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By:

Bhalchandra Chorghade

11 August 2025 at 1:54:18 pm

Jaspal Rana taught India to aim higher

Indian sport lost one of its finest champions on June 12, 2026, with the untimely passing of shooting legend and coach Jaspal Rana at the age of 49. His death has left a void that will be difficult to fill, not only in Indian shooting but in the hearts of countless athletes, admirers and young dreamers who looked up to him as a symbol of excellence, discipline and perseverance. Born in the hills of Uttarakhand, Rana emerged as a prodigious talent at an age when most children are still...

Jaspal Rana taught India to aim higher

Indian sport lost one of its finest champions on June 12, 2026, with the untimely passing of shooting legend and coach Jaspal Rana at the age of 49. His death has left a void that will be difficult to fill, not only in Indian shooting but in the hearts of countless athletes, admirers and young dreamers who looked up to him as a symbol of excellence, discipline and perseverance. Born in the hills of Uttarakhand, Rana emerged as a prodigious talent at an age when most children are still discovering their interests. By his teens, he had already announced himself on the national stage and over the years he would go on to become one of India’s most decorated shooters. His remarkable achievements at the Asian Games, Commonwealth Championships and international competitions transformed him into a household name and brought unprecedented attention to shooting in India. Yet medals alone do not define Jaspal Rana’s legacy. What truly set him apart was his unwavering commitment to the sport long after his competitive career ended. As a coach, mentor and guide, he devoted himself to nurturing the next generation of Indian shooters. His influence can be seen in the success of numerous athletes, most notably Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker, whose achievements carried the unmistakable imprint of Rana’s guidance and belief. He possessed the rare ability to identify talent, instill confidence and demand excellence without losing sight of the human being behind the athlete. To his students, he was more than a coach. He was a teacher, protector and source of strength during moments of doubt. To colleagues, he was a respected professional whose passion for Indian sport was evident in every conversation and every training session. To fans, he represented an era when dedication and hard work could elevate a niche sport into the national spotlight. His sudden departure is a painful reminder of life’s fragility. But while Jaspal Rana is no longer with us, the values he championed — discipline, courage, humility and relentless pursuit of excellence — will continue to inspire generations. India mourns a champion. The shooting fraternity mourns a mentor. His family mourns a beloved husband and father. And the nation bids farewell to a man who spent his life helping others find their aim. Jaspal Rana’s final shot may have been fired, but his legacy will echo through Indian sport for decades to come.

Diplomatic Mirage

As Russia tightens its grip and Ukraine demands a seat at the table, the future of the war is being negotiated without its primary victim.

Russia

The war in Ukraine has entered a new, more insidious phase. A Russian missile barrage on Saturday killed at least fifteen people, reducing residential buildings to rubble, plunging homes into darkness, and leaving a central city reeling. The strike on Poltava alone claimed eleven lives, four of them children. In Kharkiv, another drone attack killed one person, while three police officers died in Sumy. Russia, undeterred and unrepentant, continues its campaign of destruction with a strategic precision designed not just to cripple infrastructure but to terrorize an already exhausted population.


Yet, while missiles rain down, a different kind of battle is playing out behind closed doors. In Washington and Moscow, the future of Ukraine is being discussed in hushed conversations that pointedly exclude Kyiv. President Donald Trump and his aides have floated the idea of a negotiated settlement that could swiftly end the war. Trump’s former National Security Advisor Keith Kellogg insists that Ukraine must hold elections, even as it battles an existential threat. But democracy under bombardment is a contradiction in terms, and for Ukraine, holding elections under martial law is constitutionally impossible.


Meanwhile, in Moscow, the Kremlin presses its advantage. Reports of Russian advances in eastern Ukraine, particularly near the city of Toretsk, suggest that Putin’s forces are leveraging military gains to strengthen their position at the bargaining table. This is war by other means: a strategic combination of battlefield success and diplomatic manoeuvring designed to force Ukraine into a weaker negotiating position. Every missile strike, every encroaching battalion, underscores the Kremlin’s desire to dictate the terms of any future settlement.


President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, for his part, is acutely aware of the risks of being sidelined. He has insisted that Ukraine must be present at any peace talks, and those talks must include its key Western allies. The idea that Washington and Moscow could strike a deal over Ukraine’s fate without Ukrainian involvement is not just undemocratic - it is ominous. A settlement forged in Kyiv’s absence would amount to a tacit endorsement of Russian expansionism, rewarding aggression and setting a perilous precedent for future conflicts.


Russia, for its part, has little reason to negotiate in good faith. The battlefield momentum has shifted. And in the West, war fatigue is real. The longer the conflict drags on, the harder it becomes to justify the billions in military aid.


Zelensky understands this. A peace process that sidelines Ukraine is not a peace process but is a surrender disguised as diplomacy. In Trump’s calculus, a quick deal would be a victory, regardless of what it means for Ukraine’s long-term security.


If Ukraine is forced into a ceasefire on Russia’s terms, the consequences will extend far beyond its borders. A frozen conflict would entrench Russian territorial gains, giving Putin a permanent foothold in the country. More alarmingly, it would send a message to other would-be aggressors: that military conquest, if sustained long enough, can be legitimized through diplomacy.


The recent Russian strike on Odesa, condemned by UNESCO for damaging historic buildings, is a grim reminder of the cultural and human toll of this war. But beyond the immediate devastation, the long-term fight for Ukraine’s independence is being waged in a realm where bombs do not fall—across negotiating tables where its future is being decided in absentia.


Zelenskyy is right to insist on a seat at those discussions. For the West, the choice is either to stand firmly behind Ukraine, ensuring it has both the military strength and diplomatic leverage to negotiate on its own terms, or risk orchestrating a settlement that merely sets the stage for the next war. For now, Ukraine fights on. The world debates. And in Poltava, in Kharkiv, in Sumy, the sirens keep wailing.

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