CMYK MONDAY www.thestatesman.com 01 MARCH 2021 FIND US ONLINE Scan this with your smartphone twitter.com/TheStatesmanLtd facebook.com/thestatesman1875 Pages 12 |` 5.00|LC KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR REMOVE ME IF YOU CAN: OLI TO PRACHANDA ‘AGRI LAWS ARE DEATH WARRANTS FOR FARMERS’ P9 P5 P10 Mainly clear sky. Temperature likely to in the range of 36-23 degrees Celsius. RAINFALL: Nil RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max. 95% TEMPERATURE Min. 27% Max: 36.6°C (+5) Min: 22.6°C (+3) SUN RISES SUN SETS 06:05 hrs 17:46 hrs MOON SETS MOON RISES 17:40 hrs 06:00 hrs Next moon quarter on 06 March Around 30 wounded as forces fire on protesters ASSOCIATED PRESS YANGON, 28 FEBRUARY Leaders of the Left Front, Congress and ISF at Sunday’s rally at the Brigade Parade ground in Kolkata. SNS Group claims responsibility for planting explosives-laden SUV: An organisation named Jaishl ul-Hind has claimed the responsibility for placing an explosives-laden SUV near industrialist Mukesh Ambani's house in south Mumbai, police said on Sunday. A senior police official said that all possible angles were being investigated in this connection. The outfit claimed the responsibility by posting a message on social messaging app Telegram. STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE India on Sunday registered 16,752 new cases, the biggest single-day jump in number of cases in a month and reported 113 deaths in the last 24 hours Six states ~ Maharashtra, Kerala, Punjab, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat ~ account for 86.37 per cent of the new cases, a press statement the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said. The total number of active Covid-19 cases are 1,64,511, which comprises 1.48 per cent of the country's total infections. Among the states, Maharashtra continues to report the highest daily new cases at 8,623, followed by Ker- The next phase of the Covid-19 vaccination drive for people above 60 years and those aged 45 and above with comorbidities will begin from March 1. Registration on the CoWIN2.0 portal will open at 9 a.m. ala with 3,792 while Punjab reported 593 new cases. Maharashtra saw the maximum casualties with 51, Kerala follows with 18 deaths and Punjab reported 11 deaths. “The Centre has been engaging with the States and UTs exhibiting a higher caseload of active cases and those reporting a spike in the daily new Covid cases,” said the statement. West Bengal on Sunday reported 192 fresh Covid-19 cases and 2 deaths, with Kolkata accounting for 70 cases and one death. The state currently has 3,307 active cases. The country is all set to start the second phase of Covid-19 vaccination on 1 March 2021 for those who are over 60 years of age and for people aged 45 and above with specified comorbid conditions.To rampup the Covid-19 vaccination capacity, around 10,000 private hospitals under the Ayushman Bharat-PMJAY and over 600 private hospitals under the central government health scheme will be utilised. Atmanirbhar Bharat a national spirit: Modi SNS & PTI NEW DELHI, 28 FEBRUARY Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday stressed that Atmanirbhar Bharat is not just a government policy but also a national spirit, and said the mantra of self-reliant India is reaching villages of the country. In his monthly Mann Ki Baat radio programme, Modi also called for a 100-day campaign to clean up all water bodies and prepare them for rain water harvesting before monsoon starts. Stressing the importance of collective responsibility towards water conservation, he said the Union Jal Shakti Ministry will soon initiate a “Catch the rain” campaign with its main theme being “catch the rain, where it falls, when it falls”. Conveying greetings on the National Science Day, (PAGE 3) India records biggest jump in daily new Covid cases in 30 days NEW DELHI, 28 FEBRUARY Maharashtra minister quits: Maharashtra minister Sanjay Rathod, facing flak from the BJP over a woman's death in Pune, on Sunday resigned from the state cabinet, a day before the state legislature's budget session starts here. Shortly after Rathod announced that he had submitted his resignation to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, the latter said the resignation has been accepted. “There has been a lot of dirty politics over the issue of the woman's death,” Rathod told reporters, adding he has quit so that the truth can come out. P5 ecurity forces in Myanmar opened fire and made mass arrests Sunday as they sought to break up protests against the military's seizure of power, and a UN human rights official said it had credible information that 18 people were killed and 30 were wounded. That would be the highest single-day death toll among protesters who are demanding that the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi be restored to power after being ousted by a 1 February coup. Deaths reportedly occurred as a result of live ammunition fired into crowds in the cities of Yangon, Dawei, Mandalay, Myeik, Bago and Pokokku, the UN Human Rights Office said in a statement, adding that the forces also used tear gas, flash-bang grenades and stun grenades. “We strongly condemn the escalating violence against protests in Myanmar and call on the military to immediately halt the use of force against peaceful protesters,” its spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani was quoted saying. An Associated Press journalist was taken into police custody on Saturday morning while providing news coverage of the protests. The journalist, Thein Zaw, remains in police custody. The Democratic Voice of Burma reported that as of 5 p.m. in Myanmar, there S THUMBNAILS Voters wait for their turn to cast their ballot during Municipal By-polls at Shalimar Bagh area, in the capital on Sunday. SNS P12 At least 18 dead in Myanmar crackdown: UN THE BIG SHOW WEATHER PCB CONCERNS ABOUT VISA FOR T20 WORLD CUP NEW YORK GOVERNOR FACES 2ND SEXUAL HARASSMENT CLAIM Modi noted that this day is dedicated to the discovery of Raman Effect' by the great scientist of India, Dr C V Raman. Asserting that there is a lot of contribution of the power of science in the Atmanirbhar Bharat campaign, Modi said there is a need to make science more popular and that science cannot be limited to physicschemistry and labs. He called for expanding science with a mantra of 'lab to land'. Modi said water has been crucial for the development of humankind for centuries and people should understand their collective responsibility towards its conservation. He said that in most parts of India, rainfall begins in May-June and asked “can we right away start a 100-day campaign for the sake of cleaning up water sources around us and conserving rainwater”. With this thought in mind, in a few days from now, 'Jal Shakti Abhiyan Catch the rain' is being initiated by the Jal Shakti Ministry, he said. “We shall commit ourselves to the task right nowwe shall get existing rainwater harvesting systems repaired, clean up lakes and ponds in villages, remove impediments in the way of water flowing into water sources; thus we shall be able to conserve rainwater to the maximum,” he said. Modi highlighted an asser- tion made by a person who had written to him from Kolkata that the Atmanirbhar Bharat campaign is not just a government policy but also a national spirit, and said this was hundred per cent correct. When every person in the country takes pride in indigenous products and connects with the idea of self-reliance, Atmanirbhar Bharat doesn't just remain an economic campaign but becomes a national spirit, he said. “When we see fighter plane Tejas made in our own country doing acrobatics in the sky, when Made in India tanks, Made in India missiles increase our pride, when we see Made in India coaches in Metro trains in wealthy-advanced nations, when we see Made in India Corona vaccines reaching dozens of countries, then our heads are held high,” Modi said. 1,10,96,731 1,64,511 16,752 11,718 1,57,051 UNION HEALTH MINISTRY FIGURES AS OF 8.00 A.M. SUNDAY 28 FEBRUARY 2021 had been 19 confirmed deaths in nine cities, with another 10 deaths unconfirmed. The independent media company broadcasts on satellite and digital terrestrial television, as well as online. DVB counted five deaths in Yangon and two in Mandalay, the largest and second-largest cities. It registered five deaths in Dawei, a much smaller city in southeastern Myanmar that has seen tens of thousands of protesters nearly every day since the coup. Witnesses said Sunday's march was also large and people were determined not to be driven off the streets. Confirming the deaths of protesters has been difficult amid the chaos and general lack of news from official sources, especially in areas outside Yangon, Mandalay and the capital of Naypyitaw. But in many cases, photos and video circulated showed circumstances of the killings and gruesome photos of bodies. Initial reports on social Always told China that normal ties contingent on peace at border: FS PRESS TRUST OF INDIA NEW DELHI, 28 FEBRUARY India has always stressed in interactions with Chinese interlocutors that a normal bilateral relationship is contingent on peace and tranquillity in the border areas, foreign secretary HarshVardhan Shringla said on Sunday. Underlining that China is the second-largest economy in the world and India has a large trade profile with it, Shringla said clearly India has to continue to work on the economic relationship with the neighbouring country, but it has to be calibrated based on the progress on important issues that are critical to both countries politically. Talking about the “recent disturbances” on the India- Shringla said India has to continue to work on the economic relationship with China, but it has to be calibrated based on the progress on important issues critical to both countries China border areas in Eastern Ladakh, Shringla, while speaking at a session of the Asia Economic Dialogue, said, “We in our interactions with our Chinese interlocutors have always made the point that a normal bilateral relationship is contingent upon peace and tranquility in the border areas.” “Now as we disengage and as there is some forward movement in the resolution of some of the recent border friction points...obviously we have to see what else is required,” he said. “It is a very long border that we have with China and we are only talking about one small point on the border... We are trying to now see whether we can apply similar principles in sorting out some of the other areas which are in the Ladakh sector, some other sectors that we are talking about, and to see how else we can move forward on the issue of managing our long but contentious border with China in a manner that allows both countries to sort of maintain a level of semblance of normalcy,” the foreign secretary said. Student-built satellites, Modi image, Gitaride into space on PSLV -C51 PRESS TRUST OF INDIA SRIHARIKOTA, 28 FEBRUARY In the first dedicated mission of its commercial arm NSIL, ISRO on Sunday successfully launched Brazil's earth observation satellite Amazonia-1 and 18 co-passengers, including five built by students, onboard a PSLV rocket from the spaceport here. The satellites were placed in precise orbits one after another after the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle PSLV-C51 lifted off at 10.24 a.m. from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SHAR), in the first mission this year for the Indian Space Research Organisation. ISRO’s tally of foreign sattelites launched rose to 342 with today's mission. The co-passengers included Satish Dhawan Satellite (SDSAT) nano satellite from Chennai-based Space Kidz India (SKI) which is engraved with a picture of Prime Minister Modi and also carried the Bhagavad Gita in a Secured Digital card format. According to SKI, the picture of Modi has been engraved on the top panel of the spacecraft to show solidarity and gratitude for his Atma Nirb- har initiative and space sector reforms. Of the five built by students, the SD-SAT is intended to study radiation levels among others, while UNITYsat, a three- in-one satellite built by universities, is for providing radio relay service and SindhuNetra developed by Bengaluru-based PES University would be used for identifying suspicious ships through satellite imaging, officials said. Amazonia-1, a fully Brazil built satellite with a mission life of four years, is intended for providing remote sensing data to users for monitoring deforestation in the Amazon region and analysis of diversified agriculture across the Brazilian territory. SKI said besides the picture of Modi, it was also sending 25,000 names on-board the SD-SAT. “Congratulations to NSIL (NewSpace India Limited) and @isro on the success of the 1st dedicated commercial launch of PSLV-C51/Amazonia-1 Mission. This ushers in a new era of space reforms in the country,” Modi tweeted. The prime minister also congratulated Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro on the successful launch of Amazonia1, and said this is a historic moment in space cooperation between the two countries. Earlier, at the end of the 25.5 hour countdown, the fourstage 44.4 metre tall PSLV, a workhorse launch vehicle of ISRO in its 53rd mission, soared into a clear sky at the scheduled time of 10.24 am from the first launch pad here, CMYK over 100 kms from Chennai. “After a flight of about 17 minutes, the vehicle injected the Amazonia-1 into its intended orbit and in the succeeding 1 hour 38 minutes, all 18 co-passenger satellites successfully separated from the PSLV in a pre-determined sequence,” the ISRO said. Describing it as a special mission for the country, ISRO Chairman K Sivan said the agency guided the universities in building the satellites, adding it will enthuse industry and academic institutions to build their own satellites in future. Sivan, also the secretary, Department of Space, said the mission was also special as the five satellites come under the new space reforms announced by the Union gov- ernment last year. The Centre has decided to open up the space sector to private enterprises to carry out space activities like building rockets, satellites and providing launch services. Sunday's mission was also the first dedicated launch by the New Space India Limited (NSIL), a PSU set up under the Department of Space in 2019, which undertook it under a commercial arrangement with Spaceflight Inc, a satellite rideshare and mission management provider based in Seattle, USA. The co-passenger satellites placed in orbit include four from ISRO's Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) and 14 from NSIL, including 13 from the USA. media identified one young man believed to have been killed. His body was shown in photos and videos lying on a sidewalk until other protesters carried him away. In Dawei, local media reported at least three people were killed during a protest march, supported by photos and video. Photos on social media showed one wounded man in the care of medical personnel. Before Sunday, there had been eight confirmed reports of killings linked to the army's takeover, according to the independent Assistance Association of Political Prisoners. The 1 February coup reversed years of slow progress toward democracy after five decades of military rule. Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy party would have been installed for a second fiveyear term in office, but the army blocked Parliament from convening and detained her and President Win Myint, as well as other top members of Suu Kyi's government. See also Page 9 Woman stabbed to death during Delhi robbery bid, two arrested NEW DELHI, 28 FEBRUARY A 25-year-old woman was stabbed to death while resisting a chain-snatching bid in northwest Delhi's Adarsh Nagar area, police said on Sunday. A senior police officer said the woman, Simran Kaur, was returning home from the market along with her two-year-old daughter and mother when the incident occurred around 9:30 pm on Saturday. Police said they have arrested two men in connection with the incident. The accused have been identified as Fardeen (19) and Aqibul (22), both residents of Jahangir Puri, they said, adding that Aqibul allegedly stabbed the woman during the snatching bid. The incident occurred hardly 20 metres from the her house and there is a police post around 100 metres from the spot. The accused stabbed the victim and fled, police said, adding that she was taken to a hospital where she was declared brought dead. A CCTV footage of the incident went viral on social media. In the video, the two women can be seen walking when a man chases them and tries to snatch the victim's chain from behind. Simran chases the man following which he falls on the road. Thereafter, he stands up, stabs her and flees from the spot. Police said they received information that a woman had been stabbed by two men who were on a scooter. The victim was taken to Fortis Hospital in Shalimar Bagh where she succumbed to injuries, police said. A case under section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code was registered and investigation was taken up, police PTI said.