The BJP high command has flagged complacency among regional and local BJP leaders in Maharashtra that could hurt the party's performance in upcoming municipal elections, including in Mumbai. The BJP-led state government had aimed to win 150 seats in Mumbai's civic body BMC, but a senior BJP leader said none of the party's current 83 BMC councillors have expanded their influence. Some councillors are also confused about the reservation system for the elections. Senior BJP leaders are unhappy that the current councillors have not introduced any central government schemes in their constituencies. The ambitious target of 150 seats may be difficult if the BJP cannot retain the 83 seats it won in 2017.

1. Regional complacency may cost BJP ambitious ‘150 BMC seats’
Renni Abraham
Mumbai: The high
command of the
Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) has flagged re-
gional- and local-level
complacency in Maha-
rashtra that may prove
costly for the party-
-along with the politi-
cal formation led by
Chief Minister Eknath
Shinde--in achieving a
good showing in the up-
coming civic polls in 23
municipalities includ-
ing Mumbai.
The coalition gov-
ernment in Maharash-
tra has set an ambi-
tious target of placing
150 civic councillors in
Mumbai city’s Brihan-
mumbai Municipal
Corporation (BMC), as
announced during Un-
ion Home Minister
Amit Shah’s recent
visit to Mumbai.
“The BJP high com-
mand, after assessing
the ground-level situa-
tion in the civic juris-
diction of BMC , has
realized that none of
the 83 BJP councillors
elected in 2017 have cre-
ated a political space
for themselves,” a sen-
ior BJP leader said,
adding that political
complacency is visible
across the civic wards
of Mumbai.
A BJP councillor in
turn cited existing con-
fusion among the par-
ty’s rank and file re-
garding a fresh lottery
and reservation for the
civic elections.
The erstwhile MVA
government had in-
creased the number of
seats from 227 in 2017 to
236 (in March), which
has now reverted to
227.
“We are not sure
whether fresh reserva-
tions/lottery will be
held now after this con-
traction from 236 to 227.
Our political roadmap
can be worked out post
clarity on the issue,”
the BJP councillor
said, seeking anonym-
ity.
However, the senior
BJP leadership in Ma-
harashtra as well as in
New Delhi is unim-
pressed, given that
none of the BJP coun-
cillors have introduced
a single Union govt
scheme announced by
PM Modi in their re-
spective constituen-
cies.
“ T h e
8 3 - s t r o n g
BJP council-
lors sat in op-
position af-
ter the
2 0 1 7
BMC elec-
tions, where
Shiv Sena
secured 85
seats. Al-
t h o u g h
the BJP
a n d
Shiv Sena
were in an
a l l i a n c e
g o v e r n -
ment until
the end of
2019, the
subsequent
2.5 years saw no civic
issue or corruption be-
ing flagged by BJP
councillors despite the
parties having parted
ways.The ambitious
target of 150 seats may
be wishful think-
ing if the BJP is
unable to re-
tain the 83
elected constit-
uencies it
won in
2017,” the
B J P
leader
said.
Councillors appear to be sitting pretty,
confident of being re-elected due to the
sway Prime Minister Narendra Modi
holds over India. It is true that PM Modi
was able to improve the BJP tally in the Lok Sabha
in 2019 (303 BJP MPs elected) in comparison to
the 2014 general elections (282 BJP MPs). Howev-
er, the results of the state assembly elections in Ma-
harashtra exhibited an opposite trend--105 BJP
MLAs in 2019 compared to 122 BJP MLAs in
2014. —Senior BJP leader
Top brass unhappy with 83 Mumbai city fathers for
failing to demonstrate outstanding work, even introduce
GoI schemes in 5-year tenure
SC to hear Uddhav group’s Shiv Sena claim plea on Sept 27
First India Bureau
New Delhi: A five-
judge constitution
bench of the Supreme
Court on Wednesday
said it will hear an ap-
plication of the Uddhav
Thackeray-led faction
on September 27. It
seeks to restrain the
Election Commission
of India (ECI) from de-
ciding on the claim of
Maharashtra Chief
Minister Eknath Shin-
de-led group over the
“original” Shiv Sena
party.
The bench headed by
Justice DY Chandra-
chud said it will pass
directions indicating
the timeline for hear-
ing all other issues
emanating from a batch
of petitions filed by
both the sides. They are
all related to the power
of speaker/deputy
speaker and governor
in relation to the politi-
cal crisis which had
happened in Maha-
rashtra a few months
ago.
The bench was hear-
ing pending cases re-
lated to the crisis that
led to the fall of the
Maha Vikas Aghadi
(MVA) government in
the state.
As the matter was
taken up for hearing,
senior advocate Neeraj
Kishan Kaul, appear-
ing for the Shinde fac-
tion, told the bench
also comprising Jus-
tices MR Shah, Krishna
Murari, Hima Kohli
and PS Narasimha that
the opposite side has
filed an intervention
application in their
matter seeking to re-
strain the poll panel
from taking any deci-
sion.
He said the ECI can-
not be prevented from
taking any decision
and earlier, the top
court had refused to
stay the proceeding be-
fore the poll panel.
Senior advocate Ka-
pil Sibal, appearing for
the Uddhav Thackeray
faction, said on August
03, a top court bench
had orally asked the
ECI to not take any pre-
cipitative action.
Senior advocate
Arvind Datar, appear-
ing for the ECI, said it
is a process that when
there is a com-
plaint under
symbols order,
the poll panel
has no option
but to issue
notice to the
other side.
D a t a r
said even if
the legisla-
tors are dis-
q u a l i f i e d ,
they will still remain
members of the party
.
Sibal said disquali-
fication is attracted un-
der the 10th schedule if
the legislator voluntar-
ily gives up the mem-
bership of the party
and not the legislature.
Justice Shah asked
the counsel to reserve
their energy for
hearing on Sep-
tember 27.
The faction led by
former Maha CM
seeks to restrain
the ECI from
deciding on ‘real’
Sena itself
Shiv Sena chief
Uddhav Thackeray
—FILE
PHOTO
Dy CM Devendra Fadnavis
PM Narendra Modi
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MUMBAI lTHURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2022 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNITITLE NO.MAHENG/2022/14652 lVol 1 l Issue No.123
OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR, NEW DELHI MUMBAI
IT’S OFFICIAL!
RAJPATH IS NOW
‘KARTAVYA PATH’
New Delhi: The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC)
on Wednesday approved a proposal to rename Rajpath
as ‘Kartavya Path’. Lok Sabha MP and NDMC member
Meenakshi Lekhi said the proposal was approved in a
high-level special meeting of the NDMC Council.
The revamped 3 km-long
Central Vista Avenue is
set to open for the public
post it’s inauguration by
PM Modi on Thursday.
A NEW BEGINNING!
CONG EYES REVIVAL WITH
‘BHARAT JODO YATRA’
Cong is seeking to flag economic disparities, social polarisation,
and political centralization the gains in ‘battle of ideologies’
Amit Mishra
Kanyakumari: The
much-touted 3,570-km
‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ by
the Congress was
launched on Wednes-
day by party leader Ra-
hul Gandhi in Kanya-
kumari. Grand old par-
ty has claimed that it
will be a “transforma-
tional moment” for In-
dian politics and a “de-
cisive moment” for Con-
gress’ rejuvenation.
Rahul paid floral trib-
utes to his father and
ex-PM Rajiv Gandhi at
the latter’s memorial in
Sriperumbudur ahead
of ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’.
CMs of Rajasthan and
Chhattisgarh, Ashok
Gehlot and Bhupesh
Baghel resp and TNCC
President KS Alagiri
took part in the session.
Addressinggathering,
Rahul said, “Nat’l flag
represents the religion
andlanguageof everyone
living in country
. BJP,
RSS think that this flag is
their personal property
.”
He also said BJP think
they can frighten Oppn
by using ED, CBI, and IT.
MAJOR HAPPENINGS
z TN CM Stalin Presents
Tricolour to Rahul Gandhi
in Symbolic Start to Yatra
z G23 member Anand
Sharma conveys best
wishes to Rahul Gandhi
z Lost my father to ‘Hate
and Division’, do not want
to lose country, says Rahul
z BJP Rath Yatra was for
‘satta’, Cong Bharat Jodo
is for ‘satya’: Kanhaiya
z The Bharat Jodo Yatra
indication of Cong to take
everyone together: Venu
z Rahul should try to inte-
grate Pak, Bangladesh
into India as ‘Akhand
Bharat’: Assam CM
SONIA CALLS YATRA ‘TRANSFORMATIONAL
MOMENT IN HISTORY OF INDIAN POLITICS’
‘FAMILY-SAVING CAMPAIGN’ TO KEEP
CONTROL OF GANDHIS OVER CONG: BJP
Congress President Sonia Gandhi said, “In
view of the medical check-ups that I am
undergoing, I regret my inability to be with
all of you in person this momentous even-
ing to launch the historic Bharat Jodo Yatra
to Kashmir. This is a landmark occasion
for our great party with such a glorious
legacy — the INC. It is a transformational
moment in Indian politics,” she said.
The BJP dubbed the Congress’s ‘Bharat
Jodo Yatra’ as “hollow” and claimed that it
was essentially a “family-saving campaign”
to keep control of Gandhis over the party
and was another attempt to establish
Rahul Gandhi as a leader. BJP leader Ravi
Shankar Prasad said, “This is not about
unifying the country but trying to establish
him (Rahul) again as a leader,” he said.
Rahul Gandhi, Ashok Gehlot, Bhupesh Baghel, MK Stalin, KC
Venugopal and other leaders during the Bharat Jodo Yatra,
in Kanyakumari on Wednesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
ABOUT THE YATRA
12 STATES
and 2 Union territories will
be covered in the route
3,500-KM
long route to be
completed in 150 days
150 DAYS
Rahul Gandhi to sleep in the
container during the yatra
India going
through worst
economic
crisis ever. Bharat Jodo
Yatra is designed to
listen to people of India.
BJP, RSS think Tricolor
is their personal property
but Opposition leaders
are not scared of the BJP
to bring India together.
—Rahul Gandhi,
Congress leader
Kanyakumari
Kashmir
SHEIKH HASINA
VP DHANKHAR TO
VISIT RAJ TODAY
Jaipur: Bangladesh PM
Sheikh Hasina will visit
Ajmer today and offer
prayers at the dargah of
Sufi Khwaja Moinuddin
Chisti. Meanwhile, Vice
President Jagdeep
Dhankhar will be
visiting Kithana village
in Jhunjhunu today.
On Wednesday, a final
rehearsal was performed
on all routes along with
convoy of vehicles.
NEET UG RESULT
OUT: TANISHKA
FROM RAJ TOPS
New Delhi: The NTA on
Wednesday declared the
results of the NEET-UG
2022. This year, a total
of 18.72 lakh candidates
registered for the
entrance test. The NEET
UG exam was conducted
on July 17 with over 95
per cent of the registered
candidates appearing
in the exam. Tanishka
from Rajasthan with 99
percentile topped NEET.
GAUTAM ADANI
BAGS USIBC GLOBAL
LEADERSHIP AWARD
New Delhi: Founder and
chairman of the Adani
Group, Gautam Adani on
Wednesday was honoured
with the USIBC 2022 Global
Leadership Award. Theme
of USIBC’s India Ideas
Summit was ‘Maximizing
the Next 75 Years of US-
India Prosperity’ . Adani
later highlighted the need
for strengthening India-US
partnerships. P7
COAL SCAM: CBI
RAIDS BENGAL LAW
MINISTER GHATAK
Kolkata: The CBI team on
Wednesday raided at least
five houses of West Bengal
law and labour minister
Molay Ghatak in Kolkata
and Asansol in connection
with the alleged coal
smuggling scam. The raid
was carried out at Ghatak’s
residence after he failed
to appear before central
probe agency despite being
summoned many times.
READ
Crucial
Crucial
l NDMC passes resolution to
rename Rajpath to Kartavya Path
l PM Modi will also unveil
statue of Subhash C Bose
l Modi to inaugurate Kartavya
Path, Central Vista lawns today
l Security beefed up ahead
of Central Vista inauguration
Gehlot: RaGa taking out Yatra
to eradicate hatred violence
First India Bureau
Kanyakumari: With-
out naming the leaders
who left the Congress
party, Rajasthan CM
Ashok Gehlot, on
Wednesday, attacked
them fiercely. Gehlot
said that those who
have left the party and
those who are leaving
the party do not repre-
sent the ideology of the
Congress, they have
made a deal of their
conscience.
Gehlot, while talk-
ing to the media in
Kanyakumari, said,
“Those who have left
the party, what respect
do they get in other
parties? Becoming
Prime Minister and
Chief Minister is a dif-
ferent matter, but they
have made a deal of
their conscience to ful-
fill their selfish inter-
ests. They should see
what their conscience
tells them, in what
form the country is
calling them today.”
Gehlot said that the
purpose of starting
Bharat Jodo Yatra is to
counter the violence
and hatred in the na-
tion.
Rahul Gandhi, Ashok Gehlot, KC Venugopal, Bhupesh Baghel others
on the way to Vivekananda memorial, Kanyakumari on Wednesday.
CM Gehlot targets
Modi-Shah and
says better sense
may prevail

2. NEWS
MUMBAI | THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2022
02
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First India Bureau
Mumbai: A man at-
tempted to kidnap a
six-year-old girl play-
ing at a Ganpati man-
dal near her home in
Kandivali (East) on
Tuesday.
According to the po-
lice, around 11.40 am,
while the girl was play-
ing with other children,
themanallegedlypicked
her up on his shoulder
andbeganrunningaway
after promising to show
her more Ganpati idols.
Her father Pankaj Singh
wassleepingathishome
in the Kaveri chawl in
Singh Estate when
Vikrant Godambe foiled
the kidnap attempt.
The accused dropped
the girl and fled the spot
in Thakur village when
her father’s friend con-
fronted him. The kid-
napper was dressed in a
T-shirt and shorts, po-
lice said.
A CCTV camera at
the spot has captured
the incident. Samta Na-
gar police said they had
identified the kidnap-
per as a 24-year-old resi-
dent of Damunagar in
Kandivali (East). They
booked the man under
Indian Penal Code sec-
tion 363 (kidnapping)
and are on the lookout
for him.
First India Bureau
Mumbai: A special
Prevention of Money
Laundering Act
(PMLA) court in
Mumbai has allowed
former Maharashtra
minister Nawab Ma-
lik, arrested in a mon-
ey laundering case, to
undergo a renal scan.
The court had last
month also permitted
the Nationalist Con-
gress Party (NCP) lead-
er Malik to undergo the
renal scan (a nuclear
medicine test to see how
well kidneys work), but
it could not be conduct-
ed then as he was suf-
fering from fever and
other health issues.
Special court Judge
RN Rokade on Tuesday
allowed Malik’s appli-
cation seeking permis-
sion to undergo the
scan. A copy of the or-
der was made available
on Wednesday
.
The Enforcement Di-
rectorate (ED) arrested
Malik on February 23
this year in a money
laundering case linked
togangsterDawoodIbra-
him. Malik is currently
in judicial custody and
lodged at the Arthur
Road jail in Mumbai.
Malik had in his ap-
plication said he was
permitted to undergo
the renal scan at a hos-
pital in suburban Ghat-
kopar on August 10.
However, the scan
could not be performed
then as he was suffering
from high fever, pus
cells in urine and high
creatinine level, his
plea said.
“The vitals of the ap-
plicant have now stabi-
lized and as per his lat-
est medical report the
scan is required to de-
termine further course
of medical treatment.
Hence it is prayed that
applicant be escorted to
hospital for the scan,”
stated the plea. The
prosecution did not op-
pose the plea and left it
to the court’s discretion.
After perusal of the
medical report, the
judge directed the jail
superintendent to take
him to a test centre in
Sarvodaya Hospital
premises in Ghatkopar
on September 12 for
the scan.
First India Bureau
Pune: Chief Minister
Eknath Shinde on
Wednesday visited
several prominent
Ganesh mandals in
Pune and sought
blessings of the deity
.
Shinde visited five
“manache” or pre-emi-
nent Ganpati mandals
in the city: Kasba,
Tambdi Jogeshwari,
Guruji Talim,
Tulshibaug and Kesari
Wada. He also paid vis-
its to some other prom-
inent mandals, includ-
ing the Shreemant
Dagdusheth Halwai
Ganpati.
Speaking to report-
ers on the occasion,
Shinde said he could
see happiness among
the members of
Ganesh mandals as
they could celebrate
the festival with great
fanfare this year.
“We had eased all the
restrictions at the time
of Dahi Handi (cele-
brated last month). For
the last two years, COV-
ID-19 had left the people
of the state troubled.
Negativity had spread
in the society
, and the
state government de-
cided to do away with
thatnegativitybyallow-
ing people to celebrate
the festivals with great
zeal and zest by taking
due care,” he said.
Shinde also met ail-
ing BJP MLA Mukta
Tilak, who represents
the Kasba Assembly
constituency, to en-
quire about her health.
The 10-day festival
dedicated to the ele-
phant-headed god that
began on August 31
will conclude on Sep-
tember 09.
First India Bureau
Mumbai: The Bom-
bay High Court has
granted bail to an
18-year-old man, who
was arrested in a
gang-rape case two
years ago when he
was a juvenile. Dur-
ing the proceedings,
it also noted that he
has responded posi-
tively to the rehabili-
tative efforts.
In the order passed
on August 22, which
was made available on
Wednesday, a single
bench of Justice
Bharati Dangre also
noted that a child in
conflict with law de-
serves to be reunited
with his family.
The man, who is pres-
ently lodged at an obser-
vation home in Dongri
area of south Mumbai
following his arrest,
was booked for the gang
rape of a seven-year-old
girl in 2020. He was 16
years old at that time
and was sent to the ob-
servation home. He
turned 18 recently
.
While ordering for
him to be released, the
high court said the edu-
cation of the applicant,
who is now an adult,
cannot be further dis-
continued and reunit-
ing him with his family
would enable him to
develop himself to his
full potential.
“The applicant has
positively responded to
the rehabilitative efforts
during his stay in the
observation home. He
deserves to be reunited
and restored with his
familyanditwouldbein
his best interest so that
he can develop himself
with full potential,” said
Justice Dangre.
The man in his bail
plea had claimed that
his long detention in the
observation home has
caused disruption in his
life and that if the right
kind of opportunities,
guidance and support is
made available then he
has good potential.
The high court in its
order said no risk could
be established to the
victim by the accused
or his family
.
Justice Dangre said
the applicant deserves
to be released on bail by
invoking the principle
of repatriation and res-
toration to the same so-
cio-economic and cul-
tural status that he was
in before commission
of the alleged crime.
HC gives bail to man held
as juvenile for gang rape
Presiding Justice Dangre says he has responded well to rehabilitative efforts
and ‘deserves to be reunited with his family to develop himself to full potential’
CONSEQUENCES
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Shiv Sena
Rajya Sabha MP
Sanjay Raut—who
was arrested last
month in a money
laundering case
linked to a housing
project in Mumbai—
onWednesdaymoved
a bail application be-
fore a special court.
His bail plea is like-
ly to come up for hear-
ing before Judge MG
Deshpande, presiding
over the special PMLA
court, on Thursday
.
Raut, 60, was ar-
rested by the Enforce-
ment Directorate (ED)
in early August under
the Prevention of
Money Laundering
Act (PMLA) for his al-
leged role in financial
irregularities related
to the redevelopment
of Patra ‘Chawl’ (old
row tenements) in
suburban Goregaon.
The Shiv Sena poli-
tician is currently in
jail under judicial
custody
.
The Rajya Sabha
member was found to
be the alleged benefi-
ciary of more than
Rs2 crore of the pro-
ceeds of crime, the ED
has claimed.
Further, the central
probe agency has
claimed documents
seized during its probe
showed the purchase
of properties at Ali-
baug—a coastal town
in neighbouring
Raigad district—by
Rautinvolvedsubstan-
tial cash transactions.
Raut has denied any
wrongdoing.
MP Sanjay Raut seeks
bail from PMLA court
Raut outside Arthur Road jail last month. —FILE PHOTO
Bombay High Court. —FILE PHOTO
The accusations faced by the applicant are undisputedly seri-
ous, but he must so derive the benefit of being a child and
hence the benefit of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection
of Children) Act cannot be denied to him.
—Justice Bharati Dangre, Bombay High Court
UDDHAV DENIED PERMISSION
TO MEET RAUT IN JAIL
Mumbai (PTI): Shiv Sena President Uddhav
Thackeray was denied permission to meet jailed
party MP Sanjay Raut on Wednesday. He was
asked by authorities to take court approval for
meeting him in the prison, said a senior jail
official. According to the senior Arthur Road jail
official, a few days back, a person claiming to
be a representative of Thackeray had phoned
the prison administration. He had said that the
Sena chief wanted to meet Raut, his close aide,
in the jailer’s room. However, jail authorities
denied the meeting with Raut and asked his
representative to take court’s consent for the
same, he said, adding “no written application
had been received by the jail authorities.”
Attempt to kidnap six-year-old
girl from Ganpati mandal foiled
The kidnapper
dropped the girl and
fled the spot in
Kandivali (East) when
her father’s friend
confronted him: Cops
Court permits Nawab Malik to get renal scan
Malik is in jail for money laundering. —FILE PHOTO
Test expenses
will be borne by
the NCP leader,
said the court;
he could not get
a scan last
month due to ill
health
Govt eased festival curbs
to axe ‘negativity’: CM
CM Eknath Shinde performs aarti of Lord Ganesh at the
Shreemant Dagdusheth Halwai Ganpati temple, in Pune on
Wednesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
Governor
Bhagat Singh
Koshyari visits
Mumbai’s popular
Lalbaugcha Raja
as part of the
Ganesh festival, on
Wednesday.
—PHOTOS BY ANI
CM Ekanth Shinde with Independent MP Navneet Rana
and MLA Ravi Rana during Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations
at his residence in Mumbai. —PHOTO BY PTI
MNS President Raj Thackeray during his visit to the
residence of CM Eknath Shinde for Ganesh darshan, in
Mumbai. —PHOTO BY PTI
A team counts and evaluates
the donations and offerings to
Lalbaugcha Raja during the
ongoing Ganesh Chaturthi festival,
in Mumbai. —PHOTO BY ANI
LOP Ajit Pawar visited the
Siddhivinayak temple and
Lalbaugcha Raja, in Mumbai on
Wednesday. —PHOTO BY ANI

3. MAHARASHTRA
MUMBAI | THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2022
03
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2 civic employees held
for demanding bribe
First India Bureau
Thane: Two civic em-
ployees have been ar-
rested in Thane dis-
trict in a case of brib-
ery
, the Anti-Corrup-
tion Bureau (ACB)
said in a release on
Wednesday
.
Amanhadsoughtper-
mission from the Ulhas-
nagar Municipal Corpo-
ration (UMC) for the
renovation of his dilapi-
datedhouseandrequest-
ed authorities not to pull
it down. UMC supervi-
sor Ratan Jadhav (50) al-
legedly demanded
Rs30,000 from the man
on behalf of his senior
official, an assistant
commissioner, in ex-
change for the permis-
sion. Later, the amount
was negotiated to
Rs25,000, the ACB said.
The aggrieved man
lodged a complaint with
the ACB’s Thane unit
which laid a trap at the
UMC ward office on
Tuesday
.
The anti-graft agency
arrested conservancy
worker Viya Teji (46)
whileacceptingRs25,000
fromthecomplainanton
behalf of the supervisor
who was to pay the
amount to the assistant
commissioner.
SUSPENDED PSI
AMONG 8 HELD IN
NAGPUR JAIL
SMUGGLING CASE
FOREST DEPT
RESCUES
LEOPARD IN
NASHIK
Latur: Salia Mujayatula
Maujan (46) and her
horse were swept
away in flood waters
amid heavy rains in
Latur district, an of-
ficial said on Tuesday.
The incident occurred
around 6 pm on Mon-
day evening, in Hal-
gara village of Nilanga
tehsil, head constable
Vishwanath Dongare of
Aurad Shahajani police
station said. Search
operations could not
be conducted at night
due to poor lighting.
The body was found
in the silt of a small
stream in Halgara area
and recovered with the
help of the NRDF on
Tuesday. It was handed
over to the family after
post-mortem.
Mumbai: According
to Borivli police, Kapil
Ramanlal Khunt, an
accountant, stole
more than Rs15 crore
from his employer but
lost it on gambling.
In 2008, the accused
began working as an
accountant for Mansi
Shares and Stock
Advisors on Shimpoli
Road in Borivli West.
Chetan Shah co-owns
the business with his
brother Paresh Shah.
The accused had
siphoned a total of
Rs15,37,75,000 from
the company’s bank
accounts since 2021.
Nagpur: A suspended
police sub-inspector
(PSI) and seven other
persons were ar-
rested a day after an
MCOCA (Maharashtra
Control of Organised
Crime Act) case
undertrial, identified
as Suraj Kawle, was
arrested while trying
to smuggle ganja
and mobile-phone
batteries into the
Nagpur Central Jail,
an official said. Prima
facie, he was using
a mobile phone in
the jail and arranged
Rs45,000 for the
delivery of the ganja
and phone batteries.
Police sub-inspector
Pradip Nitnawre was
suspended in a rape
case.
Nashik: A female leop-
ard was rescued by
the forest department
in Nashik on Tuesday.
Forest officer Ganesh
Rao Jhole said, “A
female leopard has
been rescued by
our team in Nashik’s
Deolali camp area. It is
around 3 to 4-year-old
and is in healthy con-
dition. We will release
in a forest soon.”
Earlier on Monday,
the forest department
west had apprehended
four people from
Nashik, in connec-
tion with leopard skin
smuggling.
CRUCIAL READ
Thane: A 32-year-old home-maker from Ambernath in
Thane district has been booked for biting her mother-
in-law after the latter turned off the television, police
said on Wednesday. According to the complaint filed
with the Shivaji Nagar police station, Vijaya Kulkarni
had been watching television while her mother-in-law
Vrushali Kulkarni (60) was reciting bhajans on Monday
morning. Vrushali asked her to lower the TV volume,
and later turned off the set, angering her daughter-in-
law, who grabbed the old woman’s hand and bit three
of her fingers. She also slapped her husband who tried
to intervene. The victim’s fingers were not severed.
Pune: A car in the parking bay of an automobile sales
company in Pune’s Vimannagar caught fire Wednes-
day afternoon. The staffers at the facility said the fire
was caused by a lightning strike. No casualties and
damages to other cars parked nearby were reported
in the incident. The fire brigade control room re-
ceived a call regarding the car catching fire at around
2.50 pm on Wednesday. Fire officer Sopan Pawar
said, “We brought the fire under control within min-
utes after reaching the spot. The staffers have told
us they heard a very loud noise like that of a thunder,
moments before they saw the car catching fire.”
TOLD TO LOWER TELEVISION VOLUME,
WOMAN BITES MOTHER-IN-LAW; BOOKED
CAR CATCHES FIRE IN PARKING BAY,
LIGHTNING STRIKE SUSPECTED REASON
WOMAN, HORSE
SWEPT AWAY IN
STREAM AMID
HEAVY RAINFALL
ACCOUNTANT
STEALS `15 CR
FROM EMPLOYER
IN MUMBAI
MORE FACILITIES, HIGHER TAX
PMC to charge property
tax based on amenities
First India Bureau
Pune: The Pune Mu-
nicipal Corporation
(PMC) has decided to
levy the property tax
in accordance with
facilities and price of
flats in housing socie-
ties. Now, property
owners with more fa-
cilities will have to
pay a higher rate of
taxes.
Currently, the PMC
imposes property tax
based on a ready reck-
oner rate, which is
the minimum value set
by the government at
the time of property
transactions. However,
this resulted in the
same amount of tax be-
ing levied on housing
societies with more
amenities as well as
flats purchased at high
prices in non-luxurious
societies.
Now, the civic body
has decided to charge
Capital Property Tax
(CPT). In the initial
phase, the change is ex-
pected to directly affect
more than 80,000 hous-
es in the city
.
According to munici-
pal commissioner
Vikram Kumar, there
was a disparity in the
levy while charging
property tax was as per
ready reckoner. “There-
fore, now the tax will
be levied according to
the facilities and the
price of the flats. The
more luxurious the fa-
cility, the higher the
tax,” he said.
A number of housing
societies in the city
have various facilities,
including a cinema
hall, hotel, swimming
pool, gymnasium, play-
ground, kids zone, and
entertainment centre.
However, a few other
societies do not have
any of these. Similarly,
while a 500 sqft flat in a
normal housing society
costs Rs20 lakh, the
same building in large
housing projects will
cost Rs40 lakh with all
amenities. So, this dis-
parity shall be ad-
dressed, the PMC top
official explained.
The officials have not
yet specified the area to
kickstart the change.
The corporation has al-
ready levied facility-
based property tax
from 100 houses and
they are examining the
reports.
The PMC has also de-
cided to increase the
spot levying of proper-
ty tax. According to the
officials, the municipal
administration record-
ed a higher collection
of property tax when it
is levied on the spot.
The civic body has decided to charge Capital Property Tax; change is
expected to directly affect more than 80,000 houses in Pune city
Ashish Agashe
Mumbai: The dwin-
dling vulture popula-
tion has led to a ma-
jor change in the way
some in the Parsi
community treat
their dead.
This issue was in fo-
cus again on Tuesday
after Cyrus Mistry, for-
mer chairman of Tata
Sons, was cremated af-
ter his death in a car
crash two days ago.
In a shift from the
earlier practice of ‘sky
burials’—where a body
was left in ‘Towers of
Silence’ for the vultures
to feast on—many Parsi
funerals have been tak-
ing place since 2015 at a
specially made electric
crematorium in the fi-
nancial capital.
Mortal remains of
the deceased are fed
into the electric ma-
chine after performing
rituals as per the Zoro-
astrian faith; the same
was observed in Mis-
try’s case as well.
Mistry’s mortal re-
mains were taken to the
crematorium, opposite
a star hotel created by
the community in the
last decade, where a
family priest performed
the rituals before the
body was sent into the
electric machine.
For the Parsis, the de-
clining vulture popula-
tions presented a formi-
dable challenge.
While the vultures
cleaned flesh on a body
within a couple of
hours, crows and kites
only pecked the dead
bodies, leading to many
such bodies to rot in the
wells for months and
leave a stench. —PTI
Dwindling vultures led to shift in Parsis’ funerary rituals
CHANGING TIMES
lll
The more
progressive
members of
the community
have moved
from their
centuries-old
custom of
leaving their
dead in the
‘Tower of
Silence’ to
cremation
After swine flu,now dengue and
malariacasesontheriseinMumbai
First India Bureau
Mumbai: After swine
flu, now dengue and
malaria cases are on
the rise in Mumbai.
In the past four days,
the city has been
witnessing over 20
cases of malaria and
five cases of dengue
every day.
Till now, 89 patients
have been diagnosed
with malaria and 29 pa-
tients have been diag-
nosed with dengue.
Most of the cases of
dengue and malaria
have been reported
from B, F South, G
North, D, and E wards,
BMCofficialsinformed.
According to Dr Vas-
ant Nagvekar, co-direc-
tor, Infectious Diseases
at Sir HN Reliance
Foundation Hospital,
very few patients need-
ed hospitalization. “But,
anyone with fever for
more than four to five
days must go for a test,”
he said.
Experts further said
that there has been a
drop in swine flu cases.
In the past four days,
onlythreecasesof swine
flu have been reported.
“Compared to last
year, cases of malaria
and dengue are on the
lower side. But we have
to maintain cleanliness.
Masking and self-hy-
giene should continue,”
BMC executive health
officer Dr Mangala
Gomare said.
BMC worker sanitizes a temple premises in Mumbai. —FILE PHOTO
Family members of late bizman Cyrus Mistry outside Worli
crematorium, on Tuesday. —PHOTO BY BHUSHAN KOYANDE
BMC begins free diabetes
testing at Sion Hospital
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Mumbaikars
can now get their dia-
betes screening done
for free at the Non-
Communicable Dis-
ease (NCD) corner at
the Lokmanya Tilak
Municipal General
Hospital, also known
as Sion Hospital.
The Brihanmumbai
Municipal Corporation
(BMC) has launched the
initiativetogaugehealth
parameters of the city’s
population and plans to
open similar centres at
other civic hospitals too.
The NCD corner at
Sion Hospital began
functioning in August
this year. The hospital is
near Dharavi—Asia’s
biggest slum—that has a
high prevalence of dia-
betes.
“Slum dwellers who
cannot afford expensive
testscanjustcometothe
NCD centre and take the
test. It is being done for
the first time where out-
siders can voluntarily
undergo a test for diabe-
tes,” said Dr Mohan
Joshi, dean of Sion Hos-
pital.
TheBMCnowplansto
open a similar centre at
KEM Hospital, the big-
gestcivic-runhospitalin
Mumbai.
Man kills mother, tries to pass it off as suicide
First India Bureau
Thane: A man has
been arrested for al-
legedly strangling his
50-year-old mother to
death, and attempting
to disguise it as a case
of suicide, police offi-
cials in Thane district
said on Wednesday
.
The incident took
place on Monday in
Kalyan town and the ac-
cused, identified as Ravi
Pumni (34), was arrest-
ed on Tuesday, inspec-
tor SG Gavali from
Kolsewadi police sta-
tion said.
Pumni, who worked
at a factory in Ghansoli
area of Navi Mumbai,
had a history of fre-
quent quarrels with his
mother Saroja Pumni
over domestic and mon-
etary issues.
The duo had another
such fight on the inter-
vening night of Sunday
and Monday
, the official
said, adding that the
man is believed to have
strangled his mother to
death with a rope on
Monday morning, be-
fore hanging her body
from the ceiling fan
with a cloth to pass it off
as a case of suicide.
The accused
is believed to
have strangled his
mother to death with
a rope, before
hanging her body
from the ceiling
fan with a cloth
Thane (PTI): The body of a 65-year-old woman,
identified as Sharada Murlidhar Burse, was found
in a well near her house in Thane city on Wednes-
day morning, Regional Disaster Management
Cell (RDMC) chief Avinash Sawant said. Local
firemen along with a team of Thane Municipal
Corporation’s RDMC fished out the body after
police personnel informed them that some persons
had spotted the body floating in the well, he said.
The Kapurbawdi police have registered a case of
accidental death and are investigating.
WOMAN'S BODY FOUND IN WELL
EXPENSIVE STAY
DRUG PROBLEM

4. PERSPECTIVE
MUMBAI | THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2022
04
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/mumbai I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
l Vol 1 l Issue No. 123
l RNI TITLE NO.
MAHENG/2022/14652 Printed
and published by
Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of
First Express Publishers. Printed
at Dangat Media Pvt Ltd, No.22,
Dighe MIDC, Vishnu Nagar,
TTC Industrial Area, Dighe, Navi
Mumbai-400701. Published
at Plot No. 3 Scheme C of
Manglorean Garden Home, CHS
Limited, Survey No. 5, 6C (Part)
Ville Parle East, Mumbai 400057.
Editor-In-Chief: Dr Jagdeesh Chandra
Editor: Anita Hada Sangwan
responsible for selection of news
under the PRB Act
SPIRITUAL SPEAK
Whatever action is performed by a
great man, common men follow in
his footsteps, and whatever
standards he sets by exemplary
acts, all the world pursues.
—Bhagavad Gita
IN-DEPTH
WILL TRUSS
REHABILITATE
KEYNES?
he United Kingdom
finally has a new
prime minister, but
will Liz Truss im-
prove the dismal out-
look for the British economy
and political life? The conven-
tional answer is no. As Shake-
speare said, “when sorrows
come, they come not single spies
but in battalions.” That is cer-
tainly true of Britain today
.
The UK is cursed with the G7’s
highest inflation, steepest decline
in real wages, and biggest budget
andtradedeficits.Makingmatters
worse, Britain’s battalion of sor-
rows also overwhelms its politics.
Truss’s three predecessors were
theworstprimeministersinmod-
ern British history
. So says the
British public: According to the
latest polling, David Cameron,
Theresa May
, and Boris Johnson
allscorepostwarrecordsfordoing
“a bad job as PM,” with each suc-
cessive Tory leader rated worse
than the previous one. This core
Keynesian analysis is sometimes
exaggerated in extreme versions
of Modern Monetary Theory
,
which is sometimes parodied as a
“MagicMoneyTree.”Lastmonth,
I joined in, calling the notion that
US policymakers will be able to
reduce inflation without causing
a severe recession a “fairy tale.”
SOURCE: PROJECT SYNDICATE
T
ntil 2019, Ladakh
was a part of the
Jammu and Kash-
mir state. Since
then,ithasbecome
a union territory with Bud-
dhism and Islam are its main
two religions. Buddhism first
came to Ladakh in the first
century of the common era
duringthereignof theKushan
Empire. For centuries, Bud-
dhism flourished practically
unchallenged by other reli-
gions.Inthe15thcentury
,how-
ever, the spread of Islam in
Ladakh began through the
migration of Muslim traders
from Kashmir, Afghanistan
andCentralAsia.Theystarted
coming to Ladakh, settling
there and marrying local Bud-
dhist women.
Today, Muslims comprise
46.6% of Ladakh’s population
while Buddhists form 39.7%.
Yet the Ladakhi tradition of
peaceful coexistence contin-
ues. Even as anti-Muslim sen-
timent has been rising in In-
dia, Ladakh remains a model
of religious tolerance.
BUDDHIST DOMINATE
AND NEW DELHI-RUN
For centuries, Tibet has been
influencing the culture and
religious practices in Ladakh
and Tibetan refugees have
been finding refuge in the re-
gion. The first large wave of
Tibetans arrived in India in
1959 following the Chinese
invasion of Tibet. Now, there
are more than 6,500 Tibetans
living in Ladakh. The cul-
tural heritage of Ladakhis
and Tibetans is similar,
which is why Ladakh is often
called “Little Tibet.”
MUSLIM-BUDDHIST
RELATIONS STILL CORDIAL
The removal of special status
for Jammu and Kashmir in
2019 led to Ladakh emerging
asaseparateterritory
.Atfirst,
this deepened the Muslim-
Buddhistdivide.Followingthe
decision,peopleinKargiltook
to the streets to protest. Those
in Leh, on the other hand, cel-
ebrated the move.
SOURCE: FAIR OBSERVER
INDIA’S LADAKH IS
A UNIQUE CASE OF
RELIGIOUS COEXISTENCE
In 15th century, the spread
of Islam in Ladakh began
through migration of Muslim
traders from Kashmir, Af
and Central Asia. They
started coming to Ladakh,
settling there and marrying
local Buddhist women
U
COVID ORIGIN DESTINED
TO BE A FOREVER SECRET
emember the lab-leak theo-
ry? A few scientists argue
that it is dead, with new stud-
ies contending that the global
pandemic, which likely killed
three to four times the offi-
cial death-toll numbers, must
have started from someone
catching the virus from an
animal in a wet market. Oth-
er science writers say, “Not
so fast,” arguing that the lack
of cooperation from China
and incomplete data make it
impossible to rule out any
point of origin. But two and
a half years after Covid ar-
rived and turned our lives
upside down, the U.S. and the
world have grown disturb-
ingly comfortable with not
knowing the answers.
WE HAVE GROWN
ACCUSTOMED TO NOT
KNOWING THE ORIGIN
OF COVID-19
According to the official
numbers, Covid-19 has killed
more than 6.5 million people
and infected 611 million peo-
ple around the world. Those
numbers are undercounts;
the estimate at the Econo-
mist calculates that since the
start of the pandemic, hu-
manity collectively experi-
enced between 15.8 and 26.2
million more deaths than it
ordinarily would. The team
at the Economist explains
the difficulty in nailing down
a more precise figure.
As we approach the au-
tumn of 2022, Covid-19 is a
nonentity in American daily
life, with most Americans
giving the virus little thought
since the end of the Omicron
wave. That’s not the case over
in China, where “more than
70 Chinese cities have been
placed under full or partial
Covid lockdowns since late
August, impacting more than
300 million people.” With
daily life returning to nor-
mal in North America, Eu-
rope, and much of non-China
Asia, very few people are still
asking the question of what
started the worst global pan-
demic since the Great Influ-
enza of 1918. We have collec-
tively moved on.
A bit more than a year ago,
theU.S.governmentissuedits
summary statement about its
investigation, infuriatingly
shrugging and declaring,
“The [intelligence communi-
ty] remains divided on the
most likely origin of COV-
ID-19. All agencies assess that
two hypotheses are plausible:
natural exposure to an infect-
ed animal and a laboratory-
associated incident.” This
was akin to declaring that the
coin could have landed heads
up or tails up.
A bit more than a year ago,
the U.S. government issued its
summary statement about its
investigation, infuriatingly
shrugginganddeclaring,“The
[intelligence community] re-
mains divided on the most
likely origin of COVID-19. All
agencies assess that two hy-
pothesesareplausible:natural
exposuretoaninfectedanimal
andalaboratory-associatedin-
cident.” This was akin to de-
claringthatthecoincouldhave
landed heads up or tails up.
SOURCE: NATIONAL REVIEW
R
JIM GERAGHTY
The writer is the senior political
correspondent of National Review
and author of several books
Among the world’s 156 countries with at least
1 million people, we managed to obtain data
on total mortality from just 84. Some of these
places update their figures regularly; others have
published them only once
Two and half years on, we
are still very much in the
dark as to when, how and
even where SARS-CoV-2
first made its appearance.
This isn’t because our efforts
to get to the bottom of the
mystery have proved
fruitless, but rather because
those efforts have been
systematically thwarted by
the world’s two most
powerful governments:
America and China
Jagat Prakash Nadda
@JPNadda
It was a pleasure to have a fruitful
interaction with ambassadors from
different countries today under the
“Know BJP” initiative at the Party HQ.
They expressed great eagerness to know
about the history, struggle, ideology
contributions of the BJP to our country.
TOP TWEETS
Amit Shah
@AmitShah
Under the leadership of Modi, the
cabinet approved the proposal of land
amendment of railways to implement
PM Gati Shakti Framework. With this
decision 300 PM Gati Shakti Cargo
Terminals will be developed in the next
5 years, which will increase the revenue
of Railways and generate about 1.2 lakh
employment opportunities.

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6. MUMBAI | THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2022
05
INDIA
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/mumbai I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
Mahesh Sharma
New Delhi: How iron-
ic is it that the Aam
Aadmi Party is criticiz-
ing the central govern-
ment for harassing the
Opposition parties by
using central agencies,
while AAP’s own Pun-
jab government is after
its main opposition
Congress and other
parties. From the day
the Congress govern-
ment was formed in
Punjab, all the agen-
cies of the state have
been engaged against
the Congress and other
opposition leaders. Old
cases are being taken
out and investigated
and opposition leaders
are being targeted. The
police and the Anti-
Corruption Bureau of
the Aam Aadmi Party’s
Punjab government,
which have alleged
misuse of the CBI and
ED, are engaged in the
investigation of oppo-
sition leaders.
Congress state presi-
dent Raja Amarinder
Singh Warring and sen-
ior leader Sukhpal
Khaira have been
booked under the IT
Act. State government
agencies are also prob-
ing the contracts award-
ed during the tenure of
Raja Warring as minis-
ter. Recently, Bharat
Bhushan Ashu, who
was a minister of the
Congress government,
has been accused of
many types of allega-
tions and the state vigi-
lance has arrested him.
A few days after the for-
mation of the govern-
ment, the Bhagwant
Mann government ar-
rested Sadhu Singh
Dharamsot, who was
the Forest Minister of
the Congress govern-
ment led by Captain
Amarinder Singh, in
connection with the
felling of trees. The
state government has
started the investiga-
tion of Vijay Inder Sin-
gla, another former
minister of the state
government and big
leader of Congress.
These are cases differ-
ent from those filed
against Kumar Vish-
was, Alka Lamba etc.
who criticized party su-
premo Arvind Kejriwal.
Is AAP following ‘hypocrisy’ as its political agenda?
DOUBLE STANDARDS
Avrind Kejriwal with Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann. —FILE PHOTO
IN THE COURTYARD
On his Oppn Unity Mission in Delhi,Nitish
Kumar meets CPI(ML) General Secretary
Nitish Kumar with CPI(ML) Gen Secy Dipankar Bhattacharya
addressing media, in New Delhi on Wednesday.
—PHOTO BY ANI
New Delhi (ANI): Bi-
har Chief Minister Nit-
ish Kumar on Wednes-
day met Communist
Party of India (Marxist-
Leninist) General Sec-
retary Deepankar Bhat-
tacharya in his party
office and discussed
various issues includ-
ing the development of
Bihar and an urgent
need for forging a dy-
namic and broad-based
opposition unity
.
After meeting with
CPI(ML) General Secre-
tary, Kumar said, “Sev-
en political parties unit-
ed in Bihar and we are
running the govern-
ment together and on
the other side there is
only Bharatiya Janata
Party. We had a discus-
sion on how to work for
the development of the
state with consensus,
how to uplift every sec-
tion of the society and
the work has to be done
for the welfare of peo-
ple.” “I have met all the
people in Delhi and
many of them thanked
me for coming out from
NDA. Everyone wishes
that there should be
unity in every state and
such an atmosphere
will be created in the
country in the coming
days,” the Bihar chief
minister added.
New Delhi: Bihar CM Nitish Kumar met NCP chief Sharad
Pawar on Wednesday on his mission to unite the Opposi-
tion ahead of 2024
polls. The chief of
JD(U), who ended
ties with the BJP
last month, is in
the national capital
since Monday with a long list of leaders he wanted to
meet. After Congress's Rahul Gandhi and JD(S)'s HD
Kumaraswamy, he met CPM general secretary Sitaram
Yechury, CPI's D Raja, Indian National Lok Dal's Om
Prakash Chautala and Samajwadi Party's Akhilesh Yadav.
BIHAR CHIEF MINISTER MEETS NCP
PRESIDENT SHARAD PAWAR TOO
KARNATAKA HC RESTORES BRIBERY
COMPLAINT AGAINST YEDIYURAPPA
Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday
restored a private complaint against former CM BS
Yediyurappa on the allegation of accepting
bribe while stating that there is no need
of previous sanction for the special court
to order an investigation under Section
156(3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
Justice Sunil Dutt Yadav passed the order
while set aside a Special Court’s July 8, 2021 order of
rejecting the private complaint, filed by Abraham TJ, a
social activist and president of the Karnataka Anti-Graft
and Environmental Forum, Bengaluru.
UNIONCABINETINCREASESRAILLAND
LEASE PERIOD FROM 5 TO 35 YEARS
First India Bureau
New Delhi: In its meet-
ing on Wednesday un-
derthechairmanshipof
PM Narendra Modi, Un-
ion Cabinet approved
the change in the rail
land lease. The Cabinet
approved to increase the
lease period from 5
years to 35 years. Apart
fromthis,adecisionwas
taken to cut the LLF of
railway land. Now rail-
way land can be given
on lease for 35 years. Un-
ion Ministers Dharmen-
dra Pradhan and Anur-
ag Thakur briefed me-
dia about the decisions.
CABINET'S APPROVAL FOR THE
PRADHAN MANTRI SHRI SCHEME
The Pradhan Mantri Shree Yojana has also been
approved by the Cabinet. The quality of 14,597
schools will be upgraded from 2022 to 2027 at a
cost of `27,360 crore.
OTHER DECISIONS
z Ex post facto approval given for the
MoU signed on mutual recognition of
academic qualifications between India
and the UK and Northern Ireland.
z Approval for an MoU between India
and UAE on cooperation in Education.
z Approval for the MoU on coopera-
tion in the field of Disaster Management
between the National Disaster Manage-
ment Authorities of India and Maldives.
z Nod for Phase II of Kochi Metro Rail
Project at a cost of `1,957.05 crore.
300 GATI
SHAKTI CARGO
TERMINALS
PM Narendra Modi chairs Cabinet meeting
Dharmendra Pradhan and Anurag Thakur brief the media on
Cabinet decisions in New Delhi on Wednesday.
BIG CUT
IN LAND
LICENCE FEE
Amendments have
been made in the land
lease of railways to
implement the PM Gati
Shakti Framework.
More than 300 PM
Gati Shakti terminals
will be built in the next
5 years. More than
1.25 lakh employment
opportunities will be
created. The land can
be used for construc-
tion of school build-
ings and hospitals on
PPP mode. For this,
a charge of ` 1 per
square foot will be
charged. Land will be
made available at a low
cost for a solar plant.
It has been decided to
cut the LLF of railway
land. Land licence
fee has been reduced
from 6% to 1.5%.
Now 1.5% land lease
fee will be charged
on the market price
of the land. LLF is de-
ducted only for cargo
related companies.
Two supporting fac-
tors have been added
to the Rail Land Lease
change. Companies
which currently have
land lease of railways,
under the old lease
policy, they can bring
themselves under the
new lease policy.
KEY DECISIONS
Bill on data privacy will
be ready ‘soon’: FinMin
New Delhi (ANI): Un-
ion Finance Minister
Nirmala Sitharaman
on Wednesday assured
that the new bill on data
privacy will be ready
“soon” and the Informa-
tion Technology minis-
ter has been diligently
working on it.
Ashwini Vaishnaw
is the Union Minister
for Information and
Technology
.
“We will soon have a
new Data Privacy Bill,
which will be a product
of consultations and
will address every such
concern most of us had
on the privacy Bill,” she
said. Sitharaman made
the remarks here on
Wednesday while ad-
dressing the ongoing
India Ideas Summit or-
ganised by US-India
Business Council.
The Central govt last
month withdrew the
Personal Data Protec-
tion Bill 2019 from Lok
Sabha several months
after it was introduced.
Minister for Commu-
nications, Electronics
Information Technolo-
gy Ashwini Vaishnaw
had said the Bill was
withdrawn because the
Joint Parliamentary
Committee recom-
mended 81 amendments
in a bill of 99 sections.
Further, in her ad-
dress to the US-India
Business Council, she
said jobs, equitable
wealth distribution
and ensuring that In-
dia is still on the path
of growth are some of
her top red-letter pri-
orities.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman with Myron Brilliant, Executive Vice Prez and Head of International
Affairs, US Chamber of Commerce, Ed Knight, Executive Vice Chairman, Nasdaq and Atul Keshap,
President, US-India Business Council, join hands at the India Ideas Summit, in New Delhi on Wednesday.
—PHOTO BY ANI
WILL RIGHT TO DRESS INCLUDE RIGHT TO
UNDRESS? SC REMARKS AT HIJAB ROW
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked a
lawyer arguing for the right to wear the hijab in education
institutes: You can't take it to illogical ends. Right to
dress will include right to undress also? The lawyer, Dev
Datt Kamat, replied, Nobody is undressing in
a school. Justice Hemant Gupta also re-
marked: Problem here is that one particu-
lar community is insisting on a headscarf
(hijab) while all other communities are
following the dress code. Students of
other communities are not saying we
want to wear this and that.
Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam!
India keen to bolster energy, other ties with Russia, says PM Modi
New Delhi (ANI): India
is keen to strengthen its
partnership with Rus-
sia on Arctic subjects
and there is immense
scope for cooperation in
the field of energy as
well, PM Narendra
Modi said today and re-
iterated support to all
peaceful efforts to end
the Ukraine conflict.
In an online plenary
session address at the
Eastern Economic Fo-
rum, being organised
in the Russian city of
Vladivostok and also
attended by Russian
President Vladimir Pu-
tin, PM Modi said India
has been emphasising
the need to adopt the
path of diplomacy and
dialogue since the be-
ginning of the Ukraine
conflict.
“We support all
peaceful efforts to end
this conflict,” PM said.
He also said Russia can
become an important
partner for the Indian
steel industry through
the supply of coking
coal and there was
scope for good coopera-
tion in the mobility of
talent. “The Ukraine
conflict and the Covid
pandemic have had a
major impact on global
supply chains,” he said.
Referring to India’s
ancient doctrine “Vas-
udhaiva Kutum-
bakam”, PM Modi said,
“It has taught us to see
the world as a family
and in today’s glo-
balised world, events in
one part of the world
create an impact on the
whole world.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually addresses the Plenary Session of 7th Eastern Economic
Forum in Russia’s Vladivostok, in New Delhi on Wednesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
XI, PUTIN, MODI TO
HOLD TALKS AT SCO
China’s President Xi Jinping
and Russian President Vladimir
Putin will hold talks next week
on the sidelines of the SCO
summit in Uzbekistan, which
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
will also attend, a Russian of-
ficial said Wednesday.
This month itself, 30 years are
being completed since the
establishment of the Consulate
of India in Vladivostok. India was the
first country to open a consulate in this
city. Since then, this city has been witness
to many milestones in our relationship.
—Narendra Modi, Prime Minister
SUPREME COURT'S
CONSTITUTION
BENCH TO
GO 'GREEN'
New Delhi: A Delhi Court
has issued a non-bailable
warrant against the You-
tuber influencer Bobby
Kataria, who is being
tracked by the police
ever since he was seen
smoking a cigarette on
board a Spice Jet flight
last month. DCP Airport
Tanu Sharma told ANI
news agency that Kataria
has been on the run since
the case was registered
against him.
New Delhi: Justice Dhan-
anjaya Yeshwant Chand-
rachud on Wednesday
said that the Constitution
bench headed by him will
be a green bench and
asked the lawyers not
to submit any papers or
physical documents. We
will keep this a completely
green bench so there
would be no papers.
Please don't carry papers,
said Justice Chandrachud
to the lawyers.
NBW AGAINST
BOBBY KATARIA
FOR SMOKING
ON PLANE

7. MUMBAI | THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2022
06
INDIA
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Sharat K Verma
New Delhi: The
Bharatiya Janata Party
is now learning about
the ground realities of
Karnataka. Karnataka
is not important to the
BJP just because it has
a government there and
it will be better if the
government comes.
What worries the BJP
even more is that the
BJP has won 25 out of
28 Lok Sabha seats in
the state. The BJP has
only 29 seats out of 120
in all the southern
states, of which 25 are
from Karnataka alone.
So BJP cannot afford
any loss here. That is
why along with win-
ning the assembly elec-
tions that are due in
May next year, a strat-
egy is being prepared to
repeat the former suc-
cess, in the 2024 Lok
Sabha elections as well.
It is being told that
BJP’s Karnataka strat-
egy is completely in the
hands of BS Yediyurap-
pa. He was recently
made a member of the
BJP’s parliamentary
board and through him
the message has been
given to the ‘strong’
Lingayat community of
the state that the party
has not sidelined Yed-
dyurappa, but in-
creased his stature. Af-
ter that Prime Minister
Modi went to Karnata-
ka and gave a tremen-
dous preference to Yed-
dyurappa. He held his
hand and talked for a
long time. Not only
this, he made him sit
on the stage next to the
governor and allowed
him to be the focus
throughout the pro-
gramme. It is being
told that the election
strategy and ticket dis-
tribution will be done
according to Yeddy-
urappa. BJP knows
that only Yediyurappa
can do any miracle in
Karnataka. Anyway, he
himself has announced
his retirement, so the
party leadership is not
worried about him and
it is being said that both
his sons will definitely
get a good position.
BJP projects Yediyurappa as its regional leader!
SAFE PLAY IN KARNATAKA
Former Karnataka CM and senior BJP Leader BS Yediyurappa meets
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in New Delhi. —FILE PHOTO
CRUCIAL READ
SCHOOL BOYS KILLED IN MOVING CAR,
BODIES DUMPED IN CANAL NEAR KOLKATA
‘PM’s VISIT TO KUNO NATIONAL PARK ON
HIS BIRTHDAY WILL BOOST TOURISM’
Kolkata (Agencies): Two class X students who had left their
Keshtopur home two weeks prior with a neighbor to buy
a motorcycle were killed on the same evening while being
strangled inside a moving car,
and their bodies were dumped
into a canal off Basanti
Expressway while the father
of one of the boys continued
to receive calls and messages
demanding a ransom of Rs
1 cr for his son’s safe return.
The police didn’t realise the two boys had been kidnapped
and murdered 14 days prior to Monday’s arrest of one of
the suspects in the kidnapped case; instead, they followed
the bodies to the Basirhat police mortuary.
Bhopal (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to
Kuno National Park and the release of African cheetahs
in the forest on his birthday on September 17 will boost
tourism in Madhya Pradesh, said state Forest Minis-
ter Kunwar Vijay Shah on
Tuesday.“It was our wish to
celebrate the birthday of the
Prime Minister in a historic
and unique form and our
wish has been fulfilled. The
Prime Minister will come
to Madhya Pradesh on his
birthday and has permission to release cheetahs brought
from Africa into our state’s forests. This time the birthday
of the Prime Minister will prove to be a milestone in the
history of the Forest Department of Madhya Pradesh,” the
Minister told ANI.
UPSCALE SOCIETIES AMONG
WORST HIT BY FLOODING
Bengaluru (Agen-
cies): India’s IT hub,
Bengaluru, has been
witnessing devastation
for the last couple of
days. Constant heavy
rains has led to floods
and waterlogging
which has brought mis-
ery to thousands and
has caused much dam-
age. In fact, drinking
water supply was also
affected due to flooding
of pump houses in cer-
tain areas.
The flooding in Ben-
galuru has affected sev-
eral parts of the city
including elite gated
communities and high
profile residences.
The video comes as
Bengaluru is experi-
encing severe flooding
in certain areas after
two days of torrential
rains. Upscale apart-
ment buildings and
gated communities like
Divyasree 77 Place, Ep-
silon Residential Vil-
las, and Rohan Jharoka
were among the worst
hit by the torrential
rains. Other visuals
show inflatable boats
being used to evacuate
residents from their
apartments in Rama-
gondanahalli. Videos
also show cars, bikes,
and bicycles sub-
merged completely un-
der water. A resident
said, “Around 100 cars
are floating in the park-
ing space. Everything
is in bad shape. It was
so bad that we were
taken out on tractors.”
He further said that the
housing society was
cut off from electricity
and water supply ow-
ing to inundation. “All
the residents came to-
gether to help each
other.
People have moved to
hotels, and we have
come to a relative’s
house. You can’t stay in
that place anymore as
there’s no water or
electricity. I have a
16-month-old child as
well and it is a very dif-
ficult situation.”
Adding that no one
from the government,
Bruhat Bengaluru Ma-
hanagara Palike
(BBMP), or police had
come to their rescue,
he said, “Builders, gov-
ernment officials, eve-
ryone is answerable to
the taxpayers. We won’t
get our insurance mon-
ey and there are brand
new cars that have
been submerged in wa-
ter. We are forced to
live out of our own
homes and we don’t
know how long this
will take.”
‘Faulty design of bridge led
to crash that killed Mistry’
Income tax dept raids
pan India to unearth
bogus donations
Two terrorists
neutralised
in encounter
Anantnag (ANI): Two
terrorists were neutral-
ised in an encounter
that broke out at the Bi-
jbehara area of Jammu
and Kashmir’s (JK)
Anantnag district on
Wednesday
, the officials
said.
“Two #terrorists
neutralised in a chance
encounter by Anantnag
Police in Thajiwara,
#Bijbehara area of
#Anantnag, “ a police
spokesman said. Police
identified the slain as
Fayaz Ahmad Kumar
alias Faheem Kumar.
New Delhi (Agencies):
The faulty design of the
bridge is the reason be-
hind the accident of the
Mercedes Benz SUV in
which Cyrus Mistry
was travelling along
withthreeothers,which
led to the death of bil-
lionaire industrialist
and his friend Jehangir
Pandole, a forensic team
investigating the crash
has confirmed.
Piyush Tewari, CEO
of SaveLIFE Founda-
tion - the NGO, said,
“This crash is a grim
reminder of how over-
speeding when com-
bined with poor road
infrastructure and cas-
ual attitude towards
safety equipment such
as seatbelts can take
away lives.”
“As per hundreds of
forensiccrashinvestiga-
tions carried out by
SaveLIFE Foundation
on behalf of agencies
across India, non-usage
of seatbelts, especially
in the rear seat, contrib-
uted to nearly 35% of
deaths investigated. In
most cases, victims vio-
lently crash with vehi-
cle interiors and fellow
passengers, and in
many other cases are
found ejected from the
vehicle. Seat belts can
prevent that,” Piyush
Tewari said.
Reshuffling of seven IAS officers in UP
Ahtesham Siddiqui
Lucknow: The Uttar
Pradesh government
has once again trans-
ferred IAS officers as 7
officers have been shuf-
fled and given new post-
ings. IAS Amrita Soni, a
senior IAS officer wait-
ing after returning from
leave, has been made
Chief Staff Officer of
Chief Secretary Durga
Shankar Mishra.
Whereas the post was ly-
ing vacant in the Chief
Secretary’s Office after
IAS Anita Meshram
moved to Delhi. In the
transfer list, Secretary
National Integration,
Medical Health and
Family Welfare and Ad-
ditional Mission Direc-
tor, National Health
Mission IAS Pranjal Ya-
dav has been posted as
Secretary MSME and
Export Promotion, Han-
dloom and Textile In-
dustries.
Special Secretary
, Ag-
riculture Production
Commissioner Branch
IAS Dr Arvind Chaura-
sia has been appointed
as Special Secretary Ir-
rigation and Water Re-
source s, while Special
Secretary, Finance, IAS
Gurrala Srinivasulu
has now been made Spe-
cial Secretary
, Revenue.
BJP leader Ruby
Khan defies fatwa
Aligarh (UP) (ANI):
Even death threats and
a fatwa issued against
BJP leader Ruby Asif
Khan for installing
Lord Ganesh idol at her
residence in Uttar
Pradesh’s Aligarh, did
not deter her from step-
ping out to immerse the
idol with due diligence
in Narora Ghat with
heavy security
. She was
accompanied by her
two sisters and her hus-
band Asif.
Ruby Asif Khan, who
has been receiving
death threats since she
installed Lord Ganesh’s
idol at her residence,
said that she is not
scared of the fatwa and
threats. Even Fatwa has
been issued against her
for worshipping the
idol.
Speaking to ANI, she
said, “I am taking Lord
Ganesh’s idol for im-
mersion at Narora
Ghat. I installed the idol
of Lord Ganesh at my
residence on August 31.
Since then this fatwa
has been issued. Maula-
nas (clerics) are saying
that I have become Hin-
du as I have installed
Lord Ganesh’s idol. I
am receiving threats to
boycott me from Islam
and to burn my family
alive.
When I go out, people
are calling me Hindu
but I am afraid of fat-
was and Maulanas. The
way I installed the idol
in the same way I will
immerse with due dili-
gence.”
Municipal workers remove blocks and other obstructions to clear the waterlogged Outer Ring Road
after heavy monsoon rains, in Bellandur on Wednesday. —PHOTO BY PTI
Since we
don’t have
water in
bathrooms we
had to resort to
carrying water
from the swim-
ming pools up
the stairs for
our daily
chores.
—A resident
E-COM FIRMS FACES HARROWING TIME
Bengaluru (PTI): E-commerce companies, especially
their delivery boys, had a harrowing time to supply
products to the customers when certain parts of
Bengaluru was under deluge due to two days of heavy
rains in parts of the city, PTI reported. The flooded
areas such as parts of Sarjapura, Bellandur, Varthur,
Whitefield and Outer Ring Road had become inacces-
sible due to water-logging.
IAS Prashant Sharma IAS Amrita Soni IAS Kritika Sharma
Sarma’s remark over
partition creates stir
New Delhi (Agen-
cies): Assam Chief
Minister Himanta
Biswa Sarma has
made a controversial
statement about “in-
tegrating Bangla-
desh” at a time when
the neighbouring
country’s Prime Min-
ister Sheikh Hasina is
on a diplomatic visit
to India.
Sarma was re-
sponding to the me-
dia’s questions on the
Congress’ ‘Bharat
Jodo Yatra’ as part of
which Rahul Gandhi
and other Congress
leaders will travel
across 3,500 km, from
Kashmir to Kanyaku-
mari. The march is
being seen as a des-
perate attempt by the
Congress, hit by sev-
eral high-profile exits,
to rally support ahead
of the 2024 general
election. “India is
united. From Kash-
mir to Kanyakumari,
Silchar to Saurashtra,
we are one. Congress
partitioned the coun-
try into India and Pa-
kistan. Then Bangla-
desh was created. If
Rahul Gandhi feels
apologetic that my
maternal grandfather
[Jawaharlal Nehru]
made mistakes, if he
regrets it, then no
point of ‘Bharat Jodo’
in Indian territory.
Try to integrate Paki-
stan, Bangladesh and
strive to create
Akhand Bharat,” said
Sarma, who joined
the BJP in 2015.
DEMOLISHED MADRASAS WERE
AL-QAEDA OFFICES: ASSAM CM
New Delhi (ANI): A day
after the demolition of
madrasas in Assam’s
Goalpara district, Chief
Minister Himanta Biswa
Sarma on Wednesday
said all demolished
madrasas were not
madrasas but Al-Qae-
da offices. Speaking
to media persons
here, Sarma said, “All
demolished madrasas
were not madrasas but
Al Qaeda offices. We
demolished 2-3 and
now the public is com-
ing to demolish others.
The Muslim community
is coming to demolish,
saying that they do not
want a madrasa where
the work of Al-Qaeda is
done. That changes ma-
drasa’s character.” The
CM’s statement came
after local residents of
Pakhuria Char in As-
sam’s Goalpara district
demolished a madrasa
on Tuesday.
DEATH THREATS
All demolished
madrasas were
not madrasas but
Al Qaeda offices.
We demolished
2-3 and now the
public is coming to
demolish others.
—Himanta Sarma,
Assam CM
BENGALURU FLOODS
New Delhi (ANI): The
IT dept is conducting
raids on political par-
ties across the country
on Wednesday in con-
nection with the alleged
bogus donation and tax
fraud, said sources.
In Lucknow, the IT
team arrived at the resi-
dence of Rashtriya
Krantikari Samajwadi
Party chief Gopal Rai.
According to sources,
several NGOs are run
by Rai. The IT dept is
investigating cases re-
lated to tax evasion.
POLITICAL PARTIES AT RADAR!
Raid at premises of the think-tank CPR, in New Delhi on Wednesday.

8. MUMBAI | THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2022
07
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Commodity Price Change % Chg
GOLD 50,761.00 225.00 0.44 (Per 10g)
SILVER 54,009.00 315.00 0.58 (Per 1kg)
COMMODITIES
Currency Price Change % Chg
USDINR 79.89 0.07 0.08
GBPINR 91.85 0.75 0.81
CURRENCIES
Things to keep in mind while opting for EMI on your credit card
Mayank Markanday
EMI on credit card can be
useful and convenient,
however there are circum-
stances in which it is advis-
able to use this facility.
EMIs are useful when you
want to buy something that
your bank balance doesn’t
support. Also, when you
end up spending more on
your credit card, EMIs can
save you from the high in-
terest rates. In this case,
getting the EMI option can
reduce your interest rate
by half. Moreover, these op-
tions are available on click
of button or through a call
itself. Sometimes even your
Credit Card statement can
help you find this option.
Things to keep in mind.
Processing fee: EMI
schemes are subject to a
nominal processing fee.
Please check before opting.
Available credit: You
should ensure that you
have enough credit in your
card so that your EMI re-
quest is not rejected.
Provisional decline of
your credit limit: As soon
as your EMI scheme be-
gins, your bank will tempo-
rarily block an amount
equal to the value of the
purchase you have made
through the EMI option.
However, as you start pay-
ing back your EMIs, your
bank will again start in-
creasing your credit limit
by the amount equal to
your monthly EMI.
Know what can be
converted and what not:
Different banks have dif-
ferent things or items
which they permit to be
paid via EMI that include
purchase of electronic de-
vices, travel expenses, pur-
chase of apparel, lifestyle
related expenses, insur-
ance expenses, etc. How-
ever, most banks do not
allow customers to make
EMI payments for pur-
chase of jewellery and pre-
cious metals like gold, sil-
ver etc. Advantages
Manageable Financing
Option: By choosing the
EMI payment facility, the
customers can repay the
debt over a period of time,
helping them to manage
their finances better.
Improves Credit Pro-
file: With EMI payments,
there are less chances of a
borrower defaulting with
the payments helping indi-
viduals improve their cred-
it history gradually over
the period of time.
The author is Head of Credit
Cards, AU Small Finance Bank
EXPERT TIPS ON MANAGING FINANCES
business
BRIEFS
Mumbai: Despite increas-
ing margin pressure, the
consumer durables sector
is likely to witness a dou-
ble-digit volume growth,
pushing its revenue up by
15-18% to `1 lakh crore
this fiscal, according to a
report. According to the
report, a 10-13% spike in
demand/volume, which
will be driven by both ur-
ban and rural segments --
led mostly by the AC and
refrigerator segments,
though rural demand will
come into play in the sec-
ond half of the fiscal. This
fiscal, the company will
scale past the pre-pan-
demic volume mark by 3
per cent. —PTI
Bhopal: State-owned
Bank of Maharashtra
(BoM) on Wednesday
said it has raised `710
crore from bonds to fund
business growth. The
fund raised via Basel III
compliant Additional Tier
1 (AT1) bonds of `710
crore (including green
shoe option of `610
crore) is at a coupon rate
of 8.74%, the bank said
in a statement. The issue
garnered overwhelming
response from investors
with subscription of 10
times against base issue
size of `100 crore. —PTI
BANK OF MAHA
MOBILISES `710
CRORE VIA BONDS
CONSUMER GOODS
SECTOR REVENUE TO
SEE BIG GROWTH
Mumbai: The rupee de-
clined by 7 paise to close
at 79.89 (provisional)
against the US dollar on
Wednesday tracking a
strong dollar in overseas
markets and losses in the
domestic equities. At the
interbank foreign ex-
change market, the do-
mestic currency opened
at 79.93 per dollar. It hov-
ered in a range of 79.84
to 79.94 during the ses-
sion. The domestic unit
finally settled at 79.89,
down 7 paise over its pre-
vious close. —PTI
RUPEE ENDS 7 PAISE
LOWER TO 79.89
AGAINST US DOLLAR
San Francisco: ITC Ltd
would pursue the “asset-
right” strategy for its ho-
tel business to ensure
that the diversified con-
glomerate remains com-
petitive and contempo-
rary, and continues to de-
liver superior perfor-
mance, its chairman San-
jiv Puri said. The compa-
ny also said that it is ex-
ploring foreign markets
for its hospitality busi-
ness. The tourism hotel
industry is recovering and
the company will take the
demerger process for-
ward and explore alter-
nate structure. —PTI
ITC HOTELS TO
PURSUE ‘ASSET-
RIGHT’ STRATEGY
*Rates till the edition went to print.
ADANI TO BUILD 3 GIGA FACTORIES AS PART
OF $70 BILLION GREEN INVESTMENT
New Delhi (PTI) : Gautam Adani on Wednesday said his ports-to-
power conglomerate will build three giga factories for manufacturing
solar modules, wind turbines, and hydro-
gen electrolyzers as part of a $70 billion
investment in clean energy by 2030. “The
Adani Group has already committed $70
billion. This will see us building three
giga factories in India leading to one of
the world’s most integrated green-energy
value chains,” he said.
PM KISAN SCHEME: 21L
FARMERS SELECTED IN
UP FOUND INELIGIBLE
Lucknow: Under the Pradhan
Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi
scheme, 21 lakh farmers se-
lected in Uttar
Pradesh have
been found
ineligible in
a probe. The
amount given to those ineligible
farmers so far under the scheme
will be recovered from them. A
total of 2.85 crore farmers were
selected under the Pradhan
Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi
scheme in the state, out of which
21 lakh beneficiaries have been
found ineligible, state Agriculture
Min Surya Pratap Shahi. —PTI
SENSEX, NIFTY DECLINE
2nd DAY OVER LOSSES
IN BANKING STOCKS
Mumbai: Benchmark BSE
Sensex and Nifty ended lower
on Wednesday, dragged down
by losses
in banking
stocks amid
weak global
market trends.
The 30-share Sensex declined
by 168.08 points or 0.28% to
settle at 59,028.91. The broader
NSE Nifty dipped 31.20 points
or 0.18% to 17,624.40. From
the Sensex pack, IndusInd
Bank, Mahindra Mahindra,
Maruti, Bharti Airtel, SBI, Tata
Steel, ICICI Bank HDFC were
major laggards. —PTI
OTHER STORIES
New Delhi: State-owned CIL on Wednesday said it will reach close
to its production target of 306 million tonnes (MT) in the first half of
FY23, provided its mining areas are not extremely affected by heavy
rains this month. Coal India Ltd
(CIL) accounts for over 80% of
domestic coal output. “At the
current pace of production...The
company is hopeful of reaching
close to the apportioned H1 target
of 306 MT,” CIL said. Of the total
production target of 700 MT for
FY23, the output split is around 44% in the first half and 56% in the
second half, the company said in a statement. —PTI
‘Job creation, growth
priority over inflation’
FINANCE MINISTER SAYS
New Delhi (PTI): Finance
Minister Nirmala Sithara-
man on Wednesday said
the country’s economic
growth remains a priority
for the government, as in-
flation has come down to a
manageable level.
Job creation and equita-
ble distribution of wealth
remain the other focus ar-
eas, she said. “Some of
course are red-lettered (pri-
orities), some may not be.
Red-lettered ones would of
course be jobs, equitable
wealth distribution and
making sure India is mov-
ing on the path of growth.
“In that sense inflation is
not red-lettered. I hope it
doesn’t surprise many of
you. We have shown that in
the past couple of months
that we were able to bring
it to a manageable level,”
she said at the event.
According to official
data, retail inflation sof-
tened to 6.71% in July due
to moderation in food pric-
es but remained above the
Reserve Bank’s comfort
level of 6% for the seventh
consecutive month.
The Consumer Price In-
dex (CPI) based retail in-
flation was at 7.01% in
June and 5.59% in July
2021. It was above 7% from
April to June this fiscal.
She exuded confidence
that the Reserve Bank
would manage the volatil-
ity emerging from aggres-
sive rate hike stance by the
US Fed and the European
Central Bank.
‘CBDC TO BRING DOWN TIME, COST FOR
CROSS-BORDER TRANSACTIONS’
New Delhi: Central bank digital currency (CBDC), to be launched this
year, could become a tool for reducing time and cost for cross-border
transactions, Reserve Bank Deputy Governor T Rabi Sankar said on
Wednesday. “We have to
understand that interna-
tionalisation of CBDC is
crucial to addressing the
payments issue that bodies
like G-20 and Bank for
International Settlements
(BIS) are dealing with
now,” he said at India Ideas
Summit. Observing that
India has an excellent, cheap and fast domestic payments system, he
said the cost of cross-border payment, however, is still high.There is
a lot of scope for improvement in terms of both cost and speed, he
noted. CBDC is probably the most efficient answer to this, he said,
adding, for example, if India CBDC and the US CBDC systems can talk
to each other, we don’t have to wait for settling transactions. —PTI
India aspiring to
take int’l trade to $2
tn by 2030: Goyal
San Francisco (PTI): In-
dia’s goods and services
exports have already
crossed $675 billion in last
fiscal year and the country
is now aspiring to take in-
ternational trade to $2 tril-
lion by 2030, Commerce
and Industry Minister Pi-
yush Goyal has said.
Goyal also said by the
time India would celebrate
the 100th anniversary of its
independence, it would be
a $30 trillion economy
.
“...By 2047-2050 period,
when India would be com-
pleting 100 years of Inde-
pendence, we will be at
least a $30 trillion economy
on a business as usual sce-
nario and possibly a $35-45
trillion economy if some of
the aggressive plans that
the government is putting
together work well. That’s
the kind of opportunity
that I bring to the table,”
Goyal said. Goyal said the
government has spent the
last few years laying the
foundation on which the
country can rapidly trans-
form, grow its economy,
improve its systems, and
engage in technology
.
“We have recently seen
some successes in terms
of our international en-
gagement growing to
about $675 billion (exports
of goods and services) for
the first time ever last
year. We are hoping to do
our international trade to
about $2 trillion by 2030,”
the minister added.
UNTIL WE GET A
GOOD DEAL, NO FTA
WITH ISRAEL: PIYUSH
San Francisco: The proposed
India-Israel trade pact should
be beneficial to both nations
and until New Delhi gets a good
deal, it would not do an agree-
ment, Commerce and Industry
Minister Piyush Goyal said. India
and Israel are negotiating a free
trade agreement (FTA) since
May 2010. “With Israel, until
we get a good deal, we will not
do an FTA. It has to be recipro-
cally beneficial,” the minister
said. Major exports from India
to Israel include precious stones
and metals, chemical products
and textiles and textile articles
while imports include precious
stones and metals, chemicals
and mineral products, base met-
als and machinery and transport
equipment. The bilateral trade in
goods between the two countries
stood at about $8 billion in
2021-22. It was $4.7 billion in
2020-21. —PTI
Govt should plan
to privatise PSBs:
Ex-RBI Governor
New Delhi (PTI): Former
RBI governor D Subbarao
has suggested that the gov-
ernment should come up
with a 10-year road map for
privatisation of all Public
Sector Banks (PSBs) as it
would provide much need-
ed predictability to stake-
holders.
Subbarao further said
that the big bang approach
to privatisation of state-
owned banks is not desira-
ble but at the same time the
issue should not be put on
the back burner.
“Ideally, we should have
a road map, maybe over a
10 year timeframe, to priva-
tise all PSBs.
“That will give much
needed predictability to all
stakeholders,” he said.
Meanwhile, Subbarao
said the government
should also be thinking
about corporatisation of
public sector banks so that
they come within the um-
brella of uniform RBI reg-
ulation. According to Sub-
barao, the impact on the
Indian economy of privati-
sation of PSBs will be in
two ways.
India needs to be self-reliant
in semiconductor tech: Adani
New Delhi (Agencies):
Chairman of the Adani
group, Gautam Adani said
that India needs to become
self-reliant in manufactur-
ing of semiconductors.
He said that US’ help
would be critical in helping
India become self-reliant in
semi-conductor manufac-
turing. Due to global short-
age of semi-conductor
chips, which are vital for
running everything from
cars to computers to air-
crafts and military equip-
ments, industries are suf-
fering, Adani said.
Indian govt wants to
start domestic manufactur-
ing of semi-conductor
chips so that it can be in a
position to export them in
future, he said. “India can-
not remain dependent on
global supply chains, as
chipsarerequiredbyevery-
one,” he said.
New Delhi (PTI): India is
in a much better position to
deal with the challenges re-
lated to growth and infla-
tion, said Sanjiv Bajaj, Pres-
ident of industry body CII.
According to official fig-
ures, India's retail inflation
continues to remain above
the Reserve Bank's toler-
ance level of 6% since Jan-
uary, while the economic
growth in the first quarter
of the fiscal was 13.5%,
lower than the central
bank's estimate of 16.2%.
I don't want to say we
don't have our own chal-
lenges with growth, with
inflation but we are in a
much better position and
credit must go to every-
body including the central
and state governments. I
don't see economic growth
as an issue, Bajaj, who
is also the CMD of Bajaj
Finserv said.
‘India in much
better position
to deal with
challenges’
CIL HOPES TO REACH CLOSE TO ITS PRODUCTION
TARGET OF 306 MT IN FIRST HALF OF FY23
Indian billionare and Asia’s richest man, Gautam Adani, second from left,
receives the USIBC Global Leadership Award.
USEFUL AND
CONVENIENT
z EMI on credit card can be
useful and convenient, but
there are circumstances in
which it is advisable to use
this facility. EMIs are useful
when you want to buy
something that your bank
balance doesn’t support

9. Satish Nandgaonkar
Mumbai: The State
Election Commission
on Wednesday an-
nounced the third
round of local body
elections—the biggest
so far, in 1,166 gram
panchayats—on Octo-
ber 13. Not only will
the OBC reservations
applicable in these
polls, but voters will
also be able to vote di-
rectly for the sar-
panches of panchayats
as opposed to the ear-
lier system in which
electedmemberschose
the sarpanch.
Making the an-
nouncement, State
Election Commissioner
UPS Madon said the
election code of con-
duct had come into ef-
fect with the announce-
ment and that counting
will take place on Octo-
ber 14. While voters in
18 districts will cast
their votes from 7.30 am
till 5.30 pm, voting will
close at 3 pm in Naxal-
affected districts. The
reservations will be ap-
plicable as per the per-
centages decided by the
backward class com-
mission, SEC officials
said.
This is the biggest
round of local body
elections after the
Eknath Shinde govern-
ment came to power. On
August 05, 271 gram
panchayats had gone to
polls, and the BJP has
emerged at the top with
82 seats and the Shinde
faction had bagged 40
seats, while NCP had
emerged at the top in
the Maha Vikas Aghadi
alliance with 51 seats
followed by Shiv Sena
and Congress with 20-
odd seats.
On August 12, a sec-
ond round of polls were
announced and are
scheduled to be held in
608 gram panchayats
across 51 tehsils on
September 18.
MUMBAI | THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2022
08
2NDFRONT
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/mumbai I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
First India Bureau
Mumbai: A special
court on Wednesday
rejected the plea of
Vidhie Mukerjea,
daughter of es-
tranged couple Ind-
rani Mukerjea and
Peter Mukerjea,
seeking permission
to reside with her
mother in Mumbai
on her return to In-
dia. Both are accused
in the Sheena Bora
murder case.
Vidhie has been liv-
ing in London for the
past several years. She
is returning to India
on September 10, as
per her application
filed on August 30.
Her plea was reject-
ed by Special Judge SP
Naik Nimbalkar, pre-
siding over the Sheena
Bora murder case. Ind-
rani Mukerjea, the
prime accused in the
case, is currently out
on bail.
In her plea, filed
through advocate Ran-
jeet Sangle, Vidhie
claimed that she was
deprived of her moth-
er’s companionship as
a minor when Indrani
Mukerjea was arrested
in 2015. She also stated
that the separation has
affected her “emotion-
al well-being”.
The plea further
said that Indrani is suf-
fering from irreversi-
ble cerebral ischemia,
she is frail and re-
quires proper personal
and medical care,
which Vidhie would
like to provide to the
best of her ability and
time.
However, the prose-
cution (Central Bu-
reau of Investigation)
on Wednesday opposed
her plea, saying Vidhie
Mukerjea is a prosecu-
tion witness and has
not been examined un-
til now.
Allowing her plea
would be a violation of
conditions imposed by
the Supreme Court
while granting bail to
Indrani Mukerjea,
said the CBI.
The apex court
while granting bail to
Indrani Mukerjea had
set certain conditions,
including that she will
not influence the pros-
ecution witness or
tamper with the evi-
dence.
The petitioner (Ind-
rani Mukerjea) in any
case shall not meet or
establish contact with
the witnesses till the
recording of evidence
is over.
Finding merits in
the prosecution reply,
the special judge re-
jected Vidhie’s plea.
Mumbai (PTI): A
Mumbai court on
Wednesday granted
bail to actor Kamaal R
Khan, popularly
known as KRK, in the
2020 case of contro-
versial tweets about
actor Akshay Kumar
and filmmaker Ram
Gopal Verma.
On Tuesday, another
court granted bail to
him in a molestation
case of 2021.
Khan, currently in ju-
dicial custody, was ar-
restedbythepolicefrom
the Mumbai airport last
weekinconnectionwith
his tweets. He is likely to
walk out of jail on
Thursday morning.
Police have claimed
that Khan’s posts were
communal and that he
targeted Bollywood per-
sonalities.
However, Khan in his
bail plea moved through
advocates Ashok Sarogi
and Jay Yadav, said that
the tweets in question
were only his comments
on the film titled
‘Laxmii’ and no offence
as alleged by the police
was committed.
Khan is acting as a
“critic and/or reporter
in the film industry”,
said the bail plea.
First India Bureau
Mumbai: In a first,
Maharashtra will in-
troduce e-registration
of properties and
stamp duty to digitize
the process and save
home buyers the trou-
ble of visiting regis-
tration office to for-
mally record their
property transactions.
The Department of
Registration and
Stamps has collaborat-
ed with leading devel-
oper body CREDAI-
MCHI to promote the
pilot project in a big
way at the latter’s prop-
erty expo next month.
CREDAI-MCHI’s flag-
ship property festival
will return to MMRDA
Grounds in Mumbai
October 13-16, with an
exclusive stall at the
expo to create aware-
ness about the e-regis-
tration facility
.
Officers of the state
government will spread
awareness among home
buyers and guide them
through the new portal.
CREDAI-MCHI with the
state government has so
far organized six train-
ing workshops for de-
velopers.
The digitized process
will be applicable only
to first sale transac-
tions at the moment, of-
ficials said, adding that
the state registers over
30 lakh properties an-
nually. The Mumbai
Metropolitan Region
(MMR) remains the big-
gest real estate market
among the top eight
Tier-1 cities.
NikunjSanghavi,Con-
vener, Exhibition com-
mittee, CREDAI-MCHI
said, “The initiative
stems from a customer-
centric approach. Since
we will launch this facil-
ity during our flagship
event, customers would
getanopportunitytoun-
derstand the process in
real-time with the help
of dedicated members
who will take them
through the process.”
The Property festival
will offer a range of
property alternatives
from affordable to luxu-
ry apartments to home
buyers, and aims to
bringthemostrenowned
developers and home
buyers under one um-
brella. CREDAI-MCHI
represents over 1,249 de-
velopers in the MMR.
DISTRICT-WISE
GRAM PANCHAYATS
Palghar 342
Nandurbar 206
Nashik 194
Thane 158
Chandrapur 94
Ratnagiri 51
Gadchiroli 21
Raigad 20
Bhandara 20
Nagpur 17
Satara 16
Wardha 9
Gondia 6
Sindhudurg 4
Kolhapur 4
Pune 2
Amravati 1
Washim 1
IMPORTANT DATES
z Notification Sept 13
z Filing nomination Sept 21-27 except for govt
holidays (Sept 24-25).
z Nomination scrutiny Sept 28
z Last date for withdrawing nomination Sept 30
z Voting Oct 13
z Counting Oct 14
Polling to take place in 1,166
gram panchayats on Oct 13
Not only will OBC reservations be applicable, voters will be able to
vote directly for panchayat sarpanches instead of elected members
Indrani after her bail in connection with Sheena Bora murder
case, earlier this year. —FILE PHOTO
Daughter’s plea for nod to
stay with Indrani rejected
Application to court cited the latter’s ill
health and need for proper medical care as
one of the reasons for the appeal
Punecivicbodyfines
33contractors`50L
forpoorqualityroads
Maha to digitize registration process of
property transactions and stamp duty
First India Bureau
Pune: The Pune
Municipal Corpora-
tion (PMC) fined 33
contractors a total
of Rs50 lakh during
the defect liability
period due to poor
quality of roads in-
side city limits.
According to VG
Kulkarni, head of the
PMC’s road depart-
ment, this is the sec-
ond phase of action.
“Earlier, the civic ad-
ministration fined
contractors around
Rs8 lakh for not car-
rying out proper road
work. More action is
on the cards. The civ-
ic body is also mak-
ing them repair the
roads,” he said.
Throughout the
term of defect liabili-
ty
, the contractors are
inchargeof condition
of the roads.
A top PMC official
told the media that
repeat offenders are
being identified. “A
list of bad contrac-
tors is currently be-
ing compiled. They
will face severe pun-
ishment,” he said.
Contractors are
finedRs5,000forevery
square metre of pot-
hole. According to the
PMC, till now more
than 11,000 potholes
have been filled in the
past three months.
Civic groups and
denizens, however,
claimed that these
finesaremeaningless.
Contractors should
face more stringent
punishment, such as
being put on a black-
list or being charged
with a crime.
“Neither the civic
administration nor
the contractors are
worried about road
quality. They don’t
care to build roads as
per the standards of
the Indian Road Con-
gress,” a resident
claimed.
Earlier, the civic
admin had slapped
fine of around `8
lakh on contractors
for not carrying out
proper road work
Kamaal R Khan gets bail in controversial tweets case
Khan being produced at Borivali court on Tuesday. —PHOT BY ANI
CREDAI-MCHI functionaries at the announcement of e-registration facility and the property expo at
the Old Customs House.
This initiative will open doors of a new home-buying experi-
ence for thousands of buyers who will now enjoy a vastly im-
proved level of ease and convenience in buying their dream
homes. This pilot will also help in boosting home ownership sentiment
further. —Dhaval Ajmera, Secretary, CREDAI-MCHI
30th edition of
developer body
CREDAI-MCHI
property expo
set to showcase
the facility for
home buyers
First India Bureau
Mumbai: The di-
rector handling
the business ac-
tivities of M/s Ro-
bosteel Trading
Pvt Ltd has been
arrested by CGST,
Navi Mumbai, on
the charges of
availing/utiliz-
ing/passing on
fake Input Tax
Credit (ITC) which
was received from
bogus/fake enti-
ties amounting to
Rs181.67 crore
(availed Rs87.48
crore and passed
on Rs94.19 crore).
A team of offic-
ers of Anti-Eva-
sion, CGST C.Ex.
Navi Mumbai con-
ducted an enquiry
against the afore-
said firm. The total
amount of bogus
invoices involved is
to the tune of
Rs1075.37 crore,
without actual sup-
ply of goods or ser-
vices.
The accused has
been arrested and
was produced be-
fore the Judicial
Magistrate First
class, Vashi at Be-
lapur on Wednes-
day. He has been
sent on judicial cus-
tody for 14 days.
One held for
availing and
passing on
fake ITC
One of the biggest risks we
face in life is NOT to take a
risk.
—Dr Jagdeesh Chandra,
CEO Editor-in-Chief, First India

10. www.firstindia.co.in I https://firstindia.co.in/epapers/mumbai I twitter.com/
thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09
MUMBAI, THURSDAY,
SEPTEMBER 8, 2022
glance at beau-
ty and royalty
was witnessed
in the fashion
festival of Ra-
j a s t h a n
‘Udaipur Cou-
ture Show 2022’ pre-
sented by First India
and Bharat 24. The
grand Utsav of fash-
ion was held at Ra-
mee Royal Resort in
the beautiful lake
city of Rajasthan on
Monday
.
Designers from
different corners
of the country
showcased their
collections dur-
ing the fashion
event.
The show was
e m b e l l i s h e d
with nine fash-
ion sequences
in which de-
signers from
Udaipur as
well as Jaipur,
Surat, Rajkot,
Mumbai and
Delhi pre-
sented their
g a r m e n t s
on the exhi-
b i t i o n
stage. The
g r a n d
opening of
the show
was done
by heavy bridal
Mewari outfits
by fashion de-
signer ‘Yuvti by Bhupen-
dra Singh’, where Zee
Show fame actress Akan-
sha Bhalla walked the
ramp as the showstopper.
Royal fashion has under-
gone transitions with cul-
tural influences affecting
the styling and silhouette.
Traditional styles of lehen-
gas are three-piece outfits
comprising of a long skirt,
blouse, and dupatta.
With the changing global
trends, plenty of different
silhouettes are now avail-
able in lehengas. Coordi-
nated sets are the latest
trend in women’s ethnic
wear with traditional le-
henga-blouse taking the
form of modern 2 attire; a
long skirt and a crop top.
The same can also be coor-
dinated with a dupatta.
This is a preferred style
nowadays which can be
easily carried out as occa-
sion wear and looks trendy
.
Yuvti by Bhupendra Sin-
gh, presents special hues
that nurture the embody-
ing spirit of the festive sea-
son. The astonishing col-
lection is the epitome of
feminine grace that spar-
kles in shades as soothing
as these soft hues, Yuvti is
passionately moving to-
wards recreating the an-
cient culture with contem-
porary designs.
Inspired by motifs of
queenly culture and art,
Yuvti presents you with en-
sembles resembling the
rich Rajputi heritage that
spark your soul like no
other. This collection is
drawn from graceful cou-
ture inspiration encapsu-
lating the timeless and ec-
centric beauty of Rajputi
women.
During the show, Gaurav
Gaur, the director of the
Show said that they are
very thrilled to see the
breathtaking royal collec-
tion in the city of lakes.
UDAIPUR COUTURE SHOW 2022
The exquisite elegant fashion show titled, Udaipur
Couture Show 2022 presented by First India and
Bharat 24 took place at Ramee Royal Resort, Udaipur
on Monday, September 5. City First brings to you
glimpses of first sequence of the magnificent show!
HANDCRAFTED
WITH FAIRYDUST
KAVITA CHAUHAN
cityfirst@firstindia.co.in
A
Rutvi Tiwari and Khushi Jodha
Gaurav Gaur, Akanksha Bhalla, Aditi Hundia, Khushi Jodha, Rewati Upadhyay with others walking the ramp
—PHOTOS
BY
SUNIL
SHARMA
(L-R) Himakshi Choudhary, Vasudha Tiwari and Saniya Hissaria

11. 10-11
ETC
MUMBAI | THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2022
www.firstindia.co.in I https://firstindia.co.in/epapers/mumbai I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
GREETINGS GALORE!
GREETINGS GALORE!
Jagdeesh Chandra celebrated his birthday on Wednesday with
immense galore and joy.The day was no less than any festival
as hundreds of his well-wishers reached his residence to greet
and wish him good health. City First shares some glimpses!
Jagdeesh Chandra with Suresh Mishra Jagdeesh Chandra with Dharmendra Rathore Jagdeesh Chandra with Sher Mohammad Jagdeesh Chandra with Rafeek Khan
Jagdeesh Chandra with Gopal Surolia Jagdeesh Chandra with Rupa Khurana
Jagdeesh Chandra with Mahesh Sharma
Jagdeesh Chandra with Gaurav Gaur
Jagdeesh Chandra with Yogesh Mishra and Nimisha Mishra
Jagdeesh Chandra with Vinayak Sharma Jagdeesh Chandra with Moni Sharma (L) and Vinod Kumar Sharma (R)
Jagdeesh Chandra with (L-R)
Deepak Daduria and Virendra Poonia Jagdeesh Chandra with YS Rathore
Jagdeesh Chandra with Ram Sharma Jagdeesh Chandra with Khalid Ansari Jagdeesh Chandra with (L-R) Satish Sharma, Dinesh Mathur and Dilip Solanki Jagdeesh Chandra with (L-R) Shailendra Vyas and Kanta Vyas
Jagdeesh Chandra with Ram Singh Meena
Jagdeesh Chandra cuts the cake at his residence. Also seen are (L-R) Gaurav Gaur, Nikhil Anand, Krish Gangwar,
Shweta Mishra Awasthi, Shrishti Khatri, Astha Khandelwal, Akanksha Bhalla and other supermodels
Jagdeesh Chandra with (L-R) Khushboo Dahiya, Gaurav Gaur, Krish Gangwar, Arshina Sumbul,
Jigyasa Sharma, Ngo Han, Nikhil Anand, Praachi Nagpal, Rishee Miglani and Lokesh Sharma
Jagdeesh Chandra with Nishant Bhagwati Jagdeesh Chandra with Ankit Goyal
Jagdeesh Chandra with (L-R) Ashwini Yadav, Avdhesh Divakar, Rohitash Sharma, Bhanwar Singh Bhati,
Dharmendra Rathore, Rohit Parihar, Sandeep Yadav, Sher Mohammad and Laxman Raghav
Jagdeesh Chandra with Yogesh Sharma
Jagdeesh Chandra with Deepak Sain, Manish Rawat, and Lalit Gangwani
Jagdeesh Chandra with Vijendra Solanki and
Poonam Sharma Solanki
Jagdeesh Chandra with Rohit Sharma Greetings from Ria Arora
Jagdeesh Chandra with (L-R) Mitali Soni, Deepti Choudhary Saini and Pragya Tibriwal
Jagdeesh Chandra with (L-R) Neelanjana Jangid, Rewati Upadhyay, Sanya Hissaria and Megha Shyam Soni
Jagdeesh Chandra with (L-R) Rituraj Sharma, Bhuvnesh Sharma,
Laxman Raghav, Rohit Parihar, Dharmendra Rathore, Hitesh Bagari and Nadeem
Jagdeesh Chandra with (L-R) JK Jajoo, Mohit and Garima Jajoo
Jagdeesh Chandra with Sanjeev Srivastava
Jagdeesh Chandra with Lakshya Sharma
—PHOTOS BY MUKESH KIRADOO
Jagdeesh Chandra with (L-R) Mitali Dusad, Shweta Mishra Awasthi, Jinendra Shekhawat, Shishir Awasthi and Shaan

12. 12
MUMBAI | THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2022
www.firstindia.co.in I https://firstindia.co.in/epapers/mumbai I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
CITY BUZZ
GET VACCINATED
STAY MASKED
GREETINGS GALORE!
GREETINGS GALORE!
agdeesh Chandra
invokes a huge
amount of love and
loyalty from his
team and friends
and never is this
more in evidence
than on his birthday
, every
year! The outpouring of
greetings and the celebra-
tions start a day prior and
continue till the next day
.
This year too the celebra-
tions started a day prior at
midnight and were still con-
tinuing when the edition
went to print. Political, bu-
reaucracy
,mediafromacross
India,fashionandentertain-
ment world- people from all
fields greeted the media icon
on his birthday
.
He also visited the
Bharat24- Vision of New In-
dia, the First India channel
office and the First India
Newspaper office at the re-
quest of the respective
teams so that everyone
could celebrate and enjoy
the occasion together with
him. As always, the re-
nowned Taj Rambagh Hotel
organised a special celebra-
tion for Jagdeesh Chandra,
with GM Ashok Rathore
and each staff member of
Rambagh getting together
to wish their mentor and
patron on his birthday,
Rambagh is well known as
the second home of JC and
the staff refuse to consider
him a ‘customer’, he is
much more!
Jagdeesh Chandra en-
joyed the day with his inher-
ent simplicity and joy in the
love which surrounded him.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY Dr. JC!
ANITA HADA
anita.hada@firstindianews.com
J
BIRTHDAY
CELEBRATIONS!
T
he birthday celebrations
of Dr Jagdeesh Chandra
were held on Wednesday
at the Bharat24- Vision of
New India channel office at NOI-
DA. It was an afternoon replete
with joy and togetherness with
cake cutting and sharing of
sweets and savouries. Special
guests Dhiraj Srivastava Com-
missioner Rajasthan Founda-
tion, Anil Wahal CMD Whether-
ford India Private Limited , and
many others reached to greet
Jagdeesh Chandra.
Managing Editor Ajay Kumar,
Chief Business Officer Manoj
Jagyasi, Senior Editor Syed
Umar, Political Editor Aditi Na-
gar, Consulting Editor Shashi-
kant Sharma, Mimansa Malik,
Poornima Mishra, Shikha
Thakur, Sonal Dahiya, Amit
Mittal along with the entire
team were there to congratulate
and greet him on the special oc-
casion. The State Bureaus
across India joined the celebra-
tion via Zoom, adding to the feel-
ing of familial togetherness.
Jagdeesh Chandra greeted by Vaibhav Gehlot.
Also seen is GM Ashok Rathore
Special cake curated by Rambagh family
Jagdeesh Chandra greets the Rambagh family.
Also seen is GM Ashok Rathore
Jagdeesh Chandra cuts the cake, as GM Ashok Rathore and the Rambagh family celebrate the special day
Jagdeesh Chandra cuts the cake. Also seen are (L-R) Shashikant Sharma, Manoj Jagyasi, Dhiraj Srivastava,
Aditi Nagar, Ajay Kumar, Prasoon Shukla, Syed Umar, Sandeep Mishra and Bharat 24 team members
Jagdeesh Chandra with Dhiraj Srivastava, Manoj Jagyasi, Ajay Kumar,
Prasoon Shukla, Syed Umar, Poornima Mishra, Vijay Shrivastava
Jagdeesh Chandra with Shashikant Sharma, Dhiraj Srivastava,
Manoj Jagyasi, Anu Shridhar, Aditi Nagar, Ajay Kumar, Parimal Mehhta,
Syed Umar, Mimansa Malik and Vijay Shrivastava
Jagdeesh Chandra with Anu Shridhar, Amit Mittal, Syed Umar,
Prasoon Shukla, Shashikant Sharma, Aditi Nagar Ajay Kumar
Jagdeesh Chandra with Rainu Singh, Mahesh Sharma, Jinendra Shekhawat, Shweta Mishra, Shishir Awasthi, Poonam Sharma,
Vijendra Solanki, Megha Kaushik, Ayushi Vijayvargiya, Ashish Aman and other members during the celebration at the First India channel office
Jagdeesh Chandra with Rainu Singh, Shweta Mishra, Shaan
and other members of the First India family
Jagdeesh Chandra with Chandra Prakash,
Mahesh Sharma, Pawan Bagda, Vinod Sharma and others
Jagdeesh Chandra with Moni Sharma, Yaqoob Khan, Mahesh Sharma, Sharat Verma, Rashpal Singh, Gajraj Singh,
Dilip Solanki, Dinesh Mathur, Ajit Shukla and others during the celebration at the newspaper office
Jagdeesh Chandra with Moni Sharma, Yaqoob Khan, Mahesh Sharma,
Mitali Dusad, Ashish Aman, Gajraj Singh Bhati and others during the
celebration at the First India newspaper office
—PHOTOS
BY
MUKESH
KIRADOO