Quality at Value VOL. 32 NO. 47| MUMBAI, PUNE, INDORE, BHOPAL SUNDAY| MARCH 28, 2021| 17 PAGES | ` 4 Maha imposes fresh curbs, violators to pay hefty fines WHO WARNS OF COUNTERFEIT COVID VACCINES GENEVA: The WHO warned against counterfeit COVID-19 vaccines and urged people to stick to governmentrun vaccination programmes. (Pg 9) CORONAVIRUS CASES 126,887,756 DEATHS 2,782,421 NEW RULES n n n n n n A healthcare worker takes oral swabs in Dharavi on Saturday. SANJAY JOG Mumbai In view of the unabated spurt in COVID-19 cases, the Maharashtra Government on Saturday issued orders on night curfew whereby the gatherings of more than five people have been banned from 8 pm to 7 am effective from midnight of March 27. Violators will attract a penalty of Rs 1,000 per head. In the same order, the Chief Secretary Sitaram Kunte said the lockdown in the entire state has been extended till April 15. The guidelines under the BETWEEN THE LINES Prez to undergo bypass on Tues P resident Ram Nath Kovind has been shifted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here on Saturday for a planned bypass procedure, which is expected to be performed on Tuesday, according to the Rashtrapati Bhavan. The 75-year-old President's health condition is stable and he is under the care of experts, the statement said. Kovind had undergone a health check-up at the Army Hospital (R&R) here following chest discomfort on Friday morning. "The President's health is stable and he is under the care of the experts at the AIIMS," the Rashtrapati Bhavan said in a statement. 3 pilots injured in aircraft crash T hree pilots were injured after their aircraft crashed near Bishan Khedi village on the outskirts of Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh on Saturday. The crash took place in an area under the Gandhi Nagar police station limits. The injured pilots have been shifted to a nearby hospital. Sources say the ill-fated aircraft was a small trainer aircraft and was carrying the three pilots. New train between India-Bangladesh A new passenger train connecting Dhaka and New Jalpaiguri on the Indian side was inaugurated jointly by PM Narendra Modi and his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina. This is the third passenger train after Maitree Express (DhakaKolkata) and Bandhan Express (Khulna-Kolkata) between the two neighbouring countries. HOLIDAY NOTICE THE FREE PRESS JOURNAL Dear Readers, Please note that owing to Holi celebration, the FPJ editorial office will remain closed on Sunday, March 28. Hence, there will be no newspaper on Monday, March 29. Mission Begin Again have been extended for surveillance, containment and control of the rising COVID 19 cases till April 15. All public places such as gardens and beaches will be closed from 8 pm to 7 am. People not wearing masks will be fined Rs 500. If caught spitting in public places, a penalty of Rs 1,000 will be imposed. Further, all cinema halls, single screen or multiplexes, will be closed from 8 pm to 7 am. Malls, auditorium, restaurants will also be closed from 8 pm to 7 am. Photo BL Soni However, home delivery and parcel service will be allowed. The government has banned all religious, political, cultural events while around 50 people will be allowed at weddings and at least 20 people at funerals. ‘’No social, cultural, political and religious gatherings will be allowed. Auditoriums or drama theatres should not be used for the purpose of conducting these gatherings. Violation shall also attract penalties under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 for the owner of premises,’’ the n Ban on all public gatherings (political, religious) Ban on gathering of more than 5 people from 8 pm to 7 am No visit to beaches, parks gardens from 8 pm to 7 am Offenders will have to pay fine of ` 1,000 per person People not wearing masks will be fined Rs 500 Cinema halls, single screen, multiplexes, malls, auditorium, restaurants to be closed between 8 pm and 7 am Home delivery and parcel service will be allowed government said in its order. This apart, the property shall also have to remain closed till the period until the COVID 19 pandemic stays notified as Disaster by the Central Government. CONTD. ON P8 Covovax trials finally begin in India, says Adar Poonawalla SII, Novavx hope to launch the vaccine by September this year India breaks all 2021 records, sees 62,258 Covid cases SANJAY JOG / Mumbai Amid rising COVID-19 cases in the country the citizens , can expect one more vaccine apart from Covishield and COVAXIN. Serum Institute of India (SII) CEO Adar Poonawalla on Saturday announced that trials for Covovax, a vaccine being jointly developed by both SII and US-based biotechnology company Novavax, have finally started in India. "Covovax trials finally begin in India; the vaccine is made through a partnership with @Novavax and @SerumInstIndia. It has been tested against African and UK variants of #COVID19 and has an overall efficacy of 89%. Hope to launch by September 2021!," the SII CEO tweeted. CONTD. ON P8 FROM OUR BUREAU New Delhi In a first, Mumbai logs more than 6K COVID-19 cases Mumbai on Saturday reported more than 6,000 COVID-19 cases for the first time, with 6,123 new infections. The city reported 12 pandemic deaths also. The state saw a slight drop in corona cases on Saturday, with 35,726 new patients in the past 24 hours. Full story page on Pg 3 Auto, taxi drivers fleeing city fearing yet another lockdown India on Saturday broke all records of 2021 with the highest 62,258 coronavirus infections in the past 24 hours while the day's deaths hit the year's peak at 291 and the active cases also touched a fresh high of 4.53 lakh. This is the highest in over 160 days. India had last seen over 62,000 new cases on October 16 last year. India also recorded the year's highest 11.65 lakh tests conducted in the past 24 hours, pushing those tested for coronavirus so far to 23.98 crore. NEW DELHI: India's Vijayveer Sidhu and Tejaswani claimed the gold medal in the 25m rapid fire pistol mixed team event in the ISSF World Cup on Saturday. (Pg 12) Cancel PM’s Bangladesh visa at once, says Mamata Source - Worldometer l New restrictions will remain in force till April 15 l No gathering of more than 5 in the night l Cinemas, restaurants to shut by 8 pm VIJAYVEER, TEJASWANI CLINCH GOLD IN SHOOTING are here and he (PM) to Bangladesh and “Electionsgoes underwayviolation lectures on Bengal. It is a TMC calls Modi’s Bangladesh tour a violation of election code of conduct FPJ BUREAU / Kolkata/New Delhi Bengal chief minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday who is on a , Bangladesh tour. "Elections are underway here and he (PM) goes to Bangladesh and lectures on Bengal. It is a total violation of code of conduct of the election,"Banerjee said. She pointed out that during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, when a Bangladeshi actor attended a TMC rally BJP spoke to the , Bangladesh government and cancelled his visa. “Why shouldn't your visa be cancelled?" she asked. Bengal reported 80 per cent voter turnout in the first phase of the 2021 Assembly election while Assam, which also began voting today reported 73 per cent turnout. Voting , for the first phase of elections in the two states began this morning --- for 30 and 47 seats respectively A new tit-for-tat war of . leaked phone conversations erupted between the BJP and TMC on Saturday The . BJP expose was directed to embarrassing Banerjee. In the call she allegedly asked a former party worker Proloy Pal to return to the fold. of the election code of conduct. Why shouldn't your visa be cancelled? We will complain to EC.” MAMATA BANERJEE, CM of West Bengal FPJ BUREAU / Mumbai Air India’s privatisation likely to be completed by May-June: Puri Mamata Banerjee at a rally in West Bengal. Photo PTI FPJ BUREAU / New Delhi The privatisation of the debtladen national carrier, Air India, is expected to be completed by May-June, said Union Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Saturday . Multiple entities in February this year had expressed interest in bidding for the government's stake in the cashstrapped airline. According to a report by Mint, Tata Group and SpiceJet Chairman Ajay Singh have been shortlisted to bid for Air India. "At a meeting on Monday it , was decided that the government will close the financial bids within 64 days," Puri told ANI, adding that there were multiple bidders and some have been shortlisted. Other Public sector undertakings (PSUs) like Pawan Hans disinvestment is also under process, the minister added. "The airline still is in debt of Rs 60,000 crore and it is liable BHANDUP HOSPITAL FIRE The Bhandup police have registered an offence of culpable homicide in connection with the fire that broke out at Sunrise Hospital in a mall in Bhandup West on the intervening night of Thursday and Friday, that led to the deaths by suffocation of nine patients. During a primary probe, there were several lapses found in terms of security and fire safety equipment not being checked on time, which led to the deaths, the Mumbai police said on Saturday . The offence has been registered BMC orders probe With the announcement of night curfew across the state, the fear of yet another lockdown has once again spooked the blue-collared workforce such as taxi and auto rickshaw drivers. Many of the drivers are fleeing Mumbai, say the drivers' unions, and the number of taxis and autorickshaws on the roads are also dropping. Likewise, the number of aggregator cabs has also dropped, not just for this reason but also due to the fact that they are demanding a hike in fares. The FPJ had earlier reported how trains to UP and Bihar are running full in the past few days. The number of black and yellow cabs now on the roads is around 20,000 though the total number of registered taxis is around 36,000. Likewise, of the 2.50 lakh autos, there are around 1.50 lakh are on the roads. CONTD. ON P8 against six persons, including promoters of Housing Development and Infrastructure Ltd (HDIL) Rakesh and Sarang Wadhawan who are also directors of the mall. The FIR, which was registered late on Friday night, also names other Govt’s 4-pt plan to tackle Suez Canal blockage The Centre has chalked out a four-point plan to deal with the blockage in the Suez Canal, which has disrupted global trade, with over 300 vessels stuck in the channel. The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) has welcomed cooperation and help from the US and other countries to refloat a giant cargo ship that has run aground and disrupted traffic on the world's busiest waterway trade routes. The Suez Canal route is used for Indian trade worth $200 billion to and from North America, South America and Europe, which includes petroleum goods, organic chemicals, iron and steel, automobile, machinery textiles and car, pets, handicrafts including furniture, leather goods, among others. The government has advised shipping lines through the Container Shipping Lines Association to explore the option of rerouting the ships through the Cape of Good Hope. The re-routing may take additional 15 days' time. Penis size shrinking because of rise in pollution, says scientist MALE MEMBER TALK: Genitals are becoming malfunctioned due to pollution FPJ BUREAU / Mumbai The next time you turn a blind eye towards pollution, think again as it could affect the ‘male member’ in your family Environmental scientist . Shanna Swan has cautioned that the size of the human penis is shrinking due to pollution, which has been on the rise for the past few years. In her book, titled 'CountDown', Swan has said that humanity is facing an "exis- tential crisis" in the fertility rates as human penises are shrinking and genitals becoming malfunctioned due to pollution, putting human reproduction in a challenging situation. According to her, this is happening because of phthalates. Phthalate is a chemical used when manufacturing plastics. It makes the plastic flexible. However, it impacts the hormoneproducing endocrine system. She studied the phthalate syndrome as HDIL promoters Rakesh and Sarang Wadhawan, mall directors booked directors of the mall, Nikita Trehan, Deepak Shirke along with now gutted Sunrise Hospital's directors Amit Singh Trehan and Sweety Jain, who are named as wanted accused by the police. Nikita is also the hospital's director. CONTD. ON P8 At least 91 killed in one of deadliest days since coup: Myanmar media AGENCIES / Yangon FPJ BUREAU / New Delhi Former India batsman and captain Sachin Tendulkar has tested positive for Covid19. Tendulkar, the world's highest run-getter in Test cricket and ODI cricket shared the information on his twitter handle on Saturday "I have been testing my. self and taking all the recommended precautions to ensure Covid is kept at bay . However, I've tested positive today following mild symptoms. All others at home have tested negative." Tendulkar has quarantined himself at home. “Following all the necessary protocols as advised by my doctor," he added. Tendulkar thanked all the healthcare professionals, who are supporting others across the country . Interestingly on March 27, , 1994, opener Navjot Singh Sidhu suffered a stiff neck and wasn't available to open in the second ODI against New Zealand, Auckland. The team management reluctantly let Tendulkar open. He opened and made a 49-ball 82 to help India chase down a 143-run target in 23.2 overs and win the match by seven wickets. BMC commissioner, Iqbal Singh Chahal has ordered a detailed probe into the fire and asked the investigating team to present the report within 15 days. Drivers’ unions claim that the number of taxis, autos and aggregator cabs declines SHASHANK RAO / Mumbai to be sold," Puri said. He also said that the second wave of COVID-19 has delayed airlines being allowed to operate 100 per cent that was planned to happen from the start of the summer schedule this month-end. But for now, there are no questions to curtail the domestic operations, Puri said. CONTD. ON P8 Mall and hospital management booked for culpable homicide SACHIN GAAD Mumbai Sachin Tendulkar tests Covid +ve, family negative part of her research. In her report she explains that fetuses exposed to phthalates are likely to be born with smaller penises. As per the World Air Quality Report, 2020, India has 22 out of the 30 most polluted cities in the world. Ghaziabad is the second most polluted city in the world followed by Bulandshahar, Bisrakh Jalalpur, etc. While the National Capital New Delhi is the tenth most polluted city in the world. As Myanmar's military celebrated the annual Armed Forces Day holiday with a parade on Saturday in the country's capital, soldiers and police elsewhere reportedly killed dozens of people as they suppressed protests in the deadliest bloodletting since last month's coup. A count issued by an independent researcher in Yangon who has been compiling near-real time death tolls put the total by 9 pm at 100, spread over more than two dozen cities and towns. The online news site Myanmar Now earlier reported the death toll had reached 91. Both numbers are higher than all estimates for the previous high on March 14, which ranged in counts from 74 to 90. Figures collected by the researcher, who asked not to be named for his security have generally tallied , with the counts issued at the end of each day by the Assistance Association of Political Prisoners, which documents deaths and arrests and is widely seen as a definitive source. The Associated Press is unable to independently confirm the death tolls. The killings quickly drew international condemnation, with multiple diplomatic missions to Myanmar releasing statements that mentioned the killing of civilians Saturday . Demonstrators hurl back tear gas canisters towards police during a protest against the military coup in Mandalay, Myanmar. Photo PTI