In a post on X, Chiranjeevi on Sunday expressed anguish over the loss of life due to the landslides in Kerala, adding he and his son-"RRR" star Ram Charan were donating Rs 1 crore to the CMDRF.
The Army, the National Disaster Response Force, police and the fire force along with the locals began rescue operations on Sunday morning at Koottickal and Kokkayar panchayats where over a dozen people are listed to be missing due to numerous landslides accompanied by heavy downpour since Saturday.
Rescue operations in Kerala's Wayanad district resumed on Thursday, marking one of the largest efforts to save those stranded by the landslides that have hit the region.
Television channels aired phone conversations of several people crying and requesting someone to come and rescue them as they were either trapped in their houses or had no way to travel as bridges had been washed away and the roads were flooded.
The toll in the landslide at a railway construction site in Manipur's Noney district rose to 24 on Saturday with 38 people still missing, officials said.
The Kerala police on Thursday launched an investigation into an alleged social media campaign against Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's Facebook post requesting help for the people affected by the landslides in Wayanad district. The campaign was aimed at motivating people to reject the CM's appeal for disaster relief, it said.
Two army personnel and 12 civilians are still unaccounted for in the worst natural disaster to have hit the northeastern state in recent times.
As rescue operations in the landslide-hit areas of this north Kerala district entered fifth day, rescuers unearthed more bodies and body parts, taking the death toll to 215, with around 206 people still reported missing.
The border forces of India and Bangladesh will hold their bi-annual talks next week in New Delhi, with issues such as border fence construction and attacks on BSF personnel and civilians by Bangladeshi miscreants figuring among the discussion points. The 55th Director General-Level Border Coordination Conference between BSF and the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) will be organised at the Border Security Force (BSF) headquarters in New Delhi between February 17-20. The conference will be the first top-level meeting between the two sides after the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government in August last year. Discussions will be held on prevention of attacks on BSF personnel and Indian civilians by Bangladesh-based miscreants/nationals, how to prevent trans-border crimes, construction of a single-row fence, action against Indian Insurgent Groups in Bangladesh, issues related to border infrastructure, joint efforts for effective implementation of the Coordinated Border Management Plan, Confidence Building Measures and other issues.
The counting of VVPAT slips aims to verify the tally of votes recorded EVMs against the corresponding VVPAT slips, the ECI said, adding that representatives of candidates were present throughout the process.
The Bharatiya Janata Party-led Mahayuti coloured Maharashtra a vivid saffron on Saturday as it swept aside the Maha Vikas Aghadi for a landslide win while the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) retained Jharkhand, voters in both states giving the parties in power an emphatic thumbs up.
Modi also met the construction workers who worked meticulously amid harsh conditions to complete the tunnel.
Bhujbal said he had an elaborate discussion with the CM on the prevailing political and social atmosphere in the state.
The priority now is to work out a comprehensive plan for government formation.
Parts of Raigad, Ratnagiri districts in the coastal Konkan region and Kolhapur district in western Maharashtra, have been worst affected by the floods. Besides that, heavy rains have been pounding parts of Satara district.
'We waded through the wet mud into the school, and what we saw were dead bodies strewn all over.' 'We could also see parts of human bodies buried under the wet mud.' 'It was a sight I will never forget in my life. Total devastation everywhere.'
Rescue teams on Friday used GPS coordinates from aerial drone pictures and cell phones, including the last location of people who lived in the landslides-hit areas of Wayanad to help locate survivors, amidst accelerated search operations after the completion of the 190-foot-long Bailey bridge by the Army.
Mini cloud bursts are marked by intense short spells which may not exceed 10cm in one hour-a classical definition by India Meteorological Department, he noted.
When it comes to the Congress and Wayanad, the only way the scepticism in the minds of some in Kerala may be addressed is by the Gandhi family proving that they are more than a passing caravan in town, reports Shyam G Menon.
The toll in the incident near Talai village in Mahad tehsil is likely to rise, police said, as many areas of Maharashtra continued to face rain fury since the past few days.
In a heart-wrenching tale of devastation, Mansoor lost 16 members of his family, including his mother, wife, two children, sister, and 11 members of his sister-in-law's family.
'As a grand alliance, we contested the election together and are still together today'
The Kerala government on Saturday announced that a township will be established in a secure area to rehabilitate those displaced by the catastrophic landslide that occurred in the Mundakkai region of Wayanad district.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday asserted that he would keep promises he had made to the people of Jammu and Kashmir, a statement seen as an oblique reference to the demand for restoration of statehood voiced strongly by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.
'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.
While the MNS had fielded 125 candidates, the VBA had 200 candidates in the fray.
'The last three decades were the era of D, where D stands for deforestation, destruction, degradation, disaster, damages, diseases, difficulties... and finally it leads to death.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday criticized the opposition, accusing them of trying to control Parliament through disruptions and chaos for their own political gain. Modi, addressing reporters ahead of the Winter Session, said those rejected by the people 80-90 times were resorting to hooliganism. He highlighted the BJP's recent electoral victories in Maharashtra and Haryana, asserting that the people are observing the opposition's actions and will punish them at the appropriate time. Modi emphasized the importance of healthy debate in Parliament and lamented the disregard for democracy by some opposition members.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Saturday said the results of the assembly elections were historic, and they decided to whom the Nationalist Congress Party and Shiv Sena belong.
Swami Shivanand Saraswati, known as the world's 'oldest saint', claims to be 129 years old and has been attending the Kumbh Mela for 100 years.
Despite the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance securing a massive victory, winning 230 seats in the 288-member assembly, consensus has eluded the ruling combine's leaders so far on who should be the next CM.
IAF pilots and crew dodged low hanging clouds, mist covered hills, steep valleys and landed on broken landing grounds to rescue civilians in Wayanad. In one mission, they had to descend vertically to get close to the survivors. IAF flew over 80 missions, saving lives and giving hope. This is how they did it.
'Mahayuti leaders will sit together and discuss and go to Delhi and then a decision will be taken'
The TMC-led West Bengal government has already started laying the groundwork for the election, setting the tone with the recent Bengal Global Business Summit and the state Budget.
'Let Fadnavisji prove to the people of Maharashtra that he acts fairly against one and all.'
Torrential rains pounded the tiny Himalayan state of Sikkim and the tea growing region of North Bengal, causing landslides that cut off National Highway-10, the main road linking Gangtok with the rest of the country.
Maharashtra's caretaker Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, who took ill at his native village in Satara district, is recovering and will return to Mumbai on Sunday evening, an associate said.
Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday favoured giving a majority 51 per cent stake to foreign partners in joint ventures for building tunnels and detailed project reports to improve work quality. Gadkari said providing a majority stake to a foreign partner in the joint venture is necessary to ensure that only serious and technically qualified players bid for tunnel projects.
The Shiv Sena leader also asserted that Eknath Shinde will take any position in the Union cabinet as his interest lies in Maharashtra politics.
The doctor, who wishes to remain anonymous, has years of experience in her field, but the sheer scale of destruction caused by the landslide has left her shaken.
