10 more Indian wetlands sites get Ramsar tag, number rises to 64

Six of them are in Tamil Nadu and one each in Goa, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha

India has added 10 more Ramsar sites, or wetlands that are of international importance, taking the number of such sites to 64, Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav said on Wednesday.

“Absolutely thrilled to inform that 10 more Indian wetlands have got Ramsar recognition as wetlands of international importance,” Mr. Yadav tweeted.

The 10 new sites — six in Tamil Nadu and one each in Goa, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha — encompass an area of 1,51,842.41 hectares, bringing India’s total wetland area to 1.2 million hectares.

The sites are Koothankulam Bird Sanctuary, Gulf of Mannar Marine Biosphere Reserve, Vembannur Wetland Complex, Vellode Bird Sanctuary, Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary and Udhayamarthandapuram Bird Sanctuary, all in Tamil Nadu, Satkosia Gorge in Odisha, Nanda Lake in Goa, Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary in Karnataka, and Sirpur Wetland in Madhya Pradesh.

Until 2012, India had 26 Ramsar sites, with the last decade witnessing a meteoric rise. On July 26, Mr. Yadav announced that India had added five Ramsar sites.

th

CWG 2022 | Tejaswin Shankar wins bronze in men’s high jump

The 23-year-old Shankar was added in the squad last-minute on the orders of Delhi High Court

Tejaswin Shankar opened Indian athletics team’s medal account with a bronze in the men’s high jump event in the Commonwealth Games on Wednesday.

National record holder Shankar cleared 2.22m to finish third in the event.

Navy’s all-women crew completes maritime reconnaissance, surveillance mission in North Arabian Sea

The women officers received months of ground training and comprehensive mission briefings in the run up to this historical sortie.

An all-women crew of the Indian Navy has completed maritime reconnaissance and surveillance mission in the North Arabian Sea onboard a Dornier 228 aircraft, the Navy said on August 4. The mission was completed on August 3, an official said.

The aircraft was captained by mission commander, Lt. Cdr. Aanchal Sharma, who was accompanied by pilots Lt. Shivangi and Lt. Apurva Gite, and Tactical and Sensor Officers, Lt. Pooja Panda and SLt. Pooja Shekhawat, it said.

“On August 3, 2022, five officers of the Indian Navy’s INAS 314 based at Naval Air Enclave, Porbandar, created history by completing the first all-women independent maritime reconnaissance and surveillance mission in the North Arabian Sea onboard a Dornier 228 aircraft,” it said.

INAS 314 is a frontline Naval Air Squadron based at Porbandar in Gujarat and operates the state-of-the-art Dornier 228 maritime reconnaissance aircraft. The squadron is commanded by Cdr. S. K. Goyal, a Qualified Navigation Instructor.

The women officers received months of ground training and comprehensive mission briefings in the run up to this historical sortie. “This first-of-its-kind military flying mission was, however, unique and is expected to pave the way for women officers in the aviation cadre to assume greater responsibility and aspire for more challenging roles,” the navy said.

The navy said it has undertaken a number of steps in pioneering women empowerment with initiatives that include induction of women pilots, selection of women as Air Operations Officers into the helicopter stream and conducting an all-women sailing circumnavigation expedition across the globe in 2018.

th

Vijay Sethupathi-starrer ‘Maamanithan’ wins Gold medal in Tokyo Film Awards

Maamanithan’ won the gold in the Best Asian Film category, while Takahiro Kawabe’s ‘Love Song at 5 pm’ won the silver and Mart Bira’s ‘Nomadic Doctor’ took the bronze.

 Director Seenu Ramasamy’s critically acclaimed entertainer, ‘Maamanithan’, featuring actors Vijay Sethupathi and Gayathrie in the lead, has won a Gold medal at the Tokyo Film Awards this year.

The story of ‘Maamanithan’ is about a simple man who longs to provide good education to his children by getting them admitted to a private school. To increase his income, he enters into a deal with a real estate developer and in the process gets conned. The problems he faces is what the film is all about.

The film, which garnered huge praise from various quarters soon after its release, has ace director Shankar calling it a ‘realistic classic’. Shankar had even said that Vijay Sethupathi’s brilliant performance in the film deserved a National Award.

nie

Commonwealth Games 2022 | Weightlifter Vikas Thakur strikes silver in men’s 96kg

The seasoned Thakur lifted a total of 346kg (155kg+191kg) to finish second and claim his third CWG medal across three editions

Indian heavyweight lifter Vikas Thakur added yet another Commonwealth Games medal to his kitty, winning a silver in the men’s 96kg in Birmingham on August 2, 2022.

The seasoned Thakur lifted a total of 346kg (155kg+191kg) to finish second and claim his third CWG medal across three editions.

It was Thakur’s second silver, having finished second in the 2014 Glasgow edition as well. In Gold Coast, he had returned with a bronze.

Samoa’s Don Opeloge 381kg (171kg+210kg) bettered his 2018 silver by clinching gold with a record breaking performance.

th

Indian mixed 4x400m relay team wins silver with Asian junior record in World U20 Athletics

The Indian quartet of Barath Sridhar, Priya Mohan, Kapil and Rupal Chaudhary clocked 3 minutes and 17.67 seconds to finish behind USA (3:17.69).

The Indian mixed 4×400 relay team clinched a silver medal by bettering its own Asian record time in the final of the World U-20 Athletics Championships here.

The Indian quartet of Barath Sridhar, Priya Mohan, Kapil and Rupal Chaudhary clocked 3 minutes and 17.67 seconds to finish behind USA (3:17.69) on Tuesday night.

The Indian team bettered its own earlier Asian record of 3:19.62 set here a day earlier during the heats. The new timing of 3:17.67 is the second best (in juniors) in the all time list in the event, behind USA’s.

th

Commonwealth Games 2022 | Weightlifter Lovepreet Singh wins bronze in men’s 109kg

Lovepreet Singh lifted a total of 355 kg, including a new national record of 192 kg in clean and jerk, to finish third on the podium

India’s Lovepreet Singh won a bronze in men’s 109 kg to continue the country’s medal rush in weightlifting at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham on August 3.

The 24-year-old from Punjab lifted a total of 355 kg, including a new national record of 192 kg in clean and jerk, to finish third on the podium. He lifted 163kg in snatch.

Junior Nyabeyeu of Cameroon claimed the gold medal with a total lift of 361 kg, while Jack Opeloge of Samoa bagged the silver by lifting 358 kg in the event.

India have so far won eight weightlifting medals, including three gold, in the showpiece.

th

Prof. receives patent for creating supercapacitors from used tyres

Professor Nand Gopal Sahu of the Rajendra Singh Nano Science and Nanotechnology Centre of Kumaun University’s Chemistry department has obtained a patent for making supercapacitors and energy storage devices from tyre waste.

Talking to Sahu, he said that Tyre waste can be used to synthesize graphene, which is a vital industrial material.

This graphene is used to make supercapacitors that can be used for the manufacture of a variety of devices, including electric vehicles.

Sahu acknowledges Professor AB Melkani, research scholars Gaurav Tatari, Dr Chetna Tiwari, Dr Sandeep Pandey, Dr Manoj Kadakoti, and Dr Himani Tiwari for their contributions to the study.

Nainital, Uttarakhand

thetimesbureau.com

Rohit Sharma surpasses Virat Kohli to reign supreme in T20Is, scripts two sensational world records during IND vs WI

Rohit Sharma scored a 35-ball fifty to take India past the 100-run mark in the Twenty20 series opener in Trinidad.

Rohit Sharma on Friday went past Martin Guptill to regain first place in the list of top run-getters in T20 Internationals. The India skipper achieved the milestone en route his 35-ball fifty in the T20 series opener against West Indies in Trinidad. Earlier this week, Guptill had surpassed Rohit to become the leading run-scorer in the shortest format. He was 20 runs ahead of Rohit before the Indian recouped lost ground. India vs West Indies 1st T20 Live Score

Guptill is closely followed by former India captain Virat Kohli (3,308), Ireland’s ODI skipper Paul Stirling (2,894), and Australian captain Aaron Finch, who is fifth on the list with 2,855 runs.

Apart from Guptill, Rohit also eclipsed Kohli in the list of most 50-plus scores in men’s T20Is. Kohli held the first position before notched up a fifty – his 31st 50-plus score in the 20-over format.

Most fifty-plus scores in Men’s T20I:

31 – Rohit Sharma*

30 – Virat Kohli

27 – Babar Azam

23 – David Warner

22 – Martin Guptill

ht

Chennai Chess Olympiad updates | Declaring open the 44th Chess Olympiad, PM Modi says TN is chess powerhouse of India

A gala opening ceremony of the 44th FIDE Chess Olympiad took place at the Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai on July 28, 2022. The international event was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in the presence of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin.

The world’s biggest team chess championship, featuring players from 187 countries, takes place at Hotel Four Points by Sheraton, Mamallapuram, starting July 29 and is to conclude on August 10. The Olympiad is being held in India for the first time ever, after being moved out of Moscow in Russia following the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi who declared open the 44th FIDE Chess Olympiad said that in a short period of time, the organisers had made outstanding arrangements.

The grand inaugural was also attended by the Union Minister of Sports and Youth Affairs Anurag Thakur, Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L. Murugan and Tamil Nadu Governor R.N. Ravi.

th