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Flood situation causing concern across the country

     Jabalpur/Shimla: Flood situation across the country is still causing concern as major rivers are flowing near danger level. Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh are still fighting with massive floods that has created havoc in many areas of the two states. Water level in Gujarat, however, has receded and the authorities are claiming to have control over the situation. On Thursday morning, heavy to very heavy rains have been reported in six districts of Himachal Pradesh--Simla, Kinnaur, Kulu, Bilaspur, Solan, and Mandi. The Ravi and Beas rivers are flowing above warning-level and the water level is still rising. Although, the Sutlej river is flowing below warning-level. In Madhya Pradesh, floods have affected 358 villages and 6 urban areas. Among the affected districts are Sagar, Katni, Rewa, Satna, Jabalpur, Damoh, Narsinghpur, Panna and Chattarpur. Damoh and Panna districts are reported to be severely affected. An estimated 12 lakh people in Urban(9.5) and rural (2.5) are affected due to these floods. So far, 37 people have lost their lives and 15 people have been reported to be missing. Many roads links continue to be disrupted. Most critical disruption is on Sagar-Jhansi Highway NH-26. The key bridge got washed away 2 kilometres from Sagar town, blocking movement on NH-26. Large number of trucks are stranded. The State PWD is repairing the bridge which is expected to be restored and opened for traffic within 24 hours. Four Helicopters have been deployed for relief and rescue operations in Damoh and Panna districts.

     Earlier, relief materials were air-dropped in Sagar, Damoh and Panna districts. At present, 117 relief camps are operational. There are a total of 24,539 people staying in relief camps. District administration said they have made arrangements for rescuing people and bringing them to relief camps. Medical teams have also been sent to prevent the outbreak of epidemics. "All those people whose villages have been submerged have been brought to relief camps and their medical examination is being done. They are being provided with food and other assistance," said Deepak Singh, Sub Divisional Magistrate of Jabalpur. Villagers said they did not receive any help from the administration initially. Uma Kolia, a resident said food supplied by authorities was not enough to sustain a family. "We don't' have any food. The food packets supplied by the Government are not even enough for the children," she said. In Himachal Pradesh region too, a flood alert has been sounded in many areas of Himachal Pradesh as the Beas and other rivers went in spate, swamping vast tracts of land in Kullu, Mandi, Kinnaur and Shimla districts. All major power projects have opened their flood-gates and sounded a general alert advising people living downstream of the dams to move to safer places. The wild waters of river Parvati have caused extensive damange are taking their toll on school building, a bridge and a building under construction at Ghushani in Kullu district, Senior Superintendent of Police A P Singh said. He said there were no casualties so far as measures had been taken to evacuate people to safer places.

     The Beas waters had inundated a 5-km stretch of the Chandigarh- Manali highway near Hanogi, 35 km from Mandi, and also entered houses and bazaars in Sainj area in Kullu district. A bus was marooned in 6-7 ft of water near Hanogi but all its passengers had reached safer ground, the SSP said. National Highway No.21 and 22 and State Highways are blocked. Efforts are being made to repair/restore the traffic. Around 10,000 people are affected. Ten bighas of Orchard, 13 bridges and one Forest Rest Huose have washed away. Although, there have been no reports of loss of life so far. But the loss/damage of Public and Private property worth about Rs.100 crore is estimated. Traffic on the Mandi-Kullu stretch of National Highway 21 was suspended and hundreds of vehicles were stranded. Kullu and Mandi districts were under increased risk due to the swollen Beas waters, the SSP said but denied reports that some villages in the districts had been washed away. Heavy rainfall over the last five days have led to a rise of water level with Satna and Tons rivers flowing a meter above the danger mark. The southwest monsoon has spread to about three-quarters of the country, which also includes the Capital. The monsoons, though crucial to agriculture and was being eagerly awaited, also prove to be a bane as downpour often causes floods in western, eastern and northern plains of the country.

Shiv Sena MLAs parade before Maharashtra Speaker (Go To Top)

     Mumbai: Shiv Sena today held a parade of its 51 MLAs in support of newly elected legislature party leader Ramdas Kadam before Maharashtra Speaker Babasaheb Kupekar at his residence. Maharashtra Speaker had on Wednesday asked Shiv Sena to formally parade its MLAs before him to prove party's claim that 51 of the 64 MLAs are with Udhav Thackeray-led party. Expelled leader Narayan Rane had claimed of having the support of 22 party MLAs. Kadam, Shiv Sena MLA from Khed in the Konkan region, was on Wednesday elected as the leader of Shiv Sena legislature party in Maharashtra. Fifty-one of the Shiv Sena's 64 MLAs attended the meeting called by party supremo Bal Thackeray to elect the new leader following expulsion of Narayan Rane on Sunday. Uddhav Thackeray presided the meeting. Meanwhile, the expelled Rane has also called a meeting of all the party MLAs on July 8. He today went to New Delhi for some personal work. He lashed out against the Sena leadership for removing his supporters from the party posts in Sindhudurg district. "I have nurtured the district for 16 years. By appointing new men in their place, the executive president of the party (Uddhav) would not be able to run the party there," he said. Rane accused Uddhav and his coterie of selling saffron and creating a barrier between party workers and Bal Thackeray.

    Bal Thackeray on Sunday announced the expulsion of Rane as party MLA and called him a betrayer. Rane on Saturday had announced his intention to resign from the post of the leader, as he was not being consulted on party matters and also not being invited to meetings of the top leaders of the party. In a party that does not brook rebellion, Rane's move is seen as a direct challenge to the party leadership. He is at loggerheads with the working president of the party Uddhav Thackeray. "It seems that my party is unhappy with me as no one has bothered to inform me on any matter. So I think it will be best that I step down from the party leadership," he said. Rane feels that Shiv Sena has become a family centric party and the democratic practices are not being honoured. Rane's differences with Uddhav have been growing ever since the party could not defeat the Congress-NCP in the 2004 Assembly elections.

Petition against extravagant Bofors probe (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: Ram Nihor Rakesh, a former Congress MP from Chail, Allahabad Lok Sabha Constituency today filed a Writ petition in the Supreme Court demanding high level inquiry to fix responsibility for the extravagant probe into the Bofors scandal in which no evidence has been found against any one. Quoting the judgment given by the Delhi High Court on May 31, in which it was said that the CBI probe into the Rs 65 crore Bofors payoff case cost the exchequer a whopping Rs 250 crore, the former MP said that the detailed probe by the CBI has revealed nothing since 1987 when the Swedish Radio announced alleged payment of commission in the Bofors gun deal. The four time MP, in his petition filed through advocate Anis Suhrawardy, clarified that he was not challenging the verdict but wanted the Apex Court to lay down guidelines to stop misuse of the premier investigating agency, CBI, by political parties when in power.

Blasts rock London: 37 killed  (Go To Top)

     London: A series of blasts rocked central London today killing 37 people and injuring 700. The city has been put on Cobra level of alert. Scotland Yard has confirmed seven blasts on the Underground network and a double-decker bus in the city. According to it, explosions have been reported at Edgware Road, King's Cross, Liverpool Street, Russell Square, Aldgate East and Moorgate. Condemning the attack, British Prime Minister Tony Blair said that it was a designed terrorist attack to inflict damage to the civilisation and way of life of the British society. He said it was "particularly barbaric" that the attack was timed to coincide with the G8 summit "It is a terrorist attack and we will give a befitting reply to it. When the world leaders are discussing the problems of Africa and developing countries, the terrorists are trying to create chaos everywhere," said Blair in a televised address to the nation. Blair is leaving the G-8 summit venue at Gleneagles (Scotland) and returning to London. Later in the evening he will return back to Gleneagles.

      All London Underground services have been suspended indefinitely and bus services in central London (Zone One) have been halted. The British Cabinet held a meeting at the Downing Street to manage the situation. The Scotland Yard is setting up a casualty bureau. The first news of the blast came from the Liverpool subway. Even as the police were evacuating the Liverpool Street Station, an explosion ripped through a bus in central London. As reports started pouring in from all across central London, there was chaos in the British capital. London's Mayor, who was in Singapore, has rushed back to the city. The explosions came a day after London was awarded the 2012 Olympics and as the G-8 summit was getting underway in Scotland. There was chaos everywhere. People started screaming and crying following the blasts. There was immediately smoke everywhere and it was hot and everybody panicked.

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