কলম্বো এফসি ম্যাচে নেই সনি (Sony to miss Colombo FC match)

I-League: Unstoppable Mohun Bagan thrashed Minerva to make it a hat-trick of victories

Duffy and Jeje scored a brace each

Kolkata: Inexorable Mohun Bagan continues their lethal form in the Hero I-League 2017 as the Green and Maroon brigade thumped the new-coming Minerva Punjab FC by a thrashing margin at the Rabindra Sarobar Stadium today. Inspired by the inclusion of Bagan Heart-throb Sony Norde, Jeje Lalpekhlua and new Brazilian central defender Eduardo Ferreira, the Mariners’ simply outplayed the Punjab side to make it three wins out of three.

Scottish forward Darryl Duffy again grabbed the limelight with two beautiful goals to sit on the top of the Golden Boot contenders’ list. In the 16th minute, Haitian winger Sony Norde delivered a sublime free kick and Duffy scored a phenomenal goal with an opportunist header. Mohun Bagan extended their lead through Jeje Lalpekhlua when the Indian international scored after getting another fine cross from Sony Norde. Jeje played his first I-League of this season and made his impact immediately.

In the 30th minute, Duffy got another fine cross from Sony but that time the forward headed it just wide. In the 32nd minute, Duffy received a gorgeous ball from Katsumi and scored his fourth goal of the league with a clinical finish to make it 3-0. Mohun Bagan could have scored their first half only, when Sony Norde missed a great chance as the triangle of Pritam, Katsumi and Sony created a sensational move.

In the second half, the Mariners continued to play their brisk attacking football and Sony Norde’s brilliant right footer came off the post in the 58th minute. Minerva got their first dangerous move in the 62nd minute when Kamal made a superb run from the right and Kyrgyz International Ivan Filatov’s shot went just wide. Minerva came perilously close again in the 63rd minute when Joel Sunday’s long range effort came off the cross bar.

Bagan came back into the game very quickly as Sony Norde opened the goal mouth on his own but after all his hard work, his shot went just over the frame of the goal. In the 77th minute Jeje Lalpekhlua scored his second goal through a fine pass by Bikramjit Singh but again the Minerva defense made some silly errors in their back four to allow Sanjoy Sen’s men to run riot against them.

The win again puts Mohun Bagan on the top of the league table with 9 points from three games and once again having a dream start in the Hero I-League.

Amazing! Atif Aslam stops his concert midway to rescue a girl from being harassed

Singer-composer Atif Aslam had a concert recently. But, in the concert apart from his singing, one of his gestures stole everyone’s heart.

Well, while the concert was going on, Atif stopped singing, and came near to the audience and told a guy out there, “Tumne kabhi ladki nahi dekhi hai? Tumhari maa behen bhi ho sakti hai yahan par.” The singer rescued the girl from being harassed, and took her on the stage.

He later told people to behave properly, or he will make the concert short. One of the fans of Atif posted a video of the whole incident on Twitter.

Aamir Khan: Commercial awards are of no value to me

It has been almost over two decades since Aamir Khan last attended an award function. Though Aamir has received various accolades for his performances over the years, Aamir has made it a point to not any attend award ceremonies.

This year Aamir's 'Dangal' has been praised by all, and is top contention for all the major awards this awards season. When Aamir was asked about the awards at a recent press conference, the actor confessed that he does not believe in commercial awards. Aamir said, "Commercial awards are of no value to me. I will not attend awards. I believe in rewards"

However, Aamir is not the only Bollywood celebrity to reveal that they are interested in rewards rather than awards. Kareena Kapoor Khan, who recently shot for 'Koffee with Karan' said, "I will give everyone the awards, I am only interested in rewards."

Master huntsman 'Kohli is from another planet'

Virat Kohli appears able to produce miracles with his bat and the India captain masterminded yet another successful chase in Sunday's run-feast against England to enhance his reputation as the second innings king of one-day cricket.

Batting second allows a batsman to set his tempo according to demand, yet it is considered a true litmus test of stroke-making excellence due to the constant scoreboard pressure.

This was never more evident than when the opposition racked up 350 runs and reduced India to 63-4 like England did in Pune on Sunday, threatening to spoil Kohli's first match in charge since taking over the limited-overs captaincy.

The 28-year-old replied with a sublime 122, forging a 200-run partnership with fellow centurion Kedar Jadhav, to help India chase down the steep target with 11 balls to spare.

Kohli's ton equalled Sachin Tendulkar's record of 17 second innings centuries, a fact made even more remarkable considering he took 136 innings fewer than the retired great, who was quick to laud the centurions on Twitter.

Former England captain Michael Vaughan was far more succinct in his assessment of the India captain, who is ranked among the top two in all three formats of the game.

"VIRAT KOHLI IS FROM ANOTHER PLANET #Fact," Vaughan tweeted, following it with another entry in which he rated the right-hander as the top batsman in each format.

After winning the toss at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Kohli was probably unsure what would constitute a good total at the compact venue hosting only its second one-day international.

Rather unsurprisingly he opted to field and despite cutting a frustrated figure as England bludgeoned India late in their innings, Kohli was calmness personified when his 27th one-day ton helped the hosts take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

This was the third time India has chased down a 350-plus target and on each occasion Kohli has struck a century.

Since his 2008 debut, India have overwhelmed targets of 300 or more on eight occasions and Kohli failed to get a century in just two of those wins.

This was also the 15th time that a Kohli ton culminated in a successful chase, more than any other batsman has managed in this format.

India's batting mainstay averages a mind-boggling 91 in successful one-day chases but his away record is slightly less impressive.

Of his 17th second innings centuries, eight came in away matches and only four outside Asia, including one in Harare.

Having built an almost impregnable game and fuelled by an insatiable hunger for runs, Kohli is unlikely to settle for just South Asian dominance and will look to export his second innings excellence to grounds all over the world.

Om Swami Gets Beaten By The Audience

After being evicted from the popular TV reality show Bigg Boss 10, Swami Om is stirring controversy on a regular basis. From targetting Salman Khan time and again to threatening Bigg Boss that he would burn the house, Om Swami has done it all. Not only outside the show, even while inside the show he broke all limits and peed in a mug later throwing it upon Bani J and Rohan Mehra. Well, the disgusting man goes on to clarify that it was only water! Recently, he threw water on the face of a news anchor during a live interview in which he was accompanied by Priyanka Jagga

Once again Om Swami has taken into a new controversy and that too all in front of the audiences and the National Television LIVE! Yes, Om Swami has shown his disgust during a LIVE interview. As we all know, Om Swami is a man who doesn’t keep quiet and says every bullsh*t that he can, and so he did!

Spiti, Himachal Pradesh: A feast for the eye

Spiti is a delight for travellers. A virgin hill resort with opportunities for adventure sports, it fills visitors with awe at its majestic grandeur. Spiti is a relatively offbeat haven for trekkers and soul seekers, being home to many Buddhist temples and monasteries.

May to October is the best time to visit Spiti. The region receives light to medium rainfall at the time and the rain gives it the blush of a maiden fair, which makes this the best time to visit Spiti. The winters are harsh and many-a-time unbearable and should be avoided.

The Mariners defeated Shillong Lajong by 2-0 at Rabindra Sarobar Stadium

Kolkata: Scottish forward Darryl Duffy’s heroic performance helps Sanjoy Sen’s Mohun Bagan to continue their dream run in the 2017 Hero I-League at the Rabindra Sarobar Stadium tonight. The goal-poacher scored a brace including an incredible individual goal to give Sanjoy Sen’s Mohun Bagan the a valuable lead in the 21st minute of the game. Reynier Fernandez the U22 midfielder played a first time long ball for the Scottish striker and after a delightful first touch he dribbled passed two defenders and slotted it in with a magnificent finish.

It was an eventful first half for both the teams, as they both got a lot of chances to put their names on the score sheet. It was Lajong who got the first chance as Bipin Singh brought in a great cross but Brazilian Fabio’s header goes straight to Debjit Majumder. Mohun Bagan got their first chance in the 8th minute when Sehnaj’s shot was beautifully flicked by Duffy but Vishal Kaith made a fine save to prevent the goal.

In the 15th minute, Zodingliana Ralte took a powerful attempt from the distance which troubled Debjit but Anas made a timely clearance. In the 17th minute, Japanese winger Katsumi Yusa made a sublime run from the left and took a fine shot which missed the second post narrowly. The incessant pressure resulted into a goal in the 21st minute when Daryl Duffy scored a phenomenal individual goal.

Shillong Lajong came so close to equalize in the 30th minute when Sana Konsham missed a free header from a Bipin Singh cross from the left. Immediately after, Souvik Ghosh took a great free kick but it missed the near post narrowly.

In the second half, Zodingliana Ralte produced two gorgeous free kicks but Dipanda missed two back to back golden opportunities. The pressure continued to put pressure and in the 50th minute Fabio Pena missed an open sitter from a superb cross by Issac. The highlanders created chances after chances but poor finishing let them down time and again. The pressure forced Bagan Coach Sanjoy Sen to bring in the likes of Pronoy Halder and Prabir Das in the second half.

The Mariners’ got their “insurance goal” in the 77th minute when Darryl Duffy found a fine pass from Balwant and scored his second with complete ease to double the lead for Bagan. Lajong started to come back strongly after conceding the second goal but some stubborn defending from the Green and Maroon Brigade didn’t allow Thangboi Singto’s side to crawl back into the game. Substitute Jeje Lalpekhlua got a fine chance in the added time but shot it well over the bar.

Mariners’ heart-throb Sony Norde cheered his side from the stands throughout the game. The win helps Mohun Bagan to jump on the top of the table with 6 points from two games and without conceding a goal as yet.

Indian football team jumps to record 129th position in FIFA ranking, 19th in Asia

Among the 47 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) countries, Iran lead the list with 816 points while India has occupied the 19th rank with 243 points.

India have jumped to record 129th, the best over a decade, position in the latest FIFA ranking. India jumped to 42 places in less than two years. Among the top notch teams Argentina atop the list with 1634 points.

Among the 47 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) countries, Iran lead the list with 816 points while India has occupied the 19th rank with 243 points.

India was at the dismal 171st position when Stephen Constantine became the national coach. The team won nine of its last 11 games in 2016, including a victory against 114th ranked Puerto Rico.

“I think we have had a really good couple of years during my time and while results have been mixed, we have achieved what we said we would,” said Constantine, “Our ranking is at its highest since 2005 which is obviously great for Indian football. There is, however, a very long way to go where I intend to take Indian football to, but I can say that we have begun our journey.”

“It’s been a total team effort. Unless Mr. Patel (All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Praful Patel) and Mr. Das (AIFF general secretary Kushal Das) allowed me to do the things and the manner I wanted it to be done, this won’t have been possible ever,” Constantine added. 

Veteran Indian goalkeeper Subrata Paul congratulated team India. He said,”We have managed to climb 42 places in less than two years. I feel that’s a terrific achievement.”

“There have been many positive developments in the National team with a whole lot of new players having made their international debut. Constantine has been successful in building the team for the future and we will only improve with every given day,” he added.

The team’s next target, Subrata said, is a sub-100 rank.

As Argentina retained their numero uno position in the FIFA ranking, their arch rival Brazil from South America grab the second position. Among the European teams defending World Cup champion Germany hold the no. 3 position while Belgium grab the fifth position. The fourth position is held by another South American team Chile.

Om Puri’ ex-wife Nandita Puri finally breaks her silence over his unnatural death

There are a lot of speculative stories going around Om Puri‘s sudden demise. The cause of his death is yet unknown and doctors have reported that his death was not a natural death. Om Puri’s friend Khalid Kidwai later revealed that the veteran actor was high on alcohol and wanted to meet his son Ishaan a day before his death, but unfortunately he couldn’t do so, as he was out with his mother Nandita Puri. Om Puri and Nandita Puri had been living separately and were headed for a divorce. Nandita has finally broken her silence and revealed the details of what happened a day before Om Puri’s death.

She said to a leading daily, “We were supposed to go for Pankaj Kapur’s daughter, Sana, and Pahwa’s son, Mayank’s engagement ceremony. Om called me and by the time we got there, he reached my house. He went up to my mom and said, “Kya budhia, kyun sadd rahi hai yahan. Tu bhi mere saath swarg chal.” He was in high spirits. He called me again and said, “Tum aur Ishaan jaldi aa jao.” I told him we’d see him later. When he called me again, I told him, “It’s too late, we’ll see you tomorrow.” Ishaan and I still regret not seeing him that day. Ishaan was going to be with him on January 8, 9 and 10 for the shooting of ‘Tubelight’, and they were to head to Khandala from there.”

She also revealed about their separation and said, “We were not divorced and are still legally married. We had a separation. Trishul is his home and my marital home. By the Hindu law, he was allowed one wife. It can be an ex-wife and a current wife. Om had only one wife. He helped his nephews and strangers, but now when his son needs him, he is gone. I’ll miss him terribly because he is a habit. I have spent the longest part of my life with him more than my son or my parents.”

Om Puri’s death came as a shocker to one and all and many Bollywood celebrities were left shaken. He was supposed to shoot for Salman Khan’s film ‘Tubelight’, but unfortunately, he left for his heavenly adobe, before he could do so.

Should our Soldiers be treated like this?

'We owe our existence to the men in uniform, and we owe it to them to cleanse the armed forces by driving away every bit of corruption that eats into it,' argues Sudhir Bisht.

IMAGE: Border Security Force jawan Tej Bahadur Yadav whose video sparked off a national debate on the conditions in the armed forces.

I write this column with some trepidation as it is considered sacrilegious to question the integrity of any organ of the Indian armed forces -- military and paramilitary services.

Is it not blasphemous of me to write about the corruption in the Indian armed forces just because BSF jawan Tej Bahadur Yadav posted a video that says his unit has been serving him and his mates food that is very little and of poor quality?

I write this column because if I stop writing due to the fear of being labelled anti-armed forces, then I will cease to be a writer.

I believe that NOT questioning the wrongdoing in the armed forces is being anti-military. Not the other way round.

Let me start by saying that I wish that Yadav had not posted the video.

How I wish that Yadav had not felt the need to post the video.

How I wish his BSF commandant had taken note of his complaints and Yadav's grievance had been addressed quickly and justly at the battalion level.

On the other hand, it is good that this video came into the public space for it has given us an opportunity to see if all's well in our armed forces, especially in its supplies wings.

I must admit here that Yadav's video has nothing to do directly with the Indian Army. I know the jawan belongs to the Border Security Force that reports to the ministry of home affairs.

However, the fact is that the BSF in many parts of Kashmir works under the army's supervision and I want to take this opportunity to draw the attention of readers to the shortcomings that afflict the supplies side of the Indian Army.

The situation at the BSF's logistics arm may be in very bad shape, but I want to point out that it is not as if all is hunky-dory in the army.

As a writer it is my business to send out a warning when the danger isn't so imminent. Hence this piece, which is based on first-hand experience.

I was transferred from Allahabad to Jammu in 1992 upon getting promoted from operations officer to assistant manager-sales. I then worked for the biggest oil company in India and in Jammu, my main non-retail customer was the Indian Army.

My company had a near one hundred percent market share when it came to the top bulk customers/end users of petroleum products.

The Indian Army, the Border Roads Organisation, the Indian Railways, the Central Reserve Police Force, the BSF were our captive customers.

I was the youngest officer in the company's divisional office and was a keen learner. I realised very quickly that in my sales area (Jammu), the retail business didn't count for much if one hadn't earned one's spurs in the petroleum sales trade.

The key to success was all about maintaining excellent relations with all the units of the Indian Army where my corporation supplied POL (petrol, oil and lubricants) products.

My immediate boss and his boss kindly introduced me to the Army Services Corps echelons at the Northern Command headquarters at Udhampur.

They explained to me that one of the key roles that I needed to play involved coordinating between our depot and the Northern Command headquarters during the annual winter stocking (AWS) period.

AWS referred to those 120 days when my depot colleagues were tasked with the challenge of achieving targeted stockpile of POL products in army stores in the Ladakh and Kashmir divisions, which had its road access cut off for most part of the year due to snow.

Even though I wasn't responsible for the sales function of Ladakh and Kashmir valley divisions I always felt a special pride in keeping an eye on the winter stocking movements.

I was always ready with updates on the number of tank-trucks that were dispatched on a daily and cumulative basis to the far-flung depots.

Just as there was a massive exercise to store POL products, there was an even bigger exercise to store food items for Ladakh and the Kashmir valley by the army.

I visited the Northern Command headquarters several times and found great hustle and bustle there. Men in uniform and civilian suppliers were busy working in unison to achieve the common objective of stocking supplies of essential products in the limited period of 120 to 140 days.

I used to visit the army's POL units, especially in Jammu division in sectors like Akhnoor, Rajouri, Poonch, Sambha and many others.

There were depots where there were storage tanks and dispensing pumps. These depots were visited by many vehicles from smaller formations that came to collect their regular fuel quota.

I found that at many a unit, the dispensing pump meters were malfunctioning and the fuel used to be measured by the drum.

I distinctly remember that the receivers of the petroleum products always, almost always, used to haggle with the guy who was the issuer of the product.

The common refrain used to be, 'Please fill up my jerry can/drum till this line... Why are you short filling?'

I was somewhat disturbed by the utter lack of transparency among the army units on the transaction of POL products.

Why couldn't the officer in charge of POL products at the battalion or platoon formation level ensure a better way of measuring the quantity of fuel dispensed?

I stopped thinking about it after it dawned on me that if it was one unit of the army that was short-changing the other unit, the gains remained within the overall kitty of the Indian Army.

But what I thought wasn't really right. There was more to it than met the eye.

It took me several visits to realise that all wasn't as smooth as it appeared. I must point out here that my company had nothing to do with what transpired among the various army units.

Our job was to ensure that the POL supplies reached the designated storage points on time and in full measure.

It was when I started spending time at our depot that I realised that all was not so clean within the army's supplies wing.

There were many truck drivers who were very happy to go to certain army units to drop off the fuel. I used to wonder why and started investigating in right earnest.

I began by asking the truck drivers. "It is for the bottle of rum, sirji!" an old driver said, laughing. Later in the evening, I caught hold of the old man and as we sat down with a bottle of Old Monk at a local dhaba, he said, "Kakka (young boy), you are a very educated man. Someone was telling me that you are an engineer. What did you study in college?"

"Chachaji, I studied management," I replied.

"If you studied management then did you ever ask yourself a question?"

"Which question, Chachaji?"

"The question that how do two districts, Poonch and Rajouri, survive with just one petrol station? And that station sells only 1,000 litres of petrol and diesel in a day."

"Do you know that there is not even one exclusive dealer for kerosene in Poonch district? The kerosene distributor from Rajouri fulfills the kerosene needs of Poonch district too. You management de puttar, you don't know who supplies all the petroleum products to the people in Rajouri and Poonch districts!"

"It is our Indian Army. Without the army, the people would starve," he laughed.

I immediately understood what he was hinting at. I never visited Poonch district since I didn't have any fuel station or kerosene dealer there.

When I started visiting the interiors of Rajouri and Poonch districts. I found a number of shops had tiny underground dumps to store diesel and petrol.

All of them drew their supplies, illegally, from the army units.

The modus operandi was simple.

The truck carrying POL from the oil company depot to the army unit would divert a part of the fuel to these private dumps.

The money collected would then be split between the army unit and the civilian truck driver at the expense of the Indian Army.

In return the army dump would supply short to the other units that came to draw its fuel quota.

I later discovered that the story was the same for food supplies, for meat supplies and for vegetable supplies.

The only saving grace was that the percentage of stealing wasn't alarming. The pilferage happened slowly but certainly.

Was the corruption localised? Did it go up from the unit level to the command level? I don't think so, although 'I don't know' would be a better answer.

It is quite possible that the stealing may have grown out of proportion now.

I sympathise with BSF jawan Tej Bahadur Yadav. He must have been at the last mile of a very rotten local line of logistics where someone stole half the ration truck and passed on the losses to his 29th Battalion in Poonch.

I propound with full force at my command that there is a need to check corruption in the army.

I too love the Indian Army and I know that most officers and jawans are incorruptible.

They are our heroes and I know that we breathe freely because of our army, BSF and CRPF.

We owe our existence to these men in uniform, but we owe it to them to cleanse the Indian defence services by driving away every bit of corruption that eats into it.

At a time when a former air chief is being interrogated for accepting kickbacks and a BSF jawan is crying for want of adequate food, we need to investigate some of the arms of the armed Forces that carry such blemishes.

Ordnance depots that get gutted in fires need more auditing and post-mortems.

The canteen stores department is another division that may need more scrutiny.

Military Engineering Services is another key division from where whispers of systematised corruption keep emanating.

While I am sure that corruption may impact only a tiny fraction of the armed forces, I call for its total elimination to save these great institutions.

Jai Hind!

Sony Norde has reached Kolkata

Shah Rukh Khan Nominated For Fan In Best Actor

Shah Rukh Khan Nominated For Fan In Best Actor In A Leading Role In #JioFilmFareAwards. Most Deserving.

Joe Root picks his all-time Test XI

The 26-year-old English batting mainstay Joe Root has picked his all-time XI, where Indian skipper Virat Kohli and cricket Icon Sachin Tendulkar, who are the only Indian player to find their place in the Root’s all-time squad. Although, Root chose current England Test skipper Alastair Cook as captain of his team.

The right-hander also picked three Englishman in the line-up as well two Australian players in the form of Shane Warne and Mitchell Johnson in the playing XI.

Root told Lord’s Cricket Ground’s official Facebook page, “Opening the batting for me are Michael Vaughan and Alastair Cook. Vaughan because as a kid growing up, he was from the same local club then going through and playing for Yorkshire and captaining England to an Ashes-winning team,” 

Root said about Alastair Cook, “Cooky at the other end, again, England’s all-time run maker. I have had the opportunity to play alongside him and bat with him out at middle at the moment. He is going to captain the team as he is the only ever international captain I have played under in Test cricket.”

The 26-year-old who is English key batsman said that he was lucky to have played against the Tendulkar, who is in the third batting position in Root’s playing XI.

Joe said on this, “At number 3, Sachin Tendulkar, one of the best players to ever play the game. Lucky enough to have made my debut against him, and it was quite an honor to just be on the same field as him. Number 4, Jacques Kallis, I never was lucky enough to play against him, he was massive influence on me growing up.”

He also said that Virat Kohli, who is at no. 5 batting position in the squad, is one of the best players in the world at the moment. Root stated, “Number 5, Virat Kohli, one of the best players in the world at the moment. The way he can construct an innings in all formats of the game is outstanding. At number 6 is AB de Villiers, again a fantastic player for South Africa for a number of years. Can keep, can field, I think he has even got wickets, and obviously scored a number of match winning knocks for South Africa.”