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Rishabh Pant’s swashbuckling style may not be the textbook technique of great Indian batsman of old, but the diminutive wicketkeeper wrote his name into the history books at Headingley on Monday.The 27-year-old became the first Indian to score hundreds in both innings of a Test against England to give his side the edge heading into a fascinating final day of the first of a five-match series.His fourth Test century in England also saw Pant become only the second wicketkeeper in 148 years of Test history, after Zimbabwe’s Andy Flower, to score twin centuries in the same match.Having already made 134 in India’s first-innings 471, he came out to bat with the game delicately poised in the tourists’ second innings at 92-3.True to form, though, Pant went about turning the screw in his own style.He almost knocked himself off his feet when hacking his second ball narrowly over the slip cordon before advancing up the pitch to slap Chris Woakes down the ground.But those shots were as nothing compared to a kneeling slog-sweep off an 87 mile-per-hour (140 kmh) delivery from England fast bowler Brydon Carse.Shoaib Bashir was then dispatched for two sixes in three balls, even if Pant put the breaks on for spells of the early part of his innings.All the while KL Rahul looked on from the other end, the opener’s more traditional 137 a counterpoint to vice-captain Pant’s whirlwind 118 during a fourth-wicket stand of 195.Rahul — who took 202 balls for his century, 72 more than Pant needed to reach three figures — said after stumps: “I’ve had a few partnerships with Pant. It’s hard for us to understand his mindset.”You’ve got to let Rishabh Pant be Rishabh Pant, there’s obviously a method to his madness! He’s averaging (around) 45 in Test cricket, there’s a lot of thinking behind the outrageous shots he plays.”– $3 million man –Born in Haridwar, Uttarakhand, Pant’s mother would regularly make the four-hour drive so her young son could receive cricket training in the major centre of Delhi, with the pair often staying in a Sikh temple as they could not afford the cost of accommodation.Pant came under the influence of the late Tarak Sinha, a coach who had already launched the likes of Manoj Prabhakar and Shikhar Dhawan on their way to careers as India cricketers.A year after making his debut in India’s first-class Ranji Trophy debut aged 18 in 2015, Pant scored a triple-hundred against Maharashtra.He was on his way, with Pant’s first Test century coming in just his third match, on the 2018 tour of England.The following year his stunning 159 off 189 balls in a total of 622 in Sydney sealed India’s first series win in Australia against an attack used to dominating in home conditions.And in Brisbane in 2021, an unbeaten 89 guided an injury-hit India to their second series win in Australia in two visits as he defied bowlers of the calibre of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon.However, Pant’s promising career and life were nearly cut short in a horror car crash in December 2022 when he had to punch his way out of the overturned vehicle as it burst into flames.After 15 months on the sidelines, many wondered if he would return to the professional game.But his comeback was so successful that Lucknow Super Giants made him the record signing in the Indian Premier League (IPL) when they splashed out $3.21 million for his services at last year’s November auction.He arrived in England with questions over his form after striking hust 128 runs in 10 IPL innings this IPL season.But Pant showed his class is permanent by putting England to the sword in some style.

A Bangladesh court on Monday remanded in custody the former elections chief for his alleged role in rigging the vote in favour of now-ousted autocrat Sheikh Hasina.KM Nurul Huda, 77, was ordered to be detained for four days while questioning continues, a day after a mob who smashed into his home and assaulted him eventually handed him to the police.On Sunday, the powerful Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) filed a case against Huda and other former election commissioners it accuses of rigging past polls in favour of Hasina, whose 15 years in power ended in an mass uprising in August 2024.Hours after the case was filed, a mob stormed Huda’s home in the capital Dhaka, and dragged him onto the street.They put a garland of shoes around his neck and beat him up before handing him over to the police.The interim government condemned the incident and urged people not to take the law into their own hands.”Swooping on an accused and physically assaulting him is illegal, contrary to the rule of law, and a criminal offence,” the statement read.Interim leader Muhammad Yunus has said elections will be held in early April 2026 — the first in the South Asian nation of around 170 million people since the student-led revolt ousted Hasina.Police put a helmet on Huda while taking him to the court for his protection.   Human rights organisations also condemned the attack on Huda.”It was a complete violation of… the rule of law,” Abu Ahmed Faijul Kabir from the rights group Ain O Salish Kendra said in a statement.Yunus’s government warned last month that political power struggles risked jeopardising gains that have been made, saying that holding elections by mid-2026 would give them time to overhaul democratic institutions.Hasina’s rule saw widespread human rights abuses and her government was accused of politicising courts and the civil service, as well as staging lopsided elections.Hasina, 77, remains in self-imposed exile in India, where she fled after she was ousted last year.She has defied orders to return to Dhaka to face charges amounting to crimes against humanity. Her trial in absentia continues.

When wedding season comes in India, the phone of child rights activist Tatwashil Kamble never stops ringing with appeals to stop girls from being married off due to poverty.Kamble said he has helped stop thousands of illegal marriages in India, where nuptials before the age of 18 are banned. “The elders of the village think: ‘How dare we come to stop a marriage in their village!'” said Kamble, who has been campaigning for more than a decade in western Maharashtra state.Many families are motivated by poverty to marry off their daughters, so that the girls can start earning their own living.When activists have sought to stop marriages, “it has led to physical altercations”, according to Kamble. Sometimes they are able to stop the nuptials from taking place, or, if they arrive too late, then the bride is taken to a shelter and supported in deciding on her own future.India accounts for one in three of the world’s child brides, according to the UN children’s agency, with at least 1.5 million girls getting married each year.Kamble said he is driven by the bitter memory of seeing a teenager die of blood loss during labour.”That’s when I thought: so many young girls are getting married and, even after their death, it’s not being called child marriage. They are saying ‘the mother has died'” without acknowledging she was a girl.- Wedding hotline -Kamble works in the Beed district of Maharashtra, an area dominated by sprawling sugarcane fields hit hard by years of drought.Workers said they have little choice but to marry their daughters off young — arguing they do it to protect the girl, not harm her. “It is not like we don’t like the idea of education,” said Manisha Barde, a sugarcane cutter who was a child bride herself. “We want her to become a doctor.”Barde, however, arranged for her teenage daughter to be married only to be stopped by authorities.She did so because they were poor and, if they had “better jobs, we wouldn’t have thought of her marriage”.Farm labourers said that when their children are little, relatives look after them or they come to the fields.But when the girls become teenagers, their parents begin to worry — either that they could start a relationship before marriage, or be subjected to sexual violence.”There are very few girls who stay unmarried until 18,” said Ashok Tangde, district chief of the child welfare committee.”I have seen girls who have never seen a school,” he said.Families worry for “the girl’s safety”, Tangde said, and even those opposed to child marriage can end up organising a wedding.Tangde said his team received 321 calls from across the district about child marriages that were taking place, or about to happen, in the first five months of this year.During peak wedding season, which runs from October to March, Tangde said he gets around 10 to 15 calls daily, which prompt his team and other activists to raid ceremonies.- ‘Do the right thing’ -Tangde has a dedicated network of activists and other informants who help in villages across the district, sending photographs of weddings.”There are some people who want to do the right thing,” he said.Sometimes the bride calls directly. Other times, a guest rings and makes the authorities listen to the wedding music. “Disrupting a wedding… there is a lot of drama,” said Tangde. “People get ready to beat up those who go to stop such marriages.”Jyoti Thorat was 16 when her parents married her off to a 20-year-old man, ending her hopes of continuing school and joining the police.”My parents fixed it, and I wasn’t happy,” Thorat said, a decade later and a mother of two schoolboys.Her older sisters had also been married off before they turned 18, with her parents prioritising getting their only son educated.Thorat recalled with despair how work cutting cane beckoned soon after her wedding, a fate that awaits other girls. “They have to start working as sugarcane workers that same year,” she said. “A machete is ready for them.”

The first Test between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka fizzled out into a damp draw on Saturday, with rain robbing the match in Galle of a proper climax.Sri Lanka were set a tall order of 296 in 37 overs and were tottering at 72-4 when stumps were drawn 9.5 overs into the final hour, with both captains shaking hands and accepting no result was possible.The day belonged to Bangladesh skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto, who scored centuries in both innings. “We were low on confidence coming into the series but this was a very good Test match,” he said.”We wanted to declare early but rain forced us to rethink.”Shanto made an unbeaten 125 in the second innings after posting 148 in his first dig.It was the second time he had achieved the feat, scoring two centuries in a match against Afghanistan in 2023.However, questions will linger over his captaincy. In pursuit of his landmark, Shanto might have taken his eye off the larger prize.Bangladesh were 247 runs ahead when play resumed after a rain delay and, with 50 overs still to be bowled on the day, an earlier declaration could have forced a result. Instead, Bangladesh batted on for 12 more overs and, with the innings break taken into account, more than an hour of potentially valuable time was lost on a wearing fifth-day pitch.The delay gave Sri Lanka some hope but their top order crumbled under pressure. Lahiru Udara was stumped off a cleverly flighted delivery by Taijul Islam, while Pathum Nissanka gifted his wicket to Nayeem Hasan by spooning one straight to short mid-wicket.Taijul struck two crucial blows, removing the experienced Angelo Mathews and Dinesh Chandimal in quick succession, but time ran out for Bangladesh.Mathews, playing his 119th and final Test, walked off to a standing ovation as the crowd rose for one of Sri Lanka’s greats. “I can’t believe the love I have received,” said Mathews. “It’s now up to the younger players to carry the baton and run.”There was a silver lining for Sri Lanka in the form of debutant Tharindu Rathnayake. A six-wicket haul from two innings on his debut was praiseworthy enough but Rathnayake also showcased his rare ambidextrous skills. He dismissed Mominul Haque with off-spin, then switched to left-arm orthodox to account for Litton Das and Jaker Ali. He also pulled off a sensational run out, firing a direct hit from mid-on to catch Mushfiqur Rahim short of his ground on 49. The second Test will be played in Colombo next week.Brief scores:Bangladesh first innings: 495 all out (Mushfiqur Rahim 163, Najmul Hossain Shanto 148, Litton Das 90; Asitha Fernando 4-86)Sri Lanka first innings: 485 all out (Pathum Nissanka 187, Kamindu Mendis 87, Dinesh Chandimal 54; Nayeem Hasan 5-121)Bangladesh second innings: 285 for six declared (Najmul Hossain Shanto 125 not out, Shadman Islam 76; Tharindu Rathnayake 3-102)Sri Lanka second innings: 72 for four (Pathum Nissanka 24; Taijul Islam 3-23)

Najmul Hossain Shanto scored his second century of the match as Bangladesh declared on 285 for six on Saturday to set Sri Lanka a challenging target of 296 in 37 overs on the final day of the first Test in Galle. The Bangladesh captain brought up the milestone in unorthodox fashion with a reverse sweep for a single off debutant Tharindu Rathnayake to join an exclusive club of players to score centuries in both innings of a Test.Shanto’s undefeated 125 came after a commanding 148 in the first innings.It was the second time he had achieved the feat, his first coming against Afghanistan in 2023. Mominul Haque is the only other Bangladesh player to have scored centuries in both innings of a Test.However, questions could be asked about the timing of Bangladesh’s declaration. With the clock ticking and only 37 overs left in the day, the tourists may rue not ending their innings sooner to give themselves more time to attack Sri Lanka’s top order. Rain spoiled the morning session, with Bangladesh resuming at 177-3. They had slowly reached 237-4 when it began raining, with Mushfiqur Rahim the only casualty of a truncated first session.Mushfiqur fell one short of a half-century, seeking a quick single with a nudge to mid-on only to see Rathnayake swoop in and throw down the stumps with a direct hit.An early lunch was taken and further showers delayed the restart. It didn’t take long for Rathnayake — this time bowling left-arm orthodox — to make his mark when play resumed. In the first over after the restart, the ambidextrous spinner found sharp turn to hit Litton Das’s off stump with a delivery that had the right-hander groping. He struck again soon after when Jaker Ali danced down the pitch only to be beaten in flight and stumped.

Shubman Gill marked his first innings as India captain with a sparkling hundred after fellow young gun Yashasvi Jaiswal also scored a fine century against England at Headingley on Friday.India — sent into bat by England captain Ben Stokes — were in the commanding position of 359-3 at close of play on the first day of this five-Test series. Gill was 127 not out after sharing a stand of 129 for the third wicket with opener Jaiswal, dismissed for 101 shortly after tea.The aggressive Rishabh Pant was 65 not out, including an extraordinary swiped six off Chris Woakes in the last over of the day as he piled on the agony for England during an unbroken stand of 138 with his new skipper. “It was very, very good and we all did well today,” Jaiswal told Sky Sports after the close as he hailed Gill’s innings by saying: “He played amazingly. He was very composed and calm all the time.”This was a chastening start to the new World Test Championship cycle for England following South Africa’s victory over Australia in last week’s final at Lord’s.”It was a tough day,” said England bowling coach Tim Southee. “We will come back tomorrow and try to make some inroads.”The former New Zealand paceman added: “The openers did well early on, particularly Rahul….There were two great knocks, Jaiswal and Pant are class players.”Concerns had been expressed before the series about how India would cope in England without Rohit Sharma, Gill’s predecessor as captain, and Virat Kohli after the two star batsmen retired from Test duty within days of each other last month.Yet such is the depth of talent in cricket-obsessed India, quality replacements were always likely to be available.  Stokes’ decision to field may have been influenced by the fact the last six Tests at Headingley have been won by the team batting second.But England, without retired greats James Anderson and Stuart Broad and missing injured express quicks Jofra Archer and Mark Wood, rarely threatened on a good batting pitch under increasingly sunny skies.Woakes was given the new ball after returning in place of the injured Gus Atkinson but his 19 wicketless overs cost 89 runs, with all-rounder Stokes’ 2-43 in 13 making him the pick of England’s attack. – Sublime stroke-play -Jaiswal and opening partner KL Rahul got India off to a fine start in their quest for just a fourth Test series win in England after triumphs in 1971, 1986 and 2007.England, however, enjoyed a double strike shortly before lunch as 91-0 was transformed into 92-2.Rahul (42) carelessly edged a wide ball from Brydon Carse to Joe Root at first slip before Sai Sudharsan fell for a duck on Test debut when caught down the legside by diving wicketkeeper Jamie Smith off Stokes.But India’s third-wicket duo regained the initiative with sublime stroke-play.Stokes brought on Shoaib Bashir to add variety but the off-spinner’s first ball was cuffed for four by left-hander Jaiswal, who went to 99 with two superb boundaries off Carse.A quick single took an elated Jaiswal to a 144-ball hundred, including 16 fours, as he completed his fifth century in 20 Tests and third against England.It also meant the 23-year-old had scored hundreds on his Test debut, his first Test in Australia and first in England.Jaiswal, however, was out when bowled by a fine Stokes delivery from around the wicket that angled in and held its line.Pant, however, thumped Stokes back over his head for four off just his second ball.The 25-year-old Gill completed his century with a superb cover-driven four off fast bowler Josh Tongue, his 14th boundary in 140 balls faced.As he admired the shot, Gill ripped off his helmet in celebration of his sixth hundred in 33 Tests and third against England.Gill later pulled Tongue over Bashir’s head at fine leg for six and was just shy of his highest Test score of 128 at stumps. Before play both teams and the match officials observed a minute’s silence in memory of the victims of an Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad that killed all but one of 242 people on board.

India’s Yashasvi Jaiswal marked his first Test innings in England with a superb century and captain Shubman Gill hit an unbeaten fifty as the tourists took control of the series opener at Headingley on Friday.India dominated the bulk of the morning’s play after being sent into bat, only to lose two wickets in quick succession as they ended the session on 92-2.By tea on the first day of the opening Test in a five-match series, India were firmly back in control on 215-2, with 23-year-old opener Jaiswal 100 not out.Gill, in his first innings as skipper since succeeding the retired Rohit Sharma, was also in fine form on 58 not out.The pair had so far shared an unbroken partnership of 123 in 25.2 overs, with India going through the second session without losing a wicket.England captain Ben Stokes’ decision to bowl, which may have been influenced by the fact the last six Tests at Headingley have all been won by the team batting second, meant England did not have to face India’s star paceman Jasprit Bumrah at the start of the match.It also gave England a chance to strike an early blow against an India top order without experienced batsmen Rohit and Virat Kohli after the pair retired from Test cricket within days of each other last month.But an England attack without retired greats James Anderson and Stuart Broad and missing injured express quicks Jofra Archer and Mark Wood, rarely threatened on a good pitch. Chris Woakes, sidelined by an ankle problem earlier in the season, returned to take the new ball in place of the injured Gus Atkinson, with Brydon Carse given a home debut in the other change to the England side that beat Zimbabwe recently.- Sublime stroke-play -Jaiswal and Rahul seized on anything loose as India made a stylish start to their quest for just a fourth Test series win in England after their triumphs in 1971, 1986 and 2007.With India’s openers approaching a century partnership, England made a double strike.Rahul, on 42, drove loosely at a wide ball from Carse and edged to Joe Root at first slipMoments later, number three Sai Sudharsan joined the long list of batsmen who have made a duck on Test debut when a glance off Stokes was well caught by diving wicketkeeper Jamie Smith.But India’s third-wicket duo seized back the momentum with a century stand full of sublime stroke-play.Gill was especially severe on Woakes as he on-drove and cut the all-rounder for commanding boundaries before completing a 56-ball fifty — his quickest in Tests — with a pulled four off Josh Tongue.Stokes brought on Shoaib Bashir to add variety to his attack but the off-spinner’s first ball was cuffed through the covers for four by Jaiswal.Jaiswal appeared to suffer several bouts of cramp before he went to 99 with two superb boundaries off Carse.A quick single took an elated Jaiswal to a 144-ball hundred, including 16 fours, as he completed his fifth century in 20 Tests and third against England. Before play both teams and the match officials observed a minute’s silence in memory of the victims of an Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad that killed all but one of 242 people on board, with players also wearing black armbands as a mark of respect.

Bangladesh edged ahead of Sri Lanka on day four of the first Test in Galle on Friday, extending their lead to 187 runs with seven wickets in hand.  The visitors finished at 177-3 after a strong partnership of 68 between opener Shadman Islam and skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto. All-rounder Milan Rathnayake dismissed Shadman for 76 but veteran campaigner Mushfiqur Rahim, fresh off a first-innings century, joined his captain to steady the innings.The duo built an unbroken 49-run partnership for the fourth wicket to put their side in the driver’s seat heading into the final day. Bangladesh off-spinner Nayeem Hasan earlier took five wickets to halt Sri Lanka’s first-innings charge, with the visitors dismissed for 485 after lunch to trail by 10 runs.Nayeem was well supported by Hasan Mahmud, who finished with 3-74.Sri Lanka looked set for a useful lead after the first session, reaching 465-6 with Kamindu Mendis and Rathnayake stitching together a gritty 84-run stand for the seventh wicket.However, Sri Lanka then surrendered the momentum with a lower-order collapse, losing their last four wickets for 15 runs. Rathnayake had shown commendable defiance for his 39 but was undone by an inside edge onto the stumps off Mahmud.Kamindu followed in the next over with Sri Lanka’s score unchanged, falling to Nayeem’s off-spin as the ball kicked off the surface and caught the left-hander by surprise.His composed 87 included eight fours and a six but he fell with a third hundred against Bangladesh within sight.Nayeem said he “really enjoyed” Kamindu’s wicket.”Very happy with that ball that got him,” he said. Nayeem also removed debutant Tharindu Rathnayake for a duck with another sharp off-break that went through the gate as Sri Lanka lost three wickets for just one run in 10 deliveries.He then bowled Asitha Fernando (4) to close out Sri Lanka’s innings.The last Test draw at the Galle cricket ground was between the same two sides in 2013.”I think the game is open for both sides,” Kamindu said.”If we are able to get three wickets early, then we are up for a challenge.” Brief scores:Bangladesh 1st innings: 495 all out (Mushfiqur Rahim 163, Najmul Hossain Shanto 148; Asitha Fernando 4-86)Sri Lanka 1st innings: 485 all out (Pathum Nissanka 187, Kamindu Mendis 87, Dinesh Chandimal 54; Nayeem Hasan 5-121, Hasan Mahmud 3-74)Bangladesh 2nd innings: 177-3 (Shadman Islam 76, Najmul Hossain Shanto 56)Toss: Bangladesh

In the thick, steamy forests of western Thailand, 20 skittish sambar deer dart from an enclosure into the undergrowth — unaware they may find themselves in the jaws of one of the habitat’s 200 or so endangered tigers.The release is part of a project run by the government and conservation group WWF to provide tigers with prey to hunt and eat, which has helped the big cat make a remarkable recovery in Thailand.The wild tiger population in Thailand’s Western Forest Complex, near the border with Myanmar, has increased almost fivefold in the last 15 years from about 40 in 2007 to between 179 and 223 last year, according to the kingdom’s Department of National Parks (DNP).It is an uptick that WWF’s Tigers Alive initiative leader Stuart Chapman calls “extraordinary”, especially as no other country in Southeast Asia has seen tiger numbers pick up at all.The DNP and the WWF have been breeding sambar, which are native to Thailand but classed as vulnerable, and releasing them as prey.Now in its fifth year, the prey release is a “very good activity,” says the DNP’s Chaiya Danpho, as it addresses the ecosystem’s lack of large ungulates for tigers to eat.Worrapan Phumanee, a research manager for WWF Thailand, says that deer were previously scarce in the area, impacting the tiger population.But “since starting the project, we’ve seen tigers become regular residents here and successfully breed,” he says.Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam have all lost their native populations of Indochinese tigers, while Myanmar is thought to have just 23 left in the wild, in large part due to poaching and wildlife trafficking.Over the past century numbers worldwide have fallen from about 100,000 individuals to an estimated 5,500, according to the IUCN, which classifies tigers as endangered due to habitat loss and overhunting of the species and their natural prey.But major tiger recoveries have been recorded in India and Nepal, where in recent years numbers of Bengal tigers have grown to 3,600 and 355 respectively thanks to conservation measures.- ‘Incredibly successful’ -In a forest clearing in Khlong Lan National Park, DNP staff open the gate of the sambar deer enclosure where 10 males and 10 females have been grazing.The deer watch cautiously as one brave individual darts out, before the rest follow at speed and disappear into the trees.Worrapan says prey release programmes — now also happening in Cambodia and Malaysia — are part of wider restoration efforts to “rebuild ecosystems” in Southeast Asia, where they have been adapted for local purposes from similar initiatives that have existed for years in Africa.The breeding and releases also aim to solve the problem of the sambar deer’s own population decline due to hunting, says Worrapan.”The purpose of releasing deer is not solely to serve as tiger prey but also to restore the deer population,” he says, adding that GPS collar-monitoring has allowed researchers to track their lives after release.He says despite having only known captivity, the deer show a strong ability to adapt to outside threats.”(They) don’t simply wait passively. They try to evade predators and choose safe areas to thrive.”Chaiya says only a small number of the released deer end up as predator dinner, with most going on to reproduce.The sambar deer and their offspring “play a role in the food chain within the ecosystem, serving as prey for predators,” he says.

The alms bowl is a symbol of monks, yet in Sri Lanka artisans are struggling as cheap substitutes flood the market, igniting a debate over Buddhist tradition and quality.The village of Panvila has long been associated with craftsmen who produce the humble “paathra”, the special bowl that forms part of the eight essentials donated to monks and which is used to ask for food.Thenuwara Badalge Sarath, 65, says he is the only blacksmith left in a village that once supplied much of the country.”When I learnt the craft from my father, there were more than 10 families in the neighbourhood who made these bowls,” Sarath told AFP, while hammering a piece of scrap metal into a holy utensil.”Today, I am the only one keeping up the tradition. My son died recently in a road accident, and there is no one to carry on this line of work after I am gone,” said the fourth-generation craftsman.He spends about a week producing a batch of five to six bowls from discarded steel barrels. He sells each for 600 rupees ($2), but competition from cheap imports is tough.”There are aluminium bowls that come from abroad. They are cheaper and lighter — we can’t compete,” Sarath said at his village smithy, near the southern tourist resort of Hikkaduwa.- Karma drives demand -The Buddhist-majority nation of some 22 million people has just over 42,000 monks, but the demand for bowls is disproportionately high because of the positive karma attached to offering them to temples.Kirinde Assagi, a leading Buddhist monk, said the alms bowl forms part of the eight items for a monk to lead an ascetic life and spread the teachings of Buddha, along with two robes, a razor, a straining cloth, a needle and thread, and a belt.”The bowl is his livelihood. When a monk goes out begging with his bowl, he gets sustenance”, Assagi said.”Because gifting ‘ata pirikara’ to monks brings enormous good karma, devotees clamour to donate this,” said the monk, in reference to the eight-item package.At his Gangaramaya temple in the capital Colombo there were nine such packages donated within an hour one weekend.- ‘Mountain’ of discarded pots -Assagi says most of the bowls however are of poor quality, made out of aluminium and unfit to serve food in.In a storeroom at the back of his temple, there is a huge pile of bowls that monks say are not suitable even for offering food to household pets.”I will show you a mountain of begging bowls that we have discarded. We make holes at the bottom and repurpose them for potted plants.”Monks in Thailand, Myanmar, and Laos traditionally seek alms every morning, underscoring their simple life and demonstrating that their livelihood depends on others.But the influx of cheap bowls is impacting the dawn ritual.”We see the practice of monks begging slowly dying off as the quality of the bowls goes down,” he said.The Gangaramaya temple in Colombo has campaigned to improve the quality of utensils offered to monks and revive the ritual of seeking alms.Assagi said the Thai royal family has in recent years gifted more than 27,000 high qualitiy stainless steel bowls to Sri Lankan monks, most of whom are followers of the Siam sect of Buddhism practised in that nation.Unlike the financially well-off Gangaramaya, smaller temples are known to sell their excess bowls back to the market in a move that undermines traditional craftsmen such as Sarath.”When the bowls go back to the shop from a temple, we find it difficult to sell our produce,” Sarath said. He is trying to convince devotees that there is less merit in offering bowls that are being regifted.