From Pakistan to Palestine, Donald Trump is set to turn the screws again. It is now obvious that in the reckoning of his administration, the threat to foreign assistance is a potent weapon of reprisal, indeed a means of leveraging. He has reinforced the recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel with a threat to cut funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees. More accurately, he has threatened to truncate the assistance towards a humanitarian effort. Viewed through that prism, Wednesday’s announcement, specifically the latest intervention in the Middle East peace process, is potentially far more damaging to the Palestinian Authority. The Palestinian camps run by UNRWA are home to the poorest and most disadvantaged. Indeed, the camps in such places as Ramallah, Nablus and Jenin on the West Bank and Gaza are inhabited by the most radicalised of the Palestinian factions. It was from these camps that the first and second intifadas emerged and where both Fatah and the Islamist group, Hamas, were born. They are places that pride themselves both on their resilience and on being the conscience of the Palestinian national movement. Ever since the second intifada, the weapons still held by the factions have largely remained inside these camps, and under the control of the Palestinian security forces helmed by President Mahmoud Abbas. The US President, given as he is to impetuous action, has betrayed a lack of understanding of the delicate dynamics that help maintain relative peace between Israelis and Palestinians. Though Pakistan will take a while to reflect on Mr Trump’s bluster, he may have rocked the Middle East boat fair and square.

The President and his advisers regard the moves at the UN Security Council and in the General Assembly to condemn the Jerusalem announcement as an escalation in the situation. It is hard not to wonder whether he has binned the conventional negotiating strategies used by past US administrations in the Middle East peace process as failures. The purported paradigm shift lends a new dimension to the theory and practise of international law. The working arrangement between UNRWA and the Palestinian Authority, fragile as it was, is bound to get destabilised. For years, international financial and technical support for the Palestinian bureaucracy has taken care of salaries and has supported NGOs working in key social sectors. This flow has underpinned the Palestinian Authority’s security cooperation with Israel, thereby checking the influence of Hamas on the West Bank. Indeed, that international support has spared the Palestinian Authority from a possible coup by the Hamas or “coup-proofed”, as the political scientist, Edward Luttwak, reacted on Wednesday. The US President has emitted a distressing signal ~ there is no peace process and no peace plan in the Middle East. Donald Trump has taken “care” of the essentials.

On the face of it the Aam Aadmi Party’s selecting two virtual outsiders for the three Rajya Sabha seats it should bag shortly is quite a story particularly since founder-member Kumar Vishwas was ignored for a position he had made no secret of wanting to attain. The bigger story is that Arvind Kerjriwal had to settle for businessman Sushil Gupta and chartered accountant Narain Dass Gupta (in addition to party-activist Sanjay Singh) only because his overtures to more than a dozen eminent persons were spurned. When will Kejriwal come to accept that there are few takers for the larger-than-life image he projects of himself? It ought to be a sobering thought that persons who would otherwise have deemed a seat in the House of Elders a singular honour opted to stay aloof rather than touch AAP with the proverbial bargepole. Was it the supreme arrogance of Kejriwal that caused him to embarrass people like a former RBI governor and apex court judge by going public about offering them “tickets” to the Rajya Sabha without any pre-consultation? For there would be few who would accept the AAP-line that those eminent non-political persons declined the offer because they feared running foul of the government ~ there are limits to paranoia. There is little need to be exercised over poet-politician Kumar Vishwas not “making it”, nobody can claim a nomination by right. Yet there will be much resonance with Vishwas’ lament that his prospects were axed because he had aired his differences with Kerjriwal over several issues. The allegation that Kejriwal functions in dictatorial fashion has been levelled by many, a reflection of which is to be seen in his confrontations with successive Lieutenant-Governors, union ministers etc. The need to build a party “organisation”, or foster internal democracy, seems to elude the AAP leadership, a couple of persons call the shots, always.

In terms of time the AAP is still a fledgling, yet to write off all its convulsions as teething troubles would be to miss a point. In the short time it has been in business it has been disowned by its mentor Anna Hazare, and no longer enjoys the favour of those who had played prominent roles in its formation ~ Yogendra Yadav, Prashant Bhushan, Kiran Bedi, Mayank Gandhi and a host of others whose dreams of new politics have gone up in flames like the effigy of Ravana at the Ramlila Ground. Simultaneously have AAPs electoral ambitions come a cropper in Goa and Gujarat, after partial success in Punjab. The election to the Delhi Assembly is looming on the horizon, Kejriwal and his chosen few must resurrect the spirit that brought the party into existence, and power. Are they capable of proving themselves more than short-term wonders, or just the irritating mosquitoes the Prime Minister had dubbed them?

Delhi Collage of Art organised live painting demonstration classes with different techniques of painting, for the students in the courtyard of National Handicraft and Handloom Museum, Delhi.

he college principal Ashwani kumar Prithvivasi taught the students the various painting techniques and skills required to paint the natural and live scenery on the canvas. More than 100 students from different age groups took part in the classes where they learned to use different mediums like pencil, charcoal, soft pastel, oil pastel, ink and watercolours.

Premier League giants Arsenal on Thursday confirmed their first signing of the January transfer window, acquiring 20-year-old Greek defender Konstantinos Mavropanos from PAS Giannina, the club confirmed.

“Young Greek defender Konstantinos Mavropanos has signed for us,” a club statement read.

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The 6’4 centre-back made 16 Greek Super League appearances since breaking into the first team last season and while the fee has not been disclosed, the young defender is said to have cost the Gunners a fee of £1.9 million.

While Konstantinos has not yet represented Greece at the senior level, he has been capped at the U-21s and is widely regarded as one of the finest talents the country has produced in the last decade or so.

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With Per Mertesacker retiring at the end of the current season, Arsenal were in need of a central defender to replace the ageing German but it doesn’t appear that their latest recruit will be seeing any first-team action anytime soon.

If reports are to be believed, the young Greek is expected to be loaned out to a Bundesiga side to gain some more top-flight experience.

Werder Bremen are leading the race to sign the tall centre-back on a half-season loan and a deal is expected to be thrashed out before the transfer deadline (January 31).

All India Food Processors’ Association in collaboration with its east zone and with the support of Ministry of Food Processing Industries, Government of India, organised a national seminar on “Vision- 2025: Development of food processing industries in eastern India” on the occasion of 73rd annual conference of the association recently in Kolkata.

The annual conference is aimed at bringing the stakeholders together to discuss the matter which may require strategies and action plans for improving food processing in the eastern Indian states by 2025. Jindal, president, AIFPA informed that the association organises its annual conference every year in one of the four zones of the country by rotation. He shared his views on the future of food processing sectors keeping in view the wide range of fruits, vegetables, herbs, dairy, fish, honey, spices, cashew and tea among others.

He said that there will be more emphasis on health, wellness and nutrition. There are elaborated regulations on food fortification. There is a tremendous scope for the general processed foods industry in the country due to various reasons. But there will be increased demand by the elite section of the society which may need innovative foods which are healthy, nutritious and provide wellness.

Padma Shri Mithu Alur, founder of ADAPT- Able Disabled All People Together, organised a seminar on inclusive employment to commemorate the International Day of the Disabled and Human Rights Day. This is because mainstream providers of vocational and skills training have policies and practices that often exclude people with disabilities. There was a panel discussion focusing on blocks, barriers and success stories.

A research study by Alur on inclusive employment in collaboration with CITI entitled Deconstructing Work Preparedness of Adult Disabled Youth Leading to Inclusive Employment was also launched.

Cambridge Assessment English, a University of Cambridge department, has signed an agreement with TCS iON, a unit of Tata Consultancy Services, who will administer Cambridge’s computer-based business English certificates throughout India.

Cambridge will leverage TCS iON’s Digital Assessment Platform’s extensive, high stake assessment capability to conduct exams in India. Saul Nassé, CEO, Cambridge Assessment English, signed the agreement along with V.Ramaswamy, global head, TCS iON. It will enable exam bodies to effectively shorten the exam cycle. This is done with the support of high quality-computing infrastructure, large distributed execution team and a robust digital platform which will provide a wide range of benchmarked assessment capabilities for the Cambridge English: Business Certificates.

The new-age corporate world is increasingly demanding results that require creativity, strategic thinking skills, and a culture that harnesses the highest levels of employee engagement towards company’s shared mission and purpose. After all, we are producing knowledge, designs, and creative solutions to modern problems, not just performing manual tasks in drudgery.

Productivity boosts when people work in synergy. For the organisation to grow in the long-term, talented and competent workers are the best bet. Any short-lived growth doesn’t serve the organisation’s business purpose. That said modelling collaborative behaviour at the highest levels in the organisation holding everyone accountable is warranted.

Regardless of whether it is a small business or a legacy corporation, competition is innovating and driving down costs and value up, and collaboration is the one way to accelerate innovation most effectively. A competitive workforce emerges only after leaders create organisation-wide buy-in from and engagement among employees.

Collaboration starts with shared sense of purpose, trust and company leadership’s set of value systems that are ingrained in the way the organisation operates as a cohesive business unit. In large organisations, this can mean helping employees grow laterally instead of just being confined to their job vertical. Employees can parlay their skills into business results for an organisation by blending their ideas for a project or an assignment that needs a creative, multidimensional perspective. Viewing goals as compatible underpins collaboration in its best form – be it to share knowledge freely, to learn from one another, and even sharing workload.

In smaller organisations, collaboration is fostered through regular social interactions at work, cross-pollinating ideas when coming up with creative solutions for pressing problems, or conducting a collaboration-oriented training programme that cascades down to all the business divisions of the organisation. Focusing on core collaboration skills such as emotional intelligence, team coaching, interpersonal skills, and building relational skills, among others, can help an organisation to build a culture based on common values, collective creativity and outlook.

Promoting multi-generational diversity – be it the traditionalist to baby-boomers to younger workforce-is another obvious way to enliven collaborations. Understanding each individual’s personal life and professional journey and then meshing his/her set of experiences into building consensus or offering a perspective to improve business, creates as an empowered collaborative culture. While differences in convictions, cultural values, and work approach add complexity to an organisation, it also creates unity in command, through rich, innovative and renewed insight.

Instead of relying on short-term performance indicators to boost business growth, the leadership should encourage more innovation through partnering with separate industries, stakeholders and consumers to learn and imbibe the best and bold practices in building a collaborative culture. And although, there is an element of inclusiveness in a collaborative form of culture, the workforce still arrives at decisions and market responsiveness – right and fast. This is because the organisation’s effective leaders assign clear decision, rights and responsibilities, so that at the appropriate point someone can end the discussion and make a final call.

In addition, HR programmes should focus on training employees to operate in a social network of an organisation and engages them in purposeful conversations, in a fluent manner. Aligning each employee’s role and competencies with clarity relative to the ambiguous task sparks collaboration on a fundamental level. That way, employees are more inclined to contribute and share their views from their role’s standpoint, to put some method to the assigned, complex tasks.

In conclusion, strengthening the organisation’s collaborative culture makes its employees mission-ready to solve global business problems, and create a structure of teams based on trust, long-distance cooperation, if working virtually, and diversity.

I distinctly remember the farewell speech of my teacher Barman. Her parting words were, “The path of your life will fork many a time and you need to take one of them. Take the one less trodden by as few dare to do so.”

I always took the most challenging path till I realised that I was wrong. While success comes by challenging yourself, happiness comes by reducing entropy.

This year I experienced disorder, disintegrations, and randomness – as though something very powerful hit my head leading to complete disorientation. It was a fleeting moment but the impact was phenomenal.

We have all experienced something of this sort at some point in our lives. Our life is inextricably woven into our natural environment, the social and professional institutions we are associated with and even the myriad technological devices that we use. A little influence can cause a phenomenal displacement which means that cause and effect are not proportional. A small effect can have significant consequences while a major effort might yield little. In mathematics, we call such events nonlinear.

There is no explicit solution to a nonlinear mathematical problem. We face such problems in our real life and learn to deal with them. I will use the realm of physics and mathematics to explain how we can handle them or even prevent their occurrence.

The chaos theory is a very interesting idea. It explains how flapping of butterfly wings in Brazil will cause a tornado in Texas. The butterfly effect is a widely used term to describe nonlinear things that are effectively impossible to predict or control, like turbulence, weather, the stock market, our thought process and so on. A better way to express this is that small changes in the initial conditions lead to drastic results. Edward Lorenz was the pioneer of chaos theory. In 1961, Lorenz was working on weather prediction using a computer that calculated parameters up to the sixth decimals. He took a print which gave him numbers up to only third decimal places, and entered them-so instead of 5.123456, he inputted 5.123. The weather patterns the computer predicted from the new simulation were drastically different from what he had initially predicted.

Chaos is a science of surprises, of the nonlinear and unpredictable. If the butterfly had not flapped its wings at just the right point in space/time, the tornado would have not happened. Chaos theory also suggest that if one can understand all of the variables affecting a system, an underlying pattern will eventually emerge and it will be easier to predict outcomes. It is all about identifying patterns. Today data science has evolved to identify these patterns. Since it is impossible to measure the effects of all the butterflies in the world, accurate long-range weather prediction will always remain impossible. How do we measure this randomness or disorder to make it manageable?

Entropy is a measure of the disorder of a system. The term was coined by Rudolph Clausius in the 19th century. Disorder refers to the number of different microscopic states a system can be in at a particular point in time.

For example, place a small marble in a large box and shake it. The marble could be anywhere in the box. Place the same marble is a small box where its edges touch the surface of the marble. Shaking the box one will know where the marble is. The marble in the small box has low entropy. By reducing the possible positions the marble in the box could have, we can reduce its entropy.
For those who are mathematically inclined, disorder refers to the number of different states a system can be in, given that the composition of the system is fixed. Entropy = (Boltzmann’s constant k) x logarithm of number of possible states= k log (N).

Entropy is the universal tendency toward disorder, disorganisation, disintegration, and chaos. Knowing the entropy of a system can tell us many things about what can and can’t happen. Isaac Newton explained this in detail about 300 years ago. Concept of entropy originated from the study of heat, temperature, work, and energy – thermodynamics.

The second law of thermodynamics states that the universe evolves in such a way that its total entropy always stays the same or increases. We can see examples of entropy everywhere. Buildings left alone become ruins, soil gets eroded, cars in a junkyard get rusted, great civilisations eventually fall apart, and human body decays and decomposes. Our sun will eventually burn out. All organised systems tend to disorganise. In common parlance, we could say, “Everything around us is falling apart, all the time.”

Entropy is inevitable. The golden path of life is to manage entropy, and since it increases with the number of possible states a system or an individual can be in at a given point in time, the idea is to simplify and reduce options to obviate randomness and disorder. Untoward occurrences and events in the physical world can be averted if we know how to reduce the entropy associated with them.

Infusion of technology has affected the size of our box which here depicts our universe which is continuously expanding. Today ubiquity of the Internet and hyper-connectivity has expanded our physical space. We have a virtual life which is a natural extension of our physical life. This means that at a given point in time/space we now have more states-virtual personas and avatars. The fact that we can be in different states at a point in time has magnified our entropy manifold.

So there is chaos caused by randomness and disorder and it is continuously increasing. Entropy management is empowerment. For this one may reduce the size of the box, i.e. the universe, which surrounds us. It defines what one wants or what one loves. Since one’s work will fill a large part of one’s life, the only way to reduce the disorder (that translates into unhappiness) is to do what one loves.

If one hasn’t found one’s passion, then one must keep looking for it. One will know when he/she finds it. A path will carve out eliminating the choices and the randomness of the maze which will be the path of least entropy. So even if that path is the one less trodden by, it will be of least entropy as long as passion is followed.

The Himachal Pradesh government on Thursday gave approval for the settlement of arrears in BBMB (Bhakra Beas Management Board) projects in compliance with the Supreme Court order of 27 September 2011, in terms of differential energy return.

The differential energy quantum of 13066 million units will fetch an amount of Rs 3266 crore to the state at an average rate of Rs 2.50 per unit. Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur presided over the meeting of the state Cabinet.

An official spokesman said the cabinet approved negotiation with Punjab and Haryana for the return of the entire differential energy within a period of 10 to 12 years. The Cabinet also agreed to negotiate for payment of liability of Rs 111.53 crore as computed by the Union of India in its affidavit in equal annual installments.

If Punjab and Haryana insist on repayment with interest, Himachal Pradesh will go in for return of power at a premium of 6 per cent and with no further additional liability for receiving this differential energy of 13066 million units.

The cabinet gave its approval to the Governor’s address to be delivered in the first session of the 13th HP Vidhan Sabha to be held at Dharamshala from 9 January.
It reviewed the decisions taken at the cabinet meeting held on 5 August, 2017 regarding deletion of Rule-5 (1) of the Demobilised Armed Forces Personnel (Reservation of Vacancies in Himachal State Non Technical Services) Rules, 1972, and Rule -5 (1) of the Ex-Servicemen (Reservation of Vacancies in Himachal Pradesh Technical Services) Rules, 1985, and decided to restore the benefits to the extent of fixation of pay in civil employment to the ex-servicemen. This decision will entitle them to monetary benefits.

The spokesman said the Cabinet gave its approval to exclude Shri Raghunathji Temple, Sultanpur, in Kullu district from Schedule-I of Hindu Public Religious Institution and Charitable Endowment Act, 1984.

“The Cabinet also gave its nod to fell a few trees and saplings in private land transferred/ acquired by the National Highways Authority of India for construction of four laning of NH-22 from Kandaghat to Kaithlighat in relaxation of ban imposed by the State Government on felling of trees,” he said.

The cabinet accorded its approval to extend government guarantee for the loan taken from HUDCO for a housing project at Jathia Devi near Shimla airport up to 28 February, 2021.
It decided to continue the service of retired patwaris/kanungos engaged on contract basis, till the new batch of patwaris undergoing training is recruited, so as to avoid inconvenience to the general public.

It was decided to execute remaining work of widening and strengthening of Theog-Kotkhai-Kharapathar road on which Rs 29.310 crore is likely to be spent besides widening works of Kharapathar-Rohru road.

The spokesman said a detailed presentation on state financial resources was given by the Secretary Finance. “Liabilities left over due to reckless opening of government institutions by the previous government were also discussed at the meeting. Suggestions were invited for cutting expenditure besides the cabinet directed for quality of works and services, timely completion of projects without time and cost overrun.”

In the wake of the killing of a head constable of the Border Security Force (BSF) in sniper firing by Pakistan Rangers on Wednesday evening, the BSF destroyed two mortar positions across the International Border in the Samba sector of Jammu division.

The BSF killed a Pakistani intruder in the Ranbirsinghpura sector early on Thursday when taking advantage of the thick fog he had climbed the border fence.

BSF head constable Radha Pada Hazara was hit by a sniper bullet in his abdomen and died in hospital.

Top police and BSF officers, including the J&K DGP SP Vaid and IG BSF Ram Awtar, laid wreaths on his body in the headquarters of the Jammu frontier of BSF this morning.
Thereafter, Hazara’s body was flown to his native village Hat-Para in Murshidabad district of West Bengal.

A BSF officer said late on Wednesday evening mortar positions of Pakistan were identified and destroyed.

The BSF is maintaining extra vigil on Jammu border to negate intrusion attempts by miscreants aided by Pakistani forces. Firing across the IB is most of the time a diversionary tactic for facilitating intrusion of terrorists.

The Congress Legislature Party (CLP) in Himachal Pradesh on Thursday adopted a single line resolution authorising Congress president Rahul Gandhi to decide the leader.
The Congress MLAs, including former CM Virbhadra Singh, met here and unanimously decided to leave the choice of leader to the party high command.

After this, central observer, Balasaheb Thorat and party in-charge of Himachal, Sushil Kumar Shinde, met the MLAs individually to read their mind about the choice. They will give their feedback to the high command in Delhi.

“The final decision would be taken by the high command in a day or two,” said state Congress general secretary, Naresh Chauhan.

Sources said Virbhadra Singh may not be the CLP leader this time, with the BJP also projecting a younger leadership to rule the state. The names of four-time MLA, Mukesh Agnihotri, and state Congress president, Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, are doing the rounds for the CLP leadership.

Party sources said the name of former minister, Ram Lal Thakur, has also cropped up, if any senior leader is given a chance.

Liverpool’s two most in-form players—Philippe Coutinho and Mohamed Salah— have been ruled out of their FA Cup Merseyside Derby clash with Everton on Friday by Red manager Jurgen Klopp.

Speaking to the media at a press conference ahead of his side’s clash with Everton, Klopp hinted that while he didn’t expect either to feature on Friday, he said Coutinho, in particular, was expected to return for a massive Premier League clash with leaders Manchester City on January 14.

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Mohamed Salah, who has arguably been the signing of the Premier League this season after scoring 17 goals since his arrival from Serie A side AS Roma, suffered a knock late in Liverpool’s 2-1 win over Leicester City on Saturday and hasn’t featured since.

However, Coutinho’s absence has alarmed Liverpool supporters for the wantaway star is said to be on the verge of a move to La Liga giants Barcelona. The South American missed their January 1 clash (coincidentally the first day of the winter transfer window) with Burnley.

Nike, Barcelona’s official kit partners, even released a promo on their official website welcoming the Brazilian to the club before hurriedly taking it down earlier this week.

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The Catalans have been eying the twinkle-toed midfielder for a while now and they were rebuffed several times by Liverpool in the summer transfer window, but are said to be coming back with an improved offer in the region of €150 million.

With the player reportedly injured and out of action, his absence is fanning the flames even more and it’s not inconceivable to say that the 25-year-old might have played his final match for the Reds.

Currently the Reds are competing for silverware on three fronts (Premier League, FA Cup and the UEFA Champions League) but their hopes of a long-awaited league triumph are effectively over as leaders Manchester City hold a hefty 18-point lead over them.

With Punjab education department set to introduce English as a medium of instruction in 2,750 state-run schools, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Thursday termed the Congress government’s decision as ‘an anti-Punjab and anti-Punjabi step’.

In a statement, SAD spokesperson Daljit Singh Cheema said this step would undermine the prospects of Punjabi language in the very state where it enjoyed the status of official language.
Cheema said mother tongue plays a great role in human development and depriving young minds from enjoying the privilege of learning in Punjabi language, the Congress government is doing the opposite.”I wonder about the wisdom of Congress government which assumes that the changing of just the medium of instruction would result in improving the quality of education in the state,” he added.

Criticising the unnecessary haste being shown by the state government for starting English medium classes in 400 schools in first phase, the SAD leader said that it had not hired a single English teacher for this purpose.

In view of the prevailing cold conditions, Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Thursday directed the Deputy Commissioners (DCs) to personally ensure that no person, whether homeless or otherwise, sleeps in the open or on the road in view of the prevailing cold conditions in the state.

An official spokesperson said that all the DCs have been asked to ensure that roads and open areas in their district are closely inspected by senior officers during the night with immediate effect.
It has also been directed that the inspecting officers should carry with them sufficient number of blankets to make sure that during the process of shifting every such person to the nearest night shelter. Every such person be adequately protected against the cold, he said.

The spokesperson further said that Khattar has also directed the officials to ensure that all night shelters were in perfect order. Apart from this, they should keep local MLAs and ministers informed of these steps, and seek their guidance, support and participation.

The DC, Panipat, has been told to assist his counterparts in other districts who may approach him for ensuring immediate availability of adequate number of blankets, he added.

Days after Bolloywood actress Rakhi Sawant alleged Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh had tried to come close to her, jailed Honeypreet Insan’s mother Asha Taneja has sent a legal notice to the actress Rakhi Sawant seeking an apology for defaming her daughter.In a legal notice sent to Sawant, Taneja has demanded apology within 30 days or pay Rs 5 Crore for defamation of her daughter.

Taneja has claimed that Sawant tried to defame her daughter by making allegations of her links with Dera chief and claiming that she was close with Gurmeet and her closeness did not go down well with his ‘adopted daughter’ Honeypreet.

“I realised that Honeypreet was uncomfortable seeing my close proximity with Gurmeet and even feared that I may become her ‘sautan’ (lover’s wife) by marrying him,” Rakhi had said after Dera chief was sent to jail in a rape case in August and Honeypreet was arrested for inciting violence post the conviction of Gurmeet in the case.
Rakhi Sawant is currently making a film on self-styled godman Gurmeet.

Titled ‘Ab Hoga Insaaf’, Rakhi had said that her movie will expose Gurmeet who is serving 20 years in jail for raping two women disciples.

Keeping in view growing threat of radicalisation taking place on social media, the Punjab Police intends to increase its presence on such media.

The Director General of Police (DGP), Punjab, Suresh Arora on Thursday said the state police intends to have its own Facebook, Twitter and Youtube accounts to interact directly with the citizens, give timely responses to queries, provide a complaint redressal mechanism, and showcase the positive work done by the police. These accounts are all set to be launched this month.

Giving details of the achievements of 2017 and plans for 2018, the DGP said peace, communal harmony and law and order were successfully maintained after the conviction of DeraSachaSauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh on August 25 in Panchkula.

He said during the year, Punjab Police busted eight terrorist modules with the arrest of 47 persons and seizure of 43 weapons, including automatic weapons. Nearly 21 foreign handlers involved in providing logistical and financial support to these terrorist modules have also been identified, he said.

The DGP said these modules were mainly being operationalised, networked and financed by operatives based in Europe, North America and Middle East, and were aimed at targeted killings of members of organisations associated with the minority community, in order to spread communal disharmony and revive terrorism in Punjab.

Revealing the comparative figures relating to heinous crimes in 2016 and 2017, the DGP said murders came down to 656 from 771, attempt to murder to 795 from 862, kidnapping/abduction to 1462 from 1591, robbery to 116 from 147, and dacoity to 26 from 43.

As far as the cases under The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, registered FIRs had more than doubled to 12,309 from 5,906 in 2016, while recovery of heroine had increased to 186.865 kilogram (kg) from 139.596 kg. Recoveries of Poppy Husk (43,734.5 kg against 33,189 kg in 2016) and Opium (447.56 kg against 354.68 kg in 2016) also showed a significant increase.
Arora said 149 snatched vehicles, 183 firearms and Rs 1.5 Crore cash were recovered from organized criminal gangs. A mobile application having dossiers of more than 80,000 active criminals with artificial intelligence and face detection system had been operationalised, he said, adding that court permissions had been obtained for conducting 159 trials through video-conferencing in organized crime cases.