Virat Kohli Targets

Virat Kohli Targets

Unknown   21:49

Virat Kohli-led Indian Test team, under the guidance of Anil Kumble, has the chance to seal their supremacy on world cricket

Mumbai: India need to dominate Test matches and players cannot be content with just looking to improve, captain Virat Kohli said after the tourists thrashed West Indies by an innings and 92 runs in the first Test in Antigua on Saturday.

The margin of the victory, secured within four days, was India's largest outside Asia and gave the side a 1-0 lead in the four-match series.

"We are not at a stage now where we need to come and improve," Kohli, who scored his first double hundred during the test, told reporters.

"We should be ready enough in international cricket to start dominating test matches and win those crucial situations and sessions. That's how we become a better team.

"If you think we are going to keep learning every series, learning every game, we will never get that hunger and that mindset to win games from difficult situations.

"We need to challenge ourselves a little bit, which this team has been willing to do and which is a wonderful sign. The way we finished the test, it all panned out pretty nicely."

While Kohli has led India to a test series win in Sri Lanka and beat South Africa 3-0 at home, their record outside South Asia in the longest format has been poor.

They have lost series in South Africa, New Zealand, England and Australia on tours since late 2013, something new coach Anil Kumble has said he wants to rectify.

The 27-year-old Kohli replaced Mahendra Singh Dhoni as India's test captain after the wicketkeeper-batsman retired from that form of cricket during the tour of Australia in late 2014.

Kohli wants his side, who are currently second behind Australia on the International CricketCouncil test rankings, to target consistency as well as wins.

"If we have a chance to win 4-0, then why not," Kohli said. "We don't need to get complacent. If we end up getting a 2-0 lead, it's not that we would be playing for a draw in the next two tests.
"As we know, if we learn to win test matches, then we'll learn how to win tests everywhere.
"We will learn how to play in different situations and we will know exactly what to do when a certain situation is going a certain way."

Indian Railways' 'Auto Express'

Indian Railways' 'Auto Express'

Unknown   21:47

Indian Railways (IR) is aiming at 25% share in automobile freight traffic
Auto Express will ferry cargo from Gurgaon to Nidvanda
In April, IR had announced India's first rail auto hub in Walajabad
In an effort to target 25 per cent share in automobile freight traffic, the Indian Railways has launched the first time-tabled auto freight train, Auto Express, that will ferry cargo from Gurugram, Haryana to Nidvanda, Karnataka. Suresh Prabhu, Railway Minister, said, "Like our ever-growing population, auto population is also increasing on a faster rate. In fact auto sector is a fastest growing economy. If railways can tap it then it will be major source of revenue."

Flagged off on Tuesday, Auto Express promises not only timely, but also speedy, delivery of automobiles. Prabhu hopes this endeavour will help increase the automobile industry's confidence on Indian Railways' reliability. Currently, almost 2000 cars are transported between Gurgaon and Nidavanda every month. With the launch of the time-tabled auto-car freight train, the volume is expected to go up along with the number of trips, thus resulting in an increase to nearly 6000 cars a month.

Mohd Jamshed, Railway Board Member (Traffic), explained that the enterprise had first launched the time-tabled Cargo Express, and now the Auto Express, to assure faster movement of traffic. He added, "These special trains have wagons to run 100 km per hour. So the travel duration has decreased from 70 hours to 57 hours."

However, this isn't the Indian Railways first enterprise to utilise the potential offered by the automobile industry. In April, authorities had announced that India's first rail auto hub will be established in Walajabad, Kanchipuram. The facility, located in proximity to manufacturers such as Hyundai, Nissan, and Ford, is expected to, or at least hopes to, service over 1 million units of cars every year.

Monster Jam In Gurgaon

Monster Jam In Gurgaon

Unknown   21:43

After Rain, Monster Jam In Gurgaon Leaves Commuters On Road For Hours

GURGAON:  Commuters were stuck for hours on the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway on Thursday evening after heavy rain lashed the national capital.

There was a massive jam as vehicles - from cars, to two-wheelers to buses and other modes of public transport - were stuck for over four hours, especially on the Delhi-Jaipur stretch.


"@mlkhattar sir for more than 4 hrs we r in jam to pass just 2 km at sohna rd near Subhas chk Gurgaon. This is not good for happening haryana," tweeted a commuter, Satya Prakash Gupta.
@narendramodi Traffic has come to standstill in Gurgaon for the last 5 hrs; local admin is nowhere!

"Total failure of administration in GURGAON, hero Honda chowk standstill from last 3 hrs," tweeted another commuter, Pradip Agarwal.

Gurgaon Police Commissioner Navdeep Singh Virk said that the entire traffic and district police force was on roads to help commuters.



"Waterlogging on several roads in Gurgaon has led to a gridlock in parts of the city. Entire traffic police is on road trying to do the best," tweeted Gurgaon police.

Over four-feet-deep water was witnessed inundating some places near the expressway.

The excessive flooding was caused by overflow in Badshahpur drain due to heavy downpour that began around 4.30 p.m.


Kanwarias (Lord Shiva's devotees bringing Gangajal from Uttarakhand), vehicles of NSG commandos, Central and state officials were also stuck in the rainwater under which the expressway and other arterial roads disappeared.

Traffic was disrupted at the Hero Honda, Jharsa, Iffco and Shankar chowks (intersections).

Dengue alert

Dengue alert

Unknown   10:33

Education department asks schools to keep premises clean

The education department has instructed the authorities of private and government schools in Uttarakhand to clean their school premises immediately to check breeding of mosquito that spreads dengue.

It may be mentioned here that panic has spread among residents after three dengue deaths were reported in the city this week.

Dengue alert: Education department asks schools to keep premises clean
File photo

The education department trying hard to prevent the school premises from becoming breeding grounds of mosquitoes.

"Stagnant water should be flushed out of the school premises immediately to check the breeding of Aedes aegypti mosquito at a time when dengue is posing a serious threat to the city," said Rakesh Kunwar, director of education.

"We have also asked the teachers to teach the students about the appropriate preventive measures so that students will not only learn but will also convey the same to their parents,” added Rakesh.

IndiGo passenger

IndiGo passenger

Unknown   10:31

How IndiGo passenger, who was off loaded in Mumbai, misbehaved in flight

It was a massive terror scare for the passengers on the Dubai - Kozhikode Indigo flight today when a man suddenly stood up and started shouting and abusing all those around mid-air. Mentions of ISIS in between his abuses terrified the passengers and the flight made an emergency landing in Mumbai. The man, a native of Kerala's Kannur, was detained where he was found to be mentally unstable.
A co-passenger Ismail, native of Kozhikode who was on the flight with the man recalls the incident " the flight took off at 4.25am (UAE time). We were all sleeping. And after about two hours, somebody in the front suddenly got up, started shouting and abusing all of us. He said he won't leave anyone and the ISIS is killing innocents".

Also Read: IndiGo flight diverted to Mumbai, 2 detained for unruly behavior

In an exclusive video accessed by India Today, a man can be seen walking towards the airhostess in an aggressive manner and then when a co passenger tries to stop him, the man hurls blows at him.

The passengers who tried to calm him down were also hit and he forced himself to the cockpit. The flight landed at the Kozhikode airport at around 12pm, about two hours late.

"He was saying things that were completely unrelated to each other. He blamed ISIS for using innocent lives for their agenda, for not understanding the religion correctly. All this in Malayalam. His brother then told us that he was mentally unstable and that he was being taken to Kerala for treatment," said Shibu Ramachandran, another passenger.

The man and his brother were interrogated at the Mumbai airport by officers of IB, ATS and Mumbai police. He has been sent for treatment and no case has been lodged.

Indigo released a statement in connection with this: "IndiGo confirms the diversion of its flight 6E 89 (Dubai-Kochi) to Mumbai this morning on grounds of unruly behaviour on board. A little before landing, a passenger seated on 5D (who was accompanied by his brother) suddenly started misbehaving with the crew. He jumped on the forward cart (which is used for food and onboard merchandise) and sat on it. The crew immediately informed the Captain-in-command and the lead crew. The lead, politely requested the passenger to step down from the cart and he obliged. This passenger after stepping down from the cart, suddenly got violent and started physically abusing the other co-passenger.

Taking the precautionary measure, the Captain immediately informed the Air Traffic control (ATC) and the ground security staff about the situation onboard. The flight made the precautionary landing at the Mumbai airport where this passenger was handed over to the CISF for further investigations. The matter is now with the local authorities.

At IndiGo, safety and security of passengers and crew are of top priority and at no time safety can be compromised.''

The Mumbai airport police, however, is not sure if pro-ISIS slogans were raised on the flight. IndiGo has also not hinted at any terror link to the incident.

Amarnath Yatra suspended

Amarnath Yatra suspended

Unknown   10:25

Amarnath Yatra suspended after landslides close Jammu-Srinagar highway

The strategic Jammu-Srinagar national highway was closed on Thursday due to landslides, resulting in the suspension of Amarnath Yatra.

The landslides were triggered by incessant rains in Ramban district, a senior official of the traffic department said,  adding that the yatra has been suspended till the highway is restored for traffic.
Amarnath Yatra suspended after landslides close Jammu-Srinagar highway
File Photo

The over 300-km long Jammu-Srinagar highway is the lifeline of supplies for the landlocked Kashmir Valley and the only surface link for the Amarnath Yatra pilgrims to reach the valley.
Incessant rains in Jammu has swollen most rivers in the region.

Three persons including two children in Janipur area of Jammu city and a woman in Rajouri district were killed by flash floods on Wednesday.

Narsingh Yadav fails

Narsingh Yadav fails

Unknown   10:23

Narsingh Yadav fails to prove sabotage, faces ban
Narsingh Yadav is likely to get a ban of two to four years after his 'A' and 'B' samples tested positive for a banned steroid by NADA.

Narsingh Yadav's Rio Olympic dreams are over. The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) has said that the 26-year-old wrestler failed to prove charges of sabotage in the doping row that cost him a ticket to Brazil. (Narsingh Yadav can replace Praveen Rana after NADA green signal, says IOA)
Narsingh will get a ban of two to four years after his 'A' and 'B' samples tested positive for a banned steroid by NADA.The distraught wrestler will get to know his fate on Saturday or Monday.
Narsingh's lawyers have pleaded that the wrestler was a victim of circumstances and urged the panel not to put a ban on his Rio Olympic prospects.

"Argument by NADA was that Narsingh is not eligible for remission which he has been asking," NADA lawyer Gaurang Kanth told the media at the end of Thursday's hearing.

"How the substance entered Narsingh's body could not be well established by them. We have stated that the plea taken by him that he is under no fault and he had been negligent (at the SAI training centre in Sonipat) is not correct and that will not hold any ground."

"The quantum of punishment can be four years, or it can be reduced to two years. Depends on when the judgement will be coming out," he added.

NO PROOF OF SABOTAGE 

However, NADA's counsels have dismissed Narsingh's plea, saying the athlete has failed to establish sabotage or negligence.

The anti-doping agency also said that top athletes like Narsingh must be more careful.

NARSINGH STILL HOPEFUL

A desolate Narsingh, meanwhile, is still hopeful of representing the country at the Rio Olympics, which are scheduled to run from August 5 to 21.

"I am continuing my practice. I am hopeful of going to Rio. Hopefully everything will be clear by Saturday of Monday," he told reporters.

Narsingh's chances of participating in the upcoming Rio Games came under a cloud last Sunday when he returned a positive result for a dope test conducted by the NADA on June 25.

Following this, the Mumbai-based grappler, who was selected to represent the country in the men's 74kg freestyle category ahead of two-time Olympic medallist Sushil Kumar, was handed a provisional suspension. (Rio Olympics: A look at India's brightest medal prospects)
He ran into further trouble on Wednesday after it was announced that a second test conducted on July 5 has also returned a positive result.

PRAVEEN RANA NAMED REPLACEMENT

Meanwhile, under pressure from the United World Wrestling, a hesitant Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) has named Parveen Rana for the replacement slot in order to preserve India's Olympic quota in the 74kg freestyle category.

WFI President Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh said that Rana's name was sent on July 25 - which was the last date for naming replacements - to secure the Olympic quota.

"Although Praveen Rana has been named as replacement for Yadav if he gets a clean cheat, I am ready to fight another battle for him to secure his Olympic berth," Singh told IANS.

"Rana's name was sent to secure country's Olympic quota and the proposal was accepted on July 26. If we wouldn't have recommended Rana's name, we would have missed our quota," he added.