More than 51,000 diyas were lighted on Friday on Dev Deepawali at a Varanasi ghat to form 'Batoge to Katoge' -- a slogan given recently by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in a call apparently to Hindus to stay united.
Two bodies were recovered from the Manuni Khad in Kangra district while around 15-20 workers stationed at a labour colony near the Indira Priyadarshini Hydroelectric project site were feared swept away following a surge in water level in the Khaniyara Manuni Khad.
Water level of the river Kali has been continuously rising and reached the danger level.
With the recovery of six more bodies, the death toll in the Malin village landslide disaster has gone up to 136, even as health officials are sanitising the area in view of the unhygienic conditions there due to decomposing bodies.
The IMD issued a "Nowcast" warning, forecasting thunderstorms accompanied by lightning and intense spells of rain with gusty winds reaching 50-60 kmph at isolated places in Mumbai in the next three to four hours.
After making landfall near Puducherry on November 30, Cyclone Fengal weakened on Sunday, but torrential downpour under its influence paralysed the union territory, with the Army stepping in to evacuate stranded persons in inundated streets.
Chaired by Cabinet Secretary P K Sinha and attended by chiefs of the three services, secretaries of home, defence and others, the National Crisis Management Committee took stock of the prevailing situation in Kerala and directed all concerned to ensure continued assistance to the state government to meet the crisis, a home ministry spokesperson said.
Jalore, Sirohi, Pali and Barmer districts are the most affected and facing flood-like situations, the official said.
Ten teams of the NDRF have begun full-fledged relief and rescue operations on the third day of the disaster in quake-hit Nepal.
'The nearby civilians helped us a lot in providing food, water and first aid.'
At least 28 people died in rain-related incidents Sunday as heavy downpours lashed north and northwest India, causing landslides, traffic chaos and house collapses, as well as a dam breach which inundated several villages in Haryana.
Ravi, son of a road construction worker, fell into the borewell on Wednesday afternoon while playing near Thorandale village, 70 km from Pune.
Five people were killed and about 50 missing following several incidents of cloudburst in Himachal Pradesh where rains washed away many houses, bridges and roads, officials said on Thursday.
As many as 21,080 villagers from Vasai, Palghar, Dahanu and Talasari talukas, which are likely to be affected by the cyclonic storm, have been shifted to safer places, district collector Dr Kailas Shinde said.
The situation in rain-battered Gujarat improved slightly on Thursday as the rainfall activity subsided, but Vadodara and some other parts of the state are still reeling under a flood-like situation due to overflowing rivers while the authorities continue the rescue and relief operations.
22 of the people trapped in mid-air in a row of ropeway cable cars for around 24 hours following the accident were rescued on Monday while one person has died, officials said.
More than 21 hours after a huge billboard collapsed in Mumbai's Ghatkopar area due to gusty winds and unseasonal rains, killing at least 14 persons and injuring 75 others, the search and rescue operation is still on, civic officials said on Tuesday.
Rescue workers waged a grim battle with a hostile weather and difficult terrain, looking for signs of life under the monstrous heap of mud and stones on Thursday at the landslide-hit Malin village, where 41 bodies have been pulled out till now amid fading hopes of more survivors.
The rescue personnel had launched an operation to reach Sujith Wilson and pull him out of the borewell into which he had fallen on Friday evening while he was out playing nearby. More than six crews of the National Disaster Response Force as well as the State Disaster Response Force have been working to rescue the two-year-old but are yet to reach him.
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.
The torrential rain that took place between September 27 and 30 has created a flood-like situation in 15 districts of the state, including the state capital.
As sludge started solidifying inside the Srisailam Left Bank Canal tunnel in Telangana, rescuers are planning to use sniffer dogs to locate those got trapped, District Collector B Santhosh said on Wednesday.
More than 170 personnel have been tested till now after they returned to their base in Cuttack, Odisha, from the cyclone-affected West Bengal.
While there was a brief respite from the incessant downpour on Tuesday, collaborative efforts from the defence, national, and state disaster response forces took the lead in executing rescue and relief operations.
Britain, Scotland, Wales, New Zealand, Canada and Australia are among the few countries whose support staff comprises at least two security advisors for their athletes' safety
Police said around half-a-dozen dumper trucks and some machines were buried under the debris caused by the landslide which occurred around 9 am in Tosham block.
Former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh criticizes the BJP's functioning, stating he is not being consulted. He rules out rejoining the Congress but expresses willingness to help Sonia Gandhi personally. He also discusses Punjab's political landscape, AAP's performance, and national security.
The moment four National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel arrived on the other side of the rubble at the Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand to rescue 41 labourers trapped inside, their hopes of a safe evacuation were kindled, team commander Manmohan said.
Environmental organisation Greenpeace claimed that its recent findings -- about sources of radiation existing in the scrap market in Delhi's Mayapuri area -- has forced the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, the National Disaster Response Force and the Narora Atomic Power Plant team to re-start their decontamination procedures in Mayapuri.Exposure to radioactive material Cobalt-60 had claimed one life and caused injuries to 11 people in April.
Earlier on Saturday, six bodies were recovered and two more were retrieved a short time later, the police said.
More than 11,000 personnel of various agencies including Gujarat Police, NSG, RAF, and home guards among others will be deployed in Ahmedabad and at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad during the India-Pakistan World Cup cricket match on October 14, a senior officer said on Monday.
At least 11 people were killed when two three-storey buildings built 11 years back collapsed in Madhavnagar locality of Atladara area in Vadodara in the wee hours on Wednesday and about 40 people were feared to be stuck under the debris.
Six more bodies were recovered on Wednesday even as the Border Security Force and the National Disaster Response Force continued operations to trace over 200 people who went missing after their boat capsized in the Brahmaputra river in Dhubri district of Assam on Monday evening.
Rescuers are continuing the search for nearly 230 passengers of the ill-fated motor-boat that capsized in Brahmaputra River in Assam's Dhubri district on Monday evening.
The Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force have deployed six helicopters and one Dornier aircraft to help in rescue operations at the Kerala temple where a fire has left over 90 dead.
The prime minister wrote on Twitter that he spoke with Union Home Ministry officials and National Disaster Management Authority regarding the situation 'which is being monitored closely'.
This is Styrene gas that affects the central nervous system, throat, skin, eyes and some other parts of the body, he said.
With the recovery of five more bodies from the debris at the landslide-affected Irshalwadi village in Maharashtra's Raigad district, the toll increased to 21 on Friday, an official said.
Nine persons were still feared trapped under the debris of the structure which collapsed at 1.45 pm on Saturday at Wardhaman Compound in Valpada area, they said, adding that search and rescue operations were on.
The well-fought defensive battles in Aksai Chin and eastern Arunachal, in remote and forbidding locations such as Galwan, Rezang La, Gurung Hill and Walong, effectively halted Chinese advances not once but twice during the campaign. These engagements, fought with grit and without adequate support, were not immediately known to the world in 1962, points out Dr Kumar.
