Page 840 - Disaster Accident
Beijing issues orange smog alert
Beijing issued an orange alert over air pollution Saturday night.
Punjab govt to provide debt relief to six districts
The Punjab government would provide debt relief to the tune of Rs 200 crore to around 50,000 beneficiaries in six districts in the next phase, a spokesman said today. The state government has also assured that eligible farmers under this scheme would get debt relief and no eligible farmer to be left out, he said. The spokesperson of the Punjab cooperative department said the roll out of the Debt Relief Scheme-2017 would be a continuous process. He said about 50,000 beneficiaries of six districts -- Gurdaspur, Pathankot, Hoshiarpur, SBS Nagar, Amritsar and Tarn Taran -- would get relief of around Rs 200 crore and a function would be held next month in Gurdaspur. Reiterating the resolve of the state government to fulfil its commitment of debt relief to farmers, he said the scheme has been amended to obtain a self-declaration from eligible beneficiaries, thereby, simplifying the disbursement procedure. The spokesperson said that under the scheme relief up to Rs 2 lakh would be provided ..
Fire breaks out in Delhi godown
A fire broke out in a godown in Delhi's Swaroop Nagar area on Saturday afternoon.About 20 fire tenders were rushed to the spot and trying to douse the fire.It is not clear if there were people inside the godown and when and how the fire broke out, according to sources.Earlier this week, a godown, where plastic and other scrap materials used to be stored by ragpickers, in the Tughlakabad village area of south Delhi also caught fire.More details awaited.
106 passengers stranded in Germany due to drunken co-pilot
A Portuguese airline has apologised for keeping more than 100 passengers stranded at Stuttgart airport in southwestern Germany after one of its flights was canceled last-minute because of a drunken co-pilot. Shortly before the TAP Air Portugal flight was to takeoff to Lisbon last night, an airport employee noticed the co-pilot walking unsteadily and smelling of alcohol. He notified airport authorities, which decided to keep the plane on the ground. It wasn't immediately clear if the 40-year-old co-pilot was detained. The German news agency dpa reported today that all 106 passengers were put up at hotels overnight. TAP tweeted today that the passengers would only be able to fly to Lisbon on Monday, "which is, at the moment, the first day with seats available.
Three rail passengers assaulted by forcible occupiers of seats
Three rail passengers were assaulted and injured for protesting against forcible occupation of their reserved seats in a New Alipurduar-bound train late on Friday light, police said today. The incident took place at Bhaluka station in Teesta-Torsa Express train. Several persons had boarded a reserved compartment from the station and tried to forcibly occupy the seats of the bonafide ticket holders, a complaint lodged with the GRP in Siliguri said. When the passengers put up a resistance they were assaulted, the complaint said adding of two women passengers, who were on their way to Siliguri to appear for the Staff Selection Examination, were injured. Bricks and stones were thrown at the passengers from outside also in which one person was injured, it said. The passengers demonstrated when the trainreached Kumdpur station. GRP are investigating the incident, sources in it said.
4 killed in accident in Haryana
Four persons were killed and 10 others injured when a jeep collided with a SUV near Agroha, about 25 km from here, on Agroha-Barwala road, police said here today. According to police, the SUV was going towards Barwala. It overturned when the driver lost control over the vehicle. In the meantime, a jeep, carrying some passengers going to Agroha, collided with the SUV, they said. Several persons of both the vehicles were injured in the accident, police said. The injured were taken to the Agroha Medical College, where four of them died during the treatment, they said. The victims were identified as Monu (19), Kalu Ram (27), Kalu Ram (29) and Dharampal (48). Their bodies were handed over to their family after conducting post-mortem, police said.
6.8 magnitude earthquake hits Papua New Guinea
An earthquake measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale hit Papua New Guinea on Saturday.The quake, 151km east of Kimbe, struck around 11.24 UTC, the United States Geological Survey reported.Despite the huge magnitude, officials said there was no tsunami risk."Based on all available data there is no tsunami threat from this earthquake," a statement from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said.
First direct Australia-Europe passenger service takes off
The "Kangaroo Route" from Australia to Britain became a shorter hop today when the first direct passenger service left Perth for London, with the 17-hour flight set to break aviation records. Qantas' 14,498-km journey from the southwestern city to London is the world's third-longest passenger flight, the Australian carrier said, and the first ever regular service to connect the two continents directly. Captained by Lisa Norman, it will also be the longest Boeing Dreamliner flight in the world. The new link is part of Qantas' ambitious plans, unveiled over the past two years, to add ultra long-haul flights to its global schedules. This will eventually include non-stop flights from Australia's eastern seaboard to Europe in an effort dubbed "Project Sunrise". Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce last year said such flights were "the last frontier of global aviation ... the antidote to the tyranny of distance and a revolution for air travel in Australia". The world's second-oldest airline ...
6.3-magnitude quake hits Papua New Guinea
A powerful 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck the island of New Britain in Papua New Guinea today, US seismologists said, but there was no tsunami warning or immediate reports of damage. The quake struck at 9:23pm local time at a depth of 67 km, about 175 km from the New Britain town of Rabaul, the US Geological Survey said. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said the quake did not pose a tsunami risk. The Pacific nation was hit by a 7.5-magnitude quake on February 26 that buried homes and triggered landslides in its highlands region, killing at least 125 people. PNG sits on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, a hotspot for seismic activity due to friction between tectonic plates. Its mountainous and remote terrain means it often takes several days for information about damage from quakes to reach officials and aid agencies.
Man dies after ambulance carrying him runs out of oxygen
A 45-year-old man died on his way to a hospital in Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur district after the 108 ambulance carrying him allegedly ran out of oxygen.The incident happened on Friday.However, Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of the hospital BS Sodhi said that the allegation levelled by the family was wrong."Family's allegations seem to be false as Emergency Medical Technician says oxygen cylinder went empty only in end, will still inquire," Sodhi said.The deceased's family also alleged negligence on the part of the driver of the ambulance.Moreover, a helper in the ambulance also admitted that there was shortage of oxygen in the emergency vehicle.
Boat carrying 13 capsizes in Guj's Mahisagar river, one dead
A 16-year-old boy drowned while twelve others managed to swim to safety after their boat capsized today in Mahisagar river near Dakor in Kheda district, police said. The boat was carrying 13 people from Kotlindora village in Thasra taluka to Pavagadh, a pilgrimage site, on the other side of Mahisagar river when it sank, said a Dakor police station official. He identified the 16-year-old who drowned as Hardik Chavda. "The boat ride is a shorter route to reach Pavagadh from Kheda. Two out of the twelve people who swam to safety have injuries and they were taken to Dakor civil hospital for treatment," he said.
FSSAI favours comprehensive legislation for organic foods
Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), the autonomous body looking after food safety and regulations in the country, today said a comprehensive legislation should be in place for organic food products. "Presently, the agriculture ministry and APEDA (Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority) are having separate guidelines for organic foods. We feel there should a single legislation in this regard," chairman of FSSAI Ashish Bahuguna said. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) event here today, he said FSSAI has already prepared a draft regulation on organic food which has been put up in the public domain for seeking views from various stakeholders. Bahuguna also sounded caution on boro rice cultivation due to high levels of arsenic contamination in water. Bangladesh had already reduced boro cultivation for this purpose, he said, adding that use of drought-resistant paddy variants and .
Mount Etna sliding towards sea: Report
Europe's most active volcano, Mount Etna on the Italian island of Sicily, was sliding towards the Mediterranean sea at a rate of 14mm per year, according to a report.
2 Chinese rescued more than 50 hours after dredger capsized
An official says two Chinese sailors have been rescued more than 50 hours after their sand dredger capsized off Malaysia's southern coast. Three more bodies were also discovered, leaving nine others still missing. Coast guard official Sanifah Yusof says divers found the two sailors in the ship's engine room on Friday, apparently trapped in an air bubble that had kept them alive after the vessel overturned on Wednesday. Sanifah says rescuers also discovered a body floating near the vessel and two more, including a woman inside the ship, on Saturday. He says this brought the death toll to four and left nine others, including a Malaysian and an Indonesian, unaccounted for. Sanifah say rescue efforts have intensified.
UN: Conflict key cause of 124 million hungry who could die
The number of people around the world in danger of dying unless they get food urgently surged to 124 million last year, mainly because "people won't stop shooting at each other," the head of the UN food agency has said. David Beasley told the Security Council by video link yesterday that almost 32 million of those acutely hungry people live in four conflict-wracked countries: Somalia, Yemen, South Sudan and northeastern Nigeria, where famine was averted last year. "The link between hunger and conflict is as strong as it is destructive," the executive director of the World Food Program said. "Conflict leads to food insecurity. And food insecurity can also stoke instability and tension which trigger violence." Globally, Beasley said, 60 per cent of the 815 million chronically hungry people who don't know where their next meal is coming from live in conflict areas. UN humanitarian chief Mark Lowcock said "despite the wildest predictions, famines have become less frequent and less lethal .
Firefighter dies combating blaze on Bruce Willis' movie set
A firefighter from the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) died on Thursday after battling a fire on a movie set of actors Bruce Willis and Edward Norton's new movie, Motherless Brooklyn.The deceased, Michael R. Davidson, who served the FDNY for 15 years, was critically injured while fighting the five-alarm blaze in the basement of an unoccupied residential building, according to US Magazine.According to a statement posted on the department's Facebook page, Davidson was transported to Harlem Hospital Center in the city, where he succumbed to his injuries."He is the 1,150th member to make the Supreme Sacrifice while serving our city," the statement read, adding that Davidson was "cited for bravery on four separate occasions."The producers of Motherless Brooklyn also condoled the firefighter's death and released a statement of the same."Our deepest condolences to the family of Michael R. Davidson," they told Us Weekly. "A fire broke out tonight in the building where we were shooting ...
Truck drivers jailed for killing 8 Indians in UK road crash
Two truck drivers guilty of killing eight Indians last year in one of Britain's worst road accidents were jailed by a UK court today. Ryszard Masierak, a 31-year-old Polish national convicted of dangerous and drink driving at the end of a trial earlier this month, was jailed for 14 years. Second truck driver David Wagstaff, 54-year-old courier company worker involved in the highway pile-up, was sentenced to 40 months in prison after pleading guilty to causing death by careless driving. He had been cleared by a jury of the more serious charge of dangerous driving at the end of the trial at Aylesbury Crown Court. The crash had led to the deaths of Nottingham-based Keralite minibus driver Cyriac Joseph and seven of his passengers all Indians. The 52-year-old had been hired to drive his passengers from Nottingham to London to join a European holiday tour group when they met with the fatal accident. "This was a prolonged, persistent and deliberate course of very bad driving. He had ...
11 killed, 5 injured in tempo-truck collision in UP
At least 11 people were today killed and five injured in a collision between a tempo and truck on the Varanasi-Lucknow National Highway here, police said. The victims were on their way to the Chauharjan Dham in the Raniganj area here when the accident took place under the Fatenpur police station area, Assistant Superintendent of Police (east) Rakesh Singh said. While two women died on the spot, nine others were declared dead on reaching the district hospital, the ASP said, adding that the deceased were aged between 35 and 45. The injured, including four women, were undergoing treatment at the Allahabad Medical College Hospital. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expressed grief over the deaths and extended an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh to dependent of each of the deceased and Rs 50,000 to those seriously injured. The chief minister also directed the officials to ensure proper treatment to the injured, an spokesperson said.
Two minors killed after hut catches fire in UP
Two children were killed and three others received serious burn injuries after their hut caught fire in Puwayan township here today, police said. Imran (4) and his brother (2 months) were in the hut alone when the spark from the earthen stove, on which their mother was preparing food, caught fire in Taal village, SDM Mohammad Moin Ul Islam said. The parents of the children and one other, who rushed to save them and douse the flames, suffered serious injuries and has been admitted to a hospital, the SDM added.
NHAI awards Rs 149 cr highway proj in Punjab
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has awarded a Rs 149.49 crore project to Ceigall India-Inderjit Mehta Constructions (JV) for widening of a stretch on National Highway No 354 in Punjab, the government today said. The NHAI has issued Letter of Award (LOA) for "two-laning with paved shoulder/Four-Laning of Ramdas to Gurdaspur section of NH-354" to Ceigall India Ltd-Inderjit Mehta Constructions Pvt Ltd (JV) at a cost of Rs 149.49 crore, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said in a statement. The length of the stretch is 47.492 km and the same would be widened on engineering, procurement and construction mode under Bharatmala scheme. The Ramdas-Gurdaspur section is part of Border Roads designated to NHAI under Bharatmala scheme. The objective of this work is to provide good road network access and undertake development of border areas, the statement said. "The project comprises development of 1.5 km of project length to 4-lane and 45.992 km to 2-lane ...The contract ...