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June 2019 

Government forms two cabinet panels 

to check falling growth, employment 

New Delhi : Hit hard by the 5-year 

low GDP growth and a 45-year high 

unemployment rate of 6.1 per cent, the 

newly formed Modi government 

swung into action and on Wednesday, 

as it formed two new cabinet committees 

to check the declining trend in 

growth and employment and spur 

demand as well as consumption. 

A five-member cabinet panel on 

investment and growth has members 

which include Union Home MInister 

Amit Shah, Highways Minister Nitin 

Gadkari, Commerce Minister Piyush 

Goyal and Finance Minister Nirmala 

Sitharaman. 

The Government's other panel 

which will look at the unemplyment 

issue -- Cabinet Committee on 

Employment and Skill Developement 

-- has 10 members. This committee 

apart from Shah, Sitharaman and 

Goyal has Minister of Agriculture 

Narendra Singh Tomar, Human 

Resource Development Minister 

Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank , 

Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister 

Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of 

Skill and Entrepreneurship Mahendra 

Nath Pandey and ministers of state 

Santosh Kumar Gangwar (Labour) 

and Hardeep Singh Puri (Housing and 

Urban Affairs). 

The stupendous success of the 

Pramila Jayapal is 1st South Asian 

American woman to chair US House 

Washington : Pramila 

Jayapal, a Democrat from 

Washington DC, has become 

the first South Asian American 

woman to preside over the US 

House of Representatives. 

Jayapal, who 

was first elected 

to the Congress 

in 2016, tweeted 

she was "beyond 

proud" to preside 

over the House 

and serve in the 

most diverse 

Congress in the 

nation's history. 

The Indian 

American 

Congresswoman 

also shared a clip of Tuesday's 

session where she was seen 

presiding over the House as a 

temporary Speaker. House 

Democrats rotate for the ceremonial 

position of presiding 

Modi government at the hustings with 

303 Lok Sabha seats was marred by 

the news on the economic front. The 

New economic and job numbers set 

alarm bells ringing. Finance Secretary 

Subhash Chandra Garg has already 

over the chamber. 

"Today, I became the first 

South Asian American woman 

to preside over the US House 

of Representatives. Beyond 

proud to serve in the most 

d i v e r s e 

Congress in our 

nation's history 

and to hold the 

gavel today," 

Jayapal tweeted. 

The 116th 

Congress broke 

records with 

women and 

lawmakers 

crossing racial 

and religious 

barriers, including 

an all time high for Asian 

American lawmakers. A record 

number of 17 Asian Americans 

serve in Congress, with 14 in 

the House and three in the 

Senate. 

said the slowdown of Q4 could persist 

in the Q1 of the currnent fiscal. 

The numbers were unimpressive. 

The fourth quarter GDP growth (Jan- 

MArch) is at 5.8% , a 17-quarter low 

while the same day a government 

Aizawl : Despite ruling 

Mizo National Front (MNF) in 

Mizoram is a member of the 

BJP led North East Democratic 

Alliance (NEDA), the regional 

party would not support the saffron 

party in any case at the 

centre and in the state. 

Mizoram Chief Minister and 

MNF President Zoramthanga 

categorically announced that 

his party had never supported 

and would not maintain 

alliance with the Bharatiya 

Janata Party in any issues, an 

MNF spokesman said here on 

Wednesday. 

Since the formation of the 

BJP dominated NEDA in May 

2016, the MNF has been a constituent 

of the regional forum, a 

body of the most regional parties 

of northeastern states. BJP 

leader and Assam Finance and 

Health Minister Himanta 

Biswa Sarma is the convener of 

the NEDA, formed in May 

2016. 

Mizoram's lone Lok Sabha 

member C. Lalrosanga said that 

he would offer 

issue-based support 

to the BJPled 

National 

Democratic 

A l l i a n c e 

Government 

headed by Prime 

M i n i s t e r 

Narendra Modi. 

"The MNF had 

never supported 

the BJP and 

would not maintain 

alliance with 

the party. The MNF had come 

under severe criticism by rival 

parties during 58 years of its 

existence," an MNF spokesman 

said on behalf of the Chief 

report of joblessness pegged it at the 

highest in 45 years. These macroeconomic 

figures released last month ï¿½ 

GDP growth, unemployment numbers 

and core sector data ï¿½ laid bare the 

enormous challenges the Modi 2.0 

Minister on Tuesday in Aizawl 

while paying tribute to 17 Mizo 

martyrs, who along with other 

martyrs had laid down their 

lives during the two decades of 

insurgency. 

According to 

the MNF, over 

1,000 party 

cadres and leaders 

had died during 

the secessionist 

movement 

between 

1966 and 1986. 

Zoramthanga 

said: "We entirely 

rely on our 

motto 'For God 

and our Nation'. 

The Almighty has saved us 

despite violence unleashed by 

rival political parties who tried 

to destroy us. Unlike other 

political parties, the MNF has 

team faces in resurrecting the slackening 

economy and restoring the confidence 

of investors. 

In March the IIP fell to 21-months 

low. The fourth-quarter GDP growth 

for 2018-19 came in at 5.8 per cent, 

way below 8 per cent recorded in the 

same quarter the previous fiscal, lower 

than the 6.6 per cent growth in Q3. For 

the entire fiscal 2018-19, the GDP 

growth came in at 6.8 per cent, lower 

than the 7.2 per cent growth recorded 

in the previous fiscal. 

The Labour Ministry data revealed 

joblessness in the country was 6.1 per 

cent of total labour force during 2017- 

18, the highest in 45 years. Much to 

the discomfort of the government, this 

has confirmed the unemployment rate 

projected in a pre-election leaked 

report. Data from the Labour Ministry 

showed that 7.8 per cent of all 

employable urban youth were jobless, 

while the percentage for the rural segment 

was 5.3 per cent. 

The core sector data, too, pointed 

towards a gloomy picture as contraction 

in crude oil, natural gas and fertiliser 

output pulled down the aggregate 

growth rate of eight core infrastructure 

industries in April to 2.6 per 

cent. This was much lower than the 

4.7 per cent growth recorded in same 

month last fiscal. 

MNF will never support BJP, says Mizoram Chief Minister 

never changed its name and 

would never do that in future. 

The Chief Minister had also 

skipped the recent swearing-in 

ceremonies of the BJP led governments 

at the centre and in 

Arunachal Pradesh. 

Meanwhile, a statement 

issued by the newly elected 

MNF Lok Sabha member A.C. 

Lalrosanga said that he would 

strongly oppose the central 

government on the issues 

harmful to the interests of 

Mizoram and the integrity of 

the country. "I would support 

the Modi government on issues 

which are positive for the country 

in general and for the Mizo 

people in particular," 

Lalrosanga said adding that he 

would strongly oppose the 

Citizenship Amendment Bill if 

it bring to the parliament once 

again.

2 June 2019 

ASIA 

www.theasianindependent.co.uk 

Public statement on the suicide of 

Dr. Payal Tadvi in a Mumbai hospital 

Dr Payal Tadvi, an Adivasi 

Muslim from one of the most 

backward tribes of India committed 

suicide on 22 May in her 

hostel room in a Mumbai hospital. 

She was a post-graduate 

resident doctor in the hospital. 

Many times before her suicide 

her mother and husband had 

given written representations to 

the hospital authorities about 

the harassment she had been 

facing from three of her seniors. 

According to these complaints 

her harassers were using 

casteist abuses and publicly 

humiliating her. However, the 

hospital took no administrative 

actions. After her death the hospital’s 

anti-ragging committee 

has reportedly found evidence 

of harassment, and according to 

some newspaper report the 

police have found evidence of 

derogatory casteist remarks. 

Dr PayalTadvi’s suicide 

immediately brings to mind the 

suicide by Rohith Vemula in 

2015, a PhD scholar at the 

Hyderabad Central University. 

Rohith was a student 

activist.His organisation had 

been protesting against the 

HCU administration for 

months before his suicide. 

Even ministers of the BJP central 

government had enquiredif 

his organisation had been adequately 

punished by the university 

administration after it was 

Kochi : Facebook has honoured 

a 19-year-old student 

from Kerala for spotting a 

Team AI : 

Devinder Chander 

Editor-in-chief 

Columnists 

V.B. Rawat 

Farzana Suri 

Arun Kumar 

Rahul Kumar 

Harminder K. Bhogal 

Head Office 

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Suite 507, Hawthorns House 

Halfords Lane, Smethwick, 

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involved in a physical brawl 

with activists of the ABVP, the 

student organisation allied with 

the ruling party. If the context 

of Rohith’s suicide was institutional 

victimisation of radical 

dalit youth, Payal’s suicide 

throws open a window to the 

intimate cruelties suffered by 

the people of deprived backgrounds 

every day. According 

to her mother when Payal 

moved in the hospital hostel, 

the only cot in the room was 

already taken by one of her 

alleged harassers. Her roommate, 

also a doctor would wipe 

her feet on the mattress on 

which Payal slept.Payal was a 

trained doctor. She had worked 

in a primary health center for a 

year. Yet her modern professional 

status could not shield 

her from what she had to go 

through.She narrated incidences 

of her humiliation only 

to her immediate family members. 

They complained to 

authorities when they felt she 

was under serious stress. She 

died alone, without leaving any 

suicide note. 

Even seventy years after 

independence, and a constitution 

that promises a life of dignity 

to every citizen, Dalits, 

adivasis, and minorities in 

India continue to suffer multiple 

humiliations in their everyday 

lives. Appropriate legal 

Facebook honours 

Kochi teenager 

memory corruption bug on its 

instant messaging platform 

WhatsApp, the media reported. 

K.S. Ananthakrishna, a 

B.Tech student at 

Pathanamthitta Mount Zion 

College of Engineering 

College, detected the bug that 

enabled other people to completely 

remove files on 

WhatsApp without knowledge 

of the user, according to a 

report in Kerala-based 

Mathrubhumi on Monday. 

A resident of Alappuzha, 

Ananthakrishna had found the 

bug two months ago and 

informed Facebook officials. 

Facebook examined the 

solution provided by the young 

student and after two months of 

observation, then social networking 

giant decided to honour 

him for successfully rectifying 

the error. Besides presenting 

him with a cash award 

of $500 (approximately Rs 

34,000), Facebook also promised 

a spot for Ananthakrishna 

in the prestigious Hall of Fame, 

according to the report. 

provisions are in place. 

Institutional motivation to 

implement these provisions is 

woefully lacking, as shown in 

Payal’s case. However, even if 

institutional mechanisms were 

in place, these can play a role 

only after a dalit or an Adivasi 

has been humiliated, or suffered 

an assault. Indians need 

to identify and root out the conditions 

which make many of 

them abusers and haters of 

people from deprived backgrounds. 

Indian society remains a 

deeply hierarchical and divided 

society. Its public sphere, in 

which people are supposed to 

be able to interact with each 

other without distinctions, is 

also stamped with hierarchy, so 

New York : Spot gold prices in the 

benchmark US market declined on Tuesday 

after an initial surge following the Federal 

Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s 

“dovish” statement on the US-China trade 

tensions. Around 11.17 a.m. New York local 

time, the spot gold prices traded at 

$1,320.50 per ounce, lower by 0.32 per cent 

from its previous close, 

according to data from 

Kitco.com. 

Earlier in the day, it 

had touched $1,329.70 

per ounce, the highest 

price currently of any 

precious metal. 

US Federal Reserve 

Chairman Powell, in his 

opening remarks at a 

monetary policy conference 

in Chicago, said: 

“We do not know how or when these issues 

will be resolved.” This very statement was 

perceived by the investors as “dovish”, 

according to analysts. 

Powell was quoted in the US media as 

saying: “We are closely monitoring the 

implications of these developments for the 

US economic outlook and, as always, we 

that there is little respect for a 

human being for just being a 

person. The normalcy of this 

public is dominated by people 

from privileged backgrounds. 

People from deprived backgrounds 

always feel marked in 

this sphere. Numerous writings 

by Dalit and Adivasi authors 

bring it out in painful detail. In 

educational institutions and 

work environments they are 

permanently stamped with the 

‘reservation’ category tag. 

Most of them are first generation 

learners from poor families. 

They get to join these 

institutions and places of work 

after numerous hurdles, but 

their individual talents are little 

recognised. Increasingly, 

Muslims of our country are also 

being made to feel the same 

way. Institutions of higher 

learning and government 

offices reek of a nefarious discourse 

on ‘merit’ of the ‘general’ 

category. This ‘merit’ is supposed 

to be measured by marks 

in entrance exams. But how 

does one compare the abilities 

of a dalit young woman from a 

rural landless family, who spent 

half her time on family chores, 

went to a dilapidated village 

school, and still got admission 

to an institution of higher learning, 

with another person whose 

upper middle class urban parents 

gave him/her education in 

expensive private schools, provided 

comfortable learning 

environment at home, and paid 

for extra tuitions and coaching? 

Why should only one of them 

be considered ‘meritorious’? 

Why cannot they interact freely 

in an environment of mutual 

respect? 

The policy of reservation in 

jobs and educational institutions 

is often cited as the chief 

culprit, as if without this policy 

these places will be republics of 

merit.The drafting committee 

of India’s constitution under 

the leadership of Dr Ambedkar 

adopted reservations as a policy 

of affirmative action after 

serious debate. Reservations 

have been continued and 

extended by democratically 

Gold prices in red after 

making initial gains 

will act as appropriate to sustain the expansion, 

with a strong labour market and inflation 

near our symmetric 2 percent objective.” 

Gold prices, off-late firmed up on the 

back of the ongoing US-China trade tensions 

which has helped the yellow metal 

regain the status of the most expensive precious 

metal on Monday. 

On Monday, gold 

prices rose more than 

1.5 per cent on Monday 

to its highest level in 

more than three months 

of $1,325.72 per ounce. 

Analysts said that this 

upward movement happened 

on concerns that 

US-Chinese trade tensions 

and Washington’s 

threat of tariffs on 

Mexico would hurt the 

global economy. Palladium, now the most 

expensive precious metal, after decline in 

gold prices, is currently trading at $1,323 

per ounce, higher by 1.07 per cent from the 

previous close. 

Another precious metal, platinum’s spot 

price traded around $818 per ounce, lower 

by 0.24 per cent from the previous close. 

elected governments. Citizens 

have a right to criticize any 

government policy, or law. 

However, no one has a right to 

humiliate and abuse anyone, 

and any effort to show these as 

‘reactions’ to a state policy is 

pure hypocrisy. These are acts 

of aggression and violence 

against people who are vulnerable 

due to their deprived backgrounds. 

\PADS calls upon the people 

of India to seriously question 

why so many of them are haters 

and abusers of people from 

deprived backgrounds. Why do 

people who abuse and commit 

hate crimes think they can get 

away with it? It is evident that 

the anti-caste movements have 

only partially succeeded in 

democratising India. The main 

reason is that the task of making 

India a democratic society 

has never been undertaken by 

the overwhelming majority of 

Indians. Until this happens 

India will continue to humiliate 

and harass people from 

deprived backgrounds, and 

destroy bright and sensitive 

men and women like Rohith 

and Payal. 

Released by: 

Battini Rao, Convenor, 

PADS (95339 75195) 

battini.rao@gmail.com 

(People’s Alliance for 

Democracy and Secularism) 

RBI rate cut unlikely 

to stimulate growth 

due to poor 

transmission: Ind-Ra 

New Delhi : A rate cut, which is 

almost certain in the second bi-monthly 

monetary policy statement for 2019-20, 

is unlikely to stimulate demand in the 

near term due to the absence of quick 

resonance in the financial market, India 

Ratings and Research said on 

Wednesday. Despite the RBI cutting policy 

rate by 50bp so far in 2019, banks 

have not adjusted their lending/deposit 

rate accordingly. On the contrary, a number 

of banks have raised their deposit 

rates to mobilise funds. At the core of 

this mismatch between the RBI's action 

and the banks' inability to pass on the 

benefit to the borrowers is the slowdown 

in household savings. Increased government 

borrowing and elevated small savings 

rate have rendered deposit/investment 

mobilisation by banks/NBFCs 

expensive, the India Ratings report. 

India's consumption demand is also 

still not a pronounced credit fuelled or 

leveraged demand. Outstanding personal 

loan (excluding housing loan)/PFCE 

(Private Final COnsumption 

Expenditure) ratio was 35.7% in 

4QFYE19 (28.2% at 1QFYE12). 

However, Ind-Ra believes, more than 

the rate cut it is the transmission of the 

rate cut into the economy that has 

emerged as a bigger challenge. 

* The Asian Independent and people associated with it are not responsible for any claims made by the advertisers and do not endorse in any products or services advertised. Please visit www.theasianindependent.com/tc for more information.


ASIA 


Sikh Americans Remembers American & Sikh Soldiers 

in 2019 Memorial Day Parade at Springfield, Ohio 

Dayton, Ohio: Thousands of people 

gathered, lined up on the sidewalks 

of the streets, outside their resident 

homes and parks to watch the 2019 

Springfield, Ohio Memorial Day 

Parade. This year, a group of about 

100 Sikh Americans from Springfield, 

Dayton, Cincinnati and neighboring 

areas participated in the parade 

remembering and honoring Sikh and 

American soldiers of all Wars with a 

float of their own. 

The two hour and two-mile long 

parade marched through downtown 

with as many as 3000 participants in 

attendance and a gathering of about 

30-35000 spectators along the route to 

watch the parade. Over 100 groups 

and close to 300 cars made their way 

to the city, making it the biggest 

parade in the city’s history, 

Every year, Springfield resident 

Avtar Singh and family along with 

members of Sikh Community participate 

in the parade. Avtar Singh and 

Sarabjit Kaur says, “We along with 

our family participated in the Parade 

representing Sikh American for the 

first time in 1999 to honor and 

remember the soldiers who died while 

serving in armed forces. We are very 

happy that the number of Sikh community 

members who attend the 

parade is growing. Due to the tragic 

incident of 9/11, Sikhs have been the 

target of hate crimes due to mistaken 

identity, hence, it is now more important 

for Sikh Americans to participate 

in such events and reach out to the 

community. 

Sameep Singh Gumtala, a social 

activist and Convener of FlyAmritsar 

Initiative from neighboring city of 

Dayton says, “I have been part of this 

parade for the past 9 years along with 

my children, who every year are very 

excited to participate and walk down 

the street. Hosting a float at the parade 

is also an opportunity to educate people 

about the contribution of Sikhs in 

World Wars. We take pride in our 

country by supporting our troops, 

3 

remembering the people that have fallen 

for us, went to war for us and 

fought for our country.” 

Sikhs have lived in USA for more 

than 100 years with many arriving in 

the late 1800s. 

They have made many contributions 

to this nation including construction, 

farming land, hospitality, education 

and serving in the military. Still 

majority of Americans cannot even 

accurately identify a Sikh and do not 

know about the Sikh tradition. 

According to British General Sir 

Frank Messervy “In the last two World 

Wars, 83005 turban wearing Sikh soldiers 

were killed and 109,045 were 

wounded for the freedom of Britain 

and the World. During shell fire they 

had no other protection but the turban, 

the symbol of their faith.” 

Sameep Singh Gumtala 

Email: sameep.singh@gmail.com 

Obama praises Sikh man 

with rainbow turban 

Washington : Former US 

President Barack Obama has 

praised San Diego-based Sikh 

neuroscientist Jiwandeep Kohli 

who is celebrating this year's 

Pride Month with a rainbow 

turban. Kohli, who is a bisexual, 

went viral a few days ago 

when he shared an image of his 

elaborate creation -- his turban 

that featured the colours of the 

LGBT flag -- on Twitter. 

"I'm proud to be a bisexual 

bearded baking brain scientist. I 

feel fortunate to be able to 

express all these aspects of my 

identity and will continue to 

work towards ensuring the same 

freedom for others," he captioned 

the image. 

Complimenting Kohli, Obama 

tweeted on Tuesday: "You've 

got a lot to be proud of, 

Jiwandeep. Thanks for everything 

you do to make this country 

a little more equal. Turban 

looks great, by the way. Happy 

Pride Month, everybody!" The 

California viral sensation 

responded to Obama. "I'm a 

fairly verbose person, but today 

I am lost for words," Kohli 

wrote. "Thank you for your support 

and the compliment, Mr 

Obama." Pride Month kicked 

off on June 1 and honours the 

LGBTQ community while commemorating 

New York's 

Stonewall riots in June 1969 

that signalled a turning point in 

the movement for equal rights. 

Pakistan military to 

cut defence spending 

Islamabad : Pakistan's military 

has decided to slash the 

defence budget for the next 

financial year in line with 

broader austerity measures 

being introduced by the government 

to deal with the cashstrapped 

country's financial 

woes. 

Major General Asif Ghafoor, 

Director General of Inter 

Services Public Relations 

(ISPR) - the media wing of the 

military, tweeted on Tuesday 

the cuts "will not be at the cost 

of of defence and security". 

Terming it a voluntary cut, 

Ghafoor wrote, "We shall 

maintain the effective response 

potential to all threats. Three 

Services will manage impact of 

the cut through appropriate 

internal measures. It was 

important to participate in 

development of tribal areas and 

Balochistan." 

Prime Minister Imran Khan 

said he was appreciative of the 

military's "unprecedented voluntary 

initiative of stringent 

cuts in their defence expenditures" 

especially in light of the 

country's financial situation. 

Khan said he was grateful 

for the move that had come 

"despite multiple security challenges" 

that Pakistan faced. 

The funds saved would be 

used for development of the 

newly merged tribal areas as 

well as Balochistan, he added. 

Calling it "not a small step at 

all", Science and Technology 

Minister Fawad Chaudhry 

tweeted, "Only a strong civilmilitary 

coordination can rescue 

Pakistan from the deep 

problems of governance and 

economy." The army's decision, 

he said, "shows a complete 

trust in the leadership of 

Prime Minister by an important 

institution".Earlier in February, 

the government had decided 

not to make any cuts in the 

country's defence budget for 

the ongoing year. "The country's 

defence budget is already 

low compared with other states 

in the region, and therefore it 

should be increased," 

Chaudhry, then Information 

Minister, had said. According 

to experts, Pakistan's economy 

has grown 5.2 per cent in 2018, 

but is forecast to decline to 3.4 

per cent this year and 2.7 per 

cent next year, before recovering 

to 4 per cent in 2021.


ASIA 


Eid celebrated with gaiety in India, J&K sees some clashes 

New Delhi : Eid-ul-Fitr, marking 

the end of the Muslim holy month of 

Ramadan, was on Wednesday celebrated 

across India with religious fervour 

and gaiety, barring some places 

in Jammu and Kashmir where clashes 

erupted between stone-pelting youths 

and security forces after special festival 

prayers. President Ram Nath 

Kovind, Vice President M. Venkaiah 

Naidu, and Prime Minister Narendra 

Modi were among leaders who greeted 

the people on the occasion. The 

Prime Minister specially wished people 

in both English and Urdu through 

his Twitter account. "May this special 

day ignite the spirit of harmony, compassion 

and peace in our society. May 

everyone be blessed with happiness," 

Modi tweeted in English. 

The tweet in Urdu read: "Eid-ul- 

Fitr ke parmusarrat mauqe par 

mubarakbaad. Khuda kare ke yeh 

khususi din, hamare mashre mein 

ham-aahang, rahm-dili aur aman ke 

jazbat ko farogh de. Har kas-o-nakas 

ki zindagi musarraton se hamkinar 

ho." Lakhs of people thronged hundreds 

of small and big mosques and 

Eidgah maidans across India, especially 

Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, 

Jharkhand, Maharashtra, as well as the 

northeastern and southern states, to 

celebrate the occasion, marking the 

end of 30-day fasting during the holy 

month of Ramadan. 

Pakistan Foreign Secretary Sohail 

Mahmood, who is the former High 

Commissioner to India and was in 

India a private visit, offered prayers at 

Delhi's 17th century Jama Masjid with 

his children. 

A minor accident, however, 

occurred in the national capital when a 

motorist rammed his car into devotees 

emerging from a mosque in city's 

Khureji area but police said no one 

was injured. Scene of communal harmony 

marked the celebration in 

Hyderabad where non-Muslims joined 

their Muslim brethren at Eidgah or 

open grounds where 'Namaz-e-Eid' 

was offered in the morning. 

Indian and Pakistan security forces 

also exchanged sweets and greetings 

on the Line of Control (LoC) and the 

International Border on the occasion. 

Defence sources said that Indian 

soldiers greeted Pakistan soldiers on 

the LoC in Chakan Da Bagh area of 

Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district 

and the two sides exchanged sweets. 

Border Security Force troopers also 

exchanged greetings and sweets with 

Indian gets 7-year jail for 

raping woman in UK 

Pakistani Rangers in J&K's Samba 

and the Attari-Wagah joint border post 

in Punjab. 

The BSF and the Border Guards 

Bangladesh (BGB) also exchanged 

greetings, flowers and sweets on the 

occasion. According to a BSF official, 

senior officials of BSF and BGB 

accompanied by locally posted troopers 

greeted each other at many places 

along the 4,096-km Bangladesh frontier 

in West Bengal, Tripura, Assam, 

Mizoram and Meghalaya. With the 

monsoon yet to set in, special morning 

prayers were held in open places in 

Kerala and drew huge crowds. Many 

wore new dresses and greeted one 

another after the prayers. 

At all centres in the state, there 

were separate enclosures for women 

and children. At the popular Palayam 

Grand Mosque, the Shahi Imam, in his 

sermon, spoke against terrorism and 

extreme nationalism. Mutton and beef 

stalls were crowded at most places 

since late Tuesday. Mutton prices 

soared to Rs 800 a kilo while beef was 

priced at Rs 380. At Kochi, superstar 

Mammootty turned up at an Eid prayer 

session and interacted with the devout. 

Except Jammu and Kashmir, the 

festival was celebrated peacefully 

almost across India. In Srinagar, 

scores of masked men displaying 

Islamic State, and Pakistan national 

flags appeared on the streets of the old 

city's Nowhatta area and raised pro- 

Pakistan slogans. 

Immediately after the Eid prayers, 

scores of masked men came out with 

IS and Lashkar-e-Taiba flags and 

raised slogans like "Musa, Musa, 

Zakir Musa", "Hum Kya Chahte 

Azadi, Azadi", "Pakistan Zindabad" 

and displaying posters carrying pictures 

of militants. They marched 

through the streets, and dozens of 

other youths joined them until security 

forces intercepted them after half a 

kilometre from the Jamia Masjid. 

The marchers then pelted stones at 

the security forces, who resorted to 

tear smoke and pellet guns to disperse 

the crowd. 

Earlier, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, 

delivering the sermon at the historic 

Jamia Masjid, called for India and 

Pakistan to engage in "meaningful dialogue" 

"Our people have made huge 

sacrifices and unless India and 

Pakistan engage in a meaningful dialogue, 

the problem will persist," he 

said, urging the new political dispensation 

at the Centre to stop the "military 

approach" to resolve the Kashmir 

issue. Clashes were also witnessed in 

Sopore, Anantnag and Kupwara in the 

Kashmir Valley after Eid prayers. 

London : An Indian man who fled the UK 

after raping a woman in 2017 has been sentenced 

to seven years in jail. 

Ajay Rana, 35, raped the woman in the 

back of his housemate's car in Lowestoft 

town, Suffolk, after offering her a lift on 

December 9, 2017. He then took a "trophy 

photograph" and fled to India days later under 

the pretence of visiting his ill mother. 

Rana was sentenced at Ipswich Crown 

Court on Tuesday after being found guilty of 

rape following a two-week trial, the BBC 

reported. 

In a 

statement 

read to the 

court, the 

victim said 

the attack 

"will haunt 

me for the 

rest of my 

life". "I am 

so angry 

that he has 

done this to 

me, and 

(the case) 

brings it all 

flooding 

back and 

the emotions hit me like a roller coaster," the 

woman said. 

She added that she had been diagnosed 

with post-traumatic stress disorder, had begun 

self-harming and suffered regular flashbacks, 

despite receiving counselling. 

Rana had offered to drive the woman home 

as she walked along Oulton Road on 

December 9, 2017. He told her he had already 

driven two other people because of the cold 

but stopped the car in Kimberley Road and 

raped her. 

The woman, who was in her 30s, managed 

to get out and ran to a friend's house where the 

police were called. 

Rana then took a photograph of the evidence 

of the attack on the passenger seat. 

By the time the police identified him as a 

suspect five 

days later, 

having 

traced the 

vehicle to 

his home, 

Rana had 

taken a 

flight to 

India. 

T h e 

police then 

began proceedings 

to 

extradite 

Rana from 

India and 

also issued 

a n 

European Arrest warrant. 

Rana was detained under the European 

warrant by the Spanish police in Bilbao on 

October 22. He was extradited to the UK on 

November 12 after approval from the Spanish 

courts.


Bengaluru : Thousands of 

devout Muslims, including 

women and children celebrated 

Eid-ul-Fitr with religious fervour, 

gaiety and piety across 

Karnataka on Wednesday, the 

first day of the 10th Islamic 

month of Shawwal, 1440 Hijri. 

"As the Shawwal crescent 

moon was sighted over India on 

Tuesday night, we have 

declared Eid (festival) for 

Wednesday, marking the end of 

month-long Ramadhan fasting 

with prayers, distribution of 

alms and feasting," Ruwiyathe-Hilal 

Committee member 

Shaikh Aijaz Nadvi told IANS 

here. 

The fasting, which began on 

May 6 in the holy ninth month 

of the Islamic calendar, ended 

with the faithfuls offering 

prayers (namaz), listening to 

sermons (khutba) and offerings 

(nazrana) to the poor and 

needy. In Bengaluru, the largest 

gathering of about 10,000 was 

at Idgah maidan in the southwest 

suburb of Chamrajpet, followed 

by assembling of the 

devout at Silver Jubilee Park 

mosque and other shrines. 

State Congress minister 

Zameer Ahmed, party leaders 

Roshan Baig, Rizwan Arshad, 

C.M. Ibrahim and former Rajya 

Sabha member Rehman Khan 

were among the prominent 

members of the community 

who participated in the prayer 

meeting at the sprawling Idgah 

grounds and exchanged greetings 

with others. 

Ruling Congress and Janata 

Dal-Secular (JD-S) leaders, 

including Siddaramaiah, state 

chief minister H.D. 

Kumaraswamy, JD-S supremo 

H.D. Deve Gowda and deputy 

chief minister G. Parameshwara 

also participated in the prayers 

and greeted their Muslim 

brothern Eid mubarak! 

BJP's state unit president 

B.S. Yeddyurappa and party's 

city legislators R Ashoka and 

Suresh Kumar also wished the 

devout on the occasion. The 

annual fest was celebrated by 

thousands of devout at Mysuru, 

Mangaluru, Hubbli, Belagavi, 

Ballari, Bidar, Bijapur, 

Gulbarga, Raichur and Yadgir 

among the cities and towns 

across the southern state. 

Dressed in new attire and 

sporting skull caps mostly 

white, young and old thronged 

ASIA 

Eid CELEBRATED in 

Karnataka with piety 

Assam police 'high' on humour 

after huge ganja catch 

New Delhi : Assam Police have earned praise from people 

around the country for a humourous tweet that it posted after seizing 

590 kg of ganja. 

"Anyone lost a huge (590 kg) amount of cannabis/ganja and a 

truck in and around 

Chagolia checkpoint 

last night? 

Don't panic, we 

found it. Please get 

in touch with 

@Dhubri_Police. 

They will help you 

out, for sure ;) 

Great job Team 

Dhubri," read the 

message from the 

Assam Police 

Twitter handle on 

Tuesday. 

The post is accompanied by a picture of stacks of cannabis 

placed on top of one another. People lauded the team for the huge 

catch. But the humorous twist in the tale left the Twitterati in 

splits. The tweet which has been liked over 19,000 times so far, 

has also been commended by stand-up comedian Papa CJ. 

He posted clap emojis on a tweet addressed to the @assampolice 

"for the job done and the sense of humour :)" 

Assam Police lapped up the comment from the comedian. 

"You know you have arrived when Asia's Best Stand-up comic 

appreciates your humour! Thank you @PapaCJ , you are a kind (& 

funny) soul," a tweet from Assam Police said on Wednesday. 

While police often bring up the image of a coercive force, such 

humorous tweets have done well to connect with thousands. 

Social Media Consultant Salik Khan who works for both Assam 

Police and Meghalaya Police later posted a link related to the 

tweet. Mumbai Police are also known for using humour, memes 

and GIFs to send strong messages to the young. 

New Delhi : Mumbai is the 

most traffic congested city in 

the world, while Delhi is close 

behind at fourth position, an 

analysis of traffic congestion in 

403 cities across six continents 

has revealed. 

'Traffic Index-2018', compiled 

by leading independent 

location technology specialist 

TomTom, said that Mumbai 

takes the top spot for the second 

consecutive year with 

commuters spending an average 

of 65 per cent extra travel 

time stuck in traffic. 

According to the rpeort, 

after Mumbai, next in the global 

rankings were Colombian 

capital, Bogota (63 per cent), 

Lima in Peru (58 per cent), 

New Delhi (58 per cent) and 

Russian capital, Moscow (56 

per cent), making up the top 

five most congested cities in 

the world. 

With Moscow taking the 

lead in Europe, Istanbul(53 per 

cent) came a close second with 

Bucharest(48 per cent) Saint 

Petersburg (47 per cent) and 

Kiev (46 per cent) making up 

open grounds, mosques and 

community halls for prayers 

and reciting the first sermons 

(Quranic verses) as revealed by 

Angel Gabriel to Prophet 

Mohammed over 14th centuries 

ago. Women devout also 

prayed at homes in zanana (private 

portions), exchanged 

greetings with relatives and 

neighbours and joined family 

members for feasting. State 

Governor Vajubhai Vala also 

greeted the Muslim brethren 

for the festival. 

the top five. 

Brussels (37 per cent), 

London (37 per cent) and Paris 

(36 per cent) ranked in at 11th, 

12th and 13th respectively. 

Among North American 

cities, top five most congested 

are Mexico City (52 per cent), 

Los Angeles (41 per cent), 

Vancouver (38 per cent), New 

York (36 per cent) and San 

Francisco (34 per cent). 

The report said that traffic 

congestion has increased globally 

during the last decade and 

nearly 75 per cent of the cities 

Tom Tom includes in the new 

Traffic Index report had 

increased or stable congestion 

levels between 2017 and 2018, 

with only 90 cities showing 

measurable decreases. 

Decreases were measured in 

Asia with a large decrease in 

congestion (-8 per cent) in 

Jakarta while nearly every city 


Mumbai most traffic congested 

city in world, Delhi fourth 

5 

Good sleep cuts 

appetite for 

sweet, salty food 

Johannesburg : A good night's sleep helps in reducing the 

desire for sweet and salty foods, intake of sugar and caloric content, 

says a study. 

It is known that sleeping less than seven hours is associated 

with an increased cardio-metabolic risk -- heart disease risk and 

metabolic disorders -- but increasing the sleep duration can help 

reduce it, said lead author Rob Henst, Associate Professor at the 

University of Cape Town in South Africa. 

In the study, published in the Journal of Sleep Research, 

researchers found that sleep extension was associated with 

improved measures of insulin sensitivity and reductions in overall 

appetite, desire for sweet and salty foods, intake of daily free 

sugar, and percentage of daily caloric intake from protein. 

"It is now apparent that poor sleep quality may be an equally 

important risk factor for cardio-metabolic diseases," said Dale 

Rae from the varsity. For the study, the researchers studied a 

data of 138 persons who were either healthy, healthy shortsleeping, 

overweight short-sleeping, or pre- or hypertensive 

short-sleeping individuals. 

in South America posted 

increases, the largest (8 per 

cent) taking place in Lima, 

Peru. "Globally, traffic congestion 

is rising. And that's both 

good and bad news. It's good 

because it indicates a strong 

global economy, but the flip 

side is drivers wasting time sitting 

in traffic, not to mention 

the huge environmental 

impact," Ralf-Peter Schaefer, 

TomTom's Vice President of 

Traffic information said. 

He said TomTom has been 

collecting traffic information 

and providing traffic services 

for nearly a decade, allowing 

drivers to make smarter choices 

in route planning and avoiding 

congestion. "The location technology 

specialist's work on the 

future of driving -from high 

definition maps for 

autonomous vehicles, to efficient 

electric vehicle routing 

and charging -means that car 

makers, technology companies, 

road authorities and governments 

already have the tools to 

make the roads less congested," 

he said.


ASIA 


Understanding the importance of 

Dravidian legacy of Karunanidhi 

Kaliangar Karunanidhi would have 

turned 96 today. A man of remarkable 

wit and a literary icon, Karunanidhi was 

one of the most successful political personality 

of India. If the Bahujan movement 

in north India can learn a few 

things about the Dravidian politics, I am 

sure, it would help them positively. 

The Dravidian legacy of legendary 

Periyar today rules Tamilnadu where 

whether the ruling party or its opponent, 

both hail from the same ideological persuit 

though, it can be said with authority 

that AIDMK 

under J Jayalalitha 

diluted the 

Periyarist legacy a 

lot and inducted 

the brahmanical 

practices and 

interest inside the 

movement. Yet, in 

terms of pro people 

policies, both 

parties gave 

Tamilnadu a solid 

economic base. 

Karunanidh was 

much senior to not 

only Jayalalitha 

but also her mentor M G Ramachandran. 

A close associate of another legend Anna 

Durrai, Karunanidhi never compromised 

on his personal beliefs just for the sake 

of ‘votes’. He remained a staunch atheist 

all his life, like his leader Anna and 

Periyar. 

Unfortunately, the Bahujan politics 

in the north particularly those claiming 

to be the family of either Jaya Prakash 

or Lohia remained entrenched in religiosity 

and religious symbolism. Rather 

than critiquing brahmanism and fighting 

against caste hierarchy, the north Indian 

parties actually ‘welcomed’ those brahmins 

who joined them without leaving 

their ‘caste’ interest or idea of caste 

supremacy. 

I have always advocated the idea of 

understand Periyar and his hugely successful 

socio-political movement for the 

north Indian Bahujan parties but then 

they failed to protect even Periyar due 

to savarna protest in 

Uttar Pradesh. it is 

not that the 

Periyarist movement 

or Dravidian 

parties do not have 

draw backs and like 

any other party, 

Karunanidhi was 

also blamed for 

having a political 

family but it is also 

a fact that DMK 

cadres were deeply 

motivated towards 

Karunanidhi and if 

M K Stalin follow 

his father’s trait then it is certain that he 

is going to run the state for a longer 

term. 

The father of the Dravidian movement, 

Periyar was an iconoclast, an 

amazing personality of reason, a thorough 

rationalist and an absolute nightmare 

for brahmanical elite. I am using 

nightmare in logical sense and not in 

terms of any violent methods but purely 

argumentative ways. They launched the 

self respect movement and language 

was an important part of it, related to 

Dravidian identity. At the time, when 

the government is trying to impose 

Hindi on people who do not have Hindi 

as their main language, it is important to 

understand why Tamilnadu opposed it 

and why Nehru respected that sentiment. 

We respect the rights of the non 

Hindi speaking people to speak against 

imposition of Hindi. While, it is a growing 

fact that Hindi has been used by a 

huge number of people and with active 

state sponsorship and commercial venture, 

it has reached to wider sections of 

people across South Asia, it is equally 

important that Hindi or the values in the 

name of Hindi or north India are not 

imposed on people. Every state has its 

own language and some of these languages 

including Tamil, Bangla, 

Marathi have much more powerful literature 

than Hindi could ever have. 

An argument is being given that people 

should learn more languages but 

why the argument is for non Hindi 

speaking people. Why not for the Hindi 

speaking people. The importance of 

English language or that of Europe is a 

well known factor as far as internationalism 

is concern and therefore most 

of the people want to learn them. 

People dont want to learn Hindi for 

the sake 

of learni 

n g 

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat 

social and human rights activist 

something and that is the irony. 

Language represent our values, our 

identity too and therefore, it is essential 

Voices of dissent emerge 

in SP against Mayawati 

Lucknow : Voices of dissent 

against Bahujan Samaj Party 

President Mayawati have started 

emerging from the Samajwadi 

Party after the BSP snapped its 

alliance with the SP on Tuesday. 

Senior party MP Ram Gopal 

Yadav said that the Samajwadi 

Party was bigger party than the 

BSP and if the Yadav community 

had not voted for BSP candidates, 

the party's tally would 

have been around four to five 

seats. 

Ram Gopal Yadav said that 

Mayawati had been wrongly 

informed by her candidates that 

Yadavs did not vote for them. "I went around 

the state during the elections and nowhere 

did anyone complain about this. I have seen 

SP workers campaigning for BSP candidates 

and vice versa. There it is wrong to allege 

that BSP did not get SP votes," he said. 

Aparna Yadav, younger daughter-in-law 

of Mulayam Singh Yadav, said that she was 

"pained" to hear the statements of Mayawati. 

"Jo samman nahin pacha pate, wo apmaan 

bhi nahin pacha pate (Those who cannot 

digest honour, cannot digest dishonor 

either)," she tweeted. Aparna Yadav, incidentally, 

belongs to the Shivpal Yadav faction 

and has been supporting his party. She had 

contested and lost the 2017 Assembly elections 

as the Samajwadi Party candidate from 

the Lucknow Cantt seat. She told reporters 

later that it was wrong to blame the 

Samajwadi Party for the poll debacle. 

Samajwadi MLA Hari Om Yadav 

said that it was the Samajwadi Party 

that had suffered losses in the alliance 

with the BSP. 

"If the SP had contested on its own, 

it would have got 25 seats and BSP, 

on its own, would have got zero seats. 

Mayawati should actually be grateful 

to SP cadres for winning 10 seats," he 

told reporters. 

The BSP had won zero seats in 

2014 while Samajwadi Party had won 

five seats which increased to eight 

seats after the bye-election victories in 

2018. 

Samajwadi legislators, meanwhile, said 

that the alliance did not percolate down to 

the grassroots level and therefore SP suffered 

losses. 

"We will convey our views to the party 

president whenever he convenes a meeting. 

We supported BSP putting aside past hostilities 

but we have emerged as a loser," said a 

legislator from central Uttar Pradesh. 

for Indian state to respect the sentiments 

of the people, accept the diversity of 

India both linguistically and culturally 

as making it a unified one nation, one 

religion, one language idea would only 

create crisis and will never be accepted 

by people. 

Idea of India is enshrined in its constitution 

where it celebrate the vast linguistic 

and cultural diversity. Let the 

north Indians also learn 

some new languages of 

India. We cant develop 

hatred towards people in the 

name of languages and cultures. 

Urdu paid a price of it 

when linked with Muslim 

identity and religion rather than a language 

which was born in India and 

enriched our culture. Similarly, all 

Indian languages strengthen our cultural 

value system and idea of India. The fact 

is that Despite so much of variety the 

idea of India unite us and that idea is 

that we all are Indians despite diverse 

faiths and different languages and cultural 

traits, all have equal rights hence 

all attempt to impose one language, one 

culture, one religion value system on 

vast majority of people must be discarded 

in greater public interest and in the 

interest of our national unity. 

Vidya Bhushan Rawat is a social 

and human rights activist. He blogs 

at www.manukhsi.blogspot.com 

twitter @freetohumanity 

Email: vbrawat@gmail.com 

It was an experiment that 

failed: Akhilesh Yadav 

Lucknow : Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on 

Wednesday admitted 

that his alliance with 

the Bahujan Samaj 

Party (BSP) was "an 

experiment that 

failed". 

"I have been a 

science student. 

There are experiments 

and sometimes 

they fail... But 

at least you realize 

what went wrong. 

But, today, I will say 

what I said when we announced the alliance -- respect to Mayawatiji 

is respect to me," he said. He added: "As far as the alliance is concerned, 

if we have to contest alone in the Uttar Pradesh by-elections, 

I will consult my party leaders on our future strategy." BSP President 

Mayawati announced on Tuesday that her party would contest the 

coming by-elections in 11 Assembly seats alone and would review 

her decision to call off the alliance "only if the Samajwadi Party can 

bring an improvement in its cadres". 

The 11 seats have fallen vacant after the legislators of BJP, BSP 

and SP got elected to the Lok Sabha. This is the first time the BSP 

will be contesting by-elections. The party, in the past, has not contested 

by-elections, terming it a waste of time. The BSP, in the recent 

Lok Sabha elections, contested 38 seats but could win only 10 whereas 

the Samajwadi Party contested 37 seats and won five. Political 

analysts say that while Mayawati gained from the Samajwadi Party's 

Muslim and Yadav voters, her Dalit vote base did not help 

Samajwadi Party at all. However, Mayawati claims that her party 

candidates did not get Yadav votes.


New Delhi- Though nine Indian cities 

figure among the World Health 

Organisation's 10 most polluted global destinations, 

lack of effective implementation 

of pollution control measures remains a 

major challenge, say experts. 

The Narendra Modi government's 

Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana, which 

ensures LPG connections to women from 

poor families, has helped lower indoor pollution. 

But vehicular emissions and stubble 

burning in the northern states remain major 

contributors to air pollution. 

With polluted air raising health risks in 

a large part of India, the situation is critical 

to say the least and assumes significance as 

we get ready to celebrate the World 

Environment Day on Wednesday. The 

United Nation's has set "air pollution" as 

the theme for this year's celebrations. 

"There are policies and programmes to 

deal with air pollution. But there are issues 

with their management," said Anand 

Kumar, Associate Director (Environment 

and Climate Change) at IPE Global, a consultancy 

providing technical assistance and 

solutions for equitable development and 

sustainable growth in developing countries. 

The government has dealt with vehicular 

emission through several policies, but 

stubble burning, which leads to smog and 

high level of pollutant in the national capital 

during winters, has not been looked at 

properly. Last Diwali, in several parts of 

Delhi concentration of PM 2.5 exceeded 

1,500 μg/m3, way above the "severe" category 

and could result in respiratory problems 

to even healthy people, said Kumar. 

Environmentalist C.R. Babu stressed the 

need to raise public awareness. 

"Technology cannot help much in the fight 

against air pollution. The natural sinks (to 

ASIA 

Experts for right execution 

of anti-pollution steps 

Algeria cancels 

July 4 presidential 

elections 

Algiers : Algeria on Sunday cancelled the presidential polls, 

which was to be held on July 4, as both the candidates failed to 

meet requirements to contest elections. 

The papers submitted by Abdelhakim Hammadi, a doctor specialising 

in pharmacy, and Hamid Touahri, a retired aircraft maintenance 

engineer, in May had been rejected as both did not meet 

the requirements, the Algerian Constitutional Council said in a 

statement, reported Xinhua news agency. 

Amer Rekhila, a law expert, said the deadline for new presidential 

elections shall be extended for a maximum of 60 days 

according to Article 103 of the Constitution. 

Algeria has been plagued by wide-spread protests since 

February 22, which forced then President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to 

resign on April 2 and led to cancellation of presidential polls 

scheduled for April 18. Protesters later started expressing objections 

to elections on July 4. 

The protesters are demanding guarantee for free and fair elections, 

after a short transitional period of at least six months led by 

honest and clean authorities. 

Algeria’s interim President Abdelkader Bensalah shall remain 

in office until the new elected President takes oath. 

absorb pollutant) have either filled or have 

been eliminated, while sources of pollution 

are increasing. How many vacuum cleaners 

or sprays can be used to remove dust? 

People's participation is a must," he said. 

Babu suggested creation of green 

buffers as one way. "We need multiple 

patches of vegetation across the urban 

areas. Only a carpet of greenery can absorb 

dust and pollutant," he said. 

CHARGESHEET in 

minor’s rape filed 

within week in Punjab 

Chandigarh 

: Acting swiftly 

on the orders of 

Chief Minister 

Amarinder 

Singh, Punjab 

Police on 

Tuesday filed a 

chargesheet 

against the 

accused in the 

Dhuri school 

minor’s rape 

case, within a 

week of the incident 

that had 

sent shock waves across the 

state. 

The challan was filed in the 

court of Sessions Judge 

Sangrur, immediately after the 

DNA test report on accused 

Kamal Kumar was received 

from FSL Mohali. 

Kumar was arrested on May 

26 soon after the Dhuri police 

received a complaint from 

Civil Hospital Dhuri regarding 

the sexual assault of a fiveyear-old 

school girl. 

Medical examination of the 

victim was carried out and her 

swab samples, blood samples, 

clothes etc were sent to the FSL 

Mohali. Kumar, who was 

arrested the same day, was 

remanded in police custody the 

next day, when members of the 

school management Tarsem 

Chand, Jiwan kumar Jain and 

incharge of the school Babita 

Rani, were also arrested. 

A Special Investigation 

Team (SIT) headed by 

Superintend of Police Gurmeet 

Singh was formed under the 

supervision of Senior 

Superintendent of Police of 

Sangrur. During investigation, 

SIT added offences under 

Section 201 IPC, and Juvenile 

Justice AcT 2015. The SIT 

obtained one day police 

remand of the management 

members and also visited the 

crime scheme. 

A site map was prepared and 

various documents were taken 

into police custody, along with 

the victim’s clothes, birth 

record, admission record, and 

parent-teacher meeting record. 

The mobile phone of the 

accused was also taken into 

custody. 


7 

Afghan President to visit 

Pakistan on June 27 

Kabul : 

Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani on Tuesday 

said that he will 

visit Pakistan on 

June 27 in an effort 

to improve bilateral 

relations that are 

often hampered by 

mistrust and reciprocal 

accusations. 

In his message 

to mark Eid-ul- 

Fitr, Ghani said he 

agreed to visit 

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan after he met him last 

week on the sidelines of the Organization of Islamic 

Cooperation meeting in Saudi Arabia, Tolo News reported. 

“I hope the visit will be positive,” he said. 

The Afghan leader said that though he had a productive meeting 

with Khan in Saudi Arabia, there was still a need of practical 

steps. “‘Introductory’ meetings are not required, there should 

be practical meetings.” Kabul has accused Pakistan of harbouring 

Taliban militants who launch attacks inside Afghanistan, but 

Ghani said he was hopeful that years of mistrust can be replaced 

by mutual trust and cooperation towards peace. 

During their meeting on June 1, “Khan assured Ghani that 

Islamabad will support Kabul in bringing peace and stability in 

Afghanistan”, the Pakistani Prime Minister’s office said in a 

statement. “Prime Minister Imran Khan reaffirmed Pakistan’s 

commitment to a peaceful and stable Afghanistan. He also 

underlined Pakistan’s firm support for an Afghan-led and 

Afghan-owned peace process for political solution in 

Afghanistan,” the statement said. The statement added that 

Ghani and Khan will further discuss security and economic 

issues in the forthcoming visit of the Afghan President to 

Islamabad. 

Pak PM hails military’s 

‘voluntary’ cuts 

Islamabad : Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has 

revealed that 

the military has 

agreed to slash 

the defence 

budget for the 

next fiscal year 

in line with 

broader austerity 

measures 

being introduced 

by the 

government. 

He noted 

that the cuts 

were agreed 

upon despite 

“multiple security challenges”, the Dawn reported on 

Wednesday. 

He further stated that the money saved would be diverted to 

aid the development of the merged tribal areas and Balochistan. 

“I appreciate Pakistan Military’s unprecedented voluntary 

initiative of stringent cuts in their defence expenditures for next 

Financial Year because of our critical financial situation, despite 

multiple security challenges. 

“My government will spend this money saved on development 

of merged tribal areas and Balochistan,” he tweeted very 

late on Tuesday. 

However, Inter-Services Public Relations, the military’s 

media wing, stated in a later tweet that the cuts “will not be at 

the cost of of defense and security”, and that it was important for 

the military to participate in the rebuilding of Balochistan and 

the erstwhile tribal areas. 

Director General of ISPR Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor further stated 

that the slashes would be managed “internally” by all three 

branches of the armed forces taking into account strategic compulsions. 

Earlier in February, the government had decided not to make 

any cuts in the country’s defence budget for the ongoing year. 

“The country’s defence budget is already low as compared to 

other states in the region, and therefore it should be increased,” 

the then information minister, Fawad Chaudhry, had said. 

According to experts, Pakistan’s economy has grown by 5.2 

per cent last year, but is forecast to steeply decline to 3.4 per cent 

this year and 2.7 per cent next year, before recovering to 4 per 

cent in 2021, according to the report.


ASIA 


Unpredictable 

Mayawati! 

Mayawati, President of 

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), is 

known as an unreliable, unpredictable 

politician in India. 

After the death of Kanshi Ram 

on 9 October 2006, her political 

mentor, Mayawati was supposed 

to run the BSP as Kanshi 

Ram wanted her to run but it 

did not happen. 

Although Kanshi Ram 

joined hands with the BJP to 

make Mayawati the first time 

Dalit Chief Minister of Uttar 

Pradesh, a most populous state 

in India, in 1995 under the 

benevolence of the BJP, a 

party of Brahmins, Thakurs. 

Kanshi Ram, an unassertive 

orator, was the leader who 

always maintained clean and 

honorable image and followed 

the ideological path as laid 

down by his social, political 

mentor-Bharat Ratna(highest 

civilian award instituted in 

1954)Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, the 

chief architect of the constitution 

of India. 

Mayawati notoriously 

claims that she has been sacrificing 

everything for the upliftment 

of the Dalits but the truth 

is that Mayawati aims only for 

her own pecuniary advancement. 

In 2016, Swamy Prasad 

Maurya, an OBC leader in 

BSP left Mayawati accusing 

her turning the party into an 

“industrial house” and allegedly 

selling tickets. Later on, the 

same leader joined the saffron 

BJP party. It is not Swamy 

Prasad Maurya who first time 

leveled serious accusations 

against her but there are many 

other BSP leaders at the 

national and local level found 

that accusations leveled by 

Maurya are truthful. Vaishnav 

remarks that the BSP President 

Mayawati is quite open that a 

candidate should make a hefty 

contribution to the party in 

exchange for nomination. 

As a freelance journalist, I 

happen to meet leaders and 

workers of the BSP in Punjab 

and Delhi. A BSP leader from 

Punjab on the condition of 

anonymity said: “My wife and 

I are BSP workers since the 

days of Kanshi Ram. 

Kanshi Ram personally visited 

their house in Phagwara (a 

district in Punjab) during his 

election campaign. Today the 

BSP is not the same as it used 

to be at the time of Kanshi 

Ram. Kanshi Ram was a man 

who loved his workers and 

party sympathizers. He used to 

listen to the opinions, views of 

all the party workers and 

accordingly planned the election 

strategy to win the hearts 

and minds of the Dalits. People 

from the Dalit communities 

thronged his public meetings. 

Today, when Mayawati comes 

to Punjab leaders and workers 

have to spend a lot of money 

from their own pockets and 

sometimes raise funds from 

the public to hire truck, cars, 

and bikes to carry the people to 

the venue of the public meeting. 

Mayawati is a dictator 

who does not listen to anyone 

in the party. She sometimes 

humiliates the party workers in 

the public”. You see, no assembly 

or parliament seat is won 

by the BSP candidate in 

Punjab for the last decades, he 

said. The onus lies on 

Mayawati who never comes 

and support the Punjab BSP 

leaders. They are left on their 

own. The alliance with the 

Badal family(Akalis) in 

Punjab proved to be a disastrous 

alliance since the Badal 

family and Jat Sikhs succeeded 

in convincing the Dalits that 

Mayawati took money from 

the Badam family and did not 

turn up a single time in Punjab 

to support the BSP candidates, 

he said. Tell me what is the 

utility of billions when 

Mayawati cannot save her reputation; 

what the utility of billions 

is when Mayawati has no 

son or daughter. It is beyond 

my imagination for what she is 

amassing wealth and for 

whom, he said. 

Another BSP workers from 

Jalandhar(Punjab), said: “ 

Mayawati generally does not 

trust the Dalits from Punjab. 

She is under the impression 

that Dalits from Punjab can be 

controlled by her greedy, ravenous 

party UP In-charges. 

She sends office in-charge 

from the central office, UP to 

control the state leaders of 

Punjab. The state President are 

treated badly by the appointed 

office in-charge. Sometimes, 

the local BSP Punjab leaders 

and state Presidents, vice-presidents 

are humiliated by the 

UP men on the issue of funds 

collection. The litany is that 

the UP office In-charge claims 

that Behnji needs 

enormous funds to 

travel by helicopters 

to various 

states of India for 

election campaigns. 

The UP 

office in-charge 

will sometimes 

stays 15 days and 

collect the money 

and go back to 

deliver the money 

to the central 

office. God knows 

how much Behnji 

receive and how much is eaten 

away by the UP office Incharge. 

You see the majority of 

the Dalits are poor, daily laborers 

despite that they contribute 

funds with a full heart. Their 

only dream is to see Bhenji the 

Prime Minister of India”. 

Some funds are collected 

through The Backward and 

Minority Communities 

Employees Federation (BAM- 

CEF) founded by Kanshi Ram 

in 1978. 

A BSP worker from BSP 

Delhi unit stated: “The state 

President collected funds from 

the SCs/STs officers working 

in various government departments. 

The state President 

asked for the funds to give to 

Bhenji for going to various 

states of India for election 

campaigns by helicopter. The 

state President collected funds 

but most of the funds were utilized 

for their own expenses 

and some are claimed to be 

spent on the maintenance of 

the BSP Delhi office”. 

Another BSP 

workers from 

Karol Bagh, a 

central Delhi district, 

the area the 

BSP Delhi office 

is situated stated: 

“A meeting was 

called by the 

BSP Delhi unit 

state President to 

discuss the celebration 

of Behnji 

birthday i.e 15th 

– Dr Rahul Kumar January 1956, 

This day is also 

celebrated as Jan Kalyankari 

Diwas(Public Welfare Day). 

The basic idea behind the gargantuan 

celebration is to raise 

funds for the party. In the 

meeting all the participants 

were told that Behnji has given 

a target of ten Million (One 

Crore) for Delhi unit, the State 

President said. The state 

President collected huge funds 

from the Dalit officers, teachers, 

engineers, and local workers. 

A BSP party worker, a 

retired government SC 

employee, from Nagloi, a district 

in the west of UT Delhi 

stated, “Mayawati has given 

instructions to all state presidents 

or secretaries not to 

organize any political protest. 

The purpose of a political 

party is to raise the issues of 

the people to the ears of the 

government and find a permanent 

solution. If a party of 

Dalits will not raise an issue of 

Dalit atrocities, then who will? 

If you become an air-conditioned 

leader who will give 

you vote? If you do not fight 

for the rights of the people as 

reverend Baba Saheb 

Ambedkar fought for the rights 

and social dignity of the poor 

Dalits, who will become your 

party member? Baba Saheb 

Ambedkar fought assiduously 

for the Dalits rights and won 

‘Reservation’. What Mayawati 

has done for the poor, underprivileged 

Dalits in India? In 

UP she could not fight in the 

Allahabad court to save the 

reservation for the Dalits while 

she was the Chief Minister. 

She has no political ethics to 

continue to represent us in the 

parliament. Today, the situation 

is that the Dalits are not 

trusted neither in the political 

circle nor in the social circle 

and it is because of 

Mayawati`s money-grubbing, 

aimless politics, he said. 

Her opportunistic politics 

has rigorously tarnished the 

social and political reputation 

of the Dalit communities at 

large. After defeat in 2019 Lok 

Sabha elections in Uttar 

Pradesh(UP), the largest state 

having 80 parliamentary seats 

she got upset with the alliance 

Samajwadi Party(SP) and suddenly 

broke the alliance by 

accusing the SP of not translating 

the Yadav votes to the BSP. 

Such accusation seems absurd. 

How can Mayawati as the 

President of the BSP level such 

vile allegation against the 

party of Yadavs when she 

knew it very well that the 

majority of the Yadavs hate 

Dalits and its leaders inside 

their hearts and minds. The 

result of Uttar Pradesh in 2019 

Lok Sabha elections shows 

that the BSP fielded candidates 

in 38 seats out which 10 are 

won by the BSP, it means the 

BSP is the gainer whereas the 

SP fielded candidates in 37 

seats and won only 05 seats it 

means the SP as an alliance 

partner stands loser after the 

alliance with the BSP. 

A local leader from the 

Yadav community after the 

official statement of temporary 

break-up made by Mayawati 

on national televisions claims 

that “Mayawati is under pressure 

from the BJP. Mayawati 

knows it very well that if she 

does not come forward to 

break the alliance with the SP, 

sooner or later the BJP would 

compelled her to break under 

the threat of Central Bureau of 

Investigation (CBI). He further 

said that Neta Ram, a close 

aide of Mayawati is already 

under CBI scanner. The BJP is 

going to use him as bait to torment 

Mayawati.”Mayawati 

knows it very well that her 

party has no cadre workers 

who would stage nationwide 

protest if Mayawati is arrested 

on the charges of corruption, 

he said. Mayawati herself 

claim that the SP leaders gave 

her a lot of respect. After allegation 

against the SP leaders, 

this respect earned by her went 

with the wind. On that, Arpana 

Yadav, younger daughter –in 

law of Former Chief Minister 

Mulayam Singh Yadav said: 

“Those who cannot digest 

respect cannot digest defeat 

ether”. GVL Narasimha Rao 

said, “ this was predicted by 

the Prime Minister a long time 

back so it happened. He further 

said, “the era of caste politics 

in India is over”. 

Mayawati has to face a lot 

of criticism in the coming days 

for her immature act. She 

could have waited for few 

months before jumping to the 

conclusion before announcing 

break-up officially. Today 

Mayawati is 63 years old. 

Modi has already occupied the 

seat of Prime Minister for five 

years i.e. till 2024 Mayawati 

has no chance even at distance 

to become a Prime Minister of 

India. Mayawati out of desperation 

sacked office bearers, 

coordinators in Uttrakhand, 

Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Gujarat, 

and Punjab and more to follow 

after the ignominious defeat in 

2019 Lok Sabha elections. 

What it indicates that the BSP 

Supremo Mayawati has lost 

political credibility. 

Those who were hoping to 

see her Prime Minister of India 

should sit at home and whine 

her premature political demise. 

Dalits Diaspora in UK,Canada 

and USA and other western 

countries should stop funding 

the state Presidents, vice-president, 

secretaries of the BSP in 

the name of Mayawati. They 

should invest their money and 

time on education of the boys 

and girls belonging to the marginalized 

communities. That 

would be an honest tribute to 

Baba Saheb Ambedkar- THE 

WORLD HERO.

www.theasianindependent.co.uk ASIA June 2019 9 

Amid 'divergent' statements 

by aides, ED to tighten 

noose around Vadra 

New Delhi : The Enforcement 

tries to associate with him and has never 

Directorate is all set to tighten the noose 

around Robert Vadra, brother-in-law of 

Congress President Rahul Gandhi, as there 

are discrepencies in his and his associates' 

statements. 

A senior ED official told IANS that the 

statements made by Vadra during various 

sessions of questioning between February- 

March 2019 contradict the statements produced 

by his associates and counsels during 

the questioning in the case. 

The official said, "When he appeared for 

the first time on February 6, Vadra had said 

that he could not categorically say he knew 

Puja Chadha. While on March 8, he told the 

officials that he did not know Chadha. 

"The official said when Vadra was asked 

whether he knows Sumit Chahdha, a relative 

of arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari, he said he 

has not met Sumit Chadha. 

"Meanwhile, one of his associate said that 

Vadra knows Sumit Chadha," the official 

said. 

"To a question whether he knows Dubaibased 

businessman C.C. Thampi through 

whom the ED suspects kickbacks were routed 

in a petroleum deal in 2009, Vadra stated 

that he had met him on board an Emirates 

flight," the official said, adding, "while 

Thampi stated that he met Vadra through 

Madhavan, personal assistant of Sonia 

Gandhi." 

The ED has recorded the statement of 

Thmapi on April 6 this year. 

Pointing out another contradiction, the 

official said Vadra was asked whether he has 

any knowledge about 12 Bryanston Square 

(BSQ) property in London. "Vadra during 

questioning on February 7, replied that he 

has never stayed there. While Thampi in his 

statement on April 6 said that Vadra did stay 

at 12 BSQ in London," the official said. 

Another contradiction was raised on 

emails of Vadra from Sumit Chadha and Puja 

Chada. The official said that on February 6, 

Vadra agreed that a particular email ID 

belonged to him. However, the very next day 

he denied that these mails were written to 

him. "On the contrary, the close aide of 

Vadra, Manoj Arora, who was also questioned 

by the ED on January 16, told the 

investigators that "email appears to have 

been sent by Sumit Chadha on the email ID 

of Vadra and only he can explain the content 

of the emails as these are addressed to him," 

the official said. The official said during 

questioning, Vadra denied he knew Vipul 

Beriwala. 

"While Arora's mobile has the contact 

number of Briwala saved in it," he said. 

The official then said that during questioning 

on March 8 this year, Vadra denied he 

knew Sanjeev Varma, while again the mobile 

phone of Arora has the contact of Verma. 

Pointing out to another discrepancy, the 

official said when Vadra was asked if RV 

stands for his name in emails, he has stated 

that "he is not known as RV and people do 

not refer to him as RV". 

"While the mobile phone of Arora on 

January 31 said that the contact of MRV in 

his phone stands as Mr Robert Vadra," he 

said. The official then said that when on 

February 6 Vadra was asked if he knows 

Jagdish Sharma, he told the agency that 

Sharma hovers around him, follows him and 

worked for him. 

"On the other hand, on December 8 last 

year, Sharma during his questioning stated 

that he is close to Gandhi family but he is 

closest to Vadra," the official said. 

"He said he does political profiling of 

Vadra and also advises him on various matters," 

the official said. 

Highlighting other discrepancies, the ED 

official said when Vadra was asked on 

February 7 if he is known as 'sahab', the husband 

of Congress general secretary Priyanka 

Gandhi Vadra, he stated that his subordinates 

refer to him as "boss". 

"While Sharma during questioning on 

December 10, stated that 'sahab' is referred to 

Vadra. And Anuj Nautiyal in his statement to 

the ED on December 8 stated that Sharma 

had told him that his 'boss' had invested in 

the foreign properties in question and 

Sharma referred to Vadra as his 'boss'," the 

official noted. 

"Even Vadra has stated on March 8 that he 

is not referred as 'Robert Saheb', while Arora 

has stated that Vadra is also addressed as 

'Robert Saheb' and 'RV'," the official said. 

Besides, the discrepancies, the ED has 

also questioned Vadra whether he traveled 

with Bhandari to France. "Vadra has stated 

he was not sure," the official said. 

The official said that Vadra on February 9 

also said that he cannot recollect the emails 

of Vishal Bajpai regarding the reservations 

made for him and Arora. 

Vadra has also denied knowledge about 

the ownership of Columbyne Management 

Ltd. and that he knew Sanjay Dhir. 

Vadra is being investigated by the financial 

probe agency in connection with a 

money laundering case involving foreign 

assets worth 1.9 million Great Britain Pound. 

So far he has been questioned by the ED 

for over 14 times. A Delhi court on Monday 

allowed Vadra to travel to the Netherlands 

and the US for medical treatment for six 

weeks. 

21 stocks surged over 50% in 

Nifty's 11,000-12,000 journey 

Mumbai : Around 21 stocks 

contributed the most in the 

Nifty's 333-days journey from 

11,000 to the 12,000 mark, with 

over 50 per cent gain during the 

period. The index settled above 

the 12,000 mark for the first time 

on Monday. On Tuesday, it settled 

at 12,021.65, lower by 66.90 

points or 0.55 per cent from its 

previous close. 

Among the 21 stocks of Nifty 

500, shares of three companies 

rose more than two-fold, according 

to data from Ace Equity. 

Adani Power, Balrampur Chini 

Mills and Vinati Organics rose 

by 160.88 per cent, 125.14 per 

cent and 122.30 per cent respectively. 

They were followed by 

Fine Organic 

Industries and 

Praj Industries, 

which increased 

by 93.28 per 

cent and 84.76 

per cent. other 

companies in 

the top 10 were 

Procter and 

Gamble Health 

(77.44 per cent), 

Info Edge 

(India) (75.08 per cent), Power 

Finance Corp (74.03 per cent), 

UPL (73.06 per cent), ICICI 

Lombard General Insurance 

(71.61 per cent). 

The 21 top companies also 

included ICICI Bank (55.31 per 

cent), Axis Bank (50.95 per 

cent), Interglobe Aviation (50.44 

per cent). 

The other stocks included 

SRF, Bata India, Muthoot 

Finance, DCM Shriram, Tube 

Investments of India, Aditya 

Birla Fashion and Retail, Titan 

Company and Heidelberg 

Cement India. 

Analysts said that the recent 

surge in the market was mostly 

based on hopes of reforms, 

return of the BJP-led NDA government 

to power and also of 

probable interest rate cuts. 

"The journey of 1,000 points 

was a hope rally. Now, the market 

now would depend upon how 

fast the reform process takes 

place and the problems with 

NBFCs get resolved," Saurabh 

Jain of SMC Comtrade said. 

The Nifty50 may reach 

13,000 mark and the BSE 

Sensex may touch 43,500 by the 

end of the year, Jain said. 

Punjab top brass reject 

reports on ISI's plans 

Chandigarh : A high-level meeting, chaired by Punjab Chief 

Minister Amarinder Singh, 

here on Tuesday reviewed 

the state's internal security 

as well as law and order 

situation, and raised doubts 

about the authenticity of 

alleged intel reports suggesting 

an ISI project to 

target retired army and 

police officials to revive 

militancy in Punjab. 

Even as he directed the officials to take all possible steps to 

maintain peace and harmony in the state, the Chief Minister agreed 

with them that reports referring to intel inputs on such a project 

seemed far-fetched and removed from the ground realities. 

The reports were not verified and could be false, the meeting 

felt, with the Chief Minister asking the police to take all possible 

steps to verify such reports and check the spread of rumours, which 

could lead to panic among people. 

The Chief Minister, however, made it clear that his government 

would not allow the state's peace and law and order to be disturbed 

at any cost. The meeting comes a day after Punjab Police said 

Pakistan-based Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) handler Harmeet 

Singh alias 'Happy PhD' was plotting to carry out a Rajasansi-like 

attack on the anniversary of the Operation Bluestar. 

The disclosure came after seizure of smuggled hand-grenades at 

Kukranwala Adda in Amritsar district's Ajnala sub-division. 

After initial investigations, the police said Harmeet 'PhD', also a 

suspect in the grenade attack on a prayer congregation at the 

Nirankari Bhawan in Rajasansi, was believed to be behind the 

smuggling of hand grenades from Pakistan. 

Police officials briefed the Chief Minister on the incident and 

informed the meeting that probe was on to ascertain details about 

the make of the grenades and the smuggling route. 

ED questions Vadra over six 

hours in money laundering case 

New Delhi : The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday 

questioned Congress 

President Rahul 

Gandhi's brother-inlaw 

Robert Vadra for 

over six hours in connection 

with a money 

laundering case 

involving assets 

allegedly held abroad. 

Vadra was asked 

about the money 

received by his company 

as alleged kickbacks 

in petroleum 

deals in Gujarat. The 

agency said the money 

was used to buy properties 

in London. 

He appeared before 

the investigators at 

ED's Jamnagar office 

in central Delhi following 

summons. 

The case relates to 

the ownership of 1.9 

million pounds of 

overseas assets and 

undisclosed entities set 

up to evade tax. 

In a Facebook post before arriving at the ED office, Vadra 

wrote: "As I make my way for the 13th time, post almost 80 hours 

with the Enforcement Directorate, answering any number of questions, 

amidst sensation and unnecessary drama around, I stay 

focused and calm." The businessman was upset with news reports 

and media questions on his health and wrote: "But blatantly and 

carelessly airing my health matters is not correct... But my time 

spent with people with worst problems, ailing, blind and orphaned 

kids to see them still smile, gives me the strength to go on..." 

Vadra appeared before the financial probe agency, a day after a 

Delhi court allowed him to travel to the Netherlands and the US for 

six weeks of medical treatment. 

Last Thursday, Vadra was questioned by the ED for over seven 

hours on the amount received by his company as kickbacks in 

petroleum deals in Gujarat. The agency accused him of using the 

money to buy properties in London. However, he skipped the ED 

questioning the next day citing ill-health.


ASIA 


'India can replicate China's 

plan to tackle pollution' 

Indian Sweets 

& Catering 

New Delhi, June 5 (IANS) China's 

experience can be relevant to India in 

tackling high pollution levels across the 

country, a new report by a Chinese policy 

and advocacy group said on Wednesday. 

The report said India is facing a strong 

opportunity for controlling air pollution 

and introduces China's rapid progress in 

air quality management from 2013 to 

2017. It also identifies suggestions referencing 

China's experience for Indian air 

quality management efforts currently 

underway. The United Nations 

Environment Programme (UNEP) has 

chosen air pollution as the theme for this 

year's World Environment Day that falls 

on June 5 with China as the host country. 

Chinese environmental think tank 

Bluetech Clean Air Alliance released a 

report -- "Gaining a rapid win against air 

pollution: How India can make use of 

China's experience" -- sharing China's 

experience that can be relevant to the 

Indian context in tackling high pollution 

levels. As India enters the implementation 

stage of the National Clean Air 

Programme (NCAP), a plan which aims 

to bring down particulate pollution by 20- 

30 per cent across 102 cities in five years, 

experts at Bluetech Clean Air Alliance 

claim the predicament and questions were 

similar in China when the government 

issued the National Clean Air Action Plan 

(2013-17). The targets and ambition set 

by the Chinese government required it to 

achieve significant air quality improvement 

in five years, comparable to the 

reduction Europe and the US achieved in 

decades. This was considered an impossible 

mission and at the cost of slowing 

down economic growth, an expert said. 

Yet, China successfully achieved all 

the air targets planned with continuous 

growth of economy. 

The particulate matter levels were 

reduced by over 22 per cent across China, 

and highly polluted Beijing and surrounding 

region saw a 40 per cent improvement. 

Being two of the world's largest 

economies and most populous countries, 

India and China's battles against air pollution 

have global attention and spotlight. 

Combined, the two countries also have 

a population of over two billion people 

who are facing adverse health impacts of 

polluted air. Bluetech Clean Air Alliance 

head Tonny Xie said: "Strong political 

will and top level commitment from the 

government played fairly important roles 

in achieving clean air goals." "In 2013, 

the Chinese premier declared a war 

against pollution, signalling a new era in 

environmental management. This paradigm 

shift meant more frequent and 

stronger policies and regulation. Nearly 

300 national policies, appearing in different 

forms as regulations, sectoral standards 

and plans, had been rolled out from 

2013 to 2017." 

Based on China's experience, the 

report said India should consider strong 

political commitment and belief by the 

top echelons of decision making in the 

country in the benefits of air quality 

improvement. Also, well designed science-based 

policy making towards developing 

emission inventory, data monitoring, 

air quality modelling, source apportionment 

and cost benefit analysis to 

ensure most optimal and prioritized action 

plans. It also favours implementation targets 

of air quality programs designed with 

adequate consideration to regional air 

sheds where sources of pollution are nearly 

similar. Aarti Khosla, Director, Climate 

Trends -- a communications initiative 

which partnered with Bluetech Clean Air 

Alliance to bring the Chinese study to 

India -- said: "As two countries with 

starkly different political systems, India 

and China differ fundamentally in how 

policies are set and implemented." 

"Yet, with bad air as a common, Indian 

decision making could borrow aspects of 

Chinese success, and combine it with a 

more participatory approach and an 

Indian way of finding a solution to the 

problem. 

"This will mean close coordination 

among the Centre, the states and the 

municipal corporations. No success is 

possible unless there isn't agreement with 

the different levels of decision making, 

which is a necessary first step," she said. 

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MAHARASHTRA told to complete PG 

medical, dental counselling by June 14 

New Delhi : The Supreme 

Court on Tuesday told the 

Maharashtra government to 

reshuffle and hold "final" counselling 

for general candidates 

who got admission to PG medical 

and dental seats on or before 

June 14. Earlier, the apex court 

had struck down the notifications 

related to EWS quota for 

the current academic year. 

A vacation bench comprising 

Justice Indu Malhotra and M.R. 

Shah directed the state government 

to advertise and give it 

wide publicity specifying "final 

round of counselling" and complete 

the process within the stipulated 

time period on the basis of 

merit, and directed the former 

not to miss this deadline. 

The court also said that preferences 

made by candidates 

while filling up the admission 

forms will remain intact and it 

cannot be changed during the 

reshuffling and counselling 

process. The court also said: "No 

application and petition in connection 

with the admission in PG 

medical courses in the state, for 

this current academic year, can 

be entertained by any other 

court." The court asked the state 

government to consider the 

plight of the students who have 

been adversely affected by the 

implementation of the EWS 

quota and the manner in which it 

will impact their career. 

The court's order came on 

pleas filed by some medical students 

seeking re-drawing of the 

merit list after a fresh round of 

counselling. The students 

moved the top court after it 

struck down the EWS quote in 

PG medical admission for the 

current academic year. The 

court queried the state government 

counsel to explain the reason 

for not conducting 

counselling after redrawing 

the merit list. 

"You (state) are the 

author of this problem. It 

is very improper -- meritorious 

students cannot 

be thrown out of the 

window like this... fresh 

counselling is mandatory. 

The state must adopt a fair 

process", said the court. The 

counsel for the authority conducting 

the test informed the 

court that re-shuffling of the 

merit list has been done in accordance 

with the apex court's 

order. Advocate Akash Kakade, 

the counsel appearing for one of 

the petitioners, said that no fresh 

counselling has been conducted 

so far, as previous rounds of 

counselling was cancelled. 

The Maharashtra government 

counsel informed the court after 

interim stay on the EWS quota, 

the merit list of the students has 

been re-shuffled, but no counselling 

has been done so far. 

"How long does the counselling 

take?....it can be easily done in 

two days," the court said. The 

court appreciated the suggestions 

made by the counsel of the 

Medical Council of India (MCI) 

who recommended manual or 

physical counselling instead of 

online counselling, and that an 

advertisement should be issued 

on the same. 

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ASIA 


11 

Computer Baba takes charge 

in MP, demands chopper 

Bhopal : Namdev Das Tyagi, aka, 

Computer Baba, who joined office at 

the state secretariat here as chairman of 

the Narmada-Mandakini-Kshipra trust 

with ministerial rank on Tuesday, did 

not waste even an hour after taking 

charge to demand a helicopter within a 

week to inspect the Narmada River. 

Tyagi assumed charge amid rituals 

and chanting of mantras in the presence 

of former chief minister Digvijaya 

Singh, state Law Minister P.C. Sharma 

and a few religious functionaries. 

No one should be surprised if the 

Baba gets a chopper to survey the 

Narmada. The baba said he wants the 

job expedited. Any other means would 

delay action. Chief Minister Kamal Nath had 

handed the job of rejuvenating the holy river 

to Tyagi, saying the river would get a new 

life. "We will form a Narmada Sena for the 

task. The previous Shivraj Chouhan government 

was corrupt to the core," Nath had said. 

He said there should be no objection to 

'babas' coming into the government. There is 

one already running a state government, he 

had said, referring to UP Chief Minister Yogi 

Adityanath. 'Computer Baba' had campaigned 

for Digviajaya Singh during the 

recent Lok Sabha elections. He had conducted 

a havan to ensure Singh's victory. He had 

also announced that Prime MInister 

Narendra Modi would lose the Lok Sabha 

Election and that BJP would never win. The 

results are out now and the state government's 

persistence with the mumbo-jumbo of 

godmen is drawing derisive comments from 

people. 

After the Congress was trounced, the 

Baba said the sanyasis (seers) don't support 

any political party. They stand by the religion 

while the parties come and go. 

On May 9 the Bhopal police had lodged 

an FIR against the Baba, ironically, on a 

complaint from the BJP saying the Baba was 

fanning communal sentiments. 

On May 7 he had performed 'Hath Yoga' 

and performed a 'chillies havan mahyagna' 

along with Digvijaya Singh and his wife to 

ensure Singh's victory. This had prompted 

the Election Commission to serve a notice on 

him for violation of Model Code of Conduct. 

The Baba promptly said he had not invited 

the Singh couple to the havan. "I don't know 

whether Singh and his wife were present at 

India, Pakistan must start new 

chapter: Mirwaiz Umar 

Srinagar : Senior religious 

and separatist leader Mirwaiz 

Umar Farooq on Wednesday 

urged India and Pakistan to start 

"a new chapter" and told the 

Modi government that the 

Kashmir issue needed "a peaceful 

and political solution". 

Delivering the Eid sermon at 

the historic Jamia Masjid in the 

old city's Nowhatta area here, 

Mirwaiz Umar said: "We want to 

remind the new political dispensation 

in India that the Kashmir 

issue is a reality which cannot be 

wisher away. 

"It needs a peaceful and political 

solution. We are ready to 

extend a helping hand and support 

a peaceful dialogue between 

the two countries," he said. 

"We demand that the present 

military approach against our 

youth be stopped. 

"I pray that today's Eid, being 

celebrated in the entire sub-continent, 

should bring the message 

of peace, friendship, well being 

and prosperity for the people of 

India, Pakistan and Kashmir. 

"We pray that the people of 

India and Pakistan start a new 

chapter today, forgetting the bitterness 

and mistrust of the past. 

"The people of Jammu and 

Kashmir and their leadership 

wants that we should become a 

bridge of friendship between the 

two countries. 

"We demand and expect that 

all the CBMs like Srinagar- 

Muzaffarabad trade, people-topeople 

contacts which have been 

put on hold are restored. We 

don't expect these CBMs to be 

restored only between the two 

parts of Kashmir but want such 

CBMs to be announced between 

India and Pakistan as well." 

Pakistan Foreign Secretary 

prays at Jama Masjid 

New Delhi : Pakistan Foreign Secretary 

Sohail Mahmood on Wednesday offered Eid 

prayers at the 17th century Jama Masjid here, 

diplomatic sources said. 

Mahmood, who arrived here on Tuesday 

night on a three-day private visit to India, is 

scheduled to return to Pakistan on Friday, the 

sources said. Mahmood took part in the Eid 

prayers with his children who study in Delhi. 

Mahmood was Pakistan's High 

Commissioner in India before taking charge as 

Foreign Secretary in April this year. 

the spot or not. I didn't invite them. The 

camp was set up from the donations 

received," the Baba said. 

The Baba has been in and out of news 

and governments of rival parties in the 

state in the name of guarding the interest 

of the people on the banks of the 

Narmada. 

Over a year ago when former chief 

minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had 

carried out a yatra along the river and 

claimed to have planted six crore sapling 

on the banks, the Baba was up in arms 

against government's alleged corruption 

and for polluting the sacred river by conniving 

with sand mining mafia. 

Chouhan had inducted him in a panel 

to rejuvenate the river and accorded him 

ministerial rank. He was often seen hobnobbing 

with the press in the coffee house of 

Bhopal. Baba's demands continued to rise 

and finally, he left the ministry ahead of 

assembly elections to campaign for the 

Congress. He started accusing the BJP of 

being irreligious and said Shivraj was ignoring 

the cause of cow protection. This was 

when one of his rival baba was appointed a 

cabinet minister in the ministry for cow protection. 

He was among the prominent invitees 

during the swearing-in ceremony of Chief 

Minister Kamal Nath. Computer Baba was 

appointed chairman of a trust by the 

Congress on March 10. To avoid action for 

violation of electoral code, he had delayed 

taking charge till after the elections. 

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BUSINESS 


Niu Neer coconut 

delivery app to serve 

COCONUT WATER 

New Delhi, India’s first fresh tender 

coconut delivery app is here. Niu Neer, 

India’s first-ever tender coconut delivery 

service provider, is determined to offer 

India’s beloved ‘nariyal paani’ with the 

utmost convenience and consistency. 

A classic yet contemporary favourite in 

India, Niu Neer proposes to put premium 

quality tender coconuts in the hands of the 

consumer, a couple of days from the time 

they are picked. 

With services available in Mumbai and 

Chennai, Niu Neer is building its followers 

by the thousands with its diverse target 

audience. From households that traditionally 

drink the beverage every morning to 

discerning millennials adopting healthy 

lifestyles, the company not only aims to 

provide a service but to ensure a sustainable 

one as well. 

Inspired by the vision to create a consumer 

revolution, Niu Neer dove into the 

source of the value chain, reducing numerous 

layers between the producer and con- 

customers to be responsible to the environment. 

For every delivery we also collect Niu Neer Founder Deepak Ram said. 

tons of solid waste to the city of Mumbai,” 

sumer. This enables audiences to avail 

every shell we shell. 

With business picking up, Niu 

fresh, home-delivered produce, while 

We make sure we recycle the shells the Neer aims to expand to 5 cities across the 

simultaneously delivering a fair price to 

customers have returned and have created next 18 months with Hyderabad, 

farmers. “Our goal is not only to provide a 

an innovative and seamless sustainability Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Pune and Indore 

seamless service but also to incentivize 

initiative with these units thereby reducing on the map. 

RIP iTunes as Apple aims big on 

music subscription service 

San Jose (California) : As the music streaming industry gets 

bigger with more global 

players joining the 

fray, Apple has finally 

announced to phase out 

iTunes with its three 

modern standalone 

music services. 

Apple on Monday 

previewed “macOS 

Catalina” which is the 

latest version of the 

world’s most advanced desktop operating system, packed with 

new features, fresh new apps and powerful new technology for 

developers. 

“With macOS Catalina, Apple is replacing iTunes with its popular 

entertainment apps — Apple Music, Apple Podcasts and the 

Apple TV app,” said the company during its developers’ conference 

“WWDC 2019” here. 

macOS Catalina replaces iTunes with these three modern apps 

that simplify and improve the way Mac users discover and enjoy 

their favourite music, TV shows, movies and podcasts. 

The move to phase out iTunes didn’t come as a shock as the 

tech giant has been pushing users toward its music subscription 

service. “With macOS Catalina, we’re bringing fresh new apps to 

the Mac, starting with new standalone versions of Apple Music, 

Apple Podcasts and the Apple TV app,” said Craig Federighi, 

Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering. 

iTunes was formally launched in 2001 and its music store was 

launched two years later. 

Apple Music will help users discover great new music with 

over 50 million songs, playlists and music videos, said the company. 

The users will have access to their entire music library, 

whether they downloaded the songs, purchased them or ripped 

them from a CD. 

For users who sync their media to their devices using a cable, 

they can quickly and easily do so in the new entertainment apps. 

And when users connect a device to their Mac, it will immediately 

show up in the sidebar of Finder, enabling them to backup, 

update or restore their device. 

The developer preview of macOS Catalina is available to Apple 

Developer Programme members. 

Madhya Pradesh stares at grim drought 

Bhopal, The peak summer is called 

‘Nautapa’ — nine days of intense heat 

— in Madhya Pradesh. Though the 

period ended on Monday, the met 

office refuses to forecast any relief 

from the scorching heat in the next 48 

hours. 

Half the state is experiencing high 

temperatures with the mercury in 

Khajuraho and Naugaon reaching 47.5 

degree Celsius. At 48.3 degrees 

Celsius, Gwalior broke a 72-year-old 

record on Friday. 

Some areas of the Malwa region 

experienced sporadic showers, which 

could mean added humidity. Capital 

Bhopal crossed the 44 degree Celsiusmark 

for the fourth successive day on 

Monday. This year’s monsoon has 

been delayed by a fortnight. Over the 

past 20 years, only once did the monsoon 

set in in the second week of June. 

This year, however, it could be 

delayed beyond June 24. 

The resultant delay has left the 

farmers worrying. The uncertainly 

about sowing has doubled as there is a 

likelihood of the showers being interspersed 

with long gaps. That can force 

multiple rounds of sowing, which 

might derail the cropping calendar. 

The heat wave has lashed most 

parts of the state, keeping people 

indoors in Damoh, Gwalior, 

Khajuraho and Naogaon. Satna, 

Umaria Rewa, Tikamgarh ,Shajapur, 

Khargone, Guna and Shivpuri districts 

too experienced high temperatures for 

a better part of the past week. 

Dust storms have been forecast till 

Wednesday in Singrauli, Rewa, Sidhi, 

Seoni, Khargone, Betul, Burhanpur, 

Anuppur, Balaghat, Dewas, Satna and 

Chhindwara districts, while dry spell 

would extend in the remaining districts. 

The met department has issued an 

alert of severe loo in all the districts of 

Mandla, Rewa, Jabalpur, Ujjain, 

Sagar, Gwalior and Chambal divisions 

and in Umaria, Raisen, Rajgarh, 

Kharguna and Shajapur districts in the 

next 24 hours. 

Even before the onset of monsoon, 

nearly 4,000 villages are staring at 

acute drought in 36 out of the 52 districts 

in the state. 

A lean monsoon last year brought 

in its trail a grave crisis for the third 

successive year. Way back on March 

15, a report by the Panchayat and 

Rural Development department said 

that 40 rivers that provided water to 

these villages have gone dry and the 

micro-watershed management was in 

complete disarray. Most parts of the 

state have experienced 20 to 50 per 

cent deficient rainfall for the past two 

years. Villages in Bundelkhand had 

begun to experience water scarcity 

early in November. The Bundelkhand 

region is experiencing the fourth successive 

drought in five years while the 

rest of the state had a normal monsoon 

in 2017. This year, the worst-affected 

of the 36 districts is Katni with 305 

villages experiencing water crisis. 

Chief Minister Kamal Nath’s stronghold 

Chhindwara is another district 

where water management has failed 

and 145 villages bear the brunt of the 

crisis. Another 2,000 villages are 

affected in the districts of Rewa, 

Chhatarpur, Jhabua, Rajgarh, Sagar, 

Seoni, Dewas , Mandla, Neemuch , 

Damoh and Shivpuri. 

Some villagers in Tikamgarh district 

in the Bundelkhand region are 

travelling more than five kilometres 

every day to fetch water for over three 

years now. Even the Swachh Bharat 

Mission has taken a hit as women have 

to walk long distances to use toilets. 

The community toilets have no water 

in most villages. 

The Panchayat and Rural 

Development department has drawn 

up a plan to raise the groundwater 

level by recharging the rivers through 

community participation. The objective 

is to raise rural jobs and provide 

drinking water through works under 

the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural 

Employment Guarantee Scheme 

(MGNREGS). 

The state government may seek the 

Election Commission’s approval for 

sustaining work to mitigate the crisis. 

Considerable time was lost during the 

Lok Sabha elections with the model 

code of conduct cramping the administration. 

Bhopal, which is also known 

as City of Lakes, is facing a grim situation 

with the administration formally 

declaring it a low water availability 

zone. A 33-year-old Water 

Conservation Act has been invoked to 

ban drilling of borewells, except for 

drinking water. This year the Upper 

Lake, the main source of drinking 

water supply in Bhopal, has already 

hit dead storage levels.


HEALTH 


13 

Washington : Does your 

child go to school by walking or 

pedaling? If your answer is no, 

then your child can easily fall 

prey to obesity. A recent study 

has been found that children 

who regularly walk or cycle to 

school are less prone to becoming 

overweight. 

The study was published in 

the journal ‘BMC Public 

Health.’ Based on results from 

more than 2000 primary-age 

schoolchildren from across 

London, the researchers have 

found that walking or cycling to 

school is a strong predictor of 

obesity levels, a result which 

was consistent across neighbourhoods, 

ethnicities and 

socioeconomic backgrounds. 

The study is the first to assess 

the effects of physical activity 

on childhood overweight and 

obesity levels for primary 

schoolchildren by simultaneously 

relating two of the main types 

of extracurricular physical activity: 

daily commuting to school 

and frequency of participation in 

various sports activities. 

Instead of using Body-Mass 

Index (BMI) as a measure of 

obesity, the researchers measured 

body fat and muscle mass 

and assessed how these were 

correlated with physical activity 

levels. BMI is the most commonly 

used metric to measure 

obesity levels due to its simplicity; 

however, it is limited as 

BMI looks at total weight, 

including ‘healthy’ muscle 

mass, rather than fat mass alone. 

“Both BMI itself and the 

points at which high BMI is 

associated with poor health vary 

with age, sex and ethnicity,” 

said Lander Bosch, the lead 

researcher. “While adjustments 

have been made in recent years 

Children who 

walk to school less 

prone to obesity 

to account for these variations, 

BMI remains a flawed way to 

measure the health risks associated 

with obesity,” he added. 

The current study is based on 

data from the Size and Lung 

Function in Children (SLIC) 

study, carried out at University 

Eating blueberries can 

improve heart health 

LONDON : Eating a cup of 

blueberries daily reduces the risk 

of cardiovascular disease (CVD) 

by up to 15 per cent, according 

to a study. 

The findings, published in the 

American Journal of Clinical 

Nutrition, suggest that blueberries 

and other berries should be 

included in diets to reduce the 

risk of cardiovascular disease. 

"Having metabolic syndrome 

significantly increases the risk of 

heart disease, stroke and diabetes 

and often statins and other 

medications are prescribed to 

help control this rise," said study 

lead author Aedin Cassidy, 

Professor at the University of 

East Anglia in Britain. 

The researchers studied 

whether eating blueberries had 

any effect on metabolic 

syndrome—a condition, 

affecting 1/3 of 

westernised adults, 

which comprises at 

least three of the following 

risk factors: 

high blood pressure, 

high blood sugar, 

excess body fat around 

the waist, low levels of 

'good cholesterol' and 

high levels of triglycerides. 

For the study, 

the researchers investigated 

the effects of eating 

blueberries daily in 

138 overweight and 

obese people, (aged 

between 50 and 

75), and having metabolic syndrome. 

"We found that eating one cup 

of blueberries per day resulted in 

sustained improvements in vascular 

function and arterial stiffness 

- making enough of a difference 

to reduce the risk of cardiovascular 

disease by between 12 

and 15 per cent," said Peter 

Curtis, co-author of the study. 

College London between 2010 

and 2013. More than 2000 

London primary schoolchildren, 

from a range of ethnic and 

MELBOURNE : Women 

who experience symptoms of 

depression are at increased risk 

of developing multiple chronic 

diseases such as diabetes, heart 

disease, stroke and cancer, a 

study has found. 

The research, published in the 

journal Health Psychology, suggests 

that depression and chronic 

diseases share a similar genetic 

or biological pathway. 

"These days, many people 

suffer from multiple chronic diseases 

such as diabetes, heart disease, 

stroke and cancer," said 

Xiaolin Xu, a PhD scholar at the 

University of Queensland in 

Australia. "We looked at how 

women progress in the development 

of these chronic diseases 

before and after the onset of 

depressive symptoms," Xu said. 

The Australian Longitudinal 

Study on Women's Health followed 

healthy, middle-aged 

women with no previous diagnosis 

of depression or chronic illness 

over 20 years. 

The study found 43.2 per cent 

of women experienced elevated 

symptoms of depression and just 

under half the cohort reported 

they were diagnosed or taking 

treatment for depression. 

Women from the depressed 

group were 1.8 times more likely 

to have multiple chronic 

health conditions before they 

first experienced depressive 

symptoms. "Experiencing 

depressive symptoms appeared 

to amplify the risk of chronic illness," 

Xu said. After women 

started experiencing these symptoms, 

they were 2.4 times more 

likely to suffer from multiple 

chronic conditions compared to 

women without depressive 

symptoms. "Inflammation in the 

body has been linked to the 

development of both depression 

socioeconomic backgrounds, 

were included in the study, 

which looked at their physical 

activity levels, body composition 

and socioeconomic status. 

Close to half of the children 

in the study took part in sports 

every day, and a similar proportion 

actively commuted to 

school, travelling by either on 

foot, bicycle or scooter. The 

researchers found that children 

who actively commuted to 

school had lower body fat, and 

therefore were less likely to be 

overweight or obese. 

However, when looking at fat 

mass and muscle mass separately, 

children who engaged in 

sports every day had significantly 

more muscle development, 

while their fat mass did not significantly 

differ. “The link 

between frequent participation 

in sport and obesity levels has 

generated inconsistent findings 

in previous research, but many 

of these studies were looking at 

BMI only,” said Bosch. 

“However, when looking at 

body fat instead, we showed 

there was a trend whereby children 

who were not active were 

more likely to be overweight or 

obese. It’s likely that when looking 

at BMI, some inactive children 

aren’t classified as obese 

due to reduced muscle mass,” he 

added. The researchers believe 

that it is important to understand 

the relationship between obesity 

levels and different types of 

physical activity in order to 

develop informed policy measures 

that could contribute to the 

reversal of the childhood obesity 

epidemic. “Our findings suggest 

that interventions promoting 

regular participation in sports, 

and particularly active commuting 

to school could be promising 

for combating childhood obesity 

– it’s something so easy to 

implement, and it makes such a 

big difference,” said Bosch. 

Depression may up risk of 

multiple chronic diseases: Study 

and chronic physical diseases," 

he said. "Chronic diseases, like 

diabetes and hypertension, are 

also commonly associated with 

depression," Xu said. These 

findings help strengthen healthcare 

professionals understanding 

of mental and physical health. 

"Healthcare professionals 

need to know that clinical and 

sub-clinical depression (elevated 

depressive symptoms) can be 

linked to other chronic physical 

conditions," he said. When treating 

patients for these symptoms, 

healthcare professionals must 

realise these people are at risk of 

developing further chronic illness, 

researchers said.


HEALTH 


Childhood adversity may up mental disorder risk 

WASHINGTON : Growing up in 

poverty and experiencing traumatic 

events like an accident or sexual assault 

may increase the risk of mental health 

disorders, such as depression and anxiety, 

a study warns. 

The research, published in the JAMA 

Psychiatry, shows that low socioeconomic 

status (L-SES) and the experience 

of traumatic stressful events 

(TSEs) were linked to accelerated 

puberty and brain maturation, abnormal 

brain development. “The findings 

underscore the need to pay attention to 

the environment in which the child 

grows. Poverty and trauma have strong 

associations with behaviour and brain 

development, and the effects are much 

more pervasive than previously 

believed,” Raquel E Gur, a professor at 

University of Pennsylvania in the US. 

The study was the first to compare 

the effects of poverty (L-SES) to those 

who experienced TSEs in the same sample 

set. The researchers analysed data 

from of 9,498 participants aged eight to 

21 years for the study. They found specific 

associations of SES and TSE with 

psychiatric symptoms, cognitive performance, 

and several brain structure 

abnormalities. The findings showed that 

poverty was associated with small elevation 

in severity of psychiatric symptoms, 

including mood/anxiety, phobias, 

externalising behaviour (oppositionaldefiant, 

conduct disorder, ADHD), and 

psychosis, as compared to individuals 

who did not experience poverty. 

The magnitude of the effects of TSEs 

on psychiatric symptom severity was 

unexpectedly large. TSEs were mostly 

associated with PTSD, but here the 

researchers found that even a single 

TSE was associated with a moderate 

increase in severity for all psychiatric 

symptoms analysed, and two or more 

TSEs showed large effect sizes, especially 

in mood/anxiety and in psychosis. 

The researchers also found evidence 

that adversity is associated with earlier 

onset of puberty. Both poverty and 

experiencing TSEs are associated with 

the child physically maturing at an earlier 

age. They found the same effects on 

the brain, with findings revealing that a 

higher proportion of children who experienced 

adversity had characteristics of 

adult brains. This affects development, 

as the careful layering of the structural 

and functional connectivity in the brain 

requires time, and early maturity could 

prevent the necessary honing of skills. 

“The study suggests that it makes 

sense for parents and anyone involved 

in raising a child to try and shield or 

protect the child from exposure to 

adversity,” said Gur. “Traumas that happen 

to young children can have lifelong 

consequences,” he said. 

'Proper nutrition policy can cut dietrelated 

deaths in India': Experts 

NEW DELHI : Following 

India's poor ranking in the world 

hunger index last year, experts 

have urged the government to 

come up with a comprehensive 

nutritional policy to alleviate 

diet-related deaths in the country. 

A recent study by the 

Institute of Health Metrics and 

Evaluation (IHME), University 

of Washington revealed that over 

1.1 crore deaths occur due to 

poor diet alone globally. 

According to a study published 

in the Lancet journal in 

April, poor diet leads to hundreds 

of deaths in India annually. 

The study tracked trends in 

consumption of 15 dietary factors 

from 1990 to 2017 in 195 

countries, showing India ranked 

118th with 310 deaths per 

100,000 people. Experts believe 

the government will have to 

ensure access to nutritious food 

to the people living in both rural 

as well as urban areas. "We have 

failed in terms of a proper nutritional 

food policy. Poor diet creates 

a deficiency of essential 

nutrition due to low supply of 

vitamin, protein, fat, minerals 

and other micronutrients,” said 

Rajesh Kumar, a senior expert at 

Paras Hospital, Gurugram. 

"These elements not only give us 

energy to move and work, they 

are key in building the immunity 

of the body that fights the bacteria 

and viruses in the atmosphere 

from entering our body," Kumar 

said. 

"In its absence a child 

becomes susceptible to diseases, 

especially infectious disease 

such as tuberculosis among others," 

he said. Kumar urged the 

government to come up with a 

comprehensive plan to reach out 

to people in the remote areas suffering 

from nutritional food crisis 

that certainly is a root cause 

for several serious diseases. 

Emphasising that India's 

hunger and poor dietary problem 

is a major concern as it continued 

to ignore its health burden, 

Kumar said: “India is not 

immune to the problems that 

poor diet can cause. A healthy 

diet does not mean an absence of 

feeling of hunger.” It tracked 

trends for close to two decades. 

In 2018, India ranked 103rd 

Kids of less-educated moms at higher obesity risk 

The researchers observed that children from poor socio-economic backgrounds were more likely to be overweight. 

London: Children of poorlyeducated 

mothers face higher 

risk of obesity than those whose 

mothers are well-educated, suggests 

a new study. 

For the study, published in 

Paediatric and Perinatal 

Epidemiology journal, the 

researchers analysed data of 

41,399 children in three 

European countries – Ireland, 

Portugal and the UK – using the 

mother’s highest level of education 

as a marker of socio-economic 

position. The researchers 

from Trinity College, Ireland 

observed that children from poor 

among 119 countries on the 

Global Hunger Index. The country 

slipped three positions from 

its 100th rank in 2017. It was 

among the list of 45 nations that 

have serious levels of hunger. 

India is ranked way below its 

neighbouring countries such as 

China (25th), Nepal (72), 

Myanmar (68), Sri Lanka (67) 

and Bangladesh (86). Pakistan is 

placed at the 106th position. 

Tritiya Jana, a prominent 

Bengaluru-based dietician at 

Apollo Spectra, said that globally, 

three million deaths were 

attributed to too much sodium— 

but another three million deaths 

were attributed to a lack of adequate 

whole grains, and another 

two million deaths were attributed 

to a lack of adequate fruits. 

“Similarly urban migration 

also is a reason. As the cities 

developed and offered more 

opportunities for employment, 

agriculture became gradually 

less labour-intensive, people 

moved in large numbers into the 

cities. 

Even short trips to polluted 

cities can make you sick: Study 

NEW YORK : Even a short stay for travellers in cities with high 

levels of air pollution leads to breathing problems that can take 

them at least a week to recover from, according to a study conducted 

in India, Pakistan and China. 

Researchers at the New York University (NYU) School of 

Medicine in the US analysed pollution-related coughing and 

breathing difficulties, and recovery times upon returning home, in 

healthy, young adults travelling internationally. 

The finding, published in the Journal of Travel Medicine, is 

timely given that the number of tourists travelling internationally is 

expected to grow to 1.8 billion by 2030, according to the World 

Tourism Organization. "We had several reports that tourists were 

feeling sick when visiting polluted cities, so it became important 

for us to understand what was really happening to their health," 

said Terry Gordon, a professor at NYU School of Medicine. 

Researchers analysed six measurements of lung and heart health 

in 34 men and women travelling abroad for at least a week from the 

metropolitan New York City area. Most were visiting family in 

cities with consistently high levels of air pollution, including 

Ahmedabad and New Delhi in India; Rawalpindi, Pakistan; and 

Xian in China. The team noted that New York City has relatively 

low levels of air pollution, in part because of strict regulations, its 

location on the coast, and weather patterns. 

socio-economic backgrounds or 

primary-educated backgrounds 

were more likely to be overweight 

or obese at any age as 

compared to children whose 

mothers’ had a tertiary-level 

education. In Ireland, boys and 

girls aged 13 whose mothers had 

a primary-level education measured 

heavier as compared to 

children from tertiary-level (university-level) 

backgrounds, the 

study found. “This study shows 

that children from disadvantaged 

socio-economic backgrounds 

gain body mass more 

quickly than their more advantaged 

peers, are more likely to 

be overweight or obese from 

pre-school age onwards, and are 

more likely to become obese if 

previously non-overweight. 

They are quite literally carrying 

a heavier burden of disease from 

much earlier in life,” said lead 

author Cathal McCrory, 

Research Assistant Professor at 

Trinity College. 

“These findings reinforce the 

necessity of challenging the 

childhood obesity epidemic at 

early ages as these patterns are 

difficult to change once they 

have become entrenched,” 

McCrory added. 

The study showed while there 

were no differences in Body 

Mass Index (BMI) between children 

grouped by their mothers’ 

education in infancy, differences 

in BMI emerged by pre-school 

age (3-5 years). “This research 

shows that inequalities in health 

and life expectancy start early in 

life and are well established by 

age five. Most children who are 

obese have a higher risk of being 

obese in adulthood with longterm 

health consequences,” said 

Richard Layte, Professor of 

Sociology at the varsity.


HEALTH 

HIV patients at increased 

risk of heart disease, stroke 

Accelerate actions to slash 

tobacco use across South-East 

Asian Region: WHO 

New Delhi : WHO on Thursday asked its South-East Asian 

member countries 

including India to 

accelerate actions to 

slash tobacco consumption 

and said its 

use in all forms is a 

major cause of illness, 

disability and death 

across the region. 

It also asked its 

member countries to 

undertake targeted actions like developing youth-focused antitobacco 

campaigns, increasing the cost of the product and protecting 

people from its exposure. 

On the eve of the World No Tobacco Day, WHO Regional 

Director for South-East Asia, Poonam Khetrapal Singh said 

almost 246 million people smoke tobacco and just below 290 

million consume it in a variety of smokeless forms in the region. 

"Together, both methods of consumption kill approximately 1.6 

million people Region-wide every year, negatively impacting the 

sustainable development of whole communities and countries," 

Singh said. WHO's South-East Asia Region comprises of 

Bangladesh, Bhutan, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, 

India, Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, 

Thailand and Timor-Leste. Singh lauded the member states for 

taking actions in recent years to lift tobacco's burden saying ten 

of them are Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on 

Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC). Nicotine replacement therapies 

such as patches, gum or lozenges should likewise be at hand, 

with research showing that they can double the chance a person 

will successfully quit, especially when administered in conjunction 

with brief counselling and as part of a quit plan, she added. 

Washington : Patients with HIV are at a 

significantly higher risk of suffering from 

heart and blood vessel diseases as compared 

to those without the infection, scientists 

say. According to a new scientific 

statement published in the journal 

Circulation, effective antiretroviral therapy 

has changed HIV from a progressive, fatal 

disease to a chronic, manageable condition 

that increases the risk of heart attacks and 

strokes. Interactions between traditional 

risk factors, such as diet, lifestyle and 

tobacco use, and HIV-specific risk factors, 

such as a chronically activated immune 

system and inflammation characteristic of 

chronic HIV contribute to the increased 

risk of heart and blood vessel diseases in 

HIV patients. 

Tobacco use, a major risk factor for cardiovascular 

diseases, is common among 

people living with HIV. Heavy alcohol use, 

substance abuse, mood and anxiety disorders, 

low levels of physical activity and 

poor cardio-respiratory fitness are also 

common among people living with HIV 

and may contribute to elevated risk for diseases 

of the heart and blood vessels, 

according to the statement. 

“Considerable gaps exist in our knowledge 

about HIV-associated diseases of the 

heart and blood vessels, in part because 

HIV’s transition from a fatal disease to a 

chronic condition is relatively recent, so 

long-term data on heart disease risks are 

limited,” said Matthew J Feinstein, from 

Northwestern University in the US. 

In addition, people living with HIV are 

often stigmatised and face significant barriers 

to optimal health care, such as education 

level, where they live, healthcare literacy, 

cognitive impairment, internalised and 

anticipated stigma, gait and mobility 

impairment, frailty, depression and social 

isolation. There are also disparities in care 

based on age, race, ethnicity and gender. 

Another area of concern is the ageing 

population of people living with HIV — 75 

per cent of people living with HIV are over 

age 45. “Ageing with HIV differs greatly 

from the aging issues facing the general 

population,” said Jules Levin, in an accompanying 

patient perspective. 

“On average, people living with HIV 

who are over 60 years old have 3-7 medical 

conditions, including heart attacks, strokes, 

heart failure, kidney disease, frailty and 

bone diseases and many take 12-15 medications 

daily,” said Levin. “As they age, 

people living with HIV are often alone and 

disabled, emotionally homebound due to 

depression, and are socially isolated,” he 

added. “In addition, they often suffer from 

lack of mobility and an impaired ability to 

perform normal daily functions,” he said. 

Providing scientifically based recommendations 

on how to reduce the risk of 

cardiovascular disease among people living 

with HIV is also challenging. “There is 

a dearth of large-scale clinical trial data on 

how to prevent and treat cardiovascular 

diseases in people living with HIV. 

This is an area of research that is needed 

for informed decision-making and 

effective CVD prevention and treatment in 

the ageing population of people living with 

HIV,” said Feinstein. 


15 

Kids who nap are happier with 

fewer behavioural problems 

NEW YORK: Kids who take 30-to-60 minute mid-day naps at 

least three times a week are happier and have more self-control 

and grit. They also display fewer behavioural problems as compared 

to children who skip afternoon naps, says a study. 

Published in the SLEEP journal, the study revealed strong 

connections between the afternoon shut-eye sessions and positive 

outcomes in a handful of areas in the overall development of 

kids. “A study of nearly 3,000 fourth, fifth, and sixth graders 

ages 10-12 revealed a connection between midday napping and 

greater happiness, self-control, and grit; fewer behavioural problems; 

and higher IQ, the latter particularly for the sixth graders. 

The most robust findings were associated with academic 

achievement,” said Adrian Raine, Professor at the University of 

Pennsylvania in the US. 

“Children who napped three or more times per week benefit 

from a 7.6 per cent increase in academic performance in Grade,” 

Raine said. During the study, from each of 2,928 children, the 

researchers collected data about napping frequency and duration 

once the children hit grades four through six, as well as outcome 

data when they reached grade six, including psychological 

measures like grit, happiness and physical measures. 

The research team also asked teachers to provide behavioural 

and academic information about each student. They then 

analysed associations between each outcome and napping, 

adjusting for sex, grade, school location, parental education, and 

nightly time in bed. “Many lab studies across all ages have 

demonstrated that naps can show the same magnitude of 

improvement as a full night of sleep on discrete cognitive tasks. 

Here, we had the chance to ask real-world, adolescent school 

children questions across a wide range of behavioural, academic, 

social, and physiological measures,” said Sara Mednick, 

Associate Professor at the University of California. 

“The more students sleep during the day, the greater the benefit 

of naps on many of these measures,” she added. 

China gene babies' mutation 

linked to higher mortality: Study 

Paris : The genetic mutation 

had ordered people involved in 

given to Chinese twins last year 

the twin experiment to halt 

rendering them immune to the 

their activities, ruling that it 

HIV virus may significantly 

"seriously violates" national 

reduce life expectancy, scientists 

said Monday in a fresh 

Curtis, honorary Professor at 

law and medical ethics. David 

warning against human geneediting. 

Chinese researcher He 

Genetics Institute, said the new 

University College London's 

Jiankui last year provoked 

study provided a clear look at 

widespread outrage among 

the possible unintended consequences 

of gene-editing in 

doctors by unveiling the results 

of an experiment he conducted 

humans. "There are many other 

to alter the DNA of twin girls, 

examples in medicine where an 

prompting authorities in California examined the health HIV may be increased susceptibility 

to other, and perhaps one condition inadvertently 

intervention intended to treat 

Beijing to announce a moratorium 

on the practice. 

British ancestry and looked at more common, diseases," the causes major unexpected prob- 

data of 409,000 people of 

He used a gene-editing tool whether or not they possessed study's authors wrote. 

lems elsewhere," said Curtis, 

known as Crispr to insert a the mutation, which occurs naturally 

in around one percent of the journal Nature Medicine, study. "This sends us a warning 

The research, published in who was not involved in the 

mutated variant of a CCR5 

gene—known as Delta32—into the population, and how and doesn't explain why the mutation 

increases mortality risk, cautious around the introduc- 

that we should be extremely 

the girls' chromosome at the when they died. 

embryo stage meaning they are After correcting for the ages but the authors said there was a tion of therapies involving 

now immune to the AIDS-causing 

HIV virus. But a new wide- 

those with the mutation were should discourage repeats of Robin Lovell-Badge, group 

of those involved, they found clear statistical trend that modifying the genetic code." 

ranging study of genetic makeup 

and death registry informa- 

before the age of 76 than those "Introduction of new or Institute in London, added: "All 

21 per cent more likely to die He's experiment. 

leader at The Francis Crick 

tion suggests individuals carrying 

the D32 mutation face a 20- D32 possessors were signifi- 

using Crispr technology... Jiankui was foolish to choose 

who did not. They found that derived mutations in humans this shows once more that He 

per cent higher risk of early cantly more likely to die from comes with considerable risk CCR5 to mutate in his attempts 

death compared with the global diseases that are far more common 

than HIV, notably influen- 

perceived advantage," they simply do not yet know enough 

even if the mutations provide a at germline genome editing. We 

population. Researchers from 

the University of Berkeley za. "The cost of resistance to said. China in November it said about the gene."


ENTERTAINMENT 


‘I’VE NEVER BELIEVED 

IN FAIRNESS CREAMS’ 

Kajal Aggarwal posted a series of pictures, which showed her freckles 

in all glory; she says nobody can have flawless skin 

Actor Kajal Aggarwal recently 

took the internet by storm when she 

shared her pictures without makeup 

showing her freckles. The photoshoot 

went viral in no time and in the last 

three days, since it was shared, the 

picture showing her freckles has got 

over 7 lakh likes on Instagram where 

she wrote, “... we live in a world 

crazed by physical attraction or 

because social media has swallowed 

up our self-esteem in whom and what 

it glorifies. Billions of rupees are 

spent on cosmetics and beauty products 

that promise you the perfect 

body. Narcissism seems to exist 

everywhere. Between those lines, we 

try to join the crowd or feel left out.” 

Talking exclusively to us, while 

Kajal admits that in showbiz, actors 

are always “defined by how they are 

supposed to look” and “be the finest 

and in your best hair and makeup”, 

she asserts that “true beauty lies in 

accepting ourselves for how lovely 

we are”. 

An established name in the south 

Indian film industry, Kajal has had a 

decent stint in Bollywood, too, with 

films such as Singham (2011) and 

Special 26 (2013). Talking about how 

film industries expect actors to “wear 

makeup all the time”, the 33year-old 

actor adds, “That’s because it’s our 

job and we get paid for that. Nobody 

can have absolutely flawless skin 

24x7 or an airbrushed or photoshopped 

skin. We all have pigmentation 

issues, sunburns, pimples, dark 

circles and freckles. And we also have 

a support system of hair and makeup 

artistes who makes us look pretty. 

And with airport looks becoming 

popular, it has created too much pressure 

on actors.” It takes a lot of 

courage to show your flaws and 

embrace freckles with elan. Kajal 

says, “I’ve never believed in fairness 

creams or the notion of having flawless 

skin. While growing up, I was 

also fascinated by how good-looking 

celebrities were, but I was never 

obsessed with being fair. As I grew 

up, and ended up in the entertainment 

industry, I realised it isn’t possible to 

fight your hormones in order to not 

get a pimple. I just believe in being 

authentic and recognising the difference 

between what is real and what is 

not.” Though the actor “feels beautiful 

with freckles” she quickly points 

out that “in the West, people love 

freckles”. For some actors, looks play 

an important role in getting cast for a 

role, but Kajal opines that “talent and 

hard work come first”. 

Asked if sh ever faced rejection 

because of her looks or particularly 

freckles, she shares, “Never. I’m 

known for my craft and talent. I’ll not 

be okay with somebody telling me 

‘freckle aren’t looking good’. It’s part 

of my personality and I can’t remove 

it out of my system.” 

‘Language was the 

biggest challenge’ 

How did you get Shrimad 

Bhagavad? 

Initially, when I got the call I 

wasn’t too sure about doing it. 

Later, I read the script and went 

for the mock shoot. I got to 

know a lot of things about 

Bhagavad Gita from this show. 

What was your reaction 

when you were offered the role 

of Radha? 

When the role was offeres, I 

was skeptical if people would 

accept me as Radha. Both my 

director and creative director 

have worked behind this character. 

I hope my character would 

be accepted by the audience and 

our show will be a success. 

How did you prepare yourself 

for the character? 

This is my first mythological 

show. All the shows that I have 

done so far, I portrayed characters 

of either elite class or that of 

a vulnerable girl. Preparing for 

the role was easy being a 

Gujarati as we worship Lord 

Krishna. I have been taught 

about him since childhood. 

Any challenges you faced for 

this role? 

The biggest challenge was 

the language. I am not an expert 

in Hindi and it was quite difficult 

because when you play a 

god on the screen, you cannot 

go wrong. Every single word 

requires proper pronunciation. 

We have language experts who 

help us with the meaning and 

pronunciation of words. 

There are a lot of mythological 

shows in the recent past. 

What do you have to say about 

this trend? 

Yes, I have seen shows like 

Ramayan and Radha Krishna in 

the past, but, our show is totally 

different from other mythological 

shows. This is the first time 

that a show would narrate 

Shrimad Bhagavad. 

Ajay Devgn’s Chanakya 

to have TWO PARTS 

Ajay Devgn is all set to join hands with 

filmmaker Neeraj Pandey, who has directed 

movies like M.S Dhoni: The Untold Story, A 

Wednesday, Baby, among others. 

Now, the director is gearing up to make a 

story on Chanakya featuring Ajay Devgn. In a 

recent interview, Ajay opened up about playing 

Chanakya, “This film will be made in two parts 

because we have a lot to say. Chanakya was 

way ahead of his time. Whatever is happening 

today, politically and otherwise, he has spoken 

it all at that time. He had a vast knowledge and 

we see whatever he had mentioned then, 

happening worldwide now.” 

Ajay also confirmed that the movie will go 

on the floors later this year. “Director Neeraj is 

busy writing the script. I said it could be made 

in two parts, merely because summing up his 

life and history will not be possible in one 

part,” said the actor. 

When Vicky and Taapsee 

met RUSSELL PETERS 

Bollywood celebrities 

are habitual of people 

asking them for pictures, 

but there are times when 

actors themselves line up 

for another star to pose 

for photos. Recently, 

Bollywood’s who’s who 

attended the show of 

comedian Russell Peters 

in Mumbai and among 

them were Vicky Kaushal 

and Taapsee Pannu. The 

two actors, who were 

seen together in 

Manmarziyaan, were 

excited to meet Russell 

and enjoyed his show. 

Later, Taapsee shared the 

photo with Russell on her Instagram. As we can see in the photo, Taapsee, Vicky and 

Russell are posing together. Taapsee is dressed in a black and red outfit whereas Vicky 

is seen sporting a casual look in a black tee and jeans. 

Russell is seen carrying off a white shirt with blue blazer and trousers. The actress 

captioned the photo as, “Thicker than a Snicker” @russellpeters.” 

What is Ranbir hiding? 

Ranbir Kapoor surely has a huge fan 

base but the actor isn’t really a fan of 

social media and has kept himself away 

from all social media pages. However, it 

is believed that like many other celebs, 

Ranbir has a secret Instagram page. A lot 

of RK’s co-stars, friends and contemporaries 

have also admitted that he is very 

much active on Instagram and keeps 

himself updated about what’s going on in 

and around Bollywood. 

During a recent event in Mumbai, 

Ranbir was quizzed about the celebrities 

he follows on his secret Instagram page. 

Answering this question, the actor took 

the names of his two exes –Deepika 

Padukone and Katrina Kaif along with 

his ladylove Alia Bhatt. RK also mentioned 

that he follows Ranveer Singh and 

his cousin Kareena Kapoor Khan, who 

too has a secret Instagram page. 

Telling us about Ranbir being on 

Instagram, Katrina on a talk show had 

said, “I know Ranbir has. And Ranbir, by 

the way, was the person who showed me 

how Instagram works.” Meanwhile, on 

the work front, Ranbir will next be seen 

in Ayan Mukerji’s Brahmastra alongside 

Alia.


A date to 

remember 

Reality TV personality 

Khloe Kardashian finally 

attended her first high 

school prom, thanks to an 

invite from a fan. The 34- 

year-old accompanied a 

student named Narbeh to 

his dance in a high school 

in California, on 

Saturday. “My very first 

prom and I went with the 

best date ever 

@NarbehKardash! We 

had so much fun! How 

handsome is my date?” 

Khloe wrote on Twitter. 

Narbeh, who runs 

Kardashian fan accounts on 

Twitter and Instagram, also 

shared photographs of himself 

and his date dressed in 

matching black attire. His 

Instagram fan account dedicated 

to the famous family 

has about 2,40,000 followers. 

The pair went through 

the typical prom rituals, 

including clicking photographs 

before the dance, 

pinning on the boutonniere 

and corsage, and taking 

images in a photo booth at 

the event. 

ENTERTAINMENT 

We are housing environmental 

threats in our wardrobes : Alia 

We have so many clothes, but we don’t think what happens when we throw them 

away. They end up in landfills, and get burnt. ALIA BHATT, ACTOR 

It’s hot, very hot but it’s 

good, all is going well,” is 

actor Alia Bhatt’s reaction 

when we ask her how 

Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, 

where she’s shooting for 

Brahmastra right now, is 

treating her. While she’s a 

busy actor, what she also 

doesn’t miss out on is doing 

her bit as a responsible citizen. 

Her initiative, Mi 

Wardrobe is Su Wardrobe, 

which was launched last 

year has become popular, 

and now, for its third leg, 

Alia has brought her industry 

friends on board, too. 

She starts by sharing what 

made her come up with the 

campaign in the first place. 

“It started with not 

knowing what to do with all 

my clothes. It’s a basic, 

human problem. You keep 

buying new clothes, and 

when your wardrobe is full, 

you clear it out. As kids, we 

always gave away our 

clothes to an orphanage. 

When I became an actor, I 

realised my clothes were 

getting out of control. I 

don’t feel I’m alone in this 

experience. I’m sure there 

are many girls who are 

actors, or fond of shopping, 

even more now since 

there’s online shopping,” 

exclaims Alia. 

The actor says that it 

was her team that helped 

her put ideas into perspective. 

“I’d keep saying, ‘I 

want to do this fashion-forcause’, 

and then as I dug 

deeper, I found that we’re 

plastic. When we wash 

them, it’s all released into 

the ocean. So, through my 

initiative, your clothes get a 

new lease of life by say, 

another nine months, which 

reduces carbon emissions,” 

she adds. This year’s MiSu 

housing environmental sale on an online platform 

threats in our wardrobe! We coincides with World 

have so many clothes, but 

we don’t think what happens 

when we throw them 

away. They end up in landfills, 

get burnt, which has a 

terrible impact on the environment. 

At the manufacturing 

stage, most of our 

clothes are made of polyester, 

which is a kind of 

Environment Day, which 

Alia reveals was a “conscious 

decision and made 

sense.” The celebrity who 

came on board to support 

Alia this time is actor 

Anushka Sharma. 

Alia says, “I had this 

idea two years ago, to reach 

out to fellow celebs and 

friends, who would be willing. 

I started with my personal 

closet, and invited 

Anushka, a fellow animal 

lover and an amazing person, 

this time. She was gracious, 

and gave a bunch of 

clothes. Every celeb we 

approach can choose an 

added cause for the proceeds 

from the sale. A 

chunk of this year’s sale 

will go to support animal 

welfare, chosen by her.” 

Ranveer to play 

Gully Boy actor in Hrithik’s Super 30 

Actor Vijay Varma, after giving an impeccable performance 

as Moeen bhai in his 2019 release Gully Boy, won many 

hearts. This FTII graduate has been in the industry for past few 

years doing some memorable roles in films like Monsoon 

Shootout, Pink, Rangrezz among others. 

Vijay will now be seen in Hrithik Roshan-starrer Super 30 

in a cameo role. When the makers approached Vijay to do a 

cameo in Super 30, he was ecstatic to be part of this film 

because of the amazing cast of the film, including Hrithik 

Roshan and Pankaj Tripathi. 


17 

Mystery of 

missing passport 

When Aishwarya was asked to go for Miss 

Universe instead of Sushmita Sen 

Sushmita Sen was the first Indian to win the coveted 

Miss Universe title in 1994 when she was just 

18-years old. It was definitely a huge moment of 

pride not just for Sushmita but for our entire nation. 

We all are aware of Sushmita’s success story but who 

knew that she was almost on the verge of not making 

it to the final day! 

In a recent interview, Sushmita revealed that the 

organisers wanted Aishwarya Rai to go in her place 

instead. The actress recalls, “It was given to 

Anupama Varma, then a very famous model and she 

was also a coordinator for events and she had my 

passport for a show in Bangladesh. She needed it for 

some Id proof. She couldn’t find it. I went crying to 

my dad. I said, ‘Baba I am not going for anything 

else. I rightfully deserve to go for this’. My father 

was like let me see what I can do and I will go on 

record to say that Mr Rajesh Pilot helped us to get the 

passport and he himself went on to say, ‘look, she’s representing our country so we got 

to aide this process instead of delaying it’. And you better believe it that I went for Miss 

Universe.” And there’s no surprise to what happened later! 

Shooting in Bangkok 

extra special: Akshay 

Bollywood star Akshay 

Kumar is currently filming 

his upcoming movie 

Sooryavanshi in Bangkok, 

Thailand, and the actor 

says shooting his own 

stunts in the city makes 

him feel nostalgic. The 51- 

year-old actor learned 

combat sport Muay Thai 

and worked as a chef and 

waiter in Bangkok before 

making it big in the 

movies. “I always have a 

lot of fun doing my own 

stunts. Rohit is anyway a 

class apart when it comes 

to action in his films. And doing these bike 

a GUJARATI 

In the midst of working on 83, actor light this film. Both humorous and poignant, 

Ranveer Singh has signed up another film. He Jayeshbhai... is right up there with the most 

will play a Gujarati in Yash Raj Films’ (YRF) solid on-paper material I’ve ever come 

Jayeshbhai Jordaar, to be helmed by debutant across.” 

writer-director Divyang Thakkar. The actor Great craft : Ranveer has been on a roll in 

calls it a “miracle script”. The project, a the industry, and has worked with top filmmakers 

like Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Rohit 

humorous entertainer set in Gujarat, is being 

produced by YRF’s home-grown producer Shetty, Zoya Akhtar and Kabir Khan. After 

Maneesh Sharma, who also discovered amassing nationwide love as an actor across 

Divyang. It will go on floors this October. all demographics, it was natural for him to 

Describing the film, Ranveer says: back a newcomer. “I have been immensely 

“Jayeshbhai... is a film with a big heart. In its fortunate to have collaborated with some of 

concept as well as in its appeal, it encompasses 

the broadest spectrum of the cinema-loving bling and gratifying that they believed in my 

the finest filmmakers of our country. It is hum- 

audience — it’s a film for everyone. It is, in craft and chose me to lead their cinematic 

fact, a miracle script’ that YRF found for me vision. All that I have achieved as an actor 

out of nowhere. The sheer brilliance of the today is due to these titanic cinematic forces 

writing compelled me to immediately green- 

having put their faith in me,” he said. 

stunts on the streets of 

Bangkok was extra 

special. 

“Many years back I 

would ride a bike in 

Bangkok to deliver 

food. Now, I am doing 

the same all over 

again, to earn my 

food,” Akshay said. 

Directed by Rohit 

Shetty, Sooryavanshi 

is the fourth movie in 

the filmmaker’s cop 

universe. The first 

three films were 

Singham, Singham 

Returns and Simmba. 

Shilpa’s new guest 

Shilpa Shetty is a pet lover and has shown her love for 

animals from time 

to time. The 

actress has lately 

added a new 

member to her 

family of three. 

Apparently, a parrot 

had fallen 

from its nest and 

landed at Shilpa’s 

house and the 

actress immediately took it as her pet and named it 

Poppy. Shilpa took to her Instagram and posted a cute 

video with Poppy trying to mount itself up on Shilpa’s 

shoulder. While sharing the video, she wrote, “We found 

#poppy (name in transit) in our home (dunno if it’s a 

male/female) was rescued by my staff on Friday night, 

she must’ve fallen from her nest that’s on the almond 

tree in my garden...she fluttered her wings but couldn’t 

fly...Feels like a soul I know who’s trying to communicate...She’s 

soo adorable ..Going to set her free as soon 

as she’s ready...but had to share this video of how friendly 

this parrot is..#birds #poppylove #sign #goodtidings 

#love #gratitude #parrotsofinstagram.”


ENTERTAINMENT 


Filmmaker Shekhar 

Kapur doesn’t need cars 

to prove ‘self-esteem’ 

Mumbai : Acclaimed filmmaker 

Shekhar Kapur finds it silly to own a car in 

Mumbai and says he does not need them to 

prove his self-esteem. A Twitter user wrote 

to Kapur: “I derive a strange comfort to 

know that celebs like you still use a rickshaw.” 

To which the filmmaker replied: “I 

don’t own a car. It’s silly to own a car in 

Mumbai. It takes 600,000 litres to make an 

average size car. Shouldn’t we use that 

water to grow food instead?” 

A social media troll then questioned him 

about him not having a car and said that 

“Bollywood celebrities have 20 plus 

imported cars”. 

Kapur, who has made films like ‘Bandit 

Queen’, ‘Masoom’ and ‘Mr India’, replied: 

They told you so! 

Yet another study confirms that violent 

video games are dangerous for kids 

Kids exposed to violent video games are more likely to pull 

the trigger in 

real life situations, 

as compared 

to those 

who do not 

indulge in such 

gaming habits, 

researchers have 

w a r n e d . 

Published in the 

JAMA Network 

Open Journal, 

the study examined 

the effects 

of video games 

with weapons 

on children’s 

behaviour when 

they found a gun 

in real life. 

The study 

was conducted 

on children aged 

between 8-12 

years who were 

assigned to play 

three different 

versions of the 

game Minecraft. 

Although, the 

research is limited by the artificial setting of a university laboratory 

and Minecraft is not a very violent game, the researchers 

encourage gun owners to secure their firearms and reduce children’s 

exposure to violent video games. 

“I don’t need to own 20 imported cars to 

What a feast! 

A slew of celebrities from 

the film industry attended 

politician Baba Siddique’s Iftar 

party where superstars Shah 

Rukh Khan and Salman Khan 

stole the limelight. The videos 

and photographs of the actors 

from the party have been doing 

the rounds on Internet. In one 

of the videos, SRK, dressed in 

grey kurta and white pyjama, is 

seen digging into kebabs while 

conversing with Siddique and 

his son Zeeshan. 

Siddique’s Iftar party is considered 

one of the most exciting 

events every year. And 

Salman has been attending it 

for many years. 

Salman appeared in black 

shirt and jeans at the party. He 

is seen interacting with guests 

and posing for selfies. Actress 

Katrina Kaif was also there. 

While Salman’s brother 

Arbaaz attended the party with 

his girlfriend Giorgia Andriani, 

the actor’s sister Alvira was 

accompanied by her husband 

Atul Agnihotri. 

Actors Raveena Tandon, 

Urmila Matondkar, Sunil 

Grover, Mouni Roy, Huma 

Qureshi, Warina Hussain, 

Ahana Kumra, Rashami Desai, 

Motu-Patlu find a place among 

stars at Delhi’s Madame Tussauds 

New Delhi : Motu, with his 

favourite snack samosa, and 

Patlu, with his quintessential 

know-it-all expression, have 

found themselves a special corner 

at the Madame Tussauds 

here. The popular cartoon characters 

are latest in the long list 

of celebrities from sports, 

entertainment and other iconic 

personalities already present at 

the Regal Building. The event 

also marked the launch of the 

new Motu Patlu comic book for 

children. “Our endeavour has 

always been to give a complete 

and memorable experience to 

all our visitors. Motu Patlu are 

the most loved cartoon characters 

in India at the moment. 

Their presence at Madame 

Tussauds along with the other 

celebrity figures will further 

enrich the experience of visiting 

families to the attraction,” 

Anshul Jain, Director, Merlin 

Entertainments India, said. 

According to Jain, it took 

more than 20 artists and a period 

of five months to complete 

the project. Initially featured in 

print in ‘Lotpot’ magazine, the 

characters went on to be telecast 

on Nickelodeon (India) 

network from 2012 onwards. 

prove my self esteem.” 

Another user asked him if he used rickshaws. 

Kapur said: “I don’t own a car. So 

often will use ricks.” Kapur gained international 

recognition with ‘Bandit Queen’, 

based on the infamous Indian bandit and 

politician Phoolan Devi, which won the 

National Film Award for Best Feature Film 

in Hindi. It was premiered in the Directors 

Fortnight section of the 1994 Cannes Film 

Festival and was also screened at the 

Edinburgh Film Festival. 

In international cinema, his historical 

biopics on Queen Elizabeth, ‘Elizabeth’ 

and ‘Elizabeth: The Golden Age’, won the 

BAFTA Award for Best Film and two 

Academy Awards. 

Sanjeeda Shaikh, Aamir Ali 

and Tina Dutta, among others 

attended the party. 

The comic duo are known to 

get into hilarious situations 

from which they manage to 

extricate themselves only 

through luck. According to the 

creators of the show, ‘Motu 

Patlu’ combines entertainment 

and education and is designed 

for viewers of all ages. “The 

PRIYANKA 

would love to 

run for PM 

Actress Priyanka Chopra Jonas says she would like to run for 

Prime Minister of India. In an interview to The Sunday Times, 

the Quantico actress opened up about the political aspirations 

she has for herself, and her husband and pop star Nick Jonas, 

reports people.com. “I would love to run for Prime Minister of 

India. I would love Nick to run for President,” Priyanka, 36, 

said. “I don’t like the things associated with politics, but I know 

that both of us really want to make a change. Never say never.” 

While Priyanka said she has tried to remain apolitical throughout 

her life because she likes to “cheer for humanity”, the actress 

could not deny the fact that Nick, 26, would make a great leader. 

“He’s not afraid to use the word (feminist) and I love that,” she 

said. Priyanka, who got married to Nick in December 2018, previously 

praised the “Sucker” singer in April at Tina Brown’s 

10th Annual Women in the World Summit. 

show captures a right flavour of 

comedy and innocence, instilling 

ideas of right and wrong in 

kids in a subtle manner,” Niraj 

Vikram, screen writer, said. P K 

Bajaj, founder and editor of 

Lotpot Group, also said it was a 

great moment to be recognised 

in an internationally acclaimed 

attraction. “We are elated and 

look forward to kids’ reaction 

while meeting their favourite 

stars,” Bajaj said. Madame 

Tussauds Delhi might come up 

with more cartoon characters in 

future in order to cater to the 

interests of viewers, especially 

the younger, said Jain.


Uber drivers to get 

rebate at IOCL pumps 

New Delhi, Ride-hailing giant Uber 

has partnered with 

state-run Indian Oil 

Corp Ltd and digital 

payment platform 

Paytm to 

offer discount to 

drivers on petrol, 

diesel and CNG 

purchases at IOCL 

fuel stations across the country. 

Over 12,000 Uber driver partners had 

already registered for this programme, 

Uber said on Thursday. 

The tripartite agreement, reached a 

couple of months ago, became operational 

only now after the requisite number 

of driver registration for the programme 

was achieved, an IOCL spokesperson 

said. Refilling tanks at the IOCL fuel stations 

would earn Uber drivers points, 

which they would be able to redeem later. 

“Indian Oil has been always striving to 

add to the fuelling experience of customers 

coming to its retail outlets. 

Through our association with Uber, we 

would be giving one more reason for a 

Uber driver partner to fuel with us and 

also earn IndianOil’s XTRAREWARD 

loyalty points for free fuelling,” Vigyan 

Kumar, Executive Director (Retail Sales), 

IOCL, said in a statement. 

Uber launched its services in India in 

2013 with its UberBLACK service and 

premium UberX service in 2014. Uber 

operates in 31 cities in the country and 

aims to take its services to other parts as 

well. 

TECH 

Nokia 3.2 : Android One 

edge plus big battery life 

New Delhi, The trend in the 

crowded sub-Rs 10,000 smartphone 

market is to offer bigger 

phones that last longer on a single 

charge. HMD Global, the 

house of Nokia phones, also 

appears to be relying on these 

features a lot to beat the competition. 

The Nokia 3.2, launched last 

month, comes with a 6.26-inch 

HD plus display and 4000mAh 

battery. These are, however, not 

the only attractive features that 

the phone offers. 

It also comes with a dedicated 

Google Assistant button, three 

years of monthly security patches 

and two major software 

updates, as guaranteed in the 

Android One programme. 

The phone was launched in 

two variants — the 2GB 

RAM+16GB internal storage at 

Rs 8,990 and the 3GB+32GB at 

Rs 10,790. 

Let’s see how the 3GB+32GB 

variant fared during our use. 

The waterdrop notch display 

and polycarbonate glossy body 

make the phone look trendy. The 

fingerprint sensor placed at the 

back is fast and accurate. We 

also found no trouble in accessing 

the phone with the face 

unlock feature. 

Powered by the Qualcomm 

Snapdragon 429 chipset, the 

phone runs Android Pie OS. At 

moderate usage, the device lasted 

for a day and a half, thanks to 

the 4000mAh battery. 

The big screen, the thin 

bezels on sides and the big battery 

ensured that watching 

videos and playing games on the 

device was a decent experience, 

although it lacked a bit of sharpness. 

Overall, in terms of media 

consumption, the phone does not 

disappoint, considering the price 

point. In adequate light, the 5MP 

front camera captured good selfies 

and didn’t appear overexposed. 

The 13MP rear camera, 

despite having a single lens, also 

surprised us with decent pictures. 

What does not work? 

The camera, however, was 

found wanting when it came to 

low-light photography. The 

polycarbonate body easily 

attracted fingerprints and there is 

nothing to write home about the 

sound quality. 

Conclusion: The dedicated 

Google Assistant button, battery 

life and the big display are a 

huge plus for the Nokia 3.2, but 

they may not be enough to make 

the device stand out in comparison 

to Redmi Note 7, Realme 3 

and Galaxy M20, which come 

with dual rear camera systems 

and some advanced features. 


19 

Samsung unveils 

Notebook 7, Notebook 

7 Force laptops 

Seoul, South Korean tech giant Samsung on 

Monday launched two new laptops — Notebook 7 

and Notebook Force. They feature a brand-new 

design with solid metal frame, full HD display, 8th 

gen Intel processor, latest NVIDIA graphics and 

Dolby Atmos audio. The Notebook 7 and Notebook 

7 Force would initially be available in South Korea 

and Hong Kong, to be followed by the US and Brazil 

later in 2019, Samsung said. 

The Notebook 7 offers 16GB of RAM and is also 

available with 512GB internal storage, although the 

15-inch model will offer an expandable SSD slot to 

increase storage. The Notebook 7 Force comes in a 

single 15-inch FHD model and is designed to offer 

more power and graphics performance for playing 

games. It features NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 that 

offers 70 per cent faster speed against the previous 

GTX chipset. It comes with 24GB RAM and 512GB 

of internal storage with 2 expandable slots. The 

Samsung Notebook 7 will start at $999 and will go 

on sale from July 26 on Amazon and Samsung, while 

the Notebook 7 Force is priced at $1,499.


TECH 


Zomato expands to 

100 NEW CITIES, 

crosses 300 in India 

New Delhi, Crossing the 

300-cities mark, online ordering 

and food delivery platform 

Zomato on Monday announced 

its expansion 100 new cities in 

India. The new cities to get 

Zomato services include Bhuj, 

Junagadh, Rishikesh, Shimla, 

Ayodhya and Begusarai among 

others, the company said in a 

statement. “As we expand, we 

are also focusing on improving 

our average delivery 

time,which now stands at 30.5 

minutes,” said Mohit Gupta, 

10 facts about air pollution on World Environment Day 

Barcelona : Nobody is safe from 

air pollution, the United Nations 

warned on World Environment Day, 

with nine out of 10 people on the planet 

now breathing polluted air. 

This has led to a growing, global 

health crisis, which already causes 

about 7 million deaths per year, 

according to the World Health 

Organization (WHO). 

Burning fossil fuels for power, 

transport and industry is a major contributor 

to air pollution as well as the 

main source of planet-warming carbon 

emissions — and tackling both problems 

together could bring substantial 

benefits for public health. 

Here are some facts on the human 

impacts of air pollution and its links 

with climate change: 

1. Air pollution kills 800 people every 

hour or 13 every minute, 

accounting for more than three 

times the amount of people who 

die from malaria, tuberculosis and 

AIDS combined each year. 

2. Some of the same pollutants contribute 

to both climate change and 

local air pollution, including black 

carbon or soot — produced by 

inefficient combustion in sources 

like cookstoves and diesel engines 

— and methane. 

CEO, food delivery, Zomato. 

Gupta also mentioned that in 

3. The five main sources of air pollution 

are indoor burning of fossil 

fuels, wood and other biomass to 

cook, heat and light homes; industry, 

including power generation 

such as coal-fired plants and diesel 

generators; transport, especially 

vehicles with diesel engines; agriculture, 

including livestock, which 

produces methane and ammonia, 

rice paddies, which produce 

this expansion phase, Punjab 

and Andhra Pradesh were the 

most active states, with the 

highest number of launches. 

The company plans to boost its 

services in the Seven Sister 

States as well. 

On average, Zomato is 

onboarding 45-50 restaurants 

in each city and the number is 

likely to increase in the coming 

months, the company added. 

Founded in 2008, the company 

now serves over 70 million 

users every month along with 

1.4 million restaurants across 

24 countries. 

New powerful iPadOS coming this fall 

San Jose (California), 

Giving iPad new capabilities 

and intuitive features, Apple on 

Monday introduced iPadOS 

that is built on the same foundation 

as its iconic iOS. 

With iPadOS, users would 

be able to work with apps in 

multiple windows, see more 

information on a redesigned 

Home screen and more natural 

ways to use Apple Pencil. 

iPadOS with Dark Mode 

feature will be available this 

fall as a free software update 

for iPad Air 2 and later, all iPad 

Pro models, iPad 5th 

generation and iPad 

mini 4. 

“iPadOS delivers 

exciting features, 

including a new Home 

screen with widgets, 

more powerful multitasking 

and new tools 

that make using Apple 

Pencil even more natural,” 

said Craig 

Federighi, Apple’s senior 

vice president of Software 

Engineering. The Home screen 

for iPad has been redesigned 

with a new layout to show more 

apps on each page. 

iPad users can now work 

with multiple files and documents 

from the same app 

simultaneously with updates to 

Split View, or can quickly view 

and switch between multiple 

apps in Slide Over. 

Maps features a new basemap, 

built from the ground up 

where users can see street-level 

images of cities using high-resolution 

3D photography. The 

new map is available now in 

select cities and states and will 

roll out across the US by the 

end of 2019 and to more countries 

in 2020. 

methane, and the burning of agricultural 

waste; and open waste 

burning and organic waste in landfills. 

4. Household air pollution causes 

about 3.8 million premature deaths 

each year, the vast majority of 

them in the developing world, and 

about 60% of those deaths are 

among women and children. 

5. 93% of children worldwide live in 

Instagram suffers another 

global outage, reason unknown 

San Francisco : Facebook-owned photo messaging app 

Instagram suffered a 

major global outage that 

hindered app logins, page 

refreshes, commenting on 

posts and uploading content 

on the platform. 

Users started experiencing 

issues with 

Instagram at 11.30 pm ET. 

According to Down 

Detector, users in India, 

the US, the UK, South America, Japan and Australia were subject 

to the outages, news website Deadline reported on Monday. 

Since Instagram did not officially release a statement about 

the outage, it remains unclear what may have triggered it. 

According to the report, the app has recovered from the outage 

and has started functioning smoothly again. 

The news of Instagram’s breakdown comes right after Google 

apps and Snapchat recovered from a global outage across the US 

and the UK earlier on Sunday night. 

Google blamed issues with its Cloud service that powers 

other apps along with the search engine giant’s own web services 

for the outage. In March, Facebook and its family of apps, 

including Instagram, suffered the longest outage ever that lasted 

for 12 hours worldwide. 

Google says sorry for sending 

Kohli’s message to users 

New Delhi, Google has apologised for erroneously sending 

a video message in bulk to its 

Google Duo users by the 

Indian cricket team captain 

Virat Kohli. Video conferencing 

platform Google Duo 

accidentally sent a message 

from Kohli to users around 

the world. In the video, Kohli 

is seen saying “thank you for 

the wishes and keep cheering for thr team India on Duo”. 

Google later issued a statement, saying the video message 

was sent accidentally to unintended recipients. 

“This was not an ad — it was a message that users in India 

were intended to receive as a thank you if they chose to participate 

in an upcoming Duo promotion,” the company said in a 

statement late Friday. Android users took to Redditt to report the 

glitch. Interestingly, the video message was shared with users in 

the US, Canada, New Zealand and Australia but not in India. 

areas where air pollution exceeds 

WHO guidelines, with 6,00,000 

children under 15 dying from respiratory 

tract infections in 2016. 

6. Air pollution is responsible for 26% 

of deaths from ischemic heart disease, 

24% of deaths from strokes, 

43% from chronic obstructive pulmonary 

disease and 29% from 

lung cancer. In children, it is associated 

with low birth weight, asthma, 

childhood cancers, obesity, 

poor lung development and 

autism, among other health 

defects. 

7. 97% of cities in low- and middleincome 

countries with more than 

100,000 inhabitants do not meet 

the WHO minimum air quality levels, 

and in high-income countries, 

29% of cities fall short of guidelines. 

8. About 25% of urban ambient air 

pollution from fine particulate 

matter is contributed by traffic, 

20% by domestic fuel burning and 

15% by industrial activities including 

electricity generation. 

9. Keeping global warming “well 

below” 2 degrees Celsius (3.6F), 

as governments have pledged to do 

under the 2015 Paris Agreement, 

could save about a million lives a 

year by 2050 through reducing air 

pollution alone. 

10. In the 15 countries that emit the 

most planet-warming gases, the 

cost of air pollution for public 

health is estimated at more than 

4% of GDP. In comparison, keeping 

warming to the Paris 

Agreement temperature limits 

would require investing about 1% 

of global GDP.


New Delhi/Lucknow : Quintals of 

seeds meant for distribution to poor farmers 

were purchased and supplied, but merely 

on paper, by top officials of Uttar 

Pradesh government. 

Signatures of officials and the seal of 

government were blatantly used in 'forged 

purchase receipts' to siphon off funds. A 

preliminary probe has indicated that a 

major part of the scam was committed during 

the Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav's 

tenures as chief minister. 

As of now, forged receipts worth Rs 

16.56 crore have been traced. This could 

just be the tip of the iceberg. Concerned 

about the misuse of public funds, the Yogi 

Adityanath government has instructed the 

Economic Offences Wing to find out 

whether the seeds scam was limited to 

Kanpur (state warehouse) or was spread 

across other districts of the Uttar Pradesh 

as well. Speaking to IANS, Uma Shankar 

Pathak, a senior official of the Agriculture 

Department said that the Kanpur police has 

already registered an FIR on the basis of 

the preliminary enquiry of the UP Seed and 

Development Corporation. The scam was 

unearthed last year when the seed corporation 

sent its bills to the Agriculture 

Department for payment. During routine 

verification, a few bills worth Rs 99 lakh 

were found to be forged. Later, a departmental 

enquiry was initiated to probe the 

scandal. Sources said that during 

Mayawati's tenure as chief minister (2007- 

2012) and later in Akhilesh Yadav's tenure 

(2012-2017), bills amounting to Rs 16.56 

crore had been found forged. "We cannot 

rule out the involvement of any Minister or 

top bureaucrat in the scam. It appears that 

there was connivance at the top," said an 

official. 

The sources said that during the enquiry, 

which was focused on the Kanpur warehouse, 

it was discovered that receipts 

belonging to two series bearing numbers 

9080 and 7188 had been forged. A few key 

officials and lower rung employees of the 

store purchased and supplied seeds only on 

the paper. Later, the forged bills were 

NEWS 

UP farmers duped as 

quintals of seeds supplied 

only on PAPER 

Bangladeshi student gets 

42-year jail in Australia 

Canberra : A Bangladeshi student was sentenced 

to 42 years in jail by an Australian court on 

Wednesday for intentionally engaging in a terrorist 

act after stabbing her homestay landlord last year in 

an Islamic State-inspired attack. On February 9, 

2018, Momena Shoma stabbed Roger Singaravelu in 

the neck with a kitchen knife while he was taking a 

nap with his five-year-old daughter in his Melbourne 

home. Both survived the attack. 

The Supreme Court of Victoria in Melbourne 

handed down the sentence to the 26-year-old with a 

31-year non-parole period. 

Shoma pleaded guilty in September to engaging 

in a terrorist act for advancing a political, religious or 

ideological cause, namely violent jihad, ABC News 

reported. Eight days after arriving in the country to 

study at La Trobe University, Shoma yelled "Allahu 

Akbar" as she plunged the knife into Singaravelu's 

neck, the court heard. The injury was so deep that it 

fractured his spine. The blade got lodged so deeply in 

his neck that it snapped when he tried to remove it. 

His five-year-old daughter witnessed the attack and 

still suffers from fear, trauma and an inability to trust 

people. "It is the first time in Australia that a sentence 

will be imposed for the offence of intentionally 

engaging in a terrorist act," Justice Lesley Taylor 

said in her judgment, according to Efe news. 

Justice Taylor said when Shoma was approached 

by a neighbour, she said she had stabbed the man 

because she was ordered to do so by the caliph of the 

Islamic State terror group and had gone to Australia 

to attack someone, expressing the hope Singaravelu 

would die. 

According to the judgment, Shoma travelled to 

Australia with the sole aim of committing a terrorist 

act and she brought with her the weapon with which 

she intended to carry out the attack. She displayed no 

remorse for her act, it added. 

Moscow : Chinese President Xi 

Jinping arrived in Russia on 

Wednesday for a state visit. Xi is 

expected to join Russian President 

Vladimir Putin in reviewing the 

achievements and experience in the 

development of the bilateral relationship 

over the past seven decades and 

charting the course 

for its future development, 

Xinhua 

news agency reported. 

The two leaders 

are also expected to 

sign or witness the 

signing of important 

cooperation documents 

and attend a 

gathering celebrating 

the 70 anniversary 

of bilateral 

diplomatic ties. 

"We have the 

confidence and capability to bring our 

relations to a new era of greater development 

at a higher level, based on our 

experience and achievements of the 

past 70 years," Xi said in an interview 

to Russia's TASS news agency and 

endorsed by senior officials and payments 

were made. 

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has 

instructed secretaries of important ministries 

which have large expenditure to 

focus on internal audits and ensure that the 

government runs efficiently. The Chief 

Minister has already suspended several 

corrupt officials in the Animal Husbandry 

and Chakbandi departments which have 

become dens of corruption. Important 

cases related of corruption like Gomti river 

water front project and mining scam were 

earlier handed over to the CBI by the Chief 

Minister. 

Chinese President 

Xi Jinping arrives 

in RUSSIA 

Rossiyskaya Gazeta newspaper on the 

eve of the visit. 

During his stay in Russia, Xi will 

also attend the 23rd St. Petersburg 

International Economic Forum. 

He will address a plenary session 

to expound China's ideas on sustainable 

development and call for concerted 

efforts to 

safeguard multilateralism 

and improve 

global governance 

for the common 

development and 

prosperity of the 

world. Xi's visit to 

Russia, the eighth 

since 2013 when he 

was elected Chinese 

President, comes as 

the bilateral comprehensive 

strategic 

partnership of coordination 

is at its best 

in history, according to Xinhua news 

agency. 

Xi and Putin, maintaining close 

friendship, have met nearly 30 times 

on bilateral and multilateral occasions 

since 2013. 


21 

SP-BSP divorce, but ensure 

there is no bitterness 

Lucknow : Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav on 

Tuesday put the seal of 

approval on the break-up 

of the SP-BSP alliance 

when he said that his 

party will contest all 11 

seats where Assembly byelections 

are to be held in 

Uttar Pradesh. Earlier in 

the day, BSP President 

Mayawati had announced 

at a press conference that 

her Bahujan Samaj Party 

(BSP) would contest the upcoming Assembly by-elections 

alone. Mayawati said she was taking a break from her partnership 

with the SP. "It is not a permanent break," she explained, 

asking the Samajwadi Party to bring about improvement in the 

conduct of its cadre. She said that the Yadav voters had not 

supported the alliance. "If Yadavs had voted in full measure 

for the alliance, senior SP leaders like Dimple Yadav, 

Dharmendra Yadav and Akshay Yadav would not have lost 

from Yadav-dominated seats. This is a matter of concern for 

the Samajwadi Party," she said. The BSP President clarified 

that her party did not benefit with the base vote of the 

Samajwadi Party. In the Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh, 

the SP and BSP contested 37 and 38 seats respectively and won 

5 and 10. In the run up to the elections, both parties had 

declared that the alliance will continue even after the Lok 

Sabha battle. On Sunday, Mayawati had given clear indications 

at a party meeting in Delhi that the alliance with SP was almost 

over. The BSP President, in a shrewd move, said that her relations 

with Akhilesh Yadav and his family would remain intact 

and if the situation in SP improved, she could do some rethinking 

on the alliance. Akhilesh Yadav, on the hand, did not comment 

directly on Mayawati's statement but said the SP would 

form its own government in Uttar Pradesh in 2022 when 

Assembly elections are to be held. 

This is being seen as an indication of the SP also going 

alone in the Assembly polls. "I will consult my party leaders 

and then decide. We are going to contest the by-elections and 

form a government in 2022," he said. After the SP's election 

debacle, party founder Mulayam Singh Yadav had asked 

Akhilesh Yadav to revive the party by bringing back senior elders 

who had left. He also hinted at bringing back Shivpal 

Yadav who had formed his own party. Mayawati on Monday 

blamed Shivpal Yadav for the poor show of the SP and had said 

that he transferred Yadav votes to the BJP. Though the SP-BSP 

break-up was expected after the Lok Sabha elections, the unexpected 

change this time is that Mayawati has shown her softer 

side by appreciating Akhilesh Yadav and his family and insisting 

that the personal relationship between the two former Chief 

Ministers will continue. 

Mayawati confirms break-up, 

terms it temporary 

Lucknow : Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati said 

that her party would contest the upcoming Assembly bye-elections 

alone. Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav, on the 

hand, did not comment on 

Mayawati's statement but said in 

Azamgarh on Tuesday that the 

Samajwadi Party would form its 

own government in Uttar Pradesh 

in 2022 when Assembly elections 

are to be held. This is being seen 

as an indication of the SP also 

going alone in the Assembly 

polls. Mayawati said she was taking 

a break from her partnership 

with the Samajwadi Party. "It is not a permanent break," she 

explained, asking the Samajwadi Party to bring about 

improvement in its cadre. She said that the Yadav voters had 

not supported the alliance. "If Yadavs had voted in full measure 

for the alliance, senior SP leaders like Dimple Yadav, 

Dharmendra Yadav and Akshay Yadav would not have lost 

from Yadav-dominated seats. This is a matter for concern for 

the Samajwadi Party," she said. The BSP president clarified 

that her party has not benefitted with the base vote of 

Samajwadi Party. "However, we cannot ignore political compulsions 

and we will contest the Assembly bye-elections. 

However, this is not the end of the road. If the Samajwadi Party 

inculcates a missionary zeal in its workers and improves its 

performance, we will see," she added. Mayawati spoke about 

her relations with Akhilesh Yadav and his family and said they 

gave her utmost respect. "Our relationship will not end though 

politics is another aspect," she stated.


WORLD 


Indian economy grew 7.2% in 2018-19, 

likely to top at 7.5%: World Bank 

New York : As Finance Minister 

Nirmala Sitharaman prepares her 

budget, the World Bank reports Indias 

economy grew by 7.2 per cent in 

2018-19 in contrast to the recent 

Indian Central Statistical Office 

(CSO) estimate of only 6.8 per cent 

growth during the period. 

The Bank's Economic Prospects 

Report released on Tuesday forecast 

India's economy to grow by 7.5 per 

cent during this and the next two fiscal 

years, retaining its top spot as the 

fastest growing major economy. It 

would be helped by a "more accommodative 

monetary policy" and low 

inflation, it said. 

The report retained the forecasts it 

made in January for India. India's 

growth forecast is the brightest spot in 

a grim forecast for the world economy. 

The report said that the global growth 

rate was estimated at 3 per cent last 

year and is forecast to dip steeply to 

2.6 per cent this year, before edging up 

to 2.7 per cent next year and 2.8 per 

cent in 2021. 

India "is estimated to have grown 

7.2 per cent in fiscal year 2018-19, 

which ended March 31", the report 

said. "A slowdown in government 

consumption was offset by solid 

investment, which benefited from 

public infrastructure spending". 

The Bank said that the cut-off dates 

for data used in the report was May 

23. On May 31, the CSO said that 

India's gross domestic product (GDP) 

growth during the 2018-19 fiscal 

stood at 6.8 per cent, lower than the 

previous year's 7.2 per cent. 

The CSO said the Indian economy 

grew by only 5.8 per cent in the fourth 

quarter. That dragged down the fiscal 

year's growth rate. 

Finance Secretary Subash Garg 

attributed the slowdown to "temporary 

factors like stress in non-banking 

financial company (NBFC) sector 

affecting consumption finance". 

The World Bank report said, 

"Growth in India is projected to accelerate 

to 7.5 percent in FY 2019-20." 

"Private consumption and investment 

will benefit from strengthening 

credit growth in an environment of 

more accommodative monetary policy, 

and with inflation below the 

Reserve Bank of India's target", it 

added. 

Growth projections for India made 

by different organisations vary a lot. 

Last month, UN downgraded India's 

growth rate for the current fiscal year 

to 7 per cent, a cut of 0.6 per cent from 

the projection made in January and 

reduced the forecast for the next fiscal 

year by 0.4 per cent to 7.1 per cent. It 

estimated last fiscal year's growth rate 

to be 7.2 per cent. 

In April, the IMF cut India's growth 

projections for this year by 0.2 per 

cent from the 7.5 per cent made in 

January to 7.3 per cent. It projected 

next year's growth at 7.5 per cent, 

though lower than the earlier 7.7 projection. 

The Asian Development Bank said 

in April that India's growth rate would 

be 7.2 per cent this year and 7.3 per 

cent next year. 

China's economy grew by 6.6 per 

cent last year and is forecast to grow 

by 6.2 per cent this year and further 

decelerate to 6.1 per cent next year 

and 6 per cent in 2021, the World 

Bank said. 

Pakistan was estimated to have 

grown by 5.2 per cent last year, but is 

forecast to steeply decline to 3.4 per 

cent this year and 2.7 per cent next 

year, before recovering to 4 per cent in 

2021, according to the report. 

This despite "financial assistance 

from Gulf countries and China and an 

International Monetary Fund programme 

(that) have helped rebuild 

confidence", it said. 

Last year, the report said, 

Bangladesh recorded a growth rate of 

7.9 per cent -- the highest of all 

nations, regardless of size, although 

with a GDP of only about $250 billion, 

or less than a tenth of India's, it is not 

considered a major economy. 

Bangladesh's growth is forecast to fall 

to 7.3 per cent this year, the Bank 

reported. It is forecast to rise to 7.4 per 

cent next year and dip to 7.3 per cent 

in 2021. 

Commenting on the global economic 

outlook, World Bank Group 

President David Malpass said, 

"Current economic momentum 

remains weak, while heightened debt 

levels and subdued investment growth 

in developing economies are holding 

countries back from achieving their 

potential. It's urgent that countries 

make significant structural reforms 

that improve the business climate and 

attract investment". 

The Bank report added several 

notes of caution for India and the 

South Asia region. "Fiscal deficits 

continue to exceed official targets in 

India and Pakistan, and supply bottlenecks 

and business climate obstacles 

could hold back investment potential 

in the region," it said. 

"In addition, non-performing assets 

in the region remain high. A sharperthan 

expected deceleration of growth 

in major economies or an intensification 

of trade frictions could have 

spillover effects for the region," the 

report added. 

It is also an oil importer at risk from 

vagaries of the oil market. 

Brexit also poses another risk to the 

region, it said: "A number of 

economies have preferential trade 

arrangements with the UK, and would 

be vulnerable to a turbulent UK exit 

from the European Union." 

Trump joins Queen, world 

leaders to mark 75th D-Day 

Portsmouth : World leaders, including US 

President Donald Trump, joined Queen Elizabeth 

II, here on Wednesday, for the official commemorations 

marking the 75th anniversary of the D- 

Day landings. 

The 93-year-old UK monarch was the last to 

arrive at the event, attended by some 300 veterans 

and other world leaders, including French 

President Emmanuel Macron and 

German Chancellor Angela Merkel. 

A huge stage, decorated with the 

national flags of the World War II 

allies, had been set up for the occasion. 

Members of the armed forces 

welcomed the Queen with a military 

display. The Queen was accompanied 

by son and heir to the throne, 

Prince Charles, as well as the US 

President and First Lady Melania 

Trump, outgoing UK Prime Minister 

Theresa May and leaders of Canada, Australia, 

New Zealand, Belgium, the Czech Republic, 

Greece, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, 

Poland and Denmark. 

As part of the commemorations, images of the 

D-Day landings were shown on a large screen set 

up on the stage. Several nonagenarian veterans 

took to the stage, mostly with walking sticks and 

wearing medals on their lapels, and were 

applauded by audience. 

On Thursday, memorial services are planned 

to mark the 75 years since the D-Day landings. 

Troops from the UK, the US, Canada and France 

attacked German forces on the coast of northern 

France on June 6, 1944. It was the largest military 

naval, air and land operation and marked the 

start of the campaign to liberate Nazi-occupied 

north-west Europe. At the Wednesday event, 

Trump read a prayer, written by then US 

President Franklin D Roosevelt and delivered on 

the evening of D-day -- June 6, 1944, the 

Guardian reported. 

May read the letter of Captain Norman 

Skinner of the Royal Army Service 

Corps written to his wife Gladys on 

June 3, 1944. The letter was still in 

his pocket when he landed on 

Sword Beach on June 6. Skinner 

was killed the day after, leaving 

behind wife and two young daughters. 

French President Macron read 

the final letter of Henri Fertet, a 

resistance fighter, executed aged 16. 

"The soldiers are coming to get me. 

I must hurry. My handwriting may 

look wobbly, but it's just because I am using a 

small pencil. I am not afraid of death, my conscience 

is completely clear… A thousand kisses. 

Long live France," he wrote. Ahead of the event, 

the 16 nations involved in the commemorations 

agreed a proclamation to mark the anniversary. 

The statement, coordinated by the UK, recognises 

the sacrifice of those who took part in the 

Second World War and salutes the surviving D- 

day veterans. 

The text was agreed upon by Australia, 

Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, 

France, Germany, Greece, Luxembourg, the 

Netherlands, Norway, New Zealand, Poland, 

Slovakia, the UK and the US.


New York : Turning a conventional 

wisdom on its head, 

researchers have found that 

consuming red meat and white 

meat, like poultry, have equal 

effects on blood cholesterol 

levels. 

The study indicated that 

restricting consumption of 

meat altogether, whether red or 

white, is more advisable for 

lowering blood cholesterol levels 

than previously thought. 

The research, published in 

the American Journal of 

Clinical Nutrition, showed that 

consumption of high amount of 

red meat or white poultry 

resulted in higher blood cholesterol 

levels than consuming a 

comparable amount of plant 

proteins. 

"When we planned this 

study, we expected red meat to 

have more adverse effect on 

blood cholesterol levels than 

white meat. But we were surprised 

that this was not the case 

-- their effects on cholesterol 

levels are identical when saturated 

fat levels are equivalent," 

said the study lead author 

Ronald Krauss, Professor at 

University of California in the 

US. 

The study did not include 

grass-fed beef or processed 

products like bacon or sausage; 

nor did it include fish. The 

study also found that plant proteins 

were the healthiest for 

blood cholesterol. 

Consumption of red meat 

has become unpopular during 

the last few decades over concerns 

about its association with 

increased heart disease. 

Government dietary guidelines 

have encouraged consumption 

of poultry as a healthier alternative 

to red meat. 

But there had been no comprehensive 

comparison of the 

WORLD 

Poultry as bad as red meats 

for cholesterol: Study 

Indian-origin woman jailed 

for killing stepdaughter 

Washington : An Indian-origin woman has 

been sentenced to 22 years to life in prison for 

strangling her 9-year-old stepdaughter in a bathtub 

in 2016, a crime described by a US court as 

a "disturbing" example of "extreme violence". 

Shamdai Arjun, 55, of Queens, New York, 

was sentenced on Monday after being convicted 

in May of second-degree murder for killing 

Ashdeep Kaur. She will spend 22 years to up to 

life behind bars for the August 2016 killing. 

Queens Supreme 

Court Justice 

Kenneth Holder 

handed down the 

sentence in a case 

he described as a 

"disturbing" example 

of "extreme violence" 

and suffering, 

Queens Daily 

Eagle reported. 

Ashdeep Kaur 

had moved from 

India to be in the care of her father Sukhjinder 

Singh and his wife in 2016. Family members 

said the girl told them about past abuse at the 

hands of her stepmother. "It's disturbing to consider 

how you placed your hands around the neck 

and throat of that child and squeezed without letting 

up until her body went limp," Justice Holder 

said at sentencing. "The suffering this child 

endured as she was being killed is unimaginable, 

and to boot you were the last face she had to look 

up and see before she died." Acting Queens 

District Attorney John Ryan said: "The defendant 

in this case goes beyond the tales of evil stepmothers. 

This defendant committed the unimaginable 

- she wrapped her hands around her stepdaughter's 

little neck and squeezed the life out of 

her. "The victim was an innocent child and just 

nine years old. The court has imposed a sentence 

that will likely guarantee this woman never sees 

freedom again. The sentence of the Court is more 

than warranted in this tragic case," Ryan said. 

According to trial 

testimony, Arjun left 

her home in the 

Richmond Hill section 

of Queens on 

August 19, 2016 

around 5.30 p.m. 

with her former husband 

and two grandchildren, 

ages 3 and 

5.Asked about the 9- 

year-old victim's 

whereabouts, she 

told an eyewitness that the child was in the bathroom 

and was waiting for her father to pick her 

up. 

The eyewitness, who observed that the bathroom 

light had been on for several hours, called 

the victim's father Sukhjinder Singh and was 

instructed to break through the bathroom door. 

Ashdeep Kaur's lifeless and bruised naked body 

was later found in the bathtub. The medical 

examiner's office determined that the cause of 

death was strangulation. 

effects of red meat, white meat 

and non-meat proteins on blood 

cholesterol until now, Krauss 

said. Non-meat proteins like 

vegetables, dairy, and legumes 

such as beans, show the best 

cholesterol benefit, he said. 

London, On the second day of his UK state 

visit, US President Donald Trump will meet outgoing 

British Prime Minister Theresa May for 

“substantial” talks on Tuesday, amid widespread 

protests planned several cities, including 

London, against his trip to the country. 

Trump and May will start the day by co-hosting 

a breakfast meeting of British and American 

business leaders 

at St James’s 

Palace in a bid to 

boost trade links, 

the BBC reported. 

The Duke of 

York, Chancellor 

P h i l l i p 

Hammond, US 

Secretary of 

State Mike 

Pompeo and the 

President’s 

daughter Ivanka 

Trump are also 

expected to 

attend. 

May, who will 

stand down as 

Conservativeleader on Friday, will then hold 

talks with the US President in Downing Street, 

when they are expected to discuss a range of 

issues including climate change and the Chinese 

tech giant Huawei, which the US has blacklisted 

for security reasons. Also on Tuesday, thousands 


23 

Samsung spurs R&D efforts 

for 6G mobile network 

Seoul : Samsung Electronics Co. has opened a new research 

centre for the development of core technologies for 6G mobile 

networks, joining the global race for the still nascent technology, 

a company official has said. 

Samsung Research, the firm's integrated R&D organisation, has 

conducted extensive research on advanced cellular technologies 

and has recently upgraded a next-generation telecommunication 

research team to a centre to accelerate the development of solutions 

and standardization of 6G, according to a Samsung official. 

While 5G networks are just starting to roll out in early markets 

and the current 4G LTE still remains a mainstream mobile network 

in many countries, Samsung's move toward a 6G network is part 

of its long-term business plan to get ahead in the next-generation 

cellular technology, Yonhap news agency reported. 

Samsung launched the world's first 5G smartphone, the Galaxy 

S10 5G, in early April and has promoted its 5G solutions that can 

be used in a host of new businesses, including self-driving vehicles, 

smart factories and Internet of Things. 

South Korean tech companies have started working on future 

mobile technology to gain an early edge against the US and China, 

which have announced plans for 6G networks. 

LG Electronics Inc. in January joined hands with the Korea 

Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) to open a 

6G research centre, and KT Corp., the nation's No. 2 mobile operator, 

last week signed an agreement with the Seoul National 

University (SNU) to collaborate on 6G research. 

Though still in an embryonic stage, the upcoming 6G aims to 

integrate satellites for global coverage to provide far high data 

rates and faster Internet speeds than 5G, according to the 

International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology. 

Trump to hold talks with 

Theresa May amid protests 

of people are expected to join protests against 

Trump’s visit.A “national demonstration” in 

London’s Trafalgar Square will start at 11 a.m., 

while protests are also planned in Birmingham, 

Stoke, Sheffield, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Chester, 

Leicester, Oxford and Exeter. 

Organisers have called for a carnival atmosphere, 

but a huge police operation is taking place 

in central London 

to prevent any disruption 

to the trip. 

Opposition 

Labour Party 

leader Jeremy 

Corbyn is due to 

address the 

London rally, 

where he will be 

joined by members 

of other political 

leaders. 

The President 

and First Lady 

Melania Trump 

arrived in London 

on Monday. He 

later praised the 

“eternal friendship” 

between the UK and US during a state banquet 

at Buckingham Palace hosted by Queen 

Elizabeth II. But before touching down, the 

President reignited his political feud with the 

Mayor of London, calling Sadiq Khan a “stone 

cold loser”.

24 June 2019 

WORLD 


Hum se jo takrayega, 

woh chur chur ho 

jayega : MAMATA 

Kolkata : Assuring the 

Muslim community that they 

have nothing to fear, West 

Bengal Chief Minister Mamata 

Banerjee on Wednesday said 

with its help she would fight 

"every battle" to save the country. 

Banerjee acknowledged that 

the community has helped her 

uphold secularism, national 

unity, the ethos of the country 

and the state as also "every 

social work". 

"In every social work, for 

the unity of the nation, secularism, 

tradition of the country 

and the state, for the development 

of the state, you always 

help us. You also deserve our 

help. "If you are with us, then 

see, how we fight every battle. 

We will fight. There is nothing 

'Groundwater more contaminated 

in non-ODF VILLAGES' 

New Delhi : 

Groundwater 

sources were 

likely to be contaminated 

by 

12.7 times in the 

villages that have 

not become open 

defecation free 

(ODF) as compared 

to those 

free from open 

defecation, 

reveals a study by 

UNICEF. The study titled "The 

Environmental Impact of the Swachh 

Bharat Mission on Water, Soil and Food" 

also showed that the soil and food in the 

non-ODF villages were prone to have contaminated 

by 1.1 times and 2.16 times, 

respectively. 

It was released by Union Jal Shakti 

Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and 

Union Environment Minister Prakash 

Javadekar here on the occasion of World 

Environment Day. The objective of the 

study was to assess the relationship 

to be afraid," she said at an Eidul-Fitr 

congregation. 

Banerjee said one who is 

afraid is finished. But those 

who continue to fight, become 

successful. "We will protect our 

India. We will never turn away 

from our country. 

Hum se jo takrayega, woh 

chur chur ho jayega," she said, 

in a jibe at the Central government. 

between 

living in an 

ODF environment 

and the contamination 

levels of 

faecal bacteriological 

indicators 

found in 

water, soil 

and food 

sample 

taken from ODF and non-ODF villages. 

About 725 samples were collected from 12 

ODF and 12 non-ODF villages, spread 

across West Bengal, Bihar and Odisha 

between December 2018 and January 

2019. Finding of the study also showed 

that the relative risk of faecal contamination 

of piped water supply traceable to 

humans was 2.4 times more likely in non- 

ODF villages. In case of stored household 

water, the relative risk to human was 2.48 

times more likely in non-ODF villages as 

compared to ODF villages. 

Ghani expresses readiness to 

observe ceasefire if Taliban does 

Kabul, Afghan President Mohammad 

Ashraf Ghani on Tuesday expressed his 

readiness to observe a ceasefire 

if the Taliban outfit also does. 

“The government of 

Afghanistan is always ready to 

observe ceasefire but the 

Taliban group isn’t,” President 

Ghani said in his message 

marking Eid-ul-Fitr, the second 

largest annual religious festival 

that marks the end of 

Ramadan, the Muslims holy 

fasting month ended on Tuesday. 

Ghani also said that the people of 

Afghanistan were hopeful that the Taliban 

group may observe ceasefire at least during 

the three-day festival, reports Xinhua 

news agency. The President also praised 

his security forces’ fight 

against militants, saying the 

they were able to foil the antigovernment 

insurgents’ 

vicious plans to destabilize 

the security and peace 

process. 

The Taliban outfit leader 

Mullah Haibatullah 

Akhundzada in a message on 

Monday, once again rejected 

the offer for talks with the Afghan government 

and vowed to continue the war till 

the withdrawal of foreign forces from 

Afghanistan. 

No breakthrough 

in search for IAF's 

missing An-32 aircraft 

New Delhi : The search and 

rescue operation continued for 

the third day on Wednesday to 

locate the IAF's An-32 plane 

that went missing with 13 people 

onboard on Monday. 

On Wednesday, two SU-30s 

along with two C-130J, two Mi17 

helicopters and two Advanced 

Light Helicopters (ALHs) including 

one from the Army were 

deployed to locate the aircraft, 

officials said. Meanwhile, the 

Long Range Maritime 

Reconnaisance aircraft P-8I of 

the Navy which took off from Tibetan Border Police, local after taking off from Assam. 

from INS Rajali in Tamil Nadu to police and other agencies The transport aircraft was 

join the search and rescue operation 

has been put on standby and on the ground level from day one Mechuka Advanced Landing 

involved in the search operations flying from Jorhat to the 

shall be deployed, if requested by were carrying on. 

Ground. Mechuka is a small 

the Air Force.Besides, teams of The aircraft went missing in town in Aruanchal's West Siang 

the Indian Army, the Indo- Aruanchal Pradesh on Monday district bordering China.

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