tirupati l saturday l january 22, 2022 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION Flyers can carry just one hand bag, says regulator The restriction for domestic air passengers is aimed at reducing the burden of security screening to ease congestion and delays Enforce rule strictly, cisf tells airlines Ladies’ bag, laptop bag allowed Following a directive by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security, the regulatory authority for civil aviation security in India, the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) has asked the aviation authorities to implement the ‘One Hand Bag’ rule strictly. The decision was taken after it was found that passengers carrying multiple handbags were taking more time to clear security screening ■ ■ The CISF, which guards airports in the country, has asked all airlines to sensitise passengers about the rule by displaying the information prominently at vantage points at airports and including it on boarding passes as well as tickets Ladies’ hand bag and laptop bag are exempt from the rule 7 kg Maximum allowed weight of the cabin bag that a flyer can carry in a flight CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA ■ BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI Priyanka Cong Cabinet ratifies GOs on pay scales, retirement age face in UP polls E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Vijayawada E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ New Delhi Cong Youth Manifesto Ending reticence, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Friday pitched herself as the party’s chief ministerial face in Uttar Pradesh though she was non-committal on contesting the forthcoming state elections. Responding to a question on the party’s CM candidate during the launch of the Congress Youth Manifesto for UP she said: “Aapko kisi aur , ka chehra dikh raha hai Congress party ki taraf se? To phir? Dikh tho raha hai na sab jagah mera chehra.” (Can you see the face of any other Congress leader? It’s mine alone that is being seen everywhere in UP). That was a brave statement, considering the party is a marginal player in UP that is set to witness a straight fight between the BJP and the SP in most seats. She had refused to project herself as the CM face during the 2017 UP polls after which the party forced Sheila Dikshit to take up that role. As for entering the poll fray Priyanka parried, , saying: “When it is decided, you will get to know. We haven’t made a decision yet.” She, however, said her party would be open to a post-poll Opposition alliance in event of a fractured mandate. “If such circumstances arise and in the event that they do, we would be open to considering that,” she said. Explaining the party’s experiments in UP, former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi said: “If you want to propose a new vision to India, you have to start at UP .” Promises to.provide 20 lakh jobs Filling up 1.5 lakh vacant teacher posts in the primary education sector Standing firm on its decision regarding the new Pay Revision Commission (PRC), the State cabinet, which met under the chairmanship of Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Friday, ratified the Government Orders issued for its implementation. It also ratified the enhancement of government employees’ retirement age from 60 to 62 years. Briefing mediapersons on other Cabinet resolutions, Minister for I&PR Perni Venkatramaiah (Nani) said the decision to provide jobs to the family members of government employees who died of Covid-19, under compassionate grounds, was approved. As part of it, va- Hiring to fill 38,000 vacant teacher posts in the secondary education sector Filling up 1.15 lakh vacant posts in the UP Police New scheme to provide collateral free credit up to L5 lakh for entrepreneurs below 30 years of age Express News Se rvi ce @ New Delhi (Top) Air Marshal B R Krishna, Chief of Integrated Defence Staff, merging the Amar Jawan Jyoti flame with the one at National War Memorial in New Delhi; and (left) Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose’s statue will be installed at India Gate | PTI Furore over putting out flame The Congress on Friday accused the Centre of “removing history” by extinguishing the Amar Jawan Jyoti. However, government sources said there is a lot of misinformation on the matter and said the Amar Jawan Jyoti was not extinguished but merged with the flame at the National War Memorial P7 75 students test +ve in 10 Kurnool schools E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Kurnool As many as 75 students and 17 teachers from 10 different schools in the district tested positive for coronavirus on Friday prompting authorities , to close the institutions for two to five days. While eight students of Tribal Welfare Gurukul Girls Residential School at Bairluty Chenchu Gudem in Atmakur mandal tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 on Thursday, 11 others and a teacher were found infected on Friday The students have been shift. ed to a Covid care centre in Kurnool city . Following the outbreak, a team of healthcare workers under Bairluty medical officer Pavan Kumar visited the school and took up preventive steps according to Covid-19 protocol. The health officials expressed doubt that more students could have been express read Spl teams raid labs over excess Covid test fee Vijayawada: Seven special teams from the Medical and Health Department, led by the DM&HO cracked a whip by conducting surprise checks against three labs in the city for charging more than the government-mandated `350 for Covid-19 diagnostic tests. High Court CJ inaugurates first POCSO court in AP Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh High Court Chief Justice PK Mishra on Friday virtually inaugurated the first POCSO court in the State at Machilipatnam in Krishna district and the Seventh Additional District and Sessions-cum-Special Court for trial of offences against women in Kadapa. Jab-o-meter Take your shot January 20 60,79,373 doses January 21 58,37,209 doses Total doses: 1,61,05,63,199 NATIONWIDE Jan 20 Jan 21 Fresh cases 3,17,532 3,47,254 Recoveries Deaths statewide Fresh cases Recoveries Deaths Samples tested 2,23,990 2,51,777 491 703 Jan 20 jan 21 12,615 13,212 3,674 2,942 5 5 47,420 44,516 Tribal Welfare Residential School at Bairluty in Atmakur mandal of Kurnool district, where students tested positive for Covid-19 | Express 173 students, 38 teachers contracted virus: DEO Kurnool District Education Officer V Ranga Reddy said 173 students and 38 teachers in Kurnool have tested positive for Covid-19 over the past couple of weeks. The affected schools have been closed for two to five days to contain the spread of coronavirus, the DEO added infected and closed the school for five days. The school has a strength of 130 students, and nine teaching staff, including the principal. District Education Officer V Ranga Reddy, meanwhile, said 173 students and 38 teachers in Kurnool have tested positive for Covid-19 over the past couple of weeks. The affected schools have been closed for two to five days, and special teams, comprising officials from health, education, Panchayat Raj and police, visited the institutions and tested all students, parents, teachers, and possible contacts, the DEO added. Sanitisation drives were also taken up in a big way in the affected schools to contain the spread of Covid. The District Education Officer urged schoolchildren to strictly adhere to Covid Appropriate Behaviour to protect themselves from the virus. NABARD lends `1,392 cr for new medical colleges, hosps E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Vijayawada NABARD has sanctioned a loan of `1,392.23 crore from its Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) for the establishment of three new teaching hospitals in Kadapa, Vizianagaram and East Godavari, and five multispeciality hospitals in Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, East Godavari, West Godavari and Prakasam districts. The projects aim to improve healthcare facilities in the State. The medical colleges-cum-hospitals (teaching hospitals) will have operation theatres, clinical outpatient departments, dialysis, burn, casualty and specialised clinical-cum-surgical wards, oxygen plants, etc. The multispeciality hospitals will have consultation rooms, Ayush clinics, treatment procedure rooms, dialysis wards, diagnostic labs, OT complex, OPDs, general/pediatrics/ orthopedic wards, etc. Sudhir Kumar Jannawar, Chief General Manager of the NABARD regional office, said the bank has been actively partnering with the AP government in improving the health and education infrastructure in the State. NABARD has so far sanctioned `3,092 crore for school projects being implemented under the State govern- open door policy when it comes to employee issues. We are committed to the welfare of employees. The government is always ready to resolve any issues of employees through negotiations,” he avowed. The employees’ unions decided to serve a strike notice on the State government on January 24 to press their demand for withdrawal of GOs on PRC. P4 Netaji’s statue at India Gate, eternal flame shifted to Natl War Memorial Filling up 1 lakh vacant posts of principals Hiring 6,000 doctors to fill vacancies in state govt hospitals cant posts in village and ward secretariats will be filled and the appointment process will be completed by June 30. Asked about reports regarding constitution of a committee to hold talks with employees’ unions on the PRC, Perni said he was not aware of it and clarified that the topic was not discussed at the Cabinet meeting. “Our government adopts an Aid from RIDF  3 new teaching hospitals to come up in Kadapa, Vizianagaram and East Godavari  5 multispeciality hospitals to be set up in Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, East Godavari, West Godavari and Prakasam  `3,092 cr provided for school projects being implemented under ‘Nadu-Nedu’ in the State  25,648 government schools to get additional classrooms, toilet and drinking water facilities  Aid also extended for setting up of Anganwadis and integrated agriaqua laboratories in State  NABARD supports government in strengthening education and health infrastructure in the State ment’s flagship Nadu-Nedu programme. The support will enable creation of additional classrooms, and toilet and drinking water facilities in 25,648 government schools. NABARD has also supported the government in establishment of Anganwadis and integrated agri-aqua labs, the Chief General Manager said. A grand statue of iconic freedom fighter Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose will be installed at India Gate to commemorate his 125th birth anniversary, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday . “This would be a symbol of India’s indebtedness to him,” Modi tweeted. The statue, made of granite, will be installed under the canopy next to the India Gate. The canopy used to have a statue of King George V, which was removed in 1968. Till the statue is completed, a 28-ft long, 6-ft wide hologram statue would be present at the spot, which the PM will unveil on Sunday The installation of . Bose’s statue will be part of the year-long celebrations to mark his 125th birth anniversary the , PMO said in a statement. While most Opposition parties welcomed the decision, the Trinamool Congress alleged it was to blunt the criticism arising from the Centre’s rejection of Bengal’s tableau on Bose for the Republic Day parade. The announcement also came on a day the flame at Amar Jawan Jyoti at India Gate was merged with the immortal flame at the National War Memorial. “In a befitting military ceremony, the flame at Amar Jawan Jyoti was merged on Friday with the eternal flame at National War Memorial with full military honours,” read a defence ministry statement. Amar Jawan Jyoti was inaugurated on January 26, 1972 to commemorate India’s victory over Pakistan in 1971 and as a tribute to the soldiers who laid down their lives. The 42-metrehigh India Gate War Memorial Arch was built in honour of more than 80,000 soldiers who died in the First World War (1914-1918) and the Third AngloAfghan War (1919). India Gate was built in 1931 and remains a memorial to the soldiers from India who died in action. The National War Memorial was inaugurated in February 2019 in honour of soldiers who have made the supreme sacrifice to defend the sovereignty and integrity of the country .