First India-Mumbai Edition-7th October 2022

‘RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR TO BLAME FOR FOOD AND ENERGY CRISIS’

While addressing the 8th Summit (P-20) of Speakers of Parliaments of G-20

in

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said that

on

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VANDE BHARAT EXPRESS MEETS WITH ACCIDENT

Crucial 34 killed in Thailand day-care shooting 9 killed, 38 hurt as tourist bus hits state transport bus in Kerala’s Palakkad dist

Mumbai: A Vande Bharat Express between Mumbai Central to Gurajat’s Gandhinagar met with an accident after a herd of buffaloes came on the railway track on Thursday, said a railway officer. “The accident occurred at around 11.15 am between Vatva station to Maninagar station today,” said Western Railway Senior PRO, JK Jayant.

BIHAR MAN HELD FOR THREAT TO MUKESH AMBANI

Mumbai: Mumbai Police has arrested a man from Bihar for threatening calls to target industrialist Mukesh Ambani and his family, a police officer said on Thursday. A police team picked up a suspect from Bihar’s Darbhanga district around midnight and was bringing him to Mumbai, he said. P8

GUJ PATIDAR LEADER, WHO QUIT AS CONG MLA, JOINS BJP

Gandhinagar: Two days after resigning from the Gujarat Legislative Assembly as a Congress legislator, Patidar community leader Harshad Ribadiya on Thursday joined the ruling BJP here. He was inducted during a function organised at the Bharatiya Janata Party’s state headquarters ‘Kamalam’ here.

AKASA AIR TO ALLOW PETS ON BOARD SOON

New Delhi: After Air India, the Akasa Air on Thursday announced that it would allow pets on board from November 1. With this, this airline became the second commercial Indian carrier to permit pets on board. Akasa will only allow pets weighing 7 kg in the cabin.

HEROIN WORTH `100 CRORE SEIZED AT MUMBAI AIRPORT

Mumbai: The DRI has seized 16 kilograms of heroin worth more than Rs 100 crore at the Mumbai Airport, and arrested a passenger and a woman from Ghana in this connection, an official said on Thursday. The Ghanaian woman was nabbed from a hotel in Delhi as part of the DRI’s follow-up action in the case, he said. P3

Bangkok (Agencies):

Thirty-four people were killed in Thailand on Thursday in a mass shooting at a day-care centre by a former po liceman who killed his wife and child before shooting himself dead.

The victims included children as young as 2 years old, local police said. There were 22 chil dren among the victims of the suspected gun man. About 30 children were at the centre when the gunman came in.

Chakkraphat Wichit vaidya, superintendent of Na Klang police sta tion, said that the gun man had been dis charged from the police force last year.

Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha, who was to travel to the town on Friday, told reporters that initial re ports were that the for mer officer was having personal problems. “This shouldn’t hap pen,” he said. “I feel deep sadness toward the vic tims and their relatives.”

Palakkad (ANI): Nine people were killed and 38 injured after a tour ist bus carrying stu dents crashed into a Kerala State Road Transport Corporation bus at Mangalam near Vadakkenchery area of Palakkad, Kerala min ister MB Rajesh said on Thursday.

The accident oc curred after the tourist

DCGI probe on after WHO alert on Gambia deaths

US: Kidnapped Sikh family of 4 found dead

(Top) A videograb shows people outside the site of an attack at a daycare centre in Nongbua Lamphu town, Thailand on Thursday.

(L) The suspect.

Follow up Panya Khamrab, 34, the assailant in the shooting at the child’s center. Uthai Sawan Subdistrict, Na Klang District, Nong Bua Lamphu Province. Observe the vehicle used by the culprit, a white Toyota Vigo pickup truck, license plate registration 6 Kor 6499, Bangkok —Thailand’s Central Investigation Police (CIP) said in a Facebook post..

New Delhi (PTI): In dia’s drug regulator Drugs Controller Gen eral of India (DCGI) has initiated a probe and sought further de tails from the WHO af ter the latter issued alert that cough syrups manufactured by an In dian firm could poten tially be linked to the children’s death in Gambia. The WHO on Wednesday had warned that four “con taminated” and “sub standard” cough syr ups allegedly produced by Maiden Pharmaceu ticals Limited based in Haryana’s Sonepat could be the reason for the deaths in the West African nation.

Sonia Gandhi joins Congress’ ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ in Karnataka’s Mandya

Mandya (ANI): Con gress interim president on Thursday joined the party’s ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ in Mandya in Karnataka. Sonia Gan dhi, who came here on Monday, arrived at the starting point of the padyatra, which re sumed on Thursday on its after a two-day break for Dussehra. The Con gress supremo was seen walking in the company of her son and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders.

San Francisco: The sheriff of Merced County in California said a baby girl and three other family members who were kid napped at gunpoint have been found dead.

All four Sikh family members, including an eight-month-old baby

girl, who were kid napped in the US state of California earlier this week have been found dead. The family, originally from Harsi Pind in Hoshiarpur dis trict of Punjab, was kid napped at a business in Merced County, Califor nia, on Monday.

RAHUL GANDHI TIES MOTHER SONIA GANDHI’S SHOELACE, VIDEO GOES VIRAL

Mandya: The photo and video of Rahul Gandhi tying the shoelace of his mother Sonia Gandhi dur ing the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Mandya on Thursday has gone viral on social media. Sonia Gandhi had joined the Yatra which is led by Rahul Gandhi near Bellur Cross in Mandya district of Karnataka.

ED TURNS DOWN SHIVAKUMAR’S PLEA FOR EXEMPTION FROM APPEARANCE

Mysuru: Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar on Thursday said the Enforcement Directorate has turned down his plea for exemption from appearance before the agency in Delhi on October 7 in the National Herald money laundering case. He said he will decide whether to appear before the agency after talking to his party lead ers. In a fresh message to Shivakumar, the ED asked him to make himself available before the agency on Friday.

bus rear-ended into the KSRTC bus. The tourist bus carrying students and teachers of the Baselios Vidhyanike than School was headed to Ooty from Ernaku lam, while the KSRTC bus was on its way to Coimbatore. The de ceased include five stu dents, one teacher and three passengers from the KSRTC bus.

PFI ban: Justice Dinesh Sharma to head Tribunal

New Delhi (ANI): The Central Government has appointed Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma of the Delhi High Court as the Presiding Officer of the Unlawful Activi ties (Prevention) Tribu nal in the matter of Popular Front of India (PFI) and its associates.

The Presiding offic er has been appointed to review the ban on PFI and its alliances, after the Centre recent ly banned it for five years, after seizing in criminating docu ments during the search operations at the offices of the outfit and the residences of its office bearers.

MAN MAKES HOAX CALL ABOUT PM’S MURDER, ARRESTED

Pune: A 38-year-old man was arrested for allegedly making a hoax call to the Pune police control room, claiming that a plan was being hatched in a flat to kill Prime Min ister Narendra Modi. He also alleged that bomb blasts were to be carried out at Pune and Mumbai railway stations, said an official on Thursday.

Police said the accused was suffering from depression and was an noyed by the noise made by the children from the flat above his. He resides in Dehu Road area in neighbouring Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation limits.

Shinde faction to meet ECI on Friday over Sena poll symbol

Move comes ahead of Andheri East Assembly bypoll scheduled for Nov 03 necessitated by death of MLA Ramesh Latke

First India Bureau

New Delhi: Eknath

Shinde faction of Shiv Sena is set to meet the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Fri day to stake claim for the party’s bow and ar

row poll symbol ahead of the Andheri East As sembly bypoll in Maha rashtra.

The move by the Shinde faction of the Shiv Sena is seen as a bid to deny the ‘dhanush-baan’ elec tion symbol to the Ud dhav Thackeray group, which has decided to field Rutuja Latke, wid ow of MLA Ramesh Latke, for the Novem ber 03 bypoll.

The Supreme Court allowed the ECI to go ahead with the hearing of Maha CM Eknath Shinde group’s plea seeking recognition as the ‘real’

the bypoll necessitated due to the death of Ramesh Latke.

Congress and the NCP have decided to support the candidate of the Thackeray fac tion of the Shiv Sena, their coalition partner in the previous Maha rashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government.

Shinde had raised a banner of revolt against Thackeray for entering into an “un natural alliance” with the Congress and Na tionalist Congress Par ty (NCP). Over 40 of the Shiv Sena’s 55 MLAs had supported Shinde,

leading to the resigna tion of Thackeray from the post of Maharash tra chief minister.

Twelve of the 18 Lok Sabha members of the Shiv Sena also came out in support of Shinde, who later claimed to be the leader of the origi nal Shiv Sena.

The Andheri East by poll is the first after Shinde and the BJP un seated the MVA govern ment in June, and is considered by political analysts as a precursor to settling of claims by Shinde and Thackeray to be the “real Shiv Sena”.

“We are meeting the Election Commission on Friday in connec tion with the party elec tion symbol,” said Ra hul Shewale, leader of the Shinde faction of Shiv Sena in the Lok Sabha. BJP, an ally of Shin de faction, has decided to field Murji Patel, a

councillor in the Bri hanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), for

Both Thackeray and Shinde factions have been warring over ownership of Shiv Sena’s bow and arrow election symbol.

Gunman, an ex-cop, kills family too before shooting himself dead

About 30 children were at the centre when the shooter came in

Locals at the accident site at Vadakkenchery in Palakkad district of Kerala, on Thursday. —PHOTO BY PTI

Merced County Sheriff Vern Warnke announces family’s death.

Congress interim Preisident Sonia Gandhi with Rahul Gandhi, DK Shivakumar, KC Venugopal, Siddaramaiah and others, in Mandya district, on Thursday. —PHOTO BY PTI

Fadnavis hails CM Shinde’s Dussehra rally

Dy CM exudes confidence about win in upcoming state Assembly polls for Shinde faction and BJP

First India Bureau

Pune: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minis ter Devendra Fad navis hailed Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s Dussehra rally on Thursday and predicted a vic tory for the rebel fac tion and BJP in the upcoming state As sembly elections.

“Will congratulate the chief minister for yesterday he showed who the ‘real’ Shiv Sena is. There were twice as many people in BKC (Bandra-Kurla Com plex) than Shivaji Park (where former CM Ud dhav Thackeray held his rally),” said Fad navis.

“Saffron will win during the Assembly polls but it will be of the ‘real’ Shiv Sena, which is the alliance between Shinde’s Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP),”he added.

He also slammed for mer CM Uddhav Thack eray for allegedly shielding Mumbai bomb blast convicts.

Public will decide about win or defeat: Dhananjay

First India Bureau

Aurangabad: Nation alist Congress Party (NCP) MLA Dhanan jay Munde, who de feated BJP leader Pankaja Munde by as many as 30,000 votes in the 2019 Assembly elections in Maha rashtra, said that it is the public who de cides about winning or losing of a candi date adding that it is the right of an indi vidual to prepare for polls.

He was responding to the latter’s affirmation on preparing for Lok Sabha polls.

Dhananjay Munde also happens to be Pan kaja Munde’s cousin.

“I have not heard Pan kaja Munde’s speech so I will not react to it. But contesting from any seat and preparing for it is everyone’s right. People will decide who emerges winner,” Dhananjay told a news channel in Beed.

Pankaja Munde, who was a minister in the Devendra Fadnavis-led government in 2019, an nounced about prepar ing for the 2024 polls at her Dussehra rally in Sawargaon Ghat of Beed district on Wednesday.

FUNDS TO REPAIR RURAL

ROADS SOON: MAHA DY CM

Nagpur (PTI): Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday said funds will be earmarked for the repair of rural roads damaged by incessant rains. Speaking to reporters after chairing a meeting of the district planning committee (DPC) here, he said cur rently there is no provision for funds, except in the zilla parishad, for repair of damaged rural roads. “We are preparing a new mechanism for funds assistance for repairing roads in rural areas. This decision will be applicable at state level in all districts. Funds will also be made available for repairing damaged water conserva tion structures,” he said.

“He (Uddhav Thack eray) supported the Mumbai bomb blast convicts, took along those who called (revo lutionary Veer Sa varkar) Savarkar bad every day. And that is the reason he is facing such tough times,” he said.

On Wednesday, Shin

de hit back at Uddhav for his ‘Katappa’ re mark, saying that even Katappa had self-re spect and did not have double standards.

“They call me ‘Katap pa’. I want to tell you that even he had self-respect and did not have double standards like you,” said Shinde on Thursday.

Slamming Uddhav Thackeray, Shinde said that if Balasaheb Thackeray had been alive, Narayan Rane (Union minister) would have become the CM.

“He (Uddhav Thack eray) did not feel ashamed of taking the oath of CM. If Balasa heb Thackeray had been alive, he would not have become CM. Bala saheb would have made Narayan Rane the CM”, added Shinde.

In a setback to the Thackeray faction, Ud dhav’s brother Jaidev Thackeray came to show his support and shared the stage with CM Eknath Shinde at the Dussehra rally held at Mumbai’s MMRDA ground on Wednesday.

Extending his sup port, Jaidev said, “Do not leave Eknath Shin de alone. He is working for farmers and com moners”.

Shinde lambasted his former party leader Ud dhav Thackeray over the alliance with Con gress and called him a traitor. “Balasaheb made an alliance with the BJP. You did ‘gad dari’, (by forming a coa lition with NCP and Congress). We are not ‘gaddars’. You have committed a sin... go apologize to Balasa heb’s samadhi at Shiva ji Park,” said Shinde at the rally.

MINOR MISHAP

Sena MP slams Uddhav Thackeray for dragging son’s name in speech

First India Bureau

Mumbai: Lok Sabha MP Shrikant Shinde on Thursday objected to Shiv Sena chief Ud dhav Thackeray “dragging” the name of his one-and-a-half year old son during his Dussehra rally speech a day ago. Slamming the former chief minister Shinde asked whether target ing a child “suited his Hindutva”.

Shrikant Shinde is the son of incumbent Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. The rebel Sena

political opponents, but never resorted to such “lowly” remarks.

During his speech, Thackeray attacked CM Shinde as he referred to his son (Shrikant) as a brat and said his grand son Rudransh has an eye on the councillor’s post. Thackeray slammed the chief min ister for “betraying” him despite enjoying various positions as he was made a minister and his son an MP.

MP represents the Kaly an Lok Sabha seat in Thane district.

In an open letter, Shinde said late Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray seared his

“Do you understand the views shared by you on Hindutva? I just want to ask you one thing whether such dragging a one-and-half-year old son suits your Hindut va?” asked Shinde.

Berating Thackeray, Shrikant Shinde in a long Facebook post asked how a former chief minister could use such a language against a child.

CM rally speech didn’t address Maha devt: NCP

First India Bureau

Mumbai: Chief Min ister Eknath Shin de’s Dussehra rally speech did not offer anything to the state of Maharash tra, claimed the Na tionalist Congress Party (NCP) on Wednesday.

Mahesh Tapase, the chief spokesperson of the party said in a statement that even

Shinde has to justify his coup which brought down the previous Shiv Sena-NCPCongress government in June, said party spokesperson

after 100 days of re maining in office, Shinde’s speech

lacked specifics and was oriented just to ward self-glorifica tion and justification of his coup.

The Shinde-led fac tion of Shiv Sena or ganized its Dussehra rally at the MMRDA ground on Wednesday evening.

The government has no development roadmap for the state of Maharashtra and hence Chief Minister

Shinde did not an nounce a single wel fare scheme related to the state in his speech, claimed the NCP spokesperson.

The chief minister has to justify his coup—which brought down the previous Shiv Sena-NCP-Con gress government in June —as he knows in his heart that the peo ple have not accepted him, added Tapase.

24 BMC wards get `10 crore each for beautification, repair projects

First India Bureau

Mumbai: The Brihan mumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has disbursed an ad ditional fund of Rs240 crore— Rs10 crore to each of the 24 municipal ward of fices—for carrying out various repair and re-engineering works as part of the beautification of Mumbai’s roads and footpaths.

According to Addi tional Municipal Com missioner (Projects) P Velrasu, the BMC has earmarked a total fund

Govt to put Deekshabhoomi plan into action within 15 days, assures Fadnavis

chief minister had ap proved Rs100 crore for Deekshabhoomi devel opment, and even hand ed over Rs40 crore for the work; the remain ing Rs60 crore were ready for release.

of Rs30.5 crore each ward for carrying out the beautification and repair works on priority.

It has disbursed Rs10 crore to complete the pending work, mainly micro-level.

“These works do not concern the head office.

The remaining Rs20.5 crore will be disbursed only as per require ment, to maintain trans parency and a check on the expenses. We main tain a bar for spending money on certain works,” Velrasu said.

A maximum of Rs6.5 crore has been set aside from the total Rs30.5

crore fund for beautifi cation of road dividers; Rs4.5 crore for improv ing footpaths; Rs5 crore for illuminating foot paths; Rs3.25 crore each for installing street fur niture, beautification of traffic islands, optimum use of public spaces be neath bridges, and in stallation of street light ing; Rs80 lakh for illumi nating bridges in mu nicipal wards; and Rs75 lakh for creating wall painting and murals.

“As of now, we have only disbursed Rs300 crore for beautifica tion projects,” stated Velrasu.

First India Bureau Nagpur: The Maha rashtra government has prepared a new plan for the develop ment of Deekshab hoomi in the district, which will be ap proved in the next 15 days, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Wednesday, announc ing that its budget had been increased to Rs190 crore.

Fadnavis was ad

dressing a gathering at Deekshabhoomi—place where Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar embraced Buddhism after re nouncing Hinduism— on the occasion of ‘Dhamma Chakra

Pravartan Din’.

“The development of Deekshabhoomi is very important,” Fadnavis said, “A new plan…has been prepared, which will be approved in 15 days. The amount meant

for this task will be in creased to Rs190 crore. We don’t just announce, we believe in imple menting what we say.”

According to Fad navis, the BJP govern ment when he was

“But I do not know why the allotted funds of Rs40 crore were not used in the last two-and-a-half years,” Fadnavis said in a veiled attack on the previous Uddhav Thack eray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) govern ment.

“The Constitution by Dr Ambedkar has estab lished the rule of equal ity in the country. Our Constitution fulfills the hope and expectation of each individual,” he said.

Thane: A man, who was accused of stalking a woman by the railway police in Thane died during questioning. A probe into the death of the man has been handed over to the Maharashtra CID as per the rules and regulations, informed an official.

Nagpur: Several activists of Bharat Mukti Morcha (BMM) were detained as they were trying to take out a protest march to the headquarters of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in Nagpur, said an official on Wednesday.

Rajesh

Chabulal Bhavsar (59) was arrested after a woman accused him of stalking her, said the official. The accused was brought to the police station for questioning along with the complainant, he added. He was rushed immediately to the hospital, but did not survive. Video footages with regards to his interrogation are with the police station.

In a statement, BMM said that it wanted to protest against the RSS as it does not respect the constitution of the country. BMM was refused permission for holding the march on Oct 06 by the police. After this, the body approached the Nagpur High Court, but in vain after which the BMM workers gathered at the Kadbi square forcing the police to detain them.

MAN DIES DURING POLICE QUESTIONING; CID TO PROBE CASE

BMM ACTIVISTS DETAINED AT RSS PROTEST MARCH

Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis during a media interaction in Nagpur on Thursday.

CM Eknath Shinde’s son Shrikant called out the Sena chief for his remarks during Dussehra rally

Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis during ‘Dhamma Chakra Pravartan Din’ event at Deekshabhoomi.

‘New budget for development of tourist centre almost doubled to `190 crore’

Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) workers carry out repair work after a water pipeline burst near Shiv Sena Bhavan, in Mumbai on Thursday.

—PHOTOS BY ANI

Kalyan MP Shrikant Shinde

Heroin worth ` 100 cr+ seized at Mumbai airport

Woman from Ghana among two held by DRI officials; seizure made possible after tip-off First India Bureau

Mumbai: The Directo rate of Revenue Intel ligence (DRI) has seized 16kg heroin worth more than Rs100 crore at the Mumbai airport. The agency arrested a passenger and a wom an from Ghana in this connection, said an official on Thursday.

The Ghanaian wom an was nabbed from a hotel in Delhi as part of the DRI’s follow-up ac tion in the case.

The Mumbai unit of the DRI laid a trap on Tuesday at the Chhatra pati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport on a specific tip-off that a passenger travelling from Malawi, an Afri can country, to Mumbai via Qatar was trying to smuggle narcotic drugs into the country.

“As part of the trap, a surveillance and track ing team of DRI officers was positioned at the airport and intercepted a suspected passenger,” he said.

During the search of his luggage, the DRI officers found 16kg heroin that was con cealed in cavities made

in the trolley bags, add ed the official.

The value of the seized heroin is more than Rs100 crore in the international mar ket, he said, adding that the passenger was placed under arrest and was remanded in

CRUCIAL READ

WOMAN’S BODY WITH LIMBS TIED FOUND INSIDE DRAIN IN KURLA

Mumbai: A woman’s body with tied limbs was found inside a sack in a drain in Mumbai’s Kurla area on Wednesday. Soon, the police reached the spot and took the body under their possession, and sent it for post-mortem. The body was taken out from the drain using a crane. Police officials suspect that the woman was murdered and then her body was thrown inside a drain.

MASSAGE PARLOUR RAIDED, 2 MEN HELD, 2 WOMEN RESCUED

the DRI custody by the local court.

The man, a Kerala resident, was booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and further probe was on, he said.

“In a follow-up ac

tion, the DRI officers apprehended a woman from Ghana, who was to take the delivery of the smuggled contraband in Delhi,” he said.

“The female Ghana ian national was nabbed from a hotel in Delhi when she came to take

CRACKDOWN

L ast month, the Mumbai Cus toms Department arrested a pas senger from Ghana at the international airport for trying to smuggle cocaine into India by hiding it in 87 capsules that he had swal lowed. The value of the 1,300g cocaine recovered from the passenger was Rs3 crore, said Customs officials. The passenger was intercepted at the Mumbai International airport on suspicion on August 28 and was taken to a state-run hospital. Many drug seizures have since been made at the Mumbai airport in the past month.

the delivery of the drug,” said the official.

She has been arrest ed and being brought to Mumbai on transit remand granted by a court in Delhi, he said, adding that inves tigation into the case is underway.

‘Sexual abuse victim can perform well in school’

First India Bureau

Mumbai: It should not be assumed that a victim of sexual assault at home would not be per forming well in ex ams or behave nor mally otherwise, said a court while convicting a man for raping his minor daughter for several years.

The special judge of a Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act court in Mumbai, Jayshri R Pulate, sentenced the accused to 10 years in jail on September 29. A detailed order be came available on Wednesday.

The accused worked on a ship in Saudi Ara bia and visited his family in Mumbai every two months, as per the prosecution.

His wife noticed in 2014 that whenever he was at home, their daughter avoided him and stayed in her room. The girl eventu ally told her mother that he had sexually assaulted her many times over the previ ous seven years. She was facing this night mare since she was 10 years old, said the girl.

Mumbai court shoots down defense counsel while convicting man for daughter’s rape

A case was regis tered after her mother approached the po lice. Convicting the man, the court dis missed the defence’s argument about the delay in the registra tion of complaint.

During cross exam ination, the girl had stated that she got on average 70% marks in Class IX and attended school regularly. De fence argued that the

fact do not square with the allegations of sexual abuse.

But the court said the reaction of every victim of sexual as sault cannot be the same.

“It should not be assumed that the victim of sexual as sault could not secure good marks in ex ams,” said the judge.

The fact of regular school attendance and good performance in examinations would not discredit her alle gations, said the court. The ‘normal’ behaviour by the ac cused such as bring ing clothes and toys for his children did not mean he would never commit the kind of heinous of fences he was accused of, the court said in the ruling.

MMRDA tells BMC to pay `27.23cr to MoD for using land

Palghar: A man, who tried to stop a fight between two groups during a garba event was killed in the Virar area of Palghar on Thursday. The man was returning to his home situated in the Sahakar Nagar area on Wednesday when he saw the groups fighting and tried to stop them. “He was assaulted by both the groups and died while being taken to a hospital,” Assistant Commissioner of Police Ramchandra Deshmukh said. Family members and associates of the deceased protested outside the local police station asking for the immediate arrest of the accused.

Palghar: Police raided a massage parlour situated in the Nalasopara area situated in Vasai and arrested two men involved in the racket. They also rescued two women and a minor girl from the spot, informed Assistant Commissioner of Police (Crime) Amol Mandve. The accused have been charged under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POSCO) Act and Immoral Trafficking (Prevention) Act provisions, he added.

Lower courts not ‘secondary’, says SC’s Justice Oka

First India Bureau

Thane: Speaking at the inauguration of Bhiwandi Magistrate Court’s new building in the district on Wednesday, Supreme Court Justice Abhay S Oka said courts at dis trict and taluka level are not “secondary”

tant role in providing justice to common peo ple, and thus they are the core of the judiciary and should not be looked upon as secondary courts,” he said.

as they provide justice to the common people.

“District and taluka courts play an impor

LUMPY SKIN DISEASE

Acknowledging that there have been several good court buildings constructed in Maha rashtra in the last 10

years, Justice Oka said the state government should try to improve the facilities which will ensure speedy delivery of justice.

He wanted the state to increase the use of in formation technology, and that the Thane dis trict court should take the initiative for it.

Cattle movement curbs to continue for a month: Maha min

Immediate action by state govt has limited deaths to 2,100, says Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil

Mumbai: Restrictions on cattle movement in Maharashtra will continue for one more month in view of the lumpy skin disease (LSD) even as a mas

sive vaccination drive is underway against the viral infection, state animal hus bandry minister Rad hakrishna Vikhe Pa til said on Thursday.

Speaking to the me dia, Patil said that im

“We have decided to continue with the ban on the transport of do mestic animals for at least one more month. Vaccination is go ing on and we are assessing the situation. The extra vials we had procured have exhausted. This vaccination drive has helped us keep the deaths to 2,100. Had we not acted immediately, the deaths of cattle could have been in the range of 20,000.”

mediate action on the part of the state govern ment and rapid vacci nation have kept the deaths to just 2,100 in the state.

In early September, the Maharashtra gov ernment had declared the entire state as a ‘controlled area’ re stricting movement of cattle and ban on ani mal fairs, etc.

First India Bureau

Mumbai: The Mum bai Metropolitan Re gion Development Au thority (MMRDA) has asked the Brihan mumbai Municipal Corporation to pay Rs27.23 crore as land acquisition cost for Vakola Nalla bridge widening work to the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

The project is a part of SCLR (Santa CruzChembur Link Road).

An official belonging to MMRDA said that as much as 1352 sq mt of land belongs to the MoD.

The MMRDA has written to the civic body in the capacity of an ex ecuting body of the SCLR extension project that belongs to BMC.

The MMRDA letter reads, “With reference to said working permis sion, you are requested to settle/pay market rate as worked out by the MoD (Rs 27,23,74,136) directly to office con

The project will not affect ongoing SCLR extension bridge work, says official

cerned of MoD and con vey MCGM’s in-princi ple acceptance to MMR DA so as to pay the related cost required to be complied/fulfilled so that the most delayed & incomplete/half-done work of road widening to its full DP width can be completed to ease traffic congestion at Vakola Junction.”

The official also said that the Vakola Nalla project will not be affecting the on going SCLR extension bridge work that lies between Kapadia Nagar Junction and ends at WEH near Va kola Junction.

VAKOLA NALLA BRIDGE WORK

Drugs recovered by DRI officials from lining of trolley bags carried by a male passenger at Mumbai airport on Thursday. —PHOTO BY ANI

Suburban services on the main line of Central Railway in Mumbai were disrupted due to a snag in overhead wires on Thursday afternoon. The technical problem arosed at Sandhurst Road station in south Mumbai around 1 pm, due to which CSMT-bound slow trains were held up, said an official. The services on the line have been diverted to the fast line and restoration work is in full swing, he added. As trains came to a halt, commuters got down at many places and were seen walking on the tracks towards the next station.

—PHOTO BY BHUSHAN KOYANDE

The Vakola Nalla Bridge widening work is a part of the SCLR (Santa Cruz-Chembur Link Road) project. —FILE PHOTO

Vikhe Patil,

Animal Husbandry Minister

Abhay S Oka.

Narendra Modi, Indian Democracy, and the Free & Open Indo-Pacific

INDIAN PHARMA’S COUGH SYRUPS UNDER PROBE FOR LOSS OF 66 LIVES

Modi’s electoral victories in 2014 and 2019 transformed Indian polity. His election retrieved India from a political fate similar to Italy’s cycle of ungovernable weak coalition governments.

Modi’s boldness, bolstered by consecutive victories, has led India to the frontlines of the great free and open nations

DR. KAUSH ARHA

Despite external noise the U.S. and India continue to pivot to each other. Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently re buked Russia’s Putin over his war against Ukraine. This week U.S. Secretary of De fense Lloyd Austin welcomed India’s foreign minister S. Jaishankar to the Pentagon with an honor guard — a first. Dr. Jaishankar was in the country for 11 days dis cussing China, defense and trade. The United States and India share the objective of denying the ambition of Xi’s China to shape the world in its autocratic image. Advanc ing a free and open Indo-Pa cific is their joint strategy to achieve it. While the United States and India will contin ue to have disagreements and road bumps in overcoming historical mistrust, leaders in Washington must recog nize the nature of Indian de mocracy and the ascendancy of its democratically elected leader Narendra Modi.

Indian democracy where a billion people engage in free elections, buoyed by a vi brant free press, at a frequen cy and with a resiliency un

POOR LIVES MUST ALSO MATTER

imaginable in any other na tion is nothing short of a marvel. In the contest be tween democracy and autoc racy, Indian democracy and Narendra Modi are strong assets. In the Indo-Pacific the best antidote for “commu nism with Chinese charac teristics” is “democracy with Asian characteristics” with India, given its geography and size, as the flag bearer. Modi’s electoral victories in 2014 and 2019 transformed Indian polity. His election re trieved India from a political fate similar to Italy’s cycle of ungovernable weak coalition governments. Modi’s bold ness, bolstered by consecu tive victories, has led India to the frontlines of the great free and open nations. His leadership, with that of late Abe Shinzo, has been instru mental in fortifying the IndoPacific Quad to act as the democratic bulwark against Chinese aggression.

Modi, like Reagan, cata lyzed and shaped emerging and latent political senti ments. Both men profited from the invisible hand of politics: arriveth the moment arriveth the man. Imbued with unfail ing conviction in their con servative beliefs, the two share the ability to grasp the wide arc of prevailing national and global forces. Like Reagan, Modi is the master communi cator of his nation, extolling optimism, opportunity, reli

Modi, like Reagan, catalyzed & shaped emerging & latent political sentiments. Both men profited from the invisible hand of politics: arriveth the moment arriveth the man. Like Reagan, Modi is the master communicator of his nation

gion, and family values across India. In foreign policy they share an instinct to stand up to bullies whether it be the Sovi et Politburo or the Chinese Communist Party. The two share another virtue – an ad miration of America.

The Modi political revolu tion addressed two pervasive realities of India: poverty and religion. Half of India’s billion-plus people subsist on less than $3 per day. Religion is important to 9 out of 10 In dians. About 80 percent of Indians adhere to Hinduism, about 14 percent to Islam, and remaining 6 percent are Christians, Buddhists, Sikhs, Jains etc. Modi unified In dia’s chronic communal poli tics with a national anti-pov erty message of “develop ment for all.” Poverty knows no religion nor creed, he fre quently states. Concurrently he emanated a muscular

Hindu identity in an over whelmingly Hindu nation with over 500 years of recent history of being invaded and ruled by non-Hindus.

Modi benefitted from and built upon the anti-poverty policies of the preceding Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, a widely admired technocrat. Modi’s strong leadership and rousing rhet oric made the “development for all” a national slogan. He expedited India’s transition to a digital economy and ex ecuted an unprecedented so cial security system based on a biometric ID for all Indians. He promised running water, electricity, and cooking gas for each home. He further launched a most audacious public housing program with 30 million houses construct ed and counting.

Modi’s strong style attracts strong criticism: some justi fied, some hyperbolic. Clear ideology or strategy to achieve his lofty economic pronouncements are often imperceptible. His embrace of a muscular Hindu identity has inflamed Hindu national ism giving license to its ex treme elements. Consequent ly, Modi needs to be a more convincing stalwart of na tional reconciliation and co hesion and a staunch foe of all political violence and re prisals. The latter in particu lar warrants high vigilance.

At a time when there is stress on quality to make Indian phar maceutical products globally competitive, the news of India-made cough syrups as the likely cause of 66 child deaths in the Gambia has come as a setback. In a way the development justifies the lowest rank at 6.8 on a scale of 10 given to Indian pharmaceutical manu facturers by the USFDA in a 2019 study on compliance score of drugs marketed in the US. Even China’s compliance score of 7.3 was better than India’s.

After the World Health Or ganisation sounded a global alert “potentially” linking four cough syrups with “acute kid ney injuries and deaths of 66 children” the negative percep tion about quality control in In dia’s pharma industry will only get strengthened to the detri ment of India’s image.

It will also do the manufac turer, Maiden Pharmaceuticals of Haryana, no good either if the WHO is able to establish a link between the cough syrups and the Gambia death.

Work for work’s sake, not for yourself. Act but do not be attached to your actions. Be in the world, but not of it. Bhagavad Gita

Four sanitation workers died in Haryana’s Faridabad on Wednesday after inhaling toxic fumes while cleaning an underground sewer of a hospital. The men, who were hired through an agency, entered the sewer without any protective gear. Whether they were provided the safety equipment will have to be investigated but what is clear from the fre quent occurrence of such deaths is that poor lives don’t really matter. The cleaning of hazardous sewers and septic tanks claimed 161 lives in the last three years. Tamil Nadu topped the list with 28 deaths and UP was second with 26. Ironically, in a different case of two scavengers’ deaths, the

Will someone be held responsible for the Faridabad tragedy or will the buck be passed from the hiring agency to the hospital? For the bereaved families even getting compensation is not easy

Delhi High Court on Thursday observed, “It is unfortunate that even after 75 years of in dependence poor people are forced to work as manual scav engers” and ordered the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) to pay Rs 10 lakh to each of the bereaved families. The court, which took suo motu cogni

sance of the tragedy, also de scribed as unfortunate the complete disregard for provi sions of Prohibition of Em ployment as Manual Scaven gers and their Rehabilitation Act (PEMSR), 2013.

Will someone be held re sponsible for the Faridabad tragedy or will the buck be passed from the hiring agen cy to the hospital? For the bereaved families even get ting compensation is not easy. Had the high court not taken up the issue on its own, the DDA may have dragged its feet in offering ex gratia on its own.

More than compensation the focus of governments should be on ensuring the im plementation of PEMSR Act. Municipal bodies have been allowed too long a rope.

Congress and their leaders are a disgrace. Champions of Parivaarvaad they cannot digest the fact that a woman from the grassroots has risen to the ranks of the President of India. Repeated insults to the highest and most-valued office of the country shows their frustration.

Piyush Goyal @PiyushGoyal

Brand India in demand globally! India’s exports of knitted & crocheted fabrics grew over 4.6 times in AprilAugust 2022 as compared to the same period in 2013.

Dharmendra Pradhan @dpradhanbjp

SPIRITUAL SPEAK

The writer is a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council and the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue

To

DAP BEGINS PROCESS TO SET UP ZONAL, DIST PANEL

Jammu (PTI): Demo cratic Azad Party (DAP) chairman Ghulam Nabi Azad has formed vari ous teams for submit ting proposals for con stituting zonal and dis trict committees of the party ahead of the As sembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir.

The six panels having senior leaders as mem bers were asked to com plete the exercise of their respective zones within 10 days and sub mit the recommenda tions of the proposed zonal and district com mittees by Oct 18, a party leader said on Thursday.

The former chief minister's decision to select zonal and district committees of his newly floated party came at a time when Home Minis ter Amit Shah assured the people of J&K that the Assembly elections would be held after the completion of the ongo ing exercise of electoral rolls. Azad announced the formation of three teams each for J&Kr di visions to cover all the 20 districts.

"Once our zonal and district committees are constituted, zonal and district office bearers will be asked to go to the block and panchayat

level to constitute the block committees and panchayat committees," he said.

An 11-member Cen tral zone Jammu headed by former deputy chief minister Tara Chand will cover Jammu (ur ban and rural), Kathua, Samba and Udhampur districts, nine-member Chenab valley zone un

INDIA GOT REQUEST TO PRESS THE RUSSIANS, WHICH WE DID: EAM

der the leadership of G M Saroori will cover Ramban, Doda, Kisht war and Reasi districts and six-member Pir Panjal Zone headed by Ashok Sharma will cov er Rajouri and Poonch districts in Jammu province, the party lead er said quoting a com munication from Azad.

In Kashmir valley, Taj

Mohi-ud-din led north Kashmir Zone will cov er Baramulla, Kupwara and Bandipora districts, Peerzada Mohammad Sayeed-led south Kash mir zone will cover Anantnag, Kulgam, Pul wama and Shopian dis tricts, while the mem bers of central Kashmir zone comprising Srina gar, Budgam and Gan derbal districts are be ing finalised.

On criteria for the se lection of president and office bearers of the zonal committees and district committees, the leader said Azad had made it clear that each office bearer, particu larly the president of the zone and district, should be able to dedi cate minimum 20 days per month for the party, especially till the elec tions are over.

"The office bearers, particularly the presi dents of zonal and dis trict committees, must have their own trans port to visit their re spective areas. The president and office bearers should be edu cated enough to re ceive and pass on mes sages in English, Hindi and Urdu," he said quoting the guidelines issued by Azad.

PAPER LEAK CASE

Chargesheet filed against expelled BJP leader Hakam

Dehradun (ANI):

The STF on Thurs day filed another charge sheet against expelled BJP leader Hakam Singh and nine others in the Ut tarakhand Subordi nate Service Selec tion Commission (UKSSSC) case.

"After the registra tion of the case on July 22 in this case, the STF has arrested 41 accused in this case so far and the process of arrest is still going on," STF's Superintendent of Police of STF, Ajay Singh, said in a re lease. The probe body has invoked the Gangsters Act against Singh and 21 other accused in the case. As many as 41 people, including Gaurav Chauhan, the Additional Pri vate Secretary in the Public Works and Forest Department of State Secretariat, allegedly involved in the paper leak case have been arrested so far. STF is investi gating the UKSSSC paper leak case but there is a demand for the CBI probe.

‘Anti-tribal mindset’: Patra on Udit’s remark on Prez

New Delhi (ANI): BJP national spokesperson

Sambit Patra on Thurs day slammed Congress leader Udit Raj's remarks on President Droupadi Murmu and said that it showed the party's "antitribal mindset".

Udit Raj had accused President Murmu on Wednesday of allegedly doing 'chamchagiri' with his controversial remarks about her. "No country should get a President like Droupadi Murmu ji. Chamchagi ri also has its limits. She says 70 per cent of the people eat Gujarat's salt. She will get to know once she starts living by consuming salt only," Udit Raj said in his tweet in Hindi.

He further said that it is not the first time that the Congress party has used such words for the President. Prior to this incident, we have heard the words Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has used for her, when a tribal

WOMEN'S PANEL SUMMONS CONGRESS LEADER OVER "SYCOPHANCY" REMARK

New Delhi: The NCW has summoned Congress leader Udit Raj over his "sycophancy" remark against President Droupadi Murmu. In a notice issued on Thursday, the commission asked him to appear before it on October 10 and explain his "extremely condemnable and shameful" comments. At a function recently, President Murmu noted Gujarat manufac tures 76 per cent of salt produced in the country. "It can be said that all countrymen eat Gujarat's salt," she had said. The western state produces nearly 80 per cent of the salt consumed in India.

woman has become the President of the coun try, he said.

"It is surprising and saddening how Con gress is regularly us ing disrespectful words for the President of

India who has strug gled enough to reach the topmost position of the country and it shows their mentality," Patra said adding that it "exposes their antitribal mindset".

New Delhi (ANI): BJP leader Shehzad Poonawalla on Thursday took a jibe at the Congress after its leader Udit Raj allegedly made derogatory remarks on President Murmu. Poonawalla termed it 'another steep low remark of congress' by stating that he has used an unaccepta ble language for the first woman Adivasi President and asked if the party (Congress) endorses such an "insult of Adivasi samaj". Udit Raj's remarks came days after Preez Murmu noted in a civic reception hosted by the Govt of Gujarat in her honour in Gandhinagar on Monday.

Amit Shah’s rally in Baramulla shows changing face of J-K

Jammu (ANI): For the first time after three decades, a Union Minis ter went to Baramulla in J&K to hold a rally.

BY PTI

New Zealand: India is willing to do whatever it can to facilitate a solu tion to the Ukraine cri sis, EAM S Jaishankar said , as he highlighted how India pressed Mos cow on the safety of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine when the two countries stepped up fighting near the highly sensi tive facility.

Jaishankar said when it comes to Ukraine, it is natural that different

On October 5, Union Home Minister Amit Shah held a rally in Bar amulla. Sources said Shah’s rally got a phe nomenal response from the people of the dis trict. As per the sources present in the rally, the highest cheering was witnessed when the Home Minister spoke about the availability of free gas cylinders for women. It is also report ed that in the hilly areas of the Union Territory, women registered to get the Ujjwala scheme ben efit and got two cylin ders instead of one.

countries and different regions would react a lit tle differently.

“The development of Jammu and Kashmir is the prime agenda of the

PM Modi government at the Centre. BJP does not wish to ally with any of the regional players in J-K,” a top BJP source told. An other source told ANI that, “the briefing giv en to the security agen cies in the region is to ensure complete wipe out of terrorism and its supporters.”

The changing face of

Jammu and Kashmir was evident from the fact that crowds turned up in huge numbers and it was a responsive gathering. “The entire gathering of over 40,000 joined in as the Home Minister shout ed the slogan ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’. Some thing that had never been said here, the source added.

PARLIAMENTARY SPEAKER’S SUMMIT

AMIT SHAH, JP NADDA ON 3-DAY ASSAM VISIT FROM TODAY

Guwahati: Union Home Minister Amit Shah, accompanied by BJP president JP Nadda, will be on a three-day tour to Assam from Friday where the two leaders will inaugurate the new state office of the party, officials said. Addressing a press conference, BJP state president Bhabesh Kalita said, "Nadda and Shah will reach here on Friday around 4 pm. After that, they will attend a meeting of the party's core committee." On Saturday, the two leaders will inaugurate BJP's new state office on National Highway-27 at Basistha Chariali area in presence of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.

‘Russia-Ukraine crisis impacted food & energy security’

New Delhi (PTI): Lok Sabha Speaker Om Bir la on Thursday said the Russia-Ukraine crisis has adversely affected the global food and en ergy security, and as serted India believes such conflicts should be resolved through dia logue and diplomacy.

He further said the global instability caused by COVID-19 has also challenged the food and energy security of the world, especially the de veloping countries.

“Global instability caused by COVID-19 has created a food and ener

gy security crisis across the world. The RussiaUkraine crisis has also adversely affected food and energy security in

Global instability caused by COVID-19 has created a food and energy security crisis across the world. The Russia-Ukraine crisis has also adversely affected food and energy security in the world. It is in this spirit that India has called for supporting multilateralism for global peace and stability so that we can unite to address the challenges facing the world and find solutions in accordance with the aspirations of the people.

that India has always supported a rulesbased international or der, according to a statement issued by

Lok Sabha Secretariat.

“It is in this spirit that India has called for supporting multilater alism for global peace

and stability so that we can unite to address the challenges facing the world and find solutions in accordance with the aspirations of the peo ple,” Birla said, accord ing to the statement.

Referring to various Indian government schemes on food and energy security, Birla suggested it is the re sponsibility of all par liaments to sensitise their governments on important global sub jects such as food and energy security, cli mate change and sus tainable development.

IN THE COURTYARD

NO NEED TO RELY ON MINIMUM WAGES NOTIF IF INCOME CAN BE EVALUATED: SC

New Delhi: The SC has remarked that the notification of the Minimum Wages Act can be a guiding factor only in the case where there is no clue available to evaluate the monthly income of the deceased. "Where positive evidence has been led, no reliance on the notification could be placed, particularly when it was nobody's case that the deceased was a labourer as presumed by the High Court," the top court said. A bench of justices Surya Kant and MM Sundresh said while setting aside an order of Punjab and Haryana High Court and restored the decision of Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT), Karnal*.

COURT SENDS AAP'S VIJAY NAIR TO JUDICIAL CUSTODY

New Delhi: A special court on Thursday sent businessman and AAP communication in-charge Vijay Nair, arrested in connection with the Delhi excise policy scam case in which Deputy CM Manish Sisodia is also an accused, to two weeks’ judicial custody. Special Judge M K Nagpal sent Nair to jail till Oct 20 after the CBI did not seek his further custodial interro gation. Nair entered into a criminal conspiracy with others as part of which the excise policy of the govt of Delhi (GNCTD) of 2021-2022 was framed and implemented.

SC TO EXAMINE IF EDUCATIONAL INST WILL BE GRANTED MINORITY STATUS

New Delhi: The SC has agreed to examine whether an educational institution administered by members of a minori ty community would re sult in it being conferred the status of a minority institution. A bench of justices B R Gavai and B V Nagarathna issued no tices to the Uttar Pradesh government, National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions, National Medical Com mission and others while seeking their replies. The top court was hearing an appeal filed by Mahayana Theravada Vajrayana Buddhist Religious.

MALEGAON BLAST: BJP MP PRAGYA THAKUR APPEARS BEFORE TRIAL COURT

Mumbai: BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur, a prime ac cused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, on Thursday appeared before the trial court here. The Bhopal MP remained present before the special judge for NIA cases, A K Lahoti, as an official of the Maharashtra Anti-Terror ism Squad who had arrested her was deposing as a witness. The ATS official was cross-examined by Thakur’s lawyer during the day’s proceedings. She arrived around 12 PM and sat on the wooden bench assigned for the accused. Later the court allowed her to sit on a chair after she complained of backache.

S Jaishankar met Jacinda Ardern on Thursday.

Ghulam Nabi

SHEHZAD POONAWALLA SLAMS RAJ’s ‘CHAMCHAGIRI’ REMARK ON PREZ

Sambit Patra

Shehzad Poonawalla

Amit Shah

the world,” Birla said at the P20 Summit (Speak ers of G-20 Parliaments Summit) at Indonesia’s Jakarta. He reiterated

Om Birla attended the 8th G20 Parliamentary Speaker’s Summit in Jakarta on Thursday.

—Om Birla, Lok

9 bodies retrieved, 29 still trapped

Authorities launched air rescue operation for stranded trekkers in the Draupadi ka Danda region

Uttarkashi (ANI): The Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) on Thursday said that a total of nine bodies which were trapped in the Uttarkashi ava lanche have been recov ered and retrieved till now, while 29 other trainees continue to re main stranded.

According to the NIM, the nine bodies re trieved today include four dead bodies that were already brought down on Tuesday (Octo ber 4) and Wednesday (October 5).

The update on recov ered bodies came hours after a team of experts from Gulmarg in Jam mu and Kashmir, High Altitude Warfare School (HAWS), joined the op eration with the Nation al Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Dis aster Response Force (SDRF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), and NIM to rescue mountaineers that were stranded on Draupadi’s

The bodies are present at the base and some of them are expected to be brought down today itself. The measures are being hampered due to bad weather conditions

—Vivek Pandey, ITBP PRO

MOUNTAINEERING AND TREKKING BANNED AMID PREDICTED BAD WEATHER IN UTTARKASHI: ABHISHEK RUHELA

Dehradun (ANI): In the view of the safety of the trekking and mountaineering teams in Uttarkashi, district mag istrate Abhishek Ruhela on Thursday instructed to keep the activities here closed for the next

Danda-II mountain peak in Uttarakhand’s Ut tarkashi after the ava lanche hit them on Tues day. However, more

CRUCIAL

MULAYAM SINGH YADAV’S CONDITION STILL CRITICAL: MEDANTA HOSPITAL

Gurugram (ANI): Samajwadi Party patriarch and former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav’s condition is still critical, said the medical bulletin of Medanta Hospital on Thursday. “Mulayam Singh Yadav Ji’s condition is critical and he is still on life saving drugs. He is being treated in the ICU of Medanta Hospital, Gurgaon by a comprehensive team of specialists,” said Dr Sanjeev Gupta, Medical Director, Medanta.

INDIAN-ORIGIN

STUDENT KILLED IN UNITED STATES

Washington (PTI): A 20-year-old Indianorigin student has been killed in his dormi tory in the US state of Indiana and his Korean roommate was taken into custody, accord ing to media reports.

Varun Manish Chheda from Indianapolis, who was studying at Purdue University, was found dead in McCutcheon Hall on Wednesday.

CBI BOOKS JOINT DIR GENERAL FOR RECEIVING BRIBE

New Delhi (PTI): The CBI has booked a joint director general of for eign trade for allegedly receiving a bribe of Rs 1 crore from a business man in 2018 in a fraud case of Rs 118 crore, officials said. Following the registration of the FIR against Joint DGFT Sambhaji A Chavan and Deputy DGFT Prakash S Kamble, 2008 and 2013-batch.

Chandigarh (PTI): The Punjab Vigilance Bureau arrested an assistant inspector general of police and booked two other personnel in a Rs 1-crore bribery case from 2016, officials said. The money allegedly exchanged hands when AIG Ashish Kapoor, currently posted as the commandant of the 4th Indian Reserve Battalion in Pathankot, was the superintendent of Amritsar Central Jail in 2016. A spokesperson said the two policemen booked in the case are DSP Pawan Kumar and Assistant SI Harjinder Singh.

three days. Ruhela has banned these activi ties in Uttarkashi from October 6 to 8. The DM’s decision came after the meterorological depart ment issued an alert for the rain and snow fall here. The India MeT pre

teams have been sent to the advance base camp from ITBP Matli in Ut tarkashi.

An advance helicop

dicted “Intense rainfall spell likely to commence over Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh for subsequent 2-3 days and heavy rain fall spell over most parts of east and northeast during next 3-4 days.”

ter landing ground was also prepared at 16,000 ft and a trial landing was successfully conducted in the morning.

Expert team from Gulmarg to assist avalanche trapped mountaineers on Danda-II

ED rejects DK’s request for extending date

Bangalore (ANI): The Enforcement Directo rate (ED) has rejected Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president DK Shivaku mar’s request for ex tending the date of his appearance before the agency.

Dehradun (ANI): A team of experts from Gulmarg in Jammu and Kashmir has also joined the opera tion to rescue 27 mountaineers who were trapped on Draupadi’s Danda-II mountain peak in Ut tarakhand after be ing caught in an ava lanche on Tuesday.

The expert team has joined the opera tion with the State Disaster Response

Force (SDRF), IndoTibetan Border Po lice (ITBP), and Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM). As per the SDRF’s information, the team will con duct its rescue opera tion at the High Alti tude.

The teams had ar rived at the Advance Base Camp to rescue the trainees of NIM Uttarkashi on Wednesday.

Notably, the ED had earlier summoned Shi vakumar and his broth er and Congress MP DK Suresh to appear before it on October 7. “I had requested time to ap pear which was denied.

I asked time as Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra is passing through Karnataka and there are my responsi bilities,” he said.

DK Shivkumar also accused the govern ment of misusing agen cies to harass him after seeing the success of the Bharat Jodo Yatra.

The Congress leader said he would discuss the summons with fel low party leaders and take a call on whether

he should appear. ED had filed a charge sheet against Shivakumar and others in a money laundering case in May. Shivakumar is current ly serving as the Presi dent of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Com mittee.

‘Rebels’ change their stand, now bet only for Gehlot!

Big development in ongoing Raj political situation

Amit Mishra

New Delhi: There has been a sudden and erious development in the ongo ing Rajasath political cri sis where the ‘rebels’ have taken a new stand. While the rebel MLAs had earli er stressed that anyone from among the 102 MLAs could be made th CM face and flatly refused on Pi lot’s name as CM, but now the rebel MLAs outrightly

rejected the proposal of change of leadership and said, “No one other than Gehlot will be ac cepted under any cir cumstances”.

With this, the ‘confron tation’ between Congress high command and re bels may increase fur ther. The rebel MLAs are waiting for the high com mand to ask about their ‘mann ki baat’. Interest ingly, the ‘rebels’ are now questioning the high command as to “where is the need for leadership change?” They have con tested that on the basis of

one person-one post prin ciple, now Gehlot has only one post then why Gehlot is being removed and humiliated despite the support of 102 MLAs?

According to sources, the high command is shocked by this stand of the rebel MLAs.

Interestingly, sources associated with the Pilot camp, on Thursday, re acted to the ‘grapevine’ and said, “This news is misleading and beyond truth. Confrontation with the high command will not yield good re sults. Allegiance of

MLAs in politics also keeps changing. 40 rebel MLAs have reportedly approached the high command and assured that any decision of high command will be accept able to them. They have promised to stand firmly with high command’s de

cision.”

Meanwhile, the high command has given ad vice to Pilot to remain in constant touch with re bel legislators and not to give any negative re marks on the Gehlot camp. Pilot supporters are still in the hope that a decision in their fa vour could come be tween October 18 and November 18. Mean while, pro-Gehlot MLAs are firm on their stand that there should be no change of leadership at all and Gehlot should continue as CM.

UP govt announces posting of 16 IAS officers of 2020 batch

Ahtesham Siddiqui

Lucknow: The Uttar Pradesh government has issued the order for the first posting of 16 IAS officers of the 2020 batch after the comple tion of their training.

The Appointment De partment of UP has posted the 16 officers of the Indian Administra tive Service (IAS), who are relieved from their duties after receiving training from the center, as Joint Magistrates in various districts of UP and directed joining

them to join by 7 Octo ber.

IAS Jaidev CS has been made Joint Magis trate in Varanasi while IAS Nupur Goyal has been sent to Unnao, IAS Ajay Jain to Mathura, IAS Pratyush Pandey to Bareilly, IAS Nidhi

FIRST-OF-ITS KIND

Bansal to Jhansi. Nota bly, soon her husband Abhishek Kumar is coming to UP cadre from Tripura cadre and will join as Joint magis trate, Bundelkhand.

Meanwhile, Neha Bandhu has been made the new Joint Magis

trate of Gorakhpur, while her elder sisterPCS Jyotsna Bandhu - is posted as SDM Saifai.

Moreover, IAS Parikshit Khatana has been sent to Agra, IAS Ramya R to Saharanpur, IAS Suthan Abdullah to Prayagraj, Maharaj Sumit Rajesh

to Barabanki, Ojaswi Raj to Meerut, Vishal Kumar to Ayodhya, Ab hinav Gopal to Kanpur, Navneet Sehara to Mir

Isha Ambani announces opening of India’s first NMACC

First India Bureau

Mumbai: Isha Amba ni, on Thursday, an nounced the opening of a first-of-its kind space in the sphere of the arts, the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cul tural Centre (NMACC), in Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex.

Dedicated to her mother Nita M Amba ni—an educationist, businesswoman, phi lanthropist and longtime patron of the

arts—it promises to be a cultural landmark.

NMACC is housed within the Jio World Centre, which is also home to the country’s largest convention cen tre, retail and hospital ity outlets, and more, all in the heart of In dia’s financial and en tertainment capital. The three-storeyed building will open spaces for performing as well as visual arts. A trio of dedicated spac es for the performing

arts include The Grand Theatre, The Studio Theatre and The Cube, all built with cuttingedge technology to ca

ter to a wide range of experiences, from inti mate screenings and stimulating conversa tions to multilingual

programming and in ternational produc tions. The centre will also launch the Art House, a four storeyed space spotlighting leading Indian and in ternational artists.

Speaking on the oc casion, Isha said, “The Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre is so much more than a space it is the culmina tion of my mother’s passion for arts, cul ture and her love for India.”

SANGAM CONFLUENCE

Curated by India’s leading cultural theorist Ranjit Hoskote and Jeffrey Deitch, American curator, former director of the Museum of Contempo rary Art (MOCA), Los Angeles and founder of his eponymous gallery, Sangam Confluence is a group art show that cel ebrates diverse cultural impulses and traditions at the 16,000 sq. ft Art House.

INDIA IN FASHION

The Impact of Indian Dress and Textiles on the Fashionable Imagination:

Curated by prolific author and costume expert Ham ish Bowles, editor-in-chief, The World of Interiors, international editor-atlarge, Vogue US, this ex hibit traces the widespread impact and influence of India’s sartorial traditions in textiles, jewellery and surface ornamentation on global fashion spanning the 18th-21st century.

zapur, Pawan Kumar Meena to Kannauj and Ajay Kumar Gautam has been appointed as JM, Moradabad.

India condemns North Korea missile test

United Nations (PTI): India, joining the US, UK and France, has strongly condemned North Korea’s ballistic missile launch which overflew Japan, with New Delhi underlining that these launches af fect the peace and secu rity of the region and beyond. The missile fired was the first from North Korea to fly over Japan in five years. The launch mark the 24th time this year that North Korea has con ducted missile tests.

Uttarakhand avalanche rescue ops underway. —PHOTO BY ANI

Karnataka PCC president DK Shivakumar MISUSING AGENCIES

Nita Mukesh Ambani Isha Ambani

PUNJAB AIG ARRESTED BY VIGILANCE BUREAU IN `1-CR BRIBERY CASE

IAS Neha Bandhu IAS Nidhi Bansal IAS Aojasvi Raj IAS Jaidev CS

Sonia Gandhi Ashok Gehlot Sachin Pilot

FIN MIN ASSURES NO LOSS OF INTEREST RATE IN EPFO

Rupee closes at all-time low of 81.94/$

Mumbai (PTI): The rupee plunged 32 paise to close at an all-time low of 81.94 (provisional) against the US dollar on Thursday amid high volatility as firm crude oil prices weighed on the local unit.

New Delhi: The Finance Ministry has said there is no loss of interest rate for EPFO subscribers and the delay in crediting interest for the last fiscal is due to software upgrade being conducted. It further said that for all outgoing sub scribers seeking settle ment and also those with drawing their deposits, the payments are being done inclusive of the in terest. The ministry said this on Twitter in reply to a tweet by TV Mohandas Pai, who raised queries on interest in the EPF deposits.

GOVT GETS `1,203 CRORE DIVIDEND FROM FIVE CPSEs

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local currency opened on a posi tive note at 81.52, then pared all the gains to settle at an all-time low of 81.94 against the American cur rency, registering a decline of 32 paise over its previ ous close.

During the day, the local unit witnessed an intra-day high of 81.51 and a low of 81.94 against the green back.

On Tuesday, the rupee appreciated by 20 paise to end at 81.62 against the US dollar.

“Rupee, after appreciat

RUPEE/DOLLAR ON THURSDAY

z At the interbank foreign exchange market, rupee opened on a positive note at 81.52, then pared all the gains to settle at an all-time low of 81.94, registering a decline of 32 paise over its last close

z Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, advanced 0.06% to 111.27

z During the day, the local unit witnessed an intra-day high of 81.51 and a low of 81.94 against the greenback

India’s services sector activity falls to six-month low in Sept

New Delhi: The govern ment has received about `604 crore, `450 crore, and `37 crore from SAIL, HUDCO, and IREL, re spectively as dividend tranches, Secretary, De partment of Investment and Public Asset Manage ment (DIPAM), Tuhin Kanta Pandey said. In ad dition to this, the govern ment has also received `81 crore and `31 crore from IRCTC and Bhartiya Rail Bijlee Company Ltd respectively as dividend tranches, he said in a se ries of tweets.

CAN FIN HOMES PLAN TO RAISE UP TO `4K CRORE DEBT CAPITAL

New Delhi (PTI): The In dian services sector activi ty fell to a six-month low in September, as new business inflows rose at the slowest rates since March, amid in flationary pressures and competitive conditions, a monthly survey said.

The seasonally adjusted S&P Global India Services PMI Business Activity In dex fell to 54.3 in September, from 57.2 in August, high lighting the weakest rate of expansion since March.

For the fourteenth straight month, the servic es sector witnessed an ex pansion in output. “The Indian service sector has overcome many adversities in recent months, with the

latest PMI data continuing to show a strong perfor mance despite some loss of growth momentum in Sep tember,” said Pollyanna De Lima, Economics Associ ate Director at S&P Global.

The upturn was report edly restricted by price pressures, an increasingly

FELL TO 54.3 IN SEPTEMBER 2022

z

The seasonally adjusted S&P Global India Services PMI Business Activity Index fell to 54.3 in Sept highlighting the weakest rate of expansion since March. For the 14th straight month, it witnessed an expansion in output

competitive environment and unfavourable public policies, the survey said. Lima further noted that the steep depreciation of the rupee seen towards the end of the month due to inter est rate hikes in the US pre sent additional challenges to the Indian economy.

ing marginally on Tuesday, is again starting to come under pressure. The dollar strengthened after services PMI and private payrolls numbers from the US came in better than estimates,” said Gaurang Somaiya, Fo rex & Bullion Analyst, Mo tilal Oswal Financial Ser vices. Major crosses euro and pound continued to witness selling pressure at higher levels. The focus will be on the European Central Bank (ECB) meet ing minutes, Somaiya said on Thursday.

“We expect the USD/INR (Spot) to quote in the range of 81.20 and 82.05,” Somai ya added.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six cur rencies, advanced 0.06% to 111.27.

Airtel 5G Plus in 8 cities, no SIM change required

New Delhi (ANI): Bharti Airtel on Thursday said its 5G services have gone live in eight cities of Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengal uru, Hyderabad, Siliguri, Nagpur and Varanasi.

The customer availing 5G services will have to pay as per their existing 4G plan, it said.

A company spokesper son said that customer will be able to avail the services as per their 4G plan.

Airtel subscribers get ting 5G signals in their area can switch to 5G but if they find that 5G is con suming high data than can switch back to 4G network.

“Access to 5G is option al,” the spokesperson said.

FinMin releases `7,183 cr grant to 14 states

stallments.

New Delhi: Canara Bank promoted housing loan provider Can Fin Homes is planning to raise debt capital of up to `4,000 crore and will seek board of directors’ approval on this proposal later this month. The board of di rectors of the company is scheduled to meet on Oct 17. “At the said meeting the proposal is being placed to the board seek ing approval and authori sations for issuance of non-convertible redeema ble debentures up to an amount of `4,000 crore, on private placement ba sis,” Can Fin Homes said in a regulatory filing.

GOLD JUMPS `497

BUT SILVER SLIPS BY `80 ON THURSDAY

New Delhi (ANI): The cen tral government on Thurs day released `7,183.42 crore as post-devolution revenue deficit grant to 14 states in cluding Kerala, Punjab, Ra jasthan, Himachal Pradesh and West Bengal.

The Department of Ex penditure, Ministry of Fi nance has released the 7th monthly instalment of Post Devolution Revenue Deficit (PDRD) Grant of ` 7,183.42 crore to 14 states. The grant has been released as per the recommendations of the Fifteenth Finance Com mission, Union Finance

Ministry said in a state ment. The Fifteenth Fi nance Commission has recommended a total Post Devolution Revenue Deficit Grant of `86,201 crore to 14

E-comm firms clock `40K cr sale in festive season

New Delhi: Gold prices jumped by `497 to `52,220 per 10 grams in the national capital on Thursday amid a global rally in the metal and de preciation in the rupee, according to HDFC Secu rities. In the previous trade, the precious metal had settled at `51,723 per 10 grams. Silver, howev er, slipped by `80 to `61,605 per kg from `61,685 per kg. In the in ternational market, gold was trading in green at $1,722.6 per ounce.

New Delhi (PTI): E-com merce firms are estimated to have registered a 27% growth, clocking sales worth `40,000 crore, during the recently concluded seven-day festive season sale, a report said on Thursday.

Flipkart Group, includ ing Myntra, Shopsy etc, maintains its leadership position, while Meesho is the second-largest contrib utor in order volume, the report by Redseer Strategy Consulting said.

“With the conclusion of Festive Sale 1, the online retail platforms have seen

a robust 27% year-on-year growth, clocking a sale of `40,000 crore,” report said.

The growth in sales was driven by sales of mobile phones. “Mobile as a cate gory continued to lead GMV (gross merchandise value) share, contributing to 41% of the GMV, trans lating to 56,000 mobiles sold per hour.

states for the financial year 2022-23. The recommended grant is released by the De partment of Expenditure to the recommended States in 12 equated monthly in

With the release of 7th instalment for the month of October 2022, the total amount of Revenue Deficit Grants released to the States in 2022-23 has gone up to `50,282.92 crore.

The states who have been recommended Post Devolu tion Revenue Deficit Grant by the Fifteenth Finance Commission during 2022-23 are: Andhra Pradesh, As sam, HP, Kerala, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Na galand, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tripura, Uttara khand and West Bengal.

STOCK MARKETS RISE FOR 2ND SESSION AS SENSEX GAINS 156 PTS TO END AT 58,222

Mumbai (PTI): Benchmark BSE Sensex rose by 156 points while the Nifty closed above the 17,300 level on Thursday after gains in metal, IT and capital goods shares amid foreign capital inflows. The 30-share BSE benchmark gained 156.63 points or 0.27% to settle at 58,222.10. During the day, it jumped 513.29 points or 0.88% to 58,578.76.

The broader NSE Nifty advanced 57.50 points or 0.33% to end at 17,331.80.

Among Sensex shares, Tata Steel, Larsen & Toubro, ICICI Bank, HCL Technologies, Infosys and Axis Bank were among the winners. However, Bharti Airtel, Hindustan Unilever, In dusInd Bank, HDFC and Bajaj Finance were among the laggards.

SPICEJET SHARES SETTLE NEARLY 9% HIGHER AMID REPORTS OF ECLGS GRANT

New Delhi (PTI): Shares of SpiceJet on Thursday ended nearly 9% higher amid reports that the company is expected to receive an addi tional `1,000 crore as part of the modified ECLGS (Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme). After beginning the trade on a positive note, the stock of the budget carrier further jumped 10.14% to `42.35 dur ing the day on the BSE. It ended at `41.85 apiece, higher by 8.84%.

On the volume front, 11.28 lakh shares of the company were traded on the BSE. In the broader market, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 156.63 points to settle at 58,222.10.

OTHER STORIES

WORLD BANK LOWERS

INDIA’S GDP GROWTH FORECAST TO 6.5%

New Delhi: The World Bank on Thursday pared its growth forecast for India to 6.5% year-on-year for 2022/23, from an earlier estimate of 7.5%. Moreo ver, it also warned that spillo vers from the Russia-Ukraine war and global monetary tightening will weigh on the economic outlook. “Private investment growth is likely to be dampened by heightened uncertainty and higher financ ing costs,” it said.

12,000 FB EMPLOYEES MAY LOSE JOBS AMID ‘QUIET LAYOFFS’

New Delhi: Meta is reportedly conducting ‘quiet layoffs’ at Facebook that may lead to thousands of job cuts -- at least 12,000 or about 15% of its workforce. According to a report in Insider, the senior executives are in the process of executing “quiet layoffs” of underperforming workers. Several employees told Insider that as much as 15% of the workforce could be cut within the next few weeks.

SITHARAMAN SEEKS GREATER PRESENCE OF CCI TO ENSURE EASE OF DOING BUSINESS

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said that to ensure ease of doing business, it is essential that there is greater presence of Competition Commission of India (CCI) offices across the country. She said that challenges of digitisation can’t be ignored and there fore, it is important for Indian competition authorities to benchmark themselves at par with global competition watchdogs. Sitharaman said that with rising competition related issues, the CCI should keep itself abreast of new and evolving laws prevalent around the world and also the best practices. —FIB

‘NO PLAN TO CUT CHIP PRODUCTION DESPITE SLOWING DEMAND’

New Delhi: Samsung Electronics is not consider ing a cut in production of its memory chips despite slow ing demand amid concerns over a global economic recession, a senior company executive has said. “There is no internal discus sion (about a cut in memory chip production) at the mo ment,” Han Jin-man, executive VP & head of memory global sales & marketing at Samsung Electronics, said. —FIB

FROM VOOT TO JIOCINEMA, ACCESS FREE

FMCG MOST SOUGHT AFTER SECTOR BY JOB-SEEKERS: STUDY

New Delhi: Fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) con tinued to be the most sought after sector by job-seekers, a study by the human resources ser vices firm CIEL HR Services said on Thursday. Mumbai topped the list with the highest job demand in the segment. “For freshers and mid-level employees, the sector is per ceived to be offering the most promising job prospects,” the study said.

Viacom18 to shift sports content to JioCinema

First India Bureau

New Delhi: Viacom18, the joint venture between Reli ance-controlled TV18 and US entertainment major Paramount Global (earlier ViacomCBS), will move all existing sporting proper ties from the company’s video-on-demand service VOOT to JioCinema start ing with FIFA World Cup 2022, which kicks off in Qatar on November 20.

The company plans to make the JioCinema app the streaming destination for live sports.

These include football

leagues LaLiga (Spanish), Ligue 1 (French) and Serie A (Italy), as well as the NBA, ATP Masters (Ten nis) and Abu Dhabi T10 (cricket) properties.

“JioCinema is going to

MAJOR

HIGHLIGHTS

z Viacom 18 will move all existing sporting properties from VOOT to JioCinema starting with FIFA World Cup 2022

z The decision on the Indian Premier League (IPL) will be taken later

He added that JioCine ma will be available for download across all tel cos—Jio, Airtel, and Vi— and across all devices, in cluding iOS, Android and connected TVs, for free.

be our digital destination for sports, starting with FIFA 2022 in Qatar. We’ll also be moving other sports properties to JioCinema,” Anil Jayraj, CEO, Sports, at Viacom18 said.

Nothing is more important in life than purpose; It drives everyone from the richest to the poorest, the mightiest to the weakest.

Police nab Ambani threat call suspect from Bihar

Had placed call to Reliance Hospital; death threats to industrialist Mukesh Ambani and his family have increased in frequency over the past few years

First India Bureau

Mumbai: A man was caught from Bihar by the Mumbai police in connection with the anonymous threaten ing calls made on Wednesday to the HN Reliance Foundation Hospital, said a police official on Thursday.

The unidentified call er had threatened to blow up the hospital along with Ambani’s residence ‘Antilia’ in south Mumbai and kill Reliance Group Chair man Mukesh Ambani and his family.

A police team from Mumbai picked up a suspect from Bihar’s Darbhanga district around midnight and was bringing him back here, said the official.

Mumbai police on Thursday arrested Rakesh Kumar Mishra (30) from Darbhanga in Bihar for allegedly making two calls to the Reliance Founda tion-run hospital in Girgaon area in the last two days. He threat ened to blow up the hos pital, the family house on Altamount Road, and kill Ambani, his wife Nita and sons Akash and Anant.

This was the second time the Ambani family was threatened on the hospital landline number.

On August 15 this year, the hospital re ceived at least nine calls threatening the billion aire industrialist and his family members, said an official.

These were among the many death threats

to the Ambanis. In No vember 2021, the Mum bai police increased the security outside ‘Antil ia’ following a tip by a taxi driver about a pos sible threat.

However, that was mild compared to a bomb-rigged vehicle found near the Ambani residence in February that year, which made national news.

Aurangabad water pipeline scheme sees `1K cr escalation

First India Bureau

Aurangabad: Union Minister Bhagwat Karad on Thursday said that the cost of the water pipeline scheme in Aurang abad has gone up by more than Rs1,000 crore due to hike in steel prices and other components, but its inclusion in the AM RUT-2 scheme will en sure the Centre pro vides Rs678 crore for its completion.

The project, which aims to provide drink ing water to parched Marathwada’s largest

city and surrounding ar eas by bringing water from the Jayakwadi Dam, was originally es timated to cost Rs1.680 crore, but the revised estimate now stands at Rs2,714 crore, he added.

Speaking to the media after chairing a review meeting of the scheme,

Karad said that the tar get is to start water sup ply by February 2024.

“It has now been in cluded in AMRUT 2.0 (Atal Mission for Rejuve nation and Urban Trans formation) scheme of the Union Government, which will bear 25% of the scheme. This comes to Rs678 crore,” he said.

Karad further added, “Of the 39km pipeline, work on 2.3km has been completed. Of the total cost of the project, Au rangabad Municipal Corporation has to pay 30%. I will request the state government to help out.”

CONSEQUENCES

Mansukh Hiran, a Thane-based businessman, who had told police the SUV had been sto len from his pos session to threaten the Ambanis. But the matter took a grim turn when Hi ran was found dead in a creek in Thane a few days later.

Assistant Inspector of Mumbai crime branch, Sachin Waze was arrested for alleged involve ment in parking the SUV near Antilia and also for Hiran’s murder. The affair also led to Mumbai Police Commission er Param Bir Singh being shunted out.

On February 25, 2021, an SUV with explosives was found parked on Carmichael Road, near the Ambani residence.

The police found a printed threat note in side along with gelig nite sticks. The note said that the bomb was “just a trailer”, and that next time it would have assembled explosives instead of loose sticks.

ADIEU TO THE GODDESS

‘Param Bir, Waze acted in cahoots to save themselves’

First India Bureau

Mumbai: Former Mumbai Police Com missioner Param Bir Singh and dismissed cop Sachin Waze acted “in cahoots” and passed the buck to him to save their own skin, claimed former Maha rashtra minister Anil Deshmukh in his bail plea filed in connec tion with a corruption case against him.

In the petition submit ted in the special CBI (Central Bureau of In vestigation) court on Thursday, the senior Na tionalist Congress Party (NCP) leader also

claimed that the entire set of accusations against him rests upon “mere whims and fan cies” of the investigating agency. He also added that it raised questions

Bandra-Worli Sea Link mishap accused sent to police custody

First India Bureau

Mumbai: A Mumbai court on Thursday sent the person, ac cused in the BandraWorli Sea Link road accident to one day police custody.

According to the po lice, the accused—iden tified as Irfan Abdul Ra heem Beelkia—has been booked under section 304 (death by negligence) of the India Penal Code for over speeding and rash driving.

Beelkia, who was driving the sports utility vehicle (SUV) that rammed into multiple

vehicles at the BandraWorli Sea Link, was on Thursday sent to oneday police custody by a local court even as he informed cops that he was trying to plug in the

mobile phone charger at the time of the pre-dawn crash.

Five people were killed and eight injured in the accident. The mishap occurred in the morning hours of Wednesday, when an ambulance, a car, and several other vehicles were parked on the roadside and were pre paring to transport vic tims of an earlier acci dent to a hospital.

A car being driven at a high speed crashed into the ambulance and three more vehicles as well as the car that was involved in the previous crash.

3 to 4 farmers end their lives in Maha daily: Ajit Pawar

NCP leader criticizes Eknath Shinde-led state govt, alleging that despite repeated requests, the govt has not declared a wet drought in parts of Maharashtra

India Bureau

Pune: Senior Nation alist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pa war slammed the Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra govern ment on Thursday, claiming that three to four farmers have committed suicide in the state every day since the dispensa tion came to power in June this year.

He also claimed that, despite repeated re

quests, the government has not declared a wet drought in parts of the state that have experi enced heavy rains and witnessed large-scale damage to crops.

Pawar, who is the Leader of Opposition in the state Legislative As sembly, was addressing a gathering in Barama ti, his constituency in Pune district. “When we were in the govern ment, we took the deci sion of loan waiver. Due

to it, Rs50,000 will now come into the accounts of those who repay their farm loans on time. We had made sev eral key decisions (in

“When we were in the government, we took the deci sion of loan waiver. Due to it, Rs50,000 will now come into the accounts of those who repay their farm loans on time. We had made sev eral key decisions (in favour of farmers). But since this government came to power, everyday three to four farm ers are committing suicide. They are taking the extreme step despite rains.”

“Some farmers lost their ‘kharif’ crops, some lost their rabi crops due to the heavy rains and flood situa tion. While this is hap pening, surveys are still undergoing,” he added.

In some cases, the compensation was giv en, but the amount was so meagre that the farm ers were not ready to ac cept it, the NCP leader said, adding that those in power in the state do not have time to address the farmers’ woes.

about the credibility of the statements on which the CBI’s case is based.

The 73-year-old NCP leader was arrested in November last year in a money laundering case being probed by the En forcement Directorate (ED). He is currently lodged in Mumbai’s Ar thur Road Jail.

However, he is also fac ing a corruption case registered by the CBI.

Deshmukh filed his bail application before the special CBI court Judge SH Gwalani in the corruption case.

“The entire case is based on the statements of Param Bir Singh and

Sachin Waze, a tainted cop, against whom there is ample evidence avail able on record that he himself was in fact the sole person instrumen tal in the collection of illegal bribe money from the bar owners,” said the plea.

“Both of them have acted in cahoots with each other and in order to save their own skin as well as to pass the buck on to the applicant (Deshmukh), false state ments have been made having no credibility,” it said.

The court has asked the CBI to file its reply on the plea on October 14.

SPEEDING TEMPO RAMS INTO HOUSE IN THANE, NO CASUALTIES REPORTED

Thane: The driver of a speeding tempo lost control and this resulted in the vehicle ramming into a house in the Jawahar area of Thane district.

However, no one was injured in the accident, police said. The tempo was coming from Nashik when the incident took place in Khapricha Pada, he said.

“The driver lost control and the tempo rammed into the house of one Buddhesh Jangle. No one was injured but the damage to the house was extensive,” a Jawhar police station official said.

BANNED GUTKHA WORTH `73.41 LAKH CONFISCATED, 2 HELD

Palghar: Two persons were arrested by the police for possessing banned gutkha worth Rs73.41 lakh in the Pelhar area of Palghar district. An official at the Pelhar police station on Thursday informed that the cops acting on a tip-off stopped two trucks plying on the Mumbai-Agra highway, which led to the contraband being seized.

FIVE BOOKED FOR HOUSING SOCIETY FRAUD WORTH `82L

favour of farmers). But since this government came to power, every day three to four farm ers are committing sui cide,” Pawar said.

The reason for them to take this step is that they failed to get compensa tion for their damaged crops that they were sup posed to receive, he said.

“I had asked them (state govt) to declare a wet drought in the re gions where heavy rains battered crops. But they did not do so,” he said.

The accused drivers have been identified as Abhishek Nimbalkar and Bhuvasaheb Khumatkar and have been charged under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and Food and Drug Administration provisions. An investigation is underway, the official added.

Thane: Five people, including an official of the state cooperative department, have been booked for alleged involvement in misappropriating funds of Rs82 lakh of a housing society in Thane, a police official said on Thursday. An audit of works at the housing society showed irregularities of Rs82 lakh after which a case was filed with Vartak Nagar police station.

“The fraud took place between October 2019 and September 2021 when one of the accused was attached to the state cooperative department. Other accused are civil and electrical contractors who were given various works,” the official said.

Ajit Pawar.

—Ajit Pawar, Nationalist Congress Party leader

The idol of Goddess Durga being immersed by devotees after the culmination of the five-day long Durga Puja festival at Dadar Chowpatty in Mumbai on Thursday.

—PHOTO BY ANI

Anil Deshmukh is currently lodged in Arthur Road Jail of Mumbai. —FILE PHOTO

Bandra-Worli Sea Link accused Irfan Abdul Raheem Beelkia being taken to Bhoiwada court on Thursday. —PHOTO BY BHUSHAN KOYANDE

Bhagwat Karad. —FILE PHOTO

Mukesh Ambani (R) with his wife Nita Ambani.

PHOTO

CHASING THE PASSION

Nikhita Sethi, accomplished hospitality professional with years of rich experience managing hospitality brands across sizes and categories caught up with City First about her industry, idols and offering curated lifestyle experiences to its guests!

A

s a child, Nikhita had a flair for the crea tive, which led to many accolades in creative competi tions and ultimate ly transformed into a serious profes sional choice. In an exclusive interview with City First, we bring to you ex cerpts from the chat.

When asked how important are com munication skills for her and what she thinks is more important, educa tional qualifica tions or good com munication and personality, the pas sionate woman said, “Having an educational degree is as good as know ing cooking a meal but when it comes to being at the hos pitality, the first thing which is re quired is how well you interact and in terpret the knowl edge you may have

how you possess your opinion, how you have an ap proach towards multiple situations which shows your patience, empathy, your confidence, the beauty with brains replied, “As one says that rough sea makes a good sailor, hence we learn more with ex perience that ena bles them to adapt a personality which is the most impor tant part of this in dustry.” Taking about her idol, Nikhita said, “I may sound very pro found here but I al ways looked up to my mother,

sister and my fa ther, for they taught me to stay strong and their ‘never give up’ attitude. Yes, I would also give my teachers huge respect for making me who I am today, and be sides that, I simply adore Sushmita Sen as my childhood in spiration.” When asked what mes sage she would give to young people wishing to enter the hospitality indus try, Sethi said, “You can’t pour from an empty mug, so peo ple joining this field must be aware of themselves and live life to the

ANITA

SHARMA

NATIONAL FORGIVENESS HAPPINESS DAY&

ARIES

MAR 21 - APR 20 Today is a favourable day for business. You are very generous by nature and also you are the backbone of your family. You may postpone your study plans. You are very fortunate to have a great friend circle. Be careful of the words that come out of your mouth. Your lover may finally say yes to you.

TAURUS

APR 21 - MAY 20

You need a break from day to tensions and the way to cope up with stress is to meditate. You must create an environment of understanding at home. You will succeed in any sort of examination if you put your heart and soul to it. Promotion can be expected even if other are not.

LIBRA

SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 22 Visit a doctor if you have any doubts about your health. Don’t attack stress even if you don’t have any. Let go of things that are not in your control. You want to have your own house and you will work hard to make your dream come true. Overall a good day.

SCORPIO

OCT 23 - NOVEMBER 22

You make sure to make things work your way. Never demotivate someone even if someone is not capable of doing something. You are most wanted by your friends. You can have romantic affair in office and a serious one. You will invest money in clothes and accessories today. You are a God fearing person.

FIRST

National Forgiveness & Happiness Day on October 7, is a day that celebrates for giveness and the amount of happiness it can bring to one’s life. While many people hold on to grudges and fantasize about revenge, studies have revealed that the best way to heal is to actually forgive the person who hurt you. And no, forgiving someone does not make you weak. Instead, it contributes to the creation of a much more successful and happy you. This National For giveness & Happiness Day, fill your heart with the light of love and practice the art of forgiveness. It will be the best decision you have made all year!

HISTORY OF NATIONAL FORGIVENESS & HAPPINESS DAY

National Forgiveness & Hap piness Day is an occasion that celebrates forgiveness and en courages people to let bygones be bygones. This is because being unforgiving will only be harmful to you in the long run and will have no impact on the one who hurt you. To encour age the practice of ‘letting go,’ this religious-based holiday was created and sponsored by Robert Moyers and the World wide Forgiveness Alliance. The goal of the holiday was “to do the will of God each day and to love one another as God loves us.” In fact, the organ izers of the day also came up with a “Prayer of Forgiveness,” which asks God to forgive oth ers. It also pleads with God to provide us with the power to forgive others and help us for give ourselves.

Not the religious kind? Well, this day is still impor tant for you since the theory of forgiveness and the impact it has on one’s life has been supported by numerous theo rists and researchers. For in stance, in 1998, two research ers revealed that forgiveness is different from pardoning, excusing forgetting, and de nial. Instead, it’s an act that allows you to reconcile with yourself and restore a frac tured relationship. This does not mean that you forget the wrong that has been done to you, but instead, you focus on accepting that it happened and then choose to move on. Another study revealed that forgiveness increases posi tive emotions and reduces negative ones such as blame and anger. Furthermore, in 2020, Shauna Shapiro wrote in her book: “Forgiveness is perhaps the most challenging of all the resources available to us — and the most trans formational.”

WHY NATIONAL FORGIVENESS & HAPPINESS DAY IS IMPORTANT

It highlights the importance of forgiveness

Forgiveness is not easy and it takes a person to be really strong to let go of negativity. This is what this day tries to remind us all — that forgive ness will only heal us. It shows how forgiveness can lead to happiness

The day explains how forgive ness doesn’t make you weak. But instead, it could be the rea son behind eternal happiness. It makes people let go of their grievances

Since the day promotes forgive ness, it makes many people for get their grudges and reassess their relationships with a dif ferent perspective.

5 FUN FACTS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT FORGIVENESS

Letting go of grudges

Forgiveness makes you happier and healthier.

Effect on stress Being unforgiving produces the stress hormone. Don’t be the victim

Forgiveness can empower you. Forgiveness increases compassion

It makes you more understanding and helps mend relationships. Blame game

Forgiveness makes you stop blam ing others for your problems.

GEMINI

MAY 21 - JUNE 21

Your spouse may make you spend more than you expected. Fantastic day for investing money in stock market as you can make fortune. You need help on academic front and you should not shy away from asking. You miss your parents a lot and somewhere fear to loose them. Admit your faults in relationship.

CANCER

JUNE 22 - JULY 23

You care about you lover but somehow hesitate in expressing that care. Don’t make friends for money and status rather make friends who will stick with you forever. On social front, you may have to spend some extra money in buying gifts for someone for some specific occasion.

LEO

JULY 24 - AUGUST 23

You love to live close to your family. Best day to buy gold and silver or any precious metal for investment sake. You are a child at heart and never let this child die. You have a big heart and you always help someone if you can. Video gathering is possible as you miss your social circle like anything.

VIRGO

AUG 24 - SEP 23

HOW TO CELEBRATE NATIONAL FORGIVENESS & HAPPINESS DAY

Make a list of people you want to forgive

Throughout your life, there may be many people who have hurt you. Well, now is the time to think of them and free your heart of all the grudges.

Apologize to someone for your mistakes We all make mistakes because we are human. But instead of ignoring your mistakes, con front the people you have hurt and ask them for forgiveness.

Preach the lesson on social media

Not everyone knows how es sential forgiveness is for hap piness. Hence, use this day to spread the message and im prove the lives of thousands of people.

You give tough competition to people. Many people get inspired by you. You will get special treatment from your dear ones. Take stand where you need to, don’t run in the same direction where everybody else is going. Health remains perfect. Health will be satisfactory.

YOUR DAY

Horoscope by Saurabbh Sachdeva

SAGITTARIUS

NOV 23 - DEC 22

Your spouse is someone who can do anything for your happiness. You are opportunist and this will make you successful one day. There may be delays in property possession and it won’t effect you. You are happy spending whole day at home. Help your mothers at home today.

CAPRICORN

DEC 23 - JAN 20

Scrumptious food is what you are craving for today. You always maintain cordial relationship with everyone. You workout daily to keep yourself fit. You may start a side business to earn extra money. You are not a jealous kind and you feel happy for others. You are a very grounded person.

AQUARIUS

JAN 21 - FEB 19

You will feel amorous towards your wife. This is the best time try something new with life give yourself a new purpose. Work on your limitations, there can be no better time than this. You have more opposite sex friends than the same and you may be judged sometimes but don’t care.

PISCES

FEB20 - MARCH 20

Spend time talking with likeminded people as it will make you feel good for now. Boisterous behaviour is what everyone needs right now, do whatever you can do to cheer everyone up. You will feel financially comfortable. Your personality will attract many eligible bachelors.

UP KE MANN KI BAAT AT AGRA

SHUBHAM DUBEY AND DEEPAK KAUSHIK

Some more glimpses of the grand event of UP Ke Mann Ki Baat at Agra held at Courtyard by Marriott, Agra, in as sociation with Bharat24 and First India News channel on Tuesday. During the event, Un ion Minister of State for Law and Justice Professor SP Singh Baghel was present as the Chief Guest of the programme.

Dr Jagdeesh Chan dra graced the occasion with his presence and enlightened the audi ence present at the

event.

Rajkumar Chahar, National President of BJP Kisan Morcha and MP Fatehpur Sikri, Manish Asija-Secre tary of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative As sembly and other re nowned leaders were also present on the oc casion. During the pro gramme, social work ers and eminent per sonalities spoke on ed ucation, health and other issues in Agra. All the sponsors and all the intellectuals, social workers, litterateurs and officials of Agra city were present. In the same episode, vari ous doctors and other dignitaries were also felicitated at the event.

Jagdeesh Chandra with (L-R) Ashok Raj Singh, Manish Asija, Shishir Awasthi, Sumit Awasthi and Ahteshyam Siddiqi

Union MoS Prof SP Singh Baghel, Rajkumar Chahar, Manish Asija felicitate Amit Goyal, Panchhi Petha. Also seen here is Shishir Awasthi

Shishir Awasthi greets Rajkumar Chahar

Shishir Awasthi greets Manish Asija

Jagdeesh Chandra greeted by Manish Asija

Union MoS Prof SP Singh Baghel, Rajkumar Chahar, Manish Asija felicitate Dr Mayank Bhatnagar, Director Kids Corner Secondary School Firozabad. Also seen is Shishir Awasthi

Union MoS Prof SP Singh Baghel, Rajkumar Chahar, Manish Asija felicitate Focus Ultrasound and Imaging Center Dr Vikas Sharma. Also seen here is Shishir Awasthi

Union MoS Prof SP Singh Baghel, Rajkumar Chahar, Manish Asija felicitate Bunty Pal, director of Siyaram Sweets Bhandar. Also seen here is Shishir Awasthi

Union MoS Prof SP Singh Baghel, Rajkumar Chahar, Manish Asija felicitate Deenu Kaushik, Kaushik Associates. Also seen is Shishir Awasthi

Union MoS Prof SP Singh Baghel, Rajkumar Chahar, Manish Asija felicitate MD Rajat Maheshwari Lala Roshanlal Sweets and Namkeen, Kasganj during the event. Also seen here is Shishir Awasthi

Union MoS Prof SP Singh Baghel, Rajkumar Chahar, Manish Asija felicitate Md Imran Indian Shoes during the event. Also seen here is Shishir Awasthi

Union MoS Prof SP Singh Baghel, Rajkumar Chahar, Manish Asija felicitate Kailash Rajouria of Ayushman Hospital, Tundla. Also seen here is Shishir Awasthi

Rajkumar Chahar, Manish Asija felicitate Dr Sameer Bhati, Star Pathology

Union MoS Prof SP Singh Baghel, Rajkumar Chahar, Manish Asija felicitate Dr Arinjay Jain, GG Nursing Home & Research Centre. Also seen here is Shishir Awasthi

Union MoS Prof SP Singh Baghel, Rajkumar Chahar, Manish Asija felicitate Hiralal Kushwah, director Hiralal Kulfi during the event. Also seen here is Shishir Awasthi

Jagdeesh Chandra greeted by Dr Naresh Sharma

Jagdeesh Chandra greets Proff SP Singh Baghel

Jagdeesh Chandra greeted by Shubham Dubey. Also seen are Shishir Awasthi, Sumit Awasthi and Ahteshyam Siddiqi with others

Union MoS Prof SP Singh Baghel, Rajkumar Chahar, Manish Asija felicitate Dr Sukesh Yadav Chancellor, JS University. Also seen here is Shishir Awasthi

Jagdeesh Chandra greeted by Sumit Awasthi

Ranveer Singh is a volcano of Energy: DSP

ish Tiwari of First India exclusively.

ASHISH TIWARI cityfirst.mumbai@firstindia.co.in

Bollywood star Ran veer Singh launched south In dian music director Devi Sri Prasad (DSP)'s first ever non-film Hindi sin gle titled 'O Pari' on Tues day. The number has gar nered a lot of attention and created a buzz within his loyal fan base across the country. DSP Spoke to Ash

“Since Childhood, I was very acquainted with Bolly wood music, even when I made Tamil and Telegu songs people told me my songs were made for Bollywood movies, so I am eternally grateful for the love I am receiving from the audience. Well O Pari was long impending and now it’s out for the audience to love” DSP said.

Speaking on his Inspira tion behind The song he shared,” For me, my O pari is my mother and the way she brought us up amidst my dad’s heart attack I can not imagine what all she must have gone through. I owe all my success to my parents. When In school my

DURGA: A SYNONYM OF POWER!

OF ESPIONAGE-THRILLER

NAME TIRANGA’

FIRST UTTKARSHA SHEKHAR AND MRIDULA SHARMA

The trailer of one of the espionagethrillers of the year, ‘Code Name Tiranga’ is the latest sensation in Bollywood.

The trailer has amassed much love from the au dience for its high-oc tane action and emo tions. The main lead of the film Parineeti Chopra and Hardy San du along with director Ribhu Dasgupta reached Hotel Marriott in Jaipur and shared some insights about their up coming blockbust er in an exclusive interview with City First!

Acting came as a fluke to you or was it your child hood dream?

I am an actor by chance, since childhood, I was into cricket but I, my parents discovered my singing talent early and gave me the plat form to perform on stage and since then, there has been no look ing back. My first love, however, was always cricket but I got injured so I decided that sing ing is my second pas sion then my friends motivated me to try my hands at acting and I moved here.

We heard that Ran veer Singh has opened the door for you in the acting field can you

describe that thing? He didn’t open the doors but he is surely a person I look forward to, I am new to acting and he has guided me whenev er I got stuck at the time 83, but doors were opened for me in acting since I started seeing myself as an actor.

If given a chance to work in the biopic of your favourite crick eter and how will you react?

Definitely yes! I would love to work for my fa vourite Virat Kohli, I want him to become the biggest run-scorer in the world, lots of love to him.

This is the first time, you portraying a completely different character from your personality, a su per-strong raw agent who is pro tecting her country, can you describe the creative process behind your moves?

I am more than just a bubbly girl, I had so much potential in me and I always thought that I was born to do ac tion, so I explored my self but when I got the film where not the men but the women were running the war, they are the agent then I couldn’t say no! For me, my favourite mo ment was holding the Tiranga. I have put so much effort into the film, I love to work on difficult projects so that’s how I can grow and learn more.

Will you choose Parineeti as a singer

ARYAN IGNORES ANANYA

ryan Khan has yet to step foot in the glamorous world of Bollywood, yet he frequently makes it to the headlines. This time, Ananya Panday is shown being ig nored by Aryan in a video, which has netizens giggling be cause it happened just after she admit ted to having a crush on him.

They attended a special screening of Madhuri Dix it’s upcoming movie ‘Maja Ma’. On be half of his fa ther, Aryan at

tended the occasion with his sister Suhana Khan. A video of the incident, how ever, has gone viral show ing Aryan Khan walking right beside Ananya Pan day.

Oddly, Khan ignored Panday, and this occurred just after the actress con fessed to having a crush on him.

When Ananya Panday appeared on KJo’s talk show ‘Koffee with Karan’ she revealed about having a crush on Aryan Khan growing up. As she’s best friends with his baby sis ter Suhana Khan.

The viral clip featured the duo not greeting each other or even making eye contact.

or Parineeti as an actor?

I have been singing since the age of 3 and acting from age of 23, so definitely singing has a special place in my heart and my love is al ways singing but acting has given me every thing so I will choose Singer-actor.

You have created a wonderful film, where a powerful woman is saving her country but how did you get this idea?

I wanted to make an agent film and we have fewer women agent movies as com pared to men as I am from Bengal, and I am a devotee of Maa Durga, she herself is a synonym of power so I wrote this story and gave this pi ous name to Parineeti’s character, women are very powerful and so we have tried to deliver via our film.

BY MUKESH KIRADOO

mother encouraged me to learn various languages hence I could become a Pan India Musician.”

DSP’s songs have been su per addictive throughout the years and he is being re ferred to as Hit Machine now speaking on it he said, “ I believe when you are hap py things just fall in place, keeping yourself happy should be a priority no body else in the world can do that. So I am blessed that way. Once you are happy about the work you are doing it will automatically connect to the people. The thing I like about myself is I don’t stop until I reach where I want to be, in terms of the work.”

Ranveer Singh graced the

launch of DSP’s O Pari, speaking on his camarade rie with him he shared, “ He’s a Volcano Of Energy. He is full of positive energy, we have vibed so well over time. He’s true from his heart and that’s why people love him so much. We all knew he was a great actor but I was amused with his dedication as a rapper in gully boy.”

Speaking on being Sal man Khan’s Lucky Mascot he shared, “ I am grateful for all the love and support Salman Bhai has shown to me. All his songs are very special to me particularly Seeti Maar as I always wanted to recre ate that song in Bollywood and what better than Sal man Bhai.”

DSP, Allu Arjun and Su kumar share a very close bond speaking on it he shared, “The one common factor binding us all Togeth er is the passion for work when we meet the energy is quite different also we have mutual admiration amongst us, I wanted to make a sim ple song that reaches the audience and with O Pari I have done the same."

Speaking on Pushpa 2 he shared, “Pushpa 1 was a blockbuster with Allu, Su kumar and Rashmika’s per formance and also Saman tha and everything went vi ral about the movie so for the second part also we’ll put in all our efforts and work and everyone will be mind blown with Pushpa 2."

Mouni thanks fans

In a recent interview, Mouni reacted to the claims that her role in the film was more important than that of Alia Bhatt and thanked her fans for loving her work.

Mouni stated that there is no need to create controversy through such ques tions. She revealed that she believed that her role was hers and tried to deliver her best. Mouni added that it

feels great to be recog nized and loved for her work. Mouni men tioned that Junoon has quiet confidence and power which the audi ence received in a way that she never anticipated. An swering about how she feels to be called the main lead of the film and carrying it on her shoulders, Mouni dismissed saying that it is everyone’s film. But she further added that

RASHAMI MAKES A RELIGIOUS TRIP

Actress Rasha mi Desai is on a sacred trip in the majes tic mountains of Ut tarakhand. The Utta ran fame paid a visit to the Holy Kedar nath Temple to seek blessings from Lord Shiva. The actress posted a picture from her visit on her so cial media ac count Posing outside the temple looking blessed and happy with a wide smile, she captioned the post as “Har Har Ma hadev”.

Talking about the same she said," The feeling and emotion of visiting Kedar nath is heart capti vating. In the icy cold mountains, I felt a warmth in my heart by just being in such a sacred and blessed

place. It felt like enjoying the beauty of heaven or land of gods. The grandness of the temple makes you feel so small yet so much at peace, like whatever happens in the world is beyond our control and wor ries and there is a be ing out there who takes care of all things for you."

it feels good to see her work be received in a positive light. It is rather the hard work of several years that is paying off, she claimed. Mou ni also stated that it see ing the fruits of her la bour is really amazing.

She mentioned that every single character was important to make the film what it is today and one cannot negate anybody’s con tribution to the film.

Manit Joura bids adieu to Naagin 6

Actor Manit Jou ra is a popular name in the tel evision industry and is presently seen playing the role of Rishabh Luthra in the most popular daily soap 'Kundali Bhagya'.

Along with this show, Manit was also a part of an other top-rat ed show, 'Naagin 6'. In one of the re cent episodes, his character or the professor dies. His char acter and acting re ceived much love from audiences and now peo ple are saddened by the news of the death of his character.

He opens up about his experience saying, "Goodbyes are always difficult but every good thing has to end. Profes sor's character will al

Deepika on racial stereotypes

Deepika Padukone is forging her own path internation ally, not only through movies but also by appearing on popular talk shows and making high-profile appearanc es at industry events.

Currently, she is at Paris Fashion Week as the only Indian celebrity to represent the country.

Along with other Holly wood stars like Alicia Vikander and Ana de Ar mas, she has been at tending. Deepika fear lessly called out Holly wood's racial stereo types and how the West views outsiders during

her interaction at the event.

She revealed in the in terview that she used to get upset every time she visited the US, whether she was the target of any remarks or actions. She also explained why she hasn't acted in any more foreign films after making her significant Hollywood debut in xXx: Return of Xander Cage with Vin Diesel.

Without mentioning the person, Deepika re called her interaction with a Hollywood actor.

"I know this actor… I met him at this Vanity Fair party, and he said

ways be special to me. It was also an amazing experience to have worked with Tejasswi Prakash be cause she's a gem of a person. As always, it's a pleasure working under Ekta Ma'am and I am eternally grateful to Ma'am for giving me one after the other op portunities. I'm going back with a very con tent feeling."

Poster of the film...

Ranveer Singh and Devi Sri Prasad

Mouni Roy

Ribhu Dasgupta, Parineeti Chopra and Hardy Sandhu

Rashami Desai

Manit and Tejasswi

—PHOTO