Navy to train police
Bhubaneswar: In a major step to enhance its counter-terrorism capabilities in the coastal belt, the state marine police will now get comprehensive training under the Indian navy, home secretary Asit Tripathy said on Thursday. He said the navy would train 50 police officials at INS Chillika in two batches starting July. They have decided to provide basic training on seamanship, following standard operating procedure during counter-terrorism operations in coastal areas, tracking illegal trawlers and pirates, Tripathy said.
Awards
Bhubaneswar: Chief minister Naveen Patnaik awarded the Biju Patnaik Award for Scientific Excellence to Lalit Mohan Das on Thursday. The award carries a medal, citation, stole and a cash prize of Rs 2 lakh. While the Samanta Chandra Sekhar Award was given to Pradeep Kumar Chand, Swati Mohanty and Ajay Parida for their contribution to science, the Young Scientist Award was given to Biswaranjan Paital, Sasmita Mohapatra, Milan Kumar Biswal and Swarup Kumar Parida. Jibananda Mohanty, Khageswar Pradhan and Dhurba Raj Nayak were felicitated in the senior category.
Man killed
Dhenkanal: A man was trampled to death by a wild elephant near a forest area in Dhenkanal on Wednesday night. The tusker attacked Shyamsundar Patra, 55, near his house at Atinda village, killing him on spot, officials said. The authorities donated Rs 10,000 to Patra's family as immediate assistance, while the body was sent for post-mortem, a forest officer said.
Akademi
Bhubaneswar: The Sahitya Akademi Executive Board, chaired by president Vishwanath Prasad Tiwari, on Thursday approved popular young Odia poet Suryasnata Tripathy as the recipient of the prestigious Yuva Puraskar- 2017. Tripathy was selected for his anthology of poems E Sampark Emiti. The Akademi's executive board also approved Subhendra Mohan Srichandan Singh's name for the Bal Sahitya Puraskar 2017 for his contribution to children's literature in Odia.