Page 300 - Disaster Accident
Coal stock in power plants rises 25% in 2018
Coal supply from CIL to power plants rises 7.7% due to availability of railway rakes
Miners' fate uncertain, Mukul Sangma lambasts government for 'insensitivity'
Even as the fate of 15 miners trapped in a coal mine for over three weeks now remains uncertain, leader of Opposition in Meghalaya Assembly Mukul Sangma on Thursday lambasted the National People's Party (NPP)-led government for its failure to save the lives of the miners.
HC directs not to permit constructions within 500 mtrs Ganga's highest flood level
The Allahabad High Court Thursday directed authorities not to permit constructions within 500 metres of the highest flood level of the Ganga river in the city. Passing the order on a writ petition filed by Bhal Chandra Joshi and two others, the bench comprising justices PKS Baghel and Prakash Padia observed that the court has already passed a restrain order against any such constructions. The court said the District Administration, the Development Authority and other authorities are bound by the earlier directions of the High Court in this regard. The petitioner claimed that despite the earlier order, certain permanent constructions are being raised within 500 meters of the Highest Flood Level of river Ganga. The court also permitted the petitioner to implead the Kumbh Mela Authority as respondent in this petition. The court fixed January 28 as the next date of hearing and issued notices to Dinkar Rao Joshi, Mahant Dharmadas of Akhil Bharatiya Shri Panch Nirvani Ani Akhara, ...
Another 931 villages declared drought-affected in Maharashtra
The Maharashtra government on Thursday announced another 931 villages in the state as "drought-affected", which will entitle them to several benefits and conessions. Earlier, the Union government had announced 151 of the 358 tehsils in Maharashtra as drought-affected in October. Revenue minister Chandrakant Patil held a review meeting on drought situation earlier Thursday. "A government committee has assessed the data of water availability and fodder and crop productivity in tehsils which were not covered under the Centre's relief scheme," he told reporters. "931 villages from 50 revenue circles were found to have less than 50 per cent productivity. These villages will now get the benefit of schemes for drought-affected areas," Patil said. "Today's announcement means only these villages are declared as drought-affected and not the entire tehsil (where the village is located)," said an official from the Relief and Rehabilitation Department.
Bengal minister identifies 'shortcomings' in Kolkata Metro following Dec 27 fire
The West Bengal Fire and Emergency Services Minister Sujit Bose on Thursday said his department has "identified certain shortcomings" in Kolkata Metro's safety armour, including non-functional alarm and fire detection system, after the December 27 train fire incident that left 40 passengers injured.
Portion of building collapses after LPG cylinder blast in West Delhi
A portion of a building collapsed after an LPG cylinder blast in West Delhi's Sudarshan Park Thursday, said a fire service officer. The fire department received a call about the collapse at around 8.45 pm and four fire tenders, along with ambulances, were rushed to the spot, the officer said. Further details are awaited.
Search of Russian building ends with 39 dead, 1 survivor
Russian officials ended the search of a collapsed apartment building Thursday and said the rescue crews that raced through concrete rubble found 39 people dead and one survivor in the three-and-a-half days since part of the structure came down while residents slept. Officials think an explosion triggered by a gas leak caused the pre-dawn collapse Monday in the city of Magnitogorsk. A 10-month-old boy was the only person found alive in the wreckage. The baby suffered frostbite from lying in the rubble for 35 hours - temperatures were as low as minus 20 degrees Celsius (minus 4 F.) The number of deaths stood at four for most of the first day, but climbed quickly after two nights of winter weather. Russian authorities acknowledged from the start that the extreme cold gave rescue crews less time to reach trapped survivors. Hope flared when the injured infant was extracted from the debris Tuesday. He was flown to a Moscow children's hospital for treatment and was listed in stable condition
Odisha boat tragedy: Death toll rises to 9, probe ordered
The death toll in the boat capsize tragedy in Mahanadi river rose to nine Thursday with the recovery of eight more bodies in Odisha's Kendrapara district, while the state government ordered a probe into the incident. While the body of a woman was found shortly after the incident took place Wednesday evening, eight bodies were recovered during a search operation in the early hours of Thursday, officials said. "Altogether nine bodies have been recovered, while a 6-year-old girl is still missing," Kendrapara District Collector Dasarathy Satpathy said. The incident took place when the mechanised boat ferrying passengers capsized in the Mahanadi river Wednesday apparently after losing balance, the collector said. Expressing deep grief, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Thursday announced ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh each for the next of kin of the deceased, officials said. Patnaik had on Wednesday night instructed the administration and search teams to expedite rescue operations. Stating that an ...
55 trains cancelled, 12 delayed due to fog: Railways
As dense fog enveloped several parts of the national capital Thursday, 55 trains were cancelled and 25 remained partially cancelled across northern railways, officials said. At least 12 trains were delayed due to low visibility, they said. Some prominent trains including Puri-New Delhi Purushottam Express, Howrah-New Delhi Poorva Express, Bhagalpur-Anand Vihar Garib Rath Express, Varanasi-New Delhi Kashi Vishwanath Express and New Jalpaiguri-New Delhi Express have been delayed by several hours, the railways said. Most of the affected trains were running late by two-three hours due to very low visibility around the national capital, they said. The situation, however, was much better this year because of 'Fog Pass', a safety device that was provided to railway zones worst affected by fog, they added. A Global Positioning System (GPS) based handheld, portable device, the Fog Pass serves as an aid for the crew during low visibility conditions through an audio-visual alarm whenever a ...
FSSAI asks food biz to comply with new packaging norms by July 1
Food businesses need to comply with new packaging regulations that bar use of recycled plastics and newspapers to wrap food articles by July 1, regulator FSSAI said Thursday. The new regulations prohibit packaging material made of recycled plastics including carry bags for packaging, storing, carrying or dispensing articles of food. Taking cognizance of the carcinogenic effect of inks and dyes, the norms also prohibit the use of newspaper and such other materials for packing or wrapping of food articles and includes respective Indian standard for printing inks for use on food packages. "The new packaging regulations would raise the bar of food safety in India to the next level," Food Safety and Standards Authority (FSSAI) CEO Pawan Agarwal said in a statement. He also said that there would be "difficulties" in implementation of these regulations by the unorganised sector and therefore sufficient time has been given before the regulations come into force. "The food businesses shall ...
Rlys' grave lapse: 60% vacancy among staff for maintenance, inspection of bridges, says Par panel
Calling it a "grave lapse" on part of the Railway Ministry, a parliamentary panel said there was 60 per cent vacancy in staff for inspection and maintenance of railway bridges, which may compromise safety. The report of the 'Standing Committee on Railways on Maintenance of Bridges in Indian Railways: A Review' also expressed concern over the fact that there existed no separate protocol for inspection and maintenance of bridges which were 100 years old or older. "The Committee found high rates of vacancy in the staff dedicated for inspection and maintenance of bridges. As against a sanctioned strength of 7,669, the actual strength is only 4,517 (around 40 per cent). It is of the opinion that since bridges are the most vulnerable link on the railways, lack of manpower in this segment is bound to create gaps in inspection and maintenance which may compromise railway safety," the report tabled in Lok Sabha Thursday said. The Committee recommended that the ministry should fill up these ...
Coal ministry increases fuel supply to power plants
The government Thursday said it has augmented the supply of coal to power plants to meet the country's energy demands. The development assumes significance as Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy recently met Coal Minister Piyush Goyal and demanded the Centre to ensure immediate supply of coal to Raichur Thermal Power Station. "Ministry of Coal has increased the coal stock and coal supply to power plants to meet the energy demands in the country," the coal ministry said in a statement. The coal stock in power plants as on December 31, 2018, was 16.60 million tonnes (MT) as compared with 13.20 MT on December 31, 2017, showing an increase of around 25 per cent. As on December 31, 2018, the number of power plants in the critical/super-critical category was nine, compared with 13 on December 31, 2017. "The coal stock in power plants on December 31, 2018, was sufficient for 10 days as compared to the coal stock in power plants on December 31, 2017, which was sufficient for nine days," .
Cyclone 'Pabuk' approaching Andaman and Nicobar Islands
The Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) Kolkata has warned of heavy rains in Andaman and Nicobar Islands due to approaching tropical cyclone 'Pabuk' which will emerge in the Andaman sea on January 5, an official said on Thursday.
13 dead, 18 injured in separate road accidents in Jharkhand
A total of 13 people, including two children, were killed and 18 more injured in separate road accidents in Jharkhand on Thursday, police said. A speeding trailer mowed down the children and one person sleeping on a footpath in the early hours near the Tatanagar railway station here, they said. Four people were injured in the accident that took place after the driver of the trailer lost control over the vehicle, hit a divider and ran over the people, East Singhbhum district Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Alok Ranjan said. The injured were rushed to the M G M Hospital, he said, adding that the driver has been arrested and the vehicle confiscated. Five people were killed and eight others injured when a passenger van collided with a truck near Dakaya forest in Deoghar district. Sub-divisional Police Officer Vikas Chandra Srivastav said three of the injured were stated to be critical, and are undergoing treatment at the Sadar hospital. In a third accident, three people died and ...
Death toll jumps to 38 in Russian gas blast
The number of dead from a New Year's Eve gas explosion in a Russian apartment block jumped to 38 on Thursday as rescuers recovered more bodies from the rubble of the partially collapsed building. Russian news agencies quoted the emergencies ministry as saying a 38th body had been recovered, leaving only three people unaccounted for. Rescuers have been braving temperatures as low as minus 27 degrees Celsius (minus 16 degrees Fahrenheit) to search through mangled concrete and metal at the site in the Ural mountains city of Magnitogorsk. Six people including two children have been rescued at the site, but no survivors have been found since Tuesday when a 10-month-old boy was retrieved in what officials described as a "New Year's miracle". The explosion tore through the 10-storey building in the industrial city nearly 1,700 kilometres east of Moscow in the early hours of Monday. The Soviet-era block was home to about 1,100 people and the explosion destroyed 35 apartments, leaving dozens ..
J&K sets up panel to manage road safety fund
The Jammu and Kashmir administration Thursday ordered the constitution of a committee for the management of road safety fund in the state, officials said. According to an order issued by the General Administration Department (GAD), the Committee will be headed by the administrative secretary, finance department. The members of the committee include administrative secretaries or their representatives from the departments of housing and urban development, health and medical education, home, planning, public works, transport and the Inspector General of Police, Traffic, J&K among others. The Transport Commissioner, J&K will be the member secretary of the committee. The Committee shall review physical and financial progress of sanctioned schemes, ensure maintenance of accounts in accordance with rules and place all the proposals and action plan before the J&K State Road Safety Council, the official said. The Committee shall meet in every quarter of the financial year. Governor
Take 'prompt' steps to rescue trapped miners in Meghalaya: SC
The Supreme Court on Thursday said that "prompt, immediate and effective steps" are required to augment the operations for the rescue of 15 miners trapped in flood water-hit mines in Meghalaya, and expressed dissatisfaction over the outcome of measures taken so far.
SpiceJet comes under DGCA lens for purported New Year revelry onboard flight
Aviation regulator DGCA has sought explanation from SpiceJet after a purported video showed passengers indulging in New Year revelry onboard a flight to Amristar from Goa, a source said. The incident happened on December 31 when the flight SG 282 was "cruising" at 35,000 feet. The source said such activities while flying could be a violation of flight safety norms. To check whether there has been any violations, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has sought explanation from the crew of that flight, the source added. A SpiceJet spokesperson said at no point in time was any safety aspect compromised, and all necessary Standard Operating Procedures (SoPs) were followed. "Two enthusiastic passengers onboard the SpiceJet Goa-Amritsar flight on the night of December 31-January 1 shot a video of other passengers shaking hands and giving each other hi-five as part of New Year revelry. There was also music playing in the background," said the source. When the video came to the ...
Serbia arrests bus driver as death toll in crash rises to 7
Authorities in Serbia have arrested the driver of the bus that was hit by a train last month as the number of dead in the crash has risen to seven. Serbia's state TV said Thursday that prosecutors have ordered a 30-day detention for the driver as soon as he is well enough to leave the hospital. He's suspected of gravely endangering safety. The bus was carrying mostly high school students to school when a train slammed into it near the southern city of Nis, practically cutting the bus in half. Five people were immediately killed in the December 21 crash and scores were injured. Two more people have died later in the hospital. The crash has triggered protests and a debate about road and railway safety in the Balkan country.
Like airlines, rlys may soon make public status of reserved, vacant seats in trains
Just like airlines, the Indian Railways is working on a plan to enable passengers to see the status of seats available for booking a particular train by making the reserved charts public, a source in the ministry said Thursday. Railway minister Piyush Goyal has instructed senior officials of the national transporter to make the reservation charts public with the help of the Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS), sources said, to combat complaints of passengers regarding availability of seats. When a passenger is booking a seat through airlines' website, it shows the seating layout or the seating diagram with the booked seats in a different colour so that he or she can see the number of seats that are still vacant and can be booked. While in the airlines, passengers can choose the seat as per convenience and paying capacity, in the railways that will be a step that will be explored later, sources said. "As of now, we need to make the reservation status public so that passengers