Punjab will have to give up its stubbornness over SYL issue: Khattar

 

Chandigarh, December 20

 Haryana Chief Minister  Manohar Lal Khattar said that in a democratic country, states cannot run arbitrarily and Punjab will have to give up its stubbornness over the issue of SYL. He hoped that Haryana will definitely get its rightful share of water.

Addressing a Jal Adhikar Rally at ITI ground in Narnaul today, the Chief Minister said that the SYL case had been pending for decades. As soon as the present government was formed, a plea to hear the matter ahead of time was made, after which the Supreme Court ruled in favour of Haryana. The court had asked the Chief Ministers of both the states to sit down and decide but Punjab did not agree to give Haryana its rightful share.

He said that in democracy there is a way to protest. Protests can be made before the House and the media or by gathering democratically.

On this occasion, Mr. Manohar Lal assured the farmers that he would leave politics if there was any kind of threat to Minimum Support Price (MSP). He said that the government is thinking beyond MSP through the new agricultural laws. MSP will continue like before. Similarly, mandis will continue to function as well, he added. He said that some people are agitating politically, they are not farmer-friendly. We should talk about SYL water with the farmers of Punjab sitting on the border, he added.

The Chief Minister said that all three new agricultural laws are for the benefit of farmers. This will free the farmers from bondage, he added. He said that the government will procure the crop from farmers in the mandis at MSP, but if the farmer wants to sell it outside at a higher price, he will have complete freedom to do so. In addition, these new laws also aim to improve the storage system, he added.

The Chief Minister said that under this reform process, the government has made 88 mandis online out of 104 mandis in the state. He said that due to lack of proper storage, every year there is loss of food grains worth Rs. 30,000 crore in the country. Even in Haryana, food grains worth Rs 700 crore go bad, therefore the government is making efforts to save this food grain, he added. He said that Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi is the true benefactor of farmers. There is a dire need for storage reforms and sales reforms in the country and to fulfill this, the government has enacted these laws, he added.

Mr. Manohar Lal said that the opposition parties are trying to deceive the farmers in which they will never succeed. The opposition does not want the farmers' income to increase so that they can take good care of their children, he added. He said that in 2010, a committee was formed by the previous government under the chairmanship of former Chief Minister, Mr. Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Mr. Hooda had advocated for reform in the APMC Act, but today the same opposition parties are sitting on the border and provoking the people.

The Chief Minister said that in the interest of the farmers of the state, a new micro-irrigation scheme has been started. Bhiwani-Dadri and Mahendragarh districts have been included under this scheme, he added. He said that, under this, water will be made available to fields where there is scarcity. The farmers there will be provided irrigation equipment at 80 percent subsidy, he added. He said that the government will make arrangements in every possible way to provide water if a farmer comes up with a plan to bring 25 acres of land under irrigation from January 1, 2021.

He said that after the formation of the government water has been made available uptil every tail-end by dividing the available water equally. A scheme worth Rs 2000 crore has been made to raise the groundwater level in southern Haryana, by releasing excess rainwater into the rivers Krishnavati, Dohan, and Sahabi. Similarly, the MoU of Renuka-Kishau dam has been done and the MoU of Lakhwar dam will be signed soon. This work will be completed in a time-bound manner, he added.

Mr. Manohar Lal said that the State Government had called upon the farmers to quit paddy cultivation, which resulted in farmers planting paddy on 80,000 acres of less land last year.

On this occasion, Union Minister, Mr. Rao Inderjit Singh, Haryana Agriculture Minister, Mr. JP Dalal, Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Mr. OP Yadav, State President, Bharatiya Janata Party, Mr. OP Dhankar, Bhiwani-Mahendragarh MP, Mr. Dharambir Singh, Ateli MLA, Mr. Sita Ram, Prithla MLA, Mr. Nayan Pal Rawat, Former Education Minister, Mr. Ram Bilas Sharma among others also addressed the gathering. MLA, Nangal Chaudhary, Dr. Abhe Singh Yadav conducted the stage.

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Gaganjeet Bhullar sees it home with a hard-fought 68

 

Chikkarangappa finishes runner-up, moves into second on PGTI Order of Merit

Jamshedpur, December 20

 Gaganjeet Bhullar from Kapurthala (Punjab) saw it home with a hard-fought four-under-68 despite a bumpy ride on the final day of the TATA Steel Tour Championship 2020 in Jamshedpur. Bhullar, who totaled an outstanding 24-under-264 for the week, thus collected his 10th trophy on the PGTI and first in nine years on the tour.

The final round of the Rs. 1.5 crore event was witness to an absorbing contest as Kapurthala’s Bhullar, Bengalureans Chikkarangappa and Khalin Joshi, Kolkata’s SSP Chawrasia and Noida’s Amardeep Malik were all in the lead or joint lead at different stages.

Chikkarangappa ended the week as the runner-up after his fourth round of 68 moved his total to 22-under-266. Chikka’s second place finish lifted him from 11th to second position in the PGTI Order of Merit.

Khalin Joshi (69) finished third at 21-under-267, Kolkata’s Rahil Gangjee, who fired the day’s best score of 67, took tied fourth place at 20-under-268 along with SSP Chawrasia (72). Amardeep Malik (73), the joint third round leader along with Bhullar and Chawrasia, closed the week in sixth place at 19-under-269.

On Sunday, the leading 27 players out of 53 played their first nine holes at Golmuri and second nine holes at Beldih. The remaining 26 players played at Beldih first and then Golmuri.

The 32-year-old Gaganjeet Bhullar (69-63-64-68), a winner of 10 international titles with victories on both the European Tour and Asian Tour, brought all his experience into play by coming through despite dropping five shots (three bogeys and a double-bogey) in the final round.

Gaganjeet, who holds the Indian record of nine wins on the Asian Tour, consolidated his position at the top with a flurry of early birdies on the first, third and fourth holes thanks to his accurate iron and wedge shots. Bhullar’s troubles began on the fifth where he double-bogeyed after finding the hazard. He missed an up and down on the next hole to drop another shot.

Gaganjeet, a part of the Indian team that won the silver medal at the 2006 Doha Asian Games, pulled one stroke back with a 15-feet birdie conversion on the eighth before conceding another bogey on the 11th. The broad-built six-footer from Punjab then added two more birdies on the 12th and 13th before finding trouble once again on the 15th where he landed in the trees and as a result made bogey.

Bhullar was two behind Chikka and Joshi after 15 holes but the match turned on its head when Gaganjeet chipped-in for eagle on the 16th and sank a 20-footer for birdie on the 17th. As Chikka and Joshi stumbled on the 18th with a bogey and double-bogey respectively, Bhullar went on to seal the title with a two-shot margin after a par on the final hole.

Gaganjeet took home the winning cheque worth Rs. 24,24,750 and is now likely to make major gains in the world ranking from his current 807^th position having earned five Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points for his win on Sunday.

Bhullar said, “Honestly, I was not at all expecting to win this week. This week the first goal for me was to make the cut. But I kept gaining momentum with each passing round and played four solid rounds where my putting was very consistent.

“I did shoot a nine-under on day two but it was the third round of 64 that really put me in contention. That’s when I knew that I had a really good chance to win. I was aware of the fact that whenever I have been in contention in recent times, I have gone on to win.

“I believed in myself on the final day despite the ups and downs during the round. The eagle and birdie on the final stretch came just at the right time for me. It’s been great being back on the PGTI and registering my first win on the tour since my 2011 victory in Chandigarh.

“I played two events on the PGTI this month and the competition has been very intense which is a great sign of things to come for Indian golf. I would like to thank TATA Steel for staging this fabulous event and supporting Indian golf and the PGTI even in such difficult times.”

While runner-up Chikka mixed seven birdies with three bogeys during his 68, third-placed Khalin sank five birdies at the expense of a double-bogey for his 69.

Among the other prominent names, Anirban Lahiri (68) took 11th place at 14-under-274, Chandigarh’s Karandeep Kochhar (72), who continues to lead the PGTI Order of Merit, finished 14th at 12-under-276, Shiv Kapur (69) was tied 16th at 10-under-278 and Jyoti Randhawa (81) was tied 30th at five-under-283. 

-----balbirsingh227@gmail.com

Chikkarangappa’s blistering 62 hands him first round lead

Jamshedpur, December 17

Bengaluru’s Chikkarangappa S struck a blistering 10-under-62 to take the first round lead at the TATA Steel Tour Championship 2020 being played at the Beldih and Golmuri golf courses in Jamshedpur. Noida’s Amardeep Malik posted an impressive nine-under-63 to be placed second on day one of the Rs. 1.5 crore PGTI event.

Gurugram’s Manu Gandas, Delhi-based Kshitij Naveed Kaul and Arjun Prasad and Chandigarh’s Harendra Gupta were all in tied third place having shot matching scores of 64.

Pre-tournament favourite Anirban Lahiri fired a 65 to occupy tied seventh along with the Chandigarh duo of Karandeep Kochhar (PGTI Order of Merit leader) and Yuvraj Singh Sandhu.

In round one, one half of the field played their 18 holes at Beldih Golf Club while the other half played at Golmuri Golf Club. Both halves of the field will switch venues in round two.

Chikkarangappa, who began his week at Golmuri, the venue that produced the lower scores on day one, claimed an eagle, nine birdies and a bogey on Thursday. The 27-year-old reaped the benefits of using a new putter early on in his round as he sank birdie putts from a range of 10 to 15 feet on the first, fifth, sixth and seventh. After landing it within three feet on the ninth and 10^th, Chikka added two more birdies to his card.

The two-time winner on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) was relentless thereafter as he picked up birdie-eagle-birdie on the 11th, 12th and 13th to move to an astonishing 10-under for the day. On the 12th, he recovered well from the rough with a terrific nine-iron second shot before converting an 18-footer for eagle. The 13th saw him make another 15-feet conversion.

The Asian Tour regular Chikka then found the trees on the 17th that led to his only bogey of the day. He managed to negate it with a birdie on the closing 18th.

Chikka said, “I changed my putter this week as I was struggling to hole putts in previous events even though I was stroking it well on the greens. The new putter seems to be working for me as I holed a lot of long putts today.

“I’ve been in contention in all events since the tour resumed in November this year. However, I still need to convert my good starts at events into better finishes. Hopefully, with my driving, wedge-play and putting now shaping up well, I can have a good result this week.

“Golmuri is more scoring among the two courses this week so I expect Beldih to throw up its own set of challenges when I play there during round two,” added Chikka, who finished a creditable second at the PGTI event in Jamshedpur in 2018.

Amardeep Malik, who also played at Golmuri on day one, came up with a flawless round. Malik was in contention in the last event in Chandigarh lying one off the lead after round three before he finished tied 16^th. On Thursday he made four consecutive birdies on the front-nine and back-nine.

Amardeep capitalized on all four par-5s – second, third, 11th and 12th – by picking up birdies there. He also drove the green on the par-4s fourth and 13^th to set up birdies.

Harendra Gupta and Arjun Prasad produced the best scores at Beldih on Thursday, rounds of 64, to be tied third along with Manu Gandas and Kshitij Naveed Kaul both of whom played at Golmuri.

Gupta suffered a groin injury while teeing off on the ninth but still managed to return a bogey-free card.

Among the other prominent names, SSP Chawrasia, a three-time winner in Jamshedpur and local amateur Navtez Singh were both tied 13th having carded scores of 67. Jyoti Randhawa and Shiv Kapur were both tied 18th with scores of 68 while Gaganjeet Bhullar and Rahil Gangjee were a further shot back in tied 23rd place.

Defending champion Udayan Mane of Pune shot a 71 to be tied 52nd while Delhi’s Rashid Khan, the highest-ranked Indian in the world, posted a 72 to be tied 60th. 

=====balbirsingh227@gmail.com

Panchkula and Ambala bag ‘Har Ghar Nal Se Jal districts’

  Chandigarh December 16

 In a significant achievement, two districts of Haryana namely Panchkula and Ambala have bagged the title of ‘Har Ghar Nal Se Jal districts’ with 100 per cent Functional Household Tap Connection (FHTC) in rural households under the Jal Jeevan Mission. The Mission aims to ensure access to sustainable drinking water through piped water connection to every rural household by 2024.

        While stating this here today, Additional Chief Secretary, Public Health Engineering Department, Mr Devender Singh said that under the able leadership and guidance of Chief Minister, Mr Manohar Lal, Haryana is fully aligned with Government of India in this flagship programme and committed to provide FHTC to every rural household in the State by December 2022, way ahead of the national target of 2024.

         Mr Devender Singh said that Panchkula and Ambala have become districts having 100 per cent FHTC in rural households. While Panchkula with 34,433 FTHCs in four Blocks namely Pinjore, Raipur Rani, Morni and Barwala becomes the first district of the State having 100 per cent FHTCs in rural households. Thus Ambala with 1,19,431 FHTCs in six blocks namely Ambala I, Ambala II, Barara, Shahzadpur, Naraingarh and Saha secures the second position by having 100 per cent FHTCs in rural households.

        He said that since the inception of this programme the Public Health Engineering Department has actively strategized the entire programme and as a result, today, Haryana has provided FHTCs to more than 80 per cent rural households of the State.

        The Additional Chief Secretary said that as per annual action plan, it was targeted to achieve one district with 100 per cent FHTC by January 26, 2021. However, with the active contribution of staff under the guidance of Engineer-in-Chief, Public Health Engineering Department, this milestone has been achieved earlier well before the target date. During this pandemic time, by taking all the safety measures, the team at ground level headed by Superintending Engineer and team members including all the Executive Engineers, Xen, JEs and other field staff members are the real victor of this success story, he added.

        He said that further, the Department is in the process of contacting each and every Gram Panchayat and obtaining Certificate from concerned Village Water and Sewerage Committee (VWSC) for reconfirmation of 100 per cent coverage in the village ensuring on-ground coverage of the programme.

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Verma and Radhika Vasudeva win tennis titles

 

CHANDIGARH, DEC 16

  CLTA trainees Verma and Radhika Vasudeva won singles titles in the CLTA-AITA Championship Series (CS-3) Tennis Tournament at the Sector 10 Tennis Stadium here today.

Second seed Navya Verma upset the top seed Aryan Thakur in straight sets in the boys under-16 singles final. Navya Verma played a very intelligent and consistent game and there was a lot of variation in his shots, Navya won the first^t set 6-3. In the second set Navya was leading 3-0 but Aryan Thakur came back strongly and took the next three games in a row and made it 3-3. Navya however refocused on his game and closed the 2^nd set and the match 6-3. 

In the girls under-16 singles finals another CLTA trainee, Radhika Vasudeva upset the top seed Harleen Kaur Dhanda 6-4, 7-5. Radhika played a lot of variations in her ground strokes and used her shots intelligently to beat Harleen Kaur Dhanda 6-4 in the first  set. In the second set both players played good quality tennis. Finally Radhika overcame Harleen and won the 2^nd set and match 7-5 in a close contested match.   

Dr. Reet Mahinder Singh, Member Executive and Mr. Romen Singh, Chief Coach, CLTA distributed the prizes to the winners and runners-up of both the events.

Results  -

Boys under-16 singles (final): Navya Verma [2] bt. Aryan Thakur [1] 6-3, 6-3

 

Girl’s under-16 singles (final): Radhika Vasudeva [2] bt. Harleen Kaur Dhanda [1] 6-4, 7-5.

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Navya Verma and Radhika Vasudeva in finals

 CHANDIGARH, DEC 15

Second seed Navya Verma of CLTA Trainee and top seed Aryan Thakur moved into boys under-16 singles final in the CLTA-AITA Championship Series (CS-3) Tennis Tournament  . Navya defeated Aditya Chauhan another CLTA Trainee 9-5. Navya played high quality tennis, Navya forced to make error his opponent Aditya Chauhan and played solid game from the baseline. Finally Navya used his experience to win from 3^rd seed Aditya Chauhan. In the another Semifinals top seed Aryan Thakur won easily from Akshat Dhull 9-2. Aryan Thakur dominant throughout the match and Aryan Thakur win the match from Akshat Dhull without getting much pressure.   

In the girls under-16 singles final top seed Harleen Kaur Dhanda will face second seed Radhika Vasudeva. Radhika Vasudeva blanked third seed Maitreyi Phogat 9-0 without conceding single game. In another semifinals top seed Harleen Kaur Dhanda defeated Gurmanat Kaur Sandhu 9-2 in a easy score. Harleen overpowered with her aggressive flatter ground stroke from the baseline from Gurmanat Kaur Sandhu. In the previous round Quarterfinal match Harleen defeated Bhumika Gupta 9-2.

Results

Boys under-16 (s-finals):   Aryan Thakur [1] bt. Akshat Dhull 9-2,  Navya Verma [2] bt. Aditya Chauhan [3] 9-5.

Girls under-16 (s-finals): Harleen Kaur Dhanda [1] bt. Gurmanat Kaur Sandhu 9-2,  Radhika Vasudeva [2] bt. Maitreyi Phogat [3] 9-0.

Boys under-16 (q-finals):    Aryan Thakur [1] bt. Rakshit Dhankar [8] 9-5,  Akshat Dhull bt. Anirudh Sangra [6] 9-4, Aditya Chauhan [3] bt. Arnav Bishnoi [7] 9-2,  Navya Verma [2] bt. Kartik Sunil Kumar [5] 9-1.

Girls under-16 (q-finals):  Harleen Kaur Dhanda [1] bt. Bhumika Gupta [6] 9-2, Gurmanat Kaur Sandhu bt. Vanya Arora [4] 9-8(5), Maitreyi Phogat [3] bt. Ananya Dogra [5] 9-4.

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Navya and Radhika enter quarter-finals

   CHANDIGARH, DEC 14

Second seed in boys under-16 Navya Verma of CLTA and seventh seed Arnav Bishnoi advanced into quarterfinals boys singles of the CLTA-AITA Championship Series (CS-3) Tennis Tournament for Boy’s & Girl’s under-16 at the Sector 10 Tennis Stadium here today.

. Navya overpowered Yash Solanky of another CLTA trainee 8-0. Navya played matured tennis and maintained his rhythm throughout the match. Another CLTA player Arnav Bishoni won from Arpit Garg marginally 8-4. Sixth seed Anirudh Sangra and Aryan Thakur (top seed) also advanced into quarterfinals.   

In the Girls under-16 singles second seed Radhika Vasudeva, Vanya Arora and Harleen Kaur Dhanda moved into Quarterfinals. Radhika Vasudeva defeated Shriya Singh 8-3 in easy match. Top seed Harleen Kaur Dhanda overplayed from Radha Sadhra 8-2 in one sided match. 

Unseeded Gurmanat Kaur Sandhu upset seventh seed Bhumi Kakkar in a closed contestant match 8-6. Gurmanat   played consistently with good momentum, Gurmanat played few intelligent short to defeat Bhumi Kakkar. Fourth seed Vanya Arora blanked Saira 8-0. Ananya Dogra, Maitreyi Phogat, Bhumika Gupta and Riya Kaushik also advanced into quarterfinals.

Results  

Boy’s under-16 singles (PQ finals):   Aryan Thakur [1] bt. Mehraab Singh Rai 8-0, Rakshit Dhankar [8] bt. Parmarth Kaushik 8-1,  Akshat Dhull bt. Lakshya Gupta [4] 8-6,  Anirudh Sangra [6] bt. Manvir Singh Hundal 8-1,   Arnav Bishnoi [7] bt. Arpit Garg 8-4,   Aditya Chauhan [3] bt. Umang Singh Cogi 8-5,  Kartik Sunil Kumar [5] bt. Akshit Ratti 8-1,   Navya Verma [2] bt. Yash Solanky 8-0.

Girl’s under-16 singles (PQ finals):   Harleen Kaur Dhanda [1] bt. Radha Sadhra 8-2,     Bhumika Gupta [6] bt. Krittika Katoch 8-3,   Vanya Arora [4] bt. Saira Saundh 8-0,  Gurmanat Kaur Sandhu bt. Bhumi Kakkar [7] 8-6,   Ananya Dogra [5] bt. Anandita Sharma 8-7(6),     Maitreyi Phogat [3] bt. Rubani Kaur Sidhu 8-6,    Riya Kaushik [6] bt. Sidhak Kaur 8-1,     Radhika Vasudeva [2] bt. Shriya Singh 8-3.

Singles (Ist round): 

 Boy’s under-16:   Aryan Thakur [1] bt. Jashandeep Singh 8-1,  Mehraab Singh Rai bt. Anish Sharma 8-2,   Parmarth Kaushik bt. Nandit Negi 8-0,   Rakshit Dhankar [8] bt. Sabyasachi Naveen Pruthi 8-0,  Lakshya Gupta [4] bt. Angad Singh Rangi 8-1,  Akshat Dhull bt. Sehaj Sharma 8-0,   Manvir Singh Hundal W/O Harmanbir Singh,   Anirudh Sangra [6] bt. Saksham Sandhu 8-0,    Arnav Bishnoi [7] bt. Hrridya Pandey 8-0,  Arpit Garg bt. Anuj Pal 8-6, Umang Singh Cogi bt. Satyan Sankalp 8-4, Aditya Chauhan [3] bt. Samarpit Bhatia 8-1, Kartik Sunil Kumar [5] bt. Manav Malik 8-2, Akshit Ratti bt. Shaurya Goyel 8-5, Yash Solanky bt. Karen Singh 8-1,  Navya Verma [2] bt. Aryan Jolly 8-1.

Girl’s under-16:   Radha Sadhra bt. Sia Mahajan 8-6,   Krittika Katoch bt. Rhosyn William 8-5,     Saira Saundh bt. Soumya Hooda 8-1,    Gurmanat Kaur Sandhu bt. Akshita Vashisht 8-0,     Anandita Sharma bt. Mokshita Yadav 8-1,   Rubani Kaur Sidhu bt. Mehakpreet Kaur 8-2,     Sidhak Kaur bt. Milli Pandit 8-3,    Shriya Singh bt. Agrima Gandhi 8-3.

====balbirsingh227@gmail.com

CITI urges farmer unions to adopt new farming model

 CHANDIGARH,DEC 12

Chamber for international Trade and industry (CITI) urges Farmer Unions to adopt New Farm Model to create economic opportunities in agriculture for doubling Farmers income. Due to present unrest and significant challenges faced by farmer community with respect to Production and Marketing of their produce, the use of emerging technologies, the globalization and their survival, farmers desperately need handholding support by the Centre and state governments in transforming and preparing them improving their global competitiveness and profitability to double farmers income..

 

Chamber for International Trade & Industry (CITI) urge all state governments and Farmer Unions to review the existing farm policy, to strengthen their economy, and create self- employment to enhance economic opportunities in rural areas. . 

 

Mr. Mohan Singh Sudan, Former Agribusiness Advisor to J&K Government, former Advisor CII and President Chamber for international Trade & Industry (CITI), suggested that States should create a climate that nurtures and support local Farm enterprises and provide adequate infrastructure support that will optimize the resources for economic growth. .He Said that creative thinking & right lead can put the farmers on the fast track development of agriculture by providing handholding support to the farmers in getting right price for their produce.

 

Mr. Singh further said that the time has come to review the Existing Farm Policy, wherein policy makers must ensure capacity building of farmers in terms of physical, financial and up-skilling through various institutions, industry partners and other stakeholders besides encouraging growing its own large Farm enterprises rather than hunting for outside large business houses to achieve the desired results.  

 

CITI, strongly believe that there is an urgent need to act together in laying  the foundation  of  a  new Farming Model, which is not only environmentally sustainable, but can help developing agripreneurs to be globally competitive thereby doubling farmer income. The strategy & methodology towards doubling farmer income is possible only by developing a Smart Village initiative which will address all issues of farmer’s grievances by uplifting the farm community through industrialization & globalization.

 

CITI, offers to assist all farmer Unions to get register their own Farmer’s Enterprise and developing a New Farming Model  and together we can set up  a pilot project in one village and deliver the desired results within a period of 18-24 months to the best satisfaction of all stake holders.

 

The roadmap and action plan is ready to be discussed with each Farmer’s Enterprise for its implementation through an integrated development program under cluster approach involving entire members of the respective farmers union.

 

Mr. Singh being a policy Advisor of Sikkim Government would also like to assist Farm enterprises to implement Sikkim Organic Farming Model in their respective areas for the well being of the entire humanity.

====balbirsingh227@gmail.com

Karandeep Kochhar prevails in playoff against Anirban Lahiri

 

Chandigarh, December 7

Chandigarh’s Karandeep Kochhar fashioned a remarkable come-from-behind win at his home course, the Chandigarh Golf Club, after prevailing in the playoff against Indian star Anirban Lahiri thus lifting the trophy at the Rs. 1.5 crore Jeev Milkha Singh Invitational 2020 Presented by TAKE Sports. The tournament was decided in a playoff for the third year in succession.

Twenty-one-year-old local favourite Kochhar, who began the tournament with a disastrous four-over-76 to lie tied 76^th after round one, made a grand comeback with his next three rounds of 66, 67 and 68 to end up in a playoff with pre-tournament favourite Lahiri after both totaled 11-under-277 for the week.

Karandeep (76-66-67-68) and Anirban (70-68-70-69) were in a deadlock after being tied at the end of the first two playoff holes on Sunday. The match was then extended to Monday due to the fading light. They resumed the playoff with the third extra hole at 9 am on Monday. This was the first time in PGTI history that a tournament was extended by a day.

Kochhar, who began the final round in sixth place and three off the lead, went through a rollercoaster of emotions on Sunday after incurring a one-shot penalty for accidentally causing the ball to move on the 17^th hole which as a result forced the match into a playoff. Karandeep finally showed great mental fortitude to come back and prevail on the third playoff hole on Monday making a 15-feet birdie conversion even as Anirban missed his 12-footer for birdie.

Kochhar, as a result, made it back-to-back wins on the TATA Steel PGTI having won the previous event on the tour at the same venue last month. This was Karandeep’s third title and second win as a professional on the PGTI. He had won his first title on the tour while still an amateur in 2016. Interestingly, the Chandigarh lad had lost out in a playoff to Chikkarangappa in the first edition of the tournament back in 2018.

Kochhar’s win pushed him up from second to first position in the PGTI Order of Merit as his winning cheque of Rs. 24,24,750 took his season’s earnings to Rs. 33,50,680. Pune’s Udayan Mane is now second in the PGTI money list with earnings of Rs. 19,24,150. Karandeep also earned 5 Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points for his win which propelled him from 442 to 355 in the world rankings, a gain of 87 spots.

Kochhar said, “I got good advice from Jeev Sir last evening who told me to believe in myself no matter what the situation. It means a great deal to me having made such a good comeback after starting with a 76. Winning two events in a row is special and I feel I can continue this winning spree further at the next event in Jamshedpur as I’m playing the best golf of my life right now. Having played 15-under in the last three rounds, I attribute this win to my positive mindset as I trusted my game despite the poor start to the week.

“I went on the range this morning and practiced some drivers and wedges. I knew the flag was easier with water not in play so my focus was on hitting a good drive down the middle to set up a 100 yards full sand wedge approach and then get inside 10 to 15 feet of the pin to put the pressure on Anirban. I managed to execute this strategy well. I feel I always have an edge over most players here at my home course. I’m always confident of scrambling well here even when I’m not playing at my best. So that contributed to my self-belief this week.

“A goal of mine at the start of the year was to win the Order of Merit. I’m now leading the money list so I’m on track to achieve my objective.”

It was a memorable outing for PGA Tour regular and seven-time international winner Lahiri too who returned to play an event on the PGTI after over six years.

Lahiri and Kochhar to continue playoff duel on Monday after being tied on first two extra holes

Chandigarh, December 6

 The Rs. 1.5 crore Jeev Milkha Singh Invitational Presented by TAKE Sports, in its third edition this year, continues to delight golf fans with pulsating finishes year after year at the revered Chandigarh Golf Club.

This year’s tournament has again produced a playoff like the two previous editions and to add to the drama the duel between Indian star and former Asia No. 1 Anirban Lahiri (70-68-70-69) and local favourite Karandeep Kochhar (76-66-67-68) has been extended into Monday due to fading light. The third extra hole of the playoff resumes at 9 am on December 6.

The protagonists Kochhar and Lahiri ended the regulation 72 holes with matching totals of 11-under-277 after Kochhar, who began the week with a disappointing 76, made a grand comeback with his determined last round of 68 while Lahiri stayed the course with a resilient 69.

At the end of regulation play, Karandeep incurred a one-stroke penalty for accidentally causing the ball to move on the 17^th hole. The Chandigarh lad, playing on his home course, thus joined seven-time international winner Lahiri in a playoff to decide the winner.

In regulation play, Karandeep, the winner of PGTI’s last event at the same venue in November, was on the button with his short game as he collected birdies with 10 to 20 feet conversions on the fourth, eighth and 11^th. Kochhar also chipped-in for birdie on the 15^th and landed his bunker shots within six and four feet for birdies on the second and 16^th. On the 17^th, his ball landed in the right rough before he accidentally caused it to move thus resulting in a double-bogey there.

Anirban on the other hand was not having it easy on the front-nine as he dropped two bogeys in exchange for a birdie. But Lahiri’s round was back on track with tap-in birdies on the 13^th and 16^th and a 15-feet birdie conversion on the 15^th. The two-time winner on the European Tour then picked up another birdie on the 17^th thanks to a good drive.

Lahiri, who started the day in tied third, two off the lead, then sank a tricky 12-footer to birdie the first playoff hole even as Kochhar fired a magnificent approach for a tap-in birdie there.

Karandeep, who began the day in sixth place and three off the lead, found the bunker with his drive on the second playoff hole but got himself out of trouble with a fabulous third shot that left him a one-footer for par. Anirban missed his six-footer for birdie on this occasion.

With both players in a deadlock and light fading, it was decided to extend the match to Monday, a first in PGTI history.

Karandeep, currently ranked second on the PGTI merit list, said, “My chipping, putting and wedge play was top-class today. It’s great to fight my way back into the tournament after a poor start in round one. I feel I got better with each day. I was obviously disappointed about the one-shot penalty I had to incur. But I’ve put it behind me and am looking forward to finishing it well tomorrow.”

The experienced Anirban said, “I just had no momentum going on the front-nine today. I was trying to be patient and finally hit my stride from the 13^th but was still unable to apply pressure on Karandeep. I’m happy to see how Karandeep has recovered so well after his slow start in the tournament. I’m now looking forward to the contest with him tomorrow.”

Incidentally Anirban and Karandeep also played the first two rounds together being drawn in the same three-ball.

Gurugram’s Manu Gandas produced the day’s best score of 66 to take joint third place with Patna’s Aman Raj (70) at 10-under-278.

Chandigarh’s Akshay Sharma, the leader in the second and third rounds, ended the week in tied fifth at eight-under-280 after his last round of 74. Gurugram’s Veer Ahlawat (72) also claimed tied fifth.

Among the prominent names, SSP Chawrasia (69) and PGTI Order of Merit leader Udayan Mane (74) were both tied 13^th at four-under-284, Jyoti Randhawa (71) was tied 29^th at two-over-290 and Gaganjeet Bhullar (73) was tied 33^rd at three-over-291.

======balbirsingh227@gmail.com

Remembering Dr. F. C. Kohli father of Indian IT Industry

 CHANDIGARH, DEC 6

Society for Promotion of Science & Technology in India (SPSTI) in association with the Chandigarh Chapter of NASI (National Academy of Sciences India), Technology Enabling Centre (TEC), University Institute of Engineering & Technology and Panjab University Alumni Association Chandigarh organised an online memorial meeting in honour of the Father of Indian IT Industry, Padma Bhushan Dr. F.C. Kohli, Founder and first C.E.O. of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), who left for his heavenly abode on November 26, 2020. 

The web assembly took place on December 6, 2020 at 11:00 AM to pay tribute to this preeminent alumnus of the University of Punjab, Lahore (a precursor of Panjab University, Chandigarh).

The meeting was steered by Prof. Keya Dharmvir, General Secretary of SPSTI. Prof. Arun K. Grover, former Vice Chancellor of Panjab University spoke on the background of the memorial meeting, highlighting Dr. Kohli’s association with Tata Consultancy Service and TIFR (Tata Instt. Of Fundamental Res., Mumbai) and his work with Prof. Yash Pal, Prof. Narasimhan, Prof. M. K. G. Menon, Dr. Mathai Joseph and Dr. Kehav Nori. Prof. Rajesh Kochhar, an eminent historian of Science, presented a brief profile of Dr. Kohli including his personal and professional life.

 There were messages from Prof. Raj Kumar, VC, PU and Prof. Kesav V. Nori, IIIT Hyderabad, who was earlier a senior functionary at TCS, highlighting his role as a great mentor and visionary.

Mr Som Mittal, former Chairman NASSCOM, paid his tribute stating him being an engineer at heart and being a great student as well as a great teacher throughout his life. Dr. Ananth Krishnan who is Chief Technology Officer at TCS read the official statement on the great loss and said greatest tribute to him will be if we can live up to his vision for the growth of nation. 

Mr Rajiv Vaishnav shared how his every meeting with Dr. Kohli was focussed on what better NASSCOM can do to, showing his passion for nation. There was also a message from Prof. S. K. Munjal from Hero Enterprises indicating both computer and software industry would not have been possible without Mr Kohli’s interventions.

 Dr. Anil Sahasrabudhe, Chairman, AICTE, shared his personal experiences and the supportive role played by Dr. Kohli. Prof. Manoj Arora, former Director, PEC shared his vision that science curriculum including mathematics should be revised every year. Prof. Sarit K. Das, Director IIT, Ropar also shared how passionate Dr. Kohli was with the development of nation and stated his words “India has no damn business to remain poor”. Prof. Dheeraj Sanghi, Director, PEC, Dr. Manu Sharma, UIET, Prof. Renu Wig, former Director, UIET, Prof. R. K. Kohli, Secretary, Chandigarh chapter of NASI, Prof. Deepti Gupta, Dean Alumni Relations, Panjab University, Mr. Akhil from MP and Prof. G. S. Kainth, ex Faculty, IIT Kanpur, also paid their tribute by sharing their experiences.

 The meeting was also attended by Prof. R. P. Bambah, former VC, Panjab University and a contemporary of Dr. F. C. Kohli in Lahore, with more than 200 participants on zoom and about 222 on facebook page of SPSTI. The meeting ended with vote of thanks by Mr  Dharam Vir, IAS (Retd.) & President SPSTI, to all the present for the memorial meeting remembering Dr. Kohli as a legend who not only had passion for developing technology in country but also had similar love for academics.

====balbirsingh227@gmail.com