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SHIVRAJ SINGH CHOUHAN PROVES CHINA EASES CURBS ON MESSI, RONALDO, NEYMAR LEAD
MAJORITY IN MADHYA PRADESH VIRUS-HIT HUBEI AFTER LIST OF BEST-PAID FOOTBALLERS
ASSEMBLY; CONGRESS A NO-SHOW 6 2-MONTH LOCKDOWN 9 IN WORLD, SAYS SURVEY 12

INDIA UNDER LOCKDOWN FOR 3 WEEKS

WHAT WILL
STAY OPEN
& WHAT WON’T
➤ All Indian govt & PSU
offices to remain closed,
except defence, police,
treasury, public utilities,
disaster mgmt, post offices,
NIC, early warning agencies
➤ State/UT govt offices to
remain closed, except police,
home guards, civil defence,
fire & emergency services,
disaster management,
prisons, district admin &
treasury, electricity, water,
sanitation and essential
municipal services
➤ OPEN: Hospitals,
dispensaries, chemist
& medical equipment
shops, nursing homes.
Transportation for all medical
& paramedic personnel
and other hospital support
services will be permitted
➤ Commercial and pvt
establishments to be closed
down, with the following
exceptions:
A. Food & grocery shops,
dairy & milk booths. District
authorities may encourage and
facilitate home delivery
B. Banks, insurance offices,
and ATMs
C. Print & electronic media
D. Telecom, internet services,
broadcasting & cable services
E. Delivery of all essential
goods including food, pharma,
medical equipment through
e-commerce
F. Petrol pumps, LPG,
petroleum & gas retail and
storage outlets
G. Power generation,
transmission and distribution
units and services
H. Capital and debt market
services as notified by Sebi
I. Cold storage and
warehousing services
J. Private security services
➤ Industrial establishments
to remain closed, except
manufacturing units of
essential commodities;
production units which require
continuous process, after
obtaining permission from
state govt
➤ All transport services
— air, rail, roadways — to
remain suspended, except
transportation for essential
goods and fire, law & order
and emergency services
➤ Hospitality services to
remain suspended except
A. Hotels, homestays,
lodges and motels which
are accommodating tourists
and persons stranded due
to lockdown, medical and
emergency staff, air & sea crew
B. Establishments being used
for quarantine facilities
➤ All educational, training,
research, coaching
institutions to remain closed
➤ All places of worship to be
closed for public. No religious
congregations permitted
➤ All social/political/sports/
entertainment/ academic/
cultural/religious functions/
gatherings barred
➤ In case of funerals,
congregation of not
more than 20 people will
be permitted
‘Lakshman
Rekha At
Your Door’
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
New Delhi: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi on Tuesday
ramped up the fight against co-
ronavirus by announcing that
the entire country was being
placed under lockdown — he
called it as good as curfew —
for 21 days starting midnight
in order to break the chain of
Covid-19 transmission and sa-
ve India from a massive out-
break that could overwhelm
the healthcare system.
Saying there was no other
way to save the country from
coronavirus, the PM said na-
tions were facing a growing
challenge and even the health-
FULL COVERAGE:
P 2-4, 5, 6, 8-12
Violating lockdown to
invite a year’s jail, P 8
care systems of developed co-
untries like the US and Italy
were struggling to respond to
the unprecedented situation
resulting from the rapid global
spread of Covid-19.
“At 12 midnight... listen ca-
refully, at 12 midnight, all of In-
dia will be under total lock-
down. This is being done kee-
ping in mind the experiences
of other nations. This is the
only way to save India. Save
you and your families. No one
Curfew in 9 Bhilwara villages
after 3 suspects found roaming
Shoeb.khan@timesgroup.com
Jaipur: Curfew was impo-
sed at nine villages in Man-
dal tehsil of Bhilwara dis-
trict late on Monday night
after three persons, who sho-
wed symptoms of Covid-19,
were found loitering in the
rural areas earlier in the day.
The textile town is the
worst hit in the state and
the local administration is
taking strong measures to
combat the spread of the
virus.
“Curfew has been impo-
sed as part of a precautiona-
THE BATTLE TO SAVE
BHILWARA: P 4
ry measure to stop the spre-
ad of the virus since three
suspects showed symptoms
of Covid-19. The measure
will help healthcare wor-
kers in carrying out scree-
ning of entire villages with
some ease,” said Bhilwara
SP Harendra Kumar on Tu-
esday. He reiterated that
strong measures were not to
create panic, but to help he-
althcare workers in dischar-
ging their duties effectively.
The villages are Balsai-
ra, Kadukota, Srinagar, Go-
kulpura, Dhumandas, Pow-
derdas, Rupehela, Chatra-
pur and Schola.
‘Screening teams’, P 4
Ensure smooth ops of print, electronic
‘CORONA MEANS KOI ROAD PAR NA NIKLE’ City residents FM eases rules for
panic, rush to
From midnight, the entire country will go under complete
lockdown for 21 days. This lockdown is in a way a curfew buy groceries, bank customers,
and will be more stringent than the janata curfew
vegetables taxpayers, firms
Forget what it means to go out for 21 days. CORONA MEANS ‘KOI ROAD PAR NA NIKLE’
Stay at home. It is for all Indians, every (NO ONE MUST GO OUT ON THE ROADS) TIMES NEWS NETWORK TIMES NEWS NETWORK
family and even for the Prime Minister. The COVID-19 IMPACT EASING
laxity of certain people will jeopardise Today’s decision of lockdown means Jaipur: Minutes after Prime New Delhi: Finance mini- COMPLIANCE BURDEN
the entire country — including you, your a “lakshman rekha” has been Minister Narendra Modi ster Nirmala Sitharaman on
INCOME TAX
parents, friends drawn outside your doors. If you announced the 21-day lock- Tuesday announced easier
➤ Last date for I-T returns for
put even one foot out, coronavirus down, people came out in large compliance norms for compa-
Pray for the people putting their FY 18-19 extended to June 30
will enter your homes numbers to buy groceries, nies required to file under in-
lives at risk in the line of duty...Think ➤ Aadhaar-PAN linking date
fruits and vegetables on Tues- come tax, GST, customs and
of nurses, doctors, paramedics, Jaan hai to jahan hai (If extended to June 30
day late evening in a case of corporate laws, while allo-
pathologists working day and night there is life, there is
panic buying. wing bank customers the flex- RETAIL BANKING
... those who are sanitising your the world)...We must Though the supply of such ibility to use their debit cards
➤ No fee to be charged on
surroundings... media people strengthen our essential commodities is un- at ATMs without any fee, and
ATM withdrawals from any
working 24 hours to give you resolve at every likely to be much affected, re- waived the penalty for those other bank ATM for 3 months
correct information... the step and also tail shopkeepers too were in who are unable to maintain
➤ Waiver of min balance fee
police officials doing their be restrained panic and said that their sup- the stipulated minimum ba-
duty to protect you ply chain is likely to be impact- lance in their accounts. ➤ Digital transaction charge
cut for trade finance consumers
ed in the coming days. The digital trade transac-
ALL EFFORTS MADE TO ENSURE SUPPLY OF ESSENTIAL GOODS TOI visited a few vegetable tion charge will also be lowe- GST & INDIRECT TAX
markets in Sodala, Vaishali red, the FM promised, while ➤ For cos with Rs 5cr turnover,
Top priority to be Centre has Isolation wards & beds, Nagar and Jhotwara and clarifying that the benefits returns can be filed by June-end.
accorded to measures allocated ventilators and other
found that though the people will have to be offered by pri- No penalty, interest and late fee
that ensure people’s 15,000cr for arrangements to be
Yogi govt to deliver food, Govt to finalise economic ➤ For other firms, reduced
lives are safe coronavirus battle made with this amount
rate of interest of 9% (current
fruits at doorsteps, P 6 package soon: FM, P 11
ate 18%), no late fee & penalty
steps out of their house. No about venturing out. For the people’s lives took precedence. had come out in large num- vate and public sector banks. ➤ GST annual returns for
one steps out. All states, all dis- next 21days, you have to do just “Jaan hai to jahan hai (If bers, they were keeping a safe Besides, small companies FY18-19 extended to June 30
tricts, all mohallas, will be one thing, stay put at home, there is life, there is the distance from each other. were sought to be protected
➤ Payment date under Sabka
locked down. It is a curfew. It is stay put at home and stay put world)... We must strengthen “The shopkeeper is saying from insolvency action by rai- Vishwas extended to June 30
much more than a janata cur- at home only. You don’t have to our resolve at every step and that shops would be open for sing the threshold under the
few. It is tougher. It is a decisive take a single step beyond the also be restrained,” he said. He only some hours and it is also Insolvency & Bankruptcy Co- ➤ 24X7 customs clearance
fight. It will indeed come at an ‘lakshman rekha’.” added, “Come what may, you unclear when that would be. de to a loan of Rs 1crore, inste- much-anticipated economic
economic cost but every life is Modi acknowledged that have to observe social distan- So, it is better to keep a stock of ad of the current Rs 1 lakh flo- package to aid industry and
important,” the PM said in a the country would have a huge cing. From the common man vegetables,” said Raj Bala or. The minister also said IBC individuals facing income un-
televised address, his second economic cost to pay, and that in villages to the Prime Mini- Shekhawat, a homemaker who provisions may be waived in certainty, offer concessions of
on coronavirus in a week. the poor would suffer the most. ster, nobody should breach made sure that her family had case the coronavirus crisis filings for a limited period and
Drawing what he called the But he suggested it was time this lakshman rekha.” an ample supply of vegetables. persisted till beyond April. are not permanent.
“lakshman rekha” for people, for the nation to choose its The announcements,
Modi bluntly said, “Forget priorities and, clearly, saving ‘Will ensure supply’, P 8 ‘Increasing demand’, P 4 which are a precursor to the GST filing deadline, P 11
In a first, Tokyo
Olympic Games
Second death in Delhi, 3rd in
put off to 2021 Mum; slight dip in new cases
T he International Olympic
Committee announced a DurgeshNandan Jha
KERALA OVERTAKES MAHARASHTRA
Gehlot & Pilot differ on EC’s first-of-its-kind postponement
of the Olympics on Tuesday,
@timesgroup.com
Total
Name of State / UT Cases Today Recovered Deaths
decision to postpone RS polls saying the Tokyo Games, to be
originally held in July, “must
New Delhi: The Covid-19 out-
break claimed two more vic-
Kerala 14
Cases
109 4
be rescheduled to a date be- tims, a 65-year-old Mumbai re-
C hief minister Ashok Gehlot and his deputy Sachin Pilot on
Tuesday differed on the decision of the Election Commission to
defer the Rajya Sabha polls.
yond 2020, but not later than
summer 2021, to safeguard the
sident and another one in Del-
hi, even though the rush of
Maharashtra
Karnataka
10
9
107
42
8
3
3
1
health of athletes, everybody new infections slowed a bit to
The elections to the three seats in the state involved in the Games and the 64 on Tuesday, from 99 the pre-
scheduled for March 26 were postponed in the wake Telangana 6 39 1
international community”. vious day. The total number of
of the Covid-19 outbreak. Questioning the decision Other Games — 1916, 1940 and Covid-19 cases reported from Uttar Pradesh 4 37 11
to defer the polls, Gehlot accused the commission of 1944 — have been cancelled be- the states so far is 562.
giving more time to BJP for “horse trading”. While Gujarat 6 36 1
cause of war, but none have Apart from the lower num-
his deputy and PCC president Sachin Pilot ever been deferred for any rea- ber of fresh cases, there was al- Rajasthan 0 32 3
supported the poll panel saying, “It is a right son, let alone a renegade virus so some cheer on the recoveri-
decision in the present circumstance.” that has accounted for over 3.7 es front. As many as 48 corona- Delhi 0 30 6 2
“The decision to defer the RS elections definitely lakh cases globally. P 12 virus patients have so far been
comes under the scanner as the BJP did not succeed Haryana 2 28 11
discharged from hospital after
in horse trading in Gujarat and Rajasthan. Sad day
for democracy,” Gehlot tweeted. P 4 US deaths now treatment, a sharp rise from 35
reported till Monday. As many
Rest of India 13 102 1 4
Total 64 562 48 11
600, almost 50,000 as eight patients were dischar-
ged in Maharashtra.
No person must Raj reports no confirmed cases The health ministry recor- India’s response KCR warns of
ded a death in Delhi, although
step out without positive cases to make or break shoot-on-sight
mask: Raj HC on Tuesday S ix hundred people have died
from the coronavirus in the
US, while the number of con-
the state government denied
any knowledge of it. Sources
said a person suffering from global battle: WHO orders in T’gana
A mid the spread of Co-
vid-19 pandemic in the
country, the Rajasthan high
H ealth authorities heaved
a sigh of relief on Tues-
day as no person tested posi-
firmed cases stands at 49,768, a
tracker maintained by Johns
Hopkins University showed
acute respiratory distress and
heart-related ailments died at
Rajiv Gandhi Super Specialty
D r Michael J Ryan, execu-
tive director of WHO (he-
alth emergencies), said “In-
T elangana CM K Chandra-
sekhar Rao said Tuesday
that he will have no option but
court on Tuesday banned all tive for Covid-19 in the state. Tuesday. The US has the third- hospital on Tuesday. dia, like China, is a hugely to give shoot-on-sight orders
private and public gather- A 17-year-old person, resi- highest number of confirmed Mumbai recorded its third populous country. The futu- if people don’t stay indoors.
ings, and ordered that no per- dent of Jagatpura, was ad- cases globally, behind China coronavirus death Monday re of this pandemic will be “Don’t create a situation whe-
son must be allowed to ven- mitted to the SMS Hospital and Italy. Despite a WHO war- night, Brihanmumbai Muni- determined on what hap- re the government is left with
ture out of their houses with- on Tuesday, his report is, ning that the US could beco- cipal Corporation said. The pens in very large and dense- no option but to give shoot-at-
out masks. The court, howev- however, awaited. He has me the next coronavirus epi- victim was a Dubai-based man ly populated countries. So, sight orders to the police,” he
er, said that functions and been shifted to Charak Bha- centre following a “very large who had reported to an Ah- it’s really important India said. He also threatened a 24-
meetings can take place only wan, which has been devel- acceleration” in infections, medabad hospital on March 15 continues to take aggressive hour curfew if people conti-
when such events are ex- oped as corona hospital. He President Trump wants the with a complaint of back pain, action...” He said India had nue to violate the lockdown.
tremely necessary, and that was suffering from cough. lockdown eased by mid-April, and later came to Mumbai. led the world earlier in eradi- The government may even
too with prior permission of So far, in the state, 32 people warning that keeping measu- cating two silent killers — shut petrol pumps to keep pe-
authorities concerned. P 2 have tested positive. P 3 res could “destroy” the US. P 9 Manipur girl, P 8 smallpox and polio. P 5 ople off the roads. P 5
Face action for

Delhi police end

disrupting papers: Omar freed, wants all
100-day Shaheen media to check fake news: Govt to states Varanasi admin J&K detainees released
Bagh protest TIMES NEWS NETWORK and authentic information
L egal action will be initia-
ted against those who
spread rumours that coro-
Saleem.Pandit
@timesgroup.com

D elhi Police vacated all the

anti-CAA protest sites in-
cluding that of Shaheen Bagh
that has been going on for over
100 days to enforce the complete
lockdown. Police officers say
that atleast a dozen people were
detained from Shaheen Bagh
alone after they were found to
be violating the orders, despite
warnings. On Tuesday morn-
ing, cops brought in cranes to
remove the temporary struc-
tures erected along the road.
The massive tent under which
the protests were held were also
dismantled. P 6
New Delhi: With the count-
ry under a lockdown to rein
in the spread of coronavi-
rus, the information and
broadcasting ministry on
Tuesday directed chief se-
cretaries of all state and
Union Territories to ensure
uninterrupted supply of all
print and electronic media.
The important order,
which came in the backdrop
of misinformation and un-
founded fears over newspa-
pers being carriers of infec-
tions, said proper functio-
PM hails print media’s credibility dissemination,” the mini-
stry’s order said.
navirus can be spread thro-
ugh newspapers and try to Srinagar: A bearded Omar
The order, which asks disrupt their distribution,
P M Narendra Modi on Tuesday praised the efforts of news-
papers in spreading awareness among people, especially at
a time when the nation is facing a daunting challenge in the
states and UTs to ensure
smooth operation of these
the Varanasi district admi-
nistration said on Tuesday.
Abdullah on Tuesday walked
free from 232 days of preventi-
ve detention at Srinagar’s Ha-
form of the coronavirus pandemic. services, added that media Amid complaints about ri Niwas Palace after the J&K
Alluding to the credibility that print media enjoys, Modi services must be allowed to newspaper hawkers being home department revoked its
Omar Abdullah after being freed
said, “People say, ‘Oh, I’ve read it in the papers’.’’ remain operational, their stopped from entering hou- February 5 order extending
from detention after 232 days
During a video interaction with publishers and editors of supply and distribution sing societies due to fake so- his custody by three months
leading newspapers from across the country, the PM acknowl- chains run smoothly, and cial media posts, DM Kaus- under the stringent Public Sa- other political functionaries
edged the pan-India reach of print media and its significance movement of accredited hal Raj Sharma and SSP fety Act, just as it had done being detained since August
in disseminating the right information. Modi said newspapers staff of service providers, Prabhakar Chaudhary du- while freeing his father Faro- 5 last year.
also helped provide continuous feedback to government at The unsung heroes who ring an interaction with oq Abdullah two weeks ago. Omar’s release came two
both national and regional levels. P 6 deliver your newspapers, P3 newspaper distributors Omar, the NC vice-preside- days after the Supreme Co-
and hawkers said anyone nt, said the Centre should rele- urt, which was hearing a peti-
latest status. False and fake tion dissemination net- media vehicles and vehicles who would try to stop entry ase all political detainees, irre- tion filed by his sister Sara Pi-
news need to be avoided and works like TV channels, carrying mediapersons, in- of newspaper vehicles and spective of party affiliation, lot, directed the administra-

MMMM
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Page 7
ning of print and electronic
media networks was vital
for creating awareness and
to counter fake news. “Pro-
per functioning of these net-
works is required not only to
create awareness among pe-
ople and to give an impor-
tant message but also to ke-
ep the nation updated of the
good practices need to be
promoted and these net-
works play a pivotal role in
ensuring the same,” the or-
der said.
The ministry also put out
a list of critical infrastruc-
ture that should be kept run-
ning. “At this juncture, ro-
bust and essential informa-
news Agencies, teleport
operators, digital satellite
news gathering, direct to
home and highend-in-the
sky (HITS), multi system
operators, cable operators,
frequency modulation ra-
dio and community radio
stations are of utmost im-
portance to ensure timely
cluding for provisioning of
fuel, be allowed to run wit-
hout disruptions.
The order also directed
state governments to ensure
uninterrupted electricity
supply and any other logis-
tical support that may be ne-
eded to run essential media
services.
its distribution, legal ac-
tion under IPC Section 188
can be initiated against
them.
Section 188 of IPC provi-
des for one-month jail or Rs
200 fine or both for disobe-
ying a public servant who is
empowered to promulgate
an order. P 6
and restore 4G internet in
J&K. With the Abdullahs out,
PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti
is the only J&K ex-CM still
in detention under the PSA.
Mehbooba Muft’s daugh-
ter Iltija had written to Lt Go-
vernor Girish Chandra Mur-
mu on Monday, seeking the
release of her mother and all
tion to spell out if and when it
would release him. Hearing a
separate petition on Monday,
the apex court asked all sta-
tes and UTs to consider relea-
sing people detained for va-
rious reasons in view of the
novel coronavirus pandemic.
Cites Covid, P 6

2 defunct hosps turned into Covid-19 care centres in Alwar
Both Units
Can House
400 Patients
Intishab.Ali@timesgroup.com
Jaipur: A model has been prepa-
red by district administration
and doctors of Alwar for crea-
ting Covid-19 treatment faciliti-
es. Two private hospitals, which
were lying defunct for years, ha-
ve been identified by district ad-
ministration and doctors of go-
vernment and private sector and
developed a separate facility for
Covid-19 related treatment.
The district administration
acquired two private hospitals to
accommodate 20 beds for inten-
sive care and 400 beds for qua-
rantine facility. A meeting hea-
ded by Alwar district collector
Indrajeet Singh attended by doc-
tors from government and priva-
te sectors in which they decided
to start 400-bed quarantine with
20-bed ICU.
“This is a unique model we
have prepared in Alwar which
should be replicated across the
state. These are two hospitals
which were shut down earlier
and now government and priva-
te doctors have acquired it to de-
velop it as a Covid-19 treatment
centre,” said Dr M N Theraja,
president (state) Indian Medical
Association (IMA).
One of the two hospitals is
300-bed and the other has 100-bed
capacity. The IMA advocated
that inspite of admitting Co-
vid-19 patients in every private
hospital, the government should
take measures to develop such
facility for treatment and qua-
rantine facility at one place
which will minimise the chan-
ces of infecting other patients in
other hospitals. The IMA advo-
cated that the government and
private sector should develop a
facility where patients can get
the treatment without affecting
other services in other hospitals.
Please don’t spread
rumour, stay calm:
Patient to villagers
Intishab.Ali@timesgroup.com
Jaipur: A 38-year-old resi-
dent of Pali district, who
tested positive for Covid-19,
has appealed to his villagers
to stay calm during this dif-
ficult time and not to spread
rumour. He posted a video
which is circulating on so-
cial networking sites.
He has sent message to
all those hiding their travel
history to evade home quar-
antine or admission in iso-
lation wards. “All Dhola vil-
lagers are requested not to
worry. I am fine. I opted for
Covid-19 testing in the inter-
est of the village and for my
country,” he said.
He had returned from
Dubai on March 18 and test-
ed positive for the disease
when he reached Pali. He
was the first case from Jodh-
pur division. He has been
admitted to the isolation
ward in Bangar Hospital in
Pali and his entire family
has been quarantined at
home. Now, he has been
shifted from Pali to MDM
Hospital in Jodhpur.
“I had fever, so I decided
to go to hospital for Co-
vid-19. Don’t worry about
me. People are worried be-
cause of coronavirus. But, I
am fine and I don’t have fe-
ver now. I am fine. Don’t
spread rumour in the vil-
lage. My family also lives in
the village and rumours
will give wrong message to
my family. I will reach vil-
lage soon. I will take part in
c i _7 -3t
I k L
r c
L from time to time to prevent
' , . ,;
:
i ENGLISH
11
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THE TIMES OF INDIA, JAIPUR
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25, 2020
Lords Hospital and Lifeline Hospital In Alwar district. The district administration acquired these hospitals to accommodate 20 beds for intensive care unit and 400 beds for quarantine facility
SMS Hospital stops elective surgeries to fight virus
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
JAIPUR: Sawai Man Singh
(SMS) Hospital has directed
its doctors to stop routine in-
door admissions and elective
surgeries till further orders.
The steps have been taken to
create more space for Covid-19
patients and suspects.
SMS Hospital, one of the
biggest in northern India, is
taking measures to deal with
the increasing number of Co-
vid-19 suspect cases. The SMS
Medical College is taking key
decisions to turn the hospital
into one of the biggest Co-
vid-19 treatment centres in
northern India.
The college has converted
its Charak Bhawan block,
which earlier accomodated
OPD facilities for skin and eye
related ailment, into a com-
pletely dedicated centre for
Covid-19 suspects, said addi-
tional superintendent Dr Ajit
Singh.
Bhagirath/For representation only
A flyer at the airport on Tuesday
Charbhuja jagaran soon,”
he said.
However, health depart-
ment officials claimed that
a man from Dhola village in
Pali district had returned
from Dubai on March 18 but
in spite of symptomatic in-
dicators, he did not visit the
hospital.
“On the information
about a foreign visit by him,
our team went to his home
and took him to the hospital
for isolation. His sample
was sent for examination
which tested positive for
COVID-19,” said the official.
The official said, there
have been multiple cases,
where such persons have es-
caped reporting to the medi-
cal department for screen-
ing despite having symp-
tomatic indicators.
TIMES
SPEAK
Fa
BY
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PEOPLE BEHIND THE SHOW: A team of doctors of SMS Hospital who are handing coronavirus patients pose for camera on Tuesday
He said the hospital was
expanding facilities for criti-
cal care of Covid-19 cases.
Virus paranoia aggravating
mental health conditions
parul.kulshrestha
@timesgroup.com
Jaipur: Extensive coverage
in the media of the spread of
coronavirus pandemic global-
ly and the number of fatali-
ties, has led to many seeking
help for mental health condi-
tions.
Psychiatrists in Rajasthan
have been receiving phone
calls from patients with a his-
tory of mental conditions
complaining about anxiety
they have been facing in the
last few days, due to the spread
of coronavirus. In times when
people have been staying at
home in isolation, many find
themselves vulnerable in
terms of mental health.
Chitra Singh, psychiatrist
at Sawai Man Singh Hospital,
said that it is mostly the peo-
ple above 55 years, who have
been calling her. “We have
stopped meeting patients in
person due to the epidemic,
but we are available on call. I
have been receiving calls from
the elderly as this virus affects
them the most and they are
facing anxiety and depression
issues. Hypertension and
high blood pressure are be-
coming common. They are
feeling isolated sitting at
home,” said Singh.
It is not just the isolation,
but a feeling of emptiness is
hitting the patients as well. Se-
nior professor of psychiatry
and principal of Medical Col-
lege Sikar, K K Verma said
that many people are feeling
that the world is going to end
soon.
“People with a history of
How Rajputana fought TB, cholera 80 years ago
parul.kulshrestha
@timesgroup.com
Jaipur: Outbreak of epidem-
ics is not new to Rajasthan and
measures have been taken
the spread of the diseases.
From 1937 to 1941, the state
of Rajputana was hit by chol-
era and tuberculosis in which
hundreds of people lost their
lives. According to documents
available at the Rajasthan
State Archives, special mea-
sures were taken by the British
fish
c government and rulers of
those times to prevent the dis-
eases from spreading through
quarantine and vaccination.
In 1941, there was an out-
“There is a 12-bed ICU for Co-
vid-19 patients. A 30-bed ICU
has also been reserved for
WHAT THE DOCS ADVISE
³ Stay at home and avoid going out
³ Don’t believe everything on
social media
³ To divert your mind, read
books or develop a hobby
³ Cleaning home can be therapeutic
³ Read one newspaper and watch
television news for a fixed time only
depression, have started to
feel that the world is ending
and that we are all in danger,
due to the discourse on social
media . People are in a panic
mode and not going out of the
house is getting them more
anxious. I have been advising
my patients not to believe ev-
erything on WhatsApp. They
need to divert their minds
from the news and focus on
positive energy,” said Verma.
Doctors have been suggest-
ing to develop a hobby to di-
vert their minds from the out-
er world. It is better to read
one newspaper or watch tele-
vision news for a fixed hour.
Doctors are trying to encour-
age people to do terrace farm-
Documents show steps taken by authorities to contain Cholera, TB
break of cholera in the state of
Rajputana especially in Bundi,
Jhalawar, Kotah and Udaipur
regions. In Bundi state, 381peo-
Health authorities
heaved a sigh of
relief on Tues-
day as no person
tested positive for
Covid-19 in the
state | 3
them on the ground floor and
efforts are being made to in-
crease the number of ICU
³ Do not indulge in
excessive discussion on
the epidemic at home
³ Use social media for
watching content to
refresh mind
³ Take your medicines
regularly and focus on
the positives
ing, cooking, chat over phone
or read books.
“People should not get
worried about the epidemic
but just take precautions. Fix
a time-table and do some exer-
cise at home. Cleaning is a ve-
ry good therapy so people
should start dusting and
cleaning the corners of their
house that they have been
waiting to find the right mo-
ment for. The phone calls are
increasing and there is a pos-
sibility that the lockdown
might stretch further, but that
doesn’t mean more stress.
Just stop reacting to all the so-
cial media and WhatsApp for-
wards,” said R K Solanki,
head of psychiatry at SMS.
TOI
ple tested positive out of which
125 had died within a few days.
Residents travelling out of the
state of Rajputana had to go
As part of
strict lockdown
enforcement,
police arrest 20
people under
Section 144 in
Kota | 3
TOI
beds to 100 soon,” said Singh.
At the Charak Bhawan, the
college has made arrange-
No person
must venture
out without
mask: HC
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Jaipur: The high court on Tu-
esday banned all private or
public gatherings in the name
of function or meeting, except
in extreme necessity, that too,
with prior permission of the
authorities concerned.
The division bench of chi-
ef justice Indrajit Mahanty
and justice Satish Kumar
Sharma issued a number of
directions on a suo motu peti-
tion.
The court directed the aut-
horities to strictly ensure that
people cover their faces with
masks and maintain the mini-
mum required distance of two
metres from each other. “No
person shall be allowed to co-
me out without covering his
face with mask even for pur-
chase of essential households
or medicines or for any other
emergent purpose.”
The court added that the
personnel engaged in essenti-
al duties be provided with sa-
nitizers and good quality
masks, as recognised by the
competent medical agencies.
By close supervision it must
be ensured that no such per-
sonnel remain on duty witho-
ut covering his or her face
with mask. While on duty, all
such personnel should main-
tain the minimum distance
from each other.
It directed the government
machinery to take all effective
measures to ensure complian-
ce of lockdown and other si-
milar steps announced to
control the pandemic.
through the screening process.
Documents from the ar-
chives mentioned that Indore
state at that time built special
check posts on roads and rail
routes to screen people coming
from the state of Rajputana.
“Travellers had to present
a certificate which stated that
the person has been inoculated
against cholera. Huts were
constructed at the check posts
where people suffering from
illness were detained. Only pa-
tients with the certificates
were allowed to enter the
state,” the document stated.
A Cholera Advisory Com-
mittee was established at the
national level which suggested
the usage of anti-cholera vac-
TOI
ments for 150 beds for admis-
sion of suspected cases. If peo-
ple get tested positive for the
disease, they will be shifted to
main SMS Hospital building
for treatment or decided by
core group of doctors.
Medical education depart-
ment principal secretary
Vaibhav Galriya issued an or-
der saying, “With a view de-
cide line of treatment for coro-
na patients, a core group of
doctors has been constituted
in SMS Medical College.”
The core group of com-
prises SMS college principal
and controller Dr Sudhir
Bhandari, Dr Ajit Singh, Dr
Prakash Keswani, who has
treated successfully the Ital-
ian couple and the 85-year-old
Covid-19 patient who had re-
turned from Dubai on Febru-
ary 28.
Besides, the hospital has
reserved 500 beds for Covid-19
suspected cases in main hos-
pital buildings.
Set up ‘war rooms’ to
enforce lockdown,
asserts CM Gehlot
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Jaipur: Chief minister Ashok
Gehlot on Tuesday directed the
district collectors to set up ‘war
rooms’ at district level to eval-
uate and take remedial mea-
sures on the hardship caused to
the people during the lockdown
period in the state. The war
room should function round the
clock, manned by senior district
officials, the chief minister di-
rected.
The CM was holding a re-
view meeting through video
conference with the district col-
lectors and SPs on the coronavi-
rus restrictions imposed in the
state on Tuesday.
He warned that if people do
not follow the restrictions im-
posed during lockdown, the gov-
ernment will be forced to im-
pose curfew in the state. Gehlot
said the best way to prevent cor-
onavirus is by observing social
distancing, and directed the offi-
cials to ensure that there will be
no shortage of essential items.
The chief minister asked
the officials to set up an online
system to issue permits so that
common people could meet
their exigencies. Gehlot said the
restrictions on the movement of
private vehicles be strictly en-
forced.
He said the only priority of
the government is that nobody
is deprived of food. He directed
the collectors to ensure that the
daily labourers’ and other mar-
ginalized sections’ needs are
taken care of. He also exhorted
the peoples’ representatives to
come forward and provide relief
cines.
At the time when tubercu-
losis spread in the state, Brit-
ish government along with
then rulers started crowd
funding to collect money for
anti-tuberculosis treatment.
From the state of Jaipur, Rs
2,83,916 was collected, majority
of which was utilised in estab-
lishing tuberculosis clinics in
various districts of the state.
A State Tuberculosis Asso-
ciation of Jaipur was estab-
lished whose purpose was to
prevent and control the spread
of the disease. They regularly
visited schools, rural areas
and spread awareness about
the disease. Ruler of Jaipur
was the patron and prime min-
Govt to make
sanitisers
to check
hoarding
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Jaipur: Rajasthan govern-
ment has decided to manufac-
ture hand sanitisers to ensure
there is no shortage of the pro-
duct for the next few months.
The decision was taken to co-
unter black marketing of sani-
tisers which are high in de-
mand due to Covid-19.
To speed up the process, the
state government has issued
orders to four private compani-
es along with all units of Gang-
anagar Sugar Mills to start pro-
duction. Licences have also be-
en issued to all of them.
“This move has been taken
considering the fact not only
are the sanitisers in high de-
mand, but people are also hoar-
ding them. Our own produc-
tion will ensure that sanitisers
are available to everyone at
subsidized costs. This will help
in ensuring that people do not
panic and black marketing of
the product is curbed,” a go-
vernment official said.
According to the the orders
issued by the finance depart-
ment, five liquor manufactu-
ring units of Rajasthan State
Ganganagar Sugar Mills have
been issued licences to start
production of sanitizers in
Jhotwara (Jaipur), Mandore
(Jodhpur), Kota, Udaipur and
Hanumangarh.
Apart from these, four pri-
vate companies — Global Spi-
rits Ltd., Behror, Vintage Dis-
tillers Ltd.. Alwar, Agri Biotech
Industries, Ajitgarh, and ADS
Agro Ltd., Reengus, have also
been issued licenses to produce
sanitisers.
TOI
CM Ashok Gehlot during a meet-
ing at his residence on Tuesday
to the needy people in their area.
The chief minister said
there is no time restrictions on
the shops and establishments
declared as ‘essential services’.
He directed that they should
continue to maintain their sup-
ply chain so that people will not
crowd their shops.
He asked the mobile units of
consumer cooperative societies
to supply essential items at the
doorstep. He advised the police
to enforce lockdown with sensi-
tivity and humanism. Gehlot
said the police could make use of
loudspeakers on vehicles to
spread the message of lock-
down in villages and towns.
Health minister Raghu
Sharma directed the district of-
ficials to seek the help of peo-
ples’ representatives like sar-
panchs, parshads etc to enforce
lockdown. Chief secretary DB
Gupta said the district adminis-
tration could take effective mea-
sures according to the situation.
ister was the president of the
association. A doctor from Del-
hi was called having special
knowledge to deal with the tu-
berculosis cases.
As per the documents, on
the outskirts of the city a sana-
torium was built where pa-
tients were given treatment.
Officials handling the disease
were asked to prepare extra
beds in the hospitals in case of
emergency.
Later on, world came up
with effective vaccines to cur-
tail the disease. This period
was remembered as good gov-
ernance by the government at
that time when the communi-
cation system wasn’t devel-
oped enough.
THE TIMES OF INDIA, JAIPUR
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25, 2020 TIMES CITY | VIRAL WORRY 3

A day without corona positive cases in Raj Pics: Bhagirath & Arvind Sharma

Reports Of
17-Year-Old
Cities under lockdown,
At SMS Hosp
Awaited
many skip the last flight TOI

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Jaipur: It was expected that
Jaipur: Health authorities fliers would throng the air-
heaved a sigh of relief on Tu- port on Tuesday before the
esday as no person tested po- suspension of domestic
sitive for Covid-19 in the sta- flights takes effect from the
te. midnight of March 24 to 31.
A 17-year-old person, re- On the contrary, there were
sident of Jagatpura, was ad- not many to catch the last
mitted to the SMS Hospital flight to their homes.
on Tuesday, his report is, ho- CITY FALLS SILENT: (Left) A deserted road on the third day of lockdown at
In the eerie silence, a do-
wever, awaited. He has been Ahinsa Circle in Jaipur on Tuesday; A civic body personnel sanitising a barricade
zen of passengers who had re-
shifted to Charak Bhawan, ached Jaipur from Hydera-

Apartments impose curbs on

which has been developed as
corona hospital. He was suf-
fering from cough.
So far, in the state, 32 peo-
ple have tested positive for
the disease till Tuesday. “No
person tests positive for Co-
vid-19 on Tuesday. However,
the result of five samples ta-
ken from suspected patients
- two from Bhilwara, one
each from Dausa, Tonk and
Kota, are inconclusive. Hen-
ce, these samples are sent for
re-test. One sample from a
suspected Covid-19 patient
has tested negative for the
disease,” said Rohit Kumar
Singh, additional chief se-
cretary (health).
According to the health
department report, so far,
till date from January, they
have tested 1,464 samples
and out of those 1,417 have
tested negative. The report
said that the result of six
samples is awaited.
In Jaipur, 488 people with
influenza-like illness were
tested for Covid-19, out of
those, six have tested positi-
ve. Till date, 13 people have
already been diagnosed
with Covid-19 in Bhilwara,
three in Jodhpur, four in
Jhunjhunu, two in Pratap-
garh, one each in Sikar, Pali
and two Italian tourists we-
re tested positive for the di-
sease.
However, the high court
observed, “We are satisfied
that all appropriate measu-
res are being taken by the
Centre and the state govern-
ment to control and combat
the menace of coronavirus
and therefore, we are not in-
clined to pass any interim
direction at this stage.”
residents to fight pandemic
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Jaipur: Along with the dis-
trict administration, many re-
sidents’ welfare associations
(RWAs) in the city have started
enforcing a set of rules to fight
the spread of coronavirus.
As a precautionary measu-
re, many apartments have
banned the entry of maids and
drivers in the premises. To bre-
ak the human contact chain,
Rangoli Gardens Owner Wel-
fare Society has prohibited the
entry of all outside visitors in-
cluding daily vendors. Bhawa-
ni Singh, a resident of the soci-
ety said, “Since March 21, the-
re has been a ban on the entry
of maids, cooks, car cleaners
in the premises. Only milk
suppliers and newspaper haw-
kers are allowed. However, the-
ir access is till the ground floor
of the blocks. Every society ne-
eds to take stringent measures
likes ours to prevent the virus
from spreading.”
Though, many associa-
tions have not restricted move-
ment of people, they have stop-
ped allowing any doorstep de-
livery personnel inside the
complexes and have asked the
residents to either come to the
reception and pick the order
by themselves or collect it later
from the security personnel.
However, there are many
residential buildings where it
is expected that the residents
are intelligent enough to fol-
low social distancing because
of which no restrictions have
been put in place. Anand Jain
of Girnar Apartment said,
“We have not imposed restric-
tions on people as they are edu-
cated and well-informed. Most
of them have isolated themsel-
ves on their own, but there are
a few elderly members in our
society who cannot work wit-
hout domestic help. It will be
unfair to them if we make
them do so.”
bad in the afternoon flight co-
uld be seen haggling with a
taxi driver at the outer entry
gate of the city airport. He
was asking Rs 2,000 to drop
them at Tonk Phatak and the-
re was not a second taxi aro-
und to turn to.
On the road to airport
from Jawahar circle, where
on normal days cars would
zip through, the emptiness
was overpowering. A few peo-
ple could be seen walking
down towards the airport
with their bag and baggage.
It’s hard to notice taxis or pri-
vate cars.
“The airport handles aro-
und 55 flights a day but today
we have only 25. Despite the
reduction in number of
flights, not many passengers
are there. That's why the level
of activity has declined in the
airport,” said airport direc-
NO HUSTLE: The Jaipur airport wore a deserted look on Tuesday
tor Jaideep Balhara.
With the city under lock-
down and transport services
having been shut down for
travelling from Jaipur to
other towns and villages, the
demand for air travel has also
come down significantly.
“We don't know how to re-
ach Sikar. We came from Hy-
derabad but now the chal-
lenge is to go to Sikar. One of
our friends is coming in a car
to pick us but he said he is ha-
ving to plead with police who
don't allow him," said a youth
in another group of seven sit-
ting at a bus stop. He said this
is another reason why people
are not travelling because it is
tough to travel to home towns
from the airport.
The police manning the
checkpoints to restrict mo-
vement of people at Jawahar
circle said they allow people
who show air tickets. But fa-
mily members or friends go-
ing to receive those arriving
are not allowed by the police.
"As such it is very hard to
control people. They give you
false excuses to move around.
That's why if there is a proof
behind the travel and if it me-
rits a permission, we allow.
Otherwise, we don't enterta-
in the requests," said the poli-
ce officer.
Even though the suspen-
sion on air travel has been de-
clared up to 31, the resump-
tion of flight services would
depend on how the country is
able to contain spread of the
corona virus

Cops to ensure no one goes
hungry during lockdown
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Jaipur: State police headqu-
arters will provide meals to
those who are homeless du-
ring the lockdown due to Co-
vid-19.
DGP Bhupendra Singh
has requested all police per-
sonnel to ensure that no one
goes hungry and also to keep
a watch on ailing as well as se-
nior citizens so that they do
not face any issues during the
lockdown period.
Singh has appealed to all
police personnel that while
they are performing their du-
ties, they should take care of
those who need help, especi-
ally poor and homeless. “Du-
ring the lockdown till March
31, except for the essential
shops, everything will rema-
in closed. In such circums-
tances, those who are poor
and homeless will find it diffi-
cult to fend for themselves,
and I would appeal to police
personnel that they should be
extra sensitive. We have to
pledge that no one under our
watch goes hungry,” Singh
said.
Singh further added that
he is confident that during
these trying times, cops will
go out of way to help all those
who need it. Also, he advised
officials to visit the night
shelters to ensure that basic
facilities are in place. “They
should visit the night shel-
ters run by the government as
well as NGOs to see if there is
any requirement, including
availability of food,” he said.
Some cops had already
started this initiative as soon
as the janata curfew was an-
nounced for March 22. This
included Jeetendra Singh,
SHO, Manak Chowk, who dis-
tributed food packets.
JMC free meals for needy twice a day
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Jaipur: The Jaipur Munici-
pal Corporation (JMC) has
started distributing food twice
a day to the needy after Anna-
purna Rasoi — the ambitious
project of former CM Vasund-
hara Raje to provide cheap me-
als to the public — was discon-
tinued on March 21.
Niranjan Aggarwal, ma-
nager of Jeevan Sambal Cha-
ritable Trust, the contractors
who were handling Annapur-
na Rasoi since the beginning
said, “Our contract was sup-
posed to end on March 31 but
due to the epidemic and lock-
down, we stopped functio-
ning from March 21. It is up to
the government to start the
facility for cheap meals but
nothing has been decided.”
An official at Directorate
of Local Bodies who did not
wish to be named, said that no
decision has been taken by
the state government to re-
instate the contract. Epide-
mic has affected the unorga-
nised sector the most, who
are dependent on daily wa-
ges. With all the businesses
shut, arranging for two-time
meals has become difficult
for them, but JMC has taken
up the responsibility of pro-
viding food to the needy.
Under the scheme Akshay
Kalewa, JMC has been distri-
buting food one time a day i.e.
The Jaipur Municipal Corporation has started distributing food twice a
day free of cost in the city with the help of Akshay Patra Foundation
in the evening, for the last 13
years in the city. This has been
going on in collaboration with
Akshay Patra in 13 places in
TOI
Jaipur. As the pandemic has
adversely affected the econo-
mic situation in the country,
JMC has started it twice a day.
An official at JMC said,
that they are bearing complete
cost of food being provided in
Akshay Kalewa scheme. “We
approached Annapurna Rasoi
at first but as they are shut
down, it has become necessary
to have another food distribu-
tion facility ready in the time
of crisis. Earlier, we were char-
ging Rs 5 for every meal from
the public given to Akshay Pat-
ra and additional expenses we-
re borne by organization. Now,
for both the time, we are giving
food free of cost to the people.
In the morning, from 11am to
12noon and in the evening,
from 5pm to 6pm, the meals are
distributed,” said one official
at JMC anonymously.

20 held in Kota for City police crack whip on Did you know that it costs about 25,200 INR
violating lockdown, those violating lockdown to apply for a visa to Canada?
The biometrics fee is about 24,600 INR.
many vehicles seized TIMES NEWS NETWORK
TOI

Some immigration agents

TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Kota: The city police came
down strictly to enforce lock-
down and Section 144 on Tues-
day and arrested nearly 20 pe-
ople from various areas, in-
cluding six from Mahavir Na-
gar and five from Kunhari
police station area of the city.
Police also seized several ve-
hicles and slapped challans.
However, most of the areas
and markets across Kota and
Bundi districts remained de-
serted throughout the day on
Tuesday, with only emergen-
cy services being functional.
The situation of complian-
ce of the lockdown improved
on Tuesday in the city as the
people stayed at their homes.
However, police teams were de-
ployed at various points to en-
sure people stay indoors and
strict action was taken against
those who ventured out in the
markets unnecessarily or vio-
lated the lockdown, said Kota
city SP Gaurav Yadav. Police
arrested nearly 20 people from
various areas of the city under
Three arrested for
spreading rumours
Jaisalmer: Three people were
arrested for spreading rumours
and posting objectionable
comments against the PM on
social media, in Gadra Road of
Barmer. Some unidentified
people were misleading people
on social media that coronavirus
is not epidemic, but just rumour.
Taking serious note of this, SHO
Rampratap Singh’s team and
arrested Lukman, Vasudev and
Iqbal, all residents of Gadra
Road tehsil. TNN
rested and challans slapped is
yet to be reported from various
police stations of the city.
Almost complete compli-
ance was observed in the dis-
trict as the markets remained
closed and people stayed indo-
ors. However, challans were
slapped on movement of perso-
nal vehicles in some areas, yet
none was arrested in Bundi,
said Bundi SP Shivraj Meena.
The vegetable markets we-
Jaipur: A total of 6,000 police
personnel were deployed
across the city on the third day
of the lockdown. There was
heavy police presence across
the city while only a few shops
selling essential items were
open. As compared to Monday,
an additional 2,000 personnel
were deployed.
In 262 places, 1,103 vehicles
seized for being on the roads
during the lockdown. For dis-
obeying CrPC Section 144 im-
posed across the state, six per-
sons were arrested here and
two FIRs registered.
ACP Ajay Pal Lamba said,
“We had adequate forces de-
ployed in all parts of Jaipur
as well the city borders and
took strict action against tho-
se who violating the lock-
down.”
Out of the total vehicles
seized, 779 were two wheelers
while the remaining were fo-
ur-wheelers.
Since the beginning of the
lockdown, six persons have
been arrested for defying Sec-
tion 144. In addition, 11 were
charge a lot more than that.
not waste your money.
There are other ways to apply.
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Police seized over 1,100 vehicles for being on roads during lockdown
Mother-son duo in Udaipur booked
for not following home-isolation order
ukher police on Tuesday registered a case against a
S mother-son duo for non-compliance of home-isolation order.
This is first such case in Udaipur as the son who had returned
from Bangkok on March 20 was found socialising with people
instead or confining himself indoors. SHO Sukher D P Dadhich told
reporters that Jhamak Aggarwal, a resident of New Keshav Nagar
and his mother Sunita, were charged under Section 188 of the IPC
for disobeying goverment orders. The family had been isolated
and were instructed many a times not to mingle with others in the
neighbourhood. Police sent Jhamak and his father Chandan to an
isolation centre at OTC here, while Sunita and her daughter were
confined to their home. On Tuesday, too, police had to take strict
measures to deter people commuting on the streets without valid
reasons. Over 150 motorcycles and scooters were seized from

Saviez-vous qu'une demande

Section 151 of CrPC for viola- re open in the morning till arrested for spreading false such people. TNN
tion and slapped challans over 10am when people, hardly half news about Covid-19 on social

de visa pour le Canada

several vehicles, he added.
“The compliance was near-
ly 100 per cent in the city on Tu-
esday and action was taken
and challans were slapped in
the areas where it was necessa-
ry,” the SP said, adding that the
exact number of violators ar-
India’s invisible heroes: Men
who deliver your newspaper
of them masked, thronged the
markets, which charged Rs 5-
10 higher than the usual prices
on almost every item. Emer-
gency services, outlets for es-
sential commodities, inclu-
ding milk, flour mill, grocery
remained functional.
media. Two cases were also
registered at Pratapgarh and
Jhotwara police stations aga-
inst two shopkeepers for alle-
ged black marketing of
masks and hand sanitisers.
To ensure that locals
comply with the lockdown,
200 police vehicles and 50 bi-
kes of Nirbhaya Squad went
around the city using loud-
speakers to regularly update
the public about the rules to
be followed during the rest-
ricted hours.
Around 100 police person-
('J (
nel are keeping a watch on the
city using CCTV cameras.
While no cases of violence
were reported, cops are kee- coute environ T5,200 INR?
ping a watch using two dro-
nes. Around 7,000 packets of Les frais de prelevement des
food were distributed on Tu-
donnees biometriques coute
a # ,El
esday to the homeless.
y environ T4,600 INR.
, GLA
(JNIVI 'RSII Y
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Y i
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TIMES NEWS NETWORK
I
n the quiet of early morning,
they slip the world through
our door. Seasons don’t mat-
ter. Chilly winters, sweaty sum-
mers, unfriendly rains – they do
their job unfailingly with the sa-
credness of a ritual. Without the
newspapers they deliver, the
morning tea doesn’t taste the
same. You feel an absence hard
to explain. And yet, newspaper
vendors hardly occupy a speck
of space in our minds.
Even today, as we remain co-
cooned in our homes, they are
among the front line warriors in
1
the battle against corona. In ted times, when fear often
3TTif -ff bpaiRld1 &
times when social media is a trumps rationality and logic, f -A mwm II existe d'autres facons de presenter
permanent combat zone in a no- the delivery partners are often
-& a -&tm4 *f c v
holds-barred war between in- being treated as pariahs. iIcI une demande.
formation and disinformation, Talking to them across India WTqiTT Vu fa+
the value of a newspaper has – from Delhi to Chennai to Nag-
f e rr-fw-W.
Tif g I e) f fi I '
never been more emphatically pur to Chandigarh – one realiz- Visiter le site Web OFFICIEL
underlined. And the vendor is es that they are facing the tough-
the last-mile connect in a vast est of challenges every day.
Oi u i 4W ZT r 3rdraM
. *.Im.v f3¢++ mrw, mjzr du gouvernement du Canada :
canada .ca/inde-visa
chain of human activity to de- Even though some are trying to
liver reliable and trustworthy counter the fears showing vid- Prate rt 3wa l
information at your doorstep. eos of how newspapers are wazrwg* zff # w WN& wau #u ua Phi
And it is not just the newspa- printed and handled without wu %,i*I 31a$arZ&
' I
per Delivery Partners. There human intervention and sanita-
are many other service provid- ry precautions are being taken eiwati aft * 3m*tat a+r fear "ue
ers – delivery boys, for instance – by the Delivery Partners. wardwz?I aw
ol Government Gouvernement
who help us improve our daily It is time to salute these in- 1r*fe' vwrew l wr a m awi?4 1 of Canada du Canada CW 1aaa
lives. But in these unpreceden- visible, unsung heroes of India. $m,* aTs r * liuI mw W ?ft i-4 fw* I
4 TIMES CITY | REGION | VIRAL WORRY THE TIMES OF INDIA, JAIPUR
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25, 2020

Battle to save Bhilwara from clutches of corona 250 Indians

Doctors, Nurses, Healthcare
Staff Working Round The Clock
Shoebkhan@timesgroup.com
Jaipur: Rishi Sharma begins
his day with prayers to keep
him safe. He has a town to save.
Bhilwara.
The 24-year-old government
nursing staffer is part of a huge
team of 1,500 health workers
and 2,400 police personnel un-
dertaking the country’s largest
screening exercise for the novel
coronavirus (Covid-19) after 13
cases of virus infection sur-
faced in Bhilwara,
The magnitude of the task
feels overwhelming. The textile
town of 6 lakh people in Rajas-
than is under curfew. Bhilwa-
ra’s borders have been sealed
and the vast majority of the
population is struggling for es-
sential services. Officials said
they have planned three rounds
of screening and expect to com-
plete the first round in the next
two days.
So far, 5,392 persons in Bhil-
wara have been told to quaran-
tine themselves at home, proba-
bly the most in any city in the
country, and 38 have been put in
isolation wards so far, after
three doctors and nine health-
care workers from the city’s
Banger Hospital were declared
Covid-19 positive last week. A
family member of one of these
doctors, too, tested positive, tak-
ing the total number of infec-
tions to 13 till Tuesday.
Rishi Sharma’s (name
changed) family watch him go
with a mixture of dread and
pride, and plenty of do’s and
This Covid-hit community
don’ts, but from a safe distance.
They know their son is the only
person from their locality going
out every day to save a city from
doom. "Emotionally it is very
draining for my family who
know the danger of my job. My
mother keeps messaging me
and calls me to know whether
everything is all right," says
Sharma. He and others in the
screening team of 1,500, split in-
to smaller units to cover more
ground, work 8 to10 hours every
day. He goes from home to home
collecting information vital to
identifying Covid-19 suspects in
pandemic-hit Bhilwara.
The health workers include
doctors, nursing staff and an-
ganwadi workers working
round the clock with assistance
from the police and home
guards.
CMHO Mushtaq Khan said
the screening process will be
challenging because the poten-
tial carriers (those who had vis-
ited Banger Hospital) are
spread across the district. "So
far, 38,000 houses have been
screened. The remaining 25,000
houses will be screened in the
next three days. The second and
third phases will be in areas
which will have positive cases,"
the CMHO said.
So far, all 13 cases have been
linked to the city’s Banger hos-
pital. The local administration
has identified for the second
phase areas where positive
cases are likely. "A total of 120
people related to the last two
cases have been quarantined
ALL ABOUT
TEAMWORK
³ Each screening team
comprises 2 or 3 members
— one nursing staff and an
Anganwadi worker and/or
municipal worker
³ Every 10 to 20 teams are
backed by a doctor, and for
every 50 to 100 teams an
ambulance is on standby
³ The teams start work at
8 am and go on till 10 pm in
some areas, accompanied
by the police
³ The teams are trying
to identify Covid-19
suspects on the basis of
three-four questions: is
anyone in the household
suffering from cold, cough,
fever and any breathing
problem, a medical history,
especially elders? The
second question is about
the travel history of all
family members. The third
asks whether they or any
of their close ones have
visited Banger hospital
(the epicentre of the
epidemic)
and samples of 78 have been
sent to the labs. If anyone is
found to be virus-positive we
will restart the process of
screening the entire area based
on their location," Khan said.
The sense of fear wide-
spread, so much so that people
are losing confidence and being
uncooperative with the health
workers.
"People are paranoid that
health workers will infect them.
Secondly, rumours that once
the suspect is taken he/she will
Police and healthcare staff monitor the situation in Bhilwara on Tuesday
³ If they suspect a person
is infected, the information
is passed on to the doctor on
standby who checks for fever
and examines the symptoms
never come back are prevent-
ing them from cooperating.
Sometimes one household
takes half an hour to give us the
required information, further
delaying the process," said Sub-
hash Goyal, a health worker in
Bhilwara.
Meanwhile, in many areas
families have reported shortag-
es of milk, veggies, food grains
and medicines. "We have decid-
ed not to touch anything com-
ing from outside, like milk and
veggies, or to entertain any per-
‘Witnessing
an increasing
³ On the the doctor’s advice, the
person is told to self-quarantine
at home for 14 days or is sent in
an ambulance for admission to
an isolation ward
son from outside, even if we
have to starve," says Akram
Khan, a resident of Bhilwara’s
Chippa Mohalla.
The stillness deep in the city
is eerie, says Sharma, who ac-
companies an aanganwadi
worker. "Sometimes it’s scary
moving into the interiors with-
out hearing any human voice.
The fear escalates when we
knock on doors but get no re-
sponse," says Sharma.
Strangely, such is the sense
of fulfilment of a job well done
Scared of virus, inmates
³ The isolated person’s locality is
declared critical, followed by intense
screening and re-screening by the
doctor and sanitisation of every
nook and corner of the area
that Sharma likens finding a
person with virus symptoms to
winning the jackpot. "Our aim
is to identify suspects and in-
form the doctors. The feeling
doubles when the doctor, based
on my input, says the patient
must self-quarantine or takes
him/her to the isolation ward,"
says Sharma.
At the end of a working day,
any elation changes to anxiety
when he heads home, back to
the family he loves, even after
following all sanitising proto-
cols. "I have maintained a dis-
tance from the family and I keep
away from my parents and my
nephews. They also do not in-
teract with me too much," Shar-
ma says over the phone from
Bhilwara.
The health workers are re-
ceived well in some places but
households sometimes ques-
tion their motives. "Many Mus-
lim households try to confirm
whether we are part of an NPR
or NRC team," said Sharma.
Around 2,400 police person-
nel are at the front of the battle
in Bhilwara. They don’t have a
manual to help them deal with a
pandemic of this scale so they
are following a 10-point guide-
line that tells them, among oth-
er things to eat a hearty break-
fast and sanitise their batons
and vehicles before the day be-
gins. “It is an unprecedented sit-
uation for all of us and we are
following all guidelines and
turning to experience to main-
tain the confidence of the police
force,” Bhilwara SP Harendra
Kumar says. The SP's office has
been regularly updating its
staff via WhatsApp groups on
how to keep themselves, and
other, safe.
The advisory says that ev-
ery policeman starts his/her
day by wearing a fresh face
mask and refilling a water bot-
tle. Before leaving home they
have to self-check their health
status. Anyone with Covid-19
symptoms is advised to report
to the doctor.
"The job is very distressing
due to prolonged hours and the
danger. It has been advised to
share light jokes and motiva-
tional quotes to keep confi-
dence high, said Kumar.
Mehta said that Jan Rasoi has
been started under the sche-
from Iran to
reach Jodhpur
today
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Jaisalmer: More than 250 In-
dians will be brought from
Iran to Jodhpur in two flights
on Wednesday early morning
and will be kept at isolation
and wellness centre at the mi-
litary station in Jodhpur. It is
to be mentioned that the 484
Indians rescued from Iran
are healthy at the isolation
centre at the military station
in Jaisalmer and all have tes-
ted negative.
District administrations
of Barmer and Jaisalmer ha-
ve started kitchens for the po-
or who are not registered un-
der NFSA under Mukhya-
matri Bhojan Yojana. Jan Ra-
soi has been started at 13
places in Jaisalmer and aro-
und 6,000 food packets are be-
ing distributed. People are al-
so being fed at langers at the-
se places. Government offi-
cers, employees and
philanthropists are coming
forward to distribute food
packets among the poor.
District
administrations
of Barmer and
Jaisalmer have
started kitchens for
the poor who are not
registered under
NFSA under
Mukhyamatri
Bhojan Yojana
District collector Namit

has special Italy connect begin stir for bail, parole

Intishab.Ali@timesgroup.com
Jaipur: Hundreds of fami-
lies from Jhunjhunu dis-
trict work in the hospitality
sector in Italy and many of
them are still stuck in that
country where more than
5,000 people have died of
Covid-19.
Three persons of a fami-
ly — a man, his wife and
daughter — who had retur-
ned on March 8 tested posi-
tive for Covid-19.
A day after, the district
administration imposed a
curfew in a 1km periphery
of their house on March 18,
which is still in effect.
Dayaram (57), who had
gone to Italy 20 years ago in
search of a job, said his son
is stuck in Italy.
“He is under a lockdown
just like us. I came back on
February 1, but my younger
son who studies in Italy is
still there. I keep checking
him over phone. He is safe
but I am worried,” said Day-
aram.
When Dayaram went to
Italy, he was employed at a
restaurant for making
pizzas.
“Now, I work in the meat-
packing industry. I had boo-
ked my ticket to fly back to
Italy on March 15, but I rece-
ived a call from my employ-
er saying the situation is
bad there so I should not go.
I have booked my ticket for
April 17. I will go there if the
situation improves,” said
Dayaram, whose elder son
works as a waiter at a res-
taurant.
Majority of them — hai-
ling from Bagad, Rajgarh,
Surajgarh and Lolgarh —
belong to the same commu-
nity — khatik ( cloth mer-
chant).
Bansi Lal (56) returned
from Italy on February 6.
“My work is to make pizzas.
I have been living there for
over a decade now. Since I
have been staying in that
area for a long time, I have
learnt their local language.
A large number of families
from Jhunjhunu work in
the hospitality sector the-
re,” said Bansi Lal.
He is worried about his
brother’s family, who are
still in Italy.
“He has his own Indian
restaurant in Italy. He and
his family are quarantined
in his house. We pray for
their well-being,” said Ban-
si Lal.
Health department is
keeping all the people of
Jhunjhunu who have retur-
ned recently under their
watch.
“There are over 160 per-
sons who returned from Ita-
ly recently. Most of them
have completed their 28 da-
ys of home quarantine. We
keep monitoring their he-
alth to find out if they have
any symptoms of Co-
vid-19,” said Dr SK Kaler,
principal medical officer,
district hospital, Jhunjhu-
nu.
Dr Kaler further said
the situation is returning
to normal in Jhunjhunu,
yet still they have streng-
thened surveillance in the
area.
“In 1-km area of the hou-
se of the family who tested
positive for Covid-19, the
curfew is still in effect.
We have tested 106 samples,
and out of those four have
tested positive for the dise-
ase. There are a lot of
families who live in Italy.
We are constantly keeping
a watch on their health,” he
said.
demand’
Continued from P 1
Jaipur:Ramkishan Saini, a veg-
etable retailer at Sodala’s sabzi
mandi, said, “We have been told
by the Mohana Sabzi Mandi As-
sociation to procure vegetables
but we will get only two hours to
sell it. That is too less, so we are
not going to open the shop.”
Similar was the scene at
many grocery shops which were
quickly running out of stock.
“We are witnessing an increas-
ing demand when a regular cus-
tomer is trying to buy his groce-
ry for almost three months. But
our wholesalers are not sending
stocks as required. I have no
wheat flour, besan, pulses and
spices. Until I get ample stock, I
will not open the shop,” said Ra-
mesh Singhal, a retail grocery
store owner at Vaishali Nagar.
However, senior officials in
the police and district food and
civil supplies said that the lock-
down won’t affect the daily sup-
ply of vegetables, fruits, grocery,
medicines and milk. “Some
modalities to ensure timely sup-
ply of goods have been chalked
out. Railways has not stopped its
freight operations. Likewise ve-
hicles carrying vegetables, milk
and grocery are being spared
during the lockdown,” said official
of district food and supplies office.
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Jodhpur: Jail inmates of
Jodhpur Central Jail have
begun a sit-in demanding
release from jail through
interim bail and parole in
view of the threat of coro-
navirus. Alleging inadequ-
ate safety arrangements
and high human density in
the jail, they said that they
were at high risk of infec-
tion.
In a letter addressed to
the Chief Justice of India,
they have cited Section 144
stating that more than four
persons could not assemble
at one place, while the jail
has so many inmates cram-
med in a barrack, which
was violation of social dis-
tancing protocol.
The letter said that there
were no adequate medical
facilities, if infection spre-
ads in jail through the jail
guards, who keep coming
and going in and out of the
jail.
“They bound to meet the
jail inmates and there was
no proper screening facili-
ty in jail for these guards.
Not only this, but inmates
from outside are brought
Even in routine,
inmates’ health is pro-
perly taken care of. But
these days in view of
corona outbreak, we
have been keeping
adequate caution with
regard to the health
of the inmates
KAILASH TRIVEDI
Jail superintendent
into the jail premises and
there was always a threat of
them getting infected,” let-
ter said.
They also termed the de-
lay in judicial proceedings
due to effect on work in co-
urts. They have stated that
due to this delay, their pro-
spects were being affected.
With these allegations
and apprehensions, they
have demanded release
from jail through bail, inte-
rim bail and parole by way
of a designated format and
warned of protest in jail
from Tuesday.
Reacting to this protest,
jail superintendent Kai-
lash Trivedi said there were
me to provide food packets to
poor. He said that on Monday
night, around 500 people were
given food packets in Barmer
adequate medical facilities through Jan Rasoi. Under
in jail and doctors of jail ha- this scheme, 6,000 packets we-
ve been keeping close watch re made in which there are fo-
on the health conditions of od items for two persons for a
the inmates. week. In Jaisalmer city, 12 au-
“Even in routine, inma- to rickshaws have been ar-
tes’ health is properly taken ranged for commuting for ve-
care of. But these days in vi- ry important work, to health
ew of corona outbreak, we centres and other areas. DTO
have been keeping adequa- has issued permits to these
te caution with regard to autos. Door to door survey is
the health of the inmates,” going on in the district and
he said adding that it inclu- survey has been completed in
ded proper screening of large areas.
every outsider. CMHO Dr B K Barupal sa-
He said that the capacity id that 192 teams till Monday
of Jodhpur Central Jail was have surveyed 42,233 houses
1475 while the present head in the district. During the
count in the jail is 1,350, survey, 2,04,779 people have
which was 175 below the been screened and so far 177
strength. Recently, 15 inma- people have been advised for
tes from Pali and 30 inmates home quarantine.
from Bhinmal jail have be-
en shifted here due to over-
strength in these jails.
According to Trivedi,
the demand of inmates was
Exchange of
nothing but to get freedom
from jail under the veil of fire between
corona outbreak.
He said that entire jail
premises has been saniti-
cops, ATM
zed and fumigated and eve-
ry aspect of the outbreak
was being properly taken
thieves; 5 held
care of so that the virus did TIMES NEWS NETWORK
not affect jail.
Alwar: Police arrested a

Screening
Youths in this Dungarpur village form
gang of five ATM thieves in
To book your advertisement , Alwar district’s Kishang-
TB_F Sinter: . call 927M 2222
arhbas police station area
teams visited on Tuesday. They were ar-

teams to screen visitors, create checklist

SHINDE VITHOBA DABA
F/O NO. 14830359-N, SEP/MT,
SHINDE KUMAR VITHOBA,
R/AT -MHAISAL, SANGLI-
416409. MAHARASHTRA.
shall henceforth be known as
SAKHUBAI VITHOBA SHIN-
DE, vide affidavit dated. 17-
03-2020 Before Notray Public
Shyam Sunder Gurjar Nasi-
rabad (RAJ)
REQUIRED Research Staff SHINDE SAKHUBAI VI-
(Research Co-ordinators/
Associates/Assistants, Field
THOBA M/O .No. 14830359N,
SEP/MT, SHINDE KUMAR
Staff for Data Collection, VITHOBA, R/AT -MHAISAL,
Data Analysts etc) Also Reso- SANGLI- 416409. MAHA-
urce Persons for Research
RASHTRA. Shall Henceforth
Work & Workshops on Child be known as SAKHUBAI VI-
Protection & Child Rights & THOBA SHINDE, Vide Affi-
Gender-based Violence. Mail
profile: iisdorg@gmail.com
davit Dtd 17-03-2020 before
notary public SHYAM SUN-
DER GURJAR Nasirabad Raj.
I, YASHODA mother of No
JC-384379W NB/SUB PATIL
SANDIP VASANT 12ARTY
BDE SIG COY 56APO at BHA-
DAKAMBE WALWA dist.
SANGLI MH.416302 have cha-
nged my Name and DOB from
YASHODA 01.07.1958 to YAS-
HODA VASANT PATIL 01.01.
1943 vide Affidavit dtd
04/03/2020 before Nasirabad
I URBANA
JEWELS
BEST OF JAIPUR
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published in this pubication . The Times Of India
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TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Udaipur: While police and
medics have to pursue people
to report Covid-19 symptoms,
youths at Khoontwada in
Dungarpur have taken the ini-
tiative to prevent the spread of
the virus in the area.
The residents have formed
different teams who work in
shifts at a checkpost made by
them and entry is only given
into the village after the per-
The youths are also
spreading awareness
among people on
how to remain safe
from coronavirus
son is found free of any flu
symptoms.
“If anyone is found down
with flu, cough or fever, they
are advised to visit the nearest
Gehlot, Pilot differ on EC decision to defer RS polls
Joychen.Joseph
@timesgroup.com
Jaipur: Chief minister As-
hok Gehlot and his deputy Sa-
chin Pilot on Tuesday differed
on the Election Commission’s
decision to postpone Rajya
Sabha polls in the wake of Co-
vid-19 pandemic.
Elections for the three se-
ats from Rajasthan was sche-
duled on March 26.
Questioning the decision,
Gehlot accused the commis-
sion of giving more time to
the BJP for ‘horse trading’.
However, his deputy and PCC
president Sachin Pilot sup-
rested after an exchange of
fire between the cops and
nine villages gang members. Two accu-
sed also sustained bullet in-
TOI Continued from P 1 juries.
The injured were identi-
Jaipur: Prima facie it ap- fied as Rahul Palla, the gang
peared that the three villag- leader, and his accomplice
ers had recently visited Ban- Farooq, who was referred to
ger hospital, which is the epi- Jaipur in a serious condi-
centre of the disease in the tion.
district. The screening “The gang was involved
teams visited the nine villag- in several theft cases. A day
es after they received infor- before the arrest, they had
mation from the hospital broken into two ATMs in Ka-
about the suspects visiting irthal police station area.
the hospital. We received information
The suspects, who are na- that the accused were hi-
tives of these nine villages, ding in Chawandikala villa-
travelled across this rural ge and immediately a team
TAKING CHARGE: The residents have formed different teams who work in shifts at a checkpost made by them belt for some work after hav- was sent there,” said a poli-
ing visited the private hospi- ce officer.
hospital. Nobody is allwoed to age and body temperature of uths to follow protocol and tal in Bhilwara city. After finding the accu-
enter the village without pro- everyone arriving there. The stay quarantined. The youths Sources said the local ad- sed in a field in the village,
per screening,” says Ramesh, youths are also spreading awa- are also assisting the authori- ministration, which was on cops surrounded them. The
the president of the village yo- reness among people on how to ties to ensure that no one goes the verge of completing accused then started
uth association. remain safe from coronavirus. outside their homes unless it screening in urban areas of firing at the cops who also
A proper record is also be- People who have returned is unavoidable besides mainta- the district, would now turn retaliated.
ing maintained by the groups from Maharashtra and Guja- ining social distance with to these villages to screen Police recovered three
who fill in details like name, rat are being asked by these yo- each other. people. countrymade weapons,
eight live cartridges, three
ATMs and a pickup vehicle.
All the accused had extensi-
ve criminal history and we-
re also involved in petrol
Congress had named K C Venugopal and Neeraj remaining 18 of the 55 seats in fray in the last minute neces- pump loot, firing at police
the Upper House of Parlia- sitated election for the three constable and 15 other cases
Dangi as its candidates, while the BJP fielded ment were to be held on March seats. According to the party registered at various police
Rajendra Gehlot and Omkar Singh Lakhawat. 26 as 37 candidates have alrea- position, the Congress could stations.
Lakhawat’s entry into the fray in the last minute dy been elected uncontested. win two seats and BJP one. “We are questioning the
necessitated election for the three seats Pilot said, “I do not want to Congress’s only Rajya Sab- accused and will provide
criticise the poll panel as it is ha member from Rajasthan is more details about their cri-
ported the poll panel saying, was taken without taking po- a constitutional body.” former Prime Minister Man- mes which might have not
“It is the right decision in the litical parties into confiden- He added that even MLAs mohan Singh who was elected have come to light. While
current scenario.” ce. He alleged that the poll pa- have expressed apprehension unopposed in the bypolls held Farooq has been shifted to
“The decision to postpone nel ‘intentionally ignored’ and demanded that the polls last year. Jaipur, Rahul is undergoing
the elections definitely comes that Parliament was in ses- be postponed in the backdrop The Congress, which came treatment locally. Till they
under the scanner as the BJP sion till Monday and the oath- of the virus scare. to power in the state in Decem- are hospitalised, we will in-
did not succeed in horse tra- taking ceremony in Madhya Congress had named K C ber 2018, enjoys the support of terrogate the other three
ding in Gujarat and Rajast- Pradesh was held on the same Venugopal and Neeraj Dangi 123 MLAs, including indepen- who were arrested,” added
han. They want some more ti- day. as its candidates, while the dents, while the BJP has the the officer. A case under re-
me. Sad day for democracy,” According to the order is- BJP fielded Rajendra Gehlot support of 75, including its al- levant IPC sections was re-
Gehlot tweeted. sued by the commission on and Omkar Singh Lakhawat. ly RLP. CPM has two MLAs in gistered against the arres-
Gehlot said the decision Tuesday, elections to fill the Lakhawat’s entry into the the 200-strong assembly. ted persons.
 TIMES NATION THE TIMES OF INDIA, JAIPUR | WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25, 2020

NO CONG MLA PRESENT, CHOUHAN CLEARS TN CM HIKES PENSION FOR TEMPLE PRIESTS,
FLOOR TEST DAY AFTER BECOMING MP CM ANNOUNCES A TV CHANNEL FOR SHRINES

WHO: India’s corona battle ICMR: Isolation may cut Mumbai’s first
infected couple,
will make or break global war peak numbers by 89% PTI
Sushmi.Dey@timesgroup.com

New Delhi: Strictly imple-

PTI
3-yr-old among
8 discharged
‘India Led World mented social distancing
measures such as home qua-
Sumitra.DebRoy
@timesgroup.com
In Eradicating 2 rantine can reduce the ove-
rall expected number of ca- Mumbai: “There is only one

Silent Killers — ses by 62% and peak number

Smallpox, Polio’
DurgeshNandan.Jha
@timesgroup.com
New Delhi: India may well
determine the future trajec-
tory of Covid-19, declared a
global pandemic by the World
Health Organisation (WHO),
especially in the manner In-
dia handles the unpreceden-
ted crisis from here.
Dr Michael J Ryan, execu-
tive director of WHO health
emergencies programme, sa-
id this on Monday while com-
menting on Covid-19: “India,
like China, is a hugely populo-
us country. The future of this
pandemic, to a greater extent,
will be determined on what
happens in very large and den-
sely populated countries.”
“So, it’s really important
that India continues to take
aggressive action at the pub-
lic health level and at the level
of society to contain, control,
LOCKED DOWN
suppress this disease and
save lives,” Ryan said. He ad-
ded that India led the world in
eradicating two silent killers
— smallpox and polio.
“Smallpox killed more pe-
ople on this planet than all
wars together. India, through
targeted public health
interventions, ended that di-
sease and gave a great gift to
the world. India also elimina-
ted polio, another silent killer,
and did tremendous job on
surveillance, on finding ca-
ses, and vaccinating and do-
ing all the things that needed
to be done,” Ryan said at a me-
dia briefing on the Covid-19
crisis in Geneva, Switzerland.
“The pandemic is accele-
rating,” Tedros Adhanom
Ghebreyesus, director gene-
ral of the WHO, said as he cal-
led for world leaders to stop
the highly contagious viral ill-
ness in its tracks, where pos-
sible, while also mitigating its
effect on vulnerable popula-
tions and slowing its spread in
communities where the virus
has already gained a foothold.
As on Tuesday, Covid-19
has spread to 196 countries
causing illness in nearly
4,00,000 people and claiming
the lives of 17,250 people.
India has seen 10 deaths
due to Covid-19 till date.
of cases by 89%, thus “flatte-
ning” the curve and provi-
ding more opportunities for
interventions, a mathemati-
cal modelling done by the In-
dian Council of Medical Re-
search (ICMR) shows.
The findings of the study
also suggest that screening of
travellers at entry points can
delay introduction of the vi-
rus into the community by
three days to three weeks.
However, it concluded
that as a public health measu-
re, health system and com-
munity preparedness would
be critical to control any im-
pending spread of Covid-19.
The study was conducted
in February and the fin-
dings are based on the initial
data and understanding of
the spread of Covid-19. Such
model projections are sub-
ject to substantial uncerta-
inty but are often useful in
indicating steps that may
help reduce the impact or
tackle the crisis, experts say.
Dr R R Gangakhedkar,
ICMR’s head of epidemiolo-
gy, maintained that the mo-
message I would like to give se-
nior citizens and those battling
coronavirus: With good care
and patience, you will fight and
come out of it,” said a 70-year-
old Mumbai resident who was
discharged on Tuesday after
nearly 14 days of treatment.
The septuagenarian and his
A policeman guards a deserted Marine Drive promenade in Mumbai 68-year-old wife, also called
Mumbai’s index patients, had
Return of 64,000 from tested positive on March 11 fol-
lowing their return from a Du-
bai and Abu Dhabi trip.
abroad forced lockdown They were among the eight
patients to be discharged from
New Delhi: The return of as many as 64,000 persons, main- the civic-run Kurla Bhabha
ly Indians, just ahead of India closing international travel Hospital on Tuesday evening.
on Sunday prompted the government to implement a string- After being initially treated at
ent lockdown, including putting some areas under curfew, Kasturba Hospital — the city’s
in a bid to prevent the returnees from triggering a commu- nodal isolation centre — some
nity spread. The increase in the number of Covid- positive were shifted to the Kurla hospi-
patients over the past week is seen as a result of more Indi- tal last week after two of their
ans with a foreign travel history coming back, a linkage ack- consecutive test reports came
nowledged by senior health ministry and ICMR officials negative. Among those who
who are monitoring treatment and incidence of the disease. went home was a three-year-
There were concerns over people skipping home qua- old girl from Kalyan, whose pa-
rantine even as some 8,000 were in institutional camps for rents continue to be hospitali-
14 days. Most of the remaining persons were in home qua- sed, a 62-year-old man and a 49-
rantine and under watch with their details recorded in year-old US-returned Ghatko-
the integrated disease management system. But, nevert- par resident and his 68-year-
heless, the possibility of their movement or of those who old domestic help. The child’s
come in their contact was a factor in enforcing isolation. father, who had tested positive
The idea, said sources, was to prevent persons under ob- after returning from the US, is

Violators Govt in talks with India, China delling was done in Februa-
ry when the numbers were
servation becoming “spreaders”. Those who develop sympt-
oms will be treated and others who complete quarantine saf-
currently serious and under
treatment at Jaslok Hospital.
not very high and the focus ely will be out of the danger zone. This strategy is part of the The 62-year-old told TOI, “I
could be shot discuss joint was not to predict the num- strong emphasis on isolation, outlined by ICMR chief Bal- was among the luckier ones

at sight: KCR automobile firms Covid-19 fight

ber of cases that might occur
but what methods would
work towards control of the
ram Bhargava, to ensure the chain of transmission is brok-
en. A sharp rise in cases, from the pool of foreign travellers
and those who came in their contact, along with positive te-
who didn’t get very severe
symptoms. I hardly had any fe-
ver or cough. After my initial
Hyderabad: Telangana CM
K Chandrasekhar Rao on Tu-
esday said he will have no op-
tion but to give shoot-at-sight
to make ventilators
Sushmi.Dey@timesgroup.com
ANI
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi: Amid the growing

orders if people don’t stay in-
doors during the lockdown
period. Talking to reporters
on Tuesday, he also threate-
ned a 24-hour curfew if peo-
ple violate lockdown orders.
“Don’t create a situation
where government is left
with no option but to give sho-
ot-at-sight orders to the poli-
ce,” he said. Upset with the
way people came out on stre-
ets on Monday and Tuesday,
he said he may consider as-
king the Army to take over,
besides shut down petrol
pumps to keep people off the
roads, he said. “Curfew wo-
uld be implemented from 7
pm to 6am and all shops sho-
uld be closed by 6 pm daily,”
New Delhi: The Centre is in
talks with leading automobile
manufacturers exploring the
possibility of producing ven-
tilators and other equipment
in their factories to meet the
surging demand for critical
care for Covid-19 patients, so-
urces said.
Two high level meetings —
one each on Monday and Tues-
day — have taken place with
top executives from five com-
Rlys may make
beds, stretchers
T he railway ministry is
exploring utilising its
production units to make
A drone sanitises a market in
Bengaluru on Tuesday
will seek the drawings and pro-
totypes from other foreign
companies,” a DoP official told
TOI.
Covid-19 threat, India and Chi-
na on Tuesday discussed coo-
peration to jointly fight the
pandemic which has killed mo-
re than 17,000 worldwide.
Foreign minister S Jaishan-
kar tweeted that he and his co-
unterpart Wang Yi discussed
working together and agreed to
build further on bilateral ef-
forts. The two also spoke about
the upcoming G20 summit. In-
dia had earlier sent a planeload
of relief supplies to coronavi-
rus-hit Hubei province as a
mark of solidarity with China.
"Jaishankar agreed not to
label the virus and the inter-
national community should
send strong signal of solidari-
ty," Sun said.
outbreak in India. “Lock-
down and thermal screening
works is what our study
shows,” Gangakhedkar said.
The calculation determi-
ned an epidemiological cha-
racteristic known as the re-
production number that de-
termines how quickly an inf-
ection is spreading in a popu-
lation. A value below 1means
the virus is on course to die
out, while any number above
2 is difficult to contain witho-
ut severe interventions.
The study ‘Prudent pub-
sts of other individuals with severe flu or pneumonia, could
be an indication of community spread or a precursor to that,
experts feel. The situation therefore needed pre-emptive
steps like stringent lockdowns and penalties for violation.
report came positive, all the
three subsequent ones were ne-
gative.” He said he was happy to
go home but apprehensive abo-
Report of a casual response to warnings that people sho- ut how people in the locality wo-
uld stay indoors increased concerns and it was felt that the uld behave around him. “My
time was ripe for officially-declared lockdowns. As of now wife and sons had a tough time
1,87,904 people are under observation across the country. TNN after news got out that I was po-
For the full report, log on to www.timesofindia.in sitive. I even got a call from a ne-
ighbour who said his tenants
lic health intervention stra- scenario, when reproduc- had vacated after learning of
tegies to control the corona- tion number is 4, and asymp- the infection,” he said. “I hope
virus disease-2019 transmis- tomatic infections being half as people become more aware
sion in India: A mathemati- as infectious as symptoma- they understand it’s just a flu
cal model-based approach’ tic, the projected impact of and people recover,” he said.
shows that in the pessimistic social distancing falls to 2%.
YEARS OF
THE MAHATM A

he said. Koride Mahesh TNN essential items for treatment

Full report on www.toi.in of Covid-19 patients. “Railway
board has issued instructions

UN TY.
to the general managers of
STATUE OF
‘Use `52,000cr these production units to
explore feasibility of manu-
facture of items like simple
cess fund to hospital beds, medical tr-
olleys for hospitals and qua-
help labourers’ rantine facilities, IV stands,

New Delhi: The Centre on
Tuesday asked all states to
dip into the Rs 52,000 crore
construction cess fund and
directly transfer funds thro-
ugh the direct benefit trans-
fer mechanism to help labo-
urers in the sector.
In a letter to CMs of all sta-
tes, junior labour and emplo-
yment minister Santosh
Gangwar said state chief se-
cretaries must ensure the
protection of jobs and wages
of workers in private and go-
vernment firms. He advised
them “to transfer funds in the
account of construction wor-
kers through DBT (direct be-
nefit of transfer) mode from
cess fund collected by the La-
bour Welfare Boards under
the building and other const-
ruction workers (regulation
of employment and condi-
tion of Services) Act”. TNN
Full report on www.toi.in
EC defers RS
polls, fresh
date later
New Delhi: The Election
Commission on Tuesday de-
ferred biennial polls to 18 Ra-
PUBLIC NOTICE
stretchers, hospital footste-
ps, hospital bedside lockers,
washbasins with stands,
ventilators, PPEs like masks, This is to inform the public and visitors of Statue of
sanitisers, water tanks etc,”
Unity and other tourist attraction in Kevadia , that
the ministry said. TNN
it was announced to close these attractions up to
T 7 TAT Tc 21 P47MA c ft
panies — Maruti, M&M, Hy-
undai, Tata and Honda. These 25/03/2020. Now closure of these attractions is ex- Tc1 aT
meetings were also attended tended up to 31/03/2020.
by officials from the cabinet se-
cretariat, health ministry, Indi-
Please note that all visitors who have booked tick-
an Council of Medical Rese- ets for the above dates shall be refunded their full
arch and department of phar- ticket charges within 4 working days. Therefore ,
maceuticals. “These firms ha-
ve expressed concern about
there is no need to write or call us and or raise
the current situation and said refund claim.
they have required infrastruc-
ture and technology to produ-
ce ventilators. Certain modifi-
Place: Kevadia
Date: March 24, 2020 V , V
cations to their existing model Collector & District Magistrate
are required and for that they m,FINARAAnwassnois-20 Narmada
(FOR PUBLICATION IN THE NEWSPAPERS)
<<
zr r ,41'M co TA , , f4 , i
CAUVERY WATER MANAGEMENT AUTHORITY /u , i TU , u Tra , f si P iq/ rc
(A Body Corporate under the Department of Water Resources,
River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation) z , i, ar rT I r aiTu
Vacancy Circular for one post of Chairman, CWMA 7m c zi X 01 1 / LT.f f 3it w en ASTT l
Applications are invited for the post of Chairman , Cauvery Water Management Authority 3(a ETA 3i1 w e (fiat aft, Sift,
Ai/
(CWMA), in Level -17 (Rs. 2,25,000/- fixed) of pay matrix to be filled by deputation
(including short term contract). The Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) has C16;AvWH, t4Ccl , ETA , M VOM
been constituted by Government of India vide its Notification No,S.0.2236 (E), dated
01.06.2018 under the provisions of Section 6A of the Inter-State River Dispute (ISRWD) Act ,
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1956 to give effect to the decision of the Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal as modified by the
Hon'ble Supreme Court in its order dated 16.02.2018.
z TILT , w affi

B73iN3iU Tci-aif f hRft wft , 1 RT ,

jya Sabha seats in view of the LT
lockdown in force due to Co- The last date for receipt of applications for appointment on deputation (including d 1e d1

vid-19 threat. An EC press
note said the list of contes-
ting candidates published
earlier will remain valid and
a fresh date for polling and
counting announced later.
ANirvachan Sadan relea-
se said: “The poll process wo-
short- term contract) basis to the post of Chairman, CWMA, earlier published in the wrcft f 1 c1W4 , WXTU *aa WA , f QTT Vc W , gfi;g wT 3iaf
Employment News editions dated 9-15 November and 25-31 January, 2020 is hereby
extended up to 06.05.2020. f 1.'ft 5 Tv iai AFT c-in -ci T
c c'tT Z1 11-1 fl IMd 4S 1A
Persons meeting the eligibility criteria may apply for the post by sending their application , 4§1 1 MeT afm aif ft lit e aif pav
duly signed (in triplicate), in the prescribed proforma, to the Under Secretary (Estt.IV),
g w-ar,
Department of Water Resources , River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation , Room No. 435, { Ef f srr
Shram Shakti Rhawan , Rafi Marg, New Delhi - 110001 through proper channel.

uld include gathering of pol-
ling officials, agents of politi-
cal parties, support officials
and members of respective
legislative assemblies on the
poll day, which may not be su-
itable in view of the prevai-
ling situation and related ad-
visories in the country.” TNN
Full report on www.toi.in
3
Advance copies of applications or applications received after the prescribed period
or not accompanied with the requisite information/ documents are liable to be
rejected.
Details of the post , eligibility conditions etc. are available at www.doot.gov.in and
www.mowr.gov.in .
Sd/- (Shalini Juneja) T 1T4 -1-1\4i-q;ff f44TM, Tf.i
Under Secretary to the Government of India
 6 TIMES NATION | Viral Worry THE TIMES OF INDIA, JAIPUR
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25, 2020

PM: Pan-India reach gives print Will deliver

food, medicines
ENEMIES OF SOCIETY? PTI
Omar cites
Covid, parries

media key role in corona war ANI

to doorsteps,
declares Yogi
questions on
Art 370, 35A
 Continued from P 1
Modi Praises Spreading rumours, Neha.Lalchandani
@timesgroup.com
Srinagar: “For several
Newspapers stopping newspaper Lucknow: Minutes after PM
Narendra Modi imposed a
months, our students were left
without schools. Our business-

For Spreading distribution will invite three-week nationwide lock-

down, asking people not to
es, shopkeepers, hotels and all
other establishments bore the

Awareness action: Varanasi admin cross the ‘laxman rekha’ of

their homes, UP chief minister
Yogi Adityanath said his gov-
brunt,” Omar said. “I was
locked up in one place, but the
problems faced by the people of
Varanasi: The district administration in ernment would deliver essen- J&K during that period can’t be
TIMES NEWS NETWORK Varanasi on Tuesday said legal action would tial commodities like fruits, compensated for.”
formation should be shared in newspa- be taken against those who spread the ru- milk, vegetables and medicines Asked about the nullifica-
New Delhi: PM Narendra Modi on pers and web portals of the paper, Modi mour that Covid-19 can be spread through at the doorstep in the cities Police personnel punish offenders flouting lockdown guidelines in tion of articles 370 and 35A,
Tuesday praised the print media for said. The PM also suggested that infor- newspapers and disrupt their distribution, across the state. “We have ar- Kanpur on Tuesday. From making violators do situps in the middle of Omar parried the question by
its role in spreading awareness to ev- mation about say, the availability of es- reports Rajeev Dikshit. “If any person, so- ranged 10,000 vehicles, includ- the road to getting them pose with posters that read ‘I am an enemy saying now was not the appro-
ery nook and cranny of the country. sential items during lockdown could be ciety (management) or security guards of ing 4,500 police response vehi- of the society, I will not stay home’, to filing about thousand-odd FIRs, priate time to discuss these is-
Modi acknowledged the reach of shared in the regional pages. any residential society will try to stop entry cles, 4,200 ambulances and oth- authorities in UP, Punjab, Rajasthan, Haryana and J&K are using all sues. “At present, I will only
print media and said its pan-India re- With secretaries of the health and of newspaper vehicles and its distribution, er official vehicles, to ensure de- tricks in the book to deter those not sticking to the Covid-19 lockdown speak about how we can get rid
ach made it all the more important in I&B ministry in attendance, Modi legal action under Section 188 (of IPC) can be livery of essential items. From rules, reports Rohan Dua from New Delhi. Full report in www.toi.in of Covid-19. We are fighting a
fighting the coronavirus pandemic and asked the media to act as a link between initiated against them,” said DM Kaushal Wednesday, these vehicles will
disseminating the right information, government and the people, and to pro- Raj Sharma and SSP Prabhakar Chaudhary carry vegetables, milk, fruits,
2 CRPF men killed
After taali-thaali,
even at the micro level. In a video inter- vide continuous feedback at both na- during an interaction with newspaper dis- medicines and other necessary
action with publishers and editors of
leading dailies from across the country,
tional and regional levels. Underlining
the importance of social distancing,
tributors and hawkers.
Section 188 of IPC provides for one-month
items to all areas of cities in the
state,” Yogi said, adding that no
in fratricide in J&K
Modi said print media carried tremen- Modi asked media to generate aware- jail or Rs 200 fine or both for disobeying a public person should leave homes un-
T wo CRPF constables shot
dous credibility. Observing that the lo-
cal pages were widely read, he said they
could be a useful platform for spread-
ing awareness about the coronavirus.
ness about its need and highlight the
impact of the spread of the virus.
Modi emphasised the need to
avoid negativity and rumour-mon-
servant who is empowered to promulgate an
order. If the disobedience tends to cause dan-
ger to human life, health or safety or if it causes
riots then the punishment can be increased to
less allowed by the administra-
tion of the concerned district.
The CM also directed offi-
cials in districts to form teams
health workers each other dead after a
minor scuffle in Srinagar’s
Dalgate area on Tuesday. The
fire exchange took place inside
He said it was essential to inform
people about the location of testing cen-
tres, who should get tested, who should
be contacted for getting tested, and
gering, and keep people’s fighting
spirits up. Representatives of the
print media appreciated the PM’s ef-
forts and thanked him for reinforcing
imprisonment for up to six months or Rs 1000
penalty or both. The delegation met the SSP
and DM after complaints about hawkers being
stopped from entering housing societies.
of young people for setting up
community kitchens and deliv-
er cooked food to those who do
not have access to a kitchen or a
face social stigma CRPF’s water wing at Dalgate, a
police officer said, adding that
the two constables — Siju and
Jala Vijay of the 144 Battalion —
about home isolation protocols. This in- the credibility of newspapers. Full report on www.toi.in mess. TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Identify dedicated fired at each other around 4pm
after an altercation over some
New Delhi: In his address hosps, states told issue at the place of their posting

Shivraj passes floor to the nation on Tuesday,

PM Narendra Modi once
again lauded the work of
health workers out in the
test; Cong MLAs absent trenches battling coronavi-
rus. Yet in certain parts of
I n a bid to treat the rising
number of Covid-19 cases
at a hotel at Dal lake. CRPF
spokesperson Neeraj Rathore
said an investigation ahs been
with efficiency while
maintaining isolation, the
Centre has asked states to
initiated in to the fratricide.
Saleem Pandit TNN

the country, these soldiers of identify dedicated hospitals big fight against the novel coro-
Bhopal: A day after assuming office, Madhya Pradesh Chief humanity are facing social and ensure that they are navirus. We were asked to
Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan passed the floor test in the stigma. Fresh reports from ready to deal with the maintain social distancing, but
state Assembly on Tuesday by voice vote. Kerala, Bengal and Karna- increasing number of people here we are together, violating
No member of the opposition Congress was present in the taka highlight cases of dis- infected with coronavirus, that very order,” he said.
House. As the special session of the state Assembly began, crimination against them. reports Sushmi Dey from On Twitter, where he has
Chouhan moved a one-line proposal to seek trust of the House, Health minister Harsh New Delhi. Gujarat, Assam, 3.1mn followers, Omar posted a
which was endorsed by members through the voice vote. Vardhan too acknowledged Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Goa, picture of him leaving Hari Ni-
Senior BJP MLA Jagdish Devda, one of the members of the the problem by posting a Karnataka, MP and J&K are was Palace in a car and later one
speaker's panel, was on the chair of Speaker. tweet on Tuesday. “I’m setting up dedicated with his parents. “232 days after
Two Bahujan Samaj Party MLAs, a legislator of the Samaj- DEEPLY ANGUISHED to hospitals, officials said. my detention, today I finally left
wadi Party and two independent MLAs - Surendra Singh Shera see reports pouring in from Full report in www.toi.in Hari Niwas. It’s a very different
(Burhanpur) and Vikram Singh Rana (Susner) - also supported Delhi, Noida, Warangal, world today to the one that exist-
the BJP government during the floor test. Chennai etc that DOCTORS ter the landlord voiced his ed on 5th August 2019,” he
There are four independent MLAs in the state, but two of & PARAMEDICS are being concern. Others in the wrote. “Had lunch with my
them were absent during the floor test. ostracised in residential neighbourhood were also mum & dad for the first time in
The House unanimously passed the trust vote of the Shivraj complexes & societies. Land- not ready to rent out their almost 8 months. I can’t remem-
Singh Chouhan-led government. lords are threatening to evict homes. After the collector P ber a better meal even though
Later, Devda adjourned the House till 11 am on March 27. PTI them fearing #COVID2019 K Sudheer Babu inter- I’ve been in a bit of a daze &
infection. Pls don’t panic!” vened, the hospital super- don’t remember what I ate.”
Vol XIII, No. 70, Published for the Proprietors, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd., by Mr. Hitesh Bagai at 8-9 Anupam Chambers, In Kerala, three male intendent agreed to allot an In a series of later tweets, he
Tonk Road, Jaipur 302015, and printed by him at M/S, DB Print Solutions (A Unit of DB Corp Ltd) Bhaskar Printing Press,
Shivdaspura Railway Crossing, Tonk Road, Jaipur. Editor (Jaipur Market): Kunal Majumder - responsible for selection of
nurses, who had voluntari- unused quarter on the cam- thanked his “baby sister Sara”,
news under PRB Act. Tel no. (Editorial):2850120; (Response): 2745555. Registration No. RAJENG/2008/25534 ly opted for duty at the iso- pus to them for two weeks. his NC colleagues and legal
lation wards in a govern- In Kolkata also, some teams for standing by him and
1,
PUBLIC NOTICE ement hospital in Kot- nurses were asked to va- fighting for his release.
Branch Office: ICICI Bank Ltd. Regional Office Jsel tayam , had to leave their cate their rooms (With inputs from
/C/C/ Ban k Building, Malvi ya Nagar JLN Marg-Jai pur 302017 rented accommodation af- Full report on www.toi.in Sanjay Khajuria in Jammu)
IaaerL .a
Authorised Officer of ICICI Bank hereb y inform that all scheduled i
auctions, to be held for the period between March 23, 2020 till March 31,
# - f r r
2020 under the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and
Enforcement of Security Interest Act , 2002 stands postponed until further
notice , due to unprecedented outbreak of Corona Virus (COVID-19). The
list of auctions that are postponedare given hereunder;
44td i°
P) 37Jr
i . M-2-EnHM4 Ul-2020
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How group of elderly Italians recovered fully
Sr. Name of Borrower(s)! Details ofthe Secured asset Scheduled f wRf f i21.04.2020 Ipsita.Pati@timesgroup.com Eleven of that group of Italians, of them were in the 70-75 age group, ex- medical condition. Two of the patients
N Co Borrowers/ (s) with known Date & Time c 15.00 4dt 1W 4-f
*
'r (Single among the first patients in India to test cept one who was 44 years old. All 14 required oxygen as their lung capacity
Guarantors encumbrances, if any of Auction
packet system) 3177ftd 4i 715ft r 1 1 Gurgaon: Restricting the number of positive for Covid-19 — the infection were kept in isolation units and we was weak, said Dr Kataria.“Medicines
1. Abhijeet Yadav Property 1 - Plot No. A . n. 106 March
(Borrower) Krishna A, Anand Nagar, Sirsi Road, 27 , 2020 494 + : Development of Rail medical staff to a bare minimum, tak- caused by the novel coronavirus — first got their detailed medical history like Tocilizumab were prescribed to
Jai pur, Rajasthan - 302006 11.30 AM Museum at Ajmer-Mechanical (Non ing basic care of their diet and hygiene were released Monday night after to prepare a baseline medication,” Dr the patients, along with vitamin C. But
Yadav, Devi &
Construction Co. (Admeasuring An Area Of BSR) Works In connection w ith Rail
and giving them something that went spending three weeks at the hospital Kataria, an intensive care expert, no medicine can work as a substitute
2000 Sq. Ft.) 12.00PM museum at Ajmer. 2. 'd+Tif 31df>!r: fiT
(Co-Borrower) Onwards beyond medicine — psychological sup- since their admission on March 4. shared with TOI. As there are no stan- for basic care. We worked constantly to
Property 2 - Plot No. A . N. 53 45 days. 3. 4 T rr uf$r: 58 ,400/- 4. 4"
LBJA100002663898 South Part , Anand Nagar, Sirsi port. This was the strategy employed They made a full recovery. In the early dard World Health Organisation increase their immunity with the help
LBJAI00002664180 a9 31-jNrftd e1I 1d : 29,18 ,520.00/- 5.
Road, Jaipur , Rajasthan - by the two-member team of doctors at stages of India’s battle to contain the (WHO) procedures for the line of treat- of good food, including fruits like ap-
t- 4t1r4 4+7 Z53cr R (Technical bid):
302006 (admeasuring An Area
Of 1687.5 Sq. Ft.) f 2104.2020 3;j V A . 6. Web Medanta, led by Dr Sushila Kataria, coronavirus outbreak and treat pa- ment at present, the team, which in- ple, oranges and kiwis, coupled with a
site part iculars : www.ireps . ov.i n. when they began treating 14 Italian tients, it was a milestone. “When they cluded Dr Yatin Mehta, categorised the protein-rich diet, warm tea and three
Sd!- 332-AJ/20 tourists for a viral infection they had were admitted, we were aware that patients into three types — mild, mod- litres of water. They were also provid-
Dated : 25 March , 2020 Authorised Officer
Place : Jaipur ICICI Bank Limited. never handled before. they were in the high-risk group. Most erate and severe — depending on their ed psychological support,” she added.

Government of Karnataka
RT
KARNATAKA STATE ROAD TRANSPORT CORPORATION
Central Offices , Stores and purchase dept , K.H.Road ,Shanthinagar, Bengoluru-660027
E-AUCTION POSTPONEMENT -NOTIFICATION
In view of Prevailing Telangana State Lock Down, the scheduled
Protesters removed from Shaheen Bagh
0 Tel No.:080-2M1321 Ext: 224, Fax: 080-22223424 E-Auction for disposal of Scrap Vehicles, Tyres and Materials etc., New Delhi: Delhi Police vaca- over 100 days. On Tuesday, as violating prohibitory orders
on 26.03.2020 by TSRTC at Karimnagar Zonal Stores is hereby ted all the anti-Citizenship police enforced the lockdown despite being warned against
N OTICE INVITING TENDER NO.13 DATED: 21.03.2020 Amendment Act sites, inclu- announced to check the spread it. The cops moved in with cra-
Postponed . The new e-auction date will be informed later. ding the one at Shaheen Bagh of Covid-19, they also cleared nes to remove the temporary
Tenders (Pre-qualification or commercial offers) through e-procurement portal No. PS OC 1111/312017-18. 0t. 23.03.2020
in south-east Delhi, where pro- these places. At Shaheen Bagh, structures erected by the pro-
(http://eproc.karnataka.gov.in) are invited for following: R.O. No : 549-PPICL-AGENCYIADVT I112019-2 0 SdI-CHIEF CONTROLLER OF STORES tests have been going on for some people were detained for testers in these places. TNN
Tender Value Last Date for
Tender Nomenclature in Iakhs submission of - CJC CCJL ,LL!C DELHI JAL BOARD : GOVT. OF NCT OF DELHI
No. Rs: (Approx ) tender@17.00 Hrs EXECUTIVE ENGINEER (NORTH EAST)-I
ea vfta j f" zura UgT.TM Ta Mi i )d)
, ugz)
9. 01 4 1 5110694 . " To. ROHOARDINGJMCORAJAST HAN.GOV.I N
1
2142 JANTA FLATS G.T.B. ENCLAVE DELHI-110093
Supply & Installation of CCTV surveillance system to 600.00 30.04.2020
9

G-891 aMii5 vl .41.31./2020/ 437 R-641, 24 .0320 PRESS NIT NO- 117(2019-201
19- 20 Bus stations , Depots , Divisional Office & workshop. f i (1) Detail of the work:
vFR f' -M b1YT 3tE f T f Th i E 4f -f 4 f T Rd S. Name of Work Amount Date of Release Last Date/
G-90119.20 Procurement of Cotton waste. 200.00 24.04.2020 No , put to of Tender in Time of
Tender e-Procurement Receipt of
G-91119.20 Procurement of Photo Copier Paper 150.00 24.04.2020 wmTrm zA V'4u f i m ;mm 9 ft TiT R ft 7q 777 wvT 3 f f ^I (Rs) Solution Tender Through
fM111QT Wt&i d5 f E ZtIMM f T .ft9]T 21 / 2020 3f fktv 26.03.2020 1 4 e-Procurement
G-921 Supply, installation & commissioning Bus Paint Booth Solution
19-20 14 mtr (Dry Type) on turn key basis. (4 nos). 100.00 07.04.2020 27.03.2020 ;513Ra1f T T f Wf wf 13 T M ON f Zfi RTffri Wt 0
1. Repair and renovation of 35 MGD S.PS. 35,25,666.00 24 .03-2020 06.04.2020
i4TT mb iT 9T aTUTfl f 9"I A f t- 1 r $ ffoq -ITT
cm
Mansarover Park in AC 63 under NE-I 2020_DJB_ 190045_1 2:10 PM
Supply, installation and commissioning of Hydraulic
j

G-931 50.00 07.04.2020 " T3l a9 f3 ifs 4 Tqfl E 3"W-i 314 ftrl 07.04.2020 4) 08.042020 a4' LO 2. Constructions of R.C.C. boundary wall at B-P.S., A - Block, 36,09,417.05 24 .032020 06-04 .2020
19-20 Press Brake 100 Ton Capacity on turnkey basis. f'*MkiYfcif 3T TfQ 3Tf 'fiifkf wrm I New Seemapuri in AC-63 under EE(NE)-1 2020_DJB_ 190045_ 2 2:10 PM

G-941 Printing & Supply of ID Cards Monthly passes Daily 1 36 R4 i c (Wvft3-g")

PRESS NIT N0-118(2019-201

19-20 40.00 09 .04.2020 RT\4.W4K/ ?t / 19/6325 (1) Detail of the work:

passes etc for KS RTC , NWKRTC & NEKRTC. S. Name of Work Amount Date of Release Last Date/
G-95119.20 Procurement of Hand Held Metal Detector. 10.00 24.04.2020 Nivida No.12 of 201920 CORRIGENDUM NO.5 No, put to
Tender
of Tender in
e-Procurement
Timeof
Receipt of
G- 96119.20 Selection of Agency for third party audit ofAWATAR. 10.00 24.04.2020 Following rectification is made in Tender Notice No.12 of 2019-20 of Executive Engineer , (Rs.) Solut ion Tender Through
e-Procurement
Ver-Il Project Division , Vyara PIN CODE NO.394 650 Phone No.02626-222090 Dist.Tap i.
G- 97119.20 Supply of Anti Virus Software . 5.00 15.04.2020 Solution
1, Providing house service sewer connections from nearest DJB 97,67,753,00 24,03.2020 07.04.2020
G- 98119.20 Supply of Server Operating System. 3.00 15.04.2020 Event Old Date New Date.
Manhole to individual house in Jagdamha colony and Khajani 2020_D,1B_190048_1 2:10 PM
1 2 3 4 Nagar area ward No. 52-E AC-68 NE-I
A-31119-20 Procurement of Brake lining & clutch facing. 2100.00 12.05.2020 1 On line Tender upbad date , 08/01/2020 to 23i03/2020 08/01/2020 to 08/04/2020 Further details in this regards can be seen at h ttns :// delhl oovtorocurementcom
A - 32119 .20 Procurement ofGearandGear Parts . 1200.00 12.05.2020 Up to 18.00 Hrs Up to 18.00 His.
ISSUED BY P.R.O . (WATER) Sd/-
2 Submission of Document Up to 31/0 312020 at 18.00 Up to 17+0A12020 at 18.00 Advt No. J.S.V. 941/2019-20 Ex.ENGINEER (NORTH EAST)-l
A-33119-20 Procurement of RadiatorAssemblies and Core . 580.00 24.04.2020 date. Hrs . His.
A-34119-20 Procurement of NRC Chassis S ares . 300.00 24.04.2020
;doJ,
3 Opening of Pre 01/04/2020 in the Office 18/04/2020 in the Office

A- 35119.20 Procurement of Shackle Pins & Bushes. 85.00 24.04.2020

Qualification Bid date. of the Superintending
Engineer, Ukai Circle
of the Superintending
Engineer, Ukai Circle
swo qnd;; =06 giss;a th - e2.0 OOL
Short Term Tender Civi Ukai at 12,00 Hrs. Civil Ukai at 12.00 Hrs. ,.E°F ,PEFS MR-ift WW T , *OW - 570 006
All India Institute of Speech and Hearing
All other conditions remain unchanged.
G99119-2 Supply of BMI (Body Mass Index) Machine 2.00 28.03.2020
No.: MahitlSuraV1766/2020
CORRIGENDUM (An autonomous Institute under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare , Government of India)
-The due date for the submission of tender no G-77/19-20 - Procurement of PVC RexineNinylCoated Naimisham Campus , Manasagangothri , Mysuru - 570 006
fabric is extended to dt:3110312020 and G-87119-20 - Procurement of Mechanical Jacks & Hydraulic Ph: 0821-2502000, 2502100. Website: www.aiishmysore.in
Jacks with wheel spanner & Tommy Bar is extended to dt:15/0412 0 20. EXPRESSION OF INTEREST NOTICE NO SH/ ENGG/EOI-1/2019 -20 DATED 23 .03. 2020
Further any addendum / corrigendum in respect of change in calendar of events, specification, scope,
other tender terms and conditions etc., will be uploaded / published through e portal only.
Corri gendum for Tender number 2020 upbed 432559 2
PRERNA Digital System Project for Elementary Schools of Uttar Pradesh PRESS NOTICE
Expression of interest is invited for "Appointment of an executing agency for setting up
NOTE:- Interested suppliers need to register in the e-procurement portal. For further information log into This is for information of all the bidders , bidding for supply, AIISH, Kanpur, U.P. " at Surar Village, Tehsil - Kanpur Sadar , District - Kanpur, U.P from
http://eproe .karnataka .gov.in . In case of further assistance , contact e-procurement cell commissioning of Android based Tablet integrated with biometric qualified, experienced, competent and financially sound Central/ State Government
identification device and related services that the bid submission date construction companies or Central / State Public sector undertakings, based in India .
(Phone No. 080-23010900,080-23010901). Interested suppliers may also contact e- procurement cell has been extended till 3" April, 2020 for the tender document The details of eligibility criteria, scope of work and list of documents to be submitted can be
for training on bid submission. Mail to eprocurementhelpdesk@gmail.com for further information if (Ref. Tender Notice No. 2020_ UPBED_432559_2) downloaded from the Institute website: www. aiishmysore.in
required. In case of Tender clarification contact KSRTC central Offices Mobile - 7760990224/225. For convenience and clarity, the corrigendum document has been The Institute reserves the ri g ht to Empanel/ Reject, any or all the agencies, at its sole discretion.
Sd/- uploaded on the below websites . The said details are to be submitted to the Institute within thirty days from the date of this
CONTROLLER OF STORES & PURCHASES www.etender.up.nic.in, www .basiceducationup .com, www .prernaup.in notification. EOI received afterthe due date will not be considered.
DIPR/DDU/2019-20 (Tender Inviting Authority) Director of Basic Education Sd/- f i k RF-F / Director
 I’m a neat freak. I find I work best
when I feel organised and together,
I adore the fact that when I’m driving and as I work from home, that
home from work, as soon as I hit my means my house is always so tidy!
neighbourhood, I see people I know
— Ella Woodward | UK food writer
— Kelly Macdonald | Scottish actress
ADVERTORIAL AND PROMOTIONAL FEATURE
Wednesday, March 25, 2020 | Jaipur For advertising queries: Call 0141-2745577 or Email: Ascent@timesgroup.com

We may become more productive working from home

Leaders Can Use This Time To Build Emotional Connect Within Teams | Employees Can De-Stress, Give Time To Family
By Prabir Jha While the ruling is not out to more enquiries about each at work is sitting through ho- ria and tension will be some- common interests can even many to wonder if many of Every crisis has its silver
yet, organisations and lea- other, at the beginning or the urs of unproductive work what dissipated too — an im- dissolve frosty work rela- the disturbed relationships lining. Am sure the current

A
s the country and the
world battles the threat
and hysteria over the
Covid-19 virus, organisations
and governments have re-
sponded in varying degrees.
Some have encouraged their
teams to work
from home,
others have
mandated a
more severe
shutdown.
Curtailing of
travel faciliti-
es and other support systems
have also made a new acro-
nym familiar to many —
WFH (work from home).
ders can use this time to crea-
te a stronger emotional con-
nect within their teams and
with the firm:
 Encourage sharing of
WFH stories: Most organi-
sations turn sterile and beli-
eve there must be some fire-
wall between home and
work. Managers hardly app-
reciate the domestic distrac-
tions, interests and predica-
ments of their teams. If only
they knew, some could em-
pathise and encourage bet-
ter. Today, there is an oppor-
tunity to share a glimpse of
the “person” behind the role.
end, given the health worries. and meetings. Possibly, we
Leaders could learn to lead will get more efficient and
meetings with empathy rat- productive at work, opera-
her than just run directive ting from home. Companies
meetings. To me, this is an op- could share virtual tips and
portunity for nuancing lea- training inputs on these. The-
se will be techniques that can
WFH also is a great help carry forward improved
time to take anger, productivity at even a physi-
cal workplace. The time sa-
and frustration ved could be used to call anot-
away from the her colleague or relative, text
workplace. It with those you have not for a
helps put life and long time, help with stuff at
home without the stress of
relationships in travel and just connect with
perspective family better to improve rela-
tionships at home. Compani-
dership development. And es could even explore some
portant societal contribution
to be made.
 Create more virtual clubs
for interest groups: WFH
could be a very good time for
organisations to think of cre-
ating virtual interest groups,
cutting across locations, func-
tions and designations. Ima-
gine creating a community of
dog lovers or photo enthusi-
asts. Away from the classical
barriers of a physical work-
place, it could be such a silo-
breaking opportunity. And
tionships as they discover so-
me things that they never ever
knew about one another. Posi-
tive emotions are incubated,
never directed.
 Use time away from home
to pause and reflect: WFH
also is a great time to take an-
ger, angst and frustration
away from the recall of an ini-
mical workplace or work re-
lationship. It helps put life
and relationships in perspec-
tive. As one has more time to
pause and reflect, it can help
were worth it. And to resolve
to repair and let go.
To attempt new begin-
nings. And if companies co-
uld help with some virtual co-
unselling support through
their employee-assistance
programmes, many could be
encouraged to liberate them-
selves from dysfunctional re-
lationships. A more self-awa-
re mind surely will bring to
work a more empathetic he-
art. And positive relations-
hips indeed build better busi-
ness results.
health scare and a responsib-
le WFH regimen will enable
us to see a more emotionally
sensitive future of work.
Let’s not see these days as a
break from work. Let’s make
this count more. Let’s help bu-
ild more emotionally strong-
er relationships and, in turn,
enhance the ‘Optimism Quo-
tient’ of our workplace to bo-
unce back stronger.
(The writer is the founder
& CEO of Prabir Jha
People Advisory)

This round of WFH is mo-
re to push for limiting group
contact and prevent the risk
of the spread of coronavirus,
and not as much for work-life
balance or flexi-work. But my
sense is that this will take us
to another phase of influen-
As people share, they will ex-
press another side of their
persona. I am convinced that
it will only help build greater
empathy, respect and sup-
port for each other.
 Change the nature of
yes, if you want meetings to
be an opportunity for high-
potential people to sit and ob-
serve, you can more easily in-
vite younger talent to “sit in”
and observe. This could be a
great way of becoming more
egalitarian and yet develop
V
games and group exercises
for families to try out at ho-
me, and even run a fun com-
v = Fs
VIT VIT-AP
petition along those lines. As Vellore Institute of Technology
a CHRO, I always encouraged
family days, as a better enga- VELLORE , CHENNAI UNIVERSITY
ged family is a better engaged
employee. Let families be

cing the future of work — a
subject for another day. The
big debate is: Will this WFH
shift lead to reduced emotio-
meetings: Office meetings
are constrained by a physical
environment. WFH meetings
will be quicker and shorter.
your talent.
 Smart home working may
leave more time for emo-
Guiding the
grateful to the company for
helping them get closer. And
more grateful families will
Mentoring the
way ahead
improve employee engage-

future generations
nal connect at the workplace? However, it could allow itself tional connect: A lot of time ment. Most of all, the hyste-

r Il r ' 1" 1 ' ' 1 Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) group of institutions
have had a proud tradition of 36 years in pursuing
INTERVIEW / SKILL TEST
1. Applications are invited for Lateral Recruitment of Consultants/Specialis ts/Analyst knowledge and excellence. The VIT-AP University (near
Damodar V a l l e y C o r p o r a t i o n (DVC) requires f o l l o w i n g (on contract basis) to the following positions in the Reserve Bank of India. Vijayawada), which is poised to become one of the
paramedical staff on C o n t r a c t
dispensaries under various Plants/Stations of DVC
across West Bengal and Jharkhand :
basis for hosp itals &
situated S. No. Name of the Post
1 Consultant- A lied Mathematics
Vacancies
3
j: d country ' s best campuses, offers several avenues to
explore student interests , identify core competencies ,
2 Consultant - App lied Econometrics 3 and engage in an evolving life cycle of education and
Post Name Consolidated Pay (in Rs.) 3 Economist -Macroeconomic Modellin g 1
Physiotherapist (Contractual) 33, 534!- per month (Fixed) growth.
4 Data Anal y st / MPD 1
Jr. Nurse (Contractual) 19, 500/- per month (Fixed) 5 Data Anal y st / DoS-DNBS 2 VIT - AP is looking for distinguished academician with
Jr. X-Ray Technician (Contractual) 19, 500/- per month (Fixed) 6 Data Anal y st / Do R-DBR 2 highest level of competence , integrity, morals and
7 Risk Anal y st / DoS- DNBS 1 institutional commitment for the following position.
Jr. Lab. Technician (Contractual) 19, 500'- per month (Fixed) 8 Risk Anal y st DEIO 2 Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) was founded in 1984 ,
Jr. Pharmacist Gr . ll (Contractual) 17, 636!- per month (Fixed) 9 IS Auditor 2 conferred with a University status in 2001 and declared as
Interested candidates meeting the Qualification Requirement may 10 Specialist in Forensic Audit 1 an Institution of Eminence by Government of India. VIT
11 Accounts Sp ecialist 1
app ly online for appearing in INTERVIEW /SKILL TEST with
VICE CHANCELLOR

cert ificates/testimonials on the dates and venue as mentioned
in detailed Advertisement to be hosted in DVC website
www.dvc. gov.in ( Careers->Recruitment Notices) on and from
09.04.2020. The opening date of online application will be notified
in the detailed advertisement.
(INF/24 /Recruit / 19-20) Executive Director (HR)
Advert isement No. 1/2020
Advertisement for the post of Vice Chancellor,
Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat , Assam
The Chairman of The Selection Committee constituted by The
Chancellor of Assam Agricultural University cum The Hon'ble
Governor of Assam to select The Vice Chancellor of the
University, invites applications from distinguished academicians
who have attained academic excellence with proven leadership
quality and meet the following requirements!
(i) Shall be an eminent scholar and administrator.
(ii) Possess Ph. D. in any branch of Agriculture , Animal Husbandry
and Veterinary Education , Research and Development
(iii) With a minimum of 10 years of service in the rank of
professor or equivalent from research or extension System of
State / Central Agricultural Universities / other similarly placed
ga
offers 51 Undergraduate , 33 Postgraduate , 11 Integrated
12 Sy stem Administrator 9
13 Pro j ect Administrator 5 Programmes and 2 Research programmes with a student
14 Network Administrator 6 strength of 40000.
2. For all other details such as eligibility criteria , reservation of vacancies , scheme of A pplicant should possess adequate administrative
VIT is looking for distinguished academician with hi ghest
selection , submission of on-line application and other instructions , please refer to qualities with a minimum of fifteen years of experience as
the detailed advertisement to bepublished onthe Bank ' swebsite (www.rbi.ora. in) on level of competence , integrity, morals and connectivity with
Professor in a University system or fifteen years of
March 27, 2020. Candidates can apply for these posts only by online mode national and international universities for the following
experience in an equivalent position in a reputed
throug h the Bank' s website. position.
3. IMPORTANT DATES: research and/or academic administrative organization
Website Link Open - for online Registration of 09.04 .2020 to as perthe University Grants Commission (UGC) norms.
Applications and Payment of Fees/ Intimation Charges 29.04 .2020 (u pto 6 p m )
NOTE: Corrigendum , if any, issued on the above advertisement , will be published VICE CHANCELLOR For more details, please visit www .vitap.ac.in
onl y on the Bank' s website.
(Hindi version of this advertisement will be available in Dainik Bhaskar , Dainik Interested candidates are requested to apply in
Ja ran , Rajasthan Patrika & Navbharat Times ) . strict confidence along with CV and appropriate
"T - 17k , 7"L77
t- -1 A p p l i c a n t should p o s s e s s a d e q u a t e a d m i n i s t r a t i v e
supporting documents to the Email ID
qualities with a minimum of fifteen years of experience as
Professor in a University system or fifteen years of vc.selection@vitap.ac.in
latest by 20th A pril 2020
experience in an equivalent position in a reputed research
and/or academic administrative organization as per the
W
University Grants Commission (UGC) norms .
TAPMI x 1
I, U t rt e -
For more details , please visit www .vit.ac.in

# 7th
institutions r
(iv) The retirement age of The Vice Chancellor , Assam Interested candidates are requested to apply in
Agricultural University is 70 years and persons who have a strict confidence along with CV and appropriate
minimum of 5 years of service left on the last date of application (i.e. By Analytics supporting documents to the Email ID
24"^ of April , 2020) shall be preferred unless in case of outstanding India Magazine
candidate with proven record of excellence in a similar position vc.select ion@vit.ac.in
(v) Knowledge on Agriculture in North Eastern India shall be latest by 20th April 2020
desirable.
Those who applied earlier in response to the Advertisement
No. 1/201 issued
AAU/2.4(l)- 2009/RG/2019-2020/3137-43
vide Memo
dtd 13.06.2019
No. L.E.A.D.THE FUTURE I 11 MOHANLAL SUKHADIA UNIVERSITY
need not apply again. Applications in the prescribed fomat UDAIPUR - 313 001 (Raj.)
duly signed by the candidate with all the enclosure should be Big Data & Analytics is the most promising domain
sent to The Addl. Secretary to The Hon'ble Governor of in Al. and is deemed to be an integral part of every Website : www.misu .ac.in Email : vcapplication @misu.ac.In
Assam , Governor ' s Secretariat , Raj Bhawan , Kharghuli , segment in the future. No.MLSU/VCAppt./2020/ 37 Dated : 19.03.2020
Guwahati - 781001 in sealed envelopes. In service candidates
The School Invites hand written application for the following posts: Advertisement for appointment to the
Announcing 3rd Batchl
may apply but shall submit the hard copy of the application
through proper channel. Soft copy in addition should invariably PGT (Biology) TGT (PE) PRT (Art) pi of Vice ChanceHor
be submitted to the email ids: govsecassam gmail.com and PGT (PE) TGT (Computer Science) Special Educator
rajbhavan-assam@gov.in. Both the Hard Copy Soft Copy shall The Search Committee invites app lications/ nominations from
be submitted latest by 5.00 pm on the last date i.e.
24t" of April , 2020. The application forms may be downloaded from
Leadership through Analytics and PGT
(Biotechnology)
TGT (Sanskrit )
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Vo l onoc UGC - NET, June 2020
advertised. PROMPAL

DPU
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-. SCHOOL OF

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P
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www.pdpu .ac . l f Email: director _sc@pdpu .ac .in
 8 TIMES NATION | Viral Worry THE TIMES OF INDIA, JAIPUR
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25, 2020

Will ensure supply of Why India Is At High Risk

essentials, says PM T
o better understand how countries are handling the
outbreak, it helps to break it down into two phases
— the first 100 cases as phase one, and every case
daily increase in cases from its 100th case to its latest. The de-
crease in the average daily increase is indicative of a flattening
curve and several countries, like South Korea and Singapore are
Continued from P 1 after the first 100 as phase two. This breakdown gives a on the same path. But at least 23 countries, including India, are
‘COVID-19 SPREADS LIKE FIRE’ clearer idea of which countries are successfully “flat- going in the opposite direction — the number of cases has risen

A
s reports came in of pan- tening” their curves or reducing the number of new faster after the 100th case than before it. In these nations, the
ic buying after his WHO says one infected person can daily cases. Japan, for example, saw a 13% daily in- curve is rising and measures to control the outbreak are either yet
speech, Modi tweeted,
infect hundreds within weeks. It crease in cases before reaching 100 cases and a 8.1% to take effect or have failed
“By converging around shops,
you are risking the spread of spreads like fire. It took 67 days to reach
Covid-19. No panic buying 1 lakh cases globally. The next 1 lakh in TOP 5 COUNTRIES, AND INDIA, WHERE COVID-19 SPREAD SIGNIFICANTLY FASTER
please. Please stay indoors. I only 11 days. From 2 to 3 lakh it took 4
repeat— Centre and state gov- AFTER THE 100TH CASE THAN BEFORE (Average daily growth in cases was
days. You can now understand how
ernments will ensure all es- at least 10 percentage-points higher after the 100th case than before)
fast it spreads. And it becomes
sentials are available.”
difficult to stop the spread CASES AVG DAILY %
The 21-day lockdown is ar- Date INCREASE/DECREASE
guably the first measure tak- 100th PER DAY INCREASE
Countries like Iran, China, Spain, Italy, To break the chain of 1st IN CASES UP TO
en by any country to deal with case 1st to 100+ to 1st to 100+ to 100 AND AFTER (IN %)
the threat and Modi, like his German, France, US are scrambling to of spread, 21 case 100+ latest 100+ latest
address on Thursday, minced contain the virus. Be it Italy or US, they days of lockdown
is absolutely THAILAND Jan 13 Mar 16 2 87 7.8 30.1 22.3
no words in underlining the have the best healthcare. Despite that
gravity of the challenge fac- necessary. If we US Jan 21 Mar 3 2 1,756 11.7 33.9 22.2
these countries couldn’t stop the impact don’t manage
ing the country and even peo- SPAIN Feb 1 Mar 3 4 1,649 16.5 32.8 16.3
ple, citing the opinion of these 21 days, the
However, hope comes from countries
WHO and public health ex- country will be FRANCE Jan 25 Mar 1 3 734 10.2 26.0 15.8
that have been able to contain it to
perts that a 21-day lockdown set back by 21 GERMANY Jan 28 Mar 1 3 1,187 15.3 28.2 12.9
some extent. For weeks, people in years. Some
could break the chain of
transmission, and by point-
these countries stayed home and families will be INDIA Jan 30 Mar 17 3 50 10.8 22.6 11.8
followed the rules of their governments destroyed for ever
ing to the tragic experience of
(Avg daily growth in cases was less than 10%-points
developed countries reeling Italy has begun to flatten its daily new SPREAD ONLY SLIGHTLY FASTER higher after 100th case than before)
under the global pandemic. Don’t fall prey to rumours and superstitions. Listen
case tally but no. of cases remains high
“Even the most capable na- to the centre, state and medical fraternity. Don’t take BELGIUM Feb 4 Mar 7 3 227 15.8 24.7 8.9
tions have been rendered help- any medicines without a prescription Compared to countries like US, Spain and France,
less. Not that they do not have Italy’s curve has flattened to some extent in the PHILIPPINES Jan 30 Mar 15 2 44 11.0 19.5 8.5
resources or are not making ef- period after the 100th case. But because of its BRAZIL Feb 26 Mar 15 7 187 30.5 38.3 7.8
forts. But the virus is spreading
so fast that despite efforts,
Harsh Vardhan reviews ground situation, higher base, the number of cases reported after
the 100th case was very high
ITALY Jan 31 Feb 24 5 2,107 17.1 24.4 7.3
these nations are facing a
mounting challenge,” he said.
stresses on community surveillance ISRAEL Feb 22 Mar 14 5 125 25.4 30.1 4.7
However, he suggested that
India could still find a way out H ealth minister Harsh Vardhan on Tuesday
reviewed the status of containment and
management of Covid-19 in the country and
After reporting highest number of cases
initially, east Asia has flattened its curve
SPREAD ONLY SLIGHTLY SLOWER
(Avg daily growth in cases was less than 10%-points
lower after 100th case than before)
of the crisis by exercising so-
emphasised on the quality and sturdiness of
CHINA Dec 31 Jan 19 10 1,270 11.6 9.7 -1.9
cial distancing. “India is at the The percentage change in daily average cases was
stage where our actions will community surveillance and contact tracing in lower after the 100th in China, Singapore, South SINGAPORE Jan 24 Mar 1 3 16 10.0 7.0 -3.0
decide the extent to which we tackling the disease. Vardhan also visited National
Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) control room and
Korea and Japan than before. They appear to have S KOREA Jan 20 Feb 21 5 284 17.1 14.0 -3.1
can mitigate the crisis. We succesfully flattened their curves compared to
have to renew our resolve. This surveillance labs. So far more than 2 lakh calls have been answered JAPAN Jan 15 Feb 22 3 33 13.0 8.1 -4.9
and responded to at the NCDC control room, while nearly 52,000 western Europe, US and India
is the moment to exercise re-
e-mails have been answered. The minister said NCDC is taking a lead
INDONESIA Mar 3 Mar 16 8 66 33.7 25.7 -8.1
straint and maintain disci-
pline. We will come out victo- role in undertaking investigation of the disease outbreak all over the
19 countries brought daily avg cases (Avg daily growth in cases was at least 10%-points
rious if we maintained utmost country employing epidemiological and diagnostic tools. He SPREAD SIGNIFICANTLY SLOWER lower after 100th case than before)
restraint,” the PM said. appreciated the public health surveillance and response down by over 10-percentage points...
“There is only way one management, technical guidance, laboratory support and 24x7 Only a handful of largely high-income countries,
CZECH REP Mar 2 Mar 13 10 105 39.4 25.9 -13.5
way to effectively combat this helpline for Covid-19 undertaken by NCDC. “I salute the scientists
like Denmark and Ireland, have managed to IRELAND Mar 1 Mar 15 9 97 41.5 27.6 -13.9
disease. It is social distanc- who are working with the testing procedures, and putting
considerably control the spread after reporting 100 DENMARK Feb 27 Mar 10 9 112 48.3 22.4 -25.8
ing. That means we have to themselves at risk in their line of duty,“ he added. TNN
cases. However, the number of cases in most of
stay away from each other. BAHRAIN Feb 24 Mar 10 7 18 36.7 9.1 -27.6
Stay indoors. There is no oth- the lockdown was to be ob- should come out on the roads in these nations remains much lower than heavily
er way to save yourselves, served and exemptions were Hindi, spelling out “Co-ro-na”. impacted parts of western Europe and east Asia PERU Mar 7 Mar 18 11 49 54.2 25.4 -28.8
your families and friends notified by the home minis- The PM pointed that the
from coronavirus,” he added. try, crowds were seen at gro- number of infected persons ...Eight of them saw more than (Avg daily growth in cases was at least 30%-points
Modi said there were mis- cery and convenience stores. had climbed steeply. It had tak- SAW THE BIGGEST DECLINES AFTER THE 100TH CASE lower after 100th case than before)
conceptions that social dis- The PM appealed to people en 67 days to reach 100,000 peo- 30-percentage-point drop in daily cases
SWITZERLAND Feb 26 Mar 7 21 502 70.6 25.8 -44.8
tancing was only for patients. to keep in mind the sacrifices ple, 11 days to add another lakh These countries saw among the highest daily
“That is not correct. Social dis- being made by healthcare pro- and the third lakh came in only increases before reaching 100 cases but fell NORWAY Feb 27 Mar 7 12 144 69.1 21.1 -48.0
tancing is for everyone, for ev- fessionals, sanitation workers, four days. The experience of sharply after. Iran, which has among highest TURKEY Mar 12 Mar 19 27 261 111.8 59.5 -52.3
ery person, including thePM.” media personnel engaged in re- countries that beat back the cases outside of China, saw a 60-percentage
The unprecedented step of porting the situation without threat was that citizens needed NETHERLANDS Feb 28 Mar 7 16 256 83.4 24.4 -59.0
point decline in daily average cases after
placing the entire nation un- caring for their own safety and to remain indoors. “Follow the reporting its 100th case IRAN Feb 20 Feb 27 20 916 83.3 22.7 -60.6
der lockdown comes days after the police that was sometimes directives of the central and
more than 500 districts were having to deal with unruly pub- state governments 100%. We Research: Atul Thakur; Source: European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, Johns Hopkins University; Figures are as of March 24 at 6pm; Only selected countries reporting more than 300 confirmed cases analysed
put under such restrictions. lic. “I am appealing with folded are not to step out of homes.

Violating lockdown to invite a year’s jail

There is a list of exempt servic-
es such as healthcare workers,
media, sanitation staff and po-
lice that the PM mentioned,
but he plainly suggested that
implementation would be rig-
orous. “Treat your doorstep as
your ‘lakshman rekha’ that
you will not cross for the next
three weeks,” he said.
Hinting at the lack of seri-
ousness with which lock-
downs and restrictions have
been observed, the PM said,
“The carelessness and wrong
thinking of some people could
endanger yourselves, your
families, friends and finally
the nation will be in a big trou-
ble. If such carelessness con-
tinues, India will have to pay a
heavy price of which is not
even possible to estimate.”
While the rules about how
hands, whereever you are, stay
there. It will be for three weeks.
I had said recently when I
spoke to you that I am asking
for a few weeks... To break the
cycle, we will need 21days. If we
don’t control this, the country
and your families will go back
21 years. Many families will be
destroyed forever. I am speak-
ing, not as a PM but as a mem-
ber of your family. So forget
what it is to step out,” PM said.
He reminded people that
the illness could be deceptive,
and in the early stage of infec-
tion there was nothing to dis-
tinguish that coronavirus had
struck. “Many times a person
is quite healthy. No evidence of
illness is apparent. This is need
to stay alert,” he said and held
up a sign doing the rounds on
social media which said no one
Come what may, from the PM to
villager. Only then we can save
ourselves,” he said.
Modi said steps would be
taken to ensure supply of es-
sential materials and the prob-
lems of the poor would be at-
tended to. “The highest priori-
ty will be given to repairing
health facilities and working
with WHO and Indian institu-
tions. Efforts will be made to
ensure we have ICUs, ventila-
tors, beds, medical and para-
medical staff.” He said that wit-
tingly or unwittingly, rumours
get around and asked people
not to believe in them. He par-
ticularly asked people not to in-
dulge in self-medication. “A 21-
day lockdown is a long time but
it is for all of you, for your safe-
ty, it is important that every In-
dian face this successfully.”
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
New Delhi: The Centre on
Tuesday said anyone ob-
structing its guidelines on
complete lockdown of the
country for three weeks
would be punishable under
section 51 of the Disaster
Management Act for a term
which may extend to one year
or with fine or both. The or-
der provides that if the refu-
sal to comply with directions
results in loss of lives or im-
minent danger shall, on con-
viction, be punishable with
imprisonment for a term wh-
ich may extend to two years.
An order, issued by the
are equally applicable for any As a preventive measure,
As a preventive measure, the guidelines says, no government officials found the guidelines says, no court
guilty. shall take cognisance of any
court shall take cognisance of any offence under The punitive actions un- offence under this act except
this act except with the previous sanction of the der the disaster act also pro- with the previous sanction
Central government or the state government, as vides for punishing any cor- of the Central government
porate found guilty of any of or the state government, as
the case may be. These government authorities the directives of the govern- the case may be. These gov-
have to give a notice of at least 30 days for a case ment during the lockdown ernment authorities have to
to be instituted period of three weeks, start- give a notice of at least 30
ing midnight of March 24. days for a case to be institut-
home ministry after PM Na- prisonment for a term which “No prosecution for of- ed.
rendra Modi’s address to the may extend to one year with fences punishable under sec- The disobedience to the
nation, further says that any- fine. tion 55 and 56 shall be insti- order of lockdown, however,
one spreading rumour (relat- Anyone found guilty of tuted except with the previ- invites punishment for a
ed to Coronavirus) which misappropriation of funds ous sanction of the central prison term of one month or
turns out to be a false claim, meant for relief operation wo- government or the state gov- with a fine of Rs 200. But if it
in such cases the authority uld also be liable for punishm- ernment, as the case may be, causes public disorder, riot,
shall, on conviction, punish ent for prison term of up to or any officer authorised in the prison term may be ex-
such individuals with im- two years. These guidelines this behalf,” the order said. tended up to six months.

By converging
around shops, Chemists asked to Initial test
shows Manipur
you are risking
the spread: PM
check panic buying girl as positive
 Continued from P 1

of key malaria drug

M
TIMES NEWS NETWORK eanwhile, there were
indications that the vi-

A
s the 21-day lockdown
sent people rushing la-
te Tuesday to groceries
and convenience stories and
triggered panic buying, the
PM tweeted, “My fellow citi-
zens, THERE IS ABSOLUTE-
LY NO NEED TO PANIC.” In
another tweet, he said, “By
converging around shops,
you are risking the spread of
Covid-19. No panic buying
please. Please stay indoors.
Centre and state govern-
ments will ensure all essenti-
als are available.”
Raju Chhetri, a resident of
Patparganj, was among those
who had made a dash for the
nerabymarket after hearing
about the lockdown. He retur-
ned home empty-handed. “I
visited five shops to buy a
packet of atta. I was ready to
settle for any brand but they
didn't have a single packet left.
The only option was to buy lo-
ose stuff of inferior quality,”
he said.
The story was the same
everywhere — the fear of
one’s larder going empty be-
fore the lockdown ends.
"How will a family survi-
ve without going out for 21da-
ys? There is hardly anything
in most stores. They should
have given us some breat-
hing time before announcing
such a long lockdown," said
Revathy S, a customer at a su-
permarket in Bengaluru's
Richmond Town.
©BCCL 2020
Sushmi.Dey@timesgroup.com
New Delhi: Amid concerns
that panic buying of hydroxy-
choloroquine may lead to
shortage of the drug after the
government allowed prophy-
lactic use of the anti-malarial
medicine for prevention of
Covid-19 in high-risk cases
only, All India Organisation
of Chemists and Druggists
(AIOCD) asked all its mem-
ber retailers to keep a strin-
gent check on prescriptions
and not sell a dosage of more
than 15-20 days per customer.
Separately, the National
Pharmaceutical Pricing Au-
thority (NPPA) as well as some
state drug authorities also is-
sued advisories to pharma re-
tailers and chemists to not sell
hydroxy-choloroquine, chlo-
roquine, as well as the anti-ret-
roviral combination of lopi-
navir and ritonavir - approved
for emergency treatment of
Covid-19 – and related prod-
ucts to anyone without pre-
scription of a registered doc-
tor having an MD (Medicine)
degree or a pulmonologist.
While manufacturers mai-
ntain there are adequate sto-
cks of the drug as of now, In-
dia exports almost 80% of its
production to countries like
Africa as the drug is almost re-
dundant for use in India.
On Monday, the health
ministry issued an advisory
allowing prophylactic use of
NEXT ON HOARD LIST?
Hydroxychloroquine
pills fly off shelves
A lmost the entire stock of
hydroxychloroquine, a
relatively safe variant of the
malaria pill chloroquine,
disappeared from the shelves
of pharmacies across
Bhubaneswar on Tuesday,
following media reports that
it might work as a cure for
Covid-19, reports Minati
Singha, as people started
hoarding the pills.
hydroxy-chloroquine for
prevention of Covid-19 in
high-risk cases like health-
care workers involved in the
care of Covid-19 patients,
and asymptomatic house-
hold contacts taking care of
such positive cases.
However, TOIspoke to sev-
eral chemists who said people
are randomly coming to buy
the drug to avoid the infection.
Full report on www.toi.in
rus had spread to the
northeast. A 23-year-old girl in
Manipur, who had recently re-
turned from the UK, tested
positive in the initial test. The
result of her confirmation
test is awaited. If confirmed,
this would be the first Covid-19
cases in the entire northeast.
Kerala recorded the highest
number of fresh cases on Tues-
day, 14. It overtook Maharashtra
as the state with highest num-
ber of cases at 109. Maharashtra
reported 10 new cases, Karnata-
ka 9, UP 4, three each from Te-
langana and Tamil Nadu, two
each from Bengal and J&K and
one from Andhra Pradesh.
The MP government im-
posed a curfew in Gwalior af-
ter two people tested positive,
one in the city and another in
neighbouring Shivpuri, tak-
ing the state’s count to nine.
As many as four coronavi-
rus positive cases were report-
ed in UP on Tuesday, taking
the state’s total to 37. Three
cases were reported in Gau-
tam Budh Nagar and one in
Shamli district, officials said.
Of the three Covid-19 posi-
tive cases reported in GB Nagar,
a couple is from Noida while the
third lives in Greater Noida.
Health department sources sa-
id the Noida patients had no tra-
vel history, though they hosted a
friend who had returned from
London. The patient in Greater
Noida had a travel history.
Full report on www.toi.in

TAYLOR SWIFT GETS INTO A SPAT WITH KIM KARDASHIAN
AFTER LEAK OF HER 2016 PHONE CALL WITH KANYE WEST
US Could Be Next Virus Epicentre: WHO
Despite Warning, Trump
Calls For US To Be ‘Open
& Raring To Go’ By Easter
Chidanand.Rajghatta
@timesgroup.com
Washington: US President
Donald Trump appears deter-
mined to reopen America for
business at the end of the 15-
day lockdown period on March
30 despite a warning from the
World Health Organisation
that the United States could be-
come the new coronavirus epi-
centre following a “very large
acceleration” in infections.
The latest WHO daily situa-
tion report, published late on
Monday, showed that Europe
reported 20,131new cases in the
preceding 24 hours, while the
US reported 16,354, more than
doubling its total caseload.
Asked whether the US could
overtake Europe as the epice-
ntre of Covid-19, WHO spoke-
swoman Margaret Harris said:
“We are now seeing a very lar-
ge acceleration in the number
of cases from the US, so it does
have that potential.We cannot
say that that is the case yet but
it does have that potential.”
New York governor An-
drew Cuomo, too, said the rate
of new coronavirus infections
in the state was doubling about
every three days.“We haven’t
flattened the curve. And the
curve is actually increasing,”
he said. As of Tuesday morn-
ing, New York state had 25,665
cases, with at least 157 deaths.
The US is now accounting
for 40% of the 85% coming
from Europe and America,
WHO officials said on Monday,
even as a striking new paper
from Massachusetts Institute
of Technology (MIT) indicat-
ed that the virus maybe less le-
thal in warm and humid re-
gions of the world. That could
account for why there has been
a faster spread of the virus and
higher fatalities in Europe and
America than in Asia.
The MIT paper, by two re-
TRACKING OUTBREAK
Countries Infected
China 81,591
Italy 69,176
United States
49,768
Spain 39,676
Germany 31,991
Iran 24,811
France 20,149
Switzerland 9,117
South Korea 9,037
United Kingdom 8,163
OTHER TOP STORIES
B’desh to release
jailed ex-PM Zia
for treatment
B angladesh will suspend
the jail sentence of its ai-
ling former PM and opposition
politician Khaleda Zia and rel-
ease her for six months, the
law minister said on Tuesday.
“She can get treatment at ho-
me, but she can’t go abroad,”
law minister Anisul Huq said.
Zia, 74, has been in jail since
February 2018. Her health has
been deteriorating for months
and she was moved to a hos-
pital in April last year. REUTERS
64 migrants found
dead in container
in Mozambique
S ixty-four people believed
to be migrants from Ethio-
pia have been found dead in a
container attached to a truck
in Mozambique, police said on
Tuesday. Officials stopped the
truck en route from Malawi on
Tuesday in the province of
Tete. They found 14 people
alive among the bodies of 64
who had died from suspected
asphyxiation. REUTERS
searchers of Indian and Pakis-
tani origin, has found that 90%
of the coronavirus transmis-
sions have occurred within a
specific temperature (approxi-
mately 3 deg C to 17deg C) and
absolute humidity range. For
areas outside this zone, the vi-
rus is still spreading, but more
slowly. This could also mean
the virus could fade out in sum-
mer and return in winter.
“Our results indicate that
90% of the 2019-nCoV transmis-
sions until March 22, 2020 have
occurred in regions with tem-
perature between 3 and 17C and
absolute humidity between 4 to
9g/m3. The total number of
cases in countries with mean
Jan-Feb-early March temper-
ature >18C and absolute hu-
midity >9 g/m3 is less than
6%,” the researchers Qasim
Bukhari and Yusuf Jameel,
who studied in Karachi and
Kolkota respectively before go-
ing to the US, said in a paper. .
The paper provides a glimmer
of hope for India, which is lar-
gely a warm country and wh-
ere winter is now dissipating.
Meanwhile, the US lock-
down is almost certain to end as
President Trump said he “wo-
uld love to have the country
opened up, and just raring to go,
by Easter”, less than three
weeks away, a goal that top he-
alth professionals have called
far too quick. Trump said that a
total shutdown is deleterious to
the economy and demoralising
for the people. “Our people wa-
nt to return to work. They will
practice Social Distancing and
all else, and Seniors will be wat-
ched over protectively & loving-
ly. We can do two things togeth-
er. THE CURE CANNOT BE
WORSE (by far) THAN THE
PROBLEM,” the president sa-
id, even as the many members
of the medical and healthcare
community and critics warned
against loosening restriction.
Death
169
3,281 countries/
6,820 regions hit
600
4,07,485+
2,800 infected globally
149
18,229+
1,934 have died
862
122
1,04,235
have recovered
120
423 Source: Johns Hopkins
University
US to cut aid to
Af by $1bn after
Pompeo fails to
break impasse
Doha/Kabul: US secretary of
state Mike Pompeo on Monday
announced a $1billion cut in US
aid to Afghanistan after he fai-
led to convince Afghan Presi-
dent Ashraf Ghani and his poli-
tical foe to end a feud that has je-
opardised a US-led peace effort.
The US also is prepared to
cut 2021 assistance by the same
amount and is conducting “a re-
view of all of our programmes
to identify additional reduc-
tions, and reconsider our pled-
ges to future donor conferences
for Afghanistan”, Pompeo said.
His statement came as he flew
home from a fruitless effort in
Kabul to end competing claims
to the presidency by Ghani and
Abdullah Abdullah and win
their agreement to form “an in-
clusive government”. The US
“regrets” that Ghani and Ab-
dullah were “unable to agree
on an inclusive government”,
said Pompeo, adding that
“their failure has harmed US-
Afghan relations”. REUTERS
TIMES GLOBAL
China eases curbs on virus-hit
Hubei after 2-month lockdown
Beijing: Chinese author-
ities said on Tuesday that th-
ey will end a two-month lock-
down of most of coronavir-
us-hit Hubei province at mid-
night, as domestic cases of
what has become a pandemic
subside. People with a clean
bill of health will be allowed
to leave, the provincial gov-
ernment said, easing restric-
tions on movement that were
unprecedented in scale. Wu-
han, where the virus was
first detected, is to remain
locked down until April 8.
China barred people from
leaving or entering Wuhan
from January 23 in a surprise
announcement and expand-
ed that to most of the prov-
ince in succeeding days. The
drastic steps came as the cor-
onavirus began spreading to
the rest of China and over-
Decline in fatalities reversed
as Italy sees 743 new deaths
I
taly reported a sharp rise in
its coronavirus death toll
on Tuesday, with 743 more
victims, breaking a two-day
trend that had fuelled hopes
the epidemic may be on the
wane. The daily toll was the
second highest recorded in Ita-
ly since the crisis began, but
the civil protection agency
said that while the number of
new cases was up on Monday’s
figure, the infection rate was
slowing. For two days run-
ning, the percentage of day-to-
day increase in case load sta-
nds at 8%. There were 5,249
new cases, pushing the natio-
n’s total to more than 69,000.
Spain reported its sharp-
est daily increase in coronavi-
rus cases on Tuesday with in-
fections rising among health
workers, while funeral vans
began arriving at Madrid’s ice
rink, hastily transformed into
a makeshift morgue. The he-
alth ministry reported around
6,600 new cases and 500 deaths
overnight. With nearly 40,000
cases and 2,696 deaths, Spain is
Europe’s worst-hit country af-
Paracetamol
shortage in UK
after India
curbs exports
Naomi Canton
London: The UK is facing a na-
tional shortage of paracetamol
— commonly used to fight fever
— due to India curbing exports
of the drug in the wake of the
global coronavirus pandemic.
Pharmacists across the UK
are being forced to ration para-
cetamol-containing products
to one packet per customer,
with many shops completely
out of stock of the world’s
most popular painkiller.
On March 3, India restrict-
ed the export of 26 pharmaceu-
tical ingredients and the medi-
cines made from them, which
included paracetamol, some
antibiotics and certain vita-
mins. India is one of the world’s
largest producers and expor-
ters of drugs, with the UK heav-
ily reliant on its supply.
Officials in the UK depart-
ment for international trade
are currently in discussions
with their Indian counterparts
about easing those restrictions
for key British suppliers.
Full report on www.toi.in
THE TIMES OF INDIA, JAIPUR | WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25, 2020
Man in China dies
of hantavirus
A midst the coronavirus pan-
demic, a man in China’s
Yunnan province has died of
hantavirus, a disease spread
by rodents. The person died
while on his way back to Shan-
dong province for work on a
chartered bus on Monday, sta-
te-run Global Times tweeted.
“Other 32 people on bus have
been tested,” it said, without
giving further details. PTI
seas during the Lunar New
Year holiday, when millions
of Chinese travel. Over 2,500
people have died in Wuhan
out of 3,270 nationwide.
The outbreak has since
been brought under control,
and Hubei has seen almost
AFP
UK PM Boris Johnson has ordered
a three-week halt to all
non-essential activity, but photos
showed crowded trains on Tuesday
on some London subway lines
ter Italy. Around 14% of all in-
fections are among health
workers, which health emer-
gency chief Fernando Simon
attributed to the limited availa-
bility of protective equipment.
More than 4,07,485 people
worldwide have been infected
by the new coronavirus and
more than 18,227 have died, ac-
cording to Johns Hopkins Uni-
versity. More than 104,000 peo-
ple have recovered.
Confusion rippled through
Britain on the first morning
after PM Boris Johnson or-
dered a three-week halt to all
Man dies after
self-medicating for
coronavirus in US
Neil Vigdor
A
n Arizona man died and
his wife was hospitali-
sed after officials said
they treated themselves on
Sunday with a deadly home
remedy for the new coronavi-
rus — a popular fish tank ad-
ditive that has the same
active ingredient as an anti-
malaria drug.
The drug, known as chlo-
roquine phosphate or chloro-
quine, has been bandied abo-
ut by President Trump du-
ring White House briefings as
a potential “game changer”
in the treatment of Covid-19.
The couple, who officials
at Banner Health, a hospital
system based in Phoenix, said
were in their 60s quickly ex-
perienced side effects that in-
cluded nausea and vomiting.
They were not tested for the
coronavirus. The man died
from cardiac arrest and his
wife was initially listed in cri-
tical condition but is expec-
ted to make full recovery. Da-
IN HIS MEMOIR, WOODY ALLEN ACCUSES MIA FARROW OF
FABRICATING STORY THAT HE ABUSED THEIR DAUGHTER
Getty Images
no new infections for more
than a week. It remained un-
clear, however, which cities
and provinces, including
Beijing, the capital, would
allow people from Hubei to
enter their jurisdictions.
Outside of Hubei, the gov-
ernment says work has res-
tarted on about 90% of major
public construction projects
across the country. Factories
are operating again, though
not at full capacity. In Beij-
ing, the zoo and parts of the
Great Wall reopened this
week, though they required
advance reservations to li-
mit the number of visitors.
Officials have turned
their attention to the threat of
the virus entering from
abroad. China on Tuesday re-
ported 78 new cases, among
which 74 were imported. AP
nonessential activity. The gov-
ernment has told most stores
to close, banned gatherings of
three or more people and said
everyone apart from essential
workers should leave home on-
ly to buy food and medicines or
to exercise. But photos showed
crowded trains on Tuesday on
some London subway lines.
An unprecedented lock-
down looms in South Africa,
with a country of 57 million
people told to stay home start-
ing Friday. Virus cases leapt
again to 554 on Tuesday, the mo-
st of any country in Africa. For-
ty-three of the continent’s 54
countries now have cases, with
the total at 2,046. President Cy-
ril Ramaphosa on Monday im-
posed a 21-day lockdown from
midnight on Thursday after a
surge in coronavirus cases.
Philippines Congress ap-
proved a bill declaring a nation-
al emergency in the Pacific na-
tion, which has reported 552
cases. Pakistan ordered its
railways shutdown in an atte-
mpt to slow the spread of the vi-
rus as cases climbed to 903. AP
niel Brooks, medical director of
the Banner Poison and Drug In-
formation Center, said that the
couple’s attempt to self-medica-
te was a cautionary tale. He sa-
id, “It’s dangerous and foolish.”
Brooks said the couple
had read about chloroquine
phosphate on the internet. He
said the public should only re-
ly on authoritative sources
such as the CDC, the WHO
and state health officials for
medical advice — not the in-
ternet or politicians. “You ne-
ed to listen to the scientists,”
he said. “People are panick-
ing and making decisions ba-
sed on symptoms without be-
ing tested.”The woman told
NBC News on Monday that
she had heard Trump make
repeated mentions of chloro-
quine during recent White
House briefings on the coro-
navirus and that she used
chloroquine phosphate to tre-
at her koi fish.The White Hou-
se did not immediately re-
spond to a request for com-
ment Monday night. NYT
‘We will be fine’
Nobel Winner Sees Hope In Coronavirus Stats
‘I
t will get worse before it
gets better.” That is
what experts widely
seem to be agreed on.
But how bad things will get?
And how long before they
start getting better? Stanford
biophysicist and the 2013
chemistry Nobel winner Mi-
chael Levitt has stuck his neck
out to say that the outbreak
will not really be the horror
story many are anticipating it
will be. Of course, as LA
Times says in a report, he does
stress on the need to “control
the panic”, but believes its
trajectory is less fearsome
than is popularly believed.
The graph shows cases from
Jan 22, 2020, one day after WHO
began compiling its novel
coronavirus situation reports. The
first cases in China had started
appearing in December 2019
What Levitt noticed
about Covid-19 in China
The clue to predicting the
Covid-19 trajectory for Lev-
itt lies in the rate of daily
increase. Around the last
week of February, Levitt
reportedly told China Daily
News that the virus’ rate
of growth had peaked. Fur-
ther, he predicted that the
number of confirmed cases
in China would hit about
80,000. And that the disease
would claim about 3,250
lives. As of March 24, around
2 pm, there were 81,558 cases
in China and 3,281 deaths
from Covid-19. As the chart
shows, new cases are being
identified at a slower rate
Manu Dibango,
African jazz
musician, dies
of coronavirus
Paris: Manu Dibango, who fu-
sed African rhythms with funk
to become one of the most influ-
ential musici-
ans in the world
of dance music,
died on Tues-
day with coro-
navirus, his
publisher said.
He was 86. Dibango was hospi-
talised with an illness “linked
to Covid-19”, his Facebook page
said last week. The Cameroon-
born saxophonist got global fa-
me with his 1972 song “Soul
Makossa”. It was one of the
earliest hits in the nascent
world music scene, including a
catchy hook copied by some of
the world’s biggest pop stars.
In 2009, Dibango sued Mi-
chael Jackson and Rihanna, cla-
iming they had stolen his music
in “Wanna Be Startin’ So-
mething” and “Don’t Stop the
Music”, respectively. Jackson
settled out of court. AP
1,00,000 cameras
keep watch on
the quarantined
in Moscow
Moscow: A vast and conten-
tious network of facial recog-
nition cameras keeping watch
over Moscow is now playing a
key role in the battle against
the spread of the coronavirus.
Since last month, thou-
sands of Muscovites have been
confined for 14 days of compul-
sory quarantine. Police have
logged their details and warned
them that sneaking out into the
city could lead to a five-year jail
term or deportation for foreig-
ners. “We are checking that this
regulation is being observed, in-
cluding through the use of auto-
mated facial recognition sy-
stems,” mayor Sergei Sobyanin
wrote in his blog in February.
Moscow already has 1,70,000
cameras over the past decade.
Around 1,00,000 have now been
linked to artificial intelligence
systems. The remaining came-
ras are due to be connected so-
on. Police said last week that
the cameras that helped them
identify almost 200 people who
broke quarantine rules. AFP
THERE IS NOTHING
LIKE A DREAM TO
CREATE THE FUTURE
— VICTOR HUGO
Think that is just
draconian China?
Levitt says similar turn-
ing points can be observed
for other countries —
even those without au-
thoritarian clampdowns — So, fact remains we can’t
take it all that easy...
although most countries hit
by Covid-19 are still trying For Levitt, the target for
to bring down the number health systems has got to
of daily new cases. South be “better early detection”
Korea is one of the coun- — not just through testing
tries Levitt cites to point to but perhaps also with body-
a decline in the number of temperature surveillance —
daily new cases. and immediate social isola-
The report says Levitt tion. In fact, Levitt said he is
analysed data from 78 coun- for taking strong measures
tries that have had more to fight the outbreak and be-
lieves that social distancing
is a “critical” tool.
...But it doesn’t
pay to panic
On the whole, Levitt feels
there is unnecessary panic
due to an almost exclusive
focus on the galloping num-
ber of cases. He says that
the “virus can grow expo-
nentially only when it is
undetected and no one is
acting to control it”. While
than 50 new cases every day other experts quoted by LA
and that he sees “signs of Times advocated a wait-and-
recovery” in many of them. watch policy, Levitt says as
“Numbers are still noisy, long as there are strong ef-
but there are clear
signs of slowed
Number of daily
growth,” he says
new cases in
However, he
reminds that coun- South Korea
tries that have re-
covered from an
initial outbreak
must still prepare
for a return of cor-
onavirus. China
is now facing new
waves of infection coming forts to fight Covid-19, things
in from “places where the should get back to normal.
virus is spreading out of “The real situation is not
control” and other coun- as nearly as terrible as they
tries would face the same make it out to be,” he said.
problem, he says. Source: LA Times, Johns Hopkins
VIRAL BRIEFS
‘Can you hear me?’ Squawking parrot
EU video-diplomacy is warning Israelis
faces tech glitches not to go out
T he European Union’s decisi-
on-making process is being
sorely tested by video confe-
A talking parrot in Israel has a
playful message for a world
gripped by the coronavirus
rencing during the coronavirus crisis: “Don't go out!” In
pandemic, EU officials say, with crystal-clear Hebrew, Luca the
one calling it a “catastrophe”. A parrot squawks “there is corona”
virtual meeting of EU foreign mi- and “don't go out”, repeatedly
nisters on Monday was punctu-
ated by technical problems, spe-
echoing official health warnings.
Israel has ordered people to stay
akers who were unsure if they co- at home to slow the contagion’s
uld be heard and a lack of trans- spread and billboards reinforce
lators. “These video conferences the message in Hebrew and
don’t work very well, there are te-
ch problems and the ‘Hello, can
Arabic. The 22-month-old grey
parrot began to mimic the words
you hear me?’ interruptions,” after training with its owners,
said a senior diplomat present at who like many Israelis have been
Monday’s video link. “So people alarmed by their country’s more
read out their prepared notes than 1,600 cases and one death.
mostly. There is little scope for Zehava Shabat says she and her
actual negotiations.” Strong husband spent several days
coordination among the EU’s 27 teaching the bird the new words
member states is vital, but lockd- while holed up in their home in
owns have made it harder. “It’s a Kiryat Shmona. “Then, one
catastrophe, the images are lost, morning, two days ago, we hear
the voices are lost,” EU’s top dipl- her saying: Zehava, there is cor-
omat, Josep Borrell said. REUTERS ona! It's dangerous!” REUTERS
AROUND THE WORLD
AFP
ASTERIX CREATOR DIES AT 92: Albert Uderzo, one of the two
creators of beloved comic series ‘Asterix and Obelix’, died of heart
attack in Paris on Tuesday. Asterix, portrayed as a short man with a
droopy mustache always wearing a helmet with wings, was created
in the early 1960s by Uderzo and Rene Goscinny. The character lived
in a village in Gaul, present-day France, resisting Roman conquerors,
along with his inseparable big-bellied friend, Obelix
Airline to pay £7,300 June 30, 2020. It will be offered
free of charge to all eligible
if passenger gets customers, regardless of age
and nationality. “With the insu-
infected on flight
rance, passengers are eligible
V ietnamese airline Vietjet
has announced that it’s
prepared to pay customers up
for insurance coverage and be-
nefits from Vietjet within 30
days starting at 00:01 of the fli-
to 200m VND (£7,344) if they ght date, regardless of how
catch coronavirus after flying passengers are infected,” the
with them. The payout will be airline said, adding, it has set
part of its new “SKY COVID aside “tens of billion dong” of
CARE insurance” scheme, its own money to cover the
which will cover all domestic scheme, which is designed to
flights between March 23 and “bring passengers assurance”.
10 AN ECSTASY OF IDEAS THE TIMES OF INDIA
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25, 2020

A thought for today

Give me six hours to chop down a tree and
I will spend the first four sharpening the axe
ABRAHAM LINCOLN
Netas In Corona Land
Epidemic demands a new contract, stripped of double standards, between state and citizen
Sagarika.Ghose@timesgroup.com have taken place weeks ago.

Ramp Up Capacity Parliament has finally

adjourned more than a
week after the corona-
Totalitarian China has clamped
down on citizens’ freedoms in an all-out
offensive against coronavirus. But
democratic and diverse India cannot do
The lockdown has immobilised citizens but virus alarm was that because it is democracy which holds
sounded. It’s been an up our society and also enables our free,
government cannot afford to slow down unconscionable delay. mutually interdependent, informal
Last week, as the Covid-19 outbreak sector dominated economy to function.

T
he whole country is in lockdown for 21days over apprehensions
gathered pace and orders were issued
that India’s daily Covid-19 confirmed cases have entered a tra- barring more than 50 people from
jectory preceding an exponential increase in infections. WHO gathering, Parliament functioned as
has warned that a lockdown alone can’t defeat the virus and it will ke- normal. MPs crowded around the two
ep resurfacing when restrictions are eventually lifted. Having bought Houses comprising together almost
precious time at great economic cost, government must use this win- 700 people, far in excess of the
dow to greatly ramp up capacity in healthcare and ancillary sectors. 50 prescribed for citizens.
The opposition alleged the govern-
Two months since Wuhan went into lockdown, we know what has
ment’s refusal to defer Parliament earlier
worked and failed elsewhere. This lockdown, counterintuitively, also was because it had its eye on political
demands preparation on the scale of a war effort. developments in Madhya Pradesh. Had
Sunday’s Janata Curfew witnessed a ringing celebration of medical Parliament been deferred, the Supreme
personnel for their services at the frontlines of India’s war against Court may have deferred the state
Covid-19. But encomiums mean little unless government can ensure their assembly too, and the Kamal Nath
well-being. Many government doctors are flagging the lack of personal government could not have been pushed
towards collapse as rapidly as it was.
protective equipment (PPE) like masks,
Apart from MPs, chief ministers like
gloves and hazmat suits/ body overalls. BS Yediyurappa were spotted at crowded
WHO has also emphasised the importance weddings, other politicians attended
of testing more people. This newspaper VVIP bashes in Lucknow. In Bhopal
has reported how PPE manufacturers kept MLAs busily staged road shows, hugged
each other, held hands aloft and paraded
writing to health ministry since February
12 for design specifications to no avail and group numbers.
Citizens have invariably imbibed the
that testing kits made by desi companies
politicians’ foolhardy moves. London-
were awaiting validation for a month. returned singer Kanika Kapoor
Fortunately good sense is prevailing allegedly disregarded suggestions of
and many PPE manufacturers have home quarantine and attended a
reportedly received orders now, while some Indian-made test kits have crowded party. On Janata Curfew day
been approved overriding initial guidelines stipulating USFDA/ EU some people took out processions,
certified kits. With other countries restricting exports, India has no congregated in markets beating thalis.
In an Ahmedabad locality people even
option but to quickly ramp up its domestic capacity, even for critical performed garba on the streets. Images
care. The Rs 15,000 crore announced yesterday for strengthening health from some cities like Patna and
infrastructure recognises these realities. Building new hospitals/ Chennai suggest it’s business as usual,
clinics for Covid-19 treatment, setting up of critical care units that would there are no signs of a lockdown.
require manufacturing of ventilators, installing piped oxygen supply Yet our frail and only defences
and other necessary components must all happen now in record time. against the swiftly moving virus are
social distancing, quarantines and
Services of both public and private sector need to be harnessed on a
isolation. Governments around the world
war footing. Even non-essential industries put out of commission now are encouraging responsible behaviour
can contribute. Free, accessible testing and ample facilities for isolation – such as not gathering in large numbers,
of positive cases will be needed when the lockdown cannot be sustained. not sneezing or coughing in public, regular
This alternative, if adequately backed with equipment and personnel, washing of hands and maintaining
will slow the virus’s circulation and with less disruption in tow. The public hygiene. These require not only
lockdown mustn’t end up crippling essential services, industries and obedience to rules and regulations
but a new civic movement generally
even government functions required for the preparations. The social
unknown in India: social discipline.
contract by citizens to stay indoors requires government officials to
know what needs to be done and to be on their toes. The clock is ticking
fast for both the lockdown and capacity building activities.
‘You don’t think of a revolution in terms of paperwork
Right Intent ... it’s as much a part as leaders on streets’
With continued emphasis on education and
The transfer of power in 1947 from the
healthcare, AAP government does well on allocation UK to India was midwifed by an unusual
set of Indian bureaucrats whose work
But if politicians themselves
embody indiscipline and irresponsibly
flout rules, how can they hope to
encourage social discipline in the
public, particularly among gregarious
and sociable Indians?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has
said fighting coronavirus depends on
the citizen. But citizens will not act
responsibly if “leaders” are going on their
merry way attending Parliament and
toppling governments. India’s politicians
are seemingly inhabiting a disconnected
world of privilege and refusing to get
real about the looming crisis.
Politicians who encourage
irresponsible and lawless behaviour
such as encouraging chants of “shoot
the traitors”, politicians playing
unscrupulous means to obtain the kursi,
politicians who patronise unrestrained
religious gatherings are hardly examples
of social discipline and restraint. When
you empower and draw support from
faith-driven religious congregations,
religious groups are unlikely to meekly
call off their rituals and festivities
because of a government order. It’s only
after much procrastination that CM
Covid-19 is a gigantic reality
check. The behavioural and
moral change that is urgently
required among the people at
large needs to begin at the top
Yogi Adityanath finally cancelled
the Ram Navmi Mela. Trust deficits
play their part. When you demonise
protesters at Shaheen Bagh and then
suddenly, when coronavirus hits, order
them to get off the streets, will they
immediately obey you?
The political class is doing nothing to
suggest that it’s focussed squarely on
fighting Covid-19. In the Rajya Sabha
last week, a bizarrely disconnected
discussion was held on whether
“socialism” should remain in the
Preamble. Why didn’t Parliament
instead dedicate the session to evolving
a common strategy on coronavirus? The
PM did not speak on coronavirus in
Parliament, nor has an all party meeting
been called. The PM’s video conference
with chief ministers frankly should
think of revolution as fast-paced,
grabbing you by the heart instantly.
These are all ICS men who have faced
An excess of policing and forcibly
shutting down all free trade and
exchange will destroy the economy,
already teetering, as experts tell us, on
the brink of catastrophe. The intelligent
option is thus not coercive state power or
forcibly stamping out personal liberties,
but persuasion and promoting aware-
ness and self-help. Two progressive CMs,
Pinarayi Vijayan and Arvind Kejriwal,
have done this by holding dozens of
press meets in the last weeks.
Thousands obeyed PM Modi’s call to
applaud health workers on Janata
Curfew day. But citizens must be kept
informed about how government is
partnering with them to deal with the
crisis on a daily basis. An example of
positive political leadership in times of
Covid-19 is New York governor Andrew
Cuomo, meticulously spelling out his
government’s plans every day.
Covid-19 is a time to reset the
relationship between state and citizen.
Gandhi lived by his own example.
Millions followed him because he lived –
and was seen to live – the life of non-
violence and personal morality in his
everyday life. Millions of Indians now
have to be convinced to follow certain
norms and rules which they haven’t
before. This won’t happen if netas
remain in demagogue mode, move in a
world of VIP privileges and then sermo-
nise or use coercive state power to force
obedience. Citizens will only obey rules
when they are made aware at all levels
that it’s in their best interest to do so.
Covid-19 is a gigantic reality check.
The behavioural and moral change that
is urgently required among the people at
large needs to begin at the top. People
will not make behavioural changes if
politicians keep politicking with crowds
or keep attending weddings or are seen
ensconced in 5-star resorts. When
corona stalks the land, politicians can’t
afford to live in la la land.
His relationship with Jinnah goes
back to the early 1920s. Menon at that
point was a clerk, the sort of fellow you

H
istorically the Indian political class has given stepmotherly provided the nuts and bolts of the huge moral dilemmas on serving the bypass. One day Jinnah walks up to him
treatment to education and healthcare, which has contribu- governance architecture. A recent Raj while their countrymen were out on in a crowded room and they have lunch
ted greatly to India falling behind in the comity of nations. It is biography ‘VP Menon: The Unsung the streets protesting. They put their together. It’s a sort of sporadic friend-
a welcome step, therefore, that the Delhi government has broken the Architect of Modern India’ by Narayani minds to work. They began to draft laws ship. It would recur once again in 1930
mould by allocating close to a quarter of its overall budget to Basu explores one such story. She spoke that guide this country towards a more when they are all on board the same ship
education. On Monday, finance minister Manish Sisodia presented a to Sanjiv Shankaran: structured form of constitutional going to London for the Round Table
progress. These are men who often get Conference. The ship docks at Cairo and
Rs 65,000 crore budget with spending tilting towards education,
■ VP Menon had little formal overshadowed by political giants. You Jinnah takes VP in his car and they talk
health and transport. Also, keeping in mind the current public education. How did he become the don’t think of men sitting at the Imperial about Egypt’s politics, world history
health challenge, the budget specially allocated constitutional adviser? Secretariat with piles of paperwork. and go to lunch at one of Cairo’s best
Rs 50 crore to deal with the Covid-19 outbreak. It was a mix of drive, ambition and You should. That’s as much part hotels. The next time VP sees
Interestingly, the AAP government wants to sheer good luck. He runs away from of any revolution as leaders on Jinnah is in 1946, by then Jinnah
establish at least five ‘schools of excellence’ in all school at 13, after having set it on fire. He the streets. is a changed man. For VP it was
of the city’s districts. Also, it aims to benchmark is in Kolar Gold Fields as a coolie where ■ Does the Menon story sug- tragic because he knew Jinnah
he will stay for the next five years. He gest the British Raj reserved when he wasn’t the Jinnah we
its school education against global standards by remember. He wasn’t the hard-bitten,
then bounces around till he reaches When you’re talking about an top jobs but was simultaneously
participating in the PISA test in 2024. The Delhi north India. He does a number of odd Independence movement, you’re meritocratic? cynical, fanatical man pushing for
government has also decided to join the national jobs along the way. It is only when he’s thinking of leaders who make wonder- That’s a contradiction in itself. The Partition. He was an approachable man
health insurance scheme Ayushman Bharat and selling towels outside Victoria Terminus ful speeches, of bloodshed, of people top jobs were given to British officials. who liked chatting with younger men.
increase the bed capacity of its hospitals. Emphasis that he meets somebody who gives a fighting back. Which is true. But you That said, the British basically promoted VP also gets to know Liaquat Ali
on education and health is called for all the more in letter of recommendation to join the rarely think of the more tedious you on merit. If you did good work and Khan. He goes to him when the Simla
a state where services dominate economic activity. Investment here home department in the government. technical aspect of it which is the were able to meet unspoken qualifi- Conference broke down in 1945 and
He meets English supervisors who ‘babus’ behind the scene pushing cations, you were promoted on the basis Khan and his begum are visibly upset.
will provide the best possible returns socially and economically. are incredibly supportive. They don’t paper. They’re the ones sitting there of your hard work and talent. There was Neither of them had wanted Jinnah to
On the other hand, irrational elements in the subsidy policy have really look at his lack of educational making reforms happen by simply also an implied understanding you put his foot down so firmly in 1945. That
begun to show up as a manifestation of patronage. The electricity qualifications. The kind of ideas he has drafting and redrafting clauses. You wouldn’t be promoted beyond a certain friendship lasts till the aftermath of the
allocation has gone up on account of the complete write-off for matters more. It’s a mix of ambition, don’t think of a revolution in terms of point. The British never put any obstacles Simla Conference. That was valuable to
consumption up to 200 units a month. Given this, it’s resource great good fortune and supervisors paperwork, a shortage in personnel, in in the path of promoting you on the the Raj as well as to Sardar Patel and
misallocation to have another subsidy for lawyers’ chambers. Delhi willing to let him step in and step up. terms of Viceroys and their bureau- basis of your talent. That’s something Congress, because he was able to have a
recorded a revenue surplus last year but the economy faces huge ■ The run-up to Independence had crats sitting around a table and going which greatly aided VP’s own career. wide network of contacts on both
public servants in the background, over the same paragraph day in and day ■ Menon had cordial personal sides of the political divide. That’s
challenges now and some subsidies are unjustifiable. On balance, the but they impacted the way India out. That’s an aspect stereotyped as equations with MA Jinnah and what made him such a valuable asset in
Arvind Kejriwal government deserves credit for intent. But it should evolved. What’s your take? boring because it’s more exciting to Liaquat Ali Khan. the government.
also facilitate, rather than obstruct, private investment in education
and health which can provide much needed quality, diversity and
depth to these critical sectors of the economy.
dilbert Sacredspace
Prevention Vital
Spit it out To prevent the spread of the
Covid-19 pandemic, minimise
Coronavirus or no coronavirus, there’s outdoor activity, practise social
one habit many Indians refuse to give up distancing and use the time at
Jug Suraiya
home constructively in prayer and
reflection to reduce stress and gain
Two Indian men, Thooka and Thooki, engaged in animated strength to protect ourselves and
conversation about a new rule being enforced in Kerala and
the world. Opt for clean, boiled
Maharashtra, and which could soon apply in other states as well.
Thooka: I tell you, because of this wretched coronavirus water and vegetarian food.
this country is becoming like a dictatorship.
Thooki: Too true. As if all these lockdowns in so many Acharya Padmasagar Suri
places weren’t bad enough, now the sarkar in Kerala and in Maharashtra is
imposing fines on spitting. Just imagine! If you spit in Kochi you get fined 5
00 bucks, and if you spit anywhere in Maharashtra, you have to shell out a
whopping 1,000 bucks. Did you know your spit was so costly?
Thooka: I didn’t. And as other states come up with similar rules, the cost of
spit and spitting is going to go higher and higher. And all because some say that
Wellness Is The Goal Of The Navaratri Holdback
spitting spreads diseases. Renuka Narayanan for fasting is ‘upavasa’, of which ‘upa’ period, which does not exceed a day. morning and maintain ritual purity.
Thooki: Nonsense. Everyone knows that far from being a disease carrier, means ‘near’ and ‘vasa’ means ‘to stay’. Others may go on a ‘phalahari’ fast of Kathakars, traditional storytellers, like

W
spit is a healing agent. When as kids we fell down and scraped our knees and ith the onset of Chaitra Stay near whom? Near God, of course, fruit and milk, or fruit and water. to recount how Rama was such a stickler
elbows didn’t our moms tell us to put spit on them so they wouldn’t get infected? Navaratri or Vasant Navaratri, through whichever aspect of divinity Tender coconut water is a winner with for sincerely doing everything he under-
Thooka: They did indeed. And for all culminating in Rama Navami, that is close to our heart, meaning our its purity and nutrients. What is inter- took, that when Bhagavati Sita’s ‘pallu’
anyone knows, spit could be the secret cure for religious fasting, during a pandemic, ‘ishta devta’, personal deity. So, allied esting to note, though, is how some of us accidentally blew out and brushed his
secondopinion coronavirus everyone’s looking for. So instead of never looked so good. A periodic dietary
holdback is held to be extremely healthy
with the physical detox is the attempt to
calm our normally agitated minds by
have taken the concept of ‘fast food’ to
another level by deep-frying potatoes,
body because of a truant breeze that
stole into the royal quarters, he got up at
fining us spitters for spitting, the sarkar should
reward us for performing a public service. Besides which, isn’t the right to spit and could help tone up our system in focussing on the sacred. Prayers kuttu ka paratha and sabudana vadas once and quietly slipped away into the
a constitutional right? What was it that one of our great freedom fighters said? these tense times. The Hindu way of life that go with fasting, if said as delicious snacks for the fasting night to take a bath in the Sarayu.
Spitting is my birthright, and I shall have it. prescribes a monthly fast on Ekadashi, sincerely and with concent- period. No judgments here For us everyday people, Rama
Thooki: Actually, I think what he said was ‘Swaraj is my birthright, and I and on Mahashivratri; also, fasts on ration, can be likened to since we are all frail human Navami is the eagerly awaited climax of
shall have it.’ Chaitra Navaratri in March-April and high quality headphones beings together, but it is both Chaitra Navaratri. Since Rama was
Thooka: Swaraj, spitting, same thing. If we don’t have the freedom to Sharad Navaratri in October. In for the mind that filter endearing and amusing, is it born at noon, temples in the north hold a
spit as and when we like in our own country what was the point of winning addition, there are individual voluntary extraneous sound. not, the way in which we bhandara, free feast, at lunchtime,
Independence from the Brits? fasts like Savitri Vrat and Karva Chauth The nature of fasting in manage to trick ourselves, which welcomes anyone who walks in.
Thooki: Well said. So to assert our Independence from foreign rule shall we for women (and men, too, nowadays), Hindu tradition is and hopefully, the gods? In the south, the prasad at temples for
do one thook-shook? and ungendered weekly fasts like the reassuringly human and Since the Chaitra Nava- Ram Navami is ‘neer mor’, chaas
Thooka: But mightn’t we get fined? ‘vrat’ on Monday for Shiva, Tuesday for accessible. Fasting is not expected of ratri ends with Rama Navami, a poig- (buttermilk) and ‘paanakam’ (jaggery
Thooki: Don’t worry. I’ve already deposited an advance fine of Rs 10,000 Hanuman and Friday for Devi. It is easy pregnant women, children, travellers, nant fasting story comes to mind from water), a gentle reminder that though
with the authorities. So together now ... to get updates of other such fasts if we the ailing and the elderly. Those in good the Ramayana. On the eve of his anoint- Rama had every luxury as a prince, he
Thooki and Thooka (together): Acck, thooo….! download a Panchang app or just ask at health, however, may undertake ‘nirjal’ ment as the Yuvaraj, crown prince, undertook fasting as committedly as he
secondopinion@timesgroup.com the temple. fasts, going without even a drop of water Rama is told by Vasishta, the Rajguru, lived his forest life, setting an example
blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/jugglebandhi The pan-Indian word from Sanskrit during the fasting tithi, astrological royal priest of Ayodhya, to fast until that we cannot forget.
Why biotech, pharma cos are
immune to market crash?
Markets have been pummelled by the
impact of the Covid-19 outbreak. But
pharma and biotech companies that are
YEAR-TO-DATE
PERFORMANCE OF
TIMES BUSINESSModerna 46.5%
THE TIMES OF INDIA, JAIPUR | WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25, 2020

Regeneron 31.7% Gilead Sciences 14.2% S&P 500 -22.4%

at the forefront of the fight against the SELECTED BIOTECH/
PHARMA COMPANIES
virus have held steady VS THE S&P 500
Source: Statista (AS OF MARCH 17,2020)

‘RBI needs unconventional Weak signal?

You may get
Facebook in Streaming,
internet cos
measures to boost liquidity’ connected to talks for 10% to reduce
another telco resolution
Repo, OMOs Usual Moves, More Needed For MFs, Cos: Bankers Pankaj.Doval@timesgroup.com in Jio: Report Pankaj.Doval@timesgroup.com

Mayur.Shetty@timesgroup.com

Mumbai: Bank chiefs have sa-

id that mutual funds, corpora-
tes and some private lenders
are facing a liquidity crunch
and the Reserve Bank of India
(RBI) needs to take unconven-
tional measures to unfreeze the
markets in the coronavirus cri-
sis. “All cash collections and
consequently cash flows have
gone into a freeze. Mutual
funds are facing redemption
pressure and unprecedented
selling has hit bond markets,”
said a bank chief.
Bankers said that most of
RBI’s measures have been con-
ventional — providing additio-
nal liquidity to banks through
repos and open market opera-
tions. However, given the distres-
sed situation of businesses,
banks cannot provide loans.
“The US Fed has taken some re-
ally exceptional measures to
prevent a credit freeze. Other
Sensex up 693 pts on global eco boosters
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Mumbai: Boosted by the surge
in economic stimulus packa-
ges from around the world and
expectations of one by the Indi-
an government, the sensex sur-
ged about 1,800 points in mid-
session on Tuesday. However, it
gave up a large part of the ga-
ins as a similar package was
not announced here during the
day. The sensex closed 693 po-
ints up at 26,674. The Nifty clo-
sed 191points higher at 7,801.
The gains came despite a Rs
2,153-crore net selling by foreign
funds, while domestic institu-
tions were net buyers at Rs 1,554
crore, BSE data showed. Of the
30 sensex constituents, 19 closed
SMEs SEE VIRUS HITTING SALES, JOBS
Findings from a survey by small B2B commerce platform SOLV:
99% | SMEs
under pressure to
cut headcount
to protect costs
and margins
95% |
Wholesale traders
see hit from
reduced in-person
central banks are taking similar
steps. Many were expecting the
RBI to announce its package on
Monday,” said the chief of a se-
cond public sector bank.
On Monday, HDFC Bank chi-
ef Aditya Puri said that there
was no choice but to provide for-
bearance to borrowers. The Ba-
sel Committee on Banking Su-
pervision — a global bank
watchdog group — on Friday
discussed easing rules to avoid
VEXED BY VOLATILITY
Sensex intraday on Tue
High 2.7%
27,500
27,463
27,000
26,500
26,674
26,000
25,500
Prev.Close
Low 25,981
25,639
higher, while 11ended in the red.
But market players fear
that the day’s gains could be
short-lived. Kotak Securities
executive VP (equity techni-
cal research) Shrikant Chou-
han said, although India and
without assurance is difficult.
In the US, the Federal Reser-
ve has re-introduced a term as-
set-backed securities facility
interactions that was there during the global
90% | SMEs have financial crisis. It has also enab-
cashflow only led employers to claim funds
for 3 months 50% through primary market corpo-
rate credit facility and seconda-
17% | Small About 50% of SMEs ry market corporate credit faci-
biz with loans in electronics & 15% lity. Smaller lenders are seeing
that won’t be able in FMCG have already demand for funds from state go-
to repay if things lost a third of their vernments where different de-
become worse biz over last year partments are drawing the depo-
sits. “Once the damage is done, it
banks facing huge provisions is difficult to come back. Compa-
for supporting companies hit by nies are not able to keep up their
the coronavirus crisis. commitments and are sitting on
Puri said that his bank had potential defaults. What is nee-
over Rs 35,000-crore surplus ded is a 15-day or a one-month
funds but had a simple condition window where everything is fro-
for lending — borrowers should zen,” said a banker.
demonstrate that there will be Bankers said that while the
cash flows to make the repay-
ment. The government has nud-
economic package can take so-
me time, liquidity is a problem
ged public sector banks to provi- for some players and the RBI ne-
de additional credit lines, but eds to provide a window for mu-
they say providing cash support tual funds to raise funds.
NSE, BSE to have
India volatility index
(VIX) in 2020
normal ops today
84 New Delhi: Stock exchanges
NSE and BSE will conduct
normal operations on
Wednesday. The bourses said
Close
this after PM Narendra
Modi’s announced a 21-day
nationwide lockdown as part
12 of efforts to curb spreading of
Covid-19 infections. AGENCIES
Jan 1 Source: ETIG
Mar 24
other countries had relief mea- level, while on the upside 8,170-
sures to stabilise the falling 8,200 would be a major hurdle.
stock markets, the fear of coro- Two things will decide direc-
navirus is increasing day by tion for Wednesday’s trade —
day and will do so till a solution the impact of the lockdown on
is found for it. Technically, Nif- the economy, and how the Wall
ty has good support at the 7,500 Street closes on Tuesday night.
New Delhi: In an emergency
measure in view of the rest-
rictions around coronavirus,
telecom companies are see-
king to unlock intra-circle ro-
aming (ICR) between each
other that would enable custo-
mers of one operator to latch
on to the network of the other
in case of no or poor signal.
Also, the telecom compani-
es have sought higher band-
width from the government —
as a temporary measure — to
cope with the additional net-
work demand.
The ICR measure, compa-
nies say, will help ensure con-
tinuous coverage. For examp-
le, an Airtel customer will au-
tomatically be shifted on to
the network of Jio in case sig-
nals are weak. These are
contingency measures to en-
sure that there are no disrup-
tions in voice and data servi-
ces, an official of a telecom
company told TOI.
Amid the national lock-
down, a greater cooperation
between the various telcos
will mean less disruptions
to customers and immediate
rectification in case of
faults. Airtel has written to of-
ficials of Jio, Vodafone Idea,
BSNL and MTNL to kick-start
the measure.
“It is incumbent on the te-
lecom industry to ensure con-
tinuous and uninterrupted
availability of telecom and in-
ternet services, which are es-
sentially the backbone of the
digital infrastructure. It is,
therefore, of paramount im-
portance that at this crucial
juncture, we come together as
an industry to serve the na-
tion and prepare ourselves for
any kind of exigency,” the
company said in its letter to
other operators.When contac-
ted, officials at Vodafone Idea
and Jio also said they are loo-
king into the issue, especially
Pandemic Delays Deal New Delhi: Streaming and
internet companies such as
Amazon, Netflix, Hotstar, Yo-
TIMES NEWS NETWORK with Reliance Jio earli- uTube, Instagram and Face-
er. book will reduce the quality
Bengaluru/Mumbai: For Facebook, India of content on their platforms
Social media giant Face- is the largest market in to ease internet traffic and
book is in talks to buy a terms of users with its free up the network as more
10% stake in Reliance products seeing rapid and more people, now at home
Jio, billionaire Mukesh adoption on the back of due to coronavirus restric-
Ambani’s telecom and the proliferation of che- tions and the national lock-
internet services ventu- ap internet plans. But down, consume the services.
re, the Financial Times the Silicon Valley-based Many companies are re-
reported on Tuesday ci- company has also faced ducing their streaming con-
ting two people with issues in India — from tent from HD (high-defini-
knowledge of the matter. fake news across its plat- tion) to SD (standard defini-
The US-based techno- form to delay of pay- tion) as reports of networks
logy giant, which also ments services under its getting choked are rising
owns Instagram and messaging unit What- with people working from ho-
WhatsApp, was close to sApp. me, and also increasing con-
signing a preliminary Last year, reports had sumption of internet servi-
deal but the negotiations stated that Japan’s Soft- ces.
Bank may invest in Re- “With so many people
CUTTING DEBT liance Jio. A JP Mor-
gan research report
now at home full-time due to
Covid-19, we have already be-
RIL is looking at several sales gave Jio a potential va- gun the effort to reduce stre-
to reduce its `1.5L-cr net debt: luation of $50 billion,
Deal Size (in ` cr) while Bernstein peg- UNCLOGGING
20% of RIL refinery
biz to Saudi Aramco 100,000
ged it at $60 billion. NETWORKS
At the RIL AGM in
100% of Rel Jio Tele August last year, Am- aming bit rates for Amazon
Infra to Brookfield 25,125 bani had said that the Prime Video,” Amazon said.
49% in RIL retail company will become Facebook, which runs its
7,000 a zero net debt compa- own platform as well as Insta-
fuel biz to BP
ny in 18 months. This gram and WhatsApp, said,
got delayed
is being done through
due a slew of equity part-
“To help alleviate any poten-
tial network congestion, we
global travel bans ari- nerships in various bu- will temporarily reduce bit
sing from the current co- sinesses. RIL has been in rates for videos on Facebook
ronavirus pandemic. talks to sell stake in its and Instagram in India. We
The development co- petrochemicals busi- are committed to working
mes as Reliance Indu- ness to Saudi Arabia’s with our partners to manage
stries (RIL), the parent Aramco, but the deal has any bandwidth constraints
company of Jio and reportedly faced delays. during this period of heavy
which also has interests It has already finali- demand, while also ensuring
in petrochemicals and sed deals for its retail people are able to remain con-
retail, has been looking petrol pump business nected using Facebook apps
to induct foreign part- with BP and for telecom and services during the Co-
ners in all businesses as tower assets with Cana- vid-19 pandemic,” a spoke-
it plans to deleverage it- da’s Brookfield, which is sperson said.
self. While a Facebook scheduled to be closed by Telecom industry body
India spokesperson did the end of the financial COAI (cellular operators’ as-
not reply to TOI’s queri- year ending March 31, sociation of India) had writ-
es till the time of going to 2020. RIL closed last fi- ten to the department of tele-
press, Reliance could not nancial year, which en- com as well as the streaming
be reached for comment. ded in March 2019, with a companies to reduce the lo-

GST filing deadline Govt close to finalising

as it is important to keep the The FT report added that net debt of Rs 1,54,478 ad on networks due to the
network up and running. Google had also engaged crore. growing demand.

deferred until June 30 an eco package: FM TIMES NEWS NETWORK vid-19 virus. “Every atten-
TIMES
NETI"IORK
NOW Of NOTN"6
Continued from P 1 On the indirect tax tion is being given to the
New Delhi: The government economy. The Prime Minis-
side too, the

S
itharaman — who assured will soon come out with an ter himself is closely moni-

IT'S TIME T
24x7 customs facilities for payment deadline economic package and work toring the situation,” Sitha-
exporters and importers — under the Sabka is on to finalise the relief raman said, when asked
made it clear that the idea was Vishwas scheme has measures, finance minister about the economic package O

14ELP T14E HELP,

to ensure that people stayed in
lockdown and took care of their
families instead of exposing
themselves to the deadly virus
by venturing out to be "honest
taxpayers".
As a result, the GST filing
deadline for three months,
starting February, has been de-
ferred until June 30. Besides,
companies with an annual
turnover of up to Rs 5 crore do
not have to worry about paying
any late fee or interest. In case of
the larger entities, the penal in-
terest has been halved to 9%.
On the income tax front, the
last date for filing returns for
the financial year 2018-19 has
been extended from March 31,
2020 to June 30, 2020, which is al-
so the new deadline for linking
Aadhaar with PAN. But it will
benefit only a small section of
the population as the bulk of the
returns have already been filed.
been extended until
the end of June and
no interest will be
levied
There was a bigger gain for
those looking to settle their di-
rect tax disputes via the Vivad
Se Vishwas scheme. Instead of
the the March 31deadline, no ad-
ditional 10% amount will be le-
vied if the payment is made by
the end of June 30, the FM said.
On the indirect tax side too,
the payment deadline under the
Sabka Vishwas scheme has
been extended until the end of
June and no interest will be le-
vied. The move was welcomed
by the industry, which had been
pitching for the concessions as
they were finding it tough to
comply with the norms due to a
majority of employees working
from home.
Nirmala Sitharaman said
on Tuesday as she unveiled
steps to ease the compliance
burden for companies, indi-
viduals and businesses.
“Work is
going (on)
and we are
very close
to… an eco-
nomic pack-
age, which
will be announced sooner
than later,” Sitharaman told
a news conference.
Calls for a comprehen-
sive package to help revive
the economy and sectors hit
hard by the Covid-19 out-
break have gathered pace in
the past few weeks. Several
sectors such as tourism, air-
lines, hospitality have been
severely hit as authorities
have enforced strict mea-
sures to deal with the Co-
that the government intends
to announce.
She said a multi-layered
taskforce has already begun
work on analysing the im-
pact. Several sub-groups THEY'VE ALWAYS TAKEN CARE OF YOU.
within the main taskforce
such as sub group of MPs, NOW IT'S YOUR TURN!
academicians, business
leaders and sub group of spe-
cialists have begun discus-
sions. The Prime Minister
Narendra Modi had an-
nounced the setting up of Co-
vid-19 taskforce headed by
the FM during his first na-
tional television address last
week. The FM also said all
the regulators and the Re-
serve Bank of India (RBI)
along with the finance minis-
try were closely monitoring
the developments in the fi-
nancial markets in the after-
math of the Covid-19 out-
break.

Imports dip 16%, exports 8% till 19th

IN TROUBLED WATERS
Sidhartha@timesgroup.com
Sanitisers, ventilators
New Delhi: India’s imports
have declined nearly 16% to $23 How top export items fared? blocked from export
billion during March 1-19, whi- March 2020* YoY change
($ bn) (%) New Delhi: The Directorate
le exports dropped 8.2% to $16.3 General of Foreign Trade
billion during this period, data Engineering goods 4.1 -6.6 (DGFT) on Tuesday put the
accessed by TOI showed. exports of sanitisers and all
Of the 30 major sectors Oil products 1.8 -11.0 types of ventilators on the
tracked by the government, Gems & jewellery 1.7 -12.IN1 “prohibited” list to ensure
three sectors — petroleum adequate supplies within the
(down 13.5%), where prices ha- Chemicals 1.2 -9.2 country. On March 19,
ve crashed, precious & semi- ventilators had been put on the
Drugs & pharma 1.1 -0.3
precious stones (46% lower) prohibited list but in a
and gold (45.5% fall) — accoun- notification on Tuesday, it
ted for two-thirds of the decre- What happened to top import items?
expanded the ambit to include Give your help time off to look after themselves and stay safe,just like you are
March 2020* YoY change
ase. While the import bill fell
$4.3 billion during the first 19
($ bn) (%) “any artificial respiratory
apparatus or oxygen therapy
doing. Support them with paid leaves. Show some Love. Help them Laugh a
days of the fiscal, these three Crude oil, products
6.7 -13.5
apparatus or any other little. Make this world a better place to Live in.
sectors saw a decline of $2.9 bil- breathing application/device”

lion in the value of their ship-
ments, according to prelimina-
ry estimates available with the
commerce department.
During a crisis like the cur-
rent one, the demand for gems
& jewellery and luxury goods
typically comes down as inco-
mes are affected and there is
uncertainty about the coming
quarters, trade experts said.
On the export front too, fi-
ve sectors — oil products, eng-
ineering goods, gems and je-
wellery, organic and inorga-
nic chemicals and rice — dro-
Electronic goods
Machinery
Transport equipment
Pearls & gems
ve down the overall
shipments out of the country.
While exports declined by a
little under $1.5 billion, the fi-
ve sectors saw the value of go-
ods shipped out of the count-
ry drop by close to $1billion.
With the lockdowns co-
ming into effect from late last
2.5 -10.1
1.8 -9.6
1.6
1.2 -46.1 *Data for March 1-19;
Source: Govt
week, several factories have
shut shop and economic activi-
ty as well as trade are expected
to get further affected in the co-
ming weeks till health authori-
ties globally get a firm control
over the situation. But there
were some sectors which buck-
ed the trend. For instance, iron
#HelpTheHelp
in the specified product code.
TNN
60.0 ore exports were up nearly
80%, albeit on a small base, in-
dicating that the demand for
raw material remained robust
as Chinese steel plants probab-
ly resumed production. Elec-
tronic goods exports grew 5%
but the expansion was much
slower than what was witnes- #WHFafterWFH
sed in recent months.
On the import front, there
was a 60% jump in transport 0 ®© R-*NOw l ,, - ,
equipment.
 TIMES SPORT THE TIMES OF INDIA, JAIPUR | WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25, 2020

SANIA MIRZA TO RAISE FUNDS FOR DAILY WE DON’T HAVE AN ANSWER RIGHT NOW
WAGE WORKERS AFFECTED BY PANDEMIC ON IPL 13, SAYS BCCI CHIEF GANGULY

IT’S TOKYO 2021 NOW! Olympics Is Postponed By A Year

Tokyo: Japan’s prime minister and
the head of the International Olympic
Committee agreed to postpone the To-
kyo 2020 Games by a year on Tuesday
in an extraordinary move, unprece-
dented in peacetime, as the world bat-
tles the coronavirus pandemic. “I
proposed to postpone for about a year
and president Bach responded with
100 per cent agreement,” Shinzo Abe
said referring to Thomas Bach, head
of the IOC.
The move would be a devastating
blow for the city of Tokyo, which had
won widespread praise for its organi-
sation, with venues finished well
ahead of time and tickets massively
oversubscribed.
The Olympics, which has experi-
enced boycotts, terrorist attacks and
protests, but has been held every four
years since 1948, would be the highest-
profile event affected by the virus that
has killed thousands and closed sports
competitions worldwide.
The IOC has come under increas-
ing pressure in recent days to post-
pone the Games, scheduled to start on
July 24, with 1.7 billion people across
the planet in lockdown to prevent the
further spread of COVID-19.
Training has become impossible
for many athletes and exposes them
to the risk of contracting or spreading
It will also be a bitter blow to spon-
sors and major broadcasters who rely
on the four-yearly extravaganza for
critical advertising revenue.
It is not the first time Tokyo has
seen unscheduled changes to the
Games -- it was due to be the first Asian
country to host the Olympics in 1940
before pulling out due to international
pressure over its war with China.
The IOC came under fire for taking
so long to make its decision after oth-
er major events such as the European
Football Championships already an-
nounced postponements.
British cyclist Callum Skinner had
strongly criticised IOC president
Thomas Bach, accusing him of plac-
ing his own interests first.
“Bach’s stubbornness and arro-
gance has spectacularly failed in this
instance and he has weakened the
Olympic movement,” Skinner wrote
on Twitter.
“This isn’t the first time he has put
his own motives above the athletes
and the movement.” But Tokyo 2020
organisers point to the unparalleled
complexity -- not to mention cost -- of
shifting the Games. It is not even clear
venues will be available and tens of
thousands of hotel rooms will need to
be cancelled and rebooked.
“It is mind-bogglingly complex to
As Japan, IOC Arrive At Agreement
‘Best solution in
current situation’
Abhinav Bindra, Member Of IOC
Athletes Body, Says Decision
Wasn’t Easy But Inevitable
Tushar.Dutt@timesgroup.com
Pune: It took days of meetings with all the stakehold-
ers and a lot of deliberations before the Tokyo 2020
Games were postponed by a year, says Olympic gold
medallist shooter Abhinav Bindra.
Bindra, who is member of International Olympic
Committee’s (IOC) athletes’ commission, said the de-
cision to postpone the Games to 2021 is
the best possible way to deal with the
global situation.
“It has not been easy to take this
call as the decision has been made
after taking all the stakeholders on
NOT YET: The 2020 Olympic flame is about to be lit at board. We (the Athletes’ Commis-
the railway station in Fukushima Prefecture on sion) have had a series of meetings
Tuesday. The torch relay will proceed as scheduled with the IOC members in the past few
but organisers would re-assess the situation weeks and I feel postponement of the
Games was inevitable,” Bindra told TOI on Tuesday.
Bindra said he is glad that the announcement has
been made and the suspense has come to an end.
“During any crisis there are all types of sad news

In India, huge relief and

the disease. Competitions and quali-
fiers have been scrapped, while inter-
national travel is severely limited.
On Sunday, the IOC had initially
given itself a deadline of four weeks to
come up with a proposal to postpone the
Games, a Herculean task that touches
on every aspect of Tokyo 2020 planning
from venues to security to ticketing.
But after Canada and Australia
withdrew their teams and the power-
ful US Olympic Committee and World
Athletics also joined the chorus call-
ing for a postponement, the writing
was on the wall for the July start.
Tokyo was spending some $12.6 bil-
lion to host the Games, according to
its latest budget, and experts believe
a postponement could cost it some $6
billion in the short-term before re-
couping it when they eventually go
ahead.
BYE FOR NOW: A Japanese couple takes
pictures of the National Stadium
make a sudden change after seven
years of preparation for the biggest
sporting event in the world,” Michael
Payne, the IOC’s former head of mar-
keting, told AFP.
Squeezing in the 16-day Games into
what will already be a hugely crowded
2021 calendar is another major head-
ache, with arguably the two biggest
sports, swimming and athletics, due
to hold their world championships
that summer.
However, World Athletics has al-
ready said it was prepared to shift its
world championships, scheduled for
August 6-15 next year in Oregon, to
accommodate a move in the Games.
Pressure on the IOC and its power-
ful president Bach had been accelerat-
ing fast in recent days, with Canada,
like Australia, saying it would not
participate if the Games went ahead.
Other nations have pressed hard for a
postponement and a quick decision by
the Olympic body to end uncertainty.
“We would have wished that we
already had by now a clear statement
that the Games would definitely not
take place at the planned date and that
now alternatives were being consid-
ered,” said German Olympic Sports
Confederation head Alfons Hoer-
mann.
The Athletics Association said a
survey of more than 4,000 track and
field competitors showed 78% wanted
the Games delayed. Agencies
some disappointment too
TMES NEWS NETWORK
New Delhi: Indian sporting fraternity
on Tuesady heaved a sigh of relief over
the decision to postpone the 2020 Tokyo
Olympics, saying it was sensible on the
part of International Olympic Commit-
tee (IOC) to hold it in 2021.
“It’s good for Indian athletes and
athletes from all over the world. Hold-
ing the Olympics as scheduled would
have affected many aspirants who
would have taken risks during the
time of coronavirus to qualify or par-
This decision will give
athletes more time to
practice. In the current
scenario, even the athletes
who had qualified weren’t getting time
to prepare.
—Dutee Chand, ATHLETE
Every athlete across the world is very
disturbed ad nobody is able to
concentrate on the Olympics or carry on
with their training. Good that the
Olympics has been postponed.
—Bajrang Punia, WRESTLER
ticipate in it. As far as I am concerned
I am tension-free now and this is a
sensible decision,” Dutee told TOI.
India’s rising shooting star Manu
Bhaker was slightly disappointed but,
according to her father, was glad that
it won’t be held under the shadow of
a global pandemic. “She had prepared
hard for this Olympics and it was
every one’s dream to perform on the
world’s biggest sporting stage. She
was slightly disappointed, but relieved
more. She said ‘jaan hai to jahan hai’
after the announcement,” Manu’s fa-
While we were looking forward to
Tokyo2020, the environment
wouldn’t have been
appropriate for the event to be
celebrated the way it should
be. We should look at this
positively as it would allow us a
year more to plan and train.
—Neeraj Chopra, JAVELIN THROWER
IT’S AN EXCELLENT DECISION BY THE
INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC
COMMITTEE AND THE CORRECT ONE.
—Mary Kom, WOMEN’S BOXER
ther Ram Kishan Bhaker said. floating, but there is nothing worse than ‘no news’.
Indian Olympic Association, mean- The suspense is over and everybody associated with
while, welcomed the decision of IOC. the Games can now focus on the new dates, whenever
“Discussions were held by IOC with they are announced,” he added.
organisers and all stakeholders prior
to this. Soon after the lock down is
over, IOA would be holding meetings
Asked how difficult will it be for the organisers to
re-do everything again, he said such decisions are
never easy to make but one has to work according to
with athletes, federations, sponsors, the situation. “So many things move together with an
etc. to revise plans,” IOA secretary event like the Olympics. It can never be easy to push
general Rajeev Mehta said. the event of this magnitude to a year. But safeguarding
“This decision today, relieves our the health of the athletes is the priority. The IOC’s
athletes of worries of having to train prime focus is the health and wellbeing of the athletes.
now during epidemic and perform their With the Games being held in July this year, a lot of
best in four months from now,” he added. athletes were risking their lives by training during
Later when asked what will happen such times. I feel this is the best way to deal with a
to the Olympic preparatory camps in situation like this,” he said.
hockey, athletics and weightlifting, Most of the qualified athletes had planned peak of
currently being held in different parts their form already, but Bindra said a year’s time will
of the country, Mehta said “I have be enough for them to slow down. “This will affect all
mailed the federations to give utmost the athletes at the same time. A year’s postponement
priority to safety of athletes.” is better than delaying it for a few months,” he said.
It is good for all the athletes who Olympics is big
have qualified, and also for all but human lives
the athletes waiting to are bigger. No
participate in the remaining one should feel
qualifiers. Every athlete will be down. The one-
at peace now. year deferral is
—Saina Nehwal, SHUTTLER the best way to
overcome the
Humanity has to trump sport. So I’m current situation.
happy that the decision was made. For all the
Obviously, the postponement will affect athletes, it is a
our preparation, but I think the extra win-win situation.
time can help me prepare even better. —PT Usha,
—Vikas Krishan YADAV, BOXER OLYMPIAN

GALLERY

Stranded ex-NZ pacer

fears for wife’s life
Christchurch: Struggling to find a flight to
get back to his family in the UK, former
Zealand pacer Iain O’Brien says he is worri-
ed about his wife’s health as she has a lung
condition, which puts her at great risk in
the rapidly spreading Covid-19 pandemic.
The 43-year-old from Wellington, who now
lives with his wife Rosie and two kids —
Alethea and Zain — in the UK, was in New
Zealand to deal with some mental health
issues that he has been working on. “This
virus could kill her. With a couple of kids for
her to deal with, and her mum is 80, there’s
a fair bit on her plate at the moment. I
would be kind of keen to take some of that
stress off her, but I think I’m just adding to
it,” O’Brien siad.
Can’t have DRS in entire Ranji Trophy,
say Karim: The 2019-20 Ranji Trophy
season saw the maiden usage of Decision
Review System (DRS) -- though in limited
format. Speaking to IANS, BCCI GM Cricket
Operations Saba Karim said, “You cannot
have it in the entire tournament because all
the matches are not televised. It’s only the
semifinals and the finals which are tele-
vised. It’s for that reason in order to bring
uniformity, we cannot have DRS in the
entire tournament.”
Sr National Badminton meet put on
hold: The 84th Senior Badminton National
Championships scheduled to be held in
Lucknow from April 27 to May 3 has been
put on hold due to the dreaded COVD-19
pandemic, Badminton Association of India
(BAI) said on Tuesday.
Punia donates 6 months’ salary: Star
wrestler Bajrang Punia has donated his six
months salary towards fight against coro-
navirus pandemic. “I have donated my six
months’ salary towards relief fund for
COVID-19 patients set up by Haryana chief
minister ML Khattar,” Punia, who works
‘Prakash’s court craft It’s Messi, Ronaldo, Neymar again!
foxed King in the final’ Survey: Trio Leads
Narain.Swamy@timesgroup.com
Bengaluru: Not the best of facilities
or infrastructure, shuttles that mir-
rored the wobbly
state of affairs in
Indian badminton
then and allowan-
ces that had you co-
unt the change mo-
re often than
spend. Prakash Pa-
dukone overcame all these hurdles
and more to win the All England title
40 years ago.
March 23, 1980. It was the day when
Padukone reigned at the Wembley
stadium, defeating the formidable Li-
em Swie King of Indonesia, (15-3, 15-
10) the undisputed world No. 1 and the
top seed. King wanted the title badly
for a hat-trick but was systematically
dismantled by a 24-year-old Indian
with a sort of game that left the world
awestruck.
“King’s game was all about
rhythm, pace and power. Hard smas-
hes, deft net dribbles that shut out the
opponent. But Prakash had a game
plan all along. He never allowed King
to play his natural game. He set the pa-
ce, pinned King to the backcourt with
lobs and clears that kissed the baseli-
ne, used his cross-court half smashes
and a razor-sharp net game as effecti-
ve counters. King never knew what
hit him,” former national coach TPS
BCCI cancels con call
with franchise owners
Puri, who was with Padukone during
the tour, told TOI.
Padukone had won the Danish and
Swedish titles ahead of the All Eng-
land, leading officials of the Interna-
tional Badminton Federation to point
out to Puri that he was burning him-
self out, playing too many games. A
keen observer that he has always be-
en, Puri told them that Padukone was
only getting better and better with
each game.
Yet the badminton world refused
to believe Puri. An assortment of vic-
tories at the Danish and Swedish
Opens were diametrically opposite to
the way Indonesia had prepared for
the All England Championships.
King didn’t play the Danish and Swe-
dish Opens. He had kept himself
fresh for the All England.
Padukone and Puri stayed at Lon-
don’s Indian YMCA . Wembley was
far away. Their daily allowance did
not permit them the luxury of a cab.
Padukone and Puri took the London
Underground metro to the venue.
“We used to walk around 400 met-
res to the Tottenham Court Road sta-
tion, change two trains and walk al-
most a kilometre in cold weather to
the venue. I tried to convince the Indi-
an High Commission officials to pro-
vide Prakash with transport, but they
had their own constraints. But Pra-
kash made no fuss about it. He was too
focused on his game,” Puri said.
List Of Best-Paid
Footballers In World
Paris: Lionel Messi, Cristiano
Ronaldo and Neymar remain
the three best-paid footballers
in the world, according to a
study by France Football mag- RONALDO
azine. The study estimates the
income of the world’s highest-
paid players by adding their
estimated gross salaries and
income from image rights to
bonuses earned last season.
As a result, the publication
calculates Barcelona star
Messi’s total annual income as
131 million euros ($141 mil-
lion). That puts the Argentine
ahead of Ronaldo, with the MESSI NEYMAR
Portuguese forward second on
the list with 118 million euros
of estimated income.
TOP ANNUAL EARNERS Paris Saint-Germain’s Brazil of Real Madrid’s Gareth Bale. coach with total wages of 40.5
Messi: 131 million euros star Neymar, who moved to The Welshman is fourth on million euros, way ahead of
Ronaldo: 118 million euros France from Barcelona for a the list with 38.7 million euros. Antonio Conte at Inter Milan
Neymar: 95 million euros world record transfer fee in 2017, Meanwhile, according to the on 30 million euros and Pep
G Bale: 38.7 million euros is third on the list with total pay magazine, Atletico Madrid’s Guardiola at Manchester City
of 95 million euros, way ahead Diego Simeone is the best-paid on 27 million euros. AFP
Galatasaray manager Terim
Champions League and tests postive for coronavirus
Europa are postponed Istanbul: Turkish football icon Fatih Terim, currently
manager of Istanbul giants Galatasaray, said he had
Nyon (Switzerland): UEFA has
announced that it has postponed
UEFA said in a statement.
“The group has already begun
tested positive for the novel coronavirus. “The results of
a test done today showed a positive result for
coronavirus,” Terim said on Twitter. “I’m in safe hands at
the Champions League, Europa
League and Women’s Champions
League finals, originally sched-
its examination of the calendar.
Announcements will be made in
due course.”
the hospital. Don’t worry. Hopefully I’ll communicate
more as soon as possible,” Terim added.

with the Railways as an officer on special
duty (OSD) said in a tweet.
Coming soon, digital classes for TOPS
athletes: The sports ministry will soon
introduce digital classes for the elite Indian
athletes under the Target Olympic Podium
(TOPS) scheme to help sharpen their
off-field skills. Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju
tweeted about the classes on Tuesday
while a Sports Authority of India (SAI)
official explained the motive. “Very soon we
will start digital classes for our athletes.
Also, please do all important things by
yourself, wherever you are,” Rijiju tweeted.
TNN/AGENCIES
New Delhi: Already suspended till
April 15, the uncertainty surroun-
ding this year’s IPL grew on Tuesday
with the BCCI postponing a schedu-
led conference call with the franchise
IPL DILEMMA
owners which was to discuss a way
forward amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
The T20 league is staring at a possible
cancellation due to the deadly outbre-
ak, which has led to more than 16,000
deaths globally. India, which has re-
ported over 400 cases and nine deaths
so far, is in a lockdown till March 31 to
contain the pandemic.
“The situation has not improved
so there is no point in even talking
about it. If IPL doesn’t happen so be
it,” Kings XI Punjab co-owner Ness
Wadia said.
“There is no point in discussing
anything at this point. We have to deal
with matters much more important
than IPL,” added another franchise
official, who did not wish to be named.
The star-studded eight-team lea-
gue was originally scheduled to start
on March 29 in Mumbai but looks set
for a cancellation given the current
crisis.
“I can’t even think about the IPL at
this point. It is irrelevant along with
everything else,” Wadia said. PTI
uled for May, due to the corona-
virus pandemic, with no new
date given. European football’s
governing body had already post-
poned the competitions until
f u r t h e r n o t i c e e a rl i e r t h i s
month.
UEFA said on Monday that “no
decision has yet been made on
rearranged dates”.
“The working group, estab-
lished last week as a result of the
conference call among the stake-
holders of European football,
which was chaired by UEFA pres-
ident, Aleksander Ceferin, will
analyse the options available,”
The 2020 men’s Champions
League final had been due to be
played at Istanbul’s Ataturk Sta-
dium on May 30, with the Europa
League final to have been staged
in Polish city Gdansk three days
before.
The women’s Champions
League final was scheduled for
May 24 in Vienna.
Four of the men’s Champions
League last-16 second legs, origi-
nally slated for March 17 and 18,
were delayed because of the new
coronavirus outbreak, along with
all of the Europa League last-16
return games. AGENCIES
McCarthy in ‘very frightening’ situation
London: Ireland football manager Mick McCarthy is in
self-isolation in London with his wife due to the
coronavirus pandemic, describing their situation to the
Football Association of Ireland website as ‘very
frightening.’ “I am back home in Bromley and isolating as
two of our near neighbours have been diagnosed with
coronavirus and it is now very real and very frightening
for us,” McCarthy said in an interview on the website.
Maldini expects to recover ‘within a week’
Milan: Former Italy football captain Paolo Maldini said
he expects to recover “within a week” after being
diagnosed with the new coronavirus. Maldini, 51, now
the technical director at AC Milan, and his 18-year-old
son Daniel, a youth team player, had been in self-
isolation at home for two weeks. AGENCIES
 THE TIMES OF INDIA I WEDNESDAY 25 MARCH, 2020 I ADVERTORIAL,
ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY PROMOTIONAL FEATURE

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Page 4 Page 4
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Celebs go
FROM PAINTING TO LEARNING MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS

Working professionals make use low-key with

of extra time in self-quarantine Gudi Padwa
@janhvikapoor

celebrations With the COVID-19 outbreak, actors

are staying indoors to celebrate the
popular festival at home today

Abhimanyu.Mathur@timesgroup.com

ou are at home 24x7. You are working from home and even

Y when you are done with office work, there is no cinema hall
and no gym you can visit, not even a walk to the park in the
evening. You can’t eat out or go for that long drive. For most work- AMRUTA KHANVILKAR
ing professionals in India, working from home or under self-quar-
antine, this is how the last one week has looked like. With several
companies across the country allowing – some mandating – work
‘WE NEED A LOT OF
Janhvi Kapoor posted this picture on social media
with the caption, “Self isolation productivity” from home models for their employees, working professionals have GOOD VIBES AND
@katrinakaif
begun to spend all their time at home. This, coupled with an absence POSITIVE ENERGY’
of any avenue for recreation, has resulted in a lot of free time. In- Usually, I begin the day by hoisting
stead of sulking at home or bingewatching on shows (not judging
those who do!), many work-from-homers have decided to utilise this
the gudi. It symbolises new begin-
extra time to indulge in hobbies. nings, new hopes and aspirations. I
Katrina Kaif has have been celebrating it from my ear-
decided to use REDISCOVERING OLD PASSIONS lier days in Pune. Given the current
this time to learn Many are rediscovering passions that they had to give up, largely due
the guitar to the demands of their jobs and lives. New Friends Colony resident situation, we need a lot of good vibes
Zaheer wrote his first poem in over five years during his self-quar- and positive energy. So, I’m going to
antine this week. celebrate it at home in a low-key
manner, but the traditional way.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 3
@theshilpashetty

RITEISH DESHMUKH
‘WILL CELEBRATE
URMILA MATONDKAR IN A SMALL
WAY’
‘WILL BE PRAYING We must respect the
FOR WARDING OFF lockdown as it is the
CORONAVIRUS’ need of the hour. But
Gudhi Padwa is believed to ward off at the same time, we
evil, invite prosperity and good luck should celebrate
into our homes. So, this Padwa will every occasion that
be all about offering prayers for the brings us cheer.
entire country to ward off the evil of This year, we will
coronavirus. This year’s celebration is celebrate Gudi
certainly going to be very different Padwa in a small
than any other as it is all indoors and way.
>> Shilpa Shetty Kundra with her son Vihaan, minus any guests visiting each other.
indulging in a tie and dye session together
TNN

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2 JAIPUR TIMES, THE TIMES OF INDIA
LEISURE WEDNESDAY 25 MARCH 2020

TIMES HITORI LOOP THE LOOP

How to play
1. A number may
appear just
Rules
■ Connect adjacent dots
with vertical or
horizontal lines, creating
Stars provide updates on
their health, after being
once in each a single loop (Fig A).
ENGINEERING | MANAGEMENT | MEDIA | LAW row or column. ■ Crossovers or branches
Eliminate repeat are not allowed (As
shown by dotted lines in
SUDOKU CHALLENGE numbers by Fig B).

tested for coronavirus:

darkening cells. ■ Numbers in the puzzle
HOW (see example) indicate the number of
TO PLAY
2. Darkened cells lines that should
Fill in the grid must never be surround it, while empty
so that every cells may be
adjacent in a surrounded by any
horizontal row,
every vertical
column and
every 3x3 box
row or column.
3. Unmarked cells
must create a
number of lines.
■ You can’t draw lines
around zeroes.
■ Each puzzle has just
Practically back to normal...
contains the
digits 1-9,
without
repeating the
single
continuous area,
undivided by darkened cells.
one unique solution.
How to begin: Example (Fig
A) - Begin with the zero next
to 3. Since no lines can be
just bored: Daniel Dae Kim
4. Every time you darken a cell, he Lost star
numbers in the
same row,
column or
box.You can’t
change the
you can automatically circle its
vertical and horizontal
neighbours, which means they
drawn around zero, mark
crosses around it, as shown.
Now there is a cross in one
space around 3. So we know
the three lines of 3 can only
T wrote, “I am
happy to report
that my progress has
cannot be eliminated. continued and I feel
digits already be drawn in the remaining practically back to nor-
given in the 5. Any cell "sandwiched" between three spaces. Next, these
grid. Every neighbours of the same value lines can only be extended in
(Fig A) Not allowed mal. I am lucky to be
(Fig B) in the 80% of diag-
puzzle has one can be circled. (e.g. 6 4 6 ) one direction each. Continue, using the same logic.
solution. 6. A "triple" is a special case of sandwich. Circle the centre Hints: Keep eliminating possibilities by marking crosses in spaces between dots nosed cases that have
Level: Medium cells, and darken the ends. (e.g. 6 6 6 ) where a line isn’t possible, i.e., if you have already completed required lines or not required hospital-
where a line extension may create a branch or cause a deadend (Fig B) isation, that’s an im-
portant statistic. I’ve
pretty much been stay-
SCRAMBLE ing in bed, taking my
medication, but as of
Rearrange the letters in the four word jumbles, one letter now I have no symp-
BEAU PEEP

to each square/circle, to make four ordinary words toms other than a lit-
tle residual congestion
SEVER which should clear of
very soon.”
DPIIL “Happy to report
they are still symp-
tom-free and just
EEPXDN bored like the rest
of us,” he added.
CALVIN AND HOBBES

GIINGV

A fellow doesn't last long on what he has done. He's got

to keep on ___ as he goes along. (10)

HOW TO PLAY
I have completely recovered,
Now arrange the letters in the circles to form the answer to the
riddle or to fill in the missing word as indicated I am fine!: Olga Kurylenko
SPELLATHON
MARVIN

Today’s Ratings:
01-average 02-good 03-outstanding

S
O R
V
I T
I
GARFIELD

How many words of four or more letters can you make from
the letters shown in today’s puzzle? In making a word, a letter
can be used as many times as it appears in the puzzle. Each
word must contain the central letter. There should be at least
one seven letter word.Plurals,foreign words and proper names
are not allowed.British English Dictionary is used as reference.

Olga Kurylenko shared this

their own purposes. Find a bal- picture (above) on Instagram
ance between creativity and use MINDBENDER SOLUTIONS TO GAMES/PUZZLES and said she’s spending time
a logic to solve problems.Do some- with her son

FinOlex
TIMES SUDOKU LOOP THE LOOP TIMES HITORI
thing good for someone you care Die without me, never thank me.
about. Connect with others. Walk right through me, never feel me. he former Bond girl wrote on In-
FORTUNE A n u po m V Ka pi l
LIBRA September 22 - October
22 You are probably feeling ex-
cited and motivated to keep push-
ing on ahead. This day will in-
Always watching, never speaking.
Always lurking, never seen. T stagram, “I have completely re-
covered. To recapitulate: For one
week I felt pretty bad and was mostly in
ro on anupamvkapi l@gmaL.eom bed, sleeping, with high fever and strong
nr trrc: ,. 9822D42295. crease your enthusiasm and
headache. The second week, the fever was
charm but you’ll need to be sen-
sitive to the needs of others.You’ll gone but some light cough appeared and I
BIRTHDAY TODAY
MINDBENDER felt very tired. By the end of the second week
have a serious approach and a
ou might feel depressed by the mechanical
Y
routine of your life. Music may be the ideal
way to relax.
strong commitment to work. At Air SCRAMBLE I felt totally fine. Cough is almost gone al-
though I still cough in the mornings but
on delivering as he goes along.
Tip: Your lucky colours are crimson, red, gold, the same time, be sensitive to SPELLATHON what he has done. He's got to keep
WHATZIT? then it completely goes away for the day!
yellow, orange and golden brown. Your lucky others. Answer: A fellow doesn't last long on
gems are ruby, topaz, diamond and garnet. SCORPIO October 23 - Nove-
Hang on every word visor Words: Serve, lipid, expend, giving I’m fine! I’m just enjoying this time to
You share your birthday with: Sarah Jessica mber 20 Radical and inventive
visit, VISITOR,
reflect on many things and spend my
Parker
ideas hold the key to realising time with my son.”
your ambitions and advancing
ARIES March 20 - April 18 You have to your status but be careful – an unexpect-
focus on beautifying your work or living ed change could be in the works. You will
CINEMA
space. You are tempted to deviate from be unforgiving and will want some time Cinema halls to remain closed till March 30.
your routine. Celebrate your friendship with alone.Take a break from all your work du-
We are feeling better: Tom
‘Scents can stimulate memory, act
your closest companion. Your independ- ties. Don’t worry – tomorrow you will be

Hanks and Rita Wilson

ence and freedom will be restricted today. able to recuperate. You will find that there
An element of the unexpected will work in is a great deal of power at your disposal.
your favour. Friends and money don’t mix. Try not to worry so much.
TAURUS April 19 - May 19 Be a pioneer SAGITTARIUS November 21-December hough not completely out of the woods yet, the Hanks re-

T
as tool to treat mood disorders’
and work to make some new discoveries 20 You are tired of your same old routine ported that they felt better. He tweeted, “Hey, folks. Two
in the world around you. All continues to and want to experience the feeling of a weeks after our first symptoms and we feel better.... Going
go well in your private and professional new wind blowing in your life. You can to take awhile, but if we take care of each other, help where we
life. Pace yourself so you don’t become ex- make progress but be sure to include fam-
can, and give up some comforts...this, too, shall pass. We can fig-
hausted. Hard work may be tedious but ily members in your plans. Your sense of
necessary. Frustrations will cause irritability tradition will get in the way of trying new iStock ure this out. Hanx.”
esearchers at the pocampus and become stripped of Agencies
and make you mentally restless. things.
GEMINI May 20 - June 20 You will have CAPRICORN December 21 - January 19
to pay close attention to what’s going on Your creativity will be extremely high and
around you.Ambition and dedication now you will be ready to unleash your artistic
R Boston Universi-
ty (BU) Centre for
Systems Neuroscience
their details over time, why do many
people retain vivid recollections of
an event even years later? Why do
will help you to get ahead.Tomorrow, your side. Be prepared to have the spotlight have suggested that scents scents processed in the hippocam-
feet will be back on the ground and you shine directly on you. You will be deter- or odours have a great pus trigger dormant memories?
will see things in a more practical light. mined and focused but being intractable ability to stimulate the For the study, Ramirez created
Making a few short trips will be beneficial. will create challenges at workplace. Un- memory of past encoun- fear memories in mice by giving
CANCER June 21 - July 21 This will be expected events will bring out your sensi- ters and also a tool to treat them a series of harmless but star-
a good time to listen to your intuition.Your tivity. memory-related mood dis- tling electric shocks. During the
mind may not have its usual sharpness AQUARIUS January 20 - February 18 You orders. shocks, half of the mice were ex-
and you may be easily distracted. Intensi- can be absent-minded but you also have “If odour could be used posed to the scent of almond extract,
fy your ambitious and overbearing side. keen perception,so,read the body language to elicit the rich recollec- while the other half were not ex-
You will be more secretive. Try not to be of the people you are dealing with. Impul- tion of a memory – even posed to any scent. After 20 days,
stubborn and inflexible.Appointments will siveness that’s out of character will have to
of a traumatic experience once again, the mice in the odour
keep you busy. be kept in check today. You may still want
LEO July 22 - August 21 The thought of to try your luck and spin the wheel of for- – we could take advantage group got a whiff of almond extract
all the new possibilities awaiting you is tune for fun. of that (therapeutically),” Odour could be used to elicit a recollection of during their session, while the no-
enough to bring a smile to your face. Con- PISCES February 19 - March 19 Expect said BU neuroscientist a memory, even of a traumatic experience odour group was not exposed to any
nect with those around you who share sim- to take work home or to be overwhelmed Steve Ramirez, assistant scent. But this time, neither group re-
ilar viewpoints and watch the incredible re- with added responsibilities that cut into professor of psychology and brain sciences and senior ceived any new electric shocks. As expected, in the no-
sults unfold! You will have the urge to be your personal time. Sit down and face your author of the study. The traditional theory suggests that odour group, processing of the fear memory had shifted
creative but you will experience a block problem squarely and make the right de- our memories start out being processed by the hip- to the prefrontal cortex – but the odour group still had sig-
and feel inhibited. cision for yourself. Be direct and honest pocampus, which infuses them with rich details. Over nificant brain activity in the hippocampus.“(This find-
VIRGO August 22 - September 21 Some in all your dealings, even though you may time, the memory becomes processed by the front of the ing suggests) that we can bias the hippocampus to come
people who aren’t particularly trustworthy want to escape reality. brain and many of the details become lost in the shuffle. back online at a time point when we would not expect it
might decide to attach to your coattails for However, critics ask if memories slip out of the hip- to be online anymore,” Ramirez said. ANI

TELEVISION MOVIES ON TV

0630 Sneak Peek

0645 Kadak Start
0800 Music Takatak
1030 Likes Bajao
1200 Toofani Hits
1300 Fab 10 ‘The Girl Next Door’
1400 Loudspeaker at 2100 Hrs ‘Tanu Weds Manu Returns’
1500 Teleslot ‘Rambo First Blood: Part II’ at 2100 Hrs
1055 Marley & Me at 2100 Hrs ‘Evolution (2001)’
1600 Toofani Hits ‘Baaghi 2’ 0742 Buddha In A Traffic Jam
1300 Hitch at 2100 Hrs
1700 Shaamdaar Hits 0845 Hollow Man 0845 National Treasure: Book of Secrets ‘Drishyam’ at 1955 Hrs ‘No 1 Businessman’ 0921 Roja
1455 Eat Pray Love
1900 Boht Hard 1045 Daredevil 1050 Salt at 2130 Hrs 0715 Prem Ratan Dhan Paayo at 2000 Hrs ‘Hathkadi’ 1136 Raman Raghav 2.0
1710 Shoulder Arms
2000 Loudspeaker 1240 New Police Story 1230 Bruce Almighty 1040 Golmaal Again 0810 Vidroh- Let’s Fight Back at 2100 Hrs 1337 Kadvi Hawa
1805 Series : Jane The Virgin 0630 Express Khiladi
2100 Planet Bollywood 1445 Spiderman 3 1425 Bad Boys 2 1355 Garv - Pride And Honour 1125 Mera Badla Revenge - 2 0826 Maang Bharo Sajana 1514 Mukkabaaz
1900 Series : Parks And Recreation 0945 Jai Ho
News 1705 Domestic 1705 Insidious: The Last Key 1700 Indiansoldier Never On Holiday- 1420 Teri Meherbaniyan 1143 Raja Hindustani 1742 Aligarh
1930 Series : 30 Rock 1300 Biwi No.1
2130 E Town News 1905 Universal Soldier: Regeneration 1855 Charlie’s Angels 1530 Sanju Thuppakki 1700 Paapi Devtaa 1525 Loafer 1933 Sniff
2000 The Ellen DeGeneres Show
2200 Toofani Hits 2100 Rambo First Blood: Part II 2100 Evolution (2001) 1900 Vardi Ka Dum 1955 Baaghi 2 2000 No 1 Businessman 1740 Phool Aur Kante 2100 Tanu Weds Manu Returns
2100 The Girl Next Door
2300 Happily Ever After 2300 Five Superfighters 2305 Misconduct 2130 Drishyam 2300 The Great Veera 2230 Arya Ki Prem Pratigya 2100 Hathkadi 2305 Agent Vinod
2255 Little Manhattan
2330 Loudspeaker
WEDNESDAY 25 MARCH 2020
JAIPUR IS TALKING ABOUT
JAIPUR TIMES, THE TIMES OF INDIA
3

Himansh Kohli
is quarantining
with a few
novels and
biographies
Social distancing? Time to pick a new
hobby or re-discover the old ones!
...CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
I BOUGHT AT LEAST
“I was into poetry during college and participated in po-
etry slams too,” he tells us, “But I had limited myself HALF A DOZEN BOOKS
only to reading and not writing over the last so many
years. I finally had both the time and the motivation to FROM THE BOOK FAIR
write this week.” His first poem in five years was actu- LAST YEAR. BUT I HAVE
ally about social distancing. Deepkiran, an IT profes-
sional from Vasant Kunj, adds, “My husband and I had
NOT EVEN TOUCHED
bonded over our love for painting but over the years, THEM. NOW THAT I AM
as I settled in my career, I lost touch. Last week, as
I was at home, I started with sketching and then,
WORKING FROM HOME,
this weekend, graduating to watercolours. My I HAVE FINALLY
husband joined, too and it was the most fun we
have had doing an activity in ages.”
RESUMED READING
– Sudheer Verma, a 37-year-old
For many, it is akin to getting reacquainted with
banker from west Delhi
an old friend. Sudheer Verma, a 37-year-old banker
from west Delhi, says, “When I was in college, I was
a ‘one book per week’ kind of person. I would read
for six to eight hours a day without break but it quick-
ly reduced when I started working. I bought at least
half a dozen books from the book fair last year. But
I have not even touched them. Now that I am work- Gardening is fun, you can ask Amrita
ing from home, I have finally resumed reading. It Prakash. The actress is quite busy
will be the first book I will finish in years.” organising her balcony garden these days
LEARNING NEW SKILLS ONLINE
Then there are those who have used this free time have reached a point that I practise it almost
to engage in new activities and hobbies or even two hours every day.”
learn new skills. Following the lead of Katrina GETTING AROUND TO A THING YOU’D
Kaif, who posted a video of learning guitar on PROMISED YOURSELF YOU’D LEARN
her social media, Gurgaon-based consultant Rid- There are several things over the years that we
ham Ahuja, too, picked up a guitar. “I had always think we would get around to but keep procras-
wanted to learn the guitar but could never find tinating. The upside of being trapped at home
I BOUGHT A the time. Now, I have nothing but time on my hand. with several hours to kill was that the procrasti-
So I took out my brother’s guitar and started to
PROFESSIONAL watch YouTube tutorials. It is only two days, so I
nation finally ended. Tanmay Shankar, a school
teacher from Noida, says, “People would always
CAMERA, BUT NEVER can’t say if I’m getting any good but it’s quite fun,” tell me that I had a good eye for clicking pictures.
he tells us. Learning a musical instrument seems
GOT AROUND TO to be the favourite among NCR’s working pro-
I had even bought a professional camera, but nev-
er got around to properly exploring it. Now I have
PROPERLY EXPLORING fessionals when it comes to dabbling in a new finally got it out and I am clicking away. Since I can’t
IT. NOW I HAVE FINALLY skill. “I discovered my dad’s old harmonica in the
house,” says Delhi resident Archita Maheshwari,
get anyone to teach me, I read some articles online
and watched tutorials to get the basics right. The
GOT IT OUT AND I AM who works in the hospitality industry, adding, “I downside is that right now, I can only click within
CLICKING AWAY had never quite understood how it worked and I
decided to give it a shot on my second day of work
We know the gyms are closed, but how about my house or from the balcony. But I am preparing
– Tanmay Shankar, Tahira Kashyap Khurrana has started working out at home? Vivek Dahiya has been myself to be a better photographer when this ends
a school teacher from Noida from home. It took me a few attempts and lots of and I can go out more freely.”
painting at home. An old hobby, it seems! exercising at home during the #CoronaTimes
tutorials online to get the hang of it but now I

Gaming at an all-time high with rise in home quarantine
GLOBAL STATS
The gaming platform Steam
registered 19,728,027
concurrent players this month,
and is soon set to hit
20 million
users for the first time.
...CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 SO WHAT IF MATCHES ARE CANCELLED? SPORT STARS
CHEAP AND STRESS- FACE OFF IN VIRTUAL TOURNAMENTS INSTEAD
For the first time since its release in
RELIEVING Sporting events across the world have been cancelled due
to calls for social distancing, in an effort to “flatten the
2012, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive “Games are a good source of distraction, and
curve” of the pandemic. And so, several sports stars are
recently saw 1 million concurrent that is something people really need right
now switching to consoles.
players, while DOTA now. They also automatically help you cut
G After their match was cancelled on field, Spanish foot-
2 recorded
down on stress,” says Komal Uttamchandani,
a practicing psychologist from Pune. The
ballers Borja Iglesias and Sergio Reguilón, from the Real
Betis and Sevilla teams, decided to play each other in FIFA
700,000. games enjoying the maximum popularity are
the free-to-play mobile games available for
20 online. The match was watched by over 60,000 people.
G The English club Leyton Orient is also organising a ‘FIFA
download.
Quaran-Team’ tournament, that will see teams from various
According to the gaming platform Steam,
countries, including England and Australia, participate.
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive hit an all time
Meanwhile, the basketball team The Phoenix Suns also an-
peak of 1,024,845 players last weekend
nounced that they will finish their season “virtually” on NBA
whereas PUBG and Dota 2, recorded 5,15,050
2K20.
and 7,01,632 players, respectively. The
G Arsenal midfielder Mesut Ozil, defender Sead Kolasinac
platform has attributed this unprecedented
and Paris Saint-Germain winger Julian Draxler traded their
rise in players to the fact that more people are
football for virtual guns and live-streamed their Fortnite bat-
staying home due to the coronavirus
tle for fans. At the same time, professional athletes like Ben
pandemic.
Simmons and Juju Smith-Schuster tried their hand at a Call
of Duty: Warzone tournament. Proceeds from the event,
dubbed Fight 2 Fund will go towards charities helping those
MULTIPLAYER GAMES affected by COVID-19
ARE AN OUTLET FOR

GA L L ERIA
SOCIALISING TEES inter=
While gamers are known as introverts in the
offline world, online, it’s a completely differ-
ent story.
EUROPE For example, multiplayer games like World
In Italy, when schools shut down, children grabbed their consoles, leading to a of Warcraft and Call Of Duty connect people II JAI MATA DI II
from across the world, who bond over a
huge spike in internet traffic. shared interest. This can be a source of com-
“We reported an increase of more than 70% of Internet traffic over our landline fort during quarantine.
network, with a big contribution from online gaming such as Fortnite,” a telecom In fact, Discord – a popular voice chat app, M il .

exec told a publication. They added that Call Of Duty was also partly to blame. electric
that helps people live stream video games –

Makes you '

The ESL Pro League that kicked off this week - split into two divisions, North has expanded its features recently from 10 to Jil
American and European - which features the game Counter-Strike: Global Offen- 50 users, to help people feel less isolated and
sive, reported a 27% increase in audience since last year.
feelhome
stressed out.

_ ,®
Simar Sethi, 21, who has been in the gam-
again.
There has also been a “sharp increase” in downloads of the video game
streaming app, Twitch, in Europe, including Italy and Greece ing profession since 2015, adds, “A lot of peo-
ple are quarantined alone at home right now,
and gaming is one way they can connect with
CHINA others without leaving their home. Over the electric
Sales of Chinese mobile games went up by 32% in the first week of February past few days, I’ve personally interacted with
compared to the year before, according to data from Sensor Tower. players around the world, who have told me
Popular mobile games Honor of Kings, PUBG, and League of Legends have also about the situation in their respective coun-
seen double the amount of players. tries. It also makes you feel that you aren’t
Video game live-streaming apps like Douyu and Huya have also seen an 18% fighting it alone.”
Ankit Pant, who has been a professional
rise in viewership for games such as Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) and gamer since the past 13 years, adds, “I am
League of Legends (LoL) teams. unable to physically meet my friends right
now. So, I invite them all online to play a p = Q p 0
USA game instead. This is one way we get to Authorised Prime C&F Agent for Rajasthan:
There has been a 75% increase in video game usage during peak hours, accord-
ing to US telecommunications company Verizon
spend time with each other.”
LEADER SALES CORPORATION , JAIPUR
Ph.: 0141-2373090,2368056, 2364227,9829052403,9784804227,9829131165

( I VE SS inter %

qg 2 2 q , 5
r For Enquir

Mission Admission
DISEASE-THEMED GAMES Contact:
Paya l:
IN DEMAND
It’s not just the movie Contagion that’s having a bit of a moment right
now.
Games like Plague, Inc. - that lets users play the role of a pathogen
hell-bent on turning into a plague as humanity fights back - are most
in-demand in the US (where it attracted praise from the CDC) and
China (where it has now been banned).
In fact, recently, more than 130 million players crashed the Plague,
Inc website. The last time the game had enjoyed this popularity was 419-A , Pushpak Marg, Nemi Sagar Play
during the Ebola outbreak in 2014. sE * 31T` A 9799999731 Colony, Nr. Jain Fertility Hospital, Group to
“The sudden interest in everything epidemic and virus-related al-
lows people an avenue which can help to process what’s going on,” -o« --- -- INTERNATIONAL PRE-SCHOOL Vaishali Nagar , Jaipur HKG
Robert Bartholomew, a medical sociologist who explores mass hyste-

CII D-223, Behind Fire Brigade, Tulsi Marg, Bani Park

KENW RLD
ria, told a news agency recently, adding, “It’s well-known in psychol-
7073888991
1 *i S
ogy that the process of talking about traumatic events can help peo- Pla GXoup
ooL D-92 p, Nr. Collectrate, Meera Marg, Bani Park
ple ‘get it off their chest’ and relieve stress.” 9799996565 50-51, Lane # 1, Gandi Path, Vaishali Ngr. `o
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4 JAIPUR TIMES, THE TIMES OF INDIA
BACK BEAT WEDNESDAY 25 MARCH 2020

#CoronaShutdown TANVI DOGRA

Travel plans cancelled but celebs agree that ‘IT WAS

BEST
DECISION
TO CANCEL

health & duty towards society come first

TRIP’
I was to attend a
wedding with my
family in Punjab.
We had booked
With transport restrictions imposed all over India to stem the tickets for this
trip for almost
spread of coronavirus, travel plans of many celebs also stand three months
‘I WILL cancelled. But they all agree that health and society come first ago. We all were
SPEND TIME AT quite excited about it
but we have called off
HOME IN MUMBAI the plan now. I think
WITH MY WIFE’ ‘I AM it was the best
decision, given
I was to go to Jaipur to attend a friend’s wed-
ding. I was also planning to spend some quality
STAYING the scenario. In
time with my parents. Actors generally don’t AT HOME fact, after this, I
have been
get long breaks to travel because of
professional commitments. It’s been
WITH MY proactively advising
many months since I went to WIFE AND people to stay home
and socially distance
Jaipur. After the corona out-
break and lockdown, I decid-
MY DOG’ themselves to curb
ed to cancel the plan and the coronavirus pan-
spend some time at demic.
home in Mumbai
with my wife.

‘WE SHOULD
STAND
SANJAY GAGNANI STRONG AS
ANIRUDDH DAVE I had booked tickets to go to Bhopal for a very A NATION’
close friend’s wedding, who happens to be actor
Zaan Khan’s brother. But as the coronavirus situa-
tion developed, my parents made me cancel the
tickets. Now, I am staying at home and spending
time with my wife Poonam and my dog Flirty.

AASIF SHEIKH
‘SELF-ISOLATION ‘I WAS TO GO TO
THE BEST WAY JAIPUR TO MEET
TO FIGHT’ MY FAMILY’
‘NO TRAVEL
PLAN OR I was supposed to travel to
Jaipur in April to meet my
WORK IS AS family after four months.
But it was only a sensible
IMPORTANT and rational decision to
AS ONE’S cancel the plan and stay
home. My parents of-
HEALTH’ fered to visit me in
Mumbai but I requested
them to stay put at RAHUL SHARMA
home. It is my humble
My wife and kids were to go to request to everyone to I was supposed to come to Jaipur for
Goa before me and I was to join refrain from stepping out an appearance at an NGO’s event.
ROHITASHV GOUR them for three days a week later. Dausa is also my hometown and I
of their homes. Hum ghar
We had planned our stay at a vil- ke andar toh corona was looking forward to
On my birthday on March 24, I had la in south Goa. But in light of meet my parents. But in these
planned a simple celebration with bahar. As citi-
the coronavirus outbreak, we zens of this dark times, we should
my family and sister-in-law, whom decided to cancel our trip. We collectively stand strong as
I was going to meet after three country, we
must understand the severity must follow a nation and follow the
years. My wife and daughters of this situation and take all precautionary measures.
were equally excited. We had these proto-
necessary steps to safeguard cols to curb My show Lukka Chuppi’s
planned a fun road trip to M’how ourselves and our loved ones. shoot is stalled, like other
in Indore. However, we will now the spread
No travel plan or work is as im- of the shows, and I am spending
celebrate my birthday at home. portant as one’s health. Main- quality time with myself.
Self-isolation is the best way to virus.
taining social distance is crucial- NIRBHAY WADHWA
tackle the spread of this conta- ly important to protect yourself.
gious pandemic. — Neha.Choudhary@timesgroup.com

Halsey and Evan Greg calls coronavirus battle

‘hardest experience’ of his life
Peters split up? T
he Young And The Restless star Greg
Rikaart, who revealed on Monday that
he had tested positive for coronavirus,
says it’s been the “hardest experience” of his
life, a website reports. “I am a pretty healthy
43-year-old who doesn’t smoke, doesn’t drink
much, eats well and exercises regularly and
this has been the hardest experience of my
life,” Greg wrote on Instagram, adding, “Two
plus weeks ago, everyone in my house had a
bit of a cough and my son came home from
school with a high fever. Everyone recovered,
but I deteriorated. I isolated from my family
and have been in solo quarantine since 14th.”
“I had a fever for 11 days, difficulty breath-
ing and was diagnosed with pneumonia. I’m
confident that I have finally turned the
proverbial corner and am fever free today for
the first time since this all started. I was told
to stay isolated for another 72 hours before I
acclimate back into my family. So, nice try
coronavirus, but I have another 4-5 decades
worth of experiences to have with these
guys.” Greg added. Agencies Greg Rikaart, who had tested positive for coron-
avirus, says he is doing better and is fever free now

Taylor breaks silence Michelle Williams gets

Halsey and Evan Peters
over leaked Kanye video hitched to Thomas Kail i c h e l l e
were first linked together
romantically in
September last year T
aylor Swift has spoken up
about her leaked conversa-
tion with Kanye — and is
urging fans to focus on more im-
M Williams
and Thomas
Kail have reportedly
portant matters. “Instead of an- tied the knot in a se-
swering those who are asking how cret ceremony, ac-
I feel about the video footage that cording to a website.
leaked, proving that I was telling The actor, 39, and di-
peculations are rife that pop star Halsey the truth the whole time about *that rector, 43 – who met on

S and actor Evan Peters are no longer to-

gether, after the former deleted all of their
pictures from social media. However, a picture of
call* (you know, the one that was
illegally recorded, that somebody
edited and manipulated in order
to frame me and put me, my fami-
the sets of a TV show
last year – are cur-
rently expecting a
child together. The
them celebrating Valentine’s Day in Switzerland
is still up on the Without You singer’s Instagram ly and fans through hell for four couple was also spot-
WORLD RAP

page. “Life is going swimmingly. Happy Valen- years)…swipe up to see what real- ted sporting wedding
tine’s Day,” she had captioned a picture of herself ly matters,” wrote Swift on her In- rings recently, and a
sitting on top of Evans’ shoulder inside an infin- stagram stories, referencing to the source confirmed to a
ity pool. A website also reported that Halsey was 25-minute long video that leaked US tabloid that the two
back in touch with ex-boyfriend musician Yung- late Friday night of her infamous had gotten married.
blud, whom she dated before Evans. phone call with Kanye West dis- Taylor Swift is asking her fans to It was reported in
cussing his song Famous’ lyrics. late December 2019, Michelle Williams and Thomas Kail are
After Halsey posted a picture of her making focus on donating to organisations
“The World Health Organisation that Michelle – who has also expecting a child together
dinner on Sunday, captioned, “first crack at mak-
ing a Sunday dinner #YorkshireCertified”, the and Feeding America are some of sis,” continued Swift, directing fans a 14-year-old daughter Vol 13, No. 81

rapper replied, “can confirm” along the a photo the organisations I’ve been donating to organisations that are in need dur- Matilda with late actor Registration No is RJENG/2008/25534.
Published for the proprietors, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. by Hitesh Bagai at 8-9
with a check mark and heart emoji. to. If you have the ability to, please ing the coronavirus pandemic. Heath Ledger – was Anupam Chambers, Tonk Road, Jaipur 302015, and printed by him at M/S, DB
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Agencies join me in donating during this cri- Agencies pregnant and engaged Railway Crossing, Tonk Road, Jaipur.
Editor (Jaipur Market): Anshul Chaturvedi – responsible for selection of news
to Kail. Agencies under PRB Act. Tel no. (Editorial): 2850120; (Response): 2745555.