Category: Amazing Feats

India crush Sri Lanka by 8 wickets to win women’s Asia Cup 

India maintained their dominance in the Women’s Asia Cup with an eight-wicket demolition of a self-destructing Sri Lanka in the final here on Saturday for their seventh title in eight editions.

Sri Lanka, who were playing their first tournament final in 14 years, imploded after opting to bat on a slow and turning pitch.

They could only manage 65 for nine which India knocked off in 8.3 overs. Smriti Mandhana struck a sublime 51 not out off 25 balls.

It was a procession after Sri Lankan skipper Chamari Athapaththu got run out in the third over following a mix-up with Anushka Sanjeewani who too got run out six balls later.

Renuka, who has been in top form since the Commonwealth Games in August, sent back Hasini Perera on the very first ball she faced. The left-hander checked her shot only to be caught at cover, leaving Sri Lanka at nine for four.

The Sri Lankans were in dire need of a partnership but Kavisha Dilhari’s fall made it 16 for five as she was bowled while trying to play an incoming delivery from Renuka across the line.

Rajeshwari Gayakwad got her first wicket after Nilakshi de Silva played onto her stumps while trying to cut a ball close to her body.

At 32 for eight, being bowled out for a sub-50 total was very much on the cards, but Ranaweera saved them from that ignominy with an unbeaten 18 off 22 balls.

The Indians bowled with discipline but poor shot selection contributed more to Sri Lanka’s steep slide. After a memorable win over Pakistan in the semifinals, it seemed the occasion got the better of Sri Lanka. India lost Shafali Verma and Jemimah Rodrigues cheaply in the run chase.

However, both the batters did well in the tournament, with Shafali getting back to form and Jemimah making a successful comeback from injury.

The elegant Mandhana played some exquisite strokes on way to completing the formality alongside skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (11 not out of 14).

Smriti’s effort included three sixes and six boundaries. Fittingly, she sealed the win with a maximum off Oshadi Ranasinghe. The win is a shot in the arm for India’s preparations for the T20 World Cup next year.

They were able to test players for different roles during the competition, though that also contributed to their only loss in the tournament, against Pakistan in the league stage.

The Indians took a lap of the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium and, in a fine gesture, got clicked with the entire ground staff after their triumph, which was witnessed by a sizeable turnout.

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Rudrankksh, Arjun, Kiran win India’s fifth gold in ISSF Worlds

Payal Khatri and Sahil Dudhane won India’s fourth bronze of the championships in the same event, defeating Ane Torgersen and Hans Noestvold of Norway 16-14 in a close encounter.

Indian men’s 10m air rifle troika of Rudrankksh Balasaheb Patil, Kiran Ankush Jadhav and Arjun Babuta won the country’s fifth gold medal in the ISSF World Championship, routing China 16-10 in the title round.

It was also Patil’s second senior world championship gold in his very first outing, having won the individual 10m air rifle event earlier. India also picked up a silver and two bronze medals on the day to take their tally to five gold, one silver and five bronze, to maintain their second place behind China in the standings. With the women’s 10m air pistol team also making the gold medal match, that tally is certain to go up further by the end of the tournament.

The Indian team raced ahead 14-2 in the final against a Chinese side which had Yang Haoran (double Olympic gold medallist and two-time world champion), Lihao Sheng (Tokyo Olympics silver medallist) and Song Buhan (world championship silver medallist). China mounted a strong comeback to win the next four series and narrow the gap to 14-10, but the Indians held their own in the final series to clinch the crown. Both the teams were at each other from Saturday itself when the Chinese prevailed over the Indians, both in round one of qualification of 28 teams and then in the top eight second round as well.

In round one, China edged India by 0.4, while 0.9 was the difference in round two. In the match that mattered the most, however, it was the Indians who finally stamped their supremacy over the Chinese in men’s air rifles in this world championship edition at least, winning both the individual and team titles. The air rifle women, who had a heartbreak in the individual event, redeemed themselves with a bronze in the team event, prevailing 17-11 in a nail-biter against Germany.

Meghana Sajjanar shot two consecutive 10.9s in the crucial stages to clinch the deal along with partners Elavenil Valarivan and Mehuli Ghosh. They had earlier finished third in qualification stage two to miss out on the gold match by 0.6 points. In stage one, they had shot 947.0 to finish second, a mere 0.1 behind China, among 30 teams. Manvi Jain and Sameer won India’s first silver of the championships, going down to China’s Feng Sixuan and Liu Yangpan 17-03 in the gold medal match of the 25m standard pistols mixed team junior competition.

They had come second in stage one of qualification with a score of 564 and then topped stage two with a combined effort of 378 to make it to the title decider. Payal Khatri and Sahil Dudhane won India’s fourth bronze of the championships in the same event, defeating Ane Torgersen and Hans Noestvold of Norway 16-14 in a close encounter. The pair had finished third in stage one with 563 and then third again in stage two with 368, to qualify for the bronze match. In the men’s 10m air pistol team competition, the Indian trio of Shiva Narwal, Naveen and Vijayveer Sidhu shot 580 in qualification stage two to finish fifth eventually.

Also, in the women’s 50m rifle 3 positions team Junior event, India’s Nishchal, Nikita Kundu and Nupur Kumrawat ended 10th in qualification with a score of 1278

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Gandhi museum opens up in New Jersey

Inaugurated this past weekend, the museum has artefacts and digital display screens that are interactive and visitors will be able to interactively see the life events of the apostle of peace.

A museum dedicated to the life and message of Mahatma Gandhi has opened in the Atlantic City of the United States.

Inaugurated this past weekend, the museum has artefacts and digital display screens that are interactive and visitors will be able to interactively see the life events of the apostle of peace.

The event was attended by eminent Indian American community members and India’s Consul General in New York Randhir Jaiswal.

Developed in partnership with the Aditya Birla Group by the New Jersey-based Gandhian Society, it is the first museum dedicated to the “father of the nation” in the USA.

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Rudrankksh Patil wins World Championship, rallying from 4-10 down to beating Sollazzo 17-13 in gold duel

Indian 18 year old had topped 10m air rifle qualification, and brought India its first Paris Games quota place in air rifle.

India’s Rudrankksh Balasaheb Patil scored a sensational come-from-behind victory in the men’s 10m Air rifle final, beating Italy’s Danilo Sollazzo 17-13 in a shootout, to win the gold medal at the ongoing World Championships in Cairo on Friday. In the process of winning gold, Patil also earned India its first pistol/rifle event quota for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The other two quotas besides India and Italy went to China (Lihao Sheng finishing 3rd & Haoran Yang 4th) and Czech Republic through Jiri Privatsky (5th).

India’s last World Champion in the men’s air rifle was Abhinav Bindra at Zagreb in 2006, while Gagan Narang picked a bronze at the World Championships at Munich in 2010. Anjum Moudgil won silver in women’s in 2018.

The final was a glimpse into what the ISSF has in plans for the Paris Games with regards to the format. The last rule change meant that the eight participants in the final compete for rankings from 1-8. After a series of three, consisting of five shots per series, the two shooters with the least number of points are eliminated. From thereon out, two shooters get eliminated at the end of every series, until only the top 2 remain. Those two are then supposed to battle it out in a first-to-16 duel scenario, where a level score for both nets a point, and the higher score between both leads to two points to the winner.

After a 51.8 in his first series, Patil never shot under 52 for the next four series. The result – a score of 261.9, the second position in hand and the chance to go for gold with the slate all clean. Facing him in the final duel would be Italian shooter Danilo Sollazzo who had shot a monstrous 262.7 to qualify for the shootout.

In the shootout the first two attempts for both led to an identical 10.5 score which meant the scores were tied at 2-2. Sollazzo then took the lead in the next two shots as he continued to hit 10.5 and Patil managed only a 10.3 in his next couple of attempts. The scores now were 6-2. The Italian attempted to seize the initiative of the shootout, scoring yet another 10.5. But the 18-year-old Indian shooter responded with a perfect 10.9 to some loud shouts from the Indian contingent watching in support. At 6-4 though, Sollazzo won the next two rounds making the score 10-4.

At this point, it seemed hard to imagine a comeback for the Thane-teen. But the Italian’s next shot was a 10.3 and Patil responded with a 10.6. Both shooters then shot an identical 10.4 to claim a point apiece and make the scores 11-7 in favour of the Italian. The Italian lost two further points when he shot 10.2 and his counterpart replied with a 10.6.

But Sollazzo was far from done. In the next set, he dropped a 10.7 to Patil’s 10.4 to take his lead to four points again. But at 13-9, the Italian would not score any more points.

The comeback

Patil has been in shootouts before. In fact, before the World Championships, he found himself in one against Olympian Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar at the T6 national shooting trials. Patil eased to a 16-6 victory then and made his way to Cairo.

Here, down by four points, Patil began his comeback. But it began with a strategically placed time out, one where the Italian shooter, who was in some fine rhythm, was disrupted and had to wait for 30 seconds to take his shot. This moment was crucial as Rudrankksh returned from the timeout with a 10.5 to Sollazzo’s 10.3

The crowning moment of the match though was the next shot. With the scores tied at 13-apiece, Sollazzo brought out the calibre he had shown all through the event and dropped a 10.7. The Italian was cheered by his contingent and then all of a sudden, those cheers died a quick death as Patil dropped a 10.8. It was the turning moment of the match – one that gave the Indian a 15-13 lead. He quickly won the next two points as well to seal the gold medal at a World Championship.

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Submarine INS Arihant successfully test fires ballistic missile

The missile was tested to a predetermined range and it impacted the target area in the Bay of Bengal with high accuracy, according to the defence ministry.

India’s strategic strike submarine INS Arihant carried out successful launch of a ballistic missile on Friday, the defence ministry said.

The missile was tested to a predetermined range and it impacted the target area in the Bay of Bengal with high accuracy, validating all operational and technological parameters, it said.

“The successful user training launch of the SLBM (submarine launched ballistic missile) by INS Arihant is significant to prove crew competency and validate the SSBN programme, a key element of India’s nuclear deterrence capability,” the ministry said.

“A robust, survivable and assured retaliatory capability is in keeping with India’s policy to have ‘credible minimum deterrence’ that underpins its ‘No First Use’ commitment,” it said in a statement.

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Ponniyin Selvan puts identity and history of Cholas at centre of primetime debates

A new week, a new controversy centred on Hinduism has erupted. The latest victim of heated debates on primetime television is famous filmmaker Mani Ratnam’s latest movie Ponniyin Selvan — 1, the film adaptation of Kalki’s revered historical fiction novel. 

The film itself has put a smile on the faces of everyone associated with it, on account of its remarkable success, having collected almost Rs 350 crore globally. It has been appreciated for its economical writing, striking performances, and above all, for achieving the impossible task of condensing Kalki’s novel of five volumes — which, marrying history and fiction, presents a compelling story about the rise of Raja Raja Cholan/Arunmozhi Varman (played by Jayam Ravi).  

Considered South India’s most powerful king, Raja Raja Cholan is revered for his able administration, striking territorial expansions, and the creation of timeless temple architecture — including the famous Brihadheeswara Temple in Thanjavur. 

It’s the identity of this king that has now come into question a thousand years after his lifetime — his 29-year reign having ended with his demise in 1014 AD, coincidentally, exactly one millennium before political colours changed in contemporary India. That seeps into the way primetime anchors, political personalities and social media influencers are setting up a heated discourse around him centering on one question: whether Raja Raja Cholan was a Hindu.

Those on the right are celebrating him for being a ‘Hindu’ king — no doubt, ascribing to him present definitions of ‘Hinduness’. And notable personalities from Tamil Nadu, including Kamal Haasan and Vetrimaaran, have weighed in on the side of a historically more nuanced argument: that the notion of ‘Hinduism’, as defined today in an all-pervading sense, did not exist during the king’s time and that those who are projecting that idea backwards are falling prey to the fallacy of presentism. A more accurate label, they say, would be Shaivism — the worship of Shiva — which has an ancient and robust non-Vedic lineage in Tamil lands.

With the resistance to the ‘Hinduism’ label seeming to be a response to perceived ‘saffronisation’, it is a difficult debate to settle — and an unfortunate one to envelop a film in. But there is a history to this: a few years ago, a furore erupted over the religious identity of Tamil poet-philosopher Thiruvalluvar after he was depicted in saffron robes in a tweet by the BJP state unit. Some see a systematic politicisation here. Others are offended by the resistance to it. Everything, it seems, depends on where you stand in the political spectrum. In this post-truth era, there are no facts — only beliefs that strengthen your worldview and solidify your identity.

Loving documentary of fabled good time

Ponniyin Selvan 1 is a loving documentation of a fabled time when the rivers in our land ran full, when the earth had not been plundered. There are lessons to be learned from how life was lived then, and yet, it is a marker of our times that a film intended to celebrate a glorious period in our history has instead resulted in squabbles over an identity nuance the film doesn’t exactly concern itself with. 

Was Raja Raja Chola a Hindu? Was he a Shaivite? Will they even care after the next big release?

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Creation of weapon system branch for officers approved; can save Rs 3,400 cr in flying training: IAF Chief

The central government has approved the creation of a weapon system branch for the officers of the Indian Air Force, which would save it Rs 3,400 crore in flying training, Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari said here on Saturday.

This is the first time since Independence that a new operational branch is being created, Chaudhari said in his speech here on the occasion of 90th anniversary celebrations of the IAF.

“On this historic occasion, it is my privilege to announce that the government has approved the creation of a weapon system branch for the officers in the IAF. This is the first time since Independence that a new operational branch is being created,” he said.

The weapon system branch will essentially man the specialised streams of surface-to-surface missiles, surface-to-air-missiles, remotely piloted aircraft, and weapon system operators in twin and multi-crew aircraft, he said.

Creation of this branch would result in savings of over Rs 3,400 crore due to the reduced expenditure on flying training, the IAF chief said.

A ceremonial parade was held at the air force station here Saturday morning on the occasion.

Chaudhari inspected the parade, which was followed by a march-past.

Air-Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Air Command, Air Marshal Sreekumar Prabhakaran was among senior IAF officers present on the occasion.

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Gujarat’s Modhera is India’s first fully-solar village

 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday declared Modhera in Gujarat as India’s first 24×7 solar-powered village, even as he sought to further cement his connect with the poll-bound state, saying people there had showered affection and given him electoral victories without looking at his caste.

“You never saw my caste, you never saw my political life. You gave your blessings for the last two decades,” he said.

Regarding Modhera, which also has a famous Sun Temple, Modi said, whenever people discuss solar energy in the world, this village will feature in it. “Government produces electricity and people purchase it. But we want people to be producers of power. Don’t pay for electricity; sell it and earn from it instead,” he urged.

“People of Modhera are both consumers and producers of electricity. The government is purchasing additional generated power. Such successful attempts must be replicated across the country,” he added.
The solarisation of the Modhera Sun Temple and town happened through partnership between the Central and state governments. It involved integrating the village with a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) at Sujjanpura in Mehsana, about 6 km away from the Sun Temple. 

More than 1,300 rooftop solar systems have been installed on houses for power generation. While day time power comes from the solar panels, at night it is supplied from the BESS. Modhera is also happens to be the first modern village having a solar based modern electric vehicle charging station.

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India’s space economy expected to be worth USD 12.8 billion by 2025: Report

India’s space economy is likely to be worth nearly USD 13 billion by 2025, with the satellite launch services segment set to witness the fastest growth spurred by increasing private participation, according to a report released on Monday.

The growing demand for smaller satellites is set to boost satellite manufacturing in the country and will attract global start-ups in the sector to help incubate space tech companies here, said the report released by the Indian Space Association (ISpA) and Ernst and Young.

India’s space economy was pegged at USD 9.6 billion in 2020 and is expected to touch USD 12.8 billion by 2025, according to the report titled ‘Developing the Space Ecosystem in India: Focusing on Inclusive Growth’.

In dollar terms, the satellite services and applications segment would be the largest with a turnover of USD4.6 billion by 2025, followed by ground segment at USD 4 billion, satellite manufacturing at USD 3.2 billion and launch services at USD 1 billion.

“Indian space launch is expected to get a boost due to the government’s positive step towards the inclusion of private players in the Indian space ecosystem,” the report said.

The launch services segment was pegged at USD 600 million in 2020 and is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 13 per cent to reach USD 1 billion by 2025, the report said.

“The availability of low-cost satellite launch vehicles coupled with mass production will lead to demand from customers around the world. Indian private companies are looking to exploit the space industry by using innovative technologies,” it said.

Setting up space parks across the country is likely to give a fillip to companies operating across the space value chain, especially manufacturing, the report stated.

“It will be key to attracting global start-ups working in the space sector and help to incubate space tech companies in India,” it said.

Several companies are utilising cutting-edge technologies to develop innovative launch solutions in India and have built considerable expertise around the launch of LEO, MEO and GEO satellites and orbit management solutions.

“The launch segment is fast becoming a key focus area for start-ups and small and medium businesses (SMEs) in India to drive the innovation agenda and make use of new revenue opportunities,” the report said.

It noted that currently, India boasts of over 100 space tech start-ups with investments in the segment touching USD 68 million in 2021.

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Bharat Forge sends 16 Kalyani M4 vehicles to Indian Army for UN Peacekeeping deployment

The Kalyani M4 is a state-of-the-art armoured personnel carrier that provides protection to the occupants against high threats, including severe mine blasts and grenades.

The vehicle is capable of carrying an infantry platoon in full combat gear.

“Bharat Forge Ltd today dispatched 16 world-class and Made-in-India Kalyani M4 vehicles to the Indian Army for United Nations Peacekeeping deployment,” the company said.

It said Kalyani M4 successfully completed a series of extreme vehicle trials in some of the toughest environments in India.

The trials were conducted in the freezing terrains of Leh and Ladakh, and the unforgiving deserts of Rann of Kutch.

Speaking on the occasion, Baba N Kalyani, Chairman and Managing Director of Bharat Forge Ltd, said, “We are proud to be delivering the Made-in-India Kalyani M4 for UN Peacekeeping missions.”

“This encourages us to work for the benefit of our armed forces and it reinforces our commitment to harness our Prime Minister’s vision for atmanirbharata and self-reliance in the defence sector,” he said.

Amit Kalyani, Deputy Managing Director, Bharat Forge Ltd, added, “Keeping crew safety and vehicle performance as paramount factors, Kalyani M4 has been ergonomically and aesthetically designed to allow the crew to perform their duties in an optimum manner.”

The Kalyani M4 is equipped with modern military-grade power terrain with all-time situational awareness.

Recently, the Indian Army’s northern command inducted the Kalyani M4 to its fleet of armoured vehicles under an emergency procurement, the company said.

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