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Harbhajan leaves SA struggling
Players sign contract
for graded payment
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Pak may struggle Down Under: Akram
Kiwis to rest Oram, Vettori
Harikrishna is junior chess champion
Milkha to receive torch at Wagah
Rathore eyeing gold in Beijing Olympics
Spain aim to finish among
top 3 in Lahore
Namdhari XI, Surjit Academy in
semifinals
BSF, Indian Oil record wins
Ferozepore men beat Ludhiana
Olympic Bhawan inaugurated
India trounce Bangladesh
in kabaddi
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Harbhajan leaves SA struggling
Kolkata, December 1 The home team managed to take a vital 106-run first innings before leaving the visitors tottering at 172 for five at close on the penultimate day with off spinner Harbhajan Singh doing the bulk of the damage. Harbhajan snared up the first four wickets as he ripped through the South African top order to completely change the complexion of the game after the visitors were 77 for no loss at one stage on a deteriorating Eden Gardens track which gave plenty of assistance to the slow bowlers. Jacques Kallis was batting on a gritty 52 and Zander de Bruyn was giving him company on nine before play was called off because of bad light with the tourists having a lead of 66 runs. Harbhajan (4/58) opened up the floodgates by getting rid of Andrew Hall (21) and then plotted the dismissals of dangerman Graeme Smith (71), Jacques Rudolph (3) and Hashim Amla (2) in quick succession to put the hosts in the driver's seat. With most of their top batsmen back in the pavilion and with just a marginal lead, the South Africans now face a daunting task to save the match in what promises to be a pulsating final day's play tomorrow. Earlier, the home team managed to stretch their first innings lead to a substantial 106 runs before folding up for 411 just at the stroke of lunch, adding 52 runs to their overnight tally. Anil Kumble claimed the wicket of Boeta Dippenaar to go past Richard Hadlee in the Test wicket ladder. Kumble now has 432 scalps and needs three more to become India's highest wicket-taker ahead of Kapil Dev. The slow bowlers were well supported by some stunning close-in catching with Laxman's blinding one-handed catch to get rid off Smith standing out. India, however, had one crucial decision go against them when a bat-pad catch appeal against Jacques Kallis off Harbhajan was turned down by umpire Daryl Harper. Television replays showed a thick inside edge from Kallis who was on two then. But luck did not entirely desert Sourav Ganguly's men. The deviation off Dippenaar's bat beat wicketkeeper Dinesh Kaarthick's gloves and hit his pads before Virender Sehwag held on to the ricochete on second attempt. It turned out to be a satisfying day for the Indians who had to bow to the clinical efficiency of the South Africans on day three when they could score only 230 runs and lost five wickets. Credit should go to Harbhajan Singh who turned around the match by claiming two wickets each on either side of the tea break and saw the visitors slide from a promising start of 77 for no loss. Scoreboard South Africa (1st innings):
305 India (1st innings): Sehwag c Smith b Ntini 88 Gambhir LBW b Pollock 7 Dravid b Hall 80 Tendulkar b De Bruyn 20 Ganguly LBW b De Bruyn 40 Laxman c Ontong b Ntini 38 Kaarthick LBW b Pollock 46 Pathan c Smith b Ntini 24 Kumble c Kallis b Ntini 8 Harbhajan c Dippenaar b Ontong 14 Zaheer not out 11 Extras: (lb-19, nb-10, w-6) 35 Total: (all out in 150.1 overs) 411 Fall of wickets:
1-17, 2-144, 3-189, 4-238, 5-267, 6-308, 7-366, 8-382, 9-387. Bowling:
Shaun Pollock 45-13-101-2, Makhaya Ntini 44-9-112-4, Justin Ontong 18.1-1-79-1, Andrew Hall 27-5-68-1, Zander de Bruyn 16-4-32-2. South Africa (2nd Innings): Smith c Laxman b Harbhajan 71 Hall c Kaarthick b Harbhajan 21 Rudolph lbw b Harbhajan 3 Kallis batting 52 Amla c Laxman b Harbhajan 2 Dippenaar c Sehwag b Kumble 2 de Bruyn batting 9 Extras: (b-8, lb-1, nb-3) 12 Total: (for 5 wkts in 68 overs) 172 Fall of wickets:
1-77, 2-81, 3-126, 4-138, 5-147. Bowling: Pathan 5-1-17-0, Zaheer 5-0-22-0, Kumble 26-5-66-1, Harbhajan 22-3-58-4.
— PTI |
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Ganguly reported for dissent
Kolkata, December 1 "The umpires have reported the matter to me. There will be a hearing with Ganguly tonight, after which a decision will be announced," Crowe said. Ganguly was reported for making gestures at umpire Daryl Harper who turned down an appeal for bat-pad catch against Jacques Kallis in South Africa's second innings. Television replays showed a thick inside edge from Kallis off Harbhajan Singh. The Indian captain was charged with Level 1 (3) offence for showing misconduct to the umpires. If proved guilty, he would be slapped with a fine.
— PTI |
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“Better late than never”
Subhrangshu Gupta
Kolkata, December 1 It was gathered that the CAB had introduced special tickets priced at Rs 50 each to enable more people enter the stadium. The tickets had been distributed through several counters. Thanks to CAB president, Jagmohan Dalmiya for taking such a decision. “Better late than never”, remarked a journalist colleague sitting at the press box at Club House. * * * It is the third time on Wednesday when darkness descended earlier on the day at the Eden which forced the umpires to call of the day’s play. Yesterday and on Monday, the matches had to be stopped about five minutes earlier due to insufficient light. On Wednesday also, the match was called off when five minutes were still left. The time losses will have been compensated by starting the match early by five minutes next day. * * * Md Kaif’s birthday was celebrated on Wednesday. But with no drinks. No dancing on the floor. Instead, the birthday cake was cut and the candles were lit by his colleagues and their wives. They all sang “happy birthday to you”, wishing Kaif a long life.
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Gagandeep replaces Nehra
Kolkata, December 1 Bengal paceman S S Paul, who was picked in the Test squad for the recent series against Australia, was the only other uncapped player in the squad announced by Cricket Board Secretary S K Nair after a meeting of the national selectors here. The selectors opted to go on the 22-day tour with three specialist spinners in Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh and Murali Kartik and also made no changes in the batting line-up. "The physio (Andrew Leipus) submitted a report that Nehra had suffered an abdominal strain while bowling in the nets and would not be available for the first Test, so the selectors decided not to consider him for the Test series," Nair said. Paceman Laxmipathy Balaji was also not considered as he had not submitted his fitness report, he said. Team:
Sourav Ganguly (captain), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Rahul Dravid, Mohd Kaif, S S Paul, Gagandeep Singh, Dinesh Kaarthick, Murali Kartik, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh, Irfan Pathan and Zaheer Khan. Mr Nair said the squad for the three-match one-day series against Bangladesh would be announced tomorrow. Gagandeep, who has had an impressive season in the Ranji Trophy competition, has claimed 154 first class wickets from 34 matches at an average of 19.72. His best figures are six for 14. He took three wickets for 88 to help Punjab thrash Baroda by 110 runs in the Ranji Trophy Elite Group B match only last week. The Indian team embarks on December 7 for Dhaka where the first Test begins on December 9. The second match would be played in Chittagong from December 16 to 20. The one-day series will be played on December 23 (Chittagong), December 26 and December 29 (both at Dhaka).
— PTI
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Players sign contract for graded payment
Kolkata, December 1 Twelve top cricketers out of a total of 17, who were offered the contracts earlier, signed the papers today, BCCI secretary S K Nair told PTI. The players who signed the contract today are: Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Virender Sehwag, VVS Laxman, Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh (all of them in grade-A), Mohammad Kaif, Zaheer Khan, Irfan Pathan and Ashish Nehra (all in grade-B) and Murali Karthik (grade-C). The remaining five cricketers - Yuvraj Singh, Ajit Agarkar,
Laxmipathy Balaji (all in grade-B), Parthiv Patel and Akash Chopra (grade-C) - would be signing later after the contract papers are sent to them, Board sources said. The one-year contract would be effective from October 1, 2004, and the list of the cricketers and their gradation would be reviewed after one year. As per the contract, players in grade-A would get Rs 50 lakh per year, those in grade-B Rs 35 lakh and in grade-C Rs 20 lakh. Besides the annual contractual payment, players would also receive match fees as per usual practice. But it would be paid to only eleven players playing a particular match. The match fees at home would be Rs 2 lakh for a Test match and Rs 1.60 lakh for an ODI and abroad it would be Rs 2.40 lakh for a Test and Rs 1.85 lakh for an ODI. The cricket board had finalised the contract system in the last week of September. The players, however, could not sign the papers then as they left for Holland to play in a tri-series and returned in October end after the Champions Trophy in England. Uncertainty within the BCCI due to controversy over its elections here on September 29 and 30 also delayed the process subsequently.
— PTI |
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Sehwag to lead star cast in golf tourney
New Delhi, December 1 Former Indian cricket captain Kapil Dev said Rahul Dravid was also likely to play in the tournament in which around 20 present and former cricket stars will participate. Among them will be former team-mates of Kapil and who later became national selectors, Madan Lal and Syed Kirmani, present chairman of the selection committee Kiran More, Atul Wassan, Nikhil Chopra, Ashok Mankad, professional golfer Jyoti Randhawa and television hostess Mandira Bedi. Kapil advocated all cricketers should play golf "as this game is a leveller and also teaches you many things that can be useful in whatever games you play". Kapil said it was necessary to look into other sports "as every kid cannot play cricket and it's our duty to promote other sports so that the youngsters of the country have a wider canvas to excell". Digraj Singh of Tiger Sports Marketing said Vipul are the latest entrants among the corporate sponsors of golf, and the Fortune Select Global Hotel, a unit of the ITC, which is yet to formally open business for the public, will be the hospitality partners. Kapil said the two-day event will witness cricketers vying for the 'best cricketer golfer' title while 120 top corporate honchos will play alongside the celebrities. |
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Pak may struggle Down Under: Akram
Karachi, December 1 “I have been there (Australia) some 10 times in the last 20 years and I know how tough it is going to be there,” he said today. “In the past, we went there with better and more experienced sides and still struggled. Australia is the best Test side today and it is a different experience playing there,” he said. “Pakistan has a lot of talent and ability, but they lack experience and the fast bowlers are struggling,’’ Wasim added. Pakistan play Tests in Perth, Melbourne and Sydney against the all-conquering Australians, who have not lost a home series in 12 years. Wasim Akram captained Pakistan in their last two Test series in Australia, which they lost 2-1 and 3-0. He thought the team were moving in the right direction under new coach Bob
Woolmer. “My advice to the players is to remain confident and relaxed and just to enjoy the cricket,” he said.
— Reuters |
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Kiwis to rest Oram, Vettori
Christchurch, December 1 Black Caps coach John Bracewell said the game, ahead of their first match of the Chappell-Hadlee series against Australia at Telstra Dome on Sunday, was an ideal opportunity to get back into one-day mode. Brendon McCullum might also sit out after bruising his knee while batting in the last innings in Adelaide. “Having a 40-over game will shorten the middle of the match while allowing us to work specifically on the front and end of our game,” Bracewell said. Chris Cairns, Chris Harris and Andre Adams joined the side today.
— UNI |
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Harikrishna is junior chess champion
Kochi, December 1 Russia’s Ekaterina Korbut, with 10.5 points, won the girls under-20 championship, which was held alongside. Anand, Harikrishna’s idol, won the title in 1987 in Baguio, Philippines, and GM Koneru Humpy won the girls’ world junior crown in 2002. In the last round, the 18-year-old Indian drew with top seed GM Ferenc Berkes of Hungary in Catalan defence in 50 moves, while on the second board, Zhao Jun of China, who was jointly leading with Hari, after the penultimate round, lost to Radoslaw Wojtaszek of Poland in a closed Sicilian opening in 49 moves. Fourth seed GM Tigran Petrosian of Armenia defeated IM Elshan Moradiabadi of Iran in Catalan defence in 37 moves. Petrosian took the second spot on better progressive score than China’s Zhao Jun, who had to be content with the third slot. “I am delighted at winning the title. Though I was confident, I was a bit tense since I was in a must-win situation,” Harikrishna said. “I will be concentrating on the Asian Championship, being played here in January,” said Harikrishna. On the top board, Harikrishna, playing white, captured a pawn on b7 on the 17th move. Two moves later, he got one more pawn on a7, but white was forced to give back one pawn on the 27th move. The game then proceeded to opposite colour bishops, ending with both sides having lone rooks. White’s one pawn advantage was not sufficient to give Hari a point since Ferenc, a former under-18 world champion, was defending the position with mathematical precision and the game ended in a draw after 50 moves. In another game, Petrosian, playing white, gained some control on the seventh file after the 20th move, but the Iranian was able to defend with the exchange of minor pieces. In the resultant end game, with equal pawns, both players agreed to a draw in the 37th move. In the girls’ championship, Korbut sacrificed a pawn on the 11th move for gaining some attack on the rival king. But after a couple of moves, Alina Motoc, playing white, was able to trade queens. In the resultant middle game, black gained one more pawn. White tried a mating by the 20th move, but black defended it with a counter-attack, which was fruitful on the 37th move. On the top board, WGM Elisabeth Paehtz, who was jointly leading with Korbut after the 12th round, was shocked by India’s Krutika Nadig in English opening in 70 moves. In another match Eesha Karavade defeated Zhang Jilin of China in Ruy Lopez opening in 64 moves. Paehtz and Karavade finished with 9.5 points each, but the former, on superior progressive score, took the second place. Zhao Jun, who posed a threat to Hari by bouncing back to share the lead after the 12th round, lost to Radoslaw in 49 moves. On the 13th move, Radoslaw, playing black, gave an exchange for a pawn and was able to hold the white position in an underdeveloped situation, which gained black two more pawns by the 24th move. Playing an exchange down with three pawns, black’s bishop proved stronger than the white rook. Unable to prevent promotion on the ‘a’ and ‘b’ files, white resigned on the 49th move. Humpy, the lone girl in the junior boys’ category, defeated Artem IIjin (Russia) in Kings Indian attack after 30 moves. Besides Harikrishna, Deep Sengupta and Koneru Humpy finished in the top ten, while in the girls championship, Eesha Karavade, Krutika Nadig, N. Vinuthna and P. Sivasankari did well to finish inside the top ten.
— PTI |
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Milkha to receive torch at Wagah
Amritsar, December 1 Describing the event as historic, he said it would shape up the future of sports, especially athletics, not only of both Punjabs, but also of the two neighboring countries. He said both Punjabs had been the nursery of best athletes. Speaking on phone to this correspondent, Milkha Singh said playing together would usher in a new era in sports. He said the standard of sports, particularly athletics, would rise and would help the two nations in producing international-level players. Recalling his famous and keen competition against Pakistan’s leading runner Abdul Khalid, whom he defeated in the international meet at Lahore in 1960, he said the meet turned out to be a historic event in his life as not only did he win the 200 m race, but also received the name of “Flying Sikh” from General Ayub. He said initially, he was reluctant to travel to Lahore to participate in the meet on the invitation of the Pakistan Government as he had lost his parents in the communal riots of 1947. He was born at Gobindpura village near Multan district in 1931. He said he changed his decision when the then Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, told him to shed the old grudge and asked him to take part in the games. Around 25 sportspersons from various disciplines would run some distance holding the torch, which would travel from various parts of the city. The sportspersons would be taken in a procession, which would be cheered by school students standing on either side of the way on the route. Welcome gates, hoardings and banners had been erected on the route. The torch-bearer would traverse from the Wagah border to Attari, Khasa, Chheharta, railway station, Crystal Chowk, Bhandari Bridge, Hall Gate, Town Hall and Mannawala. At Rayya, a welcome function would be organised. Subsequently, the torch would be handed over to Kapurthala officials. Torch-bearers: Milkha Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Gurdip Singh, Manjit Singh, Jaspal Singh, Nirmal Singh, Harvinder Singh, Kirpal Singh, Raghubir Singh, Bakhtawar Bhulla, Gurmit Kaur, Inderjit Singh Bajwa, Dr Sandhu (all athletics), Harcharan Singh, Balwinder Shammi, Gurdev Singh, Sukhjit Kaur , Harjit Kaur, Rajwinder Kaur, Kuldeep Kaur, Nirmal Kumari (all hockey), Paramdeep Singh, Suman Sharma (both basketball), Hardeep Singh (kabaddi), Salwinder Singh (wrestling), Gurminder Singh and Manjit Kaur (weightlifting). |
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Rathore eyeing gold in Beijing Olympics
New Delhi, December 1 "I can guarantee you hard work, I can guarantee you dedication but I can't guarantee a gold medal at the moment," said the 34-year old Armyman at a felicitation ceremony here. The marksman, who won India's first-ever individual silver in double trap shooting event at the Athens Olympics, said his
achievement was not a flash in the pan and the Army would keep grooming more sportsmen. "Our previous chief, the present chief and the chief-designate all have been sportspersons and I am sure that the army will groom more medal winners for the country," he said. Rathore, however, admitted that there had been a lull on the sports front in Indian Army but asserted that the emphasis was on sports again.
— PTI |
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Spain aim to finish among
top 3 in Lahore
Amritsar, December 1 Six teams would participate in the tournament, starting from December 4. He was speaking to this correspondent before leaving for Lahore. Heading a 21-member Spanish hockey contingent, he said his team was in high spirits. Earlier, the team paid obeisance at Golden Temple and found it a unique monument. About the recently concluded two-test series against India, Hendriks said it was evenly poised. Both teams won a match apiece. Spain had fielded eight new faces while India had also presented a young team, he said. The chief coach said, “On the ground, they experienced very competitive hockey Off the pitch, they were overwhelmed by Indian hospitality in general and Punjabi in particular”. Commenting on the performance of new Indian players, he said Tushar Khandekar, Arjun and Sandeep Singh were promising. He said Tushar displayed exhilarating hockey while Arjun was at his best and Sandeep had the potential to develop into a quality drag-flicker. |
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Namdhari XI, Surjit Academy in
semifinals
Ludhiana, December 1 In a tough match, Prithipal Academy lads held current champions, Surjit Academy, Ludhiana, to a one-one draw. The defending champions took an early lead when Bachhittar Singh converted the second penalty corner in the 10th minute. However, their joy was
short-lived as the local lads scored the equaliser through Rupinder Singh in the 18th minute. Both teams pressed hard to forge ahead, but their moves failed to have a fruitful result. The encounter ended in a draw. Nevertheless, both teams qualified for the last four stage. In another match, Namdhari XI and Sukhchain Academy settled for a draw, with the final score being 5-5. On the basis of goal average, both teams booked their place in the semifinals In the third match, DAV Club of Chandigarh drew 2-2 with SAI, Kurukshetra. The fourth match, played between Grewal Academy of Kila Raipur and Ropar Hawks, ended in a 2-2 draw. |
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BSF, Indian Oil record wins
New Delhi, December 1 BSF had taken a comfortable 4-1 lead before Air India fought back to narrow the margin and give many anxious moments to the Border cops till the final hooter. Raj Singh converted a penalty corner in the fourth minute to put BSF in the lead, but then ensued a close battle, and Air India drew parity in the 26th minute through Rajesh Chauhan, who also scored off a penalty corner. Nine minutes after resumption of play, BSF regained their lead when Raj Singh scored off yet another penalty corner. Three minutes later, Mandeep Singh enhanced the lead while Marinus Lakra slotted in BSF's fourth goal in the 53rd minute (4-1). As the match was heading for a one-sided finish, Air India struck back by scoring two goals in the space of five minutes through Inderpal Singh and Rajesh Chauhan, who converted penalty corners in the 55th minute and 60th minute respectively. Mandeep Singh, who helped Air India get back into the match, was adjudged the man of the match. In the other match, Indian Oil also led by a comfortable 3-1 margin before PNB fought back and made it close. Kamlesh Kumar opened the account for Indian Oil in the eighth minute while captain Deepak Thakur consolidated the position in the 25th minute. However, seconds before the interval, PNB pulled off a goal when Jitender converted a penalty corner. On resumption, Indian Oil widened their lead when Prabhjot Singh found the mark in the 57th minute. Captain Gagandeep Singh narrowed the gap for PNB with a penalty corner conversion in the 64th minute. Indian Oil defender Kushmeet Singh was awarded the man of the match prize for his doughty defence. |
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Ferozepore men beat Ludhiana
Ferozepore, December 1 Results on the first day are as follows: men: Ferozepore b Patiala 3-1, Ferozepore b Ludhiana 3-2, Jalandhar b Ropar 3-0, Jalandhar b Fatehgarh Sahib 3-0, Amritsar b Faridkot 3-0; women: Jalandhar b Patiala 3-1, Jalandhar b Ferozepore 3-0, Amritsar b Ludhiana 3-0, Ropar b Fatehgarh Sahib 3-0; boys: Amritsar b Ferozepore 3-1, Amritsar b Faridkot 3-1, Jalandhar b Ropar 3-0. Jalandhar b Muktsar 3-0, Ludhiana b Patiala 3-2, Ludhiana b Fatehgarh Sahib 3-0; girls: Ropar b Ludhiana 3-0, Patiala b Ferozepore 3-1, Amritsar b Jalandhar 3-0, sub-junior boys: Patiala b Jalandhar 3-0, Ludhiana b Ropar 3-1, Amritsar b Ferozepore 3-0; sub-junior girls: Amritsar b Muktsar 3-0, Ropar b Patiala 3-1, Ludhiana b Jalandhar 3-1, Ludhiana b Ferozepore 3-0. |
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Olympic Bhawan inaugurated
Panchkula, December 1 The first phase of the Rs 7.43 crore project was completed. A sum of Rs 2 crore has been spent on construction of the first phase on an area of 35,000 square feet. The state government has released a grant of Rs 77 lakh as a matching grant. Speaking on the occasion, Mr Chautala said the state government was providing all facilities to the players for training and competitions. The sports policy had resulted in the all-round development of sports in the state. The state sportspersons have brought laurels to the state and country by winning medals in the international competitions. Raising of teams by the different boards and corporations is part of the state sports policy. The corporations and boards which have adopted the sports disciplines are — HSIDC (volleyball), Excise and Taxation Deptt (lawn tennis), HSARDB (judo), Haryana Warehousing Corporation (boxing), HSAMB (athletics, wrestling), Huda (boxing, hockey), Harco Bank (hockey, kabaddi), Transport Deptt (kabaddi, national and circle style), Forest Deptt (athletics), HVPNL (football, wrestling) and Hafed (badminton and table tennis).
— UNI |
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India trounce Bangladesh in kabaddi
Dhanbad, December 1 India, who were leading 25-18 at the end of the first half, overcame a spirited challenge by Bangladesh and then maintained a comfortable lead till the end. The sixth and last Test would be played at
Muzaffarpur in Bihar later this week. |
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Kolkata, December 1
Kochi, December 1
Ludhiana, December 1
