Sri Lanka will release 988 prisoners on Friday on presidential amnesty to mark Vesak Day, the most important religious event for Buddhists.

Commissioner of the Department of Prisons and spokesman Chandana Ekanayake told media that the amnesty was granted by President Ranil Wickremesinghe under powers vested on him under Article 34 of the country's Constitution.

Ekanayake said this amnesty was given based on several terms and conditions.

Sri Lanka usually pardons prisoners on Independence Day and during major religious events.

Vesak, or Buddha Jayanti, is a holiday traditionally observed by Buddhists in South Asia and Southeast Asia.

The festival commemorates the birth, enlightenment and death of Gautama Buddha.

The CBI on May 5  conducted searches at seven locations including the premises of Jet Airways and its founder Naresh Goyal in Mumbai in connection with an alleged Rs 538-crore fraud case in Canara Bank.

The CBI searches were spread across residences and offices of Goyal, his wife Anita, and former airline director Gaurang Ananda Shetty.

The agency has registered a new case of alleged bank fraud of Rs 538 crore on a complaint from Canara Bank.

The allegations pertain to alleged diversion of funds among other irregularities .

The company was in the process of revival after Jalan Kalrock Consortium won the bid for Jet Airways under the insolvency resolution process at National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).

Gautam Adani-promoted Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) on May 4  said it has completed the sale of Myanmar port Coastal International Terminals Pte Limited for $30 million.

This amount is much lower than what India’s largest private port operator had invested in the terminal.

As per a regulatory filing by APSEZ, the port is sold to a firm called Solar Energy Limited. The whereabouts and directors of Solar Energy were not shared by Adani Group but it is said the firm doesn’t belong to the promoter Group and the transaction would not fall within related party transactions. Post the stinging report of Hindenburg Research in January 2023, the Group’s dealing with the relatively lesser-known companies is under scrutiny.

The project had run into controversy after it was reported the Gautam Adani firm had paid $30 million to a Myanmar military-controlled firm for the deal. APSEZ had denied the allegations of any wrongdoing.

APSEZ, the largest port developer in India, is part of the globally diversified Adani Group.

Indian-American businessman and former head of Mastercard Ajay Banga on May 3  appointed as the President of the World Bank for a five-year term beginning June 2, 2023.

With this, Banga becomes the first person of Indian origin to head the prestigious international financial institution. The World Bank has always been spearheaded by an American since its inception at the end of World War 2. Banga, who was nominated by US President Joe Biden in February, was the sole nominee for the top post at the World Bank. He will take office on June 2, replacing David Malpass who had previously decided to step down before the expiry of his tenure.

Public sector Uco Bank on May 4  reported an 86.2% rise in net profit to Rs 581.24 crore for the fourth quarter of FY23 on the back of improvement in asset quality. The bank posted a Rs 312.18 crore net profit in the a year ago period.

Total income of the bank rose 36% to Rs 5,946.94 crore during the quarter from Rs 4,361.63 crore a year ago. Uco Bank has reported its highest-ever annual net profit of Rs 1,862.34 crore in 2022-23 against Rs 929.76 crore in the preceding fiscal, registering a nearly 100% year-on-year growth, according to the Kolkata headquartered lender.

Competing for the first time as Diamond League champion, star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra will be up against his familiar nemeses in the first of the prestigious meetings series on May 5 , as he aims to begin a 'long' season studded with top international events with a strong performance.

The 25-year-old Chopra, also a 2022 World Championships silver winner, faces the likes of reigning world champion Anderson Peters of Grenada and Tokyo Olympics silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch of the Czech Republic in a star-studded field at the Qatar Sports Club.

Chopra, who has a personal best and national record of 89.94m, had finished fourth with 87.43m in 2018 in the only other participation in the Doha Diamond League.

Despite missing the Doha leg, Chopra went on to script history one after the other last year.

He became the first Indian Diamond League champion after winning the 2022 grand finale in Zurich in September last.

A month before that, he became the first Indian to win a Diamond League Meeting in Lausanne.

Young forward Uttam Singh, who helped India reclaim the Sultan of Johor Cup last year, was on May 4  retained as the captain for the upcoming Junior Asia Cup in Salalah, Oman from May 23-June 1.

This will be a qualifying event for the forthcoming FIH Junior Men's World Cup in Malaysia in December.

India are grouped in pool A along with Pakistan, Japan, Thailand and Chinese Taipei while Korea, Malaysia, Oman, Bangladesh and Uzbekistan are grouped in pool B.

Squad Goalkeepers: Mohith H S, Himwaan Sihag; Defenders: Shardanand Tiwari, Rohit, Amandeep Lakra, Amir Ali, Yogember Rawat; Midfielders: Vishnukant Singh, Rajinder Singh, Poovanna C B, Amandeep, Sunit Lakra; Forwards: Boby Singh Dhami (VC), Araijeet Singh Hundal, Aditya Lalage, Uttam Singh (C), Sudeep Chirmako and Angad Bir Singh.

As the protest at Jantar Mantar saw a tussle between protesting wrestlers and Delhi police on  May 3 , the ad-hoc committee took charge of the Wrestling Federation of India. The three-member committee will function from the Indian Olympic Committee's headquarters in New Delhi.