06092020-TT-01.qxd 05-09-2020 23:14 Page 1 123 chandigarh | gurugram | jalandhar | bathinda | jammu | srinagar | vol.140 no.247 | 16 pages | ~5.00 | regd.no.chd/0006/2018-2020 established in 1881  haryana CM TESTS NEGATIVE, ENDS SELF-ISOLATION PUNJAB /thetribunechd TURNED COVID TRAGEDY INTO OPPORTUNITY: NADDA BACK PAGE PASH, MY FATHER — DAUGHTER’S TRIBUTE TO POET ON ANNIVERSARY SPECTRUM /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com PLA ‘abducts’ five Arunachal youths, probe on Kolkata, September 5 The Arunachal Pradesh Police have launched a probe after it was alleged the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) had abducted five youths from the state in Upper Subansiri district along the China border. The youths, all residents of the district, had gone into a jungle, near Nacho, on Friday to carry loads for the Army as hired porters. After their job, they were out fishing when PLA soldiers reportedly picked them up. Lt Col Harsh Wardhan Pande, a spokesperson for the Army’s Tezpur-headquartered 4 Corps, which oversees operations in Arunachal Pradesh, said they were ascertaining the “veracity of the incident”. The families have urged authorities to take steps to bring them back. — TNS Dialogue key to peace, Rajnath Three Chinese motorists stray into Sikkim, rescued by Army tells Wei; MEA-level meet next areas peacefully through a dialogue. The Chinese Defence Minister conveyed that the Chinese side too desired to resolve the issues peacefully.” Tribune News Service New Delhi, September 5 India and China have talked about bringing peace along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). This even as both sides, in separate statements, have spoken about their troops being ready to defend their territorial integrity. Heavily armed troops on either side have been locked in a fierce military standoff since May this year. China has, so far, stalled the disengagement process and several rounds of military talks have yielded nothing. Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met his counterpart General Wei Fenghe, State Councillor and Defence 10 lakh cases in 13 days as count goes past 40L New Delhi, September 5 India's Covid-19 infection tally sprinted past 40 lakh, just 13 days after it crossed 30 lakh, with record 86,432 cases being reported in a day. Recoveries, on the other hand, have surged to 31,07,223 on Saturday, pushing the recovery rate to 77.23 per cent, according to the Union Health Ministry. The total cases mounted to 40,23,179, while the death toll climbed to 69,561 with 1,089 people succumbing to the disease in the last 24 hours. India's Covid cases jumped from 10 lakh to 20 lakh in 21 days. It took 16 more days to race past 30 lakh and another 13 days to cross the 40-lakh mark. It took 110 days for the cases in the country to reach one lakh, while it had taken 59 days more to go past the 10-lakh mark. The fatality rate due to the sunday, september 6,2020 Very nasty situation, we stand ready to help, says US Prez Trump Defence Minister Rajnath Singh arrives in Iran after Moscow visit. PTI had invited the Indian delegation for talks. An Indian statement released on Saturday said: “The two sides should resolve the ongoing situation and outstanding issues in the border Landslide blocks Manali NH PTI RECOVERED 31,07,223 FRESH FATALITIES 1,089 TOTAL DEATHS 69,561 WORLD 2,69,18,041 1,90,20,170 8,80,950 infection has further declined to 1.73 per cent. There are 8,46,395 active cases, which is 21.04 per cent of the total caseload, the data stated. India's Covid tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7 and went past 30 lakh on August 23. According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), a total of 4,77,38,491 samples had been tested up to September 4, with 10,59,346 samples being tested on Friday. — PTI As there was danger to their lives, given the freezing temperatures, the Army unit provided them with medical assistance, including oxygen, food and warm clothing. They were given appropriate guidance to reach their destina- tion. A soldier even checked the oil, fuel pump and other parameters of the car. “The Chinese citizens expressed their gratitude to India and the Indian Army for their prompt assistance,” an Army spokesperson said. — TNS AP tops ‘ease of doing business’ 80 special trains from Sept 12 New Delhi, September 5 Eighty new special trains will be operational from September 12, reservations for which will begin from September 10, Railway Board Chairman VK Yadav said today. “Eighty new special trains or 40 pair of trains will start operations from September 12. These will run in addition to the 230 trains already in operation,” he said. The Railways would be monitoring all trains that were currently in operation to determine which trains had long waiting lists. “Wherever there is a demand for a particular train and wherever the waiting list is long, we will run a clone train ahead of the actual train, so that the passengers do not face inconvenience,” the official said. — PTI continued on back page New Delhi, September 5 Andhra Pradesh for the third time in a row has topped in the ‘ease of doing business’ annual ranking of states and UTs by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade. The ranking is based on the implementation of the business reform action plan, 2019. Registering a jump of 10 places in the rankings, Uttar Pradesh occupied the second position in 2019 as against 12th in 2018. Telangana slipped to the third position from second in 2018 followed by Madhya Pradesh (4th), Jharkhand (5th), Chhattisgarh (6th), Himachal Pradesh (7th), Rajasthan (8th), West Bengal (9th) and Gujarat (10th). 40,23,179 TOTAL RECOVERED DEATHS The Chandigarh-Manali National Highway was blocked following a landslide at Dwada in Mandi A large number of commuters were stranded as long queues were seen on both sides of the highway Armed Forces Tribunal gets 7 new members CHANDIGARH: The Union Gov- Pehowa man runs racket in minister’s name Nitish Sharma Tribune News Service JOB FOR ~20,000 shetra SP to register a case. Maya Ram claimed Mandeep would introduce himself as Singh’s media adviser. “He promised to help my son get a job with Kurukshetra University and sought Rs 20,000-Rs 15,000 in advance. He also assured jobs to my two cousins in the electricity department. In all, he pocketed Rs 78,560 from seven youths,” alleged Maya Ram. Kurukshetra, September 5 Sandeep Singh, former Indian hockey captain and now Haryana Sports and Youth Affairs Minister, has lodged an FIR against Kurukshetra resident Mandeep Saini for ‘duping’ seven youths. Mandeep has been arrested. Introducing himself as a Hindi daily scribe and an aide of the minister, he would offer ■ Mandeep would offer jobs Soldier killed, 2 hurt in LoC fire Covid norms: Cops more harsh on activists than netas, suggest 10FIRs Srinagar, September 5 A soldier was killed and two others were injured in a ceasefire violation along the Line of Control in north Kashmir’s Kupwara district today, the Army said. The Pakistan army resorted to medium to heavy mortar firing in the Nowgam sector, killing a soldier and injuring two others. The condition of the injured is stated to be stable. “The Indian Army gave a befitting reply to the ceasefire violation,” they said. The identity of the slain soldier could not be established. Meanwhile, a gunfight broke out between militants and security forces in Kupwara district. The encounter was on till reports last came in. — TNS for a mere ~20,000 ■ Duped seven youths and pocketed ~78,560 ■ Introduced himself as minister Sandeep Singh’s aide jobs in lieu of Rs 20,000, realising Rs 10,000-Rs 15,000 as advance payment. In two cases, he even provided fake job letters. SANDEEP SINGH The minister said upon learning of the fraud from Vidhan Sabha employee Maya Ram, who belongs to Pehowa, he asked the Kuruk- ArchitWatts Tribune News Service Muktsar, September 5 The Muktsar police have been accused of adopting double standards when it comes to lodging FIRs over violation of Covid safety norms. A closer look at 10 related FIRs over the past fortnight suggests the violators who participated in political protests have been booked by the police as unidentified persons. On the other hand, whenever any farmer outfit or student body organised a demonstration, their activists were booked by name. For instance, some Akalis protested in Malout on September 2 against Cabinet A Chinese national being administered oxygen by an Army jawan. TWITTER UP jumps 10 places to 2nd | Haryana slips to spot 16 Minister of China, in Moscow last night. The meeting ended at 11.50 pm IST. The delegations of India and China were attending the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meeting. The Chinese COVID-19CASES INDIA COUNT Rajnath Singh conveyed that the two sides should continue their discussions, including through diplomatic and military channels, to ensure a complete disengagement and de-escalation and full restoration of peace and tranquillity along the LAC at the earliest. Clearly, now all eyes are on a meeting New Delhi, September 5 Amid the ongoing tensions with China, the Indian Army has come to the rescue of three Chinese nationals who lost their way while travelling in a car in the higher reaches of the Tibetan plateau and accidently reached the northern Sikkim plateau. The Tibetan plateau and northern Sikkim plateau, located at an altitude of 17,500 feet, are contiguous with ample gaps in the mountains. An Army post noticed the vehicle and asked the occupants to reveal their IDs. The three, including a woman, possibly took a wrong turn in the barren landscape and reached the northern Sikkim plateau. The incident happened on September 3. 54 ATTEND POOL PARTY DESPITE CURBS, BOOKED Ludhiana: At least 54 persons attending a pool party at a farmhouse in Jhammat village were booked by the Ludhiana police late Friday night for violation of lockdown norms. Among them were wards of politicians. The resort owner was booked too. Bottles of liquor, cases of beer and two hookahs were seized. Minister Sadhu Singh Dharamsot over alleged SC scholarship scam. The case, however, was registered against unidentified persons. The police followed a similar pattern during an AAP protest, led by its two MLAs from Faridkot district, in Muktsar on September 1. But an agitation by farm activists against the Centre’s ordinances on agricultural reforms didn’t meet the same fate. The protesters had their names registered in FIRs lodged on August 20, 25, 26 and 27. At Doda village on August 21, people were booked by name for holding a gathering at a house. “The law should be same for all. Why aren’t the police naming politicians,” asked a farm leader. While Muktsar SSP D Sudarvizhi wasn’t available for comment, another senior official said he would look into the matter. ernment has appointed seven new members to the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT). The move comes when new rules notified by the Centre for appointment of AFT members were challenged in the court. The fresh appointments, however, have been made under the provisions of the old rules, sources said. TNS 17 killed in B’desh mosque explosion DHAKA: A gas leak in an underground pipeline caused six air conditioners to explode almost simultaneously in a mosque during Friday evening prayers on the outskirts of Dhaka, killing 17 persons, and injuring 20 others. Worshippers were at Friday evening prayers when the blast sent a ball of flames through the Baitul Salat mosque in the central district of Narayanganj, officials said. INSIDE NCB arrests actor Sushant’s staffer MUMBAI: The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) on Saturday arrested Dipesh Sawant, a member of Sushant Singh Rajput's personal staff, in connection with a drugs probe linked to the actor's death, officials said. The total number of people arrested in this case has now risen to six. The officials said Dipesh Sawant, who was being questioned since morning, had been arrested under the NDPS Act. BACK PAGE BUSINESS REFORM ACTION PLAN-2019 RANKING 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th STATE/ UT Andhra UP T’gana MP Jharkhand C’garh Himachal RANKING 8th 9th 10th 12th 16th 19th 21th STATE/ UT R’sthan Bengal Gujarat Delhi Haryana Punjab J&K CHD 29th In World Bank’s latest ‘Doing Business’ report, India is on 63rd spot Delhi’s position improved to 12th from 23rd in the last edition while Gujarat slipped from 5th place in 2018. Among the laggard states/UTs in the ranking, Assam was at 20th, J&K 21st, Goa 24th, Bihar 26th and Kerala 28th place. Tripura was ranked at the bottom 36th. Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said they were working on creating a single-window system for approvals. The Business Reform Action Plan 2018-19 includes 181 reform points covering 45 regulatory areas such as access to informatio and single-window system. — PTI