Pranab at its helm," the Saamana editorial stated. Elaborating on the editorial in Saamana, the Sena's spokesperson and the newspaper's

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1 he India Meteorological TDepartment (IMD) will soon be able to issue flash flood alerts with its ambitious flash flood guidance FFG system. FFG systems are specialised forecasting and early-warning systems for flash floods. The system will forecast the impact of rainfall warning that would alert States/cities on whether a particular spell of rain could lead to flooding after assessment of soil condition, moisture level and topography of the particular area. According to Director General of IMD KJ Ramesh, the new system will help take precautionary measures in advance in case of sudden flood in any specific area. "Rainfall spell would flood in an area often depends on interplay of factors that include the temperature, soil condition, n an attempt to break away Ifrom "bureaucratic red tapism" and infuse fresh ideas into governance, the Centre on Sunday advertised for 10 posts of Joint Secretary level officers opening them for general public bypassing the prevalent Union Public Service Commission system. The Government hopes to overhaul the governance system through this experimental step. Terming the recruitment as "lateral recruitment", the Government through the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) advertised for 10 posts against vacancies in ministries of Finance, Commerce, Civil Aviation, Environment, Agriculture, Road Transport and Highways, Shipping, Renewable Energy. The advertisement called professionals working in various field to join the Government and become part of nation building. Though the appointment of individuals from private sector in the Government at Secretary level is not new the NDA Government in 2002 had appointed Reliance owned BSES head RV Sahi as the Power Secretary this is the first time posts at Joint Secretary level have been thrown open for general public. "The Government of India has decided to invite talented and motivated Indian nationals willing to contribute towards nation building to join the Government at the level of Joint Secretary. The proposal of ere is an advice to the wor- off Bacchus from Hshippers the Delhi Excise department: Never drink your favourite beer in any restro bar or a club in the national Capital without checking the expiry date as the Delhi Government has found some establishments serving "expired beer" to customers. The Excise department officers were aghast to find nine well-known venues in popular hangout spots like Hauz Khas, New Friends Colony and Connaught Place serving "expired beer" during surprise inspections between August 19, 2017 and April 13, Restro bar is a commonly used phrase that means a restaurant which serves alcoholic drinks and has characteristics of a bar or nightclub. In a written response to a question asked by AAP MLA Vishesh Ravi in the Delhi Assembly, the Excise Department said 214 pubs, bars and restaurants were inspected by its Enforcement Branch during the past year and of these, 94 restro bars were found violating Excise rules. According to data provided to the Assembly, nine restro bars located in Vasant Vihar, lateral entry is aimed at bringing in fresh ideas and new approaches to governance and also to augment manpower. Candidates who have expertise in specific areas of Revenue, Financial Services, Economic Affairs, Agriculture, Road Transport & Highways, Shipping, Environment & Forests, New & Renewable Energy, Civil Aviation and Commerce and fulfil the eligibility criteria may apply for specific posts mentioned in the advertisement," the DoPT advertisement said. It added that candidates from State Governments/ Union Territories Administration, Central/State PSUs/autonomous bodies etc. set up or controlled by soil depth, antecedent soil moisture conditions, state of the drainage system, topography and the amount of rain. The trial run is going on the system," said an official of IMD. Elaborating the FFG system, officials said that real-time data input comes from remote sensing satellite radar tracking rainfall in the region and hydrological models based on local climatic and geographic conditions. "Flash flood guidance systems focus primarily on heavy rainfall and rainfall on saturated soils. The systems seek to identify the amount of rainfall that exceeds a water body's carrying capacity," official added. For instance soil condition of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh can absorb 10 to 20 cm rainfall. On the other hand soil conditions of Uttarakhand cannot absorb 10 cm or 20 cm rainfall so there are chances of flood-like situation. Continued on Page 2 Rajouri Garden, Saket, New Friends Colony, Punjabi Bagh, Laxmi Nagar, Connaught Place and Janakpuri were found serving "expired beer" to customers during the inspections. An Excise official said beer bottles of various brands have different written advice. For instance, labels of beer bottles of some brands say "best before six months from the date of manufacture", while others read "best before twelve months from date of manufacture". "The Department takes action if restro bars and clubs are found serving beer which has expired as per the written advice," he said. E xtending his social engagement programme in Jharkhand in the run up to 2019 general elections, BJP s national president Amit Shah would be meeting some of the big names, including former captain of Indian cricket team Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Shah is scheduled to visit the State in July under the Sampark for Samarthan initiative which the ruling party at the Centre is at present continuing with across the country. The decision in this regard was taken in a meeting of State BJP leaders with party s national general secretary Ram Madhav. Madhav during his tour on Sunday sat separately with office bearers first and later held a core committee meeting comprising top leaders, including State president Laxman Gilua, MPs Jayant Sinha, Sudarsan Bhagat and Ravindra Rai, former Chief Minister Arjun Munda and several others. Central/State Governments shall be appointed on deputation (including short-term contract) with lien in the parent department. The candidates from private sector organisations, international/multinational organisations etc., shall be appointed on contract basis for a period of three years extendable up to five years. Minister of State (MoS) in the Prime Minister's Office Jitendra Singh said the Government's decision of introducing lateral entry of 10 positions as Joint Secretaries is an endeavour to give every Indian a chance to grow. Terming the lateral entry as a huge reform by exposing the top civil service to competition through lateral entry, former vice chairman of Niti Aayog, Arvind Panagriya, said on Twitter: "Hope India's best minds will rise to the occasion and come forward to serve. They are the key to the success of the reform." The unconventional move based on recommendations of the NITI Aayog drew strong criticism from Opposition parties who were against the idea of diluting bureaucratic checks and balances. "Why are timetested UPSC and SSC being sought to be undermined? To fill IAS ranks with Sanghis and undermine reservation too, in the BJP's last few months in office," tweeted CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury. Defending the move Niti he Shiv Sena has set the cat Tamong the pigeons by charging that the purpose behind the RSS inviting former President Pranab Mukherjee to its headquarters might be that in the event of 2019 Lok Sabha polls throwing up a hung House, it might initiate a move to form a "national Government' with "citizen" Pranab at the helm of the new dispensation. In an editorial published in its official mouth-piece Saamana, the Shiv Sena said: "There must be definitely some agenda behind the RSS inviting Pranab to its headquarters (to address the graduated pracharaks). Whatever may be agenda, we will get to know about it in 2019". "Available pointers suggest that the BJP will not get majority in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. In the event of a hung House and the likelihood of other political parties not supporting Modi's candidature for the Prime Minister's post, the grapevine in Delhi has it that the RSS might try to float a national Government with citizen Pranab at its helm," the Saamana editorial stated. Elaborating on the editorial in Saamana, the Sena's spokesperson and the newspaper's executive editor Sanjay Raut said: "We feel the RSS is preparing itself for a situation where it might put forth Pranab Mukherjee ji as PM name if the BJP fails to get required numbers, in any case the BJP will lose a minimum of 110 seats this time". Swift came the response from Mukherjee's daughter Sharmistha Mukherjee who tweeted: "Mr Raut, after retiring as President of India, my Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant tweeted: "Niti's experience with lateral entry has been extremely good. They bring in a vast number of fresh & vibrant ideas. This move in Govt was long overdue & I welcome it. Will catalyse UPSC entrants to specialise. Govt must also allow deputation of its officers to private sector as well." This move was also welcomed by RTI activist and former CIC, Shailesh Gandhi, who said that this is a better method as UPSC doesn't show the specialisation. "If the selection is done in a transparent manner, laying down proper criteria and ensuring that experts in those fields joined is a brilliant idea," he said. Historian Ramachandran Guha posted his 2016 article written in a newspaper suggesting the Government to open bureaucracy for competition. "I think that from the level of Joint Secretary upwards, all Government jobs should be subject to open competition. At that level one can bring in professionals with expertise, and yet allow them to grow in the State system, before assuming larger responsibilities," Guha had written. Our president would pay a visit here next month and review the task he had given to the State organisation during his previous visit in the light of the Mission Along with that he under Sampark for Samarthan programme would father is NOT going to enter into active politics again." Sharmistha had earlier questioned her father Pranab's decision to go to the RSS headquarters in Nagpur by saying that his speech would be forgotten, visuals will remain and those would be circulated with fake statements. Sharmistha also responded to a tweet from a RSS sympathiser Rahul Easwar who said: "Expecting a Tweet of applause from respected, ji ; Not as a daughter, but as a Citizen. Sri #PranabMukherjeewas superb :-) In her tweet, Sharmistha said: ji from a daughter. But as a daughter as well as a citizen, I reserve the right to differ & express that difference without fear. Was brought up like that by my parents. I am what I amgood or bad- thanks to them". Earlier, alluding to the "changing approach" of the Sangh Parivar towards Muslims, the Sena mouthpiece stated in its editorial published on Saturday that the RSS, which in the past would criticise the Congress of trying to "appease" had begun to hold Iftar parties using the Government machinery and State-run guest houses. Continued on Page 2 meet some renowned personalities of the State, including Madendra Singh Dhoni and share the achievements of the n a clear message of India's Icontinued Opposition to China's ambitious One Belt One Road Initiative (OBOR), Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said mega connectivity projects must respect sovereignty and territorial integrity of the countries, asserting that New Delhi would support initiatives which ensure inclusivity. In an address at the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in this port city, the Prime Minister also coined an acronym SECURE which he explained: 'S' for security for citizens, 'E' for economic development, 'C' for connectivity in the region, 'U' for unity, 'R' for respect of sovereignty and integrity and 'E' for environment protection. Referring to the threat of terrorism, Prime Minister Modi talked about the "unfortunate" example of the effects of terrorism and extremism in Afghanistan and hoped that the bold steps taken by its President Ashraf Ghani will be respected by all the players in the region. It was the responsibility of the bloc to ensure that the reasons for which Afghanistan's unity, integrity and sovereignty were affected in the past are not repeated, he said, adding India will play an important role in the SCO Contact group on Afghanistan. NDA with them, said a senior leader present in the meeting. The programme in a sense commenced as well with Jayant Sinha holding a discussion with Padma award winner Simon Oraon and bunch of other intellectuals separately. Inputs coming out of the twin meetings with Ram Madhav suggest that the leaders have been reminded about the tasks given for strengthening the party up to booth level besides new areas getting explored. Ram Madhav also spoke briefly about this. We met here to work as per the directions of our national president to ensure our victory in 2019 and win all 14 seats in Jharkhand. It has been decided that we would boost our reach even further up to our booth level workers and panna pramukhs. Work in that direction has been started, said the general secretary stressing over the contact of the party to be refreshed with different sections of the society. Officials said almost all SCO leaders including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping talked about the dangers of terrorism and extremism and resolved to contain it with a concrete action plan. Talking about the importance of transport corridors, Modi, in presence of Chinese President Xi Jinping, said India's commitment to connectivity projects is reflected in its involvement in International North South Corridor project, development of the Chabahar port and Ashgabat agreement. "Connectivity with the neighbouring countries is India's priority. We welcome the connectivity projects which are sustainable and efficient and which respect territorial integrity and sovereignty of the countries," he said. Continued on Page 2 Insiders suggested that the meeting was entirely on organisational level in which tasks were given to reconnect with ground level workers, supporters and likeminded people. Government part was not discussed and that is why no Minister in the Raghubar Das Cabinet attended it barring Neelkant Singh Munda. Senior leaders have been tasked to work in their respective areas without letting their grievances coming in the way, said a general secretary with State BJP. During the meeting some problem areas for the party s goal for the Lok Sabha elections were also marked that included ways to make inroads into Santhal Paragana. JMM has been very strong in Santhal yet we won seats there in 2014 and later also in the Assembly polls. Again we have to stop the JMM making advances there. Repeating success we received in Palamu would be a challenge and the party is looking at this, said a senior leader.

2 n the directions of higher- security has been Oups, beefed up in Dhanbad and Bokaro district ahead of Eid. The district's police are on move to put duo cities in foolproof security cover. Vehicle checking drive also has been intensified. All officers were directed to take necessary steps to curb the economic and other crime in their region by the higher-ups. On the direction of DGP high alert has been declared in the duo districts. Cops are instructed to tackle all the adverse situations and keep strong security arrangements. Patrolling has been intensified to avert any untoward incidents in the duo district, a police official said. Cops also asked to keep vigil on anti-social elements including motorbike riders inside the city as well as on the entry point in the cities. Miscreants would be dealt strictly and no compromise will be made in providing security to the people, he added. Like previous year more than 20 spots were identified as most sensitive place and cops were asked to keep special attention in those regions. Meanwhile, peace committee meets are scheduled to be organised under several police station to maintain harmony during the festivity. Religious leaders from all communities, volunteers, Senior citizens, the local businessman, eminent citizens, professionals, youngsters would also participate in peace meetings. Stress has been given on fostering peace and harmony by bringing people together to fight anti-social elements during the meet, informed OC of Herla Police station. Its the need of the hour to sensitise peace committees in all sensitive areas and empower them to prevent any untoward incidents, said Deepak a member of a peace committee. In a bid to foil any unsocial activities we will stand together like a family member and maintain peace, added Kamru another member of the committee. To curb rumours police vowed to take action against those who have been spreading false information. Police urged people not to spread rumours on the social sites or be influenced by them; stiff action would be taken against rumour mongers, said City DSP Ajay Kumar. ihar Chief Minister Nitish BKumar comes from the Kurmi caste having just over three per cent presence in a State, which has been a laboratory of caste politics for ages. If Nitish is still the tallest leader of Bihar, then there are reasons for it: he commands acceptance across caste and community, his political acumen is unmatched, and his administrative qualities unquestionable. All of these will be on test now that one of the NDA allies wants him to relinquish the chair of Chief Minister and BJP desires him to be a junior partner and settle for just around out of 40 seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. With virtually no chance of a reunion with Lalu Prasad, Nitish Kumar will now have to explore his option within the NDA itself. A well-known election "manager" recently tried to persuade Lalu Prasad to take steps to revive the JD(U)-RJD alliance by extending support to Nitish Kumar. However, sources said, that Lalu remained noncommittal on showing any such magnanimity. In the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, when the BJP and the JD(U) were allies, Nitish was the face of the alliance and the JD(U) contested 25 out of 40 seats. In the next year's Assembly polls, once again, the JD(U) was the big brother as it contested 141 seats and the BJP had to be content with 102 seats. In 2005 Assembly polls also, the two sides had contested nearly the same number of seats. But that equation is bound to change now. After Nitish Kumar dumped the BJP and went solo in 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the Saffron outfit contested 30 seats in alliance with Ramvilas Paswan's LJP and Upendra Kuswaha's RLSP. The BJP won 22 seats, whereas LJP won six out of the seven seats it contested, and RLSP won three out of three. So, BJP, LJP and RLSP together have 31 MPs in the current Lok Sabha. That leaves only nine seats which can be given to Nitish Kumar. BJP sources said that the party may deny tickets to sulking MPs Shatrughan Sinha and Kirti Azad and may give two additional seats for the JD(U). That makes it 11 for the JD(U). This seems to be the best case scenario for Nitish, unless the BJP is ready to surrender more of the seats it won in 2014 general election, or Kushwaha walks out of the NDA. In the second case, the BJP could offer the RLSP quota seats to the JD(U). Kushwaha has refused to accept Nitish as CM candidate in 2020 Assembly polls and staked his own claim for the coveted chair. For Nitish who contested 25 seats in 2009 in alliance with the BJP, it will be a big climb down if he agreed to settle for just around one dozen seats. Nitish could hope for a face saver only if there is a "sacrosanct" agreement that the JD(U) will contest the major share of Assembly seats. However, given the distrust between the two parties, a section of the JD(U) is of the opinion that Nitish should advance the Assembly polls and hold them along with the general elections. That would insulate him against any "change of mind" by the BJP leadership if the Modi Government is back in the saddles and Nitish is seen as an expendable ally. The results of the 2009 Lok Sabha polls showed that the BJP will be well placed if Nitish and the RJD are locked in a triangular contest. However, Nitish has so far persistently denied advancing the Assembly polls, which are slated to be held in The BJP central leadership understands it too well that Nitish's options are limited. That is why the JD(U) has not even got invitation to join the Union Cabinet and Amit Shah did not think it necessary to reach out to Nitish as he did in case of Uddhav Thackeray and Prakash Singh Badal. Of course, Shah may still meet Nitish when he visits the state in course of his jan samparak programme., but the message has gone that Nitish may have to play the role of a junior partner in to the BJP in Bihar in the Lok Sabha polls. The setbacks suffered by his party in Jehanabad and Jokihat polls show that the JD(U) has to pay a heavy cost for abandoning Lalu Prasad. Now that the BJP is trying to cut him to size and even someone like Upendra Kushwaha is questioning his ability to lead Bihar, Nitish seems to be running out of options. Can he produce one more political googly he is so famous for? or last one week a gang of over a dozen Farmed robbers, allegedly belonging to the notorious Koda gang, is said to be barging into houses in Bokaro thermal, Gomia and Kathara area and robbing cash and valuables. Police informed that the robbers armed with iron rods, pistols and knives scaled the wall of the house of Ajay Yadav at Kathara and entered the house. Immediately after entering the house, and robbed cash, jewelry and other valuables from the CCL quarter 2A/13 near officer colony while robbers also robbed a house of Swtambary Kumari in CCL quarter no 1B/118 and fled the place. While the other incident took place at Gomia where the three houses of school teachers of Pitts modern school found broken their locks of all three quarter of IEL.The incident came to light when in the morning a all teachers came and found the gate of the houses were opened. After entering the house they found all Godrej almirahas were broken and all gold ornaments and cash were looted. The house owner CP Singh told the correspondent that the robbers had their faces covered and they took away cash and ornaments from almirahas. The modus operandi suggests that the criminals were outside from Bokaro. They will be arrested soon said Officer- in charge cum inspector Prameshwar Leyangi. From Page 1 "Roza-Iftar parties are in full swing across the country. There was a time when the Sangh Parivar people would criticise the Congress for holding such parties for Muslims. They would then say that Iftar parties did not fit into the scheme of Hindutva. But, the Sangh itself is holding currently Roza-Iftar parties so much so that they are using the Government machinery and State-run guest houses," the editorial stated. Recalling a statement made by RSS third Sarsanghchalak late As many as 100 stone chip making units are reportedly operating along the foothills of Garhwa seriously damaging the mountain and its natural balance. Every day over three dozen small and big trucks loaded with stone chips head towards crusher mills in the district. According to geologists and environmentalists, if the misuse of the destruction of mountain continues unabated, the hills may face massive landslides and soil erosion in the near future. District Mining Officer has an excuse about lack of manpower and inability to check illegal mining. "There are over 200 points in the district where illegal mining usually takes place. The Mining Department alone cannot check these points," he says admitting about the presence of 20 illegal crusher mills running in the district. Garhwa DC Neha Arora said that she has already formed task force involving Forest Department, Mining Department and SDO for controlling illegal mining. Recently task force had demolished three brick kilns. From Page 1 Presently the IMD issues warnings for heavy rain but these have mostly failed to prompt States into taking pre-emptive measures. What needs to be done is to the convert that forecast into a flood warning. Will the rain flood the city or not?, an official said. To forecast the floods, the IMD operates Flood Meteorological Offices (FMOs) at 13 locations, which include Agra, Ahmedabad, Asansol, Bhubaneswar, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Jalpaiguri, Lucknow, New Delhi, Patna, Srinagar, Bangaluru and Chennai with the support of Central Water Commission.Apart from this, the IMD also supports Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) by providing Quantitative Precipitation Estimation (QPF) for Damodar river basin areas for their flood forecasting activities. During the flood season, FMOs provide valuable meteorological support to the Central Water Commission (CWC) for issuing flood warnings in respect of the 43 rivers of India covering 146 river basins. CWC is working in close association with IMD and State Governments for timely flood forecast whenever the river water level rises above warning level. In a pilot mode, mathematical models for rainfall runoff estimation (like MIKE-11 FF) are used for some of the sites in Damodar Basin, Godavari Basin, Mahanadi Basin & Chambal Basin. Balasaheb Devaras in response to a comment by a socialist leader, the Saamana editorial stated: "Devaras had said that the Sangh Parivar had not changed, but the outlook of the people towards the RSS had changed. But, we have now begun to realise that the RSS has indeed changed. Otherwise how can one explain this: When the Congress held Iftar parties for Muslims, it would call the then ruling party as being religiously blind. Now when the RSS holds such parties for Muslims, then we need to justify it saying that the act is tolerance towards ata Steel was conferred the Tprestigious Innovative Practices Award 2018 on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for its Thousand Schools Programme by UN Global Compact Network India (GCNI) during its 13th National Convention held in Bengaluru. The award was received by Sourav Roy, chief, corporate social responsibility, Tata Steel from Yuri Afanasiev, UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative. A total of 65 organisations across India, including public and private sector enterprises, multinationals, MSMEs (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises), NGOs, Entrepreneurs and B- schools had submitted entries for the awards in the form of case studies to showcase their efforts in implementing CSR and Sustainability initiative, aligned with one or more of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The awards were given in two categories i.e. private and other religions". Quoting Mukhejee's statement made in his speech at the RSS headquarters that "India's nationhood is not one language, one religion, one enemy... they (Indians) live under one system, one flag and one identity of being Bharatiya," the Sena mouth-piece stated: "When Pranab Mukherjee made this statement, the people from the Sangh Parivar present at that function clapped. The Congresswallahs being idiots tried to stop Mukherjee from going to Nagpur. Ok. Let's hail Hindutva". public in the corporate sector and one category each in NGO and B-School sectors. Tata Steel was the recipient of the award in the Corporate Private category for its work towards SDG 4 i.e. ensuring inclusive and quality education for all and promoting lifelong learning. On June 2, 2018, a total of 12 shortlisted organisations presented their case studies in front of the jury in New Delhi. The top four organisations got an opportunity to present their case studies during the 13th National Convocation of GCNI and were awarded certificate and trophy. The other winning entries included initiatives from ONGC, Indian Society of Agribusiness Professionals (ISAP), National Stock Exchange of India Limited (NSE) Foundation and S. P. Jain Institute of Management and Research, in the given order. Expressing happiness on the recognition, Sunil Bhaskaran, vice president, corporate services, Tata Steel, said: "Tata Steel recognises education as a fundamental need in society, and therefore, is a core aspect of Tata Steel's CSR intervention Schools Programme is one of our endeavours to augment education system in government schools and contribute to nation building. This award reflects the faith that our communities have in us and gives us the impetus to continue the good work". On receiving the award, Sourav Roy mentioned: We are committed to the sustainable well-being of the communities we serve, and believe that quality education for children is a priority in this endeavour. The 1000 Schools Programme is our signature project in this domain, which has been able to bring children back to the schooling system, create an ecosystem for learning outcomes and enhance community-led governance across 1463 government schools in Odisha and Jharkhand. This award would not have been possible without the trust placed in us by our communities as well as our partner, ASPIRE, and we thank them for this." From Page 1 India has been severely critical of OBOR, the pet project of Xi, as the USD 50 billion China Pakistan Economic Corridor, which is part of the BRI, passes through Pakistanoccupied Kashmir (PoK). India says it cannot accept a project that ignores its core concern on sovereignty and territorial integrity. Except India, all other member nations of the SCO including Russia, Pakistan and Iran have been supporting China's OBOR. Prime Minister Modi also said the history of the region carries a clear message that connectivity does not only mean physical connectivity and that the human aspect relating to it is also important. He said priority for peopleto-people contact and exchange of ideas should be given due priority. He added that India welcomes the concept of "open doors". The International North- South Transport Corridor (INSTC) is a 7,200-km-long multi-mode transport project for moving freight among India, Iran, Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia, Central Asia and Europe. The Ashgabat agreement is a transport agreement among several Gulf and Central Asian countries which is aimed at creating a transit corridor to spur trade and investment. India has been supporting the project. "We have again reached a stage where physical and digital connectivity is changing the definition of geography. Therefore, connectivity with our neighbourhood & in the SCO region is our priority," Modi said. In his address, Pakistani President Mamnoon Hussain whole-heartedly supported the OBOR and said the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which is part of the OBOR, has boosted Pakistan's economy. It is for the first time the Indian Prime Minister attended the SCO summit after India along with Pakistan became a full-fledged members of the grouping, jointly dominated by China and Russia. The officials said India wants stabilisation of the energy market and the issue figured during deliberations at the summit. The SCO currently has eight member countries which represents around 42 per cent of the world's population and 20 per cent of the global GDP. Modi said India would like to extend all cooperation to the SCO and that the bloc gives India immense opportunities to enhance friendship with resource-rich Central Asian nations. He also suggested that the SCO members should set some goals and form a small committee to prepare a roadmap to achieve them by the bloc's 25th summit. He also announced that India will host an SCO food festival and a comprehensive exhibition on Buddhist heritage. Modi also complimented China's initiative to organise an SCO film festival and SCO world heritage exhibition. In his address, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced offering a 30 billion yuan (USD 4.7 billion) loan to SCO for joint projects. The SCO was founded at a summit in Shanghai in 2001 by the presidents of Russia, China, Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. India and Pakistan became its members last year.

3 uite a number of students of QJamshedpur proved their mettle in the IIT- JEE (Joint Entrance Examination) Advanced-2018 examination. As many as 200 students from Steel City cracked the prestigious JEE Advanced, the results of which were announced on Sunday. Aayush Agarwal (18), a student of DBMS English School emerged as the State topper with an all-india rank (AIR) 60. Out of 854 students who appeared for JEE Advanced -- the gateway to IITs from Jamshedpur this year, around 200 made it to the final all India rankings merit list. A resident of Dimna Road in Mango, Aayush said, I am really very happy as my hard efforts have brought fruitful results. I am keeping my fingers crossed to take admission in computer science at IIT- Bombay. Aayush who scored 283 of 360 in JEE Advanced had earlier got 97th rank in the JEE Mains conducted by the Central Board of Secondary uring a quick chat with D The Pioneer, Bollywood playback singer Hrishikesh Chury, the voice for Taang Utha Ke, talks about his experiences throughout his journey as a singer and his achievements in that time. Excerpts: Your Bollywood debut was in 2011 as a playback singer in the movie 40. How would you say that affected your career? Education (CBSE). Meanwhile, continuing its rich legacy on academic facade, a student of Delhi Public School Ranchi Shaan-Ul-Haque topped in State Capital securing AIR 111. Calculated hard work with meticulous planning, no short cuts in the preparations and the clarity of concepts in all subjects are the main reasons behind my success. I am great full to all those people who supported me. I was hopeful of getting good rank but will become the city topper; I was not very sure about it. I want to pursue Computer Science Engineering (CSE), said proud Shaan-Ul-Haque. More than 50 students of DPS Ranchi dominated the JEE Advanced-2018 merit list, this year. Three students who have secured ranks within 500 are Shaan-Ul-Haque (AIR- 111), Prateek Parawar (AIR- 152) and Aman Kumar Singh (AIR- 478). Dr. Ram Singh, Principal of DPS Ranchi congratulated the students and appreciated the efforts of teachers and parents for this great achievement. It is indeed a matter of immense pride for the school that several students have qualified one of overnor Draupadi Murmu Ghas stressed over the need to plant more trees looking at depleting environment. She further underlined the role of people in maintaining greenery in the State. 26 per cent of the state population is tribal who are working towards the conservation of the forests. The rest of the 74 per cent should put in their efforts in doing the same, said the Governor on Sunday while taking part in the concluding day of the Environment Awakening Week organised by Vikas Bharti. She conveyed to the audience about the need to conserve the forests of Jharkhand, seeing as industrialization has increased the amount of deforestation in the state. Jharkhand is a state that contains 40 per cent of the mineral reserves of the country, and mining for the resources is not good for the environment but is a necessity for the development of the country. This leads to deforestation and that is one of the main reasons the at least 10 plants should be planted for every tree that has been cut, added the Governor. She on the occasion also honoured some tribals from coming from over the state for their hard work in the conservation of forest. The Governor also underlined the roles of NGOs and private enterprises for working towards the betterment of the environment. Secretary of Vikas Bharati Padmashri Ashok Bhagat said that it is not only the responsibility of the Government but also the citizens to make sure a sustainable environment around. If we believe that the forest is ours then only we would save it, said he. Also present there was Urban Development Minister CP Singh who commented on the lack of cool air that Ranchi was used to experience previously. He also congratulated Ashok Bhagat on his success in his protest for a cleaner Harmu river. It s good to see people with saplings in their hands and working towards the environment, said the Minister while addressing the audience. He asked the audience to encourage the people around them to do the same. 40 was a small movie and apart from the industry nobody knew that I was one of the singers. But, yeah, it helped me get recognition in the industry and people started to approach me with new projects. What was your reaction when you first got offer for Taang Utha Ke? That was an amazing experience for me. Housefull 3 had a huge start-cast and it was one of the main promotion songs and all of a sudden I am told that my voice has been selected for the song. I have no idea what had happened and it was quite surprising. It was a crazy day for me and if I keep explaining I ll start ranting (laughing). Who do you idolize and think of as an inspiration? As a person, I idolize my the prestigious examinations, said Singh. Furthermore, a student of Jamshedpur Public School, Baridih, Rahul Kumar Tiwary scored AIR 122. He was the State topper with an all-india rank 22 in the JEE Mains. Rahul scored 268 out of 360. I was hopeful to be among the top 50, said the 17-yearold Rahul. He expressed happiness over his performance. He is aiming to study electrical engineering from IIT- Bombay. Besides, Ranchi and Jamshedpur, Bokaro students as well left their mark in the most coveted engineering test. Rishav Ranjan, a student of Chinmaya Vidyalaya stole the show by becoming the district topper with All India Rank 154 while Aryan and Anmol Harsh student of DPS Bokaro secured 821 and 989 All India Rank (AIR) respectively in general category. While in reserved category students of Chinmaya Vidyalaya, Sourish Mandal scored 308, Manish 645 and Raghvendra Dey 960 AIR. Thus, six students from Bokaro have made it in top 1000 AIR. mother. Ever since I was a child I have seen her take care of me and the way she treats people has taught me a lot about life. So, definitely it s my mother who I idolize as a person. When did you realize you wanted to pursue a career in singing? That was when the movie Roja came out and I was randomly singing that song the whole day. I love the song, in fact. So, eventually, I realized that I can sing and since I was really young at that time and had no idea what to do, I started my vocal training after a while. How was your experience as a jury member for Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Li l Champs? Being a jury member for the show was an amazing experience. There were 30 jury wo meritorious candidates T Nikhil Nishchal and Siddanth who received training and guidance under CCL s CSR programme CCL Ke Lal and Ladli ( ) cracked the prestigious JEE-Advanced exam. Hailing from modest background, both the students came out with flying colours after the declaration of results on Sunday. Nishchal s father is a farmer while Dr Ashok Singh Principal of Chinmaya Vidyalaya and Dr. Hemlata S Mohan, Director and Principal of DPS Bokaro expressed immense happiness on this achievement of the students and congratulated them. In addition, experts too appeared satisfied with the overall results. Pramod Dubey, director of Prerna Classes said Siddanth father is a tailor. CCL CMD, Gopal Singh expressed his happiness over the performance of both the students and wished them success in all their endeavors. Notably, CCL through its CSR activity helps the meritorious but economically backward students of interior regions by making all essential arrangements for their education, so that they could compete with all other aspirants taking All India Level examinations. that he is satisfied with the overall result but he was expecting much better numbers. We are happy with the overall performance. The trend was a bit different and easy going this time, said Dubey. The JEE Main 2018 offline exam was held on April 8 whereas the online exam was conducted on April 15 and April 16. hief Minister Raghubar CDas on Sunday sought help from corporate houses to make the State free from plastic menace. Addressing a CSR review meeting at district headquarters, Das said that the corporate houses must shun use of plastic bags and bottles at their respective premises and also encourage people at its operational areas to make city as well as the state plastic free. He said that work being done by industrialists under corporate social responsibility in various fields for society is certainly admirable. Under the CSR, the decision to spend 1 per cent in priority areas set by the state government is taken by the CSR Council at the state level. He added that the corporates must ensure that within five months the target will be fulfilled. We need to focus on establishing CCTV cameras in urban areas, supplying clean drinking water in rural areas and specially focused towards making the district free from plastic, noted Das. The Chief Minister said that the Prime Minister has called upon the people that on October 2, 2019, on the occasion of the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, to make India clean. The state government has decided that this target will be achieved by 2 October 2018 and the state government is working in this direction. The Chief Minister said that Jharkhand is the most prosperous state in terms of natural wealth but it still has problems like poverty and malnutrition. The government is working towards resolving this stigma and is working towards it. Chief Minister asked the representatives to give priority to the supply of clean drinking water to tackle malnutrition members at a time and we were like a one big family. We used to enjoy our time there. It was more like a group of friends sitting together. It was also a great opportunity to see so many talented children from all over India. You have won a Rotary International Award for Best Upcoming Playback Singer. How does that make you feel? and contaminated water borne diseases. The Chief Minister also called upon corporates to set up CCTV cameras for the protection of law and order in the urban areas. The responsibility of every corporate sector is to also contribute to the infrastructure.on the call of the Chief Minister, various industrialists assured the establishment of CCTV cameras in urban areas and plastic bags, bottles, etc. among their establishments and employees and ensure clean drinking water supply in remote villages of Potka and Dumariya. After the meeting, Deputy Commissioner Amit Kumar informed that the various companies of the East Singhbhum District and Aditypur area have been asked to work under areas of clean drinking water, CCTV cameras and shun use of plastic bags, bottles. The task is to be completed in five months. uring the examination Dresults season a marked increase in the number of depression cases has been noticed by psychiatrists. So much so that the number of calls received at different psychiatric centres and examination conducting bodies have almost doubled in the past few weeks. Jharkhand Academic Council (JAC) has a toll-free enquiry number ( ) to resolve the queries of students. As the date for deceleration of results is nearing the calls received by JAC enquiry department has almost doubled. The JAC enquiry department said that they receive about calls daily of which more than 50 per cent of the calls are for result enquiry. As students are in stress due to delay of JAC board results. The Central Institute of Psychiatry (CIP), Kanke, Ranchi has a toll-free number ( ) and a helpline number ( ) for 24X7 assistance to people suffering from psychiatric problems and mental distress. CIP Director, Dr. D. Ram said, per cent calls received by their helpline services are of depression problems. Many parents call in the helpline service to discuss about the child s behavioral change, about downfall in their child s academic results. He said they have also received cases of students trying to harm themselves. Dr. Ram further said that during the result season he has received several calls from students in distress on his personal number for guidance and help. In a survey released by Central Institute of Psychiatry (CIP) in collaboration with the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on World Health Day in 2017, it was found that 11.1 per cent population of Jharkhand suffers from mental disorders. Noted neuro-psychiatrist, Dr. Subodh Prasad said, he has noticed around 60 per cent depression cases among youths. The problem of depression is seen mostly among students of 9th to 12th grade and college going students. Dr. Subodh Prasad said that several schools have initiated a great step by providing a psychiatric consultant department to help the students facing anxiety and depression problems. Dr CRJ Khess, Professor of Psychiatry, CIP, Ranchi said that CIP has been conducting regular Mood Clinics and distributing booklets containing information about depression problems to create awareness among citizens. Regular Community Programs are conducted in Hazaribagh and Bokaro for people suffering from any type of Psychiatric Problems. At least 14 per cent population of Jharkhand suffers from depression problem, said Dr. Nishant Goel, an eminent psychiatrist of Central Institute of Psychiatry (CIP). Dr. Nishant Goel further said that through collection of data from survey in households it is found that per cent depression problem is seen among individuals between the age group of 25 to 45 years and 13 per cent cases of depression problem is seen among youths between the age group of 13 to 18 years. Rotary is a big name. It has a lot of branches and members and winning an award from a big and esteemed organisation is an honour for me. When they said that you have been honoured with a Rotary award, I was ecstatic. You have also been doing some philanthropy work on the side. Would you like to shed some light on that? I have been doing this for a long time, during my school as well as college time. In my college, I was actually the President of NSS. After that I was also a part of Rotaract Club in Mumbai for a short time. Then, finally I started my own NGO because I think giving back to the society is important. We get a lot from it and in my opinion, people who are underprivileged should be helped out. he Harmu river currently Tundergoing massive rejuvenation exercise may get a new lease of life by August this year. An official of agency working on the project Eagle Infra India Limited-- stated that all major restoration and beautification work of this river have been completed. Vikash Kumar, Senior Engineer of Eagle Infra India Limited on Sunday said, Finishing work that includes cleaning inlets, minor repair work of river section is left which will be completed within 10 days. As per the order of Department of Urban Development, Housing and Planning, the company has redesigned the sandy sections again to prevent untoward incidents during incessant downpour. The rejuvenation and beautification project aims at cleaning garbage of the river accumulated over the course of years. Revamping its banks with rows of trees and creation of recreational areas along the riverside is an integral part of this project. Kumar further added that due to last year s damage, the agency took some time in completing the first phase task; however, the work at present is going on in a speedy pace. Last year, a part of the bridge across it on Harmu Bypass road had Outreach fissured in due to soil erosion after heavy rainfall, its reconstruction took some time. According to the senior Engineer, setting up the sewage treatment plant meant to filter the water from Harmu River has been completed besides the construction of Pathways, pavements, toilets. Work of laying tiles and concreting the banks is also done. Plantation of saplings along the banks of the river as a part of the rejuvenation and beautification project has been finished as planned by Eagle Infra India Limited, the Mumbai-based company. Notably, for five years after the completion of civil construction task at the Harmu Riverside, the concerned agency has been given the charge of operation and maintenance (O&M) of all civil structures here. The project involves a whopping cost of Rs crore, covering approximately 10.4 km area in the first phase. The consulting and designing agency is trying to ensure that the restoration work of lifeline of Ranchi gets complete before the onset of rainfall this season covering all aspects of beautification project as per the detailed project report (DPR). Meanwhile, the second phase rejuvenation and beautification of Harmu River is being chalked out by the department. Further, new phase work will be handed over to the company soon. The second phase will feature fencing, preservation of natural habitat and installing lights along the banks of Harmu River. Developing recreational sites along the river is also on the cards. In addition, the river bed will be concreted further exceeding the area to prevent surplus flow of the water, said Kumar.

4 popular Atta-Dal Tscheme is all set to turn sweeter and hotter with the Punjab Government adding the flavours of tea and sugar to it from July. Capt Amarinder Singh Government will also provide sugar and tea under the Atta- Dal scheme from July along with the wheat and pulses, which are already being provided on subsidized rates, said the state Food and Civil Supplies Minister Bharat aryana Chief Minister HManohar Lal on Sunday held out an assurance that amendment in the Dohlidar (Land) Act would be considered, and the possibility of inclusion of Bhondedar in this Act would be examined. Speaking at the Shrdhanjali Divas organised to observe the 302nd martyrdom day of Vir Banda Bairagi in Panipat, he said other demands of the Bairagi Samaj Bhushan. The scheme, scheduled to be launched next month under the new name of Smart Ration Card Scheme, was initially launched by the SAD-BJP combine in 2007 after coming to power in the state, and was used by its leaders to propagate the government as peoplefriendly in the run up to assembly polls. The scheme, in fact, played a major role in catapulting the SAD-BJP combine to form successive government in The Congress government s attempt to move a step forward is being seen as an effort to woo the BPL (below poverty line) voters before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections next year. With this, the Congress party will also fulfill another pre-poll promise it made before 2017 elections. Providing tea and sugar under Atta-Dal scheme is one of the main promises in the Congress manifesto. would also be sympathetically considered. The Chief Minister said efforts were being made to further improve the level of education and generate more employment opportunities. The State Government has opened Antyodaya Bhavans in seven districts and these shall also be opened in the remaining 15 districts, said he. The government also plans to open these Bhavans at the sub-division and block level to enable people to get information on all schemes at one place, and apply for any scheme on the spot without having to visit any government office, said he. The Chief Minister said martyrs and great personalities did not belong to any particular caste or community. Vir Banda Bairagi was one such brave warrior who sacrificed his life for the society and the country. The 749 soldiers who sacrificed their lives along with him included one of his ancestors, he added. hief Minister Raman CSingh on Sunday lauded the people and institutions of State, who are actively worki n g for creating public awareness hhattisgarh Chief Minister CRaman Singh on Sunday finally conceded the long pending demand of about 1.80 lakh Shikshakarmis as he announced that their services would now be merged from Panchayat department to department of school education. The Shikshakarmis who were on warpath with the BJP government for weeks, cheered the decision and termed it `a bold and historic decision. Raman Singh who is heading the BJP government in the state for over 14 years, made the announcement while addressing a huge gathering in Ambikapur during his ongoing Vikas Yatra. Appreciating the contribution of Shikshakarmis in about blood donation in society on the occasion of World Blood Donation Day on June 14. In his monthly radio talk programme- `Raman Ke Goth aired from Raipur Centre of Akashwani on maintaining quality education in the government schools of the state, Singh admitted disparity in perk and allowances to them as comparable to regular teachers and said they (Shikshakarmis) deserve better facilities. He informed that a high power committee had been formed to look into the charter of demands of the Shikshakarmis and it had submitted its report on June 8. Soon a cabinet meeting would be convened in which Sunday morning, Singh said- World Blood Donation Day is on June 14 and there are many people and institutions, who are enthusiastically working for creating public awareness about blood donation. Finance Minister Manpreet Badal had announced to introduce the revamped and a new modified Atta Dal Scheme in 2017 by providing smart ration cards to all beneficiary families, and also distributing subsidized tea leaves and sugar along with the wheat and pulses to BPL families, by sanctioning Rs 500 crore for the same. Under the scheme, the sugar and tea leaves will be distributed at subsidized rates at as many as 16,738 fair price shops after linking all the beneficiaries with Aadhaar. No less than 1.37 crore beneficiaries from as many he Punjab Police on Sunday Tclaimed to have solved the case of desecrating the holy pages of Guru Granth Sahib at Singh Shaheedan Gurudwara Sahib in Dangoli village within few hours as the Roopnagar Police arrested Jagtar Singh, who works as a granthi in the same gurudwara. Rupnagar Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Raj Bachan Singh said that on June 9, 2018, Ghanauli police post in-charge Jasmer Singh had received information about the incident by some unknown lakh families across the state would be covered under the targeted public distribution system (TPDS). It has been learnt that the government will give half kilogram of pulses to every beneficiary at Rs 20 per kg, one kg sugar and 100 grams of tea at subsidized rates. The rates are yet to be decided, a senior Food and Civil Supplies Department official said. persons and it had hurt the sentiments of the Sikh community. After the matter came to light, an FIR was registered under section 295 A of Indian Penal Code (IPC) at Sadar Police Station, Rupnagar. SSP appreciated the efforts of a team comprising SP Investigation Raminder Singh, DSP Investigation Varinderjit Singh, DSP Manvir Singh Bajwa, CIA incharge Inspector Atul Soni, SHO Sadar Police Station Inspector Rajpal Singh who cracked the case within few hours. He said that during the Minister Bhushan Bhushan Ashu alleged that nearly two lakh fake Atta-Dal cards were made across the state during the SAD-BJP. And the maximum number of fake cards were made in Majitha the constituency of Bikram Majithia, he added. Ashu made it clear that strong action would be taken against the wrongful card holders. A large number of bogus beneficiaries were found under the scheme, after which the Government decided to engage the Bharat Electronics Limited, course of investigation, it was found that granthi Jagtar Singh was changing his statements repeatedly. He had earlier told the poilcemen that at 5:45 am on June 9, 2018, he had left the Gurudwara after offering morning prayers and had locked the main door of the Gurudwara, but later said that he had left the door open. Jagtar Singh also told the cops that he had informed the people about the desecration by calling them through phone, but later during investigation, this thing was also found to be false, he said. Broadcasting Engineering Consultants Indian Limited, and Electronics Corporation of India Limited to implement the computerization process of the scheme. The Government has also ensured public distribution of ration through electronic point of sale (epos) devices using biometrics. In case of finger biometric failure due to any reason, the IRIS identification would be done. To strengthen the public SSP informed that during investigation, it was found that granthi Jagtar Singh had left for his house at 5:45 am and it was around 6:15 am that some womenfolk from the same village had visited the gurudwara and were the first ones to find the holy pages of Guru Granth Sahib desecrated. During investigation, it was also found that between 5:45 am to 6:15 am, no one else had visited the Gurudwara, he said. During investigation, the granthi Jagtar Singh could not give details about the mukh waak taken on June 9, and even distribution system in the state, the state Food and Civil Supplies Department will soon advertise the vacancies of depot holders. Ashu said that to ensure the efficient distribution of wheat and other products in the offing, it is a must that there is a fair price shop or depot in every village of the State. To facilitate the same, the terms and conditions of opening a fair price shop are being revised and are being made more attractive. The commission or fair price margin of the depot holders is enhanced. t a time when the Central AGovernment is providing caste-based reservations in Government jobs, promotions and pursuing higher education, members of the India Against Reservation (IAR), Odisha held a demonstration here on Sunday demanding abolition of the quota system and enforcement of economicbased reservation. The IAR, Odisha s General Dinabandhu Sadangi lamented that if caste-based reservation are continuously provided for pursuing higher education and availing jobs and promotions, then it certainly creates an intricate question to understand the legal system of the country. Sadangi urged upon the the report of the high power committee regarding demands of Shikshakarmis would be formally approved, Singh announced. Shikshakarmis Associations have welcomed the decision of CM and thanked him for his `great decision. State Convener, Nagariya Nikay Shikshak Panchayat Morcha, Virendra Dubey in a statement to press said `it was a result of their struggle of long 23 years. It was a long cherished dream of ours. people to come up and join its campaign to stop the extension of the period of reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) to be given again on January 26, As per the Constitution (95th Amendment) Act, 2009, the period of reservation of seats for the SC and STs and representation of the Anglo- Indians in the Lok Sabha and the State Legislative Assemblies was extended for another ten years till January 26, the page number, SSP added. The SSP added that during the course of investigation, Jagtar Singh said that he works as a truck driver. He admitted that he was fed up from the daily duty of Gurudwara sahib and it was becoming hard for him to take out time for Gurudwara from his truck driving. And that is why he committed the heinous crime out of frustration and mental stress, he added. Jagtar Singh admitted that he used the sharp edged metal piece of the Siri Sahib kept near the Parshad for desecration of Sri Guru Granth Sahib. State Congress too has welcomed the decision of the state government about merger of their services and said Congress always stood behind the agitations of Shikshakarmis. Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress President Bhupesh Baghel and Leader of Opposition T.S. Singhdeo, in a joint statement, congratulated the Shikshakarmis and said ``the fulfillment of demands were an outcome of their long struggle,. n inquiry done by the Tehsil AOffice of Komna of Nuapada district has revealed that some fake displaced persons (DPs) have again been approved by the State Water Resources Department (DoWR) for payment of rehabilitation in Lower Indra Irrigation Project (LIIP). The Rehabilitation and Resettlement (R and R) unit of LIIP in 2017 had recommended a proposal for payment of assistance of Rs 6.8 lakh each to Ghasen Jagat, Pustam Sagaria, Chintamani Ganda, Ghasi Sagaria, Beda Sagaria, Uma Ganda and Saraswati Mahanand as the DPs of Dumerbahal village, which is a partially affected village of the LIIP. The proposal was forwarded by the district Collector, Nuapada to the DoWR. In spite of objection raised by some affected people, the DoWR approved the proposal and sanctioned an amount Rs 47.6 lakh vide letter no dated We had drawn the attention of the district Collector and the Principal Secretary, DoWR, but they did not take our complaint in to Committee account, alleged the DPs of fully submersed villages who are yet to get their assistance. When a report entitled Lower Indra: Fake Displaced Get Rehab was published in this newspaper on March 7 last, revealing about the issue, the department jumped into action and directed the R and R unit to conduct an inquiry. The report of the Tehsildar, Komna on residential particulars of the fake DPs submitted to the PD, R and R, LIIP, Khariar vide letter no.1647 dated reveals that, Ghasen Jagat w/o Duryodhan Sagaria is a resident of Bad Dohel village under Khariar block, which is not an affected village. She married to Duryodhan more than 30 years ago and is getting benefits of National Food Security Scheme (NFSS) in Bad Dohel village against her ration card no Pustam Sagaria s/o Ghasen and Duryodhan is also a resident of Bad Dohel. Chintamani Ganda and Uma Ganda, both daughters of Munsiram Ganda, are the residents of Baghamunda village, which is also not an affected village. Chintamani is married to Dasmu Sagaria and Uma is married to Golapchan Bhoi in Baghamunda village more than 30 years ago. Two sons of Chintamani Ganda, named Ghasi Sagaria and Beda Sagaria, who are also permanent residents of Baghamunda village, are enlisted as DPs of Dumerbahal village. According to the investigation done by the Tehsildar, Komna, all these people have ration cards in Baghamunda and are getting benefits of NFSA in Baghamunda.But, all of them have obtained voter ID and Aadhaar by changing either their names or title, mentioning Dumerbahal as their place of residence to grab the DP assistance. Ghasen Jagat, who became Ghasen Sagaria after marriage, took the title of Jagat again while registering for the Aadhaar, likewise; Chintamani Ganda became Sagaria and returned to Ganda, Uma Ganda changed to Bhoi after marriage and took the title of Ganda again to get the benefit of R and R. It is yet to be revealed by the project authority whether any action on the report of the Tehsildar has been taken. In the meanwhile, the fake DPs were sitting in dharana in front of the Tehsildar s office for submitting the adverse report to the R and R. he BJP on Sunday said the TSupreme Court s directives against mismanagement and indiscipline in the Shree Jagannath Temple, Puri has brought negligence of the State Government to the fore and the party would make people aware of it. The Government knew about the missing of Ratna Bhanda keys on April 4, the day on which an expert committee visited the treasury of the Shreemandir. But the Chief Minister was silent since then. He recently announced a judicial probe in order to avoid the He pointed out that as there are more than 400 Lok Sabha members from OBC and General Categories, they can stop the extension but are not doing so. He urged upon the people to keep demanding before the MPs for abolishing the reservation system in Mentioning that as many youths are against the quota system, Swami Vivekananda Study Circle executive member Ashish Kumar Lenka suggested that the caste-based system should be abolished and reservation on the basis of economic status should be put in place. He threatened that youths would find out own way to make India free of reservation if the Government doesn t do it. Among others, Rudranarayan Sena convenor Sitaram Satpathy, Laxman Choudhury, Bidyadhar Nayak, Laxmi Narayan Choudhury, Niranjan Sahu, Binay Dash, Deepak Jena, Jagat Jiban Jena Akhaya Kumar Das and Niranjan Nanda were present. hile a complete invento- of jewellery in the Wry Jagannath Temple s Ratna Bhandar was supposed to be taken up in every three years, why the State Governments shied away for years together in doing so has turned out to be a million dollars question. With missing of keys of the Ratna Bhandar, questions are raised as to why for years together, the inventory was not being taken up by the authorities in the State Government in general and particularly by the officials of Shree Mandir administration. A complete inventory of the jewellery of the Ratna Bhandar was taken up way back in 1978 during regime of Nilamani Routray as Chief Minister. It was conducted between May and July. After 1978, no other State attention of the people of his Government s neglegence. The Supreme Court s directives have proved it, alleged BJP leaders in a statement. The BJP would hold protest meetings at all district and subdivisional headquarters on June 11 (Monday) and launch a week-long protest at all police stations across the State on June 12. During the agitation, party activists would lodge FIRs at the polilce stations seeking action agaisnt those responsible for missing of keys. Besides, activists would also offer diyas at Jagannath Temples across the State. Government has taken up complete inventory of jewellery of Bhitar Bhandar (inner treasury) though it has been stipulated in the Shree Jagannath Temple rules to go for complete inventory in every three years. So after 40 years, the issue is being raked up blaming the State Government over keeping people in dark over jewellery in the Shree Mandir. Now the question raised is as to why the consecutive State Governments of Congress, Janata Dal and BJD Government have shied away from a complete inventory of the jewellery of the Ratna Bhandar all these years? While complete inventory of jewellery of Ratna Bhandar is needed besides proper valuation of the gold, diamond, silver ornaments, now people are raising doubts on transparency of the affairs related to the Lords treasury.

5 he Ministry of Home affairs T(MHA), which recently eased penalties on NGOs for violating Foreign contribution (regulation) Act, has started crackdown on private limited companies receiving foreign funds in violation of FCRA Act The MHA, which has so far cancelled more than 18,000 licenses of NGOs for alleged violation of FCRA, in its recent investigation found that foreign donors have now changed their strategies and instead of giving donations to NGOs, they are routing money through private limited companies, mostly owned by the trusties of these NGOs or new entities, to carry on their activities without being noticed. Investigation further revealed that in many cases several NGOs after receiving foreign donations, transferred this money to private limited companies in total violation of FCRA norms. For example, activists Teesta Setalvad received 2 crore in her private ltd company, Sabrang Communication and publishing private limited, in which she and her husband Javed Anand are directors. Teesta and her husband are facing criminal case against them and are out on bail. Similarly, Advantage India of Deepak Talwar received 5 crore in his company and he too is facing criminal case. Global Advisory Association Service private limited received 1.75 crore in violation of FCRA norms. Rajendra Pratap Gupta and his wife Kopal Gupta are directors of the company. Lawyers Collective received 9 crore through foreign funding. Indira Jaisingh and her husband Anand Grover are directors on Lawyers Collective. The MHA has prepared an elaborate list of such companies and initiating action against them. A probe by the MHA against 21 top NGOs revealed alleged irregularities in their foreign contribution receipts. Prominent among them were Mary Kom s boxing training ndia s first Sexed Semen IProduction Centre will come up at Rishikesh in Uttrakhand to produce female calves for indigenous Indian cattle. This would ensure that the cows inseminated with sexed semen give birth only to female calves. Sexed semen technology is a breeding technology about preselecting the sex of offspring by sorting or separating the X-sperms from Y-sperms. This will help to produce more cows than bulls. In normal breeding, there are chances that, we either get a bull or a cow. With sexed semen, in majority cases one gets a female progeny, said officials of Agriculture Ministry. Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh has laid the foundation of the country s first sex semen production centre at Rishikesh. The Centre is being set up as part of the Rashtriya Gokul Mission. The Centre has planned to set up 10 more such sorted semen centre across the country and global tender has been floated to this effect, Singh said. According to officials, the technology is being adopted for this centre, was developed by the United States, to produce more cows than bulls. The project is being undertaken to increase milk productivity and the cow population. Officials said that in sex sorted semen technology, the fractions of X-bearing (female) and Y-bearing (male) sperm are modified from the natural mix through sorting and selection. The new semen mix, which is formed, when impregnated will only yield female calves in almost 90% of the cases. The sorting process basically involves exploiting the differences in deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) content between X-chromosome-bearing and Y-chromosome-bearing sperms. The former contains slightly more DNA, with the difference ranging from 3.6% to 4.2%, depending upon the breed of the cattle or buffalo. The process of sorting is done either by passing the sperm cells through a laser beam or by staining sperm with a DNAbinding fluorescent dye. Data from the 19th livestock census shows that while the cattle population has dipped by 4.1 per cent in 2012 from 2007 (previous census period), the buffalo population has grown by 3.19 per cent during the same period. Further, the study notes that the percentage changes in milch buffalo population during the period and has increased by 46 per cent in rural areas. Cow is a better animal than buffalo to increase the farmers income. Cow can give you a better jump in milk yield and is more amenable to upgrading in breeding than a buffalo, officials said. fter having devoured many Aforests in the country, an invasive weed from South America, Lantana camara, is gradually spreading its tentacles to eat away the native medicinal plants found in the Dhauladhar range, an extension of Himalayas in Himachal Pradesh, researchers have warned. During their research, they found that more than 86 per cent plant species were reported to be used for therapeutic purpose by the locals. The study is published in the latest journal of Current Science. They pointed out that the heavy infestation of Lantana camera in sub-tropical forests has degraded the habitats of native medicinal plant species. The invasion of Lantana camara, which emerged as the most dominant shrub species during the present study, is changing the structure and composition of subtropical forests. Among the category of medicinal plant, Lantana camara is one, but in India this plant is categorised in poisonous plant as, this plant is among top ten invasive weeds and toxic plant on the earth. Since Lantana camara prefers relatively warm climatic condition, it has not yet invaded the temperate and subalpine forests in the region. Besides, as Lantana camara spreads in the habitats occupied by many important medicinally and ecologically important species, including Berberis asiatica, Vitex negundo and school, Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust, Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), Asianet New Charitable Trust, Waste Management Society, New Era Society, Yateem Khana and Madrasa, Amensty International (India) foundation, Center for social Development, etc. The MHA, which has by an order on June 5, eases penalties on NGOs for violating FCRA norms said that for offence punishable under Section 37 for transferring foreign contribution to any other person in contravention of Section 7 of the Act, a penalty of 1 lakh or 10 per cent of such of such transferred foreign contribution, whichever is higher will be paid. However no relaxation has been given to the companies receiving foreign fund in violation of FCRA norms. Adhatoda vasica, its continuous proliferation may be crucial for the survival of these important native plant species, noted researchers, Natasha Sharma and Chandra Prakash Kala from Ecosystem and Environment Management of Bhopal-based Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM). They have called for immediate protective steps such as declaring the high density medicinal plant areas as medicinal he Election Commission Thas given the nod to amended rules and regulations of the ruling AIADMK, which has done away with the powerful general secretary post held by the late J Jayalalithaa. The EC has uploaded the amended rules and regulations on its website. Put up under Constitutions of Political Parties, the amended rules and regulations include the creation of new party posts Coordinator and Joint Coordinator, held by O Panneerselvam and K Palaniswami, respectively. While Palaniswami is the Chief Minister of the State, Panneerselvam is his Deputy. The two leaders had merged their led respective factions in August A party general council under them later adopted a slew of resolutions, including abolishing the General Secretary post held by Jayalalithaa following her death in December 2016, besides annulling the interim appointment of her confidante, the jailed VK Sasikala, as her successor. Putting up the amended rules and regulations on the EC website for public view was a technical process, official sources said. nion Minister Arun Jaitley Uon Sunday criticised the Congress party for creating hue and cry over the Government s decision to refer back a judicial appointment recommendation to the collegium for reconsideration. He also recalled how the judges were superseded in the past and attempts were made to influence judgements. The Government had returned the recommendation of Supreme Court collegium for elevation of Uttarakhand High Court Chief Justice KM Joseph to the apex court. Although, the collegium has decided to resend his name to the Government, it is yet to officially approach the Government. Under the present scenario, Jaitley said the executive can give inputs to the collegium, it can even refer a recommendation back with relevant inputs for reconsideration but is eventually bound by the recommendations. This is contrary to the text of the Constitution, he said in a Facebook post. The hue and cry made by my friends in the Congress party recently when the Government referred a case back for reconsideration, fades into the oblivion. It is part of the much diluted role of an elected Government that relevant inputs be brought to the notice of the collegium. This is in consonance with democratic accountability? I have written this blog so that my friends in the Congress party get an opportunity to look at the mirror, he said. Jaitley spelled out various incidents of the past where judges of the Supreme Court were superseded and how recommendations of the apex court were turned down. Chief Justice Hidayatullah recommended the names of Justice SP Kotwal, the Chief Justice of Bombay; Justice MS Menon, Chief Justice of Kerala to the Supreme Court. The executive did not respond to either of the two names and ignored the recommendations. The Chief Justice meekly submitted and never questioned the inaction, Jaitley said. Citing the famous Kesavananda Bharati case, the Minister recalled how the Government of the day tried to subvert the independence of judiciary and gain the power to even tweak the basic tenets of the Constitution with the help of Parliament. It was a landmark decision of the Supreme Court that outlined the basic structure doctrine of the constitution, which cannot be tempered with. It goes to (TR) Andhyarjuna s credit that having appeared with HM Seervai on the Government side, he has plant conservation areas among others. The researchers said that apart from their therapeutic properties, these medicinal plant species maintain the health of an ecosystem as each species has a specific role in the functioning of an ecosystem. During their study, they encountered around 184 plant species in the sampling region, of which 86 per cent had medicinal uses. Among woody plant species, the use of bark was highest, whereas in herbaceous species the use of leaf and root was highest for treatment of over 32 groups of diseases. Though the local people deserve credit for sustaining village forests for centuries, further loss of medicinal plants In the amended rules, the party has said, among others, that the late Jayalalithaa shall be the eternal General Secretary and that the post has been abolished. As per wishes of the members of the party and the party cadre, Puratchi Thalaivi (Revolutionary leader) Dr J Jayalalithaa shall be the eternal General Secretary of the party and no person shall be elected appointed/nominated to that post. The Co-ordinator and Joint Co-ordinator, elected by the party General Council, shall hold respective posts for five years and are fully authorised to relax or make alterations to any of the rules and regulations, it said. Among others, the top two leaders were empowered to take decisions on important political events, policies and programmes of urgent nature, which cannot brook delay and await the meeting of either Executive Committee or General Council. In April this year, AIADMK had written to the EC, requesting it to take on record and update the amendment to its party rules and regulations done in its September 2017 General Council meeting. It had also sought that the same be uploaded on the Commission s website. authored a brilliant and accurate day by day history of how the Kesavananda case proceeded. There was acrimony on the Bench, Jaitley said. Andhyarjuna s book, The Kesavananda Bharati Case the Untold Story of Struggle for Supremacy by Supreme Court and Parliament, was published in The citizen was represented by Nani Palkhiwala and the government by HM Seervai with supporting arguments from Attorney General Niren De, he said, recalling details from the book. When a judge asked counsel a question, someone with an alternate opinion on the bench would answer it. It was a thirteen judge Bench and the obvious object of both sides in a dividing bench was to reach the figure of 7 for the law to be laid down. There are several interesting episodes which need to be stated, he said. He also recounted how the government tried various tricks to delay the hearing so that the then Chief Justice SM Sikri retires and Government retains the right to amend the constitution even with regard to fundamental rights. at these elevations should be discouraged, said the researchers. Agreed Sanchit Sharma from AIMIL Pharma, Delhi, which is engaged in production of herbal drugs like Lukoskin for white patches and BGR-34 to treat diabetes, based on extracts from medicinal plants viz. Daruharidra, Giloy, Vijaysar, Gudmar, Manjeestha and Methi. He laid stress on immediate protection of country's herbal wealth to ensure cost effective herbal drugs to the large segment of the population who can't afford to pay the costlier allopathic drugs. More so, when the Government is going all out of its way to promote the herbal drugs, most of whose efficacy has been well proven through various studies, said Sharma. BSF Sub-Officer has been Awarned and issued a showcause notice by his Commanding Officer (CO) for failing to attend a ceremonial rope pulling farewell party of a senior at a force camp in West Bengal, leading to a war of letters between the two. The officiating CO of the 155th battalion of the Border Security Force, a second-incommand rank official, shot of another letter to the Inspector under him after the latter argued that such an event was neither regimental or official and is meant to be accorded only to the head of the unit or establishment, according to records accessed by PTI. This is the second instance that has come to light in the country s largest border guarding force in the recent past where a supervisory officer has reprimanded his junior for not following the age-old traditions and norms of the uniformed force. In March, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had expressed his displeasure and directed the BSF to withdraw a seven-day pay cut order against a jawan after his CO found him guilty of disrespecting the PM. The current instance was triggered after Inspector Damodara BB failed to attend a traditional event of pulling Finally on the judgement day, six judges held that fundamental rights were unamendable and there was an implied limitation on the power of Parliament to amend. Six others held that Parliament had power to amend every Article of the Constitution, he said. The thirteenth judge HR Khanna held that the implied limitation on the power to amend was in relation to the basic structure of the constitution. The opinion of one judge thus became the law. After the judgement had been read and the Chief Justice read out the final order with regard to the law declared by the Supreme Court and then signed the same, he circulated it to the bench for signatures, he said. Four of the dissenting judges A N Ray, MH Beg, KK Mathew and SN Dwivedi refused to sign the order, he said, adding that the Kesavananda Bharati s final order was signed by only nine of the thirteen judges. That very day JM Shelat, AN Grover and KS Hegde were superseded and AN Ray become the new Chief Justice. Upon Ray s retirement, HR Khanna was superseded and Beg became the Chief Justice, he said. Talking about Nehru era, Jaitley said when Justice HJ Kania started recommending names for appointment to the High Courts, it caused a significant flutter. Pandit Nehru questioned his suitability to be the first Chief Justice of India. It was only Sardar Patel s pragmatism that had enabled him to manage Justice Kania, he said. n a move to achieve self- in defence sector Ireliance and to reduce the dependence on imports, especially from China, India is all set to produce its first lithium ion (Li-ion) battery on commercial basis. The Central Electro Chemical Research Institute (CECRI), Karaikudi, Tamil Nadu under Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) and a private firm, RAASI Solar Power Private Limited have inked a pact for transfer of technology for India s first Lithium Ion (Li-ion) Battery project. The RAASI Group will set up the manufacturing facility in Krishnagiri district of Tamil Nadu close to Bangalore. We want to bring down the cost of the vehicle by ropes to see off an assistant commandant rank officer from the unit mess at 9 am on June 6 at the BSF camp in Salugura in West Bengal. The very same day the unit s deputy Manish Negi, filing in for commanding officer on leave, shot of an explanation-cum-warning letter to Damodara seeking reasons for his failure to attend the event. The Inspector replied stating he came to work on that day as routine as there was no written order communicated to him and that such an event was neither regimental nor official and is restricted to be accorded to the head of the department, which was not the case this time. Miffed by the junior official seeking a copy of rankwise entitlements of officers from him, Negi shot off another show cause notice to him stating that the Inspector should know that it is the tradition of the force to see off an officer who is either retired or moving out for a new posting. Senior BSF officers said the forces North Bengal frontier and the headquarter has taken note of the incident and an inquiry is being carried out to ascertain the circumstances and facts of the case. No doubt, this war of letters cannot be ignored as an aberration as the supervisory officers are always told to be n the lines of campaigns in OMadhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, who is set to face a tough challenge from the Congress in the upcoming Assembly poll, is also embarking on a Vikas Yatra to showcase development undertaken by her Government and that of the Modi-dispensation at the Centre. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has completed his Vikas Yatra and Chhattisgarh CM is currently touring across the State. Rajasthan BJP is taking Vikas Yatra in all 200 Assembly seats which would go to poll by the year-end. Along with Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh all BJP-ruled States will face election together with Mizoram by November-December. All the three States would be facing anti-incumbency, but the BJP in Rajasthan would be more apprehensive of electorates who traditionally are not in habit of repeating a Government twice. BJP s central leadership had earlier declared that in all three States, the party would go to polls with the incumbent Chief Ministers. The three States would be taking fresh mandate close to 2019 elections and Assembly results could be a curtain raiser to the Lok Sabha polls. Madhya Pradesh (29), Rajasthan (25) and Chhattisgarh (25) contributes a total of 65 Lok Sabah seatsa majority of which are currently with the BJP. Vasundhara Raje (65), who had issues with the central leadership in the past is expected to commence Yatra from Monday to highlight welfare schemes undertaken by her cell manufacturing below 15,000 per KW to replace Lead Acid Battery, said C Narasimhan, CMD of RAASI Group. We also have plans to make Lithium Ion battery for solar roof top with life span of 25 years to make it affordable enough to drive the photo voltaic segment. This is the first commercial ToT for manufacturing of the Li-ion battery in the country. The CECRI has already set up the first indigenous Liion fabrication facility that has applications in defence, solar powered devices, railways and other high end usages. The facility is to start industrial level production in two months. It s the first time that we will have our own technology and potential to produce Li-ion judicious and issue rationalebased orders while undertaking disciplinary action on paper or verbally. However, the uniformed forces have a long tradition and even in this case the officiating CO has pointed out that the Inspector concerned has attended such events in the past. This will be resolved soon, the official said. He said there have been issues in the past between the combat and non-combat administrative cadre officials, as in this case where the Inspector is from ministerial cadre, and the discipline of a uniformed force is the top most irrespective of a personnel belonging to any cadre. However, another official said that such ceremonial events are accorded to a CO or formation commander and hence arbitrary use of such traditions should not be allowed as this leads to grievance amongst the jawans and junior officers. The 2.5-lakh personnel strong BSF is primarily tasked to guard Indian borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh apart from rendering a number of duties in the internal security domain. A number of its battalions are deployed under the North Bengal frontier in West Bengal to guard the Indo-Bangla international border. Government. Her previous two yatras were Parivartan Yatra (to bring in change) and Suraj Sankalp Yatra (for good governance). The latest one has been named Vikas Yatra (for development). State leaders and Ministers would be touring all 200 Assembly constituencies. It is, however, not clear as how many central leaders and Ministers would participate in the Yatra. The much delayed yatra is to first cove the tribaldominated division of Udaipur and peak in July. Like in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan too would go with the development agenda and focus on the performance of NDA under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said a senior central leader from Rajasthan. BJP which had won 160 out of the 200 Vidhan Sabha seats in the 2013 Assembly election is now faced with a resurgent Congress The BJP poll campaign in Rajasthan is affected by not having a new State president as a consensus has not reached between Vasudhara Raje and party president Amit Shah on the issue. Raje is understood to have opposed the nomination of Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Lok Sabha member from Jodhpur, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, as replacement for Ashok Parnami, the State BJP president who was asked to step down following the party s defeat in the Ajmer and Alwar Lok Sabha byelections and Mandalgarh Assembly bypoll. The defeats in bypolls has sent message to the BJP in Rajasthan that unless it puts an immediate stop to its internal differences and factionalism, it would have a tough task ahead in the polls against the Congress which is smelling power. batteries domestically. This would help in cutting costs as well as our dependence on the foreign market, said professor Vijayamohan K Pillai, Diector of the CECRI. We are looking for more investor, he said. Currently, Indian manufacturers source Lithium Ion Battery from China, Japan and South Korea among some other countries. India is one of the largest importers and in 2017, it imported nearly 150 Million US Dollar worth Li-Ion batteries. Today s development is a validation of the capabilities of CSIR and its laboratories to meet technology in critical areas to support our industry, besides other sectors, said Dr Harsh Vardhan, Union Science and Technology Minister who was present at the occasion.

6 engal Chief Minister has Bonce again raised the issue of Central deprivation alleging the BJP Government has held back its rightful 10,000 crore earmarked for development. In the recent weeks the Chief Minister has shot off at least three letters to the Centre demanding clearance of her State s dues amounting to about 9,959 crore under 16 heads. According to officials in the State Finance Department the Centre is yet to clear 609 crore due on account of good performance. Besides, the State has also demanded its due of 3830 crore on account of Sarva Shiksha Aviyan and 790 crore under Mid Day Meal scheme. Besides there are a number of other schemes under which the State has been deprived of its lawful grants from the Centre, sources said. Accordingly huge amount of money is due under Urban Renewal Mission, National Urban Employment Scheme, Swacchh Bharat and other programmes. This is a blatant denial of drive conducted in the Aprisons across Uttar Pradesh has found 459 inmates HIV positive. The joint drive, a joint operation of state Prisons Administration and Reforms Services and UP State AIDS Control Society, was launched last month and is still underway. As per the records blood test (finger prick) was conducted on 78,739 prisoners of which 559 were found reactive. Of them, 479 inmates were detected for the first time. These prisoners further underwent confirmatory three-kit tests to State rights. The people of Bengal are being deprived. We are not begging for funds. We are only demanding our dues. The Centre will have to keep in mind that the people of the States pay taxes and out of those taxes the States get their dues for development of their people, the Chief Minister has said wondering whether Bengal is being deprived because of its political preference. While the Centre has linked nonpayment of dues with non-receipt of utilization certificates, the State Government has vehemently refuted the claims saying the Centre is creating excuses to deprive Bengal. We have documentary proof to show that we have been regularly sending utilization certificates, said a senior official. Notwithstanding Banerjee s claims of malicious deprivation by the Centre the Left Front leadership on the other hand have different things to say. According to the Marxists both Mamata Banerjee and the BJP are hand-in-gloves regardless of public saber-rattling in order to polarize votes. Under Trinamool regime BJP has not deprived Bengal. The biggest proof of it is Centre s sanctioning of Rs 3,100 crore just before the 2016 Assembly elections. The money was given to clear the dues under 100-days work scheme. The grant saved the day for the Trinamool as it managed to temporarily calm down crores of rural poor. Mamata managed to scrape through in 70 seats in which the TMC won by a mere 150 to 4,000 votes. Her Government would have fallen in 2016 had BJP not helped it with funds. Similarly the Centre had disbursed funds to t he Trinamool Government ahead of this year s rural elections too, the CPI(M) leadership said. check if the are HIV positive. As per the report available so far, 459 inmates have been tested HIV positive. Report of other inmates are still awaited. Lucknow prison, comprising Lucknow district jail, Nari Bandi Niketan and Model jail, tops the list with 49 HIV positive inmates followed by Ghaziabad and Moradabad district jails with 46 and 33 HIV positive inmates, respectively. Twenty-one inmates at Naini and 24 at Aligarh district jails were also detected HIV positive. Of the total 459 HIV positives inmates, the officials have started Antiretroviral est Bengal has witnessed fter hiding for nearly 20 Wa four-fold rise in its Adays, the Jammu and expenditure on physical infrastructure Kashmir Police has since the Trinamool arrested Rajinder Singh, broth- Congress formed the er of BJP leader Lal Singh, Government in 2011, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday said. Recently, 18,000 crore of new infrastructure projects from Rajasthan in connection with a case related to alleged abuse of State Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti during a public rally, officials said here have been allocated, in today. addition to the 25,755 crore of Police cracked the case budgetary allocation for with the help of technical capital expenditure for the current financial year, she said. experts and pinpointed Rajinder s location in Udaipur Infrastructure of Rajasthan. Immediately, a development is going on in a team was sent to rapid pace in Bengal. In fact, expenditure on physical infrastructure in the state has increased almost fourfold since 2011, Banerjee wrote on her Facebook wall this evening. Udaipur where help from the local police was sought in nabbing the accused, whose purported remarks on a video against the Chief Minister created a flutter with political leaders cutting across the party The 18,000 crore of lines demanded strict action new infrastructure projects include flyovers, rural and urban drinking water, roads against him. Singh, while participating in Dogra Samman rally and bridges, power, affordable organised by his housing and irrigation, she said. brother Lal Singh, had purportedly used very bad language against the Chief Minister and had also abused her. Police registered a case on May 21 under Section 501 (printing or engraving words that are defamatory) and section 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) of the Ranbir Penal Code (RPC) and Section 66A of the Information Technology Act. Based on the FIR, a Lookout Notice was issued against Rajinder Singh by Chief Judicial Magistrate Kathua. Based on application filed by SHO Police Station Hiranagar to the effect that accused Rajinder Singh, involved in FIR no 187 of 2018 for offences under sections 501, 509 of RPC and sections 66/67 of IT Act registered with Police Station Hiranagar, is evading arrest and is hiding/concealing himself..., the order read. His bail application was also rejected on June 1 by the court. treatment (ART) of 69, as per the report. Earlier, when the list was compiled, the total number of HIV positive inmates was pegged at 406. At that time, the test had been conducted on 78,057 inmates of which 563 were found reactive. A senior jail official said they are facing problems as several inmates have refused to go for the blood test. The state prison department has now begun the process of trying to motivate the remaining 11,166 inmates to go for blood test promising that if the disease is detected they will be provided free treatment. the Congress said We are all elected for fourth or fifth time. s the dissidence in We are true soldiers of the ACongress reached a party. But party has not treated crescendo, it has also made divided factions among Lingayats to come together to fight against the Congress High Command which has refused to budge to their demands. After the formation of the Government led by JDs chief HD Kumaraswamy in a fragile coalition formation and subsequent cabinet expansion has led to major revolt by a section of powerful MLAs in the Congress which was rejected by us well. We were promised a birth but someone in the party has influenced the high command not to include us in the cabinet. One thing is sure this has brought us together. We will fight together. Lingayat leaders like MB Patil, who spearheaded the movement for a separate Lingayat movement a masterstroke to garner Lingayat votes for the congress has joined hands with another Lingayat the people of the State by giving leader Shamanur them only 78 seats. It is Shivashankarappa, who clear indication many leaders based on the caste calculations have come out against the party high command after they were rejected by the party by refusing to make them ministers. Former water resources minister and a powerful Lingayat Minister from North Karnataka MB Patil is taking the lead along with another Lingayat leader and senior congress leader Shamnur opposed the division of Lingayats within the party to fight for justice. HK Patil another Reddy Lingayat, BC Patil, SR Patil significantly who resigned as the working president of the party, Iswar Kandre and as many as another ten Lingayat leaders have joined the bandwagon of dissidence to fight the decision of the congress party. This has become a major headache for the Shivashankarappa who Kumaraswamy government opposed Lingayat division have joined to fight the party high command. Even though the party is putting a brave face about dissidence, they are shaken by the tremors they have sent. A senior lingayat leader in which is yet to start functioning. Congress has 18 Lingayat MLAs and only three have been inducted into cabinet ignoring senior members of the party. With more than 18 percent of the population ix infiltrators have been Skilled as Army foiled a major infiltration bid in Keran sector of north Kashmir s Kupwara district on Sunday. Theentire area has been cordoned off for a combing operation to trackdown more suspected infiltrators. Sources said a group of armed militants was noticed trying toinfiltrate into this side of the Line of Control (LoC) early onsunday. Soon after the suspicious movement was noticed, the counterinfiltration security grid initiated action that resulted into aprolonged gunfight. In the ensuing encounter, six armed infiltratorswere killed in several phases of the operation. A defence spokesman said that a large haul of arms and ammunition wasrecovered from the slain militants. He said search operation was in progress till last reports came infrom the area. The infiltration bid took place despite the armies of India andpakistan reaffirming their commitment to adhere to ceasefire agreedupon by the two countries in everal Congress leaders and Sworkers were on Sunday detained as they protested across the State against what the party claimed was the BJP government s failure to address the issues of farmers. As part of the protest, Congress workers threw vegetables and poured milk on the roads. They also blocked several roads, including national and state highways, by burning tyres. Today was the third day of the protest and it included tractor rallies as well as a jail bharo andolan. While Congress state president Amit Chavda was detained along with party workers at Asodar in Anand district, police detained Leader of Opposition in the Gujarat Assembly, Paresh Dhanani, at Vadia village in Amreli district. Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, however, termed it as a Congress only protest and claimed that farmers in the state had lent no support to the opposition party s three-day programme. The three-day agitation started on Friday. Speaking up for farmers and raising the voice against the anti-farmer and anti-people policies of the government is a crime in the eyes of Gujarat government. Was arrested (sic) n spite of the claims by the Iruling AIADMK that Tamil Nadu is a garden of peace, the scheduled caste and scheduled tribe communities in the State say that there has been no let down in their sufferings. Though Tamil Nadu has been under Dravidian rule since 1967, the sufferings experienced by the SC/ST communities continue unabated, L Murugan, member, National Commission for Scheduled Caste, told The Pioneer. He was referring to the May 28 murder of three Scheduled Caste persons in Sivaganga district of the State by members of the caste Hindu community. Six persons have been arrested for the gruesome murder, arising out of a frivolous charge made by the Caste Hindus that the scheduled caste persons did not get up on seeing a youth belonging to their community. Murugan had rushed to Kachanatham village on hearing that the police was indifferent to the pleas by the SC Lingayats are a dominant community and deciding factor in Karnataka politics. The division of Lingayats has not yielded much needed results to the century old party which has to strategically go for an alliance with local JDs to keep the BJP away. An advertisement by the separate Lingayat movement group in major newspapers has claimed the division has benefited the congress and many religious leaders who had supported the movement to divide the Lingayats are now demanding ministries for the leaders who helped the congress to win as many as 78 seats. I am of the opinion that two Deputy Chief Minister posts must have been created. One for a leader from North Karnataka and one from the South. My self-respect is hurt. community. There was gross violation of norms by the police. It was only after my intervention that the district superintendent of police suspended the two sub inspectors who had colluded with the accused, said Murugan. The NCSC member said that the AIADMK and the DMK, ruling Tamil Nadu alternately have been using the scheduled caste and scheduled tribe communities as vote banks. His views were echoed by TADA Periasamy, leader of the scheduled caste communities who have been waging a war against the atrocities perpetrated on SC/ST communities by caste Hindus. The Dravidian movements and parties stand for the interests of the backward and most backward communities. They portray themselves as saviours of SC/ST communities and claim that they are against the Brahmins. The Brahmins constitute a mere two or three per cent Tamil Nadu population at all a threat to the SC/ST or anyone. We are tormented and attacked by the caste Hindus with the full support of I must have been given a ministerial post in the first round of selection itself, hurt MB Patil told the media. Patil, who spearheaded the movement for a separate Lingayat religion, said that he was disappointed that his own party had dumped him. But just because they dumped me, I will not dump the Congress, Patil said after meeting with Kumaraswamy. He also said that he was not alone in this struggle and that there are 20 MLAs who are willing to join him. Hunaswadi Rajan, editor in chief of Samyuktha Karnataka, a popular daily in Kannada says the next session will decide the fate of the Government. He said dissidence and rebellion has so far refused to die down. It s going to be testing time for the chief minister and the congress in the first session as they have to pass many bills. If they (dissidence) abstain it shows that the government is in a sticky wicket and an opportunity for them to prove their strength. This is a very fragile coalition. Groups within the party has emerged to establish their supremacy to fight the party high command. Congress and JDs are facing dissidence with many senior leaders miffed that they were not given ministerial berths. The Congress chose 14 by the police (at) Aasodar, Anand for seeking #JusticeForFarmers and debt waiver for farmers in Gujarat, Chavda tweeted. Talking to reporters, he said Congress supports the demands of farmers. The BJP government has failed to fulfil promises made to farmers, and we are committed to ensuring that farmers get their due. The policies adopted by the BJP government are anti-farmer. CM Rupani said, The programme being held since the last three days is a Congress one. Nobody other than the Congress is supporting it. It is just to instigate people. All I would like to tell the Congress is that, instead of throwing milk in Gujarat, you should go to Congress-ruled States like Karnataka and Punjab where farmers get a lower price for milk when compared to Gujarat, he said. he Jammu and Kashmir TTourism Department on Sunday handed over a cheque of five lakh to the family of a tourist from Chennai who was killed by stone-pelters here last month, officials said. The stone-pelting incident had received widespread condemnation. On the directions of Tourism Minister Tassaduq Mufti, Director, Tourism, Kashmir, Mahmood A Shah today met in Chennai, the family of a 22-year-old R Thirumany, who died in stonepelting incident at Narbal on May 8, an official spokesman said. the DMK and the AIADMK. Have you seen the Dravidian parties acting against the interests of the caste Hindus? asked Periasamy, a CPI-turned- Maoist-turned Dalit active. He said Tamil Nadu could be the only State in the country which has separate residential areas for Dalits and the Backward Communities. Though caste Hindus can come to Dalit colonies, we are not allowed in their areas, said Periasamy. He said in most of the villages there are tea shops serving tea in separate tumblers for the Dalits. Murugan said Erode district, the birth place of E V Ramasamy cker (popularly known as Periyar), the Dalits are still denied entry in temples administered by the Tamil Nadu government. Periasamy said that situation was no different in other temples. Please understand that Ramasamy Naicker, C N Annadurai (founder of the DMK), M G Ramachandran stood for the interests of the backward communities while they had no concern for the Dalits, said Periasamy. He said the official handed over a cheque of Rs five lakh to the family. No amount can compensate the loss of the life, the whole J&K state shares the grief of the family, Shah said at Press Club, Chapak. After the incident on May 8, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti and the Tourism Minister, on the behalf of entire state, had apologized for the incident and the human loss. The chief minister had also handed over a cash amount of Rs two lakh to the bereaved family, officials said. Shah claimed the incident was an isolated one and other tourists who were part of legislators to become ministers in the coalition government. Leaders including MB Patil, HK Patil, SR Patil, Satish Jarkiholi, Shamanur Shivashankarappa, Ramalinga Reddy, R Roshan Baig - all of whom were ministers in the previous Siddaramaiah government - are upset over being not being given a portfolio this time around. Satish Jarkiholi, told the media that he would soon resign from the post of AICC secretary. An insider in the party said this group which is akin to former chief minister Siddaramaiah who has been sidelined in the party is instrumental in strumming the dissidence. Meanwhile Congress floor leader in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun M Kharge on Sunday said he would talk to AICC president Rahul Gandhi on filling the remaining six ministerial berths allocated to the party in the Congress-JDS coalition government to prevent dissident activity. Under the power sharing agreement, the Congress has been allotted 22 berths and the JDS 12. The JDS-Congress cabinet was expanded on June 6 with the induction of 25 new ministers, after intense bargaining for ministerial berths. The Congress has left six vacancies to be filled under its quota and the JDS one. flood alert has been sound- along river Bhavani in Aed the district, as surplus water is being released from Pilloor dam, official sources said today. People living on the banks of the river have been asked to move to safer places, they said. With the onset of the southwest monsoon, Coimbatore and neighbouring districts, particularly Nilgiris district, have been experiencing heavy rains for the last two days. Besides, 12,000 cusecs of water is being released to Pilloor from Kunda dam in Nilgiris district, which is full, district collector T N Hariharan said in a press release here. In view of this, 6,000 cusecs of water is being released from Pilloor through each of the two sluice gates, due to which there is a possibility of Bhavani to be in spate. Considering the situation, the collector asked the people living on the banks and low-lying areas to move to safer places. the group completed their travel safely. Every Kashmiri regretted the incident including those in the travel trade, who even held a press conference to condemn it, he said. Assuring that Kashmir continued to be safe for travel, Shah urged travel agents in Chennai to keep promoting the destination. South India, especially Chennai, was emerging as a good market and J&K receives good flow of tourists from these places, Shah said. He said under the Centre s Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat scheme, both states were promoting tourism in each other s destinations.

7 t least 16 people were Areportedly killed in rainrelated incidents in Kerala in the past two days as southwestern monsoon activity intensified causing landslides, sea erosion, swelling of rivers and widespread power and traffic disruption due to uprooting of trees in strong winds and mudslides. According to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), the monsoon activity will remain intense with heavy rain and wind with speed up to 60 KMPH may occur in the State till Wednesday. Fishermen have been warned not to venture into the sea during the period and people living in the mountainous areas of the State have also been advised to remain alert. Intense sea erosion was reported from Tirur and Tanur in north Kerala, where fishermen lost nets and other fishing implements and Chellanam near Kochi while the entire coastline of the State remained under the threat of swelling waves on Saturday and Sunday. Several houses in Chellanam he Kerala Government on TSunday decided to lift the high alert sounded in Kozhikode and Malappuram districts that were hit by the deadly Nipah virus last month as the virus has been brought under control and its spread has been stopped. Nipah has claimed 17 lives so far in the two northern Kerala districts. No new cases of Nipah infection have been reported. In this context, we can conclude that the spread has ended. Therefore, we are relaxing the high alert that has been in force so far, Health Minister KK Shailaja told newsmen on Sunday after chairing an all-party meeting held at the Kozhikode District Collectorate for assessing the Nipah situation. As the situation has come under control, educational institutions will reopen on were flooded due to sea erosion and people were shifted to safer places. According to reports, three persons each were killed in monsoon-related incidents in the past two days in Thiruvananthapuram, Kannur and Alappuzha districts, two each in Kasaragod and Wayanad and one each in Idukki, Pathanamthitta and Kozhikode districts on Saturday and Sunday. Reports indicated that the death toll could still go up. Most of the deaths occurred due to drowning in swollen rivers and waterlogged pits and uprooting of trees. Two children, Muhammad Shahil (8) and Sana Fatima (7), drowned in a pond at Cheeral near Sultan Bathery in Wayanad district on Sunday. The tragedy occurred after the children, who were relatives, slipped into the water while playing near the pond. A four-year-old LKG student, Fatima, had died at Kushal Nagar in Kanhangad, Kasaragod on Saturday after she fell into a waterlogged pit. An eight-year-old boy Akshay of Aranmula, Pathanamthitta, Tuesday as announced earlier by the District Collector, said the Minister. Schools in Kerala had reopened after the twomonth summer vacation on June 1 but this was postponed to June 12 in Kozhikode, Malappuram and some adjacent areas of Kozhikode district in the context of the virus scare. Restrictions on holding public functions also were being relaxed but it would be better to continue the vigil till June 30 as decided earlier, Shailaja said, adding, As the situation stands now, there is no need to isolate those under observation or to avoid talking to them. They should be able to lead normal life. Of the total 379 blood and body fluid samples subjected to analyses, only 18 had tested positive for Nipah and 16 persons in whom the virus was confirmed had died. We expect the remaining samples fter legislators from the Aruling party, now BJP MP says Ministers in the Yogi Government are corrupt but in the same breath claimed that no one can raise a finger at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath. BJP MP from Kaiserganj, Braj Bhushan Sharan Singh, during a Gram Swaraj campaign held in Gonda to highlight the achievements of the four year rule of the NDA government said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UP chief Minister Yogi Adityanath are honest in true sense but the same cannot be said but UP ministers. The statement of the MP came during his interaction with the media after holding a chaupal at Haldarmau block. I can give honesty certificates to PM Modi and CM Yogi but it cannot be given to the ministers. There are complaints about ministers minting money and this everyone knows, he said adding the time has come for the Yogi to take action against the corrupt ministers. During the chaupal, the BJP MP heard the grievances of the villagers and assured them to solve it while highlighted the achievements of the four years of the Modi government. Earlier, Suheldeo Bharatiya Samaj Party president and UP cabinet minister Om Prakash Rajbhar too continued to raise his voice against the BJP government over mis-governance and prevailing corruption. Earlier two BJP MLAs one from Ballia and another from Hardoi had blamed Yogi Government for failing to control corruption which led to this defeat. Shyam Prakash, BJP MLA from Gopamau assembly segment in Hardoi, alleged that state officers are corrupt. also to prove negative. Nobody under observation has tested positive since May 31. We don t expect any further spread now, the Minister said. The total number of Nipah deaths is considered as 17 because the blood and body fluid samples of Sabith (26), the first person to die with Nipah symptoms, had not been subjected to analysis. The two persons who were confirmed to have contracted the virus have recovered and one of them will be out of the hospital on Monday and the other on June 14. A total of 2,649 persons, who might have come into contact with affected persons, had been placed under observation but that number had now come down to 1,430 and it would further come down to 849 after Tuesday. They will remain under observation for 42 days considering the incubation period of the virus. everal trains were either Scancelled or diverted on the Central Railway after three coaches of Mumbai- Howrah Mail via Nagpur derailed near Igatpuri station in the small hours of Sunday. The coaches S-12, S-13 and pantry car of the Mumbai-Howrah Mail at 2.05 am between TGR 1 and Igatpuri before the train entered the platform 2 at Igatpuri on Mumbai division. There are no injuries to any passenger, a CR spokesperson said. The track restoration work began soon after the mishap. The front portion of the engine and eight coaches of the mishap-hit train left the site for Igatpuri at am. At am, 9th coach from engine S- 13 was re-railed, while the s-12 coach was put back on the rails at 6.35 am. At 7.05 am, the rear portion of the train (10 coaches) left the mishap site for Igatpuri, the rear portion of the train arrived Igatpuri at 7.15 am on Sunday reportedly succumbed to the injuries he had suffered in an incident of tree uprooting on Saturday. Two persons one in Idukki and the other in Thiruvananthapuram died on Sunday after coming to contact with live power lines that were snapped in the winds. At least five persons suffered injuries in two incidents of tree uprooting on Sunday in Idukki district. Dozens of houses have been destroyed or damaged in the rains and winds in the State since Friday. Reports from the mountainous districts of Wayanad and Idukki said that people living in the higher reaches were in panic following reports on the possibility of landslides as heavy rains were expected to continue till Wednesday. Four milk vendors were injured at Ayyanpuzha, Angamaly near Kochi on Sunday morning in an incident of tree uprooting. Extensive damages in heavy rains and winds were reported from Thiruvananthapuram, Idukki, Thrissur, Kozhikode and Kannur districts. Control rooms have been opened in all Taluks and three relief camps have started functioning in Kozhikode districts. Control rooms have also been opened in Idukki district. ssam Chief Minister ASarbananda Sonowal on Sunday reviewed the law and order situation with top police and civil administration official in the aftermath of the lynching of two youths in Karbi Anglong district and asked police to go all out against the rumour mongers, which led to the incident on Friday. The Assam Police have already arrested 16 people for their alleged involvement in lynching the two youths at a village under Dokmoka police station on late Friday evening on mere suspicion that they were child snatchers. The Chief Minister also held a threadbare discussion on all aspects of law and order in the state and asked Assam DGP Kuladhar Saikia to ensure that the police force maintain constant vigilance on all activities and put spanner on any canards likely to vitiate public The railway authorities made arrangements to attach three sleeper class coaches at Manmad and 3 general second class coaches at Bhusaval. The affected train front portion and rear portion was attached at Nasik Road and the train left Nasik Road at hrs for its onward journey, the spokesperson said. After the mishap, a dozen trains were cancelled, while seven trains diverted. The trains that were cancelled were: CSMT-Manmad Rajya Rani Express, Manmad- At least four incidents of landslides were reported from Idukki district in the past two days. Four tourist resorts were ordered to be shut down at Pallivasal near Munnar following a landslide on Saturday. Traffic along the Kochi- Dhanushkodi National Highway came to a standstill following a landslide on the Adimali-Munnar Road in Idukki district. A one-and-a-half acre farmland was washed away near View Point at Kallimali near Rajakkad in Idukki district on Sunday. However, no casualties were reported in the incident. Reports said that many areas of the district like Rajakkad and Bison Valley had been out of electricity since Friday due to uprooting of trees in rains and winds. The Idukki District Collector on Sunday declared Monday as a holiday for all educational institutions except professional colleges in the district in view of the intense monsoon activity. Tourists and others were advised to avoid travel through the high ranges of Idukki district after evening till Wednesday. order and peace in the State. Referring to the killing of two, he maintained that the culprits should be brought to book and no leniency should be exhibited in dealing with the incident. The Chief Minister further asked the police to be on their toes to defeat any evil agenda of rumour and trouble mongers. Later Assam DGP Kuladhar Saikia and Chief Secretary TY Das addressed a joint press conference and said that while 15 people have been arrested for their involvement in the crime, one more person was arrested for posting fake information about the incident on social media around same time when the mob was lynching the two youths. While 15 of them have been arrested for their involvement in killing the youths, one person was arrested for posting objectionable and fake information on the social networking site while the CSMT Rajya Rani Express, CSMT-Manmad Panchvati Express, Manmad-CSMT Panchvati Express, LTT-Manmad Godavari Express, Manmad LTT Godavari Express, Pune-Talegaon EMU, Talegaon-Pune EMU, Pune-Lonavala EMU, Lonavala-Pune EMU, Pune-Karjat Passenger and Karjat- Pune Passenger. The three trains that were diverted via Trains Diverted via Pune-Daund-Manmad were: eventy years long struggle Swaged by thousands of families of West Pakistan refugees to earn their citizenship rights has finally helped them to earn compensation of 21 per day. Over 3 lakh West Pakistan refugees had migrated to India during the 1947 partition and large number of them settled down in the State were deprived citizenship rights given to permanent residents of the State. The compensation package at 5.50 lakh per family was announced by the Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh during his two-day long visit to the State on Friday. If calculated on daily basis 5764 West Pakistan Refugee families have been compensated 21 per day for a period of 70 long years. Despite receiving step motherly treatment at the hands of successive State/Centre Governments President of the West Pakistan Refugee Action Committee mob fury was on on Friday, said Assam DGP Kuladhar Saikia. He said that police have identified more persons involved in the crime and search is on to nab them. Narrating on the incident on Friday, the DGP said that the two youth seemed to have become victim of some rumour. There was a rumour about sopadhara or child snatchers Labha Ram Gandhi told The Pioneer, We welcome the announcement of the union Government but I want to make it clear we will continue to struggle for our citizenship rights till our last breath. Gandhi said, More than three generations of West Pakistan refugees have sacrificed every thing to fight for their identity and after waging a 70 year long struggle we are going to receive a sum of 5.50 lakh per family. He appealed to the Union Government to immediately appoint nodal officer to ensure speedy distribution of compensation package among the refugee families. At the same time he also raised the issue of exact number of families entitled for compensation package. Gandhi claimed there were a total number of families but as per Government records only 5764 families were registered with them. Initially, the state govt had registered claims of 5764 families while rest of them failed to complete the formalities and being circulated by some rumour mongers in the village. The villagers were scared about the child snatchers and seeing the two youth they mistook them to be child snatchers and attacked, said the DGP while adding that police are also trying to find out if there is any other angle to the incident. Our additional DGP Mukesh Agarwal is camping in have been left out. Sukhdev Singh,Vice President of the West Pakistan Refugees Action committee said, after announcing the compensation package the Government should fulfill our demand for grant of Permanent Resident Certificate. He said in the absence of same our children cannot apply for State Govt jobs, exercise their right to franchise in the State Assembly elections and cannot purchase land. Bihari Lal, a resident of RS Pura said, majority of refugee population,living in pathetic conditions,want us to continue to fight for their citizenship rights.he said, we are living in houses which we cannot call our own as none of us can own State land. He said our children continue to struggle to get government jobs, they face discrimination for want of State subject. He said we have been pleading before every centre and State Govt to acknowledge our plight and treat our cases on humanitarian basis to deliver justice to us. ighlighting the achieve- of the Narendra Hments Modi Government, Minister of State for Urban Development Hardeep Puri met intelligentsia class of the State Capital on Sunday and apprised them of the development work being carried out by the Government in last four years. He met under the party s Contact for Support campaign under which leaders will meet prominent citizens to educate them about government policies and seek their support for the coming Lok Sabha elections. Over CSMT-Amritsar Express (JCO ), LTT- Guwahati Express (JCO ) and LTT- Varanasi Express (JCO ) The trains that were diverted via Vasai Road-Surat- Jalgaon were: CSMT- Varanasi Mahanagari Express (JCO ), LTT- Patliputra Express (JCO ), Panvel- Gorakhpur Express (JCO ) and LTT-Hatia Express (JCO ). Vishal Agarwal, Additional General Manager, along with Divisional Railway Manager, Mumbai Division, Central Railway and other officials supervised the restoration operation. The passengers of the affected coaches were adjusted in other coaches. Sunday s was the second train derailment witnessed in Maharashtra during the past three months. Earlier, nine empty wagons of a goods train had derailed between Jejuri and Daundaj on Pune-Miraj section March 26 this year. party leaders will contact over 1 lakh people, who matter, in last one year. In last four years the Central Government has launched various development schemes with a single aim to ensure that its benefits reach the poor. The sole aim of this Government is ensure that poor should get all the basic facilities of life which he deserves. The policies are being implemented without any bias because the spirit behind implementation is `Sabka saath sabka vikas, Puri said in his interaction with the intelligentsia class. day after the former Chief AMinister Akhilesh Yadav vacated his official bungalow in a vandalised State, he had been occupying for last over one year the Minister of State Transport Swatantra Dev Singh on Sunday demanded high level probe into the incident. He said the former Chief Minister has violated the Supreme Court orders by damaging the official accommodation and the probe will bring out the truth. Leaders like Akhilesh Yadav claim to represent the poor and the downtrodden masses. His claim is bogus as he is used to luxurious and lavish life at the cost of the state exchequer. Akhilesh Yadav and other leaders of his ilk who have amassed huge wealth and now coming together to escape from the corruption charges spent hundreds of crores of people s money for their luxury and comfort, said Swatantra Dev Singh here on Sunday. Removing of air conditioners and Italian tiles and marbles should not have been done because these are Karbi Anglong and monitoring the situation closely. We have instructed to the police in all districts to take action against those who are spreading these rumours, he said. Saikia further informed that police have also instituted a special team headed by Additional DGP Harmeet Singh to strengthen cyber patrolling across the State. Government properties. He has violated SC order. An investigation is needed, Singh said. Yadav, who recently vacated a Government bungalow in compliance with Supreme Court s order and shifted to a private villa, has allegedly taken away imported tiles, ceiling, ACs, garden lights and bathroom fittings among others. The minister said Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath too shifted to the official residence of the Chief Minister in March last year but nothing was changed there. There was neither any demolition nor any new construction, said the minister. On June 2, Yadav vacated his official residence, complying with the SC s order on the matter. Akhilesh now resides at the Ansal township on Sultanpur road in Lucknow. The Supreme Court in May 2016 quashed the law passed by the then Samajwadi party Government, which granted permanent residential accommodation to former Chief Ministers of the state. The apex court, in its order, said former chief ministers of the state were not entitled to Government bungalows.

8 The Indian Government extended the last date for the receipt of Expression of Interests for Air India s disinvestment due to a lukewarm response. Air India was once one of the preferred airlines all over the world when late JRD Tata established it in 1932 and over time, under his visionary leadership, it made a brand name for itself. Tata, himself an ace pilot, flew its first single-engine De Havilland Puss Moth on October 15, 1932, carrying air mail from Karachi to Bombay s Juhu airport and continued flying to Chennai. After World War II, it became a public limited company and was renamed Air India. It required deep commitment and hard labour to make an international airline at that time. The commitment of service and quality it offered once is best explained by the conduct of JRD Tata himself, who refused to travel even in the long haul flights in the Business class and always traveled in the Economy class. Apart from the personal example he set, it also had a management signal to keep the crew on their toes. The country must know the history of the takeover of Air India and the internecine fights it had with the Government before its privatisation. India must act in its national interest while privatising the national carrier considering that Air India provides a service; it is not just to make profits but to make travelling accessible to the many who can t afford to fly. The decision to disinvest should not look like cutting off the head for treating a headache. Around 300 letters written by JRD were published in 2004 on the occasion of his 100th birth anniversary. In one of the letters, JRD explains the pain and agony of the takeover of his airline. In the letter, he described how the then Communications Minister, Rafi Ahmed Kidwai made disparaging comments in the Constitution Assembly in 1949 about the airline. JRD wrote to former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru that by resorting to incorrect and unfair statements and allegations, Mr Kidwai has convinced the majority of the members of the Assembly that the airlines in general, and Air-India in particular, are dishonest and greedy, cannot be trusted, and fully deserve their present plight. Being pragmatic, Nehru replied and tried to clear the air and.in 1948 Hence, Air India International was set up in 1948 as the country s first joint sector project between the Government and the private sector to start overseas flightsbegin international flights. However, after five years, the Government decided to nationalise it and without having any consultation with JRD as the idea of public sector as panacea for all had taken over the nation s psyche then. Though Tata opposed the manner in which the takeover took place, he was convinced by Nehru to chair it and Tata, thus, continued as its Chairman till 1978, after which then Prime Minister Morarji Desai removed him unceremoniously. He was brought back again in 1980 for a few years by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. The objective of narrating these facts is to recall history to learn from it and make well thought-out decisions. A thoughtful decision is necessary for a strategic financial entity like Air India to ensure that we have a strategic vision of controlling machines flying in our sky. Now let us discuss why the Government was forced to sell it off despite investing huge amount of money in purchaseing next generation aircrafts. It was a massive foolishness in going for huge loans without monetary backing and can aptly be described in a British proverb: Penny wise, pound foolish. Due to this, the airline is reeling under debt. However, this is not the only reason for its bad shape. The merger of Indian and Air India in 2007 was the biggest folly committed at the time and at best can be described as a tragic error. The Government-controlled airline business has always been a victim of crony capitalism and is treated as a fiefdom of politicians and bureaucrats for appointing and promoting undeserving Sir This refers to the article, Soul of India in pluralism, tolerance: Pranab (June 8). Former President of India Mukherjee, first accepted the invite from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and attended its conclave at Nagpur the other day. Despite some reservations from Congress leaders, his bold step needs deserves applause. His speech there was more bolder and louder. He was quite right in claiming that the soul of the nation resides in pluralism and tolerance. His love for KB Hedgewar seems to be humanitarian and simple. His concern for secularism is understandable in the present day context. But some pseudo-secular politicians vitiate the atmosphere of a true democracy. This should end. Sravana Ramachandran Chennai Sir This refers to the article, Soul of India in pluralism, tolerance: Pranab (June 8). The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) event in Nagpur, as usual went without hoisting the national flag and the singing of the national anthem despite a former President s presence. Nationalism, as defined by RSS and practised by it the organisation, could do without them. RSS is now sure to take advantage of the visuals of Pranab Mukherjee with RSS chief and others in RSS uniform at the RSS people to higher positions. Some of these people behaved like headless chickens during tense situations when thoughtful decisions were the need of the hour. You cannot pitch a tent by fitting square pegs in round holes. Besides, many competent airline professionals were sidelined in the war of favoritisms and with both of the merged airlines suffering from incompetency. This is considered to be the most valid point when it comes to selling off Air India. However, whenever, competent Chairman and Managing Directors were at the helm of the affairs in the past, both of the Government-owned airlines did well. The most compelling argument for the present sell-off is the massive debt of more than 52,000 crore and an annual interest burden of 4,000 crore. The Government must thus,must also review the social service quotient of private airlines like Jet Airways, SpiceJet and Indigo before privatising Air India. The performance of private airlines is nowhere near the net accretion value to public good and faith. The splendid example of evacuation by Air India during the Gulf War is for all to see. The on time performance and profitability of Indigo can be good from their own management point of view but not from the larger people s welfare angle. The fate of Kingfisher Airlines is for all to see and there is no guarantee that the sell-off will not ground the airline after privatisation. The airline claimed a 20 per cent jump in the revenue recently and the Government should analyse this operational profitability claim and assess how and when it can repay the loan and recover the ground. What is needed here is a decentralised efficient management of resources by competent professionals with excellent track records. Hire the world's best airline professional as the CEO and give him the freedom and resources. Other than Tata, no one in this country had the honesty, grit and business sense to steer an airline of Air India s size and reach. If at all Government is bent upon it, it should rectify its mistake committed many decades ago and hand it over to Tata through a mutual agreement and by assessing the ongoing national consensus. Alternatively, it would be wise to consider separating the two merged airlines and cut down the manpower per aircraft at par with international standards. The best option here would be to appoint a committee of experts to find out how to undothe mistakes of of the past. Similarly, the wrongs committed by people must be investigated and a fledgling airline's rescue attempt through sell off should be the last resort. As the saying goes, to address a wrong it is not good to commit another wrong to be lamented later on. After all discretion is the better part of valour. (The writer is former Director- General, Indian Council of Forestry Research Chancellor, FRI University and Principal Secretary to Government of Tripura) headquarter and the erstwhile Congressman s eulogy of KB Hedgewar as a great son of Mother India at a time when secular parties are uniting against the Hindu revivalist challenge mounted by it. Mukherjee would now do well to clarify how his tribute to the RSS founder was not inconsistent with his advocacy of Nehruvian secularism, an antithesis to Hindu nationalism. It has now fallen upon the elder statesman to prove in the backdrop of his association with RSS that secular inheritors of privilege are not indistinguishable from sacred inheritors of privilege. Nevertheless, it should be comforting to the Congress that Pranab Mukherjee deployed his verbal repertoire for the defence of secularism and other ideals that sprang from the freedom movement. He wore the secular cap and not the Hindu nationalist cap while delivering his keynote address and wrong-footed the doubters (secular sentinels). It would be churlish of us to underrate his speech as an interminable reiteration of definitions of nation, nationalism and patriotism. The clash between inclusive Indian nationalism represented by the secular-minded people and exclusive Hindu nationalism represented by the Sangh Parivar is central to contemporary Indian politics and the former s triumph is crucially important for India s continued existence as a secular democracy. G David Milton Maruthancode

9 The nuclear deal which was concluded almost after 20 months of negotiations between Iran and P5 1 was annulled on May 8, 2018, after US president Donald Trump announced the withdrawal of US from the Iran nuclear deal. Both countries declared their strong positions on the issue. President Trump stated that the US will undertake any measures, including imposing more sanctions and even military action if needed, to prevent Iran from nuclear enrichment. On the contrary, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said, If Iran and other countries in the agreement cannot agree on a way forward, Iran might start enriching uranium at uncapped levels. Now under this circumstance, US withdrawal from the deal can risk the peacemaking efforts of Afghanistan and the US against terrorism and state-building in the country. This piece evaluates the potential role that Iran can play in Afghanistan and the possible implication of the US policy towards Iran for Afghanistan. Considering the fragility of situations in Afghanistan and the influence of Iran in these countries as a close neighbour, Afghanistan is the only place that can be easily turned into a battle field between Iran and the US. Realistically, Iran has a huge sphere of influence in Afghanistan, ranging from security and economics, to refugees and regional politics. Iran has established deep links with the Taliban in Afghanistan. It was in 2016 that ties between Iran and Taliban became public when a vehicle was struck by a US drone transporting Taliban chief Mullah Mansour from Iran to the Baluchistan area of Pakistan. Iran has been a great supporter of the Shiite militant groups in Afghanistan for the last couple of decades. More recently it has been unveiled that Afghan refugees are recruited and trained by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps to fight in Syria under the title of Fatemiyoun. There are possibilities that Fatemiyoun s focus could be turned to Afghanistan and lead to the establishment of their sanctuaries in the country after ending the war in Syria. Moreover, in the economic sphere, the Chabahar port in Iran became a lucrative alternative for the Afghanistan imports and exports. Expanding trade, attracting investment, creating job opportunities and, seizing connectivity are the O n a two-day visit to the state to review the security situation amid an ongoing Ramzan ceasefire, Home Minister Rajnath Singh asserted that the Centre will change the face and fate of Jammu & Kashmir. In this context, it is important to argue why Rajnath Singh s visit to the valley will turn out to be a crucial step towards breaking the political logjam in Jammu & Kashmir. Considerably, the Home Minister s visit has now assumed significance in the wake of the extension of the ceasefire announced earlier by the Home Minister during the ongoing holy month of Ramazan. Thus, the two-day visit to Jammu & Kashmir was reportedly focused on conditional ceasefire announced by Rajnath Singh on May 16 for the holy month of Ramazan. Now, the closure of Ramazan is around the corner. It is the month of peace, reconciliation, nonviolence and ceasefire a move of hope and opportunity that was taken in the beginning of Ramazan in the valley of Jammu & Kashmir. Though the extension of the ceasefire would depend on inputs Rajnath Singh will gather from security and intelligence agencies, such chances are rare and must be taken to mitigate the mayhem and decrease the chaos insurgency causes. While the Ramazan ceasefire has brought great relief to the beleaguered people of Jammu & Kashmir, militants and insurgents continue to unleash mindless violence, desperately trying to sabotage the peace process.jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has optimistically tweeted that the militants will, soon, realise the futility of their actions, wholeheartedly welcoming the reiteration of the commitment to the ceasefire on the border by both DGMO s. This brings great relief to the people residing in the vicinity. Peace on our borders is the first essential step to a larger understanding and I truly hope it sustains, her tweet remarked. Of course, Centre s announcement of a unilateral ceasefire during the ongoing Ramzan has given the Kashmiris in general and youths in particular an atmosphere to move expectations that Afghanistan bears in mind from Chabahar and Turkmenistan Afghanistan Pakista n India Pipeline (TAPI) projects. Today, almost three million Afghan refugees are in Iran, making this country home to the world s fourth largest refugee population. The Afghan refugees in Iran will be another potential source of Iranian influence in Afghanistan. Iran often utilises Afghan refugees as an instrument to put pressure on Afghanistan s Government. Now Afghanistan is more unstable that it has been in years and its economy continues to stagnate, so the repatriation of refugees would increase the challenges before for the government of Afghanistan and its supporting countries for providing appropriate shelters and services to the repatriates. Since its formation, the National Unity Government of Afghanistan has compiled its efforts to create a regional consensus towards fighting terrorism and maintaining peace in Afghanistan and the region. Such efforts are perceivable in President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah s speeches during their foreign visits since Currently, the Afghan diplomacy is still active in this arena, it urges all the countries in South Asia, Central Asia and Gulf region to leave their antagonistic interest aside and help the Government in Afghanistan with a strong collaboration. To this end, Iran is one of the main countries with acentral role to help Afghanistan build a regional consensus on peace and stability. Thus, in Afghanistan, Iran possesses all necessary tools in hand to retaliate against any US action vis à vis the Iran nuclear programme. Impact on Afghanistan US pulling out from the nuclear deal and the imposition of more sanctions on Iran may have the opposite effect to that intended. It may provoke Iran to act potentially beyond the agreement and expand its support to regional armed factions like Taliban and Shiite groups in Afghanistan. It largely hampered the development of political and economic relation between Iran and Afghanistan as well as other strategic allies of Afghanistan in the region like India. Furthermore, the extraction will shrink the level of confidence between Afghanistan, Iran and India under the framework of trilateral. Moreover, the reimposition of sanctions on Iran by US will hamper the regional consensus toward fighting terrorism and assisting Afghanistan to overcome its security and economic problems. Similarly, Afghanistan s regional initiatives, mainly Chabahar and TAPI projects may fail to materialise. Sweeping sanctions against Tehran do not only condemn Afghanistan s campaign of creating regional consensus to failure, but could result in the so-called new Great Game concept in the region. Therefore, Iran s role in Afghanistan could be changed from ahead. Therefore, most peace-loving youths in the valley are strongly pleading for an extension of the truce. Mehbooba Mufti has rightly pointed out that these children want to live, they want to play, they want to smile...like elsewhere in the country. This has put Rajnath Singh s visit to the valley in a renewed focus amid speculations that the centre may extend the Ramazan ceasefire. But this truce has also left many Kashmiri intellectuals entangled with questions like these: Is azadi (freedom) of Kashmir a call for violence? Why has Kashmir never been allowed to settle down and take a breather from violence? Those who objectively analyze and review the ongoings in the valley are now highly critical of the insurgent ideology of violence. MHA Sikander, a young Kashmiri writer-activist based in Srinagar, has penned a moving scholarly article in which he asks: Is violence the only way out in Kashmir? Sikander writes: Since last one decade gun culture has gained new currency as a tool of resistance in Kashmir...The vicious cycle of spoiler to an all-out destabiliser and could create great challenges to the peacemaking efforts of Afghanistan and US against terrorism. The attack on the Farah province by Taliban can be counted as an Iranian reaction to US withdrawal from its nuclear deal. The message was clear, Iran wanted to show to the United States that it can retaliate in many ways, and supporting the Taliban is one of those ways. What are the preventive measures for Afghanistan, how could Afghanistan manage the state of affairs? One can argue that Afghanistan s Government may undertake certain measures instead: First, Afghanistan could announce its position on US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal. Second, it could work to keep a high level of confidence with Iran, both through reiterating its commitment that Afghan soil will never be used against Iran and likewise, continue holding the bilateral, trilateral and multilateral interactions with Iran. Third, communicate the negative impacts of this withdrawal by US on Afghanistan and the entire region with P5 countries. Fourth, Afghanistan could work on a scenario that may possibly help Afghanistan it remain a white zone at least in between the US-Iran and Iran-Saudi Arabia conflicts. (The writer is First Secretary- Political Incharge, Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan) death and violence needs to be broken and fractured. The Srinagar-based writeractivist offers a historical account of how violence in the valley has been romanticised with the flawed notion of Islamic state. He further writes: The romanticism and tryst for the Islamic state is not new. In 1990s, most pro-pakistan militant organisations declared their aim as establishment of Islamic state, once the accession with Pakistan is complete..the discourse in Kashmir for establishing an Islamic state became vibrant once again with the rise of Pan Islamist insurgent movements like ISIS and Al Qaeda. This discourse is being represented by Ansar Ghazwatul Hind organisation headed by Zakir Moosa. The rise of the Ansar Ghazwatul Hind forced many militants to ponder on whether Kashmir is fighting a territorial war or a religious war? The whole of the Kashmiri insurgency is now divided on this. Now the common Kashmiris are left with only two possible options: Either support this maniac call for the self-styled 'Islamic state' of Zakir Moosa or blame the forces for lying about the ceasefire call. We as a population are so confused about this struggle now that nobody knows who is running all this. On the other hand, Pakistan is promoting leaders like SAS Geelani who loudly claims to achieve the goal of Azadi Baraa-e-Islam (freedom for Islam). These perverse minds don t understand that Muslims since ages have lived and prospered with people of all communities and religions. But in the name of Islam and Jihad, what Pakistan wants to achieve is extend its borders and influence on either side, be it creating Taliban or interfering in Kashmir. Inevitably, Pakistan s state-sponsored militants creating radical Islamist states on its borders are fuelling Islamophobia around the world. In the past 30 years, aspirations were never heard, roads were never paved, now that the opportunity in form of ceasefire has presented itself, something else has to happen. It s about time the mainstream Kashmiri people focused on their lost heritage Kashmiriyat the greatest gift of sufis and rishis, the mystics of the land. Notably, the Union Home Minister directly reached out to the children and youth by meeting players of different sports and youths at a separate event in Srinagar. Speaking at the Jammu & Kashmir Sports Conclave 2018, the Home Minister rightly stated: Children can be misguided easily, but we know the truth, which is why we have withdrawn all stone-pelting cases against them. The delegate bubbled with excitement when a nine-year-old kickboxing sensation, Tajamul Islam hugged the Union Home Minister and even took a selfie with him and other dignitaries including the Chief Minister. Kashmir is too diverse, too multicultural, a land, to imagine turning into a radical Islamist state. This visit of the Home Minister seems to go down well in the wake of fierce political turmoil in the Valley. (The writer is a freelance contributor)

10 nvesco Mutual Funds, which Ihas a wide range of equity and equity-oriented schemes, has now launched Invesco India Equity Bond and Fund to mitigate the turbulent market as well as providing security to the investors. The new fund offer or NFO will open on Monday and will close on June 25. This product is the balance mixture of debt and equity and works like an open hybrid scheme to invest in infrastructure-related equities. Bond gives a stable return and is less riskier than equity, besides perform well at every stage of the market. Actually, Invesco India has successfully tried to provide double benefit to the investors by introducing such a product which can not only handle the choppy market but also gives sustainable return. This will ensure investors to reap the benefits of growing equities as well as from the stable debt. The longer you stay invested in equity, it paves the way for bigger asset creation. Moreover, an exposure in bond protects the investors to handle the ups and downs of the market, said a Mumbai based fund manager. This works as cushion for the risk of the portfolio and profit propositions. This fund will invest across all the sectors and market capitalisation, he added. Invesco India Equity Bond and Fund have so many things s multi-agency probe con- in India into alleged Atinues lapses involving ICICI Bank s chief Chanda Kochhar and her family members, the matter has also come under the scanner of the US markets regulator SEC. Besides, the Indian regulators and investigative agencies are mulling seeking help from their overseas counterparts including in Mauritius as part of their own probes, officials said. When asked about its probe into matters related to ICICI Bank and Kochhar, a spokesperson for the SEC Office of Public Affairs declined to comment. The queries sent to ICICI Bank also remained unanswered. The bank has already instituted an independent enquiry into allegations of conflict of interest and quid pro quo in Kochhar s dealing with certain borrowers. Earlier in March, when the reports first surfaced in this regard, the bank had said that its board has full confidence and reposes full faith in Kochhar. Sources said the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) is actively looking into the matter as ICICI Bank is listed in the US also and it may seek further details from its Indian counterpart the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), which has already issued show-cause notices to ICICI Bank and Kochhar as part of its probe. Officials said the Sebi has been approached for some clarificatory details which would be provided to the bank and its CEO, among others to whom notices have been served. Those looking into the matter also include the banking regulator RBI and the Corporate Affairs Ministry, while the CBI had earlier registered a preliminary enquiry against Kochhar s husband, among others, and extensively questioned her brother-in-law in April. The cases under scanner include the bank s Rs 3,250 crore loan to Videocon Group in 2012 and the involvement of Kochhar family members in restructuring of the loan. Last week, Interim Finance Minister Piyush Goyal said the law will take its own course in the alleged case of nepotism at ICICI Bank, even though it is a good bank with very robust processes and there was no cause for concern for any of the stakeholders of ICICI Bank per se. There are allegations of impropriety in ICICI Bank extending loans to some companies and enjoying reciprocal benefits. It has been alleged that family members of the bank s chief, including her husband Deepak Kochhar, got financial favours from the borrowers nthused by the successful Eresolution of Bhushan Steel, Nirav Modi fraud-hit Punjab National Bank (PNB) is hopeful of 8,000 crore recovery from bad loans in the first quarter of the current fiscal. The bank, with its focus on recovery of dues from defaulters, has managed to surpass the total amount recovered in the last fiscal in the first two months of this financial year, a senior PNB official told PTI. This is due to renewed focus on recovery by PSB banks including referral of many cases to NCLT under the bankruptcy code is forcing many of the defaulting companies to settle their NPAs. While PNB had recovered crore in the whole of last year, the bank s recovery stands at 6,000 crore by first week of June, the official said. against the loans sanctioned by the bank. It was also alleged that Videocon Group pumped money into NuPower Renewables, a firm owned by Deepak Kochhar. Sebi has served a notice on Kochhar on dealings of the bank with Videocon Group and Nupower. There are also allegations that NuPower got investments of Rs 325 crore from Mauritiusbased Firstland Holdings, a company owned by Nishant By the time, this quarter (April-June) ends, PNB expects to complete recovery of almost 8,000 crore, the official said, adding that large corporates like Religare, Arcotech and Surya Alloys have recently settled bad loans worth 350 crore in the last two months via the recovery camps setup by PNB. It is to be noted that PNB posted loss of 13, crore for the fourth quarter ended March, 2018, the biggest ever by any domestic lender. The bank last month said it provided for 7,178 crore, 50 per cent of the total amount of 14,356 crore in the fourth quarter of , with regards to the loss incurred on account of Nirav Modi fraud. According to the bank, the remaining amount will be covered in the three quarters of the current fiscal year. PNB further said it has paid 6, crore to other banks to discharge its ealty firm Embassy group Rplans to launch its real estate investment trust (REIT) this year to raise about $1 billion as part of its strategy to monetise rent-yielding commercial assets, sources said. Global investment firm Blackstone-backed Embassy Office Parks is likely to file the draft prospectus with market regulator Sebi by next month to launch the country s first REIT, they added. Its REIT is already registered with Sebi. The Bengaluru-based Embassy group has over 30 million sq ft of leased office space and has a pipeline of about 22 million sq ft across major cities. According to sources, the Embassy group is in the process of finalising the total office assets that would form part of REIT platform. The size of the REIT would be about $1 billion and the amount raised would be utilised to retire debt, they added. liabilities towards Letter of Undertakings (LoUs) and Foreign Letter of Credits (FLCs) issued fraudulently and in unauthorised manner to certain overseas branches of Indian banks through the misuse of SWIFT system of the bank, which was then not integrated with CBS (core banking solutions). Modi and his associates in connivance with some officials of PNB defrauded the bank of over $ 2 billion dollar. To focus on recovery, PNB has moved over 3,000 personnel from operations across the country into the stressed assets vertical, the official said. The stressed assets vertical has started operating from June 1. Four General Managers from the Corporate office have been tasked with heading the recovery vertical as part of the bank s management strategy to fast track recovery of NPAs, the official said. and benefits to offer. It will work in all the circumstances of the market that will ensure the growth as well as the value of the invested fund. Debt securities portfolio will give priority to AAA ratings while per cent investment will be made in equity and rest of per cent investment will Kanodia, son-in-law of Essar Group co-founder Ravi Ruia. An independent probe was ordered by ICICI Bank board after fresh allegations of quid pro quo were levelled by activist and whistle-blower Arvind Gupta, who also accused Ruia brothers of Essar group of having got undue favours from the bank for round-tripping investments into NuPower Group. The allegations have been dismissed as motivated by the Essar Group, which maintains it has no business interest in Firstland Holdings. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs is looking into companies involved in the ICICI Bank controversy of alleged conflict of interest in Chanda Kochhar s dealings with certain borrowers, according to a senior official. The official also said the affairs of ICICI Bank are not being looked into by the ministry as that is completely under the purview of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The ministry is looking at allegations with respect to fraudulent, preferential or under-valued transactions... (related to) those companies which have come into controversy in the light of ICICI Bank issue, the official said. resident Xi Jinping has sug- to Prime Minister Pgested Narendra Modi that China and India should set up a new bilateral trade target of $100 billion by 2020, as Beijing is looking at importing non- Basmati rice as well as sugar to address the huge trade deficit. PM Modi had detailed discussions with President Xi on bilateral and global issues on the sidelines Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit here on Saturday. Addressing a press briefing after the Modi-Xi meeting, the second in nearly six weeks, Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale said that President Xi suggested to Prime Minister Modi that India and China should set up a new bilateral trade target of $100 billion by The India-China bilateral trade reached $84.44 billion last year, according to data of the Chinese General Administration of Customs in March. The bilateral trade in 2017 rose by per cent year-onyear to reach $84.44 billion. The two countries had earlier set a bilateral trade target of $100 billion by Gokhale said that India has allowed China s stateowned Bank of China to open its branch in Mumbai. There were some discussion on trade and investment related issues. And in that context Xi told Modi that China is looking at enhancing agricultural exports from India including non-basmati rice and sugar, Gokhale said. An agreement was signed between China s General Administration of Customs and India s Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare on Phytosanitary requirements for exporting rice from India to China, world s biggest rice markets. ormer RBI governor Y V FReddy has slammed the Government for the multicrore fraud at state- run Punjab National Bank (PNB) and said as the owner of public sector lenders, it is answerable to taxpayer losses rising out of such financial scams. In February this year, PNB detected a over 13,000- crore fraud allegedly involving diamantaire Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi, a billionaire jeweller, at one of its branches in Mumbai. A big fraud has come to light in the recent months involving thousands of crores in regard to one particular bank. It is clear that it is a fraud. Who should be worried most about the fraud? Its the owner of the bank who stands to lose the most. The owner (in the PNB case) is the Government, Reddy said in a speech at the Shivaji University at Kolhapur on Saturday. He was speaking on the topic `Keeping Banks Safe. The former RBI Governor, who headed the central bank from 2003 to 2008, said it is the taxpayers who pay for the losses due to such banking frauds. The taxpayers who have entrusted their money to the Government-owned banks should be asking the government to explain why, as the custodian of their money, it failed to prevent the fraud, Reddy said. He said as the majority shareholder of public sector banks (PSBs), the Government should be worried about what the directors it nominated on the their boards were doing (when irregularities were taking place). be made in debt and money market. The fund managers of this fund are Taher Badshah and Amit Ganatra. If seen as an asset class, then equity has given better returns to the investors, however, it s fluctuating trend sometimes dents its performance. In such circumstances, if investors get a product which is kind of blend of debt and equity, then it will certainly be not only popular but will eventually be proved as the most wanted product. However, Invesco Limited offers its hosts of services to the customers speeding across 120 countries and currently enjoys an AUM of $937.6 billion. he country s largest lender TSBI will conduct auction of 12 non-performing accounts (NPAs) later this month to recover dues of over 1,325 crore. The e-auction of these accounts will take place on June 25, according to an SBI notice. The NPA accounts that have been put under the hammer include Ankit Metal & Power Ltd ( crore), Modern Steels Ltd ( crore), Good Health Agrotech Pvt Ltd ( crore), Amit Cottons Pvt Ltd ( crore), and Ind-Swift Ltd ( crore). The remaining are Nikhil Refineries ( crore), Bhaskar Shrachi Alloys ( crore), Sri Ganesh Sponge Iron Pvt Ltd ( crore), Asmita Papers ( crore), Forel Labs ( crore), Karthik Agro Industries ( crore) and Abhinandan Interexim ( crore). State Bank of India (SBI) said interested bidders can conduct due diligence of these assets with immediate effect after submitting the expression of interest and executing a non-disclosure agreement with old prices are likely to rise Gup to 34,000 per 10 grams during Diwali mainly on the back of depreciating rupee and geo-political concerns, according to analysts. Gold prices are likely to hold in the range of 30,000-34,000 per ten grams until Diwali in the domestic market, and internationally the yellow metal might be in $1,260-1,400 an ounce level, Commtrendz Risk Management director Gnanasekar Thiagarajan told PTI here. Price would have absorbed the effect of rate hikes and rate hikes would only confirm inflationary expectations, which could increase the appeal for bullion as a inflationary hedge then. And with domestic currency poised to weaken further prices could test previous highs around Diwali, he added. In India, gold on June 8 closed at 31,010 per 10 grams and while in New York it closed at $1, an ounce. Globally, Thiagarajan said, gold prices have been in a range being capped by rising yields and dollar, and supported by global uncertainties and geopolitical tensions, but it is holding well in spite of a strengthening dollar. With more rate cuts, the dollar could eventually come under pressure as cost of doing business increases in the US. So, I see the possibility of investors moving towards gold by the end of the second quarter in a big way, he added. the bank. The lender s gross nonperforming assets or bad loans as on March 31, 2018, reached 2.23 lakh crore, which was per cent of gross advances by the end of SBI reported a record net loss of 7,718 crore in the fourth quarter ended March, and of 6,547 crore for due to higher provisioning for bad loans. The net NPAs were 1,10,855 crore (5.73 per cent of net loans) by end of March, SBI said that the recovery in its written-off accounts improved to per cent in March quarter and the losses during the past fiscal were mainly because it was required to make provisions at a higher rates in respect of advances to stressed sectors of the economy. The Reserve Bank s revised framework has earmarked specified norms for early identification of stressed assets, timeline for implementation of resolution plans and a penalty on banks for failing to adhere to the prescribed timeline. These guidelines came after the banking sector regulator scrapped the previous mechanisms such as the Corporate Debt Restructuring Scheme, Strategic Debt Restructuring Scheme (SDR) and Scheme for Sustainable Structuring of Stressed Assets (S4A). osses of public sector banks Lcrossed a whopping 87,300 crore in fiscal, topped by scam-tainted Punjab National Bank which took a hit of nearly 12,283 crore. Of the 21 state-owned banks, only two banks, Indian Bank and Vijaya Bank, posted profits during Indian Bank posted the highest profit of 1, crore and Vijaya Bank s profit was crore in the fiscal. So, the net loss posted by state-owned banks was about 85,370 crore in as against a net profit of crore in the previous fiscal. The 19 Government-run banks collectively posted a net loss of 87,357 crore during the fiscal, according to the latest quarterly numbers posted by these lenders. Punjab National Bank, which is reeling under more than 14,000-crore scam allegedly perpetrated by Nirav Modi and associates, posted a net loss of 12, crore last fiscal. In , the Delhiheadquartered bank had posted a profit of 1,324.8 crore. PNB was followed by IDBI Bank, whose net loss widened to 8, crore in the fiscal ended March 2018 from 5, crore in the previous year. India s largest bank State Bank of India too added hugely to the combined losses of PSBs. SBI s net loss in stood at 6, crore as against a net profit of 10,484.1 crore in Indian banking sector is grappling with mounting nonperforming assets (NPAs) and host of scams and frauds. The NPA in the banking sector stood at 8.31 lakh crore as of December Weak financials due to mounting bad loans have already pushed 11 banks, out of 21 state-owned banks, under the Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) framework of the Reserve Bank. The recent tight prudential norms released by the RBI on February 12 have added to the NPA woes. Interim Finance Minister Piyush Goyal has announced setting up of a committee to give recommendations in two weeks on formation of an Asset Reconstruction Company for faster resolution of stressed accounts. The committee under Sunil Mehta, non-executive chairman of PNB, will make recommendations in two weeks on setting up of an Asset Reconstruction Company or Asset Management Company for faster resolution of stressed accounts. The finance minister said the committee will consider whether such an arrangement will be good for the banking system and, if any such suggestion is advisable, it will also consider the modalities by which such an ARC and/or and AMC should be set up. he Finance Ministry is Tplanning to transfer shares of five sick CPSEs, including HMT and Andrew Yule & Company, to the SNIF fund to meet Sebi s minimum 25 per cent public shareholding. The Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) whose shares would be transferred to the Special National Investment Fund (SNIF) are Fertilizers & Chemicals (Travancore) (FACT), Hindustan Photo Films Manufacturing Co., Scooters India, HMT and Andrew Yule & Company, an official said. The Finance Ministry would be discussing with market regulator Sebi to allow transfer of shares in these companies to SNIF to meet the 25 per cent public holding norm for listed companies. These companies have time till August 21 to meet the 25 per cent public share holding norm. Since these CPSEs were not financially sound, meeting the minimum public shareholding norm by following Sebi s method to reduce stakes would have been difficult. Hence, we are planning to transfer the shares to SNIF on a case-to-case basis, the official told PTI. Currently, government holds per cent stake in Andrew Yule & Company, 90 per cent each in FACT and Hindustan Photo Films, per cent in HMT and per cent in Scooters India. Accordingly, shares would be transferred on a proportionate basis to the fund to bring down government stake in these CPSEs to 75 per cent. The government had in 2013 approved setting up of the SNIF with the specific objective of meeting the minimum public shareholding of 10 per cent as was then mandated by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi).

11 resident Donald Trump Planded in Singapore on Sunday evening, joining North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in the island city-state ahead of one of the most unusual and highly anticipated summits in recent world history, a Tuesday sit-down meant to settle a standoff over Pyongyang's nuclear arsenal. Air Force One touched down at a military air base, travelling from Canada, where Trump had attended a meeting of the Group of Seven Nations. Hours earlier, a jet carrying Kim landed, and after shaking hands with the Singapore Foreign Minister, Kim sped through the city's streets in a massive limousine, two large North Korean flags fluttering on the hood, surrounded by other black vehicles with tinted windows and bound for the luxurious and closely guarded St Regis Hotel. Kim smiled broadly today evening as he met with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. "The entire world is watching the historic summit between North Korea and the United States of America, and thanks to your sincere efforts... We were able to complete the preparations for the historic summit," Kim told Lee through an interpreter. Trump is set to meet with Lee on Monday. Trump has said he hopes to win a legacy-making deal with the North to give up their nuclear weapons, though he has recently sought to manage expectations, saying that it may take more than one meeting. The North, many experts believe, stands on the brink of being able to target the entire US mainland with its nucleararmed missiles, and while there's deep scepticism that Kim will quickly give up those hard-won nukes, there's also some hope that diplomacy can replace the animosity between Singapore: Pope Francis has prayed that the summit this week between the US and North Korean leaders succeeds in laying the groundwork for peace. Francis expressed hope today that Tuesday's talks between US President Donald Trump and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore will "contribute to the development of a positive path that will assure a future of peace for the Korean Peninsula and the entire world." He invited the thousands of faithful in St Peter's Square to pray with him so that the Virgin Mary "accompany these talks." Francis said he wanted yet again to send "a special thought in friendship and prayer" to the beloved Korean people. AP the US and the North. This will be the first summit of its kind between a leader of North Korea and a sitting US President. The North has faced crippling diplomatic and economic sanctions as it has advanced development of its nuclear and ballistic missile programs. The North Korean autocrat's every move will be followed by 3,000 journalists who have converged on Singapore, and by gawkers around the hinese President Xi Jinping Con Sunday said new progress has been made by the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) since the arrival of India and Pakistan. On behalf of leaders of the SCO member States, Xi made the remarks at a joint press conference in the coastal city of Qingdao in China's Shandong Province, Xinhua news agency reported. Several documents were issued during the summit, including the Qingdao Declaration of the Council of Heads of Member States of the SCO, and the Joint Statement of the Heads of Member States of the SCO on Promoting Trade Facilitation, Xi said. The summit also ratified a five-year action plan for implementing the Treaty on Long- Term Good-Neighbourliness, Friendship and Cooperation of the SCO Member States, he said. "We have agreed to abide by the goals and principles of the SCO Charter, carry forward the Shanghai Spirit of mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for diversity of civilisations and pursuit of common development, and jointly pursue regional peace, stability and development by promoting good-neighbourliness and friendship and deepening practical cooperation," Xi said. world, up until he shakes hands with Trump on Tuesday. It's a reflection of the intense global curiosity over Kim's sudden turn to diplomacy in recent months after a slew of North Korean nuclear and missile tests last year raised serious fears of war. Part of the interest in Tuesday's summit is simply because Kim has had such limited appearances on the world stage. He has only publicly left orth Korea s East Asia Nneighbors Japan, China and South Korea have a shared goal of denuclearizing the peninsula, but what may come out of Tuesday s summit in Singapore between President Donald Trump and North Korea s Kim Jong Un has different and possibly conflicting implications for their security, economic and geopolitical interests. WORRIED JAPAN Japan, a U.S. ally whose diplomatic policies largely mirror Washington s, is relying on Trump because Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has been ilk in parts of Ukraine has Mradioactivity levels up to five times over the country's official safe limit a consequence of the catastrophic Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant explosion that took place over 30 years ago, scientists say. Scientists from the University of Exeter in the UK and the Ukrainian Institute of Agricultural Radiology sampled cow's milk from private farms and homes in the Rivne region, about 200 kilometres from the site of the Chernobyl explosion in They found levels of radioactive caesium in milk above Ukraine's safe limit for adults of 100 Becquerel per litre at six of 14 settlements studied, and above the children's limit of 40 Becquerel per litre at eight sites. The highest levels found were about 500 Becquerel per unable to meet Kim. Japan worries about being marginalized by other regional players who have increased their interaction with North Korea. Abe doesn t want Trump to strike a compromise on North Korea s missile program that would leave Japan exposed to shorter-range missiles that do not reach the U.S. HOPEFUL BUT SKEPTI- CAL SOUTH South Koreans have been split between hope and doubt after seeing the seesaw developments leading up to the summit. They hope that improved relations between the U.S. and North Korea would ease tensions, adding his country three times since taking power after his father's death in late 2011 twice travelling to China and once across his shared border with the South to the southern part of the Demilitarized Zone in recent summits with the leaders of China and South Korea respectively. But it is Kim's pursuit of nuclear weapons that gives his meeting with Trump such high stakes. The meeting was initially meant to rid North Korea momentum for inter-korean reconciliation and cooperation. Some even speculate that Trump and Kim may discuss a peace treaty formally ending the Korean War, replacing the current armistice. CAUTIOUS CHINA Trump has long leaned on China to convince North Korea to moderate its actions despite protests from Beijing and some experts that China s influence may be overstated. But the success or failure of the summit will be seen by some as an indication of China s status as a major player in Northeast Asia, something Beijing has long craved. of its nuclear weapons, but the talks have been portrayed by Trump in recent days more as a get-to-know-you session. Trump has also raised the possibility of further summits and an agreement ending the Korean War by replacing the armistice signed in 1953 with a peace treaty. China and South Korea would have to sign off on any legal treaty. It's unclear what Trump and Kim might decide Tuesday. litre - five times over the limit for adults and more than 12 times that for children. "More than 30 years after the Chernobyl disaster, people are still routinely exposed to radioactive caesium when consuming locally produced staple foods, including milk, in Chernobyl-affected areas of Ukraine," said Iryna Labunska, at the University of Exeter in the UK. "Many people in the area we studied keep cows for milk, and children are the main consumers of that milk," said Labunska. "Though the level of soil contamination in the studied areas is not extremely high, radioactive caesium continues to accumulate in milk and other foods, such that the residents of these villages are chronically exposed to radioactivity that presents health risks to almost every system in the body especially among children," she said. Some simple protective measures could be taken to bring radiation exposure levels below limits at a cost of less than 10 euros per person per year for the 8,300 people living in the six villages with the highest contamination. Such measures include applying a caesium binder, called Ferrocyn, to cows, mineral fertilisation of potato fields and feeding pigs with uncontaminated fodder.the cost of this would decrease each year as radiation levels fall - but if no action is taken, the experts warn that milk contamination will continue to exceed the 100 Becquerel per litre adult limit in parts of Ukraine until at least "This situation should also act as a warning and a reminder of just how long the legacy of nuclear accidents can be," said Labunska. he first monsoon rains Thave hit camps in Bangladesh housing around a million Rohingya refugees, triggering floods and landslides but no casualties or major damage so far, officials said on Sunday. Aid agencies have been warning that the monsoon season could prompt a humanitarian catastrophe in coming months at what is the world's biggest refugee camp, sheltering people fleeing violence in Myanmar. The sites in southeastern Bangladesh are predicted to be hit by powerful cyclones and by more than 2.5 metres (eight feet) of rainfall over the coming three months of monsoon roughly triple what Britain gets in a year. Bangladesh's meteorological office said the Cox's Bazar area where many of the refugees live in makeshift shelters on bare hillsides had 138 millimetres (5.4 inches) of rain since last evening. "Some areas like the football field areas are flooded. Some houses have been inundated with water. There have been a few landslides. The conditions are bad," UN refugee agency spokesperson Caroline Gluck told AFP. The monsoon season "is going to be big test for everybody involved in the humanitarian response in support of the Government of Bangladesh", she said. More heavy rain is forecast for coming days. he annual G-7 summit Tappeared to have weathered tensions over President Donald Trump s threats of a tarifffueled trade war until the mercurial American pulled out of a joint statement while citing false statements by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. It was an unprecedented attack on the leader of the U.S. neighbor and ally. Trump was aboard Air Force One heading to an historic summit with North Korea s Kim Jong Un when he issued a pair of tweets Saturday criticizing the G-7 host and stepping back from the generally positive tone that had ended the two-day meeting. A few hours earlier, Trudeau had told reporters that all seven leaders had come together to sign the joint declaration. Trudeau said he had reiterated to Trump that tariffs would harm industries and workers on both sides of the U.S.-Canada border. He said unleashing retaliatory measures is not something I relish doing but that he wouldn t hesitate to do so because I will always protect Canadian workers and Paris: France warned today that "fits of anger" could not dictate international cooperation after US President Donald Trump abruptly rejected a joint statement agreed after a badtempered G7 summit in Canada. "International cooperation Canadian interests. As Canadians, we are polite, we re reasonable, but also we will not be pushed around, Trudeau said, and he described all seven leaders coming together to sign a joint declaration despite having some strong, firm conversations on trade, and specifically on American tariffs. In the air by then, Trump tweeted: Based on Justin s false statements at his news conference, and the fact that Canada is charging massive Tariffs to our U.S. farmers, workers and companies, I have instructed our U.S. Reps not to endorse the Communique as we look at Tariffs on automobiles flooding the U.S. Market! leven Syrian civilians were Ekilled on Sunday in regime strikes in the country's northwest, a monitor said, in apparent retaliation for a jihadist attack on two besieged Government-held villages. The bombing raids hit a string of towns and villages in the northwest province of Idlib, which is almost entirely controlled by various jihadist and hardline rebels. "Nine civilians, including three children, were killed in the raids on the town of Taftanaz," said the Britainbased Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said strikes had also hit near a children's hospital, putting it out of service. Two more civilians, including a child, were killed in other raids nearby. The air strikes came a day after jihadists from Al-Qaeda's former Syrian affiliate launched an attack on Fuaa and Kafraya, two villages held by the regime but cut off by hardline forces. Late Saturday, Hayat Tahrir al-sham (HTS) and allied fighters shelled Fuaa and Kafraya heavily and clashed with local fighters. "This is the fiercest attack in around three years," said Abdel Rahman. Six Syrian proregime fighters and at least three from HTS were killed in the fighting, which continued today. Syrian state news agency SANA also reported yesterday's attack, and said local fighters were able to push back the jihadists. Fuaa and Kafraya are the only two places in Syria currently designated as besieged by the United Nations after the government recaptured the Yarmuk Palestinian camp in southern Damascus. emoving tonsils and ade- in childhood increas- Rnoids es the risk of diseases like asthma, influenza and pneumonia, say scientists who have examined the long-term effects of these common paediatric surgeries for the first time. The researchers suggest renewed evaluation of alternatives to these surgeries that include removal of tonsils (tonsillectomy) to treat chronic tonsillitis or adenoids (adenoidectomy) to treat recurrent middle ear infections. The adenoids and tonsils are strategically positioned in the nose and throat respectively to act as a first line of defense, helping to recognise airborne pathogens like bacteria and viruses, and begin the immune response to clear them from the body. n a breakthrough, scientists Ihave developed a new technique that enables them to image 10,421 genes at once within individual cells. The technique, called intron seqfish (sequential fluorescence in situ hybridisation), is a major advance in being able to identify what goes on across the genome in hundreds of different cells at once. "This technique can be applied to any tissue," said Long Cai, research professor at California Institute of Technology in the US. "Intron seqfish can help identify cell types and also what the cells are going to do, in addition to giving us a look at the chromosome structure in the same cells," said Cai. Previously, researchers could only image four to five He followed up by tweeting: PM Justin Trudeau of Canada acted so meek and mild during meetings only to give a news conference after I left saying that, US Tariffs were kind of insulting and he will not be pushed around. Very dishonest & weak. Our Tariffs are in response to his of 270% on dairy! A spokesman for Trudeau did not address Trump s insults in a statement. We are focused on everything we accomplished here at the #G7 summit, spokesman Cameron Ahmad said. The Prime Minister said nothing he hasn t said before both in public, and in private conversations with the President. cannot be dictated by fits of anger and throwaway remarks," President Emmanuel Macron's office said in a statement to AFP, adding that reneging on the commitments agreed in the statement showed "incoherence and inconsistency." genes at a time in cells with microscopy. Scaling seqfish up to a genomic level now enables the imaging of over 10,000 genes - about half of the total number of genes in mammals - within single cells, according to the research published in the journal Cell. In order for genetic instructions to be turned into an actual functioning protein, a process called transcription must first occur. This process often occurs in pulses, or "bursts." First, a gene will be read and copied into a precursor messenger RNA, or pre-mrna, like jotting a quick, rough draft. This molecule then matures into a messenger RNA, or mrna, akin to editing the rough draft. During the "editing" process, certain regions called introns are cut out of the pre-mrna.

12 I t has been the most challenging journey for me but probably the most interesting one too. This by far has been the biggest learning curve for me. There were challenges I faced at almost every step of the process, actor, director Nandita Das said about her latest outing, Manto, which premiered at the recent Cannes Film Festival. It took me four years to research and write the script and two years to get funding, cast, crew, locations and all the preparation to shoot and get the film out. The genesis of the idea of the film was in 2012, Manto s centenary celebration, and now it finally premiered in Cannes. After having helmed Firaaq in 2008, Nandita went behind the camera to trace the life of writer Saadat Hasan Manto, to be portrayed by Nawazuddin Siddiqui in the film, expected to release in September. Manto, who died in 1955 at the age of 43, penned an impressive body of work touching various genres. He churned out about 22 collections of stories comprising a novel, essays, personal sketches and movie scripts. One of his literary gems was a story on Mirza Ghalib, a poet who is often compared with the stature of Shakespeare. His work also gained attention for weaving stories around the ordeal of Partition as well as sexuality. The film provides a window into his life during the tumultuous partitioning of British colonial India into two new nations India and Pakistan. Manto, co-produced by HP Studios, Filmstoc and Viacom 18 Motion Pictures, was the only Indian film in Un Certain Regard category at the 71st Cannes Film Festival. It will also be screened at the Sydney Film Festival, which started on June 6 and will go on till June 17. Nandita said she was deeply involved with every department and have learnt so much in the process. After all I never went to a film school or assisted any director, so everything was being learnt on the job and I was relying mostly on my creative instinct and life experiences. On her experience at the fest, she said, I have been attending Cannes since I was invited in the main jury in Then again in 2013 in the short film jury. Including more recently, to raise funds for Manto. Other than these two opportunities, I have been there several times as a film lover. Apart from it being the most celebrated festival, it truly manages to combine great cinema and is a thriving platform for filmmakers and film lovers from all over the world. While you, of course, wish your film to be premiered in Cannes, one is aware that every filmmaker wishes that too. The competition is extremely fierce. And Manto is not a typical festival film. There is more which made the movie an unlikely candidate for Cannes according to Nandita. The references and contexts are not always easy for foreigners to understand. I didn t know till the day they officially announced the list. It was the only Indian film in the main official section and so it is a huge honour. I am most delighted that Manto has started its journey in Cannes. Nandita also discussed the recent attacks on films and media and drew comparisons of Manto with the current scenario. The director said: Manto was tried for obscenity six times because he wrote about sex workers, giving them dignity that was rare and used the language of the street, deemed inappropriate. He said, If you can t bear my stories, it is because we live in unbearable times. She quoted Martin Luther King Jr. to highlight the point further. He said, Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. These days whether it is media or individuals, people are being censored by self-proclaimed vigilante groups or are selfcensoring themselves, out of fear, Nandita said. Conservatives are increasingly becoming the moral police. At the same time, official censoring bodies are becoming more bigoted and their rulings are getting more and more subjective and arbitrary, added Nandita, who had faced protests over her socially moving and bold film Fire. The actress noted that artists, writers, rationalists are all being attacked in some form or the other and nternet is a strange place where Ianybody can become famous. If you have talent, great! There is a slight chance for you. But if you are trying hard without talent, Internet guarantees you success. That s what happened to these worldwide known personalities. They simply uploaded their photos or videos and became famous with their meme characters. Who would have thought that a young girl from East Delhi, who is nowhere close to what a singer would be like, could be such a huge sensation and pocket millions? Or take the youngster in the US, who made millions by just saying three magical words, Cash me out. Here we take a look at the four biggest internet sensations, who became famous by chance The 11-year-old kid ended up being a web sensation after his video of singing his grandfather Hank Williams tune Lovesick Blues (recorded very nearly 70 years earlier) in a Walmart store went viral on YouTube. The energetic music kid, who astonished Walmart customers by breaking out into a stellar chatter at a store in Harrisburg, ended up being a shinning internet star. Inside a few days he got 25 million+ views and became a viral meme. Due to his new-found popularity Mason Ramsey also appeared on the Ellen DeGeneres Show. After he became a YouTube sensation, he was promoted to the Coachella (a Valley Music and Arts Festival) and shared the stage with an American DJ and music producer from Chicago, DJ Whethan. With a dream of showing up on Grand Ole Orpy one day, the kid signed his first record deal with Atlantic Records and Big-Loud Records and made his debut song Famous entering at number 62 on the US Billboard 100. are being silenced. A society can grow and develop only when it gives space for dissent and free thinking. And this shrinking space threatens democracy and human progress, she said. When questioned about how far we had moved away from Partition, she replied, Far from it. The Partition remains a very important part of the sub-continent s narrative. It has been invoked for all kinds of reasons. Sometimes for political agenda, sometimes to understand the pain and trauma some still feel today. Close to 14 million people were displaced, hundreds of thousands of people were killed, women raped... it spanned all the heinous crimes that come with sectarian violence. It is bound to have a lasting impact. But I am not sure we have learnt all the lessons that we needed to learn. You must be living under the rock if you haven t seen the picture of a boy clenching a fistful of sand with a determined facial expression. The picture, which is probably the most popular meme on the internet, is of Sammy Griner. His mother Laney clicked that picture when Sammy was just 11 months old and was playing on the beach. The boy became a symbol to demonstrate success that made a person s day. But the need to leave Mumbai regularly to keep Yyour soul intact. Otherwise you just get caught up in its pace and you lose your conscience, says the bold and audacious Pooja Bhatt, the first woman producer of Bollywood, who is now endorsing basketball. She was in the capital for the launch of The Delhi Hoopers, one of the teams of the 3 3 basketball tournament that will be held at The Great India Place Mall, Noida, on June 9 and 10. The winners of the tournament will get a chance to represent India at the FIBA. How has cinema changed since the time you began and what is your take on women-centric films? Whether it is my battle with alcohol, or whether it has been being an actor or a filmmaker, I was always told that you have no business in either of them ever since I was 21 and the industry was fairly male-dominated at that time. When I began directing movies, people told me tum acting karo na, why do you want to be like us? I used to be like, excuse me? You tell me not to do it and I will put my foot into that box. Don t tell me I can t belong to that club because I will rule that club and jump over you and form my own club. That s the way I am. How did you hold on to your creativity in a hostile atmosphere? Creativity is something that anybody who is remotely original has to guard very fiercely and passionately because people just want you to be run-of-the-mill. Whatever is new and people can t put into a slot, they will dismiss. I remember when I had got Rahat Fateh Ali Khan to sing Man ki lagan for my film Paap, experts in the movie industry said it wouldn t work. Now look at the singer s career. Our audience is far more evolved than we will ever be. You were denounced for getting actors like Sunny Leone in the film business... How did you hold out? I work for the people. They not only accepted Sunny but loved her work and gave her an eminent career. Apparently, it has never happened in the world ever before where an adult film star has made a mark for herself in mainstream entertainment. It has not even happened in America which talks about being very modern and forward but is actually very conservative. I guess that in itself was an answer for my critics. What is your take on content-driven films? We like everything glamorous and whatever makes a lot of money. It is rightly said, Jo dikhta hai voh bikta hai. We all understand that whether it is media, entertainment or newspapers, it is finally a business. So people make movies that they know the audience is going to watch. But what is good now is that all kinds of stories are getting heard and seen thanks to a strengthened distribution network. Regional cinema like Marathi is packing some wonderful stories in tiny budgets and creating a far bigger impact. Even for that matter Tamil and Bengali films have amazing storytelling. I recently watched Srijit story doesn t end here. Sammy Griner s fame was used again when he was 10 years old to save his father s life. His dad fell sick and experienced kidney failure and required kidney transplant. The family set up a GoFundMe page, a platform which allows you to raise money for life events. In a few days Griner raised more than $100,000. He said after his father s treatment, I am happy my fame went for a good cause and don t want to go viral again. A teenager, Danielle became popular after she made an appearance on Dr Phil (an American tabloid talk show) with her mother Barbara. On the show, the mother revealed that she wanted to hand over Danielle to the authorities after she found her to be a drug user and uploaded a video of her attempting to hit her. Barbara also said that her daughter had been stealing credit cards and cash, even taking cars of others for a joyride. The 13-year-old told the audience boldly, Cash me ousside, a phrase that transformed into a music recording by DJ Suede. It entered the Billboard Hot 100. The song led to a series of funny dance videos on YouTube and made Danielle another sparkling star of the Internet. Branding herself as a rapper, she recorded her first music video These Heaux produced by an American Grammynominated singer Brittany B. Furthermore, the song entered Mukherji s Uma and it was beyond marvellous. Apart from the story of a father and daughter, it also celebrates the spirit of a city like Calcutta. Also, some time ago, I watched Secret Superstar and it was a gem of a film. But you do need a backing of Aamir Khan to tell a story like that. Do you follow basketball and what has been your involvement with FIBA? We live in an attention-deficient time when a sport like basketball has been made more concise and simpler to understand with 3BL which is a 10-minute high speed version. I am going to watch my first live basketball match today and I am looking forward to it. It gives me something new to immerse myself into. I think life begins when you constantly will yourself to unlearn and relearn and the process goes on. I have zero knowledge on basketball but I guess it is a great place to start with zero. What has been your affiliation with the undermined sports of India? It was one day that Ritvik (former number one squash player, owner of team Delhi Hoopers) visited us and he talked about how he wanted to open a squash institute. That dream became a reality. So slowly but surely, Munna (Munish Makhija, former VJ and owner of team Delhi Hoopers) and him identified the land and collected the money or rather saved it and built the place without an architect. It was just local contractors, where we used people who built for the village really and got to do things our way. They have this beautiful institute now where there are not only kids from all over India who come from privileged backgrounds but also from villages. Ritvik said I want to find the next champ from this village. That is the day I would have achieved something. I would have achieved something the day when I have an young adivasi kid becoming the next champion of India. Through squash and boxing, I then met Rohit (3BL, League Commissioner) who has a passion for basketball. Basketball has not had conspicuous support, what is your take on that? Like I said, Rohit himself plays and he said why are Indians not a part of this, why are we not staking our claim here? With his own resources, dignity and his entire being, he developed this format. What binds these people are the underdogs in a cricket-obsessed nation. You will be amazed how kids naturally take to basketball in our country. the US Billboard Hot 100 chart at number 77 in 2017 making Danielle the third youngest artist of all time to make it to the chart on Hot 100. The success of her song encouraged Atlantic Records to sign a multi-album recording contract. With more than 4.5 million subscribers and seven successful songs, Danielle made it to the 2017 MTV movie and TV Awards in Trending category and Billboard music awards nominations. The swagger girl turned out to be a YouTube sensation after her cringe music videos got viral on social media. The selfapproved singer got famous with her popular song Swag Wali Topi which she uploaded and shared on several social media accounts. The precise next tune of her Selfie Maine Leli Aaj ran uncommonly popular with more than 35 million views and marked her cringe pop genre in the history of social media. Not just popularity but cash also flew her way. Her YouTube channel revenue was above 50 lakh as per reports. But the question is where she spent that much money? Instead of making new out of the world songs she started making Vlogs and travelling around the world like other YouTubers. Her latest Vlog shares the experience she had in Dubai.

13 W hen you talk of technology, phones, WhatsApp and education in the same breath, it is often to discuss the debilitating effects of the first three on the last one. But in a three-year remote-monitoring project run by Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham at 18 study centres called Amrita rural education centres and government schools in Uttarakhand s Rudraprayag and Uttarkashi districts, the idea has been turned on its head. The implementation of two simple, accessible technologies Android tablets and monitoring apps such as eattendance and WhatsApp has reduced absenteeism in schools in rural areas, increased teachers effectiveness and improved student performance. The technology-enhanced model for learning and teacher monitoring was envisioned by Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, chancellor, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, to improve student performance in rural areas. Constant availability of facilitator and learning anytime anywhere has made social media a new and convenient tool for learning activities. Though there is no significant difference between gain of knowledge online or didactic lectures, advantages (technical, educational or instructional) out pars the disadvantages. Monitoring school teachers is challenging, particularly in remote, rural areas that lack infrastructure and resources. Methods like maintaining attendance registers or physical inspections have not proven to be very effective and teacher and student absenteeism remains high in the Indian hinterland. Said Dr Prema Nedungadi, director, Amrita Centre of Research in Analytics & Technologies for Education, Teacher and student absenteeism is a big challenge in public schooling. Studies show that in many places in India, there is a high teacher-absenteeism rate, estimated to be as high as 42 per cent in places like Jharkhand. Our remote monitoring project in Uttarakhand gives us an innovative way to solve this problem. Android tablets, loaded with apps to gather and send data, along with WhatsApp, form a user-friendly platform to get real-time data about the teachers activity at the study centre and eliminate both teacher and student absenteeism. These inexpensive, readily available tools can help remotely monitor teachers and classrooms, substantially improving outcomes. As part of the programme, teachers at the participating study centres have been given tablets with a 2G SIM card for online connectivity. Students are given tablets with educational content, which can connect to the teachers tablets through bluetooth. The teachers tablets have WhatsApp installed as well as a couple of apps for attendance and teacher training to act as classroom monitoring tools. The study centre works in close collaboration with teachers at the local government schools, exchanging notes on student improvement and attendance. In many cases, this monitoring of students indirectly corrects the teacher absenteeism in the local schools as well. Cluster coordinators monitor educational activities for a cluster of four to five villages. They periodically conduct surprise visits to centres for physical inspection, distribute tablets for WhatsApp communication to each centre, collect information from each teacher and take decisions. Five such cluster coordinators report to a central coordinator. Teachers use the apps to send daily attendance reports of students along with performance reports. They take a time-stamped photograph of themselves, along with their students, at the beginning and end of each class and send these to cluster coordinators using WhatsApp. Teachers also keep a record of what was taught in the class each day. Photos and records can be logged every day for every class to keep track of teacher attendance and accomplishments. As data sent by one teacher is visible to all others in the group, there is peer pressure to perform. Assessments taken by the study centres along with student grades from local government schools are also sent to coordinators. When any centre needs some learning material for the class, it is made available to teachers through a virtual platform for download on tablets. The coordinators can also watch videos of how individual teachers enunciate a concept and then provide supportive feedback. Creating and conducting tests, gathering the data and measuring improvement involves continuous monitoring and support from the central monitoring team through social media. Extra-curricular activities are also implemented in local schools by teachers and tracked through chats by the coordinators. Improvements in reading, writing, mathematics and science among students are measured through weekly and quarterly assessments. This approach has resulted in increased teacher and student attendance, as well as improvements in lessons and other educational activities. Attendance and assessment reports of students are analysed by the central coordinators and feedback provided to the centres on the list of children who are at risk of dropping out and failing. Said Dr Nedungadi, With this approach, significant improvements have been seen among students in studies. For example, at Uddalka in Uttarakhand, only 24.8 per cent of class III students could do math at grade level in an assessment conducted in February In September 2017, as many as 75.3 per cent of students could complete math assessments at grade level, showing a big leap in student outcomes in math. The approach provides substantial benefits to teachers by supporting their training as well as sharing of content and experiences. The central coordinator helps plan lessons, sends lesson plans and short instructional videos and provides feedback on teaching and learning in the classroom after watching class videos. The fact that teachers play a critical, active role in monitoring, combined with the accessible, tailored in-service benefits they receive, contribute to a sense of empowerment. Though the monitoring is for entire classroom activities, teacher attendance gets automatically tracked as teachers send multiple reports daily. As achievement at each centre is acknowledged to the entire group, teachers have reported an increase in motivation. Added Dr Nedungadi, Of the teachers interviewed, 96 per cent commented on the improvement in their own teaching strategies, such as small group instruction and periodic assessments. And feedback from local schools shows that there is 82 per cent improvement in student grades. Teachers who were once isolated in a small region in remote and rural India are now able to communicate with teachers in other villages. Occasional face-to-face training is supplemented by ongoing mentoring using tablet technology. Cluster coordinators keep the central coordinators informed. This data is cross verified with the teacher chat data and information from apps to determine the authenticity of teacher reports. The success of this remote monitoring project shows that multiple low-cost channels for rural classroom monitoring that include customised apps, social media such as WhatsApp, along with periodic field visits, can help enforce accuracy in reporting and accountability, empower teachers and improve the quality of education. I t is a common belief in Indian culture that pilgrimage or tirtha as they call in Hindi is a great religious endeavour, is essential for the true devotees of God and that it helps soul in liberation from the past sins. Many devout people undertake pilgrimages to holy places hoping that the visit will fill them with inner power or cleanse them of their sins. Even the old and infirm undergo hardships to visit such places, many of which are in areas that are hard to access even in good weather. The original purpose of pilgrimage is to live in spiritually refined and sacred environment of the places where great rishis and saints had performed long-term sadhanas to awaken divine sentiments. That s one reason why on a pilgrimage, most people abstain from certain foods and sensual indulgences. People who go on a pilgrimage have a desire to get some religious experience from which they hope to benefit either in terms of getting rid of their sins or finding more peace or having other wishes fulfilled. But rarely does it bring about a permanent change in their life or in their way of thinking or behaviour. And this is a fact that no one would completely deny, because once they are back from the pilgrimage, people resume their old ways of living and any uplifting or elevated experience that they have had on pilgrimage, remains just a temporary experience that may, at the most, be cherished by them all their life. Thus, it does not elevate their consciousness because they fail to understand a fact that such kind of transformation takes place only in the soul and cannot be brought about by a physical exercise of going on a pilgrimage. We must understand that a subtle transformation requires spiritual effort, and for that the soul has to travel to the holiest of abodes which is called the soul world which is the home of all souls as well as the Supreme Soul. It is a region of eternal peace and purity from where all souls come down to this planet to play their roles in this world. The practice by which the soul journeys to that abode is called Rajyoga. One must understand that the soul itself does not travel there, but goes there by a thought, by remembering that abode and its Father, the Supreme Soul, who lives there. When the soul establishes this link of love with its home and Father, the qualities of peace, purity, love and power begin to flow into it. This unique experience nourishes the soul, empowers it and cleanses it of all the impurities that it has acquired by coming under negative influences of this world. This journey, when performed even for a short while daily, gradually makes the soul strong enough to resist all that is harmful to its well-being. It also gets rid of vices that give it sorrow. It is then able to go through life in a state of peace and happiness, enriching itself and others with positivity. Remember, this journey does not require any money, prior bookings, other material resources or physical strain. In fact, it can be performed in the comfort of one s home, any time one likes and for as long as one wants. And above all, at the end of it, one does not return exhausted but refreshed. So what are you waiting for? Let s embark on this wonderful journey of self-transformation and get empowered from within.

14 MUSCOB TES MOTION PICTURE W orld Cup s Group B has two years ago, the Portuguese have clearly shirked off the disappointing brand attracted much interest and deservedly so this being the of being the dark horses at major international events. Complacency in Russia chances this summer in Russia would The best way to sum up La Roja's group where two of the four contenders have won three European titles between will be the death for this team, and therefore a policy best left unattended themselves again. There were doubts be to simply quote that they look like them from 2008 to 2016: Spain in 2008 and 2012 and Portugal the reigning which is why head coach Fernando of humongous proportions when Champions since A battle between Santos will need to come up with a remedy to fill up the cracks. The team's attaining catharsis in South Africa, Spain, the defending champions after the two, which will be the 36th Iberian derby, shall mark the highlight of the defence, with an ageing Pepe cutting a were toppled out of the World Cup in group's fixtures but only after the other solitary figure (in terms of a fearsome Brazil at the group stage. Further misery followed after Italy drove them out two teams Morocco and Iran kickoff their World Cup campaign against some of that. of the 2016 Euro Championship the reputation) at the centre of it, can use each other. Morocco are back in the The offensive front, on the other tournament which their first group World Cup after their third appearance hand, has little worries with Cristiano rivals in Russia eventually won. 20 years ago while Iran's fifth participation in the tournament also marks Silva and Andre Silva expected to get picking up the pieces and composing Ronaldo leading the lot and Bernardo But then on came Julen Lopetegui, their involvement in two consecutive involved in creative displays. Moreover, from the fragments a new poetry. The World Cups for the first time. Ricardo Quaresma, who is likely to be theme, nevertheless, appears familiar, summoned off the bench, might have bringing its own dosage of nostalgia lost a bit of pace in recent years, but the from eight years ago: the Ramos-Pique After chiming in a European outlandish magic on his feet remains confluence at the heart of the defence Championship to their trophy cabinet intact. and Andres Iniesta and Sergio Busquets fter finally breaking through with Aits first major title at the European Championship two years ago, Portugal will use the same formula at the World Cup. The European champions will travel to Russia with many of the players from the squad that won Euro 2016, including Cristiano Ronaldo, and it will also carry the same low-key mentality it had when it succeeded in France. "We are fully aware that we are not the favorites," Portugal coach Fernando Santos said. "History shows it, as do all the titles of the other teams that will be playing at the World Cup. Before the European Championship I also didn't believe we were the favorites." Santos said Portugal can be considered a "candidate" for the title but it still shouldn't be included among the top contenders despite being European champions. "We have the same three or four teams that were favorites in the European Championship - Germany, Spain, France - and now we add Brazil and Argentina. These teams are the favorites, then there is a group of candidates in which we can naturally include Portugal," he told Portuguese television channel RTP. Portugal won its first major title in after coming close a few other times in the Ronaldo era - by avoiding all those traditional favorites until the final against host France, when it won in extra time. It played Hungary, Iceland and Austria in the group stage, then faced Croatia, Poland and Wales in the knockout matches. Santos said this time he can make the same type of promise he made to MOTION PICTURE the Portuguese people before the European Championship. "We will give our best and we will be a contender to win every match," he said. "I have the same confidence in my players and in my team that I had before the European Championship. We will have the same goal now that we had then." Nine of the players who started in the final against France are back with the World Cup team, with the only absences being veteran forward Nani and young midfielder Renato Sanches. In total, 13 players from the Euro 2016 squad will be in Russia. Among those not going to Russia are Ricardo Carvalho, Andre Gomes and Eder, who scored the title-winning goal in the extra time against the hosts. "It hurts not to be able to include all the players who were with us in the European Championship," said Santos, who opted to add a few younger players to the World Cup squad. "All of them helped us write a brilliant page at the heart of the entire formation. Moreover, there is another piece that floats perfectly in Spain s fluidity and can become their hero this year Isco. The only disturbing note is the lack of a natural striker up ahead, with the likes of David Villa and Fernando Torres no more available to sneak past defences a worrying aspect that could prove to be the grain in the shoe for Spain beyond the group stage. Coach Herve Renard has struck the right chords in the Morocco national team instigating the emotions of a group frustrated by their failures and channeling them into a spirit befitting of warriors. Renard's side conceded only a single goal in their World Cup qualifying campaign and now has passionate stars in their ranks in the form of Ajax's Hakim in the history of Portuguese football." The team was drawn into Group B at the World Cup, along with Morocco, Iran and Iberian rival Spain. Portugal's opener will be against the Spaniards on June 15 in Sochi in one of the most anticipated matches of the tournament. "It will be the game between the favorite and the candidate," Santos said. "We will need to be very careful in this group, but if Portugal doesn't advance it will be disappointing. Ziyech and a 19-year old Achraf Hakimi, who at Real Madrid has been under the watchful eye of Zinedine Zidane. Despite doubts in central defence with Jalal Hosseini being dropped and the team struggling to find an efficient defensive partnership, Iran look stronger than they did in Brazil four years ago. Their key strength depends on the form of players like Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Sardar Azmoun. The latter, in particular, will be closely watched after being dubbed as the 'Iranian Messi' and can prove to be a crucial factor in Iran's finish at group stage, with number three being the realistic aim for Carlos Queiroz's men. A future beyond that seems highly questionable, considering that the top two slots will be gobbled up by the Iberian nations. VAR OPERATIONS ROOM UNVEILS FABRA OUT OF WC WITH INJURY URUGUAY FOCUSED ON GAME SPAIN S LATE GOAL EDGE TUNISIA FRANCE DRAW WITH US EGYPT GETS WARM SEND-OFF

15 MUSCOB TES MOTION PICTURE ie Mannschaft were just on the brink of taking a flight to DRussia without their sweeper-keeper his recursive fractures furrowing German brows, until a stem-cell based treatment got Manuel Neuer back on course to be able to join the fray this summer. Winner of the Golden Glove in 2014 as his country won the World Cup, Neuer has been touted by many as the best goalkeeper in the world today. His prowess does not stay restricted close to the goal posts as he usually wanders forward to thwart the opponent s cheeky attempts of sneaking in a through ball past the German defence, in which case, the six-feet four- inch Neuer will always have the upper hand to gain advantage on the intruding ball. The 32-year old has an excellent sense of positioning himself to defend the goal-line even under nerve-wrecking pressure. His built and stature further allows him to block even the most perfectly placed shots sent rocketing through the air with all intent to damage. abeled as Saint Lloris Lby the French media after his performance over two legs against the Republic of Ireland saw Les Bleus earn a spot in the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals, 31-year old Hugo Lloris is the captain of both the English Premier Club Tottenham Hotspur and the French national team. He is often accredited for his lightening reflexes and good decision making. The son of an investment banker, Lloris made his debut for France in November 2008 in a friendly against Uruguay. He captained the national team in 2010 for the first time. e made his senior international debut in the year He has Hrepresented Brazil in U-17 and U-21 levels after which he was called by the squad manager Dunga for the first two matches of the 2018 World Cup qualification campaign against Chile and Venezuela. Alisson completed 90 mins in a World Cup friendly against Croatia at Anfield which Brazil won 2-0. He is very strong in saving close range shots with his fast reflexes. His long passing abilities can be seen in matches, and he also comes off his line very often. Brazil s number one received coaching from childhood hero Claudio Taffarel, a veteran who has gone through three World Cups. Alisson also drew inspiration from older brother Muriel who was a keeper for Brazilian club Internacional. He even followed Muriel there, collecting a hundred caps and winning the Campeonato Gaucho at each of his four season there before he was ultimately signed by Italian Serie A side Roma for 7.5 million euros. During the last season, Alisson grabbed the attention of many within the footballing world for playing a crucial role and emerging as a cetral figure in Roma s miraculous run to the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League. The Italian side eventually lost Liverpool on aggregate, but attention towards Alisson has not turned out to be momentary as Europe s elites continue to keep an eye on him. ailed by Costa Rica as their Hangel after his performaces at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, Keylor Navas is the man upon whom depends the country s hopes. His displays during the summer of 2014 earned him a move to vjoined Real Madrid who signed him among their Galacticos for 10 million. The World Cup in 2014 was also Navas debut. He appeared in the group stage against Uruguay, winning by 3-1 and conceded only a single goal across the three Group games. In the round of 16 he ended the tournament with three clean sheets from five matches and was also one of the nominees for the Golden Glove Award. W hen the goal is under siege and all hope seems to be lost, David de Gea will be the messiah for his national team just like he has been for Jose Mourinho s Manchester United in the English Premier League last season where the tall, lanky Spaniard made the fifth most saves in the League and equalled a record for most saves in a match 14 in December. He has also contributed with precision kicks which assume the role od assists for his teammates up ahead in the offensive. De Gea is known in particular for his outstanding reflexes, agility, and shot-stopping ability between the posts along with acrobatic dives and excellent saves. He got selected in Spain's 30-man provisional squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and later made the final squad but was not featured in any of the games. However, this year has been his in almost every sense and in Russia, he can prove to be the heir of Iker Casillas. oming from a player of Cvolleyball players, Thibaut Courtois made his senior international debut for Belgium in October 2011, becoming the youngest goalkeeper to represent the Red Devils. Till now he has appeared in more than 50 matches and was also there in the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. Courtois managed to keep a total of six clean shees out of ten matches through the tournament. He also helped Belgium to seal qualification into the competition for the first time in 16 years. Courtois has brilliant reflexes and a flexibility that allows him to push a ball bending dangerously out of reach away from danger. Although the recentremarks upon him have been critical due to his slip-up against Lionel Messi in the Champions League, Courtois bears the expectations of a promising Belgian lineup.

16 than doing so against this particular opponent at the French Open, where A s Rafael Nadal and Dominic Nadal is now 11-0 in finals and 86-2 overall. The only losses came against Robin Thiem warmed up before the French Open final, the booming Soderling in the fourth round in 2009 voice of an announcer at Court Philippe Chatrier called out each player's bona fides. Nadal's introduction included a yearby-year accounting of every time he'd already won the title at Roland Garros. The crowd responded, initially offering polite applause, then adding their voices, rising into a full-throated roar. Go ahead and 2018 to the lengthy list. Nadal won his record-extending 11th championship at the French Open on and Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals in "What you did and what you are doing," Thiem told Nadal during the trophy ceremony, "is one of the most outstanding things that any athlete is doing in any sport." If there were any reason for a bit of intrigue entering Sunday's match, it was this: Thiem beat Nadal in two sets on red clay at Rome in May 2017 and again at Madrid last month. Sunday, overcoming a late problem with a finger on his racket-swinging hand and displaying his foe-rattling best for a 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 victory over No 7 seed Thiem, the only person to beat the Spaniard on clay over the past two seasons. Up a break at 2-1 in the third set, Nadal stopped serving after a fault because he couldn't straighten his left middle finger. At the following changeover, Nadal was given a salt pill by a doctor and had his left forearm massaged by a trainer. "Tough moment in the third set when I got a little bit cramped on the hand," Nadal said. "I was very scared." Nadal's form never wavered, though, and soon enough he was celebrating his 17th Grand Slam title overall, second among men only to Roger Federer's 20. The two stars have combined to win the past six majors. The victory also allowed the 32-yearold Nadal to hold onto the No 1 ranking, just ahead of Federer. Nadal called it "not even a dream" to gather 11 titles in Paris, saying it was "impossible to think of something like this." Thiem, a 24-year-old from Austria, was appearing in a major final for the first time. Not much more of a daunting task "I am sure you will win here in the next couple of years," Nadal told Thiem afterward. Nadal is so dominant and so impervious on clay, in general, and at this tournament, especially, it made sense for Thiem to go for broke as much as possible, accepting that there would be risks along with the rewards. If standard play would likely lead to a loss, why not try for the spectacular, instead? So that's what Thiem tried. He pounded huge serves, topping 135 mph (220 kph) - about 25 mph (40 kph) more than Nadal's fastest - and that translated into seven aces, but also five doublefaults. He attempted drop shots; some worked, some didn't. And he took the biggest of big cuts on his groundstrokes, his feet leaving the ground as he threw his whole body into them, as if the very outcome of the match - not any individual point, but the whole shebang - depended on the strength of that one whip of his white racket. That led to 34 winners (eight more than Nadal), but also 42 unforced errors (18 more than Nadal). It worked. For a bit. Thiem stayed with Nadal in the early going on a cloudy and steamy afternoon; the temperature was 77 degrees (24 Celsius), the humidity approached 70 percent. Midway through the opening set, Nadal's aqua T-shirt was so soaked with sweat it stuck to him, so he changed into a fresh one at a changeover, drawing catcalls from spectators. From 4-all, 15-all in the opening set, Thiem faltered. After Nadal held there for 5-4, Thiem basically handed over the next game - and the set - by making four mistakes in a row. A volley into the net. A forehand wide. A forehand into the net. A forehand long. Just like that, Nadal was off on a five-game run that put him up 3-0 in the second set. Soon, Nadal was finding his spots. One down-the-line forehand winner landed right at the baseline and Thiem's shoulders sagged as he muttered to himself. Another forehand winner from Nadal followed, and this time Thiem looked up toward his coach and yelled. The conditions might have contributed to the cramping that affected Nadal about two hours into the final. His finger bent awkwardly and he pulled at it. He removed the taping from his left forearm, and maybe that let the blood flow better. After guzzling water during his visit from the doctor, Nadal was back to playing his unmistakable brand of nearly unbeatable clay-court tennis. Once again, Nicolas Mahut fell on his back on the red clay of Roland Garros. This time it was to celebrate a joyful moment, and not because his doubles partner Pierre-Hugues Herbert knocked him down the way he did two days ago at the French Open. Having recovered well from the incident, Mahut captured the French Open title with Herbert on Saturday by defeating Oliver Marach and Mate Pavic 6-2, 7-6 (4) in the final. During Thursday's semifinals, Mahut was accidentally hit in the left temple by a ball from Herbert. Mahut left the court for a little while to recover, and managed to advance to the final with his fellow Frenchman. "You can't imagine how happy I am," said Mahut, who lost in the final five years ago to the Bryan brothers when playing with Michael Llodra. "Five years ago it was so difficult I could not talk, I did not know if I would get another chance." With their Davis Cup captain Yannick Noah in the stands, Herbert and Mahut claimed their third Grand Slam title after saving six of seven break points. As the only local players to win a title, their victory was celebrated by French Open spectators, who rendered France's national anthem, La Marseillaise, a cappella. Mahut and Herbert, who also won the US Open and Wimbledon together, became just the third all-french team in the Open era to win Roland Garros. Marach and Pavic, an Austria-Croatia combination, were trying to win their second Grand Slam title of the season after claiming their first major title at the Australian Open. ain played spoilsport on RAfghanistan's first practice session ahead of its historic Test debut against India as the minnows were forced to wind up its nets 45 minutes ahead of the scheduled time, here on Sunday. Afghanistan team arrived at NCA on time and started practising from 2 PM but had to wind up its session at 4.15 PM following a heavy downpour. Rain threat also looms large over the match starting on June 14 as weathermen had forecast wet conditions during one or two days. Afghanistan players looked in good shape as they batted and bowled in the presence of their support staff led by coach Phil Simmons. The batsmen, including Ashgar Stanikzai, Mohammad Shazad, Mohammad Nabi and Rahmat Shah, who all have scored first-class tons, had a good hit at the nets. Afghan bowlers, especially spinners Rashid Khan and Mujeeb ur Rahman also swung their arms in the net. Mujeeb, who was bought for Rs 4 crore by Kings XI Punjab in Indian I ndian women faced abject humiliation after Bangladesh beat the sixtime champions by three wickets to win their maiden Asia Cup trophy here on Sunday. The tournament turned out to be the most embarrassing for the 'Women in Blue' as they lost to the minnows twice inside a week. Needing two off the last delivery of the match, Jahanara Alam hit rival skipper Harmanpreet Kaur towards deep mid-wicket and scampered home for a double to chase down a modest target of 113. For India, it was Harmanpreet (56 off 42 balls, 2/19) and leg-spinner Poonam Yadav (4/9), who put up a semblance of fight as a below-par batting effort once again became their undoing. India skipper Kaur Premier League, displayed all his tricks. In his debut IPl season, Mujeeb finished with 14 wickets rom 11 matches at a highly impressive average of and an economy rate of Rashid, who is numero uno bowler in the world in T20 format, was at his best at nets by bamboozling batsmen agreed that the batters let the team down. "It was a pressure game and we have to control our nerves. We had to bat according to the situation. The batswomen did not handle the nerves. Credit goes to Bangladesh. They were excellent in all departments of the game," Harmanpreet, who was adjudged Player of the Tournament, said. Had it not been for Harmanpreet's innings, India who had slumped to 62 for 5, would have been shot out for less than 100. Chasing a modest total, spinners Poonam and Ekta Bisht (0/13 in 4 overs) did try to bring India back in the match but middle-order batswomen Nigar Sultana (27 off 24 balls) and Rumana Ahmed (23 off 22 balls) were the ones instrumental in Bangladesh's successful chase. ustralia batsman Travis Head is confident a new-look bowl- attack will have the "firepower" to trouble England in an Aing upcoming one-day international series. Head made a century as Australia completed their preparations with a 101-run win over Middlesex at Lord's on Saturday. Despite his 106, Australia were held to a total of 283 for six. It was the second time in two warm-up games they had failed to reach the benchmark score of 300, having made 277 for nine against Sussex at Hove in their tour-opener on Thursday. The tourists will likely need to raise their game when a five-match series with England starts across London at The Oval on Wednesday but Head was unconcerned by their recent failure to break the 300 mark. "It depends, if we bowl the way we have... We'll find that out pretty quickly, what's a good score," Head said. Australia are also without their injured Ashes-winning fast-bowling trio of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood for this white-ball only tour. as they failed to read his well-disguised googlies. On Saturday night, the 15-member Afghan squad had arrived at Kempe Gowda International Airport with their tails up after decimating Bangladesh 3-0 in a T20 International series in Dehradun. The local officials gave an unforgettable welcome to the squad. Afghanistan, who got their full status along with Ireland last year, have been doing well especially in limited overs format with the help of their world class spin bowlers led by Rashid, who made his presence while representing runners-up Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL this year. However, a big test lies ahead of Afghanistan, who would be making its debut in the longer format of the game by taking on the formidable India in home conditions. The Stanikzai-led Afghanistan team would hope to make an impression with the help of its four spinners, which has prompted India to bolste its spin department, from two to three spinners by recalling Kuldeep Yadav. In a mind game battle, Stanikzai has called his spinners - Rashid, Mujeeb, Mohammad Nabi, Rahmat Shah and Zahir Khan - better than Indian tweakers. Stanikzai is hopeful of a great show from his spinners in their inaugural Test. The match will be played at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium from June 14 to 18. But Head backed pacemen Kane Richardson, Jhye Richardson, Billy Stanlake and Andrew Tye to fill the void. "They are all nasty in the nets, both Richardsons, Billy, even Nes (Michael Neser) can bowl quite sharply," he said. "We've got firepower and the control on that side, mix that with AJ Tye, he's got unbelievable skills at the back end with (leftarm spinner) Ashton Agar, who is bowling as well as he probably has in his career," Head added. ormer Australia captain FIan Chappell feels that India have the best opportunity to win the five Test series against England, exposing the multiple chinks in the home team's armoury. "There's a rare opportunity beckoning for India - the chance to beat both England and Australia in away Test series. England are in a state of flux after a devastating loss at Lord's and then a lessthan-convincing win over the predictably inconsistent Pakistan at Headingley," Chappell wrote in his column. Chappell listed a number of weaknesses in the England line-up from Alastair Cook's performance suffering due to not having a stable opening partner to predictability in their pace attack which comprise only right-arm pacers. Not to forget off-spinner Dom Bess' inexperience. "England's top-order collapses are now a regular occurrence, which is not surprising when both opening positions are under a cloud. If it weren't for the fact that Alastair Cook's numerous partners have been under intense scrutiny, Cook himself would be in jeopardy," Chappell wrote. "Two classic Cook doublecenturies can't mask the fact that in his last 29 Test innings - a period of 12 months - he has had 19 scores under 20, including ten single-figure dismissals. If an opener isn't making centuries regularly then he has to ensure the opposition doesn't get at the middle order while the ball is still new. Too often Cook is doing neither," the legendary Aussie captain observed. Talking about spinners, Chappell wrote: "Smith's (Chairman of selectors Ed Smith) other notable choice in his selection debut was offspinner Dom Bess, an energetic and effervescent cricketer. "His batting and desire to be involved in the contest are laudable but the early signs are that his offspin won't threaten an Indian team bred on facing this type of bowler regularly. In one over at Headingley, Bess delivered more full tosses than R Ashwin offers up in a year, a prospect that players like Virat Kohli and M Vijay should be relishing." Lack of variation in pace attack and the Test series starting in August will also have an impact on England's performance despite having a quality seamer like Jimmy Anderson in their ranks. "Apart from the openers' batting, England's other major problem on the tour of Australia and New Zealand was that the pace attack comprised all rightarm bowlers of similar speed. "Their inability to unearth a genuine pace bowler is a greater problem when they are overseas, but if the late UK summer is hot and dry, they will also need someone who can shake things up on home pitches in an attempt to dramatically change the course of a game," Chappell opined. "There is no doubt that the swing bowling of Jimmy Anderson will present the Indian line-up with a serious challenge, and if there's movement off the seam, Stuart Broad will also be a handful. Nevertheless India have the stronger batting line-up of the two teams and their variety in attack could help negate England's middle-order strength if the openers continue to fail."