Indian shuttler Satwiksairaj Rankireddy bereaved, loses father
New Delhi, Feb 20 (PTI): Asian Games champion shuttler Satwiksairaj Rankireddy's father R Kasi Viswanatham died of cardiac arrest on Thursday morning.
Satwik, currently in the national capital for the 43rd PSPB Inter-Unit badminton tournament, was scheduled to receive the prestigious Khel Ratna award on Thursday. His father, a retired physical education teacher, was set to travel to join him for the ceremony but tragically passed away before he could make the trip.
"It is extremely sad and unfortunate that Satwik has lost his father this morning," said a source close to the family.
The 24-year-old from Amalapuram will depart for Andhra Pradesh this afternoon to be with his family.
Satwik, who forms a formidable men’s doubles pair with Chirag Shetty, has been a trailblazer in Indian badminton. The duo, which won gold at the 2022 Asian Games, the 2022 Commonwealth Games, and the 2023 Asian Championships, is the only Indian doubles pair to hold the No. 1 spot in the BWF World Rankings and win a BWF World Tour Super 1000 title.
In 2023, Satwik also set a Guinness World Record for the fastest badminton smash by a male player, reaching a speed of 565 km/h. He had shared a heartwarming video on social media featuring his father unwrapping his Guinness World Record certificate.
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Fire destroys parked school buses in Thiruvananthapuram, sabotage suspected
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): A major fire broke out at a school ground near here in the small hours of Monday, destroying three parked school buses, police said here.
The incident occurred at around 2.45 am at the ground of a Higher Secondary School at Thundathil under Kazhakkoottam police station limits.
Three school buses were completely gutted in the fire, while another bus was partially damaged, police said.
Fire and rescue teams rushed to the area and brought the blaze under control after an operation that lasted about 30 minutes.
A tempo traveller was found close to the buses, raising suspicion of foul play, officials said.
However, it is not yet clear who drove the vehicle or how it reached the area where the buses were parked.
The school authorities and locals suspect that the fire may not have been accidental.
Police said they have begun an investigation to find out the exact cause of the fire.
