<><><>
Restoration work at the Balasore's Bahanaga train accident site in Odisha is being undertaken on a war footing with a thousand-plus workforce working tirelessly. Ministry of Railways sources said more than seven Poclain machines, two accident relief trains, four road railways and safety cranes are deployed.
eanwhile, the Odisha government is shifting 160 unidentified and unclaimed bodies of train accident victims to different morgues in Bhubaneswar. State Chief Secretary Pradeep Jena informed the media that the bodies of some victims have been handed over to their family members. However, he added that the authorities are yet to identify around 160 bodies. As per the information received from the Odisha health Department, as many as 288 passengers were killed, and a total of 1,175 passengers have been admitted to different hospitals in Odisha, of which 793 have been discharged. An internal inspection report of South Eastern Railway said the Shalimar-Chennai Coromandel Express had received a signal indicating moving on to the mainline towards Chennai, but it wrongly veered to a loop line. Moving to the loop line could be due to the human interface. The initial probe by railway authorities said it could be either an error or negligence.
Notably, the Friday evening accident involving Coromandel Express, Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express and a goods train near Bahanaga station in Odisha is one of the biggest mishaps in India in the past two decades.
As per the direction of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya today will take stock of medical assistance being provided to the injured victims of the Odisha triple train accident. He will visit the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Bhubaneshwar and SCB Medical College in Cuttack.
In view of train crash in Odisha, the Ministry of Civil Aviation has advised airline companies to keep an eye on the unusual surge in fares of flights coming to and from Bhubaneswar. The Ministry has issued an advisory to all airline companies not to increase fares. Further, the Ministry has advised all airlines not to charge any fee for cancellation and rescheduling to Bhubaneswar.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has commended the efforts of the agencies and people involved in the rescue operation at the site of the train tragedy in Odisha. In a series of tweets, Mr. Modi said, he commends each and every person belonging to the teams of Railways, National Disaster Response Force, Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force, local authorities, police, fire service, volunteers and others who are working tirelessly on the ground and strengthening the rescue operation. Prime Minister said, he is proud of their dedication.
Mr. Modi said, the courage and compassion shown by the people of nation in the face of adversity is truly inspiring. He said, people immersed themselves in assisting rescue operation and several people lined up to donate blood. Prime Minister also said, he is deeply moved by the condolence messages from world leaders on the train mishap in Odisha. He said, their kind words will give strength to the bereaved families. He expressed gratitude for their support.
A Four member team of Bihar officials will visit Odisha today to facilitate the hassle-free return of the State's stranded passengers following a rail mishap in Balasore. The State Disaster Management Department has constituted the team. At least three people from Bihar died and 17 others were injured in the accident
President Droupadi Murmu has left on a 6-day visit to Suriname and Serbia. During the first leg of her visit, Mrs. Murmu will be in Suriname till Tuesday at the invitation of the President of the Republic of Suriname, Chandrikapersad Santokhi. The visit assumes historical significance as Mrs. Murmu will be the Chief Guest at the 150th anniversary celebrations of the arrival of Indians in Suriname, to be celebrated tomorrow.
The President is accompanied by Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti, Minister of State in the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution and Ministry of Rural Development and Rama Devi, Member of Parliament.
The visit comes within 6 months of President Santokhi’s visit to India in January to attend the Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas as a special guest of honor. He was also felicitated by the Pravasi Bhartiya Samman Award in 2021.
India and Suriname enjoy warm and friendly relations and the Indian diaspora in Suriname acts as a living bridge between the two countries. This visit not only reflects the goodwill between the two countries but also reflects India’s growing stature on the global stage.
In the second leg of her visit, the President will visit Serbia from Wednesday at the invitation of the President Aleksandar Vučić. This will be the first ever state visit of the Head of State between the two countries.
A special feature of the second leg of Mrs. Murmu’s visit will be a business engagement where a 20 member business delegation will arrive separately from India to Serbia. The delegation will include members from ASSOCHAM, FICCI and CII.
The focus of the visit will be on encouraging the business communities of both the countries to explore possibilities and prospects of business opportunities.
US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin is arriving in New Delhi today on a two-day visit to India to discuss ways to further expand bilateral strategic engagement ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's trip to Washington. Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh will discuss a number of new defence cooperation projects with Mr Austin tomorrow. It will be Secretary Austin’s second visit to India, the previous one being in March 2021.
Separately, German Federal Minister of Defence Boris Pistorius is arriving in New Delhi on a four-day visit to India tomorrow. Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh will also hold bilateral talks with his German counterpart. Apart from his meeting with Mr Singh, Mr Pistorius is likely to meet a few defence start-ups during an event organised by Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) in New Delhi. On Wednesday, he will travel to Mumbai where he is likely to visit Headquarters, Western Naval Command and Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited.
The Defence Ministry said, a host of bilateral defence cooperation issues, with a focus on industrial cooperation, are likely to be discussed during the two meetings.
As the Narendra Modi Government has completed nine years in office, Akashvani News is bringing a series of special stories on the initiatives taken by the Government. Today, we take a look at the steps taken to ensure irrigation to every farm in the country through Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana
The role of the agriculture sector is critical to the progress of the Indian economy as a large proportion of the population still depends on agriculture directly or indirectly. This sector fulfills the growing demand for food, fodder, and raw materials for the industry. The stable and continuous growth of the agriculture sector is important to ensure food security and robust growth of the country. Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana was launched in the year 2015-16 to expand the cultivable area under assured irrigation, improve on-farm water use efficiency, and promote sustainable water conservation practices. Prime Minister Narendra Modi always cautioned against using indiscriminate amounts of water for irrigation.
(PM- S/B to be taken between 51 minutes to 53 minutes, link <<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoSdkg5eHUk&t=2s>>)
Since the launch of this Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana, considerable progress has been made in the irrigation of land. Now, more than half of the country’s cultivated land has access to assured irrigation. Bhupendra Singh, Akaswani News, Delhi.
The G20 3rd Health Working Group meeting will begin this morning in Hyderabad to carry forward the agenda of the G20 Health Track under India’s Presidency. More from our correspodent:-
The 3rd G20 Health Working Group meeting will begin this morning in Hyderabad with Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya formally inaugurating side event Exhibition and the meeting. The troika countries will set the agenda for the deliberations for next three days. Separate sessions will focus on the initiatives on Health Emergencies Prevention, Preparedness and Response and Strengthening Cooperation in Pharmaceutical Sector with Focus on Access and Availability to Safe, Effective, Quality and Affordable Medical Countermeasures will be discussed besides bilateral meetings. In addition, the meeting will focus on Research and Development and Innovation in its side events. . ---Lakshmi, Akashavani News, Hyderabad
Union Tourism Minister G Kishan Reddy, Ministers of State for Health and Family Welfare S P Singh Baghel and Bharati Pravin Pawar will also be present.
President Joe Biden has signed legislation that lifts the nation’s debt ceiling, averting an economically disastrous default on the federal government’s debt. The signing of the Fiscal Responsibility Act suspends the debt limit to renew borrowing and avoid a default that would have likely had damaging implications for the American and global economies.
The bipartisan deal came after months of political wrangling. The Senate earlier this week passed the Bill to raise the debt ceiling and cap government spending for the next two years. The country's debt currently stands at around 31 trillion dollar.
Republicans, who currently have a majority in the House of Representatives, had refused to raise the debt ceiling unless Biden and the Democrats agreed to federal spending cuts.
The US Treasury Department had earlier warned that if the debt ceiling was not raised beyond Monday, the US government could run out of money and default on its 31 trillion dollar debt.
Indian grapplers have signed off with three medals in the UWW Ranking Series event in Bishkek yesterday, with Manisha grabbing Gold, Reetika finishing second-best to win Silver and Sarita Mor getting Bronze. Improvising with the small sized-draws, Manisha bagged Gold in the 65 kg weight category, while India's tally in the series is four medals including 1 gold , 1 silver and 2 bronze.
Manisha won four matches in the four rounds she completed which helped her win the gold medal.
In the tournament, the wrestler with the most number of victories will be ranked first.
Earlier, Manjeet won a bronze in the men's Greco Roman 55kg category on Thursday, opening India's medal account in the series.
The Indian Junior Women's Hockey Team kicked off their Women's Junior Asia Cup 2023 campaign in emphatic fashion as they defeated Uzbekistan 22-0 in their first game of the tournament in Kakamigahara, Japan yesterday. India will next play against Malaysia in their second Pool game in tomorrow.
In Tennis, top seed Iga Swiatek thrashed China's Wang Xinyu 6-0, 6-0 to reach the French Open fourth round. Poland's Swiatek, going for a third Roland Garros title, has won four of her six sets without dropping a game.
Meanwhile, Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina pulled out of the tournament shortly before her third-round match because of illness. One of the favourites for the title at Roland Garros, the 23-year-old Kazakh was set to play Spain's Sara Sorribes Tormo.
[]><><><[]
"Centre bans 14 fixed-dose combo drugs, says they may pose 'risk' " reports The Times of India.
And finally, The Asian Age reports that "Renowned theatre actor and director Aamir Raza Husain, known for his large outdoor stage productions such as (The Fifty Day War based on the Kargil War) and (The Legend of Ram) passed away yesterday. He was 66."