28 Jan 2023

Nagaland Post

Israelis, Palestinians tense after raid

FOLLOW US ON

Everyone’s responsibility to preserve culture: Rio

Staff Reporter

DIMAPUR, JAN 27

(NPN): Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio reminded the people of their responsibility in protecting and preserving their culture, tradition and customs.

Speaking at the 16th Bishu Mini Hornbill Festival held at Kachari Community Playground, DarogajanKushiabill, on Friday, he noted that Nagaland was a small State but was home to many tribes and sub-tribes that followed their own tradition, culture and customs.

He expressed joy at all tribes having been able to keep up their tradition and identity and said that it was the duty of all to safeguard and promote them.

The festival was organised by Dimasa Public Organisation Nagaland (DPON) in collaboration with Nagaland Tourism. Rio stated that the celebration

Jio launches 5G across 6 NE states

NEW DELHI, JAN 27 (AGENCIES): Reliance Jio announced the launch of its True 5G services across all six states of North-East circle, connecting seven cities namely, Shillong, Imphal, Aizawl, Agartala, Itanagar, Kohima, and Dimapur with Jio True 5G network.

Reliance Jio has also promised that by December 2023, Jio True 5G services will be made available in every town and taluka of North East states.

Starting January 27, Jio users in seven cities across six states of Arunachal Pradesh (Itanagar), Manipur (Imphal), Meghalaya (Shillong), Mizoram (Aizawl), Nagaland (Kohima and Dimapur), and Tripura (Agartala) will be invited to Jio Welcome Offer. Once enrolled, the Jio True 5G users can get Unlimited Data at up to 1 Gbps+ speeds, at no additional cost. Jio True 5G has already reached 191 cities.

Tongpang quits; 24 AC seat declared vacant

DIMAPUR, JAN 27 (NPN): Independent MLA from 24 Angetyongpang assembly constituency, Tongpang Ozukum, has tendered his resignation.

According to the assembly secretariat, the NLA speaker has accepted the resignation tendered by Tongpang from the membership of 13th Nagaland Assembly with effect from the forenoon of January 27, 2023 and declared the seat as vacant.

Rio addressing the gathering (R) a cultural troupe performs at the 16th Bishu Mini Hornbill Fest. (NP)

of such festivals not only promoted unity, but also promoted culture and tradition.

He observed that Nagaland was known as “The land of festivals” due to each tribe having its own festival, while Hornbill Festival was the festival of all festivals.

He claimed that many outsiders often wondered how so many tribes could reside together in peace and harmony. He also expressed joy at the Mech Kacharis and Dimasa Kacharis celebrating the 16th Bishu festival together in harmony.

He however warned Nagas on the dangers of

imitating other cultures, adding that foreigners visited the State to witness the unique dances, songs, music, attires, etc, and not to witness us imitating other cultures. Rio also proposed generating revenues locally by renting out rooms to tourists through Airbnb.

He said Naga culture was protected through imposition of Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation Act 1873 in Naga hills.

Dwelling on Dimasa kingdom, he called on all Nagas to respect and protect the rich heritage, especially the kingdom’s ruins. He said

he had doggedly pursued with the Minority Ministry to recognise the entire State as a minority area, which the ministry finally did in 2022.

He assured that minority tribes like the Dimasa Kacharis, Mech Kacharis, Garos, Kukis, etc, would receive special protection through the ministry.

Rio also pointed out how the Centre had given protection to Nagas through Article 371 (A), besides being exempted from 73rd Amendment Act, while the Panchayati Raj Act was not relevant in the State. He s aid exemption from the

1st T20I: NZ beat India by 21 runs, take

Panchayati Raj Act allowed selection of village council members and not election. He appealed to every village and community to strengthen this customary practice.

Earlier, the programme was chaired by Dhonthaidi Langthasa and Resmila Thaosen and Bishu prayer was offered by former general secretary Sibrai Bismai Bosong Nagaland John Jidung.

Welcome address was delivered by Kachari Tribal Council Nagaland adviser SK Khemprai, Bishu greetings by KTCN president Ramesh Hasnu and vote of thanks by Dimasa Public Organisation Nagaland general secretary Thangsiring Jigdung. Highlights of the festival included cultural presentation by Dhansiripar Cultural Troupe, Sumi Cultural Troupe, Lotha Cultural Troupe, Mech Kachari Cultural Troupe, Garo Cultural Troupe, Dimasa Cultural Troupe and others.

4 from Nagaland participate in ‘Pariksha Pe Charcha’

DIMAPUR, JAN 27

(NPN): Three students and one teacher from Nagaland on Friday participated in the “Pariksha Pe Charcha 2023” at Talkatora Stadium, New Delhi, wherein Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, interacted with more than 1200 students.

Conceptualized by prime minister, Pariksha Pe Charcha is interactive programme, wherein students, parents, teachers from across the nation and also from overseas interact with him to discuss anxieties related to examinations and life after school.

In a press release, school education depart -

NEW DELHI, JAN 27

(IANS): The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to examine a plea seeking direction to Centre to take steps to create an appropriate system, which empower citizens to petition the Parliament and seek the initiation of a debate, discussion, and deliberation on the issues and concerns highlighted by citizens in their petitions.

A bench of Justices

K.M. Joseph and B.V. Nagarathna expressed its reservations in connection with the prayers raised in the plea. It said if allowed, it could impede the functioning of

Cong accuses BJP of going all out to destroy regional parties

Staff Reporter

DIMAPUR, JAN 27

(NPN): All India Congress Committee (AICC) media coordinator Sujata Paul has accused BJP of having no respect for any regional party and was all out to destroy regional political parties across the country.

Addressing the media at Con gress Bhavan here on Friday afternoon, she referred to January 22 incident when BJP karyakartas allegedly created havoc while protesting at deputy chief minister Y Patton’s residence and threatened to go for mass resignation.

“The street fight within BJP and between NDPP and BJP is proving to be bad for the peace-loving Nagas. It is very uncommon for Nagas to be shouting in the streets. This is what happens when BJP comes to Nagaland,” she specified.

She further alleged that indiscipline among BJP workers was not spontaneous but deliberate, planned and staged. She said it was BJP’s larger gameplan that was being encouraged by chief minister Neiphiu Rio himself. She also accused Rio of holding Nagaland to ransom through corruption, while BJP was destroying even the last remnants of democracy in an oppositionless Nagaland Assembly.

Paul pointed out that it was not just a fight between BJP and Rio-led NDPP, but

a fight that BJP was indulging in to benefit and ultimately destroy the regional party in Nagaland. She said Rio was responsible for bringing this upon Nagaland by being corrupt and weak. In its endeavour to wipe out the regional parties completely, she alleged that BJP brought in the “vote cutter” Aam Aadmi Party, claiming that this was another proof of BJP’s nervousness of losing and a strategy to intimidate its alliance partners just in case it had to go alone into the elections.

ment informed that Visali

Z Sangtam (Class 11) from Livingstone Foundation International School, Dimapur; Hansuja Medhi (Class 10) from Delhi Pu-

bic School, Dimapur and Mompy Boruah, teacher from Army Public School, Rangapahar, were selected to participate in the programme on the basis of their performance in the online competition conducted by Education Ministry.

Another student, Nyemjun Konyak (Class 10) from Government Higher Secondary School (GHSS) Diphupar, who secured second position at National Kala Utsav Competition, also attended the programme. Commissioner & secretary, Kevileno Angami; principal director, Thavaseelan K; NBSE chairman Aseno Sekhose; SCERT ad-

ditional director Keviraleu Kerhuo and senior education officers joined students and teachers of Dr. Neilhouzhü Kire GHSS, Seikhazou, Kohima in viewing the live telecast.

Department informed that all the schools functioning in Nagaland were also directed to make necessary arrangements for students from Class 6 and above to view the deliberations.

Students of Kendriya Vidyalaya Dimapur also watched the live webcast of “Pariksha Pe Charcha 2023”, which was held on the theme, “Leave all your exam stress and nervousness behind!”.

Agencies mandated to curb use of money-power in election

DIMAPUR, JAN 27 (NPN): With the announcement of the schedule for the general election to the Nagaland Legislative Assembly 2023 by the Election Commission of India (ECI), the mandate for curbing use of money-power and various forms of inducements in elections have been vested with several enforcement agencies both central and state.

In a press release, Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Nagaland V Shashank Shekhar informed that the Income

Tax, Government of India, have formed surveillance teams, air intelligence units (AIU), rail intelligence unit (RUI) and set up 24x7 Control Room for the purpose of effective monitoring of election expenditures of the candidates and for curbing the use of black money during the election process.

CEO informed that 24x7 Control Room-cum Complaint Monitoring Cell has been set up at and Camp Office at Circuit House, Kohima. Public could register complaint on the

electoral malpractices to 24x7 Toll Free Numbers at the control rooms at Dimapur (18003453889) and Camp Office Kohima (18003453878).

Airport, railway station, hotels, farm houses, hawala agents, financial brokers, cash couriers, pawn brokers and other suspicious agencies/ persons likely to be used for movement of unaccounted cash during election process would be kept under close surveillance by the Income Tax Department, CEO informed.

MCMC to monitor political advt, paid news

DIMA PUR,

the Parliament, and pointed out that India has a huge population, as compared to other countries which have such systems.

“You want it to be declared as part of Article 19(1). It will completely clog the working of Parliament,” the bench told advocate Rohan J. Alva, representing petitioner Karan Garg.

Alva, assisted by advocate Aby P. Varghese, argued that the petition raises substantial questions of constitutional law and there is an engaged electorate, which is attentive to issues but there is no avenue to engage with

the lawmakers after they have been elected. Counsel urged the top court to issue notice in the matter. As the bench asked how is the writ petition maintainable against the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, counsel argued that the system is there in the UK’s House of Commons “and we are based on the Westminster model”, while adding that these practices are in vogue abroad. After hearing arguments, the top court asked counsel to serve the petition to the Central government’s standing counsel, saying:

“Let us see what they have to say”. It scheduled the matter for further hearing in February. It, however, did not issue notice on the plea.

The petitioner has made three respondents in the petition: Union of India through its Secretary, the Lok Sabha through its Secretary General, and the Rajya Sabha through its Secretary General. The plea sought a declaration that citizens have a fundamental right to directly petition the Parliament and invite discussion on important issues of public interest.

(Cont’d on p-8)

JAN 27

(NPN): A state level media certification and monitoring committee (MCMC) was held on Friday under the chairmanship of chief electoral officer (CEO) Nagaland, V Shashank Shekhar, to monitor pre-certification of political advertisement, Paid News, social media etc. Shekhar asked the MCMC and district level committee to take responsibility of their powers and function and also examine the norms and procedures according to ECI guidelines. He informed that all registered national and state political parties and candidates contesting the election must apply for pre-

US Senator asks Pfizer to explain virus project scam

NEW YORK, JAN 27 (AGENCIES): Hours after conservative group ‘Project Veritas’ published a sting operation wherein Pfizer director Jordan Walker was heard claiming that the pharmaceutical company was “mutating” the Covid-19 virus strains, US Senator (Florida) Marco Rubio wrote a stinging letter to Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla.

In a letter dated January 26, Rubio said, “An investigative report suggests that Pfizer may be conducting gain-of-function research, which it dubs “directed evolution” research to mutate the SARS-CoV-2 virus to create additional,

more potent variants and vaccines to combat future variants.” “This type of research, similar to gain-offunction research, has long been controversial, and is suspected to be the cause of the COVID-19 pandemic,” he pointed out.

Senator Marco Rubio said, “Whether it’s gain of function research, or selected structure mutations through directed evolution, as Mr Walker claimed would occur, any effort to make a virus more transmittable and deadlier is careless and dangerous,”

“Further, Mr Walker stated that Pfizer is willing to engage in this danger -

ous research because COVID and its variants are ‘a cash cow’ for the company and regulators will go easy on their efforts because a significant percentage of government officials aim to work for Pfizer and other biopharmaceutical companies and do not want to compromise their future job prospects,” he questioned.

Sen Rubio also posed several questions on the Pfizeer CEO over its controversial project on virus mutation. ‘Project Veritas’, a conservative group known for undercover stories, had set up a date with Pfizer Director Jordan Walker and quizzed him about the

vaccine developed by the pharmaceutical company. The video was released on January 26, 2023.

Without realising that he was being recorded the whole time, Jordan Walker made damming revelations about the work undertaken by Pfizer and the lack of ethical checks and balances within the company.

The reason for wanting to mutate the virus, Walker told an undercover journalist, was so that the company could stay ahead of the game and continue to develop vaccines. He casually said that Pfizer was considering mutating the Covid-19 virus to develop a new version of

the vaccines. “You have to be very controlled to make sure that this virus that you mutate doesn’t create something that just goes everywhere,” the Pfizer Director said. He also accepted that the pandemic has been a ‘cash cow’ for Pfizer and will continue to remain so in days to come. “Yeah, it would be perfect,” Walker said on the idea of the pharma company making money from new Covid-19 vaccines. Jordan Walker also said that Pfizer has been a ‘revolving door’ for government employees who are in charge of reviewing drugs and how they later join the same pharma company.

certification of political advertisement not later than three days prior to the date of the proposed commencement of the telecast of the advertisement. On the timeline to submit application for certification, CEO said that in case of any other person or unregistered political parties, it should be not later than seven days prior to the date of telecast.

The committee also discussed and agreed to organize a workshop on monitoring of electronic and social media including the print media.

The meeting was also attended by additional CEO, R Khezhie, joint CEO Sharon Longchari, I&PR additional director, Dzuvinuo Theunuo, members of the media and others.

Pak rupee slumps to Rs.262 against USD

KARACHI, JAN 27

(IANS): The Pakistani currency maintained a freefall for a second consecutive day, plunging by a fresh 4.78 per cent (or Rs 12.87) to a new all-time low of Rs 268.30 against US dollar on Friday, media reports said.

On Thursday, the currency recorded the single largest slump in a day of 9.61 per cent (or Rs 24.54) to Rs 255.43 against the greenback.

Accordingly, the rupee has recorded a cumulative drop of almost 14 per cent (or Rs 37.41) in just two days, Express Tribune reported.

The currency saw a steep fall following the government ending its control over the rupee-dollar exchange rate and letting market forces determine it under an International Monetary Fund condition, it reported. Pakistan is all for reviving the stalled IMF loan programme of $6.5 billion to avert the looming high risk of default on international payments. The country’s foreign exchange reserves further depleted by $923 million to an alarming level of $3.7 billion, the central bank said in its latest weekly update Thursday.

‘Will clog Parl’: SC agrees to examine PIL on citizens petitioning Parliament to debate important issues

(C) Sujata Paul with party functionaries addressing the media. (NP)

Shekhar chairing the meeting of the State Level MCMC. (CEO)

Nagaland students taking selfie with PM Modi in New Delhi on Friday.

Nagaland gears up for general election 2023

DIMAPUR: As the state prepares for the general election to the 14th Nagaland Legislative Assembly (NLA), district and sub-division administrations, civil society organisations and others have been organising and issuing various programmes, information to conduct fair and smooth election.

‘Clean election’ rally at Sürümi village

DEF Pughoboto conducts flag march

Sürümi Students’ Union with others at the clean election rally.

A “Clean Election” rally under the theme, “For better change opt for righteous” was organised by Sürümi Students’ Union (SSU) in collaboration with Sürümi GBs, Sürümi Sumi Totimi Hoho (SSTH) and Church leaders on January 25 at Sürümi Village, Sürühuto Zunheboto. In a press release, SSU

president, Katovi A Aye and general secretary, Kukugha Yeptho said the main purpose of the rally was “to encourage and refreshen the minds of every public towards pragmatic mindset of clean election and its outcome for development, besides crating awareness to discard unattractive practices” for the upcoming gen-

eral election and most importantly to break ground for the future generation. The union said the rally’s messages were - “demand for development rather than selling of vote”, “cheering for altercation rather than swigging”, “longing for veracity both with the public and on the same hand for the candidate”.

Tragopan Club Viswema observe 40th Club Day

Correspondent

NEWS IN BRIEF

DUCCF annual general meeting: Dimapur Urban Council Chairmen Federation (DUCCF) has convened its annual general meeting on February 2, 10 a.m. at Lengrijan Council Hall. All members have been asked to attend the meeting.

DEF Pughoboto along with C coy 75 BSF Bn conducted flag march to instill confidence among the public for the forthcoming general election on January 27. (IA Pughoboto)

RJD to contest election

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) has decided to contest in the ensuing Nagaland state assembly election, informed RJD Nagaland media cell. This was decided during January 25 meeting of Nagaland State RJD office bearers and party workers with two senior RJD leaders, Bhola Yadav, former MLA Bihar and present general secretary of RJD Bihar, and minister of agriculture Bihar, Kumar Sarvjeet, at state party office, Thilixu, Dimapur.

AAYF to ensure ‘clean election’ DC & DEO Mkg informs on election trg schedule

Ato Area Youth Front (AAYF) while maintaining that the area and Nagaland in general needed “real development and change” has decided to carry out “inspections and checks” to ensure a “clean election”.

In a press release, AAYF president, Anoto Swu and general secretary, Khevito Zhimo lamented that the “culture of buying and selling votes for money has been practiced for long in the state of Nagaland by many politi-

cians, leaders, student bodies and civil societies”. Stating that the young generation needs “real solutions based on the ground reality”, AAYF said it would not follow the same path towards corruptions and has thus decided to stand against “corruptions in terms of all that offered during the selection of its leader”. AAYF has asked all youth to take serious note of it and has hoped for positive response from public and candidates.

Deputy Commissioner and District Election Officer (DEO) Mokokchung, Shashank Pratap Singh has informed all government employees under Mokokchung district assigned for election duty as presiding officer, 1st polling officer, 2nd polling officer, 3rd polling officer and

grade IV staffs to take note of the training schedule.

The schedules are as follows - 1st round training on February 2-3; 2nd Round of training on February 1415 and final round of the training on February 21-22. Further, DC and DEO has directed all head of the de-

partment/offices under Mokokchung District to depute all the listed officials under their respective establishment to the training. DC and DEO cautioned that any government employee failing to attend the election training/ duties shall be prosecuted under the election law.

Poilwa Namdizang Village Council resolves

In view of the ensuing general election, Poilwa Namdizang Village Council (PNVC) Peren district has resolved to uphold the true democratic process of elections as enshrined in the Constitution of India.

The council has resolved to ensure that citizen within its jurisdiction abstain trading of

votes for cash or kind; it has prohibited supply of intoxication and other substance by candidates or their agents during election. PNVC has also resolved to extend full co-operation to the district administration, security personnel and other government machineries to enable the smooth conduct of election.

BJP Mon apologizes for defying ENPO resolution

DIMAPUR: BJP Mon unit, in response to the “explanation call” notice by Konyak Union, has apologized the January 24 agitation by BJP Mon unit members in violation of the August 26, 2022 ENPO resolution. In a letter, BJP Mon unit president Nyawang Wangsa tendered

unconditional apology if their actions had hurt the sentiments of KU and ENPO. The unit also said that they fully support the ENPO and KU stand for Frontier Nagaland demand. Meanwhile, a separate undertaking was also signed by BJP unit vice president Nyang-

pong Konyak and secretary Mangoak Konyak, counter signed by KU vice president Y. Chingwang Wangsa and general secretary Manpang K. Wangyen.The BJP unit expressed regret for the protest rally held at BJP office, Mon on January 24, defying the public resolution and

College of Arts & Technology launches website

DIMAPUR: College of Arts and Technology (CAT), Nerhe Phezha in Kohima district, has officially launched its college website on Friday. One can access the link at catkohima.in. The site will provide all the necessary information and navigations about the college with integrated calendering of the college

events which can be easily accessed through various communication devices. The website was designed by Er. Ketusezo Rote, Technology Officer, Kohima Smart City Development Limited. Later, during a workshop on “Web Management and Graphic Designing” on the same day, Er. Rote gave an ex -

tensive demonstration on how to utilize and manage the web platform in order to enhance the website for robust and improved functionality. The programme was chaired by Aosenla Longchar, Dean of Academics CAT while vote of thanks was proposed by Dziesekhonuo Mere, Dept of Sociology, CAT.

order passed by the Konyak Union. The BJP sincerely apologized for the unfortunate incident and said that the party will issue public apology to the Konyaks for defying the order of KU. It further said that the party would abide by the resolution of KU and ENPO within

its jurisdiction and ensure that no such party activities would take place in the district till further notice by KU. They also agreed that the KU shall, hereafter, reserve the right to initiate any disciplinary action against the party if and when the party defies the KU resolution.

1st DEATH ANNIVERSARY

Lt REV. YANKEY PATTON

KOHIMA, JAN 27(NPN): Tragopan Club Viswema celebrated the 40th Club Day on January 26 at Rachii Panchayat Hall, with Dr Tseilhoutuo Rhutso, Managing Director, KOHIMAS Hospital as the speaker. Speaking on the occasion, Dr Tseilhoutuo praised the club for preserving and promoting traditional games by organising Nagaland Open Pcheda and Torii. Earlier, the program was chaired by information and publicity secretary, Avitso Lcho and invocation by associate pastor, CRC Viswema, Dzuvingol Sothu.

A folk song competition was conducted where Zake and Thelpsii Whe were adjudged the winners and walked away with a cash prize of Rs 10000.

DWO Dimapur informs: District Welfare Officer (DWO) Dimapur has informed that the state old age pension, financial assistance to the disabled, blind pension, disability scholarship would be paid on February 1-3 at the District Welfare Office, Diphupar. All Anganwadi workers have been informed to collect the benefits on producing photocopy of Aadhaar and bank details page of the beneficiaries.

NSCN (Akato) greets: NSCN/GPRN (Akato Chophi) has conveyed warm “Bushu Jiba” greetings to the Kachari/Dimasa community, a recognised tribe of Nagaland. NSCN (Akato) hoped that good tidings would continue to prevail upon the Kacharis/Dimasas and that they be the “pathfinders and harbinger” of love and peace.

NSSA bids farewell: Nagaland Secretariat Service Association (NSSA) organised a farewell programme in honour of its seven retiring members on January 24 at Secretariat Conference Hall. The retiring officers included Shilomenla Longchari, Joint Secretary, Imsunungsang, Joint Secretary, Vihopile Keyie, Joint Secretary, Rabeni Kikon, Joint Secretary, M. Benjongnungsang, Joint Secretary, Alosha Khamo, Joint Secretary and Narola Imti, Under Secretary.

DIED ON : 28.01.22

A year has passed since you left us but not a moment passes by without missing you You have touched innumerable lives in your lifetime and even after your death, you live through your good deeds. We live everyday with your memories. Your smile, voice and the words you have shared with us are still afresh in our hearts and lingers on. Keep watching us until we meet.

dp-353/23

Loving Family

Nagaland Christian Revival Church Council organised seminar for its ordained and license minister on January 25-26 at CRC Chümoukedima Town with Rev. Dr. Imchanyanger, Rev. Dr. N. Paphino and Rev Vangpong Phom as resource persons and Rev. Vichülie Kelio and Rev. Ahoshe as evening speakers.

Thousands attend ACWA convention

at workplaces. The inaugural session was chaired by ACWA vice president Mezhünuo Alice, greetings was pronounced by catechist, Sts. Peter and Paul Church Zhadima, Pezhachülie Philip.

Vichosüle Lydwin from SACWA read the word of God while CACWA president Neichürieno Bridget said the final prayer. Chedema CWA under NACWA was the choir for the session.

NEXT POLL

WEATHER FORECAST

JANUARY 28

Correspondent KOHIMA, JAN 27 (NPN): The 23rd convention of Angami Catholic Women Association (ACWA), hosted by Sts. Peter & Paul Church Zhadima, began Friday at the village ground Zhadima, Kohima. Around 1,000 women from 46 Angami villages under Southern ACWA, Northern ACWA, Chakhroma ACWA, Western ACWA, Kohima Town ACWA, registered on the first day of the three-day convention.

The inaugural began with the blessing and inauguration of the convention hall by Parish priest, Mary Help of Christians Cathedral Kohima and ACWA spiritual director, Rev Fr Vemedo Kezo Joseph, who was also the speaker for the service. Sharing on the theme, “Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished”, Fr Joseph urged the gathering to reflect on the story and life of Mary, the mother of Jesus. He said mothers have the key to build or break

LHSSK welcome gate inaugurated

a family and society. With this huge responsibility on their shoulders, he asked them to fulfill their responsibility and never lose the key. As mothers hold a special role in the families, he also encouraged them to be spiritual mothers to their children and keep their children close to the Church.

Despite being a minority community, he said that faithful of the church should proudly profess the faith by following ethics and teachings of the Catholic Church at home and

CATC for NCC cadets of Southern Nagaland concludes

In the second session, Parish priest of St. John the Evangelist Church Khonoma, Rev Fr Dr Solomon Visosieo Vizo spoke on the topic “Faith without work is dead”.

He said that through the Baptism, faithfuls are called to be God’s children. He therefore urged the need to regularly feed the soul with spiritual food and be in communion with Christ.

Further, he advised the people to have faith, repent, and live by the Catholic faith.

The session was chaired by ACWA joint secretary Rüüngu-ü Rose, scripture was read by CACWA general secretary Rovikono Roseline, while Kelhousano Cecilia pronounced the final prayer. Khonoma CWA was the choir of the session.

DHS Mon holds reorientation in TB elimination programme

DIMAPUR: A seminar on “strengthening of Routine Immunization (RI) and reorientation in Tuberculosis (TB) elimination programme” was conducted by the board of Continuing Nursing Education (CNE) of Mon District and organised by District Health Society (DHS) Mon on January 25 at Town Council Hall.

Correspondent

KIPHIRE, JAN 27 (NPN):

Loyola Higher Secondary School Kiphire (LHSSK)

“welcome gate” was inaugurated Friday by additional secretary, Rural Development (RD), John Tsulise Sangtam as special guest. The gate was constructed by the Alumni Association of Loyola Higher Secondary School Kiphire

in view of the school golden jubilee celebration.

In his address, the special guest congratulated the school on attaining 50 years and encouraged the management to continue to impart quality education.

He also lauded the alumni association of sharing their love with the school by constructing the gate.

Sangtam also called for more unity and cooperation

between the school authority and the alumni association.

Earlier, a prayer for the gate was said by principal and parish priest LHSSK, Rev.Fr. Philip Magh; welcome address was delivered by chairman planning committee alumni association LHSSK, A Island Peace Yangtsaba; short speeches were also delivered by leaders of the school and alumni association.

A press release by National Health Mission (NHM) Mon stated that in a speech, Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Mon, Dr Vezokholu Theyo said the objective of the training was to create knowledge, skill and educate all the nurses. She said the seminar also aims to disseminate and educate the mass on RI and TB.

The resource persons were district TB officer Mon, Dr Tinenlo James, medical officer, Wakching CHC, Dr Chingyen, DPM NHM Mon, M. Bon-

nie Konyak, CHO Tizit village SC-HWC, Rebek Khongsai and CHO Chinglong SC-HWC, Ngeplei W. Konyak.

Moderators were SN District Hospital, Mon, Kijamongla and CHO Wangti HWC, Yingngam and panellist were SN District Hospital Mon, Thronlem and Leye Montu. The programme chaired by Yingngam started with an invocation prayer by Chaplin DH Mon, Y P David.

The release informed that the agendas of the seminar were strengthening of RI, group interaction and discussion, RMNCH+A/ ANC, identifying high risk pregnancy, VNHD, role of ASHAs and AWWs, new vaccines introduced in UIP, Measles Rubella Elimination 2023, reorientation on TB elimination, post-test, remarks from panellist and moderators and valedictory session.

ATMAs, KVKs conduct various programmes

the KVK activities for the farming community.

DIMAPUR: The Combined Annual Training Camp (CATC) for the National Cadet Corps (NCC) cadets of Southern Nagaland which commenced on January 20 concluded on January 27 at Kohima Science College, Jotsoma.

A press release by PRO Defence Kohima informed that 231 cadets of junior and senior division from Peren, Phek, Dimapur and Chümouke-

dima districts underwent a well-articulated training cycle under the guidance of army personnel and ANOs under the aegis of the NCC Group HQs, Kohima. The cadets were trained to handle small arms, as applicable to NCC, camp craft, sports, weapon display and band display by Kohima Battalion of Assam Rifles.

The cadets also scaled Puleibadze as part of

the trekking activity, to enhance environmental awareness. The release stated that motivational lectures and documentaries on leadership and military history were screened for the cadets using audio visual methods. The NCC A-level certificate practical exam for junior cadets was also held on January 26 and the written test was conducted on January 27.

Lions Club distributes rice to needy

DIMAPUR: Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA) Satakha block conducted demonstrations on “oyster mushroom production technology” and demonstrations on “gully pluga” on January 27 at Usutomi Village.

The block also conducted demonstrations on “cultivation of sweet orange cum bio enzyme cleaners” and “demonstrations on oyster mushroom production technology” on January 27 at Zhevishe Village.

The block in collaboration with Focus IFAD, Zunheboto also conducted demonstrations on “oyster mushroom production technology” and distribution of “oyster mushroom spawn” and materials /equipment for oyster mushroom production for young women farmers. Resources person for

the demonstration programmes were BTM, L. Chichamo Shitini and ATM, Tovi V Jimomi from ATMA Satakha Block.

ATMA Dimapur: A weeklong Skill Training of Rural Youth (STRY) programme on “employment generation and income through sericulture” organised by Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA), Dimapur at Amaluma Village concluded on January 21.

A total of 20 participants were registered for the training programme with sericulture supervisor, C. Zhipen, block technology manager Dhansiripar, P Moainla and assistant technology manager, Kaiho Achumi as the resource persons.

Deputy project director, ATMA Dimapur, Avitoli K Yeptho underscored

the importance of vocational studies and added that STRY aims at imparting skill-based training to rural youth on agri-based vocational areas in compliance with National Policy on Skill Development & Entrepreneurship-2015 in agriculture and allied areas to promote employment in rural areas. The programme concluded with distribution of certificates to the participants and vote of thanks by block technology manager, P Moainla.

ATMA Ghathashi block: ATMA Ghathashi block conducted demonstrations on “mushroom cultivation” and “gully plug” on January 24 at Chisholimi village with ATM, Kerilhoulie Rulu as the resource person. At the programme, resource person explained how mushroom cultivation could strengthen local liveli-

hoods through generation of a fast yielding, nutritious source of food and serve as a reliable source of income. He also demonstrated the steps and methods in construction of the check dams. Rulu said the main objective of “gully plug” was to prevent soil erosion and increase percolation thereby increase water table.

KVK Peren: Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) Peren district conducted its 6th Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) meeting on January 25 at KVK Peren office, Jalukie. The meeting was virtually chaired by HORC, ICAR RC for NEH Region, Nagaland Center Jarnapani, Dr. D. J. Rajkowa. The annual progress report 2022 and annual action Plan 2023 was presented by Dr. L. Babita Devi CTO A.Sc. The meeting deliberated on the impact and relevance of

KVK Aboi: A Skill Training of Rural Youth (STRY) on “soil testing” was organised by Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) Mon on January 17-23 at KVK Aboi. The training was organised under the aegis of directorate of extension, department of agriculture, cooperation and farmer welfare, government of India in collaboration with national institute of agricultural extension management (MANAGE) Hyderabad and the state agricultural management and extension training institute (SAMETI) Nagaland.

The training aimed to impart skill- based training to rural youth on agri- based vocational areas under the sub-mission on agricultural extension and national mission on agriculture extension and technology. The weeklong training programme covered a wide range on the physical, chemical and biological properties of soil with ACTO (soil conservation), Zhiete Kapfo, ACTO (horticulture), E. Renbomo Ngullie and ACTO (plant protection), Dr. Ropfuselhou Kehie as the resource persons. A total of 19 youth from Nangching village and Aboi town participated in the training

DIMAPUR: As part of Lions Hunger Project, the Lions Club Dimapur Blue Vanda distributed 200 kgs of rice to the needy families on January 27.

The club also donated

two benches to Holuto Fair Price Shop Midland to senior beneficiaries. Meanwhile, on January 26 on the occasion of Republic Day, Lions Club Dimpaur distributed snacks ,cereals

and potatoes to the inmates of Central Jail Dimapur. LCD president Lion Sumita Sharma urged the inmates to stay positive and said, “there is a new beginning every moment”.

Free cataract surgery eye camp at District Hospital Tuensang

DIMAPUR: A five-day free cataract surgery eye camp organised by National Programme for Control of Blindness and Visual Impairment Nagaland at District Hospital Tuensang concluded on January 27.

A press release by National Health Mission (NHM) Tuensang informed that the treatment was provided to the beneficiaries of Tuensang district and its neighbouring villages under Shamator district and Noklak district.

During the five long camps a total number of 223 patients were treated of various eye ailments by consultant eye specialist DH Tuensang, Dr. Phyantsuthung, S/N Eye OT/NHAK, Neikhropeu Mero, ophthalmic assistant, NHAK, Megohenuo Kehie and ophthalmic assistant DH Tuensang, Tochi Imlong.

Rev. Fr Joseph inaugurating the ACWA convention hall on Friday. (NP)

Members of LCD and police personnel at Central Jail

John Tsulise Sangtam with the school authority and others.

Medical officials and others at the eye camp on Tuensang.

ATMA Satakha block

ATMA Dimapur block

A cadet at the training session on weapon handling at the Combined Annual Training Camp.

PM to campaign for BJP in poll-bound M’laya

SHILLONG, JAN 27

(PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi will campaign for BJP in Meghalaya in the second week of February for the coming assembly election in the northeastern state, party state unit president Ernest Mawrie said on Friday.

Union ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Smriti Irani and Nitin Gadkari will be among the 20 star campaigners for the saffron party in the state for the February 27 poll, he said.

Chief ministers of other BJP-ruled states will also be campaigning in the state, Mawrie said.

“The date for the PM’s visit has not been fixed.

But just after February 10, maybe February 11-12, the prime minister will address several election rallies in all Khasi, Jaintia and Garo hill regions of the state,” Mawrie said.

The BJP is looking at increasing its presence in the 60-member of House from just two at present so as to

lead the next government.

The state party president said BJP will announce its candidate’s list in February after the Election Commission notifies the poll.

“We have prepared the list today and we are going to send it to Delhi. We are likely to declare the names of candidates within February 2,” he said, after chairing a meeting of BJP’s state election committee.

According to Mawrie,

Blast in Manipur on Republic Day; 1 injured

Correspondent

IMPHAL, JAN 27: Rebels triggered a bomb blast in Imphal on Thursday day evening, injuring a boy, an official source said Friday.

The boy, identified as Mang working at a hotel near the blast site sustained minor injuries and was admitted to JNIMS hospital, the police said.

The bomb suspected to have been planted by rebels went off around 50 meters away from Wangkhei High School at Wangkhei under Porompat police station of Imphal East district on January 26, around 6.15 pm.

The People’s Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK), an armed rebel group owned up for the blast, stating it was one in the series of blasts carried out its armed wing- Red Army. In a statement dispatched to the local media today, the outfit claimed triggering a series of blasts on the eve of the Republic Day celebrations and on RDay day at different places of the state including the one at Gandhi Chawk at Ukhrul district headquarters that wounded at least four persons, including two women.

The release signed by publicity officer Mangal Khuman of department of publicity and propaganda of PREPAK owned up that besides the blast at the platform of statue of the Mahatma Gandhi at Ukhrul district headquarters at 5.15 pm on January 25, its cadres also detonated another

bomb near Iron bridge along NH-2 between Khurkhul and Sekmai under Sekmai police station around 11.30 pm on the same day.

The blast in the evening of January 26 at Wangkhei in Imphal East was also triggered by cadres of its special task force of its armed wing Red Army.

The release further claimed planting of bombs at Kiyamgei Pal Ahanbi and Keiroa Langdum Lamkhai under Irilbung police station and also at the road side at Heingangkhong along Pangei-Saikul road in Imphal East. However, the bombs failed to explode due to technical errors, the PREPAK said.

The bombs were planted to oppose celebration of India’s Republic Day in Manipur and in solidarity to the boycott call given by Coordination Committee (CorCom), a conglomerate of five major rebel groups and other like-minded rebel groups resorting to armed struggle against the “Indian colonialism in the region.”

PREPAK is one of the constituents of the CorCom. NWU condemns

The Naga Women’s Union (NWU) has condemned Ukhrul bomb blast on 26 January. A press release by NWU termed the incident a ‘ Sadist’ attempt to claimed innocent lives. It called it terrorism at its worst.

NWU also urged the competent authority to look into the matter earnestly and book the perpetrators sorely on humanity ground.

the party will field about 10 women candidates.

Expressing confidence that the party will win more seats in the coming poll than last time, he said, “Last time we had projected wins in 25 seats. This time we have projected 35 seats and we expect to win more seats so that we can lead the government.”

Asked, Mawrie said “We are not planning for a coalition with any party. Let us wait till after the results to

find out like-minded parties who are willing to follow our agenda of corruptionfree government,” he added.

BJP is a partner of the current ruling Meghalaya Democratic Alliance in the state led by the National People’s Party of Chief Minister Conrad P Sangma. Mawrie said the party will focus on development in its manifesto. “We don’t have good infrastructure in terms of roads (in Meghalaya). People always complain about traffic congestion. We don’t have medical or engineering colleges. All these issues will be solved if we have a double engine government – a government by the same party here in Meghalaya and at the Centre,” he said.

Indicating the progress in Assam, the state BJP president said “Look at the neighbouring state. Development has taken place there at a faster pace in terms of roads, colleges and medical colleges. The people of Meghalaya have the same aspirations for

development. We will take it up if we get a chance to form the next government (in Meghalaya).”

On fielding candidates with criminal backgrounds, he said the party is yet to receive any information on them.

“Maybe some candidates have some cases against them but it has not come to our notice. We will follow the Election Commission’s guidelines if and when we receive such information,” he added.

Asked about the party’s stand on the Inner Line Permit issue, Mawrie said the state government has passed an official resolution in the Assembly on it and it is now with the Centre. “We will wait for the Centre’’s decision.”

The Meghalaya Assembly passed a resolution in December 2019 urging Centre to implement ILP in the state under the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulations, 1873, to safeguard the interests of the citizens of the state.

50 BJP workers join Congress in Meghalaya; to support PN Syiem

SHILLONG, JAN 27

(AGENCIES): Over 50 BJP supporters from Shillong’s Pynthorumkhrah constituency on Friday joined Congress to extend their support to Congress Pynthorumkhrah candidate PN Syiem, reports East Mojo. The supporters were led by former NCP candidate from Pynthorumkhrah, Predecessor Rumnong and BJP Mandal general secretary Phillby Lyngdoh.

PN Syiem, a Member of the District Council (MDC) said the leaders and the supporters joined the Congress to bring change to the constituency that has been left behind for 25 years.

Pynthorumkhrah is BJP MLA AL Hek’s bastion, and he has been winning for the past five terms.

“There are many issues that need to be addressed. Twenty-five years under MLA AL Hek…Pynthorumkhrah people know better than me. There has been zero development with no

PN Syiem AL Hek

playground or recreational centre for children. There is no water supply, people today are in one mind, and that is to support Congress,” said Syiem. Rumnong said the constituency has much potential for development, but it has not reached anywhere under Hek’s leadership. He alleged there is no proper community hall and that people had several expectations from Hek but nothing materialised. Pynthorumkhrah constituency has a mixed population of tribals and non-tribals. There are 15 polling stations under this constituency with about

31,000 electors. Speaking about his preparedness for the elections scheduled on February 27, Syiem said, “There are many candidates coming up like mushrooms in Pynthorumkhrah…I am an MDC and have played a long inning in politics so I know the art of politics.”

As of now, the BJP has not released its list of candidates. However, it is expected that Hek will again contest from this constituency. Other opponents are NPP candidate Rocky Hek and Samborlang Diengdoh, earlier a TMC candidate but now contesting as an independent.

Rs 8 lakh, alcohol seized in M’laya Tipra Motha to contest Tripura assembly polls alone: Debbarma

SHILLONG, JAN 27

(PTI): Election officials in Meghalaya seized over Rs 8 lakh cash and alcohol in West Garo Hills district, Chief Electoral Officer F R Kharkongor said on Friday. Election to the 60-member Meghalaya Assembly is scheduled for February 27 and the model code of conduct is in force in the state. “Unaccounted cash of Rs 8.96 lakh and alcohol worth over Rs 8,000 were seized in West Garo Hills district on Thursday,” Kharkongor told PTI. With this, officials have seized cash amounting to over Rs 29 lakh from across the state after the model code of conduct came into force, the CEO said. A senior district police officer said the cash was seized from a person who was driving into the state from Assam.

AGARTALA, JAN 27 (PTI): Tipra Motha supremo Pradyot Kishore Manikya Debbarma on Friday asserted that his party will not ally with any political outfit in the upcoming Tripura assembly polls.

The royal scion also said he will fight the February 16 elections to defeat those who are opposing its “Greater Tipraland” demand.

His comment comes amid speculations that the Tipra Motha is going to ally with the ruling BJP in the ensuing polls to the 60-member assembly.

“There were speculations that the Tipra Motha will fight the elections in alliance with a political party. Today, I am saying that there will be no alliance in this election.

“Until the Govern -

ment of India gives any written document for a constitutional solution to our demand, we will not go for any coalition....

Jitega toh jitega harega toh harega but one last fight to karke rahega ! (whether we win or lose, we will put up one last fight),” he said in a video clip uploaded on Facebook.

The royal scion also said that many people could not believe that the Tipra Motha would fight the elections without any alliance. “I don’t blame those who don’t believe in our stand. Since 1977, every regional ‘Tiprasa’ party went to Delhi before elections and signed agreements but the people got nothing after polls,” Debbarma said in an indirect attack on the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT), the ally of the rul-

ing BJP in the northeastern state. Notably, IPFT leaders - late N C Debbarma and Mevar Kumar Jamatia - had gone to Delhi before the 2018 assembly elections and signed an agreement with the Centre.

Debbarma had on January 25 said the regional party “received intimation” from the Ministry of Home Affairs for a talk on their ‘Greater Tipraland’ demand. “We attended a meeting and heard them patiently but the Govern-

ment of India has not given any written assurance for a constitutional solution to our demand”, he said.

“No alliance - my heart does not agree and so I have made my decision that I cannot accept New Delhi’s offer !...I can’t betray our cause and our people,” Debbarma said on social media.

Tripura’s royal scion urged Tipra Motha workers to prepare for the polls and said he will also fight the elections to “defeat those who are opposing our demand”.

Debbarma had recently said his party would field candidates in 40-45 seats in the upcoming polls and give tickets to non-Tiprasa (non-tribal) people.

The ruling BJP and the opposition CongressCPI (M) alliance have been vying with each other to

woo the Tipra Motha into an electoral understanding as the tribal party’s votes will be crucial in determining who will rule the northeastern state after the next month’s election. In a direct contest with the ruling BJP-IPFT alliance, the regional party swept the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) elections held in April last year, winning 18 of the 28 seats over the ‘Greater Tipraland’ demand. The CPI(M) and Congress, who had vowed to contest the upcoming election jointly to defeat the BJP, have not agreed to the idea of ‘Greater Tipraland’. Analysts said that the statehood demand will affect results in 20 assembly seats, where tribals hold considerable clout electorally.

India proposes to develop 130 model villages along LAC: Lt. General Kalita

KOLKATA, JAN 27 (AGENCIES): Observing that the situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh remains stable but unpredictable, Lt. General Rana Pratap Kalita, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Eastern Command said on Friday that there was a proposal to develop 130 villages as model villages in areas along that border, reports The Hindu. “Work has started in two-three villages, Kaho [in eastern Arunachal Pradesh} to be specific. Similarly all across the

eastern theatre we have identified 130 villages and a similar number, lesser or more, has been identified in eastern Ladakh and in Himachal and Uttarakhand,” said Lt. Gen Kalita. Noting that the model villages initiative was announced in last year’s Union Budget, he said that it was an ongoing process aimed at ensuring that there was no migration from such border villages in search of livelihood. Lt Gen Kalita’s remarks are crucial, as they come in the wake of reports of China expanding its own chain of model villages close to the LAC, opposite

Illegal immigrants from Myanmar found establishing new village in Manipur

Correspondent

IMPHAL, JAN 27: A group of 81 illegal immigrants from neighbouring Myanmar was found setting up a new village in Tengnoupal district, bordering Myanmar.

A joint team of Tengnoupal district administration and police arrested the 81 Myanmar nationals, including 10 minors, during a special drive yesterday (on January 26), a police source said on Friday.

The source said that the illegal immigrants set up a new village called New Salbung just next to H Lhangcham village under Moreh sub-division of Tengnoupal district after infiltrating into Indian territory.

All the arrested Myanmar nationals were booked under section 14 of Foreigners Act aft er registering a

Police in Manipur’s Tengnoupal district verifying Myanmar nationals found settling illegally.

suo-moto case against them, the police said.

This is not the first time foreign nationals, particularly from Myanmar and Bangladesh, were found settling in the hill districts after illegally entering the state.

Hundreds of Myanmar nationals taking shelter in the state have been arrested

during special drives carried out by the state.

Among them, as many as 52 Myanmar nationals, including 18 juveniles and minors are currently staying at a temporary jail in Churachandpur district.

Sadbhavna Mandap at New Lamka is being used as a temporary detention

centre for Burmese nationals arrested during drives against illegal immigrants.

After three of them escaped from the detention centre a few days ago, 26 inmates of the centre were transferred to the central jail in Imphal on January 25.

Meanwhile, Manipur chief minister N Biren Singh appreciated the DC and SP of Tengnoupal district and their team for identifying many illegal immigrants in yesterday’s operation.

While appreciating them in a Facebook post, the chief minister warned those giving shelter to illegal immigrants of facing legal action and urged them to inform the authorities if they detect any illegal immigrants.

“If not, you may face legal consequences for sheltering illegal immigrants,” he wrote.

Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.

‘Border not clearly demarcated’

Interacting with journalists at the Press Club in Kolkata, Lt. Gen. Kalita touched on a number of issues, including the reasons for recent skirmishes between the Indian Army and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) along the LAC in the eastern theatre. On December 13, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh told Parliament that the Chinese troops tried to “unilaterally” change the status quo in the Yangtse area in Arunachal Pradesh

but the Indian Army compelled them to retreat with its firm and resolute response.

“Whole problem stems from the fact that the border between India and China in Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh is not clearly demarcated. So there are different perceptions about the Line of Actual Control which leads to friction and escalation at times,” Lt. Gen. Kalita added.

Mirroring cross-border infrastructure Reports of increase of Chinese troops along the border are being moni-

tored, he said. “We have read that gradually there has been an increase in deployment of troops opposite our sectors along with infrastructure being carried out by the PLA across the down borders.. We are continuously and closely monitoring the developments in these areas,” he added.

Asked about the Chinese build-up at Chumbi valley and steps being taken to protect the chicken’s neck corridor near Siliguri, Lt. General Kalita said,

“Siliguri corridor is geostrategically extremely important to us… On our side, to mirror those activities, infrastructure development has been carried out to ensure better response from us in case we are required to do it.”

He said that the PLA had started infrastructure development after the 2017 Doklam standoff within their own territory. He added that work on a frontier highway in Arunachal Pradesh, along with tunnels, is going to start soon.

File photo of Modi in Meghalaya.

Pradyot Debbarma

SNIPPETS

One dead after building collapses

THANE, JAN 27 (PTI):

A 37-year-old man died, while another one was rescued after a two-storey commercial building collapsed in Bhiwandi town of Maharashtra’s Thane district in the wee hours of Friday, officials said. The incident occurred around 3.30 am in Khadipar locality of the town, they said. “There were seven shops on the ground floor of the building, while the upper ones were occupied by commercial establishments. Soon after the structure collapsed, two fire brigade teams rushed to the spot and launched a rescue operation,” an official of Nizampura police station said. The deceased, identified as Maji Vansari, was asleep inside the building when it collapsed. The victim died after getting trapped under the debris, he said. Another person, who also got trapped under the debris, was rescued. He did not suffer any injuries, fire brigade sources said.

Court allows Jacqueline to travel to Dubai

NEW DELHI, JAN 27 (PTI): A Delhi court on Friday allowed Bollywood actor Jacqueline Fernandez to travel to Dubai. The court was hearing her application seeking permission to travel abroad for a conference. A detailed order in the matter is awaited.

Fernandez is an accused in a Rs 200 crore money laundering case also involving alleged conman Sukesh Chandrasekhar.

Active Covid cases in country at 1,896

NEW DELHI, JAN 27 (PTI): India logged 99 new coronavirus infections, while the active cases declined to 1,896, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Friday. The Covid case tally was recorded at 4.46 crore (4,46,82,437). The death toll stands at 5,30,739 with one death reported by Maharashtra, the data updated at 8 am stated.

The daily positivity was recorded at 0.10 per cent while the weekly positivity was pegged at 0.08 per cent. The active cases now comprise 0.01 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has increased to 98.81 per cent, the ministry said. A decrease of 10 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,41,49,802, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.19 per cent.

Cold waves continue in Punjab, Haryana

CHANDIGARH, JAN 27 (PTI): Cold weather conditions continued to persist in Punjab and Haryana on Friday with Bathinda being the coldest place in the region.

In Punjab, Bathinda recorded its minimum at 0.6 degree Celsius, five degrees below normal, according to a report of the Meteorological Department here. Among other places, Amritsar shivered at 3.3 degrees Celsius, one degree below normal while Ludhiana’s low was recorded at 6.8 degrees Celsius. Patiala, Pathankot, Faridkot, and Gurdaspur experienced cold weather conditions at 5.7, 6, 1.4 and 5 degrees Celsius respectively.

Union Territory Chandigarh, the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana, recorded its minimum at 6.9 degrees Celsius. In Haryana, Ambala recorded its low at 7.6 degrees Celsius.

Technology fasting, tech-free zones in houses: Modi

PMsuggestschildrennot tobeslavesofgadgets

NEW DELHI, JAN 27 (PTI): “Don’t consider your gadget to be smarter than you” is the advise Prime Minister Narendra Modi has for students to avoid addiction to online games and social media which result in distraction.

“Technology fasting” at regular intervals and a demarcated area as a “technology-free zone” in every household will lead to the enhanced joy of life and help children come out of the clutches of slavery of gadgets, the prime minister suggested.

The words of wisdom were shared during his sixth annual interaction called “Pariksha Pe Charcha” with students, teachers and parents on exam stress related issues.

Giving his own example that he is rarely seen with a mobile phone, Modi stressed that one should not avoid technology but restrict oneself to the things of utility as per one’s need.

Students attend PM Narendra Modi’s ‘Pariksha Pe Charcha’ programme virtually at Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s residence in Bhopal. (PTI)

The prime minister said the first decision is to decide whether you are smart or your gadget is smart.

“The problem starts when you start to consider the gadget as smarter than you. One’s smartness enables one to utilise the smart gadget smartly and treat them as instruments that help in productivity,” he said responding to a question.

Dipesh Ahirwar, Aditabh, Kamakshi and Manan Mittal asked questions about the addiction to online games and social media and resulting distractions.

Quoting a study, the prime minister said the average screen time for an Indian is up to six hours.

“In such a situation gadget enslaves us. God has given us free will and

2,967 tigers in India across 53 tiger reserves: Centre tells SC

The prime minister suggested “technology fasting” at regular intervals. He also suggested a demarcated area as a ‘technology-free zone’ in every household.

“This will lead to the enhanced joy of life and you will come out of the clutches of slavery of gadgets,” he said.

A record 38 lakh students registered this year for participation in “Pariksha Pe Charcha”.

The number of registrations is at least 15 lakh more than last year, according to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

The first edition of the prime minister’s interactive programme with school and college students was held on February 16, 2018.

an independent personality and we should always be conscious about becoming slaves to our gadgets,” he said. “I am rarely seen with a mobile phone despite being very active. I keep a definite time for such activities. One should not avoid technology but restrict oneself to the things of utility as per one’s need,” he added.

The prime minister also gave the example of the loss of capability for table recital among students. “We need to improve our capabilities without losing our basic gifts. One should keep testing and learning in this era of artificial intelligence in order to preserve one’s creativity,” he said.

A tiger at a reserve. ( File).

NEW DELHI, JAN 27

(PTI): The Centre on Friday told the Supreme Court that there are 2,967 tigers in the country spread across 53 tiger reserves, according to a 2018 report.

The apex court was hearing a petition filed by Advocate Anupam Tripathi in 2017 seeking to save endangered tigers whose numbers are dwindling across the country. Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati told a bench of Justices KM Joseph and BV Nagarathna that a lot of work has been done for the conservation of tigers and increasing their population.

The top court took note of the submission and

adjourned the matter till March as Tripathi was not present.

“Heard ASG Aishwarya Bhati. As per the 2018 census, India has 2,967 tigers spread out in 53 tiger reserves. This number constitutes 70 per cent of the global number and figures point to the growth of the tigers. In the interest of justice, to give an opportunity to the petitioner, list on March 3,” the bench said.

The top court in 2017 had issued notice to the Ministry of Environment, the National Board for Wildlife and the National Tiger Conservation Authority on the plea which had also sought relocation of people living near tiger reserves.

Yatra called off due to security breach: Rahul in J-K Chargesheet filed in Morbi tragedy; Oreva’s Jaysukh Patel tenth accused

MORBI, JAN 27 (PTI):

Police on Friday filed a chargesheet in the suspension bridge collapse incident that had occurred in Morbi town of Gujarat in October last year, in which 135 people were killed and scores injured.

In addition to the nine arrested accused, Jaysukh Patel, managing director of Oreva Group that operated the bridge, has been named as the tenth accused in the chargesheet, said advocate Dilip Agechaniya, who is appearing for the victims.

A magistrate’s court has already issued an arrest warrant against Patel.

Ajanta Manufacturing Limited (Oreva Group) was responsible for the operation and maintenance of the British-era suspension bridge on the Machchhu river that collapsed, days after its repairs, on October 30 last year when nearly 250 persons were on it.

The chargesheet, which runs into more than 1,200 pages, was filed in the court of Morbi’s chief judicial magistrate MJ Khan by Deputy Superintendent of Police P S Zala, who is the investigating officer of the case.

“Oreva Group’s Jaysukh Patel, who was not

named in the FIR initially by police, has been shown as the tenth accused in the chargesheet filed before the magistrate on Friday. The chargesheet runs into over 1,200 pages and it contains statements of over 300 witnesses,” Agechaniya told reporters.

On October 31, a day after the bridge collapse, Morbi police had arrested nine persons, including two managers of Oreva Group, two ticket booking clerks, two sub-contractors who repaired the bridge and three security guards deployed on the cable-stayed structure to guide and control the crowd.

Two weeks ago, the same court issued an arrest warrant against Oreva MD Patel in connection with the tragedy. His anticipatory bail plea will come up for hearing on February 1.

All ten accused, including Patel, have been

Soren visits former Maoist hotbed ‘Budha Pahad’

charged under IPC sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide), 336 (act which endangers human life), 337 (causing hurt to any person by doing any rash or negligent act) and under 338 (causing grievous hurt by doing rash or negligent act).

During a suo motu hearing on the incident in the Gujarat High Court on Wednesday, Oreva Group offered to pay compensation to the victims. However, the court made it clear that the compensation would “not absolve it of any liability”.

A special investigation team formed by the state government after the collapse had cited several lapses on the part of the firm.

The lapses included no restriction on the number of persons accessing the bridge and no curb on the sale of tickets, which led to unrestricted movement on the bridge, as well as carrying out repairs without consulting experts.

The probe had revealed that the new metal flooring done by the firm had increased the weight of the bridge, while the rusted cables on which the entire bridge was hanging were not changed by Oreva Group.

KHANABAL (J-K), JAN 27 (PTI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday said he had to cancel his walk for the day because police arrangements by the Jammu and Kashmir administration “unfortunately completely collapsed”.

Gandhi, who began his yatra from Banihal in Jammu region, crossed the Jawahar tunnel into the Valley in Qazigund in a bulletproof vehicle but could walk for barely 500 metres after that. He was asked by his security team to stop given the absence of police personnel to manage the large crowd that had gathered to receive him.

“Police personnel who were supposed to manage the crowd were nowhere to be seen,” the former Congress president told reporters here in a brief statement. He was supposed to walk 11 km to Vessu before halting for the night at the Khanabal dak bungalow in Anantnag district.

“It’s the Jammu and Kashmir administration’s responsibility to provide security... I hope security will now be ensured for remaining days of the yatra. I don’t know why it happened but tomorrow and day after tomorrow it should not happen,” Gandhi said in the unscheduled meeting with reporters. However, he did not take any questions, say-

ing that interaction would be reserved for Sunday.

“I had to call off my walk because I can’t go against my security people,” the Congress leader, who started his Bharat Jodo Yatra in Kanyakumari in September and ends it in Srinagar on January 30, said.

Terming the incident a “big security lapse”, his party colleague Jairam Ramesh said Gandhi’s security team is holding discussions with the Jammu and Kashmir administration to ensure that everything goes off smoothly for the next few days.

“Politics has its place but by playing with Rahul Gandhi’s security in Jammu and Kashmir, the government has stooped to its

lowest level,” the Congress general secretary added in a tweet in Hindi.

India, he said, has already lost Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi and any government or administration should desist from playing politics on such issues.

Several party leaders echoed his concern, accusing the government of withdrawing security personnel around Gandhi and demanding action against those responsible for the alleged breach.

“Who ordered this?” asked AICC general secretary K C Venugopal.

“The authorities responsible must answer for this lapse and take appropriate steps to prevent such incidents in future,” he said

on T witter. Jammu and Kashmir’s AICC in-charge Rajni Patil said “the security lapses indicate unfair and unprepared attitude of the UT administration”.

“Due to security reasons, we had to stop the yatra temporarily as there was crowd mismanagement along the yatra route approved by the security apparatus,” a senior Congress leader said.

Gandhi’s security insisted that he stop the walk immediately and he drove instead to the guesthouse in Khanabal. The morning started early with National Conference leader and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah joining Gandhi for the walk. Both leaders were dressed in similar white T-shirts in the 7 degrees Celsius chill.

Gandhi’s white T-shirt look, even in north India’s severe winter days, has been the subject of much debate and discussion.

They had walked for about three kilometres in the morning and drove through the 2.85 km Jawahar tunnel. After crossing the tunnel, party leaders accompanying Gandhi found there were no policeman to provide security at the scheduled halt.

Gandhi’s security team did not allow him to step out of the car.

SA, India sign MoU to translocate 12 cheetahs to Kuno Park

JOHANNESBURG/NEW

BUDHA PAHAD (JHARKHAND), JAN

27 (PTI): Hemant Soren on Friday became the first Jharkhand chief minister to visit the ‘Budha Pahad’ – a former Maoist hotbed – situated near the border with Chhattisgarh, where he launched a development project worth Rs 100 crore, officials said.

Soren arrived at the hilltop a little after noon, where the CRPF has now set up a camp, they said. The Rs 100-crore Budha Pahar Development Project (BPDP) will cover 11 villages of Tehri panchayat in Garhwa and 11 villages of Aksi panchayat in Latehar, the officials said.

“If need be, this amount can be increased to Rs 500 crore,” Soren said. During the last three

months, benefits of schemes worth over Rs 4 crore have been provided to villagers in the area, a senior official said. “After it was freed from Maoists, the government launched the ‘Aapki Yojana, Aapki Sarkar, Aapke Dwar’- an outreach programme at Khapri Mahua village to ensure the benefits of welfare schemes can be availed by people there,” he said.

Soren was accompanied by Chief Secretary Sukhdev Singh and Director General of Police Neeraj Sinha, among other top officials.

‘Budha Pahar’, located along the Latehar and Garhwa districts, around 150 km from state capital Ranchi, was freed from the red rebels’ control by security forces after over three decades.

The exercise was carried out through three special operations that were launched since the beginning of April 2022.

A total of 14 Maoists were killed, while 590 others were either apprehended or had surrendered during these operations, the officials said.

DELHI, JAN 27 (PTI): India and South Africa have finally signed an MoU to transport a dozen cheetahs from this African country next month and reintroduce them in the Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh, months after eight such felines were translocated from Namibia under an ambitious project.

A majority of the world’s 7,000 cheetahs live in South Africa, Namibia and Botswana. Namibia has the world’s largest population of cheetahs.

The cheetah is the only large carnivore that got completely wiped out from India, mainly due to overhunting and habitat loss. The last spotted feline died in 1948 in the Sal forests of Chhattisgarh’s Koriya district.

Under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two countries, an initial batch of 12 cheetahs is scheduled to be flown in from South Africa to India next month. The cats will join eight cheetahs introduced to India from Namibia, South Africa’s neighbour, in 2022.

“The initiative to reintroduce cheetah to a former range state following the lo-

cal extinction of this iconic species due to overhunting and loss of habitat in the last century is being carried out following the request received from the government of the Republic of India,” the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) said in a statement. The MoU facilitates cooperation between the parties to establish a viable and secure cheetah population in India; promotes conservation and ensures that expertise is shared and exchanged, and capacity is built, to promote cheetah conservation, it said.

“This includes humanwildlife conflict resolution, capture and translocation of wildlife and community participation in conservation in the two countries,” it said.

“In terms of the MoU,

AilingfemalecheetahatKuno parkmuchbetternow,saysofficial

The health condition of a female cheetah detected with an infection associated with kidneys and liver at the Kuno National Park (KNP) in Madhya Pradesh was much better now, a senior forest department official said on Friday.

The cheetah, Sasha, is more than four-and-a-half years old and was diagnosed with hepatorenal, a kidney and liver-related infection, earlier this week. She is among eight cheetahs translocated from Namibia in September last year and housed in KNP in Sheopur district.

the countries will collaborate and exchange best practices in large carnivore conservation through the transfer of technology, training of professionals in management, policy, and science, and establish a bilateral custodianship arrangement for cheetah translocated between the two countries,” the statement added.

“She is much better,” MP Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) JS Chauhan told PTI over the phone when asked about the feline’s health.

Sasha has some liver and kidney problems and is being treated by three veterinarians who are in constant touch with cheetah experts from Namibia and South Africa, he said. “Her problem came to light on Monday. Dr Atul Gupta, a veterinarian at Bhopal-based Van Vihar National Park, was rushed to the Kuno National Park after the problem was detected. She is suffering from hepatorenal infection and has been quarantined for treatment,” Chauhan added.

Congress Rahul Gandhi addresses a press conference at Khanabal in Anantnag, Friday. (PTI)

Cheetahs at the Kuno National Park. ( File).

Jaysukh Patel

Hemant Soren

Stirring up the past

Whenfilms or books are banned, they attract more attention and that itself makes them more popular which result in raking up huge financial gains. A British Broadcasting Corporation(BBC) documentary on prime minister Narendra Modi has set the country literally on fire. The BBC on January 17, released the first episode of “The Modi Question,” a two-part documentary series that tracks how the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi climbed the political ranks of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party during his time as the Chief Minister of Gujarat. According to reports, the documentary was originally broadcasted in the U.K., but unauthorised video clips surfaced in India and quickly generated hype. Viewers in India were again reminded of Modi’s controversial role in the 2002 Gujarat riots and prompting the government to block it from being aired on Indian platforms. The documentary highlighted an unpublished report from the U.K. Foreign Office that claims Modi was “directly responsible” for the “climate of impunity” that enabled the violence. Modi had denied accusations of personal responsibility for the riots, while party cite a 2013 Supreme Court ruling of there being insufficient evidence to prosecute him. However, 0pposition parties and left leaders have questioned Modi about his role when he remained passive for days when carnage was spreading across many parts of Gujarat. That the opposition, mainly the Congress, continues to use the Gujarat carnage narrative even after the Supreme Court had absolved him reeks of pure political witch hunting. For the sake of argument, the number of people killed during November 1 to 4, 1984 after the assassination of Indira Gandhi on October 31,1984 was officially 2800 while independent sources including lists prepared by surviving families of victims, put the number of Sikhs murdered to between 8000 to 17,000. During this dark period Rajiv Gandhi did nothing to prevent mobs from targeting Sikhs be it men, women or children from being murdered, raped or burnt to death in horrific manner. If BBC is so possessed with justice, then it should have also made a similar documentary about the horrific pogrom in Delhi.

In the Gujarat riots, it is officially reported that a total of around 2000, both Muslim and Hindu were killed. The government has cited emergency powers granted by the country’s information and technology law to order that YouTube and Twitter block any content related to the documentary from being published on their platforms. However with regard to the controversial BBC documentary, senior BJP functionaries were been given space to defend Modi and in a way, the subsequent ban by the government appears to be quite uncalled for. The BBC documentary is motivated and subjective and banning it has only made the government appear eager to suppress it. Again, the same was done when then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi made India, the secular and liberal democracy as the first nation to ban The Satanic Verses by Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie an Indian-born British-American novelist. The Rajiv government’s October 1988 ban may on The Satanic Verses, probably inspired Iranian leader Ayotollah Khomeini to order a ‘fatwa’ (death sentence) on Rushdie on February 14,1989. On the other hand Christians did not ban the fictional book, The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown for its blasphemous references to Jesus Christ. Today the book has been buried under the dustbin of history.

DailyDevotion

Look Again and Think

Do not worry about your life… —Matthew 6:25

A warning which needs to be repeated is that “the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches,” and the lust for other things, will choke out the life of God in us (Matthew 13:22). We are never free from the recurring waves of this invasion. If the frontline of attack is not about clothes and food, it may be about money or the lack of money; or friends or lack of friends; or the line may be drawn over difficult circumstances. It is one steady invasion, and these things will come in like a flood, unless we allow the Spirit of God to raise up the banner against it.

“I say to you, do not worry about your life….” Our Lord says to be careful only about one thing— our relationship to Him. But our common sense shouts loudly and says, “That is absurd, I must consider how I am going to live, and I must consider what I am going to eat and drink.” Jesus says you must not. Beware of allowing yourself to think that He says this while not understanding your circumstances. Jesus Christ knows our circumstances better than we do, and He says we must not think about these things to the point where they become the primary concern of our life. Whenever there are competing concerns in your life, be sure you always put your relationship to God first.

“Sufficient for the day is its own trouble” (Matthew 6:34). How much trouble has begun to threaten you today? What kind of mean little demons have been looking into your life and saying, “What are your plans for next month— or next summer?” Jesus tells us not to worry about any of these things. Look again and think. Keep your mind on the “much more” of your heavenly Father (Matthew 6:30).

Quotes

Digitally transforming agriculture

India’s agriculture sector has continued to grow in leaps and bounds, especially in terms of outputdriven by a rising population and increasing external demand. In 2022 alone, the country covered almost half of the global rice market.

The country is also one of the largest producers of spices, milk, and pulses in the world and has the largest dedicated land for rice, wheat, and cotton in the world. But, transforming the Indian Agri space to make the country a global leader in food production involves leveraging agritech which is a major focus in the crop protection sub-sector.

At the moment, a sizable part of farmers’ yield is still lost to pests and diseases during cultivation and storage. Industry stats show a low penetration and adoption of insecticides and soil energisers which can help protect crops and boost productivity. Where they are used, the application often lacks precision and is not targeted at areas where they are specifically needed. This is where technology becomes important. Without the adoption of crop protection technology,

farmers will continue to use crop protection products traditionally.

Rising agritech profile: the place of government and private players

The place of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), and Machine Learning (ML) in the agricultural space cannot be overemphasized. Thankfully, the country is already taking major steps to digitally transform. There were at least 1,000 agriculture (agritech) startups in India as of March 2022 that were employing AI, IoT, and ML, with funding to the agritech sector surpassing $1.6 billion by 2021. Within the period of 2017 to 2020 alone, agritech startups attracted equity investments to the tune of Rs 66 billion, growing at 50 percent.

It is impossible to ignore the effort of the governments (at the central and regional levels) in the Indian agritech revolution. From the Digital India Initiative which fosters connection to other parts of the world to the India Digital Ecosystem of Agriculture (IDEA) which seeks to boost the incomes of farmers, the Electronic National Agri -

Let me tell you a story about Ato. He is a farmer living in a small village far away from the state capital Kohima, cultivating fields and earning daily wages. Two of his eldest sons had dropped out of high school, got married, and have children. The younger ones attending LPS and GMS.

As usual, while listening to the evening local dialect radio program, he heard about the announcement of nomination and voting day for the Nagaland state general election.

“Finally after five years,” he exhaled. Gathering his children, he told them, “this election we are going to vote for the candidate who is likely to win. We will not take any money, that way, we can go and ask for government jobs once the election is won. At least grade 4 post.”

One day, as Ato was toiling, clearing the jungle for the coming season, his son came calling, “dad there is someone in our house, he came from a big, long vehicle, wearing black chesuma. He gave me this 100 rupee note,” showing it, “and told me to bring you home because he needed to talk to you about something urgent.”

Ato and his wife came running home.

“Hey, how are you Ato?” Before they could even keep their basket, the man removed his sunglasses and shook their dirty hands. Like a rabbit fur brushing the porcupine quill. Tussle between sour sweat and sweet smell.

culture Market (eNAM), the National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) which promotes the integration of technologies to boost agri output, and the National e-Governance Plan in Agriculture (NeGPA) set up to provide funding for modern tech acquisition in agriculture, there’s a lot the government is doing. The Innovation and Agri-Entrepreneurship Development programme is a noteworthy initiative introduced by the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) in 2018-2019. It was set up to nurture the incubation ecosystem and provide funding for startups. This has led to the adoption of 24 agribusiness incubators by the RKVY for the programme. On the other hand, private players in the sector, especially producers of crop protection products and technologies, have continued to revolutionise and build on existing technologies to provide smart solutions. Collaborations have also been secured with tech brands to see how India’s growing agriculture space can become a platform for

Ato’s house on the verge of collapsing. The roof made of cut-out oil tin. Rusted. The man opened the back door of his car. They could see many packages in black polythene. Taking out one, he handed it to the mother, who shyly took it. Later, when they opened it was everyday, sugar, and mazagold. Estimated amount less than 1000rs.

Seated in a torn mora drinking black tea, the man asked, “Whom are you going to vote for this election?” being very gentle.

“Ah cho brother, I have decided to study the wind and vote accordingly,” Ato nervously replied. “This time, at least one of my sons should get a government job.” The man nodded and said, “All right. Don’t stress over it. Let’s win the election and I’ll take care of their job. Just stick with me during the election.” He assured them.

Ato and this man’s grandfather were related. He is a first-class contractor who resides in Kohima and works in the secretariat. They last spoke five years ago, during an election campaign.

A few days later, the man woke Ato in the middle of the night. His vehicle was parked outside the house. “Get dressed Ato, I’ll let you have an interview with the candidate. He is waiting.”

Getting dressed they went to another village and sat with the candidate.

First time sitting in this luxurious vehicle, Ato’s eyes glittered. He was taken to a nearby village.

innovation and efficiency. But as these technologies emerge, farmers must show a willingness to adopt them for their own benefit and that of the nation at large.

Trends in AI, IoT, and ML applications in agriculture

There’s a lot that tech can do in agriculture, including in areas like cultivation, harvesting, weeding and insecticides application, monitoring and pest control surveillance, ploughing and many others. Worthy of note is the application of AI drones in spraying insecticides on farms.

This is a rising global trend and is fast gaining popularity in India as well. Here, farmers avoid direct exposure to insecticides and this also helps improve precision. Crop monitoring is also better done with AI, especially with the use of computer vision algorithms. This will not only reduce labour dependency and save on water usage but also significantly boost yield.

A study published in the Indian Journal of Entomology showed that India was losing about 50 per cent of yields in cotton as recently as 2005, with

5 years

The candidate stood and welcomed him, shaking his hand. He had heard of this person many times, but this was the first time seeing his face. They sat facing each other.

“Bring tea and biscuits for Ato,” the candidate instructed, making him feel warm and comfortable.

“How many voters are in your Family?”

“16 votes Sir.” He replied humbly, slurping the tea.

“Come whenever you require assistance, Brother. My door is always open for you.”

5 YEARS

After Ato had pledged his unwavering support, the candidate opened the briefcase and handed him a bundle of 500 rs notes. When Ato refused to take it, saying that he will need help after the election was won, the candidate replied, “this is for your trouble coming here tonight. I’m not buying your vote. It’s not for your vote.”

Later when he counted at home there were 16 thousand rupees. The next day onwards, he and his sons and daughters went to their candidate’s mess in the village. Each night they were given money and alcohol. They gambled the whole night, having the time of their lives. Pack of cigarettes which cost 100 rocketed to 500 rs.

Days before the election, a wealthy village chieftain came to Ato’s house and told him, “You have to follow me, Ato.” Having

reports showing losses of between 20 per cent and 40 per cent in other crops like sorghum, rice, oilseeds, and maize. Such losses can be prevented with the proper and judicious use of crop protection products.

Application by such AI drones can be an added advantage because farmers are able to detect infestation on time and deploy technology to stop its spread based on AI. At the other end of the stick are information sourcing and management. With capabilities like soil monitoring, weather prediction, and multi-crop harvesting at a local level, farmers are better guided to yield better harvests.

Experiments are also ongoing in AI-enabled robotics and smart or driverless tractors on farms. While these are still largely uncommon in India, several other nations have begun to invest heavily on these technologies to reduce the demand for scarce labour on farms as well as reduce manual workload. This will definitely be a turning point in the Indian agritech space when fully adopted and deployed. With EY projections suggesting India’s agriculture sector

no ancestral land, Ato frequently asks him for assistance for firewood and cultivable land.

When Ato refused, “What are you going to do after the election? Not listening to me Ato.” But he was adamant. “I’ll see you later,” he warned and walked out, slamming the door behind him.

Later, a group of men wearing cargo pants and camouflage jackets, with their faces covered came from a gypsy and kidnapped Ato from his house. He was beaten and tortured to vote for their supporter. They needed him as he had many votes. He wouldn’t budge.

On the voting day two of his children pressed the NOTA button. They weren’t of legal age.

Luckily Ato’s supporter won. He called the man to congratulate but wouldn’t pick up. He thought maybe he was busy and would call back after seeing his miscall, but the call never came.

Days later, he tried again. The man picked up and told him that he was busy, and wouldn’t talk to him like in the earlier days. His tone has changed. He was now boastful.

Ato wanted the man to take him to meet the minister. He had no idea where the minister lived.

Desperately, he enquired, and along with other supporters from the village went to Kohima to talk with the minister. They waited outside the residence until dusk.

They were let in when the minister returned from office. They were seated in a room as the minister ate.

will register a CAGR of 4.9 per cent between 2022 and 2027, and the agritech market reaching $24 billion by 2025, India can become the food capital of the world if the proper investments are made in tech.

A peep into the future

There’s already a lot going on in the sector and a lot more can happen. Kisan Drones are already started being utilised for crop assessments, land records, and insecticide spraying, and are projected to usher in a new era of technology in agriculture and farming. However, this is only the tip of the iceberg when compared with the huge potential that AI, IoT, and ML can offer. As the nation’s population continues to grow along with global numbers, the demand for food will continue to increase while land available for agriculture will reduce further following urbanisation. The door to sustainable food production is a technology and only the right policies and investments can unlock it.

Rajesh Aggarwal (The writer is Managing Director, Insecticides (India) Ltd.)

Ato enthusiastically asked to give his children jobs. He has even brought the documents in his worn-out bag. To which the minister replied, “I have already paid you the money for your votes, but keep the documents on the table. I’ll see.” Ato couldn’t imagine how he lied blankly, straight face. But what could he do now?

In addition to receiving the contract between Dimapur and Kohima, the man also got an LDA post for his daughter. With money intended for his constituency, the minister continued to pay off his debts created during election. His constituency road remained untouched, dusty during dry, and served as a drainage on rainy season. Development remained an alien word, unheard to the voters.

You see in the village, the man was influential as he was among the illiterate, while in the Kohima, he was just another officer without much influence. Everyone was educated, and competition was high, so he wisely chose the village for his political involvement.

5 YEARS

For Ato, since the chief refused to help him, he had to go pleading the wealthy villagers for cultivatable land and other needs.

They gave him a glimpse of hope for a short period with their promise only to humiliate and break him, instilling in him a distrust for humanity.

5 YEARS...

H.Awomi…

Self defense training: A necessity for school girls

Proneness to women atrocities is not a recent phenomenon in the society. Women have been traditionally considered as preys to male chauvinism and aggression from the time immemorial. A typical Indian girl from a middle-class or affluent family is raised chaperoned and over-protected. After independence, in last few decades, guardians as well as society have come forward in extension of educationfor girls. Various other reforms have been evolved at State and national levels. Girls has crossed the closed doors and performed well in every walk of life. They have become more strengthened to protest against the attitude and act of violence of their male counterparts. Although rarely does she learn how to protect herself or react in a situation where she is attacked.

At this backdrop the school going girl students are the worst sufferers and they have every chance of

being affected. Sometimes, the girls have to travel a long way to reach a Secondary or Higher Secondary school either on foot or by bicycle, sometimes even alone. The parents habitually stoop to this apprehension and restrain the girls’ children to attend schools regularly, which often results in chances of drop outs and discontinuation of their education & aspiration.

In this context, self defence training programme for girls studying in elementary as well as higher classes is must, so that they can build up in themselves certain self defence skills including life skill for self protection and selfdevelopment. Self Defence Training to girls in government institutionshelps them become psychologically, intellectually, physically and spirituallystrong to protect themselves in time of distress. They are trained to leverage daily usable articles like keychains, dupattas etc. for their protection.

In erstwhile centrally sponsored schemes namely National Programme for Education of Girls at Elementary Level (NPEGEL), SarvaShikshaAbhiyan (SSA) and RashtriyaMadhyamikShikshaAbhiyan (RMSA), the training programme for self defence have been imparted to school girls at elementary as well as secondary level in some sectors. Such activities helped to instill confidence in girls as well as ensuring attendance and reducing absenteeism & drop outs.

Under “SamagraShiksha” programme, which has been launched on 1st April 2018, provision of self defence training for elementary (upto class VIII) as well as secondary (upto class X or XII) level have been made with unit cost @ Rs 5000/per month for 3 months per school. Martial Arts training are impartedvarioustechniques namely; Karate, Taekwondo, Wushu, Boxing (Mushti-yuddha), Silambam (Lathi-yuddha),

Judo etc. There is also provision of self defence training to enrolled girls of Kasturba Gandhi BalikaVidyalaya sanctioned with unit cost @ Rs 10000/- per vidyalaya per annum.

Objective :-

(i) To reduce irregular attendance of girl students,

(ii) To equip the girls with some life skills and defence skills so that they can avert any kind of untoward situation at least at the first instances,

(iii) To spread a message to the violence-maker that girls are being ready for counter-defence and awareness is being developed among the girls in this regards, (iv) To make the Physical Education teacher of each school aware of these skills for future practice of them as a part of school curriculum.

Strategy :-

The broad aim of the programme is to extend the Martial Arts training to all girls studying in schoolsupto

class XII. The States have their own strategy and schedule for implementation of this programme. The states like Biharhas extended the programme through a 36day training schedule in schools by black belt master trainers. After completion of the training, the girls will be graded &certified stepwise in various types of belt through recognized Martial Arts institutions. Finally, after getting black belt, class XII pass-out girls will have option to engage themselves as master trainer in Martial Arts and become “Atmanirbhar”.

In Telangana, the Physical Education Teachers (PET) of Government schools are trained by experts, who in turn train girls in their respective schools. It is a 3 month course during which 24 vital techniques are taught to the students studying in classes VI to X. These techniques are taught in 36 sessions thrice in a week.

In Jammu & Kashmir, basic techniques of Judo & Taekwondo have been provided to girls under “BetiBachaoBetiPadhao” programme. Earlier Army had also organized four week martial arts course for school girls in remote areas.

Expected outcome:-

(a) Girls became physically robust & psychologically empowered and their self confidence increases

(b) Increase in enrolment and retention because of increased awareness among community

(c) Girls participation in school activities has increasedtraditional roles. The Self defence training programmes to girls will pave the way to ensure secured atmosphere not only in schools & colleges but in every walk of life, which will be fruitful for all round development of the country in long run.

Er. Prabhat Kishore (The Author is a technocrat and educationist)

“In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity”

~ Albert Einstein

SNIPPETS

AI case: Mishra’s bail plea adjourned

NEW DELHI, JAN 27

(PTI): A Delhi court on Friday adjourned Shankar Mishra’s petition seeking bail to January 30.

Mishra, who is accused of urinating on a woman copassenger onboard a flight in November last year had filed a fresh bail application seeking regular bail.

The court adjourned the matter after noting the investigating officer was not present. Further, the complainant’s counsel was not provided a copy of the bail plea, it noted. The incident took place onboard the Air India flight from New York to Delhi on November 26, 2022. Mishra was allegedly in an inebriated condition.

Member of Bishnoi gang held

CHANDIGARH, JAN 27 (PTI): An member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang was arrested by the antigangster task force of the Punjab police here, a top official said on Friday. Rajveer was facing charges of murder, attempt to murder and extortion, the official said. “In a major breakthrough, #AGTF team arrested Rajveer @ Ravi Rajgarh, operative of Lawrence Bishnoi Gang Gangster Rajgarh had a criminal history with 10 FIRs registered related to Extortion, Murder & 307 IPC, Arms Act in Punjab,” said Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav in a tweet. A 30 calibre China-made pistol and six cartridges have been recovered from him, he further said.

Chhattisgarh to hold youth festival

RAIPUR, JAN 27 (PTI):

The three-day Chhattisgarh Youth Festival and folk literature conference will begin here on Saturday, an official said on Friday. At least 3,000 people from across the state will participate in the event, which will be jointly hosted by the sports and youth welfare and culture departments near the sports directorate in Raipur city, he said. Traditional games such as fugdi, bhaura, gaidi race, kabaddi and kho-kho and folk dance forms of karma, raut nacha, panthi, sarhul, suva and bastariya will be performed during the festival, the official said.

2 youths attacked by tiger in UP BALLIA (UP), JAN 27

(PTI): Two youths were injured in a tiger attack in Hajauli village under the Gadwar police station area of the district, police said on Friday. The teams of police and forest department are trying to catch the big cat. Gadwar police station in-charge

Raj Kumar Singh said two youths were injured in the tiger attack on Thursday evening. They were going fishing when the animal pounced on them.

Belgian breed dogs for airport safety MANGALURU, JAN 27

(PTI): Two dogs of Belgian Malinois breed joined the canine squad of CISF that overlooks the security of the Mangaluru International Airport (MIA).

Max and Ranger are the two dogs that joined the CISF canine squad. Max stood first and Ranger was second in the training that was held at the dog breeding and training centre of CISF at Taralu in Bengaluru, a release from the MIA here said. The dogs were welcomed in a grand manner by the Airport Security Guards (ASG) wing of CISF. The guards also gave a demonstration about defence tactics.

Kishore Alva, executive director (projects and corporate business) was the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations.

Varsities continue to screen controversial BCC documentary

NEW DELHI/KOLKATA, JAN 27:

Despite police clampdown on Universities airing the controversial BBC documentary on Modi’s role in the Gujarat riots, unrelenting studies bodies in major cities continue to hold special screenings of the documentary.

Ambedkar University students claim electricity supply cut, police on campus Delhi Police personnel entered the Ambedkar University campus on Friday to stop SFI activists from screening the controversial BBC documentary on the 2002 Godhra riots, several students alleged, even as alternative arrangements to watch it on phones and laptops were made.

Police officials, however, said they were visiting all college and university campuses in the district to ensure peace and tranquility in the area.

The Left-affiliated Students’ Federation of India (SFI) alleged that the screening could not be held as the administration of the government-run university disconnected the power supply but a QR code with a link to the short film were shared with students so that they could watch it on their personal devices.

The SFI had given a call for screening the documentary at 1 pm, while the All India Students’ Association (AISA) announced that it would hold a protest to condemn the events

that unfolded at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and the Jamia Millia Islamia earlier this week following a call for screening of the film.

“Why has the Police been called inside AUD? Students of AUD wish to express solidarity against the ABVP violence and police repression unleashed on the students of JNU and Jamia respectively. Why should the Police have any presence inside the campus,” the AISA Delhi tweeted.

A senior police officer said DCP (North) Sagar Singh Kalsi and his team were visiting all colleges and universities in his district.

“We are visiting various colleges and universities to ensure that there is no disruption of peace and tranquility in the area. The situation at Ambedkar University is peaceful and under control. Police is on the spot,” he added. SFI Delhi joint secretary Yashita Singhi said the university cut off the electricity supply to stop the screening. “Even the supply to the adjacent Indira Gandhi Delhi Technical University for Women (IGDTUW) was cut. But we shared the QR code with students who are either watching it on their laptops or phones.”

“The proctor was not happy seeing the screening proceeding like this and so, he has asked the guards to call the police,” Singhi claimed.

Several students claimed that the police were asking security guards to carry out “checking” of students.

Delhi

Police detains 24 students from DU Arts Faculty

Delhi Police on Friday detained 24 students from the Delhi University’s Arts Faculty for planning to screen the controversial BBC documentary on the 2002 Godhra riots, a senior police official said. The action comes days after a similar ruckus at Jawaharlal Nehru University and Jamia Millia Islamia over the documentary’s screening.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) Sagar Singh Kalsi said, “Around 4 pm, some 20 people came outside the Arts Faculty gate to screen the banned BBC documentary. As it can cause disturbance of peace and tranquility in the area, they were asked to disperse from there. “When they did not, they were peacefully detained. A total of 24 people were detained.”

Earlier in the day, the varsity authorities wrote to Delhi Police about the proposed screening. Delhi Univer-

Await meeting of like-minded parties for Lok Sabha polls: Nitish

PATNA, JAN 27 (PTI):

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday said he was “waiting” for a meeting of like-minded parties for the Lok Sabha polls next year once Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ is complete.

The JD(U) leader, who has the Congress as a junior ally in Bihar, maintained that he viewed the ‘yatra’ as a ‘niji’ (internal) program of that party, but looked forward to a collaboration in Lok Sabha of all seven constituents of the ‘Mahagathbandhan’ (grand alliance).

The CM also said the JD(U) would not like to

crackdown on its sulking parliamentary board chief Upendra Kushwaha, whose claim of the party becoming “weak” he rejected.

“I am waiting for the yatra to be over and for a meeting of parties (opposed to the BJP) to be convened. There, we shall chalk out the strategy for the Lok Sabha polls which is, now, not far away,” Kumar told report-

ers here.

A former NDA ally, Kumar made an abrupt exit in August last year following alleged attempts to split his party, evoking accusations from the BJP that he was betraying people’s mandate to fulfil his own national ambitions.

Asked about Kushwaha, the JD(U) leader said, “He knew that we had won only 43 seats in assembly polls. If things appeared so bleak to him, he should not have returned. He should remember that his return to the party fructified at my instance since many were not in favour of taking him back.

sity Proctor Rajni Abbi said they would not allow the screening and stressed that the students’ outfits had not sought the administration’s permission. There was heavy police deployment at the north campus after students’ outfits gave a call to screen the documentary. The police have also banned large gatherings on north campus. When asked, another official said Section 144 was imposed on the campus in December. “Section 144 was imposed in December till February 28 to prevent any law and order problems at the university,” the official told PTI. The Congress-affiliated National Students’ Union has announced a screening of the documentary at 4 pm on the north campus while the Bhim Army Students’ Federation said it would hold a screening outside the varsity’s Arts Faculty at 5 pm.

BBC docu on 2002 riots screened at JU

More than 100 students at Jadavpur University have reportedly watched the controversial BBC documentary on 2002 Gujarat riots, with a Left student’s body having arranged its screening.

The Centre has recently issued directions for blocking multiple YouTube videos and Twitter posts sharing links to the documentary ‘India: The Modi Question’, which claims to have investigated certain aspects relating to the 2002 riots when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the chief minister of the state.

The Student Federation of India (SFI), a Communist Party of India (Marxist)’s arm, said the police or institute authorities did not interfere with the screening at Jadavpur University on Thursday. SFI state unit assistant secretary Subhajit Sarkar said that the student’s body will hold another screening at Presidency University on Friday.

Authorities at Presidency are yet to give a formal nod, but “we will still go ahead with the show”, he said.

Sarkar, a former Presidency student, also claimed, “The varsity has effected a power cut at the badminton court, where the screening was supposed to be held. We will now use the common room for the show.” An official at the university, however, said the power cut happened due to technical reasons. He stated that no such documentary was being shown on the university premises. Meanwhile, All India Students’ Association (AISA), another Left body, said it will hold another screening of the documentary at Jadavpur University on Friday.

The Centre also ordered YouTube to take down copies of the document.

Have set up portal on mental health info: Centre to SC

NEW DELHI, JAN 27

(PTI): The Centre told the Supreme Court on Friday it has set up an online portal for providing information on mental health facilities available in the country and 31 states and union territories (UTs) have so far provided requisite details for this purpose.

A bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and also comprising Justice Dipankar Datta, however, took note of the submission that states like Jharkhand, Bihar and the union territory of Lakshadweep have not provided the details to be uploaded on the portal, and directed them to do so in two weeks.

“We direct the states and UTs to furnish the rel-

evant information,” the bench said and posted the PIL filed by lawyer Gaurav Kumar Bansal for further hearing after three weeks.

At the start of the hearing, Additional Solicitor General Madhavi Divan, appearing for the Centre, said she would like to do a live presentation in the court showing where the centres are located across India.

The CJI asked the law officer to show the operation of the portal on screen in the court next time.

Earlier, the Central government had told the bench on November 22 last year that it was in the process of setting up the portal.

Bansal has sought in his PIL the rehabilitation and COVID-19 vaccination of

Boycott culture vitiates atmosphere: Anurag Thakur

MUMBAI, JAN 27 (PTI):

Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur on Friday deplored the “boycott culture” targeting certain films and said such instances vitiate the atmosphere at a time when India is keen to enhance its influence as a soft power.

In case someone has a problem with a movie, they should talk to the concerned government department which can take up the issue with the filmmakers, he said.

“At a time when India is keen to enhance its influence as a soft power, at a

time when Indian films are making waves in every corner of the world, such talk vitiates the atmosphere,”

Thakur told reporters here responding to questions on boycott of films by various interest groups.

The minister’s remarks come at a time when Shah Rukh Khan-starrer “Pathaan”, which released on Wednesday, is facing boycott calls over one of its songs.

In the past, actor Akshay Kumar’s “Samrat Prithviraj”, Aamir Khan’s “Laal Singh Chaddha” and Deepika Padukone’s “Padmaavat” had faced boycott

calls. “If someone has a problem (with a film), then they should talk to the concerned department which will take it up with the producer and director,” Thakur said. “But sometimes, just to vitiate the atmosphere, some people comment on some-

thing even before knowing about it fully. That causes problems. This should not happen,” he said.

Thakur is in Mumbai to inaugurate the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Film Festival that will showcase 58 movies from the regional grouping of eight Eurasian nations. SCO observer countries and dialogue partners have sent entries in the non-competition section of the film festival.

The minister also made a strong pitch for creative autonomy and said there were adequate safeguards in place for monitoring content

At DGP meet, officers flag Islamist, Hindutva outfits

NEW DELHI, JAN 27 (AGENCIES): Police officers flagged the role of Islamist and Hindutva organisations in connection with growing radicalisation in the country during the recent conference of Director Generals and Inspector Generals of Police, which was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, The Indian Express report stated. The role of such organisations were flagged in papers submitted by officers at the conference that was held from January 2022 in Delhi. All the papers submitted were posted on the conference’s website but removed Wednesday. One paper described the organisations, such as VHP and Bajrang Dal, as radical. Another listed the Babri Masjid demolition, growth of Hindu nationalism, cases of beef lynching and the “ghar vapsi movement” as breeding grounds for radicalisation of youth. These points were raised in the context of measures to

Narendra Modi and Amit Shah

tack le Islamic radicalism and ideologies of organisations such as Popular Front of India (PFI).

Several officers argued for greater representation of minorities in the polity and reservation for Muslims to tackle radicalisation. In one paper, an SPrank officer categorised radicalisation under left wing, right wing and Islamist fundamentalism. “Far-right individuals or groups…have an authoritative concept of the state, in which the state and the people, all of which are ethnically homogenous, should merge into a single unit. India though being a plural society as well is being portrayed as inching towards

majoritarianism. To name a few are Anand Marg, VHP, Bajrang Dal, Hindu Sena, etc,” the officer said in the paper. The officer described Islamic fundamentalists as a “looming threat”. “The Islamist outlook is one that essentially divides the world into two distinct spheres: ‘Muslims’ and the ‘rest’. Ex: PFI and frontals, Da’wateIslami, Towheed, Kerala Nadvathul Mujahideen etc,” his paper said.

Among challenges, the officer flagged “disproportionate usage of security establishment (Police and Intelligence)”; minimal role of “scholars, psychologists, civil society”; “missing synergy between online and offline

efforts”; “lack of curative policies”; and, “Framework Flaws”.

To illustrate the point on “framework”, the officer referred to Germany and its “longstanding EXIT Deutschland programme aimed at reforming neoNazi radicals”. Referring to Islamophobia in Britain, the officer’s paper questioned “conspiratorial websites and sensationalist reporting” that lead to “negative community perceptions towards the Muslim ‘other’”.

As a solution, the officer argued for platforms, spaces and institutions for people to vent grievances and anger freely and openly.

In a separate paper, another SP-rank officer flagged Islamic fundamentalism and Hindu extremism as challenges, among others. He labelled them under politicoreligious radicalism linked to outfits like ISIS; right-wing radicalism linked to fascism, racial supremacism and ultranationalism; and, left-wing radicalism associated with Maoist violence.

on over-the-top (OTT) platforms. “There should be no restrictions on creativity,” Thakur said.

He said the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting does receive complaints about the content on OTT platforms, but almost 95 per cent of grievances are settled at the level of producers and the others get resolved at the second stage of the association of publishers of the content.

The minister said only one per cent of complaints reach the inter-departmental committee and it is ensured that strict action is taken in such cases.

mentally ill people currently lodged in various hospitals and mental healthcare institutions across the country.

The law officer had said the government has invited tenders so real time information on mental health facilities right down to the district level can be displayed on the portal.n “The portal would be ready and functional within a period of a month,” the law officer had said leading to the adjournment of the hearing on the PIL to January 27.

Prior to this, the top court had on September 1, 2021 passed a slew of directions including the one asking the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment to set up a dashboard for seamless information with

regard to various facilities available in states and union territories (UTs) for mentally challenged people.

“We direct that the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment must set up an online dashboard in which complete details in regard to: (i) availability of institutions; (ii) facilities provided; (iii) capacity; (iv) occupancy; and (v) regionwise distribution of the Half-way Homes is made available state-wise and for the UTs.

“The availability of Half-way Homes must also be reflected in the online dashboard. The data of each State and Union Territory must be uploaded on the dashboard on a real time basis,” the bench had ordered.

Protest in Delhi’s Ambedkar University over BBC documentary screening.

Nitish Kumar

Anurag Thakur

Report on Adani causes $48 bln loss

MUMBAI, JAN 27 (AGENCIES): Shares of India’s Adani Enterprises (ADEL.NS) plunged on Friday after a scathing report by a U.S. short seller triggered a selloff in the conglomerate’s listed firms, casting doubts on the success of the company’s record $2.45 billion secondary share sale, reports Reuters.

Seven listed companies of the Adani conglomerate - controlled by one of the world’s richest men Gautam Adani - lost a combined $48 billion in market capitalisation, with U.S. bonds of Adani firms also falling after Hindenburg Research flagged concerns in a Jan. 24 report about debt levels and the use of tax havens.

The rout led to a near 20% fall in shares of Adani Enterprises, the group’s flagship company, well below the offer price of its secondary sale. As bidding started on Friday, the issue was subscribed around 1%, raising concerns over whether it would be able to proceed.

“The news cycle in the past few days has clearly

impacted the share sale and you can clearly see that in the subscription levels, especially the low retail participation,” said Narendra Solanki, fundamental research head at domestic brokerage Anand Rathi. The Adani Group was concerned but prepared to wait it out for now as the share sale continues until Jan. 31, two people with direct knowledge of the situation said. India’s capital markets regulator is studying the Hindenburg report as it may help its own probe into offshore fund holdings of Adani Group, two other sources said. Spokespersons for the regulator and Adani had no immediate comment. read more Adani Group dis

FraudAllegations:Hindenburgsaysitwould ‘Welcome’legalactionfromAdanigroup

missed the Hindenburg report as baseless and said it is considering whether to take legal action against the New York-based firm.

With a net worth of $96.6 billion, billionaire Gautam Adani is now the world’s seventh richest man, according to Forbes, slipping from the third position due to the stock rout.

The anchor portion of the share sale that began on Friday saw participation from investors including the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and Maybank Securities on Wednesday.

At the end of the first day of the share sale, investors, mostly retail, had bid for around 470,160 shares in the Adani Enterprises share sale.

CIL to set up 5 sand production plants

NEW DELHI, JAN 27

(IANS): Coal India Ltd

(CIL) plans to set up five overburden (OB) to manufactured sand (M-Sand) plants between May 2023 and July 2024. These plants would be set up by its subsidiaries namely Western Coalfields Limited, Central Coalfields Limited, South Eastern Coalfields and Bharat Coking Coal Limited. The coal behemoth has envisaged processing the overburden rocks for sand production in mines, where OB material contains about 60 per cent sandstone by volume which is harnessed through crushing and processing of OB.

OB to M-Sand initiative of CIL entails facilitating processing of waste overburden in its open cast (OC) mines. During opencast mining, the overlying

soil and rocks are removed as waste to extract coal and the fragmented rock (or OB) is heaped in dumps.

Most of the waste is disposed of at the surface, which occupies considerable land area and requires extensive planning and control to minimize the environmental impact of mining.

To ensure recovery of sand from waste overburden is the best out of waste product, sources said. The five proposed plants will ensure commercial sale of produced sand, which will generate additional revenue for coal companies, they informed further.

Apart from commercial use, sand produced shall also be consumed for sand stowing in underground mines, thus enhancing safety and conservation, sources said further. Western Coal-

fields Limited (WCL) will set up a plant in Ballarpur with aA capacity of producing 2,000 cubic metres of M-Sand per day, and it is expected to be commissioned in May 2023.

WCL will also set another sand plant in Durgapur with a capacity of 1,000 cubic metres, which would be commissioned in March 2024. South Eastern Coalfields (SECL) will set up a plant in Manikpur with a daily production capacity ofA 1,000 cubic metres of sand. This plant is expected to be commissioned in February 2024.

Another subsidiary of Coal India, Central Coalfields Limited (CCL) will set up a plant in Kathara. This will have a production capacity of 500 cubic metres and will be commissioned in December 2023.

Cong accuses BJP of going all out to destroy...

(From p-1)

Referring to BJP State president Temjem Imna

Hindenburg Research said on Thursday it will demand documents in legal discovery process if Adani Group files a lawsuit in the US against the short seller for its report on the Indian conglomerate. It said that that the company fully stands by its report, and any action against them will be “meritless”. “Regarding the company’s threats of legal action, to be clear, we would welcome it,” the US-based short seller said. “In the 36 hours since we released out report, Adani hasn’t addressed a single substantive issue we raised. At the conclusion of our report, we asked 88 straightforward questions that we believe give the company a chance to be transparent. Thus far, Adani has answered none of these questions,” Hindenburg Research said.

“If Adani is serious, it should also file suit in the

India gains 26 spots on mobile download speeds

NEW DELHI, JAN 27

(IANS): As India rolls out 5G slowly but steadily, the country went up 26 spots in rank globally for median mobile speeds, from 105th in November 2022 to 79th in the month that followed, a report showed on Friday. Median mobile download speeds in India increased from 18.26 Mbps in November to 25.29 Mbps in December, according to network intelligence and connectivity insights provider Ookla. However, India decreased one spot in rank globally for overall median fixed broadband speeds and is now at 81st position from 80th in November. The country’s performance in fixed median download speeds witnessed a slight increase from 49.11 Mbps in November to 49.14 Mbps in December.

US where we operate. We have a long list of documents we would demand in a legal discovery process,” it added.

Hindenburg Research alleged that the Adani Group, led by the world’s third-richest person Gautam Adani, is involved in a massive and “brazen stock manipulation” and “accounting fraud scheme”. It said that the company is “pulling the largest con in corporate history”. The allegations sent bonds and shares in the conglomerate’s companies down. According to Reuters, it said key listed companies in the Adani Group had “substantial debt” which has put the entire group on a “precarious financial footing”. It also said that seven Adani listed companies have an 85% downside on a fundamental basis due to what it called “sky-high valuations”.

Along and Patton seeking Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s intervention to sort out the issue, she questioned the State BJP leadership how they would be able to provide governance in the State when they could not even resolve party’s internal issues. She alleged that Along was incapable of controlling the situation because BJP was a party of “slaves” and was ruled by Delhi.

(From p-1)

The AICC media coordinator also asked Naga people whether they wanted a government ruled by Delhi or a government that understood their problems.

She also asked Rio why he was silent over the hullabaloo over seat-sharing agreement between BJP and NDPP and why he was not responding to the situation. She said Rio was now waiting and watching whether his party should back off and allow BJP to get 30 seats.

Paul lamented that the BJP-NDPP coalition

The plea, filed through advocate Joby P. Varghese, said: “The present writ petition prays that it is imperative for the respondents to take substantive steps in order to ensure that citizens can have their voices heard in Parliament without facing undue barriers and difficulties. To that end, the present writ petition presents a detailed and nuanced framework under which citizens can prepare petitions, seek popular support for it and if a citizen petition crosses a prescribed threshold, then the citizen petition

government had not only let down the people of Nagaland, but also proved to be corrupt and hence could not give good governance to Nagas.

Meanwhile, when asked whether Congress would be aligning with any party in the State, she replied that the matter would be made public when the time came. On Congress’ prime focus to fight the Assembly election, she said the party’s manifesto was getting ready and assured that the party would focus on youth.

has to mandatorily be taken up for discussion and debate in Parliament”. The plea argued that after the people cast their votes and elect their representatives to Parliament as well as to the state legislatures, there is no scope for any further participation.

“There is the complete absence of any formal mechanism by which citizens can engage with the law-makers and take steps in order to ensure that issues which are important are debated in Parliament,” it added.

Air India finalising ‘historic order’ of new aircraft: CEO

NEW DELHI, JAN 27

(IANS): Air India CEO

Campbell Wilson on Friday announced that the flag carrier is finalising a “historic order” of new aircraft to strengthen its fleet as the airline marked a year of its take over by the Tata Group. In a communication to Air India employees, the CEO said: “Finalising a historic order of new aircraft to power future growth.”

“Even as we work on improving Air India, we have not shied away from other ambitious actions, such as merging Air India Express with Air Asia, or Vistara with Air India, or kicking off the establishment of a new InfoTech Centre, or an Aviation Academy. And that’s not to mention our much talkedabout short- and-medium term fleet expansion,” he

ning of a new journey for the carrier.

In November 2022, Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Tata Sons agreed to merge Air India and Vistara, with SIA investing $250

million in Air India as part of the transaction. With the integration, Air India became the only Indian airline group to operate both full-service and low-cost passenger services.

Campbell Wilson

added. As per industry sources and reports, the order may include 190 Boeing 737 MAX planes, 20 Boeing 787s and 10 Boeing 777X planes. The sources said that this is nearly half of the order of the total of 495 jets which the airline has planned in the coming weeks to stay competitive in the aviation market.

Tata Group took over debt-laden Air India a year ago, on January 27, 2022, from the Central government, marking the begin -

‘Will clog Parl’: SC agrees to examine PIL on citizens petitioning Parliament to debate...

SNIPPETS

UK student nurse charged with taking bomb to maternity ward

LONDON, JAN 27 (AP):

A student nurse appeared in a British court on Friday, charged with planning to attack an air force base and taking a homemade bomb to a hospital maternity unit where he worked. Mohammad Farooq, 27, was arrested outside St. James’s University Hospital in Leeds, northern England, on January 20 with what prosecutors say was a “viable” pressure-cooker bomb containing 13.7 kilograms of a homemade low-explosive mixture.

Protests across the Middle

East against Quran burning

BEIRUT, JAN 27 (AP):

Protests were held on Friday in several predominantly Muslim countries to denounce the recent desecration of Islam’s holy book by farright activists in Sweden and the Netherlands. The protests in countries including Pakistan, Iraq and Lebanon ended with people dispersing peacefully. In Pakistan’s capital of Islamabad, police officers stopped some demonstrators trying to march toward the Swedish Embassy. In Beirut, about 200 angry protesters burned the flags of Sweden and the Netherlands outside the bluedomed Mohammed AlAmin mosque at Beirut’s central Martyrs Square.

Israelis, Palestinians tense after raid

JERUSALEM, JAN 27

(AP): Israelis and Palestinians braced for new violence Friday with tensions high following the deadliest Israeli raid in over two decades, even as the likelihood of a major escalation in the conflict appeared to ebb.

The raid in the flashpoint Jenin refugee camp descended into a gun battle Thursday that killed at least nine Palestinians, while clashes elsewhere left another dead. Gaza militants then fired rockets and Israel carried out airstrikes overnight — but the exchange was limited, following a familiar pattern that allows both sides to respond without leading to a major flareup. Israel’s defense minister, meanwhile, instructed to the military to prepare for new strikes in the Gaza Strip “if necessary” — also appearing to leave open the possibility that the violence would subside.

Nevertheless, the flareup posed an early test for Israeli Prime Minister Ben-

Palestinians clash with Israeli forces following an army raid in the West Bank city of Jenin, Thursday, Jan. 26. (AP)

jamin Netanyahu’s far-right government and drew “deep concern” from the State Department ahead of U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s expected trip to the region next week.

The raid also prompted the Palestinian Authority to halt security coordination with Israel. While residents of Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank remained on edge Friday, midday prayers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, often a catalyst for clashes between Pales-

Zelensky warns against hatred on ‘Holocaust Remembrance Day’

tinians and Israeli police, passed in relative calm.

But so far, both the Palestinian rockets and Israeli airstrikes seemed limited so as to prevent escalation into a full-blown war.

Israel and Hamas have fought four wars and several smaller skirmishes since the militant group seized power in Gaza from rival Palestinian forces in 2007.

The Palestinians’ rockets were fired toward the south of Israel, while Israel’s nonlethal airstrikes were on targets in Gaza,

such as training camps and an underground rocketmanufacturing site.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant claimed the military dealt a “tough blow” to Palestinian militants in Gaza and said the army was preparing to strike “high-quality targets ... until peace is restored to the citizens of Israel.”

On Friday, Israeli police were out in force in Jerusalem, as scores of Muslim worshippers gathered for prayers in the stone courtyard of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and chanted in solidarity with those killed in the Jenin raid.

Tensions at the holy site, revered by Jews as the Temple Mount, have triggered violence in the past, including a bloody Gaza war in 2021. The site is considered the third-most sacred in Islam and the holiest place in Judaism.

“In spirit and blood, we will sacrifice you,” Muslim worshippers shouted.

“Greetings Jenin, Greetings Gaza.”

Pak currency plunges to 262 against dollar amid IMF aid uncertainty

Fatal shooting at Azerbaijan Embassy in Iran raises tensions

DUBAI, JAN 27 (AP): A gunman stormed the Azerbaijan Embassy in Iran’s capital Friday, killing its security chief and wounding two guards in an attack that spiked long-simmering tensions between the two neighboring countries.

Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry said it would evacuate the diplomatic post, accusing Iran of not taking reported threats against it seriously in the past that include inciting comments in hard-line media over Azerbaijan’s diplomatic ties to Israel. Tehran’s police chief, Gen. Hossein Rahimi, initially blamed the attack on “personal and family problems,” something quickly repeated across Iranian state media. But within hours Rahimi would lose his position as police chief after footage emerged that appeared to show a security force member doing nothing to stop the attack.

“Previously, there have been attempts to threaten

A man gestures at bullet holes left after an attack at the Azerbaijan Embassy in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 27, 2023. (AP) our diplomatic mission in Iran, and it was constantly raised before Iran to take measures to prevent such cases, and to ensure the safety of our diplomatic missions,” the Azerbaijan Foreign Ministry said. “Unfortunately, the last bloody terror attack demonstrates the serious consequences of not showing proper sensitivity to our urgent appeals in this direction.”

Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev called the as-

sault a “terrorist attack.” He identified the dead security chief as 1st Lt. Orkhan Rizvan Oglu Askarov. The attack happened Friday morning, the second day of the Iranian weekend. Surveillance video released in Azerbaijan purportedly showed the gunman arriving by car at the embassy, running into the back of another car parked out front. He exited his car, holding what appeared to be a Kalashnikov-style rifle.

Watchdog

blames Syria’s air force for deadly chlorine attack

THE HAGUE, JAN 27 (AP): An investigation by the global chemical weapons watchdog established there are “reasonable grounds to believe” Syria’s air force dropped two cylinders containing chlorine gas on the city of Douma in April 2018, killing 43 people. A report published Friday by a team from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons offered the latest confirmation that the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad used chemical weapons during his country’s grinding civil war.

Mysterious illness kills 18 in Pakistan

KARACHI, JAN 27 (PTI): A mysterious illness has killed 18 people, mostly children, in Karachi’s Kemari area with health officials in this southern Pakistani port city still unable to find the cause of the deaths. Director Health Services

Abdul Hameed Jumani confirmed on Friday that 18 people, including 14 children, died from the mysterious illness in the Mawach Goth area in Kemari between January 10 and 25.

KYIV, JAN 27 (AGENCIES): Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky marked Holocaust Remembrance Day Friday by urging the world to unite against “indifference” and “hatred,” nearly one year into Russia’s invasion of his country. “Today, as al-

ways, Ukraine honours the memory of millions of victims of the Holocaust. We know and remember that indifference kills along with hatred,” President Zelensky said in a video statement, reports AFP. President Zelensky, who is of Jewish descent and from the pre-dominantly Russian-speaking south of the country, did not refer directly to Russia’s invasion in his address. Moscow has routinely accused Ukraine of harbouring neo-Nazis and justified its invasion saying the country needed to be “de-Nazified”.

KARACHI, JAN 27 (PTI): Cash-strapped Pakistan’s currency depreciated to its lowest against the US dollar on Friday in the interbank and open market and closed at 262.6 rupees.

At one stage the currency depreciated to 265 rupees in the open market and 266 rupees in the interbank before making a slight recovery by the end of the day. According to the State Bank of Pakistan, when the market opened on Friday the currency fell by 7.17 rupees or 2.73 per cent from Thursday’s close.

The Pakistani rupee’s value has devalued by 34 rupees since Thursday in the interbank, the largest depreciation in both absolute and percentage terms since the new exchange rate system was introduced in 1999.

The Pakistani rupee has depreciated sharply after the government removed an unofficial cap on the USDPKR exchange rate to revive the stalled International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan programme.

The government decision came on Thursday after the exchange companies announced the removal of a self-imposed rate cap in the open market.

10 Ukrainian civilians killed in latest Russian shelling

KYIV, JAN 27(AP): Russian shelling killed at least 10 Ukrainian civilians and wounded 20 others in a day, the office of Ukraine’s president reported Friday as the country worked to recover from an earlier wave of Russian missile strikes and drone attacks.

The new casualties included the deaths of at least two civilians in the southern city of Kherson, which Ukrainian troops recaptured in November, and two more in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk province. The missiles and self-propelled drones Russian forces fired Thursday hit deeper into Ukrainian territory, killing at least 11 people. The bombardment followed announcements by the United States and Germany of plans to ship powerful tanks to help Ukraine defend itself. Other Western countries said they also would share modern tanks from their stockpiles.

Office O f the Dimapur Yachem Bühü pangthai

Dimapur – 797 112 : n agalan D “Unite and March”

f elicitati O n

We the Dimapur Yachem Bühü Pangthai extend our heartiest congratulations to Shri. i m eren c henth

S/o M. Chenlom Phom for being promoted to Deputy Commandant of Police under Home Department, Govt. of Nagaland.

We wish him the very best in his future endeavours.

Sd/-

O. limayanger K. imkongzchicha President Secretary DYBP DYBP dp -429/23

OFFICE OF THE PHOKHUNGRI STUDENTS’ UNION

B.P.O PHOKHUNGRI, P.O MELURI - 797114 FELICITATION

With immense pride and honour, unceasing gratitude to our Almighty God, we the Phokhungri Students’ Union would like to extend our heartiest congratulations to Mr. JOSEMONG from Phokhungri Village for being promoted to the post of Assistant Headmaster/JEO (Junior Grade II) under Government of Nagaland School Education Department.

The Union further extends its best wishes in all his future endeavours.

Sd/- Sd/(ZEDANG) (Y. NGULEMONG) President, PSU General Secretary, PSU k-206/23

Moscow has bristled at the move, and accused Western nations of entering a new level of confrontation with Russia. Gov. Pavlo

Kyrylenko of the eastern Donetsk region said the Russian military used phosphorus munitions in shelling the village of Zvanivka. The

REsIgNATION

Listed below are the names with rank and file of the party from Yaongyimsen Dimapur Unit, Yaongyimsen Chumoukedima Unit, Yaongyimsen Nükshiyim who had supported the NDPP Candidate Shri. Imnatiba in the 2018 State Legislative Elections. Going forward they are pledging their allegiance in support of Shri. Nuklutoshi for the upcoming 2023 State Legislative Elections under the 22 Arkakong Constituency, Mokokchung District.

1. Imnameren

2. Bendangwapang

3. Imotemjen Jamir

4. Imtisosang Imsong

5. Sowa Imsong

6. T. Asangla Jamir

7. M. Akaba Imsong

8. Chubatemsü

9. Tiakümla

10. Süngjemla Imsong

11. Temsunungla

12. I. Temjen Imsong

13. S. Apokla Lkr.

14. Anungla Imsong

15. C. Meren Jamir

16. I. Akum Jamir

17. S. Akala Jamir

village is located about 20 kilometers north of Bakhmut, a city that has become the focus of a grueling battle in recent months. The shelling also damaged apartment buildings and two schools in the nearby town of Vuhledar, Kyrylenko said. The governor of the neighboring Luhansk region, Serhii Haidai, said Ukrainian shelling hit two Russian bases in the occupied towns of Kreminna and Rubizhne, killing and wounding “dozens” of Russian soldiers. His claim couldn’t be independently verified.

The 23 Impur Assembly Constituency NDPP Mopunchuket Unit hereby makes an announcement to all the concerned. That in the coming 14th Nagaland General Assembly Election, we the following have decided to wholeheartedly extend support to the one who has the vision for the youth and for the upliftment of the constituency. Keeping this in mind, we have resolved to tender our resignation from the active and primary membership of 23 Impur A/C NDPP Mopungchuket Unit at a meeting held on 24th Jan 2023.

Sl. No Name Designation Sign

01. L. Aosunep President

03. Yimdonglong General Secretary

04. Moaakum Asst. Gen. Secy.

05. Alangpong Treasurer

06. Lanusanen Executive

07. Limajungshi Active Member

08. Mendangchiba Active Member

REsIgNATION

In witness of the unceasing growth of the people’s support for the leadership of Shri. Imkongmar, intending candidate, the following office bearers and members of the NPF 25-Mongoya Assembly Constituency have decided to resign from both primary and active membership as well as from respective posts in the party. We solemnly declare to support his candidature for the forthcoming General Election to the

18. Rongsen Lkr.

YAONGYIMSEN CHUMOUKEDIMA UNIT

1. Imsutoshi

2. Tiakumzuk

3. Imtiyanger

4. Malem

5. Asangla

Atula

Temjenla

1. Shiluti - 22 A/C Arkakong NDPPVice President

2. Sentimeren - NDPP Nukshiyim Unit - President

3. Mokoktoshi

4. Yimkumba

5. Jongshinok

6. Tuten7. Imtiongla

Imnanungsang

KELINGMEN VILLAGE

This is to notify that these are the party workers from Kelingmen Village who had supported the NDPP Candidate Shri. Imnatiba in the 2018 Elections. Going forward they are pledging their allegiance to support Shri. Nuklutoshi for the upcoming 2023 State Legislative Elections under the 22 Arkakong Constituency, Mokokchung District.

1. Moatoshi Jamir - Secretary NDPP 22 Arkakong A/C.

2. Nungsangmanent - Executive NDPP Kelingmen Unit

3. Sungjemmeren - Executive NDPP Kelingmen Unit

4. Limakumzuk - Executive NDPP Kelingmen Unit

5. Supongnukshi - Executive NDPP Kelingmen Unit.

6. Imkongakum

7. Lanutoshi

8. Imkongnungla

9. Rongsenwati

10. Chubanungsang

11. Imtichuba

12. Lanutola

13. Meyilemla

14. Moanaro

15. T. Chubasanen Jamir

16. Imnatola

17. Maongkaba

18. Imtinenla

19. Bendangtoshi

20. Temjenchuba

21. Moamongla

22. Arenbenla

23. Imtisongla 24. Aoyangla 25. Temjenmoa

26. Imlikokla

27. Limatenzuk

28. Pangeronen

29. J. Imsuwati 30. Aokumzuk 31. Imsutoshi

32. Lipokmar 33. Imnaienla 34. I. Yanglu 35. P. Alemla

36. Temjenrenba

37. Imsungitla

38. Imnuksungba

39. Rendipokla

40. Imliten

41. Talizungla

42. Tiasenla

43. Bendangnukshi

44. Maong Jamir

Odiangshi

Volodymyr Zelensky

People check a destroyed house after a Russian rocket attack in Hlevakha, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Thursday. (AP)

Miss Nagaland 2022 launches

‘Beauty with a purpose’ project

Silver Vision; Miss Sumi 2022, Linovi P Kiba and Niloli Wotsa at Christian High School, Noklak on January 27 . In a press release, Hikali Achumi informed that “Period Positive” does not only aim to educate women but also to spread awareness among the men to appreciate and support women’s body and challenges that are faced in ever y monthly cycle. She stated that through the project she hopes at bringing everyone together to spread positivity towards changing perspectives and accepting women of all kinds and making ‘Menstruation’ a positive cycle and not a taboo.

Hekali Achumi also added that the project that was launched on Friday promises to be a bundle of hope and positivity in the wake of empowering every woman.

Anew Shazam! Fury of the Gods trailer has been released, giving fans a closer look at the upcoming DC sequel. The new trailer features a more serious tone than previous ones, showing Billy and his family confronting the villainous and immensely powerful daughters of Atlas — Hespera and Kalypso — who are portrayed by Oscar winner Helen Mirren and Kill Bill actress Lucy Liu.

Shazam! Fury of the Gods will feature the return of Asher Angel and Zachary Levi as they reprise their respective roles as Billy Batson and Shazam.

Joining them are most of the first film’s main cast, including Jack Dylan Grazer and Adam Brody as Freddy, Faithe Herman and Meagan Good as Darla, Ian Chen and Ross Butler as Eugene, Grace Fulton as Mary, Jovan Armand and D.J. Cotrona as Pedro, Marta Milans, and

Cooper Andrews. Shazam! Fury of the Gods is once again being directed by David F. Sandberg (Annabelle: Creation) from a screenplay written by returning scribe Henry Gayden. It is produced by Peter Safran.

(Yahoo Entertainment)

People with poor literacy face more mental health problems such as loneliness, depression and anxiety, according to a review of studies which used data from nine countries, including India.

The research, published in the journal Mental Health and Social Inclusion, is the first to look at the global picture of literacy and mental health.

The researchers from the University of East Anglia (UEA) in the UK found that little or no literacy disproportionately affect women, who account for two thirds of the world’s illiterate. “Despite rising literacy rates over the past 50 years, there are still an estimated 773 million adults globally who can’t read or write,” said Bonnie Teague from UEA’s Norwich Medical School.

“Literacy rates are lower in developing countries and those with a history of conflict, and women are dis-

Study

tential association between literacy and mental health but this is the first study looking at the issue on a global scale,” he added.

proportionately affected,” Teague said.

The researchers noted that people with more literacy tend to have better social outcomes in terms of things like finding employment, being paid well, and being able to afford better food and housing. Not being able to read or write holds a person back throughout their life and they often become trapped in poverty or more likely to commit crime, they said. “We also know that lower literacy is related to poorer health, chronic diseases and shorter life expectancy,” Teague said.

“There has been some research examining the po-

The team reviewed data from 19 studies that measured both literacy and mental health. These studies took place across nine different countries -- US, China, Nepal, Thailand, Iran, India, Ghana, Pakistan, and Brazil, and involved almost two million participants. The resaerchers used information relating to mental health and literacy to assess the global reported relationship between these two factors.They found a significant association between literacy and mental health outcomes across multiple countries. “People with lower literacy had greater mental health difficulties such as anxiety and depression,” said Lucy Hunn, who completed the review as part of her Doctorate in clinical psychology training at UEA. (PTI)

Health and beauty: the worst things you can put on your face

Hydrogen Peroxide

It’s a popular zit fighter because it kills bacteria living on your face

It’s a popular zit fighter because it kills bacteria living on your face. But hydrogen peroxide can damage your own skin cells, including fibroblasts that help make new tissue and heal wounds. Also avoid it for cleaning cuts and scrapes. Use soap and water instead. Hydrogen peroxide might irritate your already fragile skin.

Breast Milk

This liquid gold has long been known for its bevy of health benefits for babies. This liquid gold has long been known for its bevy of health benefits for babies. Now some spas are offering breast milk facials to tamp down pimples and to soothe skin. It won’t hurt you. But you’re better off using a cream or other products that contain lauric acid, the fatty compound found in mother’s milk.

Witch Hazel

This plant is a common natural remedy to treat acne, tighten pores, and fight greasiness.

This plant is a common natural remedy to treat acne, tighten pores, and fight greasiness. Witch hazel acts as an astringent, a type of chemical that causes your skin tissue to contract. But toners that contain witch hazel can strip all the natural oils from your skin. That might lead to irritation, dryness, and even allergic reactions.

Hydrocortisone Cream

This medication is a balm for red, itchy, swollen skin.

This medication is a balm for red, itchy, swollen skin. So you might be tempted to smear it on if you have rosacea or similar

conditions. But this type of steroid cream thins the skin, so the blood vessels on your face are more likely to burst. It also can force your oil glands to go into overdrive, leading to what’s called “steroid acne.” It’s OK to apply a small amount for bug bites and itchy rashes for a day or two.

Deodorant

If beads of sweat are always rolling down your face, swiping an antiperspirant over your brows, cheeks, and elsewhere may seem like a clever solution. It isn’t. Deodorant sticks and rollers can clog pores and make you break out. The skin on your face is

also sensitive, and you might get an allergic reaction. See a dermatologist instead. They may curb your sweaty glands with prescription medications or Botox.

Honey

This sweet stuff has been used to treat wounds since ancient times. This sweet stuff has been used to treat wounds since ancient times. Today, some folks dab it on to banish acne. Honey helps to keep germs at bay and lessens inflammation. But it probably doesn’t do much. One study found that honey worked no better than antibacterial soap. If you still want to try it,

look for manuka honey that has a minimum rating of 10 UMF to ensure it has enough germ-fighting power.

Hair Dye

If you color your hair, you may want your brows to match.

If you color your hair, you may want your brows to match. But it’s not a DIY project. Home dyes have too much peroxide to use safely near your brows. You might burn the surrounding skin or even injure your eyes. Instead, look for tinted brow gel at your drugstore. Or coat your brows with a lightweight mascara or eye shadow powder.

Urine

Devotees swear by their pee as the secret to smooth, unclogged skin. Devotees swear by their pee as the secret to smooth, unclogged skin. Urine is made up of mostly water and a compound called urea. Many creams and potions include a labmade form of urea because it binds to moisture in the air and draws it to the skin. But your pee probably doesn’t contain enough of it to matter. Plus, it’s just

gross.

Hair Spray

It’s a handy and effective fix to stop a run in your stocking or to get rid of static cling.

It’s a handy and effective fix to stop a run in your stocking or to get rid of static cling. But don’t use hair spray to set your makeup. The same ingredients that make hair stick also can dry out your skin or trigger an allergic reaction. A makeup setting spray is a better choice.

Lemon Juice

It’s loaded with vitamin C, which can brighten skin and smooth fine lines. But lemon juice is acidic and can irritate your face. It’s loaded with vitamin C, which can brighten skin and smooth fine lines. But lemon juice is acidic and can irritate your face. You also might end up with an ugly rash from phytophotodermatitis, a skin reaction that happens if you expose chemicals in certain plants and fruits to sunlight or other ultraviolet

light. The rash goes away on its own, but it can be uncomfortable.

Coconut Oil

If you believe the hype, it’s a magic elixir for beautiful skin. If you believe the hype, it’s a magic elixir for beautiful skin. It’s true that coconut oil is rich in lauric acid, which has proven zit-fighting powers. But it’s also about 90% saturated fat, which can clog your pores. Use it as much as you want on your body -- in fact, research shows it can help with severe dryness or eczema -- but keep it away from your face.

Very Hot Water

Wash your face following the Goldilocks rule: not too hot, not too cold, but just right.

Wash your face following the Goldilocks rule: not too hot, not too cold, but just right. High-temperature water strips your skin of moisture. When that happens, your skin’s oil glands try to replace it by churning out even

more oil. The result? Acne breakouts.

Body Lotion

If you run out of your facial moisturizer, you may be tempted to substitute it with your body lotion. If you run out of your facial moisturizer, you may be tempted to substitute it with your body lotion. Resist. Most lotions for the body are thicker, and thus more likely to clog your pores. They also may have fragrances or other ingredients that can cause an allergic reaction on the thinner, more delicate skin on your face. Want to check if it’s OK to use on your face? The label should say fragrance free and noncomedogenic

Glue

It’s all the rage on social media: turning school glue into facial masks to root out blackheads.

It’s all the rage on social media: turning school glue into facial masks to root out blackheads. People spread a layer of the white sticky stuff around

problem-prone areas, let it dry, and peel it off. Unfortunately, this home hack won’t clean out your pores. It may just leave you with irritated skin or broken blood vessels. Worse yet, you could accidentally strip away the surface layer of your skin.

Nail Polish

Some people might resort to it in a pinch as a substitute for face paint at Halloween or for costume parties.

Some people might resort to it in a pinch as a substitute for face paint at Halloween or for costume parties. The only place nail polish belongs is on your fingernails.

Most contain ingredients like acetate and formaldehyde that can irritate your skin. To clean up, you’ll need nail polish removers, which have even harsher chemicals like acetones that may damage your face.

Reviewed By: Stephanie S. Gardner, MD

FELICITATION

endeavours.

Interested persons can contact: 9436003559

k-191/23

A heartfelt congratulations to Ms. A . Sentiyula, wife of Mr. Along Longkumer on completing her Ph.D from Nagaland University. She wrote her thesis on the topic "Writing and performing Orality: The Naga Context" She is currently the HoD of the Department of English at Dimapur Government College. We the Mopungchuket Senso Telongjem Dimapur and Ao Temolungtsür Telongjem Dimapur wish you success in all your future

Sd/- Sd/Sobunukshi Jamir M. Arenla Jamir President, MSTD President, ATTD

2 Full-time video Editor with sound knowledge of using video editing software like Adobe Premiere Pro, Da Vinci etc creating content etc

Hikali Achumi, Miss Nagaland 2022 has officially launched her “Beauty with a purpose” project under the

theme “Period Positive” in collaboration with Vikuonuo Sachü from the Miraculum Society powered by BASN and the

‘Shazam 2’ trailer highlights the villainous daughters of Atlas Poor literacy linked to worse mental health problems:

Miss Nagaland 2022, Hikali Achumi with others during the launching of the project ‘Beauty with purpose’.

U19 Women’s T20 WC: Eng to face India in final

POTCHEFSTROOM, JAN 27 (IANS): England held their nerve to set up a final clash with India in the inaugural edition of ICC Under-19 Womens T20 World Cup after beating Australia by just three runs in a thrilling second semifinal at JB Marks Oval, here on Friday.

Earlier, India have breezed into the final of the inaugural U19 Womens T20 World Cup with an eight-wicket victory over New Zealand in the first semifinal at the JB Marks Oval. With their powerful batting line-up having faltered by posting 99 all out and leaving Australia exactly 100 runs at under a run a ball to win, an intense effort in the field and with the ball helped England defend a modest target.

Player of the match Hannah Baker led the charge, with the leg-spinner’s beguiling spell fetching her figures of 3/10 off four overs, with skipper Grace Scrivens supporting her with figures of 2/8 off

Match in action between Indian women’s

3.4 overs and getting the last wicket to fall by trapping Maggie Clark lbw for a duck.

The low run rate in the chase and Amy Smith’s run-a-ball 26 (three fours) kept Australia in the game, but once she holed out to long-off off Josie Groves’ bowling with the score on 77, England had all but set a date with India in Sunday’s final at the same

New Zealand during

and

venue. England chose to bat after winning the toss to hopefully put a big total on the board and let scoreboard pressure do its thing. But the Australian bowling attack had different ideas as Sianna Ginger (3/13), Maggie Clark (3/15) and Ella Hayward (3/25) made relatively light work of one of the more explosive batting line-ups around.

Copa del Rey: Athletic Bilbao, Real Madrid complete tough last-four lineup

MADRID (SPAIN), JAN

27 (IANS): Real Madrid and Athletic Club Bilbao joined FC Barcelona in the semifinals of the Copa del Rey knockout competition after beating Atletico Madrid and Valencia in their respective quarterfinals.

Real Madrid came back from a goal down at home to Atletico after former Real Madrid striker Alvaro Morata finished off a swift passing move from close range, on Thursday night.

Atletico sat deep in the second half, hoping to hold on to their advantage, but a brilliant individual goal from Rodrygo in the 79th minute took the game to extra time.

Atletico were reduced to 10 men in extra time when Stefan Savic was sent off after seeing two yellow cards. Karim Benzema won the tie in the 103rd minute when he followed up at the far post to slide home a cross from Marcos Asensio.

Vinicius Jr scored Real Madrid’s third goal in the last minute after he was allowed to progress through the Atletico defense virtually unchallenged.

Earlier in the evening, Athletic Club qualified for the semifinal in four years

Real Madrid players celebrate after scoring their side goal.

with a 3-1 win away to Valencia.

After controlling Valencia’s start in front of their home fans for half an hour, Athletic opened the scoring in the 35th minute when Iker Muniain fired home Inaki Williams’ knockdown.

An own goal from Oscar de Marcos, who put the ball into his own net under pressure at the far post, drew Valencia level in the 44th minute, but Inaki Williams turned provider again for his younger brother, Nico, to put Athletic back in front before halftime, reports news agency Xinhua.

That goal left Valencia groggy and Athletic controlled the second half, extending their lead from the penalty spot in the 74th

minute from Mikel Vesga after the VAR spotted a foul on Nico Williams.

On Wednesday, FC Barcelona qualified for the semifinals thanks to a 1-0 win over Real Sociedad, with Ousmane Dembele scoring an impressive second-half goal.

Real Sociedad played for over half of the game with 10 men after midfielder Brais Mendez was sent off for a high tackle.

In Wednesday’s second quarterfinal, Osasuna beat Sevilla 2-1 after extra time. It looked as if Chimy Avila’s 71st-minute goal would see Osasuna through, but Youssef EnNesyri levelled for Sevilla in the fifth minute of injury time to force an extra half hour.

Having scored the most runs in the tournament (269 from five matches) before the semi-final encounter, Grace, the England captain, posted a runa-ball 20 before being the sixth wicket out.

For the brief period she was in, middle-order batter Seren Smale looked like she was batting on a different surface, but an unlucky lbw decision went

against her for a 10-ball 10 (two fours), leaving lower order batters Alexa Stonehouse and Josie Groves to pick up the pieces.

The two compiled a gutsy eighth-wicket partnership of 46 from 46 balls, Alexa top-scoring with 25 off 33 (two fours) and Josie chipping in with 15. That partnership was the main reason England got to 99 all out, which also told them they were in the game as the biggest total scored against them in the tournament was 103 by Pakistan.

Australia losing their first two wickets for just four runs meant a cliffhanger was on the cards, with England the eventual winners in a nail-biting finish that will be remembered for a long time to come.

WOKHA, JAN 27 (NP): A1 Tsungiki and NRSA has reached semi-finals at the ongoing 12th edition of Lotha Football Championship (LFC) on Friday played at

local ground Wokha. In the first match, Tsungiki A1 beat Titans FC 2-0. The second match was decided by a tiebreaker wherein NRSA defeated

Arsenic 10-9. The match on Saturday will begin at 10:30 am. Saturday’s matches Stallion FC Vs ERSA XI Brothers Vs Avengers FC

GENEVA (SWITZERLAND), JAN 27 (IANS):

The International Federation of Football Association (FIFA) has revealed the 2022 Global Transfer Report, showing record transfers in the world in the past year.

A total of 71,002 transfers across borders, including 21,764 involving professionals for both men and women, were made in 2022, according to the annual report released on Wednesday.

In men’s professional football, 20,209 international transfers were concluded last year, 11.6 per cent more than those in 2021 and even exceeding the levels of 2019 before the Covid-19 pandemic, FIFA said.

Emilio Garcia Silvero, FIFA’s Chief Legal and Compliance officer, was quoted as saying in FIFA’s statement, “The two-year negative trend in clubs’ spending on transfer fees was turned around in 2022.”

English clubs once again spent the most in the world, with a record spending of almost 2.2 billion U.S. dollars, while France made the most profit from transfers, receiving 740.3 million U.S. dollars from other associations.

NBA: Mavs win game but lose Luka Doncic

PHOENIX, JAN 27

(AGENCIES): Spencer

Dinwiddie scored a season-high 36 points as the visiting Dallas Mavericks overcame an early injury to star Luka Doncic to beat the Phoenix Suns 99-95 on Thursday night.

Dorian Finney-Smith had 18 points and 12 rebounds, Dwight Powell added 15 points, Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 11 and Reggie Bullock had 10 for Dallas, which won for just the third time in 10 games.

Doncic, who entered the night as the NBA’s leading scorer at 33.8 points per game, exited early in the first quarter due to a sprained left ankle and did not return. X-rays were negative.

Chris Paul and Cameron Johnson led Phoenix with 22 points apiece, while Deandre Ayton had 19 points and 20 rebounds after missing the past three games due to a non-COVID illness. Paul also tallied 10 assists as the Suns saw their four-game winning streak end.

Knicks 120, Celtics

117 (OT)

Julius Randle scored 37 points and Jalen Brunson added 29 as New

York came back to win in overtime in Boston.

Randle and R.J. Barrett each hit 3-pointers to flip the score after the Celtics opened overtime on a 5-0 run. Brunson added four rebounds, seven assists and two blocks, rejecting Malcolm Brogdon’s potential game-tying 3 at the buzzer.

Jayson Tatum had 35 points and 14 rebounds while Jaylen Brown added 22 points in Boston’s third straight loss.

Hornets 111, Bulls 96 Terry Rozier poured in 28 points and LaMelo Ball, who hadn’t played in more than a week, scored five of his 15 points during a key late-game stretch as

host Charlotte beat Chicago. Rozier sank four of Charlotte’s seven 3-pointers and helped the Hornets -- who outscored the Bulls in 34-17 in the fourth quarter -- snap a two-game skid. Mason Plumlee scored 21 points, aided by 9-for-9 shooting from the field, and grabbed 12 rebounds, Gordon Hayward had 17 points and reserve Mark Williams added 10 points on 5-for-5 shooting. DeMar DeRozan’s 28 points led the Bulls, who have dropped back-to-back games following a threegame winning streak. Zach LaVine had 18 points and nine rebounds, Patrick Williams posted 15 points in

his hometown, and Nikola Vucevic (nine rebounds) and Ayo Dosunmu each had 12 points.

Pistons 130, Nets 122

Saddiq Bey scored 15 of his 25 points in the third quarter as Detroit took control in a victory over Brooklyn in New York.

The Pistons snapped a four-game losing streak, and they scored 43 points in the third, marking their highest-scoring quarter this season.

Alec Burks added 10 of his 20 points in the fourth. Rookie Jalen Duren scored 17 and Killian Hayes and rookie Jaden Ivey chipped in 16 apiece as Detroit withstood a quiet showing from Bojan Bogdanovic, who was held to 11 points on 4-of-15 shooting.

Kyrie Irving tried to will the Nets back down the stretch with 12 of his 40 points in the fourth, but Brooklyn fell to 2-6 since Kevin Durant suffered a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee on Jan. 8. Nic Claxton added a career-high 27 points and 13 rebounds while Edmond Sumner contributed a career-best 24 points.

Correspondent

KOHIMA, JAN 27 (NPN): The Pfütsero COB of Chieswema battalion Assam Rifles under the aegis of IGAR (N) have started a free martial arts coaching class (wushu & kick boxing) for kids and students at Pfütsero in Phek district from Friday as a part of “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav”.

The coaching class, which will continue for a month was supervised by 45th Assam Rifles (Pfütsero Company) with former DGAR Wushu player and coach rifleman N. Tomba Singh to motivate the kids/students to stay physically fit and mentally strong.

16 students have registered for this coaching class on first day while more students are expected to join in coming days.

Mane’s smile is a motivation booster for Bayern

BERLIN (GERMANY), JAN 27 (IANS): It might have been the explicit intention of Sadio Mane to let pictures send out a convincing message of hope.

With temperatures around the freezing point, two months after his leg injury, the striker delivered the expected pictures containing hope and determination. His message seemed striking to everyone: The race to make it back for the delicate last 16 duels in the Champions League against Paris Saint-Germain on February 14 and March 8 has started.

Constantly smiling, the former Liverpool star carried out his running session persisting in the low

temperatures in the winterly Bavarian atmosphere. Without wearing a warming beanie, he had his tracksuit bottoms rolled up as if it was a pleasantly sunny springtime day. Leaving the locker room, Mane enthusiastically spread his arms, looked up to the sky, and seemed to welcome the cold air and snowflakes, ts Xinhua. “Holidays have been long for me, and I can’t wait to be back to the full action,” the 2019 Champions League winner said after he had missed several club games as well as the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Mane’s comeback just in time, at least for a moment, seemed to improve the mood of a club suffering from internal unrest after a poor re-start after the winter break, coming along with additional unrest after the loss of keeper Manuel Neuer and several cases of

Sadio Mane

indiscipline. Coach Julian Nagelsmann called it a tight race to make it back for the first leg against Paris, but the ray of hope seems to affect everyone on Bayern’s training pitch. While Mane still needs to travel a bumpy road to attend full team training, several team members came to express their relief about his return.

“We will not take any risk, but count on small steps of recovery,” Bayern sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic said.

Mane himself has set the frame points and spoke of three weeks until rejoining the competitive squad for a game. For now, the goal for Africa’s 2022 footballer of the year is to be back for the delicate encounter against Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi “if things go perfectly,” as coach Nagelsmann put it. The running session only took around 20 minutes, but Mane’s enjoyment couldn’t have been greater. Lonely recovery training sessions were a thing of the past suddenly. Nagelsmann praised Mane’s progress and said: “He is doing faster than we all expected. He might make it, but for now, we are happy to see him around in a good mood.”

The Bayern coach spoke of “us giving him all the time he needs and avoiding any pressure.”

Kane a doubt for Tottenham in FA Cup

LONDON, Jan 27 (AGENCIES): Harry Kane may have to wait at least another week to become Tottenham Hotspur’s all-time record goalscorer as illness could rule him out of Saturday’s FA Cup fourth round tie away at Preston North End.

The 29-year-old drew level with the late Jimmy Greaves when scoring his 266th goal for the club to seal a 1-0 victory over Fulham in the Premier League on Monday.

But assistant head coach Cristian Stellini said

“We know that Harry wants to play every game so we are happy but we have to take care.”

It could open the door for new on-loan forward Arnaut Danjuma to make

his debut after his move from Spanish club Villarreal on Wednesday.

“He is a player that can play like a striker or a winger. He has a lot of positions he can cover. So we are happy and we are looking forward to working with him,” Stellini said.

3rd NAGALAND POST, DIMAPUR SATURDAY, JANUARY 28, 2023 SPORTS 11

Harry Kane

that he has struggled to train this week.

“We only have one problem with Harry, with illness this week and he hasn’t trained much. He

Oja, Three years have gone but your presence is still felt fresh. Till memory fades, in our hearts forever you hold a place no one else will ever fill.

We miss you

1st Death

(28/01/2020)

A Year has gone by but we still cannot accept that you are gone. No amount of tears can bring you back and it breaks our hearts to feel the emptiness in our lives without you. We pray that God rewards you with the best that you deserve and keep you happy up there in Heaven.

Always and Forever in our Hearts with silent tears. Loving Husband, Children, in-laws and Grandchildren.

Dallas Mavericks guard Spencer Dinwiddie (26) drives around Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul (3).

trained today but we have to think about this,” he told a news conference.

1st T20I: NZ beat India by 21 runs, take 1-0 lead

RANCHI, JAN 27

(IANS): New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner led a superb spin show to defeat India by 21 runs in the first T20I of the three-match series at the JSCA International Stadium, here on Friday.

After Daryl Mitchell and Devon Conway smashed half-centuries in powering New Zealand to 176/6 in 20 overs, including a 27-run final over, India lost their top three in powerplay as Santner, Michael Bracewell and Ish Sodhi made the most out of turn and controlled their line and length well to guide visitors to their first win of the tour.

For India, there was a 68-run stand off 51 balls for the fourth wicket between Suryakumar Yadav and captain Hardik Pandya, followed by Washington Sundar notching up his maiden T20I fifty, keeping the hosts’ in the hunt. But losing wickets at regular intervals meant India ended up at 155/9 in 20 overs.

In defence of 176, Bracewell struck on his third ball in the second over, getting a good length ball around middle stump to spin past Kishan’s outside edge and hit the off

New Zealand’s bowler Ish Sodhi celebrates with teammates after the wicket of Indian batter Suryakumar Yadav during the first T20 cricket match. (PTI) stump. In the next over, Rahul Tripathi fell for a sixball duck off Jacob Duffy, after his attempted slog took a feather edge behind to the wicket-keeper.

Santner struck on his first ball of the match as Shubman Gill went back foot to pull a slower delivery. But the ball stopped and turned at him, resulting in the bottom edge going to square leg.

With the ball turning left, right and centre, Sant-

ner managed to slip in a maiden over in the last over of power-play against an inform Suryakumar. The right-handed batter, who had previously hit a four off Santner and flicked a six off Lockie Ferguson, attacked Ish Sodhi by nailing sweeps through fine leg and square leg. He then feasted on short and wide balls from Blair Tickner, cutting him through the off-side twice. When Sodhi returned

Indonesia Masters: India’s campaign ends as Lakshya, Tanisha-Ashwini lose in QFs

JAKARTA, JAN 27 (PTI):

Lakshya Sen’s impressive run in the Indonesia Masters Super 500 badminton tournament ended with a quarter-final loss to Asian Games champion Jonatan Christie here on Friday.

World No. 12 Sen squandered an openinggame advantage to go down 21-15, 10-21, 13-21 to home favourite Christie, ranked third, in a 62-minute men’s singles match.

Later in the day, new women’s doubles pair of Tanisha Crasto and Ashwini Ponnappa lost 13-21, 18-21 to Japan’s Yuki Fukushima and Sayaka Hirota in the quarter-finals to bring down the curtain on India’s campaign.

Coming into the match with a 1-0 head-to-head record, Commonwealth Games champion Sen showed his prowess as he opened up a 8-5 lead and maintained it at the break.

Ukraine may boycott Paris Olympics if Russian, Belarusian athletes compete

against Santner and in a bid to go big off him, he danced down the pitch. But Hooda missed the shorter delivery and saw the ball turn past his bat to be stumped for 10 in the 16th over.

The slide continued for India as Santner ranout Shivam Mavi at the bowler’s end while Kuldeep Yadav nicked behind off Ferguson. Sundar, dropped in the 14th over off Ferguson, waged a lone battle for India, pulling Tickner for four and six respectively while hitting Duffy for six over mid-off, before taking two fours through delightful drives.

in the 12th over, Suryakumar brought out the lofted drive over extra cover for six. But on the very next ball, he was foxed by a googly from the leg-spinner and chipped straight to long-on, falling for 47. In the next over, Hardik went for the pull off Bracewell and the bowler moved to his right to complete the catch.

Deepak Hooda, despite being given a life off Bracewell, was all at sea

He got his fifty in 25 balls by hammering Ferguson over long-on for six in the final over. After being dropped by Sodhi, Sundar ramped straight to third man. Though Umran Malik got a four on the final ball, it wasn’t enough for India to avoid a loss.

Brief Scores: New Zealand 176/6 in 20 overs (Daryl Mitchell 59 not out, Devon Conway 52; Washington Sundar 2/22, Kuldeep Yadav 1/20) beat India (Washington Sundar 50, Suryakumar Yadav 47; Mitchell Santner 2/11, Michael Bracewell 2/31) by 21 runs.

NEW DELHI, JAN 27 (IANS): Ukraine has threatened to boycott the 2024 Paris Olympics after International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided to allow the Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete at the quadrennial event.

The IOC said on Wednesday that Russian and Belarusian athletes would participate in competitions as “neutral athletes” and in no way represent their state or any other organisation in their country.

Ukrainian Youth and Sports Minister Vadym Huttsait in a social media post on Thursday said: “We have informed everyone that the Executive Committee has decided to start consultations with national sports federations on a possible boycott of the Paris 2024 Olympics in case of allowing Russian and Belarusian athletes to return to international sports arenas to end Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.” “I hope all the federations, athletes and the entire civilized world pay attention now and we won’t have to resort to extremes,” he added. Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russian athletes should not take part

in Paris Olympics 2024.

Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs while criticising the IOC’s decision said: “IOC has been disregarding Russian war crimes, claiming that “No athlete should be prevented from competing just because of their passport”, while Ukrainian athletes continue to be killed by Russia because of their passports. I urge all sports figures to make their stance known.”

Athletes’ rights group Global Athlete and Ukrainian Athletes, however, in a joint statement have criticised the IOC’s decision to allow the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in the Paris Olympics.

“Decision to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete in qualifiers to attend the 2024 Paris Olympic Games sends a

message to the world that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) endorses Russia’s brutal war and invasion of Ukraine. By allowing Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete, the IOC is strengthening Russia’s propaganda machine, empowering the Putin regime, and undermining peace,” the joint statement read. Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, launched in February last year, the IOC Executive Board had recommended that International Sports Federations and sports event organisers not invite or allow the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials in international competitions adding that Russian or Belarusian nationals should be accepted only as neutral athletes or neutral teams.

Djokovic tops Paul; faces Tsitsipas in Australian Open

MELBOURNE, JAN 27

(AP): Novak Djokovic put aside some shaky play in the early going and took over his Australian Open semifinal against unseeded American Tommy Paul on Friday, winning 7-5, 6-1, 6-2 to close in on a 10th championship at Melbourne Park and 22nd Grand Slam title overall.

final

Christie knocked off the three-point deficit after resumption and made it 1515 before the Indian reeled off six straight points to pocket the opening game.

After the change of sides, Sen lost his grip on the match as Christie looked like a different player, zooming to 11-2 in a jiffy before levelling the match.

Christie made a good start in the decider, gal -

loping to a 5-1 lead. Sen produced four points on the trot but he was left with too much to do.

The Indonesian ensured there was no hiccup as he marched to a 11-6 lead and maintained a healthy distance from his opponent to eventually seal the contest with a four-point burst.

Sen had reached the second round at India Open last week.

Djokovic’s parents and brother are in town for the tournament for the first time since he claimed major trophy No. 1 there back in 2008, but his father stayed away from this match after getting caught up in a flap connected to spectators who brought banned Russian flags on site earlier in the week. Forget about that potential distraction. Forget about the heavily taped left hamstring that was an issue last week. Forget about how Djokovic produced twice as many unforced errors, 24, as winners, 12, in the opening set. Forget that he dropped four games in a row in one stretch. As usual, Djokovic summoned what it took to extend his Australian Open

winning streak to 27 matches, the longest in the Open era, which dates to 1968.

There was a pause in that string of victories a year ago, of course, when Djokovic was deported from Australia before competition began because he was not vaccinated against COVID-19. He still has not gotten the shots, but the strict border controls established by the country during the pandemic have been eased.

On Sunday, No. 4 seed Djokovic will take on No. 3 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas, who eliminated Karen Khachanov 7-6 (2), 6-4, 6-7 (6), 6-3 to reach his first final at Melbourne Park and second

Defending champs Belgium to face Germany in FIH Men’s WC final

BHUBANESWAR,

JAN

27 (PTI): Defending champions Belgium beat the last two editions’ runners-up Netherlands in penalty shootout 3-2 to set up a summit clash against Germany in the FIH Men’s World Cup here on Friday.

Reigning Olympic champions Belgium and the Dutch were locked 2-2 in regulation time at the Kalinga Stadium.

The match between the oldest side, Belgium, and a young Dutch team was contested equally, but the more experienced defending champions ran away winners in the shootout.

Belgium have 11 players over 30 years of age, while the Netherlands have eight players below 25 and just two above 30.

The Red Sticks, who have come with almost the same set of players that won the Tokyo Olympics gold, are among the fittest and most experienced sides.

Star striker Tom Boon (27th) and Nicolas de Kerpel (45th) scored for Belgium in the regulation time while penalty-corner expert Jip Janssen (12th and 36th) struck a brace for Netherlands. In the first semi-final, star drag-flicker Gonzalo Peillat struck a second half

hat-trick as Germany made a sensational comeback after being two goals down to beat Australia 4-3 and enter the final for the fifth time.

Peillat scored from penalty corners in the 43rd, 52nd and 59th minutes while ‘Player of the Match’ Niklas Wellen (60th) struck with just a few seconds left in the match to stun Australia, who squandered a 2-0 half-time lead in a dramatic semi-final.

Jeremy Hayward (12th), Nathan Ephraums

(27th) and Blake Govers (58th) scored for Australia, who will now play for the bronze medal on Sunday.

This was two-time champions Germany’s first entry into the final after the 2010 edition in New Delhi where they had finished runners-up. They had won silver in 1982 before winning titles in 2002 and 2006. Germany also took revenge for their 1-3 loss to Australia in the Tokyo Olympics semifinal.

For three-time champi-

ons Australia, this was their second consecutive failure to enter the final. They had lost to the Netherlands at the same stage in 2018, finishing with a bronze after consecutive titles in 2010 and 2014. Australia were leading 2-0 till the 42nd minute and it looked like they would run away with the match. But the three drag-flick goals from Peillat, who has played more than 100 matches for Argentina and won the 2016 Rio Olympics gold for the Las Leonas before

becoming a German citizen, changed the complexion of the game.

In the second semifinal, Jip Janssen gave the Dutch the lead in the 12th minute from the side’s second penalty corner as he sent a low drag flick past Belgium goalkeeper Vincent Vanasch. The Netherlands were doing most of the attack with Floris Wortelboer making a fine run into the Belgium circle but his cross from the baseline could not find anybody near the goalmouth.

Belgium struck back three minutes before half time with their star player Tom Boon scoring from a penalty corner as the scoreline read 1-1 at the breather.

Younger and hence faster on their feet, the Dutch once again took the lead in the third quarter with Janssen completing his brace from a penalty corner.

Captain Felix Denayer had two hits at the Dutch goal in the 43rd minute in a wave of attacks but goalkeeper Pirmin Blaak blocked both of them.

It was end-to-end stuff for a while and Belgium equalised just when a few seconds were left in the third quarter, with Nicolas de Kerpel firing a field goal.

at a Slam. Whoever wins the final will rise to No. 1 in the ATP rankings. For Djokovic, that would mark a return to a spot he has occupied for more weeks than anyone; for Tsitsipas, if would mark a debut there.

Djokovic has never lost a semifinal or final in Melbourne, going a perfect 19-0, and his nine triumphs there already are a men’s record. If he can add one more to go alongside his seven titles at Wimbledon, three at the U.S. Open and two at the French Open, the 35-year-old from Serbia would equal Nadal for the most Grand Slam trophies earned by a man.

India tennis star Sania Mirza on Friday wrapped up her legendary Grand slam career as Australian Open mixed doubles runner-up. The Indian ace and partner Rohan Bopanna lost to the all-Brazilian pair Luisa Stefani and Rafael Matos in the mixed doubles final here at Melbourne Park.

Sania and Bopanna were beaten 7-6(2), 6-2 by Brazilians Stefani and Matos, who were playing in their first-ever Grand Slam final.

In her final major, the 36-year-old Sania admitted her emotions almost boiled over after the Indians stunned third seeds and reigning Wimbledon champions Desirae Krawczyk and Neal Skupski in the semifinals.

There was no holding them back after her final match at Melbourne

Park, 22 years after she first teamed with Bopanna. Interestingly, Sania claimed her first major in 2009 at Melbourne Park, when she paired up with Mahesh Bhupathi. And she ended her illustrious Grand Slam career here. Melbourne Park has been a happy hunting ground for the Indian star. After his maiden triumph in 2009.

Seven years later, in 2016, she paired up with Swiss star Martina Hingis and claimed the women’s doubles title as the top seed.

Outside Australia, she earned four other Grand Slam titles: 2015 Wimbledon and 2015 US Open women’s doubles with Hingis, 2012 Roland Garros mixed doubles with Bhupathi and 2014 US Open mixed doubles with Bruno Soares.

Mumbai FC comes from behind to beat Jamshedpur FC 2-1 in ISL

JAMSHEDPUR, JAN 27 (AGENCIES): Mumbai City FC scripted a dramatic second-half comeback to edge past resilient Jamshedpur FC at the JRD Tata Sports Complex on Friday, January 27.

Despite the gap in the league standings, the Red Miners showed tremendous fight to keep the visitors at bay for most of the match. But in the end, Mumbai City had too much quality at their disposal for Jamshedpur FC to handle. As expected, MCFC had a solid start to the game; Bipin Singh unlocked the opposition’s defense in the 10th minute with a low cross that found Jorge Pereyra Diaz. The Men of Steel, meanwhile, had a few chances of their own. In the 42nd minute, it seemed like Jamshedpur had pulled ahead when Daniel Chima Chukwu’s header off a corner from Jay Emmanuel-Thomas was deflected into the back of the net. However, the referee blew the whistle for a foul during the set-piece. The Red Miners came agonizingly close to the opening goal in the 58th minute when Ritwik Ku -

mar Das’ shot was cleared off the goal line by Ahmed Jahouh. They did finally score the game’s first goal of the game five minutes later. Ritwik was once again at the center of things when he sent Daniel Chima through with a defense-splitting ball. But the Nigerian forward left the ball for Boris Singh, who found the bottom corner from a tight angle and gave JFC the deserved lead.

With their unbeaten campaign on the line, Mumbai’s two trusted wingers, Bipin and Chhangte, combined to spring the Islanders into life. Bipin Singh

out-muscled Laldinliana Renthlei on the edge of the Jamshedpur box before threading a low cross into the middle. Chhangte turned himself into the man of the moment as he steered the ball past TP Rehenesh and restored parity in the 80th minute. Mumbai City were definitely not in the mood to settle for a point as they pushed for a winner. The goal came in the 86th minute when Vikram Singh received the ball on the right and his poorly attempted cross looped over Rehenesh’s head and into the back of the net.

Belgium team reacts after winning in the penalty shootout against Netherlands during their 2023 Men’s FIH Hockey World Cup semi-final match, in Bhubaneswar. (PTI)

Lakshya Sen

Stefanos Tsitsipas

Novak Djokovic

Jamshedpur FC and Mumbai City FC players (in blue) vie for the ball during their ISL match in Jamshedpur. (PTI)