Police raided Friendship’s day party of 350 Symbioses students in Pune, four-member committee formed to take action

350 MBA students of Symbiosis Institute of Management Studies were caught in a party raid by police on Friendships day, August 1. The authorities of the Symbiosis Society have formed a four-member committee including a lady member that would take the decision on the action against the students.

The party was held on Sunday night at a bungalow in Theur, some 27 km from Pune. The Pune rural police took action in response to complaints of village residents about loud music and noisy partying.

The society’s principal director Vidya Yeravdekar said, “The students had taken permission for a late-out’ on Sunday. Two late-outs’ are granted to them in a month and since it was a Sunday, they were allowed to stay out till 12.30 am.”

She added, “When the students did not return till 12.30 am, the hostel director began making calls to them. By the time, the police had reached the venue of the party and alcohol tests were underway. Soon after, some of our authorities reached the spot when the police proceedings were still on. We are extremely disturbed about this incident. It should not have happened.”

Train accident near Jharkhand border leaves 49 dead

A train accident in West Bengal, near the Jharkhand border leaves forty-nine people dead, according to the reports. More than 170 people are taken to the hospital and some of them are in critical conditions, the reports say. Railway Minister Mamta Banerjee rushed to the place of accident along with her senior officials from Delhi.

The incident took place on Monday at around 2 am, when the Uttar Banga Express that was coming from New Cooch Bihar to Sealdah ran into Bhagalpur-Ranchi Vananchal Express that was standing stationary at Sainthia station of Virbhum district. Most of the casualties were reported from the second class bogies of the Vananchal Express as the coaches and the luggage van as well as guard van were hit and damaged severally.

The driver of the Uttar Banga Express, M.C Dey and the guard of Vananchal Express also has died in the accident. Most of the injured have been taken to the hospital. The first accident relief train and medical van has been rushed to the spot. Now the questions about the two trains being on the same line are being raised and an inquiry has been ordered into the accident. The railway has opened control rooms at all nearby places.

Bhopal gas tragedy judgment to roll out soon

Warrant Anderson, the chairman of Union Carbide, amongst other people who will soon receive a verdict from court in Bhopal. The judgment on the case will be regarding a gas plant leak that killed thousands of people more than 25 years. The court will decide if it was a criminal case or not.

The gas leak was considered as one of the worst such cases in a plant. When the unfortunate incident took place, forty tones of toxin called methyl isocyanine had leaked from the Union Carbide factory. This leaked gas spread over slums on 3 December 1984.

Now the site at which the pesticide plant was located is abandoned, taken over by the Madhya Pradesh government as the poison is still there according to the experts. More than a dozen judges have heard the criminal cases on the accused people after Central Bureau of Investigation charged 12 people with culpable homicide no amount to murder.

Girls fare better in Uttar Pradesh class 10 exams too

After outperforming boys in class 12 Uttar Pradesh board exams, girls maintained their supremacy in the class 10 exams too, the results of which were declared Tuesday.

“The total pass percentage of girls is 77.29, while that of boys is 64.21. The overall pass percentage is 70.79,” Uttar Pradesh Madhyamik Shiksha Parishad director Sanjay Mohan told reporters in Allahabad, some 200 km from Lucknow.

Girls had outperformed boys in the class 12 exams, with a total pass percentage of 89.62 against the boys’ 73.55 percent.

According to officials, this year a total of 3,357,300 students appeared for the class 10 exams, out of which 2,339,977 were declared as having passed.

Mau district acquired the top position in terms of the pass percentage of 88.43, followed by Mathura with 85.61 percent. The lowest pass percentage – 50.59 – was of Lalitpur district in the Bundelkhand region.

Though no official merit list is released by the Uttar Pradesh board, sources said Rishi Yadav, a student from the BNSD college in Kanpur district, some 80 km from Lucknow, topped the exam with 92.15 percent.

A few years ago, the board officials decided to scrap the merit list, saying it created unhealthy competition among students.

CBSE class 10 results out

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) Friday declared the results of the Class 10 exam, held under the grading system for the first time.

“The result was declared at 10 a.m.,” a CBSE spokesperson said.

Under the new grading system, the internal assessment marks of the students are added to the board examination scores and students will get grades instead of percentages. The grades will be given on a nine point scale ranging from A1 (excellent) to E2 (dissatisfactory) with D being the minimum pass grade.

A1 represents above 91 score. Similarly, B1 is 81 to 90, while D is for marks from 33 to 40, and E1 and E2 are below 33. The grades also have equivalent points which start from 10 for A1 to 4 for D.

As the exact marks will not be revealed, these points can be multiplied with 9.5 to get the average marks represented by the grades. Thus, A1 will be equal to 95, A2 – 85.5, B1 – 76, B2 – 66.5, C1 – 57, C2 – 47.5 and D will be equal to 38 average marks.

Finally Black Box of crashed Air India flight is recovered

Today morning, the black box recorder of Air India Express Boeing 737-800 aircraft which crashed in Mangalore on Saturday and killing 158 people has been recovered.

Confirming the news, Peter Abraham, director at the Mangalore airport said, “Yes, the black box has been found,”

The reason behind the air disaster in India is still in speculations.

Among the 166 people on board, only 8 people could survive by jumping out of the plane that broke into two after crash.

The aviation experts claim that the runway at Mangalore was not wide or long enough that gave problem to pilot while landing the aircraft.

Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel has said the runway should not be blamed for the crash, adding the Mangalore crash should be seen as an isolated incident.

158 killed as Air India crashes near Mangalore airport

At least 158 people were killed Saturday morning when an Air India Express Boeing 737 with 166 passengers and crew flying from Dubai overshot the runway while landing at the Mangalore airport and turned into a ball of fire as it crashed into a forested ravine, authorities and witnesses said.

The aircraft was coming down in clear visibility around 6 a.m. when the Serbian pilot overshot the runway at Bajpe, some 30 km from Mangalore, and desperately tried to take off, member of parliament Sadananda Gowda said. But the plane hit a radar pole and spun out of control.

In no time, it smashed into the ravine almost a kilometre away amid a deafening roar, breaking into pieces. Only eight people, an infant included, miraculously survived the disaster as they crawled out of the burning broken parts of the Boeing. Some of the injured are stated to be critical.

Air India Director Anup Srivastava announced in Mumbai that the plane was carrying 160 passengers, including four infants, and six crew members.

Air India Express is the low cost arm of Air India.

A grim looking Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa had said earlier that “survivors were unlikely”. “Except for half a dozen people who were rescued, the rest may not have survived.” he said in Bangalore, the state capital, before leaving for the crash site. “It is a grave tragedy.”

Most passengers were Indians, many returning home from Dubai where they worked.

Survivor Ummar Farooq said the plane seemed to be on course for landing.

“Soon after it touched the runway, I heard a sound and saw smoke quickly fill the plane. Soon there was fire and all hell broke loose,” he said.

“A crack appeared on the plane’s body where I was seated. I immediately jumped out. Two or three people seated behind me also jumped out. I am hurt in my knees and suffered burns on my hands and face. As I fled from the aircraft, flames engulfed it,” he said.

The airport at Bajpe is in a hilly area and considered one of the most difficult airports to land and take off from. The area had been experiencing heavy rains for the last two days.

There was no immediate official word, however, why the the accident occurred. Air India’s Srivastava said only an investigation would dig out the truth but most accounts blamed the pilot, identified as F. Glusica.

The pilot gave no distress signal before the crash, Mangalore airport officials said.

Villagers from the neighbourhood were among the first to rush to the accident site but the huge flames leaping into the sky kept them away.

Firemen and police personnel from the airport quickly began rescue operations, only to come across ghastly scenes of mangled bodies strewn over a large area. Some charred bodies still had the seat belts on.

About 25 ambulances and over 20 fire tenders were involved in the operation that lasted about four hours. Large crowds gathered at the site, many rushing all the way from the airport where they had been waiting for the plane’s arrival.

As firemen doused the flames, policemen began taking out bodies from the wreckage, many burnt beyond recognition. Each body had to be taken up the ravine by hand before being transferred to ambulances.

One of the passengers escaped with injuries on his knee and a minor fracture of the spine and was warded at the Kasturba Medical College Hospital in Mangalore. “He is stable, he has been shifted to the ward, and he is with the family,” doctor Vir Singh said. “We also got patients brought dead, totally charred.”

The rescue operations were hit for an hour as a drizzle turned into heavy rains. “It is a tragic incident,” Karnataka Home Minister V.S. Acharya said.

The Mangalore airport manager Peter Abrahim said there were initial difficulties in reaching the accident.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh condoled the loss of lives in the air crash at the Mangalore airport Saturday and ordered compensation of Rs.200,000 for the families of the dead and Rs.50,000 for the injured.

He also postponed an event scheduled at his official residence Saturday evening to celebrate his government’s one year in office during its second tenure.

PM greets nation on Parsi new year

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Saturday greeted the nation on the occasion of Navroz, the Parsi new year.

Marking the first day of spring, Navroz symbolises renewal and brings the message of hope and celebration.

“The festival is a living symbol of the rich diversity and the vibrant composite culture of India,” the prime minister said in a statement.

It also reinforces the values of peace and religious harmony in India, he added.

Hyderabad air crash probe begins

A day after an Indian Navy trainer aircraft crashed into a two-storeyed building in a densely-populated area during an air show here, a probe into the incident began Thursday.

Officials from the Indian Navy visited the scene of the crash at Bowenpally near Begumpet airport to gather clues that would help them ascertain the cause of the crash.

Defence personnel also started removing the aircraft’s wreckage while the damaged building remained cordoned off by police.

The defence ministry had Wednesday announced a probe into the crash.

A case under the Aircraft Act 1934 was also registered by the police at Bowenpally police station Thursday.

The 39-year-old pilot, Commander S.K. Maurya, and co-pilot, Lt. Commander Rahul Nair, 34, of the HJT-16 Kiran Mk II were killed and four civilians on the ground were injured in the crash Wednesday.

Residents of the building are still shocked but others in the area heaved a sigh of relief as the damage was limited to one building. Officials said there could have been more casualties if the aircraft had travelled some more distance after crashing into the building.

It was one of the four aircraft participating in an aerobatics show immediately after the inaugural session of India Aviation 2010 at Begumpet airport.

The plane was unable to pull up from a dive. It went into a spiral when the planes were breaking away from the formation and going in different directions.

The aircraft hit a mobile telephone tower on top of the building and exploded. A large part of the aircraft smashed into the house, destroying it. Huge debris fell on to a car parked below, crushing it.

Municipal authorities are planning to demolish the building as the crash weakened its structure and it now poses a threat to other houses nearby. Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) is likely to take a decision in this regard after an inspection of the building by its engineers.

63 dead in stampede in Uttar Pradesh ashram

The promise of a free lunch and utensils turned fatal Thursday when 63 people were killed and more than 30 injured in a stampede that broke out when thousands gathered at an Uttar Pradesh ashram for a death anniversary ceremony.

The entry gate of Kripaluji Maharaj’s ashram near Kunda town in Pratapgarh district, about 180 km from here, caved in, triggering a stampede that claimed 60 lives and turned the place into a veritable graveyard.

The dead included a large number of women and children.

“Sixty-three bodies had been recovered but more casualties cannot be ruled out as some of the injured were serious and rushed to the Allahabad medical college for specialised treatment,” Additional Director General of Police (law and order) Brij Lal said.

The tragedy occurred when thousands of followers had converged at the Bhakti Dham ashram to attend the annual ‘bhandara’ (free lunch) hosted by Kripaluji Maharaj on the occasion of his wife’s death anniversary.

“Thousands of disciples of the godman had made a beeline for the ashram to attend the ‘bhandara’ and to get freebies like clothes and utensils when the gate suddenly gave way, bringing under its weight a number of people,” Lal said.

“People ran helter-skelter in panic, leading to a stampede, that took a heavier toll, turning the whole place into a mass graveyard,” he added.

Some devotees alleged that the situation turned worse when the police used batons to disperse the crowds.

Rescue parties were rushed by the state from Allahabad while a top official was flown from Lucknow to personally take stock of the situation and report to Chief Minister Mayawati.

Legislator of the area Raghuraj Pratap Singh, better known as Raja Bhaiya, told IANS over the phone from Kunda: “The number of deaths are bound to rise as a number of the injured are critical.”

He criticised the “slow rescue operations” and said: “Although the event has been an annual feature since the death of Kripaluji Maharaj’s wife, this time the crowds swelled because of his prior announcement that some utensils would also be distributed along with lunch.”

Kripaluji Maharaj could not be contacted as he was stated to be busy supervising the relief work.