CMYK TUESDAY www.thestatesman.com 23 JUNE 2020 FIND US ONLINE Scan this with your smartphone twitter.com/TheStatesmanLtd facebook.com/thestatesman1875 Pages 12 |` 5.00|LC* KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR EX-NSA BOLTON HOPES TRUMP IS A ONE-TERM PRESIDENT THE ERRORS CHINA MADE P7 Partly cloudy sky with rain or thundershower. Temperature will be in the range of 33-27 degrees Celsius. RAINFALL: 14.1mm RELATIVE HUMIDITY TEMPERATURE P10 For every 1 lakh population, there are 30.04 cases in India, while the global average is 114.67 Min. 69% SNS & PTI NEW DELHI, 22 JUNE Max: 32.9°C (0) Min: 25.8°C (-1) SUN RISES SUN SETS 04:53 hrs 18:24 hrs MOON RISES MOON SETS 06:32 hrs 20:24 hrs Next moon quarter on 28 June ndia’s Covid-19 cases per lakh people is one of the lowest in the world despite its high population density, and the recovery rate has now reached almost 56 per cent, the Union Health Ministry said on Monday. For every one lakh population, there are 30.04 coronavirus cases in India, while the global average is over three times at 114.67, the ministry said, referring to the WHO Situation Report 153, dated June 21. This low figure is thus a testimony to the graded, pre-emptive and pro-active approach the Government of India along with the states and UTs took for prevention, containment and management of Covid19,” the ministry said in a statement. Citing the WHO Situation Report, the ministry said the US has 671.24 cases per lakh population, while Germany, Spain, Brazil and the UK have 583.88, 526.22, 489.42 and 448.86 cases per lakh population, respectively. It said Russia has 400.82 cases per lakh people, while Italy, Canada, Iran and Turkey have 393.52, 268.98, 242.82 and 223.53, respectively. Coming back to India, as on Monday morning, the total number of coronavirus cases stood at 4,25,282 and the death toll at 13,699, according to figures issued by the ministry. In its update issued at 8 a.m. Monday, the ministry said 9,440 Covid-19 patients recovered in the last 24 I THUMBNAILS Activists of Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) burn Chinese goods during a protest against the killing of 20 soldiers by Chinese troops in Ladakh last week,in the capital on Monday.  SNS Air India pilot tests positive for Covid-19: An 1 Air India pilot was found Covid-19 positive after landing a flight in Sydney from Delhi, senior airline officials said on Monday. The pilot tested positive on Saturday, they said. “The pilot was tested on 16 June and was found negative. That is why, as per the rules, he was rostered for the Delhi-Sydney flight of 20 June 20. Before the flight, his sample was taken again. He was found positive after landing the flight in Sydney,” officials said. Fitch revises outlook of SBI, 8 other banks to negative: Fitch Ratings on Monday said it has revised the outlook to negative of nine Indian banks, including State Bank of India, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank, following lowering of India's sovereign rating outlook due to impact of Covid-19 on the economy. It also revised the outlook for Export-Import Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Bank of Baroda (New Zealand), Bank of India, P8 Canara Bank, Punjab National Bank. 4,25,282 1,74,387 14,821 9,440 13,699 UNION HEALTH MINISTRY FIGURES AS OF 8.00 A.M. MONDAY 22 JUNE 2020 Bengal records decrease in active cases STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE KOLKATA, 22 JUNE West Bengal recorded 413 fresh Corona cases while registering an increase in the discharge rate and a subsequent decrease in active cases. Kolkata has witnessed a slightly lower number of cases recording 81 cases in the last 24 hours. Howrah has recorded 60 cases, North 24-Parganas 54 and South 24-Parganas 51 cases. Till now, hours, taking the total number of recoveries to 2,37,195, a recovery rate of 55.77 per cent. Presently, there are 1,74,387 active cases and 14,358 people have been detected positive in the state. Twelve patients died due to Corona in a single day taking the total Covid19 death toll in the state to 569. Among which, seven patients died in Kolkata, three each in Howrah and North 24 Parganas and one in Hooghly. The discharge rate has increased to 60.50 per cent with 390 patients being discharged from all are under medical supervision, it said. “The difference between the recovered patients and the active Covid-19 cases continues to widen. Today, BJP flays Manmohan for targeting Modi STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 22 JUNE The ruling BJP and opposition Congress party on Monday launched an all out war of words against each other over Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks at the all party meeting last week with the latter fielding former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and former its party president J P Nadda to fight it out on each other’s alleged omissions and commission over Chinese incursions into Indian territories during their respective rules at the Center. It all started after Manmohan Singh trained his gun at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a day after his former head in Congress Rahul Gandhi’s ‘surrender Modi’ tweet that had evoked sharp reaction from the BJP . P8 “Those who lead us bear the weight of a solemn duty. And in our democracy that responsibility rests with the office of the Prime Minister…ThePrime Minister must always be mindful of the implications of his words and declarations on our nation’s security as also strategic and territorial interests,” Manmohan Singh said in a statement. BJP national president Jagat Prakash Nadda reacting strongly to Manmohan Singh’s statement hit back accusing him of presiding over 600 incursions by China into India’s territory while he was the Prime Minister of the country and his Congress party of surrendering 43,000 kms of Indian territory during ‘UPA years’. He termed Singh’s remarks ‘mere wordplay’. “Manmohan Singh belongs to the same party which: Helplessly surrendered over 43,000 KM of Indian territory to the Chinese! During the UPA years saw abject strategic and territorial surrender without a fight. As PM, Singh abjectly surrender hundred square kilometres of India’s land to China. He presided over 600 incursions made by China between 2010 to 2013. Singh, rightly, calls for unity. Again, the strong words on paper fall flat when we see exactly who is vitiating the atmosphere of unity... Hope Dr Singh is able to prevail on his own party at least,” Nadda said. The BJP president also demanded that Congress party stop insulting Indian armed forces. In response to Singh’s remarks that “disinformation is no substitute for diplomacy or decisive leadership” Nadda said, “Dear Dr Singh and Congress Party, please stop insulting our forces repeatedly, questioning their valour. You did this post the air strikes and surgical strikes. Please understand the true meaning of national unity. India fully trusts and supports PM Modi. 130 crore Indians have seen his administrative experience in some of the most testing times, particularly how he has always put the well-being of the nation over and above everything.” hospitals since yesterday while a total of 8,687 Covid-19 patients have been cured till now. Subsequently, there has been a decrease in the number of active cases to 5,102. Currently, 20.95 per cent Covid beds are occupied across the state. In the 77 government designated Covid hospitals, 8174 out of 10,340 beds are unoccupied and in 29 private hospitals, 336 out of 918 Covid beds are vacant. the number of recovered patients has crossed the number of active patients by 62,808,” the ministry said. The Covid-19 testing infrastructure is continu- Udumalpet ‘Honour Killing’ accused acquitted by HC CHENNAI, 22 JUNE The Madras High Court on Tuesday acquitted B Chinnasamy, accused number one, in the sensational Udumalpet Sankar honour killing case, of all charges, including that of criminal conspiracy. Chinnaswami is father of Kausalya, who’s husband Sankar has been killed by a gang alleged to hired by the Kausalya’s family. The court also upheld the acquittal of her mother C Annalakshmi and two others by the trial court. V Sankar, a mechanical engineering student belonging to a Scheduled Caste, was hacked to death by an armed gang on broad day light. PTI Details on Page 4 SC allows Puri Rath Yatra with conditions STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 22 JUNE The Supreme Court on Monday allowed the Puri Rath Yatra of Lord Jagganath with conditions and asked the state government and the Centre to work out measures so that there is no big gathering of people and no violation of social distancing during pandemic. A bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde left it to the Odisha government to decide to stop the Rath Yatra, if it observes a spike in the number of Covid-19 cases in Puri. The Rath Yatra is scheduled on 23 June. During the hearing, the Chief Justice noted that the court is willing to modify its 18 June order which put a stay ‘INDIA WON THE MATCH FAIR AND SQUARE’ P12 India, China India Covid-19 cases per hold fresh lakh lowest in world: Govt round of talks WEATHER Max.95% RIL BECOMES 1ST INDIAN CO TO HIT $150BN MARKET CAP  The court directed the Rath Yatra with a condition that no devotee congregation be allowed. on the Rath Yatra in the backdrop of the pandemic. The apex court said that the Jagannath Temple management committee and state government can conduct the Rath Yatra in accordance with the guidelines. The court directed the Rath Yatra with a condition that no devotee congregation be allowed.  All sevayats and pandas who are tested negative can participate as decided by Shankracharya. The Odisha government agreed to coordinate with the Centre. The Chief Justice reiterated that the state government is free to stop the festival, if there are signs which endanger public health and safety. “We are only allowing this (Rath Yatra) to be done on certain conditions,” said the court. Recalling its 18 June order, the apex court observed that any spread of Covid-19 due to this will be disastrous since large numbers are involved. “It won’t be possible to track everyone after they go back home,” added the court. Earlier, the Centre told the top court that if the ban on the Puri Rath Yatra was not lifted and if traditions were broken, stopping Lord Jagannath from taking his chariot ride starting Tuesday, then as per norm, the Hindu god will not be able to have a Rath Yatra for the next 12 years. The Centre told the apex court that the RathYatra can be held without public participation. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, submitted before the bench that the tradition of cen- turies may not be stopped. “It’d be a matter of faith for crores of people. If Lord Jagannath will not come out tomorrow, he cannot come out for 12 years as per traditions. While maintaining the precautions to ensure that the pandemic is not spread further, the state government can impose curfew for a day.” He emphasised that all sevayats and pandas who are tested negative can participate in rituals as decided by Shankracharya. SC had earlier banned all related activities to Rath Yatra festival. “People may not congregate. Rather they can seek blessings on TV during livetelecast…Raja of Puri and the temple committee may supervise arrangements of the rituals,” Mehta had said. Details on Page 4 CMYK ously being ramped up and number of government labs has been increased to 723 and the private labs to 262, adding up to a total of 985, it said. According to the Indian Council of Medical Research, a total of 69,50,493 samples have been tested up to 21 June, 1,43,267 of them just on Sunday. On Monday, the country added 14,821 new Covid19 cases in a single day, pushing the tally to 4,25,282, while the death toll rose to 13,699 with 445 new fatalities reported till 8 am. The country breached the four lakh-mark on Sunday, eight days after crossing three lakh COVID-19 cases. It has recorded 2,34,747 infections since June 1. Monday was the 11th day in a row when the country registered over 10,000 cases. on border row STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 22 JUNE Corps Commanders from India and China today held another round of talks at which India is believed to have insisted on the restoration of the status quo ante that existed in Eastern Ladakh in the first week of May. The meeting between 14 Corps commander, Lt Gen Harinder Singh and South Xinjiang Military District chief Major Gen Liu Lin, which began around 1130 hrs at Chushul-Moldo, was continuing even after eight hours. Sources said the talks were more or less on the lines of the discussions the two generals had held on 6 June. Tension on the border has increased after the Galwan Valley incident of 15 June in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed, while China has maintained silence over the number of casualties on its side. Sources said the fresh round of talks was aimed at de-escalation of the situation on the border, restoration of the status quo ante and overall peace and tranquility in the region. The military commanders will also seek to ensure that the Galwan Valley-type clashes don’t occur anywhere on the borders. Apprehensions of the escalation in the situation have gone up following amassing of troops and war machinery by both sides. Army chief reviews situation at LAC with top commanders NEW DELHI, 22 JUNE Army Chief, Gen M M Naravane today reviewed his force’s operational preparedness on both the Northern and Western Fronts in the wake of the bloody clash between Indian and Chinese troops at the Galwan Valley in Ladakh on 15 June in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed. All commanders are in the national capital for the second phase of the commanders’ conference, the Indian Army said. Gen Naravane is believed to have briefed his top commanders on the situation at Ladakh and the ongoing militarylevel negotiations. SNS