On Monday, Maharashtra reported 15,140 new coronavirus cases, 7,304 less than the day before, and 39 fatalities due to the infection, according to the state health department.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde came to the rescue of a woman patient in need of a kidney transplant by taking her on board his chartered plane from Jalgaon to Mumbai after she missed her flight from the North Maharashtra city to the state capital.
Vijayan said the news that the SDMA had directed scientific institutions and scientists not to visit the disaster-affected Meppadi panchayat in Wayanad and not to express their opinions was misleading.
So far, over 30 people have died across Northeastern states due to heavy rainfalls, floods and landslides, according to media reports.
Forty-one Border Road Organisation labourers working to clear snow near the high altitude border village of Mana in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district were trapped under an avalanche on Friday.
The Kerala State Pollution Control Board (KPCB) is on high alert after a Liberian vessel carrying hazardous cargo sank off the Kerala coast. While no calcium carbide containers have washed ashore yet, a thin layer of oil spill has been detected. The KPCB is working to contain the spill and prevent it from reaching the shore, but rough conditions at sea have hampered efforts to spray dispersants. The board is also taking steps to prevent the oil from reaching the Ashtamudi and Vembanad lakes.
More than 45 lakh people in 30 out of the total 38 districts of the state have been affected by the calamity in two phases since last month, according to the Disaster Management Department.
The bodies of the last four of the trapped labourers were pulled out from the site of the avalanche-hit Border Roads Organisation (BRO) camp in Chamoli on Sunday, taking the death toll to eight as authorities ended the nearly 60-hour rescue operation.
Officials said around 1,300 pilgrims are stranded in Kedarnath, Bhimbali and Gaurikund, and are safe.
Telecom service providers and the Maha Kumbh Mela administration are on their toes to ensure smooth connectivity at the grand event set to witness record teledensity.
States are mandated to develop and implement 'heat HAPs' for prevention of heat-induced diseases. But most do not go beyond standard advisory on heat prevention.
Legislators of the opposition BJD in Odisha sprinkled 'Ganga Jal' in the state Assembly, alleging that the House had been "spiritually polluted" by the entry of policemen. The incident follows a protest by Congress members demanding a House Committee to probe crimes against women, which led to police intervention and the eviction of Congress MLAs from the Assembly. BJD members claim the police action was unprecedented and brought shame to Odisha. The Speaker denounced the act, while the Revenue and Disaster Management Minister asserted the House's inherent purity. The opposition also alleged that police prevented BJD MLAs from leaving the assembly premises on the following day.
The India meteorological department said heatwave conditions will persist for at least two more days.
Monsoon hit the state on June 20 and has since then cost it Rs 5,000 crore in damages.
'The larger story of systematic destruction, which can and has been quantified, goes mysteriously missing from any political and/or public discourse about the ongoing devastation in the Ghats,' notes Prem Panicker.
Eight persons were killed and five others rescued after several vehicles fell into a river following the collapse of a portion of a four-decade-old bridge in Gujarat's Vadodara district on Wednesday morning, police said.
The lockdown-like restrictions, imposed in April this year when the second wave of the pandemic intensified, would be lifted in 18 districts where the positivity rate is 5 per cent or less and the occupancy of oxygen beds in hospitals is less than 25 per cent, he said.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah has stated that Naxalism, currently confined to just four districts in India, will be completely eradicated by March 31, 2026. He emphasized the crucial role of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), particularly its CoBRA battalion, in achieving this goal. Shah lauded the CRPF's contributions to national security, highlighting their efforts in combating terrorism in Kashmir, maintaining peace in the Northeast, and significantly reducing Naxal violence. He also paid tribute to the CRPF's sacrifices, acknowledging the loss of 2,264 personnel in the line of duty.
India conducted nationwide civil defence mock drills simulating multiple hostile scenarios like air raids, fire emergencies, and rescue operations across several states and union territories. The drills, dubbed 'Operation Abhyaas,' aimed to enhance emergency preparedness in light of recent terror attacks. The exercises involved coordinated efforts by various agencies, including civil defence personnel, police, fire and emergency services, and the military. Mock drills were conducted at various locations, including railway stations, malls, and high-rise buildings, showcasing the response capabilities of authorities in different emergency scenarios. The drills highlighted the importance of public awareness and cooperation in dealing with real-time emergencies.
Twelve people, including three of a family, were killed and six injured in heavy overnight rains that triggered flooding and house collapse as several rivers swelled in Uttarakhand, officials said on Thursday.
The meteorological centre in Shimla issued a 'red' alert on Sunday for very heavy downpour in 10 districts of Himachal Pradesh, while services on the Shimla-Kalka rail line were suspended for hours till the debris and trees fallen on the tracks following overnight rains were removed.
At least 12 people died and 34 persons were injured in a pharma plant explosion in Sangareddy district of Telangana on Monday, State Minister Damodara Raja Narasimha said.
Nagnyal said 26 people were in the vehicle and most of them were residents of Delhi. Ten people died in the accident, the IG said.
As many as 48 NDRF and SDRF teams are extending relief while 197 medical camps have been set up.
Altogether 34,189 people, comprising 14, 675 women and 3,787 children, are reeling under the impact of the deluge.
The worst-hit districts include Kendrapara, Balasore and Bhadrak, while the human casualty 'still stands at zero,' he told reporters in Bhubaneswar.
'Today, the State looks at everyone with suspicion.'
The Wayanad district authorities said people from residential areas in the affected places were being shifted to safer locations.
Local residents have stressed that land acquisition for rehabilitation must be completed promptly, as it has been delayed after estate owners challenged it in the Kerala high court.
Alluri Sitarama Raju district, which is yet to fully recover from last month's deluge, is once again in the grip of a massive flood threat as discharge in the river crossed 10 lakh cusecs (cubic foot of water flow per second) mark.
IMD issued red alerts for Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Ernakulam and Idukki districts.
Aizawl has been cut off from the rest of the country due to a landslide on National Highway 6 at Hunthar.
A packed beyond capacity bus carrying passengers returning to work after Diwali fell into a deep gorge in Uttarakhand's Almora district on Monday, killing at least 36 of the over 60 people on board.
An accurate early warning system that correlates rainfall and the potential for landslides. That is the imperative, say experts as rains create havoc in hills across India and the toll mounts in Kerala's Wayanad slopes where landslides buried entire homesteads and possibly hundreds of people.
A 22-year-old person was killed and another one injured on Thursday after a tree fell on their hut in Mumbai as moderate to heavy rains lashed the city and its suburbs in the last 24 hours, officials said.
The locals believe the homes began to develop cracks after some portions of the land began to sink.
According to weather officials, wind speeds along and off the Odisha-West Bengal coasts are anticipated to reach 60 km/h from October 23, increasing to 120 km/h from October 24 night to October 25 morning.
The IMD also issued a red alert in the same 10 districts for August 3 also.
According to officials, the Ganga was flowing at 463.20 metres following which water filled up in Sangam Ghat, Ramkund, Dhaneshwar Ghat and Fuladi Ghat. There was also a tremendous jump in the water level of the Ganga after 2,000-3,000 cusecs of water was released from the dam of the GVK hydroelectric project built on the Alaknanda river.
Amid protests by a group of residents in Joshimath, the Chamoli administration on Thursday put a ban on all construction activities in and around the 'sinking' town even as nearly 50 families staying in houses at risk have been evacuated so far.
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