Page 553 - Disaster Accident
Temple, church, madrasa turn into relief camps in Kodagu town
Symbolising the spirit of communal harmony in times of distress, this small town in Karnataka has turned its church, temple and madrasa, into relief camps to help flood victims in Kodagu district. Many videos have gone viral depicting inhabitants of Suntikoppa in the rain-ravaged Kodagu district turning a Shiva temple, St Mary's church and a madrasa, nearby one another, into relief camps in which around 600 affected people are sheltered. Food was also being cooked in a common place at the community kitchen in the madrasa and being provided to the sheltered people in the temple and the church, residents said. This act, testifying to the spirit of communal harmony, has prompted many leaders including Congress president Rahul Gandhi to lavish praise on Suntikoppa inhabitants. In a tweet posted today, Gandhi said, "In Kodagu, Karnataka, massive floods have unleashed a trail of devastation. But amidst the gloom, here's a great story about an oasis of hope, a small town, ...
Railways urges staff to donate one day's salary for Kerala relief work
The Indian Railways has appealed to its employees to donate one day's salary each towards the Kerala relief fund, an official said on Tuesday.
UP hands over Rs 15-crore draft for flood relief work in Kerala
The Uttar Pradesh government on Tuesday handed over a bank draft of Rs 15 crore to a representative of the Kerala government as its contribution for relief work in the flood-ravaged state, a government spokesman said.
Give priority for monsoon patrolling to ensure safety: SCR GM
Officials in the South Central Railway (SCR) zone were today instructed to accord priority for "monsoon precautions" and intensify patrolling in all vulnerable areas to ensure safety of the tracks. SCR General Manager Vinod Kumar Yadav, who held a review meeting with senior officials of all six divisions under the SCR Zone through video conference, also asked them to keep a watch on all water bodies and bridges by deploying special teams to tackle any unusual situations. The GM reviewed safety aspects including monsoon precautions, minor derailments occurring in yards, signal failures and works related to station redevelopment among others, SCR Chief Public Relations Officer M Umashankar Kumar said in a release. Yadav also told the officials to take steps for installing more CCTV cameras at major stations, including Tirupati, to ensure the security and safety of passengers, the release added.
Kerala mulling 10 pc cess on GST, introduction of special lottery
As Kerala struggles to raise resources for rehabilitation in the wake of devastating floods, the state government today demanded that it should be allowed to impose a 10 per cent cess on the GST and also introduce a special lottery. This decision was taken at a state Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan here today. The flood-ravaged state has asked for the GST council's permission to introduce 10 per cent cess on the GST as part of its efforts to mobilise more resources for rehabilitation, besides planning to introduce a special lottery, a government press release said. The Cabinet also decided to accept the materials supplied by individuals and voluntary organisations outside the state and distribute the same in relief camps. In view of the flood situation, all plantation workers will be given 50 kg of free ration. Fire department personnel, police and revenue officials as also fishermen who took part in the rescue operations will be given a certificate of the ..
Lyft surpasses 5,000 self-driving rides with Aptiv fleet
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Lyft has completed more than 5,000 self-driving rides through its ride-hailing app, the company said on Tuesday, as it aims to become a serious competitor in autonomous driving while its biggest rival, Uber, retrenches.
Flood relief material from abroad exempted from customs duty, GST: Goyal
Finance, Coal and Railway Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday said the relief material coming from foreign countries for distribution in flood-ravaged Kerala have been exempted from the customs duty and the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
Fire in Bengal jute factory, none injured
A fire broke out at a jute factory in West Bengal's Howrah district on Tuesday when the work was going on, but none of the workers was injured, a fire official said.
Kerala to get cyclone warning centre: IMD
In the wake of tropical cyclones and severe weather events in Kerala and Karnataka coasts, the Centre has proposed to set up a Cyclone Warning Centre in Thiruvananthapuram, Secretary in the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) M Rajeevan said today. The cyclone centre is expected to come up in another one month, he said. At present, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has cyclone warning centres in Chennai, Bhubaneswar, Vishakhapatnam, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Mumbai. "South India was managed by the Chennai (Met) office. Now, the Thiruvananthapuram centre will cater to the needs of Kerala and Karnataka and it will be equipped with state-of- the-art infrastructure, including forecasting tools, to issue weather warnings and coastal bulletins (for fishermen etc)," he said. It would further strengthen the present forecasting activity in IMD's existing office in Kerala, Rajeevan said, adding the decision was taken to decentralise IMD's operations in South India. The east coast is prone ..
Two labourers killed, 13 injured in road accident
Two labourers were killed and 13 others injured when the jeep in which they were travelling dashed into a roadside tree on the Banda-Khuthar-Lakhimpur state highway here, police said today. The accident occurred late last night when a group of labourers working in Rohtak was returning home in the Lakhimpur district, they said. The driver apparently sped past to avoid police checking and lost control over the vehicle, they said, adding Ashish Kumar (20) and Jaskaran (40) died on the spot. The injured were admitted to the district hospital and to Bilsanda community health centre. The jeep driver has been arrested, they said.
Cyclone warning centre proposed in Thiruvananthapuram
In the wake of loss of around 370 human lives and widespread destruction due to torrential rains in Kerala and parts of Karnataka, the Union Ministry of Earth Sciences on Tuesday proposed to set up a cyclone warning centre in Thiruvananthapuram.
Mamata talks to Vijayan, assures city Malayalees of all help
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has said that she has spoken to her Kerala counterpart Pinarayi Vijayan over phone about the safety of the relatives of Malayalees residing in the city and the Bengalis living in the flood-ravaged state. Banerjee said this when members of the Confederation of Kolkata Malayalee Organisation (COKMO) called on her at her residence today. She also assured the COKMO members of all cooperation and also assured them of making arrangement for special trains to ferry their relatives, Bengali tourists and other Bengalis living there to their homes. COKMO general secretary K Nandakumar told PTI that he had informed Banerjee that there are 25 lakh Bengalis living in Kerala and they are facing problem in returning for want of trains. She assured to arrange for special trains and buses for those stranded and assured the city Malayalees to monitor the situation and take requisite steps, he added. "We thanked Mamata Banerjee for her kind ...
Railway minister appeals to employees to donate a day's salary for Kerala flood victims
Flood-hit Kerala is likely to get around Rs 200 crore from railways for rehabilitation works, after Railway Minister Piyush Goyal today appealed to the national transporter's 13 lakh employees across 16 zones to voluntarily donate a day's salary for the cause. Goyal said he was confident of a positive response from the employees as their contribution will help bring relief to the thousands rendered homeless in the state. "Employees of southern railways have already contributed Rs 65 lakh to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund without us even asking them to do so. We will send out the notice today," the minister told reporters. Railway Board officials said that the aid would amount to Rs 200 crore. Goyal also said that railways has run as many as 61 special trains in Thiruvanathapuram and Palakkad divisions to connect stranded passengers. "In particular, Thiruvananthapuram- Ernakulam section was connected by passenger Special Trains via Alleppey, which was not affected during the flood ...
DGP lauds Kerala cops for rescue ops during rain fury
The Kerala police, which had come under attack recently for alleged high-handedness, played a key role in rescuing thousands of people affected by the devastating floods that has left 223 people dead in a fortnight. More than 40,000 police personnel were deployed in the rain-hit areas across the state and they saved about 53,000 lives, state police chief Loknath Behra said today. They also assisted defence personnel and volunteers in rescuing 10 lakh stranded people, he said. Hailing the force, Behra said: "You deserve a big hand after all the hard work you have done as part of our rescue operations during the unprecedented floods in the state." It may be recalled that the state police had come under attack due to some incidents after the CPI-M led LDF government came to power in 2016. This included 'high-handedness' against a mother seeking justice for her son who had allegedly killed himself following harassment by college authorities; handling of a case connected with 'honour ...
Government extends GSTR filing date till Oct 5 in Kerala
Union Finance Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday said that the last date of filing the GSTR 3B has been extended to October 5 for Kerala and for other states, it will be August 24."Due to flood situation in Kerala, the last date of filling GSTR 3B has been extended to October 5 in the state," said Piyush Goyal while addressing the media.Adding to this he said that the relief material coming from foreign countries for flood-hit Kerala has been exempted from the custom duty and the Goods and Services Tax (GST)."The government is committed to help Kerala in this time of devastation," he said, adding, "We have decided that all the relief materials coming from foreign countries for the Kerala Relief Funds are exempted from the custom duty as well as GST."Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi directed Insurance Companies to hold special camps for assessment and timely release of compensation to the affected families and beneficiaries, under Social Security Schemes. Directions have also been ..
Breakdown in Blue Line Metro delays trains on route
Delhi Metro's Blue Line going towards Dwarka from Noida and Ghaziabad suffered a breakdown on Tuesday leading to inordinate delay in movement of trains on that stretch and inconvenience to hundreds of passengers.
Swedish fighter jet crashes after bird collision, pilot survives
A Swedish jet fighter crashed after colliding with a bird in southern Sweden today, authorities said, adding the pilot ejected safely. "It was a bird collision and the pilot had to eject," Johan Lundgren, spokesman at the Swedish Armed Forces told AFP. The pilot was on a training mission in a Jas Gripen aircraft manufactured by Swedish aerospace company Saab. The accident happened eight kilometres (five miles) north of a military air base near the southern Swedish city of Ronneby. The pilot was taken to a hospital for a check-up. Authorities said the accident happened in a remote area and no casualties were reported. Sweden reports about 400 such incidents a year, Charlotte Billgren at the Swedish Transport Agency told the TT news .
Kerala deluge: LIC relaxes claim settlement process
State-run Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has relaxed the claim settlement and documentation process for the flood victims in the deluge-ravaged Kerala, including waiving off death certificates and delayed premium payment fees. The rain fury, the worst since 1924, began on August 8 and has left 223 dead as of today and forced over one million out of their homes. Between August 8 and 18, the state received almost four times more rainfall than the normal. Since the beginning of the monsoon season late May, more than 370 people have lost their lives. Most of the casualties happened in the rich central Kerala districts and still rescue operations are on in the central district of Pathanamthitta where tens of thousands are still marooned. Announcing a slew of measures to ease the claim settlement process, LIC in a statement today said, "Our zone, division and branch authorities are in full alert and in touch with state and district authorities for settlement of ...
Kolkata chronicler distraught over news of flooding of his
Eminent Kolkata chronicler and writer P T Nair today expressed worry over the flooding of his house in Ernakulam in Kerala where he has stored archival records of the city's rich past. The ground floor of his house at Chandamangalam in Ernakulam district of Kerala, where he had stored his rich collection of old newspaper clippings and other papers on the city, is still submerged and cannot be reached as all the approach roads are still flooded. His family members had, however, escaped in the nick of time. "As the flood waters approached my son Manoj, daughter-in-law Seema and my grandchildren quickly got into their vehicle and rushed to their sister Maya's residence in Ernakulam town, which is around 15 km from the Chandamangalam house on August 16," Nair told PTI here. Nair stays in the city with his wife Sitha. Stating that he is now in regular contact with his family over phone, the 85-year-old said "I had never heard about any calamity of this magnitude in Kerala in .
Constable pushes mishap victim's body with foot; suspended
A Chhattisgarh police constable allegedly pushed the body of an accident victim with his foot, prompting authorities to suspend him. A video which purportedly showed constable Neeraj Sahu pushing the body with his foot inside a police vehicle at the accident spot in Bemetara district was widely shared on social media. Bemetara Senior Superintendent of Police H R Manhar told PTI the constable's act was highly condemnable and he was suspended yesterday with immediate effect. Sunil Kurre (18), hailing from Nawagadh town of the district, was killed yesterday after a truck hit his motorcycle on Bemetara-Kawardha road, around 70 km from here, he said. The accident took place when he was near Pikri village along with his sister who was riding pillion. Kurre, who was crushed by the truck, died on the spot, but his sister escaped unhurt, Manhar said. On getting information about the accident, a Bemetara Police team reached the spot to take the body to hospital in their patrol vehicle, he ...