38 killed in J-K landslides, flash floods; extensive damage in Himachal
|
In J-K's Kishtwar, Chishoti village along the route of Machail Mata Yatra bore the brunt. Most casualties were pilgrims. The yatra has been cancelled. In Himachal, several bridges were washed away in Lahaul-Spiti and Shimla. Debris and boulders crashed into homes. The Kalka-Shimla highway has been shut. Kullu was hit by two cloudbursts.
|
NEW DELHI, Aug 14: Cloudbursts, landslides and flash floods claimed dozens
of lives and damaged land and property across several States on Thursday.
A devastating cloudburst claimed 38 lives and caused extensive damage in Kishtwar
district of Jammu & Kashmir. The toll is likely to go up. About 100 people were
injured. The army has joined the rescue and relief operations.
The tragedy took place in Chishoti village along the route of Machail Mata
Yatra around noon. As the motorable road ends there and the 8-km trek to the
temple begins, large numbers of pilgrims had gathered there.
The yatra has been suspended.
Pahalgam in Anantnag, bordering Kishtwar, was also ravaged by the cloudburst.
Flash floods hit Frislan and Batkoot regions damaging roads and infrastructure.
In Poonch district, Mendhar in spate due to heavy rainfall is overflowing and
flooding the road.
Kishtwar helpline numbers: The UT administration has set up a control
room-cum-help desk. The numbers are: 9858223125, 6006701934, 9797504078, 8492886895,
8493801381, and 7006463710. Besides these, the district control room numbers
are 01995-259555 and 9484217492, and the police control room number of Kishtwar
is 9906154100.
Uttarakhand: In Uttarakhand landslides on Rishikesh–Neelkanth Road,
two persons were missing and two injured. The landslide struck near Laxman Jhula.
The missing persons are feared swept into the Ganga.
Himachal Pradesh: In the neighbouring State of Himachal Pradesh, cloudburst-triggered
flash floods and heavy rain wreaked havoc in the districts of Kinnaur, Shimla,
Kullu and Lahaul-Spiti. The Meteorological Department has forecast heavy rain
till August 20. On Thursday, Kandaghat recorded 100 mm, Una 85.4 mm, Solan 81.4
mm and Shimla 69 mm of rain. A total of 396 roads have been closed due to landslips.
Several areas in the Capital Shimla are cut off.
Several bridges were washed away in Lahaul-Spiti. The Kalka-Shimla highway
has been shut. In Shimla’s Rampur sub-division, a cloudburst near Nanti village
destroyed two bridges, shops and a police outpost. Kullu was hit by two cloudbursts.
Debris and boulders crashed into homes in Lahaul-Spiti. No fatalities have been
reported.
In flash Flood in Kinnaur, a bridge was washed away; 4 stranded, 1 injured.
Army was deployed for rescue in Rishi Dogri Valley.
Karnataka: In Bengaluru, Karnataka, monsoon played havoc; three deaths
were reported in tree collapses; 878 roads affected; 1,114 homes damaged. Bommanahalli
zone was worst hit with 150 km of road damaged.
Delhi: In Delhi a biker died and two were injured as a tree fell on
multiple vehicles in Kalkaji in heavy downpour.
|
|
|
|
|
SELECTIONS FROM OUR ARCHIVES |
|
US-Mexican border being painted black for thermal deterrence of illegal immigrants
|
Black proofing of the 2000-km iron wall is the brainchild of Trump although he is innocent of physics or for that matter anything of science. To demonstrate the will power behind the President's decision, Noem also picked up a roller brush where the work is going on. (Aside: But illegal immigrants can cross the border at night! Nights are cooler.)
|
|
Post-Alaska: Trump now shelves the 25% penalty tariff on Indian goods |
WHO GOT WHAT: For Putin, the summit marked a symbolic return to global
legitimacy—an escape from diplomatic isolation - a great leap forward, standing
on his head. He even floated proposals for joint US–Russia ventures, signaling
a bold pivot toward normalization. (Where have the sanctions gone!)
For Trump, the meeting served to boost his self-styled image as a master dealmaker,
inching him closer to what some insiders describe as his “obsessive” pursuit
of the Nobel Peace Prize. Whether this ambition compromises national interest
is a question critics are now asking aloud. Ironically, the original Alaska
agenda was left untouched—overshadowed by optics, ambition, and the choreography
of power.)
(Aside: Let’s put the Ukraine issue simply. Imagine India is obsessed
with national security. It decides to invade and own not the bordering Pakistan
or Bangladesh but Sri Lanka or the Maldives—not across a land border, but across
the sea—because it perceives growing Chinese influence in the ocean as a threat.
Now apply that logic to Russia. Putin wants to annex Ukrainian territory across
the strategic Black Sea—not just for land, but to control the strategic sea
route itself. Same style, a decade ago it annexed Crimea. So he invaded Ukraine
again for more. It is not a war but is an invasion. It’s not just about borders.
It’s about expansion and dominance. Now let the common man take the explanation
forward! Let us not be confused! Ukraine is not at war! There is no war!)
|
|
Tamil Nadu unveils its own education policy, rejects Centre’s NEP | |
- The State will have a two-language formula for the schools—Tamil and English.
- Goodbye to the fraud called entrance exams: No competitive entrance exam for higher education - Admissions will be based on Class 11 and 12 marks. (See footnote)
- The SEP and the State's determination to bring education back to the State
List constitute a structured resistance to the Centre’s ultimate designs for centralisation of governance.
|
|
Air India Boeing 787-8 crash: Who switched off fuel supply to engines? No answer
| |
The preliminary probe report claims both the fuel control switches were in ‘CUT OFF’ mode moments after lift-off (FADEC may be set to register like that). But the switches are mounted on the centre pedestal, between the seats of the captain and the first officer at arm's length. Who can switch it off? Transitioning is a two-stage manual procedure and that makes a clicking sound also. Not one, both switches! The switches are so protected by multiple layers of physical and procedural safeguards and guarded by metal brackets for a third party to meddle with easily. The cockpit is locked during takeoff. They are handled only for start and after landing, also in emergencies. Is it possible that the pilot just missed to put the switch to RUN while on the runway and the aircraft, a good one, was running on residual fuel? Which it can do for 20 to 40 seconds. The Air India flight stalled after 32 seconds of passing the Go/NoGo point.
(Soon after the videos came into public domain, the next day of the crash, our aviation expert had stated in these columns, the crash had something to do with the fuel line.)
(Soon we will put together another diverse discourse with experts to dispel any nagging doubts surrounding aviation dynamics that are stirring curious minds in the current context.)
|
|
The First Buddy's fallout: Musk launches ‘America Party’ to spite The New Trump; Will the business empire crash?
| |
TRUMP: "We'll have to take a look. We might have to put DOGE on Elon. You know
what DOGE is? The monster that might have to go back and eat Elon. Wouldn’t
that be terrible? He gets a lot of subsidies (Tesla and SpaceX)." Nobody on
earth ever got so much of Government subsidies as Musk, The New Trump declared
audaciously when the 'Beautifiul Bill' that scraps Tesla subsidies made its
entry into the Capitol. Musk knew the Bill spelt his death knell...
|
|
Top Govt officer thrashed, kicked inside Bhubaneswar office: Incident sparks a debate
| |
The incident has triggered a debate on social media whether the officer refused to take orders from a party leader or he was accused of any corruption, some netizens justifying the handling in either case, that Ratnakar was blocking public welfare work! It is true the Govt machinery has been the enemy Number One of the people of this country, existing for itself and for these politicians, for well over seven decades. India will never make an inch of progress - real progress, not make-believe-progress - unless and until this machinery is eliminated.
|
|
UK's House of Commons votes to legalise assisted dying: What it means | |
ANALYSIS: There have been cases of Britons going to Switzerland to get rid of a miserable life. Now once the House of Lords also passes the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, terminally ill Britons can call it quits with the help of a medical practitioner here itself. But the measure when comes into practice, will have very serious social consequences, it is feared. There won't be comparisons, even as tropes in Latin American folklores. The worst case scenario is of those who are not terminally ill also trying to misuse the provision to leave this world early when life with dignity is not available. But that is, in fact, a political question and not a moral imbroglio!
|
|
What caused Air India Boeing 787 crash? Some questions, some answers | |
The CCTV footage and the video circulating on social media do not indicate any serious abnormalities in takeoff or descent, it has been confirmed. The disaster is becoming curiouser and curiouser. The flight path was not curvy. And the aircraft maintained a steady, gliding descent with its nose straight and the wings perfectly level. The pilot's distress call does not specify what prevented lift and climb-out. Here are some expert opinions. The sole purpose is to raise travellers' awareness about air travel.
|
|
Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla line brings Kashmir Valley on India's rail map |
- The Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla line provides Kashmir with all-weather connectivity and integrates the Valley with the rest of India.
- The saying 'Kashmir to Kanyakumari' is now a dream come true.
- The Chenab bridge on the line, an engineering marvel, is the world's highest
railway bridge, taller than the Eiffel Tower. (Video: File)
|
|
Work done, Elon Musk steps down from DOGE, leaves White House | |
Musk wrote: "My scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end... The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government." Now on it will be on auto-pilot.
PROGNOSIS: DOGE was prematurely born to protect the country by aborting an impending socio-economic disaster which very few people could see coming.
Although its immediate job was to save American taxpayers billions by slashing waste, eliminating fraud, cutting Government bloat and ensuring utmost efficiency in administration for the good of the people.
(Today's headlines )
|
|
Ailing Asiatic lion Pataudi too dies of bird flu at Kanpur zoo
| |
Originally from Junagadh, Gujarat, Pataudi was relocated to Etawah Lion Safari in September 2019 before being transferred to Gorakhpur Zoo in 2021. Recently it was receiving treatment for pancreatic and liver infections. After tigress Shakti died in the zoo on May 7 due to bird flu, Pataudi was shifted to Kanpur. Some birds are also reported to have died mysteriously around Gorakhpur. All zoos in UP are closed for fear of a bird flu outbreak.
Three other animals too had died - a tiger, a leopardess and a female wolf. Wolf Bhairavi died last Saturday, leopardess Mona died the Thursday before that and tiger Kesari died on March 30. Some of them had Shakti's symptoms but the cause of death has not been confirmed yet.
|
|
48 tourist destinations closed in Kashmir following Pahalgam terror attack
| |
As tourist inflow is an indicator of normalcy returning to an erstwhile terrorist infested Valley, the Government has been trying hard to make everything travel-friendly, launching lot many projects and bringing Kashmir on the national rail map that physically completes the process of Kashmir's integration with the rest of India. And that defeats the designs of Pakistan eyeing Kashmir and simply explains a recrudescence of terrorism in J&K.
|
|
|
|
|
Previous Files
|
|
|
|
ARCHIVES
|
|
Visit Indian Travel Sites
Goa,
Kerala,
Tamil Nadu,
Andhra Pradesh,
Delhi,
Rajasthan,
Uttar Pradesh,
Himachal Pradesh,
Assam,
Sikkim,
Karnataka,
Madhya Pradesh,
Jammu & Kashmir
Gujarat
Puducherry
|
|
|
|
Neighbours Calling
Bhutan
Nepal
Malaysia
Dubai
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Visit Indian Travel Sites
Goa,
Kerala,
Tamil Nadu,
Andhra Pradesh,
Delhi,
Rajasthan,
Uttar Pradesh,
Himachal Pradesh,
Assam,
Sikkim,
Karnataka,
Madhya Pradesh,
Jammu & Kashmir
Gujarat
Puducherry
|
|
|