SUNDAY www.thestatesman.com 16 JANUARY 2022 FIND US ONLINE Scan this with your smartphone twitter.com/TheStatesmanLtd facebook.com/thestatesman1875 Pages 12 | `5.00 |LC KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR TELANGANA INVITE TO MUSK SETS OFF WORDY DUEL P4 WEATHER PARTLY CLOUDY SKY. MODERATE FOG IN THE MORNING. COLD DAY CONDITIONS AT MANY PLACES. THE MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM TEMPERATURES WOULD BE AROUND 14 AND 06 DEGREES CELSIUS RESPECTIVELY. RAINFALL: Nil RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max: 100% P6 P7 Bengal civic polls deferred to 12 Feb STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Min: 06.1°C (-1) SUN SETS 17:47 hrs MOON SETS 06:50 hrs THUMBNAILS An artist makes a mural of healthcare workers during the weekend curfew in New Delhi on Saturday. ANI Channi, Sidhu in Cong’s first list of 86 candidates for Punjab Assembly polls: The Congress on Saturday declared its first list of candidates for the Punjab Assembly poll, with Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi to contest from his current segment Chamkaur Sahib and state unit president Navjot Singh Sidhu from his current segment of Amritsar East. While deputy Chief Minister Om Prakash Soni will contest PG3 from Amritsar Central, his current seat. KOLKATA 15 JANUARY I n view of the rising Covid cases, the West Bengal State Election Commission (SEC) today decided to postpone the elections to four civic bodies scheduled later this month to 12 February. The municipal elections in Asansol, Bidhannagar, Siliguri and Chandannagar were slated to be held on 22 January and results were scheduled to be announced on 25 January.The commission, however, is yet to announce the fresh date for counting of votes. The move comes after Calcutta High Court on Friday asked the commission to explore the possibility of deferring the polls by four to six weeks in view of a high number of Covid cases. A division bench headed by chief justice Prakash Shrivastava had told the Farmers' 'Mission UP' on 1 Feb if demands not met: The Samyukt Kisan Morcha said on Saturday that it will hit the ground again from 1 February by launching a ‘Mission UP' movement if the government does not relent to their demands. Led by SKM leader Rakesh Tikait, a team of farmers would embark on a three-day tour of Lakhimpur Kheri from 21 January and meet the families of the victims of the violence. No licence needed for EV charging station: In a bid to promote electric vehicles in the country, the government revised its Charging Infrastructure for Electric Vehicles (EV) guidelines and allowed any individual or entity to set up public charging stations (PCS) without a license.The Power Ministry has outlined an exhaustive list of compliance requirements for PCS, which include appropriate infrastructure for civil, electricity and safety requirements. Devotees return to Kolkata from Gangasagar. SNS The municipal elections in Asansol, Bidhannagar, Siliguri & Chandannagar were slated to be held on 22 Jan and results were scheduled to be announced on 25 January. commission to take a decision within a period of 48 hours. Sources said the decision to defer the polls was taken after the state government wrote a letter to the commission this morning stating that they don’t have any objection if the commission postpones the polls considering the Covid situation. The notification issued by SEC said: “In compliance with the solemn Order dated 13.01 .2022 of the Hon’ble Division Bench, High Court Calcutta, in the matterWPA(P) No. 4 of 2022 Bimal Bhat- tacharya vs State of West Bengal and others, the West Bengal State Election Commission, on consideration of the prevalent pandemic situation, in exercise of the power conferred by Section 8 of the West Bengal State Election Commission Act, 1994 read with Section 84 of theWest Bengal Municipal Elections Act, 1994, in modification of its earlier notification No. 1347SEC/LE-9912021 dated 28.12.2021 in respect of the Municipal Corporations mentioned in the schedule below, hereby appoints the 12th day of NEW DELHI, 15 JANUARY In wake of the third wave of Covid, the Election Commission of India on Saturday put a ban on physical rallies in the five states going on polls till 22 January. The decision was taken after having virtual meetings with the senior officials of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the Chief Secretaries and Health Secretaries of Goa, Manipur, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. The Chief Elec- toral Officers of these five poll going States were also present in the virtual meeting. In its order, the Commission said there would be no road show, Padyatra, cycle/bike/vehicle rally and procession till 22 January, 2022. The Commission would subsequently review the situation and issue further instructions accordingly, said a senior officer of the Election Commission. The Commission, however, has granted relaxation for the political parties to the extent that indoor meetings of maximum of 300 persons or 50pe cent of the capacity of the hall or the prescribed limit set by SDMA would be allowed. The Commission told all political parties to ensure the compliance of Covid appropriate behavior and guidelines and MCC at all occasions during the activities connected with elections. In addition to this all remaining restrictions as contained in the Revised Broad Guidelines for Conduct of Elections, 2022 issued on 8 January 2022 would NEW DELHI, 15 JANUARY In a move aimed at nipping in the bud all speculations about whether Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath will contest from Gorakhpur, which returned him to the Lok Sabha for five consecutive terms, or Ayodhya, the BJP on Saturday officially declaredYogi as the party’s candidates from Gorakhpur for the coming Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. The announcement about Yogi Adityanath’s candidature came at a joint press conference here by Union minister and BJP in-charge of Uttar Pradesh Dharmendra VIRAT KOHLI AS For the first phase names of 57 candidates out of the total 58 and for the second phase a total of 48 of the total 55 seats were announced. dates from all strata of the society and social and economic background. Dharmendra Pradhan said 15 crore electorate of Uttar Pradesh were set to give their mandate for the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s development agenda on the promise of getting the state rid of gundaraj under Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s leadership. He claimed the BJP would come back to power in the coming elections with a margin of over 300 seats. “We are sure that people will vote us to victory (in the UP polls) by over 300 seats,” Pradhan said. Only Yogi Adityanath and his deputy in the UP government Keshav Prasad Maurya’s names figure in the list of candidates for the 6th and 5th phase respectively of the assembly polls. things. "He'd been displaying a tightrope walk and chose to end it today," they said. Kohli, it will be recalled, had earlier said that Ganguly never told him not to do that but Sharma's subsequent, contradictory assertion left him in a nowhere-to-hide situation. As India did not really want two captains in white-ball cricket,andRohitSharmahadbeenchosen Twenty20 leader, Kohli found himselfsurplustoIndia'srequirements as a limited-overs skipper. “He might have carried on as Test captain if the three-match series against South Africa could be won but the unbudgeted-for series defeat was yet another setback that he found himself unequal to cope with,” said the sources, adding: "And it didn't really help that he had also failed to recover from a form slump. He did play a good knock but that didn't suffice." According to the sources, Kohli stopped calling the shots in his own, allegedly self-centred way once the BCCI changed the team management, with team selection coming to reflect new coach Rahul Dravid's way of thinking. Kohli might yet have to explain his preSouth Africa tour Press conference, though, and the International Cricket Council could be pressured into taking action against him and some other Indians for their ugly confrontation with an umpire in the ill-fated Cape Town Test yesterday. More reports on Page 12 TEST CAPTAIN TESTS WON LOST DRAWN 68 40 17 1 WIN PERCENTAGE: 58.82% PULAKESH MUKHOPADHYAY KOLKATA, 15 JANUARY It had been on the cards but that did not mean it was bereft of any shock value when it came just a day after a resounding defeat. Even if it by now was only an escape act. Virat Kohli's self-decided resignation as the Test team’s captain today had sources close to the Board of Control for Cricket in India saying that he had had no alternative to this after Chetan Sharma, chairman of selectors, endorsed Sourav Ganguly's statement that the New Delhi boy bypassed a suggestion not to call it quits as the country's Twenty20 captain. Sharma was unequivocal in stating his side of PROUD MOMENT 3,68,50,962 14,17,820 2,68,833 1,22,684 4,85,752 UNION HEALTH MINISTRY FIGURES AS OF 8.00 A.M. SATURDAY 15 JANUARY 2022 continue to operate, the Commission stated. Yogi to contest his 1st Assembly poll from Gorakhpur Pradhan and national general secretary in charge of party headquarters Arun Singh in which the party declared the list of candidates for the first and second phase of the polls in Uttar Pradesh. ForYogi Adityanath who has never contested for Assembly elections winning from Gorakhpur may as well turn out to be a turning point in his political career, political experts said here. For the first phase names of 57 candidates out of the total 58 and for the second phase a total of 48 of the total 55 seats were announced. Pradhan claim today’s list was ‘sarva samaveshi’ or all encompassing comprising candi- P12 KOHLI GOODBYE H I D February, 2022, as the date on which the poll shall be taken from 07.00 AM to 05.00 PM, without interruption.” There's a possibility that elections in 107 municipalities and Howrah Municipal Corporation could also be held on 22 February 2022. Sources in the commission said that the commission might speak to the Disaster Management Department to decide the modalities and other aspects related to this election. Sources in the commission said that as the filing of nominations is over, so there will be no changes there. The commission will have to work out the other modalities and will announce the details very soon. Bengal registered 19,064 fresh cases and 39 deaths while Kolkata registered 4,831 cases and 12 deaths. EC extends ban on physical public rallies till 22 Jan STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE SINDHU OUSTED IN SEMIS HC had asked SEC to consider deferment in view of Covid surge Min: 72% TEMPERATURE Max: 14.8°C (-5) SUN RISES 07:15 hrs MOON RISES 16:17 hrs CONFRONTING GLOBAL RACISM NEW RESPONSES The rest of the names for the two phases will be declared as the polls progress. Pradhan said when Yogi Adityanath was informed about the party’s central election committee’s decision to field him from Gorakhpur he gladly accepted the offer saying he was ready to contest from any seat the party deemed fit. In response to a question he denied that because Yogi insisted on contesting from Gorakhpur the party agreed to his demand. The party decided to field Keshav Prasad Maurya from Sirathu Assembly seat in Prayagraj district. The polling for Gorakhpur seat will take place on 3 March. Monumental National Flag, the world's largest Khadi national flag, displayed along the India-Pakistan border on Indian Army Day, in Jaisalmer on Saturday. ANI Now, R-Day celebrations to start from 23 January, include Netaji’s birth anniv AGENCIES NEW DELHI , 15 JANUARY The celebrations of Republic Day will now begin from January 23 every year instead of January 23 in order to include the birth anniversary of Subhas Chandra Bose, said sources in the government. This is in line with Narendra Modi government's focus on celebrating/commemorating important aspects of our history and culture, the sources added. Earlier, the government had started the celebration of the birth anniversary of Subhas Chandra Bose as Parakram Divas. Other important days that have become a yearly affair are Partition Horrors Remembrance Day (14 August ), National Unity Day (31 October), Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas (Novem- Other important days that have become a yearly affair are Partition Horrors Remembrance Day (14 Aug), National Unity Day (31 Oct), Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas (15 Nov), Constitution Day (26 Nov), Veer Baal Diwas (26 Dec) ber 15), Constitution Day (November 26),Veer Baal Diwas (December 26). The Centre has drawn up plans to promote sites across the country associated with Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. Last year, in October, news agency PTI had reported that the Tourism Ministry was planning curated tours as part of events to commemorate the anniversary of the formation of the Azad Hind government, the provisional government that was announced by Bose on October 21, 1943. "Identification of such sites has been done and will include multiple routes. We have prepared curated itineraries that cover destinations connected to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. The itineraries will be given to tour operators to promote sites related to Netaji," an official said. Subhash Chandra Bose's family on Saturday welcomed the Central Government's decision to start the Republic Day celebrations every year from January 23 instead of January 24 to include the birth anniversary of freedom fighter Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. Chandra Kumar Bose, Netaji's kin also demanded a Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, INA (Indian National Army) and Azad Hind Force tableau for the Republic Day ceremony. UK returns 10th century stone idol of Yogini to India Start-ups are going to be the backbone of new India: Modi STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 15 JANUARY NEW DELHI, 15 JANUARY A 10th century stone idol of Goat Head Yogini that had been illegally removed from a temple in Lokhari, Banda Uttar Pradesh is being returned to India, Union minister of culture, tourism G Kishan Reddy has announced. “Repatriation of our rightful artifacts continues: 10th Century Goat Headed Yogini Idol which had been illegally removed from a temple in Lokhari, Uttar Pradesh is being returned to India from UK,” he tweeted. Earlier, the High Commission of India in London said that it was happy to announce the recovery and repatriation of a very special 10th century stone idol that had been illegally removed from a temple in Lokhari, Banda sometime in the 1980s. The sculpture is of a goat headed Yogini that originally belonged to a group of stone deities in sandstone and installed in Lokhari temple. These had been the subject of a study by Indian scholar Vidya Dahejia on behalf of National Museum in 1986 which was later published under the title, “Yogini Cult and Temples:A Tantric Tradition.The Goat head Yogini received at the High Commission on the auspicious day of Makar Sankranti has been dispatched to the ASI, New Delhi. STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Announcing the decision to celebrate 16 January as ''National Start-up Day'' to take the Startup culture to the country’s far flung areas, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today listed three important aspects of the ‘’massive changes’’ being introduced by his government in this decade to strengthen the start-up ecosystem. The first was to liberate entrepreneurship and innovation from the web of government processes and bureaucratic silos. The second was to create an institutional mechanism to promote innovation and the third was the handholding of young Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacting with startup entrepreneurs online, in New Delhi on Saturday. ANI innovators and young enterprises, he said while interacting with Startups via video conferencing. Modi pointed out that measures like removing problems of ‘angel tax’, simplification of tax procedure, arrang- ing for government funding, allowing self-certification of 9 labour and 3 environment laws and removal of more than 25000 compliances have already started yielding results. The Startups gave presentations to the PM on six themes: Growing from Roots; Nudging the DNA; From Local to Global; Technology of Future; Building Champions in Manufacturing; and Sustainable Development. During their presentation, the startup representatives shared ideas and inputs on a variety of sectors and areas, including robust data collection mechanism in agriculture; making India preferred agri business hub; boosting healthcare through use of technology; tackling issue of mental health; promoting travel and tourism through innovations like virtual tours; ed-tech and job identification; space sector; connecting offline retail market with digital commerce; increasing manufacturing effi- ciency; defence exports; promoting green sustainable products and sustainable means of transport, among others. Modi said that organisation of this Start-up India Innovation week was all the more important in this year of ''Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav'' as the role of the Start-ups would be critical when India’s freedom reaches its centenary year. The PM said the government’s effort was to institutionalise innovation in the country by creating attraction for innovation among students since childhood. He said that whether it was new drone rules, or new space policy, the priority of the government was to provide oppor- tunities for innovation to as many youth as possible. ''Our government has simplified the rules related to IPR registration too,” he added. He pointed out that India’s campaign for innovation has resulted in improvement of the country's ranking in global innovation index. India earlier stood at 81 but now it was ranked 46. Modi informed that startups of India were working with 55 separate industries and the number of startups has increased from less than 500 five years ago to more than 60000 today.He said“Our Startups are changing the rules of the game. That's why I believe Start-ups are going to be the backbone of new India.”