HYDERABAD, THURSDAY DECEMBER 17, 2020; PAGES 12 `3

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MONEY 8STATES GET MORE TIME

TO IMPLEMENT REFORMS

ANALYSIS 7BUILD AN INDIGENOUS

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SPORTS 12RAHANE WILL DO TREMENDOUS

JOB IN MY ABSENCE: KOHLI

}LUCIFER REMAKEWILL ROLL AFTER

SANKRANTI: CHIRU

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India's Coronavirusactive caseloaddeclines to 3.32 L

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acKenzie Scott is giving away her fortune at an unprecedented pace,donating more than $4 billion in four months after announcing $1.7

billion in gifts in July. The world's 18th-richest person outlined the latestcontributions in a blog post Tuesday, saying she asked her team to figureout how to give away her fortune faster.Scott's wealth has climbed $23.6 billionthis year to $60.7 billion, according tothe Bloomberg Billionaires Index, asAmazon.com Inc., the primary source ofher fortune, has surged. "This pandemichas been a wrecking ball in the lives ofAmericans already struggling," she wrotein the post on Medium.

JEFF BEZOS'S EX-WIFE GIVES AWAYOVER $4 BILLION IN FOUR MONTHS

SUNNY DEOL GETS Y-CATEGORYSECURITY, BACKED NEW FARM LAWS

Congress mayoral candidate N Venugopal has lost to the BJPcandidate by one vote, in the Kochi Corporation North Island ward

in the state's local body elections. "It was asure seat. I can't say what happened. Therewas no problem in the party. There was aproblem with the voting machine. That maybe the reason for BJP's victory," MrVenugopal said. "I have not decided to go tocourt with the voting machine issue so far.Will check what happened exactly," he added.The counting of votes for local body polls inKerala is underway at 244 counting centresacross the state.

The Central government on Wednesday informed the Telangana High Court thatruling TRS MLA Ramesh Chennamaneni is a German citizen and holds a

passport of that country. The legislator from Vemulawada constituency had earlierfiled a petition in the court challenging the UnionHome Ministry’s order holding that he is not a citizenof India. The High Court had last month directed theCentre to get information through the Indian Embassyin Germany whether Ramesh is holding Germanpassport/citizenship or not. The MLA was also askedto file an affidavit disclosing and enclosing the detailsrelated to surrendering of his German passport alongwith proof of giving up his German citizenship.

Full report on page 2

Actor and BJP MP Sunny Deol's security has been upgraded daysafter he spoke out in support of the

government's farm laws that have provokedmassive protests by thousands of farmerson highways near Delhi. Sunny Deol, 64, willnow have Y-category security, which means11 personnel, including two commandosand policemen. The MP from Gurdaspur hadearlier been questioned over his silence onthe farmer protests. Last week, he posted astatement on Twitter, saying the matter wasbetween the farmers and the governmentbut some were trying to stir trouble.

CONG MAYOR CANDIDATE IN KERALALOSES TO BJP BY 1 VOTE, BLAMES EVM

TRS MLA RAMESH IS A GERMANCITIZEN, CENTRE TELLS TS HC

VANTAGE POINT -NNARSIM

HYDERABADWEATHER

Current Weather ConditionsUpdated December 16, 2020 5:00 PM

ALMANAC

TODAY

Month & Paksham:

Margashirsha & Shukla Paksha

Panchangam

Tithi : Tritiya: 03:17 pm

Nakshatram: Uttara Ashadha: 07:13 pm

Time to Avoid: (Bad time to start

any important work)

Rahukalam: 01:34 pm – 02:56 pm

Yamagandam: 06:43 am – 08:05 am

Varjyam: 11:11 pm – 12:47 am

Gulika: 09:27 am - 10:50 am

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FFoorreeccaasstt:: Clear with periodic cloudsTemp: 27/17Humidity: 64%Sunrise: 06.39amSunset: 05.45pm

India’s HDI dwindles,settles below Bhutan,Bangladesh, NepalPNS n NEW DELHI

India dropped one spot to 131among 189 countries in the 2020human development index,according to a report released bythe United Nations DevelopmentProgramme (UNDP). HumanDevelopment Index is the mea-sure of a nation's health, educa-tion, and standards of living.

Life expectancy of Indians atbirth in 2019 was 69.7 years whileBangladesh has a life expectan-cy of 72.6 years and Pakistan 67.3years, the 2020 HumanDevelopment Report said. India,Bhutan (129), Bangladesh (133),Nepal (142), and Pakistan (154)

were ranked among countrieswith medium human develop-ment, the report said.

India's HDI value for 2019 is0.645 which put it in the medi-um human development catego-ry. India has been positioned at131 out of 189 countries and ter-ritories, according to the report.India had ranked 130 in 2018 inthe index.

Norway topped the index,followed by Ireland, Switzerland,Hong Kong and Iceland, thereport showed.

Talking to reporters, UNDPResident Representative ShokoNoda said the drop in India'sranking doesn't mean "Indiadidn't do well but other countriesdid better".

Headmasterheld formolestinggirl studentsPNS n HYDERABAD

The headmaster of a govern-ment primary school wasdetained by police onWednesday after beingthrashed by parents for thealleged sexual assault of somegirl students at BhadradriKothagudem district inTelangana.

The 40-year-old man hadsexually assaulted at least sixgirls on the school premisessince August this year, policesaid.He had also beenthrashed by parents of somegirls, who brought it to theirnotice. The parents later fileda complaint with police, follow-ing which he was booked undervarious sections of the POCSOAct and Indian Penal Code.

TS govt fixesland conversiontax ratesPNS n HYDERABAD

The state government onWednesday issued orders pre-scribing the rates of conver-sion tax for conversion ofagricultural land to non-agri-cultural purposes. The orderscame into force with imme-diate effect.

In areas covered under theGreater HyderabadMunicipal Corporation, theconversion tax has been fixedat 2 per cent of the basic valueof the land.

TS gets first womanchief justice Hima KohliPNS n HYDERABAD

Justice Hima Kohli is all set toassume charge as the firstwoman Chief Justice of theTelangana High Court.

Her appointment was con-firmed after the SupremeCourt collegiums recom-mended the transfer of presentChief Justice RaghavendraSingh Chauhan toUttarakhand and elevation ofJustice Hima Kohli, currentlyserving as senior judge in theDelhi High Court, as ChiefJustice of the Telangana HighCourt.

The Supreme Court col-legium, headed by ChiefJustice of India S.A. Bobde andincluding Justice N.V. Ramana,has finalised the transfers ofChief Justices and elevation ofjudges as CJs. The collegium'srecommendations will be sent

to President Ram Nath Kovindfor his assent.

Chief Justice RS Chauhanhas been serving as CJ ofTelangana High Court sinceJune 23, 2019. He has onemore year of service beforeretirement.

Tension prevails inold city as BJP,MIM workers clashPNS n HYDERABAD

Tension prevailed for sometime in the Old City onWednesday as some local BJPleaders tried to prevent a per-son from building a structureon a piece of shrine land atUppuguda, resulting in thedetention of BJP leaders andsome locals, including women

and the aged. The police areaccused of 'dragging' the BJPleaders and others into wait-ing police vehicles whilewhisking them away.

A person, claiming that theTemple Trust had disposed ofover acres 7.13 Guntas of landworth Rs 70 crore to himunder the survey numbers 24,

PNS n HYDERABAD

The High Court of Telanganahas passed strictures againstthe Government of Telanganafor misleading the court withregard to registration of non-agricultural assets.

The Court remarked thatthe government "said one thingto the court and did anotherthing".

"The State Government isacting too smart," the courtobserved. Meanwhile, thecourt extended the stay on theregistration of non-agricul-tural lands till Thursday.

The counsel for the petition-er deposed before the court,

saying that registration ofproperties was not being enter-tained as per the old system.

In spite of directions to thecontrary by the court, the stategovernment has been gather-ing information about AadhaarCard details.

HC angry over Govt goingback on registration of lands

SC notice to Centreon plea against LRS

The Supreme CourtWednesday sought

response from the Centre andothers on a plea to take actionagainst regularisation of illegalconstructions resulting inmassive corruption anddamage to natural resources.A bench Justices L NageswaraRao, Hemant Gupta and AjayRastogi issued notice to theMinistry of Environment andForests, Housing and UrbanAffairs, CBI,

Fiat Chryslerto set upglobal digitalhub in HydPNS n NEW DELHI

Auto major Fiat ChryslerAutomobiles (FCA) onWednesday said it will investUSD 150 million (around Rs1,103 crore) to set up a glob-al digital hub in Hyderabad tohelp the group develop newtechnologies to cater to itsautomotive operations acrossthe globe. The facility, whichis FCA's largest digital huboutside of North America,would create nearly 1,000 jobsby the end of next year.

"While reviewing our strat-egy last year, we knew the nextstep for us to set up a globaldigital hub which would serveas transformation and innova-tion engine for Fiat Chryslerand drive global technologystrategy and delivery experi-ence through robust platform,technology and service centresof excellence," FCANorthAmerica and Asia Pacific CIOMamatha Chamarthi said at avirtual event.

Komatireddy, Revanth meet Sonia, Rahul in DelhiPNS n HYDERABAD

With over a dozen aspirantsthrowing in their hats for thepost of president of TelanganaPradesh Congress Committee(TPCC), and with about half adozen of them deemed to be'strong contenders', TPCCleaders Komatireddy VenkatReddy and Anumula RevanthReddy have left nothing tochance for attaining the gaddi.On Wednesday, in a last-ditcheffort, they were in New Delhito brighten their chances.

While Bhongir Lok Sabhamember Komatireddy Venkat

Reddy met AICC presidentSonia Gandhi and RahulGandhi, the Malkajgiri LokSabha member Revanth Reddymet Rahul Gandhi and sought

Sonia's appointment. Each ofthe Congress leaders in therace for TPCC chief post claimsto be a force to reckon with,when it comes to leading the

grand old party in Telangana forthe crucial 2023 Assembly polls.

The Congress high com-mand had sent party'sTelangana affairs in-chargeManickam Tagore toHyderabad last week to beginthe 'consultation' process forselection of new TPCC chiefafter the present TPCC chief NUttam Kumar Reddy tenderedhis resignation owing respon-sibility for the party's dismalperformance in the December4 GHMC polls in whichCongress won just 2 seats outof 150 seats.

2.3 lakh noise complaints... but no action ANUSHA PUPPALA n HYDERABAD

Where will people go andwhom should they approach ifthe authorities turn a deaf earto not just one or two, but 2.3lakh noise pollution complaintsmade since June 2014?

In a finding that could turngreen activists red, the reply toa query raised under the Rightto Information Act (RTI)revealed that Telangana Statereceived a total 2,30,000 lakhnoise pollution complaints;and yet, multiple police sta-tions confirmed they neverreceived any directions toimplement GO 172 and neverpenalized anyone for it!

Apart from murder and rapecrimes, Hyderabad City Policeought to be concerned aboutnoise pollution, considering it

is the third major category ofcomplaints in the city, says RTIactivist Vijay Gopal. TelanganaPolice received 52,80,091 lakh

calls/complaints through 100from June 2014 till date and2,30,000 of these calls pertainedto noise pollution.

Even in the state capital, therecord is dismal. According tothe RTI reply, Hyderabad CityPolice received 201 noise pol-lution complaints in 2014,300 complaints in 2015, 340complaints in 2016, 320 com-plaints in 2017, 310 com-plaints in 2018, 309 com-plaints in 2019 and 209 com-plaints till date in 2020.However, no penalties wereimposed on any of the com-plainants received from 2014till 2020. The RTI reply alsostated that no hawkers, vehi-cle-mounted speakers, tem-ples, mosques were penalizedfor using speakers withoutpermission.

Uneasy calm prevails in TRSVENKAT RAM REDDY LAKKADIn HYDERABAD

There is an uneasy calm thesedays in the Telangana RashtraSamiti camp that is attributedto TRS chief and ChiefMinister K ChandraskeharRao's unusual maun post hisDecember 11-13 Delhi tripand the party brass's inabilityto de-brief him on what exact-ly transpired during his high-profile meetings in New Delhi.

The pink party, which hadsuffered warning shots inDubbak Assembly by-poll anda severe jolt in the GHMC elec-tions, saw insult being added toits injury by BJP state unit chiefBandi Sanjay, who declaredthat "KCR would go to jail" oncorruption charges.

Noticeably, relatively junior

ministers and legislators belong-ing to the party countered thatominous charge; with the brassannoyingly mum, instead of giv-ing a measured response. Thepink party, in disarray due to thepoll reverses, appears to bestruggling to devise an effectiveplan of action to corner the BJP.

Amidst all this, KCR's suddentrip to Delhi and his solitarymeetings with Prime MinisterNarendra Modi and UnionHome Minister Amit Shah hadtriggered speculations that KCRhad bargained in vain for 'polit-ical truce' with BJP.

Naveen Chandlikely to headTSPSCPNS n HYDERABAD

Retired IPS officer NaveenChand is likely to be appoint-ed as the next chairman of theTelangana State Public ServiceCommission (TSPSC). Thepresent TSPSC chairmanGhanta Chakrapani's term isset to end on Thursday(December 17).

India, Bhutan (129),Bangladesh (133),Nepal (142), andPakistan (154) wereranked amongcountries with mediumhuman development

n Reply to an RTI queryreveals that TelanganaState received a total2,30,000 lakh noisepollution complaints,but no action wastaken against any ofthem!

n Police act only onmurder, rape complaints

n KCR leaves forfarmhouse,restricts meetings

n KTR meets dad atfarmhouse

n TRS seniors,ministers mum;while juniors takethe lead incountering BJP

Taking a closerlook at the farmers’ agitation

Hunt for Geeta’shome, parents continues

Fatal mishapsmount

despite WFH

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hyderabad 02HYDERABAD | THURSDAY | DECEMBER 17, 2020

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(IN HYDERABAD)

Being neither a farmer,trader, economist / aca-demician, nor wearing

tinted glasses of any ideology;and still expressing views onthe ongoing agitation by farm-ers makes one susceptible tocharges of being ignorantabout agriculture in general,and insensitive towards thewoes of farmers in particular.

On the positive side, anoutsider’s objective views per-haps, could enrich the debateon the subject.

The ongoing agitationbrings to mind one importantquestion:- Why is agriculturein India at the crossroads?

The main reason is thatagrarian policies have tomaintain a balance betweentwo contrasting objectives –providing remunerative pricesto farmers; and secondly –keeping the prices of farmproduce manageable.

Remunerative prices arenecessary to continue farmingactivities as agriculture is the

mainstay for more than halfthe population of the country.On the other hand, stableprices of agriculture produceare important to provide foodsecurity and affordability ofagricultural produce to themasses.

A delicate balance betweenthese two objectives, therefore,has to be maintained. This isdone by the governmentthrough a policy framework,and various welfare schemesfor farmers including DirectBenefit Transfer (DBT) suchas the Rythu Bandhu Schemeof the Telangana Governmentand the Kisan SammanYojana of the CentralGovernment. The existingpolicy framework in thisregard consists of AgricultureProduce MarketingCommittees (APMC) Actenacted by governments ofvarious states for mandatoryselling of agricultural pro-duce in the regulated marketseither directly by the farmers

or through intermediaries.Availability and reach of

agricultural markets; andassociated infrastructure suchas warehouses, godowns andcold storages is limited withwide spatial variation.Increasing the penetration ofagricultural markets needsinfusion of public as well as,private capital in the country.

Second, policy instrumentis Essential Commodities Act,a Central Act that provides anumbrella under which statesare enabled to impose allkinds of restrictions on stor-

age, transport and processingof agricultural produce.

In a scarcity scenario, thesecontrols were justified on thegrounds to control hoardingand other types of speculativeactivities. However, these pro-visions do not work efficient-ly in times of genuine scarci-ty and are not needed in nor-mal times. Besides, these pro-visions are often misused bywell entrenched vested inter-ests; and have become aninstrument for harassmentand corruption. Anothermajor intervention is provi-

sion of assured MinimumSupport Price (MSP) for var-ious crops for procurement bythe Central and state agencies.

Thus, agriculture market inIndia is fragmented. The sizeof market matters for achiev-ing economies of scale andother optimum outcomes.Unfortunately, these restric-tions prevent development ofintegrated national or region-

al markets for agriculturalproducts.

In order to address variousconcerns, the agriculturereform process in all earnestwas conceived in the year2000 with the setting of aCommittee under the chair-personship of Shankar LalGuru for strengthening anddeveloping agricultural mar-keting system.

This was followed by thereport of the task force, head-ed by Dr Montek SinghAhluwalia on EmploymentOpportunities in July, 2001.The RCA Jain inter-ministe-rial task force was constitut-ed in 2001 to look into theGuru Committee recommen-dations.

These included examininglegislative reforms, institu-tional and policy supportmeasures to expand credit,and the creation of marketinginfrastructure. One of theimportant outcomes of RCAJain task force was creation of

a Model APMC Act inSeptember 2003 to preventmonopoly of the state govern-ments over wholesale marketsand to ensure a transparentpricing system.

Dr MS Swaminathan head-ed the National Commissionon Farmers and presentedfive reports on the broadtheme of ‘Serving Farmersand Saving Farmers’ betweenDecember 2004-2006 high-lighting the issues related toagriculture and suggestingremedial measures.

Based on the recommenda-tions of various think tanksand task forces, the politicalspectrum of various hues,was in favour of establishingan Indian common marketand removal of restrictions oninternal trade in agriculturalcommodities.

After a lull of several years,the Standing Committee ofParliament on Agriculture(2018-19) recommended mea-sures for reforming agriculture

market produce committees;abolishing the EssentialCommodities Act and need toencourage private investmentin agricultural sector.

In September 2020 threelaws namely; The FarmersProduce Trade andCommerce (Promotion andFacilitation) Act 2020, theEssential Commodities(Amendment) Act 2020; andthe Farmers (Empowermentand Protection) Agreementon Price Assurance and FarmServices Act 2020 had beenpassed. Agitation at this stageis premature.

The right time for farmersto raise their voices would beif the flexibility to sell, andremoval of price controls leadto adverse impact and issuesrelated to protection of farm-ers in dealing with food pro-cessing industry are witnessedduring implementation.

Now is the time to believeand honour the collectivewisdom.

DR SHAILENDRA JOSHI,IAS (RETD)

Thus, agriculture market in India isfragmented. The size of marketmatters for achieving economies ofscale and other optimum outcomes.Unfortunately, these restrictionsprevent development of integratednational or regional markets foragricultural products

Taking a closer look at the farmers’ agitation

Migrant workers slowlyhead back to MumbaiPNS n MAHBUBNAGAR

The month of May saw a mas-sive migrant exodus fromMumbai amid the Coronaviruscrisis. One such area which isabout 90 per cent full ofmigrants is Mumbai'sBhayyawadi in Juhu Koliwada,which saw nearly 80 per centof its residents leave in Maywhen the Coronavirus lock-down was in full effect. Emptylanes and eerie silence filledthis neighbourhood back then.But the hustle bustle seems tofill in the neighbourhood forthe last one-and-a-half-month.Only that the life has notreturned to normal yet for themigrants here.

As the Covid-19 impact sub-sided to a great extent, peoplefrom the district, especiallythose who live in tribal thandas,and migrant workers belongingto the district who returned tothe state during the pandemic

period have been bound forMumbai and destinations inMaharashtra like Pune andBhiwandi in search of work.

Discouraged by lack of workin the district, lack of NREGSworks due to rains and fami-

lies not owning land have beenmigrating to Maharashtra insearch of greener pastures withlock stock and barrel and withfamily members. The workerswho suffered for want of workfor the past eight months were

seen heading for Maharashtra. It may be recalled that many

migrant workers returned todistrict by foot fromMaharashtra for want of trans-port facilities. For example, thecouple Jagan and Neelima wholive in a tribal thanda inBhutpur mandal ofMahbubnagar district have fivechildren, including four daugh-ters. They did not own anyland to practise cultivation.Because of rains, the NREGSworks are not in force. So, tosave the family from starvation,they are migrating to destina-tions in Maharashtra.

Many migrant workers havebeen employed in Pune priorto the lockdown. Because ofCoronavirus, they were forcedto return to their native places.As they find no gainfulemployment, they have beenmigrating to Mumbai andother destinations in the neigh-bouring Maharashtra state.

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Central government onWednesday informed theTelangana High Court thatruling TRS MLA RameshChennamaneni is a Germancitizen and holds a passport ofthat country. The legislatorfrom Vemulawada constituen-cy had earlier filed a petitionin the court challenging theUnion Home Ministry’s orderholding that he is not a citizenof India. The High Court hadlast month directed the Centreto get information through theIndian Embassy in Germanywhether Ramesh is holdingGerman passport/citizenshipor not. The MLA was alsoasked to file an affidavit dis-closing and enclosing thedetails related to surrenderingof his German passport alongwith proof of giving up hisGerman citizenship.

When the matter came upfor hearing on Wednesday,the Assistant Solicitor General(ASG) through a memo alongwith relevant documents

informed the court thatRamesh is a German citizen ason today and his Germanpassport is due for renewal in2023.

Justice Challa Kodanda Ramthen directed the ASG to filean affidavit in this regard andadjourned the matter toJanuary 20 for further hearing.

Ramesh is in a prolongedlegal battle over his citizenshipissue. He was elected thrice toAssembly, including in a by-poll. In 2013, the AndhraPradesh High Court quashedhis election after a politicalrival approached it contendingthat he held a German pass-port.

Chennamaneni thenapproached the SupremeCourt and obtained a stay.While the stay order was inoperation, he contested theAssembly elections in 2014 and2018 and had won. The UnionHome Ministry last year issueda fresh order cancelling hisIndian citizenship on theground that he concealed factswhile applying for it.

Rudra held incash-for-votecasePNS n HYDERABAD

Implementing the ordersfrom special court dealingACB cases, the officials con-cerned on Wednesdayarrested Rudra Uday Simha,one of the accused in Cash-for-vote scam.

"On Tuesday, Rudra UdaySimha, a closed aide ofRevanth Reddy skipped toattend the trail in the case.The court directed the ACBto arrest the accused.Subsequently ACB had exe-cuted the arrest warrant andproduced him before court,"said ACB official.

The case pertains to year2015 where the ACB arrest-ed Revanth Reddy alongwith two others BishopSebastian Harry and RudraUdaya Simha while theywere allegedly handing overan advance of Rs 50 lakh toStephenson for voting infavour of MLC elections.

Ramesh is a Germancitizen, Centre tells HC

Continued from page 1

A penalty of Rs 1,000 should beimposed on first offences andRs 2,000 per offence for subse-quent offences under Section190(2) of the Motor VehiclesAct, 1988. The vehicle-mount-ed audio system and acces-sories should be removed andconfiscated, apart from otherpenalties. The other defaultersshould be fined Rs.2,000 in thecase of first offence andRs.4,000 per offence shall befined on subsequent offences asthe source of noise pollution isgenerally stationary in oneplace and cause constant emis-sion of noise resulting in accu-mulative damage to the humannervous system causing bloodpressures, etc. under Section 15of Environment (Protection)

Act, 1986.According to GO 172, a

proven offender can be pun-ished with imprisonment for aterm which may extend tofive years with fine, whichmay extend to' one Iakhrupees or with both, and incase the contravention contin-ues, with additional fine, whichmay extend to five thousandrupees for every day.

Vijay Gopal, an RTI activist,told The Pioneer, "Many peo-ple are suffering these daysbecause hawkers are also usingspeakers. Then we have theseirresponsible political partiesusing speakers, then the greatold temples and mosques, allare bothering citizens withtheir craziness. All this is goingon because Telangana Policehas not implemented GO 172.

I expect Hyderabad Police todo their job, or stop creatingshort videos asking people totrust in law and order and stopasking people to call 100 incase of distress. Only murderand rape are not crimes, soundpollution is third biggest in thecity, but the police depart-ment seems least interested init. The CP or DGP have noteven instructed the police toimplement GO 172, whichpenalizes people for usingspeakers without permission,using speakers beyond soundlimits, and seize them fromsecond time onwards".

Responding to the allega-tions, Anjani Kumar,Commissioner of HyderabadCity Police, told The Pioneer,"We are taking action againstnoise pollution complaints

under the Hyderabad CityPolice Act because HyderabadCity Police act has given a lotof powers to theCommissioner of Police. Wehave been taking a lot ofaction under this act and wehave been booking petty casesagainst noise pollution. Whenwe issue prohibitory ordersthat five or more people shouldnot gather at any place but atnormal places; that order isgiven under section 144 butunder Hyderabad City PoliceAct Commissioners have pow-ers to issue under that also. So,many times we don't issueorders under section 144;instead of it, we issue underHyderabad City Police Act. Weare also planning to createmore awareness about GO172".

Continued from page 1

Almost confirming this, KCR,who returned to Hyderabad ataround noon on December13, left for his farmhouse in theevening the same day. He hasstayed put there. Ministers andsenior TRS leaders who failedto meet KCR on December 13at Pragathi Bhavan could not doso even at his farmhouse for thepast two days as KCR did notgive them appointments. They,like the party cadre, are eager toknow what transpired in Delhimeetings. For, KCR did notshare details of the outcome ofhis Delhi meetings with anyone.He had left for his farmhousesoon after his review meetingson non-agriculture propertyregistrations and recruitmentdrives on December 13.

Other than his son and ITminister KT Rama Rao, theonly two ministers who werepresent at the review meetingswere Mahmood Ali andVemula Prashanth Reddy.

KTR is learnt to have visit-ed the farmhouse on Mondayto meet KCR and spent sever-al hours with his father.

The foregoing develop-ments have pushed TRS min-isters as well as leaders notprivy to brass-level meetingsinto utter confusion.

While BJP has stepped upits attack on KCR that hewould be soon sent to jail forcorruption, TRS ministers andsenior leaders are cluelesswhether to launch a counterattack on BJP. While awaitinga nod from the party supremo,most of the ministers andsenior leaders are keepingmum for the time being. Thesaving grace is that a few TRSjunior leaders volunteered onTuesday to launch counterattack on BJP.

Political analysts say thecrisis that TRS is currently fac-ing is similar to the one itweathered in 2009 in the after-math of the General Electionwhen TRS lost miserably andeven KCR offered to stepdown as TRS chief. Duringthat time too, KCR left for thefarmhouse abruptly, forcingparty leaders and others tomake rounds to the farm-house and plead with him tocontinue as party chief.2.3 lakh noise complaints...

India’s HDIdwindles...Continued from page 1

Noda said India can help othercountries too and lauded itscommitment to reduce carbonemissions. According to areport, India's gross nationalincome per capita fell to USD6,681 in 2019 from USD 6,829in 2018 on PPP basis.Purchasing power parity orPPP is a measurement of pricesin different countries that usesthe prices of specific goods tocompare the absolute purchas-ing power of the countries'currencies. "In India differentresponses in parent behaviouras well as some disinvestmentin girls' health and educationhave led to higher malnutritionamong girls than among boysas a consequence of shocks like-ly linked to climate change," thereport said. The report said thatunder the Paris Agreement,India pledged to reduce theemission intensity of its GDPfrom the 2005 level by 33–35percent by 2030 and to obtain40 percent of electric powercapacity from non–fossil fuelsources by 2030.

TS govt fixes...Continued from page 1

In all other districts (otherthan GHMC limits), the con-version tax has been fixed at3 per cent of the basic valueof the land.

The government alsoissued orders enforcing TheTelangana Agricultural Land(Conversion for Non-Agricultural Purposes)(Amendment) Act, 2020from December 16, 2020.

TS gets first...Continued from page 1

Justice Hima Kohli belongs toDelhi and practiced as anadvocate in the Delhi HighCourt. On May 29, 2006, shewas appointed as AdditionalJudge of the Delhi High Courtand took oath as permanentJudge on August 29, 2007. Sheis the senior-most Judge of theDelhi High Court.

Uneasy calm prevails...

PNS n NEW DELHI

The Supreme Court onWednesday granted stay oncontempt of court ordersissued by High Court ofTelangana to Public HealthDirector Srinivasa Rao.

The Government ofTelangana had challengedthe contempt of court ordersin the Supreme Court andfiled a petition stating thatconducting 50,000 COVID-19 tests per day is not feasi-ble. It told the apex courtthat the government willconduct tests "according tothe need".

The SC heard the petitionand stayed the contempt ofcourt proceedings of theHC.

COVID testing:SC stays HC'scontempt ofcourt orders

Tensionprevails in...Continued from page 1

25 and 26, started to securethe land by erecting metalsheets around the site.

When BJP leaders andlocals resisted his attempts,he approached the City CivilCourt, Nampally and secureda Police Protection Order. Hestarted erection of metalsheets in the presence of thepolice. On Wednesday, aposse of policemen weredeployed at the site.

Tension prevailed in thearea as the BJP leadersreached the place, along withthe locals, and resisted theperson's attempts at securingthe site. The EndowmentsDepartment issued auctionnotifications to dispose of theland at least 11 times since ittook the land under its con-trol in 1951.

HC angry overGovt going...Continued from page 1

The court has directed thestate government to file anaffidavit with full details andposted the matter toThursday.

Hearing a writ plea onregistering the properties inthe Dharani portal, the courtextended stay on the regis-tration of properties in theportal till Thursday.

The counsel for the peti-tioner, Desai Prakash, toldthe court that theGovernment of Telanganahad told the court that theregistration of propertieswould be entertained as perthe old system, but the samehad not yet been imple-mented.

SC notice to Centre on plea against LRSContinued from page 1

National Disaster ManagementAuthority and Telangana, TamilNadu and Andhra Pradeshgovernments. The apex court washearing a petition filed by socialworker Juvvadi Sagar Rao allegingthat Telangana, Tamil Nadu and

Andhra Pradesh governmentshave been implementingregularisation of illegal layouts intheir respective states. The petitionalleged that state governments areregularising the illegal actcommitted by real estate mafiawith the help of governmentofficials in the respondent states.

Komatireddy, Revanth meet Sonia...Continued from page 1

Manickham held parleys withCongress leaders for threedays from district-level tostate-level and gathered theopinions of over 200 leaders onwho should be appointed asnext TPCC chief. Before leav-ing for Delhi, Manickhammade it clear that he wouldsubmit a report to theCongress high commandbased on the feedback receivedfrom the TS Congress leadersand it was up to the high com-mand to take a call on who

should be the next TPCCchief.

All told, the prime con-tenders are Komatireddy andRevanth Reddy. In this back-drop, both Komatireddy andRevanth Reddy rushed toDelhi to meet Sonia and Rahuland lobby for TPCC post.Komatireddy's meeting withSonia lasted for about halfanhour at her residence inJanpath. He requested Sonia toreward his 35-year-long loyal-ty to the party with the TPCCchief post. He told Sonia thatif the party high command

permitted him, he wouldundertake padayatra acrossTelangana and bring Congressto power in 2023.

Meanwhile, a fewunnamed Congress leaders,under the banner of "loyaland senior leaders ofTelangana Congress party"have written to Sonia Gandhiurging her not to appointRevanth Reddy as next TPCCchief on the grounds thatRevanth has RSS background,changed several parties and isfacing serious cases by ACB,ED etc.

Naveen Chand likely to head TSPSCContinued from page 1

Naveen Chand, longest-serv-ing intelligence chief ofTelangana, is considered to be atrusted lieutenant of KCR. KCRappointed him as the intelligencechief after the abrupt transfer of

then incumbent B. ShivadharReddy in September 2016, postthe encounter of gangsterNayeem. A 1996 batch officerof the state police services,Naveen Chand retired on Oct 31this year. It may be recalled thatKCR recently announced the

state government's plans to fillover 50K vacancies in variousgovernment departments.

As the premier recruitmentagency of the state govern-ment, TSPSC will play a crucialrole in undertaking recruit-ment drives.

HYDERABAD | THURSDAY | DECEMBER 17, 2020hyderabad 03

CITY LIGHTS

IIT Hyderabad-incubatedstartup Pure EV iscollaborating with CSIR-

CECRI on indigenizingLithium-Ion Battery (LIB)technology for electricvehicles. Pure EV hassigned a MoU with CSIR-CECRI to undertake jointresearch on theproduction of battery packs, validation of LIB cells and addressingthe specific requirements to ensure the suitability of developed LIBsfor critical performance at the Standard Operating Procedure (SoP)conditions. Lithium battery is the most reliable and commercially-viable choice for electric vehicles across the world. Currently, inIndia, Lithium cells are mainly imported from China, which is a verycritical dependence necessary for final battery packs required forelectric vehicles.

India celebrates ‘Vijay Diwas’on 16 December every yearto commemorate victory of

Indian Armed Forces in the1971 Indo-Pakistan War. Onthis day in 1971, IndependentIndia achieved a decisivevictory over East Pakistan, in awar that the Indian ArmedForces planned, executed and carried out with precision resulting incapture of over 93000 prisoner of War and liberation of Bangladesh.This year also, ‘Vijay Diwas’ was celebrated on 16 December 2020throughout the Nation to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of thehistoric victory when Eastern Army Commander of Pakistan,Lieutenant General AAK Niazi, signed the “Instrument of Surrender”.As part of the nationwide celebrations, a wreath laying ceremony wasorganized at Veerula Sainik Smarak, Army Parade Ground,Secunderabad by Headquarters Telangana and Andhra Sub Area.

Acombined graduation paradewith full Military splendour willbe held at Air Force Academy

(AFA) Dundigal on 19 December2020 to mark the successfulcompletion of pre-commissioningtraining of flight cadets of variousbranches of Indian Air Force. Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh will bethe chief guest and reviewing officer of the passing out parade.During the function, he will confer the ‘President’s Commission’ tothe graduating trainees. The ceremony includes presentation of‘wings’ and ‘brevets’ to the flight cadets who would be successfullycompleting flying and navigation training, respectively. The chiefguest will also be awarding ‘wings’ to officers of Indian Navy, IndianCoast Guard and officers from Friendly Foreign Countries onsuccessful completion of their flying training at AFA.

The Cyberabad Police havewarned citizens, particularlyyoungsters and college

students, against the ‘Lucky WheelSpin Fraud’, of which there havebeen several victims of late.Policesaid phishing links that redirectedthose who clicked them to a luckyspin wheel were circulating on social media platforms includingWhatsApp and e-commerce websites. Once the wheel was spun, apop-up would appear saying the person had won a prize and askthem to share the link to others. “Through these links, the data ofthe user was getting compromised and money was getting debitedfrom their accounts,” police said, adding that the Cybercrime policestation here had got several complaints on this.

Wreath laying ceremony held on the occasion of Vijay Diwas

Cyberabad cops warn studentsagainst lucky wheel spin fraud

Defence Minister to review graduation parade at AFA

IIT Hyd’s Pure EV signs MoU with CSIR for LIB technology

Fatal mishaps mount despite WFHPNS n HYDERABAD

One may think that the pan-demic and work from homeroutine had subsequently led tolesser vehicles on the roads andin turn, fewer road rage casesand accidents. On the contrary,the number has in fact gone up!Every day, the state reports atleast 17 road accidents.

Human casualties resultingfrom traffic accidents haddecreased significantly in stateafter the government imposedthe lockdown in a bid to stemthe spread of coronavirus.

However, with the govern-ment decision to lift the lock-down, road accidents haveincreased.

After the lockdown restric-tions were eased, many werereluctant to use the publictransport. Instead they pre-ferred commuting in their ownvehicles, leading to traffic con-gestion on roads.

According to the officialsconcerned, overspeeding is thenumber one cause for acci-dents, followed by reckless dri-ving and traffic violations.Though the department con-cerned took measures to curbthe road mishaps in state, thedeath toll is increasing due tonon-compliance by somemotorists.

Recently, five persons werekilled and several others wereinjured in freak twin accidentin the same spot near Siddipeton Rajiv Rahadhari. In the firstaccident, three persons were

killed and several others wereinjured when a car hit the roaddivider at Rangila Dhaba. Evenas police personnel wereremoving the persons stuck inthe car, a DCM hit the policepersonnel and others engagedin the rescue operation. Twopersons died on the spot andseveral others includingInspector Ashok and twopolicemen suffered seriousinjuries.

In another incident, sevenmembers of a family werekilled and four others sus-tained injuries when a car theywere travelling in had a head-

on collision with a lorry afterthe driver attempted to over-take another vehicle. The acci-dent occurred near theMalkapur Gate in Chevellamandal on the Hyderabad-Bijapur Highway, about 50 kmfrom Hyderabad.

According to officials, thearea around GreaterHyderabad witnessed highestnumber of road accidentdeaths in the state. In terms ofcommissionerates, Hyderabad(193), Cyberabad (582) andRachakonda (466) commis-sionerates have the highestnumber of deaths.

It may be recalled that thelockdown enforced to containthe spread of Covid-19 virusfrom March 24 to the first weekof May has resulted in signifi-cant dip in road accidents inthe state.

The accidents along withfatalities were reduced by 75per cent in April when com-plete lockdown was in force.Road accidents have seen a dipfrom Janata Curfew enforcedon March 22 and continued thedownward trend even afterlifting lockdown on May 6,according to police records. InMarch 2020, as many as 512

deaths took place and 1,718people sustained injuries in1596 accidents as against 645deaths that occurred in 2011accidents injuring 2,137 peoplein March 2019. Police officialssaid the drastic dip in roadaccidents was due to lock-down during which peopleconfined mostly themselves totheir houses only. But now afterthe relaxation of lockdownnorms, the road mishaps haveseen a rise.

Sandeep Sandilya, ADG(Road Safety) said, "As many as90 per cent of cases are becauseof overspeeding. Many ridetheir bikes in a negligent man-ner leading to accidents. OnNational Highways, some evencross the speed of over 120km/h. At that speed, it becomesreally difficult to control thevehicle."

Overspeeding, overtaking main cause of frequent road accidents across state

After lockdownrestrictionswere eased,many werereluctant to

use the publictransport.

Instead theypreferred

commuting in their own

vehicles

Though it is usual for thestate to experience a fewdays of fog every year

during Sankranti season,eye-witnesses vouch thatWednesday morning wasdifferent from other days.Many parts of the state

on Wednesdayresembled hill stations,thanks to a blanket of

thick fog.

DAMP

WEATHER

Nehru Zoo first to get ISO 9001 certificationPNS n HYDERABAD

For the first time in the coun-try, Nehru Zoological Park,Hyderabad has bagged ISO9001:2015 QualityManagement StandardsCertification from Accreditati-on Service for CertifyingBodies, the United Kingdomfor its standard working pro-cedures has acquiredAccording to zoo authority, anaudit conducted by the teamexpressed their satisfaction inthe way the Zoo has been tak-ing care of the animals infields of sanitization, food pro-cessing, animal breeding, zoohospital, animal care, hygienemaintenance and establish-ment. The working of the var-ious wings is also observed bythe team and they appreciatedthe efficiency, teamwork andthe commitment of all thestaff which has raised the stan-dards of Nehru Zoological

Park, Hyderabad.The zoo authorities said that

the transparency at all works,response to any emergencyround the clock, and the stan-dards being followed whichfulfil the criteria for ISO certi-fications have inspired theteam in conveying all the infor-

mation and standards alongwith a strong recommendationfor ISO certification of Zoopark.

The certificate was present-ed by Sivaiah Alapati,Managing Director, lifetimeMembership QCI to theMinister for Forests A Indra

Karan Reddy.The Forest Minister also

announced the birth of Fourwhite tiger cubs born onOctober 6, the Zoo day and aGaur (Indian Bison) (Shiva)born on November 5.

On this Occasion, the ForestMinister appreciated the

Principal Chief Conservator ofForests Sobha, director ofNehru Zoological Park andall the staff for their effortswhich have awarded the ISOcertificate for QualityManagement Standards toNehru Zoological Park,Hyderabad.

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Covid death toll in thestate crossed the 1,500 markon Wednesday with threemore fatalities being reportedduring the last 24 hours.

The fresh deaths pushed thetoll to 1,502, health officialssaid. The state's Covid fatali-ty rate remains at 0.53 per centagainst the national average of1.5 per cent. According to theDirector of Public Health andFamily Welfare, 44.96 per centof the deaths were due toCovid while the remaining55.04 per cent were on accountof co-morbidities. The numberof people recovered fromCovid-19 also crossed 2.70lakh mark on Wednesday.

During the last 24 hours,536 people have recovered fr-om the virus, taking the cumu-lative numbers to 2,70,450.

The recovery rate improvedto 96.88 per cent against thenational average of 95.2 percent. The state now has 7,183active cases and of them 5,041are in home or institutionalisolation. Health officials said536 people tested positive dur-

ing the last 24 hours, pushingthe cumulative number ofpositive cases to 2,79,135.

Of the new cases reported,Greater Hyderabad accountedfor 107. Medchal Malakjgiridistrict saw the second high-est number of new cases at 43followed by Rangareddy (41),Warangal Urban (27), Kham-mam (26) and BhadradriKothagudem (26).

Of the 52,057 tests con-ducted during the last 24hours, government-run labo-ratories accounted for 48,626while remaining 3,431 sampleswere tested in private labs.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Stressing the importance ofDNA database storage in a vir-tual meet Dr K Thangaraj,Director, Centre for DNAFingerprinting and Diagnostics(CDFD), Hyderabad statedthat DNA databases are effec-tive in solving investigationsbecause majority of crimes arecommitted by repeat offendersand criminals. Speaking duringa virtual meet to discuss 'Roleof DNA Database in Preve-nting Repeat Crime' Thangarajexpressed his opinion.

In the absence of a database,the estimated number of DNAprofiles developed from crimescene evidence in India has

grown from 10,000 cases test-ed in 2017 to nearly 20,000 in2019. However, consideringthat India reports over half amillion violent crimes everyyear, the volume of testingremains extremely low, espe-cially in crimes against womenand children. Sharing his

thoughts Dr K Thangaraj said,"DNA databases help in estab-lishing the link between pre-vious cases and presentunsolved cases. It would bevery useful in tracing multi-ple/repeated offenders, wher-ever they are."

He further opined that

establishment of an effectiveDNA database requires timeand full cooperation betweenforensic laboratories, lawenforcement agencies, and pol-icymakers. Public has mixedopinions on the subject and asresponsible citizens we need toclarify their doubts and addressall concerns.

According to the Interpol, asmany as 70 countries have anational DNA database,including the US, Canada, andChina, holding more that 125million offender samples. Incontrast to it the picture inIndia totally different where itdidn't have a centralised data-base on DNA information ofoffenders.

Telangana's Covid deathtoll crosses 1,500 mark

One dead, four taken ill after consuming adulterated toddyPNS n HYDERABAD

A man died, allegedly afterdrinking adulterated toddy,at Jalpally here on Wednesday.Police said it was yet to beknown if any sedatives addedto the toddy led to the death.The victim Srinivas hadreportedly consumed toddyfrom a nearby toddy com-pound.

Four others are also report-edly ill after consuming toddyin the area.

The cause of the death is yetto be ascertained. More detailswill be known in the autopsyreport, said the Pahadishareefpolice, who have registered acase and are investigating.

The body was shifted to theOsmania General Hospitalmorgue for autopsy.

‘DNA databases effective in solving crimes'

ANUSHA PUPPALAn HYDERABAD

Several final year studentsstudying in degree colleges aff-iliated to Osmania Universitycry foul over delay in results oftheir backlogs exams con-ducted on December 7, as theyhave to upload their degreecertificates for verification foradmission into PG colleges,which are being scheduled infew days.

Certificate verification forongoing TSLAWCET and TSPGLCET admissions is sched-uled from December 14 to De-cember 22, 2020. Along withother certificates, the studentsneed to upload degree certifi-cate and memorandum ofmarks for verification.

However, the controller ofexaminations of OsmaniaUniversity says that nearly 5lakh students have appearedfor backlogs exams whichwere conducted in the firstweek of December and theyhave very short time to releasethe results.

One of the student SyedFaraz Quadri from Jagruthicollege, Zaheerabad said,"Certificate verification ofICET has been already sched-uled but my degree backlogresults are pending andTelangana State Council ofHigher Education (TSCHE) isasking for the results. I amworried that I will miss admis-sion in a good college."

Bhagyashree Reddy one ofthe advocate in Hyderabad

who was approached by sev-eral students regarding thepending backlog results toldThe Pioneer, "Backlog resultsof degree students from OUare still pending and withoutthe provisional degree cer-tificates it's impossible toupload certificates for PGadmissions which are cur-rently scheduled by TSCHE.Students and parents are wor-ried that they might missadmission in good college."

Venkatesh, controller ofexaminations said, "The stude-nts are not understandingabout how many exams weconducted during Covid. Wehave conducted exams for 323courses and 3,880 subjectsduring Covid pandemic. Tillnow we have announcedresults except for the backlogsas they were conducted in thefirst week of December. Wemay announce the results bythis month end. TSCHE shou-ld postpone verification look-ing at the current situation."

Papi Reddy, Chairman ofTSCHE said, "Consideringthe request of students we havedecided to postpone the certi-ficate verification for oneweek. Further schedule will beannounced in a day or two."

Man gets life termfor sexual assault on 11-yr-old niecePNS n HYDERABAD

The special court for dealingwith Protection of Childrenfrom Sexual Offences(POCSO) cases onWednesday has sentenced a29-year-old labourer to lifeimprisonment for theremainder of his natural lifefor sexually assaulting his11-year-old niece inNovember 2019.

First AdditionalMetropolitan Sessions JudgeSuneetha Kunchala, foundthe man guilty under relevantsections of the Protection ofChildren from SexualOffences (POCSO) Act andIPC and sentenced him toundergo imprisonment forthe remainder of his naturallife.

The court also slapped afine of Rs 10,000 on him, fail-ing to pay which he willhave to undergo another sixmonths of imprisonment.

According to the prosecu-tion, the girl, a third standardstudent, was staying at thehouse of her aunt and unclehere.

The incident occurred onNovember 3, 2019, when thewoman had gone out forsome work.

The man called out to thegirl playing outside the house,took her to a room and sex-ually assaulted her.

He was arrested based onthe complaint of the girl andafter investigation, policesaid.

OU students cry foulover delay in results

Police crackJalpally lakemurder case,arrest driver PNS n HYDERABAD

The Pahadishareef police onWednesday cracked the mur-der mystery of a body foundnear Jalpally lake and foundthe motive behind murder asshe resisted the sexual assault.

The accused identified asFeroz, an auto driver took thevictim to a secluded place andtried to force himself on her,following which she resisted.Upon which the accused hasattacked her with a screw dri-ver. On seeing blood oozingfrom her injured parts, hebludgeoned her with a brickto make it difficult to identi-fy and go scot free. ThePahadishareef police bookeda case of murder and arrest-ed the auto driver.

HYDERABAD | THURSDAY | DECEMBER 17, 2020 hyderabad 04

Hunt for Geeta’s home, parents continuesPNS n NANDED

Basar in Telangana, locatedaround 100 km from Nanded,resembles the place Geeta, thehearing impaired who returnedfrom Pakistan in 2015, describesas her childhood home. OnTuesday, she visited theGodavari River at Basar, shelooked along the banks to spota temple she remembers fromchildhood. She also walkedinto the town looking for onetiny hospital next to the railwaytracks. A day before, she hadlooked for the same things atJalna in Maharashtra. BeforeJalna, it was Lasur inAurangabad and Dhule.However, she was not able totrace her roots.

During an interaction withreporters here with the help of

the NGO's sign languageexpert Gyanendra Purohit,who has accompanied her,Geeta said she has been tryingto find her parents.

She conveyed that her

home was near a railway sta-tion with a hospital, templeand river nearby. Purohit saidthey have come to Nanded inthis context. "A train calledSachkhand Express runs from

Nanded to Amritsar, and theSamjhauta Express, in whichshe was found, operates fromAmritsar to Pakistan," hesaid.

Nanded's police inspectorDwarkadas Chikhlikar saidthat their team was providingall help to Geeta, Purohitand others accompanying her."Our team accompanied herduring the search and it willwork with the NGO membersas long as Geeta is here," he

said. Geeta was 7 or 8 years'old when she was found sit-ting alone in the SamjhautaExpress at Lahore station byPakistan Rangers around 20years ago. She was adoptedthere by a person from EdhiFoundation. She was broughtback to India on October 26,2015 following efforts madeby then external affairs min-ister Sushma Swaraj, whocalled her "Hindustan ki beti"(India's daughter).

Works on Srisailam HydelProject on fast trackPNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana State Genco-Transco CMD DevulapalliPrabhakar Rao on Wednesdayannounced that the works onSrisailam Hydel Power Project,which was damaged during therecent fire accident, were goingon the fast track. He saidworks are going on with an aimto generate 900 MW of powerin six units through reversiblePumping method by the com-ing rainy season.

He said the works are beingdone entirely by the Gencoofficials, staff without taking anyassistance from any otherorganisation. The revival worksare successfully done with theexpertise and experience of theGenco officials, which in turnsaved hundreds of crores of theGenco funds and help savingthe time, Prabhakar Rao said.

He inspected the revival worksat the Srisailam Hydel PowerPlant and gave some valuablesuggestions. The CMD held areview meeting with the officialsconcerned. He has finalised theaction plan for the works to bedone by the coming rainy season(June 2021). DirectorsSachidanand, Ajay, Jagath Reddy,SC Hanuman, Hydel Power

Project CE Prabhakar and oth-ers participated.

"Srisailam Hydel Power pro-ject revival works are going onwith high safety standards. As ondate two units are revived and300 MW of power is generated.By end of this month one moreunit would ready for the gener-ation. By March, two moreunits would come into opera-tion. The works on the fourthunit, which was damaged themost in the accident, would becompleted by June. Generatorand transformers for the fourthunit are getting installed. By thecoming June, all the units wouldbe ready and 900 MWs ofpower would be generated bythe reversible pumping methods

and this is our aim," PrabhakarRao said. "The Telangana StateGenco has taken it as a challengeto revive the underground HydelProject which was damaged inthe fire mishap. We are doingthe revival works withoutengaging any outside agencyand all by the Genco itself. Thisled to saving a lot of money.These revival works will be afeather on the Genco's exper-tise and experience cap andwould stand as testimony ofthe Genco's capabilities. Allthose connected with the work,from the Directors, engineers,Artisans and others are work-ing round the clock. My con-gratulations to them," CMDPrabhakar Rao said.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Municipal Administration andUrban Development MinisterKT Rama Rao on Wednesdaysaid the State government wastaking up construction of onelakh double bedroom houses ata cost of Rs 9,714 crore. "Noother State or city in the coun-try was taking up such a mas-sive housing programme aswas being done in Hyderabad,"the Minister said after formal-ly inaugurating 324 2BHKhouses at Jai Bhavani Nagar inVanasthalipuram here.

The 324 houses were con-structed at a cost of Rs 28 crore,

he said while congratulatingthe beneficiaries and askingthem to ensure sanitation andupkeep of their homes. Thegovernment has spent about

Rs 9 lakh for each house

while the market value of thesame unit could range from Rs40 lakh to Rs 50 lakh.

It was the responsibility ofhouse owners to maintain thecommunity area clean and notto dump trash. With theCovid-19 pandemic still athreat, it was important toensure cleanliness on thepremises, he said. The 324houses were constructed inthree blocks on a 'cellar+stilt+9 floors' pattern. Facilitiesprovided at the site includerain harvesting structures, firesafety systems, lightning arrest-ing systems and lifts amongothers.

KTR inaugurates 324 2BHK houses

Muslim voters are notyour ‘jagir': OwaisiPNS n HYDERABAD

A day after West BengalChief Minister MamataBanerjee alleged that the BJPis giving money to a partyfrom Hyderabad to dividevotes in the ensuing Assemblyelections, AIMIM chiefAsaduddin Owaisi hit back ather on Wednesday saying theMuslim voters were not her"jagir (property)". TheHyderabad MP tweeted thatMamata Banerjee does not likethose Muslims who think andspeak for themselves.

Rubbishing the allegationby the Trinamool Congressleader, Owaisi commentedthat nobody can buy himwith money. "So far you'veonly dealt with obedient Mir

Jaffers & Sadiqs. You don'tlike Muslims who think &speak for themselves," tweet-ed the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen(AIMIM) president.

Owaisi alleged that theTrinamool Congress leaderinsulted the people of Biharwho voted for AIMIM."Remember what happenedto parties in Bihar that keptblaming their failures on'vote cutters' Muslim votersaren't your jagir," Owaisiwrote. Mamata had said onTuesday that to divideminority votes the BJPcaught hold of a party fromHyderabad. "BJP gives themmoney and they are dividingvotes. Bihar election hasproved it," he said.

CS Somesh meets bankersover new registration processPNS n HYDERABAD

Chief Secretary SomeshKumar on Wednesday con-ducted a meeting with thebankers to explain the new reg-istration process for agricultureand non-agriculture assets andclarify doubts regarding regis-tration.

A detailed presentation wasmade on the banking andmortgage module. The bankersappreciated the modules as itwill bring more transparency inthe system. The bankersassured to co-operate with the

government and the Stampsand Registrations Departmentin the entire process of registra-tions. K Ramakrishna Rao,Principal Secretary, Finance, VSeshadri, Commissioner and

Inspector General, Stamps andRegistrations, Sarfaraz Ahmed,Director, Prohibition andExcise, A Santhosh Reddy,Secretary, Law and othersattended.

PNS n NIZAMABAD

Among women, those inNizamabad consume alcoholthe most in Telangana, accord-ing to National Family Welfareand Health Survey. The maletipplers in the district arebelow the state's average, whilethe female tipplers exceededthe state's average. The samephenomenon is reflected inconsumption of tobacco prod-ucts too.

According to the study con-ducted by the Centre, 9.8 percent of the females ofNizamabad district have hadthe habit of consuming alcohol,which is more than the state'saverage of 6.7 per cent for con-sumption of alcohol amongfemales. According to the sur-vey results, at least 10 per centof the women of the district aretipplers. Not only rural women,but also urban women arefound to have the habit of con-suming alcohol. What is caus-ing concern to authorities iswoman tipplers exceeding thestate's average of 6.7 per centby 3.1 per cent. If a male

member of the family is addict-ed to alcohol, women per-suade him to give up the habit.But, women of the district aregradually getting addicted toalcohol. The family and healthsurvey was conducted in Juneof 2019 taking a sample of over27,351 persons, aged 15 yearsand above, in the state.

The survey team went roundthe state from June 30 toNovember 14 last year anddrew its conclusions. InNizamabad district, over 891families have been surveyed.

The survey collected infor-mation on about 104 aspects.The survey was carried outwith the help of Karvy DataManagement organisation. Thereport of the survey wasreleased recently bringing star-tling information into light. Asfar as males of Nizamabaddistrict are concerned, 40.02per cent are having the habit ofconsuming alcohol, which isless than the state's average of43.3 per cent.

The survey, which also col-lected data on tobacco con-

sumption in the state, hasrevealed that 8.6 per cent ofwomen of Nizamabad districtuse tobacco and tobacco prod-ucts like beedi, cigarette, ghut-ka and tambaku, which ismore than the state's average of5.6 per cent. As far as males ofthe district are concerned, over20.6 per cent of the males arein the habit of using tobaccoand tobacco products, which is less than the state's a v e r a g ein this category - 22.3 per cent.

Women are drinking morethan they ever have!

Supply Bhagirathawater to remotehabitats: Smita PNS n HYDERABAD

Smita Sabharwal, Secretary to ChiefMinister on Wednesday asked superintend-ing engineers and chief engineers of all dis-tricts of the Mission Bhagiratha project todesign more awareness programmes toencourage people drink only Bhagirathawater.

Taking part in a review meeting with CEsand SEs at the Mission Bhagiratha office inErrummanzil here on Wednesday, sheasked them to provide Mission Bhagirathawater to Rythu Vedikas being built across thestate and Vaikuntha Dhamams. She askedthe officials to provideBhagiratha waterconnection tor e l i g i o u sorganisationsbesides themedical andh e a l t ho r g a n i s a -tions.

She insist-ed that onlyM i s s i o nBhagiratha waterbottles should be usedat all government programmes. Engineer-in-Chief Kripakar Reddy explained the dailysupply position of drinking water under theMission Bhagiratha project. He told theCMO secretary that the drinking water sup-ply has exceeded than the anticipatedquantity of water. He told her that the offi-cials have focussed more on quality ofdrinking water than the quantity. As partof the stabilisation programmes underway across the state, the quality of waterbeing supplied to households is beingchecked, he told the secretary. She told theofficials to supply Mission Bhagiratha waterfrom remote habitats by the month-end.Advisor to the government Gyaneshwar, sev-eral Chief Engineers and superintendingengineers attended the meeting.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Forest and EndowmentsMinister Allola IndrakaranReddy on Wednesday calledupon the students of ForestCollege and Research Institute(FCRI) to play a vital role inprotecting the biodiversity inthe State of Telangana aftercompleting their studies.

Addressing the first gradu-ation ceremony after present-ing the certificates to the 49first batch of students of FCRIin Mulug of Siddipet onWednesday, he urged them tojoin hands with the govern-ment in their effort to con-serve nature.

Saying that the Telangana

government has designed aplan to improve the greeneryfrom existing 24 per cent to 33per cent, the Forest Ministersaid that they have planted 214crore saplings underTelangana Ku Haritha Haram(TKHH) against the target of230 crores. Since theTelangana government is inthe need of well-trained pro-fessionals in forestry,Indrakaran said that ChiefMinister K ChandrashekharRao has decided to set up aForest College. The Ministerobserved that the ChiefMinister has been accordinggreat importance to conserva-tion of nature since the forma-tion of the Telangana State.

Conserve nature,students told

Telanganacops bag threeawardsPNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana state policebagged three awards for bestperformance from NationalCrime Records Bureau(NCRB) on Wednesday.

The police personnel whowere nominated for awardare S Sridhar, Sub Inspectorat Husnabad Police Station,D Shivarani, constable atUppal Police Station and PKarnakar, constable atSaifabad Police Station.

Telangana DGP MMahender Reddy congratu-lated the awardees for theirachievements.

On the occasion of two-day National Conference onCrime and CriminalTracking NetworkingSystem (CCTNS) &Interoperable CriminalJustice System (ICJS), theUnion Home SecretaryAjaykumar Bhallaannounced the awards.

Rachakonda police com-missioner Mahesh MBhagwat also congratulatedthe WPCO D Shivarani ofUppal PS for bringing laurelsto the RachakondaCommissionerate at nation-al level.

COVID VACCINE

PNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana is in the process ofcreating the required infra-structure for administeringCovid- 19 vaccine initially toabout 80 lakh people, includ-ing front-line warriors,oncethe preventive medicine isavailable for the state, officialsources said on Wednesday.Training programmes foralmost 10,000 vaccinatorswere underway and storagefacilities for the doses beingset up at strategic locations.

"Even if one vaccinatoradministers 100 people a day,on an average 10,000 vaccina-tors can vaccinate 80 lakhpeople in eight or ten days," aHealth department officialsaid. The official further said asof now there was no approvedvaccine for COVID-19 in thecountry and preparations werebeing made to be ready foradministering it as and whenavailable. Vaccination will bedone at all government healthfacilities such as primary healthcentres, district hospitals andteaching facilities.

TS gears up toinoculate 80lakh people in first phase

PNS n MEDAK

BJP state vice-president DrManohar Reddy said that theBJP government had broughtnew agricultural laws for thewelfare and development offarmers. Manohar Reddy alongwith BJP district presidentGaddam Srinivas held a pressconference at the district head-quarters on Wednesday.

On the occasion, Manoharalleged that some political par-ties are trying to mislead thefarmers. Swami Nathanexplained that the agriculturallaws were formulated on the

instructions of the Commission.Nallala Vijay Kumar, BanappaGari Sudhakar Reddy, DistrictSecretary Ankam Chandrakala,Vanaparthi Venkatesam, KeesanMallareddy, Raghuveer Reddy,Ankam Ravi, Ankam Krishnaand others participated.

Govt had brought newagricultural laws for thewelfare of farmers,said BJP state vice-president Dr Manohar Reddy

‘Oppn misleadingryots on farm laws’

Telangana State Genco-Transco CMD Devulapalli Prabhakar Rao inspecting therevival works at the Srisailam Hydel Power Plant on Wednesday

The newly-inauguarted 2BHK units at Jai Bhavani Nagar in Vanasthalipuram

Several couples have come forwardclaiming to be Geeta’s parents, butshe has not recognised any of themand none could substantiate theirclaims

According to astudy, 9.8 percent of thefemales ofNizamabaddistrict havehad the habit ofconsumingalcohol, whichis more than thestate's average

HYDERABAD | THURSDAY | DECEMBER 17, 2020 nation 05

Rebel Trinamool Congress leaderSuvendu Adhikari onWednesday submitted his

resignation as an MLA to the WestBengal assembly secretary, partysources said. Adhikari, the MLA ofNandigram constituency in PurbaMedinipur district, resigned from thestate cabinet last month. He hasbeen maintaining distance with theparty leadership for quite some time.

INDIA CORNER

Prime MinisterNarendra Modi will bethe chief guest at the

centenary celebrations ofthe Aligarh MuslimUniversity via video link onDecember 22, an officialstatement said. Modi willattend the online functionalong with UnionEducation MinisterRamesh PokhriyalNishank, it said. Extendinghis gratitude to the PM, AMU Vice Chancellor Professor TariqMansoor said the AMU community is thankful for his acceptance toparticipate in the celebrations marking 100 years of the university.

PM Modi to attend Aligarh MuslimUniversity's centenary celebrations

Jammu andKashmir LtGovernor

Manoj Sinha onWednesday paidtribute to the armypersonnel wholaid down theirlives for the nationduring 1971 war.“I salute ourgallant soldiers fortheir exemplarycourage andsupreme sacrifice to gain a decisive victory for our Nation in the1971 war,” Sinha said in his message on 'Vijay Diwas'. The daycommemorates the historic victory of Indian armed forces and theindomitable spirit of the brave soldiers. “On Vijay Diwas, let usremember the valour of our soldiers and their unwaveringcommitment to defend India's sovereignty and protect humandignity”, the Lt Governor said. “We are eternally indebted to ourbrave soldiers for their courage and selfless service to the nation forprotecting our frontiers from the enemies and maintaining peace inthe country,” he said.

Suvendu Adhikari resigns asTrinamool Congress MLA

J&K LG pays tributes to 1971 warbravehearts on Vijay Diwas

An inter-stategang ofdrug-

peddlers hasbeen arrestedand contrabandworth Rs 1.15crore seized,police said hereon Wednesday.The four-membergang hadstockpiled theconsignment tosell it during the new year celebrations when the sleuths of theCentral Crime Branch raided their house, they said. TirupalReddy (32) and Ejaz Pasha (45), both residents of Bengaluru,and Kamalesan (31) and Sathish Kumar (27), both belongingto Krishnagiri in Tamil Nadu, were the arrested, the police said.

Gang of drug-peddlers busted, drugsworth Rs 1.15 cr seized

PNS n KOLKATA

Eastern Army Commander LtGen Anil Chauhan onWednesday said there havebeen no intrusions or majorface-offs in the area of respon-sibility of the EasternCommand since the Ladakhstandoff between Indian troopsand China's PLA.

He said post the GalwanValley incident, bonhomie andmutual trust on the Line ofActual Control (LAC) betweenIndia and China evaporated,and it will take time for thingsto stabilise and rebuild.

"There have been no intru-sions or major face-offs in thearea of responsibility of EasternCommand since the frictionerupted in Ladakh," he said.

Lt Gen Chauhan, General-Officer-Commanding, EasternCommand, said the IndianArmy and the People'sLiberation Army (PLA) ofChina had undertaken someprecautionary deployment dur-ing the Ladakh crisis, which isnow witnessing a gradual de-

induction in the eastern sector,due to the onset of winter.

"However, the Indian Armyis fully prepared to beat anychallenge during winter," hetold reporters at the FortWilliam here on the occasionof Vijay Diwas.

He said the PLA carried outrapid infrastructure develop-ment activities of roads andtracks, and of defences alongthe Sikkim border and inKameng in Arunachal Pradesh."We are taking reciprocalactions and prepared to meet

emerging challenges... Theyhave tried to develop somekind of model villages next tothe border areas, where theyare looking to settle nomadicTibetan population," Lt GenChauhan said.

Regarding Doklam, he saidit is an issue between the gov-ernments of Bhutan and China,and that India's involvementcomes "when we have to decidethe tri-junction between thethree nations".

"Bhutan is a friendly nationwith which the Government of

India has very close ties. TheRoyal Government of Bhutan(RGOB) and Royal BhutanArmy (RBA) have taken suffi-cient steps to protect theirinterest in this particular regionand we feel assured by whatev-er steps they have taken," hesaid.

Lt Gen Chauhan said thatshould there be a need felt bythe RGOB or RBA to involvethe Indian Army in any disputewith China, they are "alwayswelcome".

On the alleged abduction offive youths of ArunachalPradesh by the PLA inSeptember, who were subse-quently released, he saiddeployment on the Line ofActual Control (LAC) in thestate is different from the eye-ball-to-eyeball contact that theIndian Army has with Pakistanon the Line of Control (LoC)in the western sector.

He said there are someplaces where there is nodeployment, but are frequent-ly patrolled, adding that boththe Indian Army and the PLA

arrive at these locations from"depth areas".

"McMahon Line was basedon a very inaccurate kind ofsurvey and hence, the correctalignment of the LAC is disput-ed in this particular area; soinadvertent crossing by civil-ians is highly possible in thisarea and this is what hap-pened when the five youths ofArunachal had gone to a placewhich the Chinese perceived astheir LAC," he said.

Lt Gen Chauhan, however,said the men were well withinthe Indian territory when theywere apprehended by the PLA.

Asserting that this is not a"one-sided game", he said thata Chinese national was recent-ly apprehended after havingcrossed over to Sikkim and theperson is still under apprehen-sion.

Describing the counter-insurgency situation in parts ofthe northeast as stable, theEastern Army commander said

"we may witness morereduction of the Army fromthe counter- insurgency grid."

No intrusions in Eastern Commandarea since Ladakh crisis: Chauhan

India's Coronavirus activecaseload declines to 3.32 lakhPNS n NEW DELHI

Continuing the trend of con-traction of coronavirus cases,India's COVID-19 active case-load now stands at 3,32,002comprising 3.34 per cent ofthe total number of infectionsreported in the country, theUnion Health Ministry said onWednesday.

A total 26,382 people werefound to be infected withCOVID-19 in India in a singleday, as per the Health min-istry's latest data update onWednesday. During the sameperiod, the country also regis-tered 33,813 new recoveriesensuring a net decline of 7,818cases in the active caseload.

"India has recorded less than40,000 daily new cases sincethe last 17 days," the ministryunderlined.

The figure of new cases permillion population in India inthe last seven days -- 147 -- isone of the lowest in the world,it said.

Total recoveries have sur-passed 94.5 lakhs (94,56,449).

The ministry said 76.43 percent of the new recoveredcases are observed to be con-centrated in 10 states andUTs.

Kerala has reported themaximum number of singleday recoveries with 5,066

newly recovered cases.A total of 4,395 people

recovered in Maharashtra in aspan of 24 hours followed by2,965 in West Bengal.

The ministry said 75.84 percent of the new cases of infec-tion are from 10 states andUTs.

Kerala continues to reportthe highest daily new cases at5,218. It is followed by

Maharashtra and West Bengalwith 3,442 and 2,289 newcases respectively.

As many as 387 case fatal-ities have been reported in aspan of 24 hours, the ministrysaid Wednesday.

Ten states and UTs accountfor 75.19 per cent of the newdeaths. Maharashtra saw themaximum casualties at70.West Bengal and Delhi fol-lowed with 45 and 41 dailydeaths respectively.

Daily deaths in India are ona sustained decline. Less than500 daily deaths have been reg-istered for the last 11 days, theministry said.

New deaths per million pop-ulation in India in the lastseven days (2) is one of thelowest numbers in the world,the ministry said.

The Union HealthMinistry said 76.43 percent of the newrecovered cases areobserved to beconcentrated in 10states and UTs.

100-yr-old mystery of how malaria affects brain decodedPNS n NEW DELHI

Using brain imaging tech-niques, scientists, includingthose from The Center for theStudy of Complex Malaria inOdisha, have unravelled thecentury old mystery of howmalaria affects the brain, anadvance which reveals howthe deadly disease causes dif-ferent outcomes in adults andchildren.

According to the researchers,cerebral malaria is a severe, life-threatening complication ofinfection with the Plasmodiumfalciparum parasite that caninfect humans through thebite of Anopheles mosquitoes.

While a fifth of people withthis form of the disease diedespite treatment, and neu-rocognitive after-effects arecommon in survivors, theysaid the effects of malaria onthe brain have puzzled scien-

tists for the last 100 years.The study, published in the

journal Clinical InfectiousDiseases on Wednesday, usedcutting-edge MRI scans tocompare the changes in the

brains of survivors with thosewho died from the diseaseacross different age-groups.

"For years, scientists haverelied on autopsies to under-stand the pathology of cerebral

malaria, but these don't allowyou to compare between sur-vivors and fatalities," said SamWassmer, a co-lead author ofthe study from the LondonSchool of Hygiene and TropicalMedicine (LSHTM) in the UK.

"By using neuroimagingtechniques to see a snapshot ofthe living brain, we were ableto identify the specific cause ofdeath in adults," Wassner said.

In the study, the scientistsassessed 65 patients with cere-bral malaria and 26 controlpatients with 'uncomplicated'malaria, who were being treat-ed at Ispat General Hospital inRourkela.

They found that brainswelling tends to decrease withthe age of the patient, and that,unlike in children, there was nocorrelation between brainswelling and death in adultpatients from the same cohort.

Instead, the researchers saidfatal adult cases had severe oxy-gen deprivation affecting allbrain structures, compared toonly localised oxygen-depriva-tion in survivors.

They said the findings werecorroborated by significantly

elevated levels of specific mol-ecules in the blood which indi-cate oxygen-deprivation.

Based on the results, theresearchers believe a systemcould be developed for theidentification of patients atrisk of developing fatal diseaseupon admission that couldinform their clinical manage-ment.

"The results suggest the tan-talising prospect of targetedtreatments for cerebral malar-ia, and we are now planningclinical trials to test whetheradjunctive therapies for oxy-gen-deprivation are effectivefor adults," said SanjibMohanty, study co-lead fromthe Centre for the Study ofComplex Malaria.

"If successful, this could bea significant step toward reduc-ing the death toll of one of theworld's most deadly diseases,"he added.

The study usedcutting-edgeMRI scans tocompare thechanges in thebrains ofsurvivors withthose who diedfrom thedisease acrossdifferent age-groups

PNS n MUMBAI

The issues flagged by agitatingfarmers can be solved in fiveminutes if Prime MinisterNarendra Modi himself stepsin, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Rautsaid on Wednesday.

Raut said the BJP-led NDAgovernment should have adialogue with the farmers whoare protesting for the last 21days outside Delhi demandingscrapping of the Centre's threenew agri-marketing laws.

The government can solvethe issue in 30 minutes sittingwith the (agitating) farmers, ifit wants...I think the issue willbe solved in five minutes if theprime minister himself inter-venes, he told PTI over thephone from New Delhi.

The Sena leader said theprotesters are Indias own farm-ers and the government shouldhave a dialogue with them. Speaking to a Marathi newschannel, Raut said the govern-ment has stretched the issuefar.

Stretching the issue this far,is like paving way for a newanarchy, Raut said. Enactedin September, the three farmlaws have been projected bythe Centre as major reforms inthe agriculture sector that will

remove the middlemen andallow cultivators to sell theirproduce anywhere in the coun-try.

However, the protestingfarmers have expressed appre-hension that the laws wouldpave the way for eliminatingthe safety cushion of minimumsupport price and do awaywith the mandis, leaving themat the mercy of big corporates.

Raut criticised the Centreover the decision of not hold-ing the winter session ofParliament due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

We will have to see why theyare not holding thesession...because the sessionhas to be held as there is

democracy, the Rajya Sabhamember said.

Without naming the BJP, hesaid it protested in Mahara-shtra seeking reopening oftemples, but has now kept thetemple of democracy(Parliament) shut.

How will this work? heasked.

To a question, the RajyaSabha MP exuded confidencethat the Shiv Sena will retainits control over theBrihanmumbai MunicipalCorporation (BMC) in the2022 civic polls.

The BJP had earlier said itwill dislodge the Shiv Sena, itsformer ally, from power in thecash-rich BMC

‘Row over farm laws can besolved in 5 min if PM steps in’

DJB, electricity staffin frontline staff listPNS n NEW DELHI

Employees of water boardand electricity departmentof the Delhi governmentwill be included in the cat-egory of frontline staff forCOVID-19 vaccination,Health Minister SatyendarJain said on Wednesday.

Interacting with reporters,he said an order has beenissued to add them to thelist.

"DJB and e lec tr ic itydepartment employees hadworked day in and day outdur ing the lockdown.Yesterday, the Delhi gov-ernment issued an order toinclude them in the catego-ry of frontline staff for vac-cination, so that they alsoget vaccine in the firstphase," Jain said.

For the Delhi government,frontline workers are VIPs,he later said in a Facebookpost. Frontline workersinclude, police and sanita-tion staff as well.

The Delhi governmenthad recently begun theprocess of enrolment ofhealthcare workers of differ-ent hospitals, nursing homesand other faci l it ies for

COVID-19 vaccination.Hundreds of healthcare

workers at government andprivate facilities in Delhihad contracted the novelcoronavirus, and many moreare still getting affected by it.

Among frontline staff,several police personnel andsanitation workers had con-tracted COVID-19, andmany had lost their lives too.

Delhi recorded 1617 freshCOVID-19 cases onTuesday with over 85,000tests conducted, even as thepositivity rate dropped to1.9 per cent, authoritiessaid.

The death toll mounted to10,115 with 41 new fatali-ties, they said.

Resume talks with Centre: Puri to ryotsPNS n CHANDIGARH

Union minister Hardeep SinghPuri on Wednesday appealedto protesting farmers to resumetalks with the central govern-ment to discuss their “genuine”demands, saying this is not thetime to remain “adamant”.

Addressing a virtual 'kisansammelan', he asserted that theNarendra Modi-led govern-ment was taking several stepsin the interest of the farmingcommunity.

“We are ready to hold talkswith them (farmers) to discusstheir genuine demands. We areready to find a solution of thisproblem, but it is necessary that

the farmer brothers join thetalks again and put forth theirpoints face to face,” he said.

Thousands of farmers fromPunjab, Haryana and else-where have been protestingnear various border points ofDelhi, including Singhu andTikri, for over a fortnight

demanding that the Centrerepeal three new farm laws.

The Housing and UrbanAffairs minister said theCentre had given assurance onthe issues of minimum sup-port price (MSP) and mandisystem, as well as dispute res-olution to the agitating farm-ers.

“If they have anything moreto discuss, then come. But thisis not the time to remainadamant,” he said in an appar-ent reference to the farmers'demand of repealing the farmlaws.

Puri said everybody has theright to hold protest in ademocracy.

“But there is also a way tohold protest. If you bring trac-tors near the national capital,that is not protest,” he said.

Notably, the Centre hadproposed to give "writtenassurance" that the existingMSP regime for procurementwould continue.

The government had alsoproposed to make necessaryamendments on at least sevenissues, including one to allayfears about the weakening ofthe mandi system.

However, farmers' bodieshave been seeking that thethree farm laws be repealedwhile rejecting the govern-ment's proposals.

Sisodia acceptsUP minister's‘challenge'PNS n NEW DELHI

Delhi Deputy Chief MinisterManish Sisodia onWednesday said he will visitLucknow in Uttar Pradeshnext week to debate on theprogress made by the tworespective governments inimproving infrastructure pro-vided in schools.

Sisodia's statement comesafter Uttar Pradesh educationminister Satish Dwivedi invit-ed Delhi Chief MinisterArvind Kejriwal and hisdeputy Sisodia to visit gov-ernment schools in the state.

Taking a swipe at the UttarPradesh government, Sisodiasaid the decision of the AamAadmi Party to contest theUttar Pradesh polls in 2022has made the state govern-ment to talk over issues ofeducation and electricity.

Sisodia on Wednesdaysaid he "accepts the chal-lenge" of the Uttar Pradeshminister for having an opendebate on the educationmodel of Delhi and UttarPradesh.

Woman who took flightsto commit thefts arrestedPNS n MUMBAI

The crime branch of Mumbaipolice has arrested a 46-year-old woman, a resident ofBengaluru, for allegedly steal-ing valuables of customersvisiting malls and big show-rooms in various metro cities,an official said on Wednesday.

The accused used to travelby air to various cities to com-mit thefts at malls, prominentshow rooms and parlours, hesaid, adding that police recov-ered jewellery, some cash anda stolen mobile phone fromher possession.

Unit 5 of the Mumbai crimebranch apprehended thewoman from her residence inBengaluru and brought her tothe city on Tuesday, he said.

The accused had allegedlystolen the purse of a woman-vcontaining gold jewelleryworth Rs 13.54 lakh, Rs 50,000cash, a mobile phone valued atRs 84,000 and other docu-ments from a famous show-room in Phoenix Mall at LowerParel in central Mumbai, hesaid. An offence under section380 (theft in dwelling house) ofthe IPC was registered at JoshiMarg police station.

COVID VACCINATION

The undermining of allmajor institutions ofdemocracy in theUnited States was afootin all earnest by

President Donald Trump in hisfour-year tenure — from theJudiciary and Military to even hisown Justice Department, all werepar for course as long as the weak-ening of the institutions solidifiedTrump’s own chances for a secondterm. His patent hiring-and-firingspree, refusing to cooperate withthe Congress on critical investiga-tions, attacking independent Pressto filling up key appointments withsupposed loyalists raised seriousquestions about the free and fairfunctioning of democracy. Notsurprisingly, the US had by 2017slipped from the status of “fulldemocracy” to “flawed democra-cy” as per the Democracy Index,as published by the EconomistIntelligence Unit (EIU). The reporthad noted: “Trust in political insti-tutions is an essential componentof well-functioning democracies.Yet surveys by Pew, Gallup andother polling agencies have confirmed that public confidencein the Government has slumped tohistoric lows in the US. This hashad a corrosive effect on the qual-ity of democracy.”

While the systemic changes,interferences and appointmentswere being made towards Trump’selectoral advantage, somewherethe popularity polls were stillgiving him nightmares — heknew that when push comes toshove, he would need these insti-tutions to be spineless, acquiesceand fall in line with Trump, irre-spective of the election results. Thetelltale signs of Trump’s nervous-ness were written all over when formonths he refused to commithonouring the poll results andensuring a peaceful transition ofpower — the seeds of “rigged”,“stolen” and “fraudulent” electionswere planted well in advance.

Two specific institutions weregetting primed for any eventual-ity i.e. Judiciary and the ArmedForces. Trump’s initial comfortwith a 5-4 conservative majorityin the Supreme Court had givenhim reasons to believe that hecould persist with controversialsteps like the travel ban from sev-eral Muslim-majority nations, aswas upheld by the courts then. Butsoon and awkwardly so forTrump, the Supreme Court start-ed asserting its independent viewsthat militated against Trump’spreferences — even Trump’s per-sonal appointees like Justice Brett

Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuchvoted against his interests incertain cases. White HousePress Secretary KayleighMcEnany shockingly admittedthat the key takeaway from theunfavourable rulings was that‘we need more conservativejustices on the courts’. Trumpdid exactly that, with the hur-ried appointment of JusticeAmy Barett eight days beforeelections, creating a powerful 6-3 conservative tilt. Tellingly,Trump had desired that thenewly appointed Justice AmyBarett participate in the forth-coming election-related casesthat went to the courts.

Even in the Military realm,when the appointment to thetop post of Chairman of theJoint Chiefs of Staff to succeedthe previous Obama-appointeeGen Joseph F Dundford Jr wasgetting considered, PresidentTrump had called the shots. Asper protocol and professionaldecorum, the Defense Secretaryhas a say in suggesting a name.Given that the DefenseSecretary at that time was thedistinguished former combat-ant James Mattis, his profession-al assessment carried weight —Mattis had preferred Air ForceChief of Staff Gen DavidGoldfein; however it wasTrump who overruled thechoice and appointed GeneralMark Milley instead. Later,General Milley had to so oftennavigate through the minefieldof Trump’s fickle, whimsical andovertly political theatrics that

the top military advisor manya time saw himself at odds withthe President’s instincts. It wasleft to him and the subsequentDefense Secretary, Mark Esper,to control wild ideas like usingmilitary personnel to controlcivil unrest on the streets of theUS. Expectedly, Mark Esper toowas fired and yet another ‘loy-alist’ ushered in.

But to the credit of both the

institutions, much before theelectoral process had started —neither gave any statement ordid any act to suggest that theyindeed had succumbed or for-saken their institutional inde-pendence, at the altar of DonaldTrump. At one stage, GeneralMilley had publicly expressedregret at having mistakenly gotcaught in an overtly politicalmoment, whilst in uniform —he rightfully acknowledged thatthe optics had diminished theapolitical stance of the ArmedForces. At yet another eventlater, when the chaos of the elec-toral results was dangerouslypoised, he tellingly clarified:“We do not take an oath to aking or a queen, a tyrant or adictator. We do not take an oathto an individual...We take anoath to the Constitution” —unequivocally indicating thatthe US Military was not behold-en to anyone.

Similarly, the SupremeCourt with an ostensiblyfavourable 6-3 Trump/conser-vative tilt, rejected a bid by theTexas’s Attorney General, whichwas supported by the President,in the strongest ever indicationthat Trump cannot count on thetop courts to overturn electionresults under flimsy or make-believe grounds. Not only didthe courts reject Texas’s pleachallenging the results towardsthe four battleground States butit effectively did so on groundsthat willy-nilly checkmate sim-ilar misadventures in otherStates too. The conspiracy the-

ories are simply unlikely to beentertained by the courts, irre-spective of the ideological com-position of the majority there-in. The sore loser in Trump wasleft fuming: “The SupremeCourt really let us down. Nowisdom, no courage!” On thecontrary, it was the actualdemonstration of wisdom andcourage by the hallowed insti-tutions of the US Governmentthat would save it from the sureruin of its revered democracy,as was envisaged and enshrinedby its founding fathers.

From falsely (and prema-turely) claiming electoral victo-ry, calling to halt vote countingto refusing to accept the results— Trump has done everythingpossible to degenerate andabuse power and respect in thedemocratic processes.Thankfully, the institutionshave shown integrity, steel andresilience despite the umpteentimes these were subjected totinkering, though Trump hasalmost guaranteed a polarised,fractured and deeply dividedsociety with his continuingvanity and petulance, which willfar outlive his stay at the WhiteHouse. The ongoing Trumpsaga is a timely reminder for theleaderships and institutions inother democracies where ten-dencies to take liberties withinstitutions are apparent.

(The writer, a military vet-eran, is a former Lt Governor

of Andaman & NicobarIslands and Puducherry. The

views expressed are personal.)UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set to visit NewDelhi as the chief guest at the Republic Day paradein January. His tour will help further strengthen Indo-

UK relations and is being seen in diplomatic circles asthe UK’s post-Brexit tilt towards the Indo-Pacific region,in which India is an important player. The significancethat Britain is attaching to the ties with India can be gaugedfrom the fact that Johnson’s trip will be his first majorbilateral outing since becoming the Prime Minister andthe first since the UK’s departure from the European Union.Both nations have shared interests because of their pasthistory and the fact that the UK has a 1.5 million-strongIndian diaspora, which has made valuable contributions

in academia, literature, arts, medicines, science, business and politics. Closer ties with theUK will help Indians who want to work and set up businesses in the island nation in termsof easier visa access. Apart from the two nations planning to boost employment and joint-ly confront threats to global peace and security in the Indo-Pacific region, the idea is to trans-form the G7 group comprising the UK, the US, France, Japan, Germany, Italy and Canadainto a broader grouping of 10 leading democracies that will be capable of thwarting China’sexpansionist plans. It is with this goal in mind that Johnson has invited India, Australia andSouth Korea to attend the UK-hosted G7 summit in the summer of 2021, and Prime MinisterNarendra Modi has accepted. For its part, a stronger bond with the UK will stand India ingood stead as it strives for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).China has been blocking it for decades despite the fact that the other four permanent mem-bers — Russia, the UK, the US and France — are backing New Delhi’s claims. Unfortunately,the UN charter is such that it gives permanent members the power to veto any resolution,including the expansion of membership, and Beijing has been exploiting this factor to thehilt. It has thwarted India’s ambitions to sit at the UNSC high table by laying down condi-tions that are impossible for New Delhi to meet. Moreover, with China wanting to push Pakistan’sagenda time and again at the UNSC, India needs as many allies as it can in its corner.

Johnson’s visit is coming at a time when New Delhi is seeking more investment to shoreup a tottering economy. The trade Ministers of both the nations are in talks and India wouldwork with the UK on a range of issues. The two are trying to deepen their economic part-nership in the hope that it will ultimately culminate in a free-trade agreement as the economiesof both the nations have taken a body blow due to the pandemic. The total trade betweenthe countries is worth almost 24 billion Euros and it grew by 11 per cent in the last finan-cial year, but there is potential to ramp it up in a post-COVID world. On December 15, UKForeign Secretary Dominic Raab, who is on a visit to India as a prelude to Johnson’s trip,announced a closer collaboration on an enhanced trade partnership, and met Modi to dis-cuss a 10-year roadmap for a new era in bilateral ties. Apart from trade, the two democ-racies are seeking closer collaboration on tackling the Coronavirus pandemic, climate changeand enhancing defence cooperation so that they can better address key issues like terror-ism and maritime security. One can safely assume that China will be watching this bon-homie and Johnson’s overtures to India with some concern, if not outright alarm.

This is a forever debate, about the efficacy of allopa-thy and homoeopathy in curing diseases. While theformer addresses the immediate criticality, the lat-

ter is good for long-term management and prevention.Alternative medicine is now being used as an add-onand as part of an integrated approach to medicine andconvalescent therapies. When it comes to the flu virus,particularly COVID-19, a cure is still remote in allopa-thy where research is still focussed on studying the virus.Homoeopathy is still prophylactic, based as it is on symp-tom management, and eases conditions of mild to mod-erate cases at least. With no drug present to specifical-

ly treat COVID-19, even allopathy is currently relying on HCQ and Remdesivir to targetsymptoms. Perhaps it is because the treatment is symptomatic in both disciplines at themoment that the Supreme Court has ruled that homoeopaths can prescribe medicinesfor prophylaxis, amelioration and mitigation of COVID-19 patients, provided the prescrip-tion is given only by institutionally qualified practitioners. It, however, clarified that no prac-titioner may flag it as a cure and strictly operate within the guidelines issued by the Ministryof AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy). The courthas enabled a bit of a stopgap, considering a cure is not in sight and vaccination will taketime to cover the population our size. While homoeopathy has long been considered apalliative, its efficacy in cure, as claimed by patients, has not been demonstrated consis-tently in medical trials. So far, the evidence of their potential has largely been anecdotalthan empirical. In fact, combinations like Bryonia Alba and Arsenic Album 30 have beenin circulation as a preventive and recuperative aid, often used alongside allopathy.

India, besides Cuba, is the only country to officially explore homoeopathy as part ofits COVID-19 prevention, treatment and research protocol. The Central Council for Researchin Homoeopathy (CCRH) has been conducting trials to prove that the discipline works incontaining the disease but in the absence of concrete proof, it is at the moment nothingbetter than a placebo. Yet, homoeopathy enjoys mass acceptability in India, with users believ-ing in its long-term effects. In fact, it is the second most popular system of medicine inthe country which, given our oversized disease burden and a stressed healthcare infra-structure, could work in taking care of basic health problems. But there has to be a ratio-nality of approach and not blind faith. Once the disease sets in, there is no alternative tothe clinically proven and medically tested protocols. Traditional systems of medicine, likeayurveda and homoeopathy, are, therefore, good for overall well-being and building bodyresistance. This distinction is very important in a country growing up in a culture of natur-opathy and home remedies and, therefore, is prone to trusting conventional wisdom. Butthis is a novel virus we are dealing with. There is no doubt that traditional systems of med-icine in India have not only survived but flourished over the centuries and there are virtuesembedded in our huge herbal heritage that are good for enhancing immunity and overallhealth management. But overplaying our herbs as part of a COVID-19 medicare protocol,when they are yet to cross the threshold of medical reason, comes with the attendant illsof misconception that they are just as effective as allopathic drugs. Like homoeopathicinstitutes, a few ayurveda pharmaceutical companies, too, have been working on simula-tion studies where few plant molecules have shown the ability to halt the alarming multi-plication of the SARS CoV-2 virus in an Artificial Intelligence (AI) modelling. Researchers atIIT Delhi, in collaboration with Japanese scientists, have found that properties of Ashwagandhahave “therapeutic and preventive value” against COVID-19 infection. But they are workingon more conclusive proof that could allow for pharmacological interventions. Besides, ourdrug control laws need more teeth and the Health Ministry has even released the draft ofDrugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) (Amendment) Bill, 2020, withstiffer penalties. But more deterrence needs to be built in. Rather than upgrading AYUSHprotocols, we need to lay out a tiered structure on evidence-based protocols and mappingthe progression of the disease. That would make us truly holistic in approach.

The globule therapy

Poll boost for LDFSir — The local body electionresults in Kerala are a good gaugeof the public mood in favour ofthe ruling Left Democratic Front(LDF) just a few months beforethe Assembly election.

Keralites are known for theirpolitical consciousness; they arefully aware that whom they voteto power matters and they exercisegreat discernment in electing theirrepresentatives. The biggest take-away from the results is that thenarrow strip of scenic beautycalled God’s Own Country contin-ues to be a Left bastion immuneto a Right-ward shift in politics.

The landslide victory is a clearendorsement of the PinarayiVijayan Government’s laudablesocial welfare programmes andbest possible handling of theCOVID-19 pandemic as well asan unequivocal rejection of theattempts by the Congress and theBJP to implicate the office of theChief Minister in the much hypedgold smuggling case.

The CPI(M)-led LDFGovernment can now feel a hugesense of relief that the orchestrat-ed campaign against it has metwith failure.

G David MiltonMaruthancode

Houses should have metSir — When the 9/11 terror attackoccurred, a Parliament sessionwas called at one day’s notice innational interest. The same prin-ciple should have been applied inIndia where a farmer agitation iscontinuing for 20 days and bothsides are sticking to their guns.

With no solution in sight, the

Winter Session was a good hopefor discussion and making someprogress. But now this hope hasvanished. The session was can-celled apparently due to theCOVID scare but today’s farmers’rally in Narela was organised by theruling party itself, which contra-dicts the Government’s statement.

Yash Pal RalhanJalandhar

Don’t quibble over bookSir — This has reference to thereport ‘Pranab’s son and daughterlock horns over his memoir’(December 16). They have eachissued statements either in favourof suppressing certain portions of,or fully publishing PranabMukherjee’s book, ThePresidential Years.

They may be entitled to theirviews but one should think thatwhat is most relevant to the citi-zens of this country is not what‘they’ think but whether the for-mer President left a will in whichhe mentioned about this book andhow its publication should be han-dled by the executor of that will.It is very reasonable to assume thathe did. This alone should be thecriterion for settling the issue.

NS RajanBangalore

Biden’s task is cut outSir — US President-elect JosephBiden will have to heal the woundsof a nation that seems to be at warwith itself. Biden and VicePresident-elect Kamala Harris willtake their oaths of office outside theUS Capitol building as inaugurationplanners make the arrangements.

The hidden mechanics ofelecting a US President have drawnnew scrutiny this year as PresidentDonald Trump continues to denythat he has been beaten fair andsquare even though Biden has offi-cially secured enough electors tobecome the next US President.

CK SubramaniamNavi Mumbai

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

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op nionHYDERABAD | THURSDAY | DECEMBER 17, 2020

06

I hope that an early andreasonable solution willbe found on the issuesraised by farmers. Thereis the possibility of acertain meeting ground.

Vice-President—M Venkaiah Naidu

Govt least bothered about soaring prices

The retail inflation figure of 6.93 per cent, asreleased earlier by the Centre, is doubtful and shock-ing as the Government has completely failed to con-

trol the rising prices of all essential items. The trend ofmarket prices of almost all items is totally different ascompared to the inflation figures supplied by theGovernment. If the inflation is at 6.93 per cent, would itnot be reasonable to expect a fall or stability in the pricesof at least some of the essential commodities?

The unpleasant truth is that the prices of all com-modities are steadily shooting up — some of the essen-tial articles cost double or triple the earlier price — espe-cially during the ongoing COVID crisis, vegetable pricesare soaring at an alarming rate. Since the prices haven’tcome down as promised by the Narendra ModiGovernment, it has shaken the faith and trust of the peo-ple in the ruling dispensation.

Also, the Government isn’t seen making any seri-ous move to tackle the worsening price situation. It seemsmore interested in wasting time and money in makinghollow promises rather than taking concrete action. Apartfrom its favourite pastime of blaming the previous

Congress Governments, it appears that the Centre is occu-pied with more important plans like toppling theGovernments in the Congress-ruled States and passingBills in haste rather than giving any serious thought tothe price issue which affects every common citizen.

It can be expected, however, that the jugglers whoare entrusted by the Government to produce imaginaryinflation figures will be busy as ever by cooking up num-bers to mislead the people.

Bhagwan ThadaniMumbai

Send yyour ffeedback tto:letterstopioneer@gmail.com

Boris is willingThe UK Prime Minister would grace the R-Day parade but hispost-Brexit tilt towards India may give China some heartburn

Stay home and watch his-tory unfold on your televi-sion or digital screens onInauguration Day. Theceremony's footprint willbe extremely limited.

US President-elect—Joe Biden

I don't think you can con-cretely plan anything in Testcricket. Test cricket is alwaysabout encountering situationsand reacting to the situationsto the best of your abilities.

India cricket captain—Virat Kohli

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

S O U N D B I T EI did not even watch my sea-son after I came out of thehouse. I don't watch BiggBoss. I find it very disturbing.Especially now, people are soaggressive in the house.

Actor—Shamita Shetty

SC allows homoeopaths for COVID-19 mitigationprotocols, recognises their right to administer doses

Institutional spine

THE TELLTALESIGNS OF

DONALD TRUMP'SNERVOUSNESS

WERE WRITTENALL OVER WHENFOR MONTHS HE

REFUSED TOCOMMIT

HONOURING THEELECTION RESULTS

AND ENSURING APEACEFUL

TRANSITION OFPOWER

Major institutions refused to buckle under pressure from President Trumpwhen he tried systemic changes to shore up his chances for a second term

BHOPINDER SINGH

Build an indigenous arsenal

WHY WILL IT BE FOR THE PARTY, BY THE PARTY AND

OF THE PARTY HERE? IN A FEW DAYS, YOU WILL

KNOW WHEN PEOPLE GO TO VOTE.

—EX-TMC MINISTER

SUVENDU ADHIKARI

AFTER PROFITING FROM BEING PART OF THE

GOVERNMENT, YOU ARE HOBNOBBING WITH THIS

AND THAT PARTY. I WON’T TOLERATE THIS.

—CHIEF MINISTER

MAMATA BANERJEE

POINTCOUNTERPOINT

On November 27, through a gazette notifica-tion, the Union Ministry of Environment,Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC)

announced the constitution of an Apex Committeefor Implementation of the Paris Agreement (AIPA).This panel has been constituted for the purpose ofensuring a coordinated response on climate changematters that protects the country’s interests andensures that India is on track towards meeting itsclimate change obligations under the ParisAgreement, including its submitted NationallyDetermined Contributions (NDCs). One of the func-tions of this committee is to “commission and rec-ommend independent research and analytical stud-ies and plan capacity-building and training activi-ties” on the above issues.

Indigenous research and development (R&D)in India requires greater attention of the Governmentin the critical areas of climate change mitigation andadaptation. It calls for coordinated actions in mis-sion mode with concomitant allocation of publicresources — an area that leaves a lot to be desiredat present. Even if we were to keep real innovationsaside, in a scenario where a substantial share of ourclimate action is based on imported technologies andproducts, adaptive R&D is critical to ensure theiroptimal performance levels under local conditions,throughout their lifespan. Moreover, business-research, too, is an important part of taking a prod-uct to its ultimate consumer in a timely fashion.

Although as per the Global Innovation Index2020, featuring 131 economies, India has moved upto 48th place, it may be noted that globally about72 per cent of spending is in sectors like Informationand Communications Technology (ICT) hardwareand electronic equipment, pharmaceuticals andbiotechnology, automobiles, software and ICT ser-vices, with a minimal share of sectors dealing withclimate actions. It is imperative, therefore, for theAIPA to earnestly take up research and innovationin areas around climate action. It must draw a planfor outcome-oriented collaborative research in pri-ority areas that are either potentially impacted byclimate change or contribute to it. Climate actioncan be broadly categorised into climate change mit-igation and adaptation.

On the mitigation front are those technologiesthat help in the reduction of greenhouse gas(GHG) emissions, such as renewable energy andtechnologies for decarbonising in hard-to-abate sec-tors like steel, cement and heavy transport. At theother end of the spectrum are technologies and prac-tices to empower society to adapt to the adverseimpacts of climate change. Several scientific stud-ies had already cautioned that India should be readyfor more extreme weather events — like cyclones,flooding and droughts — on account of the accel-erated pace of climate change.

In such a scenario, research focus areas wouldinclude climate-resilient crops, early warning sys-tems, disaster risk management, resilient coastalinfrastructure, water management technologiesand public health. For instance, as per the recentlyreleased Lancet Countdown report on health and cli-mate change, India recorded the highest loss in pro-ductivity because of extreme heat in 2019. To addresssuch challenges, the country needs solutions that suitits specific demands while taking into account itsclimatic conditions, energy consequences, as well asaffordability.

The United Nations’ Sustainable DevelopmentGoal (SDG) 9 aims to “build resilient infrastructure,promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisationand foster innovation.” Target 9.5 of SDG 9 reads“enhance scientific research, upgrade the technolog-ical capabilities of industrial sectors in all countries,in particular developing ones, including, by 2030,

encouraging innovation and substantial-ly increasing the number of research anddevelopment workers per one million peo-ple and public and private research anddevelopment spending.”

So the big question is, where are wein this respect? The United NationsEducational, Scientific and CulturalOrganisation Institute for Statistics tracksthese indicators. In 2018, the top countriesin terms of gross expenditure on R&D(public as well as private spend) as a shareof their Gross Domestic Product (GDP),were Israel (4.95 per cent), the Republicof Korea (4.8 per cent), Sweden (3.33 percent), Japan (3.26 per cent) and Austria(3.17 per cent). While China stands at 12thposition with 2.18 per cent of the GDPbeing its R&D spending, India was at 38thplace with research spending of 0.65 percent of the GDP. It ranks as one of the low-est spenders among the BRICS countries.Not only this, our ranking in another indi-cator, namely, the number of researchersper million inhabitants (in full timeemployment) is off the mark, too. With252 researchers per million inhabitants, weare near the bottom rung as compared toChina (1,307), Denmark (8,065) andKorea (7,980). This is not a demograph-ic dividend one would have envisaged.

Indeed, a report on ‘India’s R&DExpenditure Ecosystem’ compiled by theEconomic Advisory Council to the PrimeMinister (EAC-PM) in mid-2019 lamentsthat while in absolute terms our R&Dexpenditure has increased, as a fraction ofthe GDP, public expenditure on R&D hasbeen stagnant. It has remained between0.6-0.7 per cent of the GDP over the lasttwo decades. Now, India has set a goal toup its R&D spending to two per cent ofthe GDP by 2022. However, this was in thepre-Coronavirus era. Now, the implica-tions of large-scale reallocation of publicresources for battling the virus have to beseen on such “non-priority” goals. Thereis enough evidence from across the globethat governments often tend to reducepublic research funding when faced with

resource stress, prioritising short-termimpactful areas over the long-term onesthat R&D initiatives tend to be.

Incidentally, the erstwhile PlanningCommission, too, had set a goal of two percent of the GDP in the 12th Five-Year Plan,i.e., by 2017. However, the worrisome partis that investment in R&D by two criticalsectors — private and higher education,is even lower. Generally speaking, it is pub-lic funding that supports R&D of newtechnologies, given the higher risksinvolved and negligible assurance of theircommercial success. Private sector fund-ing may come at a later stage, leveragingpromising outcomes of publicly-fundedearly-stage efforts. When Prime MinisterNarendra Modi declared in the just-con-cluded Climate Ambition Summit that,“India is not only on track to achieve itsParis Agreement targets but to exceedthem beyond expectations” or the UNSecretary-General exhorts countries todeclare a climate emergency until theworld has reached net zero CO2 emis-sions; obviously this cannot happen on theback of imported technologies alone.

As the numerous problems to beaddressed are local in a country of the sizeof India the solutions, too, will have to bedeveloped indigenously, tailored to ourunique but varied requirements, more sofrom the perspective of equity and inclu-siveness. The fact that the AIPA is slatedto provide inputs to the Prime Minister’sCouncil on Climate Change, must accordit the required heft to overcome usualbureaucratic indifference.

Viewed from a broader nationalinterest perspective, the need for signifi-cant and continued public spending on cli-mate-related research cannot be overem-phasised. And this should certainly not belimited to supporting public-funded insti-tutions only. Given that in today’s worldtechnology is a core part of diplomacy asargued by our External Affairs MinisterS Jaishankar, the central role of climatetechnologies in geopolitics must be recog-nised fully.

This, in turn, leads to the relativenegotiating powers of different countries,ones that are knowledge generators vis-à-vis those who receive them. Investmentsin R&D then go beyond self-reliance andget linked to larger national interests. Afterall, Aatmanirbhar Bharat can only be builton the solid foundation of R&D-ledinnovations across value chains. As elab-orated by Jaishankar, a self-reliant Indiais essentially all about building its domes-tic strengths and enhancing its capabili-ties. For that to happen, India will have toenhance its investment in research andtechnology development in frontier areas,including those that are of relevance tointensive climate action.

However, indigenous research shouldnot be confused with isolated research tobe carried out by Indian entities alone.Rather it is all about research and inno-vations led by India through leveragingcollaborative competencies of a range ofglobal players. And it depends on incul-cating research temperament among theIndian youth and creating state-of-the-artinnovation ecosystems across the coun-try. Above all, we must aspire to be amongthe top nations as per globally recognisedR&D and innovation criteria.

If we can reach seemingly audaciousrenewable energy goals in less than adecade, there is no reason as to why wecannot set our ambitions high in terms ofexcellence in research and innovations,too. Considering that public spending onresearch is only one part of the pie, busi-nesses and higher educational sectors, too,will have to play their part. Appropriateincentive frameworks could nudge the pri-vate sector to scale up its research fund-ing in climate technologies, among otherareas of national importance on onehand and help steer higher education insti-tutions towards research on the other. Thewar against climate change requires in-country arsenal, urgently.

(The writer is Senior Director, SocialTransformation, TERI. The views expressedare personal.)

Research and development in India requires greater attention of the Governmentin the critical areas of climate change mitigation and adaptation

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

The thread thatbinds us

MARKANDEY KATJU

India is a nation united by the sensibilities of a unique Sanskrit-Urdu culture and

no one can take that away from us

AMIT KUMAR

APPROPRIATEINCENTIVE

FRAMEWORKSCOULD NUDGE

THE PRIVATESECTOR TO

SCALE UP ITSRESEARCH

FUNDING INCLIMATE

TECHNOLOGIES,AMONG

OTHER AREASOF NATIONALIMPORTANCE

ON ONE HAND AND HELP

STEER HIGHER

EDUCATIONINSTITUTIONS

TOWARDSRESEARCH

ON THE OTHER

When the British ruled India, they questioned whether it wasa nation at all. They held that it was only an administra-tive unit created and united by them. Their view was artic-

ulated by John Strachy, a high official in India who said in 1880,in his lectures given at Cambridge University (collectively publishedas a book titled ‘India’), that India was only a label of convenience,a name given to a large geographical territory having several coun-tries. He said, “This is the first and foremost thing to learn aboutIndia, that there is not and never was an India, nor any country ofIndia, possessing, according to European ideas, any sort of unity— physical, political, social or religious. No Indian nation, no peo-ple of India, of which we hear so much.” The same view was reit-erated by Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the creator of Pakistan, who insist-ed that, “India is not a nation, nor a country. It is a subcontinentof nationalities.” So, what is the truth?

To my mind, the views of Strachy and Jinnah are wrong andIndia is indeed a nation. What really makes a nation are featureswhich distinguish it from other countries. Is there any such fea-ture which makes India a nation? Yes, there is, and it is our com-posite Sanskrit-Urdu culture, which unites us and makes us onenation. Now, when I say this, immediately objections will be raised.Many South Indians, people of the northeastern States and so on,will ask what have they to do with Sanskrit or Urdu? Some peo-ple in the country are averse to Sanskrit. For instance, manyTamilians, who regard themselves as Dravidians, call it the lan-guage of Aryan invaders and oppressors. Where Urdu is concerned,many Hindus regard it as the language of Muslims.

Sadly, these objections are based on a lack of understand-ing. When I use the expression “Sanskrit-Urdu culture”, I am refer-ring to the spirit of Sanskrit and the soul of Urdu. There is a mis-conception that Sanskrit is a language that is predominantly usedfor chanting mantras during worship in Hindu temples and sacredtexts. Only about five per cent of Sanskrit literature is devoted toreligion, while the rest deals with diverse topics such as philoso-phy, science, mathematics, art, law, linguistics and so on. Theemphasis of Sanskrit is on reason because it was the languageof free thinkers who questioned everything. The great Hindi writerRahul Sankrityayan, who was in his early years an orthodox Brahmin,said that before he learnt Sanskrit he believed in God but, after helearnt the language he became an atheist. And indeed, much ofSanskrit literature is atheistic.

On the other hand, the emphasis in Urdu, which is wronglyregarded as the language of Muslims (before 1947 it was a com-mon language of all educated people, whether Hindu, Muslim,Christian, Sikh or so on, in large parts of India), is on emotion.Urdu poetry expresses the voice of the human heart and the afflic-tions of the common people with an elegance that perhaps no otherpoetry can ever achieve. The two main attributes of humans arereason and emotion, and both are necessary for progress. In Europe,the great French thinker Voltaire emphasised reason and combat-ed religious bigotry and superstitions in his writings. On the otherhand, the equally great French thinker Rousseau stressed uponemotion and passion. He said that mere reason makes one a cold,calculating and selfish being who never has the desire to help hisfellow human beings and never thinks of the suffering of others.

The fact remains that India is broadly a country of immigrants,like North America. About 92-93 per cent of the people living inthe nation today are the descendants of immigrants, most of whomcame from the north-west. Its original inhabitants are the pre-Dravidian tribals like the Bhils, Gonds, Santhals, Todas and so on,who make up only about seven to eight per cent of the country’spopulation. These immigrants brought with them their own lan-guage, religion, practices, culture and so on. Through the inter-mingling of these immigrants for over thousands of years, a com-mon culture emerged, which can be broadly called the Sanskrit-Urdu culture. This is the culture of India. Sanskrit and Urdu com-plement each other. In fact Sanskrit is one of the grandmothers ofUrdu (the other grandmother being Persian), as many Urdu wordsare derived from it.

Though Sanskrit is a great language, by its overemphasis onreason (like Voltaire) it lacked compassion for fellow human beingswho were suppressed. However, this compassion was suppliedby Urdu (much like Rousseau, who empathised with the poor).Thus, what unites India and makes it a nation is the Sanskrit- Urduculture. To those who say they have nothing to do with Sanskritor Urdu (in fact most young Indians do not know these languagesanymore) my reply is that when I use the expression “Sanskrit-Urdu culture” I am not referring to Sanskrit or Urdu literally, but tothe spirit of Sanskrit and the soul of Urdu. Even Tamilians, Nagasand so on, have reason and emotion and in that sense they belongto the Sanskrit-Urdu culture. India is a nation united by the sensi-bilities of this unique Sanskrit-Urdu culture and no one can takethat away from us.

(The writer is a former judge of the Supreme Court of India.The views expressed are personal.)

Voters decided the fate of 298candidates, including 72women, contesting the sev-

enth phase of the District DevelopmentCouncil (DDC) elections in Jammuand Kashmir (J&K) on Wednesday. Atotal of 31 DDC constituencies wentto the polls, including 13 in Kashmirdivision and 18 in Jammu division. Theresponse of the people across bothregions to the elections is a curt mes-sage to the status quo lobby.

The vast majority standing inlong queues outside the polling booths

in bone-chilling cold while respond-ing to news reporters does not mincewords. It is clear that they are votingfor development and employment. Itis their sole agenda since they havebeen deprived of it for long.Connectivity, education, health andbasic amenities still elude the peopledespite huge amounts of funds receivedfrom successive Central governments.

Where did all these funds vanish?Reports are surfacing of projectsshown as completed in files but notactually existing on the ground. Votersare openly accusing their leaders ofhaving cheated them time and againand becoming unreachable and inap-proachable after the elections are over,leaving them to their plight which hasnot changed during the last 70 years.People have also realised that they wereemotionally exploited with slogans likeself-rule, greater autonomy and so on.Had these leaders been serious andcommitted to the welfare of the peo-ple, they could have easily provided

them the basic facilities of road, waterand electricity but instead they choseto mislead them with false slogans anddreams of greener pastures while lin-ing their own pockets with the gener-ous assistance received from successiveCentral governments.

Kashmir’s identity the world overwas recognised as a multilingual,multi-faith, multi-cultural plural soci-ety famous for peaceful co-existence.But the political leaders are responsi-ble for the murder of the famousKashmiri identity. They promotedsecessionism, separatism and radical-isation, leading to the onslaught on theKashmiri Pandit community, theindigenous community of the Valley,forcing them to flee in the face of large-scale ethnic cleansing.

Corrupt leaders delayed the devo-lution of powers to the grassroots bynot holding elections to thePanachayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) andUrban Local Bodies (ULBs). Theywere loathe to allow the centre of

power to shift to the towns and villages.However, now the process to undo theills and woes of 70 years of misrule hasbeen set in motion with all sincerity.This includes elections to the secondand third tiers of PRI by holding elec-tions for Block Development Councils(BDCs) and District DevelopmentCouncils (DDCs). ULBs’ electionswere held, too.

The ongoing DDC elections are

unique in the sense that certaindeprived sections (West PakistanRefugees, Valmikis and Gorkhas) arevoting for the first time. (Earlier theycould vote only for parliamentary elec-tions). There are reserved seats for thewomen and Scheduled Tribes (STs) forthe first time. A new crop of grassrootsleadership is emerging which augerswell for the future.

The Union Territory (UT) of J&Know has 100 per cent reservation forlocals in all jobs, including gazetted andnon-gazetted ones. No other State/UTin the country enjoys this unique priv-ilege. The amended land laws were alsoused by the status quoists to create fearamong the people claiming that theirlands would be snatched and forciblypurchased by outsiders. People arebeing confused by quoting the protec-tion enjoyed by a few States underArticle 371. Often people are misledby drawing comparison with neigh-bouring Himachal Pradesh stating thatthe State has a special provision pro-

tecting their land rights. The fact is to the contrary. Section

118 in Himachal is restrictive and doesnot put an absolute ban on the sale andpurchase of land and property inHimachal. It has provisions throughwhich, with the approval of theGovernment, anyone can buy land andproperty in the State. However, the newland law of J&K totally bans the saleof agricultural land to other than theexisting agriculturists.

However, at long last, the commonman has understood how unscruplousleaders misled them and deprive themof basic amenities while filling theirown coffers. They are happy with themuch-awaited change they were yearn-ing for and are hopeful that the rep-resentatives they choose for the DDCwill meet their much-wanted basicneeds.

(The author is a Jammu-based vet-eran political commentator, columnist,security and strategic analyst. Theviews expressed are personal.)

J&K district elections to usher in a new dawnThe polls are unique in the sense that deprived sections, like West Pakistan Refugees, Valmikis and Gorkhas are voting for the first time

ANIL GUPTA

HYDERABAD | THURSDAY | DECEMBER 17, 2020

www.dailypioneer.com

F O R E I G N E Y E

Thirteen of the world’s 14peaks taller than 8,000metres have been climbed inwinter. But K2, the world’ssecond tallest mountain at8,611 metres, remainselusive. Now, a 55-memberglobal group of climbingveterans are daring to takeon a feat that has long beenconsidered missionimpossible — the first winterascent of K2.

(TKP editorial)

MISSIONIMPOSSIBLE

HYDERABAD | THURSDAY | DECEMBER 17, 2020 Money 08

MONEY MATTERS

Hinduja Group flagship firmAshok Leyland on

Wednesday introduced twopassenger bus models - the70-seater Falcon Super and26-seater Gazl - in SaudiArabia. Manufactured at thecompany's Ras Al Khaimah

facility in the UAE, Falcon buses will be predominantly marketed tocorporate entities. Gazl's market will be more focused on thehospitality and tourism sector, Ashok Leyland said in a release. SaudiArabia already has 3,500 Ashok Leyland buses plying on the roads, itsaid at the virtual launch, adding that the launch of two buses wasdone in partnership with the company's exclusive dealer in SaudiArabia, Western Auto of Al Ghurair Group.

Auto components industry bodyACMA on Wednesday said the

sector will see a double-digit declinein growth this fiscal, after witnessing34 per cent fall in the first half of theyear due to coronavirus-induceddisruptions. Automotive Component

Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA) said it can take anywhere"between two to three years, depending on how steep the recovery is"for the component makers to work out a whole sector Capex planning.In the first half of the fiscal, ACMA said the turnover of the automotivecomponents industry stood at Rs 1.19 lakh crore (USD 15.9 billion),registering a de-growth of 34 per cent as compared to Rs 1.82 lakhcrore (USD 26.2 billion) in the first half of the previous fiscal. Theperformance was mainly affected by the first quarter performance whenthe auto sector had almost "zero revenue" due to the nationwidelockdown, with restrictions continuing in the second quarter as well.

The government on Wednesdayapproved a subsidy of Rs

3,500 crore to sugar mills for theexport of 60 lakh tonnes ofsweetener during the ongoingmarketing year 2020-21 as partof its efforts to help them clear

outstanding dues to sugarcane farmers. Briefing media after themeeting, Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekarsaid the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) hasapproved a subsidy of Rs 3,500 crore on exports of 60 lakh tonnesof sweetener and the subsidy amount will directly be given tofarmers. The minister said both "sugar industry as well as sugarcanefarmers are in crisis" because of high domestic production at 310lakh tonnes as against the annual demand of 260 lakh tonnes. Thedecision will benefit 5 crore farmers, said Javadekar, who is alsoUnion Environment Minister. In the previous marketing year 2019-20(October-September), the government provided a lump sum exportsubsidy of Rs 10,448 per tonne, costing the exchequer Rs 6,268crore.

Cabinet okays Rs 3,500 crsugar export subsidy

Ashok Leyland introduces twopassenger bus models in SA

Sebi has barred two individualsfrom accessing the securities

market for two years forirregularities in the IPO of TimborHome Ltd (THL) back in 2011. Theindividuals -- AnantSureshchandra Maloo and MananVidhyapati Patel -- were thedirectors of the company during

the period of Initial Public Offer (IPO). The regulator had conductedan investigation for the period of June 22 to July 8, 2011 into thescrip of Timbor Home Ltd. The company came out with its IPO in2011. According to Sebi, the company had failed to disclose its pre-existing liabilities amounting to around Rs 7 crore related to workingcapital expenses in the Red Herring Prospectus and on the contrary,it made an affirmative disclosure that there is no pre-existing liabilityrelated to working capital expenses. Further, it was revealed that thecompany had failed to disclose about an amount of Rs 7 crore whichwas in the nature of a bridge loan. However, the company had madean affirmative disclosure that it has not raised any bridge loanagainst the proceeds of the IPO.

Auto components industry tosee double-digit decline: ACMA

PNS n NEW DELHI

The Finance Ministry hasextended the deadline tillFebruary 15 for states to imple-ment reforms like one-nationone ration card and those inthe power sector to become eli-gible for additional borrowingin the current fiscal, a releasesaid.

To meet the extra fundrequirements of states onaccount of COVID-19 pan-demic, the Centre in May haddecided to raise the borrowinglimit of the states by 2 per centof their GSDP, over and abovethe 3 per cent limit set underthe Fiscal Responsibility andBudget Management (FRBM)Act.

However, states wererequired to complete four spe-cific reforms -- implementa-tion of one nation one rationcard, ease of doing businessreform, urban local body/ util-ity reforms and power sectorreforms -- by December 31,2020, to get the benefits.

Such states would get thefacility of additional borrowingequivalent to 0.25 per cent oftheir Gross States DomesticProduct (GSDP) for complet-

ing each reform. Under thisfacility, additional borrowingof up to Rs 2.14 lakh crore isavailable to the states on com-pletion of all the four reforms.

"The Department ofExpenditure has extended thedeadline for the states to com-plete citizen centric reforms invarious sectors. Now, if therecommendation from thenodal Ministry concernedregarding implementation of

the reform is received byFebruary 15, 2021, the statewill be eligible for reform-linked benefits," the FinanceMinistry said in a statementon Wednesday.

So far nine states haveimplemented the one nationone ration card system, fourstates have completed the easeof doing business reforms andone state has done the urbanlocal body/ utility reforms.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Cooking gas LPG price onWednesday was increased byRs 50 per cylinder, the secondhike in rate this month fol-lowing firming of internation-al prices.

Also, aviation turbine fuel(ATF) price was raised by asteep 6.3 per cent.

Non-subsidised LPG pricewas increased to Rs 694 per14.2-kg cylinder from Rs 644earlier, according to a pricenotification of state fuel mar-keting compa-nies.

This is thes e c o n dincrease inrate thismonth. OnDecember 1,price washiked by a similar Rs 50 percylinder.

Prior to that, the price hadremained unchanged at Rs594 a cylinder since July. Thiswas the same rate at whichsubsidised LPG refills arealso sold.

Since May, most cookinggas customers have notreceived subsidies as the com-bination of international oilprice collapse and domesticrefill rate increases broughtparity between subsidised

and market rates.A subsidised cooking gas

cylinder was priced at Rs 497in Delhi in June 2019. Sincethen, prices have cumula-tively gone up by Rs 147.

However, the increase inrates this month would meanthat the government will haveto resume paying subsidies toconsumers.

Rates of LPG are revisedevery fortnight.

Simultaneously, the price ofjet fuel was hiked by Rs2,941.5 per kilolitre, or 6.3 per

cent, in Delhi toRs 49,161.16 perkl.

This is thesecond increasein ATF price thismonth. Rateshad gone up by7.6 per cent (Rs

3288.38 per kl) on December1.

Like LPG, ATF prices tooare revised on the 1st and16th of every month based onthe average rate of benchmarkinternational fuel and for-eign exchange rate in thepreceding fortnight.

Alongside an increase inthe price of 14.2-kg LPGcylinders, rates of the 5-kgbottles were increased by Rs18 and those of the 19-kgcylinders by Rs 36.50.

So far nine states have implementedthe one nation one ration cardsystem, four states have completedthe ease of doing business reformsand one has done the utility reforms

PNS n COIMBATORE

About 400 small and tinyfoundries in the districtremained silent on Wednesdayas part of their indefinite striketo draw the attention of theCentre to the spiralling price ofraw materials since the last twomonths.

The foundries, affiliated tothe Coimbatore Tiny and SmallFoundry Owners Association(COSMAFAN), stopped pro-duction indefinitely, resultingin a loss of Rs 30 crores daily,

its president ShivaShanmughakumar said. Theincreasing prices would notonly affect the foundries butalso related industries such aswet grinder, pump and motors,textiles and automobiles, whoare the large-scale customers offoundry products, he said.

The price increase was from30 to 55 per cent as compared tothe period before the lockdowndue to the pandemic, he said.

Moreover, the hoarding bythe traders creating artificialscarcity of the materials also

contributed to the price hike,he said, adding that the entireindustrial sector is seeking theintervention to the Centre tobring down the prices for its

survival.Meanwhile, the Coimbatore

and Tirupur MediumIndustries Association withnearly 50,000 units has alsogiven a call to down shutters fora day on Wednesday to expresssolidarity with strikingfoundries.

A total of 19 associations ofsmall and medium industrieshad already staged a demon-stration here on Tuesday, urg-ing the Centre to take steps tobring down the price of rawmaterials.

FOUNDRIES’ STIR

400 foundries stop production over raw material price hikeThe price increase wasfrom 30 to 55 per centas compared to theperiod before thelockdown due to thepandemic, he said.

Sebi imposes two-year ban onindividuals for irregularities

PNS n NEW DELHI

Photo-sharing platformInstagram on Wednesday saidit is testing 'Instagram Lite' appin India that occupies lessspace on Android phones andconsumes lesser data, before itrolls out the offering globally.

Over the past many months,the Facebook-owned companyhas tested and rolled out anumber of features in Indiafirst, including its short videooffering - Reels.

"India is an important mar-ket for us and has been a test-ing ground for innovation...India was one of the first fewcountries where we testedReels, and the first countrywhere we launched the Reelstab...In order to expand theappeal of Instagram to usersacross the country, today we'reannouncing the test ofInstagram Lite in India," VishalShah, VP of Product,Instagram at Facebook, said atthe Facebook Fuel for India2020 event.

He added that 'Instagram

Lite' is less than two megabytesin size, and has been built toprovide access and high qual-ity experience to users in India,irrespective of the device, plat-form and network that they areon.

The experience on the newapp is similar to the coreInstagram app experience,though there are some featuresthat are not currently sup-ported such as Reels, Shoppingand IGTV.

The app will be available inBangla, Gujarati, Hindi,Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi,Punjabi, Tamil and Telugu.

Facebook and other Internetcompanies like LinkedIn and

Twitter offer similar lighterapps to help users access keyfeatures of the platform withlower data usage and quickerloading time.

Shah noted that India issetting global trends as well

with two out of the five songsshared most globally on Reelscoming from Indian artists.

"We also see a lot of trendsemerging in India. For exam-ple, we saw a huge increase inpeople going Live together onInstagram, especially duringthe pandemic. That is whyIndia is one of the first coun-tries where we launched Liverooms where now up to fourpeople can go live together on

Instagram," he added.Shah said its 'Born on

Instagram' programme wascreated because of the creativ-ity the company is seeingacross India.

Instagram has nowannounced the second ver-sion of 'Born on Instagram' toequip the next generation ofcontent creators with best prac-tices to use the platform, andenable them with collaborationand mentorship opportuni-ties. In the new edition, theprogramme has been attunedto incorporate the new featureson Instagram, especially Reels.It will go on for a period of sixmonths and will continue tooffer masterclasses from inter-nal and external experts.

"With the test of InstagramLite, and the next edition ofBorn on Instagram, we're aim-ing to democratise expressionand creativity for a greaternumber of people in India.We're also hoping to gain valu-able insights before a globalrollout of Instagram Lite," hesaid.

Instagram testing ‘Instagram Lite’ in India

PNS n MUMBAI

Tyre maker Bridgestone Indiaon Wednesday said it hasinvested in fleet managementstart-up Fleeca India, whichwill strengthen its position inthe digital-based mobility solu-tions.

This investment will furtherstrengthen Bridgestone India'sexisting service Infrastructure,to provide quality and compre-hensive tyre services acrossnational highways by leverag-ing Fleeca's service infrastruc-ture, according to a release.

As part of its strategy to bea leader in mobility solutions,Bridgestone India has madeinvestment in Fleeca India, astart-up focused on providingdigital-based business solu-tions to fleet operators, toincrease efficiencies of theirtyre usage, the company said.

It, however, did not dis-close the quantum of its invest-ment in the start-up.

The Indian market is fast

evolving and witnessing deep-er penetration of digital tech-nologies. Digital-based mobil-ity solutions find greater signif-icance in context of the rapid-ly changing consumer prefer-ence, it said.

"This investment will enableus to create higher value forour customers in India andhelp them improve the return

on investments," saidBridgestone India ManagingDirector Parag Satpute.

He added that tyre manage-ment as a service is still in itsnascent stage in India andcustomer preferences are alsochanging. "Traditional businessmodels are being disruptedand overall the mobility seg-ment is undergoing a rapidchange."

"We at Bridgestone India arefocussed on pioneering newbusiness models and strength-ening our solutions business toaccelerate our growth plans,"Satpute added.

These services based ondigital applications assumeimportance as more and morefleet operators are seekingoptions like "pay per km"models when it comes to theprocurement of tyres, said therelease.

This helps the fleet ownersto maximise the total cost ofownership of their operations,it added.

Bridgestone India invests in fleetmanagement start-up Fleeca India

This investment willfurther strengthenBridgeston's existingservice infrastructure,to provide quality andtyre services

Hartek Solarbags 1.8-MWrooftop projectfrom BikajiPNS n NEW DELHI

Hartek Solar on Wednesdaysaid it has bagged a 1.8-MWrooftop project from FMCGfirm Bikaji.

"Consolidating on its Pan-India presence, Hartek Solar,the rooftop solar division ofHartek Group... has bagged a1.8-MW rooftop project inthe industrial category fromBikaji, a leading FMCG com-pany, in Bikaner, Rajasthan,"a company statement said.

The project will generate2,822 MWh of clean electric-ity annually, offsetting 57,661tonne of carbon emissions.

Based on the latestPassivated Emitter and RearCell (PERC) technology withmonocrystalline solar panels,the solar plant at Bikaji'shead office in BichhwalIndustrial Area will also beequipped with storage facility.

Cabinet approvesnext round ofspectrum auctionPNS n NEW DELHI

The Union Cabinet onWednesday approved thenext round of spectrum auc-tion to be held in March inwhich frequencies of 2,251megahertz would be sold,Communications MinisterRavi Shankar Prasad said.

The government will puton auction 2,251 MHz ofspectrum in the frequencybands of 700 MHz, 800Mhz,900 Mhz, 2100 Mhz, 2300Mhz and 2500 MHz, Prasadsaid. "The notice invitingapplication shall be issued inthis month and by auctionwil l be conducted byMarch," Prasad said.

The Digital Communic-ations Commission, theapex decision making bodyof the Department ofTelecom, in May hadapproved the spectrum auc-tion plan worth Rs 5.22 lakhcrore which includedradiowaves for 5G servicesas well.

The telecom ministry getsan average revenue share ofaround 5 per cent as spec-trum usage charge fromtelecom operators which iscalculated based on theirspectrum holding of compa-nies and 8 per cent as licencefee from the revenue earnedby the companies from saleof communication services.

GiveIndia supports 56LIndians in response tothe Coronavirus crisis

HELPING HAND

PNS n BENGALURU

GiveIndia has helped to sup-port 56 lakh Indians duringthe pandemic, using the Rs.220 Cr contributed to thenonprofit's India COVIDResponse Fund (ICRF) by acollective of individuals andorganisations. This has beenthe most impactful interven-tion executed by the platformin its 20-year history.

Formed on April 10, 2020,the ICRF collective compris-es corporates, foundations,digital platforms, govern-ment bodies, philanthropists,high net worth individuals,and citizens at large. Thefund has supported three keyareas of intervention - pro-viding monetary relief tocash-strapped families,humanitarian aid to com-munities in need, andaddressing gaps in the health-care system in protectingfrontline workers in COVID-designated hospitals.

For the flagship mission -Support COVID-19 HitFamilies - GiveIndia part-nered with 250+ nonprofitsacross the country to helpdaily wagers and migrantworkers who had lost theirmeans of earning.Underpinned by a well-defined due diligence frame-work to verify and identifybeneficiaries, a SteeringCommittee was establishedfor approving the allocationof funds on a weekly basis.Over Rs. 49 Cr was disbursedto provide support to morethan 5.6 lakh Indians, withcash relief reaching approvedbeneficiaries within twoweeks.

Commenting on the needfor ICRF, Atul Satija, Founder2.0 and CEO of GiveIndia,said, “The coronavirus pan-demic has taken a heavy tollon poor, disadvantaged com-munities. We realised earlyon that dealing with a pan-demic as daunting asCOVID-19 required broadcollaboration and participa-tion from a variety of people

and organisations, a collabo-ration that would make iteasy for everyone to chip in.And I am happy to say theydid, the response has beenquite staggering. I want tothank all our partners, andpeople who have donated -we are deeply grateful. But ofcourse, the pandemic is farfrom over and the monthsahead will present more chal-lenges which we will have toovercome.”

For the humanitarian aideffort for which Rs. 57 Cr+has been disbursed,GiveIndia's partner nonprof-its have served over 40 lakhcooked meals to migrantlabourers stranded at urbanhubs, the homeless, sexualminorities, people living withterminal conditions and dis-abilities, and children. It hasalso funded the distributionof 8 lakh hygiene and rationkits to impoverished families.

n Nonprofit platform'sIndia COVID ResponseFund raises over Rs. 220crore

n Disbursed Rs. 190 Cr+with the help of 250+NGOS, 115+ cities,impacting 56L+ lives

n ICRF worked across threekey programmes: Cashrelief, Humanitarian aid,and addressinghealthcare needs forfrontline workers andhospitals

n ICRF's flagship mission -Support COVID-19 HitFamilies - disbursed Rs.49 Cr+ and supported5.6L+ Indians

n Donors to ICRF includephilanthropy foundationslike Skoll Foundation,UBS OptimusFoundation, andMacArthur Foundation;corporations such asGoogle.org, HSBC India,and Nestle India; UHNIssuch as Vinod Khosla,Indra Nooyi, SundarPichai and Binny Bansaland the public at large -ordinary, everyday givers

ADDITIONAL BORROWINGS

States get more timeto implement reforms

LPG price up by Rs 50,ATF rises by 6.3 percent

PNS n NEW DELHI

The National PaymentsCorporation of India (NPCI)on Wednesday said it hasadded features in RuPay cardsthat will allow offline transac-tions even in areas with limit-ed internet connectivity,besides offering a reloadablewallet facility to boost seamlessretail transactions.

RuPay cardholders can makecontactless offline payments atPOS (point of sale) in areaswith limited network and anadditional feature of reloadablewallets in the form of RuPaycontactless (offline) will facil-itate seamless day-to-day retailtransactions, the NPCI said.

These additional featureswill augment the overall trans-action experience for RuPaycardholders and revolutionisethe overall card paymentecosystem, it said.

NPCI said with the relodableRuPay NCMC card, customerscan store money to ensurequick and seamless transac-tions without any irregularitieseven if they witness poor con-nectivity at the POS machines.

"The RuPay NCMC(National Common Mobility

Card) offline wallet can be usedto make ticket payments intransit including metros, bustickets, cab fares etc enablingautomatic quick cashless pay-ments, thereby, reducing thewait time, traffic congestionand in turn the transit time.These transactions are fasterthan a regular card transaction,and works as a queue buster,"it said.

Additionally, with RBI'sapproval for pilot on retailoffline transactions, offlinewallet facility is extended toretail stores (as a part of pilot).

The lack of internet connec-tivity or low speed of internet,especially in remote areas,stores located in basementsamong others are usually amajor impediment in con-ducting digital transactions.

Against this backdrop, pro-viding an option of offlinepayments, is expected to fur-ther the adoption of digital pay-ments, said the umbrella bodyfor retail payments infrastruc-ture.

NPCI adds offlinetransactions featurein RuPay cards

Wasn’tthelock-

down called due to the Covid pan-demic a great time for many tohone and for some, even discovernew skills? And the most common,favourite hobby that a lot of usenjoyed while stuck indoors, wascooking and baking. And some ofthese new bakers are using this skill

to bring smiles to peo-ple’s faces in the month

of Christmas!Sheena Mrinalini, a

working professional whobakes at Beryl’s CCC

(Cupcakes, Cakes &Cookies), tried her hand at

baking briefly with cupcakestwo years ago. When she lost

her job due to the pandemic thisyear, she thought to herself, “whynot try my hand at cakes too?” Shethen took some baking classesonline and voila, she now aces notjust cupcakes but cakes, cookies,tarts, and brownies too! “The lock-down blessed me with the time toupgrade my skills and they have allpaid off now. Good feedback fromclients has led to better sales thismonth,” Sheena shares. HerChristmas cakes are sure sellinglike hotcakes, keeping her occupiedmost days of the week.

Another baker Anthea Rodricks,to whom baking is therapeutic, hasbeen baking for a year now. Thevery first loaf that she had baked athome got her obsessed as soon as

the aroma of a freshly bakedbanana walnut loaf masked the airon a cold winter night. “The lock-down was very helpful in a waythat I could stay home and try outnew recipes and perfect them. Italso got me planning a menu that Icould put up for Christmas thisyear in order to send people thesefreshly baked goodies right out ofthe oven using contactless methodslike online payments and theSwiggy genie. Precautions arealways taken while baking likesanitising and wearing a mask,”Anthea says. Asked how her salesthis festive season is going, shereplies, “They’ve been great. I’vereceived many orders within a cou-ple of days of posting them onsocial media. Out of Hyderabad, Ihad recently sent two loaves to acustomer in Chennai with all pre-cautions taken and it had reachedher in time. She absolutely lovedthem and was so taken with thefreshness and the packaging.” Onpeople willing to trust home bakersin the face of the pandemic, shesays, “I’m happy to say that people

have reviewed our items with a5star and have placed more orders.At the end of the day, consumertrust and satisfaction is so impor-tant. Be it a pandemic or not. It ismy duty and responsibility to makesure that the ingredients andinstruments I use are of high quali-ty and are regularly sanitised.”

Called ‘TheBakerNextDoor’,Manasa Sangewar, a self-taughtbaker is just a year old in the busi-ness and credits the lockdown forhelping her pick up her bakinggame in 2020. “People, thanks toword-of-mouth, are now open totrusting the quality, taste, and stan-dards of home bakers more,” sharesthe now professional baker whocan’t wait to go back to re-openingher store she had started last yearbut had to shut soon due to herexams and then the pandemic.

If you’re craving those deliciousrum cakes, chocolate walnutbrownies, red velvet cupcakes, oreven the humble sponge and plumcakes, give these home bakers, whoswear by all the precautions, a trythis Christmas!

Follow us on

@TheDailyPioneer

facebook.com/dailypioneer

ThursdayDecember 17, 2020

What's Christmas without cakes andcookies? The lockdown has made many of

us don the chef's hat and take to baking.While many lost their jobs during the

pandemic, there are people who have madethe most of it by upping up their baking

game! These new bakers are using theirskills to bring smiles to people's faces inthe month of Christmas, while making

quick money, finds The Pioneer'sRACHEL DAMMALA

Home bakers' time to shine this Christmas

ometimes, we kickthe storms for anappetite and some-times we thrash themoff for a mental

appetite, believes Avinash. Byvery definition, he is a verypassionate creature with daysspent hurdling over chroniclestapping out portions of hissoul and nuggets of imagina-tion. He truly loves writingand that’s what makes him thebest in it. “Andhera ghana hai,yeh behtar hai jugnoo ke liyeaur shiddat se joh chamka yehsitara hojayega. Belonging tovery small settlement from thecity of Uttar Pradesh, a boywas expected to be a completeintrovert who never knewhow to express his wanderingthoughts. I was among thefortunate few who actually didsomething they loved and Imade writing my trail of life.Yes, there were struggles but Ihad the ability to shape wordsinto tangible expressions thatcan inspire, educate and enter-tain readers, that too from avery young period. However,the skies above my rural com-munity weren’t broad enoughfor me to fly distant; I wantedto fly more. This made memove to the conurbation ofnawabs where there was theinhabit of poetry too andthere began my journey withfilmmaking,” shares the film-maker. Embarking on a newvoyage of bringing every oneof the cultural art forms undera one roof, he’s all set to pre-sent one of its kind of a festi-

val across the world becauseart, be it in the form of dance,melody, cinematography,poetry, theatre, etc., is magi-cal. Creativity allows oneselfto make mistakes and thenflourish on it. In a country fullof diverse disparities, AvinashTripathi is on a mission to tellevery brimming talent toknow which art form to keepand develop it. Having avision of placing a pioneerfrom a respective cultural fieldalongside a beginner, he wantsto let the world know how onecan experience talent andtransform it into an enormousoccurrence.

“With this new course ofaction, I want to take mycountry’s pride onto an inter-national scale with our pas-sions, intelligence and a seem-ing reality. Often, we losesight of our realities andabsorb more of technical

aspects forgetting that talent iswhat ultimately speaks foritself. The new reality keptsending me hints when I ini-tially began my career, makingme realise that my fervour forwriting is my true impressionof being Avinash,” he adds.

Filmmaking is oxygen to hissoul, lockdown indeed mademany feel breathless with the-atres being shut. Emphasisingon the fact that monopolyplayers in the theatrical worldonly want to release multi-starrer or A-lister movies frombig banners, OTT has comelike a boon for independentfilmmakers. The Indian filmindustry is the largest in theworld in terms of number offilms produced and it hasbecome more professionalwhere box office earning hasprominent importance. Withthe coming of other segmentslike Netflix, Amazon Prime,Hotstar, etc. it’s now creating amark of its own. Gone are thedays now when entertainmentoptions were limited. We areseeing a new culture of filmshere, thinks Avinash. “Therewas a time when there werevery few female filmmakersbut today cinema is riding onthe wave of new generationwomen directors like LeenaYadav, Zoya Akhtar, etc. Thefuture is definitely, female!There is a complex force ofproduction into view wherethe maximum focus goes ontothe stars but a lot more goesinto the filmmaking processranging from finance, materi-

ality, techno, cinema politics,crew, etc. What’s the drivingforce? It influences socialchange, creates trends, makesfortunes, creates a fandomand provides employment. It’sboth industrial and creative inthe same breadth,” he goeshalves about filmmakingprocess.

The job of a filmmaker hasthe function to affirm andglorify an artist’s life and it’sthat hammer with which weshape it. Applauding his owncity’s Chief Minister YogiAdityanth’s surreal move ofhammering tongs about build-ing a film city, Avinashreflects that it’s going to paintmany new natures into thepromising artists’ lives. “It willattract filmmakers across theglobe and too many of thosewho see only Mumbai as thebastion of the film ecosystemmay think of shifting base andcross media convergence iswhat stands out in the filmindustries of India. The fusionthat’s been happening off lateis dubious and thanks to web-sites like YouTube and others,people can watch whateverand whenever they want,” hebelieves. Dreaming of anapparition to only fill thecountry with talent, he daresthe new aptitude to follow itto the darker places as well,suggesting that every individ-ual is more capable thanhe/she thinks and he’s goingto bring the right platformsoon for all these folks toshowcase it.

A solitary believer in new talent!After watching agreat movie, did you

ever sit back andthink of how much

work it took to makethe movie? You mayhave googled about

how much the actorswere paid or the

budget of the filmbut how much do

you know about theart of filmmaking?Avinash Tripathi, a

famous poet, lyricist,and one of the

versatile faces ofIndian media and a

renowned shortfilmmaker, knows

and loves theprocess of movie-

making. He speaksto

The Pioneer'sSHIKHA DUGGAL as

he breaks it downand takes us on a

ride towardfilmmaking.

ndian-born Miss Bahrain andfashion influencer PryancaTalukdar says she is all aboutminimalism with an edge andloves details.

The fashionista, who recently collab-orated with denim brand Freakins tolaunch its latest collection, shares fewstyling tips for the collection and alsoreveals her fashion hacks. Excerpts:

Q: Help us with some styling tipsfor the Freakins collection

A: I am all about minimalism withan edge. I love details, I love co-ords, Ilove styling oversized outfits as much asI like skin fits. So, in this capsule collec-tion you’ll see it all. I feel and I don’twant to sound corny but every piece isan extension of my personality.

I especially shot my campaign tohelp people how they could style theoutfits. Like I said, I kept it minimalwith jewels because denim in itselfspeaks volume and you don’t need todo much to stand out.

Q: What are the five must-havethings in your wardrobe?

A: Oversized denim jacket,Joggers, White/nude bodysuit,White pants and Jeans OMG

Q: Could you sharethree fashion hacks?

A: On darker

days just pick a co-ord with a nice pairof shoes and you’re good to go. Frontknot your regular tee to make it a crop.Put anything oversized over your pantsand tee or your athleisure to up thegame.

Q: A piece of advice for upcomingbloggers/influencers?

A: Dedication, passion and stayingtrue to yourself. Every person has theirown style, embrace that, bring that tothe table, let people see YOU. I oftenget asked about how to start blogging!Well honestly, I wouldn’t know how toanswer that because I don’t know whenI started, I just did what made mehappy and in no time it turned into afull time job, so staying focused comesnaturally to me because what I do iswhat I am mostpassionateabout.

S I

Styling tips, fashion hacks from Miss Bahrain

Manasa Sangewar

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Hyderabad Thursday December 17 2020 webbed

Rules

ARCHIE

GARFIELD

SUDOKU

REALITY CHECK SPEED BUMP CROSSWORD

GINGER MEGGS

NANCY

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

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

Yesterday’s solution

FUN

CALVIN AND HOBBES

ritic’s Choice Awards bringscontent-centric nuggetsunder one roof. Content cre-ators will agree that experi-mentation with narrativeshas peaked this year to

another high! Indian film director,actor, producer and screenwriter, SujoyGhosh deliberated on the trend ofshort films and web series and kickedoff the conversation saying, “It took mesix years to get my head wrappedaround short films and web series. Ijust couldn’t figure out how to tell astory in 12 minutes. How do you start?How do you get a middle and an endto a short film? What was really con-fusing was the question: why do I wantto make a short film? What is thenecessity?’ When you’re making ashort film, you have to not only look atthe content but also the way it is deliv-ered.”

In a separate conversation about theweb series, filmmaker Prakash Jhasaid, “2020 has been revolutionary! Wesaw the medium of OTT giving us anexhibition of feature films and web

series. Having made feature films allmy life, I found that web series givesyou the latitude to be able to indulge ineach and every character’s subplots andturn them into important plots andexpand your story more. At the sametime, each capsule has to be engaging,

and has to be entertaining.” The newedition of Critic’s Choice Awards ispacked with surprises as it sets out torecognise short films, web series andfilms on the same stage honouring tal-ent and technicians across all Indianlanguages.

Sujoy Ghosh and Prakash Jhapresent their take on web series

heatres that had reaminedclosed for more thanseven months now due tothe Coronavirus lock-down have opened up

recently. However, it is notewor-thy that many shows were can-celled due to the lack of a goodnumber of audience in the the-atres. The Producers’ council says

that many of them consider itsafe to release movies on

OTT even

after the theatres have opened.While Vijay Sethupathi’s Ka PaeRanasingam and Suriya’s SooraraiPottru have already released onOTT, an announcement thatArya’s Teddy will be releasing onan OTT platform soon, has beenmade. The film is being directedby Shakti Soundar Rajan andstars Arya, Sayyeshaa, SakshiAgarwal, Satish, Karunakaran,and Magizh Thirumeni in leadroles.

ith the crazy amount ofcontent on OTT rightnow, it’s a challenge forfilm-makers and con-tent creators to come up

with something unseen, new andfresh. And this is exactly what thenew show from Amazon Studiospresents. I’m a Virgo is a show writ-ten and directed by Boots Riley ofSorry to Bother you fame. StarringJharrel Jerome, the actor who cap-tivated the audience with his per-formance in Moonlight and WhenThey See Us, this show is theabsurdist delight everyone’s beenwaiting for.

I’m A Virgo is a coming-of-agejoyride about a 13-foot-tall youngBlack man who lives in Oakland,USA. “No one is quite like Boots,and we’re so excited to be workingwith him and Jharrel on this fan-tastical, funny, and utterly uniquenew series. We can’t wait for ourPrime Video customers to see it,”said Albert Cheng, COO and Co-Head of Television, AmazonStudios.

With his characteristic sass, Rileysaid that he was thrilled to be work-ing with Amazon. “This show willeither have me lauded or bannedand as such, I have demanded pay-ment upfront.”

Riley’s first feature Sorry toBother You, which he wrote anddirected, was one of the mosttalked-about films at the 2018Sundance Film Festival, where itwas nominated for the Grand JuryPrize. Later that year, he signed ascript deal with Media Res, whichled to I’m a Virgo.

AmazonStudiosgreenlit

I’m a Virgo

f women tookcharge of every-thing, what a worldwould it be! Lookforward to anotherexhilarating fun

comedy feature with the two-time Golden Globe Award win-ner Emma Thompson andMindy Kaling in Late Night air-ing this Friday, December 18, at9PM on &flix.

Emma Thompson playsKatherine Newbury, who is alegendary late-night talk show

host. Her world is turnedupside down when she hiresher only female staff writerplayed by Kaling. Originallyintended to smooth over diver-sity concerns, her decision hasunexpectedly hilarious conse-quences as two women separat-ed by culture and generationare united by their love of a bit-ing punchline.

Time to put on your laugh-ing hats with fun comedy duoEmma Thompson and MindyKaling in Late Night.

It’s ladies’ night thisFriday with EmmaThompson’s Late Night

hat would it be like to come of age in an isolat-ed corner of the South Pacific and experiencethe mysteries of adolescence without adult guid-ance? This is the question posed in this moviewhich is aninterest ing

take on a world withoutexternal influence andself- learning. From thefamous novel by authorHenry DeVereStacpoole’s The BlueLagoon comes thisbeautifully depictedmovie of two lost souls(Brooke Shields andChristopher Atkins) who find comfort in each other. Catchthe romantic offering this month airing as part of the PrivéCollection block this Friday, December 18 at 9PM on&PrivéHD.

Two children — Emmeline and Richard — are ship-wrecked on an island paradise with only one adult sur-vivor, a ship’s cook (Leo McKern). But he soon dies andthe children, alone and unadvised, must cope with thebewildering variety of physical and emotional changesattendant to growing up. They learn how to survive andeven thrive in their island home, and as they reach ado-lescence, the two teenagers fight and tease but ultimate-ly embrace each other. A natural sensuality leads to loveand unexplained emotions. But eventually they must con-front the real-world danger that awaits them.

With no hope for any rescue and marooned on an island,one must look to each other for compassion and comfortin The Blue Lagoon (1980) airing this Friday.

W

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I

W

T

Catch The Blue Lagoon,a popular 80’s romanticmovie this Friday

Arya’s Teddy to see an OTT release

ctor-filmmaker PSamuthirakani willbe playing a key rolein 47 Days directorPradeep Maddali’ssecond film, a

thriller. Announcing this onWednesday, debutant producerK Suresh Reddy, a well-knownbusinessman and MD ofCreative Mentors Animation

and Gaming College, said thatSamuthirakani is one of themost talented artists we haveand that his team is elated tohave him on board the project.“We will be announcing thenames of other cast and crewmembers soon. The film willroll shortly,” he said. Maddalisaid the Tamil-Telugu actorwill be playing the role of a vil-

lage don in the film, a RaghuKunche musical.

Presently, Samuthirakani islooking forward to releaseslike Aakashavani and Krack,where he played vital roles. Heis also playing a significantpart in SS Rajamouli’s RRR.

Neha Shetty, who was in thenews recently for bagging a

cameo in Akhil Akkineni-starrer Most EligibleBachelor, will be seenas Sundeep Kishan'slove interest in Rowdy

Baby, a G NageswaraReddy directorial

opular comedian Ali, whohas been in the industry fornearly four decades, hasfloated a banner AliwoodEntertainments to remakelast year’s Malayalam hit

Vikruthi as Andaru Bagundali AnduloNenundali. Playing an equal lengthrole alongside him in the film will besenior actor Naresh, while his friendSripuram Kiran is directing it. Thefilm was launched in Hyderabad onWednesday with SV Krishna Reddyand Achi Reddy sounding the clapper-board for the first shot, while BoyapatiSreenu and Bobby directed it jointly.Cameraman S Gopal Reddy switchedon the camera.

Speaking later, Ali said Kiran and hewere roommates during their strug-gling days in Madras. “He advised meto watch Vikruthi during the lock-down. I felt it was a great film. I imme-diately rang Naresh anna and askedhim to watch it. He obliged, afterwhich I told him he will be playing thehearing/speech-challenged man. Hewas gung-ho about it. Pavitra Lokeshwill be seen as his wife, while

Mouryani plays my wife. Ravishankaris on board for a crucial role. The storyunfolds in a metro train and Kiran hascompletely tweaked the second half,”he pointed out.

Stating that he is a fan of Ali, Nareshsounded optimistic of film’s charactersresonating with everyone. “I was inawe of the work Kiran had undertakenfor the remake. It’s a contemporary

script with a lot of humour and littleemotion. The project will be anothermilestone in my and Ali’s careers.Also, I’ve been prepping a lot for therole,” he stated.

The film, with music by Rakesh, hasgone to floors on Wednesday itself andwill be completely shot in Hyderabad.According to a source, the makers haveallocated Rs 1.5 crore as the budget.T

he suspense surroundingMegastar Chiranjeevi’s nextwas finally cleared by theactor himself on

Wednesday. With work on Vedalamremake too going on full-swing forthe past four months, manybelieved that the actor will givepreference to it after he wraps upAcharya. But he is commencingLucifer remake after Sankranti.

Earlier, directors like SujeethSign and VV Vinayak workedextensively on the script of Luciferbut their tweaks didn’t impressChiru much. Later, Mohan Raja,who made a career out of remakingTelugu films in Tamil, wasapproached by producer NVPrasad, and it seems his workpleased the megastar. “The Teluguscript work of Lucifer remake hasbeen finalised. Mohan Raja has tai-lored the script to suit our nativityand gave me a good narration. Wewill go to sets after Sankranti. Theshoot will be wrapped up by April.My close associate NV Prasad, whohas been waiting to make a filmwith me for long, is producing it,”the Megastar said on Wednesday.

NV Prasad said the film will bemade on a large scale without com-

promising on the budget.Mohan Raja recalled that he

was an assistant on the sets ofChiranjeevi-starrer Hitler andexpressed his happiness onlanding Lucifer remake. Theproject will be Raja’s secondTelugu directorial after thebox-office smash HanumanJunction (2001). He latergot busy in Tamil, success-fully remaking Teluguhits like Jayam, AmmaNanna O TamilaAmmayi, Kick and Azad.His original screenplay,Thani Oruvan, which he alsodirected, won the appreciation ofcritics and audiences alike andmade him, shed the ‘remake raja’tag. Ram Charan remade the filmas Dhruva.

Released last year, the Malayalamoriginal told the story of the political vacuum that arises whenthe leader of the ruling party passes away. In the inevitable suc-cession squabble and the powerstruggle that ensues, his adoptedson, the mysterious Stephen(played by Mohanlal), steps inand faces challenges in allspheres of life.

We were thefirst (Nov17) to

inform that youSundeep Kishan willbe playing an inno-cent rowdy in GNageswara Reddy’s

next, a joint produc-tion venture between

Kona Venkat and VizagMP MVV Satyanarayana.

To this end, the makers onWednesday launched the film in

Vizag, and also disclosed thetitle as Rowdy Baby. An

action comedy, the filmwill mark the comeback of Mehbooba girl Neha Shetty

as a leading lady, while Rajendra Prasad, Tamilactor Simha and Harsha Chemudu are playing

supporting roles.Rowdy Baby revolves around a family at

the centre of which will be Sundeep, whowill be seen as an innocent rowdy who does-

n’t like rowdyism in the first place. Situationsforce him to become one. Reddy is directing it from a

script of Kiran Bhanu. The young writer has also penned the story ofSundeep’s production venture Vivaha Bhojanambu, starring comedianSatya.Speaking to media persons after the muhurat, producer

Satyanarayana said the film will be completely shot in Visakhapatnam. “Noteven a single scene will be shot outside the city. That is the specialty of the film.Visakhapatnam is one of the beautiful cities of the country and is highly con-ducive for filmmaking. The city has infrastructure available for a film to be shotfrom start-to-end,” he noted.

Hyderabad Thursday December 17 2020

11

tollywood

A

P

More than a year afterits rights were acquired,

Lucifer Telugu remakewill finally be going in

front of the camerasafter Sankranti. The

Megastar is impressedwith the way director

Mohan Raja tailored thescript to Telugu nativity,

reports NAGARAJGOUD

Ali and Naresh in Vikruthi remake

After shifting loyalties todirection two and half yearsago, Rahul Ravindran has

avoided facing the camera as anactor. But that is going to changesoon, as we hear that he will beplaying a key role in Nani-starrerShyam Singha Roy, which waslaunched in Hyderabad last week.“Rahul has been selective with hischoice of roles after turning adirector. While he did get someoffers in the last nine months, hewasn’t convinced about them. Butrole in Shyam Singha Roy was tootempting to let it go. It may be a

supporting role but has itsmoments. He will be seen as Nani’sbrother in the film. Besides thepart, the other reason that drovehim to board the project was RahulSankrityan who he rates very high,”says a source.

An intense period romance,Shyam Singha Roy will be filmedacross Hyderabad and Kolkata pre-dominantly. Sai Pallavi and KrithiShetty are the leading ladies, whileMadonna Sebastian will be seen ina supporting role. Produced byVenkat Boyanapalli, it has music byMickey J Meyer.

Gaa

li S

amp

ath

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ing

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ard

sco

mp

leti

on

Having gone to floors last month,the filming of Gaali Sampath,spearheaded by Sree Vishnu

and Rajendra Prasad, is fast nearingcompletion. On Wednesday, the mak-ers revealed that they have completedthe Araku leg of filming, with which80 percent shoot has come to an end.The next schedule will start at RFC,Hyderabad, calling it a wrap.

In the film, Vishnu will be seen as atruck driver, while his father (playedby Rajendra Prasad) is essaying a deafand mute guy. “Gaali Sampath willmake people laugh and at the sametime take them on an emotional ride.Rajendra Prasad has played manymemorable roles in his storied career

and this will be anotherfeather in his cap. Vishnutoo has an extraordinaryrole. The beautiful journeybetween him and his fatherdots the story,” Anil Ravipudihad said about the film lastmonth. Besides penning thefilm’s screenplay, he is also pre-senting it. According to asource, he is closely monitoringthe film’s progress and only afterit is wrapped up, he will move onto his next feature, F3.

An Achu Rajamani musical,Gaali Sampath, directed by AnnishKrishna, features Mathura girlLovely Singh alongside Vishnu.

Mehbooba girl toromance Sundeep

Kishan

Rahul Ravindran inShyam Singha Roy

Lucifer remakewill roll afterSankranti: Chiru

Samuthirakani to play a villagedon in Pradeep Maddali's thriller

sport 12HYDERABAD | THURSDAY | DECEMBER 17, 2020

PTI n ADELAIDE

Apeerless Virat Kohli andhis “fearless” India wouldlook to unleash their

might on an Australian teamwhich is ready for revenge butnot exactly in ‘pink of health’ahead of the first Day/NightTest starting here at AdelaideOval on Thursday.

Media mogul Kerry Packer,while promoting his path-break-ing ‘World Series Day/NightTest matches’ on Channel 9 backin late 1970s, had an unforget-table caption “Big Boys Play AtNight”.

Even in 2020, there couldn’thave been a more appropriatecatch-line for a series whereKohli’s magnificence meets itsmatch in Steve Smith’s manicconsistency, Cheteshwar Pujara’sdoggedness challenged by amuch younger MarnusLabuschagne, ready to show theworld that he isn’t a one-seasonwonder. All this would be underlights at the Adelaide Oval.

And then there are thosemean fast men on both sidesaiming to instill the fear of pinkball in twilight zone, creating allsorts of doubts in the batsmen’sminds.

A Josh Hazlewood versusMohammed Shami will be asenticing a sub-plot as JaspritBumrah bowling those yorkersin reply to Pat Cummins’ barrageof bouncers.

With a workhorse like IshantSharma missing from Indianranks and the enforcer DavidWarner absent in the Australianline-up, the teams are evenlyplaced in terms of strength.

However, there will certain-ly be some distinct home advan-tage for Australia along with theexperience of playing moreDay/Night Tests.

A Day/Night Test match hasits own little grammar wherebatsmen are expected to attack inthe first session while bowlers are

PTI n ADELAIDE

India captain Virat Kohli onWednesday backed his

deputy Ajinkya Rahane to “doa tremendous job” in leading theside once he goes on paternityleave after the first Test againstAustralia and described theirrelationship as the one built on“trust and mutual respect”.

“Well, firstly we had a lot ofmutual understanding andrespect over the years, we havehad some great partnershipsbatting together which is basedon trust and understanding onwhat needs to be done for theteam,” Kohli said when askedhow he sees Rahane faring in hisabsence.

He believes that both havebeen on the same page andknow how this team functions.

“Jinks has done a tremendousjob in the two tour games andhe seems to be very composedand he knows the strengths ofour team and how we need togo about things,” he said.

Kohli made it clear that

Rahane will certainly follow thetemplate set by him and thereis no ambiguity as far as both ofthem are concerned.

“...We already know thetemplate that we play with andhow we want to go about things,so we are absolutely on the samepage and I am sure he will do atremendous job in my absenceas well,” the skipper seemed veryconfident.

As of now, Kohli is keen onsetting up the base for Rahaneto consolidate once he leaves.

“...The focus remains tillthe time I am here is to beable to provide, you know,captaincy and leadership andperformances as a player tothe best of my abilities andfrom then on, I am prettyconfident that Jinks will do atremendous job.”

PTI n ADELAIDE

Australian battingmainstay Steve

Smith, whose fitnessbecame a cause ofconcern after hemissed a trainingsession, was merelydown with a stiffback and will play inthe opening Testagainst India here,skipper Tim Painesaid on Wednesday.

After doing a few stretching exercises andrunning drills at the Adelaide Oval onTuesday, Smith had skipped the routine foot-ball session and headed straight to thedressing room in some discomfort.

Paine said it was not a serious niggle anda day’s rest came as a “blessing in disguise”for the star.

"We expect Steve to be there. He has hada stiff back a number of times before and youcan have that if you bat as much as he doesat the nets,” Paine said at the pre-match mediainteraction.

“He has a stiff back before and yesterday(Tuesday) was more precautionar y.Obviously, come tomorrow (Thursday), hegets through stiff back and finds a way toscore runs like he always does,” he added.

AP n LONDON

Two losses in four days hasstalled Chelsea’s serene

progress in the Premier League,turning the spotlight onto itsexpensively assembled attackthat remains a work inprogress.

Two drab draws forManchester City in the sameperiod is raising even morequestions — notably, what hashappened to what was once themost entertaining team inEngland?

It was an evening to forgetfor two of the league’s sup-posed title contenders onTuesday, with Chelsea’s 2-1loss at Wolverhampton —sealed by a winning goal instoppage time — followed byCity’s 1-1 draw at home toWest Bromwich Albion, one ofthe favorites for relegation thisseason.

Chelsea missed the chanceto climb into first place, at leastfor one night, while City

squandered an opportunity tomove within sight of the toptwo in the division, Tottenhamand Liverpool.

Chelsea’s setback atMolineux followed a 1-0 loss atEverton on Saturday and bothdefeats have highlighted theimportance of playmakerHakim Ziyech, who missedthem through injury.

Olivier Giroud, who beganthe season as Chelsea’s third-choice striker but is now start-ing regularly, opened the scor-ing in the 49th minute.

Wolves roared back andequalized through DanielPodence in the 66th before hisfellow Portugal international,Pedro Neto, broke forward onthe counterattack and drove

home the winner in the fifthminute of stoppage time.

Chelsea manager FrankLampard remodeled his attackas part of an offseasonspending spree, but TimoWerner is now without agoal in eight games, KaiHavertz has under-whelmed, and another ofthe new signings, Ziyech,has had spells out injured.

Meanwhile, US wingerChristian Pulisic is feeling hisway back to match sharpnessafter a run of injuries.

As does Pep Guardiola,with City languishing in sixthplace after a tepid displayagainst West Brom, whichgrabbed a point thanks to anunfortunate own-goal by Citydefender Ruben Dias in the43rd.

City had gone aheadthrough Ilkay Gundogan in the30th but struggled for imagina-tion in attempting to breakdown a deep-lying visitingdefense.

Guardiola’s team had sim-ilar problems in attack in a 0-0draw at Manchester United onSaturday.

With 18 goals, Cityis the lowest scorer ofthe league’s top nineteams.

Guardiola has beenplaying two defensivemidfielders since theoffseason departure of

long-time playmaker DavidSilva in an effort to give moreprotection to his defense, but itis robbing the team of creativ-ity.

West Brom battled to ahard-fought point but it was notenough to save its manager,Slaven Bilic, from getting fired.

Bilic lose his job onWednesday, with West Brom innext-to-last place.

Bilic had been at the clubfor only 18 months but hadearned the admiration of thefans after leading West Brom toautomatic promotion from theChampionship last season.

AFP n MADRID

Karim Benzemaspared Real Madrid’s

the blushes on Tuesdaywith a winning bracewhich shot the reigningchampions to a 3-1 win overAthletic Bilbao that draws themlevel on points with La Ligaleaders Real Sociedad.

Frenchman Benzema head-ed home a cross from DaniCarvajal with 16 minutesremaining to put Real aheadagainst battling Bilbao, whohad fought back to levelearlier having lost RaulGarcia to two quickfirebookings in openingminutes.

Toni Krooshad giventhe hosts thelead inMadrid with athumping strikeon the stroke ofhalf-time, butAnder Capa rockedthe capital club six min-utes after the breakwhen he shot pastThibaut Courtois at thesecond time of asking.

The 32-year-old

Benzema had otherideas however, puttinghis team in front beforemaking sure of thepoints in stoppage timewith a clinical finishafter collecting Luka

Modric’s pass.Third-placed Madrid

gained their fourth straightwin in all competitions and areequal on 26 points withSociedad, who face troubledBarcelona at the Camp Nou on

Wednesday, and local rivalsAtletico Madrid.

Tuesday’s match wasthe game in hand which

Real had on Sociedad,while Atletico have

played two gamesfewer than their

two title rivals.Barca are

nine pointsback butplay one oftheir twogames in

hand in thehope of giving

some momen-tum to what has

been a miserableseason so far.

PTI n NEW DELHI

All India Football FederationPresident Praful Patel on

Wednesday acknowledged thatthe country’s bid to host the2027 AFC Asian Cup will facetough challenge from othercompetitors but termed it a“natural consequence” of its ris-ing status in the continent.

Unveiling the Bid Book tohost the continental showpiecein 2027 along with SportsMinister Kiren Rijiju, Patel saidthe AIFF is hopeful of winningthe hosting right of the tourna-ment which will be competedamong 24 teams.

“Competition will be toughbut unless you try you will notget anything. Just like any otherbidding country, we are alsoconfident of winning the rightto host the event. There will bediplomatic support also. It is thecountry’s bid and AIFF is onlya representative,” Patel said.

“India has arrived in theworld scene in football. Wehave hosted men’s FIFA U-17World Cup and is going to hostthe women’s U-17 World Cup in2022. Then, we are hosting the2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup.

“The bidding of both the

FIFA U-20 World Cup for bothmen and women is also on thecards. So, it is a natural conse-quence of having all these toplevel tournaments that we willbid for the AFC Asian Cup in2027.”

Asian football heavyweightsSaudi Arabia and Iran as well as2022 FIFA World Cup hostQatar are also bidding for the2027 AFC Asian Cup. SaudiArabia and Qatar submittedtheir Bid Books to the AFC onMonday.

India is expected to submitthe Bid Book on Thursday orFriday — the deadline for sub-mission. Uzbekistan has pulledout of the race.

In April this year, the AIFFhad submitted its official expres-

sion of interest to host the tour-nament. The host country willbe decided in June next year.

Rijiju, on his part, said theGovernment will extend all pos-sible support to the AIFF to winthe bid.

“Indian football need to getback (to earlier glory) and weneed to host big events. This isone of the most prestigiousfootball tournaments and fromthe Government side, we willextend all the support,” said theminister. “It will be a definingmoment (if India win the bid).I am confident by 2027 the men’sand women’s team ranking willgo up and we will be apt to hostthe tournament. So, the wholenation is supporting the bid,” hesaid.

PTI n DUBAI

Zimbabwe will host the qual-ifiers of the 2023 ODI World

Cup between June 18 and July9, according to a revised sched-uled announced by the ICC dueto the postponements caused bythe Covid-19 pandemic.

India, the hosts of therescheduled 2023 ODI WorldCup, along with seven other topSuper League teams will quali-fy directly for the tournament tobe held in October-November.

The bottom five teams fromthe Super League will competein the 2023 World Cup qualifi-er, joining the best three teamsfrom League 2.

“When we rescheduled theICC Men’s Cricket World Cup2023 to October and November2023 it enabled us to extend thewindow for qualification eventsto take place and thereby ensurewe maximise the opportunityfor qualification to be decidedon the field of play,” ICC Headof Events, Chris Tetley said in astatement. The ICC alsoannounced the schedule of theWorld League 2 and theChallenge League.

PTI n NEW DELHI

Virat Kohli’s captaincy isstill work in progress

despite him being a perfect rolemodel for his teammates, feelsformer India batsman VVSLaxman, who wants the star tochop and change the squad alittle less for greater stability.

Laxman said Kohli leads byexample as far as work ethic isconcerned but tends to be abit defensive in field set-tings besides the issue ofchanging the squad toooften.

“I mentioned somany times, theintensity and thebody language heshows when he’son the field,whether he’sbatting orfielding, Ithink he leadsby example andthat is so infec-tious,” Laxmanshared his opinionon Star Sports showCricket Connected.

“It rubs off on allof his team-matesand that’s why he’s a

perfect role model of how acaptain should be. There’s stillwork-in-progress as far as cap-taincy is concerned. Couple ofthings I think Virat Kohli canimprove.”

Laxman touched uponconstant experiments with theline-up since Kohli took chargeand said this can lead to inse-curity among players. Kohlitook charge as Test captain in2014 and was handed the lim-

ited-overs’ leadership in 2017.“...There were certain

times when I felt that hebecomes little defensive, espe-cially with his field changes.

“The second thing ischopping and changingthe playing 11. Withexperience, I can saythat any player,whether experiencedor a newcomer,wants that stability,

security, so that hecan focus on per-

forming to thebest of his abili-ties for the team.That’s something

which Virat Kohlican definitely improveon,” he pointed out.

MUSCAT: Doha will host the2030 Asian Games, the OlympicCouncil of Asia announced onWednesday, while Riyadh wasnamed as host of the 2034 edi-tion under a compromiseagreed between the rivals.

An executive board meet-ing of the Olympic Council ofAsia (OCA) unanimouslyapproved the proposal to namethe runner-up in the two-horserace for the 2030 games as2034 hosts.

“I can now announce... thatthe city who had the highest voteand will host 2030 in Doha,” saidOCA president Sheikh AhmadAl-Fahad Al-Sabah.

“The second hosting city, for2034, is Riyadh.”

Doha beat Riyadh, SaudiArabia, in a vote of 45 NationalOlympic Committees at the39th OCA General Assemblyheld in Muscat, Oman.

Doha hosted the AsianGames in 2006 while SaudiArabia has never organised anOCA multi-sport event. AFP

IANS n JOHANNESBURG

Fast bowler Migael Pretoriushas received his maiden call

up in the South Africa squad forthe upcoming two-match Testseries against Sri Lanka.

The 25-year-old has had anexceptional season so far in the4-Day Domestic Series underthe coaching of former Proteaspaceman Allan Donald. He iscurrently third on the tourna-ment’s leading wicket takerstable with 19 scalps from fivematches and best bowling fig-ures of 7/102 against theHollywoodbets Dolphins intheir season opener last month.

“We’re pleased to includeMigael in the Proteas Test squadfor the Sri Lanka series. We’re bigon rewarding consistently goodwork and the player has done alot to make a case for himself,”said Cricket South AfricaConvenor of Selectors Victor

Mpitsang in a statement.“We hope that this experi-

ence will be a great learning onefor him and that this can serveas encouragement for playersacross the country, showingthem that their chances may notbe as far off as they think,” headded.

Meanwhile, Kagiso Rabadaand Dwain Pretorius have notyet been medically cleared toparticipate in the series.

The Proteas will gather inPretoria on Saturday for the Testseries which begins onDecember 26.Test squad: Quinton de Kock(captain), Temba Bavuma,Aiden Markram, Faf du Plessis,Beuran Hendricks, Dean Elgar,Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi,Rassie van der Dussen, SarelErwee, Anrich Nortje, GlentonStuurman, Wiaan Mulder,Keegan Petersen, KyleVerreynne, Migael Pretorius.

Kohli perfect role modelof a leader: Laxman

India’s bid for 2027 AFC Asian Cup

will face tough challenge: Patel

Zimbabwe tohost qualifiers of2023 ODI WC

Chelsea lose for 2nd time in 4 days

Real draw level withleaders Sociedad

Pacer Migael receivesmaiden SA call-up

Doha to host 2030 AsianGames, Riyadh in 2034

Game for Night Life

at their peak once the sun sets,allowing the pink kookaburra topick its pace up.

Never has an Indian teambeen so spoilt for choices withmultiple options in place for var-ious positions.

But Indian skipper ViratKohli made it clear that ShubmanGill and KL Rahul will have towait for their chances with themanagement deciding to stick toan out-of-form Prithvi Shaw inthe opening slot.

“Shubman hasn’t got oppor-tunities at this level yet in Testcricket, so as and when he gets anopportunity it will be great to seehow he goes about things, becausehe is a very, very confident youngman,” Kohli said on the eve of thegame.

“Prithvi has performed at theTest level, but he will be playingin Australia for the first time. So,I think it is very exciting to see hisprogress as well.”

Can Rahul be fitted in theteam at some stage?

“KL is obviously a qualityplayer and hence he has beenincluded back into the Test squadand you know we have to seewhat combinations suits the bal-ance of the team best,” skipper’sstatement stressed that HanumaVihari, with his part-time off-

breaks, is the choice for now.For the much-speculated

wicketkeeper’s slot, WriddhimanSaha was preferred over theexplosive but erratic RishabhPant.

In the build-up to the series,Saha’s fifty in the red-ball first-class match was achieved in atougher setting than Pant’s 73-ball100 under lights against a secondstring Australia A attack.

Also, Umesh Yadav pre-dictably, after his good show inthe practice game, got his place inthe side as the third pacer.

On Tuesday, India’s top bat-ters were being troubled byThangarasu Natarajan’s incomingdeliveries with pink kookaburraat the Adelaide nets.

If Natarajan, at 130-plus, cantrouble them so much, thenMitchell Starc, the world’s topwicket-taker in pink ball Tests,can be menacing.

At times, less options make iteasier to choose and Kohli wouldhope that he has made the rightchoices so that Ajinkya Rahanecan help India do an encore oncehe takes a break.

SQUADSIndia (playing XI): Virat Kohli(captain), Mayank Agarwal,Prithvi Shaw, Cheteshwar Pujara,Ajinkya Rahane (vc), HanumaVihari, Wriddhiman Saha (wk),Ravichandra Ashwin,Mohammed Shami, JaspritBumrah, Umesh Yadav.Australia: Tim Paine (captain &wicketkeeper), Joe Burns, PatCummins, Cameron Green,Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood,Travis Head, Moises Henriques,Marnus Labuschagne, NathanLyon, Michael Neser, JamesPattinson, Steven Smith, MitchellStarc, Mitchell Swepson, MatthewWade.Indian skipper Virat Kohli bats during net session @imVkohli/Twitter

Rahane will do tremendousjob in my absence: Kohli

Venue M Ind Aus Draw

In Aus 48 7 29 12

In India 50 21 13 15

Total 98 28 42 27

Since 2000 42 17 15 10

At Adelaide 12 2 7 3

INDIA-AAUSTRALIA TEST ENCOUNTERS

HIGHEST INNINGS TOTALS

Ind 705-7 at Sydney 2003-04

Aus 674 at Adelaide 1947-48

LOWEST INNINGS TOTALS

Ind 58 at Brisbane 1947-48

Aus 83 at Melbourne 1980-81

Faisel FFeatures

1st Test. Day 1Live from 9:30am IST

SONY TEN 1, 3 & SIX

India begin quest to repeat 2018-19 heroics with Pink Ball affair

Smith fit to play Green made for Test cricket,will make debut: PaineADELAIDE: Rookie all-rounder Cameron Green ismade for Test cricket and will make his debut inthe pink ball match against India, Australia cap-tain Tim Paine announced on Wednesday.

The giant seam-bowling all-rounder made animpressive hundred in the first warm-up gameagainst India A and was drafted into the Test team.While he got concussed in the second game dueto a straight drive from Jasprit Bumrah, Paine indi-cated that the baggy green is waiting for him.

“He trained well. If all things go well, CamGreen will be making his Test debut tomorrow(Thursday). Great news for him. Great news forus and great news for all Australian cricket fans,”Paine said ahead of the series-opener.

Paine, who batted alongsideGreen in the warm-up game andhas also seen him score a lot ofruns in Sheffield Shield, is con-fident that he has a bright

future ahead of him. “He is really impressive for a

guy of his age and understandshis game pretty well. He has

smart cricket brain and iscalm under pressure. He

is made for Test cricket,”Paine complimented

the 21-year-oldWest Australian’sskills. PTI