LIVE! PM Modi calls for sweet, blue revolutions

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Sun, 17 September 2017

PM Modi calls for sweet, blue revolutions

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20:34 PM Modi calls for sweet, blue revolutions

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today called upon farmers to launch 'sweet revolution' and 'blue revolution' by taking up honey bee farming and optimising use of waterways for transportation.

The prime minister, while addressing a conference of cooperatives at Amreli in Saurashtra, listed various initiatives which the farmers can take up to increase their income.

"After green and white revolution, now it is time for 'blue revolution' and 'sweet revolution'," Modi said.

"These two revolutions have the potential to transform the lives of people of Saurashtra," he told the conference after inaugurating the new Amreli Agriculture Produce Market Committee building.

Sweet revolution can be an additional source of income for farmers, he said.

The PM also urged various milk cooperative unions of the state to collect honey from farmers and sell it so the agruculturists get good returns.

On 'blue revolution', Modi said Gujarat has the largest coastline in the country and the Saurashtra region can benefit heavily from water-based transport.

He said sending goods through waterways can bring down transportation cost. Modi said goods from Saurashtra could be sent to ports in Visakhapatnam or Kolkata.

Modi also urged farmers to take up growing timber on the boundaries of their fields.

"We have to currently import timber but if our farmers take up timber farming, it will benefit them in the long run," he said.

He also asked farmers to adopt drip irrigation and solar power for drawing underground water, saying it will reduce cost and yield more benefits.

The PM also stressed on cattle rearing and increasing milk productivity in every milch animal.

Greenpeace India today condemned the inauguration of Sardar Sarovar dam on the Narmada river, saying it signals "ruin" and not development of 10,000 hapless and poor farmers.

The NGO said the Sardar Sarovar Project, which was dedicated to the nation by Prime Minister Narendra Modi today, would not bring any development for advasis in the absence of a just and fair rehabilitation programme.

Greenpeace India's executive director Ravi Chellam said as part of civil society, they condemned the inauguration of the Sardar Sarovar dam and stood in solidarity with the Narmada Bacchao Andolan which "displayed incredible courage and resilience, even now as they refuse to leave their homes by protesting peacefully in 'Jal Satyagraha'".

"This is tragically so despite a long struggle by civil society and activists, and the Supreme Court orders passed in favour of those likely to be affected," it added.

It said the "so-called development project" comes at an immeasurable cost when considered in terms of the dislocation and debasement caused to countless men, women and children, their hearths and homes, besides the destruction of forests, biodiversity and ecosystems.

The project "signals ruin not development for tens of thousands of unsuspecting, hapless and poor farmers and Advasis, in the absence of a just, genuine and fair rehabilitation programme", it said.

While inaugurating the dam, the prime minister said no other project in the world had faced so many hurdles as this "engineering miracle" which many people had "conspired to stop".

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman today said her ministry will run a campaign to remove trash from high altitude areas and glaciers.

Taking part in 'Swachhata Hi Sewa' campaign organised at Delhi Cantonment area in New Delhi, she said, "(If) we can send Mangalyaan to Mars and provide services to the world through our IT sector than why can not we keep our environs clean."

The Swachhata Seva Abhiyan by the cantonment board started on September 15 and will conclude on October 2.

The defence ministry will run a campaign to remove trash from high-altitude areas, mountains and glaciers left by tourists and others there, she said.

Lauding cantonment boards for their cleanliness initiatives, the Union minister laid emphasis on waste segregation and use of biodegradable waste in power generation and manure.

Long term planning for keeping the Cantonment Board areas clean beyond 2019 will also be taken up by the ministry, she said.

On the occasion, a cleanliness oath was administered to the school children and Cantonment Board staff.

The minister visited a market in the Cantt area and interacted with locals and inspected civic facilities. She also attended a programme by school students on cleanliness.

Defence Secretary Sanjay Mitra, General Officer Commanding of Delhi Area Lt General M M Narwani, and other senior officials were present on the occasion.

A legend, icon, philanthropist and flying chief who led from the front -- that's how Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa described the Late Marshal of the Indian Air Force, Arjan Singh.

The Indian Air Force chief paid his tributes to the Marshal of the Indian Air Force, along with President Ram Nath Kovind, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Army Chief General Bipin Rawat and Navy Chief Admiral Sunil Lanba at Singh's residence, where his mortal remains are lying in-state.

Air Chief Dhanoa said as a young boy he was inspired by the five-star officer.

"IAF yesterday lost a legend and icon. When I was a young boy I was inspired by the then Chief of Air Force Arjan Singh," said Dhanoa.

He recalled Singh's immense contribution during the 1965 Indo-Pak war, the first major air battle the IAF fought after Independence.

"It was to his credit that despite initial setbacks we were able to overcome and overwhelm the enemy and spoil their design to annex Jammu and Kashmir," Dhanoa told reporters after paying his respects to Singh today.

Singh kept his flying category even while he was the Chief of Air Staff, a distinctive quality that Dhanoa also alluded to.

"He was a flying chief and at many times he used to fly aircraft. When he used to go for inspections to units he would fly in his own aircraft. He has flown multiple aircraft and the last one was MiG21 when he was leaving the IAF," the Air Chief said.

He also remembered Singh "a philanthropist to the core" who helped retired air warriors financially through his trust. The trust named after the Marshal has so far disbursed Rs 2.7 crore, the IAF chief said.

Dhanoa also recalled that when the first three women fighter pilots of the IAF met Singh, it gave him immense joy that the glass ceiling was broken.

Photograph: PTI Photo

The Aam Aadmi Party today announced retired Major General Suresh Khajuria as its candidate from the Gurdaspur Lok Sabha seat where a bypoll is scheduled next month.

The bypoll was necessitated by the death of actor and BJP leader Vinod Khanna, who was the sitting MP.

The decision to field 64-year-old Khajuria was taken after consultations with the Gurdaspur unit of the party and the Majha region leaders and volunteers, AAP leader Sukhpal Khaira said in Jalandhar.

Khaira, who is the Leader of Opposition in the Punjab Assembly, said that Khajuria is an old party volunteer and is a local resident of Pathankot which falls within the Gurdaspur seat.

Khajuria hails from Bungal village in Pathankot. He has served two tenures as Brigade and Division Commander in Punjab during his 37 years of service.

Khaira, who was flanked by Khajuria and AAP state unit chief Bhagwant Mann, said that while the Congress and the BJP were planning to bring in "parachute" candidates, his party has fielded a local candidate with a clean image.

He lashed out at Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh alleging failure to deliver on promises made during the assembly polls.

Khaira claimed that the situation has not improved under the present regime as farmers were still committing suicides.

The Gurdaspur bypoll has been scheduled for October 11 and results will be declared on October 15. The Gurdaspur Lok Sabha seat has been a stronghold of the BJP so far. Actor-turned-politician Khanna, who passed away in April this year, won the seat four times.

Britain's Prince Charles has no plans of moving into Buckingham Palace when he takes the throne as Queen Elizabeth II's heir as he is no fan of a 'big house', a UK media report has claimed.

The Prince of Wales wants to give up the iconic London royal residence when he becomes king and is discussing plans to turn it into a more business-like "Monarchy HQ", The Sunday Times quoted royal insiders as saying.

The 68-year-old feels the palace could be made more commercially viable by opening it to the public on a larger scale than is possible with the Queen in residence.

According to the newspaper, Charles has reportedly told staff he does not intend to live at what he refers to as the "big house" and is "very comfortable" at Clarence House, his London home which wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, also prefers.

"I know he is no fan of 'the big house', as he calls the palace. He doesn't see it as a viable future home or a house that's fit for purpose in the modern world. He feels its upkeep, both from a cost and environmental perspective, is not sustainable," the newspaper quoted a source as saying.

Royal staff have had informal discussions over the future use of the 775-room palace, which is mainly open to visitors from late July until October while the 91-year-old Queen takes her annual break at Balmoral Castle in Scotland.

Under Charles as monarch, the palace might become a museum open for longer periods with an exhibition dedicated to his mother's record-breaking reign.

The palace is undergoing a 369-million-pound taxpayer-funded refurbishment.

The UK Treasury has said the building needs an "urgent overhaul" to prevent the risk of fire, flood and damage.

"Buckingham Palace will remain the official London residence of the monarch," a Clarence House spokesperson said. The discussion of the palace's future comes amid reports of differences between senior courtiers at Buckingham Palace and Clarence House over how to manage the transition of power between the Queen and her heir.

The railways is trying to put an end to those tiresome quarrels that break out due to oversleeping passengers on the middle and lower berths by reducing official sleeping hours.

According to a circular issued by the railway board, the passengers in the reserved coaches can only sleep between 10 pm and 6 am to allow others to sit on the seats for the rest of the time.

Until the circular was issued, the existing permissible time for sleeping was between 9 pm and 6 am.

"Sleeping accommodation between 2200 hours and 0600 hours and sitting accommodation for the rest of the period is provided for the passengers in the reserved coaches having sleeping accommodation," said the circular, dated August 31.

The circular, however, makes an exception for certain passengers.

"Passengers are, however, requested to cooperate with the sick, persons with disability, and pregnant ladies in case they want to sleep beyond permissible limits," it says.

The new provision replaces paragraph 652 in the Indian Railways Commercial Manual, Volume I, which provides for sleeping accommodation between 9 pm and 6 am.

"We had received feedback from officials regarding issues between passengers over sleeping arrangements. We already have a rule in place. However, we wanted to clarify it and ensure it is followed," said ministry spokesperson Anil Saxena.

This provision is applicable to all reserved coaches with sleeping accommodation, he said.

Another railway official said the sleeping time was reduced by an hour because there were times when passengers went to sleep as soon as they boarded the train -- day or night -- leaving the co-travellers on the upper and middle berths high and dry.

Amid rising cases of abuse of children, the National Council of Education Research and Training or the NCERT wants the students to recognise the difference between 'good touch' and 'bad touch' and look up to their books to know what they should do if they face abuse.

The NCERT, which suggests the Centre and state governments on school curriculum and text books, has said all its books from the next session will carry a list of dos to deal with such cases.

It will also have certain helpline numbers, brief about the POCSO Act and the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights.

NCERT Director Hrushikesh Senapathy said the ministry of child and women development had approached them with the suggestion and "we have accepted it".

Teachers do make an effort to educate students to differentiate between 'good and bad touch', but they, as well as parents, are often clueless about what to do in such situations and where to report such cases, he said.

"So from the next session, the inner side of the back cover of all NCERT books will have certain guidelines in easily comprehensible language. It will also have certain illustrations about good touch and bad touch," he told PTI.

There will be helpline numbers where students or parents can report such cases or seek any help or counselling. There will be a brief about the Protection of Children Against Sexual Offences Act and NCPCR, he added.

The move comes in the backdrop of concerns about the safety of students in the wake of killing of a seven-year-old boy on a private school campus in Gurugram and the rape of a five-year-old girl by a school peon in Delhi.

The proprietor of Pushpa Sales, which supplied oxygen to the state-run Baba Raghav Das Medical College where dozens of children died last month, was on Sudnay arrested in connection with the case.

More than 60 children, mostly infants, had died at the hospital within a week last month. There were allegations that the deaths occurred due to a disruption in oxygen supply over unpaid bills to the vendor.

The state government had vehemently denied that shortage of oxygen led to the deaths.

With the fresh arrest, all the nine persons named in the FIR have been sent to custody.

"Manish Bhandari, the proprietor of Pushpa Sales was arrested by the Gorakhpur Police at around 8.00 am from Deoria bypass road," Senior Superintendent of police Gorakhpur, Anirudh Sidhartha Pankaj told PTI.

The SSP said Bhandari's medical examination is being conducted and subsequently, he will be interrogated.

"Later he will be produced in a local court," he said.

According to police sources, Bhandari was absconding for a long time.

On September 15, the anti-corruption court had declared Bhandari an an absconder, and issued orders to attach his properties.

14:48 Sashastra Seema Bal to get intelligence wing

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh will operationalise the Sashastra Seema Bal's first ever intelligence wing tomorrow, a home ministry official said.

The paramilitary force guards India's borders with Bhutan and Nepal, which are often used by criminals and Kashmiri militants returning from Pakistan.

The intelligence wing will have 650 field and staff agents to gather actionable information.

Due to the visa-free regime India has with Nepal and Bhutan, there is a trans-border movement of criminals and anti-national elements which pose a major challenge, the home ministry official said.

As many as 230 former Kashmiri militants, based in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir, have returned home through the Indo-Nepal border since 2010.

Also, their spouses and 88 children have come along with them.

The former militants, their spouses and children did not have travel documents while entering India. Security agencies detained them upon ascertaining their real identities, another official said requesting anonymity.

They were released only after a vigorous checking of their backgrounds, past activities and following judicial process.

The Indo-Bhutan border is known to be frequented by the Assam-based insurgent group NDFB, which has even attacked Bhutanese nationals in the past.

India shares a 1,751-km-long border with Nepal and a 699-km-long border with Bhutan.

The SSB has also been declared as the lead intelligence agency for both the borders. Thus, the central government felt that a well-knit intelligence network of the highest capability that can function and deliver would be the prime requirement for comprehensive border management.

A high-powered group of ministers will meet every fortnight to resolve over two dozen technical glitches identified in the GST tax portal GSTN, the panel's head and and Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Modi has said.

Over 25-odd glitches, which had led to the GST-Network portal crashing on at least two occasions in the very first month of filing, relate largely to payments and registration, he told PTI after the five-member GoM held its first meeting in Bengaluru yesterday.

The grouping had extensive interaction with executives of Infosys, which is providing the IT support for the portal, and businesses will notice a "lot of difference" on the GSTN portal in the next 7-10 days, Modi said.

The GSTN website had faced glitches last month as taxpayers flogged to the portal on the last day of the deadline of filing returns for July.

"Over 25 issues have been identified which needs to be resolved and timelines have been set for each of them. Overall we are satisfied with the performance of GSTN and Infosys is doing its best to make it error free," said Modi.

The GSTN, the information technology backbone and portal for real-time taxpayer registration, migration, and tax return filing under the GST, had developed a snag last month when the first deadline for filing of returns approached, forcing the government to extend the last date.

A five-member GoM was constituted on September 12 after the GST Council decided to sort out technical glitches. The first meeting of the GoM was held in Bengaluru on September 16.

Besides Modi, Kerala Finance Minister Thomas Isaac, Chhattisgarh Minister of Commercial Taxes Amar Agrawal, Karnataka Agriculture Minister Krishna Byre Gowda and Telangana Finance Minister Etela Rajender are part of the GoM.

Modi said the GoM noted that the tendency of taxpayers is to file returns on the last day, which is evident from the fact that only 3.5 lakh taxpayers have so far filed GSTR-3B for the month of August. The last date for filing is September 20.

Over 47 lakh returns in GSTR-3B was filed in July and the GST to the tune of Rs 95,000 crore was collected in the maiden month of roll-out.

On September 15, GSTN officials and state commercial tax officers also held meetings with bankers, large taxpayers and tax experts to decipher the procedural issues being faced by them on the portal.

"The GoM will meet every 15 days to review the functioning of GSTN. The GSTN system is robust and load is not an issue. We are looking into the procedural issues," Modi said.

So far, over 22 crore invoices have been uploaded on the GSTN portal, which has a capacity of handling over 3 billion invoices.

Haryana Police has made two fresh arrests in connection with incidents of violence which broke out on August 25 in Panchkula after sect chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was convicted in a rape case.

Efforts are also on to trace the Dera chief's adopted daughter Honeypreet Insan and Dera spokesman Aditya Insan, against whom a lookout notice was issued earlier.

Pradeep Goyal Insan, a Dera functionary, was arrested on Sudnay from Udaipur in Rajasthan by a Special Investigation Team of the Haryana Police, a senior police official said.

Prakash alias Vicky, who is brother-in-law of Aditya Insan, was also nabbed on Sunday from Mohali, Panchkula's Deputy Commissioner of Police, Manbir Singh said.

Another person identified as Vijay was arrested from Pinjore on Saturday, he said.

"The role of all the three arrested persons Pradeep, Prakash and Vijay is under the scanner in connection with incidents of violence which broke out in Panchkula on August 25. Further investigations are under progress," Singh said.

The police have also arrested one more person from Ambala in connection with incidents of arson in Panchkula.

Haryana Police said it was collecting videos from various sources pertaining to incidents of violence which broke out in Panchkula and was trying to identify the accused involved in inciting violence and indulging in acts of arson.

Asked to comment on media reports claiming that Pradeep Goyal has told SIT that Honeypreet had already fled to Nepal, DCP Manbir said, "There is no truth in these reports. These are baseless".

The Haryana Police made several arrests after violence broke out in Panchkula that includes Dera Sacha Sauda chief's top aide and spokesperson Dilawar Insan, who was arrested from Sonepat, on September 15.

The police had earlier also arrested Dera's state body member Gobind Insan.

Taking a jibe at Pakistan, a top Indian diplomat has said Islamabad's decision to raise the Kashmir issue at the United Nations, which has not been discussed at the world body for decades, is like 'Miyan ki daud masjid tak'.

India on the other hand is focused on progressive, forward looking agenda during the UN General Assembly session beginning on Monday, India's Permanent Representative to the UN Syed Akbaruddin told reporters in New York.

"I have outlined in our approach, that is progressive forward looking. We are visionary in our goals. If on the other hand there are other countries, who as you say, focus on yesterday's issues then they are yesterday's people," Akbaruddin said in response to a question on reports that Pakistan plans to raise the Kashmir issue at the UN.

Pakistan's new Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi is scheduled to address the UN General Assembly this week.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj would deliver her address on September 23.

"If they (Pakistan) focus on an issue which has not been on the discussion table in the UN now for decades, not for years, for decades..., if this is what they want to focus on, so be it. To be his own...Miyan ki daud masjid tak," Akbaruddin said, referring to a popular Urdu proverb meaning some people think within a limited focus and are unable to think beyond that.

A day earlier, Pakistan's Foreign Ministry had said that Abbasi would be raising the Kashmir issue at the UN.

13:38 Rahul Gandhi wishes PM on birthday

Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi today extended birthday greetings to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Modi turned 67 today.

"Best wishes to Prime Minister Narendra Modiji on his birthday. @narendramodi," Gandhi said on Twitter.

Congress general secretary Digvijaya Singh also wished the prime minister on his birthday to Modi.

"My best wishes to Modi ji on his birthday. May Almighty give him wisdom to admit his mistakes and correct them," he said on the micro-blogging site.

Modi was born on September 17, 1950.

The BJP is celebrating the day as seva divas (service day).

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today dedicated the Sardar Sarovar dam built on the Narmada to the nation -- 56 years after its foundation was laid by India's first premier Jawaharlal Nehru.

Addressing a public meeting in Gujarat's Dabhoi, Modi asked people to give their best to create a new India by 2022.

Here are highlights of his speech:-

- Let us leave no stone unturned in creating a 'New India' by 2022, when we mark 75 years of India's freedom

- We specially remember two people today, Sardar Patel and Dr Ambedkar, who as minister gave great emphasis to irrigation and waterways,

- Sardar Patel would be happy today... imagine his vision that he envisioned this Dam to help farmers and citizens

- When I was the Gujarat CM, I had gone to border areas where I saw BSF Jawans do not have water. But I ensured they get clean drinking water from Narmada

- The am faced several hurdles. But, we were determined that the project will continue

- Farmers of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan will be benefitted with this project

- The saints and seers of Gujarat have played a very big role in the making of the Sardar Sarovar dam as well

The White House on Sunday insisted that the United States will withdraw from the Paris climate accord unless it can re-enter on more favourable terms, denying reports that Washington was softening its stance on the landmark agreement.

The statement by the White House comes amid reports that that the Trump administration would announce at the Montreal talks that it wouldn't pull out of the Paris accord and was offering to re-engage with the deal.

"There has been no change in the United States' position on the Paris agreement," White House spokesperson Lindsay Walters said.

"As the President has made abundantly clear, the United States is withdrawing unless we can re-enter on terms that are more favourable to our country," she said in a statement.

Ministers from 34 economies are meeting in Montreal to head off potential efforts by the US to weaken the accord at the November UN climate summit in Bonn, Germany.

Early this year, President Donald Trump announced his decision to withdraw the US from the Paris Agreement on climate change and renegotiate the deal that was agreed upon by over 190 countries during the previous Obama administration.

A state funeral will be accorded to Marshal of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh and the national flag will fly at half mast in all government buildings in New Delhi tomorrow in his honour, the home ministry said.

The last rites of Singh, who passed away at the Army's Research and Referral Hospital yesterday, would be performed at Brar Square in New Delhi at 10 am tomorrow.

"As a mark of respect to the departed dignitary, a state funeral will be accorded and national flag will fly half-mast on the day of the funeral (September 18) in Delhi on all buildings where it is flown regularly," a home ministry spokesperson said.

Arjan Singh, the hero of the 1965 India-Pakistan war and the only Air Force officer to be promoted to five-star rank, died yesterday at the age of 98.

He was entrusted with the responsibility of leading the IAF when he was only 44 years old, a task he carried out with elan. He was the chief of the IAF when it found itself at the forefront of the 1965 conflict.

Singh, who had flown more than 60 different types of aircraft, had played a major role in transforming the IAF into one of the most potent air forces globally and the fourth biggest in the world.

Known as a man of few words, he was not only a fearless fighter pilot but had profound knowledge about air power which he applied in a wide spectrum of air operations. He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan, the second highest civilian honour, in 1965.

Photograph: PIB

10:46 PM inaugurates Sardar Sarovar Dam

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurates Sardar Sarovar Dam in Kevadia, Gujarat.

He earlier took part in the rituals before the inauguration.

Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, Union minister Nitin Gadkari and former CM Anandiben Patel are also present. -- ANI

Photograph: BJP4Gujarat/Twitter

Six persons, including two women, were injured in heavy mortar fire by Pakistani troops at 11 border outposts and hamlets, along the international border in Jammu district, forcing Border Security Force troops to retaliate.

The firing stopped this morning.

There was heavy shelling of mortar bombs and firing on 11 BoPs and hamlets along IB in Arnia sector tonight, police officers said.

Such was the intensity of the firing that mortar shells reached Arnia town and over 10 to 12 shells exploded in Arnia bus stand, they said.

"From midnight till this morning, there were exchanges of fire and shelling in Arnia sector in area of 6-8 BOPs of BSF," a senior BSF officer said.

"Firing stopped at 06.45 am this morning," he said.

Pakistani troops also resorted to border firing with small and heavy weapons at four border hamlets of Nikowal, Budhwar, Buley-Chak, S H Way and Shahnaz forward posts of Arnia sector.

Three cattle were killed and four injured while a temple, three houses and three cowsheds were damaged. -- PTI, ANI

A charge sheet in the murder of the seven-year-old schoolboy inside Ryan International School in Gurugram will be submitted in court by the Central Bureau of Investigation after it takes charge of the case, the Police said today.

Gurugram Police said it has prepared the charge sheet in the case in which bus conductor Ashok Kumar is the only accused in the murder of the Class 2 student inside the school's toilet on the morning of September 8, but the Special Investigation Team will not file it in court.

The report will be handed over to the CBI once it takes over the investigation within a couple of weeks, police said.

Although Gurugram Police chief Sandeep Khirwar remained tight-lipped on the matter but chief PRO and ACP Manish Sehgal said that now the police has nothing to do with the case.

"The charge sheet will be now submitted by CBI as the case has been recommended by Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar to CBI for the probe," Sehgal told PTI.

However, the family members of the victim Pradyuman and his father Varun Thakur were not satisfied with the theory of 14 teams of SIT of police and demanded a CBI inquiry alleging destruction of key evidence by the school management.

The family members also questioned the 'callous and brazen' attitude of the police when a dog squad was pressed into service at their residence to ensure foolproof security just before the CM's visit on Friday.

"The same police have failed to use a dog squad even a week after my only son's murder inside the school. Maybe it could have produced vital clues and helped the police arrest the accused without any delay since the very first day," Thakur said. -- PTI

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