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April 2011
PM calls for N-tech for development
A long 28-year wait came to an end as India displayed iron will and enormous guts to hold the coveted World Cup trophy aloft for the second time in 28 years with a six-wicket win over Sri Lanka in a riveting final in Mumbai on April 2.
President Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil congratulated the Indian cricket team, saying it was a testament to the team’s “dedication to the cause”.
In her message to skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, she said: “The road to success has been long and hard. You and your team were tested at every stage.”
“Dedication to the cause, the strength of character to stay the course and astute leadership, however, have finally converted the potential of a talented group of youngsters, the experience of veterans and the hard work of the coach and his staff, into the reality of becoming World Champions,” the President said.
“All of you truly deserve the thanks of a billion plus Indians today,” she added. She also met the World Cup winning Indian cricket team the next day at the Raj Bhavan in Mumbai and congratulated them on their victory.
Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh also congratulated Team India for their emphatic win over Sri Lanka. “I join the nation in congratulating the Indian cricket team on their victory,” Dr. Singh.
He praised “the hard work and effort of ” Dhoni and his team saying it has been “rewarded”.
“They have shown the world that India is at the top of the game of cricket. The players demonstrated great team spirit, all the concentration and skill needed to win this well deserved World Cup. The Indian team makes India proud.”
This is India’s second world title after Kapil Dev’s team won it in 1983.
Seemingly staring down the barrel at 31/2 with celebrated openers Virender Sehwag (0) and Sachin Tendulkar (18) back in the pavilion, the lion-hearted never-say-die Indians roared back on the heroics of Gautam Gambhir (97) and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (91 not out, 79 balls) and their 109 run partnership that snatched the game away from Sri Lanka before a wildly jubilant capacity crowd of 33,000 at the Wankhede Stadium.
Setting a stiff asking rate of 5.5 after Mahela Jayawardene struck a classy unbeaten century, pulling Sri Lanka out of a sluggish start to a challenging 274/6, the Indians got to the winning run with 10 balls to spare. Dhoni smacked Nuwan Kulasekara for a mighty six into the stands, sparking delirious scenes of celebration across the park and around a jubilant nation.
As Man of the Match, Dhoni defied back pain to lead from the front when it mattered the most. The entire Indian team ran into the ground and the celebratory scenes were reminiscent of the Indian summer at Lord’s on June 25, 1983 when Kapil Dev and his boys clinched the Cup with a 43-run victory over the West Indies.
The players hugged each other, broke into tears, took the stumps as souvenirs, and then lifted an emotional Sachin Tendulkar on their shoulders to start on a victory lap, as the entire stadium stood up to give a warm ovation to the cricketing heroes and the giant scoreboard said “Congratulations World Champions India”.
But it all seemed so difficult early in the beginning. Sehwag got out in the very second ball of the innings, adjudged
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Prime Minister lays down reforms road map
Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on March 31 laid down the road map for the financial sector reforms and infrastructure development, and assured corporate honchos of a transparent environment to tackle the challenges facing the economy with confidence and without any fear or apprehensions.
Chairing the second meeting of the Prime Minister’s Council on Trade and Industry, Dr. Singh listed the steps that have been taken, relating to enunciation of public procurement standards, formulation of a public procurement policy, review and abolition of discretionary powers enjoyed by ministers, and introduction of an open and competitive system for the use of natural resources.
Text of the Prime Minister’s address:
“I welcome you all to the second meeting of this Council. When we met in May last year, many of you had spoken about the government and industry partnering to address the challenges facing our economy.
Your enthusiasm resulted in the formation of sub-committees of the Council on five thematic areas. I am happy to know that the sub-committees have given their recommendations.
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