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Fired Delhi Minister hurls bribery charge at Kejriwal
NEARBY
Kapil Mishra claims he saw ₹2 crore being given to the CM 10 new Ministers take oath in Odisha reshule BHUBANESWAR
Twelve Ministers, 10 of them new, were sworn in here on Sunday as Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik carried out a major reshule of his Ministry. While six leaders were sworn in as Cabinet Ministers, four took oath as Ministers of State. Two incumbent Ministers of State were elevated as Cabinet Ministers NEWS
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Panjab univ to withdraw plaint against students CHANDIGARH
Panjab University has decided to withdraw a complaint against some of its students on the basis of which they were booked for violence on the campus during a protest over fee hike on April 11. NORTH
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Mulayam hints he is against SP split LUCKNOW
Samajwadi Party patron Mulayam Singh on Sunday indicated that he was strongly opposed to a split in the party, while berating son Akhilesh Yadav’s move to ally with the Congress, which he claimed had left no stone unturned to “ruin” him. NORTH
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Soumya Pillai New Delhi
The internal conflict in the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is getting murkier by the day. A day after Delhi Tourism and Water Minister Kapil Mishra was sacked from the Cabinet, he alleged that he witnessed his colleague Satyendra Jain handing over ₹2 crore to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Addressing the media at Rajghat on Sunday, the ousted Minister said that when he asked the reason for the transaction, Mr. Kejriwal told him, “Not everything in politics happens for a reason.” He also alleged that Mr. Jain had helped fix a land deal worth ₹50 crore for Mr. Kejriwal’s relative.
MEERUT
Days after a person was killed and over 60 Dalit houses were burnt in caste clashes in Shabbirpur village of Saharanpur, most of the Dalits living in Thakurdominated villages of the district have led to “safer areas” fearing further violence. NEWS
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Militants ofer ‘gun salute’ at comrade’s funeral in Valley 4 ultras attend burial of Setha, who was killed in Saturday’s strike that left 5 dead Peerzada Ashiq Srinagar
In a throwback to the 1990s when militants surfaced at public places, four armed militants on Sunday appeared at the funeral of militant Fayaz Ahmad alias Setha in south Kashmir and offered a ‘gun salute’ in full public gaze. In Saturday’s attack by militants including Setha, three civilians and a policeman were shot dead on the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway near Anantnag. Setha, according to the police, was carrying a cash reward of ₹2 lakh on his head for his involvement in the Udhampur highway attack on a Border Security Force convoy in August 2015, which left two BSF troopers and a militant dead. One foreign militant had been de-
tained from the spot. He is believed to have ferried the militants to Udhampur from south Kashmir and was missing since the attack. Eyewitnesses told The Hindu that Kulgam district’s Qoimoh area saw the four
Macron set to be France’s youngest President
Locked up with trash, girl rescued
BCCI decides to send team for Champions Trophy
Exit polls give him 65.5% vote; Le Pen concedes defeat
Staff Reporter
Will not send legal notice to ICC on new inance model
Sisodia denies charge Mr. Kejriwal’s deputy, Manish Sisodia, immediately came to his rescue, denying
Open war: Kapil Mishra paying homage at Rajghat in New Delhi. R.V. MOORTHY *
all charges. “All allegations levelled by him are baseless. No one will believe them. These are not worthy of any reactions,” he said. Mr. Jain refused to comment. On Saturday evening, Mr. Kejriwal removed Mr. Mishra from the Cabinet, citing “inefficient water management in the city.” Najafgarh legis-
Sriram Lakshman PARIS
Dalits continue to lee Shabbirpur
lator Kailash Gahlot and Seemapuri MLA Rajendra Gautam have been inducted into the Cabinet, taking the total number of Ministers to seven. On Sunday, Mr. Mishra claimed that he was removed from his post after he met Mr. Kejriwal on Saturday and told him that he was going to meet the Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) to divulge details on the tanker scam. The ₹400 crore alleged scam is said to have taken place when the Congress party’s Sheila Dikshit was the Chief Minister of Delhi. She was CM until 2013. The ‘scam’ involved irregularities in hiring private water tankers to serve areas that are out of the Delhi Jal Board’s pipeline network.
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Flag-waving crowds in front of the Louvre in central Paris on Sunday night broke into jubilant cheers as the first exit polls emerged, predicting centrist and independent candidate Emmanuel Macron’s victory in a bitterly fought presidential election. Mr. Macron is predicted to win 65.5% of the votes against far-right candidate Marine Le Pen’s 34.5%, according to an Ipsos/Sofra Steria poll, making the 39year-old the youngest person to hold the office of President in the Fifth Republic. Mr. Macron told AFP that the poll outcome was the beginning of “a new chapter” in the country’s long history. “I want it to be one of hope and renewed confidence,”
Marching ahead: Emmanuel Macron leaves his home in Paris on Sunday. REUTERS *
he said. His margin of victory was more than 2% higher than was projected prior to the mandated blackout on media coverage that started at midnight on Friday. While Ms. Le Pen may have lost, her party, Front National (FN), has beaten its previous record by a huge margin; the FN won 17.8% in the second round under Ms.
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SEE ALSO DELHI METRO 쑺 PAGE 1
Le Pen’s father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, against Jacques Chirac in 2002. In her speech shortly after the exit poll results were announced, Ms. Le Pen said the French people had voted in favour of continuity. She also said the vote was a “historic decision” in which the French had chosen her alliance as the main opposition force to the President. An unusually high voter abstention rate of 25.3% has been projected. French media and political analysts are attributing this to voter disappointment over their preferred candidates not making it to the second round, as well as rainy weather and people travelling as Monday is a public holiday. PARTIES GEAR UP FOR NEXT BATTLE 쑺 PAGE 12
New Delhi
After being allegedly locked up for months in a house, every inch of which was taken up by rubbish, a 17-year-old girl in Pandav Nagar was “rescued” by neighbours and the police on Saturday night. The span of the alleged confinement by the girl’s mother and elder sister, who lived in another house in the same area, was described by a few neighbours and the police as “anywhere between three to six months”. However, the girl is learnt to have told the police that she was depressed and hence stayed indoors of her own free will. She has been sent to a hospital for treatment and is being counselled.
Open challenge: A group of militants ires in the air at Qaimoh Kulgam in south Kashmir on Sunday during the funeral of a militant killed in Anantnag on Saturday. NISSAR AHMAD *
Uthra Ganesan New Delhi
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) agreed to select the Indian team for the Champions Trophy on Monday here in accordance with the Committee of Administrators’ (CoA) advice, while also stepping back from sending any legal notice to the ICC regarding its reworked governance and finance models. But instead of calling it a climbdown from its earlier
armed militants, led by local boy Junaid, mingling with the funeral crowd which included a large number of women. The militants, who did not mask their faces, fired shots in the air as people pumped
confrontational stance with both the CoA and the International Cricket Council, BCCI acting secretary Amitabh Choudhary said after the board’s special general meeting on Sunday that it had conceded nothing and kept all options open. “Let that be unequivocally clear that the BCCI concedes nothing. There is adequate legal room for further action. There was a lot of talk about [legal notice] but there was only talk,
their fists and raised profreedom slogans. Many women were seen ducking as militants opened fire several times while the coffin was being taken for burial. CONTINUED ON 쑺 PAGE 10
nothing concrete. Our concerns are very clear. While cricket must spread, we must also make sure that our position as the predominant cricket country of the world remains undiminished,” Mr. Choudhary said. He refused to give any details of the nature of any further negotiations with the ICC that the board had agreed upon. TEAM TO BE CHOSEN TODAY; BACKROOM PARLEYS 쑺 PAGE 15
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Dress code a tougher test for NEET aspirants Special Correspondent CHENNAI
With just 30 minutes left for the first National Eligibilitycum-Entrance Test (NEET) to begin on Sunday, a girl student at Army Public School in Bengaluru faced an unexpected crisis — she was unable to remove her earrings in a hurry. The candidate had run afoul of the strict dress code for the CBSE-administered NEET exam, which barred earrings. Standing outside the exam hall, the girl struggled with a stuck screw. Her anxious father rushed her to a jeweller nearby and got the ornament cut. There was a sigh of relief as she made it back just before the 9.30 a.m. deadline. Many candidates around the country had not prepared to meet the NEET dress code, which prohibited full sleeve shirts, pens, pencils, closed or high-heeled shoes, big brooches and metal buttons. At Delhi Public School in Bengaluru, the authorities kept a stock of two dozen T-shirts for those who came in full-sleeve shirts. Students wearing closed shoes had to doff them and go barefoot, said Nehith Ravishankar, at a CM YK
Painful ring: A student gets a jeweller to remove an earring in Bengaluru. SUDHAKARA JAIN *
Kendriya Vidyalaya. An aspirant’s father in Alwal, Telangana, said the instructions referred only to large earrings but officials wanted girls to remove even ear studs and nose rings. Some boys had to cut their full-sleeve shirts to half sleeves in Chennai. In Andhra Pradesh, candidates were checked with metal detectors to see if they had any gadgets. Women had to untie their hair to show they did not have prohibited articles. A candidate at Kunhimangalam in Kannur, Kerala, said, “It was harrowing as I had to remove my top inner wear when the metal detector beeped.” M ND-ND
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DELHI
Timings
Monday, May 08
RISE 05:35 SET 19:01 RISE 16:49 SET 04:10 Tuesday, May 09
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Mulayam hints he is against SP split Lucknow
Press Trust of India Begusarai
Two teens were on Sunday drowned when they went for a swim in the Burhi Gandak river in Begusarai district. The incident took place at the Sharma ghat in Mehda Shahpur village when four youths had gone to take bath in the river.
Samajwadi Party patron Mulayam Singh on Sunday indicated that he was strongly opposed to a split in the party, while berating son Akhilesh Yadav’s move to ally with the Congress, which he claimed had left no stone unturned to “ruin” him. “Efforts should be made to strengthen the Samajwadi Party,” he said, when asked about Shivpal Yadav’s comments about forming a new front if party chief Akhilesh does not hand over the reins to Mulayam in three months. A feud between uncle Shivpal and nephew Akhilesh has been plaguing the Samajwadi party for the past several months and even affected its performance in the UP Assembly polls. Mulayam on Sunday, however, blamed the defeat on son Akhilesh’s decision to ally with the Congress, which he said had tried its best to “ruin” him. “Alliance with the Congress is responsible for the present poor state of the
Mulayam Singh party. I had advised Akhilesh not to go ahead with it, but he did. The SP is itself responsible for its defeat and not the people of the State,” he said.
‘Cong ruined my life’ “The Congress left no stone unturned to ruin my life. It (Congress) lodged cases against me and Akhilesh forged alliance with it,” Mulayam told reporters. He made the remarks during a visit to Junesa village in Karhalhere in party bastion Mainpuri, where he was to unveil a statue of martyr Dharmendra Yadav. On Shivpal’s comment
Amarinder to visit Golden Temple today
Panjab univ to withdraw plaint against students
Press Trust of India patna
Blames defeat on Akhilesh’s decision to ally with Congress Press Trust of India
Two drown in Burhi Gandak
Five held for bid to leak NEET paper
terming SP MP Ramgopal Yadav as “Shakuni”, Mulayam said:“Whatever he (Shivpal) said is true. Attempts were made to ensure his defeat and money was also spent for it.” “What he (Ramgopal) has done, only Shakuni mama did, so, it’s my request to him to first read the Gita,” Shivpal had said, likening him to ‘Shakuni’, the Mahabharat character who masterminded the feud between Kauravs and the Pandavas. However, senior SP leader Shivpal on Sunday lauded the SP patriarch. “Jahan netaji (Mulayam) khade ho jaate hain, wahi se Samajwadi Party ki shuruwat hoti hai (Samajwadi Party starts from where netaji stands),” Shivpal said on Sunday, two days after announcing that he would constitute a Samajwadi secular front. The SP MLA’s efforts to form a morcha is being widely seen as another attempt by the Shivpal-led faction of Mulayam’s family to gain clout in the party headed by Akhilesh.
The police on Sunday arrested five persons, including two medical students, here for allegedly making an attempt to leak question papers of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) examination that was held across the country. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Manu Maharaj said acting on a tip-off , a police team arrested five persons of an inter-State gang from an area under Patrakar nagar police station for allegedly trying to leak question papers of NEET examination.
Mobiles seized The police also seized mobile phones, various equipment and pick van from the arrested persons. Those arrested are the gang’s kingpin and Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) student Shiv Kumar, Nalanda Medical College and Hospital (NMCH) student Shivam Mandal, law student Avinash Roshan, a private school coordinator Avinash Chandra Dubey and a pick van driver Sanjay Yadav, the SSP said in a release.
They were booked for violence during protesst over fee hike Press Trust of India Chandigarh
Panjab University has decided to withdraw a complaint against some of its students on the basis of which they were booked for violence on the campus during a protest over fee hike on April 11. After a meeting of the senate on Sunday, PU ViceChancellor Arun Kumar Grover announced this decision to students who were demanding withdrawal of the case and a rollback of the fee hike. Mr. Grover told the students that he would write to Governor and UT Chandigarh Administrator V. P. Singh Badnore for the withdrawal of the complaint. The decision was taken during an emergency meeting of the PU senate (decision making body of the varsity) held at the administration block of the University here. On April 11, a protest against fee hike had turned violent after protesting students clashed with police, leading to injuries on both sides.
The V-C assured the senate that no student who has been booked will be disallowed from taking exams. SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT *
Acting on the complaint by PU authorities, the Chandigarh Police had then booked more than 60 students on various charges including rioting and causing damage to public property.
Students’ protest As the senate meeting started, students assembled outside the administration block protesting against the fee hike and the case registered against them. Slogans were also raised against the PU authorities. Entry to the administration block was barricaded while a water canon truck was also deployed by the
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Of laughter and health
Press Trust of India
Chandigarh police. During the senate meeting, former Union minister Pawan Kumar Bansal proposed that the cases against students should be withdrawn keeping in mind their future and peaceful atmosphere on the campus. The proposal was supported by many senators including former PU V-C R. P. Bambha. The Grover assured the senate that no student who has been booked will be disallowed from taking exams. During the meeting, several senators also took up the issue of fee hike and demanded its review.
Six kids die as tractor-trolley overturns Press trust of India
Amritsar
Jaipur
All Congress MPs and MLAs in Punjab will join Chief Minister Amarinder Singh in paying obeisance at the Golden Temple here on Monday. The Chief Minister is scheduled to visit the Sri Harmandar Sahib from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m., before going to Jallianwala Bagh to pay homage to the martyrs.. He will also visit the Durgiana Mandir and then the Sri Ram Tirath Sthal. Capt. Amarinder, who reached Amritsar on Sunday evening after a visit to Tarn Taran, had been planning the Harmandar Sahib visit since taking over the reins of government in the State but had been constrained by work issues and a relapse of his foot injury, with doctors advising him restricted movement, the spokesman said.
Six children, aged between three and 15 years, lost their lives when a tractortrolley turned turtle in Swai Madhopur district on Saturday night. In the tragic incident that occurred in the Rawanjana Dungar police station area, 25 other persons were also injured. The passengers were on their way to Khanpur from Daulatpura village to attend a mass marriage ceremony. However, the tractortrolley they were travelling in turned turtle while taking a sharp turn. The 25 injured patients are being treated at government hospital in Swai Madhopur, investigating officer in the case, Ravindra Singh said. He said that the bodies were handed over to family members after postmortem.
Awareness rally: Members of the Bhopal Laughter Club taking out an awareness rally on the occasion of World Laughter Day in Bhopal on Sunday. A.M. FARUQUI *
Haryana univ to drop 15 regular holidays Press Trust of India Chandigarh
Chaudhary Bansi Lal University in Bhiwani has decided to drop 15 regular holidays, including those on the birth or death anniversaries of eminent persons, from its list from this academic session. A decision to this effect was taken by the Executive Council of the university at
its 11th meeting held on Sunday, a university spokesman said. “This decision would benefit the students,” he said. Under the University Grants Commission (UGC) guidelines classes should be held for at least 90 days in each semester and the Chaudhary Bansi Lal University is following this rule, the spokesman said.
No illegal slaughterhouses will be allowed in MP: Chouhan We should be kind to animals, says Chief Minister Press Trust of India Dhar (MP)
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Sunday said that no illegal slaughterhouses will be allowed to function in the State. “No illegal slaughterhouses will be allowed to function in Madhya Pradesh,” Mr. Chouhan said at a function of the Jain community here. “The tenet of Jainism ‘Jeeyo aur Jeene do’ (live and let live) was praiseworthy,” he said. “Jainism preaches compassion and kindness to an-
Shivraj Singh Chouhan
imals, and advocates non-violence,” the Chief Minister said. “We should imbibe these teachings and be kind to animals,” he said. The Narmada Seva Yatra, being currently organised by
the Madhya Pradesh government, is aimed at protecting and conserving the water body. “We want to conserve all rivers in the State,” he said, adding, rivers should be protected for future generation. Mr. Chouhan said MP government was running schemes for the welfare the girl child. “Our tomorrow depends on the well-being of girls,” he said. The Chief Minister also shed light on the Beti Bachao Andolan and the Ladli Laxmi Yojna of the State government aimed at improving the skewed sex ratio in the state.
Haryana to conduct survey on socio-economic conditions ‘Every house will be allotted a smart house ID’ Press Trust of India Chandigarh
The Haryana government would carry out a special house-to-house survey to know the socio- economic conditions of the people in the State. “A real time-based survey would be conducted to gather socio-economic details of the people. Teams of Saksham and e- Numerator would visit houses to feed their GPS location in their
CM YK
tablets and create smart house IDs online and link each house with the biometric system,” Chief Secretary D. S. Dhesi said. The survey will be carried out between June 15 and August 15. “Address of each house, photo, location, details of owner of the house, electricity connection, water connection, details of electronic devices, bank account numbers, IFSC code and Aadhaar
and personal details such as mobile number, e-mail ID, educational qualification, religion and other details would be gathered,” he said, adding “every house would be allotted a smart house ID”. “The data would help in getting details of land, pension, MGNREGA, loan and LPG. The government would make sure that benefits of 150 services are provided online through this data,” Dhesi said.
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IN BRIEF
Bengal Governor hospitalised, stable now KOLKATA
West Bengal Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi was admitted at a city hospital this morning after he bled from the nose, official sources said. Mr Tripathi, whose condition is stable now, was rushed to a private hospital when he started bleeding from his nose due to high blood pressure, a senior official of the Raj Bhawan said. PTI
Leader of Opposition alleges protocol violated BHUBANESWAR
Leader of the Opposition in Odisha and Congress stalwart Narasingha Mishra on Sunday alleged that the protocol was “deliberately violated” during the swearing-in of Ministers when he had to sit in the fourth row. As per the protocol, the Leader of the Opposition is to be treated at par with the Cabinet Ministers, Mr Mishra said. He claimed that the Cabinet Ministers, Ministers of State and MPs and MLAs sat in the rows in front of him. PTI
Lightning kills three, injures two BERHAMPUR (ODISHA)
Lightning killed three persons and injured two others in separate incidents in Ganjam district, police said on Sunday. A 15-year-old High School girl student of Patapur died after she was struck by lightning on the outskirts of the village last evening. In another incident, a 51-yearold man of Kaindi village died yesterday. A 27-year-old man of Patiguda died and two others were injured when thunderbolt struck them when they were sitting in the verandah of a panchayat office last evening, the police said. PTI
One killed, seven injured in road accident HAJIPUR (BIHAR)
One person was killed and seven others were injured when the auto-rickshaw in which they were travelling overturned in Samastipur district on Sunday, police said. The deceased has been identified as Mohan Paswan (30) of Majlispur village of Vaishali district, the police said. The incident occurred when Mohan Paswan along with his family members was going to Adampur Badiya village when the autorickshaw over-turned near an under construction bridge near Sarari village, they said.
Tripura remained deprived We need Mamata in ight against BJP: CPI(M) due to corruption: Shah Promises implementation of 7th pay panel if BJP is voted to power
Soumya Das Press Trust of India
Kolkata
Agartala
At a time when there is a tussle between the State and Central Committees of the CPI(M) over joining forces with the Congress, Central Committee member Gautam Deb has hinted that the party may join forces with the Trinamool Congress (TMC) to keep the BJP out of power in Bengal. TMC secretary-general Partha Chatterjee, however, brushed aside Mr. Deb’s remarks. “If Mamata Banerjee is honest about fighting the BJP’s communal politics,
BJP national president Amit Shah on Sunday accused the ruling CPI(M) in Tripura of “corruption and malpractices”, saying the State did not witness development despite sufficient funds released by the Centre. “While Tripura received ₹10,000 crore during the UPA-II regime, the Narendra Modi government has released over ₹25,000 crore during the past three years,” he said at a rally in Kumarghat in Unakoti district.
Two-day visit Mr Shah is on a two-day visit to Tripura to strengthen the party base in the Northeastern State. “Tripura remained deprived during the Congressled UPA regime as the Communists had an understanding with the Congress,” he said. Attacking the ruling party leaders for their alleged involvement in the Rose Valley chit fund scam, Mr Shah said, “If a CBI probe is ordered into it, money will be found from the homes of these leaders. Chief Minister Manik Sarkar must order a CBI probe on moral grounds.” Mr Shah also promised
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that the BJP would implement recommendations of the 7th Central Pay Commission for the State government employees if voted to power. “The first cabinet meeting will pass the decision for the welfare of the employees and pensioners,” he said. Talking about the availability of electricity and ambulance at the people’s door step in the BJP-ruled States — Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra — he asked
if every hamlet in the State has electricity. “Do you have ambulance facility at your doorstep? This facility will be available if BJP comes to power,” Mr Shah said. Pledging that the BJP would ensure Tripura’s development if it wins the 2018 State Assembly elections, he urged the people to vote for the party. “I have been touring the entire nation and witnessing development but Tripura
despite being blessed with natural beauty is still lagging. Corruption and nepotism are seen everywhere,” he alleged. Earlier, Mr Shah visited Udaipur in Gomati district and offered prayers at Tripureswari temple. BJP president Biplab Deb, State prabhari (observer) Sunil Deodhar and Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Faggan Singh Kulaste also addressed the rally.
Return the money thus collected to the depositors, orders court Staff Reporter BERHAMPUR
The designated court under the Odisha Protection of Interests of Depositors Act, 2011, (OPID) in Berhampur has ordered confiscation and auction of properties owned by a chit fund firm in Ganjam district. The court passed the order on Saturday. “Special judge justice Pradeep Kumar Patnaik has directed the Ganjam Additional District Magistrate to confiscate and auction 37.553 acres of land and a costly car owned by Katloon Management & Services,” said Public Prosec-
utor Bijay Pradhan. The court wanted the properties to be auctioned and the money collected to be given to the depositors. Through an interim order, the State government had attached landed property and the vehicle of Katloon Company under Section 3 of OPID Act, 2011, and the recent court order makes the interim order absolute, Mr Pradhan said. The finance company had opened its branches in Ganjam district and other parts of Odisha. Its State head office was in Bhubaneswar while its regional office was
at Bhanjanagar. The firm had collected deposits by promising extremely high interest rates. However, later it neither returned the principal nor the promised amount. In 2015, a depositor filed a complaint at Buguda police station of Ganjam district and the police started investigation. It was alleged that the firm had collected over ₹1.33 crore from the depositors.
Cases registered On July 22, 2015, the Crime Branch of the Odisha Police took up the investigation.
Cases had been registered against eight persons related to the firm, including one of its directors Aswini Kumar Nayak and a promoter Kailas Sethi, who are now in Berhampur circle jail under judicial custody. As per the police investigation, the firm owns 27 plots located in different parts of the district. The value of the land holdings is over ₹51 lakh. Now as per the court directive, this land as well as the car of the company would be sold off through public auction. The money generated is to be returned to the duped depositors.
Odisha to check distress migration of workers Sanctions ₹134 crore to develop agriculture, dairy, poultry and allied activities Staff Reporter BERHAMPUR
Army seizes arms, ammo from militant hideout
To check distress migration of labourers, the Odisha government has started grass root level door-to-door survey in several districts of the State. Speaking to newsmen in Berhampur on Sunday, Odisha Building & Other Construction Workers’ Board (OB&OCWB) chairman Subash Singh said the government has already sanctioned ₹134 crore for the project. “National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj (NIRDPR), Hyderabad, has already studied migrant labourers of Bolangir, Nuapada, Bargarh, Kalhandi and Subarnapur
Indian Army seized a cache of arms and ammunition from a militant hideout in Assam’s Karbi Anglong district. According to a release, the Red Horn Division of the Army launched an operation in East Karbi Anglong district late last night following an information. “The operation resulted in recovery of three country-made self-loading rifles, five hand grenades, three SLR cartridges, one ammunition pouch and three combat dresses,” it added. The operation continued till early morning, the release said. PTI
To strengthen party base: BJP national president Amit Shah at the ‘Parivartan Rally’ in Kumarghat in Tripura on Sunday. PTI
‘Auction chit fund irm’s land, car’
PTI
DIPHU (ASSAM)
TMC says it is too early to comment on leader’s remarks
< > Hyderabad-based Rural Development and Panchayati Raj institute has studied migrant labourers of Bolangir, Nuapada, Bargarh, Kalhandi and Subarnapur districts Subash Singh Odisha Building & Other Construction Workers’ Board chairman
districts and has provided suggestions for permanent solution to the problem,” said Mr Singh.
MoU signed On April 19, a MoU was signed between the Odisha government and Tata Steel
Rural Development Society (TSRDS) for the survey to collect detail information about migrant labourers in 11 districts of the State that face the problem. These 11 districts include above mentioned districts of western Odisha, Ganjam, Gajapati, Koraput, Rayagada, Nabarangpur districts of south Odisha and Khurda district of coastal region. As a pilot project, the TSRDS has already completed survey in 15 panchayats each in Bolangir and Nuapada districts and submitted the report to the government, Mr Singh said. The ₹134 crore sanctioned by the State government would be spent on developing agriculture, dairy, poultry, fish cultivation, ve-
getable cultivation and measures to improve finance condition of migrant labourer families.
Help desks planned He added that the government has also decided to set up ‘help desks’ for migrant labourers in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Delhi, which are the usual destinations. They would also serve as special offices to provide all possible support to migrant labourers. Officials of the Odisha government and other States, along with the TSRDS would manage these ‘help desks’. TSRDS would also prepare a data base of the workforce from Odisha that works in the State concerned, said Mr Singh.
then she can talk to us and we can discuss the issue. We want to ensure that the BJP does not get a single seat in Bengal,” Mr. Deb told The Hindu on Sunday. He said the CPI(M) wanted to “unify all the secular democratic forces against the BJP” and the TMC was “necessary” for the purpose. “Currently the main danger to the country and Bengal is the BJP. If such a right wing party gains influence in the State, there will be no democracy and minority rights. We need Mamata Banerjee in our fight [against the BJP],” he
said. However, CPI(M) insiders told The Hindu that Mr. Deb’s remarks had not gone down well with a large number of State Committee members. “Several State Committee members have opposed the comments,” said a State Committee member. The TMC leadership, however, said it was “too early” to comment on Mr. Deb’s remarks. “We don’t see any reason to take his [Mr. Deb’s] remarks seriously. I don’t have any reaction,” Secretary-General Partha Chatterjee said.
Villagers ile complaint against BSF Press Trust of India Tura (Meghalaya)
Residents of a village near Bangladesh border have lodged an FIR against the BSF claiming that Friday’s firing by its personnel to stop “cattle smugglers” was actually a fake encounter. The BSF had said in a statement that their men posted at Kachu Adokgre in West Garo Hills district apprehended cattle smugglers, who attacked them along with local people, and they had to fire, injuring two persons. Belabor villagers, however, contested this version and lodged an FIR demanding action against the BSF personnel involved, Superintendent of Police MGR Kumar said on Sunday.
Cattle smuggling The BSF personnel were trying to pass ordinary villagers as cattle smugglers to impress their superiors, said the FIR lodged on Saturday. Mr Kumar said, “We are looking into all aspects of the case and an investigation is on.” The villagers asked how cattle smuggle could take place during daytime in the presence of security personnel along the border. The FIR claimed that BSF men came in two vehicles at a spot away from their jurisdiction, questioned one resident of Belabor about cattle smuggle and let him go at around 9 am. Then they moved to Kochu Adokgre and found Namseng Ch Sangma, a resident of Belabor village, tending six cattle heads. They accused him of smuggling the animals to Bangladesh, the FIR said.
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Mufti on a ‘Swachhata’ mission He visits villages to create awareness about cleanliness Press Trust of India Guwahati
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pet initiative ‘Swachh Bharat Mission’ has found an unexpected supporter in the principal of a girls’ madarasa in Assam’s Darrang district, whose zeal to convince people about proper sanitation and hygiene earned him the sobriquet ‘Swachhata Maulana’. Mufti Nasihur Rahman, principal of Al-Jamiatul Islamia Mangaldai Banat Madrasa in Mangaldai, has taken an initiative to convey the importance of sanitation and hygiene in public places to ensure a disease-free society. “For the last three years, I have been regularly visiting the villages CM YK
around Mangaldai to impart the importance of cleanliness among people, but we still have a long way to go,” he said. Mr Modi may not be very acceptable among the Muslim community but “we appreciate this particular mission of his and thank him for initiating it”. “Islam is not against hygiene and cleanliness and, in fact, Koran points out that cleanliness is ‘iman’ (purity). We had forgotten it and now want to start a movement that can revolutionise the mindset of the community towards health, hygiene and sanitation,” he said. The Mufti, however, points out that his efforts are not confined to any specific community but the areas near his school are mostly
inhabited by the Muslim community along with tea garden labourers in some villages. Last month, Mufti went to the nearby No 4 Nangli Char, a habitat on one of the islands on the Brahmaputra, where he had to stay overnight and when in the morning he asked the residents to show him a lavatory, the villagers informed that they had always defecated in the open. The Mufti asked them to bring a spade, a few bamboo poles, and some thatch. In a few minutes he had constructed a toilet and that changed the history of sanitation in the village. “The next time when I visited the village, most of the houses had a toilet and open defecation had considerably reduced,” he added. M ND-ND
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Ex-sarpanch named in 100 FIRs detained
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Up in lames
Named in every maoist attack in Dornapal-Jagargunda stretch
Maharashtra may soon get inter-caste marriage law Special Correspondent Pune
Pavan Dahat Raipur
A former sarpanch of Chintagufa village in Sukma district, who has more than 100 cases against him, has been taken into custody. Pudium Panda, a former CPI member, was picked up in the forest near Minapa village, a week ago. According to police sources, he was first interrogated at Chintagufa police station and then taken to Sukma in a secretive way. His wife, who is the current sarpanch of Chintagufa, was also flown to Sukma by a chopper to identify him. Mr. Panda was named in almost every incident of maoist attack on security forces in the Dornapal-Jagargunda stretch in the last eight years, including the Tadmetla attack in which 76 CRPF men were killed in 2010.
‘Never carried weapon’ However, communist leader and former Sukma MLA Manish Kunjam claimed that Mr. Panda never carried any weapon and he was not involved in any violent incident. “They have not disclosed his arrest and we are afraid that he may be booked in
many more cases. He was a sarpanch during Salwa Judum days and was associated with our party. In 2007, a controversial police officer launched a campaign against my party men in Bastar and many of my associates were jailed. Mr. Panda was also named in cases, including that of the Tadmetla massacre. He was forced to leave his village for his and his family’s safety, and he was roaming in the forest to save his life. He was afraid that if the police found him, he would be booked for offences which he never committed,” Mr. Kunjam, who is also the president of Adivasi Mahasabha, told The Hindu.
Mediates release Mr. Panda had reportedly mediated to secure the release of many policemen and government servants, including former Sukma collector Alex Paul Menon in 2012, who were abducted by maoists. Mr. Kunjam denied that Mr. Panda was a maoist commander. “He was not involved in any maoist incident. He never carried a gun. Even when he was arrested, he was riding his bike. He
was connected with former Home Minister Nankiram Kanwar. He used to talk to senior politicians and police officers on phone. How and why would a person talk to senior politicians and police officers if he was a maoist?” A political leader from Sukma, who didn’t want to be named, said it is difficult to say Mr. Panda was not in touch with maoists. “We cannot say that because if you are living in the forest, you are bound to come into contact with maoists.” During a meeting with this reporter in 2014 in south Sukma forest, Mr. Panda had claimed that he was being targeted for his ‘active opposition’ to Salwa Judum.
Believes in development One of his close associates had said that Mr. Panda advocated for roads and electricity in interior villages. He had even managed to bring some development projects in the area, but maoist leader Paparao had damaged the roads and electric polls. When asked about the reports of Mr. Panda’s arrest, P. Sundar Raj, Deputy Inspector General of Dantewada range, said, “Not arrested so far.”
Fadnavis ends Pune garbage stalemate Shoumojit Banerjee Pune
The impasse over the disposal of Pune’s garbage was finally broken on Sunday after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis met with the residents of Uruli Devachi and Phursungi villages and persuaded them to withdraw their agitation. The Chief Minister, who met the villagers in the presence of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MP Supriya Sule, gave them a number of
CM YK
will consider < > We capping the landill site soon, while investing in newer processing plants. Devendra Fadnavis Maharashtra CM
assurances, promising that “a comprehensive and permanent solution to the problem would be ironed out within a month”. “The concerns of the citizens of Uruli Devachi and Phursungi will be accorded
top priority … We will consider capping the landfill site soon, while investing in newer and more efficient waste-processing plants,” Mr. Fadnavis said. The protest erupted three weeks ago, after a fire broke out at the garbage depot at Uruli Devachi. Villagers stopped the Pune Municipal Corporation from dumping garbage in the villages. “We are also mulling on how to recompense afflicted villagers,” Mr. Fadnavis said.
Tragedy averted: A Star City bus caught ire at Wardha Road in Nagpur on Sunday afternoon. Fortunately, all passengers travelling in the bus escaped unhurt. S. SUDARSHAN *
Sena to launch drive to make farmers debt-free Uddhav’s visit to Marathwada sparks speculation of mid-term Assembly polls Staff Reporter Mumbai
Launching the ‘Shiv Sampark Abhiyan’ from Aurangabad, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday announced a campaign called ‘mee karjamukt honar (I will be debt-free)’ for farmers across Maharashtra. Mr. Thackeray’s visit to inspect the party’s organisational condition in the Marathwada region of the State has raised eyebrows in political circles, as it is seen as Sena’s preparations for mid-term Assembly polls. “We demand a farm loan waiver for farmers of Maharashtra. We have always said this, and continue on our position. We are launching our campaign to make farmers
Campaign mode: Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray after meeting with farmers in Aurangabad on Sunday. YOGESH LONDHE *
debt-free. The concept and execution will be disclosed in a party meeting in Mumbai within a few days,” said Mr Thackeray.
When asked whether his visit and the organisational reshuffle were signs of possible mid-term polls in Maharashtra, Mr. Thackeray said
he always prefer to keep his “army of Shiv Sainiks” ready. “Organisation building is a continuous exercise,” he said. During his visit, Mr. Thackeray held meetings with leaders from Marathwada, a region where the party is dominant. The Sena chief reportedly sought names of new faces from the region who are leading from the front, giving rise to the speculations. Commenting on the ongoing Tur procurement crisis in the State, Mr. Thackeray asked the government to change the rules, if necessary, to ensure all Tur is purchased. “The CM had said that the last grain of Tur would be purchased. It is now time to live up to that promise,” he said.
The Maharashtra government is planning to introduce an inter-caste marriage legislation to prevent heinous crimes like ‘honour killings’, State Minister for Social Justice Rajkumar Badole said here on Sunday. “Many couples and families have had to endure trauma and a litany of atrocities for having challenged regressive social norms, despite the government providing financial incentives to encourage intercaste marriages. This law is to ensure their security and to protect their children,” Mr. Badole said during a lecture at the Balgandharva Rangmandir. The talk was organised as part of the ongoing celebrations of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar’s 126th birth anniversary. The plan to introduce the law was mooted in March, with Mr. Badole chairing a nine-member committee constituted to frame the legislation. The law will give inter-caste couples priority during employment, apart from financial aid from the government. “Dr. Ambedkar desired a Maharashtra free of social inequality and caste divide. Despite him giving us the Constitution, the country has never given him his due. The Hindu Code Bill, for which he fought tenaciously, was dropped by the Indian Parliament of the 1950s, and words like freedom, equality and fraternity continue to remain tokenisms,” Mr. Badole said. The legislation is planned along the lines of the revolutionary law enacted by Shahu Maharaj, the reformer and ruler Kolhapur, in 1919.
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IN BRIEF
Tension in Telangana town following communal clash Police pelted with stones in Utnoor; 2 oicers injured; prohibitory orders in place
Two CRPF men trampled to death by wild elephant They were on duty at a sentry post near Bannerghatta forests Special Correspondent Bengaluru
Leopard entangled in steel net dies in Kerala KOLLAM
A nine-year-old wild leopard that strayed into human habitat close to forest areas at Edapalayam got entangled in a steel net and died following suspected fatigue as it tried in vain to free itself. The net was spread by farmers to keep crop-raiding wild boars at bay.
Telangana man kills wife for giving birth to girl KHAMMAM
A 21-year-old woman was allegedly strangled to death by her husband at the Vandanam village in Khammam district of Telangana shortly after Saturday midnight for giving birth to a baby girl. The deceased was identified as Umeena Begum, wife of Sheik, 25, a labourer.
near the old bus stand, indulging in arson. They hurled stones at policemen who tried to control the situation. The stone-throwing continued till afternoon.
S. Harpal Singh UTNOOR
Utnoor town, headquarters of the tribal belt in Adilabad and neighbouring districts, was tense on Sunday following pitched battles between the police and a group that indulged in stone-throwing. What started as a communal issue on Saturday turned into a police-versusmob fight by Sunday afternoon, resulting in injuries to Adilabad Superintendent of Police M. Sreenivas and DSP A. Laxminarayana.
Restoring order: Police removing burnt debris from the road at Utnoor in Adilabad district on Sunday. S. HARPAL SINGH *
‘Offensive’ audio clip It all started with an audio clip — which allegedly offended a community — circulated in Utnoor on Saturday. A case was registered against the youth responsible for circulating the audio clip the same day but the police did
not arrest him. At night, a large group staged a protest outside the police station, demanding the immediate arrest of the accused. While retreating, it damaged some property of businessmen and vendors of an-
Bellandur lake catches ire again Grass & weeds on the edge might have triggered it: oicials
other community. On Sunday morning, the latter retaliated by damaging property. The police used tear gas shells to disperse the mob. The youths who had complained of sacrilege, however, remained on the roads
Meeting with elders Karimnagar Range Deputy Inspector-General of Police Ravi Verma, Adilabad Collector Buddha Prakash M. Jyoti and Joint Collector K. Krishna Reddy visited the troubled spot. The DIG and other officials met the elders of the two communities to restore peace. Mr. Verma told the media that five cases had been booked against the accused. The police continued to enforce prohibitory orders. The DIG ruled out the need for enforcing curfew as the situation was under control.
In yet another instance of man-animal conflict on the city’s fringes, two personnel of the Central Reserve Police Force, manning a sentry post of the Dog Breeding and Training School at Tharalu village, were killed by a wild elephant on Sunday. The elephant, Forest Department officials believe, was on its way to Bannerghatta forests from Savandurga. The school is a few metres from the forests. Around 6.30 a.m., the elephant attacked the sentry post manned by four personnel, including the victims — Assistant Sub-Inspector H. Dakshina Murthy (55), hailing from Vellore in Tamil Nadu, and constable Kuttappa Lamani (35), hailing from Haveri. Two others had a miraculous escape. The elephant crossed a
Monumental tragedy: A damaged bike near the place where the two personnel were killed. SAMPATH KUMAR G.P. *
six-feet trench cut around the school. It caught Murthy, who was using the toilet near the trench, by surprise.
Killed instantly As the elephant threw him to the ground, it charged at the other three, damaging a bike and the camp in the
process. Kuttappa who was near the camp rushed to help a bleeding Murthy when the elephant trampled both, killing them instantaneously. The forest department has stepped up patrolling and formed three special teams to push the elephant into the forest.
Giving free hugs for freedom Two-month-old bear cub warms up to people in Tirupati zoo after it was rescued from a tamer
Staff Reporter Bengaluru
B. Venkat Sandeep
Days after the National Green Tribunal rapped Bengaluru’s civic agencies for their neglect of the Bellandur lake, a patch of the lake caught fire on Sunday afternoon. The lake is being weeded and cleaned up after the tribunal issued an order last month.
TIRUPATI
Thick smoke The fire started on the Belur Nagasandra side. “At first, it was a small fire with a bit of smoke. Then the smoke became thick and started billowing. That was when we called the Fire Services and BBMP officials,” said Seema Sharma K., a resident of Bellandur. The fire was doused after
Burning issue: Smoke billowing from Bellandur lake in Bengaluru on Sunday. SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT *
two-and-a-half hours, she said. Sridhar Pabbisetty of Namma Bengaluru Foundation, petitioner before the NGT, said considering the high concentration of heavy
IS springs surprise on Kerala youth
metals in the lake, a comprehensive study into the nature of the fire was needed. Officials claimed that grass and weeds on the edge of the lake might have triggered the fire.
The newest inmate of Sri Venkateswara Zoological Park in Tirupati loves human company. With thick hair, deep-set eyes and a frisky attitude, ‘Madhuri,’ a rescued bear cub has become everyone’s favourite. Now in the isolation ward, the two-month-old female sloth bear cub was seized from a “bear tamer” near Kuppam, in Andhra Pradesh. Unlike the familiar story of wild animals rescued from human habitations because they strayed into dwellings, the cub had a serendipitous rescue by a forest department official. Chancing upon the cap-
tive bear, the official registered a case against the tamer and sent the animal to the park. “The cub is kept in isolation to provide it medical care. It is being monitored for any disease, as it had been in contact with people. Post-quarantine, the cub will be shifted to an enclosure or relocated, based on what the authorities and the Chief Wildlife Warden think fit,” said SVZP Curator Y. Srinivasulu Reddy.
Freedom from bondage While rescuing wild animals and caring for them in the zoo is not unusual – Mr. Reddy points to other sloth bears and leopards that have found a new home – rarely
has such a young animal been rescued from someone who was using it as an exhibit, which is prohibited. In the first couple of days of its arrival, zoo doctor and veterinary assistant surgeon S.P. Arun saw that the cub had been weakened by diarrhoea. “Since then, it has responded well to treatment and is currently in good health. We are feeding it milk and glucose and helping it to tackle the summer heat. It has also been tagged for future monitoring,” he told The Hindu. The cub took an instant liking to its enthusiastic caretakers, Dr. Arun said, probably because of its enforced human companionship. “We do not know when it
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Selie with Surabhi
KASARAGOD
The Kerala Police and the special team investigating a case relating to the mysterious disappearance of 21 persons, suspected to have joined the Islamic State, have stepped up vigil in the light of an IS loyalist adding a local youth in their social media group. The WhatsApp message in Malayalam, recently sent to Haris Masthan, a resident of Anangoor here, purportedly by one Rashid Abdulla, presumably from Afganistan, said the youth had been added in the group, ‘Message to Kerala,’ without seeking his consent. When Mr. Masthan questioned the motive of the IS loyalist, he was greeted with a voice message identified as that of Rashid Abdulla from Thrikaripur, who was
Performing animals At its refuge, the cub is being closely monitored by two caretakers who work shifts. Cubs like Madhuri are often kept captive for years, and used as roadside performing animals in many States. In some cases, nomadic communities parade ‘dancing bears’ to make a living, and conservation efforts for these animals have focused on improving the economic conditions of the trappers.
Shaggy bear: The cub at the zoo in Tirupati. *
K.V. POORNACHANDRA KUMAR
BJP meet fails to resolve intra-party rift Feud in Karnataka unit far from over
Adds him to WhatsApp group Staff Reporter
was separated from its mother and how long it was among these people. The cub is so used to human presence that it did not sleep the first day without holding my hand and had to be bottle fed,” he said.
reported by a section of the media to have been killed in the continuing U.S.-led attack on the terror group. Mr. Masthan swiftly informed Circle Inspector C.A. Abdul Rahim of the development.
Afghanistan connection Mr. Rahim, when contacted by The Hindu, confirmed to have received a copy of the message, which has been passed on to the special squad probing the case. However, Mr. Rahim was not ready to reveal the identity of the investigating team. The official added that he did not insitiate any probe at the local level as the entire probe was being handled by the special team. It is believed that the message originated from Afghanistan at the behest of the group administrator identified as Abu Isa.
Laiqh A. Khan MYSURU
Accolades for talent: Manaveeyam Theruvorakkoottam, a cultural collective, honoured the national award winner for best actress, Surabhi Lakshmi, on Sunday. The actress is seen with her fans in Thiruvananthapuram. S. GOPAKUMAR *
Even as the two-day Bharatiya Janata Party State executive meet concluded in Mysuru on Sunday, the intra-party feud between senior leaders B.S. Yeddyurappa and K.S. Eshwarappa appeared to be far from over. Though the party leaders tried to play down the rift as “small differences akin to squabbles in a family,” former Minister and party’s State general secretary Shobha Karandlaje admitted that the spat between the two leaders had left party workers “disappointed”. The differences between the two leaders over convening of the Sangolli Rayanna Brigade by Mr. Eshwarappa to mobilise Dalits and the Backward Classes came into the open in the
last week of April and cast its shadow on the executive meet. A rapprochement between the two senior leaders remained elusive. However, Ms. Karandlaje expressed hope that the party’s Central leadership will soon put a “full stop” to the feud with the party’s national general secretary incharge of Karnataka Muralidhar Rao, who is participating in the meet, making efforts in the direction. Mr. Eshwarappa, who was cold-shouldered by Mr. Yeddyurappa at the meet, appeared to be finding himself increasingly isolated. While Mr. Eshwarappa is adamant on continuing with the meetings of the brigade, which he claims enjoys the blessings of party’s national president Amit Shah, leaders like Ms. Karandlaje disagree.
Sunkesula barrage goes dry after four decades All encroachments in Idukki Kurnool faces acute drinking water scarcity as inlow from Tungabhadra comes to a standstill water will last only for about a fortnight. Lack of rainfall and severe drought in Kurnool district, lack of inflows from Tungabhadra river and scanty rainfall in Karnataka led to the drying up of Sunkesula barrage. The only alternative source is Gajuladinne project, having a capacity of 4.50 tmcft at Gonegandla, but water stored in it is 1.22 tmcft at present.
Special Correspondent Kurnool
The Sunkesula barrage across Tungabhadra river, about 25 km from Kurnool, has gone dry after a gap of four decades, portraying the severity of the drought and resulting in acute drinking water scarcity in the city. The barrage, constructed with a storage capacity of 1.20 tmcft, had a meagre storage of 0.030 tmcft on Sunday. A constant flow of about 70 cusecs of water from the Tungabhadra to the Sunkesula barrage is needed to cater to the drinking water needs of the nearly six lakh people in the Kurnool Municipal Corporation limits.
Meagre supply The inflow from Tungabhadra has come to a standstill and people of villages along the river are CM YK
Dwindling resource: The Sunkesula barrage with traces of water on Sunday. U. SUBRAMANYAM *
struggling to fetch a pail of water by digging pits in the riverbed. Most areas in Kurnool city are being supplied water once in four days to a week, and areas under Kallur in Panyam mandal, forming part of the municipal corporation, are getting water once
a fortnight, that too for about an hour. The water being supplied is muddy and unfit for even a bath, leave alone drinking purposes, says Narayana, a resident of Kallur. The municipal officials are supplying water from a summer storage tank, but the available
Second tank Water available in the Gajuladinne Project and the Sunkesula barrage were released at will to cater to the drinking water needs of Anantapur, meting out a raw deal to Kurnool, according to CPI(M) district secretary K. Prabhakar Reddy. If water drawal is permitted from the Gajuladinne Project, it can be supplied in
Kurnool city once in four days, he said. There is an overwhelming demand for a second summer storage tank in Kurnool. The government can sanction an annual allotment of ₹100 crore for two years under the Amruth scheme to construct the summer storage tank, Mr. Reddy said. The Muchumarri lift irrigation scheme facilitated drawal of water from low levels in Srisailam reservoir for drinking water purposes, but its canals were incomplete, he added. The government had not kept its promise to supply water from the lift irrigation scheme to Kurnool, he asserted. If alternative sources were not tapped, drinking water scarcity in Kurnool would persist until the onset of monsoon, he said.
will be evicted, says Pinarayi Law to conserve ecologically fragile, sensitive zone soon Special Correspondent THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has reiterated the government’s commitment to evict large-scale encroachments in Idukki and frame legislation for ecological conservation of Munnar. Briefing reporters on the day-long consultations the government had with environmental activists, heads of religious institutions and community organisations, media persons, and leaders of political parties here on Sunday to elicit their views on the course of action, Mr. Vijayan said the government would go ahead with the eviction of large-scale encroachments in an uncompromising manner. A law would be framed to con-
Seeking views: Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan with his cabinet colleagues and leader of the Opposition, Ramesh Chennithala, at a meeting in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday. S. GOPAKUMAR *
serve the biodiversity of the ecologically fragile and sensitive zone.
Action against violators Action would be initiated against those who have diverted farm land for commercial purposes, he said.
Proposals had been placed for conserving the water sources and flora and fauna in Munnar. Revenue Minister E. Chandrasekharan, Forest Minister K. Raju and Law Minister A.K. Balan attended the meeting. M ND-ND
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IN BRIEF
Artist plans to create longest sand Buddha
Odisha to deploy six boat ambulances in cut-of areas Staff Reporter
Noted sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik is all set to create the world’s longest sand Buddha in Sri Lanka. Mr. Pattnaik said that he has been invited by the High Commission of India in Colombo to participate in the 14th International Vesak Day Celebrations organised by the Government of Sri Lanka. “We will create a 50-footlong sand Buddha,” said Mr. Pattnaik. PTI
BHUBANESWAR
The Odisha government will soon deploy six boat ambulances in four districts where a sizeable population is surrounded by large water bodies such as rivers and dams. The move follows the launching of a mobile health unit, which will provide better healthcare facilities to over 20,000 villagers in 151 villages located across the Balimela reservoir in Malkangiri district, last week.
LAKHIMPUR KHERI (UP)
Two persons were killed while over half-a-dozen others were injured when a bus carrying a marriage party rammed a tractor-trolley near Jamhaura village. The deceased were identified as 45-year-old Rajendra and Ramjit, 36, police said. The errant tractor driver fled the spot after the accident. PTI
Two kids, woman die in fire incidents in Rajasthan JAIPUR
Three persons, including two children, were killed in two fire related incidents in Udaipur, police said on Sunday. Six-year-old Ramesh and Leela (3) were charred to death when their thatched roof hut caught fire from an earthen stove (chulha) in Bakeria area on Saturday, In a separate incident in Hiranmagri, Ritu Jain (27) was killed after her car suddenly caught fire. She was returning home after attending a marriage ceremony, police said. PTI
One held, seven stolen bikes recovered in Punjab PHAGWARA
The Punjab Police on Sunday arrested one person for stealing and trading stolen property. Seven stolen motorcycles were also recovered from him. PTI
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In readiness
Will provide healthcare access to villages that are inaccessible by road
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Two killed in bus-tractor collision in U.P.
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boat ambulances < > Six have been sanctioned from the State budget. They will be deployed in Koraput, Malkangiri, Kalahandi and Kendrapara districts Naveen Patnaik Odisha Chief Minister
Floating hospitals: The boats will be part of the 108 ambulance service. LINGARAJ PANDA *
‘Many facing problems’ “Six boat ambulances have been sanctioned from the State budget. They will be deployed in Koraput, Malkangiri, Kalahandi and Kendrapara districts,” Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said on Saturday. Mr. Patnaik was speaking on the sidelines of a ceremony to sign an MoU with Public Health Foundation of India and Zikitza Health Care Limited to improve healthcare delivery system. The government said that a sizeable population in the
four districts has been facing problems in availing 108 ambulance services due to intervening large water bodies. The boats will be part of the 108 ambulance services. IIT Chennai is providing technical support to this project. Although the locations for deployment has not been finalised, an ambulance will be stationed at Balimela reservoir to supplement the mobile health unit. The Batighar panchayat in Mahakalpada block of
Kendrapara is surrounded by the Mahanadi and saltwater creeks. An estimated 12,000 people do not have any road connection.
Encircled by water As many as 16 villages in Thuamul Rampur block of Kalahandi district are located inside the Indravati reservoir. Inhabitants, comprising mostly scheduled caste and scheduled tribe communities, have to cross the reservoir for the most basic needs. Similarly, many villages in
Koraput district are encircled by water following construction of dams. In Odisha, the 108 ambulance service was launched on March 5, 2013, with a fleet of 420 ambulances to cover the entire State in a phased manner.
Improving service To improve the response time, Odisha sanctioned an additional 92 Basic Life Support ambulances. The State government also approved a proposal to upgrade 28 existing basic life support ambulances to advanced life support ambulances for their deployment in accident prone areas of the national highways and State highways.
NDMC rejects applications for eatery licence in CP Authority treads cautiously in the wake of two incidents of roof collapse Press Trust of India New Delhi
Treading cautiously after two incidents of roof collapse in Connaught Place, the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has rejected 25 applications for grant or renewal of licences to run restaurants, cafes and other eateries in the popular commercial centre. A senior NDMC official said that out of the over 100 applications received in the
past two months for grant or renewal of licences, 25 were rejected.
Getting strict “Earlier, buildings that did not have fire or structural stability certificates were served notices and several reminders were sent to complete the required documentation while they continued to operate. But now it has been decided that no provisional licences will be
issued and if no certificates are submitted, the licence will not be granted or renewed,” an official told PTI.
Stability concerns The roof of a building in Cblock collapsed on February 2, while another roof of a one-storey building housing a popular restrobar in Lblock collapsed on February 11. The incidents triggered concerns about the structural stability of the
buildings. The NDMC had formed a six-member panel to inspect the collapse sites and ascertain the reason behind the tragedy and conduct a safety audit of the buildings in the area. While the NDMC has sealed 21 rooftop restaurants and bars for flouting norms, the iconic Regal Cinema had to close down as it could not procure a structural stability certificate.
New beginnings: Buddhist monks clean a statue of Lord Buddha in Bhopal on Sunday. Buddha Purnima, which marks Gautama Buddha's birth, will be observed on May 10 this year. A. M. FARUQUI *
Where’s the rule book on stray dogs & monkeys, HC asks govt. Court asks authorities what steps are taken to tackle menace Press Trust of India New Delhi
The Delhi High Court has asked city authorities to submit the rule book, if any, that is followed in order to deal with the problems posed by monkeys and dogs entering residential and office areas. A Bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice Anu Malhotra also asked them about the rules followed by western countries on this issue. “There are monkeys all over Delhi, troubling people. What practice and rules do you follow regarding them? Monkeys are not sterilised. Are they? I remember cows
were removed from Delhi roads after an order of this court,” Justice Mittal said.
‘Shift stray dogs’ The court was hearing an appeal filed by a resident of Malviya Nagar seeking directions to the Delhi government and the municipal corporations to shift stray dogs from the parking area of his society to some other place. While the hearing was going on, several other lawyers shared stories of their encounters with stray canines and one of them told the Bench that he was bitten by a dog on HC premises. The court has asked the
authorities to place the rule book before it by July 12. The Bench also asked if there is any rule by which people can be stopped from feeding stray dogs. It also questioned the civic bodies as to why they leave dogs at the same place after sterilisation. The petitioner had submitted that many locals fed stray dogs, due to which the animals entered the parking area, terrace and stairs of the building where he resided. He said the stray dogs keep roaming around, creating “terror and biting people”.
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THE HINDU
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MONDAY, MAY 8, 2017
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IN BRIEF
Glut ruins farmers trapped in ‘cobweb phenomenon’ When prices of a commodity increase during a season of scarcity, more of it is cultivated leading to a problem of plenty Special Correspondent CHENNAI
CM promises jobs for children of slain soldier TARN TARAN
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Sunday promised jobs for the son and daughter of JCO Paramjeet Singh, killed by Pakistani forces on the LoC recently. He also visited the soldier’s home at Vein Poin village. PTI
PM’s stance on triple talaq communal: Yechury KOCHI
Describing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s stand on triple talaq as “communal campaign”, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury on Sunday questioned his “silence” on impediments to widow remarriage in other religions. PTI
BJP legislator pulls up woman IPS officer in U.P. GORAKHPUR (U.P.)
A BJP MLA in Gorakhpur pulled up IPS officer Charu Nigam publicly on Sunday, leaving her teary-eyed. The police said MLA Radha Mohan Das Aggarwal was angry as the officer had removed some people, protesting against a liquor shop. PTI
If it is tomatoes in Karnataka, it is red chillies in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, and tur and grapes in Maharashtra. An abundance of the produce has led to a crash in prices, dashing the hopes of farmers. While farmers in Kolar, Karnataka, dumped tomatoes on the road after the prices collapsed to a new low of ₹2 per kg last week from ₹10 to ₹15 a month ago, violent protests broke out in parts of Telangana after a good yield of the commodity in the two Telugu-speaking States brought down the prices from a high of ₹10,000 per quintal last year to a measly ₹2,500 this year. In Maharashtra, the demand for tur, which rode a wave of high prices last year, plummeted after its production went up from 4.44 lakh tonnes in 2015-16 to 20.35 lakh tonnes in 2016-17. So was the case of grapes after a crash in their prices plunged the vineyard owners across the State into despair. While most farmers complain about the poor remu-
It’s a murder, says family of Dalit student Plaint iled against 3 IISER students Staff Reporter Kolkata
The family members of a Dalit student who allegedly committed suicide at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Kolkata, a Central government institute, have lodged a police complaint against three students of the institute accusing them of murder.
No arrests yet No arrests have been made in the case so far. The body of Sagar Mondal (19), a second-year student of IISER in Mohanpur in Nadia district, was found hanging inside an unused bathroom in the hostel on Monday afternoon. Mondal was a resident of Fatehpur village in the Haringhata police station area of Nadia and belongs to a financially backward family. The Superintendent of
Police of Nadia, Sheesh Ram Jhajharia, said an investigation had been initiated.
‘Probe is on’ “I cannot say anything more on the case till the postmortem report arrives,” he said. The complaint was lodged earlier in the week. According to the students, Mondal was supposed to appear for an exam on Monday. Tense before exam “He was extremely tense as he feared that his scholarship might be stopped if he fails in the exam,” said an IISER student. “When he did not attend the examination on Monday, we started looking for him and finally found him hanging inside an unused bathroom on the hostel’s second floor,” the student said.
neration for their produce in comparison to the prices that prevailed in the previous season, agricultural economists have traced the reasons for the glut and the resultant price crash to the “cobweb phenomenon.” After the prices of a particular agricultural commodity shoot through the roof during a season of scarcity, farmers resort to boosting the production on the premise of the pre-existing demand and prices, leading to a problem of plenty, reasoned Dr. R.S. Deshpande, former Director of the Institute of Social and Economic Change (ISEC), Bengaluru, explaining the cobweb phenomenon. Most of the agricultural products that have now suffered a price crash due to their abundance had yielded a rich dividend in the previous season.
Chilli woes A long duration crop, consuming up to eight months for harvesting, red chilli cultivation was expanded in both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh this year after the commodity commanded a
Dashed hopes: Crash in the prices of grapes has pushed the farmers of Maharashtra into deep despair. SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT *
good price last year. However, in the absence of minimum support price (MSP) for the crop, categorised as commercial, the market dynamics of demand-supply kept the price low from the beginning of arrivals in the market this season from April first week. “As the top quality red chilli yielded a price of even ₹13,000 per quintal last year, the farming community had hopes of good
Few takers for grapes The suicide of 36-year-old Manik Randive and 25-yearold Chetan Vasal, both from Nashik, has been attributed to the poor price their grapes fetched. Despite a robust grape production, there were few
339 such companies found to have been used for diverting ₹2,900-cr. loan funds The sources said it was likely that the shell companies had been used to abet financial crimes by other offenders too. This will be probed by other agencies.
Press Trust of India NEW DELHI
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has unearthed multiple complex webs involving 339 shell companies, allegedly used to divert funds to the tune of ₹2,900 crore, as part of its probe into such cases over the last three years. CBI sources said the shell companies were being used by the suspects to divert loan funds meant for specified purposes, creating fake invoices, and ‘round-tripping’ of funds to evade taxes and generate black money. Round-tripping is sending money to tax havens abroad in the guise of payments for fake imports through shell companies and bringing back that money, showing it as “foreign investment.“ The findings of the CBI are just a tip of the iceberg as these are only those cases where the agency has been able to find ‘legally tenable’ evidence of the money trail,
Money trail: CBI sources say illegal funds are irst sent to tax havens abroad and later brought back as foreign investment.
cheating and diversion of funds to cheat the banks, said the sources not willing to be named. The murky activities have been exposed during the CBI probe into various loan fraud cases involving 28 public sector banks and a private bank, the sources said. The agency is also probing about 200 bank fraud cases involving funds of at least ₹30,000 crore, they said. The CBI is prosecuting these companies for corruption and scheduled offences
Two jawans, two civilians drown in J&K
Feed on plastic bags and other inorganic materials
Press Trust of India
associated with it. In addition, it will also refer these cases to other investigating agencies for action under various laws like the Companies Act, Prevention of Money Laundering Act, Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, Income Tax Act etc, the sources said. The agency has not only “exposed” these shell companies but also gathered enough material which would “plug” the possibility of them being used for any further operation, they said.
‘A tough task’ The companies are spread across the country as also the ‘tax-haven’ countries facilitating transfer of black money, which makes the investigation even more difficult, they said. Some important cases which have been probed by the CBI include the one against Century Communication Group, which used to run Mahua Channel. According to the figures mentioned in the agency’s charge sheets and FIRs, the group allegedly committed fraud to the tune of ₹3,000 crore. It used over 98 shell companies to allegedly divert bank loans for setting up digital studios in Noida, Mumbai, Kolkata and other locations, the CBI had said.
Dent in tur prices Tur dal, which hit the headlines last year with its skyrocketing prices, has suffered a dent in its demand this year after large scale production. In Maharashtra, production of tur went up from 4.4 lakh tonnes last year to 20.35 lakh tonnes during 2016-17, bringing down the prices by a huge margin. The total purchase by the
government through its agencies at an MSP of ₹5,050 per quintal was only around 4 lakh tonnes while another 5 lakh tonnes had been sold at rates lesser than the MSP through the Agriculture Produce Market Committees. Several lakh tonnes remain unsold. But, even during the season of scarcity, rarely do farmers benefit. For instance, even though a consumer paid almost ₹220 for a kg of tur dal last year, the farm gate price was just ₹45 to ₹50, said Dr. Deshpande. “Does it take ₹170 to convert whole tur to edible tur dal”, he wondered. Echoing Dr. Deshpande’s views on the cobweb phenomenon, Mr. Srinivas, a progressive farmer from T. Narsipura near Mysuru, said he gave up tomato cultivation this year as many farmers began growing the vegetable on a large scale in the region after it realised a good price. (With inputs from Laiqh A Khan in Mysuru, B Chandrashekar in Hyderabad, Shoumojit Banerjee in Pune and Alok Deshpande in Mumbai)
Tail of light hits another aircraft Pilots de-rostered for probe by DGCA Special Correspondent MUMBAI
The tail of a Patna-bound Jet Airways aircraft struck the wing tip of another headed for Srinagar on Sunday at the Delhi airport, leaving both the damaged aircraft grounded. The pilots have been derostered for a probe by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation. DGCA officials said both aircraft belonged to Jet Airways. While one was 9W-730 scheduled for a 2.45 p.m. flight to Patna, the other was flight 9W-603 which had a scheduled departure of 2.50 p.m. to Srinagar. At 2.40 p.m. both the aircraft were given the same taxi clearance by the Air Traffic Control (ATC) that allowed them to start moving. The Srinagar flight was, however, ahead in line, and
the pilot of the Patna flight requested a change in taxiing position and this was granted by the ATC. But as the aircraft moved ahead, passing the one ahead, it struck the wing tip of the Srinagar flight, breaking it off. As per DGCA rules, given the structural damage suffered, both the aircraft were grounded and passengers taken back to the terminal as the airline made alternative arrangements for their travel.
‘Pilot not cautious’ “The incident indicates that the pilot of the Patna flight was not cautious enough in maintaining separation. We have initiated a probe,” a DGCA official said. Delhi Police DCP (airport) Sanjay Bhatia said no passenger was injured in the incident.
Jammu
Two Army jawans and two civilians drowned in rivers in Reasi and Udhampur districts of Jammu and Kashmir, the police said on Sunday. The two soldiers, Sepoy Vinod and Havaldar Anshul, who had gone to take bath in the Tawi river, drowned in Kawa hamlet of Udhampur district on Saturday evening, a police officer said. In another incident, Bahar Din and Mohmmad Irfan drowned while crossing a river in Reasi district.
Press Trust of India Noida
CM YK
grapes not only soured the expectations of the vineyard owners in Maharashtra, but also claimed the lives of at least two farmers.
CBI busts web of shell irms
Famished cows left to die on streets by owners As Atul Yadav sets up his food cart in the sweltering morning heat, flies are not the only guests feasting on garbage dumped on the side of a road in Noida’s Barola village. Cows lumber through the dirt, trying to bite through polythene covers hoping to munch on rotten vegetables or refuse. In the process, many ingest the entire package — plastic bags, rotten food and garbage. Veterinarians say that over time, there is a huge build-up of plastic in their stomachs, along with other indigestible inorganic materials. The result? A drastic reduction in their milk production ability and, in many cases, death. While self-styled cow protection groups, calling themselves “Gau rakshaks,” have indulged in vigilantism under the garb of protection of cattle, there has been little effort to save the animals from a real threat — urban garbage, open dumps and apathy of cow owners. “After a post-mortem I did on a cow that we had admitted, we found almost 100 kg of plastic in its system. People disposing of garbage, put vegetable peels, dirt, etc., in a plastic cover and then throw it out,” said Vineet Arora, the treatment head at the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) in Noida, a suburb of New Delhi.
returns this year too”, a senior Telangana Agriculture Department official told The Hindu. But, it was not to be. The Centre has, however, announced a market intervention plan to procure 33,700 tonnes out of the 7 lakh tonnes produced in Telangana with a support price of ₹5,000 per quintal and assistance of another ₹1,250 per quintal for other expenses. The crash in the prices of
takers as the prices had collapsed. According to Shriram Gadhave, president, Vegetable Growers’ Association of India, wine manufacturers are contending their stocks are full. The average input cost per acre of grape was ₹3 lakh. Yet farmers were selling their produce at barely ₹2 lakh, he said. According to him, in April last year, more than 95% of the grape harvest was plucked by wholesalers and wine-makers from farmers’ gardens. Farmers even received a decent rate of ₹4042 per kg. This year, barely 75% of the picking had been completed while the average rate was a paltry ₹8 a kg.
Abandoned on roads: Cows foraging through garbage for food in Noida. PTI *
Atul, the vendor, said apathy and poverty had ensured that these bovines were doomed to a dismal life. “We see this happen every day, and no one even bothers to clean the mess or take care of the cows.”
Free food Most of the cows are owned by dairy farmers who let their animals loose in the city streets to look for free food instead of feeding them. “The ones that ingest plastic are not able to eat proper food after that. The plastic in a cow’s system affects the milk,” SPCA official Arora said. As their milk producing capacity declines, they are abandoned by their owners who have no further use for them. Rescuers do not have the
exact number of deaths caused by consumption of plastic and other toxic material, as most go unreported. “Many owners do not admit their animals until it is too late or they simply abandon them because it is easier,” says Arvind Shukla, a veterinary surgeon. Gaushalas in and around Noida have been taking in cattle maimed in accidents or those that have fallen ill due to diseases. “Cows that don’t get healthy food and eat plastic are not able to give milk. They die quickly as they are undernourished and vulnerable to diseases which is why people abandon them on the roads,” Monu, a caretaker at the Shri Radha Krishan Mandir Goshala, said. M ND-ND
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8 EDITORIAL
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Turkish delight turned sour Opening a new page in India-Turkey relations clearly needs to wait for better times
This time with feeling The ordinance enabling the RBI to act on bad loans must be accompanied by wider reform
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he Centre has empowered the Reserve Bank of India to get banks to take tougher steps, including insolvency and bankruptcy proceedings against defaulters, to address the growing volume of bad loans on their books. An ordinance to amend the Banking Regulation Act of 1949 has been issued to quell doubts whether the existing provisions allowed the RBI to direct banks to deal with speciic stressed assets. The RBI has also been vested with the power to form oversight committees wherever it deems it. Currently such committees exist only for loans brought into a scheme for sustainable structuring of stressed assets, also known as S4A. Now the RBI can bring in such panels to monitor the alphabet soup of other mechanisms for tackling non-performing assets (NPAs) such as SDR (strategic debt restructuring) through the JLFs, or joint lenders’ forums. The hope is that this will let bankers take decisive calls on loan accounts that have turned bad, as an independent oversight committee’s approval could keep investigative agencies of their backs. Bankers may not always have the sectoral expertise to monetise or leverage assets underlying bad loans in the best possible way. Yet, their paralysis on the NPA front, with its collateral impact being the worst bank credit growth recorded in decades, is driven by the fear that they could get themselves implicated for poor lending and monitoring decisions. The success of this latest salvo against bad loans will depend on the ine print on how the ultimate decision — whether to take a haircut on a loan and restructure it or invoke bankruptcy clauses — is arrived at. Perhaps of equal signiicance is the reshule of certain public sector bank oicials announced on Friday. This is a clear signal that the NDA government is losing its patience with bankers persisting with a status quoist approach. The ordinance is the latest attempt to resolve the twin balance sheet problem (of indebted borrowers and NPA-burdened lenders) plaguing India’s domestic investment cycle. In 2015, the Prime Minister launched a Gyan Sangam conclave with bankers, and an Indradhanush road map to revitalise public sector banks. Last year, a Banks Board Bureau was set up to recommend the appointment of top bosses at banks and help them develop strategies and plan raising of capital. If the government wants to see a spurt in investment and job-creation, it needs to do more than just pin its hopes on new oversight committees. It must amend the anticorruption law as has been promised for a while now, and accept the need to ix the policy-level stress afecting sectors such as telecom, power and highways. Above all, the government cannot in the same breath argue that the political cost of reforms is dissipating, but that the ‘re-privatisation’ of banks as mooted by the RBI recently is still a holy cow for the Indian polity.
Space for all
rakesh sood urkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s state visit to India last week was expected to open a new page in bilateral relations, which have traditionally alternated between formal and lukewarm, at best. The reason is simple. On issues of mutual concern, both countries have displayed a lack of sensitivity. Turkey’s position on Kashmir has traditionally relected its proximity to Pakistan, guided by the links between the two military establishments. Both countries were part of the anti-Communist military alliance, the Baghdad Pact (later Central Treaty Organisation or CENTO), and in both generals had wielded political power. Membership of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation has been another abiding link between the two countries. On the issue of UN Security Council (UNSC) expansion, Turkey and Pakistan are part of the Uniting for Consensus group which opposes the idea of adding new permanent members, proposing instead a doubling of the non-permanent category to make the UNSC more representative. More recently, on India’s membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), Turkey supported the Chinese idea of a criteria-based approach for non-Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty (NPT) member states, intended to accommodate Pakistan.
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A personal chemistry Against this negative backdrop is the personal relationship between Mr. Erdoğan and Prime Minister Narendra Modi developed during the last two years on the margins of G-20 summits. Mr. Erdoğan’s efforts to shift Turkish foreign policy away from its Western orientation had created space for a growing relationship with India which Mr. Modi was keen to exploit. There are similarities between the two leaders which may have
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doğan reintroduced the women’s headscarf, overturning the ban that had been introduced by Ataturk decades earlier!
Stars not aligned Notwithstanding the personal chemistry between the two leaders, the legacy of mutual insensitivity proved too diicult to overcome. The stars were not aligned. Vice President Ansari’s visit to Armenia and Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades visiting India in the week preceding President Erdoğan’s arrival were hardly good omens. Mr. Erdoğan too reverted to the pro-Pakistan default position on Kashmir and the NSG. He acknowledged that while India with 1.3 billion people needed to have its place in the UNSC, he added that the 1.7 billion Muslims also needed to be present. Both sides sought to emphasise the potential for greater economic cooperation. However, there are clear limits here, imposed by existing agreements. Half of Turkey’s $350 billion foreign trade is with Europe. Our bilateral trade which stands at $6 billion, and is expected to grow to $10 billion by 2020, can hardly become a major driver. Troubling policy choices In coming years, Mr. Erdoğan has his hands full in dealing with the forces unleashed by his policies in the region and domestically. A decade ago, Turkey had a booming economy, Mr. Erdoğan had clipped the wings of the army, Turkey appeared a moderate and progressive Islamic state, and prospects for EU membership were bright. Then came the Arab Spring and Turkish policy adopted a blend of pan-Islamism and neo-Ottomanism. Elec-
enclave on its southern border is anathema for Turkey. It has become a strong votary of maintaining Syrian territorial integrity even as Russia and the U.S. are talking about autonomous areas under different groups, separated by bufer zones to ensure peace.
Exploiting a failed coup Even as Mr. Erdoğan copes with foreign policy challenges, he demonstrated his political agility by exploiting last July’s failed coup to round up all potential opponents prior to the April referendum. It is estimated that about 120,000 government employees have been suspended or dismissed, primarily from the judiciary and the education branches, suspected of being Gülen sympathisers. In addition, 7,500 soldiers and oicers including over a hundred with the rank of a brigadier and above, and over 10,000 police cadres have been sacked. More than a dozen colleges and universities and a thousand schools are closed; licences of 24 radio and TV channels have been revoked and over a hundred journalists have been arrested. With all this, Mr. Erdoğan’s referendum, which proposes 18 amendments to transform Turkey into a highly centralised presidential government, was passed with a slim majority of 51.4% versus 48.6%. The proposed changes permit Mr. Erdoğan to get two terms of ive years each after the 2019 elections, appoint at will vice-presidents and cabinet members and 12 out of 15 supreme court judges, abolish the post of prime minister, provides for simultaneous presidential and parliamentary elections and coterminous tenures, enlarges the parliament to 600 seats while reducing the minimum age of candidacy for parliament to 18 years. This is an ambitious agenda, even for a highly committed and driven leader like Mr. Erdoğan and will keep him busy for the next two years. Opening a new page in IndiaTurkey relations clearly needs to wait for better times.
Rakesh Sood is a former diplomat and currently distinguished fellow at the Observer Research Foundation. E-mail:
[email protected]
Decoding the doctrine More clarity is needed on implementing the Joint Indian Armed Forces Doctrine
India’s launch of the ‘South Asia satellite’ sends a positive signal to the neighbourhood y launching the GSAT-9 ‘South Asia satellite’, India has reairmed the Indian Space Research Organisation’s scientiic prowess, but the messaging is perhaps more geopolitical than geospatial. To begin with, the Centre has kept its promise of considering India’s “neighbourhood irst”. Within a month of taking over as Prime Minister in 2014, Narendra Modi went to Sriharikota for the launch of PSLV C-23 and “challenged” ISRO scientists to build this satellite for the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation. The decision was then announced at the SAARC summit in Kathmandu, and the government has kept its commitment of gifting its neighbours at least one transponder each on the GSAT-9, a project that cost about ₹450 crore. India has no doubt gained goodwill across the subcontinent through the gesture, and the moment was neatly captured by the videoconference that followed the launch, showing all SAARC leaders (with the exception of Pakistan’s) together on one screen as they spoke of the beneits they would receive in communication, telemedicine, meteorological forecasting and broadcasting. The message is equally strong to South Asia’s other benefactor, China, at a time when it is preparing to demonstrate its global clout at the Belt and Road Forum on May 14-15. The Belt and Road Initiative is an infrastructure network that every SAARC nation other than India has signed on to. China has pledged billions of dollars in projects to each of the countries in the region; that, India is obviously not in a position to match. Where India does excel is in its space programme, as it is the only country in South Asia that has independently launched satellites on indigenously developed launch vehicles. However, in recent years Pakistan and Sri Lanka have launched satellites with assistance from China, while Afghanistan, the Maldives and Nepal are also understood to have discussed satellite projects with China. Bangladesh, which will launch its irst satellite Bangabandhu-1 this year, is working with a European agency. With the GSLV launch India is showing that where it is capable its commitment to the development of its neighbours is strong. Finally, by going ahead with the project despite Pakistan’s decision to pull out, the Modi government is signalling that it will continue with its plans for the neighbourhood — ‘SAARC minus one’ — if necessary. This vision was dealt a minor blow recently when Bhutan pulled out of the ‘mini-SAARC’ alternative plan of a motor vehicles agreement for BBIN (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India Nepal), but the government’s persistence indicates it will not be deterred by the obvious domestic constraints of the SAARC grouping. As Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani, particularly aggrieved by Pakistan’s refusal to grant transit rights for India-Afghanistan trade, said at the launch of the GSLV-F09: “If cooperation through land is not possible, we can be connected through space.”
drawn them together. Amitav Ghosh wrote about their ‘Parallel Journeys’, their diicult economic circumstances (Mr. Modi had run a tea stall at the railway station while Mr. Erdoğan sold lemonade at a street corner), the struggle to rise to the top in their respective political parties, a lasting and deep religiosity and exceptional communication skills. According to Mr. Ghosh, Mr. Modi’s electoral victory in 2014 was reminiscent of Mr. Erdoğan becoming Prime Minister when his Justice and Development Party (AKP) won in 2002; in both cases, their parties associated with religious organisations had overturned long standing ‘secular-nationalist elites’. In his slim volume A Question of Order – India, Turkey and the Return of Strongmen, published earlier this year, describing India and Turkey as two of the world’s largest multi-ethnic and multi-religious democracies in Asia, Basharat Peer identiies “religion and secularism as their common and dominant faultlines”. Their founding fathers (Ataturk and Nehru) were both charismatic and sought to turn their countries towards western modernity on the basis of free and fair elections and religious freedoms. The economic parallels are less persuasive but Mr. Peer weaves the political threads together in terms of the “strongmen” persona of today’s leaders — their promises of reviving national pride and restoring greatness, harnessing militant nationalism, impatience with criticism and civil society, and their personal charismatic appeal. Interestingly, Mr. Modi would like to do away with ‘triple talaq’ in order to give greater rights to Muslim women while Mr. Er-
tions in the aftermath of the Arab Spring were expected to bring in the Muslim Brotherhood, a movement with which AKP was closely aligned. But by 2013, two problems had emerged. President Mohamed Morsi in Egypt had been removed and the army was back in power in Cairo with the tacit understanding of both the West and Saudi Arabia, and Syrian President Bashar-al-Assad’s regime had proven to be far more resilient than anticipated. The jihadi highway that Mr. Erdoğan opened up on the TurkeySyria border for radicalised Europeans, Central Asians, Afghans, Arabs and Africans to enter Syria created a backlash. While the Russians were targeting the Islamic State (IS) in Syria to prop up the Assad regime, the U.S. was using its Turkish airbases for strikes against the IS and increasingly relying on the Syrian Kurds for ground operations. Relations nosedived after the shooting down of a Russian Su-24 killing the pilot. Six months later, Mr. Erdoğan had to apologise to Russia to get sanctions lifted. Meanwhile, Turkish Kurds (the outlawed PKK) linked up with their Syrian counterparts, the PYD and its militant wing YPG, spurring Kurdish nationalism as the PYD called for a Rojava (homeland). During 2016, Turkey sufered more than 200 terrorist attacks, attributed to the IS and the Kurds, killing more than 300 persons. Having repaired relations with Russia, Mr. Erdoğan is eager to repair relations with the U.S. which had frayed during the Obama years. He was quick to compliment U.S. President Donald Trump for the early April Tomahawk missile strikes on the Shayrat air base in Syria, calculating correctly that he could manage the fallout of this with Russia. Mr. Trump reciprocated by telephoning him to congratulate him on his successful referendum in April. This has been followed up with an invitation to the White House on May 16-17. Turkey is keen to join in the assault on the IS stronghold of Raqqa to ensure that the YPG is kept under check but the Syrians oppose a role for Turkey. Meanwhile, Turkish soldiers have occupied al-Bab in northern Syria, beating the YPG to it. The idea of a contiguous Kurdish
dinakar peri
“S
urgical strikes”, probably the most abused term of 2016, are now the new norm. The Joint Doctrine of the Indian Armed Forces 2017, released in April, has formally embedded them as a part of sub-conventional operations — meaning that from now on, they are among a range of options at the military’s disposal to respond to terrorist attacks. The more interesting aspect in the second such joint doctrine since 2006 is that the scope of “surgical strikes” has been left open. There is no mention of their employment being within the country or beyond its borders — the ambiguity is intended to send a message in the neighbourhood.
Larger message lost In this context, it is important to note that the surgical strikes in September 2016 on terror camps
along the Line of Control, though much maligned due to political chest-thumping draped in the camoulage of nationalism, did achieve some far-reaching strategic objectives. They were never meant to put an end to terrorism but reversed a discourse which began in 1998 that India was out of conventional options in its quiver in the face of continued cross-border terrorism after the Indian and Pakistani nuclear tests. Unfortunately, this bigger message was lost in the noise. Further, while acknowledging that the possibility of a “conventional war under a nuclear overhang” recedes with attendant “political and international compulsions”, the doctrine notes that training of ‘‘Special Operations Division’’ for execution of precision tasks needs no reiteration. Factoring in the escalation potential of a conlict due to such actions, it states: “The possibility of sub-conventional escalating to a conventional level would be dependent on multiple inluences, principally: politically-determined conlict claims; strategic conjuncture; operational circumstance; international pressures and military readiness.”
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR The Nirbhaya case The Supreme Court’s verdict has delivered justice to Nirbhaya after inexplicable barbarism perpetrated on her (“SC upholds death for Nirbhaya convicts” (May 6). But it is also time to deliver justice to the cause for which our society rose in one voice after the incident. This is the time to efectively implement various policies such as the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, and efect stricter punishment for voyeurism and stalking. There are still countless women in rural India who are unable to report or ile complaints against harassment. The low number of women police personnel further
achieved by any of the three services.
Indigenisation challenge Another important pronouncement under the “National Military Objectives” is: “Enable required degree of self-suiciency in defence equipment and technology through indigenization to achieve desired degree of technological independence by 2035.” This probably presents the biggest challenge of all given the ledgling state of the domestic defence-industrial complex. While a grand pronouncement was made under the “Make in India” initiative, it has essentially remained an exercise in doling out billions of dollars to foreign companies. The doctrine is a bold announcement, but without the necessary elements in place, it will remain just another document like the policy formulations enunciated earlier. Or worse, it will be relegated to being another political slogan for popular resonance rather than send out a message of intent beyond Indian borders and shores.
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aggravates the problem. It is also time to overhaul our way of thinking, where all students are taught to respect women, impart self-defence lessons to girls and augment police patrolling at night with women constables. These small steps will all help in delivering results. Gagan Pratap Singh, Noida, Uttar Pradesh
Child rape, gang rape, the abduction and killing children for ransom, terrorist and militant acts leading to the deaths of many also shock the conscience of public in equal measure. The perpetrators also deserve severe punishment and such cases must be fasttracked. These cases also fall under the rarest of rare cases, warranting the consideration of capital punishment. Will the top ■
The doctrine also reiterates the basic tenets of the Indian nuclear doctrine, no-irst use (NFU) and minimum credible deterrence, contrary to recent calls to revise the NFU and speculation in the West that India would resort to a irst strike. It adds that conlict will be determined or prevented through a process of credible deterrence, coercive diplomacy and conclusively by punitive destruction, disruption and constraint in a nuclear environment across the Spectrum of Conlict. Flowing from the broader objective is the statement that Special Forces units will be “tasked to develop area specialisation in their in-
tended operational theatres” to achieve an optimum efect. The various objectives open up an entire gamut of capability addition and process optimisation for the Indian military to be able to enforce it. Achieving these broad objectives requires seamless synergy between the three services, a far cry in the present circumstances. Interestingly some of the biggest policy decisions have been stuck endlessly — appointment of a Chief of Defence Staf (CDS), formation of cyber, space and Special Forces commands and carving out interservice theatre commands. After some initial push from the Government, the enthusiasm has gone cold. The doctrine also declares: “Undertaking ‘Integrated Theatre Battle’ with an operationally adaptable force, to ensure decisive victory in a network centric environment… in varied geographical domains, will be the guiding philosophy for evolution of force application and war ighting strategies.” In this context, how the doctrine will be put into efect will be worth watching given that the 15 year Long Term Integrated Perspective Plan is nowhere near being
court issue guidelines on these as well? S.V. Venkatakrishnan, Bengaluru
Space bonding By fulilling its promise made at SAARC, India has cemented its position in its “neighbourhood irst” agenda, winning it immense goodwill (“Space bonding hits a new high”, May 6). Another unprecedented feature is the free-of-cost usage, which will further improve the credibility of India as a reliable regional partner. Finally, the vast applications of the satellite will prove useful in consolidating and integrating the region as a whole. Atin Sharma, Jammu
The spirit of 1967 The writer argues that the India of 2017 needs the kind
of strategic alliance seen in 1967, forged by C.N. Annadurai (“Breathe in the spirit of 1967”, May 6). Secularism, federalism and pluralism are no doubt lofty ideals but questions remain on how these were followed by successive governments in India. Secularism, for instance, supposedly means equal respect for all religions. But politicians turned it into a plank for the appeasement of minorities. During the UPA rule of 2004-2014 — a shining example of Indian federalism — what we witnessed was mega scams. One needs to introspect on why people are voting for change, since 2014, even putting up with temporary hardships caused to them by measures such as demonetisation. A corruption-free government that delivers is more desirable than the one that
merely swears by utopian ideals. V. Jayaraman, Chennai
Heartburn for farmers It’s disheartening to note that chilli farmers in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh are sufering from the problem of excess supply and falling prices (“Market crash forces A.P. farmers to let chilli whither away”, May 7). India is an agrarian nation and farmers should be able produce their crops to the maximum
extent possible without having to bother about demand. The government has a signiicant role to play by procuring the entire supply at the minimum ceiling price and ensure that farmers are not exposed to the vagaries of market conditions. State governments do not have concrete plans for the development of the agricultural sector. S. Ramakrishnasayee, Ranipet, Tamil Nadu
more letters online: www.hindu.com/opinion/letters/
corrections & clarifications: Editing error: Prof. Douglas Webber, whose quote appears at the penultimate paragraph of “French rivals clash in debate” (May 5, 2017), was wrongly described as professor of political science at the Business School for the World. He is actually with INSEAD, an international business school. It is the policy of The Hindu to correct signiicant errors as soon as possible. Please specify the edition (place of publication), date and page. The Readers’ Editor’s office can be contacted by Telephone: +91-44-28418297/28576300 (11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to Friday); Fax: +91-44-28552963; E-mail:
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Blurring the lines on what is local Local issues do shape contestation in urban local bodies, but they alone do not drive the outcome
bhanu joshi In the lanes of a Block in Mangolpuri, an old man points us to a board outside what once was a community toilet complex. The board reads, Site for Baraat Ghar, Estimated Cost ₹140 Lakhs. “The Japanese had constructed the toilet, and after their contract got over, people took everything away,” laments the same man, who considers himself a social worker. “The previous MLA promised a Baraat Ghar (Community Centre) from his MLA quota, but this land belonged to MCD (Municipal Corporation of Delhi),” he added. “No, it is DDA (Delhi Development Authority) land and not the MCD,” offered a passerby. “There is some problem between the MLA and the Councillor, and only a board was put up, and nothing since has happened,” says the social worker. Just beyond the block is a Jhuggi Jhopri (squatter settlement) cluster where heaps of garbage mixed with sludge drawn from drains and leaking water taps marks the entry to the settlement. Although he has no formal position, the Pradhan or cluster leader is ushered in to meet us. “He maintains a register of the owners in this cluster and negotiates on our behalf,” says a man standing next to the Pradhan. Mangolpuri is one of the areas in Delhi that voted last month for a new city government. Citizen’s perception of public services provided by the rural governance institutions in India is very clear. Indian cities, however, have a far messier governance structure where the larger question of what urban citizens respond to and how their demands are met remains ambiguous.
Urban politics in India Many political scientists argue that the decentralisation of public administration and the introduction of local elected bodies have produced systems of governance that are better able to meet the needs of the poor. From a political perspective, when decentralisation works well, citizens in small communities have the power to hold their elected representative
accountable for policy decisions, yielding policy outcomes more uniquely tailored to the needs of these communities. Yet, the true nature of Indian urbanisation severely departs from this theoretical ideal, with political parties investing heavily in winning at the local level, only to give those elected leaders very limited power, while the State government exercises close control through unelected parallel bodies. In Delhi, this becomes all the more evident, where in spite of the cacophony around the importance of the election, the fact remains that we still don’t know who the three Mayors of Delhi will be. Perhaps worrying about this is of no use, given that the tenure of a Mayor in Delhi is only for one year! Indeed, the question of the broadening of the political spectrum was one of the main ideas behind India’s decentralisation policy, yet the central issue of local power — political or otherwise — and incentives for citizen participation in urban areas have remained ambiguous. This is in contrast to the local governments in rural India, which, though also limited in their functionality, have significantly more power than their urban counterparts. During our field work on understanding electoral behaviour in West Bengal, rural citizens associated with their local representatives more closely and also scrutinised their work more critically. Given this knowledge and perception of local provisions and working of the officials, rural voters can make reasonable inferences on the functioning of rural local government. In the presence of a limited functional domain, the question of how citizens assess their representatives in the urban context has remained a rather unexplored topic. Inequality in the city leading to differentiated access in services is also leading to different ways in which citizens in poorer and “unregularised” areas access the state. In Mangolpuri, for instance, the social worker and the Pradhan have been working on bringing public services to the people. As intermediaries, their influence on citizens, and particularly on their electoral participation, remains ambiguous.
Is there a local agenda? Does State politics subsume the local agenda or is it the personality cult of national and State leaders that tilts the outcome? The answer to this
FROM THE READERS’ EDITOR
Proper attribution is good reporting On two reports and their difering igures
a.s. panneerselvan
A residential colony in northwest Delhi in the run-up to the municipal corporation elections, in April 2017. SUSHIL KUMAR VERMA *
question lies somewhere in the middle. A study to delve into these issues was conducted by the Centre for Policy Research in four Indian cities. This study along with brief recent fieldwork preceding the MCD elections reveal some trends. First, local issues do shape contestation in the city, but they alone do not drive the outcome. For political parties, elections to urban local bodies appear to be a preparatory ground for consolidating their positions and widening their support base for winning the Assembly elections. For voters, these elections provide an opportunity to express their views on different political parties struggling to capture the State governments. These considerations, rather than definite political programmes of the respective parties on improving the civic services, motivate the political parties and the voters, respectively. Second, and as a consequence of the first, “politics” defines the terms of debate in the electoral contestations. Local issues do feature in the campaign, but they seem to play a minor role. Politics then determines both the strategy and mode of campaigning and voters’ behaviour. Such politicisation of local elections to mimic larger questions of ideology and politics of the State restricts the space of local democracy.
Third, non-competing narratives to developing our cities give way to an uninteresting campaign. In Katwa municipality in Bardhaman district of West Bengal, for example, every political party’s manifesto had water supply as a priority, but nobody indicated where from the resources would come to augment water supply. Similarly, in the just concluded MCD elections, most residents interviewed clearly identified garbage collection and disposal as a municipal function which had deteriorated over time, becoming a public health issue. Yet, neither of the three major parties offered anything beyond shutting or closing the landfills. Indeed, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which has been called a class-based urban political party, showed no imagination on a possible road map — something which it did so effectively in its 70-point action agenda before the 2015 Assembly elections. The citizen-state relationship in terms of jurisdiction and access in Indian cities is complex. As India urbanises, acknowledging the formal and informal interactions and incorporating them to understand local politics can provide valuable insights into our urbanisation trajectory.
Bhanu Joshi is a public policy researcher at the Centre for Policy Research, Delhi
Last week, we got a set of queries from readers pointing out discrepancies in two reports pertaining to the crisis in sand quarrying in Tamil Nadu. R. Vidyasagar, an engineer from Chennai, highlighted two differing figures, both in the number of quarries in the State and functional quarries. The report, “PWD shuts down seven quarries in Tiruchi region” (April 30, 2017), said that the State Public Works Department had obtained permission to operate a total of 42 quarries across the State, of which only 21 were functioning. Another report, published a day earlier in ‘Property Plus’, had different figures in the headline itself: “With only 10 of the State’s 38 sand quarries functional, over 40% construction activity has been hit.” He wanted to know the exact figures and wondered how these contradictions happened in reports filed within a span of 24 hours. Let’s get the facts first. In his report, “Sand quarries no longer employ machines in T.N., says PWD”, citing published figures, Associate Editor T. Ramakrishnan cleared the air. There were 61 functional quarries in the State till the middle of 2016. However, the situation became murky when the permission that stipulated the time frame and the quantum of sand to be extracted lapsed for most of the quarries over the next few months. The State Environmental Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) lays the norms for sand quarrying. This body was headless for nearly four months till the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change appointed a former officer of the Indian Forest Service as its new chairman. As of April 28, 2017, there were 20 quarries in operation. Of them nine had to be shut down following a Madras High Court order as they had violated the norms laid by SEIAA. As of now there are no river sand quarries in Tamil Nadu that are deploying machines. As the State is not able to meet the demand with the existing quarries, it has decided to shut them down altogether and go to the SEIAA for fresh approvals. The key journalistic questions in the earlier reports are not about two differing sets of figures but about the failure of the reporters to ensure proper attribution to the facts and figures cited in the article. The ‘Property Plus’ story was based on figures
given by R. Muniratham, President of the Tamil Nadu Sand Lorry Owners Association since 1995. The Tiruchi region story got its figures from local Public Works Department officials. It often happens that the figures provided by two different sources vary. However, had the reporters been diligent, they would have ensured proper attribution rather than sounding like all-knowing-Oracles.
‘Err on the side of attributing’ Most journalism manuals have spelt out the importance of attribution. Reporters would gain immensely to remember the following text from “Memo to all hands” by Alfred Friendly, Managing Editor of The Washington Post from as early as 1958: “Direct attribution is the best way of handling news and information about an event or conditions or situations of which we do not have direct, eyewitness knowledge ourselves. This is always the best way, inasmuch as it provides the reader with a knowledge of the source, enabling him to evaluate its credibility for himself. It involves no pretence of having direct knowledge, which we do not have. It avoids the risk of having the newspapers used to disseminate material for which the author is unwilling to take public responsibility.”
The public broadcaster, NPR, has a rule: “attribute everything.” It says: “Attribute, attribute and attribute some more. No material from another source should ever be included verbatim, or substantially so, without attribution… When in doubt, err on the side of attributing — that is, make it very clear where we’ve gotten our information (or where the organization we give credit to has gotten its information).” It is vital to recognise that each report is a piece in the jigsaw puzzle called our reality. A reader puts these stories together to arrive at an informed choice. Many economists are of the firm opinion that sand has become the new oil. The two reports on sand shortage in Tamil Nadu are a part of this larger picture. Is there a more compelling reason for proper attribution?
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FIFTY YEARS AGO MAY 8, 1967
Chaos in Venezuela
President tells MPs politics alone is not life The President, Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, said here [New Delhi] today [May 7] that politicians should exert their utmost to alleviate the suffering of the humanity and raise the material condition of our people. Politicians, he said, should not think that politics should absorb all their life, though “it is indispensable, but not whole of our (politicians’) life.”….There were politicians who looked upon politics as a matter of prestige and power. “It is one of service and humility. It requires us to identify ourselves with the lowest of the land and do our utmost. Politicians do not mean people who twist their tongues, or have cool hearts. They are men with warmth of feeling, with compassion for the sufferings of humanity. That is what they are expected to be,” Dr. Radhakrishnan said. The President, who is laying down office shortly, was replying to a farewell address.
It is still not too late to rescue the economy. It requires an end to price controls, and more market competition Prashanth Perumal J.
Venezuela is reeling under a severe economic crisis, one that has spilled over into its politics. Massive protests have erupted against President Nicolás Maduro with growing demands for his ouster through fresh elections. Mr. Maduro has called the protests an “economic war” waged by elite business interests. But much of Venezuela’s problems are the doing of its own leaders, as conirmed by history. Hugo Chavez, Venezuela’s former President, came to power in 1998 promising to ight poverty and inequality through socialism. He soon nationalised huge amounts of private assets, including oil companies, and expanded social spending on food, housing, education, etc. To fund these programmes, Chavez made use of his nation’s oil reserves, the biggest in the world, at a time when oil prices were at historic highs. Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A., a state-run irm that controls all oil production in Venezuela, was tasked with the job of exporting oil to spend the revenues on social welfare.
Short-lived success As a result, Venezuela’s poverty rate fell from 50% in 1998 to 30% in 2012. This apparent prosperity, however, was only short lived. As oil prices slipped from well over $100 in 2014 to as low as $27 in 2016, the low of dollars stopped and the government could no longer fund its social spending except by borrowing freshly created bolivars from the central bank. Venezuela’s money supply thus grew from 10.6 billion bolivars in 1998 to 290 billion bolivars in 2010, and later reached 7,513 billion bolivars by 2016. The result was rapid domestic price inlation and a drop in the bolivar’s value, that crippled most Venezuelans. Further, the government’s approach in dealing with rising price inlation, particularly under Mr. Maduro, aggravated the crisis. The prices of essential commodities such as food, medicine, toilet paper, etc. were capped, which in turn led to shortages fuelled by excess demand and a steep drop in supplies as business proits declined. According to reports, 75% of Venezuelans lost at least 19 pounds in 2016 due to shortages. The authorities resorted to rationing to deal with the crisis, which naturally led to corruption of various kinds. Some goods were rationed to friends of bureaucrats. Others, such as bread, were sold in the black market for higher prices. Mr. Maduro, rather than seeing these as the unintended consequences of his own policies, has taken to vilifying private enterprise. According to leaked estimates by Venezuela’s central bank, Venezuela’s GDP shrunk by 18.6% in 2016. The International Monetary Fund projects that inlation could be over 700% in 2017, and as high as 2,000% next year. These are clear signs of an economic disaster. Nevertheless, it is still not too late to rescue the Venezuelan economy. It would require a decisive end to price controls, serious currency reform, and the fostering of greater market competition in the economy. CM YK
A HUNDRED YEARS AGO MAY 8, 1917
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CONCEPTUAL
SHELF HELP
Fata Morgana
Voyage of melodies
Optics A Fata Morgana is a form of mirage, the term also used in a metaphorical sense. It is usually associated with something that is mysterious and unapproachable — as famously pictured by Longfellow in his eponymous poem in 1873. There are several other literary references to it. The unusual and complex optical phenomenon is seen in a narrow band right above the horizon, comprising inverted and erect images stacked atop one another. It is the Italian name for a sorceress from Arthurian legend, based on a belief that the mirages were fairy castles in the air or false land created by her witchcraft to lure sailors to their death. The term is sometimes applied to other, common kinds of mirages; the ‘real’ Fata Morgana significantly distorts the objects on which it is based, unrecognisably. CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC
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AAP in the doldrums for today http://bit.ly/AAPcrisis
Two books put the text and context of Hindi songs in tune Hari Narayan
What constitutes a film song? Classicists stress the primacy of the ragas while poets vouchsafe for the importance of lyrics. However, film historian Raju Bharatan, in the introduction to his book A Journey Down Melody Lane, says that film being a visual medium, the ability of a filmmaker to align the abilities of the composer with his own vision is paramount. A point he explains with the example of Satyajit Ray, who in the 1960s took to composing for his films. Bharatan says a film tune is “hewn”, not created.
The ‘audio visionary’ To illustrate this idea, he dedicates the second chapter to the genius of Raj Kapoor whom he considers a consummate “audio visionary”. This comes in the book even before Bharatan analyses the music of a Naushad or a Salil Chowdhury. Kapoor, who had sung his only song for an obscure film called Dil Ki Rani, could paint a picture of the theme, the full
sequence, in his mind before he approved a tune, he says. The composers — be it Shankar-Jaikishan or Laxmikant-Pyarelal — were arrangers, the real music director always being Kapoor himself and his favourite raga, the Raag Bhairavi. From the trendsetting Barsaat, which had five songs in the raga, to his last film Ram Teri Ganga Maili, Kapoor got Bhairavi moulded to match his ideas in such a way that it became ‘RK Bhairavi’ in his cinema. One prominent example is the dream sequence in Awara. Note the way the screen seamlessly segues from one mood to another — from ‘Tere bina’ to ‘Ghar aaya’ — both in ‘RK Bhairavi’. Anirudha Bhattacharjee and Balaji Vittal, in their book Gaata Rahe Mera Dil: 50 classic Hindi film songs, consider the Awara sequence Hindi cinema’s “first music video”. The authors analyse the process of composition, the picturisation and the importance of the song for the film. Keeping with
their objective, they include only songs that have been picturised, leaving out those without a video. Starting from ‘Chale pavan ki chaal’ (Doctor) by Pankaj Mullick, ending at ‘Dil hai chota sa’ (Roja) by A.R. Rahman — which is, in a strict sense, more a dubbed song — their descriptions follow a pattern: explaining the scenario in the industry during the song’s creation; explaining the thinking that went into the song’s making; analysing the ragas, the lyrics and the musical arrangements; and looking at how well the song fit into the film as a whole. It is as if the authors wished to compose the articles as songs in themselves: following the prelude, mukhda, interlude, antara pattern. These are two books that don’t stop with showcasing the mastery of the authors in Hindi film music. They want you to listen to the individual songs, beat by beat, and appreciate them better by placing it within the film, adding visuals to tunes.
The Indian representatives at the Imperial War Cabinet, the Maharaja of Bikanir, Sir James Meston, and Sir Satyendra P. Sinha, were the guests at a reception at 21, Cromwell road, given by the National Indian Association and the Northbrook Society, April 2nd. In the unavoidable absence of Lord Lamington and Lord Hardinge of Penshurst, the respective presidents, the guests were received by Sir Charles Lyall and Mr. Austin Low, the Chairman. After speeches of welcome from Sir Charles Lyall and Mr. Austin Low, Sir James Meston, in returning thanks, said that the delegates did not anticipate when they left India that they would have anything like the reception which had been extended to them in this country. The Maharaja of Bikanir said he was particularly glad to meet so many of his young countrymen studying here [Britain]. CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC
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THE HINDU
MONDAY, MAY 8, 2017
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FROM PAGE ONE
Militants ofer ‘gun salute’ at funeral
Daring crime: An armed militant shouts slogans at the funeral of a slain colleague in south Kashmir on Sunday. PTI *
The armed militants wearing army fatigue and pheran (a long woollen gown-type dress worn in winters) were paying tribute to Setha. Police were on a hunt for Setha for more than one year now. On Saturday he was one of those who targeted a police naka party near Mir Bazar area of Anantnag around 10.00 p.m. The police party was clearing the road near Malpora. “Militants opened fire indiscriminately at the traffic. The police party returned fire,” said a police official.
Crackdown on channels The authorities have directed district magistrates to take “urgent and necessary action” against transmission
of non-permitted TV channels by cable operators in Kashmir Valley. According to an order issued by the State home department, any such transmission “attracts violation of Cable TV Networks Regulation Rules.” “It has been reported that cable operators in the Valley have been transmitting certain TV channels which are not permitted by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. The transmission of these channels has the potential to encourage or incite violence and create law and order disturbances in the Kashmir Valley,” the order reads. The 34 channels listed in the order include non-news channels like PTV Sports, ARY Zindagi, Noor TV and Karbala TV.
Sacked Minister hurls charge at Kejriwal “I was removed after I made the allegations. I am not making the allegations because I was removed,” Mr. Mishra said. He also said that these weren’t mere allegations but he had come to Rajghat after recording his statement with Lieutenant-Governor Anil Baijal. Mr. Mishra said many issues had been raised against the AAP, including irregularities in funding during the Punjab elections, “but we always thought Kejriwal ji did not have knowledge about them.” “I could not sleep knowing about such transactions. Till now, I had thought that Arvind Kejriwal would not tolerate corruption,” he said. He, however, said he would not leave the party as he was among the first few leaders who were involved with the AAP even before its inception. Meanwhile, political opponents have demanded Mr. Kejriwal’s resignation. “Kejriwal has no moral right to hold the post of chief minister. He must resign immediately,” Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari said.
I am pained, says Hazare Press Trust of India MUMBAI
Social activist Anna Hazare said on Sunday that he was pained to see his “former colleague in the anticorruption crusade” Arvind Kejriwal facing bribery charges. “I have been a part of the anti-corruption movement for the last 40 years. The Delhi election victory was because of Kejriwal’s campaign against serious corruption. But today, he himself is facing allegations of accepting money, which is very painful for me,” Mr. Hazare said.
“I have said a number of times that Kejriwal is directly involved in corruption. Mishra’s allegations prove that point.” The Congress party said Mr. Mishra’s claims were not mere allegations but testimony of an eyewitness warranting criminal proceedings against Mr. Kejriwal.
Dalits continue to lee Shabbirpur Uttar Pradesh DGP, senior oicials arrive in Saharanpur to take stock of the situation houses were burnt. They also demanded that delegations of political leaders be allowed to visit the affected villages, a request the DGP turned down. Saharanpur district has seen two incidents of rioting in the last one month.
Mohammad Ali Meerut
Days after a person was killed and over 60 Dalit houses were burnt in caste clashes in Shabbirpur village of Saharanpur, most of the Dalits living in Thakur-dominated villages of the district have fled to “safer areas” fearing further violence. Mahendar Singh, a Dalit resident of Shabbirpur, told The Hindu that the situation continued to be tense. “Dalits of Shabbirpur are still afraid that violence may erupt any time. After a Thakur youth died during the clash, apparently of suffocation after a fire, the dominant community is very angry. Fear of a violent retaliation has spread to all the Thakur-dominated villages in the vicinity of Shabbirpur, forcing the minority Dalits to flee,” he said.
Twin fears “The fear among Dalits is two-fold because the police is acting with a bias and can implicate us in false cases,” he said. “Already the Dalit
Eerie calm: Most of the Dalits of Shabbirpur have led to safer areas after the recent clashes in Saharanpur. PTI *
village head of Shabbirpur has been arrested on charges of murder.” Mr. Singh, who was a witness to the clashes on Friday, said that while more than 50 houses were burnt to ashes, allegedly by members of the Thakur community, the police had registered only one FIR from the Dalit side. So far, six FIRs have been
filed — four by the upper caste, one by Dalits and one by the police. Seventeen people, including the village head, have been arrested on charges of murder and arson. A massive police force has been deployed in Shabbirpur and other villages nearby to prevent further eruption of violence.
Prafulla Das BHUBANESWAR
Twelve Ministers, 10 of them new, were sworn in here on Sunday as Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik carried out a major reshuffle of his Ministry. While six leaders were sworn in as Cabinet Ministers, four took oath as Ministers of State. Two incumbent Ministers of State were elevated as Cabinet Ministers. Governor S.C. Jamir administered the oath of office and secrecy to the nominees at the Raj Bhavan. The Chief Minister, many of his Ministers and other dignitaries attended the ceremony. The new Cabinet Ministers are Surjya Narayan Patro, Niranjan Pujari, Prafulla Samal, Maheswar Mohanty, Sashi Bhusan Behera and Pratap Jena. Nrusingha Charan Sahu, Ananta Das, Susanta Singh and Chandra Sarathi Behera are the new
New team: Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik with Governor S.C. Jameer and his batch of new Ministers at the Raj Bhawan, in Bhubaneswar on Sunday. BISWARANJAN ROUT *
Ministers of State. Prafulla Mallik and Ramesh Chandra Majhi have been elevated to the Cabinet rank. Ten Ministers resigned on Saturday to pave the way for the first reshuffle by Mr. Patnaik since taking over as Chief Minister for the fourth consecutive term in May 2014.
Three injured in blast at Trinamool oice Press Trust of India Bardhaman
A Trinamool Congress office in West Bengal’s Bardhaman district was on Sunday destroyed in a huge blast suspected to have been caused by explosives stored inside the structure. The blast, which left three persons injured, took place at the Pichkudi Dhaal Trinamool office at Ausgram at 6 p.m., Superintendent of Police Kunal Agarwal said. The officer said the blast was caused by explosives in-
side the building. “We are investigating where these explosives came from and who brought them inside the building,” he said. The building was a singlestorey structure and the injured were inside it when the explosion occurred, Mr. Agarwal said. They were rushed to hospital, the SP said, adding that their identity is yet to be ascertained. In a similar blast in a house in the same district in 2014, two terrorists from Bangladesh were killed.
He wants to give a new momentum to his government and revamp the Biju Janata Dal by engaging the leaders who quit as Ministers. Mr. Pujari, who was sworn in as Cabinet Minister, resigned as Speaker on Friday. Pradip Kumar Amat, who resigned as Finance
New Delhi/Shillong
Minister, is likely to be appointed Speaker.
Portfolios allocated Mr. Patro was given Food Supplies & Consumer Welfare along with Cooperation Department; Mr. Pujari was given Housing and Urban Development and Industries; and Mr. Samal was given Wo-
*
Southeast Asia,” Mr. Modi said, adding if this gateway is dirty, then the dream would not be fulfilled, and asked the people and organisations such as the Sangha to join hands with the State governments and their agencies in the cleanliness campaign. Observing that there had been no balanced development in the region so many
years after Independence, Mr. Modi said his government, “with all its resources”, had planned to bring about balanced development of the States here. He said the major thrust was to improve connectivity and develop the region for tourism purposes. “All these initiatives will help to make the northeast
Empowerment, along with Fisheries and Animal Resources Development, and Pradeep Maharathy was given charge of Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water in place of Agriculture and Farmers’ Empowerment. Similarly, Bijayshree Routray’s portfolio was changed from Revenue and Disaster Management to Forest and Environment, while Bikram Keshari Arukha was given Rural Development and Information and Public Relations along with Parliamentary Affairs in place of Forest and Environment. Badri Narayan Patra was given School and Mass Education and Science and Technology in place of Rural Development, and Usha Devi was given Planning and Convergence and Skill Development and Technical Education in place of Women and Child Development Department.
She has sought help, says Indian mission; Pakistan says she is ‘stranded’ there Press Trust of India Islamabad/New Delhi
Pakistan on Sunday said an Indian woman married to a Pakistani man was “stranded” at the Indian High Commission in Islamabad, prompting India to assert that its national had “sought help” from the mission, which was providing consular assistance. Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Nafees Zakaria said the Indian wo-
man, Uzma, who “went missing” from the Indian High Commission in Islamabad last week, was “stranded” inside the building. Mr. Zakaria’s remarks came following the Pakistani man’s allegations that the Indian High Commission detained his newly wed wife when they went there to apply for his visa. Government sources in New Delhi, however, said the Indian woman sought
Improving connectivity While an investment of ₹40,000 crore is being made to improve the road infrastructure in the entire region, 19 big railway projects have also been started, he said. “We are also improving the electricity situation and trying to bring even more tourists to the region,” Mr. Modi said. Announcing that the region would soon be connected with UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagarik) scheme, he said small airports were also being developed, while the extension of the runway at Shillong airport has been approved. Lauding the Sangha for playing a critical role during natural calamities, the Prime Minister said a myth was sought to be created that spirituality and service cannot go together. The Sangha has dispelled it, he added.
the help of the Indian High Commission on May 5. The High Commission is in touch with the Pakistan Foreign Office and the girl’s family in India, they said. Uzma from New Delhi and Tahir reportedly met in Malaysia and fell in love after which she travelled to Pakistan on May 1 via the Wagah border. The two got married on May 3. According to Mr. Tahir, they visited the High Com-
J&K govt to function from Srinagar today Shifting from winter capital Jammu
mission building and submitted visa forms as well as their phones to the officials. Ms. Uzma then went inside on being called by the officials, while he stayed back. Mr. Zakaria said the Indian High Commission confirmed to the police and the media that the woman was inside the building but would be allowed to go only after the matter was discussed with the Foreign Office, the Dawn said.
Farmers demand euthanasia ANI Baghpat
Press Trust of India
Dreaming big: PM Narendra Modi addressing the centenary celebrations of Bharat Sevashram Sangha through videoconferencing, in New Delhi on Sunday. PTI
men and Child Development and Mission Shakti along with Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise. Mr. Mohanty was given Revenue and Disaster Management, while Mr. Behera was made Minister of Finance and Excise. Mr. Jena was given Health and Family Welfare and Law. Mr. Sahu was given the portfolio of Commerce and Transport, Mr. Das Higher Education, Mr. Singh Labour and Employees’ State Insurance, and Mr. Behera Electronics and Information Technology and Sports and Youth Services. Mr. Prafulla Mallik was given Steel and Mines aand Energy, and Mr. Majhi Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Castes Development. The portfolios of six Cabinet Ministers have been changed. Damodar Rout’s portfolio was changed from Excise and Cooperation to Agriculture and Farmers’
Diplomatic row over ‘missing’ woman
the gateway of Southeast Asia,” he said.
Press Trust of India
CM YK
Dhar (MP)
In a veiled attack on the Narendra Modi government, senior VHP leader Pravin Togadia on Sunday said the situation had come to such a pass that both soldiers and farmers were feeling distressed. “The jawans are being beheaded along the borders, while the farmers were not getting fair prices for their produce,” Mr. Togadia told presspersons here. “Farmers are forced to sell chilli at ₹1,500 per quintal as against ₹12,000 due to a drastic dip in the prices,” he said. “Time has come that the Army should feel safe and farmers should prosper. For this, efforts should be made,” he said. Referring to the recent incident of the killings of two Indian soldiers and mutilation of their bodies by the Pakistani forces, Mr. Togadia said, “Pakistan should be given a befitting reply.”
Naveen Patnaik elevates two Ministers of State to Cabinet rank; changes portfolios of several members of Cabinet
PM says the region has not witnessed balanced development for so many years after Independence
survey. While four northeastern cities found a place between 100 and 200 clean cities, seven were positioned between 200 and 300, with Shillong being the 276th, he said, while stressing that cleanliness was a major challenge for everyone in the region. “We have to make the northeast a gateway for
Press Trust of India
10 new Ministers take oath in Odisha reshule
Northeast a major gateway, says Modi The Union government aims to make northeast India a gateway to Southeast Asia and is making huge investments for the overall development of the region, but lack of cleanliness can hamper this dream, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday. “If such a beautiful gateway is unclean, diseased, illiterate or disbalanced, then it will fail to cross the gateway of the country’s development. There is no reason why, with all our resources, we should remain backward or poor,” the Prime Minister said. Addressing the centenary celebrations of the voluntary organisation Bharat Sevashram Sangha in Shillong through video conferencing, he said “only Gangtok had found a place among the first 50 clean cities” out of the 12 cities from the region surveyed as part of the recent nationwide cleanliness
Director-General of Police Salkhan Singh visited Saharanpur along with the Principal Secretary (Home) Devashish Panda and took stock of the law and order situation. They met delegations of the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party, which requested the administration to offer compensation to Dalits whose
Strict action Mr. Singh said the police would take strict action against rioters. Addressing the media at the Circuit House, Mr. Panda said law and order was the priority of the government. The clash erupted after Dalits objected to the loud music played during a procession being taken out by the Thakur community in memory of Maharana Pratap. The procession, it is alleged, did not have permission from the local administration. An angry mob of Thakurs living around Shabbirpur attacked the Dalits and burnt over sixty households after a Thakur youth was killed during the clash.
Farmers, soldiers hit, says Togadia
SRINAGAR
The Jammu and Kashmir government is all set to start functioning from here on Monday for the next six months after shifting from winter capital Jammu as part of the pre-Independence bi-annual ‘darbar move’ practice. Raj Bhavan, Civil Secretariat and other offices closed in Jammu on April 28 and are scheduled to reopen here on Monday as per the ‘darbar move’ — a centuryold practice under which government functions six month each in the two capitals of the State. The government will function in Srinagar, the summer capital of the State, till late October and then move to Jammu, the winter capital, in the first week of November. Authorities have made all necessary arrangements, including security, to ensure smooth functioning
of the offices in the Kashmir Valley, which has witnessed a spurt in militant activities, officials said.
Facelift They said the summer capital has been given a facelift ahead of the reopening of the ‘move offices’. Roads around and leading to the Civil Secretariat, the seat of the government, are being renovated. Every year, the city gets a facelift on the eve of reopening of the Civil Secretariat and other move offices. Besides, the government offices and quarters have been renovated and the streetlights restored, the officials said. While most of the Kashmir-based government employees associated with the Civil Secretariat and other departments arrived in the Valley on April 29 and 30, Jammu-based employees have started arriving here since Saturday, they said.
A group of sugarcane farmers has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath demanding euthanasia. The farmers also asserted that the Prime Minister and the Chief Minister must take a decision over sugarcane payments in 15 days, otherwise they all will commit suicide on the 16th day because they cannot continue suffering anymore. “It’s better to die instead of suffering from pain,” the letter read. The Adityanath government is facing a challenge of dealing with the crisis of farmers, but the biggest problem is that of sugarcane farmers who have not yet been paid. There are many farmers in Uttar Pradesh’s Baghpat who are worried about not receiving sugarcane payments. M ND-ND
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THE HINDU
NEWS 11
NOIDA/DELHI
MONDAY, MAY 8, 2017
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IN BRIEF
Defence pay hike from May CRPF command shifted Order says remaining core concerns are being addressed separately source added. The Controller-General of Defence Accounts (CGDA), which is responsible for implementing the recommendations, has already been issued instructions. “They will now calculate the revised tables and release them,” the source said.
Dinakar Peri NEW DELHI
UP CM lags of 27 airconditioned buses LUCKNOW
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday flagged off 27 airconditioned buses from his official residence here. Of these, 12 are equipped with latest technology (Scania and Volvo). Apart from these, 15 general category (Janrath) AC buses were also flagged off by the Chief Minister, an official statement said. PTI
NSCN(IM) cadre arrested, arms seized in Nagaland IMPHAL
Assam Rifles troopers arrested some cadres of the NSCN(IM) from Peren district in Nagaland on Saturday and recovered four AK 56 rifles, one AK 47 rifle and several rounds of ammunition. They were handed over to the police.
Narcotic tablets worth ₹17 lakh seized in Imphal IMPHAL
Two persons were arrested from Imphal west district on Sunday with narcotic tablets valued at ₹17 lakh in the international market. The personnel of the Narcotics cell of the Manipur police arrested the duo from Langthabal on Intelligence inputs. The two identified as S. Rahman and Mohammad Ithem, hailing from Sora in Thoubal district, are believed to have smuggled the drug, locally known as ‘World in Yours’, from Myanmar.
Tiger found dead in Satpura reserve BHOPAL
A tiger was found dead in Bori range of the Satpura Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh’s Hoshangabad district. “It appears that the tiger, aged over five, succumbed to injuries apparently sustained in a fight with a gaur (Indian bison),” Bori forest range officer Hari Prasad Pal said on Sunday. “During patrolling on Friday evening, we found the tiger lying dead near the bones and horns of a bison it killed earlier in the core area of the reserve,” he said. PTI
After a wait of about eight months, military personnel are likely to receive their revised pay recommended by the Seventh Pay Commission with arrears in May’s salary, say the general instructions issued by the three Services to their personnel. The Union Cabinet issued orders last week for implementing the recommendations for military personnel. Following this, the three Services issued the general instructions stating the various recommendations that were approved. “Army pay rules 2017 issued on May 03 … Some core concerns have been addressed and remaining core concerns are being addressed separately,” said the instructions issued by the Army’s Pay Commission Cell on May 5.
Pay stages stretched The recommendations approved include extension of pay stages for junior commissioned officers ( JCO) and
other ranks from 24 to 40 to prevent stagnation, increase in index of rationalisation for Colonels and Lieutenant-Colonels from 2.57 to 2.67 and extension of pay stages for Brigadiers by two. On the pension front, two recommendations approved are restoration of the percentage-based disability pension and an additional option for pension by pay fixation method in addition to the consolidation method, whichever is higher.
“Revised pay with arrears likely to be credited this month,” the instruction stated.
Arrears since Jan. ‘16 Sources said the arrears will be calculated from January 2016, the date of implementation of the pay panel recommendations, and will be credited with this month’s salary along with the revised pay. “They will deduct the 10% interim arrears given before Deepavali last year,” a
Anomalies remain However, some of the core anomalies raised by the services are yet to be addressed, top among them are Non-Functional Upgrade (NFU) and higher Military Service Pay (MSP) for JCOs. NFU entitles all officers of a batch who are not promoted to draw the salary and grade pay that the senior-most officer of their batch would get after a certain period. In a reference to that the instructions notes: “Pay comparison between defence services, all India services and Group A services must be understood in totality and explained to rank and file to dispel apprehensions about discrepancies.
‘BharatKeVeer’ portal was launched by Rajnath last month A modest ₹2.1 crore has been donated by the people to a fund set up a month ago by the Home Ministry to help families of paramilitary personnel who laid down their lives fighting extremists. About ₹60 lakh of the said amount has been received for 25 personnel massacred by Naxals at Sukma in Chhattisgarh on April 24. “Encouraging response to #BharatKeVeer website. Within a month, the portal has received more than ₹2 crore for helping martyrs’ families,” Home Minister Rajnath Singh tweeted. The app and the website ‘BharatKeVeer’ was launched last month by Mr.
BJP ielding more Muslims in Bengal
Singh along with Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar, who mooted the idea. The public can visit the portal and make the contribution to support the families of those jawans who died in the line of duty. “The monetary contributions made on the website go straight into the bank account of martyred soldier’s family,” the Home Minister said.
Pool funding Attending the launch of the app and the website, Mr. Akshay Kumar had lauded the Home Ministry for making his dream come true and providing a platform for everyone to help the next of the kin of slain soldiers financially.
PRESS TRUST OF INDIA NEW DELHI
The strategic anti-Naxal operations command headquarters of the Central Reserve Police Force has been shifted from Kolkata to the heart of the Naxal violence-hit Chhattisgarh after 37 jawans of the paramilitary force were killed by Maoists in less than two months. In a May 4 order, the CRPF directed the “immediate” transfer of the central zone command headquarters, roughly seven years after it was shifted from Raipur to Kolkata because of “logistics and connectivity issues”. The new CRPF DirectorGeneral Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar has been asked to ensure that the command starts working from Raipur before the high-level meeting of Left Wing Extremismhit States here on Monday. Kuldiep Singh, Additional
Director-General of the CRPF central zone, was airdashed to Raipur from Kolkata, and he took charge of the command on Friday, sources said. Raised on August 7, 2009, the central zone was tasked with overseeing troops deployment across the States affected by Left Wing Extremism such as West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. It was moved to Kolkata in July 2010 for want of better rail and air links for the command office, days after the Maoists killed 75 CRPF jawans and a Chhattisgarh policeman in Dantewada on April 6.
Review meet Top sources in the security establishment said the Union Home Ministry, after reviewing the April 24 ambush in Sukma district that killed 25 jawans, ordered the
CRPF to immediately shift the central zone command to Raipur, without even bothering about the logistics to be put in place. The sources said Mr. Bhatnagar himself oversaw the quick activation of the command in Raipur after attending a meeting of the Unified Command on LWE on May 5, chaired by Chief Minister Raman Singh. He later went to Sukma to make an assessment of the ambush site near Burkapal and held a ‘sainik sammelan’ (a troops meeting) to boost the morale of the jawans at a camp in the forests in south Bastar, a few km from the State’s border with Odisha, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. “Over the past two days, the new DG has travelled to the interiors of Sukma and Dantewada, the worst-affected districts. He also visited the ambush site at Bheji in Sukma,” an officer said.
Indo-Japan civil nuclear cooperation agreement is still on track: Kenji Hiramatsu Suhasini Haidar
New Delhi
ADG air-dashed to Raipur from Kolkata to take charge
Japan pitches for Chabahar port
Fund for kin of slain jawans gets ₹2.1 crore Press Trust of India
back to Chhattisgarh
“This website has been made exactly in two-andhalf months. About three months ago, this idea came in my mind while watching a documentary film on terrorists, which showed how terror leaders financially support the families of the terrorist who carry out terror acts,” Akshay had said at the inauguration. As many as 2.6 crore people have visited the site so far. In the baratkeveer.gov.in or Bharat Ke Veer portal, the general public can make donations online. The main objective of the portal is to enable general public help the families of martyrs by donating money online directly to the individual braveheart’s account or to Bharat Ke Veer corpus.
NEW DELHI
Japan is keen on collaborating with India on projects in Asia and Africa as a counter to China’s Belt and Road initiative (B&RI), Tokyo’s Ambassador to New Delhi said here, indicating Japan’s nod for Australia’s bid to join a quadrilateral for military exercises with India and the U.S.. In an exclusive interview to The Hindu, Ambassador Kenji Hiramatsu revealed that the Japanese government was in talks with Tehran and New Delhi for a role in the Chabahar port project along with India. “We are interested in connectivity projects and to make sure that this region is free and open and an important port like Chabahar is good for regional connectivity ... I can’t tell when it will materialise, but we have ex-
pressed our interest,” Mr. Hiramatsu said. India, Iran and Afghanistan signed a trilateral agreement in May 2016 to build trade and transit routes from the strategically located Iranian port into Afghanistan and Central Asia, a $20-billion investment for India, and will be seen as a rival to the ChinaPakistan Economic Corridor’s Gwadar port. Aked if Japan’s plans for connectivity in the region were being challenged by China’s 60-nation BRI, the Ambassador contended that Japan and India could offer similar projects to countries here, based on their common “principles.”
Prosperity, stability “We are also providing rather generous financing to these countries as well, to enhance prosperity and stability. We hope many of
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On the edge
Kenji Hiramatsu
these countries will also choose our projects, some of which we can do in collaboration with India,” he said, adding that Japan shared values of “democracy, freedom of navigation” with India. The Ambassador’s statement points to the growing discussions on strategic convergence between India and other “Indo-Pacific” powers for whom China’s recent economic moves like the BRI
as well as an aggressive maritime stance in the South China Sea have been a matter of concern. Backing Australia’s request to join the trilateral “Malabar” naval exercises between India, Japan and Australia, Ambassador Hiramatsu said, “We cherish the cooperation with Australia, and we have just had a Japan-Australia-India strategic dialogue and a political dialogue between these three countries, and we will have to see how it develops.” Speaking about other areas of bilateral strategic cooperation, the Japanese Ambassador said the Indo-Japan civil nuclear cooperation agreement is still on track, and has been presented for ratification in the Japanese Parliament . INTERVIEW: 쑺 PAGE 13
RTI query on Modi ad draws a blank
14% rise in Muslim nominees for civic polls
No ile on Jio, Paytm seeking nod: PMO
Suvojit Bagchi
Press Trust of India
Kolkata
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) may not have nominated any Muslim candidate in the Uttar Pradesh election, but in Bengal the party has adopted a different strategy for the coming municipality elections. It has fielded more than 14% Muslim candidates in the seats it is contesting. Seven municipalities are going to the polls on May 14. Out of these seven, four are in the hills of the north, while three are in the plains of central and south Bengal. The BJP has not put up any candidate in the four hill municipalities and left all the seats for its alliance partner, the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, while contesting in the rest of the civic bodies. The party is contesting in Raigunj municipality in North Dinajpur and Domkal in Murshidabad district in central Bengal; in south Bengal it is contesting in Pujali Municipality in South 24Parganas. In Raigunj, Domkal and Pujali, the BJP has put up 10 Muslims in a total of 70 seats, thus fielding more than 14% Muslim candidates.
Sharp jump Minority community candidates figure in seven out of the 20 seats it is contesting in Domkal and three out of 16 in Pujali. The BJP nominated fewer Muslims in both the 2014 Lok Sabha and 2016 Assembly polls in Bengal. In 2014, the BJP fielded a little over 2% Muslim candidates and in 2016 this was close to 5%. BJP’s State Minority Cell president Ali Hossain told CM YK
are planning to < > We ield more Muslims
New Delhi
for the panchayat polls in 2018 Ali Hossain BJP State minority cell president
The Hindu that they are now planning to field more Muslims in the 2018 panchayat polls “compared to Trinamool Congress and Communist Party of India(Marxist).” An extensive study on the Muslim participation in polls by late Prof. Iqbal Ansari of Aligarh Muslim University, later taken forward in Bengal by a senior researcher of Pratichi Institute, Sabir Ahamed, indicates that 46 out of the 294 Assembly constituencies of Bengal have a Muslim “concentration” of more than 50%. The figure is 40-50% in about 16 seats; 30-40 % in 33 seats. The data indicates that in about one-third of the seats the Muslim vote is a factor in Bengal, where the Muslim population is a little over 27%.
‘No change in strategy’ The State president of the BJP, Dilip Ghosh, said there is “no change of strategy in fielding more Muslim candidates” in the civic polls. “In the newly formed Domkal Municipality more than 90% voters are Muslims. In Pujali Municipality also there is a substantial Muslim vote...so we fielded Muslim candidates,” he said. The other reason is a change in the policy of the Muslims “to join the BJP.” “Earlier Muslims did not join the BJP; but now they are and hence we can field more Muslim candidates,” Mr. Ghosh said.
Miraculous escape: A van crashed into the railing of the Pamban road bridge in Rameswaram early on Sunday. Twelve pilgrims on a visit to the temple town had a miraculous escape. SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT *
The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has said it cannot divulge information on who has sought permission to use Narendra Modi’s photographs in advertisements, saying that such an exercise needs a “thorough search” and may require “disproportionate diversion of the resources”. In reply to a Right to Information (RTI) query filed by a PTI correspondent, it said such an extensive exercise would “disproportionately divert the resources of this office from the normal discharge of its functions and attract the provision of Section 7(9) of the RTI Act, 2005.” Under the Section, “information shall ordinarily be provided in the form in which it is sought unless it would disproportionately divert the resources of the
public authority or would be detrimental to the safety or preservation of the record in question.” “Collection of information, if any, will require the undertaking of a thorough search of every receipt or communication kept in all the files related to the matter,” the PMO said. The PMO was asked to give details of permissions sought by companies, trusts and individuals for using the Prime Minister’s photographs with copies of communications accepting or denying such requests. In response to another query, the PMO said it had no record of permission sought by the two companies, Reliance Jio and Paytm, for the use of Modi’s pictures in advertisements. “The information sought does not form part of the records held by this office,” it said.
Meet to draw anti-Naxal plan Press Trust of India New Delhi
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Chief Ministers of 10 Maoist violence-hit States will brainstorm on Monday over ways to tackle the situation, a fortnight after 25 CRPF men were massacred by underground guerrillas in Chhattisgarh’s Sukma. Ahead of the crucial meeting, the strategic command headquarters of CRPF’s antiNaxal operations was shifted from Kolkata to Chhattisgarh. The conclave would discuss ways to revamp intelli-
gence gathering mechanism, take a close look at ongoing operations against Naxalites, identify problem areas and devise ways to minimise casualties among the security forces, a Home Ministry official said. Altogether 37 CRPF personnel have been killed by Naxalites in worst-hit Chhattisgarh in less than two months. The April 24 assault on a CRPF road opening party that claimed lives of 25 personnel was the deadliest since the April 2010 attack in Dantewada, also in Chhattisgarh, in which 76 personnel were slain.
Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, Bihar, Maharashtra, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh CMs have been invited to the meeting which would be chaired by Mr. Singh. District magistrates and superintendents of police of 35 worst-hit districts, besides heads of paramilitary forces and intelligence agencies will attend the meeting. On top of the agenda will be the issue of re-calibrating the anti-Naxal strategy to make it more effective, and to minimise casualties, says the official. M ND-ND
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ELSEWHERE
Parties across the spectrum gear up for next battle 577 seats in France’s National Assembly, the lower house of Parliament, will be contested in two rounds on June 11 and 18 Sriram Lakshman Paris
Top Obama oicials to testify on ‘poll meddling’ WASHINGTON
Alleged Russian meddling in last year’s U.S. presidential election is set to grab headlines on Monday, when former Obama administration oicials — former deputy Attorney-General Sally Yates and former director of national intelligence James Clapper — testify before the U.S. Congress. AFP
2 suspected militants blow themselves up DHAKA
Two suspected militants on Sunday blew themselves up in “suicide blasts” when security forces raided their hideout in Bangladesh, the latest such incident amid an intensified nationwide crackdown on Islamist militants, officials said. The incident occurred near Jhenaidah district,the Daily Star reported. PTI
North Korea says it has detained a U.S. citizen SEOUL
North Korea said on Sunday it has detained another American citizen for suspicion of acts against the state, which if confirmed would make him the fourth U.S. citizen to be held by Pyongyang amid diplomatic tensions. Kim Hak Song was detained on May 6 the KCNA news agency said. REUTERS
Miners at disaster site besiege Rouhani’s car TEHRAN
Angry coal miners besieged a car carrying Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday after he visited the site of a deadly mine explosion in the northern Golestan province in which at least 35 miners died. This was a rare protest targeting the nation’s top elected official as he campaigns for re-election. AP
As the French elections wrap up, political parties across the spectrum are gearing up for the next battle, this time for the 577 seats in National Assembly, the lower house of Parliament, which will be contested in two rounds on June 11 and 18.
Support from Assembly Much of what President-elect Emmanuel Macron can achieve will depend on the support he can get in the Assembly. Usually the electorate gives the President they have elected a Parliamentary majority, and the presidential and parliamentary elections were synchronised in 2000 to support this outcome. However, this year has been anything but usual, with neither the Socialists nor Republicans, France’s two mainstream parties, making it to the final round of the presidential race. While these parties had started announcing their assembly candidate lists as early as 2016, the story has been different for the newer groups. The far-left movement of Jean-Luc Melenchon, La France Insoumise, has not finalised its list yet and is racing to do that, Olivier Tonneau, who will run on the Insoumise ticket to represent French expats in several northern European countries including the U.K., told The Hindu. There are 11 expat constituencies globally. En Marche ! has also fielded just a handful of candidates but has said it will contest each of the 577 seats. Mr. Macron has said half his candidates will be women, and the other half will equally feature both civil society and local government. “You can have two situations, he will convincingly get a majority on his own… if
82 Chibok schoolgirls released from captivity 5 Boko Haram leaders let go in return Associated Press Abuja
Five Boko Haram commanders were released in exchange for the freedom of 82 Chibok schoolgirls kidnapped by the extremist group three years ago, a Nigerian government official said Sunday, as the girls were expected to meet with the country’s president and their families. The confirmation of the prisoner swap came a day after the young women were liberated. The official spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak to reporters on the matter. There was no immediate comment about the exchange from the Nigerian presidency or Boko Haram, which has links to the Islamic State terror group. President Muhammadu Buhari’s office said Saturday that “some” Boko Haram suspects in detention had been released for the freedom of the schoolgirls, but
it did not give details. The young women were flown Sunday by military helicopters from northeastern Nigeria to Abuja, the capital, where they were expected to meet President Buhari in the evening.
Rebuilding lives The International Committee of the Red Cross, which along with the Swiss government mediated the Nigerian government’s negotiations with Boko Haram, said the girls soon would meet with their families. “They will face a long and difficult process to rebuild their lives after the indescribable horror and trauma they have suffered at the hands of Boko Haram,” said Pernille Ironside, acting representative of UNICEF Nigeria. Authorities say 113 schoolgirls remain missing from the group of 276 abducted in April 2014. Girls who escaped early on said some of their classmates had died from illness.
he doesn’t win an overall majority he can enter into an alliance, German-style, after the elections, with other parties on the right and the left,” Ravi Viswanathan, a Singapore-based investor who is seeking an En Marche ! ticket told The Hindu. Mr. Viswanathan, who was born in Puducherry, has applied to run for the expat constituency that covers India, China and Russia. If Mr. Macron cannot obtain a majority in Parliament or enter into a coalition agreement, he will have to call the majority party to form the government, headed by a prime minister it nominates. This situation, called cohabitation has happened just three times in the Fifth Republic, most recently when President Jacques Chirac of the right had a socialist Prime Minister, Lionel Jospin between 1997-2002.
Media boycott Meanwhile, around 15 news outlets said they were barred from the election night gathering for French far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen and her supporters. Ms. Le Pen’s party said they were turned away because of a lack of space at the venue in Vincennes, just east of Paris. Bloomberg News, Le Monde, Liberation and L’Humanite newspapers, and the newsweekly L’Obs said they would boycott the event out of “solidarity” with the other outlets. “In solidarity with our counterparts, the editors of Liberation... have decided not to attend,” the paper’s deputy editor Johan Hufnagel said, calling the snub “anti-democratic”. Le Monde’s Editor-in-chief Luc Bronner said the move, coming “shows a poor concept of freedom of the press”. (With AFP inputs)
Why French PIOs back the centre Sriram Lakshman Paris
Since France does not collect census data based on ethnicity, statistics on how French citizens of Indian descent vote in the mainland are scarce or not credible. Nevertheless, some insights may be gained through anecdotes. There are a significant number of French people of Indian origin (PIOs) from Puducherry, many of whom live in France and some residents of Puducherry.
Momentous occasion: French President-elect Emmanuel Macron (left), poses for a selie with supporters of his En Marche ! political movement after voting in Le Touquet, northern France, on Sunday. (Below) Leader of the far-right Front National party Marine Le Pen walks out of a polling booth in Henin-Beaumont, north-western France, while polling station staf (right) wait for voters in Marseille in southern part of the country. AFP *
Family ties Those in Puducherry are generally loyal to the Republicans, the heirs of General Charles de Gaulle, with the Socialistsalso gaining some traction, Ms. Yamouna David, a Puducherry-born advocate in France, told The Hindu. The voting preferences of those of Indian descent are also influenced by the voting in Puducherry because of family ties, according to Ms. David. General de Gaulle was the founder of the Fifth Republic and its first President, and prior to that, leader of France Libre, the government in exile in London during 1940-44, when France was occupied by Nazi Germany. Known among the older Pondicherriens as ‘Papa De Gaulle’, he granted French citizenship to all those in Pondicherry shortly after World War II in recognition of their support to France Libre. In general, Pondicherriens
Indian-American 50 Afghan soldiers killed in border clashes: Pakistan doctor shot dead Five checkposts also destroyed, says top Pak. commander
Family rules out hate crime Press Trust of India
Press Trust of India Islamabad
The Pakistani Army said on Sunday it had killed over 50 Afghan soldiers near the border between the two countries, as tensions between the two forces escalated after clashes earlier this week killed 10 Pakistani civilians. Major General Nadeem Ahmed said more than 100 Afghan soldiers were also injured in the retaliatory attack by the army to the firing by Afghan forces on Friday in the Balochistan province. Maj. Gen. Ahmed, however, told reporters he was “not happy” about the incident as “Afghans are Muslims, our brothers”. Afghan and Pakistani security forces have been fighting since Friday when 10 Pakistani civilians were killed and more than 40 people, including women and children, were injured in in firing by Afghan forces on Pakistani census workers
and the troops escorting them at border villages in Balochistan. The incident marked the latest round of escalation of border tensions between the two countries, which often accuse each other of sheltering terrorists who launch deadly cross— border attacks on each other’s soils. Both the countries deny the accusations. Separately, Commander of the Southern Command. Lt. Gen. Amir Riaz, said the Pakistan Army destroyed five Afghan checkposts. “Anyone who tries to make Pakistan’s territory disputed will face similar consequences,” he told reporters during a visit to Chaman, where the Friday clashes took place.
Border crossing Asked about the closure of the border crossing point Bab-e-Dosti, Gen. Riaz said it would remain shut unless the situation improves in the
area. “The border will remain closed until Afghanistan changes its behaviour,” he said. On Saturday, Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said his country would respond instantly and effectively to the attacks on the census team. Major Gen Ahmed said on Sunday that Pakistan had informed the Afghan side about the census team in border villages but their border police sneaked into Pakistan area and “used locals as human shields so that they could make a position for attacks”. He said the census had been going on in the border areas for four days until April 29 when the Afghan forces started to hinder the process. He claimed that Pakistan tried to resolve the issue through talks but the Afghan forces resorted to force first. But the Frontier Corps secured the area Afghan soldiers had infiltrated on Friday.
Washington
A 32-year-old Indian-American doctor has been shot dead under mysterious circumstances in a car in the U.S. State of Michigan. Dr. Rakesh Kumar, who worked in the Urology Department of the Henry Ford Hospital, was found dead on the passenger seat of a car in a rest area, some 90 miles out of Detroit, on late Thursday evening. The police are investigating the case to ascertain the cause of his death.
No suspect The family members of Dr. Kumar say they do not suspect anyone and have ruled out the possibility of it being an incident of hate crime. “We do not know [the reason for his murder]. They [the police]are yet to find out,” his father Narendra Kumar, a former president of the influential American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin,
told PTI. “We do not suspect anything. We do not think, it was a hate crime,” said a shocked Mr. Kumar. Dr. Kumar was a medical graduate from the Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences in Kochi. When he did not show up for his work, a hospital doctor called his father to enquire about him. “This was quite unusual,” the father said. He said he made several phone calls and sent text messages to his son, but there was no response. Mr. Kumar then went to his son’s apartment and called the police when he did not find him there. After hours of search, the police found the dead body in the passenger seat of a car at a rest area. By late night on Thursday, the body was identified as that of Dr. Rakesh Kumar. There has been a surge in hate crimes against the Hindu and Sikh communities after Donald Trump became U.S. President.
Israel-Germany row shines spotlight on anti-occupation group Breaking the Silence consists of ex-soldiers-turned-whistleblowers who view the subjugation of Palestinians as an existential threat to Israel Associated Press TEL AVIV
Former Israeli combat soldiers who were thrust into the centre of a recent diplomatic row between Israel and Germany, say the sudden international spotlight has given them a bigger stage to speak out against Israel’s 50-year rule over millions of Palestinians. Breaking the Silence is a group of former soldiersturned-whistleblowers who view Israel’s open-ended occupation of lands sought for a Palestinian state as an existential threat to their country. Since 2004, the group has collected testimony from more than 1,100 fellow soldiers who describe the dark side of that rule, including seemingly routine mistreatCM YK
ment of Palestinian civilians stripped of basic rights. The veterans hope such accounts by former fighters will carry weight and spark public debate about the moral price of the occupation.
Group of ‘subversives’ Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and top officials in his nationalist government have a starkly different view. They have branded Breaking the Silence as foreign-funded subversives who are trying to defame Israel and its military. Most recently, Mr. Netanyahu even seemed willing to rattle Israel’s relationship with key European ally Germany to score points against Breaking the Silence, which has 16 paid staffers, several
dozen volunteers and an annual budget of about $2 million. Two weeks ago, he said he would not receive German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel if the visitor stuck to plans to meet with Breaking the Silence. Mr. Gabriel chose the soldiers instead. Mr. Netanyahu, who also serves as Foreign Minister, said that shunning visitors who meet with Breaking the Silence is now official policy. The fallout continues this week. The dispute has cast a shadow over what would otherwise have been a routine Israel visit by German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Media reports suggest Mr. Steinmeier will praise the group during a speech on Sunday, but not
an interview at the group’s office, tucked away in an old walk-up in a grubby industrial area of Tel Aviv. “On the other hand, it gives us more stages to speak about it,” said Mr. Shaul, citing more media attention and public speaking invitations that draw larger audiences.
Rights denied: A photo released by Breaking the Silence in 2010 allegedly shows an Israeli soldier pointing his rile at the face of a blindfolded detainee at an undisclosed location. AFP *
meet with its representatives to avoid another spat with Mr. Netanyahu. Yehuda Shaul, a cofounder of Breaking the Silence, said the recent atten-
tion has been a mixed blessing. The focus on the diplomatic dust-up “diverts a lot of attention from the real issue, what goes on in the occupied territories,” he said in
Bitterly divided Israelis have been bitterly divided over what to do with the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem, lands they captured in June 1967. Many Israelis support the idea of Palestinian statehood in principle, but believe it’s not safe to cede war-won territories now. Fears were stoked by three Israel-Hamas wars since 2008 and an es-
calation of regional conflicts. Meanwhile, partition is increasingly difficult, with 600,000 Israelis already living on occupied lands and settlements expanding steadily. Mr. Shaul said he and his comrades are the true patriots, not those clinging to occupied territories. “I believe Jews have a right to self-determination in the Holy Land. But I refuse to accept that the only way I will be allowed to implement my right to self-determination is if I strip my neighbours, the Palestinians, of the exact same right I demand for myself,” he said. “A permanent occupation is the most antiZionist position one can ever have because it says we are doomed to live in a sin.”
in France tend to remain with the centre — either with the Republicans or the Socialists — although over time, as the population has integrated with the general French population, its voting preferences too have expanded across the spectrum, Ms. David said, adding that she herself voted for far-left candidate Jean-Luc Melechon in the first round of voting on April 23. “I do believe we are in a world that cannot carry on without having an explosion of one type or another…the only political party that said this was a state of social and environmental emergency was La France Insoumise [Mr. Melenchon’s group],” Ms. David said.
With the Republicans There are of course those who immigrated to France from India for employment or higher education and not as a direct consequence of citizenship practices of colonial governments. This group tends to have higher average incomes than the more economically diverse Pondicherriens, according to India-born Vinod Khosla, who holds a doctoral-level degree in engineering and is the founder of the Indian Professionals Association in France. Usually this group too has voted for the Republicans, said Mr. Khosla. “In this election they are for Mr. Macron.”
CDU thumps rivals in regional poll Reuters BERLIN/KIEL
German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives won a clear victory over their Social Democrat rivals in a vote in the northern State of Schleswig-Holstein on Sunday, boosting her prospects of winning a national election in September. Ms. Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) Party fetched 33% of the vote in Schleswig-Holstein, up from 30.8% in the last election there in 2012, an exit poll for broadcaster ARD showed. The Social Democrats won 26%, down from 30.4%. The result leaves the CDU short of sufficient support to rule alone in the State, but means the Social Democrats cannot continue to govern in coalition with the Greens and the South Schleswig Party, which represents the ethnic Danish minority. “This is a clear mandate to become State premier of Schleswig Holstein,” said Jens Spahn, a senior CDU member. The CDU’s victory means it has now beaten the left-leaning Social Democratic Party (SPD) in two regional elections this year.
‘Schulz effect’ fails The SPD enjoyed a revival in the opinion polls early this year after nominating former European Parliament president Martin Schulz in January as its candidate to run against Ms. Merkel. But the “Schulz effect” failed to deliver in the western State of Saarland, where his party flopped in a March poll. The result in Schleswig-Holstein is an even bigger blow for the Social Democrats because they have been the main ruling party there since 2012. A third regional vote, in North Rhine-Westphalia next Sunday, offers the CDU a chance to defeat the incumbent SPD again and build momentum in her bid to win a fourth term. M ND-ND
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IN BRIEF
ADB eyes Delhi as regional hub Bank’s president says work has already started on procurement, deploying staf Suresh Seshadri YOKOHAMA
FDI momentum may slow this year: HSBC NEW DELHI
India’s Foreign direct Investment (FDI) inlow momentum may slow down this year and exports too may not revive with “full gusto” as domestic bottlenecks remain, HSBC said in a research note. Although higher world growth is likely to buoy exports, a strengthening rupee and worsening domestic bottlenecks could limit the increase, the report said. PTI
War on NPAs to push fund raising by banks NEW DELHI
The Union government’s all-out war against nonperforming assets (NPA) will help in cleaning balance sheets of state-owned banks and expedite fund raising via markets to meet the global Basel III capital adequacy norms, according to an oicial said. “As NPAs get resolved, the balance sheets of public sector banks will get better, improving the valuation of their stocks,” a senior Finance Ministry oicial said. PTI
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has operationally started working to create several regional hubs including New Delhi as one for South Asia, the bank’s President Takehiko Nakao said on Sunday. “We are now trying to make several places including Delhi a kind of hub for the region, not only that country but the region, several like Delhi for South Asian countries and Kazakhstan for Central Asia,” Mr. Nakao said at a press conference marking the conclusion of the ADB’s 50th annual summit here. “We have already starting out posting people, staff for private sector operations and also for procurement. We have already started working on the idea of a hub but we have not announced this is a hub but we are outposting more people.” Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, India’s Governor to the ADB, had earlier urged
NEW DELHI
Assocham has suggested creation of a Stressed Assets Fund with active participation from cash-rich public sector companies to tackle the problem of non-performing assets. The suggestion comes at a time when the Centre, last week, empowered the central bank to ask banks to initiate insolvency proceedings to recover bad loans and promised more steps to solve the crisis. PTI
CM YK
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the multilateral lender to establish a hub in New Delhi, so that it could expedite lending to development projects across the region.
‘Reduce time lag’ Observing that the “time required to approve a proposal as well as the time lag between approval and disbursement of loans can be further reduced,” Mr. Jaitley had stressed that speedier financing would help lend an edge to the ADB. “I am sure
you all would agree that speed is what will keep ADB ahead of others. In this context, I would strongly urge the bank to set up a regional hub in New Delhi for South Asia region so that a majority of the proposals could be processed there speedily.” The ADB, given its objective of combating poverty, also needed to sharpen its focus on affordable renewable energy, and in the urban development context, both drinking water and san-
Infra contracts for DMIC project to be awarded soon
Tea Board mulls poll to boost intake
Two industrial zones to attract investments worth $11 billion
Indrani Dutta KOLKATA
Lalatendu Mishra
Assocham moots fund to tackle NPAs
Reaching out: ADB is also planning a regional hub in Kazakhstan for Central Asia, says Takehiko Nakao. AP
itation, Mr. Jaitley said. “The major challenges remain in the realm of user charges and financial sustainability of urban bodies,” he observed, adding that the bank could leverage its expertise to promote models that would focus on these challenges. Mr. Jaitley also exhorted the lender to step up its support for climate resilient agriculture and social infrastructure including health and education. Mr. Nakao told reporters that the ADB had approved a new procurement framework as part of its efforts to reform the speed of procurement and project implementation. “We will continue to strengthen our resident missions by providing them greater authority, and out-posting more staff,” he added. India, is a founding member of the ADB and its fourth-largest shareholder. The bank's current portfolio of financing in the country includes 87 sovereign loans totalling $13.2 billion.
MUMBAI
Infrastructure development contracts worth ₹1,400 crore are up for grabs at the upcoming Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor industrial township project in Maharashtra. Aurangabad Industrial Township Ltd (AITL) has kick-started development work at the upcoming Bidkin industrial zone near Aurangabad. The contracts to build infrastructure such as roads, bridges and telecommunications will be awarded in 15 days, a senior govern-
ment official said. “We are at an advanced stage of awarding the contracts,” said Gajanan Patil, joint managing director, AITL. “We want the first phase of the Bidkin part of the project to be completed by 2020.”
Industrial zones AITL, a special purpose vehicle set up by Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation and Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor Development Corporation is developing two industrial zones at Shendra and Bidkin
near Aurangabad to attract investments worth $11 billion. The two locations are being developed as one industrial smart city called ‘AURIC’. Infrastructure development at Shendra has picked up and infrastructure work is scheduled to end by 2018. The total project cost of AURIC is estimated at ₹11,000 crore. Of this, ₹3,000 crore will be spent on land acquisition. The remaining ₹8,000 crore is being invested in developing infrastructure.
The Tea Board of India is planning to conduct a survey on the domestic consumption of tea in order to formulate future production plans, and to devise a strategy to promote domestic consumption. “In order to formulate the future production plans to align with demand of tea consumption domestically and to boost domestic consumption, it is felt necessary to have a survey on domestic consumption,” the Tea Board said. India is the world’s second largest tea producer.
INTERVIEW| KENJI HIRAMATSU
‘Land acquisition is the biggest problem here’ ‘Japanese irms must take up projects directly with States’ issues along the way. Has that slowed down the DMIC?
Suhasini Haidar New Delhi
The atmosphere for India-Japan business ties is continuously improving, Japanese Ambassador to India Kenji Hiramatsu said, although he does agree that it is investment, not trade, that is increasing at present.
PM Abe will be visiting India later this year as part of our annual high-level exchanges. What will be the focus of bilateral ties this year? The important thing is to diligently follow up on what we have already agreed. Japan’s continuous focus is on doubling investments as our PMs agreed a few years ago, and we have pledged about 3.5 trillion Japanese Yen in public and private financing coming to India, so we have to take every possible measure to ensure our targets will be achieved. ■
In 2014, the Centre announced a special desk to streamline the way for Japanese investment. Has that worked? Also, despite the levels of investment, there is a sense that the pace of Japanese decisions on investment is slow… Japanese investors understand the importance of the rapidly growing Indian market, and we have excellent engineers and workforce and hi-tech and finance possibilities. The Japan desk is a one-stop kind of place that connects investors to their counterparts. So the business environment here is improving. You may think that Japanese companies sometimes take time in reaching a decision, are cautious. This is not just for the In■
Yes. On the DMIC we had expected the projects to be implemented more rapidly. Some of the investors are interested in township projects facilitated by the government, some in the dedicated freight corridor project. We encountered difficulties in acquiring land, but after a lot of discussion we could come up with some solutions. In the last 1-2 years, the DMIC project is getting energised.
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investors < > Japanese understand the importance of the rapidly growing Indian market dian market, but globally, there is this kind of tendency. But if they promise, they keep their promise. I hope Indian business leaders understand this, but I do agree that we should take some risks and have more speedy decision-making.
What about projects themselves? Is land acquisition the biggest issue on this side? I think the situation is improving, but when we try to implement large projects we do find that land acquisition is the biggest problem. So we recommend that Japanese companies should look at “investment township” projects directly with state governments who can then facilitate the land acquisition, for SEZs. For huge infrastructure projects like Railway projects too, it is for the state governments to ensure that land acquisition goes ahead smoothly. Specifically on the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor, Japan decided to focus on individual projects rather than fund the corridor as a whole due to land acquisition ■
You sound optimistic, but if I may speak about trade figures, which have declined since a peak of $18.5 billion in 2012 to about $15 billion today. If things are getting better, why is trade declining? Firstly, investment figures are clearly increasing, and they help to make in India and with employment in India as well as in transferring technology. I think there are many products, spare parts that are now increasingly being made in India, which is why trade is declining. Nevertheless the increase in investments from Japan is dramatic and Japan is the biggest investor in the manufacturing sector. In service and retail sectors, the investment is expanding.
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Will there be more opportunities for Indian IT professionals in Japan? Japan is now a declining population, and ageing population. We would like to attract a well-qualified workforce from overseas, like Indian IT professionals, and we welcome them.
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14 BUSINESS REVIEW
NOIDA/DELHI
THE HINDU
MONDAY, MAY 8, 2017
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Where energy is waiting to be tapped The intermittent nature of solar and wind power has triggered exploration of unusual sources of electricity M. Ramesh CHENNAI
Viewed against the backdrop of the energy history of the country, the main-streaming of wind and solar has been rather sudden. Just three years ago, few would have thought of them as meaningful sources of energy. Today, they account for 7% of the country’s electricity production — small still, but firmly set to grow, by at least ten percentage points in the next five years. Coal, on the other hand, while still being the dominant player, is on the back foot. Apart from being a source of pollution and global warming, it is also a water guzzler – in ten years, India’s coal-fired power plants will need 12,000 million litres each day, thrice as much as Mumbai consumes daily now. With these issues, there is little reason to believe in the fuel’s resurgence as a dominant force. There is a lot more juice left in wind and solar than has been squeezed out today. Newer materials such as perovskites that can replace silicon are showing up, giving solar panels more bang for the buck; the cost of offshore wind is falling dramatically so as to open up literally new areas — the seas. But solar is a daytime source, wind is seasonal, and both are on-off energy generators. Even with the advances in storage technology, these two sources cannot replace coal completely. It is unlikely that they have enough power to replace coal. If they can’t, what can? The search for clean energy has not stopped with wind and solar. A phalanx of sources is waiting to be tapped into. Some—like Helium 3 from the moon—are on the very edge of science. But there are others that are not so far away. Swing the searchlight around, you see three that are more promising that the rest.
Hydrogen The gas’ time is truly beginning now, even if only for the reason that goes hand-inhand with renewables. Electricity from wind and solar can be used to produce hydrogen, which can be stored. Also, hydrogen can be a good grid stabiliser — it can
EXPLAINER
From the deep blue sea: An ‘always-on’ source of power, tidal turbines, as above, are turned by ocean currents and power is exported onshore. U.K.-based Atlantis Resources claims to have 1,000 MW of such projects underway. GE RENEWABLE ENERGY *
be used to fill gaps in the flow of power from wind and solar. “In a few years, hydrogen will compete with batteries,” says Dr. R.K. Malhotra, President, Hydrogen Association of India told The Hindu. Japan is ahead in hydrogen use, but more for automotive applications, with around 90 hydrogen filling stations to serve fuel cell powered cars made by Toyota. “It is a lot easier to use in stationary engines for power generation than in combustion engines,” said Dr. Malhotra. But fuel cells are a lot more efficient, easier and cleaner way than burning it in combustion engines. Fuel cells are devices that split the hydrogen atoms into protons and electrons and get the electrons to flow through a circuit — flow of electrons is electricity. Smaller fuel cells can be used in vehicles and in applications such as powering telecom towers — a Bengaluru-based company
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FATCA: Deadline, procedure and details case of FATCA. The agreement came into effect on August 31, 2015.
Sanjay Vijayakumar CHENNAI
Your bank account and other financial transactions like mutual funds need to be compliant with The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). Non-compliance would lead to blocking of accounts.
Which financial transactions need FATCA compliance? 쐍 The compliance is needed for bank accounts, mutual fund, national pension scheme and other such transactions. The compliance is needed to be done for all individual and entity accounts opened from July 1, 2014 to August 31, 2015.
What is FATCA? 쐍 The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) is a United States federal law that requires United States persons, including U.S. citizens who live outside the United States, to report their financial accounts held outside of the U.S., and requires foreign financial institutions to report to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) about their U.S. clients.
What do you need to submit to be FATCA compliant and how can it be done? 쐍 Individuals and entities need to provide details of their country of birth, country of citizenship, country of residence for tax purposes, among others, to the respective financial institutions. The self certification can be done online for bank accounts and mutual funds. The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority has said it would come out with revised guidelines on FATCA shortly.
Why is FATCA compliance necessary in India? 쐍 India had signed an agreement with the U.S. on July 9, 2015 which enables automatic exchange of financial information between India and the U.S. The agreement provides that Indian Financial Institutions will provide the necessary information to the Indian tax authority i.e. Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), which information will then be transmitted to the U.S. automatically in the
What will happen if I am not FATCA compliant? 쐍 In a press statement issued on April 11, 2017, the Finance Ministry said the process should be completed by April 30, 2017; otherwise the transactions would be blocked in the accounts for the said period. However, experts point out that on ground, the accounts have not been blocked; even if they have been, one can still provide self certification and unblock the accounts.
CM YK
called Intelligent Energy is selling such products. Larger fuel cells, or stacks of them, can used for electricity for the grid. Hydrogen is not far off. French company, Alstom, has just come up with a fuel cell-powered passenger train, Coradia iLint. The rise of hydrogen is impeded only by the cost of the gas, but experts such as Dr. Malhotra expect the cost to decline when demand, and production, increase.
Ocean energy There are three subsets of this 24x7 energy source — waves (including up-down bob of the water surface), tides and underwater currents. A few commercial scale projects have come up, but there are dozens of pilots. There are many tricks to steal energy from the oceans. For instance, the Swansea Bay project, U.K., is to build a U-shaped wall — or, breakwater — on the coast
where there is a tide, with the mouth open to the sea and place an array of turbines along the mouth. Water comes in when the tide flows and goes out when it ebbs — it turns the turbines both times.
can < > Hydrogen help ill gaps in the low of wind and solar power Dr. R.K. Malhotra President, Hydrogen Association of India
Another U.K. company, AIM-listed Atlantis Resources, places ‘underwater windmills’ on the sea bed — the turbines are turned by the flow of currents. The company claims to have 1,000 MW of projects underway, including its marquee 400 MW MeyGen project in Scotland and another 150 MW one in Indonesia. Atlantis Resources is no stranger to India — Gujarat State Power Corporation has an agreement with it to build
a 250 MW tidal energy project. Tidal energy is not distant — companies like Alstom and GE have announced manufacture of the turbines. The bobbing movement of the waters is another source of energy. Of the many companies that have tried to tap it, Wave Star Energy, (whose principal shareholders are the Clausen brothers, the owners of the Danish company Danfoss) seems closest to commercialisation. The technology is basically to let buoys to move up and down, compressing air or pumping water which could then turn the turbines.
Cold fusion Once dismissed as snake oil solution, energy from fusion of sub-atomic particles at near room temperatures has received a pep ever since an Italian engineer called Andrea Rossi came up in 2011 with a device that he claimed produces more energy than it consumes. His ‘E-Cat’ has since been at the heart of a
huge technical and commercial controversy and the subject of a courtroom battle with an American company called Industrial Heat. The book ‘An Impossible Invention’ by Mats Lewan, is on the E-Cat. Observers are divided into people who admire Mr. Rossi and those who think he is a fraud. But his E-Cat, which is a small box with a pinch of nickel, hydrogen and lithium, has rejuvenated the cold fusion talk. While Mr. Rossi has kept the workings of his machine secret, a group of scientists were able to replicate it in a now-famous experiment carried out in 2014 in Lugano, Switzerland, and found it working, though they said they did not know how. Later, a respected Russian scientist, Alexander Parkhimov, repeated the experiment and reported success. Alongside, a few companies in the U.S. have long been labouring over different forms of cold fusion. Leading among them are Brillouin Energy and Brilliant Light Power. Their method is to tinker with atoms to release energy. Brillouin’s is to fuse two hydrogen atoms into a helium atom, while Brilliant works on nudging the electron in the hydrogen atom closer to the proton — both process release energy. Cold fusion, as low energy nuclear reaction is commonly called, is not yet established science, but there is too much happening for it to be unreal. Recently, the Anthropocene Institute brought out a list of 100 entities, half of them commercial R&D that have raised $250 million. In India, Dr. Mahadeva Srinivasan, a former BARC scientist, has made it his life mission to get Indian nuclear establishment interested in ‘low energy nuclear reactions’, to no avail. However, Dr. Srinivasan said he believed that LENR is a source of very cheap, clean energy and India should seize it. Commercial hydrogen, ocean energy and LENR could be a decade away, but they are all happening technologies that have the potential to replace coal. Extremely cheap, clean power is no longer unthinkable.
GUEST COLUMN
Time for a digital Indian Rupee Financial inclusion is an attainable goal Ajeya Singh
With a vision to place India on the digital India landscape, the country is beginning to understand transformative agenda like demonetisation by the government. Digital transactions have soared with Net banking, credit cards, digital wallets, payment gateways, Aadhaar pay, PPI, UPI, payments bank and BHIM since demonetisation. These are radical initiatives that used technology to ensure wider acceptance. But such formats come with their own limitations and security concerns. In India, where more than 95% transactions are cash-driven, the rural and semi-urban populations have not had complete inclusion in this financial methodology. Hence, it is imperative to introduce digital fiat currency as part of the remonetisation of the economy for monetary sovereignty and policy effectiveness. The digital fiat currency, which we have proposed to the government, works in the same way as do notes and coins. By virtue of its digital nature, it has the potential to be the most financially inclusive instrument. Any person in India can hold it, transfer it and use it to settle debts, be it a farmer living in Gahmar village in U.P. or a salaried individual in Mumbai, with or without a bank account.
Anonymous users The validity of paper notes and coins is independent of the holder. The two persons transacting do not need to know each other’s names nor an ID because the trust is built into the payment instrument. The transaction is final as soon as cash changes hands. There is no need for subsequent settlement between banks. It is our proposal that the government issue a digital fiat currency, titled digital India Rupee, which would bear the same characteristics as does the cash Rupee. It would be legal tender and accepted throughout India. It would be backed by the
Government. The amount of digital India Rupee in circulation would be controlled as are notes and coins today in circulation. It would be used by and exchanged between any digital payment schemes and would have full interoperability. It would have two additional advantages over paper notes and coins. It would transcend time and space, i.e. it could be transacted remotely between two parties. And, it would be counterfeitproof! First, the advanced technology would prevent any fraud. Also, any counterfeit with a single rupee could be detected immediately without hurting circulation. The digital currency would bring more innovation, competition, better consumer protection, more consumer choices, more open access and better regulatory transparency. It would create a ‘firewall’ between banking and digital payment systems, protecting bank accounts and information on digital systems.
digital India < > The Rupee would bear the same features that cash now does Since digital India Rupee would be a centrally-issued sovereign currency, it would possess immense trust, security and control. It would also bring transparency on black money, tax evasion and other illicit activities under the legal framework. Also, with the negligible logistics costs and benefits of riding on existing infrastructure, the cost of digital India Rupee would be marginal. India’s cash-to-GDP ratio is 12.04%. The transition from physical notes and coins to a digital currency could drastically bring this down at par with the rest of the world. Other countries have explored this for their national digital vision. Even Sweden, that sees low cash usage, is debating issuance of a digital currency and is eyeing a decision on its ‘ekrona’ in the next two years. (The writer is the former head of Credit Suisse India and Lehman Brothers India)
INTERVIEW| VISHWAVIR AHUJA
‘We didn’t want to compete with big banks’ The strategy is to focus on inancial inclusion, development banking and technology, says the MD & CEO of RBL Bank The thinking was that we should not go for IPO till the second phase [was over]. IPO was the first step of the third phase. The strategy was to build a universal bank and not a niche bank.
Manojit Saha MUMBAI
RBL Bank, which came out with an IPO in 2016, has seen healthy investor interest making the lender one of the 10 most-valuable banks in terms of market capitalisation. Vishwavir Ahuja, managing director & CEO of the bank shared the bank’s Vision 2020 in an interview. Excerpts:
The bank has been recording high business growth, much above the industry. Two years ago, the Reserve Bank of India had raised some concerns over the high growth. Is the regulator comfortable now with the business strategy of the bank? 쐍 Yes, but not any more. The IPO has changed a lot of that things. The overall comfort level of the regulator with us became much better following the IPO. We are extremely well capitalised now. The IPO happened last year. Investors seems happy as the stock performance indicates… 쐍 Right now, version 3 of the bank is in place, where we say we have to take each business to a threshold of scale, operating profitability, and efficiency. So we have put in place the vision 2020. Part of the reason the markets are giving us high marks is that we stated our vision statement in numbers and in concrete terms and we outlined our strategy and we are executing well. So, investors have clarity. And, in this tough credit environment, where amid slow economic growth there
< >
The NPA number went up last quarter due to one account. If you take that one name out, our NPA numbers have actually improved on a sequential basis.
are huge problems of balance sheet impairment, we are not impacted adversely. It’s not that we are immune, it’s not that we are not impacted at all, but we have run the shop in a manner where the impact was minimal.
What are the main objectives of version 1 and 2? 쐍 IPO was a major milestone and turning point for the bank. Much of the time
prior to that was about transitioning from a very old-age, under-invested, small bank. The task in the first phase (the first three years from 2010) was to modernise the bank, bring in technology, skills, controls, systems etc. The second phase was about building the strategic positioning. The second phase was to get it ready, putting the building blocks in place, in terms of long-term sustainability.
How do you differentiate your strategy from other tech-savvy private sector banks? 쐍 There are two things we have done differently. One is financial inclusion and development banking, which many banks were not doing. This is basically micro lending and micro banking which includes micro insurance and self-help group lending which we started in 2011. This is something micro finance institutions were doing but not the banks — the historical legacy banks — they were not committed to this space. I would say we have a small finance bank sitting inside our bank. The other area where we differentiated was in technology. This, again, we started in the hinterland of India with doorstep banking to deliver micro services. We have created 70,000 customer service points where lending does not happen but services happen, mainly remittances. So, this is a payments bank model. These two we did before the differentiated bank licence regime started. So our strategy was to not compete head-on with the bigger banks. Do you see the corporateretail lending mix changing in the next few years? 쐍 In the fourth quarter the mix was 55% corporate and
45% retail while for the year as a whole it was 60:40. By 2020, we want to make it 50:50. Retail is growing faster now.
But, RBL Bank still has a long way to go in improving visibility and acceptability... 쐍 Surely, we are conscious [of it]. But we are seeing much better visibility compared to the past. This is one of the very positive impacts of our IPO. Post IPO, the branding and visibility of the bank have got a major boost. We had 14 lakhs retail applications for the retail IPO. Of that 30-40% have become customers of the bank. There is direct relationship between the number of branches and current and savings account (Casa) deposits. Our Casa ratio is 22% while branches are only 250. When I have a 1,000 branches our Casa ratio will be definitely above 30%. So, you plan to open more branches... 쐍 We are very clear that we will open as many branches as we can self fund. I will not invest and say, ‘I will bear the loss for two years’. I am not saying this is unimportant, it is still important in the big game. We will take it to 1,000 branches, gradually. By 2020? 쐍 No, not even then. May be 500-600 by 2020. 1,000 is the ultimate threshold. The bank’s gross NPA went up in the fourth quarter? Do you see asset quality worsening further?
This is an area of extreme focus and attention for us. The NPA number went up last quarter due to one account, [because of ] which other banks are also impacted. If you take that one name out, our NPA numbers have actually improved on a sequential basis. Our gross NPA ratio is now at 1.2%, and I am not worried about the number. Asset quality is improving for the large-corporate and mid-corporate segments. I expect gross NPAs to remain in the range of 1.21.3%. There is stress in some pockets of the microfinance portfolio. There too our numbers are better than the industry average.
쐍
You had some plans to raise capital? How much do you want to raise and by when? 쐍 Yes, we need capital for our growth needs. I still have 13.7% capital adequacy ratio but I am raising more capital. We haven’t frozen the numbers but it would be ₹1,000 crore plus. It could by by way of QIP or any other instruments. This could happen in the first half of the financial year. There were some reports you are planning to acquire Bharat Financial (formerly SKS Micro Finance)… 쐍 No…nothing is on the table at all. Are you looking to acquire any other MFI? 쐍 Right now, nothing is on the table. I am growing the business at 45-55% per anum, why do I need to acquire? M ND-ND
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THE HINDU
SPORT 15
NOIDA/DELHI
MONDAY, MAY 8, 2017
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Knight Riders humiliate RCB Team for CT to be picked today Narine equals record for fastest ifty as openers go berserk in PowerPlay
BCCI decides not to send legal notice to ICC for the time being Uthra Ganesan
Shreedutta Chidananda
NEW DELHI
BENGALURU
India will participate in the ICC Champions Trophy and the team for the tournament will be selected here on Monday. The BCCI officially announced this decision after a Special General Meeting (SGM) here on Sunday, climbing down from its initial confrontational stance with the world body and falling in line with the diktats of the Committee of Administrators (CoA). The BCCI also authorised acting secretary Amitabh Choudhary to represent its interests at the ICC, giving him a free hand to renegotiate the revenue model and address the Board’s objec-
In its final home game of what has been a wretched, painful IPL season, there was no relief for Royal Challengers Bangalore. There was no consolation, no respite. All that was in store for the host at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday was a savage thrashing. Sunil Narine smashed a 15ball fifty, equalling Yusuf Pathan’s record for the fastest half-century in the IPL as Kolkata Knight Riders completed a run chase of 159 as if it were an evening stroll. The six-wicket victory more or less assured Gautam Gambhir’s men of a spot in the playoffs. Following Travis Head’s unbeaten 75, the large numbers of RCB supporters may have hoped for an intriguing second innings. What followed, though, was embarrassing. Openers Narine and Chris Lynn clobbered 105 runs in six overs, the highest PowerPlay score in the tournament’s history.
Blazing away Returning from a shoulder injury, Lynn batted like he had never been away, striking the ball with a brutal ferocity. Aniket Chaudhary was hammered for 14 runs in the first over, and Yuzvendra Chahal was next targeted for the same treatment. Sunil Narine then took over, unfurling three identical sixes off Samuel Badree. Next over, he struck S. Arvind for a hat-trick of fours before raising his fifty with a six over long on. Narine fell for 54, edging Choudhary behind. Lynn departed not long after, having brought his half century up in 21 balls. The contest, though, was long dead. Earlier, the RCB innings began in predictably poor
Blitzkrieg: Sunil Narine took apart the Royal Challengers Bangalore attack to notch up a half-century of just 15 balls as Kolkata Knight Riders thrashed the host. K. MURALI KUMAR
V.V. Subrahmanyam
Mumbai Indians, on a high after the record-breaking win over Delhi Daredevils, takes on defending champion Sunrisers Hyderabad, sulking after its first defeat at home, at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium here on Monday. The loss against Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS) was a perfect wake-up call for Sunrisers to address some areas of concern. The home team’s hunt for a slot in the playoffs will once again hinge on the form of captain David Warner (529 runs). SRH will look to the flamboyant Aus-
Rai relieved CoA chairman Vinod Rai was relieved with the BCCI’s decision. Rai, who was present to attend the IPL Governing Council meeting, said he had already told players earlier that they were going (to play). “Of course, I am relieved. But the players always knew they were going. I had told Anil Kumble and Virat Kohli ‘you guys are playing the Champions Trophy’. I have always said that $100 million
more is okay, India can make up the money by playing a bilateral series,” Rai quipped. Choudhary insisted the BCCI’s decisions were independent of its existing concerns vis-a-vis the ICC’s reworking of the existing models. “BCCI reserves all legal options against the ICC. Playing in the Champions Trophy does not mean we agree with the ICC revenue and governance model. Governance structure is also an issue,” he said. “The negotiation process will continue before the ICC annual conference in June. The SGM is unanimous on one aspect. “Our position as the pre-
dominant cricket country shouldn’t be diminished,” Choudhary asserted. He, however, refused to say much about the two former BCCI presidents — N. Srinivasan and Shashank Manohar — who are now on either side of the divide. IPL Governing Council member Rajeev Shukla added the BCCI was looking to solve issues through dialogue. “The outcome of the meeting has been positive. Our approach should be that of trying to resolve through dialogue rather than confrontational. “There are five-six issues regarding revenue and governance model which need to be sorted,” he said.
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fashion. Batting first after losing the toss, the home side endured another difficult PowerPlay, its three big guns silenced inside five overs. Chris Gayle was dismissed off the game’s first ball, held in the covers via a leading edge off Umesh Yadav. The Vidarbha bowler struck again in his next over, trapping Virat Kohli in front with a leg-cutter. A.B. de Villiers was bowled trying to sweep Narine, having shuffled over
SCOREBOARD
IPL-10 to the off-side. Another collapse seemed imminent, but Mandeep Singh and Head set about rebuilding. Mandeep had begun in aggressive fashion, but Head and he went about their work cautiously. Indeed, when the Australian pulled Ankit Rajput for four in the 12th over, a full five overs had passed without a boundary. The RCB total entered
three figures when Mandeep steered Colin de Grandhomme behind point at the start of the 15th over. The rain came down at that stage, though, forcing a 38minute stoppage in play. Mandeep, who made a patient 52, fell upon resumption, snapping a partnership of 71. Head took centrestage. The 23-year-old reached his half-century in 48 balls and then accelerated, guiding RCB to a somewhat respectable total.
ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE VS KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Chris Gayle c Gambhir b Umesh 0 (1b), Mandeep Singh c Umesh b Narine 52 (43b, 4x4, 1x6), Virat Kohli lbw b Umesh 5 (9b), A.B. de Villiers b Narine 10 (8b, 2x4), Travis Head (not out) 75 (47b, 3x4, 5x6), Kedar Jadhav c Umesh b Woakes 8 (9b, 1x4), Pawan Negi c Lynn b Umesh 5 (3b, 1x4), S. Arvind (not out) 0 (0b); Extras (lb-1, w-2): 3; Total (for six wkts. in 20 overs): 158. Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Gayle, 0.1 overs), 2-20 (Kohli, 2.5), 3-34 (de Villiers, 4.4), 4-105 (Mandeep, 15.1), 5-125 (Jadhav, 18.1), 6-142 (Negi, 19.3).
Kolkata Knight Riders bowling: Umesh Yadav 4-0-36-3, Chris Woakes 4-0-39-1, Sunil Narine 4-0-29-2, Ankit Rajpoot 4-025-0, Piyush Chawla 2-0-13-0, Colin de Grandhomme 2-0-15-0. Kolkata Knight Riders: Chris Lynn b Negi 50 (22b, 5x4, 4x6), Sunil Narine c Jadhav b Choudhary 54 (17b, 6x4, 4x6), Colin de Grandhomme st Jadhav b Negi 31 (28b, 1x4, 2x6), Gautam Gambhir c Negi b Chahal 14 (16b), Manish Pandey (not out) 4 (3b), Yusuf Pathan (not out) 0 (5b); Extras (lb-3, w-3): 6; Total (for four wkts. in 15.1 overs):
159. Fall of wickets: 1-105 (Narine, 6.1), 2-107 (Lynn, 7.3), 3-152 (de Grandhomme, 13.2), 4-156 (Gambhir, 14.1). Royal Challengers Bangalore bowling: Aniket Choudhary 2.51-19-1, Samuel Badree 3-040-0, Yuzvendra Chahal 4-039-1, S. Arvind 1-0-26-0, Pawan Negi 3.1-0-21-2, Travis Head 1.1-0-11-0. Toss: Kolkata Knight Riders. Man-of-the-match: Sunil Narine. Knight Riders won by six wickets with 29 balls remaining.
Crunch match for Sunrisers Hyderabad HYDERABAD
tions to the proposed governance models. It was also decided that no legal notice would be sent to the ICC nor any other legal recourse taken, at least for the time being.
tralian, if the need arises, to stay and finish off a game and not leave the job for others if the way his team lost from a winning position against RPS is any reminder. Ironically, for a team
which looked vulnerable as regards the fifth bowler’s slot, SRH did remarkably well to restrict RPS to a modest total on a difficult pitch. On the other hand, nothing seems to be going wrong
POINTS TABLE
TEAM Mumbai Indians Kolkata Knight Riders Rising Pune Supergiant Sunrisers Hyderabad Kings XI Punjab Gujarat Lions Delhi Daredevils Royal Challengers Bangalore
M 11 12 12 12 11 12 11 13
W 9 8 8 6 5 4 4 2
L 2 4 4 5 6 8 7 10
NR PTS NRR 18 +1.058 0 16 +0.858 0 16 -0.060 0 1 13 +0.541 0 10 +0.242 8 -0.369 0 0 8 -0.660 1 5 -1.454
*After the KXIP-GL match
Backroom parleys paved the way for right decision G. Viswanath MUMBAI
Backroom parleys, initiated by some full members of the BCCI, on Saturday and well into the wee hours of Sunday, facilitated a decision in favour of India’s participation in the Champions Trophy. The general mood on the eve of the SGM — when the Committee of Administrators (CoA) deliberated with full members on the implementation of the Justice Lodha Committee recommendations about reforms — was not to precipitate matters and the positive and mature disposition on the issue of the Champions Trophy participation was evident at the SGM. Former BCCI president and ICC chairman, N. Srinivasan (representative of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association) took part in the SGM by ‘Skype.’ A member from Central
Zone said: “Srinivasan said India should take part in the Champions Trophy, but the BCCI can still send the notice to the ICC. “Seniors administrators Rajeev Shukla, Abhay Apte (president, Maharashtra Cricket Association) and Kapil Malhotra (Cricket Club of India) spoke at length about the need to continue negotiations with the ICC on both the revenue and governance model issues and that Amitabh Choudhary should be given the full authority to take the matter forward and close it.”
Middle path Apte told The Hindu “We said that the BCCI position should not be compromised and at the same time it should not take an extreme decision, but take the middle path of keeping the dialogue process on. “The CoA had also spoken to the members about taking
a cautious decision on the Champions Trophy issue.” It’s learnt that Shukla conveyed his feelings to a large group of members that the BCCI is seen as a body at loggerheads with the Lodha Commitee, Supreme Court, CoA and the ICC and that no way can the BCCI think in terms of not participating in the Champions Trophy. Another member said Malhotra hit the nail on its head saying Choudhary was not given the option to negotiate at the ICC meeting and that he should be given the bandwidth to negotiate and settle the governance and revenue part of the dispute with the ICC. Talking to The Hindu, Niranjan Shah said: “I wanted a resolution to be passed that the ICC has breached the MPA, but I could not have taken a decision against Indian cricket and the Champions Trophy.”
Award in favour of KTK Special Correspondent MUMBAI
Amitabh Choudhary informed members that the BCCI had lost arbitration proceedings against former IPL team Kochi Tuskers Kerala and the the latter had been awarded around ₹1,080 crore. The Board is likely to find a remedy either through an out-of-court settlement or look at legal options. The BCCI had terminated the agreement with KTK in September 2011 after the owners failed to provide a bank guarantee by March 2011.
CoA says no! G. Viswanath Mumbai
The CoA has shot down a request from BCCI president C.K. Khanna to buy tickets worth ₹20 lakh for the last two Daredevils matches to be played at the Ferozeshah Kotla. The CoA told the BCCI chief that such practices should stop.
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for Mumbai Indians. Opener Lendl Simmons, capitalising on the chance he got in the last game, forms a formidable pair with Parthiv Patel and they are followed by big guns like Kieron Pollard, Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya and Nitesh Rana. Placed on top of the table, with 18 points (11 games) and assured of a playoff berth, Mumbai will be keen to keep the momentum going.
Gujarat Lions dents Kings XI’s hopes Amla’s century goes in vain once again S. Dipak Ragav Mohali
It was deja vu in a bad way for Kings XI Punjab, as yet another 104 (60b, 8x4, 5x6) from Hashim Amla went in vain as it slumped to a sixwicket loss to Gujarat Lions. The defeat has now put a serious dent on its qualification hopes for the playoffs. If it was Jos Butler’s 37-ball 77 for Mumbai Indians in Indore that blunted Amla’s first ton, on Sunday Dwayne Smith finally found form at the top of the order bludgeoning 74 off just 39 balls with eight fours and four sixes.
Lucky It did not help that Punjab was being far too gracious in its hospitality dropping Smith twice (on 42 and 51) and then Suresh Raina once (on 36). Smith’s innings helped Lions go past 100 by the 10th over and cameos from skipper Raina and wicketkeeperbatsman Dinesh Karthik was enough to post its fourth win of the season. Earlier, Amla’s ton helped Punjab post a competitive 189 with Shaun Marsh chipping in with a valuable halfcentury. The South African put on a 125-run partnership with Shaun Marsh for the second CM YK
wicket after losing Martin Guptill in the first over. Amla started off with some fine drives but kept finding the fielders. He was even lucky when he was dropped by Jadeja off Basil Thampi — a tough chance with Jadeja diving to his right — when he was on just 12. The former South Africa Test skipper, however, persevered with a few boundaries off the pads and got to his fifty off 35 balls but again lost momentum. Finally he picked one slower delivery from Kulkarni and despatched it over long-on for his third six to find his mojo back. Off the next 12 balls he put on show his classical hitting, scoring 28 runs with three fours and two more sixes. In the final over, Amla
SCOREBOARD
Back in form: Man-of-the-Match Dwayne Smith’s rapid 74 set the platform for Lions’ win over KXIP. AKHILESH KUMAR *
used his magical wrists to find the fence twice — the second one a clean drive over the top of covers for a six to get to his century. Electing to field, Lions who have not defended a total, once again struggled with its weak bowling unit.
Kulkarni was the pick of the Lions bowlers as he took pace off his deliveries while maintaining a tight line. The other bowlers did vary their pace but couldn’t get the line right consistently and paid the price, leaking runs.
KINGS XI PUNJAB VS GUJARAT LIONS
Kings XI Punjab: Martin Guptill c Thampi b Sangwan 2 (5b), Hashim Amla lbw b Thampi 104 (60b, 8x4, 5x6), Shaun Marsh c Finch b Kulkarni 58 (43b, 6x4), Glenn Maxwell (not out) 20 (11b, 2x6), Axar Patel (not out) 2 (1b); Extras (w-3): 3; Total (for three wkts. in 20 overs): 189. Fall of wickets: 1-2 (Guptill, 0.5 overs), 2-127 (Marsh, 15.4), 3187 (Amla, 19.5). Gujarat Lions bowling: Pradeep Sangwan 3-0-28-1,
Dhawal Kulkarni 4-0-24-1, Basil Thampi 4-0-48-1, James Faulkner 4-0-43-0, Ravindra Jadeja 2-0-19-0, Ankit Soni 3-0-27-0. Gujarat Lions: Dwayne Smith c Guptill b Maxwell 74 (39b, 8x4, 4x6), Ishan Kishan c sub b Natarajan 29 (24b, 3x4), Suresh Raina c Gurkeerat b Sandeep 39 (25b, 4x4, 1x6), Dinesh Karthik (not out) 35 (23b, 2x4, 1x6), Aaron Finch c Saha b Sandeep 2 (2b), Ravindra Jadeja (not out) 7 (6b); Extras (lb-3, w-2, nb-1):
6; Total (for four wkts. in 19.4 overs): 192. Fall of wickets: 1-91 (Kishan, 9.2), 2-120 (Smith, 11.2), 3-162 (Raina, 17.1), 4-165 (Finch, 17.4). Kings XI Punjab bowling: Sandeep Sharma 4-0-29-2, Mohit Sharma 4-0-35-0, Varun Aaron 4-0-43-0, Axar Patel, 30-29-0, Glenn Maxwell 2-021-1, T. Natarajan 2.4-0-32-1. Toss: Gujarat Lions. Lions won by six wickets with two balls to spare. M ND-ND
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16 SPORT
NOIDA/DELHI
THE HINDU
MONDAY, MAY 8, 2017
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Durant drives Warriors
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AC Sports outplays R&R Sports
Former champion on brink of winning second-round series against Jazz
An all-round dominance saw AC Sports thrash R&R Sports by 88 runs to enter the quarterfinals of the 33rd All India Laxman Das Chhabra memorial cricket tournament. Gaurav Chitkara, Manoj Dagar and Amit Pal scored half centuries while Dagar, Himank Singh and Sachin Singh picked up three wickets apiece. The scores:
Agence France-Presse Los Angeles
Kevin Durant scored 38 points and Golden State Warriors withstood a determined Utah Jazz effort to win 102-91 on Saturday to take a commanding 3-0 lead in their NBA playoff series. Warriors will try to close out the best-of-seven Western Conference second-round series in game four on Monday in Salt Lake City. Jazz had hoped a return to its home floor would spark a resurgence, and it briefly looked as if it had. Although Warriors got off to another fast start, leading by 10 after the first quarter, Jazz, fueled by a standout performance from French centre Rudy Gobert, responded. It seized the lead for the first time in the series when it went up 48-47 in the second period, and led 50-49 at half-time. The hosts stretched their lead to as many as nine in the third quarter before Warriors reasserted themselves. Durant did the heavy lifting as Stephen Curry connected on just six of 20 shots en route to 23 points and Klay Thompson made just one basket in scoring six points. Trailing 75-74 early in the fourth, Warriors launched a 10-4 scoring run to regain a lead they wouldn't
Benatia in live TV racism storm MILAN
Italian football has been hit by a second racist storm inside a week after Juventus defender Mehdi Benatia of Morocco was insulted live on air during a post- match television interview. Presenters also heard the remark, but tried to brush it off, telling Benatia: “It seems there are some technical problems. No one here has been heard making any insults.” A visibly angry Benatia wiped his brow as presenters thanked him for his time before bringing the interview to an abrupt end. PTI
Asian athletics logo launched
ACS 292 for seven in 40 overs (Gaurav Chikara 76, Amit Pal 56 not out, Manoj Dagar 51) bt R&R Sports 204 all out in 35 overs (Sagar Khatri 39, Sumeet Singh 38, Deepak Sharma 32; Himank Singh three for 29, Sachin Singh three for 41, Manoj Dagar three for 40).
Dalal, Shaukeen star in RR Gymkhana’s six-wicket victory Dominating: Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant, right, powers his way past Utah Jazz’s Gordon Hayward in Game 3 of their second-round playof series. AP *
relinquish. Warriors outscored Jazz by nine points in the final four minutes, Curry warming up late to contribute to the surge with a three-pointer that made it 89-84. On the next possession Durant
NBA came off a screen and drained a pullup three over Gobert to make it 92-84. Not long after, Durant and Gobert
were involved in a testy exchange, with Durant called for a flagrant foul and a technical. Gobert, however, missed both free throws. The result: Western Conference: Golden State Warriors 102 bt Utah Jazz 91 (Warriors lead series 3-0).
Jatin Dalal smashed a 58-ball 115 and Jatin Shaukeen added 98 as Rohtak Road Gymkhana beat Young Friends Club by six wickets in the 3rd Sardari Lal Makkar memorial cricket tournament. The scores: YFC 275 for five in 40 overs (Naveen Kumar 79, Amir Malik 57, Abhishek Yadav 47;
Abhishek Vats two for 25) lost to RRG 278 for four in 31.3 overs (Jatin Dalal 115, Jatin Shaukeen 98; Abhishek Yadav three for 53).
Shoaib and Priyank shine for VPCC Priyank Tehlan top-scored with 70 and Mohd. Shoaib picked up four wickets as Vikas Puri Coaching Centre beat Players Academy by four wickets in the first Admiral Cricket League. The scores: Players Academy 177 for seven in 40 overs (Pankaj Joshi 63; Mohd. Shoaib four for 38) lost to VPCC 178 for six in 32.4 overs (Priyank Tehlan 70).
Abhishek, Ayush slam centuries Abhishek Jain's unbeaten 60-ball 122 and Ayush Badoni's 117 off 42 balls saw Modern School (Barakhamba Road) thrash Indian Public School by 98 runs in the SIS T20 cricket tournament. The scores: Modern School 258 for one in 20 overs (Abhishek Jain 122 not out, Ayush Badoni 117) bt IPS 160 for six in 20 overs (Sahil Khari 92; Rewant Rakhyan two for nine, Devyansh Maheshwari two for 30).
BHUBANESWAR
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik unveiled the logo and mascot of the Asian athletics championship, to be held in July, here on Sunday. The mascot ‘Olly the turtle’ has been created to spread awareness about the endangered Olive Ridley turtle. Former athletes Anju Bobby George and P.T. Usha also graced the occasion.
Boxing coach S.R. Singh vows to build a stronger squad
ATHLETICS
Anas wins 400m gold Patiala
Y.B. Sarangi
After the encouraging performance of the Indian boxers in the Asian Championship in Tashkent, where the country claimed two silver and as many bronze medals and also bagged seven qualifying spots for the upcoming World championship in Hamburg, chief coach S.R. Singh looked forward to building a stronger squad for top events in the next few years. According to S.R. Singh, the qualitative improvement (compared to one silver and three bronze in 2015) in the continental event was a good sign. “You have to take into account that three of our experienced boxers, Shiva Thapa (silver, 60kg), Manoj Kumar (69kg) and Sumit Sangwan (91kg, silver), have gone up to higher weights. When you go up, you face new guys who have been do-
Amalraj loses in the final SAO PAULO
Eighth-seeded Anthony Amalraj of India lost to Hugo Calderano of Brazil, the top seed, 14-12, 9-11, 11-7, 11-7, 11-5 in the men’s final of the International Table Tennis Federation Challenge SeriesSeamaster Brazil Open here on Sunday. Amalraj had to be content with $2000 and 50 ranking points.
USA seals spot in FIFA under-17 WC in India NEW DELHI
The United States has joined Costa Rica, Honduras and Mexico in qualifying for the FIFA under-17 World Cup to be held in India later this year following its victory over Cuba in a classification stage group match at the CONCACAF u-17 championship in Panama City. PTI
Jeevan & Skugor triumph
ing well there. There is a difference of height and weight as well. Considering all this, the graph has gone up,” S.R. Singh told The Hindu on Sunday. Things have become better since the inception of a new National federation in September last year. “There was a gap after the Olympics. After the formation of a new national federation, boxers have got some good training and exposure trips. We got two medals in Bulgaria and three in Thailand and now four here.”
Rare feat Thapa, who achieved a rare feat of claiming medals in three consecutive Asian Championships — 2013 (gold, 56kg), 2015 (bronze, 56kg) and 2017 (silver, 60kg) — was happy to establish himself in the higher weight. “There was not much time in hand. But I trained hard to prove myself at the
Saina’s preparations for the Worlds
OSTRAVA (CZECH REPUBLIC)
Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Franko Skugor beat Rameez Junaid and Lukas Rosol 6-3, 6-2 in the final of the €64,000 Challenger tennis tournament here. The results: €64,000 Challenger, Ostrava: Final: Franko Skugor (Cro) & Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan bt Rameez Junaid (Aus) & Lukas Rosol (Cze) 6-3, 6-2; Semifinals: Skugor & Jeevan w/o Roberto Carballes Baena & Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo (Esp).
Special Correspondent Mumbai
Saina Nehwal will play in the Thailand Open, Indonesian Open and Australian Open as preparation for the World Badminton Championships to be held in Glasgow from August 21 to 27. Talking to the media at the Edelweiss Brain Bout
inter-corporate quiz here on Sunday, Saina said, “The surgery phase was a little difficult. It's not easy to come back after such a surgery because there are a lot of movements you suddenly forget. “There are a lot of cross movements you struggle with. It takes a lot of time to get back into your flow.”
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Seven boxers have qualiied for the upcoming World championship in Hamburg
B
The competition between youth and experienced boxers will help ield stronger squads in big events
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Asian level and qualify for the World championship,” said Shiva, who defeated Olympic bronze medallist and Asian Games gold medallist Dorjnyambuu Otgondalal of Mongolia in the semifinals. Another Olympian Sumit Sangwan, finally lived up to the expectation by landing a prominent medal and making a successful switch from 81kg to 91kg. Former World championship medallist Vikas Krishan (75kg) settled for a bronze medal. Another medallist, Amit Panghal shone at the international stage by bag-
ging a bronze. Three others, Kavinder Singh Bisht (52kg), Manoj Kumar and Satish Kumar (+91kg), won their box-offs to enter the World championship. Targeting bigger success, S.R. Singh expected the upand-coming boxers to do well. “In the Asian championship, promising boxers like Amit got a medal, Ashish (64kg) got defeated by the eventual gold medallist and Kavinder won the box-off for a berth in the World championship. “If more youth boxers, who will graduate to the elite level, upset established names, then it will be good for the country. “The competition between youth and experienced boxers will help us field stronger squads in Asian Games and Commonwealth Games next year and the Olympics in 2020,” said the chief coach.
Muhammed Anas won the men’s 400 metres gold, clocking 45.89s in the Indian Grand Prix at the Netaji Institute of Sports Complex here on Sunday. It was not Anas’ best performance as he had clocked 45.69 when he won the third leg of the Asian Grand Prix recently in Chinese Taipei. Devender Singh won the men’s javelin with an impressive throw of 84.57 metres. In women’s 400m, M.R. Poovamma pipped Debashree Mazumdar for gold. The results: Men: 100m: 1. Mohammed Sadath 10.87; 2. R. Anesh 10.95; 3. Saroj Kumar Jena 12.31; 400m: 1. Muhammed Anas 45.89; 2. Arokia Rajiv 46.85; 3. Sachin Roby 47.38; 800m: 1. Ajay Kumar Saroj 1:49.71; 2. Sajeesh Joseph 1:51.33; 3. Arun Kumar 1:52.14; 5000m: 1. G. Lakshmanan 14:15.64; 2. Md. Yunus 14:29.86; 3. Kalidas Hirave 14:38.03; Triple jump: 1. Arpinder Singh 16.35; 2. AV Rakesh Babu 15.95; 3. Deep-
Premier League: SS Select 1
Muhammed Anas. ankar 15.24; Shot put: 1. Omprakash Singh 19.14; 2. Jasdeep Singh 18.78; Javelin: 1. Devender Singh 84.57; 2. Samarjeet Singh 76.85; 3. Rajender Singh 76.30. Women: 100m: 1. Merlin Joseph 10.88; 2. Reena George 11.99; 3. Manvir Kaur 12.48; 400m: 1. M.R. Poovamma 53.48; 2. Debashree Mazumdar 54.08; 3. Sarita Ben Gaya 54.20; 5000m: 1. L. Suriya 16:21.03. 100m hurdles: 1. Purnima Hembram 13.85; 2. KV Sajitha 14.37; 3. Liksy Joseph 14.84; Triple jump: 1. NV Sheena 12.91; 2. G. Karthika 12.68; 3. Niharika Vashisht 12.54. Javelin: 1. Annu Rani 59.26; 2. K. Rashmi 51.10; 3. Priyanka 47.69.
Medinipore Marshals Easy for Indian women rides on Prayas’ efort
India trounced Ireland by 10 wickets in the women’s quadrangular series here on Sunday. Ireland, put in to bat, was bundled out for 96 in 44.4 overs, with Ekta Bisht (three for 24) and Deepti Sharma (three for 20) being the most successful bowlers. Jennifer Gray top scored
TEN 2, 4 & 7 p.m.
Queen Latifa absolved of doping charges
CRICKET
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Sports Bureau
Things have become better since the inception of a new National federation Bhubaneswar
TV PICKS
with 24. India chased down the modest target without losing a wicket as Deepti (51 n.o.) and Poonam Raut (46 n.o.) in just 18.4 overs.
Special Correspondent KOLKATA
ship at the F.C. Ground, Salt Lake, here on Sunday.
The scores: Ireland 96 in 44.4 overs (Ekta Bisht three for 24, Deepti Sharma three for 20) lost to India 99 for no loss (Deepti 51 n.o., Poonam Raut (46 n.o.) in 18.4 overs.
Prayas Roy Barman’s excellent all-round performance enabled Medinipore Marshals beat Darjeeling Dazzlers by three wickets in the final of the Future school cricket champion-
The scores: Darjeeling Dazzlers 148 for eight in 20 overs (Prayas Roy Barman 66, Abhimanyu Singh three for 28) lost to Medinipore Marshals 150 for seven in 19 overs (Bishal Roy 47, Prayas Roy Barman three for 42).
Principal Correspondent BENGALURU
The Bangalore Turf Club (BTC) has shot down doping claims surrounding racehorse Queen Latifa, stating that the urine sample is free of any prohibited substance. Queen Latifa had won the Karnataka Race Horse Owners Association Million Cup during the Invitation Cup weekend in March. BTC explained that the second ‘B’ sample had been tested in the Quanti Lab (Mauritius). They stated that the horse was given procaine penicillin at the Club’s veterinary hospital to treat an abscess. “The lab report has been sent to the State Government and the police. We want to protect our interests and promote the sport of horse racing,” BTC Chairman Y. Jagannath said on Sunday. “The medical evidence is there and there is no wrongdoing. We hope that the case is closed with this ‘B’ report,” BTC committee member Ajit Saldanha said. They added that the case against the other two horses, Rafa and Kausar, are being investigated.
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THE HINDU CROSSWORD 12001 1
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15 Famous person playing violin jettisons six accompaniments (4)
7 Boneheaded alien deported by Bush (5)
16 Persistent seller sent off (10)
8 Some teeth can shine without hard cleaning (7)
23 Orders often to get prompt delivery (6) 25 Corrupt time server needing milliseconds to recover (8) 27 Hue of satire describing English test (4-4)
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6 The vast majority nearly resigned over a bug (8)
20 Hound a Hindu monastery (4)
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13 Son told off brother not working in deep recession (6)
19 Gasping boy has heart beating to a smaller extent (10)
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(set by Scintillator)
FAITH
SUDOKU
Power of faith
11 Outwardly lashy lier lying in night (7) 14 Threesomes in France — the trophy of pride for Englishman (7) 17 Former social worker's housing extremely luxuriant (9)
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■ ACROSS 1 Crossing junction, stomped away with light vehicles (6) 4 Go mad disciplining jerk that's opinionated (8) 9 Sodium appropriate to make inlammable jelly (6) 10 Electronic charge and discharge (8) 12 Rich myth misrepresented with regularity (8)
CM YK
■ DOWN 1 Some among relatives of mixed descent (7) 2 Teen crush not just on little dogs (5,4)
18 Battle horse participates in street dash (8) 19 Prohibition on head of State is insane (7) 21 Hiker inds bodhi, eg., right outside outskirts of Konark (7) 22 Hurt bishop is overwhelmed by regret (6)
3 Origin of Pandavas in modern capital (ancient city) (6)
24 Pure white sidekick of Tintin (5)
5 Siemens (unit of conductance) inverted? (4)
26 Tentative Tories content to contain sign of discontent (4)
Solution to puzzle 12000 P A N R S U O N S
S E H E T A R A E
A S P I L B AU N S O L E UPTES I T CP T EE N E A R N E O I RR G SDEA I N T I N S I EI G B NDT IW I N E C G TE R H E R ARI N A B T A O U S T N GOE T H R C A D V E R S
R A M A S T E
A F R A I D A
Solution to yesterday’s Sudoku A T I O N S
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T E S S P L I O O N A N G E R I E S
Faith and belief are strong forces within an individual, capable of putting up resistance against external causes of fear and dangers. That this faith is nurtured by experiencing the presence of the omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent Lord within one’s self is the truth expressed in the Kolaru Pathigam sung by Gnanasambandar, pointed out Dr. Sudha Seshaiyan in a discourse. Among the Moovar saints, Tirunavukkarasar and Gnanasambandar are coevals and on many occasions when they meet, they share their devotional experiences. Though the age difference between the two saints makes Gnanasambandar regard Tirunavukkarasar as his father, and the latter to have a paternal concern for the young lad, they show exceptional mutual regard and respect for each other. Once, when they are at a camp in Vedaranyam, Gnanasambandar receives a message from the Pandya queen and minister to visit Madurai where the atmosphere is charged with anti-Saiva propaganda. In fact, the king has embraced the Samana faith and has imposed it on the people as a matter of political rule. Siva devotees are unable to practise their devotional rituals such as wearing the sacred ash, etc. for fear of persecution. Gnanasambandar gets ready to leave for Madurai, but Tirunavukkarasar, fearing the dangers he might have to face in Madurai, tries to dissuade him. He points out that the day and planetary positions are not in an auspicious position and requests him to postpone the visit. But Gnanasambandar tells the elder saint that he has to accede to the wishes of these two Siva devotees and establish the glory of Saivism in that place. He then sings the Kolaru Pathigam where he extols the fact that all planets and all days are auspicious and good by themselves and that one who has faith and belief in God has nothing to fear at any point of time. M ND-ND
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THE HINDU
SPORT 17
NOIDA/DELHI
MONDAY, MAY 8, 2017
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Arsenal sinks Man United Barca keeps pressure on Real Madrid
Heena Sidhu bags bronze at Pilsen
England wins series Agence France-Presse
Sports Bureau Pilsen
Heena Sidhu won the air pistol bronze at the 48th Grand Prix of Liberation shooting competition here on Sunday. In 50m rifle prone, a nonOlympic event, Tejaswini Sawant took silver.
Pemba Tamang finished third in the 25-metre centrefire pistol, also a nonOlympic event. The results: Men: 10m air rifle: 1. Peter Sidi (Hun) 252.2 (627.9), 2. Dane Kevin Sampson (Aus) 248.6 (625.7), 3. Maximilian Dallinger (Ger) 227.3
(625.1). 25m centre-fire pistol: 1. Piotr Daniluk (Pol) 582, 2. Oleksandr Petriv (Ukr) 581, 3. Pemba Tamang 580; 5. Omkar Singh 579; 8. Arpit Goel 576; 9. Mahaveer Singh 575; 10. Samaresh Jung 575. Women: 10m air pistol: 1. Anna Korakaki (Gre) 246.3 (385), 2. Michelle
Skeries (Ger) 237.8 (380), 3. Heena Sidhu 218.8 (383), 4. P. Shri Nivetha 198.7 (383); 9. Yashaswini Singh Deswal 380. 50m rifle 3-position: 1. Nina Christen (Sui) 459.0 (589), 2. Laura Georgeta Ilie (Rou) 457.1 (587), 3. Jennifer Mcintosh (GBr) 444.5 (589).
London
England beat Ireland by 85 runs in the second ODI at Lord’s on Sunday to take the two-match series 2-0. Ireland, set 329 to win, was dismissed for 243, with William Porterfield’s 82 the highest score of the match.
The scores: England 328 for six in 50 overs (Alex Hales 32, Joe Root 73, Eoin Morgan 76, Jonny Bairstow 72 n.o., Adil Rashid 39) bt Ireland 243 in 46.1 overs (Paul Stirling 48, William Porterfield 82, George Dockrell 28, Liam Plunkett three for 23, Joe Root three for 52).
Proving a point: Danny Welbeck has now scored in each of his last three appearances against his old club Manchester United. REUTERS *
Agence France-Presse London
Arsenal is back in the hunt to qualify for the Champions League after Arsene Wenger finally got the better of Jose Mourinho in a 2-0 win over Manchester United, while Liverpool was held to a 0-0 draw by Southampton on Sunday. Wenger had failed to win any of his previous 14 competitive clashes against Mourinho dating back to 2004, with his only victory over his old rival coming in the 2015 Community Shield when the Portuguese coach was in charge of Chelsea. The Gunners boss brought an end to that frustrating streak at just the right time as goals from Granit Xhaka and Danny Welbeck improved Arsenal’s chances of salvaging a troubled season by finishing in the top four. In La Liga, Lionel Messi scored his 50th and 51st goals in all competitions to help Barcelona keep the pressure on Real Madrid in the title race on Saturday. The results: Premier League: Liverpool 0 drew with Southampton 0; Arsenal 2 (Xhaka 54, Welbeck 57) bt Manchester United 0. La Liga: Alaves 1 (Hernandez
EURO LEAGUES 53) bt Athletic Bilbao 0; Valencia 4 (Garay 22, 45, Zaza 70, Rodrigo 75) bt Osasuna 1 (Olavide 90+2). Serie A: Udinese 1 (Perica 53) drew with Atalanta 1 (Cristante 41); Chievo 1 (Pellissier 67-pen) drew with Palermo 1 (Goldaniga 88); Empoli 3 (Croce 5, Pasqual 38, Costa 47) bt Bologna 1 (Verdi 11); Genoa 1 (Pandev 70) bt Inter Milan 0; Lazio 7 (Keita 3, Immobile 19pen, 70, Hoedt 36, Anderson 38-pen, De Vrij 45, Lulic 65) bt Sampdoria 3 (Linetty 32, Quagliarella 72, 90-pen); Pescara 0 lost to Crotone 1 (Tonev 71); Sassuolo 2 (Politano 74pen, Iemmello 85) drew with Fiorentina 2 (Chiesa 37, Bernardeschi 90+4). Bundesliga: Hamburg 0 drew with Mainz 0; Freiburg 2 (Niederlechner 22, 31) bt Schalke 0. On Saturday: Premier League: Swansea 1 (Llorente 29) bt Everton 0. La Liga: Barcelona 4 (Neymar 21, Messi 45, 82-pen, Suarez 68) bt Villarreal 1 (Bakambu 32); Granada 0 lost to Real Madrid 4 (Rodriguez 3, 11, Morata 30, 35). Serie A: Napoli 3 (Mertens 2, 49, Insigne 67) bt Cagliari 1 (Farias 90+2); Juventus 1 (Higuain 90+2) drew with Torino 1 (Ljajic 52).
Aizawl rallies to beat Chennai City Brace by Laldanmaiwa Ralte
Finding the net: East Bengal’s Wedson Anselme ran solo for about 40 yards, got the better of three tough Churchill defenders, and beat the goalkeeper. BISWARANJAN ROUT *
Y.B. Sarangi
FEDERATION CUP
Cuttack
I-League champion Aizawl FC banked on Laldanmaiwa Ralte’s brace to score a come-from-behind 3-2 win over Chennai City FC in a Group A encounter of the Federation Cup at the Barabati Stadium on Sunday. East Bengal and Churchill Brothers played out a 1-1 draw in the tournament opener. Chennai foxed Aizawl with its short passing and better possession. It created several chances and took the lead in the 13th minute when Nandakumar sent in a fine cross from the right for Brazilian Charles de Souza to shoot home. The Chennai defenders closed the gaps to frustrate the Aizawl forwards. Chennai scored again in the 39th minute, when Edwin Vanspaul angled it in over goalkeeper Albino Gomes from the right. Showing better control in the second half, Aizawl reduced the margin through Mahmoud Al Amna's 53rdminute strike. He combined with Bayi Kamo to convert a counter-attack. The scores were level within 10 minutes as Laldanmaiwa dived to head in a Jayesh Rane lob from the left.
Spectacular goal Laldanmaiwa completed his brace through a spectacular CM YK
81st-minute goal. In the hot and humid afternoon, East Bengal and Churchill tussled in a goalless first half. Later, Churchill forwards, including Ansumana Kromah and Odisha lad Pankaj Sona, mounted pressure on the red-and-gold post. East Bengal scored off a surprise raid by Wedson Anselme in the 66th minute. He ran solo for about 40 yards, got the better of three tough Churchill defenders and beat goalkeeper Naveen Kumar on the left. Churchill drew parity when Sona crossed it from the left, a sliding push by Brandon Fernanades saw the ball go to a an unmarked Kromah who caught the East Bengal defenders off guard. The results: Group A: East Bengal 1 (Anselme 66) drew with Churchill Brothers 1 (Kromah 80). Aizawl FC 3 (Amna 53, Laldanmaiwa 62 & 81) bt Chennai City FC 2 (Charles de Souza 13, Vanspaul 39).
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IN BRIEF
Fancy a noodle burger? East Coming, The Beatles radio meets West in Indonesia Iconic rock band’s Sirius XM station to air its popular tracks Press Trust of India Los Angeles
Charlie Sheen struggled with borderline dementia
New wave of innovative chefs put a modern twist on country’s traditional fare
NEW YORK
Agence France-Presse
Actor Charlie Sheen says he suffered from borderline dementia when he used a combo of drugs to manage the effects of HIV. The 51year-old, who revealed in 2015 that he is HIV-positive, struggled with a number of serious side effects after taking the medicines, reported PageSix. PTI
Jakarta
German evacuation over Second World War bombs BERLIN
German police on Sunday evacuated some 50,000 people from the northern city of Hanover in one of the largest post-war operations to defuse Second World War era bombs. Residents were ordered to leave their homes for the operation, planned since mid-April, to extract five recently discovered unexploded bombs. AFP
Shark sighting disrupts triathlon in Australia PERTH
Nearly 100 swimmers at a triathlon event in Western Australia were ordered out of the water on Sunday after a shark was spotted during the Ironman 70.3 event in Busselton, about 200 km south of the capital Perth. Most of the individual competitors in the event had already completed their 1.9-km swim when the shark was spotted. AP
From a restaurant serving burgers and pizzas made with local noodles to a social media star giving street food a touch of haute cuisine, a new wave of innovative chefs are putting a modern twist on Indonesia’s traditional fare. New eateries have sprung up rapidly in recent years in the capital Jakarta, offering a wide array of foreign foods to cater to a growing consumer class, which has emerged after a long economic boom. But rather than focus entirely on cuisine from overseas, some chefs decided to fuse the new influences with age-old Indonesian foods. One eatery offering fusion food is ‘Mammamie’, whose name is a playful take on an Italian expression of shock combined with the local word for noodles, ‘mie’. It uses the country’s favourite instant noodles, Indomie — cheap blocks of fodder in colourful packaging that are sold at almost every grocery store and supermarket — to make Western dishes. Among the most popular are the ‘mizza’, a pizza whose base is made out of noodles, and a ‘merger’, a burger which has buns fashioned from Indomie. It also serves burrito, quesadillas
Converting Martian soil into concrete
Culinary delight: ‘Food stylist’ Dade Akbar displays some of his preparations in Jakarta. At right is a burger made from noodles at a restaurant in the city. AFP *
and sushi dishes made with the noodles. Cafe owner Muhammad Luqman Baehaqi said he was trying to appeal to young Indonesians who were keen to try Western foods but still enjoyed Indomie. “There isn’t a single Indonesian person that doesn’t know Indomie,” the 39-year-old said. “It’s tasty and familiar to all of us.”
Gourmet street food The small cafe can seat about 20 people on chairs designed to look like Indomie packing cases and has a distinctly hipster vibe, with young office workers enjoying dishes that cost the equivalent of about two to four dollars under an image of late Apple founder Steve Jobs.
While the ‘Mammamie’ cafe uses Indonesian ingredients to spice up Western dishes, Jakarta chef Dede Akbar is taking local dishes as his starting point, and seeking to make them more classy.
Hobby to obsession In his brightly-decorated kitchen, the 34-year-old carefully placed two blocks of tempe — a traditional soybean patty — onto a plate. He blowtorched a hard-boiled egg, and added small flowers as a garnish before artistically dripping sauce across the dish. Satisfied with his creation, he took out a camera and snapped pictures from various angles, before uploading them to Instagram. It was his popular Instagram account
‘Warteg Gourmet’, which currently has about 40,000 followers, that catapulted him to fame. Wartegs are modest stalls or kiosks selling cheap food, often cramped spaces on street corners where bluecolour workers stop for a bite and to smoke a cigarette. But rather than drab dishes for people earning low incomes, Mr. Akbar said he celebrates warteg food as it has “different textures and a wide range of colours that we can play with.” What started off as a hobby became an obsession, and eventually Mr. Akbar found he was receiving so many invites to be a “food stylist” at events that he quit his day job as an advertising agency art director to become a full-time chef.
Legendary rock band The Beatles are geared up to get their own radio channel on Sirius XM. The Beatles Channel will air popular tracks by the music group along with rarities, live-cuts and music material from their respective solo careers, reported People magazine. “I still remember the thrill of when we first heard our music on the radio but I don’t think any of us would have imagined that we’d have our very own Beatles radio channel more than 50 years later. The SiriusXM channel will have it all, 8 Days A Week,” former Beatle Paul McCartney said in a press release.
Great news: Ringo Starr While his Fab Four compatriot Ringo Starr added, “Great news, the Beatles will have their own channel on
Washington
A new form of concrete made using Martian or lunar soil and animal proteins may allow future astronauts to build colonies on Mars and the Moon, according to Stanford and NASA scientists. To establish settlements on the Moon or Mars, humans would need thousands of tonnes of concrete to survive. Both Mars and the Moon are bombarded constantly with both lethal radiation and micrometeorites that would quickly punch holes into any ordinary structure. However, since it is nearly impossible to ship such quantities of cement from Earth to Mars, the best way forward would be to start making it in space. Making Earth-style concrete requires tremendous
Press Trust of India New York
Cinnamon may reduce the effects of a high-fat diet and risk of cardiovascular damage by slowing the fat storing process in the body, scientists including one of Indian origin have found. Researchers fed rats cinnamon supplements for 12
CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC
War games
Sirius XM. Now you can listen to the Beatles, any time at all.” The channel will also broadcast tracks by the “musicians who have inspired, and have drawn inspiration
from, the Beatles.” Apart from The Beatles, artistes such as Bruce Springsteen, Pearl Jam and the Grateful Dead also have their own 24/7 SiriusXM channels.
weeks along with a high-fat diet. They found that after 12 weeks, the rats weighed less and had less belly fat along with healthier levels of sugar, insulin and fat in their blood, compared to rats that did not receive cinnamon. Researchers, including Vijaya Juturu, from the U.S.-
based company OmniActive Health Technologies, noted that rats, which were fed cinnamon, had fewer molecules involved in the body’s fat-storing process and more antioxidant and anti-inflammatory molecules that protect the body from the damage caused by stress.
How body ights harmful bacteria A blood protein helps in killing them
amounts of heat and energy, which would be very short supply for first human outposts on Mars. To solve that problem, researchers used animal protein to make a promising form of concrete that could solve problems on Mars as well as Earth.
Bovine blood protein Living organisms use proteins to make things as tough as shells, bones and teeth, so the researchers including , David Loftus from NASA’s Ames Research Centre and Michael Lepech from Stanford University in the U.S. began working on a concrete bound together with a protein from bovine blood. The protein is a fairly cheap by-product of slaughterhouses, and it is known to become very gluey when mixed with soil.
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Cinnamon cuts cardiac risk
Advancement may help build colonies Press Trust of India
Tuning in: The Beatles Channel will broadcast rarities, live-cuts and music material from solo careers of the members. AP
Press Trust of India London
Show of might: Russian army planes take formation during a rehearsal before the 72nd anniversary of the end of the Second World War, in Moscow on Sunday. REUTERS *
Researchers have cracked the mystery of how our body quickly prevents an infection from spreading uncontrollably during wound healing, an advance that may lead to new ways to counteract harmful bacteria. A new study found that fragments of thrombin — a common blood protein found in wounds — can aggregate both bacteria and their toxins, something that was not see in normal blood plasma. The aggregation takes place quickly and causes bacteria and toxins not only to gather but also to be “eaten” by the body’s inflammatory cells. “Perhaps, we do not need to kill them with antibiotics but simply gather them so that the body can better
take care of the infection,” said Jitka Petrlova, Professor at Lund University in Sweden.
‘Basic mechanism’ “This way, the body avoids the spread of the infection. We believe this to be a fundamental mechanism for taking care of both bacteria and their toxins during wound healing,” said Ms. Petrlova, lead author of the study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. “Our discovery links aggregation and amyloid formation to our primary defence against infections — our innate immunity,” Ms. Petrlova said. It is well known that various aggregating proteins can cause amyloid disease, in skin or internal organs, such as the brain.
Cuba hosts irst transgender Mass
Morocco goes all out to save its iconic monkey
Antarctic ice sheet remains stable: study
Communion highlights how much Communist-ruled island nation has changed
Barbary macaque was once found throughout North Africa
Press Trust in India
Reuters
London
MATANZAS
Central parts of Antarctica’s ice sheet have been stable for millions of years, even when conditions were considerably warmer than present, new research suggests. The study of mountains in West Antarctica may help scientists improve their predictions of how the region might respond to continuing climate change. The findings could show how ice loss might contribute to sea level rise. Although the discovery demonstrates the longterm stability of some parts of Antarctica’s ice sheet, scientists remain concerned that ice at its coastline is vulnerable to rising temperatures. Researchers from the Universities of Edinburgh and Northumbria in the U.K. studied rocks on slopes of the Ellsworth Mountains, whose peaks protrude through the ice sheet. By mapping and analysing surface rocks, researchers calculated that the mountains have been shaped by an ice sheet over a million-year period, beginning in a climate some 20 degrees Celsius warmer than at present.
For decades, belonging to a religion and being anything but heterosexual was stigmatised in Communistruled, macho Cuba, making the Mass held by three transgender pastors in the western Cuban city of Matanzas all the more groundbreaking. Rainbow flags decorated the chapel, while the pastors, who had flown in from Brazil, Canada and the United States, wore stoles in the trans hues of light blue, pink and white and the congregation swayed to Caribbean beats. Friday was the first time a trans pastor held a Holy Communion in Cuba, highlighting how much the island nation has changed since both religious believers and homosexuals went to “correctional” labour camps in the early years after the 1959 revolution. “Tonight has been a night of celebration of equality between all people, marking a new era for Cuba,” said Alexya Salvador, a Brazilian trans pastor, born Alexander, wearing a black dress with a white clerical collar and lacy sleeves she made herself. “God’s love is radically inclusive.”
Agence France-Presse Chefchaouen
“If nothing is done, this species will disappear within 10 years,” warns a poster on Ahmed Harrad’s ageing fourwheeler, showing Morocco’s famed Barbary macaque monkey. Mr. Harrad spends his time criss-crossing northern Morocco to try to convince locals to protect the endangered monkey. The only species of macaque outside Asia, which lives on leaves and fruits and can weigh up to 20 kg, was once found throughout North Africa and parts of Europe.
Danger of extinction But having disappeared from Libya and Tunisia, it is now restricted to the mountainous regions of Algeria and Morocco’s northern Rif region. Another semi-wild population of about 200 individuals in Gibraltar are the only free-ranging monkeys in Europe. Today, the only native primate north of the Sahara, apart from humans, is in danger of extinction, according to the International CM YK
Endangered species: A Barbary macaque is seen in a forest near the Moroccan town of Azrou. AFP *
Union for Conservation of Nature. Conservationists blame illegal poaching, tourists who feed the monkeys and overexploitation of the cedar and oak forests that form the species’ natural habitat.
Formulating census In response, Morocco has launched a campaign to save the species. “We are working on two areas — monitoring and making a census of the species in the Rif and raising awareness among locals so that they actively help rescue it,” Mr. Harrad said.
As head of a local association, Barbary Macaque Awareness & Conservation, Mr. Harrad has become a tireless advocate for the animal. He says it is often sold to buyers in Europe for between $110 and $330 despite laws forbidding the trade. “A lot of foreigners buy monkeys as pets.” Seen as quiet and cute when it is young, the adult monkey can become a burden, Mr. Harrad said. “It breaks things, bites, fights with children and climbs the curtains,” prompting many owners to abandon their pets, he said.
Wider acceptance: Trans pastors Cindy Bourgeois from Canada, centre, and Alexya Salvador from Brazil, left, listen to trans Baptist reverend Allyson Robinson from the U.S. REUTERS *
The Mass on Friday was the highlight of a three-day conference on transsexuality and theology organised by the Matanzas-based Cuban branch of the international Metropolitan Community Church.
‘First of its kind’ “This is not only a first of its kind event for Cuba, but certainly one of the very first ever to be held anywhere in the world,” said Allyson Robinson, a trans Baptist reverend from Washington. The conference took place ahead of the 10th anniversary, next weekend, of Cuba celebrating the global day against homophobia, and included a raucous
“transformist” party as well as a variety of panels on theology and personal experiences.
Greater inclusion In one, Salvador argued God was transgender, given the Holy Trinity was made up of the Holy Spirit, which she views as feminine, the Father and the Son. Elaine Saralegui, a lesbian pastor who founded the Cuban branch of the MCC nearly two years ago, said she hoped the conference would foster greater inclusion of trans people and prove that being trans and Christian were not incompatible. “I leave with having learnt
a lot of things I can share with other trans,” said one participant, a 26-year-old Cuban trans woman called Malu Duardo, “in particular that there is a God for everyone.” Saralegui’s congregation numbers around 35 but she said she also gets asked to hold Mass at lesbian, gay, bisexual, and trans (LGBT) activist events around the rest of the island nation of 11 million inhabitants. “Nearly always they ask me to hold a liturgy there, so we have to improvise wine, bread and hold a [Lord’s] supper anywhere,” she said. The trans pastors said they were impressed by Cuba’s progressiveness in some respects, for example providing state-financed sex reassignment. The country was clearly lagging the rest of the Americas in other ways though, they said. Same-sex couples may not marry or adopt children and a promised update to Cuba’s family code has been slow to materialise. “Everyone should have the right to have a family,” said Salvador, who has adopted two children, including a trans girl. “I believe this touch of God will also happen in the Cuban community.” M ND-ND
