History beckons IAS officer Suhas Yathiraj at Tokyo Paralympics
Noida, (PTI): History beckons Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Suhas Lalinakere Yathiraj when he steps into the court for the badminton finals at the Paralympics in Tokyo on Sunday with a shot at the gold medal.
Even if he loses and wins a silver, the 38-year-old district magistrate of Gautam Buddh Nagar (Noida) will have scripted history as the first-ever IAS officer to win a medal at the Paralympics.
Suhas, currently world No. 3 in SL4 category, has played three matches, including the semifinals on Saturday, in the ongoing Games. He has been at his dominating best against his rivals.
While it took him less than 20 minutes to sail through the first two matches, Suhas outwitted Indonesia's Fredy Setiawan 21-9 21-15 in 31 minutes in the first semifinal.
The 2007-batch IAS officer, with a leg impairment, will face top seed Lucas Mazur of France in the final on Sunday.
History under making! Suhas L Y, IAS, DM GB Nagar (Noida), UP, India in Men's singles para-badminton SL4 finals. He beats Indonesia's S Freddy 2-0 in semifinals. Now will be playing for Gold on September 5, the IAS Association, a group of serving and retired administrative officers, tweeted.
With the Karnataka-born engineer graduate making it to the final at the showpiece, internet users have been rallying support for him by trending the hashtag #Cheer4Suhas on social media platforms.
Several of the residents' Whatsapp groups in Noida are also filled with congratulatory messages on their DM's sporting feat.
Suhas, who graduated as computer engineer from NIT Karnataka with a distinction, has previously served as the district magistrate of Prayagraj, Agra, Azamgarh, Jaunpur, Sonbhadra districts.
For the last one and a half years, he had been at the forefront of the COVID-19 pandemic management in Gautam Buddh Nagar since his appointment in the western UP district on March 30, 2020.
Prior to his departure to Tokyo in the last week of August, Suhas, when asked about his badminton practice and work as DM, had told reporters, I practice from 10pm for two hours after all the day's works are over. I have been managing my game and administrative duties this way for around six years now.
Suhas said his professional journey started in 2016 while he was the DM of Azamgarh district in eastern UP and a badminton championship was organized there.
I was a guest at the inauguration of the tournament and expressed desire to participate. Until then it was a hobby for me as I had been playing badminton since childhood. I got a chance to play there and defeated state-level players, he had said.
It was there, he said, the Gaurav Khanna, the current coach of the country's para-badminton team, spotted him and push-started his professional journey.
In 2016 itself, he participated in the Asian Championship in Beijing and become the first non-ranked player to win the gold medal.
More international recognition was awaiting him as he went on to win medals at BWF Turkish championship in 2017 and 2019 besides the latest, a gold, in Brazil in 2020, just before the COVID-19 pandemic started ravaging India and world.
When his participation in the Tokyo Paralympics was confirmed in July, Suhas said the event was no doubt going to be a challenge and being the world number three in his category, he was hopeful for a medal.
Over the years, we have seen that small margins make the difference between winners and losers. I have lost games with a margin of millimeters and won by centimeters. When I compete in Tokyo, I know every player will be there hoping to win a medal, Suhas told reporters.
However, he said he was not putting himself under any pressure for it, as he cited the teaching of the Bhagvat Geeta.
Do your deed and you will get the results. I am not putting myself under any pressure. If God has brought me to this level, then I am going to put in all my efforts, he said.
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South African police arrest suspect in mass shooting that killed 12, including 3 children
Johannesburg (AP): A 32-year-old suspect has been arrested in connection with a mass shooting which claimed the lives of 12 people including three children at an unlicensed pub earlier this month, South African police said on Monday.
The man is suspected of being one of the three people who opened fire on patrons in a pub at Saulsville township, west of South Africa's capital Pretoria, killing 12 people including three children aged 3, 12 and 16.
At least 13 people were also injured during the attack, whose motive remains unknown.
According to the police, the suspect was arrested on Sunday while traveling to Botlokwa in Limpopo province, more than 340 km from where the mass shooting took place on Dec 6.
An unlicensed firearm believed to have been used during the attack was recovered from the suspect's vehicle.
“The 32-year-old suspect was intercepted by Limpopo Tracking Team on the R101 Road in Westenburg precinct. During the arrest, the team recovered an unlicensed firearm, a hand gun, believed to have been used in the commission of the multiple murders. The firearm will be taken to the Forensic Science Laboratory for ballistic analysis,” police said in statement.
The suspect was arrested on the same day that another mass shooting at a pub took place in the Bekkersdal township, west of Johannesburg, in which nine people were killed and 10 wounded when unknown gunmen opened fire on patrons.
Police have since launched a search for the suspects.
South Africa has one of the highest homicide rates in the world and recorded more than 26,000 homicides in 2024 — an average of more than 70 a day. Firearms are by far the leading cause of death in homicides.
The country of 62 million people has relatively strict gun ownership laws, but many killings are committed with illegal guns, according to authorities.
According to police, mass shootings at unlicensed bars are becoming a serious problem. Police shut down more than 11,000 illegal taverns between April and September this year and arrested more than 18,000 people for involvement in illegal liquor sales.
