Maharashtra’s senior IPS IGP, Krishna Prakash, has added another feather to his cap with another achievement of swimming against the tide literally to complete the daunting task of swimming from the Gateway of India to Elephanta Caves in the Arabian Sea.

Contrary to the popular swimming route from Elephanta Caves to the Gateway of India, in which competitive swimmers ride the waves of the high tides towards the gateway, Ironman Krishna Prakash took the challenge to swim against the waves and complete a distance of 16.20 km in 5 hours, 26 minutes from the Gateway of India to Elephatnat to beat the early Monday morning blues.

Drowning Prevention Awareness

Krishna Prakash, currently posted as IGP VIP Security, dedicated the expedition to ’Drowning Prevention Awareness’. Trust and hopes to inspire young Indians to try their best to bag an Olympic medal in 10-kilometer open water swimming.

The event was organized by the National Institute of Swimming and recognized by the World Open Water Swimming Association is certified by the Swimming Association of Maharashtra, which is affiliated with the Maharashtra Olympic Association. Jayaprakash Duble, President, JD Sports Foundation, and Jayant Duble, an internationally renowned swimmer, supervised the swim, with flag off by Olympian Suraj Karkera, and Olympian Dhananjay Mahadik presided over the felicitation ceremony after the end of the swim.

After completing his swim, Krishna Prakash gave a powerful message to the youths – “Build Strong Health, Build Strong Nation” with emphasize on the important role of health and fitness in building a prosperous and vibrant nation.

The senior IPS officer displayed remarkable physical and mental strength to prove that anything is possible with dedication and persistent efforts. “It is a testimony to his commitment to promote the importance of fitness and health, not only for the youth and sports enthusiasts, but for the entire nation, said Olympian Dhananjay Mahadik, praising Krishna Prakash for discipline and dedication

Guinness World Book of Records

The 1998 batch IPS, which already holds the Guinness World Book of Records, became the first Indian Government Servant, Civil Servant and Uniformed Services Officer, including Armed Forces and Para Military Forces, to earn the Iron Man title for completing the Ironman Triathlon in 2017. Prakash had finished Ironman Triathlon, one of the most competitive and difficult sporting events in the world, in 2017. Participants are required to complete a 3.8-kilometre swim, a 180.2 kilometre-long bicycle ride, and a 42.2-kilometre run within a set time frame of 16 to 17 hours as part of the triathlon.

Krishna Prakash, a health and sports fitness enthusiast, has served in many capacities, including as Pimpri Chinchwad Police Commissioner and Additional Police Commissioner, Mumbai Police South Region.

He is passionate about tribal welfare and deeply involved in the rehabilitation of the nomadic Phase Pardhis tribal community, denotified by the British rulers as brutal and ruthless dacoits, to dissuade them from illegal and criminal activities.

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Taller than the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Jammu and Kashmir will soon get a 1.315-km long bridge built at a dizzying height of 359 metres. The first track mounted vehicle (trolley) run was successfully conducted on Sunday in the presence of Ashwini Vaishanaw, minister of railways

Worlds highest railway bridge over Chenab river in Jammu, almost ready, Track linking activity over the Chenab Bridge has been completed.

Some track and overhead wire-related works remain, which will be likely to complete by end of this year. The bridge is part of Udhampur – Srinagar – Baramulla Rail Link Project (USBRL). Railway minister also travelled on the track mounted trally with railway officials and inspected the iconic bridge  having the height of 359 meters from the bed of river Chenab.

Foundation of hte bridge equal to half of a football field

Vaishnaw said that the decision has been taken to set up Vande Bharat Express train maintenance facility at Badgam in Kashmir Vally and in the first go Vande Bharat Metro will be run between  Jammu-Shringar cities once this important railway link, which will connect Kashmir Vally with railway network, in the rest of the country will be completed 

Vaishnaw said that the iconic bridge having foundation equal to half of the football field is a “subject of pride” and it was “difficult challenge of engineering”, while over 28,000 metric tons of steal used for the bridge structure that is built in highly active seismic zone.

Construction of the bridge started in 2005

According to Northern railway officials, the arch bridge was constructed at a cost of ₹1,486 crores. Construction work of the bridge was started in 2005. Its consumes over 13 million man work hours till the date.

The deck height of the bridge is 359 meters, while the length of it is 1.315 km. The arch bridge has 17 spans and the linear length of main arch span is 460 meters and curvilinear, they said. The codal life of the bridge is 120 years and the bridge can withstand the wind speed of 266 kmph, but the train can cross the bridge at the speed of 100 kmph.

Overarch of the deck completd with golden joint in August 2022

Prior to the construction of the Bridge, 260 meter approach roads and 400 meters long tunnel was built to reach the site. Cable crane was commissioned in 31st August 2013 for erection of steel arch, trestle and piers. Incremental launching over 2.74 degree circular and transition curve of 268 meter length was successfully done for the first time in Indian Railways in November 2017.

The overarch deck of the bridge was completed with a ‘Golden Joint’ in August last year, marking the bridge’s major achievemnet and further making way for the laying of the track. The construction of this highest railway bridge of the world was one of the biggest civil-engineering challenge faced by any railway project in India in the recent past.

Congress MLAs arrived at the Tamil Nadu Assembly on Monday wearing black shirts to protest senior leader Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification from the Lok Sabha.

Leader of the Tamil Nadu Congress Legislative Party, K. Selvaperunthugai led the MLAs and held placards outside the House.

Assembly Speaker M. Appavu denied permission to the legislators to carry their placards inside the House.

The Congress has 18 legislators in the Tamil Nadu Assembly and of these, 11 reached the house wearing black clothes.

The newly-elected Erode East MLA E.V.K.S. Elangovan is absent from the House after being hospitalised for Covid-19.

Selvaperunthugai told that the legislators would conduct an all-night protest dharna against the disqualification of Rahul Gandhi.

However, Appavu has denied permission for the dharna within the Assembly premises and that the legislators will now conduct the sit-in protest outside the Assembly.