Here is a list of some of such major tragedies that have taken place in the country in recent years.
A Pune businessman was shot dead by terrorists in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, on Tuesday, his daughter recounted the horrific incident. The family was cowering in fear inside a tent when terrorists came. They asked Santosh Jagdale, 54, to come out and recite an Islamic verse. When he couldn't, they shot him thrice: once in the head, then behind the ear and then his back. The 26-year-old daughter of the Pune businessman recounted to PTI the terror the family went through in the horrific attack in Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday. After her father fell to the ground, the gunmen turned on her uncle who was lying next to her and shot him several times in the back.
The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has removed all references to the Mughals and Delhi Sultanate from its class 7 textbooks. The new textbooks, released this week, have been designed in line with the new National Education Policy (NEP) and the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCFSE) 2023, which emphasize incorporating Indian traditions, philosophies, knowledge systems, and local context into school education. The textbooks now include new chapters on ancient Indian dynasties, sacred geography, and government initiatives like Make in India and Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao. The revamp has been met with criticism from opposition parties who equate it with "saffronisation."
A boat carrying mostly school children capsized in the Jhelum river on the outskirts of the city on Tuesday, leaving six people dead, officials said.
An armed guard of Qatal was also killed in the attack that took place on Saturday night.
Arathi Menon, a native of Kochi, recounts the terror attack in Kashmir's Pahalgam that killed her father, N Ramachandran, and 25 others. Menon, her father, and her six-year-old twin sons were walking through a fenced grassland in Baisaran when the attack happened. The family crawled under the fence to escape, but a man emerged from the woods and opened fire. Menon's father collapsed, and she fled with her sons into the forest. Despite the trauma, Menon found compassion from strangers who helped her, including her driver Musafir and another man, Sameer. Menon concealed the tragedy from her mother, pretending that Ramachandran was injured and receiving treatment. She only told her mother the truth after they landed in Kochi. The mortal remains of Ramachandran were brought to Kochi airport on Wednesday, and his final rites will be held at the Edappally public crematorium on Friday.
The stampede took place as people headed home after a satsang in the district's Phulrai village, conducted by a preacher known as Bhole Baba. Twenty-seven bodies were brought to a hospital in neighbouring Etah district. Senior Superintendent of Police Rajesh Kumar Singh said 23 of them were women. And 89 lay dead in Hathras itself.
In a strong retaliation to the Pahalgam massacre, India's armed forces early Wednesday destroyed nine terror sites including that of Jaish-e-Mohammad and Lashkar-e-Taiba in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) using deep strike missiles in a 25-minute-long 'measured and non-escalatory' mission.
A leopard strayed into a village in north Delhi's Wazirabad early on Monday, creating panic in the area and injuring eight residents before being tranquillised by forest department officials after an over five-hour-long rescue operation.
A stampede-like situation at New Delhi Railway Station on Saturday evening left at least 15 people injured, and fatalities are feared. The incident occurred due to overcrowding on platforms 14 and 15, triggered by a rush of passengers heading to Prayagraj for the Maha Kumbh. Eyewitnesses described a chaotic scene with passengers fainting from suffocation and a scramble for space. Authorities are investigating the incident, with initial reports suggesting overcrowding due to the influx of passengers for the religious festival. Rescue teams and fire tenders were dispatched to the scene, and the injured were taken to hospitals for treatment.
Rekha, a resident of Koh village, was alone at home watching TV when the incident occurred. Her children, aged seven and five, were at school and her husband Sanju, a farm labourer, was away at work, Farah police station in-charge Sanjay Kumar Pandey said.
'While I would never wish for anyone to go through what we are, it has brought out the best in us by making each one of us a better version of ourselves.' 'Being courageous, fighting for freedom, taking the burden of responsibility to help each other...' 'I know hundreds and hundreds of examples where Ukrainians are risking their lives for complete strangers and it is only in moments like this that we truly understand what it means to be human.'
A multi-storey residential building collapsed in northeast Delhi's Shakti Vihar area in the early hours of Saturday, leaving 11 people dead and 11 injured, officials said.
In a video doing the rounds on social media, some workers are seen making marks on the road with lime powder.
A series of Pakistani airstrikes in Afghanistan's Barmal district of Paktika province has resulted in the death of 46 people, with six people left injured so far, with the majority of victims being women and children, as reported by Khaama Press, citing reports from Taliban authorities.
One person died and 20 others were rescued after a tourist boat capsized in the Arabian Sea off Calangute beach in North Goa on Wednesday, police said.
A special court in India has sentenced a man to "triple death sentence" for the rape and murder of a five-year-old girl last year. The court deemed the crime "rarest of rare" and declared the accused "extremely cruel and bestial." His mother and sister were also sentenced to two years in prison for helping to cover up the crime.
At least 10 people were injured in a shooting outside a nightclub in Queens on Wednesday night, according to the New York City Police Department, the New York Post reported on Thursday.
Manipur experienced a year of intense turmoil in 2024, marked by escalating violence, displacement, and deepening divisions between the Meitei community in the valley and the Kuki tribes in the hills. The conflict, rooted in historical grievances and fueled by political tensions, resulted in numerous casualties, mob attacks, and drone strikes on civilian areas. The situation has led to widespread displacement, fear, and a sense of insecurity among the affected communities, with no signs of peace in sight.
The death toll in the overnight stampede at the New Delhi Railway Station climbed to 18 on Sunday, with a senior railway official saying the incident occurred after some passengers slipped and fell on others while coming down from a footover bridge.
World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev expressed concern over the rising number of injuries among Indian cricketers, attributing it to the demanding schedule.
A child was killed while 25 others were buried under the debris after the roof of a primary school collapsed following heavy rains in Kapkot area of Uttarakhand's Bageshwar district on Wednesday.
The fierce gunfight was going on in the area with the induction of more troops to neutralise two terrorists trapped at the spot, they said.
A war of words erupted in the Indian Parliament on Tuesday between Samajwadi Party (SP) MPs and BJP MP Hema Malini over the alleged mismanagement at the ongoing Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj. SP leaders accused the Uttar Pradesh government of failing to provide adequate food, water, and fuel, leading to the deaths of devotees. Hema Malini, however, defended the event's organization, claiming it was well-managed despite a stampede that occurred on January 29th.
A stampede at New Delhi Railway Station on Saturday night claimed 18 lives, including 11 women and 5 children. Thousands of passengers, mostly Maha Kumbh pilgrims, crowded the station to board trains to Prayagraj, leading to a surge of people that became impossible to manage. The chaos unfolded when a last-minute platform change announcement caused confusion and panic, resulting in a crush of people at an escalator. As dawn broke, railway staff began the grim task of cleaning up, while grieving families gathered at the hospital to identify their loved ones.
The Battle of Lhagyala on November 23, 1962, fought by the 4 Rajput Regiment against the Chinese PLA, remains a forgotten chapter of heroism, with no survivors left to tell their story.
Four children and a woman were among five persons injured in the unprovoked Pakistan firing on the international border in the Pragwal area of Akhnoor sector of Jammu region on Thursday.
The Forest Department in Bahraich is employing innovative tactics to capture an elusive wolf, which it believes is the sixth and last remaining of the pack that has instilled fear among locals with several attacks in the last few months.
Following a deadly stampede at New Delhi Railway Station that claimed 18 lives on Saturday night, authorities have implemented stringent security measures, including prohibiting loitering on the foot overbridge. The Railway Protection Force (RPF) is also monitoring trains heading towards Prayagraj and deploying additional personnel to manage crowds. CCTV surveillance has been enhanced, and announcements are being made to guide commuters and prevent panic. The stampede occurred due to a mix-up in train announcements, leading to a surge of passengers rushing towards platform 16 via a narrow stairway.
Thirteen people have also been injured in the accident and admitted to a government hospital.
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.
India abstained on two UN General Assembly resolutions calling for a de-escalation, an early cessation of hostilities and a peaceful resolution of the war against Ukraine. The resolutions were adopted on the third anniversary of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, with the UN Secretary General stressing that the war in Ukraine stands as a grave threat to the peace and security of Europe and the core principles of the United Nations.
Two children and a teenager were critically injured in a powerful blast in Margi Devar village of frontier Kupwara district early on Thursday morning.The explosion occurred while they were fiddling with an explosive device they had found in the village.The injured were identified as Adil, 18, Mashooq, 14 and Nazia, 11, who are members of the same family. The police officer said the group had found the explosive device in the village and brought it home.
A Palestinian man carries the body of his niece Hanan Kaloob, who was killed in an Israeli strike at the Nasser hospital in Khan Younis, Gaza.
The administration is working to catch the attacking wolves, with four already caught, she said, however the problem is there are more than hundred revenue villages and the wolves are attacking new villages within a span of four to five days.
President Droupadi Murmu has approved gallantry awards to 93 armed forces personnel, including two Kirti Chakras and 14 Shaurya Chakras, on the eve of Republic Day. The Kirti Chakras, India's second-highest peacetime gallantry award, have been awarded to Major Manjit from 22 Rashtriya Rifles and posthumously to Naik Dilwar Khan, 28 Rashtriya Rifles. The president also approved 305 defense decorations to Armed Forces and other personnel.
In a significant blow to Hezbollah, Israel announced the elimination of Jaafar Khader Faour, commander of the Nasser Unit's Missiles and Rockets Array, in southern Lebanon's Jouaiyya area.
Three children were on Wednesday injured when a crude bomb dumped in a garbage heap went off, triggering panic in Allahabad, where a powerful explosion had claimed five lives less than a month ago. The incident took place on Wednesday afternoon in Daraganj police station area, a stone's throw from the famous Nagvasuki temple.
A 62-year-old man rammed his car into a crowd of people exercising at a sports centre in Zhuhai, China, killing 35 and injuring 43. The attacker, identified as Fan, was quickly apprehended and is currently receiving medical treatment after attempting self-harm. Police believe Fan's actions were motivated by his dissatisfaction with the property division outcome of his divorce. The incident occurred on Monday evening but was not reported by Chinese media until Tuesday evening. The event has sparked concerns and prompted authorities to strengthen security measures and investigate the incident.
Hundreds of people were captivated by watching the auspicious Theyyam ritual at the Veerarkavu Temple in the Kasaragod district of Kerala when a thundering explosion and a ball of fire shattered the serene atmosphere around midnight.
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