The ‘morning practice group’ won’t be the same again. The cream of the crop of youngsters from table tennis clubs in Chennai practised under one roof three times a week. The select few were handpicked by senior pro Achanta Sharath Kamal, an Olympian and medallist at the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games. Training sessions with Sharath started during the lockdown and continued till date. The trainees shared a close bond with their mentor.

On Sunday noon, the ‘morning practice group’ lost a member. Vishwa Deenadayalan, 18, a cadet and sub-junior national champion, died in a road accident when travelling from Guwahati to Shillong for the Senior Nationals and Inter-state championships.

In her new role, Ms. Sethi coordinates National Security Advisor documentation across the Office of the Vice President.

Shanti Sethi, a trailblazing Indian-American Navy veteran, has joined US Vice President Kamala Harris's office as her executive secretary and defence advisor, according to a media report.

Ms. Sethi, the first Indian-American commander of a major US Navy combat ship, recently joined Vice President Harris’ office, Politico news website quoted vice president's senior advisor Herbie Ziskend as saying.

The Delhi government on Tuesday released an educational song. According to the Delhi government, the song reflects their vision for education and a review of the progress of Mission Buniyaad, which is dedicated to the upliftment of Delhi government schools.

The song is aimed at teaching students studying at Delhi schools about communal harmony, patriotism, and women empowerment along with other concepts and life skills. The song lyrics have been written by Alok Srivastava and the song has been sung by famous singers, Shan and Sneha Shankar.

Delhi’s Education Minister and Deputy Chief Minister, Manish Sisodia, said that the song aims to answer critical questions about the purpose of education in nation-building.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the nation on the 400th Parkash Purab of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji at the Red Fort in New Delhi on 21st of this month. On the auspicious occasion, the Prime Minister will release a commemorative coin and postage stamp.

Four hundred ragis will perform in the Shabad Kirtan on the occasion. The government is organizing a grand event on 20th and 21st of this month at the Red Fort premises to mark the 400th Prakash Gurupurab of Guru Tegh Bahadur. On the first day of the celebration on 20th April, Union Home Minister Amit Shah will take part in the commemorative event and around 400 children will participate in the Shabad Kirtan on that day. Mr Shah will also inaugurate the Multimedia show ‘The Life and Sacrifice of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji’ at the Red Fort.

National Apprenticeship Mela 2022 will be organised across the country in more than over 700 locations on 21st April. Skill India, in association with the Directorate General of Training, is organising the day-long Apprenticeship Mela across the country. Under the initiative, the aim is to support hiring of more than one lakh apprentices and assist employers in tapping the right talent and develop it further with training and providing practical skillsets.

The event will witness participation from more than 4,000 organisations across the country, operating in more than 30 sectors such as Power, Retail, Telecom, IT/ITeS, Electronics, Automotive. In addition, the aspiring youth will have the opportunity to engage and select from more than 500 trades including Welder, Electrician, Housekeeper, Beautician, and Mechanic.

Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine (GCTM) in Jamnagar on Tuesday, in the presence of the Prime Minister of Mauritius Pravind Kumar Jugnauth and Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus, Director-General, World Health Organization (WHO).

GCTM will be the first and only global outpost centre for traditional medicine across the world. It will emerge as an international hub of global wellness. Video messages from the Prime Ministers of Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and President of Maldives were played on the occasion. Union Ministers Dr Mansukh Mandavia, Sabananda Sonowal, Munjapara Mahendrabhai and Chief Minister of Gujarat Bhupendrabhai Patel were among those present.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate Global AYUSH Investment & Innovation Summit at Mahatma Mandir in Gandhinagar Gujarat at 10.30 AM today. The Prime Minister of Mauritius Pravind Kumar Jugnauth and Director-General of World Health Organization Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus will also be present on the occasion.

The Prime Minister will also attend the Adijati Maha Sammelan in Dahod at around 3.30 PM today, where he will inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of various development projects worth around 22 thousand crore rupees.

According to official sources, the three-day Global AYUSH Investment & Innovation Summit will witness 5 plenary sessions, 8 roundtables, 6 workshops, and 2 symposiums. About 90 eminent speakers and 100 exhibitors will also participate in the summit. The Summit will help uncover investment potential and give a fillip to innovation, research & development, start-up ecosystem and the wellness industry. It will help bring together industry leaders, academicians and scholars together and act as a platform for future collaborations.

The Union Steel Ministry will host National Metallurgist Award 2021 in New Delhi today to recognise the outstanding contribution of metallurgists and engineers in the field of iron and steel. The programme will be chaired by the Steel Minister Ram Chandra Prasad Singh. The Steel Ministry has instituted the National Metallurgist Award after extensive deliberations with the Ministry of Home Affairs regarding rationalisation of the awards in line with the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.  

The process of submissions of applications or nominations for the National Metallurgist Award 2021 was initiated during August to September last year. The awards will be given under categories like Lifetime Achievement, National Metallurgist, For Research and Development in Iron and Steel Sector and Young Metallurgist.

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa appointed a new Cabinet on Monday. The authorities said that a total of 17 members including many former Cabinet Ministers were sworn in. According to media reports, several former key cabinet ministers were not included in the new cabinet of ministers who were sworn in today. Also, none of the members of the Rajapaksa family including Chamal Rajapaksa and Namal Rajapaksa were appointed in the new cabinet. However, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa remains in power.Following the mass resignation of the Cabinet ministers, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on April 4 named four ministers, until a full Cabinet is appointed.

A first-of-its-kind mobile app launched for Khelo India University Games 2021.

In a first-of-its-kind initiative, the second edition of Khelo India University Games to be held in the tech capital Bengaluru will have its own mobile application which is free-to-download on Play Store and App Store.

A brainchild of Department of Youth Empowerment and Sports (DYES) and hosts Jain deemed-to-be University, the unique ‘Khelo India Uni Games 2021’ mobile app promises to be a one-stop-shop for all information regarding the prestigious event scheduled to begin on 24th April. The coveted Games, which will be India's first largest mass participation sporting event post pandemic, will witness over 4,500 participants representing a total of about 189 universities vie for top honours in 20 disciplines.