Pakistani squash great Azam Khan dies of coronavirus in London
Karachi: Pakistani squash legend Azam Khan has died of coronavirus in London, his family said.
Azam, who won the British Open title successively between 1959 and 1961, had tested positive for COVID-19 last week and died at London's Ealing Hospital on Saturday. He was 95.
Younger brother of the legendary Hashim Khan, Azam is widely regarded as one the best squash players in the world. He left playing due to an Achilles tendon injury and the tragic death of his 14-year-old son in 1962.
Even though he recovered from his injury two years later, Azam said he could not get over the death of his son.
Born at Nawakille, a small village outside Peshawar, which is known for producing squash world champions like brothers Jahangir and Jansher Khan.
Azam had settled in the UK in 1956.
He had also won the most important hardball tournament, the US Open, for the first time in 1962 before injury struck him and his son died.
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Telangana CM urges Amit Shah to increase sanctioned strength of IPS officers in state
Hyderabad (PTI): Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi on Wednesday night and urged him to increase the sanctioned strength of IPS officers to the state in view of its growing administrative and security needs.
The two leaders also discussed the recent surrender of several senior Maoist leaders before the Telangana Police and other issues.
"During the meeting, the two leaders discussed the issue of Maoist surrenders and their rehabilitation. The chief minister informed Shah that significant improvements in policing have taken place in Telangana over the past two years," an official release here said.
Highlighting that 591 Maoists have laid down their arms and joined the mainstream of society during this period, the chief minister said the state government was providing them compensation and rehabilitation assistance as per the rules.
He requested the Union home minister to extend financial support from the central government for development works in the backward regions of the state.
Reddy also urged Shah to increase the sanctioned strength of IPS officers to the state from 83 to 105 in line with the state's growing administrative and security needs, the statement said.
The first cadre review after the formation of Telangana was conducted in 2016, while the next review, due in 2021, was delayed and finally carried out in 2025. Even then, only seven additional IPS officers were allocated to the state, the chief minister informed Shah and requested that the third cadre review be conducted in 2026 as per the schedule.
Reddy explained that Telangana, like the rest of the country, is facing several modern challenges, including cybercrime, drug trafficking, white-collar crimes, and other emerging security threats.
He highlighted the reorganisation of the Hyderabad, Cyberabad, and Malkajgiri Police Commissionerates, the proposed formation of the Future City Commissionerate and the rapidly growing population in Hyderabad to underline the increasing administrative requirements of the state.
