Randhir Singh becomes first Indian to be elected as OCA president
New Delhi (PTI): Veteran sports administrator Randhir Singh on Sunday became the first Indian to be elected as the president of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) during the 44th General Assembly of the continental body here.
A five-time Olympic shooter, Randhir was the lone eligible candidate for the OCA president's post. His tenure will run from 2024 till 2028, and his election was unanimous.
The 77-year-old Randhir has been the OCA acting president since 2021, filling in for Kuwait's Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, who was handed a 15-year ban from sports administration in May this year over ethics breaches.
Randhir, who held different administrative posts in Indian and Asian sports bodies, was officially named OCA president in the presence of Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and top sports leaders from all 45 countries of Asia.
He hails from Patiala in Punjab and belongs to a family of sportspersons.
His uncle, Maharaja Yadavindra Singh, played Test cricket for India and was an IOC member. His father Bhalindra Singh, also a first-class cricketer, was an IOC Member between 1947 and 1992.
Randhir was also a member of the IOC between 2001 and 2014, after which he continued as the honourary member of the global sports body.
"Congratulations to all my team. I sincerely thank you all from the bottom of my heart. Asia is one family. Thank you all for all support. We will try to carry on for long," Randhir said after his election.
"Special congratulations to all the ladies who have joined the team. I wish to express my deepest gratitude to all of you for your dedication to the Olympic course.
"Let's all work together towards a future where the Olympic values of excellence, friendship and respect are celebrated," he added.
All the candidates to the OCA General Assembly were elected unopposed.
Among others, the session was also graced by BJP president JP Nadda and minister of state for sports, Raksha Khade.
A total of 45 nations from Asia participated in the General Assembly.
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Andhra to be developed as knowledge, creator economy hub: CM Naidu
New Delhi/Amaravati (PTI): Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Friday said the state is taking steps to transform itself into a knowledge and creator economy hub with a strong focus on artificial intelligence and quantum technology.
He noted that Andhra Pradesh has abundant tech-driven youth and the government is formulating plans to train them in futuristic technologies with support from global technology firms.
"Our goal is to transform Andhra Pradesh into a knowledge hub by focusing on AI, quantum computing, data centres, drone cities and space cities. The youth will remain our biggest asset over the next 25 years, and we seek global partnerships to scale up the creator economy," said Naidu during his interactions at the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in Delhi.
Naidu, who participated in the summit in the national capital, also held meetings with several global technology leaders and industrialists to explore collaborations in artificial intelligence, clean energy and innovation ecosystems.
He met Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen, Autodesk AI Head Mike Haley, Aramco India Director Abdul Rehman AiThukair, LEGO Education Vice President Tom Hall, Aadhaar Founder and CTO Srikanth Nadhamuni, Khosla Ventures Managing Partner Vinod Khosla and others at the AP Pavilion.
The chief minister also held discussions with Saudi Aramco representatives on clean energy projects, including solar initiatives, and invited the company to expand operations in Andhra Pradesh, stating that the state is highly suitable for green energy production.
He sought support from NVIDIA Vice President Callista Redmond for establishing AI Living Labs and proposed partnerships through the Ratan Tata Innovation Hub to promote youth innovation, including collaborations with IIT Tirupati and Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Tirupati under the Andhra Pradesh Future Innovation and Research for Science and Technology (AP FIRST) initiative.
Naidu urged Autodesk leadership to support the development of Global Capability Centres in design engineering and requested the establishment of an Innovation Academy in Amaravati aligned with quantum technology, besides proposing AI and robotics learning labs in partnership with LEGO Education.
He also discussed AI-driven smart governance solutions with Quantela Inc Chairman Sridhar Gadhi, while World Bank Group Digital AI Regional Director Mahesh Uttamchandani met Naidu on the sidelines of the summit.
Following the meetings, Naidu visited various exhibition stalls at the summit, including those of NVIDIA, Tata, Intel and Microsoft, and reviewed AI applications across agriculture, healthcare and industry.
