BHUBANESWAR l thursday l february 18, 2021 l `7.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION Petrol price crosses `100/ltr in Rajasthan At `100.13, a litre of petrol was at its costliest in Sriganganagar town of the western state. In Madhya Pradesh, the rate is `99.90 60% of the retail cost is govt taxes Modi blames predecessors for spike The all-time high price comes weeks after the state slashed 2% VAT on fuel. Still, at 36% after the rate cut, Rajasthan’s levy is the highest in India. Diesel in Sriganganagar is at `92.13. Central and state taxes make up for as much as 60% of the retail price of petrol and over 54% of diesel. The Centre levies `32.90 a litre as excise duty on petrol ■ Petrol rates have risen by `19.95 a litre since mid-March ’20, after Centre hiked levy to benefit from the fall in international prices ■ PM Modi said if previous regimes had focused on reducing India’s energy dependence, global fluctuations wouldn’t have hurt the middle-class. India imported 85% of fuel in the last financial year `91.45 petrol price in chennai. In Mumbai, it’s `96, Delhi `89.54, Kolkata `90.78 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 FIR says toolkit part of plot to damage India No names of accused in it; Nikita Jacob gets three-week advance bail from HC G ayat h r i M a n i a n d S u d h i r S u r ya w a n s h i @New Delhi/Mumbai An accidentally-leaked toolkit Google doc was not just meant to amplify the ongoing farmers protest, it also contained a detailed plan to wage an economic, social, cultural and regional war against India, if one were to go by the first information report (FIR) the Delhi Police filed on February 4. The FIR does not name any of the accused, including activists Disha Ravi, Shantanu Muluk and Nikita Jacob, but Disha’s arrest and the subsequent actions are on its basis. Disha’s advocate got access to the FIR on Wednesday . Four sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) — 123A, 153, 153A and 120B — pertaining to sedition, criminal conspiracy and creating disharmony or enmity between different groups religious, regional and social groups, have been invoked in the FIR. The toolkit inadvertantly shared by Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg on February 3 is at the centre of the raging controversy . “A perusal of the said document (toolkit) reveals that it was promoting campaign material by Poetic Justice Foundation (PJF), a Canada-based organization that openly and deliberately shared posts on social media to create disharmony and enmity, hatred and illwill among different religious, cultural and regional groups,” the FIR states. It claims the January 26 violence was part of a pre-planned conspiracy of the PJF. In the toolkit, “There a call for economic warfare against India and certain Indian companies. Their assets in India and outside are to be made targets for physical as well as coordinated actions.... The documents specifically mentions targeting certain regions of India to instigate enmity and divide. Further, detailed plans have been made by conspirators to instigate certain communities against one another,” the FIR alleged. ‘Pre-planned plot’ “It is evident from the contents of the said toolkit that the violence that took place at the streets of Delhi on 26th January 2021 near ITO, at the Red Fort, near Nangloi, etc., as a result of the farmers’ protest was a pre-planned conspiracy meant to undermine India’s sovereignty and integrity, security of the state and public order,” the FIR said Meanwhile, Mumbai-based advocate Nikita Jacob was given three-week transit anticipatory bail by the Bombay High Court on Wednesday . While passing the bail order, Justice P D Naik cited the Aurangabad bench order that gave advance bail to another accused Shantanu Muluk the previous day, adding: “It would not be appropriate to make any observations on the merits of the case.” The Delhi Police claim that Disha Ravi and Nikita Jacob were editors of the toolkit created by Shantanu Muluk. Centre plans to extend mining clearances till expiry of lease B i j o y P r a d h a n @ Bhubaneswar As the new lessees of auctioned mines are facing difficulties in obtaining fresh approvals and clearances from statutory authorities within the specified time of two years, the Ministry of Mines has proposed to extend all rights and statutory clearances to them till the expiry or termination of the lease. Since the move of the Centre needs further reforms in the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, the Ministry has invited views of the states and other stakeholders on the draft additional amendment proposals to the principal Act by February 24. “It is proposed to amend section 8B of the Act to provide that all valid rights, approvals, clearances, licences and the like granted to the lessee shall continue to be valid till exhaustion of mineable reserves and on expiry or termination of lease,” said the supplementary proposal of the Ministry . The Centre had amended the Act in January last year by inserting of a new section 8B to transfer statutory clearances to successful bidders of the mining leases expiring by March 31, 2020. The Mineral Laws Amendment Act, 2020 provided that new lessees deemed to have acquired all valid rights and clearances for a period of two years for seamless mining operations. Nearly a year after the auction of working mines, the Ministry observed that the lessees are facing hardship in obtaining the clearances and it would not be possible for them to comply with the provisions of the new mining laws within the stipulated time. “The new lessees have to ob- All the working mines auctioned before expiry of their leases have valid approvals and clearances. Extension of all rights would save time for the miners and boost production Industry sources E x p r e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ Cuttack A CUTTACK-based doctor lost over `77 lakh to cyber criminals who defrauded him on the pretext of activating his mobile SIM card. The cyber fraud came to light after the victim, Dr Sanatan Mohanty of CDA Sector 7 under Markat Nagar police limits lodged a complaint regarding the fraudulent transactions amounting to `77,86,727 from his two SBI bank accounts with the Cyber police station in the city on Wednesday . In the FIR, Mohanty stated that he received a call on February 9 wherein the caller told him that his BSNL SIM card would become inactive soon. The caller, while offering help When I made an inquiry at SBI, Bidanasi branch, I was told that `25,292.98 and `24,284.21 have been deducted from my bank account in two transactions Dr Sanatan Mohanty, cyber fraud victim to activate the SIM card, asked him to provide his ATM card number and bank details. After sharing his debit card number and bank details including the CVV number, the doctor received a message on his mobile from SBI that his ATM had been blocked on February 9 at 6.35 pm. “When I made an inquiry at SBI, Bidanasi branch, I was t o l d t h at ` 2 5 , 2 9 2 . 9 8 a n d `24,284.21 have been deducted from my bank account in two transactions. From the bank register it was revealed that purchases were made through POS machines on February 9 evening. When I met the SBI, Bidanasi branch manager in this regard, he told me that a new ATM card would be issued and also assured that no fraud transaction would occur further,” stated the doctor. However, when he went to Tulasipur SBI branch on February 15, he came to know that multiple transactions were continuing from February 9 to February 15 without his knowledge amounting to `77,86,727, the FIR alleged. Cong sweeps Punjab civic polls; big blow to BJP, AAP As expected, the ruling Congress swept the civic polls in Punjab held in the backdrop of a prolonged farmers’ protests being supported by it. The Shiromani Akali Dal came a distant second and the BJP came last, with the main opposition AAP faring well below its expectations. The civic polls were held barely a year ahead of the Assembly polls. The Congress swept seven municipal corporations in the state as it bagged Hoshiarpur, K a p u r t h a l a , A b o h a r, Pathankot, Batala, Moga and Bathinda. It was after decades that the party wrested the Bathinda civic body from the Akali Dal. The results of Mohali Municipal Corporation will be declared on Thursday . Bathinda Lok Sabha constituency is represented by former Union minister Harsimrat Badal of SAD, which broke off from the NDA last year over the new farm laws. Punjab CM Capt Amarinder Singh said the victory was due to its “progressive policies”. Set up CDA for Kotia: LoP to govt Tight vigil Armed security personnel deployed at the entrance of Odisha Assembly on the eve of Budget session on Wednesday | Express DMs to approve adoption, ease bottleneck @ New Delhi The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday approved a key change in the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 to authorise district magistrates to validate adoptions. The decision is meant to address the rather slow in-country adoptions in India, as hundreds of prospective parents are forced to wait for years to adopt orphaned or abandoned children. As of now, prospective adoptive parents are re- quired to go to civil or family courts to get the final go-ahead after all formalities are over. However, with pendency high in civil and family courts, it is not easy to get a date for hearing, said officials in the Central Adoption Resource Agency under the Union women and child development ministry . Government figures show committed in the close doors or privately. Sometimes the Stressing that women can- victims herself does not unnot be punished for raising derstand what is happening to their voice against sexual them or what is happening to a ­ buse, a Delhi cour t on them is wrong. Despite how Wednesday acquitted journal- well respected some persons ist Priya Ramani in a are in the society, they defamation suit filed in their personal lives, by former Union miniscould show extreme ter M J Akbar contestcruelty to females.” ing her allegations of The court took note sexual harassment by of the systematic abuse him in the past. at the workplace due to Additional Chief lack of grievance rePriya Ramani Metropolitan Magisdressal mechanisms at trate Ravindra Kumar the time Priya Ramani Pandey said, “The right and witness Ghazala of reputation cannot Wahab were allegedly be protected at the cost sexually harassed. of the right of life and “Time has come for dignity of woman as society to understand guaranteed in Indian sexual abuse and harMJ Akbar Constitution under Arassment and its impliticle 21 and right of cations on the victim,” equality before law and equal the court said, adding most protection of law as guaran- women do not speak about it teed under Article 14 of the because of social stigma. Constitution.” “This judgment is a validaThe court accepted Rama- tion of the stand taken by us ni’s contention that Akbar and all women during the wasn’t a man of stellar reputa- #Metoo campaign,” Ramani’s tion. In its 91-page verdict, the lawyer Rebecca John later court said, “It cannot be ig- said. Ramani had in 2018 made nored that most of the time, allegations of sexual harassthe offence of sexual­ harass- ment against Akbar in wake ment and sexual abuse (was) of the #MeToo movement. K a n u S a r d a @ New Delhi express read cabinet stamp S u m i S u k a n ya D u t ta competitive in the internationa l m a rk e t , t h e s o u r c e s maintained. Appreciating the move of the Ministry, industries sources said, “All the working mines auctioned before expiry of their leases have valid approvals and clearances. Extension of all rights would save time for the miners and boost production.” The changes were necessary as 46 working mines (24 mines from Odisha), whose leases expired on March 31 last year, have miserably failed to produce 80 per cent of the rated production capacity in the previous three years. In view of the shortfall in iron ore production, the Ministry has also proposed to amend the Mineral Concession Rules, 1960. Cuttack doctor loses Delhi court chucks `77 LAKH to online fraud Akbar’s defamation suit against Ramani harvest of success H a r p r e e t B a j w a @ Chandigarh tain 20 approvals to start the mining operations, of which nine are from different Central ministries and the remaining are from the State government. In normal course, the minimum time period required to obtain these approvals vary from two to three years,” sources said. The lengthy process of getting all clearances is not only delaying the commencement of mining operations by the new lessees but has adversely affected the mineral production in the country pushing the ore price in the market and making steel production un- that 2,160 adoptions took place in India in 2020-21 but officials pointed out that about 1,000 adoption cases are pending in courts at any given time. “Though the JJ law mandates that courts have to dispose of adoption cases within two months from the date of filing of application, it rarely happens,” said an official. “The parameters for appointing CWC members Defining eligibility parameters for appointment of child welfare committee members, and categorising previously undefined offences as “serious offence” are some of the other aspects of the proposal latest amendment will clear these major hindrances in the way of children reaching their adoptive families.” As per the norms, orphaned and abandoned children are required to be declared legally free for adoption within two months in the case of a child up to the age of two years and within four months in case of a child above the age of two years, after following due procedure. Further, surrendered children are required to be declared legally free for adoption after two months, called reconsideration period, from the date of surrender of the child. Bhubaneswar: As the Opposition is ready to attack the State government for its failure to stop Andhra Pradesh from holding panchayat elections, LoP Pradipta Naik on Wednesday demanded CM Naveen Patnaik to set up of a cluster development authority for Kotia villages | P3 Tsitsipas stuns Nadal in five-set thriller Stefanos Tsitsipas came back from two sets down to beat Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinal of the Australian Open. The five setter scoreline read 3-6, 2-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4, 7-5 I AFP I P11 BJD takes swipe at Sarangi’s Odia culture, NMA knowledge Express News Service @ Bhubaneswar AS war of words over heritage bylaws hots up between Biju Janata Dal and Bharatiya Janata Party, a combative ruling party on Wednesday countered Bhubaneswar MP Aparajita Sarangi’s claims and said Regional Director of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Kolkata, is the competent authority for heritage bylaws for Centrally protected monuments in Odisha. The ruling party also took a jibe at the BJP MP’s ‘Odia culture understanding’ and pitched her against fellow MP and Union MSME Minister Pratap Sarangi who has been assuring rollback of the heritage bylaws going against the saffron outfit’s stand on the issue. A d ay a f t e r Ap a r a j i t a Sarangi presented a Central gazette notification to cite that Director, Culture department is competent authority of NMA, Odisha, BJD general secretary (media af fairs) Manas Mangaraj said as per Section 20(E) of Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958, the Regional Director of ASI, Kolkata, is the NMA-Odisha competent authority who has sent the proposal for heritage bylaws for Odisha’s temples. Furnishing a gazette notification to back his claims, he said ‘as the MP does not understand Odia culture, may be it is difficult for her to appreciate the sensitivity involved in a religious issue that links living deities with sevayats and devotees.’ “Perhaps Honourable Minister Pratap Sarangi who is from Odisha is able to understand these sensitivities in a b e t t e r w ay, ’ ’ M a n g a r a j added.