DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA ● REG.NO.

● REG.NO. MCS/067/2018 - 20 RNI REGN. NO. 1543/57

JOURNALISM OF COURAGE
FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2020, MUMBAI, LATE CITY, 14 PAGES SINCE 1932 `5.00, WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

LG CHEM PLANT WAS READYING TO REOPEN AFTER EASING OF LOCKDOWN

10 dead in gas leak at Vizag LG factory

TRACKING INDIA’S COVID CURVE
LOCKDOWN
DAY CASES: RECOVERED: 15, 266 | DEATHS: 1,783
44 52,952 TESTS: 13,57,413 | DOUBLINGRATE: 16.08**

Leak not plugged yet, 2,000 people in Last May, company told
5-km radius affected, 200 in hospital
state: don’t have green nod
SREENIVAS JANYALA BUSINESS AS USUAL Impact Assessment Authority
HYDERABAD, MAY 7 AASHISH ARYAN & (SEIAA), the company admitted KEYSTATES TOTAL SURGEIN 3-DAYAVG. DOUBLING
BY UNNY PRANAV MUKUL that as of May 10, 2019, the unit TOWATCH CASES 24HRS GROWTH* RATE**
AT LEAST 10 people were killed NEW DELHI, MAY 7 did not have a “valid environ- ■ Maharashtra 16,758 1,233 4.84% 14.86
and nearly 350 hospitalised af- mental clearance substantiating ■ Gujarat 6,625 380 4.51% 15.97
ter gas leaked from a chemical THE VISAKHAPATNAM unit of theproducedquantity,issuedby
■ Delhi 5,532 428 4.14% 17.39
factory on the outskirts of LG Polymers India, where a gas thecompetentauthorityforcon-
Visakhapatnam in Andhra leak killed at least 10 people and tinuing operations”. ■ Tamil Nadu 4,829 771 10.80% 6.67
Pradesh in the wee hours of left several injured, did not have It also acknowledged that it ■ Rajasthan 3,224 129 2.45% 29.36
Thursday,whileitwasbeingpre- an environmental clearance for had expanded the production at 4.97%
■ West Bengal 1,456 112 14.50
pared for reopening after the itspetrochemicalplantforasub- the plant “beyond the limit of
* Compounded Daily Growth Rate over last 3 days ** Calculated over 3 days’ growth
easing of the lockdown. stantial period of its operations environmental clearance or
At least 2,000 people in five between 1997 and 2019, accord- changed the product mix with- CONCERN CAUTION A GLIMMER
villages located in a 5-km radius ing to documents accessed by outobtainingpriorenvironmen-
Gujarat: No.2 in Punjab: Nanded Bihar: Dip in
aroundthefactoryownedbythe The Indian Express. talclearanceasmandatedunder cases, very high pilgrims continue growth of cases
multinational LG Chem were A child being rushed to hospital in Visakhapatnam, hours In an affidavit submitted to the EIA notification, 2006”. case-fatality ratio to test positive over last 4 days
CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 after the gas leak on Thursday. AP the State Level Environment CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
Based on data released by Union Ministry of Health and ICMR on May 7
The six states above account for almost 73% of the national case load

First flights land in Kerala with 363 from UAE In Gujarat, over 1,200
cases in three days
Passengers arrive At Arthur which accounts for 71 per cent
in Kochi and
Kozhikode, kept
Road jail, 77 EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE
AHMEDABAD, RAJKOT,
of all cases in the state. Mumbai
accounts for 63 per cent of all

inmates, 26
VADODARA, SURAT, MAY 7 cases in Maharashtra.
in quarantine WITH 383 new cases, the num-
The new cases
Ahmedabad included five doc-
in

SHAJU PHILIP
staffers test ber of confirmed infections of
novel coronavirus in Gujarat has
tors on Covid duty and the 26
employees of Cadilla
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM,MAY7
positive crossed the 7,000-mark
Thursday — more than 1,200
Pharmaceuticals Ltd in Dholka
that had to be closed down.
INDIA ON Thursday launched cases were added in the last Ahmedabad city remains under
one of its biggest evacuation ex- three days. Twenty-nine deaths acompletelockdowntillMay15,
ercises, bringing back the first SADAF MODAK were also reported from the with paramilitary forces de-
batch of expatriates stranded MUMBAI, MAY 7 state, taking the total toll to 425. ployed in containment zones.
overseas amid the COVID-19 Gujarat has the second high- Among those who tested
shutdown. At 10.20 pm, an Air A total of 77 inmates and 26 est number of cases and deaths positive were two doctors of
India Express flight from Abu staffers at the Mumbai Central in the country, after Jamnagar who were on deputa-
Dhabi landed in Kerala’s Kochi Jail, popularly known as the Maharashtra. And just as tion at the Ahmedabad civil hos-
international airport with 177 ArthurRoadjail,havetestedpos- Mumbai contributes a bulk of pital. “Total 18 resident doctors
passengers and four children. itive for COVID-19, Maharashtra the cases as well as deaths in and six faculty members of MP
Minuteslater,inNorthKerala’s Home Minister Anil Deshmukh Maharashtra, an overwhelming Shah Government Medical
Kozhikode airport, another flight said on Thursday, a day after it number in Gujarat has been re- College were tested for COVID-
landed from Dubai with 177 pas- emerged that one prisoner and ported from Ahmedabad. 19 in Ahmedabad after they
sengers and five children. two guards were infected. On Thursday, 275 of the 383 completed their week-long
India had earlier announced Inmates who have tested new cases were in Ahmedabad, CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
thataspartof Phase1of anevac- Passengers arrive from Abu Dhabi at Kochi international airport, Thursday night. Courtesy: Air India Express RELATEDREPORTS,P8 positive will be shifted to St

Quarantine, tests
uation plan titled ‘Vande Bharat George and GT Hospital on
Mission’, 64 flights and three Friday morning. They were seg-
Navy ships would be operated to regated within the jail premises
bringhomenearly15,000Indians
Orissa HC on returning Nashik doctor tests positive, on Thursday evening. The in-
stranded overseas.
On Thursday, passengers
who landed in Kochi and migrants: Only those who advised home isolation, but
fected prison staffers will also be
shifted to a quarantine facility, a
prison official said.
long over, 3,000
test negative can return neighbours bar his entry Tabligh members
Kozhikode came home to an un- Officialsclaimedthatmostof
usual welcome. Instead of the 77 inmates were lodged in
crowdsof relativesthrongingthe the same barrack as the first in-

still not released

arrivals gate, they were greeted him to enter the building. matewho had testedpositiveon
by officials and health workers by train. ABHA GORADIA Dr Gangurde, who is also the Tuesday. Following this, swabs
who stood in PPE gear in the dis- SAMPAD PATNAIK A bench of Justices S Panda MUMBAI, MAY 7 acting civil surgeon at the hospi- of 144 people were sent for tests
infected terminal. BHUBANESWAR, MAY 7 and K R Mohapatra, while hear- tal, tested positive on Tuesday. A CONTINUEDONPAGE2
Thepassengerswereushered ingapetitiononthereturnof mi- JUST ABOUT a fortnight ago, message was soon circulated on tiveandhavenowtestednegative,
inbatchesintoatriagearea,where THE ORISSA High Court on grants, said, “State government when Dr Sanjay Gangurde (56), WhatsApp groups that “a civil SOURAV ROY BARMAN should be released,” Jain said.
they were made to undergo Thursday said only those mi- should ensure that all the mi- an ENT surgeon at the Nashik hospital doctor living in Nashik’s INSIDE NEW DELHI, MAY 7 Asked why they were
mandatory health screening. grants who test negative for grantswhoareinqueuetocome Civil Hospital returned from Gangapur Road has been found stopped from leaving after the
Those symptomatic will be COVID-19 should be allowed to Odisha should be tested neg- work, his neighbours hailed him to be positive”. GOVTCONSIDERS OVER 3,000 members of the quarantine period, Jain said: “It
shifted to Covid hospitals while into the state, forcing the state ative of COVID-19 before board- as a “corona warrior” and The doctor lives in ‘Rushiraj TablighiJamaatremainconfined was due to the lockdown. There
theasymptomaticwillbemoved government to immediately ing the conveyance”. clapped and whistled for him. Hi-rise Society’ on Gangapur
CASHDOLES TO atdifferentquarantinecentresin was absolute lockdown till May
toinstitutionalquarantinecentres cancel permission given to The order is expected to dis- But on Tuesday, after finding out Road. PERSUADEMIGRANTS Delhidespitetestingnegativefor 3 when all kinds of movement
for14daysintheirhomedistricts. other states, including Gujarat, rupt the return of thousands of that he had tested positive, Dr Since Dr Gangurde was TOSTAYBACK PAGE 4 COVID-19 and completing the were restricted. Now those
However, pregnant women, to transport stranded labourers CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Gangurdesaidtheydidnotallow CONTINUEDONPAGE2 mandatory quarantine period. stranded can be shifted and this
the elderly, children below 10 And for reasons not ex- is why these people, who are
andtheindisposedhavebeenal- plained, the Delhi Health alsostranded,shouldbeshifted.”
lowed to travel to their homes,
where they will have to stay
HC raps police for sending CITU MP takes a leap in easing labour laws, Departmenthaswrittentwiceto
the Union Ministry of Home
A March gathering of the
Tablighi Jamaat in Nizamuddin
CONTINUEDONPAGE2 leader forcibly into quarantine: allows 72-hour working week, overtime Affairs—onApril17andMay3—
seeking “directions and proto-
in Delhi has been blamed by
health authorities for the spread
‘It’s not preventive detention’ cols”ontheirrelease,sayingthey
“have not only tested negative
of Covidcasesacrossthecountry.
FIRs have been registered in

OMKAR GOKHALE
himself locked up by Mumbai
Police in a quarantine facility, in
MILIND GHATWAI
BHOPAL, MAY 7 More investment means but also completed more than
28daysof stayinhospitals/quar-
Delhi and different parts of the
country in this regard. Some
MUMBAI, MAY 7 spite of showing no symptoms
for COVID-19. He would spend IN THE MIDST of its fight against
more revenue antine facilities”.
On Thursday, Delhi Health
members of the Tablighi Jamaat,
who travelled to India from dif-
THE MORNING of April 21 was the next two weeks at the facil- Covid-19, Madhya Pradesh on Minister Satyendar Jain told re- ferent countries, have been
` 105 per kilo just like any other day for K ity, till May 5, while the police Thursdayannouncedaslewofre- porters that the Tablighi Jamaat booked for alleged violation of
Narayanan, Mumbai president withheld from him the report of forms in labour laws to give em- EXEMPTING factories and industrial units from adhering to members could not be released visaconditions—authoritiessay
of the Centre of Indian Trade the COVID19 test he was made ployersmorefreedomtooperate. multiple labour laws will help Madhya Pradesh attract earlier, despite completion of theycameontouristvisasbutat-
` 133 per kilo Unions (CITU), who had stepped to undergo. These include changing contract more businesses to invest in the state. The proposed relax- their quarantine period, due to tended a religious congregation.
out in Andheri West, along with Earlier this week, the labourconditions,allowingthird ations will help units hire more workers, increase work the total lockdown till May 3. Jain said the Delhi govern-
` 165 per kilo two of his colleagues, to distrib- Bombay High Court repri- partyinspections,allowingwork- hours, and simultaneously keep inspectors at bay. “If police have to act against ment has reached out to other
ute food to stranded migrant manded the Mumbai Police for erstoworkupto72hoursaweek Eventually, this will attract more investment, and help anyone, it is free to do so. states with lists of Tablighi
` 54per Dozen labourers. putting him in quarantine if they are willing and are paid generate not just jobs, but also more tax revenues. Otherwise,thosewhoareinquar- Jamaat members under
Hourslater,Narayananfound CONTINUEDONPAGE7 CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 antine and those who were posi- CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

PAGE 1
ANCHOR ‘Would not have accepted (RS seat)...nobody would offer it to me’
January 2018 press conference wasn’t a good idea, SC In my view, it does. I would
not have accepted it. Although I
dissent and have said that
there are no holy cows when
the system. However, having
said that, I think that the CJI
didn’t come out better (in the sexual harassment think nobody would offer it to
me in the first place.
it comes to dissent. How do
you see the expression of
must also be receptive to talking
to all the judges.
allegations against ex-CJI), says Justice Deepak Gupta THE EXPRESS
dissent amongst judges in
Justice Gogoi said he would January 12, 2018 press During your tenure, were

APURVA VISHWANATH
ence by SC judges “was not a
good idea,” cases involving “big
from the government. What
are your views? INTERVIEW act as a bridge between the
executive and judiciary in his
conference?
I was not in Delhi and was
there any formal
consultations among judges
NEW DELHI, MAY 7 money and “fancy law firms” I will not accept any offers stint as a parliamentarian. travelling abroad when it hap- on these controversial issues
seem to get priority in listing. from the government. There are WITH Your comment? pened. But when I got to know concerning the judiciary?
NOT THAT anybody would offer Supreme Court judge Justice some tribunals that are required
JUSTICE The bridge between the ex- about it, I was very perturbed. No. No CJI called for a full-
DEEPAK GUPTA
him that, but he would not have Deepak Gupta, who retired by law to be manned by ex-SC SUPREME COURT Justice Deepak Gupta retired on ecutiveandthejudiciaryexists.It Going to the press was not a court on these issues. We hardly
accepted the Government’s of- Wednesday after a three-year judges and somebody has to be JUDGE (RETIRED) Wednesday is the Chief Justice. When I was good idea and the institution is had any full-court meetings
fer of a Rajya Sabha seat; the stint,spoketoThe Indian Express. appointed to these posts but it is the Chief Justice in high courts, I always bigger than any individ- except for fixing calendars and
SupremeCourthasn’t“comeout not for me. You have to distin- have dealt with Chief Ministers ual. My personal view is that designating senior advocates.
better” after the allegations of Before retirement, some guish short-term assignments and personal view. as in the case of former CJI on various issues. they (Justices Ranjan Gogoi, J There was a request made to
sexual harassment against for- Supreme Court judges take a for the SC to head committees Ranjan Gogoi, qualify as a Chelameswar, Kurian Joseph former CJI Dipak Misra once
mer Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi; stand on whether they will etc from government appoint- Would nomination to the post-retirement job offered You have been very vocal on and Madan Lokur) should have but it did not happen.
the January 2018 press confer- accept post-retirement jobs ments.Thathasbeenmyjudicial Rajya Sabha by the President, by the government? protecting the right to settled whatever issues within CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
 2 THE SECOND PAGE WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM
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FROM PAGE ONE

Orissa HC Markaz building in Nizamuddin. ration of the contract rather than hospitalisaCOVID-19treatment

10 dead as gas leaks from Vizag factory

Of those evacuated, 536 were for a calendar year. centre, Dr Gangurde said he has
migrants, some of whom are on shiftedtohospitalsandtherestto Contractors who employ less isolatedhimselfinastorageroom,
their way to the state. Five trains quarantine centres. than20workersarenotrequired whilehiswife,atehsildar,isinan
that were to leave from Friday The MHA did not respond to toseekregistration.Thestatehas adjoiningroom.Sheiswaitingfor
withmigrantworkersfromSurat questions regarding the letters affected,withseveralfallingun- Mohan Reddy, who rushed to am,soundingsirensandasking ceased,besidesacompensation proposedtotheCentretoincrease hertestreport.Theirmealsarebe-
to Odisha have been cancelled. writtenbytheDelhigovernment conscious with breathing diffi- Visakhapatnam and met some peopletocomeout.Officerssaid package for those affected and the number of workers to 50 to ing arranged by their friends.
SuratDistrictCollectorDhaval or on the protocol for release. culties. Visakhapatnam Police of those hospitalised, ques- they had to break into many those who have lost livestock. give the contractors more free- “I used to distribute masks
Patel said, “We got information Commissioner Rajiv Kumar tioned why the alarms in the homesastheresidentswereei- The Centre has decided to dom.Also,theregistrationwillbe andsanitiserstoalldoctors.Here
fromOdishagovernmentofficials Justice Gupta Meena said at least two people factory had not gone off when ther fast asleep or may have dispatch a CBRN (Chemical, grantedonline.Itissendingapro- at the hospital, I have no mask or
thattheyhavecancelledtheNOC diedaccidentally,onefallinginto the gas leaked. An FIR has been fainted due to the gas. Biological, Radiological and posal to the Centre to make pun- sanitiser. There are few facilities
(no-objection certificate). As per Ithasbeenayearsincean a well and another off a two- registered against the factory A villager talked about Nuclear) Emergency Team of ishable offences under the here to isolate and take care of
HighCourtorders,allpassengers employeeof theSCaccused storey building, as they tried to and an inquiry started. waking up to cries for help. the NDRF from Pune, which Contract Labour Act compound- oneself.Athome,Icouldhavehad
should be tested negative and thenCJIGogoiof sexual escape the pungent-smelling Industries Minister M Visuals of people gasping for specialises in handing chemi- able. thingsatmydisposal.Neitherthe
then they should be sent to harassment.Aninternal styrenegas.“Officialsevacuated GouthamReddysaidguidelines breath as they staggered to cal disasters. Except the clause that deals hospital authorities, nor the mu-
Odisha.Itisimpossibleforthelo- committeefoundno the villages once it was ascer- have been issued to all indus- safety, of parents carrying un- The decision was taken at a with safety of workers, the MP nicipalcorporation,northepolice
cal administration to carry out substanceintheallegations tainedthatthegaswasnon-poi- triesregardingsafereopeningof conscious children, and of sev- meetingheldbyPrimeMinister governmenthasgivenrelaxations are willing to intervene. My wife
medicaltestof suchalargenum- andgaveacleanchittoGogoi. sonous.Allthepeopleadmitted factories. “Our initial informa- eral fainting, evoked memo- Narendra Modi to take stock of inallprovisionsoftheFactoryAct is terribly upset,” Dr Gangurde
ber of passengers.” Howdoyouevaluatethe in hospitals are stable,” he said. tionisthatworkerswerecheck- ries of the 1984 Bhopal gas the situation. The PM also for the next three months. told The Indian Express. He said
Patel said that over 500 peo- court’sresponseinhindsight? The LG factory, a polymers ing a gas storage tank when it tragedy and led to panic. tweetedabouttheincident,say- Chouhan said the state has done he was finally given a sanitiser
ple are tested for coronavirus in Iamnotprivytothemeritsof manufacturing unit located 15 started leaking.” Police and NDRF teams res- ing he was praying for every- whatwaspossiblewithinitsam- when he asked for it.
Surateveryday.With799casesas the case and what transpired in km from Visakhapatnam, was The officials struggled to cued the factory workers. A one’s safety. bit, but it wants to extend similar ButDrSureshJagdale,District
on Thursday, Surat is a hotspot thecommitteebutinmyopinion, set to reopen on Thursday and contain the gas leak for nearly team from the naval base in NDRF Director General S N relaxationsforthenext1,000days Civil Surgeon,said:“Heisnotina
andhasthesecondhighestnum- thehearingonApril20,2019ona around 20 workers were four hours. Visakhapatnam Visakhapatnam also helped Pradhansaid:“Thesituationhas forwhichithassentaproposalto quarantinefacilitybutataCOVID
ber of cases in Gujarat. Saturday morning (In Re Matter preparing for it when the gas CollectorVVinayChandsaidall with the rescue, bringing 50 been controlled and the silo is the Centre. carecentre.Hehasbeenkeptina
According to Odisha’s of Great Public Importance started leaking. PTI reported the five villages had been evac- breathing apparatuses. Apart leaking very little now. We will Except Section 25 of the specialroom,andIcanassureyou
InformationandPublicRelations TouchingupontheIndependence sources as saying that the mo- uated. “The situation was very from breathing trouble, people be there till it is completely Industrial Disputes Act, the state thatitisnotastorageroom.Iagree
Department,Ganjamdistrictsaw of the Judiciary in which justice ment the gas leaked, the work- serioustill6amasthegasleaked complainedofrashesandburn- stopped.” He added, “Styrene hasrelaxedallotherprovisionsto thatthefacilitiestherearenotakin
a spike in coronavirus cases after Gogoi presided over the bench ersfollowedanestablishedpro- till then. Now, it has eased a bit ing eyes. Officials said that due gas is heavier than air and set- allow industry owners to select to what you can expect at one’s
17 people who returned from but did not sign the order) was tocolandwerenotamongthose andweareabletogointotheaf- to Covid-19 preparations, tles with water. So water is be- workers as per convenience. home. He has been holding a vi-
Surat tested positive. Odisha’s uncalled for. Simply put, the affected. fected villages. A large number dozensofambulancesandven- ing sprayed. The gas intensity Industries employing less than talpositioninthehospitalandwe
coronaviruscountreached219on SupremeCourthasnotcomeout Thedeadincludedtwochil- of animals, including pet dogs, tilators were readily available. too has come down.” 100workershavebeenexempted are taking adequate care of him.”
Thursday evening. better after the incident. dren. While over 1,000 people livestock and birds, have died.” With the gas still not fully AIIMS Director Dr Randeep from the provisions of the MP Twootherdoctorsof thehos-
Nearly three lakh workers, were brought to various hospi- LG said the leak had been dispersed,theevacueesmaynot Guleria,whowaspresentatthe Industrial Employment pital have tested positive so far —
mostlyfromOdisha’sGanjamdis- Therewascriticismthatthe tals, only 346 remained admit- noticed by company staff who be able to return home for two NDMA press briefing on (Permanent Order) Act. oneisinthesamehospital,while
trict,workindiamondcuttingand committeehadnoexternal ted by evening, of whom 20 re- were inspecting machines to more days. A defusing material Thursday,saidtherewasnoan- Now MSMEs will be able to the other has been admitted to a
textile units in Gujarat’s Surat. membersandonlySCjudges. quired ventilator support. The restart the factory, and that is being transported from tidotetostyrene,alsoknownas hirelabourersaspertheirrequire- private hospital. Meanwhile, Dr
They started coming back to Idon’tagreethatthecommit- gas leak has not been fully they had raised an alarm. It Gujarat. ethenylbenzene and vinylben- menttoincreaseproductivity.The Gangurde’ssons,bothstudyingin
Odisha after the Centre allowed teemusthaveoutsiders.Youhave plugged yet. said none of its employees The gas leak also impacted zene, and the treatment was IndustrialEmploymentActwhich the US, have expressed concern
movement of migrant labourers to show trust in the institution. Originally established in were among the dead, and the movement of trains from largelysupportive.“Itcancause wasapplicabletoestablishments andsoughthelpfromtheauthor-
during the ongoing lockdown. The committee can draw up its 1961 as Hindustan Polymers to that it was cooperating with Visakhapatnam, including at harm through inhalation, lead- with more than 50 workers will ities in a post circulated on social
ThefirsttrainfromSurattoOdisha own procedure so I would not manufacture polystyrene, the Indian authorities to help the least nine Shramik Special ing to irritation of eyes, throat now be applicable if the number media. WITH INPUTS FROM
was flagged off on May 2, and 16 comment on it. factorywastakenoverbySouth residents and its employees. Trains taking migrants to vari- and breathing difficulty. In case of workers is 100 or more. ZEESHANSHAIKH
trains have left for Odisha from Korea-based LG Chem in 1997, “The gas leakage is now under ous places. Staff at SCMN of high inhalation, it can cause At present, under the Factory
Surat carrying 19,200 people. Therewasalsoaprobeby which renamed it as LG control. We are investigating Station in the city experienced headache, dizziness and even Act,unitsrunningonpowerneed Arthur Road jail
(With ENS Gujarat) formerSCjudgeAKPatnaik Polymers Limited. The factory the extent of damage and the burning in the eyes and suffo- coma. In certain cases it can be registration if they employ 10 overthelasttwodays.Thebarrack
intothe“largerconspiracy”in manufacures general-purpose, exact cause of the leak and cation. Train movement was fatal,” he said, adding that the workers.Thestatehassentapro- has 500 inmates in all.
Tabligh thesexualharassment high-impact and expandable deaths,” it said in a statement. stopped across SCMN from gas would not leave any long- posaltotheCentretoincreasethe Asked if tests are being con-
quarantine-notonehadbeenre- allegation.Didthatreport polystyrene,aswellasengineer- The people living in nearby 8.35 am to 12 noon. term impact. number of workers to 50. The ducted on the remaining prison-
leased until Thursday. haveanyimpact? ing plastics compounds, and areas first realised what was TheAndhragovernmenthas (ENS INPUTS FROM DELHI, state has argued that it will give ers in the barrack, a senior jail of-
States like Uttar Pradesh My information is also that a employs around 300 people. happening when police vans announced ex-gratia of Rs 1 PTIINPUTSFROM freedom to such units from the ficial said that so far, 270 people
started the process of returning report was submitted but I have Chief Minister Y S Jagan wentaroundtheareaatabout3 croreeachforfamiliesofthede- VISAKHAPATNAM) provisions of the Factory Act and havebeentested,includingprison
stranded people and migrant not seen it. they will be able to increase pro- staff, but "precautions are being
workers even before the Centre
cameoutwithguidelinesontheir There’sbeencriticismonthe
12 months ago, company told state: no green clearance ductiontotheirfullcapacity.Also,
industries not running on power
taken".Thereisalsoconcernthat
the 26 prison staffers who have
return. priorityorlackthereof given Thecompanyhadthenalso styrene and expandable poly- outskirts of the city, found itself In 2018, the company had are required to be registered if tested positive may have inter-
In its May 3 letter to the MHA tocertaincasesintheSC. undertaken that it would not styreneusingimportedstyrene. betweenpopulaceovertimeas plannedanexpansionofitsunit. they employ 20 workers. The actedwithmanymore,including
- it was in continuation of a letter Whilesomecrucialcaseslike “repeat any such violation in Italsoreprocessedprimaryplas- the city expanded. After taking Theproposedexpansionby240 state has proposed to the Centre inmatesfromotherbarracksand
on April 17 - the Delhi Health thecaseof theelectoralbonds future”. tics into engineering plastics. over the company from TPD was to cost Rs 168 crore to thatthelimitshouldberemoved. jail officials.
Department also mentioned arenotlistedforyears,many Furthermore,thecompany’s Questions sent to the LG McDowell & Company, LG create new production blocks, Citing the conditions created Anofficialsaidthat93staffers
“mountingpressure”onthegov- othersaretakenupandfast- plans to expand the unit last Chemical’sVisakhapatnamunit, Polymers decided to continue utilities and enhance effluent by COVID 19 pandemic, the state have been on rotational duty in
ernment to release the Tablighi trackedwithoutexplanation. yearwasclassifiedasa‘Category its parent company in South making polystyrene and ex- treatmentsystem.Thecompany hasallowedindustriestoincrease the jail since the lockdown, in-
Jamaat members. Doyouacknowledgethisisan A’ project for which a “prior en- Korea,aswellasAndhraPradesh pandable polystyrene, albeit had then also said that it pro- workers’ shifts from eight to 12 cludingjailorsandprisonguards.
“Since a month has already issue? vironment clearance” from the PollutionControlBoardelicited from imported styrene. The posed to employ workers who hours. Employees will be able to Arthur Road jail is one of the
passed after the completion of I do. The SC is a very registry- UnionMinistryofEnvironment no response. company had received a con- lived in nearby villages for con- workupto72hoursaweekifthey most overcrowded jails in the
Markaz evacuation exercise, the driven court and so the registry was required. However, the In a statement issued sentforestablishmentandcon- struction,andthustherewasno arewillingandarepaidadditional country.Itcurrentlyhouses2,800
persons shifted from these needs to be pepped up. The reg- company filed for clearance Thursday in Seoul, LG Chem, sent for operation of the unit in need of providing them with amountforputtinginmorehours. inmateswhileithasacapacityto
masjids to various hospitals and istrars come from different high with the Andhra Pradesh State the parent company of LG November2001andMay2002, housing units on-site. Various labour laws require accommodate only 800.
quarantinefacilitiesarerestlessto courtswithvariedexperiencebut Environmental Impact Polymers,saidthegasleakwas respectively. In its May 2019 application, industriestomaintain61registers “Following social distancing
go back to their respective donothavemanagerialskills.The AssessmentAuthority,whichin under control and that the According to the thecompanyhadadmittedthat andfile13returns.Nowtheywill norms is not practically possible
states/countries. As on today, all CJIandregistrydecideeverything. June 2019, transferred the pro- company was cooperating Manufacture, Storage and hazardous chemicals would be havetomaintainjustoneregister injailslikethis...So,wearetaking
the 3,013 persons have not only The listing needs to be managed posal to the Centre. with authorities. “...the leaked Import of Hazardous Chemical used for the manufacture of andfileonereturn,withself-cer- steps to ensure that each inmate
tested negative but also com- by technology and leave little According to information gascancausenauseaanddizzi- Rules 1989, styrene is classified polystyrene and expandable tification being treated as suffi- and staffer remain safe by segre-
pleted more than 28 days of stay room for discretion. sourced from the Union ness, so we are investing every asa“hazardousandtoxicchem- polystyrene, it would not have cient.Smallandcottageindustries gating whoever needs to be iso-
inhospitals/quarantinefacilities.” I have myself seen that cases EnvironmentMinistry,thecom- effort to ensure proper treat- ical”. Styrene monomer, which “any significant impact” on the employing less than 50 workers lated,” an official said.
“Administrationishavingatough involving big money and fancy pany’s proposal was delisted ment is provided swiftly,” it wasbeingusedatthemanufac- heathofvulnerablepeoplesuch have been kept free from inspec- Jail authorities said that prac-
timeconvincingthesepersonsfor lawfirmsarelistedexactlyinfour from the environmental clear- said. “We are investigating the turingplanttoproduceexpand- asthepatients,childrenandthe tion.Henceforth,theycouldbein- ticalstepswillhavetobetakento
theirextendedstay,moresodur- weekswhenwesaylistafterfour ance portal in November 2019 extent of damage and the ex- able plastics, needs to be stored elderly people. spectedonlywiththepermission ensurethatthejailisdecongested,
ingtheholymonthofRamadan,” weeks but those involving junior sayingthat“itseemsthatthePP act cause of the leak and at a temperature below 17 de- “All the hazardous materi- of the labour commissioner and since there is no space to follow
Delhi Health Secretary Padmini lawyersarenotlistedevenforsix (company) is not interested to deaths.” grees Centigrade. als will be stored in MS (mild in the event of someone filing a isolation or segregation norms.
Singla wrote to the Additional monthsdespiteourorderssaying continue the project”. Earlier, McDowell & Whiletheinvestigationsare steel) drums, in a covered shed complaint. The state has issued a Deshmukh had in March an-
Secretary (UT), MHA. list the case in four weeks. LG Polymers, which had in Company, which used to oper- underway regarding the acci- and no contamination of soil is notificationrelaxingprovisionsof nounced that 11,000 prisoners
“Department is receiving re- 1997 bought the plant from ate the unit between 1982 and dent,apossiblereasoncouldbe expected. Same philosophy MPIndustrialRelationsActtillfur- willbereleasedacrossthestateto
quests from various states for YouarethefirstSCjudgeto McDowell & Company, applied 1997, had, prior to selling the thatduringtheshutdownofthe will be followed for the after therorders.Thiswillallowfactory decongest jails, but a decision on
theirrelease.Wearenotinreceipt havehadavirtualfarewell foranenvironmentalclearance unittoLGPolymers,decidedto plant due to Covid-19, styrene expansion,” the application manager and the trade union to the criteria for release set by a
ofanyorderofMHAregardingthe keepinginwiththeCovid for the plant from Andhra decommission the production gas was not being stored at the stated.Italsosaidalltheinbuilt resolvedisputesaccordingtotheir high-powered committee – ap-
same in response of our earlier times.Whatarethelessons PradeshPollutionControlBoard of styrene and alcohol-based appropriatetemperature,caus- safety precautions would be conveniencewithoutgoingtothe pointed on the directions of the
letter as mentioned above. The courtsmustlearntoadaptto in May 2019 when it wanted to distillery, considering the ing pressure to build up in the taken during the expansion, labour court. Supreme Court – is yet to be
earlier orders of MHA issued on thisvirtualworld? expand its capacity from 415 plant’s “proximity to popu- storagechamberandthatledto and that there “will not be any taken.AsonMay2,over5,000un-
the release of quarantined per- Even without Covid, we tonnesperday(TPD)to655TPD. lated areas”. the valve to break, resulting in damagetoenvironmentorhu- Nashik doctor dertrials have been released
sonsreturningfromforeignloca- shouldhaveusedtechnologybet- The unit manufactures poly- The plant, located on the the gas leakage. man health”. asymptomatic, he was advised across 37 jails, including 582 in
tions was followed scrupulously. terbutwehavenot.Thisisagreat home isolation. The Health Arthur Road jail.
Now in the light of above-men- opportunitytoshifttovideo-con- Ministry’sguidelinesspecifythat Thejail,underlockdownsince
tioned facts, you are kindly re- ferencingcertaincases,especially come to the court. It happens ersinSurat,whowerearrestedby wasrecentlyinstalledatKochiair- fect the state has already sent, or “verymild/pre-symptomaticpa- April 9, has not allowed new ad-
quested to issue requisite direc- those in pre-trial stages. For ex- everywhere. However, I believe police for their alleged involve- port. is in the process of sending pro- tients having requisite facility at missions. It has also stopped vis-
tions/protocols for the same ample, remand hearings of un- the court cannot refuse to hear ment in the violence at Vareli vil- Afterpassengersgettheirlug- posals,totheCentrethatrequires his/ her residence for self-isola- itsfromlawyersandfamilymem-
immediatelyasthereisamount- dertrials, service of cases can all anybody simply because they lage two days ago that left three gage,theywillbegroupedaccord- its approval. tionwillhavetheoptionforhome bersof theprisonersfromMarch
ingpressureonthegovernment,” be done virtually. I see no reason criticised the court. It is a funda- policemen injured. The district ingtotheirhomedistricts,before Registrationandlicenseforin- isolation”. 18.
Singla wrote. why the SC hearings should not mental right to be heard by the recorded45newcases,takingthe beingtakentoquarantinecentres dustries,shopsandbidimanufac- But the residents of ‘Rushiraj Thefirstcasehadcametolight
It is not clear why the Delhi be live-streamed. Video-confer- court. tallytooneshortof 800,andfour there in special buses. turersamongothers,willnowbe Hi-rise Society’ reportedly held a when an accused was sent to JJ
HealthDepartmentsoughtaspe- encing has its benefits even for deaths that took the toll to 37. given in just one day against the meeting and decided to bar his Hospital after he suffered a para-
cificprotocolonthereleaseofthe judges.Theunnecessarytheatrics Gujarat MP labour laws existingprovisionof 30days.The entry. Dr Gangurde said he got lytic attack and subsequently
TablighiJamaatmembers.Singla of lawyers will also reduce. deputation to Ahmedabad civil UAE flight overtime, and introducing com- statehasalreadynotifiedchanges phone calls from the building’s tested positive for COVID-19.
did not respond to requests for hospital. Out of them, samples of under strict home quarantine. poundingprovisionstoreducein- in the Public Services Delivery committeemembers,tellinghim Officials said they suspect the in-
comments. Somejudges,includingJustice twoasymptomaticresidentdoc- There were around 60 pregnant dustrial disputes. Guarantee Act that will entail a nottoreturnhome.Andwhenhe fectionmayhavespreadthrough
In his interaction with re- Gogoi,havereferredtothis tors- one male and one female - women in the first two flights. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh fine on the authority responsible still went on Tuesday, he was not outsidersvisitingthejailsforsan-
porters, Jain did not refer to any aspectof lawyersallegedly returned positive for COVID-19. Airport authorities said bag- Chouhansaidthereformswould for registration and licencing allowed to enter the building. itationpurposesandthosedeliv-
absence of protocol in releasing tryingtobrowbeatjudges.Is Three others are equivocal and gage will be handed over to pas- attractnewindustries,createjobs these services. The applicant will When contacted, some com- ering essential items.
them. thatwhatyouarereferringto they will be tested further,” said sengers only after strict disinfec- for youths, and the unemployed receivethefineascompensation. mittee members of ‘Rushiraj Hi- Moreover, officials said that
Ofthe3,013atthequarantine astheatrics? DrNandiniDesai,medicalsuper- tion procedures - a spray of workers,bycreatingapositiveat- Factory license will hence- rise Society’ refused to comment fourundertrialswhowereshifted
centres,567areforeignnationals Therearesurelysomelawyers intendentofGGGeneralHospital sodiumhypochlorite,followedby mosphereforinvestment.Hesaid forth be required to be renewed ontheissue,whileothersdidnot fromYerwadaCentralJailinPune
and 2,446 Indians. Of the Indian who criticise the judges when whichisattachedtotheJamnagar exposure to ultraviolet rays by MP was the first state to usher in only once in ten years instead of respond to calls. to a jail in Satara, had also tested
nationals,191belongtoDelhi.The favourableordersarenotpassed. college. passingtheluggagethroughtwo thisrevolutionbyamendinglaws annual renewal. Under the Thedoctorsaidhehadnoop- positive last week.
government had evacuated Someproclaimtheyhavenofaith Theotherpositivecasesinthe tunnels. The ultraviolet disinfec- that are within its ambit. ContractLabourAct,thestatewill tion but to remain at the Nashik FULLREPORTON
around 2,346 persons from the in the judiciary and then still stateincludedtwomigrantwork- tionsystem,developedbyDRDO, Tobringotherchangesintoef- nowgivelicensefortheentiredu- CivilHospital.Whilethe100-bed www.indianexpress.com
 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

3 THE OUTBREAK
THE INDIAN EXPRESS, FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2020

Mumbai

Day after MLA posts Food delivery

outlet shuts,

video of corpses next claims police

harassment

to Covid patients, Sion EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE

MUMBAI, MAY 7

hospital starts probe

A FOOD delivery outlet, work-
ing during the lockdown as an
essential service provider, was
forced to shut shop for the
fourth time on Thursday after
allegedly being harassed and its
the rules bar visitors. cent staff attendance. staff lathicharged at least thrice
EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE The Ministry of Health and On some days, Sion hospital by the police.
MUMBAI,MAY7 Family Welfare guidelines man- records half a dozen COVID-19 Saransh Goila, owner of
datethatadeadbodymustbedis- deaths in a single day. According Goila Butter Chicken at D N
SION HOSPITAL has initiated an posedattheearliesttopreventin- todeanDrPramodIngale,onsev- Nagar in Andheri West, tweeted
inquiry a day after a BJP MLA fection risk. The guidelines state eral occasions family members that he decided to shut down
posted a video on Wednesday that the body must be sealed in a are not available or don’t answer his outlet on Thursday after his
showing COVID-19 patients in plasticbagtoavoidleakageofflu- calls following death of a patient, At Dharavi, where the number of COVID-19 cases reached 783, with 50 new cases surfacing on Thursday. Prashant Nadkar staff was lathicharged by the
beds alongside other beds on ids and be disinfected with in some cases they refuse to take police on Wednesday night.
whichlaybodiesofdeadpatients sodium hypochlorite solution. charge of the body fearing infec- Goila Butter Chicken has five

70 positive: BBD chawls in Worli,

tied in black wrapping. TheGovernmentof Maharashtra tionrisk,whichhasledtodelayin outlets, but currently only its
TheBMC,whichrunsthehos- guidelines on April 30 mandated disposing the dead in certain Bandra and Andheri outlets are
pital, on Thursday set up a com- abodyshouldberemovedwithin cases.“Asahospitalitourrespon- functioning with 13 staffers.
mitteetoprobeintowhythebod- 30minutesfromward.Following sibilitytohandoverallbodieswith “The first time the police en-

N M Joshi Marg sealed for a week

ies were not removed, and asked this, Sion hospital issued fresh dignity at the earliest. We do not tered our shop and lathicharged
it to submit its report within 24 guidelinesonMay2todisposeoff know this video is of which date, my employees, I visited the po-
hours to authenticate whether bodiesfromawardwithinhalfan whether it was taken before the lice station to understand if I am
the video is of Sion hospital and hour of death. guidelines were issued on May 2 supposed to stop delivery of
takeactionagainstthoserespon- Local corporator Ashraf Azmi by me or after that. We will take tancing norms with most resi- urging them to stay at home. them to stay at home. food. The police officer said nei-
sible for keeping dead bodies for saidhealsoreceivedseveralcom- action accordingly,” Ingale said. LAXMAN SINGH dentsfrequentlysteppingoutfor However, people still come out. Officials said that so far, 350 ther any such order has been is-
hoursinwardswherepatientsare plaints from patients in hospital “Civic hospitals generally MUMBAI, MAY 7 one reason or the other, said of- Ihavewrittentothepolicetoim- infectedpeoplehavebeencured sued, even by BMC, nor has the
undergoing treatment. about the delay in disposing of avoidtransferofaCOVID-19body ficials. plementstrictlockdownbyseal- and 50 have died from the ward. area been declared a contain-
In the video of a ward in the dead bodies. to mortuary to keep mortuary AFTER WORLI Koliwada and Mumbai Mayor Kishori ing the entrance of these BMC officials said that cases in ment zone,” Goila said.
hospital, there are patients lying “Ihadinquiredaboutthistwo staffers safe. No autopsy is being JijamataNagar,nowBDDchawls Pednekar, who is also the corpo- chawls,” Pednekar added. hotspots of Worli Koliwada and He added: “But every few
on their beds, and on four beds weeks ago in the hospital. I was performed. Most bodies are at Worli and N M Joshi Marg in G rator from Worli, said in a video Across G South Ward, which Jijamata Nagar have seen a de- days, policemen come to shut
in the same ward are bodies toldthatthereisashortageofclass handed over to family from the South Ward were on Thursday message that the BDD chawls has reported about 900 cases, clinesincethelastfewdayswith the outlet.”
wrappedinblackplastic,insome IVstaffersforthisjob,”Azmisaid. warddirectly.Ifthereisadelaythe sealed for the next seven days to will be sealed for a week. BMC has decided to seal areas strict enforcement of the lock- Krishna Chandra, a staffer of
cases a bed-sheet covered the He said manpower shortage re- body continues to remain there. implement a strict lockdown “It has been observed that where large number of cases down. “Nearly 9,600 people live Silver Spoon, another outlet in
plasticwrapping.Theincidentis mains a major hurdle in running Staffersarealsoscaredinhandling protocol. despite these areas reporting a have been found. in about 120 BDD chawls in the lane, said police frequently
allegedly of ward number 3, thehospitalsmoothly.“Bodiesre- dead bodies,” a forensic doctor With about 70 cases of highnumberof cases,peopleare BDD chawls poses a chal- these two hotspots. Seven roads visits them at night to shut the
which is an isolation ward for main in the ward for a long time from the hospital said. COVID-19, the BDD chawls in not taking social distancing lengefortheBMCasthesethree- lead to these BDD chawls and all outlet.
COVID-19 patients in Lokmanya unless a ward boy moves it out,” “Toavoidsuchincidents,hos- Worli and N M Joshi Marg have normsseriously.Alargenumber storey old buildings, with 180 sq will be shut,” said an official. “They have not hit us, but
Tilak Municipal Hospital, com- he said. He added that similar is- pital administration is taking all now emerged as new hotspots. of people are always out on the ft rooms, have a common pas- Assistant Municipal they ask us to keep the outlet
monly referred to as Sion hospi- sues have risen in KEM and Nair precautions and all concerned The decision to seal the chawls roads...ManytimesBMCandpo- sage and toilets on each floor. Commissioner (G South) Sharad open for a limited time period
tal.Afamilymemberof apatient hospitalthatarerunningtofullca- have been instructed,” a state- was taken as BMC was finding it lice personnel have visited the Also, with large families staying Ughade was not available for only,” he added.
is also seen in the video, though pacity but do not have 100 per ment from BMC said. difficulttoimplementsocialdis- area and made announcements in small houses, it is difficult for comment. When contacted, senior
Inspector Parmeshwar Ganame
of D N Nagar police station, said,

IAS officer on Covid task force tests positive Escalators for

Metro 7 arrives
“I am not aware of what has
happened, but if they stand out-
side their outlets, policemen
saidtheofficerwassymptomatic. and Rehabilitation Secretary, oppositetheCricketClubofIndia, must have beaten them up.” He
Officer’s husband, Her husband, also a civil servant, KishoreRajeNimbalkar,said,“The where some of the senior-most Mumbai: Work has commenced added that he has reached out
3 senior bureaucrats tested negative for the virus but entire disaster control room staff bureaucrats reside. “All entries ontheMumbaiMetro7(Dahisar to Goila.
has been put under observation, hasbeenstayinginisolationpods and exits to the building have East to Andheri East) with MM- “The matter has been re-
quarantined officials said. for the past fortnight.” Only last been barred. The fourth floor has RDA receiving 12 escalators and solved,” Ganame said.
Access control at the state’s week, an extensive disinfection been cordoned off,” a senior offi- twoelevatorsinthelastthreedays Officers said on several oc-
disaster control room on the first drive was carried out in cial said. Thermal screeners have fromChina.Themachinerycame casions, food delivery agents are
EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE floorofthemainsecretariatbuild- Mantralayaafterdetectionoffour also been provided at all in 30 containers. “All necessary found standing outside the out-
MUMBAI,MAY7 ing has also been tightened with other cases. such buildings. precautions were taken for the lets and not following social dis-
noonebeingpermittedentry,be- Earlier this week, a deputy A spurt of cases has also been shipment,” said a statement by tancing norms. Officers only
A PRINCIPAL secretary-rank offi- sides the immediate staff. secretary-rank official with the reportedfromBellHaven,another MMRDA, adding that work had stop to disperse the crowd, said
cer,apartoftheCOVID-19control Inthelastcoupleofweeks,the Home department had also IAS accommodation in Marine begun on a “war footing”. ENS an officer.
task force, tested positive for the principal secretary-rank officer testedpositive.OnThursday,ad- Lines.Aformerseniorbureaucrat,
virusThursday.ThreeotherIASof- was overseeing the task of trans- ditionalprecautionarymeasures now bedridden, who resides on
Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh at JJ Marg ficers, including two additional portationofmigrantworkersout were adopted for government thepremisesisamongthosewho
police station, on Thursday. Ganesh Shirsekar chiefsecretary-rankofficialswho of thestate.Meetingswerebeing buildings housing senior bu- have tested positive. Others are
mayhavebeenexposedtothein- held at the first-floor control reaucrats. “Contact tracing is go- cases from the servant quarters.
dexcase,wereputonhomequar- room. She was also a part of the ing on in both the cases. All pro- Withseniorbureaucratsnow
antine, while the principal secre- team coordinating relief meas- tocols will be followed,” a senior confined to work from home,

Top cop visits JJ Marg tary-rankofficerwasadmittedto

a hospital.
ures in shelter homes across
the state.
official said.
Measures were tightened at
functioning of some key govern-
ment department will be

police station after 26

Senior Mantralaya officials When contacted, the Relief Yashodhan, a high-rise building impacted.

PALGHAR LYNCHING 219 FIRs for

personnel test positive 3 weeks later, SP sent on forced leave attacks on cops,
nates. He said in the past they
EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE have fought tough battles ing to them, the government has The official added that health personnel
MUMBAI, MAY 7 against the underworld and MOHAMEDTHAVER decidedtosendPalgharSPGaurav Deshmukhalsoreceivedapplica-
even against terrorist, like dur- MUMBAI,MAY7 Singhonforcedleaveandgivethe tions from the families of several Mumbai:Thestatepolicehasreg-
MUMBAIPOLICECommissioner ing the 26/11, and “despite los- additionalSPofPalgharthecharge arrestedaccused,sayingthatthey istered219casesagainstresidents
Param Bir Singh visited JJ Marg ing our men we have come out PALGHARSPGauravSinghwason in the interim.” were wrongly picked up. for attacking police and health
police station on Thursday after victorious”.“Thisbattleisagainst Thursday sent on forced leave by Earlier, five policemen from Deshmukhtoldthemthathewill personnelsincethelockdownbe-
26 policemen posted at the sta- an invisible enemy and like any the state government, three the Kasa police station, including waitfortheCIDtocompleteitsin- gan. Data released by the police
tion, including 12 officers, tested otherbattle,wewillcomeouton weeks after two sadhus from a thein-charge,weresuspended.As quiry before taking a decision. Thursday showed 189 of these
positive for COVID-19. Sixty top,” Singh told his men. Mumbai ashram and their driver manyas35policepersonnelwere The lynching incident had FIRswerefiledagainstindividuals
otherpolicepersonnelatthesta- Additional Commissioner of were lynched by villagers in the transferred from the police sta- taken place on April 16 when forattackingpolicepersonnelen-
tion have been sent to home Police (south region) Nishith district. tion,underwhosejurisdictionthe Chikne Kalpvrukshgiri (70), his forcing the curfew. The latest of
quarantine. Mishra and Deputy Home Minister Anil incident took place. disciple Sushilgiri Maharaj (35) theseattacktookplaceatavillage
Sources in the department Commissioner of Police (zone 1) Deshmukh Thursday visited Sources said that after speak- and driver Nilesh Telgade (30) in Solapur rural district last week
saidthatstaff fromotherdepart- Sangramsingh Nishandar were Gadhchinchle village where the ingtothelocalrepresentatives,in- were headed to Surat from when a man allegedly tried to set
ments have been deputed at JJ also present on the occasion. incidenttookplaceonApril16.He cluding the MLA, the MP and the Kandivali to attend the funeral of a policeman on fire. Pune rural
Marg police station to support So far, 263 policemen from was accompanied by state DGP sarpanch of the village, a senior sadhu. The vehicle man- (13) and Solapur rural accounted
the existing staff. An officer said the city have tested positive for Subodh Jaiswal and officers from Deshmukhcametoknowthatthe aged to evade police checkpoints forthemaximumcasesofattacks
Singh visited the police station COVID-19. Besides, 16 police- the state CID that is now investi- police were aware that rumours set up for the lockdown, and against policemen, followed by
toboostthemoraleof thepolice- men from Sahar police station gatingthecase.Sofar,110villagers weredoingtheroundsinthearea reached right up to the Palghar (10), Satara (9) and Latur
menpostedatJJMargpolicesta- have also tested positive. have been arrested in the case. aboutthievesandchildliftersbe- Maharashtra and Dadra-Nagar (8)districts.AsofThursday,73po-
tion, as it remains the most-af- An officer said, “In our juris- In a video after his visit, ing on the prowl. “It is believed HaveliTaluka.Theywerestopped licemen and one Home Guards’
fected police station in the state. diction, Lelewadi area is the Deshmukh said, “I met the local that if strict action was taken to there by forest guards and it was personnel were injured in these
In a video of Singh's visit cir- worst-affected zone. Majority of elected representatives and resi- curb the rumour mongering, the on their way back that they were attacks. So far, 683 people have
culated on WhatsApp, he could these policemen who got in- dents to understand the reason lynching could have been mistaken as child lifters and beenarrestedforattackingpolice
be seen motivating his subordi- fected were posted in that area.” behind the incident. After listen- avoided,” an official said. lynched. personnel. ENS

CAMPUS PLACEMENTS

Some offer letters revoked, on campus recruitment postponed

processes on hold. Even students Another round of placement A student from IIT-Bombay's terpart of an American MNC. 10backedout.“Weaskedcompa-
ABHAGORADIA who have received offers from once TISS reopens is unlikely. Shailesh J Mehta School of Training and placement offi- nies if they can offer jobs that of-
MUMBAI,MAY7 companiesarenotsureiftheirap- Someschoolshaveaskedcompa- Management, placed in a cerofIIT-B,BVRaviShankar,said: feredstudenttheoptionofwork-
pointment letters will be hon- nies if they could conduct the Bangalore-basedconsultingfirm, “Wehavemovedtoonlineevalu- ingremotelyandsomedid.Since
AS A student of graduating MA oured.“Foracourselikemine,I’m process online. For the School of was to join office on April 1. ationofcandidatesforcompanies many marketing jobs involve go-
Social Work (Criminology and lesshopefuloffindinganyoppor- Social Work, absence of govern- “Luckily, the firm has sent a mail who are willing.” The second ing to the field, some offers were
Justice) class at TISS, the 24-year- tunityrightaway.Otherthanfor- ment-run companies in this year saying they will share a joining phase for placements had com- withdrawn,”said Shukla.
old was looking forward to be- mal placements, we have a was disappointing, said another date shortly. But there have been menced on January 20. Narsee Monjee Institute of
cominganemployedprofessional WhatsAppgroupforjoboffersbut representative. cases where students have not “Companies have established Management Studies said all its
just three months ago. He was many companies are now asking The campus placement sys- been given offer letters after be- contactwithmostof theselected studentswereplacedinsummer
part of the cohort who paid TISS’ forpriorexperienceof twotofive tem, through which many grad- ing selected,” he said. candidates. Rolling out offer let- internships and final-year place-
centralplacementcommitteeand years.Mostofusarefreshers,”the uating students found jobs well “There is a word on our cam- ters generally extends till May.” ments, conducted from October
theSchoolofSocialWorktoregis- TISS student said. aheadof theirfinalsemester,has pus (IIT-B) that companies are Ofthe121studentsofMasters to January and December to
ter for the year’s placement op- As for the central placements beenanearlycasualtyof COVID- backing out. I last received a mail in Management Studies at January, respectively. However,
portunities. But COVID-19 inter- forwhichhehadregisteredalong 19.Placementsformostcolleges from the company that had re- Mumbai University’s Alkesh the students claimed otherwise.
vened. witharound400others,lessthan begin after August. With the cruited me saying said that the Dinesh Mody Institute for “Whilemanyinternshipsgotcan-
The TISS student is not alone. 60 have been placed. A student economy already sluggish, the joining date has been pushed to ManagementandFinancialstud- celled, some companies have
Acrossthecountry,thelockdown representative of the cell said privatesectortoohaveindicated August,” said a student of metal- ies, 89 had been placed, said startedonlinelearningplatforms,
hasforcedseveraleducationalin- fewerthan20companiescameto that this would be a bad year for lurgical engineering, who has DirectorSmitaShukla.Of35com- which we are not interested in,”
stitutes to put their placement the campus this year. recruitment. been placed by the Indian coun- panies that had come for hiring, said a MBA student.
 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

4 THE OUTBREAK
THE INDIAN EXPRESS, FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2020

Maharashtra

Isolate more in Dharavi: Thackeray hints at

extending lockdown
Central team as state in state till May-end
cases cross 18,000 EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE
MUMBAI, MAY 7

INAmeetingwithleadersof var-
Chief
Minister
TABASSUM ious political parties on the cur- Uddhav
BARNAGARWALA rent COVID-19 situation, Chief Thackeray
MUMBAI, MAY 7 Minister Uddhav Thackeray on
Thursday indicated that the
ONAdaywhenacentralgovern- lockdownmightbeextendedtill is likely that the lockdown may
ment team visited Dharavi in the end of May in the state. beextendedtillMayend,”theof-
Mumbaitoinspectcontainment “We managed to control the ficial added.
measures,Maharashtrarecorded spread of the infection due to Bahujan Vikas Aghadi MLA
43 deaths due to COVID-19 — its stringent implementation of Hitendra Thakur said, “CM indi-
highest single-day toll so far. lockdown. Now, we have to take cated about the extension of
With this, 694 people have suc- more care till May-end,” lockdown when he said that
cumbed to the virus in the state. Thackeray said during the inter- more care needs to be taken till
Thecentralteamhasadvised action on Thursday, adding that May end to stop further increase
the state to aggressively expand At a private clinic in Dharavi on Thursday. Prashant Nadkar itcouldonlybedonewithevery- in coronavirus cases.”
its isolation facilities and shift one’s co-operation. Thakur demanded that a few
high-riskpeopleincontainment He said the BMC had set up a local trains be started for people

18,120
zones of Dharavi — which as on those who require isolation may largenumberof isolationcentres working in essential services.
Thursdayhasreported783cases goup,possiblyintofivedigits,ifall at BKC, Worli and Race Course to “Thereisalotofcrowdinginbuses
— to institutional quarantine to high-risk contacts are shifted to tackletherisingnumberof cases. thatessentialserviceworkersuse.
curb community spread. quarantine facilities. The chief minister said the state Ifafewtrainsarestartedinmorn-
With 1,362 new cases re-
ported on Thursday, the overall TOTALPOSITIVECASES “Wehaveaskedthemunicipal
commissioner to aggressively
government has also requested
the Army and the Mumbai Port
ing and evening, then these peo-
plecanmaintainsocialdistancing
tally stands at 18,120 in INMAHARASHTRA take over schools, marriage halls TrusttomakeavailableICUbeds. and travel safely. Entry on these
Maharashtra. Mumbai reported andgroundstosetupquarantine “We are taking all possible trainscanbegivenafterchecking
826of thenewcases.Sofar,ithas Number of deaths 694 facilities,” said Health Minister carewhiletransportingmigrants their ID cards,” he added.
recorded 11,394 cases and 437 Total number of people RajeshTope.OnThursday,50new totheirhomestates.Wewillalso DeputyCMAjitPawarsaidthe
deaths. While Pune reported discharged 3,301 caseswererecordedinDharavi.At take proper care before granting state government has requested
seven deaths, it also recorded least 21 people have succumbed permission to people for their the Reserve Bank of India to give
161newcases.Inall,Punehasre- Number of people tested totheinfection,includingadeath transportation within state so crop loans to the farmers who
ported134and2,461casessofar. 2 lakh that occurred on Thursday. thatitwon'tcreateanydangerin have availed the benefits of the
Nagpur,too,continuedtowit- Total number quarantined The central team also visited orangeandgreenzones,”hesaid. farm loan waiver. “The talks are
nessahugespurtincaseswiththe 13,494 Worli and Seven Hills hospital. The meeting, held through onwithRBI.Also,thegovernment
tally rising to 262 on Thursday. “The team has assured of central video-conference, was attended willensurethatthereisnoshort-
Number of new cases 1,362
With this, the city has seen 100 government aid whenever re- by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit ageof seedsandfertilisersforthe
new cases in the last 48 hours. quired. They advised that high- Pawar, Leader of Opposition in kharif season," he added.
Almost all of these cases have wereaddedtothelist.Thecityhas riskpopulationshouldbemoved Legislative Assembly Devendra Meanwhile, Fadnavis said
been reported from the two con- registered three deaths so far. tocompulsoryinstitutionalquar- Fadnavis, Leader of Opposition thousands of migrants could be
tainment zones of Mominpura Meanwhile in Mumbai, the antine,” said Anup Kumar Yadav, in Legislative Council Pravin seen walking to their home
(85) and Satranjipura (12). central government team found Director,NationalHealthMission. Darekar, ministers Balasaheb states. “The state government
The city had recorded its first thatsocialdistancingwasdifficult Of43deathsinstate,Mumbai Thorat, Ashok Chavan and shouldseekmoretrainsfromthe
case on March 11. It took 56 days to achieve in dense pockets of recorded26,followedbysevenin Eknath Shinde, MNS chief Raj Centre. It should also give more
to reach the 150-mark but in the Dharavi. It currently has nine Pune, five in Vasai-Virar, two in Thackeray, Vanchit Bahujan attention on the health situation
next two days, 100 more cases
were added to the tally.
WhileinitiallyonWednesday,
quarantine facilities in schools,
sports complexes, hostels and
communityhalls.TillWednesday,
Solapur, and one each in Palghar,
Akola and Aurangabad.
The state has 1,087 contain-
STAND ALONE Aghadi leader
Ambedkar and leaders from
other smaller parties.
Prakash in Mumbai and Maharashtra,”
said Fadnavis, while extending
complete support to the govern-
44newcaseswerereported,later 2,380peopleremainedunderin- ment zones at present and has Residents wait for their turn as an NGO distributes ration packets in Mumbai’s Dharavi on Anofficialsaidsuchanexten- ment. The government should
in the night, 24 more cases were stitutional quarantine, but the screened over 51 lakh people for Thursday. Nirmal Harindran sion was likely. “Since the num- ensurebettercoordinationinthe
detected. On Thursday, 32 cases central team said the number of symptoms of C-19. ber of cases is rising every day, it administration, he added.

Govt considers cash doles to persuade migrants to stay back

liberatethemoveonFriday. mentearlylastmonthforsuggest- Building and Other Construction About 12 crore workers are registerallbeneficiaries,thepanel daily-wage workers. The party’s
SANDEEP ASHAR The recommendation comes ingwaystorevivethestate’secon- Workers Welfare Board, which engaged in Maharashtra’s uror- has also suggested a simple web task force for COVID-19 control
NUMBER MUMBAI, MAY 7 at a time when industry captains omy,hassaidinitsreportthatthe collects one per cent cess from ganised sector, official statistics applicationformatfortheprocess. measures, headed by former

WATCH AFTER THE BJP ruled states of

havewarnedthatongoingreverse
migrationwouldhurtthepaceof
unorganised sector has been the
worst-hit due to the lockdown.
property developers for worker
welfaremeasures,toannouncea
show. “The direct transfer will
help them survive these difficult
Haryana was the first state to
rolloutcashtransferfortheunor-
Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan,
has already recommended this
Haryana and Karnataka, industry’s revival from the dam- “With the economic activity monthly cash handout of Rs times. Free food packets and ra- ganisedsector.Afterpubliclyurg- measure to the government.
■ Cases registered Maharashtra is now considering age inflicted by the coronavirus comingtoascreechinghaltduring 2,000 for three months to con- tionaregood.Butyouneedcash- ing stranded workers in his state Meanwhile,fortheMSMEsec-
under Section 188 cashtransfersforpersuadingmi- lockdown.WithMaharashtrabe- thelockdown,lakhsofdailywage struction workers. But the panel in-hand for meeting the chal- to stay back, Karnataka Chief tor, the panel has recommended
(Violating an order grant workers to stay back. ing epicentre of COVID-19 infec- earnershavealmostgoneamonth has now recommended that the lenges,” a committee member MinisterBSYeddyurappa,too,has that the government should ab-
issued by a public An expert panel set up by the tions in India, lakhs of stranded and a half without earning a sin- government should dip into its said.Panelmembersalsofeelthat announcedcashdolesforasection sorb100percentinterestonfresh
servant) of IPC: Uddhav Thackeray-led govern- workersaredesperatetoreturnto gle rupee. The livelihood of most ownkittytocomfortotherunor- the cash handouts may just per- of theunorganisedworkforce. capital loans for a six-month pe-
533 (96,231) ment in the state has recom- their native villages even in the workersisatstake.Theyneedgov- ganised workers including head suadesomeofthemigrantwork- In Maharashtra, the riod. “MSMEs would need work-
■ Persons who violated mended direct bank transfers for middle of the pandemic. ernment’sfinancialsupporttosur- loaders, house helps, and other ers to stay back and facilitate the Congress, a partner in the gov- ing capital to restart production.
quarantine: 7 (649) the next three months for the en- The 11-member expert com- vive,”thepanel’sreportstates. daily-wage earners. It has said revival of the economy. ernment,hasalreadydemanded Weareplanningtorequestbanks
tirelabourforceengagedintheun- mittee,comprisingseniorserving OnApril18,theChiefMinister that even those who survive by Contending that help from com- a monthly “unemployment al- to give loans to raise it. We will
■ Phone calls made to organised sector. A state Cabinet and retired bureaucrats, which haddivedintofundscollectedby begging alms should be consid- munitygroupsandwardortaluka lowance”of Rs5,000amonthfor bear the interest cost for six
100 pertaining to sub-committeeisexpectedtode- was set up by the state govern- the state-run Maharashtra ered as beneficiaries. level officials could be sought to the next three months to the months,” a panel member said.
COVID-19: 364 (85,309)

State to screen migrants before travel, no Tope asks pvt hospitals

■ Number of infected
police personnel:
35 (531)

to comply with price

need for individual medical certificates
■ Cases of illegal
transport: 2 (1,281)
■ Arrests: 136 (18,858)
■ Vehicles seized:
caps, warns of action
259 (53,330)
IRAM SIDDIQUE
■ Fines imposed: RS MUMBAI, MAY 7 TABASSUM State officials said
5.43 LAKH (Rs 3.56 cr) BARNAGARWALA despite the
IN A major relief to thousands of MUMBAI, MAY 7
*Figures in red are from May 7; migrant workers and other notifications, hospitals
in bracket total so far stranded persons willing to re- STATE HEALTH Minister Rajesh have continued to
turn to their home states amid Tope has warned of stern action
the lockdown, the Maharashtra if private hospitals did not com-
overcharge
governmentThursdaydiscontin- ply with the price cap and follow
Day after testing ued the need for a medical cer- thenewscheduleof ratesforvar- Officials said they have received
tificatefromaregisteredmedical iousmedicalproceduresreleased multiple complaints of “over-
positive for practitioner while seeking per- by the government on May 1. charging” by the hospital in
missiontotravelfromthepolice. “We came across complaints COVID-19 treatment on a regu-
Covid, CISF head The order, signed by that private hospitals are charg- lar basis. Dr Sudhakar Shinde,
Maharashtra Chief Secretary ing anywhere between Rs State Health Assurance Society
constable dies AjoyMehta,statedmigrantsand 50,000 and Rs 1 lakh for a single head, said, “I have warned them
stranded persons will be day of treatment. We have taken (the hospital) of strict compli-
Mumbai: A Central Industrial screened by government med- a decision to cap prices of proce- ance, else we will take action.
Security Force (CISF) head con- ical staff at the time of start of dures. And we will be firm on it. They have assured compliance
stablepassed away on Thursday, their journey, free of cost. Private hospitals have to comply from today.” Nanavati hospital’s
just 24 hours after testing posi- Subsequently,alistof allpassen- and cap charges,” Tope said. spokesperson,however,declined
tive for COVID-19. gers, indicating that they have On May 1, the state govern- to comment on the matter.
The deceased was posted at been screened and found to be mentreleasedanotificationask- The state government has
the Air Cargo Complex of notdisplayinganyinfluenza-like ing hospitals to follow the asked patients to complain on of-
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj illness, will be issued by the General Insurance Public Sector ficial email addresses of district
International Airport in Andheri medicalpersonin-charge,which Association (GIPSA) rates, and collectors if they face issues of
East. CISF PRO Hemendra Singh shall suffice, it stated. those hospitals with no agree- overcharginginhospitals.Allhos-
saidtheheadconstablehadbeen Migrant workers stranded Migrants leave in a tourist bus for their hometowns in Rajasthan from Mumbai on Thursday. Prashant Nadkar mentwithinsurancecompanies, pitals were notified to start abid-
admitted to a hospital in across the state had faced diffi- to follow scheduled rates pre- ing by the new rates Thursday.
MumbaionMondayafterdevel- culties procuring the certificates pared by the state government. “Wealsoappealtonursinghomes,
oping cough and fever. “His con- frommedicalpractitioners,with thenexttwodays,willallowany- tion within the state. tricts within Maharashtra. “We hometowns, Parab said. Stateofficialssaiddespitethe dialysiscentres,andclinicstoopen
dition continued to worsen. His many forced to stand in line for one to register for their travel People from the city limits of have made a request to the state Meanwhile, six buses carry- notifications,hospitalshavecon- their services. A lot of dialysis and
COVID-19 test came positive on hours outside the few private withinthestateafterobtaininga Pune and Mumbai, deemed government to allow those ing migrants and stranded per- tinued to overcharge. A major heart surgeries are getting post-
Wednesday and he passed away clinics that were functional. nodfromthelocalpolicestation. coronavirus hotspots, except strandedwithinthestatetotravel sons to Rajasthan were stopped component of the bill, they said, poned because hospitals are not
today (Thursday),” he said. There have also been several “Thetravelpermitswillbeis- from areas earmarked as con- freeof cost.Weareawaitingtheir at the border for more than six are personal protective equip- functioningnormally,”Topesaid.
The head constable had been complaints of overcharging for suedbythepolice,dependingon tainment zones, can avail the response,” Parab said Thursday. hours, as the state refused to al- ment(PPE)kits.Thestategovern- The minister added they
on active duty until he fell sick on medical certificates. the zone from which an appli- service, officials said. Theissueoftransportationofmi- low them permission to enter. ment has capped charges of PPE have reached out to the Central
Monday.Heisthefirstcasualtyin The order coincides with cant belongs. Those under con- While buses are currently grants was reportedly also dis- “We are not sure of the fate of from patient at not more than 10 and Western Railway to convert
theparamilitaryforcethatprotects Maharashtra State Road tainment zones will not be al- chargingRs44perkmalongwith cussed in the state Cabinet meet- these buses, if they will be al- per cent over and above the cost train wagons into isolation facil-
vitalinstallationsinthecountry. Transport Corporation (MSRTC) lowed to travel, as per the state taxes, state Transport Minister ing Wednesday. lowed to enter. We have urged of such a kit to the hospital. ities. “This will be our last resort,
Last month, 11 CISF jawans efforts to roll out a portal to en- guidelines,”aseniorofficialfrom Anil Parab Wednesday had indi- Thestateisalsoconsideringa the Maharashtra government to OnWednesday,stateofficials but we have requested the rail-
livinginNaviMumbaihadtested sure hassle-free bookings for the transport department said. catedthatthestatemayallowfree proposal to deploy buses along intervene and allow them to en- had warned Nanavati hospital, a ways for this. We are preparing
positive. Singh said all of them busestravellingwithinthestate. Each bus will ferry a group of 20 ofcosttransportationofmigrants state border to ferry people en- ter Rajashtan,” said Harsh Kotak dedicated COVID-19 hospital, to for the worst and hoping for the
have since recovered. ENS The portal, expected to be up in people for a particular destina- stuckinvariouscitiestotheirdis- tering Maharashtra to their of Bus Malak Sanghatna. comply with the price capping. best,” he said.
 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

5 THE OUTBREAK
THE INDIAN EXPRESS, FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2020

Nation

Maharashtra doctors
treating addiction say
Karnataka to restart trains for Mumbai positivity
home delivery of alcohol migrants, but many start walking stresses on
rate 15%, Centre
should be permitted der pressure from the construc- years, he had been coming to Raju, 28, a paani puri vendor

contact tracing
AMRITADUTTA& tion and infrastructure lobby, Bengalurutowork,earningabout in Bengaluru’s Wilson Garden,
ingthecrowdattheriskofCOVID- JOHNSONTA which feared the long-term Rs 20,000 a month, of which he had also set off with his family
MAYURAJANWALKAR 19infection.“Homedeliveryofal- BENGALURU,MAY7 stallingoftheirprojectsifmigrant wouldsendRs12,000tohisfam- members and a few friends. The
MUMBAI,MAY7 cohol should be permitted and workers left the state capital. ily. “Now, we are having to ask group of seven walking migrants
that should be the end of the A DAY after its decision to stop As the government reversed them to send us money. I am the includedhisbrother,sister-in-law that in some cases they seem to
BEFORE THE first three weeks of story,” he said, adding that the trainservicesforstrandedmigrant itsdecision,thestaterevenuesec- only earning member at home,” and the couple’s one-and-a-half- ABANTIKA GHOSH have arrived late to hospital,” a
the nationwide lockdown were “government can up the price of workerscameunderseverecriti- retary wrote to the governments he said. year-old daughter. They were all NEW DELHI, MAY 7 senior government functionary
up on April 14, Dr Shubhangi alcoholby200percentifitwants cism, the BJP government in ofotherstates,askingthemtopre- “We went many times to the headedtoJhansi,UttarPradesh,a said,emphasisingtheneedtore-
Parkar, a de-addiction specialist toandusethefundsforaugment- Karnataka on Thursday decided pare for the arrival of migrants. Amrutahalli police station, filling distance of 2,100 km. FORTY-THREE DAYS into the movethestigmaassociatedwith
andProfessorEmeritusatthede- ingmedicalinfrastructuretobat- to resume train services. “Once the train schedules are up forms to request for a train “Rightnow,thereisnowayto lockdown, Mumbai is reporting the disease.
addiction centre at the KEM tle the global pandemic because By by then, Chandrabhushan fixed, then workers will be ticket.Butthentheysaidtheyhave travel other than by foot. But by a novel coronavirus (COVID-19) A death audit report submit-
Hospital in Mumbai, heard from those dependent on alcohol will Sahani,24,aworkerataconstruc- broughtfromconstructionsitesto cancelled trains, so we packed a evening,Iamsuresomelorrywill positivity rate of about 15%, ted by a committee set up by the
the wife of a patient after a gap of buy it at any price.” tion firm in Hebbal, north the place of departure of trains. few clothes and started walking. agree to take us for a reasonable against a national average of 3%, Brihanmumbai Municipal
twoyears.Thewoman,ateacher, “Alcohol in itself is not bad. It Bengaluru, had started walking. They will be taken to railway sta- Thepolicemightstopus.Butwhat amount,” he said. sending alarm bells ringing. Corporation had earlier found
wept profusely over the phone is bad if you are an alcoholic, like With Rs 300 in his pocket and his tionsandwillbeputontrainsgo- else can we do? Dheere dheere Some lorry-drivers were de- Health Minister Dr Harsh that while the average time be-
andsaidthatherhusband,apost- sugarisnotbadbutitisbadif you phoneat90percentcharge,both ingtotheirstates,’’saidKarnataka pahuch jayenge (We will slowly manding Rs 5,000-Rs 8,000 per Vardhan Wednesday reviewed tween the onset of Covid-19
graduate with a well-paying job, arediabetic.Alcoholismislikeany ofwhichhehopedwouldlasthim Education Minister S Suresh reach),” said Bhagirathi Sahani, a head, Raju said. He said the fam- the status of Maharashtra and symptomsinapersonanddeath
had hit their 16-year-old daugh- other disease, like typhoid or on the 2,100-km-long journey Kumar. 22-year-oldfromthesameregion ily decided to start walking be- Gujaratandaskedstatestofocus was 6.4 days in Mumbai, the av-
ter. “For almost two years he was malaria,butinalockdown,nocop home. On Thursday afternoon, “Train services could resume who was walking with Sahani. cause their earnings had dipped onsurveillanceandcontacttrac- erage time between hospital ad-
soberbuthiswifetoldmehehad is going to allow an alcohol de- Sahani began walking on NH-44 inadayortwo.Logisticaldecisions Otherthanafewhundredrupees to zero and they were certain the ing.Theofficialpositionremains mission and death was 2.4 days.
starteddrinkingagainoverthelast pendentpersontogobuyalcohol. highway, towards Hyderabad, havetobetakenastowhoshould each, the workers said they car- lockdown would extend beyond that there is no community In some international studies,
six or seven months. He had his Ifhehadaheartcondition,hemay hoping to reach his home in be accommodated on the trains ried no food supplies. May 17. transmission in the country. the latter figure is over 15 days.
stockforeighttotendaysbutthis be allowed to go to the chemist. Siddharth Nagar district in Uttar and where they should be al- Intheinitialweeksofthelock- “Not just us, others have “The Mumbai situation is This meant that people in
happened when it got over. He is So, if home delivery of alcohol is Pradesh. lowed to board the train in order down, the company that em- startedwalkingtoo.Wehavemet very worrying,” a source said. Mumbai were arriving late to
a good man. Even his wife and allowed, it will make a huge dif- “We will reach Hyderabad, to prevent chaos. It is going to be ployed them gave them each Rs manygroupsontheway,”hesaid. “Nationally, for about 12,76,781 hospital, when their chances of
daughters say so but when he hit ference.” and then somehow if they let us donediscreetlyandallthosewho 500, once a week. “For three Inthecity,Rajusaid,whilehis tests, we have about 50,000 survival were far less.
the daughter she called me and Merchant said the de-addic- cross the state border, we will want to go will be allowed to go,’’ weeks now, they have stopped landlord waived the rent for the cases, which comes to a positiv- India on Wednesday re-
welearntthatthesemaybewith- tion centre near Kalyan was un- keep going. I need to keep speak- said a senior functionary in the givingeventhat.Thewatertanker duration of the lockdown, it was ity rate of about 3%. Mumbai, on ported 2,680 fresh coronavirus
drawal symptoms,” said Parkar, der quarantine and no one from ing to my mother and wife at government dealing with mi- that used to supply to our colony difficulttomaketheirmoneylast theotherhand,hasabout11,000 cases and 111 deaths, taking the
whoseinterventionandtheavail- outside was allowed during the home. I am worried about run- grants. stoppedcomingbecausewehave with the prices of basic goods cases against about 73,000 tests total tally to 49,391 cases and
ability of the prescribed medica- lockdown as it would require ning out of charge. So I am using But Sahani, who worked as a no money. There is no water to shootingup.“WhatshouldcostRs done, which comes to a positiv- 1,694deaths.Inhisreviewmeet-
tion helped control the situation. COVID-19 screening. Parkar said it sparingly,” he said. With him painterattheHebbalconstruction bathe or wash hands. We got 50 now costs Rs 100. And they ity rate of about 15%. This is way ing, the Health Minister also ex-
This was, however, no stand- thattreatmentattheKEMde-ad- were a group of 23 fellow work- company, isn’t waiting for the some ration but that too got over. kept saying trains would run to- too high. There are also ques- pressedconcernsaboutthehigh
alone case. The images of people diction was also not advisable ers at the same construction site, trains to start. The government here helps only day, tomorrow, day after. Yes, tions about where the samples mortality rates in some districts
crowding wine shops by the during the lockdown as it would allfromUP’sSiddharthNagarand “There is nothing for us here. the locals, they do not care what some people did donate us some are coming from and how effec- of both Maharashtra and
hordes all over the country went be risky for patients who may al- Gorakhpur districts. We have not been getting food, happens to us,” Sahani said. ration. But how long can we sur- tive the contact tracing is, given Gujarat.
viral on social media on Monday. readyhaveaweakrespiratorysys- They were among several nor money. Bahut pareshani hai. Both the workers said they vive on charity?” he said. these numbers.” “Statesneedtofocusonmore
In Mumbai, a day later the BMC temoradamagedlivertostepout groups of migrant labourers in Yahankasarkarhumarisuntinahi were so desperate to reach home Some acquaintances did the Mumbaiwasamongtheear- effective surveillance, contact
asked wine shops to down their of their homes amid the threat of Bengaluru who set off on foot for hai.Wohlogandarbaithehai,hum thattheywerenotwaitingforthe same journey a few days ago. liest coronavirus hotspots and tracingandearlydiagnosis,tore-
shutters again. However, what is COVID-19. their home states, after the state dikhte nahi unko (There is a lot of contractortopaythem.“Thecom- “They were caught at the Andhra has been the primary contribu- ducehighfatalityrate.Properin-
missing from the debate around Bhaskar S of the Alcoholics governmenthaltedtrainservices distress here. The government pany has not been paying us full border, but then they paid Rs tor to Maharashtra’s tally of terventions, screening and test-
openingwineshopsornot,med- Anonymous (AA), Mumbai for migrants on Wednesday. The heredoesnotlistentous.Theyare wagessinceDecember.Itowesall 2,000commissionandslippedoff 15,525 cases and 617 deaths. ing of Severe Acute Respiratory
icalprofessionalsfeel,islookingat Region, however, said that mak- Oppositionandothersreactedan- all inside their homes, we are not of us about Rs 8 lakh. Even then, inthenight.Letmereachthebor- There are also concerns about Infections /Influenza Like Illness
alcohol dependence as a medical ing alcohol available could undo grily to the government decision, even visible to them),” he said. we don’t want to wait. Here, our der, ma’am. I will call you and tell the crowded living conditions in cases need adequate attention
conditionwithoutmoralbaggage. what this lockdown might have alleging it had stopped trains un- He said that for the last five lives are in danger,” said Sahani. you if we make it or not,” he said. the urban slums of the city, es- as this may prevent the spread
Parkar explained that while a achieved by forcing many alco- pecially Dharavi, from where of infection in other areas. The
largenumberofpeoplewhocon- holicstoabstain.Inchroniccases, casesarenowbeingregularlyre- implementation of an effective
sume alcohol may have mild to he said, a person could always be ported. containment strategy needs be
moderatedependencethatcanbe taken to a doctor or a hospital. “There is no community the top priority of states to re-
controlledwithhydrationandnu- In the Mumbai region, while transmission in the country as a duce the mortality rate. It is the
trition, but about 20 per cent fall there might be about 15,000 whole, some places are report- need of the hour to take preven-
in the high-risk group that may members of the AA, at least 250- ingmorecases.Butitisalsoafact tive, pre-emptive and compre-
suffer from complicated or pro- 300 regularly attend daily AA that people are less careful in ur- hensive measures in a system-
tracted withdrawal symptoms in meetingsheldinabout12centres ban areas than in rural ones. atic manner and follow the
the absence of alcohol. fromColabatoGovandi,Bhiwandi They have a sense of invincibil- protocols laid down by the
“Whenthelockdownstarted, and Palghar. Amid the lockdown, ity. As for the mortality, it is clear Centre,” Dr Harsh Vardhan said.
as a de-addiction specialist, I was meetingshavemovedonlineand
worried.Forthehigh-risk,vulner- have seen larger participation
able group, the craving is biologi-
cal and if the patient reaches the
withpeoplejoininginfromother
countriesaswell.InIndia,hesaid, Delhi to peak in June-July,
stageof deliriumtremens(DTs)–
a severe form of withdrawal
symptom – it is always worrying
about10-12percentAAmembers
are women.
Hesaidmanyalcoholicssober
says Covid panel chief
and it has high mortality,” said up during the Hindu holy month infrastructure, three scenarios
Parkar. of Shravan but as soon as the last ASTHA SAXENA had been envisaged: Stage 1,
Dr Yusuf Merchant, founder puja is done, they get back to NEW DELHI, MAY 7 when the capital will start re-
and president of Drug Abuse drinking.Thesituationduringthe porting 100 cases in a day; Stage
Information, Rehabilitation and prevailing lockdown has been THE CAPITAL is likely to see a 2with500casesaday;andStage
Research Centre (DAIRRC), said similar, he said. “peak” in coronavirus cases in 3,where1,000casesormorewill
thatatthestageof DTs,oneinten “This lockdown has helped June-July, said the doctor head- be reported in a single day.
persons dies and it is surprising manypeoplebecomesober,even ing the coronavirus response The capital appears set to en-
that no such death has been re- if it may be forced sobriety. This committee formed by the Chief terStage2,especiallyagainstthe
ported during the lockdown pe- period could have been better if Minister on Thursday, as Delhi backdrop of relaxations in the
riod.“Delirium tremens is the we could have reached out and recorded 448 fresh cases. This is lockdown.
stage at which a person's hands given the message of abstinence, the third day in a row that Delhi As per the panel’s assess-
start to shake. It is harrowing for which was not possible because has witnessed 400-plus cases. ment, once Delhi starts record-
theirfamilies.Unlikeadrugaddict, of the lockdown. During the pe- Of the 5,980 cases in the cap- ing 500 cases a day, the require-
analcoholaddictwhohasanelec- riod of abstinence, an alcoholic ital, 1,431 have been reported ment of personal protective
trolyte imbalance needs IV sup-
plements,” said Merchant.
He added that with people
maybebetterplacedtolistenand
realisewhichbrackethestandsin.
Whencravingsarestrong,hemay
TICKET TO HOME sincethebeginningof thisweek.
Sixty-six people have suc-
cumbed to the virus so far.
equipment kits will shoot up to
1,500-2,000 a day. There should
be 50 beds with ventilators, 125
thronging wine shops as soon as not.Thissituationcouldhavebeen The first ‘Shramik Express’, a special train to ferry stranded workers, departed for Rewa in Madhya Pradesh on Thursday “The number is expected to ICU facilities and about 325 beds
theywereopened,hadputevery- favourable if these people could evening with 1,173 passengers, from Uruli Kanchan Railway Station in Pune. Arul Horizon stay between 400-500 cases a with oxygen support, the com-
oneincludingpolicemenmanag- be reached,” said Bhaskar. day for around the next 10 days. mittee has noted.
This is the natural course of a “As of now, we are prepared
virus.Thesearethepatientswho for Stage 2 as well. If there are

Quiz, community work keep youngsters busy in Mumbai slums were infected 10 days ago and
are now developing symptoms
of the disease. The number of
500 cases reported in a day, then
20% of them, that is 100 people,
will need hospitalisation. So, if
latedtoinformationonCOVID-19. COVID-19 threat seriously and these quizzes around topics like It has its fair share of chal- local corporator, who ensured cases is also higher as Delhi has the trend continues for five con-
MOHAMEDTHAVER& Withnothingmuchtododur- were “grouping” in their areas as COVID-19andmentalhealthdur- lenges.“Unlikeface-to-faceinter- foodreachedthesestrandedfam- immensely increased testing fa- secutivedays,500peoplewillbe
SADAFMODAK ing the lockdown, NGOs, which they did not know what to do ing the lockdown,” D’Souza actions, we have to coordinate ilies. Adolescents in Dharavi too cilities across the state. The peak hospitalised over a period of
MUMBAI,MAY7 work with children in Mumbai’s with the free time. added. with the work timings of their are helping locate people having season in Delhi is likely to come time. The estimates given by the
slums, are banking on weekly “Our volunteers also told us Volunteers are also talking to parentsastheydonotthemselves trouble receiving food,” D’Souza in June-July where we might committee to the government
IT IS to feel sad, scared, angry or quizzes, one-on-one conversa- children were panicking every these children over phone. Rama ownaphone.Sometimes,theirre- said. Arun Kumar, CEO of witness a surge in cases. seem to be under control as of
stressed during a crisis. The op- tionswithchildrenandinvolving time a patient tested positive in Shyam, programme director of sponsesaremonosyllabicasthey Apnalaya which works in M East The aim is to keep mortality rate now,” said Dr Sarin.
tions: not normal, normal, good theminoutreachprogrammesto theirlocality.Mid-March,wehad EHSAS, said, “We have moved to arearoundtheirparentsbutthey ward, said, “We knew most low, which Delhi is maintaining There are 11,000 beds in gov-
and bad. keep them engaged. abrainstormingonwhatcouldbe tele-counselling support as field call back later,” Shyam said. youngsterswouldstruggletostay so far,” Dr S K Sarin, who heads ernment hospitals and approxi-
This was one of the questions Mitchelle D’Souza, ICT con- done to keep them engaged. We interactions are restricted due to Adolescents are also helping indoors given the small houses. theDelhigovernment’sCovidre- mately 30,000 beds in private
in a quiz distributed among over sultant with Sneha’s asked them about it. Majority of COVID-19.Lastweek,wecollected out with outreach programmes. Hence,wehaveinvolvedthemin sponsepanelandisalsothehead hospitals. “What is required now
2,000 adolescents staying in Empowerment Health and them said they wanted to learn phone numbers of those part of “In Kalwa, there are families who relief distribution in their own of the Institute of Liver isthateverypatientvisitingahos-
Kandivali, Dharavi and Kalwa ar- SexualityofAdolescents(EHSAS) English,” D’Souza said. The sug- our programme or the contact live on the other side of the communities.Itisplayingtotheir and Biliary Sciences. pital must wear a mask. It is time
easonWhatsAppbyNGOSneha. programmeinDharavi,Kandivali gestionledtothequizeveryweek numbers of their parents.” pipelinewherethefoodtruckdid strengthastheyknowtheircom- A total of 77,234 people have tothinkaboutthesafetyofhealth-
While the topic for this quiz is and Kalwa, said they came to on WhatsApp. “However, we D’Souza said, adding that on a not reach. Twelve girls in touch munities better than any of us. been tested in the city so far. care workers as well,” he said.
mental health during the lock- know from their volunteers that wanted to do more. So, while the daily basis they are reaching out with us identified 119 vulnerable With their help we have com- Basedonthecommittee’sas- FULLREPORTON
down, previous week it was re- youngsters were not taking the focus was English, we themed to 72 adolescents. families there and contacted the pleted distribution in 12 slums.” sessment of the capital’s health www.indianexpress.com

Access to forest produce, livelihood for tribals hit due to lockdown: report
report on the impact of the pan- must focus on raising aware- mended plans to ensure wage million people living in and “We have submitted the report Thereportalsocitesinstances beatenbylocalofficialsforgoing
KAVITHA IYER demic and the lockdown on ness, ramping up testing in tribal employment for all tribals and around these protected areas. tovariousstateandcentralagen- of tribal migrant workers being intotheforesttocollectbamboo,
MUMBAI, MAY 7 tribal communities, organisa- areas, providing food security OtherTraditionalForestDwellers “High level of social depriva- cies, but there has been no re- stuck in cities with no access to it says.
tions including Community and livelihood support, and (OTFD)underMGNREGAaswell tion and exclusion has led to the sponse except regarding the food or work or means to return “An estimated 100 million
POINTING TO the widespread Forest Rights - Learning and these may be supported astheadditional50daysof work prevalenceof diseasesandhealth guidelines for NTFP and mini- home, and their livelihood af- forest dwellers depend on MFP
loss of livelihood and deepening Advocacy (CFR-LA), All India through funds available under that land title holders under the concerns such as malnutrition, mum support price for forest fected due to difficulties in ac- for food, shelter, medicines and
economic distress among tribal Forum of Forest Movements as Article 275 as well as funds Forest Rights Act are entitled to; malaria, leprosy, tuberculosis produce. And those do not actu- cessingNTFPorMFP.“Thosewho cashincome.TheNTFPcollection
communitiesacrossthecountry wellasindependentresearchers available in the District Mineral effective mechanisms for collec- (TB)andotherdiseases.Absence ally address the issue compre- arestuckinthecitiesarewithout season from April to June pro-
onaccountof thelockdownsince and experts have said a con- Funds, Special Purpose Vehicles tion, storage, procurement and of healthcare facilities can se- hensively,” he said. anysupportsystem,shelter,food, vides major income support to
March 22, civil society organisa- certed response from the MoTA for various projects, etc, the re- sale of non-timber forest pro- verelylimitthecapacitiestodeal Dash said Kerala and orwaterandfacingacutehunger tribals (almost 60 per cent of an-
tions have called for a COVID-19 is necessary to curtail the num- port said. duce (NTFP) during the ongoing with any major COVID-19 out- Chhattisgarh have shown some and almost a famine like situa- nual collection takes place dur-
response cell to be set up in the bers of COVID-19 cases among To ensure food security, the collection season; waiver of GST break in tribal areas posing a se- proactive measures for tribals tion. In addition, they have to of- ing this period) and, most unfor-
Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs tribals. The Union government’s report recommends free gro- on tendu leaves; and modifica- rious threat to the tribal popula- and Particularly Vulnerable ten face police atrocities and tunately,itcoincidesexactlywith
thatcancoordinatewiththestate identifiedCOVID-19hotspotsin- ceries, including nutritious food tion of the Union government’s tion,” the report says. Tribal Groups (PVTGs) through criminalization, causing mental the lockdown,” the report says,
governmentsandactiviststopro- clude 19 scheduled districts. such as millets, wheat, dal and April 6 order restricting move- Tushar Dash of CFR-LA said PDS, health facilities and MSP and psychological distress,” the adding that as women are ac-
viderelief toindigenouscommu- Other tribal pockets have re- vegetables, to be supplied mentof peopleinnationalparks, the report presses for a mecha- for forest produce. report says. tively engaged in this work, the
nities through the remainder of ported positive cases too. through the Public Distribution tiger reserves and other pro- nism to specifically address is- Odisha and Maharashtra On collecting forest produce, ripple effects on the general
the lockdown and after. COVID-19 response schemes System (PDS) for the next six tected areas, a move that ad- sues faced by tribals due to the have similarly released guide- aKolamtribalatKinwattalukaof health of families will also be af-
In a preliminary assessment specifically for tribal people months. It has also recom- versely impacts an estimated 3 lockdown and the pandemic. lines for support price. Nanded district was reported fected.
 6 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM
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 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

7 THE OUTBREAK
THE INDIAN EXPRESS, FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2020

Nation

Cancer patient,
Assam’s first 2 BSF men fall to COVID-19, 111 more corona deaths,
but record stays good on
480 cases in paramilitary
COVID case,
beats virus
ABHISHEK SAHA
GUWAHATI, MAY 7 Noida, including 41 from BSF, 37 Police for internal security duty the infections have been re-
fatality, recovery rates
DEEPTIMAN TIWARY from ITBP, one from CRPF and during the pandemic. Of the 41 ported from a company de-
ASSAM’S FIRST COVID-19 pa- NEW DELHI, MAY 7 the others from CISF and SSB. new infections, 12 are from the ployed with Delhi Police in
tient, a 52-year-old man suffer- Of the two BSF personnel company that was deployed on Shastri Park on law and order EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE
ingfromcanceranddiabetes,has TWO BSF personnel succumbed who died, officials said, one had law and order duty in Jama duty. NEW DELHI, MAY 7
recovered from the disease after to Covid-19 as the total number a kidney ailment. Sources said Masjid and Chandni Mahal ar- For CRPF, the force’s Mayur
undergoing treatment for over a of infections in the border force the patient had been undergo- eas. This company of 94 person- Vihar camp has emerged as a REITERATING THE country’s
month.Hisrecovery,doctorssay, reached 193, officials said ing treatment at the BSF’s R K nel has 73 positive cases. hotspot with 137 cases, and one good record in both case fatality
is remarkable as his ailments Thursday. Puram hospital and contracted The CISF has recorded 13 death. rates and recovery rates of
made him more vulnerable. The new infections have the disease during a visit to a su- cases in Delhi, including 11 per- “What has worsened the sit- COVID-19, the government on
A resident of Karimganj dis- taken the number of cases in the perspeciality hospital for dialy- sonnel deployed at Metro sta- uation is that a large majority of Thursday said the number of
trict in Barak Valley, the man is a paramilitarytoover480,includ- sis. tions and the rest at IGI airport. cases have been without symp- novel coronavirus cases had
senior member of the Tablighi ing 162 in CRPF, 82 in ITBP, 32 in Officialssaidtheothervictim Theforcealsoreportedthedeath toms and soldiers largely live in gone up by 3,561 in the last 24
Jamaat. He was a madrasa CISF and 17 in SSB. Most of these was 45 years old, had no co- of a head constable, who was barrackswhereproximityisnat- hours, with 111 more dying. This
teacherandranasmallbusiness. cases have been reported from morbidities, and died Monday, posted at the Mumbai interna- ural,” a paramilitary officer said. takes the total number of cases
He was found to be suffering Delhi, except for about 30 BSF within two days of developing tional airport, due to Covid-19. Taking to Twitter, Home to52,952anddeathsto1,783.So
from blood cancer in February. casesinTripuraand19fromCISF symptoms. His test results came All the SSB, ITBP and CRPF cases Minister Amit Shah said he was far, 15,266 people have recov- Women line up to receive Rs 500 in their Jan Dhan accounts
On March 5, amid his cancer in other parts of the country. two days after his death. are from Delhi. “deeply pained to know about ered. Assam’s Baksa district on Thursday. Dasarath Deka
treatment, he attended the OnThursday,90paramilitary BSF spokesperson At the ITBP’s Tigri camp in the loss of our two brave” BSF Health Minister Dr Harsh
TablighiJamaatmeetinginDelhi, personnel tested positive at the Shubhendu Bharadwaj said South Delhi, where one death soldiers. In an official statement, Vardhansaid:“Indiaisinabetter
and upon his return, tested pos- Central Armed Police Force’s most of those who have got in- has been reported, the case the BSF said that the force was condition than many other which have not had any new have not reported a single case
itive for COVID-19. On March 31, Referral Hospital in Greater fectedweredeployedwithDelhi counthasreached72.Therestof “grief stricken” over the deaths. countries as the fatality rate is case in 14-20 days, and 136 dis- till date.
the man was declared the state’s 3.3% and recovery rate is 28.83%. tricts with no new cases since “Statesneedtofocusonmore
first coronavirus patient and ad- There are 4.8% patients in ICU, the last 21-28 days. He also re- effective surveillance, contact
mitted to the Silchar Medical 1.1% on ventilators and 3.3% on viewed the situation in West tracing and early diagnosis to
College and Hospital (SMCH). oxygen support, among the ac- Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and keep the fatality rate low.
“It was a tough time for the tive cases. The testing capacity Odisha. Surveillance for Severe Acute
family. Me and my brother took has increased and it is 95,000 Besides, 13 states/Union ter- RespiratoryInfections/Influenza
himtotheSMCHthatdayandwe tests per day, with 327 govern- ritories,including Andamanand Like Illnesses should be intensi-
werequarantinedafterhetested ment laboratories and 118 pri- Nicobar Islands, Arunachal fied in unaffected districts and
positive. Fortunately, we tested vate laboratories. Cumulatively, Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Goa, districtswhichhavenotreported
negative, and so did other mem- 13,57,442 tests have been done Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, cases for the last 14 days and
bers of our family,” his son told so far.” Jammu & Kashmir, Kerala, more,throughtheIDSPnetwork
The Indian Express over the He added that there are cur- Ladakh, Manipur, Meghalaya, in collaboration with medical
phone. rently 180 districts with no new Mizoram and Odisha, have not collegehospitals.Suchmeasures
The patient was discharged cases in the past week, 180 dis- reported any case in the past 24 willhelpindicatethepresenceof
Wednesday and sent for obser- tricts with no new cases in hrs. Daman & Diu, Sikkim, any possible hidden infection at
vation for 14 days at a hospital seven-13 days, 164 districts Nagaland and Lakshadweep an early stage,” Vardhan said.
close to his residence. “We were
told that blood cancer made his
situation worse. But by God’s
grace he made it through. Now
the cancer treatment will con-
Testing capacity Cadila plant in
Gujarat shut as
tinue,” his son said.
Dr Babul Bezbaruah, princi-
pal of SMCH, said the man’s
mostly dependent 26 employees
test positive
treatment was “very difficult”,
with his condition deteriorating
in mid-April. Dr Bezbaruah said
on foreign firms
a high-level team was consti- EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE
tuted to advise on his treatment ones and two Korean ones. AHMEDABAD, MAY 7
and monitor the prognosis on a KARISHMA MEHROTRA It is the shortage of essential
day-to-day basis. “It should be a NEW DELHI, MAY 7 components that has made THE AHMEDABAD district au-
case for research. He was suffer- India’s antibody testing capacity thorities on Thursday directed
ing from leukemia — a gener- INDIA’STESTINGcapacitycontin- almost entirely reliant on foreign CadilaPharmaceuticalsatTrasad
alised and not localised cancer- uestobemajorlyreliantonglobal companies. India has begun to villageinDholkatehsilinthedis-
which made his condition A student returns after purchasing books at a market in Chandigarh’s Sector 19 on Thursday. Kamleshwar Singh supply chains even as domestic source these components from trict to shut down its operations
complicated. His immunity was manufacturing of other COVID- countries like China, where the till further orders after 26 of its
low and he was already taking 19-relatedrequirementshasbeen outbreakbeganearlierandscien- employees tested positive for

4 hospitals cleared to join WHO

anti-cancer drugs,” Dr rapidly ramped up. tists have had the opportunity to COVID-19.
Bezbaruah said. An examination of procure- synthesise them. While five employees were
As of Thursday afternoon, a ment and company approvals An official of a foreign com- foundpositiveonMay5,21more
totalof 45patientshavereported shows that foreign firms account pany, which is providing RT-PCR tested positive on Wednesday

Solidarity trial, more to follow

positive for the coronavirus in for the largest chunk of company extraction kits for the Centre and forcing the authorities to shut
Assam. Thirty-four of them have approvals for COVID-19 diagnos- several states, told The Indian downtheunitwhere1,200-1,600
been discharged, 10 are being tic materials in the country. Express that the obstacle for RT- employees worked in two shifts.
treated, and one has died. AccordingtotheCentralDrugs PCRkitswasmoreinfrastructural. “Weareshuttingdowntheof-
Standard Control Organisation “Other countries that have been fice and the packaging unit after
withtheDrugControllerGeneral Lopinavir/ Ritonavir with andrheumatologyconditionsre- (CDSCO) list released on doingthisformonthshaveaneas- theemployeestestedpositive.Of
Cases rise, TN KAUNAINSHERIFFM of India (DCGI) and Clinical Trials Interferon beta-1a; and spectively. The ICMR has autho- Wednesday, 85 of 95 (close to 90 iertimescalingupthanIndia,”he thosetested,21werefoundtobe
NEWDELHI,MAY7 Registry-India (CTRI). Some sites Chloroquine or risedhydroxychloroquineaspro- per cent) approved antibody test said. positive. They were not just from
liquor shops open are already registered, some are Hydroxychloroquine. “By en- phylaxis (preventive treatment), kit manufacturers are foreign Among other COVID-19-re- Dholka, but came from
FOUR COVID-19 treatment cen- close to registration, and many rolling patients in multiple coun- recommending it for healthcare companies.Similarly,11outof21 lated requirements, the highest Gandhinagar, Ahmedabad,
to long queues tres, in Jodhpur, Ahmedabad, moreareintheprocessofobtain- tries, the Solidarity trial aims to workers and those taking care of (morethan50percent)ICMR-ap- importedcategoryisN-95masks, Kheda and other parts. They
Chennai and Bhopal, have re- ing approval from their ethics rapidly discover whether any of COVID-19 patients at home. provedRT-PCRmanufacturersare of which 40 per cent (1 crore of should have taken more care es-
Chennai: Amid a constant surge ceived regulatory approvals for committee,” she said. thedrugsslowdiseaseprogression In China and France, small foreign. Sixty per cent of the ap- 2.49 crore units) is purchased peciallywhenafewpeoplewere
in COVID-19 infections and a taking part in “Solidarity” — the The four which have been or improve survival. Other drugs studiesprovidedsomeindications provedrapidantibodytestmanu- from abroad. Second is personal foundpositiveaboutaweekback.
newclusterof caseslinkedtothe World Health Organisation’s cleared so far are from cities that can be added based on emerging of the possible benefit of chloro- facturers are Chinese. protective equipment (PPEs), of They should have taken precau-
state’s largest vegetable market (WHO) international clinical trial havereportedahighcaseload:AI- evidence,”saystheWHOwebsite. quinephosphateagainstpneumo- Similarly, India’s recent pro- which one-third (80 lakh of 2 tions. In continuation of the con-
in Koyambedu, the Tamil Nadu tohelpfindaneffectivetreatment IMSinJodhpur,ApolloHospitalin Dr Godbole confirmed that nia caused by COVID-19, but they curementof 35lakhRT-PCRtests crore)hasbeenorderedfromfor- tact tracing, we tested more and
government Thursday opened fornovelcoronavirus—andmore Chennai, B J Medical College and India will be testing all the four need confirmation through ran- by the Department of Health eign companies. then we got these 21 more em-
retail liquor outlets across the are set to follow. Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad and treatment options. Remdesivir, domisedtrials,theWHOhassaid. Researchis90percentimported, “Domesticproduction(ofPPE) ployees,”saidArunBabu,District
state, a day after announcing a Confirming this, Dr Sheela Chirayu Medical College and whichisexclusivelymanufactured Remdesivir is a drug with an- according to a detailed presenta- wasnothingbeforethis,andnow Development Officer of
15 per cent increase in excise Godbole, Head, Division of HospitalinBhopal.Thecasecount byGileadintheUS,andInterferon tiviralpropertiesthatwasmanu- tion on May 1 by P D Vaghela, 1.87 lakh are being made every Ahmedabad who visited Dholka
duty on Indian Made Foreign Epidemiology, ICMR-National so far is 842 in Jodhpur, 2,644 in beta-1a, “have been donated by factured by a US-based biotech- Secretary, Department of day,” said Vaghela at the May 1 on Wednesday evening before
Liquor (IMFL), in a bid to tackle AIDS Research Institute, and Chennai, 4,991 in Ahmedabad, WHO for trial in India,” she said. nology company in 2014, to treat PharmaceuticalsandChairmanof press conference. the decision to shut down the fa-
the deepening economic crisis. National Coordinator of the and 605 in Bhopal. “Allfourtreatmentswillbetested. Ebolacases;itwasalsotriedinpa- the Empowered Group on PPEs, Vaghela emphasised the un- cility was taken.
Tamil Nadu reported 580 WHO-India Solidarity Trial, said According to the WHO web- Patientswhoarewillingtopartic- tients of MERS and SARS, both ventilators, etc. precedented levels of procure- A senior administrative offi-
new positive cases Thursday, theICMRplans“toinitiatethetrial site,theSolidaritytrial“willcom- ipate and provide their informed caused by coronaviruses. Even after the Indian Council ment by the government, espe- cer from the district said that
taking the total to 5,409. at20-25clinicaltrialsitesinmany pare four treatment options consentwillbeallottedrandomly, On May 1, the US Food and of Medical Research halted the cially for products that India has apart from its main office, the
Liquor outlets of the Tamil states across India”. againstthestandardofcare,toas- through a computer programme, DrugAdministration(USFDA)au- useofantibodytestkitsaftertheir been able to source entirely do- pharmafirmhasapackagingunit
NaduStateMarketingCorporation “These sites are in various sess their relative effectiveness to any one of the four treatment thorised the emergency use of faulty results, the latest approval mestically. All of the 1.3 lakh pur- in Dholka. “The packaging unit
Limited (Tasmac) opened to long stagesofbeingapproved.Thesites against COVID-19”. options,”DrGodbolesaid. Remdesivir as an experimental listshowsacontinuingrelianceon chasedoxygencylindersarefrom has also been asked to shut. The
queueseverywhereinTamilNadu, require approval from their insti- The treatment options that Chloroquine and hydroxy- drug to treat severe cases of Chinese-made products. Indian manufacturers, and an- company’sresearchunitwhichis
except Chennai and containment tutional ethics committees, and have been selected are: chloroquine are very closely re- COVID-19 who are hospitalised CDSCO’s antibody testing kit other 5 lakh industrial oxygen situated near Gandhinagar has
zones. ENS have to be trained and updated Remdesivir; Lopinavir/ Ritonavir; lated and used to treat malaria and need oxygen or ventilators. approval list on April 5 featured cylinders will be converted into been allowed to continue its op-
no Indian companies,27 Chinese medical ones. erations,” the officer said.

FROM PAGE ONE Parliament to consider virtual

CITU leader
der sections 188 (disobedience to Bhadangorderedthepolicetore- Indian Express he was staying at
order promulgated by govern-
mentservant)and269(negligent
actlikelytospreadinfectionofdis-
turnNarayanan’sphoneandpro-
vide him with fresh clothes.
AtthenexthearingonApril30,
the CITU office in Andheri since
the lockdown began.
The court observed,
meetings for House panels
without any reason, saying that tancingprotocols,”Narayanantold ease dangerous to life) of IPC and while Public Prosecutor Deepak “Quarantine cannot be used for general of both Houses to exam- distancing norms,” said the
"quarantine cannot be used for TheIndianExpress. theDisasterManagementAct. ThakareandadvocateSRShinde– preventive detention. A COVID- LIZ MATHEW ine the pros and cons of such a source.
preventive detention". It ordered He added at the distribution “The police took away my appearingforthepolice–claimed 19 negative person may catch NEW DELHI, MAY 7 process. “The report of the two Earlier, Congress leaders
the police to let him go, by which site,DeputyCommissioner(Zone phone and my request to inform that BMC had detained coronavirus in the facility.” The top officials of Parliament will Anand Sharma, who heads the
timehehadalreadyspent14days 9)AbhishekTrimukheandsenior CITUmembersorlawyerswasre- Narayanan, the civic body denied judge noted that the police had PRESIDING OFFICERS of the Lok form the basis for a considered Standing Committee on Home
atthefacility. InspectorParmeshwarGamaneof fused.Iwasthentakentoaquaran- anyknowledgeof theincident. failed to establish any due pro- Sabha and Rajya Sabha on decision by both the Presiding Affairs, and IT Committee chair-
According to Narayanan, he DNNagarpoliceaskedNarayanan tinefacilityatWestBluehoteland "Hewasdetainedsincehewas cedure of law under which Thursday decided to explore the Officersinthematter,”anofficial manShashiTharoorhadwritten
and his colleagues had been dis- and his colleagues to come to the putinaroomontheseventhfloor.” seencomingoutofaredzonearea Narayanan’s phone and other possibilityof holdingparliamen- note released after the meeting to Naidu and Birla, respectively,
tributing food and essential sup- policestation.There,whilehiscol- When his colleagues ap- in Andheri (West) and was found belongings had been confis- tary panel meetings via video- said. seeking permission to convene
plies to migrant workers and the leagues were allowed to leave, proachedthepolice,theyweredi- to be residing in a containment cated. She said there was no law conferencing, even as the “Theyfeltthatif thesituation the meetings.
poor since the lockdown was im- Narayanan was taken to a private rected to BMC officials, but to no zone,"thepolicesaid. to keep Narayanan in custody Oppositionhasbeenpushingfor does not allow regular conven- The parliamentary panels,
posed. On April 21, around 10 am, lab. “I was taken to Suburban avail. Thereafter, CITU members AtthefinalhearingonMay5– and ordered his immediate re- organising these meetings on tional meetings of the which study and deliberate on
in light of a nationwide protest DiagnoaticsinJogeshwariwithout rushedtothefacilityandspoketo heard by a new judge, Justice lease. “I could not access my cell- virtual platforms. Committees in the near future, Bills and budgets of all the min-
calledbyCITUagainstCentre'sal- being told why. A test was con- Narayananbrieflythroughtheho- RevatiMohite-Dere–theBMCin- phone for nine days and could There are indications that it alternative means of enabling istries, have not been function-
leged apathetic attitude to the ducted, a quarantine stamp was telintercom. formedthecourtthatNarayanan not contact my family or could take longer to restore nor- such meetings may be ex- ing due to the lockdown since
plight of farmers and workers, putonmyhandandIwastoldthat Toldthathistestresultwould hadbeensenttothefacilityasper lawyers. I got hold of my test re- malcy and lift travel restrictions, plored,” it said. March 24. The secretariats of
Narayananandhistwocolleagues theresultwillbesentonmyphone not be declared for at least two police’sdirection.However,itsaid port, which was negative, only and the “next viable option” According to a source, with both Houses were not in favour
arrivednearAjmeriMasjidcarry- within48hours,”saidNarayanan. weeks, CITU moved HC. hehadtestednegativeandhis14- 14 days after being tested and could be considered “because the number of COVID-cases of holding virtual meetings, cit-
ing flags, placards and food items He claimed that he was sent “Narayanan’s detention shows dayquarantineperiodhadended arbitrarily being sent to a quar- the meetings cannot be put off crossing 52,000, restrictions on ing the confidentiality clause.
to be distributed to the partici- back to the police station and the abuse of power exercised as a the previous day, on May 4. The antine facility. The police could indefinitely”, sources said. travel and gatherings could con- Sources said both the pre-
pants there and Gaodevi Dongar policeproceededunderSection41 punitivemeasuretomakeanex- state and BMC also claimed that not have detained me for merely After a meeting between tinue for a few more months. siding officers were advised
areainAndheriWest.“Priornotice of CrPC,whichempowersittoar- ample of him,” the plea moved Narayanan was seen coming out distributing essential food items Vice-President M Venkaiah “Without air travel, MPs will not that video-conferencing could
hadbeensenttothetahsildarand restanypersonwithoutawarrant by Mahendra Singh, a CITU ofredzoneareainAndheri(West) to migrants and construction Naidu and Lok Sabha Speaker beabletoattendmeetings.Once not be possible as committee
the police. We were wearing face ororderofthemagistrate.Hewas member, said. On the first hear- and that he resided in a contain- workers,” Narayanan said after Om Birla at the former’s resi- airtrafficopensup,meetingscan meetings are strictly in-camera
masksandmaintainingsocialdis- toldthathewasbeingbookedun- ing on April 27, Justice C V ment zone. Narayanan toldThe his release. dence, they directed secretaries be held while following social events.
 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

8 EXPRESS NETWORK
THE INDIAN EXPRESS, FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2020

VISAKHAPATNAM GAS LEAK

‘Peoplewalkedoutandjustcollapsed
…womenandchildrenwerecrying’ theycalledinalltheirdoctorsand
SREENIVAS JANYALA nursingstaff.“Thankfullywewere
HYDERABAD, MAY 7 preparedwithoxygenandventila-
tors as KGH had been made a
“Several people lay on the road, Covid-19hospital.Theventilators
catching their throats or rubbing helpedsavenumerouslives,espe-
their eyes. One person fell from ciallythoseof children.”
the motorcycle he was sitting on. Policesaidsomeof thescared
My wife and I gasped, unable to villagers may have run into the
breathe.” hills around a local temple, and
TadhiVenkaiah,60,described they were scouring the area.
aThursdayearlymorningof“hor- Bobby,anautorickshawdriver
ror” as police came knocking on whohelpedtakethreepersonsto

BUDDHA PURNIMA their doors to tell them gas had

leaked from a nearby plant and
they should leave. “The sound of
King George Hospital, said they
had no clue initially which direc-
tion to head as they didn’t know
Full moon as seen from Mumbai on Thursday. Amit Chakravarty thebangingonthedoorwokeme. where the gas was coming from.
I thought something had hap- “We met an ambulance and the
penedtomycowandaneighbour driver directed us to nearby hos-
had come, but someone shouted pitals,”hesaid.

Navy to charge Indian BUDDHA PURNIMA

Those engaged
‘police’. I was really scared. They
said there was a gas leak and my
Several villagers and officials
praisedpoliceforreactingswiftly,

nationals it evacuates
wife and I should go with them. I After the gas leak at LG Polymers in R R Venkatapuram village of Visakhapatnam Thursday. PTI especiallyDepsutyCommissioner
was groggy and I had difficulty of PoliceBUdayBhaskar,afterre-
in service of wakingupmywife,sopolicemen
pickedusupandputusinavehi- village,whichfellinthegasleakra- hospitals before the ambulances timewereachedhospital.Theyare
ceiving the alert around 3 am.
Autorickshaw drivers like Bobby

SHUBHAJIT ROY
there will be resentment among
citizensfromothercountriesthat
humanity are cle. They calmed us down and
brought us to hospital.”
dius.Hisfather,AEaswaraRao,said
Chandramouli struggled to brea-
startedarriving,”Raosaid,adding
that chaos prevailed for hours as
bothfinenow.”
Doctors said that many of the
also came in for praise for risking
their lives to take people out.
NEW DELHI, MAY 7 will have to buy their way home
on an Air India plane,” he said,
true followers OfthefivevillagesnearVisak-
hapatnam evacuated due to gas
theanddiedonwaytohospital.
Kanta Rao from Venkatapur-
familiestriedtotrackeachother.
Sagar, a local registered med-
victims ended up inhaling more
gas as they ran in panic.
“Withintwo-and-a-halfhours,
about 5,000 people were evacua-
THE GOVERNMENT will for the
first time charge Indian nationals
pointing out that citizens in Male
come home free on INS, but from
of Buddha: PM leakfromtheLGPolymersfactory
onThursday,Venkaiah’sVenkata-
amvillage,whostudiesatAndhra
University,saidthescenewaslike
ical practitioner, said, “There was
a foul smell in the house and I
DrMVijayofGeneralMedicine
at King George Hospital said peo-
tedfromfivevillages,thankstopo-
lice and fire and emergency serv-
who are being evacuated by DhakahavetopayRs12,000. puram was the worst-affected. out of a zombie movie. “People could not understand what was plewerebroughtinastateoftotal ices.Theseven-seaterautodrivers
Indian Navy ships. Earlier evacu- “In any case, militaries are EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE Among the dead were two walkedoutofhomesandjustcol- happening.Ifirstthoughtgaswas shock. “The inhalation of gas had are the real heroes,” said Visakha-
ationoperationsbytheNavywere usually involved only as an aux- NEW DELHI, MAY 7 children,6and9yearsold,73-year lapsed on the road. They gasped leaking from the LPG cylinder in madethemsemi-conscious,delir- patnamMPMVVSatyanarayana.
not charged to the passengers. iliary force when evacuation op- oldMekaKrishna,whohadrespi- for air and frothed at the mouths. our kitchen. Then I opened the ious. It had affected their central Banquet halls in the area opened
The Indian High erations are held in a volatile se- WISHING THE country on ratory problems, C G Raju (48), A Cows and buffaloes moaned. doors and there was this strong, nervoussystem.Theywereunable their doors to accommodate the
Commission in Male told the curity context, especially in Buddha Purnima, Prime Narasimha (55), K Naryana (35) Womenandchildrenwerecrying. pungent smell. By that time both to walk. The first half-an-hour in evacuees.Officialssaidtheyhadof-
stranded Indians on Thursday conflict areas, as in Yemen Minister Narendra Modi said and A Chandramouli, 19. A first- Policemen who came to the res- mychildrenhadstartedcryingand thehospitalemergencyroomwas fered to host the villagers till they
that they will have to pay $40 — (2015). In the current crisis, with that“Indiaismakingeveryeffort year MBBS student of Andhra cue also collapsed. A few persons were struggling to breathe. One chaos as it took us time to under- could back home. People are also
about Rs 3,028 — as “evacuation the government focusing on a to save the life of every Indian, Medical College, Chandramouli who owned autorickshaws or became unconscious and the stand the scale of what had hap- beingkeptintheaccommodations
services charge” for repatriation civilian evacuation on commer- and is following its global obli- wasathishouseinGopalapatnam fourwheelers rushed people to otherwasbarelybreathingbythe pened,” said Dr Vijay, adding that createdforCovid-19quarantine.
by INS Jalashwa on Friday. cial basis in peacetime, it may gations equally seriously”. He
InFebruary-March2011,dur- make more sense to use the also said that “those who are en-
ingtheArabspring,whenanop-
eration to evacuate 16,400
Indians was carried out from
Indian Navy and Air Force to de-
liversupplies,medicalrelief,and
safe passage,” he said.
gaged in the service of human-
ity at all times, day and night, are
the true followers of Buddha”,
Under the spotlight: Gaps in law KILLER GAS LEAK
Libya, Indian Navy ships INS
Jalashwa, INS Mysore and INS
Aditya werepressedintoservice,
In his paper on “India’s
Expatriate Evacuation
Operations: Bringing the
andthat“thisspiritkeepsillumi-
nating our lives, keeps it mov-
ing”.
to deal with mishaps like leaks Some of the worst industrial accidents over
the past few years in India linked to gas leak
but no payment was charged Diaspora Home” published at In his video address through their remedies adjudicated, and victims.
from the evacuees. Carnegie India in January 2017, social media on Thursday, Modi MANOJ C G & APURVA we are all conscious of the limi- The Environment Relief
ThedecisiontochargeIndians Xavier — who has done research said the “lack of physical pres- VISHWANATH tations of our legal system that it Fund (ERF), a central fund under
this time flows from the Home on every Indian evacuation op- ence is not so felt” in the times of NEW DELHI, MAY 7 almost takes decades, not years, the Public Liability Insurance
Ministry’sguidelines,whichsaid, eration from 1947 to 2016 — social distancing as the minds in order to compensate the vic- Act, 1991, was set up to provide
“Thecostof travel,asspecifiedby wrote, “The navy has, in many connect. THE GAS leak at the L G tims...” immediate relief to victims of
Civil Aviation Ministry or ways, already taken the lead, “Both our scales and goals of Polymers plant in “So, I would urge the accidents in chemical industries.
Department of Military Affairs with its 2007 maritime strategy success will change over time. Visakhapatnam on Thursday Government while dealing with In March, a study by Vidhi
will be borne by such travellers.” listing ‘actions to assist the However, the thing we always puts under the spotlight gaps in this expeditious legal remedy Centre for Legal Policy found
While Air India is charging Indian diaspora and Indian in- have to keep in mind is that our the legal framework in dealing machinery for victims of a nu- that a corpus of Rs 810 crore
for the evacuation of Indians terests abroad’ as a ‘likely sce- work should be done with con- with such accidents. clear incident to also consider with ERF has remained
fromdifferentpartsof theworld, nario’ for the use of military tinuous service. When there is A decade ago, the issue was that other incidents of this kind, unutilised for nearly three
the Indian Navy or Air Force has force.” In the paper, Xavier compassion for others, compas- raised even during discussions which are not caused on ac- decades. Victims of the Visakhapatnam gas leak at a hospital. PTI
neverchargedIndiansforevacu- quoted the then Navy chief sion and a sense of service, these on the Civil Nuclear Liability Act, count of a nuclear leakage, also The other provision for fix-
ating them. Admiral N K Verma in 2011, who feelings make us so strong that 2010. The 2010 Act deals with there ought to be a similar law ing liability can be found in the
Constantino Xavier, a Fellow described these evacuation ops you can overcome the biggest instituting civil liability for nu- which would deal with it.” Environment Protection Act, JUNE 12, 2014 MARCH 15, 2017
(foreign policy) at the New Delhi- as a “new priority”. challenge,” he said. “I am fully clear damage and granting While the civil nuclear law 1987, brought in the aftermath Bhilai,Chhattisgarh Kanpur,UttarPradesh
based think tank Brookings India, According to the Navy, it has confident that with such organ- prompt compensation to vic- does not deal with criminal of Bhopal Gas Tragedy. Under A leak in a methane gas An ammonia gas leak at
toldTheIndianExpress,“Involving launched Operation “Samudra isedefforts,wewillbeabletoget tims of a nuclear incident. remedies, he said criminal rem- this, the Centre has notified pipeline at the Bhilai plant the Katiyar cold storage
the Navy in repatriation poses a Setu” — meaning “Sea Bridge”, humanity out of this difficult While participating in a de- edies are going to be the same, Manufacture, Storage and of Steel Authority of India results in an explosion,
dilemma.Itwillprobablymakefor as part of a national effort to challenge and reduce the trou- bate on the Act on August 30, whether it is a nuclear leak or a Import of Hazardous Chemicals Limited results in 6 deaths killing 5 people and several
bad optics to see Indian citizens repatriate Indian citizens from bles of the people.” 2010, then Leader of the gas leak or a chemical leak, and Rules, 1989 and the Hazardous and leaves over 50 injured injuries.
paying their way on to an Indian overseas. Indian Naval Ships Speaking about Buddha Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun argued that the legal architec- Wastes (Management, Handling JUNE 27, 2014 OCTOBER 9, 2018
Navy ship to ensure safe passage Jalashwa and Magar will evacu- symbolising dedication, strong Jaitley had said, “We have a sad ture regarding them needs to be and Transboundary Movement) Nagaram,AndhraPradesh Bhilai,Chhattisgarh
home, which would also go ate 1,000 people, keeping in will and self-sacrifice, Modi said, and unfortunate experience of strengthened. “...when you store Rules, 2008 for regulating haz- A gas leak results in a A blast near a pipeline near
againstthemilitary’sethosofserv- mind COVID-related social dis- “Look at the good fortune of all the Bhopal gas leak. This law or utilise the hazardous mate- ardous substances. massive fire at the Gas the coke oven section of
ice. On the other hand, if they are tancing norms vis-a-vis the car- of us, at this time we are seeing deals only with nuclear inci- rial and it is utilised in a manner, Violation of these regula- Authority of India the Bhilai Steel Plant
exempted from the pay-per-use rying capacity and medical fa- many people around us, who dents. I think, two lessons still the fact that there is a leakage it- tions or failure to comply with Limited’s plant, killing 29 results in 11 deaths and
principle set out by MHA/MEA, cilities available onboard. serve others, treat a patient, feed remain. If there are incidents self is a proof that you did not standards would constitute an people and injuring 10. leaves 14 people injured.
a poor person, clean a hospital, and accidents which are not on handle it properly, and, there- offence. The Act also has provi-
maintain law and order on a account of a nuclear incident but fore, you must be taken to task sions against government offi-
JAISHANKAR, DOVAL MEET US AFGHAN PEACE ENVOY road, they are all working round because of which a large num- for this,” Jaitley said. cials found violating the law. The DECEMBER 2-3, 1984 Bhopal,MadhyaPradesh

‘Deeply concerned at violence the clock. In India, outside India,

every such person deserves a
ber of casualty and damage does
take place, our legal regime even
This principle of strict liabil-
ity was evolved by the Supreme
accused are booked under
Section 304A of the IPC, pertain-
Methyl isocyanate gas leaks from Union Carbide
India Limited’s pesticide plant, resulting in more
salute, a tribute.” today is only the conventional Court in the 1987 Oleum Gas ing to causing death by negli- than 3,000 deaths and affecting over 1 lakh people.
upsurge, back call for ceasefire’ FULL REPORT ON
www.indianexpress.com
legal regime that the victims go
to a civil court, and then have
leak case to fix civil liability on
companies and compensate the
gence and with a provision of jail
term of maximum two years.
This remains the world’s worst industrial disaster.

statement by the Ministry of

SHUBHAJIT ROY

‘Naikoo’s killing big success for us...

External Affairs said.
NEW DELHI, MAY 7 “The US side recognized
India's constructive contribution
Ready to reimburse migrants’
INDIA SAID that it is “deeply con- ineconomicdevelopment,recon-
fare but UP CM mum: Cong
militant recruitment will come down’
cernedattheupsurgeinviolence” structionandhumanitarianassis-
andsupportedthecallfor“imme- tance to Afghanistan. They laid
diate ceasefire” as US Special importance to India's crucial and
Representative for Afghanistan continuing role in sustainable EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE
Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad peace, security and stability in A DAY after Hizbul Mujahideen andtheirfamilieswillrealisethat LUCKNOW, MAY 7
met External Affairs Minister S Afghanistan,”thestatementsaid. operations chief Riyaz Naikoo violence isn’t an appropriate re- Punjab: Two
Jaishankar and National Security Indiahasoveradecadeandahalf was killed in an encounter, sponse to any issue and militants THE UP Congress Thursday said
Advisor Ajit Doval on Thursday. madeacommitmentof$3billion KASHMIR IGP VIJAY KUMAR have to face such fate one day... aides of Naikoo it was ready to reimburse the
TheIndiansideemphasisedto
theUSenvoythat“puttinganend
towardsAfghanistan’sreconstruc-
tion and development.
speaks to ADIL AKHZER about
the impact this will have on mil-
Naikoowasalsoinvolvedinnarco
terrorism in South Kashmir.
associate held ticket fares paid by migrant
labourers for special trains that UP CM Yogi Adityanath,
to terrorist safe havens and sanc- Jaishankar and Doval, in their itant recruitment in the Valley. Narcotics has been a major chal- Chandigarh: Punjab Police brought them back to the state, Priyanka Gandhi
tuaries is necessary for enduring conversation with Khalilzad reit- lenge for police. We have to save onWednesdayarrestedtwo but alleged the Yogi Adityanath
andsustainablepeaceandstabil- erated India's continued support How big a success is Naikoo’s our youth from narcotics. aidesofHilalAhmedWagay, government was not providing
ity in Afghanistan”. for“strengtheningpeace,security, killing for security forces? KASHMIR IGP VIJAY KUMAR a close associate of Hizbul them the list of migrants. thatwecanpayfortheirtickets”.
Jaishankar and Doval also unity, democratic and inclusive Weneutralisedfourterrorists Internet and phone services Mujahideen commander UP Congress president Ajay Adityanath, meanwhile, said
mentioned the need for “protec- polity and protection of rights of Wednesdayandoneofthemwas situation in the Valley after were suspended Wednesday. RiyazNaikoo,fromAmritsar. Kumar Lallu and Congress that he has asked other states to
tion of rights of all sections of the allsectionsoftheAfghansociety”, identifiedastheHizb(operations) yesterday’s encounter? When will they be resumed? Naikoo was killed in an en- Legislature Party Leader in the provide a district-wise list of
Afghan society, including Afghan the statement said. chief. He was a local militant and On Wednesday, for the first Yes, we had to snap Internet counterWednesday.Punjab state Aradhana Mishra said they workers from UP in their states
Hindus and Sikhs”. It also said, “India is deeply wouldoftenissueaudiomessages time after August 5, we saw such and phone services... otherwise Police had arrested Wagay wrotetoYogiAdityanath,seeking sothatimmediatearrangements
This was Khalilzad’s first visit concerned at the upsurge in vi- and instigate youths. I have no a law and order situation. But the it would have led to rumour- onApril25andsharedinfor- the list of workers who had re- can be made to bring them back.
to India after the US and Taliban olence and supports the call for hesitation in saying that he was positive sign was that it was lo- mongering.Wewillreviewit,de- mation received from him turned, but he did not respond. Healsoassuredthatworkwould
signed an agreement in Doha on immediateceasefireandneedto influential. He was involved in calised. I conducted a recce of pending on the situation. with the Centre and J&K ad- Party General Secretary be given to every worker as per
February 29 where they agreed assist the people of Afghanistan civilian killings. On March 25, South Kashmir from helicopter ministration. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said she their skills. “For this, our action
that US and NATO troops will be in dealing with the coronavirus whenthelockdownstarted,here- Wednesdayandtherewasnoma- A new outfit, The Resistance The two arrested on had written to the Amethi and plan is almost ready,” said the
withdrawn from Afghanistan in pandemic.” leasedavideothatJ&KPoliceand jorproblem.Threeofourvehicles Front (TRF), has been floated. Wednesdayhavebeeniden- Rae Bareli DMs for the list “so CM in an official statement.
14 months. The deal, which is It also said that India remains Army are more harmful than were damaged. Some 10-11 mis- Can you tell us about it? tified as Bikram Singh and
fraughtwithrisksanduncertain- engagedinextendinghumanitar- COVID-19. Soon, attacks started creantswereinjuredandthreere- Post August 5, Pakistan faced hisbrotherManinderSingh.
ties,posesmanyquestionsonthe
way forward.
ian food and medical supplies to
Afghanistantodealwiththesitu-
onpolicemenandcivilians.There
was an attack on civilians on the
ceived bullet injuries. The condi-
tion of those injured is stable.
a lot of international pressure.
They created this outfit to give an
Police have seized 1 kg
heroin and Rs 32 lakh in
Civilian injured in J&K clashes
Khalilzad,whowasaccompa- ation created by coronavirus. pretextthattheywereinformers. impressionthatTRFisalocalorg- Indian currency from them. Srinagar: A civilian died of bullet Uthmulla in Pulwama.
nied by the Senior Director in the “It was emphasised that put- They were totally innocent... His Do you think recruitment of anisation and they have nothing This was part of a Pakistan- injuriessustainedduringclashes A health department official
USNationalSecurityCouncil,Lisa tinganendtoterroristsafehavens killing is a big success for us. Not militants will go down now to do with it. But all TRF militants sponsored conspiracy to following the killing of Hizbul in Pulwama said Wani was
Curtis,andtheUSAmbassadorto and sanctuaries is necessary for onlyforsecurityforces,itwillalso that Naikoo has been killed? killed recently were in LeT categ- smuggle narcotics and Mujahideen operations chief brought to Tahab PHC. “He had
India,KenJuster,providedan“up- enduring and sustainable peace bring relief to civilians. Whenever you eliminate the oryinourlist.Theyevenincluded weapons into the state, said RiyazNaikooinPulwamadistrict. bullet injuries and was declared
date” on the US peace and recon- and stability in Afghanistan”, the leadership, it will definitely bring some Hizb militants. We can say DGP Dinkar Gupta. ENS He was identified as Jehangir brought dead,” the official said.
ciliation efforts in Afghanistan, a statement said. What is the law and order downmilitantrecruitment.Youth TRFisamixofLeTandHizbcadres. Yusuf Wani, a resident of ENS
 E EXPLAINED
WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

9
THE INDIAN EXPRESS, FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2020
@ieExplained
#ExpressExplained
If there are questions of current or contemporary relevance that you would like
explained, please write to [email protected]

The gas that leaked: SIMPLY PUT QUESTION &ANSWER

what styrene is for, India lockdown, other lockdowns

and how it behaves A Stringency Index created by Oxford University shows how strict a country’s measures were, and at what
stage of the spread it enforced these. India imposed its strictest measures much earlier than others

SREENIVAS JANYALA H KARISHMA MEHROTRA DEATH CURVES AT VARIOUS LEVELS OF STRINGENCY

HYDERABAD, MAY 7 NEW DELHI, MAY 7

THE GAS that leakedfromachemicalfac-

H
C H
IT HAS been well understood that among
FRANCE INDIA

C
tory on the outskirts of Visakhapatnam various countries responding to the Covid- 100,000 100
100,000 100
on Thursday, leaving at least 10 dead and 19 outbreak, India enforced one of the 10,000 80

Reporteddeaths
sending hundreds to hospital, is called strongestlockdownsatanearlyphaseof case

Stringencyindex
styrene. A look at its structure, the kind growth. Now, an index created by the 1,000 60
10,000 80
of industries that use it, and the kind of
health hazards experts associate it with: H C H University of Oxford quantifies that. The
StringencyIndexhasfoundthatIndiaindeed
100 40

C C 20

Reporteddeaths
hadoneof thestrongestlockdownmeasures 10

Stringencyindex
1,000 60
What is styrene? in the world — at a 100 score since March 22. 1 0
Styrene is an organic compound with It was relaxed slightly on April 20 after the 1Jan 1Feb 1Mar 1Apr 1May
theformulaC8H8,itsmolecularstructure government eased norms for certain work-
as pictured. It is a derivative of benzene C C places in regions outside the red zones. ITALY
100 40
(C6H6). It is stored in factories as a liquid,
but evaporates easily, and has to be kept
H C H What is this index? 100,000 100
10 20
at temperatures under 20°C. It is among the metrics being used by the 10,000 80

Reporteddeaths

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Oxford COVID-19 Government Response
What is styrene used for? H Tracker. The Tracker involves a team of 100 1,000 60
Styrene is the main raw material for Oxfordcommunitymemberswhohavecon- 1 0
100 40
synthesis of polystyrene, or (C8H8)n. Molecular structure of styrene tinuously updated a database of 17 indica- 1Jan 1Feb 1Mar 1Apr 1May
Polystyrene, in turn, is a versatile plastic (C8H8), with bonding in the form tors of government response. These indica- 10 20
DatafromMay3,2020,Forindividualcountries,thedatamaybeseveraldaysolder.
that is used to make parts of various ap- C6H5CH=CH2. Used for synthesis of tors examine containment policies such as 1 0 Source:OxforCOVID-19GovernmentResponseTracker.Moreat:bsg.ox.ac.uk/covidtrackeror
pliances such as refrigerators or micro- plastics, it is stored as a liquid in schoolandworkplaceclosings,publicevents, 1Jan 1Feb 1Mar 1Apr 1May github.com/OxCGRT/covid-policy-tracker
ovens; automotive parts; and parts of factories but evaporates rapidly. public transport, stay-at-home policies. The
electronics such as computers; and also Stringency Index is a number from 0 to 100 UNITED STATES IRAN SPAIN
to manufacture disposable cups and in that reflects these indicators. A higher index
food packaging.Styreneis alsoused as an What was the factory from which score indicates a higher level of stringency. 100,000 100 100,000 100 100,000 100
intermediate to produce copolymers — styrene leaked? 10,000 80 10,000 80 10,000 80
Reporteddeaths

Reporteddeaths

Reporteddeaths
Stringencyindex

Stringencyindex

Stringencyindex
which are polymers derived from one or Styrenegasleakedfromastoragetank What does the index tell us?
more species of monomers such as of LGChemPolymers.Thefactorywases- It provides a picture of the stage at which 1,000 60 1,000 60 1,000 60
styrene. tablished in 1961,originally as Hindustan anycountryenforceditsstrongestmeasures. 100 40 100 40 100 40
Polymers, to manufacture polystyrene. It Oxford provides an overlay of countries’
What happens if someone is exposed was merged with McDowell & Co of the deathcurveandtheirstringencyscore.Some 10 20 10 20 10 20
to styrene gas? UB Group in 1978, then taken over in countries saw their deaths just begin to flat- 1 0 1 0 1 0
Exposure to styrene gas affects the 1997 by South Korea-based LG Chem, ten as they reached their highest stringency, 1Jan 1Feb 1Mar 1Apr 1May 1Jan 1Feb 1Mar 1Apr 1May 1Jan 1Feb 1Mar 1Apr 1May
central nervous system, said Dr K Vijay which renamed it LG Polymers. The fac- suchasItaly,Spain,orFrance.AsChinapulled
Kumar, Head of the Department of tory manufacures general-purpose poly- strongermeasures,itsdeathcurveplateaued.
Respiratory Medicine, Andhra Medical styreneandhigh-impactpolystyrene,ex- In countries such as the UK, the US, and similar or higher case load, India called its in this set, and Iran the second most liberal. to alevelthehealthcare systemcan manage;
College. “Breathlessness, respiratory pandable polystyrene, and engineering India, the Oxford graphs find that the death strict lockdown at a much earlier point on its Other countries with a 100 score are the healthcare system can detect and isolate
problems, irritation in eyes, indigestion, plastics compounds. It is located at RRV curvehasnotflattenedafterstrictestmeasures case and death curves. These 18 other coun- Honduras,Argentina,Jordan,Libya,SriLanka, all cases (not just serious ones); manage
nausea, transient loss of consciousness, Puram in Gopalapatnam, 15 km from were enforced. From the highest death count tries had more than 500 cases when they Serbia, and Rwanda. India now has the high- transfer to and from high-risk transmission
unsteadygait,giddinessarecausedbyex- Visakhapatnam city. attheirstrongestmeasures,thecountriescom- called their strictest lockdown, while India est number of cases in this set. zones; and community engagement.
posure to it. In this incident, people were A company official said 1,800 tonnes pared were France, Italy, Iran, Germany, UK, had 320. Again, India had only four deaths India scored 0.7 (below Australia,
exposed to the gas for a short duration, of styrene was stored in a tank of capac- Netherlands, Sweden, Mexico, Canada, on March 22, when its score reached 100, What else does this resource cover? Thailand, Taiwan, and South Korea) because
so there may not be any long-term ef- ity2,400tonnes. The gasleaked fromthis Belgium,Ireland,US,Turkey,Israel,China,India, while most countries had more deaths at In a research note, these researchers ex- it scored 0 for controlling its cases. The high-
fects,” Dr Kumar said. tank when officials were preparing to re- and Switzerland. that point (except Switzerland; no deaths). amined if countries meet four of the six est scorers on this index, at 0.9, were Iceland,
However, in people suffering from openthefactorythatwasshutfor44days Spaincalledforitsstrictestmeasureslater World Health Organization’s (WHO) recom- Hong Kong, Croatia, and Trinidad & Tobago.
respiratory illness such as asthma, and due to the lockdown. About half the gas How does India compare with others? in its case and death count than all others. mendations for relaxing physical distancing Oxford found no countries meet the four
those who have chronic obstructive pul- leaked before it was contained. When compared to other countries with Sweden has had the most liberal measures measures. These are: control transmission measuredrecommendations,but20areclose.
monary diseases, these conditions may
get exaggerated, Dr Kumar said. “Those Were safety protocols in place?
suffering from diabetes or hypertension As explained, styrene has to be stored
may have anxiety disorders.” in gas tanks under 20°C to keep it stable. CORONAVIRUS DASHBOARD
It is the mucous membrane that is The temperature has to be continuously
mainly affected by exposure to styrene monitored, and any exposure to light or
gas. In Visakhapatnam, the styrene gas heat may result in polymerisation. A THE WORLD INDIA COUNT: 52,952 (1,783 DEATHS)
leak caused acute breathlessness among team of 15 engineers and officials re-
manypeople,afewof whomasphyxiated
to death.
mained on duty at the factory through-
out the lockdown period to monitor it. If
202,359
United Kingdom
168,655
Germany
214,457
Italy
131,744
Turkey
TOP 10 STATES REST OF INDIA
AndamanandNicobarIslands33
ArunachalPradesh 1
temperature rises, inhibitors have to be Assam 45 UnionHealth
What are the long-term effects? added to keep the styrene stable. At LG
1,516 Bihar 542
Punjab Chandigarh 120 Ministryupdate
Expertssaythatif peopleareexposed Chem,an inhibitor tank is attached to the 5,532 Delhi Chhattisgarh 59 asof 11pm,
to the gas for a long period, there is a styrene storage tank but it failed to sta- 3,317 DadarNagarHaveli 1 May7.Some
chanceof theirdevelopingleukaemiaand bilise it in time. As a safety measure, the
174,224 Rajasthan 2,998 UP Goa 7
France
Haryana 594
statesmayhave
headaches. Studies on the effects on styrene tanks are never filled to capacity. HimachalPradesh 45 reportedhigher
health due to occupational exposure to 1,231,992 177,160 JammuandKashmir 775 numbers.Only
styrenehave,however,beeninconclusive. Why could the inhibitor not prevent US Russia 3,138 1,456 Jharkhand 127 states/UTswith
6,625 MP West Bengal Karnataka 693
As per the United States what happened? 103,135 Gujarat Kerala 503 atleastonecase
Environmental Protection Agency, tests As the styrene was stagnant for 44 Iran
Ladakh 41 listedhere.
involvingacuteexposureof ratsandmice days, officials said, it was possible that 127,389 1,777 Manipur 2
have shown styrene to have low to mod- some gas accumulated at the ceiling of Brazil 220,325 16,758 Meghalaya 12
15,267
Spain Maharashtra Andhra Pradesh PATIENTS
erate toxicity by inhalation and oral ex- the storage tankand itstemperaturerose Mizoram 1
Odisha 185 DISCHARGED
posure. Animal studies have reported ef- beyond the specified 20°C, and the 4,829 Puducherry 9
fects on the entral nervous system, liver, styrene started vaporising and escaped. TOTAL CONFIRMED: 3,784,085 DEATH COUNT: 264,679 Tamil Nadu Telengana 1107
IN 30 STATES
AND UNION
kidney, and eye and nasal irritation from This is called auto-polymerisation. Tripura 43
Source: Johns Hopkins University, updated at 11 pm on May 7 Uttarakhand 61 TERRITORIES
inhalation exposure to styrene. Liver, However, the exact cause is still being as-
blood, kidney, and stomach effects have certained. The company has not ex-
been observed in animals following plained how the storage tank ruptured Have a question on the COVID-19 outbreak and what you should/should not do? Write to [email protected]
chronic oral exposure. and the gas escaped.

AN EXPERT EXPLAINS

Why it is necessary to watch the emergence of ISIS in the region

sitate closer scrutiny of the ISKP threat in up to the ISKP attacks could suggest a pos- Kashmiri, a kuniya (a kind of name) used by Pashtun commanders of tribal areas of proof as yet, while a few are still missing.
the region. sible shift in post-Caliphate strategy. Aijaz Ahangar, and as Huzaifa-al-Bakistani, Pakistan who, along with Moulvi Nazeer Withthesurfacingof Mushin,itappearsthat
The Wilayat Khurasan — comprising a kuniya used by his son-in-law, reportedly andHafizGulBahadur,alignedwithTaliban a few more Indians may have joined ISKP.
ISIS and Taliban parts of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran and killed in Nangarhar. tofightagainstUS-ledISAF,withactivesup- Inrecenttimes,onlineentitiescalledthe
Less than a month after the fall of the Central Asia — is a concept born in January In no time, hundreds of local fighters of port of the Pakistan Army way back in Islamic State Hind Province (ISHP) or
Caliphate (March 23, 2019), ISIS mounted 2015,whenISISdesignatedaformerTehrik- ISKP displaced the mightier Taliban from October 2001. He was also one of the Islamic State-Kashmir(IS-K) have surfaced,
spectacularattacksontargetsinSriLanka.In e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) commander from Nangarhar while, across the border the foundersof theTTPnetworkthatturnedthe with focus on propaganda and recruitment
March 2020, in Kabul, ISIS claimed mortar Orakzai, Hafiz Saeed, as “Wali” and a dis- Pakistan Army had a formidable presence heat on the Pakistan Army for targeting of Indians, or of fighters from the region, for
attacks on a high-profile political gathering, gruntledAfghanTalibancommander,Abdul to control cross-border movement for its their fiefdom. However, Aslam Farooqui attacks on Indian interests. The activities of
Anju Gupta President Ashraf Ghani’s inauguration, and Rauf,as“deputyWali”. Followingthekilling own security. It has taken close to five years was reported to have made a “deal” with ISHP and IS-K are closely linked to ISKP. The
on US troops in Bagram base twice. Was the of TTPAmir,Hakimullah,inadronestrikein for ISKP to be dislodged from a small area. the Pakistan Army around December 2012. arrest of a Kashmiri couple by Delhi Police
FOLLOWING A coordinated suicide attack March25attackan“anniversaryattack”?Did November 2013, Hafiz Saeed and TTP Some ISKP nodes did surface in Kunar Like all such deals in Pakistan, this too was Special Cell in early March, being linked to
on a gurdwara in Kabul on March 25, in ISIS intend to target “enemies” using a local spokesperson Sheikh Maqbool had drifted province, where Pakistan has for years al- denied as soon as it became public. ISHP/IS-K,mayhavebeenanattempttotest
whichseveralSikhswerekilled,Daesh(ISIS) radicalisedgroupasithadsoughttodowith away from TTP towards the ISI. The intra- leged the presence of TTP and Jamaat-ul- the waters with Indians — those driven by
claimed its second ever attack on Indian in- the July 2016 bakery attack in Dhaka or the Mehsud fight within TTP led to the emer- Ahrarbases.ThegeographicalspreadofISKP, In the region, the signs personalgrievances,radicalisedinthename
terests in Afghanistan. Identifying the lone April 2019 attacks in Sri Lanka? In a country gence of Mullah Fazlullah as the Amir, its selective and big attacks (promptly de- Itiswidelybelievedthatover100Indians of ISIS — to hit targets in Delhior elsewhere.
attacker as Abu Khalid al Hindi where ISIS presumably has a handful of tar- which led to an exodus of some command- nied by Taliban) and its “near peaceful co- had migrated to the Caliphate, while it was Although the source of ISKP/ISHP/IS-K is
(MuhammadMuhsinfromKerala,whohad gets, it is curious as to why it endorsed the ers who were being courted by the ISI to existence” with Taliban cannot be misread. gaining traction among foreign fighters known,thisdoesnotreducethethreatsposed
gone to the Gulf in 2018), ISIS termed it “re- targeting of a minuscule minority. turn them towards targeting Afghanistan. Four ISKP Amirs have been killed and a across the world. Subsequently, it became by them. Since ISIS is currently claiming all
venge for Muslims of Kashmir”. Moreover, in recent years, especially af- InOctober2014,HafizSaeedandSheikh fifth is now under arrest. The group has known that a group of Indians from Kerala, “verifiable”attacks,theseentitieshaveaready-
Subsequently, Afghan security forces ter the US-Taliban agreement, the Taliban Maqbool suddenly pledged allegiance to never gained much traction in Afghanistan including women and children, had mi- to-use platform for propaganda for recruit-
arrested the Amir of Islamic State Khurasan have repeatedly claimed to have finished ISIS.Aroundthattime,theISISideologywas or Pakistan. Except claiming a few big at- gratedtoAfghanistanaround2016-17.Some ment.Moreover,throughtheCovid-19phase,
Province (ISKP, the ISIS branch in Af-Pak) — ISKP in Afghanistan. In a recent issue of the gaining traction in Pakistan; not so much in tacks in Kabul and Quetta, ISKP has not children were born there. A total of 60-plus ISIS is becoming quite active in cyberspace.
a Pakistani national, Aslam Farooqui weekly al Nabha, criticising the agreement, Afghanistan.ThegroupdidattractPakistani shown any keenness to expand its areas of Indians were believed to be living in terri- WhileISISwouldhappilyownuptomanyat-
Akhunzada — and others, including ISIS has exhorted supporters to target “en- and Afghan foot soldiers. The group went influence. Post-Caliphate, no mass move- tory controlled by ISKP in Nangarhar. tacks by the likes of the ISKP network, it may
Kashmiri militant Aijaz Ahangar, wanted emies” as their resources are tied up with online for propaganda and recruitment of mentof regionalforeignfightersbacktothe BetweenOctoberandDecember2019,over notmisstheopportunitytoropeinandguide
for two decades. ISKP posted a picture and Covid-19. Over the last few weeks, a few foreign fighters who found it difficult to go foldof ISKPhasbeenreported.Somecentral 1,400 people with ISKP, including fighters suchnetworkstoattacktargetsintheregion.
a video of an Afghan officer in their custody, lonewolf attackshavebeenreportedacross toSyria-Iraq,especiallyfromPakistan,India, Asian fighters of dubious connections have and their families, surrendered before Thus, apart from stemming radicalisation, it
and pictures of his “beheading” on May 4. Europe. Thus, the targeting of a gurdwara is Bangladesh and Central Asia. However, this surfaced, especially in the north and AfghanforcesinNangarhar.Theseincluded iscriticaltocloselywatchthreatsemergingin
The Afghan Taliban called Aslam a “stooge” surprising. Moreover, the claim of using a recruitment was very small, except from Nangarhar, recruiting Tajiks and Uzbeks for fighters from Pakistan, Bangladesh and theregion,especiallyforIndiaandtheWest.
of Afghan forces, but his organic links in the single foreign fighter, the modus operandi, Pakistan.AccountsfromtheWestdescribed localandoverseasoperations.However,the India. Some Indian women and children
region have been known even before ISIS and weak propaganda doesn’t indicate a the group as ISKP. Online recruiters from local impact of such groups is marginal. wereinthisgroup.AfewIndianfightersare Anju Gupta is an IPS officer.
was born. The chain of events does neces- signature attack by ISIS. However, owning Kashmir surfaced as Abu Usman Al Aslam Farooqui is one of the first believed to have been killed, with no solid Views are personal
 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

10
THE INDIAN EXPRESS, FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2020
WORDLY WISE

THE EDITORIAL PAGE All that I know most surely about morality
and obligations I owe to football.
— ALBERT CAMUS

FOUNDED BY
The future of justice
§

§
RAMNATH GOENKA
Social distancing is here to stay, will profoundly
BECAUSE THE TRUTH INVOLVES US ALL
change the way in which justice is delivered

A TURNING POINT Madan B Lokur

Killing of Riyaz Ahmad Naikoo is an important milestone in the
THELOCKDOWNHASgeneratedseveralwe- sary adjustments to the new regime and the a beginning has to be made now.
battle against militancy in Kashmir, and a moment to build on binarsonjusticedelivery,technologyandthe cases are conveniently heard and decided in A virtualcourtis aunique contributionof

A
future. The discussions focus on the way for- “paperless courts”. A few other high courts the eCourts Project. A pilot virtual court was
FTER A NEARLY three-year-long manhunt, the Army and Jammu & Kashmir ward in tackling the problem of social dis- initiated similar steps, but have yet to insti- launched in August 2018 in Delhi for traffic
Police have succeeded in eliminating arguably the Valley’s most important tancing with lawyers and litigants crowding tutionalise “paperless courts”. offences and it has been a great success.
militant, Hizbul Mujahideen’s Kashmir operations chief, Riyaz Ahmad the courts even after the lockdown is lifted. Online courts have not caught on in the Virtual courts have been successfully tried
Naikoo. After the 2016 killing of Burhan Wani, and the subsequent killings There are three kinds of courts in our absenceof anycompellingneedtodoso.The outinDelhi,Haryana,MaharashtraandTamil
of most of the others in that group of a new generation of militants, the much older and justice delivery system. First, conventional lockdown has provided that opportunity, Nadu. A virtual court is a simple programme
courts located in court complexes where whichshouldbeseized.Thepresentongoing throughwhichapersoncanfindoutif achal-
more experienced militant from Awantipora kept the PoK-based group in business in the
judges, lawyers and litigants are physically “experiment” has, however, indicated that lan has been issued to him or her through a
Valley — by carrying out attacks on uniformed personnel and civilians alike, and by ma- present. Second, online courts where the the major problem with online courts is un- searchfacility.If achallanhasbeenissued,the
nipulating the anger and alienation in a section of Kashmiri youth to recruit new candi- judge is physically present in the courtroom familiaritywiththemediumof communica- details are available online and the person
dates into the group. Naikoo became the face of the indigenous militancy, though he kept but the lawyer or litigant is not. This is the tion. Judges are simply not used to con- maypleadguiltyornotguilty.Onaguiltyplea,
a lower profile than Wani. present arrangement, except that now the sciously facing a camera generally and in the minimum fine is imposed and on a not-
After the August 5 changes in Kashmir, Naikoo was responsible for civilian killings in- courtroom is the residential office of the particular while hearing a case. Similarly, guilty plea, the case is electronically trans-
judge, due to the lockdown. Third, virtual lawyers find it difficult to comfortably argue ferred to the traffic court for trial. At the end
cluding that of migrant labour, a fruit trader and a truck driver. Earlier, he had kidnapped
courts where there is no judge, lawyer or lit- while seated. Body language, facial expres- of the day, a judge reviews the cases and dis-
several J&K policemen after his father was taken away by the police, releasing them only igant and a computer takes a decision based sions, the tone and tenor, both of the judge poses of them electronically depending on
after the police let his father go. For Naikoo, who chose to give up the blackboard for the on the inputs of the litigant. and the lawyer, make for important signals the option exercised. One judge is all it takes
gun, a violent end was foretold. For the security forces, his killing is an important turning About 15 years ago, Delhi initiated a pilot and clues which cannot be captured in VC. tomanagethevirtualcourtforDelhioranen-
point in the continuing battle against militancy in the Valley. It shows that despite the project with Tihar Jail for dealing with routi- However, these and additional skills can be tire state. With the launch of virtual courts,
turbulence, the police network of informants in every village is alive and kicking — it was neremandcasesof prisoners.Theprocedure developedandfine-tuned,butnotovernight. the daily footfalls to the courts have drasti-
postulatedprisonersbeingproducedincourt, Online courts introduce a paradigm that the cally reduced and thousands have pleaded
on a tip-off that Naikoo was traced to his village Beighpora in Awantipora, where he had
not physically but through video conferenc- systemistodaynotfullypreparedfor,butcan guilty and paid the fine electronically.
gone to meet his family. ing(VC),henceanonlinecourt.Thepilotproj- certainly get ready for in due course. Thevirtualcourtsystemhasthepotential
It would be misplaced, however, to think that militancy in the Valley has ended with ectstartedtentativelywithsomehiccupsbut Some technical problems in conducting of being upscaled and other petty offences
hisremoval,orthattheeliminationof dreadedmilitantsaloneisthesolutiontoKashmir’s provedtobeasuccessandnowseveralcourts onlinehearingshavealsosurfaced.Theband- attractingafinesuchasdelayedpaymentsof
problems.Onlydaysago,anewmilitantgroupthatcallsitself TheResistanceFrontwasable have adopted the online process with vary- width is not adequate or stable enough. The local taxes or compoundable offences can
to inflict a heavy toll when an operation in a Handwara village went wrong for the secu- ing degrees of commitment. picture sometimes breaks or gets frozen and also be dealt with by virtual courts. This will
A few intrepid district judges have taken Online courts have not the voice often cracks. ease the burden on conventional courts and
rityforces.Thereweremorecasualtiesthenextday,thistimeintheCRPF.Despitetheirhard-
astepforwardandrecordedthestatementof caught on in the absence of Ironically, in the hearing relating to therefore must be strongly encouraged.
wonsuccesses,eventheArmyandpoliceareonlytooawareof thevitalimportanceof the
partiesincasesof divorcebymutualconsent. any compelling need to do restorationof 4GinJammuandKashmir,the Post lockdown, justice delivery will cer-
political process in findingtheway outof thistunnel. WhatKashmirneeds is an open and Asof now,severalsuchcases,includingthose linksuddenlysnapped.Consultationsarealso tainly undergo a transformation and judges,
participatory process that can provide answers to the political vacuum which militancy involving NRIs, are dealt with through VC in
so. The lockdown has aproblem.Lawyersoccasionallyneedtocon- lawyersandlitigantswillneedtoadapttothe
feeds on, and the new challenges in the wake of the August 5 decision to change the sta- online courts. Punjab and Haryana judges provided that opportunity, sult their client or the instructing advocate; new normal. Social distancing is here to stay
tusof J&K.Byallaccounts,thereislesstrustintheintentionsof theCentreinKashmirthan have gone even further ahead. The online which should be seized. The judges also need to consult each other dur- andwillbringaboutprofoundchangesinthe
there was even in the five tumultuous years leading up to August 2019. The Centre needs courts record the expert evidence of doctors present ongoing ‘experiment’ ing a hearing. Attention needs to be paid to way justice is administered and delivered.
from PGIMER through VC. This has freed the thesereal-timeissuesotherwiselawyerswill Open courts will remain as also open justice,
to acknowledge and address the task ahead with honesty and sincerity. Naikoo’s death is
doctors from time consuming trips to the has, however, indicated that harbour misgivings about a fair hearing. butsomedefinitionswillchangewithamore
a milestone and the challenge is to build on it — use the space created to secure the peace. courts and has resulted in savings of several the major problem with The chairman of the Bar Council of India aggressiveuseof technology,notonlyincon-
croresfortheexchequer.Similarsuccesssto- online courts is has voiced a concern that 90 per cent of the ventional but also online and virtual courts.
ries are available from other district courts, unfamiliarity with the lawyers are not computer literate or tech Several countries and courts have made ad-

WORKERS’ CHOICE
butadeterminedandconcertedeffortisnec- savvy. Law and jurisprudence are not static justments not only for the period of the pan-
essary to popularise online courts at the dis- medium of communication. but mirror societal needs and often shape demic or lockdown, but also for the future.
trict level. Judges are simply not them. Therefore, the Bar Councils and Bar We should certainly not be left behind but
Some high court judges in Delhi and used to consciously Associations must stretch every nerve to ed- must also make a roadmap to meet the chal-
Karnataka’s rollback on trains for migrants carries important Punjab and Haryana have completely dis- ucate the district and taluka lawyers on the lenge. As the Boy Scouts say: Be prepared.
facing a camera generally
pensed with paper — everything is on a soft advantagesofacceptingtechnology.It’salong
lesson for plans to resume economic activity copy, through e-Filing and scanned docu- and in particular while haul for sure and the task cannot be com- The writer retired as a justice of the Supreme

T
ments.Lawyersandjudgeshavemadeneces- hearing a case. pletedinadayorso—itmighttakeayear,but Court of India in December 2018
HEKARNATAKAGOVERNMENThasdonewelltorollbackitsorderofMay5,can-
celing trains that would have ferried migrants back to their home states.
Thousands of migrants from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan,
Tripura, Manipur, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal were reportedly left in

REDEFINING SECURITY
the lurch by the decision. In a series of tweets, Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa
hadcitedeconomicreasonsforwithdrawingthetrains:“Barringtheredzones,business,con-
struction work and industrial activities have to be resumed. In this context. unnecessary
travelofthemigrantworkershastobecontrolled”.Thedecisionhadrightlyprovokedwide-
spread outrage and the state government was called out for denying the migrants, already
driven to the wall, the right to choose.
Covid constraints on defence expenditure could help transform military culture
Pandemics are cruel not just because of the toll they take on the health of people but
alsobecauseofthesocialandeconomicdisruptionstheycause,theanxietiestheybreed.The Arjun Subramaniam
urgency of the cash-strapped states — and industry — to get workers back to factory floors
and construction sites cannot be overstated. Yet it is also evident that the relaxation of the THE FREEZING OF fresh capital acquisitions kick-start the transformation. The first is to tening of the world from a security perspec-
lockdown hasn’t assuaged the fears of workers at most places, including in Karnataka. by the defence forces, delays in procurement acceleratethecreationof indigenousdefence tive.Therewillbecommonthreatsthatwould
Migrant workers, who live precariously even in the best of the times, have concerns about and induction of existing orders, and auster- capability.Doingthiswithoutbrushingaway needtobefoughtjointlybynations.Thethree
gettingworkonasustainedbasisevenaftereconomicactivitiesresumeand,withnosafety ity measures in the administrative domain, the short and medium-term requirement of pre-requisites in these silos will be an amal-
nets in place, many prefer to return home. An empathetic attitude towards such anxieties wereexpected.Itiseasytoapproachthisprob- selective imports will be the key to a cali- gam of service-centric and joint operations
lemtacticallybyissuingdirectivesandguide- bratedmarchtoself-sufficiency.Thenextcrit- expertise,operationalacumeninaglobalen-
andrespectforworkers’dignityandsafetyshouldinformallplanstoresumeindustrialac-
linesandthenseekingperiodicfeedbackfrom icalcomponentisleadership.India’smilitary vironment, and broad-based education that
tivitiesafterthelockdown.States—andindustry—mightwelltakealeaf outof thePunjab themilitaryontheprogressmade,targetsmet, leadership is very hierarchical and sequen- develops intellectual capital.
book,wheremanyseatsonthetrainscarryingbackmigrantsarereportedlyempty,appar- shortfalls and remedial measures instituted. tialinits approach.However,thissamelead- TrainingintheIndianmilitaryistop-notch
ently because efforts to reach out to migrants and persuade them by government and fac- This would be a myopic approach and at best ershiphassuperboperationalskillsandpos- andneedsalittletweakingtohelpofficersand
toryownershavebeensuccessful.Thatseveralindustrialunitshaveputinplacesafeguards resultinshort-term,tenure-basedoutcomes. sesses a quick understanding of technology, menunderstandtherulesof engagementina
for the employees who have reported back to work after the relaxation of the lockdown Instead,thisshouldbeseenasanopportunity tactics, techniques and procedures. Volatile,Uncertain,ComplexandAmbiguous
to evolve a transformational culture in the Consequently, strategic leaders need to be (VUCA)world.Itisdiversifiededucationatall
may also have contributed to this development.
Indianmilitary,basedonclearpoliticalguide- identified and their transition towards be- levels of leadership that is a weak area.
Toitscredit,Karnatakahasputinplaceapost-lockdownrevivalroadmap.Aneconomic linesdrivenbyexistingandfuturisticcapabil- coming more than mere executors of opera- Some have suggested radical ways of se-
package, announced on Wednesday, recognises the importance of the MSME sector, agri- ities, expected strategic outcomes and antic- tional plans and campaigns needs to be en- lecting future chiefs, suggesting a “deep se-
culturists and horticulturists, and informal sector workers. It provides financial assistance ipated strategic challenges. abled. Multi-disciplinary thinking, lateral lection”andafour-yeartenurebasedonsev-
to the self-employed such as weavers, autorickshaw and taxi drivers, and barbers. The A comparison between the approaches assimilationandaworld-viewareamongthe eralcriteriathathavebeenhighlightedinthis
Karnataka government has also set up a board to deal with issues related to wages and re- taken by India’s principal adversaries is in- specific skill-sets that need to be nurtured. article.Theyhavealsohighlightedtheaccom-
trenchment of workers, many of whom are migrants. Yet if, despite all incentives, the mi- structive.Pakistanstagnatesinanexistential- Trainingandeducationformthenexttwo panyingrisksof suchamove.Keepingthatas
threat-based and India-centric approach to silos in the process of transformation. Let us anaspirationallong-termoutcomemaybea
grants still want to go back home, the state, and industry, must respect their choice.
national security. China’s expansive global takethedevelopedWesternmodelforexam- goodideaastheprocessesneededtoincorpo-
strategy and unbridled capability-based de- ple.Severalmilitaryofficersatthecolonellevel rate such a radical change are either nascent
velopmentsurgehaveovercomethedangers This should be seen as an —freshoutof warcollegesandtheuniversity or absent from the current system.
opportunity to evolve a
RETURN TO THE FIELD
ofdirectcompetitionwiththeUS.Ithasclosed environment where they spend a year of ed- Finally, the silo of jointness and integra-
thegapthroughan“indirectapproachtointer- transformational culture in ucation (not training) — are posted at the tion without losing identities and compro-
nationalsecurity”,whichlooksatbuildingon Pentagon and NATO HQ. Here, they work mising competencies is an outcome that
the Indian military, based on
strengths in areas such as cyberspace, non- alongsidecivilians,politicians,lawmakers,not needs to be chased down with focus and de-
Bundesliga season could pave the way for resumption of other contactwarfare,economicanddiplomaticco- clear political guidelines that forgetting their own joint leadership. In such termination.Therewillbepainandturfswill
ercion.StrategicguidelinesforIndia’ssecurity are driven by existing and anenvironment,itisnotdifficulttomark,train betrampledon,butwithtransformedandin-
games. It will be watched like never before managers must shift from a threat-based and recognise talent in ways that go beyond tellectuallyempoweredleadership,nobridge
futuristic capabilities,

T
methodologytoamulti-disciplinarycapabil- the mere rank structure. It is high time India will too far to cross for the Indian military.
HE BUNDESLIGA SEASON has been cleared to restart in eight days, bereft of
ityandoutcome-basedorientationtofitwith
expected strategic outcomes goes down that road because even though
spectators but offering hope that football in Germany will chalk out the blue- the nation’s power aspirations. and anticipated strategic economic globalisation may be on hold for a The writer is a retired Air Vice Marshal and a
print for the resumption of other European football leagues. France and the There are five visible silos most critical to challenges. whilepostCOVID-19,thereisgoingtobeaflat- military historian
Netherlands have already scrapped the season, copping huge financial losses,
while others are engulfed in uncertainty and pay disputes. In this backdrop, the resump-
tion of Bundesliga comes as a wave of optimism. Or, as German chancellor Angela Merkel
put it: “People get back a short piece of normal life”. The return to the field was as much
as a financial necessity as an emotional need. Aborting the season would have made the MAY 8, 1980, FORTY YEARS AGO
league, financially the most robust in Europe, poorer by 800 million dollars.
But, there’s fear in certain quarters: Will the restart usher in another wave of the pan- URANIUM FOR TARAPUR SUGAR IMPORTS police officers in Punjab and Haryana,
demic?ThreeCologneFCplayerstestedpositivelastweek,andSalomonKalouirresponsi- PRESIDENT CARTER HAS set in motion pro- THE UNION GOVERNMENT is understood to particularly among those belonging to the
bly filmed himself ignoring social distancing measures and got duly sacked. Football is not cedures which should lead to the shipment have decided to import sugar so as to in- IPS cadre. Immediate cause of the unrest is
of both enriched uranium consignments for crease the availability and check the rise in alleged harassment at the hands of the new
taking any chances. The pre-match screening is detailed, now. Players will be tested twice
Tarapur for which there are pending appli- the prices of free sale sugar. However, no of- political bosses and registration of cases
a week, three team buses will be used for social distancing, players will enter the field sep- cations, American officials disclosed. Each ficial confirmation was available of the re- against police officers in the two states. First,
aratelyandtherewillbenohandshakes.Off thepitch,foodwillbedeliveredtotheirrooms application is for approximately 20 tonnes ported purchase of about 1,50,000 tonnes of a former deputy director of the CBI, N K
and they must provide lists of family members when they go home after matches. of enriched uranium which will meet the sugar by the State Trading Corporation in the Singh, was arrested and humiliated at the
Fromaplayer-clubperspective,everymeasureisinplacetopreventanotherepisode.But needs of one year’s fuel for Tarapur. While London market. The country has not im- initiative of the Haryana government.
still, questions remain. And these concern the fans. Spectators can be kept out of the stadi- naturally hoping that India will eventually ported sugar for over 20 years. The govern- R C Sharma, former SSP of Karnalis is facing
ums,butnotoutofthegame.MoresoinGermany,whichhasthehighestaverageattendance agree to full safeguards, officials also point ment decision follows a steep fall in sugar the same fate. He is currently on bail and
outthatthereisawaiverprovisionin thelaw production in 1979-80 with the total output has not only been superseded but placed
figures in Europe. So even if the games will be played behind closed doors, chances are the
itself. Under this, even if India continues to estimated at four million tonnes. on a junior post. Sharma is considered an
fanswillthrongoutsidestadiums,crowdpubs,parksandothercommunityspaces.Theun- refusetoacceptthesafeguards,thepresident upright officer and there is a lot of
known, unregulated crowds could undo the hard work the country’s health care system of the United States can still sanction ship- POLICE DISCONTENT sympathy for him among the officers and
has put in to curb the pandemic. The world will be watching Bundesliga like never before. ments even after the law goes into effect. THERE IS GENERAL discontent among the other ranks.
 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

11 THE IDEAS PAGE

THE INDIAN EXPRESS, FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2020

WHAT THE OTHERS SAY

“Ministers and officials have failed to address the trade-offs between health
and privacy by being ambiguous about the app’s safeguards.” — THEGUARDIAN

Enemy is coronavirus, not China Acing the tests

TestingiscriticalinfightagainstCOVID,
Covid-19hastriggeredanewwaveof China-bashing.Thefactis,Chinasufferedthefirstattackof thevirus,
andinansweringquestionofwhenitis
andisnowareliablepartnerinfightingtheepidemic
safetogobacktowork
significantly ramped up diagnostic RT-PCR
based testing, this is still insufficient to un-
derstand the potential spread of the infec-
tion especially in the asymptomatic popu-
lation in hotspots such as the slums in
Dharavi.Targetedstudiestounderstandthe
prevalenceof theinfectioncouldbecarried
out for selected hotspots, such as Red
Tang Guocai Swati Piramal and Zones, which can help the authorities to
Mahesh Balsekar plan and prepare better. This will also help
intheprogressof epidemiological research
CURRENTLY, THE COVID-19 pandemic is on the disease.
spreading all over the world. Facing this un- The study could be led by an academic
precedented public health crisis, all coun- MULTIPLE COUNTRIES HAVE started con- institute of repute, as in the Santa Clara
tries in the world should work together. ductingatscalerandomisedantibodysero- study in which Stanford University led the
However, some Western politicians are tak- prevalence studies to understand the research supported by either government
ing the lead in a new wave of China-bash- prevalence and trends of COVID-19 infec- or private labs approved to undertake
ing, spinning conspiracy theories varying tion in specific hotspots, including in COVID testing. The estimated costs are
from “Chinese virus” to “Chinese problem”, Munich, Santa Clara in the US and Italy. known forvarioustestingmethods.For the
or “Chinese responsibility”, and even Based on current guidelines and avail- Stanford study, the cost of the rapid anti-
“Chinese threat”. These assertions are very able research, rapid antibody tests alone body kits was approximately $7 per kit.
arrogant and fierce, but if you take a closer are not reliable as a diagnostic tool or for Many countries (including India) and
look, they all bear the same stereotype of dis- contact tracing. Further, these tests have stateshavereporteddeficienciesintheout-
crimination against China in history. It is a lower specificity and sensitivity as com- put of antibody tests. A variety of antibody
300-year-old culture trying to tarnish a pared to molecular assay tests — like RT- tests were validated in a study done by the
5,000-year-old civilisation. PCR — leading to a higher incidence of false University of California, San Francisco and
First they called COVID-19 the “Chinese negatives and positives. A positive on the the Harvard Medical School. The New York
virus”, which reminds us of the notorious antibody test merely means that the per- Times reported on the study’s results on
cliché of “sick man in East Asia” a century son has been exposed to COVID-19 and de- April 26.
ago — it is pure racial discrimination. We veloped antibodies. The negative test Makersoftheantibodytestsdefendtheir
must listen to the World Health Organisation means that the person has not been ex- research and point out how antibody tests
(WHO) and the scientific community and posed to COVID-19 and may be susceptible have been wrongly used. US-based Sure
disregard the yarns spun by some Western in the future. Hence, as per the recently an- Biotech has helped develop more than 200
politicians. C R Sasikumar
nounced ICMR guidelines on the use of rapid tests for viruses such as HIV, herpes
Secondly, they call it the “Chinese prob- rapid antibody kits, they can be potentially andhepatitis.Thecompany’santibodytests
lem” — that China didn’t handle the crisis used for epidemiological and surveillance have had a specificity of 100 per cent in one
well, or Chinese medical products are prob- normal. Some Western countries could not India could jointly lead the civilisational ap- studies at a community level. study. On countries reporting a high num-
lematic. It is fair to say that, facing an un- accept the facts and are full of anxieties that proach, to cure the global village. These studies can help understand the beroffalsepositives,SherylDunnof Biosure
known enemy, what China has accom- China will be the “winner” after the epi- Both China and India are great civilisa- spread of the infection in hotspots, proba- writes “some users don’t understand how
plished within a month, namely, informing demic. So politicians and media are work- tions with a long history. Peace and toler- ble nature of spread in terms of asympto- tousetheserologytests.Theyarelessfordi-
the WHO of the epidemic, sharing the whole ing hard to shame China. Those baseless ance are the core of our philosophy. Chinese matic vs symptomatic carriers, facilitate agnosticandmorefortestingforpastinfec-
genome sequence of the novel coronavirus, clichés attacking China are typically the “old philosophy advocates “the unity of man and policy-making and help in evaluating the tions.If youuseserologytests betweenDay
and implementing an effective lockdown of wine” of colonial thoughts in a “new bottle”, nature”, while the ancient Indian philoso- impact of different protocols and policies. 1-14,duringacurrentinfectionperiod,they
the mega city, Wuhan, no other country can no different from the notice boards affixed phy and Gandhi’s idea of peaceful coexis- However, these studies must be designed catch only a proportion of the true positive
do better. In the fight against the pandemic, in the old days that said, “Chinese and dogs tence with nature speak to the same idea. carefully along with experienced medical cases. They are a supplement to PCR tests,
about half of the world’s medical supplies are not allowed to enter”. As a Chinese saying goes, “Do not impose on and epidemiology professionals to be able which test for current infections but so far
come from China. China’s important role as As a matter of fact, there is no winner in others what you yourself do not desire”. to draw meaningful conclusions. Based on are not as portable.”
the “global anti-pandemic factory” is well theepidemic.Chinaisalsoavictimof theepi- Equality and mutual respect China has never colonised any other coun- learnings from the research team at the The science of testing is evolving.
known and reliable. demic. China suffered the first attack, made try, rather it always works hard for the ben- Stanford School of Medicine, the following Scientists are cooperating with each other
Thirdly, they refer to the so-called huge sacrifices to contain the epidemic, and
are the basic norms of efit of its citizens and global wellbeing. critical factors must be ensured while de- faster than the speed of sound. Our ques-
“Chinese responsibility” and threaten to won precious time for the global anti-epi- international relations. But China and India are promoting mutual signing and conducting the study: tions to researchers in the Stanford study
bring lawsuits and huge claims against demic war. It should be treated fairly rather the colonial hangover is still cooperation in fighting COVID-19. Central Selection, testing methodology and robust elicited a quick response (it helped that
China. This is typical political blackmail. It than blamed. The bottom line here is the en- very much active in many and local governments as well as the busi- statistical analysis. many of the researchers are of Indian ori-
must be pointed out that attempts to use le- emy is coronavirus, not China, rather China nesscommunitiesinbothcountriesarejoin- Well-thought-through study partici- gin). Bill Gates said in a recent interview
gal means to seek political ends lack the ba- is a reliable partner in fighting the epidemic. people’s minds, and they just ing hands and moving ahead. Mumbai is pant selection methodology should be de- that we “need to get to the bottom of this”
sic common sense of jurisprudence. Frankly speaking, we live in a world dom- cannot look at China’s rise on playing a crucial role in the bilateral air cor- velopedtoensurerepresentativenessof ac- — referring to understanding how much
Fourthly, these always lead to the so- inated by Western business. According to the an equal footing. China has ridor of medical supplies. The “green chan- tual population demographic and to the virus has spread in communities.
called “China threat”, which claims that International Monetary Fund, the US dollar now effectively controlled the nel” of Indian cargo flights from China to minimise selection bias. Researchers are racing to give the answer.
China will soon surpass the United States accounts for around 40 per cent of the inter- India — the first time in history — has been Appropriate testing methodology and It may soon be possible to self-test, just by
and rule the world, through the pandemic. national reserve currency, and the Euro ac- epidemic, and its economy initiated in Mumbai. Besides being the eco- kitsshouldbeselectedtoensurehighspeci- wiping your nose and providing a swab of
Instead of fighting a common enemy, some counts for more than 30 per cent. As far as and social life are back to nomic and financial centre of India,Mumbai ficity and sensitivity, and implementation saliva via mail to a lab. Academics at IIT
Western politicians are trying to link the the media are concerned, Westerners cer- normal. Some Western is also a big hub for media and cultural in- challenges must be factoredin — for exam- Delhi are sequencing bits of the COVID
pandemic with their elections, or geograph- tainly have a “loudspeaker”, while the voices dustry, from which China could learn a lot. ple, pooled RT-PCR testing vs rapid anti- genome and making tests that are afford-
countries could not accept
ical, political or economic gains. The world of China and India get lost in this cacophony. NowwithsomeWesternpoliticalfiguresus- body kits, or both. The sample size for such able. Testing is critical in the fight against
will move on its own path after the pan- Especially in today’s world, the extreme im- the facts and are full of ing COVID-19 to slander China, the Chinese tests should be determined by appropriate COVID and in finding an answer to when it
demic. Perhaps, some people are even se- pact of new media is so intense and ridicu- anxieties that China will be people’s anger is understandably on the rise. statistical analysis driven by demograph- is safe to go back to work.
cretly betting on a “China collapse theory”. lous, that you can simply run a country the “winner” after the ChinaandIndiashouldfurtherpromote me- ics and theaccuracy of thetestsbeingused.
But, again, that is wishful thinking; laugh- through tweets. The dangers of fake news dia cooperation to ensure that our views get The Santa Clara and Munich-based studies The writers are part of the Mahacovid, a
able, and sad. and malicious stigmatisation are much more
epidemic. So politicians and across to different corners of the world. The have used a sample size of approximately voluntary informal group including
Equality and mutual respect are the ba- than ever before. media are working hard to renaissance of Asiancivilisationrepresented 3,000 participants. foundations, management consulting
sic norms of international relations. But the Faced with the epidemic, the buzzwords shame China. Those baseless byChinaandIndiaandtheriseof developing Robust statistical analysis is needed to firms, companies, public officials and
colonial hangover is still very much active in I hear in India and China are naturally simi- clichés attacking China are countries, is unstoppable. No provocation determine the appropriate sample size, ac- experts in public health and data analytics
many people’s minds, and they just cannot lar — “going home” or “returning to native can change this historical trend. counting for multiple factors such as the who are working on the ground in
look at China’s rise on an equal footing. China place”. Because deep down, we know that
typically the “old wine” of specificity and sensitivity of the tests used, Mumbai, Maharashtra to help in fighting
has now effectively controlled the epidemic, the basic unit of humanity is community and colonial thoughts in a “new The writer is consul-general of the People’s as well as to draw conclusions from the the Covid 19 pandemic. This article is based
and its economy and social life are back to a shared future. In this regard, China and bottle”. Republic of China in Mumbai study to understand prevalence. on conversations with researchers
While Mumbai and other cities have around the world

Regroup and reinvent LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

BEYOND THE CALLS
ThereisneedforcoordinatedresponsebyCentreandstatestomeetcrisis THISREFERSEDITORIAL,‘Otherhealth- IDEAS
ONLINE
care fronts’ (IE, May 7). In the rush to
Kalraj Mishra protect the country against COVID-19,
those suffering from other ailments
mustnotbeignored.Currently,thegov- ONLY IN THE EXPRESS
GLOBAL ECONOMIC PROSPECTS have been increasingly exploring the possibilities of di- mand, salaries and jobs. But with speedy The government should waive-off util- ernmentismarshallingalltheresources
severely dented by the COVID-19 pandemic. versifying their manufacturing and supply action, the government could significantly ity bills for the urban poor for three months. at its command in containing the virus ● A FLAWED RESPONSE:
This medical-cum-economic emergency chains to avoid putting all their eggs in the ease the damage. Similarly, MSMEs should be exempted from and the treatment of all other diseases SHARAD YADAV
has caused massive dislocations in global China basket. We should leverage this to our Another focus area is pharmaceuticals. electricity duties for three months. Taxes has been put on the back burner. Those
production, supply chains, trade and advantage so that China’s loss is India’s gain. Despite the country’s strength in the levied by local/state government may also with serious and critical illnesses can- ● THE RIGHT CRISIS
tourism. COVID-19 has impacted economic MSMEs form the backbone of the econ- generic drug scene, Indian pharma majors be exempted for three months for specific notbecuredtelepathicallybytelemed-
activity in India directly due to national omy. But they are quite vulnerable and have have been importing raw materials from sectors. icine. The government ought to deploy
POLICY MIX: SIMRIT KAUR
lockdown and via second-round effects op- minimal reserves to meet difficulties. The China though some of these are available Along with the private sector, the gov- its limited resources optimally. AND KAMALDEEP
erating through lower global trade and lockdown has left them with unmet ex- locally. India could be the largest exporter of ernment must create an emergency frame- Deepak Singhal, Chennai KAUR SARNA
growth. penses, utility bills, rents, salaries. And pay- medicines. It can also present itself as a work to manufacture low-cost sanitisers
The government has announced an eco-
nomic stimulus package worth Rs 1.7 lakh
ments owed to these units are stuck, creat-
ing a double squeeze. On April 15, the
credible alternative in the textile and ap-
parel segment. Other promising areas in-
and masks, testing kits and protective gear
to support healthcare professionals.
FORSEEN PROBLEMS www.indianexpress.com
crore, designed to help millions of low-in- government announced certain relaxations clude minerals and metals, homeware, ce- Additionally, manufacturing low-cost ven- THIS REFERS TO the article, ‘Weak
come households bear the lockdown. This on the lockdown restrictions. According to ramic tiles, engineering goods and tilators, digital thermometers and critical links into strengths’ (IE, May 6). Many
package was supplemented by various an assessment by the Federation of Indian furniture. vaccines will help mitigate the loss of life. of the issues relating to supply chains money to indulge in few moments of
measures from the RBI, which included re- Export Organisations (FIEO), these relax- Further, with businesses transitioning Organisations should create a COVID-19 and logistics of essential goods could pleasure. With 40 days of lockdown,
ducing the repo rate by 75 basis points, pro- ations will help restart about 80-85 per cent to a digital model, the demand for online response fund through their corporate so- have been foreseen in a pre-COVID and all other sources of revenue having
viding a three-month moratorium on pay- of export-oriented manufacturing units. If tools for communication and collaboration cial responsibility spending. A disaster man- world. The FCI wouldn’t have had to dried up, the easiest option for the gov-
ment of instalments of term loans, and these units can operate by early May, it will increase. Online methods of skilling, agement framework focused on creating a struggle with transporting food-grain ernment is to sell liquor. But the state
deferment of interest on working capital fa- would help them to pay wages for May. upskilling and reskilling will grow, leading robust channel to provide information and had godowns been established at the has a social obligation to preserve the
cilities by three months. Further, restarting labour-intensive indus- to a spike in demand for good online educa- create awareness is essential. The govern- district level. This would have reduced mental-physical well being of citizens
The sharp reduction in international tries like food processing and construction in tion content. Light industries in villages, es- ment should also ensure disaster response transportation costs and delays. as well. The freedom to drink in
crude oil prices could improve India’s terms rural areas would generate income for mi- pecially in food processing, will also get a training programmes. The Rajasthan state The government must develop a logis- moderation must be balanced by this
of trade, but the gains are not expected to grant labourers. Allowing transport, ware- boost. Startups should be encouraged to de- government should also push the National tics policy in for national emergencies concern.
offset the drag from the shutdown and loss housing and cold storage would ensure velop cold-chain logistics with a proper Agriculture Market (eNAM). and keep in mind that it shouldn’t be- Mohit Swami, Bikaner
of external demand. To manage the stress, smoother functioning of the supply chain. ecosystem. Flattening the curve is of utmost impor- come reliant on the benevolence of in-
economic policy has to focus on guarantee-
ing the functioning of essential sectors, pro-
Businesses have started facing massive
working capital/cash flow issues and these
The top priority today is to get the econ-
omy back on track while ensuring there is
tance. India is battling this medical-cum-
economic emergency through isolation, so-
dividuals and NGOs to fulfil its sover-
eign duties.
SAVE MSMES
viding enough resources for people hit by will continue even post the lockdown be- no resurgence of the disease. The Rajasthan cial distancing and upscaling diagnostic and Noel Therattil, Delhi THIS REFERS TO the editorial, ‘COVID &
the crisis and preventing excessive eco- cause of reduced demand. MSME and start- state government should set aside funds to testing requirements. But given the magni- MSME’ (IE, May 6). If the government
nomic disruption. The Chinese character of
the crisis represents both challenge and op-
ups are the worst hit. Though the govern-
ment has taken steps via SIDBI and other
take care of our first responders (across all
essential services) and patients. It should
tude of the crisis, there is a compelling need
for coordinated efforts by all stake-holders
WATER IT DOWN wants to put this sector back on the
road to recovery, it must come up with
portunity. Hence, we need to focus on the schemes to help MSMEs, we need to do provide a universal basic cash payment to - central and state governments, doctors, THIS REFERS TO the article, ‘Drink for fiscal and other stimuli immediately.
following aspects. more. The government can also procure every household so that minimal needs can nurses, planners and policy-makers and thought’ (IE May 7). The recent stam- Unfortunately, there is nothing on the
In the last three decades, China has be- from MSMEs and startups, thus helping be met even under a lockdown. The govern- even those at the helm of affairs at various pede has shown that people across the horizon. It’s time for the governmentto
come the global factory. The disruption in them sustain. Restoring pre-COVID levels ment must also ensure the uninterrupted levels of administration. All of us must play length and breadth of the country are wake up.
the supply of finished goods and raw mate- of purchase could take six months or more. flow of critical supplies and services, and our part in meeting this challenge. willing to spend astronomical sums of S K Prabhakar, Gurugram
rials has led to an increased awareness of the Until then, businesses and workers need to invest in the much-needed health infra-
risks of this concentration. Companies are brace themselves for drastic cuts in de- structure. The writer is governor of Rajasthan
 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

12 THE OUTBREAK
THE INDIAN EXPRESS, FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2020

The World

PANDEMIC
WATCH White House rejects key guidelines 3.2 mn more file
for jobless aid, US
as they could ‘slow down’ reopening total over 33 mn
NEW YORK TIMES NEW YORK TIMES
NEW YORK, MAY 7 NEW YORK, MAY 7
In Dhaka. Reuters
THE TRUMP administration has
rejected detailed guidelines
Another 3.2 million people filed
for first-time unemployment The longroad
BANGLADESH from health experts to help
schools, restaurants, churches
benefits last week, in the latest
evidence of the economic dev-
back to 2019
Govtliftscurbs and other establishments safely
TRAVEL FROMNEW astation from the pandemic.

onmosque reopen, saying they are too pre-

scriptive, according to several YORK SEEDED WAVE
TheUSgovernmentreportre-
leased Thursday brings the total
WITH THE economic de-
cline occurring so quickly
prayers administration officials.
The White House has asked
OF OUTBREAKS tally over seven weeks to more
than33million.Theweeklynum-
andcomprehensively,ex-
perts have said that a re-
Dhaka: Bangladesh on forrevisionsfromtheCentersfor bershavedeclinedsincereaching turn to the economic
Thursday allowed Disease Control and Prevention, NEW YORK City’s apeakof6.9millionclaimsinlate state of 2019 would likely
Muslims to attend prayer whose public health experts outbreak grew so large March. But the data remains takealong time.Thispre-
congregations in wrotetheguidance,butsomeof- by early March that it shocking:Officialsinsomestates diction, which contra-
mosques as the govern- ficials at the CDC have privately became the primary say more than a quarter of the dicts Trump’s assurances
ment continues to ease expressed concern that the rec- source of new infections work force is jobless. of a quick rebound, lies
thelockdownrestrictions ommendations will never be in the United States, Economists expect the partly in the fact that it is
amid the coronavirus posted publicly. new research reveals. monthly jobs report from the impossible to ascertain
outbreak which has in- In a senior staff meeting at LaborDepartment,dueFriday,to how quickly jobs will re-
fected 12,425 people in the White House last week, THIS SHOWS how show that the unemployment turn as curbs are lifted.
the country so far. MarkMeadows,thechief of staff, Police remove people from the subway to disinfect it, in New York City on Thursday. Reuters decisions including rate in April was 15 per cent or
However,mosqueleaders expressed concern that the waiting to impose higher, a Depression-era level.
are not allowed to organ- guidelines were “overly pre- distancing measures and The figure will almost certainly The country has already suf-
ise Iftar gatherings on the scriptive,” according to a person faith,employerswithvulnerable that effort, according to several keep the virus from spreading to limit international understate the damage. fered its worst decline in gross
mosque premises in line familiar with the discussion. workers, restaurants and bars, people with knowledge of the once they reopened. But several flights helped shape the The current economic pic- domestic product in a decade
with thesocial distancing Meadows’ concern, the official and mass transit administrators. deliberations inside the West federal agencies, including the outbreak’s trajectory ture is, in a word, bleak. But even and the worst retail sales report
rules, the Bdnews24.com said, was that the guidelines President Trump has been Wing. The dissension on the Department of Labor and the in the longer term, many econo- on record. And it is part of a
reported. The mosques were too uniform and regressive desperate to reopen the country guidelines was first reported by Office of Civil Rights within the A LACK of testing mists warn, the outlook is far broader global downturn.
and devotees have been for places with minimal num- quickly amid the worst eco- The Associated Press. Department of Health and obscured the true from promising, and the quick More than half of states have
asked to comply with a bers of cases. nomicmeltdownsincetheGreat Theguidance,whichtheCDC Human Services, protested, say- extent of the outbreak rebound that Trump predicts begun to reopen their
set of safety protocols to A copy of the guidance ob- Depression. The detailed CDC first submitted to the White ing it would be harmful to busi- for months, and officials may not materialise. economies or plan to do so soon.
hold prayer congrega- tained by The New York Times guidance was seen by members House in draft form two weeks nesses andtheeconomy and too acted on incomplete and “We don’t know what nor- Butmostfailtomeetcriteriarec-
tions,theReligiousAffairs includes sections dealing with of the White House coronavirus ago,wasmeanttohelpstates,lo- prescriptive for houses of wor- sometimes conflicting mal is going to look like,” said ommended by the Trump ad-
Ministry said. childcareprograms,schools and task force and other aides as a cal governments and businesses ship in particular, a federal offi- information Martha Gimbel, an economist ministration to resume business
day camps, communities of documentthatcouldslowdown adopt measures thatwouldhelp cial said. and a labor market expert. and social activities.

UNITED KINGDOM
Indian-origin
Many cases
among medics
Amid pandemic, lockdown,
UKMPsacked
ascareworker spark alarm an adoption and evacuation
London: An Indian-origin
Opposition Labour Party
in Afghanistan MARIA ABI-HABIB
MP, who had returned NEW YORK, MAY 7
part-time to her role of a HAMID SHALIZI &
care worker, says she was RUPAM JAIN THE LITTLE girl, her black curls
sacked for speaking out KABUL/MUMBAI, MAY 7 tumbling over her eyes and her
against the shortage of slight frame uncomfortably
personal protective MORE THAN a third of con- splayed out on the airplane seat,
equipment (PPE). firmed coronavirus cases in the hid crayons in her armpits the
"Because I've spoken out Afghancapitalhavebeenamong entire flight. She was puzzled
aboutthis[PPEshortages] doctors and other healthcare how they, like the new people
I've been sacked from my staff, two senior health officials calledMomandDad sitting next
employment. But this is- said on Thursday, in a sign that to her, now belonged to her.
n't just about me, it's not the war-torn country is strug- Her new parents, Seth and
just about one individual gling to deal with the pandemic. MegMosier,lookedtoeachother.
case, or even one em- Theofficialscitedalackofpro- Were they doing things right? It
ployer. Care workers tective equipment for medics as was not their first emergency
acrossthecountryarebe- wellasalackofawarenessamong evacuation — they had escaped Seth and Meg Mosier pose with their daughter Selvi
ing easily exploited by
their employers, espe-
cially if they're on zero-
CLIMBING THE DOME somemedicalstaffoftheprecau-
tions needed to avoid infection.
The high rate of infection
war and violence before — but it
wastheirfirstonaone-wayflight
from India sponsored by the before the adoption was ap- TheywerestuckinIndiawith
hours contracts," said 24- People at the Boudhanath Stupa during the birth anniversary of Buddha amid the lockdown among healthcare workers has Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- proved. They booked tickets to fewhotelsstillopen.TheMosiers
year-oldLabourPartyMP. in Kathmandu, Nepal, on Thursday. The IMF has approved a disbursement of about $214 sparked alarm among medics day Saints. And certainly their Madurai for March 12, four days checked themselves into a fancy
million to help Nepal cover pandemic costs. Reuters and some doctors have closed firstwithalittlegirltheyhadjust before their meeting with Selvi. hotel now empty of guests. They
CANADA their clinics. adopted as a deadly pandemic Just 20 hours after the spent the next nine days playing

Wagesofkey However, it is not clear

whether the apparently dispro-
swirled around the world.
In 2008, Seth, an American
Mosiers arrived, India sealed its
borders. Now all they needed to
hideandgoseekwithboredbell-
hops and the hotel manager.
workersto
beboosted
Pakistan to lift measures from portionate rate of infection
might be at least in part because
medical staff are more likely to
diplomat, was ordered to evacu-
ate from the embassy in Tbilisi,
Georgia, when the Russian mili-
do was meet their daughter and
get out in time. The bonding
process was never going to be
“So many people told us we
were the bright spot in their
day,” Meg said.

Ottawa: Canada and the

10 provinces have agreed
May 9 despite rising curve betestedfortheillness.Fewpeo-
ple with the classic COVID-19
symptoms of high fever and res-
taryinvaded.Megdroveacarfilled
with diplomats across the border
and into the safety of Armenia. In
easy, but now they had to speed
it up. “It was so scary. There was
so much weight behind this, so
Finally, theygot anemailsay-
ing the Latter-day Saints had
charteredaflighttoevacuatemis-
to increase pay for essen- creaseof1,523casesonThursday. piratory problems are being 2011, the Arab Spring protests many moments dedicated to sionaries. They offered unoccu-
tial workers such as those REUTERS & PTI Debt-ridden Pakistan is also testedinAfghanistan,becauseof forcedthemtoleaveEgypt. thinking about this moment,” pied seats to the embassy, which
working in seniors’ resi- ISLAMABAD, MAY 7 goingaheadwithitsstrategic$60 a shortage of testing kits. Seth, 41, with a dirty blond Meg said. offered them to the Mosiers.
dences,wheremanycases billion China-Pakistan Economic The total of 925 confirmed crew cut and a perpetually The next day, the Mosiers The Mosiers are now back in
have occurred, Prime PAKISTAN’S CORONAVIRUS Corridorproject,despitethecoun- cases in Kabul has included earnestlookonhisface,andMeg, could finally take Selvi home. Bethesda, where the governor
Minister Justin Trudeau lockdown will be lifted on try'sfurthereconomicdownturn. some 346 medical staff, a gov- 42,withfreckles,ashortbrunette They flew several hours to Delhi has ordered an extended lock-
said Thursday. “Workers Saturday, Prime Minister Imran "Thereisnopoliticalhindrancein ernment health official and an bob and a determination to al- on March 18. The next day, India down. They haven’t introduced
are risking their health to Khan said, despite the fact that its way. The project is Pakistan's Afghan doctor who is on the waysstaypositive,decidedtoset- announced all flights in and out Selvi to friends or family yet,
provide us with essential the number of cases in the coun- futureaswellasatangiblereality board of a government-led pan- tle down after they left Cairo. of the country would be can- which they said was a blessing
care and services, and we try is still accelerating. andnocompromisewillbemade demic task force said. Afterweeksof fillingoutmo- celled in three days. They had that allowed them to bond with
need to make sure that The decision is being taken Villagers harvest crops amid on it," CPEC Authority Chairman As of Thursday, 3,563 people notonous paperwork, they were two days to finalise an interna- their new daughter.
they are paid properly for because the country’s large lockdown in Peshawar. AP Lt-Gen(retd)AsimSaleemBajwa havetestedpositiveand106peo- directed to an orphanage in tional adoption. Meals have been difficult.
theworktheydo,”hesaid. number of poor people and said Wednesday. ple have died in Afghanistan, ac- Madurai,acityinsouthernIndia. The final paperwork usually SelvidoesnotlikeAmericanfood
Ottawa will contribute labourers cannot not afford to Pakistan takes decisions in cording to official figures. The The orphanage gave them a take a week. But bureaucrats and so Seth has been research-
C$3 billion, representing live under lockdown any more, up.... but it is not edging up as we its interest and there should be twoofficials,whoaskednottobe name: a little girl named Selvi. from both countries rushed to ing Indian curry recipes online.
75%percentoftotalcostof he said on Thursday. were expecting.” no doubt that the CPEC project named as they were not autho- Last December, when they finish it in two days. Just hours “I’ve spent a lot of time perfect-
the increased wages, the “We’re deciding that we are Pakistan, which has under- "is in the best interest of the rised to discuss the matter pub- hadtheirfirstvideochatwithher, before the airport closed, the ing a potato masala,” Seth said.
governmentsaid.Trudeau ending this lockdown now,” gone a five-week lockdown, has country" and "no external pres- licly, said at least 13 doctors had they struggled to hold her atten- Mosierscheckedin.Buttheyhad And the crayons? Selvi now
earlier said the amount Khan said in a televised address. reported 24,073 coronavirus sure will be accepted", the died in different parts of the tion.Lessthanthreemonthslater, forgottenonecrucialpieceof pa- leaves them lying around the
was C$4 billion. “We know that we’re doing it at cases with 564 deaths, and Express Tribune quoted Bajwa as country last month and in the thefirstcoronaviruscaseinDelhi per: an exit stamp allowing Selvi house. “She knows,” Meg said,
a time when our curve is going recordeditshighestsingle-dayin- saying. first week of May. REUTERS wasannouncedonMarch2,aday to leave the country. “what’s ours is hers.” NYT

OTHER TOP GLOBAL STORIES

Israeli High Court lets Netanyahu Former Iraqi intel chief Venezuela: Detained American
form govt, despite indictments approved as new premier claims he plotted Maduro’s capture
Legislatorsaccepted15minis-
Thursday approved amend- ASSOCIATED PRESS tersandrejectedfive,amongthem JuanGuaidotoseekMaduro’sre-
AGENCIES ments to two basic laws by a BAGHDAD, MAY 7 theministriesoftrade,justice,cul- BRIAN ELLSWORTH & moval.AGuaidoadvisortoldCNN
JERUSALEM, MAY 7 hefty majority, paving the way ture, agriculture and migration. ANGUS BERWICK on Wednesday he had signed an
for Netanyahu. IRAQ'S FORMER spy chief was Theministriesofoilandforeignaf- CARACAS, MAY 7 exploratoryagreement,butithad
IN A ruling late Wednesday, The Knesset or Parliament sworn in as prime minister by fairs also remain vacant pending never been finalised and the op-
Israel’s Supreme Court refused voted by 71 votes to 37 to back lawmakers early Thursday after further political negotiations. A FORMER US soldier captured position did not support the at-
to bar Prime Minister Benjamin the power-sharing deal. weeks of tense political negoti- According to Iraq's constitution, a in Venezuela said on tempted incursion.
Netanyahu from forming a gov- The bills were necessary for ations as the country faces a se- government can pass if over half Wednesday he had been con- US President Donald Trump
ernment, clearing the last major Blue and White to be able to rec- vere economic crisis spurred by ofaproposedCabinetisapproved. tracted by a Florida security has denied involvement. A sen-
obstacle to his claiming a record Benjamin Netanyahu ommend Prime Minister plummeting oil prices and the Al-Kadhimi,whogaveupthe firm to seize control of Caracas’ iorTrumpadministrationofficial
fifth term as Israel’s leader. Netanyahu to form a govern- coronavirus pandemic. intelligence post when he be- airport and bring in a plane to Nicolas Maduro said Maduro’s accusations of a
The high court unanimously ment by Thursday night's dead- The majority of 255 legisla- came the prime minister-desig- fly President Nicolas Maduro to US role “are not credible”.
rejected petitions that sought block an unusual power-sharing line to prevent a fourth election, tors approved the government nate, assumes the premiership the United States. “I was helping Venezuelans
to disqualify Netanyahu be- arrangement that Netanyahu the paper said. plan and the majority of Cabinet as Iraq faces unprecedented Venezuelan authorities on Washington to oust him. take back control of their coun-
cause he faces prosecution on struckwithBennyGantz,thefor- Netanyahu, 70, immediately ministers proposed by Mustafa crises amid falling oil revenues Monday arrested the man, Luke Duringquestioningbroadcast try,” Denman, a former special
felony corruption charges, rul- mer army chief who had fought announced he would take the al-Kadhimi, officially inaugurat- that will likely prompt unpopu- Denman, along with fellow US on state television, Denman said operations forces member, said
ing that it had no legal grounds him to a draw in three straight oath of office on May 13. Gantz, ing him as Iraq's sixth premier lar austerity measures, a rising citizen Airan Berry and 11 oth- the firm, Silvercorp USA, had in the video. He did not give de-
to do so. elections. 60, is to take office as deputy or since 2003 and ending five daily tally of coronavirus cases, ers, in what Maduro has called a signed a contract with tailsonhowhisgroupplannedto
The court also declined to Israel's Parliament on alternate prime minister. months of a leadership void. and expected US-Iraq talks. failed plot coordinated with Venezuelan opposition leader getMaduroonaplane. REUTERS
 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

13 ECONOMY
THE INDIAN EXPRESS, FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2020

GOLD RUPEE OIL SILVER

`41,705 `75.72* $26.15 `38,100
Note: Spot gold markets shut due to lockdown in major states. Indian basket as on March 19, 2020

SENSEX: 31,443.38 ▼ 242.37 NIFTY: 9,199.05 ▼ 71.85 NIKKEI: 19,674.77 ▲ 55.42 HANG SENG: 23,980.63 ▼ 156.85 FTSE: 5,917.10 ▲ 63.34 DAX: 10,726.85 ▲ 120.65
*Forex market closed on Thursday on account of Buddha Purnima; International market data till 1900 IST

COVID-19 EFFECT FINANCE MINISTER SAYS ECONOMY IS POISED TO RECOVER GSK offloads stake in
NEW AMENDMENTS
‘PSBloansof`5.66Lcrwaiting Hindustan Unilever
Relaxation in labour
laws, exemptions to fordisbursalsoonafterlockdown’ for over `25,000 cr
ENSECONOMICBUREAU
pany and GlaxoSmithKline
Consumer Healthcare Ltd (GSK

cos in various states ENSECONOMICBUREAU

NEWDELHI,MAY7
MORATORIUMTO
&workingcapitalenhancements
being prioritised by PSBs. More
months at least, according to in-
dustry sources.
MUMBAI,MAY7 CHIndia).Thetransactionwasan
allequitymergerwith4.39shares

OVER3.2CRA/Cs than27lakhcustomerscontacted ApartfromMSMEs,NBFCsare GLAXOSMITHKLINEPLC(GSK)on of HUL being allotted for every

draw trade union ire gressive move to liberate cor-

AMID DELAYS in the announce-
mentofaneconomicpackagebe- ■ In a series of tweets
fromMarch20and2.37lakhcases
sanctionedloansworthRs.26,500
cr. A work in progress,”
othercompaniesfacingthestress,
as their cost of funding has gone
up sharply especially for lower
Thursday sold its 5.7 per cent
stake in FMCG major Hindustan
Unilever Ltd (HUL) for Rs 25,480
shareinGSKCHIndia.Thistrans-
actionvaluedthetotalbusinessat
Rs 31,700 crore.
AANCHALMAGAZINE porateemployersfromobliga- ingreadiedbytheCentre,Finance on Thursday, Finance Sitharaman said on her official ratedcompanies.Sitharamansaid crore. The GSK sale, at an average “When GSK originally anno-
NEWDELHI,MAY7 tions under almost all labour Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Minister Nirmala Twitter handle. that state-owned banks have price of Rs 1,905 per share, is the uncedthedivestmentof Horlicks
lawsinUttarPradeshandMa- Thursday said the “economy is Sitharaman said PSBs ArecentreportbyCrisilpoints sanctioned funds to NBFCs. largestsecondarymarkettradeon in December 2018, the company
AMID THE coronavirus-in- dhyaPradesh,CITUsaid.Most poisedtorecover”aspublicsector have proactively out how SMEs are hit when the “Sustainedcreditflowto#NBFCs Indian stock exchanges. expectedgrossproceedsfromthe
duced lockdown, an increas- other state governments will banks (PSBs) have stepped up provided three-month economy moves into a low- &HFCsin#COVID-19.PSBssanc- “GSK has, through its sub- overalltransactiontobeapproxi-
ing number of states that in- follow the same path while loansanctionsinMarchandApril, loan moratorium growth phase. It says that when tionedloansworthRs77,383crore sidiariesGlaxoSmithKlinePteLtd mately3.1billionpoundsandnet
clude Uttar Pradesh, Madhya competingwithothersin“the andthesefundswillbedisbursed facility to over 3.2 crore theeconomymovesfromnormal between Mar 1-May 4. Inclusive and Horlicks Ltd, today agreed to proceedstobeapproximately2.4
Pradesh,RajasthanandGujar- nameofdevelopmentandat- soon after the lockdown is lifted. accounts after the to low growth rate, current asset of TLTROfunds,extendedtotalfi- the sale of 133,772,044 ordinary billionpoundafterhedgingcosts,
athavepushedthroughchan- tracting investment in the She said PSBs have proactively scheme was days (how quickly a company is nancing of Rs 1.08 lakh crore, en- shares in HUL at a volume- taxes and other expenses had
gestotheirlabourlawsbyway stateonthedubiouspleaofre- provided three-month loan announced by the RBI able to convert its current assets suring business stability & conti- weightedaveragepriceofapprox- been settled,” GSK said in an ex-
ofamendments—ordinances vivaloftheireconomy”,itsaid. moratorium facility to over 3.2 into cash) for large companies nuity going forward,” she said. imatelyRs1,905pershare,raising change filing in London.
orexecutiveorders—someof Alongwithanextensionof crore accounts after the scheme ■ PSBs are attending to risesfrom139daysto143days,for The RBI last month an- gross proceeds of approximately “With the appreciation of
whichwouldrequireapproval daily working hours to 12, was announced by the RBI. the funding needs of micro and small companies it nouncedtargetedlongtermrepo Rs 25,480 crore,” GSK said. HUL’ssharepricesincethen,GSK
from the central government MadhyaPradeshhasexempt- A total of Rs 5.66 lakh crore of MSMEs, she added jumpsfrom189daysto220days. operations (TLTRO) scheme Afterthetransaction,GSKwill nowexpectsgrossproceedsfrom
tocomeintoeffect.Reactingto ed employers from some ob- loans were sanctioned during This affects their funding ability, throughwhichbankscanborrow- not hold any HUL shares. The the divestment to be 3.4 billion
the move by states, trade ligationsundervariouslabour March-April 2020 to MSMEs, re- pushing them to seek higher ingfundsfromRBIforonlending. namesofthebuyerswerenotim- poundsandnetproceedsfromthe
unions have condemned the laws, like Madhya Pradesh tail,corporateandagriculturesec- bursalsoonafter#lockdownlifts. workingcapitalloansfrombanks. Theschememandatesthatwithin mediatelyknown.Glaxoacquired divestment to be 2.9 billion
blanketexemptiontoemploy- Industrial Relations Act and tors,whileanotheroverRs1lakh Economy poised to recover,” the Credit information firm thetotalsizeofRs50,000crore,10 the stake in HUL after the former pound,” it said. This includes the
ers from labour laws and ter- IndustrialDisputesAct,aswell crore of funds have been sanc- FM said in a series of tweets. TransUnionCIBILsaidloansworth per cent should be allocated to sold its consumer nutrition busi- proceeds received on closing of
med the move as regressive. as Contract Labour Act for tioned to non-banking financial PSBsareattendingtothefund- Rs2,32,000croreofMSMEsareat MFIs, 15 per cent to NBFCs with ness, including brands like the transaction on April 1, 2020
TheUttarPradeshgovern- 1,000 days, allowing employ- companies (NBFCs) and housing ing needs of micro, small and a higher risk of becoming non- asset size of Rs 500 crore and be- Horlicks and Boost, to HUL. and the expected proceeds from
ment had, on Wednesday, erstohireandfireworkers“at finance companies (HFCs). medium enterprises (MSMEs), performing assets. MSMEs oper- low,and25percenttoNBFCswith InDecember2018,Hindustan the sale of our Bangladesh busi-
clearedanordinanceexempt- their convenience”. The state “During March-April 2020, PSBs she added. The economic shut- ating across the value chain — in- asset size between Rs 500 crore Unilever approved a scheme of ness, which is expected to close
ing businesses from the has also allowed exempted sanctioned loans worth Rs 5.66 downhashitMSMEsparticularly cluding cycle parts, auto parts, andRs5,000croreratedininvest- amalgamationbetweenthecom- later this year, GSK added.
purview of most labour law firmsflexibilityofextensionof lakhcroreformorethan41.81lakh hard as they do not have large re- textilesproducts,toys,handtools ment grade. NBFCs have also
provisions for the next three working hours. Further, it has accounts. These borrowers are serves that bluechip companies — are facing stress due to deplet- sought a moratorium on loan re-
years. However, labour laws
related to bonded labour, de-
exemptednewfactoriesund-
ertheFactoriesAct,1948from
fromMSME, Retail, Agriculture&
Corporatesectors,waitingfordis-
have.“ForMSMEsandothers,pre-
approved emergency credit lines
ing internal reserves and low vis-
ibility of demand for next six
payments, and banks are consid-
ering this on a case-to-case basis. SBI slashes MCLR by
15 bps across all tenors
ploymentofwomenandchil- inspection from the Labour
dren and timely payment of Department and permitted
salarieswillnotberelaxedun- theflexibilitytoconductthird
der the ordinance.
“The industrial and eco-
party inspections at will.
Thestatehasalsoissuedan ‘Micro enterprises best Whataremicroenterprises?:
Micro enterprises have been
Liquidity and leveragepositions:
of active MSMEs (micro, small ENS ECONOMIC BUREAU
nomical activities in Uttar ordinance to the Madhya classified as those with and medium enterprises) as of MUMBAI, MAY 7
Pradeshhavebeenseverelyaf-
fected and slowed down due
PradeshLabourWelfareFund
Act,1982,exemptingallnewly
placed to help economy’ borrowings of less than
` 1 crore
January 2020:
STATE BANK of India (SBI), the
to the outbreak of COVID-19. established factories from fil- Micro enterprises are best placed to help the economy come ■ 63% in structurally strong country’s largest lender, on
Businesses and economic ac- ingannualreturnsandpaying out of the COVID-19 crisis, Small Industries Development NPAs in varioussegments,asof risk segment having a CIBIL Thursday slashed its marginal Deposit rates
tivitieshavesloweddowndue
to which labour welfare has
Rs 80 per labourer per year to
the Madhya Pradesh Labour
Bank of India (Sidbi) and TransUnion CIBIL said in a report December 2019:
■ 11.3%: Very small segment
MSME Rank (CMR) between 1
and 5
cost of funds based lending rate
(MCLR) by 15 bps across all cut to keep
also been affected. This is be- Welfare Board for next 1,000 (under Rs 10 lakh exposure)
■ 37% in weaker risk segment
tenors. adequate
cause businesses and eco-
nomicactivitiescametoahalt
days. Changes to the Madhya
Pradesh Industrial Employ- ■ 17.3%: Overall commercial having CMR between 6 and 10
Theone-yearMCLRhascome
down to 7.25 per cent from 7.40 liquidity
more or less due to the na- ment (Standing Orders) Act, lending segment percent,witheffectfromMay10.
tionallockdown.Tobringeco- 1961 will exempt industries `92,000 crore: Total credit This is the 12th consecutive re- THE STATE-OWNED
nomic activity back on track, employing up to 100 workers ■ 18.7%: Medium corporate support received by micro duction in the bank’s MCLR. bank has also cut inter-
new investment opportuni- from the law’s provisions. segment segment in 2019 from banks Consequently, EMIs on eligible est rates on its retail
ties would need to be created Experts have termed the and other lenders home loan accounts (linked to term deposits by 20 bps
alongwithfasteningthebusi- amending of labour laws by ■ 19.1%: Large corporate MCLR) will get cheaper by for ‘up to 3 years tenor’.
nessesprocessesandproduc- statetobeincontraventionto segment Source: Sidbi & TransUnion Cibil/PTI around Rs 255 for a 30-year loan The cut in deposit rates
tivity,” a statement issued by the globally accepted norms. of Rs 25 lakh. is aimed at maintaining
the state government said. States including Rajasthan, Further, in view of adequate adequate liquidity in the
CPI(M)-linked Centre of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh liquidity in the system as well as larger system as well as
Indian Trade Unions (CITU)
condemned the blanket ex-
and Punjab have extended
workinghoursinmanufactur- ‘Possible to raise $60 bn by listing govt bonds overseas’ withthestate-runlender,SBIhas
cutitsinterestratesonretailterm
the bank.

emption to employers from ing units to 12 hours from 8. can theoretically be through list- comelaterhalf of theyearornext global bond indices. The Centre deposits by 20 basis points (bps)
labour laws, terming it as a Reacting to the develop- ENSECONOMICBUREAU ing government bonds on the year. But that gives us the oppor- had budgeted gross market bor- for ‘up to 3 years’ tenor with ef- senior official, SBI on Thursday
“barbarous move to impose ment, CPI(M) leader Sitaram NEWDELHI,MAY7 global bond indices. tunitytostructuretheborrowing rowing of Rs 7.8 lakh crore for fect from May 12. increaseditshomeloanratesthat
conditions of slavery on the YechuryonThursdaytweeted, InaninterviewtoIndiaToday, planintermsofmaturityetctobe FY21andhadrecentlyannounced Meanwhile, to safeguard the arelinkedtoreporatebyupto30
workingpeoplewhoareactu- “Wealth is nothing but the BOEINGWONAneconomicrelief he said: “About $4 trillion of abletofinancethedeficitandalso plan to borrow 62.6 per cent of it interests of senior citizens in the bps.Thestate-ownedlenderhas
ally creating wealth for the monetisation of value. packagetofighttheCOVID-19cri- moneytracksthese(global)bond do it in a way that the cost of bor- in the first half itself. However, its current falling rate regime, the also hiked interest rates on per-
country, simultaneously suf- Destroying labour means de- siswillcomeanytimesoon,Chief indices. India is expected to get a rowing doesn’t become very plans have gone haywires due to bankhasintroducedanewprod- sonal loans against property by
feringfrombrutalexploitation stroying economic growth. Economic Adviser (CEA) weight of around 1.5-3 per cent. large,” he added. the virus crisis. The economy uct ‘SBI Wecare Deposit’ for sen- 30 bps, according to the report.
andlootbythecapitalistsand BJP’s diabolical agenda must Krishnamurthy V Subramanian Even if you take 1.5 per cent, that In March, the RBI announced could grow at 1.5-2 per cent in ior citizens in the retail term de- The new rates came into ef-
big-business”. be resisted and defeated to said on Thursday and indicated translates into $60 billion.” the opening up of key govern- FY21,withacontractioninthefirst posit segment. fect from May 1, as per informa-
The latest is the more ag- save “India, that is Bharat”.” thatborrowingofaround$60bil- “I recognise that this money ment securities to full foreign in- half. This will be followed by a V- In another development, ac- tion available on its website, the
liontofundtherisingfiscaldeficit can’tcomeimmediatelybutmay vestmentinabidtofindaplacein shaped recovery, he said FE cording to a PTI report quoting a PTI report stated. WITHPTI

CII offers suggestions to bring With no relief in sight, auto Sebi refutes Templeton CEO charge, BRIEFLY
workers back to industry industry petitions govt asks MF to return investors’ money RatanTata
AANCHALMAGAZINE
held with employers on Friday,
theConfederationofIndianIndu- ENSECONOMICBUREAU
COVID-19ontheautomobilesec-
tor, members of the Society of low credit ratings and seem to tively. These dates were subse-
investsin
NEWDELHI,MAY7 stry (CII) is also going to propose
mapping of migrant workers re-
NEWDELHI,MAY7 Indian Automobile Manufact-
urers(SIAM)Institutesoughtthat
ENSECONOMICBUREAU
MUMBAI,MAY7
havechosennottorebalancetheir
portfoliosevenduringthealmost
quently extended to September
30,2020andDecember31,2020,
pharmastartup
EXPANSION OF coverage of the siding in shelter homes or locally THE AUTO industry, which is al- switchover to certain safety 12 months available to them so respectively,inviewofCOVID-re- Mumbai: Ratan Tata has in-
applicability of Pradhan Mantri near industrial belts for employ- readyreelingundertheburdenof norms,whichhavekickedinfrom THE SECURITIES and Exchange far,” Sebi said in a statement. lated disruptions, Sebi clarified. vestedanundisclosedamo-
Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY) to ment in the nearest factories. low demand and high inventory, April,shouldbedeferredbyayear. Boardof India(Sebi)onThursday “In light of credit events since In an investor conference call, unt in a 17-year-old kid’s
more workers, addressing the “All the stakeholders, includ- both of which have got accentu- Industrymembersalsourged askedFranklinTempletonMutual September 2018 that led to chal- Johnson had said the high-yield pharma start-up Generic
shortage of workers for com- ingbothcentralandstategovern- atedwiththelockdown,isstaring thatthesectorbegivenmoretime Fund(FT),whichcloseddownsix lengesinthecorporatebondmar- market is still very immature in Aadhaar, in his personal ca-
mencement of businesses, usage ments and trade unions, need to at another big problem: How to for registration of BS-IV vehicles ofitsdebtschemes,tofocusonre- ket, a need was felt to review the India. “So we’ve had a large fund pacity. The startup supplies
ofunclaimedfundsforwagepay- work together to get the workers meet the regulatory changes soldtillMarch31aslockdownhas turning money to investors “as regulatoryframeworkformutual – it’s actually six funds that were quality generic drugs from
ments and increase in working back to industry. State govern- whichhavecomeintoeffectfrom delayed matters. Pawan Goenka, soon as possible”. fundsandtakenecessarystepsto invested with a lot of this kind of reputed manufacturers at
hoursbyfourhoursacrosssectors ments and district administra- April. Not getting any relief from MDandCEO,Mahindra&Mahin- Sebi’s advisory to FT follows safeguardtheinterestofinvestors private debt. And in October of up to 80 per cent lesser cost
are some of the key recommen- tionsneedtoworkcloselytofacil- the Supreme Court, the industry dra, said that around 20 per cent thecompany’sCEOJenniferJohn- andmaintaintheorderlinessand 2019, unfortunately, Sebi came and other medicines 20-30
dations to be made by the indus- itate the movement of migrants onThursdaysoughttheinterven- of the BS-IV vehicles sold within son’sstatementshiftingtheblame robustnessof theirinvestments,” out with new guidelines saying per cent cheaper.
try to the government. and ensure accommodation, tion of Road Transport and the March 31 deadline are still fortherecentwindingdownofsix Sebi said. The Indian Express had that any investments in unlisted
In a meeting with Labour and
Employment Minister Santosh
mealsandotherbasicamenities,”
the list of recommendations pre-
HighwaysMinisterNitinGadkari.
Inavideoconferencewiththe
stuckwiththeconcernedregional
transport authorities (RTOs) for
schemes — with a corpus of Rs
28,000crore —ontothemarkets
earlier reported that FT’s credit
riskschemeshadinvestedinsev-
instruments,youcan’thavemore
than10percentinafund,andyou Swiggy
Kumar Gangwar, which will be pared by CII stated. minister over the impact of various reasons. FE regulator’sOctober2019decision
to not let funds invest more than
eral lowly rated instruments and
lesser known companies.
can’t trade them. So that or-
phaned about one-third of our
co-founder
10 per cent in unlisted instru- In a circular dated October 1, fund there,” the FT CEO said.
Jaiminiquits
A member of Facebook’s key oversight board, ments. “Despite the regulations
being clear, some mutual fund
2019, Sebi provided a timeline to
complywiththeinvestmentlim-
However,NSVenkatesh,Chief
Executive, Association of Mutual NewDelhi:SwiggyThursday

NLSIU V-C sees a new internet regulation model

schemes seem to have chosen to itsforunlistedNCDsas15percent FundsinIndia,saidthatmeasures said its co-founder and CTO
have high concentrations of high and10percentofthedebtportfo- taken by the Sebi over the years, Rahul Jaimini will move
risk, unlisted, opaque, bespoke, lio of the scheme as on March 31, includingoneonOctober19,have away from active role in the
fessor. “In (press and broadcast) the board have been outlined structured debt securities with 2020 and June 30, 2020, respec- deepened the debt markets. company topursueanother
KARISHMAMEHROTRA& mediaregulation,therehavebeen since 2018. If a user’s post gets entrepreneurial venture.
APURVAVISHWANATH self-regulation options, but none takendownonFacebookorInsta- Jaimini will bejoining Pesto
NEWDELHI,MAY7 hasemergedasstrongly,”hesaid.
Krishnaswamyhasbeencho-
gram,thisoversightboardwillact
as an appeals process. The board
‘UK economy to shrink by most since 1706’ Tech, a career accelerator
start-up,astheirco-founder,
FACEBOOK’S NEW oversight sen among the former Prime willprimarilyjudgecontentmod- Swiggy said. PTI
board — similar to an independ- Minister of Denmark, a Nobel eration cases in consistency with PANPYLAS
ent, internal court — has chosen
National Law School of India
Laureate,non-profitorganisation
leaders, and journalists from all
thecompany’s policies, as well as
formulate policy suggestions.
LONDON,MAY7
‘Reopeningof
University (NLSIU) Vice-
ChancellorSudhirKrishnaswamy
over the world. “Facebook as a
company is to be bound by the
At least for the beginning, it
willnotdealwithpoststhatusers
THE BANK of England (BoE)
warnedThursdaythattheBritish
redzonesvital
as one of its first 20 members.
Prof Krishnaswamy, founder NLSIUVice-Chancellor
board,”Krishnaswamysaid,when
asked about the most promising
want taken down.
“The Oversight Board will
economy could suffer its deepest
annual contraction in more than
foreconomy’
of the advocacy organisation SudhirKrishnaswamy. Express policies of the structure. “But we havepowertooverturndecisions three centuries as a result of the Mumbai: McKinsey Thurs-
Centre for Law and Policy don’t have a direct relationship we’vemadeoncontentaslongas coronavirus pandemic, before day said that finding meth-
Research, told The Indian Express withFacebook.Wedoourjoband they comply with local laws,” roaring back next year. odsof keepingredzonedis-
that the new model could set an panytouse),orwehaveastateop- they do theirs.” Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg ThebanksaidtheBritishecon- tricts, which account for 41
exampleforinternetregulationin tion (where the state regulates). Hesaidtheboardwillfocuson wrote in a May 7 post. omywillbe30percentsmallerat per cent of national eco-
India and around the world. Neither of these work,” he said. “edge” cases that are most “con- Whiletheprintandbroadcast theendof thefirsthalf of theyear nomic activity, operational
“For the problem of content Theboardisathirdalternative, sequential”. He said important mediahaveattemptedself-regu- than it was at the start of it, with The British central bank said the country’s economy will be andsafewouldbecriticalin
moderationontheinternet,either said the former Azim Premji casesofpornographyandabusive lationmodels,Krishnaswamysaid thesecondquarterseeinga25per 30 per cent smaller at the end of the first half of the year keepingtheeconomicactiv-
wetakethemarketoption(where University director and a online behavior would likely this is an entirely different struc- centslumpalonefollowinga3per than it was at the start of it AP file ity sustainable. ENS
theaudiencedecideswhichcom- ColumbiaUniversityvisitingpro- reach the board. The policies for ture adapted to the Internet age. cent decline in the first. AP
 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

14 SPORT
THE INDIAN EXPRESS, FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2020
MAY 16 START FOR BUNDESLIGA
The Bundesliga season will restart on May 16, the
German Football League (DFL) said on Thursday. The
DFL said the season would restart minus fans, with six
games on Saturday, including the high-profile Ruhr valley
derby between Borussia Dortmund and Schalke 04.

Cricket in bio-secure bubble If T20 World Cup is off,

IPL may find a window

E
ECB mulls 6 Tests at 2 venues, players away from families for 9 weeks; BCCI to wait for pandemic to recede

EXPLAINED
SHAMIK CHAKRABARTY
KOLKATA, MAY 7

Daily temperature checks, onsite hotels

SHAMIK CHAKRABARTY
KOLKATA, MAY 7 A BCCI teleconference on Wednesday dis-
cussedthepossibleschedulingof IPLandalso
THE UNITED Kingdom is mulling a mid-June
restart of the Premier League after the sus-
In sport’s resumption bid to avert a financial meltdown, bio-secure stadiums will be the imminent future. gave a thought to India’s domestic and inter-
national seasons.
●
Like the ECB, which is deliberating on getting the season underway, with Tests against Windies and Pakistan.
pensioncausedbythecoronaviruspandemic Itislearntthattheoffice-bearersalsodis-
and cricket is also exploring a return to ac- SECURE STADIUMS: As the word implies, MEASURES IN PLACE: Apart from the cussedthepossiblepostponementof theT20 BCCI vs Star: 5 years
tion without fans in attendance.
The England and Wales Cricket Board is
it’s playing in conditions that are entirely
infection-free, where all those involved,
standard practices of social distancing,
England’s Test cricketers have been told to
World Cup in Australia, scheduled for
October-November. or 5 seasons?
considering options to host home series from players and support staff to officials, expect daily temperature checks, regular While the office-bearers agreed that
against West Indies and Pakistan in July- are tested for Covid-19 in advance and swabs, weekly COVID-19 tests and possi- therewasverylittlechanceof anycrickettak- In case the 2020 Indian Premier
August.AccordingtoareportinTheGuardian, then kept in a “bio-secure” environment, bly nine weeks away from their families. ing place in India until later this year, the talk League gets cancelled due to the
England players would be asked to assem- sealed off from the outside world. Only After initial testing, they would spend the of the ICC event getting pushed back at least COVID-19 outbreak, should Star get
ble at the Ageas Bowl on June 23 and they people who were virus-free or have im- first week training in small groups before gave the BCCI a window to slot the IPL. an additional year added to their
might have to stay away from their families munity are allowed into the bubble. Most an inter-squad match that serves as a However,withIndia'sCovid-19curvegetting broadcasting contract with BCCI?
for nine weeks until the end of the third Test football leagues in Europe and the ECB warm-up for the first Test against West steeper and a heavy cloud of uncertainty Some legal experts have said that
against Pakistan, scheduled from August 20. have been busy identifying stadiums that Indies. The matches will be played on the hovering over the game's commencement, Star’s 2017-2022 deal should get
ThefirstTestagainstWestIndiesmightcom- can be converted into a bio-secure bubble, practice wickets of the Bowl or on neigh- the Indian board merely saw this as a glim- extended to 2023 in case of the
mence on July 8. self-sustainable venues with onsite hotel bouring club grounds. Also, the ground mer of hope for this season’s IPL. eventuality, arguing that the con-
As per the report, the ECB could host the and training facilities in those areas that andhotelstaff willoperateinsmallgroups Meanwhile, in Australia despite the pan- tract is valid for ‘five seasons’.
six Tests at two venues – Ageas Bowl and Old have a relatively reduced incidence rate. If the ECB plan goes through, players with another set on the standby. If one of demic’snumbersshrinking,seriousquestion However, BCCI so far hints that
Trafford – and during the entire period, play- like England captain Joe Root will be the staff gets infected, the entire team will marks remained over the country hosting Star’s right to broadcast IPL ends in
ers would be subjected to daily temperature ECB’SOUTLINE:TheECBbelievesthattwo sealed off from the outside world, be put under quarantine while the new the T20 World Cup as per schedule. 2022 as the deal is for ‘five years’.
checks, regular Covid swabs and other bio- of their venues, Old Trafford and Ageas including family and fans for weeks. group takes over. Australia has closed its borders for six This conflicting interpretation of
security measures. Also, an expanded squad Bowl could fulfil the criteria of bio-secure months and even Cricket Australia (CA), the terms of agreement might re-
comprising 30 players could be chosen with venues. The two grounds have their on- CHALLENGES: A possible hurdle for ECB jointly with the ICC, has been exploring al- sult in Star invoking the “breach of
an eye to rotation. site hotels, the Bowl has a well-being cen- The Bowl's health centre could be used to istesting,asthecountryisstrugglingtoget ternate options. contract” clause.
ApartfromsixTests,sixODIsandasmany tre too, spacious enough to accommodate provide players, backroom staff, adminis- testsforevenfrontlineNHSstaff.Sotocon- It is learnt that the majority of the ICC Meanwhile, a delayed, or even
T20 Internationals are also on the roster. The both teams, their entourage of support trators and media with skin prick tests on ducttestsonanestimated200-300people members are in agreement that a global shortened, IPL might avert this po-
limited-overs itinerary includes three ODIs staff, match officials and broadcast crew. their way into the ground. every week could be quite daunting. ENS event like the T20 World Cup can’t be staged tential face-off. Star, at present, is
against Ireland at the end of July followed by behind closed doors. heavily invested in cricket as it has
threeT20IsagainstPakistanaftertheTestse- “A one or two-match (T20 series) before pledged close to Rs 30,000 crore in
ries and then three ODIs and three T20Is by the ECB about its plans on Tuesday. They Loss of revenue is a major reason why we will explore all viable options. empty stands may happen. But a big event media rights. Besides being the
against Australia in September. were told to minimise physical contact in- sports authorities are keen to have a restart Fortunately, we have a little bit of time to like World Cup, I don’t think it will happen,” rights holders for Indian cricket at
In India however, the BCCI is willing to cluding handshakes on and off the field, also at the earliest. The Premier League stares at work through the different scenarios with a BCCI functionary told The Indian Express. home and IPL, they have ICC’s global
wait. Given that the domestic season starts in the team bus, when cricket returns. It a £1 billion black hole if the season is voided. theIndiaseries.Butwearenotrulingoutany “If there’s a possibility to organise the IPL broadcasting rights.
in August-September, the board still has a needs to be seen if, like the Premier League, Similarly, ECB chief executive Tom Harrison possibility for that at this point in time,” (in autumn), we will go for it, but at the mo-
few months to make a decision. It doesn’t the ECB makes any move to have private hastoldMPsthatthisisthe“mostsignificant Roberts had said during an interaction with ment we are not in a position to take a call,”
want to put itscricketers into any health risk, companies on board to provide test kits. financialchallengewehaveeverfaced”,with the media via video conference last month. he added. poned and the BCCI gets an opportunity to
regardless of bio-secure arrangements. Sports bodies in England have swung potential losses of £380 million for a ‘zero’ A 138-room premium boutique hotel at One of his colleagues sounded more cau- organise the IPL in October-November, par-
“We aren’t considering anything (like into action after the UK government gave cricket season. Adelaide Oval, which is scheduled for a tious about the future. ticipation of overseas players might not be a
that), as of now. We will wait for the govern- their ‘project restart’ a positive considera- Septemberopening,reportedlycouldofferthe “See, at the moment we aren’t sure problem.
ment guidelines. We won’t put our players tion. Also, as Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab Australia’s single-venue plan Indian team a potential quarantine centre. about anything. One thing we are very sure, “Cricket boards that are issuing NOCs to
in a health hazard. We would be very cau- mentioned, return of sport would lift the CricketAustralia(CA),meanwhile,hasal- Whether the BCCI would agree to play Test we can’t take any chances (about the safety their players for the IPL get 10 per cent each
tious,” BCCI treasurer Arun Dhumal told The morale of a beleaguered nation that has suf- readystartedplanningaboutcricket inisola- cricketinsuchadeadpanatmosphereremains of players, officials and spectators). We will based on the total contract value of the play-
Indian Express. fered the highest number of coronavirus tion for their home Test series against India a question. see what they (CA and ICC) decide about ersfromtherespectiveboards.Giventhecur-
There’s an overwhelming agreement in deaths (over 30,000) in Europe. “I think it in December-January. CA chief executive “To start with, it depends on our govern- the T20 World Cup and will act accord- rent (economic) situation, everybody would
the BCCI that even with all the precautions would lift spirits of the nation and people Kevin Roberts has spoken about the possi- ment’s policies. To travel abroad and coming ingly,” he said, making it amply clear that like to maintain a good rapport with the
and ‘bio-security’, playing cricket, while the would like to see us get back to work and bility of hosting the series, which is worth back,youneedthegovernment’spermission. the BCCI will start thinking about its future BCCI,” said a source.
Covid-19 curve is still steep, is fraught with children can go to school safely but also pas- $300 million, at a single venue – Adelaide Then, office-bearers will sit with the team course of action only after the government India swapping the T20 World Cup with
risk. Going back to England, The Times re- times like sport,” Raab said during a govern- Oval – and behind closed doors. “Whether managementandplayerstodiscusstheissue,” green light. Australia and hosting it this year, is ruled out,
ported that a group of players were briefed ment press conference. or not there are people at the venue or not; a BCCI functionary said. If eventually the T20 World Cup is post- it is learnt.

OVER THE HEDGE by Michael Fry & T Lewis

CROSSWORD 4112 DAY TODAY BY PETER VIDAL
ARIES (Mar 21 - Apr 20) LIBRA (Sep 24 - Oct 23)
If anything, you’ll be The entire situation
more inclined to take is looking decidedly
a risk today than complicated,
earlier in the week. It probably because
is impossible to say, though, you’re torn between keeping
whether your gamble will be yourself to yourself on the one
financial or emotional. If it’s a hand, and letting everyone else
child or younger relative who is in on the act on the other.
breaking out, they deserve trust You’ve just got to work out
and words of wise advice, what’s important and
rather than restraint. what’s not.
TAURUS (Apr 21 - May 21) SCORPIO (Oct 24 - Nov 23)
From a purely The fact that the
personal point of Moon is now aligned
view, your chart with your sign
CALVIN & HOBBES by Bill Watterson speaks of the need to
put creative self-fulfilment first.
should put you in a
commanding position. The only
However, other indications complicated planetary aspects
suggest that partners’ demands occur around the early morning
or children’s needs will when there may be a fleeting
overwhelm you. Perhaps you doubt about a particular
ACROSS Down need some help. You’d better plan. That aside, the world
1 Father has a hand in getting 1 Belong to painter, perhaps ask quickly. is yours.
fruit (5) (7)
4 Find the solution is to 2 Making it may be foresight GEMINI (May 22 - June 21) SAGITTARIUS (Nov 24 - Dec 22)
organise into groups (4,3) or for sight (9) It is sometimes The main variation
8 Disturbance cut short in 3 We sat out in the desert difficult for in your solar chart is
Brazilian port (3) (5) astrologers to square provided by the
9 Combination of wind and 4 Throw out uneven and your serious attitude movement of the
frost cause a pile-up in inferior material (6) to work with your light-hearted Moon’s emotional movements,
winter (9) 5 New cadet or old soldier reputation. The problem you’ll raising hidden hopes from
10 A requirement is inside this (7) face today is that the past must your unconscious. This is
flavouring (7) 6 Sash that’s somewhat too big be addressed before the future all very positive, for if such
11 Musical journal? (5) (3) can be planned, and that can be worries are brought into the
13 Water nymphs in a sad 7 In colour it is one of the a painful process. I have every open you can do something
muddle (6) greats (5) confidence in you, though. about them.
15 Athletic pursuits turn into
instruments of sharp
12 Expert on the rocks? (9)
14 Crude modus operandi
MARVIN by Tom Armstrong CANCER (June 22 - July 23) CAPRICORN (Dec 23 - Jan 20)
practice (6) executed with propriety The Moon is cruising There are times
18 The key note of medicine (5) (7) through a region of when you can find
19 A number in favour of good 16 Desire in one’s child to your chart ruling yourself paying for
taste? (7) become a doctor (7) self-indulgence, so friends. Social
21 Keep in mind what the host 17 Business concern (6) you really should take a little extravagance does still seem to
will do (9) 18 Hair used to stuff mattresses time off to pamper yourself. be very much a vital factor. In
23 Cooling agent used in atomic (5) only responsibilities you the final analysis, the end result
energy (3) 20 Cancel an article from a year can’t dodge any more may depends on how happy you
24 Powered galley vessel? (7) book (5) come in the form of children, are to be subsidising other
25 Students may decline to 22 Sartorial obligation, perhaps young people and others people, perhaps more than
learn it (5) (3) with vastly less experience whether you can actually
than you. afford to do so.
SolutionsCrossword4111:Across:1Distressed,8Astir,9Granite,10Burying,11
Attic,12Semite,14Flagon,17Again,19Vanilla,21Opinion,22Piece,23Ill-feeling. LEO (July 24 - Aug 23) AQUARIUS (Jan 21- Feb 19)
Down:2Interim,3Tarsi,4Engage,5Seawall,6Drift,7Percentage,8Ambassador, Domestic affairs Emotional
13Tenniel,15Galleon,16Avenge,18Alibi,20Nepal. should take priority opposition from
today. This is not a other people, mainly
forecast, but advice close partners, does
which you are free to ignore. still seem to be a nuisance, but
JUMBLED WORDS DifficultyLevel4s
My prediction is, though, that if doesn’t have to be so. Your best
SOLUTION SUDOKU 4202

you take no notice of this chance is probably to make a

Instructions warning then you could tactical retreat, sure in the
Givenbelowarefourjumbledwords.Solvethejumblestomakeproperwordsandmovethemto TosolveaSudokupuzzle, run into a spot of needless knowledge that others will
therespectivesquaresbelow.Selectthelettersintheshadedsquaresandjumblethemtoget everydigitfrom1to9 bother tomorrow. soon burn themselves out,
SUDOKU 4203

theanswerforthegivenquip. mustappearineachofthe leaving you to clean up.

Youwillnotfind___anywhereunlessyoubringsomeofitwithyou.-JosephJoubert(6) VIRGO (Aug 24 - Sep 23)
nineverticalcolumns,in
Serious discussions PISCES (Feb 20 - Mar 20)
eachoftheninehorizontal will doubtless There are many
GPUER AAESWY rowsandineachofthe perform a vital role levels of reality, as
nineboxes. in helping you you well know. If you
resolve the irritations of the love anarchy, you’ll
past month and in enabling you probably be quite happy, but if
FLYOT AACDMP DifficultyLevel to see your way forward to a you’d rather have an ordered
1s=Veryeasy;2s=Easy; more hassle-free future. The life you may have an uphill
3s=Medium;4s=Hard; trouble is that someone just struggle. Forget ’real-life’ and
5s=VeryHard;6s= seems to treat everything as a look to those mystical Piscean
- Joseph Joubert
Answer: You will not find poetry anywhere unless you bring some of it with you. Genius joking matter. realms for the answer.
SOLUTION:PURGE, LOFTY, SEAWAY, MADCAP

Vol. LXIV No. 108 Printed for the proprietors, The Indian Express (P) Ltd by Ms Vaidehi Thakar at The Indian Express Press, Plot No. EL-208, TTC Industrial Area, Mahape, Navi Mumbai - 400710 and published from 1st floor, Express Towers, Nariman Point, Mumbai - 400021. Editorial & Administrative
Offices: Express Towers, Nariman Point,Mumbai - 400021. Phone: 22022627/67440000. Fax: 022-22835726. Chairman of the Board: Viveck Goenka, Chief Editor: Raj Kamal Jha, Editor: Unni Rajen Shanker, Editor (Mumbai): Nirupama Subramanian.* (*Responsible for selection of News under the PRB Act)
Additional air surcharge of `1 .00 - Goa. Copyright: The Indian Express (P) Ltd. All rights reserved. Reproduction in any manner, electronic or otherwise, in whole or in part, without prior written permission is prohibited. The Indian Express
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