Page 754 - Disaster Accident
1 killed, 4 injured in accident in southeast Delhi
A 27-year-old employee of a BPO was killed and four others were injured after their office car was hit by a truck in the early hours today in southeast Delhi's Okhla area, police said. Five employees of a call centre located in Sector 22, Noida, were returning home in their office car after their night shift when around 4 AM, a truck, bearing a Haryana registration number, hit their vehicle, they added. Jai Kumar Saini died in the accident while his colleagues Nitesh Sood (27), Dushyant (27), Swaroop (25) and Dharmender (26) were injured. The injured have been discharged after treatment. The autopsy of Saini was carried out at the AIIMS. The accused truck driver, identified as Shriramis, fled. However, the truck's numberplate fell down near the spot and the truck was later found in an abandoned condition from Mahipalpur. The truck driver was absconding and raids were being conducted to trace him, police said.
OSCC holds meeting to review preparedness of security of India's offshore installations
In a bid to review the preparedness and effectiveness of the security of India's offshore installations, the 130th meeting of the Offshore Security Co-ordination Committee (OSCC) was held at ONGC Corporate Office Urja Bhawan in New Delhi on Friday.It was held under the Chairmanship of DG Rajendra Singh, PTM, TM, Director General Indian Coast Guard.Addressing the meeting, DG Rajendra Singh, PTM, TM, DGICG, Chairman of OSCC acknowledged the bold reforms in the energy sector such as National Data Repository (NDR), Open Acreage Licensing (OAL) under the Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP) and the recently concluded Discovered Small Fields (DSF) Bid Round.He further added that in one of the largest offering of acreages, it was for the first time in India, 55 bidder selected blocks, each carved out by prospective bidders themselves in promising basins with an area of 59,282 Sq. KMs were announced for bidding.The Chairman also highlighted the implications of these reforms on .
Wheels of train engine derails in Odisha
A pair of wheels of the engine of Samaleshwari Express derailed in Odisha's Rayagada district today, affecting train services on the route, a railway official said. Nobody was injured when two wheels of the engine of 18005 Samaleshwari Express from Howrah to Jagdalpur derailed near Keutaguda station, Chief Public Relations Officer of the East Coast Railways, J P Mishra, said. "Only one pair of wheels of the engine got derailed and no coach of the train was involved. There was no report of injury to anybody in the incident," Mishra said. An extra engine has been rushed from Rayagada to the site to take the coaches to Singapur Road station and steps are being taken to send a relief train to get the engine back on rails and take it to Rayagada, he said. Train services were affected for sometime on the route, which has a single line, said an official.
Samaleshwari Express engine derails in Odisha
Passengers travelling in the Samaleshwari Express had a narrow escape after the train's engine derailed in Odisha's Rayagada district on Friday.
Tripura CM announces ex-gratia for landslide victims
Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Deb has announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh to the kin of the four people killed in landslides in West Tripura district on Thursday, according to an official statement.The chief minister on Friday went to the villages of Hezamara and Belfungpara villages where the landslides occurred yesterday.In the first incident, three members of a tribal family, living in Hezamara village, were killed after they got buried under the landslide which came down on their hut.The victims have been identified as Shaniram Debbarma (35), Amritbala Debbarma (30) and their child Abhi Debbarma (4). Debbarmas' another child was rescued in critical condition today and rushed to GB hospital in Agartala.In another incident, in Belfungpara village, Malendra Debbarma (62) died after rocks from a hilly area rolled onto his house due to incessant rain.Earlier this month, due to heavy rain and thunderstorm across several areas in the country two people in New Delhi and 11 in Uttar ...
Two fishermen killed in boat tragedy off Maharashtra
Two fishermen were killed and two other injured on a boat 'Ekveera Prasanna' after an on board explosion on the vessel off Harnai Port in coastal Ratnagiri, an Indian Coast Guard spokesperson said here on Friday.
Centre asks officials to mitigate better natural disasters' impact
Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba on Friday asked all officials of central and state departments concerned to be better prepared so as to minimize losses due to natural disasters such as floods, cyclones, earthquakes etc.In his inaugural address at the annual conference of relief commissioners/secretaries, he said we have to build our capacities through better weather forecast, conducting mock drills and improved resource management. Citing figures, he said on an average during the decade from 2005 -14, India suffered economic losses of approximately Rs. 60,000 crore per annum due to different kinds of natural disasters of which the maximum damage was caused by floods.Gauba said India is flood prone as bulk of precipitation takes place in a short time but we can reduce our losses through better preparation. Though continued efforts over the last several years have managed to reduce the impact of natural disasters, still there is room for improvement, he added.He hoped that the ...
Anil Kumar Jha appointed CMD of Coal India Ltd
Anil Kumar Jha has been appointed as the chairman-cum-managing director (CMD) of Coal India Limited, the Personnel Ministry said today. Jha, at present the CMD of Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd, has been appointed to the post till his superannuation i.e. January 31, 2010, it said in an order. CIL is a state-owned coal mining company headquartered in Kolkata.
UN, East Africa boost response as Ebola toll mounts in DR Congo
World agencies and neighbouring countries today hiked their response to an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as the toll from the notorious disease mounted. A World Health Organization (WHO) emergency panel met in Geneva to determine whether the outbreak was "a public health event of international concern" -- a move that would step up global action. The death toll rose by two to 25 out of 45 cases, WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic told reporters. Fourteen of the cases have been confirmed in laboratory tests. Alarm bells sounded yesterday after the outbreak, previously reported in a remote rural area, notched up its first confirmed case in a northwestern city -- the bustling transport hub Mbandaka. That amounts to bad news for containing and rolling back the haemorrhagic fever virus, experts warned. "The confirmed case in Mbandaka, a large urban centre located on major national and international river, road and domestic air routes increases the risk of spread within ..
Alphons seeks more flights to tourist spots
Union Tourism Minister K J Alphons suggested the civil aviation ministry today to provide better air connectivity to tourist destinations by introducing more flights to such regions, a statement said. Alphons held a meeting with Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu and his deputy, Jayanta Sinha, along with officials from both the ministries regarding the issue, the statement from the tourism ministry said. The tourism minister requested daily Air India flights to Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh, better connectivity to Aurangabad, Maharashtra, for accessing Ajanta-Ellora caves. He also asked for triangular flights on Kochi-Goa-Jaipur sector, international flights from Kozhikode and flights to Southeast Asian countries from Guwahati Airport, the tourism ministry statement said. The minister sought the commissioning of Kannur airport in Kerala; direct flights from Delhi to Kozhikode, from Ahmedabad and Kolkata to Srinagar; daily flights from Kolkata to Shillong; more flights to Varanasi and
11 pilgrims killed, 19 hurt in Uttarakhand accident
Elevenpeople, many of them in their teens, were killed and 19 injured in Champawatdistrict today when a speeding truck rammed into a group of pilgrims walking to the Purnagiri temple. The pilgrims from Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh were on their way to the hilltop temple, well known in the region, when they were knocked down by a dumper truck coming from behind. The accident took place at 5 am at Bichai, Tanakpur Sub Divisional Magistrate Anil Chanyal said. Nine pilgrims were killedon the spot and twoothers succumbed to their injuries while being taken to hospital, the district disaster management office in Champawat said. The group was following the 'dolas' (palanquins) of Purnagiri Devi, placed on two tractors, when the accident happened, the Tanakpur SDM said. The devotees, still about 30 km from the temple, were travelling on foot as a mark of gratitude towards the deity for fulfilling their wishes, he said. The seriouslyinjured pilgrims were admitted at a hospital in Khatima and the .
Four killed in landslides in West Tripura
Four persons, including three of a family, died due to landslides when they were asleep in West Tripura today, District SP Ajit Pratap Singh said. Three persons of a family -- Shaniram Debbarma (40), his wife Amitbala (35) and their three-year-old son Abhi died in Subal Singh Para when debris fell on them at around 5.30 am today, while another eight-year-old boy belonging to the same family was injured and is being treated at a local hospital, Singh said. In another incident, a man, identified as Malendra Debbarma (65), also died around the same time at Kambukcherra of the same district. The two places are located about 35 kms from state capital Agartala and 10 kms from Khowai town. SP of Khowai district, Krishnendu Chakravertty said, both the places are adjacent to Khowai district and the district police joined the rescue operation immediately after the incident. Both the houses were in the foothills and in both cases, they were buried under the debris as big chunks ...
Reduce dependence on Centre during disasters: Gauba to states
Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba on Friday urged all the states to build their own capacities to reduce their dependence on the Centre during natural disasters and asked all concerned officials of the Central and state governments to be better prepared to minimize the losses caused by such disasters.
Modi to lay foundation stone of Zojila tunnel on Saturday
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday to lay the foundation stone of Zojila tunnel on the Srinagar-Leh National Highway, the government said on Friday.
PM to lay foundation stones for Rs 10K cr projects in J&K including Zojila Tunnel
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone of Rs 6,800 crore strategic Zojila tunnel, Asia's longest bi-directional tunnel, in Jammu and Kashmir tomorrow. He will also lay the foundation stones for ring road projects in Srinagar and Jammu costing nearly Rs 3,884 crore. The tunnel will provide all weather connectivity between Srinagar, Kargil and Leh as this route remains snow-bound for a large part of the year, and is ravaged by frequent avalanches. It will also cut down the time taken to cross the Zojila pass from 3.5 hours to just 15 minutes, besides making the drive much safer and convenient, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said in a statement. It said Modi will attend "the commencement of work on Zojila Tunnel on the Srinagar-Leh National Highway at an event in Jive-tsal in Leh tomorrow". "He will also lay the foundation stone for Srinagar Ring Road and Jammu Ring Road at separate events at Sher-e-Kashmir International Conference Centre (SKICC), ...
Centre asks state govts to be better prepared for natural disasters
The Centre today asked the state governments to be better prepared for natural disasters to reduce their impact which have claimed 2,200 lives and have caused economic losses of Rs 60,000 crore per annum. Inaugurating the annual conference of state relief commissioners and secretaries, Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba said on an average, during 2005-14, India suffered economic losses of approximately Rs 60,000 crore per annum due to different kinds of natural disasters of which the maximum damage was caused by floods. Gauba asked all the concerned officials of the central and the state governments to be better prepared to minimise losses due to natural disasters such as floods, cyclones, earthquakes etc. "We have to build our capacities through better weather forecast, conducting mock drills and improved resource management," he said. Gauba said India is flood-prone as bulk of precipitation takes place in a short time but losses can be reduced through better preparation. "Though ...
Four killed in house collapses in Tripura
At least four tribals, including a child and a woman, were killed early on Friday in mud house collapses in two incidents in West Tripura district of Tripura after a downpour, officials said.
14 confirmed Ebola cases in Congo as emergency meeting held
There are now 14 confirmed Ebola cases in Congo's latest outbreak as health officials rush to contain the often deadly virus in a city of more than 1 million. Vast, impoverished Congo has contained several past Ebola outbreaks but the spread of the hemorrhagic fever to an urban area poses a major challenge. The city of Mbandaka, which has one confirmed Ebola case, is an hour's flight from the capital, Kinshasa, and is located on the Congo River, a busy travel corridor. The World Health Organization was holding an emergency meeting today. It now calls the risk to the public in Congo "very high" and the regional risk "high." It says no international travel restrictions are in place. The Republic of Congo and Central African Republic are nearby. "This is a major, major game-changer in the outbreak," Dr Peter Salama, WHO's emergency response chief, warned yesterday after the first urban case was announced. "Urban Ebola can result in an exponential increase in cases in a way that rural ...
Ten pilgrims killed on way to Purnagiri Temple in U'khand
Ten devotees, many of them in their teens, were killed and eleven injured when a speeding dumper rammed into a group of pilgrims on a trek to the Purnagiri Temple in neighbouring Champawat district early today, officials said. The pilgrims from Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh were on way to the Purnagiri temple located on a hilltop on foot when they were knocked down by the dumper coming from behind around 5 AM at Bichai, SDM Tanakpur Anil Chanyal said. Nine pilgrims were killed on the spot and 12 injured out of whom onedied later on way to hospital, taking the number of casualties to ten, he said. 19-year-old Kamal, who was one of the four seriously injured in the mishap, was referred to another hospital. However, he succumbed en route, Champawat District Magistrate Ahmad Iqbal said. Those seriously injured were admitted to Khatima hospital and the rest to Tanakpur hospital, the SDM said. The deceased were identified asVir Singh (18), Sonu (8), Vishal (17) Ram Kumar ( 16), Deendayal (35), .
Don't let Haryana cut water supply to Delhi, Kejriwal tells Modi
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to persuade Haryana to continue supplying the same levels of water to the national capital it has been supplying for the last 22 years.