YK MYK IN PUNJAB, ON FEB 20 POLL, IT IS CONGRESS VERSUS AAM AADMI PARTY OPINION KOLKATA WEDNESDAY, 19 JAN, 2022 PG- 8, YEAR— 8, ISSUE— 239 (RNI NO: WBENG / 2014 / 56803) IIT-KHRAGPUR UNDER COMPLETE LOCKDOWN KHARAGPUR: A complete lockdown has been imposed at the IITKharagpur campus. The lockdown has been announced from Tuesday to control the spread of COVID-19 inside the campus. Strict security checks have been going on outside the main gate of IITKharagpur campus since Tuesday morning. No one other than the emergency services, health workers, electricians, market vendors and traders are allowed inside. The IIT authorities are only allowing those who have already obtained permission to enter. TATA MOTORS TO RAISE PASSENGER VEHICLE PRICES MUMBAI: Automobile manufacturer Tata Motors will marginally increase the price of its passenger vehicles from Wednesday (January 19). According to the company, there will be an average increase of 0.9 per cent, depending on the variant and model. "At the same time, the company has also taken a reduction of up to Rs 10,000 on specific variants, in response to feedback from customers. "While the company is absorbing a significant portion of the increased costs, the steep rise in overall input costs has compelled it to pass on some proportion through this minimal price hike." AAP NAMES BHAGWANT MANN AS PUNJAB CM CANDIDATE NEW DELHI: The Aam Aadmi Party on Tuesday declared Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann as its chief ministerial candidate in the Punjab Assembly polls. Announcing Mann's candidature, AAP convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said: "Some people have put forward my name for CM's face, 93.3 per cent favoured Mann as Chief Minister's candidate, while three per cent preferred Navjot Singh Sidhu. CORONA METER INDIA TOTAL CASES: 37,618,271 TOTAL DEATHS: 486,784 WORLD TOTAL CASES: 331,992,333 TOTAL DEATHS: 5,565,942 SPORTS Morning India Rs. 3 AT A GLANCE AUSTRALIAN OPEN: ANDY MURRAY WINS FIRST MATCH SINCE 2017 Mamata to campaign with Akhilesh in UP MI NEWS SERVICE KOLKATA: After handing the BJP a overwhelming defeat in Bengal Assembly elections in 2021, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has now set her sights on Uttar Pradesh which will go for Assembly elections this year. Mamata Banerjee will take part in a virtual election meeting with Samajwadi Party leader and former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav in Lucknow on February 8. The Trinamool supremo will also hold a press conference. Samajwadi Party leader Kiranmoy Nanda said this after the high-profile meeting with the Chief Minister at Kalighat on Tuesday. Political circles were keen in speculating about the outcome of the meeting between Akhilesh Yadav's envoy Kiranmoy Nanda and Mamata Banerjee at Kalighat on Tuesday. After the meeting, Kiranmoy Nanda told reporters that Mamata Banerjee will hold a meeting with Akhilesh Yadav prior to the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. One will be a virtu- al meeting in Lucknow and the other will be held in Varanasi. Mamata Banerjee is now the face of the whole country in the anti-BJP movement. In Uttar Pradesh there are strict restrictions in carrying out campaign tours concerning a host of political parties. Not more than five people are allowed in the campaign rallies. I have never seen such campaign before. There are a handful of people attending Prime Minister Narendra Modi's meeting. Whereas the flow of people taking part in Akhilesh Yadav's meeting has taken the winds out of BJP's sail. The saffron camp is terrified to see this. When asked as to why Akhilesh Yadav wants Mamata Banerjee by his side, Kiranmoy Nanda replied that Mamata Banerjee is not only the Chief Minister of Bengal, she is the national face against BJP after the 2021 Bengal Assembly elections. Our supporters will be inspired if Mamata Banerjee takes part in Samajwadi Party's election campaign. Besides, opponents of BJP in Yadav will get full support from the Trinamool Congress. Rajnath writes to Mamata over R-Day tableau row the State will also get encouragement. Mamata's meeting will be virtual. If we could have arranged a normal rally, millions of people would have flocked. Seasoned leader Kiranmoy Nanda had a halfan-hour meeting with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee at Kalighat on Tuesday. It has been decided that Mamata Banerjee is going to campaign in Uttar Pradesh on February 8. She will hold a virtual meeting and press conference with Akhilesh Yadav. Later Mamata will go to Uttar Pradesh again. The meeting will be held at Varanasi. It will be also be a virtual one. Recently, several leaders from Uttar Pradesh have joined the Trinamool Congress. However, the important point of Tuesday's meeting is that the Trinamool Congress camp has not demanded any seat in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. Kiranmoy Nanda said that Mamata had made it clear that her party will not contest in any seat from the State. Instead, Akhilesh Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday wrote a letter to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on the Republic day controversy. Earlier on Sunday, Mamata Banerjee wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the "rejection of proposed tableau of West Bengal for the ensuing Republic Day Parade" and requested to "include the tableau of freedom fighters from West Bengal in the parade" In his letter, Singh said, "I would like to tell you that Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose's contribution to the country's independence is unforgettable for every Indian." Keeping this spirit paramount, the Prime Minister has declared Netaji's birthday, 23 January, as the Parakram Diwas. From now onwards, every year the Republic Day celebrations will start from January 23, the birthday of Netaji and end on January 30, the letter read. The present government is indebted to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and all the freedom fighters of West Bengal. "I would like to assure you that the selection process of the tableaux participating in the Republic Day Parade is very transparent," Singh said. "I respect your sentiments and therefore would like to personally inform you that this time 12 out of 29 State/UT proposals have been approved," he said in his letter. "I would like to inform one more fact that this time in the tableau of CPWD also, a tribute has been paid to Bose on the occasion of his 125th birth anniversary. This is a testimony to the fact that the country is giving prominence to the birth anniversary of the great leader Bose," he said. Cartoonist, writer and illustrator Railways releases report on Narayan Debnath passes away Bikaner-Guwahati Express accident MI NEWS SERVICE MI NEWS SERVICE KOLKATA: Famous Bengali cartoonist Narayan Debnath passed away at a South Kolkata nursing home on Tuesday morning. He was admitted to hospital several times last year and was suffering from age related ailments including kidney and heart problems. The state government took the responsibility of his medical treatment. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who was personally monitoring Debanath's health since he was admitted to the hospital in the first week of January said in her message, "I am deeply saddened by the demise of eminent children's writer and cartoonist Narayan Debnath. He breathed his last in Calcutta today. He was 96 years old". "Narayan Debnath, the creator of characters like Bantul the Great, Handa Bhonda, Nante Fonte, Bahadur Beral, etc, gained a permanent place in the minds of readers of all ages," she said. Extending her sincere condolences to the family of Debanth, the chief minister said, "The West Bengal government awarded him the 'Banga Bibhushan' in 2013. In addition to the President's Award, Padma Shri Award, Sahitya Akademi Award, he received his D.Litt degree from Rabindranath Tagore university. His death is an irreparable loss in the world of Bengali literature." President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday expressed grief and offered their condolences over the demise of noted Bengali cartoonist Narayan Debnath. Over 1.47L kids orphaned due to Covid since April 2020: NCPCR NEW DELHI: Since April 1, 2020, 1,47,492 children have lost their parents due to Covid-19 or other reason, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) data showed. After including 10,094 orphans in need of care and protection, a total of 1,36,910 children lost their parents, 488 were abandoned, pushing the total to 1,47,492, the Commission informed Supreme Court on the basis of data uploaded by states and union territories on its 'Baal Swaraj Portal-COVID care' up to January 11. The commission further said that out of 1,47,492 children, there are 76,508 boys, 70,980 girls and four transgender. It said that the maximum number of children are between the age group of eight to 13 years (59,010), followed by children in the age group of 14 to 15 years (22,763) and age group of 16 to 18 years (22,626) and four to seven years (26,080). "Maximum of the children are with their single parent 1,25,205, while 11,272 children are with family members, followed by 8,450 with guardians," it said. In the backdrop of the pandemic, the Supreme Court on Monday directed all district magistrates (DMs) to engage with District Legal Service Authority (DLSA), and voluntary organizations to rehabil- itate children in street situations. A bench comprising Justices L. Nageswara Rao and B.V. Nagarathna said: "we direct all DMs to involve DLSA and voluntary organisations in the identification of children on streets without any further delay". The bench added that immediate steps are required to provide shelter to children in street situations by the central government and state governments. It emphasized that children should be shifted to shelter homes and also directed the DMs to upload the information at all stages on the web portal of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR). KOLKATA: The BikanerGuwahati Express derailed at Maynaguri in Jalpaiguri few days back. Several passengers were killed. Many were injured. The Rail authority has released a report of the detailing and exactly how the accident happened and at what time. According to the report, the accident took place around 4:55 pm. The news came to the railways at 5 o'clock. According to the preliminary investigation, the driver felt severe tremors as INDIA POST PAYMENTS BANK CUSTOMER BASE CROSSES 5 CRORE MARK NEW DELHI: India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) said on Tuesday its customer base has crossed the 5 crore mark within three years of commencement of operations, making it one of the fastest growing digital payments bank in the country. "IPPB opened up these five crore accounts in digital and paperless mode through its 1.36 lakh Post Offices, out of which 1.20 lakh are in rural areas with the help of about 1.47 lakhs doorstep banking service providers," the Ministry of Communications said in a statement. Out of the total 5 crore account holders, around 48 per cent are women. About 98 per cent of accounts of women were opened at the doorsteps. soon as the 'Load', 'Loco' and 'Panto' (used for overhead cable power connection with the train) broke. The driver managed to control the train and stopped. When he came out, he saw four to five coaches derailed. According to the report, at least 10 compartments were derailed. The first engine of the train was in line but the last one was derailed. After the train accident, it was alleged that the train had a problem with the engine. The driver came to Jalpaiguri Road station and informed the station master about this. After that, without waiting, he took the train to Cooch Behar. After that the accident happened. A special investigation team led by the Commissioner of Railway Safety has already launched an investigation into the allegations. 'DECISION DANGER TO DEMOCRACY' Apex court grills Maha on 12 BJP MLAs suspension NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday continued to grill the Maharashtra government on the resolution passed by the state Assembly on July 5, 2021 to suspend 12 BJP MLAs for a period of one year for their alleged misconduct and misbehaviour in the House. A bench, headed by Justice A.M. Khanwilkar and comprising Justices Dinesh Maheshwari and C.T. Ravikumar, shot a volley of questions at senior advocate C.A. Sundaram, on the rationality of suspending the MLAs beyond the session of the House, as he argued regarding the limited scope for judicial review over the business within the Assembly. Justice Khanwilkar told Sundaram that the suspension of the MLAs should not be greater than the session of the House, and anything other than this would be irrational. "Your decision of 1 year is irrational because of the deprivation of the constituency being unrepresented for more than 6 months...," noted the bench. Justice Ravikumar said: "Another is danger to democracy.....Suppose there is a slender lead of the ruling party (in the Assembly), and 15 or 20 people are suspended, what will be the fate of democracy?" The bench queried Sundaram: "suspension up to what period and for what purpose?" Justice Maheshwari said the House meets in sessions and the rationale is, when a new session begins, new business begins. "A particular session, he may be suspended but beyond that time, the rationality question comes". The bench remarked that with a change of session, there is a completely new session and even if the action is punitive, it is for the whole session and not beyond the session. It emphasised that the constituency of the elected representative cannot be left unrepresented for a long time. Curious case of ‘kidnapping’ of a lady doctor in Latehar M FAIYAZ AHMAD DALTONGANJ: If you think sensation and drama is a perfect ingredient to a television crime story, this 'kidnapping' incident of a lady doctor in Latehar district proves the point why it is. A government lady doctor identified as Neelima Kumari, and posted in the community health centre at Chandwa in Latehar district, has filed a complaint with the local police that she was kidnapped and later released. Her narration of the alleged kidnapping looks at first hand a story or tale not built or even spun properly. The Officer in charge of the Chandwa police station who is inspector of police Ashutosh Kumar said that the doctor Kumari posted in the community health centre at Chandwa lodged a written complaint with this police station in the evening of January 16 that she was kidnapped on January 12 which itself widens the eyes much. She could not explain the 4day delay in any satisfactory manner as now lodging a complaint for a lady with the police station has been made far easier sources said. And who kidnapped her about which she wrote a man introducing himself as a WHO doctor kidnapped her and took her in a car on January 12 night first to Ranchi where the two reportedly dined together in a restaurant and then she was taken down to Ramgarh and again she was brought back to Chandwa on January 13. Sources quipped was this a winter night outing by consent or any kidnapping of a new brand? A kidnapper acted like a sincere companion! Police officer said on January 13 this lady doctor went to a bank in Chandwa and on withdrew a sum of rupees 2.50 lakh. The kidnapper was with her again said the police officer referring to the CCTV footage of the camera installed in the bank. Police officer said CCTV footage does not show the money so withdrawn has exchanged hands either. Police officer said the lady doctor gave an altogether a different version to her medical officer in charge of the community health centre at Chandwa Dr N K Pandey that she was going to Ranchi as there her mother had a fall and she would not be on duty at the centre on January 13. Police officer said a lady doctor just sits and goes away at night in a car with a man who poses to be a WHO officer. Should a doctor not know that a WHO doctor has no authority as such to ask any doc- tor except through the civil surgeon concerned and here this fake WHO doctor scares her and she succumbs to his intimidation citing allegations and complaints against her. Does a kidnapper take his victim to a restaurant for dinner? Here the lady doctor told police she was taken down to a restaurant in Ranchi at night on January 12. Police officer said the alleged kidnapper remained with his victim all through which itself is most suspicious. Police are investigating the case which is not only worrisome but bizarre too.