Bronze medalist, Preethi Pal of Team India, celebrates following the Women’s 100m T35 Final on day two of the Paris 2024 Summer Paralympic Games at Stade de France on August 30, 2024, in Paris, France. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
Avani Lekhara bags India’s first gold at Paris Paralympics in 10m air rifle
Avani Lekhara’s victory in the women’s 10m air rifle (SH1) event on Friday (August 30, 2024) made her the first Indian to win two Paralympic gold medals. Avani’s gold medal is India’s first at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris where she shot a superb 249.7, beating her own record of 249.6 at the Tokyo Paralympics. Her compatriot Mona Agarwal claimed a bronze by shooting 228.7.
Preethi Pal wins bronze in Paralympics women’s T35 100m event
India’s Preethi Pal won a bronze medal in the women’s T35 100m event with a personal best time of 14.21 seconds at the Paralympics here on Friday (August 30, 2024). The T35 classification is meant for athletes who have coordination impairments such as hypertonia, ataxia and athetosis, as well as cerebral palsy. The 23-year-old Preethi’s bronze is India’s first medal from para-athletics in the Paris Paralympics.
Manish Narwal settles for silver in air pistol event
Manish Narwal made it to the finals of the men’s 10m air pistol (SH1) event at the Paris Paralympics here on Friday (August 30, 2024), and his hard work bagged him the silver for India. He was leading for quite some time before he slipped because of a series of poor scores and shot 234.9, but surrendered the initiative to veteran South Korean marksman Jo Jeongdu who took the gold with a total of 237.4. The 22-year-old Tokyo Games gold medallist shooter had won gold in 50m pistol event at Tokyo,
PM Narendra Modi apologises for collapse of Shivaji Maharaj statue
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday (August 30, 2024) apologised to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and those hurt by the collapse of the 17th-century warrior king’s statue at Rajkot Fort in Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra. “For me, my colleagues, and everyone, Shivaji Maharaj is not just a king but a revered figure… Today, I bow my head at his feet and apologise to my deity,” he said. The Prime Minister was addressing a gathering in Palghar, after laying the foundation stone of the ₹ 76,000 crore Vadhvan Port and other projects. Meanwhile, Chetan Patil, the structural consultant for the Shivaji Maharaj statue, was arrested in Kolhapur
Students stage protests after hidden cameras spotted in women’s toilets at A.P.’s Gudlavalleru College hostel
Students of Seshadri Rao Gudlavalleru Engineering College (GEC) protested in front of the college alleging that some miscreants installed spy cameras in the toilets in the girl’s hostel. In response, thousands of students came out and staged a dharna on Thursday (August 29, 2024) night. Students boycotted classes and continued protests till Friday (August 30, 2024) noon demanding action against the accused. The management tried in vain to control the protestors. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has ordered an enquiry over allegations and directed State Mines Minister K Ravindra, Krishna District collector and superintendent of police to visit the college.
Protests roil NIT Tiruchi after student accuses technician of sexually harassing her
Protests erupted at the National Institute of Technology, Tiruchi, after a student alleged that a technician sexually harassed her inside the women’s hostel on the campus, located at Thuvakudi on the outskirts of Tiruchi, on Thursday (August 29, 2024). The survivor’s father issued a complaint after which the Tiruverumbur All Women Police arrested the technician G. Kathiresan, 38, on Thursday (August 29, 2024). They registered a case against him under Sections 332(3) and 75(1) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita, read with Section 4 of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act. The students staged a sit-in protest overnight expressing outrage over the incident and condemned the institution’s alleged response of blaming the survivor.
Former Jharkhand CM Champai Soren jumps ship to the BJP
Former Jharkhand Chief Minister Champai Soren joined the BJP on Friday (August 30, 2024), two days after he quit the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM). 67-year-old Mr. Soren and a large number of his supporters made the switch in the presence of Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma at a ceremony in Ranchi. He asserted that his reason for leaving the JMM was the state government’s present style of functioning and its policies.
NSA Doval meets key Presidential aspirants in Colombo ahead of Sri Lanka’s September 21 polls
Three weeks ahead of Sri Lanka’s crucial Presidential election National Security Adviser Ajit K. Doval, who arrived in Colombo on Thursday (August 29, 2024), met prominent Presidential aspirants, apart from political leaders representing the island nation’s Tamil and Muslim minorities. He met with President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who is seeking a mandate promising “economic stability”, Mr. Doval discussed ongoing economic collaboration between Sri Lanka and India, the Presidential Media Division said.
Israel air strike kills three Palestinians in West Bank raid
Israel said it killed three Hamas militants in an air strike in the occupied West Bank on Friday (August 30, 2024) taking the death toll, from a large-scale military operation now in its third day to at least 19. A top U.N. aid official meanwhile questioned “what has become of our basic humanity”, as the war raged on in Gaza and humanitarian operations struggle to respond.
GDP growth slows to 15-month low of 6.7% in April-June
India’s economic growth slowed to a 15-month low of 6.7% in April-June 2024-25, mainly due to poor performance of the agriculture and services sectors, government data showed on Friday (August 30, 2024) .The gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by 8.2% in the April-June quarter of 2022-23. India, however, remained the fastest-growing major economy, as China posted a 4.7% growth in April-June 2024.
Countries still far apart on COP29 finance goal
The upcoming COP29 U.N. climate negotiations summit to be held at Baku, Azerbaijan in November is less than three months away, however, countries remain far from agreeing on the summit’s biggest task – a new funding target to help developing countries cope with climate change. A negotiations document published by the U.N. climate body on Thursday (August 29, 2024) suggests seven options, reflecting countries’ competing positions, for a possible COP29 deal. The new target will replace wealthy nations’ current commitment to provide $100 billion each year in climate finance to developing countries. Vulnerable and developing countries want a far larger funding goal than $100 billion.
