Delhi, monday, january 25, 2016

www.thehindu.in Regd. DL(ND)-11/6110/2006-07-08 RNI No. TNENG/2012/49940 ISSN 0971 - 751X Vol. 6 No. 20 CITY EDITION 28 Pages Rs. 8.00

Printed at Chennai, Coimbatore, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Madurai, Noida, Visakhapatnam, Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Vijayawada, Mangaluru, Tiruchirapalli, Kolkata, Hubballi, Mohali, Allahabad, Malappuram and Mumbai

Hyderabad University
V-C Appa Rao goes on
indefinite leave

Pak. scholar Ayesha

Siddiqa calls for armies
to discuss terror

19 dead as mammoth
blizzard hits life in
eastern United States

P.V. Sindhu beats

Kristy Gilmour to win
Malaysia Masters title

Page 9

Page 11

Page 14

Page 19

FRENCH PRESIDENT IN INDIA

Modi, Hollande set the stage

for counter-terror cooperation
They resolve to
enhance strategic
ties between
India and France

Rafale deal
likely to see
some progress
DINAKAR PERI

SUHASINI HAIDAR &

KALLOL BHATTACHERJEE

NEW DELHI: Amid a slew of areas

NEW DELHI: India and France are

of cooperation to be announced
by India and France on Monday,
all expectations are on the
government-to-government
agreement for the purchase of
36 Rafale fighter jets.
In an indication of the
progress, French President
Francois Hollande said in
Chandigarh on Sunday that one
of the main aims of his visit was
to implement the decisions
taken during Prime Minister
Narendra Modis visit to
France. While the final deal
seems unlikely owing to
differences over pricing, the
conclusion of the governmentto-government agreement
seems on the cards.
The Rafale is a major project
for India and France. It will pave
the way for an unprecedented
industrial and technological
cooperation, including Make in
India, for the next 40 years.
Agreeing on the technicalities
of this arrangement obviously
takes time, but we are on the
right track, he said in an
interview to PTI.

set for a new partnership in

counter-terror cooperation,
the visiting French President,
Francois Hollande, and Prime
Minister Narendra Modi indicated on Sunday. In separate
speeches at the CEO forum in
Chandigarh, they underscored the need for the two
countries to work together on
fighting terror and enhancing
their strategic partnership.
France and India stand
united in fighting terrorists
and defeating terrorism, Mr.
Modi said. Drawing a parallel
with Frances battle with terror, he said he decided to invite Mr. Hollande to be the
guest at the Republic Day parade on November 13, the day
Paris was hit by terror attacks.
France has shown that despite its innocents being
killed in the terror strikes, it
has continued its path for development...
Mr. Hollande said his first
goal of visiting India was to
consolidate the strategic

partnership. On Monday,
both leaders will hold bilateral talks, during which they are
likely to discuss upgrading
the special and strategic
partnership signed in 1998.
For the past few months, oicials have been discussing a
closer engagement on counter-terrorism cooperation on
the lines of the India-U.S.
homeland security dialogue,
sources said.
NSA Ajit Doval is said to
have spoken to French coun-

BRIEFLY

Army oicers car stolen from Lodhi Garden

MISCONDUCT ON TRAIN
Suspended Bihar
JD(U) MLA arrested

SHUBHOMOY SIKDAR

PATNA: Bihar MLA Sarfaraj Alam

was arrested on Sunday, a day

after the ruling JD(U) suspended
him for his alleged misconduct
with a woman on a train. Later,
he was freed on bail.
NATION | PAGE 9

A RARE FIND IN KUTCH

Researchers stumble
upon dinosaur bones
NEW DELHI: Indian and German

geologists and palaeontologists

may have found the fossils of a
135-million-year old herbivorous
dinosaur in Kutch, Gujarat,
possibly the oldest such fossil
found this century.
NATION | PAGE 9

GOA WAS THE TARGET

IS suspects put
together liquid bombs
NEW DELHI: The terror suspects

arrested for their links to the

Islamic State had planned to
target Goa a few months ago,
but Intelligence agencies did not
arrest them then as they had
not acquired the capability to
carry out any terror act, a senior
official said. Their arrest was
deemed necessary this time as
some of them had assembled
liquid bombs and remote
controlled circuits.

NEWS | PAGE 12
ALERT, FAIR,

TRANSPARENT | EDITORIAL

FIRING ON KAR SEWAKS

Feel sad, says Mulayam
LUCKNOW: About 25 years after
the incident, Samajwadi Party
supremo Mulayam Singh on
Sunday said he felt sad for
ordering firing on kar sewaks in
Ayodhya in 1990 but it was
necessary to save the religious
place.
NEWS PAGE 13

TRAGEDY IN HYDERABAD
Woman techie kills self
HYDERABAD: Lipi Mishra, 26,
employee of a software firm and
hailing from Uttar Pradesh,
allegedly committed suicide at
her house in Kondapur area
here, police said on Sunday.

EDUCATIONPLUS
4 Pages

METROPLUS
4 Pages
CM
YK

ROCK-SOLID RELATIONSHIP: Prime Minister Narendra Modi greets

French President Francois Hollande at the Rock Garden in

Chandigarh on Sunday. PHOTO: PTI

NEW DELHI: Less than 24 hours

before the scheduled visit of
French President Francois
Hollande at Lodhi Estates Alliance Francaise De Delhi, the
theft of a car bearing a defence
sticker nearly 650 metres from
the venue has sent the Delhi
Police into a tizzy.
The car owned by an Indian
Army doctor and carrying a
Defence Services Oicers' Institute (DSOI) sticker was stolen from Lodhi Road on Sunday afternoon.
Police oicers confirmed
the theft and also the fact that
there are no CCTV cameras or
added deployment in the area
where Mr. Hollande and Minister of External Afairs Sush-

ter-terrorism oicials during

a visit to Paris in mid-January,
while Frances top security official and Strategic Director of
its intelligence agency DGSE
Christophe Bigot was in Delhi
in early December. The dialogue is likely to see more intelligence sharing on terror
groups and on cyber-security
issues, oicials told The
Hindu.

DEFENCE, SPACE & NUCLEAR

COOPERATION | PAGE 12

Incident comes
days after theft
of a vehicle of
ITBP I-G from
neighbouring Noida
ma Swaraj are scheduled to
visit on Monday. The area
houses many ministerial bungalows and other vital
installations.
The stolen vehicle, a white
Santro (registration number:
HR 51, T 6646), belongs to Dr.
Col. Shailendra Singh from the
Army, who was visiting the
Lodhi Garden with his family.
Mr. Singh had reached the
area around noon and parked
the car outside the Lodhi Road

WILL THE FIGHTER GET A

CHEAPER PRICE TAG? | PAGE 12

post oice, opposite gate number 1 of Lodhi Garden. When

they decided to leave around
2.45 p.m., they could not find
the car and lodged a complaint
with the police, said a police
oicer.
Fearing a security breach,
the police immediately sounded an alert in all the districts.
The car had not been traced till
late Sunday evening.
This is the second incident
raising security concerns in
the National Capital Region in
less than a week. On January
20, the oicial vehicle of an Indo-Tibetan Border Police
(ITBP) Inspector General was
stolen from outside his residence in Noidas Sector-23.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 12

Ahead of polls, BJP banks on Shah again

Election marked
by absence of seniors
Advani and Joshi
NISTULA HEBBAR
NEW DELHI: Amit Shah was
elected unopposed president
of the Bharatiya Janata Party
on Sunday for a second term,
this time for a full tenure of
three years. Mr. Shah had earlier completed Home Minister Rajnath Singhs interrupted tenure as president from
July 2014.
While party veterans L.K.
Advani and Murli Manohar
Joshi were absent from the
election process and the ensuing festivities, it was more
than made up for by the presence of other leaders, including the Chief Ministers of
most BJP-ruled States, senior
Ministers and party oicebearers. Late at night, Mr.
Shah called on Mr. Advani to
seek his blessings.
The party headquarters at
11 Ashoka Road was decked

TIME FOR CELEBRATIONS: Amit Shah (second from right) with

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh after being elected BJP
president in New Delhi on Sunday. PHOTO: V. SUDERSHAN

up in safron flags, and musicians and dancers performed

since morning. Seventeen
sets of nomination papers
were filed with the partys returning oicer, Avinash Rai
Khanna, including on behalf
of the Parliamentary Board
(the partys highest decisionmaking body), the Chief Ministers of the BJP-ruled States
and State unit chiefs. As soon

as the announcement was

made, crackers went of at the
conclusion of what was seen
as a tough stand-of between
the BJP and its ideological
mentor, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, over Mr. Shahs
re-election.
Mr. Shah is considered
close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and it is believed that despite the defeats

in the Delhi and the Bihar Assembly elections, Mr. Modi

continues to favour him.
Congratulations to @AmitShah for his election as party
president, Mr. Modi tweeted. Amit Bhai combines
grassroots-level work & rich
organisational
experience
which will benefit the party
immensely.
Please look at the way the
party has expanded in areas
where we barely had a presence before. We have also,
under his leadership, become
the largest political party in
the country, Communications Minister Ravi Shankar
Prasad said. The Parliamentary Board will meet on January 28 to felicitate Mr. Shah.
Speculation is rife that Mr.
Shah will announce a new
team of oice-bearers before
Kerala, Assam, Tamil Nadu,
West Bengal and Puducherry
go to the polls.

BACK TO THE DRAWING

BOARD FOR SHAH | PAGE 12

Pakistan must
Cabinet clears Central rule in Arunachal
dismantle terror V V
Constitution, according to
which six months shall not
networks: Obama NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet
intervene between the last
IKAS

WASHINGTON: Terming the

Pathankot attack another
example of the inexcusable
terrorism that India has endured for too long, U.S.
President Barack Obama
has demanded that Pakistan delegitimise, disrupt
and dismantle terrorist
networks operating from
its territory.
He said Pakistan can
and must take more action
against terrorist groups,
emphasising that there
must be zero tolerance of
safe havens, and terrorists
must be brought to justice.
Pakistan has an opportunity to show it is serious
about delegitimising and
dismantling terror networks, he told PTI in an
interview.
Mr.
Obama
lauded
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi for reaching out to
his Pakistani counterpart
Nawaz Sharif after the
Pathankot attack and said:
both leaders are advancing a dialogue on how to
confront violent extremism and terrorism across
the region.

ASUDEVA

on Sunday recommended
imposition of Presidents
rule on the Congress-ruled
Arunachal Pradesh after it
felt the State was heading for
a constitutional breakdown. The Congress said it
would challenge the decision
in court if it got the Presidents assent.
An emergency meeting of
the Cabinet was convened
here in the morning to discuss the situation. Prime
Minister Narendra Modi was
in the chair.
It was decided to recommend to the President to issue a proclamation under
Article 356(1) of the
Constitution.
Presidents rule will be imposed and the Assembly kept
in suspended animation, oicial sources told The Hindu.

Chief Minister Nabam

Tuki says the Governor
recommended Presidents
rule without consulting the
State Cabinet

Taking cognisance of the

situation in the State, based
on Governor Jyoti Prashad
Rajkhowas report, the government felt the State is
heading for a constitutional
crisis and it warranted the
Centres intervention, sources said.
The Centre based its decision on Article 174 of the

sitting of the Assembly in

one session and the date appointed for its first sitting in
the next session. According
to one interpretation, the
next session should therefore have taken place at the
latest by January 21, 2016.
The other interpretation is
that a session was indeed
held on December 16 albeit
outside the Assembly building (where a majority of the
members had voted) as access to the building was denied. Notably, the session
which took place on December 16, 2015 has been disputed by Chief Minister Nabam
Tuki and his supporters.
Whether this session is valid
or not is under litigation in
the Supreme Court.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 12

CONTINUED ON PAGE 12

High alert at
CRPF camp
NATIONAL BUREAU
NEW DELHI: Security oicials

went into a tizzy late on Sunday after a 10-year-old boy

staying at the CRPF camp at
Kadarpur in Gurgaon reported to security personnel that
he saw two men in black
clothes on the premises.
The area was put on high
alert even as combing operations started. The incident
comes a day before a scheduled visit of PM Narendra
Modi and French President
Fransois Hollande to Gurgaon to jointly inaugurate
the Interim Secretariat of the
International Solar Alliance
(ISA) and lay foundation
stone for the building in the
National Institute of Solar
Energy (NISE).
After the terrorist attack at
Pathankot air force base earlier this month, all military,
police and defence installations have been put on high
alert and families residing inside the camp trained to report
any
suspicious
movement.
This boy also received
the training to report any
suspicious
movement.
Around 8 p.m. on Sunday, he
reported having seen two
men in black clothes. So far
we have not found anything
but the combing operation is
on, said a senior CRPF
oicial.
ND-ND

2|

CITY
Capital on the bloody edge

Centre not letting us work: Kejriwal

In the history of the Capital, killings and revenge killings of rival

gang members is common. The year that went by, however, saw
a sudden and alarming spurt in the frequency. >> Page 4

The AAP government and the Centre are embroiled in a bitter

political battle over several issues including control over
administration and the city police. >> Page 5

DUALITY OF LIFE

Portrait of an artist

IIMC students
await certificates
SWETA GOSWAMI
NEW DELHI: Students of the Indi-

Mario dSouza with his installation. PHOTO: SPECIAL

ARRANGEMENT

JAIDEEP DEO BHANJ

NEW DELHI: Brought to life
following a three-monthlong residency in Aya Nagar
in the city and then
transferred to a gallery
space, Portraits from
Within is an installation by
Mario dSouza, an artist
who grew up in India but
has been living in France for
over a decade.

The self-portrait explores

the duality in the artists life
of retaining strong ties to
Indian culture and moving
to France to work as an
artist. The artists life is
much like what the
institution Alliance
Francaise (where the
installation is on display)
seeks to stand for.
With colours inspired by
a number of Baramasa
miniature paintings that he
randomly picked up from
an earlier visit to the city,
Mario extracts the main
colour palette from the
painting and creates a
series of sketches to go with
the original miniature that
is inspired by the flora and
fauna around, shared

CM
YK

culture and history to

create a series of
installations. The central
installation, which is
created using plastic straws,
tubes and sponge, spins a
web across the gallery.
Mario says I have chosen
to work with materials that
are hollow and have air in
them. Even the frames for
the paintings and sketches
have air in them. The air
within the material
represents movement and
the breathing space to live
that represents in some way
the duality of my life and
the freedom to move.
Talking about the life of
an artist in India and in
France, Mario says he is
basically a communitybased artist and pays to
work in France among
various communities. This
gives him the sustainability
to express himself and
experiment and to do work
that is not necessarily
saleable but done for the
emotion of creation and
therapy and not with the
objective to make money.
The exhibition is on till
February 6 at Gallerie
Romain Rolland.

an Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), despite passing

out from the institute, are still
awaiting their post-graduate diploma certificates. The disgruntled students have now
created an online petition urging Union Minister Arun Jaitley
to intervene.
According to Ajmal Aramam,
general secretary, IIMC Students and Journalists Association that has created the petition Arun Jaitley, appoint
DG, organise IIMC convocation and distribute certificates
immediately at Change.org
the delay is because the new
Director General of the institute has not been appointed.
The convocation ceremony
is held every year in October
end or November. But, so has
not been the case this time as a
result of which the batch of
2014-15 has not yet received
their certificates. The administration told us that the certificate bears the signature of the
DG and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting is yet
to appoint one for the position,
said Mr Aramam. IIMC is an
autonomous body funded by
the Ministry of I&B. The term
of the previous IIMC DG Sunit
Tandon had ended in November last year. According to
sources, KG Suresh who has
been a guest faculty and is the
editor of a Delhi-based online
think tank, Vivekananda International Foundation, is all set to
become the next IIMC DG.

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

Longest spell of dense fog afects flights, trains

Temporary
respite
expected from
tomorrow

We are not
responsible for
deaths: DUSIB

STAFF REPORTER
NEW DELHI: It was a foggy
morning and a chilly day for
Delhiites on Sunday, which
also saw the longest spell of
near-zero visibility that disrupted air and rail traic.
The maximum temperature recorded on Sunday at
16.3 degree Celsius was five
notches below the average
temperature for this time of
the season.
Even though the minimum temperature of 7 degree Celsius was normal, it
was the dip in the day temperature that made Sundays weather a bone chilling one.
Visibility at Delhis Indira
Gandhi International Airport started dipping at
around 1 a.m. on Sunday,
with near zero visibility
conditions setting in at 3
a.m. Visibility remained below 50 metres till 10 a.m.,
the longest spell of dense
fog leading to zero visibility
conditions at the airport
this season.
As a result, at least 21
flights were delayed and 39
arrivals took place using different categories of Instrument Landing System.
Rail traic was also hampered by dense fog with 18
trains being cancelled, 20

BINDU SHAJAN PERAPPADAN

People keep themselves warm huddled near a fire on Sunday evening.

PHOTO: SUSHIL KUMAR VERMA

running late by many hours

and seven trains rescheduled by Northern Railways
on Sunday.
Sunday has been the
twelfth day of dense fog at
Delhi and also this season's
worst zero visibility fog day
with all the runways witnessing Category III runway visual range for eight
hours, said Dr. R.K. Jenamani, Director-in-Charge,
IGIA met unit.
Dr. Jenamani said that
temporary respite from
dense fog is expected from
the evening of January 26.
Sunday was the third
such day in January when
fog remained for 24 hours. It
also brought down the maximum temperature down

again, to 16.3 degree Celsius, he said.

Apart from temporary
respite from January 26,
when duration of very
dense fog or zero visibility

will be significantly reduced, major improvement

is expected from January 30
when western disturbances
is expected to move, Dr. Jenamani said.

Rickshaw toilets for homeless

NEW DELHI: Delhi Urban

Shelter Improvement Board

(DUSIB) has for the first time
introduced rickshaw toilets
to ensure that homeless
people using night shelters
with no access to
adequate toilet facilities or
where sewage system isnt
available are provided
with clean and safe toilet

facilities.
The facility is currently
being tested in 30 centres
across Delhi and is available
throughout the day. Giving
details of the initiative, DUSIB
head V.K. Jain noted that this
facility is not only convenient
and hygienic, but also
ensures safety and dignity of
the user. Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI: Delhi Urban

Shelter Improvement
Board (DUSIB) has on
Sunday refused to take
any responsibility for the
winter related deaths
among homeless in the
city, which has been
steadily climbing with the
sharp dip in mercury.
The Capital has reported
nearly 20 deaths among
the homeless since the
beginning of the winter
season.
DUSIB chief executive
oicer V.K. Jain speaking
at a press conference said
that while providing
shelter to the homeless and
persuading them to use it
is the mandate of the
Board, they have no
mechanism where they
can be solely
accountable for deaths
among the homeless.
We cannot force
anyone to use our facility,
it is against the law, Mr.
Jain said.
He elaborated that daily
occupancy of the shelters
are monitored online and
as per report available
10,507 people are staying in
these shelters.

CINEMA
ENGLISH
JOY: PVR (Plaza, Rivoli, Saket), DT
(Saket, Shalimar Bagh, Vasant Kunj),
FUN (Moti Nagar, Pitampura, Laxmi
Nagar), Movie Time (Raja Garden,
Pitmapura), Wave (Raja Garden,
Noida, Kaushambi).

HINDI
AIR LIFT (New Release: Akshay
Kumar, Nimrat Kaur): Amba, Delite,
Golcha, Regal, Abhishek Cineplex,
Ritz, Milan, Samrat, Vishal, Aakash,

Liberty, Shiela, Seble, Suraj, Lokesh,

Gagan, Supreme, Cinemax, Eros One,
M Cinemas, Batra Reels, G3S
(Rohini), DT (Saket, Shalimar Bagh,
Vasant Kunj), PVR (Plaza, Rivoli,
Priya, Saket, Citywalk, Naraina,
Vikaspuri, Prashant Vihar, EDM,
Mahagun), DT (Saket, Shalimar Bagh,
Vasant Kunj), Movie Time (Raja
Garden, Pitampura), FUN (Moti
Nagar, Pitampura, Laxmi Nagar),
Satyam (Patel Nagar, Janakpuri,
Nehru Place), Wave (Raja Garden,

Noida, Kaushambi), BIG (Odeon,

Vaishali, Kaushambi, Noida), Spice
(Noida), Galaxie, Star X (Vaishali),
SRS Cinemas, MMX, JAM Shipra,
M4U, SM World, Movie Palace, Movie
Magic, Chaudhary (Ghaziabad),
Movie World and Silver City
(Ghaziabad), Inox and Q Cinemas
(Faridabad).
KYA KOOL HAIN HUM-3 (New
Release: Tusshar Kapoor, Aftab
Shivdasani, Mandana Karimi): Delite
Diamond, Amba, G3S (Rohini),

Cinemax, M Cinemas, Eros One, PVR

(Plaza, Rivoli, Priya, Saket, Citywalk,
Naraina, Vikaspuri, Prashant Vihar,
EDM), M2K (Rohini, Pitampura),
Movie Time (Raja Garden,
Pitampura), FUN (Moti Nagar,
Pitampura, Laxmi Nagar,
Karkardooma), DT (Saket, Shalimar
Bagh, Vasant Kunj), Satyam (Patel
Nagar, Janakpuri, Nehru Place), BIG
(Odeon, Vaishali, Kaushambi, Noida),
Wave (Raja Garden, Noida,
Kaushambi), SRS Cinemas, Spice

(Noida), Movie Palace, Movie Magic,

Chaudhary (Ghaziabad), Movie
World and Silver City (Ghaziabad),
Inox and Q Cinemas (Faridabad).
JUGNI (New Release: Sadhana Singh,
Siddhant Behl, Sugandha Garg):
Cinemax, PVR (Saket, Citywalk,
Naraina, Vikaspuri, Prashant Vihar),
M2K (Rohini, Pitampura), DT (Saket,
Shalimar Bagh, Vasant Kunj), Movie
Time (Raja Garden, Pitampura),
Satyam (Patel Nagar, Janakpuri,
Nehru Place).

CHALK-N-DUSTER (Shabana Azmi,

Arya Babbar, Gavie Chahal, Juhi
Chawla): Cinemax, PVR (Saket,
Citywalk, Naraina, Vikaspuri,
Prashant Vihar, EDM), DT (Saket,
Shalimar Bagh, Vasant Kunj), Movie
Time (Raja Garden, Pitampura), M2K
(Rohini, Pitampura).
(BOOKING ENQUIRIES: PVR
51513391; Spice Gold
012043890000; Satyam
Cinemas 25797385; Delite
23272903; Wave 51832222)

ND-ND

CITY

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU

MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

|3

D E L H I

Jan 25, Mon

Jan 26, Tue

Jan 27, Wed

RISE 07 13 SET 17 55

RISE 07 13 SET 17 55

RISE 07 12 SET 17 56

RISE 19 16 SET 07 44

RISE 20 10 SET 08 27

RISE 21 04 SET 09 04

Man lynched for robbery attempt

A case of murder has been registered; six accused arrested
SHUBHOMOY SIKDAR

A resident of
Swaroop Nagar, the
victim was tied to
a pole and
assaulted by a
group of men

NEW DELHI: A group of vigi-

lantes in Northwest Delhis

Bhalswa Dairy lynched a 23year-old man for an alleged
robbery attempt on Sunday.
Rafiqur Rahman (23), a
resident of Swaroop Nagar
in Northwest Delhi, was
tied to a pole and assaulted
by a group of men after allegedly being caught trying
to rob a truck driver at knife
point.
Deputy Commissioner of
Police (North West) Vijay
Singh said a case of murder
has been registered and six
accused Pawan, Ritesh
Kumar Shukla, Kasturi Lal,
Bittoo, Ramakant Pandey
and Rajkumar Mishra
have been arrested in connection with the case.
According to the police,

Rafiqur Rahman.
PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

the incident took place

around 10.30 a.m. on Sunday in lane number 9 of
Swaroop Nagar Extension.
Rafiqur and four others
were trying to rob the driver who raised an alarm and
a crowd gathered at the
spot.
While his alleged accomplices managed to escape,

Rafiqur was caught and targeted by the group.

Rafiqurs wife Phooljan
alleged that the assaulters
tried to bargain his release
in exchange for money.
Around 11 a.m., I received a call from my husbands phone. An assaulter
informed me about the incident and called me to the
spot.
My sister and I went
there and saw my husband
crying in pain. After explaining what happened
earlier, a group of five men

Family
threatened
SHUBHOMOY SIKDAR

demanded Rs.5,000 to let

him go. My husband also
made the same request to
pay the money. Later, when
I returned with the money,
he had collapsed, said
Phooljan.
She informed the police
after which the victim was
taken to a nearby hospital
where the doctors declared
him brought dead.
Phooljan recalled five
men beating up her husband, but added that others
too were hitting him
occasionally.
The crowd and even passers-by joined the group in
assaulting Rafiqur, alleged
Phooljan.
She claimed many locals
recorded the incident on
their mobile phones, but
did not intervene to save
her husband.

NEW DELHI: Rene Biju, wife of

Biju Verghese (44) who ran

a courier company and was
murdered because he refused to pay extortion
money, has submitted a police complaint. She has alleged that on January 15
and 16, she had strangers
coming to her house and
issuing threats. On January
15, two men visited the flat
and enquired about John
Minj, a witness to her husbands murder and warned
her of consequences if Mr.
Minj gave any statement
against the accused, said
Ms. Rene. A written complaint was filed at the Trilokpuri police station.
DCP (East) B.S. Gurjar
said the issue had not come
to his knowledge so far but
assured that he would initiate action.

Gym trainer held with cache of arms, ammunition

STAFF REPORTER
NEW DELHI: A cache of arms
and ammunition has been
purportedly recovered from
a gym instructor in North
Delhis Burari after the police arrested him in connection with another case.
Even though the arrest
and recoveries were being
made days before the Republic Day celebrations, the
police have so far not found
anything linking the arrested man Amit Kumar to any
terror group.
However, all angles are
being probed, they added.
However, the exercise has
ensured the fact that three
cases of attempt to murder
were worked out, claimed

the police.
Deputy Commissioner of
Police (North) Madhur Verma said the recoveries include both firearms and
sharp edged weapons, including a sword, besides
cartridges and other ammunitions.
We have recovered a
country made gun, khukhri knives, a sword, 18 cartridge of 12 bore, 6 cartridge
of 315 bore, 1 cartridge of
self-loading rifle, 6 cartridge of 32 bore, 11 cartridge
of 7.62 bore, one Bayonet of
AK-47 rifle and one rod
have been recovered from
his possession, said Mr.
Verma.
The police are now questioning Amit to find out if he

The police with the recovered items. PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

has more weapons which he

has kept with someone else
considering that the bayonet belongs to an assault rifle.

On what blew of the lid

from this cache, Mr. Verma
said it was the probe of another incident on January 18
when the accused had a

fight with the driver of Gramin Sewa Azad.

Their
vehicles
had
brushed past each other.
Following an argument,
Amit injured the Gramin Sewa driver on his head and
ran away from the spot. Accordingly, a case of attempt
to commit culpable homicide was registered, said
Mr. Verma.
During the course of investigation, a team was constituted to search the accused and a raid was
conducted at the house of
the accused Amit, but he
tried to run away from his
house while the police team
reached his house.
However,
Amit
was
caught by the police team.

Security stepped up for Modi

and Hollandes Gurgaon visit
All 23 Station House Officers of as many territorial police stations, DCPs of
3 zones, all ACPs and the Crime Branch staff have been deployed
ASHOK KUMAR
GURGAON: In view of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and
France President Franois Hollandes visit to the Millennium
City on January 25, elaborate
security arrangements have
been made across the city. The
policemen could be seen in every nook and corner of the city
on Saturday evening turning it
virtually into a fortress.
The resources from across
the State have been used and
pressed into service for the security of the visiting dignitaries. It is for the first time that
drones are being used to keep
an eye in and around the venue.
Traic advisory has also been
issued for the convenience of
the commuters. We have been
distributing pamphlets to motorists on the Gurgaon-Faridabad Road for the past five days
to make them aware of traic
restrictions on Monday in view
of the visit, said Gurgaon Police Commissioner Navdeep
Virk. Mr. Modi and Mr. Hollande would jointly inaugurate
the Interim Secretariat of the
International Solar Alliance
(ISA) and also lay the founda-

tion stone of the ISA building

in the National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE), Gurgaon.
All the 23 Station House Oicers of as many territorial police stations, Deputy Commissioners of Police of three zones,
all Assistant Commissioners of
Police and the Crime Branches
staf are deployed for the security. More than a thousand policemen are likely to be deployed in and around the venue
and along the route. While the
local police have been deployed along the route and at
the venue, the security of the
dignitaries has been taken over
by the National Security
Guards. The traic on the Mehrauli-Gurgaon Road and Gurgaon-Faridabad route will be
disrupted due to the programme. Issuing a traic advisory, the Gurgaon Police has
advised the traic coming from
the direction of MDI Chowk

and headed towards Mehrauli

and Faridabad to take Udyog
Vihar-Shankar Chowk-Cyber
City route. Also, those going towards Faridabad from Rajiv
Chowk will have to take Badshahpur-Sohna route. No
heavy vehicles would be allowed on the National Highway-8 on January 25. In view of
the traic restrictions, several
schools, such as The Heritage
and Shiv Nadar have curtailed
their school hours while many
have declared it a holiday.
In view of the traic advisory, the school dispersal is being
preponed by one hour on January 25, said a message from
The Heritage School authorities to the parents. Also, many
social functions scheduled on
Sunday have been cancelled.
We had organised a blood donation camp at Metropolis
Mall, but the mall authorities
did not allow us to go ahead
with the programme despite
permission from the administration. A programme on female foeticide had to be cancelled at the eleventh hour due
to non-availability of the police, said social activist Kuldeep Jhangu.

Women, Dr. PM Nair, Chair Professor,

Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Binalakshmi Nepram, Founder, Manipur
Women Gun Survivors Network, DR
Kaarthikeyan, President, FGG, Dr.Mallika Joseph, Associate Director, Australia India Institute at IHC, 7 pm
Theatre: 13th Natsamrat Natya Utsav:
Bade bhai sahib and gulli danda directed by Bharti Sharma, 6:30 pm and
Bank Manager directed by Shyam Kumar, 8 pm at Muktadhara Auditorium,
Banga Sanskriti Bhavan
Talk: Tribute to forgotten celebrities
Kanan Devi and Juthika Roy by Pran
Nevile at C.D Deshmukh Auditorium,

Main Building, IIC, 6:30 pm

Talk: Will the Rise of China be Peaceful? by Professor T.V. Paul, Professor
of International Relations, McGill University, Canada at Conference Room - I,
Main Building, IIC, 6:30 pm
Lecture: The Palestine Solidarity
Committee in India and the Centre for
Policy Analysis presents a lecture on
Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions
and the Palestinian Struggle by Omar
Barghouti; Chair: Seema Mustafa at
Lecture Room - II, Annexe Building, India International Centre (IIC), 6:30 pm
(Mail your listings for this column at
cityeditordelhi@thehindu.co.in)

It is for the first

time that drones
are being used to
keep an eye in and
around the venue

DELHI TODAY
Exhibition:
Colour/Perforations/
Light - an exhibition by Pierre Legrand
at Art Gallery, Kamaladevi Complex,
Main Building, IIC, 11 am - 7 pm
Exhibition: Group show of paintings
by Rabi Pasi, Rajib Sikdar & Raju Ram
Ratan at Convention Centre Foyer, IHC,
10 am - 8 pm
Exhibition: Stampone Banerjee and
the third meaning an art exhibition at
Italian Embassy Cultural Institute, 9:30
am - 5:30 pm
Discussion: Trafficking of Women
And Children - a panel discussion
Speakers: Lalitha Kumaramangalam,
Chairperson, National Commission on

Disclaimer: Readers are requested to verify &

make appropriate enquiries to satisfy
themselves about the veracity of an advertisement before responding to any published in
this newspaper. Kasturi & Sons Limited, the
Publisher & Owner of this newspaper, does not
vouch for the authenticity of any advertisement
or advertiser or for any of the advertisers products and/or services. In no event can the
Owner, Publisher, Printer, Editor, Director/s,
Employees of this newspaper/company be held
responsible/liable in any manner whatsoever for
any claims and/or damages for advertisements
in this newspaper.

Published by N. Ram at Kasturi Buildings, 859 & 860, Anna Salai, Chennai-600002 and Printed by S. Ramanujam at HT Media Ltd. Plot No. 8, Udyog Vihar, Greater Noida Distt. Gautam Budh Nagar, U.P. 201306, on behalf of KASTURI & SONS LTD., Chennai-600002. National Editor: Suresh Nambath (Responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act).

CM
YK

ND-ND

4|

CITY

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

Capital on the bloody edge

As the bodies start piling up, The Hindu takes a look at the gangs operating in the Capital and the growing rivalries that threaten to engulf Delhi
SHUBHOMOY SIKDAR

n March 29 last year, a religious

programme at Mundkas Abhinandan Vatika banquet hall was
interrupted by a hail of bullets.
The eight uninvited guests
killed former Delhi MLA Bharat
Singh, brother of dreaded gangster Kishan Pehalwan, before
absconding.
Towards the end of 2015, retired Delhi Police head constable
Hari Kishan was murdered and
his wife Kamla and daughter-inlaw Sharmila were injured in an
attack to avenge the murder of a
Jyoti Nandu gang member, killed
just an hour earlier. The attackers allegedly included Hari Kishans son Nafe Singh alias Mantri.
The year also saw two inmates
murdered inside a jail van, another one was shot inside a courtroom in Karkardooma court,
counter killings in two Chhawla
homes in a span of few hours in
December and a history-sheeter
being gunned down on a cold
November night.
What is the common thread in
these incidents? In each case, the
victim or his family member was
an active member of
a criminal gang and
was allegedly targeted by a rival
TRIGGER group.
In the history of
HAPPY
the Capital, killings
Gangwars
and revenge killings
of rival gang members is common.
The year that went
by, however, saw a
sudden and alarming spurt in the
frequency (see graphics). Even
in the first month of 2016, the
aforementioned Chhawla counter-killings
added
another
bloody chapter when the father
and brother of one of the gang
members were shot dead at their
residence.
Delhi Police oicers avoid using the word gang but agree
that the surge is alarming. They
add that since most of the victims
were from regions where gangs
operate South East, South West,
Outer and Trans Yamuna Delhi
there is a rising trend of asserting
dominance by elimination .
A surge has indeed been witnessed in the number of such incidents where a member of one
of these groups has been at-

A surge has indeed been

witnessed in the number of
such incidents where a
member of one of these groups
has been attacked or killed for
exacting revenge or resuming
the battle of supremacy
Taj Hasan,
Special Commissioner of Police (Crime)

tacked or killed for exacting revenge or resuming the battle of

supremacy. The factors we see
behind this trend are the easy
availability of weapons and improved communication technology, says Special Commissioner
of Police (Crime) Taj Hasan.
But Delhi Polices own figures
of illicit weapon seizure (which
reflects the supply trend) tell a
diferent story. Compared to 868
country made firearms seized in
2014, the number fell sharply to
431.
Conventional wisdom would
suggest that the developments of
past years the encounter killing
of Outer Delhi gangster Neetu
Dabodia in 2013, the arrest of his
main rival Neeraj Bawana in 2015,
his uncle Rambir Shokeen losing
elections choking the financial
help and political patronage the
gangster received, arrests of East
and South East Delhi ganglords
should have helped check gang

It is through killing a
rival that a gang
member proves
that he can be a
strong leader
activities.
That, however, hasnt been the
case with their illegal activities
ranging from extortion to
property encroachment and
large-scale betting activities
thriving. The sideshow of this
unrestrained business, the new
phase of violence they have unleashed on rivals, also remain
equally unchecked.
In its attempt to find out the
reason behind repeated incidents of intra-gang attacks and
what the situation could escalate
to, The Hindu spoke to several
police oicers from the areas
where some of these gangs have
influence and the two units that

are trying to stamp out organised

crime in the Capital.
In recent times, says a senior
police oicer, some new trends
have come up in gang behaviour.
For instance, earlier an unwritten code was female family members and children would be
spared but last year saw an incident where this was violated.
Chances are when the backlash
happens, the same might continue, he warns.
An inspector adds that in the
underbelly of the Capital, it is
through killing a rival that a
member of a gang proves his credentials in other words he
shows he is ready to take over the
reins after the former leader is
jailed or killed.
Easy availability of new
recruits eager to join these gangs
is another factor. These gangsters wield considerable influence in the areas they operate and
unemployed youths want to be

like them. A new shooter in the

ranks means an unidentifiable
figure for the rival who can be
caught of guard and bumped of
with relative ease, says the
inspector.
He gives the example of Karkardooma court shooting to explain how in the past year gangs
of diferent geographical regions
are forging alliances to eliminate
each others rivals.
In the incident, noted Trans
Yamuna gangster Irfan alias
Chhenu Pehalwan was critically
injured by minors linked to gangs
from Shakti Naidus gang from
South East and the target remained unwary till the time they
fished out their pistols.
Whos to blame?
Almost every police oicer
The Hindu talked to blamed the
Tihar Jail administration for allowing the gang members to use
phones and other communica-

tion devices despite being incarcerated. When instructions are

issued, targets assigned by jailed
criminals, who is going to stop
them. Also the local police have
the option to conduct trials
through video conferencing but
do not exercise the choice. Thats
what gangsters want, in every
court appearance they meet new
potential recruits, said another
senior oicer.
Some of the ire is also reserved
for the judiciary for giving bail to
gangsters easily. Their primary
ofence may be of gambling in betting cases. But these people also
work as musclemen and shooters
for the syndicate members. The
crime must be seen in the complete perspective. Not every time
we can back allegations with evidence, says a sub-inspector who
has been an investigating oicer
in many cases.
Not ready to come on record
for this, cops say that encounter

killings between 2006-08 had

proved to be a deterrent in gang
activities in the years which followed till late 2012. In muted
voices, some admit that intragang violence are only making
their job easy.
Mumbai in the making?
But where is all this going? So
far there has not been any case
of anyone from the common
public being harmed but it remains an undeniable possibility
that the strengthening of the
gangs may instill fear in the
minds of those involved in property transaction or those targeted for extortion.
On the question of Delhi going the Mumbai way as the hub
of organised gang activities, oicers dismiss the possibility citing the scale and international
dimension that the organised
crime in the maximum city had
during its peak.

Gangsters are legends in this village Staying ahead of enemies

Elders of the notorious Mitraon village in Najafgarh rue the loss of a generation to violence
rule over the underworld.
They want to imitate gangf anyone ever suggests sters who arrive at the village
Fauzi or Balraj dur- in suave SUVs with bodying the naming cere- guards flanking them.
Most parents do all they
mony of a child in this
village, they draw scornful can to shield their children
and warning stares. But these from the influence. Those
are the very names many with deep pockets send the
children demand to be re- boys away to boarding
christened with when they schools outside Delhi at the
first opportunity.
breach their teens.
The less fortunate ones reWelcome to Mitraon village in Najafgarh area in ly on strict vigilance. They alSouth West Delhi whose low their children to interact
younger generation idolises with very few friends and
their
movements
gangsters like Fauzi and Bal- track
raj they are nothing less closely.
There are times when I
than legends for the teenaghave paid surprise visits to
ers here.
As per various estimates, his school and even secretly
three to five dozen men have followed him by another vedied in revenge killings in Mi- hicle to know which places he
traon over the last two dec- visits and whom he interacts
ades, making it arguably Del- with, says Sandeep Gehlot,
his most notorious village. father to a 16-year-old boy.
For several years Mr. GehSince the start of last year,
when four villagers were lot kept the TV remote with
found charred in a car, him. I allowed my son to
around a dozen men have al- watch only childrens shows
like Chhota Bheem and Moready been murdered.
It all began over a few acres tu-Patlu. He was never alof land in the 1990s. Today, lowed to watch gangster
this village has produced films, says Mr Gehlot, a
some of the most notorious farmer.
Sandeep is not alone when
gangsters like Manjeet Mahal, Naveen Khati and Ravin- it comes to monitoring what
children watch on TV. The
der Bholu.
Today, the rivalries are no boys here are greatly inspired
more just over property or by crime flicks. Most of them
money. It is now over a false want to be politicians at a latsense of honour, says De- er stage in life and believe
pendra Pathak, Joint Com- that the crime world is the
missioner of Police (South- stepping stone towards the
goal, says Brij Kishore, a 63Western Range).
The younger lot in this vil- year-old ex-employee with
lage are inspired by Indian the postal department.
By the time the children
films that show orphans rising from railway tracks to turn 15, they are associated
SHIV SUNNY

CM
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with one of the several small

gangs from the village. Once
the gang leader is arrested or
killed, they see an opportunity to break away and form
their own gang.
Even after severe crackdown on the gangs in the past,
there are 15-20 small and big
gangs operating from the village. A murder here is followed by another and the re-

Dispute over a few

acres of land in the
1990s has turned
into a full-blown
war of supremacy

venge cycle goes on.

All this takes its toll on the
youth, particularly girls,
when they reach marriageable age. For several years, beginning late 1990s, few people
wanted to have any association with Mitraon village,
which is dominated by Jats.
Many members of our
younger generation were unable to find brides or grooms
because of fears of early widowhood or getting into legal
troubles. The only thing residents of other villages discussed about Mitraon were
the gang-wars. It became embarrassing for us to visit another village, says Om Krish-

an, a local.
Despite no dip in the crime
scene, the marriage situation
has improved claim villagers.
Yet, it took a retired government teacher of the village
two years before he could
find a groom for his daughter
who was by then way past
her marriageable age.
My daughter is a government school teacher and under normal conditions she
would have found enough
suitors, says the teacher, insisting that he faced this hurdle despite no one from his
family being ever associated
with any gang.
The older generation
claims to have done their bit
to end the rivalries between
residents of the around
12,000-strong village. Village
elders say they attend weddings at each others homes
even as their sons and grandsons are warring against one
another. But this has had little
impact as the young criminal
elements show scant regards
for their elders. Even at this
age I am scared to smoke in
front of my father. But the
younger members do not
care to even hide their guns
when they come home, says
the school teacher.
Amid all this, police have
been holding regular meetings with the village heads to
keep the youngsters in check,
but the ground reality is that
they know that a round-theclock deployment of a good
number of police personnel
in and around this village is
the only way to prevent violence here.

Their houses are fitted with the latest security gadgets,

but the modern gangster doesnt carry a phone with him
SHIV SUNNY

elhis
gangsters
have the best security cameras for
their homes but
can manage their business
without mobile phone for
months if it means keeping
their enemies and the police
at bay.
Omission and commission of technology is efectively being used by criminals here, says Dependra
Pathak, Joint CP (SouthWestern Range).
A general visit to SouthWest Delhis Dichaon Kalan
village, where slain ex-MLA
Bharat Singh hailed from,
would shock most Delhiites.
The village doesnt have a
single ATM booth or a jewellery shop, but CCTV cameras stare at you from every
other house. More palatial
homes are equipped with audio security devices too.
Notorious for gang-wars, it
is the women members of
this village who are tasked
with closely monitoring the
CCTV footage and immediately alerting their men upon
sighting anything suspicious.
If they see you loitering
around even for a few extra
seconds, the women will
send their domestic help to
the gates to question you,
warns a local man Sharad
Singh (name changed).
Unseen eyes are kept at
enemies as well as loyalists at
all times, says Singh, adding
CCTV footage helps judge
friends and foes during times
of gang wars.

Besides jewellery and cash, the Delhi Police is also recovering

laptops, mobiles, radios and other hi-tech equipment that
gangs are now using to evade the law. FILE PHOTO

Not that these CCTV cameras are always of help when

a rival wants to strike hard.
Only last December, six
CCTV cameras installed outside a retired policemans
house in nearby Chhawla
failed to keep revenge killers
away.
While some criminals
rained bullets at Hari Kishan
and his family members, two

TECH SAVVY
assailants focused their attention on removing the
DVR of the CCTV cameras.
The citys criminals also
efectively use their phones
to mislead the police. Criminals have been using mobile
phones to divert attention
from them, to create false
evidences, says Mr. Pathak.
But he is quick to add that
mobile phones have helped
the police more than they
have
assisted
these
criminals.

There have also been instances in Delhi, similar to

that shown in the film Drishyam, wherein gangsters
aware of the police being on
their trail have thrown
their mobile phones in trucks
headed to other states to mislead the police.
According to senior oicers in some of these crimeprone areas, the gangsters
have resorted to making calls
via internet instead of
phones. Even if they use mobile phones, they opt for the
very basic ones as it leaves
fewer clues for the police
while tracking them, says an
oicer. The SIM cards are often purchased from far-flung
states or through fake ID
cards to give police a tough
time to track extorters.
When notorious gangster
Neeraj Bawana was arrested
last year, no mobile phone
was recovered from him. Bawana was aware of the threat
a mobile phone posed to his
escape, the oicer said.
ND-ND

CITY/STATE

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU

MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

Centre not letting us work: Kejriwal

STAFF REPORTER

tested near the flyover, accusing him of taking credit for

the work that was done by the
Sheila Dikshit government.

Mr Kejriwal claims that nearly

Rs 350 crore has been saved in
this corridor project, spanning
three phases. We want to ask

him how was that possible. The

Chief Minister claims that
amount has been saved by using innovative techniques, but I

did not get any such information when I sought it under the
RTI, former Badli Congress
MLA Devendra Yadav alleged.

Please dont call us divyang, disability rights community tells PM

BINDU SHAJAN PERAPPADAN
NEW DELHI: Please dont call us divyang, is what several disabled peoples organisations have appealed to
Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
In a written appeal to the PM, the
group has said that during his radio

CM
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Lawyers feel the push

While judicial administration and lawyers lock horns
over space in Delhi High Court, AAP slams the SDMC
for wasting money on ads against the State govt

Elevated road between Madhuban Chowk and Mukerba Chowk inaugurated

NEW DELHI: Delhi Chief Minister
Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday accused the Centre for not letting
his government work. He said
that the Centre was placing
hurdles before his government.
I have not kept any portfolios
with myself. I am standing like
a wall between my ministers
and the central government,
he added.
Speaking at the inauguration
of the elevated road between
Madhuban Chowk and Mukarba Chowk in north west Delhi,
Mr Kejriwal blamed the Centre
for impeding the work. Centre
has created so much trouble for
us. Centre ne adchane adane
mey koi kasar nahin chhodi
hay. Hamari aisi ki taisi
karne mey koi kasar nahin
chhodi hay, adding that his
government can do much than
what it has done so far.
The AAP government and
the Centre are embroiled in a
bitter political battle over several issues including control
over administration and the
city police. I feel sad...and, if
the Centre had shown positive
attitude and supported us, we
(Delhi government) would
have done ten times more work
than what we have done so far,
he said. The elevated road is
among the three PWD projects
inaugurated within a month.
The 3.8 km long stretch has
been completed in 30 months
at a cost of Rs 300 crore against
the sanctioned Rs 421.79 crore.
The elevated road is part of the
17-km
Vikaspuri-Wazirabad
corridor, which is being made
signal free. The project is likely
to benefit a large population.
A section of Congress workers led by a former MLA pro-

|5

address Mann Ki Baat on December

27 last year he had said that physically-challenged people have a divine
ability and the term divyang should
be used in place of viklang for them.
Please refrain from trying to replace the viklaang, the appeal reads.
Maintaining that invoking divinity

will not lessen the stigma and discrimination that persons with disabilities have been historically subjected
to and continue to encounter in their
daily lives, the group has said: We
would like to reiterate that disability
is not a divine gift. And the use of
phrases like divyang in no way en-

sures de-stigmatisation or an end to

discrimination on grounds of
disability.
Disability rights organisations said
that the government should address
the issues of stigma, discrimination
and marginalisation that persons
with disabilities are subjected to. .

awyers of Delhi High

Court are up in arms
against the tendency of judicial administration to occupy the buildings on the
court premises, including
the chambers primarily
meant for them, on the pretext of administrative exigencies. The latest instance
is relating to a new chamber
block to be constructed at a
cost of Rs.100 crore.
Though the chamber
block will consist of ground
plus seven floors with three
basements, only 200 chambers will be allotted to advocates, as half of the area has
already been reserved for
the High Courts administrative oices.
The construction will
start in April-end and the
project is likely to be completed by the end of 2018.
High Court Bar Association (HCBA) president Rajiv Khosla points out that
even now, the entire ground
floor and some rooms in
Blocks II and III have been
kept locked for judicial administration despite the
availability of ample space
in the Administrative Block.
The HCBAs demand for
converting the space into
cubicles for the Bar members, having no sitting space
in the High Court, for holding conference with their
clients at a nominal rate on
an hourly basis has also not
been met.
Similarly, the demand for
allotment of non-utilised
chambers to lawyers on the
waiting list is yet to be fulfilled. The HCBA has expressed surprise at the High
Court administrations decision to convert a huge vacant space originally meant
for lawyers canteen into a
video conference room
without any justification.
Mr. Khosla says this space
could be utilised for providing oice space to the public
prosecutors and government counsels.

The message has percolated well ensuring deterrence among the beat
constable,
some
of
whom, predictably, are
not very happy with this
departure from past
precedents.

Aggrieved by the judicial

administrations latest decision, the HCBA has decided
to apprise Chief Justice G.
Rohini of the issue in order
to ensure that the space
meant for advocates is not
claimed and occupied once
again by the administration.

ome senior cops at

PHQ were full of
praise for a particular
Station House Oicer
(SHO) heading one of the
police stations with a busy market area under its
jurisdiction. Tagged as
plum postings, all such
police
stations
are
sought-after by police inspectors whenever they
are shortlisted for heading police stations.
Flourishing business activities open the scope
for bribe and the posting
itself has in the past alleged to have been secured by greasing a few
palms.
It is said that this particular Inspector was handpicked by the Delhi Police Commissioner B.S.
Bassi after repeated complaints about his predecessor reached the top
brass of the police. An officer shared how since he
has taken over, the Inspector goes from shop
to shop, market to market
ordering shopkeepers
not to pay bribes to any of
his subordinates and report if anyone asks for it.

ast week, the South

Delhi Municipal Corporation the only one
of the three corporations
not to be in a financial
crisis hit out against
the Aam Aadmi Party
Government for not releasing funds on time
through an advertisement in newspapers.
Though the government
had issued a full-page advertisement to make its
stand clear a few months
ago, AAP leaders attacked the BJP-ruled
SDMC
for
wasting
money.
However, sources in the
civic body said that the
cost of placing the advertisement in two Hindi
language dailies was less
than Rs.1 lakh. This, oicials said, was nothing
compared to the governments Rs.526 crore publicity budget.
But, the amount spent by
the SDMC would have
been more had their advertisement, which was
issued by the Mayor, the
Leader of the House and
the Standing Committee
chairperson, not been rejected by a leading Hindi
daily.
The newspaper in question declined the advertisement, with representatives saying that an
advertisement targeting
the government could
lead to a loss of revenue
from the government.
(Contributed by Mohammed Iqbal, Shubhomoy Sikdar and Damini
Nath)

ND-ND

6|

STATE
EDUCATIONAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

EDUCATIONAL

HC seeks reports on issues

regarding RTR flyover
011- 43579738, 43579797

MOHAMMED IQBAL
NEW DELHI: After two departments of the

EDUCATIONAL

Delhi government and the Traic Police

sought time for compliance with its earlier directions, the Delhi High Court has
asked concerned agencies to file reports
on the issues identified by it relating to
the construction of a three-lane flyover
at Rao Tula Ram Marg on Outer Ring
Road.
The issues included decongestion of
traic in the area, said a Division Bench
of the court over the week-end, while
making the National Highways Authority of India a party in the matter.
The court was informed that an alternative road connecting the traic coming
from Mahipalpur, on NH-8, towards RTR
had been made functional.
The Bench, comprising Justice B.D.
Ahmed and Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva,
was hearing a writ petition moved by the
residents welfare associations of Vasant

The court also suggested

that closed circuit
television cameras be
installed on the road to
monitor flow of traffic

Vihar challenging the Public Works Departments decision to build a three-lane

flyover parallel to the existing singlelane flyover on RTR Marg.
The court sought a report from the
Forest Department on the compliance
with its previous order to carry out compensatory plantation before cutting
down of trees for the project. The PWD
was directed to submit a report giving
reasons for suspension of work on the
construction of an underpass connecting
two roads in the vicinity.
The underpass was to be constructed
along with the flyover project in order to
provide an alternative route from Outer
Ring Road to cross the Ring Road, thereby reducing the pressure of traic on other
roads
connecting
RTR Marg with Ring
Road.
The Delhi DevelopDEATH
ment Authority informed the court that
the road connecting
the traic coming
from Mahipalpur towards RTR had become functional. On
this, the Bench posed
a question about the
volume of traic carried by the road and
asked the traic police
to submit a status report on this.
The court also suggested that closed circuit television cameras be installed on
the road to monitor
the flow of vehicles
and posted the case
for further hearing on
February 17.
The newly-appointed counsel for Forest
Department,
PWD
and traic police said
the three authorities
needed some time to
sit together and chalk
out a plan to ensure
compliance with the
court's earlier orders
on the petition.
The petitioner associations
have
sought directions for
construction of a sixlane flyover at the
same location by demolishing the existing
Please contact: 011-43579797
one.
On the other hand,
from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m
PWD plans to conLog on to
struct a three-lane
flyover from Munirka
www.thehinduads.com
to Signals Enclave.

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EDUCATIONAL

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ND-ND

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

Bihar political parties vie to celebrate Karpoori Jayanti

AMARNATH TEWARY
PATNA: Political parties in Bihar
on Sunday vied with one another to celebrate the birth
anniversary of former Chief
Minister Karpoori Thakur in
an apparent attempt to woo
the Extremely Backward
Class the socialist leader belonged to.
While Chief Minister Nitish Kumar called for conferring Bharat Ratna to the late
leader posthumously, the BJP
charged that both the ruling
JD(U) and the RJD have no
right to celebrate Karpoori
Thakur jayanti as they have
forged an alliance with the
Congress party to be in
power.
Earlier, the fight between
the BJP and ruling JD(U) over
Sri Krishna Memorial Hall as
a venue to celebrate the occasion reached the Patna High
Court.
The court, however, allowed the JD(U) to organise
the function at the venue but
BJP State president Mangal
Pandey said, Though, on
some technical grounds, the
court allowed the JD(U) to organise the function there,
well appeal against the judgment with the division bench
and not leave the matter
there.
Had the BJP requested me

|7

NORTHERN REGION

Government schools
not interested in
Army recruitment
No response to motivational sessions

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and (right) RJD chief Lalu Prasad with son and Health Minister Tej Pratap Yadav at separate functions to pay tributes to Karpoori
Thakur on his birth anniversary, in Patna on Sunday. - PHOTOS: RANJEET KUMAR

for the same venue to celebrate Karpoori Thakur jayanti, I would have given it to
them. But I wonder since
when have they started celebrating the birth anniversary
of Karpoori Thakur, who was
a great socialist leader?
asked Mr. Nitish Kumar a day
after the court verdict.
Later, like the RJD, the BJP
too decided to celebrate the
occasion at the party headquarters. Besides it, other
parties like Lok Janshakti Party, Rashtriya Lok Samata Party, Hindustani Awam Morcha

(Secular) and Jan Adhikar

Party too celebrated the occasion in the State capital with
the respective leaders garlanding portrait of the leader.
While addressing party
workers and leaders at the
venue, mr. Nitish Kumar
pitched for conferring a posthumous Bharat Ratna for the
politician, who passed away
in 1988.
Since the BJP has started
celebrating Karpoori Thakur
Jayanti and the party is in
power at the Centre, I demand that they should confer

Bharat Ratna posthumously

to the great socialist leader,
said Mr. Kumar.
Senior BJP leader Sushil
Kumar Modi said both Mr.
Nitish Kumar and RJD chief
Lalu Prasad have no right to
celebrate the birth anniversary as they have forged an alliance with the Congress Party to be in power.
They (Mr. Nitish Kumar
and Mr. Lalu Prasad) claim to
be the real followers of Karpoori Thakur. But throughout
his political career, Karpooriji fought against the Congress

Party. He even joined hands

with the Jan Sangh and Communist parties to stop the
Congress from coming to
power, said Mr. Modi.
But, today they are sitting
in the lap of the same Congress party to be in power, he
added.
However, Mr. Lalu Prasad
said the late politician was a
true leader of the extremely
backward class.
He lived a simple life even
after becoming the Chief
Minister of the State. His simplicity cannot be matched by

anyone today and he was also

a great visionary, said Mr.
Prasad at the RJD headquarters.
State Governor Ram Nath
Kovind too participated in
the function. Commenting on
the political calculations in
Bihar, social analyst Hitendra
Anupam said currently the
Extremely Backward Class
comprises over 30 per cent of
the total population, adding
that all political parties compete with each other to woo
the section for electoral
benefits.

BUNDI (RAJASTHAN): Army authorities in Kota region said

government schools and
colleges have shown no interest in their ofer for conducting motivational sessions in the institutes ahead
of a zonal recruitment rally
to be held next month.
Colonel J S Gondara, Director, Area Recruitment
Oice, Kota zone, said he
had written to around 60
heads of selected schools
and colleges that fall in the
jurisdiction of his ARO requesting them to invite army oicials to hold motivational sessions in their
respective institutes.
But, none of the schools
or colleges has responded
even after two letters to
them, first in August 2014
and in November 2015, Col
Gondara said while speaking to reporters here.
He said the aim behind
the proposed sessions was
to encourage students to
join the Army but was disappointed to find that the
heads of these institutions
did not show any interest.
However, the ARO had received response from Army

School of Kota where motivational sessions were conducted, he said.

The ARO Director said
the army recruitment rally
is going to be held from February 19 to 29 in Kayad Vishram Isthele in Ajmer and
online registration for it is
open since December 19,
2015. It will continue till
February 4.
Candidates from eight
districts -- Kota, Bundi, Jhalawar, Bhilwada, Ajmer, Rajsamand and Chittorgarh -that fall within ARO Kota
can apply online.
He said the Army has
planned to conduct online
tests for recruitment from
the next session.
Cautioning the aspirants
against touts and mediators
for employment, Col Gondara said the Army recruitment system is very
transparent.
He also asked the candidates not to submit fake
documents as they would
certainly be found out. Random
anti-doping
tests
would also be conducted
during the rally, he added. -PTI

Modi meets ailing Badal

CHANDIGARH: Prime Minister

Narendra Modi on Sunday

met Punjab Chief Minister
Parkash Singh Badal, admitted to a hospital here following chest congestion and fever, to enquire about his
health.
Before flying back to the
national Ccapital after
winding up his day-long visit to Chandigarh from where
French President Francois
Hollande began his threeday trip to the country, the
Prime Minister met Mr. Badal to enquire about his
well-being.
Mr. Modi spent a few
minutes at the hospital enquiring about his well being,
oicial sources said.
PGIMER oicials said
that Mr. Badals condition
was stable and he was recovering fast.
Shiromani Akali Dal gen-

CM
YK

eral secretary and Mr. Badals advisor on national affairs, Harcharan Singh
Bains said the Chief Minister was recovering and under observation.
He is doing fine. There
is nothing to worry, Mr.
Bains said.
Two days back, Mr. Badal
was admitted to a local hospital in Nawanshahar after
he had complained of congestion in the chest.
The 88-year-old Akali
leader had sufered chest
spasm soon after he had
just concluded the Sangat
Darshan at village Behloor
Kalan in Nawanshar on
Friday.
Earlier in the day, Punjab
Food Minister Adesh Partap Singh Kairon received
the Prime Minister on behalf of Mr. Badal. - PTI

ND-ND

8|

NATION

No funds back-up for Swachh Bharat

mission, says Shashi Tharoor
KAVITA UPADHYAY

Translation catalogue
for publishers launched

JAIPUR: Condemning the Modi

governments execution of
the Swachh Bharat mission,
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor,
on Sunday, said that while no
permanent solutions towards
making the country clean
were being sought, it had
been reduced to short cuts
where the campaigners were
seeking solution with photographs and videos of them
cleaning the streets.
This is the problem. We
have become a nation that
seems to specialise in sound
bites and photo opportunities, Mr. Tharoor said during
a session at the ninth ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival, here.
Speaking at the session titled Swachh Bharat: The India Story Mr. Tharoor lauded
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi for initiating the
Swachh Bharat Mission, but
ridiculed the government for
resorting to short cuts.
Weve had Prime Minister
[Modi] saying that this country needs more toilets than
temples Mr. Modi echoed
that to the surprise of some of
his Hindutva supporters, but
in practice we need a change
of mindset and it is the hardest thing to do, he said after

JAIPUR: Eight works of

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor with social activist Sanchaita

Gajapati Raju during the 'Swachh Bharat: The India Story' session
at the Jaipur Literature Festival at Diggi Palace in Jaipur on
Sunday. PHOTO: PTI

citing the example of a canal

cleanup project where he
submitted a proposal for a canal cleanup to the Central
government but didn't receive any response from the
government.
Mr. Modi had announced
the Swachh Bharat kosh
[fund]. Where is this kosh?
So far I haven't seen a paisa
from it for any cleaning activity, he said.
He said that the central government must provide the resources that could make up
for the inadequate resources

in the local areas and at the

same time strengthen the
hands of local leaders who
want to make a diference.
Taking a dig at some of the
Bharatiya Janata Party leaders
who have been making hateful remarks against people
who question the Central governments inaction over issues
of religious hatred and killings he said, You can't talk
about Swachh Bharat while
condoning bigotry, hatred,
prejudice and asking people
to go to Pakistan in your public dialogue.

A one-piece rosewood veena

fashioned with sandpaper
RANJANI GOVIND
BENGALURU: It took M.K. Nara-

simhan 2,500 hours over five

years to make a veena. But it is
no ordinary musical instrument. The civil engineer from
Mysuru wrought the veena out
of a single log of rosewood using neither chisel nor hammer.
He carved it entirely out of
sandpaper.
Although wood from the
jackfruit tree is the usual preference for a veena, Mr. Narasimhan, a retired Research Officer of the Dam Safety Cell of
Karnataka Government, was
drawn to rosewood.
He had never attempted to
make a veena before, but said
he enjoyed playing the instrument as a child. After years of
researching diferent varieties
of wood, he zeroed in on a fivefoot-long piece of rosewood
from the Titimati forest area
near Kodagu. It was 150 years
old and had been exposed to

CM
YK

fiction in six Indian

languages have been
curated into a new
catalogue for publishers
from across the world to
pick up for translation and
publication.
The Global Rights
Catalogue launched at
third edition of the Jaipur
BookMark (JBM), a
publishing segment
running parallel to the
ongoing Jaipur Literature
Festival, here seeks to
expand readership of
Indian writing in regional
languages.
The aim, according to
the organisers, is to
showcase the best of
Indias regional literature
and help facilitate sale and
exchange of publishing
rights both between
regional languages and
internationally.
Regional writing often
did not receive the
literary credit it deserved

due to an overwhelming
dearth in the availability
of translations for such
work, they said.
We realised it was
important to bring in one
of the major things that
makes for the writing in
India, which is language
writing. But, the problem
is that there are not
adequate good
translations of writers
from diferent languages
which hampers the reach
of these writers, Sanjoy
Roy, Managing Director,
Teamwork Arts, said after
the launch.
For its ongoing edition,
the JBM has tied up with
Daily Hunt, a distributor
of Indian language ebooks.
Three books originally
published in Hindi and
one each in Bangla,
Kannada, Assamese,
Rajasthani and Gujarati
are included in the global
catalogue. PTI

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

Kerala college girl

gang-raped at homestay
STAFF REPORTER
KOCHI: The police, while prob-

ing the alleged gang-rape of

a woman at a homestay in
Fort Kochi two-and-a-half
months ago, have stumbled
upon another gang-rape:
that of a college girl at the
same homestay earlier this
month.
According to the police,
the key accused in the first
case took his girlfriend to
the homestay at Pattalam in
Fort Kochi, where Ijas, son of
a civil police oicer with the
Fort Kochi station, and
Amal, another co-accused in
the first case, allegedly
raped the girl with the consent of Althaf.
Duo absconding
The duo has been absconding ever since the arrest of Althaf.
The incident came to light
on Sunday when the police
examined
the
mobile
phones of the accused after
the arrest. Althafs mobile
had video footage of a young
girl being gang-raped.
The police recorded the
statement of the girl and registered cases against the trio
under Section 376 D of the
Indian Penal Code.
Police oicer transferred
Following the discovery,
City Police Commissioner

Pawar complains
of exhaustion,
hospitalised

Police stumble
upon case while
investigating
another incident
at Fort Kochi
M.P. Dinesh transferred the
civil police oicer out of the
Fort Kochi station.
The accused in the first
case, identified as Althaf, 20,
Ijaz , 19, Christi, 18, John Bristo, 19, Clipton, 18, and Sajith,
20, were arrested on a complaint from a man who alleged that his partner was
raped by the gang while they
were at the homestay.
The complainant said the
youths forced him out of the
room at the homestay and
raped the woman hailing
from Thanneermukkom in
Alappuzha after locking it
from inside.
The accused allegedly recorded visuals after tying
her up and made away with
their car, Rs.1 lakh, and gold
ornaments, the police said.
They threatened to upload it
on social networking sites.
They threatened the couple with dire consequences
if they told anyone about the
incident.
Following this, the complainant, a taxi driver from
Cherthala, approached the
Commissioner and this led
to the arrests.

Doctors said the NCP leaders

condition is stable.
SHOUMOJIT BANERJEE

Nationalist Congress
Party chief Sharad Pawar was
admitted to the citys Ruby
Hall Clinic late on Sunday evening after he complained of
exhaustion. Doctors said the
75-year-old politicians condition was stable and he would
be discharged on Monday.
Party sources said Mr. Pawars frenetic schedule and
constant travel had perhaps
contributed to his condition.
The NCP chief was in the
city for a book launch at the
Bal Gandharva Rangmandir in
the morning. Mr. Pawars
health has been a source of
constant speculation in recent
years.
In 2013, he had complained
of uneasiness while on a visit
to Sangli district and was compelled to cut short his visit. In
2012, Mr. Pawar was admitted
to Mumbais Breach Candy
Hospital. NCP leaders, eager
to dispel alarm, then said it
was for a routine medical
check-up.

PUNE:

Nominal increase in Muslims in govt. jobs during Mamata rule

SHIV SAHAY SINGH
KOLKATA: For all the claims of
the Trinamool Congress
(TMC) government about the
development of minorities in
West Bengal, statistics tell a
diferent story.
Data revealed by a query
under the Right to Information Act (RTI) Act 2005
shows that the number of
Muslims employed with the
Kolkata Police has increased
only by 0.3 per cent in the past
eight years, of which the TMC

had been at the helm for the

last four years.
The statistics show that in
the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), the increase in
the number of Muslims employed has been a mere 0.32
per cent during the same
period.
Details of the RTI reply accessed by researcher and activist Sabir Ahamed points
out that till March 30, 2015,
there have been only 2,585
Muslims working in the Kolkata Police where the total

strength is 27,388. This brings

the percentage of Muslims
employed in Kolkata Police to
9.43 percent.
A similar RTI query filed
by Mr. Ahamed during the
Left Front regime in 2007, (after the report of Sachar Committee reflected the poor status of Muslims in the State)
showed that the percentage of
Muslims in the Kolkata Police
was 9.13 percent then.
During that period, the total number of employees in
one of the oldest police force

in the country was 24,840, of

which only 2,267 were
Muslims.
The representation of Muslims in KMC tells a similar
story, according to the RTI replies.
Till March 2015, the percentage of Muslims in the
KMC was 4.79 percent, which
in 2007 stood at 4.47 percent.
While in 2015, the number of
employees of the municipal
body stood at 27,125, with 1,301
Muslims.
The KMC in 2007 employ-

ed 34,731 employees, which

included 1,555 Muslims. Mr.
Ahamed said the statistics
painstakingly compiled over a
decade reflect the status of
Muslims in West Bengal.
If this is the tardy pace of
increase of Muslim representation in important institutions like the Kolkata Police
and the Kolkata Municipal
Corporation, then it is going
to take more than 60 years for
Muslims to have proportional
representation in West Bengal, the researcher said.

M.K. Narasimhan with his innovative instrument in Mysuru.

PHOTO: M.A.SRIRAM

both the Northeast and Southwest monsoons. It was a challenge as rosewood is known to
splinter easily. But I wanted
only rosewood as it is notches
above jackfruit wood in sound
propagation, he said. The polishing was done with a mixture
of rare essential oils like tung
oil of China, cedar oil, juniper

oil and absolute rose oil.

He used bronze bridges to
place the strings. The frets are
handmade with silver brought
from Australia, he said.
Mr. Narasimhan still has to
string the veena. He spent Rs. 3
lakh making this unique veena,
but its not for sale. I dont
think I can part with it, he said.

ND-ND

THE HINDU MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

SUICIDE OF DALIT STUDENT

Hyderabad varsity V-C goes on leave

Another batch of students begins indefinite hunger strike; situation on campus still volatile
YUNUS Y. LASANIA

RIPPLES IN MUMBAI: Supporters of Opposition parties join a march in Mumbai on Sunday, seeking
action against those responsible for the suicide of Dalit research scholar Rohith Vemula.
PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

HYDERABAD: Amid continuing

protests demanding his resignation over the suicide of research scholar Rohith Vemula, University of Hyderabad
(UoH) Vice-Chancellor, Appa Rao has proceeded on
leave.
Vipin Srivastava, who was
appointed in-charge VC on
Sunday, said Prof. Rao had
gone on leave for personal
reasons.
On Sunday, Congress leader in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjuna Kharge visited the campus and extended his support
to the protesting students.
The day witnessed the second batch of seven students
sitting on a hunger strike.
Prof. Srivastava said he and
his colleagues were discussing how to deal with the current situation on the campus
which had been rocked by
protests after Rohiths sui-

Discrimination at every step

NIKHILA HENRY
HYDERABAD: The marginalised
communities are subjected to
discrimination on university
campuses in admission, evaluation of academic performance and even in administrative
operations.
Such
students, once their identity
gets revealed, often get treated diferently, says V. Krishna,
a Dalit faculty member of the
University of Hyderabad,
who chaired a seven-member
committee in 2013 to examine
inter-caste bias on the
campus.
He said the assertion of Dalit identity was seen as out of
place as students often receive bad treatment as soon as
they revealed their lower
caste backgrounds.
Mr. Krishna, who recently
laid down his position as the
Controller of Examinations,
has a long association with
the UoH. From1982 to 1983, he
studied there in the Hindi department. He remembers
what he called a type of ghettoisation he and his fellow
Dalit students had to go
through. There was no
choice but to be in the compa-

Indian campuses are witnessing unusual

caste flare-ups, highlighted by the suicide
of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula in Hyderabad on Sunday. The Hindu examines how
caste fault lines are muddying higher education, and the governments ill-crafted
budget cuts and erratic decision-making
are adding to the grievances of a generation. This is the fifth in a series.
ny of each other, he said.
As Dalit PhD scholar Rohith Vemulas suicide brought
to the fore caste-based discrimination on campuses in
Hyderabad,
Mr.
Krishna was not surprised as he and other faculty members
on eight diferent
campuses in Hyderabad had predicted that the ongoing suppression might push
the lower caste students to
dangerous extremes.
The case of M. Venkatesh, a
Dalit research scholar at UoH
who committed suicide in
2013, is still fresh in memory.
The seven-member team led
by Mr. Krishna probed whether caste-based prejudice had
something to do with the sui-

cide. The committee pointed

out in the end that the institution and the system had
driven him to death.
Suicides in higher education are quite rampant
in Hyderabad. Five
Dalit students committed suicide between 2005 and 2015
in the UoH alone. In
Osmania University, two
women students Malleswari, a Bahujan, and Rajitha, a
Dalit had killed themselves
in 2007 and 2011 respectively.
In 2013, two Muslim students
committed suicide at English
and Foreign Languages University (EFLU).
Recalling the time when he
pursued his PhD in Jawaharlal
Nehru University in New Del-

hi, Mr. Krishna said that as the

Mandal Commission recommendations were implemented the caste divide surfaced
in a big way.
That brought me to the
core of Dalit politics, said Mr.
Krishna.Mr. Krishna is not the
only one in the UoH who believes that institutional bias is
equally responsible for the series of suicides the campus
has recorded in the last few
years. According to most senior faculty members in the
city, including the 14 Dalit
teachers of the UoH who laid
down their administrative
posts recently, ostracisation
of students coming from marginalised sections on campuses is a matter of routine.
In Venkateshs case it was
non-allotment of research supervisor or guide that led to
the suicide. In the case of P.
Raju, who killed himself in the
same year, non-publication of
results had led to the suicide,
he said.
Dalit students find it diicult to get past the biases that
surface in all modern academic spaces as teachers, staf and
administrators are not concerned about them.

Banking their way out of Kamathipura

ASHISH RUKHAIYAR
MUMBAI: You really think I

would be here if my husband

was with me? says Papiya
when asked about her family.
Her tiny home, one unventilated room in a dingy building, has been neatly partitioned, fitting in a kitchen and
a bedroom with a sliding
door.
She lives with her five-yearold daughter, who is busy
playing with a mirror and
forceps. She has two other
children, I was in Kolkata for
four months. I got my daughter married there. My son
studies in a boarding school
in the distant suburbs of
Mumbai. I cannot aford to
stay away for long. I have to
manage the monthly rent and
overhead expenses as well.
Raima, also from West Bengal, has been working to help
her family back home, where
she has bought some land,
and an autorickshaw. I have
been here for five years and

A sex worker (back to camera), who collects money

door-to-door, talking to a representative of the bank in
Kamathipura in Mumbai. PHOTO: ARUNANGSU ROY CHOWDHURY.

am saving money for my family, she tells us.

Here is Kamathipura,
Mumbais biggest red-light
district, and Papiya and Raima (both names changed) are
among the nearly 20,000 sex
workers. And, like many of
their neighbours, they dream
of being able to leave the profession and going back home.
Papiya and Raima have
been able to go some way towards their goals, though.
Thanks to being members of

Sangini Mahila Seva Cooperative Society Ltd., that, since

2007, has been exclusively
working towards providing
banking services to the commercial sex workers. It has
more than 5,000 accounts, of
which more than 3,000 are active with regular deposits.
Sanginis team of four, all
volunteers, cover the 14 lanes
of Kamathipura on foot to collect deposits from those who
are unable to come to their
oice.

Anjali Desai, one of the

three oice staf, has been
working with Sangini since
2012 and remembers the
names of all women. They
are not just our account holders, she says, We also educate them on money management. Earlier, clients or
brothel-owners used to steal
their money. Sangini has
helped them overcome this
problem.
Sanginis growing popularity with the sex workers of the
area can be gauged from the
numbers: most days, the
amounts deposited total more
than Rs 1 lakh.
Sangini was launched with
support from Population Services International (PSI), a
global health organisation focussing on issues like family
planning, HIV and AIDS.
Dedicated stafers and volunteers
notwithstanding,
Sangini desperately needs financial support if it is to succeed with its long-term development programmes.

Rohits mother
hospitalised
HYDERABAD: V. Radhika,
mother of Rohith
Vemula, was sent to
Continental hospital on
Sunday evening, after
she complained of chest
pain. She had earlier
visited the University of
Hyderabad (UoH)
Health Centre, where an
ECG test was done. A
medical oicer from the
varsity said that she is a
diabetic and had gone to
the private hospital for
an evaluation with the
cardiologist.

cide. The agitation has resulted in suspension of all classes.

The universitys administrative functions have also
been hit due to the protests.

JACOB KOSHY
NEW DELHI: A team of Indo-Ger-

CM
YK

The team members at the excavation site in Kutch basin of

Gujarat. PHOTO: COURTESY: DHIRENDRA KUMAR PANDEY

These flourished during the

Cretaceous period 145 to 65
million years ago after
which the double blows of a
meteor strike and overflowing volcanoes are said to have
destroyed these animals.
Well be moving fast to

find out if this a known species or a member of a new

class, said Dhiraj Kumar Pandey, palaeontologist at the
University of Jaipur and part
of the excavation team. About
10 years ago, he was part of a
team that discovered bones

again in Kutch of the

Camarasaurus Supremus a
herbivore and among the
most frequently-found of dinosaur fossils in North America.
From preliminary observations, this may be related to
the Camarasaurus family.
Well be sending this to Munich and hope to be able to formally publish and describe
our finds within 4 months.
Students and professors
from the Department of Geology, Krantiguru Shyamji
Krishna Verma Kutch University (SKVKU); Mr. Pandey,
Franz T. Fuersich from Germany and his wife Valsamma
Fuersich born Indian and
reportedly first saw the fossil
were among the excavation
team in Kutch.
The most recent dinosaur
fossils from India in this millennium is the Rajasaurus
Narmadensis, a 30-feet-long,
carnivorous and stocky ani-

JNU students go
on hunger strike
SWETA GOSWAMI
NEW DELHI: A few students of
the Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi have begun an indefinite hunger strike, demanding the removal and
arrest of the University of
Hyderabad Vice-Chancellor
Appa Rao Podile over the suicide of the research scholar
Rohith Vemula.
Three students of the JNU,
Shubhanshu Singh, Suchisree
Dhansiri and Lenin Kumar,
began the hunger strike on
Saturday evening along with
four others who will take up a
relay strike.
We wont give up our hunger strike until the V-C Mr
Rao and Union Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya are removed from their positions
and arrested.
We also want the removal
of Smriti Irani as Union HRD
Minister and demand adequate compensation to the
family of Rohith Vemula,
said Shubhanshu.
Suchisree Dhansiri has also
written an open letter to the
government.

More to the suicide note

SURESH KRISHNAMOORTHY
HYDERABAD: If the suicide

note was considered

important, portions of the
scratched-out content
appear to be of more
importance now.
Rohith Vemula, who
took the extreme step,
probably got disillusioned,
if one were to go by the
words he had scratched
out.
The Ambedkar
Students Association, the
Students Federation of
India, anything and
everything exist for their
own sake. Seldom the
interest of a person and an
organisation matches. To
get power, to become
famous or to be important
in between boundaries and
to think we are up to
changing the system, very
often we overestimate the
acts and find solace in
traits. Of course I must give
credit to both these groups
for making, introducing me
to wonderful literature and
people.
These were the words
written by Rohith in his
suicide note but later

scratched out, ostensibly

by himself.
When the scratched-out
portions made headlines,
the Joint Action
Committee (JAC) of
agitating students,
primarily belonging to the
Ambedkar Students
Association (ASA) went
into a huddle, discussing
the pros and cons of the
expression of a late scholar
about the goings-on in
student organisations.
The police investigating
the suicide case are said to
have forwarded it to a
forensic agency to
establish whether the same
pen was used to write the
letter and then scratch out
the other portions.
After much discussion,
the ASA woke up to the
reality and admitted to the
media that diferences of
opinion were common in
any organisation.
Another member of the
committee said Rohiths
suicide letter bore a social
history of caste violence
embedded in it and that it
was not what one could
term an emotional
outburst.

JD(U) MLA arrested,

released on bail
AMARNATH TEWARY
PATNA: Bihar MLA Sarfaraj
Alam was arrested by the
Government Railway Police
on Sunday, a day after the ruling Janata Dal (United) suspended him for his alleged
misconduct with a woman
passenger on a train.
The railway police had interrogated him for four hours
on Saturday evening. He was
summoned once again on
Sunday
for
further
questioning.
Later, in the night, the MLA
was released on conditional
bail on two sureties of Rs
20,000 each. His bodyguard
and personal staf have also
been released, reports PTI
The conditions include depositing his passport so that
he cannot leave the country
during pendency of the probe.
Other conditions included he
would neither meet the complainant nor apply pressure
the couple, will cooperate in
the ongoing investigation,
will acquire a regular bail
from a court and deposit two
sureties of Rs 20,000 each.

Sarfaraj Alam was summoned

by the railway police again on
Sunday for questioning.

The JD(U) suspended Sarfaraj Alam from the party on

Saturday for his conduct and
behaviour that sullied the image of the party. This was after a long meeting attended by
party president Sharad Yadav
and other top party leaders at
Chief Minister Nitish Kumars residence.
Indrapal Singh Bedi and his
wife had complained that the
MLA misbehaved with them
and abused them on the Dibrugarh Rajdhani Express last
week

Amma grinders cheer

women in A.P. too
S. MURALI
ONGOLE: After Kalaignar televi-

sion sets, now its Amma table-top wet grinders that have
made it to Ongole in a big way.
One of many freebies of the
Jayalalithaa government in
Tamil Nadu, the wet grinders
are up for grabs, as they come
at a dirt cheap price here. People of Ongole wait for the lorries from Chennai and other
places in the neighbouring
State that unload the grinders
in the busy Bhagyanagar and
other areas every day.
It is being ofer at just Rs.
1,300 per piece, a delighted
housewife Prema said.
The wet grinder also comes
with a two year warranty, says
another woman Laitha.No
wet grinder is priced less that
Rs. 3000 in the local market,
adds Lakshmi, happy over the
deal clinched with the saleswoman from the neighbouring State who was counting
her gains.
In Tamil Nadu, the easy-tooperate electrical appliances

Amma wet grinders on sale in

Ongole. PHOTO: KOMMURI SRINIVAS

are given free of cost to ration

card holders along with mixie
and electric fan. With nuclear
family being the order of the
day, several families have
more than one table top wet
grinder in their homes unpacked, says another woman
beneficiary who has come all
the way from Gummudipoondi in Tamil Nadu to market
the sleek machines neatly
packed as part of Amma
package.

Taking no chances

Candidates appearing for the State Service Preliminary Exam 2015 of Madhya Pradesh Public Services
Commission were made to remove their belts, watches, earrings and shoes at an examination centre in an attempt
to check malpractices in Bhopal on Sunday. PHOTO A.M. FARUQUI

Indo-German team finds dinosaur bones in Kutch

man geologists and palaeontologists may have found fossils of a 135-million-year old
herbivorous dinosaur in
Kutch, Gujarat, possibly the
oldest such fossil found this
century.
The pieces of bone possibly from the limb or hip and
about two feet long suggests that it may have been a
10-15 metre-long animal and,
were the researchers claims
to hold up, only among a
handful of Jurassic-era dinosaur fossils from India. That
was the time when India and
Madagascar were one landmass and the Himalayas yet to
form.
The so-called Jurassic era
spanned 250-145 million years
during which herbivorous dinosaurs flourished and laid
the ground for beasts, such as
the Tyrannosaurus Rex.

|9

NATION

NOIDA/DELHI

mal, which was discovered

from the Narmada Valley Basin in Kheda, Gujarat.
The potential of this region is still relatively untapped and the Kutch basin
geology is rich with rocks that
span a variety of ages, said
Gaurav Chauhan from the
SKVKU.
Though it is well known
that the Indian landmass may
be storing a plethora of fossil
life, it hasnt been plumbed
enough say researchers
for dinosaurs or other ancient
life. The Kutch basin is increasingly emerging as a hotspot and I plan to visit again
this monthwe may find
more complete bones, said
Mr. Pandey.
The Kutch Basin, it is believed, was inundated by seawater during the Jurassic period and these repeated over
millennia to throw up an extremely
varied
bio-geography.

Concern over Kerala sand-mining norms

T. NANDAKUMAR
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A notification issued by the Union
Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change prescribing regulations on river
sand mining is feared to result
in a mismatch with the State
legislation on the issue, sparking concern over its implications on the protection of the
ravaged rivers in Kerala.

The January 15 notification

mandates the creation of a
District Environment Impact
Assessment Authority empowered to issue environmental
clearance for sand mining below five hectares.
In Kerala, district-level expert committees have been
constituted to identify the locations for river sand mining.
In June last year, the State government imposed a ban on

sand mining from six rivers.

Experts fear that the uncertainty over which would prevail, the State Act or the Central notification, would create
a situation for illegal mining to
flourish. Unless the issue is
clarified, confusion will prevail, setting the stage for unscientific exploitation of river
sand resources, says Latha
Anantha, Director, River Research Centre.

ND-ND

10 |

EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

Public investment: for a new normal

monday, january 25, 2016

Alert, fair,
transparent
he arrest and detention of at least 18 people
from across the country by the National Investigation Agency and the Delhi Police over the
last few days for their alleged terror plans and
sympathies to the Islamic State is a stark warning that the
authorities need to be on heightened alert. The Delhi Police caught four young men from Uttarakhand, while the
rest have been arrested by the NIA from across India.
Both groups are accused of planning to carry out major
terrorist attacks. The NIA believes that the 14 men in its
custody were in the process of organising a training camp
to prepare for multiple attacks against domestic and foreign targets. Oicials say that both the arrested groups
had been in touch with Shafi Armar alias Yusuf, who
heads a terrorist group named Ansar-ul-Tawhid that is
aligned with the Islamic State and has former members
of the Indian Mujahideen in its ranks. This is a clear indication that the IS is no more a danger lurking in some distant land. In fact, next-door Bangladesh has already witnessed a few lone-wolf attacks suspected to have been
carried out by IS sympathisers.
The authorities now have the challenge of identifying
terrorist modules, and possible lone wolves, without allowing any attendant excesses. Real-life investigations
are painstaking tasks, and the Indian agencies have often
failed in due diligence on that front. Therefore it is important that the government keep a close watch to ensure
that the NIA and the Delhi Police carry out transparent
and professional investigations into the recent arrests.
That will ensure public safety and also protect the individual liberty of those accused of terror, but pending a
fair trial. Experience worldwide has shown that the perception game is practically won or lost while dealing
with terrorist suspects. The investigations must be timebound and chargesheets must be filed within a reasonable timeframe. A quick trial is advisable to showcase
that India has an uncompromising posture against terrorism and will hand out punishments without any delay
and swiftly, while protecting the constitutional rights of
each of its resident. Showcasing such a balanced approach towards terrorism is also very important to send
out the message to the aggrieved and those influenced by
violent ideologies that Indian democracy is their best bet
for a fair life. Young people drawn to various waves of violence through history have mostly been individuals harbouring a perceived strong sense of grievance against the
state. Their violent activities are a response to what they
believe to be injustices inflicted by the powerful. In India,
there have been three distinct waves of domestic Islamist
terrorism since the early 1990s. There is no better way of
addressing the grave threat posed by young citizens
drawn to extremist, violent ideologies than a fair, transparent and swift trial.

The Indian economy is

not exactly in a bright spot.
That is what most observers,
barring those like the International Monetary Fund
(IMF), appear to think. One
PULAPRE
BALAKRISHNAN can, of course, see where the
IMF is coming from. Multilateral agencies, though armed with a cookiecutter approach, do take a global view and it
is true that India is today the worlds fastestgrowing large economy. Cheer on this front
must, however, be mediated by an awareness
that India has a far lower per capita income
compared to other countries in the Brazil,
Russia, India, China, South Africa (BRICS)
grouping. Moreover, early indications are
that Indias growth rate is slowing this financial year.
All this is far from what some observers
had expected when Narendra Modi became
the Prime Minister in May 2014. Mr. Modi
was seen as decisive and growth-oriented,
his credentials burnished by his record as the
Chief Minister of Gujarat. Expectations of a
new dynamism in the economy were rife, at
least among the corporates and the middle
class.
The enthusiasm has dissipated by now.
Mr. Modi is under pressure to show results
on the economy front when, in fact, on the
core issues, he has not been able to even
show much initiative. Part of this situation
may be out of his control as the bureaucracy
matters when it comes to crucial decisions.
However, as far as the core of the economic
policy is concerned, not much has changed
since the second term of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA II). I elaborate on both
these points.

Indian economy finds itself in a situation of

contagious pessimism. The Finance Minister has
his task cut out: step up public capital formation,
even if it involves greater rationalisation of
subsidies and divestment in some public sector
undertakings
down but it is also to be attributed to internal
factors. Agricultural performance has been
poor since the boom of the 2003-08 phase
and the pace of infrastructure growth driven
by public investment has slowed. It bears
mentioning that in this period, when India
had come close to achieving a double-digit
growth rate, private investment in infrastructure was very high but yet eclipsed by the
growth of public investment. This should
make us accept the idea that publicly-created
infrastructure is to be a component of any
high-growth plan for the foreseeable future.
Second, in purely macroeconomic terms,
there are moments when public investment
serves as a deus ex machina. This is when the

growth in India today, private consumption

and public investment. However, with exports having stagnated for close to a year
now and private consumption largely tied to
income, public investment remains the only
source of demand growth. It may be too hasty
to term this situation as the new normal but
it certainly is a noteworthy aspect of what we
are up against.
Even if a slowdown in global demand has
not caused the present slowing down of
growth, it is clear that we must now rely on
our own devices to grow, in the sense of finding the source of demand. Enter, with enervating efect, an element of the Washington
Consensus, which in reality is no more than

A sort of New Delhi Consensus, shared by all political parties,

stands in the way of the expansion of public infrastructure. There
is reluctance to raise public revenues even in the face of inflation

private investor is skittish on spending. It is

likely that we are facing such a situation at
present.
When it comes to economic change, it is
devilishly diicult to separate the demandIn thrall of the Washington Consensus
side causes from the supply-side ones. HowSince 1991, the bureaucracy and the tech- ever, the present slowing of growth, to a great
nocrats in government have looked at eco- extent, points to the recent slowdown in denomic policy through the prism of the so- mand. The growth slowdown has taken place
called Washington Consensus, leaving it when the supply side, governed by policy, has
with less than the desired degree of flexibili- not seen any great worsening for firms in the
ty. Even independently of this, the consensus non-agricultural sector. In the past, even at
within the political class militates against times when the supply side was not much
change. Both have a bearing on the current more favourable than it is now, private insituation. So, how is the current situation to vestment has been high. It stands depressed
be understood?
today, leaving the economy almost entirely
The recent stagnation, if not further de- dependent upon public investment.
cline, in the rate of growth is a continuation
The mid-year review of the economy isof the decline seen since the 2008 financial sued by the Finance Ministry excellent
crisis. We are possibly facing a ten-year cycle both for its incisiveness and style states
here. Part of it has to do with the global slow- that there are only two sources of demand

an ideological construct, that stands in the

way of such a project. This is the axiom that
an expansion in the role of government is
not good for the economy.
In a situation when private investment is
not forthcoming, public investment has a
role not only as a source of aggregate demand
but also as catalyst. This it does by anchoring
profit expectations. Private investment is
based on expectations of profit, called the
internal rate of return for a project. In the
slightly more academic language of behavioural economics, expectations of profit are
captured by the marginal eiciency of capital.
Profit expectations, far from being known
with certainty, are highly subjective. They
are based on anticipations of the future state
of the economy on which little is known.
However, private investors need to have an
idea of it as demand for their products de-

CARTOONSCAPE

Sobering reflection
from Davos
hinas stock market turbulence and the impact
its growth slowdown is having on the global
economy were dominant themes last week at
the annual World Economic Forum in the
Swiss Alpine resort of Davos. And as the four-day gathering of international finance and corporate captains, government policymakers and central bankers wound down
on Saturday, the jury was still out on whether China is
headed for a hard landing or is in control of its transition.
That China and its fortunes have come to dominate discussions is testimony to the extent to which its companies and manufacturing industry have integrated with
the rest of the world, as well as to the increased international concern over the perceived opacity of the countrys banking and financial sectors real levels of indebtedness. This was perhaps best reflected in International
Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagardes exhortation
that financial markets need more clarity and certainty
about Chinas management of the yuans exchange rate,
especially with reference to the U.S. dollar. A modeling
study done by Oxford Economics posits that a 10 per cent
decline in the value of the Chinese currency against the
dollar by the third quarter of 2016 if accompanied by
resultant competitive devaluations among emerging
market peers could roil economies and markets worldwide, with the eurozone and Japan projected to be the
hardest hit. The domino efect could retard global
growth by 0.2 per cent and hurt countries including the
U.S., Brazil, Russia and India. Interestingly though, the
same study projects that China would have little to show
by way of gains from the yuans weakness, lending credence to the Chinese authorities assertions that they are
not interested in engendering a scenario of competitive
devaluations. Still, that second-order efects of what happens in China will be hard to hazard a guess about has already been proven by the recent volatility seen in markets worldwide. And the brave words of regulators
notwithstanding, central bankers are running out of ammunition. As Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram
Rajan said, monetary easing may have run its course and
reached the limits of eicacy as a policy tool.
The other key takeaway from this years meeting at Davos was showcased in Pope Franciss admonition to the
global political and economic elite to reflect on their own
role in creating inequality. An Oxfam study, released
ahead of the WEF meet, said the richest 1 per cent owned
as much wealth as the remaining 99 per cent combined
did, with the gap in wealth widening even faster than anticipated. With politicians across continents and the entire ideological spectrum, from the far-right to the farleft, focusing their rhetoric and stances on the growing
rich-poor divide and seeking to tap the burgeoning discontent for electoral gains, the Popes call to the wealthy
and powerful to act to help address the inequality lends a
powerful moral edge to the issue.

CM
YK

pends upon the aggregate demand and this

depends upon investment, both public and
private. In the absence of public investment,
each private investor must guess what the
others are going to do. To use the pithy
phrase of John Maynard Keynes, investors
now end up chasing each others tails.
In a situation of contagious pessimism, no
increase in private investment will take
place. The Government of India would have
a unique role to play now. For, substitute
State governments for private investors
and we have a replay of the investment game
where everyone is waiting for someone else
to make the first move. Public investment
provides forward guidance to the economy.
Being flexible on fiscal consolidation
Even when the Finance Minister is convinced of the necessity of public investment,
he is berated by admirers of the Washington
Consensus who argue against an expansionary budget on grounds that fiscal consolidation will be damaged. Indias fiscal consolidation programme is based on norms drawn
from the European Union (EU). There is no
basis in economic theory for a specified fiscal deficit target. And, in any case, the EUs
economy is in such a mess that no self-respecting economist would adopt its macroeconomic architecture uncritically.
Fiscal policy is to be used imaginatively according to the needs of the economy as they
arise. Instead, we run the danger of tying it to
unjustified targets. If an increase in the fiscal
deficit is used to expand public infrastructure, it will serve a useful purpose, both in the
current context and with regard to the longer-term trajectory of the economy.
We may conclude with two observations.
First, it is not absolutely essential that the fiscal deficit must expand substantially to enable a programme of increased public spending on infrastructure. Here, a sort of New
Delhi Consensus, shared by all political parties, stands in the way of the expansion of
public infrastructure. There is reluctance to
raise public revenues even in the face of inflation.
At the Finance Ministers annual meeting
with economists in 2015, someone in the
gathering had pointed out that the real value
of railway fares had been eroded by up to 40
per cent due to inflation. If public bodies are
starved of funds, they cannot expand. This
acts as an in-built depressor. Even Mr. Modi
is quick to expound that he intends not to cut
subsidies, only to target them better. Is it possible that at least some of the subsidies of the
Government of India may be bad for growth,
and therefore employment, in the sense that
they constrain expanding public investment?
Possibly.
Political parties are reluctant to review the
subsidy regime. They are also reluctant to
divest. This stance is an exact mirror image
of the position that any expansion of government is bad. It is considered a mistake to even
suggest sale of public assets. But why should
we not consider sale of assets in areas where
a public presence is no longer considered as
essential as it was some decades ago?
There can be no intrinsic argument
against the government selling some assets
only to acquire others. It can be beneficial for
growth and employment, and therefore for
welfare. It is a no-brainer to choose between
a publicly-owned airline that charges more
than its private sector counterparts and a
stronger infrastructure in the form of roads,
bridges and irrigation channels. The guiding
principle for our Finance Minister should be:
dont take your foot of the accelerator of
public capital formation. A rationalisation
of subsidies and some asset swapping would
ensure that he can do this without much
more borrowing.

(The author teaches economics at

Ashoka University. The views expressed are
personal.)

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

The Netaji enigma
This refers to PM releases 100
secret files on Netaji (Jan.24). The
release of the first set of 100
government files on Netaji Subhas
Chandra Bose by Prime Minister
Narendra
Modi
fulfils
a
longstanding public demand.
Though the move has garnered
accolades from die-hard fans of the
Indian National Army (INA) chief
and his family members, it has also
served to rule the feathers of
those within the Congress.
Nuggets of information like
Jawaharlal Nehru trying to help
Netajis widow, Emilie Schenkl,
the U.K. government considering
listing Netaji as a war criminal
days after his purported death, and
Mahatma Gandhi asking Netajis
family not to perform his shradh
disbelieving that he had died in the
Taihoku crash provide interesting
food for thought. These apart,
there is nothing to suggest that
there is any new information.
N.J. Ravi Chander,
Bengaluru

The only way to put to rest the

controversy surrounding the
death of Netaji in an air crash in
1945 is by carrying out the DNA
test of his purported remains,
preserved by Renkoji temple in
Japan. Some of the declassified
files reveal the reluctance of both
India and Japan to act on this
count. Instead, New Delhi used its
diplomatic capital to persuade
temple authorities to continue to
be the custodian of the remains,
on payment of money. It is obvious
that it was entirely at the behest of
bureaucrats that the Indian
government hesitated to bring the
ashes, fearing an adverse impact

Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

on the political prospects of the

party in power. Facts can no longer
be held hostage to political
expediency. Mr. Modi should
reverse the politically motivated
decisions of his predecessors.
S.K. Choudhury,
Bengaluru

While the declassification is a

welcome move, one cannot fail to
see the real motives behind it. Ever
since the Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) came to power, it has
launched a concerted campaign to
denigrate Jawaharlal Nehru and,
thereby, the Congress. After
appropriating
Sardar
Patels
legacy as a foil against that of
Nehru, it is now using Netajis
communications. While doing
this, the BJP has ignored the
convergence that occurred during
the freedom struggle between
views of the late leaders.
The three commissions set up so
far have failed to give a conclusive
explanation on the circumstances
leading to Netajis death. The most
plausible theory that still holds is
that he died in a plane crash. There
is no need to mystify things
further. The government has
better things to do instead of
wasting time and energy in a
pointless search for resurrecting
incriminating
documents
as
evidence of Nehrus role in Netajis
death. Let it focus on the pressing
issues of the day like the
growing menace of terrorism;
price rise; and atrocities against
the weaker sections of society
and think hard on why the achhe
din (good times) promised by Mr.
Modi
during
the
election
campaign still elude the people.
Satish C. Aikant,
Mussoorie

deep state, consisting of the Army

and the Inter-Services Intelligence
(ISI). It needs to show action on
bringing perpetrators of terror
attacks like those on Pathankot to
justice.

Literature on Netaji is rich in

mystery. The plane crash theory is
trashed by many. Some say that he
was not in that plane at all. Others
say that a crash of an airplane in
that area on that date never took
place. There are also rumours that
he resurfaced in India in the guise
of a sadhu. It is also observed that
in the later years of his life he was
spotted in China.
The declassification of the
Netaji files will only give room for
fresh research leading to needless
controversies.
What
really
happened to him is anybodys
guess and a stale subject for the
common man. The emerging truth
is of no use and will have very little
impact on the lives of ordinary
Indians.
Both
the
earlier
classification and the recent
declassification of the Netaji files
were purely political acts and the
most inappropriate way to
remember a patriot.

This is with reference to the

preliminary findings of the
National Family Health Survey
(NFHS-4) that stated that the
consumption of tobacco and
alcohol in India has fallen (India
drinks and smokes less now,
Jan.24). The holistic public health
campaigns with the use of
graphic displays on cigarette
packets to forewarn smokers,
restrictions on smoking on cinema
and television and ban on smoking
in public places seem to have
worked in reining in this public
health menace.

V. Lakshmanan,
Tirupur

A.J. Rangarajan,
Edison, New Jersey

Terror in Pakistan
Pakistan is slowly becoming
victim
to
its
home-grown
terrorism (Think like the
neighbour, Jan.23). The attack on
Bacha Khan University, which
killed
mainly
students,
is
reminiscent of the Peshawar terror
attack in which scores of schoolchildren were killed. One of the
major
ways
Pakistan
can
eliminate/reduce terrorism is by
providing the right education to its
youth and taking stern action
against those directly or indirectly
involved in running terror outfits.
In its own interest, Pakistan also
needs to end its policy of targeting
India in the name of Kashmir. The
state needs to gain control over the

M. Kumar,
New Delhi

Detoxifying India

The data released by NFHS-4 mark

victory
for
anti-tobacco
campaigners.
Awareness
campaigns through street-plays
and short documentaries have
contributed
immensely
to
educating people on the negative
impact of tobacco consumption.
However, there is still a lot of
ground to cover as smoking is
becoming popular among the
youth, afecting their health and
education.
When it comes to alcohol, in
many States, 25 is the legal age for
consumption but pubs and bars
serve liquor to teenagers even as
the administration looks the other
way. Also, an increase in use of
other tobacco products like gutka

must be of great concern to

authorities. The government and
the
non-governmental
organisations (NGOs) have to now
shift their focus to rural areas
where a major proportion of
tobacco-consuming
population
still lives.
Gagan Pratap Singh,
Noida

Caste prejudices
Prime Minister Narendra Modis
belated regret in the face of
nationwide protests for justice for
Rohith Vemula came as no great
solace to anyone (Mother India
lost a dear son, says PM as students
protest, Jan. 23). It is not diicult
to discern that utterance of
anything more substantive in
support of those at the bottom of
Hinduisms hereditary hierarchy
would have dented his image and
weakened his standing in the
larger Sangh Parivar.
He didnt show the fortitude
needed by condemning the events
leading to the suicide. Neither did
he sack the two Union Ministers
Smriti
Irani
and
Bangaru
Dattatreya involved in the
controversy. Had he admitted that
the Dalit scholars suicide was a
result of the caste prejudices on
the campus, his public display of
emotion would have struck the
intended chord with the people.
The Prime Minister must first
show the will to repudiate the
scriptures that sanctify caste; take
eforts to promote inter-caste
marriages; and announce a special
economic package for Dalits. Only
then will he have any right to speak
of Dr. B.R. Ambedkars dream and
Dalit welfare.
G. David Milton,
Maruthancode
ND-ND

PERSPECTIVE

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU

MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

FROM THE READERS' EDITOR

Words to celebrate,
words to reflect

Speak to the Pakistan Army, too

India may have to find a way to initiate dialogue not only with the civilian government of
Pakistan but also with the armed forces. Only then will things move
AYESHA SIDDIQA

A.S. PANNEERSELVAN

It was a carnival of ideas. Some of the participants at The Hindu Lit for Life used the forum as an Open House. They interacted not only with the visiting writers but also with journalists from the newspaper to relate the discussions at the festival
to the newspapers editorial content. Personally, I interacted
with a range of people: a legal scholar working on the biography of Granville Austin, students, retired bureaucrats, and aspiring writers.
Discussions were about analogous learning. They were punctuated with literary allusions, poetic ironies, artistic interpretations and the rules that govern journalistic practices.
Commenting on the talk by National Conference working president and
former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, a reader who
had travelled from Mysuru said: The talk touched upon the multiple issues
at stake in Kashmir. It provided insights into the working of Article 370. The
talk stressed the need to calibrate both the internal and the external dimensions, and explained the futility of war. One can get this level of detailing only in a talk that is not reduced to a sound bite or in a newspaper like The
Hindu.
Singer Sanjay Subrahmanyan explained the relationship between the in- The debate created a
herent restrictions in each form of artic- sense of optimism
ulation and creativity. He argued that
each art form came with its own set of among the
constraints a painter has to work participants that the
within the confines of his canvas, a photographer within what a frame can ofer, journey towards an
and a writer to a given word limit. For
him, these restrictions, instead of limit- inclusive society is
ing ones imagination, fostered creativi- inevitable despite
ty. One of the students from Calicut University drew a parallel between this entrenched prejudices
observation of the singer and the writings in the opinion pages of this newspaper. He said: The writers have to adhere to the rules of grammar, the
word limit and explain complex issues in an accessible manner day after day.
I think anyone who has the depth of knowledge in his or her chosen field can
be an example of Sanjays position that freedom is in the mind.
Free speech and ofensive speech
His classmate felt that Alexander McCall Smith captured the lines that divide free speech, creativity, and ofensive speech very well. McCall Smith
said: Its increasingly diicult to write in a humorous vein now than ever
before, because of increased encouragement to be sensitive and take ofence
at the drop of a hat. It is very important to have free speech, as one should be
able to poke fun. This does not mean authors can make gratuitous comments. Excessive sensitivity is like a weed killer. It is killing ideas, literature
and humorous writing. The young student wanted to know the editorial
judgment tools that are deployed to diferentiate a gratuitous comment and
what is excess sensitivity that leads to self-censorship.
Devdutt Pattanaiks presentation on the Gita generated interesting discussions during the cofee break. Some readers questioned his assertion that
there is no truest interpretation. Pattanaik rather ambiguously declared:
My truth is the way I think the world is; and yours is how you think it is. A
participant felt that the post-presentation discussion format also demanded
creativity to pose an informed counter-question. In his case, as he was formulating his counter based on other scholarly work to challenge this assertion, the session ended. He wanted to get an answer from Pattanaik to D. D.
Kosambis argument: The Gita has attracted minds of bents entirely diferent from each other and from that of Arjuna. Each has interpreted the supposedly divine words so diferently from all the others that the original
seems far more suited to raise doubts and to split a personality than to heal
an inner division. Any moral philosophy which managed to receive so many
variant interpretations from minds in widely diferent types of society must
be highly equivocal. No question remains of its basic validity if the meaning
is so flexible.
Gulammohammed Sheikhs session, Images of the City, was an exceptional experience in which fear, loss, bigotry and urban apathy came out poignantly and powerfully. If any journalist could write prose akin to what this
wonderful artist from Gujarat managed to achieve, narrative journalism
would reach new heights. Talking about narrative writing, Amitava Kumar
spoke about the importance of non-fiction in a persuasive manner. He said:
After the Delhi rape incident, the father of the girl said that when he saw his
daughter in that condition, his first thought was How will I have the money
to take the body back? Thats what poverty does to you. In this respect, nonfiction delivers a certain sense of reality that fiction cannot.
The general festive mood turned sombre when K.A. Gunasekaran, a wellknown Dalit folklorist and theatre personality, who was scheduled to participate in the concluding programme Dalit aesthetics and politics: How the
Tamil Dalits reclaimed their identity, passed away on Sunday (January 17)
morning. Nonetheless, the discussions opened up space and the debate created a sense of optimism among the participants that the journey towards an
inclusive society is inevitable despite many entrenched prejudices. The participants left the venue with a sense of hope. None of us were aware that Rohith Vemula, a Dalit research scholar, had killed himself around the same
time. As Meena Kandasamy points out, he has left us with only his words.
readerseditor@thehindu.co.in

FROM THE ARCHIVES

(dated January 25, 1966)

H.J. Bhabha dead in

plane crash
Dr. H.J. Bhabha, renowned
nuclear scientist, and Chairman,
Atomic Energy Commission, was
among the 117 killed when the Air
India Boeing, Kanchenjunga,
crashed on the snow-covered
Mont Blanc, 72 kilometres from
here [Geneva, January 24]. The
plane was piloted by Captain
DSouza, one of Air Indias most
experienced pilots.
There were 14 women,
including two air hostesses and
two children aboard, one of them
an unaccompanied child. A 11member Belgiam cultural

delegation had boarded the illfated plane at Delhi, after a tour of

India. Wreckage of the Boeing-707
jetliner was sighted a few hours
after the plane vanished from
radar screens as it neared Geneva,
where it was due to land at 07-00
G.M.T (12-30 p.m. I.S.T.). The last
contact with the plane was at
07-07 G.M.T. The aircraft was
bound from Bombay to New York
via New Delhi, Beirut, Geneva and
London.
A French helicopter pilot who
landed near the scene of the crash
reported: We found no survivors.
There just cannot be any. The
planes wreckage is scattered over
a wide area.

CORRECTIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS

>> In the first paragraph of a report, Anakkara remembers its illustrious
daughter (January 22, 2016) G. Susheela, senior most member of Anakkara Vadakkath family, was wrongly described as sister of Mrinalini Sarabhai. She is
Mrinalinis cousin.
It is the policy of The Hindu to correct significant errors as soon as
possible.
Please specify the edition (place of publication), date and page.
The Readers Editors oice can be contacted by
Telephone: +91-44-28418297/28576300 (11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to
Friday); Fax: +91-44-28552963; E-mail: readerseditor@thehindu.co.in
Mail: Readers Editor, The Hindu, Kasturi Buildings,
859 & 860 Anna Salai, Chennai 600 002, India.
All communication must carry the full postal address and
telephone number.
No personal visits.
The Terms of Reference for the Readers Editor are on www.thehindu.com
CM
YK

| 11

In a study conducted in 2014

on Pakistans trade with India, Iran and Afghanistan,
the business community,
despite some reservations
and caution, supported increased trade with India. Most heartening
was the shift in Punjab, considered central
to the idea of enmity with New Delhi.
There are numerous other studies that
point to a similar sentiment. Earlier in
2014, even the Indian High Commissioner
in Islamabad sounded convinced that
from an Indian perspective, it was a diferent Pakistan. Despite his limited access,
the diplomat could notice the change
that Pakistanis were eager to do business
and reach out across the border.
And then Pathankot happened.
Historical attempts
But the diplomat wasnt incorrect in his
assessment. The public view in Pakistan
today does not necessarily represent the
popular view prevalent in the years after
Partition, especially in Punjab which was
one of the main victims of the carnage. For
instance, it couldnt have been imagined Peace remains elusive as all major political parties put together are unable to change
in the 1970s for a Prime Minister to reach the Armys perspective. Picture shows the Chief of Army Staff, Gen. Raheel Sharif,
out to his or her counterpart as Benazir with Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Islamabad. PHOTO: AFP
Bhutto did in 1990. By inviting Indias then
Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, she not only tled due to Kargil. A similar initiative the years Pakistans military has begun to
deviated from her father Zuqfikar Ali taken during the military government of manipulate the national narrative as well.
Bhuttos legacy of a thousand years of General Pervez Musharraf was also It has indeed moved from Military Inc. to
war with India, but also began a new thwarted but later under the political gov- Media Inc. What this means is that dochapter in the political imagination of bi- ernment of President Asif Ali Zardari.
mestically there are very few voices that
Sadly, the situation does not seem to will challenge the perception that the
lateral linkages with an old enemy. This is
not to argue that things were perfect. Po- have moved considerably from 2008 Pathankot attack was possibly a setup by
litical realities also forced Benazir Bhutto when the Mumbai attacks took place. The the Indians themselves to scuttle peace
to seemingly retract, behaviour owed to peace initiative now seems to be a tragic talks and malign Pakistan. In any case,
cyclic process in Syed Salahuddin of the Jihad Council has
politics of survival
which hopeful over- already taken responsibility for the attack.
vis--vis a strong
Over the years Pakistans
tures end with some It does not matter that domestically in Pamilitary rather than
military has begun to
act of terrorism, kistan, the Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) peoa lack of clarity.
manipulate the national
then tension, and fi- ple proudly own the attack.
In fact, one of the
nally an efort to becommon
threads
The tone of the popular national disnarrative, moving from
gin again. But on the course is set by the armed forces and their
between the governMilitary
Inc.
to
Media
Inc.
other hand, most public relations agency. The Army on the
ments of Benazir
Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif during the 1990s major political parties including Imran one hand and the militants on the other
was an emerging clarity in the mind of top Khans Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) manage to challenge the political class. A
politician, who is constantly challenged
leadership regarding peace with India. desire peace with New Delhi.
The two main political parties, the PakisHowever, peace remains elusive as all on grounds of corruption or declared antan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Pakistan major political parties put together are ti-nationalist, has less credibility to auMuslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), real- unable to change the Armys perspective. thor a grand national strategic narrative.
ised that greater political empowerment The political parties may represent an aland improvement of civil-military bal- ternative pole in the overall power poli- Fear of India
ance required improving relations with tics of the state but they are still not in a
However, another reality for this ongoIndia. A military for which the threat from position to challenge the militarys politi- ing tension is the militarys fear of India or
India remains the raison detre could not cal prowess. In one way or the other, all that New Delhi seeks to destroy Pakistan.
be engaged evenly without improving major political parties are a product of the Although unable to present any convincties.
Army General Headquarters (GHQ). This ing evidence internationally, Rawalpindi
It was this civil-military balance that does not mean that they will not deviate has managed to convince itself that New
Mr. Sharif hoped to change in 1999 when from the path set by Rawalpindi but that Delhi remains hostile to the idea of Pakishe welcomed Atal Bihari Vajpayee to La- the Army remains in a better position to tan. The 1971 debacle remains fresh in the
minds of many. The military establishhore and signed the famous Lahore decla- checkmate them.
ration. Unfortunately, that efort was scutThis is not to forget the fact that over ment is of the view that it is not alone to be

blamed for the repeated scuttling of the

peace process. A popular notion is that
the Indian Army is equally sceptical of
peace and hence central to the conflict. It
is indeed the historic balance of power
strategy that seems to be at play in determining relations between India and
Pakistan.
The militarys narrative cannot be totally discarded as having no traction. There
is somewhere a deep-set discomfort if not
insecurity amongst common Pakistanis
that India has not accepted Pakistans reality. Almost seventy years after 1947
there is still a lack of closure on Partition.
Sadly, there is no formula to allay such
fears.
Referring to the militarys thinking, it is
not that the organisation is totally incapable of thinking about peace. The global
and regional realities are constantly shifting. There is also Islamabads partnership
with Beijing that would like relations to
improve between the two South Asian
neighbours to attain a certain level of stability in the region. The Rawalpindi GHQ
is not totally oblivious to these changes.
Nevertheless, it remains shy of the idea of
peace to the degree that it wouldnt want
civilians, which it mistrusts itself, to handle the initiative or the idea. Both trade
and peace with India can happen but it has
to be done carefully and it has to go
through the Army rather than the Prime
Ministers oice.
Apparently, there are several occasions
on which the Army tried to reach out to its
counterpart. In 2007, the then Inter-Services Intelligence chief, Lt. General
Ahmed Shuja Pasha, tried to convey a
message regarding his interest to talk directly to the Indian government or viceversa. The loss of life of over 100 Pakistani
soldiers at Gayari in 2012 was another instance when an efort was made. The then
Army chief, General Ashfaq Pervez Kiyani, even proposed withdrawing troops
from the highest battleground in the
world. The gesture was not reciprocated.
The media on both sides of the border
tends to not only get belligerent but fan
belligerence, especially during a crisis. It
almost feels that both states are on the
doorsteps of a conflict, perhaps even a nuclear encounter. Maybe peace cannot be
brought about through pre-set formulas.
Much as India prides itself on its democratic values, it may have to find a way to
initiate a parallel conversation one
with the civilian government and another
with the armed forces. Unless the GHQ is
brought on board (but in the shadow of a
political government), things might not
move.
(Ayesha Siddiqa, author of Military
Inc: Inside Pakistans Military
Economy, is an Islamabad-based
columnist.)

Dalits and the remaking of Hindutva

The conflict between Ambedkarite consciousness and Hindutva over religion, politics and
society has become even more violent with the intrusion of state power
bai, and of Ambedkars memorial at his
partially restored London house. Also,
prior to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections in
The Bharatiya Janata ParBihar and Uttar Pradesh, BJP president
tys relations with the DaAmit Shah took part in caste rallies and
lits are tense and complex.
meetings of various Dalit communities.
For the party, Dalit assertA big dilemma of the RSS and BJP is
iveness has become hard to
that they are willing to assimilate Dalits
comprehend, let alone acwithin their fold but just in form of a vote
cept, reminding us of a popular folk idibank. For this, the Sangh Parivar is trying
om, Na Nigalte Bane, Na Ugalte Bane
hard to incorporate the Dalit identity in
(neither can it be swallowed nor can it be
the Hindutva ideology, but wants those
thrown out). The BJP is showing an infrom the forward castes and middle
terest in accommodating Dalit groups,
castes to remain leaders. Till now, Dalits
but it knows that this embrace is not palhave not been given any crucial role unatable for its core supporters.
der the BJP and RSS leadership. After InThe BJP in its strongholds in northern
dependence, due to various state-led deand western India has been seen as a parvelopmental eforts, a literate, critical
ty of the urban middle class, the Banias,
Dalit leadership has emerged. These
and a section of Brahmins. Over time,
leaders are inspired by the writings of
the party also brought the Other BackPeriyar E.V. Ramasami, Jyotiba Phule and
ward Classes and the Most Backward
Ambedkar, and their consciousness is
Classes within its fold. With the retreat
informed by criticism of Hindu religion
of socialist politics, the rural neo-rich
and Hindutva ideology. Though a small
from the backward castes began feeling
part of this group is under the BJPs influmarginalised in national politics and
ence, it is also influenced by Ambedkamoved towards Hindutva politics. From
rite thought. The RSS has not come to
the 1970s to 1990s, this community purterms with this.
chased rural land at a much faster rate
It is this situation that could lead to
and emerged as a landed community. On Of late, the BJP has endeavoured to appropriate B.R. Ambedkar. Picture shows
clashes in educational institutions bethe one hand, this aluent group appears Narendra Modi during the foundation stone-laying ceremony of the Dr. Ambedkar
tween students charged with Ambedkato be part of the new political leadership International Centre in New Delhi. PHOTO: PTI
rite consciousness and those belonging
for post-Mandal Hindutva politics; on
the other, being the landed community, concept of Ramarajya in which the up- for political control. The local heroes of to Sangh-ailiated organisations. Clashit is also perceived to be the oppressor of per and lower castes come together in various castes, particularly Dalits, have es could also occur as it may not be easy
social life as well as in democratic poli- been selected by the party in diferent re- for the belligerent middle castes, who
Dalits in everyday rural life.
Along this 1970s-onwards timeline, tics. For instance, the Ramayana and gions for incorporation into one unified have become influential in recent decades under the BJP leadership, to accept
another change slowly took place. Dalits Lord Rama have been projected as sym- Hindutva metanarrative.
Acknowledging the political and elec- these Dalit groups assertion. All this
too became more assertive in electoral bols of unity by contending to Dalits that
politics, mainly due to a growing demo- Rama was always linked to the deprived toral importance of the Pasis, an impor- could also cause tension within Sangh
cratic consciousness and a deeper quest masses and that the epic centred around tant Dalit community in North India, the organisations.
Thus, a conflict between Ambedkarite
for identity. The BJP was thus politically the Dalits. According to this viewpoint, RSS launched a campaign in search of
compelled to appeal for Dalit votes, and the Dalits played a significant role in Ra- the communitys heroes. Following this, consciousness and Hindutva consciousness over religion, polithe Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) mas life history in the quest to find Si- Suhaldev, an icon of
tics and society has besubsequently took charge of providing a ta in Lanka, for example, the role of Su- the Pasi community,
The Sangh Parivar is
griva, Angada, Jambavan, Hanuman and was projected as a
even
more
Dalit base to the BJP.
attempting to transform come
Rakshak
violent with the intruthe monkey brigade, all symbolising the Rashtra
the newly emerging
Absorbing dissent in the mainstream
(the
underprivileged, was crucial, according Shiromani
sion of the power of the
state. After coming to
In recent decades, the BJP and RSS to Sangh and BJP ideologues. This greatest saviour of
Dalit-Bahujan identity
power, the BJP wants to
have been initiating intensive nation- showed the Sanghs attempt to absorb the nation) for deinto
a
Hindutva
one
crush through governwide programmes and campaign activ- growing Dalit dissent against Brah- fending Hindu culities such as arranging community meals minism and their struggle for self-re- ture and the country from Muslim in- ment interference every idea that oppos(Samrasta Bhoj), opening schools in Da- spect and equality, and transforming truders by forming a confederation of es its own. The biggest challenge before
lit settlements, and organising sensitisa- their newly emerging Dalit-Bahujan local kings. Festivals were also organised the Sangh Parivar in the politics of Dalit
in memory of Suhaldev in Chittora. Thus appropriation is the clash of ideas. In the
tion campaigns for upper castes. The identity into a Hindutva one.
Communalisation and safronisation the RSS and BJP projected the Dalits as process of the RSS and the BJP trying to
primary objective of the Samajik Samrasta campaign launched in Maharashtra of public spaces is a new strategy adopt- the militia saviours who made up the subsume Dalit ideas under bigger narrain 1983 was to eradicate internal conflicts ed by the BJP to mobilise each Dalit caste army of protectors of Hindu dharma.
tives of development and nationalism, it
in society while its second aim was to as- individually by evoking its unique caste
is not only the young Ambedkarites who
similate Dalits into the mainstream by identity. The party reinterpreted and Appropriating Ambedkar
are being attacked; the Sangh organisaproviding them with health, educational recreated the cultural resources of Dalits
Of late, the BJP has endeavoured to ap- tions are also hurting themselves.
and entrepreneurial assistance. A cru- at the local level, including their caste propriate B.R. Ambedkar, as is evident
(Badri Narayan is professor, Centre
cial move was to invite Dalits to eat khi- histories and heroes, with the aim of saf- from Prime Minister Narendra Modis
for the study of Discrimination and
fronising the Dalit psyche and memory, inauguration of the world-class memoExclusion, School of Social Sciences,
chri with the upper castes.
Jawaharlal Nehru University.)
The Sangh Parivar also propagated the ultimately transforming them into sites rial in the Indu Mills compound in MumBADRI NARAYAN

ND-ND

NEWS

12 |
FROM PAGE ONE

Union government also felt

that there was flouting of Article 167(b) of the Constitution
as the government was not responding to the Governors
letters on issues of public
importance.
The Congress said the Centres decision exposed Mr. Modis double-speak on federalism. Expressing shock at the
Centres recommendation, Mr.
Tuki said there was no constitutional crises in the State and
whatever crisis was there it
was the Governors creation.
Mr. Tuki said the Governor
recommended Presidents rule
without consulting the State
Cabinet at a time when several
cases on the matter were in the

Supreme Court.
Congress spokesman Randeep Surjewala said the decision has exposed Mr. Modis
double-speak of respect for
federalism and States being
equal part of Team India.
The Modi governments decision reflects the travesty of
constitutional mandate, subjugation of federalism and trampling of democracy, he
tweeted.
Congress leader Kapil Sibal
said: The Centre is destabilising a border State. This move
shows political intolerance
and Mr. Modi is the fountainhead of that intolerance. We
will challenge it, he told reporters.

Pakistan must dismantle terror

networks, says Obama
Voicing his belief that the India-U.S. relationship can be
one of the defining partnerships of the century, he said
Mr. Modi shared his enthusiasm for a strong partnership
and we have developed a
friendship and close working
relationship, including our
conversations on the new secure lines between our oices.
Asked whether the relationship had achieved its full potential, the President replied:
Absolutely not.
On the Pathankot attack, he
said: We join India in condemning the attack, saluting
the Indians who fought to prevent more loss of life and extending our condolences to
the victims and their families.
Tragedies like this also underscore why the U.S. and India

Barack Obama says the

India-U.S.relationship has not
achieved its full potential yet.

continue to be such close partners in fighting terrorism.

The President was of the
view that Mr. Sharif recognised that insecurity in Pakistan is a threat to its own stability and that of the region. After
the December, 2014 school
massacre in Peshawar, he

vowed to target all militants,

regardless of their agenda or
ailiation. That is the right
policy. Since then, we have
seen Pakistan take action
against
several
specific
groups. We have also seen
continued terrorism inside
Pakistan such as the recent attack on the university in
northwest Pakistan.
The President said that he
still believed that Pakistan
can and must take more efective action against terrorist
groups that operated from its
territory. In the region and
around the world, there must
be zero tolerance of safe
havens, and terrorists must be
brought to justice, he said.
Mr. Obama said his visit to India last year reflected how the
ties between the two countries
had been transformed. PTI

Army oicers car stolen

A similar security alert was issued by the Delhi Police on Friday after the driver of an Alto
car hired from Pathankot was
found dead in Kangada and intelligence agencies provided
inputs about the vehicle being
used to target the Capital.
However, in the Lodhi Road
case, the police decided to play

down the theft.

A senior police oicer said
the vehicle did not have any official sticker or a blue beacon
unlike the ITBP vehicle or the
Punjab Police vehicle of Gurdaspur Superintendent of Police Salwinder Singh, stolen by
terrorists and used to carry out
the attack on Indian Air Force

THE HINDU MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

TERROR THREAT

Centre recommends
Presidents rule in Arunachal
Even if the Supreme Court
rules in favour of the interpretation that this session was not
valid, there will be a constitutional breakdown because the
requirement of Article 174(1)
would have been breached. On
the other hand, if the court
holds that the December 16
session was valid, it is clear the
government is in a minority
and is not allowing a vote of
confidence. Therefore, in either case, the State is heading
for a constitutional crisis, the
sources said.
The Centre considered the
fact that the Speaker, using the
State machinery, prevented
the session, though it was
called by the Governor. The

NOIDA/DELHI

base at Pathankot earlier this

month.
Dr. Singh, a doctor with the
Indian Army, is a resident of
Yusuf Sarai and is currently on
deputation at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences
(AIIMS). He had earlier served
at the Army (R&R) Hospital in
Dhaula Kuan.

IS suspects planned to target Goa

Officials delayed arrests till concrete leads emerged
VIJAITA SINGH
NEW DELHI: The terror suspects

linked to the Islamic State

(IS), arrested in a countrywide raid over the past few
days, had planned to target
Goa a few months ago, but Intelligence agencies did not
arrest them then as they had
not acquired the capability to
carry out any terrorist act, a
senior government oicial
told The Hindu.
Their arrest was precipitated this time as some of the
suspects had assembled liquid bombs and were also
found to be in possession of
remote controlled circuits,
said the oicial. Apart from
this, gunpowder, hydrogen
peroxide and pipes were recovered from some of them.
Under surveillance
As they were under surveillance for the past seveneight months, we came to
know of their intention to target Goa a few months ago. It
was decided not to arrest
them then as they neither had
explosives nor the organisational skill to carry out the attack. Had we arrested them
then, the case could have fallen flat in the court of law later

India has given

fresh proof: Sharif

K.V. ADITYA BHARADWAJ

BENGALURU: The series of ar-

on. We decided to wait and

watch, said the oicial.
The oicial refused to disclose the month or the time
when the terror suspects
wanted to target Goa.
The arrested men were being brought to Delhi in a
phased manner. Abu Anas
(24) and Nafees Khan (24),
both from Hyderabad, were
produced before the Special
Judge, NIA court, and remanded in police custody for
13 days, an NIA oicial said.
Another investigator said,
So far, we have arrested 14
people, but there could be
more men linked to this mod-

waz Sharif on Sunday said

India had given fresh leads
relating to the Pathankot
terror attack and Pakistan
was verifying the same to
bring the perpetrators to
justice.
We could have hidden it
or forgotten it but we asserted that we have received the
evidence, Mr. Sharif said on
a day when U.S. President
Barack Obama termed the
Pathankot terror strike another example of the inexcusable terrorism that India
has endured for too long.
PTI

ule. It is too early to divulge

details.
The oicials are scanning
the jihadi literature and the
CDs seized from the accused.
Mumbai resident Mudabbir Mushtaq Sheikh, said to
be the leader of the group,
was in regular contact with
former Indian Mujahideen
member Shafi Armar alias
Yousuf, now the leader of Ansar-ul-Tawhid (AuT), which
has pledged allegiance to the
IS, said the oicial. He had declared himself the Ameer
(head) of Janood-ul-Khalifae-Hind (Army of Caliph of
India).

rests of alleged suspects in

terror cases seems to have exposed the fact that the Karnataka Police failed to keep
track of two IT professionals
who were deported from Turkey after being caught trying
to cross over to Syria in January 2015.
The two have now gone untraceable and the failure to
keep track of them has raised
concern that State agencies
are not on the ball in tracking terror suspects, Intelligence Bureau sources say.
Both were part of a group
of nine people, including five
children, deported from Turkey.
The alleged leader of the
group, Mohammed Abdul
Ahad, who had taken his five
children and wife in the attempt to cross the Syrian border allegedly to fight for the
IS, has now been arrested.
But there are fears that one
of the two techies could have
fled from India. This is despite Central agencies asking

94 sites used by IS blocked

SHOUMOJIT BANERJEE

LONDON: Prime Minister Na-

Deported from Turkey,

untraceable now

PUNE: The Maharashtra Anti-

Terror Squad (ATS) on Sunday said it had blocked 94

websites deployed by the Islamic State terror outfit as
platforms to brainwash and
recruit vulnerable youth.
The influence of the IS is
clearly seen in Maharashtra
and 10 other States, said
Anti-Terrorism Squad chief
Vivek Phansalkar at a press
conference here.
The urgent decision was
taken in the backdrop of the
arrest of six individuals
from various cities in an anti-terror swoop conducted

ATS chief says

the squad is
monitoring social
media and other
sites
by the ATS in conjunction
with the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
Mr. Phansalkar said that a
new website, to be extensively used for the purpose
of de-radicalisation, would
be launched soon.
Were monitoring more
websites and social media
sites... any website used to
propagate the IS agenda will

be blocked. The IS emphasises the use of visuals in

their recruitment modus
operandi, with extensive
use of pictures downloaded
from various jihadi websites.
He said over 150 sites
were currently under the radar of the security agencies.
The recent arrests of 14 individuals across India suspected of IS linkages
showed fine inter-State coordination between the ATS
and the NIA. Mr. Phansalkar
said Muslim community
leaders had been roped in
for
confidence-building
measures.

NISTULA HEBBAR
NEW DELHI: Vinayak Damodar

Savarkar, for whom the Shiv

Sena is demanding the Bharat
Ratna, Indias highest civilian
honour, will be the subject of
a four-volume study by Sridhar Damle, co-author of the
seminal work on the RSS
The
Brotherhood
in
Safron.
Dr. Damle told The Hindu
that his volumes on Savarkar
would open new aspects of
the incident known as LAffaire Savarkar, when an international case resulted in The
Hague after his escape from
the British ship Morea
docked in Marseilles and
bound for Bombay.
I have found the file containing the minutes of a meeting where the British police
have been shown as having a
more direct hand in the arrest

of Savarkar than previously

supposed, he said.
The case, tried in the international court, was about Savarkar being handed over to
British authorities after being
mistaken for an escaping
crew member by the French
police. Later, when the
French discovered that he
was a political prisoner, the
case went into arbitration at
The Hague.
Dr.Damle said that through
research and documentation,
he wanted to look at Savarkars place in Indian history,
especially the period immediately preceding the Partition and the assassination of
Mahatma Gandhi.
I have found extensive
documentation up to 1943, but
I am trying to get my hands on
files pertaining to 1946-47. After the assassination of Gandhi, documentation is plenti-

ful, but this period remains in

the dark, he said.
Maxim Gorky wrote an article in Russian on Savarkar,
and others in several other
languages. Dr.Coutinho from
Goa had possession of Savarkars manuscript in Marathi
on his book on the revolt of
1857.
Dr.Coutinho then went on
to meet Madame Cama and
Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad
in Paris, Shyamji Krishna Verma in Geneva and Vladimir
Lenin in Zurich. His biography is a rich source, and took
me three years to locate, he
said.
He says he has over 10,000
pages of the Savarkar files
held by the British government and nearly 16,000 pages
of files from an archive in
Mumbai. My work is 95%
complete, and I hope to finish
it soon, he says.

the State police to keep track

of the entire group.
The family of one of the
two missing techies, Noufal,
said he was in Saudi Arabia,
but they do not have the documentation to support their
claim, said an NIA oicial.
Earlier this month, the city
police were left stumped
when the Delhi Police Special
Cell arrested radical cleric
Moulana Anzar Shah Qasmi
for his alleged links with the
Al-Qaeda in Indian Subcontinent (AQIS).
Qazmi, with whom all the
arrested suspects were in
touch, was under city police
surveillance for nearly three
months following tip-ofs
from the locality, but the surveillance inputs were not
shared with other agencies
and they failed to investigate
him thoroughly.

Six from Mumbai

held in Vadodara
AHMEDABAD: The police on Sun-

day detained six persons in

Vadodara after people complained about their alleged
suspicious movements.
They were picked up from a
dargah in the sensitive Yakutpura area of the city, about 100
km from here.
Preliminary investigation
revealed they were residents
of Mumbai and came to the
city in the morning by train,
Vadodara Police Commissioner E. Radhakrishnan said.
Mr. Radhakrishnan said a
team had been sent to Mumbai to ascertain the claims
made by the youths. PTI

Back to the drawing board for Amit Shah

NISTULA HEBBAR

Sridhar Damles four-volume

work to go into Lafaire Savarkar

Karnataka Police
failed to keep
track of two
techies brought
back to India

NEW DELHI: BJP president Amit

Shah was re-elected, unopposed, by his party for a full

three-year term, after he
completed the former president, Rajnath Singhs tenure
which was cut short when he
joined the Union Cabinet in
2014.
He will be the party president during the 2019 general
election, but much will depend on what he manages to
do in 2016, not a very promising year politically for the
party. Of the States going to
the polls this year Kerala,
Tamil Nadu, West Bengal
and Assam and the Union
Territory of Puducherry it
is only in Assam that the party has hopes of making
headway.
But that is not the most important challenge for Mr.
Shah. The main challenge is
two-fold: of perception and
an
organisational
trust
deficit.
In his first tenure, Mr. Shah
laid stress on expanding the
partys activities, and his
supporters are proud of the
fact that not only has the BJP

Celebrations outside the BJP headquarters in New Delhi on Sunday after Amit Shah was elected
party chief. PHOTO: PTI

become the largest political

party in the world with a
reported membership of over
11 crores, five times more than
what it was before Mr. Shah
took over it has also gained
toehold in Jammu and Kashmir, the Northeast, Ladakh
and Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The party had been
pushing the frontiers of its
growth and dispelling the

perception that it was a largely north-Indian, upper-caste

party that did not represent
non-hinterland areas.
This year, Mr. Shah will
have to go back to the drawing
board.
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwats remarks in an interview
to Organiser that the reservation system should be reviewed; Minister of State Gen.

(retd.) V.K. Singhs insensitive

remarks on the death of two
dalit children in Faridabad;
and the suicide of Dalit research scholar Rohith Vemula
have shattered the BJPs Dalit
outreach. The grand idea of
the Hindu vote, regardless of
caste, looks more distant now
than ever.
The consolidated Hindu
vote that propelled Prime

Minister Narendra Modi to

power in 2014, wiping out
many Opposition parties,
shows signs of falling apart, as
it did in Bihar, where the party
was routed in the Assembly
polls because of the consolidation of the backward castes
around the Janata Dal (United) and the Rashtriya Janata
Dal (RJD).
The second challenge to
Mr. Shah is that he will have to
address the first with a team
of people who dont trust each
other. Mr. Shahs style of micro-managing things had
alienated the State units in
places where elections took
place in 2015. This was an organisational grouse that has
forced the RSS to take up matters seriously. The result: The
State unit chiefs in Kerala,
West Bengal and, to some extent, in Assam have the RSS
stamp of approval and Mr.
Shahs team selection for this
tenure is under watch. His
own men may have to be shifted out to accommodate some
choices imposed by the exigencies of compromise. That
team will be expected to return the party to power in
2019.

Modi, Hollande to take up defence, space and nuclear cooperation

SUHASINI HAIDAR &
KALLOL BHATTACHERJEE
NEW DELHI: Having tackled busi-

ness-to-business issues at
their meeting in Chandigarh
on Sunday, Prime Minister
Narendra Modi and French
President Francois Hollande
are likely to focus on intergovernmental issues on Monday.
These include the completion of the agreement for the
purchase of Rafale aircraft.
Expectations have been rising ahead of Mr. Hollandes
visit of a breakthrough in
price negotiations, similar to
the one in the India-U.S. nuclear deal that was announced when President Barack Obama visited India for
Republic Day in 2015.
Mr. Modi and Mr. Hollande
will take up the pricing issue
on
Monday,
oicials
confirmed.
Both sides are likely to anCM
YK

nounce a new phase of space

cooperation between the
space agencies ISRO and
CNES, with a special satellite
dedicated to climate change
research.
In addition, India and
France will discuss more
cooperation on the lines of
the renewable energy agreement signed last April. Shortly after their meeting in Delhi
on Monday, Mr. Modi and Mr.
Hollande will travel to Gurgaon to inaugurate the International Solar Alliance Secretariat.
Oicials said the two sides
could announce new partnerships for more nuclear energy
plants, while discussing the
hurdles to land acquisition for
the six-reactor 9,900-MW Jaitapur facility for which Areva
and NPCIL signed an agreement in 2010.
The leaders will end the
day by attending a banquet
hosted by President Pranab

Mukherjee and will oiciate

at the Republic Day parade on
the morning of January 26.
This is the fifth time a French
President is being invited as
the chief guest for the parade,
marking a record honour for
any country invited by India.
They will take the salute for
the first time from a French
contingent of the 35th infantry regiment that has fought
terror groups in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The two countries have
unfortunately experienced
terrorism in diferent ways,
but they can learn from each
other, Lt. Col. P. Bury, Commanding Oicer of the 35th
Infantry Regiment of 7th Armoured Brigade, said. Speaking about the contingent
marching down Rajpath as a
symbol of India-French cooperation, Mr. Hollande said the
occasion on Tuesday would
an exclusive and historic
one. (With inputs from PTI)

Rock Garden gets French attention

CHANDIGARH: The iconic Rock

Garden here hosted two highprofile visitors on Sunday, as

Prime Minister Narendra Modi joined French President
Francois Hollande for a tour
of the place housing sculptures made from industrial
and household waste.
Mr. Hollande arrived here
in the afternoon as he began
his three-day visit to India.
Mr. Modi reached Chandigarh the city designed by
French architect Le Corbusier
around 80 minutes after
Mr. Hollandes arrival here at 1
p.m.
The high-profile visitors
spent about 20 minutes at the
Rock Garden. The duo then
proceeded to the Capitol
Complex, which includes the
Open Hand Monument besides the Secretariats, High
Court and Legislative As-

Will the fighter get

a cheaper price tag?
DINAKAR PERI
NEW DELHI: A senior govern-

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Francois

Hollande with folk dancers at the Government Museum and Art
Gallery in Chandigarh on Sunday. PHOTO: PTI

sembly of Punjab and Haryana, designed by Le Corbusier.

Denied entry
But the son of the late Nek
Chand, creator of the iconic
Rock Garden, alleged that a

Prime Ministers security oicial asked him to leave the

venue minutes before Mr.
Modi joined Mr. Hollande for
there. Anuj Saini said he was
asked to go out despite having an entry card. PTI

ment oicial, speaking about

the Rafale fighter jet deal,
said eforts were on to reduce
the price per aircraft by 20
per cent, which is now over
Euro 100 million or Rs. 800
crore, along with the weapons package.
In a surprise move, Prime
Minister Narendra Modi,
during his visit to Paris last
April, announced the decision on the direct purchase
of 36 Rafale fighter jets, citing the critical operational
necessity of the Indian Air
Force. Teams from both
countries have been holding
hectic talks over the last few

days to finalise the draft of

the government-to-government agreement, which will
lead to the commercial deal.
However, the final deal has
been delayed by diferences
over pricing and delivery
schedule. My impression is
essentially the hurdles have
been removed, the former
Ambassador, Kanwal Sibal,
told The Hindu, referring to
the resolution of the ofset issue.
Helicopter project
Mahindra of India and aircraft major Airbus signed an
agreement to establish a joint
venture to build military helicopters in India under the
Make in India initiative.
ND-ND

NEWS

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU

MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

JOINT FIGHT

India, Arab League vow to

check terror, funding sources
Those who silently sponsor terror groups may end up being used by them
MANAMA: India and the Arab
League on Sunday vowed to
combat terrorism and called
for developing a strategy to
eliminate its sources and its
funding as External Afairs
Minister Sushma Swaraj
made a strong pitch for delinking religion from terrorism.
While addressing the 1st
Ministerial Meeting of ArabIndia Cooperation Forum
here in the Bahraini capital,
Ms. Swaraj also warned that
those who silently sponsor
terror groups could end up
being used by them, in an apparent jibe at Pakistan.
Those who believe that silent sponsorship of such terrorist groups can bring rewards must realise that they
have their own agenda; they
are adept at using the benefactor more efectively than
the sponsor has used them,
Ms. Swaraj told some 14 foreign ministers of the 22-member Arab League grouping,
with its Secretary General
Nabil El Araby in attendance.

Turning point
She said the meeting
marked a turning point for
India-Arab relations, while
pointing out that we are also

Civil services
oicers seek fair
representation
on pay panel
NATIONAL BUREAU
NEW DELHI: Seeking to challenge
the dominance of Indian Administrative Service (IAS), a
confederation representing
thousands of oicers of 20
Civil Services, including Indian Police Service, has sought
fair representation on an empowered committee that will
examine the Seventh Central
Pay
Commission
recommendations.
In a memorandum submitted to Cabinet Secretary P.K.
Sinha and Expenditure Secretary Ratan P. Watal recently, it
demanded that the representation of any one service be
restricted to 25 per cent of the
total
strength
of
the
committee.
On January 13, the Union
Cabinet gave its approval for
setting up an empowered
committee of Secretaries under the Cabinet Secretary to
process the recommendations of the pay panel.
The Confederation of Civil
Services Association (COCSA) has highlighted the apprehensions shared by a
majority of oicers and requested for a fair representation to other services on committee, said senior IRS oicer
Jayant Misra, its convener.
The COCSA had in December forwarded a memorandum and sought an appointment with the Cabinet
Secretary to explain to him
the concern of these
oicers.
We are still waiting for an
opportunity to meet the Cabinet Secretary. We have submitted fresh memoranda dated January 19, 2016 to the
Cabinet Secretary and also to
the Expenditure Secretary,
reiterating our demand that
equitable representation be
given to various services in all
the bodies or committees etc.
looking into or implementing
the recommendations of the
seventh CPC, so that there is
no domination by any particular service, Mr. Misra pointed out.

College girls
were murdered
STAFF REPORTER

Minister for External Affairs Sushma Swaraj and her Bahrain

counterpart Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa signing an agreement
in Manama on Sunday. PHOTO: PTI

at a major turning point in history when the forces of terrorism and violent extremism
are seeking to destabilise societies and inflict incalculable
damage to our cities, our people and our very social
fabric.
Equally, we must delink religion from terror. The only
distinction is between those
who believe in humanity and
those who do not. Terrorists

use religion, but inflict harm

on people of all faiths, said
Ms. Swaraj, who arrived here
on Saturday.
The Manama Declaration
The meeting, which was
opened by Bahrains Foreign
Minister Khalid bin Ahmed
Al Khalifa, culminated with
the two sides issuing a joint
statement called the Manama
Declaration.

The two sides discussed regional and global issues of

mutual concern, including
the Palestinian issue, developments in the Arab region
and in South Asia, as well as
counter-terrorism, Security
Council reforms and nuclear
disarmament.
The two sides condemned
terrorism in all its forms and
manifestations and rejected
associating it with any religion, culture or ethnic group.
They also emphasised the
need for concerted regional
and international eforts to
combat terrorism and to address its causes and develop a
strategy to eliminate the
sources of terrorism and extremism, including its funding, as well as combating organised cross-border crime,
the Declaration stated.
In this context, the two
sides airmed their respect to
the independence, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of Iraq and non-interference in its internal afairs
and rejecting infringement of
such principles, strongly condemned crimes committed by
all terror organisations, especially those committed by the
Islamic State. PTI

I feel sad for ordering firing

on kar sewaks, says Mulayam
LUCKNOW: About 25 years after
the incident, Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh on
Sunday said he felt sad for
ordering firing on kar sewaks in Ayodhya in 1990, but
it was necessary to save the
religious place.
Mr Singh, who was then
Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, had ordered firing on
kar sewaks in which 16 people were killed.

I feel sad for firing on kar

sewaks but it was necessary
to save the religious place
(Babri Mosque), Mr Singh
said, while addressing workers at the party headquarters
here marking the birth anniversary of socialist leader
Karpoori Thakur.
The SP chief said when the
then Leader of Opposition
Atal Bihari Vajpayee had
mentioned the incident in

Parliament, he had replied

that it was necessary to order
firing.
Ministers flayed
Addressing the workers,
he came down heavily on the
party Ministers saying, he
knew what they were doing.
If they (ministers) have to
earn money they should quit
politics and start business.-PTI

| 13

U.S. scholar denied

access to Bose papers
PARVATHI MENON
LONDON: An eminent Ameri-

can academic and Subhas

Chandra Bose scholar has
tried for the past 15 years to
access the Nehru papers in
the Nehru Memorial Library
for material relating to Bose,
but has been denied permission by Congress president
Sonia Gandhi in whose
hands lies the authority to
grant or deny scholars permission to use them.
Unless you have Sonia
Gandhis permission, you
cant see the documents,
even today. If there is some
file in Nehrus papers about
Subhas Bose, I cannot see it.
Sonia Gandhi has to give permission for people to see the
papers of Jawaharlal Nehru
when he was Prime Minister
from 1957 to 64. She has
approved about five people
and I am not one of them,
Leonard Gordon, the author
of the definitive book on the
lives of the Bose brothers
Subhas and Sarat Chandra
Bose, entitled Brothers
Against the Raj: A Biography
of Indian Nationalist Leaders Sarat and Subhas Chandra Bose, published in 1990,
told The Hindu in a telephone interview.
Professor Gordon, who
taught at the South Asia Institute in Columbia, current-

Professor Leonard Gordon

says the classification of
files on Netaji is a case of
undue official secrecy.

ly heads the Taraknath Foundation in the same institute.

He is in India for a series of
talks on Bose and said this in
the context of the controversies that the recent declassification of documents relating
to the Indian National Army
leader by the Narendra Modi
government has ignited.
Phoney letter
Professor Gordon believes
that the letter purportedly
written by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to British
Prime Minister Clement Attlee in which he refers to Subhas Chandra Bose as your
war criminal is definitely
phoney.
Asked why he thinks the

Nehru letter is a fabrication,

as after all, Nehru referred to
Bose as your war criminal
in a letter to the head of the
country that did indeed regard Bose as a war criminal,
Professor Gordon said: I
have not yet seen the document first hand, but I have
been told that it is full of misspellings and mistakes. Nehru was a meticulous user of
English. The document is
phoney. We dont know when
it was put there [in the cache
of declassified documents]. I
have read hundreds of Nehrus letters in the files on Nehru in the Nehru Library. He
would never write such a
thing.
Subhas Boses decision to
ally with the Germans and Japanese against the British
was condemned by the nationalist mainstream in India
and alienated Bose further
from the Congress leadership. After World War II,
however, once the sacrifices
of the soldiers of the Indian
National Army in Burma
(now Myanmar) came to
light, Nehru changed his
evaluation of the INA, lauding its spirit but still critical of
its tactics. Professor Gordon
does not expect much new
information in the documents, believing that their
classification is a case of undue oicial secrecy.

Netaji did not live in USSR

LONDON: The 100 government
files declassified by India
confirm that Netaji Subhas
Chandra Bose did not live in
the former Soviet Union in or
after 1945, said a U.K. website
set up to chart the last days of
the nationalist leader.
The Russian government
informed the Indian Embassy in Moscow in 1992 and
1995 that there was no record
of Bose being in the Soviet

Union in or after 1945, the

website bosefiles.info said as
it reiterated its claim on December 7 denying that Bose
escaped to the Soviet Union
in 1945.
The website was set up in
London to chronicle the
truth about how Bose died.
As a maiden disclosure, it
rendered redundant the
speculation among a section
of people that he escaped to

the Soviet Union and was not

killed in the plane crash in
Taipei on August 18, 1945.
Notes exchanged between
the Prime Ministers Oice
and other Union Ministries
in the mid-1990s uphold the
revelation made by bosefiles.info that there were two replies from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Afairs to
queries from the Indian Embassy stating its point. PTI

CM
YK

NEW DELHI: The Manmohan

Singh government in
2006 had accepted that
ashes in Renkoji Temple
in Japan were those of
Netaji Subhas Chandra
Bose.
It even instructed
Indian Ambassador to
work out modalities to
shift the mortal remains
of the freedom fighter to
new building of the
Indian Embassy there
when the temples priest
indicated that the
remains could not be
preserved with respect,
according to the files on
Netaji, released by Prime
Minister Narendra Modi
on Saturday.
The points were made
in a reply by the Ministry
of External Afairs to then
Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh who
instructed the Ministry to
examine the issue of
bringing back the
remains of Netaji, it
showed.
Dr. Singh had asked the
MEA to examine the
issue after he received a
representation on Dec. 7,
2006 from Subrata Bose,
then Lok Sabha MP, who
said that countless
Indians were of the firm
view that ashes in the
Japanese temple were
not those of Netaji and
any decision of the
government to take over
the remains would be
opposed tooth and nail.
In its reply, the MEA
had said that the
government of India
accepted that the ashes in
the temple were those of
Netaji. The MEA has
decided that the remains
will be relocated to a new
building of the Indian
Embassy being built in
Tokyo, the Ministry
pointed out. PTI

Red Fort all set to host four-day festival

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

SC upholds no open tender

policy for key defence spares
KRISHNADAS RAJAGOPAL
NEW DELHI: Taking note of Indias substantial role as a defence power and the need to
keep the lives of its personnel safe, the Supreme Court
upheld the governments
policy against having any
open advertisements inviting tenders for critical and
specialised defence spare
parts.
In a recent judgment, a
Bench of Chief Justice of India T.S. Thakur and Justice R.
Banumathi set aside a Delhi
High Court decision ordering the government to issue
advertisements to invite
open tenders for the purchase of submarine batteries.
For defence critical spare
parts like submarine batteries, there cannot be any open
advertisement inviting tenders. Advertisements are issued calling for tenders only
for common use items which
are normally available in the
open market with a wide
range of sources. Submarine
batteries do not fall under
this category of common use
items, the apex court held.
In the verdict delivered on
an appeal filed by the Centre,
Justice Banumathi, who authored the judgment, agreed
with the justifiable reasons
cited by the government to
classify submarine batteries
as critical and specialised defence product to be procured
only from duly approved
suppliers under the close
watch of the Directorate
General Quality Assurance

The Supreme Court Bench set aside a High Court verdict on

the purchase of submarine batteries. FILE PHOTO: K.R. DEEPAK

Advertisements
for tenders are
only for items of
common use, says
Supreme Court
(DGQA). The dispute arose
when a company, HBL NIFE
Power Systems Ltd, wanted
an opportunity to supply the
batteries but did not get the
green signal from the government, which gave the
contract to its usual approved supplier.
Noting that HBL could not
claim any vested right to
supply submarine batteries,
the Supreme Court judgment observed that the lives
of defence personnel could
not be put at risk merely on
the basis of the companys
claim to have the capability
to
supply
submarine
batteries.
If the country wishes to
play a substantial role in the
Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea, India must ensure
high standards of defence
power comparing with the

neighbouring countries and

it should have modernised
submarines.
Modernised
submarines require submarine batteries with high sophisticated standard under
the aegis of DGQA. The government cannot put the lives
of its defence personnel and
submarine worth crores of
rupees to risk simply because the respondent [HBL]
claims to have the capability
and can supply submarine
batteries, the judgment said.
The importance of submarine batteries to a submarine
cannot be underestimated as
it is strategically a vital
equipment for submarines, it
said.
The only source of power
to a submarine when it dives
beyond nine metres into sea/
ocean is submarine batteries. Batteries are unique
source of electric energy in
underwater navigation ... If
the batteries fail, submarine
will be without power and it
can have catastrophic consequences on men as also submarine would be lost, the
apex court pointed out.

NEW DELHI: As part of Republic

Day celebrations, the government will organise a four-day
festival at the Red Fort showcasing cuisine and culture of
diferent States.
The aim is to generate a
patriotic mood, promote the
rich cultural diversity of the
country and to ensure wider
participation of the general
public, an oicial release
said.
The Bharat Parv will be
open to public from 5 p.m. to
9 p.m. on January 26, and
from 12 noon to 9 p.m. on January 27, January 28 and January 29.

Identity proof mandatory

The release said the Tourism Ministry had been designated as the nodal ministry
for the event, the highlights
of which include display of
Republic Day parade tab-

A horse went berserk during the full dress rehearsal for the Republic Day celebrations, on
the Lal Parade ground in Bhopal on Sunday. PHOTO: PTI

leaux, performances by the

Armed Forces Bands (static
and moving), food festival,
crafts mela and cultural performances from diferent re-

gions of the country.

The event is open to the
public and the entry is free.
However, identity proof is to
be carried, it added.

Govt. move to scrap AMUs

minority status condemned
OMAR RASHID
LUCKNOW: Condemning the
unnecessary interference
in the afairs of the minority
character of the Aligarh
Muslim University (AMU)
and the Jamia Millia Islamia,
senior lawyers and activists
on Sunday urged the Human
Resources
Development
Ministry to keep away from
vote bank politics. They
criticised the Centre's move
to scrap the minority status
of the two prominent
universities.
A joint resolution passed
by senior lawyers, activists

and groups, including the

AMU Old Boys Association,
termed the Centres plan to
strip the minority status of
these two varsities a sinister vote bank politics to promote an unholy agenda and
dilute special character of
these two premier seats of
learning.
They termed as a highly
condemnable act the interference of the MHRD in the
internal afairs of the Hyderabad University, which resulted in the death of Dalit
research scholar Rohit
Vemula.
The resolution, which

was passed at a seminar in

Allahabad, also condemned
and termed as unconstitutional the remarks of Attorney-General Muku Rohatgi
that the AMU and the JMI
were not minority educational institutions. The two
instutions institutions were
set up by an Act of Parliament and not by Muslims,
was
the
argument
presented.
Attended by prominent
lawyers of the Allahabad
High Court, the signatories
included Zafaryab Zilani,
Additional Advocate-General of the Uttar Pradesh.

VILLUPURAM /CHENNAI: A day after

three girls of the SVS College

of Naturopathy and Yoga Science at Bangaram in Villupuram were found dead in a well
near the institution, revenue
oicials sealed the college
and picked up the son of the
colleges administrator, a lecturer, and two hostel wardens
for questioning.
The parents of the girls suspected foul play and expressed the fear that the students were killed and their
bodies dumped in the well as
they had confronted the management about monetary exploitation some months ago.

Ashes in
Renkoji Temple
are of Netaji,
say files

Centre sanctions funds for Wagah-like ceremony in Tripura

AGARTALA: The Centre has

sanctioned funds to create

infrastructure for Beating
Retreat ceremony here at
Agartala-Akhaura border
with Bangladesh, similar to
that at Wagah in Punjab.
Of the Rs. 99 crore
sanctioned by the Centre to
develop tourist spots in
Tripura, Rs. 18 crore has
been earmarked to create

infrastructure at the
Agartala-Akhaura border
for Wagah-like Beating
Retreat ceremony, State
Tourism Minister Ratan
Bhowmik said.
The money was
sanctioned by the Union
Tourism Ministry under the
Swadesh Darshan scheme
for building a mini stadium
and roads among others.

It will be in a more
friendly manner
as Indias ties with
Bangladesh are
very cordial: BSF
Work on developing the
infrastructure will begin
soon, the minister said.
The Agartala-Akhaura

check post is an integrated

one, which is also the
second largest trading
centre with Bangladesh
after Benapole and
Petrapole in West Bengal.
The Beating Retreat
ceremony is performed at
Wagah during closing of the
border every evening by the
BSF and its Pakistani
counterpart Pakistan

Rangers since 1959 and is a

major tourist attraction.
The Beating Retreat
ceremony at Wagah is
performed by the BSF and
the Rangers in a bit
aggressive manner. But it
would be done in a more
friendly atmosphere at
Akhaura check post because
Indias ties with Bangladesh
and BSFs relation with the

Border Guards Bangladesh

(BGB) is very cordial, BSF
spokesperson D.S. Bhati
said.
The BSF and the BGB
regularly perform a beating
retreat in Agartala-Akhaura
border and it could be a
more exciting and splendid
show with the building of
proper infrastructure, the
spokesperson added. PTI

Cultural shows will include folk and tribal dances

and musical programme by
the Culture Ministry through
its zonal cultural centres.

Trinamool draws
flak over Madan
Mitra ticket issue
STAFF REPORTER
KOLKATA: The Opposition par-

ties in West Bengal were

quick to seize the opportunity
over the controversy sparked
over giving ticket to contest
coming Assembly elections to
incarcerated Trinamool Congress leader Madan Mitra accused in Saradha scam.
After the remarks of party
MP Saugata Roy that Mr. Mitra would contest from Kamarahati seat in North 24 Parganas what provided more
ammunition to the Opposition is an event in the constituency on Sunday where the
MLAs son Subharup Mitra
was
seen
distributing
blankets.
The public appearance of
Mr. Mandan Mitras younger
son in his fathers constituency comes despite claims by
the party that no decision on
ticket distribution had been
taken.
Communist Party of India
(Marxist) Polit Bureau member and MP Md. Salim said
that Mr. Roys announcement
showed that Mr. Mitra and the
TMC leadership were on the
same page. State Congress
leadership described the development as the TMCs sign
of desperation.
ND-ND

WORLD

14 |

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

Massive blizzard leaves 19 dead in U.S.

Washington hit with two feet of snow while NY City just shy of all-time record; New Jersey, Delaware flooded
NEW YORK AND WASHINGTON: New

York lifted a travel ban and

mass transit started getting
back to normal on Sunday after a near-record blizzard in
the U.S. northeast, but Washington remained at a standstill following storms that
killed at least 19 people across
the country.
The storm was the secondbiggest in New York City history, with 26.8 inches of snow
in Central Park by midnight
on Saturday, just shy of the record 26.9 inches set in 2006,
the National Weather Service
said.
Thirteen people were
killed in weather-related car
crashes in Arkansas, North
Carolina, Kentucky, Ohio,
Tennessee and Virginia on
Saturday. One person died in
Maryland and three in New
York while shoveling snow.
Two died of hypothermia in
Virginia, oicials said.
New York Mayor Bill de
Blasio said Sunday would be a
major cleanup day. He urged
residents to stay of streets so
city crews could clear roads.
We still have some areas that
we have to do a lot more work
on. But we've come through it
pretty well," he said on ABCs
This Week with George Stephanopolous. The snow pile
is going to be with us for a
while, but I think well be in
good shape in the next 24
hours, Mr. de Blasio said.
On the New Jersey shore, a
region hard-hit in 2012 by Superstorm Sandy, the storm
drove flooding high tides. After dumping about two feet of
snow on the Washington area,
the storm unexpectedly
strengthened as it spun
northward and slammed into
the New York metropolitan
area on Saturday, home to
about 20 million people.
Winds gusting to more than
64 kmph sculpted drifts many
feet high, burying cars.
By early Sunday the storm

Wont lose votes

even if I shoot
someone: Trump
SIOUX CENTRE, IOWA: Donald
Trump is so confident about
the loyalty of his supporters
that he predicted on Saturday
they would stick with him
even if he shot someone.
The Republican presidential frontrunner bashed conservative commentator Glenn
Becks support of rival Ted
Cruz and welcomed a Republican figure, Sen. Chuck
Grassley of Iowa, in rallies
nine days before the Iowa caucuses open voting in the 2016
campaign. I could stand in
the middle of Fifth Avenue
and shoot somebody, and I
wouldnt lose any voters,
OK? Mr. Trump told the audience at Dordt College, a
Christian school. Its like incredible.
Mr. Beck campaigned for
Mr. Cruz and held little back
in going after Mr. Trump.
The time for silliness and
reality show tactics has
passed, Mr. Beck charged .
He warned that a Trump victory in the February 1 caucuses could have lasting consequences If Donald Trump
wins, its going to be a snowball to hell. Mr. Trump demonstrated the extent to which
some Republicans have begun to accept a potential
Trump nomination when Mr.
Grassley introduced him at a
later event in Pella. AP

THE PERFECT STORM: (Clockwise from above) A snowplough clears snow on Lexington Avenue in Manhattan, New York, during the snowstorm; NASA released a model
of the storm system that dumped potentially record-breaking snowfall in eastern U.S; a woman walks with a suitcase down a snow-covered street in New York City
on Sunday. The storm caused near-record high tides to crash on to the New Jersey shore, which was hard hit in 2012 by Superstorm Sandy. The driver of an SUV
looks out of his window on a flooded street in North Wildwood, New Jersey, on Saturday. PHOTOS: AFP, AP & NASA

had all but moved of the

coastline, with remnants
trailing over parts of Long Island and Cape Cod. Much of
the northeast was expected to
see a mix of sun and clouds on
Sunday with temperatures
just above freezing.
Shows, flights cancelled
Given the storms impact, it
was too soon to tell how much
Wall Streets reopening on
Monday would be afected.
Broadway theatres cancelled Saturday matinee and
evening performances at the
urging of the mayor, and a
Bruce Springsteen concert
set for Sunday was called of.
As an otherworldly quiet
descended on the usually
bustling city of 8.5 million, the
nation's most populous, tourists and residents took to city
streets, venturing into the expanses of parks, some on skis.
Others built snowmen and
had snowball fights.
About 3,500 flights were
cancelled on Sunday, with
more than 600 already cancelled for Monday, said

It is too soon to
tell how much Wall
Streets reopening
on Monday
will be affected
FlightAware.com, the aviation data and tracking website. United Airlines said it
would not operate at Washington-area airports on Sunday, and would gradually resume service on Monday. The
airline plans to start "very
limited operations" on Sunday afternoon at its Newark,
New Jersey, hub.
The brunt of the blizzard
reached the New York City
area after battering Washington, which was buried under
two feet of snow.
Snow piled up outside the
White House and famous
monuments were frosted.
The record high of 28 inches
of snow in Washington was
set in 1922 and the biggest recent snowfall was 17.8 inches
in 2010. The city was a dazzling white under a bright

sun, and some people, including the occasional crosscountry skier, were out in the
wintry landscape on Sunday.
More tides expected
High winds battered the
entire East Coast, from North
Carolina to New York, reaching 70 mph in Wallops Island, Virginia, late on Friday,
whipping up the tides and
causing coastal flooding, said
National Weather Service
meteorologist Greg Gallina.
The snow also engulfed the
Mid-Atlantic cities of Baltimore and Philadelphia while
about 150,000 customers in
North Carolina and 90,000
homes in New Jersey lost
electricity.
Accumulations in parts of
Virginia and West Virginia reached 40 inches.
Tides higher than those
caused by Superstorm Sandy
three years ago pushed water
onto roads along the Jersey
Shore and Delaware coast
and set records in Cape May,
New Jersey, and Lewes, Delaware. Reuters

Malaysia arrests 7
IS-linked militants
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian police said on Sunday seven
members of an Islamic State
(IS) cell had been arrested in
a three-day operation carried
out across the Southeast
Asian country.
The
operation
was
launched in four states on January 22, ahead of Mondays
International Conference on
Deradicalisation and Countering Violent Extremism
that Malaysia is hosting.
The police said the suspects had received instructions to carry out attacks in
Malaysia by Syria-based IS
members, including Bahrun
Naim, an Indonesian militant
named as the mastermind of
January 14 suicide attacks in
Jakarta which killed seven
people.
All of the suspects are
members of the same cell,
who are responsible for planning terror attacks in strategic locations throughout Malaysia, Inspector-General of
Police Khalid Abu Bakar said
in a statement.
He said the suspects were
also given orders by Muhammad Wanndy Mohamed Jedi,
a known Malaysian IS recruiter who had previously been
linked to a beheading video
in Syria.
The arrests were made following the January 15 capture
of a suspected militant who
had confessed to planning a
suicide attack in Kuala
Lumpur, according to Khalid.
One of the suspects was
believed to be responsible
for collecting and channelling funds to Malaysian citizens looking to join up with
IS in Syria.
The funds were also to be
used to fund a terrorist operation in Malaysia, Mr. Khalid
said. Reuters

Dhaka files charges

The New York Times
reports:
Bangladeshi authorities
have filed terrorism charges

They received
instructions from
Syria-based
jihadists to carry
out attacks: police
against 14 Bangladeshi construction workers deported
from Singapore last week on
suspicion of involvement
with
Islamic
militant
networks.
The authorities in Dhaka,
however, also dismissed
some elements of the Singaporean warning, saying there
was no evidence that the
workers had links to al-Qaida
or the Islamic State group or
that they were planning an
attack in Bangladesh.
Of the 27 workers deported by Singapore, 13 have been
released and allowed to return to their families, because, though they subscribe
to radical views, they had not
violated any law, said Monirul Islam, the joint commissioner of the detective
branch of the Dhaka metropolitan police.
We will keep our watch
on them, he said. They will
be under our surveillance.
Islam said that the 14 men
who had been charged were
mentally ready to get involved with terror activities
at any time, but that the police had not found any specific plan of carrying out an
attack on any particular
target.
Singapore announced last
week that its law enforcement agencies had identified
27 Bangladeshis, members of
a closed religious study
group, who had become
radicalized and were planning attacks back home.
Among their possessions,
the Singaporean authorities
found diagrams apparently
used to instruct men in silent killing and videos that
showed young children
training with firearms.

Greek islanders to be nominated Madhesis reject changes to Constitution

for Nobel Peace Prize
India welcomes Nepal amendments
KATHMANDU: Nepals agitating

reek islanders who

have been on the frontline of the refugee crisis are
to be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize with the
support of their national
government.
Of the 9,00,000 refugees
who entered Europe last
year, most were received
scared, soaked and travelling in rickety boats by
those who live on the Greek
islands in the Aegean Sea.
The islanders, including
fishermen who gave up their
work to rescue people from
the sea, are in line to be honoured with one of the
worlds most esteemed
awards. Eminent academics
from the universities of Oxford, Princeton, Harvard,
Cornell and Copenhagen
are drafting a submission in
favour of awarding the prize
to the people of Lesbos, Kos,
Chos, Samos, Rhodes and
Leros.
The nomination deadline
is February 1, but those behind the plan have already
met the Greek Minister for
Migration, Yiannis Mouzalas, who they say has ofered
his governments full support. A petition on the website of the grassroots campaign group, Avaaz, in

A rescue team monitoring refugees and migrants as they

cross the Aegean sea on a dinghy from Turkish coasts to the
Greek island of Lesbos. FILE PHOTO: AP

favour of the nomination

has amassed 2,80,000 signatures. According to the petition: On remote Greek islands, grandmothers have
sung terrified little babies to
sleep, while teachers, pensioners and students have
spent months ofering food,
shelter, clothing and comfort to refugees who have
risked their lives to flee war
and terror.
While the oicial nomination letter is yet to be finalised, it is understood the
academics, whose identities
will be revealed in the coming days, will implore the

Nobel committee members

to accept their nomination.
They will say it must be
noted that a people of a
country already dealing
with its own economic crisis responded to the unfolding tragedy of the refugee
crisis with empathy and
self-sacrifice, opening their
homes to the dispossessed,
risking their lives to save
others and taking care of the
sick and injured.
Only individuals or organisations are eligible to win
the prize. Guardian
Newspapers
Limited,
2016

Madhesis on Sunday rejected

the constitutional amendments passed by the Parliament as incomplete for failing to address concerns over
redrawing of borders. This
has dimmed hopes of an early
end to the political imbroglio
and blockade of trade points
with India.
Though the constitution
amendment bill endorsed by
the Parliament on Saturday
was positive to some extent, it
does not address the demands
raised by Madhesi parties in
their entirety, said Rameshwar Raya Yadav, senior Madhesi leader and senior vicepresident of Madhesi Peoples
Rights Forum Democratic.
Yadav listed the positive
provisions in the amendment
as those dealing with proportionate representation, inclusiveness, and allocation of
Parliament seats on the basis
of population. He said it
would have been better if the
agitating parties were taken
into confidence before endorsing the two amendment
bills.
The amendmentswere endorsed by a two-third majority on Saturday. The Madhesis
in Nepal are largely of Indian
origin.
The lawmakers of the agitating parties had boycotted
the voting, saying the amendments were incomplete, as
they fell short of addressing

KALLOL BHATTACHERJEE
NEW DELHI: India on Sunday

welcomed the first round of

amendments of the Nepal
Constitution, which is expected
to create a more inclusive
society in Nepal.
We regard the two
amendments passed yesterday
by the Nepal Parliament as
positive developments. We hope
that other outstanding issues
are similarly addressed in a
constructive spirit, the Ministry
of External Affairs said in an
official statement.
The amendments, supported
by 461 of the 601 members of
Parliament, covered Article 42 to
ensure more inclusive social
justice, Article 84 to create a
House of Representatives, and
Article 286 to create a new
process of constituency
delimitation, helping the
Madhesi groups.
their concerns, including redrawing federal boundaries.
Rajendra Shrestha, co-chair
of the Sanghiya Samajbadi Forum Nepal a constituent of
the United Democratic Madhesi Front, said that the proposal by Nepali Congress
leaders Minendra Rijal and
Farmullah Mansoor was more
progressive than the original
bill filed in Parliament on De-

attaining the provinces. The

amendments were passed in the
absence of the 35 members of
the Madhesi political parties
who boycotted the late night
session.
Nepals Constitution,
promulgated on September 20,
2015, has attracted a series of
amendment proposals.
Saturdays amendment was the
Main demand
first of the process and several
The amendment process,
others are expected to come up
however, did not include the
soon.
main demand of the Madhesis
Devi Prasad Tripathi, Indias
for the creation of two separate Rajya Sabha member, and one of
Madhesi provinces in the plains
the key interlocutors on Nepal,
of Nepal.
said that the amendments,
The amendment process is a though incomplete, had started
step in the right direction. But it the process for the first official
has not addressed the core issue visit by Prime Minister K.P.
of creating two provinces for
Sharma Oli to India. Prime
Madhesi people on the 1,200Minister Oli was expected to
km-long southern plains of Nepal clear the amendments before his
bordering India, said Rajendra
trip to India, which is expected
Mahato of the UMDF, pledging to to be in the first week of
continue the struggle for
February, Mr.Tripathi said.
All the three elements of the
amendment process were part
of a deal between the
government of Nepal and its
mainstream political parties, and
the rebel Madhesi political
formation of the United Madhesi
Democratic Front (UMDF), which
has been agitating for the
changes in the Constitution.

cember 15. As many as 24 proposals were filed by more

than 100 lawmakers of diferent parties, seeking to amend
the bill, which was endorsed
in the House after incorporating the proposal registered by
Rijal and Mansoor.
The agitating parties said
the revision proposal, in line
with which the Constitution
Amendment Bill was en-

dorsed, was incomplete despite being progressive, The

Kathmandu Post reported.
Morcha leaders said that
they would comment only after studying the text of the
amendment.
Madhesis, who are inhabitants of the Terai region, are
opposed to the new Constitution that divides their ancestral homeland. PTI

Moneyed Saudis, the CIA and the arming of Syrian rebels

Support for the Syrian insurgents fighting President Bashar al-Assad is only the latest chapter in the decades-long relationship between the espionage services of Saudi Arabia and the United States
MARK MAZZETTI &
MATT APUZZO
WASHINGTON: When President
Barack Obama secretly authorised the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to begin
arming Syrias embattled rebels in 2013, the spy agency
knew it would have a willing
partner to help pay for the
covert operation. It was the
same partner the CIA has relied on for decades for money
and discretion in far-of conflicts: the Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia.
Since then, the CIA and its
Saudi counterpart have maintained an unusual arrangement for the rebel-training
mission, which the Americans have code-named Timber Sycamore. Under the deal,
current and former adminis-

CM
YK

tration oicials said, the Saudis contribute both weapons

and large sums of money, and
the CIA takes the lead in training the rebels on AK-47 assault rifles and tank-destroying missiles.
The support for the Syrian
rebels is only the latest chapter in the decades-long relationship between the spy services of Saudi Arabia and the
United States, an alliance that
has endured through the IranContra scandal, support for
the mujahedeen against the
Soviets in Afghanistan and
proxy fights in Africa. Sometimes, as in Syria, the two
countries have worked in concert. In others, Saudi Arabia
has simply written cheques
underwriting U.S. covert
activities.
The joint arming and train-

ing program, which other

West Asian nations contribute money to, continues as
Americas relations with Saudi Arabia and the kingdoms place in the region
are in flux. The old ties of
cheap oil and geopolitics that
have long bound the countries together have loosened
as Americas dependence on
foreign oil declines and the
Obama administration tiptoes toward a diplomatic rapprochement with Iran.
And yet the alliance persists, kept afloat on a sea of
Saudi money and a recognition of mutual self-interest. In
addition to Saudi Arabias
vast oil reserves and role as
the spiritual anchor of the
Sunni Muslim world, the long
intelligence
relationship
helps explain why the United

States has been reluctant to

openly criticise Saudi Arabia
for its human rights abuses,
its treatment of women and
its support for the extreme
strain of Islam, Wahhabism,
that has inspired many of the
very terrorist groups the
United States is fighting.
The Obama administration
did not publicly condemn
Saudi Arabias public beheading this month of a dissident
Shia cleric, Sheikh Nimr alNimr, who had challenged the
royal family.
Although the Saudis have
been public about their help
arming rebel groups in Syria,
the extent of their partnership
with the CIAs covert action
campaign and their direct financial support had not been
disclosed.
Details
were
pieced together in interviews

with a half-dozen current and

former U.S. oicials and
sources from several Persian
Gulf countries. Most spoke on
the condition of anonymity
because they were not authorised to discuss the program.
From the moment the CIA
operation was started, Saudi
money supported it.
They understand that they
have to have us, and we understand that we have to have
them, said Mike Rogers, the
former Republican congressman from Michigan who was
chairman of the House Intelligence Committee when the
CIA operation began. Mr.
Rogers declined to discuss details of the classified program.
U.S. oicials have not disclosed the amount of the Saudi contribution, which is by
far the largest from another

nation to the program to arm

the rebels against President
Bashar Assads military. But
estimates have put the total
cost of the arming and training efort at several billion
dollars. The White House has
embraced the covert financing from Saudi Arabia and
from Qatar, Jordan and Turkey at a time when Mr. Obama has pushed gulf nations to
take a greater security role in
the region.
Spokesmen for both the
CIA and the Saudi Embassy in
Washington declined to comment. While the Saudis have
financed previous CIA missions with no strings attached, the money for Syria
comes with expectations, current and former oicials said.
New York Times News U.S. President Barack Obama with Saudi Arabias King Salman
(right) in Riyadh last year. FILE PHOTO: REUTERS
Service
ND-ND

| 15

BUSINESS

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

Finolex to invest Rs. 100 cr to expand PVC pipes capacity

Mahindra Defence, Airbus sign pact

Leading rigid PVC-U pipes and fittings manufacturer Finolex Industries Ltd. (FIL) plans to invest Rs.100 crore in
adding 1,00,000 tonnes of pipes capacity over the next three years. After expansion, our pipes manufacturing
capacity will go up to 3,50,000 tonnes, Finolex Industries Managing Director Saurabh Dhanorkar told PTI.

Mahindra Defence and Airbus Helicopters inked a pact to form a joint venture to produce military
helicopters in India. The statement of intent was signed on Sunday by representatives of both companies
in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Francois Hollande. PTI

Reserve Bank of Indias ECB norms:

two steps forward, one step back
The relaxed norms in the new framework are more complex than the previous set of rules
TCA SHARAD RAGHAVAN

he Reserve Bank of Indias revamped norms for external commercial borrowings (ECB) benefit
global lenders rather than domestic borrowers, analysts and bankers said.
The new rules were announced
by the RBI in November 2015. Sectors such as housing finance and
infrastructure have been left high
and dry, with ECB applications
pending for over nine months and
in some cases the government has
urged the central bank to review
its stance on restricting mediumterm borrowings for infrastructure projects.
I am rather surprised how it has happened, but the latest
DOMESTIC ECB guidelines do
CONCERNS not talk about housing. This (financial)
year, almost nine
borrowing
months have gone
and all the housing finance companies are
waiting for ECB approvals. If my information is correct, there are around 16 applications which are pending, Mr.
Sanjaya Gupta, Managing Director
of PNB Housing Finance, told The
Hindu.
I think we have about $2 billion
worth of ECBs permissions or applications pending, he added.
The relaxed norms in the new
framework were more complex
than the previous set of rules, analysts said.
In a nutshell, it is two steps forward one step back. They have
made it a bit more complicated.
Earlier, it was a straightforward regime, now they have introduced
three tracks of ECBs (according to
tenor of the loan), said Shishir
Mehta, Partner, Banking and Finance at law firm Khaitan and
Company, adding that the intent
was good and some changes were

The new rules have liberalised the lending side, while there has been no real change in the borrower base

in the right direction. The revised

frameworks three tracks include
medium-term foreign currency
denominated ECBs with a maturity period of three to five years
(Track I), long-term foreign currency denominated borrowings
with a maturity period of ten years
(Track II), and rupee denominated
borrowings of a maturity period of
three to five years (Track III).
The road transport ministry had
written to the RBI governor last
month that limiting ECBs in the infrastructure sector in Track II and
III could limit financing from international lenders who may not
be comfortable with providing
long-term borrowings to Indian
companies in the infrastructure
space.
Under the Track I norms, shipping and airline companies can tap
ECBs for importing vessels and
aircrafts, respectively, and for payment of towards capital goods already shipped or imported but not
paid for.
But ECBs are not permitted for
working capital in the civil aviation sector, for repayment of rupee
loans or fresh capital expenditure
by companies with consistent foreign exchange earnings under the
$10 billion scheme, or in the low

Almost nine months

have gone and all the
housing finance
companies are waiting
for ECB approvals
cost afordable housing segment
under the Revised Framework, according to a note by international
law firm Majmudar and Partners.
This is the first time there is a
rupee denominated track. A lot of
things are not quite clear about
this as yet, like whether it will be
accepted by the market. There are
other issues with hedging that will
also have to be sorted out, Mr
Mehta said.
Akil Hirani, managing partner at
Majmudar & Partners said that the
new ECB framework eases the
process of raising global financing
for infrastructure firms, real estate
investment trusts and core investment companies.
However, true liberalisation
will only be achieved if there is a
very small negative list of eligible
borrowers, and the restrictions on
permitted uses are further whittled down, Mr Hirani said, adding
that the new norms were also unclear about the treatment of for-

Govt. must not pressure PSU

banks to lend to corporations
ANIL KUMAR SASTRY
MANGALURU: Social responsibilities of the banking sector will
take a back seat if state-run
banks start functioning like
their private counterparts,
Prabhat Patnaik, economist
and political commentator,
said.
Mr. Patnaik, who was also
the Vice-Chairman of Kerala
State Planning Board, said the
government first should stop
interfering in their functioning and pressurising the public sector undertaking banks
to grant corporate loans.
India could not have
achieved green revolution,
strengthen the priority sector
lending in agriculture, fishery, small business and other
sectors without the PSU
banks, he told delegates at the
20th All India Conference of
Corporation Bank Oicers
Organisation here.
The state-owned banks

INTERVIEW

Economic
slowdown across
the world has
shrunk the market
affecting exports
should focus on strengthening the domestic market as
the economic slowdown
across the world has shrunk
the market afecting exports
from India.
This can be done through
promoting education, health
and agriculture sectors in rural areas, he said. Private
banks will not be able to
achieve this and public sector
banks should go back to the
1960s making a specific demand with the central government in this regard.
No to privatisation
All India Bank Oicers
Confederation President Y.
Sudarshan said trade unions
are opposed to privatisation

of public sector banks. Citing

non-performing assets as one
of the grounds for privatisation is myth, he said.
A majority of the bad debts
can be attributed to corporates and the government
should empower public sector banks to recover non-performing assets.
Mr. Sudarshan also said the
unions are opposed to the
proposed Industrial Relations
Bill, seeking to consolidate
various laws pertaining to
trade union and other industry-related activities.
The government could
achieve many of its projects
due to the public sector
banks. When oicers and staf
work overtime to implement
government schemes they
should also be compensated
properly, he said.
The two-day conference is
being attended by over 2,500
delegates
from
across
the country.

eign currency convertible bonds

(FCCB) and foreign currency exchangeable bonds (FCEB).
FCCB is a permitted form of external commercial borrowing.
FCEB can only be done through
the approval route. FCEB is more
akin to an equity instrument while
FCCB is a form of debt, and so
thats why the RBI wants greater
control over the former, said Mr
Mehta.
The new rules have liberalised
the lending side, while there has
been no real change in the borrower base.
The RBI has opened up the
lender base abroad. We can now
get access to funds from pension
companies, insurance companies,
wealth funds, etc, and the Indian
market can tap that, Mr Mehta
said.
The silver lining according to
Hirani, is that the RBI has said this
ECB framework will be modified
after an year, around November
2016, based on the ECB activity
and the prevalent macroeconomic
situation.
This is good as it shows the
RBIs commitment to tweak policy
more frequently to ensure that the
purpose of the policy is fulfilled,
he said.

Exhibition-cum-sale
of Indian gold coins

Digital payments set to take

of this year: TRAI chief
YUTHIKA BHARGAVA
NEW DELHI: Banking should be-

come as easy as making a mobile phone call and this year

could see digital payments
take of in India in a big way
with the entry of telecom
companies as payment banks,
said R.S. Sharma, Chairman of
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India.
A low-cost model would attract even those at the bottom
of the pyramid to digital payments and banking, Mr. Sharma said. My belief is that if
you can have banking at very
low cost, similar to what you
have for mobile top ups in the
telecom space (for prepaid
sim cards)whose average
value is Rs 10, Mr. Sharma
told The Hindu.
This, he said, is now possible with the Reserve Bank of
India (RBI) recently issuing
payment banks licenses to 11
companies, many of whom
are telecom companies that
have experience of handling
transactions, which are low in
value and large in volume.
The Prime Minister has also said on number of occasions that mobile should become a tool of empowerment
and it is indeed a tool of empowerment. People can get
government services and informationIf someone needs
to pay Rs 100 to their grocer,
they should be able to just
take out the phone and pay,
he added.
Bharti Airtel, Vodafone, Reliance Industries and Sun
Pharma
promoter
Dilip
Shanghvi who is partnering
Norwegian telecom player
Telenor, are part of the eleven
licencees approved by the
central bank in August 2015.
They have eighteen months
to commence operations and
many are expected to start
this year.
Mr. Sharma, who had earlier worked with Infosys cofounder Nandan Nilekani at

For example, in IRCTC

(the Indian Railways booking
website), when you make an
online booking you pay Rs 20
more compared to when you
go to a counter. This should
be reversed actually, he
added.
Digital transactions must
be promoted, which Finance
Ministry and the RBI are doing Regulators and stakeholders from the technology
space, the ministries are all
working in tandem. We are
actually on the cusp of our real digital revolution in some
sense, Mr. Sharma said.
Asked if the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India is
working with the RBI to push
forward the digital payment
ecosystem, Mr. Sharma said
both institutions will work in
tandem wherever required.
The TRAI chief expressed
confidence that the countrys
telecom sector would get a
big boost from the governments Digital India program.
I will only say that I see
great future of telecom sector
in this countrywith Digital
India program where you
have JAM Jan Dhan Yojana
(which provides financial inclusion), Aadhar (gives digital identity) and Mobile (provides means of communica
tion as well as act as a proxy
digital identity), he said.

Flexible norms to make gold scheme glitter

NATIONAL BUREAU

SPECIAL CORRSPONDENT

CHENNAI: MMTC is organising a

three-day
exhibition-cumsale of India gold coins at
Essar House, Esplanade,
Chennai between January 25
and 27. MMTC gold medallions, silver products and exclusive gold jewellery items
also will be on display, says a
company release. The Indian
gold coin is of 4 karat purity
(999 fitness) and has the national emblem of Ashok
Chakra enraved on one side
and the face of Mahatma
Gandhi on the other. This limited edition national coin is
available in denominations of
5 gm, 10 gm and 20 gm.

the Unique Identification Authority of India that is implementing the Aadhaar project,
said banking would not become ubiquitous unless you
drive down the cost and this
can only be done through digital mobile banking, using
Aadhar as a factor of
authentication.
I am looking forward to every person being empowered
by mobile handset in his hand
to do all kinds of transactions
from that mobile. Banking
should become so ubiquitous.it should become as easy
as making a phone call, Mr.
Sharma told The Hindu.
Mr. Sharma said that the
problem in the digital world is
that of establishing an identity which can be solved by using Aadhar as it can help do a
secure transaction at a very
low cost.
RBI requires two-factor
authentication for any transaction... either what you are
(biometrics) and what you
have (mobile phone, debit
card) or what you know (user
name and password) and
what you have, he said.
Mobile phone manufacturers are now putting iris authentication into the deviceAnd I think UIDAI is
doing proof of concept. This
is basically mobile phone
(what you have) and iris
(what you are). So in single
click you can do the transaction, Mr. Sharma said.
Backing the governments
stated intent to promote cashless payments, which includes a mandate to switch all
central government receipts
and payments to paperless
form by the end of 2016,
Mr. Sharma said
there could be
some incentives
for doing transactions on the
Internet.

NEW DELHI: The government has

made a slew of changes in its
gold monetisation scheme to
make it more flexible and
attractive.
Since the scheme was introduced two months ago the
government has collected
over 900 kilos of gold. The
new norms issued by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in
consultation with the government are based on suggestions to make the scheme more
accessible for potential gold
depositors, and allow premature redemptions after three
years and five years for medium term and long term deposits, respectively. The interest payable to depositors in
such cases would be reduced,
while allowing them an exit
option.
Further, the quantity of
gold collected under the
scheme will be expressed up
to three decimals of a gram to
give consumers better value

The gold collected under the

scheme is refined for
domestic purpose with an eye
on cutting Indias high gold
imports, which registered a
surge of 179 per cent in the
month of December 2015.

for their gold deposits that

can be of any purity level.
The gold monetisation
scheme was launched by
Prime Minister Narendra Modi in November 2015 and allows people to deposit gold

jewellery or bars with banks

or designated collection
agents, which could now also
include 13,000 jewellers
across the country. In return,
they get up to 2.50 per cent
tax-free interest per annum
and an exemption from capital gains made through trading or at the time of
redemption.
The gold collected under
the scheme is refined for domestic purpose with an eye
on cutting Indias high gold
imports, which registered a
surge of 179 per cent in the
month of December 2015.
A number of suggestions
have been received to make
the scheme easier for the customers to participate, the finance ministry said in a statement on Sunday, listing out
the changes to the scheme,
adding that a media campaign, including print media
and mobile SMS is being undertaken to increase awareness among depositors.
Gold depositors can now

give their gold directly to the

refiner rather than only
though collection and purity
testing centres (CPTCs), the
ministry said, adding that this
would encourage bulk depositors including institutions to
participate in the scheme.
Banks would now be paid a
2.5 per cent commission for
their services on medium and
long term deposits which include testing the purity of
gold deposits, refining, storage and transportation. Banks
have also been given the freedom to hedge their positions
in the case of short-term deposits, and issues around interest rate calculation as well
as extending loans against
gold deposits have been
clarified.
The number of refiners under the scheme are also likely
to go up with the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) modifying the licensing condition
that mandated three years experience to one year refining
experience.

DEEPAK MITTAL

Customers are getting more knowledgeable and demanding

OOMMEN A. NINAN

Life insurance customers are

looking to engage with
brands they trust are transparent,
says
Deepak
Mittal, Managing Director
and Chief Executive Oicer
of Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance. In an e-mail interview with The Hindu, Mr.
Mittal narrates the changing
attitude of customers towards life insurance and the
need for insured.

What are the latest trends in

the Indian insurance sector,
particularly in the life insurance
segment?
The most promising trend
seen currently is that life insurance customers are getting
increasingly
more
knowledgeable and demanding about what they need.
Products and companies are
researched across web aggregators, trusted circle of
friends and peers as well as
CM
YK

the communication that insurance companies are putting across. Customers expect brands to understand
their needs and help them
compare products thus enabling them to make the right
choice.
Customers are also looking to engage with brands
that they trust are transparent in dealing with them, and
are able to provide a resolution in a matter of hours and
not days. Keeping this in
mind life insurance companies, while keeping the operating costs low, will try and
surprise the customer pleasantly. Technology will play a
key part in achieving this
goal.
Companies will also invest
heavily on product development as well as training and
development of the sales
force to ensure that the sales
teams are well equipped to
acquire customers the right
way while creating long term
loyalty.

The life insurance category will also see an expansion

in the kinds of products being ofered.
Life insurance is increasingly becoming as much
about living longer in an inflationary world as it is about
securing against an unfortunate event. Coping with critical illness and long term
heath care, retirement planning, wealth accumulation
are the kind of product solutions needed today.
Marketing will play a
stronger role in building connect with the customers.
Smart use of technology, conversing with customers
across relevant media and
ensuring that the conversation is meaningful will be the
key pillars of any good
brands customer strategy.

How did Edelweiss Tokio

perform in this current fiscal
year?
It has been a solid first half

for us in the current fiscal

year. As of November 2015,
our new business in terms of
premiums and individual
policies has grown more than
20 per cent compared to the
same period last year. This
puts us in the top quartile of
all life insurance players in
India.
Edelweiss Tokio Life has
been one of the fastest growing life insurance companies
since inception and we are
continuing to focus on enhancing the quality of our
business.

What are your company's

growth expectations for the
next 5 years?
Edelweiss Tokio
Life is committed to ex-

panding its footprint across

India.
By the end of this year, we
will truly have a pan-India
presence with our branches
spread across 70 cities.
This makes us confident of
growing at a pace faster than
we have since our inception.
The Edelweiss group is focused on growing its retail
business, and being a key re-

our sales team has with a customer is around understanding his or her financial goals
and needs, and not on the
product.
This need-based sales ap Do you see any inclination of
proach is efective and has
the customer towards unitbeen simplified to make it
linked insurance plans?
easier for any sales person to
Insurance and equity invest- use. Placing needs first enments are about being com- sures that we are always able
mitted to longer-term invest- to demonstrate our focus on
customer
ment periods. We believe understanding
and the early signs also seem needs first and then providto indicate that the ULIP in- ing a solution.
vestors have matured and
Modern day living has its
there is good stability in their own complexities. Increased
investment irrespective of life expectancy, rising finanshort-term
market cial aspirations and the growmovements.
ing urgency to secure ones
own and the familys future
have created a unique set of
There are 24 insurance
companies in India, how will
customer needs.
ETLI differentiate
Our products like MyLife+,
themselves in term of
Criticare+, Wealth Builder
products?
and Wealth Accumumation
(Privilege) are based on
Customer centricity is these insights into what cusour key diferentiator. tomers need.
The first conversaLonger coverage, flexible
tion any member of pay-out options and ability to
tail business for the group,
Edelweiss Tokio Life will
play a big part in this expansion plan.

cope with multiple setbacks

are some of the key benefits
these plans ofer and help
people better prepared for
the unexpected.

Currently every insurance

company seems keen on
growing their online presence.
How is it going to change the
life insurance industry?
Sales, either through a companys online presence or
through web aggregators, are
seeing traction across the industry which I personally
feel will change the industry
for the better. New and innovative distribution models
are likely to emerge, especially with draft guidelines for ecommerce companies. This
will challenge the insurance
companies and could lead to
some interesting innovative
developments. Cutting down
customer acquisition costs
drastically will allow companies to pass on the benefit to
the end customer.
ND-ND

16 |

NOIDA/DELHI

BUSINESS
BOTTOMLINE

THE HINDU MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

Start-up India Action Plan: a good start,

but Govt. apathy, big corporates a hurdle

global round-up

Start-ups and entrepreneurship are critical to Indias efforts to restart private investment in the economy

RAJEEV

he much anticipated, and needed,

Start-up India initiative was
launched last weekend by Prime
Minister Narendra Modi in a move
to help start-ups and catalyse entrepreneurship. Start-ups and entrepreneurship are critical to Indias eforts to restart private
investment into the economy, in
the face of risk aversion, stalled or
slow investments from corporate
India.
Start-ups in India have faced
two significant obstacles. One is
government apathy, corruption
and a complex approvals process.
The other is the power of entrenched corporates, to oppose or
kill start-ups which challenge
them. So while the Action Plan unveiled by Mr. Modi is a catalyst, also needed are structural reforms
that permit free
and fair competition and other issues that determine the viability
and existence of
start-ups. Net neutrality, for instance,
CHANDRASEKHAR is a policy requirement that will determine the future
for tech start-ups.
The Start-up India Action Plan
lists out a comprehensive set of
structural and regulatory reforms
in order to achieve this. Income
tax exemption, easing compliance
through reduction of regulations
and having fixed qualifications as
to what a start-up is, were expectations at the top of the entrepreneurial bucket-list.
But the Action Plan goes further. It goes on, for instance, to
provide an 80 per cent waiver on
patent filing fees by start-ups, provide advisory services and create
a Rs.10,000 crore fund-of-funds
which is to be managed by professionals drawn from the private
sector. These are just a few of the
sweetheart deals for start-up entrepreneurs under the Action
Plan.
Money matters
But the Action Plan also appears
to have a few flaws which need to
be addressed. For instance, it sets
up an Inter-Ministerial Board led
by the Department of Industrial
Policy and Promotion which validates the innovative nature of an
enterprise, thereby qualifying it as
a start-up an involvement of government in this ecosystem that is
hardly desirable. It also requires a
start-up to obtain a recommendation from an incubator in order to
be eligible. The most obvious and

Saudi Aramco IPO may be open

to international markets
An initial public offering of Saudi Aramco, the world's biggest
oil company, could be on the local or international markets
but would not include Saudi energy reserves, the company's
chairman told Saudi-owned al-Arabiya television. The
reserves would not be sold, but the company's ability to
produce from the reserves is being studied, Khalid al-Falih
told the channel in an interview from Davos. Aramco has
crude reserves estimated at about 265 billion barrels, over 15
percent of all global oil deposits, so it could become the first
listed company valued at $1 trillion or more if it went public,
analysts have estimated. Reuters

tangible benefits to start-ups under the Action Plan are the tax
breaks and funding support. The
Action Plan waives income tax on
profits for a period of three years
and also exempts taxes on capital
gains which are invested in the
fund-of-funds.
This move will help to reduce
cash outflows and bring down the
cost of running a start-up. In conjunction with the waiver of the
angel investor tax under the Finance Act, 2013, start-ups now can
have improved access to funding
opportunities.
Pending reforms like the GST
regime, would also make it easier
for small start-ups to operate
across the country.
Rs.10,000 crore fund-of-funds
The Rs.10,000 crore fund-offunds is a significant financial
commitment by the Government
under the Action Plan. It is set to
start with Rs.2,500 crore initially
with the amount set to recur for 4
years.
This mega fund will not directly
invest in start-up ventures. Instead, it will do so via SEBI registered venture funds. This fund
will contribute a maximum of 50
per cent of the daughter fund size,
providing a significant boost to
the corpus of investments that
start-ups have access to. It is important that this corpus is not
managed by Politicians or bureaucrats, but smart, savvy fund managers who have a track record on
investing.
On the cost saving side, an 80

The most obvious and

tangible benefits to
start-ups under the
plan are tax breaks
and funding support
per cent rebate on patent filing
costs alongside an exemption
from having prior-experience to
be eligible under the public procurement process are steps taken
to promote tech-based start-ups in
particular.
While tax incentives, cost saving measures and funding support
will undoubtedly drive up investment into innovative start-ups it is
essential that the government not
lose sight of non-tech start-ups. It
should make special provisions to
ensure that this support structure
extends to the agriculture, manufacturing, and handicrafts sectors.
Ease of doing business
Promoting start-ups by improving ease of doing business is clearly at the forefront of the Action
Plan. A significant benefit a startup accrues under this policy is the
waiver from labour inspections
for 3 years.
Now, anyone who has run a
business and navigated the maze
of bureaucracy understands the
quagmire that labour laws can be,
especially for a start-up. Along
with the ease in environmental
checks, these changes to labour
inspections are a step in the right
direction particularly for those
start-ups which are based in the

manufacturing sector. But the Action Plan exempts starts-up from

inspection under a fixed number
of labour laws six to be specific.
There are about 45 laws at the central level and about four times this
number at the state level. The
Centre needs to work with the
States to ensure a smooth rollout
of the benefits under the Action
Plan and avoid discord between
policies at the two levels.
Start-up India Hub
The Action Plan also creates a
centralised system under the
Start-up India Hub which assists
start-ups by providing advisory
services on financing, business
structuring and improving management skills. It also provides for
a mobile app which allows startups to self-certify themselves and
also acts as a single point of contact between entrepreneurs, regulators and the government. This is
a positive move in simplifying the
registration process.

The Action Plan

requires an enterprise or
partnership to be
innovative by developing
and commercialising a
new product or service
a step to promote truly
innovative ideas.

This is perhaps the most pertinent question which has been answered by the Action Plan. In order to obtain the wide ranging
benefits which have been detailed
in the 40-page Action Plan, it is essential for an enterprise to qualify
as a start-up. An uncontroversial
requirement, but the devil is in the
details.
The Action Plan requires an enterprise or partnership to be innovative by developing and commercialising a new product or service
a step to promote truly innovative ideas. But it institutes an interministerial body led by DIPP to
examine whether an enterprise is
innovative.
It also requires a recommendation from an incubator setup by
the government or be supported
by an incubator in a post-graduate
institution recognised by the government this need for validation and recommendation goes
against the very steps the Action
Plan takes to reduce government
involvement. This additional layer
of bureaucracy could slow down
the starting up process and needs
to go.
Start-up India is consistent with
the PMs call for innovation when
he launched Digital India. The
Start-up India Action plan is a
good start to this but will need
continued support and evolution
to make this a true, deep revolution for the youth of India.
The author is a Member of
Parliament & a tech entrepreneur
rajeev.c@nic.in

PLANTATION

Bengal tea industry sees ray of hope in Ministers visit

Global insurers plot cautious

course to Iran
Global insurance firms are circling Iran for business
opportunities following the lifting of sanctions - and the first
test of their appetite could come in March when some Iranian
companies seek new cover. Insurers, the reinsurers that share
their risk and the brokers that forge deals, are exploring ways
to tap a market worth $7.4 billion in premiums after a nuclear
accord between world powers and Tehran led to the removal
of restrictions on financial dealings with Iran this month.
Allianz, Zurich Insurance, Hannover Re and RSA, for example,
said in recent days that they would evaluate potential
opportunities in the country. Specialists regard the marine
and energy sectors as among those offering the best
opportunities. Reuters

Iran eyes 114 Airbus planes,

deal with Boeing
Iran plans to buy 114 aircraft from European plane maker
Airbus as soon as March, and is looking for other deals, senior
Iranian officials said as their country emerges from sanctions
and international isolation. The republic could need as many
as 500 new planes over the next three years, lawmaker
Mahdi Hashemi, the chairman of the parliament's
Development Commission, said at Tehran's first major postsanctions gathering of global businessmen. Transport
Minister Abbas Akhoondi told journalists Tehran would
discuss details with Airbus next week and was also
interested in negotiating with U.S. plane maker Boeing for
aircraft. Reuters

The state has made global headlines with reports of starvation deaths in the gardens in North Bengal

he West Bengal tea industry has

been in the news for all the
wrong reasons. The state, which has
in its fold the famed Darjeeling
brand, has since last year, made international headlines with reports of
starvation deaths in the gardens in
North Bengal. Similar reports have
resurfaced this year.
However, although the term starvation death has been disputed, there
is no denying the fact that there is distress in some of the tea-gardens in the
state. Importantly, the entire industry is at a precipice.

IN A NUTSHELL
Although the term starvation death

has been disputed, there is no denying

the fact that there is distress in some
of the tea-gardens in the State.
Importantly, the entire industry is at a
precipice.

The rising demand for high quality

teas in the export and the domestic

market has led to a situation of
declining demand for Dooars teas,
whose quality has been affected by
climate-change

As per latest statistics between

January and October 2015 production

in West Bengal is lower at 274 million
kgs compared to a year ago figure,
with the gardens in Dooars
accounting for a major part of the
drop.

Indrani Dutta

This provides the backdrop to

Union Commerce Minister Nirmala
Sitharamans visit last week. She visited a closed garden as well as a garden belonging to a major corporate
group and met all the stakeholders
during her short stay. It is her positive
approach towards the problems being faced by the West Bengal tea sector, which has cheered the industry.
Talks with a cross-section of the industry revealed, that the minister has
accepted the need to examine Plantation Labour Act and the possibility of
asking workers to accept a minimum
wage structure that encompasses the
benefits now being extended, to the
workers under the PLA.
The industry is in a precarious
state, said A. N. Singh a former
Chairman of the Indian Tea Association and the Managing Director of
Goodricke, which owns some 12 gardens in West Bengal and 10 in Assam.
The rising demand for high quality teas in the export and the domestic
market has led to a situation of declining demand for Dooars teas,
whose quality has been afected by
climate-change, he said. Big blenCM
YK

The industry is also keen to see

West Bengal is Indias second largest tea-growing State with a 20 per cent
share of the countrys cultivated area and contributes about 24 per cent of the
total crop

The issue of high costs

is plaguing the organised
industry in tea producing
regions of Assam, West
Bengal and the South
ders now rarely bid for these teas at
the auctions. The minister has
looked at the entire issue of the West
Bengal industry in holistic manner.
It would be relevant here to examine the construct of the West Bengal
industry.
West Bengal is Indias second
largest tea-growing state with a 20
per cent share of countrys tea cultivated area, contributing about 24 per
cent of the total India tea crop. There
are 377 gardens of which 87 are in
Darjeeling and the rest in Dooars

(Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar district)

and Terai (Darjeeling plains and Uttar Dinajpur). It is the 188 Dooars gardens, which are facing problems the
most. There are a total 2.64 lakh
workers directly involved with the
industry.
As per latest statistics between January and October 2015 production
in West Bengal is lower at 274 million
kgs compared to a year ago figure,
with the gardens in Dooars accounting for a major part of the drop.
The issue of high-costs is plaguing
the organised industry throughout
the tea producing regions in Assam,
West Bengal and the South. The
small growers are mostly out of this
as they are not governed by PLA.
The industry flagged the issue of
high costs and low prices before the
minister. Climate-change is afecting

some changes on the PLA front. The

Plantation Labour Act was enacted in
1951 to ensure workers welfare
measures which normally falls within
the realms of the State.

tea industry badly and we sought interventions from the Centre, said
Arijit Raha Secretary General, ITA.
The industry is also keen to see
some changes on the PLA front. The
Plantation Labour Act was enacted in
1951 to ensure workers welfare measures, which normally falls within
the realms of the State. This included
housing facility, cheap power, firewood, subsidised food grains and
medical facilities.
A 2009 report on the Competitiveness of The Indian Tea Industry, prepared by a Union Commerce Ministry panel said that while the industry
has failed to keep up with global
trends in the tea industry, there was
also need to review many of the provisions of the PLA, which may have
lost their relevance.
The committee, which had repre-

sentation from the government and

the industry, said that statutory social
welfare measures, as mandated in
this Act adds to garden-costs and reduces the Indian industrys competitiveness. It also recommended that as
in Sri Lanka, India may consider the
dovetailing of various government
schemes with the benefits being provided by PLA.
It has long been felt that schemes
like social security schemes like Indira Awas Yojana, Targeted PDS
schemes, National Heath Schemes
and Prime Ministers Gram Sadak Yojana could all be dovetailed with the
schemes being implemented under
the PLA by the industry.
We face huge pressures on account of housing, subsidised electricity and ration costs Mr Raha said
adding that 80 per cent of the costs
are fixed in nature.
The industry will now face an additional cost on account of irrigation
as climate-change is afecting rainfall
patterns. The cost of production for
manufacture of 1 kg of tea for an estate governed by PLA is around Rs
170 per kg. However auction prices at
an average of Rs 126, has led to cash
losses in the large number of gardens
in West Bengal.
There is at present no minimum
wage for tea industry in West Bengal
and while the Minister stressed the
need for this, the industry felt that
minimum wage should take into consideration the in-kind benefits being
provided to the workers. Industry
has estimated that the current daily
wage rate of Rs 122. 5 works out to an
employment cost of Rs 225 if the benefits are monetised.
While for the industry the situation is one of revival the stakes are no
less for the governments at the state
and the Centre, given the fact that
there is a sizeable electorate among
the tea workers and elections are
knocking on the door in the countrys
tea-belt.

Merck sees deal opportunities as

biotech funding gets tighter
U.S. drugmaker Merck & Co is eager to do deals to bring in
promising experimental medicines and believes a recent
correction in biotechnology stocks should throw up new
opportunities. Prices have come back somewhat. That is a
positive thing, Chief Executive Kenneth Frazier told Reuters in
Davos. In particular, some of the early-stage companies are
struggling to get the next round of financing as people start
to be a little less willing to pay for the promise of growth, so
that gives us opportunities. Frazier said he was looking for
small and medium-sized bolt-on deals to bring in new
drugs, although such transactions could still be
sizeable. Reuters

Toshiba to sell part of its

chip operations: sources
Japan's Toshiba Corp plans to sell part of its chip business as
it aims to recover from a $1.3 billion accounting scandal,
three people familiar with the matter told Reuters. The
electronics conglomerate has started accepting bids, with
early interest shown by the Development Bank of Japan Inc,
said the sources, who declined to be identified because they
are not authorized to talk to the media. The state-owned bank
has already invested in Seiko Holdings Corp's semiconductor
operations. The sale would exclude Toshiba's mainstay NAND
flash memory operations, according to sources. Reuters
ND-ND

SPORT

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU

MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

Telecast schedule
Australian Open: Sony ESPN & Sony ESPN HD, 5.30 a.m. & 1.30 p.m.
Prof. D.B. Deodhar Trophy cricket, India A vs India B, STAR Sports 4 &

HD4, 9 a.m.

South Africa vs England: 4th Test: TEN Cricket & TEN HD, 2 p.m.
Hockey India League: STAR Sports 2, 3 & HD 2 & HD 3, 5.40 p.m.

| 17

Garcia captures crown

End of a long wait

Unbeaten Danny Garcia beat Robert Guerrero by unanimous decision to

capture the World Boxing Council welterweight crown vacated by the
retirement of undefeated Floyd Mayweather. Judges awarded the 12round victory in the all-American slugfest to Garcia by three identical
scores of 116-112.

Kotoshogiku captured the Emperors Cup at the New Year

Grand Sumo tournament on Sunday, becoming the first
Japanese-born winner for a decade. The 31-year-old ranking ozeki
shoved fellow ozeki Goeido onto the ring to finish the 15-day
tourney at 14-1. It was also Kotoshogikus first career victory.

Djokovic survives Simon scare

Last years finalists Serena and Sharapova to meet in the quarterfinals

MELBOURNE: Novak Djokovics

grip on the Australian Open title

looked shaky for a short spell on
Sunday, but the World No. 1 finally shook of Gilles Simon in a
four-and-a-half hour marathon
to take his place in the
quarterfinals.
Serena Williams, by contrast,
booked a re-match of last years
title decider against Maria Sharapova by sweeping into the
quarterfinals without having
lost a set, and Roger Federer
progressed almost as comfortably to bring the day to a close.
The whif of an upset hung
around Melbourne Park for
much of the day Tomas Berdych, Agnieszka Radwanska
and Carla Suarez Navarro all
lost opening sets but it was
most potent in Djokovics fivesetter against Simon.
Djokovic had eased into the
fourth round without losing a
set as he continued the dominant form that earned him 11 titles, including three of the four
Grand Slams, last year.
Defensive baseliner Simon is
a wily campaigner, however,
and he elicited 100 unforced errors out of the reigning champion in his 6-3, 6-7(1), 6-4, 4-6,
6-3 defeat.
Hurtling around the arena on
legs that have always looked too
spindly to take the kind of punishment they regularly endure,
the 31-year-old Frenchman absorbed Djokovics power and
timed his shots to perfection to
hurl it back at the Serbian.
Djokovic has not won five titles at Melbourne Park without
being able to negotiate a scrap,
however, and despite a string of
flufed drop shots he reasserted
his authority in the final set to
reach the last-eight for a 27th
successive Grand Slam.
I honestly didnt expect to
make this many unforced errors. In terms of a level that Ive
played, its the match to forget
for me, said Djokovic.
When youre playing someone like Simon youre trying to
cut down on the length of the
rallies, go for a winner or go for a
dropshot. Sometimes you have a
brain freeze, if I can call it that.
Djokovics next opponent, Ja-

Rabadas seven-for
stretches
SA advantage
CENTURION: Kagiso Rabada took
seven for 112 as England was
bowled out for 342 in its first innings in reply to South Africas
475.
South Africa was 42 for one at
the close, an overall lead of 175.
England had lost only one
wicket in almost two hours before Rabadas burst of three
wickets in 12 balls just before
lunch.
At 208 for three, Rabada had
Joe Root caught behind by
Quinton de Kock for 76. James
Taylor swung at a bouncer and
edged the ball to de Kock and
Jonny Bairstow gloved a ball
which lifted and seamed back at
him, giving Rabada, in his sixth
Test, his second five-wicket
haul in successive matches.
He followed up by getting
Ben Stokes (33) caught at first
slip by Hashim Amla, and
claimed his seventh when
Stuart Broad was caught on the
midwicket boundary. AFP

Rabada.
PHOTO: JULIAN FINNEY/GETTY IMAGES

SCOREBOARD
South Africa 1st innings: 475.
England 1st innings: A. Cook c

de Kock b Morkel 76, A. Hales c Piedt b

Rabada 15, N. Compton lbw b Rabada
19, J. Root c de Kock b Rabada 76, J.
Taylor c de Kock b Rabada 14, B.
Stokes c Amla b Rabada 33, J. Bairstow c de Kock b Rabada 0, M. Ali c
Piedt b Morkel 61, C. Woakes c Elgar b
Duminy 26, S. Broad c Cook b Rabada
5, J. Anderson (not out) 5; Extras (b-2,
lb-7, w-3) 12; Total (in 104.2 overs)
342.
Fall of wickets: 1-22, 2-78, 3-177,
4-208, 5-211, 6-211, 7-252, 8-295,
9-320.
South Africa bowling: Abbott 199-36-0, Rabada 29-6-112-7, Piedt 244-78-0, Morkel 23.2-4-73-2, Elgar 4-013-0, Duminy 5-0-21-1.
South Africa 2nd innings: S.
Cook (batting) 23, D. Elgar c Bairstow
b Anderson 1, H. Amla (batting) 16; Extras (b-2) 2; Total (for one wicket in 17
overs): 42.
Fall of wicket: 1-5.
England bowling: Anderson 5-114-1, Broad 4-1-8-0, Stokes 3-1-6-0,
Woakes 2-0-7-0, Ali 2-1-1-0, Root
1-0-4-0.
CM
YK

Radwanska and Suarez Navarro both had their nerves tested before being able to set up
their quarterfinal date.
Radwanska was 5-2 down in
her deciding set against AnnaLena Friedsam, but the 21-yearold German was reduced to
tears when her legs simply gave
up on her, allowing the fourth
seed to recover for a 6-7(6), 6-1,
7-5 victory.
Tenth seed Suarez Navarro
rebounded from an opening-set
battering to beat Daria Gavrilova 0-6, 6-3, 6-2 and end Australias interest in the womens
draw.
The most welcome recovery
of the day was that of Ana Ivanovics coach and Andy Murrays father-in-law, Nigel Sears.
The 58-year-old, who was taken to hospital on Saturday after
collapsing in the stands in Rod
Laver Arena, was discharged on
Sunday and allowed to return
home to Britain. Reuters

THE RESULTS

BALLETIC GRACE: Roger Federer hit his stride pretty quickly to ease past David Goffin, an occasional practice partner, in straight sets.
PHOTO: DARRIAN TRAYNOR/GETTY IMAGES

pans Kei Nishikori, must have

enjoyed every last minute of the
match as he rested up after a
straightforward 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 victory over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
Nishikori was humiliated 6-1,
6-1 in his last meeting with Djokovic in November, and will be
hoping to avenge that defeat and

revive memories of his stunning

upset of the Serbian in the semifinals of the 2014 U.S. Open.
In London, he kind of destroyed me, the seventh seed
said. I hope I
can make some
changes and try
to play better.
Yeah, Im ready
to beat him
again.
Williams lost her serve for the
second time at the tournament
in the opening game of her
match, but that was just about all
that went against the American
in her brisk 6-2, 6-1 demolition of
Margarita Gasparyan.
Sharapova was made to work
much harder for her 7-5, 7-5 vic-

tory over teenager Belinda Bencic in the opening match of the

day on the main showcourt.
The fifth seeds reliance on
her serve to get her out of trouble against the
rising Swiss talent was at odds
with perceptions of her
game in recent
years.
David Goin has made great
strides over the last couple of
years, but could still not cope
with 17-time Grand Slam champion Federer.
The 34-year-old Swiss got onto court late, but wasted little
time in dissecting the Belgian
6-2, 6-1, 6-4 to set up a meeting

CRICKET

Dhoni has a lot to ofer as a

captain and player: Clarke
SHREEDUTTA CHIDANANDA
SYDNEY: Michael Clarke believes
M.S. Dhoni is the right man to
lead India in limited overs
cricket despite the growing
chorus for him to step aside.
Dhoni has a lot of cricket left
in him, the former Australia
captain said at the Sydney
Cricket Ground here on Saturday.
He can continue to captain
India if he wants to because hes
earned that right. And I think
hell know when the right time
is to go. His captaincy has been
very good throughout his career and I think hes played a big
part in helping India sustain
success over a long period.
Any time the team doesnt
win the captain is always accountable so Im sure he feels
disappointed about not being
able to win this series. But I still
think Dhoni has a lot to ofer as
a captain and also as a player.
Clarke admitted, however,
that India missed an explosive
hitter of the ball in the middle
order. Theyve probably missed someone in that middle order to be able to go on in the last
five or 10 overs at a strike rate of
150, something Dhoni has done
for so long.
It is where Australia was
able to utilise Glenn Maxwell in
the last game (in Canberra).
99% of the time, [when] Dhoni
walks out to bat with five overs

or 10 overs...hes unbelievable.
You look at his record. Somebody in the Indian team hasnt
been able to do that in this
series.
Captaining India, however,
was a uniquely diicult challenge, Clarke felt. Thats the
thing a lot of people dont understand or appreciate till they
go to India and see the expectation and the pressure.
So I say we need to be very
careful when were judging
Dhoni because hes done a lot
for Indian cricket. Hes had a lot
of success. And Im sure Virats
still learning from MS as well.
Theyre two diferent captains
theyre two diferent
people.
During the innings break, as
Clarke sat cradling his infant
daughter in his arms, he was

Maxwell to miss T20

opener against India
SYDNEY: All-rounder Glenn Max-

well will miss Australias T20

opener against India in Adelaide
with a hamstring injury, acting
coach Michael Di Venuto said
on Sunday.
Maxwell flew straight to Melbourne where the second game
in the three-match series will
take place on Friday, skipping
the opener in Adelaide on
Tuesday.
He has still got a little, slight
hamstring niggle so he flew
straight to Melbourne and will
spend a few days in Melbourne
at home and join the squad when
we get there in a couple of days,
Di Venuto told reporters in Adelaide. Maxwell was also ruled
out of the fifth one-day interna-

tional against India in Sydney on

Saturday.
The series is seen as a preparation for the T20 World Cup in
India in March, with Di Venuto
who has replaced Darren Lehmann while the coach is being
treated for deep vein thrombosis
hoping to give every player in
the 17-man squad one or two
games at least.
Obviously, theres a big carrot at the end of this with the
World Cup team being picked,
and you know you can only pick
15 people, so we want to give
people opportunities to see what
they can do, Di Venuto, usually
the teams batting coach, added.
The third game takes place in
Sydney on Sunday. AFP

taken on a lap of honour around

the SCG in a pick-up truck, to a
warm ovation. Clarke retired
from international cricket after
the Ashes last year, but he still
missed playing the game, he admitted.
Its nice to be at home with
my family and obviously having my little daughter, its been
great to be able to spend so
much time with her.
Theres definitely parts
where you see a full house tonight, so much support...youll
miss parts of the game. Ill always miss playing cricket. I
started playing when I was six
years of age. I played for 28
years. Its been great to have a
summer of but theres definitely parts that you do miss.
When asked if he wished to
compete in any of the worlds
T20 leagues, the 34-year-old
stated that he was yet to make
his mind up about his future. If
Im going to come back and
play...you know Ive never
played a full season of the IPL
and Ive always said Id love to
do that, he said.
Ill just have a think and see.
My body is as fit and healthy as
Ive felt in my career. Ive been
able to have six months away
from cricket and allow my body
to rest. Ive still been training
every day to stay fit and healthy
but no cricket. And I feel great
for it. Now Ive just got to work
out if Ive got the time.

with Berdych, who earlier came

from behind to beat Roberto
Bautista Agut 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 1-6,
6-3.
Im pleased with how I
played, said Federer. David
normally gives me a hard time in
practice, so I was surprised at
how well I went.

Actually, it gives
me great joy to
know that I cant get
worse than that; than
what I played today
Djokovic sees the bright side
of notching up a century of
unforced errors.

Men: Fourth round: 1-Novak Djokovic (Srb) bt 14-Gilles Simon (Fra) 6-3,
6-7(1), 6-4, 4-6, 6-3; 7-Kei Nishikori
(Jpn) bt 9-Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (Fra) 6-4,
6-2, 6-4; 6-Tomas Berdych (Cze) bt 24Roberto Bautista Agut (Esp) 4-6, 6-4,
6-3, 1-6, 6-3; 3-Roger Federer (Sui) bt
15-David Goffin (Bel) 6-2, 6-1, 6-4.
Doubles: Third round: 14-Treat
Huey (Phi) & Max Mirnyi (Blr) bt 4-Rohan Bopanna (Ind) & Florin Mergea
(Rou) 6-4, 6-3.
Women: Fourth round: 5-Maria
Sharapova (Rus) bt 12-Belinda Bencic
(Sui) 7-5, 7-5; 1-Serena Williams (USA)
bt Margarita Gasparyan (Rus) 6-2, 6-1;
4-Agnieszka Radwanska (Pol) bt AnnaLena Friedsam (Ger) 6-7(6), 6-1, 7-5;
10-Carla Suarez Navarro (Esp) bt Daria
Gavrilova (Aus) 0-6, 6-3, 6-2.

Bopanna and Paes advance

MELBOURNE: Leander Paes and
Rohan Bopanna advanced to
the second round of the mixed
doubles with their respective
partners.
Paes and Martina Hingis
posted a 6-3, 7-5 win over
Anastasia
Pavlyuchenkova
and Dominic Inglot in an hour
and nine minutes while thirdseeded Bopanna and Yung-Jan
Chan of Chinese Taipei also
hardly broke a sweat before
prevailing over Australians
John Millman and Kimberly
Birrell, 7-5, 6-1 in 48 minutes.
However, fourth seeds Bopanna and Romanian Florin

MONDAYS MATCH-UPS

Mixed doubles: First round:

Leander Paes (Ind) & Martina Hingis

(Sui) bt Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
(Rus) & Dominic Inglot (GBr) 6-3, 7-5;
3-Rohan Bopanna (Ind) & Yung-Jan
Chan (Tpe) bt John Millman (Aus) &
Kimberly Birrell (Aus) 7-5, 6-1.
Junior girls: First round: 15-Katherine Sebov (Can) bt Mihika Yadav
(Ind) 6-0, 6-2.
Doubles: First round: Anna Kalinskaya (Rus) & Tereza Mihalikova (Svk)
bt Mihika & Zhuoma Ni Ma (Chn) 6-3,
6-0.

Mergea crashed out of the

mens doubles in the third
round, losing 6-4, 6-3 to 14thseeded Treat Huey and Max
Mirnyi.
In junior action, Indias Mihika Yadav lost both her singles and doubles matches.
Mihika first went down to
Canadian 15th seed Katherine
Sebov 6-0, 6-2 in the opener
before losing the doubles
match 6-3, 6-0 with Chinese
partner Zhuoma Ni Ma to
Russian-Slovakian
second
seeds Anna Kalinskaya and
Tereza
Mihalikova.

Agencies

WOMEN
7-Angelique Kerber v Annika Beck; 14-Victoria Azarenka v Barbora
Strycova; 15-Madison Keys v Zhang Shuai; Johanna Konta v 21Ekaterina Makarova
DOUBLES
1-Sania Mirza & Martina Hingis v Svetlana Kuznetsova & Roberta
Vinci

MEN
Andrey Kuznetsov v 23-Gael Monfils; 13-Milos Raonic v 4-Stan
Wawrinka; 16-Bernard Tomic v 2-Andy Murray; 8-David Ferrer v
10-John Isner

India still an unsettled outfit

B Virat Kohli felt Australia had won all the crunch moments,
the difference lying in the fact that this was a side used to
fter yet another one-day sevictory
ries defeat, India is no clos-

SHREEDUTTA CHIDANANDA

er to finding solutions to the issues it has long wrestled with.

Indias bowling group, which
had performed admirably in the
World Cup, bowling out every
opponent till it ran into Australia in the semifinals, was rudderless here. It did not help that India lost Mohammed Shami, its
bowling spearhead, to injury
just before the first game of the
VB Series.
In his absence, Ishant Sharma
did alright but if he was expected to lead the attack, he disappointed. Of greater worry was
Umesh Yadavs performance.
This is the fast bowlers third
tour to Australia and he made
the same elementary mistakes,
bowling too short, straying
down the leg-side multiple
times when his captain had
loaded the of-side with fielders,
and generally operating without
a plan.
Yadav was, by a distance, the
most expensive bowler from
both sides, leaking 345 runs from
five matches, at an average of
49.28. Ravi Shastri rather charitably called Ishant and Yadavs
eforts part of a huge learning

curve while Dhoni repeatedly

expressed his frustration. Barinder Sran made an impact in
Perth before being handed a
harsh lesson in bowling at this
level. He will get better, though.
Let down by his bowlers in
the first two matches, it is understandable that Dhoni wanted
to explore all options to salvage
the series in the third ODI. It is
true R. Ashwin struggled in
Perth and Brisbane, but it was
perhaps not sensible to omit him
from the side in Melbourne,
where Ravindra Jadeja got the
ball to grip. Ashwin did not figure in Canberra or Sydney, a
venue traditionally favourable
to spin bowling, even with Yadavs diiculties.
Not logical
Dhonis explanation was that
it was the only way an extra
seamer could be accommodated
without weakening the batting.
But India was hardly required
to bat that deep, and the only
time it was at the Manuka
Oval Gurkeerat Mann, Ravindra Jadeja and Rishi Dhawan fal-

tered. Rishi Dhawan was publicly dismissed as an option by

Dhoni when he was speaking of
the need for a seam-bowling allrounder. In the end, when given
a chance, the Himachal Pradesh
player fared better with the ball
than someone as experienced as
Yadav.
India will feel this was a series
it could and perhaps should
have won. It had no business
losing in Canberra, and with just
a little more discipline, a better
fist could have been made of the
third ODI in Melbourne.
Virat Kohli felt Australia had
won all the crunch moments,
the diference lying in the fact
that this was a side used to
victory.
This was a tournament of flat
pitches and tall totals indeed
no five-game bilateral ODI series has produced more runs
with echoes of the last bilateral
engagement between these
sides in 2013. If Indias bowlers
struggled on the flat pitches
rolled out here, its batsmen
flourished. Rohit Sharma and
Virat Kohli put Australia to the

sword, scoring two hundreds

apiece. Shikhar Dhawan, just
when his place in the side was
being called into question,
scored a pair of fifties and one
century.
It was Indias middle-order,
though, that was exposed here.
Number five is still a problem
area, and Dhonis admittedly
waning big-hitting powers
mean six is not his ideal spot.
Manish Pandey got too little
time to bat in the first two games
and was unfairly dropped, for
the sake of the teams balance.
He was recalled only in the final ODI, and even that decision
was forced by Ajinkya Rahanes
injury. Pandey and India are fortunate that he produced that innings in Sydney, to help the side
complete the highest successful
ODI run chase against Australia
in Australia. Similarly, Jasprit
Bumrahs encouraging display
at the SCG was only facilitated
by the injury to Bhuvneshwar
Kumar, who has clearly
regressed.
India went into the VB Series
with an unsettled side and
emerges from it with one, despite handing out four new caps.
But for Pandey and Bumrah, it
learnt very little about itself that
it did not already know.

Match tied
FATULLAH: Defending champion
South Africa and the West Indies played out a thrilling tie in
a warm-up match here on Sunday ahead of the ICC under-19
Cricket World Cup starting on
January 27.
In the other match of the day,
which was also curtailed by bad
weather at the start, Scotland
beat Fiji by 21 runs.
The scores:
West Indies 153 for nine in 35 overs
(Keacy Carty 45, Michael Frew 33 not
out, Conor McKerr three for 30) tied
with South Africa 153 for four in 35
overs (I. Smith 39, K. Verreynne
33,Wiaan Mulder 58 not out).
Scotland 192 for eight in 36 overs
(Owais Shah 35, Rory Johnston 53,
Finlay McCreath 36, Josaia Baleicikoibia three for 26) bt Fiji 171 in 31.3 overs
(Delaimatuku Maraiwai 57, Tuwai Yabaki 36, Haris Aslam four for 39,
Mitchell Rao three for 22). PTI

STARS OF SYDNEY: Jasprit Bumrahs superb display with the ball and Manish Pandeys brilliant innings helped India complete the

highest successful ODI run chase against Australia in Australia on Saturday. PHOTOS: AFP
ND-ND

18 |

SPORT

Diego Costa at it again

Arsenal slips to third after

morale-shattering defeat
against Chelsea

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

Deadly Taisuke does it

for Mumbai FC
G. VISWANATH
MUMBAI: The faithful at the

LONDON: Arsenal missed out on

the chance to regain top spot in

the Premier League after losing
1-0 at home to London rival
Chelsea on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Swansea gave
new coach Francesco Guidolin
victory in his first game in
charge with a 2-1 win away to
Everton as the Welsh club
moved four points clear of the
relegation zone.
At the Emirates, Arsenal was
reduced to 10 men in the 19th
minute when Per Mertesacker
was sent of for a challenge on
Chelsea striker Diego Costa,

EUROPEAN LEAGUES
with referee Mark Clattenburg
ruling the Gunners defender
was the last man.
Four minutes later, Costa
gave Chelsea the lead when he
got on the end of a Branislav
Ivanovic cross at the near post.
Arsenals defeat left it in third
spot, three points behind shock
leader Leicester City, while
Chelsea moved up to 13th place.
Winning start for Guidlolin
A hard-fought victory at
Goodison Park saw Italian boss
Guidlolin of to a winning start
with the Swans. Swansea went
ahead through Gylfi Sigurdssons 17th-minute penalty but

DECISIVE MOMENT: Diego Costa reached to Willian's superb through-ball just ahead of Per Mertesacker and with the German already
committed to a sliding tackle, the Chelsea striker tumbled and referee Mark Clattenburg brandished the red card.
PHOTO: CLIVE MASON / GETTY IMAGES

Everton was level nine minutes

later when Gareth Barrys nearpost flick was turned into his
own net by the Swans Jack
Cork.
But Swansea regained the
lead in the 34th minute. Leftback Neil Taylor burst clear and
released Andre Ayew, whose
shot deflected in of the sliding
John Stones.
Atletico held
In La Liga, Atletico Madrid
spurned the chance to move
back on top as it failed to break
down 10-man Sevilla in a 0-0
draw on Sunday.

Other results:
EPL: Sunday: Everton 1 (Cork 26-

og) lost to Swansea 2 (Sigurdsson 17pen, Ayew 34).

Saturday: West Ham 2 (Valencia 1,
56) drew with Manchester City 2
(Aguero 9-pen, 81).
Bundesliga: Sunday: Eintracht
Frankfurt 3 (Meier 66, 73, 90+3) bt
Wolfsburg 2 (Dante 25, Schuerrle 79)
Saturday: Borussia Monchengladbach 1 (Raffael 58) lost to Borussia
Dortmund 3 (Reus 41, Mkhitaryan 51,
Gundogan 75).
La Liga: Sunday: Athletic Bilbao 5
(Aduriz 12, 52, Merino 27, Laporte 40,
Dos Santos 80-og) bt Eibar 2 (Baston
4, 49-pen); Atletico Madrid 0 drew

Kim Song Yongs brace gives

BFC an easy win over Lajong
N. SUDARSHAN

Arsenal's Flamini
lost his first PL
match at the
Emirates after
54 games
with Sevilla 0.
Saturday: Espanyol 2 (Caicedo 3,
Moreno 39) drew with Villarreal 2 (Trigueros 23, Musacchio 88); Granada 3
(Rico 27, El-Arabi 36, Rochina 77) bt
Getafe 2 (Scepovic 71, Moises 73);
Rayo Vallecano 3 (Miku 21, Tito 26, Jozabed 36) bt Celta Vigo 0.
Serie A: Sunday: Fiorentina 2 (Ilicic 24, Rodriguez 83) bt Torino 0; Vero-

Conceding the goal in

the first minute never
helps. It put us back
throughout
Thangboi Singto,
Lajong coach

sitions to keep the opposition

defenders guessing.
Midfielder Alwyn George,
too, made his intentions clear
with a powerful shot from 20
yards and a cheeky back-heel.
But neither helped double the
lead.
On 36 minutes though, Kim
scored the second. He headed
on a Curtis Osano long ball for
Vineeth to square from the
right. Alwyn shot the ball
straight at the goalie but Kim
bundled in the rebound.
Had a towering header by
John Johnson on the stroke of
half-time found the back of the
net instead of crashing against
the bar it could have been
match over for Lajong right
then.
However, not much time
passed before it was done and
dusted. Fifteen minutes into the
second period, a dummy by Vineeth let Kim through on goal,

and the North Korean easily

guided it past goalie Vishal
Kahit.
With eight minutes left, Kim
could have had his hat-trick.
But he hit the post with a low
drive from the right and then
missed an easy header of a
cross
by
left-back
Lalchuanmawia.
We could have taken more
care towards the end, said
Bengaluru coach Ashley Westwood. We couldve scored one
or two more. But three is good.
The first half was a bit edgy,
second half we looked a good
side and, in spells, looked pretty
expansive knocking the ball
around.
Lajong coach Thangboi Singto said: Conceding the goal in
the first minute never helps. It
put us back throughout.
The result: Bengaluru FC 3 (Vineeth 1, Kim 36, 60) bt Shillong Lajong
0.

Two in
joint lead
CHENNAI: Grandmasters Yuri Solodovnichenko of Ukraine and
Vladimir Belous of Russia
shared lead with 7.5 points each
after the ninth and penultimate
round of the Chennai Open International
Grandmasters
chess tournament held here on
Sunday.
The results (Round 9, Indians
unless specified): Mikhail Mozharov
(Rus) 7 drew with Yuri Solodovnichenko (Ukr) 7.5; J. Deepan Chakkravarthy
6.5 lost to Vladimir Belous (Rus) 7.5;
Boris Grachev (Rus) 7 bt Vitaliy Bernadskiy (Ukr) 6; Marat Dzhumaev
(Uzb) 7 bt Ivan Popov (Rus) 6; Sipke
Ernst (Ned) 6.5 drew with Alberto David (Ita) 6.5; Vijayalakshmi Subbaraman 7 bt Anton Demchenko (Rus) 6;
Vitaly Sivuk (Ukr) 6.5 bt V.S. Rathanvel
6; Adam Tukhaev (Ukr) 6.5 bt Akash
Thakur 5.5; Artur Gabrielian (Rus) 6.5
bt S.V. Srinath Rao 5.5; Valeriy Neverov (Ukr) 6.5 bt A.L. Muthaiah 5.5; Attila Czebe (Hun) 5.5 lost to Ramanathan
Balasubramaniam (6.5).

CRICKET

Izumo and Zhu

are champions

India A locks horns with India B

BENGALURU:

MAN OF THE MOMENT: Kim Song Yong struck once in each half after
Vineeth had scored in the opening minute to effectively end the
match as a contest. PHOTO: K. MURALI KUMAR.

Jaypee Punjab
Warriors defeated Dabang
Mumbai 3-1 to notch up its second win and jump to the top of
the table in the Hockey India
League here on Sunday.
Armaan Qureshi and Christopher Ciriello scored in the
ninth (field goal) and 21st minutes respectively as the home
side led 3-0 at half-time. Harmanpreet Singh pulled one
back for the Mumbai side in the
39th minute.
The Sardar Singh-led Warriors had lost to Delhi Waveriders a day after beating Ranchi
Rays in its opener.
The result: Punjab Warriors 3 (Armaan 9 (FG), Ciriello 21) bt Dabang
Mumbai 1 (Harmanpreet 39). PTI

CHANDIGARH:

TABLE TENNIS

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
Bengaluru
FC
strolled to a 3-0 victory over
Shillong Lajong at the Kanteerava Stadium here on Sunday,
and as a result went top of the ILeague standings with nine
points from three games.
The striking duo of C.K. Vineeth and Kim Song Yong combined to great efect, accounting for all three goals to ensure
that Bengalurus home start
was as unfaltering as its away
opener this season.
The home side had the best
possible opening, with Vineeth
scoring in the very first minute.
Following a defensive error
from Lajong, he collected the
ball and placed a low shot into
the right corner.
Lajong could have hit back
immediately but Bipin Singh,
left unmarked and under virtually no pressure, sent a cross
over the bar from a very promising range.
Skipper Sunil Chetri, slotting
in on the left, did not have his
greatest of games, but when on
the attack along with Vineeth
and Kim he often switched po-

na 1 (Pazzini 39) drew with Genoa 1

(Coppola 19-og).
Inter Milan 1 (Palacio 39) drew with
Carpi 1 (Lasagna 90+2); Lazio 4 (Candreva 66-pen, 81, Cataldi 72, Keita
90+6) bt Chievo 1 (Cesar); Palermo 4
(Quaison 35, Hiljemark 56, Lazaar 77,
Trajkovski 87) bt Udinese 1 (Thereau
79).
Sampdoria 2 (Correa 45, Eder 73)
lost to Napoli 4 (Higuain 9, Insigne 18pen, Hamsik 60, Mertens 79); Sassuolo 0 lost to Bologna 2 (Giaccherini 68,
Floccari 90+4).
Saturday: Frosinone 0 drew with
Atalanta 0; Empoli 2 (Zielinski 32,
Maccarone 61) drew with AC Milan 2
(Bacca 8, Bonaventura 48).

Cooperage football ground may

have been pleasantly surprised
by the quality of football dished
out by the two teams Mumbai
FC and Goas Salgaocar Sports
Club in their I-league match
on Sunday.
But first the energetic and enterprising Japanese captain of
the home team, Taisuke Matsugae, and his band of players and
thereafter some meticulous undertaking by the visitors ensured that the spectators got
their moneys worth and a best
weekend holiday. Mumbai FC
won 2-1.
For straightforward reasons
the 33-year-old midfielder, Taisuke was the toast of the evening, scoring the first goal of the
season for his side with a long
range pile-driver in the 37th
minute and thereafter backpassing for Sushil Kumar Singh
to hit home the second in the
48th that clinched the first big
points for the home team.
Always a threat, Salgoacars
Jackichand Singh found the net
in the 66th minute to raise hopes
of a dramatic finish. A weary
and nervous Mumbai FC faltered many times in the second
half, but it managed to hold on to
the one-goal lead and when the
play came to an end after three
minutes of added-on time, there
was much relief and joy in the
home teams ranks and
supporters.
Although coach Khalid Jamil
had gone overboard to say that
he would not be disappointed
with a drawn result, his charges
believed otherwise. The presence of Japans Ryuki Kozawa
appeared to have injected a massive dose of hustle and bustle in
the home teams front line. With

the likes of Izumi Arata and

Sushil Kumar looking to capitalise on the fine work done by
Jayesh Rane and Liberian Eric
Brown on the wings, the emphasis was heavy on attack.
Right from the start there
were a number of shots directed
at the goal that kept the Salgaocar goalkeeper and captain Karanjit Singh watchful and busy
inside the penalty box. Attention was riveted on Kozawa who
made his I-League debut, but the
man who took centre-stage was
Taisuke.
He was the livewire and completely caught the rivals by surprise eight minutes from halftime. A yellow card for committing a foul did not deter him
from going full throttle to add to
the pressure sustained by Rane,
Brown, Arata, Sushil Kumar and
Kozawa.
There was a sort of scule after Taisuke put his side ahead,
and also a strong riposte from
the Goan side in the last five
minutes of the first session. The
match lifted itself to a level of a
true contest in the second half
with the individual brilliance of
Darryl Dufy and clever movement by Jackichand, Calvin
Mbarga and defender Gurjinder
Singh taking long range shots on
and of.
Mumbai FC impressed with
its short passing and body feints;
maybe Brown and Sushil Kumar
overdid, but it went down well
with the 2500 odd spectators.
There were a number of freekicks that raised the excitement
quotient, and Mumbai FC
gasped when substitute Manandeep Singhs shot skimmed over
the cross bar in the first minute
of the add-on time.
The result: Mumbai FC 2 (Taisuke
37, Sushil Kumar 48) bt Salgaocar SC 1
(Jackichand Singh 66).

Warriors climb
to the top

INDORE: Japans Izumo Takuto

and Zhu Chengzhu of Hong
Kong emerged the boys and
girls champions in the 11Even
Sports 2015 ITTF World Junior
Circuit Finals at the Abhay
Prashal here on Sunday.
The three-day event came to
its conclusion when the Japanese hardly dropped a sweat
beating Carlos Vedriel from
Spain 4-0 in a one-sided final
while Zhu overcame stif resistance to beat Park Seri of Korea
4-2.
Each winner took home
$3,800 while the runners-up received $2,100 each.
The fifth-seeded Japanese
said, I played my natural game
as I was determined to attack
right from the word go. Carlos
was making surprisingly too
many mistakes and it helped

my cause. I simply kept the ball

on the table for him to make
mistakes.
For Zhu it was sweet revenge. When I entered the arena for the final, the loss to Park
Seri in the group match was at
the back of my mind. I wanted
to make amends for the [2-4]
loss and was more determined.
She quickly changed her strategy but I adapted to the
changes.
The results: Boys: Final: Izumo
Takuto (Jpn) bt Carlos Vedriel (Esp)
4-0 (11-7, 11-7, 11-3, 11-5). Semifinals:
Takuto bt Zhang Kai (USA) 4-1 (11-6,
11-9, 7-11, 11-9, 12-10), Vedriel bt An
Jaehyun (Kor) 4-3 (11-7, 13-11, 11-8, 811, 1-11, 10-12, 11-8).
Girls: Final: Zhu Chengzhu (HKG)
bt Park Seri (Kor) 4-2 (11-4, 11-6, 8-11,
11-6, 7-11, 11-7). Semifinals: Zhu bt
Andreea Dragoman (Rou) 4-0 (12-10,
12-10, 11-4, 12-10), Seri bt Adina Diaconu (Rou) 4-0 (11-5, 14-12, 11-7, 12-10).

Japans Izumo Takuto and Zhu Chengzhu of Hong Kong pose

with their trophies.

Y.B. SARANGI
KANPUR: In a season of changes
in Indian cricket, the good old
Deodhar Trophy a fourdecade-old inter-zonal List A
event is all set to be played
in its new avatar at the Green
Park here through the week.
With the build-up for the upcoming World T20 championship getting priority, the Indian Cricket Board (BCCI) may
have tried to transform the
zonal afair into a more competitive event for the players.
The zonal sides have been
replaced with Gujarat, the Vijay Hazare Trophy champion,
and two other teams India A
and India B, which were regular fixtures in the mundane
Challenger Trophy.
With 9 a.m. starts in the
height of winter, the teams will
play each other once before
the best two clash in the final
on Saturday. India A and India B will lock horns in the
opening match on Monday.
It is a combined form of
Challenger and Deodhar. With
three good teams it is going to
be a good competition, said
India B captain Unmukt
Chand.
Railways all-rounder Karn
Sharma said, The best players
will get opportunity to showcase their talent. This can result in some tight contests.
India B coach Aashish Kapoor was a little cautious
though. The zonal event was
monotonous. Now good players from smaller sides can play
with others. We have to wait
until the end to know how
good is the change.

LIMBERING UP: India B skipper Unmukt Chand with Mayank

Agarwal during a practice session in Kanpur on Sunday.
PHOTO: SANDEEP SAXENA

The Ambati Rayudu-led India A is studded with batsmen

like Murali Vijay, Jalaj Saxena,
Mandeep Singh, Kedar Jadhav
and Naman Ojha.
Good options
Of-spinners Parvez Rasool
and Saxena, leg-spinner Amit
Mishra, left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem apart from the
pacers Siddharth Kaul, Sreenath Arvind and Krishna Das
provide good options. Varun
Aaron is not available due to
an injury.
India B looks formidable
with its top-order batting comprising Unmukt, Shreyas Iyer,
Mayank Agarwal, Suryakumar
Yadav, B. Aparajith, Dinesh
Karthik and Sheldon Jackson.
All-rounders in Karn, Pawan
Negi and Stuart Binny give a
lot of balance.
Efective pacers in Dhawal

Kulkarni, Shardul Thakur and

Nathu Singh and of-spinner
Jayant Yadav strengthen the
attack.
After bagging the Vijay Hazare Trophy in style, Gujarat
loaded with youngsters and
captained by the experienced
Parthiv Patel will look forward to make an impact again
in the 50-over format.
Parthiv, Rujul Bhatt, Priyank
Panchal, Chirag Gandhi and
Manpreet Juneja form the core
of Gujarat batting. All-rounder
Axar Patel is also in fine touch,
while R.P. Singh leads the pace
department by example.
The team, which will miss
the services of its star pacer
Jasprit Bumrah who is representing India, will try to gain
from Rush Kalaria's presence.
The tournament also assumes
importance ahead of the Indian Premier League season.

VARIETY
THE HINDU CROSSWORD 11608
1

Incognito

10

11

13

12

14

15

17

16

18

19

20

21
22

23

24

25
26

27

28

Across

1 Removing water content may

lead to drying death (11)
9 Boy left mutilated gerbil for
hybrid animal (5)
10 Accountant's charity fair for
Royal Irish Academy's food
outlet (9)
11 MIT hens pun wildly and get
retribution (10)
CM
YK

12 Fathers with Indian redhead

couple (4)
13 Religious leader found in
mihrab, bizarrely (5)
15 Expectorate behind Head
Office next to Albert's
nursing home (8)
17 Richthofen's embarrassed
aristocrat (3,5)
19 Approaches player and lugs ...

(5)
22 ... son with black stuff for
leading performer (4)
23 Dark summer snake (5,5)
26 Scary dream about horse
after dark (9)
27 Aircraft panels damaged (5)
28 Sincerity displayed by auditor
having cosy pad near cape
(11)
Down

1 Fortified position with

revolving gun, including
leading infantryman, after
commencement of day (3,2)
2 His mohair was destroyed in
nuked city (9)
3 Leave secretly last month
a non-civil cop followed (6)
4 An Iberian royal may be son
of Al (criminal) (7)
5 Setters not confused X (4)
6 Monster recast gun at Agra
(9)
7 One who runs away to marry
queen, having damaged Opel
(6)
8 Scout patron changed
direction from North to left

(6)
14 Dishevel sleeping place, with
waste cloth tied on broken
leg (9)
16 Explosive fruit found under
tree (9)
17 Hate letters from millionaire's
enterprise (6)
18 Ok, Alice makes animal feed
(3,4)
20 Shout out Indian honorific
before English king (6)
21 Take a millilitre (a drop of
elixir) before exercise (6)
24 Distributes cards and trades
(5)
25 Move and electrify prison (4)

Solution to puzzle 11607

C
C O
U
F R
T
D I
E
P R

A
O K
I
A N C

S R
A
I V
E
R A N D
R
C O R P
M A
A S S
S

S
C
U
P L A I N T
H
P
S
E
T O T T
R
A
A
A E L I
B R
N
L
A T E
G E N
A
D
OM A P P E
A
R
O
O R A L
R U
I
I
T
O N A N C E
D
G
R

M
I F F
N
I
E R E D
L
A N D Y
S
E R A L
A
B
N D I X
N
S T I C
L
T
U N I T
G
O

FAITH

SU | DO | KU

Greatness of Srimad Bhagavatam

The date of king Pareekshits death became known to him, and
he wanted to spend the remaining seven days of his life
listening to the Bhagavata Purana, which Sage Suka narrated to
him. When Suka was about to begin his narration, the
celestials appeared before him and ofered him nectar. They
said that he could give Pareekshit the nectar instead of
narrating Srimad Bhagavatam to him. But the sage said that
nothing could liberate a person from the cycle of births and
deaths, as the Bhagavata Purana could.
The greatness of the Bhagavata Purana was revealed by
Brahma also, elaborated P.T. Seshadri in a discourse.
Brahma put all the Vedas and all the sacred texts on one side
of a balance. On the other, he placed the Bhagavata Purana.
The side with the Bhagavata Purana tilted downwards,
indicating that all the sacred texts put together could not equal
it in greatness.
Every yuga has its own dharma, its own way for people to
attain liberation. The ways to liberation in each yuga take into
account the character of the people who live in the respective
yugas. Thus in the Krita yuga, dhyana (meditation) was the
prescribed mode; in Treta yuga, yaga (sacrifice) was
prescribed; for the dvapara yuga, archana was prescribed; for
Kali yuga it is sankeerthanam, the recitation of the Supreme
Ones names, that is prescribed.
Kali is a time of turmoil and the people of this yuga will not
resort to diicult means to attain liberation. Keeping this in
mind, a simple method of seeking moksha has been prescribed
for them, namely Sankeerthana. The Bhagavata Purana shows
us the auspicious qualities of the Lord, and as we chant His
name and listen to the Purana, we are freed from worldly pulls
and eventually reach His feet.

A mind game and a

puzzle that you solve
with reasoning and
logic. Fill in the grid with
digits in such a manner
that every row, every
column and every 3x3
box accommodates the
digits 1 to 9, without
repeating any. The
solution to yesterdays
puzzle is at left.
ND-ND

SPORT

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

Sydney Thunder
beats Melbourne
Stars to win BBL

| 19

Sindhu clinches Malaysia Masters

BADMINTON / The Indian produced some delectable serves and strokes to outclass her opponent

MELBOURNE: Sydney Thunder

beat the Melbourne Stars by

three wickets to win the Australian Big Bash League at the
Melbourne Cricket Ground on
Sunday.
After being set 177 to win, the
Thunder reached the target
with three balls to spare.
Stars reached 176 for nine
thanks largely to a scintillating
74 from Kevin Pietersen.
After Usman Khawaja (70)
got Sydneys run chase of to a
superb start putting on 86 of the
opening wicket with Jacques
Kallis (28), skipper Mike Hussey hit a quick-fire 18, and useful contributions from Aiden
Blizzard (16) and Ben Rohrer
(13 not out) got them home.
Its been a great journey
weve been building something
for the past few years so to reach the summit is something
pretty special, said Hussey.
I think weve got a nicely
balanced team.
Weve got a lot of all-rounders and when youve got three
of the worlds best all-rounders
(Kallis, Watson and Andre Russell), it makes the captains job a
lot easier.
The scores:
Melbourne Stars 176 for nine in 20
overs (Kevin Pietersen 74, David Hussey 21, Shane Watson two for 17, Chris
Green two for 37) lost to Sydney
Thunder 181 for seven in 19.3 overs
(Usman Khawaja 70, Jacques Kallis
28, Adam Zampa two for 32, Marcus
Stoinis three for 30). Agencies

PENANG: Indian shuttler P.V.

Sindhu continued her rampaging run to clinch the Malaysia

Masters Grand Prix Gold title
with a straight-game win over
Scotlands Kristy Gilmour, making a resounding start to the new
season here on Sunday.
The third-seeded Indian prevailed 21-15, 21-9 in a 32-minute
clash to clinch her fifth Grand
Prix Gold title to avenge a 2013
loss to the Scot, their only previous encounter before this
match.
This is also Sindhus second
Malaysia Masters Grand Prix
Gold title, having won it in 2013
as well. She also completed a
hat-trick at the Macau Open
Grand Prix Gold in November
last year.
The Indian had reached her
maiden finals of a Super Series
premier event at the Denmark
Super Series Premier.
Sindhu, who had an unbeaten
streak at the Premier Badminton
League (PBL), produced a dominating performance as she
showed better court coverage
and produced some delectable
serves and strokes to outclass
her opponent in the summit
clash.
In the opening game, Sindhu
made early strides, moving to
5-2 and then sped away with her
superior game plan. The Indian
shuttler picked the shuttle early
and came up with some superb
serves and pushed her opponent
to commit numerous errors.

The Indian had a healthy 12-6

lead which she increased to
18-10.
The World no. 20 Scot, on the
other hand, reeled of four
straight points but could never
threaten Sindhu who closed the
game without much efort.
In the second game, Sindhu
once again opened up a slender
5-2 lead which was quickly
erased by Gilmour. But the Indian then changed gears and
moved to 9-5 and then jumped to
a huge 16-5 lead.
The Scottish shuttler tried in
vain to narrow the gap but the
Indian slammed the door on her.
PTI
Special Correspondent from
Hyderabad adds:
The Badminton Association
of India announced a cash incentive of Rs. 5 lakhs to P.V.
Sindhu on winning the Malaysia
Masters Grand Prix Gold title on
Sunday.
Dr. Aklhilesh Das Gupta,
president of BAI, in a message
said: I congratulate her for this
stupendous win. She won the title in 2013 and this time she was
quite keen to achieve the feat
again and she did it. I am proud
of her and wish her luck to win
more such titles in the future.
This victory comes at a time
when winning and being in form
is important keeping the upcoming Rio Games in mind and I
am certain she will be a force to
reckon with in the upcoming
event, he added.

CRICKET

Rohit jumps to career-best fifth spot

Rohit Sharma. PHOTO: AFP

Mitchell Marsh and John Hastings have achieved a career-high
ranking.
Maxwell, who scored 169 runs
in the series, has moved up two
places to eighth, Smiths 315 runs
have helped him to 15th spot, and
Warner has jumped five places
to 18th after scoring 220 runs.
Outside the top 20, Ajinkya
Rahane has moved up three places to 25th after contributing 141
runs, and Marsh has rocketed 21
places to 43rd after scoring 164
runs.
The series, in which a total of
3,159 runs were scored, proved to
be a diicult one for the bowlers
and this is reflected in the latest
bowling chart in which most of

the top-ranked bowlers have

been unable to defend their preseries rankings.
Indian of-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has dropped two
places to 11th, Bhuvneshwar Kumar has slipped seven places to
20th, James Faulkner has plummeted seven places to 28th, Axar
Patel has fallen four places to
33rd and Umesh Yadav has
plunged five places to 41st. The
only bowlers inside the top 50 to
improve their rankings are Indias Ravindra Jadeja, who is in
22nd place (up by two places),
and Hastings, who is sitting in
49th position (up by 62 places).
Outside the top 50, Ishant Sharma has gained 15 places and is
now in 71st spot.
Australia fast bowler Mitchell
Starc missed the series against
India, resulting in him dropping
from the No. 1 position. Starc had
moved to the top after he bowled
Australia to the 50-over World
Cup victory last year in March.
Starcs slip means New Zealands Trent Boult will start the
three-match series against Pakistan as the No. 1 ranked bowler.
He leads Bangladeshs Shakib Al
Hasan, in second place, by seven
points. PTI

Punjab emerges triumphant

The Punjab team after winning the Vijay Merchant under-13 trophy on Sunday.
BENGALURU: Punjab won the Vijay Merchant Trophy under-16
tournament here on Sunday by
virtue of having secured the
first innings lead over Mumbai.
From its overnight second innings score of 443 for seven,
Punjab ended up with 514.

Mumbai, chasing a practically

insurmountable target of 652 in
less than a day finally totalled
220 for five in its second
innings.
The scores: Punjab 311 & 514 in 28
overs (Abhishek Sharma 123, Deepin
Chitkara 123, Sumit Sharma 92, Jag-

deep Singh 41, Nehal Wadhera 34, Ayush Gautam 30, Vighnesh Solanki
eight for 173) drew with Mumbai 174
& 220 for five in 65 overs (Suved Parkar 91, Divyaansh Saxena 37, Shreeraj
Anant Gharat 27, Yashasvi Jaiswal 41
n.o.) [Punjab won on first innings
lead ]

V.V. SUBRAHMANYAM
HYDERABAD: Newly-crowned Ma-

IN GOOD NICK: P.V. Sindhu dominated the net and used her drop shots to bamboozle Scotlands
Kristy Gilmour in 32 minutes. PHOTO: PTI

India lifts T20

Asia Cup for Blind
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

DUBAI: Indias Rohit Sharma

jumped eight spots to claim a career-best fifth position in the ICC
batsman rankings after a stellar
showing in the recent series
against top-ranked Australia.
Man-of-the-Series Rohit, who
made 441 runs in the five matches, struck two centuries and a
match-winning 99 in the consolation win for the visitors, who
lost the series 1-4.
Rohit, who played in the 2006
Under-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka, has now become Indias second highest-ranked batsman behind Virat Kohli (second), with
captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni
slipping seven places to 13th position in the latest rankings,
which were released on Sunday.
The 28-year-old Mumbai batsman earned 59 points for his
performances and he is now 64
points behind Kohli, who trails
No. 1 ranked A.B. de Villiers of
South Africa by 75 points.
Meanwhile, India, after winning the Sydney ODI, has retained its second position.
Australias dominant performance in the series is reflected in
the fact that Glenn Maxwell and
Steve Smith have improved their
rankings, while David Warner,

These kinds of wins

boost your confidence
laysian Masters Grand Prix
champion P.V. Sindhu says she
could not have expected for a
better start to the years international circuit than winning the title on Sunday.
It is a big, big win to start
with, she told The Hindu soon
after her title triumph in Kuala
Lumpur. This being the year of
Olympics, it is always important
to keep winning the majors and
what really pleased me in the Malaysian Open was the way I could
get most of the things right.
I finished last year with a title
in the Macau Open and have now
started this one on a winning
note. These kinds of wins give
you so much confidence that you
tend to feel better and belong to
the elite group, said the
20-year-old.
Reflecting on the final, the
World No. 12 said that it was far
easier than she had expected.
I think the semifinal against Ji
Hyun Sung [of Korea and topseeded in this edition] was tougher. But again, since I had not
played Kirsty Gilmour [Scotland] for a long time I was not
honestly sure how the final
would be today, she added.
Once I won the first game, I
got the feeling that I could win
this title, said Sindhu.
Definitely, the PBL, though a
completely diferent format,
helped get into the groove in
terms of expectations and at the

same time make those minor adjustments, the Chennai Smashers star player said.
Asked about the most impressive part of her game in the Malaysian Open, Sindhu said, I
think my net game was really
good. That doesnt mean that I
would be content with this performance. I am aware that I have
to keep improving with each
event and that also means keeping in tune with the changing
strategies of diferent opponents
in the majors lined up which includes the prestigious All England championship.
The eforts are really on to be
a much better player by focussing
on many areas of my game as no
one can be a complete player,
she added. Overall, it has been a
really satisfying outing in the Malaysian Open and I just hope to
win a few more big events in the
run-up to the Olympics as an
Olympic medal is the ultimate
dream I am chasing, said Sindhu.

CUE SPORTS

Passion is their driving force

VIJAY LOKAPALLY

KOCHI: World champion India

held its nerve impressively on

Sunday, defeated Pakistan by
45 runs and lifted the first T20
Asia Cup for the Blind at the
Nehru Stadium here.
Despite its big star Prakash
Jayaramaiah considered one
of the worlds best batsmen in
this version falling for a duck
and the consistent Ketan Patel
not scoring big, India still managed to make 206, thanks to
some late fireworks from captain Ajay Kumar Reddy who
made an unbeaten 34 from 16
balls (1x6, 1x4).
Pakistan, which lost the toss,
was struggling at 80 for six in
the ninth over of the chase but a
58-run stand between Javed
(43) and Israr Hassan for the
next wicket put the side back on
track.
But with the formers runout, things became easy for the
host.
The scores (final): India 208 for
five in 20 overs (Dunna Venkatesh 36,
Deepak Malik 40, Ketan Patel 34, Anil
Garia 25, Ajay Kumar Reddy 34 n.o.) bt
Pakistan 163 in 18.2 overs (Amir Ishfaq
38, Anees Javed 43, Israr Hassan 28,
Deepak Malik two for 41).

This being the year

of Olympics, it is
always important to
keep winning the
majors and what
really pleased me in
the Malaysian Open
was the way I could
get most of the
things right

INDORE: Smiling and always presentable, this small fraternity of

referees in snooker and billiards
always stands out for its commitment and discipline. They
arrive before the players and
leave much after they have left.
For most of them it has been a
life dedicated to the game without a semblance of recognition.
In unison they claim passion
as the driving force but scarcely
admit how they painfully go unrewarded for their service to the
game.
Kishore Khurana, Ajay Rastogi, Irfan Mirza and R.B. Ganesh
have seen the best and worst of
the game.
Mirza, as a schoolboy, had
stood in line to buy entry to the
Satish Mohan-Michael Ferreira
billiards final in Calcutta in the
60s.
The hall is sparsely full when
he oiciates today at the championships in progress here.
Unsung but dedicated, is
how Khurana, 60, looks at his
group of 24 national referees.
We face more pressure than
the players and do not seek returns. Ours is a small group (20-

IN LOVE WITH THE SPORT: National billiards and snooker referees

(from left) Ajay Rastogi, Kishore Khurana, R.B. Ganesh and
Irfan Mirza in Indore on Sunday. PHOTO: VIJAY LOKAPALLY

30 referees) which gives its best

to keep the game going.
There is no comfort zone for
us. There are times when the facilities for us are below par but
we carry on. We are ambassadors of the game too.
Four decades of association
has made Rastogi a veteran of

his art.
I have travelled a lot but it is
tough. You cant sustain your
life. All we get is bed, breakfast,
one meal a day. Spending from
own pocket is the norm. To still
continue I must be mad or passionate. But it is a small circuit
and the fraternity has deep

bonding. There is no bitterness

and no politics.
For Mirza, a player-turned
commentator-referee, it is devotion. We sacrifice a lot. It is
sustenance of life actually. It
gives me identity and takes me
places. At times it is hard on the
pockets but I take it as a service
to the game.
Ganesh, 52, played the game
and turned referee to stay in
touch.
I used to organise tournaments and would stand in as referee too. What I like best is the
respect you get from the players
and the afection from colleagues. We back each other.
The game has seen changes but I
would prefer the players also to
maintain a dress code as we do. I
owe it to the game even though I
miss many family functions.
Ganesh, like, Khurana, Rastogi
and Mirza, is away 300 days in a
year on refereeing duty.
The sad part is that for all
their hard work, 12 to 16 hours a
day, the referees go home empty
handed in terms of financial remuneration.
But they do so with smiling
faces and keep alive their passion to serve the sport.

PRO-KABADDI LEAGUE

Match-fixing will be
dealt with severely
SPORTS REPORTER
BENGALURU: Any Pro Kabaddi
League player found to be involved in nefarious activities like
match-fixing will be severely
punished, Mashal Sports Director, Charu Sharma, stated here on
Sunday.
There are many governance
bodies in the PKL to address
match-fixing. On our part, we
have educated the players thoroughly on the dos and the donts.
A whole barrel of apples may
have one rotten apple our job
is to identify, remove and crush
it, Charu said at a press conference here.
Can I guarantee that there will
be no bad incidents at all? No, I
cannot. Unfortunately, human
greed is powerful. But we have
put the fear of the devil in the
players, and we will be ruthless if
anyone is caught, he added.
Asked about the clash in schedule between the PKL and the ka-

baddi event at the South Asian

Games (SAG), Charu stressed
that no player will be allowed to
choose the PKL over international duty. All India players will be
released to represent the country. They will return to the PKL
after the SAG finishes, he said.
The kabaddi events at the SAG
are scheduled to be held from
February 10 to 15, which means
that the players will at a minimum miss the entire Pune leg
of the PKL (February 11-14), as
well as the final day of the preceding Kolkata leg (February 10).
Charu explained that the brief
absence of the star athletes will
not diminish the appeal of the
PKL. They will be away for just a
week. In cricket, if M.S. Dhoni
does not play a match, the spectators will still come to the stadium.
The spectacular nature of kabaddi will always draw crowds. Besides, there are plenty of talented
youngsters waiting to step up,
Charu said.

Myrtlewood lifts Villoo Poonawalla Indian Oaks

MUMBAI: Myrtlewood ridden by
P.S.Chouhan won the Villoo Poonawalla Indian Oaks (Gr. I), the stellar attraction of the races held here on Sunday.
The winner is owned by Mr. & Mrs.
Mehernosh H.Debboo. Pesi Shrof
trains the winner.
The 36th Edition of the Asian Racing
Conference (ARC) kicked of with the
Villoo Poonawalla Indian Oaks and was
supported by the Asian Racing Federation Trophy at the Mahalaxmi race
course. More than 600 delegates from
all over the world attended this mega
event.
The presence of Princess Zahra Aga
Khan at the races gave an added grace to
the occasion. Besides live music and a
host of prizes, including Logines watches and 100gm of gold for contest of skill
for delegates were given away, courtesy
Dr. Cyrus Poonawalla.
1. IRISH THOROUGHBRED
MARKETING
MULTI-MILLION (1,400m), Cl. III, rated 40 to 66:
Holy Smoke (Donoghue) 1, Governor
General (Sandesh) 2, Persian Prince
(Trevor) 3 and Zana (Yash Narredu) 4.

CM
YK

2-1/4, 3-3/4, 1/2. 1m 23.22s. Rs. 44 (w), 16,

21 and 10 (p). SHP: Rs. 65, FP: Rs. 510, Q:
Rs. 501, Tanala: Rs. 348 and Rs. 102. Favourite: Persian Prince. Owners: Mr.
Gulamabbas E.Karachiwala, Mr. & Mrs.
Shapoor P.Mistry rep. Manjri Horse
Breeders Farm Pvt Ltd & Mr. Gaurav
Gadhoke. Trainer: Faisal Abbas.

2. BREEDERS OF INDIA
CHAMPIONSHIP
STAKES
(2,000m), 4-y-o & over: Quasar (Yash
Narredu) 1, Booker Jones (Trevor) 2,
Shivalik Showers (Sandesh) 3 and Baracchus (I.Chisty) 4. 3/4, 2-3/4, 15. 2m
00.06s. (record time). Rs. 12 (w), 13 and
14 (p). SHP: Rs. 27, FP: Rs. 18, Q: Rs. 18,
Tanala: Rs. 29 and Rs. 10. Favourite:
Quasar. Owners: Mr. Jaydev M.Mody
rep. J.M.Livestock Pvt ltd. M/s. Tanmay
A.Agashe & Madhav G.Patankar. Trainer: M.Narredu.

3. GOOL S.POONAWALLA
MILLION (Gr. III), (1,000m), 3-y-o
only: Serenita (Dashrath) 1, Honey
Dew (Trevor) 2, Lady Danehill (Zervan)
3 and Frosty (P.S.Chouhan) 4. Not run:
Saire Song. 1-1/2, Sh, 1-1/2. 59.11s. Rs. 145
(w), 29, 14 and 15 (p). SHP: Rs. 33, FP: Rs.

949, Q: Rs. 134, Tanala: Rs. 1,665 and Rs.

793. Favourite: Cataleya. Owners: M/s.
Joydeep Datta Gupta, Achuthan Siddharth, Ashwin B.Mehta, Narendra Kumar Ambwani & Shovon Mukherjee.
Trainer: S.K.Sunderji.

4. TRM MULTI-MILLION
SPRINT CUP (1,000m), Cl. II, rated
60 to 86: Goldberg (David Allan),
Brahmachari (Trevor) 1 (dead heat), Super Sunshine (Suraj Narredu) 3 and
Merchantofvenice (Sandesh) 4. Dht, 1, 1.
58.51s. H.No. 3. Rs. 27, H.No. 5. Rs. 21 (w),
21 and 15 (p). FP: Rs. 38, Q: Rs. 89, Tanala:
Rs. 363 and Rs. 175. Favourite: Maleficent. Owners: Goldberg: Mr. Neil Darashah, M/s. Mohan Chattaram, Kishore
M.Dingra & G.Shewakramani. Trainer:
Golberg: Neil Darashah. Owners: Brahmachari: M/s. Mohan Chattaram, Mr.
Kishore M.Dingra & G.Shewakramani.
Trainer: Brahmachari: Imtiaz Sait.

5. VILLOO POONAWALLA
INDIAN OAKS (Gr. I) (2,400m), Indian fillies, 4-y-o only:
MYRTLEWOOD (MULTIDIMENSIONAL - ADAMILE)
(P.S.CHOUHAN) 1,

CHEF DOEUVRE (IFFRAJ - ALIWIYYA) (NEERAJ) 2,

WAVEAFTERWAVE
(ARABIAN
GULF - ROYAL LIVERPOOL) (DONOGHUE) 3 and
SHIVALIK HEROINE (ORPEN - IFNI) (YASH NARREDU) 4.
4, 1-1/2, Sh. 2m 30.72s. Rs. 33 (w), 18,
108 and 46 (p). SHP: Rs. 628, FP: Rs. 1,372,
Q: Rs. 169, Tanala: Rs. 7,435 and Rs.
4,249. Favourite: Myrtlewood. Owners:
Mr. & Mrs. Mehernosh H.Deboo. Trainer: P.Shrof.

6. AT THE RACES CHAMPIONSHIP STAKES (1,400m), 4y-o & over: Your Royal Majesty
(P.S.Chouhan) 1, Shivalik Storm (Sandesh) 2, Perfectionist (Yash Narredu) 3
and Rule Downunder (Neeraj) 4. 3/4,
1/2, 3. 1m 21.74s. Rs. 21 (w), 12, 14 and 16
(p). SHP: Rs. 46, FP: Rs. 99, Q: Rs. 59,
Tanala: Rs. 265 and Rs. 97. Favourite:
Your Royal Majesty. Owners: Mr. &
Mrs. Keki D.Mehta and Mr. Dara
K.Mehta rep. Darashaw Bloodstock Pvt
Ltd. Trainer: P.Shrof.

7. ASIAN RACING FEDERATION TROPHY (1,400m), 3-y-o on-

ly: Devoted Eyes (Suraj Narredu) 1,

Accolade (Trevor) 2, Star Councillor
(S.John) 3 and Bold March (Sandesh) 4.
Not run: Sir Desmond. 2-1/4, 4-1/2, Nk.
1m 23.42s. Rs. 72 (w), 18, 12 and 51 (p).
SHP: Rs. 40, FP: Rs. 78, Q: Rs. 38, Tanala:
Rs. 601 and Rs. 386. Favourite: Accolade.
Owners: Dr. Y.K.Hamied & Mr. Atul
N.Amersey rep. So Blest Trading Co Pvt
Ltd. Trainer: C.D.Katrak.

8. AM TOTE INTERNATIONAL HANDICAP MILLION (1,200m), Cl. IV, rated 20 to 46:

Pearl Secret (Sandesh) 1, Turf Dancer
(C.S.Jodha) 2, Paramour (P.S.Chouhan)
3 and Snow Blast (V.Jodha) 4. 1-1/4, 1/2,
1-3/4. 1m 10.99s. Rs. 38 (w), 17, 43 and 34
(p). SHP: Rs. 101, FP: Rs. 245, Q: Rs. 75,
Tanala: Rs. 6,616 and Rs. 2,126. Favourite: Pearl Secret. Owners: M.A.M.Ramaswamy Chettiar Of Chettinad
Charitable Trust. Trainer: Karthik G.
Jackpot: 70 per cent: Rs. 8,271 (119
tkts), 30 per cent: Rs. 399 (1,056 tkts).
Treble: (i) Rs. 223 (64 tkts), (ii) Rs. 812
(44 tkts). Super Jackpot: 70 per cent: Rs.
1, 09, 746 (12 tkts), 30 per cent: Rs. 15, 254
(37 tkts).
ND-ND

20 |

LIFE

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2016

ASTRONOMICAL CHALLENGE

Rise in space junk could provoke

armed conflict, say scientists
IAN SAMPLE

he steady rise in space

junk that is floating
around the planet could provoke a political row and even
armed conflict, according to
scientists, who warn that even
tiny pieces of debris have
enough energy to damage or
destroy military satellites.
Researchers said fragments
of spent rockets and other
hurtling hardware posed a
special political danger because of the diiculty in confirming that an operational
satellite had been struck by
flying debris and had not fallen victim to an intentional attack by another nation.
Space agencies in the U.S.
and Russia track more than
23,000 pieces of debris larger
than 10 cm long, but estimates
say there could be half a billion fragments ranging from
one to 10 cm long, and trillions of smaller particles.
The junk poses the greatest
danger to satellites in low
Earth orbit, where debris can
slam into spacecraft at a combined speed of more than
48,280 kmph. This realm of
space, which stretches from

An artists impression released by the European Space Agency

(ESA) depicts an approximation of 12,000 objects of space
debris in orbit around the Earth. FILE PHOTO: AFP/ESA

160 to 1930 km above the surface, is where most military

satellites are deployed.
Impact on satellites
In a report to be published
in the journal Acta Astronautica, Vitaly Adushkin at the
Russian Academy of Sciences
in Moscow writes that impacts from space junk, especially on military satellites,
posed a special political danger and may provoke political or even armed conflict be-

tween space-faring nations.

The owner of the impacted
and destroyed satellite can
hardly quickly determine the
real cause of the accident.
Mr. Adushkin adds that in
recent decades there have
been repeated sudden failures
of defence satellites that have
never been explained. But
there are only two possibilities, he claims: either unregistered collisions with space
debris, or an aggressive action
by an adversary. This is a po-

litically dangerous dilemma,

he writes.
According to the report, the
amount of debris cluttering
low Earth orbit has risen dramatically in half a century of
space-faring.
Without eforts to clean up
the space environment, Mr.
Adushkin warns of a cascade
process in which chunks of
debris crash into one another
and produce ever more smaller fragments.
Data in the study from the
Russian space agency show
that the International Space
Station (ISS) took evasive action five times in 2014 to avoid
space debris. Even small
flecks of paint that have flaked
of spacecraft can be hazardous. NASAs space shuttle was
struck by flying paint several
times in orbit, forcing ground
staf to replace some of the
spaceships windows.
The report follows a report
commissioned by NASA in
2011 which warned that the
level of space junk was rising
exponentially, and had reached a tipping point in the
threat it posed to satellites
and the ISS. Guardian
Newspapers Limited, 2016

Needle-free method to
deliver anaesthesia

STAR TREK
Katrina wins high praise from Salman

uperstar Salman Khan welcomed Katrina Kaif on

stage during the finale of his show Bigg Boss on
Saturday and heaped praise on the actor calling her
one of the strongest women he has ever known.
The ex-couples comfort level with each other was
evident. Katrina, 32, was accompanied by
actor Aditya Roy Kapur to promote
their film Fitoor.
When Katrina told the Bigg Boss
Nau finalists that if she were in their
place, she would have been nervous
and broken into tears, Salman
interrupted her saying, Dont lie.
You are one of the strongest women
I have ever known.
You were just 16-years-old when you
came in the industry and reached
so far. It is all your hard work.
The whole country is in awe of
you, including me, Salman
added. Salman also
congratulated Prince Narula, who
emerged victorious on Bigg Boss
and won Rs. 35 lakh. PTI

Ready for some diversitycomedy?

omedian and actor Chris

Rock, who will be hosting
the Oscar Awards
ceremony this year, is working on
a whole new script and is planning
to include jokes on its lack of
diversity controversy.
Rock is hard at work for the
Oscar night, as he has thrown out
the script I wrote and is writing a
new show, Academy Awards
producer Reginald Hudlin told
etdonline.com.
He and his writing staff locked themselves in a room as
things got a little provocative and exciting, he added.
Hudlin confirmed that the 50-year-old comedian, who
often addresses issues of race in his movies and standup shows, will include some #OscarsSoWhite jokes
during the show. And, yes, the Academy is ready for him
to do that. Theyre excited about him doing that. They
know thats what we need. They know thats what the
public wants, and we deliver what the people want, he
said. The 88th Annual Academy Awards will air on
February 28. IANS

WASHINGTON: In some good

news for people who fear

painful injections given by the
dentist, scientists have found
a new method to deliver
anaesthesia using a tiny electric current instead.
Needle-free administration could save costs, improve
patient compliance, facilitate
application and decrease the
risks of intoxication and contamination, said Renata Fonseca Vianna Lopez, from the
University of Sao Paulo in
Brazil. Dentists often have to
carry out invasive and painful
procedures in the mouth. To
minimise patients discomfort, dentists use anaesthetics
that block the pain, which are
administered using needles.
For some patients, an additional step is needed dentists first give them a topical
painkiller to reduce the pain
and associated fear
caused by the needle.
This can come in the form
of a hydrogel, ointment or
sprays; the most common are
hydrogels that can contain lidocaine and prilocaine.
Researchers studied a way
of getting these topical anaesthetics into the body more effectively, to see if they could
replace needles altogether.
They found that applying a tiny electric current a process called iontophoresis

A tiny electric current applied

along with topical
anaesthetics can do away
with the need for injections.
FILE PHOTO: K.V. RAMANA

made the anaesthetics more

efective.
The researchers first prepared the anaesthetic hydrogels with a polymer to help it
stick to the lining of the
mouth.
They added two anaesthetic drugs, prilocaine hydrochloride (PCL) and lidocaine
hydrochloride (LCL). They
tested the gel on the mouth
lining of a pig, applying a tiny
electric current to see if it
made the anaesthetic more
efective.
The anaesthesia was fastacting and long-lasting. The
electric current made the prilocaine hydrochloride enter
the body more efectively; the
permeation of the anaesthetic
through the mouth lining increased 12-fold.
The study was published in
the journal Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces. PTI

Art soothes children in

gun-plagued Washington

Tomlinson confirms sons birth

ne Direction star Louis

Tomlinson has confirmed
the birth of his baby son. In
a series of tweets, the singer
gushed about the newborn boy
whose mother is his ex-girlfriend
Briana Jungwirth. Im pleased to
say my baby son was born
yesterday. He is healthy and pretty
amazing. Im very happy!! the
24-year-old wrote and added a
baby face emoticon.
He seemed to be enjoying his new
role as a father for he wrote later, Daddy daddy cool.
Tomlinson and Jungwirth got together in May 2015 after
he broke up with long-term girlfriend Eleanor Calder.
News of the pregnancy broke in July but the couple were
no longer together. He is now reportedly dating actress
Danielle Campbell. PTI

Twitter comes to the aid of Ruffalo

ollywood actor Mark Ruffalo managed to trace

his wallet and phone, which he lost in the
blizzard in New York, with the help of his
followers on Twitter. Ruffalo had tweeted: APB out for
a cell phone in a wallet case out on the streets of NYC
in a blizzard. My drivers licence is in there. Reward and
signed pic. Within minutes of his post, The Avengers
actor updated that his belongings had been found. In
fact, he even posted an image
featuring Amenaide and Catherine
Brown, who found them. OMG It
was just found! That was freaking
fast. Thanks for helping me find it,
he tweeted.
The 48-year-old actor met the
good samaritans and posted:
Thanks Brown family for your
decency. This was the second
time that Ruffalo lost his wallet. It
happened in Chicago the last time,
and then too he had found it
through Twitter. Now thats some
luck with social media! IANS
CM
YK

Life Pieces to Masterpieces after school program apprentice

Michael shows some of the art work the children made in
Washington. PHOTO: AFP
WASHINGTON: This is one place
where Jamar feels safe, painting with other boys to escape
from the gunshots that ring
out through his Washington
neighbourhood, one of the
most violent in the United
States.
Life Pieces is a good place.
Youll always be safe at Life
Pieces, says Jamar, who is
nine years old.
Ward 7 of the US capital is
home to 70,000 people 95
percent of them black and
has an unemployment rate
more than double that of national levels.
I prefer to do my homework here its not safe at
Grandmas, Jamar, a bit shy at
times, says. He is among 140
boys aged three to 17 who attend the Life Pieces to Masterpieces
(LPTM)
after
school program each day.
The non-profit group,
launched in 1996, provides an

oasis of calm for young boys

living in an area east of the
U.S. Capitol that is prone to
gang activity and where the
murder rate is among the nations highest.
LPTM focuses on the development of black men using
the concept of artwork, explained executive director
Selvon Malcolm Waldron,
adding that Its a safe space to
be, in a loving environment.
When I hear shootings,
Im scared they will kill me,
that they will shoot at me,
said Michael, 11.
Life Pieces helps students
connect by choosing a theme
after discussing it and meditating; create by working on a
piece; contribute by working
together on the artwork and
celebrate by exhibiting the
works.
Last year, the group raised
$22,000 from sales of the artwork. AFP
ND-ND