Eminent Assamese dramatist, litterateur and social activist Ratna Ojha passed away due to old-age related ailments. For his contribution to the field of theatre, he received the prestigious Natyasurya Award in 2005.
He had introduced street plays in Assam in 1971 with his skit ‘Kokaideo’ to revive the theatre movement in the state that was fading with the death of his mentor Phani Sarma.
Iran’s top commander General Qassim Soleimani has been killed in a U.S. drone strike in Baghdad. Soleimani, who led a special forces unit of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards, has been a key figure of Iranian and the Middle East politics.
His death exacerbated already-high tensions between Iran and the United States and triggered concerns of retaliation from Iranian forces. After the news of Soleimani’s death, oil prices jumped more than 4% and fuelling fears of a conflict in the crude-rich region.
Senior Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Devi Prasad Tripathi passed away after prolonged illness.
Tripathi joined politics at the age of sixteen and was one of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi’s aides. He joined the NCP in 1999 after leaving the Congress opposing Sonia Gandhi’s foreign origins.
Alajangi Viswanath Swamy, a noted social activist and former Rajya Sabha member from Odisha, passed away at his Khariar Road residence in Nuapada district due to old age-related ailments.
Swamy had played an active role in social reformer Vinoba Bhave’s Bhoodan Movement. He was nominated to the Upper House of the Parliament on April 4, 2012 and was in the position till April 3, 2018.
Former Governor of Karnataka T N Chaturvedi passed away at a private hospital in Noida, at the age of 90. He was the 14th Governor of Karnataka from 2002–2007. He also served as of Comptroller and Auditor General of India from 1984 to 1989. He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan in 1991.
Former Tamil Nadu Assembly speaker and senior AIADMK leader P H Pandian passed away at the age of 74. P H Pandian, a lawyer by profession, served as Speaker of Tamil Nadu Assembly between 1985 to 1987 when MG Ramachandran was the chief minister. Later between 1999 to 2004, PH Pandian served as Tirunelveli MP of the AIADMK.
Centenarian freedom fighter Bhim Chandra Jana passed away at 107, of old age-related ailments in West Bengal’s Howrah district. Jana was awarded by the Government of India after Independence and was an avowed Gandhian all his life.
Hans Tilkowski, the West Germany goal-keeper in the 1966 World Cup final against England passes away at age 84. Tilkowski was best known outside Germany for conceding England’s third goal in extra time in the 1966 final, with the score at 2-2, when Geoff Hurst’s shot hit the bar and bounced downward. The decision to award the goal started decades of debate and much-disputed video analysis. Tilkowski always said he was sure the ball did not fully cross the line.
Former Western Army Commander Lieutenant general Prem Nath Hoon, who played an important role in the war against Pakistan in 1984, passed away at the age of 90. Lt Gen Hoon was admitted in Command Hospital, Chandimandir, Panchkula for the past two days due to illness.
Born in pre-partition India on October 4, 1929, Lt Gen Hoon had joined the Indian Army and led Operation Meghdoot, the code-name for the Indian Armed Forces operation to capture the Siachen Glacier in the Kashmir region, precipitating the Siachen Conflict. The action resulted in Indian troops gaining control of the entire Siachen Glacier.
Former Lok Sabha member from Vellore, R.P. Ulaganambi, passes away due to age related illness. He was 82. He was elected from Vellore for the DMK and served as an MP in the 5th Lok Sabha during 1971-76.
Legendary balladeer and sarangi maestro from Punjab, Sharif Idu passes away at age 80. He was conferred with the country’s highest honour for performing arts — the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2006 in dhadi folk music category — by then President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam.
Veteran screenwriter Buck Henry, credited for penning Hollywood classics such as The Graduate and Heaven Can Wait, passes away at the age of 89. According to Deadline, Henry died after suffering a heart attack at Cedars-Sinai Health Center in Los Angeles. Born Henry Zuckerman in 1930 in New York City, the writer was the son of silent film star Ruth Taylor. He was known as Buck Hendry
The titular head of Odisha’s Gajapati dynasty and former parliamentarian, Gopinath Gajapati Narayan Deo passes away at age 76, following prolonged illness. Gopinath Gajapati was undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Bhubaneswar due to heart-related. He was under medication for over three years.
Born in 1943, Deo had represented the Berhampur parliamentary constituency for two terms as a Congress member in 1989 and 1991. He switched over to the BJP in 1998 and joined the ruling BJD a decade later, in 2009.
The longest-serving ruler of Oman Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said passed away. He was a charismatic and visionary leader who transformed Oman into a modern and prosperous nation. He was ruling Oman since 1970. The Sultan is the prime decision-maker in Oman and also holds the portfolio of Prime Minister, supreme commander of the armed forces, minister of foreign affairs, minister of finance and minister of defense.
Former India legendary all-rounder, Bapu Nadkarni died on Friday following an old-age related illness at age 86. He played 41 Test matches for India in which he scored 1414 runs and grabbed 88 wickets with 6/43 as his best bowling figures. He was best known for his parsimonious left-arm spin bowling and ability to get maiden overs at will, including 21 consecutive ones against England in a Test match in Madras (Chennai).
Veteran Congress leader Shamsher Singh Surjewala passed away on Monday following prolonged illness. He was 87. Surjewala, father of party leader Randeep Surjewala, breathed his last at the AIIMS hospital in Delhi.
Shamsher Surjewala remained a five-time MLA and one-time Rajya Sabha MP. He was also the former president of the Haryana Congress and a former minister. He was a president of the Haryana Krishak Samaj and fought for the rights of farmers.
Former Test batsman and National selector Man Mohan Sood passed away at the age of 80. Sood played one Test and 39 first-class matches with one century in his cricket career.
Sood made his first class debut against Services in 1957 and played his final Ranji Trophy match against Jammu and Kashmir in 1964. His lone Test appearance came against Richie Benaud-led Australia at Madras in 1960 when India lost by an innings and 55 runs.
National Basketball Association (NBA) legend Kobe Bryant passed away in a helicopter crash with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna. Bryant was a 5-time NBA champion and 2-time Olympic gold medallist is widely regarded as one of the greatest basketball players in history.
Bryant rocketed to fame as an 18-year-old rookie and played 20 years for the Los Angeles Lakers – 18 of them as an all-star – winning 5 NBA championships. His death sent shockwaves through the National Basketball Association, which he helped propel to international prominence, and around the world.
Noted artist and sculptor Sher Singh Kukkal passed away in Delhi after brief illness. He was 86. He was awarded Senior Fellowship in Visual Art Photography by Union Ministry Of Culture during 2008-09.
A versatile artist with a vast experience in fine arts, Mr. Kukkal hailed from Buffa district, now in Pakistan. He worked as a freelance artist, doing drawing, painting, sculpture, printing and photography. He painted with graphite pencils, pen and ink.
He won various national and international awards for photography and painting, including the Gold Medal in Painting from Queens College, Lucknow and the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation Award.
Eminent Assamese scholar, linguist and litterateur Dr Golok Chandra Goswami passed away at his residence in Guwahati. He was 96. He was honoured with the Asam Sahitya Sabha’s ‘Sahityacharya’ title, ‘Bhashacharya’ title by Asom Bhasha Bikash Samiti and ‘Anundoram Borooah Award’ by the Anundoram Barooah Institute of Language, Art and Culture. Dr Goswami was the founder president of Assam Bhasha Bigyan Samiti.
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