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VIJAYAWADA, SUNDAY, JANUARY 2, 2022; PAGES 10+16 `5

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Updated JANUARY 01, 2021 5:00 PM

FFoorreeccaasstt:: SUNDAY SUNNYTTeemmpp:: 32oc

HHuummiiddiittyy:: 63%SSuunnrriissee:: 06:36 AMSSuunnsseett:: 05:47 PM

AALLMMAANNAACC

TTOODDAAYY

Month & Paksham:

Agrahayana & Krishna Paksha

Tithi : Amavasya : Jan 02 03:42 AM to Jan

03 12:03 AM

Nakshatram : Moola: Jan 01 07:17

PM to Jan 02 04:23 PM

Rahukalam : 4:27 PM to 5:49 PM

Yamagandam : 12:20 PM to 1:42 PM

Varjyam : 12:51 AM to 02:16 AM

Gulika : 3:04 PM to 4:27 PM

Amritakalam : 10:50 AM to 12:14 PM

Abhijit Muhurtham : 11:58 AM to 12:42 PM

India will not allow Covid todampen development: ModiPNS n NEW DELHI

Amid growing concerns overspread of Omicron, Prime MinisterNarendra Modi on Saturday saidIndia needs to accelerate pace ofdevelopment in the new year andwill not allow the challenges posedby the Covid-19 pandemic todampen the growth process.

He stressed that the country willcontinue to fight the pandemic with"full caution and vigilance", andalso take care of the national inter-est.

Speaking at the release of 10thinstalment under the PM-KISANscheme, Modi reeled out theachievements of the country dur-ing the pandemic-hit 2021 acrosssectors, like health, defence, agri-culture, start-up ecosystem andinfrastructure.

"2021 will be remembered forIndia's strong fight against theCovid-19 pandemic as also forreforms undertaken during theyear," Modi said, and lauded the

achieving of more than 145 croreCovid vaccine doses.

He said in the year gone by, Indiaaccelerated the speed of reforms invarious sectors, and also createdmodern infrastructure.

"We have to further acceleratethe pace of development. Coronaposes challenges, but it cannotstall the growth process," the PrimeMinister added.

India saw a single-day rise of22,775 new COVID-19 cases onSaturday, highest since October 6last year, while the number ofactive cases surpassed one lakh andOmicron infection tally reached1,431.

The Prime Minister said that asIndia enters the new year, thecountry needs to embark upon anew journey taking inspiration

from the achievements of the pastyears.

He recalled the nation's effort infighting the pandemic, vaccinationand making arrangement for thevulnerable sections during the dif-ficult period. The government pro-vided additional food grains for freeto nearly 80 crore people during thepandemic, which cost Rs 2.6 lakhcrore.

He said the government is work-ing relentlessly to strengthen thecountry's medical infrastructureand listed efforts like new oxygenplants, new medical colleges, well-ness centres, Ayushman BharatHealth Infrastructure Mission andAyushman Bharat Digital HealthMission in the direction of revamp-ing medical infrastructure.

Modi said the country is movingwith the mantra of 'Sabka Saath,Sabka Vikas and Sabka Prayas'.Many people are spending theirlives to build the country.

Stampede atVaishno DeviShrine leaves12 deadPNS n JAMMU

Twelve people lost their lives and16 others were injured in a stam-pede at the famous Mata VaishnoDevi shrine in Jammu andKashmir in the early hours dur-ing a heavy rush of devotees onNew Year.

This is the first such tragedy atthe revered shrine located atop theTrikuta hills - about 50 km fromhere - that attracts lakhs of peo-ple every year.

The incident occurred between2.30 AM and 2.45 AM onSaturday near a relatively narrowpassage at gate number 3 outsidethe sanctum sanctorum of thehilltop shrine where devoteesusually arrive round the clockafter trekking from the Katrabase camp, a distance of nearly 13km.

A high-level inquiry panelheaded by Principal Secretary(Home) Shaleen Kabra, withDivisional Commissioner JammuRajiv Langar and AdditionalDirector General of PoliceMukesh Singh as its members, hasbeen set up by LieutenantGovernor (L-G) Manoj Sinhaand asked to submit a report with-in a week.

Condolences poured in fromall quarters and Prime MinisterNarendra Modi spoke to LGSinha. President Ram NathKovind and a number of otherleaders including Congress pres-ident Sonia Gandhi, RahulGandhi, union ministers andchief ministers expressed griefover the loss of lives.

According to eyewitnessaccounts, the number of devoteeswas allegedly beyond the permit-ted level with flagrant violation ofCOVID-19 norms, and some ofthe survivors accused the Jammuand Kashmir administration of"mismanagement".

44 Naxalssurrender inChhattisgarhPNS nRAIPUR

As many as 44 naxals including ninewomen cadres surrendered beforepolice in Chhattisgarh's insurgency-affected Sukma district on Saturday,a senior official said.

The rebels, mostly lower-rungcadres who were active in Chintalnar,Kistaram and Bheji areas of the dis-trict, turned themselves in at thenewly-set up police camp inKarigundam village, said SukmaSuperintendent of Police Sunil Sharma.

Rs 172-cr liquor sales on New Year’sDay in TS, Andhra not far behindM L MELLY MAITREYIn HYDERABAD

In the tussle between the New Yearsentiment and scare about Omicron,people of Telangana voted big for theeffervescent spirit and preferred toring in the New Year with gusto andenthusiasm.

Although the government hadimposed several stipulations to curbNew Year celebrations and insistedon strict adherence to Covid-19-appropriate behaviour like wearingmask, maintaining physical dis-tance, nothing could come in theway of people queuing up in frontof liquor shops.

Many preferred to celebrate theoccasion at their homes, communi-ties with known groups of relativesand friends and the New Year's Evesaw record sales of liquor filling upthe coffers.

In Telangana, just on Fridayliquor worth Rs.172 crore was sold.This comprised 1.76 lakh cases ofliquor and 1.66 lakh cases of beer,according to the Excise departmentsources. The maximum sales wererecorded in the erstwhile Ranga

Reddy district at Rs.42.26 crore. Theother key figures were: unitedWarangal - Rs.24.78 crore andHyderabad-Rs.23.13 crore. In undi-vided Medak, liquor sales were tothe tune of over Rs.27 crore.

In December month, liquor saleswere to the tune of Rs3,459 crore.During the month, 40.48 lakh casesof liquor and over 34 lakh cases ofbeer were sold. So far, in Telanganaduring this financial year, liquorsales turnover has been pegged atRs.30,222 crore.

Neighboring Andhra Pradeshtoo registered brisk sales of liquor.In AP on Friday alone, liquor worthRs.124.10 crore was recorded. Thetimings of sale were extended by anhour in bars and shops by an houron Friday and premium brands werealso made available.

Sources said that 1,36,124 casesof liquor and 53,482 cases of beerwere sold in AP.

After a night of celebrations,people queued up in front of tem-ples right from Saturday early hoursand Churches attracted a goodturnout of Christian devotees tooffer prayers.

GST on Zomato,Swiggy, Ola,Uber from today PNS n NEW DELHI

Food aggregators like Swiggy andZomato will have to collect anddeposit tax at 5 per cent rate start-ing today, a move which willwiden the tax base as food ven-dors who are currently outside theGST threshold will become liableto GST when provided throughthese online platforms.

Currently, restaurants regis-tered under GST are collectingand depositing the tax.

Also, cab aggregators like Olaand Uber will have to collect 5 percent Goods and Services Tax(GST) for booking 2 and 3 wheel-er vehicles effective January 1.Also, footwear irrespective ofprices will attract 12 per cent taxfrom today.

A new era has begunwith visionary Jaganat the helm: Sajjala

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Asserting that a new era has begunin the State under the leadership ofYS Jagan Mohan Reddy,Government Advisor (PublicAffairs) Sajjala RamakrishnaReddy has slammed theOpposition parties for conspiringagainst the government andreminded them how they wererejected by the people upon failingto meet people's aspirations.

Speaking to the media here onSaturday, he said that a new era hadbegun in the State since the incep-tion of the YSRCP governmentwhich had been implementing allthe promises made in the mani-festo despite facing all the chal-lenges due to Covid. He said thatChief Minister YS Jagan MohanReddy had proved to be a truevisionary leader by fulfilling 95

percent of the poll promises anddirectly crediting Rs 1.16 lakhcrore through DBT under variouswelfare schemes without any cor-ruption.

Ramakrishna Reddy said thatthe people had clearly witnessedthe difference between both thegovernments and are fully aware ofwho the real visionary leader is.

n Says Oppn conspiring against govt

Social security pension hikedfrom Rs 2,250 to Rs 2,500 in AP

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

The State government hasincreased the social securitypension from Rs 2,250 to Rs2,500 as a New Year gift.

Launching the enhanced pen-sion scheme, officially chris-tened 'YSR Pension Kanuka', atPrathipadu in Guntur district onSaturday, Chief Minister YSJagan Mohan Reddy distributeda total amount of Rs 1,570 crorefor the month of January andcelebrated the New Year withthe beneficiaries.

Addressing the public on theoccasion, the Chief Ministersaid that almost every promise inthe manifesto is being fulfilledfor the last 30 months. Pensionsare being del ivered at thedoorstep of over 62 lakh benefi-ciaries. Drawing a comparisonbetween the previous TDP gov-ernment and his government, he

said that during the TDP rule,pensions were provided to only39 lakh beneficiaries at the rateof Rs 1,000 each, at a monthlyexpenditure of Rs 400 crore.However, the current govern-ment enhanced the pensionamount to Rs 2,250 soon afterforming the government and

has been door-delivering thepensions to almost 62 lakh ben-eficiaries at a cost Rs 1,450 croreevery month. With the freshenhancement to Rs 2,500, themonthly expenditure went up toRs 1,570 crore.

n CM disburses Rs 1,570 cr to 62 L beneficiaries for Jan

Naidu meets Radha, discusses ‘recce’ issuePNS n VIJAYAWADA

The sensational revelations of for-mer MLA and Telugu Desam Party(TDP) leader Vangaveeti RadhaKrishna that recce was conductedto kill him took an interesting turnon Saturday as TDP chief and for-mer CM N Chandrababu Naidumet Radha at his residence locat-ed at Tadepalli on Saturday.

Chandrababu Naidu had a dis-cussion with Vangaveeti Radhaand his mother Ratnakumari, a for-mer MLA. It is learnt that Radhaexplained to Naidu who conduct-ed a recce to kill him. He also gaveNaidu some names behind theconspiracy to physically eliminatehim. Naidu asked Radha to be cau-

tious and take utmost care whilemoving in public.

Naidu advised him to analyse theruling YSRCP's vindictive politics

and conspiracies. He assured Radhaand his mother to extend all sup-port. The TDP would stand byRadha and always extend physical

and moral support, Naidu toldRadha, it is learnt. Naidu alsoadvised Ratnakumari to advise herson in politics.

Later, talking to the media,Naidu said that he had written a let-ter to the DGP on Radha's allega-tion that recce was conducted at hisoffice and asked for an inquiry."Even after seven days, the policehave not responded. There areCCTV cameras and the police canexamine the footage to identify whoconducted the recce but the policedid not respond," Naidu alleged.

It is the responsibility of thepolice to inquire into the fears andspeculation on the incident andexpose the facts.

Game for early elections:TDP PNS n AMARAVATI

The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) isready to face an early election asand when it is held in AndhraPradesh, party chief NChandrababu Naidu said here onSaturday.

For some time now, there hasbeen a talk that Chief Minister YSJagan Mohan Reddy may do a KCRand go for mid-term polls some-time in 2023, though the electionto the State Assembly is due onlyin April 2024.

In neighbouring Telangana,Chief Minister K ChandrasekharRao went for a mid-term electionto the State Assembly in 2018,months before the due date in 2019,and retained power).

"I heard the talk, too. If there is

an early election, we are ready toface it," Chandrababu said in a free-wheeling chat with reporters on theoccasion of New Year's Dayat the TDP headquartershere.

People expectedJagan to do somethingbetter than what we did.So they gave him the onechance he had sought.But the myths are now shat-tering, the TDP president said.

Chandrababu said people did nottake to the streets only because ofCovid-19. Thus, Jagan got awaywith all his wrongdoings. People aresilently bearing the atrocious actsof the Jagan regime but they willaccount for everything at the polls,the former Chief Minister said.

The TDP chief refused to

respond to a question on possibleelectoral alliances saying it washypothetical.

Coming down heavily onJagan, Chandrababu said no

other Chief Minister left theState economy in tatters.

What is happening inAndhra Pradesh now is

economic destruction. Imyself am unable to assess

the State's economic situation.Andhra's brand image has beencompletely ruined, the formerChief Minister said.

From daily wage earners toindustrialists, everybody wasmigrating from Andhra Pradesh toother States. Earlier, people used tomigrate from Odisha to AndhraPradesh in search of work. Now,there is reverse migration,

Chandrababu said. The TDP chiefalleged that the Chief Minister wasthreatening everyone by (mis)usingthe Crime InvestigationDepartment and the Anti-Corruption Bureau. Some of themare staying silent to safeguard theirprestige while some others areleaving the state, he said. Talkingabout the internal affairs of theTDP, he said he would hold meet-ings with the rank and file of all 175Assembly constituencies.Ineffective leaders and those whoare not working will be kept aside.The party cannot do any sacrifices.So, replacements will happen, hesaid. Chandrababu Naidu said theTDP would step up agitation in thecoming days on various issuesfaced by the people and expose theJagan regime.

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GST collection at Rs 1.29 L cr in Dec

Naxals on back foot

in Bastar regionNorth Korea’s

Kim talks food...P6

P5

P10

‘Modi hai to mehengaihai': Cong takes jibeat PM over inflation

The Congress Saturday attacked

the Central government overprice rise, saying both PrimeMinister Narendra "Modi and

inflation are harmful for the country"."Modi hai to mehengai hai (If there's

Modi, there's inflation)," Congressspokesperson Supriya Shrinet said,also criticising the government overthe Goods and services Tax terming

it 'Gabbar Singh tax'. Talking toreporters here, she said the Modi

government's New Year gift to thepoor are recession, unemployment

and inflation. "Both Modi andinflation are harmful for the country,"

the Congress spokesman said. Shesaid that 10 years ago when the

Congress was in power, theunemployment rate was two percent,

but it has reached about 10 percentin 2021.

India sends 5 lakhCovid vaccines to

Afghanistan

In the second tranche of

humanitarian aid toAfghanistan after it fell

to the Taliban, India on Saturdaysupplied 5,00,000 doses of theCovaxin vaccine to the war-torn

country and announced that an equalnumber of jabs would be sent in the

coming weeks. The Ministry ofExternal Affairs (MEA) said the

consignment of vaccine doses washanded over to the Indira Gandhi

Hospital in Kabul. It said another batchof additional 5,00,000 doses of the

vaccine would be supplied toAfghanistan in the coming weeks. The

consignment was sent to Kabul by aflight of Iran's Mahan Air.

New Year: Indian,Chinese troops

exchange sweets

India and Chinese troops on

Saturday exchangedsweets and greetings at 10

border posts along the Line of ActualControl (LAC) including in eastern

Ladakh to mark the New Year, officialssaid. The gesture by both sides came

in the midst of an over 18 month-longstandoff between the two sides in

several friction points in easternLadakh. The border areas in the

Ladakh region where the two sidesexchanged sweets and greetings areKonkala, Chushul Moldo, Demchok

Hot Springs, Daulat Beg Oldi,Bottleneck and KK pass, the officials

said. A similar exercise was carried outin Nathula and Kongra La in North

Sikkim.

In brief

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(IN VIJAYAWADA

Joy fills the air as youth throngstreets to welcome New YearC PRADEEP KUMAR

n VIJAYAWADA

Families, students and theyouth thronged the streets onSaturday to extend New Yeargreetings to their friends, rel-atives and loved ones, throw-ing COVID guidelines to thewind. Most of the people vis-ited places of worship. Thefootfall at bakeries and sweetshops was very good comparedto the previous year. The placeswere actually overcrowded.

The police took a sigh ofrelief as there were no unto-ward incidents, accidents, orgroup clashes during NewYear's eve celebrations. Theauthorities thanked thedenizens for their support andcooperation in followingCOVID guidelines during thecelebrations.

Last year, due to the COVID

infection surge, New Year cel-ebrations were low-key and theState government had putmany restrictions on conduct-ing prayers in churches on thenight of December 31 and

gatherings at temples.However, this year as theCOVID infection rate was incontrol, the authorities havegiven permission to celebratethe New Year following

COVID guidelines.People were seen visiting

churches across the city totake part in the New Year ser-vice in large numbers. On theother hand, people visited tem-ples in the city on the first dayof the New Year, offeredprayers, and took blessingsfrom the priests.

Meanwhile, students andyouth flooded the roads in themorning greeting each other asthere were restrictions imposedon New Year's eve. A few peo-ple cut cakes and some distrib-uted sweets among themselvesextending New Year greetings.Many students were seen inmovie theatres and commercialcomplexes spending time withtheir friends.

The sweets and bakery shopshad a roaring business onDecember 31 and January 1 aspeople thronged to grab cakes

and sweets of their choice.Anubhava Home Foods pro-

prietor Praveena said that thesale of bakery items, cakes, andsweets was good fromDecember 29 to January 1.When compared to the previ-ous year, it was far better asthere were more restrictionslast year due to COVID, sheadded.

A Vijay Kumar, an engineer-ing student, said that heenjoyed the New Year celebra-tions thoroughly with friends.He said he and his friends gath-ered in his house and later theywent around the city on bikestill midnight. They were awaketill 2 am, chitchatting. They cutthe cake, had food, and later fellasleep. On January 1, all thefriends met and visited templesand later went to BhavaniIsland and enjoyed till evening,he said.

n COVID precautions thrown to the wind in Andhra Pradesh

Fake note printing becomesan easy affair; rackets thrivingPNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

High-quality scanners and thelatest printing technologieshave made making fake cur-rencies way easier. Certaingangs are engaged in makingfake currency notes with a sim-ilar GSM (Grams per SquareMeter) to the original ones andthe same thickness of thepaper. Not only organisedgangs, but some youngstersalso print fake currencies andcirculate them in various mar-kets during busy hours.

Though the police havenabbed many members of thefake currency mafia, the majorplayers in the business arestill not in the picture. Thegangs have also changed theirmethods of circulating fakecurrency. Earlier, they used tosell fake currency notes for realnotes - they would sell fakenotes worth Rs.30/40 forRs.60/70. Instead of bulk trad-ing, the gangs now circulate thecounterfeit currency in busymarkets, wine shops, petroloutlets, cinema theatres andthe shopping malls whichdeposit the daily collections inbanks.

After the demonetisation,however, printing fake noteshas become easy as the paperwith the thickness of real

Rs.100, Rs.200 and Rs.500 isavailable in markets. High-resolution printers and scan-ners are also available at afford-able prices. These factors aresure to attract the youths whowish to make money easily.

"Yes, since the demonetisa-tion, more such incidents havebeen reported. If a bankerrejects a fake currency note,the depositors have to replacethe same and should pay fromtheir pockets," said a seniorpolice officer. Earlier, therewere mafias that printed andcirculated fake currency inthe markets. Now, with thehelp of the high-resolutionprinters, scanners and otherthings, anyone can do it, theofficer said.

The cashiers at some banksexpressed their helplessness

to identify the fake currency.Some of the nationalised banksdo not have the latest technol-ogy counting machines. Whilecounting the notes, suchmachines can easily identifythe fake ones and alert the staff.However, several banks don'thave the latest machines andstill maintain old ones.

"There are several CurrentAccount holders in the branchand they deposit lakhs ofrupees every day. Because ofthe rush, it has become atough task to identify fakecurrency. Recently, the super-visor of a wine shop deposit-ed Rs.4.5 lakh from which fourRs.200 fake notes were found.The supervisor had to pay theamount from his own pocket,"an employee of a leading bankin Visakhapatnam said.

Cancellation of proposalfor 3 Capitals demandedPNS n VIJAYAWADA

The Amaravati Capital RegionCoordination Committee andthe CPM have demanded can-cellation of the proposal ofthree capitals and release of aWhite Paper revealing the factsabout Amaravati.

CPM State executive com-mittee member and ACRCCconvener Ch Babu Raodemanded that the YSRCPgovernment should abandonthe idea of three capitals andthe Centre should fund andcomplete the capital construc-tion. He demanded that thegovernment disclose the factson the sale of capital lands byreleasing a White Paper.

Babu Rao deplored that

after seven years of the enact-ment of the APCRDA Act, theconstruction of the capitalAmaravati was still not pro-gressing smoothly. Hedemanded that Amaravatishould be retained as the onlycapital and it should be fullydeveloped.

He further demanded thatthe State government shouldsettle all the disputes by con-ducting an all-party meeting toresolve the Amaravati issueamicably. He said that peoplewere worried over the newsthat the government was try-ing to borrow Rs 11,000 croreby selling capital lands hencethe government should dis-close facts.

He recalled that as an

Opposition party, YSRCP hadopposed sanctioning ofAmaravati lands to Singaporecompanies during the TeluguDesam Party government'sregime, but the YSRCP gov-ernment followed the samepath of the TDP government.

Babu Rao said that accord-ing to the AP ReorganisationAct, the responsibility of con-structing the capital is on theCentral government and itshould construct theSecretariat, Raj Bhavan,Assembly, Council and HighCourt buildings. He demand-ed that the State governmentstop selling Amaravati landsand pressurise the Union gov-ernment to fulfil its responsi-bility of capital construction.

Judge celebrates NewYear at old-age homePNS n VIJAYAWADA

Andhra Pradesh High CourtJudge Justice Battu Devanand,along with his wife PadmaKumari, celebrated New Year'sDay at an old- age home in thecity. The couple, along withBattu Prasanna Kumari, man-aging trustee of BattuVenkataratnam CharitableTrust, visited the old-age homerun by HoDs of VMC in RajivNagar in the city on Saturday.

VMC Commissioner VPrasanna Venkatesh, alongwith his wife Maanasa, wel-comed Justice Devanand andhis wife and introduced themto the inmates of the old-agehome. The couple cut the

cake with the inmates andextended New Year greetingsto them. They also distributednew clothes to the inmates.Later, they personally servedfood to the inmates andenquired about their wellbe-ing.

The judge was satisfied withthe arrangements and thepleasant atmosphere providedinside the home and compli-mented the organisers for thesame. He expressed hope thatthe people who wished toserve people would follow thelead.

Local corporator MTirupathamma, District FireOfficer T Srinivas and otherstaff were present.

Continued from Page 1

"This year we will complete 75years of our independence.This is the time to start a newvibrant journey of the country'sresolves, to move forward withrenewed vigour," Modi said ashe elaborated on the power ofcollective effort.

In his first address of 2022,Modi said that on many para-meters, the Indian economy islooking better than pre-coviddays.

He pointed out that India'seconomy is growing at morethan 8 per cent, the country hasattracted record foreign invest-ment, forex reserves have

touched new highs and GSTcollections are rising. Also,the country has set new recordsin exports, especially in agricul-ture, he added.

Modi also said that in 2021,transactions of more than Rs70 lakh crore were done onUPI. More than 50,000 start-ups are working in India ofwhich 10,000 came up duringthe last six months.

He further said the year2021 was also the year ofstrengthening India's culturalheritage. Initiatives like beau-tification and development ofKashi Vishwanath Dham andKedarnath Dham, Renovationof Samadhi of Aadi

Shankaracharya, restoration ofstolen idol of goddessAnnapoorna, construction ofRam Mandir in Ayodhya andgetting World Heritage statusfor Dholavira and Durga Pujafestival are strengtheningIndia's heritage and enhancingits tourism and pilgrimagepotential, he said.

Also, Modi said the processhas been initiated to raise thelegal marriage age of women to21 years from the current 18years, and bringing at par withthat of men.

He also referred to openingof doors of Sainik Schools andthe National Defense Academyfor women candidates. Also,

India is making unprecedent-ed investment in the sportinginfrastructure of the country,the Prime Minister informed.

Leading the world againstclimate change, Modi saidIndia has also set a target ofNet Zero Carbon Emission infront of the world by 2070.Many records of renewableenergy, he added, are beingmet by India before time. Healso spoke about India's hydro-gen mission and taking thelead in electric vehicles

In his address, the PrimeMinister said that PMGatishakti National MasterPlan is going to give a newedge to the pace of infrastruc-

ture construction in the coun-try.

"Giving new dimensions toMake in India, the country hasimplemented ambitious plansfor new sectors like chip man-ufacturing, semiconductor,"he added.

The Prime Minister alsoreleased 10th instalment ofPM-KISAN under which overRs 20,900 crore were trans-ferred to more than 10.09crore beneficiary farmer fam-ilies. He also released equitygrant of more than Rs 14 croreto about 351 Farmer ProducerOrganizations (FPOs), a moveaimed at benefiting nearly1.24 lakhs farmers.

India will not allow Covid to dampen development...

A new era has begunwith visionary...Continued from Page 1

People had given Naidu achance in 2014 who misusedhis power to loot as much aspossible and abandoned pub-lic welfare. In the last 30months, Chief Minister JaganMohan Reddy had giventransparent governancethrough village and ward sec-retaries, by implementing var-ious welfare schemes and cre-ating jobs to lakhs of youth.

He said that by 2024, over80 lakh poor families would beentitled to ownership of theirhouses, fulfilling their distantdream through the govern-ment's housing scheme andOTS. While the State govern-ment had been fulfilling thedreams of the poor by distrib-

uting house sites, constructinghouses, and providing owner-ship rights through OTS, theOpposition leaders were stilltrying to defame the govern-ment through malicious pro-paganda and by filing PILs inthe courts. He said that theOpposition parties in the Statewere jealous over the goodgovernance of the ChiefMinister and had been creat-ing hurdles in the path ofdevelopment.

Sajjala said that the ChiefMinister is trying to build a'Human Capital' with 'HumanAssets' by providing good gov-ernance along with welfare.The government is laying thefoundations for creating aprosperous, healthy and edu-cated State in the long run.

Stampede at Vaishno Devi Shrine leaves ...Continued from Page 1

The Shri Mata Vaishno DeviShrine Board, however, deniedthe charges saying all necessaryarrangements were made inview of the expected rush.

Most of the deaths havetaken place due to suffocation,police said, adding among thedeceased seven are from UttarPradesh, three from Delhi andone each from Haryana and J-K.

Director General of PoliceDilbag Singh told reportersthat the incident took place dueto confusion or "probably dueto some altercation".

"All these things are beinglooked into. That area is a lit-tle narrow and people ran hel-ter-skelter without knowingthe reason. Most of the deathshave taken place due to suffo-cation and most of the injuriesare also due to the same rea-son," he said.

Singh had told PTI that pre-liminary information from thescene suggests there was aminor altercation among some

boys, and within seconds, therewas a stampede.

"Police and officials of thecivil administration were quickto respond, and the order with-in the crowd was immediatelyrestored, but by that time, thedamage had been done," saidthe DGP, who accompaniedthe Minister of State in thePMO, Jitendra Singh, duringthe visit to the shrine after thestampede.

Prem Singh, from Gwalior inMadhya Pradesh, said therewas a "complete mess" as nei-ther was the number of pil-grims restricted nor wereCOVID-19 guidelinesenforced.

"It was a free-for-all-like sit-uation. Many people werewithout mandatory facemasks," he said, claiming thatpolice personnel on duty at thechecking point surrendered tothe heavy rush and were warn-ing people about the possibil-ity of such an accident.

"Nothing but mismanage-ment was the cause for thistragic accident. They were

aware about the possible rushbut allowed the people inunhindered," a pilgrim fromGhaziabad in Uttar Pradeshsaid while waiting outside amortuary to identify a body.

Many people were resting onthe floor, instead of headingback, and this led to over-crowding and chaos at thesite, he said.

Senior officials present at thescene said 12 people died in thestampede and their bodieswere taken to a hospital in theKatra base camp.

The deceased were identifiedas Arun Pratab Singh (30),Dharam Veer Singh (35),Vineet Kumar (38), ShewataSingh (35), Mohinder Gour(26), Narinder Kashap (40)and Monu Sharma (32) ofUttar Pradesh, Vinay Kumar(24), Sonu Panday (24) andAkash Kumar (29) of Delhi,Mamta (38) of Haryana andDesraj Kumar (26) of Rajouridistrict of Jammu and Kashmir,the officials said.

Sixteen injured were admit-ted to the Mata Vaishno Devi

Narayana SuperspecialityHospital, and the condition oftwo of them was stated to becritical. Six were later dis-charged after first-aid, theyadded.

Rani Devi of Bihar'sMuzaffarpur said they werefortunate to escape death.

"I saw many people lying onthe floor and was heartbro-ken," she said, blaming thetragedy on the "uncontrolled"crowd of pilgrims.

Another man, who lost hisfriend Arun Pratab Singh (30),said they had come fromGorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh.Aditya Sharma, a pilgrim, saidsome people who were sleep-ing on the floor got crushed inthe melee.

An hour after the incident,pilgrims were again allowed atthe site, the officials said,adding the yatra was not dis-rupted.

Following the incident,many pilgrims were seen leav-ing Katra without visiting theshrine.

"We are from Pathankot.

We returned from the bhawanwithout 'darshan' due to thestampede," said Rekha, whowas accompanied by five otherfamily members, includingthree children.

Prime Minister Modi saidthat the central government isin constant touch with the J-K administration to assist theaffected people.

The JK administration hasannounced a relief of Rs 10lakh to the deceased and Rs 2lakh to the injured which willbe paid by the Shrine board.

The PMO tweeted that "anex gratia of Rs 2 lakh eachfrom PMNRF would be givento the next of kin of those wholost their lives due to the stam-pede at Mata Vaishno DeviBhawan. The injured would begiven Rs 50,000: PM @naren-dramodi".

Union Minister JitendraSingh said innovative measuresare required to deal with thenew trend of youngsters eagerto visit the Mata Vaishno Devishrine on the first day of thenew year.

Naidu meets Radha, discusses...Continued from Page 1

Naidu said that some newschannels had already telecastsome evidence on the incidentbut the police did not respond.Naidu demanded that thepolice take Radha's complaintseriously and conduct a com-prehensive inquiry on whoconducted recce at his office.

Meanwhile, Naidu, for thefirst time, went to the house ofRadha Krishna which hadbecome a hot topic in the Statesince Radha Krishna earnedfame as a Kapu leader. RadhaKrishna's motherRatnakumari was a two-timeMLA. She was elected to the

Assembly from VijayawadaEast constituency twice onthe Congress ticket but latershe quit the Congress andjoined the TDP.

As the TDP did not give herticket to contest from the Eastconstituency in 1999, she quitpolitics. Interestingly,Vangaveeti Radha was electedto the Assembly from EastConstituency in 2004. Later, hejoined the Praja Rajyam Party(PRP) founded by film actor KChiranjeevi. Later, he quit theparty. Radha and his motherRatnakumari later joined theYSRCP. However, Radha quitthe YSRCP before the 2019elections and joined the TDP.

GST onZomato,...Continued from Page 1

These are among the manychanges in the GST regimethat have come into effect inthis new year 2022.

Also to tackle evasion, theGST law has been amendedto state that the input taxcredit will now be availableonly once the credit isappearing in GSTR 2B (pur-chase return) of the tax payer.Five per cent provisionalcredit, earlier allowed in GSTrules, will not be permittedpost January 1, 2022.

EY India Tax Partner BipinSapra said "this change willhave an immediate impacton working capital of taxpayers who are currentlyavailing credit of 105 per centof matched credit. Thechange will also mandateindustry to validate that theprocurements are made fromgenuine and compliant ven-dors."

The other anti-evasionmeasures which would comeinto effect from the new yearinclude mandatory Aadhaarauthentication for claimingGST refund, blocking of thefacility of GSTR-1 filing incases where the business hasnot paid taxes and filedGSTR-3B in the immediateprevious month.

Currently, the law restrictsfiling of return for outwardsupplies or GSTR-1 in case abusiness fails to file GSTR-3Bof preceding two months.

44 Naxalssurrender...Continued from Page 1

One of them, Madkam Dula, amember of Maoist platoon no.4, was carrying a reward of Rs2 lakh on his head.

Others were members ofnaxals' militia or the ChetnaNatya Mandli, a cultural wingof Maoists, Sharma told PTI.

A large number of local vil-lagers accompanied the cadreswhen they arrived at the policecamp, located more than 400km from capital Raipur, he said.

The surrendered cadres saidthey were disappointed withthe "hollow" Maoist ideologyand "impressed" by the districtpolice's rehabilitation drive fornaxals, called 'Puna Narkom',he said.

Puna Narkom, a Gondiword, means a new dawn.

Social security pension hiked...Continued from Page 1

He said that besides providingsocial security pensions to olderpeople, widows and the dis-abled, the government is alsogiving pensions to patients whoare suffering from critical ill-nesses, and added that AndhraPradesh is the only State tocome up with such an initiative.

On YSR Pension Kanukaalone, the government hadspent over Rs 45,000 crore,since the inception, without anycuttings or any corruption andadded over 18.44 lakh freshbeneficiaries.

Taking a dig at theOpposition, the Chief Ministersaid that there are a lot of peo-ple who criticise even thoughthe government has been doinggood for the people and provid-ing financial support to thosewho couldn't earn a living. Herecalled the instances of theOpposition going to courtsagainst the house site distribu-tion in Amaravati citing 'demo-graphic imbalance' althoughthey were demanding it as thesole capital. He said that suchcritics are also objecting to the

OTS scheme with jealousy, as itenables the poor to gain fullrights over their houses.

Terming them 'anti-poor',he said the Opposition politi-cises the introduction of Englishmedium, distribution of housesites for the poor, even the priceregulation on cinema tickets,leaving no aspect that benefitsthe poor.

He said the government didnot hold back any welfare ini-tiatives despite financial diffi-culties due to the Covid crisis,leaving no one behind irrespec-tive of caste, religion or theparty they support. In case ofany difficulty in receiving pen-sions, the Chief Minister sug-gested contacting thevillage/ward secretariats or vol-unteers immediately or callingthe toll-free number 1902 forhelp.

Later, the Chief Ministersanctioned the construction ofa new PHC building atPedanandipadu, constructionof CC roads, drains, sportsdevelopment centres, drinkingwater provision to Prathipadu,double roads, and setting up ofcentral lighting.

VIJAYAWADA | SUNDAY | JANUARY 2, 2022 vijayawada 03

VMC CCHIEF PPRAYS AAT MMARY MMATHA SSHRINE

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Purohits of the TirumalaTirupati Devasthanams (TTD)and Sri Durga MalleswaraSwamy Varla Devasthanam,have given Veda Ashirvachanamto Andhra Pradesh Governor SriBiswa Bhusan Harichandan andthe First Lady of the StateSuprava Harichandan, on theoccasion of New Year, at RajBhavan on Saturday. SomiNaidu, Chairman, Sri DurgaMalleswara Swamy VarlaDevasthanam and G VaniMohan, Secretary, Endowmentdepartment, D Bhramaramba,EO handed over ‘Prasadam’ tothe Governor. P Ramesh Kumar, Chief InformationCommissioner and Members ofAP Information Commission,

Dr Sameer Sharma, ChiefSecretary, Gautam Sawang,Director General of Police, KVijayanand, Chief ElectoralOfficer, Kanti Rana Tata,Vijayawada PoliceCommissioner, P Arjun Rao,Director of BC Welfare, Dr. ASridhar Reddy, Chairman, andAK Parida, General Secretary ofAP State Branch of Indian RedCross Society, called on theGovernor at Raj Bhavan andgreeted him on the occasion ofNew Year. Earlier, GovernorHarichandan released the 2022Year Calendar brought out byRaj Bhavan, in the presence ofRP Sisodia, Special ChiefSecretary to Governor and AShyam Prasad, Joint Secretary,and other officers of RajBhavan.

Durga Temple priests blessGovernor on New Year

Telugu Yuvatha demandsrelease of fresh job calendarPNS n VIJAYAWADA

Telugu Yuvatha general secre-tary K Naga Sravan onSaturday asserted that theorganisation will launch anoth-er full-scale agitation if theJaganmohan Reddy govern-ment does not release a gen-uine job calendar by the end ofthis January. Naga Sravanstrongly criticised the ChiefMinister for not fulfilling hispre-election promise of issuinga job calendar on every NewYear Day.

Addressing a press confer-ence here, the TDP leaderdemanded that the YSRCPgovernment release a freshjob calendar to fill thepromised 2.30 lakh jobs by the

end of this month. The CMshould also fulfill his promiseto take up a mega DSC to give26,000 Government teacherposts to the aspiring youth.Many educated unemployedyouth were eagerly waiting forthese job notifications.

Naga Sravan recalled howthe YSRCP leaders spread mis-information that the previousTDP regime did not fill over17,000 teacher jobs. The ChiefMinister raised great expecta-tions among the youth at thattime. But once he got power, hestarted turning a deaf ear to thejob aspirations of the youth.Three January firsts were overbut Jaganmohan Reddy did notfill a single genuine job in theState.

The TDP leader said the CMjust released a fake job calen-dar on June 18 last year inwhich just 10,143 vacancieswere mentioned. Big advertise-ments were given in the mediaabout a job revolution. But, theGovernment did not provideeven these jobs in reality. Thebetrayal of job aspirants wascontinuing unabated in theState.

Naga Sravan said HomeMinister Sucharita spoke offilling over 16,000 constablejobs at the rate of 4,000 jobs peryear. Over 14 lakh aspirantswere waiting for these oppor-tunities. They took loans andgot coaching for this. But, theGovernment was not taking upthis recruitment.

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

The long-cherished dream ofthe students of GovernmentSchool for VisuallyHandicapped, located atYendada in the city, for a play-ground has come true onSaturday. It is the only residen-tial school for the blind in theState where a large number ofstudents are pursuing theireducation.

The students are also partic-ipating in various games andsports at State and national lev-els. However, the school had noexclusive playground for the

past three-and-a-half decades.Taking cognizance of this,

pharma company Divi’sLaboratories Limited hasdeveloped an exclusive play-ground and provided all nec-essary material to the school.

The playground, which wasdeveloped at a cost of Rs13lakh, is named DiviChandravadana Kala Vedika.It was inaugurated by thestudents of the school in thepresence of Director, Divi’s

Laboratories DiviMadhusudhan Rao andPrincipal of the school MMaheswara Reddy onSaturday.

The company also set up a2.32 KV capacity solar powersystem, at a cost of Rs 3 lakh.

Speaking on the occasion,the principal of the schoolthanked Divi’s company for itscontinuous support to theinstitution.

E S Nagaraju, CSR Officer,Balakrishna and K Narsimhulufrom the company, the facultyand the students were presenton the occasion.

Divi's builds a playground for Govt Blind School

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Andhra Pradesh GovernorBiswa Bhusan Harichandaninaugurated the 32ndVijayawada Book Festivalorganised by Vijayawada BookFestival Society in Vijayawadaon Saturday, from Raj Bhavanin virtual mode.

Speaking on the occasion,Governor Sri Harichandansaid that the Vijayawada BookFestival provides a platform forbook-lovers and book enthu-siasts to gather and browsethrough more than three lakhbooks in English, Telugu andHindi languages, displayed by200 publishers, participatingfrom within and outside ofAndhra Pradesh.

Governor Harichandan saidhe is also an avid book-loverhimself and a writer of patri-otic literature in Oriya lan-guage and while in prisonduring the Emergency periodand later on, he had availed thegreat resources for writingbooks such as Raana Pratap,Maru Bataas, Manasi etc. inOdia language.

The Governor further saidhe was happy to learn that theVijayawada Book FestivalSociety has been successfullymaintaining a library for thepast 18 years, in addition toholding the annual BookFestival, by bringing goodbooks and literature within thereach of book lovers. Libraries

played a vital role in the free-dom movement and helpedthe freedom fighters to spreadthe message of freedom strug-gle and carry forward themovement to reach the goal,said the Governor.

He said, ‘As a writer and abook-lover, I strongly appealto all the parents to inculcatethe habit of book readingamong children at a youngage, which will empower themwith the knowledge as theygrow up reading books.’

The Governor compliment-ed the members of VijayawadaBook Festival Society for theirefforts in organising the annu-al 32nd Vijayawada BookFestival, on such a large scalewith a view to encouraging thehabit of book reading andsuggested that they shouldconsider publishing selectedworks of eminent authors ofother Indian languages intoTelugu so that the Telugureader is exposed to the cul-ture and history of otherregions of the country.

Velampalli Srinivas,Minister of Endowments,Malladi Vishnu, MLA, RBhagya Lakshmi, Mayor ofVijayawada MunicipalCorporation, Manohar Naidu,President, Vijay Kumar,EMESCO, Coordinator,Vijayawada Book FestivalSociety, have participated inthe programme in virtualmode.

Guv’s emphasis on inculcatingreading habit among kidsBiswa Bhusan Harichandan inaugurates 32

ndVijayawada Book Festival

Phototherapy unitopened at rly hospitalPNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

Phototherapy unit was inau-gurated in the DivisionalRailway Hospital by presidentof the East Coast RailwayWomen’s WelfareOrganisation (ECoRWWO),Waltair, Parijatha Satpathy onSaturday.

The Infant LED doublelight phototherapy unit hasbeen donated by Women’sWelfare Organisation Waltairfor the benefit of the newbornbabies at the hospital.Neonatal jaundice is the mostcommon in newborn babiesin the first week of life forwhich some babies need pho-totherapy which helps indecreasing the bilirubin whichis responsible for jaundice. Tillnow, babies of newborns withneonatal jaundice have beenreferred to private tie up hos-pitals, due to which babies had

to stay at those hospitals andmothers had to stay at the hos-pital. The unit now clears thedifficulty and the babies canbe treated at the hospital.

The Divisional RailwayHospital, Waltair has 134 bedswith all the necessary special-ties in-house. On average, 15-20 deliveries occur per monthwhich is on the gradualincrease and now the pho-totherapy unit adds on morebenefits to the railway organ-isation.

Chief MedicalSuperintendent Dr. M KRamakrishna; Secretary ofECoRWWO Priyanka, Dr.Bhashini, Gynecologist andothers were present.

Divisional RailwayManager Anup Satpathy con-veyed best wishes to the hos-pital team and appreciated theefforts of the ECoRWWO forsuch a noble cause. 25,012 eye surgeries

performed by ShankarFoundation in 2021PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

Noted eye care institutionShankar Foundation has per-formed the highest number25,012 eye surgeries during2021 and occupied the firstposition in the implementa-tion of the Dr. YSR KantiVelugu scheme in the State.

An official release from theShankar Foundation claimedthat a total of 3,67,888 eyesurgeries were performedsince its inception.

Managing Trustee of theFoundation K B N Manimalacommended the State govern-ment’s support to the hospital,particularly the governmentparamedical ophthalmic offi-cers who are instrumental inthe successful implementa-tion of Dr.YSR Kanti Veluguand Dr. YSR Aarogyasrischemes.

Out of the total eye surg-eries, 2,87,356 operations wereperformed free of cost in thehospital. The hospital has per-formed 9,423 cataract surgeries

for over 60 years under theState government’s ‘Awwa-Tata’programme during 2021. Thehospital is also conductingeye screening camps under theaegis of ITDA, Paderu andextending surgical treatment tothe tribals living in interiorhamlets in the Agency areas,Manimala explained.

Three youthkilled, 1 hurt in mishapPNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

Three youths died andanother person receivedsevere brain injury in a roadaccident on the BRTS Roadin the city on Saturday.

The incident took placewhen two speeding bikescollided near Arilova in thecity. According to the police,the two bike riders wereproceeding in oppositedirections at high speed.

The deceased were iden-tified as Rakesh, Rambabufrom Vivekananda Nagar,Arilova, and Nitish fromPydimamba Colony,Vepagunta. All of them wereaged between 20 and 25years.

The middle lane of theBRTS road was closed onFriday night to prevent thebike racers.

However, after 5 am, thepolice removed the barri-cades and allowed vehiculartraffic on it.

The accident occurred ataround 6.15 a.m, the policesaid.

Vijayawada Municipal Commissioner V Prasanna Venkatesh, his wife Maanasa, and their children attended a prayer service organised to mark New Year's Day at the famous Mother Mary Church in Gunadala on Saturday evening. The Commissioneroffered prayers to Mother Mary for the well-being, good health, and prosperity of the people of Vijayawada.

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Chief Minister Y S JaganMohan Reddy celebratedthe New Year Day at thecamp of f i ce here onSaturday with cake cuttingalong with ministers andofficials, as priests chantedVedic hymns.

The priests from Tirupati

Tirumala Devasthanams(TTD) blessed the ChiefMinister and gave himprasadam, along with TTDcalendars and diaries.

Minis ters PeddireddyR amachandra Reddy,Vel l ampal l i Sr in ivas ,Adimulapu Suresh, Ch SriRanganatha Raju, ChiefSecretary Sameer Sharma,

D GP Gaut am Sawang ,G over nment Adv is erAdityanath Das, SecretariesSolomon Arokiaraj, RevuMuthyalaraju and other offi-cials were present on theoccasion.

Governor's Special CS RPSisodia conveyed greetingsto the Chief Minister onbehalf of the Governor.

Jagan celebrates New Year with ministers, CMO officials

New Yearcelebrated in style at SRM-AP UnivPNS n VIJAYAWADA

The New Year was welcomedby the students, faculty andadministrative staff mem-bers of SRM University-AP ina colourful manner on cam-pus on Saturday. Vice-Chancellor Prof VS Rao cutthe New Year special cake andaddressed the gathering.

On the occasion, Rao said,“We shall enter the NewYear with the hope that pan-demic will be endemic in2022”. He also suggested thateveryone take steps in aplanned manner to receivethe success they hope for inthe new year.

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

The Confederation of IndianIndustr y (CII)-AndhraPradesh chapter organised its34th edition of AndhraPradesh State-level qualitycircle competition for theyear 2021 through digitalplatform.

Mangal Industries Limited(Vivekananda-01 QC team)won first place, AurobindoPharma (Badlav QC team)second place, while AmaraRaja Electronics Limited(Power zone QC team)bagged third place.

A large number of teamstook part in the competi-tion.

The CII has been continu-ally advocating the need forincreased attention to quali-ty and productivity by indus-try.

The quality circles are vitalTQM Tools. They play a veryimportant role in involving awide cross-section of employ-ees in an organisation forimproving quality throughparticipation and motivatingworkers to exchange ideas,views and share experienceson quality circles and variousapproaches to problem-solv-ing.

The State-level competi-tion is a part of CII’s contin-uous thrust towards strength-ening the quality movement

in India. The three winners of the

competition would now com-pete at the Southern Regionallevel competition. Regionalwinners finally compete at theCII National QC CircleConvention.

A V Seshagiri Rao, P S SHanumantha Rao, from fac-ulty, QCFI, HyderabadChapter and C B HemaMalini, retired employees ofBEL, Hyderabad acted asjudges for the competition.

P L Bheemesh, Co-Convenor, CII AndhraPradesh inaugurated the com-petition and announced thewinners at the valedictorysession.

Mangal Industries bags firstplace in CII-AP quality contest

Industrialists, workers migrating: Naidu PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Leader of the Opposition NChandrababu Naidu onSaturday said that he was notable to estimate the extent offinancial crisis that the YSRCPgovernment has caused inAndhra Pradesh in the pastthree years.

Naidu said many chief min-isters had served the united andresidual AP in the past but noneof them has caused this kind ofinestimable, irreparable damage

to the State economy. The ongo-ing destructive rule was badlyhurting the brand image of aprogressive State like AP bothnationally and internationally.

In a chit-chat with the mediapersons here on the occasion ofNew Year, the TDP chiefexpressed concern that all sec-tions of the people were losinghope in finding a better futurein the State. From the industri-alists to the daily wage coolies,all Andhras have been lookingtowards other States for work

opportunities and livelihoods.Naidu said a sort of reverse

migration was taking placebetween AP and its neighboringStates. In the past, people usedto come from Bhubaneswar toVisakhapatnam for opportuni-ties. Now, the scene has reversedand people are going fromVizag to Bhubaneswar, the cap-ital of the neighboring OdishaState.

Naidu said CM JaganmohanReddy had a big relief as he didnot have to face the people dur-

ing the Coronavirus infections.The CM did not come onto theroads in view of the pandemicconcerns. It was a breather forhim at a time when publicresentment was rising. The TDPwould hold meetings in all the175 assembly segments and itwould step up people's agita-tions.

The TDP chief said there wasinformation in circulation about'early elections' in AP. In such asituation, the TDP would alwaysbe ready.

VIJAYAWADA | SUNDAY | JANUARY 2, 2022 04

PNS n ONGOLE

Prakasam District CollectorPravin Kumar said that Rs109.90 crore was disbursed to3,70,088 pensioners inPrakasam district on Saturday.

A programme was organisedhere on Saturday on the occa-sion of the release of enhancedpensions. Speaking on theoccasion, the Collector saidthat the enhancement of socialsecurity pension from Rs 2,250to Rs 2500 benefited 3,70,088.He said that 9,940 eligiblebeneficiaries for pensions hadbeen identified during themonth of December. Rs3,191.53 worth pensions hadbeen disbursed to the pension-ers in the district from June2019 to December 2021, theCollector informed.

E du c at i on m i n i s te rAdimulapu Suresh said thatChief Minister YS Jagan

Mohan Reddy formal lylaunched the disbursementof enhanced pensions today.He said that Rs 2500 isbeing disbursed in the stateto 8 categories of pension-ers, and welcomed the ChiefMinister’s decision of hikingsocial security pension to Rs2,500.

The minister said that theChief Minister is giving toppriority to the welfare of thepoor as well as the develop-ment of the state. The ChiefMinister knew the difficulties

of the people during his paday-atra. He was fulfilling all theassurances which he had givenduring the padayatra. As partof fulfilling the promise, thesocial security pension washiked to Rs 2500, he added.

“The construction works ofVeligonda project phase 1 willbe completed and water will bereleased during this year itself.All the problems of evacueeswill also be resolved at the ear-liest”, the minister said anddirected the Collector to takesteps to resolve the evacuees'

grievances. MP Magunta Srinivasa

Reddy said that the manifestoassurance of hiking pensiongradually to Rs 3000 was beingfulfilled. The Chief Minister isnot compromising in imple-menting welfare schemes andcarrying out developmentworks in the state. MLC PotulaSunita also spoke. Mayor GSujata, Joint Collector KKrishnaveni, DRDA PD BabuRao, and MEPMA PD RaviKumar were among those whowere present.

Rs 109.90 cr disbursed topensioners in Prakasam

PNS n ONGOLE

Superintendent of PoliceMalika Garg called onCollector Pravin Kumar, HighCourt Judge K ManmadhaRao, District Judge VenkataJyothirmai and conveyed NewYear greetings here onSaturday.

The SP personally met theCollector, High Court Judgeand district judge, presentedthem a bouquet and conveyedNew Year greetings.

Later, the SP cut the cake inthe SP office to celebrate NewYear's eve and expressed bestwishes to the police officialsand staff.

Speaking on the occasion,she exhorted all to work with

enthusiasm in the New Year.She appealed to all to work ina coordinated manner andresolve the problems of victimssympathetically.

The SP asked the policepersonnel to reach out to peo-

ple and serve them better tothem. OSD K Chodeshwari,AE Additional SP Ashok Babu,DPO AO M Sulochana and ahost of DSPs and CIs partici-pated in the New Year celebra-tions.

PNS n ELURU

West Godavari DistrictCollector Kartikeya Mishrasaid that Rs 1.26 crore was dis-bursed to over 4,19,431 pen-sioners on Saturday.

A programme was organ-ised here on Saturday to dis-burse the enhanced pensions.The government hiked thesocial security pensions fromRs 2,250 to Rs 2500 and ChiefMinister YS Jagan MohanReddy launched the disburse-ment today in Prathipadu inthe Guntur district.

The Collector personallyhanded over pensions to someof the beneficiaries. Speakingon the occasion, he said thepensioners in the WestGodavari district were dis-bursed Rs 1,26,21,000 worth ofpensions. He said that 13,722eligible people were sanctionedpensions which caused Rs 3.21crore additional burden onthe exchequer.

The Collector said that since

2019, 1,36,616 pensions hadbeen sanctioned in the district.From January 1 st onwards, theenhanced person of Rs 2500would be disbursed to nearly5 lakh beneficiaries.

ZP chairman K Srinivassaid that as per the assurancegiven by Chief Minister YSJagan Mohan Reddy's socialsecurity pension was beinghiked gradually to Rs 3000. Hesaid that when the YSRCPcame to power Rs 2000 was

being disbursed as pensionand the government as perpromise hiked it to Rs 2250and now again enhanced it toRs 2500. The Collector and ZPchairman disbursed the pen-sions to some of the elderlybeneficiaries. Joint CollectorHimanshu Shukla, DRDA PDSrinivas, ZP CEOHariharanath, DPO RameshBabu, and DWMA PDRambabu were among a slewof officials who were present.

Enhanced pensions totalingRs. 1.26 cr disbursed in WG

Car catchesfire, one diesPNS n NELLORE

An unidentified person wasburnt alive when the car inwhich he was travellingcaught fire at Golagamudirailway gate inVenkatachalam mandal onSaturday.

Police said that an uniden-tified person was burnt alivein the car in which he wastravelling. The body wasburnt beyond recognitionand the car was completelygutted. The police registereda case and started an investi-gation.

Police identified thedeceased as Mallikharjunwho was running RK Xeroxcentre in Nellore. The policesuspect that he might becommitted suicide by settingablaze.

SP Garg asks cops to work with renewed enthusiasm

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Minister for HousingCherukuvada Sri RanganathaRaju has directed the officialsto provide construction mate-rials in the housing layouts tohelp beneficiaries in construc-tion of houses. The ministerinstructed them to expedite theconstruction of houses whichwere started in the first phaseas part of the Navaratnalu-Pedal Andariki Illu HousingScheme for the poor in theState.

Minister Ranganatha Rajusaid that godowns should beestablished in every layout tostore the building materialsand to supply the materials tothe beneficiaries at the layouts.

He said that bringing sandfrom other places wouldimpose an extra financial bur-den on the beneficiaries and

instructed the officials to sup-ply sand at the layouts.

On Saturday, State HousingDepartment ManagingDirector Narayana BharatGupta, Chief Engineer G VPrasad, SuperintendentEngineers Jayaramachari andNagbhushanam and other offi-cials met the minister at thecamp office at Thadepalli andconveyed New Year wishes.The housing officials explainedto the minister the progress ofthe first phase of the scheme.

The minister said that ChiefMinister Y S Jagan MohanReddy was giving top priorityto the housing programmeand the officials should workdedicatedly to achieve thisyear’s targets.

Building materials to be suppliedin layouts to help beneficiaries

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Krishna district police officialscelebrated the New Year in aninnovative way by visiting thehomes of constables, homeguards, and other staff onSaturday. Usually, the lowergrade staff visits the houses oftheir officials to extend theNew Year greetings. Contraryto the regular system, over 100police officials visited the res-idences of over 500 constablesand home guards in the districtand distributed sweets andcakes and greeted the family

members.Krishna distr ic t

Superintendent of PoliceSiddharth Kaushal and otherofficials visited the resi-dences of home guard P VNarasimha Rao, constable AR amachandra R ao, ARConstable N Rambabu inMachilipatnam. SP Kaushalmet the family members andextended the New Year greet-ings to the members. Theconstables and their familymembers were shocked overthe sudden visit of SP andcelebrating the New Year

with them. Kaushal also vis-ited the residence of consta-ble Ismail, who died recent-ly in the accident . Heenquired about their prob-lems and living conditionsand handed over the sweetpackets.

Similarly, the DeputySuperintendent of police andcircle inspectors visited the res-idences of constables, headconstables, and other staff onSaturday and extended theNew Year greetings and cele-brated the New Year with theirfamilies.

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

The CPM has strongly object-ed to the demand of the BJPleaders to rename the JinnahTower Centre, Guntur, andKing George Hospital (KGH),Visakhapatnam. The partypointed out that to divert peo-ple’s attention from their fail-ures, the BJP leaders were try-

ing to create trouble in society.Addressing media persons,senior CPM leader Ch.Narasinga Rao said that theCentral government had start-ed efforts to privatise theVisakhapatnam Steel Plant. “Itis keeping mum on the assur-ance to form a separate railwayzone with Visakhapatnam asheadquarters, not releasing

funds for the Polavaram projectand has categorically cheatedthe State by not accordingSpecial Category Status toAndhra Pradesh.

In order to divert attentionfrom these, the BJP has come upwith the demand to renameplaces and institutions,” Raopointed out.

“The BJP is aiming to dis-

turb the social harmony inthe State. The CPM neversupports such cheap politics.Instead, we are demandingimmediate sanction of fundsfor the Polavaram project,withdrawal of the move toprivatise Visakhapatnam SteelPlant and a railway zone withVisakhapatnam as headquar-ters,” Narasinga Rao said.

Celebrating New Year, the Krishna police style!

Siddha couple donates Rs 2.50Lfor annadanam of Durga templePNS n ONGOLE

Former minister and YSRCPleader Siddha Raghava Raoand his wife donated Rs2,50,000 for the NityaAnnadhanam scheme of thefamous Kanaka Durga temple,located atop the Indrakeeladrihill, in Vijayawada on Saturday.

Siddha Raghava Rao and hiswife handed over the donationto temple EO Brhamaramba.

The priests and committeemembers welcomed theRaghava Rao couple. Thepriests blessed the couple andpresented a 'Prasadam' andportrait of Goddess KanakaDurga.

Talking to the media on theoccasion, Siddha RaghavaRao said that he invoked thegoddess to bless the people ofthe state to be happy andprosperous.

BJP trying to divert public attention: CPM

Rowdy-sheeterdone to deathPNS n ELURU

A history-sheeter was brutal-ly murdered inTadepalligudem on Saturday.Police said that the deceasedDorababu (35) belonged toJuvvalapalem village and hewas involved in several crim-inal cases.

Some unidentified mis-creants murdered him byslitting his throat with sharpa weapon under the over-bridge in front of Srinivasalodge. He died instantaneous-ly. The miscreants alsoattacked another person, whowas with the deceased. He hasshifted to Tanuku area hospi-tal where his condition is saidto be critical.

PNS n TIRUPATI

Tirumala TirupatiDevasthanams (TTD)Executive Officer Dr. KSJawahar Reddy on Saturdayinspected Sri PadmavatiChildren‘s Cardiac Hospitalhere and gave some suggestions.

Speaking on the occasion,the EO said that as the nextexpansion in its medical ser-vices for the poor, TTD hadcommenced an action plan forthe construction of a SuperSpeciality Hospital in Tirupati.

Dr. Reddy said thePadmavati hospital was inau-gurated by Andhra PradeshChief Minister YS JaganMohan Reddy in 2020.

The hospital has become abackbone for the poor sinceNovember 11 onwards as near-ly 45 surgeries were performed,of which 50 percent were theopen heart, and the rest wereCath lab procedures.

He said there is a waiting list

of over 200 patients and week-ly 20 surgeries are beingmulled to be performed by a

dedicated team of doctors withthe aid of sophisticated med-ical equipment.

TTD to construct Super SpecialtyHospital in Tirupati: TTD EO

ELURU: Tirumala TirupatiDevasthanams (TTD) ExecutiveOfficer K S Jawahar Reddy onSaturday said that TTD Boardwould review the feasibility oflaunching degree courses forthe students of the SV Deafand Dumb schoolhere. JawaharReddy said the dif-ficulties of stu-dents after inter-mediate courseshad been broughtto his notice andthe TTD boardwould examine thefeasibility of starting

degree courses for them. Earlierthe TTD EO visited the SVSchool for Deaf & Dumb andinteracted with the students.Speaking on the occasion, Dr.Reddy said the special school is

already providing teach-ing from 1st standard

to intermediatecourses for thechallenged chil-dren. He direct-ed officials toprepare anaction plan for

developmentactivities in the

school.

TTD mulls degree coursesfor deaf, dumb students

Covid forces political parties tosuspend mass contact plansSNCN ACHARYULU

n HYDERABAD

Omicron and covid-19restrictions have upset theplans of the TRS and the BJPto intensify political moves.

TRS supremo K.Chandrasekhar Rao hadplanned to tour districts afterthe MLC elections whichconcluded on December 15.

At that time Telangana BJPPresident Bandi Sanjay

Kumar had announced thatthe second phase of PrajaSangrama Yatra will belaunched after December 15.

Union Home MinisterAmit Shah had asked BJPleaders to organise publicmeetings and that he willattend them. But the increasein omicron and covid caseshas forced the state govern-ment to impose restrictionson public gatherings.

Due to these restrictions,

Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao has post-poned his district visits. TheCM had planned to tour thedistricts to review develop-ment projects and to inaugu-rate TRS off ices. Now,sources say that KCR maystart his district visits only inFebruary after the Cabinetreshuffle.

Telangana BJP PresidentSanjay has not yet finalisedhis praja sangrama yatra.

‘Doubtful’ TRSMLAs lookingat other options K VENKATESHWARLU

n HYDERABAD

TRS legislators who havedoubts about their own per-formance in their constituen-cies are secretly holding talkswith other parties thinkingthat the TRS may not givethem tickets in the nextAssembly elections.

It seems that some TRSlegislators are secretly makingarrangements to join otherpolitical parties if their partydenies them tickets.

Sources said there are oneor two MLAs like this in alldistricts. It is learnt that theyare already holding negotia-tions with the leaders ofother parties without creatingany suspicion in the minds oftheir own leaders.

But they will not take adecision in a ‘hurry.’ They willtake a decision only after theTRS announces party ticketsfor the next Assembly polls.

Sources said doubtful TRSMLAs have launched theseexercises secretly after ChiefMinister K. ChandrasekharRao’s warning at the meetingheld on December 17 atPragathi Bhavan that someMLAs will not get tickets inthe next elections if they donot change their ways.

The Chief Minister alsowarned that he had informa-tion that some MLAs are fac-ing a lot of opposition in theirconstituencies. KCR had alsosaid that the MLAs shouldnot criticise him if they donot get a ticket.

Don't use our images for yourads: KTR takes a dig at netasNAVEENA GHANATE

n HYDERABAD

IT and MunicipalAdministration Minister K TRama Rao started the NewYear with a dig at netas in poll-bound states.

While sharing a glimpse ofthe Shaikpet Flyover built bythe Greater HyderabadMunicipal Corporation underthe Strategic RoadDevelopment Plan, KTR said:"Please don't copy theseimages and advertise in elec-tion-bound states".

It may be mentioned herethat the Uttar Pradesh govern-ment had faced a backlash onsocial media platforms forusing what appeared to be aphoto of a Kolkata flyover inone of its advertisements.However, later a media housetook responsibility for pub-lishing the ad, though not theUP government.

The six-lane two-way fly-over from Shaikhpet toRaidurgam, built under theStrategic Road DevelopmentPlan (SRDP) at a cost of Rs333 crore, was inaugurated onSaturday. This 2.7-km- longflyover is the second longestone in the city. It will help infree flow of traffic fromRethibowli towardsGachibolwli bypassing fourcrossings.

KTR said the state govern-ment was focused on develop-ment of Hyderabad as it hadbeen playing a key role inTelangana's contribution to

the national growth. He citedthe report of the ReserveBank of India (RBI) that, in ashort span of time, Telangana

had become the fourth largestcontributor to the country'seconomic growth.

KTR said that under SRDP,brainchild of Chief MinisterK. Chandrasekhar Rao, aimedat easing traffic congestion, 24projects had been completedat a cost of Rs 6,000 crore.

The government had alsoformed the Hyderabad RoadDevelopment CorporationLimited (HRDCL) to develop132 link roads under theComprehensive RoadMaintenance Program(CRMP), roads to a length of709 km were being main-tained.

VIJAYAWADA | SUNDAY | JANUARY 2, 2022 nation 05

The city's air qualityturned 'poor' onSaturday morning,

hours after revellers burstfirecrackers to ring in 2022,an official of West BengalPollution Control Board(WBPCB) said. People ofKolkata woke up to grey

skies as emission from firecrackers, coupled with winter smog,added to the pollution levels, he said. At the monitoring station ofBallygunge, the air quality index (AQI) was recorded at 237 around11 am, while the one at Rabindra Bharati University logged 239.Similarly, at Fort William, the AQI clocked 179 during that hour, andat Jadavpur it was 187. An AQI between zero and 50 is considered'good', 51 and 100 'satisfactory', 101 and 200 'moderate', 201 and300 'poor', 301 and 400 'very poor', and 401 and 500 'severe'.

Kolkata air quality dips as peopleburst crackers to ring in New Year

Union HomeMinister AmitShah on

Saturday expressedgrief over a landslidethat took place at amining site inHaryana's Bhiwani inwhich two peopledied, and spoke toChief MinisterManohar Lal Khattar

about the accident. At least two people were killed and many arefeared trapped after the landslide at the Dadam mining zone onSaturday. "The accident due to a landslide at a mining site in Bhiwanidistrict of Haryana is very sad. I have spoken to Chief Minister@mlkhattar. The local administration is engaged in rescue work, andour priority is to save as many lives as possible.

Shah expresses grief overlandslide at Haryana mining site

Ahead of thecrucialAssemblyelections in Uttar

Pradesh, Samajwadi Partychief Akhilesh Yadav onSaturday promised 300 unitsof free electricity tohouseholds, if voted topower. The former chiefminister also promised free

electricity for irrigational purposes. Wishing the people a happy NewYear, Yadav tweeted in Hindi, "2022 will be a new year with new lightfor a new Uttar Pradesh. Three hundred units of electricity forhouseholds (domestic consumers) will be given for free andelectricity for irrigation will be free." A similar promise was made bythe Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in September 2021. The Arvind Kejriwal-led party had promised 300 units of free electricity to all domesticconsumers, waiver of outstanding bills of 38 lakh families and 24-hour power supply.

UP polls: Akhilesh promisesfree power supply for irrigation

The Karnataka governmenthas slashed the propertyguidance value across the

state by 10 per cent for the nextthree months in a move aimedat providing an opportunity forpeople to get registrations doneat the earliest, RevenueMinister R Ashoka said on

Saturday.The minister even called it a New Year's Day gift to thepublic. For the purchase of property, whether it is a revenue land,site, building or a flat, the government is slashing the guidance valueby 10 per cent which will be applicable across the state for threemonths only, Ashoka said while speaking to reporters here. "This isan offer for those who are pushing time with the General Power ofAttorney (GPA) and agreements on properties. Also, it is for thosewho are planning for property registrations. This will be effective fromtoday (January 1) till March 31," the minister added.

Karnataka govt cuts propertyguidance value by 10 pc

INDIA CORNER

PNS n PUNE

Undeterred by the rising num-ber of COVID-19 cases and thepandemic-related restrictions,lakhs of people paid tributes atthe Jaystambh military monu-ment in Pune district ofMaharashtra till Saturday after-noon to mark the 204thanniversary of the KoregaonBhima battle amid tight secu-rity. In contrast to the 203rdanniversary of the historicalbattle last year, which was alow-key affair due to the pan-demic curbs, lakhs of people

have visited the Jaystambh pillar,which is decorated with theinsignia of the Mahar Regiment,

in Perne village. As per the Dalit narrative, the

Jaystambh is the symbol of the

victory over casteism as theBritish forces that fought thePeshwas at Koregaon Bhima onJanuary 1, 1818, comprised large-ly of soldiers from the DalitMahar community, who waged a"war for freedom" from 'casteism'of the Peshwas, who wereBrahmins.

"By this afternoon, the num-ber of people visiting theJaystambh increased steadily. Wefeel that going by this pattern, theflow of visitors will continue till5 PM. Around 200 PMPMLbuses are plying from variousareas in Pune to Koregaon

Bhima. Lakhs of people have paidthe tribute since this morning.Tight security is in place at var-ious spots," said AbhinavDeshmukh, Superintendent ofPolice (Pune rural). The Punedistrict administration hadappealed to people above 60and children below 10 years toavoid coming to Jaystambh inview of the coronavirus pandem-ic.

Deshmukh said that the num-ber of senior citizens visiting thememorial is comparatively less.However, children below 10 areseen accompanying their parents.

Maha: Lakhs visit ‘Jaystambh' monument

PNS n NEW DELHI

Prime Minister Narendra Modion Saturday released over Rs20,900 crore to more than 10.09crore farmers across India as10th installment of financial aidunder the PM-KISAN scheme.

Modi released the amount tobeneficiaries at an event heldthrough video conference.

Under the Pradhan MantriKisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme, a financialbenefit of Rs 6,000 per year isprovided to the eligible farmer

families, payable in three equalinstallments of Rs 2,000. Themoney is transferred directly tothe bank account of the bene-ficiaries. During the virtualevent, the Prime Minister alsoreleased an equity grant ofmore than Rs 14 crore to about351 Farmer ProducerOrganizations (FPOs), benefit-ing 1.24 lakh farmers. The vir-tual event was attended by asmany as nine chief ministers,several ministers from differentstates, and representatives ofagricultural institutions.

PNS n MUMBAI

Property tax on residentialunits of up to 500 sq ft,located within the Mumbaimunicipal area limits, will bewaived off, MaharashtraGovernment said onSaturday.

Chief Minister UddhavThackeray announced thedecision at a meeting of theurban development depart-ment earlier in the day, anofficial release said.

The waiver comes ahead ofMumbai municipal corpora-tion elections due nextmonth.

The CM has asked theadministration to implementthe decision with immediate

effect, the release said. Itquoted Urban DevelopmentMinister Eknath Shinde assaying that the decision willbenefit owners of over 16lakh houses below 500 sq feetin Brihanmumbai MunicipalCorporation (BMC) limits.Shinde said the Shiv Sena,which rules the BMC, hasfulfilled an important assur-ance it gave ahead of the 2017BMC elections.

Thackeray on Saturdaychaired a virtual meetingwith Shinde, Mumbai districtguardian minister AslamShaikh, Mumbai suburbandistrict guardian ministerAaditya Thackeray, MayorKishori Pednekar and ChiefSecretary Debashish

Chakrabarty.An official said the BMC is

expected to lose a revenue ofRs 468 crore following thewaiver.

Shah expresses gratitude to PM

Union Home Minister AmitShah on Saturdayexpressed his gratitude to

Prime Minister Narendra Modifor transferring Rs 20,900 croreto 10 crore farmers under thePM Kisan Yojana on the veryfirst day of 2022. In a series oftweets in Hindi, Shah said theModi government was makingcontinuous efforts to makefarmers self-reliant in the lastseven years. "Without farmer

empowerment the overalldevelopment of the country isnot possible and the country hasseen the farmer-friendly Modigovernment making continuousefforts to make farmers self-reliant since the last sevenyears," he said. The homeminister said the PM KisanYojana has done very well inkeeping farmers debt- free bygiving them financial support atthe most critical time of farming.

PNS n AHMEDABAD

The Congress on Saturdayclaimed that the Centredeferred the hike in GST ontextiles from 5 per cent to 12per cent out of fear of losingthe upcoming Assembly elec-tions in five states and later inGujarat, which is a textilehub. Addressing a press con-ference here on New Year day,the party's national spokesper-son Pawan Khera said consid-ering the current scenario ofinflation, wishing people a"prosperous year" would be alie, and handed out a list ofitems that will become costlierthis year, such as footwear,online auto ride booking,FMCG products, ATM servicecharge, cement, steel, etc.

The only way to preventPrime Minister NarendraModi from continuing withthe price rise on items ofdaily necessities is by givinghim a taste of defeat in the

elections, Khera said."The Centre was going to

raise the GST on textile, ofwhich Gujarat is a hub, fromJanuary 1, but it decided todefer the move. It was donebecause of the upcoming elec-tions in five states, and afterthat in Gujarat (which will goto the polls in December thisyear)," he said.

So, the decision to raise theGST on textile was put on holdout of fear of (defeat) in theseelections, he said.

The BJP only understandsthe language of victory anddefeat, and has nothing to dowith people's prosperity, thespokesperson said.

The Centre decided toreduce the prices of petrol anddiesel, only after its deposit onseats in the Assembly by-elec-tions in Rajasthan andHimachal Pradesh were for-feited. The government alsowithdrew the controversialfarm laws, Khera said.

PNS n KOCHI

"Court is yet another servicewhich is provided by the Stateto all its citizens and initiativeslike e-filing and paperlesscourts are an important step inthe decentralisation of jus-tice," Supreme Court judgeJustice D Y Chandrachud saidon Saturday.

Chandrachud said e-filing ofdocuments makes them moreaccessible to litigants andlawyers but urged the Stategovernment to ensure neces-sary digital literacy to all.

The senior Supreme Courtjudge was speaking onlineduring an event held here toinaugurate the e-filing, paper-less court and e-office projectsof the Kerala High Court.

Launching the e-filing mod-ules for the High Court,Chandrachud, who is alsochairperson of the e-commit-tee of the Supreme Court,urged the Chief Minister toensure that the State nowmakes it mandatory to providefor e-filing in all litigationwhich is initiated by the State.

"Our initiatives today at theKerala High Court emphasise

the need to deliver e-servicesat the doorstep of all our citi-zens. In other words, the courtis yet another service which isprovided by the State to all itscitizens. These initiatives are animportant step in the decen-tralisation of justice,"Chandrachud said.

He said e-filing reduces theburden of travel faced by thelitigants and members of thebar to courts by instead allow-ing them to upload docu-ments from the comfort oftheir homes or their offices.

"However, it is important toacknowledge that not every-

one may have access to thenecessary technological appa-ratus, a high-speed internet oreven the necessary digital lit-eracy to conduct e-filing," hesaid. "Kerala is a remarkableexample in our country interms of the spread of litera-cy and education and I dobelieve that hand-in-handwith the initiative which weare taking up today, we mustensure 100 per cent comput-er literacy between all advo-cates and all litigants whocome to our courts seekingaccess to justice," Chandrachud added.

Court is a service provided byState to all citizens: SC judge

‘Centre deferred GSThike on textiles fearingimpact on polls’

Indian tipplers becomingquality conscious, finds studyPNS n KOLKATA

With growing urbanisationand rising income levels,Indian alcoholic beveragesconsumers are becoming morequality conscious rather thanstaying price-sensitive, a recentstudy has found.

With increasing interna-tional travels and exposure toforeign brands, their behaviourchange is reflected in their pur-chase choices, which makesIndia an attractive market forglobal manufacturers andretailers, the joint study byIndian Council for Research

on International EconomicRelations (ICRIER) and solic-

itor firm PLR Chambers said.According to the study, the

country is one of the fastest-growing markets for alcoholicbeverages, with an estimatedmarket size of USD 52.5 bil-lion, and it is expected to growat a CAGR (compound annu-al growth rate) of 6.8 per centbetween 2020 and 2023.

While this data does notcapture the size of the infor-mal or illicit liquor market, itdoes provide directions to thestate excise departments toplan their revenue projectionbased on the consumptiondemand, it said.

PNS n MUMBAI

Three Nigerians were arrested inthe western suburb of Bandra andNavi Mumbai for alleged posses-sion of various drugs worth overRs 3 crore on New Year's Eve,police said on Saturday. Theaccused, who are suspected to bepart of an international drugsyndicate, had brought the con-traband to the city to sell it topeople at New Year parties, anofficial said. A patrolling team ofthe Mumbai police's Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) nabbed oneof the accused Ebey CheneduMike (39) near Tata Colony atBandra Kurla Complex on Friday,the official said.

ANC nabs three

Nigerians with drugs

worth Rs 3.18 cr

PNS n NEW DELHI

The report of the tri-ser-vices investigation into thechopper crash, that killedCDS Gen Bipin Rawat and13 others, is set to be sub-mitted to the Air headquar-ters next week, peoplefamiliar with the develop-ment said on Saturday.They said the investigationinto the December 8 acci-dent near Coonoor inTamil Nadu has nearlybeen completed and thevoluminous report is beingfinalised for submission inthe next few days.

IAF choppercrash: Probereport likelynext week

PNS n RAIPUR

Claiming that a major portionof the Bastar region was nowfree of naxal insurgency,Chhattisgarh Chief MinisterBhupesh Baghel on Saturdayhailed the security forces fortheir successes against therebels.

He was addressing a gather-ing of state police and paramil-itary personnel on the occasionof New Year at Police Parade

Ground here. His governmenthas changed Chhattisgarh's

image as an insurgency-affect-ed state, Baghel said.

“I am happy that our policehave been doing excellent workin naxal-affected areas.Naxalism is not just a law andorder problem, but also a polit-ical and social problem.Security forces have set upcamps in Maoist strongholdswhich pushed the rebels on theback foot,” the chief ministerwas quoted as saying in an offi-cial release.

‘Need to deal with trend ofyoungsters visiting Vaishno’PNS n KATRA

Innovative measures arerequired to deal with the trendof youngsters visiting theVaishno Devi shrine on NewYear, Union minister JitendraSingh said on Saturday, as hearrived here to take stock ofthe situation following a stam-pede that left 12 devoteesdead. The minister of state inthe Prime Minister's Officevisited the cave shrine atop theTrikuta hills in Reasi district ofJammu and Kashmir and also

met injured devotees undergo-ing treatment at the Shri MataVaishno Devi NarayanaSuperspeciality Hospital atKakriyal.

PNS n AGARTALA

The India-Bangladesh bor-der in Tripura will be com-pletely fenced by next year toensure fool-proof security, atop BSF official said onSaturday. Border SecurityForce Inspector General(Tripura Frontier), SushantaKumar Nath, said that 80-85per cent of the 856-km-longIndia-Bangladesh interna-tional border in the north-eastern state has alreadybeen fenced. "Substantialfencing work has been donein the Tripura's eastern sec-tor last year, and work on a31-km porous stretch hasbeen taken up on a prioritybasis. Single row fencing hasgained momentum in thestate's western sector, and 10km was fenced last year," hetold reporters. Setting up offloodlights is going hand-in-hand with fencing work, hesaid.

"We are hopeful of com-pleting fencing and settingup of floodlights along theentire stretch of the India-Bangladesh border in thestate by next year," he said.

Indo-Banglaborder inTripura will befenced totally

PM-KISAN SCHEME

PM okays Rs 20,900 cr to farmers

Farmer seeks to treat PM with special bananas

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's video interaction with farmers across the country during the release offunds under the PM-KISAN scheme on Saturday witnessed a lighter moment when a Lucknow farmerwanted to treat the PM to special bananas grown by him. The farmers at various centres across the

country had their agricultural products, including fruits, vegetables and crops displayed on stalls for thePrime Minister to inspect them. As the Lucknow farmer Dharam Chand's stall caught the PM's attention,he asked, “You have kept so many products here. Have all these been grown by small farmers?" To this, anelated Dharm Chand, a member of Uttar Pradesh Farmers' Producer Organisation said all the items haveindeed been grown by small farmers. Attracted by the size of bananas on the stall, Modi observed that theyappear to be quite big. "Sir, this is a branded banana. It is called 'naveen kelaa”. Please give me a chance,please call me, I will bring the banana for you,” an effusive Dharm Chand gushed, triggering laughteramong the audience, besides a smile on the PM's face.

‘Naxals on back foot; largepart of Bastar free of their hold’

Mumbai: No property tax onresidential properties up to 500 sq ft

Chief Minister

Uddhav Thackeray

announced the

decision at a

meeting of the

urban development

department earlier

in the day, an

official release said.

VIJAYAWADA | SUNDAY | JANUARY 2, 2022 money 06

MONEY MATTERS

Nissan Motor India Ltd onSaturday reported overtwo-fold jump in domestic

wholesales in December 2021 at3,010 units for its two brandsNissan and Datsun. The company had a wholesalesof 1,159 units in the samemonth of 2020. The company'sdomestic sales in the April-December 2021 period were

27,965 units as against 6,609 units in the year-ago period, NissanMotor India said in a statement. "Nissan has cumulative growth of323 per cent in spite of the challenges of Covid-19 andsemiconductor shortages affecting supplies...," Nissan Motor IndiaLtd Managing Director Rakesh Shrivastava said. The company hasdelivered over 35,000 units of SUV Magnite and it continues tohave strong booking momentum, with 31 per cent of the 77,000plus bookings coming from the digital ecosystem, he added."Going forward with the support of the supply chain ourendeavour will be to maintain this growth momentum for theupcoming months and to continue to deliver value to thecustomers with the lowest cost of ownership towards customerassurance," Shrivastava said. The company said its exports in theApril-December 2021 period were at 28,582 units as against17,785 units in the year-ago period, a growth of 61 per cent, itadded.

Nissan Motor India posts 2-fold jumpin domestic wholesales in Dec

Homegrown auto major TataMotors on Saturday reported a50 per cent jump in total

passenger vehicle sales to 35,299units in December 2021. Thecompany had sold a total of 23,545units in the same month a year ago,Tata Motors said in a regulatoryfiling. In the third quarter endedDecember 2021, the company saidits total passenger vehicle sales

stood at 99,002 units as compared with 68,806 units sold the sameperiod in the previous year, up 44 per cent. "Tata Motors PV businessgrowth journey continued and set several new milestones during thequarter despite witnessing a shortfall in production due to the ongoingsemi-conductor crisis," Tata Motors President (Passenger VehiclesBusiness Unit) Shailesh Chandra said. A decade-high quarterly andmonthly sales were recorded. In addition, the company also posted acalendar year sale of 3,31,178 units in 2021, the highest-ever since theinception of the PV business, he added."Records were also created onthe EV front as EV sales witnessed a new peak of 5,592 units in Q3FY22 (growth of 345 per cent versus Q3 FY21)," Chandra said.Electricvehicle (EV) sales also touched 10,000 units in the first nine months ofthe ongoing fiscal and crossed 2,000 monthly sales landmark for thefirst time in December 2021 at 2,255 units, he added."Going forward,semiconductor supplies will remain the key source of uncertainty.Additionally, the impact of the new strain of COVID-19 needs to beclosely tracked.

Tata Motors reports 50 pc jump inPV sales to 35,299 units in Dec

The country's largest carmakerMaruti Suzuki India (MSI) onSaturday reported a four per

cent fall in the total wholesales to1,53,149 units in December 2021.The company had sold 1,60,226units in December 2020, MSI said ina statement. In December 2021, thedomestic sales slipped 13 per cent to

1,30,869 units last month as against 1,50,288 units in December 2020,it added. "The shortage of electronic components had a minor impact onthe production of vehicles during the month. The shortage primarilyaffected the production of vehicles sold in the domestic market," MSIstated. The company took all possible measures to minimise the impact,it added.Sales of mini cars, comprising Alto and S-Presso, fell 35 percent to 16,320 units as compared with 24,927 in the same month lastyear.Similarly, sales of the compact segment, including models such asSwift, Celerio, Ignis, Baleno and Dzire, slumped 11 per cent to 69,345units as against 77,641 cars in December 2020.Sales of mid-sizedsedan Ciaz declined to 1,204 units as compared with 1,270 units inDecember 2020.Utility vehicle sales, including Vitara Brezza, S-Crossand Ertiga, rose five per cent to 26,982 units as compared with 25,701vehicles in the year-ago month, MSI said.

Maruti Suzuki sales dip 4 pc to1,53,149 units in Dec

PNS n NEW DELHI

India's power consumptiongrew by 4.5 per cent inDecember to 110.34 billionunits (BU) over the same peri-od a year ago, according topower ministry data.

In December 2020, con-sumption was 105.62 BU, upfrom 101.08 BU in December2019.Experts are of the viewthat power consumption aswell as demand has grown ata steady pace in Decemberwith improvement in econom-ic activities across the country.

However, they expressedconcerns over rising cases ofCOVID-19 in the countrywhich may compel states toimpose local lockdown restric-tions, that may affect commer-cial and industrial powerdemand as well as consump-tion as had happened after thesecond wave hit the country inApril 2021. Peak powerdemand met or highest supply

in a day rose to 183.39 GW inDecember 2021 compared to182.78 GW in December 2020and 170.49 GW in December2019.In November this year,the power consumption grewby 2.6 per cent to 99.37 BU.Last year in November, powerconsumption stood at 96.88BU and in the same month in2019, it was at 93.94 BU.

The country's power con-sumption had grown by 3.3 percent in October this year to

112.79 BU, compared to 109.17BU in the same month lastyear. Many states had imposedlockdown restrictions after thesecond wave of the pandemichit the nation in April this yearand affected the recovery incommercial and industrialpower demand as states start-ed imposing restrictions inthe latter part of the month.Curbs were gradually lifted asthe number of COVID casesfell.

Power consumption rises 4.5 percent to 110.34 bn units in Dec

PNS n MADRID

(The Conversation) In the lastquarter of 2020 we publishedin The Conversation SpainWelcome to the era of disorder.

In that text, Professor JorgeHernando Cuñado, fromNebrija University, broke downsome of the events that wereexpected to bring instability toworld order and the worldeconomy.

It is clear that, indeed, chaoshas been present at many lev-els in the year that now ends.

Energy and pricesSpain began 2021 chilled

with cold because of the stormFilomena. The unusual drop intemperatures caused anincrease in energy demandthat led to a sharp rise in elec-tricity prices. At the time it

seemed somewhat circumstan-tial.

Thus, at the beginning of lastyear and because of the snowwe began to talk about one ofthe recurring themes of 2021:electricity prices.

Researchers Escamilla,Sánchez Martínez and Tilocca,

from the University of Seville,explained to us in Why doesthe price of electricity changeso much in Spain? the factorsthat act in the Spanish energymarket to set electricity prices.

Then, in the middle of theyear, the Government madechanges in the calculation of

the electricity bill that ProfessorJosé Luis Sancha, from theUniversidad PontificiaComillas, explained to us in theelectricity bill in the free mar-ket: Are you overcharging mymarketer?

And, in Myths around theprice of electricity: shouldrenewables be the only bet? ,Professor José GuillermoSánchez León (USAL) ana-lyzed the management of theelectricity market and the fac-tors that could help (or not) tolower prices.

Gas is one of the mainsources of energy for electric-ity production and this yearthere have been many factorsinfluencing the rise in its prices.

Some go beyond the econo-my and are interwoven withgeopolitical reasons, asexplained by Professor Luis

Velasco, from the University ofMalaga, in his articleGeopolitics in the boiler: whatis happening with gas inEurope? .

As the months go by, theconjunctural imbalance seemsmore structural: what a yearago was paid at € 39.51 / MWhtoday is paid at € 358.06 /MWh.

Debt and inflationThe upward trend in global

debt and the return of inflationafter years of price suppressionwere other threats loomingover the global economy at theend of 2020.

Today we know that globaldebt has reached values neverseen before. According to thelatest update of the IMF data-base , in 2020 it reached 256%of world GDP (226 trillion dol-lars). And growing.

Economy 2021: A disruptive year for the world economy

PNS n NEW DELHI

After navigating the turbulentpandemic waves, the recover-ing Indian economy is nowsailing through uncharteredwaters of rising coronaviruscases, spiralling commodityprices and spiking inflationthough the lighthouse of sus-tainable growth remains visi-ble.

As 2022 begins, a raft ofdevelopments, ranging fromBudgetary announcements tocontinuation of stimulus mea-sures to monetary policy, willset the tone for the domesticeconomy, which is projected to

grow more than 9 per cent inthe current fiscal endingMarch 2022.

The country's continuingmassive vaccination drive and'precaution' doses starting forselect categories of people thismonth will provide a firewallagainst any steep spike in coro-navirus cases amid the emer-

gence of the Omicron variant.Experts opined that the

economy is expected to see astrong recovery in the comingmonths and even going pastthe pre-COVID levels unlessthe pandemic plays spoilsport.

In the 2021 April-June quar-ter, the economy recorded awhopping 20.1 per cent growthbut then it came mainly on theback of the base effect as GDPcontracted 24.4 per cent in theyear-ago period.

Nevertheless, an 8.4 percent growth in the secondquarter (July-September) wasmore meaningful as it indicat-ed sustained recovery.

2022: Economy sets sail with growthhopes; pandemic, inflationary headwinds

PNS n NEW DELHI

Nearly 5.89 crore income taxreturns for the 2020-21 fiscal(ended March 2021) have beenfiled on the new e-filing portaltill December 31 deadline, theI-T department said onSaturday.

Of this, more than 46.11lakh ITRs were filed on the lastdate or December 31 alone.

"Nearly 5.89 crore IncomeTax Returns (ITRs) have beenfiled on the new e-filing portalof the Income Tax Departmentas on 31st December, 2021, theextended due date," the CentralBoard of Direct Taxes (CBDT)said in a statement.

In comparison, as on January10, 2021, (the extended due datefor ITRs for AY 2020-21), thetotal number of ITRs filed was5.95 crore. As many as 31.05lakh ITRs filed were on the lastday or January 10, 2021.Out of5.89 crore ITRs filed for AY2021-22 (2020-21 fiscal), 49.6per cent of these are ITR1 (2.92crore), 9.3 per cent are ITR2(54.8 lakh), 12.1 per cent areITR3 (71.05 lakh), 27.2 percent are ITR4 (1.60 crore), 1.3per cent are ITR5 (7.66 lakh). Besides, 2.58 lakh ITR-6 and0.67 lakh ITR7 were filed.

"Over 45.7 per cent of theseITRs have been filed using theonline ITR form on the portal

and the balance have beenuploaded using the ITR creat-

ed from the offline software util-ities," it said, adding it wouldwork tirelessly to ensure asmooth and stable taxpayerservice experience.

ITR Form 1 (Sahaj) and ITRForm 4 (Sugam) are simplerforms that cater to a large num-ber of small and medium tax-payers. Sahaj can be filed by anindividual having income up toRs 50 lakh and who receivesincome from salary, one houseproperty/other sources (interestetc).

ITR-4 can be filed by indi-viduals, HUFs and firms withtotal income up to Rs 50 lakhand having income from busi-ness and profession.

ITR-2 is filed by people hav-ing income from residentialproperty), ITR-3 by people hav-ing income as profits from busi-ness/profession, ITR-5 by LLPsand ITR-6 and 7 by businessesand trusts respectively.

Nearly 5.89 cr ITRs for FY21filed till Dec 31 deadline

PNS n NEW DELHI

Asset management companyICICI Prudential Mutual Fundhas announced the launch ofcountry's first silver ETF thatwill invest in physical silverand silver-related instruments.

The new fund offer (NFO)will open for subscription onJanuary 5 and conclude onJanuary 19, documentsshowed.

Further, bunch of assetmanagement companies arequeuing up their silver ETFsfor launch and have file doc-uments with markets regula-tor Sebi for approval in thisregard.

HDFC Mutual Fund,Nippon India Mutual Fund,Mirae Asset InvestmentManagers, Aditya Birla SunLife Asset ManagementCompany and DSP Mutual

Fund are among fund housesthat have applied for silverETFs.

This comes after Sebi inNovember issued operatingnorms for the introduction ofsilver ETFs. Under the rules,these ETFs have to invest atleast 95 per cent of their netassets in silver and silver-related instruments.

The ICICI Prudential SilverETF is an open ended schemethat will track the domesticprices of silver. The schemewill invest its proceeds inphysical silver and silver-relat-ed instruments.

The investment objectiveof the scheme is to generatereturns that are in line with theperformance of physical silverin domestic prices as derivedfrom the LBMA (LondonBullion Market Association)AM fixing prices.

ICICI Pru MF silver ETF toopen for subscription on Jan 5

PNS n NEW DELHI

Honda Cars India Ltd(HCIL) on Saturday report-ed a 26 per cent year-on-yearincrease in its domesticwholesales at 89,152 units in2021.

The company had dis-patched 70,593 units to deal-ers in the domestic market inthe January-December peri-od in 2020, HCIL said in astatement.

The automaker said itsexports rose to 16,340 unitsduring the period underreview from 2,334 units in2020.In December 2021, theautomaker reported an eightper cent dip in its domesticsales at 7,973 units. It haddispatched 8,638 units in thedomestic market inDecember 2020.

The company also export-ed 1,165 units last month. Ithad shipped 713 units inDecember 2020. "The year2021 continued to be a chal-lenging year with the ongo-ing pandemic but I think welearnt to cope much betterwith it.

Honda Carsreports 26 pcjump in 2021wholesales

PNS n NEW DELHI

GST revenues in December2021 grew 13 per cent to overRs 1.29 lakh crore, mainly dueto pickup in economic activi-ty and anti-evasion steps, theFinance Ministry said onSaturday.Though the collec-tion was lower than Rs 1.31lakh crore mopped up inNovember, December is thesixth month in a row when therevenues from goods sold and

services rendered stood atover Rs 1 lakh crore."Thegross GST revenue collected inDecember 2021 is Rs 1,29,780crore, of which CGST is Rs22,578 crore, SGST is Rs28,658 crore, IGST is Rs 69,155crore (including Rs 37,527crore collected on import ofgoods) and cess is Rs 9,389crore (including Rs 614 crorecollected on import of goods),"the Finance Ministry said in astatement.

GST collection at Rs1.29 lakh cr in December

PNS n NEW DELHI

MG Motor India on Saturdayreported 43 per cent increasein retail sales in 2021 at 40,273units. The company had sold28,162 units in 2020.

The company's sales lastyear was mainly driven by itsHector SUV which clocked31,509 units, followed byGloster SUV at 3,823 units, ZSEV 2,798 units and Astor SUV2,143 units, MG Motor said ina statement. Commenting onthe performance, MG MotorIndia President and ManagingDirector Rajeev Chaba said,"The year 2021 was a challeng-ing year for the entire autoindustry."

MG MotorIndia posts 43pc rise in retailsales in 2021

"Nearly 5.89crore Income TaxReturns (ITRs)have been filedon the new e-filing portal ofthe Income TaxDepartment ason 31stDecember, 2021,the extended duedate," theCentral Board ofDirect Taxes(CBDT) said in astatement.

PNS n NEW DELHI

State-owned power giant NTPCarm Nabinagar PowerGenerating Co (NPGC) hasdeclared an interim dividend ofRs 100 crore for 2021-22, accord-ing to a statement."NabinagarPower Generating Co (NPGC),a wholly-owned subsidiary ofNTPC Ltd, declared an interimdividend of Rs 100 crore for theFY 2021-22," the company saidin the statement.

Ramesh Babu V, director(operations) of NTPC and chair-man of NPGC, had presentedthe cheque for the interim div-idend to NTPC Chairman andManaging Director GurdeepSingh on December 31, 2021.

NPGC declaresRs 100 cr interimdividend

PNS n NEW DELHI

VE Commercial Vehicles(VECV), a joint venturebetween Volvo Group andEicher Motors, on Saturdayreported a 25.8 per centjump in sales to 6,154 unitsin December 2021.

The company had sold4,892 units in December2020, VECV said in a state-ment.

Eicher-branded trucksand buses recorded totalsales of 6,002 units lastmonth as compared with4,687 units in December2020, a growth of 28.1 percent.

In the domestic market,Eicher trucks and busesrecorded sales of 5,192 unitsin December 2021 as com-pared with 4,069 units inDecember 2020, represent-ing a growth of 27.6 per cent,the company said.

Exports of Eicher-brand-ed trucks and buses were at810 units in December 2021as compared with 618 unitsin the year-ago month, up31.1 per cent.

Sales of Volvo trucks andbuses stood at 152 units lastmonth as compared with205 units in December 2020,down 25.9 per cent, thecompany said.

VE CommercialVehicles reports25.8 pc jump insales to 6,154 units

PNS n NEW DELHI

FMCG distributors inMaharashtra have warnedColgate Palmolive India of tak-ing strict steps after the compa-ny failed to respond to the issueof price disparity of productsbetween traditional and busi-ness-to-business distributors.

The Fast-moving consumergoods (FMCG) distributors areseeking a level playing fieldfrom manufactures and are inprotest over the price disparitiesbetween the traditional tradeand business-to-business retail-ers such as Jiomart, Walmart,Metro Cash & Carry, Booker,ElasticRun, udaan etc.

Commenting on the devel-opment, Colgate Palmolive(India) said it values the strongrelationships with its distribu-tors and is looking to addresstheir challenges and find solu-tions that help grow their busi-ness. We have engaged with ourdistributor network and arelooking to address their chal-lenges and find solutions thathelp grow their business, ensur-ing our consumers continue tohave access to their favouriteand trusted brands, said a state-ment from Colgate Palmolive

(India) Ltd.All India Consumer Products

Distributors Federation(AICPDF), which representsover 4 lakh distributors and thestockist pan India, is in talkswith several FMCG makersover the issue.

Almost all the companies ofFMCG were mailed on thesame subject two weeks ago bythe organisation...(and) almostall the companies have assuredto solve this problem after talk-ing with the organisation, butColgate under its obstinate atti-

tude till now, neither is talkingto the organisation nor isresponding, said AICPDF in astatement.

Due to this "obstinate atti-tude", AICPDF is going to takestrict steps from January 1 andno distributor of Maharashtrawill sell Colgate's Max Freshbrand in the market, in the nextone week, and if the companydon't come to talk, then the nextweek the distributor will not sellthe Ved Shakti brand, the asso-ciation said. Colgate-Palmolivesaid it values the strong relation-

ships, it has developed with dis-tributors over the past 8decades.

"We work hard to cultivatetrust and transparency and wewill continue to prioritise thegrowth of all of our partnersirrespective of their size andscale, it added. Earlier thisweek, FMCG distributors hadsaid they would stop sellingproducts of the leading makerHUL in Maharashtra, as it hasnot engaged in discussion withthem over the issues of pricedisparity.

FMCG distributors warn ColgatePalmolive of strict steps Price disparity in products between traditional and B2B distributors

Thousands of lives can beimproved through organ andtissue transplants, enabling

people to live better, and in manycases, survive. So, why are only0.01 per cent of Indians consent-ing to donate their organs aftertheir death?

Organ donation is the processof retrieving or procuring an organlegally with the intention of beingable to medically help someone inneed. Consent is given either by thedonor while they’re still alive, orafter death by their Next of Kin.First the organ is recovered, or har-vested, before being transplantedinto the recipient in need. Organdonation in India is regulated by the1994 Transplantation of HumanOrgans and Tissues Act. The actaims to control the removal, storage,and transplantation of organs andprevents any commercial dealings,while the National Organ andTissue Transplant Organisationfacilitates procurement, allotment,and distribution of organs withinIndia. With a budget of `149.5 crore,the Government implemented the

National Organ TransplantProgramme for promoting organdonation.

Despite the Government iden-tifying the need for organ donation,there is a disparity between hugedemand and low supply. Organdonation in India is only just begin-ning to take off — reason for thedelay being lack of awareness, spir-itual belief of life after death, andgenerally negative attitudes towardsorgan donation. Donation isencouraged as a charitable act thatsaves or enhances life; therefore, itrequires no action on the part of thereligious group.

India’s Statistical Data as of2015 shows that in response to thedemand for 1.75 lakhs of kidneytransplants, only 5000 transplantswere completed. With 50,000 peo-ple dying of terminal liver disease,only 1000 got transplants. These sta-tistics are even more distressing inorgans like hearts and lungs. About0.5 million people in India die everyyear from causes that could havebeen prevented by organ transplantsthat were not available to them.

Organ donation rates in India sit at0.01 percent, a miniscule figure incomparison to countries likeCroatia’s which sits at 36.5 per centand Spain’s at 35.3 per cent.

One donation from a deceasedwhose brain gave way before theirheart can save lives of up to eightpeople who are suffering from endstage organ failures. If India’s dona-tion rates were to be improved toone donation per million deaths, itwould satisfy the country’s organrequirement completely.

The process of pledging is sim-ple. A donor card is provided to aperson who is willing to donate theorgans after death. Donor cards arenot a legally binding document - itis only an expression of a person'swillingness to be a donor. At thetime of organ donation, the familyof the patient will make the finaldecision on whether to donateorgans or not. Any person willingto donate his/her organs can do soby filling out the donor consentform available on the Ministry ofHealth and Family Welfare,Government of India website.

Government of India shouldundertake the responsibility forestablishing proper infrastructure allover India to facilitate speedy trans-port and harvesting of organs. Theofficial paperwork should be moredonor-friendly and convenient.The NGO’s along with healthcareproviders should run their aware-ness campaigns in a more intensiveway, involving print/social and elec-tronic media.The writer is a final year student of Shri Ram

College of Commerce, University of Delhi

COCOA: Cocoa is consideredto be one of the bestmedicinal foods. It is full offlavonoids. It helps controldiabetes and cocoa basedproducts are advisedto be included inthe daily diet toi m p r o v ethe insulinresistance andlevel of glucosein the body.

Cocoa powder isgood for the heartand prevents fatal blood clots.Hence, avoiding severe cardiacproblems. The flavonoid and

anti-oxidants in cocoa beanslowers blood pressure andimproves the elasticity of veinsand blood vessels.

Cocoa is great forthe skin. It is also con-sidered to cure cancer

- used particularlyin the cure ofprostate and

colon cancer. Ithas anti-depressant

properties that can helpprevent mental exertion andfacilitate certain physiologicalprocesses and elevate themood.

Even though the monsoon brings withit the much-needed relief from thescorching heat, it does have a down sideas well. Dengue and malaria are someof the diseases that are common dur-

ing this season. Then there are diseases that comedue to flooding and water-logging of low-lyingareas. One such disease is leptospirosis.

WHAT IIS IITIt is mainly a monsoon associated infection

associated with exposure to water, soil or mudcontaminated with the urine from infected ani-mals. It is caused by a bacteria called Leptospira.It is carried by many animals. It lives in their kid-neys and is found in the urine and faeces.

WHO IS AT RISK?Anyone who wades through flooded water

is at risk. When there is water-logging, the watergets contaminated by bacteria because of the mix-ing of the stool or urine. The bacteria then entersthe body through skin cuts or abrasions when aperson wades through this contaminated water,and occasionally through the lining of themouth, nose and eyes. Farmers are also at highrisk as they may get exposed to the urine and exc-reta of field rats while working.

SYMPTOMSSymptoms usually develop after five to 14

days following exposure. The most common ini-tial symptoms of this disease include either fewor all of these symptoms: Fever, severe headache,sore muscles, chills, vomiting, and red eyes. Sincethese mimic other monsoon-related illnesses likemalaria and dengue, clinical diagnosis cansometimes be difficult.

Few people with leptospirosis can developsevere disease and may need hospitalisation.

This can include kidney failure, jaundice, liverfailure, bleeding and respiratory complications.Lesser common complications include menin-

gitis where the lining of the brain and spinal cordgets involved and causes altered sensorium.

TREATMENTThis disease is commonly treated with

antibiotics. Treatment is thought to be most effec-tive when detected early. The testing can takesome time and the disease may be severe in somepatients. A doctor may therefore sometimeschoose to start antibiotics prior to confirming thediagnosis with tests. However, some people recov-er spontaneously without antibiotics.

LONG-TERM EFFECTSMost individuals recover from leptospirosis

without further sequelae. But in some individ-uals who went undiagnosed and untreated in theearly and or acute illness, there can be long-termeffects. People can have a chronic-fatigue-like ill-ness that lasts for months. Others can have per-sistent headaches, depression or other neurolog-ic complaints. Occasionally the bacteria can per-sist in the eyes and cause chronic eye complaints.

PREVENTIONAs far as possible, avoid wading through pud-

dles and water-logged areas. Wear well coveredfootwear in monsoon. Cover any cuts and abra-sions with waterproof dressings. Wash hands andlegs with soap, as leptospira bacteria are quick-ly killed by soap, disinfectants, and drying.Rodent control is of paramount importance andrequires efforts both at individual and govern-ment level. Prompt cleaning up of garbage dumpsand removing food sources that are close to hous-ing is essential. Appropriate personal protectivegear for those who work with animals or on thefarms (like waterproof boots)

Those who may have been exposed to thebacteria because they waded through floods mustcontact their doctor immediately. The doctor mayprescribe certain antibiotics (like Doxycycline)that can be taken to prevent the disease.

DOCYARDDR SHAILESH JAIN

Principal Consultant,Neurosciences

NEW DELHI

COVID in the last 18 months has shown a devastating effecton human life. Apart from affecting the lung, it also affect-

ed different parts of the body. However, it mainly affects the lungand increases level of ferritin, D-Dimer, CRP and cytokines egIL-6. High levels of all these chemicals may have catastrophiceffect on vital organs.

Neurological involvement is a spectrum of loss of olfactorysenses to necrotising encephalitis and involving almost everyaspect of central (CNS) and peripheral nervous system (PNS).Prevalence is around 0.1-1 per cent of COVID infections. Mostcomplications are seen by second to fourth week of COVID infec-tion. CNS-related events were more common than PNS mani-festations. Common CNS manifestations are headache, distur-bance in consciousness, dizziness, acute cerebrovascular disease,ataxia, and seizures. PNS symptoms are impairment in taste, smell,and vision. Musculoskeletal symptoms were observed in formof myalgias and nonspecific pain.

Stroke comprises of 60-70 per cent, encephalopathy 30-40per cent and neuropathy around 6 per cent and all other neu-rological complications in 0.1 per cent cases of neurological casesrelated to COVID.

Neurological involvement is mainly categorised into CNS andPNS involvement. CNS involvements are in form of stroke,encephalopathy, delirium, psychoses, necrotising encephalitis andfungal infections eg. Fungal abscess or rhinocerebral mucormy-coses. PNS involvements are facial palsy, acute inflammatorydemyelinating neuropathy (AIDP) and paraesthesia in all limbsand myalgia.

Strokes are ischemic type usually due to large vessel occlu-sion with high degree of morbidity or mortality and it is moreprevalent with diabetic, hypertensive and Coronary artery dis-ease. It is also associated with large coronary occlusion or sud-

den cardiac death upto six-eight weeks after COVID.Most patients were found tohave hypercoagulable state

Encephalopathy or delir-ium or psychoses were seenby third to fourth week ofCOVID. It is a non-specificterm used to describe theacute impairment of brainfunction which presents clin-ically as alteration in the levelof consciousness and trig-gered by viral infections. It iscompletely reversible withappropriate medications.

Neuropathy may be inform of facial palsy or severeweakness of all limbs in formof G B Syndrome. Both arecompletely reversible withmedications. Headache,myalgia and paresthesia andfatigue are minor symptoms

and it disturbs sleep but didn’t cause any disability. These recov-er with time and medications.

Some unusual complications are necrotising encephalitis andmyelitis. They have high level of morbidity and mortality.Encephalitis is a serious condition with significant impact andburden. About 20–50 per cent of encephalitis cases are causedby viruses, and half of the cases have no known etiology. Thedisease causes a variety of neurological abnormalities, such asaltered consciousness, hallucination, confusion, abnormalmovement, and aphasia.

Smoking accelerate the process of atherosclerosis all over bodyand leads to endothelial dysfunction, thrombus formation andhypercoagulable state. It also aggravates dyslipidemia. It increas-es chances of cardiovascular disease in all forms eg CAD, CVA, PVD.It locally affects the lung parenchyma and make it vulnerable toCOVID related lung damage and oxygenation of body. Coexistenceof smoking related atherosclerosis and COVID induced hyperco-agulable state increases chances of large vessel stroke.

Smoking

accelerate the

process of

atherosclerosis

all over body and

leads to endothelial

dysfunction,

thrombus

formation and

hypercoagulable

state. It also

aggravates

dyslipidemia

pioneer THE PIONEER VIJAYAWADA | SUNDAY | JANUARY 2, 2022 07

Covaxin is effective against the Delta plus variantof COVID-19, claims Indian Council of Medical

Research (ICMR) in its study released onMonday. Covaxin is developed by the Bharat

Biotech in collaboration with ICMR and NationalInstitute of Pune. The study states: “The sera ofindividuals who were fully immunised (with two

doses) didn't show significant fold-reduction in theNAb titer against Delta, Delta AY.1 and B.1.617.3.”

CovaxinWorks

C O V I D C A R E

nWhat was the idea behind the inceptionof Faibr-x?

Faibr-x was conceptualised on the ideaof safespace for every human and child.Clothes are the biggest carrier of virus andbacteria and we strongly believe thatclothes can also be the biggest protectoragainst both. Faibr-x was conceptualised toadd an element of protection, certified pro-tection in this case, to our daily wear clothesto protect us against virus, bacteria andinsects including mosquitoes. And to behonest, this was called for by the situationcaused by the COVID pandemic. Now wemay have started to move out of our hous-es but it is still not safe, the pandemic isn’tentirely over yet and we do need an extraline of defence against this virus.nHow is it different from already treatedantiviral clothes?

Faibr-x uses nanotechnology to impartprotective nature to garments against virusand bacteria. The protective finish as addedto garments is done on a nano level(1nanometre is 10^-9 metre) wherein theprotective finish is applied on the fibre ofthe cloth. This nano level application allowsthe garment to not only be completely pro-tective in nature but also makes it long last-ing. A once treated garment would remainprotective even after 10 washes. Here we arenot just fighting a specific virus, we are tak-ing down all kinds of viruses and diseasecausing bacteria. Along with the bacteriathat cause odour. This is what sets theclothes treated with Faibr-x apart fromalready treated antiviral clothes.nWhat are the challenges that you face?

Biggest challenge is to make the endconsumer understand and acknowledge oursolution. We realise Faibr-x is a first of itskind solution and therefore many peoplemay not be aware of our vision and theimpact of our solution. With that said, weare making a constant stride forward,towards brand awareness and making peo-ple realise how significant can Faibr-x proveto be during this pandemic. nHow safe are Faibr-x treatments for var-ious individuals?

Faibr-x nanotechnology and its ingre-dients are certified by OekaTex Class 1 andhave been evaluated by CDSCO, ISO, andNABL labs human and environment safe-ty. Non metal, non silver, non itching tech-nology is safest not only for various indi-viduals but even for newborn and youngtoddlers.nHow can one get their clothes Faibr-xtreated?

As mentioned above, we have tied upwith grocery stores, medical stores, drycleaners, and departmental stores that actas collection points for us. People can droptheir clothes with these stores, from wherethey would be picked up and sent for Faibr-x treatment. And then returned.nWhat has been the people’s response tosuch treated clothes?

People’s response to the treated clotheshas been positive so far. Our services havebeen perceived by our customer base as aunique concept of protection. People do feeldonning Faibr-x treated clothes acts as adefence mechanism against virus and bac-teria. Customers have been happy with theaffordability and the accessibility of our ser-vices, given we have collaborated with localgrocery stores and dry cleaners, we are eas-ily accessible.

MUSBA HASHMI speakswith SASHA BOSE, Director& CEO of Nanochemiqs PvtLtd, about the nano techapplication that allowsgarments to not only beprotective in nature but alsomakes it long lasting

A DOSE FOR

YOUR CLOTHES

It’s complicated

SIGN OF ENDOMETRIOSIS

Endometriosis is an often painful disorder inwhich tissue similar to the tissue that nor-

mally lines the inside of your uterus — theendometrial — grows outside your uterus.Endometriosis most commonly involves yourovaries, fallopian tubes and the tissue lining yourpelvis. Rarely, endometrial tissue may spreadbeyond pelvic organs.

Dr Neerja Goel, professor and HOD ofObstetrics and gynaecology department, ShardaHospital, said at the time of endometriosis “com-plains of painful menstruation, cramping,painful sex, constipation, back pain, leg pain, painwhile urinating, and rectal bleeding. It can affectwomen of any age. It’s a long-term condition thatcan have a significant impact on any woman’slife and also the main cause of ovarian cancer.”

Foods rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, freshfruits and vegetables, avoiding intake of alco-hol and caffeine, avoid stress and fatty foods addregular exercise and yoga in your routine thathelps in to resolve the problem and if it is nottreated on time it leads to infertility or heavybleeding during the time of menstruation andhaving pregnancy at an older age. “Primarytreatment of this disease and if it is not diag-nosed at an early stage then surgical treatmentis the option. Usually, nonsteroidal anti-inflam-matory drugs are used to relieve pain. If symp-toms are mild and women do not plan tobecome pregnant, for most women with mod-erate to severe endometriosis, the most effec-tive treatment is removing endometrial tissueand endometriosis,” says Dr Goel.

INBRIEFOnly 0.01 per cent Indians consent to donateOrgan donation in India is only just beginning to take off — reason for the delaybeing lack of awareness, spiritual belief of life after death, and generallynegative attitudes towards organ donation, says RAGHAV KHANNA

MONSOONMALADYMONSOONMALADY

ANYONE WHO WADESTHROUGH FLOODED

WATER IS AT RISK. WHENTHERE IS

WATER-LOGGING, THEWATER GETS

CONTAMINATED BYBACTERIA BECAUSE OF

THE MIXING OF THESTOOL OR URINE. THE

BACTERIA THEN ENTERSTHE BODY THROUGH SKIN

CUTS OR ABRASIONS

With rains come plethora of diseases including leptospirosis,

DR TRUPTI GILADA tells SHALINI SAKSENA

Pho

to: RR

anja

n DD

imri

Governmentshould undertakethe responsibilityfor establishingproperinfrastructure tofacilitate speedytransport andharvesting oforgans

The rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI)methods in the past decade, along withthe realisation that automated data-

based AI tools can outperform even top-levelhuman experts at some tasks, has given riseto the hope that AI may soon be able to takeover many of the functions of a manager.This is hardly a new dream.

Frederick Taylor, in the late nineteenthcentury, already imagined the transformationof management to an engineering subject.The discipline of operations research wasinvented in the last century, mostly byexperts working for the US Department ofDefence, to quantify and automate

managerial tasks such as scheduling ofwork, planning of inventories, distributionand logistics, and production planning andmanagement. A lot of tools that are used inAI were invented by operations researchengineers. The advance of computer andcommunication technology in the latter partof the last century brought the dream ofautomated management and decisionmaking even closer to reality.

Automated decision making is indeed,one of the central topics studied in AI. Thegeneral case is that of an intelligent agentthat needs to make a sequence of decisionsin the presence of uncertainty. A number of

AI tools are already available that can take adescription of the business environment, itslaws of evolution, and the set of actions thatthe manager can take and find a sequence ofactions that minimises costs or maximisesrewards. However, most of these tools are ofrecent vintage, still have a lot of theoreticalshortcomings, and have not been testedextensively under real life conditions. Also,they work well only when the businessproblem they address is very well-defined

and can be expressed numerically.As such, these tools can be of great use

when the decisions to be made are in a well-specified and precisely measured domainsuch as production planning, oradvertisement targeting, or financial asset-liability management. When the problem isless clearly specified, and less clearlymeasured, say as in customer satisfactionimprovement, or human resourcemanagement, or strategy formulation, the

available tools are still at a very early stageof their life cycle and they are of anelementary nature. As such human intuitionand expert judgment are more successfulthat any automated AI based method.

What will it take to change this? Theanswer turns out to lie in the relentlessexpansion in the capabilities of computerhardware and software, as embodied inMoore’s Law and its corollaries. There islittle doubt that in the 2030s we will lookback at the early 2020s as an era of primitivecomputers that had only terabyte storage,gigabyte memories and gigahertz clockspeeds and 5G communications.

As we push on to exabyte storage,petabyte memories and 7G communications,we will be able to pose messier real-lifeproblems using conversational naturallanguage interfaces, and solve them usingmuch more advanced algorithms, maybeeven quantum methods. This will bringbusiness management automation within ourgrasp and ever more realistic decisionproblems can be solved to a degree ofefficiency that will be beyond the abilities ofeven the best human managers.

The writer is Dr Debashis Guha, Director,Master of AI in Business, SP Jain School of Global

Management

VIJAYAWADA | SUNDAY | JANUARY 2, 2022 avenues 08

M I N D I T

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You are looking to study abroad?Consider the following: Whyapply now? Why this course and

university? Why do you want to moveabroad for your degree? What are yourfuture goals? How do the university andyour chosen program align with these?Do you know what you want from thisexperience?

If you have failed to answer any ofthese questions, not even an outstand-ing GPA will secure that coveted collegespot for you. University admissions arenot merely an exercise in form-filling,in which you would mechanically listyour achievements; this is an intro-spective and constantly evolving process.One of the first things you would needto do is set aside some time to ponderthese questions and the research uni-versities that match your expectations.

In India, students instinctively reachout to their immediate network foradvice or follow a gut feeling. The dan-ger this poses is that there is a surfeit ofinformation on the web, not all of whichis accurate or even relevant to your pro-file. Confronted with so many choicesand opinions, it is crucial to acquaintyourself with the science of making intel-ligent decisions. Here are tools to helpyou choose better.

Academic strength: The universi-ties you choose should ideally be glob-al leaders in the field of your choice. Ifthe institution specialies in that disci-pline, you can rest assured that you willbe immersed in a competitive, cutting-edge, and quality-driven environmentwith like-minded peers. Research thecourses that the university offers. If youwould like a tailored, mixed curriculum,or a course that incorporates an equalamount of practical and theoreticalmodules, pick the universities that giveyou that flexibility. If you are interestedin the university’s research strengths,find out where its faculty expertise liesand if this relates to your academic goals.

Prospects: Look at the university’srecruitment data. This will help you geta better idea of life after graduation.Alumni connections via LinkedIn willprovide an insider view. There are alsouniversity career services and fairs, aswell as internship or professional pro-

ject opportunities, that many schoolsoffer; if gaining professional experiencealongside your degree is a priority foryou, choose accordingly.

Social life: This may not seem likethe most important part of your deci-sion-making process, but its value isoften understated. Your peer communitywill be a considerable part of your stu-dent life, and the experiences you havevia student clubs, societies, and eventscan be formative and inspiring. Theinformal network you build is a muchmore personal way to network and learnabout potential opportunities. Anotheraspect you would be taking into accountis its location, your accommodation, andaccess to the city’s industry contacts andcultural scene.

Don’t go overboard. We recommendlisting not over seven schools for a PGshortlist, and not more than 15 forundergraduate. Divide these furtherinto aspirational and safe schools — uni-versities you feel confident about andconsider your chances of gaining admis-sion. However, keep your expectationsrealistic and be prepared for failure.College rejections are a tough buthealthy way of learning that you areentering into a competitive, globallyinvolved space. A story of failure mayjust provide you with that extra moti-vation for your next attempt.

‘Research beforeapplying abroad’There are many choices and opinionswhen it comes to foreign education. Butit is crucial to acquaint with science ofmaking intelligent decisions, saysADARSH KHANDELWAL

Adarsh KKhandelwal,Co-founder, Collegify

To recognise academicachievement, theUniversity of

Strathclyde’s (Glasgow)Dean’s InternationalExcellence Award-Postgraduate Taught offersall qualified international PGstudents pursuing a Masters amerit based scholarship. Theamount of £4,000 is towardsthe first year of tuition fees ofa full-time Masters, EdDEducation or one-year MResprogramme in the Faculty ofHumanities and SocialSciences.

Number of scholarships:70

Duration: One yearEligibility: Candidates

must: Be available to com-mence their academic studiesin the UK by the start of theacademic year in September-October 2021.

Have an offer of study fora full time, postgraduate,Humanities and SocialSciences programme at theUniversity of Strathclyde.

Have paid the tuition feedeposit before 31 August2021.

For more informationcontact: Masters, PGDE,MRes: hass-pg-enquiries@strath.ac.uk; forEdD Education: hass-post-grad@strath.ac.uk

Application deadline:

Last date to apply isAugust 31, 2021.

The University ofMelbourne, Australia invitesapplications for itsMelbourne Mobility Awards.International students canapply.

Eligibiity: The candidatemust be enrolled at the uni-versity in either an undergraduate or a graduate course-work degree.

The applicant intends tostudy overseas as part of aUniversity of MelbourneExchange or short-term pro-gram or a University ofMelbourne subject with anoverseas component that willbe credited towards yourUniversity of Melbournedegree.

Supporting documents:If applicants wants to apply fora scholarship on the basis offinancial disadvantage, per-sonal difficulties or disabilityor medical condition, they willbe asked to provide support-ing documents like Centrelink statement or medical cer-tificates as part of the onlineapplication.

Admission require-ments: For taking admission,applicants must have highschool certificates with a goodacademic record.

How to apply: Applicantsmust submit an online appli-cation form.

Application deadline:The last date to apply for theawards is December 31, 2021

In the wake of the COVID-19lockdown, the transition fromin-person classes to online

learning was facilitated by digitaleducational platforms along withonline learning tools. Againstsuch a backdrop, it is now makingparents, teachers and studentswonder what the future of onlineeducation is?

The future of online educationlies in the development of a holis-tic platform that enhances theteaching-learning experiences.And, determined strides are beingmade in this direction.

Several ed-tech platforms areoffering a wide range of educa-tional tools and learning materi-als to students to learn while theyare stuck at home. These digitalplatforms have evolved to provideclassroom-like experiences as theyenable real-time interactionbetween students and teachers,which is crucial for clearing doubtsor assigning homework, and so on.

It must also be noted that edu-cation comprises five pillars—mentorship, self-learning tools,effective doubt solutions, test andfeedback systems and a cus-

tomised performance improve-ment plan. At the moment, theplatforms are mostly solving anyone of the following. However, thefuture of online learning is expect-ed to be a holistic one, with plat-forms covering all five of them.

Looking at the trend, it isn’t asecret that online learning willbecome mainstream. Gradually,schools are expected to adopt ahybrid learning model in the newnormal era. In a hybrid model,online as well as offline learnerscan simultaneously attend theclass of a particular teacher.

This will provide immenseflexibility in teaching and learning.Hybrid learning also increasesthe accessibility of education tolearners from even the remotestareas. It improves their learningexperience through more cus-tomized and interactive classes,audio-visual lessons, and engagingtutorials. These facilities can meetthe requirements of both onlineand in-person learners.

ONLINE SIMULATION TOOLSEducational institutions that

cannot afford world-class labora-

tories can use online simulationtools thereby giving students areal-lab experience. In addition,remote learning can be furtherenhanced by the use of virtual labs.In-depth virtual experiments canalso increase their understandingof various equipment and exper-imental processes.

COMMUNITY LEARNINGAnother benefit is the com-

munity learning that will act as thekey to solving doubts. In additionto the faculty, peers and seniorscan guide in a moderated envi-ronment. All in all, it will enhancethe exchange of new ideas, shar-ing experiences, discussions, andteamwork.

ROLE OF EDTECHIt is therefore fair to mention

that several Edtech platforms haveemerged to make online learningeffortless. According to IBEF, in2020, a total of $ 1.1 billion waspoured into the Edtech sector.Another report by IBEF suggeststhat the Edtech market in India isexpected to touch $10.4 billion by2025. The data proves that ed-tech

is going to flourish further, mak-ing online learning popular in theyears to come. These platformswill be serving an array of advan-tages.

They will continue to play animportant role in giving studentsaccess to customised and inter-esting e-content. Collaborationof ed-tech start-ups with educa-tional institutions is serving theinterest of both educators andlearners alike. Besides, the cours-es are available in multiple lan-guages to cater to the needs ofdiverse sections of learners.Teachers can create educationalcontent and share it with studentsinstantly. Through the use ofonline grading tools, the evalua-tion of the students' performancecan conveniently be done.

Therefore, the future of onlinelearning appears bright mainlybecause of rapid digitisation andthe advancements taking place inthe field of technology. Further,modernisation of the educationsector will continue to happen toraise the standard of the quality ofeducation in the country.

The writer is CEO, DUX Education

The Indian Institute of ManagementUdaipur (IIMU) Incubation Centeropened registrations for its second

cohort of the pre-incubation programmefor early-stage ventures, students andworking professionals with product ideas.The program is open to 30 eligibleparticipants and will run from September1, 2021 till November 2021.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought

a surge in entrepreneurship. Theprogramme will host live curatedworkshops, structured modules, offerincubation team support and provide alearning community.

The modules will help participants tounderstand target customers and theirproblems, design prototype and definebusiness model, understand pricing, learnto find investment and launch product.T

he Leap’s IELTStrainingprogramme has

been attended bymore than two lakhstudy abroadaspirants since its

launch in February2021. It offers awhole suite ofcurated courses,delivered fullydigitally on the weband the app. The

IELTS is a globallyacceptedstandardisation test,designed to gaugethe English languageproficiency of non-native speakers.

The Aplicar, an end-to-endstudent recruitment techstart-up has announced its

partnership with Portage Collegeand CodeCore College. Studentsand recruitment partners fromaround the globe can nowaccess these esteemedinstitutions only through Aplicar.

Located in New

Westminster, CodeCore Collegewas founded in 2008 inVancouver as a codingbootcamp. It has been providingpractical programming trainingtailored to industry needs tostudents. With many innovativecourses, this college has aplacement rate of 95% within 90days of graduation.

Farmers Family, a Noida-based agritech startup,has signed a long-term

memorandum ofunderstanding (MoU) withIIM Lucknow-EnterpriseIncubation Centre (IIML-EIC). The signing of theMoU marks a significantdevelopment in promotingentrepreneur development,startup incubation, andopening up investmentavenues to the business.

According to the MoUsigned with IIM Lucknow,Farmers Family will receiveguidance from IIML-Incubator expert mentors,investors, experienced andsuccessful senior businessand corporate sector execu-tives and industry veteranson a broad range of topics,including the fundamentalsof setting up a business,among others.

Vikal Kulshreshtha, Co-

founder & CEO, FarmersFamily said, ‘Our associa-tion with the world-classpremier institute is not onlyfostering close linkagesbetween academia andindustry but will also opennew avenues for resourcesharing. We believe thatthis partnership has thereal potential to make adeep and tangible impacton our business and enableus to reach milestones.”

The Association ofInternational WealthManagement of India

(AIWMI has announced thesecond edition of India’slargest Financial ServicesEmployability test (F-SET)which is a nationalassessment designed foraspirants who are keen towork in the financialservices.

The assessmentconsists of 14 individualtests focusing on variousverticals and functions

within financial services.For an aspirant keen towork in financial services,F-SET is a fantastic way togain insight and get aheadof peers in preparation forthe recruitment processesof financial servicesinstitutions.

The registrationprocess has already startedfor and the last date ofenrolment is September 30,2021.

Duration of each examwill be two hours and

results will be announcedon October 17, 2021.

The fees for theassessment is `354 tillAugust 15, `472 betweenAugust 16 September 15and `590 post September16 till the last date.

Aditya Gadge founder-CEO of AIWMI said:“Appearing for variousassessments under F-SETis an ideal way foraspirants to test theirknowledge and gainnational recognition.”

2ND EDITION OF PRE-INCUBATION PROGRAMME AT IIMU

SUCCESSFUL IELTS TRAINING BY LEAP

PARTNERSHIP INKED

FARMERS FAMILY SIGNS MOU WITH IIML-EIC

2ND EDITION OF F-SET ANNOUNCEDINCUBATION CENTRE AT ANANTU

INBRIEF

It isn’t a secretthat online

learning willbecome

mainstream.Schools areexpected to

adopt a hybridlearning model

in the newnormal

The AnantUhas launchedincubation centre —Aarambh with a vision to

foster a culture ofentrepreneurship among thedesign and architecturefraternity, students and buddingentrepreneurs to use DesignThinking for solving societal

problems with along-termimpact.

The aim isto promote theentrepreneurshipculture in and

around the campus byoffering various platforms to

budding entrepreneurs toexperiment with their businessideas, get one-on-onementorships from domain

experts and professionals from

the industry, interact withinvestors and create their ownorganisation and or enterprise.The platform will nurtureentrepreneurial thinking,promote business knowledgeand inculcate confidence inevery student. It would addvalue to the entrepreneur andmake an impact on society atlarge.

Partnered with the StudentStartup & Innovation Policy,Government of Gujarat and IITKanpur, the incubation centreprovides an integrated approachto learning that includesconverting the idea into afeasible business proposition,connecting to theentrepreneurial network assist inpitching the idea to the rightaudience.

The future of online education lies in the development of a holistic platformthat enhances teaching-learning experiences, says ROHIT JAIN

ENHANCINGLEARNINGENHANCELEARNING

VIJAYAWADA | SUNDAY | JANUARY 2, 2022

09https://www.dailypioneer.com/vivacity/

CARNIVOROUS ANIMALS INVITE DISEASES CHILDREN GAINED WEIGHT DURING THE PANDEMICNCAP SHOWS SIGN OF HOPE

Anew study has revealed that children gained excess weightduring the Covid-19 pandemic, especially those between

five and 11 years.“When we compared the weight gain among children

from 2019 to 2020, we found that there was more weightgained during the pandemic for youths of all ages,” saidresearcher Corinna Koebnick from the Kaiser Permanente inthe US.

To determine if children picked up extra weight during thepandemic, researchers analysed the electronic health recordsof 1,91,509 children, who were aged between five and 17 fromMarch 2019, to January 2021. Most of the increase wasamong five-11 and 12-15 years olds.

“We need to immediately begin to invest in monitoringthe worseningobesity epidemic anddevelop diet andactivity interventionsto help childrenachieve and maintaina healthy weight,”Koebnick added.

Unable to manage your blood pressure (BP) levels?Eating flavonoid-rich foods like berries, apples, pears

and drinking red wine can lower systolic blood pressurelevels, as well as improve greater diversity in gutmicrobiome,according to newresearch.

The study,published in thejournal Hypertension,showed that up to15.2 per cent of theassociation betweenflavonoid-rich foodsand systolic bloodpressure could be explained by the diversity found inparticipants’ gut microbiome.

Flavonoids are broken down by the body’s gutmicrobiome — the bacteria found in the digestive tract.

The study evaluated 904 adults’ food intake, gutmicrobiome and BP levels together with other clinicaland molecular phenotyping at regular follow-upexaminations.

BERRIES, APPLES, WINE LOWER BP LEVELS

Carnivorous animals have a defective immune system,which makes them likely to be asymptomatic carriers of

disease-causing pathogens, finds a study.Thus, farming large

numbers of carnivores,like mink, dogs, andcats — who are thebiggest carriers ofzoonotic pathogens —could allow theformation of undetected‘disease reservoirs’, inwhich a pathogen couldspread to many animals and mutate to become a risk tohuman health, said researchers from the University ofCambridge.

The researchers say that the carnivorous diet, which ishigh in protein, is thought to have antimicrobial propertiesthat could compensate for the loss of these immunepathways in carnivores — any gut infection is expelled bythe production of diarrhoea. But the immune deficiencymeans that other pathogens can reside undetectedelsewhere in these animals.

CUTTING SUGAR CAN HELP PREVENT DEATHS

Half-way through itstarget period, the

National Clean AirProgramme (NCAP) isinching towards its goalswith certain steps takenby several states, whilesome others were stilllagging behind with non-tracking of its airpollution related data. Even as air pollution remains mostlyurban centric, studies have well established the regionalscale pollution is more concentrated in the Indo-Gangeticplains because of the peculiar meteorology and also in moreindustrialised states.

In studies, done initially for six major metros, the majorcauses of pollution were identified as vehicle, dust andconstruction, biomass, industry and others. It is encouragedto move from city-centric to air shed-centric air qualitymanagement. This approach requires an inter-statecoordination mechanism, which can be facilitated by settingup regional air shed management authorities that enjoycross-state jurisdiction.

Most powerful is he who has himself in his own power.—Seneca

Cutting 20 per cent of sugar from packaged foods and 40

per cent from beverages can prevent death as well as

the onset of cardiovascular diseases and diabetes in

millions of people worldwide, according to a study.

The study, led by

a team of researchers

from Massachusetts

General Hospital, Tufts

University and others,

showed that reducing

the amount of sugars

in packaged foods and

beverages can reduce

the risk of 2.48 million

cardiovascular disease events (such as strokes, heart

attacks, cardiac arrests), 4,90,000 cardiovascular deaths,

and 7,50,000 diabetes cases in the US. The reports was

published in the journal Circulation.

Consuming sugary foods and beverages is strongly

linked to obesity and diseases such as type-2 diabetes

and cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of

mortality in the US.

As per the Indian Census 2011,2.68 crores people out of thetotal 121 crores population

have been enumerated as ‘disabled’.While 0.81 crores are from urbanareas, 1.86 crores i.e. 69 per cent ofthe disabled population reside in ruralareas of the country. Some of theseareas are so remote that the challengesfaced by the disabled rural populationnever reach the policymakers. The lifeof Mohammad Qasim — a 16-year-old, physically disabled boy is onesuch story that requires immediateattention.

Diagnosed with clubfoot — abirth defect in which the limb is twist-ed or out of shape or position — thisteenaged boy is the sole breadwinnerof his family. A resident of the bor-der district of Poonch’s Ban Baala vil-lage, Qasim lost his father when hewas just seven. “After my father’sdeath, our lives became miserable. Mymother never recovered from theshock and developed serious healthissues. She is bed-ridden to date,” saidthis young boy while sharing hisplight.

As part of social welfare schemesfor persons with physical disabilities,Qasim receives ̀ 1,000 every month,but the money is insufficient to takecare of his family’s basic needs, whichincludes his mother, a 12-year-old sis-ter and a 14-year-old brother. Jobless,with no other source of income, thiseldest son of a destitute family start-ed begging on the streets to makeends meet. He and his family survivedsomehow for nine years but withCovid-19 coming into the picture,their lives became even more miser-able. “The market was shut during thenationwide lockdown. The streetswere deserted, and people were

scared to step out of their houses.Since then, we have been dependenton the ration being provided by thegovernment and non-governmentorganisations,” shared a disappoint-ed Qasim.

According to People withDisabilities in India: From commit-ments to outcome, a report by theWorld Bank, disabled people have sig-nificantly lower employment ratesthan the average, and this gap hasbeen increasing over the past 15 years.With no avenues to earn a living,most of them are pushed into pover-ty. This affects one’s ability to affordtreatment and other necessities.

“My family always wanted to get

my foot treated but the lack ofresources never allowed it. Despite thedeformity, I did not quit. After sev-eral failed attempts to find a job, Istarted begging,” rued Qasim whobelieves that support from govern-ment or non-government organisa-tions can help him overcome hisphysical disability. “If I could receivefree treatment and financial assistancefrom the concerned organisations, Iwill be able to live a life of dignity andhelp my family,” said Qasim.

Undoubtedly, several schemeshave been introduced by both theUnion Territory administration andthe Union Government to supportpeople with disabilities but for peo-

ple like Qasim, who come fromunderdeveloped regions like Poonch,it is difficult to have access to suchschemes.

When Shakeel Ahmed, the dis-trict social welfare officer of Poonch,was contacted, he informed thatpension is being provided to personswith disabilities under National SocialAssistance Programme (NSAP) andIntegrated Social Security Scheme(ISSS) in the region. “We will providecrutches to Qasim. He should visitour office and put an application toreceive the benefit. We will see howwe can support him further,” heassured.

Qasim, however, is not alone. 12-year-old Ismat Bi, 30-year-oldNaseem Akhter and 42-year-oldShareefa Bi are others from Qasim’svillage who have been deprived ofbasic rights only because of theirphysical disabilities.

According to Mohammad Bashir,a 50-year-old resident from the samevillage says, “Each member of oursociety is important for the develop-ment of the nation. It is extremelyimportant for disabled people tohave access to life skills and tools thatsupport them in their journey tobecome independent.”

There are also examples fromthese mountainous villages that provehow a little support can change thelives of people with disabilities. 30-year-old Abdul Karim, from Poonch’sBhati Dhar village, was born paral-ysed due to premature birth, butdespite several hurdles, he trainedhimself to be a professional tailor inhis region. “We have to accept ourbodies and find ways to deal with dif-ferent situations as we are differentfrom others. We need help from the

authorities,” shared Karim whobelieves that NGOs and administra-tion can play a great role in support-ing disabled individuals in makingtheir lives. easier.

With access to new medical andhealth care technologies, specialschools, vocational training, andNGOs, the livelihood of people withdisabilities can be improved easily.Abdul suggested that increased andeasy availability as well as accessibil-ity to customised life skills can pre-pare disabled people to make theirway through the constraints especial-ly in rural areas.

Until the 2011 census, onlyseven kinds of disabilities wereincluded in the survey. In 2016, afterthe introduction of the Rights ofPersons with Disabilities Act, the listof disabilities was expanded to 21.Subsequently, the 2019 NationalStatistics Office report identified dis-abled people as those with temporaryloss of an ability as well as neurolog-ical and blood disorders, in additionto the earlier definition, whichincluded mental retardation andpermanent inability to speak, move,hear and see. It also included acidattack survivors.

The government is investinggreat efforts to address the needs ofboth physically and mentally disabledpeople. However, the inclusion ofpersons with disabilities residing inrural areas is a huge challenge. Theylack awareness, information andmeans to receive benefits from theseefforts. In areas like Poonch, whichis guarded by the mighty Pir PanjalRange, several Qasims waiting to beheard. It is about time their chal-lenges are discussed at national level.

—Charkha Features

In the modern world, stressis often synonymous with

your professional life. Usually,this part is relegated to work-ing in the office, dealing withbosses and colleagues as wellas being productive. At the endof the day, home is where youdisengage and relieve fromthe daily grind. However,home, too, has its own set ofstress like meeting expecta-tions of spouse, parents andchildren. On top of all this,there are unavoidable invisibleenergies caused by moderntechnology at both home andoffice which amplifies thestress. This creates a runawayeffect where stress spirals outof control and you end upbeing burnt out as a result.This is why it’s important tomanage both your space andtime.

Most of us are used to theelectronic conveniences ofmodern life. But few of us areaware of the possible healthrisks presented by the gadgetsthat make our world work. Weare surrounded by electro-magnetic radiation whetherat home or office.Electromagnetic frequenciesare generated by all electron-ic and electrical devices.Mobile phones, wi-fi routers,microwave ovens, laptops, tele-vision, cordless phones aresome of the devices which arenow prevalent in every Indianhousehold and which generateEMF radiations as long asthey are operational. In offices,servers, UPS, wi-fi accesspoints, and mobile towers aregreat sources of high EMFradiation to which we are con-tinually exposed.

All subtle energies, be itthe energies of vastu or ener-gies of electromagnetic radia-tion have a deeper and pro-longed effect on our mindand body. On one hand, while

gross energy like sound, lightand wind have acute and tem-porary effects, subtler energieshave chronic and long-termeffects. While vastu energiescan be good and bad, in differ-ent directions and at parts,depending on the design of thebuilding, the EMF energies areuniformly bad in all places.

When exposed to theseEMF radiations, different peo-ple have different symptomsdepending upon their vitalityand constitution. The mostprominent symptoms are dis-turbed sleep, anxiety, palpita-tions, headaches, lethargy, tin-nitus (ringing in the ears), andnausea. Most people maydefine the collection of thesediseases as high stress.However, World Health

Organisation (WHO) hascoined a new term for peoplewho are more susceptible tothe effects of EMF radiation —electromagnetic hypersensi-tivity. Prolonged exposure canresult in lower immunity,reproductive and fertilityissues, auto-immune diseasesand some malignant diseases.Indian Institute of Technology(IIT) Mumbai submitted areport to the Government ofIndia in 2010 highlighting theeffect of mobile tower radia-tion and the Central PublicWorks Department (CPWD)has also defined protocols anddesign guidelines to reduce theimpact of EMF on residentsand workers and both thesedocuments are easily avail-able on the internet.

These radiations arecaused by modern technologyand stopping the use of thesegadgets is not practical. Thesedays, our efficiency dependson the use of these gadgets.Even if you stop using them,you will still be continuallyexposed to mobile tower radi-ations, radio-frequency wavesfrom microwave and radiotowers, and in some cases theneighbour’s wi-fi routers.

Since avoiding these radi-ations is not possible, theauthor suggests prudence inthe use of these equipment. Forexample, you keep your mobilehandset more than seven feetfrom where you sleep, and donot install the wi-fi router ortelevision set in your bed-

rooms. In case the televisionset is already installed in thebedroom, and for some reason,you cannot shift it elsewhere,you should switch off the TVfrom the mains and not fromthe remote before you sleep.Do not be near the microwaveoven when it is operational.Keep at least 10 feet or moredistance from the same. Donot operate the laptop by plac-ing it on your lap. Try toswitch off the mobile phoneand wireless router during thenight by routing your calls onthe good old landline phone atyour bedside.

If you are hypersensitiveto electromagnetic radiation,there are shielding paintsavailable in international mar-kets which can be applied onthe outer walls of the buildingto prevent mobile tower radi-ations from entering thebuilding but the disadvantageis that the mobile signalsweaken inside the buildingcausing network connectivityissues. In the modern way ofworking this may be unac-ceptable.

Modern vastu expertshave another way to neu-tralise the effect of these radi-ations. Specific materials,angles and geometric shapescan be installed at strategiclocations in the building toharmonise the effect of theseradiations on residents.

Irrespective of your sensi-tivity to electromagnetic radi-ations, we are all continuous-ly exposed to them especiallyin urban cities and they areaffecting our psyche and bodyenergy to one level or anoth-er. Some precautions and vasturectifications will definitelyreduce its negative effect.

(The writer is a vastuAcharya with more than 20

years of corporate leadershipexperience.)

Human beings generallyforget that they are

imperfect and so are theirforecasts or prophesies aboutthe future. These do not, andcannot, take into account allthe forces and factors at play.So, a few years back, not onlyordinary people but manywise people also indulged inwishful thinking that therewould now be no nuclear war.As a pigeon closes its eyes tothe reality of a cat advancingtowards it, human beings alsothink that there would be nocatastrophes. Like an ostrich,they bury their head andeyes in the dunes. It is thishabit of human societies thatbrought about the extinctionof many civilisations, as theythought that they were notconfronted with any dangers.They had become so proud oftheir progress and power aswell as become so intoxicat-ed that they lost their sanerjudgement. In fact, this atti-tude of sleeping over the dor-mant dangers has always pre-ceded the cataclysmic eventsthat brought devastation tovast civilisations or commu-nities. History is witness tomany such catastropheswhere knowledgeable peo-ple had been warning butwere not taken seriously. It isa sign of the Iron Age (kaliyu-ga) that the intellect is underthe shadow of tamoguna.And, even if they were heed-ed by some, what can the gov-ernments do about theremaining population.Moreover, in such a shortperiod, who has the will, thestature and the power to do it?The same can also be saidabout nuclear war. What wasformerly called the ‘Cold War’has, no doubt ended. But thecinders have not yet beenextinguished; they are coveredby only a thin layer of ash.They can flare up again whenthe winds of change blow.Indeed, the indications arealready there for anyone whocares to see.

It is also not properlyrealised that the masses innuclear power nations aregreatly affected by the eco-nomic plight which theirleaders have created. Theyalso feel that the leaders ofother countries have nothelped them enough but areinterested in manipulatingtheir economy. The econom-ic condition in some of thesecountries is so bad that theyhave been led to cripplinginflation, increasing crimerates and mass unemploy-ment. As a result of this,many think that people inthese countries would soonfeel frustrated and the conse-quences would be very dan-gerous. Thus, consideredoverall, the danger of anuclear world war hasincreased rather thandecreased or vanished. It hasonly disappeared for a while.

Alfred Nobel, in whosememory the famous Nobel

Prizes are awarded every year,had stated, “Let the sword ofDamocles hang over everyhead and you will witness amiracle. All war will stopinstantly.” But, unfortunately,his optimistic thinking wasproved wrong because noth-ing can work as a deterrentforever.

Today, humanity standsat a historic juncture, facingmultiple interconnectedthreats within a compressedtimescale. Besides the poten-tial use of nuclear weapons,there is environmental degra-dation, resource scarcity, cli-mate change, overpopulation,global disease pandemics,financial crises and naturaldisasters. The sort of interna-tional cooperation needed toreduce the number of nuclearweapons is similar to thatneeded to address these othertransnational threats. Thequestion today is whether astrategy based on nucleardeterrence continues to be themost effective way for govern-ments to deal with interna-tional tensions and protectthemselves, or whether alter-native strategies with greaterbenefits and lower risks areavailable. The answerdepends, in part, on how ourunderstanding of nucleardeterrence has evolved andwhether it will remain as sta-ble and salient as the major-ity of the strategic communi-ty believed it to be during theCold War.

According to spirituality,construction and destruc-tion are two sides of thesame coin. When we con-struct something, we do sofrom material which hasbecome available after a thingwas destroyed, disintegratedor decomposed. Likewise,destruction is the essentialforerunner of reconstruction.Hence, we should under-stand that a new world orderwill set in, only when theolder giveth place. Just as anew life in the form of a love-ly child comes into existenceafter the death of a decayed,diseased and degeneratebody, a new world order ofcomplete purity, peace andprosperity, without any kindof nuclear threat or any otherkind of insecurity wouldcome into existence only afterthe destruction of the old andailing world. So, instead offearing destruction, let usenlighten ourselves fromwithin to welcome a newworld order i e the GoldenAge which would be ruled byfeelings of universal brother-hood and love.

Wait for a newworld orderRAJYOGI BRAHMAKUMAR NIKUNJ JI

claims that destruction only pavesway for construction

EXTEND A HANDSAFEER IRDAM focusses the spotlight on MOHAMMAD QASIM to highlight thedifficulties faced by the less-priviledged disabled population

Guard your energyMANOJ SRIVASTAVA elaborates on how vastu can help in reducingstress and health issues caused by modern technology

TAILOR ABDUL KARIM MOHAMMAD QASIM

Will anyone go to jail for Christmas tree decorations? Jesus! Howis it possible? But that exactly is what happened to a drug dealer

in the United Kingdom. The man's decision to decorate his Christmastree with small packets of drugs and cash came back to haunt him.Marvin Porcelli, the dealer, had taken photos of the Christmas treedecorations on his mobile phone. The images were eventuallyretrieved by the police, who added them to a huge pile of evidenceproving his involvement in a major narcotics ring. The police in

Merseyside in northwest England said Porcelli wasarrested as part of a bigger operation,

named Overboard. The policeshared the information on

Twitter. The thread alsohad some lessons for

potential drugtraffickers. The

police saidwhen people start getting high on drugs, their

taste in festive home design “goes out of thewindow”.

North Korean leader KimJong Un capped off his 10th year

in power with a speech that made moremention of tractor factories and school uni-forms than nuclear weapons or the United States,according to summaries by state media on Saturday.

North Korea's main goals for 2022 will be jump start-ing economic development and improving people's lives asit faces a "great life-and-death struggle," Kim said in a speechon Friday at the end of the 4th Plenary Meeting of the 8thCentral Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK),which began on Monday.

The meetings coincided with the 10-year anniversary ofKim effectively assuming leadership of the country after thedeath of his father in 2011. Kim has used previous speech-es around the New Year to make major policy announce-ments, including launching significant diplomatic engage-ments with South Korea and the United States.

But summaries of his speechpublished in North Koreanstate media made no specificmention of the United States,with only a passing referenceto unspecified discussions ofinter-Korean relations and"external affairs."

The domestic focus of thespeech underscored the eco-nomic problems Kimfaces at home, whereself-imposed anti-pandemic borderlockdowns have leftNorth Korea moreisolated than everbefore, with inter-national aid organi-sations warning ofpossible foodshortages and ahumanitarian cri-sis.

FCRA licences -required to be ableto receive funding

from abroad - of over 6,000NGOs and other organisa-tions expired overnight, theHome Ministry saidSaturday morning, days

after it refused to renewsuch a licence for MotherTeresa's Missionaries ofCharity.

Home Ministry sourcessaid most of the 6,000+NGOs or organisations hadnot applied for their licens-

es to be renewed. Ministryofficials told NDTVreminders had been sent tomake the application beforethe deadline - Friday - butmany had not done so."How can permission begiven..." an official asked.

Overall, more than 12,000NGOs - including theOxfam India Trust, JamiaMilia Islamia, the IndianMedical Association and theLeprosy Mission - whoselicences had expired overthe past few months havelost their FCRA licenses asof now.

The list includes theTuberculosis Association OfIndia, the Indira GandhiNational Centre For Arts,and the India IslamicCultural Centre.

Oxfam India is in the listof NGOs whose FCRA cer-tificates have expired andnot in those whose registra-tions have been cancelled.

There are now only16,829 NGOs in Indiawhich still have a FCRAlicence, which was yesterdayrenewed till March 31,2022, or till the time renew-al applications (for NGOswho have applied) aredecided.

22,762 NGOs are regis-tered under the ForeignContributions RegulationAct, according to newsagency PTI, and they mustremain registered (have alicense) in order to receiveforeign funding.

All of this comes afterthe Home Ministry cited"adverse inputs" to notrenew the FCRA licence ofthe Missionaries of Charity,leaving the group - whichoperate orphanages andshelters for the poor, sick,and destitute across India -without access to foreignfunds in over 250 accounts.

scopekaleid backpage VIJAYAWADA | SUNDAY | JANUARY 2, 2022

12,000 NGOs,including Oxfam and Jamia,lose foreign funding licence

Registration for vaccination against COVID-19 for teensbetween the ages of 15 and 18 is beginning today on the

COWIN portal, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviyasaid.

Taking to Twitter, the Health Minister requested people toregister eligible teens in their families for this.

"On the occasion of New Year, registration is being start-ed on COWIN portal for immunization of children

against #COVID19 in the age group of 15 to 18 yearsfrom today. I request the family members to reg-

ister the eligible children for vaccination.#SabkoVaccineMuftVaccine," Mr

Mandaviya tweeted in Hindi.

Registration begins for

COVID VAX FOR AGED 15-18

Japan backs Bill

Gates' n-reactor The Japan Atomic

Energy Agencyand MitsubishiHeavy Industries Ltdare set to cooperatewith the UnitedStates and Bill Gates'venture company tobuild a high-technuclear reactor inWyoming, the dailyYomiuri reported onSaturday.

The parties willsign an agreement asearly as January forJAEA andMitsubishi HeavyIndustries to providetechnical supportand data fromJapan's ownadvanced reactors,the report said citingmultiple unidenti-fied sources.

TerraPower, anadvanced nuclearpower venturefounded by Gates, isset to open itsNatrium plant inWyoming in 2028.The U.S. govern-ment will providefunding to cover halfof the $4 billion pro-ject.

Terrapower hadinitially explored theprospect of buildingan experimentalnuclear plant withstate-owned ChinaNational NuclearCorp, until it wasforced to seek newpartners after theadministration ofDonald Trumprestricted nucleardeals with China.

EU drafts plan to

label gas and nuclearinvestments as green

Jan 1 (Reuters) -he European Unionhas drawn up plansto label some naturalgas and nuclearenergy projects as"green" investmentsafter a year-long bat-tle between govern-ments over whichinvestments are trulyclimate friendly.

The EuropeanCommission isexpected to proposerules in Januarydeciding whethergas and nuclear pro-jects will be includedin the EU "sustain-able finance taxono-my".

This is a list ofeconomic activiesand the environ-mental criteria theymust meet to belabelled as greeninvestments. Byrestricting the"green" label to trulyclimate friendly pro-jects, the systemaims to make thoseinvestments moreattractive to privatecapital, and stop"greenwashing",where companies orinvestors overstatetheir eco-friendlycredentials.

Brussels has alsomade moves toapply the taxonomyto some EU funding,meaning the rulescould decide whichprojects are eligiblefor certain publicfinance.

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Religiousleader bookedfor Haridwarhate speech

Uttarakhand policehave filed a hate

speech case against YatiNarasimhanand - theorganiser of a 'dharamsansad', or 'parliamentof religions', inHaridwar last monththat triggered outrageafter some Hindu reli-gious leaders urged peo-ple to take up armsagainst Muslims andcalled for genocide.

Narasimhanand -who has previously alsobeen accused of incit-ing violence with incen-diary speeches - wasone of those who spokeat the event. He is thefifth person to benamed in a FIR (firstinformation report)that was filed four dayslater and only afterpublic calls for action.

The others named inthe FIR are Sagar SindhuMaharaj, a woman iden-tified as 'SadhviAnnapurna' and a mannamed Dharam Das, aswell as a Wasim Rizviaka Jitendra Tyagi. Allfive have been chargedwith promoting enmitybetween religious groupsand defiling a place ofworship.

Clips from the event -held from December 17to 20 - were circulatedon social media anddrew sharp criticismfrom former militarychiefs, activists and eventennis legend MartinaNavratilova.

Man held for postingpvt pics of woman on social media

A33-year-old man wasarrested for allegedly

posting private pictures of awoman on social media,

police said onSaturday.

The accusedhas been

identified asRajesh

SinghSuman,

a resi-dent

of Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh,they said.

According to police, awoman lodged a complaintat the Dwarka South PoliceStation alleging that Sumanwas stalking, blackmailingand threatening her.

She said that she came incontact with the accusedthrough a matrimonialwebsite, met him a coupleof times and later sharedher private photographswith him, a senior policeofficer said.

However, their marriagegot cancelled, followingwhich the accused started

blackmailing and threat-ening the complainant

that he would post thephotos on social

media platformsand with acquain-

tances, the offi-cer said.

Drug dealer decoratesChristmas Tree with

cash and cocaine