New Delhi: India on Saturday issued an advisory warning its nationals about fake jobs floated on social media following case of over 100 workers being lured to Myanmar by dubious IT firms. Authorities have so far rescued 32 Indian nationals who were taken to a remote part of Myanmar on the pretext of lucrative IT jobs.
HM inaugurates 5 Border Out Posts of SSB in Kishanganj, lauds SSB for role in fight Kishanganj (ANI): Lauding the role of the Sashastra Seema Bal in the battle against Naxal ism, Union Home Minis ter Amit Shah on Satur day said owing to their “tough fight”, Naxalism has been finished in Bi har and Jharkhand re gions. Shah also inaugu rated 5 Border Out Posts of SSB in Kishanganj.
New Delhi: In an effort to unite Opposition parties ahead of the 2024 LS polls, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar and RJD chief Lalu Prasad will be meeting Cong president Sonia Gandhi in Delhi on Sunday. Earlier in the month, Nitish met Rahul, signalling that he is not in favour of keeping Cong out of an anti-BJP Oppn formation.
New Delhi: In the biggest crackdown on the circulation and download of child pornography in India, CBI Saturday conducted raids at 56 locations across 19 states and a Union territory as part of ‘Operation Meghchakra’. The name of op comes from the agency cracking down on ‘cloud servers’.
Dehradun: The BJP on Saturday expelled Vi nod Arya, the father of Pulkit Arya, who is the main accused in a re ceptionist’s murder in Pauri district here. Vi nod Arya is a former minister and member of national executive of the BJP OBC Morcha. Pulkit's brother Ankit Arya has also been ex pelled from the party with immediate effect. He was earlier removed also from the post of Deputy Chairman of the Uttarakhand Other Backward Classes Com mission.
Meanwhile, anger is mounting as locals set fire to the Vantara re sort, which was owned by Pulkit. Cops on Sat urday recovered body.
KILLED FOR DENYING ‘SPECIAL SERVICES’ TO GUESTS, SAYS DGP Uttarakhand DGP Ashok Kumar said that the 19-year-old receptionist was being pressured by Pulkit Arya, the resort owner, to provide “special services” to guests. As per reports, the victim had told her friend that the owner and the managers of the resort where she worked were mounting pressure on her to have sex with guests visiting the resort.
RAJ CM GEHLOT EXPRESSES GRIEF OVER MURDER CM Gehlot on Saturday expressed grief over mur der of a resort employee and demanded a speedy investigation by the state govt and justice to family. He described incident as “highly condemnable and sad”. “There is a lot of anger among people about form in which BJP leader’s son put pressure on girl and then she was brutally murdered,” he tweeted.
“The body of daughter Ankita was recovered this morning. My heart is deeply pained by this heartbreak ing incident,” Uttarakhand CM Dhami tweeted on Saturday.”In order to ensure the harshest punishment for the culprits, an SIT has been formed under the leadership of DIG of Police P Renuka Devi ji and ordered an in-depth investigation of this serious matter,” Dhami wrote.
“SSB jawans have fought a tough fight against Naxalism ram pant in the northeast. As a result, Naxalism is on the brink of ending in Bihar and Jharkhand regions, we can even say it is finished here,” he said. “The responsi bility increases if it’s an open border. However friendly may relations be, even if neighbouring nations have no ill inten tions, there are a few ele ments in society who use open borders for un authorised earning – be it smuggling or infiltra tion,” Shah added.
Sitting in Del hi, one thinks you have the easiest duty as we’ve friendly relations with both nations (Nepal and Bhutan). But when one comes to the border, we realise that you have the toughest duty as it’s an open border.
—Amit Shah, Home Minister
New Delhi: Prime Min ister Narendra Modi will launch 5G services in India at an event in the first week of Octo ber, the government’s National Broadband Mission tweeted on Sat urday. “Taking India’s digital transformation & connectivity to new heights, Hon’ble PM, @ narendramodi, will roll out 5G services in India; at India Mobile Con gress; Asia’s largest
CENTRE GIVES TOP PRIORITY TO BRACE BORDER INFRA: HM HM Amit Shah on Saturday asserted that the government gives top priority to strengthen the country’s borders, a reason why expenditure on infra structure development in these areas has gone up considerably under the current regime.
technology exhibition,” it said. The govt has given a target of 80 per cent coverage of 5G tel ecom services in the country in the short
timeframe, Union Min ister for Communica tions, Electronics & In formation Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw had last week said.
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Maharashtra
Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday alleged the Popular Front of India (PFI) has large-scale
plans to trigger unrest in the country.
Speaking to reporters at Nagpur airport in the wake of nationwide raids against the organ ization, arrest of its leaders, Fadnavis said, “Based on investiga tions, it has been re
vealed that the PFI has now adopted a new mo dus operandi. It has massive plans to trigger unrest within India and it has been working to wards creating commu nal tension.”
“The action against PFI shows the NIA (Na tional Investigation Agency) and ATS (AntiTerrorist Squad) had
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Saturday ap pointed guardian min isters of districts in the state, with deputy CM and senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, Devendra Fad navis, receiving charge of several areas in Vid arbha.
Fadnavis has been appointed the guardian minister of Nagpur, Wardha, Amravati,
Akola, Bhandara and Gadchiroli.
Maharashtra School Education Minister Deepak Kesarkar will be guardian minister of Mumbai city and Kol hapur, while the me tropolis’ suburban dis trict will be under the charge of state Tourism Minister Mangalprab hat Lodha.
As per the CM’s an nouncement, state Rev enue Minister Rad hakrishna Vikhe Patil has been appointed
guardian minister of Ahmednagar and Solapur, Forest Minis ter Sudhir Mungatiwar of Chandrapur and Gondia, Higher and
Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil of Pune and Trib al Welfare Minister Vi jaykumar Gavit of Nan durbar.
Rural Development Minister Girish Ma hajan will be guardian minister of Dhule, La tur and Nanded and Wa ter Supply Minister Gu labrao Patil will take care of Buldhana and Jalgaon. Meanwhile, Ports Minister Dada Bhuse will be guardian minister of Nashik and
Food & Drug Adminis tration (FDA) Minister Sanjay Rathod will han dle Yavatmal and Washim. Other guardi an minister appoint ments include Coopera tion Minister Atul Save for Jalna and Beed, Ex cise Minister Samb huraj Desai for Satara and Thane, Labour Min ister Suresh Khade for Sangli, EGS minister Sandipan Bhumre for Aurangabad (Chhatra pati Sambhaji Nagar), and Health Turn to P6
adequate proof. The in vestigation is still un derway,” said the depu ty CM, who also holds the home portfolio in the state.
Both central and state agencies are cur rently investigating the terrorism charges lev ied against PFI. “In the recent past, even the Kerala government
sought a ban on the PFI,” pointed out Fad navis.
On Thursday, NIA and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) con ducted multiple search es across the country at premises linked to the PFI. In Maharashtra, the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) arrested 20 people during Turn to P6
New York (ANI): India replies against remarks made by Pakistan’s PM Shehbaz Sharif on mi norities in India & issue of Kashmir at 77 session of UNGA debate. Indian diplomat Mijito Vinito reminded Pakistan to introspect before level ling false allegations against India. He told that instead of making claims over J&K, Islam abad should stop “crossborder terrorism”. “He has done so to obfuscate misdeeds in his own country & to justify ac tions against India that world considers unac ceptable,” he said.
First India Bureau
Jaipur: The Election of Cong president has be come interesting now as another senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor will also contest polls of the Congress President against Rajasthan CM Gehlot. Although Ge hlot’s victory in election is certain but now elec tion of Congress Presi dent became interesting.
If Gehlot and Tharoor contest, then northsouth factor can be seen in polls. However, there
Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Satur day collected the form to run for the post of party president, making him the first leader to officially enter the contest. P5
are speculations that Tharoor will withdraw at the last minute. Tha roor’s agenda was ensur ing Rahul’s nomination for presidency which has not happened. Mean while, all Congress MLAs of Rajasthan can go to Delhi on Sept 28 to
Nominations for the Con gress president began on Saturday and the nomination papers can be filed til Sep tember 30 with results to be announced on October 19.
show their support to Gehlot as he may file his nomination on Sept 28.
Sachin Pilot reached Delhi on Sat urday and will meet state in-charge Ajay Maken today. He may meet party high com mand also.
CM Eknath ShindeFadnavis says action against Popular Front of India ‘shows there was plenty proof with the NIA and ATS’
Dy CM Devendra Fadnavis
UTTARAKHAND RECEPTIONIST MURDER CASEPolice recovers body of the receptionist from the Cheela canal where she was dumped A SIT formed to probe into the case: Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami Moni Sharma (T) Vanatara resort, owned by BJP leader Vinod Arya’s son Pulkit Arya being demolished, in Rishikesh on Saturday. (R) Flames & smoke billows out from resort, after it was set on fire by locals. Union Home Minister Amit Shah interacting with the SSB’s personnel, in Fatehpur on Saturday. Mijito Vinito at UNGA debate. Mumbai: The CBI has taken four-day custody of former Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjay Pandey. This devp comes in connection with illegal phone tapping of NSE employees by his IT firm, officials said on Saturday. Alleged fraud against Pandey relates to manipulation of the stock market through the electronic contrivances. FAMILY PM Narendra Modi will roll-out 5G services in India on October 1 at the India Mobile Congress event. He will be present at the event during the launch. DoT an nounced that 5G internet would be launched in 13 cities like Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi, Gandhinagar, Gurugram, Hyderabad, Jamnagar, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai and Pune in the first phase.
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Taking ex ception to a report edly “morphed” pho tograph of Baramati MP Supriya Sule sit ting in chief minis ter’s chair, the Na tionalist Congress Party (NCP), on Sat urday, demanded that the Mumbai po lice take action against the spokes person of the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction.
NCP office-bearer Aditi Nalawde filed an online complaint with Worli police station, and demanded appro priate action against the person who posted the photograph on Twitter.
Nalawade said the photo was shared to ma lign the public image of an elected representa tive.
The photograph of Sule, tweeted by Shin de’s Sena faction
Pune: The Pune po lice have registered an offence against more than 60 persons for holding a protest in the city without permission against the nationwide raids on the Popular Front of India (PFI) and the arrest of its activists.
Spokesperson Sheetal Mhatre, showed the Baramati MP sitting in a chair with a board be hind her that read “Ma harashtra Government - Chief Minister”. In the photograph, she was flanked by former min isters and NCP leaders Dilip Walse-Patil and Rajesh Tope.
Mhatre captioned the photograph with “Look who is sitting in the chief minister’s chair”.
Accusing Mhatre of posting a morphed pic ture, the NCP urged the Mumbai police’s cyber cell to take action.
Police had detained 41 of these protesters during their agitation held outside the Pune district Collectorate on Friday, said an official on Saturday.
“We have registered an offence against more than 60 persons, includ ing 41 who were de tained yesterday, for organizing a protest without permission, for unlawful assembly and for blocking the road,” said Senior Inspector Pratap Mankar of Bun dgarden police station.
The police had earli er given a notice to the organizers not to hold any protest, but they did not follow the order, he said.
Accordingly, an of
fence was registered against the protesters under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 141, 143, 145, 147, and 149 (all pertaining to unlawful assembly), 188 (disobe dience to order duly promulgated by public servant) and 341 (wrong ful restraint), and also under sections the Ma harashtra Police Act.
In a massive crack down on the PFI, multiagency teams spear headed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) had, on Thursday, arrested 106 leaders and activists of the radical Islamic outfit in nearsimultaneous raids in 15 states for allegedly supporting terror ac tivities in the country.
Maharashtra and Kar
Pune (PTI): A video of protesters purport edly raising “Pakistan Zindabad” slogans during an agitation held by the Popular Front of India (PFI) has surfaced on social media. It has prompted some Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders in Maharashtra to demand strong action against the demonstra tors. The city police said they were looking into the matter. When asked about the proPakistan slogans by
nataka accounted for 20 arrests each, Tamil Nadu (10), Assam (9), Ut tar Pradesh (8), Andhra
the protesters, the city police said they were investigating the mat ter. Taking to Twitter, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Nitesh Rane said those who raised pro-Pakistan slogans should remember that they will not be spared. He also demanded a ban on the PFI. “To all those shouting Paki stan Zindabad slogans in support of PFI in Pune.. Chun chun ke marenge.. Itna yaad rakana!!! #BanPfi,” he said.
Pradesh (5), Madhya Pradesh (4), Puducherry and Delhi (3 each) and Rajasthan (2).
Chandrapur (PTI):
Union Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Satur day said the Centre has not taken any de cision to set up an oil refinery project in any specific area of Maharashtra.
Speaking to report ers in Chandrapur, he said the state govern ment will have to dis cuss the project’s loca tion with the Central government.
He alleged the previ ous Maha Vikas Agha di (MVA) government in Maharashtra had allocated land for the project, but later re fused under the pre text of changing the location, which de railed the project.
“Following this, the state and the country faced huge economic losses in the last twoand-a-half years,” al leged Puri.
The Union minister
was apparently refer ring to the Ratnagiri Refinery and Petro chemical project, pro posed to be built at Na nar village in Ratnagiri district in coastal Kon kan. It was scrapped before the 2019 polls at the insistence of Shiv Sena, the then alliance partner of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Establishing a 60-mil lion metric tonne per annum oil refinery will be the biggest plant in the world, said Puri.
“If it is set up any where in the country, it has the potential to change the economic scenario in that state very fast,” he said.
Mumbai (PTI): Mum bai police have begun an investigation after a city resident allegedly held captive in Myan mar contacted them and claimed that he and many other Indi ans are stranded there after falling prey to a job racket.
People hold a demonstration in support of the climate protection movement 'Fridays for Future', in Mumbai on Saturday.
—PHOTO BY PTIPolice have received information about at least three persons from the city who end ed up in Myanmar af ter they were promised IT jobs in Thailand, a senior official said on Saturday.
After one of them managed to contact
Says more than 70 Indians being forced to commit cyber crimes; lured though promise of jobs
The complainant, who is from suburban Bandra, told police that he and his two friends had been prom ised IT sector jobs in Thailand by an agent. After they landed in Thailand, they were taken to the neighbour ing country of Myan mar where they have been held against their wishes and forced to do jobs which involved cy bercrimes, he said.
city police, the crime branch registered a First Information Re port (FIR) against uni dentified persons and started a probe.
Sangli: A village in Sangli district is showing the way out of the clutter of elec tronic gadgets and so cial media platforms in modern life by get ting its residents to go in for a “digital de tox” every evening.
The idea was mooted by Vijay Mohite, the sarpanch of Mohity anche Vadgaon village, and residents have been participating in this novel exercise enthusi astically.
A siren goes off from a local temple at 7pm, signalling people to put off their mobile phones, gadgets. They also switch off their televi sion sets and other de vices to indulge in read ing books, studying and talking with one anoth er, while the second alarm at 8.30pm signals the end of the detox pe riod.
Talking about the unique concept, Mohite said, “The COVID-19-in duced lockdown and subsequent spell of on line classes brought mo
bile phones into the hands of children for long hours even after school ended for the day. Also television viewing
hours of parents got ex tended.”
“When physical classes resumed, teach ers realized children
the school hours. There weren’t separate study rooms in the homes of the villagers. So I put forth the idea of a digi tal detox,” he said. “I had proposed a one-and-a-half hour pe riod at first. Initially, there was hesitancy as people were wondering if it was possible to keep away from mobile and TV screens. On In dependence Day, we convened a gram sabha of women and decided to purchase a siren.
8.30pm, people keep their mobile phones aside, switch off televi sion sets and focus on reading, studying, writ ing and conversations. A ward-wise committee has been set up to moni tor if the initiative is being implemented,” explained the sarpanch.
According to a local residentt, women in the village’s households would be busy watching television serials and there wasn’t much pa rental supervision over children.
had become lazy, did not want to read and write and were mostly en grossed in their mobile phones before and after
Then ASHA workers, anganwadi sevikas, gram panchayat em ployees, retired teach ers went from home to home to create aware ness about digital de tox,” he added.
“Between 7pm and
“Now, from 7pm to 8.30pm, children study while parents read and write. There is no dis turbance as everyone goes about such produc tive activities,” added the villager.
I had pro posed a oneand-a-half hour period at first. Initially, there was hesitancy as people were wondering if it was possible to keep away from mobile and TV screens. On I-Day, we convened a gram sabha of women and decided to purchase a siren. Then ASHA workers, anganwadi sevikas, gram pan chayat employees, re tired teachers went from home to home to create awareness about digital detox.
DIGITAL DETOX —Vijay Mohite, Sarpanch, Mohityanche Vadgaon village Children in Sangli’s Mohityanche Vadgaon village study during the detox period —PHOTO BY PTI Several leaders of the Popular Front of India organization have been nabbed in raids across the country by central and state investigative gencies. —ANI PHOTO Union Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri —ANI PHOTO Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri is in Chandrapur under BJP’s ‘Pravas’ campaign ahead of 2024 general polls Alleged morphed picture of NCP MP Supriya Sule sitting in a chair with a Maha CM board behind her.Thane: The body of an unidentified woman, who was around 50 years of age, was found float ing in Makhmali Talao lake of Thane district on Saturday morn ing, said an official.
“We received a call at around 10 am where we were informed about a body floating in the lakh. A team of the fire brigade and cops from the Naupada police station and RDMC reached the spot and recovered the body, which has been sent for post-mortem in a government hos pital,” RDMC Chief Avinash Sawant said.
Mumbai: In four sep arate incidents re corded in the past 24 hours, three women have been killed by their partners and a minor has sustained injuries. All crimes have been reported in Thane and Pune dis tricts of the state.
A 24-year-old woman was allegedly strangled to death by her live-in partner in Bhiwandi town of Thane district.
Saddan Sharif Sayyed (30) was nabbed while transporting the body in an ambulance, said Inspector Chetan Kakade of Bhiwandi town police station on Saturday. A resident of Kalyan, Sayyed alleg edly killed his girl friend Kavita Ramappa Madar at around 4 am on Thursday. The ac cused allegedly stran gled the victim, he said.
Based on a tip-off,
Sayyed was caught by Pune police while head ing towards Vijapur with the body.
In another incident, a 28-year-old man alleg edly strangled his wife to death over an argu ment at their residence in Thane city. Police have arrested Anil Lax man Lokhande for al legedly killing his wife Meena (25) in Indira
The occurrence of domestic murders and disturbances has increased in the last few years. During the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, police received various complaints regarding domestic arguments, and crimes. According to re searchers, occurrences of such incidents may have happened during the pandemic as a result of people being inactive physically, being cooped up in their homes all day, depres sion, unemployment, among other factors.
Nagar area of Kalwa on Friday, said Senior In spector Manohar Awhad.
The couple used to frequently fight over petty issues and in the early hours of Friday, the accused strangled his wife, he said.
A 22-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly stabbing and injuring his girlfriend
and her mother over a petty argument in Thane on Friday. The incident took place at around 9.45 am on Thursday when the ac cused asked the 18-year-old victim to accompany him to his house for a visit.
The accused got an noyed at the girl’s re fusal and took a big knife from the kitchen
to attack her. He in jured the latter’s moth er when she tried to intervene, said an of ficial.
The duo was rushed to a local hospital, where they are under going treatment.
In the final incident, a man allegedly shot and injured his eightyear-old daughter fol lowing an argument with his wife and other family members in Pune. Pandurang Ubhe (38) came home in an inebriated state at around 8 pm and began arguing with his wife. In a fit of rage, he pulled out his licensed revolver and pointed it at his wife. But his daughter Rajnandini started screaming, fol lowing which he shot her in the chest.
The
Nagpur: A 23-yearold man was killed and three of his friends sustained serious injuries when two motorcycles col lided in the Wadi area of Nagpur, a police official said on Sat urday. The deceased has been identified as Nitesh Kahar (23), he added. “Kahar’s motorcycle was hit by another two-wheeler on which his friends were riding. All four have sustained seri ous injuries and were rushed to the hospital where Kahar died,” he said. A case of rash driving and other offenses have been registered against Kahar’s friend Sunil Gautam.
Mumbai (PTI): Maha rashtra on Saturday reported 619 COV ID-19 cases and three fatalities, taking the tally to 81,18,804 and the death toll to 1,48,327, the health de partment said.
A day earlier, the state had logged 611 in fections and two deaths.
Of the three fatali ties, Kolhapur circle reported two and Mum bai circle one.
Of the 619 cases, the highest 260 were re
Thane: Dr Juber Shah was booked after health depart ment officials found medical waste including used vi als, syringes, and expired medicines dumped in the open near his hospital, an official of the Shivajinagar police station said. A case has been registered under Section 269 (whoever unlawfully or negligently does any act which is, and which he knows or has reason to be lieve to be, likely to spread the infection of any disease) and other relevant provi sions of the IPC.
Mumbai: Public trans port services in the state capital remained unaffected and no ma jor waterlogging was reported, civic offi cials said, even as heavy rains lashed parts of Mumbai on Saturday morning.
Police have regis tered offenses against the accused in all cases and investigations are underway.
The city and its east ern and western sub urbs received heavy showers between 7 am and 8 am, after which the rainfall stopped in most places.
No major waterlog ging was reported anywhere in the city or sub urbs. The subur ban train services running normal and bus services of Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) also were not diverted. three fatalities
Kolhapur (24), Aurang abad (13), Akola (12), and Latur (11) circles reported less than 100 new cases.
With 686 people dis charged in the last 24 hours, the count of re coveries in Maharash tra went up to 79,66,768.
A civic official said that during that one hour, Dadar Fire station and Ravali Camp re corded 28mm rainfall, F-North ward office 21mm, F-South office 18mm, Wadala Fire sta tion 17mm and Britan nia at Reay Road record ed 12mm rainfall.
where in the city or its suburbs. The suburban train services running normal and bus servic es of Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) also were not diverted,” the official stated.
ported from the Pune circle, and 219 from the Mumbai circle which includes the metropoli tan region (MMR). Na shik (42), Nagpur (36),
Thane: The Motor Ac cident Claims Tribu nal (MACT) here in Thane has awarded compensation of Rs8.10 lakh to a boy who was injured in an accident in 2017.
MACT member HM Bhosale directed Bal chandra Mhatre, the owner of a the offending car, and the ICICI Lom bard Insurance Co. Ltd to pay the compensation jointly and severally along with interest at 8% per annum from the date
the claim petition was filed.
Appearing for the peti tioner, advocate SM Pa war said that on Decem ber 27, 2017, the boy
severe injuries and had to undergo a surgery. The boy’s parents spent more than Rs5 lakh on medical expenses.
Of the 3,709 active cases in the state, the highest 1,172 cases are in Pune, followed by 752 in Mumbai and 457 in Thane districts, the health department re port stated.
In the eastern sub urbs, M-East and L-East ward offices recorded 17mm and 12mm rain fall, respectively, while SWM Workshop record ed 20mm, Cooper Hospi tal and H-East ward 18mm, Andheri fire sta tion 17mm and Versova Pumping station record ed 14mm rainfall.
“No major waterlog ging was reported any
Mumbai city, its east ern suburbs and western suburbs recorded rain fall 27.45mm, 5.24mm and 9.38mm, respective ly, in the last 24 hours ending at 8.30 am on Sat urday, officials said.
The India Meteoro logical Department has predicted partly cloudy skies in the morning and light to moderate rain fall in the city and its suburbs in the evening.
Ganesh Vijay Kadam, who was five years old at the time, was hit by a speeding car on the Ko kanipada-Tikujini Wada Road. The boy sustained
The total compensa tion of Rs8.10 lakh in cluded Rs3 lakh towards compensation on ac count of permanent dis ability, Rs2.80 lakh to wards hospital expens es, Rs1 lakh towards medical expenses, Rs50,000 each towards loss of enjoyment of life and pain and suffering, Rs20,000 towards con veyance and Rs10,000 towards special diet.
First India Bureau
Nagpur: The face of Vidarbha region will change with the new Mumbai-Nagpur Samruddhi Express way making it a ma jor economic corridor of the country, said Deputy Chief Minis ter Devendra Fad navis on Saturday.
Addressing a gather ing at the “Pride of Land Awards” ceremo ny in Nagpur Fadnavis said several firms in the logistics sector were coming to Nagpur,
Wardha and other areas in Vidarbha, which has long been classified as a backward region in the state. He said there were plans to develop connectivity between Nagpur and Goa on the lines of the Samruddhi Expressway that links Vidarbha’s largest city with the state capital.
“Chief Minister Eknath Shinde wants to develop 5,000km of ac cess-controlled express ways by linking Nagpur to Hyderabad (in Telan gana) and New Delhi. The aim is to ensure
cargo traverses these routes within 10 hours,” he said.
“The Mumbai-Nag pur Samruddhi Ex pressway will change the face of Vidarbha, making it the country’s next major economic
corridor,” he added.
He said the govern ment under him be tween 2014 and 2019 had sanctioned development plans across the state without any corruption.
Fadnavis also cited a report by real-estate bar on Niranjan Hirananda ni that claimed the state government, between 2014 and 2019, spent Rs3 lakh crore on infrastruc ture in Mumbai and its surrounding metropoli tan region, which was 10 times more than the amount spent in 60 years before 2014.
CM Shin de wants to develop 5,000km of ac cess-controlled ex pressways by link ing Nagpur to Hy derabad (in Tel angana) and New Delhi. The aim is to ensure all types of cargo traverses these routes within 10 hours.
— Devendra Fadnavis, Maharashtra Dy CM First India Bureau Fluffy clouds float amid a clear blue sky, their reflections mirrored in the still waters of the Chandrabhaga River in Pandharpur, in Maharashtra’s Solapur district, on Saturday. —PTI PHOTOThree women killed, one minor shot in Thane and Pune districts; cops launch inquiries into all crimes
K NATWAR SINGH
Dear Natwar,
One has learnt to expect all kinds of unethical action from our opposition but I must admit that I was deeply shocked at the manner in which some of them including those in the Cong(O) seemed to view the prospect claiming that his disappearance from the scene would clear the way for Opposition unity
Jammu, 14 April 1975
Your letter of the 10th arrived only yesterday and I have just read it in the plane on the flight to Jammu. I have not been to Jammu for a long time and since this particular visit was decided upon, new and complex problems have arisen on the political scene. Knowing the Shiekh’s autocratic nature, I had envisaged such a situation, though not so soon. Now we can only try to set it right and hope for the best.
In the meanwhile, we have given in to a part of Morarji’s demandabout the Gujarat elections. It seemed such a silly point for which to fast or for us to hold our, since the difference in dates was only three months. However, our difficulties are acute and varied enough without having a dead Morarji haunting the scene. One has learnt to expect all kinds of unethical action from our opposition but I must admit that I was deeply shocked at the manner in which some of them including those in the Cong(O) seemed to view the prospect claiming that his disappearance from the scene would clear the way for opposition unity.
It is hard going for Mother Teresa. But I figured that it was better for me to support a really worthwhile candidate, even if the chance of success is slim.
I am glad you have reminded me about Dame Sybil Thorndike. Some time ago I had proposed that some way should be found to honour women around the world who have shown sympathy towards India. I do not know whether the Ministry has moved in the matter.The prospect of seeing a play is indeed tempting but I do not know whether it will be possible to stop over in London.
With good wishes
Shri K Natwar Singh Deputy High Commssioner, India House Aldwych, London WC-2
Yours Sincerely, [Indira Gandhi]
Dear Natwar, Thank you for sending the Peter Jay’s remarks. He also wrote to me. My comment on that letter: “a bouquet from an unexpected quarter!”.
Malraux was pleased with his Indian visit and I was told by the French Ambassador that he was sorry to leave. I have glanced at Tara’s review of Bhatia’s book. To me it seemed a rather pitiable self-portrait-so full of hatred and pettiness-of the reviewer.
PS: This top portion was dictated long ago but I thought I would add to it. Hence the delay. In the meantime your letter of the 27 December has come with Pam Cullen. I was sorry to hear about her father. What a time to have to leave England.
Lord Louis is, as you know, incorrigible. He is friends with all the wrong sort of people and presumably believes what they tell him about me and about India. Krishna Menon had something to say about this just a few days before he died.
I am glad Prince Charles is breaking journey here but it will be difficult to do anything interesting in just one day as I suppose the protocol part cannot be entirely ignored.
We are all stunned by LN Mishra’s murder. As the National Herald rightly says, although LNM cannot be compared with Gandhiji in any way, there is no doubt that it was the atmosphere of hatred, calumny and violence, spread under the wings of JP that was responsible for this dastardly act.
As you may have seen from the newspapers, we have had a torrent of VVIPs and international conferences-the brightest star being Gina Lolobrigida who interviewed me. I believe she has also interviewed Wilson, Kissinger, McNamara and Fidel Castro who had urged her to meet me.
With good wishes for 1975.
Yours Sincerely [Indira Gandhi]
Rashtriya Swayam Sewak Sangh su premo Mohan Bhagwat’s out reach to Muslim intellectuals and clerics is be ing seen as a positive step to narrow down the widening gulf between the two commu nities. Bhagwat’s conversa tion with Muslim intellectuals was especially frank. The RSS Sarsanghchaalak was in formed of Muslims’ concerns over their vilification and be ing referred to as Pakistani, jihadist and terrorist and the need to restrain those who at tack and lynch Muslims on the suspicion of transporting beef and spew hate against the community members. Bhag wat raised the issue of cow slaughter and Muslims calling
journalist Shahid Siddiqui, who is also a national vicepresident of the Rashtriya Lok Dal and businessman Saeed Shervani. The RSS said that the meeting was part of Sangh’s Samvad (dialogue) process. Bhagwat’s first-ever visit to a Delhi mosque for a meeting with Umer Ahmed Ilyasi, the chief imam of the All-India Imam Organisation
Bhagwat’s conversation with Muslim intellectuals was especially frank. The RSS Sarsanghchaalak was informed of Muslims’ concerns over their vilification and being referred to as Pakistani, jihadist and terrorist and the need to restrain those who attack and lynch Muslims on the suspicion of transporting beef and spew hate against the community members
was also part of that process. Intellectuals described the move as a great initiative, while Ilyasi preferred to call Bhagwat rashtra-pita. Bhag wat also advised Hindus to stop looking for a shivling in every mosque. Will those who gave hate speeches at the Dharm sansad in Haridwar last year follow Bhagwat’s line when they meet at Sangam
city next year? As for shiv lings, will the Hindus drop their claims on Qutub Minar and Taj Mahal? Most impor tantly, will Bhagwat’s land mark visit to the mosque sof ten hate-mongers among Hin dus? To ensure that Bhagwat’s efforts do not go to waste the Hindus and Muslims must keep up the process of dia logue for the country’s good.
Roger Federer has long been admired for his top class ten nis and sportsman ship. He is also re garded as a good human being and for his family values. That he commanded respect for these qualities is to state the obvious. His friendship with his on court rival Rafa Nadal has become more famous than that between John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg. Both sets of players fought tooth and nail on court but off court they have remained best of friends. An overwhelmed Nadal failed to hold back his tears as he said that a part of him was leaving with Federer.
Federer’s emotional side was on display at London’s O2 Arena where he signed off as one of the world’s greatest athletes. As he “tied his tennis shoes one more time” Federer said he was happy not sad but kept breaking down, intermittently wiping his tears. “It’s been a perfect jour ney, I’d do it all over again,” the Swiss star told a 17,000 strong crowd.
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Bible
Dr. S. Jaishankar @DrSJaishankar
Editor-In-Chief:
Editor:
Dharmendra Pradhan
PM Shri @narendramodi ji’s pathbreaking policies are ushering in growth and good governance and empowering citizens. Today, #NEP2020 and other tech-driven interventions are contributing in the
At #UNGA, India normally speaks to the world. This morning, at India@75 event, the world spoke about India. Thank @un_pga, @AminaJMohammed and colleague FM of Armenia, Antigua &Barbuda, Guyana, Jamaica, Tanzania, Maldives, Gambia, Timor-Leste, Cyprus and Yemen for participating.
SPIRITUAL SPEAK
TOP TWEETS
Hindus “kafirs”, non-believ ers. The intellectuals report edly agreed that it was wrong. Hijab and Gyanvapi contro versies were also discussed.
The five intellectuals---the former chief election commis sioner SY Quraishi, former Lt-Governor of Delhi Najeeb Jang, former vice-chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University Zameer Uddin Shah, senior
Prime Minister House New Delhi 4th January 1975
The author is Former Minister of External Affairs of India
Party workers and people came out in large numbers to support Rahul Gandhi
Thrissur (ANI): The Congress has resumed its Bharat Jodo Yatra, after a day's break, from Perambra junction in the Thrissur district of Kerala on Saturday.
Workers and people of Thrissur came out in large numbers to sup port Rahul Gandhi and all the Padyatris as the Bharat Jodo Yatra re sumes after a break.
The yatra began from Perambra junction, reached Amballur junc tion for their morning break. The yatra will then resume at 5 pm from Talore Bypass junc tion after which the par ty leaders, workers, and supporters are sched uled to take an evening break at Swaraj Round road at Vadakkumathan South Gate at 7 pm.
Thrissur: The Congress will not be able to retain the Lok Sabha seats it had won during the 2019 Par liamentary elections in the state as MPs including, Rahul Gandhi, have ‘failed’ to resist the BJP in the national polity, Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan has said.
‘RaGa WALKING TO J&K FROM KERALA’: A JOHN CUSACK ENDORSEMENT
Thrissur (Agencies): The Congress’s mass contact programme – the Bharat Jodo Yatra – has caught the attention of a Hollywood star. Weeks after the foot march, which aims to cover over 3,500 km across the country, was kicked off, John Cusack – in a tweet – wrote: “Indian parliament member Rahul Gandhi is walking to Kashmir from Kerala.” Cusack – who has starred in multiple Hol lywood blockbusters, including Serendipity”, “High Fidel ity”, “Con Air” and “2012” – noticed the march that Rahul Gandhi and other party leaders have been undertaking to strengthen the grassroot stronghold ahead of several state elections. The grand old party’s spokesperson, Jairam Ramesh, shared John Cusack’s post on his Twitter feed. Rahul Gandhi started the march from Kanyakumari, the southernmost tip of the country’s mainland, and he has been covering southern states presently. Ever since the yatra started, a war of words has also been going on between the BJP and the Congress.
New Delhi: With almost everyday one or the oth er Congress leader stressing that Rahul should lead the party and the Gandhi scion declining to take the mantle, the real ques tion is that when Rahul Gandhi has decided that he will not contest the election of Congress President, then why is the proposal of his name being passed by the state committees of Con
gress? Why State Con gress Committee meet ings are being called in every state and a resolu tion is being passed to make Rahul the President? It is also surprising that the head of the party's com munication de partment, Jairam Ramesh, has said in a
press conference that the resolutions being passed by the states are not binding. That is, the party high com mand is not bound to ac cept them, yet proposals are being sent from the states and about a dozen states have already for warded such pro posals to the high com mand.
In fact, this is being done to establish Rahul Gandhi as the supreme leader of the party and strengthen his moral authority. Any person may become the presi dent but the biggest leader will be Rahul. It will be said on behalf of the Congress that all the state commit tees wanted to make Rahul the president but he rejected taking the post. There will be pressure on whoever is the new president.
New Delhi (ANI): Filing of nominations for Congress presi dent began on Sat urday with a contest between Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot and former Union minister Shashi Tharoor on the cards. Tharoor collected the form to run for the post of party president, making him the first leader to officially enter the race. The nominations will be filed till September 30 and results declaring the new Congress chief will be an nounced on October 19. This will be the first time in 25 years that Congress will see a non-Gandhi chief after Sonia Gandhi replaced Sitaraman Kesri as party chief in 1998. The last time the party had a non-Gandhi chief was in 1997 when Sitaram Kesri defeated Sharad Pawar and Rajesh Pi lot Chairman of Cen tral Election Authority Madhusudan Mistri will be available in Congress headquar ters in the national capital to take the nomination papers as returning of ficer of the
Mathura (ANI): Actorturned-politician Hema Malini on Saturday re acted to the specula tions that actor Kanga na Ranaut could contest elections from Mathura, which is Hema’s parlia mentary constituency.
“Good, it is good...You want only film stars in Mathura. Tomorrow, even Rakhi Sawant will become,” she said. Re cently, Kangana Ranaut had visited the famed Thakur Banke Bihari temple in Vrindavan.
A crowd of devotees and locals were seen
running towards her as she got down from the car heading towards the Banke Bihari temple. Tight security had to be arranged to make Kan gana's exit from the temple possible.
Chandigarh: Amid the ongoing confrontation between Punjab Gover nor Banwarlilal Purohit and the AAP govt, Puro hit on Saturday hit back at CM Bhagwant Mann, schooled him about the Vidhan Sabha rules.
In a letter to Mann, Purohit said, “After reading your statements in today’s newspapers, it appears to me that per haps you are ‘too much’ angry with me. I think your legal advisors are not briefing you ade quately. Perhaps your
opinion about me will definitely change after reading the provisions of Article 167 and 168 of the Constitution, which I’m quoting for your ready reference.” Bhagwant Mann with Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit.
New Delhi: Supreme Court judge Justice DY Chandrachud speaking at an event on Saturday said that despite laws mandating disabilityfriendly infrastructure, public transport, Govt and private buildings, hospitals, libraries, parks and many other spaces continued to be inaccessible for Person with Disabilities.
Justice DY Chandra chud remarks came
while speaking at Third Professor Shamnad Basheer Memorial Lec ture’. He was address ing the topic “Making Disability Rights Real: Addressing Accessibil ity and More”.
New Delhi: Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and his Punjab counter part Bhagwant Mann will visit Ahmedabad on Sunday and hold interactions with the youth, sanitation workers and tempo rary employees of the Gujarat government. Kejriwal posted a tweet on Saturday about his Gujarat visit.
New Delhi: The ED has provisionally attached immovable assets worth Rs 16 crore for money laundering in connec tion with a case against Mandeep Industries, Ra jkot. ED said Mandeep Industries is a partner ship concern of Ashish B Talaviya, Kishorbhai Haribhai Vaishnani, Ramjibhai H Gajera, Kalpesh P Talaviya and Bhavesh Talaviya.
New Delhi (ANI): The Delhi High Court recently granted anticipa tory bail to Ex Additional Direc tor General of Police (Law and order) in a cheating case. He is an accused in a case registered at Police station Inder Puri, Delhi. The case was registered in 2016 against a private company and its directors and its employees.
Bengaluru (Agencies): A special court in Karnataka has rejected the bail plea of Shivamurthy Muruga Sharanaru, the head of the Murugara jendra Mutt in the Chitradurga district of the state, who is an accused in a sexual assault case involving two minor students. The court rejected the bail petition of the religious leader on Friday, a day after it turned down a similar plea of a hostel warden, ac cused of abetting the crime.
Council, Programme Officers/NSS Units and NSS Volunteers, with a view to further pro mote NSS in the coun try. At Present, NSS has about 40 lakh volun teers on its rolls spread over the country.
The NSS is a Central ly Sector Scheme which was launched in the year 1969 with the primary objective of developing the person ality and character of the student youth through voluntary community service.
New Delhi: The Narendra Modi government's phi losophy of ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vishwas, Sabka Vikas and Sabka Prayas’ is a Gandhian thought and it rises above “all politics”, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar said on Satur day. He also described as "a very dangerous trend" the belief among a section of the people that only the philosophy they believed in was right, adding Ma hatma Gandhi listened to every point of view.
(Clockwise from left): Union HM Amit Shah visits Budhi Kali temple in Kishanganj; Shah interacting with SSB’s personnel, in Fatehpur; Shah observes Pillar No. 151 and 152 and reviews various activities during his visit to Fatehpur BOP on the IndoNepal border, in Kishanganj on Saturday.
—PHOTOS BY ANI
` properties of Rajkot firm by ED
First India Bureau
New Delhi: President Droupadi Murmu pre sented the National Ser vice Scheme Awards for the year 2020-2021 at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Saturday. Union Minis ter of Youth Affairs and Sports Anurag Thakur and Minister of State for Youth Affairs & Sports Nisith Pramanik attended the awards cer emony. Secretary, Youth Affairs Sanjay Kumar and Secretary, Sports, \ Sujata Chaturvedi and
senior officers of the Ministry and other dig nitaries were also pre sent on the occasion.
Ministry of Youth Af
fairs & Sports, Depart ment of Youth Affairs confers every year the National Service Scheme Award to recog
nize and reward out standing contributions towards voluntary com munity service made by the Universities/ +2
President Droupadi Murmu and Union Minister Anurag Thakur with the NSS awards recipients.
VP Jagdeep Dhankhar paying floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi at Gandhi Ashram, in New Delhi on Saturday.
—PHOTO BY ANI
Hema downplays poll query over Kangana Hema Malini, in Mathura on Saturday. —PHOTO BY ANI KEJRIWAL AND MANN TO VISIT
Justice Chandrachud
Congress leader Pawan Khera (c) addresses media on Bharat Jodo Yatra in Thrissur, on Saturday.
MP Shashi Tharoor
Sharat K Verma
Rahul Gandhi
New Delhi (Agencies):
The largest-ever crack down that was conduct ed against the Popular Front of India (PFI) members spread across 15 states was codenamed “Operation Octo pus”, sources said on Saturday. The joint teams of the National Investigative Agency (NIA) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrest ed over 106 PFI members in multiple raids spread across several states.
The states where the raids were conducted included Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Delhi, Kerala, Karnata ka, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Hy derabad, Assam, Mad hya Pradesh, Maha rashtra, Goa, West Ben gal, Bihar and Manipur.
The searches were con ducted in connection with five cases regis tered by the NIA follow ing “continued inputs and evidence” that the PFI leaders and cadres were involved in the funding of terrorism and terrorist activities, organising training camps for providing armed training and rad icalising people to join banned organisations.
A number of crimi nal cases have been reg istered in different states over the last few years against the PFI members for their in volvement in many vio lent acts. Criminal vio lent acts “carried out” by PFI include chopping off the hand of a college professor, cold-blooded killings of persons as sociated with organisa tions espousing other faiths, collection of ex plosives to target promi nent people and places.
New Delhi (ANI): A Special Court of Delhi has allowed the ED for 7-day custodial interrogation of Perwez Ahmad (President, PFI Delhi), Md. Ilias (Gen eral Secretary PFI Del hi) and Abdul Muqeet (Office Secretary, PFI, Delhi) in relation to their involvement in the offence of money laundering in the guise of cash donations. The three persons are re quired to be confront ed with the statements and the tendered/ recovered documents in this case. Forensic examination of mobile phones seized from their premises is also required to be done in their presence, ED stat ed. The ED on Friday while seeking remand for three office bearers
Chennai: A petrol bomb was hurled at the house of an RSS leader near Tambaram near Chen nai in the early hours of Saturday, said the police. No person was injured or no major property damage took place. “Petrol bomb hurled on RSS functionary Seetharaman’s residence at Chitlapakkam in Tambaram near Chennai. Efforts under way to nab two unidentified people who threw petrol bomb,” as per the police.
Vancouver: The Consulate General of India in Vancou ver felicitated veterans of the Indian armed forces in the city of Calgary in Cana da’s Alberta province during an event held as part of the ongoing Azadi Ka Amrit Ma hotsav, a government-led campaign to celebrate 75 years of independence. The ‘Varishth Yoddha’ event was organised with an aim to recognise the armed forces veterans over 75 years of age for their service.
of the Delhi Unit of PFI stated that Perwez Ah mad, President, Delhi PFI since 2018, was part of a criminal con spiracy. He admitted to having looked after the collection of funds in Delhi. Investigation revealed that such fund collection exercise was a sham and was falsely projected to be received from PFI sympathizers whereas statements of indi viduals, projected as contributors, revealed that these transactions were bogus.
z NIA and ED had arrest ed over 106 PFI members in multiple raids spread across several states on September 22.
z The searches were conducted following “inputs and evidence” that the PFI leaders and members were involved in funding of terrorism.
z A large number of criminal cases have been registered in different states over the last few years against the PFI leaders and activists.
z The PFI in Kerala lured vulnerable youths to join terrorist organi sations including LeT, Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) or Daesh and Al-Qaida.
New Delhi (ANI): The All India Bar Associa tion (AIBA) has sought a ban on the Popular Front of India (PFI) in the face of its involve ment in terror activi ties after law-enforce ment agencies con ducted searches against it at multiple locations across 15 states.
Adish C Aggarwala, Senior Advocate and Chairman of All India Bar Association, stat ed, “This is the right time to ban this organi zation as nobody should be allowed to be involved in activities directed against the in tegrity and sovereignty of India. It is clear that the PFI, its leaders and members were involved
in violent protests in different parts of the country against the Citizenship (Amend ment) Act, forced con versions, the radicali sation of Muslim youths, money laun dering and links with banned groups” It is under these circum stances that the NIA has identified terror networks and busted the whole infra. The concerted raids by the
NIA at 93 locations spread across 15 states in India displayed the extensive terror net work spun by the Popu lar Front of India (PFI).
The All India Bar As sociation in its state ment stated that the Union Home Ministry to ban PFI without any delay and expeditious ly. More such arrests should be made with out fail so all terrorist possibilities could be rooted out. NIA should gather all relevant in formation quickly and lay the chargesheet without any delay. NIA should stay active in courts and ensure that none of the arrested top rung leaders of PFI gets bail from any court.
Lucknow (ANI): Stepping up the crackdown on the Popular Front of India, the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terror Squad arrested six members of the organisation from two different towns and recovered “objection able literature” among other materials from them, said the ATS on Saturday. Four members of PFI were arrested from Meerut on the intervening night of Friday and Saturday while two others were nabbed in Varanasi during the same period last night. The arrested accused in Meerut were identified as Mohammad Shadab Aziz Qasmi hailing from Shamli, Maulana Sajid (Shamli), Mufti Shahzad (Ghaziabad), Mohammad Islam Qasmi (Muzaffarnagar).
New Delhi: The PFI in Kerala encour aged vulnerable youths to join ter rorist organisations including LeT, ISIS or Daesh and Al-Qaida and also conspired to estab lish Islamic rule in India by commit ting a terrorist act, reveals NIA remand copy submitted before a special court in Kerala. The Central agency also accused the PFI’s members and cad res operating from Kerala to conspire to indulge in “un lawful activities by creating enmity be tween members of different religions.
New Delhi (ANI): Drawing a comparison between the NDA and UPA governments, Prime Minister Naren dra Modi on Saturday said that NDA is a stable government and brought stability to policymak ing and governance.
“For decades, there were coalition govern ments and an atmos phere of uncertainty if they can perform or not. Due to that, people in the world were scep tical about the country.
jects undertaken by the BJP government in the state, he said, “We have allocated Rs 14,000 crore for national highways in Himachal Pradesh and approved the pro posal to add the Hatti community to the list of STs in the state.
New Delhi: During interrogation, PFI leader Shafiq Payeth revealed that PM Modi’s visit to Patna on July 12 was on the target of PFI. PFI leaders wanted to spoil the atmos phere during PM’s visit to the state. For this, Shafiq also trained some people.
In the investigation, it was found that in a year about 120 crore rupees were received in various accounts of PFI, double the amount was received in cash. The amount was collected not only from different cities but also from abroad.
London: Pacer Jhulan Goswami received a guard of honour from the players as she walked out to bat final time in international cricket during the third ODI against England at Lord’s ground on Saturday. Jhulan, playing her final ODI at the Lord’s, walked out to bat at number 9 after an ordinary batting display from India. She, however, received a heartwarming gesture on the field from England players as she made her way out final time in international cricket.
FROM PG 1
Minister Tanaji Sawant for Parbhani & Osmanabad (Dharashiv).
PWD Minister Ravindra
Chavan will take charge as guardian minister of Palghar and Sindhudurg, while Agriculture Minister Abdul Sattar will handle Hingoli. There are 20 ministers in the Eknath Shinde government, including the chief minister and deputy chief minister, while it can have a maximum of 43 ministers.
In 2014, a stable govern ment was elected which brought stability to
policymaking and gov ernance,” said Modi while virtually address ing the Yuva Vijay Sankalp Rally at Paddle ground in Mandi. Talk ing about the recent As
sembly elections, Modi stated that even in Uttar Pradesh and Uttara khand, govts used to change every five years but people elected the BJP government again
in recent Assembly elections in both states. Now, people are un derstanding the impor tance of a stable gov ernment, he added. Talking about pro
“We also brought the facility of ropeway along with developing villages near the border areas,” he added.
Lauding Himachal Pradesh, Modi said that the way the tourism sec tor of Himachal Pradesh is expanding, it’s quite encouraging.
Srinagar (PTI): Two non-local labourers were shot at and injured by terrorists in Pulwa ma district of J&K on Saturday. The police said the two were shift ed to hospital where their condition is stated to be stable. They were identified as Shamshad and Faizan Qasri, resi dents of Batya Zila, Bi har. Four non locals have been killed so far this year, while there have been few incidents in which terrorists at tacked non locals.
New Delhi (Agencies):
A record number of peo ple in India went to the movies on Friday in honour of National Cin ema Day. Thanks to heavily discounted tick ets, an estimated 6.5 mil lion moviegoers attend ed their local multiplex to purchase tickets for just ₹ 75, making Septem ber 23 the highest-at tended date of the year for theatres, according to the Multiplex Associ ation of India (MAI). In a press note, the MAI
stated, “The one-day ini tiative has seen a mas sive response from the Indian moviegoers, with shows starting as early as 6:00am due to an un precedented demand for movie tickets.”
Women brave rain to listen to PM Modi’s virtual address. PM Narendra Modi. at 12 places, including Beed, Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane, Parb hani, Nanded, Pune, Na shik, Aurangabad, Jal gaon and Kolhapur.
“Audiences of all ages came together and the country’s cinema operators reported house-full shows throughout the day, marking 23 September the highest attendance of the year,” it added.
The statement fur
ther also informed that more than 4,000 screens across the country par ticipated in the initia
Mukta A2, Movie Time, Wave, M2K and Delite and many others.
minds of the Indian au diences.
tive including cinema chains like PVR, INOX, Cinepolis, Carnival, Mi raj, Citypride, ASIAN,
The National Cinema Day celebrated the suc cessful reopening of cinemas after COV ID-19, and is a “thank you” to the moviegoers who made this happen, the MAI said. It also added that this massive success of the initiative reinforces the fact that the appeal of the cine ma experience is uni versal, enduring and deep-rooted in the
Meanwhile, due to state regulations with respect to cinemas and ticket pricing, in states, including Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, some cin emas were reportedly not able to participate in the National Cinema Day celebrations. How ever, participating thea tres in all states, includ ing the aforementioned list, made special offers to mark the occasion.
The PFI activists whose custody was handed over to NIA, coming out of the special court of NIA, in Kochi on Saturday. —PHOTO BY ANI —REPRESENTATIONAL IMAGE —REPRESENTATIONAL IMAGEMumbai: Blackstone Inc will sell a stake worth up to $400 million in Embas sy Office Parks REIT, In dia’s biggest real estate in vestment trust, via Indian stock exchange block deals, three sources famil iar with the matter told Reuters. Abu Dhabi’s sov ereign wealth fund, one of the world’s largest, is like ly to pick up at least half of the stake that Blackstone is to sell, one of the sourc es said. Shares in the Em bassy REIT closed at Rs 354.42 on Friday, giving it a market capitalisation of $4.15 billion.
—PTI
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has directed e-commerce firm Flipkart to deposit Rs 1 lakh pen alty within one week in the court’s registry for al lowing the sale of a substandard pressure cooker on its platform, accord ing to a release. Last month, the Central Con sumer Protection Author ity (CCPA) had imposed a penalty of Rs 1,00,000 on Flipkart. The authority had directed Flipkart to notify buyers of all 598 pressure cookers sold on its platform, recall the pressure cookers and re imburse money to the consumers.
New Delhi: India’s engi neering goods exports to China nosedived over 70% in August 2022 to US$ 173.7 million as compared to US$ 619.5 million in the same month last year. As per Engineering Export Promotion Council analy sis, engineering exports to the European Union (EU) fell 27.3% year on year to US$ 1.47 billion. The 15% export duty on steel contin ued to weigh on engineer ing exports as India’s iron and steel exports dropped by 62.2% in August 2022 on Y-O-Y basis. —PTI
Pune (PTI): Finance Min ister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said the rupee has “held back very well” when compared to other currencies against the US Dollar. The Reserve Bank and the Finance Ministry are keeping a very close watch over the develop ments, the finance minis ter told reporters after the domestic currency sunk to a lifetime low against the greenback.
“If any one currency which has held its own and did not get into fluctuation or volatility as much as other currencies it is the Indian rupee. We have held back very well,” she told reporters here on the final day of her three-day visit to Pune district which is a stronghold of NCP chief Sharad Pawar. She also asked a reporter to do a study on how the other currencies are behaving against the US dollar in the latest round of depreciation.
According to experts, the latest round of deprecia tion is triggered by adverse global developments start ing with the geopolitical tensions triggered by the
New Delhi (PTI): India is on track to attract USD 100 billion foreign direct investment (FDI) in the current fiscal on account of eco nomic reforms and ease of doing business, the government said on Saturday. In 2021-22, the country received the “highest ever” foreign inflows of USD 83.6 billion. “This FDI has come from 101 countries, and invested across 31 union territories and states and 57 sectors in the country. On the back of economic reforms and Ease of Doing Business in recent years, India is on track to attract USD 100 billion FDI in the current FY (financial year,” the commerce and industry ministry said in a statement. It said that to attract foreign investments, the government has put in place a liberal and transpar ent policy wherein most sectors are open to FDI under the automatic route. The reform measures include liberalization of guidelines and regulations, in order to reduce unnecessary compliance burden, bring down cost and enhance the ease of doing business in India, it added. FDI equity inflows in India dipped by 6 per cent to USD 16.6 billion during April-June period of the current fiscal.
Russian invasion of Ukraine earlier this year. The war pushed up com modity prices, leading to a record surge in inflation in the developed world, which
New Delhi: Global brokerage house Morgan Stanley has said India’s Spot forex (FX) reserves of $551 billion, as of September 9, can cover imports of only 8.4 months.Both oil and non-oil exports, the re port said, have declined in recent months likely due to weaker global demand and domestic factors such as the imposition of windfall taxes on the export of petrol/ jet fuel at the beginning of July. “On the other hand, relatively resilient domestic growth has kept imports elevated, leading to record high merchandise trade deficits in recent months. Our cur rent account deficit forecast is 3.2% of GDP in 2022, and we forecast a BoP deficit above $60bn in 2022,” it added. —PTI
New Delhi: India’s state-run Bharat Petroleum Corp said it has signed a preliminary agreement with Brazil’s national oil company Petrobras to help it diversify its crude oil sourcing. Indian state refiners rarely buy Brazilian oil. The Memorandum of Understand ing (MoU) was signed by BPCL Chairman Arun Kumar Singh and Petrobras CEO Caio Paes de Andrade, BPCL said in a statement on Saturday. —PTI
New Delhi: India and the Carib bean Community (CARICOM) nations have agreed to work together on global issues such as food and energy security and combating climate change, as they held discussions on deepening political engagement and increasing cooperation in the context of post-pandemic economic recovery. The 4th India-CARICOM Foreign Minis ters’ Meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. —PTI
have resulted in steep rate hikes by the US Fed. This has resulted in a flight of capital back to the US, hence resulting in curren cy depreciation episodes.
New Delhi (Agencies): In dia was the fastest growing Internet of Things (IoT) module market with more than 264 per cent growth in the second quarter this year, a report showed.
Although growing on a lower base, the growth in IoT modules in India was driven by smart meters, telematics, point of sale (POS) and automotive ap plications, according to Counterpoint Research.
Global cellular IoT mod ule shipments grew 20 per cent (year-over-year) in Q2 2022. “The IoT module mar ket is going through a criti cal phase where the Chi nese brands have become bigger, making it very dif ficult for international brands to grow in silos,” said senior research ana lyst Soumen Mandal. The global cellular IoT module market continued to recover despite a tighter supply chain, Covid-19 lock downs in China and macro economic headwinds.
New Delhi (PTI): Edtech firm Byju’s has cleared $230 million payment that was due to private equity invest ment firm Blackstone for acquiring a majority stake in test preparatory firm Aakash Educational Ser vices, according to sources privy to the development. Byju’s had acquired Aakash in April for about $950 mil lion. “Byju’s paid $230 mil lion to Blackstone for ac quiring a stake in Aakash,” the source told PTI.
While it cleared pay ments that were due to the founder of Aakash in July, the payment of Blackstone was deferred based on a mutual agreement. Found ers of Aakash and Black stone continue to hold a minority stake in the firm. Acquisition of Aakash has been positive for Byju’s business. Payment to Blackstone and non-closure of $800 million funding
Washington (Agencies): Economist Nouriel Roubi ni, who correctly predicted the 2008 financial crisis, sees a “long and ugly” re cession in the US and glob ally occurring at the end of 2022 that could last all of 2023 and a sharp correction in the S&P 500. “Even in a plain vanilla recession, the S&P 500 can fall by 30%,” said Roubini, chairman and CEO of Roubini Macro Associates, in an interview Monday. In “a real hard landing,” which he expects, it could fall 40%.
Roubini whose presci ence on the housing bubble crash of 2007 to 2008 earned him the nickname Dr. Doom, said that those ex pecting a shallow US reces sion should be looking at the large debt ratios of cor porations & governments. As rates rise and debt ser vicing costs increase,
z Roubini also warns that recession will drag global markets down because of debt levels worldwide
z His warning comes after all major economies is seeing high rates of inflation
New Delhi (Agencies): More than one in two senior business execu tives globally (59%) believe there will be a recession in the coming year, according to an IDC survey. Moreover, nearly 30 per cent of those who believe a recession will occur also believe that we are cur rently in a recession, with another 26 per cent expecting a recession to begin in the second half of 2022, according to the survey of almost 900 C-Suite level executives. Nearly 44 per cent of Asia/Pacific re spondents believe the recession will begin in the second half of 2022.
“many zombie institu tions, zombie households, corporates, banks, shadow banks and zombie coun tries are going to die,” he said. Roubini, who has warned through bull and
z Byju’s booked a loss of Rs 4,588 crore for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2021, 19 times more than the preceding fiscal
z The losses in the 2020-21 fiscal widened from Rs 231.69 crore in 2019-20. Revenues during FY21 dropped to Rs 2,428 crore from Rs 2,511 cr in FY20
z Byju’s said the losses widened in FY21 mainly on account of deferment of some revenue and losses incurred from WhiteHat Jr
round due to non-payment of committed investment from Sumeru Ventures and Oxshott have been two main issues that raised questions on Byju’s busi ness performance.
New Delhi (PTI): E-com merce firm Amazon India on Saturday said it has re corded a two-fold jump in its customer base from tier 2 and 3 cities during the first 36 hours of its festive season sale. Tier 2 and 3 cit ies accounted for 75% of the total customer base of the e-commerce major dur ing its ‘Great Indian Festi val’ sale, an Amazon India spokesperson told PTI. “75% of customers came from tier 2 and tier 3 cities. We saw 2 times more cus tomers from Tier 2 & 3 cit ies compared to last year,” the spokesperson said.
bear markets that global debt levels will drag down stocks, said that achieving a 2% inflation rate without a hard landing is going to be “mission impossible” for the Federal Reserve.
Bhadohi (UP) (PTI) : Car pet traders of Uttar Pradesh’s Bhadohi district, popularly known as “kalin nagri” for its exquisite weaving skills, are gearing up for a four-day interna tional carpet fair to be held from October 15-18.
Weavers, exporters and all other stakeholders, anx iously waiting for a revival of the industry after Covid pandemic, are expecting to book a handful of overseas shipment orders during the fair to be held in this town for the first time.
Organised by the Car pet Export Promotion
Council under the Union textile ministry, the bian nual fair was earlier held either at New Delhi or Varanasi. The fair is scheduled to be held at Bhadohi, less than 50 kilo metres from Varanasi, from October 15-18, offi cials said. Carpet Export Promotion Council chair man Umar Hameed told PTI that the council has sent invitations to 350 im porters of 60 countries.
“Almost 300 importers have already registered for attending the fair. The im porters who are coming are primarily from countries,
including America, Aus tralia, Brazil, Belgium, Ger many and Italy,” he said.
General Manager of the
z The chairman of the Rug Export Promotion Council, Umar Hameed, told that the council had sent out invitations to 350 importers from 60 countries
z Almost 300 importers have registered for the fair from countries including America, Australia, Brazil, Belgium, Germany and Italy
“Foreign importers will be able to reach the fair spot in 30 minutes after landing at Varanasi air port,” Mahboob said. Su perintendent of Police Anil Kumar said preparations for the fair are in full swing and all aspects of the event are being looked into.
Talking about the handwoven carpets made in Bhadohi, Ahmed said, “The technique of carpet making came from Iran. The carpets made here cannot be copied and the cost is also less, which are the reasons behind its popularity.” nagari’ to host 4-day int’l carpet fair from Oct 15-18
All India Carpet Manufac turers’ Union Aslam Mah boob said that the state gov ernment has taken several
steps to facilitate the car pet fair in Bhadohi, which is well-connected with the Varanasi airport.
New Delhi: Sanjai Kumar has taken charge as the Chairman & Managing Di rector of RailTel Corpora tion of India Limited, a PSU which provided broadband, VPN and other communi cation services for Indian Railways.Earlier, Kumar was the Director (Network Planning & Marketing/ NPM) with an additional charge of Director (Project, Operations & Maintenance/ POM) in RailTel. He is an officer of the Indian Rail way Service of Signal Engineers (IRSSE) and has around 30 years.
SANJAI APPOINTED AS NEW CHAIRMAN & MD OF RAILTELBLACKSTONE TO SELL $400 MN STAKE IN REIT EMBASSY Weaver prepares carpet at a workshop, ahead of International Carpet Fair scheduled to be held in mid-October, in Bhadohi.
E ver since the rise of Narendra Modi on the national stage of Indian politics, he has changed the face of politics to a great ex tant. It is said that poli tics is a game of uncer tainties, you can find the meaning of this story in many big deci sions of Modi. No one is aware of what Modi is going to do next, but if a few voices of po litical background are reconciled properly, then its echoes tell that something big is going to happen in the Cen tre. A major
and many new and fresh faces may get a chance. Some minis ters shown the way out of the cabinet may also get Governorship, while some may be ab sorbed in the organiza tion and some may be put on hold. Especially those ministers or leaders are going to be blamed, due to which the central govern ment has been tar nished in the last few days or those leaders who have given an op portunity to political rivals to corner the government. Sources also suggest that some leaders of the Eknath Shinde faction of Ma harashtra may also
perspective of Bihar, some changes can be made in the central government. An unex pected decision of the Modi government may also come out regard ing Madhya Pradesh.
Purushottam Rupala may be vacated for Gu jarat elections. Howev er, till the last moment, who all would be re moved and who will be given a spot, only spec ulations can be made on this. In fact, only two people know about what will happen, the same two people, who together make up the face of the central gov ernment!
B efore Thursday, hardly any politi cal analyst would have had any idea that in this era of ‘Hindut va’ in the coun try, one day suddenly RSS chief
Mohan Bhagwat will reach Gol Masjid on Kasturba Gandhi Marg. It should be not ed that Maulana Ilyasi of Gol Masjid is also the head of the All In dia Imam Association. Bhagwat went to the Mosque and went to the madrasa and met the children, talked to them openly. A day be fore this, the Sangh chief also met five eminent Muslim intel lectuals and had an open dialogue with them. Some Sangh thinkers are consider ing this innovative ef
fort of Bhagwat as an initiative to create na tional integration. If sources are to be be lieved, the Maulana of Gol Masjid, Dr Umer Ahmed Ilyasi was try ing to meet Bhagwat for a long time. Re cently, in this se quence, a senior offi cial of the Sangh had reached Gol Masjid to meet Ilyasi, but the matter of this meeting was kept strictly con fidential. When Bhag wat came, Dr Ilyasi bestowed him with the title of father of the nation and sage
of the nation. Bhag wat became uncom fortable, even inter rupted Ilyasi for this, but Ilyasi knew the biggest ‘epicentre’ of today’s politics? It is believed that both the Sangh and the BJP are divided in taking the Muslim community along. The line of the new BJP strategists is very clear that now there will be politics of Hindu interests only. Sources reveal that Ramlal played an important role in changing the attitude of the Sangh chief to wards the Muslim community. Ramlal, who was the BJP’s na tional organization minister for 13 con secutive years, after some allegations, in July 2019, the Sangh called back this pracharak to its fold and was made All In dia Sampark Pra mukh. Gradually Ramlal be came
one of the most impor tant advisors of the Sangh chief.
T he entire focus of Congress’ ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ has shifted to Rahul Gandhi. Some Congressmen are say ing, albeit in mur murs, that this ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ has be come Gandhi’s ‘Dandi Yatra’ because during Dandi Yatra, Gandhi remained visible and here in Bharat Jodo Yatra, only Rahul is visible. Ramkumar Shukla had taken Gan dhiji to Champaran for the Dandi March, but he was nowhere to be seen even after being present throughout the journey. Similarly, Prashant Kishor had
the original idea of Ra hul’s Bharat Jodo Yatra, people like Dig vijay Singh and Yo gendra Yadav worked day and night to make it happen, but today they are out of sight.
For example, Digvijay Singh was involved in the yatra with his jour nalist wife Amrita Sin gh. Amrita followed Rahul’s footsteps throughout the week, but Rahul did not give her any importance and did not even speak to her to enquire how she was keeping.
Hence, angered with Rahul’s antics, Amrita left the journey mid way. She was in pain that no one recog nized her. So what is the use of walking about on roads only?
Even ‘leaders’ like Kanhaiya are not be ing given any due rec ognition, but due to his familiarity in the me dia, Kanhaiya has kept himself busy in the journey.
home minister in April last year, he once again asked the party to give him the home ministry, but he did not get the portfolio.
Pune: Even as Union Finance Minister Nir mala Sitharaman toured the Pawar fam ily bastion of Bara mati in a bid to shore up support ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Nationalist Congress Party leader Ajit Pawar was heard ‘joking’ about how the leadership refused to give him the Home ministry.
The Leader of Oppo sition in the Assembly and political heir ap parent to NCP chief
Sharad Pawar made the comments in a meeting of the NCP’s Pune unit where a functionary re marked that when the party becomes part of a government in the fu ture, he (Pawar) should
become home minister.
“Last time, when I was made deputy chief minister, that time ‘I told them to make me home minister’. But seniors thought if the home minister’s posi
tion was given to me, I would not listen to them,” he said jokingly.
Pawar has served as Maharashtra’s deputy chief minister twice.
Pawar said after Anil Deshmukh resigned as
Speaking to report ers later, the senior NCP leader clarified he had made the remarks about eyeing home ministry in a lighter note while addressing party workers.
“I made those re marks jokingly, to ener gize party workers in the hall, who were look ing dull and tired,” Pa war said.
Asked about the Na tional Investigation Agency (NIA)'s raids on the Popular Front of India and arrest of more then 100 of its members nationwide, Pawar said, “It seems that after noticing some serious things, a deci sion was taken (to con duct raids at PFI offic es) at the higher level (at the Centre).”
CRICKET TALKFirst India Bureau
Mumbai: Three histo ry-sheeters with as many as 50 cases reg istered against each of them, were arrest ed in Mumbai on Sat urday. Police officials also seized gold worth Rs15 lakh and Rs2 lakh cash, a police of ficial said.
The accused have
been identified as Ramesh Jaiswal, his younger brother Nar esh Jaiswal, and one Dattaram Bangade. All three were nabbed from lodges in Navi Mumbai, a Mulund police station official informed.
“On September 08, the three robbed a sen ior citizen of Rs2 lakh in cash and gold on Sevagram Lalwani
Road. An investigation found that the Jaiswal siblings and Ban gade—who had been released on bail in July—were behind the act. They have commit ted 21 robberies within two months in Mu lund,” he said, adding that they were report ed to be active in Mum bai, Thane, and Navi Mumbai areas.
The explosive Singapore-born batsman made his debut for Australia in the first T20 against
First India Bureau
Nagpur: Big-hitting Tim David is a “ver satile and flexible” player and his pres ence only adds to the options that Austral ia possesses going into the T20 World cup, feels skipper Aaron Finch.
The Singapore-born batter, known for his ex
plosive knocks, made his debut for Australia in the first T20.
“What Tim brings to the table obviously is some great form in com petitions around the world. We see him as a really versatile and flex ible player and obvi ously his power speaks for itself,” said Finch.
“We have all seen how destructive he can be
once he gets in. And in terms of the order, I think it just depends on the game situation, maybe, some matchups in the opposition as well,” he added.
Talking about David’s batting position, he said, “Ideally, it would be right towards the back end be cause the top order has done a great job. But I think if you look down
our World Cup squad, we have got some power there with Maxwell, Stoinis, David, Wade and Smith. We have a lot of options there which is really good.”
Australia suffered a six-wicket loss to India in the second T20 which was reduced to 8 overs a side due to a wet outfield.
“It is important that you are always looking
at ways to improve and obviously we were with Maxwell at three, Tim David at four. So we are trying to be a bit more aggressive up front and yeah, we have not played too many shortened games,” said Finch.
Especially leading into a World Cup, we have to put some thought into it over some time, he added.
INVOKING THE GODDESS! Devotees transport an idol of Goddess Durga in a tempo filled with school students, ahead of the Navratri festival, in Mumbai on Saturday. —PHOTO BY PTIAjit Pawar ‘jests’ that the party leadership thought he wouldn’t listen to them if given the key portfolio
Last was that time told them to thought if the to would not to theBY TRIDIB PM Narendra Modi Mohan Bhagwat Dr Umer Ahmed Ilyasi Rahul Gandhi Prashant Kishor
aulo Coelho was born in Rio De Janei ro, Brazil, on August 24, 1947.
He was a re bellious teenager. His introversion and oppo sition made his par ents put him in a men tal institution. He es caped three times be fore being released at the age of 20. In 1986 Coelho walked the 500+ mile road of San tiago de Compostela, in NW Spain. It proved to be a turning point in his life. On the path, he had a spiritual awak ening, which led him to write 'The Pilgrim age' book. Before be coming a full-time au thor, he worked as a theatre director and actor, lyricist and jour nalist. He has written over 25 books and re ceived numerous awards. In 1996, he founded The Paulo Coelho Institute, which provides aid to children and elderly people with financial problems. In 2007, Coe lho was named a Mes senger of Peace to the United Nations.
'The Valkyries' book is a classic master work of spiritual ten sion and realization by Paulo Coelho. It asks the question most cen tral to all literature and all of humanity's quest for understand ing. "Why is it that we destroy the things we love most?" In a twist ed tale, Coelho has laid bare his innermost thoughts and has shared some of his life secrets, encouraging everyone to believe in their dreams - if they ever want them to come true. It's a novel based on three F's: For getting your past, For giving your sins & Ful filling your dreams. Beneath this novel's compelling story and shimmering elegance lie a bedrock of wis dom about following one's heart.
tense than Coelho's. The Valkyries tell him, "You need, not just courage, but the cour age of a woman".
MAR 21 - APR 20
Using your initiative at work will be much appreciated. You may get a chance to pursue old hobby. Health tips from an expert will enable you to get closer to your fitness goals. Your generous behavior would enable to enjoy some lovely moments with family. Overall a good day for you.
APR 21 - MAY 20
LIBRA SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 22
Distant relatives may drop in for a surprise visit at your place. On the professional front, recognition for good work would motivate you to work harder. Those who are aaiting for an affirmation on romantic front are likely to get lucky today, as partner will respond positively.
OCT 23 - NOVEMBER 22
The enchanting true story of 'The Valkyries' begins in Rio de Jane rio when author, Paulo Coelho, gives his mys terious master, J, the only manuscript of his book 'The Alchemist'. Haunted by a devastat ing curse, Coelho con fesses to J, "I've seen my dreams fall apart just when I seemed about to achieve
them". In response, J gives him the daunting task to find and speak to his Guardian Angel. "The curse can be bro ken if you complete the task". This book is a compelling ac count of this 40-day quest in the searing heat of the Mojave De sert, September 5, to October 17, 1988. There, Paulo and his wife Chris, encounter the Valkyries, warrior women dressed in leather, travelling the desert on motorcycles, spreading the word of angels. Coelho nar rates his spiritual journey and experi ences gained in this journey as he continu ously fights his inner demons. Led by a wom an- Valhalla, the
Valkyries adopt Coel ho when they realize he is of their 'Tradi tion' and guide him towards 'his angel'. Valhalla also tests his fidelity and his dedica tion to his wife. Chris, who never really be lieved in her husband's magic, begins to feel her consciousness ex panding, engaging in her own spiritual jour ney, which is more in
Chris is a strong per sonality, incredibly forgiving, and willing to accept her hus band's flaws. She knows that their mar riage is crumbling, yet she was there for him, sharing his journey. Herein lies Coelho's greatness. The work is almost indistinguish able from the man himself. Penning this autobiographical book must have required unparalleled courage and self-awareness- re vealing his vulnerable life details and past in discretions! It's an al together different reading experiencelike reading a diary, exposed to everyone's judgment. 'The Valkyries' clearly pre sents the man that ex ists beyond the Magus, preparing us for be ings 'away from perfec tion'. The true seeker knows that "regardless of our faults and de fects, the spiritual path is stronger". If we look beyond our weak nesses, we find The Truth- "Love, Victory & the glory of God. We are responsible for everything that hap pens in this world. We are the Warriors of Light. The day will come, when the strength of our Love and our Will, will change everyone's des tiny. Then, those who knock at the gates of Paradise will see them open, those who ask will receive, and those who weep will be con soled. The Angels guide and protect us. God is Love, Generos ity and Forgiveness."
"At once a modernday adventure, a meta physical battle with self-doubts and fear. A true story of two peo ple striving to under stand one another, and a supernatural encoun ter with angels. The Valkyries is ultimately a story about forgiving our past and believing in our future."
Despite hectic schedule you will manage to find time for family. Seek the opinion of your family before finalizing a property deal. Your bold initiatives on romantic front bring back passion and spark in romantic relationship. Overall health seems to remain fine.
MAY 21 - JUNE 21
Following a health diet will be a good idea. Luck favours you today on the professional front. Focussing on health now will help you in keeping physically fit. Clarity of mind and retentive power will help you forge ahead on the academic front. Frustration on the romantic front is possible.
JUNE 22 - JULY 23
Your intuition will save you from a tricky spot today. Yoga would help in raising energy levels and improve your metabolism. You will manage to achieve your aim through travel. This is a great time on the academic front, when you mange to render your best. Overall a great ahead.
JULY 24 - AUGUST 23
Family will be most supportive, when it really matters for you. Some of you may add to your list of properties by booking a new one. It is good day to confess your love as stars appear favourable for positive reply. A long drive is likely to help you get over mental tiredness.
AUG 24 - SEP 23
Your efforts on the professional front will be recognised. Opting for some healthy choices when it comes to food will ensure you remain in perfect health. You will feel much happy and contented on the family front. Today you will enjoy the trust of senior management.
NOV 23 - DEC 22
You will succeed in resolving problems with family members, normalizing ties. Despite your misgivings, you retain good health. You will do much to bring peace and harmony at home. You will remain much in demand on social front. Some of you can get romantically involved.
DEC 23 - JAN 20
Happiness in the domestic sphere will only come with a changed mind set. Some of you are likely to become a part of an overseas official trip. Better to consult an expert in financial matters before making an investment. Harsh words may create a rift in your romantic relationship; be careful.
JAN 21 - FEB 19
A friend or colleague may motivate you to take up a healthy activity. Parents may appear more than happy with what you deliver. Plans for overseas travel are likely to materialise. You are likely to get clearance or approval for your construction plans. You find things moving in the way you want them.
FEB20 - MARCH 20
Avoid raising controversial issues at home to maintain harmony. Successful implementation of new ideas and projects would add to your prestige on the professional front. It is a wonderful day to build new connections. Your relationship requires you to be tactful.
Gifting something to your beloved is likely to make the day memorable for both of you. Matrimonial match for siblings will bring happiness for entire family. You will get a good price for your property. Those awaiting results are assured of succeeding with flying colours. Saurabbh Sachdeva
MOULI ROY, Model
Paulo Coelho
n a world of style, mu sic and romance how can Dev Anand not be necessary? Dharam dev’s own list Pishori mal Anand (26 Septem ber 1923 – 3 December
2011 left his mark on cinema as an Indian actor, writer, director and producer through a career that spanned over six decades.
Dev Anand will be remembered for his charm, the hairstyle cop ied across, his sloping rambling
walk, dialogue delivery and per haps most of all for his spirit and the joie de reverie!
Dev sahab was not a master of the fight sequences, fighting with droll humour in most cases with rolling punches similar to his style on-screen but he was the master of romance and woo ing his co-stars and the songs are legendary which still tug at the heartstrings.
We all have our list of favour ite songs of Dev Anand and what better way to spend the weekend than tuning in to these romantic songs on your music app as you soak in the raindrops into your very soul?
My all-time favourite remains Din Dhal jaaye from Guide, for me, it is the epitome of love which tears the lovers apart… love is not enough, is it? It is the perfect song to listen to, on loop as you unravel the mysteries of
your own love story. Chhod do Aanchal from Paying Guest with Nutan is another one close to my heart as is Dheere Dheere chal from Love Marriage with Mala Sinha. Another classic is Abhi na jao chhod ke with Sadhana from the classic movie Hum Dono, which is a forever love song for the parting lovers.
Tujhe Jeevan Ki Dor from Asli Naqli again with Sadhana is so hummable and so is the lilt ing Likha Hai Teri Aankhon Mein from Teen Deviyan with Nanda.
Gaata Rahe Mera Dil an other one from Guide with Waheeda is as evergreen as the stars themselves. Just watch Dev Anand wooing the beau ties and you cannot but fall in love with him and with the idea of love…just a little.
Pyaar zaruri hai aur Dev Anand bhi!
The beautiful Khushalii Kumar who made her debut with Kookie Gulati’s Dhokha Round D Cor ner has a reason to cel ebrate. She has got rave reviews for the charac ter she plays. Khushalii plays Sanchi who is a delusional housewife with a personality dis order who has been taken hostage by a ter
rorist on the loose. It is integral to know that this is Khushalii’s first film and she has come out as a performer to watch out for.
Khushalii portrays a dark, complex and dif ficult character with utmost ease and audi ences are very im pressed with her per formance.
cityfirst.mumbai@firstindia. co.in
similar incident hap pened with this year’s Oscar entry of India.
‘Chhello Show’ which is India’s official Os car entry has been se verely criticised for not meeting the proper criteria required.
Punjab Tigers is the latest fran chise that has become part of the Tennis Premier League and is all set to compete in the fourth season of India’s premier tennis tournament.
Taapsee Pannu, expressed her jubila tion on becoming the co-owner of the Punjab Tigers, as she said, “I have always been a
sports and fitness en thusiast. I am extreme ly excited for the league to kick off because I properly immerse my self in the match and become a fan. I am sure the league will further help unearth the po tential of tennis in India. I am looking forward to competing with all the other teams in the Tennis Premier League.”
Choosing the correct film for the Oscars entry is al ways a task as India has nev er managed to win an Oscar in the Best Foreign Film cat egory and also has only been to the final round twice in all these years. Thus, eve ry time the Film Fed eration of India de cides to send a film to the Oscars, it is heavi ly speculated on whether the film is worthy enough to go to the Oscars. While sev eral decisions are hailed, many times, they are criticised. A
The Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE), is the Mother Body of 31 crafts functioning in the Film/ TV/ Web/ Ads Industry. They have raised questions on the legitimacy of the entry and requested a probe into the matter.
Their official state ment reads, “We at FWICE have observed that this year’s nomi nation of the film ‘Chhello Show’ as In dia’s Official Entry to the 95th Oscar Award is not as per the usual norms and has there fore created a lot of doubts and issues we thought of raising. We
Pashmina Roshan is currently gear ing up for her de but in the reboot ed version of Ishq Vishk that will see her star opposite Rohit Saraf, Naila Grewal and Jibraan Khan. The actor is leaving no stone unturned to per form her role to the T.
Right from several workshops to put in her 100% efforts in doing what she is asked to do for the film is absolute ly noteworthy. While Ishq Vishk Rebound is currently under pro duction, her fans cannot wait to see the beautiful Pashmina on screen.
She constantly keeps her fans up dated through her social media posts and never fails to amaze them with her gorgeous visuals. The actor recently went for a sultrier 90s vibe as she posted a slew of pictures from a photoshoot. Pashmina donned a red slip dress that fit her curves perfectly. With a flowy hairstyle, minimal makeup and black nails, she looked absolutely regal. Giv ing off a sexy vibe, Pashmina sat be hind a red backdrop while shadows played with her figure to give off a mys terious vibe to the photos. cityfirst.mumbai@firstindia. co.in
strongly feel that the selection pro cess was not thorough ly followed. We have nothing against the producers and makers of the film which has been nominated but at the same time, the real successors of this award cannot be left in dilemma.”
According to the FWICE ‘Chhello Show’
is primarily produced by foreign studios and most of the crew is also from foreign coun tries. Its major produc ers Orange Studios are foreign studios. Hence, they raise the question of how a foreign film could be India’s offi cial entry.
They further stated that this film has been on their site for a few
years. It’s only recent ly some Indian compa nies did a deal for this film for its Indian re lease. Hence, the ques tion remains how could a previously re leased film that was recently distributed in India become its offi cial entry?
Another problem that arose with the film was that there are
Alia Bhatt’s pregnancy is a hot top ic in Btown. She’s been embracing her motherhood through social me dia by sharing her pregnancy cravings and her maternity fashion regime.
Shanaya in a recent inter view revealed that she is nervous and excited about her debut, Dharma Pro ductions’ Bed hadak starring Gurfateh Pirza da and Lakshay Lalwani.
She said, “Nervous because it’s impor tant that I do the best job and because it isn’t just a first film, it’s the first step towards hope fully a long and var
ied career. And ex cited because I’m fi nally a step closer to realizing a dream I’ve had since child hood. It’s a mix of all kinds of emotions.” Shanaya men tioned that her debut is not a ‘typi cal launch’. She re vealed, “As people would expect. It’s a solid story about 3 youngsters, and the character is quite challenging - I’m preparing for it.” cityfirst.mumbai@firstindia. co.in
As per the reports, Nani Soni Razdan & Dadi Neetu Kapoor are planning to host a baby shower for Alia Bhatt and the bash will be in Bandra by the end of this month. It will be at tended by some big celebs and there were re ports that Deep ika Padukone and Katrina Kaif “Ranbir’s exes” are on the guest list.
In an inter view, Pooja Bhatt opened up about the baby shower and said “About the baby show er, I have no idea. Also, it’s not in my na ture to talk about any body’s life unless I have been told to.”
some very serious al legations that it was inspired/copied from the Oscar-winning 1988 film, ‘Cinema Par adiso’. The similari ties between the syn opsis and poster of both films also do not help. India had to face humiliation the last time when Gully Boy was rejected by the Os cars after drawing similarities with 8MM.
Also, the film was released in 2021, hence it being the official en try for Oscars 2022 is also a very questiona ble decision by the FFI. In an official statement given by the chairman of the jury, TS Nagabharana, the film was considered for the Oscars, last year as well. Hence, how a film could be given to the Oscars twice is a question of the legitimacy of FFI’s decision.
ASHISH Ashok Dubey, Ashoke Pandit and BN Tiwari Khushalii Kumar Taapsee Pannu and Raminder Singh Pashmina Roshan First India, The Fashion Connect set the bar high with the completion of its very successful previous seasons and this time, the prestigious single day fashion event will be held on September 25 at Fairmont, Jaipur. Famous fashion designer, Manish Malhotra landed in the royal city where he was greeted by Rishee Miglani, Youth Icon along with Rajiv Kapoor, General Manager Fairmont Jaipur at Fairmont, Jaipur on Saturday. The entire city is waiting to witness the mega-star of the fashion industry and his avantgarde creations, which are synonymous with all things glitz and glamour. Shanaya Kapoor Rajiv Kapoor, Nishi Bhayani, Hitesh Bhayani, Manish Malhotra, Rishee Miglani and Lokesh Sharma Lokesh Sharma, Rishee Miglani and Manish Malhotra