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RN-1127/57 TECH/GH – 103/2018-2020, VOL. 82, NO. 196 GUWAHATI, MONDAY, JULY 20, 2020

82 years of service to the nation

www.assamtribune.com Pages 12 Price: 6.00

p2 p9 Six NE scientists getICAR awards

Unlock guidelines‘ambiguous’, say citizens

p5Netanyahu’s graft trial resumesamid Israeli virus anger

Politics, business and Covid

make an interesting mix.

JOCOSERIOUS

Virus deathsJOHANNESBURG, July

19: The number of peoplearound the world who havedied as a result of thenovel coronaviruspandemic has passed the600,000 mark as countriesfrom the US to SouthAfrica to India struggle tocontain infections. – AP

Death tollGUWAHATI, July 19:

Four more persons –Pramod Chandra Sarma(62) and Binapani Das (78)of Kamrup (Metro)district, SK Wagle (46) ofCachar and Prasanta Saikia(74) of Tinsukiasuccumbed to COVID-19today. The toll has rose to57. – Staff Reporter

Cop infectionGUWAHATI, July 19:

Till Saturday evening,altogether 823 AssamPolice personnel havetested positive, of whom444 have recovered. Onthe other hand, 814personnel are underquarantine, while 29 haverejoined duty. – StaffReporter

MonsoonNEW DELHI, July 19:

The country has receivedsix per cent more rainfallthan normal so far in thismonsoon season, butprecipitation in parts ofnorth India remainsdeficient, the IMD said onSunday. – PTI

SIVASISH THAKUR

GUWAHATI, July 19: The one-

man judicial commission constituted

by the State government to probe

media reports of rampant illegal coal

mining in the Dehing Patkai rainfor-

est belt, including both the elephant

reserve and the wildlife sanctuary, has

been given a wide mandate for un-

earthing the deep-rooted nexus be-

hind the illegalities.

The probe headed by Justice (retd)

BP Katakey will encompass a wide

range of issues that have apparently

been brushed under the carpet by

various government authorities, in-

cluding the forest and police depart-

ments. The commission will submit

its report within six months from the

date of issuance of the notification.

Official sources told The Assam

Tribune that the probe had been

mandated to look into the alleged il-

legal coal mining activities in four re-

Probe panel given wide mandate for unearthing illegalitiesserve forests (RFs) and proposed re-

serve forests (PRFs) – Saleki PRF of

Digboi Division, Tipong PRF, Jeypore

RF of Dibrugarh Division, and Dilli

RF of Sibsagar Division – including in

the Tikok Open Cast Project (OCP)

area by Coal India Limited and its sub-

sidiaries, besides by some unscrupu-

lous individuals.

“In addition, allegations of large-scale

illegal opencast mining by the mafia at

other forests such as Namphai, Tinko-

pani, Lekhapani, etc., under Digboi Di-

vision will also be covered by the in-

quiry. Assessing the adverse environ-

mental impact on the flora and fauna of

these forests will be another aspect of

the probe,” sources added.

The commission has also been

tasked with looking into the allega-

tions of violation of the Forest (Con-

servation) Act, 1980, the Assam For-

est Regulation, 1891, and the Wild-

life (Protection) Act, 1972, in the proc-

ess of coal mining activities carried

out by Coal India Limited and its sub-

sidiaries in Saleki and other areas.

Sources said the rampant violations

of the Mines and Minerals (Develop-

ment & Regulation) Act, 1957 and the

Rules framed there under, regulating

mining lease, period of lease, collection

of different royalties, preservation of

area for conservation, penalty and re-

covery for unauthorised mining, resto-

ration and rehabilitation of mined area,

prevention of illegal mining, transpor-

tation and storage by any corporation,

organisation or individual during the last

20 years would also come under the

ambit of the investigation.

SEE PAGE 6

Flood death toll inState goes up to 84

Heavy rainfall forecast till July 21

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI, July 19:The Regional Meteorolog-ical Centre here on Sundayissued red alert of heavyrainfall till July 21 for Aru-nachal Pradesh, Assam andMeghalaya. The alert hascome at a time when theflood situation of Assam hasshown signs of improve-ment in the last 48 hours.

Meanwhile, flood-induced

death toll in the State touched

84 on Sunday with five new

fatalities reported from Bar-

peta (1), Baksa (1), Dhubri

(1), Morigaon (1) and Nagaon

(1) districts.

According to the Assam

State Disaster Management

Authority (ASDMA), alto-

gether 24 districts – Dhemaji,

Lakhimpur, Biswanath, Dar-

rang, Baksa, Nalbari, Barpeta,

Chirang, Bongaigaon, Kokra-

jhar, Dhubri, South Salmara,

Goalpara, Kamrup, Kamrup

(Metro), Morigaon, Nagaon,

Golaghat, Jorhat, Majuli,

Sivasagar, Dibrugarh, Tinsukia

and Cachar – were reeling un-

der flood waters, affecting

25,29,312 people and sub-

merging 1,12,138 hectares of

cropland in 2,400 villages un-

der 70 revenue circles.

The Brahmaputra river in

Jorhat, Sonitpur, Goalpara

and Dhubri, Dhansiri in Gola-

ghat, Jia Bharali in Sonitpur,

Kopili in Nagaon, Beki in

Barpeta, Kushiyara in Kar-

imganj and Sankosh in Dhu-

bri have been flowing above

danger level.

According to ASDMA, a to-

tal of 4,53,360 people have

been affected in Goalpara mak-

ing it the worst-hit district. In

Kamrup (Metro) district, flood

waters have affected altogeth-

er 43,671 people in Sonapur,

Chandrapur and Dispur reve-

nue circles. Among the affect-

ed people, 50,559 people are

taking shelter in 521 relief

camps across the State.

Flood waters have dam-

aged a number of embank-

ments in Dibrugarh and

Chirang districts along with

a number of roads in Dibru-

garh, Barpeta and Goalpara

districts in the past 24 hours.

Several flood-triggered inci-

dents of erosion have also

been reported from Biswa-

nath, Dibrugarh, Majuli and

Chirang districts on Sunday.

A number of forest camps

in Kaziranga National Park

and Pobitora Wildlife Sanctu-

ary are still reeling under

flood waters. In Kaziranga,

floods have claimed lives of

108 animals so far.

Modi speaks to Sonowal overflood situation, assures support

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI, July 19:

Prime Minister Narendra

Modi on Sunday telephoned

Chief Minister Sarbananda

Sonowal and took stock of the

flood, erosion, COVID-19 and

Baghjan oil well fire situation

and expressed solidarity with

the people of Assam during

these difficult times.

He also enquired about the

steps taken by the State Gov-

ernment for the relief and re-

habilitation of flood-affected

people and treatment of

COVID-19 positive patients.

During the conversation,

Sonowal apprised the Prime

Minister that 26 districts of

the State have been affected

by the current wave of flood

and the State government is

taking steps for providing

shelter to the flood-affected

people in the relief camps set

up for the purpose and strict

adherence to COVID-19

protocols have been ensured

in those relief camps.

Sonowal also informed that

have farm lands and houses

been severely affected by

erosion. The district adminis-

trations have been instructed

to tackle the problems due to

floods. The Chief Minister has

been visiting different places

to monitor and assess the dam-

age caused by flood and ero-

sion along with the rescue and

rehabilitation operations.

Informing about the COV-

ID-19 scenario in the State,

Sonowal apprised the Prime

Minister that the number of

positive cases was increasing

in the State.

Sonowal expressed confi-

dence that the Health Depart-

ment would be able to handle

the situation even if the

number of positive cases goes

up rapidly in the near future.

SEE PAGE 6

Covid fatalityrates of NE

states amongcountry’s lowestSPL CORRESPONDENT

NEW DELHI, July 19:

The Centre on Sunday

said India has one of the

lowest fatality rates in

the world with four

northeastern states of

Manipur, Nagaland, Mi-

zoram and Sikkim hav-

ing zero case fatality rate

(CFR). Assam has a CFR

of 0.23 per cent.

According to Health

Ministry data, the north-

eastern states have less

than one per cent CFR.

Arunachal Pradesh, Meg-

halaya and Tripura have a

CFR of 0.46 per cent, 0.48

per cent and 0.19 per cent

respectively.

Support to Tibet’s cause getting stronger: Sangay

RITURAJ BORTHAKUR

GUWAHATI, July 19: De-

tection of 24 fresh COVID-

19 cases at Raj Bhavan on

Sunday despite strict con-

tainment measures for more

than a fortnight has stunned

many. The total number of

positive cases at the high se-

curity complex at Kharguli

hills now stands at 70.

Initially, it began from two

security men who tested

positive, after which samples

of around 200 staff, including

the Governor, were taken.

Two more employees - the

generator operator and a

computer assistant tested

positive later. Following the

development, Raj Bhavan

was declared a containment

70 COVID-19 casesreported in Raj Bhavan

zone on July 4.

But despite the contain-

ment measures, positive cas-

es continued to surface there.

Fifty four families reside

inside the complex which also

houses a company of paramil-

itary, special branch men be-

sides the staff of the Gover-

nor’s secretariat.

By July 6, the number of

positive cases rose to 12,

which included four CRPF

men, the Governor’s doctor

and his laundry man who was

allegedly doing work even af-

ter giving his samples for test

on July 1. Ten days later, IAS

officer SS Meenakshi Sunda-

ram, who is the Commission-

er & Secretary to the Gover-

nor also tested positive.

By then, around 45 staff and

security personnel of the Raj

Bhavan had tested positive.

As officials were preparing

to resume work at the Gov-

ernor’s secretariat, the Health

Department launched a fresh

testing drive at Raj Bhavan as

a precautionary measure, ini-

tially with rapid antigen detec-

tion kits that detected a fresh

positive case. Three more cas-

es emerged later, and another

round of RT-PCR tests were

conducted, which found 24

more positive cases today. Test

results of some are awaited.

“Some of the persons who

tested positive today had

never moved out of their res-

idences since July 2. It is

strange as to how they got

infected,” one of the employ-

ees exclaimed.

R DUTTA CHOUDHURY

GUWAHATI, July 19: Glo-

bal support towards the

cause of the Tibetans is get-

ting stronger, said the Presi-

dent of the Central Tibetan

Administration (Tibetan

Government in Exile), Dr

Lobsang Sangay. He also said

that in recent times, China

has been trying to strength-

en its hold on Nepal.

In an interview with The

Assam Tribune, Dr Sangay

said that they are hopeful of

solving the issue of Tibet

soon. But at the same time,

he admitted that they were

also prepared for the worst

and are ready to brave any

kind of obstacle to achieve the

goal in the days ahead.

“Keeping in mind the cur-

rent India-China conflicts

ranging from border dispute

to international relations, I

feel that only the ‘Middle Way

Approach’ is the way for-

ward to resolving our issue

and the India-China conflict

too,” Dr Sangay said.

Dr Sangay said that

since the early 1970s, the

Central Tibetan Administra-

tion has pursued dialogue with

the Chinese government

based on the ‘Middle Way

Approach’ as envisioned by

His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

The global support which the

Tibetan cause received has

further re-affirmed CTA’s

commitment to the ‘Middle

Way Approach’. “China will

not achieve the global stand-

ing it desires with its current

path of coercion and military

aggression and record of gross

human rights violation. It can-

not continue on the current

set trajectory and image. I

hope that Chinese govern-

ment appreciates it and come

to the table to genuinely

discuss the Tibet issue,” he

said.

Asserting that the global

support to the cause of Tibet

is increasing, Dr Sangay said

that just recently, the UN

experts called on the United

Nation Human Rights Coun-

cil to investigate in Tibet.

And to add to that during the

recently held EU-China sum-

mit, EU raised the issue of

Tibet and their concerns over

nnnnn Also see page 3

the deteriorating human

rights situation in Tibet. “As

you might know, the Tibetan

Policy and Support Act was

recently passed with an

overwhelming majority vote

in the US House of Repre-

sentatives,” he said.

Dr Sangay said there is a

strong global support for

Tibet because the Tibet is-

sue represents the story of

injustice and gross human

rights violation. “Those who

support the Tibetans are not

just supporting the Tibetan

people but are also pro-jus-

tice, pro-freedom,” he said.

Dr Lobsang Sangay

SEE PAGE 6

Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal along with ministers Keshab Mahanta and Pijush Hazarika takes a boat ride to assess theflood situation in Morigaon district on Sunday. – UB Photos

24 tested positive on Sunday

Illegal opencast mining inside Namphai forest

Opencast mining in Dehing Patkai region

MONDAY, JULY 20, 20202 THE ASSAM TRIBUNE, GUWAHATI

Purbi Jain of St. Claret

School, Borjhar has

secured 99.6 percentage

in the CBSE class X

examination 2020. She has

scored 100 marks in five

subjects and 98 marks in

one subject making the

entire region proud. She is

the daughter of Mr. Sanjay

Kumar Jain and Mrs. Hema

Jain from Bijoynagar.

The management, staff

and students are proud of

her achievement. We

congratulate her and wish

her all the best in her

further studies.

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WASHINGTON, July 19: The Indi-

an-American community could be “an

absolute difference maker” in battle-

ground states in the November 3 pres-

idential elections, a top Democratic

leader has said.

As a little over 100 days are left for the

elections, both the Republican and the

Democratic parties are making huge ef-

forts to reach out to the small but influen-

tial Indian-American community in some

of the key battleground states such as

Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Thomas Perez, chair of the Democrat-

ic National Committee, on Saturday said

that Michigan has 125,000 Indian-Amer-

ican voters.

“We lost Michigan by 10,700 votes in

2016,” he said, referring to the loss of

Hillary Clinton, the then Democratic

presidential nominee at the hands of Pres-

‘Indian-American voterscould make huge difference’

Presidential polls: Battleground states

ident Donald Trump.

In the eight battleground States of Ar-

izona, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, North

Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wis-

consin, there are 1.3 million Indian Amer-

ican voters.

“In Pennsylvania, (there are) 156,000

(Indian-American voters). We (Demo-

cratic party) lost (presidential elections

in) Pennsylvania by 42,000 (votes). In

Wisconsin (there are) 37,000 (Indian-

Americans). We lost Wisconsin by 21,000

(votes) in 2016,” said the head of the Dem-

ocratic party.

“The Indian-American vote, the AAPI

(Asian-American and Pacific Islanders)

vote more broadly, can be an absolute dif-

ference maker (in the 2020 presidential

elections),” Perez said at a virtual event,

“An Electorate Coming of Age: Indian

Americans for Biden,” jointly hosted by

the South Asians for Biden along with

AAPI Victory Fund and Indian-American

Impact Fund.

“We are hustling to the finishing line –

108 days till the weekend. Think about those

three states alone that I mentioned. The In-

dian-American votes alone can be the differ-

ence in moving forward,” Perez said. – PTI

WASHINGTON, July 19: UN

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres

has called for a New Social Contract

and a New Global Deal to address

inequality across the world.

COVID-19 is a human tragedy, but it

has also created a generational

opportunity to build back a more

equitable and sustainable world, Xinhua

news agency quoted Guterres as saying

in his Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture

address, which was delivered virtually

on Saturday.

“The response to the pandemic, and

to the widespread discontent that

preceded it, must be based on a New

Social Contract and a New Global Deal

that create equal opportunities for all

and respect the rights and freedoms

of all.”

This is the only way that the world

will meet the goals of the 2030 Agenda

for Sustainable Development, the Paris

Agreement on climate change and the

Addis Ababa Action Agenda on financing

for development – agreements that

address precisely the failures that are

being exposed and exploited by the

pandemic, he said.

A New Social Contract within

societies will enable young people

to live in dignity, will ensure women

have the same prospects and

opportunities as men, and will

protect the sick, the vulnerable,

and minorities of all kinds.

“To close those gaps,

and to make the New

Social Contract

Guterres calls forNew Social Contract,

New Global Dealpossible, we need a New Global Deal

to ensure that power, wealth and

opportunities are shared more broadly

and fairly at the international level.”

A new model for global governance

must be based on full, inclusive and

equal participation in global

institutions, he said.

“Without that, we face even wider

inequalities and gaps in solidarity, like

those we see today in the fragmented

global response to the COVID-19

pandemic.”

In his address titled “Tackling the

Inequality Pandemic: a New Social

Contract for a New Era,” Guterres said

COVID-19 has laid bare risks that have

been ignored for decades: inadequate

health systems, gaps in social protection,

structural inequalities, environmental

degradation, the climate crisis.

The New Social Contract, between

governments, people, civil society,

business and more, must integrate

employment, sustainable development

and social protection,

based on equal rights and

opportunities for all. –

IANS

China’s top universitysacks Xi Jinping’s critic

BEIJING, July 19: China’s

top university has sacked a law

professor, who is a staunch crit-

ic of the ruling Chinese Com-

munist Party leadership in-

cluding the constitutional

amendment facilitating indefi-

nite tenure for President Xi

Jinping by scrapping the two-

term limit.

Xu Zhangrun, an outspo-

ken Chinese law professor of

the Tsinghua University, has

been formally notified of his

removal on Saturday, Hong

Kong-based South China

Morning Post reported on

Sunday.

The Tsinghua University,

whose famous alumni include

President Xi, has been listed

as China’s number one uni-

versity by the Times Higher

Education World University

Rankings.

The notification, dated on

Wednesday, was sent to Xu

by courier, the report said

quoting a friend who re-

quested anonymity for fear of

retribution.

The Tsinghua University,

where 57-year-old Xu

worked for 20 years, said it

took the decision after a

meeting on July 10.

Xu, a prominent legal

scholar, is one of the very few

academics to have publicly

challenged the Communist

Party of China (CPC) leader-

ship in recent years in a

number of essays published

online in China and overseas.

“We have verified that Xu

Zhangrun has published many

essays since July 2018 and it

is a serious violation of the

’10 standards of professional

conduct for teachers in terti-

ary institutes in the new

era’,” the notification read.

The guidelines, issued by

the Ministry of Education in

2018, said teachers would be

fired or punished if they said

or did anything that under-

mines the authority of the CPC

or violated the directions and

policies of the party.

Earlier this month, Xu was

taken away by Chengdu po-

lice from his Beijing home.

His wife was later informed

that he was arrested for so-

liciting prostitutes while trav-

elling to the capital of Sichuan

province, a claim dismissed

by Xu’s friends as an attempt

to discredit him. Xu was re-

leased last Sunday and he re-

turned home after six days

of detention. – PTI

GENEVA, July 19: The number of

new cases of coronavirus rose by almost

260,000 in 24 hours — the largest single-

day increase since the pandemic began,

the World Health Organization (WHO)

has said.

According to WHO, this is the first

time the number of new daily infections

has surpassed a quarter of a million,

BBC reported.

The biggest increases were in the

US, Brazil, India and South Africa.

The global death toll from

coronavirus also rose by 7,360 — the

largest daily increase since May 10.

The previous record rise in new

confirmed cases was recorded by WHO

just one day earlier.

The total number of confirmed cases

of coronavirus passed 14 million on

Saturday, with over 600,000 recorded

deaths, according to the tally kept by

Record single-day globalspike in corona cases: WHO

US-based Johns Hopkins University.

Cases are surging in several US

states, particularly in southern states

that were initially reluctant to enforce

lockdowns or mandate the wearing of

masks. Florida, Texas and Arizona have

seen particularly high surges.

Florida is currently the epicentre of

the US epidemic. The state recorded

more than 10,000 new infections and 90

more deaths on Saturday, bringing its

total number of cases to more than

337,000 and its death toll to more than

5,000.

In recent weeks, hospitals across the

state had also warned that their ICUs

were at capacity and that they were

unable to accept any new patients.

Measures to stem the spread of the

virus, including wearing masks, have

become highly politicised in the US.

– IANS

LONDON, July 19: A 50-mile-wide swarm of

flying ants has been making its way over the UK

– and it has been spotted from space due to the

massive size, it was reported on Sunday.

The enormous cloud of ants was picked up by

the Met Office’s weather radar over Kent and

Sussex on England’s southeast coast, Sky News

said in a report.

The weather service said smaller swarms

could also be seen over London.

A video was released by the Met Office, along-

side a tweet saying: “It’s not raining in London,

Kent or Sussex, but our radar says otherwise.

“The radar is actually picking up a swarm of

#flyingants across the southeast.

“During the summer, ants can take to the skies

in a mass emergence usually on warm, humid

and windless days #flyingantday’.”

A spokesman for the Met Office said there

were likely to be “thousands” of ants within

the swarm.

“It’s not unusual for larger swarms to be

picked up,” Sky News quoted the spokesman

as saying.

“A similar thing happened almost exactly a

year ago on ‘Flying Ant Day’.

“On days when it is sunny, the radar detects

the swarm but we are able to see they are not

the same shape as water droplets, and in fact

look more insect-like,” he added.

Large swarms of the insects appear – in what

is widely known as “Flying Ant Day” – when

males and new queens leave the nest to mate,

with many ant colonies doing so on the same

day. The Royal Society of Biology points out

there is not always one such day, with flying

ants spotted on as many as 96 per cent of the

days between June and September. – IANS

Giant swarm of flying ants spotted from space!

Israeli police use a water cannon to disperse people during a protest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu inJerusalem on Saturday. Protesters demanded that the embattled leader resign as he faces a trial on corruption chargesand grapples with a deepening coronavirus crisis. – AP/PTI

JERUSALEM, July 19: Israeli

Prime Minister Benjamin

Netanyahu’s corruption trial

resumed on Sunday, as the long-

serving leader faces mounting

discontent over his handling of the

coronavirus crisis.

Netanyahu is charged with fraud,

breach of trust and accepting bribes

in a series of scandals in which he is

alleged to have received lavish gifts

from billionaire friends and

exchanged regulatory favours with

media moguls for more agreeable

coverage of himself and his family.

Netanyahu denies wrongdoing,

painting the accusations as a media-

orchestrated witch-hunt pursued by

a biased law enforcement system.

The trial opened in May.

Just before appearing in front of

the judges, Netanyahu took to a

podium inside the courthouse and

flanked by his party members

bashed the country’s legal

institutions in an angry tirade.

Netanyahu was not expected to

appear at Sunday’s hearing, which

is taking place at a Jerusalem court

and is mostly a procedural

deliberation that will determine the

pace at which the trial will proceed.

The trial resumes as Netanyahu

Netanyahu’s graft trial resumesamid Israeli virus anger

faces widespread anger over his

government’s handling of the

coronavirus crisis.

While the country appeared to

have tamped down a first wave of

infections, what’s emerged as a

hasty and erratic reopening has sent

infections soaring. Yet even amid the

rise in new cases, Netanyahu and

his emergency government

“formed with the goal of dealing

with the crisis” appeared to neglect

the numbers and moved forward

with other policy priorities and its

reopening plans.

It has since paused them and even

reimposed restrictions, including a

weekend only lockdown set to begin

later this week.

Netanyahu and his government

have been criticised for a baffling,

halting response to the new wave,

which has seen daily cases rise to

nearly 2,000. It has been slammed

for its handling of the economic

fallout of the crisis.

While Israel has pledged billions

of dollars worth of aid, it hasn’t all

been doled out to those in need, and

a plan to give a stipend to all Israelis,

even the wealthy, has been panned

by the country’s leading economists.

The first and second round of

restrictions has battered the

economy and sent unemployment

skyrocketing to more than 20 pc,

up from 3.9 pc before the outbreak.

The anger has boiled over into

protests over the past few weeks

that have culminated in violent

clashes with police. – AP

SEOUL, July 19: North Korean

leader Kim Jong Un presided over

a Central Military Commission

meeting of the ruling Workers’ Par-

ty and discussed “the key issues of

further bolstering a war deterrent

of the country”, state media report-

ed on Sunday.

The meeting held on Saturday

also examined the “strategic mis-

sion” of major military units for

coping with the “military situation

around the Korean Peninsula” and

approved “major key munitions

production plan indices”, according

to Pyongyang’s Korean Central

News Agency (KCNA).

“The enlarged meeting dis-

cussed issues of intensifying the

party’s education and guidance of

commanders and political officials

of the people’s army and stressed

the need to thoroughly arm the

young commanding officers,” Yon-

hap News Agency quoted KCNA

as saying.

“Then there was a closed meet-

ing... to examine the strategic mis-

sion of the major units for coping

with the military situation in the

vicinity of the Korean Peninsula and

Kim Jong Un discusses ‘wardeterrent’ at party meeting

the potential military threat and the

alert posture and to discuss the key

issues of further bolstering a war

deterrent of the country,” it added.

Kim signed the orders to exe-

cute tasks that had been dealt with

during the meetings. The KCNA,

however, did not say what meas-

ures related to the “war deterrent”

were discussed, though the term

usually means nuclear weapons and

ballistic missiles.

Nor did it mention any measures

related to South Korea.

Saturday’s meeting came after

Kim attended a preliminary session

of the Central Military Commission

last month and suspended all mili-

tary plans that the North had threat-

ened to take against South Korea

in anger over anti-Pyongyang prop-

aganda leaflets, Yonhap News

Agency reported.

During that meeting, the North

also discussed measures to bolster

“the war deterrent”. – IANS

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks during an enlarged meeting ofthe Central Military Commission of the Workers’ Party of Korea inPyongyang, North Korea on Saturday. Independent journalists were notgiven access. – AP/PTI

M S Iqbal nextB’desh Navy ChiefDHAKA, July 19: Rear Admiral

Mohammad Shaheen Iqbal, who did his

specialisation in anti-submarine warfare

from India, has been appointed as the

next Chief of Bangladesh Navy, the

defence ministry said.

Iqbal, who is currently serving as the

assistant navy chief, will succeed Vice

Admiral Aurangzeb Chowdhury, who is

retiring later this month.

Iqbal will take on his new role on

July 25 with an elevated rank of vice

admiral, the defence ministry said in a

statement on Saturday.

"He will serve as the Chief of Navy

Staff for three years till July 24,

2023," it said. Iqbal joined

Bangladesh Navy as an officer cadet

in 1980 and attended various courses

at home and abroad. – PTI

Thomas Perez

MONDAY, JULY 20, 2020 THE ASSAM TRIBUNE, GUWAHATI 3

NATIONAL

Plasma therapytrials on seriousCOVID patients

encouragingBHUBANESWAR, July 19:

Plasma therapy has brought

hope among the serious COV-

ID-19 patients in Odisha as

condition of those who have

received the therapy is im-

proving.

Out of six critical patients

who are now under plasma

therapy, four are responding

very well and they are no long-

er in need of oxygen support.

They will be discharged soon,

said an official. Other two pa-

tients are in stable condition and

are expected to be out of dan-

ger soon, the official added.

A total of eight units of plas-

ma have been collected from

four donors so far. Out of those,

six have been used for four pa-

tients at SUM Covid Hospital

and two patients at Ashwini

Covid Hospital, said a state-

ment.

Last week, Chief Minister

Naveen Patnaik had inaugurat-

ed this facility at SCB Medical

College in Cuttack which acts

as the nodal agency. After the

appeal of Chief Minister, sev-

eral people have volunteered

to donate their plasma. – IANS

Actor PratikGandhi testspositive forCOVID-19

MUMBAI, July 19: Actor

Pratik Gandhi on Sunday said

he, along with actor-wife

Bhamini Oza and brother Pu-

nit, has tested positive for

COVID-19.

The actor has featured in

hit Gujarati movies such as

“Bey Yaar”, “Wrong Side

Raju”, “Love Ni Bhavai”

and has starred in Hindi

projects, including

“Mitron” and Salman Khan-

backed “Loveyatri”.

In a Twitter post Pratik said

while he and Bhamini were

quarantining at their home, his

brother has been hospitalised.

“We as a family took ‘be

positive’ way too seriously

and didn’t discriminate against

even corona. Me and my wife

are being treated at home and

my brother is hospitalised.

“We are all putting up a

strong fight against the virus.

With warmth, support and

prayers of friends and fami-

ly,” he tweeted.

In reply to a friend’s tweet,

Pratik thanked BJP leader

Kirit Somaiya for his timely

intervention and said he was

grateful for the help.

“I can’t thank you enough

@MadhaviBhuta and @Kir-

itSomaiya for your timely

support and warmth during

this testing time to family,”

the actor wrote

Somaiya said he was in

touch with the doctors who

have assured him that Punit

“will recover.” – PTI

A patient plays carom at CWG Village COVID-19 CareCentre, near Akshardham in New Delhi on Sunday. – PTI

NEW DELHI, July 19: In-

dia’s COVID-19 fatality rate

has fallen below 2.5 per cent

for the first time, marking a

significant dip and bringing the

country in the queue of nations

with the lowest fatality rates

globally.

Interestingly, 29 states and

Union Territories (UTs) have

Case Fatality Rate (CFR) low-

er than the national average,

says the latest report collated

by the Ministry of Health and

Family Welfare (MoHFW).

The CFR is progressively

falling and currently it is 2.49

per cent, the MoHFW data

said.

Manipur, Nagaland, Sikkim,

Mizoram along with Andaman

and Nicobar Islands have zero

per cent fatality rate while 14

states and UTs have a CFR of

less than 1 per cent.

The 14 states and UTs with

less than one per cent fatality

rate includes Ladakh (0.09),

Tripura (0.19), Assam (0.23),

Dadra and Nagar Haveli and

Daman & Diu (0.33), Kerala

(0.34), Chhattisgarh (0.46),

Arunachal Pradesh (0.46),

Meghalaya (0.48), Odisha

(0.51), Goa (0.60), Himachal

Pradesh (0.75), Bihar (0.83),

Jharkhand (0.86) and Telanga-

na (0.93).

Uttarakhand (1.22), Andhra

Pradesh (1.31), Haryana

(1.35), Tamil Nadu (1.45), Pu-

ducherry (1.48), Chandigarh

(1.71), Jammu & Kashmir

(1.79) and Rajasthan (1.94)

have fatality rates lower than

two per cent while Karnataka

(2.08) and Uttar Pradesh (2.36)

are in the bracket of 2 to 3 per

cent fatality rate.

“This shows commendable

work done by the public health

apparatus of the country,” said

the ministry, adding it hap-

pened because of focused ef-

forts of the Centre and state

and UT governments on effi-

cient clinical management of

hospitalised cases.

“With effective containment

strategy, aggressive testing

and standardised clinical man-

agement protocols based on

holistic standard of care ap-

proach, the CFR has signifi-

cantly dipped.”

The data comes when In-

dia’s total coronavirus cases on

Sunday reached 10,77,618

with a record 38,902 new cas-

es reported in the past 24

hours. With 543 new deaths,

the death toll stood at 26,816.

Karnataka is the new

hotspot state nearing 60,000

cases, as Maharashtra re-

mained the worst-hit state,

with 3,00,937 cases and 11,596

casualties. It crossed the 3-lakh

mark on Saturday with Mum-

bai reporting over 1 lakh coro-

navirus cases so far. It is fol-

lowed by Tamil Nadu with a

total 1,65,714 cases, including

2,403 deaths.

The national capital, on the

other hand is projecting an

uplifting trend. For 17 of the

last 20 days, including 11 in a

row now, the number of peo-

ple recovering from Covid in

Delhi has remained higher

than newly-detected infections

– no other state has come close

to such a trend.

Globally, over 14 million

people have been infected with

the virus and 602,656 have

died. It has taken just four days

to climb to 14 million cases

from 13 million recorded on

July 13. The WHO warned

that fresh daily tallies are

breaching all records.

Under the guidance of the

Centre, the ministry said the

state and UT governments

have ramped up testing and

hospital infrastructure by

combining public and private

sector efforts.

At the ground level, front-

line health workers like Ac-

credited Social Health Ac-

tivists (ASHAs) and Auxil-

iary Nurse Midwife (ANMs)

have done a commendable

job of managing the migrant

population and to enhance

awareness at the communi-

ty level. – IANS

India’s COVID fatality rate below2.5%, five states/UTs at zero

NEW DELHI, July 19: The

Airports Authority of India

(AAI) has decided to procure

198 body scanners for 63 air-

ports and these will replace

existing door frame metal

detectors and hand-held

scanners, besides pat-down

searches of passengers to

detect metallic objects, offi-

cials said.

The process to procure

the body scanners started

earlier this year before the

outbreak of the novel coro-

navirus, the officials from the

AAI said.

Out of these 198 scanners,

19 will be for the Chennai air-

port, 17 for the Kolkata air-

port and 12 for the Pune air-

port, they told PTI.

The AAI owns and manag-

es more than 100 airports in

the country.

Airports in Delhi, Mumbai,

Bengaluru and Hyderabad

are managed by private com-

panies and not by the AAI.

Therefore, procurement for

body scanners at these four

major airports will be done

by the private entities, the

officials said.

They said it has become

important to get these 198

scanners as soon as possi-

ble as frisking of passengers

by security personnel has

been minimised since

March due to the COVID-

19 pandemic.

Central Industrial Securi-

ty Force (CISF) personnel,

who are deputed at airports,

have been asked to maintain

the ‘minimum touch’ con-

cept and wear masks as per

COVID-19 prevention

measures. – PTI

AAI to procure 198 bodyscanners for 63 airports

NEW DELHI, July 19: Son-

ali, a transgender woman in her

early 30s, was eking out a liv-

ing by begging at traffic signals

in east Delhi’s Mayur Vihar

before the government or-

dered people indoors to con-

tain the spread of COVID-19

in late March.

After struggling for

months to make ends meet,

she had been eagerly wait-

ing for June 1, when the eas-

ing of lockdown, Unlock 1.0,

would begin.

Soon after Sonali got back

to her routine, she was con-

fronted with a new reality. Not

only was there less traffic on

roads, people were apprehen-

sive about rolling down the

windows of their cars and giv-

ing her alms.

“No one wanted to give us

money. People are not even

ready to roll down the win-

dows to hear what we have to

say,” she said.

Like Sonali, many others

from the transgender commu-

nity have been hit hard by the

pandemic.

Relegated to the sidelines

of the society, many of India’s

estimated 4.88 lakh transgen-

der people are forced to make

a living through begging, danc-

ing at celebrations like wed-

dings, and sex work, accord-

ing to rights groups.

Another transgender

woman Ritupari (name

changed), 38, who used to

dance at celebrations, said the

new normal “has no place for

people like us”.

“People are not inviting their

close relatives to weddings and

other celebrations, so why will

they call us. Even if we go

somewhere, we are looked

down upon and shooed away,”

she said.

“Most professions we prac-

tised have been completely

destroyed due to COVID-

19,” she rued.

Chandni (name changed),

42, an acute diabetic, used to

beg on trains. She has slipped

into depression after losing her

means of livelihood.

Her brother said his once-

chirpy sister has stopped talk-

ing and almost never steps out

of the house.

“She has seen a lot in her

life but the past few months

have dealt a serious blow to

her. She used to be so talka-

tive and jolly. The entire house

would light up when she would

return home. Now she just

keeps looking out a window,”

he said.

Ayesha Behra, an Odisha-

based transgender woman and

rights activist, said the mem-

bers of the community also face

a higher risk of contracting

COVID-19 due to their living

conditions.

“They mostly live in slum

areas where there is no con-

cept of social distancing.

Around 10-15 of them stay

together in one room, so so-

cial distancing is a luxury they

cannot afford,” she said.

Behra said she has been

looking for alternative means

of livelihood for transgender

people.

“We recently joined hands

with a few self-help groups and

taught some of the transgen-

der community members to

make sanitisers and phenyl. We

are also planning to train them

to make perfumes,” she said.

Another transgender activ-

ist Pushpa Mai, who is based

in Jaipur, claimed many mem-

bers of the community are fac-

ing increased domestic vio-

lence due to the loss of liveli-

hood.

“A number of families were

dependent on the earnings of

the transgender members.

Now when they are not able

to earn, there has been an in-

crease in violence against

many of them. In some cases,

the partner of the transgen-

der person fought with them,”

she said. Mai said she has been

trying to help transgender

people but more needs to be

done. – PTI

Pandemic-hit transgender community struggles to find its feet

NEW DELHI, July 19: On

the initiative of Delhi Police,

a ‘Plasma Donation Cam-

paign’ has been launched at

the All India Institute of

Medical Sciences (AIIMS),

New Delhi, on Sunday. Un-

ion Minister of Health &

Family Welfare Dr Harsh

Vardhan, was the Chief

Guest while Commissioner

of Police, SN Shrivastava, was

the Guest of Honour, on the

occasion.

“The objective of the cam-

paign is to encourage people

to come forward to donate

plasma to be used for the

treatment of COVID-19 pa-

tients,” said Additional PRO

Delhi Police Anil Mittal.

In all, 26 personnel includ-

ing a woman constable of

Delhi Police kicked off the

campaign by donating their

plasma. “More than 650 Del-

hi Police personnel are likely

to donate their plasma dur-

ing the week-long cam-

paign,” the officer said.

Dr Randeep Guleria, Di-

rector AIIMS, appreciated

the initiative of Delhi Police

and termed the donor police

personnel ‘Super Corona

Warriors’, as being affected

by the deadly virus they first

fought against it and then vol-

untarily donated their plas-

ma to save lives of others.

He appealed to people to

come forward and donate

plasma as it would help treat

critical patients.

Speaking on the occasion,

Shrivastava underlined, “deal-

ing with coronavirus has been

a unique experience as none

of us knew what to do. Police

had two major responsibilities

– to maintain law & order and

to enforce the lockdown. At

the same time, managing our

own health and motivation of

force were also a challenge.

Being visible arms of the gov-

ernment, police must ensure

implementation of govern-

Delhi Police launches plasmadonation campaign at AIIMS

ment’s directions.”

Being frontline warriors po-

lice personnel were most sus-

ceptible to exposure of the vi-

rus. As a result more than 2,500

personnel got infected and a

dozen succumbed to the virus

in the line of duty. However,

the recovery rate is more than

84 per cent as more than 2,100

personnel have recovered and

resumed duties. – IANS

Union Minister for Health Harsh Vardhan along with Delhi Police Commissioner SNShrivastava gives a certificate to a policeman as he donates plasma during Plasma DonationCampaign organised by Delhi Police, at AIIMS in New Delhi on Sunday. – PTI

Highest singleday jump of

5,041 COVIDcases in AndhraAMARAVATI, July 19:

Andhra Pradesh’s Covid-19

tally skyrocketed on Sunday

with 5,041 new cases detect-

ed in the 24 hours ending 9

am, state health officials said.

This is the highest ever

single-day tally and comes on

the back of successive

records set over the preced-

ing four days. The day also

saw a record 56 deaths due

to coronavirus in the state.

Sunday’s update takes the

overall tally of cases in the state

to 49,650. Yet again, all the thir-

teen districts reported Covid

cases in triple figures. East

Godavari reported the highest

tally of 647 positive cases, while

Anantapur followed with 637

cases. Srikakulam with 535 cas-

es and Chittoor with 440 cases

were the other districts that re-

ported high numbers.

Other districts that report-

ed high cases over the previ-

ous 24 hours include Krishna

with 397, West Godavari with

393 cases, Nellore with 391

cases, Guntur with 354 cases

and Visakhapatnam with 266

cases. – IANS

4 THE ASSAM TRIBUNE, GUWAHATI MONDAY, JULY 20, 2020

MESSAGE FOR TODAY

The mind is everything. What you think you

become.

– BUDDHA

Livelihood questionsThere needs to be a logic to every crucial decision made

by the administration, particularly during a crisis such as the

Covid-19 pandemic. Unfortunately, the decisions on lock-

downs made by the Kamrup Metro administration seemmore of a knee-jerk reaction to the abnormal increase in the

number of coronavirus infections rather than a response toany strategy modulated by informed medical scientists’ opin-

ions. This district has been more or less under lockdownsince the 25th of March, with a brief relaxation in-between

before lockdown reimposition for two more weeks. Though

some relaxations, in line with the national policy, had beenmade last month, overall restrictions had remained in place

almost throughout, in particular the imposition of night cur-few. Yet, despite this, the number of cases of coronavirus

infections has continued to spike, and the administration’sexpected response had been to extend the lockdown peri-

od for another week till July 19. But the situation in Guwahatiis becoming grimmer, with the city registering more than

500 Covid-19 positive cases for three consecutive days,

and 25 fatalities. Meanwhile, not only has normal life beendisrupted, but livelihoods in all strata of society have been

negatively impacted upon. The most tragic victims had beenunskilled daily wage-earners who depend solely on work

demanding physical exertion and, in the backdrop of shut-down of manufacture and transportation, have gone months

without work.

Equally sad has been the plight of vendors of perishable

consumption items like vegetables, fish and meat, as also

sellers of street-food and other items. These are the seg-

ments of urban society who live a hand to mouth existence

and do not possess nest-eggs on which to fall back upon

during hard times. No doubt the administration is attempt-

ing to help them by providing cash as well as basic food

requirements, but feedback suggests that such assistance

is not always reaching the most vulnerable. Prolonged shut-

down has badly impacted small businesses and there is gen-

uine fear that many of these, saddled as they are with bank

loans, may not be able to withstand further disruption to

normal commercial activities. Another problem associated

with prolonged lockdowns had been the plight of non-coro-

navirus patients since private hospitals were refusing to

admit them unless they were tested at a government-run

facility for Covid-19. With the administration mandating pri-

vate hospitals to open up coronavirus testing units, this prob-

lem has been to some extent, though not fully, mitigated.

The incomes of professionals, from plumbers, electricians,

barbers to even lawyers and some practitioners of medicine

like optometrists and dentists, have been severely curtailed,

causing them hardship. The irony is that prolonged lock-

downs have not stemmed the spread of the virus nor have

contributed to furthering herd immunity, something that the

administration needs to keep in mind if they are contem-

plating more future lockdowns!

Stop the mayhemThe State Government has done well to institute a judicial

inquiry into the large-scale illegal coal mining in the Dehing

Patkai range which constitutes the Dehing Patkai Elephant

Reserve and the Dehing Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary – the

State’s last vestiges of rainforests. Although the illegalities

including rampant rat-hole coal mining as well as the more

destructive opencast mining had been going on for years, it

took a series of investigative news reports by The Assam

Tribune to compel the Government into some action at long

last. The Forest Department had all along been denying

these shocking illegalities perpetrated on this biodiversity

treasure trove and more disturbingly, a section from the

conservation fraternity, too, had been seeking to trivialize

the grave issue. It is now abundantly clear that widespread

illegal coal mining has been ravaging these precious forests

and wildlife habitats with the various government authori-

ties, especially the Forest Department and the police choos-

ing to look the other way. The developments become all the

more shocking when one takes into account the fact that a

Navaratna PSU like Coal India had also been found guilty of

doing illegally mining in several forests for years. One ex-

pects that the judicial probe will go into the roots of the

murky developments and fix responsibility on the guilty.

Apparently, such illegalities cannot continue for such a long

time without bureaucratic and political patronage and hence

the need to probe it beyond the involvement of local-level

forest officials. Not just illegal coal mining, rampant deforest-

ation across the entire range caused by illegal logging and

encroachment, especially in the elephant reserve, remains

another unaddressed concern.

Given the urgent need to save our only remaining stretch

of rainforests, both the State Government and the Centre

need to have a rethink on its policy of opencast mining in

prime wildlife habitats such as Dehing Patkai. The logic that

the British had done coal mining in the area for decades

before it was entrusted to Coal India in 1973 cuts little ice.

This is because the British did underground mining only,

leaving the forests intact. And during the British days, con-

servation was far from a concern in view of our abundant

forests and thriving wildlife. Still the British cared for for-

ests and wildlife which is borne out by the legislations enact-

ed by them well over a hundred years back. The changing

situation today vis-a-vis rapid depletion of natural forests

warrants us to save these invaluable natural assets for our

own sake. The rainforest ecosystem is responsible for pro-

viding us oxygen in great quantity besides releasing abun-

dant water vapour, creating its own weather in the process.

To destroy those for the sake of extracting coal worth a few

thousand crores of rupees is ridiculous to say the least. The

Government must expand the area of the wildlife sanctuary

by a large margin and also free the remaining rainforests

from coal mining at the earliest.

ssam is passing through

a critical period of eco-

nomic destabilization,

the impact of which can

be observed in every sphere of the

economy. This actually is the com-

bined effect of the sharply rising

prices and the resultant increase in

inflation (7.39% as in November

2019), growing unemployment and

falling labour force participation

rates, increase in the magnitude of

revenue expenditure and, finally, the

ban imposed on all economic activ-

ities to restrain the aggressive

march of Covid-19. A critical analy-

sis of our spending behaviour will

expose that generally, no principle

is followed in allocation of resourc-

es amongst various sectors of the

economy which impacts adversely

in the spending pattern. An econo-

my with no direction of its spend-

ing cannot survive during the criti-

cal period. We spend much of our

earnings for unproductive purpos-

es and it is growing year by year.

These expenditures are elastic; the

more we spend, the more we be-

come prone to expand the spend-

ing limits. The expenditure on rev-

enue accounts is indicative of such

expenditure. Of our total budget-

ary allocation, the amount spent on

revenue account varies between

82% and 89% leaving only a mea-

gre percentage for incurring in cre-

ation of assets. In absence of any

planning strategy for economic de-

velopment, today we are forced to

rely on the annual budget as our

annual plan. It is here that we need

a strong team of experts to identify

the areas exactly where govern-

ment intervention is necessary, so

A

A government perhaps neither

can exhaust its resources in

the name of a virus which

requires no application of drugs

for recovery of its patients nor

can it shut down every time any

business house for each

positive case reported – people

should be made educated and

responsible for management of

the disease.

Lettersto the

EDITOR

Flood ravages

Sir, – As the coronavirus

continues to make headlines in the

State with an alarming number of

cases being reported every day,

there is also another serious issue

that needs attention – the monsoon

floods that occur every year in

Assam. It is an issue that needs no

introduction, as we the people of

Assam are familiar with this

problem since ages. In fact, every

year Assam suffers from heavy

losses both economic as well as

humanitarian due to the unprece-

dented floods that occur in the

Brahmaputra Valley. This year too

is no exception. The Assam floods

have an infamous reputation as over

the years many people have lost

their lives, followed by the loss of

properties and resources of

livelihoods. Thousands have been

rendered homeless. Now the

concern is that, with the coronavi-

rus on the one hand and the floods

on the other, how will the masses,

especially those who are residing in

the flooded areas, be able to cope up

with the situation, when shifting or

that investment is prioritized and

becomes outcome-oriented.

Employment generation is the

second area where we are failing.

While planning our expenditure, it

should have been our effort to make

long-term goals to be achieved in the

employment front. The State Finance

Minister has recently noted the mag-

nitude of unemployment at 20 lakhs.

In our agenda, however, we have no

such specific component

that devotes completely in

this area. We do not have

any long-term plan for em-

ployment generation. For

this, we are so far relying

on the Government of In-

dia’s employment genera-

tion schemes and missions.

A State must aim at creat-

ing a skilled manpower re-

serve and make room for

their gradual absorption in

a strategic manner. So far,

our effort on the employ-

ment front is confined only

to filling up regular vacan-

cies in the government pay

rolls, without assessing the

priority aspect of their re-

quirement. We all know that public

employment is always limited and it

cannot solve the growing unemploy-

ment problem. For this we need to

intervene in the areas of the house-

hold manufacturing sector setting

plans for both short and long terms.

Strategies need to be in place to back

up the central schemes such as

MGNREGA, etc., by customizing

the scheme and integrating therein

the State’s role so as to achieve a far

better result both quantitatively (add-

ing numbers to the fixed targets) and

qualitatively (adding skills to the po-

tentially viable ones).

The service sector has a profound

impact on the growth of the State

economy. This sector contributes as

much as 46% (2018) at current pric-

es to the State’s Gross Domestic

Product. But in absence of industrial

growth, the service sector expan-

sion in an economy is not always a

good sign, especially when the con-

tribution comes from the unorgan-

ized sector. Economic activities in our

service sector are grossly related to

the fast growing informal sector

which is vulnerable as there is no

social or service security for the

employees. Most of them are either

self-employed or casually employed

who do not have any secured serv-

ice tenure and they continue their

services at the mercy of the employ-

er. This makes the sector vulnera-

ble and undependable. This is the

reason why during the lockdown, the

service sector emerged as the worst

affected sector.

Recently, it has been reported in

the media that as much as 4.2 lakhs

of migrant labourers have come back

to the State. Some of them have

claimed to be skilled labourers and

are demanding engagements. They

have come back to the State at a time

when unlocking was in progress and

in many States business activities

were picking up. They are now sit-

ting idle at home adding to the

strength of the State’s unemployed

labour force. There are assurances

from the Government

that all of them will be

provided job cards under

MGNREGA. But that has

not yet happened. More-

over, many of these mi-

grant labourers have al-

ready left for their places

of work while many are

in two minds whether to

go back to work or stay

here. Few of them have

already engaged in vari-

ous self-employment

schemes. With this situa-

tion, till now no clear pic-

ture has emerged. But the

fact remains that a huge

labour force comprising

these migrant labourers

exists today in the State giving rise

to the existing market demands but

without adding anything to the pro-

duction process.

The awards of the Finance Com-

mission have significant bearing in

the economic development of the

State. The fact that the 15th Finance

Commission is still not ready to an-

nounce its second part of recommen-

dations (2021-2024) has tremendous

impact on the State’s future planning.

Moreover, due to the late announce-

ment of the first year’s award, budg-

etary provision could not be made in

the current year. This is one reason

why the current slowdown is expect-

ed to remain in the State for some

considerably longer time. The

amount recommended by the 15th

FC for 2020-21 in terms of devolu-

tion of central taxes (Rs 26,776 crore)

and revenue deficit grant to the tune

of Rs 7,579 crores needs to be care-

fully handled as soon as it is released

and budgeted. With the Assembly

election round the corner, the Gov-

ernment should commit to its re-

sponsibility and not spend the amount

on the floating schemes which have

no sustainable impact on the econo-

my, rather would drive the economy

like a rudderless boat.

From what have been discussed

above, it can now be inferred well

that the State is not in a position to

tide over the deficit situation re-

sulting from various factors includ-

ing the emergence of Covid-19. To

reach the correction path, we need

time, resources and the aptitude for

planning to fix a roadmap. Unfortu-

nately, we neither have resources

nor have time as the election is

round the corner. Covid-19 has al-

ready eaten up a major part of our

time and resources. A strategy

must be there where we know ex-

actly where government interven-

tion in the Covid-19 process is a

must and where people need to

take care of themselves. A govern-

ment perhaps neither can exhaust

its resources in the name of a virus

which requires no application of

drugs for recovery of its patients

nor can it shut down every time

any business house for each posi-

tive case reported – people should

be made educated and responsible

for management of the disease.

Environment Impact Assessment Notification, 2020nvironment impact assess-

ment (EIA) is an important

tool in the hands of the Gov-

ernment for minimizing or

mitigating the adverse socio-environ-

mental impact of any upcoming

projects. The purpose of the assess-

ment is to ensure that the decision-

makers consider the environmental

impacts when deciding whether or

not to proceed with a project. EIA,

thus, is defined as ‘the process of iden-

tifying, predicting, evaluating and

mitigating the biophysical, social and

other relevant effects of develop-

ment proposals prior to major deci-

sions being taken and commitment

made’. It recommends appropriate

legislative measures, programmes,

operational procedures to minimize

the adverse impacts. It is basically a

decision-making tool to decide

whether the project should be ap-

proved or not.

EIA was made mandatory by the

Union Ministry of Environment,

Forest and Climate Change (MoE-

FCC) by promulgating an EIA noti-

fication on January 27, 1994 under

the Environment (Protection) Act,

1986 making environmental clear-

ance (EC) mandatory for expansion

or modernization of any activity or

for setting up new projects. The

Ministry grants environmental

clearance to various projects with

n Dr Kulen Chandra Das, Bubul Sarma

the help of two important commit-

tees, namely, the Expert Appraisal

Committee (EAC) at the Centre

and the State-level State Environ-

ment Appraisal Committee (SEAC).

It is to be noted that before obtain-

ing the much-needed environmen-

tal clearance, a project has to un-

dergo a few rigorous steps like

scoping, preparation of draft EIA,

public consultation and preparation

of final EIA. The 1994 notification

was later on replaced by a new one

in 2006 which put the onus of clear-

ing projects on the State govern-

ment depending on the size/capac-

ity of the project.

The MoEFCC has recently issued

a draft notification, i.e., EIA Notifica-

tion 2020, and placed it in public do-

main for comments, objections and

suggestions of the general public. The

draft notification has brought signifi-

cant changes which are in contradic-

tion to its parent legislation, i.e., the

Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

The draft, if approved, has the po-

tentiality to impact adversely and

make irreparable ecological damage

to Assam’s rich biodiversity resourc-

es. Panthataru Sangrakshani Asom

did a rigorous evaluation of the draft,

which is called for changes in the con-

text especially of Assam, at a time

when the people of the State are con-

fronting environmental crises such

as the Baghjan gas leak followed by

the unprecedented fire and illegal coal

mining at Dehing Patkai.

There are several points of ob-

jections in various pages of the

draft. Firstly, one of the major draw-

backs in preparing an EIA report,

so far, is that the onus of preparing

the EIA falls on the project propo-

nent (PP). In that case, a negative

report is always unlikely. There-

fore, it is suggested that the reput-

ed academic/research institutes

such as IITs be given the responsi-

bility of conducting EIA. Further, it

is also submitted that the provision

of preparing the EIA should not be

an onus on the PP. Rather, EIA and

related studies should be the re-

sponsibility of the Central or State

governments and detached from

the PP. Secondly, it is observed that

the provision of B2 categories of

projects invalidates the process of

scoping, EIA and public consulta-

tion. It is not at all acceptable since

a lot of projects, which are known

to produce significant amounts of

pollution, have been placed under

this category. Thirdly, it is observed

that the new draft has a provision

of awarding post facto clearance to

various projects. Through this pro-

vision the Ministry seeks to legiti-

mize the illegal projects running

without prior environmental clear-

ance. This provision of post facto

clearance is absolutely anti-ecolog-

ical and contradicts the very prin-

ciple of sustainability. Fourthly,

while taking cognizance of viola-

tions and non-compliances by

project proponents (PP), the draft

is recognizing information provid-

ed only by PP, a government au-

thority, besides getting detected by

Appraisal Committee and regula-

tory authority.

As provided in the Constitution of

India, every citizen has a duty to

maintain and improve his/her envi-

ronment. Therefore, information

provided by and complaints about the

violation and non-compliance lodged

by any Indian citizen should be taken

cognizance of. The rule proposed in

the draft goes against the spirit of

the fundamental duty of citizens as

enshrined in the Constitution. An-

other important reservation is re-

garding the views and responses to

be submitted by the public. The new

draft notification seeks to reduce the

time period of submission of obser-

vation, complaints, etc., from 30 to

20 days. It implies, thus, that ade-

quate time has not been provided to

the people who would be affected

primarily by the commissioning of

the project. Moreover, the draft also

nullifies the necessity of any EIA,

public hearing and scrutiny by the

expert committee in case of a project

covering a land area up to 1,50,000

square metres instead of 20,000

square metres as per the 2006 noti-

fication. Without the EIA and public

hearing, the project decision is tanta-

mount to a blatant resource grabbing.

Besides, we place our serious reser-

vation to the definition of the study

area, provision of collection of base-

line data to be collected during the

process of preparing the EIA. It is

worth mentioning here that the new

draft necessitates the PP to submit

compliance reports once in a year

stating that they are adhering to the

terms and conditions on which the

permission was granted for the com-

missioning of the project which was

twice a year in the earlier notifica-

tion of 2006.

Economic growth cannot happen

at the cost of the welfare of the peo-

ple. But, the notification seems to

compromise with the general peo-

ple’s obtaining clean air, clean water

and many more environmental re-

sources. At a time when the global

community is desperately confront-

ing the climate emergency and vari-

ous climate-related disasters, EIA is

crucial for fighting against such ad-

verse impacts. Upon reviewing, how-

ever, the EIA Notification, 2020

seems obviously to weaken the fight

against climate change. The notifica-

tion, thus, once approved, shall re-

place the earlier notification of 2006

along with its various amendments

and would tantamount to fundamen-

tal changes in the environmental reg-

ulation of our country.

E

migrating to other places within the

State is risky due to the pandemic

situation prevailing all around the

State? This time, the battle is going

to be tougher than ever before.

Yours etc., DIBYOJYOTI

BRAHMA, Cotton University.

Pregnant poor womenSir, – The plight of the reverse

migrants returning to their home

States in the wake of the ongoing

pandemic has deservedly received

due attention. These migrants have

thus received aids from innumera-

ble quarters. Such humanitarian

acts, also the good Samaritans and

the State governments, deserve to

be applauded. In the wake of the

huge attention this human tragedy

has received, one section of society,

which also needs immediate help

and care, has unfortunately been left

to suffer in silence. I am referring to

the pregnant women from the

extremely poor sections of the

society. In the absence of even one

filling meal a day for the expectant

mothers, forget about a nutritious

one, these unfortunate women have

been fighting a grim battle for

survival. The Government has to

work for the welfare of these

unfortunate citizens. They too

deserve our attention and support.

Yours etc., BARUN BARPUJARI,

Six Mile, Guwahati.

Underwater tunnelSir, – This is in response to the

letter of Dr Hiren Gohain on the

proposed river tunnel project

below the Brahmaputra (AT, July

17). I beg to differ with Dr Gohain

on the following points. He has

stated that the project is undertaken

because of technological arrogance

of the Government. Such a long

underwater project calls for

adoption of sophisticated ultramod-

ern technology. It is not called

technological arrogance. He has

cited the example of the Baghjan oil

well blowout as a case of technologi-

cal arrogance. Oil well blowout is

inadvertently associated with oil

drilling anywhere in the world. It

happened in Bombay High, in North

Sea, in Russia, in the USA, in the

Gulf and at Rudrasagar in Assam in

the 1960s also. As because this risk

is there, people will never refrain

from oil exploration.

Dr Gohain has stated that in the

long construction phase of the

proposed tunnel, the riverbed will

be disturbed and the Brahmaputra

river will become muddy. I have

travelled through such tunnels

elsewhere in the world. These go a

minimum of 100 feet below the

riverbed and there is no scope for

such apprehensions. His fear that

the long raised approach, to prevent

the tunnel from being flooded, will

jeopardize the life of the indigenous

people to an immeasurable extent

is unfounded, because there would

be no such very long raised

embankment kind of thing. Modern

technology will take care of that.

It will be better that the authority

concerned comes up with a public

awareness campaign to let the

people know what is going to

happen and where. The State

Government should take the

initiative. The detailed designs and

drawings should not be in public

domain for security reasons.

This is a big project and instead

of taking a caustic stand, we should

come forward to be associated with

its implementation. Remaining

away and bitter will only make us

redundant. Yours etc., SANJIB

SABHAPANDIT, Mother Teresa

Road, Guwahati.

Articles (within 1000-1100 words) and

Letters to the Editor for publication in

the editorial page may be sent to the

email ID: editor@assamtribune.com.

The ailing economy of Assam

Tap water supplySir, – Your editorial dated July 12,

2020 is very much appreciated and

timely, hinting at the possible water

crisis in the days to come in

Guwahati city. It is not known why

the Government of Assam has not

accorded top priority for supply of

safe potable piped water to the

citizens of Guwahati, the gateway to

the Northeast. Sufficient funds were

allocated to the water supply

project, which started during 2007-

2008 and was supposed to be

completed by 2011. It was extended

till 2011 and further to 2013, 2015

and finally 2016. Later, we came to

know that the 24x7 water supply

project will be commissioned by

2020. It is estimated that 70%

people are suffering from stomach-

related diseases due to consumption

of unhygienic water. The State

Government should place the

completion of the water supply

project in its top priority list. Yours

etc., Dr AJOY KUMAR CHAKRA-

BARTY, Rukminigaon, Guwahati.

n Udayan Hazarika

MONDAY, JULY 20, 2020 THE ASSAM TRIBUNE, GUWAHATI 5

CITY

LOCAL FORECAST:

Generally cloudy skywith heavy rain.Maximum and minimumtemperatures are mostlikely to be 30°C & 24°Crespectively on Monday.

TEMPERATURE:

Max 29.6°C

Min 26.0°C

WEATHER

GUWAHATISTAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI, July 19: The

guidelines issued by the State

Government to unlock Kam-

rup (Metro) have attracted

mixed reactions, largely tilt-

ed towards those who found

the guidelines ambiguous and

lacking clarity. In the wake of

such confusion, many traders

may continue to down their

shutters on Monday.

Not satisfied with the un-

lock order issued by the Chief

Secretary, netizens took to

social media questioning sev-

eral guidelines. While some

questioned how the govern-

ment was planning to enforce

the restrictions on private

vehicles, the business com-

munity did not approve of the

idea of COVID testing made

mandatory for shopkeepers

and their employees.

Several guidelines did not

go down well with the who’s

who of the automobile indus-

try, who said that there were

confusions galore and the

government must issue a

modified order. “We still do

not know whether automo-

bile dealers or showrooms

would be treated as shops or

offices in view of the one-

side-of the-road norm. The

buying process may be sev-

erally affected if the show-

rooms are treated as shops,

since the process of buying

is continuous in nature and

needs some time. There also

prevails ambiguity about

whether or not customers

can visit the showrooms. If

the unlock is intended to re-

vive the industry, then such

an unclear order does not

help,” a Guwahati-based au-

tomobile dealer told The As-

sam Tribune. He said that

under such confusion, many

showrooms may not open.

“We want the government to

come up with a clearer and

modified order,” he said.

Supreme Court lawyer

Kaushik Choudhury said,

“Public safety will be at a high-

er risk and it will be extreme-

ly dangerous if private vehi-

cle are restricted while allow-

ing Ola and Uber. Public will

behave more responsibly if

private vehicles are allowed.

Use of cabs instead of private

vehicles will take social dis-

tancing for a toss and only in-

crease the transmission.”

Trader Abhishek Agarwal

said the compulsory testing

policy of the government is

logic-defying. “COVID-19

test report takes at least 5-7

days and if that is the case,

then a trader would have to

remain indoors during those

days making the unlock irrel-

evant. In case of construction

sites, how are we supposed

to bring labourers from out-

side Guwahati if there is a ban

on movement of private ve-

hicles?” he asked.

Two other traders, Amit Ja-

lan and Mintu Prasad, said that

making COVID-19 test com-

pulsory for traders hardly

serves the purpose of unlock-

ing. Prasad expressed reser-

vation on the safety of COVID

centres and vouched for door-

to-door testing, while Jalan

said it was high time that the

government adopts the Del-

hi-model which seems to be

working not just for traders

but the public as well.

Jalan said the guideline ask-

ing traders to test them-

selves was “baffling” since a

person can get positive at any

time even after testing neg-

ative on the first occasion. “Is

anybody going to keep a tab

on that? We are not against

testing but that has to be

done in an organised manner

and not in haste,” he said.

Meanwhile, in a decision tak-

en on Sunday evening, the

government modified its or-

der, saying shop owners or

their employees need not car-

ry a COVID-19 negative sta-

tus report. The Health depart-

ment will conduct random tests

in a phased manner, it said.

Unlock guidelines‘ambiguous’, say citizens

Food being distributed among roadside dwellers during the lockdown at Bhangagarh inGuwahati on Sunday. – UB Photos

Kamrup (M) admin holdsmeeting on opening of shops

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI, July 19: Re-

garding opening of shops and

business establishments in

the city from Monday, the

Kamrup (Metro) district ad-

ministration on Sunday de-

clared that Paltan Bazar will

be the nodal point from

where right and left sides of

the road will be finalised.

The decision was finalised

at a meeting convened by

Deputy Commissioner

Biswajit Pegu with various

trade organisations.

The meeting decided that

on Monday, shops located on

the right side will be al-

lowed to open from Paltan

Bazar towards Khanapara,

Jalukbari to Noonmati,

Jalukbari to VIP Road, Six

Mile to Narengi and Six Mile

to Panjabari. Next week, the

reverse system of opening

of shops will be followed.

Meanwhile, in the remain-

ing areas of small lanes and

byelanes, the local trade

bodies will finalise the right

or left side as per the gov-

ernment order.

In the meeting, the dis-

trict administration clarified

that shops and business es-

tablishments only on one

side of the road will be al-

lowed to open on any given

day and failure to comply

with the orders will invite

action, including cancellation

of licenses.

The Deputy Commission-

er requested all traders to

get themselves tested along

with their employees, deliv-

ery persons, etc., for COV-

ID-19 before opening their

business entities.

Electricity workers on their way to attend to an emergency call during the lockdown inGuwahati on Sunday. – UB Photos

PRANJAL BHUYAN

GUWAHATI, July 19: As

part of the effort to ensure

supply of essentials to

citizens during the pandem-

ic period, the Food Corpo-

ration of India (FCI) has

inducted 12.47 lakh metric

tonnes (MT) of food grains

across its various locations

in the North-Eastern

region during the April-

June quarter of this year.

“Different districts in

Assam have been under

various degrees of lock-

down regimes due to

burgeoning COVID-19

cases. As on July 15, a

record 3.80 lakh MT of food

grains were stocked in FCI

depots across Assam with

capacity utilisation of

around 95 per cent. Our

godowns in Assam have

been adequately filled up.

This has greatly bolstered

our capability to meet any

emergent public distribu-

tion system (PDS) require-

ment in the State,” said a

senior official of the public

sector corporation’s North-

East zonal office.

He said DV Prasad,

chairman and managing

director of FCI, is personal-

ly monitoring the entire

exercise from New Delhi.

Also, the induction and

stock building are being

monitored by the executive

director (North-East) and

other senior officers of the

FCI North-East zone at the

local level.

“Around 5.75 lakh MT of

food grains were available

in the various depots of FCI

in the North-East zone as

on July 15, with capacity

utilisation of around 93 per

cent. As such, there are

sufficient food grains to

meet the month-wise

requirements of the North-

Eastern states under

Pradhan Mantri Garib

Kalyan Anna Yojana

(PMGKAY), along with the

National Food Security Act

(NFSA) and other welfare

schemes like Mid Day

Meal. Further, a system of

dynamic planning of rakes is

in place so that stocks can

be inducted as per require-

ment,” the official said.

He added that the FCI is

undertaking operations in

close coordination with the

Indian Railways, besides

agencies like Central

Warehousing Corporation

(CWC), various state

warehousing corporations

in this region and other

stakeholders.

Sources said 100 per cent

lifting of food grains was

registered by the North-

Eastern states under the

PMGKAY during the April-

June period. A total of 5.23

lakh MT was lifted in total

by the states in this region

under the scheme.

For the July-November

period, over 8.79 lakh MT

of foodgrains have been

allotted for the North-

Eastern states under

PMGKAY. The scheme,

under which additional free-

of-cost food grains at the

scale of 5 kg per person per

month are provided to

beneficiaries covered under

NFSA, has recently been

extended by another five

months.

FCI ensures ‘uninterrupted’supply of food grains across NE

ICSI’s NE chapterhosts webinar onsecretarial audit

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI, July 19:

The North Eastern Chapter,

Guwahati, of Eastern India

Regional Council (EIRC) of

the Institute of Company

Secretaries of India (ICSI)

conducted the fourth webi-

nar on the topic ‘secretarial

audit’ for its members on

Thursday.

The all-India president of

the institute, Ashish Garg at-

tended the webinar as the

chief guest. He apprised the

participants about the special

initiatives to be taken by ICSI

for the North East. He said

that the ICSI was commit-

ted to the development of the

student community of the re-

gion and mentioned the fee

waiver scheme for the stu-

dents. He also initiated a

mega career awareness pro-

gramme in the North East.

“The ICSI is working on

opening new centres in Aru-

nachal Pradesh and Naga-

land,” he added.

Ranjeet Pandey, immedi-

ate past president of ICSI, in

his address as an esteemed

speaker deliberated on a de-

tailed and valuable presenta-

tion on secretarial audit.

Deepak Kumar Khaitan,

member of the Central Coun-

cil of ICSI in his address as the

keynote speaker, apprised the

participants about the impor-

tance of secretarial audit for

company secretaries.

Over 70 members attend-

ed the webinar.

The webinar was inaugu-

rated by Bishal Harlalka,

chairman of the North East-

ern Chapter of EIRC of ICSI.

CORRESPONDENT

JALUKBARI, July 19: The

Zoological Society of Assam

(ZSA) unit of DK College and

IQAC of DK College, Mirza

organised a national webinar

in collaboration with ZSA,

Guwahati, on Saturday on the

topic “Grassland Ecosystem

– its significance, conservation

and management”.

More than 325 participants

from different parts of India,

Malaysia and the Philippines

took part in the webinar. Dr

Bibhuti Prasad Lahkar, emi-

nent scientist of NGO Aaran-

yak, who was the main speak-

er, stressed the need for con-

servation of grasslands, which

is the habitat for a variety of

indigenous species like the

one-horned rhino, pigmy hog,

hispid hare, Bengal florican,

water buffalo, etc.

He said that at present,

large scale shrinkage of grass-

land due to human settlement,

agriculture, livestock grazing,

unsystematic fire, etc., has

become a great cause of con-

cern for ecologists, and all-

round efforts are needed from

the government to make con-

servation a people’s move-

ment to save the degraded

grasslands.

Lahkar had won the IUCN

World Heritage Hero Award

in 2016, becoming the first

Asian to get this honour for

his contribution towards con-

servation of the Manas World

Heritage Site. He is a mem-

ber of the IUCN SSC Asian

Elephant Specialist Group,

and an expert member under

the Union Ministry of Envi-

ronment, Forest and Climate

Change.

Dr Deepalee Das, associate

professor and head of the Dept

of Zoology at DK College, was

the coordinator of the webi-

nar, which was earlier inaugu-

rated by principal Dr Nabajyoti

Das. ZSA president Priyabra-

ta Lahkar was the chief guest,

while ZSA general secretary

Prof Jogen Chandra Kalita

spoke a few words on ZSA.

Dr Arunabh Chakraborty, as-

sistant professor of civil engi-

neering at Tezpur University,

was also present.

Webinar on conservationof grassland ecosystem

CORRESPONDENT

JORABAT, July 19: Lions

Club-Anmol and Lions Club-

Guwahati Care in a joint pro-

gramme on Sunday distrib-

uted masks, sanitizers and

other essential items to vil-

Lions Club distributes masks,sanitizers among Khetri villagers

lagers to fight the deadly

coronavirus.

The items were distribut-

ed at a programme for the

people of Robingaon village

in Khetri. Later in another

programme, some items

were given to officials of

Kamarkuchi Gaon Panchayat

to distribute them among the

people. Project director

Ganesh Sarma and coordina-

tor Pankaj Poddar expressed

belief that the items will help

the people keep themselves

safe from the virus.

GNRC sets uptwo COVIDcare units

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI, July 19:

GNRC, a super speciality hos-

pital in the North-East, has

come forward with two dedi-

cated COVID care units for the

people of the region.

"Currently, there are almost

23,000 COVID-19 cases in

Assam and it is expected that

the number might increase in

the days to come. In such a

scenario, it is expected that the

private healthcare facilities

should join hands with the state

government to manage this

pandemic. Private healthcare

institutions of the region need

to rise to the occasion to miti-

gate this devastation caused by

the Coronavirus. Dr Nomal

Chandra Borah, the founder of

Affordable Health Mission and

GNRC, had already announced

on social media on March 25

offering 500 beds to the state

government if the need aris-

es," a GNRC statement said.

GNRC has made operation-

al two COVID units at its Dis-

pur and North Guwahati units.

GNRC-Good Health Clin-

ic (which is based near the

GNRC Dispur and Sixmile

units) has been converted

into fully functional indoor fa-

cilities along with ICU unit

for COVID patients.

An entire block of GNRC

Medical-North Guwahati has

been converted into a COV-

ID care facility. However, the

rest of the hospital premises

of GNRC-North Guwahati

will remain open for the pub-

lic to avail treatment with

non-COVID ailments at af-

fordable rates.

Similarly, the GNRC-Dis-

pur and Sixmile units shall

continue to serve patients

suffering from non-COVID

related ailments.

GuwahatiChapter of PR

Council launchedSTAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI, July 19: The

Guwahati Chapter of Public

Relations Council of India

(PRCI), the 38th national

chapter of PRCI, was inau-

gurated through a webinar on

Wednesday. Public relations

(PR) practitioners from

across India and abroad par-

ticipated in the event.

Launching the Guwahati

Chapter, MB Jayaram, chief

mentor and chairman emer-

itus of PRCI, conveyed his

best wishes to all members

of the new chapter and urged

them to take up programmes

for the benefit of the PR in-

dustry as well as for the peo-

ple they serve.

He announced that an all

India directory of PR func-

tionaries would be brought

out soon in which PR practi-

tioners of the North East

would also be included.

Anjuli Chittaranjan, state

head, corporate communica-

tions Assam & North East at

Reliance Jio Infocomm Lim-

ited, who was the chief guest,

spoke about the changing

needs of PR in the emerging

scenario.

LR Sailo, Director, Indian

Institute of Mass Communi-

cation NE Campus, Aizawl,

Mizoram, who was the guest

of honour, expressed hope that

PRCI would play a pivotal role

in promotion of PR in the NE.

Besides the 38 chapters in

India, PRCI has its branches

also in Australia, Bangladesh,

Nepal, Sri Lanka, UAE, UK

and USA.

OBITUARY

Pradip Baruah

GUWAHATI, July 19:

Pradip Baruah, a resident of

Nandan Nagar, Sarumotoria,

Dispur passed away at the 151

Base Hospital, Basistha here

on July 18 at the age of 72 years

after prolonged illness.

Born to former Asam Sa-

hitya Sabha president Atul

Chandra Barua and Hiran

Prabha Barua, he retired as

Assistant Commissioner of

Sales Tax in 2010.

After his retirement he

wrote two books comprising

humorous short stories –

Hao Mor Ailaposu and

Gantepra, Gubin Kharg.

He leaves behind his wife,

two sons, two daughters-in-

law and two granddaughters.

The cremation will take

place at the Navagraha cre-

matorium on Monday.

Virtual teaconclave fromSeptember 1

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI, July 19: The

Confederation of Indian Indus-

try (CII) will organise a virtual

tea conclave from September

1 to November 30. The first-

of-its-kind tea conclave will

have digital conferences, ex-

hibition of different varieties

of tea and products related to

the tea industry and will have

buyer-seller meets spread

over 90 days. The CII had in

the past organised eight tea

conclaves – five in Siliguri and

two in Guwahati.

“Because of COVID-19

pandemic, this tea conclave

will be a virtual one and have

virtual stalls similar to regu-

lar exhibitions. Producers

and manufacturers will be

able to display their products

in the stalls. Buyers and tea

connoisseurs can visit the

stalls. During this pandemic,

this exclusive virtual plat-

form for tea will open up the

horizon of business linkages,

both nationally and interna-

tionally,” a press release said.

The conclave will be at-

tended by central and state

government policy makers,

Tea Board officials, tea grow-

ers, tea buyers and traders,

tea packagers, tea brokers,

tea wholesalers, tea retailers

and tea cafes, tea machinery

manufacturers, tea imple-

ments manufacturers, any

products related to tea, tea

research organisations, tea

auction organisers, educa-

tional institutes, tea associa-

tions, tea customers and the

general public, banks and fi-

nancial institutions, etc.

AJYCP slamsState govt over

flood reliefSTAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI, July 19: The

Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuva Chat-

ra Parishad on Sunday

slammed the State Govern-

ment for its failure in provid-

ing relief to all the flood-af-

fected people in a proper

manner. The organisation

also demanded adequate

funds to Assam in such a sit-

uation.

Meanwhile, Assam State

Disaster Management Au-

thority (ASDMA)’s report

stated that altogether 26 dis-

tricts are reeling under flood-

waters, affecting 27,63,719

people in 2,678 villages un-

der 79 revenue circles.

Although the flood situa-

tion has slightly improved, it

may deteriorate again as the

meteorological department

has predicted heavy rainfall

in some parts of the State in

the next few days.

MONDAY, JULY 20, 20206 THE ASSAM TRIBUNE, GUWAHATI NATIONAL

PRESS NOTICE INVITING E-TENDERNo. E-TEN-1/2020-21/864

The Director of Soil Conservation, Assam invites bids

from reputed Govt./NHAI registered eligible bidders for

the following projects

“Green Highways Projects for (Km 275 to Km 285.000

of AS-16 (Stretch ID-30 PIU-Haflong, NH-54 (New NH-

27), Km 285.000 to km 295.000 of AS-16 (Stretch ID-

31 PIU-Haflong, NH-54 (New NH-27), Km 295.000 to

km 300.76 of AS-16 (Stretch ID-30 PIU-Haflong, NH-

54 (New NH-27)” fresh Roadside Plantation (Avenue

& Median) work amounting to Rs 5,84,19,416.00

(Rupees Five Crores Eighty Four Lakh Nineteen

Thousands Four Hundred and Sixteen) only.

Details may be seen at website http://

assamtenders.gov.in and also in the Directorate of

Soil Conservation, Assam, Bhumi Shangrakshan

Bhawan, R.G.B. Road, Guwahati-05 w.e.f. 20.07.2020

during office hours.

The authority reserves the right to cancel the tender

process at any point of time without assigning any

reason thereof.Sd/- Director of Soil Conservation,

Janasanyog/C/2258/20 Assam

No. EAA/SIU/125/2018/83

NOTICEIn continuation of this office Notice vide No. EAA/

SIU/125/2018/70 Dated 15.07.2020 and in view of

the current situation of lock-down due to the

Covid-19 pandemic; the time of submission of option

for the candidates who got selected in more than

one post is hereby extended till the Midnight of

21st July, 2020.

The candidates shall submit their option for only

one post through the official website of DEE, Assam

(https://dee.assam.gov.in) as mentioned in detail

in the original notice published on 16.07.2020 as

mentioned above.

All other terms and conditions of the earlier Notice

will remain the same.Sd/- Director,

Elementary Education, Assam

Janasanyog/D/2000/20 Kahilipara, Guwahati-19

Actor threat case:FIR against twoInstagram usersMUMBAI, July 19: Mumbai

Police have registered an FIR

against two Instagram account

holders for allegedly threaten-

ing actor Rhea Chakraborty, an

official said today.

The location of the two ac-

cused is yet to be traced, the

official said, adding that the in-

vestigation in the case is at a

primary stage.

Chakraborty on Thursday

requested the Cyber Crime

Cell to look into the rape and

murder threats she has been

receiving ever since the death

of close friend, actor Sushant

Singh Rajput.

Rajput (34) was found dead

in his apartment in suburban

Bandra here on June 14, leav-

ing people in the film industry

and audiences shocked.

Chakraborty, in particular,

was subjected to online hate

with users blaming her for Ra-

jput’s suicide.

“We registered the first

information report (FIR) on

Saturday under Indian Penal

Code Sections 507 (criminal

intimidation by an anony-

mous communication), 509

(intending to insult modesty

of any woman) and relevant

provisions of the Information

Technology Act,” Santacruz

Police Station’s senior in-

spector Shriram Kore-

gaonkar said.

“No arrest has been made

so far. We are conducting an

investigation in the case,” he

added.

On Thursday, sharing a

screenshot of a hate message

she received on Instagram,

Chakraborty said while she

had ignored many abusive

texts sent to her in the past

month, the harassment was

now unbearable. The 28-year-

old actor eventually disabled the

comments section of her Insta-

gram page. – PTI

NEW DELHI, July 19: Amid

the ongoing political drama in

Rajasthan, at the centre of at-

tention are three Congress

MLAs who switched their loy-

alties at the last minute and

dashed Sachin Pilot’s hopes of

pulling the rug from under the

Ashok Gehlot Government in

the State.

These MLAs are Danish

Abrar, son of late MP Abrar

Ahmed, who is close to a pow-

erful functionary in Delhi in the

Congress set-up, Chetan Dudi

who is the MLA from Didwa-

na, and Rohit Bohra, the MLA

from Rajkhera.

These three MLAs were

considered close to Pilot and

came to Delhi on the first day

itself, but later returned.

The other MLA whose au-

dio clips have been leaked is

Bhanwar Lal Sharma who was

allegedly heard negotiating

with the BJP.

The three young MLAs re-

turned to Jaipur after inter-

vention by a top AICC func-

tionary who convinced them

to return and also got to know

the plans of the Pilot camp and

the exact numbers of MLAs in

touch with Pilot for a possible

coup, sources said.

The coup had to aborted

midway as the Congress came

to know of the plans and guard-

ed its MLAs who did not reach

Delhi.

Meanwhile, these three

MLAs on reaching Jaipur de-

nied any meeting with the BJP

and briefed the press. “We are

the soldiers of Congress and

NEW DELHI, July 19: Af-

ter the National Institute of

Open Schooling (NIOS) can-

celled this year’s board exams

for Classes X and XII due to

the coronavirus pandemic,

more than 600 prison inmates

in Delhi who were to appear

in them, heaved a sigh of re-

lief, jail officials said today.

Jail officials said the pandemic

disrupted the academic calendar

and classes had to be cancelled

in March. Therefore, only 20-

30 per cent of the syllabus could

be completed before the exams

were postponed twice and finally

scheduled in July.

Earlier, classes were held

five days a week by faculties of

various NGOs under the NIOS

programme at Delhi prisons.

Delhi has three prisons in

Tihar, Mandoli and Rohini.

As soon as the news of the

exams being cancelled was

shared with the candidates,

many of them were more than

happy and relieved, jail officials

and wardens who interact with

the inmates regularly, said.

Earlier this month, NIOS

issued a circular cancelling the

exams. The results will now

be declared based on the as-

sessment scheme finalised by

a committee of the NIOS.

According to data shared by

the Delhi Prisons authorities,

Cancellation of NIOS exams providesrelief to Delhi prison inmates

a total of 552 inmates from the

three jails had enrolled for

Class X and 62 for Class XII

through the NIOS, exams for

which are held twice a year,

between March-April and Oc-

tober-November.

Of 552 inmates who have

applied for Class X, 366 are

from Tihar, 17 from Rohini, and

169 from the Mandoli jail.

Forty-five inmates from Tihar,

four from Rohini and 13 from

the Mandoli jail have enrolled

for Class XII this year. Besides

them, around 75 inmates from

the Delhi prisons who did not

qualify in their Class X exams

last year were to reappear in

the exams this year. Nineteen

inmates were to reappear in

Class XII exams this year, offi-

cials said.

The NIOS has its study cen-

tre in the Delhi prisons from

where a prisoner can pursue

his studies and is given a certif-

icate for the particular course

without mentioning the place

of examination, which is jail.

“Under the provision of the

NIOS, the inmates who take

admission are provided study

materials and teaching facili-

ties here. We also have teach-

ers coming in from NGOs to

teach the students. Those who

are interested in pursuing

studies, we encourage them

and motivate them to take ad-

mission and continue their

studies,” said Director Gen-

eral (Prisons) Sandeep Goel.

“Due to some reasons or

circumstances, they took to

crime, but now that they are

here, this is also an opportuni-

ty for them to restart their life

afresh and make a living out of

it once they leave jails. It is part

of our various reformation pro-

grammes. Once they get into

studies, they stay focused and

have a purpose in life once they

leave the jail,” he said.

Most of the inmates who

have enrolled for NIOS pro-

grammes are from Central Jail

No. 5 in Tihar, where inmates

of the 18-21 age group are

lodged, jail officials said.

For nearly three years now,

Anil Kumar Sharma has been

a visiting faculty at Central Jail

No. 5, Tihar. He comes on be-

half of an NGO, Care Today, and

has been teaching approxi-

mately around 100 inmates in

separate batches for Classes X

and XII.

The classes were held five

days a week – from Monday

to Friday – between 1 pm and

3 pm for Class X students and

from 3 pm to 5 pm for Class

XII students.

The “Better Life School” in

Central Jail No. 5 has a class-

room like any other with a pro-

jector, blackboard, desk and

bench, he said over phone.

Sharma said he only guides

students about various sub-

jects available to them. “I leave

it to them to choose subjects.

Depending on their interest,

they are free to opt,” he said.

Recalling about his classes,

Sharma said students are quite

enthusiastic in class. They

come up with doubts and are

always interested in knowing

about things related to their

subjects.

“Some of them come for

classes, even before I reach and

they don’t disturb the class.

These inmates took to crime,

whatever may be the reason,

but now they feel they need to

study and get a degree. They

don’t intend to indulge in crim-

inal activities again. Once they

leave jail, with this certificate

they can apply for ITI and get

placements,” he said.

Even after leaving jail on bail,

many students stay in touch

and contact Sharma to enquire

about their course and exam

schedule. “Our classes are

more like interactive session.

I motivate my students with

inspirational stories. I tell

them that all is not lost. They

still stand a chance to make

their future,” he added. – PTI

NEW DELHI, July 19:

Strong winds, heavy rains

and thunder: while this may

sound just the ideal Sunday

morning for many Delhiites,

there were scores in Delhi

who would not agree.

No doubt, the sudden drop

of temperature to 29 degrees

centigrade has brought a huge

respite to many struggling

with the heat, but it has left

at least one person dead pre-

sumably by drowning, hous-

es swept away and Central-

ised Accident and Trauma

Services (CATS) teams be-

ing deployed. For many in

Delhi, it was not a Sunday,

they were hoping for.

While reports of two

deaths have come in, the po-

lice have just confirmed one

whose body was found float-

ing near Delhi’s Minto

bridge. The entire area was

submerged and the dead

man, who is identified as

Kundan, is believed to have

3 MLAs upsetSachin Pilot’s

plans in Rajasthanwill be with the party till our

last breath” said Bohra. Dudi

said his leader is Sonia Gan-

dhi, while Danish Abrar main-

tained that the Government is

under no threat.

The three MLAs returned

to Jaipur and maintained that

they were on a personal visit

to Delhi, but the leak of tapes

of Bhanwar Lal Sharma has put

the Pilot camp in the dock.

Congress spokesperson Pa-

wan Khera slammed the BJP

and said, “The entire shame-

lessness of this admission is

very shocking as they are not

worried about the fact that they

have been caught red-handed,

but they are worried about the

fact that they were being re-

corded and asking if it was le-

gal.” However, Union minister

Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has

denied that he was in touch with

Sharma, but the Congress on

Sunday demanded Shekha-

wat’s removal.

“Congress demands that ei-

ther Gajendra Singh Shekha-

wat resigns or else he should

be removed so that he cannot

influence the probe,” said par-

ty leader Ajay Maken in Jaipur.

Meanwhile, 19 MLAs who

were staying in Gurugram have

shifted to a south Delhi hotel,

said sources. However it is not

clear in which hotel they are as

earlier the MLAs were in the

ITC Grand Bharat in Guru-

gram, but after the Rajasthan

Special Operations Group

reached there, the MLAs shift-

ed base and the Pilot camp is

tight-lipped about it. – IANS

A submerged DTC bus on the waterlogged Minto bridge underpass after rains in New Delhi onSunday. A tempo driver died due to drowning of his vehicle on the underpass. – PTI

Delhi rain fills up city’s cup of woesdrowned.

“Water was logged under

the Minto bridge because of

overnight rains. He tried to

manoeuvre his vehicle

through a waterlogged un-

derpass, but, apparently,

could not succeed. He, it

seems, died of drowning. No

external injury marks on his

person. Inquest proceedings

under Section 174 of the CrPC

are under way,” said a senior

Delhi Police officer.

Not very far from where

Kundan lost his life, a slum

was battered in Delhi’s ITO.

In fact, dramatic visuals show

how a house there crumbles

like a pack of cards as eye-

witnesses shout to alert the

inhabitants to flee. It result-

ed due to a canal overflowing

that weakened the base of the

house in the slum. The house

eventually was washed away.

The CATS and Delhi Fire

Service were pressed into ac-

tion to help people of Anna Na-

gar. Meanwhile, a senior Delhi

Police official confirmed, “We

are aware that a few houses

were washed away. However,

there has been no casualty re-

ported from there.”

The Indian Meteorological

Department said that Delhi’s

Safdarjung, Lodhi Road and

Ridge area received particu-

larly heavy rainfall with 74.8

mm, 81.2 mm and 86 mm

rainfall respectively. “These

three stations witnessed

heavy rainfall, in the morn-

ing hours between 5 am to

8.30 am,” Kuldeep Srivasta-

va, head of IMD’s regional

forecasting centre told this

news agency.

The ITO, the nucleus of the

capital’s workforce, has not

just been infamous for its

hours-long traffic snarls but

also for chronic drainage prob-

lems for decades now. Not far

from the area, a DTC bus was

submerged in the water un-

der the Minto bridge. – IANS

NEW DELHI, July 19: Hit-

ting out at External Affairs

Minister S Jaishankar, former

Union minister Anand Sharma

said that the rhetoric and

tweets do not change ground

reality and foreign policy must

have gravitas and depth. En-

gagements with strategic part-

ners demand seriousness and

cannot be trivialised and re-

duced to event management,

Sharma said.

In a statement, Anand Shar-

ma said, “Amused by Foreign

Minister Dr S Jaishankar’s de-

fence of a directionless foreign

policy. Neighbourhood first has

been a priority of India’s for-

eign policy but sadly derailed

by a cavalier approach,” said

Sharma.

The Congress leader said

the Government may pat its

back, but “history will judge

you by outcomes how much

you may create illusions by

your optics”.

The attack from the Con-

gress comes after the Exter-

nal Affairs Minister rebutted

Rahul Gandhi on key foreign

policy issues, which were

raised by the former Congress

president on Friday via a vid-

eo release.

Replying to Rahul Gandhi,

Cong hits out at ForeignMinister S Jaishankarfor ‘cavalier approach’

Jaishankar had said, “Rahul

Gandhi has questions on For-

eign Policy. Here are some

answers. Our major partner-

ships are stronger and inter-

national standing higher. Wit-

ness regular summits and in-

formal meetings with US, Rus-

sia, Europe and Japan. India

engages China on more equal

terms politically. Ask the ana-

lysts.”

But Anand Sharma de-

manded to know why the re-

lationship with neighbours are

low. “India and Nepal have his-

torically shared a relationship

based on trust, friendship and

mutual respect. The present

drift and tension are a matter

of national concern. The For-

eign Minister cannot have the

luxury of denial, but should an-

swer for the failures,” he said.

Sharma also attacked Jais-

hankar’s reference to the

Mumbai terror attack and said

it was “oddly out of place”.

“As India’s Ambassador and

senior diplomat, he was artic-

ulating India’s position which,

for political expediency, he has

chosen to criticise and disown.

India’s response was robust

and mobilisation of interna-

tional support exposed and iso-

lated Pakistan.” – IANS

RAIPUR, July 19: At least 25

villagers were injured, eight of

them seriously, after being alleg-

edly beaten up by Naxals for

seeking development in their

area in Dantewada district of

Chhattisgarh, police said today.

The incident took place on

Friday night in Parcheli village

under the Katekalyan Police

Station limits.

A police team rushed there

on Sunday after being alerted

about the incident, Dantewa-

da SP Abhishek Pallava said.

The SP said he and the dis-

trict collector recently visit-

ed the area during which some

people from Parcheli had de-

manded construction of roads,

25 villagers injured in Naxals’assault at Dantewada

setting up of an anganwadi

(government-run women and

child care centre) and other

development works in their

village.

The officials had assured the

villagers to consider their de-

mands, he said.

When the Naxals came to

know that the villagers sought

help from the administration

for development works in the

area, around 10-15 armed ul-

tras convened a meeting on

Friday night at Parcheli, locat-

ed around 440 km from

Raipur, and brutally hit the vil-

lagers, including women and

children, with sticks, he said.

A police team along with an

ambulance reached there on

Sunday morning and shifted 25

injured villagers to a nearby

community health centre.

Eight of them, including a

woman, who received severe

injuries were referred to the

district hospital for further

treatment, Pallava said.

The other 17 injured villag-

ers were discharged after be-

ing given primary treatment,

he said. “Such a mass beating

of villagers by Naxals has be-

come frequent in the region

and it is due to the frustration

of Naxals after some of their

accomplices surrendered to

the police while some were

arrested,” he said. – PTI

NEW DELHI, July 19:

When Ruskin Bond told his

mother that he wanted to be a

writer, she laughed saying with

his good handwriting he could

only be a clerk in a lawyer’s

office.

This was early in 1951 when

Bond was waiting for his school

board results. He knew he

would do well in English liter-

ature, history and geography,

but was not too sure about

maths and physics.

Bond’s aim was to write sto-

ries and become an author, but

no one else seemed to think it

was a good idea.

His stepfather wanted him

to attend college, his mother

advised him to join the Army,

while his school headmaster

wished he became a teacher.

These very thoughts would

terrify Bond. “A teacher! That

was the last thing I wanted to

be; I’d had enough of school

rules, homework and early

morning PT. And I had no wish

to inflict it on others. The

Army? More rules, more PT,

heavy boots, routine march-

ing...” he would think.

So finally he told his mother

that he is going to be a writer.

She laughed and told him:

“Well, you have a good hand-

writing. You could be a clerk

in a lawyer’s office.”

Mom laughed when Isaid I wanted to be awriter: Ruskin Bond

After that, Bond says, he

stopped talking about what he

was going to do.

Bond could not afford to buy

books, but thanks to a lending

library, he could borrow as

many books he liked for two

rupees. Thus he was able to

read quite a few popular fic-

tion writers – PG Wodehouse,

Agatha Christie, Dornford Yat-

es, W Somerset Maugham,

James Hilton and others.

“Sometimes, my stepfather

would also give me a rupee or

two, but I was anxious to sup-

plement my income on my

own, and the only way I could

do this was by putting my lit-

erary talents to practical use,”

he recalls.

So he began to use his step-

father’s old typewriter and

would send stories and skits

to magazines and newspapers

all over the country.

“Then, finally, a little maga-

zine in Madras called My Mag-

azine of India, accepted one of

them and paid me by money

order the princely sum of five

rupees! After that, I bombard-

ed the magazine with every-

thing I wrote and, to my de-

light, the five-rupee money

orders kept coming in,” he

writes in his latest book A

Song of India: The Year I Went

Away. – PTI

(Contd from page 1)

“Even in the face of grave persecution, the

movement by the Tibetans has never swayed

from non-violence. We are really grateful to

our supporters who have constantly raised

their voice on behalf of the people in Tibet.

From governments to politicians, to organisa-

tions to individuals has for decades stood with

us and I am sure they will continue until the

issue of Tibet is peacefully resolved,” he said.

Probe panel ...

(Contd from page 1)

Constant interactions were held with doc-

tors, nurses and all other COVID-19 warriors

and the medical colleges in the State had also

been directed to strengthen the COVID-19

treatment facility. Sonowal also said that many

inmates in the State’s jails had also been de-

tected as COVID-19 positive and necessary

steps had been initiated to ensure proper treat-

ment of those inmates. Referring to the Bagh-

jan oil well fire incident, the Chief Minister

said that the Union Petroleum Ministry had

(Contd from page 1)

“The commission will in-quire into and fix responsibilityupon government officials of anydepartment found involved incommission of any illegal min-ing or any other illegal activityin commission or abetment ofthe aforesaid forest area. Asideidentifying organisations and in-dividuals responsible for under-taking such illegal mining ac-tivities, it will further probe themanner of processing of anyapplication by any organisationor individual for grant of min-ing lease in the aforesaid forestareas during the period from2003 onwards, and also to in-quire whether grant of anymining lease during the periodwas in compliance of or in con-formity with the provisions ofapplicable laws,” sources said.

Another aspect concernssuggestion of measures for re-

covery of loss caused due tounlawful coal mining activityunder the jurisdiction of Dig-boi Forest Division, either inthe form of rent, royalty, penal-ty, land arrears or tax in termsof Section 21(5) of the Minesand Minerals (Development &Regulation) Act, 1957 or underany other law in force duringcommission of offence.

It will also suggest measuresto be taken for restoration, re-habilitation and reclamation ofareas damaged due to illegalcoal mining and ancillary activ-ities, and assess the approxi-mate amount of costs to be in-curred for such purpose.

The probe will inquire into anyother prohibited or regulatedactivities inside all the forests (RF/PRF) and wildlife sanctuary un-der Digboi Forest Division andsuggest remedial measures forchecking such activities.

been persistently carrying out activities to com-

pletely douse the fire and the State Govern-

ment was extending all cooperation in this re-

gard.

The Prime Minister said that the Central

Government was keeping a close watch on

flood, erosion, COVID-19 and the Baghjan fire

situation in the State, and had been standing

closely with the people of Assam during these

difficult times. He also assured all help and

cooperation from the Central Government in

managing these challenges.

Modi speaks to Sonowal ...

Dr Sangay said that in recent times, Tibet-

ans have not been able to come to India through

Nepal. Since 2008, the number of Tibetans

coming to India through Nepal has dwindled

and with President Xi Jinping at the helm, the

number has further dwindled. China has been

strengthening its foothold in Nepal and it is

under great pressure from China to restrict

the flow of Tibetans fleeing through the bor-

ders, he added.

Support to Tibet’s cause ...

MONDAY, JULY 20, 2020 THE ASSAM TRIBUNE, GUWAHATI 7NORTH EAST

Forecast for North Eastern

States : Rain / thundershower

is very likely to occur at most

places over Arunachal Pradesh,

Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland,

Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura.

Warning : Thunderstorm with

lightning is very likely to occur

at isolated places over

Arunachal Pradesh, Assam,

Meghalaya, Nagaland,

Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura.

Heavy to very heavy rain with

isolated extremely heavyfalls

is very likely to occur at

isolated places over Arunachal

Pradesh, Assam and

Meghalaya. Heavy rain is very

likely to occur at isolated

places over Nagaland,

Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura.

Temperatures :

Max (°C) Min (°C)

Dibrugarh 29.5 23.6

Tezpur 29.4 27.2

Silchar 32.4 25.8

Dhubri 27.1 24.5

Jorhat 30.7 25.5

N Lakhimpur 27.5 23.7

Shillong 21.3 19.4

Cherrapunjee 21.2 18.4

Aizawl 23.8 18.2

Kohima 25.8 18.5

Pasighat 24.9 22.1

Itanagar 28.2 23.8

Imphal 30.7 22.9

Agartala 33.0 27.2

WEATHER

NORTHEAST

STAFF CORRESPONDENT

SHILLONG, July 19: Two COVID-19

patients succumbed to the disease at the

NEIGRIHMS here today, taking the death

toll in the State to four.

The number of active cases in the State

also rose to 397 with 32 more persons

testing positive for COVID-19.

According to health officials, one of the

deceased was a BSF personnel and the

other was an officer of the Geological Sur-

vey of India (GSI).

The BSF personnel, a type II diabetic

patient, was tested positive on July 4.

Health officials informed that he was

initially treated at the BSF composite hos-

pital and later shifted to the Shillong Civil

Meghalaya virus death toll climbs to fourHospital and then to the NEIGRIHMS

when his condition worsened.

He, however, did not recover and final-

ly passed away today.

On the other hand, the GSI officer had

returned from Kolkata and was under quar-

antine when he complained of abdominal

pain. He was diagnosed with acute “Calcu-

lus Cholecystitis”. He was admitted to the

NEIGRIHMS on July 5 where he tested

positive for COVID-19, health officials said.

On July 16 and 17 he tested negative for

COVID-19, but developed respiratory

problems and suffered a cardiac arrest.

Despite best efforts by the doctors, he

could not be saved, officials added. The

deceased was from Ri-Bhoi district.

Meanwhile, Director of Health Servic-

es Aman War informed that 32 new COV-

ID-19 cases have been reported.

Of these 32 new cases, 29 are BSF per-

sonnel and two civilians. All the BSF per-

sonnel are from East Khasi Hills.

One case has also been reported from

Khanapara in Ri-Bhoi district.

There is a possibility that Mawpat and

Rynjah areas could be declared as contain-

ment zones. The BSF headquarters are

located in these two areas, which wit-

nessed a surge in COVID-19 cases.

“At the end, the State Government has

to decide whether to declare these areas

as containment zones,” War said.

A PTI report from Shillong adds: The

Meghalaya government has declared four lo-

calities in Ri-Bhoi district bordering Assam

as containment zones to prevent the spread

of COVID-19, officials said on Sunday.

Ri-Bhoi district magistrate RM Kurbah

issued the order on Saturday night based

on the recommendation of the Health de-

partment, the official said.

The areas declared as containment zone

include 13th Mile Tamulikuchi, Byrnihat,

Baridua till Khanapara with effect from July

19 to July 26.

“The order was issued in view of the

rise in detection of COVID-19 positive

patients... who are inhabitants of 13th Mile

Tamulikuchi, Byrnihat, Baridua and Khan-

apara area,” the official said.

The order prohibits movements within

the containment zone and inhabitants can

move only in case of medical emergencies

or for essential goods and services.

The Director of Health Services said

the situation in areas from Byrnihat to

Khanapara is “very alarming”.

“Although there is no community spread

in the State, the situation in these areas

bordering Assam is quite alarming,” Dr

War told reporters.

“We are still doing contact tracing and if

the virus is from Guwahati, we are a bit in

trouble as it very virulent and we hope

that we would be able to contain the

spread,” he said.

Meanwhile, night curfew imposed in the

State capital here has been extended till

July 27. East Khasi Hills district authori-

ties said the night curfew will be in force

from 9 pm to 5 am.

CORRESPONDENT

ITANAGAR, July 19: Taking

strong exception to the decision of

University Grants Commission to

conduct final year examinations

before September 30, the State’s

apex students’ body All Arunachal

Pradesh Students’ Union (AAPSU)

today appealed to the HRD Ministry

and the UGC to cancel terminal

examinations for end-semester

students in the State in view of the

prevailing COVID-19 crisis.

The UGC, in its latest guidelines,

said the universities must conduct

AAPSU demands cancellation of end-semester examstheir final year/final semester exams

before September 30 which can be

held either online or offline, or using

a combination of both.

In a representation sent to the

Union Human Resource Develop-

ment Minister, the AAPSU said the

UGC decision has led to confusion

and chaos among the parents,

teachers and other stakeholders.

“Most of the final semester

students from Rajiv Gandhi Universi-

ty (RGU), Doimukh and colleges

affiliated to it in the State are not

ready to take exams due to fear of

the COVID-19 pandemic,” the

representation said.

Further, the months-long lockdown,

including the ongoing one at Itanagar

Capital Complex which also includes

Doimukh where the State’s lone

Central University

is located, has

severely affected

the mental and emotional well-being

of the students. The same was

conveyed to the AAPSU by the Rajiv

Gandhi University Students’ Union

(RGUSU),” it said.

AAPSU further stated that other

State Universities and institutions in

Arunachal Pradesh are also unsure

about the exams and many of the

students studying in these universities

are “against the move of the MHRD

and UGC to forcibly push for exams

during such a serious health crisis

which has affected

the entire nation”.

Stating that “the

challenges in a frontier and topo-

graphically diverse region like ours

are manifold”, AAPSU said, “We

genuinely feel that the concept of

online or offline mode of examination

is not possible in our State due to the

prevailing conditions, including the

great digital divide and the serious

risks posed due to the COVID-19

pandemic.” It also cited that the

intermediate semester exams have

been cancelled and the students have

been promoted to the next class.

Further, the recent landslides,

floods and other natural calamities in

Arunachal Pradesh have cut off

surface and digital communication in

many districts of the State. Further,

many parts of Arunachal Pradesh and

Assam are currently under lock-

down. It will be almost impossible

for the students to make it to the

university,” the AAPSU said in

support of its demand.

The union is also skeptical about

the safety and security measures to

be put in place for the students, and

the teachers as well, if they are

compelled to appear for the exams.

“The hardships people continue to

face due to the pandemic are very

much unprecedented and cannot be

measured. While many of the offices,

schools, factories, public places, etc.,

are closed, we don’t find any merit in

conducting exams for the final

semester students in the universi-

ties,” it said. At present, many of the

students are at their native places

due to lockdown restrictions.

COVID-19 crisis

A submerged village in West Garo Hills as seen on Sunday. – Photo: Correspondent

CORRESPONDENT

ITANAGAR, July 19: In view of the rising

coronavirus cases in the State, the Arunachal

Pradesh Government has extended the lock-

down in Itanagar capital complex till August 3.

“The decision to extend the lockdown was

taken to contain the local transmission of the

disease in the capital complex,” State Chief Sec-

retary, Naresh Kumar told reporters today.

Itanagar capital complex has witnessed a

spurt in COVID-19 cases in the past two weeks.

The Chief Secretary said that the lockdown

extension was required so as to facilitate the

district administration and the Health depart-

ment to carry out surveillance and conduct

rapid antigen tests on all primary and second-

ary contacts of the COVID-19 patients.

He said that a large-scale testing for COV-

ID-19 will be initiated for all the primary and

secondary contacts as well as the vulnerable

groups during this period. The government

has constituted 20 teams which would visit

Lockdown extended inItanagar capital complex

all 20 wards in Itanagar capital region for rap-

id antigen tests, he added.

The Chief Secretary said that no move-

ment of people, including vehicles except for

the exempted ones like those of essential

services, and inter-district movement of peo-

ple to/from Itanagar capital complex except

pressing emergency cases with prior approval

of concerned DCs will be allowed during the

extended lockdown period. He informed that

lockdown relaxation would remain similar as

announced earlier. Grocery shops will be al-

lowed to open at sectors and colonies. Home

delivery of essential items will also be allowed.

Kumar further said that the medicines

which are primarily recommended to treat

COVID-19 patients are available in the State.

Apart from that, he informed that the MLA

Apartments at Chimpu near Itanagar are be-

ing developed as a COVID Care Centre, while

a pre-fabricated dedicated COVID hospital

with ICU facility would be opened at Midpu

under Doimukh circle by the end of this month.

Tripura Youth Congress activists staging a demonstration against price hike of petroleum products in Agartala on

Sunday. – Photo: Correspondent

CORRESPONDENT

ITANAGAR, July 19:

Arunachal Pradesh has

reported 41 new cases,

taking the COVID-19 tally

to 650.With the release of

99 patients following their

recovery, the State’s total

number of cured patients

increased to 274, while

active cases were recorded

at 373, coupled with three

casualties, according to a

bulletin issued by the

Directorate of Health

Services here last night.

Of the 41 new positive

650 COVID-19 casesin Arunachal

cases, 18 cases were

detected in Itanagar capital

complex and six in Chiputa

under Doimukh circle of

Papum Pare district – all

found outside the quaran-

tine facility.

As per the bulletin, 10

cases were reported from

Lower Siang district, three

from Lower Dibang Valley

and two each from Lower

Subansiri and West

Kameng district.

All the Lower Siang and

Lower Dibang Valley cases

are returnees and detected

in quarantine facility , while

one each case of Lower

Subansiri and West Kameng

are returnees and detected

in quarantine facility.

Out of the 41 cases, 40

were found to be asympto-

matic and one symptomatic.

All have been shifted to

COVID Care Centers, the

bulletin said.

Of the 99 positive cases

released on Saturday,

Itanagar capital complex

accounts for 97 and two

cases in Namsai district. A

total of 38,042 samples

have been tested in the

state so far, he said.

CORRESPONDENT

AIZAWL, July 19: With two more cases

reported, Mizoram’s tally for COVID-19 to-

day rose to 284. Of the 148 samples tested at

Zoram Medical College lab in Aizawl on Sat-

urday, two men were confirmed to be posi-

tive, an official statement said today.

It added that the two are non-locals, aged

27 and 46, who were under institutional quar-

antine and asymptomatic. They returned from

outside Mizoram. With this, Mizoram has a

284 COVID-19 cases, of which 117 are active

and 167 are recovered cases.

Aizawl district has the highest number of ac-

tive cases at 77, followed by Lunglei with 16

cases, Lawngtlai with 13 cases, Serchhip four

cases, Siaha and Champhai three cases each and

one in Mamit district. Kolasib, Khawzawl, Hnah-

thial and Saitual districts are presently virus-free.

Curfew clamped in Aizawl neighbour-

hood: Curfew was clamped in Salem Veng

neighbourhood in Aizawl after a person, un-

der quarantine at R Dengthuama Hall at the

locality who tested positive for coronavirus,

Mizoram reports 2 newCOVID-19 cases

was found to have sneaked out of the facility

and bought things from a shop.

A Myanmarese national, who tested posi-

tive last Friday night, had ventured out of the

quarantine facility and bought things from a

shop at Salem Veng locality before his result

was declared. Salem Veng local task force on

COVID-19 secretary K Lalrinmawia said that

13 Myanmarese nationals who returned from

Delhi were quarantined at R Dengthuama

Hall. They were sent to Champhai town near

Myanmar border on Friday before their test

results were out.

According to a local secretary, at least 15 sam-

ples from Salem Veng locality were collected

on Saturday and test results were awaited. “Cur-

few will not be lifted until all primary contacts of

the positive person test negative,” he said.

The local task force, as well as the local peo-

ple, was extremely unhappy with the police

personnel who guard the quarantine facility.

“We implore the police personnel to be

more alert no to allow any more such inci-

dent. They should have stood guard 24 hours,”

the local secretary said.

AGARTALA, July 19 :Six

agricultural scientists of

three north-eastern states -

Tripura, Meghalaya and Aru-

nachal Pradesh were award-

ed ICAR’s National Award

for their outstanding innova-

tion in farming and boosting

agricultural economy in the

region, officials said.

A senior official of the In-

dian Council of Agricultural

Research (ICAR) said that

besides six scientists, two

Krishi Vigyan Kendras

(KVK) in Arunachal Pradesh

and Manipur and three farm-

ers of Tripura, Arunachal

Pradesh and Meghalaya re-

ceived the ICAR awards on

Thursday for their excep-

tional feats in agricultural and

farming sectors of the region.

Four scientists -- Lopa-

6 NE scientists getICAR awards

mudra Sahoo, Gulab Singh

Yadav, Chandan Debnath and

Basant Kumar Kandpal, who

are associated with the ICAR

research complex in Tripura

received the Fakhruddin Ali

Ahmed Award and Swami

Sahajan and Saraswati Award

for the year 2019-20. Scien-

tist Amit Kumar, who is cur-

rently associated with the

ICAR research complex in

Meghalaya and Nangsol Dol-

ma Bhutia, Assistant Profes-

sor of Central Agricultural

University at Pasighat in Aru-

nachal Pradesh have received

the Jawaharlal Nehru Award

for PG Outstanding Doctor-

al Thesis Research in Agri-

cultural and Allied Sciences.

The ICAR on its foundation

day has been recognising and

rewarding the institutions, sci-

entists, teachers, farmers and

agricultural journalists every

year for their outstanding per-

formance in research and in-

novation on agriculture. On the

occasion of the 92nd founda-

tion day on Thursday, Union

Minister of Agriculture and

Farmers’ Welfare Narendra

Singh Tomar gave these

awards at a ceremony organ-

ised on a virtual platform.

ICAR’s Tripura research

complex scientist Sahoo said

that for the past 10 years, a team

of scientists, is striving hard

for socio-economical upliftment

of tribal farmers of Tripura

through inter-disciplinary re-

search and development in the

field of integrated farming, con-

servation agriculture, compos-

ite fish culture and resource

management. – IANS

Tripura recordstwo moreCOVID-19

deathsCORRESPONDENT

AGARTALA, July 19: Two

more persons with comor-

bidities died of COVID-19 in

Tripura on Saturday, taking

the death toll due to the con-

tagion in the State to five.

One of them was a woman

in her sixties having throat

cancer while another was a

73-year-old man with diabe-

tes and hypertension.

“Unfortunately 2 COVID-

19 patients died today.

Among them one was a pa-

tient of throat cancer and an-

other person was patient of

Hypertension,” Tripura

Chief Minister Biplab Kumar

Deb said in a Facebook post.

He further said that of 4184

samples tested yesterday,

171 were found to be COV-

ID-19 positive.

A large number of BSF

personnel, mostly from Dha-

lai district, have contracted

the disease. Among the 171

fresh cases detected yester-

day, a whopping 146 are BSF

jawans.

Sepahijala, Gomati, South

and West districts are the

worst-hit by the pandemic in

Tripura.

Dhalai district, which re-

ported the first case of COV-

ID-19 in the State in May,

reported 85 new cases yes-

terday.

A total of 1,05,059 COV-

ID-19 tests have been con-

ducted, including 91,776 RT-

PCR tests and 13,283 Rapid

Antigen Tests, in the State

so far.

Currently, the total

number of COVID-19 cases

in Tripura stands at 2,673.

“To fight the COVID19

pandemic, our Govt is focus-

ing on: Testing, Tracing and

Treatment. We are conduct-

ing maximum number of

tests to ensure safety of eve-

ryone, we have adequate

Medical Infrastructure to

tackle the Pandemic. Re-

questing everyone to co-op-

erate and not to Panic,” the

Chief Minister wrote on Fa-

cebook.

Manipur’sCOVID-19

tally touches1,911

CORRESPONDENT

IMPHAL, July 19: Manipur

today reported 20 new COV-

ID-19 cases, taking the State’s

tally to 1,911.

Dr Khoirom Sasheekumar

Mangang, Additional Direc-

tor of the Health department

informed that all the infect-

ed persons are now under-

going treatment in the vari-

ous COVID care facilities.

In the last 24 hours, 53

persons have been dis-

charged after their recovery.

According to the Health

department, the recovery

rate in the State stands at 64.62

per cent. As on Sunday, a total

of 3,08,973 persons were

screened at various entry

points of the State.

MONDAY, JULY 20, 2020 8 THE ASSAM TRIBUNE, GUWAHATI

STATENEWS IN BRIEF

3 found positive atGossaigaon

GOSSAIGAON, July 19: Three persons – two male andone female have been found COVID-19 positive atGossaigaon. Health department sources here informedthat Deba Shankar Saha(46), Jyotish Devnath (43) andSnhha Saha (18) all fro dalgaon village have testedpositive. – ANN Service

Two positive at GauripurGAURIPUR, July 19 : Two more COVID-19 positive

cases were found at Gauripur yesterday evening. Theyare Atul Charaniya (28) and Ranjit Poddar (30). AtulCharaniya was sent to Guwahati and Ranjit Poddar wassent to Dhubri Civil Hospital for treatment. At Gauripurthe positive cases have gone upto 16 till the filing of thisreport. – Correspondent

Hailakandi corona casesHAILAKANDI, July 19: Sixty-eight more COVID-19

positive cases were reported from Hailakandi district onSaturday, taking the total tally to 710. This is the secondhighest spike in the district. Health authorities heredisclosed that six more police personnel and four moreemployees of the DC’s establishment have been afflictedwith the disease. As many as 18 positive cases havebeen detected in ward numbers 15 and 7 under Hailakan-di municipal area. – Correspondent

CRPF man dies of COVIDBISWANATH CHARIALI, July 19: An ASI of CRPF,

Padmeswar Deori died of COVID-19 on Friday night ina hospital at Avantipur, Srinagar. Deori who hailed fromShantipur Deorigaon village of Gohpur in Biswanathdistrict, was reportedly under treatment in a hospitalthere for the last six days. He was 56. Late Deori hadbeen stationed at Avantipur for two years. – Corre-spondent

AP member tests positiveJAGIROAD, July 19: An Anchalik Panchayat member of

Deosal Panchayat under Jagiroad Police Station KartikDas (Debasish) was found COVID-19 positive onSaturday afternoon. He was admitted to the HPCLCOVID-19 hospital, Jagiroad. – Correspondent

Online int’l workshopGUWAHATI, July 19: The Department of Political

Science, Kumar Bhaskar Varma Sanskrit and AncientStudies University, Nalbari recently organised an onlineinternational workshop on ‘Mapping Post COVID-19World: Challenges and Opportunities’. A number ofeminent scholars took part in the workshop which wasinaugurated by the Vice-Chancellor of the University ProfDipak Kumar Sharma. – Staff Reporter

Bank looted of materialsGOSSAIGAON, July 19: Three men entered the UCO

Bank on July 17 night and looted valuable machineryequipment but could not take any cash money. CCTVfootage showed Bank showed three men inside the bankand ransacking various equipment. Materials worth Rs 3lakh was stolen, the manager stated. Police investigationis on to nab the thieves. – ANN Service

Bhattadev varsityGUWAHATI, July 18: The Bhattadev University has

initiated the online admission process for undergraduate,post-graduate and post-graduate diploma programmes forthe session 2020-21. The university is providing BAprogramme with honours in Assamese, Economics,Education, English, Geography, History, Philosophy,Political Science and Sanskrit and BSc course withhonours in Botany, Chemistry, Geography, Mathematics,Physics, Statistics, and Zoology. The University is alsoopening PhD programmes from the coming academicsession in Assamese, Geography, Zoology, Mathematics,Physics and Chemistry, a press release stated. – StaffReporter

Mushahary’s death condoledGOSSAIGAON, July 19: The Asam Sahitya Sabha,

Gossaigaon branch has condoled the death of SahityaAkademi awardee Guneswar Mushahary. The Sabha flagwas flown at half mast on Saturday in front of theKamamnath Club-cum-Library, Gossaigaon. The presi-dent of the branch, Parasu Kalita in his speech termedMushahary as a true lover of Assamese literature and aman having a multifaceted personality. Advisor of thebranch, Sankar Chandra Das, also spoke a few wordshighlighting late Mushahary’s helping hands in leadingthe Gossaigaon branch Sabha to a standard literaryinstitution. Secretary of the branch Khanindra Nath Das,recalled late Mushahary’s contributions to the people ofGossaigaon as a sensitive personality. – ANN Service

Flood relief camps inspected

GUWAHATI, July 19: The Deputy Commissioner ofGoalpara, Varnali Deka visited flood-affected areas underKharmuza GP, Ramharirchar, Nakaliyapara char, Katlamarichar, Barvita, Sonahara and various relief camps inGoalpara including Jaitunnessa LPS, Boys HighMadrassa, MKN memorial HS etc., a press releasestated. She inspected all the arrangements in the campsincluding arrangements as per ASDMA directives,interacted with the inmates regarding the facilitiesreceived, supervised the child-friendly spaces etc. Allcamp inmates expressed satisfaction about the efforts ofthe administration.

CORRESPONDENT

TEZPUR, July 19: The All Bodo

Students’ Union (ABSU) is happy

with the performance of the Boro-

medium students in the 2020 HSLC

examination.

In a telephonic conversation with

this correspondent, ABSU president,

Dipen Boro said that the perform-

ance of Boro-medium students in the

examinations has shown an upward

trend, which is very satisfying to note.

“After Boro was introduced as a

medium of instruction in 1963, the

students have withstood many tough

challenges,” he said adding that the

ABSU has been able to successfully

mentor and guide the Boro students

of the region.

Speaking about the state of Boro-

medium schools and its students, the

ABSU chief said that along with oth-

er national and social organisations of

the Boro community, the ABSU has

also relentlessly been working to give

ABSU happy with Boro-medium students’ performance in HSLC examsa dynamic thrust to the Boro-medi-

um students, because of which

amidst a number of problems like

poor infrastructure, lack of timely

supply of textbooks, insufficient

teachers etc., the students have grad-

ually been able to give good perform-

ances in various examinations, includ-

ing the HSLC examination, which is

considered as the first important ex-

amination of their life.

“We feel that our children/stu-

dents too have got talent, but they

do not get the required exposure.

Despite this, as a result of a series of

various awareness programmes,

like a five-year plan– educational

movement, christened ‘Mission

Quality Education 2006,’ carried out

by the ABSU till date, we have be-

ing able to get a better feedback in

this line.” He added “though it is

not sufficient in today’s competitive

world, we are hopeful that in the

days to come if the government

comes forward with a positive in-

tent to implement every clause, es-

pecially the educational points men-

tioned in the recent BTR/Peace

agreement, then the Boro-medium

students will get a facelift.”

Highlighting the academic graph

since 2006 of the Boro-medium stu-

dents in the HSLC Final Examina-

tions, he said that year, altogether

66 students passed in the 1st divi-

sion. “Maintaining a good trend, 58

students passed in the 1st division

in 2007, 101 in 2008, 78 in 2009, 141

in 2010, 137 in 2011, 263 in 2012,

326 in 2013, 540 in 2014, 909 in

2015, 1174 in 2016, 1370 in 2017,

1266 in 2019 and 1304 students

passed in the 1st division this year

in Boro medium,” he said. He said

that many Boro-medium students

who couldn’t even clear their HSLC

examinations due to various factors

are today happy at the progress

shown by today’s students. “We are

really happy that our students stud-

ying in the Boro medium are shin-

ing in their higher education besides

clearing many regional and national-

level competitive examinations like

the APSC, UPSC, NEET, JEE etc,”

Boro said.

However, annoyed with govern-

ment’s indifferent attitude towards

the condition of these schools, he said

that they are still plagued with a

number of problems like inadequate

teachers, poor infrastructure facilities

etc. “A number of rosy programmes

meant for educational development

of the State are yet to reach many

Boro-medium schools due to which

Boro students are deprived from ad-

equate education. There are still a

number of Boro-medium schools to-

day running with a single teacher.

Moreover, there are many schools

in forest villages where the govern-

ment is reluctant to grant govern-

ment aid, an act which violates the

Right to Education Act 2009,” Dipen

Boro said. Pointing out to the sorry

state of these schools, Boro further

said that a critical situation awaits

many Boro medium students study-

ing in zero teacher schools, single

teacher schools, venture schools, and

schools where the teachers’ posts

have not been provincialised and the

lack of sufficient textbooks etc. “We

demand that all these problems be

sorted out soon so that the Boro-

medium students can give further

better performances in the near fu-

ture”, he added.

STAFF CORRESPONDENT

JORHAT, July 19: Health and Family

Welfare Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma

has suggested to the Jorhat Medical Col-

lege and Hospital authorities to set up a

separate isolation ward for all patients

coming to the hospital for emergency

treatment in order to contain the spread

of COVID-19 among doctors and em-

ployees.

Speaking to mediapersons after his

visit to the JMCH on Saturday, Sarma

suggested that patients should first be

isolated and doctors and staff wearing

PPE kits should examine them. He said

that the patients should be tested for

Himanta for separate isolation wardat JMCH for emergency patients

COVID-19 virus, the results of which

should be given within eight to 12 hours.

“If the patients test negative, then they

should they be shifted to other wards,”

Sarma observed.

It may be mentioned here that in

Jorhat district about 60 healthcare work-

ers and doctors have tested positive for

COVID-19 in recent days.

The Minister further stated that he had

instructed the Health department to sup-

ply insulin and other requirements to

COVID-19 patients who were also suf-

fering from diabetes and heart ailments.

He said that he also asked JMCH au-

thorities to allow home-made food for

COVID-19 patients if the family of the

patients were willing to give the food,

but should ensure that the food was

packed in disposable packets/containers.

Meanwhile, Jorhat Deputy Commis-

sioner Roshni A Korati informed on Sat-

urday evening that Shyamal, a resident

of Gar-Ali area, died at the JMCH on

Saturday. It is learnt that Shyamal was a

plumber from Odisha who was staying

here and working.

Meanwhile, 75 positive cases were

found on Saturday in Jorhat district out

of which 74 did not have travel history,

the Jorhat Deputy Commissioner stat-

ed. Among the 75 positive people, 28

were of Jorhat town having no travel his-

tory, Korati said.

ABSU president Dipen Boro

Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal distributing ex-gratia cheque of Rs 4 lakh to the next of kin of flood victims atJhargaon under Mayong Revenue Circle in Morigaon district, on Sunday. – UB Photos

CORRESPONDENT

NALBARI, July 19: Two

progressive farmers of Nal-

bari district recently bagged

national awards declared by

the Indian Council of Agricul-

tural Research (ICAR) in dif-

ferent categories.

In agriculture sector Biju

Kalita and Bipul Haloi of Bal-

itara village of the district who

were nominated by Krishi

Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Nal-

bari got the Pandit Deendayal

Upadhyay Antyodaya Krishi

Puraskar and Jagjivan Ram

Abhinav Kisan Puraskar,

ICAR, 2019 respectively.

It may be mentioned here

that Biju Kalita and Bipul

Haloi both of the same vil-

lage have been engaged in

the farm sector since a long

time back. Kalita owns a fish-

ery-based multi-component

livestock and horticultural

farm with piggery, poultry,

dairy and goatery units. His

annual income is reportedly

more than Rs 21 lakh. Simi-

larly, Bipul Haloi is also en-

gaged primarily in agricul-

ture and horticulture with

integrated fishery and live-

stock components. His an-

nual income is also more than

Rs 15 lakh.

Their contribution to the

society in food production and

doubling farmers income is

an inspiration to the youths.

Their farms are a massive at-

traction for the youth who

want to take up agriculture as

an entrepreneural venture.

Nalbari farmers bagnational awards

Biju Kalita Bipul Haloi

CORRESPONDENT

DIPHU, July 19: “The Kar-

bi Anglong Forest department

under the administrative ju-

risdiction of Karbi Anglong

Autonomous Council has tak-

en all necessary steps to pro-

tect the wild animals who have

crossed the national highway

and scaled the northern Kar-

bi Anglong hill range,” said Dr

Abhijit Rabha, Special Chief

Conservator of Forests, after

Chief Minister Sarbananda

Sonowal during his recent

visit to the flood-hit Kaziran-

ga National Park, had direct-

ed the district administration

to take all necessary meas-

ures in this regard.

Speaking to this corre-

spondent, Dr Rabha said that

many animals have crossed

over to the hills of Karbi An-

glong district during the sec-

ond wave of flood, which has

inundated 95 per cent area of

the national park.

“As a standard operating

procedure, the Karbi Anglong

Forest department under the

administrative jurisdiction of

Karbi Anglong Autonomous

Council has taken all neces-

sary steps to protect the wild

animals who have crossed the

national highway and scaled

the Northern Karbi Anglong

hill range dominated by Dola-

mara and Parkup Pahar rang-

es under the control of East

Division Forest of Karbi An-

glong autonomous district.

“The encouraging aspect is

that the local residents are

helping us a lot in driving back

the stray rhinos and ele-

phants to the plateau behind

the Bagori range. Officers,

armed forest guards and a

substantial number of armed

home guards have been

pressed into service to keep

strict vigilance on the migrat-

ing animals.

“Actually in anticipation of

the floods, we had prepared

our forces earlier not just to

keep vigil within our areas,

but to cooperate with our

counterparts to cover a

number of parts extended

across the national highway on

the fringes of the park. Cer-

tain areas between the hills

and the national highway have

been flooded and the animals

are crossing the area peril-

ously. No causality of wildlife

or our staff has taken place till

now, but we are all set to pro-

tect wildlife of Kaziranga”. Dr

Rabha said.

Earlier, Sonowal had sur-

veyed the inundated areas of

Kaziranga National Park in a

speed boat cutting through the

upstream of Mora Difalu Riv-

er from the foothills of Bagori

Range of the Park to perceive

the situation of the marooned

animals and the action taken

by the park authority to en-

sure their defence.

During his hour-long visit

to the flood-hit areas of the

park, the Chief Minister ob-

served the animals taking

shelter at the highlands built

by the Forest department in

the flood-prone areas of the

park. He also visited the flood-

affected forest camps at

Gorakati, Mora Difalu and

Mur Phuloni and exchanged

views with the forest guards

on keeping vigil against all

odds to protect the stranded

animals.

All steps takento protect KNP

wildlife: Dr Rabha

Incessant rains stallnormal life at Gauripur

CORRESPONDENT

GAURIPUR, July 19 :

Non-stop and very heavy

rains for the last 24 hours

have stalled normal life in

greater Gauripur area. Al-

most all the four wards of the

historic town remain under

knee-deep water. Specially

the Malapatty, Pramathesh

Barua Road, Taranath Gos-

wami Road, Baruapatty Road,

Masterpara, Chadakbari

Road, Namasudrapara Road

are under water.

Some of the roadside hous-

es in the areas are sub-

merged. Pucca drains of the

town are overflowing caus-

ing serious health hazards to

the tax payers as these drains

have not been cleared for last

three to four months. The

residents of the town have

been compelled to remain at

their homes. Some of the

cattle farmers of the town

failed to supply milk to their

customers as their cowsheds

are under rain water. There

is no sign of improvement of

the weather and the town is

facing uninterrupted rain till

filing of this report.

Meanwhile, the Gadadhar

river is flowing above the

danger level and has inundat-

ed vast areas including

Asharkandi, South Geramari,

Beguntali, Falimari, Harin-

chara, part of Bhelakoba, Sar-

aldanga, Chapgarh, Fulku-

mari villages under Gauripur

circle. Vegetables farmers

have had to incur heavy loss

as almost all their fields have

been submerged by rain and

flood water.

The Milan Sangha connecting road of Gauripur seen underrain water. – Photo: Ambu Nath Sharma

Huge cache ofarms recovered

CORRESPONDENT

UDALGURI, July 19: Act-

ing on a tip-off, the Udalguri

police recovered a huge cache

of arms from a ditch at the bank

of Laxmi river near No. 2 Gh-

agra village under Harisinga

PS in Udalguri district today.

The search operation jointly

launched by Bidyut Das Boro,

Additional SP, Premabkur Haz-

arika, O/C of Harisinga PS and

Dipak Das, O/C of Orang PS

recovered one HK series ri-

fle, M16 rifle, AK-47 rifle, four

magazines and 27 rounds of live

ammunition from the spot. A

case has been registered at

Harisinga police station.

OBITUARY

Bina DasCORRESPONDENT

JAGIROAD, July 19: Bina

Das of Jagiroad-Nizarapar

here died on Saturday early

morning at a private hospital

at Guwahati due to cardiac

arrest. She was 80.

She was actively associat-

ed with religious organisa-

tions in the area. She leaves

behind her husband, two

daughters, one son and a host

of relatives.

THE ASSAM TRIBUNE, GUWAHATI 9MONDAY, JULY 20, 2020

STATE

Women transplanting paddy seedlings in a field at Bakaliaghat in Karbi Anglong, on Sunday. – UB Photos

CORRESPONDENT

DHUBRI, July 19: Although the water lev-

el of the Brahmaputra in Dhubri district was

on the receding trend since the last few days,

yet heavy rains today resulted in 278 villages

being submerged, thereby affecting a popula-

tion of 3,15,838.

According to the Daily Flood Report by the

District Disaster Management Authority un-

der Dhubri revenue circle, 18 villages with a

total population of 16,250 have been affected

by the overflowing waters.

Similarly, 16 villages under Gauripur, 13

under Agomoni, 44 under Chapar, 23 in Bilas-

ipara, and 164 villages under South Salmara

Circle have been affected by the seasonal del-

uge.

The ongoing floods claimed another life in

the district as the body of an 8-year-old was

Over 3 lakh affected byfloods in Dhubri district

recovered on Saturday. The minor died due

to drowning in the Brahmaputra near his home

at Nayahat Pt-III under Bilasipara Circle.

The ongoing flood has already damaged at

least six roads and two bridges in the district.

At the time of filing this report, the Brah-

maputra had crossed the danger level and was

flowing at 29.58 metres while the Gangadhar

was flowing at 30.19 metres, when their dan-

ger levels are 28.68 metres and 29.94 metres

respectively.

Although the level of the Brahmaputra was

receding, the level of the Gangadhar was ris-

ing and rainfall measuring 154.8 mm was re-

corded over the Brahmaputra during the last

24 hours.

Following heavy rain, almost all the drains

of Dhubri town were clogged and flash floods

affected at least eight out of 16 wards in Dhu-

bri town.

Himanta takes stock ofSivasagar Covid scenario

Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma reviewing the COVID-19 scenario at the SukaphaBhawan in Sivasagar, on Sunday. – UB Photos

CORRESPONDENT

SIVASAGAR, July 19 :

Health, Education, PWD and

Finance Minister Dr Himan-

ta Biswa Sarma met the

Sivasagar district administra-

tion in a meeting today

evening at the Sukapha Bha-

wan here and reviewed the

overall situation in the dis-

trict brought about by the

pandemic.

The Minister, accompanied

by Minister Jogen Mohan, MP

Topon Kumar Gogoi and MP

Rameswar Teli, instructed

health officials to strictly fol-

low clinical procedures while

conducting swab and Rapid

Antigen Tests every day.

The Minister told the dis-

trict administration to set up

3 or 4 more COVID-19

Screening Centres in the dis-

trict and conduct a minimum

of 300 test per day. He sug-

gested that ASHA workers

should be deployed to iden-

tify persons with travel his-

tory and help them in going

for tests.

Dr Sarma instructed the

SP of Sivasagar to strictly

implement inter-district

travel ban and also contact the

truckers in the loading and

unloading places in order to

make them cooperate with

the healthcare system.He

also directed the Health De-

partment to carry out swab

tests on the jail inmates too.

Sarma said that till August,

the situation may further de-

teriorate and in September

it may show signs of im-

provement.

He said that asymptomat-

ic patients may be asked to

stay at home if they have sep-

arate toilet and have no one

at home with diabetes or

above 60 years of age.

The Minister assured that

over 3,000 Rapid Antigen

Test kits will be sent to the

district soon.

The Deputy Commission-

er of Sivasagar Lakhinandan

Gogoi, Superintendent of Po-

lice Amitabh Sinha and Joint

Director of Health Services

Dr Jayanta Biswa Sarma,

among others, attended the

meeting.

Meanwhile, going by the

present tend of transmission

every single day, Sivasagar

town is heading towards be-

coming another hotbed of

COVID-19.

With 24 new COVID-19

patients being detected dur-

ing the last 24 hours, 87 of

the 117 beds in Sivasagar’s

Covid Hospital have already

been occupied by patients.

One Doctor in Moran, one

security man of an SBI ATM

and 10 women have tested pos-

itive during the last 24 hours.

Barring a few, all the others

did not have any travel history.

Dr Udayaditta Rajkonwar,

senior medical officer of

Sivasagar said that general

people need to be very care-

ful now and avoid social con-

tact as far as possible.

3 suspectedBangla cattle

smugglerskilled

STAFF CORRESPONDENT

SILCHAR, July 19: Three

unidentified suspected Bang-

ladeshi cattle smugglers

were killed by a mob at Bog-

rijan Tea Estate under

Patharkandi Police Station in

Karimganj district.

Karimganj Superintendent

of Police Kumar Sanjit Krish-

na today said, “on enquiry it

was revealed that the suspect-

ed Bangladeshi nationals had

illegally crossed the interna-

tional border with a motive

of stealing cattle from the

vicinity.They were killed by

unknown miscreants.”

The SP further informed

that rope, fencing cutter, wire,

bags and food items made in

Bangladesh were recovered

by the possession of the de-

ceased. Follow-up action and

further investigation is under

process, he added.

Meanwhile, police also in-

formed that talks are being

held with the Border Guards

of Bangladesh (BGB)

through the BSF regarding

identification of the suspect-

ed Bangladeshi nationals.

Stolen ricerecovered,four held

CORRESPONDENT

DOOMDOOMA, July 19:

A case of stealing rice meant

for government supply came

to light when a police team

from Changsari Police Station

in Guwahati led by Deepak

Borkakoti recovered 57 bags

of stolen rice from the gro-

cery shop of one Rajkumar

Prasad and 5 bags of rice from

the grocery store of one San-

dip Prabhakar of Netaji Road

(Sonari Patty) of Doom-

dooma town today afternoon.

Both the grocers were

picked up by police.

The investigation officer

Deepak Borkakoti told this

Correspondent that on July

9 a truck loaded with 341

bags of rice and 272 bags of

white pea (motor) left for

Margherita from a Changsa-

ri-based godown in Guwaha-

ti for supply in the Anganwa-

di centres in Margherita.

But when the truck did not

reach Margherita on July 10,

the supplier filed an FIR at

Changsari Police Station.

The truck driver Arjun Ya-

dav who hails from Dibru-

garh Panchali was arrested

from Beltola area in Guwa-

hati by tracking his mobile

number.

During interrogation, he

revealed that he and his part-

ners instead of taking the

consignment to its destina-

tion, sold them at various

places on their way.

Police also arrested one

Pradeep Mishra from Chabua

in this connection. Further in-

vestigation into the case is

under way.

Webinar heldCORRESPONDENT

SIVASAGAR, July 19: In

the meantime, a webinar on

‘Indo-Sri Lanka Relations to-

wards Regional Cooperation’

was organised by the De-

partment of History at Gar-

gaon College recently.

The webinar was inaugu-

rated by Dr Sabyasashi Ma-

hanta, Principal of the col-

lege. Guest speaker Rabind-

ra Chandrasiri Polliyaguruge

spoke extensively on the so-

cio-cultural relations be-

tween the two nations and

prospects of cooperation for

development in the South

East Asian region.

He lauded the role of the

Indian Prime Minister for

initiating the SAARC Emer-

gency Fund availed by Sri

Lanka to fight the COVID-

19 pandemic in Sri Lanka.

The webinar was coordi-

nated by Dr Raktim Pator in

association with Dr

Dimbeswar Das, Dr Aram-

dao Nargery, Dr Baluram

Das, Prof Anil Tanti and Prof

Nilutpal Chutia.

Earlier, Dr Manjumoni

Gogoi, HoD, delivered the

welcome address.

A meeting under way at the Hailakandi DC’s office campus, on Sunday. – Photo: Satananda Bhattacharjee.

DC tells Hailakandi officials togird up loins to contain virus

CORRESPONDENT

HAILAKANDI, July 19: With a spike

in the number of COVID-19 positive

cases in the community, the district ad-

ministration has come up with new ways

to deal with the grim situation in order

to arrest further spread of the conta-

gious disease in the community.

Convening an emergent meeting to-

day with officials of the administration

and concerned departments on the

lawns of his office campus, Deputy Com-

missioner Megh Nidhi Dahal stressed

on channelising all energies towards

preventing further spread of the disease

within the community.

Hailakandi district has already regis-

tered 719 positive cases till today

evening. Of them, 22 are from the DC’s

office, 22 police personnel and 12 from

paramilitary forces. Some family mem-

bers of the DC’s office employees were

also found positive. Two persons died in

the district due to COVID-19 infection.

Harping on a focussed effort to con-

tain the disease at the community level,

Dahal formulated setting up of a dedi-

cated cell at IDSP Office for quick re-

sponse to any positive case, contact trac-

ing and containment of the area con-

cerned.

A magistrate will be responsible for

looking after a Covid Care Centre and

making provision for increasing the

number of bed strength in Covid Care

Centre in view of spurt in the number

of COVID-19 positive cases.

There has been detection of a number

of coronavirus positive cases under the

Rapid Antigen Test and Assam Target-

ted Surveillance Programme in the dis-

trict. Many have been found positive

without travel history, thus forcing the

administration to close down haats and

weekly markets, besides saloons and

beauty parlours. It has also made com-

pulsory for officials and employees to

undergo swab test in the wake of detec-

tion of positive cases among the em-

ployees.

Apart from closing all business estab-

lishments, except chemist shops at 5 pm,

the administration is also ruthlessly en-

forcing COVID-19 guidelines and night

curfew from 7 pm to 7 am.

Deputy Commissioner Dahal asked

all the officials concerned to gird up loins

and to work in tandem to ensure timely

and coordinated action to contain fur-

ther spread of the disease in the com-

munity.

District Programme Officer of the

District Disaster Management Author-

ity, Rupjoy Maibangsa said the meeting

which was convened at short notice by

the Deputy Commissioner in view of

the gravity of the situation, underscored

the need to contain community trans-

mission of COVID-19 pandemic in the

district.

The meeting was attended, among

others, by District Development Com-

missioner, Additional Deputy Commis-

sioner, Health, Circle Officers, Sectoral

Magistrates, BDOs, Branch Officer,

DDMA, Joint Director of Health Serv-

ices and District Surveillance Officer.

Incidentally, two persons succumbed

to the infection on Saturday. In all, 11,617

persons from outside have arrived in

the district so far. Presently, 312 per-

sons are under facility quarantine cen-

tres and 5,992 under home quarantine.

CORRESPONDENT

DOOMDOOMA, July 19:

In yet another escalation of

the COVID-19 pandemic, 12

more persons, including Tin-

sukia district Deputy Com-

missioner Bhaskar Pegu were

found COVID-19 positive.

With this, the total number

of positive cases in the district

has reached 515. All these 12

fresh cases detected in the dis-

trict have contracted the dis-

ease from the community.

Tinsukia DC Bhaskar

Pegu’s sample was taken on

Friday and his test report

came out on Saturday night.

But prior to that, the DC at-

tended several programmes

and came into contact with

many people, including mem-

bers of the public, people’s

representatives, government

officials and journalists.

On Saturday afternoon,

the DC distributed cheques

among the Baghjan victims

at his office premises in the

presence of MoS for Labour

Sanjay Kishan, Tinsukia SP

Shiladitya Chetia and OIL of-

ficials, besides a few promi-

nent personalities.

Panic obviously struck the

people who came into con-

tact with the DC after he test-

ed positive.

In the meantime, the DC

has been put on home isola-

tion at his official residence and

the entire office premises of

the Deputy Commissioner’s

establishment has been de-

clared as Containment Zone.

It may be recalled that the

Joint Director of Health Serv-

ices of the district, Dr Altaf

Ahmed too tested Covid-

positive earlier.

Meanwhile, Health and

Family Welfare Minister Dr

Himanta Biswa Sarma visit-

ed Tinsukia today to take

stock of the COVID-19 situ-

ation in the district.

The Minister visited Lok-

apriya Gopinath Bordoloi

Civil Hospital in Tinsukia and

reviewed the arrangements

made, besides seeking up-

dates from doctors about the

condition of the patients. He

also took stock of the health

condition of Sadiya MLA Bo-

lin Chetia, who too was ad-

mitted in the hospital after

he tested Covid-positive.

Later, the Minister told the

local media persons: “The

situation in the district is se-

rious, but not out of control”.

The Minister also in-

formed that since he could

not have a meeting with the

DC and other officials of the

district like ADC (Health) and

the Joint Director of Health

Services as they all tested

Covid-positive and were

hence physically indisposed,

he would arrange a video

conference with them soon

regarding further steps to be

taken on the COVID-19 sit-

uation in the district.

Tinsukia DC tests virus-positive

Covid-positive woman diesJORHAT, July 19: A COVID-19 positive female patient named

Anju Chetia aged 80, expired yesterday night at the JMCH.

Jorhat Deputy Commissioner Roshni A Korati while in-

forming about the death of the Covid-positive woman, how-

ever, stated that the cause of death of the woman as per the

State Death Audit Board was non-Covid.

The DC informed that cremation of the deceased was done

as per the COVID-19 protocol. Meanwhile, the Jorhat DC

stated that 50 positive cases were found in Jorhat district

today, thereby raising the number of positive cases in the

district to 798. Korati disclosed that out of the 50 people

found positive, 47 did not have travel history and among the

50 positive cases, 17 were from Jorhat town. She said that

among those 17 positive from Jorhat town, 8 did not have

travel history. The DC further stated that the number of ac-

tive cases in the district was 490. – Staff Correspondent

19 new COVID-19 casesdetected in Dhubri dist

CORRESPONDENT

DHUBRI, July 19: After finding 19 new cases in the district,

the total number of Coronavirus infected persons in Dhubri

till the time of filing this report on Saturday was 621.

On Saturday, the total COVID-19 positive cases was 602,

on Friday it was 597 and on Thursday the number of cases

was 583.

According to the COVID-19 checklist, 474 persons had re-

covered and were released. Most of them are presently home

quarantined, leaving 147 active cases.

The Joint Director of Health Services Dr Syed Imdadullah

confirmed that there is no community spread of COVID-19 in

the district as yet and the positive cases are amongst the

migrant labourers and among persons who came in direct

contact with the patients.

He further informed that they had started Rapid Antigen

Test in the district, which was helpful in curbing community

spread. “We get results of these tests within an hour and

accordingly we take the patients for treatment. These tests

are really helping in curbing spread of the pandemic.

On Saturday, we tested around 300 persons following which

30 persons were detected as positive cases in Dhubri dis-

trict”, said Imdadullah.

Till today, the District Health Services along with the dis-

trict administration had collected 42,008 samples in Dhubri

district for COVID-19 tests out of which 40,505 samples were

found to be negative while 913 reports were still awaited.

ANN SERVICE

DHEMAJI, July 19: Even

as COVID-19 cases in Dhe-

maji district were increas-

ing day by day, 8 more cas-

es were confirmed today

after test results showed

their health status, there-

by taking the total number

of active cases to 318 in the

district, official sources

said.

The newly-tested COV-

ID-19 positive persons in

Dhemaji have been identified

as Ansuna Narzary of Sissi-

borgaon, Dhruba Musahari of

Dimou, Dhanuj Pegu of Dhe-

maji, Karabi Chutia of Dhe-

maji Nalanipam, Pranabjyoti

Chutia of Nalanipam,

Kamarendra Kalita of Deka-

pam and Kamal Chutia and D

Kalita of Jayrampur.

Dr Krishna Kemprai, Joint

Director of Health Services

said out of the newly-tested

8 persons, 5 have travel his-

tory while the other 3 who

have no any travel history are

suspected to be infected by

coronavirus through commu-

nity transmission.

Out of the aforementioned

3 persons, Karabi Chutia is a

health worker (ANM) who

had been serving as a nurse

at IDBT quarantine centre,

Telijan as well as Dhemaji En-

gineering College quarantine

centre.

The Joint Director of

Health Services further in-

formed that 272 cases out

of the total 318 positive cas-

es in Dhemaji were dis-

charged from hospitals till

date with the discharge of 3

today, while 2 cases were

referred to the AMCH, Di-

brugarh for better treat-

ment. Hence, 45 active cas-

es remain in Dhemaji Cov-

id Hospital and Silapathar

Model Hospital.

Tests confirm 8 more Covid cases in Dhemaji

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LOCKHORNS

THE PHANTOM ® By Lee Falk

HAGAR THE HORRIBLE

BLONDIE

Know your DAYBy JACQUELINE BIGAR

HAPPY BIRTHDAY for Monday, July 20, 2020:

Both adventuresome and practical, this year you experience fewer ups and

downs than usual. Success has your name written all over it. You only need to

beware falling into a slump following your success. If single, fate propels you

toward a soul mate by winter. If attached, your strong existing relationship

moves to a new level of intimacy. For some, a new love can suddenly replace

a stale situation. SAGITTARIUS keeps you on your toes.

The Stars Show the Kind of Day You’ll Have: 5-Dynamic; 4-Positive; 3-

Average; 2-So-so; 1-Difficult.

ARIES (March 21-April 19)HHHHH It is a wonderful time to redecorate, plan home improvements

and foster a deeper sense of unity with both relatives and members of

your extended family. Genealogical study might uncover some interesting sur-

prises. Tonight: A lively dinner conversation that lasts way into the night.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20)HHHH Do not neglect correspondence. Return all calls and answer

emails promptly. Get organized. Commuter travel and multitasking

might be necessary. Yes, you can get everything done. Time passes more

quickly than usual. Tonight: There is no stopping you. All smiles.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20)HHH Conversations revolve around business. Focus on what’s prac-

tical. It’s a good day to use common sense and to take a down-to-earth

perspective on what you’re doing. You offer advice and support, but know when

to say enough is enough. Tonight: Do not push yourself too hard.

CANCER (June 21-July 22)HHHHH Today fosters your overall vitality and enthusiasm. Write

your resolutions, schedule appointments and begin projects you have

been interested in. You can set great things in motion. There is a surprise

regarding home and family life. Tonight: Prepare for a change within your home.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22)HHHH Today brings out the lone wolf side of your nature. Your

creative talents shine. A walk in nature or time spent in reverie helps

you heal and focus. Use your imagination. Quiet the mind through meditation.

Tonight: Get a good night’s sleep. Lucid dreaming.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22)HHHH You work well with a group today, especially if the members

are of like minds. Friends play an important role. Focus on your wishes

and dreams, and make sure they are still compatible with your interests.

Tonight: Catch up with old friends.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)HHHHH A friend provides valuable career tips. You may seek a

position of greater leadership. It is a good day for dealing with the

public. You get a boost in prestige. You get along with fellow workers; you are

sensitive to their needs. Tonight: Relax.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21)HHHHH Acquaintances inspire you. Travel is favored, as are jour-

neys of the mind and spirit. If you have always yearned to write, now

is the time to jot down those jokes, stories and poems. Expect an increase in

energy and motivation. Tonight: Burning the midnight oil.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)HHHHH You discover new aptitudes and personal potentials. Ease up

on routines. You are curious and inventive and communicate well. Your

popularity is on the rise. Past life memories might arise from dream analysis and

meditation. Tonight: Worry less about your to-do’s – at least for tonight.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19)HH A partner has expectations. A competitive mood prevails. Adapt

and keep the peace. Follow directions; keep records and receipts.

Questions of fairness and legality might have to be addressed. Keep your calm.

Tonight: Treat yourself to a long, soothing bath.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18)HHH Today brings new insights about yourself. Adopt a live-and-let-

live attitude toward others. Make few demands, and seek no favors. A

strong sense of competition is present. Negotiate to avoid conflict. A health

challenge can be overcome. Tonight: As you like it.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20)HHHH Time seems to move faster today. You will restore stability and

feel more in control. There is time for a romantic encounter or a favorite

leisure activity. Those near you are growing, and with growth comes change.

Tonight: You accept these changes philosophically.

H H H

Thought for the day

I hope I never get so old I get religious.– INGMAR BERGMAN

What is ___, anyway? Just a collective

hunch. – Lily Tomlin (7)

Words: Easel, bride, tootle, dactyl.Answer: What is reality, anyway? Just acollective hunch. – Lily Tomlin

Given below are four jumbled words. Solvethe jumbles to make proper words and movethem to the respective squares below. Selectthe letters in the shaded squares and jumblethem to get the answer for the given quip.

JUMBLED WORDSHEALTH CAPSULES®

by Bron Smith

Health Capsules is not intendedto be of a diagnostic nature.

CROSSWORD - 6950

Across: 1 Ohms, 4 Abroad, 8 Nil, 10 Cask, 13 Veracity,

14 Ashamed, 15 Inches, 17 Remarking, 21 Wok, 22 Etc, 23

Ape, 26 Prohibits, 27 Sweden, 28 Drive-in, 32 Corduroy, 34

Erse, 35 See, 36 Eaglet, 37 User.

Down: 1 Orca, 2 Mush, 3 Five, 5 Baaing, 6 Obi, 7 Dryest,

9 Led, 11 Askew, 12 Kayak, 15 Inch, 16 Hopi, 18 Mote, 19

Kern, 20 Ito, 23 Above, 24 Etuis, 25 Psyche, 26 Peruse, 28

Dos, 29 Ryes, 30 Errs, 31 Near, 33 Rug.

SOLUTION

12:05 India’s Jungle Heroes

13:00 Snakes In The City

15:00 Out There With Jack Randall

16:00 Primal Survivor

17:00 Science Of Stupid

17:50 Mangalyaan

18:45 India’s Mega...

19:05 Snakes In The City

20:00 Monster Fish

21:00 Primal Survivor

22:00 Spotlight: Lost Cities With...

23:00 Banged Up Abroad

23:45 Monster Fish

12:00 How Do Animals Do That?

12:30 The Lion Kingdom

12:55 Animals Unleashed

13:35 Jewels Of The Natural World

14:00 Animal Planet Exclusives

14:45 Fierce 5

15:30 Jewels Of The Natural World

16:00 Crikey! It’s The Irwins

16:50 Big Cat Tales

17:40 Animals Unleashed

18:05 Spy In The Wild

19:00 Animal Planet Exclusives

19:55 Wild Flicks

20:45 World Of Oceans

21:05 One Wild Day

11:00 Assamese news

11:30 Assamese news

12:00 Mid Day Live

13:00 Assamese Feautre film

16:30 Discussion Show (R)

17:30 Guwahati Bisesh

18:00 Guwahati Live

18:30 Breaking @ 6:30

19:00 Assamesse Prime Time

20:00 Discussion Show (R)

21:00 Kotha Barta

21:30 Talk Time

22:00 Live at 10

22:30 Noixo Guwahati

23:00 Noixo Batori

16:00 Upasona

17:00 Devotional Slot

1730 B2B Music

18:00 North East Diva GF

20:00 Rang Blockbuster

23:00 B2B Music

18:30 Vivo IPL HLs

19:00 Cricket Connected

19:30 Vivo IPL HLs

20:00 Cricket Connected

20:30 IPL HLs

21:00 Cricket Connected

21:30 Vivo IPL HLs

22:00 3TC Match HLs

22:30 IPL HLs

23:00 ICC Cricket WC HLs

23:30 Hero ISL HLs

18:30 Vivo IPL HLs

19:00 Cricket Connected

19:30 Vivo IPL HLs

20:00 Cricket COnnected

20:30 IPL HLs

21:00 Cricket COnnected

21:30 Vivo IPL HLs

22:00 3TC Match HLs

22:30 IPL HLs

23:00 ICC Cricket WC HLs

23:30 Football United Special

12:30 Arena eSports

13:30 Champions League

14:00 Whacked Out Sports

14:30 Eng vs WI Test HLs

15:30 Eng vs WI Test Live

22:30 Arena eSports

23:00 Eng vs WI Test HLs

12:30 WWE BlockBusters

15:30 Whacked Out Sports

16:00 WWE BlockBusters

17:30 SCSA Special

18:00 WWE SmackDown

19:00 Whacked Out Sports

20:00 WWE BlockBusters

22:15 SCSA Special

23:00 Serie A Live

12:00 The Amirates FA Cup

14:00 Serie A HLs

12:00 The Lion King

14:40 Singham

15:45 VIP 2: Lalkar

19:55 Baby’s Day Out

22:10 Taarzan: The Wonder Car

11:55 Shikara

14:45 iSmart Shankar

17:20 Thugs of America

19:55 PK

23:30 Mummy

11:40 The Italian Job (2003)

13:25 The Intern

15:15 Journey to the Center of

the Earth

16:50 Blood Diamond

19:05 The Meg

21:00 Edge of Tomorrow

22:50 Shazam!

ZEE CINEMA

23:00 Munna Michael

WB

23:10 House of Wax

HBO

22:50 Shazam!

11:45 Divya Shakti

16:30 Ek Aur Ek Gyarah

20:20 Saathi

12:45 Shahenshah

16:30 Main Khiladi Tu Anar

19:45 Lal Baadshah

22:15 Khoon Ka Rishta

10:00 Sardaar Gabbar Singh12:30 Jumanji: The Next Level14:55 Vivah18:25 Tholi Prema20:45 Geeta Govinda23:00 Munna Michael

12:00 Bhabi Ji Ghar Par Hain!

15:00 Laal Ishq

23:00 Bhabi Ji Ghar Par Hain!

12:00 Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai

14:00 Saath Nibhaana Saathiya

17:00 Mann Ki Awaaz...Pratgya

19:00 Sai Baba

19:30 Ramayan

20:30 Mahabharat Ki Maha

21:30 Devon Ke Dev Mahadev

22:30 Saath Nibhaana Saathiya

12:35 Best Of The Kapil

Sharma Show

19:45 Super Dancer - Chapter 3

21:20 The Kapil Sharma Show

22:45 Times Of Music

23:50 Best Of The Kapil

Sharma Show

15:40 Fear Factor Khatron Ke

Khiladi Darr Ki Class

17:20 Balika Vadhu

21:00 Fear Factor Khatron Ke

Khiladi Darr Ki Class

12:00 Khatra Khatra Khatra

13:40 Kitchen Champion

15:50 Naagin 3

17:00 Meri Aashiqui Tum Se Hi

18:00 Internet Wala Love

19:00 Faislo Ka Mahasangam

Madhubala & Gathbandhan

20:05 Naagin 3

21:00 Jai Shri Krishna

22:00 Faislo Ka Mahasangam

Madhubala & Gathbandhan

23:10 Khatra Khatra Khatra

12:00 Slender Man

14:00 The New Adventures Of

Aladdin

16:00 Seinfeld

19:00 I Dream Of Jeannie

22:00 Starry Nights Gen Y

SOLUTION TO TRIBUNE CROSSWORD – 6950

13:00 Karz: The Burden of Truth

16:40 Tum Se Achcha Kaun Hai

19:55 Kochadaiiyaan The

Legend

22:25 Player Ek Khiladi

11:20 Night at the Museum:

Secret of the Tomb

13:30 The adventures of

Sharkboy and Lavagirl 3-

D

15:30 Help, I Shrunk My

Teacher

17:30 Advengers: Infinity War

20:55 Aladdin

Across

1 Electrical units

(4)

4 Overseas (6)

8 Naught (3)

10 Barrel (4)

13 Truthfulness

(8)

14 Red-faced (7)

15 Twelfths of a

foot (6)

17 Commenting,

declaring or

noting (9)

21 Chinese frying

pan (3)

22 And so on (3)

23 Mimic (3)

26 Forbids (9)

27 Kingdom in N

Europe (6)

28 Outdoor theatre

(5-2)

32 A ribbed pile

fabric (8)

34 Irish (4)

35 Behold, look (3)

36 Young raptor (6)

37 Employer (4)

Down

1 A killer whale (4)

2 Mawkish

sentimentality (4)

3 Quintet quorum

(4)

5 Lamb noise (6)

6 A religious belief

of African origin

involving

witchcraft and

sorcery (3)

7 Most arid (6)

9 Guided (3)

11 Crooked (5)

12 Inuit canoe (5)

15 Creep along (4)

16 Mesa dweller (4)

18 Small particle (4)

19 “Show Boat”

composer (4)

20 Skater Midori (3)

23 On high (5)

24 Needle cases (5)

25 Human mind (6)

26 Read over (6)

28 Some parties (3)

29 Deli breads (4)

30 Goes astray (4)

31 Close (4)

33 Small carpet (3)

LEISURE & LIFESTYLE10 THE ASSAM TRIBUNE, GUWAHATI MONDAY, JULY 20, 2020

14:30 Ultra Trail World Tour HLs

15:00 Impact Wrestling...

18:00 The Emirates FA Cup

18:30 UFC Fight Night

21:30 The Emirates FA Cup

22:00 Football Extraaa

22:30 The Emirates FA Cup Live

12:00 The Emirates FA Cup

12:30 WWE BlockBusters

15:00 The Emirates FA Cup

17:30 SCSA Special

18:00 WWE SmackDown

19:00 India’s Finest

19:45 WWE BlockBusters

22:00 Football Extraaa

22:30 The Emirates FA Cup Live

22:00 Wild Frank

22:55 Just Animals

23:40 Epic Earth

12:35 Ancient Aliens

13:25 Pawn Stars

13:50 Storage Wars

14:15 Modern Marvels-Mega...

15:05 OMG! Yeh Mera India

15:55 Forged In Fire

16:45 Counting Cars

17:10 Storage Wars

17:35 Shipping Wars

18:00 Food Tech

19:00 Monster Motor Challenge

20:00 The Secret History Of The...

21:00 Dynamo Magician...

21:50 Pawn Stars

22:15 Storage Wars

22:40 Battle Factory

23:05 Forged In Fire: Knife Or Death

12:00 Untamed Summer

14:10 Hunter Vs. Hunted

15:00 Animal Fight Club

16:00 Africa’s Wild Side

17:00 When Sharks Attack

18:00 Science of Dogs

19:00 Inside The Pack

20:00 Hunt For The Kill

21:00 Africa’s Deadliest

22:00 Animal Fight Club

23:00 Wild Caribbean’s Deadly...

23:00 The Late Late Show With

James Corden

12:45 Koffee With Karan13:30 Prince Of Persia: The

Sands Of Time15:30 How I Met Your Mother18:00 Last Man Standing

19:00 Homeland

12:30 Kumkum Bhagya Kahani...

13:00 Kundali Bhagya Kahani...

13:30 Tujhse Hai Raabta Kahani...

14:00 Guddan Tumse Na Ho

Payega Kahani Ab Tak

14:30 Qurbaan Hua Kahani Ab Tak

15:00 Pavitra Rishta

17:00 Ra.One

20:00 Guddan Tumse Na Ho

Payega Kahani Ab Tak

20:30 Tujhse Hai Raabta Kahani...

21:00 Kumkum Bhagya Kahani...

21:30 Kundali Bhagya Kahani...

22:00 Qurbaan Hua Kahani Ab Tak

22:30 Queen

23:30 Kumkum Bhagya Kahani...

Actor Adil Hussain is thrilled about his

film Nirvana Inn being screened at the

International Film Festival of South Asia

(IFFSA) in Toronto.

“Happy to announce that

our@NirvanaInnFilm will be screened @iiffsa

Toronto.. So happy that it is quite bit shot in

Majuli, Assam. I play an Assamese Character

called Jogiraj. Along with @sandymridul and

@rajshriartist,” the actor, who hails from

Assam, tweeted.

The movie is about a boatman, Jogiraj

Chakraborthy (Adil Hussain), who acts on his

suicidal thoughts and capsizes his vessel mid-

journey, killing every passenger on board.

Months later, he signs up to be the caretak-

er of Himalayan resort Nirvana Inn, only to

find that the guests who check in are the very

people he presumed dead.

Directed by Vijay Jayapal, the Hindi film

also stars Rajshri Deshpande and Sandhya

Mridul.

IFFSA Toronto showcases a diverse,

language independent films from around the

world, on themes of South Asian cultures and

identities.

Adil film at TorontoAssamese actor Adil Hussain’s new film will be

screened at a Toronto festival

Due to the COVID-19 situation, the festival

is being held online this year. IFFSA Virtual

2020 will take place in August.

Earlier, the critically acclaimed actor who

has been part of many successful movies,

including Ang Lee’s international hit Life Of Pi

says he has never aimed to be at the top.

“Acting is all about embodying another

personality and portraying it in front of a

camera. If one focuses on the craft and goes

deeper into the understanding the art of

acting, the byproducts are inspirational. I have

never aimed to be at the top but have always

aimed to act well instead,” said Adil, who has

featured in Bollywood movies like English

Vinglish, Lootera and Good Newwz.

On nepotism in Bollywood, Adil said: “It

exists in every sphere of life, so does in

Bollywood. If someone does not have merit

and they are being pushed for certain advan-

tages because they are from certain family

then that is nepotism. In India we do not have

the structure in place for the casting of a

particular character unlike west which leads to

nepotism to an extent.”

(Source: IANS)

STAR MOVIES

19:25 The Transporter

MONDAY, JULY 20, 2020 THE ASSAM TRIBUNE, GUWAHATI 11BUSINESS & ECONOMY

AS per the latest auction sale (No28) of Guwahati Tea Auction Centre(GTAC) held on July 16-18, the totaltea offerings were 1,42,946 packages,out of which 90 per cent was sold.Overall the market witnessed gooddemand with prices remaining aroundlast levels to being occasionally dearer.HUL was the mainstay of the marketalong with support from western In-

dian buyers and TCPL. Exporters also lent good support.

Dinesh Bihani

Secretary, Guwahati Tea Auction

Buyers Association (GTABA)

Top garden prices

BOP Price BOPSM/BP Price OF/PF Price

HALMARI 536 HALMARI 500 HOOKMOL 451

DUBBA 446 HOOKMOL 471 HAROOCHARAI 406

KHONGEA 440 SOTAI 431 NAMROOP 401

HOOKMOL 401 GATOONGA 431 BORMAHJAN 400

KOOMTAI 400 DUBBA 426 HIRAJULI 395

NEW DELHI, July 19: At least sevenIndian pharma companies are workingto develop a vaccine against coronavi-rus as they join global efforts to find apreventive to check the spread of thedeadly virus that has already infectedmore than 14 million globally.

Bharat Biotech, Serum Institute, Zy-dus Cadila, Panacea Biotec, Indian Immu-nologicals, Mynvax and Biological E areamong the domestic pharma firms work-ing on the coronavirus vaccines in India.

Vaccines normally require years oftesting and additional time to produceat scale, but scientists are hoping to de-velop a coronavirus vaccine withinmonths because of the pandemic.

Bharat Biotech has received approvalto conduct phase I and II clinical trial forits vaccine candidate Covaxin, that hasbeen developed and manufactured in the

7 Indian pharma cos in race to develop COVID-19 vaccinecompany’s facility in Hyderabad. It lastweek started human clinical trials.

Leading vaccine major Serum Instituteof India has said that it is hoping to devel-op a COVID-19 vaccine by the year-end.

“At present, we are working on theAstraZeneca Oxford vaccine which is un-dergoing phase III clinical trials. In addi-tion to this, we will also start humantrials in India in August 2020. Based onthe current situation and most recentupdates on the clinical trials, we are hop-ing that the AstraZeneca Oxford vac-cine will be available towards the end ofthis year,” Serum Institute of India CEOAdar Poonawalla told PTI.

The company is also developing a liveattenuated vaccine with US-based bio-tech firm Codagenix, which is undergo-ing pre-clinical trials, he added.

“Apart from AstraZeneca Oxford vac-

cine and Codagenix, we have associatedwith multiple institutions worldwide asmanufacturing partners for vaccine can-didates that are being developed. Theseinclude Austria’s Themis along with twoothers,” Poonawalla said.

On the partnership with AstraZeneca,Poonawalla said: “Serum Institute of Indiahas entered a manufacturing partnershipwith AstraZeneca to produce and supply1 billion doses of the COVID-19 vaccinebeing developed by Oxford University.”

These vaccines will be for India andmiddle and low income countries acrossthe world (GAVI countries), he added.

Pharma major Zydus Cadila has saidthat it is looking to complete clinical tri-als of its COVID-19 vaccine candidateZyCoV-D in seven months.

The company had last week startedclinical trials of its COVID-19 vaccine

candidate with the first human dosing.Depending on the study outcomes and

if the data is encouraging and the vaccineis found to be effective during the trials, itcould take a total of seven months for thetrials to be completed and for the vaccineto be launched, Zydus Cadila ChairmanPankaj R Patel said in a statement.

Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech lastweek started human trials of its vaccineCovaxin at Rohtak’s Post-Graduate In-stitute of Medical Sciences.

The phase I and II clinical trials of thevaccine for SARS-CoV-2 by Bharat Bio-tech have been approved by the Indian drugregulator after pre-clinical studies demon-strated safety and immune response.

The company has developed the vac-cine in collaboration with the IndianCouncil of Medical Research (ICMR) andthe National Institute of Virology (NIV).

Panacea Biotec in June said that it wassetting up a joint venture firm in Irelandwith US-based Refana Inc to develop avaccine for COVID-19.

The company in partnership withRefana aims to manufacture over 500million doses of COVID-19 candidatevaccine, with over 40 million doses ex-pected to be available for delivery earlynext year, Panacea Biotec had said.

Indian Immunologicals, a subsidiaryof National Dairy Development Board(NDDB), has inked an agreement withAustralia’s Griffith University to devel-op a vaccine for coronavirus.

Others like Mynvax and Biological Eare also working to develop vaccines forCOVID-19.

Vaccines typically provide the immunesystem with harmless copies of an anti-gen: a portion of the surface of a bacteri-

um or virus that the immune systemrecognises as foreign. A vaccine may alsoprovide a non-active version of a toxin apoison produced by a bacterium so thatthe body can devise a defence against it.They must follow higher safety stand-ards than other drugs because they aregiven to millions of healthy people.

Vaccine testing is a four-stage process –pre-clinical testing on animals, phase I clin-ical testing on a small group of people todetermine its safety and to learn more aboutthe immune response it provokes, phaseII trials are expanded safety trials, and phaseIII testing is done by administering it tothousands of people to confirm its efficacy.

Globally, the World Health Organisa-tion (WHO) is tracking around 140 vac-cine candidates, of which around twodozen are in various phases of humanclinical trials. – PTI

WASHINGTON, July 19: The next10 years is going to be India’s “gold-en moment” in key sectors like tech-nology, pharmaceutical, e-commerceand manufacturing, said a top venturecapitalist from Silicon Valley, pointingat the $20-billion foreign direct in-vestment in the country amidst thecoronavirus outbreak.

“Coronavirus is sweeping theworld, especially the US and India.In spite of that, the amount of in-vestment going into India is mind-boggling,” Silicon Valley’s top ven-ture capitalist, entrepreneur andphilanthropist MR Rangaswami toldPTI in an interview.

India has received foreign directinvestment of over $20 billion in thelast few months during the corona-

Next 10 years will be India’s golden moment in keysectors, says Silicon Valley venture capitalist

virus pandemic, which has had an ad-verse affect on businesses across theworld, apart from the over-6-lakhlives the infection has claimed so far.

“I think the next 10 years is thegolden moment for India to shine;using digital and technology – wheth-er it’s medicine, telemedicine, e-commerce, logistics – in every seg-ment of the market. Whether it’s akirana (local grocery) shop, every-thing is going to be digital. It is thegolden moment that India shouldseize,” Rangaswami, the softwarebusiness expert said.

Referring to the series of FDIinto India post-COVID-19 outbreak,Rangaswami said it is unprecedent-ed by any standards.

Prominent investments include

$10 billion from Google, $5.7 billionfrom Facebook, $1.2 billion fromWalmart and $1 billion from Foxconn.

“I think there will be many, manymore deals this year. You’ll see a lotmore companies coming in, a lotmore money coming in. A lot moreinvestments,” he said.

“Amazon (e-commerce company)continues to invest in India. Othercompanies are looking at India now.Private equity guys are looking atIndia. Sovereign funds will be look-ing at India. Definitely India is go-ing to be the hot destination fortechnology money,” Rangaswamisaid in response to a question.

He noted that the current Presi-dent Donald Trump-led administra-tion’s anti-China sentiment is also

helping India bag big investment.Relations between the US and Chi-

na have spiralled downward afterWashington criticised the Asian pow-erhouse’s handling of the COVID-19pandemic. The US has questioned anew national security law in HongKong, treatment of Uyghur Muslimsand security measures in Tibet.

“This gives India an opportunityfor an economic game-changer. Ithink it’s predicated by two things.The number of smartphone users(in India) is over 500 million, may-be even close to a billion. Second,the government’s push for digitalcombined with COVID-19 out-break, which has taken (number of)digital transactions through theroof,” said Rangaswami, a keen ob-

server of the Indian market.He said the entire business eco-

system is adopting new technolo-gies like never before – which notonly provides easy solutions in busi-ness but also is a market in itself.

“On the ground (during the coro-navirus outbreak), everybody isforced to go digital. This is a hugetipping point. So, this is an opportu-nity I want to see India seize andnot let it go to waste,” he said.

“So, what I would request is Indi-an ministers, key bureaucrats andtechnology industry leaders put to-gether a roadmap, set of regulationsand authorisations so that companiescan come in easily. We (must) avoidall the problems of privacy, securityin the future,? he said. – PTI

First set of pvt trains to beintroduced by 2023: Rlys

A boy passes time at a wholesale rakhi shop, during Unlock 2.0, at Dharavi in Mumbai,on Sunday. Residents of Dharavi, a containment zone, are barely coming out to shopahead of the Raksha Bandhan festival amid the coronavirus pandemic. – PTI

NEW DELHI, July 19: The first set of 12private trains will be introduced in 2023, fol-lowed by 45 more in the next fiscal, accord-ing to an initial timeline drawn by the Rail-ways which plans to roll out all 151 such trainservices by 2027, officials said.

In a formal kick-start toits plans to allow privateentities to operate passen-ger trains on its network,the Railways earlier thismonth invited proposalsfrom companies to run 151 modern passen-ger trains on 109 pairs of routes across thecountry. The project would entail a privatesector investment of about Rs 30,000 crore.

As part of the plan for private trains, theRailways has planned to introduce 12 trainsin 2022-23, 45 in 2023-2024, 50 in 2025-26and 44 more in the next fiscal, taking the totalnumber of trains to 151 by the end of FY2026-2027.

The request for qualification (RFQ), whichwas floated on July 8, is likely to be finalised

All of 151 suchservices by 2027

Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman participating in the 3rd meeting of G20 FinanceMinisters to discuss global economic outlook amid evolving COVID-19 crisis and other G20 Finance Track deliverablesfor 2020, through video-conferencing, in New Delhi on Saturday. – PIB

by November, the financial bids will be openedby March, 2021 and selection of bidders isplanned by April 31, 2021, according to a time-line for introduction of private passenger trainsprepared by the Railways.

Bidders quoting the highest share in grossrevenue shall be awardedthe project, officials said.

“We have worked out aplan by which we hope tobegin private train opera-tions. Tenders will be fi-

nalised by March 2021 and trains will operatefrom March, 2023,” a senior official said.

The Railways has said that 70 per cent ofthe private trains will be manufactured in In-dia which will be designed for a maximumspeed of 160 kmph.

There would be a reduction in journey timeby around 10-15 per cent at 130 kmph andaround 30 per cent at 160 kmph. The runningtime taken by a train shall be comparable toor faster than the fastest train of Indian Rail-ways operating in the respective route. – PTI

NEW DELHI, July 19: Theongoing pandemic has hitevery sector of the Indianeconomy hard and the retailtrade in the country has lostabout Rs 15.5-lakh crore inthe past 100 days.

In a statement, the Confed-eration of All India Traders(CAIT) said that the tradersacross the country are highlydepressed because of very min-imal footfall of the consumers,considerable absence of em-ployees, facing the highest fi-nancial crunch and yet have tomeet many financial obligations.

“No support policy from

India’s retail trade losesRs 15-lakh cr in 100 days: CAIT

the Central or State govern-ment is yet another crucialfactor which is haunting thetraders,” it said.

Praveen Khandelwal, Sec-retary General of CAIT todaysaid that the domestic trade inthe country is passing throughits worst period in the currentcentury which reflects that ifimmediate steps are not tak-en, about 20 per cent of theshops in India will have to closedown their shutters.

As per inputs availablefrom the traders across thecountry, CAIT said that thereis footfall of only 10 per cent

of the consumers so far postthe unlock period which hasaffected greatly the daily turn-over of the traders. As perthe traders’ body, at this cru-cial time, handholding of trad-ers is all the more required.

A financial mechanismneeds to be crafted to awardbusiness loans to traders andrelaxation in payment of taxesand extension in repaymentperiod of bank loans, EMIswithout any further interest orpenalty is also required to pro-vide financial liquidity in thehands of the traders to revivebusiness activities. – IANS

MahindraFinance posts

Rs 156-crQ1 profit

MUMBAI, July 19: Mahi-ndra and Mahindra FinancialServices has reported morethan two-fold jump in stan-dalone net profit to Rs 156crore in the quarter endingJune helped by cost rational-isation measures and lowerfunding cost.

It had reported a profit af-ter tax of Rs 68 crore in thesame quarter of last year.

On a consolidated basis, thelender reported a profit af-ter tax of Rs 432 crore dur-ing the quarter as against Rs108 crore last year.

“The increase in profit wasdue to cost rationalisation,reduction in overall cost ofborrowing and also rise inNPAs was not high,” Mahin-dra Finance Vice-Chairmanand MD Ramesh Iyer said.

He said April and Maywere no-activity months andthe entire disbursementshappened in June.

The total value of assets fi-nanced for the quarter endedJune stood at Rs 3,489 croreas against Rs 10,598.3 crorelast year in the same period.

The company expects anincrease in demand and financ-ing for pre-owned vehicles,agri machinery (tractors) andsmall vehicles going ahead.

“We have seen a revival intractor demand and sales ofthree-wheeler goods carriers.We feel that rural sentimentsare turning positive as monsoonis on time...,” Iyer said. – PTI

NEW DELHI, July 19: Amid spurt in COV-ID-19 cases in the country, Corona Kavach healthinsurance policy has evoked good responsewithin days of its launch by almost all insurers.

Corona Kavach is a standard health insur-ance policy created to meet the treatmentrequirements for coronavirus.

The term of the policy ranges from three-and-a-half months to nine-and-a-half months,with maximum insured amount at Rs 5 lakh.

The Insurance Regulatory and DevelopmentAuthority of India (IRDAI) has given a greensignal to all general and health insurers to launchCorona Kavach policy to cover medical ex-penses of the COVID-19 positive patients.

“The response has been tremendous as peo-ple are quite eager to buy these plans. Sincethese plans have gone live on the PolicyBa-zaar’s website, the company has been selling300-500 policies per day,” said Amut Chhabra,Head - Health Insurance, Policybazaar.com.

Corona Kavach policy evokesgood response: Insurers

Most customers buying these plans areyoung individuals, he said, adding that “thepolicies are very much affordable like Rs 208monthly, which is a fairly cheap amount.”

Subramanyam Brahmajosyula, Head, Un-derwriting and Reinsurance, SBI General In-surance Company, said the provision to coverother members of the immediate family un-der the family floater option and home caretreatment expenses are some of the featureswhich are generating considerable interest.

Subrata Mondal, Executive Vice-President(Underwriting), IFFCO Tokio General Insur-ance, said there has been a very good re-sponse for the COVID-19-specific productsthat were launched just a week back. “Major-ity of insured are preferring nine-and-a-halfmonths tenure. This indicates that people, ingeneral, are expecting the current pandemic tolast for some more time. Nearly 40 per centopted for hospitalisation cash,” he said. – PTI

NEW DELHI, July 19: In-dia’s drug regulator has soughta clarification from GlenmarkPharmaceuticals over its al-leged “false claims” about theuse of anti-viral FabiFlu onCOVID-19 patients with co-morbidities and also over the“pricing” of the drug, afterreceiving a complaint from aMember of Parliament.

In a letter to the Mumbai-based company, Drugs Control-ler General of India (DCGI) DrVG Somani stated that his of-fice received a representationfrom an MP that the total cost

DCGI asks Glenmark toclarify on FabiFlu claim

of the treatment with FabiFlu(favipiravir) will be around Rs12,500 and that the”cost pro-posed by Glenmark is definite-ly not in the interest of the poor,lower middle class and middle-class people of India.”

“Further it has been men-tioned in the representationthat Glenmark has also claimedthat this drug is effective in co-morbid conditions like hyper-tension, diabetics, whereas inreality, as per protocol summa-ry, this trial was not designedto assess the FabiFlu in comor-bid condition,” the letter dated

July 17 read. No clinically suffi-cient data specific to these con-ditions is available, the DCGIsaid in its letter.

The ‘subject’ of the letterwas stated as: “Regarding thefalse claims and pricing of tabFabiFlu 200 mg (favipiravir) byGlenmark PharmaceuticalsLtd, India”. “In view of this, youare requested to provide yourclarification on the above pointsfor taking further necessary ac-tion in the matter,” he said.

There was no immediatecomment from the compa-ny. – PTI

Canara Bank toraise up to

Rs 5,000 cr equitycapital in FY21

NEW DELHI, July 19:State-run Canara Bank willraise up to Rs 5,000 croreequity capital through variousmodes in the current fiscalyear to boost its capital ade-quacy ratio in view of expan-sion plans, and will seek nodfrom shareholders for thesame in its AGM next month.

In view of certain expansionplans of the bank, the imple-mentation of Basel III norms,and consequent capitalcharge, there is a need to in-crease the capital to furtherstrengthen the capital adequa-cy ratio, Canara Bank said inits annual report for 2019-20.

The bank will seek share-holders’ nod at the annualgeneral meeting (AGM) tobe held on August 10 throughaudio/visual means in view ofthe coronavirus pandemic.

The Bengaluru-headquar-tered lender, which amalga-mated Syndicate Bank intoitself with effect from April1, 2020, has Rs 1,030.23 croreas equity capital currently andits capital adequacy ratiostood at 13.65 per cent as onMarch 31, 2020, well abovethe regulatory requirementof 10.875 per cent.

“In order to shore the bank’stier I capital, the board of direc-tors of the bank has decided toraise capital to the extent of Rs5,000 crore through variousmodes including follow-on is-sue, right issue, preferential is-sue to government and finan-cial institutions, QIP and otherpermitted mode of raising cap-ital,” Canara Bank said in theannual report for FY20.

In its previous AGM in July2019, the bank had sought per-mission from shareholders forraising up to Rs 6,000 crore asfresh equity capital throughvarious means including a QIP.

However, the bank said it didnot raise capital through any ofthe modes approved by theshareholders, while the gov-ernment infused equity capitalworth Rs 6,571 crore in lieu ofpreferential allotment of shareson December 4, 2019.

In his message to share-holders amidst the globalpandemic, Managing Direc-tor & CEO LV Prabhakarsaid the outlook at this junc-ture remains uncertain giv-en the depth of economicimplications of the ongoingpandemic wave. – PTI

12 THE ASSAM TRIBUNE, GUWAHATISPORTS

MONDAY, JULY 20, 2020

Printed and published by Ganesh Ch. Das on behalf of Assam Tribune Pvt. Ltd. at the Tribune Press, Tribune Buildings, P.O.- Assam Tribune, M.R.D. Road, Chandmari, Guwahati-781003. Tel. 0361-2660102 (EPABX), 0361-2661360, 0361-2668807 (News Desk), FAX 0361-2666396. E-mail: advt@assamtribune.com; news@assamtribune.com; atribunenews@gmail.com. Editor: Prafulla Govinda Baruah

BCCI hope for deferment of T20 WCDUBAI, July 19: On hold

for the past two months, the

fate of this year’s T20 World

Cup will be up for a decisive

round of deliberation when

the ICC board meets virtu-

ally on Monday with the

BCCI hoping for a postpone-

ment to ensure that the IPL

can go ahead.

The global event is sup-

posed to be held from Octo-

ber 18 to November 15 in

Australia but the country’s

cricket board had, in May it-

self, expressed its inability to

host amid a second surge of

COVID-19 cases in the state

of Victoria.

With India’s case load also

exceeding the 10 lakh mark,

including more than 26,000

deaths, the IPL, if it is held,

is likely to move to the UAE

once the central government

gives its go ahead.

“The first step was post-

ponement of Asia Cup, which

has happened. We can only

start to move ahead with our

plans after the ICC announc-

es the postponement. They

have been sitting on the de-

cision even after Cricket Aus-

tralia said that they are not

too keen on hosting the

event,” a BCCI Apex Coun-

cil member told PTI on con-

ditions of anonymity.

This year’s T20 World Cup

will likely be held in Austral-

ia in 2022 as India doesn’t

want to swap its 2021 host-

ing rights with Cricket Aus-

tralia as of now.

That Australia won’t be

hosting the mega event was

clear after the cricket board

told its players to prepare for

a white-ball series against

England scheduled for late

September.

CA has even announced a

26-strong preliminary squad

for that tour.

The ICC, on its part, has

maintained that it wants to

explore all possible “contin-

gency” options before taking

a call of such immense mag-

nitude. And it is not unusual

for the governing body to

wait this long. – PTI

Atalanta held 1-1 at Verona,Milan routs Bologna 5-1

MILAN, July 19: Atalanta’s push for second spot was ham-

pered by a 1-1 draw at Hellas Verona in Serie A.

Duvn Zapata took advantage of a mistake to give Atalanta

the lead in the 50th minute but Matteo Pessina who is on loan

from Atalanta levelled nine minutes later.

The result left Atalanta level on 71 points with second-

place Inter Milan, which visits Roma. Italian league leader

Juventus has a six-point advantage and hosts fourth-place Lazio

on Monday. An emphatic AC Milan performance saw it humil-

iate Bologna 5-1 to strengthen its chances of qualifying for the

Europa League. Alexis Saelemaekers and Ismal Bennacer

both scored their first goals for Milan and Takehiro Tomiyasu

did so for Bologna. – AP

Saba Karimasked ‘to resign’

NEW DELHI, July 19:

Former India wicket-keeper

Saba Karim has been asked

to resign from the post of

BCCI General Manager -

Cricket Operations.

The 52-year-old Karim,

who played one Test and 34

ODIs for India, was appointed

by the BCCI in December

2017. The Board has not is-

sued a formal statement on the

matter but it is learnt that it

was not satisfied with Karim’s

planning for domestic cricket.

“Yes, he has been asked to

resign. One of the reasons for

that is that he was not able to

prepare any tangible action plan

for domestic cricket (in the

wake of COVID-19 pandem-

ic),” a BCCI source told PTI.

Domestic cricket is unlikely

to start before December with

the COVID-19 cases continu-

ing to rise in the country. – PTI

Originating from Japan,

‘su do ku’ is a mind game

and a puzzle that can be

solved with proper

reasoning and logic. Fill

the grid with digits in such

a manner that every row,

every column and every

3 x 3 box accommodates

the digits 1 to 9 without

repeating any.

Solution of last problem

SU DO KU BWF puts four-term limiton president’s role

NEW DELHI, July 19: The Badminton World Federation (BWF)

has placed a four-term limit on its president’s position besides

approving the introduction of “geographical and gender represen-

tation” in its Council during the Annual General Meeting (AGM).

During its virtual AGM staged in Copenhagen on Saturday,

the BWF membership approved changes to the constitution

ensuring “at least 30 per cent of each gender on Council and

among the representatives from each continental region.”

The decision was in line with the International Olympic

Committee (IOC)’s recent directive to its National Olympic

Committees (NOCs) to maintain gender equality in decision-

making positions by 2020. – PTI

Zidane caps title campaign byignoring out-of-favour Bale

BARCELONA, July 19: Gareth Bale has been left out of

Real Madrid’s squad for its final Spanish league match in the

latest setback for the Wales star who is out of favor with club

manager Zinedine Zidane. Bale played an important role in

helping Madrid to win four Champions League titles after the

Spanish powerhouse set the then world-transfer record of

100 million euros to Tottenham in 2013.

But Bale’s role in the team declined in recent seasons, and he

has become the center of long-standing transfer speculation. His

almost complete absence from Madrid’s impressive march to this

season’s Spanish league title will likely only stoke those rumours

that his stint in Spain’s capital is approaching its end. – AP

‘Bumrah is hardest to faceamong India bowlers’

NEW DELHI, July 19: He has played just one Test against

India but Australian swift-riser Marnus Labuschagne is quite

confident of “staying a step ahead” of the world-class attack come

December even though Jasprit Bumrah is “hard to get past”.

A rookie Labuschagne had played one Test against India in Syd-

ney during the 2018-19 series and the eagerly-awaited four-match

series in December will be an acid test for the fast-rising batsman

after his stellar initiation to longest format of the game. “They are

all good bowlers but it is hard to get past Jasprit Bumrah,” the 26-

year-old told PTI in an exclusive interview from Brisbane. – PTI

Sam Curran of England celebrates after taking the wicket of Shai Hope of West Indies with histeammates during day four of the 2nd Test at Emirates Old Trafford on Sunday.

Brathwaite, Brookslead West Indies innings

Campbell lbw b Curran 12, ASJoseph c Pope b Bess 32, SD Hopec Buttler b Curran 25, SSJ Brooksnot out 60, RL Chase not out 8.Extras: (lb 11, nb 2, w 2) 15. Total:(For 4 wickets in 76 over) 227.Fall of wickets: 1-16, 2-70, 3-123,4-199. Bowling: SCJ Broad 16-3-59-0, CR Woakes 16-6-41-0, SMCurran 13-3-35-2, DM Bess 19-3-59-1, JE Root 1-1-0-0, BA Stokes11-3-22-1. – Agencies

SCORECARD (at tea)England 1st innings:Total: (For 9 wkt) 469 decl.West Indies 1st innings: KCBrathwaite c & b Stokes 75, JD

MANCHESTER, July 19:

West Indies reached tea on

the fourth day on 227 for four

in its first innings in reply to

England’s 469 for 9 declared.

KC Brathwaite (75) and SSJ

Brooks (60 n.o) led the visi-

tor’s innings with solid batting.

At lunch West Indies were

118 for two as England

searched desperately for wick-

ets to give itself a chance at a

series-levelling victory after

Day 3 was washed out.