5 Covid-19 positive hockey players shifted to hospital as precaution: SAI

 Five COVID-19 positive hockey players have been shifted to a hospital in Bengaluru as a precautionary measure after striker Mandeep Singh was transferred to the facility following a dip in his blood oxygen level, the Sports Authority of India (SAI) said on Wednesday.

Mandeep is asymptomatic but was hospitalised at the SS Sparsh Multispeciality Hospital in Bengaluru on Monday night after his blood oxygen level dipped. Five of his teammates were also admitted to the same hospital on Tuesday.

"...the Sports Authority of India decided to shift the other five players, to SS Sparsh Multi-speciality hospital in Bengaluru on Tuesday afternoon, as a precautionary measure," the SAI said.

Mandeep, national captain Manpreet Singh, defenders Surender Kumar, Jaskaran Singh, drag-flicker Varun Kumar and goalkeeper Krishan Bahadur Pathak tested positive for COVID-19 last week after reaching Bengaluru for the national camp, which starts on August 20.

"The decision to hospitalise them was taken so as to ensure that the players were attended to at all times and could be given the best possible treatment. All six athletes are in good health and recovering well."

According to SAI, the players contracted the disease, in all probability, while travelling to Bengaluru from different parts of the country after a month-long break.

Their vitals are being checked four times everyday, the SAI stated.

All six players tested COVID-19 positive during SAI's mandatory testing upon arrival in Bengaluru.

All the women players have, however, tested negative and are on track to resume training.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Indicated in first CoA meeting itself that I didn't want any payment: Guha

Technology
Noted historian Ramchandra Guha on Wednesday said he didn't expect to be paid for his tenure in the outgoing Committee of Administrators and had made this clear in the CoA's very first meeting.
Guha declined a payment of Rs 40 lakh along with another former CoA member, banker Vikram Limaye, who was to be paid Rs 50.5 lakh.
"I had indicated in the first meeting itself that I did not expect or want any payment," Guha told PTI.
Limaye has also refused to accept the payment due to him, citing the same reason, according to a source in the Board.
The Vinod Rai-led CoA, which demits office on Wednesday, was originally a four-member panel appointed by the Supreme Court on January 30, 2017.
The 61-year-old resigned from it in July 2017, citing personal reasons, while Limaye also put in his papers subsequently to take charge as the Managing Director and CEO of National Stock Exchange (NSE).
Guha's resignation letter later created a storm as he lambasted the BCCI for failing to address the conflict of interest issue with regards to players and coaches holding multiple positions.
He also criticised the handling of Anil Kumble as the then coach of the national team, saying that his tenure should have been extended.

 Kumble stepped down after a public fallout with captain Virat Kohli following the Champions Trophy in 2017. Guha had slammed the "superstar culture" in the Indian team...READ MORE

Vistara to launch international flights in the second half of 2019

Current Affairs
Full service carrier Vistara, which has been serving the Indian skies for more than four years, plans to launch international services in the second half of this year.
A joint venture between Tatas and Singapore Airlines, Vistara might also look at starting medium and long-haul flights, depending on approvals, amid the grounding of Jet Airways.
"We see India as a growing market. We are here for the long term," Vistara CEO Leslie Thng said on the sidelines of the annual general meeting of airlines' grouping IATA on Sunday.
Without providing specific details, he said the airline plans to start international operations in the second half of 2019.
It had planned to launch overseas flights in the first half of this year.
Currently, Vistara has more than 22 planes and operates around 850 flights every week.
Last month, the carrier announced it would take on lease four Boeing 737-800 NG aircraft and two A320 neo planes.
In 2018, Vistara placed its order for purchased and leased aircraft totalling 50 from the Airbus A320neo family, including A321neos.These would be for domestic as well as short and medium-haul international operations, with deliveries scheduled between 2019 and 2023.

 Further, the carrier has bought six Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft that are scheduled to be delivered between 2020 and 2021. These would operate long-haul international operations.Thng said, Vistara can start short-haul flights but would need more time for long-haul ones.