11-yr-old to swim 550 km in raging Ganga

Lucknow: A spirited Shraddha Shukla, all of 11, has taken up the challenge to swim 550 km in the swollen Ganga from Kanpur to Varanasi in 10 days. Even as the river continues to devastate parts of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Bihar, Shraddha took the plunge on Sunday at the Massacre Ghat in Kanpur for the feat. She aims to reach Gau Ghat in Varanasi on the 10th day. She plans to swim 60 km each day, taking a break every four to five hours. — IANS

Most docs prefer spouses from profession

New Delhi: Around 69 per cent doctors prefer their spouses to be from the medical profession. Curofy, a networking app for doctors, approached 1,273 doctors and found that the majority preferred partners from the same profession. “Life is extremely busy and if your better half is also from a medical background, there is more understanding,” reasoned a doctor. However, 31 per cent rejected the notion, saying the same hectic schedule makes it difficult to cope with family pressure. — IANS

2.5-kg gold hidden in AI flight toilet seized 

Panaji: Nearly 2.5 kg of gold jewellery concealed in a toilet of an Air India flight, which arrived at Goa from Dubai, was seized by the Customs and Central Excise officials. The unclaimed gold was worth Rs 70 lakh. The airlines staff are under the scanner. The flight later left for Bengaluru. This is the third instance of unclaimed gold being found in an Air India flight from Dubai to Goa this year. — PTI