04042021-TT-01.qxd 4/3/2021 11:00 PM Page 1 123 chandigarh | gurugram | jalandhar | bathinda | vol.141 no.92 | 18 pages | ~6.00 | regd.no.chd/0006/2021-2023 established in 1881  haryana UK BACKS VACCINE POST BLOOD CLOT CASES WORLD /thetribunechd SHOT IN THE ARM: ISSF CUP SEES INDIAN SHOOTERS WIN 30 MEDALS SPECTRUM BJP CREATING COMMUNAL STRIFE, ALLEGES MAMATA BACK PAGE /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com sunday, april 4,2021 Wrong to link letter with farm stir: MHA At 89K, daily cases near 2020 peak Tribune News Service New Delhi, April 3 Noting that it has nothing against the farmers of Punjab, the Centre today issued a clarification saying the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) letter to the state Chief Secretary was only intended to highlight the issue of bonded labourers in border villages and to seek appropriate action against human trafficking syndicates. SAYS ALERTED STATES ON TRAFFICKING SYNDICATES In an official statement, the MHA said, “A section of the media has erroneously reported that this ministry has written to the Punjab Government allegedly levelling grave charges against the farmers of state. These news reports present a distorted and highly editorialised opinion of a simple continued on page 6 No ‘bonded labour’, Pb cops refute BSF claim GS Paul & Ravi Dhaliwal Tribune News Service Amritsar/Gurdaspur, April 3 The term “bonded labour” was never mentioned in any of the cases lodged with the police on those apprehended by the BSF at the International Border, say the Punjab Police. SPS Parmar, IG (Border Range), Amritsar, says an investigation is being conducted to ascertain the BSF claim, cited by the MHA in its letter to Punjab, on having apprehended and handed over to the Punjab cops 58 Indian nationals from the border areas of Gurdaspur, Amritsar, Ferozepur and Abohar during 2019-20. Gurpartap Sahota, Attari DSP said: “We are scrutinis, ing the cases of those handed over to us by the BSF in the past two years.” A BSF official, pleading anonymity, ❝ We are scrutinising the cases of those handed over to us by the BSF in the past two years. Gurpartap Sahota, ATTARI DSP claimed it was a known fact that labourers from UP Bihar, , MP and Jharkhand, mostly in the age group of 30-50, were allured with handsome packages and perks. “In some cases, they end up being exploited and hooked on drugs,” he said. Backing his claim, Amarjit Shastri, a trade unionist, asserted that providing drugs to the labour was a common practice in rural Punjab. But Rattan Singh Randhawa, vice-president, Jamhoori Kisan Sabha, called the MHA report a “complete lie,” arguing that farmers who offered “langar” amid humanitarian crisis could never indulge in continued on page 6 Farmers protest Khattar’s visit, clash with cops Sunit Dhawan Tribune News Service Rohtak, April 3 Two elderly farmers and a policeman were injured in a clash between protesting farmers and police personnel deployed near Baba Mastnath Math on the outskirts of the city here ahead of Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar’s visit this afternoon. The Chief Minister was slated to visit Rohtak to attend a condolence meeting of local BJP MP Arvind Sharma’s Policeman among 3 hurt in Rohtak, stones hurled; CM’s chopper forced to land at Police Lines ROADS BLOCKED IN JIND Villagers blocked roads at various points in Jind district to protest the police action on farmers in Rohtak. BJP MP PUTS OFF VISIT An injured farmer Sirsa MP Sunita Duggal was forced to cancel visit to Fatehabad as farmers carrying black flags assembled at BJP office. continued on page 6 5 jawans, 3 Naxals killed in encounter Put DBT on hold, consensus must, Capt writes to PM NEW DELHI: Tribune News Service IN BRIEF Five security personnel and three Naxals were killed in an encounter in a forest in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district on Saturday. Two deceased jawans were from the CRPF and three from the District Reserve Guard. — TNS Prof jailed for Maoist links loses his job NEW DELHI: Delhi University's Ram Lal Anand College has terminated the service of assistant professor GN Saibaba, who’s serving life term in Nagpur jail for “Maoist links”. — PTI father and his helicopter was supposed to land at the helipad on the math premises. However, the helicopter landed at the local Police Lines instead of the math in view of the farmers’ aggressive protest. Khattar was taken to the condolence meeting via a different route amid tight security. A number of farmers carrying black flags marched towards the math shortly before the scheduled landing Chandigarh, April 3 Punjab CM Capt Amarinder Singh on Saturday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking continuance of the existing system of payment to farmers till a consensus was evolved on the issue of Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT). Asserting that the arhtiyas were not middlemen but service providers, he urged the PM to ensure that the livelihood of farmers and others involved in the procurement of grain was not jeorpardised. He sought a meeting Arhtiyas service providers, not middlemen:CM with the PM to apprise him of the concerns raised by various stakeholders “before the situation gets out of hand,” assuring his complete support to evolving a consensus for long-term reforms. Expressing concern over the efforts to “rock” the well-established institutional and social arrangements, the CM said he could see a pattern in some of the one-sided decisions and steps taken by the Centre. Study: Linking printouts to source possible Dipender Manta Tribune News Service Mandi, April 3 Printed documents can now be linked to specific types of printers like inkjet, laser or photocopier. This was revealed in a study conducted jointly by researchers of Regional Forensic Science Laboratory (RFSL), Mandi, and University of Technology and Management, Malaysia. Dr Rajesh Verma, Deputy Director, RFSL, told The Tribune that documents served important evidence in forensic cases. continued on page 6 Days before IPL, 10 Wankhede staffers test +ve Tribune News Service Mumbai, April 3 Exactly a week before Mumbai is to hold the second match of the IPL, which kicks off on April 9 in Chennai, 10 staff members of Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium have tested positive for Covid-19. What’s more worrying is the fact that India player Axar Patel, who plays for Delhi Capitals, has also tested positive. He had checked into the team hotel on March 28 after arriv- Delhi all-rounder Axar Patel infected too; matches can be moved to another city ing in Mumbai with a negative report. Six others, part of the event management team, have also tested positive. Four IPL teams — Delhi Capitals, Mumbai Indians, Rajasthan Royals and Punjab Kings — are currently in Mumbai and their access to Wankhede Stadium has been stopped. Their players are currently training in other city venues such as Brabourne Stadium, Bandra Kurla Complex and DY Patil Stadium. Mumbai is one of the six cities where the IPL will be held. Wankhede Stadium is scheduled to host 10 league matches between April 10 and 25. If the Covid situation worsens, there is a possibility that these matches could be moved elsewhere. The five other host cities are Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Ahmedabad. Though the BCCI is confident about organising matches in Mumbai, in case the city is scratched out, its share of matches could be moved to Hyderabad or Indore, which have been placed on stand-by. SECOND WAVE In Punjab, 49 deaths in 24 hrs, 12-fold jump in 2 months Tribune News Service New Delhi, April 3 The daily Covid-19 cases reached 89,129 on Saturday, nearing the 97,000 peak during the first wave of the pandemic last year with states witnessing an alarming rise in active cases requiring home or hospital care, ICU and oxygen. The active caseload nationally reached 6,58,909, making up 5.32 per cent of the country’s total cases. The total active cases surged by 44,213 over the last 24 hours. An analysis of the increase in the number of active cases in the top 10 states in the last two months (February 3 to April 3) paints a grim picture. In percentage terms (see table), Punjab has reported the maximum increase in active cases—a 12-fold jump from 2,122 to 25,458 cases in two 13 DELHI ST STEPHEN’S STUDENTS TEST +VE AFTER TRIP TO HP SINGLE DOSE MAY BE EFFECTIVE FOR SURVIVORS, SAYS STUDY J&K EX-CM FAROOQ ABDULLAH HOSPITALISED WOMAN MISTAKENLY GIVEN 2 SHOTS IN UP A midwife, who was on a phone call, administered two doses to a woman in Akbarpur area of Kanpur Dehat in UP, leading to an uproar at the health centre. months. Haryana has seen a 10-fold rise from 1,055 to 11,022 cases over this period. Over the last 24 hours, 714 deaths were reported across the country, including 49 in Punjab. Sources said hospitals were reporting three-fold rise in admissions and the supplies of medical oxygen and the situation in ICUs were being SURGE IN ACTIVE CASELOAD State Punjab Hry Delhi Maha UP Feb 3 2,122 1,055 1,217 42,830 5,007 April 3 25,458 11,022 11,994 3,91,203 14,073 Rise* 12-fold 10-fold 10-fold 9-fold 3-fold (*APPROXIMATE COUNT) 714 1,64,110 deaths in 24 hours, TOTAL FATALITIES highest since Oct 21 last year reviewed all over again to be ready for a potential surge. Only yesterday, Cabinet Secretary Rajeev Gauba had said the current wave was much more infectious than the previous one and was spreading to hitherto unaffected areas and was more lethal as well. The daily rise today was the highest in over six months as total cases rose to over 1.23 crore and the toll touched 1,64,110 after 714 deaths — the highest since October 21 last year. The daily cases stood at 92,605 on September 20, 2020. The active cases have been rising for 24 days in a row and the recovery rate fell to 93.36 per cent today.