Dominica Says 'No' To Hosting T20 World Cup 2024

File image of T20 World Cup Trophy© Twitter

Dominica will be unable to meet the deadline for completing the construction work of their stadiums and the government on Thursday announced its decision to withdraw from hosting their allotted matches of the T20 World Cup next year. Windsor Park was shortlisted to host one group match and two Super Eight games as Dominica was one of seven countries in the Caribbean shortlisted to host the T20 World Cup.

The T20 showpiece is being co-hosted by the West Indies and the USA from June 4-30 next year. “Several tangible actions were taken both at the Windsor Park Sports Stadium and at the Benjamin’s Park including the commencement of upgrading and enhancement of the practice and match venues, various assessments and the creation of additional pitches where necessary,” a statement from the Dominica government’s read.

“However, the implementation timelines submitted by the various contractors revealed that it would not be possible to complete these works within the stipulated timeframe before the commencement of the tournament. As a result, a decision was taken not to host any of the matches in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 as it would not be prudent for the Government of Dominica to commit to hosting these games.

“In light of Dominica’s sterling reputation in hosting international cricket, this decision is considered to be in the best interest of all. The Government of Dominica thanks Cricket West Indies (CWI) for its partnership over the years and looks forward to continued collaboration in the future. The Government of Dominica extends best wishes to the organisers for a successful tournament in June 2024.” The ICC is yet to respond to the development.

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2 Israeli Women Hostages Handed Over By Hamas, Says Israel Army

2 Israeli Women Hostages Handed Over By Hamas, Says Israel Army

The two are French-Israeli dual national Mia Shem, 21 (left), and Amit Soussana, 40 (right).

The Israeli military said on Thursday it received two Israeli women hostages released in the Gaza Strip from the Red Cross.

More Israeli hostages were expected to be transferred to the Red Cross “in the next few hours”, it said, while the Israeli prime minister’s office named the two as French-Israeli dual national Mia Shem, 21, and Amit Soussana, 40.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Current Progress Pace Can Make India Developed Before 2047: Minister

Current Progress Pace Can Make India Developed Before 2047: Minister

Som Parkash distributed Ayushman cards to some of the beneficiaries. (File)

Hoshiarpur:

Union Minister Som Parkash on Thursday said the country’s current pace of progress in every sector could lead the nation to become ‘Viksit Bharat’ even before 2047.

Addressing a gathering at the Ajram village here, where the ‘Viksit Bharat Sankalap Yatra Van’ reached on Thursday, the Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry highlighted the “strong connection” people have with this yatra, demonstrating their commitment to make India a developed nation.

The ‘Viksit Bharat Sankalap Yatra’ (VBSY) is currently going through many districts of Punjab, including Hoshiarpur.

Vans carrying information materials and videos are making people aware of various central government schemes through which eligible individuals can avail themselves of various benefits at their doorstep, he said.

Som Parkash emphasised that it has been the constant endeavour of the prime minister to ensure that the benefits of the central government schemes reach every eligible person.

Later, he distributed Ayushman cards to some of the beneficiaries.

One of the women beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna (Gramin) expressed her happiness at being able to build her house with the financial help under this scheme.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Blinken Urges Israel To Create "Safe" Zones For Gaza Civilians

Blinken Urges Israel To Create 'Safe' Zones For Gaza Civilians

Bliken said Israel must put in place humanitarian civilian protection plans for Palestinians in Gaza.

Tel Aviv:

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Israel on Thursday to create safe zones for Palestinian civilians in Gaza before it resumes “major military operations” in the Hamas-ruled territory.

Israel “must put in place humanitarian civilian protection plans that minimise further casualties of innocent Palestinians”, he told reporters in Tel Aviv, “including by clearly and precisely designating areas and places in southern and central Gaza, where they can be safe and out of the line of fire”.

Blinken was speaking on the seventh day of a pause in hostilities between Israel and Hamas that has seen scores of hostages released in return for Palestinian prisoners.

He said protecting civilians meant avoiding further “significant displacement of civilians inside Gaza” as well as “damage to life (or) critical infrastructure like hospitals, like power stations, like water facilities”.

“And it means giving civilians who have been displaced in southern Gaza the choice to return to the north as soon as conditions permit.”

There should be no “enduring internal displacement”, he said.

Blinken said Israel was “capable of neutralising the threat posed by Hamas while minimising harm to innocent men, women and children. And it has an obligation to do so.

“I underscore the imperative of the United States that the massive loss of civilian life and displacement of the scale that we saw in northern Gaza not be repeated in the south,” he added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Blinken Urges Israel To Create "Safe" Zones For Gaza Civilians

Blinken Urges Israel To Create 'Safe' Zones For Gaza Civilians

Bliken said Israel must put in place humanitarian civilian protection plans for Palestinians in Gaza.

Tel Aviv:

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Israel on Thursday to create safe zones for Palestinian civilians in Gaza before it resumes “major military operations” in the Hamas-ruled territory.

Israel “must put in place humanitarian civilian protection plans that minimise further casualties of innocent Palestinians”, he told reporters in Tel Aviv, “including by clearly and precisely designating areas and places in southern and central Gaza, where they can be safe and out of the line of fire”.

Blinken was speaking on the seventh day of a pause in hostilities between Israel and Hamas that has seen scores of hostages released in return for Palestinian prisoners.

He said protecting civilians meant avoiding further “significant displacement of civilians inside Gaza” as well as “damage to life (or) critical infrastructure like hospitals, like power stations, like water facilities”.

“And it means giving civilians who have been displaced in southern Gaza the choice to return to the north as soon as conditions permit.”

There should be no “enduring internal displacement”, he said.

Blinken said Israel was “capable of neutralising the threat posed by Hamas while minimising harm to innocent men, women and children. And it has an obligation to do so.

“I underscore the imperative of the United States that the massive loss of civilian life and displacement of the scale that we saw in northern Gaza not be repeated in the south,” he added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

BJP Likely To Keep Madhya Pradesh: NDTV Poll Of Polls

The Congress campaign is being led by Kamal Nath.

An NDTV Poll of Polls has shown that the BJP is returning to power in Madhya Pradesh, where it has ruled for close to two decades, barring a 15-month period when the Congress won in 2018. The Poll of Polls has projected that the BJP will win 124 of the state’s 230 seats while the Congress will emerge victorious in 102. 

The majority mark in the state is 116.

Of the eight exit polls on which the Poll of Polls is based, three have predicted that the BJP is coming back to power in the state in a clean sweep. The Congress may not be down and out, however, with three others giving it a slight edge. 

The BJP’s Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who first became chief minister in 2005, is looking for a fifth term, but his party has not declared him as the candidate for the top job this time around. The Congress campaign is being led by state unit president Kamal Nath, who is being supported by senior party leader Digvijaya Singh. 

Health warning: Exit polls often get it wrong.

News 24-Today’s Chanakya has predicted a clear, comfortable victory for the BJP in the heartland state. The exit poll’s prediction for the ruling party is 151 while the Congress is projected to be reduced to 74, more than 40 seats short of the majority mark. 

Another exit poll that has predicted a clear victory for the BJP in Madhya Pradesh is India Today-Axis My India, which has said that the party is expected to win 140-162 as opposed to the Congress’ 68-90. It is also unique in giving 0-2 seats to the alliance between the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Gondwana Gantantra Party in the state. All the other exit polls have predicted zero seats for that alliance. 

India TV- CNX has also predicted a sweep for the BJP, projecting that the party will win 140-159  seats, while the Congress will be restricted to between 70 and 89.

The exit poll by Republic TV-Matrize has given an edge to the BJP, predicting that the ruling party will win between 118 and 130 seats. The prediction for the Congress is that it will emerge victorious in 97-107 seats and other parties will get 0-2. 

The predictions by TV 9 Bharatvarsh-Polstrat swing in favour of the Congress, however, with the party being projected to win between 111 and 121 seats and the BJP being restricted to 106-116. The constituencies where other parties are projected to win are between zero and six.      

The poll by Dainik Bhaskar has also given a slight edge to the Congress, predicting that the party will win 105-120 seats while the BJP is expected to win between 95 and 115 seats. The number for other parties is also quite high, between 0 and 15, indicating that they may have a role to play if the BJP or the Congress fall short of a majority.

The Congress and BJP also seem neck-and-neck according to the Times Now ETG poll, with the former having a slight advantage. The exit poll has predicted 109-125 seats for the Congress and between 105 and 117 for the BJP.

Jan Ki Baat has the closest prediction in its exit poll, with the numbers indicating that the results could go either way. It has projected 102-125 seats for the Congress, 100-123 for the ruling BJP and five for Others. 

The BJP campaign has been led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the party has avoided giving a clear answer on whether Shivraj Singh Chouhan will be the chief minister if it wins in Madhya Pradesh. The party has also fielded seven MPs, including union ministers Narendra Singh Tomar, Prahlad Patel and Faggan Singh Kulaste, for the Assembly polls.

These factors have led to speculation that the BJP may be looking beyond Mr Chouhan for the top job, but several experts have pointed out that the senior leader, who is also known as ‘Mama’, remains the party’s most popular leader in the state. 

For Kamal Nath, who is the Congress’ state unit chief, these elections have become doubly important following the rebellion by Jyotiraditya Scindia in 2020, which had led to his government collapsing after just 15 months. Asked about the rebellion ahead of the elections, Mr Nath had said the Congress is confident of returning to power in the state and does not need Mr Scindia to do so.

Jagan dedicates Owk channel II to the nation

The tunnel facilitates supply of 20,000 cu.sec. of water through it.

Published Date – 06:26 PM, Thu – 30 November 23


Jagan dedicates Owk channel II to the nation

File photo

Nandyal: Chief Minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy on Thursday dedicated to the nation the Owk second channel under the Galeru-Nagari project catering to the needs of the drought-prone Rayalaseema region and Nellore district.

The tunnel facilitates supply of 20,000 cu.sec. of water through it.


The major part of the Owk tunnel work was completed during the regime of late YSR at a cost of Rs.340.53 crore. However, during 2014-19, the Chandrababu government spent only Rs. 81.55 crore to leave the works pending in the fault zone. Now, the Jagan government spent Rs.145.86 crore to complete tunnel II successfully while tunnel three is also getting ready with Rs.934 crore spent on it so far. Of the 5.801 km Tunnel III, 4.526 km works are already completed.

So far, Rs.1,501.94 crore was spent on the three tunnels for supply 30,000 cusec of water.

Mohun Bagan 'No-show' Gives East Bengal Derby Walkover

File image of Mohun Bagan Super Giant team© Twitter

The much-anticipated derby of the Calcutta Football League premier division was a “no-starter” after Mohun Bagan Super Giant did not turn up for the clash against arch-rivals East Bengal. “Today’s scheduled CFL derby at the Naihati Bankimanjali Stadium couldn’t take place due to Mohun Bagan SG’s non-participation,” read the official update.

Playing back-to-back matches in AFC Cup and ISL, the Mariners had appealed to the local governing body, Indian Football Association to postpone the match to December 28.

But the IFA did not accept Mohun Bagan’s request and went ahead with the scheduled fixture.

The match was slated at 2pm and match referee Tanmoy Dhar waited for the stipulated period of one hour before declaring Mohun Bagan “absent”.

East Bengal will, thus, get full three points and set to become the runners-up.

Mohammedan Sporting have already sealed the title.

Mohun Bagan fielded a second string side this season and won seven, drew three to log 24 points from 13 outings.

The red-and-gold brigade have 36 points from 15 matches.

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Shreyas Iyer's Inclusion Will Make Big Impact: Ravi Bishnoi

Shreyas Iyer brings a huge reputation as a T20 batter and is poised to make a big impact in the remaining two games of the five-match series, said young India leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi on Friday. Designated vice-captain Iyer will be back in action after being rested for the first three matches as India will have another shot to seal the series from being 2-1 up. “It will make a big impact in our batting lineup,” Bishnoi told reporters during the pre-match press conference.

Shreyas amassed 530 runs in 11 matches of the recent ODI World Cup.

“He brings a lot of reputation in T20 cricket and has been in good form in the World Cup. As a senior player his experience will also help us.” The 23-year-old legspinner has been the pick of the bowlers in the series, having grabbed 6 wickets at 19.66.

Bishnoi credited this to his skipper Suryakumar Yadav for giving the bowlers a “free hand”.

“As a captain, Surya bhai gives you a free hand, he gives you all the right to place the fielders, the length that you want to bowl but you have to deliver in your execution,” said Bishnoi.

“He has been doing great captaincy in last 2-3 matches.” Bishnoi made his India debut against the West Indies in a T20 game in February last year and has featured in 19 T20Is so far, snapping 31 wickets.

With a number of senior players rested, Indian team features a lot of youngsters and Bishnoi said it is important to grab the opportunity and make a mark.

“It is a great opportunity for young players from both the teams because such opportunities come rare when senior players are rested. We have a great chance to win the series,” he said.

“We have a lot of young players so we will look to execute the plans, the focus will be on execution.” Heavy dew has proved to be a factor in the last few games with bowlers finding it difficult to grip the ball.

India failed to defend 43 runs in the last two overs in the third T20I as Glenn Maxwell took the bowlers to the cleaners to steer Australia to a five-wicket win in Guwahati.

“We try to practice with wet bowls. I have done well in the last two matches despite the dewy conditions. I try not to give loose deliveries. If a batsman goes for a shot then it’s okay, but if I bowl loose balls, that is not acceptable to me,” he said.

“I am happy with my bowling and I will try and win the series for India.” The Rajasthan-born spinner, who was the leading wicket-taker in the 2020 Under-19 World Cup, has featured in four seasons of IPL, taking 53 wickets at an average of 27.26, playing for Punjab Kings and Lucknow Super Giants.

“I learnt a lot. International cricket is the ultimate aim for everyone and it was my dream too. The atmosphere is different. In IPL, players get divided in franchises,” he said.

“Other players from different countries are also part of the team but here you play for the country so there are a lot of expectations.”

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