24 killed, 60 injured in stampede at Rajghat bridge near Varanasi

October 15, 2016

Chandauli, Oct 15: Twenty-four people were killed and 60 injured in a stampede at Rajghat bridge on the border of Varanasi and Chandauli where a large number of people had gathered for a religious event this afternoon.

stampede copy

The incident took place when thousands of followers of religious leader Jai Gurudev were on their way to Domri village on the banks of the Ganga to take part in the two-day camp, police said.

Nineteen people including women were killed, CMO, Varanasi, V V Singh said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is also the MP from Varanasi, expressed anguish over the incident and asked senior officials to take stock of the situation. He also announced a solatium of Rs 2 lakh each to the families of the deceased and Rs 50,000 to those injured.

Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakhs each to next of kin of those killed and free treatment to the injured, who have been admitted to different hospitals in Varanasi and Chandauli, IG (Law and Order) Hariom Sharma said.

People in large numbers were brought for the camp by the organisers who had taken the permission only for two to three thousand devotees.

One person died due to suffocation on the bridge because of the surging crowd on the narrow Ganga bridge leading to rumours which resulted in the stampede, ADG law and order Daljit Chaudhary said.

Spokesman of Jai Gurudev Sansthan Raj Bahadur said the devotees were proceeding towards the camp, but police started sending them back though they kept on thronging the bridge.

This led to rumours that the bridge ahead has collapsed leading to stampede, Raj Bahadur said, alleging there was a serious lapse on the part of the administration.

Senior police and administration officials of Varansi and Chandauli have rushed to the spot to carry out relief and rescue operations.

Sharma said an inquiry will be instituted to ascertain if any lapses led to the incident.
Home Secretary S K Raghuvanshi and ADG (Law and Order) Daljit Chaudhary have rushed to monitor the rescue work, officials said in Lucknow.

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Agencies
January 16,2020

Cuttack, Jan 16: At least 15 passengers were injured as five coaches of the Mumbai-Bhubaneswar Lokmanya Tilak Express derailed and three more were displaced after colliding with a goods train amid heavy fog near Cuttack in Odisha on Thursday, railway officials said.

Railway officials had earlier said that 25 passengers were injured in the incident but later officers who reached the site reported that four passengers were found to have suffered major injuries and 11 had received minor injuries.

Passengers with major injuries have been sent to Cuttack Medical College. All passengers are stated to be out of danger.

Officials said the accident happened when the passenger train hit the guard van of a good train around 7 am between Salagaon and Nergundi stations.

The officials said there was heavy fog at the site but it was not clear what led to the accident. The speedometer of both the trains have been seized for inquiry, East Coast Railway Spokesperson J P Mishra said.

Buses have been arranged for all remaining passengers to move towards their destination.

Cuttack is around 10-12 km away and Bhubaneswar(Terminating station) is 35 km.

The accident disrupted train services in the area.

Five trains have been affected due to the accident where restoration work in underway. These include the Bhubaneswar-Mumbai LTT SF Express, the Puri-Rourkela Express, Dhanbad-Bhubaneshwar Rajyarani Express which have all been diverted via Naraj.

"East Coast Railway acknowledges with deep gratitude help of nearby locals and villagers who have displayed great humanitarian values and come to the rescue of injured passengers," Mishra said.

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Agencies
July 8,2020

Kanpur, Jul 8: The Special Task Force (STF) shot dead Amar Dubey in an encounter in Maudaha on Wednesday morning. Amar, a right hand man of gangster Vikas Dubey, who shot dead eight police personnel on Friday last, figured prominently in the list of wanted persons released by the Kanpur police on Tuesday.

He was a named accused in the massacre.

According to STF sources, the police team had received a tip off about Amar's presence in the district and when they tried to close in on him, the criminal opened fire on them, He was killed in retaliatory firing around 6.30.a.m,

Amar was reportedly heading towards the house of one of his relatives in Maudaha area.

"We asked him to surrender but he opened fire at us and was killed when we returned the fire," said an STF official.

Earlier, he had been hiding in Faridabad but moved out after police pressure increased there.

Amar Dubey was a trusted accomplice of Vikas Dubey and the police had announced a reward of Rs 25,000 on him after the Kanpur massacre.

Incidentally, reports claim that Vikas Dubey was also seen at a hotel in Faridabad on Tuesday night but fled before the police could close in on him.

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Agencies
March 26,2020

Puducherry,Mar 26: Congress legislator from Kamaraj Nagar constituency John Kumar has been booked on charges of violating lock-down rules, Lt Governor Kiran Bedi said on Thursday.

In a Whats app posting she further said that an FIR has been registered under the Disaster management Act.

She stated John Kumar in an irresponsible manner allowed more than 200 people to gather outside his house and distributed doles personally when lock down was enforced in the country.

A criminal case has been registered against him for blatant violation of law despite mass information and media messages.Instead of following the law, he chose to violate it,she further stated.

The LG added that as per the ground report by IGP Surendra Yadav, there was perceptible improvement in enforcement of lock down and public were aware and cooperative.Vehicles carrying essential supplies and personnel were moving and every day is an improvement.

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