YK MYK WEATHER TODAY MAX 26 C MIN 11 C CAIT URGES PM MODI TO ROLL OUT E-COMMERCE POLICY BUSINESS Sky will be partly cloudy. AIM TO MAKE PEOPLE LAUGH WITH ‘COOLIE NO 1’: VARUN DHAVAN SCREEN & CINEMA Morning India Rs. 3 KOLKATA MONDAY, 30 NOV, 2020 PG-12, YEAR— 7, ISSUE—193 (RNI NO: WBENG / 2014 / 56803) IMA offers free service for COVID-19 vaccine implementation programme BY SAHIL PANDEY to be provided as per cold chain conditions along with the disposables. This will be a force amplifier for the vaccination programme and substantially increase the number of outlets available for the people," said IMA's letter. IMA said it will offer the services of more than 3 lakhs of its members who are 'qualified modern medicine doctors' for government's COVID-19 vaccination programme. "IMA has 1,750 local branches spread over all the districts of the country. An effective top to down command and control is in place with 28 state branches. Most of the members have a small team of nurses for their professional NEW DELHI: With talks about COVID-19 vaccines and their distribution gaining momentum, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Sunday wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, offering its services 'free-ofcost' for the effective implementation of the vaccine across the country. "IMA offers its sincere cooperation and support to the Government in making available the vaccination services to our people across the country. All the IMA members will offer their services voluntarily and free of cost. The vaccines have AT A GLANCE NORTH INDIA LIKELY TO HAVE HARSHER WINTER: IMD NEW DELHI: North India is likely to expect a harsher winter and can see a rise in the frequency of cold waves this season, India Meteorological Department (IMD) Director General Mrutunjay Mohapatra said on Sunday. The IMD, in its winter forecast for December to February, said below normal minimum temperatures are likely over north and central India. The winter is likely to be harsher in north India this season, Mohapatra said. NOT IN FAVOUR OF HAVING CELLS IN PARTY ON CASTE BASIS: GADKARI NAGPUR: Union minister Nitin Gadkari on Sunday said he was not in favour of having cells in a political party on the basis of castes, religions or communities, and added that talent was more important than these factors. He was referring to the cells formed within political parties to represent different castes or communities, like the minority community. NIA rejects Stan Swamy's claims of seizing his straw and sipper NEW DELHI: National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Sunday rejected claims of tribal rights activist Father Stan Swamy, an accused in the Elgar Parishad Maoist links case, that it had seized his straw and sipper and sought 20 days' time from the court to respond to his plea to allow him to have these. The anti-terror agency, in a statement issued on Sunday, said the claims made by Swamy, 83, are "false, incorrect and mischievous", as it "neither recovered any straw and sipper from the accused nor sought 20 days' time to file reply in his application to court". Swamy, who is suffering from various health issues including Parkinson's disease, was arrested on October 8 for his involvement in the activities of CPI-Maoist and for furtherance of the agenda of the banned terrorist organisation as one of the alleged conspirators in the Bhima Koregaon Elgar Parishad case. The case pertains to widespread violence, arson and stone-pelting resulting in loss of lives and property near Bhima Koregaon town in Maharashtra as a result of the provocative speeches CORONA METER INDIA TOTAL CASES: 9,372,854 TOTAL DEATH: 136,469 WORLD TOTAL CASES: 62,160,054 TOTAL DEATH: 1,452,380 practice. A large number of small and medium hospitals and nursing homes in sub-district towns are run by IMA members," IMA stated. The medical body said that its practitioners are available even in remote, hilly districts and areas not easily accessible, and many of them have taken part in the Pulse Polio and many other government welfare programmes. It also stated that medical practitioners will work with the government with full zeal and strength at all levels to implement the programme on war footing so as to reach each and every citizen of the country at the earliest. BIDEN LIKELY TO IMPOSE SANCTIONS ON CHINA BEIJING: As tensions between the US and China continue to worsen under the current President Donald Trump's administration due to Beijing's human rights violations and hiding vital information regarding COVID19, a leading economist said that incoming Biden administration might impose sanctions thus affecting the Chinese economy next year. David Li Daokui, a professor at Tsinghua University and a former adviser to China's central bank, according to South China Morning Post warned that economic planners should not rule out the possibility of a Trump comeback in 2024 and added that President-elect Biden might "continue Trump's hard-line approach to China." ALSO SEE WORLD PG SYDNEY: Australia beat India by 51 runs in the second ODI on Sunday at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG). The hosts have thus sealed victory in the three-match series, having taken an unassailable 2-0 lead. Chasing a mammoth target of 390, India were restricted to 338/9 after another century from Steve Smith took Australia to 389/4 batting first. India started with a 58-run stand between openers Mayank Agarwal and Shikhar Dhawan. The pair departed within a few balls of each other after which PG 12 captain Virat Kohli anchored the middle order. PROTEST AGAINST FARM LAWS ‘Farmers got new rights, opportunities with new farm laws’ PM Narendra Modi during Mann Ki Baat, Sunday. during the Elgar Parishad programme at Shaniwarwada, Pune on December 31, 2017. The NIA said that it produced Swamy before the Special Court in Mumbai along with charge sheet on October 9 and never took his police custody. "All the necessary legal formalities such as his medical examination were duly observed. Since then, Swamy has been in judicial custody at Taloja Central Jail." Nearly a month after, on November 6, Swamy filed an application in NIA court at Mumbai for getting back his straw and sipper, which the NIA said "Swamy falsely claimed to have been kept by the NIA". INDIA FALL TO 51-RUN DEFEAT; AUSTRALIA WIN SERIES 2-0 NEW DELHI: In a bid to allay fears of farmers who have been protesting against the new farm laws, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that the agricultural reforms have opened the doors of new opportunities for farmers and gave them more rights. "Recent agri-reforms have opened the doors of new opportunities for farmers. Decades-old demands of farmers which were promised by many political parties have now been met. Parliament has recently passed farm reform laws after rigorous brainstorming. These reforms have not only broken shackles of farmers but have also given new rights and opportunities to them," PM Modi said while addressing the nation in the 71st edition of his monthly radio programme 'Mann Ki Baat'. "Under this law, it is mandatory to pay farmers within three days of purchasing the produce. If payment is not made, then the farmer can lodge a complaint. Another major provision is that the SDM of the area must address the complaint of the farmer within one month," he said. Explaining the benefits of the new agriculture laws, the Prime Minister cited an example from Maharashtra's Dhule who got his dues after Decades-old demands of farmers which were promised by many political parties have now been met. These reforms have not only broken shackles of farmers but have also given new rights and opportunities to them filing a complaint with the Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM). "You should know how Jitendra Bhoiji, a farmer in Dhule, Maharashtra used these new farms laws. He produced maize and decided to sell it to traders at the right price. The total amount agreed at was around Rs 3.32 lakh. He got Rs 25,000 in advance," he said. "It was agreed that he will get the remaining amount in 15 days but he didn't get the payment. He filed a complaint and got his dues within a few days," he said. The Prime Minister requested the youth especially those studying agriculture to go to nearby villages and make farmers aware about modern farming. A large number of farmers gather during their protest against the farm laws at Singhu border in New Delhi on Sunday. ANI Farmers reject govt appeal to lift blockade NEW DELHI: Rejecting the Centre's offer to hold talks once they move to the Burari ground, agitating farmers who have been staying put at Delhi's borders for four days said on Sunday they will not end the blockade and will continue their stir against the new farm laws. After a meeting of over 30 farmer groups on Sunday, their representatives said they will not move to the Burari ground as it is an "open jail". They said the farmers will not accept any conditional dialogue and will block all five entry points to Delhi. "The condition laid down by Home Minister Amit Shah is not acceptable to us. We will not hold any conditional talks. We reject the government's offer. The blockade will not end. We will block all five entry point to Delhi," Surjeet S Phul, Bhartiya Kisan Union's Punjab president, told reporters. "The condition put for talks is an insult to farmers. We will never go to Burari. It is not a park but an open GOVT DRUNK ON POWER, NOT LISTENING TO CRORES OF FARMERS: CONG NEW DELHI: Even as a stalemate between protesting farmers and the Centre on their protest venue in Delhi continued, the opposition Congress on Sunday attacked the government for "being drunk on power and not listening to the voice of farmers". "The government is drunk on power... Union Agriculture Minister and Home Minister say there will not be any talks with the farmers till December 3, in this harsh winter. Both Ministers do not have time for farmers until five days?" Congress Chief Spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala told a press conference. jail," he added. After spending another night in the cold, thousands of farmers continued to protest against the Centre's new agri laws on the fourth consecutive day on Sunday, staying put at the Singhu and Tikri border points. "We do not accept the condition of their (govt) proposal. We are ready to talk but will not accept any condition now," said Gurnam Singh Chadhoni, Haryana unit president for the Bhartiya Kisan Union. Darshan Pal, Punjab president of Krantikari Kisan Union, said, "The government has invited us to talk with conditions. The environment should be created for a conversation. We will not talk if there are any conditions". Union Home Minister Amit Shah had appealed to the farmers to shift to the Burari ground and had said the Centre was ready to hold discussions with them as soon as they move to the designated place. MORE ON PG 7 COVID-19 impact on women-led biz widens socio-economic gap NEW DELHI: The adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on women-led micro businesses in India has exacerbated the vast socio-economic gap, finds a survey. The survey suggests that governments, banks and other financial institutions must immediately follow effective gendersensitive policy responses to improve the situation. The findings are based on a collaborative study by Global Alliance for Mass Entrepreneurship (GAME) and LEAD at Krea University, Andhra Pradesh which seeks to capture the impact on micro enterprises in India during the COVID-19 crisis through a survey. LEAD is a non-profit research organisation. The survey started in May and will be concluding in January. The gender specific results were for the data collected between July to August, covering about 1,800 micro enterprises. The regions and states covered in the survey include North India (Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh), South India (Tamil Nadu), and West India (Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan). The study monitors key trends on the impact of the crisis and government-mandated lockdowns on business livelihoods, employment, and the income of nano and micro businesses. According to the 6th economic census, women entrepreneurs own over 8 million enterprises in India or about 13 per cent of the total units. According to the survey, women-led micro and small busi- GAME REPORT nesses are particularly at risk because they include smaller companies working in lower-margin markets and are more prone to face instability than micro businesses led by men. Women usually operate with structural and systemic con- straints in addition to cultural norms and restrictions. So, the ability to take risks, make mistakes and, more importantly, to fail, is not a liberty licensed to women. Notably, 43 per cent of women-owned enterprises in the survey fall in the category that reports less than Rs 10,000 profit a month whereas only 16 per cent of those owned by men fall in this category. Similarly, 40 per cent of women-owned enterprises are self-run with no workers; the corresponding number for men is 18 per cent, the study said. Despite the adversity, 19 per cent of the sample reported scaling up their businesses, showcasing immense resilience. In the study, which predominantly covered women enterprises in urban and semi urban areas, low sales and reduced customer footfall was reported by 79 per cent of the female entrepresetting up an enterneurs. prise and the THE STUDY MONILast year in ten changes that the TORS KEY TRENDS days, all of us made business has brought ON THE IMPACT Rs 5,000 by selling at within herself. OF THE CRISIS a bazaar. We miss Prior to my foray AND GOVERNthose times. Now in entrepreneurship, MENT-MANDATED also we do have the I had no respect LOCKDOWNS ON stock but no bazaars within my family. I BUSINESS LIVELIare being held. One have everyone's HOODS, EMPLOYof the benefits of the respect now, and my MENT, AND THE lack of access to family members INCOME OF NANO physical markets is approach me for AND MICRO BUSIthat we learned advice," she said. NESSES. about the possibilities Due to operational of online sales and inefficiencies, collatpayment transfers. "We have eral requirements, and lack of started leveraging social media for digital data trails, banks hesitate selling now. Since the onset of the in lending to women. Gender gaps lockdown, we have sold fifty bags persist in the availability, access online, says Vidya, one of the and the use of finance, the study women entrepreneurs surveyed. observed. In fact, 63 per cent of Vidya, who has a registered the sample did not have cash MSME and has availed the Mudra reserves to manage their expensloan talks about her struggles in es during the crisis.