A Bharatiya Janata Party leader and Right to Information activist on Saturday accused the Harish Rawat government of paying Rs 47.19 lakh out of disaster relief funds to a firm, in which singer Kailash Kher has a stake, for a tourism video featuring cricketer Virat Kohli.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has urged Mumbai citizens to take precautions as the city experiences heavy rainfall and anticipates high tides. Waterlogging has been reported in several areas, and officials are taking measures to ensure public safety and minimize disruptions.
Landslides blocked arterial roads leading up to Dharali where dozens of people were trapped and many homes and cars swept away by the raging waters on Tuesday. Eleven Army personnel from the nearby camp in Harsil were among those missing.
The rain and flood situation in northeastern states remained grim on Tuesday, with lakhs people affected in Assam, Mizoram and Manipur, even as the meteorological department predicted more rain in several parts of the region.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Manipur to unveil projects worth 8,500 crore, marking his first visit since ethnic violence erupted in May 2023. The visit is met with heightened security and criticism from opposition parties.
Houses in low lying areas of Kerala were flooded in the heavy rains, while the accompanying strong winds uprooted trees, damaged homes and caused power disruptions, throwing normal way of life into disarray across the state.
The Wayanad district authorities said people from residential areas in the affected places were being shifted to safer locations.
Aizawl has been cut off from the rest of the country due to a landslide on National Highway 6 at Hunthar.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and his Telangana counterpart Revanth Reddy visited some inundated areas in their respective territories.
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said that Indian Premier League (IPL) matches will not be shifted from Bengaluru's Chinnaswamy Stadium.
He said six people have been rescued so far, and a search operation is being conducted on a war footing as some people are swept away.
The Indian Air Force's Chinook and MI17 helicopters on Friday joined the rescue operations in Uttarakhand to evacuate over 500 pilgrims stranded on the rain-ravaged trek route to Kedarnath, with 10 of them being airlifted in the first round.
Heavy rains exacerbate the flood situation in Punjab, leading to 37 deaths and widespread crop damage. Rescue and relief operations are underway as authorities issue alerts and provide assistance to affected populations.
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.
Two people died and over 300 were injured during the 'Dahi Handi' festival in Mumbai and Thane. The festival involves forming human pyramids to break pots of curd suspended in the air.
Eight persons have been killed in floods and landslides in Assam as incessant rainfall caused massive inundation in 17 districts, affecting over 78,000 people, officials said on Saturday.
A GLOF occurred in parts of Lhonak Lake, leading to a rapid rise in water levels with very high velocities downstream along the Teesta River Basin in the early hours of October 4. This resulted in severe damage in Mangan, Gangtok, Pakyong and Namchi districts.
A concrete slab holding up the main gate of a government senior secondary girls school in Rajasthan's Jaisalmer district collapsed on Monday, instantly killing a six-year-old boy who was there to be accompanied home by his sister studying in the school, police said.
In his notice to the chairman of the Rajya Sabha, the Congress leader alleged that the home minister had made unfounded allegations against chairperson of Congress parliamentary party with "a premeditated motive to malign her reputation."
Normally, the southwest monsoon makes its onset over Kerala by June 1 and covers the entire country by July 8. It starts retreating from northwest India around September 17 and withdraws completely by October 15.
The death toll in the Mahisagar river bridge collapse in Gujarat's Vadodara district climbed to 19 on Friday after one of the injured persons succumbed to injuries at a hospital, officials said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Ethiopia on a bilateral visit, engaging with Ethiopian leadership to strengthen partnerships in various sectors. He was warmly welcomed by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali and participated in cultural events, highlighting the strong ties between the two nations.
Rudraprayag District Disaster Management Officer Nandan Singh Rajwar told PTI that the accident took place above the forests of Gaurikund amid poor visibility due to bad weather.
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 Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC) was forced to suspend the operation after flooding was reported at the underground Acharya Atre Chowk station.
A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking immediate action to prevent future stampedes at railway stations. The PIL, filed by advocate Vishal Tiwari, calls for the implementation of a 2014 report by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on crowd management. The plea also criticizes the disparity in safety efforts, questioning why high-end technology and intelligence are deployed for VIPs while common citizens remain vulnerable to such incidents. The PIL seeks directions to the Indian Railways to take measures for passenger safety, including widening corridors, constructing broader over-bridges and platforms, and ensuring easy access to platforms through ramps and escalators.
The CRPF has created an exclusive team of about 1,800 personnel within its special anti-riots wing Rapid Action Force (RAF) to act as responders against CBRN attacks and various other disasters, a senior officer of the force said on Thursday.
Bharatiya Janata Party MP Kangana Ranaut visited some cloudburst-affected areas in Rampur, in Shimla on Tuesday, taking stock of the situation.
The meeting will focus on the current internal security scenario in the state, with a special emphasis on anti-Maoist operations, the release added.
So far, over 30 people have died across Northeastern states due to heavy rainfalls, floods and landslides, according to media reports.
The Election Commission has decided to set up a panel to identify the experiences and shortcomings during the recently-held five assembly polls.
One more body was recovered on Thursday, taking the toll in multiple landslides in Mizoram's Aizawl district to 28, a police officer said.
Heavy overnight rain in Gurugram caused widespread waterlogging and traffic gridlock, bringing the city to a standstill. Several residential areas and major roads were inundated, leading to commuter chaos.
The Supreme Court of India dismissed a plea seeking directions on crowd management at the New Delhi railway station, following a stampede that resulted in the deaths of at least 18 people. The court questioned the claim of 200 deaths and suggested the petitioner approach the Delhi High Court.
In a bid to enhance preparedness for disaster management among government officials involved in management of the annual Amarnath Yatra starting July 2, National Disaster Management Authority has planed to conduct a three-day mock drill.
Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar has rejected a privilege notice against Union Home Minister Amit Shah after he cited a 1948 government press release to authenticate his statement that a Congress leader was part of the management of Prime Minister's National Relief Fund. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh had moved the notice against Shah for "casting aspersions" on Congress Parliamentary Party head Sonia Gandhi.
The Maharashtra government's decision came two days after the Centre cancelled the Central Board of Secondary Education Class 12 board exams citing the prevailing COVID-19 pandemic.
'When an establishment operates despite demolition or closure orders, without proper fire exits, evacuation plans or safety audits, and yet is allowed to host large crowds, the state cannot hide behind the language of accident.' 'The authorities were aware of the risks and of the violations, but chose not to act decisively because doing so would have inconvenienced those with influence and financial stakes.' 'In such a scenario, the moral and legal responsibility for the resulting deaths moves from negligence towards culpability; calling it 'murder' is a way of underlining that these lives were sacrificed at the altar of greed and complicity, not fate.'
If they act now, they can reshape the strategic map of Asia without firing a shot. If they wait, the next opportunity will come only after a serious Taiwan Strait incident -- by which time the price will be far higher, and the room for boldness far smaller -- the opportunity may well be lost by then. The question is no longer whether this can or should be done, points out Varun Arya.
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.
