SPORTS

CISF fetes shooter Anjali Ved Pathak
Our Sports Reporter

New Delhi, June 7
The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) honoured its ace shooter, Arjuna Awardee Anjali Ved Pathak, with a cash award of Rs 50,000 for securing a berth for the Olympic Games in Athens in 2004 at a simple function at the CISF headquarters in the Capital on Friday.

CISF director-general H. J. Dora feted Anjali and other members of the Indian shooting team bound for the 2002 Commonwealth Games to be held in Manchester (England) in July and the World Shooting Championship at Finland.

Those who were honoured, besides Anjali, included another Arjuna Awardee Shilpi Singh, Samresh Jung, Kuheli Ganguli and Sushma Rana. The shooting event, once a monopoly of Services, is now the exclusive domain of CISF.

In the 2001 Commonwealth Championship in England, CISF shooters had won 13 medals, including five gold, four silver and four bronze.

The tally rose to 22 medals in the prestigious European Championship Circuit in 2002, which included six gold, 12 silver and four bronze.

Mr H. J. Dora highly commended the achievements of Anjali and others, and felt that Anjali was one of the best in the world, and she was capable of doing much better in international competitions. Anjali put up a consistently brilliant performance in the ISSF World Cup in 2002, which

not only won her two silver medals in the Sydney and Atlanta circuits last month, but also ensured her a place

in the 2004 Olympics. Anjali has thus become the first Indian small bore shooter ever to earn a quota place in the Olympic Games in the Women’s Air Rifle category.

Mr Dora said to enable the shooters to procure imported kit items as aids to enhance performance, Anjali was given Rs 50,000 and others Rs 25,000 each by the CISF as outright grants.

He said each of them will also receive cash awards for their recent winning performances in various international events.

Mr Dora said the CISF was now a force to reckon with in the firmament of sports as other disciplines like hockey, kabaddi, wrestling, shooting, taekwondo, judo and boxing have also done well.

Randhir Singh nominated to ANOC executive
Our Sports Reporter

New Delhi, June 7
Indian Olympic Association (IOA) secretary-general Randhir Singh has been nominated to the Association of National Olympic Committee (ANOCA). Randhir Singh, who is also the secretary-general of the Olympic Association of Asia, had been elected to the International Olympic Committee a few months ago. Randhir Singh is a former Asian Games medallist in shooting and is also the vice-president of the Commonwealth Games Federation.

The various important positions adorned by Randhir Singh is an asset to Indian sports as his achievements have played a great role in giving a fillip to the Olympic Movement in the country. Randhir has also done proud to his father, the late Raja Bhalendra Singh, and forefathers, who have been the guiding spirits of the Olympic Movement in the country. Raja Bhalendra was a member of the IOC for four decades.

Randhir is also a recipient of the D.Litt degree from the Gwalior University. He was bestowed the Arjuna Award in 1997. The latest honour is a singular achievement for Randhir as the ANOCA will play a prominent role in the revival of the postponed inaugural Afro-Asian Games which the IOA now plans to hold late next year.

SAIL to take on HDFC Bank in Hari Ram Cricket
Our Sports Reporter

New Delhi, June 7
Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) will take on HDFC Bank in the opening match of the sixth Lala Hari Ram Aggarwal Memorial Day-Night Cricket Carnival to be held at the Karnail Singh stadium from June 8.

The opening match will begin at 5 pm. President of the Tournament Committee Ashok Aggarwal said former Chief Minister of Delhi Madan Lal Khurana will inaugurate the tournament. Union Minister Chaman Lal Gupta and former Test cricketer Kirti Azad will also be present.

Mr Ashok Aggarwal said several past and current Test players like Virender Sehwag, VVS Laxman, Mohd. Kaif, Dinesh Mongia, Ashish Nehra, Ajay Ratra, Harbhajan Singh, Sharandeep Singh, Vijay Dhaiya, Rahul Sanghvi, Amit Bhandari, Nikhil Chopra, Gursharan Singh and Gyanender Pandey will be representing various teams in the tournament.

Mr Aggarwal said 16 top teams will be participating in the tournament.

They include Indian Airlines, Oil and Natural Gas Commission, Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association, Chand Khanna Club, Collage Group, Sonnet Club, Railways, Lal Bahadur Shastri Club, Delhi Police, New Delhi Municipal Council, Youngsters, Business Standard, Gyan Bharti South Delhi and Rajdhani Sports (Rajouri Garden).

The winners of the tournament will pocket a whopping cash prize of Rs 1,11,000 while the runners-up will get Rs 51,000. BDM bat will sponsor the man of the match awards.

The best batsman and best bowler of the tournament awards will be sponsored by Bajaj Fan.

According to Mr Rajeev Aggarwal, top umpires like S. K. Bansal, Hari Haran, Devendra Sharma, Vijay Chopra, Anil Chaudhary, Arun Bhardwaj, Satish Gupta, Kamal Juneja, Desraj and Rajan Seth will officiate in the matches.

ONGC win

New Delhi
A fine knock of 79 runs by UP Ranji Trophy player Mohd. Saif and deadly bowling of 3 for 22 by Amit Sharma helped Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC) beat Dena Bank by five wickets in a Super A Division match of the DDCA League at the Ferozeshah Kotla ground in the Capital.

Scores: Dena Bank: 189 for 9 in 40 overs (Puneet Bisth 76, Sanjay Sharma 33, Manu Nayyar 31, Amit Sharma 3 for 22, Mithun Minhas 2 for 33, Feroz Gyas 2 for 41).

ONGC: 192 for 5 in 28.2 overs (Mohd Saif 79, Radhey Shyam Gupta 40, Suresh Batra 2 for 27, Pradeep Gupta 2 for 49).

ADMINISTRATION

L-G strikes down extension to Addl Commissioner
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, June 7
Lieutenant-Governor Vijai Kapoor today issued instructions to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) that the resolution passed by it, which reads that Mr Manjit Singh be allowed to continue as the Additional Commissioner (Slums and JJ) beyond his date of superannuation on June 30, 2002, is “contrary to rules and government policy”.

The communique issued by Raj Niwas says the Lieutenant-Governor has said Mr Singh shall retire on the date of his superannuation. “The MCD Commissioner has been asked to get an appropriate officer as replacement of Shri Manjit Singh from the Government of NCT of Delhi,” the communique reads. “And in case of delay in getting a substitute, the work of slum and JJ could be handled as an additional charge to another additional commissioner of the MCD”, it says.