Mandhana, Harmanpreet score half-centuries as India win
East London (South Africa) (PTI): Smriti Mandhana and captain Harmanpreet Kaur cracked fine unbeaten half-centuries as India defeated West Indies by 56 runs to keep their slate clean in the Women's T20I Tri-Series here.
India, after winning the toss and electing to bat, were off to a good start and managed 167 for two in 20 overs. They then restricted the opponents to 111 for four to eke out their second consecutive win of the series.
Openers Yastika Bhatia and Mandhana stitched together a 33-run partnership before the former was dismissed by off-spinner Karishma Ramharack for 18 with just one delivery remaining in power play.
Ramharack tossed the ball up outside off and Yastika attempted a drive over covers but ended up playing away from her body. A faint outside edge saw the opener give an easy catch to wicketkeeper Rashada Williams.
Her dismissal brought in Harleen Deol but her stay at the crease didn't last long, as she was trapped in front while trying to flick the ball on the off-side from pacer Shanika Bruce.
The early response to the length ball saw the young middle-order batter miss the stroke, with the ball hitting her on the front pad.
At 52 for two, there were some tense moments but once Mandhana and Harmanpreet paired up, boundaries flowed freely.
Harmanpreet, who was back leading the side after missing the opening match of the tri-series reportedly due to illness, was on song as she smashed a 35-ball 51 studded with eight boundaries.
Mandhana, after failing with the bat in the opening game against South Africa, was equally belligerent scoring 74 off just 51 deliveries as the duo batted together for nearly 12 overs to guide India to a competitive score.
Mandhana, who was dismissed for seven runs in the tri-series opener against South Africa Women, hit 10 boundaries and a six, even as the opponents utilised seven bowlers to break the partnership.
A target of 167 was always going to be a difficult chase and India spinners led by Radha Yadav throttled the runs, giving away precious little by way of loose deliveries. The 22-year-old Radha gave away just 10 runs in her four overs while also taking the wicket of Shemaine Campbelle (47), who consumed 57 deliveries.
By the time Campbelle was dismissed attempting a pull off a full toss but holing out to Amanjot Kaur at deep mid-wicket, the match was as good as lost for West Indies as they were 96 for four with just 15 deliveries remaining.
Skipper Hayley Matthews and Afy Fletcher too couldn't get the runs flowing and in the end a target of 167 proved too big to chase.
Brief scores: India Women 167 for 2 in 20 overs (Smriti Mandhana 74 n.o., Harmanpreet Kaur 56 n.o.) beat West Indies Women 111 for 4 in 20 overs (Shemaine Campbelle 47, Hayley Matthews 34 n.o.; Deepti Sharma 2/24, Radha Yadav 1/10) by 56 runs.
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.
Single higher education regulator bill tabled in LS; Oppn flags ‘centralisation,' JPC likely
New Delhi: A bill to set up a 13-member body to regulate institutions of higher education was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday.
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan introduced the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, which seeks to establish an overarching higher education commission along with three councils for regulation, accreditation, and ensuring academic standards for universities and higher education institutions in India.
Meanwhile, the move drew strong opposition, with members warning that it could weaken institutional autonomy and result in excessive centralisation of higher education in India.
The Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025, earlier known as the Higher Education Council of India (HECI) Bill, has been introduced in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
The proposed legislation seeks to merge three existing regulatory bodies, the University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), into a single unified body called the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan.
At present, the UGC regulates non-technical higher education institutions, the AICTE oversees technical education, and the NCTE governs teacher education in India.
Under the proposed framework, the new commission will function through three separate councils responsible for regulation, accreditation, and the maintenance of academic standards across universities and higher education institutions in the country.
According to the Bill, the present challenges faced by higher educational institutions due to the multiplicity of regulators having non-harmonised regulatory approval protocols will be done away with.
The higher education commission, which will be headed by a chairperson appointed by the President of India, will cover all central universities and colleges under it, institutes of national importance functioning under the administrative purview of the Ministry of Education, including IITs, NITs, IISc, IISERs, IIMs, and IIITs.
At present, IITs and IIMs are not regulated by the University Grants Commission (UGC).
Government to refer bill to JPC; Oppn slams it
The government has expressed its willingness to refer it to a joint committee after several members of the Lok Sabha expressed strong opposition to the Bill, stating that they were not given time to study its provisions.
Responding to the opposition, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the government intends to refer the Bill to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for detailed examination.
Congress Lok Sabha MP Manish Tewari warned that the Bill could result in “excessive centralisation” of higher education. He argued that the proposed law violates the constitutional division of legislative powers between the Union and the states.
According to him, the Bill goes beyond setting academic standards and intrudes into areas such as administration, affiliation, and the establishment and closure of university campuses. These matters, he said, fall under Entry 25 of the Concurrent List and Entry 32 of the State List, which cover the incorporation and regulation of state universities.
Tewari further stated that the Bill suffers from “excessive delegation of legislative power” to the proposed commission. He pointed out that crucial aspects such as accreditation frameworks, degree-granting powers, penalties, institutional autonomy, and even the supersession of institutions are left to be decided through rules, regulations, and executive directions. He argued that this amounts to a violation of established constitutional principles governing delegated legislation.
Under the Bill, the regulatory council will have the power to impose heavy penalties on higher education institutions for violating provisions of the Act or related rules. Penalties range from ₹10 lakh to ₹75 lakh for repeated violations, while establishing an institution without approval from the commission or the state government could attract a fine of up to ₹2 crore.
Concerns were also raised by members from southern states over the Hindi nomenclature of the Bill. N.K. Premachandran, an MP from the Revolutionary Socialist Party representing Kollam in Kerala, said even the name of the Bill was difficult to pronounce.
He pointed out that under Article 348 of the Constitution, the text of any Bill introduced in Parliament must be in English unless Parliament decides otherwise.
DMK MP T.M. Selvaganapathy also criticised the government for naming laws and schemes only in Hindi. He said the Constitution clearly mandates that the nomenclature of a Bill should be in English so that citizens across the country can understand its intent.
Congress MP S. Jothimani from Tamil Nadu’s Karur constituency described the Bill as another attempt to impose Hindi and termed it “an attack on federalism.”
_vb_22.jpeg)
