FRIDAY www.thestatesman.com 29 APRIL 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 RAHUL SLAMS MODI FOR HIS APPEAL TO REDUCE TAXES ON FUEL K’TAKA CM SUPPORTS SUDEEP'S REMARKS ON HINDI P4 WEATHER PARTLY CLOUDY SKY. HEATWAVE CONDITIONS AT MANY PLACES WITH SEVERE HEATWAVE AT ISOLATED PLACES. POSSIBILITY OF DUST STORM ACCOMPANIED WITH GUSTY WINDS(SPEED 4050 KMPH) TOWARDS EVENING/NIGHT. THE MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM TEMPERATURES WOULD BE AROUND 44 AND 25 DEGREES CELSIUS RESPECTIVELY. RAINFALL: Nil RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max: 56% Min: 16% TEMPERATURE Max: 43.5°C (+5) SUN RISES 05:42 hrs MOON RISES 05:23 hrs Min: 23.°C (-2) SUN SETS 18:55 hrs MOON SETS 17:37 hrs THUMBNAILS IndiGo ATR 72-600 aircraft equipped with GAGAN lands using Localiser Performance with Vertical Guidance Approach, at Kishangarh Airport, in Ajmer on Thursday.  ANI CU tops higher education ranking list: Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday expressed her delight at Calcutta University (CU) being ranked Number 1 among the central and state-aided public universities in India by the Times Higher Education Impact Ranking 2022. Taking to Twitter she said: “Glad to learn that the CU has been ranked 1st in India among all Central and State aided public Universities and Institutes by Times Higher Education Impact Ranking 2022.” CU has been awarded the 14th rank in the whole work in the sub-cat egory of 'Decent Work and Economic Growth'. BSF jawan shoots himself dead in Chh’garh: One Border Security Force jawan shot himself dead on Thursday morning in the Kanker district, the police said.In a conversation with ANI, Kanker Superintendent of Police Shalabh Sinha said, "One BSF 30 Bn Koylibeda jawan shot himself dead today morning in Kanker district. The reason of death is yet to be ascertained." Further probe into the matter is underway. P5 IMD issues an orange alert for Rajasthan, Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha SNS & AGENCIES NEW DELHI, 28 APRIL A mid an ongoing spell of heatwave, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Thursday issued an orange alert for five states of northwestern India including Rajasthan, Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha. "There has been no significant rainfall since 25 February. In between, on 14 April and 21 April, there were dust storms in Rajasthan and Haryana but there was no significant rain. Hence the long dry spell has resulted in high temperatures," senior IMD scientist R.K. Jenamani told media persons. A Western Disturbance on 2 May will bring in some relief for northwest and central India, he said. Asked if this month's maximum temperatures for the entire country were creating any record, Jenamani said: "April 2010 was the hottest to date for all of India."This year, even when northwest India and large parts of central India are witnessing extreme heat, the northeast region, Kerala, and large parts of Tamil Nadu are experiencing heavy rainfall. So, we have to wait till April 30 to see how it averages out." In an advisory, the IMD said that under the influence of another fresh Western Disturbance likely to affect northwest India from May 2, light/moderate isolated/scattered rainfall accompanied with thunderstorm/lightning is likely over the Western Himalayan Region during 2-4 May."Because of this, isolated light rainfall is likely over plains of northwest India during 3 and 4 May."For now, heatwave conditions will prevail over large parts of India. The IMD has predicted heatwave conditions over northwest and central India during the next four days and over east India during the next two days and it will abate thereafter. Heatwave conditions will prevail in isolated pockets over west Rajasthan during April 2830 with severe heatwave BOILING NATION  This year, Northwest India recorded the hottest March in 122 years, with an average maximum temperature surpassing the previous record of 30.67 degrees Celsius in 2004  The unrelenting heatwave building up in large parts of India has led to a sharp rise in power demand in states like Maharashtra  The weather office has predicted the tempera- conditions on May 1-2; heatwave conditions in some/isolated parts over Vidarbha, west Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana-Chandigarh, Delhi & east Rajasthan during next five days; east Uttar Pradesh May 1, Bihar, Jharkhand, interior Odisha, Chhattisgarh & Gangetic West Bengal April 30 and Telangana till May 1. Delhi witnessed yet another warm morning today as the temperature as the weather office predicted a heatwave in the ture In the national capital to touch 44 degrees Celsius by Friday. region during the day with the maximum temperature likely to touch 43 degrees Celsius. The weather office has predicted the temperature In the national capital to touch 44 degrees Celsius by Friday. The unrelenting heatwave building up in large parts of India has led to a sharp rise in power demand in states like Maharashtra. The state has reported a shortage of 20,000 lakh metric tonnes and key thermal power plants in the state are likely to run out of coal in less than 2 days. Rajasthan is scheduled for four hours of power cuts for factories, making it at least the third state after Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh to disrupt industrial activity to manage surging power demand amid an intense heatwave. The state also imposed four-hour power cuts for rural regions. Odisha sweltered in the blazing sun for the third successive day on Wednesday as the maximum temperature breached the 40 degrees Celsius mark in 24 places, the Met office said. Protests against the unprecedented electricity crisis in Jammu and Kashmir grappling with heatwave conditions on Thursday spilled on the streets across the UT as there was no improvement in spite of government’s claim that the Centre has allocated 207 mws additional power to meet the situation.In Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has announced early summer holidays for educational institutions due to severe heat. SEE PG5 Jahangirpuri row: Key accused held from Bengal PEACE KEEPER NEW DELHI, APRIL 28 Security forces conduct a route march at Teele wali Masjid, in Lucknow on Thursday. ANI STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE JAMMU, 28 APRIL KOLKATA, 28 APRIL be raised further and so the Prime Minister had tried to shrug off the Centre's responsibility by passing the buck on the states on Wednesday. She added that the Centre had earned a total revenue of over Rs 17.31 lakh crores through taxes on petrol and diesel since 2014. “The prices have been increased at least 14 times and the Centre has continued to deprive the state of its dues,” she added. When asked whether the chief ministers of non-BJP ruled states will unitedly write to the Centre on this issue, she said that they (Centre) do not respond to any letter, so writing another letter will be a futile exercise. “There was actually no Covid agenda, the agenda was to shy away from the responsibility of keeping petrol diesel price under control,” she added. Miss Banerjee who is leaving for New Delhi on 29 April to attend a conclave the next day in the presence of Chief Justice of India N V Ramana, Mr Modi, high court judges and CMs from other states, said that she would not seek an appointment with the Prime Minister during her visit as she would be returning on 30 April for certain preoccupations in Bengal. The Special Cell of Delhi Police has arrested one person from Bengal who is said to be a key accused in the April 16 communal clashes in Jahangirpuri, official sources said. The accused, identified as Farid alias Nilu, was arrested from his relative's place at Tamluk in East Midnapore district of West Bengal. Official sources said that a team of the Special Cell has already left Bengal for Delhi along with the accused.IANS Efforts on to remove AFSPA from N-E: PM PM Narendra Modi inaugurates seven state-of-the-art cancer centres and lays the foundation stone for seven new cancer hospitals, in Dibrugarh on Thursday. Industrialist Ratan Tata and Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma are also present.  ANI STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE GUWAHATI, 28 APRIL Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said the Centre is making efforts to remove the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA), which provides sweeping powers and immunity from criminal prosecution to the armed forces operating in ‘disturbed areas’, from the entire North-East. “As peace is coming, we are changing rules. Now AFSPA (The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act too is removed from certain places because there is peace. In other places, too, we are trying if things are alright, then AFSPA will be removed from there too,” said Prime Minister Narendra Modi as he addressed a massive ‘unity, peace and development’ rally at Diphu in Karbi Anglong in Assam. He said that the “doubleengine government” has been working with the spirit of Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas Sabka Vishwas and Sabka Prayas and has brought permanent peace and development in Assam. “Today this resolve has been reinforced in this land of Karbi Anglong. The work of carrying out the agreement which was signed for the permanent peace and rapid development of Assam is going on at a brisk pace,” he said.The New daily Covid cases breach 3kmark, 39 deaths in last 24 hrs STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE FACT FILE NEW DELHI, 28 APRIL Two Al-Badr terrorists involved in a series of attacks on outside labourers were on Thursday killed in an encounter with security forces in Mitrigam in south Kashmir's Pulwama. Both have been identified as local terrorists namely Aijaz Hafiz and Shahid Ayub, of Al-Badr outfit. Two AK rifles have been recovered. They had been involved in series of attacks on outside labourers in Pulwama in the month of March-April, police said. Meanwhile, three OGWs Mohammad Amir Kalas, Nisar Ahmad and Kafeel Ahmad involved in smuggling of arms and ammunition from across the LoC were (SEE PAGE 3) arrested. P12 India logged 3303 new Covid cases and 39 fatalities in the last 24 hours, stated the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Thursday. On Wednesday, 2927 coronavirus cases were reported from the country. With this, India’s active caseload now stands at 16,980 with active cases now constituting 0.04per cent of the country's total positive cases. As per the data shared by the ministry, India’s recovery rate stands at 98.74% with 2563 patients having recovered in the last 24 hours taking the cumulative tally of recovered patients to 4,25,28,126. While the weekly positivity rate in the country currently TOTAL CASES 4,30,68,799 ACTIVE CASES 16,980 NEW CASES 3,303 NEW RECOVERIES 2,563 TOTAL DEATHS 5,23,693 UNION HEALTH MINISTRY FIGURES AS OF 8.00 A.M. THURSDAY 28 APRIL 2022 Delhi recorded 1,490 cases and 2 deaths stands at 0.61 percent, the daily positivity rate is reported to be 0.66 percent, as per the data. Besides, the health min- istry stated, the last 24 hours saw a total of 4,97,669 Covidtests being conducted taking the cumulative tests to over 83.64 crore.Under the National vaccination drive, 188.40 crore vaccine doses have been administered so far. As per the data, Covid vaccination for the age group 1214 years was started on 16 March, 2022. So far, more than 2.78 Cr (2,78,64,432) adolescents have been administered with the first dose of vaccine. Similarly, the Covid precaution dose administration for age group 18-59 years also started from 10 April, 2022 onwards. More than 19.58 crore balance and unutilised Covid vaccine doses are still available with the states and UTs to be administered. ‘India needs to be ready for short & long-term standoffs’ Mid-air fuss: Pilots use SNS & AGENCIES NEW DELHI, 28 APRIL NEW DELHI, 28 APRIL India today rejected Pakistan’s objection to PM Narendra Modi's recent visit to J&K, saying Islamabad has no locus standi to talk about what was happening in the Union Territory. “The visit was very successful...it's very clear from the reception he (PM) received from the people and the projects he launched during the visit,” MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said. Pakistan objected to Modi’s visit to Kashmir and laying of foundation stones for the construction of the Rattle and Kwar hydroelectric projects on the Chenab river, which it claimed was a “direct contravention” of the Indus Waters Treaty.SNS Girls hold umbrellas to beat the heat on a hot afternoon in the Capital on Thursday. SUBRATA DUTTA There has been no significant rainfall since 25 February. In between, on 14 April and 21 April, there were dust storms in Rajasthan and Haryana but there was no significant rain. Hence the long dry spell has resulted in high temperatures R.K. JENAMANI - IMD SCIENTIST Two Al-Badr terrorists killed in J&K India rejects Pak’s objection to PM’s J&K visit P9 Heat wave alert in 5 states Central govt raising funds for party usage: Mamata on PM’s fuel remark Chief minister Mamata Banerjee today again came down heavily on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over rising petrol, diesel and domestic gas prices and demanded an immediate price slash to provide relief to the common people. “The price of domestic gas should be reduced by at least Rs 300. Petrol and diesel prices should also be slashed immediately. When the price had reduced globally, the Centre had not decreased the prices. Instead, the funds they collected have been kept in reserve so that it can be utilised for party (BJP) funds,” she said. She said that the prices will BEN STOKES APPOINTED ENGLAND TEST SKIPPER WORKERS STRIKE TO PRESSURE SRI LANKAN PREZ TO STEP DOWN The current geo-political situation necessitates India, which has ongoing border disputes with both China and Pakistan, to prepare its armed forces for both short- and long-term stand offs, Indian Air Force chief V.R. Chaudhari said on Thursday. Addressing a seminar here, Air Chief Marshal Chaudhari, quoting the famed Chinese strategic thinker, said that "Sun Tzu aptly said: 'The line between disorder and order lies in logistics'. Understanding what logistics means varies across the military and civil domain, however, both domains believe that logistics comprises of having material or services in the right quantity, in the required con- dition, in the right place and at the right time. Only a commander who understands logistics can push the military machine to the limits without risking a total breakdown." He said that the IAF's recent experiences as well as the evolving geo-political scenario mandates the force to be operationally and logistically responsive at all times. "The current geo-political situation necessitates the Indian Air Force to prepare for intense and small duration operations at a short notice. This new paradigm of high intensity operations, coupled with minimal build-up time, would require major changes in terms of operational logistics. Logistics support in such a scenario would be extremely challenging considering the fact that we have a fairly vast and diversified inventory."To address issues like availability of spares, the IAF chief said that India need to re-evaluate demand forecasting methods and stocking philosophies. "The way forward will be to have a serviceability linked inventory management system."Flexible stocking policies with modern forecasting techniques would help in demand sensing and prepositioning of items at bases. "We must also review our procurement strategies in order to reduce lead time for supplies and preempt prob- lems of supply chain obsolescence," he said.He said in the force, space, and time continuum, "there would be a need for us to prepare for short swift wars as well as be ready for a long drawn standoff akin to what we are seeing in eastern Ladakh".There will be a need to cater for resources bridging and transportation for both these contingencies, he said.“While movement of squadron load to operational locations would be supported to an extent by dedicated air effort, timely replenishment of ATF, armament, aviation spares, aviation lubes and FOL, would be a challenging proposition as, during contingencies, the roads and rail heads would be choked due to simultaneous movement of Indian Army along the same axes," he stated. expletives against org AGENCIES NEW DELHI , 28 APRIL Disgruntled over delays in restoring their pre-Covid salaries, around seven IndiGo Airlines pilots used expletives against senior management on the radio while operating aircraft. After being alerted about the incident by Air Traffic Control (ATC), the DirectorGeneral of Civil Aviation (DGCA) ordered an investigation into the matter. A senior DGCA official said that the incident happened on 9 April when a group of Indigo pilots were expressing their unhappiness over the delay in restoration of the preCovid salaries on 121.5 MHz frequency that is generally After being alerted about the incident by Air Traffic Control, the DGCA ordered an investigation into the matter reserved for civilian distress or emergency use. Notably, the 121.5 MHz frequency is used in case of distress to contact any air traffic control facility within range. Any communication over the frequency is minutely watched and it is kept on record. It is expected of pilots to maintain the sanctity of the emergency services.Aviation regulators across the world are very serious about the violation or misuse of the 121.5 frequency and any such matter is dealt with a heavy fine. Centre in March reduced the ‘disturbed areas’ under the ambit of the law in the region. He said there has been a 75 per cent drop in violent incidents in the northeast over the past eight years and that is why Meghalaya and Tripura were removed from the ambit of AFSPA. “In Assam, it has been in force for over three decades now. Due to a lack of improvement in the situation, earlier governments used to extend its enforcement repeatedly. But in recent years, due to improved ground situation, AFSPA has been removed from 23 districts of Assam,” he said. “We are trying to bring the situation to normal in other parts of the state so that AFSPA can be removed from there too. Similar efforts are also underway in Nagaland and Manipur (parts of both states are under AFSPA) to remove the Act.” Mr Modi recalled last year’s inclusion of many organisations from Karbi Anglong in the peace and development process. The Bodo Accord in 2020 opened doors for permanent peace and in Tripura the NIFT had taken steps towards peace. Two and half decade old Bru-Reang problem is solved, he stated. (With input from agencies) CJI to chair conference of HC Chief Justices today NEW DELHI , 28 APRIL Chief Justice of India NV Ramana will be chairing the 39th conference of Chief Justices of various High Courts of the country on Friday. Being held after a gap of six years, the conference is being organized with an aim to address and resolve the issues concerning the judiciary. The venue of the conference will be the premises of the Supreme Court. According to a press statement, the conference shall review the progress made on the resolutions passed in the previous Chief Justices Conference-2016 and also to consider further steps that need to be taken to improve the justice delivery system in the country. The conference will also be attended by Justice Uday U Lalit and Justice AM Khanwilkar, the two senior-most judges of the Supreme Court and all the Chief Justices and acting Chief Justices of High Courts. The SC has been organising the conference of Chief Justices of High Courts with the object to deliberate on issues related to the judiciary. Besides the evaluation of progress made vis-a-vis resolutions of Chief Justices' Conference-2016, other major issues are to be deliberated upon in the Chief Justices' Conference-2022 are strengthening of the network and connectivity at all court complexes pan India on priority basis, human resources and personnel policy~needs of district courts, and, infrastructure and capacity building among ANI others.