Nearly 600 tribal students abandoned a government-run hostel in Amravati, Maharashtra, after some girls exhibited strange behaviour, leading to claims of spirit possession. Officials suspect mental stress or selective hysteria, while local beliefs attribute the incidents to angry spirits from a cut 'mahua' tree or an encroached temple. Counselling efforts are underway to bring students back.
Girl students at a government residential school in Amravati, Maharashtra, are moving to a new hostel after nearly 600 students left, claiming some girls were "possessed." Officials attributed the strange behaviour to mental stress and local superstitions, including beliefs about spirits and upset deities. The new hostel aims to alleviate overcrowding and provide a better environment.
Aseem Chhabra glances at the week gone by in New York
The West Bengal government objected to the inclusion of the Leader of the Opposition in the committee.
'I know of at least one techie who quit his job to join the AAP in Delhi. Many others traveled to India to volunteer during the election. If you ask these volunteers why they were doing it when they can't even vote in India, they say, "We want a corruption-free India".' Ritu Jha looks back on the year that was; it was party time, she says, for news junkies like her.
