Mortal remains of Sridevi reaches Mumbai along with family members

Agencies
February 27, 2018

The body of Bollywood icon Sridevi, whose sudden death triggered a frenzy of grief, disbelief and searching questions, was flown back to Mumbai today after Dubai authorities determined that she had accidently drowned in her hotel bathtub.

Family members, including her film-maker husband Boney Kapoor and stepson Arjun Kapoor, brought her body in a private jet after three days of uncertainty over her unexpected death on Saturday in Dubai.

Earlier today, Dubai Public Prosecutor's Office put an end to speculation about the cause of her death, saying she accidentally drowned in the bathtub following loss of consciousness, and that the "case was now closed".

It did not say what caused the 54-year-old superstar to lose consciousness. The Embraer jet, owned by industrialist Anil Ambani, landed in Mumbai around 9.30 p.m. and the cremation is scheduled tomorrow around 3.30 p.m.

Ending speculation over Bollywood diva Sridevi's sudden death, the Dubai Public Prosecutor's Office said on Tuesday that she accidentally drowned following loss of consciousness and that her body was "released" to the family after a comprehensive probe.

Sridevi's funeral will take place on Feb. 28 late afternoon here, the family said in a statement.

In a detailed announcement, the family said that her body will be kept at Celebration Sports Club in Lokhandwala for people to pay their last respects before it is taken for cremation.

"On behalf of Khushi, Janhvi, Boney Kapoor, the entire Kapoor and Ayyappan families, a sincere thanks to the media for your continued sensitivity and support during this emotional moment," the statement read. It said that well-wishers can pay their condolences from 9.30 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. at Celebration Sports Club, Garden No 5, Lokhandwala Complex, Andheri West.

The family said that the media can also pay their respects "provided camera, recording devices etc. are left outside the venue. The last journey will commence at 2 p.m. from Celebration Sports Club to Vile Parle Seva Samaj Crematorium and Hindu Cemetery." 

The cremation will take place at around 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The 54-year-old actress, known as Indian cinema's first woman superstar, passed away in her hotel room in the Jumeirah Emirates Towers late on Saturday. 

Three days after the actress was found dead, the family was finally given custody of her body. Family members, including her filmmaker husband Boney Kapoor and stepson Arjun Kapoor, took the body from the morgue to get it embalmed before heading to Dubai airport for her final journey home. A private jet had flown to Dubai from Mumbai on Sunday, a day after her death. Dubai Media Office, the official Twitter handle of the media office of the government, said in a series of tweets that the case is now closed.

"Dubai Public Prosecution has approved the release of the body of the Indian actress Sridevi to her family following the completion of a comprehensive investigation into the circumstances of her death," it said.

"Dubai Public Prosecution stressed that all regular procedures followed in such cases have been completed. As per the forensic report, the death of the Indian actress occurred due to accidental drowning following loss of consciousness. The case has now been closed."

The actress leaves behind her husband Boney and their two daughters Jhanvi and Khushi.

The Consulate General of India in Dubai also confirmed on Twitter that Dubai Police had given permission to take the body for embalming.

Arjun Kapoor reached Dubai this morning to be with his father. "Arjun has gone to Dubai this morning to be with his father at the hotel while the formalities are being wrapped up and to oversee the return journey," said an official statement from the family in Mumbai. The Dubai Police said on its Twitter handle on Monday that Sridevi drowned in her bathtub after she lost consciousness. The case was transferred to the Dubai Public Prosecutor's office, which carried out further investigations and procedures followed in such cases, it said.

"Following the completion of post-mortem analysis, Dubai police headquarters today stated that the death of the Indian actress Sridevi occurred due to drowning in her hotel apartment's bathtub following loss of consciousness," it said.

Sridevi was in Dubai for a family wedding and had stayed back after the ceremonies. Her husband had flown back to Mumbai with their younger daughter Khushi, but returned to Dubai to surprise her, reports said.

The news of her death, first reported at around 3 a.m. IST on Sunday, sent shock waves across India.

In Mumbai, industry insiders and friends visited the family in the home of actor Anil Kapoor, Boney's younger brother. With their father away, Khushi and Jhanvi were at their uncle's Juhu home. Director Anees Bazmi, who has worked with Boney Kapoor on "No Entry", was amongst the visitors today. "It is a big shock for everyone. I have worked with the entire Kapoor family. I can't imagine what Boneyji would be going through at this point. He loved her very much. Their two daughters are so young. It is a sad situation. "I have not told the family about what the media is reporting. It is sad, unfortunate. A person like her does not deserve this," Bazmi told PTI while referring to the sensational TV coverage of the death.

The others who have called on the family in their hour of grief include Shah Rukh Khan and his wife Gauri, Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan, Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Tabu, Rekha, Farah Khan and Javed Akhtar and Shabana Azmi. There were also huge crowds outside Sridevi's home at a Lokhandwala building.

Earlier post

Sridevi's body released to family; funeral set for Feb 28

Dubai, Feb 27: Ending speculation over Bollywood diva Sridevi's sudden death, the Dubai Public Prosecutor's Office said on Tuesday that she accidentally drowned following loss of consciousness and that her body was "released" to the family after a comprehensive probe.

Sridevi's funeral will take place on Feb. 28 late afternoon here, the family said in a statement.

In a detailed announcement, the family said that her body will be kept at Celebration Sports Club in Lokhandwala for people to pay their last respects before it is taken for cremation.

"On behalf of Khushi, Janhvi, Boney Kapoor, the entire Kapoor and Ayyappan families, a sincere thanks to the media for your continued sensitivity and support during this emotional moment," the statement read. It said that well-wishers can pay their condolences from 9.30 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. at Celebration Sports Club, Garden No 5, Lokhandwala Complex, Andheri West.

The family said that the media can also pay their respects "provided camera, recording devices etc. are left outside the venue. The last journey will commence at 2 p.m. from Celebration Sports Club to Vile Parle Seva Samaj Crematorium and Hindu Cemetery." 

The cremation will take place at around 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The 54-year-old actress, known as Indian cinema's first woman superstar, passed away in her hotel room in the Jumeirah Emirates Towers late on Saturday. 

Three days after the actress was found dead, the family was finally given custody of her body. Family members, including her filmmaker husband Boney Kapoor and stepson Arjun Kapoor, took the body from the morgue to get it embalmed before heading to Dubai airport for her final journey home. A private jet had flown to Dubai from Mumbai on Sunday, a day after her death. Dubai Media Office, the official Twitter handle of the media office of the government, said in a series of tweets that the case is now closed.

"Dubai Public Prosecution has approved the release of the body of the Indian actress Sridevi to her family following the completion of a comprehensive investigation into the circumstances of her death," it said.

"Dubai Public Prosecution stressed that all regular procedures followed in such cases have been completed. As per the forensic report, the death of the Indian actress occurred due to accidental drowning following loss of consciousness. The case has now been closed."

The actress leaves behind her husband Boney and their two daughters Jhanvi and Khushi.

The Consulate General of India in Dubai also confirmed on Twitter that Dubai Police had given permission to take the body for embalming.

Arjun Kapoor reached Dubai this morning to be with his father. "Arjun has gone to Dubai this morning to be with his father at the hotel while the formalities are being wrapped up and to oversee the return journey," said an official statement from the family in Mumbai. The Dubai Police said on its Twitter handle on Monday that Sridevi drowned in her bathtub after she lost consciousness. The case was transferred to the Dubai Public Prosecutor's office, which carried out further investigations and procedures followed in such cases, it said.

"Following the completion of post-mortem analysis, Dubai police headquarters today stated that the death of the Indian actress Sridevi occurred due to drowning in her hotel apartment's bathtub following loss of consciousness," it said.

Sridevi was in Dubai for a family wedding and had stayed back after the ceremonies. Her husband had flown back to Mumbai with their younger daughter Khushi, but returned to Dubai to surprise her, reports said.

The news of her death, first reported at around 3 a.m. IST on Sunday, sent shock waves across India.

In Mumbai, industry insiders and friends visited the family in the home of actor Anil Kapoor, Boney's younger brother. With their father away, Khushi and Jhanvi were at their uncle's Juhu home. Director Anees Bazmi, who has worked with Boney Kapoor on "No Entry", was amongst the visitors today. "It is a big shock for everyone. I have worked with the entire Kapoor family. I can't imagine what Boneyji would be going through at this point. He loved her very much. Their two daughters are so young. It is a sad situation. "I have not told the family about what the media is reporting. It is sad, unfortunate. A person like her does not deserve this," Bazmi told PTI while referring to the sensational TV coverage of the death.

The others who have called on the family in their hour of grief include Shah Rukh Khan and his wife Gauri, Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan, Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Tabu, Rekha, Farah Khan and Javed Akhtar and Shabana Azmi.

There were also huge crowds outside Sridevi's home at a Lokhandwala building.

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News Network
May 26,2020

New Delhi, May 26: With India now in the bracket of top 10 nations worst hit by the novel coronavirus, experts have attributed the surge in cases to easing of travel restrictions and movement of migrants besides enhanced testing capacity.

According to AIIMS Director, Randeep Guleria, the present rise in cases has been reported predominantly from hotspot areas but there is a possibility of further rise in the number of COVID-19 cases in the coming few days due to increased travel.

"Those who are asymptomatic or are in presymptomatic stage will pass through screening mechanisms and may reach areas where there have been minimal or less cases," Guleria said.

He said there was a need for more intense surveillance and monitoring in areas where migrants have returned to contain the spread of the disease.

If proper social distancing and hand hygiene is not maintained at a time when people are out on roads, the coronavirus infection will transmit much faster, he said.

Guleria also noted that testing capacity has been significantly ramped up which is reflecting in the increasing number of cases being detected.

Commenting on the partial resumption of rail and road transport services and migrants returning to their native places, Dr Chandrakant S Pandav, former president of the Indian Public Health Association and Indian Association of Preventive and social medicine, said the floodgates have been opened.

"This is a classic case of creating an enabling environment for coronavirus to spread like wildfire. In the coming few days, the number will rise dramatically. While it is true that lockdown cannot go on forever, the opening up should have been in a measured, calibrated and informed manner," he said.

"Travelling leads to spread of the infection. Now, the government will have to ensure even stronger surveillance to curb the infection but if that will be done is something to be observed," he said.

The death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 4,167 and the number of cases climbed to 1, 45,380 in the country, registering an increase of 146 deaths and 6,535 cases since Monday 8 am, according to the Union Health Ministry.

Dr K K Aggarwal, President of the Confederation of Medical Association of Asia and Oceania (CMAAO), and former IMA President, said there will be a further surge in cases in the coming days if migration continues without any proper social distancing.

"Within the next ten days, the cases will cross two lakh. The very fact that number of cases was rising before the end of the third lockdown and continuing during the fourth lockdown means that people are not following physical distancing as required," he said.

"Even in the last week of May when the temperature is very high, the rising number of cases would mean that human-to-human transmission is more important than surface-to-human transmission. Normally in heat the surface-to-human transmission should have reduced the new cases by half which has not happened," Aggarwal said.

However, Professor K Srinath Reddy, president of the Public Health Foundation of India, said an increase in the number of cases reflects both an increase in testing rates and an increase in spread.

"What we need to see is the number of new tests performed per day and the number of new cases that were identified from them. That gives a better idea of the rate of spread than the total number of new cases alone.

"We also have to see if the testing criteria has remained the same between the two periods of comparison.We may open up gradually but will have to continue case detection, contact tracing and follow personal protection measures as vigorously as possible," he added.

A total of 31,26,119 samples have been tested as on May 26, 9 am and 92,528 samples have been tested in the last 24 hours, ICMR officials said.

India is the tenth most affected nation by the pandemic after the US, Russia, UK, Spain, Italy, Brazil, Germany, Turkey and France, as per the John Hopkins University data.

The country has recorded 6,088, 6,654, 6,767 and 6977 cases on May 22, 23, 24 and 25 respectively. Also, the number of RT-PCR tests for detection of COVID-19 in the country crossed the 30-lakh mark on Monday.

The first two phases of the lockdown led to 14-29 lakh COVID-19 cases being averted, while the number of lives saved in that period was between 37,000 and 78,000, the government said last Friday, citing various studies, and asserted that the unprecedented shutdown has paid "rich dividends" in the fight against the pandemic.

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News Network
January 7,2020

Jan 7: Body of the senior Iranian military commander, Qasem Soleimani killed in a U.S. drone strike in Iraq last week, has arrived in his home town of Kerman in southeast Iran for burial, the official IRNA news agency said on Tuesday.

State TV broadcast live images of thousands of people in the streets of the town, many of them dressed in black, to mourn Soleimani's death.

Soleimani was widely seen as Iran’s second most powerful figure behind Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, 80, who wept in grief along with hundreds of thousands of mourners who thronged the streets of Tehran for Soleimani’s funeral on Monday.

Khamenei led prayers at the funeral in the Iranian capital, pausing as his voice cracked with emotion. Soleimani, 62, was a national hero even to many who do not consider themselves supporters of Iran’s clerical rulers.

He was killed while leaving Baghdad airport last Friday. Mourners packed the streets, chanting: “Death to America!” - a show of national unity after anti-government protests in November in which many demonstrators were killed.

The crowd, which state media said numbered in the millions, recalled the masses gathered in 1989 for the funeral of the Islamic Republic’s founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

The killing of Soleimani has prompted fears around the world of a broader regional conflict, as well as calls in the U.S. Congress for legislation to keep President Donald Trump from going to war against Iran.

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News Network
January 10,2020

Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 10: Eminent Carnatic vocalist and playback singer K J Yesudas, who has enthralled music aficionados across the world with his profound and mellifluous voice for the last six decades, turned 80 on Friday.

People from various walks of life, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and luminaries of music and film world besides socio-cultural personalities, wished the legendary singer, popularly called as 'gana gandharvan' (the celestial singer) by his fans, on his birthday.

Regional newspapers came out with special pages and television channels with exclusive programmes as a tribute to the singer, who has recorded over 80,000 songs in various genres in almost all languages of India including about 25,000 film songs, Carnatic bhajans and devotional songs.

Besides Indian languages like Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, Kannada, Bengali, Odia, his voice gave life to songs in Arabic, English, Latin, and Russian during a career spanning over six decades.

Yesudas, whom the country had honoured with Padma Vibhushan in 2017, is the recipient of eight national awards, 25 Kerala state awards, five state awards of Tamil Nadu and four of Andhra Pradesh.

"On the special occasion of his 80th birthday, greetings to the versatile K J Yesudas Ji. His melodious music and soulful renditions have made him popular across all age groups. He has made valuable contributions to Indian culture. Wishing him a long and healthy life," Modi tweeted.

The Left veteran also shared a photo of the veteran singer along with the tweet.

Meanwhile, Yesudas this morning visited the Mookambika Temple at Kollur in Udupi district of Karnataka along with his family, a practice he has been following for the last four decades.

Draped in the traditional Kerala style kasavu mundu and shawl, 'dasettan', as he is known among his hardcore fans cutting across ages, Yesudas offered prayers along with his wife Prabha and sons and performed special poojas at the Goddess Saraswathi temple.

Hundreds of music buffs gathered at the shrine to wish the octogenarian singer.

Considered as one of the best playback singers in the country, Yesudas had begun his music career in the tinsel town with the Malayalam song "Jathi bhedam matha dwesham" in the year 1961 and sang in Tamil, Telugu and Kannada films among other languages.

Yesudas's foray into Bollywood saw him recording various memorable hits, including "Jab Deep Jale Aana" and "Gori Tera Gaon Bada Pyara".

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