First journey from Mangaluru on July 21: Minister Zameer Ahmed
Hajj pilgrimage -2018
Bengaluru, June 21: The first flight of the Hajj pilgrims leaving from the state in 2018 would leave for Madina from Mangaluru airport on July 21, said Minority Development, Hajj and Wakf Minister Zameer Ahmed Khan.
After holding a meeting with the officials at the State Hajj Committee office here on Thursday, the Minister said that total three flights would fly to Madina from Mangaluru airport. Apart from Mangaluru, the pilgrims would also fly from Bengaluru airport in 15 flights from August 1 to 15. The journey would be officially inaugurated at Hajj Bhavan in Tirumenahalli in the city on July 31. Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy would inaugurate the flight journey, while Union Minister for Minority Affairs, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Opposition Leader in the Rajya Sabha Gulam Nabi Azad and other national leaders would be presented, he said.
Total 540 pilgrims of Gulbarga region would leave for Madina through Hyderabad airport from August 1 and pilgrims from Belagavi region would leave from Goa airport from July 26 to 28, he said.
This time, total 18,000 persons applied for Hajj pilgrimage from the state. But total 6624 persons allotted from the state by the central government were selected through lottery and reservation, he said.
Food Ministers meeting
The Central government has convened a meeting of the Food Ministers of all states in New Delhi on July 29 and 30. He would also participate in the meeting. At this time, he would also discuss with Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj on getting additional quota for Hajj pilgrims from the state, he said.
Additional fee is being collected from the Hajj pilgrims from the state and it might cause additional burden on them. He would discuss the issue with the Union Minister and Indian Hajj Committee, the Minister said.
As the State Haj Committee building is old one, the office would be shifted to the newly built Hajj Bhavan after the completion of the process of Hajj pilgrimage. After demolishing the old structure, he would discuss with the senior leaders of the community on constructing the new building, he said.
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Gill, Mandhana win top BCCI awards
New Delhi (PTI): Prolific batters Shubman Gill and Smriti Mandhana were named the Best International Cricketers (Men's and Women's) at the BCCI Naman Awards 2026 here on Sunday, recognising their outstanding performances in the 2024–2025 season.
Gill won the prestigious Polly Umrigar Award, while Mandhana received the award for the fifth time.
For Gill, it was his second Cricketer of the Year award after first winning it in 2023.
Former stars Roger Binny, Rahul Dravid and Mithali Raj were honoured with the Col. C. K. Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award, the BCCI's highest honour, recognising their outstanding service to Indian cricket.
India's five trophy-winning sides (2025 ICC Champions Trophy, 2025 Women's ODI World Cup, 2025 U-19 Women's World Cup, 2026 Men's U-19 World Cup, and 2026 T20 World Cup) were honoured as well on the occasion.
Gill enjoyed a stellar 2025 and established himself as one of the team's most dependable batters in the longer formats.
On the tour of England, skipper Gill led from the front in the five-Test series, finishing as the top run-getter with 754 runs in 10 innings at an average of 75.40, including four centuries and a top score of 269.
Gill also played a pivotal role in India's Champions Trophy triumph last year, having entered the tournament as the No.1-ranked ODI batter in the world. He made an unbeaten 101 against Bangladesh in India's opening match, and finished the tournament with 188 runs.
Mandhana finished 2025 with 1,703 international runs, including 1,362 in ODIs, the most by any woman in a calendar year. In doing so, Mandhana became the first batter in women's ODI history to score 1,000 runs in a single calendar year.
Mandhana also made handsome contributions to India's maiden Women's World Cup title triumph, aggregating 434 runs in nine matches to end as the tournament as India's leading run-scorer and the second-highest overall.
Before the World Cup, the left-hander Mandhana smashed a 50-ball century against Australia in New Delhi to register the fastest ODI hundred by an Indian batter, surpassing Virat Kohli's 52-ball effort.
Shafali Varma (Best Woman Cricketer Senior Domestic One-Day), Ira Jadhav (Best Woman Cricketer (Domestic), Harsh Dubey (Best All Rounder in the Ranji Trophy), and Ayush Mhatre (Best All Rounder in Domestic Limited Overs Competitions) too won awards for their strong performances across the 2024-25 domestic season.
