Vol. 65 No. 225 | THURSDAY | JANUARY 20, 2022 | 1 5 P a g e s | BETWEEN THE LINES MVA OUTDOES BJP IN NAGAR ELECTIONS T he ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi has outdone the BJP in the elections held for 1,802 seats in 106 nagar panchayats. Of the 106 nagar panchayats, the results for 97, with 1,638 seats were declared on Wednesday while those for nine others with 153 seats will be announced on Thursday. Even though the BJP bagged the number one slot by winning 384 seats, the NCP, Shiv Sena and Congress together have won 944 seats. The NCP bagged 344 seats, the Congress got 316 and the Shiv Sena, 284. Incidentally, the 206 Independents who have won are expected to play a crucial role in winning the elections to the posts of the president and deputy president. Full Report on Page 2 BAN ON FLIGHTS TILL FEB 28, NOW A mid rising concern over the Omicron variant, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation on Wednesday extended the ban on commercial international passenger flights till February 28. This restriction shall not apply to international all-cargo operations and flights specifically approved by DGCA. Likewise, flights under air bubble arrangement will not be affected. Due to the pandemic, international passenger services have been suspended in India since March 23, 2020. Earlier, on December 9, DGCA had extended the ban till January 31, reports ANI. BJP SUSPENSIONS: RULING RESERVED T he Supreme Court on Wednesday reserved its verdict on the one-year suspension of a dozen BJP MLAs for allegedly misbehaving with the presiding officer, asking the parties to file written submissions within a week. Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for most of the MLAs, said the suspension for one year was grossly irrational, while senior advocate Mahesh Jethmalani argued on behalf of one MLA that the suspension was worse than expulsions since it affects the rights of the constituents. TAILPIECE Singer dies after exposing herself A n anti-vaccine Czech folk singer died after she deliberately contracted Covid to obtain a health pass that would have allowed her to visit the sauna and theatre, her family said. Proof of vaccination or a recent infection is required to access cultural and sports facilities as well as for travel and for visiting bars and restaurants in the EU member state, which is facing a soaring Covid count. Hana Horka, who was the vocalist for the band Asonance, died on Sunday at the age of 57, according to her son Jan Rek. She voluntarily exposed herself to the virus when her husband and son, both vaccinated, caught it before Christmas, Rek told public radio iRozhlas.cz. "She decided to continue to live normally with us and preferred to catch the disease than to get vaccinated," he said on Monday. Two days before her death, Horka took to social media to say: "I survived... It was intense." "So now there will be the theatre, sauna, a concert... and an urgent trip to the sea," she added. Rek blamed the death on a local anti-vax movement. IT’S BACK TO SCHOOL FROM JANUARY 24? RELIANCE JIO TOPPLES BSNL AS TOP FIXED BROADBAND PLAYER EDIT REAL ISSUES OF PUNJAB NEED TO BE IN FOCUS I FEEL I AM AN ACTOR MADE BY THE AUDIENCE: AMIT SADH Covid under control in city: BMC to HC Proposal to begin offline classes from KG to Class 12 in areas where Covid cases are low; Cabinet to decide today; local administration will take final call, depending on ground situation SANJAY JOG Mumbai Taking note of the strong demand from experts, parent and teacher associations, the school education department has submitted a proposal to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray seeking his nod , for the reopening of schools from January 24 for pre-primary (junior and senior KG) and from Classes 1 to 12 in those urban and rural areas where Covid cases are low. The department has left it to the local administration to take a call on the subject, with the primary concern being the health and security of students. School Education Minister Varsha Gaikwad said, “The department has submitted a proposal to empower the local administration, including divisional commissioners, district collectors, municipal commissioners and chief executive officers to decide on school reopening. The department expects the CM’s clearance and thereafter, schools will be reopened from January 24.” The state cabinet to be chaired by Thackeray is expected to discuss the issue and give its approval on Thursday This is necessary . as the state government had said in its order on December 28 that schools would remain shut till February 15. The decision had then been taken in the wake of the exponential rise in cases in the state. Gaikwad’s announcement came a day after BrihanMumbai Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Chahal said the civic body was planning to reopen schools from January 27. “The department has included pre-primary schools in its proposal along with Classes 1 to 12, for reopening from January 24 by strictly following Covid norms and standard operating procedures in areas where the number of cases are low. Besides, parents’ consent is necessary As decided earlier, . the local administration will plan on allowing offline classes in phases, or on alternate days, or with attendance of students with 50 per cent or full capacity . The objective is that the students should get offline education and it should become an interactive exercise,” she noted. CONTD. ON NATION PAGE IndiGo planes involved in near mid-air collision NEW DELHI: More than four hundred lives were in jeopardy as two IndiGo planes averted mid-air collision over the Bengaluru airport just after take-off on the morning of January 9. The radar controller saw the impending danger and took corrective actions, a preliminary report by the aviation regulator DGCA has said. The incident was not entered in the logbook and it was not reported by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) either, sources said. DGCA officials have revealed that the two IndiGo planes -- 6E455 (Bengaluru to Kolkata) and 6E246 (Bengaluru to Bhubaneswar) -- were involved in 'breach of separation' at Bengaluru airport. wards each other. Bengaluru airport operates two runways - north and south. On January 7 morning, flights were taking off from the north runway and landing on the south runway On the 9th, a shift in-charge of . runway operations decided to use a single runway the north one, for both , landings and take-offs, the report said. CONTD. ON NATION PAGE 5G CHAOS: AI CANCELS US FLIGHTS JON GAMBRELL Dubai BJP trespasses into Mulayam household RASHMI SHARMA Lucknow In a big catch in the run-up to the Assembly polls, the BJP has finally earned some brownie points by weaning away a member of the Mulayam Singh Yadav household. The ‘acquisition’ is none other than the patriarch’s daughter-in law Aparna Yadav who is married to Prateek, offspring of Mulayam’s second wife. Akhilesh is from the first marriage. Mulayam Singh tried his best to dissuade his daugh- URVI MAHAJANI Mumbai The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) assured the Bombay high court on Wednesday that the current Covid-19 situation in Mumbai and the areas adjoining the city was ‘under control’ and there was no reason for citizens to panic. Anil Sakhare, counsel for the BMC, informed the court that Mumbai was witnessing a gradual decline in Covid-positive cases in the current third wave of the pandemic. A bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice MS Karnik was hearing a PIL filed by one ter-in-law Aparna, but she did not relent, having made up her mind to cross over to the BJP claims Akhilesh. , ‘‘Now, I can only wish her good luck,’’ said the visibly embarrassed SP chief on Wednesday . Loreto Convent-educated Aparna (32) has a Masters' degree in international relations and politics from the University of Manchester and runs ‘bAware’, an NGO working for the empowerment of women. Insiders in the Yadav household say that both the stepbrothers -- Akhilesh and Prateek -- were never comfortable with each other, but Mulayam Singh ept the clan united. After Mulayam’s grip on the party weakened and Akhilesh took command, the dynamics of the relationship changed. The second wife of Mulayam wanted her son and daughter-in-law to be given due importance in the party which was not acceptable to Akhilesh.Soon after joining the BJP Aparna lashed out , at SP and called it a party that promotes hooliganism and anti-social elements. CONTD. ON NATION PAGE Air India has cancelled eight flights on India-US routes from Wednesday onwards due to deployment of 5G internet in North America which could interfere with aircraft's navigation systems. US aviation regulator Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had on January 14 said that "5G interference with the aircraft's radio altimeter could prevent engine and braking systems from transitioning to landing mode, which could prevent an aircraft from stopping on the runway". Altimeter measures height of the aircraft above the ground. The band on which altimeter works is close to that on which 5G system works. Three carriers -- American Airlines, Delta Airlines and Air India -- currently operate direct flights between India and the US. These eight Air India flights were Delhi-New York, New York-Delhi, Delhi-Chicago, Chicago-Delhi, Delhi- San Francisco, San FranciscoDelhi, Delhi-Newark and Newark-Delhi. CONTD. ON NATION PAGE Sunrise: 07:14 am Sunset : 06:23 pm Sneha Marjadi on several issues related to the pandemic and the management of the state’s resources for controlling the same. Citing available data, Sakhare said that till January 15, there were 84,352 active Covid cases in the city . Of these, only 5,962 persons required hospitalisation, or only seven per cent of the cases. Three per cent of the total active cases in the city needed oxygen support and 0.7 per cent needed ventilator support, he said. A detailed note was submitted by the BMC with details of active cases, oxygen supply stock of medicines, , hospital beds available etc. CONTD. ON NATION PAGE An expert panel of the central drug authority has recommended that regular market approval be given to Covishield and Covaxin, reports India Today’s news portal. A market authorisation means the vaccine can be authorised for use without reservations or conditions. Both the Serum Institute and Bharat Biotech have confirmed receiving the approval from the subject expert committee (SEC). 6032 COVID METER 12 DEATHS New cases in MUMBAI In MUMBAI in last 24 hrs This essentially means that vaccines will be now easily available at clinics and hospitals registered with CoWin. At the time of administration, the MVA govt breathes easy after SC seeks OBC data If SC accepts data, it would pave the way for temporary restoration of reservation in upcoming civic & local body polls SANJAY JOG Mumbai The Maha Vikas Aghadi government on Wednesday heaved a major sigh of relief as the Supreme Court asked it to submit the data and information on Other Backward Classes available with the state to the Maharashtra State Backward Classes Commission (MSBCC). The apex court said that the MSBCC could submit the interim report if so advised to the concerned authorities within two weeks from receipt of information/data from the state government. If the Supreme Court accepts the state government’s data, it will pave the way for the restoration of 27 per cent political reservation to the OBC community which was scrapped last year, citing it was above the 50 per cent quota ceiling. This will then be applicable in the upcoming elections to the municipal corporations of Mumbai, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Nashik, Pune, PimpriChinchwad and a couple of others and also various zilla parishads in the state. The state government had thereafter issued an ordinance providing OBC quota in local bodies below 50 per cent quota limit but this too was stayed by the apex court. In the recently concluded winter session, the legislature had unanimously passed a resolution that local body elections should not be held in the absence of OBC quota. CONTD. ON NATION PAGE Leopard carcass found in park; hit and run? LAST WORD DIPTI SINGH / Mumbai The carcass of a three-year-old male leopard was found in the Yeoor range of Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) on Tuesday evening. While on one hand, the forest department suspects that the death could have been caused by a fall, wildlife enthusiasts are seeking an enquiry into the incident as it could be a case of hit-and-run, they contend. The leopard, identified as C-40 by the forest department staff, was found on the Chena West beat in the Yeoor range of the SGNP in Thane. As per the protocol, the carcass was taken to the SGNP’s wildlife hospital for post mortem and it is suspected that the cause of the death of the big cat was probably due to its falling from a height, which could have led to the rupturing of its liver. The feline has been identified as a resident leopard from the Aarey Milk Colony by the team carrying out camera-trapping of leopards in and around Aarey It had been unof. State can’t bar unjabbed from locals T NARSI BENWAL Mumbai he Bombay High Court was informed on Wednesday that the Maharashtra government doesn’t have powers to disallow non-vaccinated citizens from travelling in suburban local trains. The HC was further told that the government had erred in imposing such a restriction as it breached the right to movement of the citizens. A bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Makarand Karnik was hearing a bunch of petitions challenging the executive order of the state disallowing non-vaccinated citizens from travelling in the local trains. Advocate Nilesh Ojha, arguing for one of the petitioners, relied on the judgment of the Gauhati HC, CONTD. ON NATION PAGE Market approval for 2 vaccines ONLINE REPORT New Delhi Breach of separation happens when two aircraft cross the minimum mandatory vertical or horizontal distance in an airspace. Both these aircraft departed from Bengaluru airport within a span of approximately 5 minutes on the morning of January 9, the officials said. The radar controller made an intervention when he noticed that both aircraft after take-off were moving to- 280c. 220c. ficially named Aries by the team. “ per the post mortem, the rupAs ture of liver led to internal haemorrhage and subsequent hypovolemic shock, which is the probable cause of death. However, we are conducting a further inquiry into this about incident and it is already in progress,” said G Mallikarjuna, Conservator of Forests & Director, SGNP . A wildlife activist requesting anonymity said that such deaths should ideally not be brushed aside as natural deaths. “Leopards falling and dying is not a common occurrence. However, there are several cases where these big cats have been hit by vehicles on busy roads such as Ghodbunder Road and have later died of internal injuries very similar to injuries or haemorrhages caused by the suspected fall as per the forest department.” The activist added that there was also an urgent need to instal properly visible signages warning motorists about crucial wildlife crossings on Ghodbunder and other roads. clinic/hospital will put in details in CoWIN. ENDEMIC BY MARCH 11: Meanwhile, the head of Indian Council of Medical Research’s Epidemiological Department Samiran Panda has projected that Covid will become endemic by March 11. “If we don’t let our guards down and no new variant emerges, Covid will be endemic by March 11,” he said, reports India Today “If Omi. cron replaces Delta it will become endemic. CONTD. ON NATION PAGE Abducted Pune boy, 4, reunited with his family PRACHI BARI Pune The four-year-old Pune boy who was abducted by an unidentified motorbike rider near his playschool a week ago, was happily reunited with his parents on Wednesday News of his ab. duction had been making ripples on Pune’s WhatsApp groups and social media over the last few days. Swarnav Chavan, the boy whose photographs went viral on WhatsApp and Facebook groups in Pune, was kidnapped around 10am when he was walking to his playschool on January 11. The son of pathologists Drs Satish Chavan and Prachi Chavan who run a laboratory in Balewadi, Swarnav alias Duggu was last seen in a CCTV grab showing him being borne away by unidentified motorbike rider. The Pune and PimpriChinchwad police had launched a massive manhunt for the child based on a missing complaint registered by the Chavan couple with the Chaturshrungi police station in Pune. “The boy is fine. Though he has been found after eight days, there is no trauma. His parents are doctors and will take care of their son. A paediatrician will also examine him. We understand that many wellwishers took to the social media, but it could have hampered the case further. Hence, we are appealing to the people concerned that the boy is now safely back with his parents and let the police do their work,” said Joint Commissioner of Police (law & order) CONTD. ON NATION PAGE