PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Actor-politician and Jana Senachief Pawan Kalyan has askedleaders of his party to extend fullsupport to the people who arefacing many hardships onaccount of the lockdown to con-tain the spread of the deadlyCoronavirus, while taking careto while maintain social distanc-ing norms.

Addressing the PoliticalAffairs Committee (PAC) , partygeneral secretaries and secre-taries through videoconferenceon Thursday, Pawan Kalyansaid that a plan of action wouldsoon be chalked out on how bestthe Jana Sena can help thepoor. The responsibility lies oneveryone to follow the sugges-

tions of Prime MinisterNarendra Modi as responsiblecitizens, he said.

During the session, the partyleaders expressed concern over

i n c r e a s i n gnumber of Coronavirus positivecases and hardships being facedby daily-wage workers, peopleworking in the small crafts and

the poor. The party leadersinformed Pawan Kalyan aboutthe service activities taken up bythe Jana Sena workers since thebeginning of lockdown. Theyinformed him that peopleinvolved in making handicrafts,auto drivers, hawkers and oth-ers have lost their livelihood andare facing financial constraints.

Pawan Kalyan said that in thiscritical time it is not correct topoliticise the issue and criticisethe government. “We need toensure that people who are suf-fering get help from officials andmaintain restraint. We will talkabout politics and failures of theadministration only after liftingof the lockdown.

PNS n NEW DELHI

A 100 per cent centrally-fund-ed five-year scheme worth Rs15,000 crores to strengthennational and state-level healthsystems was approved onWednesday as India fights tocontrol the spread of the infec-tious COVID-19 virus, thegovernment has said.

The "COVID-19Emergency Response andHealth System PreparednessPackage" will be implementedin three phases - from January2020 to June 2020, from July2020 to March 2021 and fromApril 2021 to March 2024.

PNS n WBENGAURU,

The actual coronavirus pos-itive cases in the countrywill be at least four times thereported count, biotechentrepreneur KiranMazumdar-Shaw said onThursday, citing large num-ber of people under quaran-tine without being tested.

Pitching for random test-ing, she also wanted makingwearing of face masksmandatory in public space.

The country's death tolldue to the coronavirus rose to166 and the number of casesto 5,734 in the country,according to the UnionHealth Ministry on Thursday.

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

Ola, a cab aggregator service,on Thursday announced thelaunch of ‘Ola Emergency’ onits app to enable essentialmedical trips on its platform incollaboration with theGovernment of AndhraPradesh.

The new category will pro-vide convenient and safe trans-port to citizens who need to

access a hospital for medicalpurposes. Vizag is the secondcity after Bengaluru whereOla has launched theEmergency category.

‘Ola Emergency’ is availablein Vizag from Thursday witha network of cars that areequipped with masks and sani-tisers and will be operated byspecially trained drivers.

PNS n KAMAREDDY

A woman travelled fromBodhan to Nellore of AP andback on her two-wheeler, cov-ering a distance of 1,400 km tofetch her son stranded inNellore, crossing innumerablecheck-posts, hurdles, policepatrols, fences erected by farm-ers and so on.

The woman’s journey at atime the entire world is lockeddown, and her display ofcourage, has not only earnedher praise from all quarters,but also reminded everyonethat a mother’s love knows nobounds.

Razia Begum set out on her1,400-km journey on April 6and reached Nellore on April7. She started her return jour-

ney on the evening of April 7and reached Bodhan on April8, a tedious job for even thehardcore roadie, let alone awoman teacher.

Razia Begum lives inBodhan of Kamareddy district.

Ever since the death of her hus-band 12 years ago, she shoul-dered the responsibility ofbringing up her son. She worksas a teacher in a Governmentschool.

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*Late City Vol. 2 Issue 158*Air Surcharge Extra if Applicable

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BHUBANESWAR RANCHI DEHRADUNHYDERABAD

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MaharashtraCabinet namesThackeray’s forMLC post

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RBI hopes monetary, fiscalmeasures to spur eco activity

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Surplus FCI stockscan be utilized toengage, feed hungry millions

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Current Weather ConditionsUpdated April 09, 2020 5:00 PM

ALMANACTODAY

Month & Paksham:Chaitra & Shukla PakshaPanchangam:Tithi: Tritiya: 09:31 pmNakshatram: Vishakha: 09:54 pmTime to Avoid: (Bad time to start

any important work)Rahukalam: 10:44 am – 12:17 pmYamagandam: 03:22 pm – 04:55 pmVarjyam: 1:37 am – 03:06 amGulika: 07:39 am - 09:12 amGood Time: (to start any

important work)Amritakalam: 01:58 pm – 03:24 pmAbhijit Muhurtham: 11:52 am – 12:42 pm

VIJAYAWADAWEATHERForecast: Partly cloudyTemp: 37/25Humidity: 52%Sunrise: 06:03 am Sunset: 006:31 pm

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Woman travels 1,400 km from Bodhanto Nellore on two-wheeler to fetch son

State’s family survey now morecomprehensive, official tell CMPNS n VIJAYAWADA

The Andhra Pradesh govern-ment is now well into thethird round of a comprehen-sive family survey as per ICMR(Indian Council of MedicalResearch) guidelines and theeffective steps may reflect in adownward trend in Covid-19cases. In a review meetingchaired by Chief Minister YSJaganmohan Reddy here onThursday, the officials saidthat the spike in the number ofcases was due to a number ofDelhi returnees and their con-tacts testing positive for thevirus. The Police Departmenthas done a tremendous job inidentifying them, they toldthe Chief Minister.

Jagan directed the officials toconduct a comprehensive sur-vey of households includingmore details in the question-naire on a real-time basisbesides including the ICMR

guidelines. He instructed theofficials to include 6,289 symp-tomatic members in the thirdsurvey as well.

The officials said that twomore categories have beenadded in the survey question-naire as per the ICMR guide-lines. The Chief Minister made

it clear that there should be noerror in the process and thedetails should be submitted ona real-time basis. He instruct-ed the officials to set up an iso-lation ward in every hospital.

Issues related to the agricul-ture department were also dis-cussed in the review meeting.

‘Poor’ Archakas to be givenRs 5,000 fromWelfare Fund PNS n VIJAYAWADA

The YSRCP government hasdecided to extend financialhelp to temple Archakas whohave lost their livelihooddue to the lockdown.

Chief Minister YSJaganmohan Reddy hasinstructed the endowmentsdepartment to extend finan-cial assistance of Rs 5,000 toeach of the around 2,500temple priests serving insmall and moderate templesacross the state.

Disclosing this to news-men here on Thursday,Endowments MinisterVelampalli Srinivas said thatthe AP State ArchakaSamakhya has expressedgratitude to the CM for thedecision.

IMA eager to serve,but seeks safeguards PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Members of Indian MedicalAssociation, Vijayawada arehappy to be involved inserving the public ata time the world issuffering due toa pandemic likeCovid-19, Dr TKarthik, secre-tary IMA,Vijayawada.

In a release hereon Thursday, DrKarthik said that the IMAwould like enter into an MoUbetween the doctors represent-ed by Indian MedicalAssociation, AP chapter, andthe State Government thatwill make it mandatory for the

latter to provide personal pro-tective equipment (PPE) to allhealthcare personal reportingfor duty, as per the national

family welfare guidelines.“Provision of healthand life insurance of

Rs 50 lakh per per-son, as per aC e n t r a lG o v e r n m e n tscheme for the next

six months isrequired. We would

offer service free of costto the public and nation,” DrKarthik said. He said accom-modation shall be provided toall the healthcare profession-als at the nearest decent place.

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Thursday brought mixed emo-tions to the people of AP on theCovid-19 pandemic front;while the number of personstesting positive for the deadlyinfection declined to 15 fromthe 34 on Wednesday, twopersons succumbed to thevirus. The total number ofinfections in the state so farstood at 363 as on 10 pm ofThursday, while the death tollshot up to six. Meanwhile, onemore patient was dischargedafter making a full recovery.

Among the two deathsreported in the state was a 70-year-old patient fromAnantapur who breathed hislast while undergoing treat-ment. He was admitted to theGGH, Anantapur on April 6with Covid-19 symptoms andsamples were taken and sent fortests. Even before the testreports were received, theinfection claimed his life onApril 7. The test reports con-firmed Covid-19 to be thecause. The second death wasof a 45-year-old patient fromGuntur who was brought to theGGH in a very critical condi-tion on April 7. After samples

were drawn and sent for test-ing, the patient died barely twohours later. Later, the test reportrevealed that he was sufferingfrom Covid-19.

Meanwhile, Patient-8 fromChittoor was discharged afterrecovery. He had been admit-ted to GGH SVR Tirupati on

April 23 and was later testedpositive.

Hospital Superintendent DrSubba Rao and the paramed-ical staff treated the patient andas per the protocol he was test-ed negative thrice before beingdischarged.

Girl walks 70 km to marry her belovedTaxi services for non-Covidtrips to 50 hospitals in Vizag

No politics till end of lockdown: Pawan

Covid-19cases at least 4 times more:Biotech chief

Number of infectionsdips, but 2 more dead

NEW DELHI: As they work almost 24/7 with coronavirus patients,two doctors in Bhopal have each moved into a space that iscramped, uncomfortable and barely enough for one. Their temporary"apartment" also has wheels. Sachin Nayak and Sachin Patidar, bothdoctors at the same government hospital in the Madhya Pradeshcapital, have been living in their cars for weeks, quarantiningthemselves to protect their families.

Doctors on Covid-19 duty live in their cars to protect families

Centre approvesRs 15,000-crresponsepackage

PNS n GUNTUR

A girl has proved that love con-quers all barriers, bridges alldistances and eases all pain.

Lockdown or no, this 19-year-old said that she was lit-erally willing to go the extramile to marry her beloved.

Chitekala Bhavani walkedover 70 km to marry herboyfriend, and proved thatlove does conquers all. Herperseverance, determinationand will-power left hardened

cops flabbergasted. Bhavani, a resident of

Hanuman Junction married

Kallepalli Sai Punnaiah, 22, ofEedepali in Machilipatnam onWednesday, going against herfamily’s wishes.

Soon enough, informationabout the marriage becamepublic knowledge and the cou-ple started receiving threaten-ing calls.

When contacted,Chilakapudi Inspector MVenkatanarayana said thatBhavani was in love with aclose relative Sai Punnaiah ofMachilipatnam.

Venkatanarayana revealedthat Bhavani’s parents wereagainst the marriage asPunnaiah is uneducated and isa daily wage worker.

When they realised thatBhavani was in love with him,her parents started scouting formore “well-settled” bride-grooms to get her married assoon as possible, despite herresistance. On the other hand,Punnaiah’s family was in favourof the match.

Theresponsibilitylies oneveryone tofollow thesuggestions ofPrime MinisterNarendra Modias responsiblecitizens,Pawan Kalyansaid

l 15 more test positive for Covid-19, total reaches 363

Among the two deaths reported in the state was a 70-year-old patient from Anantapur whobreathed his last while undergoing treatment. He was admitted to the GGH, Anantapur on April 6 with Covid-19 symptoms and sampleswere taken and sent for tests

ODISHA FIRST TO EXTENDLOCKDOWN TILL APRIL 30

Oil demand in the world's third-biggest consumer has collapsed by asmuch as 70 per cent as India endures the planet's largest national

lockdown, according to officials at the country'srefiners. The estimate for the current demand loss is astark reminder of the challenge facing oil producers asthey haggle over a deal to cut supply and prop upthe global energy industry. Consumption for theentire month could average about 50 per centbelow last year's levels but that's based on India'sthree-week lockdown ending April 15 as planned,according to the officials.

DELHI'S BENGALI MARKET SEALED OVER 3COVID-19 CASES, 35 FOUND ON SHOP ROOFAnew coronavirus scare has emerged in Delhi after 35 workers were

found on the rooftop of a pastry shop at Bengali Market, a popularfamily haunt in the heart of the capital. Bengali Market has been sealed offalong with the 20 virus hotspots in Delhi after threepersons were diagnosed with COVID-19. An FIRhas been filed against Bengali Pastry Shop forendangering lives by defying the lockdown tocheck the spread of COVID-19. Asserting that itwas closed, the iconic shop, in its defence, saidit had provided shelter to workers who hadnowhere to go.

ANew York couple has seen the cityscape outside their Brooklynapartment change dramatically in recent weeks, as refrigerated

trucks line up in the lot below to receive the remains ofCOVID-19 victims as they exit the Wyckoff HeightsMedical Center. Alix Monteleone, a 28-year-oldaccount supervisor, who lives in a trendy part ofBushwick with her 33-year old fiance, Marc Kozlow,described what the two have witnessed peering outtheir window. "We have a bird's eye view," Monteleonesaid, during a recent interview conducted by Reutersvia Skype.

‘STOPPED COUNTING’: NEW YORK COUPLESEES TRUCKS REMOVING VIRUS VICTIMS

WORLD'S BIGGEST LOCKDOWN SLASHESOIL DEMAND BY 70 PER CENT IN INDIA

The Odisha government today announced it has extended the lockdownover the COVID-19 pandemic till April 30, becoming the first state to do

so as the number of patients infected by the novel coronavirus continues torise across the country. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has askedthe centre not to start train and air services till April 30."Odisha cabinet decides for extension and alsorecommends to union government to do the same," thestate government said in a statement. "Coronavirus is thebiggest threat that the human race has faced in morethan a century. Life will not be the same ever.

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Although every possible care and caution has been taken to avoid errors or omissions, this publication is being sold on the condition and understanding that information given in this publication is merely for reference and must not be taken as having authority of or binding in any way on the writers, editors, publishers, and printers and sellers who do not owe any responsibility for anydamage or loss to any person, a purchaser of this publication or not for the result of any action taken on the basis of this work. All disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of competent court and forums in Delhi/New Delhi only. Readers are advised and requested to verify and seek appropriate advice to satisfy themselves about the veracity of any kind of advertisement beforeresponding to any contents published in this newspaper. The printer, publisher, editor and any employee of the Pioneer Group's will not be held responsible for any kind of claim made by the advertisers of the products & services and shall not be made responsible for any kind of loss, consequences and further product-related damages on such advertisements.

VIJAYAWADA | FRIDAY | APRIL 10, 2020 vijayawada 02

Irregularities alleged indistribution of free rice PNS n ANANTAPUR

Corruption in implementa-tion of schemes has provedtime and again and it hasbecome a hurdle as the bene-ficiaries are unable to enjoybenefits being provided by thegovernment.

This time also irregularitiesby fair price shop dealers infree distribution of 12 kg riceand one kg red gram to theration card holders are beingalleged in the district.

The dealers are accused ofunder weighing two to three kgof rice and 200 to 300 grams ofred gram for each card holder.

If anyone questions the FPdealers, they are reportedlytelling them not to ask ques-tions and take whatever theygive since the rice and redgram are freebies.

There are over 3,012 FPshops in the district. The cardholders under their limits is putat 12,23,780. To distributeamong them free of cost,30,000 tonnes of rice and 900tonnes of red gram against theneeded 1,200 tonnes were sup-plied.

Since March 29, distributionof rice and red gram was com-

menced. The Civil SuppliesDepartment statistics say thatthe rice and pulses have beensupplied to over 9.51 lakh cardholders so far.

Because of under weighingat some PDS shops and usingtin containers and other gim-micks adopted by dealers, thecard holders complain of get-

ting 2 kg less rice. On thewhole, the extent of PDS ricecornered by dealers is put at1,902 tonnes.

As against the earlier prac-tice of supplying red gram inpackets, the dealers are supply-ing red gram to consumersloose. Thus, the quantity of redgram pocketed by FP dealers isput at 190 tonnes worth Rs 1.71crore.

For want of official supervi-sion, the word of FP dealers hasbecome law. District SuppliesOfficer Sivasankar Reddymade it clear that under weigh-ing is not at all tolerated. Evenif it is a freebie, the FPs deal-ers should distribute rice andred gram as per governmentspecifications. The DistrictSupplies Officer urged theconsumers to give writtencomplaint against the dealers toenable him to take action.

According to Pavan Kumarof Gulzarpet of the city, he isentitled to receive 15 kg of ricesince the number of familymembers entered in the card isthree. He got less rice by 2 kgand red gram 250 grams. Noaction has been taken againstthe dealer in spite of lodgingcomplaints against him.

Indians in Wuhan say lockdown, social distancing must to curb CoronaPNSn BEIJING/WUHAN

A few daring Indians, whoremained in Wuhan where thenovel coronavirus first emergedand then became a global pan-demic, have a word of advice fortheir compatriots back home: fol-low the strict lockdown andself-isolation measures to arrestthe spread of the deadly disease.

Speaking to PTI, the Indiannationals in Wuhan said theywere very happy that their 76-daysuffering due to the strict lock-down came to an end onWednesday when the authoritieslifted the restrictions in the cen-tral Chinese city of 11 millionpeople.

"For over 73 days, I stayed putin my room, stepped out to mylab close by with permission.

Today I struggle to speak prop-erly because I have not spokenmuch all these weeks as there isno one to speak because every-one stayed indoors," saidArunjith T Sathrajith, a hydro-

biologist working in Wuhan.India evacuated about 700

Indians and foreigners throughtwo special Air India flights, butArunjith, who is from Kerala,decided to stay in Wuhan and

brave it all because he felt "escap-ing" from a troubled place wasnot the ideal thing for "Indians todo".

He is one of the few Indianswho chose to stay back inWuhan, a city of 11 million peo-ple and the epicentre of the pan-demic.

He also thought his return toKerala could endanger his par-ents and in-laws, all over 50 years,besides his wife and child.

A microbiologist-turned-hydro-biologist who is takingpart in a research project in thecentral Chinese city, he saidIndia had done the right thing togo for a nationwide lockdown,but the major problem for thecountry could surface when themonsoon season arises as peo-ple's immunity levels go down.

That is the time virus couldturn virulent, Arunjith said.

If there is any lesson Wuhan

offers, it is the strict lockdownand people's participation inself-isolation campaign, he said.

Another Indian scientist whoalso stayed put in Wuhan fullyagreed with Arunjith.

"For about 72 days I have shutmyself in my room. My neigh-bour has three very young chil-dren. I have not seen them com-ing out of their flat even once.

"Today I am happy andrelieved I survived but still notwilling to venture out because Icould run into virus carriers," thescientist, who preferred to remainanonymous, told PTI overphone.

He advising Indians to strict-ly follow the lockdown. The sci-entist said a lockdown of Wuhana few days before could havehelped prevent the virus from

spreading like wildfire.He preferred to remain in

Wuhan and declined the Indianembassy's offer because he wasconcerned about his family backhome. "Considering the hospital-ity I enjoyed, I was confident Iwould be taken care of by myemployer and local friends andthey did," he said.

Arunjith said he and his fellowresearchers began hearing aboutthe spread of a vicious virus inWuhan from the second week ofDecember and things progres-sively began deteriorating withfear spreading among people asthey began wearing masks.

But even after the lifting of thelockdown in Wuhan, still notmany people are stepping out asthere is lingering fear about theasymptomatic cases.

Unseasonal rains cause Rs 2 crloss to farmers in Anantapur dist

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

For the first time in theEast Coast Railway,Diesel Loco Shed,Visakhapatnam, hasdeveloped a prototype ofa sanitisation tunnel,which is placed at theLoco Shed, as a part ofpreventive measure tofight against the pan-demic Covid-19 infec-tion.

The whole arrange-ment was carried outunder the guidance ofDivisional RailwayManager Chetan KumarShrivastava. The fabrica-tion of whole arrange-ment has been made from thein-house available resources.

The equipment endowedwith a sensor at the entry pointmarked with pedestal, connect-ed to two valves (controldevices), which get activatedthrough interception of sensor.The two valves, one filled withchemical water and other withcompressed air, discharge orspray mixture of chemical mistfor five seconds and stops auto-matically. Again, it gets activat-ed when next person stand on

the pedestal after interceptingthe sensor. It is an in-house andcost effective approach to sani-tise all staff during entry andsigning off from duties.

The total fabrication has beencompleted within two days timeby a team of four persons head-ed by Santosh Kumar Patro, Sr.Divisional Mechanical Engineer(Diesel), Diesel Loco Shed.DRM Chetan KumarShrivastava appreciated the teamfor such innovative invention atthis crucial time.

PNS n ANANTAPUR

Unseasonal rains wreakedhavoc in Beluguppa,Mudiguppa, Kanaganapalli,Kalyanadurgam and Guntakalmandals by razing bananaplantations to the groundand causing a huge loss to themango, papaya and watermel-on crops in the district.

Farmers already been rav-aged by lack of transportfacility and closure of marketsbecause of the lockdown inthe wake of the Coronavirus.Unseasonal rains have comeas a bolt from the blue andshattered whatever meagrehopes of recovering at least apart of the input costs.

In Beluguppa, D Heerehaal,Kottacheruvu, Bukkapatnamand BKS villages, maize andpaddy crops have been flat-tened. According to a conser-vative estimate by officials,the cyclones caused loss to thetune of Rs 1.03 crore damag-ing horticultural crops in114.20 hectares and Rs 1crore loss to general crops in130 hectares.

On Tuesday night, unsea-sonal rains, accompanied bygales, created havoc in many

parts of the district breakingthe back of the farmer at atime when the farmer is gear-ing up to harvest the standingcrops.

In about 39 mandals, mod-erate to heavy rains wereexperienced. Battalapallimandal recorded 71.6 mmrainfal l , fol lowed byMudigubba (54.8 mm),Roddam (37 mm), Rolla (30.2mm), Dharmavaram (26.4mm), Amarapuram (24.2

mm), Kottacheruvu (23.8mm), Garladinne (23.6 mm),Agali (22.6mm), Yadiki andBukkapatnam (22.2mm),Anantapur (21.6mm),Tadimarri (18.2mm),Raptadu (17.6mm),Chennekottapalli (16.6mm),Madakasira and Gooty(16.4mm each), Puttapartiand Parigi (14.2mm),Somamdevapalli (13.2mm)and Peddavadaguru(10.2mm).

Cops in Lord Yama’s attireeducate people on Covid-19PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

The Vizianagaram districtpolice are creating awarenessamong people on Covid-19 ina unique way in order to makethem stay at home to preventthe spread of the virus.

Donning the attire of LordYama, regarded as ‘god ofdeath’ in Hindu culture, twopersons were seen standing onthe roads with holding macelike Covid-19 virus at YJunction and VT Agraharamin Vizianagaram and warnedthe motorists of defying thelockdown norms. It was astrange experience for manymotorists in Vizianagaram asthey were intercepted by thetwo artistes dressed up asYamarajs. Both of them askedthe motorists to stay home tosave their life and others.

The unique initiative to ropein the artistes was the brain-child of police officer J RamaMohan Rao, working as theASP, Parvathipuram inVizianagaram district. This isone of the ways to show peo-ple that they should strictly fol-low the lockdown regulationsto prevent the spread of virus

otherwise, it’s like an invitationto Yamaraj, police added.

A couple of days before, theVizianagaram police took outa rally to spread awarenessabout the Coronavirus andthey were seen sportingCoronavirus helmet. “We have

been appealing to people byadopting innovative methodsto follow social distancing andlockdown norms to fightagainst the dreaded Covid-19.We will launch some moreunique ways in the comingdays,” they added.

l As against theearlier practice of

supplying red gramin packets, the

dealers aresupplying red

gram toconsumers

loose. Thus,the quantity of

red gram pocketedby FP dealers is put at

190 tonnes worth Rs 1.71 crore

l For want of official supervision, theword of FP dealers has become law

l District SuppliesOfficer SivasankarReddy made itclear that underweighing is not atall tolerated. Even

if it is a freebie, theFPs dealers should

distribute rice and redgram as per governmentspecifications

l Consumerstold to givewrittencomplaintagainst thedealers toenableDistrictSuppliesOfficer totake action

l Donning the attire of LordYama, regarded as ‘god of death’

in Hindu culture, two personswere seen standing on the roadswith holding mace like Covid-19

virus at Y Junction and VTAgraharam in Vizianagaram andwarned the motorists of defying

the lockdown norms

l It was a strangeexperience for manymotorists in Vizianagaram as they were intercepted bythe two artistes dressed upas Yamarajs. Both themasked the motorists to stayhome to save their life andothers

Wuhan virus lockdownover, but lingeringfears slow recoveryPNS n WUHAN

Hairstylist "Ah Ping" is backin business now thatWuhan's coronavirus lock-down has been lifted, but hissalon has no customers, onlyempty chairs and lingeringfears over a contagion thatcontinues to haunt the city.

Wuhan is waking fromits Coronavirus nightmare,loosening tight restrictionson movement and businessas the global pandemic'slaunchpad tries to move on.

But full recovery remainshampered by fear of a poten-tial new wave of infections.Many businesses and allschools are still closed,restaurants aren't alloweddine-in customers, and someneighbourhoods remainsealed off behind barriers.

Residents need to showthey have a "healthy" ratingon a mandatory phone appto leave their homes, usepublic transport, or entermost public spaces.

"When people come out,infections will probably rise.I'm really afraid of this," said"Ah Ping", a nickname.

The 43-year-old, whodeclined to give his fullname, also worries aboutgetting his life restarted.

He paid his salon's quar-terly rent of 15,000 yuan($2,100) in full just before

Wuhan was locked downon January 23. Now anoth-er rental payment is due.

"Isn't that terrible? I paid15,000 in rent and did nobusiness," he said.

Whi le many otherChinese cities are gettingback to near-normal ,Wuhan's government hasmade clear that easing con-trols poses new perils andthat a return to usual life willhave to wait.

In some areas, it's beentwo steps forward, one stepback. Wuhan authoritiessaid 70 residential neigh-bourhoods — out of nearly7,000 recently declared "epi-demic-free" —lost that sta-tus this week, prolonginglockdown measures there.

Indian nationals in Wuhan said they were very happy that their 76-day suffering due to the strict lockdown came to an end on Wednesday when the authorities lifted the restrictions in the central Chinese city of 11 million people

CMRFreceivesRs 133.06 crdonationsPNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

T Vijay Kumar Reddy,Commissioner of Informationand Public Relations, Memberof the State-Level Task ForceCommittee to fight Corona,informed the media here onThursday that Rs 133.06 crorehas been received throughdonations from 11,839 con-tributors towards ‘CMRF–Covid–19 AP’ till April 9.

He said in a statement thatdonors, who wish to donatethrough cheques should writethe Chief Minister’s ReliefFund – Andhra Pradesh ontheir cheques and send dona-tions online: (A) SBI AccountNo. 38588079208, VelagapudiSecretariat Branch, IFSC Code:SBIN0018884 (B) AndhraBank Account No.110310100029039, VelagapudiSecretariat branch, IFSC Code:ANDB0003079. Those whowish to donate throughcheques and online shouldsend their personal details likename, address of the donor,phone number, e mail addressand purpose of the donation,details of cheque and onlinepayment to the Special Officerto the CM, Ground Floor, 1stBlock, AP Secretariat,Velagapudi /e-mail: splofficer-cm@ap.gov.in, he said.

PNS n KAKINADA

The current onslaught ofCovid-19 pandemic in thecountry and across the worldis also taking its toll on the doc-tors and para medics, who arerisking their lives to treat theinfected patients. There is adire need of regular supplies ofPersonal Protective Equipment(PPE).

For the benefit of medical

fraternity, the State governmenthas decided to procure PPE kitslocally to help assist and aidmedical and para medic staffdealing with Covid-19 patients.This task has been entrusted toMuralidhar Reddy (IAS),District Collector andMagistrate, East Godavari, toselect a prospective philan-thropic entrepreneur, who cantake up this benevolent gestureof supplying quality PPE units

as per the demand. GMRKakinada Special EconomicZone (SEZ) management has

been approached by the officeof the District Collector to ful-fil this requirement. Actingswiftly to the request from theauthorities, GMR KakinadaSEZ got in touch with PalsPlush India Private Limited, themanufacturers of soft toys andaccessories, operating out ofthe KSEZ.

On special request fromGMR KSEZ, Pals Plush India,which has the requisite tech-

nology, skills and manpower toproduce ‘Personal ProtectionEquipment’ kits rose to theoccasion and dedicated itsentire production capabilityfor manufacturing high quali-ty PPE kits, including Coveralland Face Shield. This activitycommenced from April 1 andis catering to the requirementof doctors and para medicstaff dealing with Covid-19patients in the State.

Pals Plush makes PPE kits on GMR’s request in KSEZ

l Farmers already beenravaged by lack of transport

facility and closure of marketsbecause of the lockdown in

the wake of the Coronavirus

l Unseasonal rains have come asa bolt from the blue and shatteredwhatever meagre hopes ofrecovering at least a part of theinput costs

Amazon Pantryservice resumesoperationsin VijayawadaPNS n VIJAYAWADA

Amazon Pantry service hasresumed it operations inVijayawada. To serve cus-tomers’ urgent needs, it iscurrently prioritising anddelivering items that are essen-tial as per the guidelines of thegovernment such as food, gro-ceries, medicines and healthcare in the city.

In a release on Thursday, ithas informed that Amazonprioritising essential items asper the government guidelines,lower-priority products aretemporarily unavailable onAmazon. As an added mea-sure of safety, customers cannow avail no contact deliverywhere the delivery associateleaves the package at thedoorstep, following social dis-tancing guidelines for cus-tomers’ safety. With temporarysuspension of Pay-on-Delivery/Cash-on-Delivery onAmazon orders, one can avoidcard and cash exchange at thedoorstep during delivery.

A DUTIFULDOCTORPNS n VIZIANAGARAM

People likens doctors to Godas they save their lives. Provingtheir assumption true, a preg-nant doctor was winning thepraises of public for her dedi-cation in providing treatmentto patients.

She was identified as Dr Jhansi, a medical officerworking in Bondapalli PrimaryHealth Centre.

Risking not only her life andalso that of a 28-week-old foe-tus in her womb, a doctor hasbeen serving patients inAgency areas of the districtundertaking rounds to variousvillages.

At a time when Coronavirus in the State in virulentform and at a time when shemust take rest at home, she isattending hospital.

She is screening patientsvisiting the hospital and visit-ing v illages to sensitise peopleon Coronavirus.

Sanitisation tunnel atVizag diesel loco shed

People passing through sanitisation tunnelat loco shed in Visakhapatnam on Thursday

But full recoveryremains hamperedby fear of apotential new waveof infections. Manybusinesses and allschools are stillclosed, restaurantsaren't allowed dine-in customers, and someneighbourhoodsremain sealed offbehind barriers

VIJAYAWADA | FRIDAY | APRIL 10, 2020 vijayawada 03

Vizag civic body chiefattends office with her newbornVISAKHAPATNAM: People ofthe city have been showeringpraises on Commissioner ofGreater VisakhapatnamMunicipal Corporation Srujanafor her duty mindedness inspite of being the mother of aone-month-old baby.Government officials and thepolice have become very busyin enforcing the lockdown andresolving the other associatedproblems. As people confinedto their homes, governmentofficials have kept themselvesbusy with their assigned duties.Srujana is accountable to over30 lakh people of the steel city.She is reporting for workattending office, along with herone-month-old baby, instead ofavailing maternity leave. Sheset an example for others toemulate. Her image has goneviral on the internet, earningencomiums of netizens. In fact,she delivered a baby boy amonth ago. She did not availher maternity leave in the wakeof Coronavirus. For the firstthree weeks she left the baby inthe custody of her husband andmother. In between her busyschedule, she used to go to herhome to see her son. As thecity dwellers are frightened withthe virus, boosting their moraleis her duty, she said. Tostandby people at this hour, shesaid, she is attending office.She exhorting people tocooperate with the governmentto implement lockdown andasking them not to venture outof their homes.

CAPSULE

PNS n AMARAVATI

The ongoing lockdown onaccount of Covid-19 could nothave come at a worse time forthe aquaculture sector thatearns million of dollars throughexport of shrimp. At the peakof the season, the lockdown haspushed the sector into jeopardy,with farmers, industrialists andexporters each facing their setof problems and an uncertainfuture as shrimp is seen as aluxury product.

Ready-to-harvest shrimpworth over Rs 1,200 crore isnow lying in the ponds pre-dominantly in East and WestGodavari districts. The shrimpprocessing units in the State arenot functioning to their capac-ity due to acute shortage ofmanpower even as the MarineProducts Export DevelopmentAuthority said it would invokeClause 43 of the MPEDARules, 1972, and de-register thelicences, if processing of theproduce was not done.

Exporters are advised toremain supportive to farmersin these difficult times so thatthey continue to engage inshrimp farming, which is theprincipal commodity ofmarine products exportedfrom the country in terms ofvalue, MPEDA secretary BSree Kumar told the processorsand exporters. In the absenceof export orders and littlescope for processing, farmersfear their produce would onlyperish.

Though China, one of themajor markets for Indianshrimp, relaxed the restric-tions for import, the exportersare unable to take full advan-tage of it as the processing isnot happening adequately. In

the last one week, close to 3,000tonnes of shrimp was shippedto China.

Andhra Pradesh has a 50.41per cent share in the countryin shrimp production andearns close to 53 per cent of theoverall revenue. In 2019-20,shrimp production in AndhraPradesh was around four lakhtonnes and about 2.55 lakhtonnes of it was exportedbetween April and December2019, according to the Stategovernment data.

That fetched a revenue of Rs13,960 crore to the aquaculturesector. Exports had stalledsince the outbreak of Covid-19in China and the lockdown invarious countries only aggra-vated the crisis, at a time whenthe Indian exporters werereadying to ship the produce atthe end of January- Februaryslack period.

“Shrimp from Andhra isexported mainly to EU coun-tries and the US, apart fromChina. The aquaculture sector,which is linked to the interna-tional market, is now at astandstill. Exports to Chinaand the US have just re-start-ed and our government is ableto sort out the problems by tak-

ing up the issue with theCentre,” said Minister forAnimal Husbandry andFisheries Mopidevi VenkataRamana.

The State has 72 units pro-cessing seafood but they arenot functioning even to one-third of their installed capaci-ty. Essentially, a lot of manu-al labour was involved after theshrimp is harvested and beforeit is processed.

Over 50 per cent of theworkers are migrants andbecause of the lockdown theywent away to their respectiveStates P Ramachandra Raju, anexporter, said.

The local workers were notcoming to work because of therestrictions imposed by theirrespective village heads tocheck the spread of the pan-demic.

In East Godavari district, forinstance, of the total 11,000workers only about 2,000 wereattending to duty, that tooafter persuasion by the govern-ment authorities, according toMinister for Agriculture KKanna Babu.

The state government hastaken a pro-farmer stand andbeen focusing on getting the

aqua produce harvested andpurchased by the industry.

The processors andexporters, however, are in apredicament.

Most of the containers thatset sail with shrimp in earlyMarch, days before the lock-down, were stranded either atsea or in the port of arrival.

At the same time, the shrimpmarket overseas has alsoshrunk because of the lock-down, leaving little scope forfurther export.

Farmers want us to buy thestock even through deferredpayment but the uncertainty inthe export market will only bedetrimental to the entire sec-tor in the prevailing scenario,an exporter said.

Covid-19 lockdown pushesaquaculture into deep water

“Shrimp from Andhrais exported mainly toEU countries and theUS, apart from China.The aquaculturesector, which islinked to the inter-national market, isnow at a standstill.Exports to China andthe US have just re-started and ourgovernment is ableto sort out theproblems by takingup the issue with theCentre,” saidMinister for AnimalHusbandry andFisheries MopideviVenkata Ramana

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

As transportation comes to agrinding halt except theemergency services due to theCoronavirus lockdown, ganjasmuggling in Vizag andAgency areas seems to havetaken a backseat.

Police and prohibition andexcise officials are heaving asigh of relief. The DeputyExcise Commissioner, Vizag,T Srinivasa Rao, said theganja peddlers stopped thesmuggling of the weed in thevehicles suspecting that theymight be caught at any spotas lockdown was in force intribal pockets, border areasand also the NH-16 stretch.Similarly, presence of policepersonnel at the check-postson many routes deterredthem to continue their activ-ity.

Drug peddlers used toadopt innovate and sophisti-cated ways to transport theganja from Vizag and EastGodavari districts to variousparts of the country by evad-ing the enforcement agencies.The price of one kg dry ganjais procured at Rs 2,000 in theAgency and sold at Rs 40,000in some metro cities attract-ing smugglers from TamilNadu, Rajasthan, Odisha andNew Delhi.

In all, 400 odd smugglersremanded in the judicial cus-tody indicate the spread ofthe network and the profit itis earning.

The weed was grown in anextent of 12,000 acres inVizag and East GodavariAgency areas with a hugeextent in AOB area wherethe Maoists presence keepsaway police and the excise

personnel.A senior officer said that

ganja smugglers may adoptinnovative methods such asloading the weed with vegeta-bles and other essentials com-modities in vehicles to trans-port the ganja. We are talkingall measures to check in pos-sible ways of ganja smugglingduring the lockdown, headded.

VIRUS THREAT

Ganja smugglingtakes a backseat

n The Deputy ExciseCommissioner, Vizag, TSrinivasa Rao, said the ganjapeddlers stopped thesmuggling of the weed inthe vehicles suspecting thatthey might be caught at anyspot as lockdown was inforce in tribal pockets,border areas and also theNH-16 stretch

n The price of one kg dryganja is procured at Rs2,000 in the Agency and soldat Rs 40,000 in some metrocities attracting smugglersfrom Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan,Odisha and New Delhi.

n In all, 400 odd smugglersremanded in the judicialcustody indicate the spreadof the network and theprofit it is earning

Archakas to get Rs 5,000from Welfare Fund

Continued from Page 1

Srinivas said that financial assistance will begiven to the priests who do not receive any month-ly salary. The amount will be given from theArchaka Welfare Fund and about 2,500 priests willbenefit, said the minister. He said due to impo-sition of the lockdown to contain the spread ofCoronavirus, devotees are not allowed to visit tem-ples across the state. Priests are performing ritu-als in the temples alone, Srinivas said. Archakasin small temples were facing financial problemsas they do not have any source of income as devo-tees are restricted from visiting temples. As manyas 2,800 archakas in the state benefit through theDoopa-Deepa, Archaka Welfare Fund, but thereare another 2,500+ archakas who are not coveredunder these schemes. Keeping their problems inmind, the CM issued orders to grant Rs 5,000 toarchakas, Srinivas disclosed.

No politics till end ofthe lockdown, saysPawan Kalyan

Continued from Page 1

It has been brought to my notice about theYSRCP candidates for the local body electionshave been given the task of distributingfinancial assistance of Rs 1,000 to the familiesof the poor. The leaders are requested to lodgea complaint with the State ElectionCommission. We have even responded on theproblems of shortage of face masks for doc-tors and inadequate supply of PPEs,” PawanKalyan said.

Jana Sena leader Thota Chandrasekhar, PACchairman Nadendla Manohar, PAC memberK Nagababu, T Sivasankar, Bolisetty Satya,Madhusudan Reddy, Dr Hariprasad, BNayakar, P Yesaswini and others raised vari-ous issues at the conference.

Woman travels1,400 km...

Continued from Page 1

Her youngest sonMohammad Nizamuddincompleted Intermediate inBodhan and is preparing atNarayana Medical Academy inHyderabad to get a seat inMBBS. Nizamuddin had struckfriendship with a youth ofNellore while he was pursuingIntermediate in Bodhan.

In March, the duo visitedBodhan from Hyderabad totake the Intermediate supple-mentary examinations.

Meanwhile, Nizamuddin’sfriend got a message that hisfather was unwell, and leftBodhan for Nellore.Nizamuddin also accompa-nied him. While Nizamuddinwas in Nellore, the whole coun-try was locked down due toCoronavirus pandemic.

With her son stuck inNellore, Razia Begum began toworry, her anxiety mountingwith each day.

She decided that the onlyway she could ensureNizamuddin’s return wasbringing him back herself.Razia Begum called on BodhanACP Jaipal Reddy andexplained the situation to him.She obtained a letter from theACP, giving her permission totravel. Armed with the letter,she set out on her journey of700 km to reach Nellore onMonday. She managed to reachher destination on Tuesdayafternoon.

Taxi servicesfor non-Covidtrips...

Continued from Page 1

Citizens can book a cabfrom their app by selecting the“Ola Emergency” category andenter the drop location from alist of available hospitals in thecity. Ola has mapped over 50hospitals to its app to providethe service and ensure cabs areused only for essential medicaltravel.

Speaking on ‘OlaEmergency’ services, AnandSubramanian, spokespersonand head of communications,Ola, said, “We are thankful tothe Government of AndhraPradesh for giving us an oppor-tunity to serve the people inthese tough times. With over 50hospitals in the city mapped,'Ola Emergency' will be a con-venient and safe transport tothousands of citizens in Vizagfor medical trips that do notrequire an ambulance. Thisincludes scheduled medicalappointments such as dialysis,chemotherapy, immediatemedical attention for injuries orother non-Covid-19 relatedissues.” He added, “All driverson the network are trained tofollow sanitary measures,including wearing masks andhaving hand sanitisers in thecars. We will work closely withthe Government to ensuremaximum number of peoplecan avail the service.”

Continued from Page 1

The cost of all and any legalcases from the patients beingtreated by the healthcare pro-fessionals in the course ofdoing their duty and the sixmonths from the date ofcompletion of service will beborne by the AP govern-ment. Also, private doctorsshould be involved in volun-teer service only when thenecessity arises, the IMAoffice bearer said.

He said that as there is ashortfall of critical care physi-cians, ICU is predominantlymanaged by the anaesthesiateam, with requests for tele-conferencing and consulta-tions in ICUs and wards alsoto prevent the spread of dis-ease.

“As per guidelines if youget exposed to Covid-19 pos-itive patient, healthcare pro-fessionals need to be isolated.Home isolation for doctorsshould also be considered orany alternative acceptableplace should be provided,” hesaid. Dr Karthik requestedthe state government not toimplement ESMA on medicalpractitioners, as a medicalfraternity are also taking careof non-Covid-19 cases andnot to put Covid-19 andNon-Covid-19 cases in thesame facility.

Doctors onCovid-19duty live...

Continued from Page 1

When their day's shift is over,they walk near their homes for abit and rest in their car, stayingaway from their families inside.

In their spare time, they read,take a nap and talk to family onthe phone. Their cars haveeverything they need -bedsheets, clothes, laptop, andmattress. Sachin Nayak, a fatherof a three-year-old, works in theisolation ward for coronaviruspatients. "The pandemic spreadin days, there was no time forthe administration or us toprepare...it's our job to fend forourselves," he says. Dr Nayakinteracts with at least 100people and staff every day. "Wecollect the samples, which canspread infection, that's why Idecided to live in my car," hesays. Sachin Patidar isspecializing in anesthesia. SinceMarch 31, he has also beenstaying in his car. He proudlygives NDTV a tour - he hassoap, deodorant, a comb andshaving kit. The backseat is hisbed. He is worried about theelderly members of his family.

Continued from Page 1

The Inspector said thatBhavani decided to take mat-ters into her own hands andmarry Punnaiah. Accordingly,she started off on hermarathon walk and after muchstruggle, she reachedMachilipatnam to the house ofher beloved.

Soon after she reachedPunnaiah’s home, he and hisfamily members went to thenearest temple, where theyexchanged garlands.

The Inspector said that

the newlyweds received callsthat her parents that herparents filed a ‘missing per-son’ complaint at HanumanJunction police station. Theythen approached theChilakalapudi police andinformed the cops that bothof them are major and hadmarried of their own will.The couple said thatBhavani’s parents may with-draw the complaint.

The Inspector informed theHanuman Junction police sta-tion where the cops coun-selled Bhavani’s parents that

she was a major and had theright to choose her life partner.

Earlier, while jotting downtheir details, the ChilakalapudiPolice Inspector becameintrigued and asked Bhavanihow she travelled toMachilipatnam fromHanuman Junction, about 70km away. She smiled, and said:“I put my best foot forward.”

Her perseverance has wonover many of those presentover; hopefully Punnaiah toorealises that he has beenblessed with an extraordi-nary wife.

Girl walks 70 km to marry her beloved Covid-19cases...

Continued from Page 1

A total of 1,30,000 sampleshad been tested for COVID-19so far in country. I am sure thenumber (of positive cases) ismuch larger.

It has to be much larger. Ifyou look at the numbers inquarantine itself who have notbeen tested, I would say at leastfour times that number it willbe, minimum, Mazumdar-Shaw told PTI.

Testing only those withsymptoms is not such a greatidea. A lot of asymptomaticpeople are also positive. Its alsoimportant to do some amountof random testing in the clus-ters. You need to do lot moretesting. The more you test, themore positives you get. Onlyredeeming feature is that thenumber of those getting intoICU or dying is not huge, shesaid.

The Chairman andManaging Director of BioconLtd said she personally believesthat schools and colleges -high risk areas where the viruscan easily spread -- should beshut till June end. Large gath-erings should not be allowedwhile malls and cinema hallsshould continue to be underlockdown. Social distancinghas to be continued. One of themost import thing is you haveget people to wear masks.Thats a very important thingwhen you lift the lockdown."

IMA eager to serve,seeks safeguards

Centre approvesRs 15,000-crresponse package

Number ofinfections dips,but 2 more dead

Continued from Page 1

This fund will be dividedamong all states and unionterritories. Activities to befunded under this schemeinclude the development ofdedicated COVID-19 hos-pitals, ICUs (intensive careunit) and supply of oxygen inmedical centres.

"With the objective ofemergency COVID-19response, (a fund has been setup for) strengthening nation-al and state health systems tosupport prevention and pre-paredness, procurement ofessential medical equipment,consumables and drugs andstrengthening of surveillanceactivities, including setting uplaboratories and bio-securitypreparedness," a circularsigned by the Director of theNational Health Mission said.

Continued from Page 1

Kurnool district remains theworst-hit by Covid-19, with 75positive cases followed byGuntur with 51 and SPSNellore with 48. Prakasam reg-istered 38 cases, Krishna district35 and YSR Kadapa 29 cases.West Godavari district report-ed 22 positive cases whileVisakhapatnam and Chittoorremain at 20 positive caseseach. Anantapur district report-ed 13 and East Godavari dis-trict reported 12. The NorthAndhra districts of Srikakulamand Vizianagaram remainuntouched by Covid-19.

The Covid-19 pandemichas shattered the lives ofmillions of migrant

labour, those employed in theunorganized sector, daily wage-earners and petty vendors.Apart from medical attention,what these people need most isfood, which, under normalcircumstances, they earn on aday-to-day basis without anykind of social security netwhatsoever.

Still, given the urgency ofthe present situation, thereare ways in which their basicneeds can be met now andpost lockdown. We can pro-vide them emergency reliefusing surplus stocks of foodgrains lying with the FoodCorporation of India in itsgodowns. This is perhaps theeasiest way in which theCentre can reach out to themigrant labour and otherswho are jobless and hungry inurban and rural areas.

As things stand, the prob-lems facing these sections ofpeople are likely to multiply,with people eating into theirlittle stores of essential com-modities and exhausting theirmeagre savings. Before thingsget out of control, we need toutilize FCI stocks of foodgrains by engaging voluntaryorganisations that areequipped to supply cookedfood, gurudwaras, NGOs likeAkshaya Patra etc. Even hotelsand canteens could be roped into make and distribute food,using food grains supplied byFCI. Select NGOs could beasked to oversee the arrange-ments, including earmarkingareas for distribution and tyingup with the hotels and rations.All they need to mobilizeadditionally are additionalinputs required like vegetables,cooking oil etc. These suppliescould be arranged throughgovernment agencies wher-

ever possible or by involvingother NGOs.

The country will have to revup the economy as soon aspossible to productively engagelarge sections of unemployedpopulation. The toll of Covid-19 on daily-wage earners andcontract labour, employees ofservice sectors like malls,shops, hotels, shopkeepers,street hawkers, skilled trades-men like construction workers,job-work factory labour, etc isalready visible. In the daysahead, unless a miracle takesplace, the problems will creepup to embrace employees offactories and bigger business-

es across the board. Clearly, no establishment

can afford to pay salariesindefinitely to its employees ifthey cannot be productivelyengaged, more so in employ-ment-oriented and serviceindustries. Despite theGovernment of India's exhor-tation to employers to pay fullsalary for this month, severalstate governments have resort-ed to pay cuts.

In rural areas, the effects ofthe lockdown are just emerg-ing. In some areas, crops areripe, but labour for harvestingis not available. Farms aredrying up for want of watering.

Elsewhere, farm produce isrotting for want of transportand marketing avenues.

Mechanisms like DirectBenefit Transfer and schemeslike MNREGA should beviewed as part of a safety netthat buys us the time requiredfor isolation and treatment-

related issues. We have nochoice but to restart econom-ic activity as quickly as possi-ble.

Successful easing of thelockdown is no mean task.Given the complexitiesinvolved, resumption of eco-nomic activity has to be cau-tious, measured, and graded indiffering geographies.

The experience of some for-eign countries can be instruc-tive. Countries like Italy andthe UK initially downplayedthe magnitude of the problemand are now facing the conse-quences. Countries likeTaiwan and the CzechRepublic have rigorouslyenforced masks and socialdistancing, allowed essentialservices like trains and tramsto run, and permitted limitedeconomic activity. Japan andSweden have allowed mosteconomic activities, while tak-ing due precautions of mask-

ing and maintaining mini-mum social distances. Thesecountries have concentratedon testing and quarantiningpeople coming from outsidetheir borders, while allowingthose inside to pursue eco-nomic activities without goinginto a total lockdown.Singapore too initiallyachieved considerable successin controlling the spread of thevirus, despite keeping itsschools, offices, markets,restaurants and public trans-port running. Of late, it hasseen a slight increase in infec-tions and it responded imme-diately by tightening restric-tions and closing all schoolsand most workplaces.

As India comes out of thelockdown, it would help vast-ly if we could identify zones inthe country as A, B and C toreflect totally virus free, fewercases and more cases respec-tively, and then dovetail a

range of economic activities.We need to have strict controlson intra-zone movements. Thedetails of the economic activ-ity in states and UTs must befinalised in consultation withmedical experts and state govts.Complementary measures likeenforced wearing of maskswhile travelling and at work,social distancing, allowing only50% occupancy in trains,buses, restaurants, and encour-aging e-commerce and doordelivery of goods may help.

The foregoing steps canyield results only with thewhole- hearted participation ofall stakeholders - theGovernment of India, the StateGovt. including the districtadministration at the grass-roots level and above all peo-ple themselves right down tothe panchayat level.

(The author is formerUnion power secretary)

ANIL KUMAR KUTTY, IAS (Rtd)

As things stand, the problems facingthese sections of people are likely tomultiply, with people eating into theirlittle stores of essential commoditiesand exhausting their meagre savings.

Surplus FCI stocks can be utilized to engage, feed hungry millions REVVING UP ECONOMY POST LOCKDOWN

VIJAYAWADA | FRIDAY | APRIL 10, 2020 nation 04SHORT READS

Man thrashed after beingaccused of conspiracy tospread coronavirusNEW DELHI: A man who hadreturned to his village in Bawanain northwest Delhi afterattending a Tablighi Jamaatconference in Bhopal wasallegedly thrashed earlier thisweek after some people accusedhim of spreading COVID-19,police said. Three people havebeen arrested for allegedlybeating the 22-year-old, who isrecovering from his injuries in ahospital, police officials said. Itwas earlier erroneously reportedthat he had died after beingthrashed. Mehboob Ali, aresident of Harewali village inBawana, had gone to Bhopal fora Tablighi Jamaat conference,officials said. He was there for45 days and returned to thenational capital in a truckcarrying vegetables. He got offat the Azadpur vegetable marketon Sunday where a medicalexamination was conducted tocheck for symptoms of COVID-19. When he reached there,rumour spread that he hadplans to spread COVID-19.

Village head shootsdead wife suspectingher of infidelity

Retired cop held forliquor home deliveryETAH (UP): A retired policemanhas been arrested here fordelivering liquor to thedoorsteps of people despite anationwide lockdown imposedto contain COVID-19, policesaid on Thursday. Peshkar washeld with 13 cartons ofcountry-made liquor inMalawan area, said Etah SSPSunil Kumar Singh. Theaccused was involved in liquortrade and home delivery ofliquor in the district, the seniorsuperintendent of police said.Peshkar was sent to jail afterregistration of an FIR againsthim, the SSP added.

Gujarat reports 241COVID-19 casesAHMEDABAD: The total numberof coronavirus cases in Gujaratjumped to 241 on Thursdaywith 55 new patients beingfound in the state, an officialsaid. The death toll also went upto 17 with one more personsuccumbing to the viral disease.Out of the 55 new cases, 50were reported from Ahmedabad,two from Surat and one caseeach from Dahod, Anand andChhotaudepur district. Thesudden spike in the number ofnew cases, particularly inAhmedabad, was due to theintensive surveillance beingcarried out in areas declared as‘hotspots' here and other majorcities of Gujarat, principalsecretary (health) Jayanti Ravisaid.

BAHRAICH (UP): The head ofGangapur village in Rupaideehaarea allegedly shot dead his 38-year-old wife suspecting her ofbeing in a relationship withanother man, police said hereon Thursday. The victim, KusumPandey, was shot dead by herhusband Ravish Kumar Pandeywith his rifle on Wednesdaynight after the couple arguedover her alleged wrongdoing,Bahraich Superintendent ofPolice Vipin Mishra said. In theincident, their daughter Khushi(14) also sustained injuries aftershe tried to intervene and stopher parents' fight. The accusedhas been arrested by the police,the SP said.

Odisha now may send epidemicrule violators to jail for 2 yrsPNS n BHUBANESWAR

Amid spurt in COVID-19cases, the Odisha governmenthas promulgated an ordinancewith provision of imprison-ment up to two years for thosewho violate the epidemic reg-ulations, official sources saidon Thursday.

The ordinance amends asection of the EpidemicDiseases Act, 1897, they said.

As per the Epidemic Diseases(Amendment) Ordinance,2020, anybody who disobeysany regulation or order madeunder the principal Act is liablefor imprisonment up to twoyears or with fine up to Rs10,000 or with both.

"Every offence under thisAct shall be cognisable andbailable," it said.

The ordinance was broughtas the state assembly is not insession at present, sources said.

It replaces the section 3 ofthe main Act, which stated vio-lating the law invites imprison-ment for maximum six monthsand Rs 1,000 fine, an officialsaid, adding that a clause hasbeen inserted in another sec-tion of the principal Act.

Procurement of goods, ser-vices, and equipment for pre-

vention and control of the epi-demic disease have beenbrought under the purview ofthe amended provision whichwas not included in the 1897Act, the official said.

In the wake of coronavirusoutbreak, the state govern-ment had, last month, imple-mented the Odisha COVID-19Regulations, 2020, using themain Act.

With this ordinance, theenforcement agencies will nowbe able to book violators oforders made under the epi-demic disease Act, he said.

Meanwhile, the Odisha gov-ernment has made wearing ofmask mandatory fromThursday to contain the spreadof the novel coronavirus as the

number of COVID-19 cases inthe state crose to 44 so far fromjust 5 reported till April 1.

Though there is shortage ofN-95 masks in the markets, thepeople may use their cleanhandkerchiefs and a piece ofcloth with multiple folds forcovering their nose and mouthwhile going outside their hous-es, Odisha government'sspokesman on COVID-19Subroto Bagchi said.

He said the children belowtwo year and asthma patientsshould refrain from wearingmasks as they might feeluneasy.

The experience of Japan istaken into consideration asthe country could contain thespread of the dreaded virus by

using masks, another officialsaid.

Health and Family WelfareDepartment also tweeted,"Wear simple face mask when-ever you go outside to slowspread of #COVID-19. Useany cotton material like hand-kerchief or piece of cloth andprepare it as a face mask tocover your nose, mouth andchin."

Mission Shakti directorSujata Karthikeyan said thewomen self-help groups inOdisha have so far distributedmore than 12 lakh masksamong policemen, healthworkers and others.

PNS n INDORE

A 62-year-old doctor, whohad tested positive for coron-avirus, died here on Thursday,taking the death toll due toCOVID-19 in Indore districtof Madhya Pradesh to 22, anofficial said.

Indore's chief medical andhealth officer (CMHO), DrPraveen Jadia, said that the vic-tim, who was a general physi-cian, breathed his last at a pri-vate hospital in the morning.

"It appears that he had comein contact with a coronaviruspatient during treatment. Weare trying to trace the sourceof infection," he said.

This is probably the firstcase of a doctor succumbing tocoronavirus infection inMadhya Pradesh.

The government-run MGMCollege here had onWednesday night issued a listof COVID-10 patients, inwhich the doctor's name hadfigured. He had symptoms ofcoronavirus, but the authoritiesare yet to trace the COVID-19patient he had come in contactwith, officials said.

Meanwhile, a purportedvideo is doing rounds in socialmedia in which the doctor isseen sitting with his familymembers and claiming that heis completely healthy.

As per the latest figuresprovided by the state healthdepartment, so far 213 peoplehave tested positive for coro-navirus in Indore district,which has emerged as thecoronavirus infection hotspotin the state.

62-yr-old doctor diesdue to COVID-19;Indore death toll 22

PNS n HAMIRPUR (HP)

The Gaddis (nomads) ofHimachal's Chamba areas havestarted returning to their nativeplaces after getting special per-mission from authorities amidcurfew restrictions in the stateto contain spread of coron-avirus.

The nomads were preparingto go to their homes when theyreceived the new of lockdownand subsequent curfew onradio.

Curfew has been imposed inHimachal Pradesh since March24 to contain the spread ofcoronavirus

The nomads said it was a hor-rible time but locals helpedthem with food, water and otheritems and when the state govern-ment lifted ban on their move-ment, they started their journey.

Speaking to a group ofreporters in Hamirpur, theysaid they had spent the lastseven months in the hills ofDhaulgiri and other high hillareas of Shivalik mountainranges of Hamirpur and Unadistricts.

Accompanied by their live-

stock, they did not seem to bebothered about the threat ofCOVID-19 pandemic.

Motu, one of the nomads,said that they were returningwith a herd of about four hun-dred as against three hundredsthat they had taken along withthem at time of their journey

to plains.The nomads have purchased

land and built houses at Badaand Chhota Bhangal areas inKangra's Baijnath subdivisionand started cultivation to earntheir livelihood.

Motu said about 50 per cent

of gaddis don't own livestockand work in fields About 3,000nomads go to plains with theirflock as during the winter theirareas face acute shortage ofpastures.

The gaddis said, ”We havegrazing rights in almost allparts of Punjab, Haryana andHimachal Pradesh on the basisof old traditions.”

No one stops us from graz-ing the flock in their fields. Atmany places, people them-selves offer them their fieldsand also provide them withfood as a goodwill gesture, theyadded.

“There is general beliefamong people that with thearrival of gaddis in their fields,their productions will increaseand that they will not face anythreat from evil forces, “ headded.

Caught in curfew, Himachal nomads start journey home

PNS n NEW DELHI

Mass emergencies resulting in sit-uations like ongoing 21-day lock-down tend to create unusuallyhigh demands for essential com-modities leading to hoarding andblack marketing, experts said onThursday.

They appreciated the stepsbeing taken by the central gov-ernment to check artificial pricerise, black marketing and hoard-ing of such items of daily needs.

"Mass emergencies tend to cre-ate unusually high demands fora list of items over a short run giv-ing opportunities for hoarders.We saw this during theNovember 2019 pollution crisisin Delhi when masks werehoarded and sold at exorbitantprices. COVID-19 presented aneven bigger opportunity for theblackmarketers and initially wesaw the price of face maskssoaring at price several times theMRP. And it happened not just

in India, but across the world,"said Srijan Pal Singh, chief exec-utive officer of A P J abdul KalamCentre, a non-profit organisation.

He said when the lockdownhappened food items of all kindsbecame an easy target for hoard-ing.

"And one must look at it notjust from the angle of shopkeep-ers hoarding up, but also whathappens at cold storages and alsoat household level where panichoarding disrupts market sup-

plies," said Singh, author of abook on corruption "The BlackTiger".

He said the government hastime and again been issuingdirectives against hoarding ofgoods and blackmarketing, butnot everyone seems to be payingheed to them.

Recently, the Union HomeMinistry has directed the author-ities to take quick and sternaction against people indulgingin hoarding and black marketing

of goods, said Singh.He, however, said it is hard to

track this crime over a wide rangeand it needs a new approach.

"For instance, the governmentcan ask users to geotag shopswhich are blackmarketing on theCOVID app it has started," Singhsuggested.

According to Satnam Narang,principal research engineer ofTenable, the US-based cyberexposure company, COVID-19has proven to be a successful tool

for cybercriminals and scammersseeking to make a profit from thescarcity of essential goods.

"Over the last few months,COVID-19 has been on top ofthe mind for most of the world,enabling opportunistic individ-uals to capitalize on fears anduncertainties. Whether its cyber-criminals, scammers or thoseseeking to make a profit from thescarcity of essential goods,COVID-19 has proven to be asuccessful tool and it will contin-ue to serve as one until the endof the pandemic," he said.

Narang said, it is important forindividuals to seek out informa-tion from credible sources, bewary of unsubstantiated cures,refrain from buying masks andpurchase essential products fromverified sellers or retailers. "Whatwe've seen so far from theseopportunists is just the tip of theiceberg. Unfortunately, I antici-pate many more campaigns tocome," he said.

Bachchan starts distribution of2,000 food packets in MumbaiPNS n MUMBAI

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan onThursday said he has undertak-en the distribution of 2,000food packets for lunch and din-ner at various locations acrossthe city for those hit by the lock-down due to the coronaviruspandemic. The 77-year-old actorsaid along with these packets, theefforts of providing around3,000 bags of monthly provisionsare also on.

"On the personal front, 2,000packets of food are being giveneach day for lunch and dinnerat various locations over the cityand the larger bags of a month-ly provision, about 3,000 bags,which would take care of at(least) 12,000 mouths is in

process," Bachchan's wrote onhis blog. The actor said loca-tions such as Haji Ali Dargah,Mahim Dargah, BabulnathTemple, the slum in Bandra anda few other slums in the interi-or north of the city will bene-fit from the initiative.

However, getting the provi-

sion to reach the needy was "anexercise", the actor hopes some-thing would work out soon.

"The process has its problems.The lockdown has now made itillegal to step out of the houseand living areas. So even thoughI have been able to get the bagsready its transportation causesproblems," he said.

"The authorities are sayingthat when the package arrives,people, specially those in theslums for whom the material isspecially packed (and who) havenot eaten for 3-4 days, they rushfor the vehicle to pick up theirpackage, which almost causes astampede and the Police cannotallow that to happen with theconditions of social distanc-ing," Bachchan added.

PNS n MUMBAI

In view of the lockdown dueto the coronavirus outbreak,the Bombay High Court forthe first time on Thursday livestreamed case hearings beingconducted via video confer-ence to allow public access tothe proceedings.

Justice Gautam Patel heardnine matters listed before himand over 450 people, includ-ing lawyers, petitioners andgovernment officials, partici-pated in the proceedings.

The video conference washeld via Zoom app. The highcourt has been working on areduced staff following out-break of the coronavirus pan-demic.

Apart from the Bombay

High Court, only the highcourt of Kerala is conductingcourt hearings via video con-ference and live streaming it.

After finishing the courtproceedings, Justice Patel saidin the present situation every-one, including the judiciary,and lawyers will have toimprove their skill sets onhow to conduct hearings dig-itally.

High Court begins live streaming of case hearingsvia video conference

PNS n BENGALURU

Karnataka Chief Minister B SYediyurappa on Thursday said allhis cabinet colleagues are of theunanimous opinion to extendthe lockdown for about 15 daysafter April 14, and a final deci-sion in this regard will be takenafter consulting the PrimeMinister.

Speaking to reporters after thecabinet meeting here, he said, "Tocheck COVID-19, all my cabinetcolleagues have unanimouslyopined that the lockdown shouldbe extended for about 15 days,after April 14."

However, we will take a finalcall on whether to relax the lock-down after April 14, followingdiscussions with Prime MinisterNarendra Modi tomorrow andlooking at the situation in otherstates. "I told my cabinet col-leagues also the same thing thatafter discussing with the PrimeMinister let's take a final decision

and execute it," he added.A committee of health experts

tasked with devising an exitstrategy for coronavirus lock-down in Karnataka have recom-mended its continuation in"hotspots" along with some relax-ations.

In its recommendations sub-mitted to the CM on Wednesday,it said schools and collegesshould remain shut till May 31

and advocated restrictions onpublic transport to continue forsome more time even as it sug-gested odd-even formula forprivate vehicles.

While non-air conditionedshops can be allowed to function,IT,BT companies, governmentoffices providing essential ser-vices and factories can be oper-ated with 50 per cent staff, thecommittee said.

The recommendations werefor a period of 15 days after thecurrent national lockdown.

Responding to a question,the Chief Minister said, till April14, no one should step out oftheir houses, we will take strictmeasures to implement the lock-down that is currently in place.

"Arrangements have beenmade to buy groceries, fruits andvegetables in the localities itself,still if people come out unnec-essarily, we will be forced to takestrict measures. I request peoplenot to come out....." he said.

PNS n THIRUVANANTHAPURAM

Prime Minister NarendraModi on Thursday condoledthe death of T V Babu,Secretary of Bharat DharmaJana Sena (BDJS), a con-stituent of the BJP-led NationalDemocratic Alliance in Kerala.

In a tweet, Modi said "ShriTV Babu did commendablework at the grassroots level inKerala. His efforts to serve thepoor and further socialempowerment were note-worthy. Saddened by hisdemise. My thoughts are withhis family and well-wishers inthis sad hour. Om Shanti".

Babu, passed away follow-ing cardiac arrest at a hospi-tal in Thrissur on Thursdaymonring. He was 62. TheBDJS leader had unsuccess-fully contested in the 2019Lok Sabha elections as theparty candidate from Alathur.

PM condolesdeath of BDJSleader in Kerala

PNS n NEW YORK

Countries that have conductedwidespread testing have donefairly well in the fight againstCOVID-19 and those strug-gling to contain the spread of thepandemic may do well to followtheir lead, according to epi-demiologist Jennifer Nuzzo, aSenior Scholar at the JohnsHopkins Center for HealthSecurity in the US.

Rather than hoping that a vac-cine will soon be available andeverything will suddenly bealright, nations affected by thepandemic should continue to testwidely, identify those with thedisease and isolate them, whilealso asking the general popula-tion to continue to practicesocial distancing until effectivetreatments are available, she saidin an interview to JSTOR Daily,an online publication that con-textualises current events withscholarship.

In September 2019, less thanthree months before the out-break of COVID-19 in China'sWuhan area became public,Nuzzo and her colleagues pub-lished a WHO/World Bank-commissioned report titled"Preparedness for a High-ImpactRespiratory PathogenPandemic."

The report identified priorityactions for countries, interna-tional organisations, and otherstakeholders to pursue that

would mitigate the public health,economic, social, and politicalconsequences of the emergenceof a high-impact respiratorypathogen - months before theworld got introduced toCOVID-19.

In her interview to JSTORDaily, published this week, Nuzzosaid that the US squandered theopportunity to prepare for thepandemic. The country got aboutthree months, according to her,to prepare for the disease

As per the EpidemicDiseases (Amend-ment) Ordinance,2020, anybody whodisobeys anyregulation or ordermade under theprincipal Act is liablefor imprisonment upto two years or withfine up to Rs 10,000or with both

The nomads said itwas a horrible timebut locals helpedthem with food,water and otheritems and whenthe state govern-ment lifted ban ontheir movement,they started theirjourney

Fine, jail fornot wearingmask in DelhiPNS n NEW DELHI

Not wearing a mask while step-ping out of your house in Delhimay land you in jail for up tosix months, according to anorder issued by CS Vijay Dev tocontain the spread of the con-tagious coronavirus disease.People violating the order bynot wearing masks when out-doors may also have to coughup fines between Rs 200 and Rs1,000. The chief secretary saidviolators will strictly be pun-ished under Section 188 of theIndian Penal Code. In his order,Dev said any person working atany site, office and workshopmust wear a face mask. "No per-son/officer will attend any meet-ing/gathering without wearingmasks. These masks may be sta-ndard masks available with thechemist or even homemade wa-shable masks that can be reusedafter proper washing and disin-fecting them," the order stated.

Mass emergencies give opportunities to hoarders, black marketersThey appreciatedthe steps beingtaken by the centralgovernment tocheck artificial pricerise, blackmarketing andhoarding of suchitems of daily needs

Karnataka cabinet favours lockdownextension, decision after consulting PM

Rigorous testing key to fight COVID-19:Johns Hopkins epidemiologist

VIJAYAWADA | FRIDAY | APRIL 10, 2020 nation 05SHORT READS

GB Pant Hospitalremoved from list ofCOVID-19 facilitiesNEW DELHI: GB Pant Hospital,a designated COVID-19 facility,will no more be on the list ofsuch hospitals in view ofproblems being faced bygeneral patients, according toa Delhi government orderissued on Thursday. The orderissued by the healthdepartment said GB PantHospital will continue tofunction as it was before beingmade a designated facility. Fivehospitals, including LNJPHospital combined with GBPant Hospital, were recentlymade as designated COVID-19facilities. The decision toremove GB Pant Hospital fromthe list has been taken in viewof the problems faced bygeneral patients who arereceiving treatment in thesuper speciality stream, theorder said. LNJP Hospital willcreate additional 500 beds byutilising OPD space and anewly-constructed block, inlieu of beds designated at GBPant Hospital, it said.

COVID-19: UP govtorders fire safetychecks of hospitals

COVID-19 lockdownhits Goa's poultrysupplyPANAJI: Goa's poultry supplyhas been hit by the COVID-19lockdown, after over 50,000birds belonging to the state'spoultry owners remained stuckat Belagavi in neighbouringKarnataka. Several poultryowners in Goa prefer to havetheir breeding farms in Belagavibecause of its favourableweather. "Before the Goagovernment sealed the stateborders on March 22, we werein the process of bringing in50,000 birds to the state," saidJaikrishna Naik, president of AllGoa Poultry Owners Associa-tion. The poultry is still stuck atBelagavi and the state govern-ment has not shown anyinterest in allowing transporta-tion of the same, he said. Thebiggest worry for the poultryfarmers is that the birds needto be fed regularly and it coststhem Rs 2 lakh on an averageevery day for their feedings,Naik said. "If this situationcontinues, we will have todispose them off in Karnatakaand the entire trade will suffer ahuge loss," he said.

LUCKNOW: The Uttar Pradeshgovernment has ordered firesafety checks for allgovernment and privatehospitals handling COVID-19cases, an official said onThursday. "State homedepartment has ordered firesafety checks of all medicalcolleges, government hospitalsand private hospitals taken forCOVID-19. The check is to bedone on Thursday itself,” saidDirector General, Firedepartment, RK Vishwakarma.He said directives have beenissued to all the fire officers inthis regard. After the safetychecks of hospitals, the Firedepartment officials will presenttheir findings to the head ofthese establishments,Vishwakarma said.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Pakistan is aiming to score nar-row political goals by attempt-ing to bring India's initiativesto collectively fight the coron-avirus pandemic in theSAARC region under the for-mal umbrella of the grouping,government sources said onThursday.

On Wednesday, Pakistanboycotted a video conferenceof trade officials of the SAARCcountries to discuss ways tominimise the economic cost ofthe pandemic.

Islamabad said such initia-tives could only be effective ifspearheaded by the group'ssecretariat instead of India.

In such a scenario, thesources said, Pakistan will geta free hand to block India's ini-tiatives and proposals by usingthe SAARC charter of provi-sions and rules of procedure.

"It is an attempt to score nar-row political goals while peo-ple of the region are facing thecoronavirus crisis," said asource on Thursday.

The trade officials of theSAARC countries onWednesday broadly agreed toidentify new ways to "sustainand expand" the intra-region-al trade to offset the huge eco-nomic cost of the coronaviruspandemic.

The officials also deliberat-ed on creating a larger frame-work of trade facilitation and

highlighted the need toenhance the quantum of intra-SAARC trade as the pandem-ic is likely to have a consider-able impact on the region.

The deliberations took placeas a follow up to an India-ini-tiated video conference ofSAARC leaders on March 15.Prime Minister NarendraModi had suggested in theconference that the membernations of the bloc shouldcome together to jointly fightthe pandemic.

The South AsianAssociation for RegionalCooperation (SAARC) is aregional grouping comprisingAfghanistan, Bangladesh,Bhutan, India, the Maldives,Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

All the SAARC membernations are reeling underadverse social and economicimpact of the coronavirus pan-demic.

Pak aiming to score narrowpolitical goals thru Covid-19

Strength of federalism has given majorboost to fight against COVID-19: SorenPNS n NEW DELHI

The strength of federalism hascome to the fore in the fightagainst the coronavirus pan-demic with many chief ministerscoordinating with each other tohelp out people stranded outsidetheir home states, JharkhandChief Minister Hemant Sorensaid on Thursday.

Soren said he spoke withchief ministers of various states,including Kerala, Maharashtraand Delhi, where people ofJharkhand were working andthey promised all support.

In an interview to PTI, hesaid based on the total callsreceived at the migrant helplinebeing run by the state's labourdepartment, there are about 7lakh Jharkhandis who are cur-rently outside the state,

Soren said lifting the lock-down is a "big challenge" andmust be given a consideredthought. Though the spread ofthe coronavirus has been kept incheck in Jharkhand, things could

change if a large number of peo-ple return to the state from var-ious parts of the country, he said.

"The prime minister(Narendra Modi) did not askthe states while imposing thelockdown and now he is ask-ing states for suggestions toopen the lockdown," he said.

The nationwide lockdownwas imposed from March 25 bythe Centre to prevent thespread of the coronavirus that

has claimed 166 lives andinfected 5,734 people across thecountry.

Soren said his governmentstarted work early and that hadhelped in keeping COVID-19cases in check.

"About two lakh people cameinto our state after the lock-down somehow, but we had putmechanisms in place to dealwith the situation. Now detailsof 1.75 lakh out of those peo-

ple are with us. Some peoplebelong to Jharkhand, whileothers are from West Bengaland other states," he said.

They are in home quarantineand information on themcould be obtained as the com-mittees were formed by thestate government at the district,block, village and panchayatlevels, Soren said."We have also set up informa-

tion centres. There is one forpeople within the state and theother is for people from ourstate stuck in other states," hesaid.

The chief minister also saidJharkhand was largely depen-dent on the Centre forresources and would need adedicated financial package todeal with the crisis.

"Due to the imposition of theGST, the central governmenthas already broken the back ofstates. We would need a dedi-cated package from the Centre.We would also need morehealth equipment," he said.

Soren said the Centre hadgiven about Rs 250 crore toJharkhand from the packageannounced by it nationally andit also received some pendingdues, but that is not enough.

The Jharkhand chief minis-ter also asserted that India'sfederalism had manifested itselfduring the COVID-19 crisisand many chief ministers werecoordinating with each other.

PNS n MUMBAI

The Maharashtra Cabinet onThursday decided to recom-mend Chief Minister UddhavThackeray's name for beingnominated as member of thestate Legislative Council fromthe Governor's quota.

Thackeray, who is currentlynot a member of either of theHouses of state Legislature,was not present at the Cabinetmeeting where the decisionwas taken. At present, there aretwo vacancies in the LegislativeCouncil from the Governor'squota after MLCs RahulNarvekar and Ram Wadkutequit the NCP to join the BJPbefore the Assembly polls inOctober last year.

The term of these twovacant seats is till mid-June.

Maharashtra ParliamentaryAffairs Minister Anil Parabtold PTI that the decision torecommend Thackeray's nameas MLC from the Governor'squota was taken at the state

Cabinet meeting."Governor Bhagat Singh

Koshyari has been requestedto appoint Uddhav Thackerayfrom one of the two vacantseats," he said.

Thackeray was not presentat the Cabinet meeting whichwas chaired by Deputy ChiefMinister Ajit Pawar at thestate secretariat. MinorityAffairs Minister Nawab Maliktold reporters that Thackerayhad been advised not to attendthe meeting, since the Cabinetwas to recommend his nameto the governor for appoint-ment as MLC.

Maharashtra Cabinetnames Thackeray'sfor MLC post

COVID-19 fallout makes Indian philosophy of‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' more relevant: ICCRPNS n NEW DELHI

With people globally feeling"very lonely and frustrated" inthe confinement of their homesamid the COVID-19 pandem-ic, the ICCR is contemplatingoffering classes on the basics ofIndian philosophy as the credoof 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' isall the more relevant now, itspresident Vinay Sahasrabuddhesaid on Thursday.

On a day the India Councilfor Cultural Relations, India'scultural arm to strengthen itsexternal affairs outreach,observes its 70th foundationday, Sahasrabuddhe told PTIthat in the six years of the Modigovernment, this organisationhas become more result-orient-ed and productive.

In the wake of the coron-avirus outbreak, all ICCR cen-tres abroad have started e-tutorials on a variety of subjects

including yoga, classical dances,music and even Sanskrit andHindi languages, he said.

In fact for music and danceclasses, YouTube and Skype-type platforms are proving tobe more effective at someplaces, he added.

To a question if the ICCR isrecaliberating its agenda due tothe disruption brought by thepandemic, Sahasrabuddhe, who

is also a senior BJP leader anda Rajya Sabha member, notedthat people are likely to feel verylonely and frustrated in thesedays of remaining confined tothe four walls of their homes.

COVID-19 has been a hugedisruptor, he noted.

"In a situation like this, rela-tionships become very impor-tant and Indian philosophy ofVasudhaiva Kutumbakam (the

world is one family) becomesall the more relevant. Theuniqueness of our philosophyis, even while recognising indi-viduality of personal space,we have been emphasisingmore on collectivism.

"The understanding of boththese features have the potentialof providing a healing touch inthese circumstances and that iswhat is needed. May be, class-

es on basics of Indian philoso-phy could be an activity worthcontemplating," he said.

Setting the bar high for theorganisation going forward,he said when it comes to softpower, its efforts must be com-pared with that of BritishCouncil and American Center.If ICCR activities are looked atfrom that angle, then "werealise that we have miles to gofurther".

"And if we take a longer per-spective and understand theenormity of this subject, werealise that strengthening softpower can't be left to an insti-tution alone. All citizens, allgovernment or non-govern-ment agencies with some con-nection with people abroad, canvery well significantly con-tribute in this mission. Creatingawareness about this collectiveresponsibility is also one of ourpriority areas," he said.

PNS n NEW DELHI

The Delhi High court Thursdaydecided to suspend its summervacation this year, slated fromJune 1 to 30, to make up for theloss of working hours due to thecoronavirus pandemic lock-down.

The high court has also can-celled the summer break of sub-ordinate courts in June this year.

The decision was taken at ameeting by Delhi High CourtChief Justice D N Patel andother judges considering thesevere hardship and difficultiesbeing faced by litigants onaccount of the lockdown andconsequent suspension of func-tioning of the courts that arecurrently hearing matters ofextreme urgency only throughvideo conferencing.

The high court has beenhearing only urgent matterssince March 16. Besides, all theinterim orders passed by it andthe trial courts earlier, whichwere to expire by March 16 orthere after, have already beenextended till May 15. The highcourt resolved Thursday that thecourts shall continue function-ing during the entire vacation

month of June 2020."This decision has been taken

by the Full Court on April 9, tomake up for the loss of courtworking hours and to ensurerestoration of normalcy in thefunctioning of the courts at theearliest," said a statement issuedby the high court.

The resolution said, “Sinceduring the period of suspensionof work, the hearing is limited tothe matters of extremely urgentnature or urgent nature, there isnegligible fresh filing of cases, less-er disposal and correspondingescalation in arrears, resulting inextreme hardship to litigants."

It said the September 16, 2019notification, which had declaredthe period of the summer vaca-tions for the high court and trialcourts here in June this year, ismodified.

Delhi HC suspends summerbreak to make up work loss

PNS n MUMBAI

An empty tent is a circus group'sworst nightmare but the nation-wide lockdown due to the coro-navirus has compounded theproblems of an already strugglingbusiness, says Sujit Dilip, the pro-prietor of Rambo Circus, whohad to put out an appeal for help.

Dilip said he was initially"embarrassed" to ask for help butdecided to reach out to public asthey were grounded in Airoli,Navi Mumbai from March 13,when the state and later thenation announced the lock-down due to the pandemic.

With no shows possible andthe responsibility of around 80artistes and 20 animals, Dilipsaid they were staring at anuncertain future as the pandem-ic has taken away their chanceto earn money during the peak

summer season."We were about to start our

circus when the CM announcedthe lockdown from March 13and we had to close. It'll take atleast three-four months for thesituation to settle down but bythen monsoon will start and it'llbe a bad time for us again," Diliptold PTI in an interview.

Circuses in the country, Dilip

said, have two primary seasons:the summers and Diwali.

Last year, Rambo Circusbraved the Aurangabadfloods—which damaged theirtents and lights—faced heavyrainfall in Pune and finallyarrived in the suburban Maladhere during Diwali to make upfor the losses.

"I had to sell off my flat to bail

out the circus. But even the fes-tive period earning was hit. Sowe finally decided to focus onthe summer of 2020. Whowould've thought this wouldhappen?" he wondered.

A 'MOVING VILLAGE' STOPS:

Rambo Circus faces heat amid coronavirus outbreak

PNS n THIRUVANANTHAPURAM

Kerala is set to become thefirst state in the country tocommence convalescent plas-ma therapy, which uses anti-bodies from the blood of curedpatients, to treat critically illCOVID-19 cases on a trialbasis.

The Indian Council ofMedical Research (ICMR) hasgiven its nod to the state gov-ernment for the first of its kindproject, initiated by the pres-tigious Sree Chitra TirunalInstitute for Medical Sciencesand Technology (SCTIMST), atop official said.

SCTIMST, an Institution ofNational Importance underthe Union Department ofScience and Technology, isexpecting to start the trials bythis month end once therequired approvals from theDrugs Controller of India andthe Ethics committee arereceived.

"We have received theapproval from the Indian

Council of Medical Research(ICMR) to conduct it as a clin-ical trial", Director of the city-based institute Dr AshaKishore told PTI.

"This is a form of convales-cent plasma therapy. The tech-nique is to use (blood) plasmaof patients who have complete-ly recovered from COVID-19as it will be rich in antibodies",she said.

In COVID-19, some small

studies have been done inChina and United States wherethey had tried this treatmentmethod -- taking the plasma ofa patient who is cured andwhose blood contains lot ofantibodies to fight the virus,she said.

Their plasma is collectedand infused into COVID-19patients who are critically illand whose immune systemcannot fight the virus.

30 workers found living onterrace of a shop inBengali Market, owner heldPNS n NEW DELHI

An FIR was lodged against apastry shop owner in BengaliMarket here after his 30 work-ers were found living in unhy-gienic conditions and notadhering to social distancingnorms to contain the spread ofcoronavirus, police said onThursday.

The Bengali Market, alongwith 20 other COVID-19hotspots in Delhi, was sealedafter three members of a fam-ily tested positive for the dead-ly virus there.

As a preventive measure,police, along with a medicalteam, members from NewDelhi Municipal Corporationand the District Magistrate,conducted home-to-homeverification in Bengali Marketon Thursday, a senior policeofficial said.

Police found 30 workers ofa pastry shop living either on

the terrace of the shop orbehind it at shelters providedto them in unhygienic condi-tions without maintainingsocial distancing, he added.

Subsequently, An FIR wasregistered at Barakhamba roadpolice station under section188 (disobedience to orderduly promulgated by publicservant), 269 (negligent actlikely to spread infection ofdisease dangerous to life) ofthe Indian Penal Code andsection 3 of the EpidemicDiseases Act against the shopowner, police said.

PNS n LUCKNOW

BSP supremo Mayawati onThursday demanded strictaction against a BJP MP whohad allegedly beaten up aDalit officer, saying suchbehaviour was "shameful".

Revenue officer ArvindKumar was allegedly beaten bythe BJP's Kannauj MP SubratPathak and his supporters onTuesday.

"Manhandling and misbe-havior with a dalit 'tehsildar,who was discharging his dutyhonestly, by the BJP MP inKannauj recently is veryshameful," Mayawati said in atweet in Hindi.

In a separate tweet she said,"It's saddening that instead ofgoing to jail, this MP is roam-ing outside due to which dalitemployees are agitated. Insuch circumstances, the chiefminister should initiate strictaction against this MP so thathe does not repeat such anincident in the future."

"BSP demands strict action

against the MP so that suchbehaviour is not meted out toany other Dalit employee inthe state," she said.

Kumar had alleged thatPathak was pressurising himto sanction some projectswhich flouted rules and whenhe refused, the leader verbal-ly abused him on the phoneand later arrived at his resi-dence along with his support-ers and beat him up.

Pathak, however, said theofficial had failed to properlydistribute food among thepoor and also misbehavedwith his supporters.

Mayawati demandsaction against BJP MP

Kerala to start clinical trial of plasmatherapy for COVID-19 treatment

The nationwidelockdown wasimposed fromMarch 25 by theCentre to preventthe spread of thecoronavirus thathas claimed 166lives andinfected 5,734people acrossthe country

To a question if the ICCR isrecaliberating its agenda due tothe disruption brought by thepandemic, Sahasrabuddhe, whois also a senior BJP leader and aRajya Sabha member, noted thatpeople are likely to feel verylonely and frustrated in thesedays of remaining confined tothe four walls of their homes

With no showspossible and theresponsibility ofaround 80 artistesand 20 animals, Dilipsaid they werestaring at anuncertain future asthe pandemic hastaken away theirchance to earnmoney during thepeak summer season

It has often been said, yet it bears repeat-ing: The Coronavirus epidemic will, inall probability, leave the world lookingsignificantly different from the one weinhabited prior to the outbreak of the

infection. The global nature of COVID-19has ensured that this realisation is not lim-ited to only a few but finds resonance acrossborders. India’s response to the outbreak hasbeen comparatively swift. Credit, therefore,must be given to all parties, who have fought,and continue to fight the notorious virus.

While praise is well-deserved, we mustensure that our response to this novelthreat is swift and decisive. We cannot affordto be reactive. This is where I would like todraw a distinction between “reaction” and“response.” For the purpose of this article,the latter refers to a well-calibrated decision,one that considers all factors and puts thingsinto the context while also keeping in mindthe consequences of the former. This shouldbe a decision that utilises the slow thinkingpart of our brain. A “reaction,” on the otherhand, is, as the word suggests, “reactive.” Itis our first response to the problem, wherewhat is right in front of us is the only thingwe react to. Such a “reaction” is intuitive andborn from the fast-thinking part of our brain.In this particular case of Coronavirus, thebig thing in front of us is that it is one of thebiggest pandemics of our times.

For example, our obsession with theCoronavirus and the news surrounding it isunsurprising. However, it must be put intocontext. Tuberculosis kills an estimated1,200 people per day in India. Compare thiswith the number of Coronavirus deaths,which currently is as low as 10-30 per day.However, our “reaction” to the Coronavirusis much more severe than the one to tuber-culosis. Of course, this is an oversimplifica-tion of the problem and I do not want to bemisunderstood in saying that the currentpandemic requires any less effort, vigilanceor focus. This could be a terminal mistakefor the country and we must exercise asmuch caution and care as suggested by ourleaders and healthcare professionals. Afterall, any negligence could cost the lives of sev-eral other people and we owe a duty of careto each other during these difficult times.

However, the human mind is reallystrange. We tend to focus a lot more onthings that evoke strong “reactions.” Forexample, terrorism and murders areimmense social evils. They take up a chunkof the time of television news hours, spaceof newspapers and are a hot topic for socialdiscussion. But globally, the number of peo-ple who die due to suicide in a year, is almosttwice the number who die due to homicide.Yet, we do not as yet have as frequent dis-cussions or serious debates about address-ing mental health issues. Instead, we end upfocussing more on the problem that evokesgreater emotions. We are humans, after all.

In the fight against Coronavirus though,we cannot afford the same reaction. We must

be thoughtful rather than emo-tive in our response. One aspectof the fight against COVID-19is the immediate decision toimpose a nationwide lockdown.There is no denying the fact thatthis is the only “true” way to fightthis dreaded virus at this partic-ular time. However, while imple-menting the lockdown, we can-not ignore the fact that cure runsthe risk of causing more harmthan the disease.

Over 76 per cent of Indianworkers are engaged in “vulner-able employment.” This wasstarkly visible when millions ofmigrant workers from all overthe country tried to make theirway home on foot. WhileGovernments and civil societygroups have come forward in acommendable way to help andensure that the workers do notdie due to hunger, we cannotexpect this to be a long-termsolution.

A large part of the workingforce in our country are eitherdaily wagers or contractualworkers. While even for a shortperiod of time, a lockdown ismore palpable for salary earnersand business owners, for dailywage earners, it is a daily strug-gle of life and death. Therefore,in my opinion, a complete lock-down will have the effect ofpushing the country 25 yearsback. We cannot, therefore, givein to our intuition.

We must think of morenovel and nuanced wayswhereby this problem can be

tackled. Whether it is about tar-getting specific hotspotsthrough sealing drives, as beingdone in certain parts of thenational capital by ensuringdoorstep delivery of essentials,or something else, ourapproach cannot afford to besimplistic and carte blanche.

The other thing we must dois, carry forward this delibera-tive approach, going forward.What this means is that we mustensure that Governments spendmore on healthcare and educa-tion rather than on statues. Wemust look at ways by which ourspending can be better utilisedand how social goals can beachieved more efficiently.Health, for example, has a closecausal relationship with cleanli-ness. In order to enforce clean-liness, we cannot merely rely onadvertisement campaigns orjust be content with building arecord number of toilets. Boththese measures have beenproven to not nudge the peopleto do the right thing. Instead,what has proven problematic isnot the existence of toilets inmany areas but the fact that theyare often dirty and lack properwaste disposal measures. Thisdissuades the people from usingthe toilets even if there may bemany around them.

Therefore, the focus needsto be on understanding whatare the behavioural reasonsbehind the people who do notadopt clean habits. Only afterunderstanding these cues can

an effective strategy be imple-mented. One way of ensuringthat we understand these socialbehaviour and calibrate theefficacy of our systems is byensuring that maximumamount of accurate informa-tion is at our disposal. This can-not be done solely by theGovernment.

Every Government (just asevery person) has an incentiveto show itself in the best light.Therefore, we must encouragecivil society and the media toprovide ground-level feedback.Here, too, there is a chance ofbias and fake news being circu-lated as we have seen from timeto time. Thus, any supply orencouragement of fake orunsubstantiated data must besoundly punished.

In the case of Coronavirus,just as in every sphere of ourlives, we have our blind spots,too. Unfortunately, for our elect-ed leaders, there is little scope forsuch blind spots while dealingwith a pandemic and balancingour economic interests on thesame scale. We must, therefore,be unafraid of diverse views andencourage open communica-tion. The virus does not affectjust a few of us but all of us inone way or the other. Therefore,we have little option but tocome together to try and ensurethere is some light at the end ofthis long tunnel.

(The writer is a former IPSofficer, a former MP and currently a member of the AAP)

There will be several societal and behav-ioural changes in the next few years thatwe will all be able to ascribe to the impact

of the Coronavirus pandemic. A global phe-nomenon of wearing masks might take offbeyond East Asia where it had normalised afterthe SARS pandemic. Personal hygienechanges will almost certainly become a norm.Everybody will wash hands more often andcarrying a small personal hand-sanitiser willbecome a must. But what about shopping?With major outlets closed, traditional retail has

taken a hit across the world, one, which coupled with the rise of online com-merce, might make it difficult for the industry to recover. But some of the changesin online commerce, especially in India in Corona times, are noteworthy. Oneis the support that some online chains, from Amazon to Zomato, are gettingfrom the public authorities in deliveries, especially to quarantined zones. Theother major change is the way the delivery services are working. Small kiranaoutlets are making local area deliveries of bread, milk and eggs as well as freshproduce like fruits and vegetables. While some parts of major cities have decentaccess to provisions despite the lockdown, the fact that certain hotspots arebeing sealed as well as the news that the lockdown might continue for sever-al more days mean that such deliveries are becoming even more vital. In timesof restricted customer mobility, a smooth functioning of such platforms can helpserve high demands. But for that, it is essential for them to remain automat-ed and mechanised, they need to ensure adequate sanitisation of personnel andproducts and strive to drive innovation in the last mile. These new models, whichmarketing experts would describe as “competitive collaboration,” might be theway forward for the growth of e-commerce in India. This is because social andphysical distancing might also become a norm across huge swathes of the nation.

Of course, it is too early to predict when the nationwide lockdown will becompletely lifted; it may be a month before some areas of the country areopened up. It is also impossible to predict which business models will sur-vive the lockdown. Business as usual, as this paper has noted in the past, isover. That is also going to be the case with e-commerce. But will this collab-orative model be the best way out of the lockdown rut for e-commerce com-panies? One will have to wait and watch.

First things first. India has no choice butto develop its own template of protect-ing itself from the monstrous attack of the

Coronavirus. That means in a densely popu-lated country like ours, we will need to min-imise the rush of people in danger of conta-minating each other. Hence a protracted spellof lockdown and a behavioural monitoring, forexample, at markets. The other is harvestingavailable resources in a poorly developed healthframework to treat the sick, which meansaggressive testing in clusters and faster serol-

ogy tests besides pool tests in virgin areas. In other words, a tiered approachto the problem. Then there is the larger challenge of enabling the economy atthe local level through staggered permits for agriculture and production. And givenIndian doctors and researchers have gone on to achieve world acclaim, it is timefor us to trust home-grown experience and expertise to fight our battle, both onthe medical and economic fronts. Simply because nobody else will fight it forus. Certainly not the World Health Organisation (WHO), which has bungled inestimating the extent of the Wuhan contagion and led many countries to believethat it was a local problem. US President Donald Trump has threatened to cutfunding to the world body, saying while his nation keeps it alive, it had been guid-ed by Chinese projections of the virus. While transactional politics should cer-tainly not be the order of the day in this test of survival of the human race, thefact is that the WHO did mislead us by changing its own advisories and delay-ing the classification of the virus as a pandemic. Had we gone by all its advi-sories, then we could have gone under. Already the spiral, largely the result offocussed testing, shows how deeply the disease has spread in the hinterlandand how an early warning system could have helped us shut down internation-al flights at least two weeks earlier. As late as January 30, WHO Director-GeneralTedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said he would not recommend travel restrictionsto China. Yet on the same day, WHO’s International Health Regulations EmergencyCommittee raised a global alert on the need for containment, surveillance, detec-tion, isolation and even contact tracing. India’s first advisory on avoiding non-essential travel to China came before but by then hotspots had sprung up inEurope and the US.

The Government, while taking note of the WHO advisories, has totally reliedon the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and in a collaborative effortis sharing the experience of several State Governments — be it Kerala, Rajasthan,Maharashtra or Uttar Pradesh. The aggressive containment, cluster isolation,aggressive testing and minute observation at hotspots is a story of learning andsharing that has made cooperative federalism the new credo. The all-party con-sultative meetings are back, too. The Government, alarmed by reports in theUS that droplets of infected people could hang in the air for a while, made mask-wearing mandatory while stepping outdoors although the WHO argued againsta directive on face covers, saying masks were needed for those who are symp-tomatic, health workers or caregivers. And while the WHO stuck to the “test,test, test” formula, the ICMR countered that with “isolate, isolate, isolate,” giventhat we cannot afford to let precious test kits go waste even as we indigeniseproduction. In fact, some States adopted voluntary quarantine even before thenational lockdown based on this advice. Simply because the airport screeningwas not effective in identifying carriers and spreaders. This may not entirely flat-ten the curve but at least won’t let it bulge and break either, considering we areyet assessing the depth of seepage at the community level. While testing is goingon according to parameters, the rapid antibody tests in “areas reporting clus-ters and in large migration gatherings/evacuee centres” are a faster way of datacollection and establishing the right graph. And though the WHO did not rec-ommend a treatment protocol, doctors in Jaipur tried out two anti-virals — lopinavirand ritonavir — in saving patients. Doctors here also worked out a combina-tion of hydroxychloroquine and the antibiotic azithromycin to slow down theprogress of the disease. A vaccine and cure are far away and Indian researchersare part of global trials on the disease. But till then, smart COVID managementand a ground-up, felt approach will be our only saviour.

Ear to the ground

Take the call soon

Sir — Many States are demand-ing extension of the 21-day lock-down to allay fears and to miti-gate the spread of the virus. Theimpact of the current lockdownhas been such that it has affect-ed the economy drastically,including slowing the growth,migration, closure of public trans-port and rising unemployment.The Government should make aquick decision either to lift thelockdown soon or extend thesame. This will dispel fake mes-sages and rumours now doing therounds on social media.

An early decision by theGovernment will not only helpthe citizens gear up for comingdays but also help the agencies tobe better prepared to fight thepandemic by staying abreast ofthe situation. A prompt decisionwill also help them procure nec-essary Personal ProtectiveEquipment (PPE) kits, ventilatorsand medical supplies, amongother things in sufficient quanti-ties if the need so arises. Timelyharvesting of the wheat crop, too,is essential for the farmers.

Varun DambalBengaluru

Make a phased exit plan

Sir — Over the last few days, therehas been a demand in the mediato stretch the current lockdownperiod beyond April 14. AssamFinance Minister Himanta BiswaSarma said that everything shouldnot be opened on April 15; ratherthe lockdown should be lifted sys-

tematically and scientifically toavoid chaos. Union MinisterPrakash Javadekar, after a recentmeeting of the Cabinet, said thata decision would be taken “in thenational interest” at the right time.

India is monitoring the worldsituation to be able to fight thehighly contagious virus effec-tively. My personal opinion is that

the lockdown should be with-drawn in a phased manner. Thatis because saving lives is moreimportant than the economy.Lifting the lockdown unsystem-atically will certainly increasethe incidence of COVID-19 infec-tion. Therefore, the Governmentmust take a considered step sothat people do not face the kind

of situation many Western coun-tries are facing.

AL Nadwi Bengaluru

Putting heads together

Sir — This refers to the report,“PM, Opp concur on more lock-down” (April 9). For a change, theruling Government andOpposition parties are on thesame page in the battle againstCoronavirus. Yes, an extension ofthe lockdown will be tough formillions of Indians, especially fordaily wagers and poor people, butthe Government will have totake a hard decision in the larg-er interest of the nation.

While the Prime Ministerhas spoken to Opposition parties,economists, business tycoons andother stakeholders, State ChiefMinisters can also give feedback.A collaborative approach will beof immense help. A staggered lift-ing of the lockdown is essential.Areas not/less affected by theinfection can be opened up first.

Bal GovindNoida

P A P E R W I T H P A S S I O N

www.dailypioneer.comfacebook.com/dailypioneer | @TheDailyPioneer | instagram.com/dailypioneer/

op nionVIJAYAWADA | FRIDAY | APRIL 10, 2020

06

Light at the end of tunnel

AJOY KUMAR

While dealing with the Coronavirus epidemic, India must draw a fine line betweenreaction and response. Its measures must be thoughtful rather than emotive

While forces are servingthe needy amid the prevail-ing situation in the country, the border deployment has not been affected inany manner.

BSF Director-General —SS Deswal

I don’t have the expertise inthat department, I lack the skillto market myself. Some peoplehave it and they are blessedbut I don’t think I have expertise to promote myself.

Actor—Kay Kay Menon

I would like to reopen the USeconomy with a big bang butthe death toll from Coronavirus needs to be on the down slope before that can happen.

US President—Donald Trump

S O U N D B I T E

L E T T E R S T O TT H E E D I T O R

Locking India is the safest option

It is clear from the rising number of cases in India thatwe have not at all reached a stage of containment or“flattened the curve” to lift the 21-day nationwide lock-

down on April 14. To put it simply, the extension of thelockdown has become not just essential but inevitable.The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is report-ed to have advised the Government to stretch the lock-down. Given the mode of transmission of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is human-to-human, it is commonsense that “physical distancing” needs to be maintainedto stop the spread of the virus and save lives.Considerations of survival must override all other con-cerns. While “sustained and uninterrupted lockdown”is needed, we shouldn’t be thinking in terms of “stag-gered exit”, “periodic relaxation” or “hot spot strategy.”

The pandemic has necessitated staying indoors; allexcept healthcare workers, police personnel andproviders of essential goods and services must stayindoors. Of course, we can step out to fetch foodgrainsand groceries but “social distancing” must be maintained.This is important in view of the potential of the conta-

gion to engulf clusters of human populations overwhelm-ingly. It will become very hard to manage if “commu-nity transmission” takes place. In these difficult andunsettled times our collective efforts, marked by our ratio-nal and responsible behaviour, alone will overcome thekiller virus. In the name of resumption of economic activ-ities or economic renewal, we cannot afford to cast pru-dence to the winds and imperil lives.

G David MiltonMaruthancode

UNFORTUNATELY,FOR OUR ELECTED

LEADERS, THERE ISLITTLE SCOPE FOR

SUCH BLIND SPOTSWHILE DEALING

WITH A PANDEMICAND BALANCINGOUR ECONOMIC

INTERESTS ON THESAME SCALE. WE

MUST, THEREFORE,BE UNAFRAID OFDIVERSE VIEWS

AND ENCOURAGEOPEN

COMMUNICATION

Send yyour ffeedback tto:letterstopioneer@gmail.com

E-commerce to rescueGovernment has given relax-ations, farmers will not haveto face problems during thelockdown. Shops of agricul-ture machinery and equipmentwill remain open at highways.

Union Minister—Narendra Singh Tomar

Ignore the politics but WHO did misread the pandemic as itevolved. India has done well to rely on its field assessment

With deliveries getting going once again, but now supportedby physical stores, is the way India shops going to change?

Locked down with a predator

IT’S PRETTY CLEAR THAT THE WHO HASN’T BEENABLE TO ACHIEVE WHAT IT WAS DESIGNED TO. WEJUST CAN’T CONTINUE TO PERMIT THAT TO GO ON.

—US SECRETARY OF STATE MIKE POMPEO

SOLIDARITY AT THE GLOBAL LEVEL AND LEADERSHIPFROM THE US AND CHINA. THE MOST POWERFULSHOULD LEAD THE WAY. QUARANTINE COVID POLITICS.—WHO DIRECTOR GENERAL TEDROS ADHANOM GHEBREYESUS

POINTCOUNTERPOINT

In the run-up to the announcement of a nation-wide lockdown starting from March 25, therewere several areas where the Government

failed to craft a strategy to address its possible fall-out. One such aspect that was completely ignoredwas the way to deal with incidents of domestic vio-lence (DV) against women and children in the coun-try during the 21-day shut down. The checks andbalances that needed to be in place for victims ofDV to resort to in their hour of need were unheed-ed.

The term “domestic violence” (DV) is used inmany countries to refer to intimate partner violence(IPV) but it also encompasses child or elder abuse,or abuse by any member of a household. Accordingto the World Health Organisation (WHO), one inevery three women across the globe experiencephysical and/or sexual violence by an intimate part-ner or sexual violence by any perpetrators in theirlifetime: At least 30 per cent of all women who havebeen in a relationship have experienced physicaland/or sexual violence by their intimate partner.

It has been seen that violence against womentends to increase during every type of emergency,including epidemics. So, not surprisingly it hasincreased globally during the lockdowns enforcedby governments to combat the spread of COVID-19. It is fuelled by social distancing, economic uncer-tainties and anxieties caused by the Coronaviruspandemic.

For instance, countries like China, the UnitedStates (US), the United Kingdom (UK), Brazil,Tunisia, France, Australia and many others havereported cases of increased DV/IPV. India is alsoshowing symmetrical trends, especially when it isinfamous for being the fourth-worst country (afterthe United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Saudi Arabia)for gender equality (ranked by perception).

According to the Crime in India Report, 2018,published by the National Crime Records Bureau(NCRB), every 1.7 minutes a crime was recordedagainst women in India, every 16 minutes a rapewas committed and every 4.4 minutes a child is sub-jected to domestic violence.

Within a few days of the lockdown, theNational Commission for Women (NCW) noteda rise in the number of DV/IPV complaintsreceived via e-mails. The NCW Chairpersonbelieves that the real figure is likely to be more sincethe bulk of complaints comes from women in thelower strata of society, who send their complaintsby post. In March and up to April 5, the NCWreceived 310 grievances of DV. During this period,a total of 885 complaints were received by the NCWfor other forms of violence against women (exam-ple: Bigamy/polygamy; denial of maternity bene-fits to women; dowry deaths; harassment of mar-ried women/dowry harassment; outraging themodesty of women/molestation; rape/attempt torape; right to live with dignity; sexual assault andsexual harassment). Several women’s rights organ-isations have also been receiving numerous DVcomplaints since the enforcement of the lockdown.

The number of cases reported might not be pro-portional to the actual rise in the number of DV/sex-ual abuse cases. This is because the woman/childlocked down with the abuser does not get accessto a mobile phone or the space and time, with lim-ited access to financial resources and social networksor even the courage when s/he could call up for help.In other words, all options of escape for the formerfrom their situation of despair are impaired.

Thus, the intensity of the impediments s/hewould normally face has been exacerbated by the

pandemic and the lockdown.While the NCW Chairperson has

urged women to contact the police orreach out to State Women’s Commissionsif they face DV or their children are beingabused, it must be noted that theremight be chances where the police aredelayed in such rescues. This is becausethey are already handling challenges ofenforcing the lockdown, ensuring deliv-ery of essentials to vulnerable sections andin several places assisting health workersin the discharge of their duties. Further,women have felt additionally unsafe inapproaching the police because theythink that if their husbands are arrested,they could be harassed by in-laws, or oncetheir husbands return, they or their chil-dren would be tortured even more.

With partners and children potential-ly trapped at home during the COVID-19 lockdown, the rate and intensity ofabuse could get even worse and extendto child abuse. Repeated acts of physicalviolence, such as slapping, hitting, kick-ing and beating; sexual violence, includ-ing forced sexual intercourse and otherforms of sexual coercion; emotional(psychological) abuse, such as insults,belittling, constant humiliation, intimida-tion (e.g. destroying things), threats ofharm, threats to take away children; con-trolling behaviour, including isolating aperson from family and friends; monitor-ing their movements; restricting access tofinancial resources, employment, educa-tion or medical care, often result indepression, panic attacks, other anxietydisorders and even suicides.

It often has lasting impacts on the sur-vivors as research suggests that the mem-ory of abuse persists long after the vio-lence has stopped. This often results inchronic health problems and developingrisks of many diseases that arise from pro-longed stress.

In the critical situation of trying tocombat a pandemic, an increased num-ber of women/children are faced with the

plague of DV within their households. Itmust not come as a surprise because DVtopped in the category of violence againstwomen/girls in 2018. As per the data, atotal of 89,097 cases related to crimesagainst women/girls were registeredacross India in 2018. The figures indicatethat not much has improved when com-pared to the figure of 86,001 cases regis-tered under this head in 2017. The crimerate per lakh women/girl populationwas 58.8 in 2018 in comparison to 57.9in 2017.

The National Family Health Survey(NFHS-4), 2015-16 highlighted that 30per cent of women/girls in India in theage group of 15-49 experienced physicalviolence since the age of 15.

Among married women experienc-ing physical, sexual or emotional violence,an alarming 83 per cent claimed that theirhusbands were the main perpetrators ofsuch forms of abuse, followed by abusefrom the mothers (56 per cent), fathers(33 per cent) and siblings of the husbands(27 per cent). The major crimes report-ed by women in India are — cruelty byhusband or relatives (32.6 per cent),assault on women with intent to outrageher modesty (25 per cent), kidnappingand abductions (19 per cent) and rape(11.5 per cent).

The above crime statistics are unableto capture the data on violence againstwomen in its entirety. This is primarilydue to the prevalence of orthodox socialnorms and the stigma that is placed onsurvivors of DV/sexual abuse whichleads to such cases being grossly under-reported. The report also shows thatunemployment and alcoholism of themale partner are highly associated withDV/sexual abuse on women/girls.

In addition to the direct healththreat posed by the Coronavirus, the pan-demic and restrictions aimed at checkingits spread have heightened anxieties,right from apprehensions of catching thedisease, to financial worries, to social con-

cerns. There is also a concern thatDV/sexual abuse would further increasewith job losses and other economic pres-sures. An added challenge has been theimportance of intertwined negative psy-cho-social impact on mental health ofwomen/girls.

In the attempt to flatten the COVID-19 curve, women’s equality and physicaland mental health seem to have suffereda collateral damage. The Governmentoverlooked the need to formally integrateDV/sexual abuse and mental healthrepercussions into the public health pre-paredness and emergency response plansagainst Coronavirus. In fact, theSustainable Development Goal (SDG)that seeks to “eliminate all forms of dis-crimination and violence against womenin the public and private spheres and toundertake reforms to give them thesame rights to economic resources andaccess to property by 2030”, is being enor-mously compromised.

Members of the community must bemade aware about the increased risks towomen’s/girls health and life in the lock-down days. They must develop the ethosto condemn violence and shoulder theresponsibility of offering all possibleassistance to ensure their safety. In itsefforts against COVID-19, theGovernment must allow civil societyorganisations, counsellors, mental healthorganisations and providers to come tothe rescue of the women/girls facingDV/sexual abuse. Reaching out towomen/girls in distress and the need toaddress the various forms of violenceagainst them need to be classified as an“essential service” by the Government.Finally, the perpetrators of DV/IPV/sex-ual abuse must be brought to trial andrepeat offenders must be dealt withstrictly as per the provisions of law.

(Simi is CEO and Editorial Director,IMPRI, Balwant is Fellow at IHD, Co-Founder and Visiting Senior Fellow, IMPRIand Kumar is Director, IMPRI)

In its bid to flatten the COVID-19 curve, the Govt overlooked the need to formally integratedomestic violence/abuse into the public health preparedness and emergency response plan

analysis 07F I R S T C O L U M N

A Catch-22situation

MARKANDEYKATJU

DHRUTIKAPADIA

While short lockdowns would be valid, long shutdowns would not be good for the people or

the economy of the country

SIMIMEHTA

ARJUNKUMAR

BALWANTMEHTA

IN ITS EFFORTSAGAINST

COVID-19, THEGOVERNMENTMUST ALLOWCIVIL SOCIETY

ORGANISATIONS,COUNSELLORS,

MENTAL HEALTHORGANISATIONSAND PROVIDERSTO COME TO THE

RESCUE OF THEWOMEN/GIRLS

FACINGDV/SEXUAL

ABUSE. REACHINGOUT TO

WOMEN/GIRLSIN DISTRESS AND

THE NEED TOADDRESS THE

VARIOUS FORMSOF VIOLENCE

AGAINST THEMNEED TO BE

CLASSIFIED AS AN‘ESSENTIAL

SERVICE’ BY THEGOVERNMENT

Should the lockdown be ended after the three-week period announcedon March 24 by the Prime Minister expires on April 14, or should itbe continued thereafter? This is the Catch-22 situation which the author-

ities in India are facing. Some States are already putting pressure on NarendraModi to extend the lockdown while Odisha has gone ahead and extend-ed its shutdown till April 30. The PM will take a call on extending the shutdown in other States on April 11. So let’s look at the alternatives beforethe Government and their consequences.

The consequences of lifting the lockdown: Ending the lockdown mayresult in a huge surge in Coronavirus cases and many more deaths. Tillnow the number of infected people in India is 5,865 and we have seen -169 deaths so far. Globally, the effect of the pandemic has been felt moreby the developed nations and the number of cases worldwide has touched15,36,205 with 89,887 deaths. Nations are fighting over medicines theythink can help them stop the march of the Coronavirus as it is universal-ly accepted that as yet there is no vaccine or cure for the disease (thoughresearch is going on at a war footing worldwide). Till now the only waywe know how to stop the spread of the virus in through social distanc-ing. The 21-day lockdown in India forced people to observe social dis-tancing and this meant that a Corona-positive person could not infect oth-ers. This enforced social distancing will end when the shutdown is liftedas people will start meeting each other in schools, factories, offices, busi-ness houses, media houses, courts, malls, restaurants, cinema halls, reli-gious places, trains, buses and so on, thereby spreading the disease.

If there is anything that we know about the Coronavirus with certain-ty is the fact that it is highly infectious and spreads rapidly when socialdistancing is not maintained. A single person may infect half a dozen oth-ers and each one of these may infect half a dozen more and so on, tillthousands of people are sick. This is like a chain reaction in an atomicbomb. So, if the Government lifts the lockdown, it will be endangering mil-lions of people who will start going about their business as usual, becauseeven if one or two in the crowd is a COVID-19 vector, they will set off thechain-reaction of infection, till it spreads to lakhs of people.

The biggest problem that India is facing is that there is little medicaltesting in the country for the Coronavirus as we simply do not have enoughtesting kits/equipment and so on, to meet the requirement of 1.3 billionpeople. Hence, it is difficult for us to plug the gaps and it is easy for per-sons infected with the Coronavirus to fall through the cracks as the dis-ease is asymptomatic for the first 15 days. It is because of the fear of anexplosion in Coronavirus cases that States are reluctant to lift the lock-down. While Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao is in favourof extending the shut down in his State, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh(UP), Assam, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand have indicated that they wouldnot fully lift the restrictions after April 14. In fact, in UP 15 districts havebeen sealed as they have emerged as COVID-19 hotspots.

The consequences of not lifting the lockdown: To continue with theshutdown may result in poor people dying of hunger in large numbers asthey are deprived of food, work and money, like the immigrant workers incities who had to trek hundreds of kilometres on foot to their villages. Awhopping 80-90 per cent of Indian workers are in the unorganised sec-tor of the economy and these are daily wage earners, having no securityof tenure. The shutdown has hit these workers and their families the hard-est. Reports are coming in from rural areas that farmers cannot sell theirproduce as there is no transport available to take it to the wholesale mar-kets, besides the fact that no one is coming to them. Hence their produceis often perishing unsold. Also, this is harvest time but the labourers whoused to work fields are not available, as they mostly used to come fromtowns or nearby districts, but are unable to do so because of the lock-down. Hence, farmers will suffer major harvest losses. The police forceseems to have become baton-happy these days and there are reports ofcops beating people found outside their homes, no matter what their rea-son for doing so. Consequently, people are afraid to step out of their hous-es. Many village shops have run out of stock as shopowners cannot replen-ish their goods. So people cannot buy essentials like medicines and gro-ceries. Business houses are suffering as the economy, which was alreadyin a bad shape prior to the lockdown, is crumbling even further. Internationalexports have taken a steep dive. Huge infrastructure projects are at a stand-still due to the lockdown. Many industries and sectors have closed downputting lakhs of workers out of jobs.

Government must strike a balance: Article 19(1)(b) of the Constitutiongrants citizens the right to assemble peacefully, Article 19(1)(d) grants themthe right to move freely throughout India and Article 19(1(g) grants themthe right to practice any profession, trade or vocation. No doubt these rightsare subject to reasonable restrictions, but it is well settled that for a restric-tion to be valid, it must not be excessive. While short lockdowns wouldbe valid, long shutdowns would not be good for the people or the econ-omy. Man is a social being. Human beings cannot survive for long in iso-lation since we are dependent on others for our existence. Hence socialdistancing may be possible for short periods but not for long ones. Indiais thus caught in a catch-22 situation, with hard choices to make.

(Katju is former Judge, Supreme Court and Kapadia is Advocate andSolicitor, Bombay High Court and Advocate on Record, Supreme Court)

No person shall be deprived of lifeor personal liberty exceptaccording to procedure estab-

lished by law,” says Article 21 of theIndian Constitution. The ability of ourgovernments to respond to the pan-demic must be extolled. Some heads ofStates, shedding their differences,appealed to humanity to fight united-ly against the Coronavirus.

As of now, all options are open,right from the use of ArtificialIntelligence (AI) to biotechnology towin the battle against the Coronavirus.

As the world is literally in a lockdown,Governments, right from China to theUS, are allowing private AI and dataanalytics firms to sweep through per-sonal data on phones for locations andso on. Facial recognition technology isalso deployed to search for people withCoronavirus. It is reported that com-panies like Tencent and Alibaba areworking with the Chinese Governmentto deploy these technologies andBeijing is using apps to collect travelhistory, time spent in infected placesand details of an individual’s interac-tions. So, in short, they know every per-sonal detail of an individual they wantto track, with the help of AI and apps.

In India, too, various Coronaapps are being made popular as ascreening and tracking tool.

In China, once the information iscollected, algorithms assign peoplehealth codes. These yellow, red andgreen codes notify whether one is tobe quarantined or not, whether one canuse the public transport or not. Most

of this data collection is not by choiceof the citizen. AI reports back to theGovernment if the individual hasgiven inconsistent answers or simplylied. Coercive actions follow that.The Government has superseded allprivacy conventions and is freelyallowing private companies to look intophones, computers, public cameras toachieve the results. The Chinese Statehas an extensive and often-called“Black Mirror-esque and dark” socialcredit system, which allows for mon-itoring of each action and behaviour.If the behaviour is aligned with theState, you are rewarded, otherwise youcan’t even board a train.

Looking Westward, in England SkyNews reports, “The Government isworking with mobile network O2 toanalyse anonymous smartphone loca-tion data to see whether people are fol-lowing its social distancing guidelines.”Israel is using mobile surveillance tosend users customised messages aboutwhether they are infected or not.

Social media firms like Facebook,Google and so on, are doing their bit,too, by giving Governments our data.So no matter where you are, theCoronavirus crisis has given “BigBrother” an excuse to watch you all thetime. And remember it is for “publichealth and your own good.” And ofcourse we have nothing to hide.

The stakes are getting higher as theUS-China trade wars have entered anew horizon of AI-based technology.Both nations are cognisant of the enor-mous power of AI-based surveillanceand medical technology. No friend ofthe Silicon Valley, US President DonaldTrump now has taken assistance froma company called BlueDot to create amass surveillance system to monitorpeople for COVID-19. The USGovernment last year had alreadytried to outlaw encryption and forcedFacebook to give it access to WhatsAppmessages. It is only a matter of timebefore other Silicon Valley giants likeMicrosoft and so on begin their dal-

liance with the White House to birththe most sophisticated reconnaissancesystems engineered to feed theGovernment your per-minute heartrate. Emergency legislations are intro-duced across the world to expedientdata collection and give theGovernment “war-like situation” pow-ers. In a statement, Kamran Khan ofBluedot told the media, “We know thatgovernments may not be relied uponto provide information in a timely fash-ion. This reflects the larger disbelief ingovernments and democratic institu-tions at large by this class of tech-nocrats.”

I don’t doubt the noble intentionsof our Governments and private com-panies in their efforts to controlCOVID-19 but the AI-based systemsthey are creating do force us to beg thequestion, what happens to mass sur-veillance-based systems after COVID-19 goes away? Will the mass surveil-lance, too, go away or evolve further?Can citizens of the world be certain it

won’t be misused? Coupled with 5G technology, this

system will be extremely powerful andits master will be the overlord of ourplanet. One can only think of AbrahamLincoln’s warning that, “Nearly allmen can stand adversity but if you wantto test a man’s character, give himpower.” What will happen to our lead-ers when they can pry into our lives onthe touch of a button. This system willopen up a Pandora’s box of control.People of the world must be very care-ful, for under the garb of remedies ofCOVID-19, lurks a far sinister danger.AI-based mass surveillance slithers intoour lives with our approval. As fearreigns, neighbour has already turnedagainst neighbour. People of Asiandescent are becoming Hitler’s Jews. Asnews of racial hatred is rising, we areglobally descending into chaos. Wehave to ensure the virus doesn’t aidanother holocaust of hate and fearempowered by technology. From thegas chambers to the nuclear bomb, they

were all cutting-edge science of theirtime and yet they served Satanic ends.Champions of technology and sciencelike Elon Musk and Stephen Hawkingalong with other scientists, have alreadycautioned the world against AI. In factMusk goes on to say that, “AI is moredangerous than nuclear weapons.” Weneed to curb indiscriminate use of AI-based technology, especially applica-tions that loot our privacy and rights.Democracy, privacy and humanityare threatened by private technocrat-ic tools like AI-based surveillance. Thecrisis is not an excuse to free them fromregulation, we need to have a “pre-nup-tial” agreement with these firms andtechnology.

We all agree that the Corona cri-sis must be stopped by all means nec-essary but we should be very carefulthat our remedies don’t seed the nextdisease — a mass surveillance State.

(The writer is Programme Directorfor Policy and Outreach at the NationalSeed Association of India)

Big Brother is watching behind COVID maskWe all agree that the Coronavirus crisis must be stopped by all means necessary but we should be very careful that our AI-based

remedies don’t seed the next disease — a mass surveillance State

INDRA SHEKHAR SINGH

VIJAYAWADA | FRIDAY | APRIL 10, 2020

www.dailypioneer.com

VIJAYAWADA | FRIDAY | APRIL 10, 2020 money 08

CAPSULE

HMSI pledgesfinancial support todealers amidlockdown

JSPL promotercompanies repay Rs391 crore debtNew Delhi: Three promotercompanies of JSPL have repaidan amount totalling Rs 391crore to the lenders, said acompany official. Thecompanies are OpelinaSustainable Services Ltd, OPJTrading Private Ltd and GaganInfra Energy Ltd. "Thesepromoter companies haverepaid loans of around Rs 391crore out of total debt amountRs 747 crore as on December3, 2019," the official said. Thesaid promoter companies havealso informed the exchangesabout the development, hesaid. "With this repayment, thecurrent debt at promoter levelunder loan against sharesstands at only Rs 356 crore,"he said. Part of the USD 25-billion OP Jindal Group, JSPLhas presence in steel, power,mining and infrastructuresectors.

New Delhi: Honda Motorcycleand Scooter India (HMSI) onThursday said it has lined up aslew of measures, includingbuyback of unsold BS-IVstock, in order to support itssales partners during theunprecedented nationwidelockdown due to thecoronavirus pandemic. Thetwo-wheeler major said itplans to buy back the BS-IVinventory lying unsold withfew dealers, majorly in Delhi-NCR area, and provideadvanced payments ofincentives andreimbursements across thethree functions -- sales,service and spare parts. Thecompany will also entirely bearthe interest cost of BS-VIinventory (physical plustransit) with the dealers for the21 days of the lockdown, itadded.

Covid-19: Nasscom seeksgovt help for BPM, GCCsPNS n NEW DELHI

IT industry body Nasscomhas sought a relief packagefrom the government, includ-ing allowing bench employeesto be paid only minimumwages, to prevent job losses inbusiness process management(BPM) and global capabilitycentres (GCC) sectors.

Nasscom said BPM, GCCand parts of IT industry areoperating at maximum 70 percent capacity utilisation inwake of the lockdown imposedto contain the spread of thecoronavirus infection in thecountry.

Assuming that 20 per cent ofthe industry is idle, salarycosts would be huge for com-panies that employ lakhs ofworkers, it added.

Nasscom urged that theyshould be allowed to pay benchemployees only minimumwages along with statutorilyentitlements.

"In the absence of work, itwill be difficult for companiesto pay regular incomes to theemployees on bench. This willensure such employees arepaid as per the statutoryrequirements along with other

entitlements," it added.Employees on bench are

those who aren't working onany project for the time beingbut remain on the rolls andreceive regular salary from thecompany.

Nasscom suggested intro-duction of a furlough scheme,like one in the UK where forthe period of lockdown,employee stay on the rolls ofthe companies without salaries.

During this period, the gov-ernment pays 50 per cent of the

employees' salary (no furthercontribution from company)and during that period, theaccruals of the employee alsocease.

This is required immediate-ly to prevent job losses whichwill be the case after April 15,Nasscom argued.

It has also asked the govern-ment to expand its scheme forbearing employer and employ-ee contribution towardsProvident Fund for the nextthree months.

"This (present scheme) is forthose establishments whichhave up to 100 employees and90 per cent of them earn lessthan Rs 15,000. Suggest thatthis be extended to all estab-lishments without the cap of100 employees and 90 per centof them earning less than Rs15,000.

"Government may, however,cap the contribution of 24 percent up-to a wage amount notexceeding Rs 15,000," it said.

This will provide a signifi-cant benefit particularly toB P M / I T - e n a b l e dservices/GCCs companies, itadded.

The industry body suggest-ed that an option be providedto employers for a one-timePF/ESI opt-out option toreduce the costs, withoutaffecting take home salarypresently. This, it said, willenable greater take home salaryfor employees as pay hikes aredifficult.

The coronavirus outbtreakacross the globe has had a dis-ruptive impact on businesses,demand and supply of prod-ucts, services as also cash flowof firms due to slowing eco-nomic activity.

Nasscom said BPM, GCC and parts of ITindustry are operating at maximum 70per cent capacity utilisation

PNS n NEW DELHI

The domestic cement indus-try is likely to face yet anoth-er decline in demand inFY21 after posting negativegrowth last fiscal, IndiaRatings and Research said.

The ratings agency expectsa "washout" in April 2020 dueto the ongoing lockdown,followed by demand declineof around 40 per cent in May.However, it expects a gradualrecovery thereafter.

The agency expects a lowsingle-digit growth in Q2(July-September) period anda significant recovery hap-pening only in Q3 (October-December).

Cement demand haddeclined in FY20, which was

only the second instance of adecline in the past 15 years,after the demonetisationaffected FY17.

India Ratings andResearch expects successivedeclines in cement demandFY21, following the FY20trend, with growth plungingto a historical low of negative4-5 per cent yoy given thenation-wide lockdown till14 April 2020," it said.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Micro, small and mediumenterprises (MSME) exporterswill be impacted more by thecurrent lockdown on accountof COVID-19 pandemic asthe sector accounts for over 45per cent of the country's totaloutbound shipments, accord-ing to trade experts.

They said the magnitude ofthe impact on MSMEexporters can be gauged fromthe statement of the WorldTrade Organisation (WTO)which has projected that glob-al trade in goods is set todecline steeply between 13 percent and 32 per cent in 2020as countries across the worldare battling the pandemic.

The sector also contributesabout 25 per cent to the coun-try's GDP (Gross DomesticProduct) from service activi-ties and over 33 per cent to themanufacturing output ofIndia. Biswajit Dhar, a profes-sor of economics at JawaharlalNehru University, said thegovernment should immedi-ately come out with an incen-tive package for exporters asthe current crisis will 'severe-ly' hit the MSME sector.

"India will suffer very badlyand the biggest impact will beon the MSME exporters. They

will also face issues in callingback their workers as severalof them have migrated totheir villages and towns," hesaid. He said several countries,including the US, Japan andGermany, have announcedincentive packages,

"Incentives will helpexporters to resume the workimmediately after things startgetting normal, otherwisethey will not be able to restoretheir global buyers," Dharadded. Rakesh Mohan Joshi,professor at Indian Institute of

Foreign Trade (IIFT), saidthe outbreak of COVID-19has put economies across theworld on a virtual standstill.

"India's major export itemssuch as petrochemicals, gemsand jewellery, automobiles andauto components, cotton yarnsand textiles, apparels, marineproducts, bovine meat amongothers are likely to receive a joltprimarily due to slump indemand in its major marketsand disruption of supplychains which are integratedacross countries," he said.

‘Ready to fight invisible, invasive Covid-19’PNS n NEW DELHI

The CRPF is all geared to"fight the invisible and invasiveenemy" in the form of the coro-navirus pandemic in the coun-try, the chief of the force saidon Thursday.

In a communication to histroops on the occasion of the'Valour day' of the force, CRPFDirector General (DG) A PMaheshwari asked them to bestrong and fit for serving thecountry during these toughtimes.

"Dear friends, when goinggets tough, the tough getsgoing. Toughness is our trade-mark..."

"Today, the entire nation isfacing a tough time due toCOVID-19. I am happy thatbeing tough yourself, you allhave geared up to help peoplefight the invisible and invasive

enemy," he said.The DG said "all pro-

grammes related to the day arefor the time being suspended"in view of the viral outbreak.

"However, we in ourthoughts and ethos uphold thedignity of the day," he said.

It was on April 9,1965 atSardar Post in Gujarat that onlytwo companies of CRPF heroesproved tough enough for a full

brigade of Pakistani army,making them bite the dust,Maheshwari said.

"We are and will always beproud of their valour and sac-rifice for the motherland," hesaid.

President Ram Nath Kovindsaid the Central Reserve PoliceForce men, who were killed inaction, wrote a "golden histo-ry" on this day with their

extraordinary bravery, patrio-tism and sacrifice.

He also paid his tributes tothe martyrs in a message issuedover Twitter.

Prime Minister NarendraModi also lauded the braveryof the force.

"The courage of @crpfindiais widely known. On CRPFValour Day today, I salute thisbrave force and remember thebravery of our CRPF person-nel in Gujarat's Sardar PatelPost in 1965. The sacrifices ofthe brave martyrs will never beforgotten," the PM tweeted.

Union home minister AmitShah wished the force, sayinga small contingent of the force

created history by defeating theinvading enemy army that wasseveral times larger than them.

"Congratulations to every-one and salute to our bravemartyrs of CRPF. 'Shauryadivas' is a symbol ofindomitable courage, valourand sacrifice," Shah said onTwitter.

The fight-back by the force,which was posted for borderguarding duties that time, ismentioned as one of the glori-ous chapters in military histo-ry of the nation when only twocompanies (about 150 person-nel) of the force stood theirground and repulsed thePakistani attack.

PNS n MUMBAI

Equity benchmark Sensex ral-lied over 1,265 points onThursday, led by robust buyingin auto, financial and IT stocksamid hopes of a second stim-ulus package from the govern-ment to mitigate the blow ofthe Covid-19 lockdown.

After hitting a high of31,225.20 during the day, the30-share BSE barometer ended1,265.66 points or 4.23 per centhigher at 31,159.62.

Similarly, the NSE Niftysoared 363.15 points, or 4.15per cent, to 9,111.90.

Mahindra and Mahindrawas the top gainer in theSensex pack, surging over 16per cent, followed by Maruti,

Titan, Bajaj Finance, HDFC,Bajaj Auto and HeroMotoCorp.

On the other hand, HUL,Tech Mahindra, IndusIndBank and Nestle were the lag-

gards."Indian markets started trad-

ing on a positive note takingupbeat cues from its Asianpeers in the morning session aspolicymakers discussed the

process of reopening the glob-al economy as data showed aslowing spread of Covid-19,"said Narendra Solanki, Head-Equity Research(Fundamental), Anand Rathi.

During the afternoon ses-sion, market further strength-ened on back of expectations ofsecond stimulus package esti-mated at around Rs 1 lakh croreand focus on helping small andmedium businesses, which led toboth broad-based buying andalso triggered some short cover-ing, he added.

A Bank of America Securitiesreport said the Centre may soonannounce another fiscal packagewhich may be almost similar tothe Rs 1.75 lakh crore stimulusunveiled last month.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Apparel retailers are expectedto offer large-scale discounts toclear old stocks and also perkup consumer sentiments oncethe lockdown is lifted, accord-ing to industry players.

A series of lockdownsaround the world has severe-ly impacted the fashion retailecosystem as stores all over theworld shuttered, resulting incancellations of late Summerand Autumn merchandise anda build-up of unsold Summer2020 within the business, theysaid.

Benetton India ManagingDirector and CEO SundeepChugh told PTI that although"there is certainly no specificdiscounting strategy post lock-down, as a brand we wouldwant to uplift the sentiments ofour consumers through a wel-come-back strategy encapsu-lating season specific offers andengagements at our stores".

Chugh further said,"Weanticipate the lockdown wouldbe lifted by/during mid-sea-son, and that's the time whengenerally mid-season offersprevail and we would mostlyalign with the same as per themarket ecosystem."

Moreover, he said,"Benetton

is trying to fully adhere to gov-ernment regulations and wewant to take all decisions intandem with the government'sinstructions.”

Spykar Lifestyles CEOSanjay Vakharia also said thesituation would depend entire-ly on how long does the lock-down continue and when therestrictions would be eased.

"Also whether lifestyle busi-nesses will be the last to openor they will open along withthe rest is to be seen. But if thelockdown is lifted in thismonth we may be at the begin-ning of the Spring Summerseason, not necessitating anearly end of season sale.However, if opening is delayed,the Spring summer will be ondiscount then," he said.

Giving a global perspective,Forever New CountryManager Dhruv Bogra saidCOVID-19 crisis seriously dis-rupted the global supply chainfor fashion early this year.

Covid-19 pandemic to hit MSMEexporters more: Trade experts

Godrej Consumer partnersZomato, ShopKirana, Zoomcar PNS n NEW DELHI

FMCG major GodrejConsumer Products Limited(GCPL) on Thursdayannounced partnership withfood delivery app Zomato,B2B supply chain startupShopKirana and car rentalcompany Zoomcar for deliveryof essential goods during lock-down.

Zomato will deliver GCPLproducts directly to consumersat their doorsteps whileShopKirana will deliver themto individual retailers by con-necting with GCPL directly,said a statement.

Zoomcar, self-drive mobil-ity platform, will facilitatetimely delivery of various

essential products under thepersonal care, hair care, homecare and household insecticidecategories, to distributors, itadded.

Earlier three FMCG makers- ITC Foods, Marico andBritannia - had announcedpartenships with several firmsto get their products deliveredat consumer's doorsteps byusing the service of app-based

aggregators."We have embarked on three

unique collaborations toempower communities andcontribute to the greater causeof curbing this pandemic'sspread," GCPL CEO - India &SAARC Sunil Kataria said.

GCPL's home delivery ini-tiative will be listed underZomato's new app feature'Zomato Market'.

Worldwidesemiconductorrevenue todecline 0.9%PNS n BENGALURU

Due to the impact of thecoronavirus on semicon-ductor supply and demand,worldwide semiconductorrevenue is forecast todecline 0.9 per cent in 2020,according to Gartner Inc.

This is down from theprevious quarters forecast of12.5 per cent growth, theresearch and advisory firmsaid.

The wide spread ofCOVID-19 across the worldand the resulting strongactions by governments tocontain the spread will havea far more severe impact ondemand than initially pre-dicted, said RichardGordon, research practicevice-president at Gartner,was quoted as saying in astatement.

Blue Dartcuts retailtariff rates by25 per cent PNS n NEW DELHI

Express logistics servicesprovider Blue Dart Expresson Thursday said it hasreduced retail tariff prices by25 per cent, aiding the coun-try in its fight against thecoronavirus crisis.

Blue Dart Express, part ofDeutsche Post DHL Group(DPDHL), operates six ded-icated Boeing 757 freighterseach with a capacity of 34tonnes.

These aircraft have beenoperating during the lock-down period across Indiancities enabling essential ship-ments like medical equip-ment and pharmaceuticalproducts reach the firstresponders in hospitals andmedical institutions with thepromise of secure and time-ly deliveries.

Apparel retailers likely to offer hugediscounts after lifting of lockdown

The sector also contributes about 25per cent to the country's GDP (GrossDomestic Product) from serviceactivities

RBI hopes monetary,fiscal measures to spur eco activity PNS n MUMBAI

Amid lockdowns and globalslowdown adversely impactingthe economic activity, the RBIon Thursday expressed hopethat recent monetary and fis-cal measures will mitigate theimpact of COVID-19 ondomestic demand and spurgrowth once the normalcy isrestored.

Observing that it was diffi-cult to make growth projec-tions at this point of time, theReserve Bank in its MonetaryPolicy Report said the lock-down following the outbreakof COVID-19 and expectedcontraction in global outlookwould weigh heavily on thegrowth outlook.

It said prior to the outbreak,the outlook for growth for2020-21 was looking up.

The RBI noted that thebumper rabi harvest and high-

er food prices during 2019-20provided conducive condi-tions for the strengthening ofrural demand, the transmis-sion of past reductions in thepolicy rate to bank lendingrates has been improving, andreductions in the tax rates andmeasures to boost rural andinfrastructurespending weredirected at boosting domesticdemand more generally.

"The COVID-19 pandemichas drastically altered thisoutlook," the report said, andadded the global economy isexpected to slump into reces-sion in 2020, as post-COVIDprojections indicate.

NIIT’s free course tofight against Covid-19PNS n NEW DELHI

Skills and talent developmentcompany NIIT Ltd onThursday said it has speciallydesigned and launched a'Remote Work Excellence Kit'course to support the fightagainst Covid-19 crisis. Aimedat helping facilitate remoteworking for adults, the RemoteWork Excellence Kit is suitedfor corporate executives, smalland medium businesspersons,and management students, astatement said.

The online course coversareas such as how to set up aremote office, establishing aremote presence, setting upand running virtual meetings,time management while work-ing from home, remote busi-ness etiquettes, and also best

practices, it added."It is abundantly clear that

the COVID-19 pandemic notonly poses a massive healthchallenge, it will also lead toeconomic slowdown and achange in how businesses areconducted worldwide,” NIITLtd Vice Chairman andManaging Director VijayThadani said. In the immedi-ate term, work from home isimportant to not only main-tain social distancing but alsoas a means of keeping theeconomy ticking, he pointedout.

Going forward, it has thepotential to become a normrather than an exception andthe team has been able toquickly develop this usefuland timely Remote WorkExcellence kit, Thadani said.

Cement industry to seesuccessive decline

Sensex rallies over 1,265 pts; Nifty reclaims 9,100 level

A series oflockdowns aroundthe world hasseverely impactedthe fashion retailecosystem

CRPF DG AP Maheshwari asked them tobe strong and fit for serving the countryduring these tough times

Muskurayega Hyderabad!s the world bat-tles theCoronaviruspandemic, peo-ple are bom-barded with sad

and negative news often.Most of the news covereddaily tends to spread fear,panic, and hopelessness.And at a time when half-world is locked up indoorsfor weeks together, this isthe last thing one wouldwant to hear and feel.

To address this, bloggersfrom the city came up witha unique concept to bringsmiles on people’s faces.Aptly titled ‘MuskurayegaHyderabad,’ the idea is toboost the morale ofHyderabadis and let themknow that “this too shallpass.”

Muskurayega Hyderabadis the brainchild of citybloggers Namrata Sadhvaniand Shweta Parihar, whoaim to encourage their fel-low citizens to write about

their delightful momentsduring these times of dis-tress and panic with a pic-ture that represents hope.

Namrata Sadhvani tellsus, “We want people toextend their support toeach other in times

of crisis.The idea serves as an excel-lent way to spread smiles.”

Shweta seconds her say-ing, “People are fed up withnegative news and as socialmedia influencers, we’remaking the right use of our

popularity by widening thechances of hope.”

Sab Saath Hasenge tabhitoh#MuskurayegaHyderabad isinspired by

#MuskurayegaIndia cam-paign, reminding people ofall the happy times they’veseen and that we’ll all getthrough this too, soon.

Motivated by TelanganaChief Minister KChandrasekhar Rao’s

speech, both the bloggersbelieve social media mustpropagate more positivity.“All we know is that hope isthe most powerful compo-nent in these times of suf-fering and we are all in thistogether. We will be overthis, soon,” says Namrata.

In an attempt to bringpositivity amid this virus,Muskurayega Hyderabad issending out a message thatevery person, whether richor poor, regardless of theirreligion, can contribute andovercome this pandemic.“It’s a way to show solidari-ty while also spreadinghope and smiles,” they say.

To participate in the#MuskurayegaHyderabad,all you have to do is post ahappy picture of yourself inquarantine on your socialmedia handle with the#MuskureyegaHyderabadand mentioning that onething you’re looking for-ward to indulging in, oncethe lockdown ends.

While people arelocked inside homeand are exposed to

news that iscreating panic

about the ongoingpandemic, some

bloggers in the cityare using social

media platforms tospread smiles and a

message of hope, finds

SHIKHADUGGAL

A

TIPS TO KEEP PETS ENGAGED

Meet the brothersLIFTING SPIRITS with short videos

nspiration pushespeople to achievetheir goals andguides them toreach heights.Many people give

up easily on what they’vestarted without realising thepower they possess inachieving their dreams. ThisHyderabad-based youth whois suffering from MND(Motor Neuron Disease) isfighting the disease everyday and is setting an exam-ple to many people thatnothing can stop them fromachieving what they desire.Inspired by the way hisbrother is fighting the dis-ease, Sandeep along with hisbrother Phanideep started aYouTube channel TeluguGeeks and are making shortvideos to encourage andmotivate people aroundthem.

Speaking about his broth-er Phanideep, who suffersfrom MND that left himparalysed, Sandeep says, “Weare a happy-go-lucky family.All of a sudden, MND struckmy brother. Doctors told us

that he can survive only forsix months left. ButPhanideep defied destinyand is living happily formore than seven years sincethe disease hit him. He is aninspiration to many whogive up on life. He can’t con-verse or move properly but isdoing all he can to inspirepeople through our YouTubechannel.”

On how ‘Telugu Geeks’took shape, Sandeep shares,“We wanted to encourageand motivate people aroundus that are suffering withvarious issues. We started thechannel in 2016 and havebeen making short videosabout various psychologicalissues and how to deal withthem in life ever since. Webelieve that when we openup about our issues withsomeone, there is a sense ofrelief. Thus, we share storiesof people who defied all oddsto succeed in life.”

The duo reads manyinspirational and self-helpbooks to collate and sum-marise important pointsfrom them and use these

points to make a ten-minutevideo. “We read real-life sto-ries of people and under-stand how they overcamevarious problems beforeattaining success. We com-pile important points fromtheir lives and summarisethe book. Later, we work onhow to make put thesepoints into a video formatand then work on preparingthe script. My brotherPhanideep helps with theediting while I do the voice-over,” Sandeep explains.

The brothers also narratebiographies of people likeSteve Jobs and other promi-nent ones who are an inspi-ration to many. “All ourefforts are aimed at remov-ing negativity from peopleand inspiring them to takeup what they want to achievein life. We have been receiv-ing good feedback from ouraudience. They tell us ourvideos helped them get overcertain issues in their life. Itgives us utmost satisfactionknowing our efforts havebeen fruitful,” Sandeep con-cludes.

Hyderabad-based brothers Sandeep and Phanideepstarted a YouTube channel — Telugu Geeks — tohelp people deal with psychological issues, finds V SATEESH REDDY

Lockdown‘tails’

Most of the world isunder lockdown right

now to control thespread of

Coronavirus. But onething that plagues

the minds of peopleis the health of theirdogs. The lockdownhas not only brought

human’s life to agrinding halt, but

also that of our furryfriends.

K RAMYA SREEtalks to pet parentsand vets to find out

how we can keep ourpets safe and

entertainedat home

ver since Indiaentered lockdown,people have beenworried sick overthe impact of con-fining their pets at

home. The dogs and cats whichwere accustomed to going topet parks and for long eveningwalks, are now having tomake do with just a shortwalk, enough to justattend nature’s call, aspet parents preferreturning home assoon as possible.Animals, boththe ones at ho-me and strays,need your loveduring thesetrying times.

This 21-daylockdown peri-od is a goldenopportunity forpet parents toteach their furryfriends new com-mands and tricks. But afew burning questions onpets health that has beenhaunting people are: Can youtake them outside? How canthey exercise? Are they suscep-tible to contracting and spread-ing the virus?

Answers to these questionsare still unclear as medical pro-fessionals search for solutions.While there is nothing muchone can do than staying home,we spoke to a few pet loversand activists on steps to ensurethat your furry friends’ healthdoes not get affected duringthe lockdown.

Sajan Chowdary, member ofan animal welfare board andparent to a German shepherdand Indie says, “It’s been proventime and again that pets aren’tcarriers. So why quarantinethem? One can take safety mea-sures like wiping their pawswith a sanitiser or a medicatedsoap but the onus mainly lieson humans as we have this sub-standard habit of spitting on theroads. This can in turn end upsticking to their paws and canenter your home.”

Sajan makes sure his pets are

being vaccinated routinely evenduring these distressing times.“Showering your pet withtreats and love is not enough.Without exercise, pets, espe-cially the larger breeds, tend toget obese easily,” he adds.

K Navya,parent to a Pomerenian and atechie by profession talks aboutways to keep one’s pet healthy.She says, “One of the mostcommon ways to exercise yourdog is taking them for a walk. Ifyou’re healthy enough, walkingand running your pet is recom-mended. When you go outside,avoid touchingunnecessary surfacesand wash yourhands as soonas you

return home. Wash your pet’spaws when you return home.”

“If you are scared to ventureon to the streets even for 30minutes, making your pets runor play fetch on your building’sterrace or parking lot is also agood option,” she adds.

Speaking about ways to keepone’s pet active despite avoid-

ing walks, T Anusha Reddy, apet parent and an actor by

profession says, “Pets arecurious in nature and

love challenges, espe-cially ones thatreward them. Tryhiding treats orstuff their favouritefood inside one oftheir toys. Theyalso like games likehide-and-seek. Tryto entertain them

by playing suchgames.”

While the questionstill remains if animals

can contract the virus, DrRP Singh, a veternarian

tells us steps to ensure thepets are safe. He said, “Avoidtaking your dog to places wherethere are many people. Even ifyou are taking them for walk,take them during uncommonhours. Ensure you wipe theirpaws and clean their coat. Alsoensure you avoid taking themto places where there is grassand moisture. Social distancingis necessary for pets too.”

E

THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND:o Entertain your pets with toys or anything possible. Don’t

let them remain idle.o Keep your pet supplies in stocko Train your pets to urinate in the backyard if you are

unable to go out completelyo Keep two metres distance while taking them for a walk

and avoid crowded placeso Wash your hands for at least 20 seconds when you

return home.o Don’t let your pet lick surfaces outside.

(With inputs from Shikha Duggal)

I

Anusha Reddy

K Navya

FridayApril 10, 2020

Follow us on@TheDailyPioneerfacebook.com/dailypioneer

scar-winningcomposer ARRahman andlyricist PrasoonJoshi don’tseem happy

with a new recreated ver-sion of their 2009 gem,Masakali. The duo hadcreated the song forRakeysh OmprakashMehra’s film Delhi-6, andon Thursday joined agrowing band of socialmedia users who haveconveyed their disap-pointment over the newnumber.

Without mentioning thename of Masakali 2.0,Rahman tweeted: “Noshort cuts, properly com-missioned, sleepless nights,writes and re-writes. Over200 musicians, 365 days ofcreative brainstormingwith the main aim to pro-duce music that can lastgenerations. A team of aDirector, a Composer, anda Lyric supported byactors, dance directors anda relentless film crew.”

Along with it, Rahmanshared a link of the origi-nal song, which makes it

obvious what he isreferring to.

Sonam Kapoor, onwhom the original songwas picturised, retweet-ed Rahman’s tweet.

Lyricist Prasoon Joshiurged fans to stand fororiginality. “All songswritten for #Delhi6including #Masakaliclose to heart, sad to seewhen original creation of@arrahman@prasoon-joshi_ &singer@_MohitChauhan insen-sitively utilised,”Joshi wrote.

inger Kanika Kapoor,who had tested posi-tive for Covid-19 lastmonth, has finallyreturned home aftertreatment Kanika was

being treated at a Lucknow hos-pital for almost two weeks.

Kanika’s brother Anurag con-firmed the news. “Yes, Kanikais back. We all are very happy.She is doing fine now,” he said.He added that she has notbeen advised any precautionsby her doctors and is doing

well.Anurag also mentioned how

no one that she came in con-tact with since her return

from UK has tested positivefor the disease. “We areglad Kanika has recov-ered and what’s even bet-ter is that none of thepeople who she came

in contact with havetested positive,” hesaid.

Kanika was dis-charged from hos-pital on April 6after her sixthoverall and sec-

ond negative testfor Coronavirus. Shewill now be interro-

gated by the UttarPradesh Policeafter she com-pletes the 14-dayquarantine peri-od, as advised

by the doc-tors.

10

Vijayawada Friday April 10, 2020 what’s brewing?

O

Kanika returns home, no one

she came in contact with tested

+ve for Covid-19, says brother

Sis newtrackLoca iswowingthe fans,and pop

star Yo Yo HoneySingh is already allset to come up with

his next song, titledMoscow Suka. The

upcoming number,featuring Neha Kakkar,will be a mix of Punjabiand Russian language.

“Moscow Suka com-ing on April 12. Yougonna love it,” he wrote.

The Russian vocals weregiven by EkaterinaSizova.

Earlier on Wednesdayafternoon, Honey Singhshared that he is comingup with a new bilingualsong and asked fans toguess which interna-tional language he hasused in the track.

“The song I am drop-ping is going to be aPunjabi and interna-tionalcollaboration....comingsoon,” Honey Singhposted.

Honey Singh gainedinstant stardom withhits such as Main shara-bi, Angrezi beat andLungi dance.

He was missing fromthe limelight around2016-2017 but he madea stunning comebackwith the hits Dil choriand Chhote chhote pegin the film Sonu Ke TituKi Sweety.

His latest numberLoca has garnered over84 million views onYouTube at the lastcount.

Honey Singh to come

up with a bilingual song

h

ollywood star VarunDhawan will be huntingfor the best talent amongyoungsters across thenation through an onlinetalent hunt show titled

Entertainer No 1.Sharing the details of the show,

Varun said, “Through this newshow, we are seeking to entertainmillions of fellow Indians as webring in some much-needed pos-itivity. I’m looking forward todelivering the best entertainmentin collaboration with people fromacross India. Our country is a

treasure trove of talent and I trulybelieve that anyone should havethe opportunity to showcase theirentertainment skills.”

The stay-home reality show islaunching on Flipkart video incollaboration with Varun. Theactor believes that such concep-tual shows are important to staypositive as the world is goingthrough a tough time due to theCOVID19 pandemic.

Anyone who is 13 years orabove can record their perfor-mance video and upload thevideo directly in the Flipkart

video section andover the period ofeight weeks Varun,along with a panelof judges, will gothrough the processof deciding upon thebest talent.

Varun said, “Giventhe unique format ofthe show, I’m lookingforward to some excitingentries from across Indiaand can't wait to get on thisentertaining rollercoaster ridethat begins next week.”

BVarun Dhawan in onlinetalent hunt show

Rahman, Prasoon Joshi upset withrecreated version of Masakali

FUN

Rules

ARCHIE

GARFIELD

SUDOKU

REALITY CHECK SPEED BUMP CROSSWORD

GINGER MEGGS

NANCY

CALVIN AND HOBBES

l Each row and column cancontain each number (1 to 9)exactly once.

l The sum of all numbers inany row or column mustequal 45.

Yesterday’s solution

sport 11VIJAYAWADA | FRIDAY | APRIL 10, 2020

AFP n MILAN

ATP chairman Andrea Gaudenzi on Thursdaysaid he hopes the clay-court season and French

Open can be played in September as tennis scram-bles to salvage a season in danger of being wiped outby the coronavirus pandemic.

“If we manage to start again in August, we’ll savethree Slams and six Masters 1000, otherwise theproblems will increase tenfold,” Gaudenzi said in aninterview with several Italian media outlets.

“We are working on the hypothesis of four weekson clay after the US Open, with Madrid and Romebefore Roland Garros.”

Tennis has been in lockdown since early lastmonth and is not scheduled to return until July 13at the earliest following the cancellation ofWimbledon for the first time since World War II.

The decision to axe the sport’s oldest and mostprestigious Grand Slam event followed the FrenchOpen’s unilateral switch from its traditional May-Juneslot to September-October.

Gaudenzi said no sanctions would be takenagainst Roland Garros for taking the decisionalone to postpone.

“Now we are working together,” Gaudenzi, whotook over as ATP chief in January, told Gazzetta DelloSport.

“Tennis needs unity, Paris acted out of fear, mak-ing a mistake. But they have recognised this.”

All this will depend on the virus which hasinfected over 1.5 million with the United States andEurope hit hard.

“We have made 50 versions of the calendar thatwe change day by day,” said Gaudenzi.

“I am confident that the season in America canbegin with the August Masters 1000 in Toronto andCincinnati and then the US Open.

“In this way three Slams and six Masters 1000would be played (there are also Shanghai and Bercy)and the season would be 70 percent safe.

“Of course, if the whole American slot were toskip, the difficulties would increase tenfold.”

Gaudenzi said the options were being examinedin conjunction with the ATP Player Council includ-ing Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

He stressed it was hoped to maintain the ATPFinals, scheduled for London in November 15-22.

“The 02 Arena is only available in the weekalready fixed. I don’t like closed doors, it’s the lastresort.”

LONDON: Clubs outside thePremier League cannot resumetraining till “May 16 at the ear-liest” due to the coronaviruspandemic but the season can becompleted in “56 days” EnglishFootball League chairman RickParry informed them in a letter.

The 72 clubs have been kick-ing their heels since the EFL sus-pended the campaign in theChampionship, League One andTwo on March 13.

All 24 sides in theChampionship still had ninematches to play.

Some clubs in League Onehave 12 games remaining, whilein League Two, teams have eithernine or 10 matches remaining tocomplete the regular season.

However, Parry said follow-ing a EFL board meeting onThursday they were confident

once there was a resumption theleague fixtures and the promo-tion play-offs could be complet-ed within two months.

“The EFL Board determinedthat to provide a level of certain-

ty, clubs should not recommenceany training activity with playersuntil May 16 at the earliest,” Parrywrote.

“Whenever the decision istaken that it is safe to resume, we

currently estimate that theLeague will require 56 daysapproximately to complete theoutstanding matches in the sea-son (including Play-Offs).”

Parry said it is probable thematches will be played behindclosed doors due to the BritishGovernment’s social distancingmeasures.

“It is our working assump-tion at this stage that matches willbe played behind closed doorswhen we eventually return,” hesaid.

His letter also suggested thedelayed resumption of the pre-sent season could impact on thestart of the 2020/21 campaign.

“We will ensure there is asuitable break between the two,so as to allow clubs and staff suf-ficient time to regroup and pre-pare accordingly,” he said. AFP

GLASGOW: Rangers stronglycriticised plans to terminate thedivisions below Premiership,warning of “severe conse-quences for the Scottish game”.

With play halted due to thecoronavirus, the ScottishProfessional Football League(SPFL) announced proposals todetermine final placings bypoints per game in leaguematches played to date by eachclub.

The resolution, to be votedon by clubs, also recommendsthe top tier remains postponedfor the time being, althoughfinal placings would be deter-mined by the same system ifthe SPFL’s board determinesmatches cannot be played.

That would see Celticcrowned champions for theninth successive season andHearts relegated, but the imme-diate impact of the plans wouldbe relegation for Partick Thistlefrom the second-tierChampionship and Stranraerfrom League One.

Steven Gerrard’s second-placed Gers, 13 points behindCeltic, said in a statement theywould oppose “in the strongestpossible terms” any attempt torailroad changes to existingrules.

They said they wouldimmediately propose a mem-ber’s resolution that wouldrelease prize money to be dis-tributed to all clubs throughoutScotland urgently.

Rangers said forcingthrough change “without duecare and attention” would havesevere consequences for theScottish game.

Partick, bottom of theChampionship, said theywould not accept the propos-al as it stood, adding it neededmore scrutiny and debate.

Dundee United would bepromoted to the Premiership ifthe resolution passed, whileRaith Rovers would move up tothe Championship and CoveRangers would join LeagueOne. AFP

AFP n BERLIN

Bruno Labbadia will succeedJurgen Klinsmann as head

coach of Hertha Berlin, theBundesliga club announced onThursday, confirming earlierreports in the German media.

“With Bruno, we have someonewho knows the Bundesliga wellfrom his many years as a player anda coach and has shown that he canstabilise teams and lead them backup the table,” sporting directorMichael Preetz said.

According to newspaper Bildand football magazine Kicker, 52-year-old Labbadia will sign a con-tract until 2022 to oversee prepa-rations should the German leagueresume next month after being halt-

ed on March 13.The former Wolfsburg and

Hamburg coach will be the fourthdifferent person to occupy theHertha dugout this season, and willcharged with saving a miserableseason for the capital city club.

Hertha, who are backed by awealthy investor, are 14th in thetable, six points from the relegationplaces with nine games left.

PARIS: For the Tour de France, oneof the last of the summer’s majorsports events still standing in theface of the coronavirus pandemic,the stop-watch is ticking.

While the Tokyo Olympics,the Euros, tennis and golf majorsand the Giro d’Italia have alreadybeen postponed or even cancelled,the Tour is still scheduled to start onJune 27.

Christian Prudhomme, theTour director, made clear thatbefore the race he wants “twomonths of exposure for the riders.”

That means training rides andraces and with most prospectivecompetitors confined, the chancesof their getting back on the road by

late April look slim.The race also needs France to

end its lockdown, not just so the rid-ers can ride but because the Tourattracts 10 to 12 million spectatorswho stand by the roads to watch.

Last week, when he announcedthe postponement of the Dauphine,an eight-day Tour warm-up stagerace in the southeast of France dueto start on May 31, Prudhommesaid: “The most important word inTour de France is France, andhealth concerns come first.”

The situation across Europesuggests that a postponement isincreasingly likely.

Prudhomme is not prepared todiscuss alternative plans in public,

but said: “As of today, the dates ofthe Tour de France are maintained.But it would be a lie to say that weare not studying other hypotheses.”

Behind the scenes, it is learnt,the organisers have sounded out

cycling teams as well as Frenchpoliticians and broadcasters abouta postponement to August.

Sports Minister RoxanaMaracineanu talked of banningspectators. But the idea seems tohave died.

The Tour is fuelled by its fansand it would be hard to prevent peo-ple coming out of their houses whenthe race passes by.

Welshman Geraint Thomas,the winner in 2018, and JulianAlaphilippe, France’s hero of the2019 Tour after wearing the leader’sjersey for 14 days, used almost iden-tical words. “Without the fans, itwouldn’t be the Tour de France,” washow Thomas put it. AFP

PTI n NEW DELHI

The complete lack of live action due tothe COVID-19 pandemic is a “good

break” for modern cricketers spendingmost of their time on the road, feels leg-endary Pakistan batsman Zaheer Aabbas.

The international calendar, in hisplaying days, was not as crammed as it istoday.

“I think it is a good break for them.They always live on suitcases, play toomuch cricket, and rarely get time to be athome. Now they have got a chance tospend time with family,” Abbas said.

“I would suggest them to introspect,keep working on fitness and do whatev-er they were not able to because of theirbusy schedule. It will also keep themrefreshed for the future,” added the formerskipper.

PTI n HOBART

The Australian cricket team avoidsprovoking “any fight” with Virat

Kohli, concedes Test skipper Tim Painebut he also asserts that it’s a strategy tokeep the Indian captain’s bat quiet, nota ploy to save IPL contracts, as claimedby his predecessor Michael Clarke.

Paine rejected Clarke’s claims thatthere was a phase in Australian crick-et when the side “sucked up” to Kohlito land fat deals with IPL franchises.

“I certainly didn’t notice too manypeople being that nice to Virat or nottrying to get him out or anything likethat,” Paine told ESPNCricinfo.

“I’m not sure who was going easyon him; we certainly had a thingwhere we didn’t want to provoke anyfight with him because we think that’swhen he plays at his best,” he said.

India are scheduled to tourAustralia from October, 2020 toJanuary, 2021 to play four Tests, threeODIs and three T20 matches.

“Who knows what will happen thisseries and, as we saw in the documen-tary, there was still quite a lot of heatin some of those games. I certainly was-n’t holding back, but again the IPL’s nota huge draw for me at the moment, soI had nothing to lose,” Paine said.

“But anytime our guys go out andplay a Test match for Australia, they’llbe giving their absolute all and I’m pret-ty sure they’re not thinking about an

IPL contract when they’re running in,bowling to Virat.”

In November, 2018, Clarke hadslammed attempts to improveAustralian cricket’s image owing to theinfamous ball-tampering scandal, say-ing the national team “won’t win agame” by “worrying about being liked”.

Paine said verbal wars cannot winmatches unless one displays the requi-site skills on the field.

“What you say on the field is irrel-evant 99 per cent of the time,” Painesaid. “Sometimes you can get a littleinside someone’s head or something likethat, but if you’re not batting well andnot bowling well, all the talk in theworld doesn’t mean anything,” he said.

Rejecting a one-size-fits-all kind ofapproach to planning, Paine said strat-egy has to formulated keeping theopposition’s strengths in mind.

“There’s no doubt our first focus ison executing our skill and being as goodas we can possibly be in that area andthen sometimes things happen on acricket field and you’ve got to go in,you’ve got to change your tack, or you’vegot to have a few words.

“As we’ve seen the last 12 or 18months, we still do that, we still stickup for each other, we still fight as hardas any Australian team, but we’veprobably just had to move with thetimes and I’ve been really proud of theway we’ve played out cricket,” heexplained.

PTI n JOHANNESBURG

South Africa’s ODI series victo-ry over Australia was the

“light at the end of the tunnel” forTeam Director Mark Boucher,who remains optimistic aboutrebuilding a strong Proteas sidedespite a tough summer.

The former wicketkeeper-batsman took over in mid-December ahead of the Englandtour which saw South Africa losea Test and T20 series whiledrawing a rain-affected ODIseries.

The Proteas then suffered ahome T20 series defeat toAustralia before a young Quintonde-Kock-led side registered a 3-0 win over Aaron Finch’s men inthe ODIs.

“If I look back over the sum-mer and reflect on the team’s per-formances and progress, especial-ly against England and Australia,I think it was quite disappointing

to be honest,” Boucher toldCricket South Africa.

“Especially against England,we didn’t perform like we want-ed to perform. In saying that Ithink we, as a new coaching staff,asked some questions and Ithink we got some answers.Some were good and some werebad.”

The 43-year-old is delightedwith the team’s performance inthe shorter formats of the gamebut reckons the Test side needsrebuilding.

“The nice thing for me aboutthe whole summer was the lightat the end of tunnel, especially inour short formats. I think wehave a lot of work to do with ourTest cricket still, there’s probablya lot of rebuilding in that respect.”

PTI n NEW DELHI

The legendary Kapil Dev onThursday slammed Shoaib

Akhtar’s idea of a made-for-tele-vision three-match ODI seriesbetween India and Pakistan toraise funds for the COVID-19pandemic, saying “India doesn’tneed the money” and it is notworth risking lives for a cricketmatch.

Akhtar on Wednesday pro-posed a closed-door series tojointly raise funds to fight thedeadly virus both in India andPakistan. Dev said the propos-al is not feasible.

“He is entitled to his opin-ion but we don’t need to raise themoney. We have enough. For us,what is important right now isthat how our authorities worktogether to deal with this crisis.I am still seeing a lot of blamegame on television from thepoliticians and that needs tostop,” Dev said.

“Anyway, the BCCI hasdonated a hefty amount (`51crore) for the cause and is in aposition to donate much moreif the need arises. It doesn’t needto raise funds.

“The situation is unlikely toget normal anytime soon andorganising a cricket game meansputting our cricketers at riskwhich we don’t need to,” said the

World Cup-winning formercaptain.

Dev said cricket should noteven matter for at least the nextsix months.

“It is just not worth the risk.And how much money can youmake from three games? In myview, you can’t even think ofcricket for the next five to sixmonths,” he said.

Dev said the focus, at themoment, should only be on sav-ing lives and taking care of thepoor who are struggling tomake ends meet in a lockdownsituation.

“Cricket will resume whenthings get normal. The gamecan’t be bigger than the country.The pressing issue is to look afterthe poor, the hospital workers,the police and all other peoplewho are on the frontline of thiswar,” said the 61-year-old.

NEW DELHI: Star India batsmanCheteshwar Pujara’s deal withGloucestershire for the first sixmatches of the County C’shiphas been cancelled due to

COVID-19 pandemic.The 32-year-old Indian,

who has scored 5840 runs at anaverage of 48.66 in 77 Tests, wassupposed to play six CountyC’ship matches for the club at thestart of the county’s first seasonback in Division One.

However, Gloucestershireon Thursday said that the dealis off now given the globalhealth crisis, which has forcedthe ECB to suspend all profes-sional cricket until May 28.

“We will also now miss theopportunity to see ChetshwarPujara play for the mighty Glosin the 2020 season which weknow our supporters were real-ly looking forward to,” the clubsaid in a statement. PTI

Kapil rejects Akhtar's proposalfor Indo-Pak series

Gloucestershire call off Pujara deal

Avoid fights with Kohli to keep him quiet, not to save IPL contracts: PaineTest skipper rubbishes Clarke’s statement on Australia being nice to Virat

Indian skipper Virat Kohli and Australian captain Tim Paine in action during India’s tour of Australia for four-match Test series in 2018-19 AP/File Picture

LONDON: Australian cricketershad gone “out of control” andturned “pretty average people”two-three years before the ball-tampering scandal, says formerICC Elite Panel umpire IanGould, who was the TV officialin the infamous Cape Town Testof 2018.

Gould, who retired after lastyear’s World Cup, relayed whathad been spotted on the TV —Cameron Bancroft puttingsandpaper down his trousers —to the on-field umpires.

“If you look back on it now,Australia were out of controlprobably two years, maybe threeyears, before that, but not in thissense. Maybe — behavioural,chatty, being pretty averagepeople,” Gould told the Daily

Telegraph while promoting hisautobiography Gunner — MyLife in Cricket.

The fallout of the NewlandsTest was huge.

Then captain Steve Smithand his deputy David Warnerwere slapped with a one-yearinternational ban while Bancroftwas suspended for nine monthsby Cricket Australia for theirrole in the scandal. It alsoprompted a cultural review intoAustralian cricket.

“... I didn’t realise what therepercussions would be,” Gouldsaid.

“But when it came into myearpiece I didn’t think the prime

minister of Australia was goingto come tumbling down onthese three guys. All I thought

was — Jesus, how do I put thisout to the guys on the field with-out making it an overreaction.

“It was a bit like onMastermind when the light ison top of you and you’re going— oh dear, how do I talkthrough this?”

Ball-tampering was classedas a level two offence under theICC Code of Conduct, but it hassince been elevated to a levelthree category, which carries aban of up to six Tests or 12ODIs.

Gould admitted he could-n’t quite believe what he was see-ing on TV, but said what cameout of it was good for the game,especially Australian cricket.

“When the director said,‘He’s put something down the

front of his trousers,’ I startedgiggling, because that didn’tsound quite right. Obviously,what’s come from it is for thebetterment of Australian crick-et — and cricket generally,” heobserved.

Gould said that he still hasthe balls that were used in theNewlands Test.

“If you saw the balls, youwould get it completely wrong.At the end of the day, the sand-paper didn’t get on that ball.

“They were working to getthe ball to be pristine. Oncethey’d got one side bigger andshinier, that’s when the sandpa-per was coming in.” PTI

Aussies were out of control well before ball-tampering scandal: Gould

ATP chief hoping forRoland Garros and clay-court season in Sept

Rafael Nadal in action during Roland Garros tourney in 2019 ATP

Rangers blast plans to endScottish season early

Boucher optimist about rebuilding strong SA side Pandemic unwanted but‘good break’ for cricketers

Tour de France racing against time, and losing

Mid-May possibility for League clubs to return to training: EFL Labbadia succeedsKlinsmann at Hertha

ith Parasuramset to directsuperstarMahesh Babuup next,rumours about

his proposed project withNaga Chaitanya (tenta-tively title NageswaraRao) shelved completelyhave done the roundssometime back. Chay fanswere particularly unhap-py with the fact that thedirector gave a coldshoulder to their actorafter formally announcingthe project last December.However, we have learntfrom multiple sourcesthat the director will beworking with Chay —immediately after hewraps up Mahesh’s film.

While ideally directorswho work with stars ofMahesh’s standing tend todo their next with stars ofsimilar repute, Parasuramhas assured Chay that hewill be directing the actorcome what may next year.A source close to thedevelopment tells us, “Itwas an unfortunate situa-

tion that Parasuram sawhimself in earlier thisFebruary. He got the nodof Mahesh for a project lastyear itself but as the actorwas committed to VamshiPaidipally’s next after he

wraps up SarileruNeekevvaru, he toldParasuram that he candirect a new film in theinterim and can come backto him towards the secondhalf of 2020. However, littledid he think that Maheshwould reject Paidipally’s

script and would approachhim later! As it has beenhis wish to direct a star ofMahesh’s stature for thepast two years, he acceptedthe offer.”

The next stop forParasuram was to have aword with Chay to ensurehis smooth transition toMahesh’s film. “It wasn’t asif the director acceptedMahesh’s offer withoutinforming Chay. Being agentleman that he is, hemet Chay multiple timesand told him about hiswish of taking the nextleap in his career. Chayunderstood it. At the sametime, he informed Chaythat there is no waythat he would missan opportunity todirect him, as thestory of NageswaraRao is dear to him.They both mutuallyagreed to team upnext year for 14 ReelsPlus. So the questionof Nageswara Raobeing shelved alto-gether doesn’t arise,”the source concludes.

Parasuramhas assuredChay thathe will bedirecting theactor comewhat maynext year,findsNAGARAJGOUD

Vijayawada Friday April 10, 2020

W

12

tollywoodChay-Parasuram

film to roll NEXT YEAR

THE DIRECTORINFORMED CHAYTHAT THERE ISNO WAY THAT HEWOULD MISS ANOPPORTUNITY TODIRECT HIM, ASTHE STORY OFNAGESWARA RAOIS DEAR TO HIM

MEGA BROTHERSbond over Lord Hanuman

peculations aboutMaruthi Dasari doinghis next with RamPothineni have beenrife for the past onemonth or so. With

Ram too not announcing hisnext yet, having wrapped up theshoot of Red sometime back,speculations only gained fur-ther momentum. However, thedirector chose to put a lid on allrumours. Taking to Twitter, heclarified that he is still penning

the script of his next and hasn’tmet any actor in this regard. “Sawfew articles about my next film ina section of media. Thanks forthe interestbut I am

still writing script and it will takesome time to finish it. I will letyou know once I am done with it.This is the only news I have,” thedirector posted.

The director, who has deliv-ered his biggest hit last year

with Prathiroju Pandage, isbelieved to collaborating

with GA2 Pictures andUV Creations again.

n a series of tweets,Megastar Chiranjeevi,who has taken tosocial media like a fishto water, explained hisconnect to Lord

Hanuman on HanumanJayanthi. “I won a picture ofLord Hanuman in a lottery in

1962. I’ve preserved it and itis with me the way it waswhen I first won it. Whenmy dad saw the picture,he told me that its facialfeatures resembled tomine. Decades later in2002, Bapu (director)

gifted me a Hanuman picture.He told me later, ‘I could drawonly your features as I starteddrawing it. Which is why, Ididn’t change it’. I reproducedhis picture on a marble stoneand got it placed in my prayerhall,” Chiru, an ardent devoteeof Lord Hanuman, postedgoing down the memory lane.His posts were an instant hit asthey received many likes andre-tweets.

On Thursday, replying tohis elder brother’s tweet,Pawan Kalyan shared an inter-esting anecdote. “Hanumanji

worship came into our homethrough my brother-Chiranjeevi garu; & that mademy father to transform froman atheist& communist toLord Rama Devotee. I used torecite Chalisa 108 times in cer-tain days of my teen age.JaiHanuman (sic),” he posted onTwitter.

Meanwhile, Chiru hasinformed that food essen-tials—raised through fundsfrom Corona Crisis Chairty—are being door delivered to thedaily wage employees of theindustry with due care.

I

S THE DIRECTORCLARIFIED THAT HE ISSTILL PENNING THESCRIPT OF HIS NEXTAND HASN’T MET ANYACTOR IN THIS REGARD

MARUTHI dismisses reportsabout his next with Ram

MOHAN BABUdistributes 2

tonnes of veggies

oing his bit to help people who have been hit badly byCoronavirus, actor Mohan Babu has donated vegetables weigh-ing two tons to three villages of Andhra Pradesh. With the helpof his staff from Vidyanikentan educational institutions, whichhe runs in Tirupati, the actor distributed vegetables inRangampeta, Pullaiahgaripalli and Ramireddy Pally panchayats

recently.D

NIDHHI AGERWAL wantsto have an arranged marriage

ike many actors,iSmart Shankargirl NidhhiAgerwal admitsto be missingfilm sets. “I am

missing shoot so much youhave no idea.. I cannotwait to get back on set.. myhappy place (sic),” was theactress reply when a fanasked her if she is missingshooting. She participatedin a #AskNidhhi season onWednesday evening whereshe engaged with her fanson her personal life, com-

petition and much more.Insisting that she is ‘single’,the actress informed toone of her fans that shewould prefer an ‘arrangedmarriage’ in life.

When asked about her

go-to fashion item, shestated, “A good pair ofshoes.. give a girl the rightpair of heels and she canrule the world. to be pre-cise I’m obsessed with@LouboutinWorld.”

To a question as to whoshe feels is her competitorin Telugu cinema, shewrote, “There are so somany talented actresses inTollywood.. but I think ouronly competition is our-self. Everybody has theirown goal and path.” Shealso revealed that her stintwith modeling had some-thing to do with landing achance in films.“Modelling was a way ofgetting into movies. It hasalways been only theMOVIES (sic).”

LSHE PARTICIPATED IN A #ASKNIDHHISEASON ON WEDNESDAY EVENINGWHERE SHE ENGAGED WITH HERFANS ON HER PERSONAL LIFE,COMPETITION AND MUCH MORE