Akashvani , National news, All India Radio News

THE HEADLINES:

• Eight persons die in a flash flood in Jalpaiguri district of West Bengal; Prime Minister Narendra Modi expresses grief and  announces two lakh rupees ex-gratia for bereaved families.

• A team of experts from High Altitude Warfare School joins operation to rescue 29 mountaineers trapped in avalanche in Uttarakhand.* 

• External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar urges his NewZealand counterpart to  expedite visa processing of COVID-impacted Indian students desirous of studying in New Zealand.

• Kerala High Court initiates suo motu proceedings in Palakkad road accident case.

• National Commission for Women issues notice to Congress leader Udit Raj for his derogatory remark on President Droupadi Murmu; asks him to apologise. 

• North Korea launches fresh ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan.

• And, in Cricket, first ODI between India and South Africa in Lucknow delayed due to rain.

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In West Bengal at least eight people died and several were feared missing in Malbazar in Jalpaiguri district after they were swept away due to flash floods in Mal river during Durga Visarjan last night. Officials said today the death toll was likely to rise as several people are still reported missing. About 15 are injured.  Ten are undergoing treatment in hospital.

According to sources, the incident took place around 8.30 pm as several people entered Mal river to take part in the Durga idol immersions. The sudden rise in the water level caught them unawares and several people were swept away. A few who took shelter on a raised, grassy area in the middle of the river were rescued. Eyewitnesses alleged that there was no rescue team at the spot at the time of the incident.

The Prime Minister's Office, in a tweet, informed that two lakh rupees from the PMNRF would be given to the next of kin of each of the deceased. The injured would be given 50,000 rupees.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is keeping an eye on the rescue work. She also expressed grief at the  incident and announced an ex-gratia of two lakh rupees will be given to the next of kin of the deceased and 50,000 rupees to the injured. 

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A team of experts from High Altitude Warfare School has  joined the operation to rescue 29 mountaineers who were trapped on Draupadi's Danda-II mountain peak in Uttarakhand after being caught in an avalanche on Tuesday.  The expert team has joined the operation with the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police  and Nehru Institute of Mountaineering.

SDRF said that  the team will conduct its rescue operation at the High Altitude.

Indian Air Force has informed that they had deployed two helicopters for the rescue operation with which several mountaineers were rescued from Base Camp located at about 12,000 ft to Matli helipad. Nine mountaineers lost their lives in the avalanche while several are still missing.

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External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar today said India and New Zealand have a particular responsibility in forging a post-colonial order, which is fairer and more equitable. He stressed that it will provide prosperity and stability to large parts of the world.

Speaking at a joint press interaction with the Foreign Minister of New Zealand in Auckland, Dr Jaishnkar said both countries should play to each other’s strengths, which specifically meant business, education, technology, digital world, agricultural trade, talent, and most of all people to people connect .

The External Affairs Minister also took up the issue of Indian students impacted by Covid measures. He urged expeditious visa processing of those desirous of studying in New Zealand now.

Dr Jaishankar will participate in an event along with Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern to felicitate members of the Indian community in New Zealand later in the day for their exceptional achievements and contributions. Both leaders will release India@75 postage stamps to commemorate and showcase Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav in New Zealand. He will launch the book Modi@20: Dreams Meet Delivery. A book showcasing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s special bond with the Sikh community ‘Heartfelt - The Legacy of Faith’ will also be released.

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India has rescued around 45 of its nationals trapped in fake job rackets in Myanmar. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi gave the information in a tweet. Out of the rescued, 13 Indian citizens reached Tamil Nadu yesterday. Mr Bagchi said, some more Indians have been rescued from their fake employers, and are in the custody of Myanmar authorities. He informed that legal formalities have been initiated for their return. Sharing his plight, one of the rescued persons said that he was selected in an interview in Dubai this year by a Thailand firm. He said, he along with others were forcibly taken to Myanmar by road from Bangkok. They were forced to work for nameless companies by the armed gangs.

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The Kerala High Court today initiated suo motu proceedings in the wake of the tragic bus accident that took place at Vadakkancherry in Palakkad district last night.

A Division  Bench comprising Justices Anil K Narendran and P G Ajith Kumar asked the Police and the Motor Vehicles Department to file reports in connection with the accident. The Bench questioned how banned flash lights and blaring music systems were allowed in the tourist bus which met with the accident.

Nine persons including five school children and a teacher were killed when a tourist bus carrying school children from Ernakulam bound for Ooty rammed into a Kerala State Road Transport Corporation bus and overturned.  Three others who were killed in the mishap were passengers of the KSRTC bus. About 60 others were injured in the mishap.

Meanwhile, the bodies of the school children and the teacher are being taken to Ernakulam after postmortem.

President Droupadi Murmu has expressed grief over the loss of lives in the accident. In a tweet, Ms Murmu termed the incident as a heart-wrenching tragedy, where the precious lives of school children and others were lost. She wished those injured to recover at the earliest.

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The BJP today criticized the Congress following it's leader Udit Raj's objectionable tweet on President Droupadi Murmu. Party spokesperson Sambit Patra said, words used for the President by the Congress leader are unfortunate. He said, it is not the first time Congress leaders used such words. Mr Patra said this reflects their anti-tribal mindset. Another party spokesperson Guru Prakash said the kind of language used by the National Spokesperson of Congress for the first ever woman from the tribal community to reach the Rashtrapati Bhavan is unpardonable. Demanding his apology, Mr Prakash asked the Congress to clarify whether Mr Raj's remark is the official line of the main opposition party.

Meanwhile, The National Commission for Women (NCW) has sent notice to the Congress leader Udit Raj pertaining to his statement regarding President Droupadi Murmu. NCW further asked him to also apologise for the same.

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Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal today said  Quality can help  significantly when all are looking at a sustainable future for the country. He stressed that improved product quality will help the economy and country to become developed nation by 2047. Addressing the Silver Jubilee celebrations of Quality Council of India in New Delhi , Mr Goyal said, quality will help to achieve the Panch Pran given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, smarter and better. He said, the quality never comes at a cost and it is always cost-effective.

The Minister highlighted the work that Quality Council of India did to bring quality into the entire Coal ecosystem is worth the highest accolades. He said, the moment quality parameters is brought to any programme, it becomes more efficient, viable and certainly helps serve people it is intended for. He said, it has played a crucial role in One District One Product initiative.

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Law Minister Kiren Rijiju has said the government is in discussion with the Election Commission to bring in major electoral reforms through amendments in the Representation of the People Act. In an interview to a newspaper, he said the changing time and situation demands overhaul of some electoral laws that are lacking in ensuring adequate transparency and accountability. Mr Rijiju said, the government is already having elaborate discussions with the EC to study major changes in the Act and other election rules. He said the Centre will take steps after due consultations for major electoral reforms.

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The government has appointed Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma of the Delhi High Court as the Presiding officer of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Tribunal. The presiding officer has been appointed to review the ban on  Popular Front of India (PFI) and its associates. The centre has recently banned PFI for five years, after seizing incriminating documents during the search operations at the offices of the outfit and the residences of its office bearers.

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The Interim President of the Congress party, Sonia Gandhi today joined the Bharat Jodo Yatra near Belluru cross, in Mandya district, Karnataka. Former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah , Karnataka state President D K Shivakumar and other senior leaders accompanied her during the yatra . The Congress party's Bharat Jodo Yatra commenced in Karnataka today after a gap of two days. The Yatra led by Rahul Gandhi commenced at Chinya village in Mandya district. The Yatra entered its Karnataka leg on September 30th and covering around 25kms everyday by walk. Speaking to media persons in the morning, the state President D K Shivakumar said that it was a matter of pride for them that Sonia Gandhi took part in the yatra today.

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Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has said that Sonia Gandhi taking part in the Bharat Jodo yatra for a brief period today will not have any political bearing. Speaking to media persons in Bengaluru today, he added that he has nothing to do with Congress senior leaders participating in the yatra in the state. He informed that BJP will soon organise six public rallies across the state. Responding to a question on Rahul Gandhi writing a letter to him about a wounded elephant and its calf in Nagarahole national park, the Chief Minister said that the Government will provide suitable treatment to the wounded elephant and its calf. He further said that he will talk to the concerned officials about the issue and direct them to take remedial measures immediately.

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More than 218 crore 84 lakh vaccine doses have been administered so far under the Nationwide Vaccination Drive. Over 79 thousand doses were administered in the last 24 hours while more than three thousand people recovered. Currently, the recovery rate is  at 98.74 per cent. 

Over two thousand new cases were recorded and more than one lakh 22 thousand tests conducted in the last 24 hours.

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North Korea today fired two ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan. Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has condemned the repeated launches. He has instructed the authorities to provide information to the public and ensure people's safety. Meanwhile, North Korea has justified the launching as necessary countermeasures against joint military drills by the United States and South Korea. Early in the morning, South Korea's military also confirmed North Korea's  missile test.

India has strongly condemned North Korea's ballistic missile launch over Japan and said that these moves affect the peace and security of the region and beyond.   While addressing the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), India's Permanent Representative to the UN, Ruchira Kamboj called for the full implementation of the relevant UNSC resolutions relating to Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

The 15-member UN Security Council met yesterday after North Korea test-fired a ballistic missile over Japan on Tuesday. 

Ms Kamboj said the Global South has already been disproportionately affected by the prevailing geopolitical situation and related challenges . She added that it is therefore important to continue to make all efforts to maintain peace and stability.

As the UNSC met to discuss Pyongyang's Tuesday launch of an intermediate-range ballistic missile over Japan, North Korea blamed Washington for "escalating the military tensions on the Korean peninsula".

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The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its Russia-led allies have agreed to cut oil production by two million barrels a day. It is the deepest cut in oil production since the 2020 COVID pandemic. It could spur a recovery in oil prices that have dropped to about 90 dollars from 120 dollars three months ago on fears of a global economic recession, rising US interest rates and a stronger dollar. However, the cut in real terms might be less than the headline figure, with multiple OPEC members currently producing less than their assigned quota.

US President Joe Biden has expressed disappointment at the OPEC cartel's decision to slash oil production output. US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and top economic advisor Brian Deese said the President is disappointed by what he called the shortsighted decision. They said the supply cut will hit countries already reeling from high prices while the global economy is dealing with the continued negative impact of Russia's attack on Ukraine.

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The European Union has given its final approval to a new round of sanctions on Russia over its war against Ukraine.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said, she welcomes the member states’ agreement on the eight sanctions package. She added that they would never accept Russia's sham referenda nor any kind of annexation in Ukraine.

The agreement is to be formalised by today if no EU country raises last-minute objections as the sanctions require unanimous backing of all the bloc’s 27 members.

The measures include more restrictions in trade with Russia in steel and tech products, and an oil price cap for Russian seaborne crude deliveries to third countries through European insurers meant to align the bloc with the United States.

In addition, the sanctions will target more individuals at the Russian defence ministry, people involved in Moscow’s ad-hoc annexation votes in occupied eastern Ukraine and those participating in bypassing sanctions.

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The Nobel Prize in Literature will be announced today. The Nobel Prize in Chemistry was jointly awarded to Carolyn Bertozzi, Morton Meldal and Barry Sharpless for their work on snipping molecules together, known as click chemistry. "Click" chemistry is about linking together molecules like those in living cells. Their work is used to explore cells and track biological processes and can be applied in cancer treatment drugs. The Nobel Peace Prize will be announced tomorrow. 

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Over the past 75 years since independence, India's largest public service broadcaster, All India Radio has been the proverbial story teller for crores of people across the country.

All India Radio is celebrating 75 years of freedom with a series, Azad Bharat Ki Baat- Akashvani Ke Saath. It showcases the journey of India since independence in various walks of life through the story telling of All India Radio.

In Today’s Episode we bring you the story of CINEMA: JOURNEY OF HINDI FILMS IN INDIA .   

"Hindi film industry also known as Bollywood represents about 40 percent of Indian net box-office revenue; and has overtaken the U.S. film industry to become the largest centre for film production in the world. Alongside commercial  films, a distinctive genre of art films, presenting realistic content and avoidance of musical numbers also exist in Hindi. Bollywood, the word is a portmanteau of "Bombay" and "Hollywood”shot into international fame when Mehboob Khan's film Mother India (1957) became the first Indian film nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Many Hindi films made during the fifties and sixties addressed social issues and great music, produced stars such as Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand and Raj Kapoor.

Films like Mughal E Azam, Awara, Sangam, Ganga Jamuna, Pyasa, Aradhana, Bobby, Anand and Sholay went on to become huge pan Indian hits.

Super stars like Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan ruled the box offices during 70s and 80s.

Leading ladies like Madhubala, Nargis, Vijayanthimala, Meena Kumari, Hema Malini and Sridevi too had their share of immense popularity. Great film makers like K. Asif, BR Chopra, Raj Kapoor, Gurudutt, Hrishikesh Mukherji, Basu Chatterji, Yash Chopra, Manmohan Desai, Subhash Ghai, Meera Nair and Ashutosh Gowarikar took Hindi cinema to international levels. Eminent composers like Naushad, SD Burman, Laxmikant Pyarelal, Shankar Jaikishen, RD Burman and AR Rahman lifted the standard of film music sky high.

Interestingly, all the three Indian films that have been officially nominated in the best foreign film category for the Oscar award, Mother India, Salaam Bombay and Lagaan were made in Hindi. All India Radio too played its part by promoting film music in a great way. In tomorrow's episode, we will tell the story of the second biggest film industry of India, the Telugu films. 

Azad Bharat Ki Baat- Akashvani Ke Saath-Can Be Accessed On @Airnewsalerts On Twitter, Newsonairofficial Youtube Channel, Newsonair App, Facebook And Instagram Handles. So Tune Into All India Radio News For Azad Bharat Ki Baat- Akashvani Ke Saath.

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The commercial operations of the North-South Corridor of the Ahmedabad Metro began today. The 18 Kilometer North-South Corridor connects APMC, Vasana in the South to Motera in the north. This will be the second corridor of Phase 1 of the project that was opened for passenger travel this month.

The Phase 1 of Ahmedabad Metro, which consists of East-West and North-South corridors, was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 30.

The line which is completely elevated will be passing through Sabarmati, AEC, Sabarmati Railway station, Ranip, Vadaj, Vijaynagar, Usmanpura, Old High court, Gandhigram, Paldi, Shreyas, Rajivnagar, and Jivraj stations.

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The Sensex and the Nifty today climbed more than half a percent in the afternoon trade. Both indices gained amid positive cues from the global share markets. The Sensex was trading above 58,400 points while the Nifty was trading near 17,400 level.

The Sensex rose 373 points, or 0.64 percent, to trade at 58,438. The Nifty also surged 117 points, or 0.67 percent, to trade at 17,391. 

In the forex market, the rupee weakened 27 paise to trade at 81 rupees and 79 paise against the US dollar in afternoon deals.

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The Toss has been delayed due to rains, for the first One Day International of the three-match series between India and South Africa at Ekana stadium in Lucknow.

BCCI had initially said that the match was delayed by half an hour.

However, there has been a further delay as the showers intensified in the city.

The other two matches will be played in Ranchi, and Delhi on 9th and 11th October respectively.

Having won the T20I series, India will be keen to carry forward their form in the ODI format. In the ODIs, team India will be led by Shikhar Dhawan.

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The T20 World Cup 2022-bound Indian team left for Australia today.

The team will travel to Perth before traveling to Sydney where they are scheduled to play two warm up games against New Zealand and hosts Australia before taking on Pakistan in the all-important opener on 23rd of October.

Earlier, The BCCI had picked the 15-man squad on September 12 where Rohit Sharma was named captain with KL Rahul being the vice captain. The selection was expected on line with Rohit, Virat Kohli, Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda named as specialist batters.

Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel are the two allrounders in the squad.

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At the 36th National Games, Aakarshi Kashyap defeated Malvika Bansod and won the gold in Women’s Singles badminton this morning.

In Archery Women’s individual bronze medal match, Ms. Simranjeet Kaur won the bronze medal for Punjab in Recurve round.

In the medals tally,  Services continue to dominate with 89 medals including 40 golds, 25 silvers and 24 bronze, followed by Haryana with 66 medals including 25 gold, 22 silver and 19 bronze. Maharashtra is now on third place with 24 gold medals, 22 silver and 42 Bronze.

Tamil Nadu is now on fourth place with 52 medal including 18 gold, 17 silver and 18 bronze.

The National Games 2022 is being held across six cities, Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Surat, Vadodara, Rajkot and Bhavnagar, in Gujarat.

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Indian men's table tennis team will play World Champion China in the pre-quarterfinals of ITTF World Team Championships Finals today.

The Indian men’s team advanced to the pre-quarterfinals despite losing 0-3 to France. The Indians escaped elimination from the Championships, entering the round of 16 due to one of the higher-ranked best-placed third teams in the group stages.

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Now, let's have a look at weather across the country today.

National Capital Delhi will have generally cloudy sky with very light rain thundershowers. The minimum temperature was 22 degree celcius and maximum temperature will hover around 33 degrees celsius. 

Mumbai is likely to have generally cloudy sky with light rain or drizzle. The minimum temperature was 26 degree celcius and the maximum will be around 33 degrees. 

Kolkata will have generally cloudy sky with one or two spells of rain or thundershowers. The minimum temperature was 26 degree celcius and the maximum will be around 32 degrees. 

Chennai will have generally cloudy sky with intermittent rain. The minimum temperature was 24 degree celcius and maximum will be around 27 degrees.    

Jammu  will have mainly clear sky. The minimum temperature in Jammu was 21 degree celcius and maximum  will be around 34 degrees celcius.

Srinagar will have a mainly clear sky becoming partly cloudy towards afternoon or evening.The minimum temperature was 10 degree celcius and maximum will be around 28 degrees  

Muzaffarabad will also have mainly clear sky becoming partly cloudy towards afternoon or evening. The minimum temperature was 17 degree celcius and the maximum will be around 34 degrees.

Leh and Gilgit will have mainly clear sky. Temperature in Leh will vary between 2  and 18 degree celcius. In Gilgit, the temperature will hover between 09 and 29 degree celcius.  

In the South, Hyderabad will have generally cloudy sky with a few spells of rain or thundershowers. The minimum temperature was 21 degree celsius and  maximum will be around 29 degrees.

Bengaluru will have generally cloudy sky with light rain.  The  minimum temperature was 19 degree celcius and maximum will be around  28 degree celcius.

Thiruvananthapuram will have generally cloudy sky with one or two spells of rain or thundershowers. The minimum temperature was 24 degrees celius  and maximum will be around 31 degree celcius.

In the North East, Guwahati, Shillong,  Aizawl,  Imphal will have partly cloudy sky, While Itanagar,Agartala and Gangtok  will have partly cloudy sky with one or two spells of rain or thundershowers.

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THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN

• Eight persons die in a flash flood in Jalpaiguri district of West Bengal; Prime Minister Narendra Modi expresses grief and  announces two lakh rupees ex-gratia for bereaved families.

• A team of experts from High Altitude Warfare School joins operation to rescue 29 mountaineers trapped in avalanche in Uttarakhand.* 

• External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar urges his NewZealand counterpart to  expedite visa processing of COVID-impacted Indian students desirous of studying in New Zealand.

• Kerala High Court initiates suo motu proceedings in Palakkad road accident case.

• National Commission for Women issues notice to Congress leader Udit Raj for his derogatory remark on President Droupadi Murmu; asks him to apologise. 

• North Korea launches fresh ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan.

• And, in Cricket, first ODI between India and South Africa in Lucknow delayed due to rain.

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