HYDERABAD  THURSDAY  NOVEMBER 19, 2020  `7.00  PAGES 16  LATE CITY EDITION BOEING 737 MAX CAN FLY AGAIN AS U.S. REGULATOR ENDS BAN The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had put in place grounding orders in March 2019 after two deadly crashes CHANGES IN DESIGN, SOFTWARE AND WIRING However, the clearance does not mean the plane can take to the skies immediately. Existing aircraft will need to be modified before going back into service, with changes to their design. Alongside the software and wiring changes, pilots will also need training. The FAA said the design changes will “eliminate what caused the accidents” ■ 346 AIRCRAFT WILL BE 100% SAFE, SAYS FAA ■ A probe into the crashes found that a safety feature which was meant to stop the plane from climbing too fast and stalling had improperly forced the nose of the plane down FAA administrator Steve Dickson said he is “100% confident” in the safety of the plane and that such crashes won’t recur PEOPLE WERE KILLED IN TWO FATAL ACCIDENTS INVOLVING BOEING 737 MAX CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA ■ BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOGGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ WARANGAL ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI Efficacy in final Pfizer shot trial KCR to unite non-BJP parties against Centre EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ New Delhi CM plans to invite Mamata, Akhilesh, Stalin, HDK and others to a meeting in December V V B A L A K R I S H N A @ Hyderabad CHIEF Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Wednesday announced that he will convene a meeting of all non-BJP parties in Hyderabad in the second week of December, wherein the saffron party would be called out to account for all the ills plaguing the nation. Apparently with an intention to emerge as a formidable force that can challenge the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the national level, Rao plans to invite leaders of national stature — Mamata Banerjee, HD Kumaraswamy, Akhilesh Yadav, Mayawati and MK Stalin, apart from some of the Left parties. The Chief Minister, ahead of the general elections in 2019, had toyed with the idea of forging a federal front with all non-BJP and non-Congress leaders. But this had fizzled out as the BJP grew stronger and romped home with a massive majority at the Centre. Now, with the election to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) scheduled for December 1, Rao, at a joint meeting of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) Parliamentary and Legislature parties at Telangana Bhavan here, targeted the BJP for failing to rise to the expectations of the people. Interestingly, he came out with his narrative of the national alternative to the BJP after the saffron party, which was dismissed as one of no consequence, vanquished it in a byelection to Dubbaka in north Telangana where the pink party has a vice-like grip. The TRS chief said he will take the lead to launch the fight against the anti-people, especially the antifarmer and anti-labour, policies of the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre. “The TRS is a formidable political force in the country and it is its responsibility to take the lead to fight against the policies of the BJP I will bring all . the non-BJP parties on one platform. I have already spoken to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Kerala CM P Vijayan, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik, former CMs HD Kumaraswamy, Akhilesh Yadav, Sharad Pawar, Prakash Singh Badal and also DMK leader MK Stalin,” Rao said. Attacking the BJP the Telan, gana Chief Minister said: “The Narendra Modi government did nothing for the country in the last six years. The country has been pushed backwards due to the lopsided policies. It is the responsibility of all non-BJP parties to rise and end the inefficient rule of the BJP government.” PSUs handed over to corporates, alleges KCR Rao alleged that several Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) had been handed over to corporate companies through disinvestment process. “We will express our solidarity with the agitating PSU employees and fight against Modi’s disinvestment policies,” the TRS chief declared. He further said: “The TRS will educate the people of the country, along with other regional parties, and fight against the anti-people polices of the Narendra Modi government.” Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao addresses TRS MLAs, MPs and MLCs ahead of the GHMC election, at Telangana Bhavan in Hyderabad on Wednesday. Attacking the BJP, he said Modi had done nothing for farmers, Dalits, tribals and OBCs The TRS is a formidable political force in the country and it is its responsibility to take the lead to fight against the policies of the BJP. I will bring all non-BJP parties on one platform THE Telangana State Election Commission (TSEC) on Wednesday directed the State government to put off the disbursement of `10,000 flood relief to rain-affected families in Hyderabad till the GHMC election. The SEC stalled the disbursal of the aid till December 4, citing that it violates the model code of conduct which is in force for the GHMC election. But while issuing the poll schedule on Tuesday, it had said the disbursement of rain Suspended till Dec 4 The Telangana State Election Commission stalled the disbursal of the `10,000 flood relief till December 4, citing that it violates the model code of conduct which is in force for the GHMC poll relief was being allowed as it is related to a calamity and is a continuing scheme. Following Wednesday’s decision, all hell broke loose, with an ugly slugfest breaking out The TRS supremo said Modi had done nothing for the development of farmers, Dalits, tribals and people of other backward classes. As he could not achieve anything, he has always taken recourse to campaigns such as Pakistan, Kashmir and Pulwama to derive political mileage during elections, Rao alleged. The BJP would rake up emotive issues, divide the people on religious lines and disturb communal harmony, thus benefitting from all this in elections, he said. “The Modi government had claimed that it waged a war against the enemy across the border. But it failed to control China. BJP always depends between Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and BJP State president Bandi Sanjay Kumar. It also led to frayed tempers and fisticuffs at Mee Seva centres, with angry victims demanding to know why their applications for the rain relief were not being accepted. The staff refused to entertain applications of rain victims, who arrived at the Mee Seva centres in droves. At the Neknampur Mee Seva Centre, which falls under the Golconda police station limits, a 70-year- EXPRESS READ LVB depositors’ money safe: RBI administrator Mumbai: Lakshmi Vilas Bank has enough liquidity to pay back its 20-lakh depositors and will complete the proposed merger with DBS before the deadline, Reserve Bank-appointed administrator said on Wednesday. “Liquidity is not a problem… This is the shortest moratorium period for a bank and we are confident that before the deadline we will have a resolution in place,” TN Manoharan said, allaying concerns on the liquidity front | P10 Pak resorts to heavy shelling in Poonch Jammu: Pakistan’s army violated ceasefire twice on Wednesday and resorted to heavy firing and mortar shelling in forward areas along the LoC in Poonch district of J&K, officials said, adding that Indian Army retaliated befittingly `72,480 cr garnered via Vivad Se Vishwas New Delhi: The Centre has got `72,480 cr through direct tax dispute resolution scheme Vivad Se Vishwas, sources said. A total of 45,855 declarations have been filed. The scheme offers immunity from penalty for offences under the I-T Act INSIDE K Chandrasekhar Rao, Chief Minister Nothing much in it for India The vaccines of Pfizer and Moderna may have little implications for India, as storage and distribution could be a major constraint. In any case, most of the doses to be manufactured till next year by them have been booked by rich nations least 8,000 participants in the phase 2/3 study, showed that the vaccine was well tolerated, with most adverse events resolving shortly after vaccination, the statement added. The adverse effects included headaches and fatigue in about 2% TS CUTS RT-PCR RATES FROM `2,200 TO `850 I P5 CONGRESS IMPLOSION on fake campaigns. It gave beautiful slogans such as ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’. But in reality, it did nothing for the people,” Rao alleged. Lauds Nehru Rao lauded the country’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru. With a foresight, Nehru had started PSUs. But the BJP has been diluting and handing these over to the corporates. The disinvestment process was started during the Atal Bihari Vajpayee regime. There was a Minister in Vajpayee’s Cabinet for disinvestment, he recalled. The same policies were continued by the Manmohan Singh government. CONTINUED ON P4 TS poll panel stalls flood aid; protests erupt S B A C H A N J E E T S I N G H @ Hyderabad THE Corona vaccine world got just got another shot of excitement as US-based pharma major Pfizer on Wednesday raised its candidate’s efficacy to 95%, up from 90% a week ago, as final results of its phase 3 trials across six countries came in. The other big takeaway was the vaccine’s 94% effectiveness in adults over 65 years, who are among the most vulnerable to the virus. Just a couple of days ago, its competitor Moder na had claimed 94.5% efficacy in its initial phase 3 results. Both biotech firms intend to seek emergency regulatory approval within days. The BNT162b2, the vaccine candidate Pfizer developed along with German partner BioNTech, was reported to be consistent in performance across age and ethnicity demographics without major side effects. A review of the reactogenicity data, which consisted of at old woman collapsed and died of exhaustion while waiting for her turn to apply for the flood relief. As the protests intensified at the Mee Seva Centres, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, while interacting with TRS legislators at Telangana Bhavan, said the disbursement was suspended after the SEC, acting on a petition by BJP leaders, had issued the orders. He came down like a ton of bricks on the BJP for standing between him and the CONTINUED ON P3 people. ADHIR’S TURN TO SAVAGE SIBAL, SAYS HE’S FREE TO LEAVE Sibal was one of 23 leaders who wrote to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi calling for a THE infighting within the functional leadership. After Congress intensified on the Bihar debacle, he reiterWednesday with the party’s ated his demand for an introleader in the Lok Sabha spection on the party’s failAdhir Ranjan Chowdure in elections after hury telling dissentelections. ing leader Kapil Sibal’s sharp comSibal to join another ments triggered a party if he is not war of words among happy with the Conparty leaders. While gress. Choudhury Congress Rajya Sabalso questioned ha MP Vivek Tankha Sibal’s intentions in agreed with Sibal publicly targeting and sought serious the Gandhis after Instead of giving introspection, Rajasthe party’s poor per- sermons sitting than Chief Minister formance in the Bi- in AC rooms, he Ashok Gehlot said (Kapil Sibal) har elections. the comments were “Kapil Sibal could should work on unwarranted and the ground. have raised the iswould demoralise sues inside a party Lecturing others party workers. without doing forum instead of Senior leader Salanything won’t making such embar- help. Only calling man Khurshid, who rassing remarks in for introspection is considered close public. He is a senior to the Gandhi family , without doing leader and has ac- anything on our also hit out at Sibal cess to the party’s own is of no use saying there is no top brass. Those who point in “aimless inare unhappy with the func- trospection” and that leadtioning of the party have the ers who bite nails when the freedom to form a new party party underperforms may o r j o i n o n e , ” s a i d have “no nails to bite” for Chowdhury . future. EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ New Delhi ONE OF A KIND MP first grazing pasture for cow cabinet E X P R E S S N E W S S E R V I C E @ Bhopal A day after announcing the introduction of a Bill against ‘love jihad’ in the next session of the Vidhan Sabha, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday decided to set up perhaps the country’s first ‘cow cabinet’ for the protection and promotion of cows. Announcing the decision, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan tweeted, “It has been decided to constitute a Gau Cabinet (cow cabinet) for cattle conservation and promotion. It will comprise animal husbandry, farmers’ welfare, forest, panchayat-rural development, home and revenue departments. The first meeting of the cow cabinet will be held at the cow sanctuary in Agar-Malwa district on Gopashthami festival on November 22.” Besides Chouhan, the cow cabinet will include Home Minister Narottam Mishra, Forest Minister Vijay Shah, Agriculture Minister Kamal Patel, Panchayat and Rural Development Minister Mahen- of the volunteers. In all, the vaccine candidate was trialled on over 41,000 volunteers in the US, Ger many, Turkey, South Africa, Brazil and Argentina. Global markets reacted positively though Pfizer-BioNTech , is yet to release detailed data on the study. Also, its results are yet to be analysed by independent experts. The troubling part of maintaining Pfizer’s vaccine at -700C to -800C continues, but the company said it was confident of using the cold-chain infrastructure to distribute the vaccine around the world. Pfizer-BioNTech aim to produce up to 50 million vaccine doses in 2020 and 1.3 billion by 2021-end. In all, 170 confirmed cases of Covid-19 were evaluated from the 28th day after the first shot of BNT162b2. Of them, 162 were in the placebo category while only eight were in the vaccinated group. Ten individuals went on to develop severe disease, nine of whom were in the non-vaccinated group. dra Singh Sisodia and Minister for Animal Husbandry Prem Singh Patel. Six departments will execute the decisions of the gau-cabinet in a coordinated manner, Chouhan stated. Among the objectives are marketing products made from cow milk and increasing the use of cow dung cakes. Reacting to the development, the Opposition Congress said it falls short of the BJP’s 2018 pre-poll promise of creating a separate cow ministry . “The same Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who before 2018 Assembly polls had promised to form a separate Cow Ministry and put in place a series of cow sanctuaries and cowsheds is now talking about constituting a Cow Cabinet,” Congress state president Kamal Nath posted on micro-blogging site Twitter on Wednesday . It has been decided to constitute a ‘gau cabinet’ for the protection and fostering of ‘godhan’ (cow and its progeny) in the state - Shivraj Singh Chouhan HUMANE ORDER HC directs admitting Varavara Rao at Nanavati EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Mumbai THE Bombay High Court on Wednesday ordered the Maharashtra government to admit jailed octogenarian poet and activist Varavara Rao for treatment at the private superspecialty Nanavati hospital here at state expense. Rao was arrested in August 2018 in connection with an Elgar Parishad conclave in Pune in December 2017 that turned violent, and is lodged in Navi Mumbai’s Taloja Jail. A division bench comprising justices S S Shinde and Madhav Jamdar said, “Ultim at e ly t h e man is on almost death bed. He needs some treatment. Can the state say no, we will treat him in Taloja? We are only saying transfer him to Nanavati for two weeks. We will further see after two weeks.” It also directed that family members of Rao should be allowed to meet him at the Nanavati hospital, and posted the matter for further hearing on December 3. The court was hearing two cases — a bail application filed by Rao on medical grounds and a writ petition by his wife Hemalata saying his incarceration was a violation of his right to health and life. Citing his medical history, senior advocate Indira Jaising said there was “reasonable apprehension that Rao may die in jail and not even stand trial in the Bhima Koregoan case”. On Tuesday, Jaising had trashed a medical report on Rao submitted by Nanavati hospital’s doctors. Despite his deteriorating condition due to neurological problems and urinary infection coupled with dementia, he was not examined by experts, she said.