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Train hits baby elephant in Siliguri (Go To Top)

          Siliguri: A baby elephant was seriously injured in a train accident at Mahananda wildlife sanctuary in West Bengal on Wednesday. The elephant was hit by a goods train while crossing a railway line on the outskirts of the sanctuary in Siliguri, in search of food in the nearby fields. The villagers found the elephant critical when they came to their fields early in the morning.

          Nearly five elephants of the Mahananda sanctuary have died in similar accidents. Villagers say the elephants have become a menace. They frequently destroy standing crops scattered over 238 hectares of land. A rise in human population in and around the forest has led to loss of habitat for the elephants and frequent man-animal conflicts. Elephants in India are scattered in more than 15 states and their estimated population now stands anywhere between 15,000 and 20,000.

Former militant gunned down in Srinagar (Go To Top)

          Srinagar: A former militant was gunned down by militants in Srinagar. Mukhtar Ahmed Bhat, a former commander of Hizbul Mujahideen, was fired upon by three persons in the heart of Srinagar. Bhat was a member of the political party, Janata Dal (United). "We were crossing from there. I was going to work. Suddenly there were fire shots. We ran to the spot and saw that he was killed. Then we informed his relatives," said Mushtaq Ahmed, an eyewitness. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack but police says the killing was planned to sabotage the forthcoming national polls beginning next month. Violence in the state has continued even after the recent peace moves between India and Pakistan, that started last April.

Cancer 'epidemic' in Bhatinda village (Go To Top)

          Jalal (Bhatinda): People in Jajal village of Bhatinda district in Punjab have appealed for help as an unusually high incidence of cancer amongst residents, has left over 80 people dead in three years. Seven villagers are even now battling against the deadly disease, which has afflicted more men than women in this village of about 5,000 people. Lung and throat cancer and leukaemia are the most prevalent. Locals say there is a pattern to the deaths and suspect contaminated water as the main cause of the disease. The village is almost entirely dependent on ground water, which locals say has either been affected by the pesticides or some other unknown cause. Many like Balbir Kaur have spent thousands on travel and medical bills as specialised treatment is available only in a select few cities. The worst hit are women, poor and uneducated dozens like Kaur who have been left behind with entire families to support.

          "My husband died of cancer. His treatment went on for years, he was being treated in Bikaner and before that in Punjab...we have spent a fortune. There are a lot of deaths in the village...the water here is bad, there have been reports and analysis but no action has ever been taken," a tearful Kaur said. Though a recent study of the water by a medical team from state capital Chandigarh confirmed the presence of DDT, a widely-used pesticide, no firm conclusion linking water to prevalence of cancer, has been established. Angry residents say more and more people are falling sick as authorities delay action.

Iraq bomb blast: 29 killed (Go To Top)

          Baghdad: Twenty-nine people were killed and 50 were injured in a huge explosion that ripped through a hotel here late on Wednesday. US officials were quoted as saying by international news agency that the blast at the Mount Lebanon Hotel was caused by a car loaded with about 450 kilos of explosives. The hotel housed guests from Britain, Jordan, Egypt and the Iraqi staff. Several residences in the street were also destroyed. Baghdad police are blaming non-Iraqis for the explosion. A member of Iraq's U.S. appointed Governing Council described the blast as an attempt o derail democracy in Iraq. The blast is the largest in the Iraqi capital since the 9th of this month, when three suicide bombers killed 71 people around the Kadhimiya mosque.