MUMBAI, SATURDAY, APRIL 18, 2020 MUMBAIMIRROR.com 16* Pages PRICE Rs 3.00 or 7.

16* Pages PRICE Rs 3.00 or 7.00 along with The Times of India

FORECAST | TEMP Colaba Max 33 Min 25 | SantaCruz Max 35 Min 25 To advertise with us, call 1800 120 5474 | To order your copy, call 1800 120 0004 toll free or visit https://subscribe.timesgroup.com

More than a
Recruitment advertisement clearest indication yet WhatsApp rant
that Covid-19 battle is going to last months, not weeks Andheri lawyer
moves intl
BMC offers top docs court against
China over
coronavirus
three-month contracts Ashish Sohani, who
practises in the Bombay
High Court, files petition in
the International Criminal

at SevenHills Hospital
Court saying China’s
actions amounted to crime
against humanity

Civic body to hire 30 | Alka Dhupkar

alaka.dhupkar@timesgroup.com
tisement for SevenHills Hospital
-- its second most important
80,000 for MBBS doctors, Rs
60,000 for BAMS, Rs 50,000 for
senior consultants TWEETS @alka_MIRROR
institution after Kasturba in the BHMS, Rs 30,000 for nurses and

T
and intensivists, 90 he BMC is going on a
hiring spree to fill va-
assistant medical cancies at its frontline
Covid-19 treatment
officers and 400 and isolation centres
as it appears to be
nurses for the knuckling down for a prolonged
battle that could last not weeks
Andheri hospital but a few months at the least.
Through a recruitment adver-
battle -- the civic body is seeking
to hire 30 senior consultants and
intensivists, ten anaesthetists,
three nephrologists, a neurolo-
gist, a cardiologist, 90 assistant
medical officers (MBBS, BAMS,
and BHMS) and 400 nurses.
Each is being offered a three-
month contract, with fixed sala-
ries – Rs 3.5 lakh a month for
consultants and intensivists, Rs
Rs 20,000 for ward boys.
Interviews will be held on April
20 at Sion Hospital.
Mumbai recorded 77 new
cases on Friday, taking the total
number to 2120 and maintain-
ing its position as the country’s
worst-hit city. There were five
deaths and the toll now stands Ashish Sohani says he has
at 121. a strong case
CONTINUED ON PAGE 4 »
| Vijay.Tagore
@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @vijaymirror

A
lot of people, includ-
ing Donald Trump, are
blaming China for the
NILESH WAIRKAR

Covid-19 mess that has

already claimed around
1.46 lakh lives, locked down
the planet, and pushed global
economy to the brink. Ashish
Sohani, a lawyer from Andheri
who practises in the Bombay High
Court, wanted to do more than
just forward anti-China messages
on WhatsApp and rant on Twitter.
Hence, he moved the Interna-
tional Criminal Court (ICC)
against China for “not contain-
ing” the pandemic and allowing it
to spread outside its borders. The
33-page petition demands

INSIDE» IN MMR TODAY NEW CASES 95 DEATHS 8

CONTINUED ON PAGE 4 »

Cops to arrange funerals for old, unclaimed bodies to make space RAJU SHINE
There are an estimated 250-300 unclaimed bodies from before the outbreak at morgues across
the city, which need to be moved out soon in view of the rising number of Covid-19 deaths
| Raju Shinde and Alka Dhupkar the outbreak are cremated or buried Nagpada hospital, told Mumbai
mirrorfeedback@timesgroup.com urgently to free up space. This only Mirror that he has received orders
applies to unclaimed bodies whose from seniors to bury or cremate
TWEETS @MumbaiMirror identities are not disputed. Although these bodies at the earliest.
there are no official numbers, it is “Generally, unclaimed bodies are

W
ith the number of
Covid-19 deaths in Mum-
bai rising every day, the
city police have instructed
various police stations to ensure
Dr S M Patil, police surgeon at Nagpada hospital, said there are 158 that bodies that have been lying
such bodies in five morgues under his jurisdiction unclaimed at morgues since before
estimated that there are between 250
and 300 such unclaimed bodies at
various mortuaries across the city,
including at JJ, Rajawadi, Cooper,
Bhagwati, Siddharth hospital, KEM,
Sion and Nair hospitals.
Dr S M Patil, police surgeon at
cremated or buried after eight days
but in Mumbai we wait a little long-
er as it is possible that relatives from
elsewhere could be trying to get in
touch,” he said.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 4 »

City
SHOBHAA DE
TALK TIME
Life lessons from she who knows better
Write to her at mirrorfeedback@timesgroup.com
We all live in a
yellow submarine
J
is din lockdown khatam hoga,
logon ka naya drama start ho
jayega - Miss my Quaran-
tine days.” Whosoever
came up with that brilliant
meme featuring Nana Patekar
deserves an award for reading the
mood accurately. At the moment,
we are dealing with this difficult
period by distracting/deluding
ourselves, and doing a pretty good
job of it, too. We greedily feed on
videos posted by our favourite
Bollywood stars as they stage
photo-ops featuring domestic
chores. We gasp each time Taimur
shows up taking gardening les-
sons from his dad. Or Ranveer
bakes a cake for Deepika. Cho
Chweet, we coo. And wonder
where the rest of the Bollywood’s
Insta-fixated regulars have dis-
appeared. Some (Julia and Jacque-
line) are hanging out at Salman
Khan’s sprawling Panvel farm-
house. We know this through his
posts and theirs, as they while
away the hours riding his magnif-
icent steeds and indulging in
organic farming. But the others?
There are cruel memes galore
caricaturing the usual Insta sus-
pects hiding their faces since –
oops - the fillers have fallen off.
Yes, calamities do sometimes
bring out the worst in us. What to
do? We are weak creatures, and in
distressing times, we hang on to
anything that makes us cackle
gleefully - at someone else’s ex-
pense, of course.
Not everything out there is as
sadistic or mean. There are several
inspiring/delightful posts with
strong messaging that make one
smile. Two ads stand out: The very
clever and imaginatively execut-
ed Air India commercial, which
shows paper missiles being
chucked by Air India staffers to
colleagues, who deftly catch and
open the crumpled balls. No
words are spoken. Each message
on the sheet is shown to the cam-
era. The last one reads: ‘We will be
back, stronger than ever.’ The
participants are bright and full of
good cheer, conveying a much
needed upbeat mood. It certainly
made my day when I watched it.
As did the commercial for Titan,
which has an appropriate word in
place of numerals on a watch.
Precisely 12 words that say it all -
‘Just Like These Numbers We Too
Can Be Apart Yet Be Together.’
Then the baseline: ‘This Too Shall
Pass. Give It Time.’ Splendid.
Some say creativity gets honed
and heightened during a crisis.
That maybe true. Recall that old
chestnut – ‘Necessity is the mother
of all inventions’? At the moment,
the entire world is literally and
metaphorically holding its breath
for just one invention – the vac-
CORONAVIRUS OUTBRE AK
cine. Till we find one, all these
strenuous lockdown efforts seem
a bit superfluous and futile. From
SATISH MALAVADE
my balcony, I can spot hundreds
of slum dwellers squatting by the
shore or precariously perched on a
walkway jutting into the small
bay. They have no other place to
relieve themselves. The women
wait for darkness to descend
before they can ‘go’. It is a com-
mon problem across our city.
Where do the poor go to do their
daily business? How do you ‘seal’
overcrowded, filthy localities
which lack bathrooms and san-
itation? Is it humanly possible to
keep people who are this desper-
ately poor from straying outside a
designated area? Should they be
moving their bowels on the door-
steps of their hovels? Peeing into a
bucket next to the chulla where
their meagre meals are being
cooked?
What of those without any
means of support, who live on the
kindness of strangers? Like an
elderly Parsee lady, close to de-
hydration and starvation, who is
barely alive, that too in a very
posh area? With no relatives to
feed her, and just a watchman
posted at the gate to look after the
property (not her!), how long will
she survive under these extreme
circumstances? There are thou-
sands like her around our city.
How does one even reach them
and offer help? Pets are badly hit,
too. Try taking one to a vet (essen-
tial service). You may be pulled up
and told to stop ‘loitering’. As our
help was. The cop told him, “Jab
insaan mar rahey hain, who cares
about a dog?” Vets themselves are
unable to help very much since
their assistants cannot come to
work. Stores have run out of pet
food. Desperate owners are aban-
doning beloved dogs, unable to
look after them. The poor crea-
tures can be seen in an emaciated
condition, lost and dehydrated,
pathetically whimpering while
Santacruz where essential commodities were being
looking for their masters.
Let’s see what happens on
April 20. Citizens have pinned
their hopes on major announce-
ments, and the possibility of a
phased relaxation of lockdown
rules. “When all this is over…” is a
phrase one constantly hears.
Well… God knows when that will
happen. It could be as late as
mid-next year, according to
global experts. Till then, let’s keep
ourselves amused. I’d rather
watch Katrina Kaif prettily wield-
ing a jhadoo in her spacious living
room, than listen to those crazed
television anchors giving us more
terrible news.
OK, going back into my yellow
submarine now. Will surface next
week. Same space. Same time.
Umasankar2
MumbaiMirror
Saturday, April 18, 2020
mirrorfeedback@timesgroup.com
facebook.com/themumbaimirror
@MumbaiMirror
BMC’s new testing
protocol empties out
quarantine centres
Since patients’ asymptomatic contacts will not be aggressively tested,BMC is either sending
them home or moving them to schools, hotels, lodges that have toilets attached to rooms
A municipal school in Dharavi that’s now housing 167 residents. Mobile toilets have been provided and a
kitchen is operating out of the ground floor. The school has the capacity to take in 500 people
RAJU SHINDE
Chaitanya.Marpakwar
@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @chaiMIRROR
I was asked to leave
the PWD guesthouse
W
ith the BMC excluding
asymptomatic con-
tacts of Covid-19 pa-
since two of my tests
tients from its new so far came back
testing protocol, large negative. But I have
halls it had acquired and turned into
no toilet in my house.
institutional quarantine centres be-
gan emptying out on Friday. I will have to
A total of 167 residents of Dhara- depend on the
vi, who were moved into the Rajiv community toilet
Gandhi Sports Complex in the area —A 40-year-old from Worli whose
after the slum cluster reported its first mother died of Covid-19
case last month, have been shifted to
en has been set up on the ground
a local municipal school. “We have are stamping their hands to show
kept one fam- floor.” that they are under home quaran-
ily per Even the National Sports Club of tine and moving them out. They will
India’s dome, which was the not be tested until they begin to
Biker who spat city’s first sports facility to be show symptoms of the disease.”
on Manipuri woman held turned into a quarantine A40-year-old resident of Jijamata
Nearly a fortnight after a biker spat on a centre with 500 beds last, Nagar slum in Worli, one of the Co-
has been completely va- vid-19 hotspots, who was moved out
25-year-old Manipuri woman near Kalina, the
cated. It will begin ac- of institutional quarantine from the
police on Friday arrested a 23-year-old Kurla
cepting positive but PWD guesthouse in Andheri West,
resident, Amir Khan, for the attack. On April 6, the
asymptomatic pa- said sending people home may back-
woman was walking towards the military camp in
tients from Saturday. fire. “My mother died of Covid-19.
For asymptomatic My father and father-in-law tested
distributed, when Khan slowed his bike down, spat
positive patients, the positive, too. I was asked to leave
on her and sped away. Kailas Avhad, senior
BMC has launched since two of my tests so far came back
Vakola police inspector, said they tracked Khan
seven Corona Care negative. But I have no toilet in my
down with the help of CCTV footage. Days before
Centres with a capacity house. I will have to depend on the
this attack, a man in Delhi had spat
of 519 beds. Till Friday, 473 community toilet,” he said, adding
on a Manipuri woman, called her
such patients were isolated at that he has been ordered to be home
coronavirus and fled on a scooter.
these centres. quarantined till May 1.
—Vallabh Ozarkar
class- Since the protocol doesn’t make With the testing norms relaxed,
room. The exemptions for high-risk contacts ei- health workers are waiting for pa-
sports complex has been vacated,” ther—the new rule says all asympto- tients with symptoms to report
said Kiran Dighavkar, assistant mu- matic contacts can be tested only be- themselves at the several ‘fever clin-
nicipal commissioner of G-North tween days 5 and 14 to prevent ics’ set up in areas that have reported
ward. He said only asymptomatic chances of false negatives—resi- a clutch of Covid-19 cases.
positive patients will now be kept at dents who have a toilet inside their As on April 15, 43,249 contacts
the sports complex. “We can house house have been asked to home- were in home quarantine, while
500 people at the municipal school. quarantine. 3,271 were in institutional quaran-
We can increase the strength to 799. A senior civic official said some tine. The BMC has traced 45,768
Mobile toilets have been brought in others are also being directed to ho- low-risk contacts and 8,219 high-risk
since the classrooms don’t have at- tels and lodges that have independ- contacts. A total of 10,738 people
tached toilets. A community kitch- ent rooms with attached toilets. “We have completed their quarantine.
 City
MumbaiMirror
Quarantine over, Worli locals return home
The 129 residents of Worli-Koliwada were sent to an isolation facility at Podar hospital on April 1after their close contacts tested positive
NILESH WAIRKAR
Linah Baliga
@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @MumbaiMirror
A
pplause and cheers greeted
129 Worli residents who left
Podar hospital at midnight
on April 14 after completing
their 14-day quarantine. After a few
people tested positive for coronavirus
in the Worli-Koliwada area, the close
contacts of the patients were ferried
to the isolation facility at the hospital
on April 1as a precautionary measure.
The BMC and the police clapped
for the residents as they emerged
from the hospital with their belong-
ings, ready to board buses waiting to
take them home, after having tested
negative. The BMC has instructed
them to stay put at home till April 28
and not venture out.
Recalling the day they were taken
to the hospital, Ankita Takke, from Ja-
nata Colony, a Worli Koliwada resi-
dent said that she had gone to Kastur-
ba hospital in an ambulance to get
herself tested after a friend tested pos-
itive.
When she and her family returned
to the locality that night, locals did
not allow them to enter and there was
Cop’s son designs hands-free sanitising chamber
The M-Tech student wanted to minimise the risk of infection for the police force. Built at a cost of Rs 15,000, the unit is operated via a pedal
The unit is fitted with a 14-litre tank filled with a mixture of 2 ltr
sanitiser and 12 ltr water. Once inside, the user has to push a pedal
which activates a high-powered pump that sprays the disinfectant
mist through two nozzles
K 3
CORONAVIRUS OUTBRE A
A police march in Lalji pada, Ekta Nagar and Ganesh Nagar in Malad on Friday
a squabble till late at night. They were
then taken to Podar hospital along
with others on buses on April 1.
Takke praised the facilities provid-
ed by BMC. “For the first few days, the
food was inedible and the toilets were
unclean. But things improved a lot af-
ter we complained. They served us po-
ha and upma with chai for breakfast.
For lunch, they provided us roti, dal,
rice, veggies and rice and even kheer.
At 4 pm they served biscuits and tea.
For dinner, they served dal, roti, veg-
gies and rice with fruits. Whatever we
demanded - whether hair oil or sham-
poo - was provided to us,” she said.
When asked about how she feels
being back home she said, “It feels
Vinay.Dalvi
@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @MumbaiMirror
A
police constable’s son has
designed a cost-effective
sanitising chamber that
does away with the need to
touch anything for operat-
ing it. The unit, which has been made
for a production cost of merely Rs
15,000, has already been installed at
five police stations in the city, and or-
ders for more are pouring in.
Devised by Amit Kolekar, a final
year M-Tech student of Rajaram Bapu
Institute of Technology in Sangli, the
unit allows frontline workers to be dis-
infected from head to toe within sec-
onds. And instead of requiring hand-
held operation which increases the
risk of infection, all the users have to
do is push a pedal with their foot to ac-
tivate it. Two nozzles fitted inside the
enclosure then spray a mist of sanitis-
ing liquid. A 10-second ‘sanitising
bath’ is enough to disinfect any sur-
face, Kolekar says.
“We were worried as my father
would step out for work while most ev-
eryone got the option to work from
home. As protection, all he had was a
bottle of sanitiser and a mask. He him-
self worried that he may pass on the vi-
rus to us after coming home,” said the
23-year-old Kalyan resident.
His father Samabhaji Kolekar is at-
tached to the Mumbai Police’s Local
Arms department (LA) in Naigaon,
Dadar East.
Kolekar, who has a bachelor’s de-
gree in mechanical engineering, got a
pump from a nearby godown, a few
nozzles, a pedal and a shower, and got
down to work.
Saturday, April 18, 2020
good but I feel I was more safe there as
there are still positive cases emerging
here. People in Worli village are living
in fear."
Takke, who was quarantined with
her three sisters and entire family at
Podar hospital, spent her days chitch-
atting and watching movies on the
phone. She added that some people
The unit has already been installed at the Bhiwandi Traffic Chowki
(above), and at Kalachowkie, Kon, Narpoli and Mankoli police stations
“In college, we are taught how to
work with boilers, pumps and hydrau-
lics. I just pulled up some YouTube tu-
torials and other DIYs for help,” he
said.
The unit comes fitted with a 14-
litre tank which is filled with 2 litre of
sanitiser and the rest is water. Once the
user pushes the pedal, a high-powered
pump pushes the liquid through the
two nozzles and in a few seconds, any
surface including uniforms and lathis
are disinfected.
“My aim is not profit. I see my fa-
ther and his colleagues risking their
life for others. This is for their safety,”
Kolekar added.
“The Rs 15,000 I charge are fully
utilised for buying the materials and
equipment. Plus, I also have pay an
electrician who helps me install the
were later shifted out of the hospital
to a BMC guesthouse.
Another resident who was also un-
der quarantine said, “They brought
us to Podar hospital by BEST bus and
dropped us back in Worli-Koliwada
by bus. When they had first come to
shift us, they gave us only eight hours
to pack our clothes and essentials. For
the first two days, we felt lost. Espe-
cially senior citizens who were dia-
betic. It felt as if they had kidnapped
us. But then the BMC resolved our is-
sues and provided good facilities."
Another resident who completed
her 14-day quarantine said she is re-
lieved to be back home. "When I en-
tered my home, it felt like I emerged
victorious from a war. It was like I was
on a 14-day exile from home,” said
the senior citizen.
Sharad Koli, a resident of Worli
Koliwada who lives in close proximi-
ty to the quarantined residents who
have returned said, “We are mainly
fishermen. When these residents
were first bussed out 14 days back they
weren’t prepared for it. Imagine be-
ing shifted from ancestral homes to
living in a ward of a hospital? But we
understand BMC did this to save
lives."
unit.”
In fact, the enclosure is so cost-ef-
fective that after the Covid-19 threat
subsides, the pump can be reused for
farming or to water gardens in parks or
housing societies.
Currently, the chamber has been
installed at Kalachowkie, Kon, Narpo-
li, Mankoli police stations and at Bhi-
wandi Traffic Chowki on the high-
way.
“I have received good feedback
about the unit. It’s cheap and very ef-
fective. And it’s a matter of pride for us
that our constable’s son has come up
with such an innovation to reduce his
father’s plight,” said DCP Amit Kale of
Thane Traffic Division.
Kolekar is now also being ap-
proached by several housing societies
for his invention.
 City
K 4
MumbaiMirror
CORONAVIRUS OUTBRE A Saturday, April 18, 2020

BMC offers top docs Andheri lawyer moves

intl court against China
three-month contracts over coronavirus
at SevenHills Hospital
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

$2.5 trillion – 190 lakh crore in

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
The BMC has struggled to make
available intensive care facilities for
Covid-19 patients, leading to, what
many experts believe, the worryingly
high fatality rate. Kasturba, the nerve
centre of BMC’s anti-coronovirus
efforts, does not have an intensive
care unit. SevenHills has only eight
beds with intensive care facilities.
With the hiring of such a large
number of doctors and nurses, espe-
cially senior consultants and inten-
sivists, BMC will be able to meet its
target of expanding the SevenHills
intensive care facility to 30 beds and
focus greater attention on each of
the over 450 Covid-19 patients being
treated at the hospital.
On Thursday, the BMC hired 213
nurses from the earlier batches of its
own nursing college. All of them
have already been assigned to vari-
ous Covid Care Centres, Covid
Health Centres and fever clinics.
More than half of the 213 will be
deployed at SevenHills. “Some of
these nurses have been offered per-
manent employment, while others
have temporary contracts,” said
Deputy Municipal Commissioner
Ramesh Pawar.
Apart from this, every assistant
municipal commissioner, executive
health officer and medical superin-
tendent has been granted special
powers to hire health workers – from
doctors to ward boys – for civic hos-
pitals under their jurisdiction.
Additional Municipal
Commissioner Suresh Kakani said
the BMC’s Public Health Department
has around 10 per cent vacant posts.
“Walk-in interviews are going on at
major facilities like the Jogeshwari
Trauma Center We have recently
hired 50 doctors there. We are going
to hire 150 ward boys, 150 to 200
drivers and more nurses in same
facility,” he said.
Dr Mohan Joshi, Dean, Sion
NILESH WAIRKAR
Hospital, said so far over a hundred
candidates have filled forms. “We are
hoping more will come forward in
this critical moment to fill the gaps
in our health services,” he said.
Indian currency – on behalf of the
Government of India from the
People’s Republic of China.
The International Criminal
Court – not to be confused with
the International Court of Justice
(ICJ) which is hearing India’s plea
against Pakistan’s decision to hang
Kulbhushan Jadhav -- is an inter-
governmental organisation and
international tribunal based in The
Hague, Netherlands. It has the
jurisdiction to hear cases of inter-
national crimes, genocide, crimes
against humanity, war crimes, and
the crimes of aggression.
Sohani, 32, the son of former
Deputy Commissioner of Police
Pradeep Sohani, submitted his
e-petition on May 11. Three days
later, he received a communication
from the court saying his petition
was under consideration. “We will
give consideration to this commu-
nication, as appropriate, in accord-
ance with the provisions of the
Rome Statute (a multilateral treaty
that serves as the court’s founda-
tional and governing document).
As soon as a decision is reached, we
will inform you and provide you
with reasons for this decision,” the
court conveyed, adding that such a
communication does not guaran-
tee an investigation.
Sohani, who has filed a parallel
case against China in the Supreme
Court, believes he has a strong case
against the neighbouring super-
power. According to him, China
has violated Article 25(1) of the
Universal Declaration of Human
Rights (UDHR) which states:
“Everyone has the right to a stand-
ard of living adequate for the
health and well-being of himself
and of his family.” He said that
China has further violated Articles
2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 & 9 of International
Health Regulations (IHR) formulat-
ed by the World Health
Organisation to “prevent, protect
against, control and provide a pub-
lic health response to the interna-
tional spread of disease in ways
that are commensurate with and
restricted to public health risks,
and which avoid unnecessary
interference with international
traffic and trade.”
Apart from China, Sohani has
named the country’s National
Health Commission, Hubei
Provincial Government, and
Wuhan Municipal Government in
his petition saying their actions
amounted to “crimes against
humanity.”
Sohani, whose mother Soniya
retired as judge at the family court
in Mumbai, said all efforts should
be made to ensure China is
brought to justice. He said that
there was enough evidence to
prove that China was aware of the
dangers of the virus and that it did
little to contain it in the initial
stages. “It will be befitting if the
Government of India officially
lodges a complaint against China,”
he said.

Cops to arrange funerals for old, unclaimed bodies RAJU SHINDE

he said, he recently brought in 11
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
such bodies in a single day.
According to Dr Patil, there are 158 Asked where the bodies are
such bodies in five mortuaries cremated or buried, he said, “There
under his jurisdiction - 28 at are five shamshan bhoomis - at
Bhagwati, 26 at Cooper, 13 at Sion, Dadar, Worli, Bhoiwada and
Siddharth hospital, 40 at JJ and 51 Reay Road - where I take the bodies
at Rajawadi. of deceased Hindus. Bodies of
A man whose job it is to Muslims are taken to Bada
transport unclaimed bodies from Kabrastan, while those of Christians
morgues between Chembur and are taken to Mahalaxmi for their
south Mumbai said there is just one last rites.”
vehicle to ferry these bodies in all of Dr Harish Pathak, professor and
south-central Mumbai. Despite this, head of forensics at KEM hospital
and Seth GS Medical College said,
A man whose job “We have 38 unclaimed bodies and
nine have already been handed over
it is to transport to the police.” Dr Shilesh Mohite,
unclaimed bodies head of the forensics department at
from morgues said he Nair hospital, said they have
recently brought in handed over three unclaimed
bodies to the police in the past two
11 such bodies in a days and will hand over the
single day remaining eight soon.
 City
MumbaiMirror
Early testing saved my life: APMC trader
Haresh Shah suspects he
contracted the virus at his
uncle’s funeral on March 24
NATION
Flower emojis to replace bouquets in
Kerala couple’s e-wedding on April 26
T
he nationwide lockdown
has forced a Kerala couple to
cancel their plans for a lavish
wedding. The bride-to-be and her
groom will wed through video call-
ing instead.
Sreejith Nadesan, 30, who hails
from Changanassery in Kottayam
was to marry P Anjana Assary, 28,
who is currently quarantining her-
self in Lucknow, on April 26.
Sreejith works for a small finan-
cial institution in Kumbanad while
Anjana is an analyst with HCL
Technologies in UP where she was
born and brought up.
The couple got engaged on
November 9 last year. The marriage,
initially planned for January, was
postponed to a more ‘convenient’
date on April 26. Following the stay-
at-home orders and restrictions
imposed over the spread of Covid-
19, both families thought of post-
poning the marriage further. But
decided against it due to lack of an
auspicious day in the near future.
They are now planning for an
e-wedding on the same day.
On the wedding day, Sreejith and
his parents plan to go to the bride’s
native house in Pallipad. Anjana and
Wife bans man from entering house
without Covid-19 negative certificate
A
woman in Andhra Pradesh did
not allow her husband entry
into the house until he got
himself tested and produced a certifi-
cate from authorities saying that he
had tested negative.
The man, a daily wage worker
employed at a jewellery shop in
Nellore in Andhra Pradesh, was
stuck there ever since the lockdown
was announced on March 24. He
managed to reach home on
Wednesday only to be stopped out-
K 5
CORONAVIRUS OUTBRE A
53-year-old says he and his family isolated themselves; neighbours delivered all provisions at their door
| Alka Dhupkar
alaka.dhupkar@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @alka_MIRROR
H
aresh Shah is proof that
early diagnosis can help
beat Covid-19. The 53-year-
old spice trader at the
Vashi APMC market tested
positive on April 8, which led to the
market’s shutdown from April 11-14,
was discharged from hospital on
Thursday.
Currently on home quarantine
for 14 days as a precautionary meas-
ure, Shah is grateful to his neigh-
bours in Bhagnari cooperative hous-
ing society in Chunabhatti for not
buying into rumours and myths—
residents greeted him with loud
claps on his return and also took
care of his wife and son, who had
The couple got engaged in
November last year
her kin will connect with them from
Lucknow through WhatsApp. In a
symbolic gesture, Sreejith will tie the
mangalsutra around the bride’s neck
on the screen. Subsequently, Anjana
will tie a thread around her neck
herself, the family said
Once the restrictions are lifted,
both families will plan a big recep-
tion in Kerala.
side the door by his wife who insist-
ed that he be tested first.
Despite his many attempts, she
stood her ground saying that it was
for the wellbeing of their family and
neighbours.
Nellore has recorded at least 64
Covid-19 positive cases. Two of the
infected people have died.
Following this, he was sent for
testing, and was subsequently
allowed home once his results
cleared him. —MMB
quarantined themselves during his
hospitalisation, while practising
social distancing. “They left provi-
sions that my family needed at our
doorstep and did not treat them any
differently,” he says.
Shah suspects that he contracted
the virus at his uncle’s funeral—
which had a sparse gathering of just
six people—on March 24. He first
developed a dry cough, which was
accompanied by a runny nose in a
few days. He consulted his family
physician at Saifee Hospital and sus-
pecting it to be a case of the seasonal
flu, he started a course of antibiotics.
My wife and son followed a healthy diet,
exercised and meditated daily, and got
enough sleep. We took it seriously but were not
hysterical –Haresh Shah, Chunabhatti resident
THE DANGLING QUESTIONS
| Rahi.Gaikwad
@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @rahi_MIRROR
T
he lockdown has disrupted
the academic cycle, leaving
students with unanswered
questions as officials grap-
ple with a fluid situation. Mirror
takes a look at some of the ques-
tions.
What is the status of CBSE
Class 12, ISC and ICSE exams?
The CBSE has not decided on a
revised timetable of Class 12
boards. It decided to conduct
only key exams, important for
admissions. Similarly, there is no
decision on the revised dates for
pending ISC and ICSE exams.
Both the CBSE and Council for
the Indian School Certificate
Examinations have warned
against rumors, clarifying that
exams have not been cancelled.
Will junior college admis-
sions be delayed?
Maharashtra cancelled the last
SSC paper and exams of disabled
students. Teachers have correct-
ed some subject papers. Other
answer sheets are still in schools
and teachers cannot go to col-
lect them. However, as internal
school exams have been can-
celled, teachers have more time
to evaluate board papers and can
make up for the lost time. There
could be some delay in the
results and admission process.
Saturday, April 18, 2020
After he developed high fever, the
doctor asked him to undergo testing.
“At that time, I strictly isolated
myself at home. After my test result
arrived, I got myself admitted to
Saifee Hospital,” says Shah, who
insisted on paying for his treatment.
“I could pay the hospital bills. Free
beds should be available to the
needy,” he adds.
Since until the infection, he only
had high blood pressure and sleep
apnoea, he responded well to the
Covid-19 treatment. Two days after
it started, his condition began to
improve—gone were the cough, the
What about college and uni-
versity exams?
Mumbai University has can-
celled exams till May 3. Colleges,
even the autonomous institu-
tions, will align their schedules
with the dates allotted by the
government and university. This
ensures uniformity. The academ-
ic calendar, however, gets
pushed ahead. Higher education
minister Uday Samant has clari-
fied that exams will be held.
What about NEET-UG and
JEE exams?
The two important competitive
exams are a major area of con-
cern. The National Testing
Agency, which conducts them,
postponed the NEET-UG exam,
earlier scheduled for May 3 and
postponed JEE-Mains, which was
scheduled to be held earlier this
month. JEE-Mains are proposed
to be held in the last week of
May. The next academic sessions
might get delayed. At IIT
Bombay, it might start in August.
What about CET (Common
Entrance Test)?
State-level entrances for profes-
sional courses stand postponed
until further notice. The
MH-CET cell is tentatively con-
sidering May-end or June for
exams. It may shorten timelines
of the admission process to miti-
gate the impact on the next aca-
demic session. The exam sched-
ule is still uncertain. The major
challenge involves conducting
fever and the runny nose.
His wife and son were his pillars
of support; they stayed calm and
collected during the time of crisis.
“They followed a healthy diet, exer-
cised and meditated daily, and got
enough sleep,” says Shah. “We took
it seriously but were not hysterical.”
His son also took charge of field-
ing the deluge of calls from govern-
ment agencies, colleague and rela-
tives that followed after word of his
diagnosis got out.
That the family held it together is
even more admirable since they had
to battle rumours. “There was a
report that claimed I had enter-
tained a guest from abroad and
that’s how I had got infected. It was
completely baseless. It caused brief
moments of panic initially,” says
Shah.
exams with social distancing
measures, even in a post-lock-
down scenario, “With many
dynamic factors, it is difficult to
predict anything,” Sandeep
Kadam, CET commissioner said.
Can schools ask for fees dur-
ing lockdown?
School education minister Varsha
Gaikwad said on Friday that
schools cannot demand fees dur-
ing the lockdown period.
Gaikwad said parents can com-
plain to the district officials if the
institutions do so. The depart-
ment’s resolution urged schools
to be sensitive. However, schools
are using indirect ways, such as
offering discounts or charging
late fee to induce parents to pay.
What about placements at
IIT Bombay and TISS?
Placements at TISS and the sec-
ond phase of placements at IIT
Bombay are on hold and most
students are at home. As of now,
no company has rescinded offers
from students at IIT, but they are
advancing joining dates.
What’s the impact on stu-
dents planning to apply for
foreign degrees?
Indian students mostly opt for
the September semester. Thus,
there is a breathing period.
However, the visa and bank loan
process may get affected. The
biggest uncertainty is over col-
lege results.
 City
K 6
MumbaiMirror
CORONAVIRUS OUTBRE A Saturday, April 18, 2020

After funeral, family learns

Dharavi man had Covid-19
His 1st sample had tested negative but a test on a 2nd sample, collected a day before he
died, came back positive 3 days later; 2 relatives quarantined in his house also test positive The mangled remains of the Mercedes; DJ Nelson
| Alka Dhupkar Steven Swami, the prime accused
alaka.dhupkar@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @alka_MIRROR
Drunk DJ takes
D
haravi resident Suresh Naray-
ankar, 58, who worked as a
plumber and fitter at BMC’s Worli
pumping station, died at Sion
car for a spin,
hospital on April 7. His family was
given his death certificate, which said it
was a natural death. They were also given a
rams it into
certificate that said he had tested negative
for Covid-19.
Narayankar, who was diabetic, had
(Above) Suresh
Narayankar and (left)
his brother-in-law,
three vehicles
been going to work until the last week of
sister and mother-in- The 22-year-old, who flouted lockdown rules,
March, travelling by BEST bus as an essen-
tial services provider for the BMC.
law, who were
quarantined in his
has been booked under several sections of
However, in early April he started to feel
restless and began to develop respiratory
home. The two women IPC as well as the Disaster Management Act
later tested positive
problems, later confirmed to be pneumo- | Vinay.Dalvi@timesgroup.com TWEETS @VinayMIRROR
nia. sample was taken from him on April 6. He were thus asked to self-quarantine in his

Based on his negative test report,
Narayankar’s family arranged a normal
funeral for him at Dharavi Shamshan
Bhumi that day, which was attended by
about 50 people.
But two days after his death, on April 9,
policemen and health workers visited the
family in Dharavi’s Mukund Nagar and
told them that a test on Narayankar’s sec-
ond sample had come back positive, and
that they would all have to be quaran-
tined. Seven members of his family,
including his wife and two grandchildren
aged two and three, were taken to the
quarantine facility at Dharavi sports com-
plex. Their swabs were taken on April 15
and their test results are awaited. However,
three other relatives who were visiting the
family when the lockdown was imposed
were not deemed primary contacts and
told to remain there under home quaran-
tine.
His son Krishna said the family was
shocked when they heard that the second
test had come back positive as they had no
idea at the time of his cremation that a sec-
ond test report was pending or that they
should be careful when conducting his last
rites.
He said his father’s first report came
back negative on April 4 and a second
said, “When his body was handed over to
us we were not aware the second report
was pending. We were under the impres-
sion that the second report had also come
back negative.” He also said that while the
family was later informed that he did have
Covid-19, they were not given a hard copy
of his report.
Dr Mohan Joshi, dean of Sion Hospital,
said, “There were four to five such cases [of
people who died] where the reports were
awaited. We did not mention ‘report
awaited’ on the death certificate as the sta-
tus was indeterminate.” Asked why it took
so long to get Narankar’s test results, he
said, “It is down to limited resources. The
labs are running at full capacity. We test
550 samples every day in three labs but
more than double that number are waiting
to be tested at any point. Every health
worker is giving their best during this
time.”
Mother-in-law, sister test
positive but left in lurch
Strangely, Narayankar’s mother-in-law,
brother-in-law and sister, who had been
visiting the family when the lockdown
was imposed, were not deemed primary
contacts by the BMC, despite living in the
same home when he tested positive. They
10 ft x 10 ft home. On Wednesday, health
workers informed them that two women
had tested positive. However, they were
not taken anywhere, and for the next 24
hours, Narayankar’s brother-in-law dialled
numerous helplines in vain.
“I was trying to get treatment for my
mother and wife but there was simply no
response. I have the money to admit them
to a private hospital but couldn’t do that
as I am in quarantine. Finally I managed to
arrange for an ambulance. They are now
admitted at Sai Hospital. We will shift
them to Raheja hospital on Friday. I had to
pull many strings to get the ambulance
and the beds. Now I am scared. I need to
test myself one more time as we were all
staying together in a tiny place.”
He added that including his two family
members, there were six Covid-19 patients
in his lane. None of their families could
get anyone to take them to a hospital for
the first 24 hours after they were informed.
He said, “We complained to every pos-
sible authority and made many calls.
Finally they took all six of them on
Thursday evening. The health workers tell
the family members that their deceased
relative has tested positive but they don’t
give it in writing, which is a huge prob-
lem.”
A
drunk disc jockey (DJ), who was driving his car in
brazen violation of lockdown rules, lost control of
the vehicle and rammed it into three cars parked
near Maheshwari Mansion on Nepean Sea road near
Malabar Hill. He was booked under several sections of
the Indian Penal Code for flouting lockdown norms, rash
and negligent driving, and endangering life and personal
safety of others. The cops have also charged him under the
Epidemic Act and Disaster Management Act.
According to the Malabar Hill police, Nelson Steven
Swami, 22, was with a friend Pratik Balsara, 35, both resi-
dents of Walkeshwar, when he ran his car into the three
vehicles.
“The two men were part of a live DJ session via video
on Wednesday night after which they partied and took
out the car for a spin. From Priyadarshini Park, they were
headed towards Breach Candy when Swami lost control,”
said Devesh Sharma, who is the son of renowned physi-
cian Dr Rajeev Sharma.
Swami’s car dashed into a Mercedes E-220, which
belongs to Sharma, a Hyundai i20, and a Toyota Innova.
“My car is completely damaged from the right side.
Had there been no cars, they would dashed into an ATM
kiosk,” said Sharma.
While the bumper, radiator, headlights, shock-absorb-
ers and engine of Sharma’s car were badly damaged, only
the bumpers of the other two cars were affected.
“Fortunately I have a spare car. Otherwise, my father,
who is keeping a busy schedule even during the lock-
down, would have been stuck at home since all garages are
shut,” said Sharma.

Pandemic challenge
RBI takes steps to boost liquidity, eases bad loan rules
By cutting the reverse repo rate by 25 basis points, the central bank is encouraging banks to lend more to the economy
| Mumbai Mirror Bureau liquidity and expand bank credit. corporates availing the moratorium It kept its benchmark repo rate,
mirrorfeedback@timesgroup.com In a measure that effectively to access additional funding from which was reduced late last month,
meant that bad loans or non-per- banks or non-banking financial com- unchanged at 4.40 per cent.
TWEETS @MumbaiMirror forming asset (NPA) classification will panies (NBFCs). The RBI has now been decided to

T
RBI governor Shaktikanta Das
introduced a second set of
measures to support the economy
he RBI on Friday further eased
bad-loan rules, froze dividend
payment by lenders and pushed
banks to lend more by cutting the
reverse repo rate by 25 basis points, as
it unveiled a second set of measures
to support the economy hit hard by a
coronavirus-led slowdown.
In his second televised address
since the nationwide lockdown
began from March 25, the Reserve
Bank of India (RBI) Governor
Shaktikanta Das pledged to boost
now happen after 180 days instead of
the current policy of 90 days of pay-
ment default, the RBI announced an
asset status freeze on loans that have
been granted moratorium or defer-
ment on interest/principal payment.
This would cover the borrowers of
both banks and NBFCs.
This means that the moratorium
period will not lead to a spurt in
NPAs in the system and will allow the
borrowers across retail, small and
medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and
Das, however, said lenders will
have to make an additional provision
of 10 per cent for those exposures
under moratorium.
RBI cut reverse repurchase rate, a
tool to control the money supply, to
3.75 per cent with immediate effect
to encourage banks to deploy surplus
funds within the system towards
lending. The reverse repo rate cut will
discourage banks from parking cash
with the RBI and encourage them to
lend to the economy.
increase the ways and means advanc-
es (WMA) limit of states by 60 per
cent over and above the
level as on March 31, 2020 and
extended the increased limit until
September 30.
It will inject Rs 50,000 crore in a
new round of targeted long-term
repo operations and asked banks
to use the funds availed through
this facility to benefit NBFCs
and micro-finance institutions
among others.
 City 7
MumbaiMirror
CORONAVIRUS OUTBRE AK Saturday, April 18, 2020

Artificial surface to real world

Defending Senior Div hockey champs Maharashtra Police players being tested on a different field
among the very few in the side who
| Mufeed Mahdi Rizvi
are not in the middle of action.
mufeed.rizci@timesgroup.com
While Zakir, who is posted at the
TWEETS @MufeedMirror

M
Ghatkopar police ground, has been
aharashtra State Police carrying out his social work, Arvind
(MSP) defender Sand- spends most of the time practising.
Coach Zakir and Sandeep Sawant
eep Sawant has a famil- Another police constable and
iar task at hand, with a half-line player Abhishek Pathak is
bit of a twist. The only attached to the Riot Control Platoon
difference: his hockey stick has been and is trying to keep things under
replaced with a baton. The decision control in Akola.
on this field is not about victory or “It’s a small percentage of people
defeat, it’s about life and death. in every area that does not pay heed Abhishek Pathak and Shadab
Posted in Kolhapur, Sandeep was to what we announce every day. For
manning the Mumbai-Bengaluru them 9 am to 12 noon is the time
highway when he got the call from they can roam around on the streets.
Mirror. “The highway is calm. There And if you pull them up, they say
is no vehicular movement at all,” they have the right to remain out in
constable Sandeep said, adding that the stipulated time,” Abhishek dis-
his duty shuffles between the high- cusses the problems he is facing. Satyajit Sawant and Arun Yadav
Maharashtra State Police players with the Senior Division trophy
way and the city. Midfielder Arun Yadav is more
After years of struggle, MSP not understanding while patrolling in forward task of entering home a tedi- While these men are on duty, “The team has received great
only won the Mumbai Hockey Vile Parle. On-duty at Bamanwada, ous one. “I go straight into the bath- Shrikant Kalakoti, Bhojane and coach encouragement from our DG Subodh
Association-organised Senior he was outside a building which had room, wash my clothes and myself Zakir are on the reserve bench waiting Kumar Jaiswal (himself an MSP goal-
Division title, but also finished at reported a suspect coronavirus thoroughly before I interact with my for a call to serve. This, however, keeper in younger days) and hence we
respectable fifth in the 28-team All- patient. “People make every possible family,” says Shadab, who lives with doesn’t stop them from keeping fit and are doing well. I have prepared a sched-
India Police Hockey Championship excuse to leave home. At times it’s his parents and younger siblings. carrying out social work, like distribut- ule that they have to follow,” said Zakir,
in October last year. groceries, another time it’s milk. But ing food among the homeless and poor. who along with sports officer Bajirao
The team had begun training in the most common excuse is medi- No leverage Those on duty squeeze in some time Kalantre, is overseeing the laying of
Mumbai to better their standing for cine. People know that’s the most Abhishek, on the other hand, has to follow the fitness instructions given artificial surface at the Ghatkopar police
this year’s All-India Police Hockey emotional, sensitive and safe com- two instructions for his younger to them by their coach. ground.
Championship scheduled to be held modity,” Arun said, while on his way brother. “Go out only to get essen-
in September-October when the back home to Naigaon. tials and be prepared to take police
lockdown was announced. Every Shadab Sayyad has just returned beating if caught roaming around MUNICIPAL CORPORATION OF GREATER MUMBAI
member of the squad was sent back home – empty-handed. Stationed in without a reason. No leverage will
home to take up on-field duty, some- Jalgaon, the forward is always on his work even if you are a policeman’s
Dy.Ch.EJRoads/95/ES Date: 16.04.2020
thing, as sportsmen, they were going toes. Like Abhishek, Shadab is also brother. COVID-19 knows no rela- E-Tender Notice
to experience for the first time. attached to the Riot Control Platoon. tion,” he quips.
“We were not expecting it. Most The 24-hour on-call duty had He has a reason to say this. Name of Organization Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai
of us knew that the training sessions delayed him so he couldn’t pick up “Despite repeated reminders, young- Subject 1. Name of Work : AE-131 : Pre-monsoon preventive mainte-
would come to a halt, but there was essentials for home. “It was too late. sters here are taking this as a vaca- nance work and emergency works of various roads in Zone
very little anticipation that the play- And this keeps happening. I will tion. Playing cricket in colonies.” VI -, E. S. Div- (N , S & T ward) (Year 2020-21 & 2021.22)
ers would be sent on the field to help ensure that I buy them before I leave Satyajit Sawant, another forward Bid Invitation No,: 7100177455
fight COVID-19,” MSP’s veteran in the morning,” Shadab calmly in the team from Kolhapur, is happy Tender Cost : Rs.12,00,00,000,00/-
player, head constable and coach said. But the duty isn’t all that calm. that sport is helping him in conduct-
Contract Period : 24 months (Including Monsoon)
Zakir Killerdar told Mirror. At a hospital for COVID-19 suspects, ing his duty. “It is our fitness that
EMD : Rs.12 ,00,000.00/-
Zakir, who was also appointed his posting demands total alertness allows us to stand at one place for
2. Name of Work : AE-132: Pre-monsoon preventive maintenance
coach of Indian Police this year, and and care. hours. We had never experienced
work and emergency works of various roads in Zone V -,
goalkeeper Arvind Bhojane are This makes his normally straight- on-field duty,” says the constable.
E. S, Div.(L, M/E & WE ward) (Year 2020-21 & 2021-22)
Bid Invitation No.: 7100177417
, Tender Cost : Rs.12,00,00,000.00/-

4 +161,14i'm 10co r Contract Period : 24 months (Including Monsoon)

EMD : Rs.12,00,000,00/-

f Date of issue and sale of tender 18.04.2020 at 11 .00 Hrs , onwards

Pre-Bid Meeting 24.04.2020 at 15.00 Hrs at office Dry, Ch ,E , (Roads) ES,
41 Floor , Pant Nagar Garage Building, Behind Pantnagar Bus
N c c F. 4T;f' M-12 - W. 40 ,lvoo - 44, eoo + * 01zif dq afB T 64 to Depot , Ghatkopar (East) Mumbai - 400 075,
tT nTUW i to 4 TUzff 3 adRf ft q c o 8 . R oQo 4 R f i :ZL o11.:Zo o RimcpTiiff 4.}o P4U A %qr f4CJ &rt A
zT413 c. Last date & time for sale of tender 11.05.2020 upto 12,00 Hrs.
ur Submission of Bid & Bid Security 11.05.2020 upto 16,00 Hrs.
3 1 r 3Tv7 f1f >T 1(a) "(w) 1(3) fd9111 Zrra t Deposit
(31) off Vff
Opening of Packet A 11.05-202016.01 Hrs. onwards
qo o 0 0 0 0 98 9o z 96 64 Opening of Packet B 11.05-202016-02 Hrs. onwards
ivr Uffti A34 PfM ZifArf m 3iffaf F Tt 4 f 3TF TUU f k c gm We clw1IO 31ft.
Opening of Packet C 18.05-202011-00 Hrs. onwards
W- 3'
HgYffal 3Rv
f 3rul fair w +Tv7
" vf I Iu M C'N} z °°`"y i f `iof Address for Communication Office of Dy. Ch.E. (Roads) ES,
(31) (i) (45) (3) f [rA 4" floor, Municipal Garage Bldg,
2ff£IR vf } R o 0 0 0 o f, } y 6 Rl9 Behind Ghatkopar Bus Depot,
}off
g ,,
} R 0 0 0 0 o s } 4 qg Pantnagar, Ghatkopar (E), Mumbai - 400 075.
3iR8rm
dyceroadses@gmail,com /
dycheroadses.rdtr@mcgm.gov .in
A T i q4 % 9 0 0 0 0 0 q } qq
Venue for opening of bid On line in Dy.Ch.E (Roads) ES Office
9 0 0 0 0 0 0 9 0 9 1i

9 o 0 0 0 0 0 9 q o q 8 This tender document is not transferable.

Hof 90 4 0 0 0 0 0 9N qo 6 q6 44 E-Tender is available on MCGM official website (http :/Iportal ,mcgm,gov .in) , If in case,
3gtrffci 1r fv ' i fc 131RE1UF d c l k"I RIT EY q i ^!, ' it 7 Wid TiNt>fcl any changes in header data the same willbe updated on MCGM website (http://portal.mcgm.
fdRmllm a fdqm gdnfvr 3rjiN fr ta; 3r\Yw N,;z ' I-ru unq -nhRa. vin OR the same will be displayed on notice board of office of Dy,Ch.E, (Roads) E.S.
gRq-Ao T. Q+fdYQft / 8 8 d k gQ.19.2o g4 44a w Yfl419 Mu e , i1f #ar m f' zirf 31RENf eI11 91 .
The MCGM reserves the right to accept any of the application or reject any or all the
hrt 0: +! no!t,,l. m c a m .anv. in ?Ii Z ,,,,c .
3uwi 1 31r . qRA
` J U p f d "o 4 rffi;R$ U application received for above subject without assigning any reason thereof .
/-
MCGNI Sd/-
61 "IIIL L
For Dy, Ch,Eng.(Roads) E.S.

PRO/21/ADV/2a21 PRO/17/ADV120-21
 City
MumbaiMirror
Dharavi corona tally now
101 with 15 new cases
With a 62-year-old succumbing to the virus, 10 people from the slum have died so far
| Chaitanya.Marpakwar
@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @chaiMIRROR
T
he number of coronavirus
cases in Dharavi reached
101 on Friday with 15 new
patients being detected, said
a BMC official. A 62-year-old
from the area died of the virus at
Sion hospital, he added. A total of 10
Covid-19 patients from this densely
populated slum have died so far.
Three new cases each were found
in Matunga labour camp, Muslim
Nagar and Indira Nagar, two at
Social Nagar and one each at Dr
Baliga Nagar, Laxmi Chawl, Janata
society and Sarvoday society on
Friday, said the BMC official.
The BMC is screening around 7.5
lakh people in Dharavi, India’s larg-
est slum cluster. The process, which
began on Friday, will continue for
around two weeks. It involves
recording the temperatures of resi-
dents and checking them for coro-
navirus symptoms. On Friday,
health minister Rajesh Tope said the
BMC will use drones to spray disin-
fectants in the sprawling slum. Tope
also said drones will be used by the
police for “effective” implementa-
tion of the lockdown in densely
populated areas.
The BMC has already taken over
the entire 51-bed privately owned
Sai Hospital in Dharavi and turned it
into a isolation centre for local
patients.
The civic body, which is carrying
out a door-to-door exercise in
Dharavi, has thermally screened
over 13,000 people so far. Based on
the addresses of the positive cases
identified so far, five slum pockets
within Dharavi have been ear-
marked as red zones and their resi-
dents segregated — to the extent
possible — from the rest. The five
zones —Madina Nagar, Muslim
Nagar, Mukund Nagar, Kalyanwadi
Second APMC trader tests positive;
grain market resumes operations
| Alka Dhupkar
alaka.dhupkar
@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @alka_MIRROR
A
second trader from the
Agriculture Produce Mar-
ket Committee (APMC)
market in Vashi tested positive
for Covid-19 on Friday. The ad-
ministration has shut one wing
in the grain and pulses section
of the market, where the trader
was based.
The development comes
after a trader from the APMC’s
spice market tested positive on
April 8 prompting the shut-
CORONAVIRUS OUTBRE A
Doctors in Dharavi work tirelessly to contain the spread of the virus. Till now 13,000 people have been screened
and Social Nagar —have a combined
population of about 50,000.
It was in Dr Baliga Nagar that the
first Covid-19 case in Dharavi was
found on April 1. The man had died
down of the facility. The trader
tested negative for Covid-19 in
a test conducted on April 16.
Nilesh Veera, president of
APMC told Mirror that the
grain trader was undergoing
treatment at the SevenHills
Hospital. “This trader has not
visited his office since Sunday.
His staff and family members
will undergo tests,” Veera said.
“He home quarantined himself
Citizens may con-
tact 022/27889191
with APMC market-
related queries
K 8
Saturday, April 18, 2020
pal commissioner, G-north ward,
said, “Since the first case in Dharavi
was detected, we strictly implement-
ed quarantine measures in the slum.
We have been providing food packets
and medicines to the residents and
also tracing high-risk contacts of
patients and conducting health and
fever-screening camps. But the num-
ber of cases was rising, so we needed
more people for contact tracing. We
appealed to private doctors and 24 of
them came forward. They were split
into teams of two, each with a nurse,
a co-ordinator and two volunteers.
the same day. Following his death, We provided them with masks, suits,
the civic body launched a massive thermometers and other equipment
operation to contain the spread of like gloves and goggles. Soon, the res-
the virus in Asia’s largest slum. idents started co-operating as they
Kiran Dighavkar, assistant munici- trusted the local doctors.”
State asks house owners to
defer rent collection by 3 months
T
as soon as he started noticing he Maharashtra government on
symptoms of the virus and got Friday issued an advisory to city
tested immediately. His office landlords and house owners ask-
premises and surrounding areas ing them to defer collection of rent
have been sealed.” by three months amid the unfolding
Meanwhile, the pulses and pandemic situation.
grains market which was shut The advisory was issued by addition-
for the last four days has al chief secretary (home and housing)
resumed operations. APMC Sanjay Kumar. “Due to the unprecedent-
records said 893 vehicles car- ed situation, common people are facing
ried fruits, vegetables, grains extremely difficult financial difficulties,”
and spices to Mumbai, Thane the circular said. The circular also urged
and Navi Mumbai on Friday. house owners to refrain from evicting
The APMC secretary said the tenants due to non-payment of rent.
committee has started a 24x7 In its April 11 edition, Mirror had
helpline to address queries reported about an online petition by
related to the market. Citizens Tejaswini Divya Naik demanding defer-
may contact 022/27889191. ment in rent payments. “I am delighted
FB friend asking
for money? Could
be a hacker
| Somendranath.Sharma
@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @MumbaiMirror
H
elping a ‘needy’ cousin dur-
ing the lockdown proved
costly for a 24-year old dia-
mond trader.
The man had received a mes-
sage on Facebook from his distant
cousin, who sought monetary
help during lockdown. When he
kept asking for more and more
money, despite having paid four
times, he called up his cousin
only to be told that his cousin’s
Facebook account got hacked and
messages asking for money were
sent to all his contacts.
The complainant in the case is
SR Maurya, a resident of Chira
Bazaar. On Thursday, around
9:45 am, the victim received a
message from his cousin MK
Maurya on Facebook messenger.
“According to the victim, after
chatting for a while, his cousin
asked for Rs 15,000 and assured
him that he would return the
same by 5 pm,” said an officer
from LT Marg police station.
His ‘cousin’ then provided him
a mobile number and asked him
to make the payment through a
mobile cash transfer application.
“When the victim entered the
mobile number, it turned out to
be of one Rahul Sharma. The vic-
tim informed the same to his
cousin on messenger, who asked
him to go ahead with the transac-
tion. After he paid once, the per-
son asked for more and more
help, and he ended up making
four payments of Rs 15,000 each,”
said a police officer.
When his cousin kept asking
for more money, he got suspi-
cious and called him up. The
cousin then informed him that
his Facebook account had got
hacked three days ago. He also
informed him that the hacker
had sent such messages to his
other contacts too.
The police have registered a
case under relevant sections of
the IPC and Information
Technology Act.
that the state government has respond-
ed to my petition. We were hoping for
a deferment of maybe a month. But
three months is beyond our expecta-
tion,” Naik said.
BR Bhattad, president of Property
Owners Association, said he will share
the advisory with 6,000 landlords who
are members of his association. “For
many landlords, the monthly rent is
their only income and it may be diffi-
cult for some to defer rent payments.
We will circulate the advisory and see
what they say. If the government is ask-
ing landlords to defer rent payment, it
should also ask BMC to defer property
tax payments by six months,” he said.
—MMB
 City
MumbaiMirror
Govt in big push towards
digital sales in realty
May also allow more access to foreign funds to projects nearing completion
Satish.Nandgaonkar
@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @MumbaiMirror
T
he Minister of Housing and
Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh
Puri on Friday told a group of
developers at a webinar that
the government will look at
issuing a digital signature protocol to
facilitate digital sales of properties.
Renu Sud Karnad, managing direc-
tor, HDFC, made the suggestion to Pu-
ri that the government should ap-
prove a protocol for digital signature
for facilitating loan disbursal by banks
and registration of property agree-
ments. Karnad said the visual and
technological aids were available
now, which developers can use to give
a 360-degree view of the properties to
customers online, but lack of digital
signature validity were hampering the
further process regarding the sale of
the property and bank loan process.
Puri said: “We have taken note,
and we will find a solution.” MoHUA
Secretary Durga Shanker Mishra said,
“We are already using Aadhar Card for
digital authentication process and we
could simply develop an Aadhar-
based protocol for this.”
Puri also indicated that the gov-
ernment may consider tweaking of in-
vestment norms for allowing more ac-
cess to foreign funds to projects near-
ing completion stage. He also assured
developers that he would personally
intervene when developers informed
him that steel and cement manufac-
turers were planning to hike their rates
once the lockdown is lifted on May 3.
Niranjan Hiranandani, national
president, National Real Estate Devel-
opment Council (NAREDCO), which
works under the aegis of MoHUA,
pointed out though the central gov-
ernment and the Reserve Bank of In-
dia are coming out with several mea-
sures to provide relief to the industry,
the same is not passed on by the banks.
“I find it highly shocking that almost
Rs 6.9 lakh crore was lying idle with
banks under the reverse repo adjust-
ments.
“This money could have been giv-
en to provide relief to several sectors.
There is an urgent need for an inter-
vention at the prime minister’s level
to let that happen,” he said.
State allows registration of property transactions online
Makarand Gadgil and Yogesh Naik
@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @makarandmirror1
T
he state government on Friday
decided that it will allow online
registration of property transac-
tions. The decision was taken by a cab-
inet sub-committee on Covid-19
chaired by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit
Pawar.
Allowing online registration of
properties will pave the way for some
revenue through stamp duty on prop-
CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK
Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri
Over 2,500 developers participa-
ted in the webinar from across India
and made different suggestions to the
minister to rescue the real estate sector
from the slump.
Neel Raheja of Raheja Group
pointed out that India was the only
country in the world where under
construction projects had to pay GST
as well as stamp duty whereas GST was
waived off for ready-to-move-in
homes. He said the overall costs for
warehousing and IT parks had gone up
due to 18 per cent GST being charged.
Vikas Oberoi of Oberoi Realty suggest-
ed that a substantial stamp duty waiv-
er would help boost demand, and
could be passed on to the home
buyers.
erty transactions.
The committee also decided that
frontline workers including doctors,
nurses, health workers, police, and
conservancy workers be paid their sal-
aries in full.
Earlier this month, the state gov-
ernment had announced that it
would be paying its employees’ sala-
ries in a staggered manner.
The committee directed all district
collectors to undertake works under
National Rural Employment Guaran-
tee Scheme (NREGS) to make work
opportunities available in rural areas.
Godrej uses digital sales
tools to sell 500 homes
Godrej Properties said that it
sold over 500 homes in the
second half of March 2020
using digital sales tools.
The company revealed this
in a disclosure to the Bombay
Stock Exchange last week
announcing its operational
updates for Q4 and FY 2019-20.
It reported that residential
sales had increased by 14 per
cent year-on-year to Rs 5,840
crore in FY20.
The Pawar-led committeealso de-
cided to start the work on infrastruc-
ture project. It made it mandatory for
contractors to make adequate trans-
port arrangement for the workers.
The committee has asked the in-
dustry department to explore the pos-
sibility of starting operations of in-
dustries located in rural areas. It also
discussed the issue of nearly 1.5 lakh
sugarcane cutters, who are stranded
in various districts of Western Maha-
rashtra due to lockdown.
Meanwhile, the state is mulling over
issuing a grant of Rs 5,000 per con-
* Saturday, April 18, 2020
A paradise on earth,
but full of challenges
Fabiana Dimase, executive
director, Chamber of
Commerce & Industry,
Argentina-India, on coping
with life in lockdown
t doesn’t matter whether you are
I in an airport, in a tiny hotel room
or in the semi freedom being a
prisoner in paradise - that is how I
see myself where I am currently
spending the lockdown in India, in
Goa, on a beach on the Arabian Sea. A
paradise on earth, but full of challeng-
es that get more and more complicat-
ed by the day.
After an active week of meetings
at Doha, I felt an eerie silence at the
airport there on March 10 and at
Mumbai as well, on landing. It was
like a silence just before the tsunami.
The meetings I had been invited to at-
tend, both in Mumbai and Delhi,
were cancelled and my friends started
a self-inflicted quarantine even be-
fore the janta curfew.
Ithen decided to leave for Goa ex-
actly a month back, thinking it would
be easier to live here, but had never
imagined it would last so long.
I have been coming to India for
the last 30 years, and particularly for
work for the last 14. I am blessed in
many ways, having travelled around
the world from a very young age, both
with my parents and alone, which
has given me some important tools to
be able to live and survive in precari-
ous situations. Needless to say, there
are daily challenges in a situation that
isn’t easy for anyone. And as strong as
I am, facing these challenges with a
good temper and positive thinking
and the help and unconditional sup-
port of my friends and family, keep-
ing my spirits up sometimes requires
alot of determination.
I struggled to get even basic stuff
during the initial days of the lock-
down, and it took some help from the
police to get what would become my
diet - tomatoes, red onion, potatoes
and eggs. Three weeks later, we have
all become used to walking to the two
or three small shops that sell canned
tuna, chickpeas, rice, pasta and some
dried fruits and seeds.
In this paradise that I now call
home, I have had to change hotels
twice, with the first one closing with
me inside the bungalow. My Indian
friends’ intervention too didn’t help.
That day, March 26, was probably the
struction worker in the state. Labour
minister Dilip Walse Patil told Mirror,
“I have sent the proposal. We will be
issuing orders by Saturday.”
The money will be allocated from
the Building Construction Labourers’
Welfare Fund, which has a corpus of
nearly Rs 4,000 crore.
While some workers have return-
ed to their hometowns, many are
stranded at the sites are struggling to
make ends meet without their daily
wages.
Avdesh Singh, a skilled mason on a
construction site in Ghatkopar said,
9
Fabiana Dimase
most difficult day for me; no other re-
sort would take me as they didn’t
know where I had come from. People
would put their masks on the minute
Igot near.
Hours later I found another place,
but it shut shop on April11. Help from
two officers at the Argentine Consul-
ate, including Ms Cecilia Risolo, and
Goa’s deputy mayor didn’t make any
difference. Finally, with my friends’
help, I moved to the place where I am
right now.
Daily challenges
We are only three guests here, but I
am now facing daily challenges as I
had come here with a budget. I have
had to ask friends in India to pay for
this last hotel as I have very little cash
left, which I use for vegetables and
food. I really have to think about how
long this situation may last. The pric-
es of food in the three or four resorts
that are open are Rs 280 approximate-
ly per dish, way more than any other
city. Temperatures are now soaring. I
am afraid monsoon rains will bring
mosquitoes carrying dengue and ma-
laria.
I do not ask money from my gov-
ernment. But I am appalled at the Ar-
gentine President Alberto Fernan-
dez’s stand not allowing the citizens
to come back. It is my right as a citizen
of Argentina, the country were I was
born, raised, and where I work and
pay my taxes to be able to return
home in the middle of a pandemic.
Ifeel the 250 Argentinians strand-
ed in India, as well as each and every
Argentinian in an airport, hotel,
friends’ home, etc, are being denied a
fundamental right under a decree
passed by the president without seek-
ing the consent of congress.
(AS TOLD TO SUNIL BAGHEL)
“I used to get Rs 1,500 per day, but now
there is no work and the builder does
not pay us. I am surviving on the little
money that I saved.’’
Shrikishan Shrirangam, chief of
the state construction workers wel-
fare board said, “This amount will be
given only to active construction
workers. We have 12.18 lakh active
construction workers in the state.’’
Builder Niranjan Hirandanani,
who is national president of NARDE-
CO said, “The idea is to give it back to
workers. I am told about the proposal,
but I don’t know at what stage it is.’’
 City
MumbaiMirror
Two booked for claiming Covid-19 cure
Somendra.Sharma
@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @MumbaiMirror
P
olice in Arnala, Palghar, have
registered a case against two
people who allegedly posted a
video on YouTube claiming they had a
cure for Covid-19.
The police filed the case on Mon-
day against Virar resident PB Raut and
Vasai resident S Dixit, under Section
188 (disobedience to order duly prom-
ulgated by public servant) of the Indi-
an Penal Code; and Section 51 (b)
3 test positive at Nanavati Hospital
Two of them are nurses while
the other is a canteen worker
Chaitanya.Marpakwar
@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @chaiMIRROR
T
wo nurses and a canteen staffer
tested positive for the virus at Ju-
hu’s Nanavati Hospital, which
has been designated as a Covid-19 crit-
ical care hospital by the state govern-
ment.
According to BMC officials, one of
the nurses, who was posted in the iso-
lation ward of the hospital had tested
positive last week. The civic body then
carried out a contact-tracing exercise
and found that her roommate too test-
ed positive. Later a staffer at the hospi-
tal canteen was also found positive.
Several public and private hospi-
tals in the city have been hit by the vi-
rus. In a month’s time, over 150
healthcare workers in the city have
IN OTHER NEWS
17-year-old dies after
falling from high-rise
Police suspect the teenager was under the influence of alcohol
Vallabh.Ozarkar
@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @MumbaiMirror
A
17-year-old boy from
Andheri died after falling
from the 15th floor of a
building on Friday morn-
ing.
The Amboli police, under whose
jurisdiction the incident took place,
suspect the teenager was under the in-
fluence of alcohol.
The deceased has been identified
as Jas Gandhi, a student.
According to the police, the inci-
dent took place around 2am on Friday
at Parthenon Building, located on J P
Road in Andheri (West). The police
said the victim lived with his father, an
accountant by profession, on the 20th
floor.
On Friday the victim and his 22-
year-old friend were drinking alcohol
on the 15th floor. The two were inebri-
ated and Jas lost balance and fell and
landed on the fifth floor.
CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK
(punishment for obstruction) of the
Disaster Management Act, 2005.
According to the police, the state
administration has issued orders to
take strict action against those who
spread misinformation and rumours
related to Covid-19 on social media
platforms.
“We came across a video on You-
Tube in which Raut, who is a local busi-
nessman, claimed to have a medicinal
cure for Coronavirus. The said video
was shot by Dixit last month. The
claims were made with the intention
to mislead people and hence an of-
contracted the infection, accounting
for 7 per cent of Mumbai’s positive
cases. Experts have raised concerns
about the need to protect doctors to
avoid cross-infection and ensure the
functioning of hospitals.
The count of infected healthcare
workers at the civic-run Sion hospital
touched 13 on Thursday after two
more doctors tested positive. In 10
days, seven doctors, five nurses and
one ward boy from the hospital have
tested positive. A resident doctor from
Nair Hospital’s gynaecology depart-
ment too came positive.
Bhatia Hospital too has been badly
hit, second only to Wockhardt Hospi-
tal in Mumbai Central, where 52 staff-
ers had tested positive.
BJP MLA from Andheri (West)
Ameet Satam said that Nanavati Hos-
pital should have taken enough pre-
cautions and care of its staffers. "De-
spite being a Covid-19 designated hos-
pital, staffers there have tested posi-
NILESH WAIRKAR
Parthenon Building
fence has been registered against the
duo,” said a police officer.
Superintendent of Police, Maha-
rashtra Cyber, Balsing Rajput, said
since March 24, when the nationwide
lockdown began, police in Maharash-
tra had filed 227 cases relating to ru-
mours and hate speech on social
media. “Out of that 219 are cognisable
cases and eight are non-cognisable. In
total 46 accused have been arrested
and 170 have been identified. All con-
cerned police units are taking swift ac-
tion against fake news and rumours,”
he said.
tive,” he said.
Manpreet Sohal, CEO of Nanavati
Hospital, said, “Despite stringent se-
curity measures, two of our nurses
from the active Covid care team tested
positive. The immediate screening of
all their contacts showed no spread of
the infection and the duo recovered in
subsequent days. One of our canteen
staff also tested positive and after an
immediate contact-tracing exercise,
three of his high risk contacts were
quarantined.”
He also said that the organisation is
providing continuous training exer-
cises for PPE usage and clinical proto-
cols to its staff. “All our health workers
receive prophylaxis medication and
regular screening to prevent them
from the infection.
“Every individual has to undergo a
rigorous screening exercise to enter
the hospital premises to ensure the
safety and security of our health work-
ers,” he added.
The friend, who witnessed the in-
cident, was so shocked he fainted, the
police said.
Residents informed the police,
who took Jas to hospital, where he was
declared dead on arrival.
”It seems that the friends wanted
to drink and they went to the garbage
area. There they had drinks. However,
Jas said he wanted more alcohol and
asked his friend to get it. He then start-
ed walking towards the edge of the
floor. His friend tried to convince him
that he wouldn’t get any alcohol be-
cause there was a lockdown. Jas sud-
denly lost balance and fell,” said a po-
lice officer
“It looks like the victim and his
friend had somehow procured alco-
hol despite the lockdown.”
The police said an accidental death
report had been registered.
Krishna Hegde, a resident of an ad-
jacent building, said the incident had
shocked everyone in the area.
“The building is new and very few
people have moved there,” he said.
Saturday, April 18, 2020
Money and
Economy
On the wheels that make Mumbai run
Write to him at mirrorfeedback@timesgroup.com
Allow mobility to
farm labour
T
his is peak harvest season
for the rabi crop. India
will produce about 130
million tonnes of wheat,
chana, mustard, coarse
cereal. But how to harvest without
farm workers, who are stuck in a
lockdown? Many of the migrant
workers in cities go back to villages
as their labour is required for rabi
harvest, and also for the sowing of
crop for the next season. Nearly 40
per cent of India’s agriculture
production depends on landless
workers. These could be tenant
farmers leasing land from absen-
tee landlords, or simply workers
on other people’s farms. Landless
workers are mobile who move
between cities and villages. Dur-
ing off season they work on con-
struction sites or projects in cities,
and during harvest or sowing
season they are back on the farm.
They enjoy the freedom to move,
which is one of the great rights
given by India’s Constitution
(unlike say, in China). But during
the lockdown this big section of
India’s workforce has been unable
to exercise their basic right to
move to the place where they will
earn their livelihood.
Unlike demonetisation, the
virus pandemic was not caused by
a government decision. But the
imposition of the lockdown, that
too at short notice, was a decision
of the government. Of course, this
was a difficult choice between
lives and livelihoods. If the lock-
down was not imposed, then the
infections and consequent serious
cases might have overwhelmed
our weak health and hospital
infrastructure. Hence it was need-
ed. It was a difficult choice, and we
will never know whether the
six-week lockdown was optimal or
not. There are encouraging signs
that the “curve is flattening” in
many places, most notably in the
state of Kerala. So we may be able
to selectively lift the lockdown
and focus only on the hotspots.
But in the meantime what
about the farmer? Now is the time
to let loose the farm labour. For
instance this is peak mango sea-
son for Maharashtra. But there is
severe shortage of manpower to
pluck, pack and transport the
delicious Alphonso mangoes. The
fruit is not going to wait un-
plucked on the tree, and delay its
ripening till the end of the lock-
down. Mango season is turning
out to be bitter. In the Navi Mum-
bai wholesale market, more than
80,000 boxes of five dozens each,
arrive in a normal year. But this
year arrival is down by half. This is
due to trucking restrictions and
lack of manpower. Export of
10
AJIT RANADE
mangoes is also down steeply.
Season is slipping by, hence
mango prices are down. For the
Konkan mango farmer whose
entire income comes from these
two months, it’s a write-off. Un-
like wheat or chana or jowar,
perishable stuff like fruits and
vegetables cannot wait or be
stored indefinitely.
As per a report from Credit
Suisse, despite a bumper crop, the
arrivals at various wholesale
markets is down by 50 to 95 per
cent. This is mainly because of
lack of trucks and manpower for
loading and unloading. Just like
nurses and doctors are frontline
warriors in the Covid war, the
farm workers, including loaders,
are also frontline warriors in our
war against hunger. By denying
them movement we are hurting
food security of the nation, and
also livelihood for those workers.
It seems some mandis are com-
pletely shut due to detection of
one or two Covid cases. This
happened in Lasalgao and Vashi
APMC markets. Vegetable arrivals
also have dropped sharply, al-
though their demand from restau-
rants is also zero, due to closure. It
seems 85 per cent of trucks across
the nation are halted, because of
absence of loaders and unloaders,
or uncertainty of picking up
produce. Additionally, the drivers
are not sure of how to survive in
absence of dhabas en route.
Maharashtra has high produc-
tivity in a variety of farm products
like grapes, bananas, cashew apart
from mangoes. India is also a
major exporter of grapes, bulk of
which goes out from this state.
The state is also host to maximum
number of wineries.
So it is imperative that farm
workers be allowed to move back
to the villages and the farm. As
such the state governments have
been proactive and responsive in
issuing ad hoc permits and direct
contact between bulk purchasers
like grocery chains and e-com-
merce players and the farmers. In
times of Covid the states are
bypassing the stranglehold of
APMC and middlemen. Some
states like Andhra are also propos-
ing doorstep procurement of
grain directly at the farmer’s
home. This sounds very ambitious
but might partially succeed. The
bigger solution might be to use
intelligent logistics, supply chain
algorithms, GPS-enabled trucks,
app-based scheduling to force
farmers to line up at wholesale
markets, and observe social dis-
tancing. This is not all that far-
fetched, and can start earnestly, at
least on a pilot basis.
 You
Your eyes need
extra care
As screen time goes up during the lockdown, experts
suggest simple changes to work from home lifestyle
| Barkha Kumari
mirrorfeedback@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @MumbaiMirror
W
hether people are
working from home
or hosting virtual par-
ties, attending online
classes or checking their
phones for the latest updates, screen
time is at an all-time high ever since
countries around the world declared
varying periods of lockdown since
last month. While it may be neces-
sary at this time, prolonged/exces-
sive exposure to gadgets can lead to
a host of eye problems, ranging from
dryness, irritation and redness, to
grittiness and watering in the eyes
and even headache. These symptoms
can be clubbed under Computer
Vision Syndrome and eye doctors
say they can be addressed by
making simple changes to your
tech-centric lifestyle.
Who is at risk?
Dr Niteen Dedhia, opthalmologist
with the Bandra branch of Ojas Eye
Hospital, says he’s been getting
10-15 complaints of eye dryness and
strain daily of late. He says, “These
are coming from people in the age-
group of 30 to 45 years who are
working from home, in front of their
laptops for longer hours. The prob-
lem seems to be higher in the sub-
urbs, where the younger, IT popula-
tion resides.” He’s also observed that
people who are working remotely
while “wearing glasses with the
wrong or uncorrected power” seem
to experience greater discomfort.
Techies, bank employees, stu-
dents and “anyone already having
more exposure to screen due to their
work profile” are predisposed to dry
eyes, says Dr Hardik Parikh, medical
director and chief surgeon at Global
Eye Clinic, Ghatkopar West. As
also are contact lens wearers and
people with hormonal issues such
as thyroid problems, PCOD and
post-menopausal women, he adds.
ASK THE
SEXPERT
DR MAHINDER WATSA
HEALTH TIP: Green beans contain
# saponins and gamma-tocopherol, which
have anti-carcinogenic properties
Tackle eye dryness
The exposure to blue light, coming
out of the display screens of comput-
ers, electronic notebooks, phones
and TVs, is the main culprit behind
dryness, says Dr Parikh “because they
tend to affect the tear glands and
make the tear film unstable”.
Constant fixation, i.e. staring into
the screen without taking breaks,
and infrequent blinking (a normal
eye blinks 15-16 times a minute) also
leave the eye surface exposed for a
longer time and lead to dryness.
“This is more so if person has refrac-
tive error and does not wear glasses,
“Dr Parikh points out. Unconscious
touching of eyes and lack of sleep
wreak havoc on your eyes.
Then comes the poor ergonomics
of the work-from-home model. Dr
Ashwin Santosh Shetty, an opthal-
mologist with CMI Aster Hospital,
Bengaluru, breaks it down, “Firstly,
there is the issue of lighting at
home. It’s not as bright or optimal as
your office environment. Working
under fluorescent lights, or with
lights switched off is a no-no.
Secondly, most people are working
1 I am 39 years old. And
have a low sex drive. I did
a blood test and a few other
tests. I don’t have diabetes,
thyroid problems or other
issues. But it emerged that my
testosterone level is low. Could
this be the reason for my poor
drive? What could be the
reason for low testosterone?
Yes, low testosterone levels lead
Almonds are natural sources of
tocopherol, folate, and polyphenols,
which prevent cognitive disorders
on the 14-inch screens of laptops at
home now and it’s not the same as
working on larger PCs in the office.
So while your workload remains the
same or may have gone up, your
screen has shrunk, and this can put
a lot of strain on the eyes.”
Besides, in the absence of an
office desk and seat, people tend to
sit on their sofas, beds or on the
floor, and hunch over their laptops.
“This impacts the angle they view
the PC or laptop at, and the result-
ing poor body posture can lead to
neck, back and cervical problems,”
explains Dr Dedhia.
What can you do?
Experts reecommend taking these
preventive measures:
Place your screen 40 to 60 cm
away, with the middle of the screen
at eye level. “If the middle of the
screen is below eye level, it can
cause neck pain and eye strain. If
it’s above eye level or too close, it
can lead to dryness of the eye,”
says Dr Parikh.
Avoid working under dim or fluo-
rescent light or in a dark room.
to diminished sex drive. There
could be various reasons why the
testosterone is low. Please see a
doctor, give your full history and
they will be in a better position to
guide you.
2 I am 29 years old. I got
married to a man that my
parents chose for me last year.
I fantasise about different men
Also, make sure the AC draught is
not directed towards you as it can
dry up your eyes.
If there is no way to avoid the glare
coming in from overhead light
sources or even windows, “use a
good quality anti-glare or anti-
reflection glass on the screen,” says
Dr Ameya Ingawale, eye surgeon
and owner of The i Clinic, Thane.
If you don’t have one, invest in
one after the lockdown is lifted —
as this is always good to use.
Follow the 20-20-20 rule, says Dr
Ingawale. Look away from your
screen every 20 minutes at some-
thing 20 feet away for 20 seconds.
Blink frequently as it helps the tear
film to spread evenly across the eye
and keep it lubricated. “We tend to
blink less when we do activities
that require us to concentrate, such
as looking at the computer moni-
tor, watching a TV show or read-
ing. So blink more. Don’t squeeze
your eyes shut — just blink gently,”
Dr Parikh says.
Get away from your system every
two hours — go for a short walk
around the home and/or do some
while having sex with my
husband. Could this be
considered infidelity? What
should I do? I don’t feel
attracted to my husband. What
would you recommend?
There is nothing wrong in playing
fantasies out in your mind as long as
it does not affect your relationship
otherwise. Nurture your
relationship with your husband and
MumbaiMirror 11
Saturday, April 18, 2020
mirrorfeedback@timesgroup.com
facebook.com/themumbaimirror
@MumbaiMirror
stretches. “Try relaxation exercises
like placing your palms over your
eyes for a few minutes. Or, apply
cold packs two times a day to
soothe tired eyes.” Dr Dedhia says.
Warm compresses are also used to
provide temporary relief from dry
eye-related conditions as they help
the tear glands to work better.
Hydrate, and include omega-3
fatty acids in your diet (almonds,
walnuts, fish and citrus fruits are
good sources).
If dry eyes persist, consult a doctor
and get eye drops over the
counter. “While Ocurest is used for
soothing and decongesting the eyes
and it can be used once a day,
Refresh Tears is a lubricating drop,
to be used two-three times a day,”
Dr Dedhia advises. “Eye drops
are temporary solutions. In those
who have long-standing cases of
dry eyes, Intense Pulse Light
Therapy can be done. However
that’s possible post the quarantine
period,” says Dr Parikh.
Finally, wear your spectacles dili-
gently and treat your fatigued eyes
to sufficient sleep.
get to know him more intimately.
It could turn out that he is better
than anyone who has featured in
your fantasies.
SEND YOUR QUERIES TO
Ask the Sexpert, Mumbai Mirror,
Times Of India Building, Dr D N Road,
Mumbai 400001 or email at
drwatsa@timesgroup.com.
Contact Dr Watsa, send an email to
mcwatsa@hotmail.com
 12
Unwind
MumbaiMirror
Saturday, April 18, 2020
mirrorfeedback@timesgroup.com
facebook.com/themumbaimirror
@MumbaiMirror

03 THINGS TO DO TODAY 03 THINGS TO DO ON SUNDAY

Colour your blues away
I
f you’ve got a printer and a bunch
of colour pencils or sketch pens,
we’ve got a perfect fun family day
recco for you guys. Over 100 muse-
ums and libraries across the world
have banded together to start “Col-
our Our Collections” campaign,
which means you get to colour
their masterpieces any which way
you please as they are offering free
colouring books and pages. Some
of the participating institutions
include The New York Academy of
Medicine Library, Toronto Public Li-
brary, Getty Research Institute and
Cambridge University Library.
Visit: www.nyam.org/colorourcol-
lections

Read contemporary comics

S
hortbox, a quarterly indie
comics box service, based
in the UK, has made several
of their books available digitally
this month. If off-beat (and often
heartwarming) storylines and
gorgeous art appeal to you, then

Learn why heritage matters do read the titles they’ve released

online on Gumroad. These in-

I
n this webinar, examine
how the current Covid-19
crisis is impacting the
arts and culture space, as
well as the heritage and
tourism sectors. To
commemorate World
Heritage Day, and
understand the future
better, experts will explore
questions such as “What is
the best way forward for
governments to make
interventions with
immediate and long-term
impacts?”; “How best can
civil society engage?”; and
other pertinent questions
around the subject.
Today, 2 pm. To register,
visit: bit.ly/3aaU0g7
clude Emily Carroll’s Beneath the
Dead Oak Tree, Jean Wei’s A Long
Distance and Stoke by Sam Wade.
Visit: www.gumroad.com/
shortbox

Tune into this benefit

Enjoy live music
O
ne World: Together At Shawn Mendes, Billie Eil-

N
ow in its fourth week, the #SO-
CIALIndoors series has featured
quite a few stellar acts from the
indie scene, including Ankur Tewari
and Dhruv Visvanath. This evening,
chill out to tunes by singer-songwriter
Ramya Pothuri, who recently released
breezy singles such as “It’s Not Worth
It” and “Do You Care?” (with Trodd).
The show will be
held at 5 pm to-
Home is a digital special
organised by Global
Citizen, curated in collabora-
tion with Lady Gaga. The aim
of this is to support frontline
healthcare workers and the
WHO. The massive roster of
celebrities taking part in
this show includes David
and Victoria Beckham,
Lizzo, Shah Rukh Khan,
ish, Oprah Winfrey, Priyanka
Chopra Jonas, Elton John,
Jennifer Lopez, John Legend,
and much more. The show
will be hosted by Stephen
Colbert, Jimmy Fallon and
Jimmy Kimmel.
To check India timings,
visit: www.globalcitizen.
org/en/connect/
togetherathome

Catch a Shakespearean tragedy

day, on www.
facebook.

W
atching one of the Bard’s greatest works on the com/ScialOf-
stage — produced by Shakespeare’s Globe — is fline as well as
a dream for many theatre fans. Well, since that @Socialoffline
isn’t happening anytime soon, the good folks at Shake- on Instagram
speare’s Globe is offering six plays — all for free — on
their YouTube channel. The only caveat is that it will be
on one at a time, on a rotation of two weeks. This week-
end, watch the 2018 adaptation of Hamlet, a production
whose casting was gender-blind, with artistic directer
Michelle Terry playing the lead.
Hamlet is on till April 19. Visit: www.shakespeares-
globe.com

To feature an event on this page, send the details and photographs to Vijayeta Basu on mirrorfeatures@timesgroup.com

Movies
‘My parents are in Shillong…
I have been panicking’
Actress Patralekhaa informs that she has been paranoid ever
since Meghalaya registered its first Covid-19 death on Wednesday
| Ankita.Chaurasia
@timesgroup.com
TWEETS @AnkitaMirror
S
he has been in lockdown
in Mumbai for a month
now, but the coronavirus
scare struck home when the
North-Eastern state of Megha-
laya registered its first Covid-19
death. The deceased, a 69-year-
old doctor from a city hospital,
passed away on Wednesday.
“My parents are in Shillong
and I have been panicking
ever since. It’s not about just
one case; it’s the people who
have come in contact with the
infected person,” admits an
agitated Patralekhaa, confessing
that news reports have added
to her paranoia. “My brother is
there too, so my parents won’t
have to venture out for grocer-
Ellen irks talk show crew
E
llen DeGeneres
has been con-
tinuing her daily
syndicated talk show
from the comfort
of her own home,
amid the coronavirus
shutdown, which has
angered her crew,
comprising of around
30 people, who have
received ‘no commu-
nication’ about issues like pay
and working hours for over a
month. To make matters worse,
13
MumbaiMirror
Saturday, April 18, 2020
16 Vidyut Jammwal: I am on an inner pilgrimage mirrorfeedback@timesgroup.com
@MumbaiMirror
Entertainment Industry Promotion
Patralekhaa
with her family
ies, but I’m still worried.”
Insisting that besides physi-
cal concerns, there’s a mental
health aspect that needs to be
addressed too during the pan-
demic, the actress points out
COVID-19
that she has never seen her
father sit at home. “Even on
Sundays, he’s working in his
HAS SHOWN US
firm. Time slips by when you
are busy, but not having any-
thing to do adds to the stress,”
states Patralekhaa who has set a
THAT
timetable to account for all her
waking hours since day 1 of the
lockdown.
The self-confessed “spoilt
hostel kid” was in a fix when
she sent her cook on leave 10
days before she was shut in.
She’s learnt cooking watching
YouTube videos, starting with a It seems fake news on social media is
simple dal palak with quinoa spreading faster than the virus itself. And
dish to healthier versions of
chocolate cakes. “Of course, answers are harder than ever to come by.
there were some misadventures
along the way. I don’t want to
Now we aren ' t medical experts , but we know
be reminded of my first attempt how to get to the truth . By thoroug hly
at a dosa or a flourless chocolate
cake,” she laughs. researching and verifying every word before
Patralekhaa, who binges on
i t s actually printed . So in these uncertain
online content often, has got
back to reading now and already times , might we ask you to wait . Wait before
finished Conversations with
Mahavtar Babaji. “It was a breezy you share something you have no way of
read, now, it’s Ira Mukhoty’s confirming . Wait until the truth in print
Heroines which is insightful,”
shares the actress, who has makes its way to your doorstep. -'!
also reconnected with cous-
ins, aunts and long-lost
school friends. “We play PRINT IS PROOF.
Ludo in the evenings. I
just won a round,” she
brags.
And what about beau
Rajkummar Rao?
Patralekhaa turns evasive,
refusing to discuss the
subject. However, pictures
speak louder than words.
On Friday she shared a
video of Raj giving her a
hair trim with the caption,
“Jahan chhaah wahan ! s
raah.” L
In I
/ w
f
/
the crew was also
‘furious’ upon learning
that the daytime talk
show host hired a non-
union tech company
to help DeGeneres 1-d by India Beadi ng --pap-
broadcast daily from
her home in Califor- THE TIMES OF INDIA Da inik Bhaskar hhdusfantimies THEMA&HIN DU VIJAVAANI
nia. When the crew
finally heard from
11 1 Mir
production executives,
'l-W M+ -q I .. I ,,zavea s IIfl;,E (Y1NmucI7 .ms ror ,
u z4'vId
they were told to expect
a whopping 60 per cent pay
decrease, even while the show
, ea,w I f I BusincssLinc 810 midday
continues airing. —Agencies

Chai-Time
Kakuro
The numbers in the grey 15
squares refer to the
9
sums of the digits that
you must fill into the
empty spaces directly
below or to the right of the
grey square containing the
number. For instance, in the
given example, the 3 boxes
horizontally next to 15 must
contain 3 digits that add up to 15,
Quick
Across
7 Spell out (6)
8 Hayfield (6)
9 Desire or long for (4)
10 Ceaseless (8)
11Scold (7)
13 Ancient marketplace (5)
15 Mecca of cricket (5)
17 Person no longer popular
(3-4)
20 D in CBD Belapur (8)
21Water from the clouds (4)
23 Proved false (6)
24 Belgian port (6)
Riddler What turns everything around but doesn’t move?
whereas for 9, it is the 2
boxes placed vertically
under it that must add up to
9. No zeros are used here,
only the digits 1through 9.
Note: A digit cannot appear
more than once in any
particular digit combination.
For instance, in the example,
we cannot have the
combination of 4+7+4 for 15.
Down
1A word meaning 'half' (4)
2 Wealthier (6)
3 Yehudi ___ : the famous
violinist? (7)
4 Glowing coal (5)
5 Small canine (6)
6 Movie featuring Elsa the
lioness (4,4)
12 Supplied (8)
14 To warn (7)
16 A particular item (6)
18 Scold (6)
19 Types; sorts (5)
22 Small hotels (4)
14
MINDCHOW JOKE OF THE DAY MumbaiMirror
Give it your all. Whatever Q: Why was King Arthur’s army Saturday, April 18, 2020
work you do, do it to the too tired to fight? A: It had too mirrorfeedback@timesgroup.com
best of your ability many sleepless knights facebook.com/themumbaimirror
@MumbaiMirror
LOOP
Sudokuchallenge
Rules
» Connect adjacent dots with vertical
or horizontal lines, creating a single
loop (Fig A).
» Crossovers or branches are not
allowed (As shown by dotted lines in Fig
B).
» Numbers in the puzzle indicate the
number of lines that should surround
it, while empty cells may be
surrounded by any number of lines. Not allowed
» You can’t draw lines around zeros. (Fig B)
» Each puzzle has just one unique
solution. (Fig A)
How to begin:
Example (Fig A) – Begin with the zero To solve a Sudoku puzzle, every digit from one to nine
next to 3. Since no lines must appear in each of the nine vertical columns, in each
can be drawn around zero, mark of the nine horizontal rows and in each of the nine boxes.
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
be drawn in the remaining three
spaces. Next, these lines can only be Gofigure Easy
= 16
extended in one direction each. Place the four numbers in
Continue, using the same logic. the first, third, fifth, and 4 5 8 9
Hints: Keep eliminating possibilities by seventh boxes and
marking crosses in spaces between Medium
whatever operators you
dots where a line isn’t possible, i.e, if care to use in the second, = 44
you have already completed required fourth, and sixth boxes in
lines or where a line extension may the correct order to get 5 6 6 8
create a branch or cause a dead-end the answer. Use the Hard
(Fig B) numbers only once. =4
The operators 2 3 4 6
Strikeout Fastfive
Hocusfocus
How long do you think it
will take you to unscram-
ble the ten words shown
below and fit them cor-
rectly into the grid in the
order given? One letter
has already been entered
to get you started. On
your marks, get set…
Across Down
This crossword has no clues and answer is there 1At vas 1Grail
waiting for you. All you have to do is find it in each 6 Barre 2 True V
square. You have a choice of two letters, one of which 7 Raged 3 Caaba
6.Railing is thicker
you must strike out. If you choose correctly, you will be 3.Tie is longer4.Hat is larger 5.Hair is different
left with a grid that contains real words. 8 Thy IC 4 Had us
Differences: 1.Hand is moved 2.Bracelet is moved
9 Usual 5 Tyres
Quoteuncode Mensapuzzle Bull’seye Alphatriangle
This puzzle is a substitu- Which number How many words of four Beginning at the top move towards the bottom
tion cipher in which one completes the bottom or more letters can you seven-letter word by adding a letter at each step and
letter stands for anoth- grid? make from the letters rearranging. A correct and different word must be
er. If you think that Q shown? Every word made at each step answering to the clue given.
equals C, it will equal C must contain the cen- 118th letter 2 Either __ 3 Legendary bird 4 Toe woe
throughout the puzzle. tral letter. There should 5 Sing softly 6 Type of oil 7 Line on map
Single letters, short be one seven-letter
words and words using word. British English
an apostrophe give you Dictionary is used as a
clues to locating vowels. reference.
Solution is by trial and
error.
R
G
TODAY’S CLUE: R
Z EQUALS S. E E
R
VBPJWXU PZ TAG GFU T
C L R
ATJC DWTPZFNUTG
N R
VAX JBIPTUZZ; GFUXU
PZ BJZA GFU R
»
ZWHHUZZ AV AGFUXZ. 04 Average; 05 Good; R
07 Outstanding
DIFFICULT TO SOLVE? FIND THESE SOLUTIONS ON THE NEXT PAGE
 ChaiTime MumbaiMirror Saturday, April 18, 2020 15

COMICS Ferd”nand SIGN POST Shirley Bose

If it’s your birthday today

Health is better due to a change in lifestyle habits. Having had to spend so much
time at home has helped the family enjoy time together and plan to keep it so.
There is greater closeness with your spouse/ partner. Business/ career
is on a slow karmic cycle which picks up after October. New work begins
coming in after June. Do your best.

Capricorn Taurus Virgo

Frank and earnest by bob thaves Make your stand
clear by stating
Don’t get side-
tracked in mea-
Do continue main-
taining this inner
views very system- ningless actions and serenity you’ve
atically. Health is habits. Life now changes cultivated over time.
good. to a better karmic cycle. Plan a change systematically.
Love msg: Having faith and trust Love msg: Life unfolds in Love msg: Somehow a relation-
in each other is the most basic newer and more delightful ship (for some) no longer has the
requirement in a relationship. ways due to love. chemistry to sustain itself.
Colours: red/ black. Colours: green/ peach. Colours: mustard/ cream.

Aquarius Gemini Libra

Practising regular Being aware of Unable to nudge
Bizarro by Dan Piraro meditation/ yoga/
other forms of
different nuances of
a situation is a huge
life along faster
can be frustrating.
exercise really helped learning lesson. Try Be patient.
in getting through trying times not to react immediately. Love msg: Those in a fairly
effectively. Love msg: Expressing your recent relationship may feel
Love msg: That love is the highest love is something that happens taken for granted. Discussing
energy of all is crystal clear. so naturally. this issue is better.
Colours: olive/ maroon. Colours: blue/ maroon. Colours: turquoise/ salmon.

Pisces Cancer Scorpio

Avoid making spec- An expected Be aware in which
ulative investments - payment is re- area of your
always. Receiving ceived. Memories of profession there
Jumpstart karmic justice is such a the past crowd you have been major gains.
great feeling. suddenly. Work on them even more. Be
Love msg: Positive thinking Love msg: A relationship has a lot practical.
and faith in karma helps draw of unanswered questions. They will Love msg: The bond deepens
in a soul mate for singles. be answered shortly. Be patient. with time spent together.
Colours: aquamarine/ black. Colours: navy/ peach. Colours: gold/ grey.

Aries Leo Sagittarius

Don’t get coerced Confidently and Goals change
into making a diplomatically often, but keep
decision which dealing with people them compatible
doesn’t feel right. Do get makes you popular. A with each other.
enough sleep. friend cancels a trip to your city. Love msg: By healing family
Pearls before swine by Stephan Pastis Love msg: You look forward to Love msg: Both come to a mutual issues, you learn to deal better
a small retreat whenever that understanding about an impor- with each other, understanding
will be possible. tant issue. the mindset and values.
Colours: white/ black. Colours: blue/ green. Colours: orange/ cream.

KIDZONE WHATZIT
Manish kadam, 14 years, Mumbaii

Redeye by Mel Casson

The odds are stacked against you

SOLUTION:

Mumbai Mirror, Times of India Bldg, Dr D N Road, Mumbai– 1

or email us at kidzone@timesgroup.com LINEMARO
If you were a disease,
Please send hard copies of your artwork in A4 size only. you’d be hepatitis bae

SOLUTIONS
teen
3x4/6+2=4 A mirror lent, NEGLECT,
Hard RIDDLER gent, gentle,
5 x 6 + 8 + 6 = 44 cent, elect,
Medium BULL’S EYE
8 + 4 - 5 + 9 = 16 the bottom right box.
second numbers for
Easy between the first and others.
GO FIGURE and the difference success of
to get the final figure, there is also the
figures on the top row for laziness;
Croton, Contour first and second only punishment
R, Or, Roc, Corn, Croon, 9. For each group, add Failure is not the
KAKURO LOOP ALPHA TRIANGLE SU DOKU MENSA PUZZLE QUICK STRIKE OUT FAST FIVE QUOTE UNCODE

Volume No 15, Issue No 273 REGD. NO. MAHENG/2005/16272

Published for the proprietors, Metropolitan Media Company Limited, by R Krishnamurthy at The Times of India Building, Dr D N Road, Mumbai 400 001and printed by him at (1) The Times of India Suburban Press, Akurli Road, Western Express Highway, Kandivli (E),
Mumbai 400 101. Tel. Nos. 66353535, 22733535 and (2) The Times of India Print City, Plot No. 4, T.T.C. Industrial Area, Thane Belapur Road, Airoli, Navi Mumbai-400 708. Tel. No. (022) 2760 9999; Fax: (022) 2760 5275, Response - 66353636, 22733636,
Email - mirrorfeedback@timesgroup.com, Fax - 22731160. Editor: Pankaj Upadhyaya (Responsible for selection of news under PRB Act). Reproduction in whole or in part without the written permission of the Publisher is prohibited.
Movies MumbaiMirror Entertainment Industry Promotion Saturday, April 18, 2020
16

‘I’m on an inner pilgrimage’

Vidyut Jammwal’s exercises, shared and perfected during lockdown, help de-stress, develop immunity
| Roshmila.Bhattacharya No one knows what will happen elbow ache was gone.
@timesgroup.com tomorrow, so why stress over it.” Talking about chakras and
Vidyut himself has let his hair marmas, Vidyut goes into
TWEETS @RoshmilaMirror

T
he on-going lockdown has
left many bored, depressed
and restless, but Vidyut
Jammwal who took off to an
undisclosed location in the
countryside just days before we were
shut in by the coronavirus outbreak,
couldn’t be happier. “I’m on an
inner pilgrimage, disconnected with
the outside world and connected
with the inside. We will never get
a time like this in history again, so,
utilise it to learn about yourself and
do all that you ever wanted to but
couldn’t for lack of time,” he asserts.
Prod the actor on his timetable
and he laughs, “I don’t have one. I
eat when I am hungry. I’ve slept 14
hours and stayed up 36 hours.
When girls complain about their
hair, I tell them to let it grow, even
let it gray. Just be the person you are
without trying to be any different.
grow out and is sporting a beard
while brushing up on his
Kalaripayattu skills through action
and meditation. “This martial arts
has come down to us directly from
Lord Shiva. It underlines the fact
that nothing is impossible. Practise
makes perfect,” he asserts.
Starting with cousins and friends
who urged him to go on Facebook,
he has been sharing his knowledge
and expertise with anyone who
cares to log in for a live demo on the
social networking site or watch his
videos later. “These sessions are
completely free and aimed at
relieving mental distress and
building up immunity,” insists
Vidyut.
Rattlings off the six systems—
circulatory or cardio-vascular,
respiratory, digestive, neuro or
nervous system, muscular and
skeletal—that govern our body and
Vidyut’s handwritten formula
need to be nurtured, he points out
that his workouts are unlike a gym
routine. So, while trainers shame
you into doing 20 squats by pulling
off 50 themselves, which come from
years of training, he urges you to jog
on the spot, clap and tap every part,
from neck to knee, breath into every
organ, from bones and lungs to
kidneys, in a warm-up exercise
which proclaims ‘I love my body’.
It can be done anytime—first
thing in the morning, when you are
watching TV or preparing for bed. “I
usually wake up around 5-6 am.
After 15 minutes of charging myself,
I’m fully energised and can be on
the go for 10-15 hours. It’s
important to keep moving, shake up
the systems, as that flushes out
toxins and strengthens the inner
core,” the actor informs, adding that
after a recent session on bone
breathing, aimed at increasing red
and white blood cell count, he got
18,000 messages
exulting that a
nagging shoulder or
kidney breathing and
reverse breathing which
help balance out the mind
and body. “Fear is the
biggest disease of the
human brain, along with
jealousy and anxiety,” he
cautions, saying his simple
exercises like bending from
the hip for as far as you can go
and stretching out the leg, has
helped not just him after several
bone cracks but even those who,
even after surgeries, were unable to
squat. And his reverse breathing has
breathed 15 per cent life into a
76-year-old man unable to bend his
shoulder girdle and elbow for seven
years.
In conclusion, while
teaching you to smile at the
sun and kiss the moon, the
actor says, “I know all of
us out there are dying
to go back to work, to
capture the world.
But till it’s time,
why not capture
this moment.”

Ranjit Chowdhry (1955-2020)

He was ‘my Ranjit’

in the line to go up the Statue of an incredible way. In fact, when
Liberty, when a few people came up Dad would receive letters from
to him and told him that they Ranjit, he would send it to all of us

to everyone he knew
loved him in Mississippi Masala. It
was a fantastic moment. I do
believe that he should have worked
more than he did. When you see
him play a street urchin in the chil-
Theatre director Quasar Thakore Padamsee pays tribute dren’s film Hungama Bombay
Ishtyle, you realise how much the
just to read because they were writ-
ten so beautifully.
Though our meetings were few
and far between, there was always
some kind of connection. As we
grew up, we became four children
(Raell, Shazahn, Ranjit and I) of

R
anj”, “Jeet”, “Chottu”,
“Freako”.
Growing up, I knew
Ranjit (Chowdhry) on
screen. He had acted in films such
as Khatta Meetha, Baton Baton Mein
and Khoobsurat. He had even acted
in Badal Sircar’s play, Evam
Indrajit—he acted opposite my
mum (Dolly Thakore)—directed by
Vikram Kapadia.
Even though he may have
played the role of a shopkeeper or
taxi driver, he paved the way for
the early generation of actors to be
featured in American television.
The absolute gamut of the work he
has done has been incredible.
Many people now know him as
that recurring character in Cosby or
Vikram, the telemarketer in the
American TV show, The Office.
He wasn’t a salesman of his
own work. He loved cinema, but
he had cut his roots in theatre. Not
because of his mum (Pearl
Padamsee) or dad (Alyque
Padamsee), but he really cut his
teeth in theatre.
Ranjit was in and around
Ranjit Chowdhry in The Office
Bombay a lot when I was growing
up. When I was a kid, I always
found him ‘cool fun’ to hang out
with. He always made you feel at
ease. He got married and went off
to work in Toronto. And I didn’t see
him much. Then, when I was 14, I
went on my first trip abroad with
my father to New York. AP and I
were walking on the road, when we
heard someone scream, “Alyque”.
We were surprised to see Ranjit and
he said if he did shout ‘dad’, all of
NYC would turn. He had that kind
of presence. Within hours of that
meeting, Ranjit and I took off. AP
loved New York but hated all the
touristy stuff. So Ranjit took me to
the Empire State Building and
Statue of Liberty. We were waiting
camera loved him.
But acting is the work of his
you saw; what I loved about him
was his mind. Ranjit was a won-
derful writer. He was one of the
writers of Malgudi Days. Everyone
loved the show, but since I knew
him, there was a certain excite-
ment to it. And because he had a
writer’s mind, he brought great
pathos to all his characters. You see
that in the film Sam & Me (a film
he wrote and acted in), and for
which he received great acclaim in
Cannes. How he would read a line
was different than most actors
would.
One of the aspects of living
away was that he couldn’t be there
for every occasion. So, he would
send us a letter to be read. Farid
(Currim, actor) and I would “arm
wrestle” over it. Because whoever
read the letter, invariably, became
the star of the evening. His take on
things was always hatke—he
would say something fun on a sol-
emn occasion or speak about the
beauty in a fun evening. He encap-
sulated his quirkiness in a letter in
my father. When Ranjit’s son (Avi)
was born, there was so much
excitement because we became
uncle and aunts. It was a big
moment for all of us, I remember.
We both bonded over our dis-
dain for the IPL. He, like me, felt
IPL was not cricket. AP, however,
loved the IPL and we would fight
with him over this. Ranjit would
send me emails discussing it. Aside
of cricket, we would often discuss
different writing styles and other
preoccupations in the world. It was
like having an intellectual soul-
mate.
Ranjit had an acerbic tongue;
his humour was always tongue-in-
cheek. But despite all of that, he
was remarkably tender and gentle
and created that feeling with eve-
ryone around. He could appear as
this constantly complaining
grouch. But that was a veneer. We
always had a mothering attitude
towards him. He brought out in
everyone that illicit warmth
towards him. To each person he
knew, he was always “my Ranjit”.
— As told to Reema Gehi