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c m y k c m y k
COUNTER POINT
Max: 33.5OCMin: 17OC RH: 38%Rainfall: Nil
Forecast: Partly cloudysky. Misty morning.
Max/Min temp. 33/17ºC
WEATHER
ASTROGUIDEVikari; Uttarayana
Tithi: Magha Shuddha Tadiya till8.22 am
Star: Shatabisham till 9.23 amVarjyam: 4.32 pm to 6.19 pm
Durmuhurtam: 9.07 am to 9.51 am; 11.12 pm to 12.03 am
Rahukalam: 3 pm to 4.30 pmHIJRI CALENDAR
Jumada al-Thani 2,1441 AHPRAYERS
Fajar: 5.46 amZohar: 12.39 pm
Asar: 4.33 pmMaghrib: 6.15 pm
Isha: 7.24 pmSUNSET TODAY 6.08 PM
SUNRISE TOMORROW 6.48 AMMOONRISE TOMORROW 9.11 AM
MOONSET TODAY 9.06 PM
Centre offers to sell Air India
New Delhi: Moving forwardwith Air India stake sale
process for the second timein less than two years, the
government on Mondayissued the preliminary bid
document for 100 per centstake in the airline along
with fixing the debt amountfor prospective bidders. AirIndia would sell its cent percent stake in profit-making
budget carrier Air IndiaExpress and 50 per cent
stake Air India SATS AirportServices.
■ Full rreport oon PPage 113
S.A. IISHAQUI || DDCHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
The ruling TRS onMonday completed itsrout of the civic bodiespolls, sweeping 112 munic-ipalities out of 120 and allthe 10 corporations. TheCongress won four munic-ipalities, the BJP and theMIM two each.
The State Election Com-mission (SEC) has post-poned the election of chai-rperson and vice chairper-son in Medchal municipal-ity due to lack of quorumand in Nereducharla beca-use of a controversy rais-ed over the voting by Con-gress Rajya Sabha mem-ber K.V.P. RamachandraRao as an ex-officio mem-ber. These elections willbe held on January 28.
The TRS had absolutemajority to form councilsin 82 municipalities andfive municipal corpora-tions, the Congress ineight municipalities andthe BJP in three. The rul-ing party grabbed twofrom the Congress and onefrom the BJP using its ex-officio votes — those ofMPs, MLAs and MLCs.
In the other 31 bodiesincluding the Nizamabad,
Boduppal, Ramagundam,Meerpet and Badangpetmunicipal corporations,the TRS won with the sup-port of rebels, indepen-dents and the MIM.
In Thukkuguda, the BJP
had won nine wards out of15 and the TRS five. Theruling party then used theex-officio votes of ministerSabita Indra Reddy, RajyaSabha member Dr K.Kesava Rao and MLCsNayani Narasimha Reddy,E. Mallesham and K.Janardhan Reddy.
The BJP lodged a strongobjection with the SEC forallowing Dr Kesava Rao,to vote as he representsAP in the Rajya Sabha.
■ Page 55: KKTR claims TTRShas wwide vvoterbase
KANIZA GGARARI || DDCHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
A scientist who arrivedfrom China on aMalaysian Airlines flighton Sunday night enteredthe city without thermalchecking at the RajivGandhi International air-port. Once in the city, hecalled the helpline num-ber and reported to FeverHospital, where an isola-tion ward has been set upfor those with suspectedinfection by the newstrain of coronavirus thatis spreading worldwidefrom China.
Three others were alsoadmitted in the isolationward on Monday, takingthe total number to eight.
Three samples weretaken on Monday but arelying with the Fever
Hospital as the bureau-cratic tangles are delay-ing their transportationto the National Instituteof Virology at Pune.
The samples have to betransported by road. Withno sanctioned budget,health department unitsare asking each other tofund it. The samples needto be placed in bottles andpacked in containerswhich have to be sealed inthree layers. These are tobe packed in another con-
tainer and those handlingit have to wear gloves andmasks. The samples haveto be sent in a privatevehicle and not in publictransport as there is fearof the virus escaping.
This requires contain-ers, sealers and capablehandlers to ensure thatthere is no possibility ofthe virus escaping.
Health officials fear thatmore people will report toFever Hospital as therehave been continuouscalls to the helpline num-ber. There is panic amongthose who visited Chinain the first two weeks ofDecember also. They havebeen calling in and askingwhether they should getevaluated for the virus.
■ Page 22: DDon’t ggo oout aafteryou aarrive ffrom CChina
RAJIB CCHOWDHURI || DDCKOLKATA, JAN. 27
The West Bengal onMonday became the fourthstate in the country afterKerala, Punjab andRajasthan to have passedan anti-CAA resolution inthe state Assembly.
After the passage of theresolution, West BengalChief Minister and Trina-mul Congress supremoMamata Banerjee calledupon the Opposition par-ties, including the Congr-ess and Left, to bury their“narrow differences” tobuild a united movementagainst the CitizenshipAmendment Act (CAA).
Speaking on the resolu-tion, Chief MinisterMamata Banerjee also saidthe protests against thelaw is “not just for theminorities but for the sakeof the country's unity”.
“In Bengal, we won'tallow CAA, NPR, and NRC.We will fight against thempeacefully. We want CAAto be repealed immediate-ly. We also want NPR to berevoked,” she said. “TheCAA is against the Const-itution and humanity.”
She also slammed seniorBJP leader Kailash Vijayv-argiya’s for his controver-sial comments on pohasaying, “a single colourcannot run the country”.
■ Full rreport oon PPage 88
VIKRAM SSHARMA || DDCHYDERABAD JAN. 27
Even as the decision to banthe Kerala-based radicalgroup Popular Front ofIndia (PFI) is pendingbefore the Centre, theEnforcement Directorate(ED) has found that the vio-lent protests against theCitizenship AmendmentAct (CAA) in Uttar Pradeshin December last year had afinancial link with the PFI.
The ED, in its findings,has said that at least `120crore was deposited in 73bank accounts related toPFI and distributed acrossUttar Pradesh and otherparts of the country to fuelanti-CAA protests. The EDis probing the financialtransactions of the PFIunder the Prevention ofMoney Laundering Act(PMLA) since 2018.
Deccan Chronicle hadrecently carried a series ofreports about how the anti-CAA protests had infused anew lease of life into the PFIwhich not only helped itexpand its support base con-siderably (post the passingof the CAA in Parliamentlast year) but also saw anincrease in the funds flowfor the Kerala-based organi-sation, which is accused ofseveral offences.
Quoting the note forward-ed by the ED to the Unionhome ministry, sources saidseveral payments and with-drawals were made in vari-ous areas around the time ofprotests during Decemberlast year and January.
It was alleged that thefunds deposited in bankswere routed from foreignshores and sent to theaccounts of certain invest-ment firms.
■ Page 66: PPFI ssays iit hhas nnotviolated aany rrules
Wins 109 out of 120 municipal chief positions
TRS sweeps civicbody chief polls
WB ASSEMBLYREJECTS CAAAFTER 3 STATES
4 more in isolation wardfor coronavirus testing
ANTI-CAA PROTESTFUNDING TRAILLEADS ED TO PFI
TRS working president and minister K.T. Rama Rao (left)refuses to accept a sweet offered by minister TalasaniSrinivas Yadav during a press meet at Telangana Bhavanin Hyderabad on Monday. — S. SURENDER REDDY
Vol. 83 No. 27 Established 1938 | 32 PAGES | `6.00deccanchronicle.com, facebook.com/deccannews, twitter.com/deccanchronicle, google.com/+deccanchronicle
TABLOIDSPORTS|14Something sweet,something hot
Basketball star Bryantdies in chopper crash
Billie Eilish bags top 4 Grammies
WORLD|9
Samples stuck in city for lack of funding
POLL TALLYMAYORS MUNICIPAL
CHAIRS
TRS 10 112Cong 0 4BJP 0 2MIM 0 2
N. VVAMSI SSRINIVAS || DDCVIJAYAWADA, JAN. 27
The Andhra PradeshAssembly on Mondayunanimously resolvedthat “the State LegislativeCouncil of AndhraPradesh be abolished.”
All the 133 members pre-sent in the House — 132belonging to the rulingYSR Congress and onefrom Jana Sena —votedfor the resolution whileTelugu Desam membersboycotted the day’s pro-ceedings. Chief MinisterY.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy,who moved the resolu-tion, pressed for division.
As many as 18 rulingparty members, includingwhip Ch Bhaskar Redddy,did not take part in thevoting reflecting the poorfloor management. While21 TD members boycottedthe Assembly proceed-ings, two TD legislators,
who have since switchedover their loyalties toYSRC, abstained from thevoting apparently toavoid anti-defection pro-ceedings.
There was confusion forsome time with the Spea-ker initially announcingthat the resolution wasadopted with 121 mem-bers supporting it.
Municipal administra-tion minister BotsaSatyanarayana, however,brought to the Chair’snotice that the head countwas incorrect.
■ Page 55: CCentre tto ttackleCouncil iissue nnow
AP Assembly asks Centreto abolish state’s Council
The framers of theConstitution too were
against the second chamberand left it to the States todecide on it.
— Y.S. JAGAN MOHANREDDY
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister
iNSIDE■ Page 77: TThai nnationaldies iin WWB, ccoronavirusfeared
■ Page 112: CChina’s LLi iinvirus-hhit WWuhan, ttollreaches 881
THE LARGEST CIRCULATED ENGLISH DAILY IN SOUTH INDIAHYDERABAD I TUESDAY I 28 JANUARY 2020
c m y k c m y k
COUNTER POINT
Max: 33.5OCMin: 17OC RH: 38%Rainfall: Nil
Forecast: Partly cloudysky. Misty morning.
Max/Min temp. 33/17ºC
WEATHER
ASTROGUIDEVikari; Uttarayana
Tithi: Magha Shuddha Tadiya till8.22 am
Star: Shatabisham till 9.23 amVarjyam: 4.32 pm to 6.19 pm
Durmuhurtam: 9.07 am to 9.51 am; 11.12 pm to 12.03 am
Rahukalam: 3 pm to 4.30 pmHIJRI CALENDAR
Jumada al-Thani 2,1441 AHPRAYERS
Fajar: 5.46 amZohar: 12.39 pm
Asar: 4.33 pmMaghrib: 6.15 pm
Isha: 7.24 pmSUNSET TODAY 6.08 PM
SUNRISE TOMORROW 6.48 AMMOONRISE TOMORROW 9.11 AM
MOONSET TODAY 9.06 PM
Centre offers to sell Air India
New Delhi: Moving forwardwith Air India stake sale
process for the second timein less than two years, the
government on Mondayissued the preliminary bid
document for 100 per centstake in the airline along
with fixing the debt amountfor prospective bidders. AirIndia would sell its cent percent stake in profit-making
budget carrier Air IndiaExpress and 50 per cent
stake Air India SATS AirportServices.
■ Full rreport oon PPage 113
S.A. IISHAQUI || DDCHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
The ruling TRS onMonday completed itsrout of the civic bodiespolls, sweeping 112 munic-ipalities out of 120 and allthe 10 corporations. TheCongress won four munic-ipalities, the BJP and theMIM two each.
The State Election Com-mission (SEC) has post-poned the election of chai-rperson and vice chairper-son in Medchal municipal-ity due to lack of quorumand in Nereducharla beca-use of a controversy rais-ed over the voting by Con-gress Rajya Sabha mem-ber K.V.P. RamachandraRao as an ex-officio mem-ber. These elections willbe held on January 28.
The TRS had absolutemajority to form councilsin 82 municipalities andfive municipal corpora-tions, the Congress ineight municipalities andthe BJP in three. The rul-ing party grabbed twofrom the Congress and onefrom the BJP using its ex-officio votes — those ofMPs, MLAs and MLCs.
In the other 31 bodiesincluding the Nizamabad,
Boduppal, Ramagundam,Meerpet and Badangpetmunicipal corporations,the TRS won with the sup-port of rebels, indepen-dents and the MIM.
In Thukkuguda, the BJP
had won nine wards out of15 and the TRS five. Theruling party then used theex-officio votes of ministerSabita Indra Reddy, RajyaSabha member Dr K.Kesava Rao and MLCsNayani Narasimha Reddy,E. Mallesham and K.Janardhan Reddy.
The BJP lodged a strongobjection with the SEC forallowing Dr Kesava Rao,to vote as he representsAP in the Rajya Sabha.
■ Page 55: KKTR claims TTRShas wwide vvoterbase
KANIZA GGARARI || DDCHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
A scientist who arrivedfrom China on aMalaysian Airlines flighton Sunday night enteredthe city without thermalchecking at the RajivGandhi International air-port. Once in the city, hecalled the helpline num-ber and reported to FeverHospital, where an isola-tion ward has been set upfor those with suspectedinfection by the newstrain of coronavirus thatis spreading worldwidefrom China.
Three others were alsoadmitted in the isolationward on Monday, takingthe total number to eight.
Three samples weretaken on Monday but arelying with the Fever
Hospital as the bureau-cratic tangles are delay-ing their transportationto the National Instituteof Virology at Pune.
The samples have to betransported by road. Withno sanctioned budget,health department unitsare asking each other tofund it. The samples needto be placed in bottles andpacked in containerswhich have to be sealed inthree layers. These are tobe packed in another con-
tainer and those handlingit have to wear gloves andmasks. The samples haveto be sent in a privatevehicle and not in publictransport as there is fearof the virus escaping.
This requires contain-ers, sealers and capablehandlers to ensure thatthere is no possibility ofthe virus escaping.
Health officials fear thatmore people will report toFever Hospital as therehave been continuouscalls to the helpline num-ber. There is panic amongthose who visited Chinain the first two weeks ofDecember also. They havebeen calling in and askingwhether they should getevaluated for the virus.
■ Page 22: DDon’t ggo oout aafteryou aarrive ffrom CChina
RAJIB CCHOWDHURI || DDCKOLKATA, JAN. 27
The West Bengal onMonday became the fourthstate in the country afterKerala, Punjab andRajasthan to have passedan anti-CAA resolution inthe state Assembly.
After the passage of theresolution, West BengalChief Minister and Trina-mul Congress supremoMamata Banerjee calledupon the Opposition par-ties, including the Congr-ess and Left, to bury their“narrow differences” tobuild a united movementagainst the CitizenshipAmendment Act (CAA).
Speaking on the resolu-tion, Chief MinisterMamata Banerjee also saidthe protests against thelaw is “not just for theminorities but for the sakeof the country's unity”.
“In Bengal, we won'tallow CAA, NPR, and NRC.We will fight against thempeacefully. We want CAAto be repealed immediate-ly. We also want NPR to berevoked,” she said. “TheCAA is against the Const-itution and humanity.”
She also slammed seniorBJP leader Kailash Vijayv-argiya’s for his controver-sial comments on pohasaying, “a single colourcannot run the country”.
■ Full rreport oon PPage 88
VIKRAM SSHARMA || DDCHYDERABAD JAN. 27
Even as the decision to banthe Kerala-based radicalgroup Popular Front ofIndia (PFI) is pendingbefore the Centre, theEnforcement Directorate(ED) has found that the vio-lent protests against theCitizenship AmendmentAct (CAA) in Uttar Pradeshin December last year had afinancial link with the PFI.
The ED, in its findings,has said that at least `120crore was deposited in 73bank accounts related toPFI and distributed acrossUttar Pradesh and otherparts of the country to fuelanti-CAA protests. The EDis probing the financialtransactions of the PFIunder the Prevention ofMoney Laundering Act(PMLA) since 2018.
Deccan Chronicle hadrecently carried a series ofreports about how the anti-CAA protests had infused anew lease of life into the PFIwhich not only helped itexpand its support base con-siderably (post the passingof the CAA in Parliamentlast year) but also saw anincrease in the funds flowfor the Kerala-based organi-sation, which is accused ofseveral offences.
Quoting the note forward-ed by the ED to the Unionhome ministry, sources saidseveral payments and with-drawals were made in vari-ous areas around the time ofprotests during Decemberlast year and January.
It was alleged that thefunds deposited in bankswere routed from foreignshores and sent to theaccounts of certain invest-ment firms.
■ Page 66: PPFI ssays iit hhas nnotviolated aany rrules
Wins 109 out of 120 municipal chief positions
TRS sweeps civicbody chief polls
WB ASSEMBLYREJECTS CAAAFTER 3 STATES
4 more in isolation wardfor coronavirus testing
ANTI-CAA PROTESTFUNDING TRAILLEADS ED TO PFI
TRS working president and minister K.T. Rama Rao (left)refuses to accept a sweet offered by minister TalasaniSrinivas Yadav during a press meet at Telangana Bhavanin Hyderabad on Monday. — S. SURENDER REDDY
Vol. 83 No. 27 Established 1938 | 32 PAGES | `6.00deccanchronicle.com, facebook.com/deccannews, twitter.com/deccanchronicle, google.com/+deccanchronicle
TABLOIDSPORTS|14Something sweet,something hot
Basketball star Bryantdies in chopper crash
Billie Eilish bags top 4 Grammies
WORLD|9
Samples stuck in city for lack of funding
POLL TALLYMAYORS MUNICIPAL
CHAIRS
TRS 10 112Cong 0 4BJP 0 2MIM 0 2
N. VVAMSI SSRINIVAS || DDCVIJAYAWADA, JAN. 27
The Andhra PradeshAssembly on Mondayunanimously resolvedthat “the State LegislativeCouncil of AndhraPradesh be abolished.”
All the 133 members pre-sent in the House — 132belonging to the rulingYSR Congress and onefrom Jana Sena —votedfor the resolution whileTelugu Desam membersboycotted the day’s pro-ceedings. Chief MinisterY.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy,who moved the resolu-tion, pressed for division.
As many as 18 rulingparty members, includingwhip Ch Bhaskar Redddy,did not take part in thevoting reflecting the poorfloor management. While21 TD members boycottedthe Assembly proceed-ings, two TD legislators,
who have since switchedover their loyalties toYSRC, abstained from thevoting apparently toavoid anti-defection pro-ceedings.
There was confusion forsome time with the Spea-ker initially announcingthat the resolution wasadopted with 121 mem-bers supporting it.
Municipal administra-tion minister BotsaSatyanarayana, however,brought to the Chair’snotice that the head countwas incorrect.
■ Page 55: CCentre tto ttackleCouncil iissue nnow
AP Assembly asks Centreto abolish state’s Council
The framers of theConstitution too were
against the second chamberand left it to the States todecide on it.
— Y.S. JAGAN MOHANREDDY
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister
iNSIDE■ Page 77: TThai nnationaldies iin WWB, ccoronavirusfeared
■ Page 112: CChina’s LLi iinvirus-hhit WWuhan, ttollreaches 881
THE LARGEST CIRCULATED ENGLISH DAILY IN SOUTH INDIAHYDERABAD I TUESDAY I 28 JANUARY 2020
BALU PPULIPAKA II DDCHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
Even as the Centre onMonday said it had decid-ed that “steps may betaken to prepare for thepossible evacuation ofIndian nationals inWuhan,” some Indiansstuck in the epicentre ofthe novel coronavirus dis-ease have expressed asense of unease at theprospect of being herdedinto a large group andspending hours in an aero-plane for the flight backhome to India.
Social media chat groupslit up in the evening inWuhan with many of the250-odd Indians in theChinese city discussingthe possibility of goinghome. The plan for theescape from the predica-ment they are in Wuhansoon emerged as a poten-tial daunting prospectgiven the complicatedlogistics involved.
Indians in Wuhan thatDeccan Chronicle spokewith on Monday eveningexpressed serious appre-hensions at being groupedin an aircraft for the longjourney back. “Right now,anyone can be a walkingzombie. Even if one personis infected in the group,that person has the poten-tial to infect at least 14 oth-ers. With nearly 250 peoplein a plane, that is a scaryprospect. Do we take thechance of being exposed tothe disease even if one isinfected on the multiplelegs of the journey,” one ofthem said.
In addition, the logisticsrequired to bring backIndians in Wuhan andother smaller cities in theHubei province could bemind-boggling. The localgovernment will first haveto approve bringing small-er groups of Indians, liv-ing in different parts ofthe city, together andallow vehicles that cancarry these groups of peo-ple. Then there is theprospect of getting per-missions for buses totransport the Indians to anearby province fromwhere they can be flownout that might involve alocal flight before reach-
ing an airport that allowsinternational flights.
“Even if everything goessmoothly, when we land inIndia we will have toundergo a 14-day quaran-tine. It is not clear if anyof the cities in India
where the flight lands hassuch a facility,” he said.
Meanwhile, the govern-ment in Hubei is learnt tohave informed the Indianembassy in Beijing thatany person running out offood and other essential
supplies can call twohelpline numbers thatwere set up locally. Thosecalling these numbers willbe provided with informa-tion where such supplieswere available in the cityfor purchase.
PAGE
2CityTUESDAY | 28 JANUARY 2020 | HYDERABADDECCAN CHRONICLE
Safer roadsTransport minister Puvvada AjayKumar formally opens road safetyweek programme in Hyderabad
IN BRIEF
Blood donationdrive is a hit
Hyderabad: Around 240bottles of blood were col-
lected in the blood donationdrive by Alliance against
CAA, NPR and NRC onJanuary 26. It has been
donated to Thalassemia andSickle Cell Society. The drive
was carried out in differentparts of Old City and young-sters came in large numbers
to donate blood.
V-P: SPREAD OFCORONAVIRUSIS A CONCERN
Hyderabad, Jan. 27: VicePresident M. Venkaiah Naiduon Monday underscored theneed for global cooperation forearly detection of new virusesand to contain any seriousfallout from outbreak of epi-demics.
Addressing scientists andresearchers of CSIR-Centre forCellular and Molecular Biology(CCMB) in Hyderabad, the VicePresident while referring to thenewly-discovered strain ofCoronavirus, said that it wasspreading across the nationsand causing a major concern tohealth authorities. He pointedout that period outbreak of epi-demics and new viruses high-lighted our vulnerability to dis-eases.
Referring to the vital role ofthe Indian Science andTechnology Innovation (STI)System in achieving nationalgoals as India aspires for sus-tainable and inclusive growth,he appealed to the private sec-tor to create a fund for financ-ing innovative scientific proj-ects that will address societalconcerns.
Observing that investmentin STI plays a major role inpromoting research and devel-oping cutting edge technolo-gies, Naidu said the fundingfor basic research also has tobe stepped up.
Stressing that the outcome ofevery scientific endeavourmust improve the lives of peo-ple, he called upon scientists ofCCMB and other scientific labsto find answers to the manychallenges the world was fac-ing today like poverty, effects ofclimate change, pollution, lackof clean drinking water, sanita-tion, increasing urbanizationand growing drug resistance,among others.
Lauding CCMB for develop-ing bacterial blight-resistantSambah Mahsuri rice varietyin collaboration with IndianInstitute of Rice Research(IIRR), Naidu urged scientiststo find ways to develop moredisease and pest-resistant cropsand aid in increasing produc-tivity. — INN
Mercury at 33°Ceven in Jan.
Hyderabad: The mercurytouched 33°C on Monday, allbut heralding the end of thevery mild winter in the city.
This is a marked changefrom the previous yearswhen the city remained
pleasant all of January. Withanother five days to go forthe end of the month, thecool breeze and relatively
low temperatures have cometo an end. The Indian
Meteorological Departmenthas forecast that the maxi-
mum temperature onTuesday would stay at 33ºC.
The night temperature willbe 17ºC. A saving grace,
especially for those who goout for a walk early in the
day, is that the morning willbe cool. There will be fog in
some areas, the IMD said.
New Kali mandir
Fever Hospital staff is seen outside the special isolation ward set up to provide treatment to any suspected case of the coronavirus (CoV) on Monday — PTI
Members of the Bengali community in the city take out a procession from Old City to Shamshabad on Mondayahead of the inauguration of a Bengali Swarna Shilpi Vivekananda Kali Mandir in Shamshabad. — Gandhi
DON’T GO OUT AFTER ARRIVING FROM CHINAFrom Page 1
A senior doctor on condi-tion of anonymityexplained, “Only thosewho have symptoms ofcough, cold and fever arebeing checked. Or thosewho feel that they are suf-fering from some type offatigue. So far, the reportshave been negative. Thosewho are now coming fromChina need to be quaran-tined. They must notmove out for seven to 10days and must practiceself-isolation.”
Officials from the Unionhealth ministry willarrive late on Mondaynight and will inspect
Gandhi Hospital, whichhas 20 beds which areready in the isolationward. The nurses andparamedical staff havefull body protection gear
which will be used onlywhen the coronaviruscases are confirmed. Theteam will then visit FeverHospital and seniorhealth officials.
Submit plans, estimatefor new Secretariat: HCVUJJINI VAMSHIDHARA II DDCHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
The High Court onMonday directed the gov-ernment to submit thearchitectural plan, designand estimated budget ofthe proposed Secretariatcomplex by February 12.
A division bench com-prising Chief JusticeRaghavendra SinghChauhan and Justice A.Abhishek Reddy gave thego-ahead to prepare theplan, draw up cost esti-mates with the help ofexpert agencies and toassess the required built-up space in the new com-plex.The Chief Justicesaid, “Nobody has ever
prevented you frompreparing the plan anddesign of the newSecretariat. Earlier, wehad directed not to touchthe existing buildings asthe matter was sub judicewith several petitionsbefore the court allegingthat the decision of demo-lition of existing build-ings is unreasonable.”
The court said, “surpris-ingly the state is goingahead to construct thenew secretariat complexwithout a design, plan andbudget estimation. Itbrings the legality of yourdecision in question andis unreasonable.”
Additional Advocate-General J. RamachandraRao said the government
did not move on the mat-ter after the earlier direc-tions of the court. He saidthe plan and design wereunder preparation.
“How much money doyou need to shell out to pre-pare the project design? Itmay be a meagre amount.Once the design is ready,the competition among thebuilders may bring downthe cost of constructionwhen compared to the stateestimated budget of `400crore,” the court said.
The court made it clearthat there was no possibil-ity of going ahead withthe petitions against theSecretariat demolitionwithout having the newdesign and other details ofthe proposed complex.
Women gheraoanti-CAA JAC chiefWant Malik to get permission for protest
Indians fear flying cooped up in aircraft for long hours
KANIZA GGARARI && SANJAY SSAMUEL PPAUL || DCHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
About 200 womenHyderabadis intending asit-in at Mir Alam Eidgahgot upset when they foundpolice surrounding theentire place and not allow-ing anyone to assemblethere. The venue for thesit-in protest wasannounced after theorganisers received per-mission from police forthe same on Saturday,January 25. Based on thisassurance, messages weresent for the sit-in.However, police withdrewthe permission on Sunday,January 26.
Scores of women werenot aware of this develop-ment and started arrivingat the venue, only to findthe police occupying thearea. Hesitant about stillgoing ahead, womenmarched to the office ofJoint Action Committee(JAC) against CAA, NRCand NPR, demanding toknow what they must bedoing now.
Women were quite angryand it took quite sometime for JAC convenorMushtaq Malik to quietenthem down. Malik said,“The location was changedfrom Darulshifa ground toEidgah as suggested bypolice officers. However, atthe last minute, we weretold that there no sit-inwill be allowed. The angrywomen came here. Wepacified them and againadministered them thepledge that no documentswill be given for NRC andNPR.” The women whofirst went to the venue
messaged their counter-parts when they saw policepreventing the gathering.Women were to gatherthere from 11 a.m.onwards. Due to presenceof the police, many womenheld themselves back.
A woman protestor, oncondition of anonymity,
said, “Police are detainingprotesters, which is veryuncomfortable for most.Due to this reason, werefrained from goingahead with the plannedprotest. There is angerwithin us against police fornot allowing peacefulprotests.”
Cops put Bhim Army chiefon New Delhi-bound flightATHER MMOIN II DDCHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
The police after a night-long drama dropped BhimArmy chief Chandrashe-khar Azad at the RGIAirport and forced him toleave Hyderabad. He leftfor Delhi by an earlymorning flight with apromise to return soon.
Azad was arrested by theHabeebnagar police fromMallepally, kept in a carand driven around. Atmidnight he was taken tothe Bolaram police stationfor an hour. When policeofficials tried to serve himnotice under Section 41 ofthe CrPC, he refused toaccept it.
Azad contended that hewas arrested by theHyderabad police and theBolaram police was notpart of the commissioner-ate. Section 41 allows thearrest, without a warrant,of anyone who obstructs apolice officer from per-forming his duty.
Later, the police offeredhim a room in a guesthome situated in HitecCity, which Azad turneddown. He was shifted toHotel Golkonda at 1.30 amwhere a room was bookedfor him. He took dinner. Inthe morning, the policeescorted him to the air-port at 5 am from wherehe left for Delhi alongwith his advocate
Mahmood Pracha and hiscolleagues.
Azad asserted that hewill return to Hyderabadvery soon. “Tanashahi isat its peak in Telangana.The people’s right toprotest has been seized,”he said.
“First our people werethrashed with sticks andthen I was arrested.Bahujan Samaj won’t for-get this humiliation,” MrAzad said. Students fromvarious universitiesdemonstrated against thearrest of Mr Azad. A com-plaint was lodged by SujitRavan against theHyderabad police beforethe State Human RightsCommission.
SBI too will acceptNPR form for KYCDC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
The State Bank of India(SBI) has some eyebrowsby issuing a public noticestating that letters issuedby the National PopulationRegister (NPR) would bevalid documents for theKYC (Know You Customer)requirements.
The notice was publishedin an English daily inSecunderabad on Sunday,amid the raging nation-wide protests against theNPR.
Twitter users reactedimmediately, condemningthe bank for trying to legit-imise a controversial moveby the Central govern-ment. Many called forwithdrawing theirdeposits from SBI to“secure” their savings.One user wrote: “Take outyour hard-earned moneyfrom all governmentbanks. They may freezeyour accounts in the nameof KYC. We need to rejectNRC, CAA and NPR.”
It may be noted that a few
weeks ago, the RBI hadrevised its KYC guidelinesand made the NPR letters avalid document. BeforeSBI, the Central Bank ofIndia had issued a similarnotice.
Notwithstanding theguidelines, there is verylittle clarity about wherethese NPR letters willcome from. Even SBI offi-cials didn’t seem to knowabout them.
A senior official toldDeccan Chronicle, “TheNPR is not a new concept.We have had NPR updationexercises in the past aswell. Even then, throughmy decades-long service, Inever saw a letter issuedby the NPR. No one hasever tried to submit it. Idoubt many would do thatnow either.”
The official emphasisedthat NPR letters were onlyone of the documents thatcould be used for KYC.“Customers can continueto submit their Aadhaar,Voter ID, driving license,passport or MNREGA jobcards,” he said.
HIGH | EXPECTATIONS
Budget should focus on environmentDURGA PPRASAD SUNKU || DDCHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
Most citizens desire thatenvironment be given toppriority in the upcomingunion budget, followed byinfrastructure, according toa survey conducted byLocalCircles, a communitysocial media platform.
Many of them also wantthe tax exemption limitincreased from the current`2.5 lakh to `5 lakh.
From among the close to80,000 citizens who partici-pated in the survey, 30 percent said environment (air,water, and waste manage-ment) should be given high-er allocations in budget 2020,followed by 26 per cent forinfrastructure sector, 16 per
cent for agriculture, eightper cent for rural develop-ment, and six per cent forskilling.
Another 11 per cent saidwomen and child safetymust be given high priority.
On income-tax payable byindividuals, the survey
revealed that 60 per cent oftaxpayers wanted the limitfor zero tax to be hiked from`2.5 lakh to `5 lakh and 18per cent wanted it beincreased to `3 lakh. Sevenper cent wanted the limit toremain at the same levelwhile four per cent stated it
should be reduced to `2 lakh.With regard to budgetary
allocations for IndianRailways, citizens wereasked for their top focusareas in the 2020 budget. Atotal of 47 per cent saidimprovement in servicesand amenities, 21 per cent
wanted improved safety, 15per cent sought better time-liness and 13 per cent pre-ferred cleanliness.
When asked about thenumber of tiers in GST theywould desire effective, 48 percent said it should be athree-rate structure (basicessentials, all others, andsin/luxury products), while20 per cent wanted two (allproducts and sin/luxuryproducts) and 10 per centwere for a single rate.
Mr Akshay Gupta, generalmanager, LocalCircles, said,“Amid talks of an economicslowdown, many are hopingthat the Budget 2020 wouldturn out to be a balancingact. We have organised thissurvey to get the citizens’perspective of what areasthey want addressed”.
47% of respondents hope for improvement in Railway services
Bhim Army Chief, Chandrashekhar Azad, at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport onearly Monday morning. — DC
CITIZENS’ WISH30% said environment (air, water, and waste management) should be given higher allocations in Budget 2020
26% for infrastructure sector
16% foragriculture
8% for rural development
6% forskilling
11% also said women and child safety must be given high priority
■ ■ Transmission is found primarily from patientswith recognised illness of cough, cold, fever andbreathing problems.
■ ■ It appears that 2019-nCOV uses the same cellu-lar receptor as SARS-COV which means thattransmission occurs only after signs of lower res-piratory tract disease. It is a large droplet infec-tion which means when people cough and sneeze,the droplets can carry the virus.
■ ■ Isolation for two weeks in those who havesymptoms or those who have been in the affectedarea.
Evacuation plan will be complex
PAGE
3CityTUESDAY | 28 JANUARY 2020 | HYDERABADDECCAN CHRONICLE
SCB grouseSCB V-P J. Rama Krishna blamed BJPfor lack of development in the area,says Centre is yet to release `550cr
SHORT TAKES
POLICE CANCELSDRIVING LICENCE
OF DRUNK DRIVER DC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
A proposal sent by theCyberabad traffic police tocancel the licence of a drunkdriver was approved by thelicensing authority.
The accused, KondaveetiAshwin, was involved in aroad crash which led to thedeath of motorcycle rider onNovember 24 last year atKhanamet crossroad underthe Madhapur police limits.The pillion rider was severelyinjured.
Investigations revealed thatAshwin had a Blood AlcoholConcentration (BAC) level185mg/100ml against the legal-ly permissible 30mg/100ml.Police found found that thiswas his third instance ofdrunken driving in 2019.
Subsequently, the Cyberabadtraffic police sent a proposalin December to revokeAshwin’s licence on thegrounds that he is unfit todrive any kind of vehicle onpublic roads.
In response, the licensingauthority, the RTA of RangaReddy district, suspendedAshwin’s driving licence per-manently.
The Cyberabad traffic policeadvised motorists to followtraffic rules.
As per the directions of theSupreme Court committee onroad safety, the driving licenceof drunk drivers can be seizedby police and forwarded to theRTA for action.
DC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
Hyderabad will get its first sophisti-cated cantilever traffic signal that isaligned with the stop line at theKhairatabad junction. The trafficsignal will even display the pedes-trian crossing time which will bevisible from 800 metres to com-muters. The GHMC has procuredthe advanced traffic signal systemat a cost of `12 lakh and it wouldfunction in a couple of days.
According to the corporation offi-cials, the advanced system has beeninspired from London, and would befirst installed at Khairatabad junc-tion, which includes Panjagutta,Khairatabad flyover and RajBhavan road traffic signals. Thefour cantilever signals will have 12
poles leading to bylanes of Khai-ratabad junction. Earlier, theGHMC had come up with a 265 feetlong vertical garden, which displays‘I Love Hyderabad’, along with awater fountain. A major aspect ofthe junction beautification here arethe new LED lights on Khairatabadflyover. A senior GHMC officialsaid they have completed junctionbeautification works with a cost ofover `65 lakh that too in a shortspan of 40 days.
“For LED lighting, pedestrianproject and water fountain, we havespent `40 lakh while installation ofvertical garden had cost `25 lakh.The stripped lighting cost `3 lakh.With the completion of beautifica-tion works, the junction has become100 per cent pedestrian friendly,” headded.
London-style trafficsignal at Khairatabad
DC CCORESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
The Air Vice Marshal B.Chandra Sekhar was awardedthe Ati Vishist Seva Medal byPresident of India in the occa-sion of Republic Day 2020. He isa resident of BHEL Colony,Hyderabad and did his initialschooling from BHEL HigherSecondary School, Hyderabadbefore joining the NDA.
AIR VICE-MARSHALGETS PRESIDENT’S ATIVISHIST SEVA MEDAL
VUJJINI VAMSHIDHARA || DDCHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
On being summoned forneglecting complaints bythe residents of coloniesnear the Jawaharnagardump yard in Medchal dis-trict, GHMC commissionerLokesh Kumar appearedbefore the High Court onMonday and explained thesteps being taken toimprove the situation.
A division bench compris-
ing Chief Justice Ragha-vendra Singh Chauhan andJustice A. Abhishek Reddyhad summoned Mr Kumarwhile dealing with a taken-up PIL for not taking con-crete steps to curtail the pil-ing up of garbage at theJawaharnagar yard.Residents of Sainikpuri,Yapral and other areasresiding in the vicinity ofthe dump yard are fallingprey to the air pollution,the PIL stated. The courthad taken up the suo motu
PIL by converting a letterwritten by Col. Sitaram-raju. Mr Kumar said theJawaharnagar dump yardstands on 337 acres of landand the GHMC had con-fined garbage to 137 acresand huge polythene sheetsare being used to cover it.
He explained the systemto cap the garbage adoptedby the GHMC. He said thecorporation aims to pro-duce electricity from themethane gas generated bythe garbage. Two garbage
treatment plants wereinstalled to prevent foulsmell from spreading.
The court directed theGHMC chief to file a count-er by February 15.
Justice Chauhan inquiredabout the steps taken to pre-vent lake encroachment.
The bench said it wouldmonitor the cleansing ofthe Jawaharnagar yard aswell as the other PILs ques-tioning the inaction of theGHMC in restraining lakeencroachers.
HC pulls up GHMC for stenchCivic body chief told to list steps at JawaharnagarFOUL | PLAY
DC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, Jan. 27
Rail users under theHyderabad division bel-ieve that the SouthCentral Railway hasbeen neglecting them forlong. They claim thatefforts to develop sta-tions and routes in thedivision are not enough.This grouse ties intotheir complaint aboutthe delay in MMTSPhase II works betweenBolaram and Malkajgiri,that would ultimatelyserve people of this divi-sion.
Mr Noor, a formerRailway employee andgeneral secretary of theMalkajgiri SuburbanTrain and BusTravellers Association,said the Hyderabad divi-sion has only one termi-nal at Kacheguda.Arguing for the decen-tralisation of the net-work, he said,“Travellers from theeastern part of the twincities, which comesunder Hyderabad divi-sion, have to travel toSecunderabad orNampally. If the SCRdevelops Malkajgiri orBolaram as terminals,trains could begin or ter-minate there. Very fewtrains stop at these sta-tions currently, makingthem useless.”
Mr Noor saidSecunderabad has sanc-tioned terminals —
Vattinagulapally, Cha-rlapalli, Lingampally,Secunderabad andNampally.
“We have been dema-nding from SCR officialsto develop Malkajgiri orBolarum as terminalsbut our demands havegone unheard,” he said.
Mr Manohar Reddy, amember of SCR’s advo-cacy body Zonal RailwayUsers ConsultativeCommittee (ZRUCC),representing theHyderabad division,said the problem laymuch deeper.
“The officials seem tobelieve that Hyderabaddivision is the leastimportant one. Conne-ctivity to towns such asNizamabad and Bodhanin the division is verypoor. We have com-plained even to the rail-way minister in the pastbut nobody cares,” hesaid.
The development ofSCR’s network seems tobe concentrated in thecity’s west zone, wherethe IT industry is locat-ed. “Since the past fewmonths, the Lingam-pally terminal has beendeveloped into an impor-tant station. Manytrains are originatingthere. The same conven-ience has not beenoffered to people ofolder parts of the city,”said Noor.
He added that theMMTS Phase II, which
would connect Bolaramand Malkajgiri to subur-ban network, too hasbeen ignored for a longtime.
Mr Reddy also said therail network ofHyderabad division hada rich history. “The ini-tial development of thisnetwork was done by theNizam State Railway. Ina way, we had a headstart. Sadly, however,since then it has beendownhill for us,” hesaid.
Asked about thesecomplaints, a SCR repre-sentative said the deci-sion to develop new ter-minals is based on routetraffic. “For instance,Cherlapalli connectsSCR to Delhi, Chennai,Bengaluru and Tirupati.The number of trainspassing throughCherlapalli is almost 10times more than thosethat pass throughNizamabad,” he said.
The official confirmedthat work was underwayto increase traffic onroutes in Hyderabaddivision. “Electr-ifica-tion works are ongoingalong major stretches inthe division. Once thishappens, we will have agreat route towardsMumbai. Then we canproceed with building anew terminal,” he said.
The official added thatBolaram would be thestation of choice for anew terminal.
SCR ignores Hyderabadzone royally, say experts
Poll win crown of thornsNew corporators have few powers, will gain from realty rulesMADDY DDEEKSHITH II DCHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
Aspirants who spent largeamounts of money to getelected to civic bodies, espe-cially on the city outskirts,have unwittingly won acrown of thorns. TheMunicipal Act gives themvery little power but loadsthem with responsibilities.
Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao andmunicipal administrationminister K.T. Rama Rao hadrepeatedly warned aspirantsto read the municipal Actprior to filing nominations.They realised the true pic-ture only after they wereelected as mayors of munici-pal and chairpersons ofmunicipalities.
They cannot sign chequesfor the development of theirwards. Most powers restwith the municipal commis-
sioner and district collec-tors. The elected representa-tives can be sacked at anytime for issues like poor san-itation, survival rate of lessthan 85 per cent of saplingsplanted in Haritha Haaram,mosquito menace, road dam-age and even for erectingunauthorised hoardings.
Collectors and commis-sioner can cancel any resolu-tion passed by the civic body
and even suspend chairper-sons. Even Cabinet minis-ters cannot stay the orders,unlike previously. However,the party has indirectlyassured them said that theycould deal with real estateactivity since 60 per cent ofpanchayats are convertedinto municipalities andmunicipal corporations.Most of the corporators arerealtors. Realty is booming
in the municipal corporationareas of Badangpet,Bandlaguda, Peerzadiguda,Jawahar-nagar, Meerpet,Boduppal and Nizampet onthe city outskirts which arein HMDA jurisdiction.
The provision in theMunicipal Act to get deemedapproval for buildings con-structed on plots of less than500 square metres and andconstructions less than 10metres in height withoutofficial interference is amajor boost. Sources saidthat the Municipal Actwould be would extremelyuseful for citizens, whichgives the option of self certi-fication for plots less than 75square metres, online build-ing permission, ensuringgreenery for which represen-tatives would made account-able, better sanitation andcorruption at the groundlevel.
Youngsters waiting at a bus stop in Hyderabad are engrossed with their mobile phones,unmindful of what is happening around them on Monday. — P. SURENDRA
Mobile hot spot
DC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
Telangana Model scho-ols released a notifica-tion for admissions onMonday. The entrancewill be decided throughan admission test.
Online applicationswere invited from eligi-ble candidates for admis-sion tests to Class VI andfor vacant seats in class-es VII to X for the aca-demic year 2020-21.
The test will be held onApril 12 from 10 am to 12noon for Class VI andfrom 2 pm to 4 pm forClasses VII to X at thedistrict headquarters.Online applicationsbegin from February 3 toMarch 2. The sitehttp://telanganams.cgg.gov.in will give detailsfrom February 2.
ADMISSIONS FORSTATE’S MODELSCHOOLS NOTIFIED
POWER | SHUTDOWN10 am to 5 pm: Kendriya
Vidyalaya School,Hashamnagar, MandulaBasthi, Defence Colony,
Fateh Darwaza, ChotaBazaar, Central Bangla,
Museum, Post Office, 7thGalli, Bada Bazaar, DhanaKota, Saleynagar Kancha,
Military Hospital,Indiranagar, flour mill area,
Netajinagar, Omnagar,Maruthinagar, Srinivasnagar,
Jyothinagar, Sardar Bagh,Mogal ka Nala, Langer Houz
crossroads and market,Pensionpura, Baghdad
Colony, Gollabasti, AhmedColony, Company Bagh, NRI
Colony, KGN Hotel ,Prasanthnagar, Bapu Ghat,
Ambedkarnagar,Laxminagar,
10 am to 3 pm: Sriramnagar,MIGH, Muradnagar Kunta,
Asifnagar Main Road,Rehnuma-e-Deccan, Milan
Talkies, Zeba Bagh; SBIColony, Priya Colony,
Heeranagar, Maheshnagar,Chaithanya College;
Navodaya Colony,Sabernagar, Huda Colony,
Alinagar, Jayanagar;Gudimalkapur, VBG Garden2 pm to 5 pm: NSF Colony,
Suryanagar, Bal ReddyNagar, Virasanath Colony,Owaisi Colony, Akbarpua,Minar Colony, Al Kareem
Colony; Aravindnagar,Samatha Colony, Aziz Bagh,
Rahul Colony, RainbowApartments, Adithyanagar,Suryanagar, Shaikpet Nala;
OU Colony, Shaikpet,Vinobhanagar, Vinayaknagar,
Datteryanagar,Dwarakanagar, Dream Valley,
Maruthinagar
■ ■ INVESTIGATIONSrevealed that Ashwin had aBlood AlcoholConcentration (BAC) level185mg/100ml against thelegally permissible30mg/100ml. Police foundfound that this was histhird instance of drunkendriving in 2019.
■ ■ THE LLICENSING authori-ty permanently cancelledhis licence
■ ■ 10% OOF municipal budget for greenery, ward membersmust ensure survival saplings
■ ■ NOT MMAINTAINING sanitation, hygiene, garbage disposal,roads, drainage can result in sacking.
■ ■ FEW PPOWERS with elected representatives
■ ■ BUILDERS HHAVE to upload construction progress reportson website or pay penalty
■ ■ SELF-CCERTIFICATION for plots less than 500 sq.m.
■ ■ GOVERNMENT to undertake random audits, heavy finesfor plan deviation.
PAGE
4CityTUESDAY | 28 JANUARY 2020 | HYDERABADDECCAN CHRONICLE
Pat for winnersKCR congratulated Padma awardeesfrom the state, including ace shuttlerP.V. Sindhu who got Padma Bhushan
IN BRIEFMan who crushed4-yr-old boy heldHyderabad: An employee of
a private finance company,who was allegedly responsi-
ble for the death of a four-year-old boy by driving his
car in a negligent manner atan apartment, was arrestedby the Malkajgiri police onMonday. On January 24, afour-year-old boy Chakali
Tharun, who was playing inthe cellar of Venkat Plaza
apartment at Anandbagh inMalkajgiri died after comingunder a car that was enter-
ing the parking area. Tharunwas the son of the watch-
man, C. Rangappa. Followinga complaint from Rangappa,
the police had registered acase against the JithukaManohar Sudharkar, 47.
Hajipur rape-murdersverdict now on Feb. 6Accused Srinivas Reddy was arrested on April 30 last yr DC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
The verdict in the rapeand murder of threeminor girls at Hajipurwas posted to February 6by the Nalgonda fast-track court on Monday.The court said that thejudgment, which was tobe delivered on Monday,was not ready.
The family members ofthe victims who werehoping that the accused,Marri Srinivas Reddy, 27,would get the deathpenalty left disappoint-ed.
The fast track courthad on January 17 post-ed the judgment toJanuary 27. The accusedwas on Monday he wasbrought from Nalgondadistrict jail and pro-duced before the court.
Srinivas Reddy and allthe victims belong toHajipur in YadadriBhongir district.
He was arrested onApril 30 for kidnap, rapeand murder of two
minor girls and kidnapand murder of anotherminor girl.
The villagers had van-dalised his house and setit ablaze. For the lasteight months, his familyhas abandoned thehouse.
Speaking to the media,
a villager said, “None ofthe family members ofSrinivas Reddy havecome back to the house.Now the girls in the vil-lage feel safer. About 12cameras have beeninstalled and two buseshave been arranged tothe village. People like
him should face severepunishment.”
The elder sister of oneof the victims, said, “Mysister went missing onApril 22, and herremains were found inthe same month. He(Srinivas Reddy) wasarrested long ago but heis not yet hanged. Howmany girls should sufferlike my sister? Peoplelike him will do suchoffences if they are setfree, and we demand thedeath penalty.”
“The families of vic-tims would get justiceonly when the accused ishanged to death. Peopleof the village will feelsafe only after hisdeath,” another villagertold media.
Verdict in Samatacase on Jan. 30DC CCORRESPONDENTADILABAD, JAN. 27
The final verdict in rapevictim, Samata’s case,which was scheduled forMonday, has been post-poned to January 30since the district andsessions judge M.G.Priyadarshini is onleave due to ill-health.
Police brought thethree accused in Samatacase before fast-trackcourt but the judge was
no available.Special Public prosecu-
tor, who was arguing onbehalf of the victim M.Ramana Reddy, told themedia that the final ver-dict which was supposedto be delivered today bythe judge was postponedto January 30 becausethe judge was indis-posed.
He said the police hastaken remand extensionof the accused before thein-charge judge.
Man gets 3-yearRI for raping girl DC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
A centring worker, who wasbooked on the charges ofkidnap and rape of a girl atSanathnagar police station,was convicted and sentencedto three years of rigorousimprisonment by a court onMonday.
On June 23, 2014, a case ofan 18-year-old first year engi-neering student going miss-ing was registered with theSanathnagar police. Thepolice traced and rescuedthe girl.
The girl had told the policethat one R. Anil, 24, a cen-tring worker from
Hafeezpet, had deceived heron the pretext of love. Hehad given her a SIM card totalk to him and took her toMedak, where he sexuallyassaulted her after promis-ing her marriage.
The girl later learned thatAnil was already married.
The police then bookedAnil on the charges of rape,cheating and kidnap andarrested him.
After investigation, acharge-sheet was filedbefore the MetropolitanSessions Judge Court at LBNagar.
On conducting a trial,Judge N. Narsing Rao, onMonday convicted Anil.
DC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, Jan. 27
Unable to bear theharassment of her hus-band, a 21-year-oldwoman allegedly com-mitted suicide by hang-ing at her house inKPHB Colony.
According to the KPHBpolice, the coupleVasundhara, 21, andSanjeev, a private
employee, got married in2014, after falling in love.They were living alongwith two children atAdithyanagar Colony inKPHB limits. Soon aftermarriage Sanjeevreportedly started men-tally and physicallyharassing Vasundharaon petty issues, aboutwhich she used to tellher mother Durga, wholives at Kothapet.
On Sunday, Vasun-dhara called her motherand said Sanjeev wasbeating and abusing herand she was unable tobear it. After the phonecall, Durga and her hus-band Nageshwar Raodecided to visit their son-in-law and talk to him.When the parents wereon their way, theyreceived a phone callfrom elder daughter
Rajeshwari that she wasinformed about a suicideattempt by Vasundharaand that she was taken toHolistic Hospital. Vasun-dhara was declared deadat the hospital, said thepolice. Based on a com-plaint from the mother, acase has been registeredagainst Sanjeev on thecharges of domestic vio-lence and abetment tosuicide.
Woman abused by husband ends life
FATHER, SONKILLED IN ROADACCIDENTDC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
A 25-year-old man andhis three-year-old sondied in a road crash onSunday under Keesarapolice station limits. Thevictim, Suresh, wasgoing on a two-wheeleralong with his wifeRajani, 20, daughterRadhika, 6, and three-year-old son Sagar.Police said he was speed-ing and rammed the bikeinto a divider. He sus-tained severe head injuryand died on the spot. Therest of the family wasrushed to GandhiHospital where Sagardied on Monday.
BENGAL MANHELD FOR
FLESH TRADE DC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
A West Bengal native, who wasinvolved in trafficking a minorgirl from Bangladesh wasdetained under the PrimitiveDetention Act by theRachakonda police on Monday.
Rachakonda commissionerof police Mahesh Bhagwatsaid that Krishna Shil, 34, ofAkrampur in West Bengal, hadmigrated to the city about nineyears ago and was runningbrothels.
Shil has two cases ofimmoral trafficking againsthim at Narayanguda andAmeenpur.
In 2019, he gave money to oneMohd Sohail Hussain to get aminor girl from Bangladeshand pushed her into the fleshtrade. Krishna Shil was arrest-ed and the PD Act was invokedagainst him, Mr Bhagwat said.
■ ■ Both Shaik Saber andSudheer, after consum-ing alcohol, had a quarrelover usage of abusivelanguage by Sudheer inthe past.
■ ■ THE VVILLAGERShad vandalised theconvict’s house andset it ablaze. For thelast eight months, hisfamily has abandonedthe house.
DRUNK YOUTHARRESTED FORKILLING FRIENDDC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
Shaik Saber, 20, a fruit ven-dor who allegedly killed hisfriend following an argu-ment over using abusivewords while consumingalcohol was arrested by theKPHB police on Monday.
The police said onJanuary 21, the victim T.Sudheer, 20, went out alongwith his friends and Saber,20. The duo after consum-ing alcohol had a quarrelover usage of abusive lan-guage by Sudheer in thepast.
Saber hit Sudheer with abeer bottle and stabbed himwith the broken glassthroat.
Saber fled on his scooterand was nabbed on Monday.
DURGA PPRASAD SSUNKU || DDCHYDERABAD JAN. 27
Among all the fiveHyderabad city policezones, south zone (theentire Old City) has alwaysbeen considered the mostsensitive one. This is get-ting further evidenced ifone goes by the innumer-able communal clashes,stone-pelting incidents andeven a bomb blast.
Yet, for the last fivemonths, the state govern-ment has not posted anyIPS officer as the DeputyCommissioner of Police(DCP) to head south zone,even as protests against theCitizenship AmendmentAct (CAA) are raging inand around Hyderabad --with old city as its epicen-ter. This is the first time inthe city history that thesouth zone has remainedwithout a DCP for full fivemonths and indications arethat it is likely to continuethis way for the next fewmonths as the Telanganastate government appearsto be in no mood to appointanyone at the moment.
For the last five months, aDIG rank officer AvinashMohanty, who heads the
Central Crime Station(CCS), a key wing of theHyderabad city police that
deals with white-collaroffences and other majorcrimes, has been given
additional charge of southzone. Government sourcestold Deccan Chronicle thatwhile bureaucracy inTelangana has come to astandstill as far as postingand transfer of both IASand IPS officials are con-cerned, what with dozensof them languishing in theold posts despite being pro-moted several months ago,not many are bothered tobring to the notice of thegovernment that there isan urgent need to postsomeone to south zone,which, incidentally, is thestronghold of Majlis-Ittehadul Muslimeen(MIM). In fact, there wasnever a time when the postof DCP south zoneremained vacant.
The last DCP of southzone was Mr Ambar KishorJha, a 2009 batch IPS offi-cer who took charge inSeptember 2018. Last July,Jha went on Central depu-tation and is presentlyworking in New Delhi.
As a temporary measure,the top brass gave addition-al charge of south zone toAvinash Mohanty.
Wear helmet, seat belt for safety: CopsRAJESWARI PPARASA || DDCHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
The transport departmentinaugurated the 31stNational Road SafetyWeek on Monday in whichthe usage of seat belt, hel-met and regulation ofspeeding were stressed bytransport minister P.Puvvada Ajay Kumar andChief Secretary SomeshKumar. Traffic awarenessprogrammes would beconducted throughout theweek in several parts ofthe state till February 2.
Speaking at the eventheld at the HyderabadMetropolitan Develop-ment Authority (HMDA)grounds, Mr Ajay Kumarsaid, “It is everybody’sresponsibility to have anaccident-free city andstate. Each and every indi-vidual should take theresponsibility by wearinghelmets and seat belts.Fatality rates in accidentscan be reduced.”
A bike rally was conduct-ed on the occasion, inwhich Chief SecretarySomesh Kumar, transportcommissioner M.D. Sunil
Sharma, actress EeshaRebba and others partici-pated. A blood donationcamp was also organised.
In a traffic awareness
session at Rachakonda,police commissionerMahesh Bhagwat saidmost of the road accidentsoccur due to negligence of
the driver includingdrunken driving, talkingon mobile phone whiledriving or poor conditionof the vehicles.
Traffic policemen use a speed gun-cum-camera to monitor speed violation. If amotorist breaks the speed limit, a challan is immediately generated and the violatoris informed through a text message on the mobile phone. — P. SURENDRA
REVISED RESPONSIBILITIES In the wake of present law and order developments, the followingofficers of the central crime station have been attached to the Southzone to assist the local police in maintenance of law and order for aweek. Every day they have to send a report to additional commis-sioner of police law and order D.S. Chauhan.Officers Area of responsibility ACP S.V. Hari Krishna Chatrinaka PSACP K. Srinivas Reddy Charminar PSACP K. Srinivas Rao Mirchowk PSInspector C. Harish Chandra Reddy Dabeerpura PSInspector P. Padmanabha Raju Hussainalam PSInspector Dheeravath Hussain Moghalpura PSACP K. Ram Kumar Hussainalam PSACP Ch Kushalkar Moghalpura PSInspector K. Manoj Kumar Charminar PSInspector N. Mohan Rao Mirchowk PSInspector D. Ram Prasad Dabeerpura PSInspector B. Veeranna Chatrinaka PS
Old City, hotbed of anti-CAA protests, remains rudderless
South Zone without DCP for 5 monthsSENSITIVE | REGION
UTHAVANA
Smt. ASHA RANIDOD: 25.01.2020
Chautha Uthavana of Smt. AshaRani on 28.01.2020 at HaryanaBhavan, Paradise, Sec’bad. Timing:2 p.m. - 3 p.m.
Grief StrickenPardeep - Meenu (Son-Daughter-in-Law)Arun - Manju (Son-Daughter-in-Law)
Aadesh (Son)(M) - 9885345858, 8074234426
(S/1920/D01734)
OBITUARY
VALLAMKONDA SRI HARIDOD: 20.01.2020
Address: 301 LIGH, HB Colony,Moulali, Secunderabad.
Inserted byKodithyala Shiva Kumar
(Brother-in-Law) & FamilyKodithyala Rajeshwar
(Brother-in-Law) & FamilyKodithyala Laxman Rao
(Brother-in-Law) & Family
(S/1920/D01738)
1st DEATH ANNIVERSARY
Sri GUNDLAPALLY NARENDER BABU
Retd. Quality Engineer, BHELDOB: 07.06.1949 DOD: 29.01.2019
You are remembered every moment in our lives
Inserted by Wife: G. Shoba RaniSon and Daughters &
Family Members
6th DEATH ANNIVERSARYSafe in the Arms of Jesus
LEONARD ALFRED SMITHD.O.B: 15.04.1950 D.O.D: 28.01.2014“The one who believes in me will liveeven though they die.” John 11:25Inserted by Philomena Smith (Wife)
Leslie Smith (Son)Lendl Smith (Son)
Leander Smith (Son)9885037888, 9848928949
(B/1920/D00195)
I am the resurrection and thelife, those who believe in me,even though they die will live.
PETER GOMESDOB: 19.05.1950 DOD: 26.01.2020
Funeral Mass at 11:00 AM on28.01.2020 (Tuesday) at St. Joseph’sCathedral Gunfoundry, Hyderabad.Followed by Burial at BhoigudaCemetery
Inserted by Sleeva Gomes (Wife) and Family Members
Ph: 9182632917
(B/1920/D00197)
PAGDI / CHOUTHA CEREMONY
Shri MAHESH CHANDNANIS/o Late Kishinchand Chandnani
For Ladies & Gents will be held on Tuesday(28-01-2020) between 5 - 5.30 pm at SindhiDarbar, Hira Hall, Abids, Hyderabad.Land Mark: Near Tajmahal HotelBody donated through MohanFoundation as per the wish of my father.In Grief: Kushal Chandnani (Son)
Mob: +91-9989659247Inserted by: FAMILY
(B/1920/D00196)
OBITUARYI am the resurrection and the life, those whobelieve in me, even though they die will live.
PETER GOMESDOB: 19-05-1950 DOD: 26-01-2020
Funeral Mass at 11.00 am on28-01-2020 (Tuesday) at St. Joseph’sCathedral, Gunfoundry - Hyderabad.Followed by Burial at Bhoiguda Cemetery
Inserted by: Son, Daughters,Son-in-law & Family Members
Ph: 9949496601(B/1920/D00198)
OBITUARYIsaiah 57:2 Those who walk uprightly enterinto peace; they find rest as they lie in death.
Celebrating the life ofMrs. DEBORAH CHRISTIE
W/o Mr. Daniel ChristieDOB: 22/3/1983 DOD:27/1/2020
Funeral Service and Burial at12 Noon on 28th Jan’2020 (Tuesday)at Narayanaguda Cemetry, Hyd-bad.
Inserted by: FAMILY MEMBERSPh: 7416861259, 7416520626
PAGE
5CityTUESDAY | 28 JANUARY 2020 | HYDERABADDECCAN CHRONICLE
Festival timeMulugu MLA Dansari Anasuya extendsinvitation for Medaram Jatara toGovernor Tamilisai Soundararajan
SHORT TAKES
BJP GAINSSTRENGTH IN 3LS SEGMENTS
DC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
The BJP has given a toughfight to TRS and Congress par-ties in the just-concludedurban local body elections,particularly in the Nizama-bad, Karimnagar and Adila-bad Lok Sabha constituenciesthat it had captured duringthe parliamentary elections.
The BJP has increased itsnumber of seats in municipal-ities and corporations fallingunder these three LS seats,from where BJP candidateswere elected MPs.
In the elections last conduct-ed for the Karimnagar Muni-cipal Corporation, BJP won amere two seats. However, thistime, its candidates went on to win from 13 divisions in the corporation. Similarly, itstood second in Vemulawadaand Huzurabad municipali-ties, pushing the Congressbehind.
In the Nizamabad corpora-tion, BJP emerged as the sin-gle largest party, capturing 28out of the 60 divisions of thecity. The party also took thesecond place in Korutla,Metpally and Armoor munici-palities.
In the Adilabad parliamentsegment, the party won 11 ofthe total 49 wards in Adilabadmunicipality and stood secondin Bhainsa, bagging nine ofthe total 26 wards.
During the last municipalpolls in these three districts,Congress party, which was inthe second place, has failed toopen its account this time insome corporations and munic-ipalities. The party had to set-tle for the third place in a fewurban local bodies.
Karimnagar MP B. SanjayKumar, speaking to DeccanChronicle, alleged that the rul-ing party spent hundreds ofcrores in the municipal elec-tions but won the wards anddivisions only with thin mar-gins. He maintained that BJPis the only alternative to theruling TRS in Telangana. Hehoped that the BJP wouldstand in the first place in thenext general elections in thestate.
JAGAN GOESTO HC AFTER
CBI BACKLASHDC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
Andhra Pradesh ChiefMinister Y.S. Jagan MohanReddy approached theTelangana High Court onMonday after facing a setbackin the CBI special court onFriday last, which had refusedto give him exemption frompersonal appearance in con-nection with the quid pro quocases pending against him.
Mr Reddy filed 11 criminalpetitions in the High Courtchallenging the CBI court ord-ers in as many separate cases,urging the court to allow hisadvocate and Jagathi Publica-tions to appear before the trialcourt on his behalf on everytrial day.
In the petitions, he explainedthe reasons for his inability toappear before the trial court.He said that as Chief Ministerof Andhra Pradesh, he had todischarge his official dutiesand would not be in a positionto attend court personally inthe cases pending against him.
Since the CBI court wasrefusing to give him exemp-tion, he said he was forced tomove the High Court. He requested that his co-accused from Jagathi Publi-cations be allowed to appearon his behalf in the Enforce-ment Directorate (ED) cases.
‘Strategic’ TRS pipsBJP to Mayor postNARENDER PPULLOOR || DDCNIZAMABAD, JAN. 27
The strategy of the TRSpaved the way for securingthe mayor’s post inNizamabad MunicipalCorporation where it hadlanded up third.
The BJP emerged as thesingle largest party with 28corporators, but failed toget the magic figure for the post. It contested for the Mayor and DeputyMayor posts on Monday, butfailed to get the majorityand has to sit in the opposi-tion.
The MIM won 16 seats andemerged as the secondlargest party. Its corpora-tors supported the TRS toget the top post and wasrewarded with the DeputyMayor’s post.
The TRS had won only 13of 60 seats in theCorporation, but managedto have Mr Dandu NeethuKiran elected as Mayor,thanks to the support of theMIM.
The BJP leadership sus-pected that TRS would allotthe post to the MIM, as itwas the larger party, as partof statewide sharing ofpower in urban local bodies.There was a war of words
between Nizamabad MP D.Arvind (BJP) andNizamabad Urban MLABigala Ganesh Gupta (TRS).Mr Gupta had sworn in thename of temples inNizamabad that the TRSwould not allot the Mayor’spost to the MIM.
MIM’s Mohammad IdrisKhan has been electedDeputy Mayor. Surprisingly,one independent and two Congress corporators,six TRS MLAs and MLCs took part in the elec-tion as ex-officio memb-ers.
Minister for legislativeaffairs V. Prashanth Reddysaid that being a secularparty, the TRS had won thesupport of the Congress andindependents for the toptwo posts.
KTR slams BJP-Cong tie-upTRS working president terms alliance in two municipalities as ‘unholy’IREDDY SSRINIVAS REDDY II DDCHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
Slamming the Congressand the BJP for their“alliance” in Makthaland Manikonda munici-palities to form the coun-cils, TRS working presi-dent and minister K.T.Rama Rao on Mondaysaid that the people werenow aware of whichparty was the B-team.
Addressing a press con-ference in Telangana Bh-
avan, Mr Rama Rao than-ked the people for show-ing huge support to theTRS in the elections tothe civic bodies. He than-ked the leaders and cadr-es for working hard forthe victory of the rulingparty in 112 municipali-
ties out of 120 and the 10municipal corporations.
He alleged the BJP andthe Congress had tied upin the two municipalitiesin an “unholy alliance”.TPCC chief N. Uttam Ku-mar Reddy and BJP statepresident Dr K. Laxmanhave to change theirparty scarves, he said.
He alleged that thoughthe Congress and the BJPclaimed they were Delhi-based national parties,they were practicing“silly politics in the gul-
lies” of the state.Mr Rama Rao exuded
confidence that the TRSwould win the Medchaland Nereducharla munic-ipalities were electionswere postponed toTuesday. Asked aboutwinning the Thukkugudamunicipality with ex-offi-cio votes though the BJPhad a majority, and atKosgi and Adibatla muni-cipalities and Ramag-undam Municipal Corpo-ration, Mr Rama Rao saidthe system was not intro-
duced by the TRS.He said that the then TD
government had in 1999given voting rights to theMLAs to vote as ex-officiomembers in municipali-ties and corporations. In2008, the then Congressgovernment had extend-ed the voting rights toMLCs. The TRS only usedthe existing rules.
He thanked the MIM forsupporting the TRS toform the council in theNizamabad MunicipalCorporation.
Increasing opportunities
DC CCORRESPONDENTVIJAYAWADA, JAN. 27
It is turning out to be war of“naadu-nedu” (then andnow) videos between ChiefMinister Y. S. Jagan MohanReddy and Telugu Desampresident N. ChandrababuNaidu even as the AP capi-tals’ issue appears to have reached a decisivestage.
Both leaders displayed,though at different places,video clips of each other tohighlight their backtrack-ing on core issues, varyingfrom abolition of the leg-islative council to cordial
relations with Telangana.It all started with the
Chief Minister launching ascathing attack againstNaidu during the debate inassembly on abolition ofthe legislative council.Jagan accused the TD chiefof adopting double stan-dards on core issues, point-ing to videos of Naiduchanging stands on specialcategory status for AP,Prime Minister NarendraModi, relations withCongress, and abolition ofcouncil.
Ironically, it was the TDpresident, who opposed cre-ation of the council in 2004
during the YSR regime.Naidu had then given rea-sons like burden on excheq-uer, re-employment to lead-ers who lost direct polls,and delays it would lead toin the legislative process.
Ruling YCP built itscounter on the same threepoints. The House burstinto laughter on referenceof Naidu being seen invideos taking contradictorystands on support to PrimeMinister Narendra Modiand former Congress presi-dent Rahul Gandhi on dif-ferent occasions.
Following this, the TDchief too came up with
Jagan Mohan Reddy’svideos during a press con-ference in TD headquar-ters. The CM could be seenlaunching a tirade againstthe centre over special cate-gory status to the state in one video while, inanother, he was seenresigned to the fact thatnothing much can be doneon SCS, except requestingthe centre and seekingdivine blessings. Naidu alsodisplayed videos ofchanged versions of theChief Minister on relationswith Telangana and supplyof fine variety of rice topoor.
Jagan-Naidu war of videosCM attacking Naidu in Assembly ignited warVIDEO | CONFLICT
KTR to ensureplanned growth
KTR: TRS has big voterbaseFrom Page 1
In the 15 wards ofAdibatla, the Congresswon eight, the TRS six andthe BJP one. The TRSused the ex-officio votes ofMLC Srinivas ReddyRajya Sabha memberBanda Prakash and localMLA M. Kishan Reddy towin the council.
In Nalgonda, theCongress and the TRSwere even at 20 wardseach out 48 but the TRStook over the municipali-ty with votes of MLCsGutha Sukhender Reddy,T. Chinappa Reddy, N.Vidya Sagar and PallaRajeswara Reddy.
In Kosgi, the Congressand TRS won seven eachout of the 16 wards but theTRS took the help of twoindependents and ex-offi-cio votes of MahbubnagarMP M. Srinivas Reddy,MLA P. Narender Reddyand MLC K. NarayanReddy to sail home.
In Nereducharla, therewas high drama as the col-lector refused to permitCongress Rajya Sabhamember K.V.P. Ramachan-dra Rao to vote as an ex-
officio member. The Cong-ress approached the StateElection Commission(SEC) challenging theorder.
The SEC set aside theorder of the collector andpermitted Dr Ramachand-ra Rao to vote in the coun-cil election on Tuesday inview of the bulletin rele-ased by Parliament earlierrecognising Dr Ramac-handra Rao as Rajya Sab-ha member from Telanga-na state.
After the results, TRSworking president K.T.Rama Rao told reportersthat a lion share of seatshad been given to leadersfrom the BC, SC, ST, andminority communitieswhich did not have strongpolitical representationuntil now.
He claimed that no otherparty can deliver socialjustice the way the TRSdoes. As per the directions
of TRS president andChief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao,utmost importance wasgiven to the marginalisedsections in the election ofmunicipal chairpersonsand mayors. “By this, wehave shown our commit-ment towards the welfareof BC, SC, ST, and minori-ties,” Mr Rama Rao said.
He noted that leadersfrom these sections hadwon general categoryseats and added that 58chairpersons and mayorand 45 vice-chairpersonsfrom the TRS, totalling103, had been elected.
While Suryapet wasreserved for generalwomen, Ms Annapurnam-ma from the ScheduledCaste community hadbeen elevated as chairper-son.
In the Medchal district,the chairperson's post inthe general category atPocharam municipalitywas given to Mr RedyaNayak, an ST leader. InKagaznagar of Adilabaddistrict, a Muslim leaderhad been elected in thegeneral category munici-pality.
DC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
Municipal administra-tion K.T. Rama Rao onMonday said that keep-ing in view the rapidurbanization of the sta-te, the government willensure the planned dev-elopment of new townsand corporations.
Addressing a pressconference at Telanga-na Bhavan, he said that43 per cent of the popu-lation was living inurban areas. Since peo-ple gave an absolutemandate to the party inthe civic polls, the TRSwould fulfil the electionpromises to the urbanpeople. “We will soonimplement an urbanprogress, the PattanaPragathi programme,in every municipality.We will give training tothe new mayors, deputymayors, chairpersonsand vice chairpersonson administrat-
ion,” he said.Mr Rama Rao said
that the municipalitiesare getting `1,037 croreas grant from theCentre every year andthe state governmenthas decided to providea matching amount.
He explained that forthe planned develop-ment, the governmenthad decided to set upyouth, women, seniorcitizens and residents’welfare associations ineach ward and divisionof the municipalitiesand corporations.
“We will give permitswithin 21 days for con-struction of housesunder the self-certifica-tion process and intro-duce self-certificationproperty tax system.We will give bring QRCode for all houses.Trade licenses will beissued through self-cer-tification for businessand commercial com-plexes” said Mr Rao.
Minister of state for home affairs G. Kishen Reddy inaugurated a free trainingcenter for empowering women in Musheerabad. — S. SURENDER REDDY
■ ■ THE BBJP leadership sus-pected that TRS would allotthe post to the MIM. Therewas a war of wordsbetween Nizamabad MP D.Arvind (BJP) andNizamabad Urban MLABigala Ganesh Gupta (TRS).Mr Gupta had sworn in thename of temples inNizamabad that the TRSwould not allot the Mayor'spost to the MIM
■ ■ MR RRAMA RRAOalleged that theCongress and the BJPwere practicing “sillypolitics in the gullies” ofthe state
■ ■ K.T. RRAMA RRAO toldthat a lion share of seatshad been given to leadersfrom the BC, SC, ST, and minority communit-ies
Centre to tackle Council From Page 1
The Assembly staff onceagain took the head-count following whichthe Speaker announcedthat 133 members werepresent and they hadsupported the resolu-tion.
As the resolution war-rants support of two-third of the memberspresent and voted,Speaker TammineniSitaram announced thatthe resolution seekingabolition of the Councilwas adopted unani-
mously before adjourn-ing the House sine die.
As per the procedure,the resolution would besent to the Centre forapproval of theParliament andPresidential assent.
Winding up the debateon the resolution, theChief Minister said adecision to abolish theCouncil was taken in thelarger interest of peopleand to ensure that theirwelfare and state’s devel-opment are not ham-pered.
The Council is used as
a tool in a larger con-spiracy hatched by theOpposition to deprivepeople of development.
"It (Council) is totallyuseless and a burden onexchequer," he said.
Responding to allega-tions that the three-dayrecess to Assembly wasto indulge in horse-trad-ing, Mr Jagan MohanReddy said had heapproved horse-trading,TD chief N.Chandrababu Naiduwould have lost the sta-tus of Leader ofOpposition long back.
PAGE
6CityTUESDAY | 28 JANUARY 2020 | HYDERABADDECCAN CHRONICLE
Joining handsTS BJP president K. Laxman says he willsoon meet Jana Sana party chief PawanKalyan for political alliance
SHORT TAKESUrdu Science Cong
to be held at Manuu
IIIT-H to improvegender sensitivity
Hyderabad: IIIT-Hyderabadhas decided to take positivesteps to improve the genderratio among its undergradu-
ate students. Towards thisgoal, the institute has set atarget of 25 per cent repre-
sentation of girls among stu-dents admitted to the 4-year
B.Tech programme throughthe JEE mode of admission
for 2020-2021. Severalmeasures are being taken tofacilitate this which includesintroduction of scholarships,
fellowships, and partialwaiver of tuition for girl stu-dents; partial/full waiver ofapplication fee and estab-
lishment of a diversity poolof seats for the JEE mode of
admission. Deadline forapplications is May 19. —
INN
Hyderabad: Maulana AzadNational Urdu University’s
Centre for Promotion ofKnowledge in
Urdu(CPKU)and School ofSciences is organizing
theNational Urdu ScienceCongress on February 25and 26. The Congress is
being organized for scien-tists, authors translators,
teachers and those interest-ed in writing and promoting
science in Urdu language. According to Dr. Abid Moiz,
Consultant, CPKU andConvener of the Congress,
the topic of the congress is"Promotion of science in
Urdu language". Interestedpersons can send the papers(in between 2,500 to 3,000
words) in Urdu on emailnusc2017@gmail.com.
EIGHT DEVOTEESINJURED IN
ROAD MISHAPDC CCORRESPONDENTWARANGAL, JAN. 27
Eight devotees returning fromthe Medaram jatara inMulugu district were injuredon Monday when the vehiclethey were travelling in over-turned on the outskirts ofTadvai village. One personsustained a fracture on hishand, the remaining sevenescaped with minor injuries.
The injured were shifted tothe Mulugu Government Hos-pital. The accident took placewhen the driver of the vehicletried to overtake a lorry andlost control. The vehicleveered off the road and turnedturtle. Locals came to the res-cue of the passengers andpulled them out of the vehicle.They called the emergencyambulance and shifted theinjured.
T.S.S. SSIDDHARTH || DDCHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
Indiscriminate foggingactivity, green-slaughterand overwhelming light-ing from commercialcomplexes has forcedbats in the city to wan-der out during the daytime, say environmental-ists and wildlife enthusi-asts of the city.
Bats that were not visi-ble for most parts of theday have been sighted incertain places during theday due to irreparabledamage done to theirhabitat.
“There is an impactthat the electromagneticradiations from cell pho-ne towers have on thesebats. But we have seen adecline in the number ofinsectivorous bats thatare present in urban
agglomerations. We areseeing that there is aconsiderable decline intheir population,” Dr. C.Srinivasulu, a professorof Osmania Universitytold Deccan Chronicle.
Adding that the dam-age done to these noctur-nal mammals is not justlimited to the glitzyparts of the city, but evenin places like Sainik-puri, KBR Park and a
few other areas are wit-nessing a decline in theirpopulation.
“Another reason whybats are actively keepingaway from well-lit areasis because of theirinstincts. Under suchlights, they are easilyspotted by their preda-tors—owls,” he said.
As it turns out, thereare a number of batsthat are spotted in
tourist places like theGolconda Fort and theQutub Shahi Tombs.These places are aloof ofheavy human populationand artificial lighting.
“Bats are usuallynoticed in places thathave a lot of trees whichbear fruits,” said NavinSigamany, of the Hyder-abad Walking Company.As it turns out bats inDelhi, bats have madeheritage structures likeQutub Minar among oth-ers their roost as there isminimal light pollution.
There are a number ofbats in the city that areinsectivores, and sincethe insects are beingdriven away by the fog-ging activities, the batpopulation is moving tolocations where there isnourishment is avail-able.
Bats forced out in daydue to extreme lightsFogging, chopping trees, bright lights are culprits
GHMC plans ABC on straysDC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
In order to control streetdog population and to mini-mize incidences of rabies,veterinary officer of GHMCVenkateswar Reddy saidthey are conducting animalbirth control/anti-rabiesprogramme in accordancewith the Animal BirthControl (Dog) Rules 2001 andStandard Operating Proc-edure (SOP) of Animal Wel-fare Board of India (AWBI).
Under the ABC/AR pro-gramme, the strays are
being caught from theGHMC limits and brought tothe Animal Care Centres atAutonagar, Chudibazar, Pat-elnagar, KPHB Colony andJeedimetla for sterilisationand immunisation againstrabies.
The sterilised dogs arenotched by making ‘V’shaped cut on right ear toprevent the same dog frombeing caught and subject toa second surgery. After pro-viding post-operative four tosix-day care, the sterilisedand immunised street dogsare released in the localities
from where they werepicked-up. Further, rabid,terminally-ill and grievous-ly injured dogs are put tosleep under the supervisionof a qualified veterinarian.
The wing has conducted39,346 sterilisations and62,139 anti-rabies vaccina-tions to street dogs duringthis year. Dog bite victimswere advised to take anti-rabies vaccination on 3rd,7th, 14th, 28th day and boost-er dose on the 90th day.People on noticing any straydog menace can call on toll-free number: 040-2111-1111.
DC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
The legitimacy of 60 percent of the arrests madeby the police in thecountry is questionable,said Prof. Dr FaizanMustafa, vice-chanc-ellor of NALSARUniversity of Law,Hyderabad, on Monday.
Delivering the 24thK.S. Vyas memorial lec-ture on ‘Constitution,Human Rights, andPolicing’ at the TSPolice Academy, DrMustafa, said that therehas been a discussionrecently that some ofthose arrested were noteven citizens, which isdue to the lack of awar-eness of the rights thatevery citizen possesses.
Referring to theprotests over the Citize-nship Amendment Act(CAA), Dr Mustafa said,“So much debate is nowgoing on that certainpeople are not citizens.The Constitution givessome rights to our citi-zens, the freedom ofspeech, freedom ofassembly without arms,freedom to form anassociation.”
He said that the rightsunder Article 21 wereavailable to citizens andnon-citizens. “So, peo-ple who have been
excluded from NRChave all the rights, rightto livelihood, for insta-nce. Right to shelter,right to environmentand right to breathefresh air and similarright to equality, beforethe law, equal protec-tion of laws. Citizens,non-citizens, and aliens,everybody has theserights,” he added.
“In my last 27 years, Ihave never felt as over-whelmed when I see thepeople have really emb-raced this Constitution.The whole country isreading the preamble.No other country any-where in the world hasever seen so many peo-ple reading the Consti-tution,” he said.
Dr Mustafa said policeofficials need to be con-tinuously given aware-ness training on humanrights and suggestedthat it would help ifthey had a diploma ordegree in law. Herecalled that theTelangana State police
had signed a memoran-dum of understanding(MoU) with the NAL-SAR university. “We arecreating a new kind ofpolicing in Telanganastate. Our police isreceiving public sup-port and applause fromeverywhere,” he said.
He noted that studentswere unhappy about therecent instances of useof police force in theuniversities in Delhiand Aligarh. “It may bedifficult for me to justi-fy the use of police forcein the hostels, in the lib-rary of the university.In both cases the policedid not file the FIRs.But, the Delhi police, Ibelieve has done a dis-service to its reputationby inaction in Jawaha-rlal Nehru University(JNU) and the slowprogress of the investi-gation, so far,” he said.
Speaking at the eventearlier, DGP, M. Mahen-dar Reddy, said that themodernisation andinnovations in policingstarted during the peri-od of the late K.S. Vyas,who formed the Greyh-ounds that received hu-ge applause across thecountry for its perform-ance. “The Telanganastate police are abidingby the law and areenforcing it,” he added.
Nalsar VC: 60% arrestsby police questionable
Will work with Customs to curb crime: DGPDC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
With several common goalsand objectives, the statepolice and the Customsdepartment can worktogether and achieve thegoal of curbing crime, saidDirector-General of PoliceM. Mahendar Reddy dur-ing the InternationalCustoms Day celebrationsheld in the city on Monday.
Addressing the gather-ing, Mr Mahendar Reddysaid that the Customsdepartment was playing avital role in guarding theeconomic frontiers. Thepolice and Customs havecommon goals and objec-tives where both thedepartments enforce sever-al similar laws, he said.
“The police and Customsdepartment can worktogether and achieve the
fostering sustainability for‘People, Prosperity and thePlanet’,” said the DGP.
Hyderabad CustomsPrincipal CommissionerJ.S. Chandra Shekar saidthat the Customs depart-ment contributes to 6 percent of the country’s rev-enue.
“A great challenge for theCustoms department is tocurb the illegal activitiesand our personnel are per-forming the duties in a bet-ter way,” he said.
PFI says it has not violated any rulesFROM PPAGE 11
The note said that 27 bankaccounts were opened inthe name of PFI and itsaffiliates.
At least nine of thoseaccounts were in the nameof Rehab India Foundation,which is said to be affiliat-ed to PFI. In turn, the foun-dation is alleged to haveopened 37 bank accounts inthe name of different peo-ple and organisationsamong others. Theamounts deposited rangedfrom `5,000 to `50,000.
“‘Amounts varying from`2,000 to `5,000 were trans-
ferred to several individu-als. On certain days duringthe protests in December,close to a 90 withdrawalswere made from a singleaccount.
To dodge the agencies,`120 crore was deposited indifferent accounts. Anamount of `1.04 crore wasdeposited in 15 bankaccounts of the PFI andRehab India Foundationbetween December 4, 2019,and January 6 this year,”the ED has said adding,“the money trail hasproved beyond doubt thatthe PFI had mobilised themoney to fuel the anti-CAA
protests.” The agency saidthat further investigationis on.
Protests against CAA spi-ralled out of control whichleft 20 persons dead acrossUP in December.
However, the PFI has
denied any wrong doing.“The news is attributed toED through some unnamedsources but the ED has notcontacted our organisa-tion.
The ED has not issuedany such official statementregarding these allega-tions,” the PFI has said.
The outfit stated thatsome news channelsalleged that the PFI hadtransferred funds to theaccounts of seniorCongress leader KapilSibal and lawyersDushyant Dave and IndiraJaising.
“This statement exposes
the intention of the vestedinterested who are keen toblame the PFI for every-thing that is happening inIndia.
The truth is that transferswere made in 2017 aslawyer fees for these advocates for the Hadiyacase.
This transfer was openlydeclared by Popular Frontin various public meetings.Attributing fee transferthat happened in 2017 as afunding for 2019 CAAprotest is totally absurdand exposes the intentionto defame Popular Front,’’the outfit said.
KCR COMMENDSPADMA WINNERSFROM TELANGANA
BOEING HEAD, KTRDISCUSS PROGRESSOF PROJECTS
Hyderabad, Jan. 27:Telangana Chief Min-ister K. ChandrasekharRao on Monday congrat-ulated star shuttler P.V.Sindhu and others fromthe state on being selected for the Padmaawards.
Rao has specially con-gratulated Sindhu forgetting the PadmaBhushan award, arelease from his officesaid.
The Chief Ministeralso greeted innovativefarmer Chintala VenkataReddy fromSecunderabad andSanskirt scholar VijayaSaradhi Sri Bhashyamfrom Karimnagar onbeing selected for thePadma Shri.
Rao said it was uniqueindividual contributionsin their respective fieldsthat brought nationalfame to Padma awardwinners and made themrole models to others.
He also appreciated theCentre for honouringpeople who have ren-dered public service intheir respective fields,the release added. —PTI
■ ■ PROF. DDR FFAIZANMUSTAFA, vice-chan-cellor of NALSAR wasdelivering the 24th K.S.Vyas Memorial lectureon Constitution, HumanRights and Policing’
■ ■ PFI MMEMBERS haveallegedly been involved ina series of offences, whichis under probe by theNational InvestigationAgency (NIA). Variouschargesheets filed by NIAhave indicted PFI mem-bers.
■ ■ BATSTHAT werenot visible formost parts of theday have been sighted in certainplaces during the day due to irrepara-ble damage done to their habitat
■ ■ THE DDGP said theCustoms department wasplaying a vital role inguarding the economicfrontiers. The police andCustoms have commongoals and objectives whereboth the departmentsenforce several similarlaws, he said.
Telangana Director-General of Police M. Mahendar Reddy, Chief Post Master General ofTelangana, K. Sandhya Rani and Hyderabad Customs Principal Commissioner J.S.Chandrashekar, during the International Customs Day celebrations at FTCCI on Monday.
— S. SURENDER REDDY
DC CCORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD, JAN. 27
A team from Boeing lead-ership, led by the aviationgiant’s president MichelArther and Indian headSalil Gupte, met IT andindustries minister K.T.Rama Rao on Monday.
The team shared theirappreciation on theprogress made onBoeing’s manufacturingfacilities in Hydereabad,including those for itsApache and Chinook pro-gremmes. They hinted atfurther expansion in thestate. Mr Rao emphasisedon how progressive thestate government’s indus-trial policy was. He saidTS-iPASS and the superi-or infrastructure offeredby TS has led to growth ofaerospace sector.
■ ■ THE CCM said it wasunique individual contri-butions in their respec-tive fields that broughtnational fame to Padmaaward winners and madethem role models to oth-ers.
PAGE
7NationTUESDAY | 28 JANUARY 2020 | HYDERABADDECCAN CHRONICLE
Help sought Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan writes to PMNarendra Modi seeking special flight toWuhan for airlifting stranded Indians
SHORT TAKES
DC CCORRESPONDENTMUMBAI, JAN. 27
A special Prevention ofMoney Laundering Act(PMLA) court on Mondayevening remanded KapilWadhawan, chief managingdirector of Dewan HousingFinance Ltd (DHFL), in theEnforcement Directorate’s(ED) custody till January 29in connection with the ongo-ing probe into the moneylaundering case againstDawood Ibrahim’s formerhenchman Mohammad IqbalMemon alias Iqbal Mirchi.
The court had granted bailto Kapil Wadhawan’s youngerbrother and prime accusedDheeraj Wadhawan in thesame case in the morning.
The EnforcementDirectorate had called KapilWadhawan to its office in themorning and arrested himaround 4 pm after he failed toproduce certain documentssought by the agency and alsofailed to give satisfactoryanswers.
The ED then produced KapilWadhawan before specialPMLA judge Prashant P.Rajvaidya and argued thatDHFL had given loans of`1,100 crore to five shell com-panies in 2010-11 and thismoney was later given toIqbal Mirchi to buy threeproperties in Worli.
The agency had initiallycalled him to its office onNovember 19, 2019, and he had sought three days’time to produce documentsrelated to these loans.
B. AARAVINDA SSHETTY || DDCBENGALURU, JAN. 27
Will Chief Minister B.S.Yediyurappa get the muchawaited nod for Cabinetexpansion and be able to pla-cate the 12 newly elected BJPMLAs who have been waitinganxiously for their ministeri-al berths for more than amonth now?
With pressure mounting onhim to expand his Cabinet,the CM is likely to leave forDelhi on Tuesday to meet newBJP national president J.P.Nadda in this regard. It willalso be an opportunity forYediyurappa to greet Naddaon his election to the presti-gious post as the CM was inDavos when the change ofguard took place. If theCentral leadership gives himpermission, the CM may gofor expansion on or beforeJanuary 31, sources added.
Yediyurappa has alreadyheld one round of talks withparty national general secre-tary (Organisation) B.L.Santhosh regarding induc-tion of the new ministers. Allhe needs now is the nod of theparty national president forthe ministers’ list, sourcessaid. If the CM still fails to getthe approval of the nationalpresident, the expansion willbe postponed till the DelhiAssembly poll process is com-pleted in February, said partysources.
DHFL CMD HELDFOR MONEY
LAUNDERING
FILMMAKERSWITHDRAWPETITIONS
DC CCORRESPONDENTMUMBAI, JAN. 27
Filmmakers AnandPatwardhan and Pankaj RishiKumar withdrew their peti-tions after the Centre and thefilms division filed their affi-davit in support of the compe-tition rejecting the petition-ers’ films.
Both producers claimed thattheir internationally-acclaimed films were refusedscreening at the MumbaiInternational Film Festival(MIFF) for being critical ofthe government. However, theUnion government told thecourt that the rejection wasbased on criteria and not onthe content of the documen-taries.
A division bench of JusticesS.C. Dharmadhikari and R.I.Chagla was hearing the peti-tions. On Monday, additionalsolicitor general Anil Singh,appearing for the films divi-sion of the Union ministry ofinformation and broadcastingwhich organises the MIFF,told the court that the filmshad been rejected after theselection committee viewedthem.
BSY OFF TODELHI, TO MEETNADDA TODAY
SUCHETA DDASGUPTA || DDC
How do time and thesense of place affecta poet? At poetry
durbar on day three, thiswas the question posed byLakshya Datta to a daz-zling panel of wordsmiths.
Anamika used ametaphor to describe whatshe saw as a relationshipbetween the poem, theplace where it comes from,the place where it ispenned and the time ofpenning those lines. If thepoem could be comparedto a spectrum, then theplace is the prism whichgives birth to it and time isthe ray of light, she said.
I have written all mypoems in Allahabad butthen they changed thename of the city to
Prayagraj and since then Ihave stopped writing, wasthe irascible senior poet,Arvind KrishnaMehrotra’s curt retort.
Wry and brazen, JeetThayil sat back andresponded, talking aboutpoetry is like taking a hotbath in a tub with yourclothes on.
His one-liner wouldremind one of LemnSissay’s short argumentfor performance poetry tobe delivered on day four.Sarcasm, they said, is thelowest form of wit, herecited. I said, it is not, isit? What followed was apause that sealed the victo-ry of his argument.
What’s in a name of aplace or a city? Well, per-haps Calcutta can evokeboth hope and nostalgia in
a way that Kolkata doesn’t. Calcutta, now Kolkata,
was the subject of discus-sion at a session on thefinal day of the fest whenthe audience learnt that itwas a city that also gaveDevapriya Roy the love ofher life.
Roy confesses that she isa poor navigator andwould habitually get lostin the lanes and bylanesaround College Street. Inher first week in college,she launched a newspaper.She also liked this boy whowas a year senior. “Theday the newspapers wereprinted we gave them to alittle typesetter and desk-top publisher’s shop some-where off College Square.I needed somebody tocarry the newspapers backwith me. So I told him, will
you walkwith me tothe shop?He agreed.And thenwe walked round andround to find that shop. Weended up spending threehours walking around thatneighbourhood — no signof the shop — I didn’tknow where it was, but at
the end ofit all, I hadfound lovewhich Ithink is a
better bargain,” Roy remi-nisced. That gentleman’sname is Saurav Jha, awriter of renown himself.
If the city can be the seatof so many memories anddreams and the source of
so much passion and fer-ment, how about the vil-lage?
Anthropologist andHindi writer G.C. Bagriwho knows 12 languagesand is from Alwar inRajasthan, has based hisnovel, Aakhree Gaon (TheLast Village), on his nativeRaisarana which is locatedon the state’s border withHaryana. It is his attemptto bridge this gap and hisact of love, he says. Wewish for more Bagris topopulate our nation andspread this love.
And so, from places toplatforms for thought pio-neers and ideas that bothpotentially and actuallychange the world.
On the very first day ofthe festival, an audiencemember got up to ask
Anand Neelakantan thisquestion. Is Netflix a bet-ter medium of creativeexpression than main-stream publishing? Manycritical observations andideas are considered no-goareas by the media andpublishing industry, butone can work with them onthe audio-visual mediumand broadcast them onNetflix, going by the kindof films that are shown onthat platform and the top-ics they choose to exam-ine.
Sometimes, the subtextof a conversation is allthat you need to trulyunderstand its meaning.In terms of the sheer num-ber of conversations, bothexpress and inferred, thiswas a thumpingly success-ful fest.
Poets discuss relationship between poem, place where it comes from, & place where it’s penned WORD | POWER
Understanding places, poetry and pushing boundaries
Centre signs accord toresolve Bodo issueMANOJ AANAND || DDC GUWAHATI, JAN. 27
In what is expected toboost peace and develop-ment in the North-East,the Central governmenton Monday signed a freshBodo accord with all thefactions of one of thedreaded insurgent groupsof Assam — NationalDemocratic Front ofBodoland (NDFB), com-mitting them more politi-cal power in addition to`1,500 crore economicpackage.
The powerful All BodoStudents Union (ABSU),which has been spear-heading a movement for aBodoland state was alsosignatory to the accord.
The tripartite agree-ment was signed in pres-ence of Union home min-ister Amit Shah andAssam Chief MinisterSarbananda Sonowal.
Asserting that tripartiteagreement will not onlyfulfill political and eco-nomic demands of theBodo people but also safe-guard the Bodo languageand culture, Shah toldreporters, “Centre, Assamgovernment and Bodo rep-resentatives have signedan important agreement.This agreement willensure a golden future forAssam and for the Bodopeople.”
He also said it would bepermanent as it involvesall stakeholders, unlikelast time, when threegroups were left out.
Pointing out that tripar-tite agreement has furtherstrengthen the territorialintegrity of Assam, Shahsaid that 1,550 cadresalong with 130 weaponswill surrender onJanuary 30.
“They are not militantsnow, all are our brothers,”said Shah.
Of them, those who havea clean record will bemade part of the paramil-itary forces. The familiesof those who died in theBodo movement willreceive `5 lakh as compen-sation.
According to the agree-ment, the area calledBTAD will be renamed asBodoland TerritorialRegion and the Centrewould expedite ‘hillstribe’ status to Bodo peo-ple living in the hill dis-tricts of Assam. The Bodolanguage, with Devnagriscript, will become associ-
ate official language forentire Assam.
The agreement alsoinvolves a hefty financialpackage — the state gov-ernment would give `250crore for 3 years to devel-op the area. The Centrewill also add an equiva-lent amount, bringing thetotal to `1,500 crore.
The funds would be usedto set up industry andemployment package andpromote eco-tourism.Under the socio-culturalpackage, the governmentwill set up a CentralUniversity in name ofUpendranath Brahma anda national sports universi-ty.
The other projects willinclude a regional med-ical institute, hotel man-agement campus, aMother Dairy plant, aNational Institute ofTechnology and moreNavodaya Vidyalayas.
Guarding against CORONAVIRUSNovel coronavirus (nCoV) is a large familyof virus that causes illnesses ranging fromcommon cold to acute respiratory syndromes. The virus that hasso far killed oover80 ppeople andaffected oover2,700 iin CChina, is anovel strain and has not been seen before.
29,707No. of pas-
sengersscreened by Jan. 26
from 137 flights. No case detected in
India so far.
THERMALSCREENING
AT AIRPORTS
KERALAOne person each fromThrissur,Thiruvananthapuram,
Pathanamthitta andMalappuram and 3 from
Ernakulam kept inisolation wards of
various hospitals.
JhulaghatUttarkhand
NEPAL
JauljibiUttarkhand
PanitankiW. Bengal
Kolkata
Mumbai
Bengaluru
Hyderabad
Chennai
Kochi
Kerala aandMaharashtraOver 100 peoplekept under observation
MAHA
Health teams deployed
Thai national dies inWB, coronavirus fearedChinese national too suspected to be suffering from virusRAJIB CCHOWDHURI || DDC KOLKATA, JAN. 27
A Thai national died at aprivate hospital inKolkata on Mondayamidst suspicion of thecause of death being coro-navirus. Surin Naktoy(32), the female patient,was suffering from severerespiratory distress .
Meanwhile, a youngChinese national, suspect-ed to be suffering from thevirus, has been admittedto a state-run hospital inthe city, prompting seniorstate health departmentofficials to rush there foran inspection on Mondaymorning.
The patient, Hu Mai (28),has been undergoingtreatment at an isolationward in the InfectiousDiseases Hospital inBeliaghata, also the nodalcentre in the state.Embarking on a globaltour six months ago fromChina, she travelled vari-ous countries, includingNamibia, Madagascar andMauritius, before reach-ing the city on January 24.
She took admission to aprivate hospital off EMBypass with fever, coughand headache for medicaltests on her own.
Meanwhile, with thecoronavirus outbreak inChina, two Bengaluru res-idents who returned fromChina ten days ago havebeen kept under medicalobservation at a govern-ment hospital, saidsources from theKarnataka health depart-ment.
The two residents, whoreturned from China onJanuary 18, came to thehospital on Sunday nightafter developing a cold.Their samples will be sentto a laboratory in Pune fortests, officials said with-out divulging the namesand locality that they livein. They are under obser-vation at the Rajiv GandhiInstitute of Chest dis-eases.
Another man, who wasadmitted for medicalsupervision three daysago, was discharged afterhe tested negative for thedeadly virus. The blood
samples were sent to theNational Institute ofVirology in Pune. Thevirus has claimed over 80lives with 2,744 confirmedcases in China so far, thedepartment sources said.
Besides these cases, sixpassengers — fourChinese and two Indians— are under 28-day housequarantine and they areasymptomatic, a state-ment from the departmentsaid.
The Airport Health
Organisation, which is onthe alert ever since theoutbreak of the virus inChina, said on Mondaythat none of the passen-gers who came from thatcountry in the last 14 dayswere found to have con-tracted the disease.
No passengers arereported positive withthermal scanning andhaving history of visit toWuhan city in the last 14days, the KIA unit of theAPHO, said.
Centre gears upfor evacuation bid
WOMAN FROMCHAPRA HOSPITALISED
TOP COURT TOHEAR MUKESH’SPLEA TODAYDC CCORRESPONDENTNEW DELHI, JAN. 27
The Supreme Court onTuesday will hear a pleaby Mukesh — a deathrow convict in Nirbhayacase — challenging therejection of his mercypetition by the PresidentRam Nath Kovind.
Mukesh has contendedthat the rejection ofmercy petition was donein an “undue haste”.
Mukesh had filed themercy petition onJanuary 14, 2020, aftertop court rejected thecurative petition by himand Vinay Sharma onthe same day. The mercypetition by Mukesh wasrejected by thePresident. A bench com-prising Justice R.Banumathi, JusticeAshok Bhushan andJustice A.S. Bopannawill hear Mukesh’s pleaagainst the rejection ofmercy petition on thegrounds of undue hasteand alleged none adher-ence to the procedure.
The petition byMukesh challenging therejection of mercy peti-tion will be heard by thethree-judge bench at12.30 pm.
Earlier in the morninga lawyer made an oralmentioning of the peti-tion and urged the ChiefJustice S.A. Bobde tohold an urgent hearingof the petition either onTuesday (Jan. 28) orWednesday (Jan. 29).
Bobde said:“Somebody is going tobe executed, it has to bepriority number one.”
Patna/Chapra, Jan. 27:A woman who returnedfrom China last week wasadmitted to a Patna hospi-tal on Monday with symp-toms similar to those ofcoronavirus that left 80people dead in the neigh-bouring country, officialssaid.
The woman who is inher 20s returned home toChapra, the headquartersof Saran district, fromChina on January 22 andshe was taken to theChapra Sadar Hospitalthree days later.
From there, the womanwho was pursuing a PhDfrom the TianjinUniversity in China, wasreferred to the PatnaMedical College andHospital on Monday.
“She has been kept in anisolation ward. Her bloodsamples have been sent tothe National Institute ofVirology (NIV) in Puneand the RajendraMemorial ResearchInstitute of MedicalSciences here for tests,”PMCH superintendent DrVimal Karak said.
The mode of treatmentwill be decided based onreports of the tests, Karaksaid.
Asked if it is a case ofCoronavirus, he said theChapra Sadar Hospitalreferred her to the PMCHsaying it is a suspectedcase of coronavirus.
“I can’t say anything onthis until I get test reportsfrom the NIV in thisregard,” the PMCH super-intendent said.
In view of the deadlyvirus spreading rapidlyoutside China, includingNepal, Bihar healthdepartment on January 25had issued an ‘advisory’asking district officialsand hospitals to stay alertand monitor the situation.
Nepal shares 729 kilome-tres long border withBihar. — PTI
New Delhi, Jan. 27: TheCentre on Monday decidedto take steps for possibleevacuation of over 250Indians from Chinese cityof Wuhan, the epicentre ofthe coronavirus outbreak,and announced a raft ofprecautionary measuresto deal with suspectedcases.
A meeting chaired bycabinet secretary RajivGauba reviewed India’spreparedness to deal withthe virus amid mountingglobal concern overincreasing number ofcases in China and severalother countries.
In India, no case hasbeen detected so farthough nearly 450 peoplehave been kept underobservation in the coun-try, most of them inKerala, following screen-ing for possible exposureto the novel coronavirus.
Some, who havereturned from China inrecent weeks, haveapproached medicalauthorities as a precau-tionary step.
Till Monday, a total33,552 passengers arrivingin India from China in 155flights have beenscreened.
“4,359 passengers in 18flights from Chinascreened on Monday fornCoV. No (positive) casehas been found in thecountry so far,” a seniorhealth official said.
The meeting in Delhipresided by the cabinetsecretary decided to take aa series of precautionarymeasures includingscreening of people atinternational ports havingtraffic from China as wellas at the integrated checkposts across the borderwith Nepal.
Officials said ministry ofexternal affairs will makea request to the Chineseauthorities for evacuationof Indian nationals, most-ly students, stuck inWuhan city.
“It was decided thatsteps may be taken to pre-pare for possible evacua-tion of Indian nationals inWuhan. Accordingly, min-istry of external affairswill make a request to theChinese authorities,” agovernment statementsaid.
Kerala Chief MinisterPinarayi Vijayan andGujarat Chief MinisterVijay Rupani have urgedthe Centre to take steps tobring back students fromtheir states who are study-ing in Wuhan. — PTI
AK, BJP spar overShaheen BaghSANJAY KKAWAND SSHASHI BBHUSHAN ||DCNEW DELHI, JAN. 27
Delhi Chief MinisterArvind Kejriwal, accusedby the BJP of supportingthe ongoing anti-CAAprotest at Shaheen Bagh,hit back on Monday byindicating that the saf-fronites want the proteststo continue to polarisevoters for electoral gains.
“People are being incon-venienced due to the roadblocked at Shaheen Bagh.BJP doesn’t want the roadto be opened,” Kejriwaltweeted on Monday,accusing the BJP of prac-tising “dirty politics”.
He suggested that theBJP leaders should imme-diately go to ShaheenBagh and talk to the pro-testers and get the roadreopened.
During his election cam-paign, Kejriwal toldreporters: “I can give youthis in writing — the BJPdoes not want to open theroute in Shaheen Bagh.This route will remainclosed till February 8(election day) and willopen on February 9.”
BJP leaders rangingfrom party chief J.P.Nadda to Union ministersAmit Shah and RaviShankar Prasad had beenclaiming that Kejriwaland others were “support-ing those who want tobreak India.”
Shah dared the AamAadmi Party chief tovisit Shaheen Bagh sothat people of Delhi candecide whom to vote forin the assembly election.
He said the Delhi Policehas booked SharjeelImam, a JNU student, onsedition charge for hiscomment of “trying to cutthe chicken’s neck” andbreak the Northeast fromthe rest of the country.
“I want to ask Kejriwalwhether he is in favour ofapprehending SharjeelImam or not? Whetheryou are with the people ofShaheen Bagh or not,please tell the people ofDelhi,” Shah said whileaddressing an electionrally at Rithala in north-west Delhi on Monday.
Imam was one of theinitial organisers of theShaheen Bagh protest.
“You (the AAP leaders)people say that you arewith Shaheen Bagh. Ifyou have the guts then goand sit with them. And letDelhi decide,” he added.
In reply, Kejriwal took toTwitter to ask what wasstopping Shah fromarresting Imam andaccused the home minis-ter of practising bad poli-tics.
Devapriya RRoy Jeet TThayil
■ ■ During his electioncampaign, ArvindKejriwal told reporters:“I can give you this inwriting — the BJP doesnot want to open theroute in Shaheen Bagh.This route will remainclosed till February 8(election day) and willopen on February 9.”
■ ■ Delhi goes to polls insingle-phase on Feb. 8
Union home minister Amit Shah presides over the sign-ing of an agreement between the Centre, governmentof Assam and Bodo representatives in New Delhi. — PTI
4,359 passengers in 18flights from China
screened on Monday fornCoV. No (positive) case hasbeen found in the country sofar
— A SENIOR OFFICIAL
DC AT JAIPUR LITERATURE FEST
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