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Indian Army considering a proposal to allow 3-year tenure for civilians

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Indian Army considering a proposal to allow 3-year tenure for civilians

In a game-changing move, the Indian Army is considering a proposal to allow civilians including young working professionals to join the force for a three-year tenure as officers and in other ranks for a variety of roles, including front-line fighters.

On Wednesday, Army Chief General M M Naravane said that the idea to open up Army for civilians came up after they learnt from visits to colleges and universities that the youth were eager to experience army life. “When our officers addressed youths in colleges, we came across the feeling that they want to experience army life, but not as a career. Taking a cue from this, this idea was born of why not give them an opportunity to serve for two to three years,” Army Chief General M M Naravane said.

The Army Chief added that the country will benefit by getting younger manpower and the society will benefit by getting people who are disciplined and have imbibed the ethos of the army.

Will be implemented on a trial basis and model is cost-effective: Army officials

According to senior officials in the Army, the proposed model of Tour of Duty (ToD) will be implemented on a trial basis for officers and other ranks in the army for a limited number of vacancies. The vacancies will be increased if the model is successful. The proposal is a shift from the concept of permanent service in the armed forces towards an “internship” for three years.

The ToD scheme, if and when approved, will initially be launched with around 100 vacancies for officers and 1,000 for jawans. This move, as per officials, could save huge cost for the Indian Armed Forces as training, pay and allowances, incurred on people joining under the new model would be Rs 80-85 lakhs, as compared to over Rs 6 crore for an officer under the Short Service Commission, who serve up to 14 years.

The proposed model is expected to help save on pensions and other allowances paid out to short-service commissioned officers released after 10 and 14 years of service.

The officials also said that the corporates can benefit from individuals who would serve in the army for three years. The army is also examining a proposal of giving a “token” lum sum amount to officers and jawans exiting from the ToD scheme, to make it more attractive. With this proposed scheme, the army is trying to atract youth from top academic institutes such as IITs.

Voluntary, not compulsory service

The “tour of duty” model will not be similar to ‘conscription’ or compulsory military services like in Israel or some other countries. However, it will be completely voluntary and no relaxations will be allowed in the selection criteria for those wishing to join.

Reportedly, the Army currently has around 43,000 officers, with almost 80% of them in the permanent commission (PC) cadre, and 11.8 lakh other ranks. The minimum service tenure for a short-service commission (SSC) officer is 10 years and 50-60% of them will be granted permanent commission to serve till at least 54 years of age and thereafter to avail benefits of a pension.

One of the rationales behind pushing temporary commission is increasing defence pensions during the last five years. The salary and pension bill of the 14-lakh armed forces and 4-lakh defence civilians, addition to the 31-lakh pensioners, amounts to 56% of the overall annual defence budget, which leaves little for military modernization.

Handwara encounter martyr Colonel Ashutosh Sharma’s wife scatters his ashes at South West Army command War Memorial

OpIndia Staff
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Handwara encounter martyr Colonel Ashutosh Sharma’s wife scatters his ashes at South West Army command War Memorial

Wife of Colonel Ashutosh Sharma who was martyred while fighting terrorists in Handwara of Jammu and Kashmir last week scattered his ashes at the South West Army command in Jaipur on Friday morning. Pallavi Sharma, had earlier said that she will not shed tears for her fallen husband as she was a proud wife whose husband died while protecting the country. “I will not shed tears on his martyrdom. It is an honour to be sacrificed for the country,” she had said.

Colonel Sharma was a Commanding Officer of the Indian Army’s 21 Rashtriya Rifles. He laid down his life in an encounter operation to eliminate Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists reported to be hidden in a cattle shed. Along with him, four more security personnel were martyred in the Chanjmulla area of Handwara in North Kashmir’s Kupwara District.

The state of Rajasthan honored the fallen jawan who died during a counter-terrorism operation in Handwara. Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and family members of the martyr performed a wreath-laying ceremony and paid their last respects to him at 61 Cavalry location, Jaipur Military station here.

Handwara encounter

On 2nd May 2020, at around 3:30 PM, an encounter started between the Forces and terrorists in the Chanjumullah area of Handwara in Kupwara, North Kashmir. Towards evening, reports started pouring in that two senior Army personnel including a Colonel-rank officer and a Major were trapped in a house with two Pakistani terrorists. The senior officers soon lost contact with the team. Soon, they lost contact with the unit.

As per reports, the terrorists were found hiding in a cowshed. The Forces were reportedly acting on a tipoff that terrorists were present in the Rajwar forests area. The special operations group of police surrounded the house the terrorists were hiding in and an encounter followed. As of now, the reports are that five security personnel have lost their lives while two terrorists were killed. All 5 members of the original team including Commanding Officer 21 RR Col Ashutosh Sharma, Maj Anuj Sood, Police Sub Inspector Shakeel Qazi, one Lc Naik, and one rifleman have been martyred.

As per reports, when no radio contact could be established with the team, the unit called Colonel Sharma’s mobile phone. The call was answered by a terrorist who responded with an ‘Assalamalaikum’.

Two terrorists, including top Pakistani Lashkar-e-Taiba leader Haider were killed by the security forces. The identify of other terrorist is yet to be ascertained.

Petition filed in Rajasthan HC against Minister Vishvendra Singh for not wearing mask in public

OpIndia Staff
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Petition filed in Rajasthan HC against Minister Vishvendra Singh for not wearing mask in public

A petition has been filed in Rajasthan High Court against Rajasthan Tourism Minister Vishvendra Singh for appearing in public without wearing a mask.

Reportedly, the petition was filed in the Rajasthan High Court on Wednesday by lawyer Poonam Chand Bhandari. In the plea, Bhandari has accused Vishvendra Singh of visiting a public place in Rajasthan’s Bharatpur district without wearing a mask.

In the wake of coronavirus pandemic, Rajasthan High Court had earlier issued a diktat making it mandatory to wear a mask in public. The guidelines issued by union home ministry has also made wearing a mask or face-covering in public places mandatory.

In his petition, Bhandari has stated that, on April 25, Tourism Minister Vishvendra Singh was instructing policemen outside the Kumher police station in Bharatpur. The petition mentioned that Vishvendra Singh was asking the local police to enforce rules in the city after a woman from the city was tested positive for the coronavirus.

The lawyer accused that Rajasthan Tourism minister was seen without a mask even as all the policemen were wearing masks. Bhandari said that Vishvendra Singh violated Section 51 of the Disaster Management Act. 

Senior police officers made respondent in the case

Reportedly, apart from minister Vishvendra Singh, DGP Bhupendra Yadav, Bharatpur DIG Laxman Gaur and Bharatpur SP Hyder Ali Jaidi have also been made respondents in the case.

Advocate Bhandari also accused the Rajasthan police of not registering an FIR, which led him to file a criminal petition under Section 482 of the Criminal Procedure Code. He also alleged that he has been receiving threat calls for registering a complaint against Congress minister.

Speaking to India Today, Rajasthan Tourism minister Vishvendra Singh said that he was aware of the petition filed against him in the Rajasthan High Court.

Vishvendra Singh had caught spreading misinformation in the past

Rajasthan Tourism Minister Vishvendra Singh had taken to Twitter in early April to claim that a pregnant Muslim woman was refused admission in a hospital by one Dr Muneet Valia in Bharatpur “because she was a Muslim”. Singh had claimed that the doctor had asked the patient to go to Jaipur to get her checkup done since she is Muslim.

However, the transfer slip issued by the said doctor to the patient was soon shared by netizens exposing the false propaganda of the Rajasthan minister. Later, it became known that the Muslim woman was pregnant for the 7th time and was suffering from anaemia due to which she was referred to a different hospital.

“You people are terrible terrorist of India. You all have to be killed,” Marriott International employee’s Hinduphobic tweets go viral

OpIndia Staff
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“You people are terrible terrorist of India. You all have to be killed,” Marriott International employee’s Hinduphobic tweets go viral

In a shocking act of Hinduphobia, one person named Vinny Bailam has been caught spreading vile hatred against Hindus on social media, to the extent of threatening to kill Hindus of the country.

On Thursday, social media users flagged Vinny Bailam, who, as per his facebook profile, works for hospitality chain Marriott International, for spreading not only hatred against Hindus of the country but inciting Muslims and Christians of the country to commit genocide against Hindus.

Calling Indians, especially Hindus as ‘racist’, Vinny Bailam threatened Hindus of dangerous consequences if Muslims and Christians of the country unite against them. Mocking Hindus, who are being thrown out of jobs from gulf countries following the anti-India propaganda by Islamists, Bailam said Hindus will not have food to eat anymore and they all need to beg for food in the country.

Image Source: Vedic Revival @Vedic_Revival

Vinny Bailam, just like other Islamist bigots and terrorists, mocked Hindus by resorting to ‘cow urine’ jibe. Indulging in derogatory words to attack PM Modi and Republic TV chief Arnab Goswami, Bailam said that Hindus loved to drink ‘cow urine’.

Image Source: Vedic Revival @Vedic_Revival

Calling nationalist organisation Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh as a terrorist organisation, Vinny Bailam expressed his urge to kill them all.

Image Source: Vedic Revival @Vedic_Revival

Shockingly, Bailam also referred to Mumbai Police as a ‘Hindu police terrorist’.

Image Source: Vedic Revival @Vedic_Revival

He also said that when the Ram Mandir is built at Ayodhya, the Muslims shall destroy it this time.

His other Hinduphobic rants also included the ‘cow urine’ jibe.

As we looked carefully into Vinny Bailam’s social media accounts, it was revealed that he has a history of peddling abusive anti-Hindu propaganda across social media platforms. His Twitter profile, created in April 2020, is full of abusive, derogatory and crude posts on PM Modi, several journalists and Hindus organisations.

A Facebook profile corresponding to his name mentions that he is working with Marriott International.

Vinny Baliam’s Facebook page

According to Vinny Bailam’s Facebook details, he hails from Mumbai and currently resides in London, United Kingdom.

Soon netizens demanded whether Marriott International endorses the views by its employee.

Marriott International is yet to respond to the allegations.

After the social media backlash, Bailam seems to have removed his employment details in his Facebook profile where he had earlier claimed that he works for Marriott International.

Update: Responding the allegations on social media, Marriott Hotels have said that proper action will be taken.

Marriott has informed that any conduct that does not comply with the internal policies and service standards will not be tolaterd. “Be advised that the proper actions will be taken along with management team and all involved departments,” it said in a tweet.

Update 2: Responding to this report, Marriott has now said that Vinny Bailam is not employed at any of their managed hotels in Europe and has no employment relationship with Marriott International. In an email sent to OpIndia on 14th May, Area Director of Marketing for South Asia of the hotel chain issued the following statement- “We are aware and troubled by recent reports and online discussions about an individual allegedly claiming to be an employee of Marriott International spreading inappropriate racial and religious messages. The views of this person does not reflect the position and stance of Marriott International. We take this matter seriously and our initial investigations have shown that this person is not employed at any of our managed hotels in Europe and has no employment relationship with Marriott International. We are also working closely with our franchisees who employ staff directly and will work to ensure that the appropriate actions are taken. As a hospitality company, Marriott celebrates and values different cultures and people from all walks of life. Marriott strives to create a safe, secure and hospitable environment for our guests. We are committed to following local laws and regulations to ensure the safety and well-being of our guests and associates as the utmost priority. Especially in today’s current climate, it is more important than ever that we stand in solidarity and maintain respect for all”.

Although Marriott International has asserted that the person is not directly employed by them, they have indicated that they are working with their franchisee partners to see if he works for some of them. They have ensured that appropriate action will be taken if he is found to be working with such a franchisee.

Poet Munawwar Rana displays Hinduphobia, says there are 100 crore ‘animals’ and 35 crore ‘humans’ in India

OpIndia Staff
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Poet Munawwar Rana displays Hinduphobia, says there are 100 crore ‘animals’ and 35 crore ‘humans’ in India

In a Hinduphobic tweet, Sahitya Akademi Award winning poet Munawwar Rana referred to Hindus as ‘animals’ who only come in handy while voting and Muslims as ‘humans’.

Addressing BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra, Munawwar Rana was criticising government of India’s measures to combat coronavirus. He said, “After seeing government’s failure on coronavirus, it has been proven that there are 35 crore humans and 100 crore animals,”. As per 2011 census, Muslim population was estimated at about 17.22 crore which would have grown over the years. And while he did not explicitly mention that he meant Hindus and Muslims as ‘animals’ and ‘humans’ in his tweet, netizens objected to this tweet of Rana and pointed out the Hinduphobic nature of his tweet.

After the outrage, he again took to Twitter to ‘clarify’ that his words were being twisted.

He claimed the 35 crore mentioned in his original tweet were not Muslims but those who are healthy and happy and 100 crore ‘animals’ are those who are deprived of basic things like food, water and shelter. But netizens were not buying it.

Amusingly, soon after clarifying that he did not mean to divide Indians on religion as ‘animals’ and ‘humans’, Rana defended the Tablighi Jamaat, which emerged as one of the major hotspots for coronavirus in India.

Many of the Tablighi Jamaat members were accused of pelting stones and misbehaving with the healthcare workers and frontline staff. UP Police recently arrested few attendees who had allegedly molested a nurse at quarantine centre.

Munawwar Rana

Munawwar Rana was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2014 by the same ‘fascist’ Modi government he keeps whining against. He was awarded for “Shehdaba”, a collection of ghazals and nazms (long poems). One of the poems in Shehdaba, was on Sonia Gandhi, which was written when Sonia Gandhi, despite winning with a thumping majority, refused the chair of the prime ministership. He returned the award in 2015 to protest against the ‘rising intolerance’.

In December 2019, his daughter, while protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act, the Act which sought to fast-track Indian citizenship to persecuted religious minorities in three neighbouring Islamic countries, Pakistani, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, had said that Muslims are Muslims first, then anything else. “Do not lose your identity to become secular,” she said.

Coronavirus may never go away, may become another endemic, says WHO

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Coronavirus may never go away, may become another endemic, says WHO

The UN specialized agency – the World Health Organisation has now warned that coronavirus “may never go away” and stated that the disease could become endemic like HIV, reports BBC.

Speaking at a virtual briefing on Wednesday, WHO emergencies expert Mike Ryan cautioned against predicting how long the coronavirus be active as he urged countries to put a “massive effort” to counter the pandemic.

“It is important to put this on the table: this virus may become just another endemic virus in our communities, and this virus may never go away,” WHO emergencies expert Mike Ryan said.

Mike Ryan added, “I think it is important we are realistic and I don’t think anyone can predict when this disease will disappear. I think there are no promises in this and there are no dates. This disease may settle into a long problem, or it may not be.”

Ryan added, “It is a vicious cycle of public health disasters followed by economic disasters. This virus may never go away. HIV has not gone away. But we have come to terms with the virus. We have developed therapies, prevention methods. People are not as afraid of HIV as they used to be earlier. We are offering long, healthy lives to people with HIV. I am not comparing the two diseases. But it is important to be realistic”.

Noting that there are currently more than 100 potential vaccines in development, Dr Ryan said there are other illnesses, such as measles, that still have not been eliminated despite having vaccines for them.

He added, “We do have a one-way shot, of developing a highly effective vaccine. But we have to make that vaccine available to everyone, then only we will have a shot at eliminating this disease.”

It is possible to control the virus: WHO DG Tedros

Meanwhile, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who is facing heat for his failure to contain the Chinese pandemic and is accused of misleading the world, stressed it was still possible to control the virus, with effort.

“The trajectory is in our hands, and it’s everybody’s business, and we should all contribute to stop this pandemic,” he said.

Dr Tedros warned that there was no guaranteed way of easing restrictions without triggering a second wave of infections.

Tamil Nadu: Chennai’s Koyambedu market cluster emerges as the new hotspot with over 3000 cases traced, CM blames vendors

OpIndia Staff
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Tamil Nadu: Chennai’s Koyambedu market cluster emerges as the new hotspot with over 3000 cases traced, CM blames vendors

The Koyambedu market in Chennai has emerged as the new coronavirus hotspot in Tamil Nadu. So far nearly 3,000 cases have been reported from the market. Over 35% of the total cases reported in Tamil Nadu till now has been traced to the Koyambedu market.

According to a senior health official, the Koyambedu market cluster has emerged as a new cluster as it has impacted not only Chennai but several other districts such as Ariyalur and Perambalur. Two neighbouring districts of Chennai city region, Chengalpattu and Tiruvallur, have also seen a jump in the coronavirus cases.

As per a report in Indian Express, the state’s total tally was 9,227, out of which 4,089 were linked to arrivals from other countries and states. Nearly 1,365 positive cases were linked to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi in March while other cases have been traced to the Koyambedu market cluster. Out of the 509 new cases reported across the state in the last 24 hours, 380 were from Chennai.

Reportedly, most of the infected have been traced to have links to the Koyambedu market. Vendors, drivers, workers and those who visited the market on a daily basis, and their secondary contacts have been tested positive.

Koyambedu market opened in 1996 in Chennai. It is one of Asia’s biggest markets and attracts people from across Tamil Nadu and neighbouring states, who come here to sell their products or seeking work. The administration had shut the market and shifted it to the outskirts of Chennai after several people working at the market were tested positive for coronavirus.

Some districts in Andhra Pradesh have also reported cases linked to Koyambedu cluster as many migrants, traders had visited the market in the last few days and had returned their home state in the last week of April. At least four districts in Andhra Pradesh has been impacted from the cluster and about 20 persons from the state who visited the market contracted coronavirus.

Chief Minister blames traders for the outbreak

Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Wednesday blamed wholesale vegetable and fruit traders at Koyambedu market cluster for the violating the lockdown rules and aggravating the pandemic. He stated that that the traders “stiffly opposed” the government’s move to close down the market earlier.

“Attempts were made several times to shift the market out of Koyambedu, but the traders refused to cooperate, fearing loss of business. So, reports in sections of the media that the government’s inaction led to the spread of the disease from Koyambedu are not true,” the Chief Minister said.

The TN government is facing criticism over failure to maintain lockdown orders and implement social distancing norms despite several media reports pointing out the potential threat of infection from the market.

The total number of coronavirus cases in India has jumped to 74,281 while the death toll has risen to 2,415, according to the data released by the Health Ministry. In past 24 hours, 3,525 fresh coronavirus cases have been detected while 122 deaths were registered due to coronavirus.

Nirav Modi defended in UK court by former Judge who had joined Congress after meeting Rahul Gandhi

OpIndia Staff
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Nirav Modi defended in UK court by former Judge who had joined Congress after meeting Rahul Gandhi

Retired Bombay High Court judge and Congress leader Abhay Thipsay on Wednesday defended fugitive businessman Nirav Modi in a London court via video conference and claimed that the charges levelled by the CBI against Nirav Modi will not hold in India. The CBI has charged Nirav Modi with criminal conspiracy, cheating and dishonestly inducting delivery of property.

Who is Abhay Thipsay who is defending Nirav Modi

Abhay Thipsay is a Congress leader who joined the grand old party in 2018 after meeting the then Congress President Rahul Gandhi. He had joined Congress ‘to fight communal forces and communalism’. He later launched a book blaming Hindus for bomb blasts done by Islamic radicals. He was the same judge who convicted 9 out of the 17 accused in the Best Bakery case. Justice Thipsay claimed that the Hindus carried out the 2008 Malegaon blasts.

He gave an interview to Jyoti Punwani, who is a known anti-BJP professional activist. That interview says:

“Your bail orders to suspected Maoists and terror accused couldn’t have made you popular with the authorities. What made you give such bold judgments? In fact, you were even known as the ‘bail judge’.“

Thipsay: I’ve always decided bail on the merits of the case. I’ve never been scared of taking decisions in accordance with the law. What is ‘bold’ in these judgments? In court, there can be only one conclusion, based on the evidence presented. Many a times the crime alleged is enormous, but there is no evidence against the accused. Courts are not supposed to see what’s not there….”

He thus defends his orders giving bail to Maoists and terror accused on grounds of ‘lack of evidence’, but doesn’t extend the same logic to Sohrabuddin case accused being discharged due to ‘lack of evidence’. 

You could read more about him here.

At least 14 migrants killed and several injured in two separate road accidents

OpIndia Staff
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At least 14 migrants killed and several injured in two separate road accidents

Six migrant workers walking along with Muzaffarnagar-Saharanpur highway were killed after a speeding bus ran over them late last night. As per reports, the unfortunate incident happened near the Ghalauli check-post. The police has registered a case agains the unknown bus driver. As reported by Outlook, the accused driver, who is suspected to be driving under the influence of alcohol, has been arrested.

Two migrant workers who were critically injured were referred to a hospital in Meerut. Two other migrants who sustained minor injuries are currently undergoing treatment at Muzaffarnagar district hospital and will be discharged later today as per reports.

In another such horrifying incident, at least 8 migrant labourers were killed and 50 injured after a truck they were travelling in collided with a bus. The incident happened in Guna at around 3 AM. The injured are currently undergoing treatment at district hospital.

Road and train accidents kill migrants walking home

Earlier this week, 5 migrants were killed and 11 were injured after a truck laden with mangoes carrying labourers from Hyderabad to Uttar Pradesh overturned in Madhya Pradesh. Prior to that, 15 migrant workers who were walking to catch a train were killed after a goods train ran over them while they were sleeping on the tracks.

Some countries busy in spreading other viruses such as terrorism, fake news, doctored videos during Coronavirus pandemic: MEA S Jaishankar

OpIndia Staff
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Some countries busy in spreading other viruses such as terrorism, fake news, doctored videos during Coronavirus pandemic: MEA S Jaishankar

Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar hit out at Pakistan without taking its name in Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meet with the foreign ministers of several countries. MEA Jaishankar said that some countries are “busy” in spreading terrorism while the world is a fighting coronavirus.

Dr. S Jaishankar took to twitter saying that he participated in the virtual SCO meet during the impact of coronavirus. At the anniversary of the Second World War, the situation of Afghanistan and future activities of SCO were also discussed. He also posted a clip of his around one-minute speech from the meeting.

The conference was held under the Chairmanship of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. MEA Jaishankar said, “Even as the world fighting the COVID-19. Some are busy in spreading other viruses such as terrorism, fake news, doctored videos are also used to divide communities and countries.”

Highlighting the coronavirus crisis has led to an interruption in production networks and supply chains, Jaishankar called for a uniting in finding new ways to revive the economy. He said, “Due to COVID-19, we have all seen any prospect of growth evaporate before our very eyes. For a society like India, it means that many will not come out of poverty for no fault of theirs, they have little understanding and even less control over why this happened. Of course, the crisis has resulted in an interruption in production works and supply chains reverberating across the globe. In these circumstances, it is pertinent of the member states to jointly identify new ways and means to sustain economic growth.”

Prime Minister Modi also said the same during NAM meeting

Prime Minister Modi on May 4 while addressing the Non-aligned movement meet also said slammed Pakistan saying, “Even as the world fights Covid-19, some people are busy spreading other deadly viruses such as terrorism, fake news, and doctored videos to divide communities and countries.”

Pakistan spreading cross-border terrorism

Even as the world is battling the Wuhan originated novel coronavirus pandemic, Pakistan despite being seriously affected by the disease continues to export cross-border terrorism. The Pakistani leaders have been witnessed sharing fake news and doctored videos to divide the communities in India. The Indian intelligence agencies have traced thousands of social media accounts peddling fake narrative.

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