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Toshali stuns top seed Zhu Jiner at World Junior Chess Championship.

Source – sportstar.thehindu.com

In chess, the four-digit rating of a player is reflective of his/her playing strength. On Friday, top seeds in both sections of the World Junior Chess Championship ran into far lesser-rated Indian rivals and fell well short of playing to their strengths.

The world’s top-ranked junior girl, China’s Zhu Jiner (2507) crashed to demoralising defeat at the hands of 73rd seed V. Toshali (1868). The fate of the top seed in the open section, Iran’s Amin Tabatabaei (2642) was a shade better when he managed to draw with a gritty Rithvik Raja (2369).

Toshali, an 18-year-old second year student from Visakhapatnam, produced a flawless performance to pull off the biggest win for an Indian in the competition. This 28-move shut out a player rated 639 points higher was the surprise of the day.

If Zhu Jiner was looking for a hat-trick of wins following her shock second-round defeat, Toshali was looking to recover from the loss in the previous round.

“Perhaps, Zhu underestimated me at some point and did not play accurately,” said Toshali following the analysis of her game and continued, “I did take a bit more time but my calculations proved perfect. I don’t remember beating such a strong player.”

Rithvik Raja made light of a rating difference of 273 points to hold a struggling Tabatabaei in 58 moves following an endgame involving knight and pawns.

Meanwhile on the leading boards, second seed M. Karthikeyan defeated Harshit Raja to share the second spot at four points. Fellow Grandmaster P. Iniyan matched Karthikeyan’s tally by beating lower-rated Mongolian Ganzorig Amartuvshin. However, R. Praggnanandhaa’s ploy of trading his rook for a bishop backfired against new leader Ukraine’s Evgeny Shtembuliak (4.5) and resulted in his first loss.

Praggnanandhaa’s sister R. Vaishali, the strongest Indian in the girls’ section, accounted for Vantika Agarwal. The marathon 98-move battle involving two Nagpur girls’ saw Divya Deshmukh tame Mrudul Dehankar. Earlier, the second board clash involving Arpita Mukherjee and Rakshitta Ravi ended in a draw.

Important fifth-round results (Indians unless stated):

Open: Evgeny Shtembuliak (Ukr, 4.5) bt R. Praggnanandhaa (3.5); Aram Hakobyan (Arm, 4) bt Ruiz Miguel Santos (Esp, 3.5); Raja Harshit (3) lost to M. Karthikeyan (4); Zhangos Agmanov (Kaz, 3) drew with Shant Sargsyan (Arm, 3); Gunzorig Amartuvshin (Mgl, 3) lost to P. Iniyan (4); Leon Mendonca (3.5) drew with Semen Khanin (Rus, 3.5). Ravi Haria (Eng, 3.5) drew with Aaryan Varshney (3.5); Rithvik Raja (3.5) drew with Amin Tabatabaei (Iri, 3).

Girls: Bibisara Assaubayeva (Kaz, 4) drew with Boldbaatar Altantuya (Mgl, 4.5); Arpita Mukherjee (4) drew with Rakshitta Ravi (4); Mobina Alinasab (Iri, 4.5) bt N. Priyanka (3.5); R. Vaishali (4) bt Vantika Agarwal (3); Divya Deshmukh (3) v Mrudul Dehankar (3); V. Toshali (3.5) bt Zhu Jiner (Chn, 2.5).

Praggnanandhaa’s potential comes to the fore in World junior chess championship.

Source – thehindu.com

R. Praggnanandhaa never ceases to surprise. The ease with which the 14-year-old sacrifices his rooks for bishops, like he did during his wins in the second and fourth rounds of the World junior chess championship, underline his deep reading of the given positions.

After being shockingly held by England’s Ravi Haria in the morning round, Praggnanandhaa unleashed a rare twin rook-sacrifice before putting the finishing touches with his queen and bishop-pair to end Mongolian Dambasuren Batsuren’s resistance in 44 moves.

With seven of the top eight boards ending in draws, Praggnanandhaa joined Ukraine’s Evgeny Shtembuliak and Spain’s Ruiz Miguel Santos in the lead at 3.5 points from four rounds.

Walkover

In fact, the double-round day saw the stronger players recover in varying degrees from the setbacks of the last two days. There was also an unusual ‘walkover’ from the 11th seeded Iranian Aaryan Gholami when pitted against Israel’s Alexander Zlatin in the fourth round. Since there have been many occasions in chess a contest between players of these two countries have remained non-starters, Gholami took nothing to chance and even produced a medical certificate to prove his ‘indisposition’.

Among the girls, Arpita Mukherjee blew away a golden chance to win and take the lead against teammate N. Priyanka but settled for a draw.

Altantuya ahead

Earlier, Mongolian Boldbaatar Altantuya took the lead with four straight wins. The victorious Rakshitta Ravi (3.5) moved to the joint second place while Praggnanandhaa’s sister R. Vaishali (3), seeded five, was held by Russia’s Elizaveta Solozhenkina. Vantika Agarwal and Divya Deshpande drew; so did Mrudul Dehankar to reach three points.

Important results:

Open: Fourth round: Ruiz Miguel Santos (Esp, 3.5) drew with Evgeny Shtembuliak (Ukr, 3.5); Semen Khanin (Rus, 3) drew with M. Karthikeyan (3); Shant Sargsyan (Arm, 3) drew with Ravi Haria (Eng, 2); R. Praggnanandhaa (3.5) bt Dambasuren Batsuren (Mgl, 2.5); P. Iniyan (3) drew with Zhandos Agmanov (Kaz, 3); Dmitrij Kollars (Ger, 2.5) drew with Sammed Shete (2.5); Aronyak Ghosh (2.5) drew with Harsha Bharathakoti (2.5).

Third round: Haria (2.5) drew with Praggnanandhaa (2.5); M. Karthikeyan (2.5) bt Aaryan Varshney (2); R.K. Srihari (2) drew with Kollars (2): Vid Dobrovoljc (Slo, 1.5) lost to P. Iniyan (2.5). Aditya Mittal (2) bt Arno Sterck (Bel, 1); Aravindh Chithambaram (1.5) bt Amir Ghaazi Mohd Saprin (Mas, 1).

Girls: Fourth round: Boldbaatar Altanutuya (Mgl, 4) bt Michelle Katkov (Isr, 3); N. Priyanka (3.5) drew with Arpita Mukherjee (3.5); Elizaveta Solozhenkina (Rus, 3) drew with R. Vaishali (3); Vantika Agarwal (3) drew with Divya Deshmukh (3); Mrudul Dehankar (3) drew with Gabriela Antova (Bul, 3); Rakshitta Ravi (3.5) bt V. Toshali (2.5).

Third round: Dinara Dordzhieva (Rus, 2) lost to Priyanka (3); Mrudul (2.5) drew with Rakshitta (2.5); Arpita (3) bt Marian Avetsyan (Arm, 2); Vaishali bt Saloni Sapale (1.5); Divya (2.5) bt G. Harshita (1.5).

President Kovind Embarks On 7-Day Visit To Philippines, Japan.

Source – businessworld.in

President Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday departed for an official seven-day visit to the Philippines and Japan with an aim to expand the bilateral cooperation between the two countries.

The highlights of the visit would be the President attending the enthronement ceremony of new Japanese Emperor Naruhito and unveiling the bust of Mahatama Gandhi at the Center of peace education at a college in Philippines’ capital Manila. Kovind will arrive in Manila on the first leg of the tour. The five-day-long visit has been organised at the invitation of Philippines President Rodrigo Roa Duterte and will carry forward the high-level engagements between the two countries.

The relations of New Delhi with Manila have been friendly. The economic relationship between the two countries has been growing and trade stands at USD 2.3 billion dollars.

Kovind will receive a ceremonial guard of honour at Malacanang Palace. The President will lay a wreath at a memorial of Jose Rizal, who is the national hero of the Philippines.

The one-to-one talks between Kovind and Duterte will be followed by delegation-level talks.

The President will address the plenary meetings of Indo-Philippine business conclave and fourth ASEAN India business summit.

Kovind will also unveil the bust of Mahatama Gandhi at the Centre of peace education at Marian College in Manila. He will interact with the Indian community on the penultimate day of his visit to the Philippines.

The President will head to Tokyo on October 21. He will attend various ceremonies related to the Emperor Naruhito’s enthronement and also take part in a banquet hosted by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The ceremony will be attended by leaders from all parts of the world.

Along with participating in a community event, the President will visit a Buddhist temple and plant a sapling from the sacred Bodhi Tree in Gaya to highlight India and Japan’s historical and cultural linkages based on Buddhism.

Kovind will take one of the superfast trains to visit the Kakegawa city on the forenoon of October 23. He will participate in the foundation laying ceremony of ‘shoni seto’ which is to be developed as a temple and a place for meditation and yoga to highlight Indian culture. 

PM Modi, Mongolian President unveil Lord Buddha statue in Ulaanbaatar

Source: moneycontrol.com

Amid the chanting of Buddhist prayers, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Mongolian President Khaltmaagiin Battulga on September 20 jointly unveiled a statue of Lord Buddha at the Gandan Monastery in Mongolia via video.

The Mongolian president is on a five-day visit to India.

The golden statue with Lord Buddha holding a bowl was unveiled at a brief ceremony held at the prime minister’s Lok Kalyan Marg residence.

The Gandan Monastery is located in Mongolia’s capital Ulaanbaatar.

Just before the unveiling, young monks at the monastery chanted Buddhist chants. Soon after, a Buddhist monk present at the prime minister’s residence offered prayers as Modi and President Battulga stood with folded hands.

The Prime Minister’s Office on September 19 described the unveiling ceremony as a “symbol of India-Mongolia spiritual partnership and shared Buddhist heritage”.

In May 2015,PM Modi had visited the monastery where he presented a Bodhi tree sapling describing it as a token of friendship from the Indian people.Gandan is the largest and most significant monastery in Mongolia. Built in the mid 19th century, it is the only monastery where Buddhist services continued to function even during the Communist period.

Flood-like situation in Gujarat claims 5 lives; Assam, Bihar return to normalcy

Source: indiatoday.in

ive persons were killed and over 5,000 were evacuated in Gujarat which was battered by nearly 500 mm of rain till Thursday morning, even as Assam and Bihar heaved a sigh of relief as the flood situation in the states improved considerably for the second consecutive day.

Water from the overflowing Vishwamitri river entered several localities in Gujarat’s Vadodara.

Four persons were killed in Bajwa area after a wall collapsed due to heavy rain. The body of an unknown man was recovered from Khodiyarnagar area Thursday, Vadodara district collector Shalini Agarwal told PTI.

According to figures provided by the state government, Vadodara received a staggering 499 mm of rainfall in 24 hours ending 8 am on Thursday.

Of this, 286 mm of rain fell in just four hours, between 4 pm to 8 pm on Wednesday, the release said.

Close to 9 million people are said to be affected by floods in Bihar till Thursday though the number of casualties remained unchanged, at 130, for the second consecutive day, according to the state disaster management department.

Torrential rainfall in Nepal in the second week of July, besides heavy showers in districts of Bihar situated on the border, had caused half a dozen rivers, including Bagmati, Kamla, Khiroi and Burhi Gandak to swell, which continue to be above danger level at many places.

Assam’s flood situation also improved considerably with the water level of all the major rivers and its tributaries receding and life was slowly returning to normal in the flood affected districts.

A population of 3,64,553 in 459 villages of 12 districts are currently affected by the floods, according to the flood bulletin of Assam State Disaster Management Agency (ASDMA).

The marooned districts are Dhemaji, Darrang, Barpeta, Biswanath, Sonitpur, Chirang, Kamrup, Morigaon, Nagaon, Golaghat, Jorhat and Charaideo.

There was no report of any fresh casualty and the death toll in the current wave of floods in the north eastern state stays at 86.

It was a hot and humid day in the national capital with the mercury settling at 36.9 degrees Celsius, three notches above the normal.

The minimum temperature settled at 27.8 degrees Celsius, a notch above normal, a Meteorological (MeT) Department official said.

Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department (IMD), said the monsoon is expected to be normal in August and September, in its forecast for the second half of the four-month rainfall season.

Mritunjay Mohapatra, Director General of IMD, said the next two weeks are expected to bring good rainfall due to formation of a low pressure area in the north Bay of Bengal.

Light to heavy rains lashed several places in Himachal Pradesh, while a yellow weather warning for heavy rains has been issued in the state for this weekend.

Una received the highest 76 mm rainfall in the state, followed by Amb (30 mm), Sundernagar (24 mm), Mandi (20 mm), Bhuntar (15 mm), Manali (12 mm), Shimla (7 mm), Dalhousie and Kufri (1 mm each).

The highest temperature in the state was recorded at 29.6 degrees Celsius in Nahan, while the lowest temperature was 14 degrees Celsius in Keylong, the official said.

The Shimla MeT centre has forecast rains in the state till August 7, and issued a yellow warning for August 3 and 4.

Downpour in parts of Kashmir brought down the temperature in the Valley, even as rain caused waterlogging in many regions.

Light rainfall started in the city around 7:30 am. The downpour got heavier as the day progressed, leading to waterlogging of roads in many areas of the city, including the commercial hub of Lal Chowk, officials added.

Jharkhand to Install 11,000 LED Solar Streetlights Across the State

Source: mercomindia.com

The Jharkhand Renewable Energy Development Agency (JREDA) has issued a tender for setting up LED solar streetlights across the state on a turnkey basis.

The bid submission deadline is August 19, 2019. The opening date for technical bids is August 21, 2019.

The scope of work for the tender includes the supply, installation, testing, and commissioning including five years of comprehensive maintenance contract for LED solar street lighting systems with lithium ferro phosphate batteries. The project will be executed at various locations across the state. A total of 11,000 streetlights will be deployed under this project.

The contract will be awarded over a 12-month duration. The project has to be completed over a six-month period. The estimated cost of the project is ₹175.56 million (~$2.55 million).

The earnest money deposit (EMD) for this tender is ₹159,600 (~$2,319.80) for a lot size of 500 LED streetlights. Those bidders who quote for higher numbers of streetlights would need to submit EMD in relevant proportions. The last date for submitting earnest money deposit is August 20, 2019.

The applicant bidding for the project should fulfill certain technical conditions. The bidder should be a Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) approved channel partner, manufacturer or system integrator. The bidder should have a registered manufacturing company or corporation of India (including medium sized enterprises (MSEs) of Jharkhand) manufacturing one of the major components of solar streetlight systems. The authorized dealers and subcontractors are not eligible to take part in this tender.

Bidders should have an annual turnover of at least 25% of their bid capacity derived from the last three financial years ending on March 31, 2018 or 2019. On the other hand, for micro small and medium enterprises, the average annual turnover of 10% of the bid capacity is required.

Solar streetlights are an intelligent way of revamping public spaces in the country. In the recent years, various state governments along with the center have introduced tenders and programs to encourage such initiatives.

In December 2018, the MNRE had received the approval to launch phase II of Atal Jyoti Yojna (AJAY) during the financial year 2018-19 and 2019-20. The ministry had also received ₹500 million (~$7.13 million) to meet the pending liabilities of phase I of the program. Under the phase II of AJAY, 304,500 solar streetlights are expected to be installed in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Assam, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, North Eastern states including Sikkim, Andaman & Nicobar, Lakshadweep, and parliamentary constituencies covering 48 aspirational districts.

Recently, the Rajasthan Electronics and Instruments Limited also issued a tender for the supply, installation, and commissioning of 20,000 off-grid solar LED streetlights across the country.

Jharkhand HC bench recuses from hearing CBI plea in case involving Lalu Prasad

Source: .moneycontrol.com

A Jharkhand High Court bench recused itself from hearing a petition filed by the CBI seeking enhancement of the jail term of RJD chief Lalu Prasad and five others in a fodder scam case.

When the petition came up for hearing, Justice K P Dev said that since he had been a counsel for the CBI earlier, he wished to stay away from hearing the matter.

The bench of Justice Apresh Kumar Singh and Justice K P Dev then directed that the petition be sent to another bench.

A special CBI court had sentenced Prasad and five others to three-and-a-half years prison term while sentencing another convict to seven years of incarceration in the same case.

The CBI moved the high court seeking enhancement of the jail term of Prasad and five others, contending that the case pertained to conspiracy and the sentence should be the same – seven years – for all.Prasad has been serving jail term in a number of fodder scam cases in Ranchi.

Retired Ranchi University teachers demand dues

Source: telegraphindia.com

Around 150 teachers under the aegis of Retired Ranchi University Association staged a demonstration on the varsity campus on Saturday to demand their dues.

The demonstration began around 11 in the morning and continued till 2pm till the protesters met Vice Chancellor Ramesh Kumar Pandey and discussed the issue with him.

A university official confirmed the stir by the retired teachers and said the situation reflected the sorry state of higher education in the state.

“It was painful to see the retired university teachers agitating in the same campus where they used to command respect. Though only 150 ex-teachers took part in the agitation, the actual number of sufferers is not less than 500,” the university official said requesting anonymity.

Ram Eqbal Tiwary, retired head of the department of mathematics of Ranchi University and president of the association, said they were left with no option other than taking recourse to agitation.

“Teachers, who have retired during 2006-10, have not received their arrears so far. Moreover, the fixing of pension in accordance with the recommendation of Seventh Pay Commission has also not been done so far. Several retired teachers have not got their leave encashment and gratuity amounts as well,” Tiwary said.

Vice Chancellor R.K. Pandey said he gave a positive assurance to the teachers.

“The demands of the retired teachers are justified. The money for payment has to be released by the state government. The university is not in a position to do anything. But I have promised my full co-operation to them,” Pandey said.

Set up in 1960, Ranchi University is the oldest varsity in the state and has produced many bureaucrats and technocrats.

Ranchi MP Sanjay Seth had recently raised the demand of converting the varsity into a central university in Lok Sabha.

Asked about the sufferings of the retired teachers, Seth said he would look into the matter.

“I will talk to government officials and see how the problem can be solved. It is unfortunate that they have to agitate for their genuine demand,” he said.

Director of higher education department Dinesh Prasad said the payment of dues and pension in accordance with the Seventh Pay Commission were awaiting approval from the finance department. “Efforts are underway to get the approval soon,” he added.