kumar said he hasapprised the Governor of theprevailing situation.

"I will continue to keepreporting to the Governor onthe poll process. If required, Iwill submit a report to theSupreme Court as well," hesaid, referring to the defiantstance being adopted by the YS

Jaganmohan Reddy govern-ment over the elections underRamesh Kumar's helm.

On Friday, Chief SecretaryAdityanath Das had made afervent appeal to the SEC,beseeching him to wait untilthe Supreme Court hears theSLP filed by the State govern-ment on Monday and not toproceed further on holdingpanchayat polls.

Senior officials of the pan-chayat raj department —Gopalakrishna Dwivedi and MGirija Shankar — had visitedthe SEC office late in theevening and handed over theletter by the Chief Secretary tothe personal assistant to theSEC. They had left withoutmeeting the SEC.

In his letter, Adityanath Dasrequested that a fresh schedulebe drawn in such a way thatsmooth conduct of the vacci-nation programme of thepolling personnel is also com-pleted by the health depart-ment prior to their beingassigned election duties.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana Pradesh CongressCommittee (TPCC) Presidentand Nalgonda MP Capt NUttam Kumar Reddy hasstrongly condemned the mis-use and diversion of fundsmeant for development ofmunicipalities across the State.

Uttam Kumar Reddy wasspeaking to media personsafter attending the SuryapetMunicipality general bodymeeting in municipal office onSaturday.

He said that he had recent-ly got Rs. ii. crores sanctionedfrom Central Government forsoo KV substation in Suryapet.He said he was striving hardfor the development ofSuryapet. However, he allegedthat the development was get-ting affected due to misuse anddiversion of funds.

He exhorted the municipalcouncillors of all parties tooppose the manner in whichthe District Collector was sanc-tioning the municipal funds inan arbitrary manner misusingSection 26 of Municipal Actwhich is only to be used inemergencies. Uttam KumarReddy expressed deep concernover 'politicisation of admin-istration' in Telangana State

and alleged that the develop-ment activities were not beingcarried out in a planned man-ner. Except for Chief MinisterK Chandrashekhar Rao andhis family members and a fewministers, the other electedpublic representatives werenot getting due importance intheir own constituencies.

He said that the DistrictCollectors were sanctioningfunds in an arbitrary mannerwithout following the rulebook just to please their polit-ical bosses. He said that therewas no transparency in releaseand spending of funds by thelocal administration. He saidthat the public funds werebeing spent in a haphazardmanner. He said that the localcouncillors or other electedrepresentatives in the localbodies were not having a say inspending of public funds.

Uttam condemns misuse and diversion of municipal funds

APSEC ignores Govt pleas, goes ahead with poll...


Giving two views — thegovernment’s and theemployees — against holdingthe elections at this point oftime.

In his letter, the ChiefSecretary had said that theentire administration waspreoccupied with the Covidvaccination programme andit would not be possible totake up election duty and beexposed to the virus.

He wanted the SEC to waitfor another 60 days for theemployees to get two doses ofvaccine and then take upelection duty.

Adityanath Das had alsoreminded the SEC that theState government had filed anappeal in the Supreme Courtagainst the High Court orderson holding gram panchayatpolls and wanted Ramesh

Kumar to wait for the apexcourt’s decision.

However, Ramesh Kumarturned down both the rea-sons, stating that they werenot justifiable and went aheadwith issuing the election noti-fication.

Resultantly, the ChiefSecretary and employeesstuck to their decision anddid not attend the video con-ference.

Meanwhile, governmentemployees have accused theSEC of adopting a “dictator-ial stand” and not consider-ing their genuine concernsand of the state government.

Elsewhere, YSRCP leadersallege that Ramesh Kumar isfollowing the directions ofTelugu Desam Party supremoN Chandrababu Naidu andnot following the consulta-tion process that the HighCourt had insisted.

Govt staff refuses...


A historic decision had beentaken to empower local offi-cials at various levels to sanc-tion emergency works involv-ing minimal expenditure with-out the need for them to seekpermission from Hyderabad,he pointed out.

The Chief Minister held areview meeting on Saturday atPragathi Bhavan on thePalamuru-Rangareddy, Dindiprojects. Power MinisterJagadeeshwar Reddy, TRSParliamentary Party LeaderDr K Keshav Rao, Governm-ent's Chief Advisor Rajiv Sha-rma, MLAs Guvvala Balraju,Surender, Principal SecretaryRajat Kumar, CM SecretarySmita Sabharwal, WaterResources Department AdvisorPentareddy, E-in-C Murali-dhar, CEs Mohan Kumar,Ramesh, Raghunatha Rao, SEsAnand, Vijayabhaskar Reddy,Umapathi Rao, SuryanarayanaReddy and others participated.

The CM also reviewed ongo-ing works on the NarlapurReservoir, Pump House,Narlapur-Edula Canal, EdulaPump House, Edula-VattemCanal, Vattem reservoir,

Vattem-Karvena Canal,Karvena Reservoir, Karvena-Uddandapur Canal andTunnel. He instructed that thefinal designs for the route fromUddandapur upper areas,where the water would be sup-plied, should be completed.The CM said that by complet-ing Kalwakurthy, Bhima, KoilSagar, Nettempadu in the com-bined Mahbubnagar district, 10lakh acres would get water andwith Jurala water suppliescould be extended to 11.5 lakhacres. If the Palamuru projectwere completed, the entireMahbubnagar district wouldbecome fertile. The CMreviewed works related to canaland reservoirs under Dindiproject. The CM instructedPrincipal Secretary Ramakris-hna Rao to immediately releaseRs 2,000 crore to pay the bills

pertaining to the Palamuru-Rangareddy, Dindi LiftIrrigation Scheme's works. TheCM asked Collectors of NagarKurnool, Nalgonda andRangareddy to pay compensa-tion to those whose lands werebeing acquired for the both theprojects. He wanted the farm-ers to be paid compensation asper the Acts and complete theland acquisition and hand overthe same to the WaterResources Department.

Rajat Kumar was asked tobring in required motors fromBHEL and monitor their instal-lation. He wanted regular coor-dination with the electricitydepartment. All tanks shouldbe filled first every year.Maintain the MinimumDrawing Level in all the reser-voirs to supply water toMission Bhagiratha pro-

gramme, he said."When the Telangana State

was formed, paddy was culti-vated in 30 lakh acres. Nowpaddy is being cultivated in1.10 crore acres. This becamepossible due to increase in thesupply of water for irrigation.The network is getting ready tosupply water through the pro-jects to 1.25 crore acres. Theland cultivated under borewellsis additional. Water ResourcesDepartment has the responsi-bility to supply water for irri-gation to Mission Bhagirathaprogramme for drinking pur-poses and to the industries.This has enhanced the respon-sibility and jurisdiction of theWater Resources Department.

"The government hasrevamped the Water ResourcesDepartment to efficiently man-age its affairs. All the projects,

reservoirs, check dams, anicut,lift irrigation schemes of theregion were brought under thecontrol of the CE concerned.The Government had trans-ferred specific financial powersfrom the DEE to Engineer-in-Chief. The power is given tothe local official to take up andexecute emergency works with-out there being any need tocome to Hyderabad for permis-sion. This is a historic decision.Nowhere in the country suchtransfer of power has hap-pened. Engineer-in-Chief(General) can approve worksup to Rs 25 crore per year witheach work not exceeding Rs 1crore; CE works worth Rs 5crore per year with each worknot exceeding Rs 50 lakh; SE,works worth Rs 2 crore peryear with each work notexceeding Rs 25 lakh;Executive Engineer, Rs 25 lakhworth works per year, witheach work not exceeding Rs 5lakh; and Deputy EE, Rs 5 lakhworks per year with each worknot exceeding Rs 2 lakh. Thisshould be properly utilizedand all the small works com-pleted. Supply water for irriga-tion to farmers without anyglitches," the CM said.

Expedite Palamuru-RR project to stop...


Explaining the way in whichthe gang robbed the branch,Cyberabad Police commis-sioner V C Sajjanar said thaton Friday morning at about09:15 hours the six accusedpersons reached Hosur onthree bikes. Rup Singh Baghaland Shanker Singh Baghalstood outside the MuthootFinance unit, observing themovements, while the remain-ing accused viz. Amit , PavanKumar, VishkarmaBhupendhar Manji, VivekMandal entered the premiseswearing face masks and hel-mets. They threatened theemployees at gunpoint androbbed about 25 kg of mort-gaged gold ornaments anddecamped with the booty."

After commission of the

offence, they reached theBangalore-Tamil Nadu borderand met the driver Ram andcleaner who were waiting withcontainer vehicle as per theirplan, and kept the robbedornaments in a box which hadbeen made for keeping theornaments.

They all headed towardsNagpur with the containervehicle along with Amit. Theremaining accused personsfollowed the container vehiclein Sumo vehicle, which washired in Bangalore, thenswitched to another hiredvehicle in Ananthapur.

The police were successfulin recovering intact the goldornaments weighting 25 kgand Rs 93,000 from their pos-session, apart from sevenweapons, ten magazines, 97rounds of ammunition.

Muthoot Fin robbersnabbed by Cyb cops

Stoppoliticking,Kishan tells...


During the COVID-19vaccine dry run, problems inthe mobile application weretaken to the notice of theCentre for resolution, but invain.

Since January 16, severalproblems have surfaced inthe mobile application.

Therefore, the vaccina-tion programme is beingimplemented, giving weigh-tage of only 50 to the mobileapplication and 50 per centfor work on manual basis.

As the higher authoritieshave directed the executivestaff to take the help of onlythe mobile application, theyhave been scratching theirheads on how to go aboutthe app, which is not work-ing as designed.

Once people intending tobe vaccinated reach the vac-cination centre, their detailshave to be cross-checkedwith data avai lable inCoWIN.

Cases of vaccine recipi-ents showing side effects,surplus vaccines left with theauthorities, and wastage ofvaccines should be includedin the mobile application.

The officials should fur-nish electronic certificates tothe effect after administeringvaccine to beneficiaries.

Technicalglitches in...


Haryana, Maharashtra,Chhattisgarh, HimachalPradesh, Gujarat, UttarPradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi,Rajasthan, Jammu andKashmir and Punjab -- forcrow/migratory/wild birds.

"However, crow/pigeonsamples submitted fromRudraprayag, LansdowneForest Range and PaudiForest Range of Uttarakhand;pigeon samples fromSriganganagar district ofRajasthan; crow and peacocksamples from Fatehpur dis-trict of Uttar Pradesh havebeen found negative forAvian Influenza," the state-ment said. The ministry saidthat the control and contain-ment operations are going onin the affected epicentres ofMaharashtra, MP, Chhattisg-arh, Punjab, UP, Gujarat,Uttarakhand and Kerala.

Avian fluconfirmed in9 states: Govt


Could amplify in course oftime and turn into a full-blown 'wars for water' betweenthe states, unless urgent stepsare taken to resolve the coreissues amicably with or with-out the Centre's help.

According to experts, certainissues between the Telugustates have not been resolved,as per the terms laid down

before bifurcation, in letterand spirit. They cite the presentturn of events as its conse-quences.

Social analysts warn that ifthe disputes between TS andAP continue, there could beserious consequences in thefuture, unforeseen losses, con-flicts between people of the twostates, and clashes amongfiercely competing politicalforces.

The distribution of assetsand liabilities of public sectororganizations and governmentundertaking companies in boththe states has not yet been com-pleted as per the AndhraPradesh Reorganization Act-2014. The Krishna River waterdispute between the states ofAndhra Pradesh and Telanganahas been going on for the lastsix years. People in both statesnow doubt whether the Chief

Ministers of the two statesreally want a permanent solu-tion to the problems. KCRrecently wrote an 18-page let-ter to the Union Ministry ofWater Resources clarifying theneed for the central govern-ment's intervention. In his let-ter, he also described the deep-ening conflict and the contextin which it is happeningbetween the Telugu states.

Officials of the TS Irrigation

Department have no doubtthat if the construction of thePotireddipadu project is com-pleted, there will be tremen-dous loss to TS. The AndhraPradesh government has uni-laterally decided to build a newscheme to lift Krishna waterfrom the Srisailam project.KCR has objected to it and hasclarified that the decision goesagainst the letter and spirit ofthe bifurcation act.

Will KCR and Jagan meet again?Continued from Page 1

While ordering penalactions against schools whichdisallow students from writingexamination on any grounds.

The HSPA requested thegovernment to arrange virtu-al classes and provide videorecording of virtual classes to

benefit all students. No studentshould be prevented fromwriting examinations on thegrounds of non-payment/pending fee dues. Dues, if any,can be collected at the time oftaking TC, the associationsuggested. HSPA has madethese requests in view of thechildren's academic year.

Parents urge the govt toreduce Class-X syllabus

HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | JANUARY 24, 2021 hyderabad 03

More than 21companies and2,500 job aspirants

participated in the JobConnect programme ofthe Hyderabad City Policeat SVIT EngineeringCollege, Patny Centre onSaturday. The JobConnect, which is beingorganised by the City Police for the last five years, was not held forthe last nine months due to the Covid-19 pandemic. On Saturday,City Police Commissioner Anjani Kumar relaunched the activityorganised by the North Zone police in the presence of seniorofficials. HR Managers of 21 companies were also present at theprogramme, which had more than 2,500 candidates registering forjobs. Anjani Kumar said through Job Connect, jobs for more than2,000 candidates were generated every year and urged theyoungsters to make use of the opportunity and take part in theevent. "This is the first step and we will call the remainingcandidates next Saturday," he said. The City Police will conduct jobmela every month in each zone, he added. DCP (North Zone)Kalmeshwar Shingenavar and others were also present.

CITY LIGHTS

With most of the schools set tounlock their doors to students, thesunny weather on Saturday sawqueues of families with youngchildren - some without face

coverings - form outside NehruZoo Park in the city. Close to 40sanitiser dispensers have been

installed at various locations butthe visitors are not being checked

with thermal scanners at theentrance. Battery-operated

vehicles and toy train facility havebeen made available with

complete occupancy. Signagehave been placed at different

locations to convey COVID-19protocol to visitors.

‘ZOO'MING BACKTO NORMALCY!

– SV Chary

PNS n HYDERABAD

Vice President M VenkaiahNaidu urged youngsters onSaturday to take inspirationfrom the life of SubhasChandra Bose and work foreradicating ills such as pover-ty, illiteracy, social and genderdiscrimination and corruptionfrom the society.

Noting that 65 per cent ofIndia's population is below 35years of age, Naidu said young-sters should lead from thefront in building a New India- a happy and prosperous Indiawhere every citizen gets equalopportunities and where thereis no discrimination of anykind.

'Parakram' or courage wasthe most defining feature ofNetaji's persona, the vice pres-

ident said and lauded the gov-ernment's decision to cele-brate Bose's birthday as'Parakram Divas', an officialstatement said.

Naidu was addressing theofficer trainees attending thefoundation course at the MCR

Human ResourceDevelopment Institute of theTelangana government inHyderabad to mark the birthanniversary of Bose.

Referring to the pivotal roleplayed by Bose and severalfreedom fighters, social

reformers, including unsungheroes from different regions,he said many people were notaware of their greatness astheir contributions were notproperly projected in the his-tory books.

"We have to celebrate thelives of many of our greatleaders. We have to come outof the colonial mindset," heasserted.

Observing that differentleaders approached the free-dom movement in differentways, the vice president saidthe ultimate goal was to achievethe country's freedom fromcolonial rule.

Noting that Netaji wantedabolition of the caste system inthe country, Naidu said as farback as in the 1940s, soldiers ofall castes, creeds and religions

lived together, ate together incommon kitchens and foughtas Indians first and last.

Bose always used to stressthat the progress of Indiawould be possible only with theuplift of the downtrodden andmarginalised sections of thesociety, he said.

The Vice President recalledthat Bose believed in giving anequal pedestal to women inevery sphere of life - be it social,economic, or political.

"The progressiveness ofNetaji's ideas can be gaugedfrom his decision to form awomen's corps in the INAnamed the Rani of JhansiRegiment," he said and appre-ciated the government's deci-sion to provide permanentcommission to women in thearmed forces.

V-P: Youngsters should take inspiration from Netaji's life

DUGGU RAGHUn HYDERABAD

When one thinks of the biggesturban lung spaces inHyderabad with a water bodyalongside, it is none otherthan Tank Bund that crossesone's mind. A visit toHussainsagar and Tank Bundremains one of the most cher-ished experiences for locals andtourists alike. The 2.2-km-long Tank Bund Road thatconnects Hyderabad andSecunderabad is dotted withthe War Trophy, Patton Tankand statues of icons of Teluguculture, is an emotional con-nect for the people ofHyderabad.

The Tank Bund was devel-oped into a tourist attraction bythe Nizams. In contemporaryhistory, it was late ChiefMinister NT Rama Rao whotook the initiative to develop itslandscape and installed statuesreflecting our cultural icons.After close to 35 years, theTank Bund was given a faceliftby Municipal Administrationand Urban DevelopmentMinister KT Rama Rao, whohas issued instructions fordevelopmental works and the, Hyderabad MetropolitanDevelopment Authority(HMDA) has renovated the

stretch.The 2.2-km road is likely to

draw more visitors, after it wasdeveloped with a new beauti-fied look.

Street furniture, kiosks anddecorative lightingsOrnamental lights, kiosks andgalleries, stone benches, foot-paths with flamed granite,including granite kerbs andaligned designer lamp posts tobring more glory to the historictank bund.

The HMDA has taken up

beautification works on eitherside of the tank bund road toelevate its look and createfacilities for citizens. Therefurbishment is being takenup at an estimated cost of14.50 crore.

Asking the residents ofHyderabad for their feedbackafter renovation works, KTRtweeted, "How do you like therenovated Tank Bund Guys?Please share comments & sug-gestions. Work still in progress& will be completed soon". The

tweet received appreciationsand several suggestions.

Tank Bund wears a new look

Over 2K aspirants take part in Hyderabad cops' Job Connect

The shopkeepers inNarayanguda haveresorted to protest against

the construction of Foot overBridge (FoB) in the area. TheGreater Hyderabad MunicipalCorporation had initiated theconstruction of a FoB atNaryanguda in June 2020 onan antiquated 50-year-oldconventional design. According to the locals, it seems to be entirelyunsuitable for a congested and highly commercial location likeNaryanguda. The shopkeepers in a press statement said that it has afootprint of 69.1 feet on either side of the road, thus covering up 12to 14 shops and snatching their livelihood. The same bridge can bebuilt on a 20 feet footprint only using the design attached.Alternately, the same pedestrian crossing can be made in a muchmore practical way by constructing either a road underpass or bymaking a zebra crossing, said the shopkeepers. They also added thatthe GHMC has refused to have a conversation with them forcingthem to conduct protests and dharnas.

Shopkeepers protest against the construction of new FoB

City-based Yashoda Hospitals' division of InterventionalPulmonology, led by Dr. Hari Kishan Gonuguntla, receivedinternational recognition in the field of Bronchoscopy, from the

World Association of Bronchology and Interventional Pulmonology(WABIP). The hospital won two out of the three awards in the "BestImage Contest 2021", held by WABIP and Dr. Hari Kishan was alsoappointed as the National Delegate from India, at the EuropeanAssociation for Bronchology and Interventional Pulmonology.Dr. Hari Kishan has been appointed as the National Representativefrom India to the prestigious European Association for Bronchologyand Interventional Pulmonology, said Dr. Pavan Gorukanti, Directorof Yashoda Hospitals group. The team of Dr. Hari KishanGonuguntla, Lead, Interventional Pulmonary Medicine, Dr. SamiaRasheed, Dr. Varun Kandukuri, Fellow and Associate Consultant, Dr.Varun, Dr. Tiyagesh Ganapathy, Interventional Pulmonary Fellows,shared their joy with the Institution.

Yashoda Hospitals receives intlrecognition in bronchoscopy

Telangana Governor Dr TamilisaiSoundararajan on Saturday paidrich tributes to Netaji Subhash

Chandra Bose on his birth anniversarywhich has been declared as ‘ParakramDiwas.' At a special function at the RajBhavan's Darbar hall, here, theGovernor offered floral tributes to theportrait of Netaji Subhash ChandraBose and lauded the efforts and hard work of the great Indiannationalist Netaji, in achieving the independence.1 am delighted on hearing the announcement of Government ofIndia that the birth anniversary of Netaji Subhash Chandra Boseon 23rd January would be celebrated as "Parakram Diwas" toinspire people of this country, especially youth to act withfortitude in the face of adversity and to infuse patriotic fervour. Itis indeed the greatest tribute to Netaji," she added.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Sangareddy police nabbed aseasoned fake currency cir-culator on Saturday andseized Rs 16,000 notes of Rs2,000 denomination and aSwift Car. The accused wasidentified as Rajuprasad, 30,a resident of Alladurg.

DSP Sangareddy A Balajihas said that the accusedhad exchanged Rs 2 thousandfake currency note onJanuary 7 at Kirana GeneralStore in Rajampet when thevictim had approached theone town Police. The accusedhad bought Rs 200 worthgroceries at the shop andexchanged the fake Rs 2,000currency note.

Rajuprasad has revealedthat he was caught twiceunder Patancheru PoliceStation in 2017 andBachupally Police Station in2019. Rajuprasad, who hadsuffered huge losses in busi-ness, had reportedly tried tocome out of the losses byprinting fake currency notes.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana reported 221 newCovid cases on Friday takingthe overall tally to 2,93,056 inthe state. Two new deaths arereported on January 22, takingthe total tally to 1,588.

The fatality rate in the stateis 0.54 per cent which is lessthan the national average of 1.4per cent. The Greater Hyde-rabad Municipal Corporationarea reported 36 new caseswhile Ranga Reddy reported14 new cases.

Districts of Telangana isseeing the increase in cases.Medchal Malkajgiri reported16 new cases while Karim-nagar reported 17 new cases.

Around 431 citizens recov-ered from the infection onFriday taking the tally of totalrecoveries to 2,87,899. Therecovery rate, as per the gov-ernment now stands at 98.21per cent, which approximate-

ly one per cent higher than thenational average of 96.8 percent.

The government tested30,005 citizens for the virus onFriday. So far 76,32,980 sam-ples have been tested in thestate. Samples tested per mil-lion population stand at2,05,077. Still, 499 reports areawaited. The state currentlyhas 3,600 active cases. Of thetotal active cases, 1,973 areunder home isolation. Of totalpositive cases, 70 per cent are

asymptomatic with no severesigns of distress while 30 percent are symptomatic.

According to the state bul-letin, men aged between 31and 40 years contribute to14.72 per cent of the totalcases.

Women aged between 21and 30 years contribute to9.02 per cent of the total cases.The deaths due to comorbidi-ties have risen to 55.04 percent. 44.96 per cent of victimshad no comorbidities.

ANUSHA PUPPALAn HYDERABAD

Passengers travelling in Tela-ngana State Road TransportCorporation (TSRTC) allegedthat the corporation is charg-ing Rs 15 extra from their pas-sengers despite not providingany amenities and water bot-tle. A passenger who was trav-eling from Hyderabad toHanamkonda in Rajadhanibus had to pay Rs 300 for a fareof Rs 248 as he had to pay Rs15 extra for amenities andsome additional charges.

According to the ticketshared by the passenger, thepassenger paid Rs 300 for aticket to Hanamkonda fromHyderabad city. The fareincludes Toll User Fees- Rs 14,Passenger Cess - Rs 1,Passenger Amenity - Rs 15 andGST- Rs 13. However, the pas-sengers did not receive anykind of amenities and waterbottles alleged the passenger.

Speaking to The Pioneer, thepassenger Vinay Vangla said,"It's sad to see how passengersare forced to pay extra chargefor amenities and water bottleswhich they are not even pro-viding. Apart from this, thetelevision and charging ports

were not working so despite allthis we were charged extra.And no one was followingphysical distancing measuresin the bus, which was scary. Iwill definitely file a complaintagainst this in consumerforum."

S Umesh Kumar, a con-sumer activist said, "Peopleshould be alert while purchas-ing tickets whether the totalamount is matching with theprice mentioned on the ticket.Here, the total is Rs 291 andthey charged Rs 9 extra.TSRTC should mention thereason for exploiting passen-gers with hidden charges. As apassenger, I have the right to

know what I have beencharged for. Not mentioningthe service but the collectedamount for it is nothing butexploitation."

He further added, "Comingto amenities, as they failed toprovide basic amenities such asa charging port, TV, it is a defi-ciency in service. Yes, any hid-den charges are considered tobe unfair. The consumersshould file a complaint againstthe deficiency and unfair tradepractice. In case of noresponse, passengers as beingconsumers can file a complaintdirectly in the consumer forumand seek compensation forthe grievance caused.”

‘SanghaMitra’ to fightcrime against womenPNS n HYDERABAD

Aiming at spreading aware-ness and empowering womento fight crime against themand children as well, theRachakonda Police have comeup with a new initiative calledSanghaMitra.

The objective of the pro-gramme launched by Rach-akonda Police CommissionerMahesh M Bhagwat is to iden-tify and create an efficient andeffective team of volunteersfrom rural areas, communitiesand societies who would betrained and certified to pro-vide support to women vic-tims facing various kinds ofabuse in their life. RachakondaSecurity Council – Women’sForum has started the selec-tion process in rural sector.

Rachakonda She Teams ledby Additional DCP Salimaand Bhongir Town InpsectorSudhakar participated in thelaunch of the initiative alongwith District Child ProtectionOfficer Pulugujju Saidulu,RKSC Women’s Forum JointSecretary Latha Ram,SanghaMitra Lead ArchnaManne, Women’s ForumMembers – Rajani N, SivaKaradi, Shalini, Jayashree,Savithri M and others.

SanghaMitra at Bhongir hadthe participation of more than300 women and the five-hourinteractive programmeengaged the audience withcritical information on sup-port systems, counselling,women laws, child abuse, childmarriage and other relevanttopics.

‘RTC is charging Rs 15 extra foramenities, but not providing any’

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Banjara Hills police offi-cials on Saturday booked acase against Mumbai-basedhospitality firm for cheatinga construction company to atune of Rs 15 crores.

According to the police,the firm identified as HotelLeela Ventures Limited, sup-pressing the fact that civil caseis pending in Supreme Courtof India on the propertyentering into an MoU in theyear 2014, collected hugesum of Rs 15.5 crores fromPBSAMP Projects PrivateLimited for sale of the aboveland. Subsequently, the dealcaused wrongful loss toPBSAMP Projects PrivateLimited. In this regard, thecompany lodged a formalcomplaint at Banjara HillsPolice Station.

Based on the complaint,police booked a case againstHotel Leela Venture Limited,Chairman and ManagingDirector Vivek Nair and acase was booked underSection 406, 420 IPC. Furtherinvestigation is underway.

Hospitality firmowner booked forcheating in Hyd

State reports 221 Covid cases

Governor pays rich tributes to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose

Fake currency circulator heldin Sangareddy

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Commissioner's SouthZone Task Force team appre-hended five members of agang who were trying to sellfake tiger skin as original.

The accused were identi-fied as Naga ManeendraKumar, Ch Kishore, SrinivasReddy, Anand Naik and GVijay Kumar. The primeaccused was still absconding.

The accused persons weretrying to sell the tiger skin atRs 25 lakhs to customers.Based on the credible infor-mation, the task force teambusted the gang and caughtthem red-handedly.

The prime accused identi-fied as Balaraj Goud is a res-ident of Uppal. Earlier he us-ed to run restaurant at Uppal.After a loss in business dur-ing lockdown, Balaraj metManeendra Kumar, Narayanaand Srinivas Reddy. Theyhatched a plan of selling offake tiger skin. ThroughNarayana, they identified onefake tiger skin and returnedto Hyderabad. While waitingfor customers to sell it, policenabbed them. Police launc-hed a manhunt against threeother accused.

Five held forbid to palm offfake tiger skin

PNS n HYDERABAD

A human skeleton was foundin Mission Bhagiratha pipesat Honnajipet mandal head-quarters of Nizamabad.

According to the police,the villagers noticed the skel-eton and immediately alert-ed the police. Circle InspectorPrasad said that they foundthe skeleton stored in MissionBhagiratha pipelines atDharpally village.

Human skeletonfound in pipeline

PNS n MEDAK

Heaping praises on ChiefMinister K ChandrasekharRao for allocating quota forEBCs, municipal chairmanThodupunuri Chandrapal,along with the party leadersand workers, performed milkbath to the portrait of theChief Minister. Speaking on

the occasion, he termed KCRas an outstanding leader, whorecognised the poor amongthe upper castes. He laudedthe Telangana as the first gov-ernment for identifying thepoor in upper castes at thegrassroots level. On the occa-sion, he thanked the ChiefMinister on behalf of theupper caste poor.

HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | JANUARY 24, 2021 hyderabad 04

CAPSULE

PNS n NIZAMABAD

The skeleton remains werefound in Mission Bhagirathapipes at Honnajipet mandalheadquarters of Nizamabaddistrict. According to thepolice, the villagers noticed theskeleton and immediatelyalerted the police. CircleInspector Prasad said that theyfound the skeleton stored inMission Bhagiratha pipelines atDharpally village.

SKELETAL

REMAINS

FOUND

PNS n WARANGAL RURAL

The 42nd National SecurityAwareness Month was kickedoff in Parakala town inWarangal rural district. ACPSrinivas said motorcyclistsmust wear helmets during thebike rally taken out by thepolice to wear helmets. OnSaturday, a bike rally wastaken out under the auspicesof the police under theParakala Division to make itmandatory for two-wheelers towear helmets. This bike rallywas started with RDO Kishanwaving the flag. Later, ACPparticipated in a pressconference held on the busstand premises. According tothe law, one must wear ahelmet, driving licence andinsurance documents to ride avehicle, and action will takenby the police if the rules areviolated. Similarly, parents ofminor children should notallow them to ride a vehicle.MVI Ravinder, CIs MahenderReddy, Ranjit Kumar, RameshKumar, RSIs Srikanth,Venkatakrishna, PraveenKumar, Bhaskar Reddy,Rajababu, motorists, RTCpersonnel and others werepresent on the occasion.

RALLY TO MARK

42ND NATIONAL

SECURITY MONTH

PNS n HYDERABAD

The government began mea-sures to strengthen the DistrictCooperative Central Banksacross the State and open newbranches to extend better ser-vices at the doorstep of farmers.The Telangana State CooperativeApex Bank (TSCAB) has alreadycompleted computerisation of795 Primary Agricultural CreditSociety (PACS) in this regard.

Chief Secretary SomeshKumar, who chaired the firsthigh-level committee meeting ofthe National Bank for

Agriculture and RuralDevelopment (NABARD) atBRKR Bhavan here on Saturday,asked the officials to create amobile application to extendbetter services from branchesand initiate necessary steps tostrengthen the DCCBs in theState.

The Chief Secretary suggest-ed that NABARD officials con-duct a feasibility study to opennew branches to extend servicesto all the villages. He said the fea-sibility report will be submittedto Chief Minister KChandrashekhar Rao for clear-

ance. He also wanted them toprepare a note on the report sub-mitted by the high-level commit-tee to strengthen the CooperativeCredit System. He asked them toconduct a workshop for all theDCCBs to improve their eco-nomic performance and extendbetter services.

Agriculture Secretary BJanardhan Reddy, TSCAB pres-ident K Ravinder Rao,Commissioner of Co-operativedepartment and Registrar ofCo-operative Societies MVeerabrahmaiahand other seniorofficials were present.

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Central governmentagreed to procure CustomMilled Rice (CMR) pertainingto last Rabi season (2019-20)from millers till February 28.The decision comes in thewake of the initiative taken byChief Minister KChandrashekhar Rao, whopursued the issue with theCentre. As against 43 lakhtonnes of Custom Milled Riceto be handed over to the FoodCorporation of India (FCI) byDecember 31,2020, the millershad so far handed over 37 lakhtonnes.

In a statement here onSaturday, Minister for CivilSupplies Gangula Kamalakarstated that due to various fac-tors, there was a delay in thesupply of six lakh tonnes ofCMR from the millers to the

FCI and the Corporation didnot respond to the requestsfrom the State government toextend the procurement date.When this was brought to hisnotice, the Chief Ministerresponded immediately andtook up the issue with the

Centre following which FCIagreed to extend the procure-ment date. The minister direct-ed the rice millers to hand overthe remaining six lakh tonnesof CMR to the FCI within thestipulated time.

Meanwhile, the kharif sea-

son for 2020-21 witnessed abumper paddy crop. As perthe directive of the ChiefMinister, the Civil Suppliesdepartment opened 6,505paddy purchase centres andprocured about 48.42 lakhtonnes of paddy. The paddy

purchases reached the finalstage and 6,139 centres of thetotal 6,505 purchasing centreshave been already been shutdown. Of the total paddyprocurement, coarse varietyaccounted for about 28.2 lakhtonnes and the fine variety ofpaddy 20.22 lakh tonnes.

“We purchased paddyworth Rs 9,136 crore from10.92 lakh farmers. AroundRs 8,696 crore have beenalready deposited into thebank accounts of farmersproviding the MinimumSupport Price (MSP) for theirproduce,” the minister said.He said the efforts of the ChiefMinister over the past sixyears have been yielding pos-itive results as paddy acreagewas increasing every year andwas greatly contributing to thedevelopment of the agrariansector.

PNS n NIZAMABAD

The TRS and BJP have beentrading charges on each other onTurmeric Board as the turmer-ic season is about to unfold in afortnight or so.

The farmers have been culti-vating turmeric for a period ofover nine months makinginvestments in lakhs of rupees.But, there was no guarantee forthe MSP to the turmeric farm-ers. In this backdrop, all polit-ical parties have been focussingon the problems of turmericfarmers.

The TRS has been breathingfire on the BJP accusing the lat-ter of ignoring its electionpromise to the turmeric farm-ers. The Nizamabad MP Arvindgave it in writing on a bondpaper about the establishment ofturmeric board. The TRS hasbeen highlighting it in its tiradeagainst the BJP.

Important TRS MLAs andleaders have been highlightingthe BJP's failure to set up theturmeric board. They are gun-ning for MP Arvind's scal as hefailed to implement his electionpromise to turmeric farmers.They have been demanding the

Union Government to set upturmeric board immediately.

Turning tables on the TRSgovernment, the BJP leadersallege that the state govern-ment has not been sending itsproposals to the Center onextending MSP to the turmer-ic. If the state government wereto give a letter on the MSP pro-posal, the BJP leaders say thatthey would convince the centreof the MSP, says party Telanganaaffairs incharge Tarun Chugh.

The BJP leaders contend thatthe Centre set up spices board

regional office for the benefit ofthe farmers, treating it as amajor achievement than settingup of the turmeric board.

Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar speaks at the high-level committee meeting of National Bank for Agriculture and RuralDevelopment (NABARD) at BRKR Bhavan in Hyderabad on Saturday

Govt to strengthen DCCBs

A CHANDRASHEKHAR RAOn SANGAREDDY

The authorities concerned arecollecting details department-wise as the government hasissued directions to completepromotions in all the depart-ments by the end of thismonth. The department headsare conducting departmentalreviews to give promotions toofficials in erstwhile Medakdistrict.

Arrangements are beingmade to award promotionsbased on qualifications androster points as per regulations.Vacant compassionate appoint-ments will also be completedwithin the stipulated time.Officials are making arrange-ments to complete the promo-tion process and also to give

notification of vacancies inFebruary.

The government has issueddepartmental promotions toClass IV employees, who havebeen working in the erstwhileMedak district. The heads of

the respective departments hasbegun the process after ChiefSecretary Somesh Kumardirected them to complete theprocess by the end of thismonth.

Details of those who are eli-

gible for promotions are beingcollected, their credentials arebeing reviewed and rosterpoints. They are arranging totake and give promotions fromthe date of joining the job.

Promotions for the Class IVemployees would be given inall the branches. Senior assis-tant promotions will be givento junior assistants. At the dis-trict level, there is an opportu-nity to give non-gazetted poststo the department heads with-in the respective departments.

In the revenue department,tahsildar promotions will begiven by CCLA based onseniority. Those who have beenworking in the respectivedepartments for years and arenow looking forward to pro-motions will get them withthese orders.

n Officers collecting detailsbranch-wise

n The Chief Secretaryordered the process tobe completed by theend of this month

n Collectors whoconducted reviews withdistrict officials

Deadline for Rabi paddy procurement extendedThe ChiefMinisterrespondedimmediately andtook up theissue with theCentre followingwhich FCIagreed toextend theprocurement

PNS n WARANGAL

Resolving to check the growthof the BJP in the State, the CPIand CPM have underscoredthe need for an aggressivecampaign to win Warangal,Khammam and Nalgondagraduate MLC constituencyThe joint meeting of the CPMand CPI was convened hereon Saturday.

Addressing the meeting,CPI and CPM State secretariesChada Venkat Reddy andTammineni Veerabhadramtook potshots at BJP govern-ment and appealed to thepeople to support the Left par-ties that were trying to preventfascist and anti-people policiesof the BJP. “The ongoingpeasant struggle against thefarm laws has successfullysubdued the Modi govern-ment, which has decided tokeep the implementation ofthe ‘black laws’ in abeyance fora year-and-a-half. The Centralgovernment is looking toenforce black laws in defiance

of constitutional values anddemocracy. Keeping this inmind, we should support thefarmers’ movement and takeout rallies on January 26 insupport of the tractors’ rallyannounced by the farmers,”they said and added that theywould rope in all the non-BJPparties in the stirs. Theyexhorted the party rank andfile to work hard for the vic-tory of the Left parties’ candi-date B Jayasarathi Reddy inthe Warangal, Khammam andNalgonda graduate MLC con-stituency. Member NationalCouncil of the CPITakkalapally Srinivas Rao, BJayasarathi Reddy and otherleaders attended the meeting.

Rig owners enhance ratesfor digging borewellsPNS n HYDERABAD

The cost of digging bore wellshas been increased by at least50 per cent. As such, one hasto keep ready at least Rs 2-3lakh to get a bore well dug.After the lockdown conditionseased, taking into reckoningthe increased cost of diesel andlabour charges the Rig Owners’Association has hiked the costof sinking the borewell.

In Ranga Reddy district,prior to COVID-19, to dig aborewell for every 100 feet, therig owners used to charge onlyRs 45 per feet. After every 100feet, the cost will increase by Rs10 per feet. The fare wouldincrease by Rs 20 for every feetafter having dug 500 feet.Similarly, the cost wouldincrease by Rs 50 per feet afterdigging 800 feet. Now, thecost has escalated to Rs 70 forevery feet up to 100 feet. Fordigging the next 100 feet, onehas to pay Rs 80 per feet. Infact, to sink a borewell up to900-1000 feet, it would cost Rs360 for every feet. In 2019, the

rig owners only charged Rs 200per feet to dig borewell up to9000-1000 feet. It used to costonly Rs 1,25 lakh 18 monthsago to dig a borewell up to9000-1000 feet, while it wouldcost at least Rs 2.30 lakh now.

A rig owner J Ganga Reddyof BS Nagar said that the dieselprices, compared to the pricesof the fuel 18 months ago,increased by at least 25 percent. After the lockdown, dueto a shortage of workers, thewages have increased. “Because

of these conditions, we areforced to increase the cost.”

A farmer of Maal village ofRanga Reddy district, DLakshman Rao, said that hedug a 900-feet borewell twoyears ago at a cost of Rs 80,000.As he planned to raise paddycrop, he felt that single borewellis inadequate and desired tohave another one. So, got thesecond borewell dug 15 daysago. It cost him Rs 1.92 lakh,the cost registered more thantwice in two years.

n A rig owner J Ganga Reddyof BS Nagar said that thediesel prices, compared tothe prices of the fuel 18months ago, increased byat least 25 per cent. Afterthe lockdown, due to ashortage of workers, thewages have increased.“Because of theseconditions, we are forcedto increase the cost”

n A farmer of Maal villageof Ranga Reddy district,D Lakshman Rao, saidthat he dug a 900-feetborewell two years agoat a cost of Rs 80,000.As he planned to raisepaddy crop, he felt thatsingle borewell isinadequate and desiredto have another one.So, got the secondborewell dug 15 daysago. It costed him Rs1.92 lakh, the costregistered more thantwice in two years

Government issues orders to expeditepromotions in erstwhile Medak dist

PNS n KARIMNAGAR

Continuing tirade against BJPState unit chief, KarimnagarMayor Y Sunil Rao lambastedBandi Sanjay for commentingon the internal affairs of TRS.

Addressing the media hereon Saturday, the Mayor foundfault with Sanjay for comment-ing on TRS matters instead oflooking after his own partyaffairs. Where was the need forthe BJP leader to intervene inthe internal affairs of TRS whenthe latter was not intruding intoBJP’s party issues? Though itsown party activists burnt thestate BJP office in Hyderabad,the State president was nottalking about it.

Sunil Rao criticised the BJPpresident for making statementsagainst Chief Minister KChandrashekhar Rao’s recentKaleshwaram lift irrigation pro-ject visit. Senior BJP leaderappreciated Chief Minister forthe latter’s struggle for separateState, he pointed out and ques-

tioned where was Sanjay whenKCR continued separateTelangana movement for 14years.

Development of Telanganawas the main agenda of TRS.The Chief Minister and TRSwere working to materialise it.While the government wasstriving for the all-round devel-opment of the State, the BJPpresident was trying to benefitby creating trouble among thepeople.

Being the MP, Sanjay neverspoke about the development ofKarimnagar. People were watch-ing and would teach a lesson tohim, he said.

By winning the Dubbakbypoll and a few seats in GHMCpolls, BJP leaders assuming thatit has become stronger in theState. It was wrong, he said andmade it clear that nobody wouldcompete with TRS in any polls.

Besides introducing severalwelfare schemes, the govern-ment had completed major irri-gation projects.

TRS, BJP trade charges on Turmeric Board in Nzb

KMC Mayor takespotshots at BJP chief

Milk bath performedto KCR’s portrait

Municipal chairman Thodupunuri Chandrapal, along with the party leaders andworkers, performs milk bath to a portrait of Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Raoin Medak on Saturday

PNS n SANGAREDDY

Minister for Finance HarishRao has directed the authori-ties concerned to prepare pro-posals for the construction ofa super specialty hospital.

The minister held a meetingwith officials of the PollutionControl Board, Ministry ofHealth, Industries andRevenue at the Collectors’chamber on Saturday.

The minister also directedthe medical health depart-ment officials to preparerevised proposals for setting upof a 200-bed super-specialtyhospital, which was earlierproposed on the land adjacentto the Patancheru AreaHospital.

The minister suggested that

in addition to the proposeddepartments in the respectivehospital, special assessmentproposals should be preparedespecially for the establish-ment of specialisation depart-ments like Trauma CareCentre, Kidney Dialysis,Dermatology, Cardiology etc.

The PCB officials were

directed to pay special atten-tion to pollution prevention.The meeting was attended byDistrict Collector HanumantRao, MLAs Kranti Kiran, GMahipal Reddy, Manik Rao,Bhupal Reddy, Director ofMedical Education RameshReddy and others partici-pated.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Taking up cudgels againstNarendra Modi, former MPHanumanth Rao said despitethe Prime Minister being aBackward Class (BC) commu-nity member, step-motherlytreatment is being metedout to BCs across thecountry. He demand-ed that the Centrewithdraw plans ofapplying creamylayer concept toOBCs. Thoughthere is 27 per centreservation for BCs,not even 10 per cent wasbeing implemented, he point-ed out and added that therewas need for effective imple-mentation of reservations forthe welfare of BCs.

Addressing a press confer-ence at Gandhi Bhavan hereon Saturday, the Congressleader urged Chief Minister KChandrashekhar Rao not toconfine to construction of‘Athma Gourava’ (self-respect)buildings for BCs but ensure

welfare and developmentof other community

m e m b e r s .M e a n w h i l e ,Congress MLA TJagga Reddydemanded that theState government

sanction a medicalcollege to Sangareddy.

Addressing the media atGandhi Bhavan, he said theChief Minister had promiseda medical college forSangareddy and should fulfilhis promise.

‘Step-motherlytreatment to BCs’

Super specialty hospital to be set up in Patancheru

Minister for Finance Harish Rao interacts with officials at a meeting convened atthe Collectorate on Saturday to discuss setting up of a super specialty hospital inSangareddy

The 42nd National SecurityAwareness Month was kickedoff by RDO Kishan at Parakalatown in Warangal rural districton Saturday

Left vows to check thegrowth of BJP in TS

n They exhorted the partyrank and file to work hardfor the victory of the Leftparties’ candidate BJayasarathi Reddy in theWarangal, Khammam andNalgonda graduate MLCconstituency.

HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | JANUARY 24, 2021 nation 05

The Karnataka government saidstaff members at all airports

across the state are considered asfrontline workers of COVID-19and are permitted for vaccinationagainst the virus on priority basis.Commissioner Health and FamilyWelfare Service, Government ofKarnataka issued a circular to this

effect on Friday. The circular asks respective district Health andFamily Welfare officers to make necessary arrangements for thesame. They have been asked to ensure that all the staff membersat Airports received the COVID-19 vaccine as per the existing pro-tocol. Authorities at Kempegowda International Airport KIAL,Bengaluru and Mangaluru International Airport, also at Belagavi,Hubbali -Dharwad, Kalaburagi, Mysuru and Bidar have also beenintimated about the same.

INDIA CORNER

Leaders across party lines,including NCP chief Sharad

Pawar, paid tributes to Shiv Senafounder Bal Thackeray on his 95thbirth anniversary. Taking toTwitter, the NCP chief saidThackeray used his talent as acartoonist to comment on varioussocial issues. The late leader'scommand over words made him a

good orator and he had a hold over state politics, Pawar tweeted.Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, the late leader's son, offered floraltributes to the portrait of his father at Matoshree, the family'sresidence in suburban Mumbai. Born in 1926, Thackeray hadfounded the Shiv Sena, a party wedded to the "Marathi manoos"cause, and later, embraced Hindu nationalism.

Leaders pay tribute to BalThackeray on birth anniversary

COVID-19 vax on priority forairport staff in Karnataka

The Border Security Force(BSF) on Saturday

detected anotherunderground tunnel,constructed by Pakistan atthe International Border (IB)to facilitate infiltration ofterrorists into Jammu andKashmir, in Kathua districtduring the past 10 days, a

spokesperson of the border guarding force said. The secret tunnelwas detected during an anti-tunnelling operation in the borderoutpost Pansar area of Hiranagar sector, he said. This is the secondunderground tunnel detected by BSF personnel in Hiranagar sectorduring the past 10 days, fourth in the past six months along the IBin Samba and Kathua districts and 10th in the past decade. OnJanuary 13, a 150-metre-long tunnel was detected in Bobiyaanvillage in the same sector. A BSF officer said the latest tunnel isbelieved to be 150-metre-long originating from the Pakistan sidewith a depth of about 30 feet and three feet diameter. The wholearea has been cordoned off and further details are awaited, he said.

BSF detects underground tunnel at IB in J-K's Kathua

The Border Security Force(BSF) Saturday busted a

militant hideout in the Poonchdistrict of Jammu andKashmir and recovered alarge cache of arms andammunition, a spokespersonfor the force said. The hideoutwas unearthed this afternoonduring a search operation inDoba Mohalla forest area in

Hadiguda, 10 kms from Mandi town, the spokesperson said. He saidthe search operation was launched by the BSF on specific intelligenceinformation. It led to the recovery of an AK-47 rifle with threemagazines, 82 rounds, three Chinese pistols with five magazines and33 rounds, and four hand grenades. An Under Barrel GrenadeLauncher (UBGL) and a wireless set were also found at the hideout,the spokesperson said, adding the BSF is searching the area despiteincessant rains. Further details are awaited.

Militant hideout busted in Poonch;huge cache of arms seized

PNS n SIVASAGAR

Reaching out to the indigenouspeople of election-bound Assamamid frequent anti-CAA protests,Prime Minister Narendra Modion Saturday distributed landownership certificates to over onelakh such families, insisting themove will guarantee them "pride,freedom and protection".

On his first physical visit out-side the national capital this year,Modi reaffirmed the state and thecentral government's commit-ment to protecting the landrights and the unique cultural tra-ditions of the indigenous people.

He also castigated the previousgovernments for depriving themof their land rights for years sinceIndependence.

"When the SarbanandaSonowal government took overthe reins in Assam, more than sixlakh indigenous families had nolegal rights over their land. In thelast few years more than two lakhsuch families have been allottedownership certificates.

"With more than one lakhfamilies added today, the govern-ment has shown its commitmentto protecting the rights of the

indigenous people," Modi said.The previous governments in

Assam never cared for the rightsof those who "loved this sacredland", he alleged.

"The land ownership certifi-cates (pattas) will guarantee their'Swabhiman' (pride), Swadheenta(freedom) and Suraksha (protec-tion)," the prime minister assert-ed. As Modi spoke at the func-tion in Sivasagar, the historicalcapital of the Asom kings, anti-CAA and anti-NRC protests

were staged at several places inAssam. The prime minister, how-ever, steered clear of the contro-versies surrounding the two andmade no mention of these in hisspeech.

Seeking to impart nationalis-tic fervour to the event, Modi saidNetaji Subhas Chandra Bose,whose 125th birth anniversarywas being celebrated on Saturdayacross the country by his govern-ment as 'Parakram Diwas' (TheDay of Valour), "inspires hope

and national pride"."Netaji is loved and respected

for the sense of pride he instilledin all Indians and his spirit offreedom will guide as we cele-brate the day across the countryto realise our national goals," hesaid.He asserted that the BJP-ledgovernment is committed pro-tecting the land, language andculture of the indigenous peopleof Assam.

Modi said the state's BJP-ledgovernment had introduced anew land policy in 2019 to giveland ownership rights to them.

"They can now improve theirliving standards by availing ofthe benefits of a host of centralgovernment schemes like PMKisan Samman Nidhi, cropinsurance scheme, and also eas-ily secure farm loans frombanks," he said.

About 70 tribal communitiesin Assam were provided socialsecurity under BJP-led govern-ments at the Centre and in thestate, he said.

Modi said, in the last four-years-and-half, his governmenttook steps to honour and pro-mote Assamese literary, cultur-al and spiritual heritage.

Modi vows to protect landrights of indigenous people

PNS n NEW DELHI

A new survey has found thatabout 42 per cent adolescent girlsare allowed access to a mobilephone for less than an hour in aday with most parents feeling thatthey are "unsafe" and an"unhealthy distraction" for them.

Centre for Catalyzing Change(C3), a New Delhi-based NGO, inassociation with DigitalEmpowerment Foundation(DEF) conducted the survey in 29districts of 10 states with 4,100respondents to understand digi-tal access to young girls in India.

The survey, released ahead ofthe National Girl Child Day, cov-ered 4,100 respondents acrossfour key stakeholder groups – ado-lescent girls, family members,teachers, and representatives of

community organisations (likeNGOs) in ten states -- Assam,Haryana, Karnataka, Bihar,Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra,Tamil Nadu, Telangana, UttarPradesh and West Bengal. Thesurvey found that there is a crisisof access to digital devices for ado-lescent girls in India.

"Access differs from state tostate. Karnataka is where themaximum amount of adolescent

girls enjoyed easy access to digi-tal or mobile devices, with 65 percent.

"Boys have easier access. InHaryana, the gender gap is thewidest, while Telangana reportedthe lowest difference between thepercentage of boys and girls hav-

ing digital access (12 per cent)," itsaid.

The survey said family attitudesand biases restrict the time givento girls to access a digital device –42 per cent of girls are allowedaccess to a mobile phone for lessthan an hour in a day.

And on top of this, the surveyfound that 65 per cent of teachersand 60 per cent of communityorganisations say being a girl is afactor in accessing digital technol-ogy. Most parents felt that amobile phone is "unsafe" and an"unhealthy distraction" for anadolescent girl, the survey said.

"Even when families and ado-lescents can afford smartphones,computers or other digital devices,it is always the male family mem-bers' usage of such devices that isprioritized," the survey found.

42 pc girls allowed access to mobilephone for less than an hour: Study

Don’t oppose ministers at Republic Day fete: BKU leaderPNS n CHANDIGARH

Haryana Bharatiya Kisan Unionchief Gurnam Singh Chadunion Saturday appealed to farm-ers and their supporters protest-ing the Centre's contentiousfarm laws not to oppose minis-ters or political leaders atRepublic Day events in thestate.

He, however, said farmers willcontinue opposing state minis-ters at rallies and events on otherdays.

"I would like to request thatin Haryana if any minister orpolitical leader comes to anevent to unfurl the nationalflag on the occasion (of RepublicDay), we don't have to opposethem," Chaduni said in a videomessage.

Disruption of any kind of aRepublic Day function "willsend out a wrong message", hesaid.

Farmers will continue tooppose Haryana ministers ifthey hold rallies and functionson other days in the state, headded.

Earlier this month, protestingfarmers had vandalised thevenue of a "KisanMahapanchayat" in Karnalwhere Haryana Chief MinisterManohar Lal Khattar was to

address people to highlight thebenefits of the Centre's threefarm laws. Last month, a groupof protesting farmers had shownblack flags to Khattar when hisconvoy was passing throughAmbala city.

In another incident lastmonth, a group of farmers hadshown black flags to UnionMinister Rattan Lal Kataria inJandli village adjoining Ambalacity.

Notably, Khattar and stateministers will be unfurling thenational flag at various eventsacross the state on January 26.

According to an officialrelease, Khattar will unfurl thenational flag in Panipat.

Deputy Chief MinisterDushyant Chautala will unfurlthe tricolour at a function in

Ambala. Education MinisterKanwar Pal will hoist the flag inGurgaon and TransportMinister Mool Chand Sharmain Rewari.

Haryana police sources saidtight security arrangements arebeing put in place in and aroundvenues of all Republic Day func-tions which will be attended bythe chief minister, ministersand other dignitaries.

Thousands of farmers, most-ly from Punjab, Haryana andwestern Uttar Pradesh, havebeen camping at several Delhiborder points since November28 last year, demanding a repealof three farm laws and a legalguarantee on MSP for theircrops.

Enacted in September lastyear, the three laws have beenprojected by the Centre as majorreforms in the agriculture sec-tor that will remove middlemenand allow farmers to sell theirproduce anywhere in the coun-try.

However, the protesting farm-ers have expressed their appre-hension that the new laws wouldpave the way for eliminating thesafety cushion of minimumsupport price (MSP) and doaway with the 'mandi' (wholesalemarket) system, leaving them atthe mercy of big corporates.

Lalu to be shiftedto AIIMS-Delhi ashealth conditiondeterioratesPNS n RANCHI

Jai led RJD chief L a luPrasad will be shifted toAIIMS-Delhi af ter hishealth condition deteriorat-ed while undergoing treat-ment at a hospita l inRanchi, officials said onSaturday.

Prasad (72), convictedin fodder scam cases, isundergoing treatment atthe Rajendra Institute ofMedical Science (RIMS)here for multiple ailments.

"Lalu Prasad is havingtrouble breathing for thelast two days. On Friday, hewas found to be havingpneumonia. Consideringhis age, we have decided toshift him to AIIMS-Delhion the advice of doctors forbetter treatment," RIMSDirector Dr KameshwarPrasad said.

"He is likely to be shift-ed to AIIMS today. Wehave already spoken to theexperts at AIIMS," headded.

Dr Prasad further saidthat the authorities and hisfamily are arranging for anair ambulance to shift himto AIIMS-Delhi.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Over 50 shanties were guttedin a massive fire that brokeout in east Delhi's GhazipurDairy Farm area on Saturday,officials said.

Fire officials received infor-mation about the blaze at 1.41pm, following which 17 firetenders were rushed to thespot.

Around 50 to 60 shantieswere gutted in the fire.

The blaze was broughtunder control at 2.50 pm,they said, adding that coolingprocess is underway.

Over 50shantiesgutted in East Delhi

PNS n MUMBAI

Northern parts of Maharashtraalong with Mumbai and Thaneare likely to witness a drop intemperature from January 25onwards, an official from IndiaMeteorological Department(IMD) said on Saturday. TheSantacruz observatory inMumbai on Saturday morningrecorded the minimum temper-ature at 18.8 degrees Celsius,showing a departure of -0.4degrees from the normal, theofficial said."Conditions arefavourable for drop in temper-ature, which may cause a declinein minimum temperature fromJanuary 25 onwards in Mumbai,Thane and north Maharashtra,"he said.

Mumbai, northMaharashtra towitness drop intemperature

Mamata slamsCentre forabolishingplan panel PNS n KOLKATA

West Bengal Chief MinisterMamata Banerjee onSaturday criticised the Centrefor abolishing the PlanningCommission, which, accord-ing to her, was conceptualisedby Netaji Subhas ChandraBose.

Addressing a programmeat Netaji Bhavan here on his125th birth anniversary,Banerjee described Bose as anicon who had advocatedunity among all communitiesin the country.

She also demanded thatNetaji's birthday on January23 be declared a national hol-iday.

"Why the nationalPlanning Commission, whichwas conceptualised by Netajiin independent India, wasdissolved? Why the demandfor a holiday on Netaji's birth-day by our government notyet met?" Banerjee said in herbrief speech. The NarendraModi government disbandedthe Planning Commission in2014 and had formed the NitiAayog.

PNS n HOWRAH

Several people were injured,many vehicles vandalised asBJP and Trinamool Congresssupporters clashed in WestBengal's Howrah district onSaturday, police said.

BJP alleged that a partymember was shot at, whilesome were beaten with rodsand sticks.

Crude bombs were alsoallegedly hurled during thestreet fight at Bally, triggeringpanic in the area. Besides, afew bikes and a police vehiclewere vandalised, officials said.

On Friday, Bally MLABaishaki Dalmia was sus-pended by the TrinamoolCongress for alleged anti-party activities, hours afterDomjur MLA Rajib Banerjeeresigned as a minister in theMamata Banerjee govern-ment. Police were yet to con-firm about the firing but theBJP claimed that party mem-ber Promod Dubey whoreceived a bullet injury in afiring at Abhra Sen Streetwas rushed to the Howrah

hospital. Police said that ahuge contingent has beendeployed in the area to con-trol the situation and preventany further flare-ups.

Local TMC leaders saidthat some BJP members wereallegedly extorting moneyfrom shops in the area, follow-ing which people of the areaprotested and roughed themup.

As the BJP men blocked theGT Road in protest, someTMC supporters tried toremove them, triggering theviolence.

TMC claimed that BJP sup-porters hurled crude bombsand set on fire some vehiclesto foment trouble in thepeaceful locality.

Local TMC leaderssaid that some BJPmembers wereallegedly extortingmoney from shops in the area

Several injured, manyvehicles vandalised inBJP-TMC clash at Howrah PNS n NEW DELHI

The Enforcement DirectorateSaturday said a money laun-dering chargesheet has beenfiled against a Haryana-basedcompany and its directorsaccused of cheating about 31lakh investors by way of aPonzi or fraud multi-levelmarketing scheme.

It said a prosecution com-plaint or chargesheet has beenfiled against Hisar-basedFuture Maker Lifecare Pvt Ltdand its two directors RadheShyam and Bansi Lal undervarious sections of thePrevention of MoneyLaundering Act (PMLA).

The chargesheet has beenfiled before a special PMLAcourt in Panchkula “with aprayer for awarding punish-ment to the accused personsand confiscation of attachedassets to the tune of Rs 261.35crore”.

According to an ED state-ment Radhe Shyam and BansiLal, both residents of Haryana,floated companies in the nameof Future Maker Life Care PvtLtd and FMLC Global market-ing Pvt Ltd.

“Through these companiesthey have duped innocentpersons in guise of a multi-level marketing (MLM)scheme that promoted variousPonzi schemes in many partsof the country,” theEnforcement Directoratealleged in the statement issuedhere.

An MLM scheme works ina pyramidal structure wherethe persons at the top gain atthe behest of the loss borne bythe persons at the base of thepyramid.

The ED's money launderingcase against the accused wasfiled after taking congnisanceof multiple Haryana andTelangana police FIRs regis-tered against the accused for“cheating lakhs of investors”.

The Haryana Police hadslapped charges of cheatingand conspiracy under varioussections of the IPC and thoseunder the prize chit andmoney circulation banningAct of 1978 read with Haryanaprotection of interest ofdeposits in FinancialEstablishment Act of 2013against the accused, the cen-tral probe agency said.

The ED said its probe foundthat “around 31 lakh investorslost their money by makinginvestments in the schemesfloated by the accused”.

“In this scheme, the initialinvestors were paid highreturns to attract moreinvestors and entice currentones to invest more money.When other investors begin toparticipate, a cascading effectbegins,” it said.

The schemer pays a “return”to initial investors from theinvestments of new partici-pants rather than from gen-uine profits, it said, describingthe modus operandi alleged-ly deployed by the accused toperpetrate the fraud.

“Radhey Shyam used tolure innocent persons throughspeeches in fancy seminarsconducted across Indiapromising high returns of upto 5-8 times of the investmentin two years.”

“Bansi Lal was the financialmastermind whose role waslayering and laundering ofthe tainted money collectedfrom the investors in variouspaper concerns,” the EDclaimed.

ED files chargesheet againstHaryana firm, directors

PNS n COIMBATORE

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister KPalaniswami on Saturday onceagain dared DMK president MK Stalin to debate with him oncorruption and said the partychief was not competent to bea leader Campaigning here forthe forthcoming Assemblyelections in the state,Palaniswami said Stalin has nocourage to face the AIADMKdirectly and was trying to onlydefame the ruling party bydiverting the people's attentionby making false promisesthrough grama sabha meetings.

While AIADMK was facingthe people with its successfulwelfare schemes, DMK has noachievements to put forwardand was enacting a drama in thename of grama sabha meetings,the Chief Minister said.

Stalin failed to respond to aquery from a woman, who wasthrashed in the city a month agowhen she questioned him onwelfare schemes during a gramasabha meet, Palaniswami said.While 13 former DMKMinisters were facing corruptioncharges, Stalin wanted to h

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