Page 991 - Disaster Accident
Five killed in J&K roof collapse
Five people were killed and eight others injured when the roof of a house collapsed in Jammu and Kashmir's Reasi district, police said on Thursday.
220,000 children threatened by mines in Ukraine's east: UN
Hundreds of thousands of children are at imminent risk of being hit by mines and other explosive weapons in war-torn eastern Ukraine, one of the most mine- contaminated places on earth, a UN report said today. A bloody conflict between Ukraine's army and Russian- backed rebels has endangered 220,000 children who live, play and go to and from school in areas littered with landmines and other deadly explosive devices, the UN International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) said. "It is unacceptable that places where children could safely play less than four years ago are now riddled with deadly explosives," said Giovanna Barberis, the agency's Ukraine representative. "All parties to the conflict must immediately end the use of these gruesome weapons that have contaminated communities and put children in constant danger of injury and death." Available data from January to November showed on average one conflict-related child casualty a week along eastern Ukraine's front ...
Earthquake shakes areas near Iranian capital
An earthquake measuring 5.2 magnitude on the Richter scale shook Malard town in Iran's Tehran Province on Wednesday, the Iran Seismological Center (ISC) said.
Iran state TV: 5.2 magnitude earthquake strikes near capital
Iran's state television says that a magnitude 5.2 earthquake has jolted a town near the country's capital. The report says the quake hit Meshkindasht, about 40 kilometres southwest of Tehran, at 23:28 Wednesday local time. There were no immediate reports of casualties or major damage. The quake was felt in several cities in Iran's north, including Tehran. Rescue teams were sent to site. In November, a 7.2 magnitude quake hit western Iran, killing more than 600 people. Iran is prone to near-daily earthquakes as it sits on major fault lines. In 2003, a 6.6 magnitude quake flattened the historic city of Bam, killing 26,000 people.
Coal India board clears way for 'Shakti' scheme
Coal India Ltd on Wednesday said its board cleared the decks for signing of fuel supply agreements after the auction of coal linkages to Independent Power Producers having long-term Power Purchase Agreement have been concluded.
34 fishermen in 3 boats traced,
Thirty four fishermen trapped in the high seas off this city in the aftermath of cyclone Ockhi have been traced, official sources said. A search and rescue team, comprising fishermen, had traced them and efforts were on to bring them ashore, they said. The fishermen had put out to sea from Kochi coast and got trapped after the cyclone battered the coasts of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and also the Lakshadweep islands early this month. Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the two states and Lakshwadeep yesterday and assured all possible help from the Centre to rebuild lives of the fishermen and trace those missing. He also said that search operations to trace the missing fishermen in Kerala and Tamil Nadu would continue and hoped that all of them would come back home before Christmas. Both Tamil Nadu and Kerala had demanded a special financial package from the Centre to tide over the destruction caused by the natural calamity and wanted the cyclone to be declared as a national ...
5 killed, 8 injured after house collapses in J-K
At least five labourers were killed today and eight others injured when an under-construction mud house collapsed in Jammu and Kashmir's Reasi district, police said. The double-storey house collapsed when the labourers were covering the roof with mud and were about to complete their day's work at the site in remote Thub Panassa village, a police official said. He said five labourers --Manzoor Ahmad, Ashiq Ali, Muzaffar Ahmad, Mohammad Gafoor and Gulzar Ahmad - died on the spot, while the injured were admitted to a district hospital in Reasi. The official said that a case has been registered in this regard and an investigation is underway.
5 dead, 8 injured after house collapses in J-K
At least five people were killed today and eight others injured when an under-construction house collapsed in Jammu and Kashmir's Reasi district, police said. The incident occurred at remote Thub Panassa village when an under-construction house collapsed all of a sudden, trapping many people present there, a police official said. He said rescuers immediately swung into action and managed to pull out 13 people from the debris. The official said five were declared dead on the spot while the rest were taken to a hospital in a serious condition. The rescue operation is underway, he said. The deceased were identified as Manzoor Ahmad, Ashiq Ali, Muzaffar Ahmad, Mohammad Gafoor and Gulzar Ahmad, all local residents.
35 defence aircraft crashed, 14 pilots killed since 2014: Minister
As many as 35 defence aircraft, including 11 helicopters, crashed between 2014 and 2017, killing 14 pilots, the government informed the Lok Sabha on Wednesday.
Two dead, six injured in Nepal's gas factory fire
Two people died, while six were injured in a gas factory fire in Sugauli Birta area of Nepal's Birgunj Sub-Metropolitan City on Wednesday.The fire incident occurred in Super Gas Pvt. Ltd was reported at around 6:30 am and was doused after nine hours, the police informed.The reason behind the fire is still uncertain. Local authorities have suspected that the fire caused due to leakage of gas when it was being unloaded from the tanker.The deceased victims Madhusudan Mishra and Yadav Prasad Adhikari have been confirmed dead after they were reported to be missing earlier. Three other firefighters, along with three locals, have sustained severe injuries.The fire was put off at around 2 pm with the help of the locals, Nepal Army, Armed Police Force, Nepal Police and additional assistance from Raxaul in neighbouring India.Chief District Officer Binod Prakash Singh said, "Our firefighters were later joined by firefighters from India, which helped us to control the fire soon."The investigation
Gurugram braces for mega quake mock drill
Various security agencies will hold on Thursday a mega mock drill across Haryana on how to conduct rescue operations after an earthquake but motorists should be ready to face traffic jams as usual on the Delhi-Gurugram Expressway.
10 power producers secure 27 MT coal supply
As many as 10 independent power producers have secured 27 million tonnes of annual coal linkages under the auction of fuel supply, the coal ministry said today. "Auction of coal linkages to Independent Power Producers (IPPs) having long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) have been concluded successfully by CIL (Coal India Ltd) whereby 27.18 million tonnes of annual coal linkages have been booked by 10 successful bidders," the Coal Ministry said in a statement. These fuel supply pacts are likely to result in an generation of over 47 billion units per annum from the linkage coal, and an estimated savings in tariff of approximately Rs 125 crore per annum for period up to 25 years. The 'Scheme for Harnessing and Allocating Koyala (Coal) Transparently in India' (SHAKTI) policy replaced the earlier discretion based system of granting coal linkages. This transformation has helped in achieving accountability in allocation of coal. It has ensured access to coal for several ...
Army men posted along China border to get liberalised family pensions
Liberalised Family Pension -- so far given to soldiers posted along the Line of Control and the International Border with Pakistan -- has been extended to Army personnel working along the Line of Actual Control as well, an official statement said on Wednesday.
Four sacked for Delhi Metro accident
The Delhi Metro on Wednesday sacked four of its officials, including a Deputy General Manager, for Tuesday's accident in which a metro train rammed through a wall after failure of its brakes.
Saudi-led coalition to keep Yemeni port open
The Saudi Arabia-led Arab coalition on Wednesday announced it will allow Yemen's main port to remain open for 30 days to receive humanitarian aid.
Hurricanes, heat waves, fires ravaged planet in 2017
Fierce hurricanes, heat waves, floods and wildfires ravaged the planet in 2017, as scientists said the role of climate change in causing or worsening certain natural disasters has grown increasingly clear. It was also the year the world's second largest polluter, the United States, turned its back on the 196-nation Paris climate deal meant to limit global warming to under two degrees Celsius (1.5 degrees Fahrenheit) over pre-industrial levels. President Donald Trump, who has dismissed global warming as a Chinese hoax, vowed to quit the 2015 Paris accord and tapped fossil fuel allies to key environmental posts. His administration also dropped climate change from the list of national security threats, announced plans to auction off vast swaths of the Gulf of Mexico to oil and gas drilling, and signed a proposal to eliminate the Clean Power Plan, aimed at limiting the release of polluting greenhouse gases. Trump says the goal is to make America a dominant source of energy ..
Army personnel guarding Indo-China border given liberalised
Army personnel guarding the over 4,000 km-long Indo-China border will now get the benefit of the liberalised family pension, the defence ministry announced today. At present, the liberalised family pension is given to army personnel deployed along the Line of Control and International Border (IB) with Pakistan. "Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has approved that the same benefit of Liberalised Family Pension be extended to Army Personnel working along Line of Actual Control (LAC) along India-China borders," the defence ministry said in a statement. It said the Liberalised Family Pension provides for 100 per cent of last "reckonable" emoluments in comparison to normal family pension which provides for 30 per cent of the last "reckonable" emoluments. The move comes months after Chinese and Indian troops were locked in a 73-day border standoff from June 16 when Indian soldiers stopped Chinese personnel from building a key road close to India's 'chicken's neck' ...
Bodies of missing shepherds found under snow in U'khand
The bodies of three shepherds, who had gone missing for over a week from a village in Uttarkashi district, were today recovered from under several feet of snow. Acombined team of the Indo Tibetan Border Police and state Disaster Response Force personnel recovered the bodies at Pushtara grassland, District Disaster Management Officer D S Patwal said. The deceased have been identified as Jagmohan Singh (35), Ramdhyan Singh (23) and Kritam Das (30), the official said. The bodies are being brought to Sankri with the help of locals where a post-mortem will be carried out, the official said. These shepherds, from Dhatmir village of Mori block, were missing since December 11, he said. They had gone in search of their missing livestock to the Pushtara grassland when they lost their way due to heavy snowfall in the area, the official said.
Rly accidents decreased from 85 in 2016 to 49 this year: Govt
The number of train accidents in which there were casualties has decreased from 85 in 2016-2017 to 49 in the first eight months of the current financial year, the government said today. Minister of State for Railways Rajen Gohain said in Lok Sabha that out of the 49 such accidents, 30 accidents were caused due to failure of the railway staff and 12 due to failure on the part of others. Other accidents occurred due to incidental factors or as a result of a combination of factors while inquiry report was awaited in one case. "Out of the 30 accidents in which railway staff was found responsible, disciplinary action has been initiated against 76 railway employees," the minister said. In an answer to another query on rail accidents, Gohain said that the unmanned level crossings led to 16.33 per cent accidents which led to deaths between April 1-November 30. The minister also said that the national transporter was developing a suitable and viable vandal proof advance warning ..
278 people killed in communal violence in last 3 years: Govt
A total of 278 people were killed in 2,098 communal incidents in different parts of the country in last three years, the Rajya Sabha was informed today. Minister of State for Home Hansraj Ahir said the highest number of 77 people were killed in Uttar Pradesh in 450 communal incidents in 2014-16, followed by Maharashtra where 32 people were killed in 270 such incidents. There were 197 incidents of communal violence in Bihar in which 29 people were killed and 26 people lost their lives in 279 such incidents in Karnataka. Ahir also said 24 people were killed in 200 communal incidents in Rajasthan and 21 people lost their lives in 182 such incidents in Gujarat between 2014 and 2016.