First India-Delhi Edition-27th October 2022

RISHI SUNAK: UK GETS A NEW PRIME MINISTER

SC DECLINES TO TRANSFER AJAY MISHRA’S CASE FROM LOK BENCH

Sunak delays crunch budget plan until Nov 17

l He became UK’s first Indian-origin British PM after being invited by King Charles III to form a government

First India Bureau

London: Britain’s new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, earned cheers from his lawmakers and plaudits from po litical commentators on Wednesday as he locked horns with the opposi tion Labour Party in parliament for the first

Crucial

INTRODUCE CURRENCY

NOTES WITH IMAGES OF GANESH-LAXMI: KEJRI

New Delhi: Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday appealed to PM Modi to have the pictures of Lord Ganesha and Goddess Lakshmi on the currency notes. Fresh currency may have a picture of Mahatma Gandhi on one side and of 2 deities on other, he added.

TERRORIST TRAPPED, JAWAN INJURED IN J&K’S BARAMULLA

Srinagar: An encounter broke out between terrorists and security forces in J&K’s Baramulla on Wednesday. One army jawan has been injured & one terrorist is believed to be trapped. This comes just hours after a foreign terrorist was killed in Kupwara town.

WHATSAPP EXPLAINS WHY APP STOPPED WORKING FOR 2 HRS

New Delhi: WhatsApp suffered a major outage in India and other countries on Tuesday. The app and web clients were down for millions of users for nearly 2 hours. Due to the outage, users were unable to send messages or use any of their services. The Metaowned company has now offered clarification about why its services were down worldwide. “We have asked WhatsApp for a report on the recent outage,” Telecom Min Ashwini Vaishnaw said.

time since becoming leader. Britain post poned the announce ment of a plan to repair the country’s public fi nances to November 17, new finance minister Jeremy Hunt said. The delay was to ensure the right decisions are tak en, Hunt told. Sunak made key Cab

KHARGE TAKES OVER AS A NEW CONG CHIEF, PROMISES TO RIDE ON THE... ‘NEW WAVE OF INDIA’

Karge says will continue to look for Sonia advice; Relieved: Sonia

Moni Sharma

New Delhi: Mallikar jun Kharge on Wednes day formally took over as the new president of the Congress party— the first non-Gandhi to assume the party’s top post in two-and-a-half decades. He immediate ly vowed to fight the BJP and break its “sys tem of lies, hoax and hatred”, and to imple ment the “Udaipur re solve”. Handing over charge to Kharge, Sonia Gandhi said she was confident and relieved that he will inspire the party and strengthen it under his stewardship.

The Congress, on its part, lavished praise on Sonia, calling her an “icon of sacrifice”. Af ter Kharge took over as new president, AICC gen secy in-charge of organisation KC Venu gopal announced that CWC members, AICC gen secretaries and incharges of states, have tendered their resigna tions, ostensibly to en able the new chief to choose his own team.

Nuclear option should not be resorted: Singh

New Delhi: Defence Minister Rajnath Sin gh on Wednesday told his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu that the Ukraine conflict should be resolved through dia logue and diplomacy and the nuclear option should not be resorted to by any side. In tele phonic talks, Shoigu briefed Singh on the evolving situation in Ukraine, including his concerns about possible “provocations through use of ‘dirty bomb’”, de fence ministry said.

The conversation took

place at the initiative of Russian defence minis ter amid escalation of hostilities between Rus sia and Ukraine. It said the two ministers also discussed bilateral de fence cooperation as well as deteriorating situation in Ukraine.

I’m very happy today. To tell the truth, I’m feeling relieved. The President you have chosen is an experienced leader who is connected to the ground. He has reached this position through dedication and hard work.

I’m confident he will inspire the par ty and the party will be strengthened under his leadership.

—Sonia Gandhi, Former Cong Chief

It was an “emotional moment” for him that the son of a labourer, who began his political life as an ordinary worker, has been elected Con gress president. Who would have thought that the country will face a political era when lies will hold sway and those sitting in power and ruling the country will try to weaken democracy. But I know that we will break the system of lies, hatred and hoax.

—Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress President

IN A 47-MEMBER STEERING COMMITTEE...THAROOR OUT

I n his first crucial decision after assuming charge of Congress, president on Wednesday constituted a 47-member Steering Committee which will function in place of CWC. The newlyconstituted panel includes Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, AK Antony, Jairam Ramesh, Randeep Surjewala, Am bika Soni, Ajay Maken, Harish Rawat, Abhishek Singhvi & Anand Sharma.

l Son–in–law of Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy takes over after a months-long leadership war in party

inet appointments and decided to keep the new Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, in place for eco nomic stability. He brought back Indianorigin Suella Braver man as Home Secretary while James Cleverly will remain Foreign Secretary despite not being a Sunak loyalist.

—Rishi Sunak, UK PM

l I look forward to work ing closely together on global issues: Modi greets Rishi Sunak as UK PM

l Sonia writes to British PM Sunak, hopes India-UK ties will further deepen during his tenure

l Sunak ordered the resignation of many ministers in the old cabinet of Liz Truss

l UK says has completed most of India trade deal, will only sign once happy

l Liberal Democrats call for probe into Braverman’s return to Home Office: Report

l UK PM Rishi Sunak faces Opposition in Parliament for 1st time

l British pound extends recovery with 1% dollar gain on Wednesday

l Amid Criticism, PM Rishi Sunak defends Braverman’s reappointment as UK Home Secretary

9 YEARS, 1 TRADITION: MODI’S DIWALI PLANS WITH SOLDIERS

Shah flags increase in heroin smuggling from West coast

Ahmedabad: Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday expressed concern about the in crease in the smuggling of heroin from the West coast of the country.

Speaking at a meet ing of the western re gion states on `Drug Trafficking and Nation al Security in Gandhi nagar, he also urged the govts of Maha and Goa to play “proactive role” in fight against the drug menace. During a meet ing, nearly 12,500 kg of seized drugs were de stroyed in two locations in Gujarat and Delhi.

LG VINAI SAXENA APPROVES CHHATH PUJA AT DESIGNATED YAMUNA GHATS

New Delhi (PTI): Delhi

Lt Governor Vinai Ku mar Saxena has given his nod to hold Chhath Puja at designated ghats on the Yamuna and urged Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to en sure clean ghats and water for devotees, sources in his office said on Wednesday.

The sources said Sax ena had also cautioned Kejriwal against “mis leading and premature publicity” over the is sue. A tweet by Kejriwal a few days ago had caused confusion with

many people assuming that the puja could be performed anywhere along the Yamuna, the sources said.

“The proposal to hold Chhath Puja approved

by the LG was specific to designated ghats on the Yamuna,” a source said.

Saxena has also di rected the revenue and environment depart

ments to ensure strict enforcement of the Na tional Green Tribunal’s orders on Yamuna pol lution. The Delhi gov ernment’s revenue de partment is the nodal agency for Chhath ar rangements. It is work ing in close coordina tion with other govern ment departments and civic agencies to make Chhath a success.

Chhath will be cele brated on October 30 and 31. It involves offer ing ‘arghya’ to the Sun god by fasting women in knee-deep water.

SAMRIDDHI to settle tax dues, property disputes

New Delhi (Agnencies): For residents of the na tional capital’s authorised and regularised colo nies, Delhi Lieutenant-Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena on Wednesday announced a one-time prop erty tax amnesty scheme. Under the Strengthen ing & Augmentation of Municipal Revenue for Infrastructure Development in Delhi (SAMRID DHI) 2022-23 scheme, the NCR people will be able to pay only the principal amount of the current and pending tax of past five years for residential properties. Apart from this, the people can also get a waiver on all pending dues, including penalty and interest through this scheme. However, for commercial properties, the dura tion will be six years. “The MCD (Municipal Corporation of Delhi) will have no right to reopen any property tax case after one year,” the daily quoted a Raj Niwas official as saying.

The festival is hugely popular among Purvanchalis — i.e. people belonging to Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh living in Delhi.

Newly-elected Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge with former Congress president Sonia Gandhi during his charge-taking ceremony, at AICC headquarters, in Delhi on Wednesday. —PHOTO BY ANI

HM Amit Shah being presented with a bouquet by Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel as Sonah Shah looks on, on the occasion of Gujarati New Year, in Ahmedabad on Wednesday. (R) Amit Shah addressing at a high level regional meeting on ‘Drug Trafficking and National Security’, in Gandhinagar on Wednesday.

PM Narendra Modi, who has been celebrating Diwali with the security personnel since 2014, visited Kargil on Monday.

The important thing is to focus on energy security, meaning more renewables, more offshore wind, more nuclear.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, centre, alongside the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, centre right, holds his first Cabinet meeting in Downing street on Wednesday.

PHOTO BY ANI

Mallikarjun Kharge requests Sonia to sit beside his chair as he assumes charge at AICC HQ. Rahul Gandhi, Ashok Gehlot, Venugopal, Chidambaram, Anans Sharma, Avinash Pande, Girija Vyas & other top leaders are also seen here.

New Delhi:

has declined to transfer an appeal against the 2004 acquittal of Union minister of state for home affairs Ajay Mishra ‘Teni’ in a murder case from the Allahabad HC’s Lucknow bench to the principal bench in Prayagraj.

People will reject BJP, give AAP a chance: CM

New Delhi (PTI): Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said people of Delhi would reject the BJP in the upcoming MCD polls and give a chance to the Aam Aadmi Par ty to clean up the na tional capital.

Speaking at a media briefing, Kejriwal chal lenged the BJP to show one good work it had done during the last 15 years that it had con trolled the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD).

“Delhi’s people will fight the elections and Gujarat’s residents will fight the polls there. Ask (the) BJP even if they have done one good deed during the last 15 years in the MCD and in 27 years in Gujarat.

“On the other hand, if you go out on the road and ask anyone about the work done by Kejri wal in the last seven years, you will know,” he said.

MCD polls are expect ed to be held at the end of 2022 or early next year. However, there has been no formal an

nouncement regarding the dates.

In 2017, the BJP swept the civic body polls, bagging 181 wards in the erstwhile south, north and east Delhi municipal corpora tions. The Centre uni fied the three munici pal corporations this year into the Municipal

Corporation of Delhi.

“They used wrong tactics during delimita tion to delay the MCD polls. They can do what ever they want but the public is going to reject them. All the demonic powers have aligned against us to suppress the voice of truth but they will not be able to

silence the voice of the people,” he asserted.

Stressing that the Aam Aadmi Party was fully geared up for the elections, he said the people of Delhi want them to clean up the city.

“The residents of Delhi gave us the re sponsibility for improv ing schools and hospi tals and we fulfilled it.

Now the people of Delhi want to entrust us with the responsibility of cleaning up the nation al capital,” he said.

DyCM Sisodia accuses BJP Of conspiring to shut AAP’s ‘Delhi Ki Yogshala’

New Delhi (PTI): Dep uty Chief Minister Man ish Sisodia today ac cused the BJP of “con spiring” to shut the AAP government’s ‘Delhi ki Yogshala’ programme by pressuring officials.

He said Chief Minis ter Arvind Kejriwal has given his nod to continue the initiative and has sent the file to Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena for approv al. Government sourc es had on Tuesday said Sisodia has sought an explanation from the secretary of the direc torate of training and technical education for allegedly trying to “dis continue” the ‘Dilli Ki Yogshala’ programme.

The programme was

Sisodia said ‘Delhi ki Yogshala’ programme was started around 1.5 years back where around 600 free yoga camps were conducted

announced by Kejriwal on December 13 last year for providing free-

classes are being run daily with more than 17,000 participants.

The deputy chief minister said ‘Delhi ki Yogshala’ programme was started around 1.5 years back where around 600 free yoga camps were conducted and about 17,000 people were provided yoga training through trained instructors.

He said of the 17,000 people, around 11,000 were those who were going through postCovid ailments and yoga helped them a lot.

of-cost yoga instructors to the people of Delhi. Currently, 590 yoga

12 Jamia Millia scholars selected for PM Research Fellowship

New Delhi: Jamia Mil lia Islamia(JMI) ex pressed its pride in be ing awarded the Prime Minister Research Fel lowship (PMRF) of 12 research scholars of the university under Later al Entry Scheme of the May 2022 drive. Accord ing to PMRF Coordina tor, Prof AQ Ansari, the researchers will indi vidually get a fellowship of Rs 70,000 for the first

Planning Dept rejects Shah’s plea for more time to respond

two years, Rs 75,000 for third year, Rs 80,000 for the fourth and fifth year respectively. Apart, each

fellow will get a research grant of Rs 2 lakh per year (a total of Rs 10 lakh for 5 years).

DU releases list of vacant seats for 2nd round of allocation

“The BJP pressurised the officers and con spired to shut this pro gramme from Novem ber 1,” Sisodia alleged in a press conference.

Cop injured in bid to arrest drug peddler

New Delhi (PTI): A po liceman from the north east district was in jured while attempting to nab a 22-year-old sus pected drug peddler who tried to evade ar rest by driving away in his car, officials said on Wednesday.

Constable Harender suffered a fractured hip during the chase and is admitted to Max Hospi tal in Patparganj, the police said.

AIIMS meet on referral mechanism on Oct 29

New Delhi (PTI): Di rector of AIIMS, Delhi has called a meeting with medical superin tendents of govern ment hospitals in the national capital on Oc tober 29 to establish a referral mechanism be tween them and the pre mier institute for stable emergency patients.

According to an of fice memorandum by AIIMS Director Dr M Srinivas, the emergen cy department of AIIMS, Delhi handles around 600 patients in a day which has both crit ical and non-critical cases. The hospital also receives referral of crit ical patients from other

government hospitals who they are not able to handle either due to lack of superspeciality department or bed shortage.

There is no formal re ferral mechanism be tween the government hospitals of Delhi and AIIMS for stable pa tients and many patients face inconvenience hav ing to move from one hospital to another, the memorandum said.

“To work towards pa tient safety and wellbe ing, it is imperative to make a system of refer ral for stable patients between government hospitals in Delhi,” it said.

New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi govern ment’s Planning De partment has rejected DDCD vice chairman Jasmine Shah’s re quest seeking an ad ditional 10 days to re spond to a complaint of “misuse of public office” against him, sources said on Wednesday.

Shah was given time till October 28 to submit his reply, they said. The Planning Department had is sued a show cause no tice to Shah on Octo ber 17 on allegations of “misuse of public office” against him based on a complaint by BJP leader and West Delhi MP Parvesh Verma.

“Initially, Shah was given a week’s time to submit his reply. He had sought 10 more days (to reply to the notice) after he failed to do so within the stipulated time but he

Initially, Shah was given a week’s time to submit his reply. He had sought 10 more days after he failed to do so in time.

Source, Planning Department

has been asked to sub mit his reply by Octo ber 28,” said a source.

In his complaint dated September 13, Verma had alleged that “while working as Vice Chairperson, Dialogue and Devel opment Commission of Delhi (DDCD), Jas mine Shah has acted

as official spokesper son of the Aam Aad mi Party for political gains, which is in vio lation of established procedures...”

An inquiry in the matter was carried out by the Planning Department, which is the administrative de partment in-charge of the DDCD.

After “thoroughly analysing various video footage of Shah’s presence in TV programmes, tran script of press confer ences addressed by him and news reports in newspapers, news portals, etc.”, the de partment prima facie found that he was us ing his government office and other perks to “further an ex tremely partisan po litical agenda, specifi cally contrary to the laid down norms for conduct of a public servant”, the sources said.

PITCH

New Delhi (PTI): A day after its first round of seat allocation conclud ed with the majority of them getting filled up, Delhi University on Wednesday published a list of vacant seats.

In many of the cours es, only one to two seats will be available for can didates in the second round of seat allocation, according to the list.

Some courses like B.A Economics in Hindu College and B.A Pro gram (History + Politi cal Science) in Aryab hatta College have no seats left.

Most seats in popular colleges in DU’s North

Campus like Hindu and Miranda House are al ready filled up. Similarly in St. Stephen’s College, several courses have only a few PwD (persons with disabilities) seats left. Unreserved seats are vacant only in B.Sc (Hons.) Physics (5) and B.Sc (Hons.) Chemistry (2) in the college.

In Miranda House College, all seats in over 20 courses are filled up.

DU, however, has said the number of vacant seats might change due to reconciliations, with drawals and cancella tions. DU’s first round of seat allocation con cluded on Tuesday.

On Tuesday, two po lice personnel saw a car parked when they reached the area behind Alok Punj School in Karawal Nagar while on patrol duty. They found a man sitting in the driver’s seat in a suspicious condition, a senior officer said.

When the two police men asked him to open the boot, he started the car and tried to flee, but Harender clung on to the vehicle, the officer said.

After covering some distance, the driver hit a wall, leading to Haren der’s injury. Head Con stable Amrish then nabbed the driver, the police added.

The man was later identified as Ankur, a resident of Prem Nagar in Dayalpur, DCP (Northeast) said.

We don’t do politics of hate, we build schools, hospitals: Bhagwant Mann

For the November 3 bypolls, the AAP has fielded Satender Singh, who switched over from the BJP

Hisar (PTI): Punjab Chief Minister Bhag want Mann here on Wednesday claimed that the Aam Aadmi Party does not indulge in politics of hate but talks of development and building schools and hospitals.

He said this talking to reporters while cam paigning for his party candidate in the Adam pur bypolls.

Mann took out a road show in Adampur and also addressed gather ings in villages while campaigning for AAP candidate Satender Sin gh. “We don’t do politics of hate. We do politics of development, we build schools and hospitals,” he told reporters.

Mann appealed to peo ple to elect good people, saying it will bring good results like Punjab.

He then touched upon the Punjab government recently announcing the restoration of the old pension scheme and the decision to give six per cent dearness allowance to employees and an ear lier move to give 300 units of free power to every household.

Mann also claimed that his government eliminated corruption in Punjab.

“People of Punjab voted for us on trust and we will keep their trust,” he said.

Earlier, Mann paid obeisance at a gurdwara in Jawahar Nagar.

Last month too, Mann had visited Hisar with Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who had launched the party’s nationwide “Make India No. 1” campaign from Haryana.

The byelections were necessitated after Kul deep Bishnoi resigned as an MLA and switched sides from the Congress to the BJP. Bishnoi had defeated BJP’s Sonali Phogat from Adampur in the 2019 state Assem bly elections.

For the November 3 bypolls, AAP has fielded Satender Singh, who switched over from the BJP.

Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann at a road show in Hisar on Wednesday

Arvind Kejriwal challenges BJP to show ‘one good work it has done in last

years’ in MCD

They (the Centre) used wrong tactics during delimitation to delay the MCD polls, claims the CM

CM Arvind Kejriwal addressing a press conference in New Delhi on Wednesday.

—PHOTO BY PTI

If you go out on the road and ask any one about the work done by Kejriwal in the last seven years, you will know.

—Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi CM

Manish Sisodia said in a press meet that around 11k people were going through post-Covid ailments and yoga helped them.

Delhi's air improves, but still ‘poor’

AQI of city improved from 312 on the day of Diwali to

on Wednesday morning

New Delhi (PTI): Del hi's air quality im proved on Wednesday morning on the back of favourable wind speed but it remained poor.

The Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 262 at 6 am, improving from 303 at 4 pm on Tuesday. It was 312 at 4 pm on Mon day, the day of Diwali.

The neighbouring cities of Ghaziabad (262), Noi da (246), Greater Noida (196), Gurugram (242) and Faridabad (243) re ported "moderate" to "poor" air quality.

An AQI between zero and 50 is considered "good", 51 and 100 "satis factory", 101 and 200 "moderate", 201 and 300 "poor", 301 and 400 "very poor", and 401 and 500 "severe". Delhi's particu late matter (PM) 2.5 pol lution levels on Wednes day morning were three to four times above the national standard of 60 microgram per cubic metre for 24 hours.

The capital had re corded "very poor" air quality on Tuesday after residents in many parts of the capital flouted the ban on firecrackers on Diwali night, but the pol lution levels for the next day were the lowest since 2015, thanks to warm and windier conditions that diluted its effect.

In the last two years, Delhi and its neighbour ing areas had witnessed severe air quality post

AQI between 201 and 300 is considered ‘poor’,

FIGURES

Delhi’s PM 2.5 pollution

RED LIGHT ON, GAADI OFF CAMPAIGN

New Delhi (Agen cies): The AAP-led government, which has launched a 15-point action plan to battle air pollution in the national capital, has once again announced its ‘Red light on, gaadi off’ campaign that aims at curbing vehicular emissions.

If you don’t have a solution, then resign as CM: BJP to Kejriwal on Delhi pollution

New Delhi (PTI): BJP leaders on Wednesday demand ed CM Arvind Kejri wal's resignation over his alleged failure to control pollution in Delhi and claimed that the city's air quality had improved after Diwali.

Diwali, which was cele brated in November, with intense smog envel oping the region for days as stubble burning peaks during the month while

low temperatures and calm winds trap pollut ants. Since Diwali was observed early in the sea son this year, moderately warm and windier con

ditions prevented the rapid accumulation of pollutants from fire crackers and reduced the effect of stubble burning.

Environment Min Gopal Rai to chair meeting on anti-dust campaign

New Delhi (PTI): Del hi Environment Min ister Gopal Rai will on Wednesday chair a high-level meeting to review the progress of the anti-dust cam paign in the capital.

Rai is expected to share data on the number of sites com plying with the guidelines to manage dust pollution and in fractions of govern ment directions, an official said.

User agencies of

construction and demolition projects larger than 500 square metres are required to register them on the construction and demolition (C&D) por tal launched in Octo

Man blugeoned to death over car parking in Gzb

Ghaziabad (PTI): A 35-year-old man was battered to death by a brick following a dis pute over car parking opposite a hotel here, police said on Wednes day. The victim has been identified as Varun, a son of a re tired assistant sub-in spector of the Delhi Po lice and resident of Jawli village in the Teela Mor area.

The incident took place on Tuesday night when Varun had gone to a roadside eatery for dinner and parked his car near another car,

the door of which could not open due to it.

This led to an alterca tion, after which Varun was beaten up brutally with a brick.

Two held for firing at a man on Diwali

New Delhi, (PTI): Two men have been arrested for allegedly firing at a person on Diwali in north Delhi’s Shastri Nagar area, police said on Wednesday.

The accused have been identified as Ab hishek Khari (25), a resident of Dera Walan Nagar, and Mayank Kharbanda (26) of New Gupta Colony, they said.

On Monday, officers at Sarai Rohilla police station received infor mation regarding a fir ing at Jalebi Chowk in

Shastri Nagar. The po lice reached the spot and found that the in jured person had been shifted to Deep Chand Bandhu Hospital, a sen ior officer said. The po lice recorded the state ment of the complain ant Umesh, a resident of Shastri Nagar, on Tuesday. In his state ment, Umesh said when he was on his way to Jalebi Chowk, he was caught in a traffic jam and noticed the driver of a car waving a pistol, the officer said.

Severely injured, Varun was rushed to GTB Hospital for treat ment where he died, ASP (Second) Gyanen dra Singh said.

BY PTI

ber last year in a bid to control dust pollu tion in the capital.

The project propo nents have to self-au dit their compliance with dust control norms and upload a self-declaration on the portal on a fortnightly basis. In September, the Delhi government had also made it man datory to install antismog guns at all con struction and demoli tion sites larger than 500 square metres.

As the name suggests, under the ‘Red light on gaadi off’ campaign, people will be persuaded to switch off their ignition at traffic intersections while waiting for the signal to turn green. The Delhi government’s campaign to curb vehicular pollution will be launched from October 28 for a month, said environ ment minister Gopal Rai on October 21. This is not the first time such a campaign will be launched. The campaign began on Oct. 16, 2020, to cut down vehicular pol lution. The minister said the measure was being taken again this year as experts had predicted increased pollution levels after Diwali if the wind direction changed.

SEASON OF FESTIVITIES

BJP MP and former Delhi unit chief Manoj Tiwari said the city's air quality in dex (AQI) levels were worse before Diwali. The AQI improved af ter the festival, show ing that Diwali is not to be blamed for pollu tion in Delhi, he said.

"Before Diwali, the AQI was 330 and after Diwali this morning (Wednesday) it is 306. (This is) the benefit of bursting green crack ers. So those who were blaming Diwali should now worry that if the pollution gets worse from now on then don't blame it on Diwali," Tiwari said in a tweet in Hin di on Wednesday.

The BJP's West Del hi MP Parvesh Sahib Singh, on the other hand, demanded Ke jriwal's resignation for his failure to con trol pollution.

"Arvind ji, if your paid news is over on

pollution, then also say something on it. Why are you telling so many lies everyday?

If you do not have a solution to pollution, then leave the post of the CM," Singh tweet ed in Hindi.

Singh's tweet was in response to pic tures posted on so cial media that claimed Delhi's AQI had hit the 'very poor' category. React ing to the same pic tures, party spokes person Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga said Di wali crackers were not responsible for Delhi's deteriorating air quality.

"No one was burn ing crackers yester day (Tuesday). Once

again proved Diwali is not responsible for Pollution in Delhi. Ke jriwal failed to pro vide any solution in Delhi and just to save his image he was blaming Hindus and crackers. Kejriwal

Model is Fraud, Kejri wal is Fraud," Bagga tweeted.

In the last two years, Delhi and its neighbouring areas witnessed severe air quality post Diwali, usually cele brated in November, with intense smog enveloping the re gion for days as stub ble burning peaks during the month while low tempera tures and calm winds trap pollutants.

3 arrested for burgling in southwest Delhi

New Delhi (PTI):

Three people, includ ing a 45-year-old wom an, were arrested for allegedly burgling houses in southwest Delhi, police said on Wednesday.

The accused have been identified as Dharmender (4), a resi dent of Kalyanpuri east, Bablu (40), a resi dent of Dallupura, and Laxmi, a resident of Noida, they said.

A gold necklace, two pairs of earrings, a car and tools used for breaking into the hous es were recovered from their possession, they

said. The southwest district saw a rise in such incidents. During the investigation, the CCTV footage of the cameras in the area were scanned and three people were identified, a senior police officer said.

On October 11, a trap was laid and the three suspects were appre hended, DCP (south west) Manoj C said.

PIECE OF HISTORY

Rare exhibits from Khuda Bakhsh displayed

New Delhi (PTI): The illustrated manuscript of “Tarikh-e-Khandane-Timuriyah” was among the rarest and most valuable books from Patna’s Khuda Bakhsh Oriental Li brary displayed at an exhibition here last week.

The exhibition was part of India Interna tional Centre’s ‘The IIC Experience’ that show cased photography, folk and installation art, dance, music and thea

tre performances, and screenings of awardwinning international films. The ‘Treasures of Khuda Bakhsh Oriental Public Library’ includ ed texts, reproductions of archival photo graphs, facsimiles of rare books, digitised copies of illuminated and illustrated manu script and other digital reproductions from the collection of the iconic library in Patna. One of the ‘treasures’ on display was the

“Tarikh-e-Khandan-eTimuriyah”, written and created 22 years (1577-78 AD) into the reign of Mughal emper or Jalaluddin Moham

mad Akbar. The manu script is the “only ex tant copy” that deals with the history of Timur and his descend ants in Iran and India,

including the Mughal rulers Babur, Humayun and Akbar.

“It was the history of the Timurids, right from the time of Timur to that of Akbar. It has textual material and also paintings made by artists from Akbar’s court. More than 100 paintings are there by 60-70 artists. One artist would sketch it and an other would paint it,” Dr Shayesta Bedar, director of the library, told PTI.

Attesting to its au

thenticity and status as a royal copy, Mughal em peror Shah Jehan in scribed a note in his own handwriting at the be ginning of the manu script. “This is a brief account of Hazrat-e Sa hib Qiran (Timur) and his great descendants and a history of Hazrate Arsh Ashyani up to the twenty-second year of his reign. It was com posed during the time of Shah Baba (Akbar),” a translation of the brief note reads

‘very

and

and

‘severe’

The AQI improved after the festival, showing that Diwali is not to be blamed for pollution in Delhi

—Manoj Tiwari, BJP MP and former Delhi unit chief

Devotees perform rituals during Govardhan Puja festival at ISKCON Temple in Noida, Wednesday. —PHOTO BY PTI

The site where a man bludgeoned another with a brick over a parking dispute, in Ghaziabad. (Inset) File photo of the victim.

BJP MEETING CPM TO DESTABILISE TMC?

GANESH, LAKSHMI ON CURRENCY IS AAP’S TWIST TO RELIGIOUS POLITICS

TMC MOCKS SUVENDU

The TMC said it does not give importance to Adhikari’s statements. “Suvendu Adhikari used to say ‘BJP hatao Desh Banchao’ till mid-2020. He had campaigned against Amit Shah during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Being an oppor tunist and unethical person, he crossed over to the BJP. We don’t attach any importance to the utterances of an unethical person,” TMC state general secretary Kunal Ghosh said.

In politics, especially in India, there are no permanent friends or foes. Politics is a game of strange bedfellows and there is no change in this old order. Recently, the meet ing of BJP MP Raju Bista and party MLA Shankar Ghosh with veteran CPI(M) leader and former mayor of Siliguri Ashok Bhattacharya at his (Bhattacharya’s) house raised eyebrows and the po litical grapevine was quick to spin a yarn about the report ed saffron camp’s plan to rope in the Left leader ahead of the panchayat elections slated for next year.

Though both the Left and the BJP leaders described it as a “courtesy visit”, the rul ing Trinamool Congress has smelt a conspiracy! However, brushing aside speculations and describing the meeting as a “courtesy visit” by the BJP leaders, Bhattacharya told the media, “If an MP pays a visit on the occasion of Diwali, I cannot shut the door on his face. It was also the death anniversary of my wife and everyone was invit

IT IS RISHI SUNAK’S TURN AT THE HELM

FEW POINTS TO PONDER

z The recent ED raids and the visuals doing the rounds across the media in the country, political observers feel will have an impact on the ruling party in the state

z The party had to go on a defensive mode and distance itself from the leaders who were in the ED scanner

ed. The speculations that are doing rounds are baseless and unjust.”

Calling it a “courtesy vis it”, BJP Darjeeling MP Raju Bista said, “Ashok Bhattacha rya is a former minister, MLA and mayor of Siliguri. I came here to extend my Diwali greetings to him. It was also the death anniversary of his wife. Therefore, I wanted to meet him at his residence.”

“Our party MP Raju Bista wanted to meet the Left lead er to inquire about his health. So, during the auspicious oc casion of Diwali, I went with him. It is wrong to draw a conclusion based on this. It is also not right to consider it a political meeting,” said BJP’s Siliguri MLA Shankar Ghosh, who was previously with the CPI(M).

The TMC’s mouthpiece

z It may also be noted that TMC will have to prepare its panchayat poll blueprint on its own with its prime politi cal strategist and strong man, Anubrata Mondal in a spot and under ED scanner

z Mondal has been a poll striker for the TMC in its citadel in Birbhum and the adjacent districts for a very long time

‘Jago Bangla’ on Tuesday pub lished an editorial, mention ing that the BJP’s meeting with Bhattacharya may have serious political connotations. Meanwhile, TMC state gener al secretary Kunal Ghosh went on to say, “There is a con spiracy going on to destabilise the government, especially in the northern part of the state. It may be noted that BJP lead ers have been demanding a separate state for the people in north Bengal.

“We have information that the BJP wants to destabilise the northern part of Bengal and plan to make it a Union Territory with some parts of Bihar. We have said this before and are saying it now that the Left and the BJP are trying to destabilise the state govern ment. They will, of course, say that it was a courtesy visit

but we know what is happen ing. They are seeking Bhat tacharya’s support to execute their plans,” alleged Ghosh.

HINDU MAHASABHA TO FIGHT RURAL POLLS?

The Akhil Bharat Hindu Ma hasabha announced that it will contest next year’s pan chayat elections in West Ben gal. The outfit that was rela tively unknown in the con temporary political land scape of West Bengal also tried to strike another contro versy on Friday by demand ing that the photo of Gandhi on currency notes should be replaced with that of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

SUVENDU’S CLAIM

The Trinamool Congress’s rule in West Bengal will be over in a few months, leader of opposition Suvendu Adhi kari claimed recently, stating that the police cannot save the regime anymore.

Addressing a ‘Bijaya Sam milani’ or post-Durga Puja meeting in his hometown Kan thi in Purba Medinipur dis trict, the BJP leader said that his party will fight next year’s panchayat elections “inch by inch”. He said the BJP will form “strong” teams in every booth to counter the TMC’s “terror” in the panchayat polls.

THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL

More than Britain, there is joy in In dia over Rishi Su nak becoming the first Briton of col our to become the country’s prime minister because of his India link. Sunak is the youngest to lead the country and, reportedly, is richer than the King and is a prac ticing Hindu. His appoint ment is indeed a milestone moment in British history and speaks volumes about the equal opportunities avail able to immigrants in the United Kingdom, which ruled over us for centuries.

No matter how excited we may be at the prospect of puja being performed at 10 Downing Street, his official residence and his Bengalurubased billionaire in-laws, Ri

Rishi Sunak leading the Tories to an electoral victory will be a true test of the white man’s (and woman) having come out of the colonial and racist mindset. Lest we forget, Sunak is the choice of Tory MPs and that he earlier lost to Liz Truss when over a million Tory members were asked to choose between the two

shi Sunak will have to watch, and promote, Britain’s inter ests if wants his Conserva tive Party to win elections in two years’ time.

Rishi Sunak leading the To ries to an electoral victory will be a true test of the white man’s (and woman) having

come out of the colonial and racist mindset. Lest we forget, Sunak is the choice of Tory MPs and that he earlier lost to Liz Truss when over a million Tory members were asked to choose between the two.

For now Sunak’s appoint ment as prime minister has stabilised Britain’s revolving door politics. His new cabi net reflects Sunak’s attempt to unite Tory factions and now has the task of propping up the inflation-plagued economy and making life af fordable for Britons. Retain ing Jeremy Hunt as Chancel lor showed his belief in con tinuity and seriousness to wards the economy. For India the proof of pudding will lie in early signing of the Free Trade Agreement promised by Boris Johnson.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has come up with a new idea to give the coun try’s religious poli tics a new twist. While doing Diwali puja, he said, the idea dawned on him that images of Lord Ganesh and goddess Lak shmi, the deities who represent wealth and prosperity, should be there on India’s currency notes. The new currency notes being printed should carry these im ages for the sake of the coun try’s prosperity when even with out invocation of gods it is be lieved to be doing much better than developed economies.

Kejriwal’s is not so subtle an at tempt to give religious politics a new turn has been done with Gu jarat and Himachal Pradesh elec tions in mind and to beat the BJP at its own game. The ruling par ty’s politics has revolved around Ayodhya, Kashi and Mathura. To make his proposal acceptable to Muslims he cited the example of Indonesia, a Islamic country, which has Lord Ganesh on its cur rency. It may still not work.

SPIRITUAL SPEAK

l Vol 2 l Issue No.57

l RNI TITLE NO. DELENG/2021/19840

Printed and published by Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of First Express Publishers. Printed at Impressions Printing and Packaging Limited, C-21, 22 Sector-59, Noida-201301. Published at G-20, 3rd Floor, 309, Preet Vihar, New Delhi-110092. Phone 011-49846474.

Editor-In-Chief: Dr Jagdeesh Chandra Editor: Anita Hada Sangwan responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act

Those who cling to perceptions and views wander the world offending people. Buddha

Jagat Prakash Nadda @JPNadda

Hearty congratulations to all of you on the festival of ‘Govardhan Puja’, a symbol of nature, cattle promotion and environmental protection. On this holy day, taking inspiration from Lord Shri Krishna, let us all take a pledge for the protection and promotion of mother cow. Krishna bless everyone. Jai Shri Krishna!

Bhupender Yadav @byadavbjp

Proud moment! Two more Indian beaches have made it to the list of Blue Beaches. Minicoy, Thundi Beach and Kadmat Beach - both in Lakshadweep - are the proud entrants in the coveted list of Blue Beaches, an eco-label given to the cleanest beaches in the world.

ROBIN ROY

The writer is Senior Journalist and former Managing Editor, First India

Peace and tranquillity in border essential: Jaishankar to Chinese envoy

New Delhi: Peace and tranquillity in the bor der areas are essential for normal ties between India and China, Exter nal Affairs Minister S Jaishankar conveyed to outgoing Chinese Am bassador Sun Weidong on Wednesday.

Jaishankar made the remarks when the en voy called on him.

India and China are locked in a lingering border standoff in eastern Ladakh for over 29 months. The bi lateral relationship came under severe strain following the deadly clash in Galwan Valley in Eastern

Ladakh in June, 2020.

“Received Ambassa dor Sun Weidong of China for a farewell call. Emphasized that the development of In dia-China relations is guided by the 3 Mutu als. Peace and tranquil ity in the border areas is essential,” the exter nal affairs minister tweeted.

“The normalization of India-China rela tions is in the interest of both countries, of Asia and the world at large,” he said.

India has been as serting that the SinoIndia ties must be based on three mutu

als: mutual sensitivity, mutual respect and mutual interest.

In his farewell re marks at an event on Tuesday, Sun said it is natural for China and

India to have some dif ferences but the focus should be to seek com mon ground for devel opment while resolv ing the pending issues through dialogue.

“I’M VERY IMPRESSED BY YOUR MINISTER...”

ENOUGH ROOM IN WORLD FOR CHINA, INDIA; LET’S NOT INTERFERE IN OTHER’S AFFAIRS: OUTGOING ENVOY

Last month, the In dian and Chinese mili taries carried out dis engagement from the Patrolling Point 15 in the Gogra-Hotsprings area last month.

In Shah’s presence, over 12,500 kg drugs destroyed in Gujarat & Delhi

Ahmedabad (Agen cies): Union Home Min ister Amit Shah ad dressed a meeting of the western region states on ‘Drug Trafficking and National Security’ in Gandhinagar on Wednesday. “I congratu late Gujarat Chief Min ister Bhupendra Patel, Gujarat Police and Guja rat Minister of State for Home Harsh Sanghavi for doing commendable work in stopping this activity by running sev eral operations in coor dination with central agencies,” Shah said at the meeting.

While Patel was pre sent on the dais, Goa CM Pramod Sawant, MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Maha rashtra deputy CM Dev endra Fadnavis among others joined through VC. Nearly 12,500 kg of seized drugs were de stroyed at two locations in Gujarat and Delhi as the meeting was in pro gress in Gandhinagar.

HM TO CHAIR 2-DAY ‘CHINTAN SHIVIR’

New Delhi: Develop ment of an ecosystem for cybercrime man agement, increase in usage of IT in criminal justice system, wom en’s safety, coastal security issues will be discussed at the twoday ‘Chintan Shivir’ of home ministers of states at Surajkund on October 27 and 28.

Home Minister Amit Shah inaugurates a high level regional meeting on ‘Drug Trafficking and National Security’, in Gandhinagar on Wednesday. (Left) Drugs being destroyed in presence of Shah.

EASTERN ZONAL COUNCIL MEET

Kolkata: Chances of West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee and Union Home Minister Amit Shah coming face to face on November 5 are high as the latter is scheduled to attend and chair the meeting of the Eastern Zonal Security Council at the Bengal secretariat of Nabanna.

Senior IAS officer on long leave

Lucknow: Senior IAS officer of UP cadre Monika S Garg, ACS

Minority Welfare, Mus lim Waqf, has gone on a long leave. Many ACS rank officials have al ready retired in the state and those who are left have the charge of many departments.

In such a situation, the government has handed over the charge of ACS Minority Af

SHAH TO INAUGURATE, LAY STONE OF PROJECTS WORTH RS 6,629 CR IN H’YANA

Chandigarh (PTI): Union Home Minister Amit Shah will inaugurate and lay foundation stones of four projects worth Rs 6,629 crore from a programme in Haryana’s Faridabad, according to a statement. The event will be held on Thursday at Faridabad’s Parade Ground, Sector 12.He will lay the foundation stone of the Haryana Orbital Rail Corridor project costing

PM TO INAUGURATE VARIOUS PROJECTS

Visakhapatnam: PM Narendra Modi will visit Visakhapatnam on November 11 to inaugurate and lay foundations for vari ous developmental and infrastructure projects. Railway of ficials have received the communication that he will be in the port city.

Rs 5,618 crores besides the inauguration of a Rs 590 core rail coach refurbishment factory in Sonipat. The projects also include the country’s first longest elevated railway track built in Rohtak at Rs 315.40 crore.The home minister will also dedi cate and inaugurate the Haryana Police Residence Complex, Bhondsi, con structed at a cost of Rs 106 crore.

PM LIKELY TO VISIT AP ON OCT 30

Itanagar: Prime Min ister Narendra Modi is likely to visit AP on October 30 to inau gurate the Donyi Polo Airport near here, a senior official said. CM Pema Khandu had recently met the prime minister and request ed him to inaugurate the greenfield airport in Hollongi, he said.

Mahesh Sharma

New Delhi: Even be fore the results of Con gress President’s elec tion were out, Shashi Tharoor and his team had started making al legations of election malpractices. Shortly after the counting of votes began on Wednes day, Tharoor’s election agent Salman Soz made allegations of election rigging. He said that he was in touch with the

head of the election au thority Madhusudan Mistry and informed him about many things. However, he said that he cannot go into detail about it. He made alle gations of electoral mal practices in Uttar Pradesh, which has the maximum number of representatives, approx imately eleven hundred. Tharoor’s team also de manded cancellation of elections in UP. Earlier, during the election cam

New Delhi (ANI): Out going Chinese envoy to India Sun Weidong in his farewell address has stressed the need to manage and resolve differences between India and China and uphold the principle of non-interference in each other’s internal affairs. Sun, who as sumed office in July 2019, is leaving at a time when the two sides continue to man age ties, following the Ladakh border clash

that has remained the dominant issue between the two sides. In his farewell remarks posted on the Chinese embassy website, Sun said it is only natural for important neighbours China and India to have some differences but the key is how to handle the differences. “We should be aware that the common interests of the two countries are greater than differ ences,” the envoy said.

Kharge chairs Congress CEC meeting for Guj assembly polls

New Delhi (ANI): Mallikarjun Kharge, who on Wednesday took over as Congress president, chaired a meeting of the par ty’s Central Election Committee (CEC) to finalise candidates for the Gujarat as sembly polls.

Former Congress president Sonia Gan dhi was also present at the meeting. Three meetings of Congress screening committee have already been held for Gujarat as sembly polls. The Congress is seeking to oust the BJP gov ernment in Gujarat and is also facing challenge from Aam Aadmi Party which is seeking to establish itself in the state. The BJP has been contin uously in power in Gujarat from 1998.

The assembly polls in Gujarat would be held before the end of the year. Kharge offi cially took charge as the party president at the AICC headquar ters in New Delhi.

Telangana (PTI): After a three-day break, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra is set to resume its march from Tel angana on Thursday.

The Congress Minister of Parliament will be reaching Hyderabad later in the day and will leave for Makthal in Narayanpet district to resume the yatra after a night halt.

New Delhi (PTI): Hours after Sonia Gan dhi handed over charge as Congress chief to Mallikarjun Kharge, her daughter and party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra shared an Instagram post with the mes sage: “So proud of you Ma, no matter what the world says or thinks, I know, you did it all for love.”

Yogi approves VRS application for ‘87 batch

Ahtesham Siddiqui

Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minis ter Yogi Adityanath has given his approval to the VRS application of 1987-batch Indian AAdministrative Ser vices officer Renuka Kumar.

An officer of UP cad re, Renuka Kumar was on central deputation. Annoyed by the central government’s move to

SOMETHING FISHY

send her back from the deputation, Renuka in stead of returning to UP sent her VRS to the UP government in the office of the Resident Commissioner, New Delhi in August.

After getting NOC from the central gov ernment, Chief Minis ter Yogi has given his approval to the VRS ap plication.

Her husband Sunil Kumar is also an IAS

the VRS of IAS Renuka Kumar would not have been approved and if she had returned to Ut tar Pradesh, many equations could have changed in the state bu reaucracy.

Renuka Kumar was to retire in June 2023.

She has been a trusted officer of Yogi.

PK hints that he is being aided by former clients

officer and currently he is on central deputa tion.Sources in the bu reaucracy said that if

Earlier the UP gov ernment had approved the VRS of IAS officer Juthika Patankar.

electioneering of Cong?

A face was needed to fight against candidate backed by Sonia and Rahul Gandhi

paign, Tharoor himself had alleged of favorit ism.

The allegations and complaints leveled by Shashi Tharoor and his team, who contested the

election against Mall ikarjun Kharge, have given legitimacy to this election. No one can call this election a mixed game, however, it was actually so. A face was needed to fight against a candidate backed by Sonia and Rahul, who had the image of an in dependent leader.

Shashi Tharoor was meeting this criterion because he was also a member of G23 and used to give statements

from time to time re garding the policies of the party. Now his com plaints will further prove that he was not a proxy candidate, but contested the election of his own free will, with full preparation.

The Congress party wanted to create this message so that no one can call the election of the President as a sham and in this agenda, Con gress has tasted success.

Patna (PTI): Political strategist-turned-activ ist Prashant Kishor on Thursday hinted that he was receiving finan cial assistance for his ‘Jan Suraaj campaign’ in Bihar from his for mer clients, many of whom were now chief ministers of their re spective states.

He made the candid disclosure at a press conference in Valmiki Nagar, a picturesque but remote forest re serve situated along the Indo-Nepal border, about 300 kms from the Bihar capital.

Kishor has been on a ‘padayatra’ since Octo ber 2 and intends to cover 3,500 km on foot, touching every nook and corner of his home state before his cam paign evolves into a full fledged political party.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar meets outgoing Chinese Ambassador to India Sun Weidong for a farewell call , in New Delhi on Wednesday.

—PHOTO BY ANI

New Delhi (PTI): Omar Sultan Al Olama, the UAE’s Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, on Wednesday lauded External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, saying he is impressed by how he positions India’s foreign policy on the world stage amid geopolitical tugs of war.Omar Sultan Al Olama, praised Jaishankar during a conference at a Delhi-based think tank. He had virtually joined union ministers from India and several parlia mentarians.

IAS officer Renuka Kumar

Ahtesham Siddiqui

fairs to IAS Dr Hari om, an officer of the rank of Principal Secretary.

Hari Om is a 1997 batch officer and cur

rently holds the re sponsibility of Princi pal Secretary Social Welfare and Director ST Development.

Monika S Garg

IAS Dr Hari Om

BHARAT JODO YATRA SET TO RESUME IN T’GANA

“MA, NO MATTER WHAT WORLD SAYS...” PRIYANKA

Ashok Gehlot with Bhupesh Baghel, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Deepender Singh Hooda and Ajay Maken and party members attend the charge-taking ceremony of newly elected party president Mallikarjun Kharge, in New Delhi on Wednesday.

Complications in many dengue patients in Del

Liver dysfunction & capillary leak among the most common ailments reported

New Delhi (PTI): Amid a rise in dengue cases in Delhi, doctors in several city hospitals said many patients of the vectorborne disease are devel oping complications such as liver dysfunc tion and capillary leak.

More than 900 cases of dengue have been re ported in the capital in October, taking the in fection tally to 1,876 so far this year, according to a civic report issued on Tuesday.

The 939 cases, record ed till October 19, is nearly half of the total number of dengue cas es logged this year.

DyCM Manish Siso dia on Wednesday said the government is mon itoring the data and stressed that cases are rising but there have been no fatalities.

Dr Sumit Ray, head of critical care at Holy Family Hospital in Okh la, said 37 patients are presently admitted to their facility.

“On an average, eve ry day six to 10 patients are getting admitted. Patients are develop ing issues like severe liver dysfunction and capillary leak. These are young patients aged between 20-40 years,” he said.

He said the patients

Most hospitals in the city are seeing a rush of dengue patients, leading to a shortage of beds.

developing such com plications could be ei ther due to dysregulat ed immune response or movement of people af ter a gap of two years due to Covid.

“Ninety per cent of the people have a bal anced immune re sponse but in some cas es, the immune system is over responsive or under-responsive. Both the situations are not good for patients. Also, people in that age group might be seeing more complications since they comprise the work ing population and have to step out more often as compared to the elderly who mostly stay at home,” he opined.

Dr Sushila Kataria, senior director - Inter nal Medicine at Medan ta, said they were seeing 10 patients every day on an average for 3 weeks.

Ninety per cent of the people have a balanced immune re sponse but in some cases, the immune sys tem is over responsive or under-responsive. Both the situations are not good for patients.

Kejriwal to visit Ghazipur landfill site today

New Delhi (PTI): CM Arvind Kejriwal Wednesday accused the BJP, which ruled the three erstwhile municipal corporations in Delhi, of creating three garbage mountains and filling the city with waste. In a tweet, Ke jriwal said he will visit the Ghazipur landfill site and urged people to accompany him. “I asked one of their (BJP) leaders: What work did you do in the municipal corporation in 15 years? While shying away, he told two things - 1) (They) Built three big garbage mountains and 2) Filled the entire Delhi with garbage. Tomor row morning I will visit Ghazipur garbage mountain. You please also come,” he tweeted.

Bijapur (ANI): The BJP on Wednesday took a jibe at AIMIM presi dent Asaduddin Owaisi over his remark that he wishes to see a hijabwearing woman as the Prime Minister of In dia. Addressing the press Owaisi had also said the BJP wants to eradicate secularism and is against equal op portunity for all in the country. BJP's Shehzad Poonawalla said, "Owai si ji hopes that a hijabwearing girl becomes PM of India! Well, Con stitution bars nobody but do tell us when will a Hijab-wearing girl get to become the President of AIMIM."

28 dead in B’desh cyclone, millions without power

Dhaka (Agencies): Bangladesh rescue workers found the bod ies of four missing crew of a dredger boat, taking the death toll from Cyclone Sitrang to 28 as millions re mained without power, officials said on Wednesday (Oct 26).

Cyclones - the equiva lent of hurricanes in the Atlantic or ty phoons in the Pacificare a regular menace in the region but scientists say climate change is likely making them more intense and fre quent. Cyclone Sitrang made landfall in south ern Bangladesh on Monday but authorities managed to get about a million people to safety before the monster storm hit.

With winds of 80kmh, it still left a trail of dev astation in the coun try's densely populated, low-lying coastal re gion, which is home to tens of millions of peo ple. The government said nearly 10,000 tinroofed homes were ei ther "destroyed or dam aged" and crops on large swathes of farm land were wrecked at a

time of record-high food inflation.

Fire department di vers found the bodies of four crew of a dredger boat that sank during the storm in the Bay of Bengal. "We found one body on Tuesday night and three more this morning. Four crew are still missing," Abdullah Pasha from the fire de partment.

VP pays obeisance at Golden Temple

Amritsar (ANI): VicePresident Jagdeep Dhankhar on Wednes day offered prayers at the sanctum sancto rum of the Golden Temple here. Dhankhar, who also partook in the 'langar' (community kitchen), was accorded a warm welcome by Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) chief Harjinder Singh Dhami.

53 wagons of coal train derail

Chennai (PTI): A probe by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) into the Coimbatore explosion case would be recom mended to the Centre, the Tamil Nadu government said here on Wednesday. The state government also announced raising a special police force to foil sabotage and bolster its intelligence wing.

Patna (Agencies): In Bihar rail traffic on Gaya – Dhanbad section has been disrupted fol lowing the derailment of 53 wagons of a coalladen goods train.

The derailment took place at 6.24 this morn ing at Gurpa station be tween Koderma and Manpur railway sta tions of Dhanbad divi sion. The rail traffic was disrupted on the Up and Down lines after the accident.

Dhami had earlier told the media that the apex gurdwara body

lease of 'Bandi Singhs' (Sikh prisoners). He had said this issue was the "most important for the community as Sikh prisoners had not been released even after they had completed their sentences".

would also give a mem orandum to the vicepresident for the re

Last month, the SGPC had sought time from Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a meeting to discuss the issue of the release of Sikh prisoners.

UP hospital in platelets row to be demolished

Prayagraj (PTI): The authorities here have ordered the demolition of a private hospital where a dengue patient died after being trans fused with what the fam ily claimed was sweet lime juice and not blood platelets.

Prayagraj District Magistrate Sanjay Ku mar Khatri said that report of the sample col lected from the hospital revealed that platelets and not sweet lime juice

Guwahati (PTI): Local authorities in western Goalpara district in Assam sealed a Miya Museum on October 25, two days after it was inaugurated by an or ganisation representing migrant Muslims.A team led by Lakhipur circle of ficer Rajib Gogoi evicted the items displayed at the museum at Dap karbhita near Lakhipur town before sealing it. The reason cited was that it was a house built under the PM’s AYG scheme.

New Delhi (ANI): In a major development, the NIA has reportedly questioned Punjabi singer Afsana Khan, an associate of late Punjabi Singer Siddhu Singh Moosewala, in the gangster-terror nexus case on Wednesday. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has found a link of the Punjabi pop industry in the case, and questioned Khan.Recently, the NIA conducted a nationwide raid at the hideouts of several gangsters.

Kedarnath (ANI): The sanctum sanctorum of Kedar nath Dham has been decorated with gold. The walls and ceiling of the sanc tum sanctorum have been given a new look with 550 gold layers. The gold layering has provided the sanctum sanctorum a more attractive look. Temple Committee President Ajendra Ajay said that the work of golden decoration of the sanctum sanctorum of Kedarnath temple was completed this morning.

Ramnagara (Karna taka) (Agencies): The 45-year-old Lingayat seer in Karnataka who died by suicide on Monday was “hon eytrapped” and being blackmailed over “obscene video calls” with a woman, police today said.

"Two names in the

suicide note are con nected to the mutt," in vestigators have said.

“The private mo ments of the woman (unidentified so far) and the seer were captured by the woman using her phone's screen-record ing function,” the sources said.

was transfused to the patient. He, however, charged Global Hospital with laxity in the transfusion process,

saying the reports showed the platelets were stored in an im proper way which might have led to clotting.

"POORLY PRESERVED" PLATELETS, NOT MOSAMBI JUICE: UP OFFICIAL ON DEATH Lucknow (Agencies): Days after the family of a dengue patient in UP alleged that he died because he was intravenously given 'mosambi' or sweet lime juice instead of blood platelets, triggering widespread outrage, a senior government official on Wednesday denied the claim. Sanjay Khatri, the District Magistrate of Prayagraj, on Wednes day said they had found that the patient had been given a packet of "poorly preserved" platelets. "We had formed a three-member team to probe the incident. Their report found that the patient had been given poorly preserved platelets. We are tak ing action based on this information," Khatri said.

Kerala Guv writes to CM, says fire FM

Thiruvananthapuram (Agencies): Kerala Gov ernor Arif Mohammed Khan has written to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, demanding the dismissal of Finance Minister KN Balagopal over recent remarks at a university, which he said were “seditious”. In his letter to the CM the Governor alleged

that Mr Balagopal deliv ered a speech at a cam pus in Thiruvanan

thapuram last week, seeking to “stoke the fire of regionalism and provincialism and un dermining the unity of India”. According to re ports, minister KN Bala gopal had said at the function that “those who come from places like UP, may find it tough to understand universities in Kerala.”

Thiruvananthapuram (Agencies): Protests are growing against actions of Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan on his actions on state-run universities. Recently, the Governor issued a showcause notice to VCs of nine universities, asking them to step down.

Will BJP ‘honor’ Mulayam in Mainpuri by-election?

Sharat K Verma

New Delhi: By-elec tions may be announced soon in the Mainpuri seat, which was vacated by the death of Sama jwadi Party founder Mu layam Singh Yadav. This election will be very in teresting. One reason for this is the suspense over who will contest the election from the family of Netaji i.e. Mu layam Singh and sec ondly what will the

Bharatiya Janata Party and Samajwadi Party do? Will the BJP field a candidate for Netaji’s seat against any mem ber of his family in the by-election? Right now, citing tradition in Ma harashtra, the party has not fielded a candidate against the wife of late MLA Ramesh Latte. Can this happen in Mainpuri seat of Uttar Pradesh also? The question is be ing raised in view of the kind of affection shown

QUESTION RAISED

which is his heritage. Before that it has to be decided as to who will contest the election from Mulayam Singh’s family. So far Dharmen dra Yadav is considered to be the strongest con tender. He was earlier MP from Badaun from where he lost last time.

by top BJP leaders to wards Mulayam Singh on his death and Prime

Minister Narendra Modi said that Mulayam Singh had blessed him,

Recently, Akhilesh Ya dav resigned from Azamgarh seat, Dhar mendra Yadav fought from there but he lost by close to 10 thousand

votes in this seat which was a stronghold of the party. So, now his name is being considered from Mainpuri. Tej Pratap Yadav, the grand son of Mulayam Singh, was once an MP from Mainpuri. He is also the son-in-law of Lalu Pras ad. So, he also has a claim on this seat. The name of Akhilesh Ya dav’s wife Dimple Ya dav is also discussed but it is less likely that she will fight.

TAMIL NADU TO HAND OVER COIMBATORE EXPLOSION CASE PROBE TO NIA

ASSAM SEALS 'MIYA' MUSEUM SET UP BY MIGRANT MUSLIMS

NIA QUESTIONS

PUNJABI SINGER AFSANA KHAN

KEDARNATH DHAM'S SANCTUM SANCTORUM DECORATED WITH 550 GOLD LAYERS

CRUCIAL

Late former

Mulayam

Cyclone Sitrang crossed the Bangladesh coast on Monday taking the death toll to 28. —PHOTO BY PTI

“Hijab-wearing woman will become PM”

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar along with his wife Sudesh Dhankhar and SGPC officials pose for photographs as they pay obeisance at the Golden Temple, on Wednesday. —PHOTO BY ANI

‘A woman has hone this to me,’ behind seer’s death

The patient was being treated at Global Hospital in Jhalwa locality of Prayagraj.

PHOTO

—Dr Sumit Ray, Holy Family Hospital

The landfill site at Ghazipur.

—FILE PHOTO

New Delhi: The govern ment is planning to launch the fourth tranche of Bharat Bond ETF, In dia’s first corporate bond exchange traded fund, in December, an official said. The funds raised would be utilised for un dertaking capital expendi tures by public sector en terprises. “We are cur rently in discussion with CPSEs and assessing their needs. The issue size for the fourth tranche of Bharat Bond ETF could probably be close to last year’s,” the official said.

Premium products lift festive sale spirit

New Delhi (PTI): Premi um and mid-end products have lifted sales of consum er durables and FMCG items this festive season amid inflation woes, ac cording to industry players.

Industry body Consumer Electronics and Applianc es Manufacturers Associa tion (CEAMA) said the sec tor is estimated to clock volume growth of 20% and value growth of over 30%.

“Overall mid and pre mium product sales have done well this festive sea son. The mid and premium segment has witnessed around 30% volume growth

at least and value growth between 40 to 50% this fes tive season. The last three days were great for mid

Govt nudges LIC to tweak its product strategy

New Delhi (PTI): The gov ernment is nudging LIC to tweak its product strategy to maximise profitability in a bid to help the coun try’s largest insurer real ise its full growth potential and yield better returns for investors, an official said.

participating products or term plans to improve profitability.

and premium products,” CEAMA President Eric Braganza said.

However, he said, “Sales

MAJOR HIGHLIGHTS

z Industry body CEAMA said the sector is estimated to clock volume growth of 20 percent and value growth of over 30 percent

z The decline in sales of entry-level products is primarily due to upgrading by consumers and also stress witnessed in the rural market

of entry-level products are down by 10-15% this festive season.”

The decline in sales of

entry-level products is pri marily due to upgrading by consumers and also stress witnessed in the rural market.

Panasonic Marketing In dia Managing Director Fumiyasu Fujimori said consumers are looking for a premium range of appli ances and the company ex pects double-digit growth this festive season, led by smart ACs, large-screen TVs and the home appli ances category.

“In terms of value growth invertor ACs re corded 38% growth, overall LEDs grew by 10% whereas

Fin Ministry extends ITR filing deadline for Cos till November 7

4K TVs grew by 34%. Our top-load washing machines registered 13% growth this festive season,” he said.

The company is seeing a rise in demand for appli ances that are easy to use (allowing users to multitask), energy-efficient, con nected (smart), and healthy and hygienic.

Consumers have become conscious of their choices and value-proposition pre mium appliances are tak ing precedence in their purchase decisions.

“This growth trend is here to stay,” he said on Wednesday.

25cr+ e-KYC transactions carried out using Aadhaar in Sept

New Delhi: Close to 14.62 lakh new members joined the ESIC-run social security scheme in Au gust 2022, according to official data. It showed that the gross new enrol ments with ESIC rose to 1.49 crore in 2021-22, from 1.15 crore in 202021. According to the re port, net new enrolments with EPFO stood at 16.94 lakh in August 2022. It showed that from Sep tember 2017 to August 2022, around 5.81 crore (gross) new subscribers joined the scheme.

LIC has been trading be low the issue price of `949 a share ever since it got listed on stock exchanges on May 17.

It listed at `872 apiece on NSE. The finance ministry in its performance review has been sensitising the LIC management about the steps that could be taken to bet ter investor wealth and fo cus on non-

“With the listing of LIC, the process of modernisa tion of the over 65-year-old institution has started. We are working with the man agement so that they mod ernise their product offer ing and lower dividend payout to policyholders,” the official said.

“The younger genera tion is more inclined to term plan. LIC will have to rework their strategy and decide what should be done so that their asset under management is utilised to its full poten tial,” the official added.

New Delhi (PTI): The Fi nance Ministry on Wednes day extended the deadline for filing income tax re turns for the assessment year 2022-23 by businesses till November 7.

The last date for filing ITR by companies who are required to get their accounts audited was October 31.

The Central Board of Di rect Taxes (CBDT), the apex decision-making body in matters of income and corporate tax, in a notifica tion said since it had last month extended the dead line for filing audit reports, hence the ITR filing due date too is extended.

“CBDT... Extends the due date of furnishing of Re turn of Income under sub-

Air India Express to lease 2 Boeing 737 planes from Vistara

New Delhi: The initial share-sale of Global Health Limited, which op erates and manages hos pitals under the Medanta brand, will open for public subscription on Novem ber 3. The initial public offering (IPO) will con clude on November 7, ac cording to the red herring prospectus (RHP). Ac cording to merchant banking sources, the IPO size could be about `2,200 crore. The IPO consists of a fresh issue of equity shares aggregat ing to `500 crore, and an Offer-For-Sale (OFS) of up to 5.08 crore equity shares.

HOUSING SALES MAY HIT RECORD 3.6 LAKH UNITS THIS YEAR

Mumbai (PTI): Budget airline Air India Express is looking to lease two Boeing 737 aircraft from full-ser vice carrier Vistara to offer more flights during the winter schedule, according to a source.

Both Air India Express and Vistara are part of the Tata group, which also has Air India and AirAsia In dia under its wings.

The source close to the development said the two narrow-body planes are ex pected to be inducted into the Air India Express fleet on a short-term lease in No vember and December, re spectively.

The move is part of con

AIR INDIA EXPRESS & TATA

z Both Air India Express and Vistara are part of the Tata group, which also has Air India and AirAsia India under its wings. Tata group took over Air India and Air India Express in January this year

solidating as well as tap ping the synergies in the group’s airline business.

Also, the leasing of the planes will help Air India Express to operate more flights during the winter schedule, which starts from October 30, the source said.

When contacted, a Vista

z The two narrow-body planes are expected to be inducted into the Air India Express fleet on a short-term lease in November and Dec, resp

z The move is part of consolidating as well as tapping the synergies in the group’s airline business

ra spokesperson said, “we cannot comment on specu lations”.

Tata group took over Air India and Air India Ex press in January this year after emerging as the win ning bidder in the disin vestment process that con cluded last year.

section (1) of section 139 of the Act for the Assessment Year 2022-23, which is Octo ber 31, 2022... To November 7, 2022,” the CBDT notifica tion said.

Domestic companies are required to file their in come tax returns by Octo ber 31, 2022, for the Finan

Again, states borrowing cost again rises

Mumbai (FIB): After a fall in the previous week, the market-funding cost for the states continues to go up, with the latest auc tion seeing the average cut-off rate or yield jump ing by as much as 12 bps to 7.84%, but for the Centre, it remained flat.

After rising for four weeks in a row, the average price that the states pay to their debt investors fell by 11 bps to 7.72% at the auc tions held on October 18.

The weighted average cut-off rose by 12 bps to 7.84% from 7.72% in the last auction, with a rise in weighted average tenor to 13 years from 12 years, Adi ti Nayar, of Icra said.

Sprite becomes bn-$ brand in Indian mkt

New Delhi: Housing sales are likely to hit an all-time high this year at 3.6 lakh units in seven major cities on a strong demand across all price categories despite hardening of in terest rates on home loans and property rates, according to Anarock. The previous high was re corded in 2014 when housing sales stood at 3,42,980 units across pri mary markets of DelhiNCR, MMR, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hy derabad and Pune.

New Delhi (PTI): Global soft drinks major Coca-Co la Company said its lemon and lime-flavoured soft drink Sprite has become a billion-dollar brand in the Indian market.

The company has record ed a “strong” volume growth in its India business in the third quarter of 2022, helped by its sparkling soft drinks portfolio and fruit drink brand Maaza.

Coca-Cola Company Chairman and CEO James Quincey said, “Trademark Coke delivered strong growth through effective execution and occasion-

based marketing.”

“We drove 2.5 billion transactions in India at af fordable price points through the expansion of returnable glass bottles and single-serve PET pack

COCA-COLA IN INDIA

z India is the fifth-largest

z

ages,” he noted.

“Sprite has grown to be come a billion-dollar brand in the market, driven by the success of locally adapted, occasion-based global marketing cam

Coca-Cola

in January this year, Coca-Cola had said its Indian soft drink brand Thums

had become a billion-dollar

paigns and screen time,” said Quincey.

Earlier in January, CocaCola had said its Indian soft drink brand Thums Up had become a billion-dollar brand in 2021.

cial Year 2021-2022.

The due date to file ITR will be November 30, 2022, for companies which are subject to transfer pricing norms.

Last month, the CBDT extended the deadline for filing audit reports by 7 days till October 7.

OTHER STORIES

IRDAI SETS UP HEALTH INSURANCE CONSULTATIVE CMTE

New Delhi: Regulator Irdai on Wednesday announced to set up a 15-mem ber Health Insurance Consultative Committee with an aim to achieve the goal of universalisation of health insurance in the country. The committee, headed by Irdai member Rakesh Joshi, has been tasked to identify the challenges in carrying out the health insurance business smoothly and make recom mendations to facilitate ease of doing business.

New Delhi (PTI): Over 25 crore e-KYC transactions were carried out using Aad haar in September, almost 7.7% higher than the levels seen in August, according to an official release.

An e-KYC transaction is done with the explicit con sent of the Aadhaar holder, and eliminates physical paperwork, and in-person verification requirement for KYC. “In September alone, 25.25 crore e-KYC transactions were executed via Aadhaar, almost 7.7% jump in such transactions when compared with Au gust,” the release said.

The cumulative number of e-KYC transactions through Aadhaar so far has increased to 1,297.93 crore.

DLF TO LAUNCH NEW PROPERTIES WORTH `3.5K CRORE IN FY23

New Delhi: Realty major DLF plans to launch new projects worth `3,500 crore during the second half of this fis cal, mainly in Gurugram and Panchkula as it seeks to tap a rising demand. DLF informed that the com pany plans to launch residen tial projects across Gurugram and Panchkula by March 2023 after getting requisite approv als from authorities. The com pany plans to launch around 3 million square feet area across residential projects.

COAI ROOTS FOR ‘SAME SERVICE, SAME RULES’ FOR PARITY WITH OTT COMM SERVICES

New Delhi: Telecom operators’ association COAI has made a strong pitch for ‘same service, same rules’ with regard to OTT communication services, arguing that a level playing field needs to be maintained for all technologies. “...

There is a need to ensure a level playing field among all technologies, that is Same Service Same Rules with respect to OTT Communication Services, so that fair and healthy competition prevails in the industry,” Cellular Operators’ Associa tion of India (COAI) said.

TATA STEEL INKS PACT WITH FORD TO SUPPLY GREEN STEEL

New Delhi: Tata Steel has inked an agreement with American carmaker Ford to supply “zer emis green steel” from its Nether lands-based IJmuiden plant after the unit shifts to hydrogen-based steel making. “Tata Steel Nederland has signed a MoU with Ford in Europe to supply the carmaker with Zeremis green steel once the IJmuiden steelworks switches to green hydrogen-based steelmaking,” a statement said.

INVESTMENTS IN ENERGY STORAGE, SMART GRID UP 66%

New Delhi: Investments in the energy storage and smart grid globally grew 66% year-onyear to record $25 billion in Jan-Sept pe riod this year, according to a Mercom Capital report. The funding includes those through venture capital, public market financing and debt financing. “Total corporate funding for energy storage, smart grid, and efficiency companies in 9M 2022 was record $25 bn compared to $15.1 bn in 9M 2021.

ESIC SCHEME ADDS 14.62 LAKH NEW MEMBERS IN AUGUST

MEDANTA BRAND’S GLOBAL HEALTH IPO TO OPEN ON NOV 3

With a ‘rubber stamp’ tag, Kharge’s real challenge is to ensure accessibility to Rahul & making young Gandhis hear to his advices as well: Dr Chandra

Editor-in-Chief of Bharat24 and First India, Dr Jagdeesh Chandra takes a look at the ascendence of Mallikarjun Kharge to the top post in Congress party and the problems associated with it. Dr Chandra also explains in detail how Gehlot’s Presidency would have eased much of Congress’ problems, how Rahul Gandhi will continue to stay the ‘definitive voice’ in Congress and why it will be extremely difficult for a 80-year-old Kharge to handle the Gandhis while also ensuring the party runs smoothly. Excerpts... (Part-1)

z With the tag of be ing a ‘Rubber Stamp President’, how effec tive do you think Mallikarjun Kharge would be as the new Congress President?

Dr Jagdeesh Chandra: It is not merely a tag, it is a reality. He is one hundred percent a rub ber stamp president who will be remotely controlled either by 10, Janpath (Sonia Gan dhi’s residence) or 12, Tughlak Lane (Rahul Gandhi’s residence) and there is nothing bad about it. Congress cant function, let along run, without the Gan dhis and therefore, even Kharge has said that there is no shame in taking advice or hold ing consultations with the Gandhi family ma triarch. He is the most dignified, decent and senior face of Congress and you can say that he is the most safe nomi nee of Gandhis’. Al though Rahul Gandhi had said prior to elec tion said that it would not be honourable to call Kharge and Tha roor as remote control presidents, but you know, in politics, some times denial amounts to confirmation. So yes, Kharge is a remote con trolled president. And this is also a fact that without Gandhis Con gress can not exist. But their working is such that Congress govern ment is left in only two states. And the tragedy is that no one other than Gandhis can actu ally take the Congress forward and ensure its resurgence. Secondly, you asked how effective as a president Kharge would be. That is a sepa rate question and I think even the Gandhis do not have any second thoughts about Kharge’s effectiveness. If you want to assess or evaluate this new presi dent in terms of perfor mance or capacity to handle a position of this stature and in terms of his capacity to win elections against the likes of Modi and Shah, then you will be

deeply disappointed. I am sure, as far as per formance is concerned, even Gandhis, would not be expecting much out of him. Its just a full time Congress presi dent sitting at AICC which was the function al requirement of Gan dhis. It was Rahul’s stubborn demand for an outsider to become Con gress president as he did not want to take di rect responsibility or let Priyanka take the mantle, so they brought an outsider. Secondly they wanted an individ ual who would appear to be non-controversial and balanced and from among the Congress’ clout, this individual appears balanced and without sides. So as far as performance is con cerned, at this age of 80 years, don’t expect much out of him.

z An outsider has come to helm of Con gress, but a huge sec tion of the party con siders that Congress will face major loss in Ashok Gehlot not taking over as party president. Also, how did this entire jour ney of new Congress president, right from Ashok Gehlot to Kharge, happened?

Congress has surely faced a major loss since Ashok Gehlot was unanimous face and is a face of north India.

Congress is basically a party of north-India. As far as loyalty and com fort level is concerned, between Gehlot and Kharge, even though Kharge has been with the Gandhis for fifty years, but there is no equal or parallel to Ashok Gehlot. Today Sonia Gandhi can not feel as comfortable or easy with Kharge as much she can with Ge hlot. The, Kharge is merely a face or a lead er, but he is not a re source manager, who plays an important role in politics. Gandhis have an understanding and a wavelength with Ashok Gehlot and they say it too that they

shared such a relation or bond with late Ahmed Patel or Ashok Gehlot. The situation changes and Gehlot could not become Presi dent. So definitely it has been Congress’ loss that Gehlot has not become President and the most loss has been incurred by Sonia Gandhi. Eve rybody here has been a loser in this and even Ashok Gehlot too. A north Indian leader could not ascend to the party’s presidency, hav ing started from Jodh pur district President and reaching to these heights and if, as Presi dent, he would have walked along side Ra hul Gandhi, that would have been a powerful spectacle. He has a stat ure and a persona and he always stands with Gandhis and he could even get decisions done by Gandhis. So every one is a loser in this sense and in totality Congress party has lost much more. Secondly, you as ked about se quence of events which started from Gehlot and ended at Kharge. As far as I know, it has been an

ty. So he agreed and af ter a month he said he is going to file nomina tion. But when the time for nomination came, the Rajasthan fiasco happened and fate had something else in mind. So he later met Sonia Gandhi and even dur ing the Rajasthan cri sis, Sonia was of the firm belief that Gehlot is more suitable as par ty president. When the crisis happened Sonia Gandhi asked him as to why he didn’t believe in her and why did he think that a single line proposal would come for Pilot, so he said he was sorry and said he was hurt. My guess is Gehlot too must have felt bad. At that mo ment, Sonia Gandhi again asked him to be come party president, but, it has come to my knowledge, that Gehlot said it would not be pru dent for him to become party president in such a situation. He came back to Jodhpur house and announced he wont be contesting. This was part one of the se quence wherein Ashok

Gehlot moved out of the race. Second part starts when the vacancy for presidency candidate occurred and on the op posite end was Shashi Tharoor. He could not be given the reins and someone had to be ap pointed, so suo-moto Digvijaya Singh be came active and his team rushed to Delhi. Singh though that since Gehlot isn’t the one, then he (Digvijaya) is the best person. So peo ple became active and by nightfall it turned out that he would file nomination the very next day. But it is poli tics and there are groups against Digvi jaya Singh in Congress and as such it is said there are two groups in Congress, one is pre2000, that includes old and senior leaders, and another is post-2000, which include young guns and favours Ra hul. This young bri gade, it is said, pre pared a dossier of all controversial state ments of Digvijaya Sin gh and ended up, what in politics is called as Karseva. So that hap pened and prior to this gopal and stressed on his candidature as to cancy who cant he be a candidate. KC told him to speak to Sonia Gandhi but before he could meet and

speak with Sonia, this development happened. So next day Singh was to speak to Sonia and the night before, an emergency meeting oc curred at Manmohan Singh’s home where Ge hlot too was present and the leaders mulled on who after Gehlot could taken the mantle. Gehlot was again asked to become President, and it shows the indis pensability of Ashok Gehlot and even after so much came to pass, the party was still looking at him. He again, with folded hands, said sorry. And that is when the name of Mallikarjun Kharge came forward as a proposal, where Ge hlot too played a role. There was no other op tion and all leaders were in agreement on his name since he is a Dalit, has been in poli tics for past five dec ades, has never courted controversy and is hon est among other quali ties of his. When Shashi Tharoor went to meet Sonia, she said its you choice. So that is how the events unfolded and Kharge won the elec tion.

z Rahul Gandhi said that Kharge is his new boss and will de cide on his new role. Do you think it will be so?

See, on the face value this statement perhaps highlights what Rahul may have wanted. Ra hul is different from Priyanka and Sonia, perhaps because he studied in a British in stitution, where a dif ferent mind-set and ide ology is forged. Rahul is a decent person and he must not have though on these grounds. I think that although what he has said he would mean and not merely say it for politi cal optics, but in reality,

it will boil down to face value. So what ever has to be done, will be done by Rahul Gandhi, Pri yanka Gandhi and to some extent, Sonia Gan dhi as well. So you can say that it is merely a formality, although it can be well intentioned formality, or a ritual, but this does not hold any meaning because everyone knows who will take the ultimate call.

z What is the mes sage behind Sonia Gandhi leaving 10, Janpath and reach ing 10, Rajaji Marg, the residence of Mall ikarjun Kharge, spe cially when 10, Jan path, for all practical purposes, came to be known as the Con gress headquarters?

Message is that it is So nia Gandhi’s nobility and also, at times when a person gets free from the burden, then too they show such large hearted approach. Ask Ashok Gehlot, he has had so much to deal with like Pilot factor and pressures created by other leaders. There are other chief minis ters too and only they know how to make things work, similarly, Collectors or SPs or any official for that matter knows how they get things done. And then a time comes when per son lets everything go or keeps it aside and fo cuses on living peace fully. So perhaps Sonia may have had this thought in her mind too that she is out of it now and she must be happy that now a good indi vidual will be handling the work, so it has sent a good message. It wasn’t a PR exercise rather a well inten tioned move and every one in the party liked it. But ultimately what ever happens, the ulti

mate result of all this exercise is zero, since whether it is Kharge or anyone else, Congress is in no situation to counter the onslaught of Narendra Modi and Amit Shah.

z Although Mallikar jun Kharge has sever al challenges before him, but perhaps the biggest challenge for him is to strike syner gy with Priyanka Gandhi. How do you assess that situation? Handling three bosses will be a challenge for anyone and this is why Kamal Nath back tracked. But the biggest challenge is Rahul Gan dhi because there is no accessibility. Moreover, he is currently on his Bharat Jodo Yatra so how many times can anyone contact him un abated. Some decisions are to be taken after per sonally meeting some one. And when a party functions, one has to speak to the president several times a day. Here by president I mean the real president which is Rahul Gandhi. Secondly, he does not take direct responsibility and when asked he asks the person to take their call, so how will it work. Thirdly he is like a reluctant bride and so Kharge would also mull on these things and think that how and why would he stress with Rahul Gandhi go ing beyond a point. As far as Priyanka is con cerned, if they get a few decisions done by her, then she is also not sure that Rahul will be okay with them. So yes, there is a challenge before Kharge in handling the Gandhi family, but I am sure he will handle it.

TO BE CONTINUED...

During the show #JConMallikarjunkharge trended top All-India on Twitter

Dr Jagdeesh Chandra with (R-L) Poornima Mishra, Mimansa Malik, Aditi Nagar, Tripti Arora and Sachin Arora during The New JC Show.

Dr Jagdeesh Chandra during The New JC Show.

DIVINE, DELIGHT & DIWALI

Celebrities were seen out and about in their traditional best as they celebrated the festival of lights. City First brings to you some glimpses of the lavish Diwali bash

iwali is the festival of light, love and happi ness. Diwali moti vates us to be better people and to share our joy with the world. The new dress es, gifts, bright lights, flow ers, foods, and the chanting of mantras sum up, excite ment is in the air. But it’s not just the dresses and gifts which bring happiness to our surroundings, it’s the sense of belonging, the connection that we all feel with each oth er during these festivals. This festival is often the reason for bringing the family together, making friends and celebrat ing the very spirit of man kind and spreading happi ness. To mark the auspicious occasion Bollywood stars threw momentous Diwali bashes to celebrate the festi val of light. This year, the fes tivities kicked off with a scin tillating bash thrown by Ayushmann Khurrana and his wife Tahira Kashyap. All the big names of Hindi show biz turned up with their fash

UTTKARSHA SHEKHAR uttkarsha.shekhar@firstindia.co.in

(L-R) Ananya Pandey, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Kiara Advani, Manish Malhotra and Sara Ali Khan

Saif Ali Khan and Kareen Kapoor Khan with their cute son Taimur

Anshula Kapoor and Janhvi Kapoor

(L-R) Natasha Dhawan, Karuna Dhawan and Varun Dhawan

(L-R) Katrina Kaif, Manish Malhotra and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

(L-R) Anushka Sharma, Bhumi Pednekar, Janhvi Kapoor and Sara Ali Khan

SHUBHANSHI PATHAK cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

It is tough to understand the feelings, emotions, and affection shared by siblings. Some particu lar days or occasions, on the other hand, are dedicated to strength ening the bond between a brother and a sister. Bhaiya Dooj is one such occasion that can characterise siblings' un dying love (brother and sister). This delightful holiday is a vi tal time for sisters to pray to God for their loving brother's longevity, well-being and pros perity. The event takes place following the two-day Diwali holiday. The occasion oc curs on the second day of the Shukla Paksha of the Kartika month. City First brings to you some delectable recipes for fes tive cuisine to commemorate the love-filled relationship be tween brothers and sisters.

FLAVOURS For Royalty

CHAAT BOARD

A charcuterie board but with chaat! Interesting, isn’t it? Instead of just preparing pani puri, dahi bhalla, or papdi chaat, why not make an entire board of chaats? A chaat board can in clude samosas, pani puris, and papdi chaats drizzled with chutneys and curd.

RASMALAI

It’s one of the most delectable classic sweet meals that may be prepared at any moment. This delectable treat is created with paneer, milk, sugar, saffron, almonds, and pistachios.

Gulab Kheer is a unique

with a rose flavour. It's a traditional yet unique sweet dish made with full

milk, basmati rice, condensed milk, dry rose

rose water and sugar. We are confident that your brother will fall in love with this delectable delicacy.

TAWA SABZ

Tawa

KESARI SHRIKHAND

Kesar shrikhand, one of Gujarat's most delight ful foods, is created with thick yoghurt, con densed milk, sugar, cardamom and saffron. Garnish the dish with dry fruits and serve cold. This Bhai Dooj, finish your celebration with this delectable, creamy dessert.

SEWAYI

PARFAIT

Try this gorgeous version served in layers in a glass like a parfait instead of conventional sewaiyan! This sewayi parfait, topped with whipped cream, is one to save for

CHOCOLATE & GINGER PHIRNI

It is another type of phirni with a modern twist for individuals who wish to test out new meals. Cocoa

rice flour, milk, dried

and whey protein are used to make this phirni. This phirni will appeal to your healthconscious brother because it contains both flavours and protein.

MALAI KOFTA

Malai kofta is a royal delight and one of the most popular meals at

festive and special occasions in India. Malai kofta, a sweet and moderately spicy paneer dish that can

CELEBRATING KHATTA-MEETHA RISHTA

The best thing that ever happened to me was to meet him and since then he has always been there for me, taking care of me, and supporting me, defending me! I couldn't have asked for a better brother.

—SALONI SHARMA

Yesterday, my sisters and I celebrated Bhai Dooj at our nani's house. We had dinner together and then played a round of cards. I was moved to tears by my sister's hand-written letter, which she read out to me.

—YOGESH CHAUHAN

I and my cousins have planned a two-day Pushkar trip for bhai dooj this year. We’re leaving tomorrow morning and it’s a road trip! I am looking forward to one amazing Bhai Dooj celebration on the hills. A fun trip with my cousins is all that I needed this year.

—PRIYANSHU

After fighting for an entire day, we very peacefully completed the rituals of Bhai dooj, thanks to me. He gave me chocolates as a present and ate my Donut in return. Even though he troubles me a lot, I am always happy when he is around.

Hindus celebrate the unwaver ing love between a brother and a sister on Bhai Dooj or Bhaiya Dooj. In an effort to deepen their link, Bhai Dooj defines the enduring affec tion between siblings. Sis ters pray to God for their beloved brother’s long life, good health, and prosperity on this auspicious day. The sisters celebrate the event by applying a tilak or a vermilion mark to the forehead of their broth ers, followed by an aarti of him, while carrying a decorated thali filled with treats, roli, and coconut. Then they fill their bellies with sweets, and in response, the broth ers shower them with gifts and blessings. On the very final day of the five-day celebration of lights, Diwali, the festival is observed. It’s also said that after defeating the demon Narakasura, Lord Krish na went to see his sister Subhadra, who welcomed him by donning a ti lak. City First brings to you some highlights from the festival of love!

Honestly, Bhai dooj is no different than Raksha Bandhan for us brothers. They are just two days of us loosing our hard-earned money for a cupcake in return. Yes, I am not earning right now but you need to focus on the emotions. My sister’s going to kill me now, haha.

—SPARSH CHOUDHARY

To celebrate Bhai Dooj, we’ll go to our sister’s house. She’ll hopefully prepare some delectable cuisine for us all, just like she did last year. Oreo shake is much awaited. Of course, she will charge a lifafa in return, which is the only sad aspect of the day for me.

—JAYANSH SHARMA

This year I celebrated Bhai Dooj by going out on a lunch with my cousins. Because of the Diwali holidays, everyone was in Jaipur and therefore nobody was missing in the celebration. We had a great time, took loads of photos, and shared some delicious meals.

—SAMIT GUPTA

Being the eldest among my cousins means that I harbour most of their unconditional love and attention while! Most people view it as a responsibility but they make me feel 12 again! Even that day when we asked Alexa to play ‘Rakhi Bandhan’ songs (yeah, the mistake was purposive :D ) and spoiled each other’s tilaks, we didn’t care about the worries that flood ourselves but basked in the moment that God solely wrote for us. I’m so blessed to have y’all in my life.

—DISHA AJMANI

City First brings to you glimpses of the festival that celebrates the love-hate relationship of brothers and sisters across the nation as they dive into this special day of joy and love.

KHUSHI TAMBI cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

—SHIKSHA

Saloni Khandelwal and Avi Jain

Yogesh Chauhan with his mother Lad Kanwar Chauhan and sisters Jyotsana Chauhan & Pooja Chauhan

Rakshavya Sharma and Priyanshu

Shiksha and Jhankrit

Disha and Nishan Ajmani

Samit Gupta and Family during Bhai Dooj celebration

Agrima Sharma and Jayansh Sharma

Raghav Katta and Sparsh Choudhary

BIGWING IN NEW DELHI

Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) elevated the #GoRidin spirit with the inau guration of a premium big bike business vertical, Honda BigWing recently in New Delhi. Speaking on the inauguration of BigWings in New Delhi, Atsushi Ogata, Managing Di rector, President & CEO of Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India said “Our focus is on the expansion of Honda Big Wing (Honda’s exclusive pre mium motorcycle network)

DIWALI 2022 BASH

CITY FIRST

This year’s Diwali witnessed grand parties hosted by many celebrities and personali ties. Amidst all, an industry lead er in his own right Actor & Entrepreneur Nitin Arora also hosted a grand Diwali party at his resi dence in Nation’s Capital. The bash was the perfect time to spread the aura of happiness on this auspi cious holiday so beauti fully. The entire house was mesmerized by lights, music, sweet savouries, and booze with different varie ties of food and his favourite people around. The evening was daz zled by the won derful presence of b’town biggies including Sonu Nigam, Honey Singh, Adnan Sami, Mithoon, Mohit Chauhan, Chitraganda Sin gh, Harshdeep Kaur, Akhil Sachdeva, Jas bir Jassi, Meet Brothers, Kiku Sharda, Toshi Shar ib, Navraj Hans, Hari Sukhmani and many others were witnessed in the grand celebration.

THE

CITY FIRST

Asolo art exhibi tion, The Woven Image by Vinita Karim was or ganised recently in the city. Vinita Karim’s land scapes portray com plexity in the organ isational dimension resulting in integra tion between natural and the made. Her recent body of work presented includes an expansive range of media explored

by Karim. Her paintings are based on an instinc tive mood. She uses her underlying sentimentali ties and daily disposition as a torque to manifest. There is a constant back and forth, trying to de code her transcript to find its roots and dis sect its intent. The scorings negotiate their own stance while being part of a larger architectural set ting. One can see elabo rate details that adorn a

canvas with confident geometry, vibrant col ours, and a purposeful ornate that celebrates both traditional craft and what one may consider the artistic practice.

The Woven Image also showcased her finely done embroidery work and works of mineral pigments. The perfor mance of the needle re sembles brushwork, a liner or rigger brush with long bristles. Ka rim’s practice of making

to deliver a truly differenti ated immersive experience closer to customer. Today, we are delighted to inaugurate BigWing at Lajpat Nagar in New Delhi. Through this new premium outlet, we aim to take Honda’s fun motorcy cles closer to customers in New Delhi and bring to expe rience our mid-size range of premium motorcycles.”

Further strengthening its penetration across the coun try, customers can now expe rience the differentiated Sil ver Wings at over 100 opera tional touchpoints.

cityfirstdel@gmail.com

sculptures is a mode to expand her interest in found objects and a means to indulge in an

approach that does not restrict her in dimen sionality or history. The artist relished the joys of

inaccuracies, the mo ments of surprise, and the spontaneity that comes with the risky technicalities of produc tion. She uses her unique mark-making to create a dialogue between the by gone and contemporary, as a means to eternalise, but also personalise; as means to preserve his torical links, but also lib erate pieces from their older ties, giving them new life. cityfirstdel@gmail.com

PROUD MOMENT!

CITY FIRST

The official Twitter handle of Police Families Welfare Society shared glimpses of Police Families Welfare Society stores where candles, bundles and swadeshi clothes and other products were made available to fill this Diwali with lights and to portray their devotion towards God.

The official Twitter handle of the Police Families Welfare Society shared photos of PFWS-Mission Olympic Player and DelhiPolice Family member Sarthak Rana as he won a medal in the 72nd Junior National Basketball Championship.

The official Twitter handle of the Police Families Welfare Society shared glimpses from the rangoli competition organised at the PWFS Welfare centres to increase the energy of Indian tradition and festivals. The creative works of the winners were rewarded.

Sonu Nigam

Mithun and Maninder Buttar Meet Bros Chitrangada Singh

Shareeb and Toshi Honey Singh

Adnan Sami with his wife and daughter

Harshdeep Kaur

Kikku Jasbir Jassi Mohit Chauhan

Meher Kalra, Anjolie Ela Menon, Tripat Kalra and Vinita Karim

Maite Delteil and Paresh Maity

Anjolie Ela Menon with a guest

Vinita Karim, Seema Kohli and Tripat Kalra

Nitin Arora with his wife

During the event