YK MYK ROYAL FAMILY VERY MUCH NOT RACIST, SAYS PRINCE WILLIAM WORLD Rs. 3 KOLKATA FRIDAY, 12 MARCH, 2021 PG-12, YEAR—7, ISSUE—295 (RNI NO: WBENG / 2014 / 56803) PLAYING OSHO A LIFE-CHANGING EXPERIENCE: RAVI KISHAN SCREEN & CINEMA Morning India Refrain from causing inconvenience to anybody: Mamata WEATHER TODAY MAX 34 C MIN 23 C Sky will be partly cloudy. AT A GLANCE BANK STAFF STRIKE ON MARCH 15-16 AGAINST PRIVATISATION CHENNAI: With the conciliation meeting between bank unions and the Central government failing, about 10 lakh bank employees will strike work for two continuous days - March 15 and 16 - protesting against the government decision to privatise public sector banks, the All India Bank Employees' Association (AIBEA) said on Thursday. BRAHMA KUMARIS' CHIEF DADI HRIDAY MOHINI DIES AT 93 JAIPUR: Brahma Kumaris' chief administrator Dadi Hriday Mohini died on Thursday at a private hospital in Mumbai. She was 93. She was undergoing treatment at Saifee Hospital in Mumbai for the last 15 days, according to a spokesperson of the spiritual organisation. The spokesperson added that after the death of its former chief Dadi Janki a year ago, Mohini was appointed as the chief administrator of the organisation. Her body will be brought to the headquarters in Abu Road, where on Friday, the public will be able pay respects for the 'Rajyogini' with a last prayer. CORONA METER INDIA TOTAL CASES: 1,12,46,380 TOTAL DEATH: 157,958 WORLD TOTAL CASES: 117,851,853 TOTAL DEATH: 2,613,951 PICTURE PERFECT Artists dressed as Shiva and Parvati take part in Maha Shivratri celebrations in Ranchi on Thursday. ‘Maha’ Covid Alert Health ministry says 'very worried about Maharashtra' NEW DELHI: The Union Health Ministry on Thursday during its weekly press conference expressed concerns over the COVID-19 situation in Maharashtra and said that the reduced testing, tracing and lack of COVID appropriate behaviours have led to the surge in active cases in the state. "We are very worried about Maharashtra. This is a serious matter. This has two lessons- don't take the virus for granted and if we have to remain Covid LOCKDOWN free, then, we IMPOSED IN need to follow Covid appropriate NAGPUR FROM behaviour," Member (Health), MARCH 15 TO 21 NITI Aayog Dr VK NAGPUR: Amid a spike Paul said. Echoing a sim- in COVID-19 cases in ilar remark, ICMR Maharashtra, the state government on DG Balram Thursday decided to Bhargava said that Maharashtra impose a lockdown in has shown a wor- Nagpur district from March 15 to 21. Only risome trend. essential services such "The mutant as vegetable and fruit strain has not shops and milk booths been found will stay open, according incriminating in to the order issued by this surge in the Nagpur district cases. administration. It is just related to reduced testing, tracking & tracing and COVID inappropriate behaviour and large congregations," he said. Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday said strict lockdown measures will be enforced in some parts of the state to contain the spread of COVID-19. Earlier in the day, a complete lockdown has been announced in the Nagpur city area from March 15 to March 21 in view of the rising infections. As per official data, Maharashtra on Thursday recorded 14,317 new coronavirus cases, the highest one-day spike this year, which took the state's caseload to 22,66,374. There are 1,06,070 active cases in the state. TMC defers manifesto release KOLKATA: Trinamool Congress today deferred its manifesto release following the hospitalization of party chief and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The Chief Minister, who was on a two-day visit to Nandigram from where she filed her nomination earlier on Wednesday, alleged that she was pushed by a few unidenti- fied people during her election campaigning. She was brought to Kolkata's SSKM Hospital by road from Nandigram. Banerjee sustained "severe bony injuries" on her left foot and ankle as well as bruises and injuries on her shoulder, forearm and neck, according to the report of her initial medical examination. Maharashtra chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray gets the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at JJ Hospital in Mumbai on Thursday. ANI India records 22,854 new cases, highest daily tally this year NEW DELHI: India recorded its highest daily tally of COVID-19 cases this year with 22,854 new infections, taking the total tally to 1,12,85,561, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Thursday. The country last recorded such an increase in daily cases 76 days ago on December 25 when it registered 23,067 infections in a day. The death toll increased to 1,58,189 with 126 daily new fatalities, the data updated at 8 am showed. The total active cases have increased to 1,89,226 which now comprises 1.68 per cent of the total infections. The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 1,09,38,146 which translates to a national COVID-19 recovery rate of 96.92 per cent, while the case fatali- ty rate stands at 1.40 per cent, the data stated. India''s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19. According to the ICMR, 22,42,58,293 samples have been tested up to March 10 with 7,78,416 samples being tested on Wednesday. The 126 new fatalities include 54 from Maharashtra, 17 from Punjab and 14 from Kerala. A total of 1,58,189 deaths have been reported so far in the country including 52,610 from Maharashtra followed by 12,530 from Tamil Nadu. KOLKATA: A day after sustaining injuries in an alleged attack, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday appealed to her supporters to maintain peace and refrain from doing anything that can cause 'inconvenience' to anybody. In a video message from her hospital, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief said she has sustained injuries in a hand, leg and ligament during the attack, but will resume work in the next two to three days. "I sustained injuries in hand, leg and ligament. I was standing near the car when I was pushed against it, yesterday. I am on medication and will soon leave from Kolkata. I request everybody to maintain peace and refrain from doing anything that can cause inconvenience to anybody. I will resume work in the next two to three days," said Banerjee. Earlier today, TMC also appealed to party workers to maintain peace and not resort to "means which Didi would not approve of". "We appeal to all our workers to not let their emotions overflow. We understand your concerns and we'll keep updating about Hon'ble @MamataOfficial's health. We request to maintain peace and not resort to means, which Didi would not approve of. Let us all pray for her speedy recovery," the All India Trinamool Congress tweeted. A delegation of the TMC on Thursday filed a complaint at the Election Commission office in Kolkata over the attack and have called the incident a "deep-rooted conspiracy to take her life". The Chief Minister, who was on a two-day visit to Nandigram from where she filed her nomination earlier on Wednesday, alleged that she was pushed by a few unidentified people during her election campaigning. She was brought to Kolkata's SSKM Hospital by road from Nandigram. Banerjee sustained "severe bony injuries" on her left foot and ankle as well as bruises and injuries on her shoulder, forearm and neck, according to the report of her initial medical examination. Elections to 294-member West Bengal Assembly will be held in eight phases starting from March 27 with the final round of voting taking place on April 29. The counting of votes will take place on May 2. West Bengal is likely to witness a triangular contest this time with TMC, Congress-Left alliance and the BJP in the fray. THREE DIE IN LATEHAR AFTER INHALING TOXIC GAS IN WELL RANCHI: Three persons of a family, including the father and the son, died due to inhaling poisonous gas after they entered a well in Latehar district in Jharkhand on Thursday, the police said. The incident took place at Palhitola village situated under the Balumath block in Latehar district. Ashish Toppo (15) first entered the well get a water pump out of it. After he fell unconscious, his father Simon Toppo (45) entered the well. He too fell unconscious. To save the father-son duo, Anup Toppo (26), a nephew of Simon Toppo, entered the well, but only to meet the same fate. The villagers later rescued the three persons and took them to a local hospital where they died during the course of treatment. Simon had put a water pump inside the well to irrigate his land. The water level was only five feet. When the irrigation work was over, Ashish went inside the well to take out the water pump. The bodies have been sent for post-mortem. ED ATTACHES ASSETS IN CYBER FRAUD CASE The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached properties worth Rs 66 lakh in a cyber fraud case registered in Jharkhand's Jamtara district. Trinamool criticises Modi, Shah for keeping mum on Mamata's health KOLKATA: The ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal on Thursday criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for not enquiring about the health of injured Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who is admitted to the state-run SSKM Hospital for almost 24 hours now. "Mamata Banerjee happens to be the only woman Chief Minister in the country. She was injured on Wednesday. But neither did the Prime Minister, nor the Union Home Minister enquire about her health since last night. This is quite surprising. How can they ignore such an incident?" asked veteran Trinamool leader Lok Sabha MP Sougata Roy at a press conference here. Trinamool's Secretary General Partha Chatterjee said: "They (Narendra Modi and Amit Shah) could have at least shown some courtesy by showing some concern about her (Banerjee's) health". CO of first Rafale Squadron transferred within 6 months of command SUMIT KUMAR SINGH NEW DELHI: The commanding officer (CO) of the first Rafale Squadron of the Indian Air Force, Group Captain Harkirat Singh, has been transferred to the Eastern Air Command (EAC) in Shillong, just six months after taking command, sources said. While the Indian Air Force (IAF) maintained that it is a routine transfer, the move has raised eyebrows in the service with questions being raised as to "why he was removed within six months of command of the first Rafale fighter squadron". Top officers remained tight-lipped over the decision taken by IAF chief Air Chief Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria. However, the IAF maintained that "Group Captain Harkirat Singh will be based at the Eastern Air Command (EAC) in Shillong and would be overlooking the raising of the second squadron of Rafale jets at the Hasimara Air Force base in West Bengal". Roy moves privilege motion against mining officials SANJAY SAHAY RANCHI: Alleging that due to the lapse of officials, ministers are giving incorrect replies to questions raised in the House, Independent MLA Saryu Roy has requested Speaker Rabindra Nath Mahto to bring a breach of privilege motion in the house on the issue. In a press release, the minister representative has stated that the Speaker agreed to take up the matter on Monday. Roy alleged that he got baseless and incorrect information on his question In a press release, the minister representative has stated that the Speaker agreed to take up the matter on Monday. related to the mines and minerals department. He added the department officials were regularly providing incorrect information to the questions. Roy said in a short notice question he had asked about revenue loss of several crore rupees due to decision taken by the officials. He said the reply by the department was, however, misleading He has attached the letter of the then East Singhbhum deputy commis- sioner to the district mining officer (DMO). It may be noted here that in 2012 the then DC had written to the DMO stating that in 2009-10 and 2010-11 Odisha Manganese and Minerals (OMM) Limited had mined more iron ore than permitted by the ministry of forest and environment, Government of India. The DC had ordered that DMO must ensure that the production of the company be curtailed for the years 2012-13 and 2013-14. Roy in his question asked whether it is true that the OMM had exceeded the permitted limit of mining in 2009-10 and 2010-11. He asked whether it is true that the then DC did not act properly against the company and instead ordered that its excess production to be adjusted by reducing output in the coming years. Is is true that the DC has no power to order for adjust- ment and his order was a corrupt means to save the company Rs 500 crore as fine, Roy asked. He said if the allegations are true then what steps the government is taking to recover the fine and start action against the DC. The government replied that steps for recovery of excess mineral value have been initiated since 2017-18 adding a sum of Rs 86.70 crore is being recovered. Roy is unsatisfied with the reply. Roy said that the officials of the concerned department also violate the privileges of the Vidhan Sabha committees.