Kolkata, July 30 (IANS) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee launched a scathing attack against the Centre following the derailment of the Howrah-Mumbai CSMT Mail accident in Jharkhand on Tuesday in which two persons were killed and over 50 injured.

“Another disastrous rail accident! Howrah- Mumbai mail derails in Chakradharpur division in Jharkhand today early morning, multiple deaths and huge number of injuries are the tragic consequences,” the Chief Minister posted on X.

Questioning the governance in the Railways administration, the Chief Minister said that a series of nightmares every week, an unending procession of deaths and injuries on the railway tracks have become a regular feature.

“For how long shall we tolerate this? Will there be no end to the callousness of Government of India?! My heart goes out to the bereaved families, condolences to the next of kin,” the Chief Minister further said in the post.

The Chief Minister had been critical of the alleged negligence on the part of the railway authorities in installing the safety devices on the tracks that could have averted the accidents.

She has been constantly claiming that the safety devices installation process that was initiated during her tenure as the Railways Minister was not followed up at a later stage by successive ministries.

The Chief Minister had been especially critical about the non-implementation of Kavach, the automatic train protection system, in all the tracks that could have averted many accidents.

Meanwhile, West Bengal Police on Tuesday announced 13 helpline numbers at three GRPs in the state following the derailment of the Howrah-Mumbai CSMT Mail in Jharkhand, in which two persons have died and many were injured. Of the 13 helpline numbers, five are at Howrah and Sealdah GRPs each, while three are at Kharagpur GRP.

–IANS

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Kozhikode, July 30 (IANS) The death toll in the massive landslides at Churalpara in Kerala’s Wayanad on Tuesday has gone up to 41, district authorities said.

The landslides were reported to have occurred at around 2 a.m. and the area remains cut off. The worst affected areas include Churalpara, Velarimala, Mundakayil and Pothukalu.

Authorities said that several parts of the affected areas continue to remain cut off and a sudden increase in the number of dead has been reported from Pothukalu.

The Harrison Malayalam plant is another area that has been cut off and its general manager has told the media that a few of their managers are reported to be missing, while several labourers have been moved to safer places.

A team of the Territorial Army and their medical team from Kozhikode have moved towards Wayanad.

Due to the inclement weather, two helicopters were unable to land in the affected landslide areas and are now waiting at Kozhikode.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in the morning held discussions with top Kerala State Disaster Management Authority ( KSDMA) officials in the state capital city.

According to reports around 400 families are trapped in a few areas at Churalmala.

State Health Minister Veena George said all the available health officials in and around the district are being asked to join the operations as there are reports of several getting injured.

“We have started to ensure that all medical supplies are being transported to the affected areas. Medical teams from Kannur and Kozhikode will be reaching out to speed up treatment of the injured people. At the moment 70 injured are being treated at a few hospitals in Wayanad,” said Minister George.

Earlier, Kerala Chief Secretary V. Venu told local media, “Around 2 a.m., landslides took place at least two to three times. At this point, few affected areas are cut off. The weather is also adverse for NDRF teams to go to some of these affected areas. Everyone is on alert. We will carry out the rescue in a coordinated manner. We are still ascertaining about how many people are trapped. All options, including airlifting people, are being looked into to ensure rescue work is carried out.”

–IANS

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Kolkata, July 30 (IANS) West Bengal Police on Tuesday announced 13 helpline numbers at three GRPs in the state following the derailment of the Howrah-Mumbai CSMT Mail in Jharkhand, in which two persons have died and many were injured.

Of the 13 helpline numbers, five are at Howrah and Sealdah GRPs each, while three are at Kharagpur GRP.

Two persons were killed and 50 others injured after 18 coaches of a train bound for Mumbai derailed in Jharkhand. The Howrah-CSMT Express (train number 12810) derailed between Rajkharsawan and Badabambo stations at around 4 a.m., 80 km from Jamshedpur in the Chakradharpur railway division of Jharkhand.

Most of the passengers were sleeping at the time of the accident. Suddenly, a loud noise and jolts were felt as several coaches derailed one after another. Panic ensued inside the train as people scrambled to save their lives. Many passengers sleeping on the upper berths fell, and luggage was scattered everywhere.

Anxious relatives of the passengers gathered at the Howrah station and were seeking information about the fate of their near ones travelling by the train.

Meanwhile, two long-distance trains, Howrah Barbil Jan Shatabdi Express and Kantabanji Ispat Express, which were supposed to depart from Howrah Station on Tuesday morning, have been cancelled.

At the same time the departure time of a number trains have been rescheduled. The route for several long-distance trains, both in the up and down sections, will be diverted.

The train operations on the Tatanagar-Chakradharpur section of the South Eastern Railway have been halted due to the accident. Several trains have been cancelled, and some are being run on alternative routes.

–IANS

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Navi Mumbai, July 30 (IANS) In a major breakthrough, the Navi Mumbai Police has managed to track and arrest prime suspect in the gruesome murder of a 22-year-old Belapur girl, from his hideout in Karnataka, an official said here on Tuesday.

The absconder, Dawood M. Shaikh was traced to the Shahapur Hills in Gulbarga district, said Navi Mumbai Police Crime Branch Deputy Commissioner of Police Amit Kale.

The investigators were hot on the trail of Shaikh after the brutal murder of the girl, Yashashri Shinde, came to light on July 27 when her mutilated body was found in some bushes near the Uran railway station.

The murder assumed political overtones after the Bharatiya Janata Party labelled it as a ‘love-jihad’ case and demanded stringent against Shaikh, a history-sheeter.

On Monday, the Shiv Sena (UBT) Leader of Opposition in Council Ambadas Danve called on the family of Yashashri Shinde to offer support to the victim’s kin and assured them of getting justice for their daughter.

“The SS(UBT) has assured the family that we are with them. We urge the government to track and give the most stringent punishment to the accused,” Danve said, accompanied by others like Deputy Leader Kishori Pednekar and Raigad District chief Manohar Bhoir.

Since quite some time, Shaikh was in a relationship with the girl but her family was against it, while the BJP has termed the incident as an instance of “love-jihad”.

On July 25 evening, Yashashri left her home in Belapur ostensibly to meet a friend, but failed to return even the next day, after which her family lodged a missing complaint.

Two days later, her body was found in a mutilated state with multiple injuries and stab wounds near Uran station, with the family accusing Shaikh, a driver by profession.

According to police, Shaikh has a previous criminal record, including a 2019 complaint by the deceased girl for molestation, and a crime under the POCSO Act, for which he was out on bail, and is believed to have fled to his native Karnataka.

Highlighting the incidence of growing crimes against women in Navi Mumbai, Danve said that recently a housewife, Akshata Mhatre, 30, was allegedly gang-raped by three temple staffers in Koparkhairne, and her body was dumped in a deep ditch on July 9, and alleged a breakdown of the law-and-order situation in the state.

BJP ex-MP Kirit Somaiya and Uran BJP MLA Mahesh Baldi also visited the victim’s family and urged Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis to ensure justice in the matter.

–IANS

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Kozhikode, July 30 (IANS) The death toll in the massive landslides at Churalpara in Kerala’s Wayanad on Tuesday reached 24, said the district authorities.

The landslides were reported to have occurred at around 2 a.m.

Due to the inclement weather, two Helicopters were unable to land in the affected landslide areas and are now waiting at Kozhikode.

The two helicopters arrived with men and materials for commencing rescue operations but will have to wait to land in the affected areas.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday morning after having discussions with top Kerala State Disaster Management Authority ( KSDMA) officials in the state capital city told the media that information about the landslide-affected areas was trickling in and at the moment it was a bit early to say more.

According to reports around 400 families are trapped in a few areas at Churalmala.

State Health Minister Veena George said all the available health officials in and around the district are being asked to join the operations as there are reports of several getting injured.

“We have started to ensure that all medical supplies are being transported to the affected areas and in the hospitals in the area. Medical teams from Kannur and Kozhikode will be reaching out to speed up treatment of the injured people. At the moment 70 injured are being treated at a few hospitals in Wayanad,” said Minister George.

Earlier, Kerala Chief Secretary V. Venu told local media, “Around 2 a.m., landslides took place at least two to three times. At this point, few affected areas are cut off. The weather is also adverse for NDRF teams to go to some of these affected areas. Everyone is on alert. We will carry out the rescue in a coordinated manner. We are still ascertaining about how many people are trapped. All options, including airlifting people, are being looked into to ensure rescue work is carried out.”

–IANS

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