School syllabus to be cut by 50%; sports to be mandatory: Union Minister

Agencies

August 7, 2018

New Delhi, Aug 7: In a bid to promote sports in the country, Union Minister Rajyavardhan Rathore said on Monday that a games period will be made mandatory in schools after reducing the syllabus by 50% by next year.

“We have come to a stage where sports is not a part of education; it is education. The ministry of education is ensuring that by 2019, the syllabus in schools is reduced by 50% and there will be a sports period on a regular basis,” Rathore said.

Rathore said the ministry is planning several things to make sports more relevant.

“We are also ensuring that the SAI (Sports Authority of India) reduces its manpower by 50% by 2022 so that it can cater to sports and it has a lean body and money is spent on sports.

“This year, we will have 20 specialised sports schools and the government of India will pump in about Rs 7-10 crore each. The idea is to have a very pointed approach so that each school will have only two or three main sports. They will be very focused,” he said.

Comments

Add new comment

Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.

Elusive bamboo shrimp resurfaces in Mangaluru estuary after 70 years

News Network

December 7,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 7: A rare bamboo shrimp has been rediscovered on mainland India more than 70 years after it was last reported, confirming for the first time the presence of Atyopsis spinipes in the country. The find was made by researchers from the Centre for Climate Change Studies at Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, during surveys in Karnataka and Odisha.

The team — shrimp expert Dr S Prakash, PhD scholar K Kunjulakshmi, and Mangaluru-based researcher Maclean Antony Santos — combined field surveys, ecological assessments and DNA analysis to identify the elusive species. Their findings, published in Zootaxa, resolve decades of taxonomic confusion stemming from a 1951 report that misidentified the species as Atyopsis moluccensis without strong evidence.

The shrimp has now been confirmed at two locations: the Mulki–Pavanje estuary near Mangaluru and the Kuakhai River in Bhubaneswar. Historical specimens from the Andaman Islands, previously labelled as A. moluccensis, were also found to be misidentified and actually belong to A. spinipes.

The rediscovery began after an aquarium hobbyist in Odisha spotted a shrimp in 2022, prompting systematic surveys across Udupi, Karwar and Mangaluru. Four female specimens were collected in Mulki and one in Odisha, all genetically matching.

Researchers warn the species may exist in very small, vulnerable populations as freshwater habitats face increasing pressure from pollution, sand mining and infrastructure development. All verified specimens have been deposited with the Zoological Survey of India for future reference.

Comments