Chief selector Ajit Agarkar's contract renewed till next year
New Delhi (PTI): Ajit Agarkar will continue as chairman of the senior selection committee after the BCCI decided to renew his contract for one more year, keeping an eye on the 2027 ODI World Cup.
Under Agarkar's chairmanship, the selected Indian teams between October 2023 to March 2026 reached four ICC tournament finals, winning three of them -- two T20 World Cups and one ICC Champions Trophy -- and it was a foregone conclusion that his contract will be renewed for fourth year.
"Agarkar didn't seek extension. A selector can continue up to four years in either junior or senior selection committee and five years cumulatively across both committees. Hence Ajit's contract is being renewed and not extended," a senior BCCI source told PTI.
Sources close to Agarkar always maintained that he preferred to let the decision-makers assess his panel's performance rather than seek a renewal himself.
Continuity ahead of the 50-over World Cup is one of the key factors behind the board's decision.
During his tenure, the committee has taken several tough calls, including overseeing the Test retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, and gradually phasing out senior pacer Mohammed Shami from international cricket.
It also made a bold selection call, dropping Test and ODI skipper Shubman Gill from the T20 World Cup squad and instead fielding a form player in Ishan Kishan.
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Telangana survey flags 89,000 child labourers, highlights caste disparities in employment
Hyderabad: A caste-based survey conducted by the Telangana government for 2024–25 has identified around 89,000 children engaged in labour across the state, with a large share belonging to Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) communities.
The findings are part of the Socio, Economic, Educational, Employment, Political and Caste (SEEEPC) Survey, which covered about 3.5 crore people across 242 caste groups. According to the report, nearly one per cent of individuals below 18 years are involved in daily wage work. While the percentage appears small, officials noted that the absolute number reflects a serious concern.
The survey found that 11 per cent of identified child labourers belong to the ST Lambadi community, while 14 per cent are from the SC Madiga community. The highest incidence was reported among the ST Kolam group, where 7.2 per cent of minors are engaged in daily wage labour.
The data also revealed wider socio-economic disparities. Nearly half of the Scheduled Caste population is dependent on daily wage work, while only around 5 per cent are employed in the private sector, compared to about 30 per cent among General Castes.
State Welfare Minister Ponnam Prabhakar said the findings show that SC and ST communities remain three times more backward than General Castes, while Backward Classes are about 2.7 times more disadvantaged.
The report further noted that, on average, 31.3 per cent of people in the 25–65 age group depend on daily wage work. Among communities, the BC-A Odde group recorded the highest share at 55 per cent. In contrast, only 2.6 per cent of OC Brahmins rely on such work.
Several SC and ST communities, including Kolam, Beda, Madiga, Koya, Gond, Yerukulas and Mala Sale, were found to have among the highest proportions of daily wage earners. On the other hand, most General Caste communities and some Backward Class groups such as Goldsmiths and BC-C Christians showed lower dependence on daily wage employment.
The survey also pointed to inequalities in access to formal employment. Communities such as OC Rajus, OC Brahmins and Kapus were found to have a higher presence in private sector jobs, with up to 27 per cent of their population employed in such roles.
