Seven, including 4 children killed as building collapses in Delhi’s Ashok Vihar

Agencies
September 27, 2018

New Delhi, Sept 27: A five-storey "weak" building collapsed in northwest Delhi on Wednesday, killing seven people including four children, three weeks after the 20-year-old structure was "inspected" by a municipal team following complaints.

The Delhi government has ordered a magisterial inquiry into the incident, and police registered a case under IPC Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), punishable with a maximum jail term of 10 years, against the owner Dharmender, his business partner Sachin and Sachin's father Roshan Lal, who had rented out the building in Ashok Vihar. All the accused are on the run.

While police claimed that the building was inspected 20 days ago following complaints to the municipal body that it was in "dangerous" condition, North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) claimed that the building was not declared "dangerous" and it had not received any complaint against it.

There were 12 people inside the building when the tragedy struck. Eleven other occupants, among them seven kids, were outside. Four of the children were at school, while two children had accompanied their mother to her workplace and a 14-year-old girl was outside. The other four people were out on work.

Among those who were killed was Ashi, whose parents were looking forward to celebrating her third birthday on October 22. "My wife Seema and my children, Ashi and Shaurya, are gone," said a grieving Umesh, whose family was living on the second floor.

Umesh's brother too died in the incident. Laxman, 25, succumbed to injuries at LNJP Hospital late evening.

The ground floor of the building housed a shop, which was closed during the incident, while the second, third and fourth floors were occupied by tenants. The first floor had been vacated by the tenants a month ago since they felt the building was unsafe.

Residents of Sawan Park were in a state of fear after the incident and said many of them are also living in dilapidated buildings. They said they could have been in the place of those who died in the incident.

Two families were living on the third floor. Another deceased woman, Munni, was living in one of the houses on the third floor. The second family living on that floor lost two children, Rajnesh, aged four, and Sumnesh, aged 12, the police said.

The fourth floor was occupied by a couple -- Narottam and Nisha. Nisha is critical, the police said. The injured were rushed to Deep Chand Bandhu Hospital.

Bimlesh, who was present at the hospital and lost his sons Rajnesh and Sumnesh, said, "As soon as I left home and had barely walked a few metres, I heard a loud noise and when I turned back, I saw the building collapse like a pack of cards."

Locals claimed that along with the building, a sheesham tree, adjacent to the building, fell. A call about the incident was received at 9.25 am and six fire tenders were rushed to the spot near Sawan Park, an officer said.

A senior NDMC official said the building was about 20 years old. Its structure was weak and in a deteriorated condition, the official added.

The BJP-ruled North Delhi civic body came under fire from the Aam Aadmi Party and the Congress after the incident, with Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who also visited the site, blaming the municipal corporation for not fulfilling its responsibility of safety of buildings.

A political slugfest also ensued with Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken slamming the BJP-ruled civic body for the tragedy and the BJP's Delhi unit demanding a judicial probe into the incident from the Lt Governor. Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari, along with NDMC mayor Adesh Gupta, visited the site and the hospital where the injured were admitted.

Union Minister Harsh Vardhan, who is the MP from the Chandni Chowk constituency in which the area falls, visited the site of the building collapse and said it is painful that they lost their lives in the most tragic manner.

Police said a complaint was lodged about the building being dangerous on August 16, 2017 and a team of civic body had inspected the building around 20 days ago, the police said.

However, the NDMC said the building was not declared "dangerous" and had not received any complaint against it. North Delhi mayor Adesh Gupta, who visited the site, ordered a detailed inquiry into the incident, while asserting that "strict action" will be taken against the guilty.

The civic body, however, admitted that the building was about 20-25 years old and its structure was "weak" and in a "deteriorated condition" while asserting that no new construction activity or construction material was found at the site.

As soon as the incident took place, two teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) were mobilised for rescue operations, its spokesperson said.

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News Network
November 13,2024

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Beirut: The Israeli army on Tuesday continued to launch attacks against civilians in Lebanon, targeting them in several areas without prior evacuation warnings.

However, 13 airstrikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs in the space of only three hours were preceded by evacuation warnings.

The attacks caused no injuries but resulted in widespread destruction of residential buildings and commercial, medical and educational centers.

The airstrikes in southern Lebanon and Bekaa region, reaching Akkar in Lebanon’s far north, erased any hope of a near-term ceasefire settlement.

The strikes were accompanied by an announcement on Israel’s Channel 14 that “the Israeli army has expanded its operations in southern Lebanon to areas it had not reached since the beginning of the ground operation.”

About 50 days have passed since Israel intensified its hostile operations in Lebanon targeting Hezbollah. The death toll from these confrontations and attacks has passed 3,200, with more than 14,000 wounded.

For the first time, an airstrike targeted a mountainous area between Baalchmay and Aabadiyeh on the road leading to Aley, destroying a building housing displaced people.

The mayor of Baalchmay, Adham Al-Danaf, confirmed that “the airstrike targeted a residential building in the Dhour Aabadiyeh area.”

The initial toll from the Ministry of Health showed “five people killed and two injured.”

The raids that targeted Beirut’s southern suburbs for the first time in the morning, unlike nightly raids before, caused huge destruction. Those who evacuated their homes after Israeli warnings, used their phones to record the collapse of empty buildings in Sfeir, Haret Hreik, Bir Al-Abed, Mrayjeh, Laylaki and Hadath.

Israeli warplanes also targeted Tyre, where a strike on a building killed three people and injured many others, while a raid on Tefahta killed a man identified as Kifah Khalil and his family.

Attacks were widespread, with Yater and Zebqine subject to artillery shelling, a civilian being killed in Hermel, and further attacks on Bouday and an area between the towns of Srifa and Arsoun.

A raid on the town of Siddiqin killed two people and injured several others, while an attack on the Mechref farm led to one fatality and multiple injuries.

The search for those missing after an Israeli raid on the town of Ain Yaacoub in Akkar, in the northernmost part of Lebanon, continued until dawn.

During the operation, 14 bodies were retrieved, identified as those of residents displaced from the town of Arabsalim in the Iqlim Al-Tuffah area of the south, along with members of a Syrian family, a mother and three of her children. Additionally, there were 10 people in critical condition.

The targeted residence belongs to a Lebanese citizen, Hussein Hashim, who is reported to be a member of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party.

An airstrike on the town of Saksakiyeh in the Sidon region on Monday night resulted in yet another tragedy.

It appeared that the intended target was the Shoumer family, who just days before lost Hussein Amin Shoumer and his two sisters in a drone strike near Al-Awali River.

Israeli army spokesperson Avichay Adraee issued additional evacuation warnings for towns in the southern region along the Litani River, which, according to estimates from the mayors, are currently 90 percent uninhabited.

In the meantime, Hezbollah announced its continued efforts to “combat the intrusions of Israeli forces and to strike military installations and towns in the north.”

Hezbollah said in a statement that it confronted “an Israeli Hermes 450 drone in the airspace of Nabatieh and forced it to leave Lebanese airspace.”

The party also announced that it targeted “Kfar Blum settlement with a rocket salvo.”

On the Israeli side, air raid sirens sounded in areas of Upper and Western Galilee and in the town of Kiryat Shmona and its surroundings.

The Israeli army confirmed that “a drone exploded in Nesher, east of Haifa, without activating the air raid sirens,” and that “a drone launched from Lebanon crashed into a school in Gesher HaZiv, north of Nahariya.”

Israel’s Channel 13 reported the Israeli military’s assessment regarding Hezbollah’s military strength, claiming that the group currently possesses approximately 100 precision missiles, thousands of artillery shells, and hundreds of rockets. Additionally, it was highlighted that “there are around 200 Lebanese towns that remain unvisited.”

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News Network
November 10,2024

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Mangaluru: A tragic accident took place on Saturday at Chembugudde near Thokkottu, claiming the life of a 47-year-old woman after a tanker lorry ran over her. The victim, identified as Rahmat H Rashid, was riding pillion with her husband, Abdul Rashid G, on their scooter. 

The couple was traveling from Yenepoya Hospital to Bajpe when the scooter skidded on the poorly maintained road. Rahmat fell onto the road and was fatally struck by a tanker lorry that was coming from behind. Despite being rushed to the hospital, doctors declared her dead upon arrival.

The incident prompted a swift response from the DYFI Ullal Taluk Committee, which staged a protest on Saturday night, condemning the unsafe condition of the road. Nithin Kuthar, president of the committee, criticized MLA and Legislative Assembly Speaker UT Khader for failing to ensure safe infrastructure, despite touting the road as toll-free. 

Kuthar demanded immediate repairs, warning that the committee would march to the MLA’s office with black flags if the road is not fixed within a week.

Former DYFI State President Sunil Kumar Bajal also voiced frustration over the deteriorating condition of Thokkottu market, highlighting the struggles people face while crossing roads riddled with dangerous potholes. In response to public outcry, temporary repairs were made to the road at Chembugudde on Sunday, though locals remain wary and demand a more permanent solution. 

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News Network
November 14,2024

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The UN special rapporteur for Palestine has slammed Israel’s parliament for passing a law authorizing the detention of Palestinian children, who are “tormented often beyond the breaking point” in Israeli custody.

Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur on the rights situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, in a Thursday post on X, characterized the experiences of Palestinian minors in Israeli detention as extreme and often inhumane.

The UN expert highlighted the grave impact of this policy, noting that up to 700 Palestinian minors are taken into custody each year, a practice she described as part of an unlawful occupation that views these children as potential threats.

Albanese said Palestinian minors in Israeli custody are “tormented often beyond the breaking point” and that “generations of Palestinians will carry the scars and trauma from the Israeli mass incarceration system.”

She further criticized the international community for its inaction, suggesting that ongoing diplomatic efforts, which often rely on the idea of resuming negotiations for peace, have contributed to normalizing such human rights violations against Palestinian children and the broader population.

The comments by Albanese came in response to Israel’s parliament (Knesset) passing a law on November 7 that authorizes the detention of Palestinian children under the age of 14 for “terrorism or terrorist activities.”

Under the legislation, a temporary five-year measure, once the individuals turn 14, they will be transferred to adult prison to continue serving their sentences.

Additionally, the law allows for a three-year clause that enables courts to incarcerate minors in adult prisons for up to 10 days if they are considered dangerous. Courts have the authority to extend this duration if necessary, according to the Knesset.

The legislation underscores a shift in the treatment of minors and raises alarms among human rights advocates regarding the legal and ethical ramifications of detaining children and the conditions under which they may be held.

Thousands of Palestinians, including hundreds of children and women, are currently in Israeli jails—around one-third without charge or trial. Also, an unknown number are arbitrarily held following a wave of arrests in the wake of the regime's genocidal war on Gaza.

Since the onset of the Gaza war, the Israeli regime, under the supervision of extremist minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, has turned prisons and detention centers into “death chambers,” the ministry of detainees and ex-detainees’ affairs in Gaza says.

Violence, extreme hunger, humiliation, and other forms of abuse of Palestinian prisoners have been normalized across Israel’s jail system, reports indicate.

Over 270 Palestinian minors are being detained by Israeli authorities, in violation of UN resolutions and international treaties that forbid the incarceration of children, as reported by Palestinian rights organizations.

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