New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has attacked the Karnataka government over the alleged suicide by a contractor who had said that he was asked for a bribe.Rahul Gandhi in a tweet said, “BJP’s 40% Commission Govt in Karnataka has claimed the life of their own Karyakarta.The victim’s pleas to the PM went unanswered. PM &amp; CM are complicit.”The issue came to the fore after a Belagavi-based contractor, Santosh Patil, who was said to be a BJP worker, accused Panchayat Raj and Rural Development Minister K S Eshwarappa of corruption, and allegedly committed suicide on Tuesday.After the allegation surfaced in March the Congress has been demanding the sacking of Eshwarappa over the bribery allegation by the contractor who had written a letter to the Prime Minister.The Congress had said that the Karnataka Contractors Association President has alleged that officials in the BJP government demanded a 40 per cent commission in the contracts and said, “we are finding it very difficult to manage this big corrupt practice of Karnataka.”The allegation which has rocked Karnataka had been made by Santosh Patil from Belgaum district who had executed a contract worth about Rs 4 crore in Hindalaga Gram Panchayat. The Congress claimed that Patil alleged that he was asked for a 40 per cent bribe.Congress MP Naseer Hussain alleged that when the contractor went for the release of the funds, the minister’s associates asked Santosh Patil to give 40 per cent out of the Rs 4 crore, which he did. He said he had given Rs 15 lakh to the associates of the minister, but they are demanding 40 per cent of the contract money.—IANS

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has attacked the Karnataka government over the alleged suicide by a contractor who had said that he was asked for a bribe.

BJP's 40% Commission Govt In K'taka: Rahul Attacks After Contractor's Death

Lakhimpur Kheri: An elderly man was allegedly beaten to death by his son here following a heated argument over money, police said on Friday.The incident took place in Chimni village under Lakhimpur Kotwali police station area on Thursday night, they said.Jagdish Prasad (65) was beaten to death by his son Jitendra alias Darshan, the police said.According to a complaint filed by Prasad’s wife Rameshwari, her husband recently sold a property to settle his loan and Jitendra, who is an alcoholic, demanded that he hand over the money to him.Prasad refused to give the money to Jitendra and this angered him. Jitendra, who was in an inebriated condition, attacked his father with a stick and a sickle, killing him, the complaint stated.The accused was caught by villagers when he was dragging his father’s body to the nearby Lakhimpur-Sitapur highway, the police said.Deputy Superintendent of Police, Lakhimpur, Sandeep Singh said an FIR has been registered against Jitendra and he has been arrested.&nbsp;—PTI&nbsp;

An elderly man was allegedly beaten to death by his son here following a heated argument over money, police said on Friday.  The incident took place in Chimni village under Lakhimpur Kotwali police station area on Thursday night, they said.

Elderly Man Beaten To Death By Son In UP

An elderly man was allegedly beaten to death by his son here following a heated argument over money, police said on Friday. The incident took place in Chimni village under Lakhimpur Kotwali police station area on Thursday night, they said.




Madhya Pradesh : The police have arrested nine persons in connection with the death of two tribal men who&nbsp;were allegedly assaulted by a group of people over suspicion of cow slaughter in Madhya Pradesh's Seoni district, an official said on Wednesday.The two tribal men died on Tuesday morning after some people, allegedly belonging to the Bajrang Dal, beat them up over suspicion of cow slaughter in Simaria village under Kurai police station limits.After the incident, a group led by opposition Congress legislator Arjun Singh Kakodia staged a six-hour-long protest on the Jabalpur-Nagpur highway on Tuesday, demanding job and financial assistance for the kin of the deceasedThey ended the protest after an assurance from the district administration.Local MP and Union minister Faggan Singh Kulaste said it is yet not clear whether the accused belonged to any organisation.The dispute started over meat (of cow) and it would not be correct as of now to say that any organisation is involved in the incident, Kulaste told reporters on Tuesday night in Seoni.&nbsp;He said action will be taken on the basis of an inquiry and nobody, irrespective of their association, will be spared.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;According to an FIR registered following a complaint by Brajesh Batti, who was injured in the incident, a group of 15-20 people allegedly hit Sampatlal Batti, a resident of Sagar village, and Simaria resident Dhansay Inwati with sticks after accusing them of cow slaughter, between 2.30 am and 3 am on Tuesday.&nbsp;When Brajesh Batti arrived at the spot, he too was assaulted.Inwati and Sampatlal Batti died around 6 am on Tuesday during treatment in hospital, the complainant said.Following the incident, the police arrested Sher Singh Rathore (28), Ajay Sahu (27), Vedant Chouhan (18), Deepak Avadhia (38), Basant Raghuvanshi (32) and Raghunandan Raghuvanshi (20), all of whom have been named in the FIR, the police said in a press release.&nbsp;Three suspects -- Anshul Chourasia (22), Shivraj Raghuvanshi (23) and Rinku Pal (30) -- were also arrested, the police said, adding that a hunt was on for others involved in the incident.Meanwhile, the district administration in an official release said financial assistance worth Rs 8.25 lakh has been approved for the kin of each of the deceased.Also, Sampatlal Batti's daughter Sunita Batti has been appointed as a daily wage employee at a tribal girls' hostel in Barelipar village, and Dhansay Inwati's son Jaiprakash has been appointed as a daily wager at a higher secondary school in Vijaypani village, the release said.Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Kamal Nath has constituted a committee of three-party legislators -- Omkar Singh, Dr Ashok Marskole and Narayan Patta, all belonging to the tribal community -- to look into the incident, Nath's media coordinator and state Congress spokesman Narendra Saluja said.State Bharatiya Janata Party president VD Sharma termed the incident as "inhuman" and assured that his party and government in the state will not spare any of the culprits—PTI

The police have arrested nine persons in connection with the death of two tribal men who  were allegedly assaulted by a group of people over suspicion of cow slaughter in Madhya Pradesh's Seoni district, an official said on Wednesday.

MP: 9 held for beating 2 tribals to death over cow slaughter suspicion

The police have arrested nine persons in connection with the death of two tribal men who  were allegedly assaulted by a group of people over suspicion of cow slaughter in Madhya Pradesh's Seoni district, an official said on Wednesday.



New Delhi: India on Thursday strongly objected to the use of mathematical models by the World Health Organization for projecting excess mortality estimates linked to the coronavirus pandemic in view of the availability of authentic data, saying validity and robustness of the models used and methodology of data collection are questionable.In a report released on Thursday, the WHO estimated that nearly 15 million people were killed either by the coronavirus or by its impact on overwhelmed health systems in the past two years, more than double the official death toll of 6 million. Most of the fatalities were in Southeast Asia, Europe and the Americas.According to the report, there were 4.7 million Covid deaths in India -- 10 times the official figures and almost a third of Covid deaths globally.India likely to raise the issue at the World Health Assembly and required multilateral forums, sources said.India has been consistently objecting to the methodology adopted by the WHO to project excess mortality estimates based on mathematical models, the Union Health Ministry said in a statement"Despite India's objection to the process, methodology and outcome of this modelling exercise, the WHO has released the excess mortality estimates without adequately addressing India's concerns," the statement said.India had also informed the WHO that in view of the availability of authentic data published through Civil Registration System by the Registrar General of India, mathematical models should not be used for projecting excess mortality numbers for India.Registration of births and deaths in India is extremely robust and is governed by decades old statutory legal framework, i.e. “Births &amp; Deaths Registration Act, 1969”. The civil registration data as well as sample registration data released annually by the RGI has been used by a large number of researchers, policy makers and scientists both domestically and globally, the ministry said.The RGI is over a century old statutory organisation and is assisted by chief registrars of states and union territories and about three lakh registrars and sub-registrars across the country.Based on reports submitted by states and UTs, national reports are published annually by the RGI. The national report for the year 2019 was published in June 2021 and for the year 2020 on May 3, 2022. These reports are in public domain."India firmly believes that such robust and accurate data generated through Legal Framework of a Member State must be respected, accepted and used by WHO rather than relying on less than accurate mathematical projection based on non-official sources of data," the statement stated.India had pointed out the inconsistencies in the criteria and assumption used by the WHO to classify countries into Tier I and II as well as questioned the very basis for placing India into Tier II countries, for which a mathematical modelling estimate is used.India had also underlined the fact that given the accuracy of the mortality data collected through an effective and robust statutory system, India doesn't deserve to be placed in Tier II countries, the statement said."The WHO till date has not responded to India's contention. India has consistently questioned WHO's own admission that data in respect of seventeen Indian states was obtained from some websites and media reports and was used in their mathematical model. This reflects a statistically unsound and scientifically questionable methodology of data collection for making excess mortality projections in case of India," the statement said.Throughout the process of dialogue, engagement and communication with WHO, it has projected different excess mortality figures for India citing multiple models, which itself raises questions on the validity and robustness of the models used.India objected to the use of Global Health Estimates 2019 in one of the models used by WHO for calculating excess mortality estimates for India. GHE itself is an estimate."Therefore, a modeling approach which provides mortality estimates on the basis of another estimate, while totally disregarding the actual data available within the country, exhibits lack of academic rigour," the statement said.The test positivity rate -- another key variable used by the WHO -- for COVID-19 in India was never uniform throughout the country at any point of time.Such a modeling approach fails to take into account the variability in Covid positivity rate both in terms of space and time within the country. The model also fails to take into account the rate of testing and impact of different diagnostic methods (RAT/RT-PCR) used in different geographies, the statement stated.Owing to its large area, diversity and a population of 1.3 billion which witnessed variable severity of the pandemic both across space and time, India consistently objected to the use of “one size fits all” approach and model, which may be applicable to smaller countries but cannot be applicable to India, it said.In spite of these differences, India continued to collaborate and coordinate with WHO on this exercise and multiple formal communications -- 10 times from November 2021 to May 2022 -- as well as numerous virtual interactions were held with the global body."Despite communicating this data to WHO for supporting their publication, WHO for reasons best known to them conveniently chose to ignore the available data submitted by India and published the excess mortality estimates for which the methodology, source of data, and the outcomes has been consistently questioned by India," the statement said—PTI

India on Thursday strongly objected to the use of mathematical models by the World Health Organization for projecting excess mortality estimates linked to the coronavirus pandemic in view of the availability of authentic data, saying validity and robustness of the models used and methodology of data collection are questionable.

4.7 mn Covid deaths in India, says WHO; govt objects

Kolkata: Tension erupted in the Cossipore area in north Kolkata on Friday after the body of a BJP activist was recovered from an abandoned room near the railway yard.The dead person was identified as Aryun Chaurasia (26), an activist associated with the BJP Yuva Morcha. The incident took place when Union Home Minister Amit Shah is on a two-day tour of the state.No suicide note was recovered from the spot, said police.After the body, which was found hanging in the room, was detected, the local people informed the Chitpur Police station. When the police tried to take the body, the local BJP activists and the family members of the victim protested alleging that he was murdered.The family members alleged that since the end of the West Bengal Assembly elections last year, Chaurasia was constantly threatened by the local Trinamool Congress activists.Soon, BJP’s north Kolkata president, Kalyan Choube also reached the spot and alleged that Chaurasia was killed by the ruling party activists.The victim’s family members alleged that on Thursday, Aryun received his salary for the month. According to them, he returned home and again went out. However, he did not return home till late at night. His family members tried to reach him through his mobile phone which kept on ringing. Finally, on Friday morning his body was identified at an abandoned room near the railway yard.BJP’s national vice president and party MP, Dilip Ghosh said that it was unfortunate that the murder of one of the party activists took place when the Union Home Minister, was on a two-day tour to the state. “We have requested the Union home minister to meet the family members of the victim. If time permits, he will surely come and meet the family members,” Ghosh said—IANS

Tension erupted in the Cossipore area in north Kolkata on Friday after the body of a BJP activist was recovered from an abandoned room near the railway yard.

Mysterious death of BJP activist in Kolkata

Tension erupted in the Cossipore area in north Kolkata on Friday after the body of a BJP activist was recovered from an abandoned room near the railway yard.



Jaunpur: &nbsp;A young wrestler was stabbed to death here on Friday night allegedly over personal enmity, police said.Superintendent of Police (City) Sanjay Kumar said the incident took place in Gaurabadshahpur area when the wrestler, Badal Yadav (21), resident of Dharmapur Thakurchi village, was going with his friend Ankit Yadav (25). The attackers -- both carrying knives -- fled after inflicting several blows.Locals rushed them to hospital where the doctors declared Badal dead and referred Ankit to Varanasi in critical condition.Angry over the incident, the villagers blocked the road at Prasad trisection, set a government ambulance on fire and pelted police vehicles with stones, shattering their glasses, the SP said.Personal enmity is said to be the reason behind the incident, the SP said, adding that a few days ago, Badal and Ankit had a dispute with some people and that might have led to the Friday's incident—PTI

  A young wrestler was stabbed to death here on Friday night allegedly over personal enmity, police said.

Wrestler stabbed to death

  A young wrestler was stabbed to death here on Friday night allegedly over personal enmity, police said.



Indore: Seven persons were charred to death after a massive fire broke out in a double storey building in Indore's Swarna Bagh Colony in the early hours of Saturday, police said.According to preliminary information the blaze is suspected to be have triggered by a electric short circuit inside a house, Indore Police Commissioner Harinarayan Chari Mishra who was present at the siteThe Police Commissioner said, "Seven people have died and nine people have so fare been rescued by officials present at the spot."<img src="https://im.rediff.com/news/2022/may/07indore2.jpg?w=670&amp;h=900">A fire department official said: "The fire might have started due a short circuit. It took us three hours to bring the fire under control."Further investigation is underway—ANI

Seven persons were charred to death after a massive fire broke out in a double storey building in Indore's Swarna Bagh Colony in the early hours of Saturday, police said.

7 charred to death in fire at Indore building

Delhi: Health ministers of different states who attended the 14th conference of the Central Council of Health and Family Welfare have slammed World Health Organisation for its estimate of 4.7 million Covid-related deaths in India, saying it is "baseless" and "intended to show the country in a poor light".They said India has a robust, efficient and comprehensive system for registering deaths and all Covid fatalities are systematically recorded transparently following a legal process.On Friday, a resolution was passed at the conference strongly objecting to WHO's estimates of Covid deaths in India.It stated the WHO estimate is "unacceptable" to India and the modelling methodology used by the global health body to reach the figure was "flawed".The three-day conference of the CCHFW, an apex advisory body of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, began in Gujarat's Kevadia on Thursday.It was chaired by Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya.Karnataka Health Minister K Sudhakar questioned the modelling methodology used by WHO to arrive at the death estimate, alleging that it was an attempt to "tarnish" India's reputation."There is no rationale behind the modelling methodology used by the WHO to arrive at the estimate. All health ministers at the conference here have condemned the report and passed a resolution against it. We have urged Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya to convey India's disappointment to WHO and raise it at higher international forums," "We stand by our numbers because there is a robust, legal and transparent system for data collection and Covid mortality surveillance. It's a sheer attempt to malign India which has done good work on Covid management. There seems to be a malafide intention behind the report," Sudhakar said.Punjab Health Minister Vijay Singla alleged that WHO's death estimate was "fabricated" and it has not made a proper calculation to arrive at the figure of 47.4 lakh Covid-related deaths."India has a strong data collection system and there is no reason to doubt its authenticity. The modelling methodology used by the global health body was not scientific," he said.Madhya Pradesh Minister of Medical Education Vishwas Sarang alleged there was a conspiracy to belittle India's achievements on the COVID-19 front starting from the low mortality rate to the high vaccination coverage."The figures by WHO are erroneous and not based on sound mathematics. All health ministers at the conference rejected the WHO report saying it was not founded on facts,"Sarang said that "20 to 22 health ministers, including those from states not ruled by the BJP, unanimously rejected the WHO report".Echoing similar sentiments, Health Minister of Sikkim M K Sharma and his Bihar counterpart Mangal Pandey alleged that the WHO report was "devoid of facts" and its modelling methodology was "not scientific".It's a deliberate attempt to portray India in a poor light, they claimed, adding registration of births and deaths in the country is extremely robust and is governed by the decades-old statutory legal framework the Births and Deaths Registration Act, 1969.The Union Health Ministry on Thursday strongly objected to the mathematical models used by WHO for projecting excess mortality estimates linked to the pandemic given the availability of authentic data, saying the validity and robustness of the models used and methodology of data collection were questionable.India is likely to raise the issue at the World Health Assembly and other multilateral forums, sources in the ministry said."Despite India's objection to the process, methodology and outcome of this modelling exercise, WHO has released the excess mortality estimates without adequately addressing India's concerns," the Union Health Ministry said.<a href="https://www.rediff.com/news/report/who-report-baseless-attempt-to-tarnish-indias-image-health-ministers/20220507.htm" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(71, 123, 196);"><img src="https://imworld.rediff.com/worldrediff/pix/blank.gif"></a>India had also informed WHO that given the availability of authentic data published through the Civil Registration System by the Registrar General of India, mathematical models should not be used for projecting excess mortality numbers for India."India firmly believes that such robust and accurate data generated through the legal framework of a member state must be respected, accepted and used by WHO rather than relying on less than accurate mathematical projection based on non-official sources of data," the statement added—PTI

Health ministers of different states who attended the 14th conference of the Central Council of Health and Family Welfare have slammed World Health Organisation for its estimate of 4.7 million Covid-related deaths in India, saying it is "baseless" and "intended to show the country in a poor light".

WHO report 'baseless', attempt to 'tarnish' India's image: Health ministers

SRINAGAR : Hundreds of people participated in the funeral of a policeman who was killed by militants in Srinagar.The funeral took place late Saturday night, barely an hour after a wreath laying ceremony was held for constable Ghulam Hassan Dar at the district police lines in Srinagar.Police officers led by IGP Kashmir, Vijay Kumar, DIG central Kashmir range, SSP Srinagar, SSP (Police control room) and other officials paid tributes.Militants fired at Dar while he was going on his bike for his daily duty.He was shifted to the SKIMS Soura hospital where he succumbed to injuries on Saturday night.The funeral procession took place at his native Danwar Eidgah area—IANS

 Hundreds of people participated in the funeral of a policeman who was killed by militants in Srinagar.

Hundreds participate in slain J&K policeman’s funeral

HAVANA (Cuba) :&nbsp;The death toll from Friday's explosion at Hotel Saratoga in Havana rose to 30 on Sunday, as search and rescue efforts continue.The Ministry of Public Health reported that there are also 84 injuries, with 19 adults and five children remaining hospitalized.Rescuers continue to search for survivors and bodies at the hotel, which was seriously damaged when a tanker truck loaded with some 10,000 litres of liquid gas exploded on Friday afternoon.Located opposite Cuba's National Capitol building, the five-star hotel was preparing to reopen on Tuesday as part of the country's bid to revive tourism—ANI

The death toll from Friday's explosion at Hotel Saratoga in Havana rose to 30 on Sunday, as search and rescue efforts continue.

Death toll from hotel explosion in Havana rises to 30

Kolkata:&nbsp;The autopsy report of BJYM leader Arjun Chourasia, conducted by Command Hospital here and submitted to Calcutta High Court on Tuesday, indicated his death was by hanging and the ligature mark on his neck was anti-mortem in nature.The Union of India submitted the post-mortem report in a sealed cover before a division bench presided by Chief Justice Prakash Shrivastava. The autopsy was conducted as per an order of the court passed on Friday.The bench, also comprising Justice R Bharadwaj, noted in its order that the findings relating to the cause of death of Chourasia is "hanging" and the ligature mark on his neck is "anti-mortem".It ordered that the post-mortem report be handed over to Advocate General S N Mookherjee representing the West Bengal government.It directed that the viscera sample be handed over to police authority concerned.Crying foul following the discovery of Chourasia's body in an abandoned railway quarter at Kashipur in north Kolkata on May 6, his family members had moved the high court seeking that the autopsy be conducted at Command Hospital of the armed forces.—PTI

The autopsy report of BJYM leader Arjun Chourasia, conducted by Command Hospital here and submitted to Calcutta High Court on Tuesday, indicated his death was by hanging and the ligature mark on his neck was anti-mortem in nature.

BJYM leader's autopsy report indicates death by hanging

The autopsy report of BJYM leader Arjun Chourasia, conducted by Command Hospital here and submitted to Calcutta High Court on Tuesday, indicated his death was by hanging and the ligature mark on his neck was anti-mortem in nature.



Colombo: The death toll rose to eight on Tuesday in the unprecedented violence in Sri Lanka that erupted after supporters of former prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa attacked peaceful anti-government protesters demanding his ouster over the country's worst economic crisis that led to acute shortages of staple food, fuel and power. <img src="https://gumlet.assettype.com/dtnext%2F2022-05%2F550d5ec2-b94c-40c9-b2ca-f01098377a39%2FSL4_d.webp?auto=format%2Ccompress&amp;format=webp&amp;w=768&amp;dpr=1.0">Over 200 people have also been injured in the violence in Colombo and other cities.Mahinda Rajapaksa, 76, resigned as Sri Lankan Prime Minister on Monday amid unprecedented economic turmoil, hours after his supporters attacked anti-government protesters, prompting authorities to impose a nationwide curfew and deploy Army troops in the capital.The violence saw arson attacks on the homes of several politicians, including the ancestral home of the Rajapaksas in Hambantota.Video footage showed the entire house of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and his younger brother and President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in Medamulana in Hambantota city was burning.Prime Minister Mahinda's House in Kurunegala was also set on fire by protesters while a mob also destroyed D A Rajapaksa Memorial - constructed in the memory of the father of Mahinda and Gotabaya - in Medamulana, Hambantota. <img src="https://gumlet.assettype.com/dtnext%2F2022-05%2Ff2a75246-be57-4535-8f58-b4289624cec6%2FSL1_d.webp?auto=format%2Ccompress&amp;format=webp&amp;w=768&amp;dpr=1.0">Chairman of the Imaduwa Pradeshiya Sabha A V Sarath Kumara died following an attack on his residence on Monday. Kumara, 63, was admitted to the hospital due to a heart condition following the attack.One person was killed following an attack on a popular hotel in Negombo. Multiple luxury cars worth millions of rupees were completely destroyed.SLPP Member of Parliament Amarakeerthi Athukorala and his security guard died in Nittambuwa on Monday.<img src="https://gumlet.assettype.com/dtnext%2F2022-05%2Fff59df26-bc4b-4ae0-9392-a076f21ed544%2FSL15_d.webp?auto=format%2Ccompress&amp;format=webp&amp;w=768&amp;dpr=1.0">Eye-witnesses said that the people who had come with the Member of Parliament to Nittambuwa shot at a group of people protesting against the attack on the peaceful protesters in front of the Temple Trees and the President's Office. A 27-year-old male died in the shooting incident.Two people were killed in a shooting that took place at the Weeraketiya Pradeshiya Sabha Chairman's residence on Monday night.<img src="https://gumlet.assettype.com/dtnext%2F2022-05%2F97a81a29-af5e-4d47-8849-4231ae7670b0%2FSL3_d.webp?auto=format%2Ccompress&amp;format=webp&amp;w=768&amp;dpr=1.0">A person succumbed to his injuries at the hospital in Colombo.The Colombo national hospital said at least 217 people had been admitted for treatment.Several properties of ministers and lawmakers of the ruling coalition were destroyed by the protesters.Protesters have also attacked the house of Badulla District parliamentarian Tissa Kuttiarachch and later set it on fire.The house of Puttalam MP Santha Nishantha was completely destroyed due to an arson attack.There have been protests over soaring prices and power cuts since last month. Sri Lanka is facing its worst economic crisis since gaining independence from Britain in 1948.The crisis is caused in part by a lack of foreign currency, which has meant that the country cannot afford to pay for imports of staple foods and fuel, leading to acute shortages and very high prices.Thousands of demonstrators have hit the streets across Sri Lanka since April 9 seeking the resignation of President Gotabaya and his brother Mahinda, as the government ran out of money for vital imports; prices of essential commodities have skyrocketed and there are acute shortages in fuel, medicines and electricity supply.<img src="https://gumlet.assettype.com/dtnext%2F2022-05%2Fe7579db0-1cd3-48ec-8685-ad9fec116f17%2FSL2_d.webp?auto=format%2Ccompress&amp;format=webp&amp;w=768&amp;dpr=1.0">In a special Cabinet meeting on Friday, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa declared a state of emergency with effect from Friday midnight. This is the second time that an emergency was declared in Sri Lanka in just over a month as the island nation was in the grip of the worst economic crisis—PTI

The death toll rose to eight on Tuesday in the unprecedented violence in Sri Lanka that erupted after supporters of former prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa attacked peaceful anti-government protesters demanding his ouster over the country's worst economic crisis that led to acute shortages of staple food, fuel and power.

Death toll in Sri Lanka violence rises to 8; over 200 injured

Kannauj:&nbsp;Two brothers were crushed to death after a dumper truck rammed their motorcycle on the Tirwa Bela Road in Kannauj district on Friday, police said.They were identified as Sunil Rajput (19) and Mohit Rajput (17) of Auraiya district, Station House Officer Indergarh Kamal Bhati said.The victims were returning home after attending a wedding here when the accident took place, he said, adding that the truck driver fled the spot.Mohit Rajput was an intermediate student, and Sunil Rajput was working in Delhi, Bhati said.—PTI

Two brothers were crushed to death after a dumper truck rammed their motorcycle on the Tirwa Bela Road in Kannauj district on Friday, police said.

Two crushed to death under dumper truck in UP's Kannauj

Colombo: A former Sri Lankan ruling party legislator who died in a violent clash in the western town of Nittambuwa was beaten to death by a mob and it was not a suicide as reported earlier, police said on Friday.Amarakeerthi Athukorala, a Member of Parliament in former Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa-led Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna administration died on Monday in the country's Western town of Nittambuwa after a clash with an angry mob.Earlier it was claimed that the 57-year legislator from Sri Lanka's North Central district of Polannaruwa committed suicide by shooting himself after he opened fire at two members of the group which had surrounded his vehicle on Monday.“The MP who was killed was actually murdered,” Police Spokesman Nihal Thalduwa was quoted as saying by the EconomyNext newspaper on Friday.“He was not shot at. He was murdered by the protesters. He was killed by beating. He was escaping, but he got caught and was beaten to death. It was not a suicide,” Thalduwa said.President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has ordered an investigation into the violent clashes that killed at least nine people, including Athukorala, while nearly 300 were injured.The clashes started after supporters of the then prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa attacked unarmed and peaceful protesters with iron rods and wooden poles near Rajapaksa's official residence and the presidential secretariat in Colombo on Monday.Rajapaksa resigned soon after the attack.Rajapaksa supporters' brutal attack came after a meeting with him and his political allies who were mostly legislators.On Thursday, a court-imposed travel ban on Mahinda Rajapaksa, his son and former Sports Minister Namal Rajapaksa, and several former ministers.Rajapaksa escaped a mob attack when thousands of protesters surrounded his official residence late on Monday to express their anger.He and his family were evacuated by the military early Tuesday and the defence secretary has said the former prime minister is being kept in the eastern naval base of Trincomalee for his protection.After the Monday attack, anti-government protesters also burnt and damaged hundreds of houses and vehicles mostly owned by SLPP parliamentarians across the country. Even the ancestral home of the Rajapakasas was attacked.—PTI

A former Sri Lankan ruling party legislator who died in a violent clash in the western town of Nittambuwa was beaten to death by a mob and it was not a suicide as reported earlier, police said on Friday.

Lanka ruling party MP's death during violence not a suicide, but murder: Police

Bijnor:&nbsp;Three people allegedly thrashed a 50-year-old grocery store owner to death for demanding a meagre Rs 30, which they had borrowed from him, police said on Sunday.The incident took place on Saturday night, Additional Superintendent of Police (Rural) Ram Arj said.The police official said Bhupendra, his brother Yogendra and Aashi allegedly attacked the shopkeeper, Yashpal, with sticks for demanding Rs 30, which he had lent them earlier.Yashpal had a grocery shop in Tanda Dhaki village under Shivala Kalan police station area.He was taken to a community health centre, where he succumbed to the injuries, Ram Arj said, adding that a case has been registered against the accused and efforts are on to nab them.—PTI

Three people allegedly thrashed a 50-year-old grocery store owner to death for demanding a meagre Rs 30, which they had borrowed from him, police said on Sunday.

Grocery store owner killed over Rs 30 in UP

New Delhi: India saw over 23.5 lakh premature deaths due to pollution of all types -- including 16.7 lakh fatalities caused by air pollution -- in 2019, the highest among all countries globally, according to a new study published in&nbsp;The Lancet Planetary Health&nbsp;journal. The majority of air pollution related deaths -- 9.8 lakh -- in India were caused by ambient PM2.5 pollution -- tiny pollution particles in the air that are two and one half microns or less in width, the researchers said. Another 6.1 lakh were due to household air pollution, they said. Globally, pollution of any kind was responsible for nine million deaths in 2019 -- equivalent to one in six deaths worldwide.Air pollution -- both household and ambient -- was responsible for the greatest number of deaths at 6.67 million worldwide. "The health impacts of pollution remain enormous, and low- and middle-income countries bear the brunt of this burden. Despite its enormous health, social and economic impacts, pollution prevention is largely overlooked in the international development agenda,” said study lead author Richard Fuller, from Global Alliance on Health and Pollution, Geneva, Switzerland. "Attention and funding has only minimally increased since 2015, despite well-documented increases in public concern about pollution and its health effects," Fuller said in a statement.In India, air pollution is most severe in the Indo-Gangetic Plain (northern India), where topography and meteorology concentrate pollution from energy, mobility, industry, agriculture, and other activities, the researchers said. According to the study, burning of biomass in households was the single largest cause of air pollution deaths in India, followed by coal combustion and crop burning. Population-weighted mean exposure to ambient air pollution peaked nationally in India at 95 milligrammes per cubic metre (mg/m3) in 2014, was reduced to 82mg/m3 by 2017, but more recently has been rising slowly again, the researchers said."India has developed a range of instruments for tackling air pollution, including a National Clean Air Program, and in 2019 launched a Commission for Air Quality Management in the National Capital Region. State Pollution Control Boards have regulatory powers to impose and enforce emissions standards on pollution sources,” the authors of the study noted. "However, India does not have a strong centralised administrative system to drive its air pollution control efforts and consequently improvements in overall air quality have been limited and uneven," they said. The report noted that India's PM2.5 pollution remains well above World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines of 10 microgram per cubic metre in 93 per cent area of the country. The WHO had recently tightened its health-based global air quality guidelines, lowering the guideline value for PM2·5 from 10 microgram per cubic metre to 5 microgram per cubic metre. Deaths due to traditional pollution (household air pollution from solid fuels and unsafe water, sanitation, and hand washing) in India have reduced by more than 50 per cent since 2000, the report said.Excess deaths due to pollution have led to economic losses totalling USD 4·6 trillion in 2019 globally, which is 6.2 per cent of global economic output, it said.Economic losses due to modern forms of pollution -- ambient particulate matter air pollution, ozone pollution, lead exposure, occupational carcinogens, gases, fumes -- have increased between 2000 and 2019 in India and are now approximately 1 per cent of its gross domestic product (GDP), it said. The new report is an update to The Lancet Commission on Pollution and Health. It states that although the number of deaths from pollution sources associated with extreme poverty -- such as indoor air pollution and water pollution -- have decreased, these reductions are offset by increased deaths attributable to industrial pollution such as ambient air pollution and chemical pollution. "Pollution is still the largest existential threat to human and planetary health and jeopardises the sustainability of modern societies," said study co-author Professor Philip Landrigan, Director, Global Public Health Program and Global Pollution Observatory at Boston College, US."Preventing pollution can also slow climate change -- achieving a double benefit for planetary health -- and our report calls for a massive, rapid transition away from all fossil fuels to clean, renewable energy," Landrigan said. The new report provides updated estimates for the health effects of pollution based on the most recently available 2019 GBD data and methodological updates, as well as an assessment of trends since 2000.The researchers said water pollution was responsible for 1.36 million premature deaths globally. Lead contributed 900,000 premature deaths, followed by toxic occupational hazards at 870,000 deaths.—PTI

India saw over 23.5 lakh premature deaths due to pollution of all types -- including 16.7 lakh fatalities caused by air pollution -- in 2019, the highest among all countries globally, according to a new study published in The Lancet Planetary Health journal.

India saw 23.5 lakh pollution deaths in 2019, highest in world

Delhi: India recorded a single-day rise of 1,829 new coronavirus infections, raising the tally to 4,31,27,199, while the active cases have declined to 15,647, the Union health ministry said on Wednesday. The death toll due to the pandemic has climbed to 5,24,293 with 33 fresh fatalities, the data updated by the ministry at 8 am stated. The active cases comprised 0.04 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate was 98.75 per cent, the health ministry said. A decrease of 753 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 case count in a span of 24 hours, it said. The daily positivity rate was recorded at 0.42 per cent and the weekly positivity rate was recorded at 0.57 per cent, as per the data. The 33 new fatalities include 31 from Kerala and 2 from Delhi. The total number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,25,87,259, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.22 per cent, the data stated.The cumulative doses administered in the country so far under the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive have exceeded 191.65 crores, the ministry said. India's COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16. It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19 in that year. India crossed the grim milestone of two crore cases on May 4 and three crore cases on June 23, 2021. A total of 5,24,293 deaths have been reported so far in the country, including 1,47,855 from Maharashtra, 69,434 from Kerala, 40,105 from Karnataka, 38,025 from Tamil Nadu, 26,198 from Delhi, 23,513 from Uttar Pradesh and 21,203 from West Bengal. The health ministry stressed that more than 70 per cent of the deaths occurred due to comorbidities."Our figures are being reconciled with the Indian Council of Medical Research," the ministry said on its website, adding that the state-wise distribution of figures is subject to further verification and reconciliation.—PTI

India recorded a single-day rise of 1,829 new coronavirus infections, raising the tally to 4,31,27,199, while the active cases have declined to 15,647, the Union health ministry said on Wednesday.

India records 1,829 new Covid cases, 33 deaths

Ghaziabad: A special Central Bureau of Investigation court in&nbsp;Ghaziabad has awarded death sentence to the prime accused in the Nithari murders Surinder Koli for raping and murdering a woman. Judge Rakesh Tripathi awarded seven years imprisonment to Koli's employer -- businessman Moninder Singh Pandher -- in the case. The court imposed a fine of Rs 62 thousand on Koli and Rs 4 thousand on Pandher. Special CBI public prosecutor Darshan Lal said the agency has produced 83 witnesses before the court and their statements have been recorded. On the basis of evidence, Koli was held guilty of killing, raping, hatching a conspiracy and destroying proof of crime while Pandher was accused of immoral trafficking on Tuesday. The court had reserved its order on sentencing for Thursday Prior to this, the court had awarded death sentence to Koli in 13 cases while he was acquitted in three. Pandher too was sentenced to death in three cases. Lal said the court observed that the offense which Koli committed falls in the 'rarest category' of crimes as it shows his cruelty towards the victim who was strangled to death after being raped. Her body was sliced into pieces and the parts were stuffed in polythene bags and dumped in a drain behind Pandher's house in Nithari. Meanwhile, Pandher urged the court to decrease his punishment as he is unwell and undergoing treatment in the jail hospital. The sensational killings came to light with the discovery of eight skeletal remains of children from the drain behind Pandher's house on December 29, 2006. Pandher and Koli were subsequently arrested by the Noida Police. With further digging and searching of drains and the area around Pandher's house, more skeletal remains were found. Most of these remains proved to be that of poor children and young women who had gone missing from the area. Within 10 days, the CBI took over case and its search resulted in the recovery of more bones. During the interrogation, Koli had accepted rape, murder and cannibalism, according to the CBI. A total 19 cases were lodged but in three cases the CBI had filed closure reports due to lack of evidence, he said.—PTI

A special Central Bureau of Investigation court in Ghaziabad has awarded death sentence to the prime accused in the Nithari murders Surinder Koli for raping and murdering a woman.

Nithari killer Surinder Koli gets death sentence in another case

Itanagar: The death toll due to landslides in Arunachal Pradesh increased to eight after the body of a woman who went missing was recovered here on Friday, police said. The body of 35-year-old Kusum Rai was retrieved from the debris in the backside of Punjabi Dhaba in the city after six days of an extensive search operation, Capital Superintendent of Police (SP) Jimmy Chiram said.The bodies of Nagen Barman (50) and Tapas Rai (15) were recovered from the spot and the woman was feared dead after their house was hit by a landslide on Sunday night. "The search operation conducted by the National Disaster Response Force, state officials and the police was hampered due to incessant rainfall," Chiram said. Two Public Works Department labourers were also buried in a landslide at Ganga-Jully Basti Road on Monday while trying to extricate a motorcycle stuck in the mud. Three people also lost their lives due to landslides in Kurung Kumey district while another is still missing, sources at the State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) said. Most parts of the state have been witnessing heavy rainfall over the last few days, with landslides being reported from several districts, they said. Around 3,000 people in 33 villages of 14 districts have been affected till Wednesday by heavy rain that triggered landslides and flood-like situations.At least 7.6 hectares of cultivated fields have been destroyed, while 392 houses were damaged across the state, the sources said. During a meeting on monsoon preparedness, Chief Minister Pema Khandu had on Thursday stressed on the need for putting in a robust advance warning system to avert the loss of lives due to disasters. He insisted that the State Emergency Operation Center should be active round the clock during the monsoon season.—PTI

The death toll due to landslides in Arunachal Pradesh increased to eight after the body of a woman who went missing was recovered here on Friday, police said.

Death toll due to landslides in Arunachal rises to eight

Hyderabad: &nbsp;In another 'honour' killing in Hyderabad, a 24-year-old man was killed in public in front of his father over an inter-caste love marriage. Neeraj Kumar Panwar (22) was stabbed to death by five men, said to be relatives of his wife, near the busy fish market in Begum Bazar area under Shahinayathgunj police station limits on Friday night.The young businessman was returning home along with his father Rajender Panwar after closing the shop when the assailants attacked from behind on his head with a granite stone. As he fell down, they stabbed him with a sickle used to cut coconut. Panwar, resident of Kolsawadi in Begum Bazar area who was into retail groundnut business, had a love marriage about one-and-a-half years ago with Sanjana (20), a resident of the same area but belonging to another caste. A child was born to them about one-and- a-half months ago.As Sanjana's family was against the marriage, they developed a grudge against Neeraj. They were allegedly planning murder for last six months. For one week they conducted a recee to know Neeraj's movements from shop to his house. Since the weather on Friday was cloudy and there were not many people on the road, they decided to execute the plot. The assailants, who came on two bikes, escaped after committing the crime. Police shifted Neeraj to hospital, where the doctors declared him dead.Traders gathered on the road and staged a protest demanding immediate arrest of the accused and stringent punishment. They called for a bandh in Begum Bazar on Saturday.Police examined CCTV footage and picked up a few suspects. Working on some clues, police on Saturday apprehended four accused at Gurumitkal in Karnataka, about 150 km from Hyderabad. According to the victim's relatives, he had approached police a year ago seeking protection as he was facing threat to his life from wife's family. This was the second honour killing in Hyderabad in less than a month. On May 4, a 25-year-old man was hacked to death in Saroornagar over an inter-faith marriage. Billapuram Nagaraju was murdered in public in front of his wife by her brother and another relative. Nagaraju had married Ashrin Sultana after the latter eloped with him early this year.—IANS

In another 'honour' killing in Hyderabad, a 24-year-old man was killed in public in front of his father over an inter-caste love marriage.

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Sunil Aswal

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BJP's 40% Commission Govt In K'taka: Rahul Attacks After Contractor's Death

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