CMYK TUESDAY www.thestatesman.com 08 SEPTEMBER 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 ASSANGE IN UK COURT TO FIGHT US EXTRADITION BID ‘SHOW MAXIMUM FLEXIBILITY IN IMPLEMENTING NEP’ P10 P5 WEATHER Generally cloudy sky. One or two spells of thundershower. Temperature will be in the range of 34-28 degrees Celsius. NITISH HIGHLIGHTS BIHAR NDA GOVT’S DEVELOPMENT WORK P5 Max.92% SNS & PTI STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE BALASORE/NEW DELHI, 7 SEPTEMBER DMRC, commuters tread with caution after a five-month hiatus Min. 64% Max: 33.5°C (1) Min: 28.1°C (2) SUN RISES SUN SETS 05:21 hrs 17:48 hrs MOON RISES MOON SETS 21:00 hrs 9:21 hrs Moon next quarter on 10 September THUMBNAILS Migrant labourers rest outside the departure lounge of Dum Dum Airport as their flights got cancelled during a day-long lockdown. In Kolkata on Monday. AFP Sputnik V vaccine trials in India soon: The clinical trials of Sputnik V vaccine for coronavirus will be held this month in several countries including India, confirmed Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) on Monday. Dmitriev told Sputnik that the clinical trials in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, the Phillippines, India and Brazil will begin this month. The development comes as Russia had said it is looking forward for a partnership with India for producing Covid vaccine. Why no ban on disinfectant tunnels?: The Supreme Court asked the Centre on Monday as to why it has not banned the use of tunnels for disinfecting people for Covid-19 despite taking the stand that spraying of chemical disinfectants is physically and psychologically harmful. A bench headed by Justices Ashok Bhushan, R Subhash Reddy and M R Shah was told that the Health Ministry has not issued any advisory on use of ultraviolet lights for disinfection of humans for Covid management. P4 NEW DELHI, 7 SEPTEMBER BACK ON TRACK he Delhi Metro resumed services with curtailed operations on the Yellow Line on Monday after being closed for over five months due to the Covid-19 pandemic, as both the DMRC and the commuters trod with caution amidst the new normal in the rapid transport system. The trains will operate in batches of four-hour each from 7-11 a.m. and 4-8 p.m, officials said. The services resumed at 7 a.m. with strict safety and social distancing measures in place. The first trains left from Samaypur Badli station to HUDA City Centre station and simultaneously from HUDA City Centre to Samaypur Badli, a senior official of DMRC said. As the day began, some riders wearing protective masks were seen entering the premises of key stations like Kashmere Gate and Hauz Khas on the Yellow Line, which connects Samyapur Badli in Delhi to HUDA City Centre in Gurgaon. “A few happy faces from our first journey after more than 5 months. #MetroBackOnTrack,” the DMRC said in another tweet and posted pictures of some commuters wearing masks inside train coaches. On the station premises, passengers were permitted to enter the concourse only after temperature checks with thermal guns and sanitisation of hands. Hundreds of Delhi Metro ground staff and A view of Delhi Metro Rail service (Yellow line) after 169 days of lockdown to prevent Covid-19 pandemic, in the Capital on Monday.  DEEPAK T  The trains will operate in two four-hour batches from 7-11 a.m. and 4-8 p.m in New Delhi.  The Chennai Metro Rail services in Tamil Nadu recommenced operations. Passenger trains in the state also resumed services after a two-month break Central Industrial Security Force personnel wore face shields, masks and gloves as preventive measures against the pathogen. The Home Ministry had recently issued guidelines allowing Metro services in the country to resume operations in a graded manner, following which the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) had said it would be done in three stages from 7-12 September . After a five-month plus hiatus, the Chennai Metro Rail services in Tamil Nadu recommenced operations on Monday. Similarly, trains within the state also resumed services after a break of about two months. Notably, passenger trains and long-distance buses to Chennai city from other parts of Tamil Nadu and services from the state capital began on Monday after they ceased in March owing to Covid-19. When the first Metro train departed from the Airport to Washermenpet, at 7 a.m., Industries minister M C Sampath was among those who boarded the train and he travelled up to Nandanam station. Train stoppage time at stations has been increased from 20 seconds to 50 seconds to facilitate passengers to de-board and board by maintaining social distancing and also to ensure fresh air circulation. Stickers were stuck and markings have been made both in trains and platforms so that passengers could sit on alternate seats to ensure social distancing. The Metro rail has begun operations in the Blueline between Airport and Washermanpet via Anna Salai; services in the Greenline from St Thomas Mount to MGR Central Metro would start from 9 September. Metro Rail services in Kochi resumed on Monday after being suspended for five months due to the Covid-19 lockdown even as Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated the newly finished Thykoodam-Pettah stretch. The Metro services between Thykoodam and Aluva resumed at 7 a.m., adhering to Covid-19 protocols. The inauguration of the Thykoodam-Aluva stretch of the Kochi Metro marked the completion of the first phase of the urban transport mobility in the coastal city at a cost of Rs 6,218 crore. Union minister for Civil Aviation and Housing & Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri presided over the function held virtually, hours after the Kochi Metro resumed services. Covid tally goes past 42L; 69k recoveries in 24 hrs SNS&PTI NEW DELHI/KOLKATA, 7 SEPTEMBER India has surpassed Brazil to become the second worsthit in the world by the coronavirus pandemic with a record daily spike of 90,802 cases taking the country’s tally past 42 lakh, Health Ministry data showed this morning. This is the second consecutive day that the country registered over 90,000 new infections in 24 hours. The United States, which has the highest number of Covid19 cases in the world, has over 62.75 lakh Covid infections so far, about 20 lakh more than India The Covid-19 recovery rate in India has risen to 77.31 per cent with 69,564 patients recuperating from the disease in 24 hours pushing the total number of recoveries P12 Metro services resume DRDO: India enters elite in Capital, other cities hypersonic missile club RAINFALL: NIL RELATIVE HUMIDITY TEMPERATURE NEVER BEEN SO CALM, SAYS KOHLI to 32.5 lakh, the Health Ministry said on Monday. The case fatality rate has further dropped to 1.7 per cent, it said. According to the Ministry, five states are contributing 60 per cent of the total cases with Maharashtra at the top accounting for 21.6 per cent cases, followed by Andhra Pradesh with 11.8 per cent, Tamil Nadu 11 per cent, Karnataka 9.5 per cent and Uttar Pradesh 6.3 per cent. Maharashtra also contributed 26.76 per cent of the active cases in the country, followed by Andhra Pradesh 11.30 per cent, Karnataka 11.25 per cent, Uttar Pradesh 6.98 per cent and Tamil Nadu 5.83 per cent. These five states combined presently contribute 62 per cent of total active cases, the Ministry said. “On a continuous upward trajectory, India’s total recovered cases have crossed 32.5 lakh today, with 69,564 patients being discharged in the last 24 hours. This has resulted in the recovery rate touching 77.31 per cent,” it said in a statement. The Ministry said various calibrated and focussed actions undertaken within the umbrella strategy of ‘test, track and treat’ have enabled early identification of cases through aggressive and wide-scale testing. “Better ambulance services and seamless point-topoint management of patients to facilitate their timely hospitalisation before their health deteriorates has led to a high number of Covid-19 patients recovering and being discharged from the hospitals,” the Ministry said. Bengal records sharp one day spike: With the single-day fresh Covid cases in the state surpassing that of discharges, West Bengal today recorded a sharp spike with 3,077 cases and 58 deaths due to infection while 3,021 patients were discharged in the last 24 hours. The total Covid case count is 1,83,865, death toll is 3,620 and number of cured patients stood at 1,57,029. There are 23,216 active Covid cases in the state. Kolkata witnessed a decrease in single-day Covid cases by recording 458 cases and 16 deaths while North 24 Parganas recorded 576 cases and 13 deaths. During the day, 42,216 people were tested for Covid and the rate of positivity is 8.35 per cent. There are 2,445 people in government quarantine cen- Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully demonstrated the hypersonic air-breathing scramjet technology with the flight test of Hypersonic Technology Demonstration Vehicle (HSTDV) at 1103 hours from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Launch Complex atWheeler Island, off the coast of Odisha today. The hypersonic cruise vehicle was launched using a proven solid rocket motor, which took it to an altitude of 30 kilometres (km), where the aerodynamic heat shields were separated at hypersonic Mach number. With the success , India entered the elite club of nations which have mastered HSTDV technology. The cruise vehicle separated from the launch vehicle and the air intake opened as planned. The hypersonic combustion sustained and the cruise vehicle continued on its desired flight path at a velocity of six times the speed of sound i.e., nearly 02 km/second for more than 20 seconds. The critical events like fuel injection and auto ignition of scramjet demonstrated technological maturity. The scramjet engine performed in a text book manner, the Press release said . The parameters of launch and cruise vehicle, including the scramjet engine, were monitored by multiple tracking radars, electro-optical systems Day 2: NCB quizzes Rhea Chakraborty for 8 hours PRESS TRUST OF INDIA MUMBAI, 7 SEPTEMBER 42,04,613 8,82,542 90,802 69,564 71,642 UNION HEALTH MINISTRY FIGURES AS OF 10.00 P.M. MONDAY 07 SEPTEMBER 2020 tres, 63,845 in home quarantine and 1,777 in safe homes. and Telemetry Stations. A ship was also deployed in the Bay of Bengal to monitor the performance during the cruise phase of hypersonic vehicle. All the performance parameters have indicated a resounding success of the mission. With this successful demonstration, many critical technologies such as aerodynamic configuration for hypersonic manoeuvers, use of scramjet propulsion for ignition and sustained combustion at hypersonic flow, thermo-structural characterisation of high temperature materials, separation mechanism at hypersonic velocities etc. were proven. Defence minister Raj- Actress Rhea Chakraborty was questioned by the NCB for around 8 hours on Monday, the second consecutive day of her interrogation, in the drugs case linked to the death of her live-in partner and actor Sushant Singh Rajput. The 28-year-old arrived at the agency’s office in Ballard Estate around 9:30 a.m. and she left around 6 p.m. Dressed in a pink hooded jacket and carrying a bag, Rhea was escorted by police personnel. The actor was questioned for about six hours by the agency for the first time in the case on Sunday. She may be called again for the third such session on Tuesday, officials said. The agency has said that it wants to question Rhea and confront her with her younger brother Showik Chakraborty (24), Rajput’s house manager Samuel Miranda (33) and his house staffer Dipesh Sawant to ascertain their roles in this alleged drug racket after it obtained mobile phone chat records and other electronic data that suggested some banned drugs were allegedly procured by these people. These three men were arrested by the NCB in this case over the last few days. The NCB, meanwhile, has arrested another man, identified as Anuj Keshvani, in the case. The agency had said it seized drugs like hashish, LSD and marijuana and cash after raids conducted against Keshvani on Sunday. A total of nine people have been arrested till now by the NCB with seven directly linked to this probe. nath Singh congratulated DRDO on this landmark achievement towards realising Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat. He also spoke to the scientists associated with the project and congratulated them on this great achievement. India is proud of them, he said. Secretary Department of Defence R&D and Chairman DRDO Dr G Satheesh Reddy congratulated all the scientists, researchers and other personnel related with HSTDV mission for their resolute and unwavering efforts towards strengthening Nation’s defence capabilities. On this successful demonstration, the country entered into the hypersonic regime paving way for advanced hypersonic Vehicle, an official press release further stated. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday lauded the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) for the successful flight of the hypersonic test demonstration vehicle, saying very few countries have such capability today. In a tweet, Modi noted that the scramjet engine developed by scientists helped the flight achieve a speed six times the speed of sound. “Congratulations to @DRDO_India for successful flight of the Hypersonic Test Demonstration Vehicle today. The scramjet engine developed by our scientists helped the flight achieve a speed 6 times the speed of sound! Very few countries have such capability today,” he said. (SNS photograph) Kangana given Y-plus security NEW DELHI, 7 SEPTEMBER Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut has been given Y-plus category security by Central security agencies and will be protected by about 10 armed commandos around the clock, Union Home ministry officials said. The decision comes two days before Ranaut, who is in her home state Himachal Pradesh, said she plans to visit Mumbai on 9 September. She said she felt unsafe in Mumbai after the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput and also spoke of drug use in Bollywood film industry. The Y-plus category central cover entails the deployment of about 10 armed commandos with the protectee round the clock. BJP leader Ram Kadam had asked the Sena government to provide police protection to Ranaut since “she wanted to expose Bollywood drug nexus”. Details on Page 5 Djoker sent packing from US Open after hitting line judge with ball ASSOCIATED PRESS NEW YORK, 7 SEPTEMBER Novak Djokovic was kicked out of the US Open for accidentally hitting a line judge in the throat with a tennis ball after dropping a game in his fourthround match, a stunning end to his 29-match winning streak and bid for an 18th Grand Slam title. As he walked to the Arthur Ashe Stadium sideline for a changeover on Sunday, trailing Pablo Carreo Busta 6-5 in the first set, Djokovic who was seeded and ranked No. 1 and an overwhelming favourite for the championship angrily smacked a ball behind him. The ball flew right at the line judge, who dropped to her knees at the back of the court and reached for her neck. During a discussion of about 10 minutes near the net involving tournament referee Soeren Friemel, Grand Slam supervisor Andreas Egli and chair umpire Aurelie Tourte, Djokovic pleaded his case. “His point was that he didn’t hit the line umpire intentionally. He said, ‘Yes, I was angry. I hit the ball. I hit the line umpire. The facts are very clear. But it wasn’t my intent. I didn’t do it on purpose.’ So he said he shouldn’t be defaulted for it, said Friemel, who made the decision to end the match. “And we all agree that he didn’t do it on purpose, but the facts are still that he hit the line umpire and the line umpire was clearly hurt.” Friemel didn’t see what happened, and said he was not allowed to check a video replay, but was given a rundown by Egli and Tourte. Friemel said that even if Djokovic didn’t intend to hurt the line judge, she was hurt, and that was enough to merit the ruling. Eventually, Djokovic walked over to shake hands with Carreo Busta. Tourte then announced that Djokovic was defaulted, the tennis equivalent of an ejection. “I was a little bit in shock, no?” Carreo Busta said later at a news conference done via video conference because of social-distancing rules at the US Open, the first Grand Slam tournament staged amid the coronavirus pandemic. Novak Djokovic of Serbia tends to a line judge who was hit with the ball during his Men’s Singles fourth round match of the 2020 US Open late Sunday in the Queens borough of NYC.  AFP Djokovic quickly left the tournament grounds, posting an apology on social media hours later. “This whole situation has left me really sad and empty. I checked on the lines person and the tournament told me CMYK that thank God she is feeling ok. I’m extremely sorry to have caused her such stress. So unintended. So wrong,” he wrote. “As for the disqualification, I need to go back within and work on my disappointment and turn this all into a lesson for my growth and evolution as a player and human being,” he wrote. “I apologise to the @usopen tournament and everyone associated for my behavior.” Asked whether he thought Djokovic should have been allowed to continue to play, Carreo Busta shrugged and replied: “Well, the rules are the rules. ... The referee and the supervisor (did) the right thing, but it’s not easy to do it.” Indeed, the US Tennis Association issued a statement saying that Friemel defaulted Djokovic “in accordance with the Grand Slam rulebook, following his actions of intentionally hitting a ball dangerously or recklessly within the court or hitting a ball with negligent disregard of the consequences.” The USTA went on to say Djokovic forfeits the ranking points and $250,000 in prize money he earned in the tournament”in addition to any or all fines levied with respect to the offending incident.” “Novak was angry. He hit the ball recklessly, angrily back. There was no discretion involved,” Friemel said. This was the latest example of Djokovic finding himself at the centre of the ten- nis world for a reason other than his best-in-the-game returns, can’t-miss groundstrokes and body-contorting defensive prowess. Djokovic tested positive for the coronavirus as did his wife, one of his coaches and other players after participating in a series of exhibition matches with zero social distancing he organised in Serbia and Croatia in June. With reigning US Open champion Rafael Nadal, who cited concerns about travelling amid the coronavirus pandemic, and Federer, sidelined after two knee operations, not in the field, the 33-yearold from Serbia was expected to claim a fourth trophy in New York and gain on them.