Chennai-born Indian-American crowned Miss India USA 2024
Washington, Dec 18: Chennai-born Indian American teenager Caitlin Sandra Neil has been crowned Miss India USA 2024 at the annual pageant held in New Jersey.
Caitlin, 19, is a second-year student at University of California, Davis.
"I want to leave a positive lasting impact on my community and focus on women's empowerment and literacy," Caitlin was quoted as saying in a media release.
Born in Chennai, India, Caitlin has been living in the USA for the last 14 years. She wants to be a web designer and also pursue a modelling and acting career.
Sanskriti Sharma from Illinois was crowned Mrs. India USA and Arshita Kathpalia from Washington won the Miss Teen India USA in the pageant organised by the India Festival Committee (IFC).
Rijul Maini, Miss India USA 2023 and Sneha Nambiar, Mrs India USA 2023 crowned Caitlin Sandra Neil and Sanskriti Sharma, respectively.
Nirali Desia of Illinois and Manini Patel of New Jersey were declared first runner-up and second runner-up in the Miss India USA competition.
Sapna Mishra of Virginia and Chinmayee Ayachit from Connecticut were named first and second runner-up in the Mrs India USA competition. Dhriti Patel of Rhode Island and Sonali Sharma were declared as first runner-up and second runner-up in the teen category, the press release said.
Forty-seven contestants from 25 states participated in the three categories of the pageant.
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Bill making CM chancellor of RDPR varsity replacing Guv passed in Council by one vote
Belagavi (Karnataka), Dec 18: The bill that proposes to replace the Karnataka Governor as chancellor of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (RDPR) University with the Chief Minister, was passed in the Karnataka Legislative Council on Wednesday, by one vote.
Having passed by both houses of the legislature, the bill will now have to go before the Governor for his assent to become a law.
Leader of Opposition in the council, Chalavadi Narayanaswamy opposed the bill and demanded for a division of votes during the voting on the bill. Hence, Council Chairman Basavaraj Horatti arranged for row wise headcount of members both in favour of and against the bill.
The division of votes showed 26 votes in favor of the bill, and 25 against it.
The Karnataka State Rural Development and Panchayat Raj University (Amendment) Bill, 2024 passed by the Assembly on Tuesday, seeks to amend the 2016 Act to make provisions for the Chief Minister to be the Chancellor, and for appointment of the vice chancellor by the chancellor from the panel of three persons suggested by search committee.
The Opposition BJP-JD(S) legislators walked out of the Assembly on Tuesday after clashing with the Congress, during the passage of the Bill.
Several opposition members questioned the intention of the government in replacing the Governor as the Chancellor of the university and insisted that the field of education should not be politicised.
JD(S) MLC T A Sharavana said the move seems to be out of hate towards the Governor, and suggested that there should always be a cordial relationship between the government and the Raj Bhavan.
"What the government is going to achieve by keeping the Governor away. CM is always busy politically and administratively. Can he give enough time towards the affairs of the University?" he asked.
BJP MLC C T Ravi questioned whether the Governor was not "cooperative" towards the University's functioning? "What is the intention behind bringing this amendment that was not there when the actual bill was brought a few years ago? Why is the constitutional authority being removed from the Chancellor's post?"
Congress MLC Ivan D'Souza, while defending the bill, said, "In what way the Governor can help the university? If the CM is the chancellor, he can organise funds for the development of the university. Nowhere law stipulates that only the Governor should be the chancellor. States like Gujarat have withdrawn the Governor from Chancellorship of various universities in their state."
Replying to the discussion, RDPR Minister Priyank Kharge said, the bill was not brought with any political malintention or out of any political hatred or to have any confrontation with the Governor.
The bill has been brought in to make the university function more efficiently, to make it coordinate with the government better and, to provide better quality of education and training for youths, he added.
"I have nowhere said that the Governor was not cooperating. As we felt that this is one of the better ways to manage the university, we have brought these amendments. Show me any guidelines including the UGC guidelines which says that only the Governor should be the Chancellor. No such guideline anywhere," Kharge said, pointing out that in various states like Gujarat and Arunachal Pradesh, the Governor has no role in several Universities.
