Local Round-up: First Gay National Spokesperson in Indian politics, India's Paris Olympics 2024 Medal Tally and more!

Local Round-up brings to you what's happening across the country in the travel, food, infrastructure, sports, and herein, we have curated for you, the updates from the weekend and the initial of this week. So, read these out below. 

Amrabad Tiger Reserve becomes India’s second-largest tiger reserve

The Amrabad Tiger Reserve of Telangana recently saw an addition in tigers, increasing its population to 30. With this, the tiger reserve has become the second-largest tiger reserve in India. This significant increase has been seen since 2018 and is ascribed to better habitat management, increased prey availability, and strengthened protection measures. To create an atmosphere that is favourable for tigers to reproduce and thrive, forest officials have also worked to improve the tigers' habitat and supply of prey.

India finishes in 71st position with 6 medals in the Paris Olympics 2024

As the Paris Olympics comes to an end on Sunday, India finished in the 71st position in the medal tally. With 1 silver and 5 bronze, the Indian contingent brought home 6 medals in total with Neeraj Chopra winning silver in Men’s Javelin Throw, the Indian Men’s Hockey Team clinching bronze, Manu Bhaker securing a bronze in Women’s 10 m Air Pistol Shooting, Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh, a bronze in 10m Air Pistol Mixed Team Shooting, Swapnil Kusale grabbing a bronze in men’s 50 m rifle 3 positions and 21-year-old Aman Sehrawat securing the third podium in Men’s Freestyle 57 kg Wrestling. 

Shah Rukh Khan wins the Pardo Alla Carriera award at the Locarno Film Festival 2024

Shah Rukh Khan was conferred with the Pardo Alla Carriera award at the Locarno Film Festival 2024 in recognition of his significant contributions to Indian cinema. After receiving the award, he said, “I want to thank you all for welcoming me with such wide arms, wider than the ones I do on screen in this really pretty, very beautiful, very cultural, very artistic, and extremely hot city of Locarno.”

10,000 women set World record for largest Kashmiri folk dance

In a significant achievement, 10,000 women performed the largest assembly of the Kashmiri folk dance - the Rouf Dance. This performance during the ‘Kashur Riwaaj’ cultural festival held at the Prof. Showkat Ali Indoor Stadium made it to the Guinness Book of World Records for the largest Kashmiri folk dance. The festival featured a range of cultural activities including traditional dances, music, and calligraphy as a celebration of the 78th Independence Day.

Anish Gawande becomes the first-ever gay national spokesperson of an Indian political party

The NCP (SP) has named 27-year-old LGBTQ+ activist Anish Gawande as its national spokesperson. Anish becomes the first-ever gay national spokesperson of a political party. After coming out to pursue his professional goals, Gawande started Pink List India to track down politicians who support LGBTQ+ issues.  His appointment is seen as a milestone for LGBTQ+ representation in Indian politics. He advocates for horizontal reservations and comprehensive anti-discrimination laws.

Government releases 109 climate-resilient seed varieties to boost farm yield and nutrition

In an effort to increase farm production and farmers' income, Prime Minister Narendra Modi introduced 109 high-yielding, climate-resilient, and biofortified seed varieties of horticulture and agricultural crops on Sunday, August 11, 2024. These varieties span 61 crops, including 34 field crops and 27 horticultural crops were developed by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR).