CMYK

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Pages 12 |` 5.00|LC

KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR

MORE OF SYED AKBARUDDIN 'KOHLI LIFTED

NATO TRYING TO
THE SAME? DISMISSES NYT INDIA TO
DRAG UKRAINE INTO
REPORT AS RUBBISH SUCCESS'
ALLIANCE: LAVROV
P6 P5 P10 P12

WEATHER
Parliament’s Budget Rafael Nadal clinches record
21st Grand Slam with Oz win
Mainly clear sky. Maximum and
minimum temperature most likely to be
around 25 °C and 12 °C respectively.
RAINFALL: Nil
session starts today
Session expected to be stormy; Opp expected to raise MSP law, Pegasus
RELATIVE HUMIDITY
Max.93% Min. 36% DIPANKAR CHAKRABORTY
TEMPERATURE
Max: 24.1°C (-3) Min: 11.7°C (-3)
NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY
Cong asks govt to address people’s
T
SUN RISES SUN SETS
06:16 hrs
MOON RISES
17:24 hrs
MOON SETS
he Budget session of
Parliament, which
will begin on Mon-
issues, Adhir moots privilege motion
05:28 hrs 16:25 hrs
day with President then the further strategy will
New moon on 01 February
Ram Nath Kovind’s address be decided."
to a joint session of both The Congress has said
Houses of Parliament, is that the Prime Minister is
THUMBNAILS likely to be a stormy one with directly involved in it and
the opposition parties pre- alleged, based on a NewYork
pared to take the govern- Timesreport, that the Modi
ment to task over farmers’ government purchased
demand for a law on MSP, Pegasus Spyware in 2017 and
and alleged use of Pegasus other military technology as
spyware, among other the "centrepieces" of a pack-
issues. age, including "weapons
The Budget 2022-23 ses- and intelligence gear worth
sion is also taking place INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE pensation to the families of roughly $2 billion" from
just ahead of the crucial Uttar NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY Covid victims & martyred Israel during PM Modi's
Pradesh assembly elections farmers?" visit.
Rafael Nadal on Sunday created history as he became the first man to win 21 Grand
in February and amid adher- A day ahead of the start of The stage is set for a Congress leader in the Slams. Two sets down, the Spaniard rallied to defeat the world number two, Daniil
ence to strict Covid-19 safe- Budget session of Parlia- stormy Budget Session with Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Medvedev, by 2-6, 6-7(5), 6-4, 7-5 as he clinched the record-breaking Australian Open
ty protocols further neces- ment and amidst the Pega- the opposition gearing up Chowdhury, meanwhile, trophy at the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne in a clash that lasted five hours and 24
sitated by detection of about sus snoopgate controver- against the government on demanded that a 'Privi- minutes. With this triumph, Nadal broke his tie with Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer
Tara Gandhi Bhattacharjee, grand daughter of
875 Covid positive cases at sy, the Congress demand- the Pegasus snooping issue. lege Motion' be moved for the most men's singles Grand Slam titles in history. �ANI (Match report on Page 12)
Mahatma Gandhi, pays tribute to Gandhi on his the Parliament complex on ed that government should The Congress is reaching out against Information Tech-
23 January. address issues which con- to the opposition to devise nology Minister Ashwini

75 p.c. adult population

74th death anniversary, at Gandhi Smriti in New
Delhi on Sunday. �ANI Giving details of the cern common people. a common strategy to cor- Vaishnaw for allegedly mis-
schedule of the session, a The party,in a state- ner the government. leading the house on the
Rajya Sabha secretariat note ment said, "With the Bud- Not only the Congress Pegasus issue.

in India fully vaccinated

Farmers to observe ‘Betrayal Day‘:Alleging here stated that the Budget get Session starting tomor- but other political parties The Pegasus issue has
betrayal by the Centre, Bharatiya Kisan Union session would be held in two row, will Modi government are also planning to corner marred the proceedings
(BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait on Sunday anno- phases. The first phase of address the issues of fail- the government on the of Parliament and a major-
unced a country-wide observance of "Betrayal the budget session will ing economy, unending snooping row. ity of the Monsoon and
Day" on Monday over farm issues. The national begin on 31 January and price rise, unbearable Leader of the opposition Winter sessions was washed
spokesperson of the influential farmers' union conclude on 11 February. unemployment, Chinese Mallikarjun Kharge said, out because of the Oppo-
said the over-a-year-long protest at Delhi's bor- The second part of the ses- aggression, dismissal of "We will seek the view of sition's protests on this
ders was withdrawn on the basis of a letter of sion will begin on 14 March MoS Ajay Mishra, com- other political parties and issue.
promises by the government on December 9 and conclude on 8 April.
but those remain unfulfilled. Soon after the President
addresses the session of shifts with members seat- Motion of Thanks regarding Sabha Chairman M Venka-
4,10,92,522
Parliament, the Economic ed across the chambers. the President’s address. The iah Naidu and Lok Sabha
EC to review political rally ban: The Election
Commission of India (ECI) will hold a virtual
Survey for the year 2021-22
will be tabled in Lok Sabha.
The first part of the Bud-
get session will have 10 sit-
Lok Sabha will take the dis-
cussion on the same on
Speaker Om Birla met at
Upa-Rashtrapati Niwas, the
18,84,937
review meeting to assess the situation on Mon- Union Finance Minister tings between January 31 Wednesday, following which house of the vice president
day when the ban on physical political rallies
and roadshows for the upcoming Assembly
Nirmala Sitharaman will
present the Budget for the
and February 11 while 19 sit-
tings are scheduled for the
the PM is expected to reply
to the debate on February 7.
and discussed the prepa-
rations for the upcoming 2,34,281
elections comes to an end. On January 22, the year 2022-23 on 1 February second part between March The Budget session Budget Session . They
ECI had extended the ban on physical rallies at 11 a.m. 14 and April 8, 2022, accord- beginning Monday will be expressed the hope that all
and roadshows till January 31 amid rising Covid
cases. An ECI official said that the commission
Considering the Covid-
19 third wave, the Lok Sabha
ing to the Rajya Sabha sec-
retariat.
the sixth to be held since the
outbreak of the Covid pan-
political parties would
engage in ‘constructive’
SNS & AGENCIES
NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY On 30 January 2020, 3,52,784
will take a decision according to the situation and the Rajya Sabha (upper The first four days of the demic in January 2020. debates and contribute to India reported its
will be sitting in separate session are reserved for the Vice President and Rajya a productive session. India achieved another first positive case
4,94,091
and the Covid cases in the respective states.
milestone in its fight against of the coronavirus
Covid-19 on Sunday as it from Kerala. Over
Pakistani, JeM Pegasus snooping case: Fresh plea in apex court administered more than 75
per cent of the adult pop- the next two years,
UNION HEALTH MINISTRY
FIGURES AS OF 8.00 A.M.
SUNDAY 30 JANUARY 2022
commander INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE pieces' of this deal. In April top court judge, Justice R.V. technical committee are Dr.
ulation with both doses
of vaccines, said Union
the country has
recorded over 4.1 WEST BENGAL REGISTERED

among 5 NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY 2017, it was reported that India

had inked a $2 billion deal with
Raveendran, to probe the Pega-
sus snooping allegations.
Naveen Kumar Chaudhary, Pro-
fessor (Cyber Security and Dig-
Health Minister Mansukh
Mandaviya.
crore infections.
3,427 COVID CASES AND 33
DEATHS IN THE LAST 24 HOURS.

terrorists
killed in J-K
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
JAMMU, 30 JANUARY
Five terrorists of the Jaish-e-
Mohammad ( JeM) and
Lashkar-e-Taiyyaba (LeT)
outfits, including two top
JeM commanders and a
Pakistani, were killed by secu-
rity forces on Sunday in two
separate overnight encoun-
ters in south Kashmir.
The police have described
these killings as a major suc-
cess for security forces.
Police said that two oper-
ations were launched during
the night at Charar-e-sharief
in district Budgam and at
Naira in district Pulwama.
“Both have concluded with
killing of one terrorist in
Budgam and four in Pulwa-
ma, including two top JEM
A fresh plea has been moved in
the Supreme Court seeking that
it take cognisance of a news
report in international media,
in connection with the pur-
chase of Pegasus spyware, and
order an FIR against Prime Min-
ister Narendra Modi.
The plea moved by advocate
M.L. Sharma, lead petitioner in
the pending Pegasus case, said
the New York Times published
a detailed report declaring that
in July 2017, the Modi govern-
ment purchased Pegasus from
the Israeli firm.
“The report, published on Fri-
day, revealed that in 2017, India
and Israel agreed to a $2 billion
sale of a ‘package’ of weapons
and intelligence gear. It further
stated that Pegasus and a mis-
sile system were the 'centre-
Aim is to re-establish India’s
Israel Aerospace Industries for
supply of air defence missiles
to the Indian Army," said the plea.
The plea seeks registration
of FIR “to recover public money
paid for the impugned deal and
prosecute concerned persons
including Narendra D. Modi in
accordance of law”.
“... petitioner has also filed
an application to issue a letter
rogatory to Israeli Court for
securing necessary evidence
secured by the government dur-
ing its raid upon NSO office and
other places. Which is still pend-
ing,” the plea added.
On October 27, the top court
said it was compelled to take up
the cause to determine the
truth, as it appointed an inde-
pendent expert technical com-
mittee supervised by a retired
The court has authorised
the technical committee to
devise its own procedure to
effectively implement and
answer the terms of reference.
The committee can hold an
investigation it deems fit and take
statements of any person in
connection with the inquiry
and call for records of any
authority or individual.
Justice Raveendran is over-
seeing the functioning of the
technical committee and he is
assisted by Alok Joshi, former IPS
officer, and Dr. Sundeep Oberoi,
Chairman, Sub Committee in
(International Organisation of
Standardisation/International
Electro-Technical Commis-
sion/Joint Technical Commit-
tee).
The three members of the
ital Forensics) and Dean, Nation-
al Forensic Sciences Universi-
ty, Gandhinagar, Gujarat, Dr.
Prabaharan P., Professor (School
of Engineering), Amrita Vishwa
Vidyapeetham, Amritapuri, Ker-
ala, and Dr. Ashwin Anil Gumaste,
Institute Chair Associate Pro-
fessor (Computer Science and
Engineering), Indian Institute
of Technology, Bombay, Maha-
rashtra.
A batch of petitions includ-
ing those by advocate Sharma,
CPI-M MP John Brittas, journalist
N. Ram, former IIM professor
Jagdeep Chokkar, Narendra
Mishra, Paranjoy Guha Thakur-
ta, Rupesh Kumar Singh, S.N.M.
Abdi and Editors Guild of India
were filed seeking an indepen-
dent probe into the Pegasus
snooping allegations.
TEEMING CROWD
“With the mantra of
‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Prayas’,
India has administered 75
per cent of its adult pop-
ulation with both doses
of the Covid vaccine. We are
getting stronger in the fight
against the pandemic,”
Mandaviya said in a tweet.
As per the Health Min-
istry report on Sunday
morning, with the admin-
istration of more than 62
lakh vaccine doses in the
last 24 hours, India's Covid-
19 vaccination coverage
has exceeded 165.7 crore
in India. This has been
achieved through
1,81,35,047 sessions.
“Seventy-five per cent
of all adults are fully vac-
cinated. Congratulations to
our fellow citizens for this
momentous feat. Proud
of all those who are mak-
ing our vaccination drive
a success," tweeted Prime
Minister Narendra Modi.
Meanwhile, India report-
ed a marginal decline in
fresh Covid-19 cases at
2,34,281 with 893 deaths in
the last 24 hours. Howev-
er, the daily positivity rate
in the country has risen to
14.5 per cent. The active
caseload has also reported
a further decline at 18,84,937
which constitute 4.59 per
cent of the country's total
Covid-positive cases.
Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi, meanwhile said
the trust of people in indige-
nous vaccine was the ‘great
strength’ of the country.
The PM, in his Mann Ki
Baat radio address on Sun-
day, said with a decline in
cases of coronavirus infec-
tion it was the desire of the
people that alongside main-
taining safety the pace of
the economic activities
should also be maintained.
“Now the cases of coro-
na infection have also start-
ed decreasing - this is a very
positive sign. People should
be safe, the pace of eco-
nomic activities of the
country should be main-
tained - this is the wish of
every countryman,” the
Prime Minister said, as he
termed India’s fight against
the latest wave of the coro-
navirus a ‘great success’.

national symbols: PM Modi

Commanders Zahid Wani
and an Foreign terrorist from
Pakistan,” according to a
police statement.
The encounters started
during anti-terror operations
in Pulwama and Budgam dis-
tricts last evening.
In an operation in Chrar-
e-Sharief area of Budgam
district, one terrorist was
killed. Police said one AK rifle
was recovered from the
encounter site.
Inspector General of Police,
Kashmir, Vijay Kumar has
termed the encounters as a
major success for the police.
An Army spokesman said
that warlike stores and arms
and ammunition were recov-
ered at the two encounter
spots.
Police said that the ter-
rorists who were killed
were involved in several
attacks targeting civilians
and security forces.
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
in his first ‘Mann Ki Baat’
address in 2022 over All India
Radioon Sunday said whether
it was the display of national
valour at Rajpath during Re-
public Day and extending the
Republic Day celebration from
Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s
birth anniversary till up to
death anniversary of Mahat-
ma Gandhi or digital sculpture
of Netaji at India Gate, all
these efforts were aimed at ‘re-
establishing’ India’s ‘national
symbols’.
Mr Modi’s remark comes
murmurs of subdued disap-
proval among a section of
society over installation of
Netaji’s statue at India Gate.
“One change you must have
noticed is that now the Repub-
lic Day functions will start
from the 23rd of January, i.e.,
the birth anniversary of Neta-
ji Subhas Chandra Bose and
will continue till the 30th of Jan-
uary i.e., Gandhiji's death
anniversary. A digital sculpture
of Netaji has also been installed
at India Gate.We can never for-
get the way the country wel-
comed this, the wave of joy that
arose from every corner of
the country; the kind of feel-
ings expressed by every coun-
tryman,” Mr Modi said. “In the
Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, the
country is re-establishing its
national symbols through
these efforts.”
Mr Modi said, similarly
the merger of ‘Amar Jawan Jyoti’
near India Gate and the Jyoti
lit at the ‘National War Memo-
rial’ in the vicinity brought tears
in the eyes of many country-
men and martyr families. He
quoted some former soldiers
writing to him saying, “The
‘Amar Jawan Jyoti’ lit at the
memorial is a symbol of the
immortality of the martyrs.”
He said on the walls of Nation-
al War Memorial names of all
the bravehearts martyred
since Independence had been People throng Sarojini Nagar market after Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) lifted
inscribed. weekend curfew and odd-even curbs for shops, in New Delhi on Sunday. �ANI

CMYK

02 KOLKATA, MONDAY 31 JANUARY 2022
English Bazaar BJP MLA
launches ‘paray bidhayak’
TMC mocks it as ‘show off’ ahead of municipality elections
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
MALDA, 30 JANUARY
B
JP MLA of English
Bazaar in Malda,
Sreerupa Mitra
Choudhury, today
launched what the party
termed 'paray bidhayak' (MLA
at the doorstep) in the Bans-
bari area under the English
Bazaar police station.
Trinamul Congress leaders,
however, mocked the move
and said that it was a "show
off" before the municipal elec-
tions.
Though MLA Choudhury
claimed that it will be a con-
tinuous drive, even during
the post-election period, the
TMC said that she had not been
in her constituency after win-
ning the Assembly election and
was now "falsely posing as a
N Dinajpur biz body seeks rail
infrastructure development
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
RAIGANJ, 30 JANUARY
As the Centre prepares to pre-
sent the Railway budget, the
West Dinajpur Chamber of
Commerce (WDCC) of North
Dinajpur has demanded devel-
opment of railway infra-
structure in the district.
The WDCC yesterday sent
a memorandum to Railway
minister Ashwini Vaishnaw
and the general manager of the
Northeast Frontier Railway
to this effect.
The trade body of both
North and South Dinajpurs has
demanded resumption of the
Delhi-bound Simanchal
Express, introduction of the
rake point at the Raiganj sta-
tion, construction of a fly-
over in Raiganj, and some
other development projects.
"Earlier, due to the adverse
Covid-19 situation, the Delhi-
NFR to run Jalpaiguri-Agartala ‘kisan trains’
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
SILIGURI, 30 JANUARY
The Northeast Frontier Rail-
way has decided to run two
Kisan Rail trains from Jal-
paiguri and Dhupguri in West
Bengal to Agartala in Tripura
for transportation of pota-
toes with stoppages enroute
for loading and unloading.
Among these services, train
No 00571 Jalpaiguri-Agartala
Kisan Rail will run on 30 Jan-
uary, and 6th, 13th and 27th
February (Sunday), leaving
Jalpaiguri at 14-00 hours to
reach Agartala at 03-00 hours
on the third day. The train will
have stoppages at Raninagar
in Jalpaiguri, New Coochbe-
har, New Bongaigaon and
Guwahati stations. Train No
00560 Dhupguri-Agartala
Kisan Rail will run on 4th, 11th,
18th and 25th February (Fri-
day), leaving Dhupguri at 17-
00 hours to reach Agartala at
04-00 hours on the third day.
The train will have stoppages
at New Coochbehar, New
PFA Siliguri marks Animal
Welfare Fortnight
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
SILIGURI, 30 JANUARY
The Animal Welfare Fortnight
being marked by People For
Animals (PFA) Siliguri came
to an end here today.
The PFA has kick started the
fortnight programme on 15
January, the organisation's
office bearers said.
During the programme,
the PFA organised free animal
health check-up camps,
including one held today in the
Betgera Village near Salugara
in Siliguri.
"Over 200 cows, calves,
responsible people's repre-
sentative."
As the municipal elections
approach, a rise in the polit-
ical fever is palpable in the
district.
Mrs Mitra Choudhury today
took part in a programme
and tried to solve the problems
being faced by the people in
the Banshbari area.
bound Seemanchal Express
train from Radhikapur had
been suspended. But the Covid
situation has now eased. As
such we demand the resump-
tion of the train soon," the Gen-
eral Secretary of the WDCC,
Shankar Kundu, said.
"Around 15 years ago, dur-
ing the introduction of the
broad gauge track, the Rail-
ways had withdrawn the rake
point from the Raiganj station.
After that, no rake point has
been reintroduced at the sta-
tion till date. Though Raiganj
is the district headquarters, in
the absence of the rake, goods
are brought from Malda or Kis-
hanganj in Bihar. As such,
the prices of goods in North
Dinajpur are higher than other
places.We have demanded that
the Railway minister reintro-
duce our rake point at the
Raiganj station," M Kundu
added.
Bongaigaon and Guwahati
stations.
"It may be mentioned here
that perishable items like
fruits & vegetables and agro-
products can be easily trans-
ported through Kisan Rail.
Fifty percent subsidy in freight,
which is borne by the Ministry
of Food Processing Indus-
tries (MoFPI), is being grant-
ed on transportation of fruits
and vegetables through Kisan
Rail services," the NF Railway
said in a release.
"Presently destinations like
Agartala, Dimapur, Changsari,
New Guwahati, Jorhat Town,
Azara, Tinsukia are being cov-
goats, pigs, cicken and dogs
were given medical treatment
during today's camp. Anti-
rabies vaccine was also admin-
istrated among the dogs there,
while all the necessary med-
icines were distributed among
animal owners," said Sujoy
Dutta of the People For Ani-
mals Siliguri.
"It was a successful animal
health check-up camp, and
other PFA members who lent
their helping hand in the pro-
gramme included Manisha
Gupta, Ranjit Chaklader and
Sangita Mitra," Mr Dutta
added.
According to Mrs Mitra
Chowdhury, the programme
had nothing to do with the pre-
poll campaign.
"The programme in the
neighborhood is for the com-
mon people. Even after the
polls, the MLA programme will
continue in the neighbor-
hood," she said.
District TMC spokesperson
According him, the railway
level crossing in the middle of
Raiganj town is causing huge
traffic congestion in the town,
inconveniencing mainly stu-
dents, office goers, and patients
headed for the Raiganj Med-
ical College.
"We have demanded that
the railway authorities con-
struct a flyover on the level
crossing in Raiganj to save the
town from traffic congestion.
We have also demanded
changing the time table of the
Howrah-Radhikapur passen-
ger train and development of
infrastructure of the Kanki
railway station. If our demands
are not fulfilled in the coun-
try's next budget, we will be
compelled to start a movement
in favour of our demands.
We sent our demands to both
the railway minister and the
general manager of NF Rail-
way," Mr Kundu said.
ered by Kisan Rail in the North-
east Frontier Railway. For
detailed information regard-
ing Kisan Rail services, one can
contact officials of the com-
mercial department con-
cerned either at divisional
levels or at the headquarter
level," NF Railway's Chief
Public Relations Officer Guneet
Kaur said.
Leased Parcel Cargo
Express Train service
As part of the Business
Development Unit (BDU) ini-
tiatives, NF Railway operated
its first leased Parcel Cargo
Express Train (PCET) from
Azara (Guwahati) in Assam to
Members of People For Animals Siliguri vaccinate a dog at Betgera in Siliguri on Sunday ��SNS
CMYK
No politics this time, but restoration of Darjeeling's glory
AFTER A MEETING OF HIS PARTY ON PREPARATIONS FOR THE DARJEELING MUNICIPALITY ELECTIONS
Shubhamoy Basu, on the other
hand, said, "The MLA has not
been seen in the area ever since
she won the Assembly elec-
tions. Residents here could not
get the certificates they need-
ed from the MLA. Now she is
acting before the civic elections.
There will be no benefit for the
BJP in doing all this. The mis-
take made by the people in the
Assembly elections will not be
repeated in this election."
Meanwhile, some local
people supported the BJP's
programme, some others
did not.
"The MLA was not seen here
when people were in trouble
during the raging Covid pan-
demic that had reached a
high point, and now she is
doing politics before the civic
elections," said a resident of
the Banshbari area.
GENTLY DOWN THE STREAM...
Children play in the Mahananda river, at Kamrangaguri near
Fulbari in Siliguri on Sunday evening. ��MANAS R BANNERJEE
Vasco-da-Gama in Goa yes-
terday. The train commenced
its maiden journey from Azara,
carrying mosquito repellents,
a variety of tea, broom, and
other goods, the NF Railway
said.
"In a first, AVG Logistics
operated a leased Parcel Cargo
Express Train (PCET) for North-
east Frontier Railway (NFR)
covering a distance of 3358 km
(one way) between Azara
(Guwahati) in Assam and
Vasco in Goa via Siliguri,
Kolkata, Hyderabad, Hubli
with loading/unloading facil-
ities. The train was loaded
with food products, ready-
CMYK
AJOY EDWARDS, LEADER, HAMRO PARTY
FINAL TOUCHES
An artist gives finishing touches to an idol of goddess Saraswati, at Kumar Tuli in Siliguri on Sunday.
made garments, varieties of tea,
bamboo products and other
handicrafts, spices, edible oil,
mosquito repellents, etc. The
total transit time was 87 hours,"
Ms Kaur said in a statement.
According to the NF Rail-
way, the train will operate on
a round-trip basis. The train
will depart from Azara every
Wednesday at 6 pm and reach
Vasco-da-Gama at 8:30 am on
Sunday. The train consists of
15 van parcels of 24 tonne
capacity each and 1 brake
van for the first six months and
a total of 20 parcel vans there-
after up to next 6 years.
"This new route will not only
strengthen the connectivity
between the North Eastern
States with the South and
West, but also act as a cata-
lyst for business growth. It will
act as an efficient and reliable
time bound solution to the sup-
ply chain needs of Eastern
India. It will bring a boom to
the industrial and agricul-
tural sector across the eastern
region," Ms Kaur said.
Covid cases down, but deaths
still a cause of concern
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
SILIGURI, 30 JANUARY
Even though Darjeeling dis-
trict is witnessing a plateau-
ing of Covid-19 cases, the
number of deaths at the North
Bengal Medical College and
Hospital (NBMCH) in Siliguri
has, however, remained a
matter of concern.
Around 33 persons who had
tested positive for Covid-19
have died at the region's pre-
mier health institution so far
this month. An 80-year-old res-
ident of Pradhannagar in Silig-
uri died there today.
Health department offi-
cials have said that some pre-
existing serious illnesses and
late hospitalisation in some
cases had led to most of the
deaths.
Public health physicians
tracking Covid cases say that
it appears that the so-called
third wave was on the wane.
"We are witnessing a fall in
the Covid-19 graph, but there
should be strong focus on
reducing the transmission
rate. The trend needs to be
observed. However, a series of
deaths do pose a concern," said
a physician here today.
Health experts have said
that it was important to accel-
erate efforts to vaccinate all
at-risk populations.
Among the dead at the
NBMCH, some patients had
been in the age group of 40s,
while some were also more
BSF North Bengal to have
first women-only music band
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
SILIGURI, 30 JANUARY
The Border Security Force
(BSF) is all set to introduce its
women-only musical band
in the North Bengal Frontier
(NBF).
Inspector General of the
BSF, NBF, Ajai Singh, has said
that this will be the first time
such a band will be formed
here.
Talking to reporters, Mr
Singh said: "Very talented and
culturally developed girls are
joining the BSF. A group of
women was interested in
music. During their training,
the authorities constituted a
music club for them and they
performed well day by day by
playing musical instruments.
Finally, the authorities decid-
ed to introduce a separate
women music band in the NBF,
BSF."
Notably, the BSF's NBF
has a band and orchestra
team with only male members.
��PULAK KARMAKAR
than 30 years old. However,
most of them were 70 and 80
years old.
Data suggests that Omicron
infection may be associated
with a lower risk of hospital-
ization as compared to infec-
tion with the Delta variant of
the coronavirus.
The sharp spike in Covid
cases had also led to a rise in
admissions at the NBMCH.
Fifty-five patients were under-
going treatment in the Covid
block of the hospital as of
today.
Many are alleging that lack
of proper treatment was
responsible for the deaths.
The officer on duty for
public health in north Bengal,
Dr Susanta Kumar Roy, said
the NBMCH authorities were
looking into the issue seriously.
According to him, a multi-dis-
ciplinary expert committee at
the hospital was ascertaining
"At present, 919 Mahila
Prahari are undergoing train-
ing at the STC (Subsidiary
Training Centre) in Baikun-
thapur. The NBF has 757
Mahila Prahari and they are
performing round the clock
duties and frisking of women
is done by them," Mr Singh
added.
"The BSF has zero tolerance
for any sexual harassment
and the BSF Act and rules are
very powerful," he added.
According to official BSF
sources, troops of the BSF
deployed at various Border
Outposts within the jurisdic-
tion of the North Bengal Fron-
tier have seized several smug-
gled items in 2021 worth Rs
105 crore.
The BSF seized 5694 heads
of cattle, 1,69,479 bottles of the
Phensedyl cough syrup, 5891
yaba tablets, 16 Lbs snake
venom and many other items,
including 423.93 kg ganja
smuggled from India to
Bangladesh.
the causes.
"There is no question of
improper treatment. Many
patients who are suffering
from serious comorbidities
have contracted Covid-19. A
multi-disciplinary expert
committee is also monitoring
the matter," Dr Roy said.
191 cases in Darj dist
Meanwhile, Darjeeling dis-
trict today detected 191 new
Covid cases, according to
reports issued by the health
department.
Thirty-eight cases have
been reported in areas under
the Siliguri Municipal Cor-
poration, including 31 cases
in areas that fall in Darjeeling
district.
Takdah in Darjeeling Hills
registered 34 cases. Also today,
191 Covid patients recovered
and they wither left hospitals
or ended their home isolation
period, officials said.
Interestingly, "other con-
traband" items seized during
2021 was worth Rs 1.93 crore,
the BSF said.
"In the year 2021, the BSF
apprehended a total of 137 ille-
gal entrants, including 89
Bangladeshis and three
Nepalis. A total of 152 smug-
glers were intercepted. Of
them, 41 were from Bangladesh
and others from Indian part,"
the BSF said.
 CMYK

03
Democracy survives on rule of law, not the rule of an individual.
I hope she (CM Mamata) looks into it.
WEST BENGAL GOVERNOR JAGDEEP DHANKHAR
ATTACKING WEST BENGAL CHIEF MINISTER MAMATA BANERJEE’S GOVT KOLKATA, MONDAY 31 JANUARY 2022

THUMBNAILS
Shantanu Thakur to FLORAL TRIBUTE

talk BJP grievances

with Central leaders
Amidst turmoil in state unit of the party
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE of state leaders led by Union
KOLKATA, 30 JANUARY minister Shantanu Thakur
demanding the removal of a

West Bengal minister
Bratya Basu paying trib-
ute to Mahatma Gandhi
at Beleghata Gandhi
Bhavan. �SNS
Kabir Suman row: A few
hours after the West
Bengal BJP unit lodged a
complaint with the
police against Kabir
Suman, a former Trina-
mul Congress MP and
National award-winning
singer, musician and lyri-
U
nion minister Shan-
tanu Thakur will
take up with Central
party leaders the
ongoing rift within the party,
which he says is affecting the
growth of the party in Bengal.
He departed for Delhi from
NSCBI airport today to join
Budget session of Parliament.
Before leaving for the
National Capital, he said a cri-
sis looms large in the party,
with many grievances damp-
ening the spirit of the party
workers and BJP is ultimate-
ly suffering in its bid to
strengthen the base of the party
before upcoming civic elec-
tion.
“Two senior leaders were
ring to the Citizenship
(Amendment) Act.
Party sources said Mr
Thakur yesterday held a long
meeting with two senior sus-
pended leaders.
Meanwhile BJP state pres-
ident and MP Sukanta
Majumder said all issues
regarding the grievances could
be resolved through discus-
sion.
"Shantanu Thakur is emi-
“particular” leader in the state
committee.
The West Bengal unit of the
BJP announced its new state
committee in December 2021
replacing several veterans
and triggering rumblings in
the organisation by retaining
many who came from the
Trinamul Congress (TMC).
Earlier, Mr Thakur and at
least nine MLAs quit the
party’s WhatsApp groups after
the party overhauled its dis-
trict committees.
“Almost 90 per cent of the
leaders, who helped to increase
the BJP’s vote share from West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar paid floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi on his death anniversary at Mahatma Gandhi
around 2 per cent to 40 per Statue on Mayo Road, Kolkata. � SNS
cent in the state, were exclud-
ed from all committees at

Three held for driving car

cist, for allegedly using
abusive language
against a television jour-
nalist, Suman wrote a
long Facebook post
making an apology to
the journalist. “I apolo-
gise to the journalist,
BJP, RSS and the Ben-
galis,” he said. ANI
expelled by the state party
recently even after they gave
30 years to the party. Where
will they go now? I’ll speak to
central leaders regarding all
these matters. I shall also
speak to Union home minis-
ter regarding implementa-
tion of CAA," he said, refer-
nent leader of our party. He
can meet MLAs, and MLAs can
meet him and he may speak
to central leaders. I spoke to
him. All could be resolved
through discussion, " he said.
The rift in the BJP unit in
West Bengal came out in the
open recently with a section
the state, district, block and
booth levels. It could be a Kalna: Husband
conspiracy of a rival party. We
booked for
on railway tracks
want removal of that leader.
We have already informed
our national level leaders and
‘murder attempt’
we would take this protest for- BURDAWAN, 30 JANUARY
ward in the future,” Mr Thakur
said earlier. STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE A cruel husband in Kalna, who
KOLKATA, 30 JANUARY had unleashed ruthless tor-
ture on his wife repeatedly

‘Racing’ bus turns turtle at Dorina The railway police last night
arrested three persons for
allegedly driving a four-wheel-
because she gave birth to two
daughters, was finally caught
by the police today.

Crossing, at least 23 injured

STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
KOLKATA, 30 JANUARY
A mini bus said to be packed
with passengers belonging
to a wedding party turned tur-
tle at Dorina Crossing, this
afternoon leaving over a score
injured.
Police sources said the inci-
dent happened around 2.10
p.m. Around 23 passengers
sustained injuries on account
of the accident, including a
woman who is said to have
received severe head injuries
in the accident.
They had been taken to
SSKM Hospital for treatment.
The bus had about 50 pas-
sengers on board.
According to police, a
Howrah-bound mini bus
which was coming from Park
Circus was allegedly hurtling
at break-neck speed on its way
to Bankra, in Howrah for a wed-
ding.
Police sources said pre-
liminary investigation revealed
that the bus which was speed-
ing in its bid to overtake
another bus had had one of
its tyres resoled and it got
deflated, resulting in its over-
turn.
A passenger of the rogue
bus said that the bus was
speeding recklessly from Park
Circus and always ran the
risk of being caught in an
accident.
"It got worse when it was
locked in a game of overtak-
ing another bus, this was
when the accident happened,”
said another passenger.
The passengers of the bus
were rescued by local people.
About an hour later, anoth-
er bus on the same Howrah-
Bankra route at the same spot
at Dorina Crossing was
observed tilted on one side and
officers of the City Police
immediately got the bus seized
for being unfit and got the pas-
sengers deboarded for their
safety.
The incidents triggered
strict instructions from the
state transport department.
The state transport minister,
Firad Hakim issued instruc-
tions for immediately seizing
the unfit buses to the RTOs in
the city.
“The bus was not only
unfit but even the tyres were
resoled. Because of the resoled
tyre, the vehicle could not
take the calibration of the
weight properly and over-
turned while taking a turn,”
informed the state Transport
Minister, Firhad Hakim. “We
have urged the police com-
missioner and the depart-
ment to check out the valid
and invalid vehicles. I have
asked the Kolkata RTO to
seize the unfit buses without
a fitness certificate immedi-
ately,” he added.
er on railway tracks at Bally-
gunge Station.
According to sources, three
youth along with three women
were in the car when the
vehicle was spotted on the
tracks last night. The driver
of the car allegedly drove the
vehicle on the tracks near
platform number four which
is generally used for goods
trains. The three women are
said to have escaped from the
spot before the arrival of the
police. The local residents
along with the RPF and GRP
managed to remove the vehi-
cle from the tracks.
As informed by sources,
Civic polls: Bengal BJP to meet SEC today
ASIAN NEWS INTERNATIONAL
KOLKATA, 30 JANUARY
In view of the surge in Covid-
19 cases, the West Bengal BJP
will move to the State Elec-
tion Commission (SEC) on
Monday requesting it to post-
pone the civic polls for remain-
ing municipalities (in the
empty bottles of alcohol were
recovered from the car. The
railway police are said to be
hunting for the three women.
According to sources, the
accused along with the three
women were allegedly drunk.
The driver of the car who is
in police custody is reported
to have informed that he was
second phase) by a month .
"West Bengal BJP to meet
State Election Commission
tomorrow demanding that
the elections for remaining
municipalities (scheduled to
be held on February 27) should
be postponed by four weeks
in wake of COVID situation,"
said BJP leader Samik Bhat-
driving the car while follow-
ing the GPS when the incident
occurred.
The statement, however,
has raised questions as the spot
where the car was found, is
said to be used dedicatedly by
trucks and goods vehicles for
loading and unloading pur-
poses.
tacharya.Earlier, the HC had
asked SEC to postpone the elec-
tions of Civic Polls which was
on 22nd Jan for 4-6 weeks
which was later postponed to
February 12 citing that the third
wave of COVID has hit the state
and that the life of the residents
of the State will be put to
threat if elections are held.
The ACJM Court in Kalna
ordered five days police
remand for him. Charges of
attempt to murder and
unleashing physical torture
with a view to coercing his
wife to meet an unlawful
demand (under sections - 307
and 498A of the IPC) were
brought against him.
Taushif Sheikh - a resident
of Baganapara in Kalna was
married to Sharifa Khatun of
neighboring Nibhuji locali-
ty in 2016. In last six years
Sharifa became mother of two
daughters, which irked
Taushif and he allegedly
started regular physical tor-
ture on his wife. He, accord-
ing to the complaint lodged
jointly by the victim and her
father, had inserted iron rod
into the female organ along-
side rubbing with sandpaper.
The housewife was res-
cued by the neighbors in a
critical condition yesterday
and was shifted to the Super
Speciality Hospital in Kalna.
The accused had fled the
place but was caught by the
police today, the officials
said. SNS

Dhankhar again
takes dig at
chief minister
KOLKATA, 30 JANUARY
West Bengal governor
Jagdeep Dhankhar on Sun-
day took a dig at Chief
Minister Mamata Baner-
jee saying that democra-
cy survives on rule of law
and not the rule of an
'individual'.
"Democracy survives
on rule of law, not the rule
of an individual. I hope she
(West Bengal CM Mama-
ta Banerjee) looks into it.
She is mandated by the
constitution to sit for a
dialogue with Governor",
stated West Bengal Gov-
ernor Jagdeep Dhankhar.
Dhankhar's remarks came
after paying his tributes to
Mahatma Gandhi on his
74th death anniversary.
According to the Gov-
ernor, in Bengal, democracy
needs to be saved from
violence. He also claimed
that Chief Minister Mama-
ta Banerjee never per-
formed her constitutional
duty to furnish information
about the state to him."I
have appealed to CM
Mamata Banerjee that
democracy survives on
dialogue.We have to ensure
to save democracy from vio-
lence...The constitutional
duty of CM is to give infor-
mation to the Governor, but
it has not been performed
ever since I became Gov-
ernor", the Governor added.
He sought information
from the West Bengal CM
on July 26 Pegasus notifi-
cation, Pandemic Purchase
Enquiry, Bengal Global
Business Summit, Bengal
Aerotropolis Project,
Gorkhaland Territorial
Administration (GTA), MAA
Canteen and State Finance
Commission. ANI
CCTV footage shows Burdwan hospital
fire victim had caused blaze herself
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
BURDWAN, 30 JANUARY
CCTV footage has exposed
how the fire incident at the
Covid ward of the Burdwan
Medical College and Hospi-
tal early yesterday morning
that had left a patient dead hd
been caused by the patient her-
self.
A three-member team of
experts assigned by the state
government arrived the hos-
pital within hours of the inci-
dent and submitted their pri-
mary findings in 24 hours.
The expert committee
comprised Anirudhha Niyo-
gi (Special Secretary, Health
Services), Dr Somnath Das
(Head of Forensic Medicine,
R G Kar Medical College and
Hospital) and Monica Gayen
Fish breeding ponds on Singur ‘agri’ land prompt Opp snickers
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
HOOGHLY, 30 JANUARY
The land area within the Tata
project was handed over to the
respective owners by the state
government after the Tata
Nano project was aborted.
The state government
reclaimed a part of the same
land making it suitable for agri-
cultural purposes, however,
the farmers did not find it suit-
able for the particular purpose
as concrete debris remained
mixed with the soil, hence till
this day, the major part of the
land area remains uncultivated
and full of weeds.
Recent activities of exva-
cation of large water bodies
in the area which was only
meant for agriculture have
raised the eyebrows of oppo-
sition parties that have blamed
the state government for
(Deputy Director of Health Ser-
vices, Nursing).
The BMCH authority how-
ever has set up a separate six-
member fact-finding com-
mittee headed by hospital's
Medical Superintendent Dr
Tapas Ghosh that will submit
its report next week, the offi-
cials said.
The experts relied mostly
on the CCTV footage of the
affected Covid ward while
preparing their primary report.
The report, according to the
sources, stated that the vic-
tim patient Sandhya Mondal
was wearing a high-flow nasal
mask for better oxygen inhal-
ing. But, at a certain point after
4 am yesterday, the footage
indicated that she'd unmasked
herself and was trying to light
a mosquito incense stick with
cheating the Singur farmers.
Meanwhile, large earth-
moving machinery have
been seen operating within
the Singur land area hand-
ed over to the farmers by the
state government for agri-
cultural purposes.
Massive chunks of soil are
being scooped out to form a
deep depression in the earth.
Bonomali Maity and other
farmers at the spot said huge
water bodies are being created
to carry out fish breeding.
The fish breeding ground
is being prepared under the
beneficiary schemes of the
state government.
At present, 10 bighas of land
area have been sanctioned by
the Gopalnagar Panchayat,
said the farmers.
Other farmers on the spot
welcomed the initiative taken
by the Panchayat since no agri-
the help of a cigarette lighter.
" Th e m om en t s he 'd
clicked on the lighter, the
Oxygen pipe caught fire first,
which started spreading."
The continued Oxygen
flow through the pipeline
meant for Covid-19 patients
accelerated the fire.
The family members of
the victim patient meanwhile
criticised the report asking how
and why a cigarette lighter was
allowed inside the Covid ward.
The victim's grandson
Kalachand and daughter Ranu
Mondal said that they had pro-
vided her a mosquito net.
“Then why would she require
a mosquito incense stick
inside the hospital ward?"
they asked.
Also, the victim's family
questioned how the inflam-
culture can be carried on in
a land full of concrete debris,
and macher bheri business is
very profitable.
Moreover, Singur can now
also take a lead in supplying
fresh fish to the markets of the
district, the farmers said.
Senior BJP leader Mr Dilip
Ghosh, on election cam-
paign in Chandannagar,
lashed out at the state Chief
Minister and said Didimoni
(the state chief minister)
has not only cheated the
Singur farmers but the edu-
cated jobless youths of the
district. There are no job
opportunities for the edu-
cated youths in the state,
Chief minister scattered
mustard seeds on Singur
land but till now it remains
barren with no crop culti-
vation. Weeds have come up
all over as if narrating a sad
mable lighter was found inside
the room intact despite of the
fire incident.
They added: "We demand
a true and sincere probe and
not a trick to divert the truth."
Sandhya Mondal, an elder-
ly woman suffering from res-
piratory distress, was taken to
the Burdwan Medical Col-
lege and Hospital from her Bar-
muria village residence in
Galsi on last Wednesday and
she tested Covid-19 positive.
"So, she was shifted to the
Covid ward of the hospital,"
said Dr Probir Sengupta, Prin-
cipal, BMCH.
Sandhya suffered 100 per-
cent burn injuries and died
shortly after the fire but three
other Covid positive patients
who were in the ward were res-
cued alive.
story how the Singur farm-
ers and educated jobless
youths were cheated and
deprived by the state gov-
ernment.
The labour and Panchayat
mi ni st er M r Bec ha ra m
Manna denied the allegations
made by Mr Dilip Ghosh.
Mr Manna said, the BJP
leader should learn a lesson
to talk less, they should under-
stand and realise that the
BJP party is not acceptable to
the people of Bengal. The
people of Bengal very well
know that saffron party lead-
ers are migratory birds, he said.
During the election, they
are found all around with
fake promises but the state
Chief Minister Mamata Baner-
jee and other party mem-
bers have always been by the
side of common people round
the clock.

CMYK
04
Let us take a vow that there is no place in the Indian soil for
Godse's heirs and their evil thoughts.
TAMIL NADU CHIEF MINISTER M.K. STALIN
KOLKATA, MONDAY 31 JANUARY 2022 AFTER PAYING FLORAL TRIBUTES TO MAHATMA GANDHI AT THE MARINA BEACH

Punjab CM Channi to contest Will there be a 6th CM to HMS celebrates ‘Nathuram

from second seat of Bhadaur
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY
The Congress on Sunday released the
third list of candidates for Punjab
assembly polls. Punjab Chief Min-
ister Charanjit Singh Channi will
contest from second seat of Bhadaur.
ni, Barnala - Manish Bansal, Patiala
- Vishnu Sharma.
The Congress is trying to sort
out issue of CM face in the state and
Rahul Gandhi on Thursday cate-
gorically said that it will announce
a chief ministerial candidate after con-
sulting the party workers.
Godse-Narayan Apte Day’ on
be sworn in after polls? Mahatma death anniversary
Long-awaited change of guard may finally happen in Chhattisgarh
AJAY BHAN SINGH vival tactics in his armoury and pumping enormous
RAIPUR, 30 JANUARY when Singh Deo took up money from Chhattis-
the cudgel in August and garh to various parts of UP,

He is also contesting from Chamkaur Both Chief Minister Charanjit
Sahib. Singh Channi and state Congress chief
While Vishnu Sharma has been Navjot Singh Sidhu have urged Rahul
named candidate from Patiala which Gandhi to announce a CM face well
is the home turf of former chief ahead of the polls, instead of going
minister Amarinder Singh. with the collective leadership.
The other candidates are -- from "Both (Channi and Sidhu) have
Attari Tarsem Singh Sialka, Khem assured me that they will help who-
Karan - Sukhpal Singh Bhullar, Nawan ever is named as the CM face," said
Shahr - Satbir Singh Saini, Ludhiana Rahul Gandhi, who kickstarted Con-
South - Ishwarjot Singh Cheema, Jalal- gress' election campaign in Punjab
abad - Mohan Singh Phalianwala, on Thursday after paying obeisance
Bhadaur (SC) - Charanjit Singh Chan- at the Golden Temple in Amritsar.
NOTICE NOTICE
This is to inform all con-
IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA
cerned that State Level
FMA 1223 OF 2021 Environment Impact
CLIFF TREXIMC PRIVATE LIMITED & ANR.; Assessment Authority,
Govt. of West Bengal, vide
… Plaintiffs / Appellants
its EC Identification No.
-VERSUS- EC22B038WB154466 & File
FORT PROJECTS PRIVATE LIMITED & ORS.; No. EN / T-II-1 / 131 / 2021,
date of issue of EC
… Defendants / Respondents
Re: Seven Flats at Building "Fort Oasis" being Flat 27.01.2022 has accorded
No. 60904 on the 9th floor of Block No. 06, Flats environmental clearance to
M/s. Merlin Projects
No. 70605 and No. 70606 on the 6th Floor of
Limited for the proposed
Block No. 07, Flat No. 60304 on the 3rd Floor of
Block No. 06, Flat No. 60203 on the 2nd Floor of IT/ITES Building at Plot No.-
Block No. 06, Flat No. 70102 on the 1st Floor of N1, Block-EP & GP, Salt Lake
Block No. 07 Iying and situated at Premises City, Sector-V, Bidhannagar,
No. 36B, Panditya Road, P.S.: Lake, Kolkata- Kolkata-700091, P.S. Salt
Lake Electronics Complex,
700029 and Unit No. 2 on the 12th floor lying
and situated at 37, Panditya Road, P.S.: Lake, Dist.: 24 Parganas (North),
Kolkata-700029. West Bengal.
(Proposal No.: SIA / WB /
This is for information of the public at large that MIS / 220651 / 2021).
our clients, Cliff Trexim Pvt. Ltd. has filed a suit Copy of the environmen-
being Title Suit No. 725 of 2021 before the Ld. 9th tal clearance is available
Civil Judge (Sr. Division) at Alipore against Fort
with the office of West
Projects Pvt. Ltd., Fort Builders, Sanjay Gupta, Bengal Pollution Control
Spandan Projects Pvt. Ltd., Shyam Sundar Board, Kolkata and may
W
hen the nation
will be divid-
ed in cheer-
ing the win-
ners and mourning the
losers after poll results in
5 states, Chhattisgarh
would likely be bracing up
for a long-awaited change
of guard in the state which
was deferred due to
impending assembly elec-
tion in Uttar Pradesh, a
Hindi heartland bastion
vital for any political
takeover of New Delhi.
“To the best of my
knowledge, there also will
be a 6th person who will
be sworn in as Chief Min-
ister after March 10, apart
from those who will
emerge victorious in 5
poll-bound states. The
sixth person could be the
new CM of Chhattisgarh”
a veteran Congressman
confided to ‘The States-
man’.
“As per as I know, Singh
Deo has been unequivo-
cally assured by the party
leadership that they will
ensure that the fifty-fifty
formula reached between
him and CM Baghel is
honoured after Uttar
Pradesh assembly polls”,
another top Congress
leader told on the condi-
tion of anonymity.
The frantic lobbying
for a change of guard in
the state was torpedoed
by the Congress's top
brass after Diwali last year
due to upcoming polls in
5 states including Uttar
Pradesh and party-ruled
Punjab. Disgruntled Health
Minister TS Singh Deo
was assured by the Gand-
hi family of an equitable
and acceptable deal after
the Uttar Pradesh elections.
He has been maintaining
an amazingly low profile
since then and his buoy-
ant supporters are in a state
of torpor.
With the high decibel
electioneering in UP reach-
ing the crescendo and the
grand old party showing
no signs of the revival of
its moribund fortunes
and appears sort of accept-
ing its distant fourth place,
both the warring sides of
Chief Minister Bhupesh
Baghel and his rival Singh
Deo are gearing up for the
next round of power strug-
gle.
Baghel, a former Digvi-
jay Singh protégé,
employed all possible sur-
September last year to
take the mantle of the
state. Fiery CM since then
has been trying to con-
solidate himself in the
increasingly fluid political
situation. His recent crack-
down on sand-mafia, for
instance, left those in the
thick of things bewildered
because there has been a
rallying cry in the oppo-
sition about his alleged
protection and stake in ille-
gal sand-mining besides
the unaccounted sale of
liquor across the state.
His fervent overtures to
bring Rahul Gandhi to
Chhattisgarh finally
brought some respite with
the Gandhi scion accept-
ing his invitation to launch
Rajiv Gandhi Bhoomi-
heen Krishi Majdoor Nyay
Yojana on February 3.
Under the scheme, regis-
tered landless labourers in
rural areas will be given
financial assistance of Rs.
6,000 per year.
Baghel was entrusted
with galvanising back-
ward castes in favour of ail-
ing Congress in Uttar
Pradesh in lieu of the lease
of life he got from a full-
throttle political feud with
Singh Deo for the top
post. However, despite
herding hundreds of his
confidante OBC leaders
Congress lost the war of
perception weeks before
the actual battle began.
Congress leader Priyan-
ka Gandhi who was
impressed upon Baghel’s
piercing political instinct
and his appeal among
the OBCs is particularly
upset over his dismal
show. The young Gandhi
scion made her displea-
sure known to the CM
and gave him a dressing
down in Varanasi recent-
ly, a source privy to the
matter claimed.
Naysayers, who have
been in denial mode so far,
however, have now begun
smelling the inevitable
albeit with a Socialist-
Marxist tinge. If at all the
Congress top brass
removes Bhupesh, he will
be replaced by an OBC or
a tribal leader, they argue.
These speculations have
thus reinvigorated ambi-
tious key OBC, Schedule
Tribe, and Schedule Caste
leaders. The lobbying for
the top job has reached
such an extent that a group
of Deobandi Sunni Mus-
lim clerics reportedly
called on Congress Pres-
ident Sonia Gandhi recent-
ly and urged her to pick
Forest Minister
Mohammed Akbar as the
CM of Chhattisgarh.
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
BHOPAL, 30 JANUARY
The Hindu Maha Sabha (HMS)
celebrated ‘Nathuram Godse-
Narayan Apte Day’ at its office
in Gwalior today, on the occa-
sion of Mahatma Gandhi’s
death anniversary, and gave
away ‘Godse-Apte Bharat
Ratna’ honour to five persons
including controversial self-
styled Godman Kalicharan
who is currently lodged in a
jail.
The police was said to be
on an alert regarding the
function, but senior police offi-
cials said they were not aware
of any such function being held
publicly.
HMS National Vice- Pres-
ident Jaiveer Bhardwaj said on
the occasion, “Today HMS
conferred the ‘Godse-Apte
Bharat Ratna’ at its office in
Gwalior upon Sant Kalicha-
ran, Kishore Mahor, Pawan
Mahor, Anand Mahor and
Naresh Batham.”
“As Sant Kalicharan is
presently in jail, his award was
received by Pramod Lohpa-
tre,” Bhardwaj said.
“The other four men have
been honoured, as they had
to go to jail due to their con-
tinuous praise and worship
of Nathuram Godse,” Bhard-
waj averred.
“We bow our heads and
revere everyone who praises
and worships Godse ji,” Bhard-
waj asserted.
He was seen in a video say-
ing that the HMS has passed
a resolution today of build-
ing an ‘Akhand Bharat’ (Uni-
fied India) by merging Pakistan
in India.
According to media reports,
Kishore Mahor is the HMS
Mandal General Secretary,
Pawan Mahor is HMS Youth
Wing Coordinator, Anand
Mahor is HMS District Con-
vener and Naresh Batham is
HMS District Spokesperson.
Gwalior Superintendent
of Police (SP) Amit Sanghi said
the HMS did not conduct
any programme publicly.
“No event was organized
by the HMS on a large scale
publicly. We are not aware if
they conducted a function
behind closed doors,” Sanghi
told The Statesman today
evening.
According to historical
records, Mahatma Gandhi’s
assassin, Nathuram Godse
was a member of the Hindu
Maha Sabha. Godse had
received the pistol from
Gwalior, with which he shot
Gandhi on 30 January 1948 at
the Birla House in New Delhi.

KT Rama Rao lashes out at Centre

Nandgalia, Vivek Kathotia, Balaji Grahanirman Pvt.
Cong to resume Mekedatu padayatra
also be seen at the website
Ltd., Vinimay Pvt. Ltd., Ramani Enclave Pvt. Ltd., of MoEFCC / SEIAA, where it
Gatika Vinimay Pvt. Ltd., Lupin Consultants Pvt. is displayed.
Ltd., Prayash Vyapar Pvt. Ltd., Ramani Tower Pvt. M/s. Merlin Projects
Ltd., Mist Valley Marketing Pvt. Ltd., Fort Advisory
Pvt. Ltd., Fort Reality Pvt. Ltd., Ramani Housing Pvt.
Limited SNS According to sources, tally, is also seen as an
"Merlin Oxford", 2nd Floor
Ltd., Rotech Traders Pvt. Ltd., Fort Infrastructure 22, Prince Anwar Shah
BENGALURU, 30 JANUARY now that the pandemic attempt at one-upman- STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE was the delivery date for a host promises made in AP Reor-
Development Pvt. Ltd., Life-Link Vanijya Pvt. Ltd., Road situation is easing and the ship by Shivakumar who HYDERABAD, 30 JANUARY of Central schemes including ganisation Act and recom-
Akshara Vyapar Pvt. Ltd., Pragati Agency Pvt. Ltd., Kolkata-700033 The Congress is all set to state government too wears his ambition of housing and clean drinking mendations by NITI Aayog to
Bhuwalka Nirman and Holding Pvt. Ltd., Panditya
Developers Pvt. Ltd., Barun Kathodia, Subhankar resume its controversial has lifted the accom- becoming chief minister, Keeping up the pressure on the water to every household. support Mission Bhagiratha
Nandy, Debjani Nandy, Sabita Singh and Sanjukta Mekedatu padayatra panying restrictions , the on his sleeves. He wants Centre on the eve of Union Along with clippings of news- and Mission Kakatiya,”tweet-
Mitra in respect of All That property being Flat No. which it was forced to party will resume the “ to up the ante against for- Budget Telangana minister paper reports on the various ed the minister. Earlier, he had
60904 on the 9th Floor of Block No. 06, Flats No.
70605 and No. 70606 on the 6th Floor of Block No. 07, stop earlier this month walk for water.” In fact, mer chief minister, Sid- KT Rama Rao today called promises made by the Prime also addressed a number of
Flat No. 60304 on the 3rd Floor of Block No. 06, Flat For , following rising cases the second phase should daramiah, who is slated for an equitable allocation Minister Mr Rao said: “Hope letters to Union Finance min-
No. 60203 on the 2nd Floor of Block No. 06, Flat No. of Covid-19 coupled with start soon, went the to be the chief contender for all the states and urged PM the allocations will be equi- ister Nirmala Sitharaman stat-
70102 on the 1st Floor of Block No. 07 lying and sit-
uated at Premises No. 36B, Panditya Road, P.S.: Advertisement the Karnataka HC’s refrain. The padayatra for the post, in the event Narendra Modi to support a table and reflect firm resolve ing the requirements of the
Lake, Kolkata-700029 and Unit No. 2 on the 12th observation against the which had started on 9 the party romps home, progressive state like Telangana. in translating your vision into states and urging her to allo-
Floor lying and situated at 37, Panditya Road, P.S.: Booking march. The tentative January was planned post the polls. In the past Budgets the rul- reality.“ cate funds in the upcoming
Lake, Kolkata-700029. In the said suit, our clients
had prayed for a decree for declaration that the date for the resumption by the Karnataka Pradesh Congress was forced ing TRS had complained that The minister also appealed Union Budget.
below mentioned registered deeds are void, invalid Please is 20 February. Congress Committee to suspend the protest on the Centre neglected Telan- to the PM that Telangana Meanwhile, the chief min-
and inoperative and the same be delivered up and The over 100 km chief, D K Shivakumar. 13 January following the gana but this time the party despite being a young state had ister K Chandrasekhar Rao
cancelled: Call at protest walk , up to Ben- It was aimed at embar- curfew imposed in the has decided to confront the made worthy progress with its today held a meeting with the
DEED NO. 160500090 for the year 2016
galuru from Ramanagara rassing the ruling party Ramanagara area ,as BJP for the low allocation of various schemes and deserves party MPs ahead of the Bud-
DEED NO. 160505586 for the year 2017 8017858334 district, related to the while keeping an eye on part of Covid restric- central funds and resorted to to be supported by the Cen- get session.
DEED NO. 160503998 for the year 2019
alleged failure of the the 2023 assembly polls. tions, .Additionally , the put more pressure on the tre. He said that the provisions The MPs were seen taking
In an appeal arising from an order passed in the
above suit the Hon'ble Calcutta High Court, upon Basavaraj Bommai gov- Incidentally both the high court had ques- NDA government. In a cou- made in the AP Reorganisa- copious notes as the CM
being satisfied of the case made out by our clients, ernment in building the BJP & Congress govern- tioned both the Bommai ple of tweets addressed to tion Act should also be fulfilled. briefed them in details about
vide order dated 8th October, 2021 admitted the Rs 9000 crore dam across ments in the past had government and the Prime Minister Narendra “I would also urge you to the requirements of the state.
appeal and passed an order of status quo with
regard to ownership, possession or the existing the Cauvery river for drawn up plans for the Congress on how the Modi, the industry and munic- support progressive state like The TRS MP are expected to
encumbrances in respect of the aforesaid 7 flats. meeting the drinking reservoir without, how- march could be carried ipal administration minister Telangana (which is 4th largest be vocal in this session of the
The said order of status quo has been extended ALL CLASSIFIED
water needs of the IT cap- ever, being able to exe- out when a curfew had KT Rama Rao today pointed contributor to Indian econ- Parliament over the various
from time to time and lastly vide order dated 7th
January, 2022 is still subsisting, valid and binding. ARE CARRIED ital. Besides generating cute the project. in effect due to the ongo- out that the current year 2022 omy) by way of honouring the issues relating to the state.
Anyone dealing with the aforesaid flats, shall do
hydel power. The march, inciden- ing pandemic.
so at his own risk, costs and consequences and FREE OF COST
shall also be liable for being proceeded for viola-
tion of the order of the Hon'ble Court. ON TENDER
SINHA & COMPANY
ADVOCATES OUR WEBSITE BJP plays safe in Minor girl jumps to death due to
4, FANCY LANE
KOLKATA-700001
Phone: 22624821 / 22624822
HTTPS://EPAPER.THE
Manipur, but may sexual harassment by TDP leader
4029 2758, 40037638
E-mail: sinhacofancylane@gmail.com
Advocate for the plaintiff/appellants
TATESMAN.COM
still face hurdles from walk they were shocked
to learn that she ended her
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SER- ally, candidate Letpao life from jumping down. He
VICE Haokip had won the said the police recovered
IMPHAL, 30 JANUARY Chandel seat. suicide note from her bed
In these two con- room in which she wrote
The BJP has done a stituencies Naoriya how Vinod Jain was sexual-
tightrope walk in Pakhanglakpa and ly harassing her.
KOLKATA BANGALORE
announcing the Chandel (ST ), the INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE Meanwhile, Andhra
Statesman House, No. 68, First Floor, Gold Tower names of 60 candi- advantage is not with VIJAYAWADA, 30 JANUARY Pradesh State Women's Com-
4, Chowringhee Square
50 Residency Road dates for elections in the saffron party, and mission chairperson Vasired-
Kolkata-700 001
M- 9830139593,9831528760 Bangalore-560025. Manipur and has the contests can be Suicide of a minor girl in dy Padma said that the gov-
Email: Tel.; 080-22229129, 9212192123 retained most of the symbolic in more Vijayawada due to sexual ernment has taken the inci-
statesmandisplay@gmail.com Email: sitting MLAs to avoid ways than one. harassment by a leader of dent seriously and that all
thestatesmanclassified@gmail.com delhistatesman@gmail.com dissension and deser- But BJP nominee opposition Telugu Desam efforts will be made to ensure
delhistatesman@gmail.com tion. Olish had polled over Party (TDP) has sent shock that the culprit gets stringent
bangalore@thestatesmangroup.com
DELHI However, elections 23 per cent of vote waves in the city while the rul- punishment.
Statesman House,
CHENNAI are always tough share in 2017 and ing YSR Congress Party Endowments minister
148, Barakhamba Road, Fagun Mansion (4th floor), games with a lot of 'Ifs polled 9,842 votes to ( YSRCP) has demanded Vellampalli Srinivas termed
New Delhi-110 001 26, Ethiraj Road and Buts' elements finish third in the harshest punishment to the the incident as shocking and
Tel: (011) 2331 5911, 43043793 Chennai-600 008, and still there could race. culprit. said the government will
delhistatesman@gmail.com Tel: (044) 28278037, 28224800 be some exodus from Whether the saf- The 14-year-old girl ensure justice to the victim's
Hiten Rathore the saffron camp; but fron party was able to jumped to death from fifth family. "The kind of harass-
M-9212192123
hiten.statesman@gmail.com perhaps it would be make further inroads floor of her apartment build- ment the girl was subjected
Mob: 9212192123 Email:
delhistatesman@gmail.com maintained at mini- in last five years ing in Bhavanipuram area on too is really shocking. We
BHUBANESWAR chennai@thestatesmangroup.com mum. remains to be tested. Saturday. In a suicide note, can't even speak what the girl
Plot 3A, Zone B, Sector A, In the list Closer analysis which police later recovered has written in the suicide
Mancheswar Industrial Estate, MUMBAI announced, Chief suggests the BJP could from her bedroom, the stu- note," he said.
Bhubaneswar-751010. 5, Kasturi Buildings, Jamshedji Minister N. Biren face a tough fight in dent of class 9 wrote that she The minister alleged that
M-09438838880 Tata Road, Mumbai-400 020 Singh has been field- eight-ten con- was ending her life due to sex- TDP president and former
statesmanbbsr@gmail.com M-9212192123 / 9892810138 ed from his tradi- stituencies in the val- ual harassment by Vinod chief minister N. Chan-
Delhistatesman@gmailcom
Email: tional Heingang con- ley that sends 40 leg- Jain, who resides in the same drababu Naidu was encour-
SILIGURI delhistatesman@gmail.com stituency. islators to the 60- building. aging such people leading to
Spencer Plaza mumbai@thestatesmangroup.com The list includes member assembly. Police have arrested the crimes against women and
18/19, 1st Floor,
LUCKNOW
three women candi- In the hills includ- accused, who contested the children
Burdwan Road dates - Nemcha Kip- ing Naga stronghold recent municipal elections as YSRCP legislator and actor
Above Vishal Mega Mart 2/2, Butler Palace gen from Kangpokpi, areas, the BJP's list a corporator on TDP ticket. R.K. Roja said that a 60-year-
Siliguri-734005, West Bengal Near Jopling Road)
Ph.: 9832082429
Ms Soraisam Kebi suggests it is banking He has been booked under old man sexually harassing
Lucknow-226 001, Devi from Naoriya on the image of Prime Protection of Children from a 14-year-old girl and driving
sil_statesman@yahoo.co.in
M-9212192123 Pakhanglakpa con- Minister Narendra Sexual Offences (POCSO) her to suicide is a heinous
Delhistatesman@gmailcom
Email: stituency and S.S. Modi vis-a-vis the Act. crime. She called up on
HYDERABAD delhistatesman@gmail.com Olish from Chandel Naga peace talks and The girl's grandfather said women to stage protests
The Statesman Limited RANCHI (ST) reserved con- hence the advantage she looked depressed since across the state to seek strin-
2nd Floor, UNI Building, stituency. could be with NPF. morning but did not say gent action against such
A.C. Guards Mobile: 9835115742, 9212192123
Hyderabad-500004, Email:
Nemcha Kipgen Most Bharatiya anything when he enquired. criminals.
Mob: 9866323009,9212192123 has a bright prospect Janata Party candi- He said when he and his She alleged that during
binodenarayansingh@yahoo.co.in
Email: delhistatesman@gmail.com as she is a sitting dates are new. daughter were going for an TDP rule many women and
hyderabad@thestatesmangroup.com delhistatesman@gmail.com Bharatiya Janata Party The BJP nominees evening walk she came to children became victims of
legislator (2017). In will get the advantage them and hugged her moth- rapes and sexual harass-
AIR-SURCHARGE: Kathmandu - Rs. 2, Eastern Region - Re. 1 2012 she had won of support from the er to say 'I love you'. ment. Meanwhile, the TDP
All other stations in India - Re. 1 the seat on the Con- Kuki population in When the father and on Sunday suspended Vinod
gress ticket. In 2017, Churachandpur and daughter duo returned home Jain from the party.
NPP, BJP's post-poll the adjoining region.

THUMBNAILS
Union Minister and BJP
leader Bhupender Yadav
with party spokesperson
Sambit Patra shows the list
of party candidates for the
Manipur Assembly elec-
tions, during a press con-
ference at the party head-
quarters, in the capital on
Sunday. �SNS
LS Speaker review prepa-
rations ahead of Budget:
Rajya Sabha Chairman M
Venkaiah Naidu held a
meeting with Lok Sabha
Speaker Om Birla in the
presence of senior offi-
cials of Lok Sabha as well
as Rajya Sabha Secretariat
on the preparations for
the Budget session of Par-
liament which gets under-
way from Monday. ANI
Cremation of Gujarati family that
froze to death likely in Winnipeg
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
TORONTO, 30 JANUARY
With their relatives in India
deciding not to bring back their
bodies back to the country,
the four members of a Gujarati
family who froze to death on
January 19 while trying to
enter the US illegally from
Canada's Manitoba are like-
ly to be cremated in Win-
nipeg.
However, no decision has
been taken yet.
A gofundme to raise
$70,000 for the victim fami-
ly has almost hit the target
amount.
The bodies of the four
family members - who have
been identified after autop-
sies as Jagdish Patel, 39, his
wife Vaishaliben Patel, 37,
daughterVihangi Patel, 11, and
son Dharmik Patel, 3 - are cur-
rently lying in a morgue inWin-
Former Kerala minister K T Jaleel levels
serious allegations against Lokayukta
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, 30
JANUARY
Former higher education min-
ister K T Jaleel on Sunday lev-
eled serious allegations against
Kerala Lokayukta Justice Cyr-
iac Joseph, also a former judge
of the Supreme Court.
In a Facebook post, KT
Jaleel, who was forced to quit
as higher education minister
in the previous PinarayiVijayan
government after Lokayukta
indicted him of nepotism in
appointments, alleged that the
Lokayukta “will do anything
,if he gets adequate reward for
it” and the Congress-led UDF
is using him as a weapon to
stab chief minister Pinarayi
Space sector reforms, growth of space economy top priorities: ISRO's new chief Somanath
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, 30
JANUARY
With space sector reforms
and growth of India's space
economy his topmost prior-
ities, ISRO's new Chairman S.
Somanath says that
'Gaganyaan', the ambitious
project to put a human crew
in space, is another key objec-
tive and the space agency
expects that the mission would
help lay the robust foundation
for a sustainable human flight
programme in the long run.
As the Indian Space
Research Organisation (ISRO)
is undertaking in-depth
research and new projects
and programmes to take space
technology and space to a
higher level and for benefits
to the common man, it is also
for promoting new entrepre-
neurs and for more and more
programmes that would be
useful to explore space and for
bringing in benefits to
mankind, Somanath in an
exclusive interview to IANS at
his residence in Thiruvanan-
thapuram.
Following are excerpts from
the interview.
Q: What are the major pro-
Akbaruddin rejects NYT
report over Pegasus
The insinuation about India's UN vote is utter rubbish, said for envoy to UN
ASIAN NEWS INTERNATIONAL
WASHINGTON, 30 JANUARY
I
nsinuation about India's
UN vote is utter rubbish,
said India's former per-
manent representative
to the United Nations Syed
Akbaruddin rejecting a New
York Times report that stated
that in 2019, New Delhi voted
in favour of Jerusalem after the
purchase of Israeli spyware
software Pegasus.
"The insinuation about
India's UN vote is utter rub-
bish," said Akbaruddin -- who
currently serves as Dean at
Kautilya School of Public Pol-
icy -- on Saturday referring to
the New York Times report
which was published on Fri-
day. The NYT report stated
that in July 2017, the Indian
Prime Minister became the first
head of state to visit Israel as
nipeg.
Jaswant Patel, a cousin of
the deceased man in their
native village Dingucha near
Ahmedabad, said that the
family wants their funerals to
take place in Canada.
The Indian High Com-
mission in Ottawa, which is
in touch with the victims'
family in Gujarat, will take the
final decision on the matter.
Vijayan in the back.
Without naming Justice
Joseph, Jaleel said the UDF has
found a “new knife” to back-
stab the Pinarayi Vijayan gov-
ernment after three Central
Government agencies had
probed in vain. In the post,
Jaleel also alleged that in
2005 a senior leader of the UDF
was saved from a controver-
sial case when he was a judge
in the High Court and in turn
he managed a plum post for
his sister-in-law. He was indi-
rectly referring to the appoint-
ment of Jancy James as the vice
chancellor of the Mahatma
Gandhi University in Kot-
tayam.
“What tragedy would have
happened, if a weapon meant
grammes in pipeline for ISRO?
A: The Indian Space
Research Organisation is in the
process of adapting and adopt-
ing to new challenges and
opportunities. India will be
launching two major space
missions in the 75th year of
Independence and the ISRO
is in an advanced stage of
developing the Reusable
Launch Vehicle (RLV). We are
also in the process of the first
launch of the Small Satellite
Launch Vehicle (SSLV).
While Covid has put our
plans on the backburner or
delayed our launches, we are
hopeful of completing the
landing trial or testing the
landing gear mechanism of
RLV soon. RLV is a priority and
it will bring down the cost of
launch drastically as also we
need launch vehicles that
need to be used even up to 15
times. The scaling down of costs
would reflect on more launch-
es and eventually the benefit
is transferred to a large num-
ber of people. The design and
development of SSLV are
almost done and we will be
launching it within months.
Gaganyaan will be a top pri-
ority and with the Covid pan-
demic on, it has been delayed
Priyanka Gandhi only gives slogans but doesn't do anything.
for decades, India had main-
tained a policy of what it
called "commitment to the
Palestinian cause," and rela-
tions with Israel were frosty.
The visit by the Indian Prime
Minister, however, was notably
cordial, complete with a care-
fully staged moment of him
and then Israeli Prime Min-
As the Gujarati community
of Winnipeg awaits a decision
on the funerals, it held an
online Shanti Path (prayer
meeting) for the victim fam-
ily on Saturday.
"Over 60 people joined
us. We prayed for the family.
Our local MP and the Mayor
were among those who con-
veyed their condolences,"
said organiser Bhadresh Bhatt
of the Hindu Sabha of Man-
itoba. Bhatt, who has been
coordinating with the Indian
High Commission since the
tragedy came to light, said mis-
sion officials are in touch
with the relatives in Gujarat
of the victim family.
"Since the victim family has
no relatives and friends inWin-
nipeg, the Indian High Com-
mission will finally take a
decision of the funerals -
whether they will be held in
Winnipeg," he said.
for Gandhiji was handed over
into the hands of Godse, that
is what is happened in Kerala
in connection with the
appointment of the Lokayuk-
ta. The Lord, who had bar-
gained the post of the MG Uni-
versity VC for his own broth-
er’s wife for rescuing a UDF
leader from a sensational
case, would do anything, if he
gets adequate reward,” Jaleel
wrote in his post.
Later he also posted a copy
of the Kerala High Court ver-
dict dating back to 2005,
issued by the bench of Chief
Justice B. Subhashan Reddy
and Justice Cyriac Joseph,
which had dismissed writ
petitions seeking action against
then UDF minister P K Kun-
a bit but the ambitious push
to put a human crew in space
is on and we, at the ISRO, hope
that the mission would help
lay the foundation for a sus-
tainable human space flight
programme in the long run.
Chandrayan-3 and Aditya-L1
missions are some of the pro-
jects awaiting immediate
attention.
Q: Can you explain the
proportionate impact that a
fleet of satellites will have on
communication technology?
A: We aim to have the capa-
bility of transmitting direct-
ly to handheld devices with-
out any time lapse. This will
revolutionalise the informa-
tion and the infotainment
industry. In a similar manner,
the low-cost launch will also
help improve space applica-
tion using remote sensing
satellites or other low orbit
satellites. With the help of
Artificial Intelligence, we hope
to bring out more services
that bring benefit to more
people and more lives. Other
than this more eyes in the sky
would help fine-tune the exist-
ing meteorological models
along with other observation
needs.
Q: There are reports on
ister Netanyahu walking
together barefoot on a local
beach. They had a reason for
the warm feelings. Their coun-
tries had agreed on the sale
of a package of sophisticated
weapons and intelligence
gear worth roughly USD 2
billion -- with Pegasus and a
missile system as the centre-
Court rejects
bail plea of Bulli
Bai app creator
NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY
Observing that the creator
of Bulli Bai app, Neeraj Bish-
noi, had been targetting
women activists including
journalists of a particular
community, a Delhi court has
rejected his bail plea.
The court said that alle-
gations levelled against the
accused were serious in
nature and the investigation
was at early stage, noting this
the accused was not given
bail, an official said on Sun-
day.
The court of Addition
Sessions Judge Dharmender
Rana while rejecting the
bail plea noted that the
women were abused and
insulted on public platform
it is certainly going to be an
adverse impact on the soci-
ety which will effect the
communal harmony. IANS
halikutty, in a sex scandal
Opposition leader VD
Satheesan has alleged that
KT Jaleel's outrageous criticism
against the Lokayukta is a
public challenge of the ruling
party against the judiciary.
“Justice Cyriac Joseph was
appointed as Lokayukta by the
present government. It is for
the CM to reply to such wild
allegations,” saidVD Satheesan.
“Frustrated Jaleel is attack-
ing constitutional positions to
vent his anger,” said BJP state
president K Surendran. The
CPI-M is yet to comment on
his post. Jaleel’s criticism
against the anti-corruption
body came at a time when the
Kerala government’s decision
to clip the wings of anti-cor-
emerging commercial oppor-
tunities in the Space sector.Your
comments
A: There are a lot of emerg-
ing opportunities in the space
sector and there is a huge
enthusiasm among the coun-
try's young entrepreneurs to
explore the emerging com-
mercial opportunities in the
space sector. We have opened
our doors to these game chang-
ers and they can explore the
envelope of possibilities in this
sunrise sector instead of con-
fining their skills and imagi-
nation to a particular area of
space science.
I can say that there are
many skilled and qualified
youngsters who are in dis-
BJP LEADER APARNA YADAV
SLAMS PRIYANKA GANDHI VADRA
pieces.
Months later, Netanyahu
made a rare state visit to
India. And in June 2019, India
voted in support of Israel at
the UN's Economic and Social
Council to deny observer sta-
tus to a Palestinian human
rights organisation, a first for
the nation, said the report.
The NYT said that the com-
bination of Israel's search for
influence and NSO's drive
for profits has also led to the
powerful spying tool's ending
up in the hands of a new gen-
eration of nationalist leaders
worldwide. Though the Israeli
government's oversight was
meant to prevent the power-
ful spyware from being used
in repressive ways, Pegasus has
been sold to Poland, Hungary
and India, despite those coun-
tries' questionable records
on human rights.
Congress leaders use Goa as a holiday retreat: Amit Shah
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
PANAJI, 30 JANUARY
Union Home Minister Amit
Shah on Sunday chided top
Congress leaders for using Goa
only as a holiday retreat,
while adding that only the BJP
could usher in development
as well as provide stability in
the poll-bound state.
"If you bring a BJP gov-
ernment here, will Modi's
hands be strengthened or
not? Do we have to do it or
not? Rahul Baba cannot run
the country," Shah said.
"For us Goa is golden Goa,
for the Congress, it is Gand-
hi parivar ka Goa. They want
a retreat to come for a holi-
day every once in a while. Their
leaders take a lot of holi-
days," Shah said.
BJP leaders have often
chided the Gandhis, Sonia and
Rahul, for repeatedly holi-
daying in Goa.
Through 2018-19, Sonia
Gandhi, sometimes accom-
ruption body Lokayukta
through an ordinance has
drawn wide criticism.
The Opposition parties
have said the move to curtail
the powers of the Lokayukta
came in the wake of three com-
plaints against the chief min-
ister for allegedly abusing his
position to grant financial
help to three ineligible persons
from his disaster relief fund
CM Vijayan is accused of
sanctioning lakhs of rupees to
the families of former CPI-M
lawmaker K K Ramachan-
dran, former Nationalist Con-
gress Party leader Uzhavoor
Vijayan and that of a gunman,
who died while on security
duty of the party’s state sec-
retary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan.
cussions with the ISRO for their
startups that are entering the
field. However, there are risks
involved in rocket manufac-
ture and developing other
launch vehicles and risk is a
great factor in the manufac-
turing and assembling of satel-
lites.
The maximum interest
being envisaged in the com-
mercial side is on the low-risk
area of application develop-
ment based on space-based
data and becoming providers
of space-based services opens
a vista of opportunities to
these youngsters who have the
entrepreneurial bug and ISRO
is fully supporting them.
Q: How are the strides in
KOLKATA, MONDAY 31 JANUARY 2022
UP Polls: Rajnath Singh slams SP, says
politics of polarisation is not what BJP does
ASIAN NEWS INTERNATIONAL
KASGANJ, 30 JANUARY
On the campaign trail in Uttar
Pradesh, Defence Minister
Rajnath Singh on Sunday hit
out at the Samajwadi Party and
said that BJP seeks votes on
the basis of humanity and jus-
tice only.
Taking forward Prime Min-
ister Narendra Modi's jibe at
Akhilesh Yadav led party "Red
topi of SP spells red alert",
Singh said, "We do not want
votes on the basis of caste,
creed and religion. We seek
votes only on the basis of
justice and humanity." "Sama-
jwadi Party is doing politics
of polarisation. They have
crossed all limits to get the vote
of a particular religion. Votes
from polarisation politics are
not acceptable to us," he
added.
Lauding the UP Chief Min-
ister Yogi Adityanath-led state
government, Singh said, "The
Samajwadi Party has to accept
the fact that it was in their
tenure only that so many
panied by her son Rahul or
daughter Priyanka had hol-
idayed in Goa on four occa-
sions.
Shah also said that the
Sonia Gandhi-Manmohan
Singh led United Progressive
Alliance governments had
ignored the issue of nation-
al security due to vote bank
politics.
"For ten years, the Sonia-
LOCKDOWN
The National Conference on Sunday decried continued disallowing of Friday congregational
prayers at the historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar. �SNS
Indian space research bene-
ficial to common man?
A: While most of the nations
were used space for project-
ing another dimension of
their defence power, we, in
India, used it for reaching the
scientific benefits to the com-
mon man of the country. The
giant strides the country has
made in telemedicine, weath-
er forecast, agriculture, and dis-
tance education are a few
examples that we can show-
case on the contribution we
have made in space research
that is directly transferred as
benefits to common man.
My mission is to continue
this work and to follow the foot-
steps of my seniors who have
made yeoman contributions
in the development of space
science in the country and ISRO
has played a stellar role in it.
We know that there are
several departments in the
country that need the support
of space technology and we
will improve interactions with
them to develop user-based
initiatives in these areas. At pre-
sent we are in direct contact
with some government insti-
tutions and we will expand it
to a larger number and spread
our wings with indirect con-
riots took place. They need to
answer why did this happen.
And, you all need to under-
stand why no one could dare
to riot under the rule of
Bharatiya Janata Party."
One of the planks on which
the BJP is reaching out to the
people has been the drastic
improvement in the law and
order situation in the state
since 2017.
Expressing confidence that
the BJP will repeat the win of
2017, Singh said, "You all
want Lakshmiji (wealth and
prosperity) to come home.
Lakshmi ji does not come on
a cycle (SP symbol), she does
not come on an elephant
(BSP symbol), she does not
move her hand (congress
symbol); when Lakshmi ji
comes, she comes riding on
a lotus (BJP symbol)."
Addressing the audience
during a 'Prabhavi Matdaa-
ta Samvad' (effective voter dia-
logue) program in Kasganj,
Singh paid rich tributes to for-
mer Chief Minister and one
of BJP's tallest leaders Kalyan
Manmohan government was
running and from Pakistan.
Alia, Maliya and Jamalia used
to sneak in behead our sol-
ders, but it would not even cre-
ate a stir in the minds of
those running the government
from Delhi because of vote
bank politics," Shah said.
"When Modi government
came to power, there was an
attack in Uri, Pulwama. But
tact with some government
bodies. The idea is to bring
them all under one umbrella
and develop products that
uplift the lives of common peo-
ple in the country.
Q: There are a lot of dis-
cussions on graveyard orbits
being in use by major play-
ers in space. Please explain
A: Graveyard orbit is used
when the change in velocity
required to perform a de-
orbit maneuver is too large.
For satellites in geostationary
orbit and geosynchronous
05
Singh.
He also coined a new term
for Kasganj and said that it is
Khasganj (Special Place).
Singh further said that as
a leader, Kalyan Singh refused
to open fire at the Kara Sevaks
and chose to go to jail instead.
"His contribution to the
people of Uttar Pradesh was
so special that's why the gov-
ernment of the day under
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi has bestowed the Padma
Award on him...," he said.
As he signed off from the
day-long campaign, Singh
said that this Uttar Pradesh
assembly election, which
happens to be the pre-final to
the 2024 Lok Sabha elections,
will be no ordinary election
but a defining one.
It is from Uttar Pradesh that
the largest chunk of 80 Lok
Sabha seats comes.
Rajnath Singh's younger
son, Pankaj Singh, is in the elec-
toral fray as he continues to
contest from Gautam Budh
Nagar where he is already
sitting MLA.
then they realised that Man-
mohan government had
moved out. It was Modi in
power now... In ten days,
there was a surgical strike and
air strike. Did you ever think
this would happen before?"
he also said.
Shah also urged the vot-
ers of Goa to ignore small par-
ties like the Aam Aadmi Party,
Trinamool Congress, Nation-
alist Congress Party, the Maha-
rashtrawadi Gomantak Party
and vote only for the for the
BJP, which he said can pro-
vide a stable government ori-
ented towards development.
"I want to ask, can these
small parties which have
come from other states, can
they give development? Can
they understand what you
want? Development in Goa
started only during an admin-
istration run by the BJP," Shah
said.
Elections to 40 assembly
seats in Goa is scheduled to
be held on February 14.
orbits, the graveyard orbit is
a few hundred kilometers
beyond the operational orbit.
06 KOLKATA, MONDAY 31 JANUARY 2022 Vol. CXXXXXVI 25

Incorporating and directly descended

A Terrible Bargain A MEMBER
OF THE

from THE FRIEND OF INDIA - Founded 1818

More of the same?
U
S President Joe Biden finds himself in a parti-
cularly galling situation regarding his adminis-
tration’s China policy. Because it’s not just his
political foes who are panning his handling of a ram-
pant Beijing; the searing criticism is coming from the
simpatico. Perhaps the perils of giving into the left
cabal in the Democratic Party have come to bite Mr
Biden in the fleshy parts. For, he is being accused by
pro-establishment policy makers, sections of the
media, and party lawmakers of effectively following
what has been derisively described as a ‘Trump Lite’
approach towards China that continues, according to
them, to be destructive and unimaginative. The tough
line on China being followed by Mr Biden, thankfully
sans the bombast of his predecessor, is justified by his
officials as one that has strong bi-partisan support.
According to foreign policy expert Jeffrey A. Bader,
when asked to distinguish its China strategy from that
of its predecessor’s, the Biden Administration says it
favours a multilateral approach of rallying allies, in
contrast to the unilateralism of the America First prac-
titioners. “Yet, it is intellectual laziness to justify policy
on the basis of bipartisanship rather than formulate a
(new) one. In no other instance, whether it’s US policy
toward Iran, Ukraine and Russia, or EU-NATO, has the
administration sought to duplicate Trump’s policy,” he
writes. Scholars such as Mr Bader quote opinion polls
to assert that Democrats do not have a visceral dislike
of China which Republicans do and argue that in tak-
ing an uncompromising stand, President Biden is
Professor Joy Sen researched and conceptualized the publication of a 2022 calendar ASIAN VOICES
by IIT-Kharagpur (IIT-K) titled “Recovery of the Foundations of Indian Knowledge Systems.”
Demographic
In addition to months, dates and days, this calendar carries a narrative of our past. In
particular, the narrative attempts to convince the reader that the creators of the vast imbalances
Harappan civilization were also the authors of the Rigveda, and that motifs of Harappan
T
he census conducted by the
seals are alluded to in the Hindu sacred texts. In this attempt, many incorrect or obsolete Central Bureau of Statistics con-
cluded on November 25. The
claims have been made head count revealed that the popula-
tion of Nepal was increasing at a slow
pace, in fact, the slowest in the last
80 years.
It is growth nonetheless, but the
question is whether it is to be taken
positively or as an indication that
could spell disaster for the country in
the years to come.
In most developed countries, pro-
jections of a fall in population signal
economic woes.
Statisticians are quick to inform
the administration of the economic
challenges the government will need
to face concerning labour shortages
and a possible impact on the housing
market.
After an arduous two weeks, the
enumerators gathered much-needed
information which showed a modest
increase in the population by 0.93
percent.
Are the authorities worried about
possible labour shortages that may
affect economic output? It is highly
doubtful.

guilty of continuing to pursue a Trump-era policy
under the guise of bi-partisanship at the expense of
grassroots Democratic views. What these critics from
within fail to recognise is that politicians usually have
their ear to the ground and whatever opinion polls
may claim, Mr Biden is attempting to keep the Democ-
rats from lurching to the left when it comes to China.
On the substantive issues, he has done well to jetti-
son the incendiary and provocative language of his
predecessor while continuing to insist that meaningful
cooperation, as opposed to transactional economic
and trade ties, with Beijing would be possible only if
there are fundamental changes in its hegemonic
approach and undemocratic state apparatus. Further,
by recognising and calling out the Chinese desire for
domination and gearing up international diplomacy
including strengthening the Quad, launching AUKUS,
doubling down on its East Asia security alliance, and
keeping its strategic focus on the Asia-Pacific to ensure
the Communist Party of China doesn’t have a free run,
Washington feels it is on the right track. The strategy of
“decoupling” from China by continuing a high tariff
regime, validating the FBI’s sharp focus on Chinese
and Chinese-Americans conducting research at Amer-
ican universities especially in sensitive dual-use tech-
nologies, and closing down various exchange pro-
grammes including with the Centre for Disease Con-
trol given the data-fudging by the Chinese which was
blatant during the coronavirus pandemic, are apt too.
Crucially, President Biden has indicated that accep-
tance of the One-China Policy is not sacrosanct given
the aggressive moves by Beijing against Taiwan. Trump
Lite or not, this is a policy approach which needs to be
supported by all sensible sections of the American
establishment.
Soldier returns
T
he IIT-K calendar essay declares that
“glaciers of Mount Kailash is the
source of two important river Valley
Civilizations”, Indus and Brahmapu-
tra. This is not correct. Brahmaputra origi-
nates from the Manasarovar lake region, and
Indus from the Bokhar Chu glacier in the
northern slopes of Mt Kailash. The essay fur-
ther claims that the “tributaries of Indus as
mentioned in the Rig Veda are sourced to the
Siwalik ranges in the Central-Eastern Hima-
layas”. This is also not correct. Rigveda is
familiar with the entire Indus river system.
Western tributaries of Indus like Kubha
[Kabul], suvastu [swat], and Gomti [Gomal]
are mentioned in addition to the Punjab
rivers. No river in the Indus system arises in
the Shivalik range.
The essay claims that “the entire antiqui-
ty of Indian Vedic Civilization” was deliber-
ately limited within 2000 BCE “to best accom-
modate an Aryan Invasion Myth leading to a
split of Vedic culture and the Indus Valley Civ-
ilization!” When Vedic texts were being inter-
preted, archaeology and genetics were still
into the future. Rigveda repeatedly refers to
Indra as purandra, the destroyer of forts. It
was assumed that the forts that Indra target-
ed were located in India. However, when
Harappan sites were excavated, it became
clear that no structures matched the
Rigvedic description of the forts. The schol-
arly consensus now is to attribute the Harap-
pan decline to environmental issues.
The essay states that “the objectives of
the Aryan Invasion is one of aggression,
genetic superiority by race and skin color.”
Aryan “invasion theory” is a dead horse, the
flogging of which perpetually yields rich ide-
ological dividends. The key question is
whether the Aryans came from outside the
with metal (copper) and spoked wheel. The
latter as a technological invention can be
dated to 4000 BCE. Rigveda cannot be older
than this date. The IIT-K calendar essay
claims to bring “the Vedic Culture and the
Indus Valley Civilization (7000 BCE-1500
BCE) under one fold; 7000 BCE is still
Neolithic era. If Aryans, the carriers of Vedic
culture, were present in India at such an early
date, this has serious implications: all Indo-
European speakers must also be placed in
India and introduced to copper and spoked
wheel before dispersal.
Quite improbably, if Harappans were
Aryans, Zarathushtra must also be stationed
in India. The Zoroastrian texts, however, do
not mention India, there is no indication of
familiarity with Indus, and constantly refer
to Central Asia. In a recent interview (“IIT’s
Aryan thrust baffles scientists,” The Tele-
graph, 28 December 2021), Professor Sen
accused geneticists of propagating ideas of
Aryan invasion in migration and population
genetics studies. This is blatantly false. As we
RAJESH PARTHA
KOCHHAR MAJUMDER
The writers are, respectively, author of The Vedic
People and Sanskrit and the British Empire and a
National Science Chair, Government of India
know, genes are our inherited endowment.
tions of specific genetic changes ~ that arose
in Central Asia were carried by migration of
people to India. One genetic signature, “U2e”
is found widely, in low and variable frequen-
cies, in Indian population groups. The epi-
centre of this signature is in Western Eurasia
(including Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzs-
tan, Tajikistan), as evidenced by its high fre-
quency in that region. The inference from
these data is that migrants from Eurasia
(Indo-European/Aryan speakers) entered
India about 4000 years ago and admixed with
the indigenous populations of India, descen-
dants of those who arrived in India on a wave
of migration from out of Africa about 65,000
years ago. Similar evidence can be found in
respect of variation in the genomic signature
called R1a1a. Recent studies based on DNA
isolated from fossils have confirmed that
migrants from the Kazakhstan area (Eurasian
Steppe) had entered India, but the date of
entry was estimated to be more recent, about
2000 BCE. Population genetic studies have
neither provided evidence of any Aryan
“invasion” nor are these studies helping
propagate the “invasion myth.” Objective
analyses of genetic data from living and long-
dead individuals have revealed that people
from Central Asia had entered India between
2000 and 4000 BCE, not 7000 BCE as claimed
in the IIT-K calendar.
The Calendar Essay also claims that the
“system of Yoga and Kshema as realized and
developed by the Arya Sages are synchro-
nous.” It says that Rigveda (Mandala 10,
Hymn 167, Verse 1) mentions “Yogakshema-
vishayaih karma’’. It does not. Similarly, the
phrase “Yogebhi Kshemebhi’’ is said to fig-
ure in Rig Veda (Mandala 7, Hymn 36). Here
the verse number is not given. A search did
not reveal this phrase in the Rig Veda. So this
The administration has failed
miserably to retain the youth and pro-
vide a stable, meaningful environ-
ment.
Instead of being able to reap the
youth demographic dividend, Nepal is
in the business of exporting skilled
and unskilled talent abroad in
exchange for precious foreign
exchange.
While there is nothing wrong with
ensuring that citizens find jobs over-
seas, relying on it ultimately does not
bode well for a country.
And the hallmark for develop-
ment has always been in retaining the
populace to build one’s country.
This lack of policy to retain the
youth has led to a mass exodus of
young people from the towns and
villages, leaving only the elderly,
women and children to ensure
that they remained a functional
place. Those unable to find employ-
ment abroad were drawn to the
cities.
Thus, it may be fair to assume
that the administration’s short-sight-
edness concerning the development
of remote regions in Nepal has led to
this imbalanced distribution of popu-
lation in the country.
Lest we forget that the Maoist
insurgency acted as a catalyst for the
imbalance, but what has the adminis-
tration done in the last 15 years after
securing a peace deal?

T
ill a couple of days ago, the world knew Burkina
Faso as a geographical expression in Africa. But
this week’s coup signifies the return of military
strongmen to the volatile region. There is little doubt
that the new wave of uprisings occurred after democ-
racy had seemingly become entrenched in the region.
Less than five months after soldiers in fatigues
appeared on national television in Guinea to
announce that they had removed President Alpha
Condé from office, the spectacle was repeated on
Monday in Burkina Faso, as the military proclaimed
the overthrow of head of state Roch Kaboré. Which is
not to forget the double-putsch in Mali, where army
officers deposed President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta in
August 2020. They promised the regional bloc Ecowas
that they would organise elections the following
month, but in May 2021 they staged a second takeover
to reassert control over the transition and later set out
plans to stay in power for almost five more years. West
Africa was a region where constitutional multi-party
civilian politics had become the norm. Almost all
countries were at least formally democratic, even if
some elected Presidents, once in office, twisted the
rules to perpetuate their stay in power. Now three
members of Ecowas (the Economic Community of
West African States) are under the command of men in
uniform. Is the long-forgotten era of the military
strongman making a comeback? In Burkina Faso, as in
Mali, it is the jihadist security crisis that has clearly
exerted a destabilising toll. The relentless reports of
Islamist attacks fuelling popular anger on streets and
resentment among soldiers who feel they are being
sent out, too lightly armed, underpaid or even under-
fed, to sustain the struggle against militant groups that
take no prisoners are a flashpoint. This week's Oua-
gadougou putsch is an outburst of exasperation from
the lower and middle-ranking soldiers who risk their
lives on the frontline in a brutally uncompromising
conflict. Feelings had become particularly intense
since a 14 November jihadist attack on the Inata gen-
darmerie garrison in northern Burkina Faso that left 53
of the 120 troops dead. Some in Burkina Faso want
Russian forces to replace the French ~ as they have in
Mali. Demands for a more effective security strategy
had built up through last year, and President Kaboré
overhauled first his government and then the military
command in a bid to regain the political momentum
and restore some stability to the battered northern
and eastern provinces. Over the past two years, more
than 1,000 schools have downed their shutters and 1.5
million people have fled their homes to escape the
violence, some consigned to begging for money or
food on the streets of the capital. More than 2,000 peo-
ple have lost their lives. Burkina Faso is virtually a pow-
der-keg, a recipe for the soldier to step in.
subcontinent or not. If they did, it is a minor Individuals who have a set of common ances-
matter whether they are to be called invaders tors will have similar genetic endowment. A
or immigrants. Rejection of the invasion group of individuals with a different set of
hypothesis does not automatically make ancestors will have some shared and some
Aryans the Harappans. unshared genetic characteristics with those
The essay declares that there is “striking descended from a separate ancestral group.
similarity between millions of words evident Indeed, these shared and unshared genetic
in Indian languages and others in the Euro- characteristics provide pillars for inferring
pean Tree of Linguistics,” an inordinate exag- ancestral components of contemporary pop-
geration. On a more sober note, the intro- ulation groups. Further, since genes move
duction of Sanskrit into Europe, availability of with people, the patterns of frequencies of
large number of old manuscripts, and devel- genetic characteristics in extant population
opment of philology as a science led to the groups can help estimate directions and
postulation of an Indo-European family of extents of migration admixture using specific
languages. Within this family, two branches, population genetic frameworks. Random
the Indic and the Iranian, produced litera- genetic changes caused by various environ-
ture, Rigveda and Avesta, respectively. These mental factors accumulate; their frequencies
two texts are so closely related linguistically usually vary across geographical regions.
that one cannot be studied without the help In the geographical region where one or
of the other. The differences in grammar are more genetic changes have arisen, the fre-
very small. One can find verses in the oldest quencies of these changes are high. These
portions of Avesta which by well-established changes are carried to other regions as people
phonetic substitutions can be turned into migrate from this region. However, in the
intelligible Sanskrit. Sanskrit terms like Arya, recipient regions their frequencies are expect-
asura, hotr, kshetra, Nabhanedishta, Prthu, ed to be lower. If there is continued migra-
Vrtrahana, yajna, Yama have Avestan coun- tion, the frequencies of these changes are
terparts. Any theory on Aryans to be admissi- expected to consistently decrease as one
ble, leave aside acceptable, must first and moves away from the region or origin of these
foremost satisfactorily explain the Indo-Euro- genetic changes. Using this framework of
pean linguistic commonalities and Indo-Iran- expectations, there is unequivocal evidence
ian literary similarities. Rigveda is familiar that some “genetic signatures” ~ constella-
editor@thestatesman.com
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
When proxies join battle
SIR, This refers to the editor- 2020 as the war had hit a
ial, “Ballistic Houthis” (28 stalemate. Since then, the
January). The Saudi-led co- Emiratis have provided tac-
alition, of which the UAE tical support to the South-
was a part, started bombing ern Transitional Council, a
Yemen in 2015, hoping to separatist body in southern
swiftly dislodge the Houthi Yemen that drove the Saudi-
rebels from Sana’a and rein- backed forces loyal to Presi-
state the government of Ab- dent Hadi out of Aden. The
drabbuh Mansur Hadi. Al- dynamics changed again
most seven years later, the when the Houthis began
Iran-backed Houthis, who pushing into territories out-
were holed up in northern side their stronghold, espe-
Yemen and began counter- coincidence that the attacks cially Marib; if they took
attacks with missiles and were carried out at a time Marib, they would be a step
drones into Saudi Arabia, when the UAE-backed forc- ahead to push into the sou-
have expanded the war all es have been making slow th. A Houthi strike to scare
the way to the Gulf coast of gains in Yemen’s conflict away the Emiratis from Ye-
the UAE. Monday’s drone at- against the Houthis. But the men could trigger the oppo-
tacks on Abu Dhabi by the UAE’s involvement in Yemen site reaction from Abu Dha-
Houthis were a message to has had many turns. It quit bi, which now has powerful
the Emiratis. It may not be a the Saudi-led coalition in proxies in the south. The
is also likely to be false. The IIT-K essay takes Possibly even decentralisation of
note of the racist theories of the Nazis, but vital administrative functions would
plays havoc with European history. It talks of help persuade people to fan out across
“The Two World Wars, 1914-1945” as if these the country, but there have been no
were two innings of a single match. There is a such steps.
gap of 20 years between the two wars during The census shows a parallel
which Hitler with his hatefulness had risen. between a drop in the hill population
The racist ideology of Aryanism is not an and an increase in the Tarai belt popu-
issue in the First World War. And yet the essay lation.
declares: “More than 120 million civilians and If this trend continues, it has con-
soldiers were killed and slaughtered between sequences on two fronts in particular
1914 and 1945 in the name of European defi- ~ politics and the economy and a
nition of Aryan invasion!” The essay expends change in socio-economic behaviour.
considerable verbiage condemning colonial On the economic front, most of
invaders. And yet in its map of India it calls the arable land in the Tarai region
the river Ganga “the Ganges.” would have to make way for construc-
There is ample evidence that Indians tion, constricting agricultural output
have contributed concepts and objects to further and adding strain to the exist-
others, but there is no reason to be uptight ing infrastructure.
about accepting that others have also con- And on the political front, an
tributed to our culture. Assertions that Aryan increase in the Tarai population could
speakers were “superior” are subjective and pave the way for reduced electoral
baseless; there is no reason for us to continue constituencies in the hills and, in turn,
to debate it. In a classic case of double-speak, further affect development in the hills
this kind of distortion of ancient history and contribute to the existing imbal-
and archaeology is being designated “Recov- ance.
ery of the Foundations of Indian Knowledge It is not the rate of population that
Systems”. If the so-called recovery belittles should be ringing the alarm bells for
rigorous scholarship, ignores scientific data, the administration, but rather the lack
and anoints IIT’s face black, it is a terrible of policies to correct any of the existing
bargain. demographic imbalances.
cycle of violence spells tragic
news for Yemen’s 30 million
people. Unfortunately, the
parties and their regional
HIDDEN AGENDA
SIR, The proposed amendments to the rules of the Indi-
backers are keen on escalat- an Administrative Service by the Centre are against the
ing the conflict rather than spirit of federalism. With the amendment, the Centre
finding a solution. If the wants to break the state’s hold over all-India service offi-
fighting over the last seven cers working under them, particularly in matters related
years holds any lesson, it is to deputation to the Centre. Of late, the issue of deputa-
that there can be no military tion has got a political colour. The Centre and those
solution to Yemen’s prob- state governments that are ruled by rival parties are
lems. To dial down tensions, crossing swords over the postings of a few IAS or IPS
there have to be talks, not officers, vitiating the atmosphere. Now the Centre wants
only between the rebels, to take away the choice of the state and of individual
separatists and the govern- officers regarding deputations on the plea that it does
ment but also between their not adequate number of officers. It’s nothing but a lame
backers ~ Iran, the UAE and excuse.The Central government has introduced lateral
Saudi Arabia. If these regio- entry to fill some vacancies. It can increase the recruit-
nal powers agree to rein in ment of officers directly. Instead, it wants to go against
their proxies and work to- the principles of cooperative federalism, may be with
wards rebuilding Yemen, some hidden agenda.
that would also help them Yours, etc., Dr D V G Sankararao,
restore stability and security Vizianagaram, 21 January.
in the Arabian Peninsula.
Yours, etc., S S Paul,
Nadia, 28 January.

Why Russia is so eager to
control Ukraine
ABHIROOP CHOWDHURY
AND ARMIN ROSENCRANZ
A
geopolitical crisis is looming
large over the eastern border
of Russia. There has been a
massive military build-up by
Russia close to Ukraine. The histories
of the two nations are linked and
until 1991, they were part of the
USSR. Since independence in 1991,
Ukraine had a pro-Russian leader,
Viktor Yanukovyc, whose ambitions
were aligned with Russian interests.
The situation changed with ‘The rev-
olution of dignity’, popularly known
as the ‘Maidan revolution’, where a
series of protests erupted across the
nation during 2013-14, following
Yanukovyc’s refusal to join political
association and a free trade agree-
ment with the European Union. The
elected government was ousted, and
power shifted towards the current
pro-West Volodymyr Zelensky.
Following these incidents, the
Crimean Peninsula, a geostrategic
region in southern Ukraine, with the
port of Sevastapol, was annexed by
Russia on 18 March 2014. The annex-
IT CAME TO MIND | MANISH NANDY
Alien and intimate
M
ornings are glorious in
Santiniketan. I was visit-
ing Santiniketan in the
sixties and staying in the
home of the Vice Chancellor of Viswa
Bharati University. There was a siz-
able lawn next door and, early one
morning, as I woke I saw a man going
around and around in a circle.
As I walked up to him, I saw a
tall, bearded foreigner and was about
to say Good Morning in English. He
pre-empted me, by speaking in Ben-
gali, and that too sardonically, “Final-
ly, you are awake!” He justified the dig
with his next sentence, coupled with
an elaborate gesture of his arm,
“Bright morning!”
Paul Detienne had displayed his
three most characteristic ploys in the
very first moment of our encounter.
He spoke Bengali better than a native.
He loved sarcasm. His arms, like his
face, were not just expressive, they
were dramatically demonstrative.
These were not features one
expected in a Jesuit missionary. But
Detienne seldom did anything very
expected. When he said he was Bel-
gian, I quickly suggested, “Why don’t
we talk in French? I want to improve
my French conversation.” He coun-
tered, “But I want to improve my
Bengali. I’d rather we talk in Bengali.”
After some haggling, we reached a
deal. He will speak to me in Bengali; I
will speak in French.
That created what Thurber
CROSSWORD
ation was claimed by Russia as a
mandate of citizens of Crimea, who
are mostly Russian in origin.
Since that incident, bilateral rela-
tions between the two nations suffered.
On 15 December 2018, the Kiev church
severed its ties to the Russian orthodox
church as per the decree of the Ecu-
menical Patriarchate of Constantino-
ple. This clearly showed the determi-
nation of the nation to break out from
its former ‘Soviet’ roots, distancing itself
from Vladimir Putin’s Russia.
The situation got worse with
Ukraine’s growing proximity to the
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
(NATO). Russia was the successor to
the erstwhile USSR, both in the Secu-
rity Council of the United Nations
and in its global presence. Since
World War II, the Soviet Union had
tried to protect its vulnerable west-
ern front by bringing Eastern Euro-
pean nations within its iron curtain.
By 1945, Joseph Stalin, the then com-
munist dictator of USSR, had realised
that the open fields of western Russia
would be difficult to protect by mili-
tary might alone.
The initial success of Hitler’s
would have called “a hullabaloo of
misunderstanding.” Since I worked
in an office near Park Street and he
was often there for his work, our
paths crossed frequently, and we
stopped and talked at street corners.
We attracted attention. Passersby
stopped and chided me, “What’s
wrong with you? That sahib is talking
Bengali and you are talking some gib-
berish. Can’t you be polite and talk to
him in English?” One time, when we
went to the Flury’s cafe for some tea,
two persons, after hearing our con-
versation from the next table, came
ACROSS
1 Stuck up small head by
mistake (8)
5 Uproar behind you and me
(6)
9 State has plenty of time and
means (8)
10 Stick poster in this place (6)
12 Meet and greet ghetto
revolutionary (3,8)
15 Poisonous beast consumed
by jerk (5)
NOTE: Figures in parentheses denote the number of letters in the words required. (By arrangement with The Independent, London)
CMYK
Operation Barbarossa was due to the
plain land geography of the Russian
heartland. It is devoid of any moun-
tains or any natural barriers. The rea-
son for the dual-front war strategy of
Hitler may have revolved around
control of the oil-rich Caspian, Volga
and Caucasus regions overlooking
the Russian heartland. The situation
was contained by exemplary Soviet
resistance at the Battle of Stalingrad
in 1942-43. Some estimates say that
27 million Soviet lives were lost in
World War II.
The situation in Ukraine is echo-
ing warnings similar to those voiced
before World War II. After the collapse
of the USSR, Russia lost most of its
Eastern ‘buffer lands’. Poland, the
Baltic republics (Latvia, Lithuania
and Estonia) and Germany are pro-
US and linked with the NATO
alliance, which was originally an anti-
USSR pact. If Ukraine also slips out
of Russian influence, NATO will get a
foothold in the Volga region and can
threaten Russia’s control over its
hydrocarbon rich areas.
This global crisis is taking its toll
over ordinary Ukrainians. A war
Illustration: Debabrata Chakrabarty
to help me, “It is all right if you don’t
know English. Just tell us what you
want to say in Hindi, and we will
translate it for him in English.”
Detienne relished such confu-
sion. He would pull their leg and say,
“English is a far cry for him. He can’t
even speak Bengali well. I am trying
to teach him a little bit.”
Sometimes he would drop by my
office. If I was busy, he would not
waste his time, but talk instead with
my secretary, my assistant, or even
the receptionist. In short order he
knew their names, where they lived,
17 Following overdose music controversy (8)
producer, born in Sultanate, 26 Attempt to embrace man
finds fixer (3-3,3) with love in ideal situation
18 Searched and managed to (6)
fire journalist (9) 27 Stretches back to get
19 Begin letter without steamy photograph (8)
introduction (5)
20 Brief special vehicle branch DOWN
of the police (6,5) 1 Kills merriment aboard ship
24 Arouse interest in article (10)
about vigil (6) 2 Public dismissal is too much
25 Original member of family (10)
left out after bit of 3 Do butchers extract all
CMYK
between pro-Russian separatists and
Ukrainian forces has been waging in
Eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk and
Luhansk oblasts, collectively called
the Donbas region, since 2014. It is
already proved to the world that the
separatists are supported by Russia.
Between 13,100 and 13,300 lives have
already been lost in this futile civil
war since 2014. The current military
build-up of Russia alongside the
Ukraine border accounts to more
than 100,000 soldiers. The world’s
powers, including the USA, are fear-
ing a Russian annexation of the
region in similar fashion as the
Crimean Peninsula.
These geopolitical instabilities
point towards a common issue - the
dependency of the world on hydro-
carbons. Russia’s paranoia revolves
around its hydrocarbon resources
which account for $ 250 billion worth
of exports in 2021. More than 40 per
cent of these exports go to EU coun-
tries. This adds another dimension to
the Ukraine crisis. With this depen-
dency of Europe on Russia’s hydro-
carbons, it cannot support Ukraine
in case of any imminent crisis.
whether they were married, what
they liked to eat. One time my assis-
tant made the mistake, while serving
him tea, of using the word ‘sugar’
instead of the Bengali equivalent, and
Detienne said, “If you are a Bengali,
and you don’t know the Bengali word
for sugar, you need to improve your
language. If you know the word, but
choose to use a word from another
language, then you need to improve
your idea of yourself.” He said it gen-
tly and with a smile, but he detested
the practice he had noticed of Indi-
ans mixing English words while
speaking an Indian language.
I took him home to meet my
parents and my brothers. He told
Ashis, “I have a better beard than
yours,” and he deliberately poked Pri-
tish by mispronouncing his name as
British. My mother wanted to know
about his family and Detienne dis-
closed that all his brothers, six of
them, were priests in different coun-
tries, mostly Africa, except one. His
mother had apparently said that she
needed one near her and would not
let him join the Jesuits. The youngest
brother was to get married, and Deti-
enne wanted the bride to wear a sari,
a Benarasi, for the evening reception.
My mother dictated the steps
involved in wearing a sari; I translat-
ed her words into French and my sec-
retary typed them out. We helped
Detienne buy a beautiful sari and he
carried it to Brussels. But my mother’s
instructions or my translation was
poor, and the bride had to seek emer-
gency help from the Indian Embassy
nutritious offal first of all?
(5)
4 Frame guides showing ways
to access multiple places
(8,4)
6 Suggestion from
subordinate, tense individual
(9)
7 Support lord vocally (4)
8 Cook ineffectual politicians
upset (4)
11 Republican and Democrat
droned on about keeping
KOLKATA, MONDAY 31 JANUARY 2022
Though EU and US uphold and
defend democratic governments
across the globe, the energy depen-
dency on Russia makes them inca-
pable of taking any meaningful steps
to resolve Russian illegal occupation
in Crimea in 2014 or in the recent
military crisis in eastern Ukraine.
With climate change impacts
battering the world, global powers are
trying to distance themselves from
carbon-intensive hydrocarbon ener-
gy. By limiting dependency on hydro-
carbons, major world powers will be
less bothered by politics in their
neighbouring nations. The world will
be a more peaceful place as super-
powers will not use their economic
and military might to scare smaller
nations under their banner, just for
the sake of safeguarding their hydro-
carbon wealth.
Let’s move towards renewables
and nuclear energy to make the
world a peaceful and clean place for
all to live and flourish.
The writers are, respectively, Associate
Professor and Dean at the Jindal School of
Environment and Sustainability, O.P. Jindal
Global University, Sonipat, India
before the reception. But, reported
Detienne, the bride looked gorgeous,
and he was the hero of the evening.
A heavy price for my nomadic
life is the number of friends one lost
in pre-internet days. When I connect-
ed with Detienne again after twenty-
five years, he had mellowed some-
what, but he still retained his procliv-
ity for sarcasm and dramatic gestures.
He was a literary celebrity, for he had
produced a stream of witty, enjoyable
books that had made him a best-sell-
ing Bengali author, a literary lion. I
took it as a great compliment when
one or two remarked that some of my
own writing reminded readers of the
flavor of Detienne.
I have a whole collection of Deti-
enne’s books. I woke up early this
morning, made a cup of coffee and
walked out on the deck with a Deti-
enne book. I looked at Detienne’s pic-
ture on the cover and half expected
him to jump out, make an oversized
gesture and say, “Finally, you are
awake!”
I turned the pages and, toward
the end, this is what I came across:
“My time has come to leave. I
have finished all that I had to say. But
not quite.
I will hope to see you again.”
The writer is a US-based international
development advisor and had worked with
the World Bank. He can be reached at
mnandy@gmail.com
NO 29165
house plant (12)
13 Clumsy American couple
thrive without Flo (10)
14 Factor in dirt engine
churned up (10)
16 Loudly regret returning
after tea with posh driver
(9)
21 Second party for
rascal (5)
22 Women behind drift (4)
23 Stun and partially confound
a zealot (4)
07
100 YEARS AGO
OCCASIONAL NOTE
There seems to be a disposition in parts of
England, notably Manchester and Lon-
don, to follow the lead which has been set
in America by what is known there as the
Life Extension Institute. The basic idea of
this institute is that members enroll
themselves to secure medical attendance
not when they are sick, but while they are
well. Prevention is better than cure. Each
member of the institute is periodically
overhauled by specially appointed exam-
iners according to standardised methods,
and he is also entitled to the advice of a
consultative board of recognised authori-
ties in the various departments of medi-
cine and hygiene. In order that strict pro-
fessional secrecy may be observed med-
ical histories, if members so desire are
recorded at headquarters under a simple
number. The service is available on pay-
ment of a fixed annual subscription,
which does not, however, include domi-
ciliary visits. In England, such a scheme
should appeal specially to the middle
classes, who at present get little benefit
from either the hospitals or the National
Insurance scheme, and who not only have
to pay dearly for medical attendance
when they are ill, but are often put off call-
ing in medical aid till the illness has
reached an advanced stage. The reason-
able principle that the doctor should have
a proprietary interest in health rather than
in disease has been observed in China
from time immemorial. It has been curi-
ously slow in making its way into modern
Europe.
NEWS ITEMS
NEW FEATURES
IN TRIAL OF
ARMSTRONG
One of the principal new features in the
Armstrong trial was the evidence of Nurse
Kinsey, who attended Mrs. Armstrong.
She said she suggested a whole-time
nurse as there was fear of suicide. Nurse
Kinsey stated that Armstrong and his wife
were on affectionate terms. Dr. Hincks
stated that with the facts known today his
opinion was that Mrs. Armstrong's death
was due to chronic arsenic poisoning. As
regards his treatment of Major Armstrong,
Dr. Hincks claimed professional secrecy,
but on being overruled stated that Arm-
strong had contracted venereal disease.
He mentioned a conversation in which
Armstrong questioned him regarding the
amount necessary for a fatal dose of
arsenic. Dr. Hincks said he was flabber-
gasted by the questions.
SERIOUS RIOT AT
SOLONGA
A telegraphic report from the District Mag-
istrate, Pabna, states that on January 27,
he was present at Solonga hat, thana
Raiganj, with an armed force under the
Superintendent of Police and a Deputy
Superintendent, for the purpose of pre-
venting intimidation and picketing. Some
volunteers who were picketing were arrest-
ed, whereupon a crowd, estimated at 2,000
strong, surrounded the party and threat-
ened them with violence. The Magistrate,
Superintendent endeavoured to quiet the
mob but without success. The Deputy
Superintendent was hit on the head and
knocked senseless and the Magistrate and
Superintendent were both assaulted. The
mob were warned that if they did not dis-
perse the police would open fire, but the
only reply was a volley of stones. The police
then fired blank cartridges without effect.
ECONOMIC
ADVANTAGES OF
INDIAN TIMBER
In the unavoidable absence of Mr. Mon-
tagu, Sir William Meyer presided today at
the meeting of the Royal Society of Arts,
when a paper by Mr. Alexander Howard, of
a firm who are agents for the Government
of India timbers in Europe, was read in his
absence by his partner. The paper pointed
out that the British market was beginning
to recognise more fully the economic
advantages of the use of Indian as well as
foreign timbers. The Bank of England, at
the new buildings in Finsbury Circus, had
had the whole of the decorative woodwork
made of Indian timbers and various firms
were following that example. Experience
gathered from the innovation of sending
teak here in logs, instead of sawn, had
convinced Mr. Howard of the advantage
of marketing timbers in this form.
THE DISCONTENTED
ELEMENTS
Speaking at the East African dinner in Lon-
don tonight, Mr. Churchill made an impor-
tant reference to the political problems of
East Africa. He pointed out, as a curious
result of the war, that the discontented ele-
ments in African and Asiatic countries
seemed to think that they had only to
express the wish that Britain should lay
down the Government and Britain would
comply. It was high time it was made clear
that this was not the rule Britain intended to
follow. He added, however, that French
administrators of native populations took
the greatest care to mingle with the natives
and understand intimately their feelings in a
manner which the more aloof and stand-off
British official was not accustomed to adopt.
08
KOLKATA, MONDAY 31 JANUARY 2022
Budget 2022: Tax-free work from
home allowances likely for employees
Higher deductions for such expenses would increase the take-home salary
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY
T
he upcoming Budget
might increase the
standard deduction.
The figure could be
doubled to Rs 1 lakh from the
present Rs 50,000.
Budget 2022 might also
introduce tax-free work-from-
home allowances for salaried
employees. Higher deduc-
tions for such expenses would
increase the take-home salary.
Also, direct tax collection has
been robust in FY22. This
can allow for greater limits for
tax deductions, William O' Neil
India, a company that provides
financial services and infor-
mation said in a note.
In Budget 2021, the Finance
Minister introduced a new tax
regime. However, this regime
offered no major benefits.
According to consensus, most
taxpayers are continuing with
the old regime and were
Kotak Securities sees incentives on
agri commodities value addition
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY
The Centre, in its Budget for
FY23, is likely to incentivise
value addition of agri com-
modities besides transporta-
tion, marketing and branding
of such products, brokerage
house Kotak Securities said in
a note.
Export of Indian ‘Ready to Eat’ food
products registered a 26% growth
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY
Export of the Indian ‘Ready
to Eat’ (RTE) food products
industry have registered an
increase of 26 % in 2020-21
while the Biscuits and con-
fectionery category recorded
28.87 % growth, claimed the
Ministry of Commerce and
Industry here on Sunday.
India’s export of final con-
sumer food products main-
ly Ready to Eat (RTE), Ready
to Cook (RTC) and Ready to
Serve (RTS) have been on
the rise for the past one
decade, claimed a senior offi-
cer of the Commerce Ministry.
The export of food prod-
ucts under the RTE category
have registered a Compound
Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
of 12 per cent in the last one
decade while the RTE share
in the total food export mar-
ket increased 2.1 per cent to
5 per cent during the same
period, the officer said.
He said India exported
more than $ 2.14 billion worth
of final food products in 2020-
21. According to the latest date,
the export of products under
RTE, RTC and RTS categories
Automakers to suffer from chip, labour shortages
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY
With Covid-19 continuing to
impact the global economy
in its second year, the auto-
motive semiconductor mar-
ket will experience uneven
shortages and tight supply
amid labour shortfall, accord-
ing to a new IDC report.
The general theme for
semiconductors in 2021 was
shortages in mature process
technology nodes.
The IDC expects tight
semiconductor supply to
continue through the first
half of 2022 as the industry
builds up inventory to nor-
mal levels.
The automotive market
continues to be impacted as
chips move upstream, limit-
ing automobile manufac-
turing and driving original
unwilling to move to the new
one as they cannot avail of any
investment benefits under
the new regime. In Budget
2021, income tax slabs
remained untouched.
This time, there are expec-
tations the tax-free slab could
be increased from the current
Rs 0-2.5 lakh. If personal
income tax is reduced, there
would be more disposable
income, which in turn would
encourage consumption. With
increased GST-compliance,
the government can thus cer-
tainly boost the share of indi-
rect taxes collected, the report
said.
With an eye on elections,
the rural economy could
receive higher allocations.
Around 25 per cent of the
country's rural population
is in the five states going to
polls in February-March. So,
it is expected that the gov-
ernment would maintain ele-
vated rural and agriculture wel-
Five states set to go for
Assembly polls is another rea-
son why the agriculture sec-
tor could be in focus during
the Budget.
"Committed to increasing
farmers' income, the gov-
ernment of India can come up
with various plans in Budget
2022-23 in spite of the recent
withdrawal of three farm laws
rose by more than 23% to $
1011 million in April – Octo-
ber (2021-22) compared to $
823 million reported in April
– October (2020-21).
In 2018-2019, export of
Indian RTE was at USD 766
million, which rose to USD 825
million in 2019-20 and USD
1043 million in 2020-21.
Similarly, the export of RTC
food products also increased
from USD 473 million in
2018-19 to USD 368 million
in 2019-20 and USD 560 mil-
lion in 2020-21, the Ministry
said.
The products covered
under RTE category, includes
Biscuits & Confectionery, Jag-
gery, Breakfast Cereals, Wafers,
Indian Sweets and Snacks, Pan
Masala & Betal Nuts etc. The
Biscuits and Confectionery
and Indian Sweets and Snacks
constitute a major share of 89%
in the RTE export in 2020-21.
The share of each catego-
ry in RTE export are 52.32%
(Biscuits & Confectionery),
1.52% (Jaggery), 4.11% (break-
fast cereals), 1.73% (wafers),
37.04% (Indian sweets and
snacks), and 3.28% (Pan
Masala and Betal nuts), the
Ministry said.
equipment manufacturers
(OEMs) to utilise their semi-
conductor supply for higher
value vehicles, which raised
the average selling price of
vehicles for 2021.
"Automotive semicon-
fare spending. The govern-
ment could focus on welfare
spending such as food sub-
sidies, MGNREGA, PM-Kisan,
and fertilizer subsidies.
Employment has been a key
issue. MGNREGA being a
labour market shock-absorber,
the FM could raise the wages
and also the number of work-
days. Despite several efforts,
farmers' income has not
increased as expected. So the
government could take fur-
ther steps to improve the
income of farmers, the report
late last year," it said.
Further, it is expected that
the Centre may announce
something in order to achieve
self-reliance in edible oil and
pulses.
"With over 65 per cent of
the country's total edible oil
requirement being met by
imports, it's imperative to
reduce dependency on foreign
supply. Notably, edible oil is
the third largest imported
commodity in India after
crude oil and gold," it added.
Having already reduced
import duties on edible oils
three times in the second half
of 2021, further duty cuts are
unlikely, the brokerage said.
Furthermore, the Centre
may announce subsidised
interest rates for agriculture
loans and increase in credit lim-
its to alleviate the financial bur-
den of farmers.
Worsening of debt sustainability indicators to
2002 levels may drive fiscal conservatism
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY
A peak level of India's pub-
lic debt/GDP ratio at 91.7
per cent, near doubling of
combined fiscal deficit in the
aftermath of the pandemic
averaging at 12 per cent, and
worsening of debt sustain-
ability indicators to the 2002
levels may be driving fiscal
conservatism, JM Financial
said in a report.
However, we see greater
chances of moderating fiscal
support from both the Cen-
tre and the states. GoI's spend-
ing in the proportion of Bud-
get estimates is already
restrained to levels that were
last seen during the peaks of
the economic boom in FY07-
08, the report said.
Thus, the FY23 Union Bud-
get may bet heavily on private
sector revival as we saw after
2003 even as it targets con-
servative spending. The risk
is that premature fiscal con-
servatism may prove to be
counter-productive if the pri-
vate sector does not recover
adequately enough, the report
said.
ductors will continue to be
a limiting constraint on the
automotive market through
the first half of 2022, but bar-
ring any unforeseen shut-
downs or semiconductor
manufacturing issues, sup-
The momentum for our products and platforms is strong and this
will further cement our leadership position in the digital mapping.
said.
In 2004, security transac-
tion tax (STT) replaced the
long-term capital gains (LTCG)
tax. Budget 2018 brought
back LTCG, levied again at a
rate of 10 per cent on annu-
al gains of over Rs 1 lakh. How-
ever, STT was not removed.
Many new investors have
started their investment jour-
ney in the last 12-18 months.
Removing STT could encour-
age several of these investors
to start trading. Although
LIC’s top
official’s tenure
extended by
one year
NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY
The Centre has extended the
tenure of Life Insurance
Corporation of India's Chair-
person M.R. Kumar and
Managing Director Raj
Kumar by one year, officials
said.
With this extension, both
the top officials of the insur-
er will continue till March
2023. Prior to the latest
extension, the Centre had
extended the term of M.R.
Kumar from June 30, 2021
till March 13, 2022, which
is when he was to complete
three years in LIC.
This tenure extension
comes at a crucial juncture
when the company is
expected to launch its IPO
in the current financial
year ending March. IANS
FY22 fiscal management
is wedged between addi-
tional spending of Rs 3 tril-
lion on top of the budgeted
Rs 34.8 tn (free food pro-
gramme, Air India dues, fer-
tiliser subsidy, MGNREGA,
export arrears, etc), and short-
fall in inflows (excise duty cuts,
delay of 5G auctions and a sce-
nario where despite the reit-
erated intent of the govern-
ment, the BPCL divestment
and LIC IPO are not completed
by fiscal year-end), the report
said.
While the additional
spending would have meant
a healthy 43 per cent YoY rise
in productive spending (i.e.
adjusting for the FCI loan
ply should gradually improve
through the second half of the
year," said Nina Turner,
research manager.
Adding in the time to man-
ufacture the vehicle, this
means the "automotive mar-
investors want LTCG to be
removed, the government,
in the winter session of Par-
liament, said there are no
plans to abolish LTCG tax on
equities and mutual funds.
Thus, there are hopes that Bud-
get 2022 would see STT
removed. However, it is esti-
mated that with increasing
investors and trade volumes
in the market, STT could gen-
erate more than Rs 5,000
crore in revenue. LTCG col-
lection for AY 2019-20 and AY
2020-21 was Rs 3,460 crore and
Rs 5,311 crore respectively.
Looking at those numbers, it
is unlikely the government
would make a change here,
the report said.
The government needs to
leave more money in the
hands of the taxpayer. Look-
ing at the current numbers,
if the government resists a
change in tax slabs, there are
chances that the ceiling of Sec-
tion 80C for tax-saving
Realty seeks increase in approval
time frame for rental housing
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY
In a bid to promote affordable
rental housing as well as
incentivise developers, the
National Real Estate Devel-
opment Council requested
the Centre to increase the
approval time frame of such
housing projects by at least five
years.
"...the country has just
begun to formalise a rental
housing framework in the
country. The rental housing
policy is not yet final across
several states.
Hence, to incentivise the
developers of rental housing
projects, the time limit of
approval should be increased
by at least five years," said Dr
Niranjan Hiranandani, Vice
Chairman of NAREDCO, nn
repayment in March'21),
chances are high that not all
of this may be spent. This is
because the Centre's spend-
ing is already lagging with
FYTD22 (Apr-Nov'21) spend-
ing ex-interest payments (IP)
growing modestly at 6.0 per
centYoY. Thus, only 60 per cent
of the budgeted target has
been spent so far, which is sig-
nificantly lower than 70 per
cent during FY16-FY20 and
nearly equal to levels seen dur-
ing boom times of FY07-08,
JM Financial said.
If indeed the budgetary
inflows do not materialise,
some part of the additional
Rs 3 tn may be subsumed
within the overall budgeted
ket will begin to improve
towards the end of 2022 and
into 2023 if there are no
other supply chain shocks,"
Turner added.
One of the key supply
constraints for the semi-
conductor market was in
mature process nodes.
While the automotive
semiconductor market
largely depends on these
older processes, many other
semiconductors are made
on these mature manufac-
turing process technolo-
gies at 40nm and above,
such as LCD drivers, power
management ICs, power,
Auto ICs, and microcon-
trollers. Companies are slow-
ly adding what capacity they
can, but capacity improve-
ment will be incremental
this year and accelerate in 2023
and beyond, said the report.
CHAIRMAN AND MD OF MAPMYINDIA
schemes can be increased to
Rs 2.0-2.5 lakh from the cur-
rent Rs 1.5 lakh. This would
not only leave more money
in the taxpayer's hand but also
stimulate savings. This can be
positive for asset-manage-
ment companies as well.
The pandemic has high-
lighted the importance of
medical insurance for fami-
lies as they have incurred
huge expenditure on treat-
ment. Currently, the health
insurance premium can be
tax-exempted up to Rs 25,000
for persons under 60 years and
up to Rs 50,000 for those
aged above 60. The pandemic
increased the volume of these
claims and in the aftermath,
insurance companies have
been raising their premium
costs. An increase in the
deduction for medical cov-
erage would help increase
the penetration of insurance
and bring relief to the layman,
the report said.
autonomous self-reaulatory
body under the Union Min-
istry of Housing and Urban
Affairs.
NAREDCO President Rajan
Bandelkar said the Centre
should increase the deduction
of interest on home loan for
self-occupied house from tax-
able income to at least Rs 5 lakh
spending by cuts in spend-
ing on some components.
Thus, the slippage on GoI's
fiscal deficit/GDP for FY22
may be a marginal 10-20 bps
higher than the budgeted 6.8
per cent. Additional spend-
ing will, however, still mean
higher expenditure growth
during the residual months
of FY22 than YTD 6 per cent
YoY.
Sustainability concerns
may prompt GoI to lower
FD/GDP target at 6.4 per
cent in FY23.
Until the pandemic, the
Centre's liabilities ratio has
been steady even as it was ris-
ing for states, thus, keeping
overall debt levels more or less
constant. However, following
the pandemic, India's com-
bined government debt/GDP
ratio has risen to 91.7 per cent
(FY21), similar to peers.
Key indicators for the Cen-
tral government liabilities
indicate rising discomfort.
Thus, given the fiscal con-
servatism already visible, we
expect the Union Budget to
provide greater details on
the pace of future fiscal con-
solidation path, the report said.
DAMEPL requests court to direct DMRC to deposit
Rs 6,208 cr into escrow account without delay
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY
Following the Supreme Court
January 24 directive, the Delhi
High Court will hear the Delhi
Airport Metro-DMRC Case
on Monday (January 31).
Delhi Airport Metro Express
Pvt Ltd (DAMEPL) has filed
a fresh application request-
ing the High Court to direct
DMRC to deposit Rs 6,208
crore available in its accounts
into the project escrow account
without any delay.
DAMEPL in its fresh appli-
cation has rejected any out of
court negotiations or assign-
ment of debt.
DAMEPL says that it wants
the execution of arbitral award
at the earliest and is not agree-
able to any alternate pro-
posal from DMRC.
RAKESH VARMA
Industry eyes increased fund
allocation for health in budget
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY
India has been facing the Covid
pandemic for two years now
and the pharma industry has
witnessed ups and downs dur-
ing this period while the gov-
ernment has introduced some
policies to strengthen India's
healthcare industry during
the crisis.
But public health expen-
diture, as a share of country's
gross domestic product, is still
low and the industry stake-
holders are hopeful of a change
this year as Covid has provid-
ed an opportunity to increase
health spending in this bud-
get.
"The Indian pharmaceuti-
cal industry is of strategic
importance for the country, pro-
viding access to affordable
quality medicines across the
world. The pharmaceutical
industry is science-based and
knowledge-driven with sci-
entific developments evolving
at a rapid pace. The budget
should spur innovation and set
the pace for taking the phar-
maceutical industry to the
next level," Sudarshan Jain, Sec-
in order to promote the own-
ership concept.
Currently, interest on bor-
rowed capital to acquire a
house for rental purposes is
allowed in full.
However, in the case of
self-occupied houses, inter-
est is restricted to Rs 2 lakhs,
the council said in a statement.
Marine Products registers
export growth of 35 percent
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, 30 JANUARY
Exports of the Indian Marine
Products registered a growth
of 35% to USD 6.1 Billion
during April-December 2021
as compared to USD 4.5 Bil-
lion during the same period
in the year 2020, claimed the
Ministry of Commerce and
Industry here on Sunday.
In the month of December
2021, exports of Marine Prod-
ucts touched USD 720.51 Mil-
lion, registering a growth of
28.01% over USD 562.85 Mil-
lion logged in December 2020,
said a senior officer of the
Commerce Ministry.
He said the overall exports
of Marine Products in the last
Financial Year (March, 2020-
April, 2021) was at USD 5.96
Billion, while the export fig-
ure has been crossed in just
three quarters (approx USD
6.11 Billion) of this financial
DAMEPL had also main-
tained the same position in
the Supreme Court, in the last
hearing on January 24, 2022.
The SC in its January 24
order had stated, "The parties
are directed to appear before
the High Court on 31.01.2022
and seek for advancing the date
of hearing.We request the High
Court to take up the matter
at the earliest and dispose of
the application without any
further delay, as consequences
of the pendency of the said
application are detrimental to
the interest of the petitioner
as well as respondent."
Pursuant to this SC order,
DAMEPL's fresh application
requests the Delhi High Court
to fix an early date in the first
week of February for the final
hearing and disposal of the
execution petition.
retary General, Indian Phar-
maceutical Alliance, told IANS.
He said that the primary
thrust for the Indian pharma-
ceutical industry going forward
should be to move up the
value chain by scaling up R&D
and innovation to meet the
unmet needs of patients across
the world.
"The industry should evolve
from 'Make in India' to 'Make
and Discover in India, for India
and World' fulfilling the phi-
losophy of Vasudhaiva Kutum-
bakam," he added.
Jain underlined that as we
have been into the pandem-
ic for the last two years, every-
one has talked about strength-
ening of health infrastructure.
"But it can not be done with
spending just 1.2 per cent of
the GDP, and instead the health
spending should go around 2.5
per cent of GDP this year."
The Covid-19 pandemic
has remained a challenge for
the healthcare system as lack
of adequate infrastructure and
the shortage of basic medical
equipment are some points
which emerged as important
obstacles in providing heath-
care services in rural areas.
"The sales momentum
had picked up during the sec-
ond half of previous year. In
this perspective, while there
is a need to continue the sales
pace, there is also a need to
strengthen the hands of con-
sumers," Bandelkar added.
Noting that the Centre had
taken up a pro-growth stand,
he said, however, there is a need
to continue the support offered
to the realty sector amidst
the renewed lockdown and
economic uncertainty, he
said, adding that there was a
need to create a sense of
home ownership and create
value in buying homes.
Further, the Council urged
the Centre to treat the units
of 'Real Estate Investment
Trusts' equivalent to listed
entities for direct tax com-
putation.
year.
And if all goes well, the sec-
tor is likely to exceed the all-
time high despite the impact
of the Covid19 pandemic
since January, 2020, the offi-
cer claimed.
The top 5 export destina-
tions include USA (44.5%),
China (15.3%), Japan (6.2%),
Vietnam (4%) and Thailand
(3%). Indian Frozen shrimps
constitute the major share of
the Marine Products exports
items with 74% share in value
terms (USD), Frozen Fish
constitutes (7%), and Frozen
Squid (5%), the officer stated.
In a bid to further pro-
mote the Blue Revolution in
the country, India has set a bud-
get of Rs. 20,050 crore for var-
ious development schemes of
the fisheries sector in India.
The PMMSY (Pradhan
Mantri Matsya Sampada
Yojana), being implemented
over a period of 5 years from
FY 2020-21 to FY 2024-25 in
all States/Union Territories, has
set a target of Rs. 1,00,000 crore
fisheries export, additional
70 lakh tonnes fish production,
and generation of 55 lakh
employment in the years to
come the Ministry said.
DAMEPL, in its plea, has
stated that the non-payment
of Termination Fee since 2013
by DMRC has caused immense
damage to DAMEPL and its
promoter company, Reliance
Infrastructure Ltd.
Reliance Infrastructure
had infused Rs 2,513 crore to
DAMEPL by taking loans from
the public sector banks, and
the banks have initiated pro-
ceedings for liquidation against
the company. Any further
delay in satisfying the Arbi-
tral Award will result in irre-
versible consequences for
DAMEPL and Reliance Infra-
structure Ltd.
The delay in satisfying the
arbitral award is adding an
incremental daily interest of
Rs 1.76 crore per day on
DMRC and this amount cumu-
latively comes to Rs 260 crore.

NK tests longest-range
missile since 2017
The latest launch suggests Kim’s moratorium is already broken, said Lee Choon Geun, a missile expert
ASSOCIATED PRESS
SEOUL, 30 JANUARY
N
orth Korea on Sun-
day fired what
appeared to be the
most powerful mis-
sile it has tested since Presi-
dent Joe Biden took office, as
it revives its old playbook in
brinkmanship to wrest con-
cessions from Washington
and neighbors amid a pro-
longed stalemate in diplo-
macy.
The Japanese and South
Korean militaries said the
missile was launched on a loft-
ed trajectory, apparently to
avoid the territorial spaces of
neighbors, and reached a
maximum altitude of 2,000
kilometers (1,242 miles) and
traveled 800 kilometers (497
miles) before landing in the
sea.The flight details suggest
the North tested its longest-
range ballistic missile since
W African regional bloc suspends Burkina Faso
ASSOCIATED PRESS
ACCRA, 30 JANUARY
West African neighbor states
on Friday suspended Burki-
na Faso in the aftermath of this
week’s coup, making it the third
nation in the regional bloc to
be punished for a military
takeover in only 18 months,
officials said.
The announcement from
the bloc known as ECOWAS
came days after more than a
dozen mutinous soldiers went
on state television in Burki-
na Faso to announce their mil-
itary takeover of the country
— that’s under siege from
Islamic State strikes from shadows in vulnerable Syria, Iraq
ASSOCIATED PRESS
BEIRUT, 30 JANUARY
With a spectacular jail break
in Syria and a deadly attack on
an army barracks in Iraq, the
Islamic State group was back
in the headlines the past week,
a reminder of a war that for-
mally ended three years ago
but continues to be fought
mostly away from view.
The attacks were some of
the boldest since the extrem-
ist group lost its last sliver of
territory in 2019 with the help
of a U.S.-led international
coalition, following a years-long
war that left much of Iraq
and Syria in ruins.
Residents in both countries
say the recent high-profile IS
operations only confirmed
what they’ve known and feared
LEISURE
10 MINUTE CROSSWORD
ACROSS
1 Cat’s sound (4)
3 Brought together (of
pages) (8)
9 Progress (7)
10 Bedlinen item (5)
11 Spicy sauce (5)
12 Neckwear item (6)
13 No laughing matter
(6,1,4)
16 Change (6)
17 Backbone (5)
20 Gleam (5)
21 Persuade by flattery (7)
22 Job with minimal
duties (8)
23 Cattle (4)
SOLUTIONS TO YESTERDAY’S CROSSWORD
ACROSS 12 Energy,
13 Convex,
1 Boar,
3 Toff (Bought 14 Pugna-
off), cious,
7 Lisp, 17 Motorway,
18 Anew,
8 Roulette,
9 Bogged 19 Opus,
20 Sear.
down,
By arrangement with The Independent
Figures in parentheses denote
the number of letters in the words required
2017, when it twice flew inter-
mediate-range ballistic mis-
siles over Japan and, separately,
three intercontinental ballis-
tic missiles that demonstrat-
ed the potential to reach deep
into the American homeland.
Sunday’s test was North
Korea’s seventh round of
launches this month. The
unusually fast pace of tests indi-
cates its intent to pressure the
Biden administration over
long-stalled nuclear negoti-
ations as pandemic-related dif-
Islamic extremist attacks.
ECOWAS had suspended
neighboring Mali after a coup
there in August 2020 and then
took similar action against
Guinea after the president
was overthrown last Sep-
tember.
Mali is also under punishing
economic sanctions, includ-
ing flight bans and asset
freezes, after its coup leader
failed to organize elections
within 18 months as promised.
West African leaders met
virtually Friday to discuss the
Burkina Faso coup, and a del-
egation was expected to trav-
el to Ouagadougou in the
for months: Economic collapse,
lack of governance and grow-
ing ethnic tensions in the
impoverished region are revers-
ing counter-IS gains, allowing
the group to threaten parts of
its former so-called caliphate
once again.
One Syrian man said that
over the past few years, mili-
tants repeatedly carried out
attacks in his town of Shuheil,
a former IS stronghold in east-
ern Syria’s Deir el-Zour
province. They hit members
of the Kurdish-led security
force or the local administra-
tion — then vanished.
“We would think it is over
and they’re not coming back.
Then suddenly, everything
turns upside down again,” he
said.
They are “everywhere,” he
BEETLE BAILEY/Mort Walker
RED EYE/Bill Yates & Mel Casson
DOWN
1 Laud (6)
2 Adversary (5)
4 Mineral (3)
5 Insurance assessor
(4,8)
6 Curtain accessory (7)
7 Information (4)
8 Hostile (12)
12 Tea container (5)
14 Sentiment (7)
15 Humble (6)
18 Alphabetical list (5)
DADDY DAZE/John Kovaleski
19 A long time (Informal)
(4)
21 Armed conflict (3)
DOWN 11 Menswear,
1 Brisbane, 13 Coccyx,
2 Asp, 15 Nowt,
3 Tae kwon 16 Romp,
do, 4 Fate, 18 Axe.
5 Greedy,
6 Quid,
10 Garrulous,
The Islamic Emirate held talks over different issues such as politics,trade,
the economy, transit and the extension of bilateral relations.
ficulties put further stress on
an economy broken by
decades of mismanagement
and crippling U.S.-led sanc-
tions over its nuclear weapons
program.
South Korean President
Moon Jae-in called an emer-
gency National Security Coun-
cil meeting where he described
the test as a possible “mid-
range ballistic missile launch”
that brought North Korea to
the brink of breaking its 2018
self-imposed moratorium on
coming days.
Ghanaian President Nana
Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the
current ECOWAS chairman,
called the recent spate of
coups in West Africa “a direct
violation of our democratic
tenets.”ECOWAS has faced
criticism for its handling of the
coups, particularly in Mali
where mediators negotiated
with the junta on the 18-
month deadline for holding
democratic elections. Mali’s
coup leader has said that
won’t be met, citing security
conditions, and has
announced a vote four years
from now instead.
said, striking quickly and
mostly in the dark, creating the
aura of a stealth omnipresent
force. He spoke on condition
of anonymity out of fear for
his safety.
IS lost its last patch of ter-
ritory near Baghouz in east-
ern Syria in March 2019. Since
that time, it largely went
underground and waged a
low-level insurgency, includ-
ing roadside bombings, assas-
sinations and hit-and-run
attacks mostly targeting secu-
rity forces. In eastern Syria, the
militants carried out some
342 operations over the last
year, many of them attacks on
Kurdish-led forces, accord-
ing to the Britain-based Syr-
ian Observatory for Human
Rights.The Jan. 20 prison break
in Syria’s Hassakeh region
TALIBAN'S DEPUTY SPOKESMAN INAMULLAH SAMANGANI
the testing of nuclear devices
and longer-range missiles.
Japanese Defense Minis-
ter Nobuo Kishi also told
reporters that the missile was
the longest-range the North
has tested since its Hwasong-
15 ICBM in November 2017.
North Korean leader Kim
Jong Un chaired a ruling party
meeting on Jan. 20, where
senior party members made
a veiled threat to lift the mora-
torium, citing what they per-
ceived as U.S. hostility and
threats.The latest launch sug-
gests Kim’s moratorium is
already broken, said Lee
Choon Geun, a missile expert
and honorary research fellow
at South Korea’s Science and
Technology Policy Institute.
In his strongest comments
toward the North in years,
Moon said the situation around
the Korean Peninsula is begin-
ning to resemble 2017, when
North Korea’s provocative run
Israel prez on 1st visit to UAE
ASSOCIATED PRESS
DUBAI, 30 JANUARY
Israel’s figurehead president
met the powerful crown
prince of Abu Dhabi on Sun-
day on the first official visit
to the United Arab Emirates
by the country’s head of state,
the latest sign of deepening
ties between the two nations
as tensions rise in the region.
The UAE and Israel nor-
malized relations in the fall
of 2020, part of a series of U.S.-
brokered diplomatic deals
between Israel and Arab
states that had long avoided
formal relations with Israel
was its most sophisticated
operation yet.
The militants stormed the
prison aiming to break out
thousands of comrades, some
of whom simultaneously riot-
ed inside. The attackers allowed
some inmates to escape, took
hostages, including child
detainees, and battled the
Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic
POST TALIBAN AND PAK NSA MEET
KOLKATA, MONDAY 31 JANUARY 2022
S.Korean nuke envoy holds phone
talks with US, Japanese counterparts
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
SEOUL, 30 JANUARY
South Korea's top nuclear
envoy held phone talks with
his US and Japanese coun-
in nuclear and long-range terparts on Sunday over North
missile testing resulted in an Korea's launch of an inter-
exchange of war threats mediate-range ballistic mis-
between Kim and Trump. sile earlier in the day, Seoul's
Moon said the North’s lat- Foreign Ministry said.
est moves violated U.N. Secu- Noh Kyu-duk, special rep-
rity Council resolutions and were resentative for Korean Penin-
a “challenge toward the inter- sula peace and security affairs,
national community’s efforts and his American counterpart,
to denuclearize the Korean Sung Kim, denounced the
Peninsula, stabilize peace and North's latest missile launch
find a diplomatic solution” to as a challenge to the inter-
the nuclear standoff.The North national community's efforts
“should stop its actions that cre- to diplomatically resolve the
ate tensions and pressure and Korean peninsula issue, as well
respond to the dialogue offers as to the UN Security Coun-
by the international commu- cil resolutions, Yonhap News
nity including South Korea Agency quoted the Ministry
and the United States,” Moon as saying."
said, according to his office. (The two sides) agreed to
Moon had ambitiously pushed maintain the security pos-
for inter-Korean engagement ture based on the firm South
and held three summits with Korea-US alliance and con-
Kim in 2018 while also lobby- tinue efforts for an early
ing to set up Kim’s first sum- resumption of dialogue with
mit with Trump in 2018, where North Korea," the Ministry said
they issued vague aspirations in a statement.
for a nuclear-free peninsula. Noh also held a separate
Thousands displaced in Congo’s
over its decades-old conflict
with the Palestinians.Presi-
east amid rebel, army clashes
dent Isaac Herzog met with ASSOCIATED PRESS
Crown Prince Sheikh KIBUMBA, 30 JANUARY
Mohammed bin Zayed Al
Nahyan, the de facto Emirati Thousands of people in Congo
leader. A royal welcome for have been displaced after
the Israeli leader at the palace, they fled ongoing clashes
with the Israeli national between the Congolese army
anthem blaring and 21-gun and rebel fighters this week.
salute roaring.During over two On Tuesday, a fresh attack
hours of talks, Herzog urged carried out by the March 23
more countries in the region Movement, or M23, targeted
to join in recognizing Israel a Congolese army position in
and condemned the recent the territory of Rutshuru, just
aerial attacks on Abu Dhabi north of the city of Goma in
claimed by Yemen’s Houthi eastern Congo. While author-
rebels that marked a serious ities confirmed the attack,
regional escalation. they did not provide details
of neighboring civilians from
their homes.
It harkened back to a series
of jail breaks that fueled IS’s
surge more than eight years
ago, when they overwhelmed
territory in Iraq and Syria.
Hours after the prison
attack began, IS gunmen in Iraq
broke into a barracks in moun-
tains north of Baghdad, killed
a guard and shot dead 11 sol-
diers as they slept.
Forces for a week. It was not It was part of a recent
clear how many militants uptick in attacks that have
managed to escape, and some stoked fears the group is also
remain holed up in the prison. gaining momentum in Iraq.
The fighting killed dozens An Iraqi intelligence source
and drew in the U.S.-led coali- said IS does not have the
tion, which carried out same sources of financing as
airstrikes and deployed Amer- in the past and is incapable of
ican personnel in Bradley holding ground. “They are
Fighting Vehicles to the scene. working as a very decentral-
The battle also drove thousands ized organization,” said the offi-
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phone conversation with his
Japanese counterpart, Take-
hiro Funakoshi, and agreed to
continue "close communi-
cations and cooperation" to
keep the situation on the
peninsula under control.
North Korea fired the mis-
sile from the northern province
of Jagang at 7.52 a.m., and it
flew about 800 km at a top alti-
tude of 2,000 km, according
to South Korea's military.
It marked the North's sev-
enth show of force this year
and by far its biggest weapons
test since the test-firing of an
intercontinental ballistic mis-
sile in November 2017.
Pyongyang appears to be
about it. Residents told The
Associated Press that they
saw gunfights and dead bod-
ies.Since the beginning of
this week, inhabitants from six
villages in the country’s east
have fled the violence. At
least 2,000 people are now liv-
ing in improvised shelters, in
churches, schools or with
host families.
On Friday, the AP inter-
viewed several eyewitnesses
who fled to Kibumba and
found shelter in a local church.
“The attack began in Nye-
sisi, Ngungo, Kanombe. When
cial, who spoke on condition
of anonymity to discuss secu-
rity information.
The group’s biggest oper-
ations are conducted by 7-10
militants, said Iraqi military
spokesman Maj. Gen. Yehia
Rasool.
He said he believes it is cur-
rently impossible for IS to
take over a village, let alone a
city. In the summer of 2014,
Iraqi forces collapsed and
retreated when the militants
overran vast swathes of north-
ern Iraq.
On its online channel,
Aamaq, IS has been putting out
videos from the prison attack
and glorifying its other oper-
ations in an intensified pro-
paganda campaign. The aim
is to recruit new members
and “reactivate quasi-dor-
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SUDOKU
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word, using scoring
directions at right, 7-
letter words get 50-
point bonus. "Blanks"
used as any letter
have no point value.
All Judd's words are
in The Official
Scrabble Players
Dictionary(Merriam-
Webster) and OSW
Official Scrabble answer to
Words(Chambers).
Judd's solution previous
tomorrow. puzzle
10-25-12
09
inching closer to its earlier
threat to consider suspend-
ing a self-imposed moratori-
um on nuclear and long-
range ballistic missile tests
amid an impasse in its nuclear
negotiations with the US.
North Korea has been
ramping up its testing activ-
ity in recent months, demon-
strating its military might
amid pandemic-related dif-
ficulties and a prolonged
freeze in nuclear diplomacy
with the United States - it
makes more than it had con-
ducted all of in 2021.
While aggressively expand-
ing his military capabilities
despite limited resources,
North Korean leader Kim
Jong-un is also reviving
Pyongyang’s old playbook of
brinkmanship to wrest con-
cessions from Washington,
which leads to international
sanctions over the North’s
nuclear program.
Experts say the North could
halt its testing spree after the
start of the Beijing Winter
Olympics next week out of
respect for China, its major ally
and economic lifeline.
we were in the field onWednes-
day, we heard bullets over
the hills and we fled,” Baseme
Mashukano, a resident of
Nyesisi, one of the six vil-
lages caught in the crossfire,
said. “We abandoned every-
thing and now we are here in
Kibumba. We spend the night
in the church while others sleep
outside, we have nothing to
eat, no food, no water or
medicine.” Another person dis-
placed by the conflict, Sarah
Kasigwa, said she lost her
three children and husband
amid the chaos.
mant networks throughout
the region,” according to an
analysis by the Soufan Group
security consultancy.
Residents say the Islamic
State group is not collecting
taxes or actively recruiting
people, indicating they are
not seeking to seize and con-
trol territory like they did in
2014, when they became de-
facto rulers of an area that
stretched across nearly a third
of both Syria and Iraq.
Instead, they exploit the
security vacuum and lack of
governance and resort to
intimidation and kidnappings.
The resident of Shuheil in
Deir el-Zour said they most-
ly operate at night, in flash
attacks on military posts or tar-
geted killings carried out from
speeding motorcycles.
Police Toll Free No. 1073
Transport Deptt. No.
6451-6718
CESC Fault Reporting
1912 and 4403-1912
Trains
Howrah Station Old Complex
1331/1332 (Auto Telephone
Numbers), 1310, 2638-
7412/3542/2581 (manual).
Sealdah: 2350-3535/3537
Shalimar Station: 2668-1121,
Eastern Railway and South-
Eastern Railway: 139.
Sudoku is a number-placing
puzzle based on a 9x9 grid with
several given numbers. The
object is to place the numbers 1
to 9 in the empty squares so
that no row, no column and no
3x3 box contains the same
number. The difficulty level
increases through the week.

10
KOLKATA, MONDAY 31 JANUARY 2022
WEATHER
CITY MAX(°C) MIN(°C)
SINGAPORE 30 25 R
HONG KONG 22 15 H
TOKYO 13 4 R
LONDON 8 6 R
DUBAI 27 22 H
SAN FRANCISCO 11 7 R
NEW YORK 10 7 R
MOSCOW -5 -13 R
S= sunny, CL= clear,
H=hazy, R= rainy...
THUMBNAILS
Vines scaling the side of a
building are covered in
snow in Providence, on
Sunday. � AP
16 died in NYC jails last
year: At least 16 people
died in New York's jails in
2021, and most were
awaiting trial and died on
Rikers Island, the notori-
ous 90-year-old warren of
cellblocks separated from
the city's mainland by the
East River, reports by
media read. Inmates were
found hanging from the
ends of makeshift nooses
or slumped from drug
overdoses. IANS
Austria to ease Covid
restrictions in Feb: Austria
has announced plans to
relax Covid-19 restrictions
in February despite high
infection numbers in
recent days. Starting from
February 5, restaurants
and shops across the
country will be allowed to
open until midnight with
the lifting of the current
10 p.m. curfew, Chancellor
Karl Nehammer told
reporters here on Satur-
day. The move came amid
a recent surge in infec-
tions in Austria driven by
the highly contagious Omi-
cron variant. IANS
Portugal picks new government
ASSOCIATED PRESS
LISBON, 30 JANUARY
Portuguese voters went to the
polls Sunday in an early
election that looked set to
produce another vulnera-
ble minority government,
just as the country is poised
to start spending a huge
windfall of European Union
funds.
That outcome would leave
Portugal back where it start-
ed two months ago, when
lawmakers rejected the
minority Socialist govern-
ment’s spending bill and the
country’s president dissolved
parliament.The center-left
Socialists and their main
rivals, the center-right Social
Democratic Party, were in a
tight race, opinion polls sug-
gested.
Those two parties tradi-
tionally collect around 70%
of the vote and have for
decades alternated in power
in Western Europe’s poorest
country.The landslide victory
needed to form a majority
government, which can pass
most legislation despite
opposition in parliament,
is rare. Portugal has had just
three majority governments
in the past half-century.
That means one of the two
main parties likely will have
to for m parliamentar y
alliances by cutting deals
with smaller parties.The
stakes are high: Portugal, a
country of around 10.3 mil-
lion people, is poised to
begin deploying some 45
billion euros ($50 billion)
of aid as a member of the EU
to help spur the economy
after the COVID-19 pan-
demic.
Two-thirds of that sum is
intended for public projects,
such as major infrastruc-
ture, giving the next gov-
ernment a financial bonan-
za. The other third is to be
awarded to private compa-
nies.The ballot took place
amid a surge in COVID-19
cases blamed on the omicron
variant, with about 1.2 mil-
lion people confined at home
but allowed to go to polling
Russia’s Lavrov: NATO wants
to ‘drag’ Ukraine into alliances
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also challenged NATO’s claim to be a purely defensive structure
ASSOCIATED PRESS
MOSCOW, 30 JANUARY
R
ussia’s foreign min-
ister claims that NATO
wants to pull Ukraine
into the alliance, amid
escalating tensions over NATO
expansion and fears that Rus-
sia is preparing to invade
Ukraine.
In comments on state tele-
vision Sunday, Foreign Min-
ister Sergey Lavrov also chal-
lenged NATO’s claim to be a
purely defensive structure.
Russia’s massing of an esti-
mated 100,000 troops near the
border with Ukraine has
brought increasingly strong
warnings from the West that
Moscow intends to invade.
Russia in turn demands that
NATO promise never to allow
Ukraine to join the alliance,
and to stop the deployment
of NATO weapons near Russ-
ian borders and roll back its
forces from Eastern Europe.
The head of Russia’s Secu-
rity Council, Nikolai Patrushev,
on Sunday rejected Western
warnings about a planned
invasion.
Boris Johnson’s mounting trouble is treasure for satirists
ASSOCIATED PRESS
LONDON, 30 JANUARY
A politician’s troubles are a
humorist’s treasures.
The scandal-prone British
Prime Minister Boris Johnson
has given cartoonists and
meme-makers unimaginable
riches for years, and with his
hold on power now in jeop-
ardy, their fortunes are only
growing.
Johnson and his staff are
facing civil and criminal inves-
tigations into social gatherings
they hosted last year while the
rest of the U.K. was hunker-
ing down under coronavirus
restrictions. The episode rais-
es serious questions about
Johnson’s leadership and polit-
ical accountability.
But what gives it extra bite
— and gives humorists much
to chew on — are the often
ludicrous details: political
aides hauling suitcases of
stations to cast their vote.
President Marcelo Rebe-
lo de Sousa, in an election-
eve address to the nation,
urged people to vote, saying
it is “a way of saying that ...
nothing, and nobody, can
silence our voice.”
He said the coming years
would be marked by “leav-
ing behind a painful pan-
demic (and) an urgent
rebuilding of the economy.”
Miguel Morgado, a 49-
year-old company manager
voting in Lisbon, the capital,
said he wasn’t worried by the
high coronavirus infection
rate and hoped the country
would soon be back to nor-
mal.
“Above all it is our civic
duty to vote, the country
needs it,” he said. “No mat-
ter what we believe in, we
must vote.”
By midday, 23.3% of reg-
istered voters had cast their
ballot, up from 18.3% at the
same time of day at the last
election in 2019, official fig-
ures showed.
Since it came to power in
2015, the Socialist Party had
relied on the support of their
smaller allies in parliament
— the Left Bloc and the Por-
tuguese Communist Party —
to ensure the annual state
budget had enough votes
to pass.But last November
their differences, especially
over public health spending
and workers’ rights, were
insurmountable, leaving
Socialist Prime Minister
António Costa short of votes
to pass his party’s plan.
Costa could seek to res-
urrect the left-of-center
alliance, despite some acri-
monious exchanges during
the election campaign.
The Social Democrats,
meanwhile, may have to
deal with a surge in support
for the Chega! (Enough!)
populist party, whose poli-
cies Social Democratic Party
leader Rui Rio finds dis-
tasteful.
The Social Democrats
have also in the past joined
forces with the smaller Pop-
ular Party.
“At this time, they’re say-
ing that Russia threatens
Ukraine — that’s completely
ridiculous,” he was quoted as
saying by state news agency
Tass. “We don’t want war and
we don’t need it at all.”
Russia has long resented
NATO’s granting member-
ship to countries that were
once part of the Soviet Union
or were in its sphere of influ-
ence as members of the War-
saw Pact.
NATO “has already come
close to Ukraine. They also
want to drag this country
there,” Lavrov said. “Although
wine into the prime minister’s
residence, or drunkenly break-
ing a swing set belonging to
Johnson’s toddler son.
One recent newspaper car-
toon captured the collision of
tragedy and farce by depict-
ing Johnson as the betrayed
Roman ruler Julius Caesar,
stabbed in the back with
corkscrews.
Martin Rowson, a political
cartoonist for The Guardian
newspaper, says mockery is
one of the trade-offs in demo-
cratic societies between gov-
ernment and governed: “They
have power and we have the
right to laugh at them.”
Britain has a long and
proud tradition of political
satire. In the 18th century, car-
toonists such as James Gillray
lampooned British politicians
and royalty with an irreverence
— even viciousness — that
shocked many European vis-
itors.
After huge pandemic losses, governments see rapid rebound
ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON, 30 JANUARY
State and local governments
lost at least $117 billion of
expected revenue early in the
pandemic, according to an
Associated Press analysis, but
many are now awash in record
amounts of money, boosted
partly by federal aid.
In response to the dra-
matic turnaround, governors,
lawmakers and local officials
have proposed a surge in
spending as well as a new wave
of tax cuts.
“The ultimate effect of the
pandemic was a net posi-
tive,” said Stephen Parker,
assistant city manager for the
Los Angeles suburb of Upland,
where sales tax revenues are
soaring. “Isn’t that unbeliev-
able? It’s just crazy to think of
that.”
After the blizzard, the big chill as East Coast digs out
ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON, 30 JANUARY
Gusty winds and falling tem-
peratures plunged the East
Coast into a deep freeze as peo-
ple dig out after a powerful
nor’easter dumped mounds
of snow, flooded coastlines and
knocked out power to tens of
thousands.
Dangerous wind chills fell
below zero in many locations
across the region on Sunday
after the storm dumped snow
from Virginia to Maine.
Philadelphia and NewYork had
plenty of snow, but Massa-
chusetts bore the brunt of
the storm, with the town of
Sharon getting more than 30
inches (76 centimeters) of
snow before the storm moved
out.
The wind continued rag-
ing as over 100,000 lost power,
mostly in Massachusetts,
hampering crews’ ability to
work on overhead lines. No
other states reported wide-
spread outages.
Winds gusted as high as 83
mph (134 kph) on Cape Cod
CMYK
I wish to thank lawmakers and regional representatives
for the faith they have put in me.
AFTER GETTING RE-ELECTED AS ITALY'S PRESIDENT WITH WIDE MAJORITY
everyone understands that
Ukraine is not ready and could
make no contribution to
strengthening NATO securi-
ty.”Ukraine has sought NATO
membership for years, but any
prospects of joining appear far
off as the country struggles to
find political stability and
attack corruption.
Lavrov also underlined
Russia’s contention that NATO
expansion is a threat because
it has engaged in offensive
actions outside its member
countries.
“It is difficult to call it
defensive. Do not forget that
British TV shows like “Spit-
ting Image,” with its latex
puppet politicians, carried
on the tradition in the late 20th
century.
These days, internet videos
and memes have joined the
fun.
When Johnson became
prime minister in 2019, some
feared he would be hard to
satirize because he was
already a cartoonish figure,
with his thatch of blonde
hair, rumpled clothes and
blustering manner.Steve
Marchant, learning coordi-
nator at the Cartoon Muse-
um in London, says they
needn’t have worried: John-
son is a gift for humorists.
“All you need to draw is an
egg with some straw on top
and you’ve got Boris before you
even attempt to draw the
face,” Marchant said. “And
he is so — gaffe-prone is
probably the polite term I
Upland, a city of 79,000, was
representative of many cities
at the outset of the pandem-
ic. It reported an estimated loss
of nearly $6.1 million in 2020
— the result of a steep but
short-lived national reces-
sion and what Parker describes
as a “generous” Treasury
Department method for cal-
culating losses. That figure was
the median amount among
in Massachusetts. It scoured
the ground bare in some spots
and piled the snow into huge
drifts in others. Coastal towns
flooded, with wind and waves
battering North Weymouth,
south of Boston, flooding
streets with a slurry of frigid
water, according to video
posted on social media. Other
videos showed a street under-
water on Nantucket and waves
crashing against the windows
of a building in Plymouth.
Forecasters watched close-
ly for new snowfall records,
especially in Boston. The
Boston area’s modern snow-
fall record for a winter storm
is 27.6 inches (70 centimeters),
set in 2003.
The city tied its record for
biggest single-day snowfall
on Saturday, with 23.6 inch-
es (60 centimeters), the Nation-
al Weather Service said.
Boston resident Jesse Ledin
owns a home-goods rental
business startup. He was out
walking his dog in the storm,
wearing ski goggles Saturday
as he navigated gingerly
through huge snow drifts and
CMYK
ITALIAN PRESIDENT SERGIO MATTARELLA
they bombed Yugoslavia for
almost three months, invad-
ed Libya, violating the U.N.
Security Council resolution,
and how they behaved in
Afghanistan,” he said.
The U.S. and NATO has for-
mally rejected Russia’s
demands about halting NATO
expansion, although Wash-
ington outlined areas where
discussions are possible, offer-
ing hope that there could be
a way to avoid war.
Russian President Vladimir
Putin has made no public
remarks about the Western
response. Lavrov has said it
leaves little chance for reach-
ing agreement, though he
also says Russia doesn’t want
war.U.S. Defense Secretary
Lloyd Austin said Friday that
Putin could use any portion
of his force to seize Ukrain-
ian cities and “significant ter-
ritories” or to carry out “coer-
cive acts or provocative polit-
ical acts” like the recognition
of breakaway territories inside
Ukraine.Two territories in
eastern Ukraine have been
under the control of Russia-
backed rebels since 2014,
should use. Every week some-
thing happens with Boris. No
cartoonist is going to die poor
thanks to the antics of Boris
Johnson.”
This, after all, is the errat-
ic politician who once mused
about being “reincarnated as
an olive,” who has offended
everyone from the people of
Papua New Guinea to the cit-
izens of Liverpool and who
once got stuck midair on a
zipline while waving two
Union Jacks.
One of the most popular
parodies of the “partygate”
scandal is a video by the
protest group Led By Don-
keys that inserted Johnson
into the hit TV detective
show “Line of Duty.” Through
digital cut-and-paste, John-
son became a suspect being
grilled by the show’s anti-cor-
ruption police unit for hold-
ing illegal parties during
lockdown.
more than 900 cities that
reported their revenues to
the department under the
American Rescue Plan Act.
Upland’s financial situation
turned around even before the
end of 2020, Parker said. Fed-
eral COVID-19 stimulus checks
played a role. So did a shift in
consumer spending to goods
instead of services. That lift-
ed city revenues, Parker said,
painful wind gusts.
“It’s pretty intense with
the winds getting up to 70 miles
(112 kilometers) an hour. As
for the depth, it’s pretty deep
in spots with the wind and the
snow drifts, but it’s pretty
nasty out and I definitely
wouldn’t want to be driving.
So it’s nice to be able to walk
through these huge snow-
drifts and in pretty tough
conditions,” Ledin said.
Climate change, particu-
larly the warming ocean, prob-
after Russia annexed the
Crimean Peninsula from
Ukraine.
Russia is once again rattling
its saber amid rising tensions
over Ukraine, hinting that the
U.S. refusal to heed its
demands could spur closer mil-
itary cooperation with allies
in Latin America. In recent
days, several senior Russian
officials have warned Moscow
could deploy troops or mili-
tary assets to Cuba and
Venezuela if the U.S. and
NATO insist on meddling on
Russia’s doorstep.
U.S. National Security
Adviser Jake Sullivan quickly
dismissed Russia’s tit-for-tat
threats. On the heels of its mas-
sive troop buildup on its bor-
der with Ukraine, Russia’s
ability to mobilize troops in
the Western Hemisphere,
thousands of miles away, is lim-
ited at best, experts con-
tend.But the leaders, although
expressing gratitude for Rus-
sia’s conti nued aid, have so far
, Facebook from Ambassador
remained silent on Ukraine —
a sign they may be reluctant
to be drawn into another
geopolitical tussle.
Trump dangles prospect of
pardons for 6 Jan defendants
ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON, 30 JANUARY
Former President Donald
Trump is dangling the prospect
of pardons for supporters
who participated in the dead-
ly Jan. 6 storming of the U.S.
Capitol if he returns to the
White House.
“If I run and if I win, we will
treat those people from Jan-
uary 6th fairly,” Trump said Sat-
urday night during a rally in
Conroe, Texas. “And if it requires
pardons, we will give them par-
dons because they are being
treated so unfairly.”
The offer represents an
attempt by Trump to further
minimize the most significant
attack on the seat of govern-
ment since the War of 1812.
Participants smashed through
windows, assaulted police
because services often are
exempt from sales taxes, while
goods are not.
The pandemic relief law
championed by Democrats
and signed by President Joe
Biden last March included
$350 billion in aid to states and
local governments. The Trea-
sury Department required
states, counties and larger
cities to file reports last year
detailing their initial plans
for the money. Those gov-
ernments also were asked to
estimate their losses for 2020
by comparing actual revenue
to expected revenue under a
Treasury formula.
Though revenue figures
were left blank by nearly one-
quarter of the roughly 3,700
governments that filed reports,
the data nonetheless pro-
vides the most comprehensive
picture yet of the financial
ably influenced the strength
of the storm, atmospheric
researchers said.
Much warmer ocean waters
“are certainly playing a role in
the strengthening of the storm
system and increased mois-
ture available for the storm,”
said University of Oklahoma
meteorology professor Jason
Furtado. “But it isn’t the only
thing.”
The storm had two saving
graces: Dry snow less capable
of snapping trees and tearing
Russia moves naval exercise that
rattled EU member Ireland
ASSOCIATED PRESS
BELARUS, 30 JANUARY
Russia says it will relocate naval
exercises off the coast of Ire-
land, after Dublin raised con-
cerns, amid a tense dispute
with the West over the expan-
sion of the NATO alliance
and fears that Russia is prepar-
ing to invade Ukraine.
The February 3-8 exercis-
es were to be held 240km (150
miles) off southwestern Ire-
land – in international waters
but within Ireland’s exclu-
sive economic zone. Ireland
is a member of the 27-nation
European Union but not a
member of NATO.
Irish Foreign Minister
Simon Coveney last week
objected to the war games, say-
ing: “This isn’t a time to
increase military activity and
tension in the context of
what’s happening with and in
Ukraine. The fact that they are
choosing to do it on the west-
ern borders, if you like, of the
EU, off the Irish coast, is
something that in our view is
simply not welcome.”
Russia’s embassy in Ireland
on Saturday posted a letter on
Yuriy Filatov saying the exer-
cises would be relocated out-
side of the Irish economic zone
”with the aim not to hinder
officers and sent lawmakers
and congressional staff flee-
ing for their lives while trying
to halt the peaceful transition
of power and the certification
of rival Joe Biden’s victory.
More than 700 people have
been arrested and charged
with federal crimes in con-
nection with the riot, marking
the largest investigation in the
Justice Department’s history.
The tally includes more than
150 people charged with assault-
ing police officers, more than
50 charged with conspiracy, and
charges of seditious conspir-
acy against the founder and
leader of the far-right Oath
Keepers militia group, and 10
other members or associates.
More than 100 police offi-
cers were injured, some crit-
ically, after Trump supporters
stormed the Capitol on Jan.
strain on governments during
the pandemic’s first year.
More than two-thirds of
state and local governments
reported at least some loss-
es, ranging from a few thou-
sand dollars in some rural
counties to more than $12 bil-
lion for the state of Texas,
according to the AP’s analy-
sis. The total was $117.5 bil-
lion.The Treasury Depart-
ment last October declined an
AP request to release the rev-
enue-loss data under the fed-
eral Freedom of Information
Act, saying it would be pub-
licly available later. It recent-
ly posted the data on its web-
site. The next reports are due
Monday for some govern-
ments and April 30 for others.
Some states, including Cal-
ifornia and Texas, projected
large revenue losses at the out-
set of the pandemic but have
down power lines, and its
timing on a weekend, when
schools were closed and few
people were commuting.
Parts of 10 states were
under blizzard warnings at
some point: Maine, New
Hampshire, Massachusetts,
Rhode Island, Connecticut,
New York and New Jersey,
along with much of the Del-
marva Peninsula in Delaware,
Maryland and Virginia.
The National Weather Ser-
vice considers a storm a bliz-
fishing activities”.
The decision was a rare
concession amid the esca-
lating tensions surrounding
Russia’s massing of an esti-
mated 100,000 troops near the
border with Ukraine, and its
demands that NATO promise
never to allow Ukraine to
join the alliance, stop the
deployment of NATO weapons
near Russian borders, and
roll back its forces from East-
ern Europe.
The US and NATO for-
mally rejected those demands
last week, although Wash-
ington outlined areas where
discussions are possible, offer-
ing hope there could be a way
to avoid war.
Russian President Vladimir
Putin has made no public
remarks about the Western
response.
Foreign Minister Sergey
Lavrov said it leaves little
chance for reaching an agree-
ment, though he also says Rus-
sia does not want war.
US defence chief Lloyd
Austin said on Friday that Putin
could use any portion of his
force to seize Ukrainian cities
and “significant territories” or
to carry out “coercive acts or
provocative political acts”
such as the recognition of
breakaway territories inside
Ukraine.
6, 2021, following a “Stop the
Steal” rally by Trump near
the White House in which he
falsely claimed Biden had
won election through massive
voter fraud.As president Trump
used his pardon power to
pardon or commute the sen-
tences of numerous political
allies, friends and associates,
including his former chief
strategist, Steve Bannon; his
former campaign chair, Paul
Manafort; his former nation-
al security adviser, Michael
Flynn; and a longtime friend
and political ally, Roger Stone.
Trump has criticized the
Democrat-led House for its
ongoing investigation of the
riot.While his supporters over-
ran the Capitol on Jan. 6,
Trump ignored desperate
pleas from allies to forceful-
ly disavow the attack.
since posted big gains.
When it passed a budget
early in the pandemic, Cali-
fornia had expected the reces-
sion to cause a $54 billion
deficit. That led officials to defer
payments to schools and com-
munity colleges and to reduce
state employee pay, accord-
ing to the state’s Treasury
report.
Now California is project-
ing a nearly $46 billion surplus
spurred by record tax collec-
tions, leaving officials search-
ing for ways to use the money.
Gov. Gavin Newsom recent-
ly proposed a budget that
would expand health cover-
age to all low-income adults
living in the state illegally
while simultaneously cutting
taxes.
The Democratic governor
also said a substantial tax
rebate was likely in order.
zard if it has snowfall or blow-
ing snow, as well as winds of
at least 35 mph (56 kph) that
reduce visibility to a quarter-
mile or less for at least three
hours. In many areas, Satur-
day’s storm met those crite-
ria.
Rhode Island, all of which
was under a blizzard warning,
banned all nonemergency
road travel.
Hardy New Englanders
took the storm in stride.
Dave McGillivray, race
director for the Boston
Marathon, jokingly invited
the public to his suburban
Boston home on Saturday for
a free snow-shoveling clinic.
“I will provide the driveway
and multiple walkways to
ensure your training is con-
ducted in the most lifelike sit-
uation,” he said.
Washington and Baltimore
got some snow but were large-
ly spared.
The worst of the nor’east-
er was expected to blow by Sun-
day morning into Canada,
where several provinces were
under warnings.

A feeling of ‘unpeace’
For the Act East
Policy to keep
ticking, public
diplomacy has to be
scaled up on several
fronts
PRASENJIT BISWAS
I
ssues that afflict India’s North-
east aren’t few or far between.
They include, but are not limited
to, ownership of natural
resources like land, water and miner-
als; continuous imposition of the
Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act,
1958; othering of linguistic, cultural
and religious minorities across all
states; enforced statelessness, mob
lynching, recent incidents of police
violence and an overall distance with
the Centre. Border disputes between
Meghalaya and Assam, with no easy
solution in sight, keep the pot boil-
ing. Hoping for a settlement of the
Naga issue is another chilling
imbroglio for which no one seeming-
ly has a magic wand.
Some may call the North-east a
kind of low-intensity conflict zone,
while others theorise that new poli-
cies have had a calming effect. Both
ways, burning issues continue to flare
up alongside unresolved problems,
each of which impact the region at a
holistic level.
One of the most critical ques-
tions to consider is why governmental
efforts at resolving issues end up
without any satisfactory closure. Is it
because stakeholders never arrive at
the right course of action? Seemingly,
the scope of positive action by gov-
ernments is diminished by wrong
turns of events. Negotiations between
states on border issues end up in pro-
nouncements without delivering on
the ground.
On the Naga front, a framework
agreement is in place, but it cannot
be implemented due to opposition
from Assam, Manipur and Arunachal
Pradesh. Similarly, after the Mon fir-
ing of 4 December last year, while
much talk about the removal of
AF(SP)A had been in the air, the Act
was extended and the whole of Naga-
land declared a “disturbed area”.
Meanwhile Meghalaya, Manipur
and Tripura have completed their
golden jubilees or 50 years of exis-
tence. That said, basic infrastructure,
modes of livelihoods and raising of
income are still far less than satisfac-
tory. The accountability of elected
representatives also remains unsatis-
factory as there is no way that they
can be made answerable. Vigilantes
and insurgents, therefore, exploit the
situation by increasing their presence.
At times, the security situation
deteriorates. The recent confiscation
of explosives by the Indian Army that
was heading towards Myanmar
points to the geo-political signifi-
cance of the North-east as a route to
ANOTHER PRECIOUS LOSS
A recent incident of rhino
poaching in the Kaziranga
National Park and Tiger Reserve
of Assam has made the
authorities sit up and take notice
NAVA THAKURIA
T
he poaching of endangered
one-horned rhinoceros in
Assam was once usual news,
which broke almost every
month from various protected forest
reserves. Time was when as many as
27 rhinos were killed for their pre-
cious horns during both 2013 and
2014.
Slowly, that came down and by
the end of 2021, the state government
in Dispur claimed that less than 20
rhinos were killed by poachers in the
last five years, where the year just
passed witnessed only one such inci-
dent.
That said, the new year has
brought sad news for the state forest
authority as its officials recovered the
decomposed carcass of a full-grown
(around 30 years old) female rhino
from Kaziranga National Park and
Tiger Reserve in the second half of
this month. Killing of the rhino for its
horn was perhaps perpetrated some
days ago (probably in the first week
of January) at the world-famous forest
reserve.
It was hence a matter of irony
that well-known former cricketer and
conservationist Kevin Pietersen
appreciated the Prime Minister
Narendra
Modi-led Union government on
reduction of incidents related to rhino
poaching. “Bravo Narendra Modi and
bravo to all the men and women who
sacrifice their lives in protecting the
animals in India too. I’ve met lots of
them and I respect you immensely,”
South and South-east Asia. Further,
counter-insurgency operations
against the United National Libera-
tion Front-People’s Liberation Army
of Manipur rebels also indicate some
covert relationship between the Indi-
an and Myanmerese counter-insur-
gency forces. The situation portrays
multiple possibilities of the cycle of
violence and counter-violence oscil-
lating between the state and insur-
gents, which does not augur well for
stability in the region.
The internal dynamics of gover-
nance also need to be balanced
against geopolitical priorities. Politi-
cal negotiations between the United
Liberation Front of Assam-Indepen-
dent and Assam government remain
nascent. Whether a Naga-style cease-
fire could be arrived at as the next log-
ical step in the negotiations with Ulfa
is a major concern.
Just as a ceasefire agreement
between Naga groups and the state
gives rise to a more nuanced space
for political negotiations, in the same
way, some headway with Ulfa in rela-
tion to their demand for indepen-
dence could have further reduced the
risk of ambushes and counter-insur-
gency operations. Especially, the
extension of AF(SP)A across the
region could have been avoided for
facilitating more democratic political
moves bereft of any underground
influences.
With the Manipur Assembly elec-
tions around the corner, there are
risks galore when it comes to insur-
gency. It also shows what political
theorists have termed “unpeace”. It is
not lack of peace, but a situation with
an imminent possibility of the break-
down of civic peace, and especially,
said Pietersen on 19 January.
The South African-born British
celebrity responded to an item by a
newsweekly, which quoted Assam’s
anti-rhino poaching task force chief
G P Singh claiming on 15 January that
only one incident of poaching could
take place till date since April 2021.
The top state police official termed
the containment of poaching of rhi-
nos as a major achievement for the
task force constituted by the govern-
ment and he appreciated the team
work shown by the various district
police forces.
Assam chief minister Himanta
Biswa Sarma promptly responded to
Pietersen on the digital platform on
19 January itself and thanked him for
the acknowledgement. “Inspired by
our PM Narendra Modi, we’ve
launched aggressive programmes to
curb poaching. We’re proud to have
burnt and destroyed a stockpile of
rhino horns, largest ever in the world,
on World Rhino Day to send a stern
message to poachers and syndicate,”
tweeted Sarma.
One-horned rhinos (also known
as rhinoceros unicorns or great Indi-
an rhinoceros) are recognised as vul-
nerable by the International Union
for Conservation of Nature. India’s
Wildlife Protection Act gives enor-
mous power to rangers for protecting
the grass-eating pachyderm. Native
to the Indian subcontinent, the rhi-
nos are being poached for their horns
which have a high demand in Asian
countries.
The horns are believed to have
some medicinal value as traditional
CMYK
the re-emergence of conflicts
between the state and non-state
insurgents. The most important dri-
ving factor for “unpeace” is probably
not just a stalemate in negotiations,
but the absence of proper rehabilita-
tion packages for former insurgents
who want to join the mainstream.
The financial liabilities involved
are also a major factor to twist a peace
deal on this side or that side.
“Unpeace” also marks a kind of statist
restlessness as expressed by the
aggravated use of force, as in the case
of Assam. Several police encounter
deaths are under scrutiny by the
National Human Rights Commission.
Development narratives, espe-
cially in Tripura, haven’t yielded the
desired output. The expansion of
roads to Bangladesh for facilitating
trade routes to ports on the Bay of
Bengal remains a distant dream. Bor-
der fencing in Meghalaya met an
obvious hurdle as an entire village
called Lyngkhong in the East Khasi
Hills fell on the other side of the inter-
national border. It requires a negoti-
ated settlement with Dhaka, whose
outcome would depend on the pre-
vailing diplomatic situation between
India and Bangladesh.
As part of the Act East Policy, the
road connecting Tamo with Mandalay
and beyond is a major concern.
Direct links of Sittwe port and then to
Paletwa as part of the Kaladan Multi-
Modal Road Project are still incom-
plete. The question is, therefore,
could the development narrative act
as a counterpoint to the security situ-
ation in the North-east, which is inti-
mately connected to the immediate
neighbourhood of Myanmar and
Bangladesh.
A family of one-horned rhinoceros in Kaziranga
with swamp deer in the background.
Chinese medicine requires horn pow-
der that is supposed to cure high
fever, stomach ailments and even
cancer. Taiwan, Thailand, South
Korea, Vietnam and West Asia are
known to be huge markets for the
horns, where their use for medical
purposes and scientific research is
legal. But veterinarians argue that
rhino horns comprise the same pro-
tein that constitutes the formation of
hair and it cannot have any such
medicinal value.
Last year, on 22 September
(World Rhino Day), the Assam gov-
ernment set 2,479 rhino horns -- con-
fiscated from poachers and also
extracted from the naturally or acci-
dentally dead ones over the last four
decades since 1980 -- on fire with an
aim to spread the message that they
don’t have any aphrodisiac quality.
The pledge of the day was to drasti-
cally reduce incidents of rhino poach-
ing with government initiatives and
full public support. With the first-of-
its-kind event to destroy rhino horns
on such a large scale, the forest and
environment department also
intended to send a strong message to
poachers.
The same day, the International
Rhino Foundation said that rhinos
have walked the Earth for more than
CMYK
The re-emergence of insurgent
outfits among the Rohingyas of
Myanmar, namely the Harakah al-
Yaqin or Arakan Rohingya Salvation
Army, is another concern for the Indi-
an security establishment. It’s a
tightrope situation involving
Bangladesh, Myanmar and India,
none of whom can claim to have
enough territorial control and opera-
tional capability in relation to such
guerrilla outfits with a footprint in
South-east Asia. Recent moves by
major outfits like the UNLF, National
Socialist Council of Nagaland, Ulfa
and others in close relation with some
of the ethnic groups of Myanmar
throws up a new challenge for the Act
East Policy. India must distance itself
from antagonising such groups, who
have a direct bearing on the North-
east, by not aligning itself too closely
with the military junta in Myanmar.
Further, Bangladesh’s not-so-
successful efforts to create peace and
stability in relation to the Rohingya
refugees remain a sticking point for
India. Indo-Bangladeshi diplomatic
twists and turns are another area of
concern that cannot be entirely man-
aged by trade and development
works.
The “kidnapping” of an Indian
national from Lungta Jor under the
Siyungla area of Upper Siang district
in Arunachal Pradesh on 19 January
by the Chinese Peoples’ Liberation
Army is another issue that has kept
the low-intensity border conflict
brewing. The subsequent return of
the 17-year-old boy called Miram
Taron will have ripple effects and
keep diplomats and Army comman-
ders busy on the ground.
China will successfully create its
The female rhino's carcass
50 million years and once roamed
throughout Africa and Asia. At the
beginning of the 20th century, the
global rhino population was around
500,000 and now after 120 years,
28,000 rhinos (including the two-
horned ones) have survived.
Deforestation and land clearance
for human settlements have already
wiped-out rhino populations in
Myanmar, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Pak-
istan, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and
Vietnam. Statistics reveal that Assam,
which claims a success story for con-
serving two-thirds of the world’s sin-
gle-horned rhinos, has lately restrict-
ed incidents of rhino poaching with
strong protection and strict laws.
In the last two decades, it came
to its lowest during 2021. The two pre-
vious years witnessed only five inci-
dents of rhino poaching in Kaziranga
and the other protected reserves of
Assam, where two rhinos were
poached in 2020 and three in 2019. It
was relatively larger in number during
2018 (six killed), followed by 2017
(seven), 2016 (12), 2015 (17), 2014 (27)
and 2013 (27).
The latest incident of poaching,
however, has alarmed the government
and it immediately took steps. The
authority announced that comman-
dos will be deployed in vulnerable
KOLKATA, MONDAY 31 JANUARY 2022
own propaganda out of the incident
while acting as a benevolent big
brother at the same time. Once again,
the clouds of Chinese hegemony over
Arunachal Pradesh and its continuous
attempts to arm twist India on unre-
solved border issues have a direct
bearing on the insurgency situation in
Myanmar, as many of the outfits draw
their diplomatic support indirectly
from Chinese connections. They are
covert connections that keep the bor-
der situation precarious, which always
carries the potential to cause some
disturbance in the North-east.
Policy making for the North-east
must be far more sensitive and in
tune with the ground reality than it is
now. The absence of a proper think
tank has kept the region out of a
coherently framed policy direction.
The fragile Chicken’s Neck area; build
up across Doklam, and the presence
of Chinese PLA across the border,
along with insurgency within, create
conditions for “unpeace”.
The mere possession of offensive
capability on the Indian security
forces’ part is not good enough to stall
the developing clouds of insecurity,
as they call for full-blast diplomacy
and foreign policy initiatives on many
fronts. Maintaining internal stability
by avoiding community and religious
polarisation, combined with public
diplomacy and several Track Two ini-
tiatives, can keep the Act East Policy
ticking. Obviously, all those require
proper research-based inputs, for
which university and academia could
also be deployed in developing a larg-
er perspective.
The writer is a philosopher and an
independent political analyst based in
Shillong
areas of the forest reserve on the south
bank of the Brahmaputra. Moreover,
drones will be used for surveillance
and 10 satellite phones will continue
to be allowed to forest officials for bet-
ter communication, as the normal
mobile network is poor.
The police have also detained
one suspect in the latest poaching
case and gained leads about the entire
gang. The operation to hunt down all
of them is in progress and all the 233
anti-poaching camps inside the park
have been activated. Park director P
Sivakumar has echoed the govern-
ment strategy for zero tolerance
towards poachers, which is slated to
increase the rhino population to 3,000
in Assam's forest reserves.
Nonetheless, sad news continues
to come from Kaziranga as it also wit-
nessed reduction of the eastern
swamp deer population probably for
the annual flood that hits the United
Nations Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organisation world heritage
site. A recent census called the East-
ern Swamp Deer Estimation 2022
indicates that the vulnerable deer
population has declined to 868 (it was
found to be 907 in 2018). Otherwise,
the park continues to give shelter to
42,205 birds of different species
including ferruginous ducks.
The writer is the Guwahati-based Special
Representative of The Statesman
11
PLUS POINTS
Padma awards
Ten distinguished personalities, including
four women, from seven of the eight
North-eastern states were conferred
Padma Shri awards in different fields.
Shakuntala Choudhary of Assam was
awarded for social work while Lourembam
Bino Devi and Muktamani Devi, both from
Manipur, were recognised for their contri-
butions in art, and trade and industry,
respectively. Badaplin War of Meghalaya
was recognised for literature and educa-
tion.
Choudhury, the 102-year-old Gandhi-
an social worker from Kamrup, is popular-
ly known as “Shankuntala Baideo” (in
photo, sitting on red chair). Veteran
applique textile artist Lourembam Bino
Devi, 77, is famous for preserving the Leeba
textile art of Manipur for more than five
decades while 49-year-old Muktamani
Devi is an inspirational woman entrepre-
neur exporting and popularising hand-
crafted woollen shoes. War, 60, a scholar
and author, has been promoting Megha-
laya’s Khasi language globally.
Manipur’s 58-year-old doll-making
artist Konsam Ibomcha Singh, a resident
of Imphal East district, who is preserving a
more than a century old art form and
Sikkim’s Khandu Wangchuk Bhutia, 62, an
eminent Tangkha painter specialising in
traditional Buddhist paintings on cotton
and silk, were also featured in art. Naga-
land’s T Senka Ao, Assam’s Dhaneswar
Engti and Mizoram’s V L Nghaka, all
authors of many books, have been con-
ferred the Padma Shri awards in literature
and education.
Ao, 76, has been preserving Nagaland’s
Ao language through his writings for
decades while nonagenarian Nghaka, a
Hindi author and translator from Aizawl,
is well-known for developing a Hindi-Mizo
dictionary. Karbi author and poet from
Karbi Anglong district, 66-year-old Engti
has been working towards the preservation
and advancement of indigenous lan-
guages.
Buddhist spiritual leader from
Arunachal Pradesh and former abbot of
the Tawang monastery, Guru Tulku Rin-
poche, 53, also got the Padma Shri award.
IANS
Birds dead
More than 100 migratory birds from Cali-
fornia in the United States have been found
dead in Sukhsagar, a sprawling lake in
Tripura’s Gomati district, forest officers said
last Friday. The carcasses were found float-
ing on the lake, they said.
Gomati divisional forest officer
Mahendra Singh and Udaipur sub-divi-
sional forest officer Kamal Bhowmik visited
the site on Thursday and collected one car-
cass for post-mortem examination. “An
inquiry has been ordered and the carcass
sent to Agartala for autopsy,” Singh said.
Another forest officer, on condition of
anonymity, said that poachers might have
poisoned the water body with pesticides,
and the migratory birds, which have been
coming from California for the last decade,
might have died after consuming the water.
“The carcasses were found scattered across
the water body and it is very difficult to give
the exact count. It seems, however, that
more than 100 birds have died. The reason
is yet to be ascertained but prima facie, it
seems that the birds died due to insecti-
cides,” officials said.
PTI
For Arunachal
Arunachal Pradesh governor B D Mishra
dedicated the General Bipin Rawat Hall in
Itanagar’s Raj Bhavan to the people of the
state on 26 January, in the presence of chief
minister Pema Khandu and others, says a
report in the Arunachal Times.
Interacting with General Rawat’s
daughters Kritika and Tarini through the
virtual mode, the governor said, “Great
patriot, great strategist, a gallant soldier and
an outstanding general, General Rawat will
always be remembered by the people of
Arunachal Pradesh and will be an inspiring
figure for the present and future genera-
tions of the whole nation.”
Khandu said that, in honour of the late
General, the road from Walong to Kibithu,
where General Rawat had rendered his
invaluable service as the commanding offi-
cer of his battalion, the 5/11 Gorkha Rifles,
will be named after him.
 GREENWOOD PROBE
Manchester United have started an investigation into allegations of
KOLKATA
MONDAY 31 JANUARY 2022 12
domestic violence against young forward Mason Greenwood. United
have been left stunned after Greenwood's girlfriend Harriet Robson
posted photographs and videos on social media of serious injuries
she claims the England star inflicted on her. United issued a statement
insisting they "did not condone violence of any kind" and said,
"We are aware of images and allegations circulating on social
media.We will not make any further comment until the facts
have been established."

For more updates www.thestatesman.com Registration No.KOLRMS/55/2016-2018 MH/MR/South-67/2012-2014

CSK becomes country's first

'Young Nassiri has some way to go'
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
KOLKATA, 3O JANUARY
An obviously happy but char-
acteristically humble Jamhed
Nassiri today played down his
own role in the upward mobil-
ity of his son, Kiyan (in photo),
who had distinguished him-
self last evening with a triple
strike in Mohun Bagan's 3-1
victory against East Bengal in
the Indian Super League.
"Yes, Kiyan did well," he
told The Statesman, adding:
"I liked the way he pulled off
a cool finish, staying cool
when smelling an opportu-
nity, and also did his best try-
ing to help his team's back four
when they were under pres-
sure. Time is always impor-
tant too. He came on as a sub-
stitute and hit those goals
which made the difference.
He has some way to go yet and
I hope he will. He's come up
the usual, age-group way and
was coached, among others,
by Shyamal Banerjee and
Monojit Das, scoring goals and
catching the eye."
Reminded of 1985, when
he had himself netted East
Bengal's match-winner in
their 1-0 triumph over Mohun
Bagan in the Federation Cup
final, Nassiri, who had joined
the club five years earlier,
forming an Iranian trio with
Majid Bashkar and Mehmud
Khavazi, chuckled, saying:
"Yes, that was in Bangalore,
right? I do remember that. But,
in those days, Mohun Bagan
would have had to change
their constitution to take us
foreigners in. I remember
talking to such stalwarts as
Sailen Manna, Dhiren Dey, PK
Banerjee and Arun Ghosh
and being told that Mohun
Bagan wouldn't be able to
make that alteration in a
hurry."
Nassiri said that East Ben-
gal had had their chances too
in Saturday evening's game
in Goa but could not make the
most of them. "If it's a big
match, you've got to seize on
your chances," he said, adding:
"In our day, you weren't even
sure you'd get a few scoring
opportunities. So if you got
one and wasted it, you were
letting your team down."
Significantly, among those
who have praised Kiyan quite
generously is Sisir Ghosh,
himself an ace marksman in
his day, going to the extent of
saying that the young boy's
feat would never be forgot-
ten. "He came into his first
Mohun Bagan-East Bengal
match in its 60th minute with
his own team 0-1 in arrears
and went on to turn things
around spectacularly, winning
out 3-1," Ghosh, who had
played for India, Bengal and
the Kolkata Maidan's domi-
nating duo, said today. "His
achievement will never be for-
gotten."
Kiyan, in the Mohun Bagan
bio bubble in Goa, was said
to be quite uninfluenced by
the fuss around him. He said
what his father told The States-
man in the city: "This is just
the beginning."
Unicorn sports enterprise
CHENNAI, 30 JANUARY
Ahead of the 15th edition of
the Indian Premier League
(IPL), one of its most successful
franchises, Chennai Super
Kings (CSK), has become the
country's first sports Uni-
corn with its market cap hav-
ing touched a high of Rs
7,600 crores and its share in
the grey market trading in the
Rs 210-225 price band.
The Mahendra Singh
Dhoni-led CSK, which won
its fourth IPL title in Dubai
last year, now has a market
cap more than its parent
entity, India Cements. On
Friday, India Cements' mar-
ket cap stood at Rs 6,869
crores.
Two key reasons which
have led CSK's market cap to
go past its parent entity are
the team winning its fourth
IPL title in Dubai, and two new
franchises being added to
the upcoming season at
record prices.
The Sanjiv Goenka-led
RPSG Group bought the Luc-
know franchise (Lucknow
Super Giants) for Rs 7,090
crore, while CVC Capital
acquired the rights for the
Ahmedabad franchise for
5,625 crore.
N Srinivasan, the man-
aging director of India
Cements and former presi-
dent of the Board of Control
for Cricket in India (BCCI) was
quoted as saying on Friday
that, "Brand CSK will outgrow
Brand India Cements. If you
look at the history of franchise-
based leagues in the US, it will
outgrow everything. Passion
for cricket is so much in
India. The road between
countries will see franchise-
based leagues getting prece-
dence as we go along." ANI

Nadal clinches historic 21st Krejcikova-Siniakova pair clinches

Australian Open women's doubles title
Grand Slam with Oz Open win
AGENCIES hand and dictate with his heavy Ad-Nadal, before eventually
AGENCIES
MELBOURNE, 30 JANUARY

The Czech Republic's pair of

MELBOURNE, 30 JANUARY topspin forehand. The sixth breaking back as they moved Barbora Krejcikova and Kate-
seed fired 67 winners, closed the to a tie-break. From 4/5, rina Siniakova clinched their

S
howing his trademark
big-match mentality,
World No 5 Rafael Nadal
on Sunday scripted his-
tory after defeating Daniil
Medvedev in a marathon Aus-
tralian Open 2022 final to
become the first man tennis
player to win 21 Grand Slam titles,
here.
Under the lights at Rod
Laver Arena, the legendary
Spaniard roared back from
two-sets-to-love down to over-
come the Russian Medvedev 2-
6, 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-4, 7-5 in an epic
five hours and 24 minutes final
to win the Australian Open
men singles trophy.
With his dramatic victory,
Nadal claimed sole ownership
of the record for the most men's
singles Grand Slam titles, mov-
ing past Roger Federer and
Novak Djokovic who are both
on 20 major crowns.
The 35-year-old, who also
clinched the trophy in Mel-
bourne in 2009, has become just
the second player in the Open
Era alongside Djokovic to win
each of the four majors at least
twice. He is also the third-old-
est man in the Open Era to win
a Grand Slam title after Ken Rose-
wall and Federer.
"It was one of the most
emotional matches of my
career," Nadal said during the
trophy ceremony.
In a high-quality and phys-
ical match that ebbed and
flowed, a pumped-up Nadal
showcased his fighting spirit to
put water on a red-hot Medvedev
performance.
With his back firmly against
the wall after the second set,
Nadal's champion mindset
shone through as he began to
hit through Medvedev with
more success in a brutal, heavy-
hitting performance to table the
turns. He rallied from 2-3, 0/40
on serve in the third set to
change the momentum of the
match and sealed his win on
serve at the second time of
asking in the decider.
TheWorld No 5 was aggres-
sive from the baseline through-
out, demonstrating great foot-
work to run around his back-
net effectively to shorten the
points and broke seven times
to triumph, an atptour.com
report said.
Nadal now leads Medvedev
4-1 in their ATP Head2Head
series, with this their second
meeting in a Grand Slam final.
At the US Open in 2019,
Medvedev rallied from two-
sets-to-love down before Nadal
prevailed in the decider in a
Flushing Meadows epic.
In a fast start, Medvedev
quickly found his range against
Nadal, forcing the Spaniard
into errors as he showcased his
impressive defensive skills to stay
in brutal rallies.The Russian read
the Nadal serve well, breaking
the 35-year-old to love in back-
to-back service games to pull
5-2 ahead before holding to lead.
In a mammoth second set
that turned one way and then
the other, both were strong on
return as they matched each
other's intensity off the ground.
Nadal twice had a break advan-
tage, but was unable to put the
Russian away, with Medvedev
recovering from 1-4 and then
3-5.
Medvedev saved a set point
on the Spaniard's serve at 3-5,
Medvedev raised his level, set-
ting up a set point with a drive
volley winner, which he then
converted by guiding a back-
hand pass down the line, lift-
ing his arms in celebration.
But Nadal showed everyone
his fighting spirit at the start of
the third set. He crucially held
from 0/40 down at 2-3 before
he turned the screw on
Medvedev with his brutal hit-
ting to break. When serving
for the set, the Spaniard opened
his shoulders and fired three
winners to clinch the set, roar-
ing in delight as he gained a
foothold in the match.
A pumped up and re-ener-
gised Nadal continued to go on
the attack in the fourth set. He
fended off two break points at
the start of the set before he found
the breakthrough on Medvedev's
serve as he pulled theWorld No
2 from corner to corner with his
brutal striking.
Medvedev refused to go
away, responding immediate-
ly when Nadal fired a forehand
long, but Nadal once again
demonstrated his fighting spir-
it, sealing his second consec-
utive break with a deft backhand
pass crosscourt.
fourth Grand Slam women's
doubles title as a team, defeat-
ing Kazakhstan's Anna Danili-
na and Brazil's Beatriz Had-
dad Maia in the Australian
Open final here on Sunday.
This was the No.1 seeds'
maiden Australia Open title
and came after the Czech
duo overcame a spirited chal-
lenge from the unseeded pair
of Danilina and Haddad Maia
6-7(3), 6-4, 6-4.
Siniakova, ranked world
No.1, and Krejcikova, No.2 in
the doubles, had lost in the one step further in each of the Grand Slam final, according
final of the 2021 Australian last five editions of the Aus- to wtatennis.com. Maria
Open, falling to Belgian- tralian Open. They lost in Bueno won a total of 19 Grand
Belarusian pair of Elise the round of 16 in their 2018 Slam titles between 1959 and
Mertens and Aryna Sabalen- debut, reached the 2019 quar- 1968 (seven singles, 11
ka. terfinals, the 2020 semifi- women's doubles and one
But the Czechs prevailed nals, and the 2021 final before mixed doubles), and Claudia
this time around in an engross- their title this year. Monteiro reached the mixed
ing two-hour and 42-minute For Danilina and Haddad doubles final at 1982 Roland
contest. Krejcikova and Sini- Maia, the defeat ended their Garros.
akova added to their two exceptional run. They had Danilina was ranked
French Open titles (2018 and paired up for the first time two No.100 in doubles coming into
2021) and their 2018 Wim- weeks ago and won the Syd- Sydney, but hit a career-high
bledon title, which means ney title before making their of No.53 after that title, and
they only need to win the US first Grand Slam final in Mel- will leave the Australian Open
Open title for a career Grand bourne. The duo won the with a projected top-25 dou-
Slam. first nine matches of their part- bles ranking. Haddad Maia will
Tokyo Olympic Games nership. also reach a new career-high
gold medallists Krejcikova Haddad Maia was the third doubles ranking, projected to
and Siniakova have improved Brazilian woman to reach a crack the top-45.

Moeen helps England level
T20I series against Windies
AGENCIES
BRIDGETOWN (BARBADOS),
30 JANUARY
A fine half-century and two cru-
cial wickets by England stand-
in skipper Moeen Ali helped the
tourists defeat theWest Indies
by 34 runs at the Kensington
Oval to level the five-matchT20I
series 2-2 here on Sunday (IST).
The 34-year-old Moeen (63
off 28 balls), who is substitut-
ing for Eoin Morgan after the
regular captain suffered a low-
grade quadriceps injury dur-
ing the third T20I, slammed
seven sixes, of which four were
consecutive strikes off the
bowling of Jason Holder, help-
ing the tourists post an impos-
ing 193/6.
In reply, the hosts fell 34 runs
short, with Moeen capping off
a 'Player of the Match' perfor-
mance with two wickets, tak-
ing the series to the decider.
The stand-in captain strode
out with England starting in a
sedate manner, building on the
work of Jason Roy (52 off 42 balls),
who gradually moved into his
innings after adjusting to slow
conditions.
JamesVince (34 off 26) also
It was disappointing to lose Shubman Gill: KKR coach
KOLKATA, 30 JANUARY
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)
chief coach Brendon McCul-
lum has admitted that it
was disappointing for the
franchise to lose young and
talented opener Shubman
Gill.
played a strong hand in the mid-
dle overs, before the likes of Liam
Livingstone (16) and Sam
Billings complimented Moeen,
as the team scored 59 runs in
the final three overs.
Moeen, at one stage 20 off
16 balls, unleashed in the late
flurry, hitting six of his sixes in
the space of nine legal deliv-
eries he faced. After his dismissal
in the final over, Billings (13 not
out from four deliveries), enjoyed
some late six-hitting of his
own to put the tourists' score
above par.
West Indies were unbeaten
in the Powerplay and strong in
response, with Kyle Mayers
looking in strong form early. He
Gill played 58 matches for
the KKR in the lucrative
League (IPL) before the two-
time champions decided
not to retain him. He was
later picked by the new IPL
team -– Ahmedabad -- as
their third draft pick for Rs
8 crore.
fell to Moeen for 40 (23), as did
his partner Brandon King, who
made 26 at less than a run-a-
ball. Spin was the key for Eng-
land as Adil Rashid (1/28) and
Liam Livingstone (1/18) joined
their skipper, stifling in the
middle overs and preventing
a late fight-back.
Jason Holder (36 off 24)
provided resistance, but it
proved futile in a comfortable
win for England.
Brief scores:
England 193/6 in 20 overs
(J Roy 52, J Vince 34, M Ali 63;
J Holder 3/44) beatWest Indies
159/5 in 20 overs (B King 26, K
Mayers 40, J Holder 36; Moeen
Ali 2/28) by 34 runs.
In a live session for KKR,
McCullum said, "You need
to plan as you're going to lose
a lot of players. It was dis-
appointing to lose Shub-
man Gill. But that's the way
life is sometimes and we will
be well prepared for the
upcoming auction." ANI
Kohli lifted India to overseas success like Women's Ashes Test: One-off
no other captain had done, says Chappell match ends in a thrilling draw
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
SYDNEY, 30 JANUARY
Former Australia cricketer
Ian Chappell feels Virat Kohli
(in ani photo) lifted India to
success in overseas conditions
which hadn't been achieved
by any other captain before.
He added that Kohli's big
focus was administering a
craving for Test cricket. In
January, Kohli stepped down
as Test captain just a day after
India lost the three-match
series 2-1 to South Africa.
The 33-year-old finished
as India's most successful
Test captain, leading the side
in 68 Tests, winning 40, los-
ing 17 and drawing 11 match-
es.
Under him, India clinched
a historic Test series win over
Australia in 2018/19 and led
2-1 in England last year apart
from becoming a top-ranked
Test side and reaching the final
of the ICC World Test Cham-
pionship (WTC).
"When Kohli took over
after the successful reign of
MS Dhoni, there was one
major concern: would his
boundless enthusiasm cloud
his judgement as leader?
There's no doubt Kohli was
an exception as captain; he
didn't curb his enthusiasm but
he was still able to lead the
Indian team to a higher level.
"With the capable assis-
tance of vice-captain Ajinkya
Rahane, he lifted India to
overseas success like no other
captain had done," wrote
Chappell in his column for
ESPNCricinfo on Sunday.
Talking about the biggest
achievement of Kohli as the
Test captain, Chappell
remarked, "One of Kohli's
great achievements was instill-
ing in his team a craving for
Test cricket. Despite his all-
encompassing success, Kohli's
major aim was to achieve
victory in the Test arena and
this is where his passion real-
ly shone. There is no doubt that
Kohli drove his men hard but
it's also apparent they enjoyed
competing and wanted suc-
cess."
The 78-year-old felt that
Kohli backing up wicket-
keeper-batter Rishabh Pant
to develop well in Test crick-
et was a big plus too.
"Kohli has a number of
individual achievements in his
resume, none bigger than
the development of Rishabh
Pant as a wicketkeeper and bat-
ter. Kohli tended to get his way
when it came to selection
and some of his decisions in
this area were a little ques-
tionable but there's no doubt-
ing his support of Pant was a
master stroke."
Chappell signed off by
saying that Kohli should be
appreciated from stepping
down as Test captain on his
own terms.
"Kohli took the legacy of
Sourav Ganguly and Dhoni
and substantially built on it
in seven years at the helm. Per-
formance is another factor in
ranking a captain and in his
Tests as captain, Kohli aver-
aged a masterly 54. He also has
to be commended for resign-
ing at a time of his choosing.
Kohli got it right, though he
didn't go out having achieved
his final ambition."
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
CANBERRA, 30 JANUARY
The one-offTest in the women's
Ashes ended in a thrilling draw
as England managed to survive
the last two overs with one wick-
et in hand against Australia at
the Manuka Oval on Sunday.
The narrow draw meant that
the women's Ashes is still alive
with a three-match ODI series
still left to play. The match also
makes up for a strong case to
havemorewomen'sTestmatch-
es in future, with the duration
being extended to five days.
After Australia declared at
216/7 to set England a target
of 257 off 48 overs, the tourists
took on the challenge with
aplomb.TammyBeaumont was
quick off the blocks, hitting
seven boundaries to get 36 off
42 balls before Rachael Haynes
at cover plucked a catch out
of thin air to send the right-han-
der back to the dressing room.
LaurenWinfield-Hill, sedate
till then, began to quicken up
in company of captain Heather
Knight till Rachael took a catch
at mid-wicket on Ellyse Perry's
bowling to end her stay at 33.
At 94/2, Heather and Nat Sciv-
er joined forces for an aggres-
sive stand full of boundaries
and strike rotation to get Eng-
land close towards the target.
With 104 needed off 17
overs, Australia brought a twist
in the match as Darcie Brown
trapped Heather plumb in
front of the stumps. The cap-
tain went for the review but
replays showed ball hitting the
stumps. Sophia Dunkley played
a blinder of a knock to keep Eng-
land in the hunt for chase. She
hit back-to-back boundaries off
Darcie before smoking Annabel
Sutherland for successive sixes.
Nat reached her fifty and
looked great till England lost
their way sensationally. Annabel
had Nat caught while pulling
at square leg for 58, before
returning in her next over to
dismiss Amy Jones for four at
long-on. Alana King, in her
debutTest, removed Sophia on
45 off 32 balls with Beth
Mooney taking a brilliant
catch at long-on.
Annabel returned to take out
Katherine Brunt with an edge
behind to keeper Alyssa Healy
while Alana effected a run-
out of Anya Shrubsole and
then dismissed Charlie Dean
toleaveEnglandninedownwith
2.1 overs left. Sophie Ecclestone
and Kate Cross batted out the
remaining balls to force a draw
after England lost six wickets
for 27 runs out of nowhere.
Earlier, Australia, resuming
from 12/2 on day four, saw Beth
and Ellyse steady the ship.
The duo put on a 91-run part-
nership and were aided by gen-
erous drops (Beth at 40, Ell-
yse at 35) and mix-ups.Though
Ellyse was trapped lbw by
Sophie on 41, Beth marched
on to reach her half-century
before being trapped plumb
lbw by Charlie for her maid-
en Test wicket.
Brief Scores:
Australia 337/9 d in 104.1 overs
and 216/7 d in 64 overs (Beth
Mooney 63, Ellyse Perry 41;
Katherine Brunt 3/24, Charlie
Dean 2/24) drew with England
297 all out in 105.5 overs and
245/9 in 48 overs (Nat Sciver
58, Heather Knight 48; Annabel
Sutherland 3/69, Alana King
2/39).

Printed and published by SANDEEP KUMAR AGRAWAL on behalf of THE STATESMAN LTD and printed at The Statesman Printing Press, 6 Munshigunge Road, Kolkata 700023. Published from 4 Chowringhee Square, Kolkata 700001 * Editor: RAVINDRA KUMAR * Managing Editor: ARYA RUDRA (c) The Statesman Ltd., RNI No. WBENG/2708/57