SUNDAY www.thestatesman.com 23 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 IMPLACABLE FOE OF THE EMPIRE LEGISLATIVE SETBACK P6 PARTLY CLOUDY SKY. VERY LIGHT RAIN/DRIZZLE. THE MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM TEMPERATURES WOULD BE AROUND 16 AND 10 DEGREES CELSIUS RESPECTIVELY. RAINFALL: 4.9 mm RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max: 100% Min: 11.5°C (+4) SUN SETS 17:53 hrs MOON SETS 11:08 hrs THUMBNAILS Trinamul Congress MLA Madan Mitra pays tribute to the statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose at the inauguration of a tram in his name ahead of his 125th birth anniversary, at Gariahat Tram Depot, in Kolkata on Saturday. SNS 2 LeT terrorists killed in J&K : Two Lashkar-eTaiba terrorists were killed in an encounter between the terrorists and the security forces at Kilbal area in Shopian district, officials said. "One more terrorist killed..incriminating materials including arms and ammunition recovered. Search going on," a police officer said.The firefight took place after a joint team of the police and the security forces cordoned off the area and launched a search operation on the basis of specific information about the terrorists. WB approves loan of $125mn to Bengal govt: In a significant recognition to the social welfare schemes launched by West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, the World Bank has approved a loan of $125 million (nearly Rs 1,000 crore) for inclusive social protection.This will help in certain welfare schemes launched by the state government like 'Kanyashree', 'Rupashree', 'Lakshmir Bhandar', 'Swastha Sathi', 'Widow Pension' and PG4 'Old Age Pension'. IPL 2022 to be held in India without crowd: BCCI NEW DELHI , 22 JANUARY The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 season will be held in India itself, top sources in the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) confirmed. Sources in the know of developments confirmed to ANI that if the Covid subsides in the country, then the board will go ahead with hosting the IPL 2022 in India. “IPL 2022 will be held in India and the tournament will be staged without crowds in attendance. Likely venues for IPL 2022 are Wankhede Stadium, Cricket Club of India (CCI), DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai and if needed, we can look at Pune as well,” the source said. The IPL player registration closed on January 20 and a total of 1,214 players (896 Indian and 318 overseas) have signed up to be part of the 2022 player auction. The two-day mega auction will see 10 teams bidding for some of the finest talents in world cricket. The players' list incorporates 270 capped, 903 uncapped, and 41 Associate players. The detailed list is as follows: Capped Indian (61 players), Capped International (209 players), Associate (41 players), Uncapped Indians who were a part of previous IPL seasons (143 players), Uncapped International who were a part of previous IPL seasons (6 players), Uncapped Indians (692 players), and Uncapped Internationals (62 players). The IPL auction is set to be held on February 12 and ANI 13 in Bengaluru. P8 Panel relaxes a few curbs, will review the situation to decide on future steps Min: 84% TEMPERATURE Max: 14.7°C (-7) SUN RISES 07:13 hrs MOON RISES 22:56 hrs P7 EC extends ban on poll rallies till 31 January WEATHER STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 22 JANUARY I n wake of the growing number of Covid cases during the third wave, the Election Commission of India on Saturday extended ban on physical rallies and road shows till 31 January in the five poll bound states UP, Punjab, Goa, Uttarakhand and Manipur. According to ECI, political parties or contesting candidates can also not hold a physical road show, Pad-yatra, cycle/bike/vehicle rally and procession till 31 January. The Commission would subsequently review the situation and decide on its future course of action after January 31, said a senior officer of the Election Commission of India. The Commission, however, increased the limit of door to door campaigns from five persons to 10 persons excluding security personnel, will be allowed for door to door campaigns. The Commission also allowed video vans for publicity with usual Covid restrictions at designated open spaces with a maximum of 500 viewers or 50 per cent of the capacity or the limit set by SDMA. The decision to this effect was taken this evening by the Election Commission of India (ECI) after reviewing the situation with the Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare through virtual mode. The Commission also held separate virtual meetings with Chief Secretaries, Chief Electoral Officers and Health Secre- 3,89,03,731 21,13,365 3,37,704 Roads are vacant during the weekend lockdownin the Capital on Saturday. SUBRATA DUTTA taries of all poll bound states, said a senior officer of the ECI. “After taking into consideration inputs and ground reports from these officers, the Commission also deliberated on requirements of the campaign period in phases where candidate list will be finalized on January 27 for Phase 1 and on 31 January for Phase 2,” the Commission said. “Since contesting candidates for Phase 1 elections will be finalized on January 27 Commission has decided to allow physical meetings of concerned Political parties or contesting candidates in designated open spaces with a maximum of 500 persons or 50per cent of the capacity of the ground or the prescribed limit set by SDMA, whichever number is lesser, from January 28 till February ,” the ECI said. Similarly the contesting candidates for Phase 2 would be allowed physical meetings of concerned Political parties or contesting candidates with public in designated open spaces with a maximum of 500 persons or 50% of the capacity of the ground or the prescribed limit set by SDMA, from February 1 till 12 February. Meanwhile, India recorded 3.47 lakh daily Covid cases, around 2.7 per cent lower than yesterday, and 703 fatalities in the past 24 hours, Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare data showed on Saturday. With 703 fresh fatalities in a day, the death toll climbed to 4,88,396. The active cases have increased to 21,13,365, the highest in 237 days. The active cases now comprise 5.43 per cent of the total infections, while the national Covid recovery rate has decreased to 93.31 per cent. The daily positivity rate has dropped from 17.94per cent to 17.22per cent while the weekly positivity rate was recorded at 16.65 per cent. The Omicron infection tally has risen to 10,050 across the nation, an increase of 3.69 per cent from the previous day. The recovery of 2,51,777 patients in the last 24 hours has increased the cumulative tally to 3,60,58,806. Consequently, India's recov- ‘Delimitation has started in J&K, polls will be held soon’ STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE JAMMU, 22 JANUARY Union home minister Amit Shah on Saturday said that delimitation has started in Jammu and Kashmir and elections will also be held soon in newly-carved Union Territory. He also assured that statehood would be returned to J&K as soon as normalcy was restored. “I have given assurance in Lok Sabha that as soon as the situation becomes normal in Jammu and Kashmir, statehood will be given back to J&K,” Shah said while virtually releasing the District Good Governance Index in Jammu and Kashmir. He said that several development works are being done in J&K. “Record number of tourists visited J&K this year. People are receiving direct benefits from the government scheme,” he added. Jammu and Kashmir has become the first UT to have such an index. Shah launched the index in the presence of Union minister Jitendra Singh and Jammu and Kashmir's lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha. Addressing the event, Shah congratulated all residents of Jammu and Kashmir for the launch of the District Good Governance Index. This is an important day not just for J&K but for the entire country. He said beginning of this index in Jammu and Kashmir will slowly expand to all other states and a good governance INDIA LOOK TO AVOID WHITEWASH INTEREST SUBVENTION KEY TO ‘HOUSING FOR ALL’ competition will start in every district of the country.The index will benefit residents of Jammu and Kashmir in a big way as it will work towards improving the district machinery, make districts result-oriented and also improve their delivery mechanism. Under the index, the policies, schemes and programs of the central as well as the state governments have been monitored at the district level, the home minister said. The District Good Governance Index, which has been launched for all 20 districts of Jammu and Kashmir, has been prepared by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG) in partnership with the Union Territory's administration and is a major reform in bench-marking good governance at the district level. 2,42,676 4,88,884 UNION HEALTH MINISTRY FIGURES AS OF 8.00 A.M. SATURDAY 22 JANUARY 2022 Delhi recorded 11,486 fresh cases & 45 deaths ery rate stands at 93.31 per cent. Also in the same period, a total of 19,35,912 tests were conducted across the country, taking the cumulative number to over 71.15 crore. Though the weekly positivity rate has climbed to 16.65 per cent amid sudden spike in the cases, the daily positivity rate has declined to 17.94 per cent. With the administration of over 70 lakh vaccine doses in the last 24 hours, the country's Covid inoculation coverage has reached 160.43 crore as of Friday morning. Daily Covid infections in Maharashtra, one of the worst-hit states by the pandemic, rose by 2,073 to record 48,270 new cases on Friday. This included 144 Omicron infections. 52 people also died due to the virus.Delhi logged 10,756 fresh Covid cases and 38 more fatalities due to the infection on Friday. UN chief hopes for peaceful resolution of Kashmir issue P12 Six dead, 23 injured in Mumbai building blaze INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE MUMBAI, 22 JANUARY At least 6 persons have been killed and 23 others injured when a major blaze engulfed the 18th floor of a building in Tardeo, South Mumbai at dawn on Saturday, the BMC Disaster Control said. The fire was noticed at the top part of the 20-storied Kamla Building at around 7.30 a.m. with people in neighbouring buildings and morning walkers alerting the fire brigade. The Mumbai Fire Brigade (MFB) rushed with 13 fire tenders as the flames quickly spread to the two upper floors sparking panic among the building residents. The MFB managed to rescue at least 23 injured persons from the inferno that raged in the top three floors, and the firemen continued to battle the A fire broke out in the 18th floor of the 20-storey Kamala building at Tardeo, in Mumbai on Saturday. ANI blaze in the afternoon. The injured persons were rushed to various private and public hospitals and 7 were given first aid and allowed to go. The remaining 16 with grievous burns of various degrees, have been admit- ted to different hospitals. Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar and other top BMC officials rushed to the spot to supervise the rescue and relief operations, and the cause of the fire is being probed. After the two fatalities earlier, another four critically injured persons succumbed to their burns in the next few hours, and another five are still critical, said the BMC Disaster Control.The dead victims have been identified asPurushottam Chopdekar, Manju Kantharia, Hitesh Mistry and the identity of 3 including 2 women is yet to be ascertained. The BMC has ordered a probe into the causes of the fire catching many in the building unawares, whether the society had adequate fire warning/ fighting facilities, etc, said an official. R-Day: ‘Abide With Me’ hymn dropped from Beating Retreat ceremony SNS & AGENCIES NEW DELHI, 22 JANUARY The iconic hymn 'Abide with Me', which was a key part of the Beating Retreat ceremony post Republic Day, has been dropped this year. The tune, said to be Mahatma Gandhi’s favourite, does not figure in the line-up announced by the government on Saturday for the January 29 ceremony performed at Vijay Chowk in the national capital that marks the end of the Republic Day celebrations. The decision to omit the popular hymn comes a day after the government ‘shifted’ the ‘eternal flame' from Amar Jawan Jyoti at India Gate to the nearby National War Memorial. The hymn, composed by Henry Francis Lyte in 1847, finds no mention in an Indian Army handout released on Saturday with details of the ceremony, staged on the eve of Gandhi’s death anniversary. The eternal flame, Amar Jawan Jyoti, at India Gate was on Friday extinguished after 50 years and merged with the flame at the adjacent National War Memorial, amid political finger pointing. The Beating Retreat ceremony has traditionally ended with the hymn, Abide With Me, that has been played every year since 1950. In 2020 too, the tune was initially dropped from the list but was subsequently restored in the final list after protests from a cross section of the public on social media. This year military buglers will play the iconic Sare Jahan Se Achain the end. The other popular tunes that will be played at the ceremony include Kadam Kadam Badhaye Ja, Ae Mere Watan Ke Logon and Hind Ki Sena. PREP-MODE NEW YORK, 22 JANUARY UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has said that he hopes the Kashmir issue between India and Pakistan can be solved peacefully. Well, the position of the UN and the resolutions that were taken are the same, remain the same. We have, as you know, a peacekeeping operation there. We are, of course, committed, he said. I'd offered my good offices several times, and we hope that this is something that can be solved peacefully and the situation in Kashmir is a situation in which human rights are respected and in which people can live in peace and security, he said. He was responding to a question by a Pakistani journalist on this issue.AGENCIES Artists rehearse for the upcoming Republic Day Parade 2022, at Rashtriya Rangshala Camp, in New Delhi on Saturday. ANI Work on time-bound targets to take govt scheme to people, PM tells DMs STATESMAN NEWSSERVICE NEW DELHI, 22 JANUARY Interacting via video conference with District Magistrates (DMs) of various districts, Prime Minister Narendra Modi (in pic) today asked them to work on time-bound targets for taking roads to all villages and ensuring ayushman cards, bank accounts, Ujjwala gas connection, insurance and pension housing for every household. Calling for a two-year vision for every district, he suggested that every district could identify ten tasks to be completed in the next three months to improve ease of living for common people. Similarly, Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacting with the district magistrates of various districts on the implementation of key government schemes, through video conferencing, in New Delhi on Saturday. ANI five tasks could be associated with the “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav”. The DMs shared their expe- riences which have led to an improvement in performance in their districts on a host of indicators. The PM sought direct feedback from them about the key steps taken by them which have resulted in success in the districts, and about the challenges faced by them in this endeavour. He also asked them about how working under the aspirational districts programme has been different from their work done earlier. The officers discussed how ''Jan Bhagidari'' has been a key factor behind this success. They spoke about how they kept people working in their team motivated on a daily basis, and made efforts to develop the feeling that they were not doing a job but were performing a service. Modi noted that various fac- tors led to a situation where aspirational districts, in the past, started lagging behind. In order to facilitate holistic development, special handholding was done for the aspirational districts. The situation has changed now as today, aspirational districts were eliminating the barriers of the progress of the country. The PM also mentioned districts where excellent results have been obtained by the use of technology and innovation in the fields like malnutrition, clean drinking water and vaccination. He noted that convergence was a major reason for the country’s success in the aspirational districts. All resources were the same, government machinery was the same, officials were the same but the results were different, he observed. Modi drew the attention of the officers towards the changed mindset of New India. He reiterated that today the country's goal was to achieve 100 per cent saturation of services and facilities. He said the country was witnessing a silent revolution in the form of Digital India. No district should be left behind in this. He stressed the importance for digital infrastructure reaching every village and becoming a means of doorstep delivery of services and facilities. The PM said various ministries and departments of the government have prepared a list of 142 districts which were not so much lagging in development but were weak on one or two parameters. He emphasised the need to work with the same collective approach as was being done in the aspirational districts. “This is a new challenge for all the governments- the government of India, the state government, the district administration, and the government machinery. Now we have to meet this challenge together”, he said.