Page 884 - Disaster Accident
7 shops gutted in Shimla market fire
At least seven shops and an ATM of Canara Bank were completely gutted in a fire that broke out in the congested Lakkar Bazaar area here in the wee hours today. A major devastation was averted as fire brigade officials fought the flames for nearly eight hours and prevented the blaze from spreading, officials said. Shimla Deputy Commissioner, Amit Kashyap, who was among the first to reach the spot, helped avert further damage by removing LPG cylinders from an adjoining "dhaba". The cause of fire was yet to be ascertained and an immediate relief of Rs 10,000 was disbursed to those who suffered damages, Kashyap said.. Immediately after receiving the information past midnight, eight fire tenders were rushed to the spot and the fire was completely extinguished around 9.00 am," Mall Road station Fire Officer Dharam Chand Sharma said. Sharma himself sustained minor injuries while battling the blaze. Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur visited the spot today along with Education Minister Suresh ...
Shoes hurled at Odisha CM, culprit thrashed
Shoes were thrown towards Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik while he was addressing a gathering in Bargarh, on Monday.Patnaik's personal security officers, however, parried the blow and he was taken to safety.Later, the culprit was thrashed by the crowd and is believed to have sustained injuries.
Medium danger avalanche warning issued in J-K
The Jammu and Kashmir government today issued a medium danger avalanche warning in the high altitude areas and advised people living in the avalanche-prone areas to take precautionary measure. "On the basis of an information received from the Snow and Avalanche Study Establishment, a medium danger avalanche warning has been issued for Baramulla, Gulmarg, Furkian and Z-Gali and Kupwara-Chowkibal-Tangdhar in north Kashmir for the next 24 hours," an official spokesperson said. He said a low danger warning has been issued for Poonch, Rajouri, Reasi, Ramban, Doda, Kishtwar and Udhampur districts in Jammu division, Anantnag, Kulgam in south Kashmir, Badgam and Ganderbal in central Kashmir. The low danger avalanche warning was also issued for the Bandipora-Kanzalwan-Gurez sector of north Kashmir and Kargil and Leh districts of the Ladakh region, besides the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway for the next 24 hours, the spokesperson said. He said the disaster management authority has advised the .
Child killed in MP blast
A child was killed and two others injured in an accidental blast in Madhya Pradesh's Ratlam district on Tuesday, police said.
GoAir's A320 neo plane face engine issue
GoAir's A320 neo aircraft, powered by Pratt & Whitney engine, enroute to Lucknow was forced to return to the national capital last week following a warning of 'potential oil chip detection'. P&W engine-powered A320 neo planes -- which are operated in the country by GoAir and IndiGo -- have been facing engine problems. Sources said the aircraft had faced issues thrice in a span of two days -- February 14 and 15 -- related to reported oil chip detection. When contacted, a GoAir spokesperson said the aircraft is presently in operation and that its engine had exhibited an "indication issue of intermittent nature". "On February 15 while operating on Delhi-Lucknow sector, the aircraft returned to Delhi due to an indication for a potential oil chip. After arrival, the manufacturer's procedures to evaluate the potential presence of an oil chip were carried out. No oil chips were detected," the spokesperson said in a statement. There was no immediate response to queries sent to Pratt ..
CCEA approves six rail projects worth Rs over 11,000 cr
The Union Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Tuesday approved six projects at a cost of Rs 11,661 crore for new lines as well as doubling and electrification of tracks in Uttar Pradesh and three other states, an official statement said.
Fleeing car crashes into tree during police chase, killing 2
Authorities say a suspected stolen car fleeing police in a high-speed chase crashed into a tree in Cleveland, killing two people in the vehicle. The crash around 2:30 a.m. today split the fleeing vehicle into several pieces and scattered debris in the yards of several homes a few miles south of downtown Cleveland. No other injuries were immediately reported. The car had been reported stolen. WJW-TV reports police in suburban Shaker Heights tried to stop the vehicle and then pursued it when the driver fled, starting the minutes-long chase. Cleveland police didnt immediately release details about the people who died. The crash is under investigation.
Fire closes Maltas only airport, flights diverted to Sicily
A fire in the arrivals lounge has forced the temporary closure of Maltas only airport. Incoming flights were diverted to Sicily, Italy and departing flights were delayed after the fire on Tuesday afternoon, which forced the evacuation of hundreds of passengers. No-one was injured in the blaze. Malta International Airport said it was working to bring operations back to normal in the shortest time possible.
2 killed, 6 injured in tempo-truck collision
Two people were killed and six others injured as the tempo in which they were travelling was hit by a truck on the Lucknow- Varanasi National Highway today, police said. The accident occurred near Senapur petrol pump under Fatanpur Police Station area, they said. In the incident, 53-year-old Jag Bahadur Patel died on the spot, while Bablu Dubey (45), who was seriously injured, succumbed to injuries at a hospital here, the police said, adding the bodies have been sent for post-mortem.
BSF kills intruder on Punjab border, recovers 10 kg heroin
Border Security Force (BSF) troopers shot dead an intruder from Pakistan and recovered 10 kg heroin along Punjab's border with Pakistan in the frontier district of Ferozepur, officials said on Tuesday.
4 die as ammonia gas leaks after blast at Pb food processing unit, magisterial probe ordered
Four people died and 11 were injured after ammonia gas leaked following an explosion at a food processing unit in Shambhu-Ghanaur road here early today, prompting Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh to order a magisterial probe into the incident. The chief minister also announced Rs one lakh ex gratia to the next of the kin of each deceased and free treatment to the injured admitted to the Government Rajindra Hospital in Patiala, an official spokesperson said. According to the police, a blast was heard before the gas leaked suggesting that a cylinder filled with ammonia could have exploded inside the food processing unit. After hearing sound of the blast villagers rushed to the facility. The injured were rushed to the hospital where four of them were declared brought dead, the police said. The spokesperson said, the chief minister expressed shock and dismay at the loss of lives and ordered a magisterial inquiry that would look into all aspects of the incident and pin ...
Govt allows pvt firms to mine coal for commercial use
In the biggest coal sector reform in over four decades, the government today allowed the private sector to mine coal and sell it for commercial use, ending state-owned CIL's monopoly in a bid to cut imports by raising domestic output. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved the auctioning of coal mines to any firm bidding the highest per tonne price, Minister for Coal and Railways Piyush Goyal said briefing the media. At present, private sector firms are only allowed to mine coal for use in their cement, steel, power and aluminium plants. Coal India Ltd (CIL) is the sole commercial miner with 80 per cent market share. Goyal said the opening up of commercial coal mining for private sector is the most ambitious coal sector reform since the nationalisation of the sector in 1973. The reform, he said, is likely to bring efficiency into the coal sector by moving away from the era of monopoly (of CIL) to competition and lower power tariffs. He said the move will lead to ...
Hazardous effort to recover bodies from plane crash in Iran mountains
Iranian rescue teams struggled to recover bodies today from the wreckage of a plane that crashed in hazardous terrain near a mountain peak two days earlier with 66 people on board. "Deep and dangerous crevices in the area of the crash have made it impossible for helicopters to land," Ghafoor Rastinrooz, director of the regional medical centre, told official news agency IRNA. "The bodies must be transferred by hand to the foot of the mountain which will be time-consuming," he said. Aseman Airlines flight EP3704 disappeared from radar as it flew over the Zagros mountain range on Sunday morning, around 45 minutes after taking off from Tehran on a domestic flight. After two days of heavy snow and fog, the weather finally cleared on Tuesday morning, allowing a helicopter crew to spot a piece of the wreckage with the company's logo. A pilot told state broadcaster IRIB he had seen "scattered bodies around the plane" and that it was located on one of the Dena mountains at a height of around ..
Cape Town now faces dry taps by July 9
Residents of drought-stricken Cape Town received good news today when city officials said they now face losing piped water to their homes by July 9 -- a month later than last forecast. But Capetonians are not yet out of the woods. If drastic consumption reductions are not achieved by so-called "Day Zero" -- the last day of normal water supply -- people will have to queue at 200 standpipes for daily rations of 25 litres (6.6 US gallons). The city, which attracts millions of tourists every year, has enforced strict waste controls including prosecuting homeowners who use significantly more than the current 50-litre daily limit. "The Groenland water transfer and the reduction in our weekly average demand has had a dramatic impact on the Day Zero date," said deputy mayor Ian Neilson in a statement, referring to a recent transfer of water from a region that had experienced good rains to South Africa's parched second city. "Today I urge the residents of Cape Town not to ease up on their ...
Indonesia police seize over a tonne of crystal meth
Indonesian authorities early today seized 1.6 tons of crystal methamphetamine hidden on a Singapore-flagged ship in their second major drug bust this month, officials said. Customs inspectors said they spotted the vessel between Indonesia's Sumatra island and Singapore and reported it to police. A subsequent search of the ship turned up the huge haul of narcotics stuffed into some 81 rice sacks. Four Taiwanese crew were arrested including a 69-year-old man. "We are currently weighing the drugs and questioning four Taiwanese crew," tax and customs agency spokesman Deni Sirjantoro told AFP. Indonesian authorities said they had been looking for the ship for several months on suspicion it was shipping drugs to Indonesia and Australia, adding that it may have flown flags from different countries to avoid detection. Earlier this month the Indonesian navy seized 1.3 tonnes of crystal methamphetamine and arrested four Taiwanese crew on a ship spotted in the strait between Singapore and ...
Fire at east Delhi factory, no casualty
A fire broke out in a factory manufacturing batteries in Patparganj area of east Delhi today but no casualty was reported, police said. A call about the fire at the ground floor of the factory was received around 12.35 pm and 17 fire tenders were rushed to the spot. The fire was brought under control at 2 pm. There was no loss of life or injury, but goods were damaged, a Delhi Fire Services official said. The cause of fire is being investigated, a police officer said.
Student going to take board exam killed in road accident
A class 10 student, who was on his way to take a board exam, was killed when a speeding truck hit his motorcycle on GT road near Badalpur area here, police said today. The other boy on the motorcycle got injured in the accident and was in critical condition till late evening today, they said. Agitated over the incident, villagers blocked the traffic on the road, the police said, adding that senior police officers pacified the mob and dispersed them.
Iran locates wreckage of crashed plane
The Iranian authorities on Tuesday located the wreckage of a passenger plane that crashed in the mountainous central province of Isfahan, killing all 66 people on board.
Uri ceasefire violation: Villagers moved to safer location
Due to heavy firing from the Pakistani side on Monday, some residents of two villages in the Valley were relocated, the Baramulla police said."Our Army responded to the Pakistani aggression and after intervention from our side, Pakistani guns were silenced and since then, there is no firing in the area. From two villages, some people have been evacuated to a safer location and the situation is normal," Imtiyaz Hussain, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Baramulla told ANI.SSP Hussain informed that the unprovoked firing had injured one civilian lady, who was hospitalised."Three other people also sustained minor injuries who were locally treated," he added.On Monday, Pakistani troops resorted to unprovoked firing along the border in Jammu and Kashmir's Uri sector.
India allows private firms to mine coal for commercial use
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India will auction coal blocks to private companies, Coal Minister Piyush Goyal said on Tuesday, a move that would end restrictions on the sale and use of the fuel after more than four decades and end Coal India's near-monopoly status.