India finish 2019 as number one shooting nation in world
New Delhi: On the back of its sparkling show through 2019, India finished the year as the top shooting nation in the world, leapfrogging Olympic heavyweights China and the USA.
In terms of overall medals, the tally stood at 21 gold, six silver and three bronze as India topped all the Rifle-Pistol World Cups and Finals in a unforgettable year.
A delighted National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) president Raninder Singh tweeted a screenshot of the International Shooting Sport Federation's (ISSF) overall rankings for 2019.
"Well done Team India," he wrote.
While India leads the standings with 30 medals overall, China is second with 11 gold, 15 silver and 18 bronze for a total of 44 podium finishes.
The USA is placed third with 15 medals (six gold six silver and three bronze).
The number of Olympic quotas, which now stands at a record 15, is not a only refection of the country's rapid rise in the sport over the last one year but also sets up the shooters nicely for a record haul at the Tokyo Games, after the meltdown at Rio de Janeiro.
Besides the shooters, the federation has also worked extensively towards bringing the sport to where it is today.
Indian shooting's best show at the Olympics remains the two medals won at London in 2012, but if the shooters' exploits in recent months are anything to go by, the country can easily emulate or better that in Tokyo.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Extensions in service setback to those who are in line: Vice President Dhankhar
Bengaluru, Jan 11: Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar said on Saturday that extensions in service, in any form for a particular post is a setback to those who are in line.
Dhankhar was delivering the inaugural address at the 25th National Conference of Chairpersons of State Public Service Commission being held in Bengaluru.
According to him, extension of service indicates that some individuals are indispensable.
"Indispensability is a myth. Talent abounds in this country. No one is indispensable. And therefore, it lies in the domain of public service commissions at the state and the central level that when they have a role in such kinds of situations, they must be firm," added the VP.
He also said public service commissions' appointments cannot be driven by patronage, or by favouritism.
"We cannot have a public service commission Chairman or a member, wedded to a particular ideology or an individual. That will be undoing the essence and spirit of the framework of the constitution," said Dhankhar.
The Vice-President also frowned upon post-retirement recruitment and said it is antithetical to what was visualised by framers of the Constitution.
"In some states, it has been structured. Employees never retire, particularly those in the premium services. They get a number of ad-hoc nomenclatures. This is not good. Everyone in the country must have due and that due is defined by law," said the VP.
The VP also said fairness of selection has no meaning if paper leakages occur.
"Paper leakage has become an industry, a form of commerce. This is a menace that must be curbed," he added.
He commended the initiative the government has taken in this regard, with the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024.
The Vice President is also of the view that although it is "India's century", without a "calm political atmosphere" India will not really gain.
A vitiated political climate is far more dangerous than the climate change we are facing, he pointed out.
"Our polity at the moment is too divisive, too polarised. Interaction is not taking place at the premium level in political organisations."
The solution, according to him, is harmony in polity.
"Harmony is imperative. If there is no harmony in polity, if the polity is polarized, deeply divisive, with no communication channels functioning, imagine you are in an earthquake, you are lost and you have no connection with the outside world, things will be terrible for you," he added.
He also said for India to stand strong, we need strong institutions.
"Any institution, if it is weakened, the damage is to the entire nation. Weakening of an institution is like a prick on the body. The entire body will be in pain," said Dhankhar.
To build strong institutions, he added, states and Union governments must work in tandem.
"They must be in synergetic mode. They must be in sync with one another when it comes to national interest," said the VP.
Noting that discussion is deeply rooted in our civilizational ethos, the Vice President urged senior leadership for all political parties, irrespective of their ideologies, to "enhance dialogue, believe in consensus and always be ready for deliberation".
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who was also present on the occasion, said Public Service Commissions are pillars of democracy, upholding meritocracy and fairness, and contributing immensely to governance.
"Karnataka has a rich history in public administration, starting with the Mysore Civil Services (MCS) examination initiated by Dewan Sir K Seshadri Iyer in 1892. This pioneering step set the foundation for a cadre of distinguished administrators, a legacy Karnataka continues to uphold with pride," he added.
He said tackling challenges such as paper leaks remains a top priority for Karnataka today. He also said learning from the best practices of other states and leveraging advanced technologies like artificial intelligence will make recruitment more transparent and corruption-free.
Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot; Chairman of UPSC Preeti Sudan and Chairman of Karnataka Public Service Commission Shivashankarappa S Sahukar were among the dignitaries present on the occasion.
