Punjab crowned Champions of Hockey India Jr men national meet
Bhopal, May 6 : Punjab defeated Haryana 4-2 to lift the eighth Hockey India Junior Men National Championship (A Division), it was announced on Sunday.
Gangpur-Odisha secured the bronze medal as they defeated Odisha 6-1 in the match for the third place.
In the final match of the competition, Punjab came from two goals down to defeat Haryana 4-2. It was Haryana who took a 2-0 lead after 37 minutes and looked like winning the match.
However, Punjab scored four goals in the second half to secure the title, after having finished with the bronze medal last year.
It was Gursahibjit Singh who scored a hat-trick of goals for Hockey Punjab in the 42nd, 57th and 65th minutes while Karajwinder Singh (70th minute) also found the back of the winner for the Champions. Hockey Haryana's two goals were scored by Deepak (26th) and Mohit (37th).
In the bronze medal match, Hockey Gangpur-Odisha defeated Defending Champions Odisha 6-1 to secure a podium finish.
The match saw Hockey Odisha take the lead in the 16th minute through Dibesh Jojo's field goal. However, Hockey Gangpur-Odisha struck four goals before the half-time whistle to take a 4-1 lead into the break.
Gangpur-Odisha made sure that they followed in the footsteps of their women's team as they scored twice in the second half to secure an emphatic 6-1 win.
Goals for Gangpur-Odisha were scored by skipper Pratap Lakra (27th minute, 59th, 63rd), Sanjay Xalxo (24th, 35th) and Sudeep Chirmako (32nd).
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41 lakh illicit liquor seized, 1.84 lakh arrested in major drive: K'taka Minister tells Assembly
Belagavi (Karnataka) (PTI): The Karnataka Excise Department has conducted a statewide crackdown on illegal liquor trade over the last two years, resulting in arrests and seizures of alcohol, Karnataka Excise Minister R B Timmapur said on Tuesday.
As many as 1,09,017 people were arrested, and seizures included 13.66 lakh litres of liquor and 27.19 lakh litres of beer, he said in a written reply to a starred question by Harihar BJP MLA B P Harish in the Karnataka Assembly.
The Minister said the enforcement drive covered the financial year 2023–24, 2024–25 up to June, and 2025–26 from July to October, targeting unauthorised liquor manufacture, storage, sale and transportation across the State.
"During this period, statewide enforcement drives resulted in a total of 1,84,570 raids against illegal liquor sales,” Timmapur said.
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He noted that 9,179 non-bailable cases and 91,968 bailable and compoundable cases under Section 15(A) of the Karnataka Excise Act, 1965, were registered during the same period.
According to him, there have been no reports indicating that students have become addicted to alcohol due to illegal liquor sales.
The sale of alcohol to minors is strictly prohibited under the Karnataka Excise Act, 1965, and the department has issued periodic instructions to initiate legal action against violators, with strict enforcement and investigation measures in place, the Minister said.
Excise officials are carrying out regular road and night patrols, collecting intelligence, monitoring habitual offenders and conducting raids to identify illicit distillation units, unauthorised liquor outlets and spurious liquor manufacturing centres, he said, adding the department is also enforcing the law to prevent the production, storage, sale and transport of spurious, non-duty-paid and unauthorised liquor.
Regular patrols are being conducted on national and state highways, with suspicious vehicles being subjected to checks.
At the district level, standing committee meetings are held under the chairmanship of Deputy Commissioners, and joint operations are carried out with the police and forest departments to curb excise-related offences.
The department is also conducting awareness programmes through Gram Sabhas and in schools and colleges to educate the public and students about the physical, mental and social health hazards associated with alcohol addiction and substance abuse, Timmapur added.
