First India-Jaipur Edition-14th October 2022

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday delivered a split verdict on the ban on wearing hijab in Karnataka’s educational institutions, referring the matter to CJI for constituting a larger bench.

Justice Hemant Gupta, dismissed the appeals against the Karnataka HC, which refused to lift the ban and held that the hijab is not part of the “essential religious practice” in Islamic faith. “There is divergence of opinion,”

Justice Gupta, who was heading the bench, said at the outset while pronouncing the verdict on a batch of 26 petitions.

He said he had framed 11 questions in his judgement.

Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia allowed the pleas and said wearing the hijab is ultimately a “matter of choice”.

NO END TO HIJAB ROW!

BALL NOW IN CJI’S COURT

The Supreme Court division bench then said the matter will be placed before the Chief Justice of India for hearing by a three-judge bench. Meanwhile, All India Bar Association (AIBA) has requested CJI UU Lalit that the Hijab issue be referred to a larger bench of a minimum of 5 judges including 1 Muslim judge in SC after split judgments on this issue.

MAJOR HAPPENINGS

Udupi on Alert, Karnataka government deploys additional security in sensitive areas after SC verdict

hijab matter will continue to attract the SC’s attention: Congress leader Jairam Ramesh

panel hails Top Court Justice Dhulia’s verdict, asks Karnataka govt to withdraw case

questions framed by Justices Gupta and Dhulia may guide the hearing before the new bench

hijab matter was first argued on February 2, 2022

Since it’s a judicial matter and since I’ve not read the written document I’ll not be commenting on this. Supreme court verdict is very important in this matter, this not limited to Karnataka, it’s a national issue hence the we will wait for the final Supreme Court verdict.

—Basavaraj Bommai, Karnataka Chief Minister

We welcome the judgment of the Supreme Court. But I had expected an order on the Thursday hearing. The matter will go to a larger bench. As of now, the Karnataka government’s no-hijab rule on campus stays valid. —BC Nagesh, State Education Minister

Tata group, Singapore airlines in talks over Vistara, AI integration

KERALA HUMAN SACRIFICE CASE

3 accused in police custody till October 24

WALK THE TALK, SHUT DOWN TERROR INFRA:

TELLS

Diwali arrives early in Himachal Pradesh!

PM Narendra Modi launches several projects related to the pharma, education and connectivity in Una, HP

First India Bureau

Shimla: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday laid the foundation stone of a Bulk Drug Park in Una district during his visit to poll-bound Himachal Pradesh. He also dedicated to the nation the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT)-Una.

SMOKE: SPICEJET MAKES EMERGENCY LANDING IN

New Delhi: Singapore Airlines Ltd said on Thursday it was in confidential discussions with India’s Tata Group regarding a potential deal which may involve the integration of Vistara and Air India.

“The discussions seek to deepen the existing partnership between SIA and Tata, and may include a potential integration of Vistara and Air India,” Singapore Airlines said in a statement. However, it added the discussions were ongoing and

no definitive terms were agreed upon yet.

Singapore Airlines owns a 49% stake in Tata SIA Airlines, which operates Vistara, while the remaining 51% is owned by the Indian conglomerate. Air India did not respond to comment.

Ernakulam: Amid the horrifying case of Human Sacrifice in Kerala’s Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam First Class Magistrate Court sends all three accused to 12day Police custody till October 24 for allegedly killing two women as a human sacrifice in black magic rituals. Earlier on Wednesday, the Ernakulam magistrate court said the 3 accused will be under judicial remand for a 14day duration which will end on October 26.

Modi laid the foundation stone of the Bulk Drug Park at Haroli which will be built at a cost of more than Rs 1,900 crore. The park will help reduce dependence on API imports. It is expected to attract investments of around Rs 10,000 crore and provide employment to more than 20,000 people.

He said that the state has played a crucial role in making India the number one medicine manufacturer in the world. “The raw materials for medicine manufacturing will be produced in Himachal Pradesh. India’s dependency on other countries will decrease significantly.” The PM added that there was a need for skill and innovation institutions across country. More on P5

RAJASTHAN LEADS IN SOLAR ENERGY DUE TO STATE GOVT’S POLICIES: CM GEHLOT

MoU signed between Rajasthan Vidyut Utpadan Nigam and Coal India Limited for 1190MW solar park

5,400 crore Solar Park will be set up in Poogal of the Bikaner

Jaipur: Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said on Thursday that Rajasthan has become a leading state in the field of renewable energy.

“Investments are continuously pouring in renewable energy sector after the state government came out with new solar and wind energy policies and simplification of rules.

Max MoUs have also been signed in field of solar energy

It is our biggest priority to hone the skills and potential of the youth. The youth of Himachal has served in the army and created new dimensions in the security of the country. Different types of skills will help them take them to higher positions in the army as well.

—Narendra Modi, Prime Minister

being

DELEGATES WILL ENSURE VICTORY OF KHARGE: CM GEHLOT

Jaipur: Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot expressed hope on Thursday that delegates, while exercising their voting right, will make Mallikarjun Kharge the new party President. Giving a statement in favour of Kharge via a video, Gehlot said, “I hope that delegates will ensure victory of Mallikarjun Kharge with huge majority. After we succeed, he will guide us all. Congress will emerge as a stronger opposition. This is my thought, my wish that Kharge should be victorious with great number of votes.”

BRIEF

THREE OF FAMILY KILLED IN CLASH BETWEEN TWO GROUPS OVER THEIR OLD ENMITY

2-DAY POWER MINS

CONF FROM TODAY EARTHQUAKE TREMORS IN CHURU

Udaipur: The Union Power Ministry will convene a twoday conference of power ministers of states and Union Territories in Udaipur starting Friday. The event will be chaired by Union Minister RK Singh. CM Ashok Gehlot will also be present in the meeting.

Churu: Tremors were felt in Sadulpur area of Churu on Thursday. Earthquake was of 3.5 magnitude. The tremors were felt at 3:02 pm. People thought that it was the impact of movement of a heavy vehicle but when they realised it was an earthquake, they panicked.

The SC delivers split verdict in Hijab case

Justice Hemant Gupta upholds hijab ban

Matter of choice: Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia

Moni Sharma

Advocate Ejaz Maqbool, representing the

speaks to the media at Supreme Court

MODI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Union Minister Anurag Singh Thakur, Himachal Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur, State BJP chief Suresh Kashyap, former CM Prem Kumar Dhumal and other leaders at the laying of foundation stone of Bulk Drug Park and dedicates the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Una to the nation, in Una, Himachal Pradesh on Thursday.

BJP

Addressing a public gathering at Sant Savaiyanath Dham before launching the third leg of the Gujarat Gaurav Yatra, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday expressed confidence that ruling BJP will retain power in Gujarat by winning the upcoming Assembly elections with a two-thirds majority. Also seen here are CM Bhupendra Bhai Patel, State party chief CR Paatil, union minister Mansukh Mandaviya and other leaders. Full Report on P5

First India Bureau

Vikas Sharma

Bharatpur: Three persons were killed and two injured in a group clash in Bharatpur district on Thursday. The incident occurred in Pathena village in Bhusawar police station area where the families of Vijendra and Dharmendra clashed. Police said that Vijendra (55), his sons Hemu (28) and Kishan (24) died in the incident. “The clash broke out between two groups of the same caste over an old issue,” a police official said. —Ravi Katara

CM Ashok Gehlot and Pralhad Joshi with (L) Ramcharan Bohra, Bhanwar Singh Bhati, Govind Singh Dotasra and Usha Sharma during MoU signing between RVUNL and CIL Jaipur on Thursday.

BJP TO PROTEST AGAINST CONG GOVT ON OCTOBER 17

Sikar: The state unit of BJP will hold a protest against the state govt on Oct 17. A meeting for the preparations of the scheduled protest was held in Sikar on Thurs day. Senior BJP leaders including Dy Leader of opposition Rajendra Rathore, Former BJP State President Arun Chaturvedi and other BJP leaders discussed the roadmap for protest.

While addressing a press conference, BJP leader Rajendra Rathore said that the protest will begin from the assembly constituency of State Congress President GS Dotasra. “The protest will begin from the Lak shamangarh assembly constituency. The state govt has failed on every front and has cheated farmers. The Congress is not able to fulfill its an nouncements. Bajra is the largest crop in the state, but it is not being given a support price,”.

“Today, the support price of Bajra is Rs 2350,

The protest will begin from the assembly con stituency of Rajasthan Congress chief Govind S Dotasra’s constituency, Lakshmangarh. State govt has failed on every front and has cheat ed farmers.

—Rajendra Rathore Dy LoP

but it is being sold for Rs. 1300 to Rs 1400. Last time too, farmers had suf

RAJ BJP MINORITY MORCHA TO CORNER KHARGE OVER HIS MUHARRAM REMARK

Jaipur: BJP Rajasthan’s Minority Morcha on Thursday condemned Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge’s ‘Bakrid mein bachenge toh Muharam mein nachenge’ statement saying that the statement has shaken the mi nority community. “Kharge should know that Muharram is observed as the day of sacrifice given by Imam Hussain, the grandson of Hazrat Mohammad Sahib and his 72 companions. Is not a happy occasion but a sad occasion and fasting is also observed on this day,” Mohammad Sadik Khan, state president of BJP Minority morcha, told reporters here. Khan said that it has been 24 hours but till now there is no apology. Kharge’s effigy will be burnt on 16 and 17 October across the state.

fered a loss of Rs 600 cr. If Bajra is not purchased on support price, then

farmers will suffer a loss of Rs 7200 cr this year too,” Rathore added.

RAJASTHAN

Vice Prez Jagdeep Dhankhar to visit Jaipur on Oct 15

First India Bureau

Jaipur: Vice-President of India, Jagdeep Dhankhar, will be visit ing Jaipur on October 15. The Vice-President is scheduled to reach Jaipur from Delhi at 3:20pm on Oct 15 by a spe cial plan of the Indian Air Force. He will take part in a program at Bhagwan Mahaveer Can cer Hospital and later visit Raj Bhawan in Civil Lines. At around 8pm, he will return to Delhi.

No support to Dr Somya as BJP maintains silence

First India Bureau

Jaipur: After being sacked from the post of Mayor of Jaipur Munic ipal Corporation Great er, both Dr Somya and the BJP party are silent.

The way the party fought aggressively at the time of her suspen sion a year ago was no longer seen at the time of her termination. It is being talked about in the political corridors that the saffron party does

not seem to be getting any special political ad vantage on this issue, due to which the party has not shown any tough stand on it. A section of the party is not in favor

of Dr Somya continuing as mayor. At the same time, the government has also done the work of suppressing the pro test by making Sheel Dhabai as the caretaker mayor again. Former BJP state prez Arun Chaturvedi, , said that the issue was discussed after the SC order came.

On the other hand, even after 16 days of ter mination, Dr Somya is still waiting for official copy of her termination.

HC seeks reply over REET eligibilty

First India Bureau

Jaipur: Raj HC has is sued a notice to RBSE Ajmer and seeking a reply in 7 days in a matter related to REET Eligibility Test2022 Level-2 Result.

The court issued no tice on the petition of Rajesh Kapoor Meena in the case of non-is suance of eligibility certificate despite se curing 82 marks (55%) in REET after normal ization. Hearing in the

case was held in the single judge bench of Justice Inderjit Sin gh. The court was in formed that the peti tioner had answered the questions cor rectly but still the board has considered them wrong.

Work of Rajasthan International Centre will be completed by Nov 30

Abhishek Shrivastava

Jaipur: The winter season of Shree Jhulelal Tibetan Market developed by Rajasthan Housing Board at Shiprapath in Mansarovar will start on Friday. At 11 am, RHB Commissioner Pawan Arora will inaugurate this season’s sale. It is noteworthy that the Board had fulfilled the long-standing demand of providing a per manent market by allotting 266 shops of this market to Tibetan Refugee Hosiery Readymade Seller Union last year. The union officials apprised the Commis sioner that all 266 Tibetan shopkeepers have a lot of enthusiasm to operate shop in permanent market.

TRADERS MEET JMCH MAYOR GURJAR FOR EXEMPTION IN ADVT FEE ON DIWALI

Jaipur: During the mass decorations on Diwali, traders met Jaipur Municipal Corporation Heritage Mayor Munesh Gurjar on Thursday regarding the discount on advertisements in the markets. Traders raised the demand for relaxation in advertisement costs on Diwali. They also shared the problems they are facing in the various markets of the old city. The mayor assured them about the discount on advertis ing on Diwali like every year. Under the leadership of the Jaipur Trade Federation, the traders of the walled markets reached the house of Mayor Munesh Gurjar. Federation President Subhash Goyal asked the Mayor to give an exemption in the advertisement for Diwali to which Mayor has assured the exemption.

Jaipur: UDH Advisor G S Sandhu on Thurs day reviewed the pro gress of the construc tion of Rajasthan Inter national Centre in a meeting held at the JDA auditorium. The centre is being con structed at Jhalana In stitutional Area with a cost of Rs 130 crore.

Discussion on com pleting the project be fore November 30 was held in the meeting at tended by the JDA com

missioner Ravi Jain and other officers. It was informed in the meeting that the in tention of the state govt is to hold an exhibition on the achievements of the govt in the Ra jasthan International

Centre on the comple tion of 4 years of govt.

JDA Commissioner told the UDH advisor that at present, the work of interior deco ration of the center is in progress.

He said that work is

being done at a fast pace to complete the project at the earliest and dedicate it to the general public. The rep resentatives of the con sultancy agency ap prised Sandhu about the various planning and works of the pro ject. The Rajasthan In ternational Centre is being constructed with the facility of conven tion hall, auditorium and mini auditorium, conference hall, lectur er hall, library and elibrary, restaurant etc.

KEEPING SIMPLICITY

ABOVE ALL Union Jal Shakti Minister having lunch at the house of Mandal president Walajapet and Dalit leader Boopathy, on his way to Kanchipuram to attend several programmes in Tamil Nadu on Thursday.

RG RURAL OLYMPIC GAMES

Mutual connects in villages have increased: Poonia

lll

Seeing the popularity of these rural Olympic games, CM Gehlot has also announced plans to organize urban Olympics, says Dr Poonia

Naresh Sharma Jaipur : The final phase of Rajiv Gandhi Rural Olympics will be held from October 16 to 19. The last round of rural Olympics will witness the presence of nearly four sports persons participating in six different games.

President of Ra jasthan State Sports Council Dr Krishna Poonia said that in the present era, children are more prone to mo

Final phase of rural Olympics will

bile phones instead of sport activities.

“According to the vi sion of Chief Minister

Ashok Gehlot, the Ra jiv Gandhi Rural Olym pic Games has in creased mutual con

between village to village. Seeing the popularity of these ru ral Olympic games,

OVER 30L PEOPLE

TOOK PART SO FAR N otably, more than 30 lakh people have participated in the games so far and two lakh teams from 46,348 villages of Ra jasthan participated in the Rajiv Gandhi Rural Olympic Games which started from Aug 29.

Gehlot has also an

plans to or

urban Olym

said Dr Poonia.

RAJ GOVT SUBMITS REPLY IN SC

RELATED TO ILLEGAL SAND MINING

Jaipur: The Rajasthan govt has presented a reply in the Supreme Court in the case related to illegal gravel mining. The apex court had sought a reply during hearing days ago on which the answer was presented on behalf of the state govt.

Additional Advocate General Dr Manish Singhvi presented the answer. Final hearing in the matter will be held on November 16. In another case related to illegal gravel lease related to Rajasthan could not be held in the Supreme court today.

The matter will now be heard on November 16.

The matter was listed before the bench of Justice MR Shah and Justice Krishna Murari. Notably, river sand mining remained prohibited during the rainy season from July 1 to Sept 30.

Dungarpur MLA Roat keeps his promise, gifts air travel to 40 students

First India Bureau

Dungarpur: Fulfilling his promise, Chaurasi MLA Rajkumar Roat has made 40 talented students fly by air. Roat sponsored the air travel of the stu dents who were topper in class 10th and 12th exami nation in his constituency from Udaipur to Delhi.

Of these, 10 students are from three different blocks while 10 are from one school of the MLA’s

‘Aye Zindagi’ goes tax free in State

Jaipur (FIB): Raj govt has declared ‘Aye Zind agi’ movie tax free in the state. The state govt waived SGST on the ticket in multiplexes and cinema halls.

Tickets will be sold to the audience after de ducting the amount of SGST. The order issued after approval of the CM Gehlot.

Panchayat. Roat said that he had resolved to do bet ter work in the field of education and in order to increase the enthusiasm, he had promised to take 10 meritorious students of class 10 and 10 from each Panchayat Samiti in his constituency on air travel.

He said that 40 stu dents of his assembly constituency were select ed in the block level mer it. Out of these, 33 are girls and 7 are boys.

Ramesh Sharma

A

of

protest was discussed in Sikar on Thursday. MP Sumedhanand, Arun Chaturvedi, Rajendra Rathore, and other office bearers of

Sikar unit were also present in the meeting.

RHB COMMISSIONER PAWAN ARORA TO INAUGURATE TIBBATI MARKET

50 people including 40 students, MLA Rajkumar Roat and teachers, took an Indigo flight from Udaipur to Delhi on Thursday on a three-day tour.

GS Sandhu, Ravi Jain and other JDA officials on Thursday.

Dr Somya

RAJASTHAN

WALLED CITY-LIKE PROJECT TO BE DEVELOPED AT AGRA ROAD

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS OF HERITAGE CITY

Two brothers drown in waterbody in Barmer dist

First India Bureau

Food adulteration: 16,000 kg mustard oil seized in city

Abhishek Shrivastava

Jaipur: Based on the lines of walled city, a similar walled city will be built at Agra Road by Jaipur Development Authority (JDA). After a series of consultations, the JDA has finally issued a notification to develop a Heritage City Scheme at Agra Road. The Heritage City will depict the unique heritage and architecture of the walled city.

Officials informed the notification was issued under Section 25 of the JDA Act after a number of meetings were held by UDH Minister Shanti Dhariwal. Under the Master Development Plan – 2025, the area surrounding Kho Nagorian and

GATES TO BE NAMED AFTER STATE HISTORICAL FIGURES

T he parameters will be based on Walled City. The plots falling on a 30-metre road will be used for mixed and commercial purposes. Similarly, front and side setbacks will not be applicable in the scheme. The internal roads of the scheme, where width of road is less than 30 metres, a Chowk will be built on the plots measuring 200 to 750 sqm. The

Agra Road was marked as a specific development area. Later, it was decided to develop a Heritage City on Agra Road.

height of the buildings will be 15 metres, in which the basement, ground floor and three floors can be constructed. Likewise, a total of nine roundabouts and six main entrance gates will be constructed to enter the Heritage City. The entrance gates will be named after the freedom fighter, historical figures and the history of Jaipur or Rajasthan.

As per the parameters of Heritage City Scheme, buildings will be constructed on Rajasthani architecture and the scheme has

PoW reaches Jaipur on first tour after 2.5-year Covid halt

Nirmal Tiwari

Jaipur: The royal train Palace on Wheels reached Pink City on its first commercial tour on Thursday. After a long gap of two and a half years, the operation of the Palace on Wheels train has been started once again.

The due for this goes to Tourism Corporation President Dharmendra Rathod, who made every effort to get the royal train back on track.

Gandhinagar station.

been earmarked as mixed land use. Both residential and commercial use of the land will be permitted under the scheme.

Kota: Farmer dies of shock after crop damage

First India Bureau

Tourists of Palace on Wheels, who reached the city on the first commercial tour on Thursday, were accorded a grand traditional welcome at

Young couple found hanging in Masuda

First India Bureau

Masuda: There was an atmosphere of chaos in the village after the bodies of a young girl and a boy were found hanging in Shergarh.

The dead bodies have been identified as Kartik and Anchi.

Sanwar Lal of Shergarh had given a complaint to Masuda police on Wednesday that his daughter Anchi had been taken

away by a boy named Kartik. After which, on Thursday boy’s sandals and hand bracelet were found lying outside the well.

After getting the information, the police called Sanwar Lal to the spot and searched the well with the help of the villagers. Both the bodies were found tied with a cloth.

The police kept both bodies in the mortuary of Masuda Hospital.

On its first tour, 35 tourists from eight countries are travelling in the royal train. These include seven tourists each from India, America and Britain, four from Canada, three each from Mauritius and France, two from New Zealand and one from Ireland. These tourists were given a red carpet welcome at the railway station. The tourists were garlanded with tilak.

Kota: A 35-year-old farmer on Thursday dies due to shock after the widespread damage to crops due to unseasonal rains in Kota’s Mahendra Nagar. Out of 10-12 bighas of cultivation between two brothers, Mahendra cultivated soyabean this year.

However, disappointingly, after sowing it rained for several days and later Mahendra’s soybean was destroyed by the water lying in the fields.

Barmer: Two brothers drowned in a waterbody at Bayatu sub-division in Barmer on Thursday. Police informed the deceased has been identified as Suresh (30) and Jogaram (30), residents of Somesra village in Barmer.

According to the police, the incident occurred when Suresh and Jogaram had gone to graze cattle in the fields on Thursday. Jogaram accidently slipped into the water body while cattles were drinking water.

Suresh too jumped into the water to save him.

However, both of them went into deep waters and could not swim back.

“Their bodies were fished out by a team of police officials. Later, a post-mortem was conducted and bodies were handed-over to the family members,” police added.

First India Bureau

Jaipur: As the festival is approaching, the joint team of medical, food department and district administration have become vigil. This investigation team is now seizing adulterated food items by raiding different places in the city every day. Under this, the team on Thursday raided the companies selling edible oil at the Vishwakarma Industrial (VKI) area of the city, where more than 16,000 kg of mustard oil was seized.

Two youths, falsely implicated by police, to get `5 lakh each

First India Bureau

Sirohi: The Rajasthan Government has announced a compensation to two youths who were implicated in a false cases of murder and robbery by Sirohi’s Barlut Police.

Jagveer Singh, Joint Secretary, Home Department has issued orders for DGP to give compensation of Rs 5 lakh each to both the youths.

CM’s advisor and

rasiya in a murder case.

In both the cases, a high-level inquiry committee was constituted and a re-investigation was conducted.

Taking action at another place 735 kg of coriander powder was seized. The department has taken samples of both.

According to the report received from the district administration, on Thursday the team under the leadership of Sub-Divisional Officer Anil Chaudhary and Laxmikant Katara Crime Branch Jaipur raided the place of Goyal Edible on VKI Road No. 14 and after taking a sample of mustard oil from here, 3,600 kg of mustard oil was seized.

Minor raped by relative on marriage lure

First India Bureau

WITH WORLD-CLASS FACILITIES

Gandhi Nagar Rly Stn to get makeover

Kashiram Choudhary

Jaipur: Gandhi Nagar Railway Station of Jaipur will be rejuvenated with a cost of Rs 215 crore. The appearance of the station will completely change and passengers will get facilities as per world class standards.

However, during the construction work, for the next two-and-a-half years, the commuters will have problems with the vehicle parking.

FACILITIES TO BE ADDED IN BUILDING

The entrance building will have various facilities like departure lobby, security check area with baggage scanner, help desk for passengers, toilets, RPF room, head TC room etc.

Gandhi Nagar was

stations identified for redevelopment. Under the development works, two new buildings will be constructed at the station.

The main entrance building on the Bajaj Nagar side will be threestoreyed, while the building on the Tonk Road side will be two-storeyed.

Air concourse will be constructed to connect both the platforms of the station. It will be the first railway station to have an air concourse.

MLA Sanyam Lodha had raised the issue of implicating Lakhmaram Dewasi in a false case of murder and robbery and imprisoning innocent Gemaram Ga-

The Inquiry Committee ordered the compensation of Rs 5 lakh each in view of their social and economic condition. On releasing the compensation amount, Sanyam Lodha said that it was the victory of the truth.

“Truth has prevailed,” he said.

Jaipur: A case of rape of a minor girl by a relative has come to the fore in the city. The minor was taken in the guise of promising marriage.

The accused is a maternal relative and has raped the minor several times in the last one year. The victim’s father lodged a report at Mansarovar police station on Wednesday.

The report said that the accused who raped his minor daughter is the son of a distant maternal uncle.

The 26-year-old accused also lives in Manyawas Mansarovar area.

MAN HELD FOR RAPING 6-YR-OLD GIRL IN KOTA

Kota (PTI): A man has been arrested here for allegedly kidnapping and raping a six-year-old girl, police said on Thursday. According to the minor’s parents, an unidentified person entered their house around 4 am on Wednesday and took away the girl who was sleeping, Ranpur police station SHO Balbir Singh said. The accused took the minor to an isolated place and raped her.

3 held for blackmailing people with nude videos in Jodhpur

First India Bureau

Jodhpur: Three people were arrested in Jodhpur for allegedly blackmailing people after filming their nude videos. The GRP Police Station (Merta Road) in Jodhpur has busted the honeytrap gang and arrested three people in this regard. Notably, a youth allegedly committed suicide in Jodhpur after he was harassed by the accused on the basis of his obscene videos.

“The incident occurred nearly one-anda-half month ago wherein a youth was blackmailed and harassed. After being tortured continously over

his nude videos, he committed suicide. The reason behind his suicide was ascertained when the victim’s mobile phone was checked,” police said.

Buildings to be constructed as per the Rajasthani architecture. —REPRESENTATIONAL PHOTO

Food Department and District administration during the raid.

A condolence meet was organised for the deceased father of the State HRC Registrar Shailendra Vyas at Adarsh Vidya School in Ambabari.

Vasundhara Raje pays floral tribute to former Minister Harendra Mirdha’s wife Ratan Kanwar at Askoh Vihar Park in Tilak Marg.

Arrested accused in police custody in Jodhpur.

THE NORD STREAM GAS PIPELINE SABOTAGE

DR N K SOMANI

The Nord Stream gas pipeline leak has put the world on the verge of confrontation, amid world peace already at stake after Russia’s attack on Ukraine. Russia has directly blamed the US-Ukraine for this incident, while the USA has termed a big conspiracy to create an energy crisis in European countries during the winter season.

both the pipelines. Although the pipeline had not been in operation since the time of the Russia-Ukraine war, but both lines were filled with gas. The extent of damage caused to the marine environment is not yet known. But it is estimated that if the entire gas reserves go into the water through the leak, then about 200,000 tons of methane gas will be emitted.

Natural gas is composed mostly of methane, which is the second most powerful green gas after carbon diox ide. In such conditions, the possibility of major environ mental damage is being ex pressed. This issue is gaining momentum. NATO says that the pipelines have been delib erately targeted. This is an attack on the interests of NATO countries and NATO will retaliate for it. The EU has also taken this seriously.

NATO says that the pipelines have been deliberately targeted. This is an attack on the interests of NATO countries and NATO will retaliate for it. The EU has also taken this seriously. It says it is a well-intentioned conspiracy and is aimed at exacerbating the energy crisis in Europe. The EU has also warned of retaliation on the lines of NATO

The dangerous way methane gas is leaking in the Baltic Sea has affected the ecosystem of the ocean and it infuses the world into a new environmental crisis. In such a situation, the question is who is responsible for the damage caused to the flora and fauna of the sea due to the strategic competition of the superpowers?

Actually, in 2011, Russia and Germany signed an agreement on a 1222 km long Nord Stream pipeline for easy and safe transportation of natural gas. The pipeline was commissioned in Octo ber 2012. Through this pipe line, Russia supplies 55 bil lion cubic meters of natural gas to Germany per year. This pipeline became chron ic and dilapidated. So Russia started Nord Stream2. This is completed in 2021. USA and some European countries had objected this project.

Recently, there were reports of rupture of Nord Stream pipelines and gas leaks from Russia’s Baltic Sea to Europe. There are two gas leaks in

SC’S SPLIT VERDICT ON HIJAB BAN

It says it is a well-intentioned conspiracy and is aimed at exacerbating the energy cri sis in Europe. The EU has also warned of retaliation on the lines of NATO.

Both USA and Russia al leged each for sabotage. Be fore the leak there were sev eral explosions in the Baltic Sea one after the other. It is alleged that these explosions have caused damage to the pipeline. The quality and depth of Nord Stream is stateof-the-art. In such a situation, the chances of damage to the pipeline itself are negligible.

Then the question arises as to who has done this audacity?

Russia’s reason for suspi cion is that the leak occurred exactly when Norway and Po land announced the commis sioning of the Trans-Baltic

Pipeline. After the commis sioning, the countries of East ern Europe will no longer be dependent on Russia. So Kremlin may have damaged the Nord Stream to create an energy crisis. Since both the pipelines are built by Russian company Gazprom and it has 51% stake in the entire project.

The cost of project of Nord Stream 2 of $11. In such a situ ation why Russia would harm itself? If Kremlin’s intention was to push Europe into an energy crisis, he could have openly announced a halt to gas supplies. Ukraine has also blamed Russia. Russia has called a meeting of the Secu rity Council to investigate the whole matter, calling the alle gation a ‘stupid and absurd’. Then is this action of USA?

The finger is being raised on America because USA and some countries of Central and Eastern Europe have been op

posing the creation of Nord Stream 2 from the very begin ning. The USA believes that its construction will increase Pu tin’s influence in Europe and put Putin in a bargaining posi tion with big countries such as Germany, Britain and France. US have said on several occa sions that this pipeline is part of Russia’s broader strategy to weaken the West by increas ing European dependence on Russian gas supplies. Presi dent Joe Biden said just before the Russia-Ukraine war that the US would block Nord Stream 2 if it invaded Ukraine. Poland and Ukraine are also under suspicion. President Putin suspects that Ukraine sabotaged the pipeline to weaken Russia economically and cut its influence on Eu rope. There is another reason to doubt Ukraine. After the start of Nord Stream2, a big source of his income was go ing to end. The Nord Stream One went to Europe via Ukraine. Ukraine used to re ceive an amount of $ 1 billion annually from Russia in the form of transistor fee. Now through Nord Stream 2, Rus sia wants to bypass Ukraine and reach European coun tries. So may have Ukraine damaged the pipeline.

The dangerous way meth ane gas is leaking in the Baltic Sea has affected the ecosystem of the ocean and it infuses the world into a new environmen tal crisis. In such a situation, the question is who is respon sible for the damage caused to the flora and fauna of the sea due to the strategic competi tion of the superpowers?

SOURAV GANGULY GIVEN A RAW DEAL BY BCCI AND IT’S UNFAIR TO HIM

For now the ban on hijab will contin ue in Karnataka schools. The Su preme Court hear ing the petitions challenging the Karnataka High Court’s order upholding the ban im posed by the state govern ment gave a split verdict on Thursday. Justice Hemant Gupta dismissed the peti tions challenging the high court’s order, while Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia said that “wearing hijab is a matter of choice” and struck down the order. Because of their diver gent views the Bench has re ferred the matter to the Chief Justice of India “for appro priate directions” like wheth er the case should be heard by a three-judge bench or larger.

The Karnataka High Court

Allowing the appeal Justice Dhulia said, “One thing which was topmost (priority) for me was education of girl child. A girl child in (many) areas does household work and chores before going to school and are we making her life any better by doing this (banning hijab).”

had ruled that a prescribed school uniform does not vio late either the right to free dom of speech and expression or the right to privacy under Article 21 of the Constitution.

Allowing the appeal Jus tice Dhulia said, “One thing

which was topmost (priority) for me was education of girl child. A girl child in (many) areas does household work and chores before going to school and are we making her life any better by doing this (banning hijab).”

The insistence on wearing hijab by a section of Muslim girls is in stark contrast to Iranian women’s defiance against hijab which is sup posed to be mandatory as per Islamic law, though the Kar nataka High Court ruled that it is not a “part of essential religious practice in Islam”. It seems that what is religios ity for one set of Muslim women is a curtailment of women’s freedom for anoth er. Even in India there are Muslim women who prefer to go without hijab.

Sourav Ganguly’s likely exit from BCCI has kicked up a con troversy as Jay Shah has been given an other term as the cricket board’s secretary while the former India skipper has been denied the fa vour of continuing as President for a second term. Ganguly’s fans feel that the BCCI has been unfair to him. They believe he has been snubbed. He is also un likely to get the board’s backing for the post of International Cricket Council’s chairman. Ac cording to reports he has de clined to be the Ganguly himself downplayed the controversy. “I was the presi dent of the Cricket Association of Bengal for five years. I have been president of the BCCI for two years. After all these terms you have to leave and go… You cannot play forever and you cannot re main in administration forever.”

One Trinamool Congress lead er said that the BCCI is now packed with relatives of BJP lead ers. There is obviously more to the controversy than meets the eye.

SPIRITUAL SPEAK

It’s rightly said, ‘There is enough for everyone’s need, but not greed’. Bhagavad Gita

TWEETS

India is making a new identity under the leadership of Prime Minister @ narendramodi ji. As the world’s “pharmacy” at the time of global crisis, India helped many countries including America. Today India is supplying food to the world along with its food supply.

Dharmendra Pradhan @dpradhanbjp

#GujaratGauravYatra

Nitin Gadkari @nitin_gadkari

Bringing Prosperity Through World Class Infrastructure in New India. Iconic cable-stayed cum suspension bridge across Krishna river in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana has been approved at total cost of Rs 1082.56 Cr with the construction period of 30 months. #PragatiKaHighway

THE VIEWS

AUTHOR

PERSONAL

DR SURESH YADAV

writer

writer

To

Previous govts in India did not provide proper facilities: PM

New Delhi: PM Naren dra Modi, who flagged off country’s 4th Vande Bharat Express train that will run from Amb Andaura in Himachal Pradesh & New Delhi, said previous Indian governments did not provide facilities avail able elsewhere even in 20th century.

He was addressing a public meeting at the Indira Gandhi stadium in poll-bound Una dist.

“We will provide you with facilities for the 20th as well as the 21st centuries,” Modi said.

PM Modi laid the foun

IN THE COURTYARD

HC ASKS BMC TO ACCEPT LATKE’S RESIGNATION

Mumbai: In a major relief to ‘Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray’ party, the Bombay HC on Thursday directed the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to accept the resignation of its employee and the party’s candidate for the forthcoming Andheri (East) Assembly bypoll, Rutuja Latke.

ED MOVES TO BENGALURU

COURT AGAINST 6 Bengaluru: ED has filed a Prosecution Complaint before the Principal City Civil and Sessions Judge and Special Court at Bengaluru against 6 individuals on charges of money laundering.

Those individuals are TL Praveen Kumar, Branch Manager, Bank of Baroda; SK Subramanaya Reddy; R Ranganath, Narasimha Murthy K, Santha Kumari K, and R Kavitha. The Special Court (PMLA) has taken cognizance of said Prosecution Complaint, ED said.

dation stone of two hy dropower projects, the 48 MW Chanju-III Hydroelectric Project and the 30 MW Deothal Chanju

NEHRU IS TO BE BLAMED FOR PLAGUING KASHMIR’

He said this during the Gaurav Yatra on Thursday morning which will conclude at Somnath Temple

Zanzarka (Guj): Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday blamed India’s first PM Jawaharlal Nehru for issues plaguing Kash mir & credited Naren dra Modi government for solving them by re moving Article 370.

Speaking at an event to flag off BJP’s ‘Gaurav Yatra’ in poll-bound Gu jarat, Shah also said the Cong used to taunt his party over the construc tion of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya but work on it was now in progress.

“Due to the mistake of (first prime minister) Jawaharlal Nehru of in serting Article 370, Kashmir was in a mess. It could not be properly integrated with country. Everybody wanted re

moval of Article 370. PM Modi removed it in one stroke & completed inte gration of Kashmir with the country,” Shah said.

Incidentally, Modi had also blamed Nehru

SHAH: PEOPLE OF GUJARAT HAVE GARLANDED BJP WITH VICTORY

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday expressed confidence that ruling BJP will retain power in Gujarat by win ning upcoming Assembly elections with a two-third majority. He said the people of Gujarat have been trusting the BJP for a long time and the party has fulfilled their wishes.

Shah was addressing a public gathering at Sant Savaiyanath Dham, a popular religious place in Zanzaraka of Ahmedabad district, before launch ing the third leg of the Gujarat Gaurav Yatra.

The yatra will conclude at Somnath temple in the Gir-Somnath district.

Hydro-electric Project, in Chamba. Both pro jects will generate over 270 million units of elec tricity annually and

Himachal Pradesh is ex pected to get annual rev enue of Rs 110 crore from these projects.

The Prime Minister also launched Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yo jana (PMGSY)-III in Himachal Pradesh for the upgradation of around 3,125 km of road in the state. More than Rs 420 crore has been sanctioned by the cen tral government under this phase for the upgra dation of 440 km of roads in 15 border and far-flung blocks of the state.

According to Prime Minister’s Office

(PMO), running from Amb Andaura to New Delhi, it is the fourth Vande Bharat train that has been introduced in the country and is an advanced version com pared to the earlier ones, being much light er and capable of reach ing higher speed in shorter duration.

It accelerates to 100 km per hour in just 52 seconds. The introduc tion of the train will help boost tourism in the region and provide a comfortable and fast er mode of travel for people of India.

I want to bring a change in the party, says Tharoor

New Delhi (ANI): Con gress presidential can didate Shashi Tharoor on Thursday lamented that some leaders had openly come out in sup port of his poll opponent Mallikarjun Kharge and even summoned meet ings in his favour, say ing it disturbed the lev el-playing field.

He also said several PCC chiefs and senior leaders were not availa ble for a meeting with him during his visits to their respective states, but they warmed up to Kharge when he visited them for support.

THAROOR APPOINTED CHAIRPERSON OF PARL PANEL ON CHEMICALS & FERTILISERS

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court Thursday ‘dismissed as withdrawn’ the plea moved by E Abubacker, the former chairperson of Popular Front of India (PFI), for bail on medical grounds. He was recently arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and has been in custody since Sept 22.

Raipur: Enforcement Directorate on Thurs day arrested Chhattis garh cadre IAS officer Sameer Vishnoi and two other people after it launched multi-city raids in state early this week as part of a money laundering investiga tion, officials said. Businessman Sunil Agrawal of the Indram ani group and Laxmi kant Tiwari, uncle of “absconding” business man Suryakant Tiwari, have also been taken into custody.

for issues plaguing Kashmir while address ing a gathering in Guja rat earlier this week.

Shah, later in day, will flag off 2 ‘gaurav yatras’.

“BJP governments have done innumerable types of works. And therefore, in every election, whether it is corporation, district/ taluka, people of Gujarat have garlanded BJP with a victory,” said Shah.

Justice Ali Mohd Magrey takes oath as CJ of J&K & Ladakh HC

Srinagar: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Thursday adminis tered the oath of office to Justice Ali Moham mad Magrey as Chief Justice of High Court of J&K and Ladakh here.

Sources told GNS that sitting judges and some retired judges of the HC, judicial officers, Advo cate General, lawyers and other dignitaries from civil and police de partment participated.

Justice Magrey, who was born on Dec 8, 1960, in Wattoo village of

Gang uses FASTag to dupe people in Delhi with new credit cards

New Delhi: The Delhi Police Crime Branch has claimed to have busted a gang using FASTag to cheat people in the name of activat ing credit card services. The police said they have arrested three men and seized luxury vehicles and other SUVs from the posses sion of the accused.

According to the po lice, accused cheated people of Rs 80L in less than a month. The mat ter came to light while the police were investi

gating a murder case. Senior officers said one of the gang members was living with the murder accused. The man, Mohd Zahid, 22,

was caught with a lap top, mobile phone, card swipe machine, and SIM cards. When ques tioned, he couldn’t give details of belonging.

Sharat K Verma

New Delhi: Delhi govt’s Dalit Min Rajen dra Pal Gautam has resigned. He resigned at behest of party, which was approved by Lieu tenant Guv VK Saxena.

On other hand, Satyen dra Jain is in jail for several months in the hawala case but he is still a minister and has not resigned. His port folios have been divided

Seeking votes from delegates at DPCC of fice, He said he wanted to bring a “change” in organisation. He also said aimed to “bring back” the voters who did not support the Con gress in the 2014 and the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

“I want to bring a change in the party,” he told the delegates.

ALL AICC GEN SECYS, STATE IN-CHARGES, TOLD NOT VOTE IN ASSIGNED STATE

New Delhi: Cong’ central election authority has issued a directive, AICC general secretaries, state in-charges, sec retaries & joint secretaries would cast their vote in party’s presidential polls at their home state & not in assigned state. This has been done in order to “maintain trans parency in election process”, according to directive by central election authority chairman Madhusudan Mistry.

Bharat Jodo Yatra: Rahul says BJP ‘auctioning’ govt jobs in Karnataka

Chitradurga: On 35th day of the Congress’ Bharat Jodo Yatra, par ty leader Rahul Gandhi accused the Karnataka government of auction ing off state jobs. “The twin engine of the BJP is devouring the future of the young,” he add ed, adding that the BJP administration in Kar nataka is busy “selling jobs” while the state’s youth are unemployed. Karnataka is the first BJP-ruled state to join the yatra. A day before the yatra arrived in Karnataka, posters of welcoming were ripped.

POLITICAL GAME

among other ministers but his resignation has not been taken even though he is in jail on

a social and political dispute, but he was quick to resign.

corruption charges.

The controversy in which Rajendra Pal Gautam got involved is

Rajendra Pal Gautam had attended an event in which thousands of Hindus took a pledge not to worship Hindu deities while reiterat ing oath of Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar. Af ter its video went viral, BJP accused Gautam of being anti-Hindu & Ke jriwal hastened his res ignation because Kejri

wal may have got Ambedkar’s photo in stalled in all govt offices but he is doing Hindut va politics. In Gujarat elections, he is asking for votes by claiming themselves to be incar nations of Krishna & on other hand their Min are making a resolution not to worship RamaKrishna. Only then, see ing possibility of loss of votes, Kejriwal to Gau tam to resign.

Self proclaimed ‘Krishna’ Kejriwal gets Gautam to resign for Hindu votes, but keeps jailed Satyendra!

PM Narendra Modi greets the supporters at the flagging off ceremony of Vande Bharat Express from Amb Andaura, Una, to New Delhi. Also seen Ashwini Vaishnaw Jai Ram Thakur. —PHOTO BY ANI

PM Narendra Modi at flagging off ceremony of Vande Bharat Express from Amb Andaura, Una to New Delhi. —PHOTO BY ANI

Union Home Minister Amit Shah with Gujarat BJP President CR Paatil offers prayers at Sant Shree Savaiyanath Samadhi Sthaan temple, Zanzarka, in Ahmedabad on Thursday. —PHOTO BY ANI

CONGRESS’ ‘BHARAT JODO YATRA’ TO PASS THROUGH VILLAGES IN CHITRADURGA

Chitradurga (Karnataka): ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ of Cong led by Rahul Gandhi on Thursday resumed from Bommagondana halli in Karnataka’s Chitradurga district and headed towards Rampura. Hundreds of people gathered on roadside in morn ing to welcome them. According to Cong workers, march started at 6.30 am from the BG Kere underpass in Bomma gondanahalli. The yatra will exit the state on October 20.

Cong presidential candidate Shashi Tharoor addresses a press conference regarding party presidential elections.

Rahul Gandhi interacts with a padayatri as he takes part in party’s Bharat Jodo Yatra, at Bommagundanahalli in Chitradurga.

APPROACH TRIAL COURT FOR BAIL, HC TO EX PFI CHIEF

IAS officer and two others arrested by ED

Damhal Hanjipora in south Kashmir’s Kul gam dist, is 35th CJ of HC. CJ Magrey received

school education in his native village & did graduation from Uni versity of Kashmir.

Manoj Sinha (left) with Justice Ali Mohammad Magrey during the latter’s oath-taking ceremony as Chief Justice.

New Delhi: Cong leader Shashi Tharoor has been appointed as chairperson of Parliamentary Standing Committee on Chemicals and Fertilizers, according to a notification issued by LS Secretariat.Tharoor’s appoint ment as chairperson of parliamentary panel came after Cong leadership suggested his name. Recommendation came at a time when he is contesting Cong Prez election.

—PHOTO BY ANI

—PHOTO BY ANI

IIT Guwahati needs to nurture other institutes in NE: President

Prez spoke after virtually inaugurating & laying foundation stones for various projects

Guwahati (ANI): Pres ident Droupadi Murmu, on Thursday stressed the need to promote a knowledge-based socie ty and the importance of technological solu tions to the problems of the country, while high lighting the role of in stitutes of higher edu cation in this regard.

She was speaking af ter virtually inaugurat ing and laying the foun dation stones for vari ous central and state projects from the cam pus of the Indian Insti tute of Technology (IIT), Guwahati.

These include the in auguration of super

computer ‘Param Kam rupa’, under the Nation al Supercomputing Mis sion, and a laboratory for the design and devel opment of high-power microwave components

CRUCIAL READ

AIFF TO INITIATE ENQUIRY ON LATE ARRIVAL OF BOOTS

Bhubaneswar (PTI): The All India Football Federation will initiate an enquiry on the late arrival of boots of four members of the FIFA Women’s U-17 World Cup, leading to the players wearing them for the first time during the match.AIFF secretary general Shaji Prabhakaran said he has asked for a report from the teams on how the consignment of new boots did not reach.

ODISHA, TELANGANA GOVTS VIOLATE MODEL CODE

New Delhi (PTI): A delegation of Bharatiya Janata Party lead ers met the Election Commission here on Thursday to complain against the “illegal” transfers and postings by Odisha and Tel angana governments ahead of bypolls in both states early next month. The delegation submitted memo randums regarding complaints against both states.

LAW MINISTRY TO ORGANISE ALL INDIA CONFERENCE OF LAW MINS FROM TODAY

New Delhi (PTI): The Union Ministry of Law and Justice will organise an All India Conference of Law Ministers and Law Secretaries from October 14 to 17 to provide a platform for discussion and to help policymak ers upgrade the overall legal system, an official statement said.In a state ment, the Ministry said the conference will be held at Ekta Nagar in Gujarat. The inaugural session will be held on Saturday morning.

ARMY's ASSAULT DOG, CRITICALLY INJURED, DIES

New Delhi (Agencies): Army assault dog Zoom, who received gunshot wounds during an encounter in Jammu and Kashmir’s Anantnag district, succumbed to his injuries on Thursday noon, news agency ANI reported citing army officials. The dog was under treatment at the 54 Advance Field Veteri nary Hospital (AFVH) in Srinagar.

NAVY MAN BOOKED AFTER TEEN FILES RAPE PLAINT

Mumbai (PTI): A Navy engineer has been booked for rape on the complaint of his 19-year-old college friend, a Mumbai police official said on Thursday.The teenage girl, who studies in a private college and stays in a hostel near INHS Asvini in Navy Nagar in south Mum bai, filed her complaint on Tuesday, the Cuffe Parade police station official said.

at IIT-Guwahati.

Murmu also virtual ly inaugurated the Dhu bri Medical College and Hospital and laid the foundation stones for the Zonal Institutes of

The north east should be a torch bearer in spreading knowl edge and inculcating scientific tempera ment. The benefits of technology should reach the remotest corners of society

—Droupadi Murmu, President of India

the National Institute of Virology (NIV) at Di brugarh in Assam and Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh at the same programme. Lauding the achievements of

IIT-Guwahati, the Pres ident stressed the role of the institute in the region.

“Being the only IIT in the North East, it must shoulder the responsi bility to nurture other institutes in the region to work with the state government and defence forces to strengthen our borders and provide technological solutions to prevent recurrence of natural calamities in the region,” she said.

Murmu also exhort ed the people of the Northeastern region to play a leading role in creating a knowledgebased society.

“THREAT TO HUMAN LIVES”

Maha: “Conflict Tiger” that killed 13 captured

Gadchiroli (Agen cies): The Maharashtra forest department on Thursday tranquilised and captured ‘conflict tiger’ CT-1 after it had killed 13 persons in Gadchiroli and Chan drapur districts in the state’s Vidarbha region, an official said.

The tiger was moving in Wadsa forest range here in Gadchiroli and was becoming a threat to human lives, he added.

“The tiger had killed six persons in Wadsa, four in Bhandara and three in Brahmapuri for est range in Chandrapur district. The Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) Nag

pur had, in a meeting on October 4, directed that conflict tiger CT-1 be cap tured,” he said.

“Accordingly, the Tadoba Tiger Rescue team, the Rapid Re sponse Teams of Chan

drapur, Navegaon-Nagzi ra and other units worked on war-footing to capture the tiger. It was tranquilised and cap tured from Wadsa forest range on Thursday morning,” he informed.

One cannot stay in admin forever, says Sourav Ganguly

Kolkata (ANI): Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Sourav Ganguly said that he enjoyed his time as a cricket administra tor, but one "cannot play forever, remain in ad ministration forever".

His comments come when he was likely to take over as BCCI presi dent. "I was the presi dent of the Cricket As sociation of Bengal for five years. I have been president of BCCI for years. After all these terms, you have to leave and go. As an adminis trator, you have to con

EAM Jaishankar to pay two-day visit to Egypt

New Delhi (PTI): Ex ternal Affairs Minis ter S Jaishankar will begin a two-day visit to Egypt on Saturday to explore new initia tives in India’s part nership with the Afri can nation.

It will be his first bi lateral trip to Egypt as the external affairs minister. Announcing the visit, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thurs day that Jaishankar will discuss a range of bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest with his Egyptian counter part Sameh Hassan Shoukry. Egypt has been invited as a ‘guest country’ during India’s Presidency of G-20 in 2022-23.

tribute a lot and make things better for the team. Me being a player, who was around for a long time, understood it. I enjoyed my time as an administrator thor oughly. You cannot play forever and you cannot remain in administra tion forever," said Gan guly at an an event.

Former Indian crick eter and member of the 1983 World Cup winning team Roger Binny is likely to be the next BCCI president replac ing Ganguly while BJP MLA Ashish Shelar is likely to be the Treas urer replacing Arun Dhumal as per sources in the BCCI.

‘15 states among achievers in logistics performance index ‘22’

New Delhi (PTI): Andhra Pradesh, As sam and Gujarat are among the 15 States and UTs categorised as achievers in the logis tics index chart 2022, ac cording to a report re leased by the commerce and Industry Ministry on October 13, 2022.

The index is an indi cator of the efficiency of logistical services necessary for promot ing exports and eco nomic growth. Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Ra jasthan, Puducherry, Sikkim and Tripura are the other States catego rised as fast movers in the ranking.

The 15 States and UTs ranked in the aspirers category include Bihar,

Chhattisgarh, Goa, Mi zoram, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lak shadweep, Ladakh, Na galand, J&K and AP. The other States and UTs which are in the achievers category in clude Chandigarh, Del hi, Haryana, HP, Karna taka, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, TN, Telangana, UP and Ut tarakhand.

Will Guj and HP Assembly elections be held together?

Mahesh Sharma

New Delhi: It is a big irony that the Election Commission says on one hand that it is capa ble of holding all the elections across the country simultaneous ly and on the other hand it cannot hold elections in two states simultaneously.

Elec tions are still held in six-seven phases in many states. The as sembly elections of Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat are an example of this. Last time i.e. in 2017 the elections of both the states were held

separately in a gap of one month. First Himachal Pradesh elec tions were held and after voting, the parties and candidates had to wait for about one and a half months for the results.

This time it is expect ed that both the states elections can be held si multaneously. In 2017, the Himachal Pradesh assembly elections were held on November 9.

Voting for all the 68 as sembly seats in the state was held on the same day on November 9. But after that the results had to wait for about one and a half months as the as

sembly elections were held in Gujarat a month after Himachal Pradesh and the votes of both were counted together.

Voting for 182 assembly seats in Gujarat was held in two phases on December 9 and 14.

Four days later, on De

ACROSS THE WORLD

cember 18, the votes of both the states were counted.

Just think, there are two small states, Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat. Together, there are a total of two hun dred and fifty assembly seats, but the Election

Commission had con ducted elections on these two hundred and fifty seats in three phas es and it took two months for the process to be completed.

In Himachal Pradesh, the process of nomina tion had started on Octo ber 18, that is, before that the model code of conduct (MCC) was put in place and the MCC continued till the results were declared on De cember 18. The process of elections in Gujarat began in November.

So, this time there are two questions before the election commission.

First, whether the elec tions to both the states will be held simultane ously and secondly, when will the announce ment of the elections be held? The last time elec tion process was com pleted on December 20. In this regard, the Com mission still has time. If both the elections are to be held together, then the announcement of elections can be done in November also. But recently, Gujarat state BJP president CR Patil had said that the process of election would be completed by the end of November.

Russian missiles target more than 40 Ukraine cities, towns

Kyiv(Agencies): Rus sian missiles pounded more than 40 Ukrainian cities and towns, offi cials said on Thursday, as NATO allies meeting in Brussels unveiled plans to beef up Eu rope’s air defences after committing more mili tary aid to Kyiv.

The new pledges prompted Moscow to renew warnings that Western states’ help made them “a direct party to the conflict” and that admitting

Ukraine to Western military alliance NATO could trigger World War Three.

Three,” deputy secre tary of Russia’s Secu rity Council, Alexan der Venediktov, told media as the United States vowed to defend “every inch” of allied territory.

WANT “EVEN STRONGER” INDIA TRADE TIES: UK FM

NATO HOLDS NUCLEAR TALKS AMID WAR TENSIONS AND PUTIN THREATS

‘PAK MISUSED CICA PLAN TO PROPAGATE FALSE PROPAGANDA’

“Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed es calation to a World War

Moscow has repeat edly justified the Feb 24 invasion that has killed tens of thousands of people, in what it calls a “special operation”, by saying Ukraine’s ambitions to join the al liance posed a threat to Russia’s security.

London (Agencies): British foreign minister James Cleverly said Britain wanted to have an even stronger trading relationship with India after reports that remarks by a fellow minister about Indian immigrants could put a future deal in doubt. Interior minis ter Suella Braverman about Indian migrants and the pos sible impact, Cleverly said, “We do want to have an even stronger, it’s strong already, an even stronger trading relationship with India.”

BRUSSELS (Agencies): NATO’s secretive Nuclear Plan ning Group met as the military alliance presses ahead with plans to hold a nuclear exercise next week as con cerns deepen over President Vladimir Putin’s insistence that he will use any means necessary to defend Russian territory. Defense ministers which usually happens once or twice a year, at NATO headquarters in Brussels.

SHANGHAI QUIETLY SHUTS DOWN SCHOOLS, GYMS, BARS AS COVID RETURNS

Shanghai (Agencies): Shanghai is quietly shutting down schools and a raft of other venues as officials try to rein in a flareup that’s hit the financial hub just days before one of China’s most important political events. Several schools dotted throughout the city have sus pended in-person classes as the fear of infection spread grows, according to parents and social media posts.

Astana (ANI): India and Pakistan squared off on the issues of Kashmir and mean ingful engagement at a re gional summit in Kazakhstan on Thursday, with minister of state for external affairs Meenakshi Lekhi calling on Islamabad to immediately end cross-border terrorism to create conditions for any dialogue. Addressing the CICA Summit in Astana, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif accused the Indian government.

A view shows an apartment building damaged by a Russian military strike in Mykolaiv on Thurdsay. —PHOTO BY ANI

President Droupadi Murmu inaugurates the Supercomputing facility at IIT Guwahati, as Assam Governor Jagdish Mukhi and CM Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday. —PHOTO BY ANI

BCCI President Sourav Ganguly signs a cricket bat during a programme, in Kolkata on Thursday. —PHOTO BY ANI

The man eating Tiger that killed 13 persons in Gadchiroli and Chandrapur district. —FILE PHOTO

Ganguly says on his future as BCCI president

Piyush Goyal

UNION MIN: GOVT WON’T CANCEL COAL BLOCK ALLOCATION TO RAJ

An MoU was signed for setting up 1,190 MW solar power plant in Bikaner district Vikas Sharma

Jaipur: Union Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi on Thursday said that the Chhattisgarh government has requested for cancellation of the allocation of coal blocks to Rajasthan but the government has refused to do so.

He said that he has spoken to Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan CMs and is looking forward to resolving the issue and getting the mining activities resumed so that Raj continues to get 11 rakes of coal from there. “A resolution from the Chhattisgarh government has come for getting the mine allotted to Rajasthan in Chhattisgarh cancelled, but we have allotted to Rajasthan under a process, therefore we are not cancelling it,” Joshi told reporters here.

Earlier, speaking at a programme of MoU signing between Coal India Ltd and Rajasthan Vidyut Utpadan Nigam ltd (RUVNL) for setting up a 1,190 MW solar plant in Bikaner, Joshi said that the central government has laid special emphasis on promoting renewable energy generation. Along with this, by adopting new technology, the government is also working towards producing electricity from coal without pollution.

Joshi said that per capita electricity consumption in the coun-

New Solar Park will ensure smooth power supply: CM

From Pg 1...

of solar energy in the Invest Rajasthan Summit,” the CM said while addressing a programme organised to mark MoU signing between RVUNL & CIL for setting up 1190Mw solar project.

He said, “With the setting up of a solar park, uninterrupted power supply can be made to general public along with saving coal and reducing pollution.”

try will almost double by 2040 and to meet future needs, there is a need to pay special attention to electricity generation from renewable sources.

CM Ashok Gehlot said that the state has huge potential for solar

power and asserted that factories to manufacture equipment used in setting up solar plants should be set up in the state so that employment opportunities should also be created along with the generation of energy.

The MoU was signed for setting up 1,190 MW solar power plant in Rajasthan’s Bikaner district. Coal India ltd will set up the plant which is scheduled to be completed in two years.

The solar plant will be set up in a 2000 mw solar

CIL has got the number of coal rakes increased, which has ensured smooth supply of coal to state, CM said adding that it is easy to set up solar plants due to State’s large area. Rajasthan ranks 1st in the country by setting up 14825MW solar power projects. Energy Minister BS Bhati said that investment is coming into state from private & govt sectors in solar energy sector due to State Govt’s policies.

park in Poogal, Bikaner.

The CMD of RVUNL R K Sharma and Coal India Limited’s Technical Director V Reddy signed the MoU in the presence of Union Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi and and Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot.

Jpr: Geo India-2022 to begin today

First India Bureau

Jaipur: Petroleum and Natural Gas minister Hardeep Singh Puri will inaugurate a threeday South Asian Geosciences Conference and Exhibition ‘GEO India 2022’ here today at JECC, Sitapura. In the conference or-

ganised by the Association of Petroleum Geologists (APG), experts from India and other countries including the US, Norway and the European Central will participate to discuss the issues and share their experiences, Rajesh Kumar Srivastava, patron of APG and CMD of

ONGC, said here. ‘Fossil Fuels, Decarbonization & Changing Energy Dynamics’ has been chosen as a theme for conference. Srivastava said that the conference will brainstorm on role of oil & gas in context of energy transition in fast-changing world, he said.

Will successfully organise Jamboree: Gehlot

First India Bureau

Jaipur: CM Ashok Gehlot, while taking stock of preparations for the 18th National Scout & Guide Jamboree to be held at Rohat in Pali from January 4 to 10, 2023, said that this Jamboree of international level would be the biggest ever event of Scouts and Guides in the State. “State has got the opportunity to host the event after 67 years and the government will leave no stone un-

turned for its successful conduct,” the CM said, adding, “Such events develop qualities like health, character, art & skill, service spirit, discipline, social harmony, spirit of mutual brotherhood. We have organised rural Olympic Games with similar

SLUGGISH APPROACH

aim,” Gehlot said. State Chief Commissioner of Rajasthan State Bharat Scouts and Guides Niranjan Arya gave detailed information about the progress of various works being conducted for Jamboree through presentation.

AFTER CM’s NOD, HINDOLI AGRI MARKET TO BE RENAMED AFTER MEENA

Jaipur: CM Gehlot has approved the proposal to name the agricultural subsidiary market located in Hindoli in Bundi district after the former Pradhan Late Ragunath Meena. It is noteworthy that Gehlot, during his Bundi tour on July 30, 2022, announced to rename Hindoli Krishi Goundi Mandi after Late Raghunath Meena. Notably, Gehlot has given relaxation in State Govt's order dated 21.04.2010 which stated that Krishi Upaj Mandis should be named after personalities related to agriculture.

STATE GOVT EXTENDS PERIOD OF DISBURSEMENT OF PENSION

Jaipur: Providing relief to all pensioners, State Govt has extended the period of disbursement of pension from November 30, 2022 to March 31, 2023 or till the mobile app is ready, without producing the living certificate. According to information received from Director Pension and Pensioners/ Welfare Department, Sanjay Solanki, now pensioners/family pensioners can get their pension without presenting the living certificate till March 31, 2023 or till the mobile app is ready, whichever is earlier.

‘Miraculous’ DoP posts RAS on a non-existent position!

Singh was given a posting as Addl Director in Social Justice Dept, which has been denoted as a ‘vacant post’ in the transfer

First India Bureau

Jaipur: Yet another instance of lackadaisical and lethargic work culture prevalent in the DoP has come to light.

RAS Rajendra Singh, who was put on APO, was accorded a posting through the transfer list dated October 5, but the officer has been given a posting on a post that does not even exist!

Rajendra Singh is a senior IAS of the 1996 batch and he had been serv-

ing as the Additional Director in Panchayati Raj Sansthan since January 2021, but owing to ‘friction’ with the new minister, he was put on APO in August 2022 by the DoP.

After a gap of two months, Singh was given a posting and was made Additional Director in Social Justice Department, which has been denoted as a ‘vacant post’ in the transfer list dated October 5. But the ‘real

through a letter that there is just one post of Additional Director in the Department and one officer is already

This has resulted in Singh moving from one office to another, without any real work for him to attend to. As such, he is now in the super-time scale and has even served as an Additional Director in the Social Justice Department ten years back (July 2012). Singh, who has had a 26-yearlong career, is now an example of how DoP does not know how its ‘Human Resources’ should be handled!

Social Justice Department

Mohan Meena has informed the DoP

working on the position thus there is no position available for Rajendra Singh in the Department!

CM Ashok Gehlot during the MoU Signing Ceremony between RVUNL & CIL at Hotel Marriott, Jaipur on Thursday. Also seen here are Pralhad Joshi, Bhanwar Singh Bhati, GS Dotasra, Usha Sharma, Sheel Dhabhai and other officials.

The Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court Pankaj Mithal calls upon Governor Kalraj Mishra at Raj Bhawan on Thursday. This was Justice Mithal’s courtesy visit to the Governor before taking oath as the Chief Justice today.

Jaisalmer: Maharashtra Dy CM Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday visited the famous temple of local deity Baba Ramdev in Jaisalmer district. Fadnavis reached Baba’s samadhi and offered velvet chadar and Prasad. Samiti’s administrator and priest Kamal Chhangani made him worship with rituals. Earlier, Fadnavis was welcomed by BJP workers at helipad in Ramdevra town. Later, while talking to reporters, Fadnavis said that Baba knows the wishes of all the devotees and it is not proper to make it public. In the meanwhile, Fadnavis also visited the Salasar Balaji Temple in Churu district and prayed for peace and harmony.

Jaipur: Former CM Vasundhara Raje offered prayers at the Shila MataTemple in Amer on Thursday as a part of her resolve to pay obeisance at the temples dedicated to Nine Goddesses before Diwali. She prayed for peace and prosperity of the State. She also prayed at the Ambikeshwar ShivaTemple and Lord BhaironTemple in Amer. She would be visiting the Shakambhari MataTemple situated in Jhunjhunu district on Saturday.

CM Ashok Gehlot chairs a meeting at CMO to review preps for ‘National Scout & Guide Jamboree’ to be held in Jan 2023. Also seen here are Dr BD Kalla, GS Dotasra, Usha Sharma, Niranjan Arya.

will host the event

CM Ashok Gehlot congratulates Pralhad Joshi during the MoU Signing Ceremony. Also seen here is GS Dotasra.

A SPLASH OF

he emergence of fusion fashion has revolutionised the Indian fashion industry. Women want contemporary styles and vintage charm to blend and thus Indo-western wear is fast catching up. City First brings to you an overview of the dynamics of this category. Indo-Western Fashion is the amalgamation of western fashion with traditional ethnic wear. Styling at the top of trends, this fashion statement is a beautiful mixture of two different cultures and traditions and is commonly referred to as fusion fashion, which honours the beauty of both Indian and Western cultures while promoting innovation that transcends

Many famous designers have been expertly combining these two fashion cultures as western fashion becomes more well-liked and accepted in Indian society.

This beautiful combination of modernity with culture has made a special place in the Indian Fashion World. Young gorgeous girls during the festive season prefer to deck up in various

Combination of ethnic needlework into clothing with a western aesthetic, like Rajasthani mirror work and Punjabi phulkari. Styles like Meenakari, Kundan, Resham, and Zardozi are perfect attires to wear in the festive season. Fashion lovers prefer wearing the shorter form of the kurta, known as the ‘kurti,’ which is typically worn with a pair of denim slacks or trousers. Newer fusion fashion trends are emerging throughout time, like modern bridal clothing including lehengas worn with halter tops.

The emergence of fusion fashion has revolutionised the Indian Fashion industry. Women want the fusion of modern Styles and vintage charm. City First brings to you an overview of this dynamics fashion!

A DOCTOR WHO TURNED INTO A DIRECTOR

Dr Bose, your books have a medical thread running through them, a reflection of your life, were they fictional works?

HIGHLIGHTS

Dr Anirban Bose is a nephrologist who got inspired and turned into a director by the true story of a gentleman he met at a fundraising event for organ donation

Dr Anirban Bose is a Nephrologist who practices as an Inpatient Nephrology Attending at Strong Memorial Hospital. He is also the clinical associate professor at the University of Rochester in upstate NY. He is not only a doctor but also a musician and enjoys writing. He has published 3 books titled Bombay Rains-Bombay Girls, Mice in Men and The Death of Mitali Dotto.

He is very passionate about promoting ethical organ donation in India and worked in India in the program before moving to the USA. His passion for the cause and to do something for the program in India made him look at MOHAN Foundation and observe how it has gone about promoting deceased donations over the years. We speak to the author who turned director with Aye Zindagi, a Hindi movie releasing on October 14.

‘Aye Zindagi, a fresh perspective to inspire millions on the life-transforming effect of organ donation.’

Well, it is true, my books do have a medical thread running through them, that’s probably my source of inspiration. I feel as a physician I am privileged in many ways since patients open up and share incidents and issues that they probably wouldn’t even share with their friends. So, it’s a relatively easy way to begin a story.

Where did the idea of Aye Zindagi come from? Was Aye Zindagi a book in your mind or you decided to jump straight to a script?

The idea of Aye Zindagi... well basically it is a true life story. It is the story of a gentleman I encountered during a fundraiser for MOHAN USA which raises funds for non-governmental organisations that work in the field of Organ Transplantation. His story was so powerful that it brought me to tears. I wanted to get the story out to the world, so initially, I wrote an article and a lot of people who read it told me that it would make a great film.

Aye Zindagi is certainly not a book in my mind, it was such an unusual ‘life is stranger than fiction’ kind of story, that I felt if I wrote it as a book, it wouldn’t be believable. In fact, that is the beauty and richness of the story of Aye Zindagi.

What made you turn into Director when you wrote the script for Aye Zindagi? A doctor who writes is still an acceptable norm but you will agree that one who directs a full-fledged commercial Hindi film is out of the box.

So, I tried to get this script turned into a movie for quite some years and met a lot of producers in Bombay... most of them said that

He struggled for two years to find the right person to direct the film and finally decided to direct it on his own

Aye Zindagi - An inspiring movie highlighting the transformative role of organ donation in people’s lives

it is a beautiful story but it didn’t lead anywhere. Then I met Shiladitya (Bora) who said YES and things started rolling. In the search for a director, I felt that they were not ‘grasping the essence as much as I was like one director that I met, wanted to make it a heart transplant story as it would be perhaps more emotional. But, the truth is that it is a real-life story of a guy who has a liver transplant and visually for a medium like cinema a liver transplant is far more interesting. Because you see things on screen like jaundice, we see the skin blotches called spider nevi, we see abdominal swelling. The visual transformation for liver failure is far more ‘cinematic’. It was not an easy decision, I struggled with the whole thing for about 2 years but finally, I decided to direct it myself. I spent some time learning about film directing, writing, editing and other many things.

Was Revathy your first choice to play the lead?

Directing a film is a complete professional change, even though you must have been learning on the go (so as to speak), what was your biggest learning personally?

So, directing a film is a completely different thing, it’s like reading a book and then trying to fly a plane. You have no training, you know what the gears do, what the switches and knobs are for but the first time you are sitting in the cockpit and you have to fly this 787 across the Atlantic and that is exactly what directing first time a fulllength feature film starring big professional actors, felt like. There was a lot of learning but I had excellent support and that is what made everything so good.

The actors were so good, so professional and so com-

Poster of the film...

What was the most challenging part of directing Aye Zindagi?

Revathy was always the first choice to play the lead as she has that kind of beauty that I was looking for. In fact, when I wrote the script, I named the character Revathy because I had her in mind. And when she said Yes, I was thrilled.

Revathy was always the lead as she has that looking for. In fact, when I

It turns out that she is the first celebrity in India to sign an Organ Donor card, which is too many coincidences to not have her play the lead, so I am just very glad she said yes.

mitted, I really got to see how intelligent actors are and how they get into the role as they listen to it. I had tremendous help from Shila my producer, my DOP, my editor and my production designer, anything I wanted they would get for me. So, I was lucky I think, I had lots and lots of support. Frankly, at the end of this whole directing process, I feel the director gets too much credit. What the director does is build on the foundation of his team, and it is this team effort that gives life to his imagination. I am a lucky man!

Many a time as a film progresses, changes have to be made to make it more acceptable to the masses, any such changes in Aye Zindagi?

This is a story based on real life and I have tried to stick to the plot points, In fact, the story is so rich and unbelievably beautiful, that for me writing it was really simple. I just had to play up the conflict because for cinema to be engrossing for people that conflict has to come out. We have simplified the organ donation process and the brain death protocols a little. Because, if you make it very true to life, it sort of delays the experience or understanding of the elements.

The most challenging agi... well, were many! The locations were another since

The most challenging part of directing Aye Zindagi... well, were many! The budget is always an issue, locations were another since we wanted to keep it as true to life as possible so could not use a set. Then we had cast changes because people drop in, then drop out... But at the end of the day, I think that all the challenges and changes were for a good reason. I can’t imagine the film any other way right now and so if we expect life to be smooth, it’s not really going to be worth it. It’s the challenge that makes anything worthwhile.

As the movie releases across India and North America, what do you hope for, apart from a successful run of course? What I am really hopeful about is that people will watch this film and take the underlying message of the film which is that Organ Donation not only saves lives, it is transformative for lives. See Organ donation and transplantation are the miracles of medical science like vaccines and antibiotics, but unlike these two, transplantation has this really human element. When we ask someone to donate the organs of a loved one, they are in the midst of a great loss, they are in grief and yet in the middle of their grief they can empathise with another human, a stranger, someone they will never meet, never get anything from him- that is the amazing beauty of organ transplantation.

Dr Anirban Bose

COUNTDOWN TO INFINITY & BEYOND!

MRIDULA SHARMA cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

Now that Karwa Chauth has already arrived, the anticipation for the day was pretty great. Everyone including Bollywood couples was looking forward to a great day. On the occasion, married ladies offered prayers for their husband’s long life and well-being. Numerous Bollywood stars fast on this day each year and they post pictures of their celebrations on social media for their fans to see. Bollywood couples have their own unique way of celebrating the festival. Some celebrity couples observed Karwa Chauth for the first time following their nuptials. City First brings to you glimpses from ‘Karwa Chauth’ celebrations from B-Town hit couples.

DEEPIKA PADUKONE AND RANVEER SINGH

After six years of dating, Ranveer and Deepika married in Italy in November 2018, apart from the spotlight of the media. Ranveer claimed that he first met Deepika during his difficult times when spilling the beans on how he met the love of his life. The actor continued by saying that he met her in person at an office and fell in love with her right away. Ranveer went on to explain how he fasted for his bride last year on Karwa Chauth because he wants Deepika to be his life partner for the subsequent seven incarnations. Their pictures of exhibiting romance on the occasion of Karwa Chauth are still due.

MOUNI ROY AND SURAJ NAMBIAR

Mouni Roy, who is now enjoying the success of her blockbuster movie Brahmastra, wed her longtime partner Suraj Nambiar in Goa. They followed Bengali and South Indian customs during their wedding. On the occasion of their first Karwa Chauth, on Thursday Mouni Roy shared some beautiful pictures in which she was seen flaunting her henna ahead of her first Karwa Chauth. Mouni looked fresh and stunning in the pictures. She wrote in the caption “Firsts are always special... Happy Karwa Chauth beau ties.”

PRIYANKA CHOPRA AND NICK JONAS

VICKY KAUSHAL AND KATRINA KAIF

After keeping their romance a secret, Katrina Kaif and Vicky Kaushal shocked everyone by announcing their marriage in December of the previous year. The pair posted on Instagram, saying, “We have nothing but love and gratitude for everything that has led us to this point.” Katrina loves Indian festivals and we are sure she must be very enthusiastic about her first Karwa Chauth as well. While fans are still waiting for glimpses of Katrina’s first Karwa Chauth celebrations.

Priyanka Chopra wore a red and gold sari to celebrate her first Karva Chauth with Nick Jonas in 2019, the actress was stuck with the same colour scheme last year also. She teamed her outfit, a not-so-basic scarlet drape from Jade by Monica and Karishma, with a strappy gold shirt for a more contemporary look. The sheer ruffles at the hemline gave the ensemble a romantic twist. This year Priyanka and Nick is accompanied by their daughter Malti Marie Chopra and we can’t keep calm for their Karwa Chauth pictures this year also.

RAJKUMMAR RAO AND PATAREKHA

Rajkummar and Patralekhaa decided to take the leap and be married in Chandigarh in November last year after 11 years of dating. Additionally, they chose a small wedding. Patralekhaa and Rajkummar published images from the wedding and stated, “I married to my everything today, my soulmate, my best friend and my family, after 11 years of love, romance, friendship and joy. Being referred to as your spouse today makes me happier than anything else, @patralekhaa Countdown to infinity and beyond.” Couple this year celebrated their first Karwa Chauth together.

Anushka Sharma, frequently appear in each other's social media posts. The power couple, who wed in a top-secret ceremony in Italy on December 2017, celebrated Karwa Chauth on Thursday. Fans may get a glimpse into

ALIA BHATT AND RANBIR KAPOOR

On April 14 of this year, Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor became husband and wife. Attended by their close friends and family, they enjoyed a private ceremony at Ranbir’s Home Vastu at Bandra. Bollywood’s A-list couple wore stunning wedding attire. Alia posted the images along with a touching message on her handle. The couple revealed their first pregnancy in June, shortly after getting married. They were prepared to greet their little bundle of joy following the celebration of Karwa Chauth.

THE SHOW BEGINS..!

Abeautiful even ing full of glam our and class was witnessed during the training and grooming sessions of the ninth chapter of ‘Elite Miss Rajasthan 2022’ presented by First India and Bharat24 at Samska ra Resort, Jaipur on Wednesday. During the session, the participants went through an intro duction round. Recently the top 32 finalists were announced in a ceremony held at Pratishtha Ban quet, Jaipur.

Jagdeesh Chandra graced the occasion with his presence and while motivating the finalists he said, “I congratulate all of you for making it to the grand finale. We at First India truly believe in promoting beauty and tal

ent and pageants like these provide an authen tic platform for young women like you. May the best win.” He further add ed, “This is the ninth chap ter of Elite Miss Rajasthan 2022 and with each pass ing year, the magnanimity of Elite Miss Rajasthan is

DURING THE DAY!

expanding. I congratulate Gaurav and his team.”

Giving an overview of the preparations for the finale, Gaurav Gaur, the director of the show said that the auditions wit nessed huge enthusiasm from the divas. The tal ented beauties are getting

training and grooming sessions for 7 days lead ing to victory. Yasheel Pandel, one of the direc tors of EMR and director of Hashtag Blunt was also present on the oc casion. Hashtag Blunt Salon is the styling Partner of the Elite Miss Ra jasthan and Manisha Pan del Director of Hashtag Blunt will give beau ty tips to the beautiful partici pants. The muchawaited grand finale of will be held on October 16 at Sam skara Resort.

On the occasion of Karwa Chauth, Mamta Bhupesh, Cabinet Minister Gov of Raj, celebrated the festival of Karwa Chauth with her husband IAS Dr Ghanshyam with much fervour and joy after worshipping the moon at her residence on Thursday.

On the occasion of Karwa Chauth, a grand Karwa Chauth celebration was organised by the Vasundhara Ladies club, managed by Vasundhara Ladies Welfare Society at Hanumant Tower, Vidyadhar Nagar, Jaipur on Thursday.

On the occasion of Karwa Chauth, Industry Minister Shakuntla Rawat offered prayers and celebrated the Karwa Chauth with family and friends on Thursday.

On the occasion of Karwa Chauth, ladies of Mangal Vihar Colony dolled up and celebrated the festival of Karwa Chauth with much fervour and love after worshipping the moon at Mangal Vihar Colony, Gopalpura Bypass, Jaipur on Thursday. On this occasion, women observe fast for an entire day for the longevity and prosperity of their husbands.

Yuvraj Shivraj Singh Neuro Rehab and Physiotherapy Center was inaugurated by the Gaj Singh and Hemlata Raje from the erstwhile royal family of Jodhpur the Indian Head Injury Foundation at Sewa Kunj, located in Sardarpura, Jodhpur's temple complex on Wednesday. Yuvraj Shivraj Singh and Yuvarani Gayatri Kumari distributed free helmets to children in the age group of 6 to 14 years.

On the occasion of Karwa Chauth, Child Protection Commission President Sangeeta Beniwal celebrated the festival of Karva Chauth with family members in Jodhpur on Thursday.

Badrinarayan defeated Kanhaiyalal and became the national president of the All India Bagra Brahmin Mahasabha by 666 votes on Thursday. Badrinarayan said that together with society, we will provide better educational opportunities for the children. Coaching and hostel arrangements will be made for competitive examinations. Efforts are being made to take 3200 meters of land for construction, as soon as the. the construction work of the hostel will be started. —MUKESH BAGRA

With the immense compassion of Balaji and the blessings of Siyaram, an Akhand Ramayana was recited in the Bhajan Sandhya organised by Advocate Lalit Sharma and Seema Sharma at Gargi Garden, Gopalpura Bypass, Jaipur on Thursday. Jagdeesh Chandra graced the occasion with his presence and sought blessings from Balaji. Various dignitaries including TP Sharma, Sunil Khurana, Mahendra Khurana, RP Sharma, Judge JP Sharma, Dr Seema Sharma and Surendra Sharma were also present on the occasion.

—PHOTOS

Jagdeesh Chandra with (L-R) Mahendra Khurana, Sidh Swaroop Das, Lalit Sharma, Seema Sharma, Surendra Sharma and Sunil Khurna Jagdeesh Chandra with (L-R) Swarnim Sharma, Akshat Sharma, Surendra Sharma and Lalit Sharma Jagdeesh Chandra greeted by Surendra Sharma and Ram Prasad Sharma

KAVITA CHAUHAN

Jagdeesh Chandra with the stunning finalists of Elite Miss Rajasthan 2022 displaying the recent City First edition

Anticlockwise: Shivangi Singh Rao Harshita Singh and Shreya Chalana

Jagdeesh Chandra addressing the audience

Jagdeesh Chandra greeted by Yasheel Pandel, Gaurav Gaur, Akanksha Bhalla and Astha Khandelwal

Jagdeesh Chandra appreciates Yasheel Pandel, as Gaurav Gaur looks upon

Usha Vijay, Anju Naval, Chaman Sandhi, Seema Soni, Neha Sangi, Priyasi Maheshwari, Shipra Ajmera, Riya Bikaner, Shashi Vijay and Kailash Devi Vijay