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UK judge takes dig at India on delay in giving proof on Mallya

NEWS DIGEST

‘Are Indians Prompt In Responses?’ HARDIK PREVENTED FROM VISITING MANDSAUR: The Congress' Madhya Pradesh heavyweight Jyotiraditya Scindia and Gujarat's Patel quota stir spearhead Hardik Patel were on Tuesday turned back by the police before they could enter Mandsaur, the hub of the recent farmers' agitation P 12

Major reshuffle in state’s bureaucracy The Gujarat government on Tuesday announced transfers of several senior IAS officers. Pankaj Kumar, principal secretary, health and family welfare, has been appointed to the post of principal secretary revenue department. Punamchand Parmar, additional chief secretary, urban development will now take charge as secretary of health department. P 2

PM to review jobs scenario on Sunday: PM Narendra Modi will oversee a review of job creation and data collection on employment on Sunday in response to criticism that GDP growth has not translated into higher employment. P12

Naomi [email protected]

London: The court hearing to decide whether fugitive Indian billionaire Vijay Mallya will be extradited back to India has been pushed back to December -- and may not even happen till next year. Chief magistrate Emma Arbuthnot at Westminster magistrates’ court noted December 4 for a two-week hearing on Tuesday after she heard there were delays in evidence arriving from the government of India. Aaron Watkins, representing India, opened the case saying the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) needed a further three to four weeks to receive the rest of the evidence from India and to review it. Arbuthnot asked, “Are Indians normally very prompt in their responses? They have

Vijay Mallya arrives for the extradition hearing at Westminster Magistrates Court in London on Tuesday

taken six months so far and we have not got any further forward in the past six weeks.” She added, “If there is still no sign of the evidence, then April 2018 is a possibility (for the full hearing). If we have everything, then it may look like December.” Watkins said there was a close working relationship with India on the case and the material received was “not insubstantial”.

The flamboyant businessman was remanded on conditional bail until December 4. July 6 is the next case management hearing. It’s the equivalent of Tuesday’s hearing, and it’s when the court will see if all the evidence has been admitted. Mallya has been told he does not have to attend the July 6 hearing. Mallya, 61, later told reporters, “I deny all allegations that have been made and I will continue to deny

Cop among three arrested for Patidar man’s custodial death TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Woman's chopped body found: A woman's body chopped in several pieces was found in an open ground near Umiyanagar near Ajwa Crossroads on Tuesday. While all the body parts were found from the bags, the head and one arm of the woman is missing. P 8

Uber CEO to take leave of absence: Uber CEO Travis Kalanick announced on Tuesday he would take an indefinite leave of absence as the company battles to address allegations of corporate misconduct. P19

10 die as incessant rains lash NE: Incessant rains, triggered by a deep depression that moved into Bangladesh on Monday, wreaked havoc in the northeast on Tuesday with 10 deaths in Assam and Mizoram. P16

Palanpur: Eight days after 29year-old Patidar man Ketan Patel’s custodial death, Mehsana police on Tuesday arrested three persons, including a head constable, for the crime. Police arrested Bharat Brahmbhatt, the shopkeeper from whose shop Ketan had allegedly stolen cash, his son Jignesh alias Jigar and Chirag Parmar, head constable of Mehana Taluka police station. They were booked under sections 302 (murder), 120 (B) (criminal conspiracy) and other sections of Indian Penal Code. Late on Monday, Ketan’s father Mahendra Patel had lodged a complaint against at least half a dozen people, specifically naming these three. Ketan had stolen Rs 9,500 cash from Brahmabhatt’s shop in Balol village adjoining Mehsana on May 30 and was arrested on June 3 following

Centre nixes speculation of delay in GST rollout TIMES NEWS NETWORK

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New Delhi: The Centre has put an end to speculation that the rollout of GST will be delayed, with revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia and Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) saying the tax reform is on track for a July 1launch. Adhia tweeted: “The rumours about GST implementation being delayed are false. Please do not be misled by it (sic).” CBEC said: “Preparations are in full swing for a smooth implementation... from 1st July, 2017.” There has been speculation over the rollout date with sections of the industry expressing the view that more time is required. West Bengal government also sought a delay. But the Centre said it will stick to July 1. P 12

them. Claming no loans were ever diverted, he said, “You can keep dreaming about a billion pounds; you cannot prove anything without facts.” Ben Watson, acting for Mallya, said: “We have not yet received the final evidence from the government of India.” He added that the evidence had been requested six weeks ago. “This began on January 31 and it’s now June and we still don’t have the case,” he said, pushing for the hearing to be postponed till spring 2018. “There has also been a second extradition request which we have not yet seen which adds to the uncertainty of this,” Watson added. Replying to this, the Crown Prosecution told TOI: “There is no second extradition request. The defence asked about a second request that they believe the Indian government may submit, but at present there is nothing concrete to consider.” Continued on P 9

Patan youth critical after being shot in Atlanta

New Delhi: Pregnant women have been advised to stay away from “desire or lust”, avoid non-vegetarian food and have spiritual thoughts, the government-funded Central Council for Research in Yoga and Naturopathy has said in a booklet released by Shripad Naik, minister of state for Ayush. The controversial observations, which clearly lack any discernible rationale, are part of recommendations contained in a booklet “Mother and Child Care”

distributed ahead of Yoga Day on June 21. It also includes advice like the need to avoid bad company. Part of the government’s information, education and communication

Pantry car staffer rapes woman in train, arrested

Akhilesh photo on school bags leaves Guj govt red-faced

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Surat: A 32-year-old staffer of pantry car was arrested from Vadodara on Tuesday by Government Railway Police (GRP) for allegedly raping a 32year-old woman in a moving train between Mumbai and Surat on June10 night. She lodged a complaint in Jaipur when the train reached there. The GRP posted at Jaipur railway station transferred the rape survivor’s complaint to Surat and also brought her to the Diamond City on Monday. Azhar Khan, a resident of Jhansi, who is employed with a Delhi-based firm that has contract for pantry in Aravali Express, was arrested at Vadodara railway station for the alleged rape of the woman and also brought to Surat. Khan was traced on the basis of the description of the accused given by the woman. The rape survivor, who is a married woman and a resident of Ghaziabad, alleged in her complaint that she was coming to Jaipur in Bandra-Jaipur-Aravali Express and had boarded it at Borivali in Mumbai on June 10. She was in an unreserved coach and it was overcrowded. She was worried how she will travel up to Jaipur when the accused met her and offered to provide her a seat in the train. He took her to a cubicle in the pantry car and then raped her.

Probe Ordered Into Shala Pravesh Utsav Faux Pas TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Vadodara/Gandhinagar: Akhilesh Yadav’s political career graph may have dwindled after the recent electoral drubbing at BJP’s hands. But the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister’s made his presence felt prominently in the schools of tribal-dominated Chhota Udepur when several bags with his pictures were distributed at the recent Shala Pravesh Utsav. As many as 12,000 bags were distributed to the schoolchildren at the enrolment drive, forcing an embarrassed state government to order a probe into the faux pas. The row surfaced when some parents removed a sticker on the school bag using a thinner only to see Yadav’s sticker emerge prominently. The bags distributed between June 9 and 10 in Sankheda village by Congress-ruled district panchayat officials also carried a punch line ‘Khub Padhao, Khub Badhao’. A local district official claimed that

As many as 12,000 bags were distributed to the schoolchildren at the enrolment drive in Chhota Udepur

the bags were supplied by Surat-based firm Chhotala Safety Products, which had won the e-tender for the supply. The firm, which has also been served a notice, cried conspiracy by business rivals. “We are inquiring into the matter and action will be taken against those responsible,” state education minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama said in Vadodara. Education department officials said not all of 12,000 bags bear the sticker but just a few. They also claimed that the Surat firm may have had supplied similar bags to the UP government earlier. Continued on P 8

Continued on P 8

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Relatives of Ketan Patel break their fast after the accused were arrested

the latter’s complaint. Sources said that Brahmbhatt and his son Jigar allegedly thrashed Ketan before handing him over to the taluka police where he was again beaten by Parmar. “We have taken the matter very seriously after getting the FIR from Ketan’s father. We have formed 15 teams to search for other accused,” Chaitanya Mandlik, superintendent of police, Mehsana, told TOI.

Asked about involvement of more people, Mandlik said that would be known only after further investigation. Meanwhile, the family of the deceased and their advocate B M Mangukiya stuck to their demand for CBI probe and the CD of second post-mortem’s videography. “We will not conduct his last rites till one of the demand is fulfilled,” said Suresh Patel, north Gujarat convener of PAAS.

Ahmedabad: A 24-year-old NRG Sameer Patel, was critically injured on Monday, when two armed assailants rushed into the store in Atlanta, where he worked, and shot him while robbing the cash box. Sameer’s friends have informed his family in Sundher village, Patan. While some unconfirmed reports claimed that Sameer was shot dead, his uncle insisted they have not been informed of his death. Sameer was the only earning member of his family. His father, Hasmukh had been murdered over a land dispute in their village nine months ago, Sameer’s uncle, Arvind Patel, told TOI. P 2

Army coaching helps 9 Kashmiri students crack IIT entrance exam Surendra.Singh @timesgroup.com

New Delhi: Nine youngsters from the Indian Army’s own Super-40 batch in Kashmir — run along the lines of Bihar’s Super-30 — have cleared JEE Advanced, India’s most competitive engineering entrance exam, and are now eligible for admission to the Indian Institutes of Technology. The Indian Army, engaged in counter-terror operations in Kashmir and facing young stone-pelters, has been coaching its own Super-40 batch for the last three years to help local children clear the Joint Entrance Exam. Earlier, 26 local boys and two girls from this year’s batch of the Super-40 had cracked the JEE Mains. Fi-

General Bipin Rawat congratulates the students on Tuesday

ve could not appear in the entrance examination for personal reasons. With 28 out of 35 clearing the JEE Mains, the Super-40 batch’s success rate was 80%. This was also the first time that five girls from the Valley had joined the Ar-

my’s Super-40 batch. Two of them cleared the JEE Mains and are now eligible for admission to engineering courses in Jamia Millia University and Jamia Hamdard University in Delhi. Continued on P 9

Govt’s tips for a healthy baby: British-Indian CEO buys Avoid lust, non-veg, be spiritual Kohli painting for `2.4cr [email protected]

PANKAJ PATEL-LED ZYDUS CADILA MARKET-CAP JUMPS `7.9K CR IN 2 WEEKS 19

(IEC) material, the booklet has also suggested that expecting mothers read about the life of great personalities, keep themselves in “peace” and hang “good and beautiful pictures” in their bedrooms for a healthy baby. “Pregnant women should detach themselves from desire, anger, attachment, hatredness, and lust. Avoid bad company and be with good people in stable and peaceful condition always,” the booklet said. Continued on P 9

Birmingham: British Indian entrepreneur Poonam Gupta has bought a painting depicting Virat Kohli's IPL journey over 10 years for 2,90,000 pounds (approx Rs 2.4 crore). The artist is Sasha Jaffrey and it was bought during the recent charity dinner organised by Virat Kohli foundation. Sasha is an award-winning internationally known painter He has collaborated with likes of David Beckham, M S Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh for their charities and pet causes. “What I like about this yo-

ung generation of Indian cricketers is that they are responsible and want to make a difference on and off the field. I am very connected to the cause taken up by Virat,” said Poonam Gupta, who is CEO of Scotland based company PG Papers. “Slavery has no place in this world and we need to stand up and do our bit. I am glad Virat has come forward against this evil and by buying this magnificent piece of art created by my favourite artist Sasha Jaffrey, I tick two boxes. I take a rare masterpiece to my home and also help this noble cause in my own way,” Gupta said. AGENCIES

10-year-old’s sketch in court convinces judge of her rape [email protected]

New Delhi: Proving a girl had been raped by her uncle, two years after the crime, would have been very difficult, but a trial court relied on her crayon sketches to convict the accused and sentenced him to five Continued on P 9 years in prison. The girl, who now studies in a school, belongs to a broken family in Kolkata, but she suffered the most as

If elements of this drawing (right) are considered in the background of facts and circumstances of this case, then commission of sexual assault upon her by somebody in her house after undressing her, and it leaving an impression upon her mind, becomes evident. Therefore, I find the child victim to be a competent witness —Justice VINOD YADAV

an eight-year-old while staying with her aunt in Delhi. Her uncle Akhter Ahmed

allegedly disrobed and sexually assaulted her several times before she escaped.

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HC TELLS GOVT TO PROVE VALIDITY OF PERMISSON FOR AMBARDI LION SAFARI PARK | 6

STATE GOVERNMENT SETS UP HELPLINE FOR BOOZE WHISTLEBLOWERS | 6

AMC asks Unesco for review of case Heritage City Bid Had Been Put On Hold By UN Body TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad: In reply to Unesco’s World Heritage Committee’s (WHC) decision to defer world Ahmedabad’s heritage city nomination in Unesco’s upcoming 41st session, the civic body has prepared a detailed explanation as to why it disagrees with several points of WHC’s evaluation. The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC)

has prepared a detailed ‘factual error’ document which will be submitted to Unesco’s World Heritage Center in Paris through the Indian diplomatic mission there. Ahmedabad’s nomination was to be discussed in Unesco’s 41 st session to be held between July 2 and 12 in Krakow, Poland. “We have requested the WHC that they should not view an Indian heritage city through European standards,” said a senior AMC official, adding, “We have provided a detailed explanation to them.” Besides this, the AMC document has refused to extend walled city boundaries to include monuments located on the western side of the Sabarmati river. Ah-

TOI

SEEKING SECOND SHOT

medabad’s nomination was to be discussed on July 8. “The WHC has sought a detailed report on the impact that projects like metro-rail and BRTS will have on the heritage monuments,” said municipal commissioner Mukesh Ku-

Robbers shoot, critically injure Patan youth in Atlanta TOI

He Was The Sole Support For His Mother In Sundher Village TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad: Sameer Hasmukh Patel, 24, from Sundher village in Patan, was critically injured after two unknown assailants shot him while robbing the store in Atlanta, US, where he worked. His friends in US i nformed his family in Patan that Sameer was first rushed to a nearby hospital and then, due to his critical condition, he was airlifted and shifted to another hospital within a few hours of the incident. The armed robbery took place at about 11pm on Monday. The robbers shot Sameer when after entering the mall, they entered his store and took the cash box. CCTV footage of the incident is available. Sameer’s uncle Arvind Patel told TOI, “Sameer went to Atlanta on a work permit

Sameer Hasmukh Patel

three years ago and worked at a departmental store. He was the only child of his parents.” “Tragedy struck his family when Sameer’s father, Hasmukhbhai, was murdered in a land dispute case in Sundher village nine months ago. Sameer was the only support for his mother,” said Arvind, adding, “After her son’s death Sameer’s mother remains the only surviving member of the family.” While unconfirmed reports claimed that Sameer was shot dead, his uncle Ar-

The robbers shot Sameer at his store in a mall. They took away the cash box. Sameer was first taken to a nearby hospital and then, due to his critical condition, he was airlifted to another hospital. He went to Atlanta on a work permit three years ago. He is the only child of his parents vind told TOI that they have no such information. Sameer’s mother has already left for Atlanta on Tuesday along with a few relatives. Former sarpanch of Sundher village, R D Patel, said , “Many villagers have been shocked after learning of the incident. The family will be traveling to Atlanta shortly.” More than 500 people from Sundher village or nearby areas are settled abroad and work there claims Arvind.

mar. Another issue that has been dogging AMC is to convince Unesco on the core heritage zone despite the existence of modern buildings like apartments and commercial complexes in the midst of heritage structures.

In a note dated May 19, WHC has told the Union government that there was a need to “enrich the heritage department of the AMC with capacity building and technical capacity , so that it has a relevant role in handling the responsibilities for the documentation, conservation and monitoring of the nominated property .” The WHC note also mentions that the documentation on historic buildings, including private timber houses, was not comprehensive and in some cases, inaccurate. The note has also asked for a detailed separate heritage and visitor management plan. It has also urged authorities to ensure the implementation of development control regulations for heritage zones. The WHC has also asked the AMC to reconsider the boundaries of the nominated area.

Passport rules relaxed for step-parents Adoptive Parents Will Also Benefit TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad: The passport office has made it easier to include the names of stepparents in the passports of their children. Earlier, stepparents had to obtain a court order to put their names as parents in the passports of their children. Now, they’ll just have to furnish a declaratory affidavit, and two photo identity proofs to get the job done. Neelam Rani, regional passport officer, Ahmedabad, said, “The rules have been relaxed and the new rules will make it easy for stepparents who had to get a court order earlier.” Rani said that now two photo identity proofs carrying the names of the step-parents and a declaratory affi-

davit will be all that are needed. She said that this will bring huge relief to parents in case of second marriage, and even adoption. The new rule will help to get the names of the step-parents entered easily in the column of biological parents. The Ahmedabad RPO has further decided that they would stop cash collection from walk-in applicants, and all applicants will have to pay digitally. Besides online payment options, there would also be point-of-sale machines at passport seva kendras to accept payment through credit or debit cards. “It has been decided to encourage cashless transactions,” said Rani, adding, “The POS machines will be available at the passport seva kendras in Ahmedabad, Vadodara and Rajkot.” “However, those going to the centres in post offices at Palanpur, Bhuj or Dahod will have to pay online,” said Rani.

Ahead of polls, reshuffle in babudom One officer gets additional charge

11 IAS OFFICERS TRANSFERRED

ACS: Additional Chief Secretary, PS: Principal Secretary

Name

Former posting

Transferred as

Pankaj Kumar

PS Health & Family Welfare

PS Revenue

Poonamchand Parmar

ACS Urban Development

ACS Health & Family Welfare

Mukesh Puri

PS Narmada, Water Resource

PS Urban Development

J P Gupta

Commissioner Health

PS Narmada, Water Resource & Kalpasar

Jayanti Ravi

Commissioner Rural Devpt & PS Panchayat Commissioner Health

Mona Khandhar

Secretary, Economic Affairs (Finance)

Commissioner Rural Devpt

Sanjiv Kumar

Secretary, Expenditure (Finance)

Secretary, Economic Affairs

Miland Torwane

Secretary, Housing & Urban Development

Secretary, Expenditure (Finance)

C V Som

MD, Civil Supply Corporation

PS Urban Housing & Nirmal Gujarat

Manish Bhardwaj

Commissioner Relief

MD, Civil Supplies Corporation

A J Shah

Director Information

Director Relief

N B Upadhyay

Registrar Cooperative Societies

Additional Charge, Director Information

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Gandhinagar: The Gujarat government on Tuesday transferred 12 senior IAS officers, apparently with an eye on the 2017 assembly elections. Pankaj Kumar (1986 batch), principal secretary, health and family welfare department, has been appointed principal secretary in the revenue department. This post

was vacant for about a month, after K Srinivas moved to Delhi. Punamchand Parmar (1985 batch), additional chief secretary, urban development department will replace Kumar in the health and family welfare department. Mukesh Puri, principal secretary, Narmada, water resources, water supply and Kalpsar department has been appointed principal secretary, urban development depart-

ment. J P Gupta, commissioner, health, medical services and medical education and ex-officio principal secretary, health and family welfare department replaces Puri in the water resources department. Jayanti Ravi, commissioner, rural development and principal secretary of panchayats, rural development and rural housing department replaces Gupta as health commissioner.

3 booked for sale, purchase of Thai miniature croc Single-Line Chargesheet Filed 3 Years After Incident TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad: It took three long years for the forest department to file a one-line chargesheet in connection with illegal sale and purchase of a Thai miniature crocodile. Three persons – a Sabarmati-based doctor, Himanshu Khara, and Hiren Patel and Nadar Manikandan Kanan – have been charged under various sections of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 for illegally keeping a baby crocodile in their possession. Patel and Kanan were accused of selling the animal to the doctor. In a three-year long probe, investigator K S Upadhyay, range forest officer of Daskroi range, seized mobile phones of the accused persons and sent the phones to the FSL to recover details.

Siddhartha

When the Thai miniature crocodile was brought to courtroom at the Metropolitan court in an aquarium by forest officials on July 17, 2014, the judge was left bewildered and he told the officials that there was no need to bring the animal to court and it should have been kept in safe custody of the department only. However, the forest officer insisted that they must bring the captured two-month old crocodile before the court because it was “muddamaal”. The judicial officer was unable to digest the argument, and he had questioned, “If you catch a tiger, will you bring it, too, before the court?” The animal was later rele-

ased at Indroda Park in Gandhinagar. It was forest department’s case that Patel and Kanan had sold the Thai crocodile to Dr Khara and charged him Rs 16,000. They had purchased it from Mumbai for Rs10,000. Both Patel and Kanan were released on bail on the same day – July 17, 2014, after furnishing bond of Rs25,000 each. The doctor was arrested and produced before the court on July 23, 2014 and released on bail. Forest officials had raided the doctor’s house in Memnagar, where they found the crocodile. Later, they had raided another house of the doctor in Sabarmati.

‘Save the Girl Child’ HC unmoved by hotel’s sun and light appeal message resounds in UK TIMES NEWS NETWORK

TOI

Gujarati Women Hold ‘Saree In A Gadi’ Rally Parth.Shastri @timesgroup.com

Ahmedabad: The message of ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ (Save the Girl Child, Educate the Girl Child) reached Britain’s shores on Sunday, June 11, when a group of over 100 Indian women, primarily of Gujarati diaspora, set on a 416km long journey from London to Leicester and back with the message. Titled ‘Saree in a Gadi,’ the rally was led by Bharulata Kamble, native of Navsari, who had driven 32,000 km solo from UK to India covering Arctic circle and 32 countries - in 2016, setting a world record. “The message, ‘Save the Girl Child’, is close to my heart. It’s been perceived that Indian women are not active in adventure activities, and I was happy to break that perception through my journey,” Kamble told TOI. “The event aimed to mobilize Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) to act as brand ambassadors for the cause and influence their natives in India and elsewhere to support girl children and their education,” said Kamble. Coordinators for the event, Arti Vyas and Sulekah Dawda, said that it had

Ahmedabad: The famous lyricist Javed Akhtar lamented vertical development in cities, when he wrotes, “Oonchi imaaraton (tall buildings) se makaan mera ghir gayaa / kuchh log mere hissay ka suraj bhi kha gaye.” Hotel Royal Highness, in the heart of the city, has approached Gujarat high court with this grievance against an upcoming commercial complex at the site of the famous Roopalee Cinema. The hotel management complained that the construction on the adjacent plot has snatched away its right to air and light. The HC refused to intervene and said, “Go to the civil court because easementary rights are civil rights.” After Roopalee Cinema

was pulled down a couple of years ago, one SKZ Realties began constructing a commercial complex. The immediate neighbours, the five-storied hotel to the east and Cama Motors to the west of the plot, moved the HC complaining that the development permission granted by AMC violated the General Development Control Regulations (GDCR). This was because the realtor did not leave margin space between the two buildings. The hotel complained that the development permission granted was faulty because the realtor showed that the plots adjacent to Roopalee Cinema were vacant and got their building plan passed by keeping the authorities in the dark. Various other arguments

Yogesh Chawda

The hotel had complained that the construction on the adjacent plot had snatched away its right to air and light

were made, including the prohibition on construction due to the site’s proximity of the 16th-century Sidi Saiyyed Mosque and that the construction violated the Ancient

High court refers temple razing demand to DDO TIMES NEWS NETWORK

The rally started from BAPS Swaminarayan Temple at Neasden, London, and ended at BAPS Swaminarayan Temple at Leicester

taken them about two months to plan the event. Participants included Rena Amin, head of women’s wing of BAPS temple, Anita Ruparelia, chairperson of Brent Indian Association and Gull Bilimoria, representative of Parsi community in the UK, among others. Dawn Butler, MP, Brent Central, flagged off the rally amid sounds of dhol and tasha. The participants also paid homage to the vic-

ROOTS & WINGS

tims of the recent terror attack in London. The rally started from BAPS Swaminarayan Temple at Neasden, London, and ended at BAPS Swaminarayan Temple at Leicester. The lord mayor of Leicester City Council received the rally at the temple. Over the course of journey, the groups connected with locals on route and said that gender imbalance is a global phenomenon and sex determination for abortion is practised in many countries. The participants asked local residents in UK to join hands for gender equity.

Ahmedabad: In a rare case, a resident of the remote tribal town of Vijaynagar in Sabarkantha district has demanded demolition of an Ambaji temple on the grounds that the temple has been constructed illegally on public place. After getting conflicting reports from authorities on the legality of the construction, Justice J B Pardiwala has asked the Sabarkantha district development officer to take a decision within a month on whether the temple should be demolished or not. According to case details, Umang Doshi, a resident of Vijaynagar, had moved the high court in 2013 after a temple was constructed on the town’s main square Holi Chawk and the public space shrunk. He requested the court to direct authorities to demolish the temple because it was constructed without obtaining any permission.

The HC sought a report from the district collector, who informed the court that the temple was constructed on a public place without any permission. However, several villagers and the panchayat itself insisted that there was an old temple that existed in the square. The petitioner supplied photographs of construction under way, and copy of invitation reflecting that the temple was recently constructed. However, looking at the opposition to this demand, the high court referred the case to the DDO and asked all interested parties to put their case before the officer. Interestingly, the HC in the past had taken suo motu cognizance and declared that all religious structures erected on public places without due permission must be demolished and the place should be restored for public utility. This issue is at present pending before the Supreme Court.

Monuments Act. However, the main grievance of the hotel management was that the development permission at the Roopalee Cinema site was faulty

because it violated its rights to light and air and access to open space, which had existed between the erstwhile cinema building and the hotel. After a prolonged hearing, the HC concluded that the development permission granted on the plot was in line with the norms. With regard to the hotel’s grievance that its right to ingress and egress or to light, air and ventilation were violated by the absence of open space due to the development, the court said this did not make the development permission illegal. The HC made it clear that at most it could be a violation of the hotel’s easementary rights. The hotel must establish such rights first and the remedy is available before a civil court.

Ashram Express gets fancy new coaches TOI

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad: The AhmedabadDelhi Ashram Express will have its first journey with the new Linke Hofmann Busch (LHB) coaches, and will gain extra speed and more space, said Western Railway officials. The LHB coach will have eight more berths than a regular coach, officials said. Officials said that the new coach will add 24 more seats in sleeper and third AC coaches. At present, in order to keep the train at the platform, the railway will reduce one sleeper coach. Currently, the train has 12 sleeper coaches, which will be reduced to 11. Officials said that the LHB coaches will also help to increase the train’s speed by around 10 to 15 kmph. Earlier, LHB coaches were introduced in Karnavati, Gujarat Express and Shatabdi Express.

The new coach will have eight more berths than a regular coach

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TIMES CITY

FOR CLEAN, GREEN FUTURE NO CIVIC DISCIPLINE

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NARANPURA CITIZENS TO BLAME: This picture captures the scene outside Mangalmurti Apartments in Naranpura. Residents of nearby areas throw garbage on the road rather than in the AMC garbage bins provided to them —Acharya Nirav

DROWNING A LAKE

ROBBED OF FREE SPACE

GHUMA

PUNISH OFFICIALS: Despite court orders to stop drainage/sewage flow into Ratna lake in Telav-Ghuma, local Bopal municipality authorities clandestinely direct sewage flow from nearby societies into the lake. Trees and aquatic life have been affected because of this pollution. This is criminal and stringent action should be taken against these errant officials —Satyarth Srivastava

THE GREEN DRIVE

GOTA PANKORNAKA CALLING AMC: Vendors at Pankornaka Crossroads in the walled city are a menace. They encroach upon public space and the civic body does precious little to restrict them. Can’t they be provided an alternative location to free road space? —Luqman Sayyedina

MISSION BEGINS AT HOME: Recently at Shukan Lotus Society, in Gota, we planted 21 medicinal plants. This was a small effort to spread awareness on the importance of greenery in our neighborhood. Some of our society members have adopted these saplings and have tagged them with the names of their children —Seema Kumar

30-year-old woman electrocuted in Vejalpur

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30-year-old woman was electrocuted in Vejalpur. According to Vasna police, Ramila Hapani, 30, a resident of Swatantrata Apartment near Rajwadu Hotel, died from an electric shock from a malfunctioning geyser in her bathroom. The incident happened at 6am. Police have registered a case of accidental death. TNN

VADODARA PLAYING OUR PART: As part of our greening initiative, our company organized a tree-plantation drive on its premises at GIDC Waghodia in Vadodara. Since June 5, every employee in our company — from those in the manufacturing wing to the office staff — is taking turns to plant trees. We have vowed that we will water them daily —Rajiv Thakore

Ahmedabad: The authorities of Lalita Green Lawns School at Jawahar Chowk in Maninagar on Tuesday suspended Vinnie Anklesaria, a teacher and the daughter-in-law of a trustee, after an FIR with Maninagar police accused her of resorting to corporal punishment. Ahmedabad city DEO Navneet Mehta visited the school and seized CCTV footage of the incident. The DEO said he will recommend revocation of the school’s accreditation. On Monday, Honey Prajapati, 10, a class V student and a resident of CTM, wore a ponytail instead of two braids as is mandated by the school. A swelling on her head didn’t allow her to comb her hair properly. The teacher did not listen to her, took her near the principal’s office and made her to do sit-ups for the entire period, approximately an hour. Pravin Prajapati, Honey’s father, said that she ended up doing nearly 200 sit-ups and

12-year-old boy strangled Ahmedabad: A 12-year-old boy was found dead in the bathroom of his residence in Dholka on Monday afternoon. Dholka police have registered a complaint of murder and have started the investigation. The body of Prince Rathod, 12, the son of Paresh Rathod, a resident of Dholka town, was found by his parents when they returned from work at in afternoon. Rathod and his wife work for private firms and left for work early in the morning whereas Prince had gotten ready for school. “When the duo returned, they found Prince strangled in the bathroom. He had not gone to school and it is thus believed that the murder may have taken place in the morning,” said a police investigator. TNN

GST roll-out: Car dealers clear inventories

Man held for raping 16-yr-old girl

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THE TIMES OF INDIA, AHMEDABAD WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2017

Honey Prajapati and Lalita Green Lawns School at Jawahar Chowk

her legs swelled up severely due to the punishment. Prajapati said Honey could not stand or walk properly and had to be taken to LG Hospital. On Monday evening, Prajapati lodged an FIR against Anklesaria. Navneet Mehta, DEO, Ahmedabad city, said that a team had visited the school on Tuesday and recorded statements of the school authorities. “Prima facie, the complaint of the corporal punishment appears to be true from the CCTV footage. The accused is a teacher at the school and the daughter-in-law of one of the school’s trustees. A notice will be issued for violation of the rules and an expla-

nation will be sought from the school,” he said. Education department officials said corporal punishment is punishable under the Right to Education Act and Juvenile Justice Act. Sources said CCTV footage will be analyzed to ascertain if this was the only incident of corporal punishment at the school. VB Barad, inspector of Maninagar police station, said that they have started investigation on the basis of the FIR filed on Monday. “The statements of the parents and school authorities have been recorded. We are yet to question the accused,” he said.

Youth held for harassing woman woman’s Facebook account. “We sought details about Ahmedabad: A team of city the account from Facebook crime branch arrested a 25-ye- and identified Ronit Panchal, ar-old youth for harassing a 25, a resident of Panchavad, woman and sending her objec- Saraspur,” said an official.“Setionable photographs and ven months ago, Panchal had created the fake messages on and had Facebook. InONLINE STALKING profile sent friend revestigators said quests to a that the youth is suspected to have been in number of women,” said the contact with more than 50 wo- official. “He used to identify himself as husband or other men on social media. According to crime relative of the woman whose branch officials, a woman li- profile he was using,” said the ving in Saraspur area had re- official. During probe , officigistered a complaint with Sha- als came to know that he assuherkotda police under sec- med different identities to tions of IPC and IT Act against chat with over 50 women on an unknown person who used Facebook. He had also created to send her lewd messages and another fake profile of a wophotographs from another man for the purpose. TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad: A 35-year-old man was apprehended by police for raping a 16-yearold girl. Ranip police said the duo was involved earlier and the man had been apprehended by Sola police under provisions of POCSO but was released recently. Ranip police said the girl from Ranip approached police accused Yagnesh Gaud of raping her between June 7 and 9, at a hotel on Science City Road. In her complaint registered under sections of the IPC and POCSO, she says Gaud asked her to meet him at Balolnagar in Ranip on June 7. He threatened to harm her brother and other family members and compelled her to accompany him on his vehicle after which he took her to the hotel and raped her. V B Patel, inspector of Ranip police station, said that the accused was caught earlier for similar charges by Sola police. “Further investigation will take place after the victim’s medical examination,” he said.

12-year-old boy missing Ahmedabad: A 12-year-old boy from Veraval, who had come to the city with his relatives to take part in ‘Prakash Parva’ event organized at Sabarmati riverfront on June11, was reported missing to Riverfront (W) police. He has not been found as on Tuesday evening. According to investigators, Kartarsingh Bavri, 35, a resident of Veraval came with his family to take part in the event. His nephew Harpaal Singh, 12, was part of the group. On June 11, he had complained of fatigue because of the travel and stayed back in the bus to catch some sleep. “When Bavri and the others returned in the evening they could not find Harpaal. Those present could only say that he had gone to get a water pouch at 3pm and had not returned,” said an investigator. TNN

PREPARING FOR D-DAY TOI

Longer Waiting Periods For Select Models After July 1 [email protected]

Ahmedabad: There is a great deal of anxiety among automobile dealers over Goods and Services Tax (GST) roll-out on July 1. The dealers want to minimize their inventories to be able to move to the new tax structure on a fresh page of their account books. Little clarity about input tax credit and the uncertainty over pricing of cars after the implementation of the new tax regime is driving dealers to offer discounts to lure customers. “Discounts ranging from Rs 40,000 to Rs 1 lakh, depending on the models, are being offered at our dealership,” said Surendra Sharma, the managing director of a city-based Hyundai dealership. “Customers are getting great benefit from the schemes. Sales are good and we are hoping to meet our monthly closing targets early.” Some dealers say that there might be a relatively longer waiting period for certain models after the GST roll-out as they are keeping their inventories to the bare minimum or clearing them off completely. “We are clearing off petrol variants of

our cars as they are relatively less in demand,” said Ajit Mehta, the CMD of a city-based Toyota dealership. “In case there is a price rise, the already low demand will plunge further.” Even sales executives are using the GST as a pitch to woo customers. “It is better to purchase a product ahead of the GST roll-out as discounts are available now,” said the sales executive of a Maruti Suzuki dealership. “There is little clarity on the prices after July 1.” Rajnish Arora, the vice-president of a Honda dealership in the city, said: “We are not sure of the pricing of our models yet. Some models might get costlier, some might become slightly cheaper.” Arora said as there was no clarity, inventories were being cleared.

Charas supplier held in New Maninagar

Students of Anjuman-e-Islam High School practise yoga ahead of World Yoga Day on June 21

Star-crossed lovers end lives at Indroda TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad: A couple was found dead at Indroda Park in Gandhinagar on Monday evening. They had hanged themselves from a tree using nylon rope. Police suspect that their being unable to marry each other was the reason for their ending their lives. According to Infocity

me to the park earlier with the rope. While no suicide note has been found on them, questioning has revealed that they were in touch for some time as they belonged to the same community and had common relatives. They could not marry each other and this may have driven them to end their lives,” said a police investigator.

GU approves more seats at three SFIs ‘Nursing admissions solely on board results’

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Ahmedabad: A team of city crime branch arrested a Jammu and Kashmir resident for supplying charas (hashish) to a city resident. The peddler was caught earlier by crime branch. According to crime branch officials, a team of inspector S L Chaudhari had arrested Mohammad Aziz Shaikh, 48, a resident of Fatewadi, with 2kg charas from JuhapuraMakarba Road. During his questioning, police got to know that the stock was provided to him by Abdul Rashid Asadulla Zargar, 55, a native of Anantnag, Jammu and Kashmir. “Working on information, Zargar, who was in the city, was arrested from New Maninagar-Jamfalwadi Road at 8.45pm on Monday. Zargar had supplied a total of 5kg charas to Aziz and his brother Rafiq some time ago. Zargar was arrested by Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in 2000 and had spent 10 years in prison,” said a crime branch official.

police, employees at Indroda Park found the bodies near the Nilgiri Van at 5pm on Monday. By checking the pockets of the youth, he was identified as Manuji Thakor, 20, a resident of Chanasma. On questioning his relatives and others, the girl’s identity was established as Hetal Thakor, 17, a resident of Shahibaug. “The duo may have co-

Ahmedabad: Gujarat University recently approved additional divisions in three self-financed colleges, thus adding more seats. The decision was taken at a time when admissions are under way. According to the rules of the university, priority for adding divisions — increasing the intake, in effect — is given first to government institutes, followed by grantin-aid colleges, and then to self-financed institutes. This is so because more seats in government or grantin-aid institutes will accommodate more students at lower fees. But on this occasion, three self-financed institutes got approval. After the decision was taken, representatives of other institutes approached

the university seeking clearance to increase intake. The university said that such approvals could be given after a local inquiry committee reviews the institutes. For 40,000 BCom, BBA, and BCA seats (among others), only 42,000 applications have been received. Therefore, experts say that there is no seat crunch to justify the approval of more seats, that too in self-financed institutes. Sources said that the decision of the university may invite strong protest from student bodies in the days to come.

Ahmedabad: The education department has decided that admission in medical, dental, ayurved, homeopathy and naturopathy courses will take place on basis of the National Entrance cum Eligibility Test (NEET) organized by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). However, admissions in courses like nursing, physiotherapy and audiology are going to take place exclusively on basis of results in class XII board exams.Till date, the merit list used to be prepared giving

60% weightage to marks obtained in board exams and 40% to marks obtained in GujCET. TNN

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TIMES CITY

`72k crore outstanding in crop and agri term loans In Poll Year, Govt Has No Money For Waivers Kapil Dave & Niyati Parikh

TNN

Gandhinagar: The prospect of a farm loan waiver is proving a headache for the state government which faces an election this year. While two neighbouring BJP-ruled states, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, have already announced populist loan waiver schemes for farmers, a glance at Gujarat’s crop loans scenario shows a similar move will bring the state to its knees, financially. The state government faces outstanding crop loans worth Rs 40,650 crore as

GOING THROUGH THE ROOF Outstanding farm loans in last 5 years

Financial Crop Agriculture Year Loan Term Loan March 2013 17,400 17,650 March 2014 21,697 24,953 March 2015 26,669 27,619 March 2016 32,533 28,885 March 2017 40,650 31,562

Outstanding Figures In ` crore; Source: State Level Banking Committee

on March 2017 according to the latest state level banking committee data. Apart from crop loans, the total outstanding for agriculture term loans stood at Rs31,562 crore thus bringing the total outstanding for agriculture advances at Rs72,212 crore. Data shows that the outstanding for crop loans has gone up by 25% as compared to the last financial year.

On condition of anonymity, a top level state government officer said, “In the election year, the government will certainly face pressure for farm loan waiver like Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.” “Considering the present financial condition, any such decision may upset the state finances badly. Even if the government decides to waive even 1/4th of the present outstanding

crop loans of Rs40,650 crore it will be more than Rs10,000 crore of additional burden.” Chiman Sapariya, state agriculture minister, when contacted for comment on the issue, said, “I am not authorized to speak. Only the government spokesperson may make a comment.” When asked about farm loan waiver, Nitin Patel, state government spoksperson and deputy chief minister said, “I would not like to make any comment.’’ Even as the state government has declared many sops for farmers in the recent budget for the poll year, farm loan waiver on the lines of Maharashtra might become a key political issue in coming days. In case the government is forced to take similar measures, the state’s financial condition may go topsy-turvy.

‘BJP defaming us, we won’t leave INC’ Vaghela’s Son Mahendrasinh Skips Solidarity Meeting TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Gandhinagar: With rumours that several Congress MLAs are going to defect to the BJP alongside leader of opposition Shankersinh Vaghela, on Tuesday 13 Congress MLAs associated with Vaghela came forward before the media and asserted that they are not leaving the Congress and such rumours are nothing but BJP propaganda ahead of the state assembly elections. Congress whip in the assembly, Balwantsinh Rajput,

who is also a close relative of Vaghela’s, led the group of MLAs who asserted that they were the victims of BJP social media propaganda. Rajput said, “For the last several days rumours are being reported in the media and on social media that we are in touch with the BJP and are joining the BJP. These are all rumours and BJP propaganda. None of us are in touch with the BJP or any mediator. We will unitedly fight the BJP.” Regarding rumours of Vaghela joining the BJP, Rajput said, “He went to the governor with other party leaders to make a representation about farmers’ issues. He is our senior leader and all such rumours are false.” The senior-most tribal MLA, Anil Joshiyara, said,

“The BJP has lost hope for the 2017 elections so it is intentionally spreading such lies. We decided to clarify the issue publicly, as the rumours were damaging our reputations

Congress whip in the assembly, Balwantsinh Rajput, led the group of MLAs who asserted that they were the victims of BJP’s social media propaganda among our voters.” Shailesh Parmar, spokesperson of the Congress legislative wing and senior MLA, said, “I met Bapu (Shankersinh Vaghela) today and he himself suggested

that we should clarify the issue. To end any such controversy we are clarifying it publicly, that all such rumours are BJP propaganda only.” Those present at the briefing were Balwantsinh Rajput, Shailesh Parmar, Anil Joshiyara, Ashwin Kotwal, Poonabhai Gamit, Amit Chaudhary, Mahesh Patel, Kaminiba Rathod, Mahendrasinh Bariya, Baldevji Thakor, Gyasudin Sheikh, Joitabhai Patel and Manilal Vaghela. Shankersinh Vaghela’s son and MLA, Mahendrasinh, with his loyalist Raghavji Patel, who had openly expressed dissatisfaction with the party remained absent from the meeting. Parmar said that all other MLAs were away from Ahmedabad in their constituencies.

THE TIMES OF INDIA, AHMEDABAD WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2017

HC to govt: Prove validity of nod for lion safari park TOI

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Ahmedabad: The Gujarat high court on Tuesday asked the state government to explain whether it has received the final order from the Central Zoo Authority (CZA), granting recognition of the Ambardi lion safari park near Dhari in Amreli district in the Gir sanctuary. A bench of Chief Justice R S Reddy and Justice V M Pancholi sought an explanation by Friday on the validity of the final nod from the Centre after it was pointed out that the technical committee appointed by the CZA has taken the final decision to grant permission to create an enclosure for Asiatic lions. The technical committee is an internal body of the CZA which was expected to propose the final authority to take a decision on whether a zoo should be given recognition or closed. But here, the technical committee itself assumed the power of

the final authority and passed the order. The judges remarked that if there is no order passed by the CZA on a report submitted by the technical committee, it is said to be a lacuna. The judges also questioned the state government on how it could begin work without obtaining the final nod from the competent authority, which is the CZA. The government is expected to reply to the queries on Friday. The state government

and the Union ministry of forest and environment declared on June 5 that the competent authority had given the final nod for the construction of the Ambardi lion safari park. This hearing is taking place on a PIL filed by Biren Padhya who has challenged the permission granted on June 5 for the creation of an enclosure for lions on the grounds that certain conditions laid down for this project have not been fulfilled. He has also requested the establishment of a court commission to visit the spot for proper inspection.

Arrested for lion shows, youth attempts suicide TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad: A resident of Talala, Bharat Kalsaria, attempted to commit suicide by ingesting poison after he was arrested by the forest department for alleged involvement in conducting lion shows. According to forest officials, on April 29 seven people including Bharat were accused of involved in organizing an illegal lion show in Talala. “Ever since, Bharat was on the run. He was spotted by

forest department staff on Tuesday and was detained. The officer, on finding him guilty of holding illegal lion shows, fined him Rs 7,000. He was later allowed to go. A video of him being released by the department was also made,” said chief conservator of forests A P Singh. Officials in the department said that since the arrest had created a lot of tension in the Talala area, the forest department to be safe had shot a video of his release. Officials further they we-

re not aware that he ingested poison at his residence after his release. A senior officer said illegal lions shows are rampant in the area the department acting firmly to set an example. Based on information they had received, a case was registered against Bharat and six others. The officers said Bharat confessed to the crime before the officials and even paid the fine. Bharat was admitted to a hospital later, said officials.

COURT BRIEFS

HC notice over GCCI polls Gujarat high court on Tuesday issued notice to the election officer, empowered apex committee and general secretary of the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce & Industry (GCCI) in response to a petition filed by Haresh Alvani and Indrajit Taparia after their nominations for election were rejected. In all, 18 nomination forms out of 64 forms for 33 seats have been declared invalid. This has led to an uproar in GCCI.

Survivor allowed to terminate pregnancy Gujarat high court has permitted a 15-year-old rape survivor from Patan district to terminate her 16-week pregnancy. The court directed doctors at GMERS Medical College at Sola to carry out abortion on the minor and provide necessary treatment to her.

NEET petitions Gujarat high court on Tuesday permitted the petitioners to take up the issue before the Supreme Court regarding controversy over NEET exams following different question paper sets for English and Gujarati medium students. This happened after the CBSE filed a plea before the apex court, which stayed the Madras HC’s order of staying declaration of results and kept further hearing on June 27.

Helpline for booze whistleblowers set up by govt TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Gandhinagar: Pradipsinh Jadeja, the minister of state for home, reviewed action taken under the new, stringent prohibition law. Jadeja instructed police officials to strictly implement the new law. He said that the government, under the leadership of chief minister Vijay Rupani, stood on four pillars: “transparency, decisiveness, progressiveness, and sensitiveness”. He said there had been a steep decline in domestic violence, accidents, and suicide among women due to the changes made in the prohibition law. The state government has set up a State Monitoring Cell (SMC) to ensure effective implementation of rules, Jadeja said. He said it uses social media to muster public support. A toll-free number, 14405, and a WhatsApp account, 9978934444, have been set up for people to reach out to the SMC. The government will protect the identity of those who get in touch to report any breach of law. Jadeja said people can contact the SMC on its Facebook page, ‘SMC Gujarat’, or by email, [email protected]. People involved in manufacturing of alcohol or its sale or consumption shall face strict action, which can include imprisonment up to 10 years and a fine up to Rs 5 lakh. People involved in helping alcohol production shall face a prison sentence up to 10 years and can be fined up to Rs 1 lakh. Those involved in violence and molesting women after drinking shall face up to three years in prison. Even those who help culprits escape will face imprisonment up to seven years and can be fined up to Rs 1 lakh. Anyone trying to hamper investigations shall also face a jail term up to five years and a fine up to Rs 5 lakh.

Vahan drives vehicle details to central servers Govt Agencies Across Country Get Instant Access To RTO Records TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad: Driving licences and details of cars registered in the state can now be accessed across the country. This was made possible by the implementation of the “Vahan 4.0” software, which has been designed by the Union government. The software has been implemented at 32 of the 36 regional transport offices (RTOs) in the state. Sources in the state transport department said that the car registration database of 32 RTOs in Gujarat were recently linked and uploaded on central servers in Delhi. With the data on central servers, car registration details from say Ahmedabad or Rajkot can be accessed by any agency, including the law enforcement agencies across

the country. An officer at the Ahmedabad RTO said that if a vehicle is caught for an offence in another state, local police can get details such as the owner, year of registration, place and chasis number from the central server almost instantly. More than 650 RTOs in districts across the country will be linked by the software. This will enable applicants to get details of registration details and other processes online. Furthermore, the software will be useful for banks, insurance companies, automobile companies and other government offices as well. The software will prevent malpractices such as duplicate or fake vehicle registrations. The new software will also enable car or vehicle manufacturers to register details online along with the name and code of the dealer they were sent to. These details can be accessed by any RTO or agency, said the officers.

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GUJARAT

Two die of food poisoning in Rajkot’s labour colony

‘Bags I got did not have image of Yadav’ Continued from P1

Pics: TOI

24 Affected; Probe Identifies Impure Water As Key Cause TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Rajkot: Two persons died and about 24 others were hospitalized after complaining of diarrhoea and vomiting since Sunday afternoon at Ekta Colony located in Jangleshwar area of the city. Primary probe by the health department of Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC) suggested that those affected consumed contaminated food or water. Police said that Ekta Colony with a population of over 400 is inhabited by labourers from Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat. They work at factories and industrial units as labourers in the city. The deceased were

BJP gains in local body bypolls TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Gandhinagar: Though local body elections do not reflect the mood of voters in the state, the state BJP won more seats than the Congress in the byelections for local bodies whose results were announced on Tuesday. Byelections were held for Vyara, Bharuch, Kheda, Wankaner, Bhavnagar and Una taluka panchayat and municipality seats. Of the total of 36 seats, BJP won 23 and the Congress 12. Congress had held 22 seats of these 36 seats. Both parties however, claimed to have the upper hand.

All those affected seem to have used water from the same source, a common tank in the colony

identified as Ditesh Kumar Sahu (25) who died on Sunday and Malikram Gupta (25) who died on Monday, police added. RMC health officer Dr Pankaj Rathod said that a total of 24 labourers from Ekta Colony in Jangleshwar were admitted to Rajkot civil hospital over the last two days with complaints of diarrhoea and vomiting. “We have surveyed the locality to find out the source of contamination, whether it is food or water.

All those affected are between 20 years and 40 years and mostly from Uttar Pradesh,” Rathod told TOI. He said that most of them live in groups of 6-7 in a single quarters and they also cook in the same place. “We have already distributed chlorine tablets in all houses of the colony and stationed one mobile dispensary with medical personnel at Ekta Colony to deal with similar emergencies,” Rathod said.

However, sources at the RMC said that all those affected have been living separately and had cooked food at different places. But all those affected seem to have used water from the same source, that is, a common tank in Ekta Colony Lane 4. Various samples of water from different sources have been collected and sent for testing. On the condition of about two dozen people under treatment, Rathod said that they were all stable.

T

he firm owner, Zinabhai Chhotala, said, “I had supplied the bags at a short notice. I had purchased the bags from different Delhibased suppliers. But those which I received did not have any image of Yadav. There was just a black patch on these bags on which we had pasted the image as per Gujarat government’s directive.” Principal secretary, state education (school) department, Sunaina Tomar, when contacted, said, “We will order a formal inquiry into the matter and take necessary action.” Chotta Udepur district primary education officer (DPO) Mahesh Prajapati, who has also formed an inquiry committee headed by taluka education officer, said, “The bags were purchased at the rate of Rs 124 per piece from the district panchayat funds through the e-tendering process.” A senior district official also claimed that the bags are of poor quality and that the Surat firm had outsourced their manufacturing.

Cave-ins after rains blot on Baroda’s face TOI

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Vadodara: The city’s Smart City mask was washed away with the first spell of rains of the season post Monday midnight. The heavy downpour that continued for less than an hour may not have caused heavy waterlogging, but led to a crater and caveins in the city. The worst-affected areas because of the cave-ins were those where trenches were dug up in the recent past to lay pipelines. Right from Ajwa Road in the east to Diwalipura Road in the west and Manjalpur in the south, the entire city witnessed cave ins or ones in the making with small openings on the top and larger cavities inside. The cave-ins were clearly a fallout of lousy work done by contractors who had not bothered to fill trenches properly and cure them with water before coating them with asphalt. The end result was that the first major rainfall led to settling of

Times View

C

The worst-affected areas were those where trenches were dug up in the recent past to lay pipelines

earth and other material like gravel in these trenches eventually causing cave-ins or potholes. Congress councillor Chirag Zaveri, whose ward was amongst the badly hit, pointed out that several vehicles had fallen in the craters created by the cave-ins. “The entire stretch from Susen to Kalali has caveins. A major work to lay a water supply pipeline was conducted in the area. The filling of the

trenches was not done properly leading to the situation,” he said. The situation was the same on the Diwalipura road where a water pipeline had been laid from the ward 11 office to Havmor Crossroads. Small cave-ins were seen at the spot and a car got trapped in one of them. VMC officials said that its staff at the ward level had been asked to attend to any such complaints on a priority. Said

ave-ins are not new in the city. While it is understandable that some of these may be caused by leakages in underground pipelines, it is disturbing to note shoddy works by contractors are to blame for most. Contractors do not cure the trenches with sufficient amount of water to ensure that the earth settles before the road is repaired. The Vadodara Municipal Corporation, which is chalking out Smart City plans, should not go soft on such contractors. Repeat offenders should be black-listed from civic works along with stringent clauses in the contracts.

in-charge city engineer Shailesh Mistry, “The complaints were rampant only in the south zone where the water supply pipeline was laid. The water project department has been asked to look into the issue.”

THE TIMES OF INDIA, AHMEDABAD WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2017

Woman’s chopped body found in open ground TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Vadodara: In a gruesome incident, body of a woman was found chopped in several pieces in an open ground near Umiyanagar adjacent to Ajwa Crossroads on Tuesday evening. The police found the body pieces packed in plastic wrappers in two black bags. While all the body parts were found from the bags, the head and one arm of the woman is missing. “On Tuesday evening, some dogs pulled the bags from bushes and brought them in open ground. Some

kids playing there noticed it following which the locals informed the police,” said Sajansinh Parmar, deputy commissioner of poli-

ce (zone 4). The woman seemed to be in her mid-forties. “It’s a clear cut case of murder. The woman was killed probably two days

ago at some other place as the body has decomposed. The body was then disposed here. The primary investigation will focus on identifying the woman,” said Manoj Sashidhar, police commissioner. Police said that the murderer hasn’t disposed the woman’s head to ensure that she is not identified. The woman’s body will be sent for post mortem. “We will scan all the missing persons complaints lodged in and around Vadodara to ascertain whether any middle-aged lady has gone missing,” Parmar told TOI.

`25k reward for info on absconding Diu BJP leader TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Rajkot: The police department of Union territory Diu has announced Rs 25,000 reward for the person who provides information about Diu district panchayat president and BJP leader Shashikant Solanki, who is wanted in connection with a rape case against him. He was earlier declared absconder by a local court in Diu. The decision of the police comes ahead of panchayat polls that was scheduled for July 1. This comes as a major blow to the ruling BJP in Diu. Solanki (42) had gone missing following a complaint of rape and trespassing lodged against him by a female resident of Diu. According to police, So-

Police department of Diu has announced Rs 25,000 reward for information about Shashikant Solanki, who has gone missing following a rape complaint against him lanki had developed a relationship with the woman after promising marriage. Sources said that Solanki knew the complainant woman and the two used to meet regularly. However, when he refused to marry her, the woman lodged a rape complaint against Solanki on June 9. The district panchayat president of BJP was booked under sections 376 (rape), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 452 (house-trespass after preparation for hurt, assault or wrongful

restraint), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) among others of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Superintendent of police, Diu Samir Sharma said that Solanki was missing since the complaint was lodged against him. “So, we announced a reward of Rs 25,000 for anyone who gives information about Solanki’s whereabouts,” Sharma told TOI. The Diu administration was tightlipped on the issue of Solanki and refused to divulge much information. Also, this was not the first complaint against Solanki. In April this year, he and vice-president of BJP unit for Daman and Diu, Kirit Vaja, were arrested along with two others for allegedly raising slogans against the local administration at a rally to protest ban on liquor sale along the highways.

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he accused threatened the woman to throw her off the train if she complained to anyone. The woman did not complain to anyone about the incident while on the train, but approached police soon after

getting down at Jaipur, the police said. “The accused has been arrested by police. We will produce him in a court and seek his custody. We will conduct an identification parade of the accused in the presence of the rape survivor on Wednesday,” said P K Diyora, deputy superintendent of police, GRP, Surat.

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THE TIMES OF INDIA, AHMEDABAD WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2017

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Pradhan steps in to ease Mallya spoke in friction over fuel price confident voice Daily Revision Of Prices Kicks Off This Friday TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi: Union oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan has stepped in to address concerns expressed by petrol pump owners and operators, who have threatened to stop lifting stock from depots in protest against the move to revise fuel prices daily from June 16. Pradhan is scheduled to meet the representatives of dealers’ associations on Wednesday, even as the staterun oil companies stepped up efforts to reason with the dealers and ensure a smooth rollout of the daily price revision. In an attempt to douse the tension, the chairman of the country’s largest fuel retailer IndianOil, Sanjiv Singh, and his marketing director B S Canth reached out to dealers

in 11 states through video-conference on Tuesday. The development came a day after Hindustan Petroleum chief M K Surana and the company’s marketing director S Jeyakrishnan did the same. The dealers under the aegis of All India Federation of Petroleum Traders (AIFPT), which claims to represent the majority of dealers, met senior executives of state-run fuel retailers in Mumbai without any change in the position of either side. In a statement, Delhi Petrol Dealers’ Association too decided to support the AIFPT decision. “The system is not ready at this point for a countrywide roll-out. As of today, our plan to stop lifting stocks from depots from June 16 stands as it is," FAIPT national secretary Sukhminder Singh Grewal told TOI.

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SWITCHOVER TIME Scenarios claimed by dealers for changing rate at a petrol pump with 16 nozzles and 4 tanks (2 each for petrol and diesel) and assuming new rates are communicated at 8pm WITHOUT AUTOMATION Time taken

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er uncle Akhter Ahmed was arrested last June but his lawyer argued the girl had been tutored to accuse him of rape and could not be considered a ‘competent witness’. The case turned unexpectedly when the girl, who was given paper and crayons to occupy her mind during the hearing, sketched an abandoned house, a girl holding balloons attached to entwined strings, and a dress lying beside her. She filled the drawings with ‘gloomy’ colours. Additional sessions judge (ASJ) Vinod Yadav regarded the sketches sensitively as the child’s impression of her ordeal. “If the elements of this drawing are considered in the background of facts and circumstances of this case, then commission of sexual as-

sault upon her by somebody in her house after undressing her, and it leaving an impression upon her mind, becomes evident,” he said, adding it was enough to explain the girl’s suffering to someone having no knowledge about the facts of the case. “Therefore, I find the child victim to be a competent witness,” ASJ Yadav said. Ahmed might have escaped punishment but for the care and rehabilitation the girl received after she was found in a bus in November 2014. Her alcoholic father had abandoned her when her mother died, and the aunt who brought her to Delhi had put her to work at another woman’s house. Besides the work and the illtreatment, she also suffered sexual abuse by her uncle, and eventually fled home. “Her so-called saviour had

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committed repeated sexual assault upon her,” the court said. The girl’s medical examination indicated possible sexual assault. She was counselled by members of HAQ Centre for Child Rights and opened up to them, but it still took them time to piece together a description of Ahmed. When he was traced and arrested on June 4, 2016, he claimed innocence. The court held that the girl had faced sexual assault but it was not penetrative, therefore it sentenced Ahmed to five years’ rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 10,000. For the girl’s welfare and rehabilitation, the court ordered a compensation of Rs 3 lakh in fixed deposits. It also praised HAQ counsellors Pearl Messy and Uzma Parveen for providing her institutional care.

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he Army is holding coaching classes for the Super-40 batch in Srinagar with its training partner, the Centre for Social Responsibility and Learning (CSRL), and Petronet LNG. The project aims to support and help talented and underprivileged students of Kashmir achieve academic success. On Tuesday, Army chief General Bipin Rawat met the Super-40 batch and congratulated them. Meenakshi Shai, chief manager of the Army’s Super-40 batch project (CSRL), said, “This Super-40 batch has been in existence for the last three years. In the first year, not one student in the batch got enrolled. Last year, 30 students from the batch took the JEE Mains. Out of them, 25 students cleared the JEE Mains and seven cleared the JEE advanced.” She added, “This year, the number of students who cleared the JEE Advanced has increased to nine. We hope the number will keep increasing by the year.”

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en Watson said that Mallya had faced a “battle” to enter the court building and “cameras were thrust In his face" and requested for physical barriers to be put up at the next hearing Mallya attended to “protect him from the press.” The chief magistrate gave permission for Mallya to not attend the next case management hearing on July 11 at 2pm. Dressed in white openneck shirt, flaunting a gold chain, grey trousers, a navy blue blazer and black shoes, Mallya’s tanned face looked stressed and tired and he had bags under his eyes. He looked alternately at the packed press gallery, the judge and his counsel. He spoke in a confident voice to confirm his name and date of birth. Despite constantly criticising the Indian media, out-

side the court room Mallya could not stop himself speaking to them. Asked how he was, he replied: “Cheering for the Indian cricket team to great controversy.” Asked, “Do you feel confident?” he said, “We will see.” “Why do you dislike this tribe (the media)?” “I am more disliked than anything I dislike or like,” he said. Still annoyed about the boos of ‘chor’ during the India-South Africa cricket match, he continued: “I show up at the cricket match to cheer on my team and it becomes a media sensation. What can I do? There is no guarantee that anything I say will be reported the way I say it. The media sensationalises everything. I can’t keep repeating myself everywhere and putting the correct facts forward, so I keep quiet.” He added he would be attending the IndiaBangladesh Champions Trophy semifinal on Thursday.

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hen contacted, CCRYN director Ishwara N Acharya said, “This is only an advisory and no one is forced to follow. The tips are based on years of clinical practice of yoga and naturopathy and there is nothing unusual about the recommendations made.” Acharya, however, maintained that the recommendations do not suggest pregnant women avoid sex but only detach themselves from desire and lust, which are distracting factors. He also said, “Non-vegetarian food should be avoided during pregnancy as that is a

common principle in naturopathy.” Experts ridiculed the suggestions and said they have no basis. “In fact, eggs and non-vegetarian food is highly recommended during pregnancy as they are rich in protein,” a doctor with a leading hospital in Delhi said. Doctors also said caution while having sex is advised during the first trimester when the placenta is low-lying and especially in the case of high-risk pregnancies. Otherwise, if the pregnancy is normal, there is no need for abstinence as the baby in the womb is protected by the amniotic fluid and the uterus muscles.

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RAINBOW OF OPTIONS

Training for a career in the airline industry can range from on-the-job training to a bachelor’s degree. Find out about the requirements of these programs, and learn about career options, job growth and salary information for airline industry careers Huta Raval

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ecently, India has witnessed a burgeoning growth in the aviation industry due to a jump in air travel and use of air cargo services. Old airlines are looking for expanding their base in the country; and some of the new airline companies have also marked their presence. In such a scenario, freshers can reap maximum benefits as most of the carriers prefer to hire fresh talent. There are countless job opportunities available for freshers in the aviation industry. However, the main openings feature in the category of Cabin Crew with Air Hostesses and Flight Attendants being most sought after. These apart, the other job vacancies can be found for Pilots, Boeing Pilots, ATR Pilots, Aircraft Engineers, Chefs, Flight Engineers, Cockpit Crew, Airport Services and Aircraft Maintenance Engineers.

Candidates who hold degree or diploma in disciplines like travel and tourism, flying

ENGINEERING THE FUTURE It is that time in your life, where you have to choose from a platter. Confused on what to pursue? Which branch is the best? Reflect to know the answer which lies in your skills and not the subjects [email protected] fter taking Maths, Physics and Chemistry in the 11th and 12th, students can get a seat in an engineering college after successfully cracking JEE and other private entrances. Mechanical, Electrical, Computer Science or something else? Deciding upon the right engineering stream is quite tricky for both students and their parents. Many go through the same dilemma after clearing different entrance exams. Career options for medical and arts students are relatively clear, however, a lot of thought goes into choosing the right branch in engineering. Most students go by the job prospects of the field while making this decision, interest and aptitude could get ignored in the process. Besides the most popular branches like Mechanical, Computer, Electrical and Civil, there are numerous other engineering branches like Chemical, Biotechnology, Aeronautical, Industrial, Instrumentation, Marine, etc. which have a good scope. While it may be said that scope for a field keeps changing with time, as one sees new trends coming up every few years. The reality is, every branch has good scope and opportunities if you perform well in it. Contrary to this, if you take up a branch just based on its job prospects and lack interest in it, you’ll end up getting nowhere. So it is very important to go for a branch that is of your in-

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terest. The most common query among all engineering aspirants is about the “best engineering branch”. To answer that, all engineering branches are equally good. What matters is one’s interest and aptitude for that branch. Whether you choose college A over college B or branch X over branch Y should not be a random decision and instead be based on research on these colleges and the electives they offer under each course. As a lot of people know, engineering is a 4 year course and has various area concentrations, choose wisely. After completing the B.E., one can go for an M.E., MBA, Ph.D, join the airforce, the army, and take the UPSC, Banking or Insurance entrances. Students can also go for a 3 year diploma course in engineering. Many polytechnic colleges offer diploma course in engineering. Hence, the scope of engineering and its associated fields is quite large. Vimal Bhatt, a professor of civil engineering, when asked about the various engineering courses available in the city, says, “There are many diploma courses in mechanical, civil, electrical, petrochemical and IT engineering that are offered in colleges nowadays. In addition to this, self-financed courses in architecture, electronics and communications and computer engineering are also available. Bachelor’s courses in mechanical, civil, electrical, chemical, computer engineering, textile and IT engineering are offered along with several Master’s courses. The scope of engineering is vast and increasing day-byday and many innovations are also being incorporated in the courses.”

CONSUMER CONNECT INITIATIVE WHAT DO AIRLINES LOOK OUT FOR IN A PROSPECTIVE EMPLOYEE?

■ A pleasant demeanour and courteous behaviour ■ Willingness to work hard ■ A team player who enjoys collaborative efforts and gets along with people ■ A good posture, excellent hygiene and knack for dressing appropriately ■ Ability to fit in with values aligned with the organisation mission ■ An optimistic perspective which views tasks as potential opportunities, rather than insurmountable problems ■ Innate enthusiasm for the job displayed by active listening and asking of insightful, pertinent questions ■ Reliable, dependable, committed and trustworthy persona

operation, aviation safety or technical aspects aircraft maintenance, air traffic management and regulatory policies are given preference. Candidates looking out for a pilot’s job need to produce Airline Transport Pilot License (ALTP) or Commercial Pilot License (CPL) certificate depending on the nature of work. For those interested in technical jobs in the aviation industry, a background of math, chemistry or physics is mandatory. Physical criteria in terms of height which needs to be met by aspirants for air hostess and flight attendant profiles are 5-2’’ plus for girls and 5-7’’ plus for boys. One needs to be open to working late night or early morning hours; maintain one’s looks and shape; serve others with a warm smile; and able to lift heavy objects. Pay packages in this industry are the most handsome ranging from INR 32,000/- pm to INR 6, 00,000/- pm with pilots drawing the maximum followed by flight attendants and air hostesses/host. For more details please contact [email protected]

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TIMES NATION

THE TIMES OF INDIA, AHMEDABAD WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2017

Farmers in UP cry foul over waiver Scindia, Hardik prevented ‘Many Ryots Kept Out Of Sop Preview’

PTI

[email protected]

New Delhi: Farmer groups in Uttar Pradesh have upped the ante against the Yogi Adityanath-led UP government over the criteria for identifying farmers eligible for a loan waiver. They have alleged the current procedure for identifying farmers threatens to leave out a large chunk that has faced acute agrarian distress. Soon after it came to power in UP, the state government announced it would waive outstanding farm loans till March 31, 2016 of up to Rs 1 lakh, for small and marginal farmers. The government also said the prom-

Those outside the waiver net have threatened to join ranks with the farmer movement across India to corner the BJP government

ise of a loan waiver would benefit 78 lakh farmers in the state. Uttar Pradesh is home to 2.15 crore farmers of which about 1.80 crore are small and marginal farmers. According to the state government’s current estimates, Rs 36,589 crore will only be able to service outstanding crop loans of 37% small and marginal farmers in UP, leaving plenty of room for complaint from those who

are left out. Those outside the waiver net have already cried foul, threatening to join ranks with the building farmer movement across India to corner the NDA government. President of Kisan Jagriti Manch, Sudhir Panwar, said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the ambassador of the BJP’s promise of loan waiver. He was the one who gave this promise legitimacy. Now, the govern-

ment is backtracking on its promises by only waiving loans for a section of the affected farm segment. It appears that BJP’s politics has trumped fiscal discipline.” While farmer groups including Rakesh Tikait’s Bharatiya Kisan Union’s have said the ‘half-help’ to the group is likely to do more damage to the farm sector, Wali Ullah Engineer of the Indian Minorities Front on Monday petitioned Governor Ram Naik against the UP government’s decision to leave farmers who have taken term loans from cooperative banks, out of the loan waiver net. Sources in UP’s Land Development Bank told TOI that small and marginal farmers who took term loans adding up to over Rs 4,000 crore, have been entirely excluded from the state’s waiver move. These loans for pur-

chasing agriculture implements were for 5-10 year duration. A senior UP government functionary said, “We have approached the chief minister several times over the need to include other affected farmers. But there have been reservations because of resource constraints.” With Union finance minister Arun Jaitley announcing that the Centre will not fund states’ loan waivers, the state government is scrambling to put together the resources to keep the poll promise. “One view is that the profit-making corporations will be tapped for funds. However, the government is facing immense pressure as a result of having to arrange for an extra Rs 20,000 crore towards increased salaries following the implementation of the Seventh Pay Commission,” a government official said.

from visiting Mandsaur

Ratlam/Neemuch: The Congress’ Madhya Pradesh heavyweight Jyotiraditya Scindia and Gujarat’s Patel quota stir spearhead Hardik Patel were on Tuesday turned back by the police before they could enter Mandsaur, the hub of the recent farmers’ agitation. Dramatic scenes unfolded at the Nayagaon-Jaora toll booth in Ratlam where Scindia, his party colleague Kantilal Bhuria and a large number of their supporters were detained. They were proceeding to neighbouring Mandsaur where prohibitory orders barring assembly of more than four people are still in force. Scindia, the suave and sophisticated face of the Congress, was seen seated atop

Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia trying to make his way to Mandsaur on Tuesday to meet the relatives of farmers killed in firing

the anti-riot ‘Vajra’ vehicle, clenching his fist and chanting slogans like “Bharat Mata Ki Jai” and “Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan”. For some time, a large Congress flag fluttered atop the vehicle, with the lawmaker from Guna Lok Sabha seat frantically waving it. A convoy of vehicles followed the Vajra van as hun-

India agrees to total ban Qatar blockade takes the Modi to review on child labour at Geneva wind out of Beypore’s sails country’s job scenario Sheila Mathrani @timesgroup.com

Geneva: India ratified on Tuesday two fundamental conventions against child labour - the Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) and the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) – at the International Labour Organisation (ILO) conference currently on in Geneva. With this, India became the 170th member of the ILO to ratify

Convention No 138 and the 181st member to ratify Convention No 182. There are total 187 member states. Labour minister Bandaru Dattatreya, representing India at the conference, said the amendment now completely prohibits employment or work of children below 14 years in any occupation or process, and also prohibits the employment of adolescents (14 to 18 years) for hazardous occupations and processes.

[email protected]

Kozhikode: They are thousands of miles apart, but the storm brewing in distant Qatar has sunk hopes in Beypore. Since 2011, the sleepy coastal town has supplied as many as 10 customised luxury dhows (locally called uru) to Qatari royalty, but with the recent blockade imposed on the country by its Arab neighbours the future of the traditional boat builders here seems uncertain. Two huge luxury dhows commissioned by the Qatar royal family are currently under construction at 52-year old master craftsman and

AP

Mahendra.Singh @timesgroup.com

A dhow under construction for Qatari royalty at Beypore

dhow builder Sathyan Edathody’s boatyard facing the Chaliyar river. As per current plans, the 120 feet long vessels are to sail to Dubai for interior works by mid-2018 before they are taken to their final destination in Doha. Ever since news came in of the Gulf crisis, Edathody has been in

constant touch with his major clients in Qatar on a daily basis. Edathody said he will have to rework plans to do the interior work, cabins, luxury furnishing and air conditioning at Qatar itself or elsewhere if the naval blockade on Qatari vessels in Dubai is not withdrawn by then.

Punjab cabinet OKs hike in women quota to 50% in civic bodies Chandigarh: The Punjab cabinet on Tuesday gave go-ahead to a proposal to increase reservation for women in panchayati raj institutions (PRIs) and urban local bodies (ULBs) from 33% to 50%. The GST Bill was also approved to be tabled in the assembly during the budget session. Increase in women’s quota to 50% in all civic bodies was Cong’s poll promise. TNN

New Delhi: PM Narendra Modi will oversee a review of job creation and data collection on employment on Sunday in an exercise that is intended to frame a policy response to criticism that GDP growth has not translated into higher employment. The charge of “jobless growth” had dogged the previous UPA government as well and the Modi government is keen to examine both employment avenues and data generation. The meeting comes at a time when top policy-makers feel there is a lack of credible and timely job data that makes it difficult to assess job creation. Job creation was an essential element of BJP’s poll pitch in 2014 and the government is keen to address the issue well before the next national election. The concern is that unless the issue is clarified and job creation and employment clearly authenticated, the issue will become an Achilles heel for the ruling party. The official data is seen to suffer from some shortcomings in terms of the sectors it covers, its mapping of the informal economy and whether there is a sufficient distinction between jobs and self-em-

dreds of Congress supporters ran to keep pace with the automobiles. “All rules are being torn to shreds. Dictatorship and Nazism (Hitlershahi) prevails in MP,” he told the media amid cries of ‘Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan’ by agitated Congress supporters. When told by a police officer that prohibitory orders were in place in Mandsaur, Scindia said he was prepared to go there alone. “Why are you not allowing me to go there alone?” he angrily asked the officer, before being detained. Earlier in the day, Hardik Patel was arrested from Nayagaon in Neemuch. The Patidar quota agitation leader, heading to Mandsaur to meet the kin of five farmers killed in police firing on June 6. PTI

INDIA DIGEST

ED attaches 50 kg gold of TN businessman

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TAKING STOCK

ployment. A government source said Niti Aayog vice-chairman Arvind Panagariya is going to make a presentation to PM Modi on employment data. He is heading a task force set up by the government to assess the creation of jobs based on credible data and the panel has been mandated to formulate a methodology for timely and reliable statistics. Recently, Niti Aayog rejected the jobless growth criticism, arguing India has no credible job data to allow such conclusions. Panagariya said India will soon have new job data that should be able to help policymakers get a better sense of the employment scenario. The Niti Aayog has said the current set of data has serious flaws.

he Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday said it has provisionally attached around 50 kg of gold ingots/bars worth over Rs 13,96,88,246 crore of businessman J.Sekhar Reddy and his associates in connection with new-for-old currency notes scam. The action has been taken under the provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA).

Two killed in clash over land dispute: Two persons were killed and six others injured in a clash between two groups over a land dispute in village Dharsul of Fatehabad district in Haryana, the police said on Tuesday. The deceased were identified as Deepak (29) and Vijender (30). Seven persons have been held in connection with the clash which took place last night, officials said.

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https://telegram.me/PDF4EXAMS A successful career will no longer be about promotion. It will be about mastery.

If you are not different than your competition, you're in trouble.

—Michael Hammer

—Mark Sanborn

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Wednesday, June 14, 2017 | Ahmedabad

For advertising queries: Call 079-67774447 or Email: [email protected] IMAGESBAZAAR

DEVELOPING the LEADERSHIP

PIPELINE

It is crucial to develop the leaders well to make the organisation reach newer thresholds

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Ramesh Shankar, head HR, Siemens Ltd

enry Ford rightly said - “If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses”. What distinguishes visionary leaders from the rest is their way of looking at the world. An organisation is only as good as the skill and ability of these leaders. Instead of managers, a company needs more leaders who can foresee the future and ideate accordingly. However, leaders cannot appear unexpectedly whenever there is a crisis. The company must create a provision for the same by grooming leadership at each level.

THE NEED The practice of honing the leadership skills of every employee ensures that the right skills are implemented at the right place at the right time for the right job. This eventually results in a healthy and supportive environment which fosters sustainable growth and learning experiences. In case there is a sudden resignation at an important position, there will be no void. Avoiding emergency situations by having the right personnel ready will save the company from no-choice situations.

THE PROCESS There are a few ways to implement leadership at every level. Companies should cultivate a concrete learning process by open discussions, constructive criticisms, systematic thinking

and by encouraging new ideas. The thumb rule is that a holistic and systematic environment needs to be built where the leadership quality is reinforced. The process should begin with proper talent requisition. The managers, along with the HR, need to determine the talent mind-set of the company. The next step would be identifying linchpin positions and recruiting proper personnel for the same. Linchpin positions are jobs that are crucial for securing the company's health for a long time. These are usually difficult to fill and are rarely individual-contribution jobs. By monitoring the linchpin positions, the management can focus on development programmes to ensure an adequate supply of appropriate talent. To check whether an individual qualifies for the linchpin positions, the companies can pair theoretical training with reallife exposure to live projects. The managers can involve techniques like job rotation, assign special duties like taking charge of a new office in another location, and pull together a group of high-potential employees to research and make recommendations on fresh ideas.

EXPECTATIONS When an organisation has a steady leadership pipeline ready, it can reach newer thresholds by being an ideal learning organisation where the employees continually create, acquire and transfer knowledge within a supportive environment. In addition, an educational system will help the mid-level managers develop the skills required for taking the position of the top-level leaders. The traditional system is often restricted to only knowing the skills, but not actually developing the same.

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TIMES NATION | MUMBAI

THE TIMES OF INDIA, AHMEDABAD WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2017

MEA bails out bizman in custody battle with estranged Dutch wife Shibu.Thomas @timesgroup.com

Mumbai: A father cannot be charged with kidnapping his daughter, the external affairs ministry and the CBI informed the Bombay high court on Tuesday. In a relief to a Bandra businessman and a jolt to his estranged Dutch wife, the MEA said it had rejected a Netherlands government request to arrest Sajid Shah and extradite him on charges of abducting his daughter from Amsterdam. The court was hearing Sajid’s petition challenging the extradition request. Sajid’s estranged wife Nazneen had filed a criminal complaint against him after he

brought their two-year-old daughter back to India in September 2016. She accused Sajid of violently kidnapping their daughter from her house. Nazneen also launched an online campaign for the child’s return. An Interpol notice was issued for Sajid’s arrest and the Netherlands government requested the Indian authorities to arrest and extradite him to face trial. Advocate Hiten Venegaonkar, counsel for the Centre, submitted an affidavit filed by the CBI along with an MEA letter. “Since the taking away of a child by her biological father does not amount to kidnapping, it is not an extraditable offence,” B P Bagchi, assistant director,

Like in film, real life pal helps ‘Sairat’ star score 66% in SSC

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ust like her on-screen friend ‘Ani’, actress Rinku Rajguru has a real life friend Ria who came to her rescue during before the SSC exams, the results of which were declared on Tuesday. Rinku, who shot to fame overnight with her lead role in Marathi blockbuster Sairat and also won the National award in 2016, scored 66.40 %. A resident of Akluj in Solapur district, she was shooting for the Kannada remake of Sairat for the entire year during standard X. Rinku told TOI over the phone from Akluj, “It was a tough year and just 45 days before the SSC exam, I opened the books for the first time.My best friend Ria was of great help when I actually started studying.” TNN

MUMBAI MASALA

Dealer uses fake docus to activate SIMs, arrested

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mobile SIM dealer, Tausif Hanif Khan alias Guddu (34), from Dongri area in south Mumbai was arrested on Tuesday for selling active SIM cards without verification of photos and documents. Acting on the specific information the Dongri police raided Madina building in Dongri and arrested Khan with fake documents, rubber stamps and 51 SIM cards.

State govt will reduce jail term of prisoners: The quantum of jail term of all prisoners in the state will be reduced to mark 125 years of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar’s birth anniversary. The state home department has proposed reducing the jail term of prisoners who have been convicted for three months by seven days and for those sentenced to jail term of three months to one year by 15 days. Prisoners sentenced to a jail term of one year to five years will be given a relaxation of two months and for prisoners sentenced for more than five years, the remission will be of three months. Immigration officers aid traffickers, held: Following a spate of deportations due to forged passports and visas, senior immigration officers at the city airport carried out an internal probe and found that two of their men were hand in glove with human trafficking agents and helped them illegally send 53 Indians to Canada in the last two years.

National Central Bureau, CBI, said in his affidavit. “The MEA, in its May 5, 2017 letter, rejected the extradition request. In view of the above, Sajid shall not be arrested and no coercive steps will be taken against him and his daughter,” the officer added. Nazneen had met Sajid in Amsterdam in 2010 during an Indian film awards event, and they were married in 2011. Nazneen said Sajid’s behaviour changed after the wedding. She gave birth to a girl in 2014. A local court awarded Nazneen her daughter’s custody in 2016. A few months later, Sajid abducted their daughter and brought her to India, she alleged. The criminal charges against Sajid

invite a jail term of up to 15 years. Nazneen’s story went viral after it was shared on the Humans of Amsterdam Facebook page. A change.org petition to MEA for the return of the daughter reportedly got around 18,000 signatures within 24 hours. Meanwhile, Sajid filed a divorce and custody petition before the Bandra family court. The MEA said the petition for divorce and custody was pending and sub judice before the Bandra family court. After hearing the MEA and CBI stands, the HC disposed the petition filed by Sajid on Tuesday. (Names changed to protect the family’s identity)

Aarey to lose 3,184 trees for car shed: Metro corp [email protected]

Mumbai: The Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (MMRCL) has now revealed in an official document that more than 3,000 trees will be felled inside Aarey Colony to build a car shed. This high number overturns the 500-odd figure it mentioned in submissions to the National Green Tribunal (NGT) and in press statements. In all, 3,184 trees will be cut within Aarey, one of the city’s few remaining green lungs, and about 200 will be transplanted to make way for a shed to park trains running on the Colaba-SEEPZ metro line, says a tender document from MMRCL.To rub salt into the wound, the cost of felling the trees is estimated in a range of Rs 940 to over Rs 28,000! The new numbers of trees on the chopping block go against every estimate given so far. TOI had earlier reported that MMRCL had underestimated the extent of green cover that would be lost along the route. Weeks before tenders were called for cutting, transplanting trees and planting saplings on February 14 this year, MMRCL said 254 trees would be cut and 2,044 transplanted, in response to an RTI query. For the full report, log on to www. toi.in

https://telegram.me/PDF4EXAMS 15 Model death: Police register murder case Mumbai: Amboli police on Tuesday registered a case of murder against unknown person after the model and struggling actress, Kritika Chaudhary (27), was found dead in her rental flat at Bhairavnath SRA Society in Andheri (west). Police suspected it a case of murder because the main door was locked from outside. Investigator said the unknown accused has used steel fighter (weapon) to attack on Kritika’s head. TNN

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TIMES NATION

THE TIMES OF INDIA, AHMEDABAD WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2017

Cong member praises ‘Pappu’, fired

GJM men take to streets; unrest continues in hills

Meerut District Chief Accused Of Using Critics’ Insult Of Choice For Rahul Kabir Agarwal

Cong VP headed for Italy to meet granny

TNN

Meerut: A senior Congress member from Uttar Pradesh has been removed from all party positions for purportedly referring to Congress vicepresident Rahul Gandhi as “Pappu”, repeatedly, in a social media message meant to laud his recent attempt to visit Mandsaur following the death of five protesting farmers in police firing. “Pappu” is the term Rahul’s critics are known to use when denouncing him, especially on social media. Vinay Pradhan, the party’s Meerut district president, allegedly made the references in a message sent on a WhatsApp group titled ‘Indian National Congress’. The message sought to heap praise on Rahul for “putting the interest of the nation be-

CBI arrests mining group promoters for `290cr fraud TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi: Probing a major bank fraud, the Central Bureau of Investigation on Tuesday arrested Manoj Jayaswal and Abhisek Jayaswal – promoters of mining company Abhijeet Group – along with former DGM of Canara Bank for allegedly causing a loss to Rs 290 crore to two public sector banks. Abhijeet group was probed by CBI in coal scam as well and Manoj Jayaswal was chargesheeted by the agency. In the present case, CBI said that the Rs 290 crore loan is just the tip as the agency during the last two years of probe has found that 13 companies of Abhijeet Group – now known as Pathbreaking group – have defaulted on loans of Rs 11,000crore-15,000 crore from 20 banks and financial institutions which have become non-peforming assets since 2014. CBI has found that these funds from the banks have allegedly been diverted through 132 shell companies of the group, sources said. According to CBI, State Bank of India has outstanding dues to the tune of Rs 2,200 crore and Axis Bank has Rs 1,600 crore debt in its books which comprise some of the largest non-performing assets on account of group companies of Abhijeet group. The duo was arrested in Kolkata and a special court there has sent them to eight days of CBI custody during which investigation officers are planning to not only examine them on the Rs 290 crore but also on web of transactions allegedly used to divert bank loans for purposes other than specified.

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Rahul Gandhi

ongress vice-president Rahul Gandhi is taking a break from politics to visit his 93-year-old grandmother in Italy. He will most likely spend his 47th birthday next week with them. “Will be travelling to meet my grandmother & family for a few days. Looking forward to spending some time with them!” Rahul announced on Twitter. The Congress vice-president, however, did not mention how many days he would be out, and where exactly he was headed. Rahul’s grandmother Paola Maino lives in Italy. Rahul’s latest foreign trip comes at a time when Congress is engaged in political discussions over a common opposition candidate for the election of the next President. Defending the trip, Congress spokesman Randeep Surjewala said: “Rahul Gandhi is travelling abroad to meet his 93-year-old grandmother and family. To take care of the well-being of elders is part of our culture.” In March, Rahul had visited the US, where his mother and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi had gone for a health check-up. Earlier, during New Year celebrations, Rahul had gone to London for a short break. TNN

fore his own”. But it said: “Pappu could have joined hands with Adani, Ambani and Mallya but he did not do that. Pappu could have been a minister or even the Prime

Minister, but he did not go down that road. Instead, he put his life on the line by going to Mandsaur.” On Tuesday, Ramkrishna Dwivedi, chairman of the dis-

ciplinary committee in Congress, issued a letter announcing Pradhan’s removal from all party posts for the “provocative” message. “This is an attempt to malign the party lead-

NDA likely to pitch for opposition support for its President nominee

New Delhi: The government has put an end to speculation that the rollout of the goods and services tax (GST) will be delayed, with revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia as well as the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) saying the tax reform is on track for a July 1launch. Adhia tweeted: “The rumours about GST implementation being delayed are false. Please do not be misled by it (sic).” CBEC said, “Preparations are in full swing for a smooth implementation of

To Firmly Pitch For Its Candidate TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi: Acting swiftly on the party’s strategy for presidential polls, BJP president Amit Shah on Tuesday held meetings with senior ministers Arun Jaitley and Venkaiah Naidu for a broader consensus over the nominee for the top post. Shah had on Monday formed committee of three ministers consisting of Rajnath Singh, Jaitley and Naidu to hold discussions with opposition parties for a common candidate for the country's highest office. Soon after Shah met the two ministers, Naidu said BJP would talk to all political parties in the true spirit of democracy to evolve a broad consensus on the presidential nominee. However, Naidu made it clear that the NDA will firmly pitch for its candidate and seek other parties’ support since people’s mandate is with the BJP-led coalition. “They should go by the mandate of the people which is for this government,” said Naidu sounding out his party’s intentions that the initiative is to seek opposition support for its candidate. “We have started internal consultations. We are the ruling party and we have to take everyone on board

Shatrughan bats for Advani as President A

day after BJP announced a three-member panel to reach out to the opposition for a consensus on the presidential nominee, party MP and veteran actor Shatrughan Sinha rooted for L K Advani as the “most deserving” candidate for the post, saying he hoped “good sense prevails” on the leadership. With just four days to go before the date for filing nominations for the country’s top Constitutional office begins, Sinha, who has been disgruntled with the party leadership on several issues, sent out a series of tweets to bring up Advani’s name, saying “his admirers inside and outside the party” feel he (Advani) is the most suitable presidential candidate. Sinha said, “As the D-day for the presidential election draws close, I strongly echo the views of Advaniji’s admirers and well wishers... He is clearly the most suitable, learned, respectable, experienced, desirable and deserving candidate for the most prestigious post... I sincerely hope, wish and pray that good sense prevails on one and all and the Pitamah of BJP is bestowed upon with the honour... that he most richly deserves...” "We have to fulfill his dreams...May God bless him with a healthy life ahead. We have to move ahead keeping all respect for him in the heart and do what he always wanted to do. No body in BJP or outside BJP can challenge his experience," Sinha said. AGENCIES

and work towards evolving a broad consensus and seek their support,” Naidu said at a press conference assert-

ing that the exercise will be done in the “true spirit of democracy”. BJP sources said the pur-

the landmark tax reform from 1st July, 2017. The window for migration to the GSTN (GST Network) has reopened to assist the remaining taxpayers.” There has been persistent speculation over the rollout date with sections of the industry expressing the view that more time is required. The West Bengal government has also sought a delay. But the government has said it will stick to the July 1 rollout and almost all states have no reservations on this score. The government has time

and again reiterated its position that there will be no change in the deadline for the biggest indirect tax reform on July 1. Finance minister Arun Jaitley last week said that there is no reason to further postpone its targeted rollout date on GST. The government has felt that there will be teething troubles irrespective of the date and any further delay will not resolve matters. The government is also keen to launch the reforms well before the festival season later this year which will also coincide with state elections in

Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. The state of readiness of GSTN has been questioned by some quarters but the government feels it is will be up to the test. CBEC said that, along with the states, the department has increased its outreach programmes on the forthcoming indirect tax regime so as to reach even the “last trader”. CBEC has got the government’s approval to reorganise the existing Central Excise and Service Tax field formations according to the requirements of the panIndia GST regime.

TOI rules Bengaluru: 164% bigger than next 2 Eng papers combined 4.5 Times Hindu’s Circulation, 2.5 Times Of Deccan Herald TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bengaluru: The Times of India remains the undisputed leader in the technology capital of the country with a circulation of 4.78 lakh copies daily, including its variant edition of 70,086 copies, for the July-December period of 2016, according to the latest report of the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC). This puts the Times of India far ahead of the combined circulation of Deccan Herald and The Hindu.The Times of India in Bengaluru city is over two and a half times the size of its nearest competitor, Deccan Herald, which, according to ABC, had a circulation of 1.87 lakh

Darjeeling: Tuesday’s general strike in the Hills, Terai and Dooars took an ugly turn in the morning after three SUVs packed with 15 tourists from Mumbai, including five children, headed to Siliguri from Darjeeling were stopped by Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) supporters at Kurseong, 29km from Darjeeling. There was an altercation between the drivers and GJM supporters for nearly 30 minutes before a large contingent of police, led by Kurseong SDPO Pinaki Dutta, reached the spot and dispersed the mob. Two persons –– Amir Pradhan and Hemant Subba –– have been arrested, but police did not confirm they were GJM workers. According to a senior police officer, the tourists had been told of the strike but they had decided to start from Darjeeling early to avoid trouble.

10 die as incessant rains lash NE TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Centre nixes speculation of delay in GST rollout TIMES NEWS NETWORK

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

ership. Other parties appear to be involved in this. It is also an effort to divert attention from the main issues, like the plight of farmers in Madhya Pradesh,” he said in the letter, adding, “Vinay Pradhan is guilty of violating the constitution of Congress party.” Pradhan said the message in question was not sent by him, and he wasn’t given an opportunity to explain himself. “This is an effort by some people in the party to malign me. I have not sent any such message. The screenshots being circulated have been photoshopped. I respect Rahul Gandhiji and would never use such language for him. The party should have at least heard me out before removing me from all posts. I am seeking an appointment with him and will explain the matter to him,” he said.

copies, including 49,332 copies of the variant. The Hindu trails way behind with 1.04 lakh copies (including 40,125 copies of the variant), which makes TOI more than four and a half times larger. The sheer dominance of The Times of India in the city can be gauged from the fact that the combined circulation of Deccan Herald and The Hindu is a mere threefifth TOI’s. In other words, TOI is 164% the size of DHplus-Hindu in the city. TOI’s leadership status extends to rest of Karnataka too. Daily circulation of The Times of India across state stands at an impressive 5.19 lakh copies (including 70,086 copies of the variant).

pose of Shah’s meeting with the two ministers was to assign them different parties to hold discussions with.

Guwahati/Aizawl: Incessant rain, triggered by a deep depression that moved into Bangladesh on Monday, wreaked havoc in the northeast on Tuesday with 10 deaths reported from Guwahati and Aizawl. The Guwahati Met office recorded 105.7 mm rain between 8.30am and 5.30pm on Tuesday. Eight people were killed in Tlabung sub-division in Lunglei district, south Mizoram, in the past two days. State disaster management and rehabilitation department officials said more than 350 houses were flooded in Mizoram since Monday. Six bodies, including that of a mother and her daughter, in Changpui village, are feared to have been washed away. Three people in Marpara South were killed in a flash flood. Only one body was found. Three people were swept away by flood waters from a house in Phairuangkai village late Monday night. Villagers had gathered there to mourn the death of an eightyear-old girl, whose body was also swept away.

No anticipatory bail for K’taka ex-CM TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bengaluru: Former Karnataka chief minister and state JD(S) president H D Kumaraswamy was on Tuesday denied anticipatory bail by a special court here in an illegal mining case. Lokayukta Court judge Gopal rejected the prayer of Kumaraswamy, who has been summoned by the Lokayukta's special investigation team in connection with the case. Kumaraswamy, the son of former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, is accused of putting immense pressure on the then Commissioner of Mines, Gangaram Baderiya, to clear a file in favour of Janthakal mining firm in 2007, when he was the chief minister. Baderiya, now the principal secretary (revenue), was arrested by the SIT on May 15 for allegedly allowing the firm to illegally lift

Kumaraswamy is accused of putting pressure on the then Commissioner of Mines, Gangaram Baderiya, to clear a file in favour of Janthakal mining firm in 2007, when he was the CM one million tonnes of mined ore in Chitradurga based on forged documents. The SIT has summoned Kumaraswamy, following the arrest of Baderiya. Meanwhile, speaking to reporters, Kumaraswamy said he had no role in the case and would come out clean. "I do not have any role in this case... My legal team will bail me out... I will prove myself innocent," the state chief of the Janata Dal (Secular) said. Earlier, Kumaraswamy had accused the Congress government of targeting him ahead of the 2018 Assembly polls.

Sulabh founder to rename village after Trump [email protected]

Gurgaon:Sulabh International founder and chief Bindeshwar Pathak has announced that an open defecation-free village in Mewat will be named after the US President Donald Trump. Sulabh believes it will help draw attention of the world towards India’s cleanliness campaign. Sulabh is currently working in some villages of Mewat to make them ODF, one of which

will be named after Trump. “We have chosen Mewat, but the village to be named after Trump will be decided in next few days,” said Pathak over phone from the US, adding he will visit Mewat to interact with villagers after he returns to India in the next few days, during which, a village will be chosen for adoption. Pathak made the announcement at a community event organised in the suburbs of Washing-

ton DC. “The Indian government is trying to rid the country of open defecation. We urge the global community to help us realise the goal of sanitation and cleanliness in India,” he said, adding that big corporate houses can adopt a village, block or taluka as part of the campaign. He said the idea behind naming a village after Trump is to highlight the issue of sanitation globally.

STING ON HORSETRADING SET TO ROCK TN ASSEMBLY

DMK launches OPS: None of my pincer attack, in MLAs accepted court & in House or gave money [email protected]

Chennai: The cash-for-vote narrative by two AIADMK MLAs, revealed in a Times Now-Moon TV sting operation telecast on Monday, will put the ruling AIADMK on the backfoot when the assembly session starts on Wednesday. DMK convened a strategy session for its MLAs on Tuesday, hours after its senior counsel urged Madras high court for an early hearing of its pending PIL against Edappadi K Palaniswami’s vote of confidence case, besides a fresh demand for CBI or DRI probe into the expose. DMK meeting devoted much of its time brainstorming its MLAs on how to corner the government in the assembly. The party wants the speaker to order a probe into charges of bribing of MLAs, and it also plans to meet the governor and make a request for a probe. The government on its part is likely to defend the issues raised by the opposition parties but their main worry will be as to how the MLAs, who are die-hard supporters of Sasikala and her family, will behave in the assembly. “Cabinet, after discussing the issues of governance, also discussed ways and means to handle the opposition onslaught on the TV expose and other issues like drinking water crisis, NEET etc,” said a source privy to the cabinet

DMK convened a strategy session for its MLAs on Tuesday, hours after its senior counsel urged Madras high court for an early hearing of its pending PIL against Edappadi K Palaniswami’s vote of confidence case, besides a fresh demand for CBI or DRI probe into expose meeting. The government is also worried about facing the cut motions which will be moved by opposition after the demand for grants is moved by the concerned minister. “If some ruling party MLAs rebel and refuse to support, then cut motions may be a big headache for the government and this also figured in the meeting,” said the source. “Thalapathi (DMK working president M K Stalin) advanced the legislature party meeting to Tuesday only to brief us on the TV channel’s expose. The meeting discussed plans to raise the issue soon after the assembly session starts,” said an MLA not willing to be named. Nearly 80 of its 89 MLAs attended the meeting at party headquarters Anna Arivalayam, which went on for nearly an hour.

No MLA in his camp offered or accepted money ahead of the trust vote on March 23, AIADMK (Puratchi Thalaivi Amma) leader O Panneerselvam tells TOI’s Jaya Menon and B Sivakumar in an exclusive interview. He also says PM Modi wants both the AIADMK factions to unite and provide a clean government. Excerpts from the interview: On the ‘MLAs for sale’ expose by Times Now - Moon TV he said none in his camp had offered or accepted money. ■ Why did you call off the merger talks? This is a party built by MGR and Jayalalithaa. We can’t let it perish. We don’t want any one family to take control of the party. We thought we will sort out differences with the other faction through talks, but they did not give us enough confidence. They are enacting a drama and trying to discredit us. We felt that there was a danger of the party’s image being damaged. ■ Did the likelihood of Rajinikanth entering politics force you to walk out of the talks? Even though AIADMK is split, not a single cadre has joined any other party. This shows that AIADMK is a strong party. Anyone can start a political party and they can be a leader if people accept them. It will not affect the AIADMK’s prospects. ■ What did the Prime Minis-

O Panneerselvam

ter Narendra Modi tell you about your factions merging? Modi feels the two factions should merge and function as aunited party that can provide stable governance. More important, he feels it should be a corrupt-free regime and he has conveyed this to us. He has made it clear that whatever be the situation, there should not be corruption in governance and that he would not permit it. He is firm on that.

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TIMES GLOBAL

ONLY DO WHAT YOUR HEART TELLS YOU — PRINCESS DIANA

THE TIMES OF INDIA, AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2017

MIRANDA KERR SAYS SHE LOVES ‘LEECH FACIALS’ SO MUCH THAT SHE KEEPS THE WORMS AS PETS

ANGELINA JOLIE’S NEW NEIGHBOURS SAY THE ACTOR’S ARRIVAL IS CAUSING CHAOS AND IS A NIGHTMARE

Trump’s cabinet meet turns into an adulation and loyalty show AFP

Talks Of Prez Firing Mueller Doing Rounds Chidanand.Rajghatta @timesgroup.com

Washington: Trump supporters are mounting a campaign to have the US President fire special prosecutor Robert Mueller, who is tasked with investigating Russian subversion of the 2016 elections, amid expressions of adulation and sycophancy by his cabinet colleagues that has drawn derisive comparison to what happens in dictatorships and totalitarian regimes. In a bizarre, televised cabinet meeting on Monday that forced even non-partisan news agencies such as Reuters and AP to drop their impersonal tone, Trump called on his cabinet members to boost his administration, after claiming that “Never has there been a president, with few exceptions

Donald Trump attends the cabinet meeting in the White House

… who has passed more legislation, done more things.” Trump hailed his plan for the “single biggest tax cut in American history,” even though he has not presented one to Congress, and claimed “no one would have believed” his election could have created so many new jobs over the past seven months (1.1 million), even though more jobs (1.3 million) were created in the previous seven months. He then called on his cabinet colleagues to have their

say in the presence of reporters, forgoing the usual routine of the press being escorted out after preliminary on camera remarks. What followed was a loyalty and adulation show worthy of North Korea that tested the detachment of even news agencies. Such over-the-top show of fawning is quite alien to American politics. “They came to praise Trump, not focus on the controversies engulfing him,” Reuters reported. “One by one, Trump’s Cabinet

members assembled around the table spoke effusively about the president as he sat beaming, soaking it all in.” The hallelujas were led by Mike Pence, who said “it is the greatest privilege of my life to serve as vice president,” and it was topped by chief of staff Reince Priebus, who thanked the president “for the opportunity and blessing you’ve given us to serve your agenda and the American people.” In a spoof video, New York Senator Chuck Schumer parodied the cabinet meeting, having his staff flatter him and his hair. The kissing up to the president was accompanied by efforts by some Trump supporters to nix the FBI probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election. It all began with Christopher Ruddy, the chief executive of the conservative Newsmax Media and Trump’s friend, suggesting after a visit to the White House that Trump might fire Mueller. “I think he is considering perhaps terminating the special counsel,” Ruddy said on PBS Newshour. “I personally

think it would be a significant mistake, even though I don’t think there is a justification (for a special counsel).” White House spokesman Sean Spicer did not outright discount the notion but he noted Ruddy was not a spokesman for Trump and he had not met the president. “Chris Ruddy speaks for himself,” Spicer said. But hours later, former House Speaker and Trump surrogate Newt Gingrich said those who believed the investigation was going to be “neutral” and “professional” were “delusional,” and called special counsels “very dangerous.” A top justice department official also said there was no “special plan” to fire Mueller. “Senator, I’m not going to follow any order unless I believe those are lawful and appropriate orders,” deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein said at a Senate hearing on Tuesday. “Special counsel Mueller may be fired only for good cause and I am required to put that cause in writing. If there were good cause, I would consider it.”

‘Covfefe Act’ would record prez Travel ban: US court tweets as official statements says Trump exceeded Washington: From the incomprehensible “covfefe” to a post labeling fired FBI director James Comey a “leaker”, President Donald Trump’s tweets would be preserved as presidential records if a Democratic lawmaker’s proposed Covefefe Act becomes law. Representative Mike Quigley introduced on Monday the “Communications Over Various Feeds Electronically For Engagement” Act that would amend the Presidential Records Act and require the National Archives to store presidential tweets . “If the president is going to take to social media to make sudden public policy proclamations, we must ensure that these statements are documented and preserved, ” Quigley, a member of the intelligence committee, said. “The president must be held accountable for every post.” The law will bar the prolifically tweeting president from deleting his posts. White House spokesman Sean Spicer said last week that Trump’s tweets “are considered official statements.” Trump famously tweeted on May 31, “Despite the constant negative press covfefe.” It spurred a wave of speculation. REUTERS

WORLD DIGEST

B’desh diplomat indicted in US for exploiting maid

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d Shaheldul Islam, 45, the deputy consul general of Bangladesh in New York has been indicted on charges of forcing his domestic help to work long hours without pay, with prosecutors saying he tried to cover up his actions after an Indian diplomat faced visa fraud charges and was accused of exploiting her maid in 2013. According to the indictment, Md Amin was brought to Queens around 2012 to work as household help. Soon after Amin’s arrival, Islam took his passport and required the man to work 18 hours a day. If convicted, Islam faces 15 years in prison.

EU opens case against 3 nations over migration: The European Commission launched a legal case on Tuesday against Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic for refusing to take in asylum seekers, ratcheting up a bitter feud within the 28-nation bloc about how to deal with migration.

Indian woman stabbed to death in Kuwait: An Indian woman was beaten and stabbed to death in Kuwait and her body was recovered from a flat, according to a media report. The woman was found dead in a flat in Khaitan area and her husband was nowhere to be found.

TWEET LESS, VOTERS TELL TRUMP How do you think Trump uses Twitter... TOO MUCH

4% NOT ENOUGH 15% ABOUT THE RIGHT AMOUNT 12% DON’T KNOW/NO OPINION Do you think Trump’s use of Twitter is...

59%

A BAD THING

23%

A GOOD THING

What’s the impact of his tweets on... The News The Trump National Media Presidency Security

US Standing In The World

57%

53%

51% HURTS

13

HURTS

20

DEFIANT TRUMP TWEETS

44% HURTS

HURTS

15

29 HELPS

NIL

DK/NO

The FAKE MSM is working so hard trying to get me not to use Social Media. They hate that I can get the honest and unfiltered message out

Egypt may ban foreign names for babies n Egyptian parliamentary committee will meet on Tuesday to debate a law that would ban parents from using “western names.” Under the law, parents would face a fine of up to $270 or a jail sentence of up to six months. Egyptian MP Bedier Abdel Aziz will propose the law in parliament complaints and suggestions committee and claim names such as Lara, Mark and Sam are difficult to pronounce for Arabic speakers. “Using such Western names and abandoning Arabic ones will lead to an undesired and radical change in our society,” he said. THE INDEPENDENT

A

can support any and all exercise of executive power.” Trump said the ruling caWashington: A second federal appeals court has ruled aga- me at a “dangerous time”, mainst President Trump’s revised intaining that the curbs would travel ban, delivering on Mon- keep the country safe. “Well, as day the latest blow to the admi- predicted, the 9th Circuit did it nistration’s efforts to limit mo- again — Ruled against the vement from several predomi- TRAVEL BAN at such a dangerous time in the history of our nantly Muslim countries. The administration has al- country. SC.” The ruling affirmed most of ready sought a Supreme Court review of a similar decision is- a March decision from Judge Derrick Watson, of the district sued last month by Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. court in Hawaii. But the appeals court narroMonday’s decision came from SECOND LEGAL BLOW wed the injunction issued by the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, San Watson. The appeals court said Francisco, that rested its con- Watson had erred in barring clusions on statutory grounds. the administration from conIt said Trump had exceeded the ducting internal reviews of its authority Congress granted vetting procedures while the him in making national securi- case moved forward. That may ty judgments in the realm of turn out to be important as the immigration without adequa- Supreme Court considers how to address the two cases. te justification. The key part of the order “The order does not offer a sufficient justification to su- suspended travel from six Musspend the entry of more than lim countries for 90 days to give 180 million people on the basis the administration time to reof nationality,” the Ninth Cir- view its vetting rules. If that recuit’s opinion said. “National view can be completed, the jussecurity is not a ‘talismanic in- tices may decide the case will cantation’ that, once invoked, soon be moot. NYT NEWS SERVICE Adam Liptak

A recent poll conducted by the Politico/Morning consult survey has found that 69% of voters think US President Donald Trump should tweet less

69%

authority on security

Colombia recognises first 3-man marriage Bogota: Three gay men have gained legal recognition as the first “polyamorous family” in Colombia, where samesex marriages were legalised last year. “We wanted to validate our household... and our rights, because we had no solid legal basis establishing us as a family,” said one of the men, actor Victor Hugo Prada, in a video on Monday. He said he and his two partners, sports instructor John Rodriguez and journalist Manuel Jose Bermudez, signed legal papers with a solicitor in Medellin, establishing them as a family unit with inheritance rights.

“This establishes us as a family, a polyamorous family. It is the first time in Colombia.” Lawyer and gay rights activist German Rincon Perfetti said there were many threeperson unions in Colombia but this was the first one to be

FAMILY RIGHTS legally recognised. “It is a recognition that other types of family exist.” A ruling by the constitutional court in April 2016 made Colombia the fourth South American country to definitively legalise same-sex marriage, after Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay. AFP

Don’t call students ‘genius’, it’s not gender-neutral: Cambridge Reuters

Rachael Pells

ambridge University examiners have been warned against using words such as “flair”, “brilliance” and “genius” when assessing students’ work because they were associated with men, an academic said. Lucy Delap, a lecturer in British History at the institute, said History tutors were discouraged from using the terms because they “carry assumptions of gender inequality”. “Some of those words, in particular ‘genius’, have a very long intellectual history

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SEXISM DEBATE

where it has long been associated with qualities assumed to be male.” Delap said one of the reasons why men get more first class degrees at Oxford and Cambridge than women was because female students

struggle with the “male dominated environment”. She pointed towards reading lists dominated by male authors and the lack of diversity seen in college portrait collections as an example. In order to help Cambridge university progress in gender equality, Delap said her department wanted to use language that was more “transparent”. “We’re rewriting our first two years of our History degree to create a wider set of paper choices,” she explained, “to make the assessment criteria clearer.” THE INDEPENDENT

Panama severs ties with Taiwan for China Panama City/Beijing: Panama has established diplomatic ties with China and broken with Taiwan in a major victory for Beijing, as it lures away the dwindling number of countries that have ties with the self-ruled island. Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela said on Monday that the country was upgrading its commercial ties with China and establishing full diplomatic links with the second most important customer of its key shipping canal. “This is the correct path for our country,” Varela said. Taiwan’s minister of foreign affairs David Lee said it was sorry and angry over Panama’s decision, and it would not compete with China in what it described as a “diplomatic money game”. wChina is deeply suspicious of Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, who it thinks wants to push for the island’s formal independence, although she says she wants to maintain peace with Beijing. Panama is the second country to switch its recognition to Beijing since Tsai took office last year, following a similar move by Sao Tome and Principe, trimming to 20 the number of countries that formally recognise Taiwan. Panama said it recognised there was only one China, with Taiwan belonging to the Asian giant, and that it was severing ties with Taipei. REUTERS

Indian-origin MP named communities minister in UK London: Indian-origin MP Alok Sharma was appointed minister of state in the department for communities and local government in the UK government on Tuesday. The Conservative party MP had held on to his Reading West seat by 2,876 votes in the June 8 general election. “I am absolutely delighted to be elected as MP for a third time and I will do my very best for the people of Reading West,” Sharma, 49, said. His win was precarious as he was contesting a marginal seat, which are constituencies with a very slim majority for the sitting MP, leaving it up for grabs for any political party. “Over the past seven years, the big issues I have tackled include securing more spaces at schools, getting more business investment and securing more standard class seats on trains from Reading into Paddington,” Sharma said. Sharma will serve as a junior minister under Pakistani-origin Sajid Javid, who was re-appointed secretary of state for communities and local government last week. In the previous Theresa May-led Cabinet last year, Sharma had been parliamentary undersecretary for Asia and the Pacific in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and was effectively the FCO minister in charge of India. His latest appointment marks a step up in the UK ministerial ranks. PTI

Qatari bizman to airlift 4,000 cows to beat blockade C

all it the biggest bovine tari flag have been placed next airlift in history. The to dairy products in stores. “It’s a message of defianshowdown between Qatar and its neighbours has dis- ce, that we don’t need others,” rupted trade, split families said Umm Issa, 40, a governand threatened to alter geopo- ment employee. “Our governlitical alliances. It has also ment has made sure we have prompted one Qatari busi- no shortages. We have no fear. nessman to fly 4,000 cows to No one will die of hunger.” Most of the fresh milk and the Gulf desert to fill the void left by a collapse in the supply dairy products for Doha’s more than 1 million population of fresh milk. It will take as many as 60 come from Saudi Arabia. Reuters flights for Qatar Airways to deliver the 590kg beasts that Moutaz Al Khayyat, chairman of Power International Holding, bought in Australia and the US. “This is the ti- FIGHTING ISOLATION: Qatar Airways me to work for Qa- called on the UN’s aviation body to declare the Gulf boycott against the carrier ‘illegal’ tar,” he said. Led by Saudi and a violation of a 1944 convention on Arabia, Qatar has international air transport been accused of supporting Islamic militants, That milk is getting scarce for charges the sheikhdom has a country that spends $500 denied. The isolation that million a week to prepare stastarted on June 5 has forced diums and a metro before the the world’s richest country by Fifa World Cup in 2022. Al Khayyat has been excapita to open new trade routes to import food, building panding the company’s agrimaterials and equipment for cultural business at a farm its natural gas industry. The 50km north of Doha. On a sicentral bank said domestic te covering the equivalent of and international transac- almost 70 soccer fields, there tions were running normally. were already plans to import Turkish dairy goods have the cows by sea. Then Qatar been flown in, and Iranian was ostracised. Al Khayyat fruit and vegetables are on the said the company will take a way. There’s also a campaign hit on the shipping cost, to buy home-grown produce. which increased five times to Signs with colours of the Qa- $8 million. BLOOMBERG

Rains trigger landslides in Bangladesh, 105 dead Dhaka: A series of landslides triggered by heavy monsoon rains have killed 105 people, including several army officers, in Bangladesh. The worst affected Rangamati hill district, located close to the Indian border, alone has witnessed 76 deaths, including four military personnel, who were on duty to remove the rubble to clear a major highway. Media reports said that the toll could rise further as many people remained buried under tonnes of rubble. Landslides killed 23 people in Rangunia and Chandanaish upazilas of Chittagong. In Bandarban, six people were killed and five others injured. “Most of the casualties

AP

Rescuers search for survivors after a landslide in Bandarban

were caused by landslides, but some died of electrocution, drowning and collapse of walls,” said an official. Many of the victims belong to the ethnic minority or tribal groups in Rangamati and Bandarban who live in makeshift structures along the hills. The officials said

many people were asleep when the landslides hit, causing more casualties, especially among children. “The rescue campaign is underway. We can get a clearer picture of the casualties later,” a spokesman of the disaster management ministry said. PTI

AROUND THE WORLD Reuters

FRENCH SPIDERMAN SCALES 29-STOREY BUILDING IN 20 MINUTES: French urban climber Alain Robert has scaled a 29-storey hotel in Barcelona with his bare hands and in just 20 minutes. Footage released on Tuesday showed 54-year-old Robert, who is known as the ‘French Spiderman,’ climbing the 374ft-high Melia Barcelona Sky hotel without a safety harness

Get ride-hailing apps, judge tells drunk drivers

A

n Ohio judge known for handing down unusual sentences has asked convicted drunken drivers to download ride-hailing apps on their phones as part of their punishment. Municipal Court Judge Michael Cicconetti also asked the defendants to enter a credit card number on the Uber and Lyft apps as a condition of probation. Cicconetti reasoned that it was common sense to take advantage of the technology, which is safer than driving drunk and a cheaper alternative to thousands of dollars spent after a drunk driving arrest.

In US, man jailed after dispute over dog poop:

Woman calls 911 over delay in nuggets’ delivery:

Police in Florida said an argument between two men over dog poop left one in jail and another with a knife wound. Ricardo Garcia Sanchez was arrested and charged with aggravated battery. Sanchez, a property maintenance worker at an apartment complex, fought with a resident who he believed allowed his dog to defecate without cleaning up afterward.

Police in Texas said a woman called 911 when a restaurant took too long in delivering her chicken nuggets. Waco police said the woman wanted the nuggets given to her for free because of the delay. The woman was given her money back and told to leave, without her nuggets.

‘Kleptomania student’ caught shoplifting: A Wyoming college student who was caught shoplifting told officers she was working on a term paper on kleptomania. Lydia Marie Cormaney was arrested on June 5 after trying to leave Walmart with nearly $1,900 worth of merchandise.

Hospital gives wrong baby to couple, fined $100,000: An Austrian court has ordered a hospital to pay $100,000 for handing a baby to the wrong parents two decades ago. Doris Gruenwald, 26, discovered the error after a blood test revealed that she was not the biological child of Evelin and Josef Gruenwald. The Gruenwalds’ natural child has not been found.

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AN EPIPHANY A thought for today Pardon him, he is a barbarian, and thinks that the customs of his tribe and island are the laws of nature

Mamata has blundered in trying to impose Bengali on Darjeeling Hills

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ith protests and bandhs called by the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha the Darjeeling Hills are tense, and the Bengal government has a serious crisis on its hands. Violence has already broken out against government establishments – such as the torching of the Bijanbari block development office – forcing thousands of tourists to flee the picturesque holiday destination. The GJM stir started over the state government’s declaration last month to make Bengali compulsory in all schools, which has certainly backfired for chief minister Mamata Banerjee. It has breathed life into her political opponents and allowed them to accuse Kolkata of linguistic and cultural chauvinism. That said, violence cannot be justified under any circumstances and those protesting in the Darjeeling Hills must do so peacefully. In fact, resorting to violence will only undermine the protesters’ valid cause: making Bengali compulsory in all schools in the state goes against the spirit of plurality on which Indian democracy rests. Unfortunately this isn’t the first time that a Bengal government has tried to force-feed the Bengali language. In 1984, the erstwhile Left Front regime had abolished English in the primary sections of state-run schools to give primacy to Bengali. That decision ended up negatively affecting the job prospects of a whole generation of Bengalis. It’s welcome that Mamata has now reversed her position and clarified that Darjeeling schools will be exempt from the compulsory Bengali policy. Just as the NDA-led government at the Centre has been criticised for trying to impose Hindi on non-Hindi speaking states, the latter can’t justify imposing regional languages within their own jurisdictions. If the Centre is erring with moves that may see Hindi being made a compulsory subject in CBSE schools across the country, so is the Kerala government with its recent ordinance that makes Malayalam mandatory in all schools in that state. In an increasingly globalised world languages have become closely linked with economic opportunities where parochial policies do more harm than good. India’s rich and diverse linguistic traditions must not be sacrificed at the altar of political expediency. Governments promoting a particular language at the cost of other languages is a recipe for disaster. The country has already seen its fair share of violence on this account. A better approach would be to allow schools and parents to decide what languages should be taught and promoted.

South Asia Cup? ICC Champions Trophy sees the dominance of subcontinental teams and audiences

T

he ICC Champions Trophy semifinal stage is going to be a subcontinental affair with India, Bangladesh and Pakistan vying for top honours along with hosts England. It was there that the game originated, but these days all and sundry like to do an Ashis Nandy facelifting of the facts, that cricket is a South Asian game accidentally discovered by the English. Even from Cardiff to Edgbaston it’s been people of South Asian origins who have been filling the stands. The tournament of course has delivered lots of drama and surprises, with the two teams that played the 2015 ODI World Cup final (Australia and New Zealand) being the first to exit and the top-ranked ODI team (South Africa) being beaten by the lowestranked (Pakistan). Now the prospect of an Indo-Pak final has fans salivating. But really the task of predicting a winner or even the finalists remains tougher than ever due to volatile performances. Pakistani bowling looked ineffective against India but decimated South Africa. The Indian side that crushed Pakistan convincingly looked ordinary while being made to eat humble pie by Sri Lanka. Bangladesh’s spirited batting performance against New Zealand gave them a semifinal berth and they look all fired up to avenge their 2015 World Cup quarterfinal loss against the fancied Indians at Edgbaston tomorrow. It is England however which has impressed everyone by winning all their three pool matches comfortably. A diverse and multicultural England has also provided a great setting for the tournament. The good-natured joke goes that if the Brits hadn’t invaded us, the semifinal play with Indians, Pakistanis and Bangladeshis wouldn’t have happened. Champions Trophy is now truly headed for a reunion of the batch of 1947.

Look beneath government hype, and signs of deep economic distress are evident Kapil Sibal

Three years of drought, that is the state of the nation. The monsoon of hope is a long way away. Yet the dream has not soured; a reflection perhaps on the nature of our Republic. This government is in denial. It believes that black economy has been given a fatal blow. At 7.1% India continues to be the fastest growing economy in the world. Spurt in public investment has created jobs. FDI flows are evidence of investors’ confidence in the growth story of India. Reforms have led to ease of doing business. Consensus on GST that eluded the previous government has been reached. This historic legislation will now be implemented from July 1. The Sensex has reached record levels. All this because Modi, as predicted by Nostradamus, will transform India. Let us critically examine each of these claims. On November 8, when the prime minister announced demonetisation of all 500 and 1,000 rupee notes freezing 86% of India’s economy, it was indeed a surgical strike at unaccounted cash in the economy. If this ill-thought decision was an attempt at eradicating unaccounted wealth then it failed miserably. Most cash is either invested in real estate, gold or is stashed abroad. Undisclosed cash in circulation represented only around 5% of unaccounted wealth. Now that real estate is outside the GST net, cash will continue to be a factor in real estate transactions. What is a larming is that unaccounted cash entered the banking system and is slowly being withdrawn and reconverted into undisclosed cash. Demonetisation was a godsend for dalals who earned a fat commission for depositing such cash in banks and then ensuring their withdrawal. Black money is back albeit at a slow pace. Its full flow will take time. The problem of black money remains. It’s the poor however who suffered. Claims that demonetisation will eliminate both fake

notes and deal a fatal blow to terrorism have turned out to be hollow. The claim of 7.1% growth is also suspect. The latest Q4 GDP results show a growth of 6.1%. This also reflects the adverse impact of demonetisation on the economy. Private investment, the engine of growth, has dried up. Rate of savings is below 30% of GDP, whereas during UPA regime it was over 35%. Exports were in constant decline for 19 consecutive months till June 2016 and have now plateaued. The IT sector has to reinvent itself to remain competitive. Recent layoffs by four major IT companies are evidence of its health. Bank NPAs at 11% of gross advances are a roadblock to lending. Low credit off-take, in the absence of demand, is worrisome. There are hardly any jobs for the 12 million who enter the workforce annually. Underemployment is rampant. Jobs created in 2015 and 2016 stood at a dismal 1.35 lakh and 2.31 lakh, respectively. Yes, public sector investment has created some jobs but unless private

Private investment, the engine of growth, has dried up. Rate of savings is below 30% of GDP, whereas during UPA regime it was over 35% sector investment is robust, the economy’s capacity to absorb the workforce will be suboptimal. FDI flows mainly in IT, electronics and defence – niche sectors of the economy – don’t cater to jobs in either agriculture, small and medium scale sector, or for that matter in manufacturing. The National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) set up in December 2015 to catalyse core sector growth has so far not made a single investment in any project. So much for the confidence of foreign investors in our economy. Modi believes in seducing foreign investors in digitising the economy, little realising that most of India earns less than Rs 10,000 a month and seldom accesses digital platforms for

bank transactions. Record levels of Sensex, we all know, do not reflect the true state of the economy. With real estate giving no returns and interest rates down, the only option for investors is in equities. This is risky because once the bubble bursts investors will be badly hurt. As for ease of doing business, we are ranked 130 out of 190 countries evaluated by the World Bank. Is that the transformation Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised in 2014? Unless the economy is rid of bureaucratic juggernauts and antiquated rules and regulations, the promised transformation will elude us. In a regime which terrorises business and entrepreneurs, where the taxman is allowed to become an extortionist, where investigation agencies are hand in glove with government, business cannot hope to flourish. Business is already moving out of India. Big business now prefers to make investments abroad. This is the reality. Ease of doing business is a chimera. Reforms have been slow and incremental. Radical reforms were promised only to be forgotten. GST is a ghost of what was originally conceived. Any consensus which compromises the core of the reform is not a cause for celebration. To exclude electricity and real estate from GST was a mistake. We were sold the dream ‘One Nation One Tax’ which is now ‘One Nation Eight Taxes’. Multiple rates will make for bureaucratic squabbles. Multiple registrations will break the back of the small and medium sector. The trader is already complaining at the haste with which the finance minister is moving. They want GST implementation postponed. Some states also hold the same view. GST could have been a historic legislation. Its shortsighted compromises have taken away its sheen. The economy is in distress. Maybe, the cheerleaders of Modi do not quite know what Nostradamus meant. The writer is a senior Congress leader and former Union minister

‘More inclusive and softer Brexit would be smoother ... need a cross-party negotiating team to represent UK’ Preet Kaur Gill was elected as Britain’s first-ever female Sikh MP in the recent UK general elections, winning the Birmingham Edgbaston constituency in the House of Commons on a Labour Party ticket. Gill spoke to Rohit E David on UK Prime Minister Theresa May’s failed gamble of calling a snap election, Labour’s substantial gains and the impact of British political uncertainty on Brexit and negotiations with the European Union: ■ What explains the surprise election results in UK and the reverses for Prime Minister Theresa May wherein her party lost 13 seats and its majority in parliament? The snap election was called by May for her personal and Conservative Party interests and not in the public interest. The objective was to solidify her position and mandate, taking advantage of her positive polling and public opinion in April. However, what the election and the campaign showed was a stark difference between the two main parties – Labour and Tories – in values and connections with the general public. The positive campaign run by Labour focussing on the many and not the few resonated with the electorate. This was highlighted by the massive gains made by Labour in both winning new seats as well as reducing the Tory majority.

■ What does the hung parliament verdict in UK indicate just days before Brexit negotiations are to begin? The Conservatives failed spectacularly in this election. Their stated objective was to build a clear strong majority to empower May to dictate policy and Brexit on her personal terms ahead of the public need. The actual result has left the Tories short of a majority. It is unfortunate that despite all the support and momentum Labour fell short of an overall majority. This has allowed the Conservatives to now try and form a minority government through an alliance, with the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) adding their 10 seats to the 318 won by the Conservatives. ■ What does the UK election result mean for Brexit? This whole election was called to strengthen May’s position for a hard Brexit with Europe. She openly said no deal was better than a bad deal, indicating she was prepared to leave the EU without a deal in place. This would have

been catastrophic for UK. The people have spoken and shown that they do not have confidence in the Tories. Brexit should now be taken up by a cross-party negotiating team to represent and reflect the will of the people of UK for the best deal for all. ■ Doesn’t this jeopardise prospects for hard Brexit and bring in much more uncertainty? This depends on the approach of the Conservatives going forward. They will clearly not be in a position to do what they wish as they will face a tough challenge in the House of Commons on each decision and bill that is not in the wider public interest. People in my constituency have strong views on this and people and the economy should be at the centre of negotiations. If the government changed their approach to a more inclusive and softer Brexit, utilising views and ideas and policies put forward by Labour and the other parties then this would ensure a smoother Brexit. ■ Where did the

dilbert

Conservatives lose support? The Tories basically lost their way with their unprecedented U-turn on their election manifesto just five days after publishing it. This highlighted the weakness and ill thought out policies of the Tories, openly challenging their slogan of strength and stability. This was further questioned when May failed to attend open televised debates with other party leaders. Overall, the Tories underestimated Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and his ability to connect and resonate directly with the electorate, especially the young voters in a way we have not seen before in British politics. ■ Do you feel that the result may impact India-UK ties? I don’t see this result specifically affecting India-UK ties. However, it will make it more difficult for the Tories to make key decisions for the future of UK without proper parliamentary discussion. ■ What are some of the challenges you foresee in front of you while representing the Indian community? The most pressing issue for the Indian community is of race hate crime. Given global terror incidents, the response by countries like US to demonise entire communities has caused real concern. We have seen increased threats and loss of life in the Sikh community due to mistaken identity and ignorance.

Sacredspace Serious Theft I always saw pollution as theft, and I always thought, ‘Why should somebody be able to pollute the air, which belongs to all of us, or destroy a river or a waterway, which is supposed to belong to the whole community?’

Bahu ho to aisi Rabri Devi wants daughters-in-law straight out of Ekta Kapoor serials Shinie Antony

Rabri Devi has spoken what’s on most mom-in-law minds. She wants a bahu straight out of Ekta Kapoor’s serials. You know, the one who chops onions in a kanjeevaram sari with sindoor trickling down her head. The former chief minister of Bihar is looking for two rishtas, a bride each for her sonny boys, as Tej Pratap Yadav and Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, both in their late twenties, have come of age. Ministers in the Bihar government, they look forward to taking dabbas with garam garam rotis in them. One apple of her eye, she says, is very religious; the other apple of her other eye not so religious. The tricky thing will be to match their future brides accordingly. The pooja-path boy should get the pooja-path girl. Plus, as he is given to dressing up as lord Krishna, she must have a Radha costume on the go. Girls who go to cinema halls and shopping malls need not apply. They can continue to shop and munch popcorn, undisturbed. It is the other type of girls – those who shop online and watch pirated films at home – that we need here. You know, the girl next door. Who can look after the house, preferably the Yadav household and not some random neighbour’s; who will respect elders, mainly Mr and Mrs Yadav, and not the cook or driver, however elderly; who can manage outside work, without being sidetracked by shop windows and movie posters. In short, just like mommy-in-law. Her sons, whose mall plans were stalled for their eco-unfriendly tendencies, better hope these malls never get made, so no wife of theirs is tempted to accompany them to work and be mistaken for shoppers. That would upset mummy ji, who only asks they be well-cultured. Meanwhile, her husband Lalu Prasad tweeted that the two dream bahus can, in addition to being caring and loving, be working women or housewives. Perhaps describing someone he knows well, he particularly stressed he doesn’t want a veiled, home-bound, dependent woman on the premises. Sanskari, yes, he said in Alok Nath’s voice, but his own accent. He also mentioned his continuing youth. ‘Abhi toh main jawaan hoon,’ he said on the occasion of his seventieth birthday, a comment she ignored like all good wives should. But candidates who apply for this post must be able to place cake in hubby’s mouth without looking at hubby at all, as demonstrated by Rabri Devi herself in photos from that day.

THE TIMES OF INDIA, AHMEDABAD WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2017

Modinomics Rings Hollow

GEORGE BERNARD SHAW, Caesar and Cleopatra

Douse Language Fires

OF IDEAS

Robert Kennedy, Jr.

No Hope For Religion In A Sleepless World Talk: Osho

riumph over death’ does not mean there is something like death to conquer. It simply means you will come to know that there is no death. To know that death is not, is to conquer it. As soon as one knows there is no death, our ongoing and losing battle with death ceases. In sleep we reach the same place as we do in meditation. But in sleep, we are unconscious, while in meditation, we are fully conscious. If someone were to become fully aware, even in his sleep, he would have the same experience as in meditation. For example, if you were under anaesthesia, and in your unconscious state, you are taken on a stretcher to a garden where flowers are in full bloom, where fragrance is in the air, the sun is shining and birds are singing, you would be completely unaware of all this.

‘T

Once you are out of the anaesthesia, if we asked you how you liked the garden, you would not be able to tell us anything. Then, if you were to go to the same garden when fully conscious, you would experience everything present there when you had been brought in before. In both cases, although you were brought to the same place, you were unaware of the beautiful surroundings in the first instance, while in the second instance you would be fully aware of the flowers, fragrance, song of the birds, the rising sun. So although you will undoubtedly reach as far in an unconscious state as you will reach in a conscious state, to reach some place in an unconscious state is as good as not reaching there at all. In sleep, we reach the same paradise

we reach in meditation, but we are unaware of it. Each night we travel to this paradise, and then we come back – unaware. Although the fresh breeze and lovely fragrance touch us, and the birdsong rings in our ears, we are never aware of it. And yet, in spite of returning from this paradise totally unaware of it, one might say, ‘I feel very good this morning. I feel very peaceful. I slept well last night.’ What do you feel so good about? Having slept well, what good happened? It cannot be only because you slept – surely you must have been somewhere; something must have happened to you. But in the morning you have no knowledge of it, except for a vague idea of feeling good. The worst punishment ever devised

the

speaking tree

on earth is not letting a person sleep. In the past, meditation was as easy for those who were close to nature as sleep is for those who live close to nature. First, meditation disappeared; now sleep is on its way out. Those things are first lost which are conscious; after that, those things are lost which are unconscious. With the disappearance of meditation the world has almost become irreligious, and when sleep disappears the world will become totally irreligious. There is no hope for religion in a sleepless world. You will not believe how closely, how deeply, we are connected to sleep. How a person will live his life depends totally on how he sleeps. (Abridged from ‘And Now And Here’, Osho Times International, courtesy Osho International Foundation, www.osho.com) Post your comments at speakingtree.in

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TIMES BUSINESS THE TIMES OF INDIA, AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2017

YAHOO CEO MARISSA MEYER QUITS AS VERIZON CLOSES $4.5BN ACQUISITION OF INTERNET CO

Infy warns of risks from shareholder activism Analysts See SEC Filing As Reference To Promoters Who’ve Publicly Criticised Co’s Corporate Governance Standards TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bengaluru: Infosys has warned that actions by activist shareholders can impact its ability to execute its “strategic priorities” and disrupt its operations. The warning, the first such by the company, was interpreted by analysts as a reference to Infosys’ promoters who have publicly criticised the company’s corporate governance standards over the past year. The company, some analysts noted, is worried that the promoters will continue to play an activist role, notwithstanding efforts to resolve issues internally. Infosys, however, denied that it was referring to any individuals in particular, and sources in the company suggested that it is a reference to the likes of hedge fund Elliott Management, which has been playing an activist role in Cognizant. In a filing to the US stock market regulator SEC on its 2016-17 performance, India’s second largest software services exporter by revenue has classified activist shareholders among its many risk factors that can negatively affect its business and its stock price. “Responding to actions by activist shareholders can divert the attention of our board of directors, management

PERFORMANCE METRICS@INFOSYS Infosys for the first time disclosed the parameters on which its top executives receive their performance bonus (variable pay, stock incentives) EXECUTIVE

Rajesh K Murthy, President

R&M from consulting business and respective industry segments

Krishnamurthy Shankar, Group HR head

Talent effectiveness (people retention, ESAT, gender diversity), leadership development

*KPIs comprise both company goals and individual KPI goals **R&M — Revenue and margin

and our employees and disrupt our operations. Such activities could interfere with our ability to execute our strategic plan. This may also require us to incur significant legal fees and public relations costs. The perceived uncertainties as to our future direction could affect client and investor sentiment, resulting in volatility in the price of our se-

CSO to change GDP base year to FY18 from FY12

IDBI to establish vertical for NPA recovery: As part of their turnaround strategy, IDBI Bank has announced formation of a separate vertical having around 100 dedicated staff to recover their mounting non performing assets (NPAs), which now stand at around Rs 45,500 crore. The bank management has formed a ‘credit monitoring group’ to find out potential NPAs based on early warning signals.

SBI Card to get new JV partner by Sept-end: The country’s largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) on Tuesday said it expects to get on board a new partner for its card business in the next three months. US-based General Electric (GE) has already announced its decision to exit SBI Card as part of its global restructuring exercise.

Sebi allows options trading in commodity futures: Market regulator Sebi has allowed options trading in commodities to deepen the market but will permit each exchange to launch options on futures of only one commodity initially and asked bourses to follow robust risk management measures.

curities,” the company said. When TOI asked Infosys if it was alluding to its promoters, the company said in a statement: “Our industry is undergoing significant transformation. Over the past year, there have been specific instances of companies in our industry seeing active participation and discussion with shareholders and stakeholders. We would like to

Zydus Cadila market-cap jumps `7.9k cr in 2 weeks

EXECUTIVE DIGEST

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) under the statistics ministry is set to change the base year of national accounts to 2017-18 from 2011-12 after completion of the household consumer expenditure survey and labour force data by the end of 2018, statistics minister D V Sadananda Gowda said on Tuesday.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS (KPI)

Revenue, operating margin % and revenue Dr Vishal Sikka, CEO per employee Cost optimization and succession planning UB Pravin Rao, COO Return on capital employed, capital MD Ranganath, CFO allocation policy, M&A plan Delivery cost optimization, implementation Ravi Kumar S, Dy COO of US talent model Sales effectiveness, growth of top 50 Mohit Joshi, President accounts, R&M** for respective industry segments R&M from new software and respective Sandeep Dadlani, industry segments President

categorically state that ‘activist shareholders’ called out as a risk in our Form 20F does not refer to any particular group of investors or individuals.” Shriram Subramanian, MD of corporate governance research firm InGovern Research Services, said the reference to founders as activist shareholders cannot be ruled out. “The board will have to take inputs from any activist shareholder, including founders, and examine the merits of it and deal with it appropriately. Infosys is also vulnerable to activism like what happened to Cognizant with Elliott,” he said. Infosys has been dogged over the past one year with concerns and criticisms from its founders, most notably N R Narayana Murthy, who repeatedly expressed his displeasure over chief executive Vishal Sikka and chief operating officer U B Pravin Rao’s compensation, the severance package to former CFO Rajiv Bansal, and slippage in governance standards of the board. On the Bansal issue, the board was compelled to admit that there was an element of subjectivity, and promised it would take measures to eliminate such subjectivity. For the full report, log on to www.timesofindia.com

Kalpesh.Damor @timesgroup.com

Ahmedabad: Cadila Healthcare Limited’s shares seem to be on roll with the Ahmedabad-based pharmaceutical major receiving backto-back US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) approvals for its drugs. The company, popularly known as Zydus Cadila, has seen its market capitalisation surge by Rs 7,908.41 crore since the beginning of the month. Although the company’s share price on BSE eased marginally on Tuesday, the stock has rallied by 16.62% to Rs 541.80 a share as on June13 from Rs 464.55 on May 31, 2017. As a result, the m-cap of the company has risen to Rs 55,466.37 crore from Rs 47,557.96 crore du-

ON THE RISE Share price M-cap

May 31

June 13

464.55

541.80

47,557.96 55,466.37

Share price in Rs, market cap in Rs/cr

ring the period. The company over the last two weeks has received USFDA nod for as many as six drugs in various therapeutic segments. Apart from this, the company’s Moraiya plant near Ahmedabad received its first product approval post successful USFDA inspection of the facility. “Most of the gains of Zydus Cadila can be traced to its successful resolution of the compliance issues of its Moraiya plant. It was very critical as this plant accounted for 60% of the company’s

sales in the US. The company will now start getting approvals for products that were stuck due to regulatory issues at Moraiya,” said VK Sharma, head of business, PCG, HDFC Securities. “Almost 40% of the ANDA filings are from Moraiya Plant or approximately 105 products have been pending for approval from the plant. US accounts for 48% of the overall revenues. Some 35 to 40 products can get approval in FY18, which in turn could boost revenues and bottom line,” he added. Zydus’ m-cap has also crossed Rs 50,000 crore mark for the first time in June this year. The company toppled Lupin Ltd to become the second largest pharma company after Sun Pharmaceutical in terms of market capitalization.

Sebi queries Raymond on JK House property sale [email protected]

Mumbai: Markets regulator Sebi has sent a letter to fashion retailer Raymond and its board of directors, asking for clarifications about nondisclosure of an agreement under which the company had agreed to transfer a highvalue real estate property in south Mumbai to members of its promoter family at a throwaway price. Shareholders and proxy advisory firms alleged that the agreement, if executed, could lead to huge

losses to the company, but Raymond refuted the same. Although Raymond, members of its promoter family (Singhanias) and Pashmina Holdings, an invest-

NON-DISCLOSURE OF AGREEMENT ment company of the Singhania family, had entered into this agreement in 2007, it was kept under wraps for about 10 years and disclosed to shareholders only recently. On June 5, Raymond’s minority

shareholders rejected a company resolution to transfer the duplex flats to the signatories to the agreement. Under the 2007 agreement, Raymond CMD Gautam Singhania, Vijaypat (Gautam’s father), Akshaypat (Gautam’s cousin) and Veena Devi (Vijaypat’s brother’s wife) will get one flat each in the redeveloped 5,185-sq-ft J K House of at a price of Rs 9,200 per sq ft. Compared to this, the going market rate in that area of the city could be upwards of Rs 1.2 lakh per sq ft.

Uber CEO to take leave of absence

Travis Kalanick Does Not Disclose Return Date To Employees

U

ber Technologies CEO Travis Kalanick told staff he plans to take a leave of absence, without disclosing a return date. The company will strip him of some duties and appoint an independent chair to limit his influence after a slew of scandals, according to an advance copy of a report prepared for the board. At a staff meeting Tuesday, the company will convey the results of a probe conducted by Eric Holder, the former U.S. attorney general who Uber hired to look into allegations of harassment, discrimination and an aggressive culture. The 47 recommendations include creating a board

Michael said to blame board for ouster

U

ber Technologies’ newly ousted senior vice-president for business, Emil Michael, believes that a weak board of directors, a lax internal legal team, coupled with his tight friendship with co-founder Travis Kalanick, ultimately led to his downfall — not the scandals, two people close to Michael said. He places the blame on the directors, particularly investor Bill Gurley, for his removal, accusing them of not having the backbone to stand by him amid what he sees as largely mischaracterised and inconsequential controversies, the people said. BLOOMBERG

oversight committee, rewriting Uber’s cultural values, reducing alcohol use at work events, and prohibiting intimate relationships between employees and their bosses. Uber’s board met Sunday to review a detailed version of the report and voted unani-

mously to approve the recommendations. Afterward, the San Francisco-based company ousted Emil Michael, Uber’s head of business. Upon Kalanick’s return, the board will move to diminish his role by giving some of the CEO’s job responsibilities

to a chief operating officer -- a position Uber has been actively recruiting for but has yet to fill. This person would “act as a full partner with the CEO but focus on day-to-day operations, culture and institutions within Uber,” the report said. Uber lost or removed much of its management team in recent months as scandal after scandal emerged. The 14,000plus workforce lacks a clear No. 2 who could run things in Kalanick’s stead. Uber has started taking steps to fill out Kalanick’s bench. Last week, it hired Harvard Business School’s Frances Frei as senior vice president of leadership and strategy, and will add Nestle SA’s Wan Ling Martello as an independent director. BLOOMBERG

ACE BOND INVESTOR BILL GROSS WARNS ALL FINANCIAL MARKETS ‘INCREASINGLY AT RISK’

Nano man Wagh to head Tata Motors’ CV business Reeba.Zachariah @timesgroup.com

Mumbai: Girish Wagh, the man behind the Nano car and also the moneyspinner Ace truck, is now the head of Tata Motors’ commercial vehicles unit. The announcement comes a week after Ravindra Pisharody, executive director (commercial vehicles), resigned from the company. Wagh, a Tata Motors lifer, will also be a member of the automobile company’s executive committee. It is not clear whether Wagh will replace Pisharody on the board of Tata Motors. The 46-year-old’s rise at Tata Motors has been spectacular. A mechanical engineer from Maharashtra Institute of Technology and a post-graduate (manufacturing) from SP Jain Institute of Management & Research, Wagh joined Tata Motors in 1992 straight from the campus. He had worked on Indica, which marked Tata Motors’ foray into passenger vehicles in 1997. He subsequently was part of the launch of Tata Ace truck in 2005. But it was his involvement with Nano, Ratan Tata’s dream project that brought him to the spotlight. Tata Motors observers said that Wagh could be a potential candidate for the top leadership position. Before becoming the head of Tata Motors’ mainstay business — commercial vehicles — Wagh was leading the medium & heavy CVs. His appointment comes at a time when the company is seeing weak sales in its commercial vehicles segment. During the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017, sales of medium & heavy commercial vehicles fell 2.2% year-on-year while that of light commercial vehicles declined 6%. Besides, Tata Motors had to take a onetime hit of Rs 148 crore during the fourth quarter of 2016-17 on unsold stock of vehicles.

RBI identifies 12 a/cs for quick resolution Seeks Action Under Bankruptcy Law, Debtors Account For 25% Of Bad Loans TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India had identified 12 borrowers, which account for 25% of all bank bad loans, for immediate resolution under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC). The RBI will now ask banks to file for insolvency proceedings under the IBC in respect to the identified accounts which will be accorded priority by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). The top 25 accounts were identified by an RBI-constituted panel comprising independent board members. Although the central bank has not divulged the names of the borrowers, banking sources expect that it would include top defaulting companies such as Bhushan Steel, Bhushan Power, Essar and Jaypee group. According to filing by banks in their quarterly results, the total gross NPAs for the banking sector stood at Rs 7.11lakh crore as on December 2017. Of this, Rs 6.19 lakh crore bad loans lie with public sector banks. Banks

say that even if the NPAs were to be resolved during the current fiscal, they would be classified as standard loans only after a year. The RBI panel, called the internal advisory commitee (IAC), held its first meeting on June 12. “The IAC ag-

RECOVERING

for IBC reference all accounts with fund and nonfund based outstanding amount of over Rs 5,000 crore, with 60% or more classified as non-performing by banks as of March 31, 2016. In the case of other non-performing accounts which do

Top Defaulters For Banks

MONEY Banks’ gross NPAs as of Dec 2016

`7.11L cr Value of top 12 a/cs

`1.75L cr reed to focus on large stressed accounts at this stage, and accordingly took up for consideration the accounts which were classified partly or wholly as non-performing from among the top 500 exposures in the banking system,” the RBI said. The IAC recommended

Bhushan Power Bhushan Steel Videocon Ind Jaypee Grp Essar Alok Ind Lanco ABG Shipyard Punj Lloyd Electrosteel Holding Aban Holdings Monnet Ispat not qualify under the above criteria, the IAC recommended that banks should finalise a resolution plan within six months. In cases where a viable resolution plan is not agreed upon within six months, they will need to file for insolvency proceedings under the IBC.

Adani commissions 50mw solar power plant in UP TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad: Continuing its expansion in solar power generation space, Adani group on Tuesday announced commissioning of its 50mw solar power plant at Mahoba in Uttar Pradesh. The group has invested Rs 315 crore for the plant, set up under National Solar Mission Scheme.

INVESTS `315 CRORE

“With this plant, Adani group now has 838mw solar power generation capacity spread across Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh

and Punjab,” Adani group said in a statement. Apart from 40mw solar plant at Bitta in Gujarat, the group operates 100mw plant in Bhatinda in Punjab. Recently the group has unveiled a 648mw solar power plant at Ramanathapuram district in Tamil Nadu which is the world’s largest solar power plant at a single location.

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TIMES SPORT THE TIMES OF INDIA, AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2017

SAINA BATTLES PAST RATCHANOK IN THE OPENING ROUND OF INDONESIA OPEN | 21 If it’s Bangladesh, it must be Dharmasena!

O

ne of the questions put to Bangladesh coach Chandika Hathurusingha drew alarmed reactions from the large Bangladesh media contingent here ahead of the semifinal. “Coach, Kumar Dharmasena has been announced as one of the umpires!” Everyone drew a sharp breath, including Hathurusingha. Dharmasena was, after all, at the heart of the decision review system (DRS) chaos in Chittagong in October 2016 in a Test England won by 22 runs. The Test saw a record 26 umpiring decisions being reviewed by the players, 16 of those belonging to Dharmasena. Eight of these were overturned, an unwanted world record which led to the now-legendary monicker of ‘Dharmasena Review System’! Incidentally, Bangladesh had reviewed 13 times, and were successful only four times. Three consecutive LBW appeals against Moeen Ali on the second day were changed on appeal, with who else but Dharmasena being at the receiving end. The ICC promptly reacted by making Dharmasena officiate in the second Test of the series too! Since DRS woes continued to dog Dharmasena all the way to the India-England Test in Mohali in November 2016, India too may need to be wary of him. Richard Kettleborough is the other on-field umpire for the Champions Trophy semifinal.

Bangla loom, but Kohli and fans look ahead to England! Indian captain Virat Kohli, who shot to the top of the ODI batting charts on Tuesday, surprised everyone by saying “everyone wants to see an India-England final here” during a special reception hosted by the Indian high commission at Lord’s. “It would not have mattered who we were playing in the semis, we have an opportunity to win one game and enter the finals. Everyone wants to see an India-England final. If both teams play, people might get what they want to see.” It’s not known if England fans are chuffed about the team’s prospects, but Indian fans here certainly are. According to organizers, 31% of the tickets for the final at the 25,500-capacity Oval have been bought by Indians. They have even bought 37% of the seats at Cardiff, where Pakistan will play England on Wednesday! Black marketing of tickets, interestingly, is rampant here in the UK, and the scenes outside the Oval in London or at the Edgbaston on match days is not much different from those at Indian grounds like the Kotla or Kanpur – if you want tickets, you will get them, sometimes for an insane amount! — Partha Bhaduri

GALLERY

ABD to lead SA in T20 series against England AB de Villiers will captain South Africa in this month's three-match T20 international series against England with regular skipper Faf du Plessis rested ahead of the Test series. De Villiers, who was criticised for his captaincy as he led the one-day international side to a firstround exit in the ongoing Champions Trophy, has ruled himself out of the Test matches. Squad:Farhaan Behardien, AB de Villiers (captain), Reeza Hendricks, Imran Tahir, David Miller, Morne Morkel, Chris Morris, Mangaliso Mosehle, Wayne Parnell, Dane Paterson, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Tabraiz Shamsi, Jon-Jon Smuts.

Kohli reclaims No. 1ranking: India captain Virat Kohli on Tuesday reclaimed the top spot in the latest ICC ODI rankings for batsmen following the conclusion of the last round of league matches in the Champions Trophy. With brilliant knocks of 81 not out against Pakistan and 76 not out against South Africa, Kohli leapfrogged AB de Villiers and David Warner into the No. 1 spot. Pakistan fined for slow over-rate: Pakistan have been fined for maintaining a slow over-rate against Sri Lanka during their last Group B fixture in the ICC Champions Trophy at the Sophia Gardens. Match referee Chris Broad imposed the fine after Sarfraz Ahmed's side was ruled to be one over short of its target. Players are fined 10 per cent of their match fees while the captain was fined double that amount.

Limaye’s impending exit big loss to COA, says Edulji: Vikram Limaye will soon leave BCCI's Committee of Administrators (CoA) to head the National Stock Exchange (NSE) and that will a big loss to the the already trimmed panel, said COA member Diana Edulji. “It will be a big loss. His inputs have been excellent in all the meetings. He has been a big help in financial dealings,” Edulji told PTI. “Even when he represented BCCI at the ICC meet in February, he got a grasp of the subject in real quick time,” she said further. Limaye will hold his position till July 14, when the Supreme Court reopens, after which he will have to step down for his new assignment at the NSE. The Vinod Rai led COA next meets on June 24 in Mumbai, ahead of the BCCI SGM on June 26.

Hockey India name 33 probables: Hockey India on Tuesday named 33 core probables for the junior women's national camp to be held at Sports Authority of India centre in Bengaluru. The probables were picked after a selection trials conducted under the watchful eyes Hockey India High Performance Director David John. The core group will be trained by Indian junior women's team coach Baljeet Singh Saini.

FIH likely to introduce HIL’s new goal rule: Hockey India League’s ‘two-goals-for-one-fieldgoal’ rule has caught the attention of world body FIH, which is considering implementing the “innovative” system in the international arena. In the last few years, the International Hockey Federation has made a host of changes in playing rules to make the game fast and attractive. With the experience of more than two decades as a hockey umpire, referee and technical official, FIH's new CEO Jason McCracken is impressed with the innovative rule, which is aimed at increasing the percentage of field goals. “I was very impressed with the two goals for a field goal rule. It has revived the attacking style of hockey. The rule is very interesting and innovative,” McCracken said. AGENCIES

SKIPPER SUNIL CHHETRI SCORES AS INDIA BEAT KYRGYZ REPUBLIC 1-0 IN ASIAN CUP QUALIFIERS | 21

India-Bangla: A burgeoning rivalry? Kohli’s Men Will Be Cautious Against Their Resurgent Neighbours In Champions Trophy Semis AP

BANGLA’S WINS AGAINST TOP TEAMS

TIMES IN ENGLAND

AGAINST India India S.Africa S Africa S Lanka Pakistan England England S Lanka S Lanka S Lanka N Zealand N Zealand

Partha.Bhaduri @timesgroup.com

Birmingham: At least until Thursday evening, the west midlands will belong to the Tigers. Two days before the semifinal, this place is being swamped by an army of red and green hungry for tickets, accommodation and a chance to put India down. It’s India versus Bangladesh, and Birmingham better brace for some chaos. Anything can, and usually does happen in this nascent but bitter sporting rivalry: tempers run high, prime ministers complain about umpiring, ICC presidents resign, players elbow each other and twitter wars rage. In between, Bangladesh can also lose three wickets in three balls, but right now you better have an escape route ready at Edgbaston before you

Chandika Hathurusingha | Bangla coach

GAME ON: Bangladesh have all the qualities to upset top teams

nal of the Asia Cup, beating India and South Africa twice each at home in ODIs, and Sri Lanka and Pakistan once each at home in T20s since June 2015. They are also angry with themselves for exhibiting a nasty tendency to self-destruct in pressure situations. They have a lot to fight for against India, and invariably, in recent times, have put up a scrappy fight. In this Champions Trophy they are riding into the semis of an ICC event for the first time, on the back of a lucky rain break against Australia and a superlative batting performance against New Zealand which served as exhibition of their enormous, world-beating

o nobody’s surprise, I should think, England have emerged as the strongest side in this competition. Indeed, the only side who can stop them now is India, and fittingly, I believe both of them will get to the final. Honestly, if India don’t beat Bangladesh, they shouldn’t go home for a while! They should just have a holiday in Europe and wait until everything calms down, because they won’t be allowed back in the country. Of course, Bangladesh have done well to come as far as they have, and particularly to win against New Zealand, but to be fair, New Zealand are not the force they once were. Their middle-order is poor, and their second string bowlers are weak. That has not always been the case but it is the reason why, at the start of the tournament, I did not include them in my list of potential finalists. Their captain is a fine player, and the opening batsmen and Ross Taylor are very good but, after the first four batsmen, the rest are poor. Nonetheless, well done Bangladesh – their win is certainly good news for cricket. And to be fair again, rain has been a factor in the way the final four have shaped up, including the elimination of the forever dangerous Australians so, even though Bangladesh have a few good players, I don’t see them posing a threat to India, purely on merit. England, similarly, ought to be able to see off

potential. Bangladesh, then, are no pushovers, and India must grudgingly acknowledge this fact when they sit down to make their semifinal plans. The rise of the acrimonius, social media-driven Indo-Bangla cricket rivalry has coincided with a relative decline of drama in India-Pakistan games. With India playing Pakistan too infrequently for any reasonable continuity, along with Pakistan’s steep decline as a cricketing powerhouse, Bangladesh have occasionally risen to fill the 'local-rivalry' void. When they lose, their fans scream conspiracy. If Bangladesh win, their players have usually produced a larger-than-

their unpredictable semifinal opponents. Pakistan have always been volatile and, while their fans can’t be too happy about that, for the rest of us that has meant several years of edge-of-the-seat entertainment. By contrast, England have appeared calm, ruthlessly professional, and hard to beat. This England team is a far cry from the appalling outfit which travelled to Australia for the 2015 World Cup. We were probably the worst side in that tournament, and there was tremendous criticism of the team’s performance back home, justifiably so. They were clearly still playing an old-fashioned game of cricket and they hadn’t caught up with the modern way. But then Andrew Strauss took over as director of cricket, and his position was simple: as hosts of the Champions Trophy now and the World Cup two years from now, England simply can’t afford to be bottom of the table. You can’t play rubbish in your own backyard. Therefore, the team embarked on what you might call a corrective course, driven by a deliberate policy by the board to pick players specifically meant for One-day cricket, even if that meant leaving out proven hands such as Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad. In addition, unlike earlier, the board has been encouraging players to participate in international leagues like IPL, to absorb and assimilate the modern limited-overs game, as well as to test them against the best in the world. The result: IPL stars like Ben Stokes and Chris Woakes.

life performance, and are dutifully feted as national heroes. It’s a karmic cycle Indian cricket has seen before and can empathize with. Bangladesh began inflicting the hurt way back in 2007, when they sent Rahul Dravid’s starstudded India scurrying out of the World Cup in the Caribbean. That created the notion of enmity, though that defeat had nearly been forgotten when the 2015 World Cup quarterfinal happened. Rohit Sharma, on 90, spooned a short-pitched one straight to the fielder, but umpire Ian Gould ruled that it was above waist high and gave not out. Sharma scored a century

and during the steep chase, Mahmudullah was given out caught at the boundary when it seemed Shikhar Dhawan had touched the ropes. Bangladesh lost, and Dhaka University students promptly took out a protest march. ICC president Mustafa Kamal resigned saying the outcome had been “pre-arranged” in favour of India. The Bangladesh PM said umpiring error cost the team. The last encounter between the two, in the World T20, saw Bangladesh snatch defeat from the jaws of victory as only they can, and Mushfiqur Rahim’s subsequent tweet added to the rancour after India lost to the West Indies. Ugly memes of Taskin Ahmed

ICC appeal on Cardiff tickets Fans who no longer plan to attend the Champions Trophy semifinal between England and Pakistan in Cardiff on Wednesday have been urged to put their tickets on the official re-sale site in a bid to prevent empty seats at the ground. When spectators bought tickets for the one-day tournament, they were asked to specify a team preference by the International Cricket Council. Of those that did for the Cardiff semifinal, 30 percent said they were India fans. But with title-holders India playing Bangladesh in Thursday's second semifinal at Edgbaston, there are concerns that Wednesday's match at the 14,100 capacity Cardiff ground could be blighted by mass no shows.

Sangakkara scores 100th career ton: Sri Lanka great Kumar Sangakkara scored the 100th century of his illustrious career while playing for English county Surrey in a one-day match on Tuesday. Sangakkara hit a run-a-ball 121against Yorkshire in the One-Day Cup at Headingley. AGENCIES

Former Skipper’s Letter Forces BCCI To Determine What Constitutes Conflict

BCCI to draw the line on Dravid issue Mumbai: Former India captain Rahul Dravid’s letter to the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA), asking if his role as a national coach of India’s junior teams is in conflict with his duties as a mentor to an Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise, has spiralled its way to the core of an issue that cannot be swept away under the carpet any more.

REFORMS Coming from Dravid himself —a cricketing legend whose identity among his fans has been synonymous with integrity and hard work — there are those in the corridors of Indian cricket who’ve finally woken up to the realization that conflict of interest as a subject needs to be dealt with an air of finality going forward. “The question is not about whether Rahul can continue as national coach while he’s with an IPL team or vice versa. The question is whether the BCCI is clear in its own thought process even as it struggles to put in

Bangladesh’s win over England in Dhaka (28-10-2016) was their first Test triumph against an opponent other than Zimbabwe and Bangladesh. They won the Test in just three days

We are not trying to think about India. The focus is on doing well overseas. India are still favourites, but if we play to our potential we can give the opposition a run for their money

Geoffrey Boycott

K. ShriniwasRao @timesgroup.com

DATE/YEAR 18-6-2015 21-6-2015 12-7-2015 15-7-2015 28-2-2016 2-3-2016 9-1-2016 28-10-2016 15-3-2017 25-3-2017 6-4-2017 24-5-2017 9-6-2017

Stats: Rajesh Kumar

Only India can stop England T

FORMAT VENUE ODI Dhaka ODI Dhaka ODI Dhaka ODI Chittagong T20I Dhaka T20I Dhaka ODI Dhaka Test Dhaka Test Colombo ODI Dambulla T20I Colombo ODI Dublin ODI Cardiff

With their win over Pakistan (02-03-2016), Bangladesh had reached the final of the Asia Cup for the second time — the first instance being on March 22, 2012 losing by two runs to Pakistan in the Finall

KEY CLASH go about mentioning that -those rooting for India haven’t landed here yet! Of course they will in larger numbers by Friday, but funnily enough the average Indian cricket fan doesn’t even want to consider this match-up a ‘rivalry’. It suits them to think any notion of a ‘contest’ in an India-Bangladesh game is purely a figment of the Bangladeshi mind. That illusion has been shattered in recent times. Bangladesh beat India in an ODI home series in 2015, and lost by one run in a World T20 game last year. The 2015 World Cup quarterfinal nearly led to a diplomatic powwow after some contentious decisions went India’s way. Bangladesh are incensed that in the eyes of the cricketing world, they haven’t convincingly shaken off the ‘minnows’ tag yet, in spite of reaching the fi-

MARGIN 79 runs 6 wickets 7 wickets 9 wickets 23 runs 5 wickets 34 runs 108 runs 4 wickets 90 runs 45 runs 5 wickets 5 wickets

place basic governance policies,” a cricketer-turnedadministrator told TOI on Monday. On this note, thanks to Dravid himself raising the subject and seeking clarification, a due-diligence process of sorts is soon come to be in place, and this time with the intent to spell out the basics as to what essentially amounts to conflict and what doesn’t. For instance, Dravid’s role as a national coach while being an IPL franchise mentor is being seen as a case of conflict by a section of senior individuals who manage the state of affairs in Indian cricket. And, in that, there is a thought process that, in the words of a senior administrator, works like this: “A position with the national team, in whichever capacity, has to be considered ‘sanctimonious’. It’s a choice one has to make — work with the national team and the National Cricket Academy for an entire year and draw a handsome salary or draw the

same salary working with an IPL franchise, if you’re getting it, and use the remaining time to pursue whatever off-field interests you may have. But you can’t be doing both. Let’s not complicate this, let’s just take a look at how the football circuit works.” That brings us to a question that’s been left unanswered for quite a while now. Can the term conflict be determined / drafted and explained in black and white? “Maybe not but the principles of what constitutes conflict can be determined as a broader outline. For instance, Sourav Ganguly is also conflicted by way of being a BCCI state association chief doing commentary. Just until last month, his business partner was an IPL franchise owner. It’s a conflict,” says the administrator. The Indian cricket board is finally working on a provisional draft to regulate degrees of variance that have led to the term ‘conflict’ become one of the most

AGAINST

MARGIN

abused expressions in the country’s sports fraternity. “A lot is going to happen in this matter between now and next month. Just wait and watch. Even a handbook will be brought out spelling out a few basics,” is how another senior administrator put it, confirming that the coming BCCI general meeting will discuss it as priority. A lot has been said earlier too. Except that this is the first time that someone (read: Dravid) has actually stood up and asked if he’s conflicted or not. In doing so, he’s put the ball in the BCCI’s court and rightly so. Guha’s letter, highlighting ‘conflict’ in Indian cricket, wasn’t something new to those tracking developments the last few years. There are those in the BCCI who believe the historian lost patience and unnecessarily jumped the gun whereas he could have stayed and made an effort to set things right, especially if he felt so strongly about it. However, what can be said with absolute surety is that the letters from Guha and Dravid have become the final nails in a coffin that was long waiting to be put to rest.

FORMAT

VENUE

DATE/YEAR

holding Dhoni’s severed head or Mustafizur’s ‘cutters’ partly shaving off Indian cricketers’ heads have added to the hype machine, putting more pressure on Bangladesh to hold their own in such clashes. “We are not trying to think about India,” said Bangladesh’s Sri Lankan coach Chandika Hathurusingha, before pausing and adding: “Not too much. We are relaxed. This is a journey. The focus is on doing well overseas. India are still favourites, but if we play according to potential we can give the opposition a run for their money. There’s no feeling of revenge. A win will give us a lot of confidence,” the coach added.

England may bring in Bairstow for Roy Cardiff: England are considering changing their top order for the Champions Trophy semifinal against Pakistan, captain Eoin Morgan said on Tuesday, indicating that they will replace out-of-form opener Jason Roy with Jonny Bairstow. “There is a chance there will be a change,” said Morgan of Wednesday’s game. “Jonny Bairstow is our next man in line. He is a very fine batsman. One thing he does exceptionally well is deal with no baggage. “He comes in and wants to prove everyone wrong the whole time, it’s been a huge attribute in him scoring runs when he has had a chance.” South African-born Roy, who watched Tuesday’s net session with arms folded from the sidelines, has scored 51 runs in eight ODIs this summer and was dismissed second-ball in England’s final group game against Australia. England have previously insisted that players would be allowed to bat themselves back into form. “Everyone goes through a bad run and that’s expected,” Morgan said of Roy. “If some-

PREVIEW one happens to miss out then they’re not going to be too far away from our plans in the future.” Bairstow is in prime form after striking a careerbest 174 off 113 balls while opening for his county Yorkshire against Durham last month. But the 27-year-old has never filled the role in an ODI and they could decide to juggle the order and promote Moeen Ali. Either way, England, the only unbeaten team in the tournament, will go into the game as favourites after winning 11out of 12 ODIs and posting in excess of 300 in five of the past six matches in which they have batted first. While Roy has failed, every other batsman has hit form with Alex Hales (151), Joe Root (212), Eoin Morgan (175) and Ben Stokes (150) among the top 11 tournament run scorers. In 47 ODIs since their abject failure at the 2015 World Cup, England batsmen have scored 25 centuries, compared with 22 in 88 matches during the previous four years. Pakistan came into the tournament as the eighth-ranked team and are highly unpredictable, only just qualifying for the last four by beating Sri Lanka by three wickets in a see-saw game on Monday. AGENCIES

AFP

ALL SET: Jonny Bairstow

LIVE ON STAR SPORTS, 3.00 PM PAK

ENG

ICC ODI RANKINGS

8 4 49 30 HEAD TO HEAD

GROUND

With the weather expected to be partly cloudy, seamers are expected to have a field day. Batsmen could find it a bit difficult to negotiate movement.

WEATHER It’s expected to be partly cloudy and the threat of rain is always there.

ODDS: ENG 4/10 PAK 5/2

NUMBERS GAME

80

England’s winning percentage against Pakistan in the last ten ODIs played between the two nations. While England have won 8 of their 10 matches, Pakistan have managed to win just twice. —Rajesh Kumar

IN ICC Champions Trophy Team Played Won Lost England 24 14 10 Pakistan 21 9 12

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THE TIMES OF INDIA, AHMEDABAD WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2017

Anand registers win over Caruana Stavanger (Norway): Former world champion Viswanathan Anand on Tuesday beat Fabiano Caruana of United States in the sixth round to register his first win of the Altibox Norway chess tournament here. Having lost two and drawn three, Anand was under pressure to find back his winning ways and the Indian ace did that in style at the expense of Caruana. Anand moved up to 2.5 points out of a possible six . Two white games out of the remaining three rounds might just help him recover more. Armenian Levon Aronian was the other winner of the day, accounting for a rather out-ofsort Vladimir Kramnik of Russia while world champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway remained winless for the sixth day running as he was held to a draw by Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. In the other games of the day, Anish Giri of Holland missed out on some chances before signing peace with Wesley So of United States and another American Hikaru Nakamura could not break the ice against Sergey Karjakin of Russia. PTI

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CHHETRI SEALS IT FOR INDIA Captain Scores The Match-Winner Against Kyrgyzstan In Home-Leg Tie Chethan Shivakumar

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Bengaluru: A moment of fine individual skill and perseverance from skipper Sunil Chhetri helped the Indian football team score a 1-0 win over Kyrgyz Republic in their AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 Qualifier at the Sree Kanteerava stadium here on Tuesday. Chhetri collected the ball inside India's half and set off on a run that saw him wiggle past three Kyrgyz players before linking up with fellow striker Jeje Lalpekhlua and side-footing a low first-time shot into the net. However, that goal from a pacy counter-attack in the 69th minute was nearly cancelled out by a powerful long-range effort from Kyrgyz striker Vitaly Lux deep into extra time, just moments after Chhetri and substitute Robin Singh spurned clear opportunities to swell the lead. Chhetri was guilty of missing the target from inside the box in the 56th minute too – before Kyrgyz Republic skipper Mirlan Murzaev hit the post and Sandesh Jhingan cleared a shot off the goal line – but he made amends with his solo effort to send over 6,000 fans into raptures. Stephen Constantine's men, who

Sunil Chhetri celebrates after scoring the winning goal for India in their match against Kyrgyz Republic at Kanteerava stadium in Bengaluru on Tuesday

now have two wins out of two games, next face Macao in September. “It’s a great feeling to score. I have played for the country for 12 years but this was by far our best performance. The team showed character. This is so important for us,” said man of the match Chhetri. “Let’s not get greedy,” coach Constantine said, when reminded about the team’s missed chances. “I will take three points any day. I’m so proud

Sindhu, Saina advance Getty Images

Chen Stuns Marin Manne.Ratnakar @timesgroup.com

Hyderabad: Saina Nehwal defied odds to oust former world champion Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand 17-21, 2118, 21-12 in the first round of the Indonesia Open Super Series Premier in Jakarta on Tuesday. PV Sindhu downed Pornpawee Chochuwong of Thailand 21-12, 21-19 to join Saina Saina Nehwal in action in her in the second round. Howe- match against Ratchanok Inver, the mixed doubles pair of tanon in Jakarta on Tuesday Sumeeth Reddy and Ashwini Ponnnappa went down to confidence. She started with Irfan Fadhilah and Weni an 8-2 lead but Ratchanok Anggraini of Indonesia 12- caught up with the Indian at the 14th po21, 9-21. Saina INDONESIA OPEN int. Thereafter, the played like a champion against Ratcha- three-time world junior nok, who had won the Thai champion went ahead by Open last week. Saina has a winning three successive po7-5 record against the Thai ints from 16-16 and wrapped and the way she dominated up the first game at 21-17. Saina started cautiously Ratchanok from the second in the second. She maintaigame will give her loads of

ned at least a two-point margin till the 16th point. Though Ratchanok made it 16-16, Saina scored the big points towards the end to force the decider. In the third game, it was Saina all the way. The world No.11 was 11-6 up before the mandatory change of courts. And at 14-10, she came up with a five-point burst to outclass the world No.8. In the second round, Saina will face Nitchaon Jindapol, who trounced Kim Hyo Min of Korea 21-16, 21-14. Saina has never lost to the Thai girl in seven meetings. After an easy first round, Sindhu will face a challenging opponent in Beiwen Zhang of USA in the second. Sindhu enjoys a 3-0 win-loss record against Zhang. Meanwhile, the tournament witnessed the biggest upset as world and Olympic champion Carolina Marin suffered a shock loss to world No.33 Chen Xiaoxin of China.

of the boys, it was a good team performance. India deserves this,” he said. Constantine had said India would have to be prepared for a tough battle, but it was the Kyrgyz team that fell victim to some early physicality when striker Zemliankhun Anton was stretchered off and replaced by Edgar Bernhardt in the first half. Darting in to latch on to a cross floated into the Indian box, Anton clattered into approaching goalkeeper

Gurpreet Singh in the third minute. “The substitution affected us, because it’s not ideal to change a player early on. But that wasn’t a factor as the game went on,” said Kyrgyz coach Alexander Krestinin. “We missed a lot of opportunities on the counter later. It was difficult to control India’s attack too,” he said. The visitors, despite becoming more comfortable passing the ball around in the Indian half, were unable to create clear chances but prompted the reshaping of India's formation, with a third attacker regularly dropping back to help in midfield. With space to operate on the right, Jackichand Singh enjoyed several bright moments. After a left-footed chip went over the bar three minutes earlier, he swung in a cross in the 25th minute that missed skipper Chhetri narrowly but fell to Holicharan Narzary. The midfielder could only produce a tame left-footer. India's next match is against Macau, an away game, on Sept 5 RESULTS: AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 Qualifiers: Group A: India 1 (Chhetri 69) bt Kyrgyz Republic 0; Macao 0 lost to Myanmar 4 (Aung Si Thu 4, Kyaw Ko Ko 30, Aung Si Thu 61, Min Min Thu 74).

FIH draws grand plans, but India-Pak question remains [email protected]

Mumbai: The International Hockey Federation (FIH) will embark on a novel journey in January 2018 with the launch of the Hockey Pro League (HPL), which will witness nine countries battle it out over a period of six months on a homeand-away basis in both the men’s and women’s categories. The teams in the men’s section include Argentina, Australia, Belgium, England/Great Britain, Germany, India, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Pakistan. This has resulted in some countries, which have excelled on the hockey pitch over the years, including Spain and Malaysia, missing out on a competition that FIH hopes will turn out to be a moneyspinner for them. “The selection of teams was not based only on performance. It was based on commercial aspect and the popula-

rity of the sport in that country. We could accommodate a maximum of nine teams after intense deliberations, and hence, countries like Spain and Malaysia have missed out,” Jason McCracken, the CEO of FIH, told TOI on Tuesday. Another issue that will crop up as the league draws closer is the unlikelihood of the Indian government allowing the India-Pakistan fixture to take place in any Indian city. McCracken is aware of the prevailing situation and is keeping his fingers crossed. “We are hopeful that the governments of both countries will support the league and allow the teams to play each other. India-Pakistan matches generate huge interest and I am sure fans of both countries would love to see these fixtures. Apart from that, we will take stock of things once we get closer to the league,” said McCracken.

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TIMES SPORT

ULTIMATE WARRIORS Durant, Curry Star As Golden State Clinch Second Title In Three Seasons AP

Oakland (California): The Golden State Warriors secured their second NBA championship in three seasons with a 129-120 Game Five win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday, capping a near-perfect run through the playoffs. The Warriors, who beat Cleveland in the 2015 Finals only to lose to them last year after squandering a 3-1 series lead, went a record-setting 16-1 in the playoffs, their only loss coming in Game Four of the best-of-seven championship. The win provided redemption for the Warriors, who brought Kevin Durant over from the Oklahoma City Thunder last offseason to bolster their already high-powered offense. Durant, who lost in his only previous Finals appearance in 2012, led the way for the Warriors with 39 points and was relieved after feeling pressure to deliver prior to the game.

NBA FINALS "I couldn't sleep for two days," Durant, who was named the Finals MVP, said during an on-court interview. "I was anxious, I was jittery. I just wanted to lay it all out there. I put in work, I just had to trust in it. We were really good tonight." Cavaliers' forward LeBron James had a game-high 41 points and guard Kyrie Irving hit tough shots all night but defensive breakdowns by Cleveland led to easy baskets late in the game for the Warriors, igniting a deafening crowd. James said he had no reason to

SNAPSHOTS

Brazil thrash Oz 4-0 in friendly Brazil demolished Australia 4-0 fired by a Diego Souza goal after just 12 seconds in their international friendly in Melbourne on Tuesday. The Socceroos held the five-time World Cup champions to 1-0 at half-time but the Brazilians ripped apart the home defence with three second-half goals. Souza, who replaced Gabriel Jesus, scored twice with other goals from Thiago Silva and substitute Taison with his first international goal.

Iran down Uzbek to seal WC

GOLDEN CHARGE Five NBA titles:1947, 1956, 1975, 2015, 2017 Record run: In 2017, Warriors set a record by winning their first 15 games of the playoffs. Unstoppable: Warriors finished the 2015-16 regular season with a 73-19 record, eclipsing the previous mark (72-10) set by Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls during the 1995-96 season. Coach class: Steve Kerr was a five-time NBA champion as player. In 2015, Kerr became the first rookie coach to win an NBA title since the LA Lakers’ Pat Riley in 1982.

Golden State Warriors players, coaches and owners hold up the Larry O'Brien NBA trophy after Game 5 of the finals against Cleveland Cavaliers in Oakland on Monday

feel sorry for himself. "I left everything on the floor every game, all five games," he said. "I have no reason to put my head down." Warriors point guard Stephen Curry said the experience of losing last year's Finals served them well this season. "We learned from everything we've been through," Curry said during the trophy celebration. "To be back here and bring gold Larry (O'Brien trophy) back home, I'm just excited to be a part of this group and accomplish something

berth: Iran became the second team to qualify for next year's FIFA World Cup finals as they beat Uzbekistan 2-0 with goals from Sardar Azmoun and Mehdi Taremi at the Azadi Stadium in Tehran on Monday. Azmoun's goal midway through the first half set Iran on track to qualify for the 2018 event in Russia before Taremi added a second two minutes from time as Iran reached back-to-back World Cup tournaments for the first time.

Satyendra finishes 8th: Satyendra Singh finished eighth in the men's 50m Rifle 3 Positions event on the final day of competitions at the ISSF World Cup at Gabala, Azerbaijan. Satyendra shot 1173 to qualify for the eight-man final but was the first to be eliminated on a

special. I'm ready to do it again." An unprecedented third straight Finals clash between the Warriors and Cavaliers was hyped as the ultimate championship rubber match and expected to be the antidote for a postseason that had little in the way of drama. But that idea fizzled fast when the Warriors opened with a pair of lopsided wins at home, fought back late to steal the next game in Cleveland and then, after dropping their first game of the postseason, closed out the series at home. In the end, the Cavaliers simply

score of 396.7 after 40 shots. Sanjeev Rajput scored 1157 in qualifying to bow out in 45th place.

Injured Evans withdraws from Aegon Open: Top seed Dan Evans has withdrawn from the Aegon Open in Nottingham due to a calf injury but hopes to be fit for the upcoming Queen's Club tournament and the Wimbledon, starting on July 3.

Gujarat boys, girls finish third in OORJA football: Gujarat stamped their superiority in both the boys and girls categories in the OORJA football tournament in Ahmedabad on Tuesday. At the Divine Child International School Stadium, the hosts overpowered the Andaman and Nicobar boys 3-1 to clinch the third position. The boys final be-

Path to Finals: Won Pacific Division; bt Portland 4-0 in Western Conference Q/Fs; bt Utah 4-0 in semis; bt San Antonio 4-0 in final; beat Cleveland 4-1in NBA Finals.

did not have enough top-class talent to topple the Warriors, even with four-time league MVP James doing all he could to keep his team in it. For James, already a three-times champion, the loss puts him in rare company as only the fourth player to come up short in five NBA Finals. Cleveland's inability to give the Warriors much of a fight has already sparked talk that James, who left the team in 2010 for Miami before returning four years later, could consider another move during 2018 free agency. AFP

tween Goa and Maharashtra will take place on Thursday evening. At the Sports Authority of India Stadium in Gandhinagar, the Gujarat girls too thumped the Andaman and Nicobar 12-0 to bag the third position – thanks to four goals by Shrya Oza while Manasi Vakharia and Kaisahben Thakor netting three goals apiece.

Farhan wins under-14 title: Farhan Patrawala defeated Dhanush Patel 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 in a hard-fought match to emerge the winner in the AITA Talent Series tournament in the boys under-14 in Ahmedabad recently. Dhanush beat Vedansh Patel 9-7 in the semifinals. TNN & AGENCIES

THE TIMES OF INDIA, AHMEDABAD WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2017

Now, Ronaldo in tax row Madrid: Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo was on Tuesday accused of a 14.7 million euro tax evasion through offshore companies, the public prosecutor's office announced here. The Portuguese footballer was accused of ‘‘four crimes against the public treasury between 2011-14’’, the office said. "The accused took advantage of a company structure created in 2010 to hide income generated in Spain from his image rights from tax authorities, which is a 'voluntary' and 'conscious' breach of his fiscal obligations in Spain," it said. Prosecutors accuse the Portugal forward, who is the world's highest paid athlete according to Forbes magazine, of evading tax via two companies based in the British Virgin Islands and Ireland. Ronaldo is the latest star to fall foul of Spanish tax authorities. Argentina’s Lionel Messi was sentenced to a 21-month jail sentence last year for tax fraud. The prison term will likely be suspended as is common in Spain for first offences for non-violent crimes carrying a sentence of less than two years. The 29-year-old and his father Jorge Horacio Messi were found guilty of using companies in Belize, Britain, Switzerland and Uruguay to avoid paying taxes on 4.16 million euros of Messi's income earned from his image rights from 2007-09. AFP

Griezmann extends Atletico deal by a year: Atletico Madrid's France forward Antoine Griezmann has signed a year's contract extension through to 2022, seemingly ending what was shaping up to be one of the sagas of the transfer window. Griezmann, third in the 2016 Ballon d'Or behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, had been heavily linked to Europa League winners Manchester United in recent weeks. AGENCIES

Federer gears up for Wimbledon Stuttgart: Roger Federer will begin his grasscourt campaign and bid for an eighth Wimbledon crown at Stuttgart on Wednesday insisting that he's rested enough. The Swiss veteran has taken the last two months off after what he described as a surprisingly successful start to the year that resulted in victory at the Australian Open and then the Indian Wells-Miami Masters double. "I was surprised to win the Austra-

lian Open and to back it up and win the double in Indian Wells and Miami was a surprise to me," Federer said. Although 35, he has been in fine form during his limited activity this year, losing only once -- a shock reverse to Evgeny Donskoy in Dubai.

Nadal first in race to London finals: Rafael Nadal has become the first player to book his place at the season-ending ATP World Tour Finals in London in November after the Spaniard won a record 10th French Open title in Paris on Sunday. AGENCIES

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STARTUP STORIES

These startups are banking on bitcoins

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ver since its creation in 2009, Bitcoin, the world’s most popular cryptocurrency, has been in the limelight. While some countries like Bolivia, Ecuador and Bangladesh have banned bitcoins, Australia and Japan are regulating it. Today, there are almost 750 cryptocurrencies with a capitalisation of more than $104 billion. And a handful of startups in India are making early moves in a market that is yet to be recognised by the government. Sandeep Goenka had started two companies before he decided to set up Zebpay with Saurabh Agrawal and Mahin Gupta. In 2014, they attended a conference in the US which gave them insights into the future of bitcoins. “We started as a bitcoin wallet and expected people’s interest to be low, but every time we set targets, we surpassed them,” said Goenka. When they met investors in 2015, there was apprehension but a year later, the founders raised close to $1 million. He said Zebpay has 7 lakh users and adds a lakh a month. The startup plans to expand to Southeast Asia.

Entrepreneurs have come together to draft regulations for cryptocurrency that is yet to be recognised by the government Zebpay Digital asset exchange where users can buy/sell bitcoins. Has bitcoin wallet app that enables bitcoin transactions using mobile phone number Founders: Saurabh Agrawal, Mahin Gupta, Sandeep Goenka Founded: June 2015 Funding: $1 million in pre-series A round from angel investors in January 2016

When Sathvik Vishwanath set up Unocoin along with Sunny Ray, Harish B V and Abhinand Kaseti, they believed in bitcoin as the future of money despite the apprehensions surrounding cryptocurrencies. “Technology always precedes regulation. There were no cab-sharing guidelines before Uber. It is after the disruption and its impact on lives that the government looks into the issues and decides on regulation,” said Vishwanath. What could have led to the increasing acceptance of bitcoins is the surge in value. In 2017, bitcoins have touched an all-time high. In January, the currency crossed $1,000 for the first time in three years. Last month, bitcoins crossed $1,500, becoming more valuable than gold. Earlier this week, the combined market capitalisation of cryptocurrencies crossed $100 billion. Vishwanath says the surge in prices has helped garner users, adding that Unocoin has 2.7 lakh users. In August 2016, the startup raised funding of $1.5 million in a pre-Series-A round from multiple investors, including Blume Ventures, Mumbai Angels and Ah! Ventures. For Blume Ventures, bitcoins presented a rare opportunity. “Bitcoin has the ability to transform the way we look at money. When we made the investment,

we didn’t know that this sector would become so hot. India has a large unbanked population, and is on its way to becoming digitized. With the possibilities this technology brings in crossborder remittances, it seemed like a natural reason for us to invest in a company dealing with bitcoins,” said Arpit Agarwal, principal, Blume Ventures.

Enables buying, selling, storing, transacting in bitcoins without a wallet

Funding: $250,000 from bitcoin investor Barry Silbert followed by $1.5 million in a pre-series A round in September 2016

Founded: July 2013 Founders: Sunny Ray, Sathvik Vishwananth, Harish BV, Abhinand Kaseti

AHEAD OF THE PACK CB Insights finds that talk about autonomous vehicles has overtaken other trending topics like AR/VR

2013

Augmented reality

2014

Virtual reality

2015

Genomics

2016

2017

AUTO TECH ANNUAL GLOBAL FINANCING HISTORY Startup investment in auto tech companies rocketed to a triple-digit deal count in 2016, inspired in part by GM’s March 2016 Cruise acquisition and Mobileye‘s 2014 IPO. At its current rate, 2017 investment will outpace 100 last year’s record figures.

Full Year Run Rate

129

$3,433 Full Year Run Rate

72

49 47

44

Hesham Rehman was a bitcoin trader for four years before he set up Bitxoxo with Mohammed Rizwan. It now has almost 10,000 users, and the founders are in talks with investors to expand their presence. An equity and commodities trader, Siva Kameshwara Rao was exposed to bitcoins when he was trading in forex markets.

Unocoin

Technology has always been a staple of the automotive sector, but the past few years have seen rapid growth with IoT and artificial intelligence. Startup investment has risen dramatically as concepts once reserved for science fiction like autonomous vehicles move towards commercialisation

2012

Rao set up BTCX in 2014 but has not limited himself to bitcoins. With ethexindia, Rao has introduced the next digital currency, ether or ethereum, to the Indian market. “We have niche users. While bitcoin accounts for over 40% of the cryptocurrency market, if the current trend continues, it will be ethereum that will take the number 1 spot,” said Rao, who has seed investment from a Europe based investor. Rao’s focus on ethereum is in line with the global backing that the currency is receiving. In February, global behemoths Microsoft, Accenture, Intel, JPMorgan and a dozen other banks and companies formed an alliance around the cryptocurrency. Just last month, Indian IT major Wipro joined the alliance. While cryptocurrencies have caught the attention of many in India, the lack of clarity in regulation has raised concerns. RBI has issued warnings on usage of bitcoins. In a bid to create a selfregulatory mechanism, Zebpay, Unocoin, Coinsecure and

21

$109

$685

$407

$1,109

$1,102

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

$1,307

2017 YTD

Disclosed Funding ($m)

Deals

DONE DEALS Goomo, Mumbai online travel aggregator Varun Gupta

$50 million

from Naspers, Accel, Emerging India CEO

Varun Gupta

ABI Health, Bengaluru, healthcare solutions; founded by Ajit Veerappan and Balaji Sundararajan; $1.5 million from Norwest Venture Partners

Experts in blockchain, the technology behind bitcoin, have their reservations given the hacking it has been subject to. Bitcoin was first hacked in August 2010 when hackers exploited a vulnerability and generated billions of bitcoins. Mt Gox and Bitomat, two of the largest bitcoin exchanges at the time, suffered massive security breaches in 2011. A couple of years later, Instawallet, a webbased wallet provider, shut down after it lost 35,000 bitcoins. “Many people believe bitcoins are un-hackable. That’s not true. Hackers have targeted an Australian bitcoin wallet provider (Inputs.io), a Chinese cryptocurrency exchange (Bter), a Slovenian exchange (Bitstamp), and a Hong-Kong exchange (Bitfinex). Bitcoin has seen frauds such as Global Bond Limited and Cryptsy,” said Rohas Nagpal, co-founder, Primechain Technologies. Nagpal believes bitcoins are another way to gamble in the hope of windfall profits. “The current bitcoin price rise is a massive pump-and-dump scheme which will see millions of people lose a lot of money while a few will rake in billions of dollars in profits,” he said.

INTERVIEW

‘In the last 10 years, the time to scale has compressed’ Anand J & Shalina Pillai | TNN

B

ipul Sinha is founder of Rubrik, a cloud data management company that is considered the fastest growing enterprise software company in Silicon Valley. As a venture capitalist, Sinha bet on startups like Nutanix and Hootsuite. Sinha, who grew up in Patna and was in Bengaluru last week, believes in scaling fast and has raised $292 million for his unicorn company. While VCs always think of exits, Sinha says there is no exit for an entrepreneur. Rubrik has 400 people worldwide, and is adding 90 people a quarter.

Q

How much does Rubrik plan to invest in India? We have become a global company in the last 12 months and we have big plans for India, both on the engineering and product side. We want to invest $50 million in the next two to three years. In the next three to six months, we will grow our India team five fold. Our biggest client base is North America, which is 70% of business.

Later as a VC, I funded companies led by my Oracle colleagues, including Nutanix CEO Dheeraj Pandey. I pulled people out of Oracle to create startups like Numerify. The journey taught me a lot about operations, hiring engineers and getting things done at high speed.

easy. As a VC, when people come to you, you help them with strategic things. I have more empathy for entrepreneurs now. Even as the first investor and as much as you are involved, you are not responsible for everything as a VC. You don’t lose sleep.

Why do you need so much money? Why did you turn entrepreneur? I wanted to get out of engineering so I went to Wharton and joined Blumberg Capital in San Francisco. My first investment was HootSuite, social media management software. At Lightspeed, I invested in Pulse News, which LinkedIn acquired. But I was sitting on the sidelines clapping, not on the field. I wanted to make a bigger impact.

Was it difficult to make the transition from VC to entrepreneur? The transit i o n w a s not

How did you start?

Source: CB Insights

WHERE FOCUS IS ON MACHINE LEARNING, IOT SAP Startup Studio, Bengaluru The idea: The aim was to build an accelerator programme that helps early and growth stage startup companies with opportunities to expand their businesses in sync with SAP’s vision. “This initiative Dilipkumar fits into Khandelwal SAP’s philosophy of fostering entrepreneurship and promoting innovation for growth and development,” said Dilipkumar Khandelwal, MD, SAP Labs India. The in-house accelerator is the first of its kind in SAP and the company intends to replicate it in other locations.

If required, the company will take an equity position and refer to its merger and acquisition team for the next stage of growth.

USP: Deep domain and technology expertise that SAP has in providing solutions across the globe for 25 industries and 12 lines of business.

Progress: Seven startups graduated, 16 currently part of the programme working on artificial intelligence (AI), cloud, machine learning and IoT functions. By end of this year, the incubator will expand to a 100-seater facility.

Founded in June 2016

Benefits to startups: One-year mentorship, access to SAP knowledge, experts, venture capitalists and academia.

Success stories: Ecolibrium Energy, a provider of energy management solutions that joined the accelerator in 2016 has been onboarded into the Co-Innovation Labs programme at SAP; Sellerworx, an e-commerce technology solutions and services firm that joined the accelerator programme in 2016 was acquired by Capillary Technologies.

VULNERABILITIES EXPOSED

Why AUTO TECH startups are in the FAST LANE

Autonomous or self driving

GIVING WINGS TO IDEAS

Searchtrade launched Digital Asset and Blockchain Foundation of India (DABFI) in February. “We are working on a draft set of regulations and it should be ready in a few months,” said Vishwanath of Unocoin.

OVERCOMING DOUBTS

Drones

THE TIMES OF INDIA, AHMEDABAD WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2017

I grew up in Bihar, went to IIT-Kharagpur and did electrical engineering. In the US, I worked at American Me g atrends, which used to make server appliances, for two years and moved to Oracle.

Because we are building one of the world’s largest companies. We are operating in a $50 billion market, so even if we get 1% of it, that’s a lot. You need to have a strong balance sheet, if you want to build a large company. We looked at valuation and if money is available at a good price, why not? If you don’t grow fast now, somebody else will take that market. In the last 10 years, the time to scale has compressed. Having money in the bank doesn’t mean you spend it. When we raised Series D, we hadn’t touched Series C of $60 million. Having money gives you options and power.

Since you were a VC, have you thought about an exit? IPO doesn’t mean exit. We are in it for the long haul. IPO is a milestone for us. We want to be cash flow positive before we go public.

Bipul Sinha Co-founder & CEO, Rubrik Education: Electrical engineering, IIT Kharagpur, MBA from Wharton Business School Previous experience: American Megatrends, Oracle, Lightspeed

MENTORING TAKES CENTRESTAGE: Seven startups have graduated and 16 are part of

the programme working on AI, cloud, machine learning and IoT functions

DOUBTFIRE Entrepreneurs ask questions they have encountered while building their ventures, and we get them answered by seasoned entrepreneurs and investors TWEET YOUR QUESTIONS TO @TOISTARTUPS

Agriculture has been one of the slowest adopters of technology Sudeep Anandapuram | CO-FOUNDER, INDI.COM, VIDEO-SHARING PLATFORM Why are VCs following western trends while investing in startups? It has been proved that India has its own characteristics. Don’t you think the startup ecosystem should be structured around this? As India is an agrarian economy, we probably need more startups in agriculture or realty. This is particularly true in the digital consumer domain. Consumer behaviour across the world is consistent. Consumers want better products/ services at affordable prices in a convenient fashion. To learn from another region where it has played out at scale is a natural thing. However, each market has its own constraints. This is what has played out in India. Successful companies have innovated to overcome challenges of lack of payment infrastructure and internet penetration. It is playing out differently

Q

A

Ranjith Menon |

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, IDG VENTURES INDIA

in the software space, where companies like Manthan, Freshworks, Unbxd and Uniphore are building solutions for global markets from here. Technology can drive productivity in the farm sector significantly. But agriculture has been one of the slowest adopters of technology globally. The farm output in the US is about 1% of GDP; in India it is about 17% but employs about 60% of the population. If we study the history of startups, they have thrived in sectors that have two fundamental characteristics — sectors that have less regulation, and sectors that have rapid adoption of technology. Agriculture globally has challenges on both fronts. With the advent of technologies like the cloud and mobile, there are entrepreneurs looking at the agriculture sector to solve problems relating to supply chain, distribution, and content. We will see more in this space in the next few years.

Founders walk a tightrope when it comes to customer communication Apoorv Ranjan Sharma | CO-FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT, VENTURE

Mayank Grover | TECHNOLOGY ARCHITECT AT TECHPILLAR, SOFTWARE DISCOVERY PLATFORM

CATALYSTS

One of the most important

Q aspects of a startup is ensuring user acquisition and Q user retention. What all should a startup take into consideration in order to provide better experiences and ensure customer retention? Undoubtedly, one of the most important aspects for any startup is to build a great customer service and a support system that allows it to acquire more customers and retain them. A great customer experience ensures positive word-of-mouth publicity that acts as the strongest factor to attract more customers. In today’s highly competitive business environment, providing quality experience to customers often becomes the deciding factor behind the success or failure of a venture.

A

Startups should have a specific team that ensures prompt responses are provided to customers and grievances expressed on any forum are replied to quickly. The website, app or any other user engagement platform should be simple and engaging, which leaves a positive imprint on the user. Furthermore, any new venture should ensure that an official channel of communication such as email or phone numbers are provided to the customers, which helps avoid complaints on public forums. Also, they need to walk a tightrope when it comes to customer communication and adopting a unique mix of a formal yet engaging interaction style. Adopting an attitude of ‘one customer at a time’, startups should focus on providing impeccable service to each individual customer to attain a content user base as a whole.

HOW I GOT MY STARTUP IDEA

BHive, Bengaluru, co-working space; founded by Shesh Rao Paplikar; $1.2 million from Blume Ventures, Meera Reddy WayForward, Gurugram, wellness platform; founded by Ritvik Singh; $1 million from Farhan Naqvi, Sreepathy Viswanathan Spinny, Gurugram, platform for pre-owned cars; founded by Niraj Singh, Ramanshu Mahaur, Ganesh Pawar and Mohit Gupta; $1 million from Outbox Ventures, Blume Ventures and others OTHER DEALS Growfitter ($600,000), ZipLoan ($500,000), Stockal (350,000), Guiddo (300,000), Rentongo, Gyandhan, MarketPulse, Ftcash Source: Tracxn

‘IT’S HARD TO FIND A GOOD SALON IN A NEW CITY’ The idea: Spalontime, online aggregator for spas and salons Eureka moment: Parinitha Manohar and her friends moved cities and shifted jobs many times during the 15 years she worked in the corporate world. There was one service she and her female friends had difficulty finding — a good salon. “Whenever one moved to a new city, the hardest thing was finding an inexpensive salon. There are so many to choose from

but good service is not guaranteed,” she says. Early days: She quit her job at Verisign and started Spalontime as an app-only aggregator that listed local spas and salons in 2015. Manohar soon realised the importance of a web presence and expanded it for the desktop. Now: The platform has started selling spa deals. It has over 1,000 salons in Bengaluru, Delhi and Mumbai listed on its website. The platform also does social media marketing for listed salons. TNN

SHE’S GOT THE LOOK: PARINITHA MANOHAR

‘NO ONE UNDERSTOOD FRESH MEAT’ The idea: Licious, online gourmet meat brand Eureka moment: Vivek Gupta believes there is no such thing as a Eureka! moment for a company. Gupta and his friend Abhay Hanjura decided to set up a meat delivery startup after having a number of discussions. “Everyone had the wrong notion about fresh meat. They didn’t consider hygiene and the right temperature. Meat is a science.” Early days: They approached farmers and distributors, and set up delivery centres to

ensure meat was clean and properly packed. They supply chicken, lamb, seafood, and different marinades to customers in Bengaluru. Now: Licious has revenues of Rs 2 crore a month and processes five tonnes of meat a day. The company has expanded to Hyderabad and plans to launch in Delhi this year. The platform is also introducing different flavours of spread under its brand. TNN

MAKING THE CUT: VIVEK GUPTA