Bravery award for Richa Singh

Allahabad student leader Richa Singh, whose ordeal was raised in Parliament on Tuesday, received support both from the ruling Samajwadi Party government and the Opposition Bahujan Samaj Party in Uttar Pradesh.

In a last minute decision, the Akhilesh Yadav government included Ms. Singh’s name in the list of women to be conferred the Rani Laxmi Bai bravery award on International Women’s Day. Her name was not in the original list and she was surprised to receive a call from the government on the eve of the ceremony.

The award was presented to her by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav in Lucknow on Tuesday. “He has assured me his full support. I also received assurances from the SP. In this fight against saffronisation of educational institutions and harassment of a woman student leader, we are reaching out to all parties,” Ms. Singh told The Hindu .

BSP chief Mayawati also extended support to the student leader, who has complained of harassment at the hands of the Allahabad University administration and the ABVP. She said the SP government and the university had not learnt any “lesson” from the death of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula.

The BSP chief said the first woman president of the Allahabad University Students’ Union since Independence must be provided with adequate security by the State government. She called Ms. Singh a victim of oppression. “Her only crime was that she opposed the entry of Yogi Adityanath, who is known for vitiating the atmosphere with his communal speeches, into the campus.

Ms. Singh has also been in the limelight for taking on the ABVP and raising issues of gender insensitivity. She now faces the prospect of having her admission cancelled and a case against her election is pending in the Allahabad High Court. Ms. Singh has said the administration was targeting her to “settle scores.”

Source:- The Hindu, 09-Feb-2016

Foreign Secretaries to meet first in Kathmandu rather than Islamabad?

The Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan may meet for the first time after the Pathankot attack in Kathmandu, instead of Islamabad, official sources suggested on Wednesday.

The meeting, put off from January 14 this year, is yet to be rescheduled. Officials say it is unlikely to be scheduled in the next week. As a result, S. Jaishankar and his Pakistani counterpart could meet, for the first time, at the SAARC meeting for senior officials on March 15.

Calling reports of a proposed meeting in Islamabad “all in the realm of speculation,” a senior official told The Hindu that the Foreign Secretary was expected to attend the SAARC standing committee meeting, while External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj would attend the SAARC Council of Ministers meeting on March 17, where she is expected to meet Pakistan Foreign Affairs Adviser Sartaj Aziz. However, officials said no bilateral meeting was scheduled yet.

The status of the talks was discussed by India’s new High Commissioner to Pakistan Gautam Bhambawale and Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday.

Data that may be helpful:

Important Points:

• The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is an economic and geopolitical organisation of eight countries that are primarily located in South Asia or the Indian subcontinent.^[4] The SAARC Secretariat is based in Kathmandu, Nepal.
• Pakistan will host the 19th summit of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) in Islamabad in 2016. 
• The 18th SAARC Summit was held at the Nepalese capital Kathmandu from November 26 to November 27, 2014 and was attended by the prime ministers of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal and Pakistan, the presidents of the Afghanistan, Maldives and Sri Lanka. The motto was ‘Deeper Integration for Peace and Prosperity’

Source:- The Hindu,  25-Feb-2016

Mumbai gets Kulkarni boost for final against Saurashtra

Dhaval Kulkarni is back in the Mumbai squad for the Ranji trophy final against Saurashtra scheduled to start on February 24.

Other than his inclusion, the Mumbai selectors have retained the squad that secured their place for their 45th title clash in Cuttack.

Mumbai’s bid to clinch their 41st Ranji Trophy crown, and the first after two seasons, got a significant boost with the availability of fit-again pacer Dhawal Kulkarni for the final against Saurashtra in Pune.

Kulkarni missed the semifinal against Madhya Pradesh at Cuttack, after picking up an injury during their quarterfinal victory over Jharkhand at Mysuru.

Other than his inclusion, the Mumbai selectors have retained the squad that secured their place for their 45th title clash in Cuttack.

Significantly, when Mumbai clinched their 40th crown, Saurashtra were their opponents in the 2012-13 season.

The five-day final will begin on February 24.

The Mumbai squad:

Aditya Tare (Captain), Abhishek Nayar, Dhaval Kulkarni, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Akhil Herwadkar, Siddhesh Lad, Sufiyan Shaikh, Nikhil Patil (Jr.), Iqbal Abdullah, Shardul Thakur, Balwinder Singh Sandhu (Jr.), Badre Alam, Bhavin Thakkar, Vishal Dabholkar.

Keywords: Ranji trophy 2016, Ranji trophy final, Mumbai versus Saurashtra final match, Dhaval Kulkarni

source: the Hindu

Massachusetts plans rattlesnake colony on uninhabited island

In this Sept. 2008 handout file photograph from the Mass. Div. of Wildlife and Fisheries, a timber rattlesnake slithers across a flat rock in Western Massachusetts. A plan by the state to start a colony of venomous timber rattlesnakes on an off-limits island in Massachusetts’ largest drinking water supply is under fire.

The state Department of Fisheries and Wildlife has offered assurances that a small island full of rattlesnakes would pose no threat.

The US state of Massachusetts is planning to set up a colony of venomous rattlesnakes on an uninhabited island, sparking fears that the dangerous serpents could escape and attack people.

The Department of Fisheries and Wildlife wants to make a Quabbin Reservoir island home to the venomous timber rattlesnake, which is indigenous to the state.

Governor Charlie Baker is on board for using the unpopulated island for that purpose. He calls the project

“fairly short money” at a few hundred thousand dollars, and said he thinks it is important to preserve indigenous species.

“By creating a colony on an island like that, they are far less likely to run into people who are on the trails and working their way around Quabbin reservoir than they would be if we did nothing,” Mr. Baker was quoted as saying by CBS News.

He downplayed safety concerns among locals, some of whom are worried the snakes could get off the island and attack people in the area.

“If they swim off the island, first of all, it’s a long way from the islands being discussed to get to shoreline anyway. And secondly, if they do, their likelihood of survival is pretty small,” Mr. Baker said.

The state’s plan to revive a native endangered species on a remote island, however, does sound like a horror movie —— breed and raise 150 venomous timber rattlesnakes until they are good and strong, then turn them loose on protected land in the middle of the Quabbin Reservoir.

“Well, they [the snakes] swim,” Peter Mallett, president of the Millers River Fishermen’s Association, who opposes the plan, was quoted as saying by the Boston Globe.

The state Department of Fisheries and Wildlife has offered assurances that a small island full of rattlesnakes would pose no threat.

Any that escape the island will die during the following winter, unable to make it back to their nest, said Tom French, assistant director of the department.

And in reality, rattlesnakes are shy creatures which bite people only when threatened, he said.

“People are afraid that we’re going to put snakes in a place of public use and that they are going to breed like rabbits and spread over the countryside and kill everybody,” he said while representing the state at a public meeting Tuesday to address the concerns.

Timber rattlesnakes once slithered through forests and feasted on mice and chipmunks all over Massachusetts. But deforestation over the last two centuries left little habitat that allowed for their deep underground nests in winter.

Today, only a few isolated populations remain in the Blue Hills, the Connecticut River valley, and Berkshire County.

Keywords: Snakes island, Massachusetts, rattlesnake colony, on uninhabited island

Source: the hindu

McCullum out for 25 in final test; Australia presses for victory

New Zealand’s Brendon McCullum acknowledges the crowd as he leaves the field for the last time after being dismissed for 25 by Australia’s Josh Hazelwood on the third day of the second test match at Hagley Park Oval in Christchurch on Monday

Australia won the first test and needs only a draw to reclaim the top ranking from India among test-match nations.

Brendon McCullum was out for 25 on Monday in his last international innings as New Zealand slipped toward a series defeat on the third day of the second cricket test against Australia.

After making the fastest century in test history, from 54 balls, to lift New Zealand from 32-3 to 370 in its first innings, McCullum was again called on to play a match-saving role in the 176th and last test innings of his international career.

Kane Williamson, left to hold the New Zealand innings together, was 45 not out, while Corey Anderson was 9.

Australia won the first test at Wellington by an innings and 52 runs and needs only a draw at Hagley Oval to win the two-match series and to reclaim the top ranking from India among test-match nations.

McCullum is retiring after 101 tests, 260 one-dayers and 71 Twenty20 internationals. His final innings lasted all of 36 minutes and was full of the excitement and drama that has been a feature of his long career.

It also reflected the importance Australia placed on McCullum’s wicket.

McCullum needed a few balls to settle in and appraise the threat posed by Pattinson, who was able to get the ball to swing back late at right-handed batsmen. He hit three fours over or wide of the slip cordon and a six, pulled off the front foot, into the crowd beyond the square mid-wicket boundary.

But McCullum was out on next ball, caught by David Warner at short mid-wicket from the bowling of Josh Hazlewood.

New Zealand had previously lost Martin Guptill for 0, Tom Latham for 39 and Henry Nicholls for 2 as Australia’s bowlers dominated the hosts and edged closer to victory.

Earlier, New Zealand paceman Neil Wagner returned career-best figures of 6-106 to try to prevent the visitors from running up a huge first innings lead. He also claimed to vital wicket of Adam Voges for 60, ending his run of three straight centuries in his last three test innings.

Wagner had dismissed Steve Smith for 138 and Joe Burns for 170 late on the second day, which ended with Australia just seven runs behind New Zealand. He used a barrage of short-pitched balls through the first two sessions on Monday to remove Voges, Mitchell Marsh (18), Peter Nevill (13) and Hazlewood (13).

“As a kid growing up you dream of taking a five wicket bag against Australia,” Wagner said. “Probably not the way I took it; you dream of bowling guys out and getting guys out more conventionally. But you do dream of it and it’s a dream that came true for me.”

McCullum also had two catches to assist in Australia’s dismissal and bowled four overs, including two maidens, at a cost of three runs.

Keywords: Australia tour of New Zealand, New Zealand versus Australia Test series, New Zealand versus Australia second Test at Christchurch, Brendon McCullum

All you need to know about upcoming T20 World Cup

The top teams in speed cricket are set to clash in the ovals across India from March 8 to April 3 for the title of world T20 champions. Hosts India will be hitting the field after their lacklustre performance in South Africa and a gruelling outing in Australia. The 2016 ICC World Twenty20 will be the sixth edition of the tournament. Here is a look at the previous editions of the championship:

TWENTY20 WORLD CUP

The 2016 ICC World Twenty20 will be the sixth ICC World Twenty20 tournament and is scheduled to be held in India from March 8 to April 3, 2016. The ICC, after its first meeting in Dubai on January 28, 2015, awarded India the rights to host the World Twenty20 championship in 2016. Sri Lanka are the defending champions.

Who are the previous winners?

ICC introduced the championship in 2007. India became the first champion followed by Pakistan (2009), England (2010), West Indies (2012) and Sri Lanka (2014)

The story so far
2007	On September 24, 2007, India became the first Twenty20 champions by defeating its arch-rivals Pakistan in the finals at Wanderers, Johannesburg by 5 runs. Team India was led by M.S. Dhoni. This championship became memorable when Yuvraj Singh hit six sixes in an over off the bowling of England's Stuart Broad.
2009	On June 21, 2009, Pakistan lifted the T20 title by defeating Sri Lanka at Lords. Shahid Afridi impressed with his leg-spin and then produced an effort (54 not out off 40 balls) of substance in the finals.
2010	On May 16, 2010, England lifted its first ICC trophy by defeating its arch-rivals Australia in the finals at Bridgetown.
2012	On October 7, 2012, West Indies defeated Sri Lanka by 36 runs in the finals at R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. It was a major ICC title for West Indies after a long hiatus.
2014	On April 6, 2014, Sri Lanka defeated India in the finals to lift the title in Dhaka. It was indeed a fitting farewell for Sangakkara and Jayawardene as it cantered to a six-wicket win. Source: the hindu

Cricket is now a career option for youngsters: Kapil

1983 World Cup winning captain Kapil Dev,

Kapil asked the government to provide the required sports infrastructure and reduce tax on sports goods and equipments.

Former captain Kapil Dev on Monday doffed his hat at the rise of cricket as a career option for youngsters, saying that parents now encourage their children to take up the game to earn a living.

“Now a cricketer can earn Rs. 10 crore for playing 40 days only (in the IPL). It is just fantastic. Cricket is a career option now,” Kapil said during his address at the 7th Global Sports Summit organised by Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) in New Delhi.

“Times have changed and the thought process has changed. Now parents say to their children ‘if you do not want to study you can at least play cricket and become a Sachin Tendulkar or a Rahul Dravid’,” the 1983 cricket World Cup-winning captain said.

Kapil asked the government to provide the required sports infrastructure, including play fields, and reduce tax on sports goods and equipments.

“The corporate has done their part by way of sponsorship and media have done their part by making sports, especially cricket, big. I think the government will have to do its part by giving sports infrastructure if India wants to produce champions,” he said.

“The government will have to provide the sports infrastructure. Reduce the tax on sports goods and equipments. I heard that shooters have issues on importing their equipment and ammunition. The government will have to make it easy to bring in sports goods and equipments by reducing taxes on these,” he said in the presence of Sports Secretary Rajiv Yadav.

He also said that every school in the country should have enough play fields.

“Schools are the places from where talent will come and if there are not enough play fields, how will the country produce world champions. 40 per cent of the premises of all schools should be play fields,” said Kapil.

Responding to Kapil’s plea, Yadav said that because of the limited budgetary allocation for sports, it’s difficult for his ministry to provide all the facilities and it needs help from the corporate sector to build infrastructure.

“The budget allocation for 2015-16 is just Rs. 835 crore, whereas it should be at the range of Rs. 6000 crore. With limited sports budget we cannot give the entire infrastructure and we need a bit of help from the corporate sector,” Yadav said.

Yadav informed that the Finance Ministry has accepted that sports infrastructure building by corporates will get concessional finance from the government. He said it was a good beginning though short of corporate sector’s demand to give sports the status of an industry.

“We had a meeting with Finance Ministry a few days back and the government has accepted that sports infrastructure building (by the corporate sector) will get concessional finance and this is a good news for the corporates,” he said.

When queried by FICCI sports director Rajpal Singh whether the acceptance by the Finance Ministry would mean that sports will fully be given the status of an industry, Yadav said, “No, it’s not full acceptance. Sports infrastructure building, training academies will be included for concessions but not the competition structure and coaching etc. They are not included for concessions.

“But it is a good beginning. We can start at least with something,” he added.

He said he will take up the issue of provision of state-of-the-art sports facilities at the smart city project of the government.

“You can’t have smart cities without state-of-the-art sports facilities. I will take up the matter with officials of the Urban Development Ministry.

“But you will need at least Rs. 500 crore to build a sports complex in such smart cities while at the district headquarter, the amount could be Rs. 150 crore at least,” said the sports secretary.

Yadav also said that the School Games will be promoted in a big way from the coming 2016-17 financial year.

“We are looking at two tiers of talent grooming. First, from the 2016-17 onwards, we are going to promote School Games in a big way. Another is to revamp competition structure at the university level so as groom the talent identified at the school level.”

Keywords: Kapil Dev, Cricket as career option for younsters, 1983 World Cup winning captain

Source: the hindu