TEHRAN, Nov. 29 (MNA) – European Union’s deputy foreign policy chief Enrique Mora says that he had held talks with two senior Iranian diplomats on different issues.
Rishabh Pant becomes most expensive IPL buy at Rs 27 crore, Iyer fetches Rs 26.75 crore deal
Rishabh Pant became the most expensive player in the history of IPL as Lucknow Super Giants splurged a humongous Rs 27 crore to buy the flamboyant India keeper-batter in the tournament’s mega auction here on Sunday.
Updated On – 24 November 2024, 11:06 PM
Jeddah: Rishabh Pant became the most expensive player in the history of IPL as Lucknow Super Giants splurged a humongous Rs 27 crore to buy the flamboyant India keeper-batter in the tournament’s mega auction here on Sunday.
The amount LSG spent for Pant ensured Shreyas Iyer’s record of being the tournament’s costliest player lasted barely a few minutes after Punjab Kings broke the bank to buy the India batter for Rs 26.75 crore.
Moments before Pant emerged as the most expensive player, Iyer surpassed the record held by Australian pacer Mitchell Starc, who was bought by Kolkata Knight Riders for Rs 24.75 crore in the last auction.
Pant went to LSG after his former franchise Delhi Capitals did not use the Right to Match card to buy him back.
Starc got a much lower price this time and was sold to Delhi Capitals for Rs 11.75 crore, while England’s Jos Buttler went to Gujarat Titans for Rs 15.75 crore.
Among others, left-arm seamer Arshdeep Singh’s consistency earned him a massive bid of Rs 18 crore, also from Punjab Kings via the Right to Match card, while South African speedster Kagiso Rabada was bought for Rs 10.75 crore by Gujarat Titans.
Iyer, the former Kolkata Knight Riders captain, started with a base price of Rs two crore.
Delhi Capitals had the bid at Rs 26 crore for him but PBKS raised the amount to get the player.
Chennai Super Kings started with the first bid for Arshdeep, whose base price was also Rs two crore.
Eventually, after an intense bidding war, the seamer was bought back by Punjab, who exercised the right to match option to complete the deal, having released him earlier.
This is the second time an IPL auction is being held outside the country after last year’s event in Dubai.
Hyderabad-based Marut Drones secures $6.2 million in Series A funding-Telangana Today
The company aims to recruit professionals across all verticals, foster drone entrepreneurship, launch 17 new drone academies and enhance its research and development efforts in partnership with leading institutions
Published Date – 5 November 2024, 03:39 PM
L to R: Suraj Peddi, Prem Kumar Vislawath, Sai Kumar Chinthala – Co Founders Marut Drones
Hyderabad: Marut Dronetech, a leading drone technology company with DGCA certification for manufacturing and training has raised $6.2 million in Series A funding from Lok Capital.
Marut Drones plans to allocate funds towards several key initiatives, including the development of advanced agricultural drones tailored to customer needs, expanding its channel partner network and service centers into Tier 2-3 cities to better serve rural customers, and establishing drone agriculture service hubs to offer Drone-as-a-Service with a partnership approach, a press release said.
The company also aims to recruit professionals across all verticals, foster drone entrepreneurship, launch 17 new drone academies to train skilled professionals and enhance its research and development efforts in partnership with leading institutions.
Hari Krishnan, Director of Lok Capital said drones for agriculture are a novel technology that can secure the health of crops, while also saving water, preserving soil health, avoiding exposure to chemicals, increase yield to farmers and providing income to village-level entrepreneurs.
Prem Kumar Vislawath, CEO and Co-Founder, Marut Drones said, “The fresh capital will also allow us to make investments in building our team, increasing our manufacturing capacity to 3000 drones per annum, and marketing to continue scaling at a rapid pace to reach a revenue target of Rs.1000 crore in the next five years.”
Founded in 2019 by Prem Kumar Vislawath, Suraj Peddi and Sai Kumar Chinthala, Marut Drones has a goal of establishing a pan-India presence, thus positioning the company to play a pivotal role in modernizing agriculture across diverse geographies.
"Daaka Daalne Ki Koshish": Ex-Pak Star On ICC's 'Champions Trophy' Ultimatum
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is in danger of losing the hosting rights of the 2025 Champions Trophy after refusing the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)’s demands of a hybrid model. Despite BCCI’s firm refusal to send its team to Pakistan owing to security concerns, the PCB has time and time again refused to accept there demands. While the ICC is trying its best to sort out the issue, both the PCB and BCCI have not been able to achieve common ground. During Friday’s inconclusive meeting, the ICC has warned the PCB to either accept the ‘Hybrid’ model of hosting for next year’s Champions Trophy or be prepared to be ousted from the event.
However, former Pakistan batter Basit Ali has slammed the ICC and BCCI, who according to him are trying to rob the hosting rights from PCB. On reports of Pakistan set to be snubbed from the event, Basit feels that a tournament without India and Pakistan would not be feasible.
“Who won in the meeting — ICC, BCCI or PCB? And How could the meeting end so quickly? Ab pata chalega, Pakistan ko ek kaum bana diya hai BCCI ne (now they will get to know, the Indian board has united Pakistan)…Even those who were against the PCB, they are saying ‘Whatever (PCB chairman) Mohsin Naqvi says, we will stick to that,” Basit said on his YouTube channel.
“Yeh insaaf nahi hai, ke hamari Champions Trophy pe aap daaka daalne ki bharpoor koshish kar rahe hain (it’s not justified that they are trying to rob Pakistan of Champions Trophy hosting),” he added.
During Friday’s emergency meeting, which has now been adjourned, the the ICC board members were sympathetic towards Pakistan’s situation, but PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi was, nonetheless, advised to accept the ‘Hybrid’ model as the only “plausible solution” for the current imbroglio.
If a ‘Hybrid’ model is adopted, India’s share of Champions Trophy matches will be held in the UAE.
“Look, no broadcaster will give a penny to an ICC event which does not have India and even Pakistan knows that. The ICC meeting on Saturday will only happen if Mr Mohsin Naqvi agrees with the ‘Hybrid Model’,” an ICC Board source told PTI on conditions of anonymity.
(With PTI Inputs)
Topics mentioned in this article
Harish Rao pays visit to Sanjeevani Hospital in Siddipet
Former Minister T Harish Rao, who visited the hospital on Saturday, hailed the services of the Satya Sai Trust.
Published Date – 30 November 2024, 07:43 PM
Former Minister T Harish Rao is at Sri Satya Sai Sanjeevani Centre for Child Heart Care and Research in Siddipet district on Saturday.
Siddpet: Sri Satya Sanjeevani Centre for Child Heart Care and Research in Kondapak, which was opened recently, performed 18 heart surgeries on poor children in the last six days.
Former Minister T Harish Rao, who visited the hospital on Saturday, hailed the services of the Satya Sai Trust. Rao said that the hospital can perform 5 surgeries every day since it has a 150-bed hospital with a 50-bed ICU facility. The former minister interacted with the staff, patients, and attendants.
Iran, India, Uzbekistan to ease transit thru Chabahar Port
According to the Iran Ports and Maritime Organization, the third joint working group was held in Mumbai, India, in the presence of Deputy Director of Port and Economic Affairs of Chabahar Hossein Shahdadi.
The participants discussed the capacity and infrastructure of transportation and the obstacles in this field.
Presenting the necessary proposals to facilitate commercial transactions through Chabahar Port was also on the agenda of the meeting. Transportation and transit of goods from Chabahar Port were also discussed in the working group.
The 3rd joint working group was held with the participation of officials from the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways of India, along with ambassadors of Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, and Iran in India, and Indian diplomats.
MA/IRN85675085
Israel targets World Central Kitchen convoy in Gaza, killing 3 aid workers
Israeli occupation forces have targeted a civil car belonging to the World Central Kitchen (WCK) in a drone attack on Gaza’s southern city of Khan Younis, medics say.
Five people have been killed including three aid workers from the charity kitchens, medics said Saturday. One of the victims is the director of the civilian agency.
The World Central Kitchen has yet to comment on the attack.
In April, seven international aid workers were killed in Deir el-Balah while they were traveling in three vehicles belonging to the aid group, with clear WCK signage attached to the car.
WCK is a US-based non-profit that focuses on fighting hunger around the world.
Israeli forces also killed at least 32 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip overnight and into Saturday, according to medics.
Among the 32 killed, at least seven people lost their lives when an Israeli strike targeted a house in central Gaza City, according to a statement from the Gaza Civil Defense and the official Palestinian WAFA news agency.
The Gaza Civil Defense also reported that one of its officers was killed in attacks in northern Gaza’s Jabalia, bringing the total number of civil defense workers killed to 88 since October 7, 2023.
Ever since, nearly 44,400 people have been killed in Gaza, with seventy percent of the victims being women and children, according to the health ministry figures.
IPL auction: Here’s team-wise list of players sold, check names and price
Venkatesh Iyer was the surprise show-stopper as he was bought back for Rs 23.75 crore by his former franchise Kolkata Knight Riders
Published Date – 25 November 2024, 09:32 AM
Arshdeep Singh, Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer. — File Photo
Jeddah: On the first day of the IPL mega auction, a total of 84 players (72 sold and 12 unsold) went under the hammer with teams breaking the bank for the marquee Indian cricketers.
While India wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant pipped Shreyas Iyer (Rs 26.75 crore) to become the costliest buy in IPL’s history with a Rs 27 crore winning bid from Lucknow Super Giants, Venkatesh Iyer was the surprise show-stopper as he was bought back for Rs 23.75 crore by his former franchise Kolkata Knight Riders.
Here is the team-wise list of the players sold by the end of the first day of the auction along with those unsold (price in INR):
Chennai Super Kings:
Ravichandran Ashwin for Rs 9.75 crore
Devon Conway for Rs 6.25 crore
Rachin Ravindra for Rs 4 crore
Rahul Tripathi for Rs 3.40 crore
Khaleel Ahmed for Rs 4.80 crore
Noor Ahmad for Rs 10 crore
Vijay Shankar Rs 1.20 crore
Retained: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Matheesha Pathirana, Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni.
Mumbai Indians:
Trent Boult for Rs 12.50 crore
Naman Dhir for RS 5.25 crore
Robin Minz for Rs 65 lakh
Karn Sharma for Rs 50 lakh
Retained: Jasprit Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Rohit Sharma, Tilak Varma
Rajasthan Royals:
Jofra Archer for Rs 12.50 crore
Maheesh Theekshana for Rs 4.40 crore
Wanindu Hasaranga for Rs 5.25 crore
Akash Madhwal for Rs 1.20 crore
Kumar Kartikeya for Rs. 30 lakh
Retained: Sanju Samson, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Shimron Hetmyer, Sandeep Sharma
Gujarat Titans:
Jos Buttler for Rs 15.75 crore
Mohammed Siraj for Rs 12.25 crore
Prasidh Krishna for Rs 9.50 crore
Kagiso Rabada for Rs 10.75 crore
Nishant Sidhu Rs 30 lakh
Mahipal Lomror for Rs 1.70 crore
Kumar Kushagra for Rs 65 lakh
Anuj Rawat for Rs 30 lakh
Manav Suthar for Rs. 30 lakh
Retained: Rashid Khan, Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, Rahul Tewatia, Shahrukh Khan
Kolkata Knight Riders:
Venkatesh Iyer for Rs 23.75 crore
Anrich Nortje for Rs 6.50 crore
Quinton de Kock for Rs 3.60 crore
Rahmanullah Gurbaz for Rs 2 crore
Angkrish Raghuvanshi for Rs 3 crore
Vaibhav Arora for Rs 1.80 crore
Mayank Markande for Rs. 30 lakh
Retained: Rinku Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Harshit Rana, Ramandeep Singh.
Delhi Capitals:
KL Rahul for Rs 14 crore
Mitchell Starc for Rs 11.75 crore
Jake Fraser-McGurk for Rs 9 crore
Harry Brook for Rs 6.25 crore
T Natarajan for Rs 10.75 crore
Sameer Rizvi Rs 95 lakh
Karun Nair Rs 50 lakh
Ashutosh Sharma Rs 3.80 crore
Mohit Sharma for Rs. 2.20 crore
Retained: Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Tristan Stubbs, Abhishek Porel.
Punjab Kings:
Shreyas Iyer for Rs 26.75 crore
Yuzvendra Chahal for Rs 18 crore
Arshdeep Singh for Rs 18 crore
Marcus Stoinis for Rs 11 crore
Glenn Maxwell for Rs 4.20 crore
Nehal Wadhera for Rs 4.20 crore
Harpreet Brar for Rs 1.50 crore
Vishnu Vinod for Rs 95 lakh
Vyshak Vijaykumar for Rs 1.80 crore
Yash Thakur for Rs. 1.80 crore
Retained: Shashank Singh, Prabhsimran Singh
Royal Challengers Bengaluru:
Josh Hazlewood for RS 12.50 crore
Phil Salt for Rs 11.50 crore
Jitesh Sharma for Rs 11 crore
Liam Livingstone for Rs 8.75 crore
Rasikh Salam for Rs. 6 crore
Suyash Sharma for Rs. 2.60 crore
Retained: Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Yash Dayal
Sunrisers Hyderabad:
Ishan Kishan Rs 11.25 crore
Mohammed Shami Rs 10 crore
Harshal Patel for Rs 8 crore
Adam Zampa for Rs 2.40 crore
Rahul Chahar for Rs 3.20 crore
Abhinav Manohar for Rs 3.20 crore
Atharva Taide Rs 30 lakh
Simarjeet Singh for Rs. 1.5 crore
Retained: Pat Cummins, Abhishek Sharma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Heinrich Klaasen, Travis Head.
Lucknow Super Giants:
Rishabh Pant for Rs 27 crore
Avesh Khan for Rs 9.75 crore
David Miller for Rs 7.50 crore
Mitchell Marsh for Rs 3.40 crore
Aiden Markram for Rs 2 crore
Aryan Juyal for Rs. 30 lakh
Retained: Nicholas Pooran, Ravi Bishnoi, Mayank Yadav, Mohsin Khan, Ayush Badoni.
List of unsold players with base price
David Warner (Rs 2 crore)
Devdutt Padikkal (Rs 2 crore)
Jonny Bairstow (Rs 2 crore)
Waqar Salamkheil (Rs 75 lakh)
Yash Dhull (Rs 30 lakh)
Anmolpreet Singh (Rs 30 lakh)
Upendra Yadav – (Rs 30 lakh)
Luvith Sisodia – (Rs 30 lakh)
Kartik Tyagi – (Rs 40 lakh)
Utkarsh Singh – (Rs 30 lakh)
Piyush Chawla – (Rs 50 lakh)
Shreyas Gopal – (Rs 30 lakh).
Apple-Globalstar $1.5 billion deal disrupts connectivity market, report says-Telangana Today
Emma Mohr-McClune, Chief Analyst for Technology at GlobalData, stated that this is likely the largest and most impactful consumer OEM low-Earth-orbit (LEO) deal to date. The agreement positions Apple as the clear leader among Western OEMs for offering extended direct satellite texting and calling services, catering to both emergency and remote use cases.
Updated On – 6 November 2024, 05:41 PM
New Delhi: The $1.5 billion Apple-Globalstar deal packs a competitive punch for virtually all corners of the connectivity market ecosystem, from carriers to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), according to a report on Wednesday.
Apple plans to invest $1.1 billion in satellite communications company Globalstar, alongside a further $400 million for a 20 per cent equity stake in the business.
According to Emma Mohr-McClune, Chief Analyst, Technology at GlobalData, this is arguably the largest and most significant consumer OEM low-Earth-orbit (LEO) deal to date, and the arrangement puts Apple in a clear leading position among western OEMs for extended direct and mass-market voice satellite texting and even calling services for both emergency and remote use cases.
“In addition to continuing to allocate 85 per cent of its network capacity to Apple, Globalstar will use the $1.1 billion in preservice payments to deliver a new satellite service constellation, expanded ground infrastructure, and increased global mobile satellite services (MSS) licensing,” said Mohr-McClune.
The new arrangement represents a significant expansion of an earlier 2022 deal, which first gave iPhone 14 users access to Globalstar’s 31 L-band satellites for emergency text services – a service which has since been extended to remote or off-grid use cases with iOS 18.
According to the report, the Apple-Globalstar arrangement also lowers the incentive for mobile network operators to strike their own deals with satellite providers for connectivity.
“There is now no doubt that Apple iPhone users are likely to have faster, readier access to more sophisticated and extended D2D use case services regardless of their wireless connectivity provider,” said the report.
It can no longer be claimed that Apple has no interest in the connectivity business.
On the downside, Apple’s B2C direct monetisation plans for this investment are still hazy, and premium plans are likely still several quarters out, the report mentioned.
Why Thousands Of Georgian Are Protesting In Tbilisi After EU Bid Halted
Thousands of protesters returned outside the parliament in Tbilisi on Saturday to protest against the Georgian government’s decision to suspend European Union (EU) membership talks amid a post-election crisis. Police deployed water cannons, tear gas and pepper sprays to confront the pro-European protesters, who have been on the streets since Georgia’s ruling party on Thursday said it was halting EU accession talks until 2028.
Protesters carrying Georgian and EU flags marched towards the Soviet-built parliament building. They hurled fireworks at police officers, while authorities forced them away from the assembly and down Rustaveli Boulevard toward the opera house, according to a report by Reuters. At least 10 employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and 32 police officers were reportedly injured during the confrontation with the protestors, the Black Sea nation’s interior ministry said.
As per the Interior Ministry, 107 people were detained for “disobedience to lawful police orders and petty hooliganism.”
Reuters
“Throughout the night… protesters threw various objects, including stones, pyrotechnics, glass bottles, and metal items, at law enforcement officers,” it said.
Unrest In Girogia
Georgia has been rocked by turmoil since the ruling Georgian Dream party claimed victory in the October 26 parliamentary election that the pro-EU opposition said was fraudulent. The party has ruled Georgia since 2012 and is often accused by critics of trying to move the country closer to Russia and away from the EU. Ahead of October’s elections, it pushed through legislation targeting independent civil society and curbing LGBTQ rights, drawing warnings from Brussels.
After the party claimed victory in last month’s election, Opposition lawmakers have questioned the results of the election. Alleging fraud, they boycotted the new parliament.
Following this, the country’s President Salome Zourabishvili, who is reportedly at loggerheads with the governing party – called the one-party parliament “unconstitutional”. She sought to annul the election results through the country’s constitutional court.
Reuters
The European Parliament on Thursday backed a resolution calling last month’s election as the latest stage in Georgia’s “worsening democratic crisis” and saying that the ruling party was “fully responsible”, according to a report by BBC.
The resolution also expressed concern about reports of vote manipulation and buying, voter intimidation and harassment of observers.
Following the resolution, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said his government had “decided not to bring up the issue of joining the European Union on the agenda until the end of 2028”.
He said Georgia would continue to implement the reforms required for accession and that it still planned to join by 2030, but added that it was “crucial for the EU to respect our national interests and traditional values”.
Georgia has the official EU candidate status since 2023. However, according to the BBC report, Belgium had halted Georgia’s accession process earlier this year over the country’s “Russia-style law” targeting organizations accused of “pursuing the interests of a foreign power”
Latest Protest
European Union accession is a popular issue in Georgia, and freezing of application talks has been met with widespread anger from people, who aim to see EU membership written into their constitution. Thousands massed outside the parliament building in Tbilisi on Thursday before they were dispersed by riot police using water cannons and gas.
Reuters
The protesters returned on Friday and Saturday and were faced with violent suppression of resistance by the government. Independent TV station Pirveli said one of its journalists covering the protest was hospitalised with serious injuries after police beat her and a cameraman.
Pro-Western President Zurabishvili has also put her weight behind the protestors. In a televised address to the nation, she said: “The resistance movement has begun… I stand in solidarity with it.
“We will remain united until Georgia achieves its goals: to return to its European path, secure new elections.”
On Friday, hundreds of serving employees of the country’s foreign, defence, education and justice ministries signed open letters denouncing the freeze in talks as unconstitutional.
A string of private universities have said they are suspending studies amid the unrest, while business groups have called for the government to review its stance.
Worsening Relations With The EU
Georgia’s move to halt membership talks caps months of deteriorating relations between Tbilisi and the West, which has accused the Georgian Dream government of authoritarian and pro-Russian inclinations.
Georgian Dream has this year passed laws against so-called “foreign agents” and LGBT rights, which critics say are draconian in nature and Russian in inspiration.
The party, which is widely seen as controlled by its founder, billionaire and former prime minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, says it wants eventually to join the EU, and that the laws it has passed are necessary to defend Georgia’s traditional values.
The EU’s ambassador to Georgia described Georgian Dream’s stance as “heartbreaking” on Friday and condemned the crackdown on protesters.
