1. Historic Pink Test Beckons Bangla Fans
A former soldier playing a stringed instrument and singing songs of unity, a budding cricketer who wants to witness history in the making and a businessman are among several Bangladeshis who have already arrived in Kolkata to watch the first-ever day-night Test match on Indian soil at the Eden Gardens beginning on Friday.
Several Bangla fans were frantically hunting for tickets for the historic India-Bangladesh tie even on Wednesday afternoon. Those lucky to lay their hands on the prized possession — with a little help from their Indian friends — hung outside Eden Gardens to catch a glimpse of their team, which practised at the ground in the first half.
“This is definitely a historic moment for the Indian team and Eden Gardens. But it also makes Bangladesh a part of history, too, as this is the firstever day-night Test that our country is also playing,” said Mahdi Hassan, a domestic cricketer in Bangladesh who reached Kolkata on Tuesday evening from Dhaka. “In Bangladesh, we are very passionate about cricket. I can assure you those who were unable to come will be glued to their televisions on Friday,” said Hassan.
(Source: The Times of India)
2. Bengali Relief for BJP Leaders in Delhi
If a politician is from Bengal, better speak in Bengali.
Thanks to this message from the party headquarters in Delhi, Bengal BJP leaders who have to speak in Parliament or face the media in the national capital are breathing easy as communicating in Hindi became the biggest challenge for most of them.
“I have been trying to learn Hindi as prowess in that language is a must in our party. I have started taking lessons in Hindi, but it’s a tall order,” said a first-time MP who did not wish to be named.
(Source: The Telegraph)
3. Five-Year-Old Fiddles With Dad’s Toto, Runs Over Two-Year-Old in New Town
In a freak accident in New Town, a two-and-a-halfyear-old toddler died after he was hit by a Toto, with a 5-year-old girl on the driver’s seat. The child had switched it on accidentally. The driver of the Toto — the girl’s father — had left behind the vehicle key in the slot while going to buy some grocery items. With her father not around, the child sat on the driver’s seat and started fiddling with the vehicle.
Like any other day, Aayush Roy Chowdhury had gone out with his mother to accompany his elder brother to the school bus stop on Tuesday morning. “Piyush, who studies in a reputable English-medium school in New Town, boarded the bus at 7.20am. From there, I went to the local market with Aayush. Around 8am, when we were returning home, I saw a child sitting alone in a Toto parked along the road. We just crossed the vehicle and walked a few metres when I was suddenly hit from the back. I was dragged for a few metres before I lost consciousness,” said Aayush’s mother Mamata Roy Chowdhury.
(Source: The Times of India)
4. 12-Year-Old East Bengal Sub-Junior Player Ends Life
A 12-year-old student, who sometimes played for the East Bengal sub-junior team, reportedly ended his life at their home at Vidyasagar Colony in Naktala on Tuesday night after being allegedly pulled up by his mother for not concentrating enough for his exams on Wednesday.
Rohan Roy studied in Class VII at a school in Naktala.
Police said as no suicide note had been found, they would speak to the family first before arriving at a conclusion on why he took the extreme step. “We have a few collaborative statements from neighbours, saying the boy was
rebuked on Tuesday evening,” said an IPS officer leading the probe.
According to Rohan’s uncle, Rabi Roy, his cousin, Kavita, he was recently called to play in the East Bengal subjunior team and so, had been practising football hard. His father, Raju Roy, a luxury-cab and app-cab driver, and mother, Soma Roy, a homemaker, were supportive of his football dreams but were reportedly worried about his exams. Assessment tests at his school were supposed to begin this week.
(Source: The Times of India)
5. Money From Heaven, Literally
Wads of currency notes were thrown out through a sixth-floor window of a building on the busy Bentinck Street, allegedly to avert the glare of a central agency that was raiding an office on Wednesday afternoon.
“It was like money raining from the sky. Notes were floating… 2,000, 500…. People were screaming with joy and amazement. Many people had gathered below,” said Gopa Mukherjee, who works as a nurse in a building opposite the one from where the cash was being thrown out.
An official of the directorate of revenue intelligence (DRI), which raided the office of Hoque Mercentile Private Limited, said notes totalling Rs 5 lakh had been thrown out through a washroom window on the sixth floor. “We could recover close to Rs 4 lakh from the road,” he said.
(Source: The Telegraph)
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