Leeds (PTI): India and England players along with on-field umpires observed a minute of silence in remembrance of the victims of the tragic plane crash in Ahmedabad ahead of the first Test here on Friday.

In the gruesome accident of the Air India flight to London, 241 passengers and crew on board were killed on June 14.

"What happened in the aircraft (crash), I think the whole India was disheartened but at the same time the only thing from our side... we are going to be sticking with them, how we can make India happy again," vice-captain Rishabh Pant had told media here on Wednesday.

On the cricketing front, top-order batter B Sai Sudharsan became the latest Test entrant for India, and he will bat at No. 3.

India under new captain Shubman Gill are searching for their first Test series win on England shores since 2007.

 

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New Delhi: The Union Ministry of Culture allegedly spent Rs 76.13 lakh on print advertisements marking the 100-year celebrations of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), according to a Right to Information (RTI) reply.

The information was sought by RTI activist Ajay Basudev Bose, who filed an application seeking details on expenditure incurred by the ministry for advertisements commemorating the RSS centenary.

Bose shared a picture of the reply from the ministry on his official ‘X’ handle.

“It is informed that an amount of Rs 76,13,129 has been spent on advertisement given in various print media by the Ministry of Culture on the occasion of the completion of 100 years of RSS,” the government’s reply stated.

Bose questioned the expenditure in the post X, “when Everyone knows RSS is Not Registered & Does not Pay any Tax is it justified to spend Tax Payers Money on such Private event??”

Reacting to the development, Karnataka’s IT-BT and Panchayat Raj Minister Priyank Kharge also criticised the spending.

In a post on X, he asked why public money was being used for what he described as a “private ideological project.”

"Modi Sarkar spent Rs 76,13,129 of public money on newspaper advertisements to celebrate 100 years of the RSS. Why is Government spending taxpayers money on an unregistered, non-tax-paying organisation to celebrate their centenary?," he added. 

According to reports, the RSS describes itself as a volunteer-based organisation and has stated that it functions as a body of individuals rather than a registered entity.

Founded by Keshav Baliram Hedgewar in 1925, the organisation is marking its centenary year beginning from Vijaydashami in 2025, with the milestone observed on October 2.