Gautham, a Class 10 student from Vandiperiyar in Kerala lost his books and notebooks in the flood. He says, "We returned home from a relief camp after 15 days today and I can't find my books. I don't know how I will continue my studies now." Gautham's father added,"we have lost everything."


On August 20, a 19-year-old boy allegedly committed suicide on finding that his Class 12 certificates were damaged in the devastation caused by monsoon in Kozhikode district. The boy's death came to light later in the day when his parents came to clean up the house as the water receded. They were shocked to see him hanging, police said.


Volunteers engaged in relief work in rain-hit regions here say houses, flats and shops affected by the floods resembled a 'battlefield' and it is "a very big challenge" to restore them.


According to the Disaster Management State Control room, 231 people have lost their lives and 32 are missing in rain-related incidents since August 8. Nearly 14.50 lakh people from 3.91 lakh families are still in about 3,879 relief camps across the state.

Shashwata Chatterjee, Somnath Chatterjee's grandson, tells Rediff.com's Archana Masih about watching the football World Cup, spending days in the MP's Delhi home and the day his Dadu came to visit him in his college in Los Angeles. Do read the engaging account here.

Volunteers engaged in relief work in rain-hit regions here say houses, flats and shops affected by the floods resembled a 'battlefield' and it is "a very big challenge" to restore them.


MLAs Hibi Eden and M Swaraj said volunteers and officials could not open many homes as they were filled with carpet of slush and debris dumped by the floods.


"The houses hit by floods look like battlefields. It will take some time for the people to rebuild their lives," Eden, a Congress MLA, said while taking part in rehabilitation activities at Cheranellore Panchayat which falls under his Ernakulam constituency.


"Cleaning of flood-hit houses, shops and flats is a very big challenge because you are welcomed there by knee-deep slush and reptiles including venomous snakes," Swaraj, a CPI(M) MLA representing Thrippunithura constituency, said.


He has been involved in cleaning work with party colleagues and volunteers in nearby Aluva, one of the worst affected areas situated on the bank of Periyar river. Eden said the house of a poor man in Cheranellore collapsed when its door was opened for cleaning. Many of the houses of the poor are not safe as the floods have weakened their walls and roofs, he added. He also said carcasses of animals like cows, goats and dogs killed in the floods were also lying unattended, posing health risks.


According to the Disaster Management State Control room, 231 people have lost their lives and 32 are missing in rain-related incidents since August 8. Nearly 14.50 lakh people from 3.91 lakh families are still in about 3,879 relief camps across the state. -- PTI


Image: A woman cleans mud from the entrance of her house Paravur in Kerala: Picture: Reuters

NASA has released a video using satellite data that provides an estimate of rainfall and shows the spread of the resulting severe flooding in Kerala, and parts of Karnataka.


The summer monsoon is a regular feature this time of year in India, and it can bring heavy rains to the region. However, periodically areas of low pressure can form within the general monsoon trough and bring even more rain.


Kerala is facing its worst floods in nearly a century that has left at least 231 people dead, and forced over thousands of people out of their homes. The Centre has declared this calamity of 'severe nature'.


Although the extreme Himalayan topography is much more well-known, another contributing factor to the heavy rains along the southwest coast of India is the Western Ghats, NASA said in a statement.


Though much smaller than the Himalayas, this mountain range runs parallel to the West Coast of India with many peaks over 2,000 metres. As a result, the Western Ghats are well positioned to enhance rainfall along the West Coast of India as they intercept the moisture laden air being drawn in off the warm waters of the northern Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea as part of the southwest monsoon circulation.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah today handed over urns containing ashes of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to state unit chiefs of the party who will take out processions with it to mark the legacy of the popular leader.


The state unit heads of the BJP along with the union ministers from their respective states were assigned to carry out the 'Asthi Kalash Yatra' in all states to immerse the ashes in holy rivers.


The urns carrying the ashes of Vajpayee were handed over by Modi and other senior leaders of the BJP to party's state unit chiefs in a programme organised at the BJP's old head office here.


Home Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj as well as members of Vajpayee's family were also present.


The party had decided to undertake the 'Asthi Kalash Yatra' in all the states of the country, so that all the citizens could offer their tributes to the popular leader, Shah tweeted.


The BJP decided to take out the yatras in all districts, the party leaders said. The yatra was being organised as party workers and people in the country wanted to pay tributes to Vajpayee, who died last week after a prolonged illness at the age of 93, they said. Processions will start from today from state capitals and pass through all blocks, they added -- PTI



Image: PM Modi hands over an urn containing Atal Bihari Vajpayee's ashes to a state unit chief

Rahi Sarnobat wins gold in women's 25m pistol shooting at Asian Games.

The Calcutta High Court directed the West Bengal government to ensure that there was no slaughter of animals in any open public place. The court also directed the state authorities to take necessary steps to ensure that the provisions of West Bengal Animal Slaughter Control Act 1950 were implemented prior to observance of the festival of Id-Uz-Zoha next year.


Passing the order on a modification application filed by the state in connection with a prior order of the court on a PIL, a division bench presided over by Chief Justice J Bhattacharya expressed surprise that the state did not have the machinery to implement the provisions of an act which was 68 years old.


"One could have definitely expected that by this time the state would have its machinery in place to implement the provisions of the said act of 1950, which is a creature of the legislature itself," the bench, also comprising Justice A Banerjee, said.


The court, however, allowed the modification application moved by Advocate General Kishore Dutta to implement the provisions contained in the act before observance of ID-Uz-Zoha next year, instead of this year. The PIL had sought direction to the state government to publish notices giving widespread publicity of the act of 1950 and Supreme Court orders in this regard. -- PTI


Image: Believers offer prayers in Srinagar. Pic: Umar Ganie

West Bengal: Border Security Force exchanged sweets with Border Guards Bangladesh at the Indo-Bangladesh border at Fulbari on the occasion of Eid.

Two policemen were suspended after a video went viral showing locals of Nekpur village here thrashing and ill-treating a man for allegedly slaughtering a cow, police said today.


"On August 16, locals of Nekpur village under Nigohi police station allegedly caught one Bhura slaughtering a cow. They beat him severely and forced him to pick up meat pieces from the ground with his mouth," SP S S Chinappa said today. It is alleged that policemen present at the spot helped the locals and shot a video of the incident. An inquiry has been ordered in the matter.

An Indian in Canada has been allegedly racially abused over a parking dispute by a white woman who yelled "go back to your country" and called him a "Paki", according to a media report.


Rahul Kumar, who moved from India to Canada seven years ago, was also called a "loser" with "shit-coloured skin", CTV news reported. Kumar filmed the encounter outside his home on his cellphone last week. In the video, a woman yells at Kumar over a parking dispute.


"You can film all you want Paki. Yes Paki, that's you with the shit-coloured skin," the report said, citing the video. The woman who made the comments called CTV Edmonton after the report aired and criticised the coverage, saying that she is "not a racist."


Asked whether the parking disagreement justifies the racist language used, she said, "It doesn't matter if it justifies it or not; it happened and that's where I took it."


She is unapologetic. "I have no problem with what happened," she was quoted as saying by the report.  -- PTI

Maharashtra Environment Minister Ramdas Kadam has announced that the bungalows of fugitive diamantaire and Punjab National Bank scam accused Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi in Raigad district would be demolished as they are illegal.Addressing the media here after a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Kadam said 121 bungalows in Alibaug and 151 bungalows in Murud town in Raigad district are illegal and mostly owned by industrialists and businessmen.


"There are 121 bungalows in Alibaug and 151 bungalows in Murud that are illegal and mostly owned by industrialists and businessmen. Some locals also have illegal bungalows, there are 60 of them in Alibaug and 50 more in Murud," he stated.


Stating that the Maharashtra government would take strict action against the illegal bungalows, Kadam added that he has instructed the district collector of Raigad to immediately demolish the illegal bungalows belonging to Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi.


The minister continued, "The (state) government will take action against all these bungalows. Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi's bungalows are also there. There are a few more big names on the list and action will be taken against them too. No relief would be given to those owning these illegal bungalows."  -- ANI

Kulgam: Wreath laying ceremony for Constable Fayaz Ahmed Shah who was shot dead by terrorists outside a mosque in Zazripora today. Police has registered a case and investigation has started. Police said Shah was undergoing a recruitment training course at Talwara and he had come home to celebrate Eid with his family.

Total 20 victims were brought to KEM Hospital, of which four were brought dead; 1 senior citizen female and 3 male. Two bodies have been identified. 16 patients stable; 10 male & 6 female: Dr. Avinash N Supe, KEM Hospital Dean, on victims of fire accident in Crystal Tower, Mumbai

The death toll in the Mumbai high-rise fire goes up to four. ANI reports that four people have died in the fire accident that broke out in Crystal Tower near Hindmata Cinema in Parel area earlier today. Identification of two bodies is still to be done. At least 16 people have been injured in the fire. They were rushed to the nearby KEM Hospital, where two of them were declared brought dead, the city civic body said in a statement.


The smoke spread through the building's staircases and lifts were not used as a precautionary measure. Snorkel ladders were used to rescue residents stranded in the building, an official in the fire brigade control room here said. Ten fire engines, four water tankers, officials of the Mumbai Police and electrical mechanics were at the spot, he said. The cause of the fire will be known after an inquiry.

Unidentified bike-borne terrorists opened fire at the main gate of CRPF's 30th Battalion's G Company in Bijbehara's Hassanpora earlier today. The guard at the gate fired in retaliation, terrorists managed to escape. No injuries have been reported.

Two people are confirmed dead after a fire broke out in a residential building in the Dadar area of Mumbai this morning.


One of the of  the two casualites is is a woman, a senior citizen. The two residents were found inside the elevator. They had suffocated to death.


The dean of the civic-run KEM Hospital in Parel, said, "A total of 16 were brought to the hospital, of which two were brought dead. One is a woman, a senior citizen lady and the other is a male. The condition of others is believed to be stable.


The fire brigade control room got a message about the blaze on 12th floor of the 'Crystal Tower' building, located near Hindmata Cinema, at 8.32 am, he said. Reports say a blast was heard believed to be from an AC compressor.

The smoke from the raging fire spread rapidly and residents were trapped on the building's staircases, Mumbai Fire Brigade chief P S Rahangdale said. The flames have been doused but many are feared trapped on the top floors.


Eight fire engines, four water tankers, officials of the Mumbai Police and electrical mechanics were on the spot and they were making efforts to control the blaze, sources said.


Image: Several people are believed to be injured. They have been admitted to the KEM Hospital nearby. Pic: Sahil Salvi

Two people are confirmed dead after a fire broke out in a residential building in the Dadar area of Mumbai this morning.


One of the of  the two casualites is is a woman, a senior citizen. The two residents were found inside the elevator. They had suffocated to death.


The dean of the civic-run KEM Hospital in Parel, said, "A total of 16 were brought to the hospital, of which two were brought dead. One is a woman, a senior citizen lady and the other is a male. The condition of others is believed to be stable.


The fire brigade control room got a message about the blaze on 12th floor of the 'Crystal Tower' building, located near Hindmata Cinema, at 8.32 am, he said. Reports say a blast was heard believed to be from an AC compressor.

The smoke from the raging fire spread rapidly and residents were trapped on the building's staircases, Mumbai Fire Brigade chief P S Rahangdale said. The flames have been doused but many are feared trapped on the top floors.


Eight fire engines, four water tankers, officials of the Mumbai Police and electrical mechanics were on the spot and they were making efforts to control the blaze, sources said.


Image: Several people are believed to be injured. They have been admitted to the KEM Hospital nearby. Pic: Sahil Salvi

The celebrations of Eid was marred by violence in Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar city when stone-pelters came out on the streets and waved flags of Pakistan and dreaded terrorist group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.


In a bid to disrupt peace, the demonstrators chanted slogans and clashed with police personnel on duty in Srinagar's Eidgah area, soon after Eid prayers. They also pelted stones on security personnel, who were trying to disperse them.


In another incident, a policeman was shot dead by terrorists outside an Eidgah in Kulgam's Zazripora, when he was leaving after offering prayers.


Earlier in May, a tourist from Tamil Nadu's Chennai had lost his life in stone-pelting, a few days after the vehicle of a district judge from Bengaluru, who was on a holiday with his family, was pelted with stones. Around the same time, a bus carrying school students was also attacked by unruly stone-pelters in Zawoora village of Shopian district.


The rampant incidents of stone-pelting in Jammu and Kashmir have become a matter of concern for the state administration, with Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman condemning the same, saying that although the armed forces cannot be held responsible for being firm with terrorists, it is extremely important to ensure safer movement of tourists to restore normalcy. --  PTI

The fire that broke out in Crystal Tower near Hindmata Cinema in Parel area earlier today has now been doused. Fire brigade officials have gone inside the building to search for any trapped person. A total of eight people are rescued and sent to KEM Hospital.


Image: A snorkel of a fire tender douses flames at Crystal Tower

With flood water receding in most of the affected areas, flood-ravaged Kerala is struggling to return to normalcy. As per the India Meteorological Department forecast, no heavy rainfall is expected in the state for the next few days.


A total of 41 teams of National Disaster Response Force are still deployed in Kerala to assist the state administration in rescue, relief and rehabilitation work and to respond in emergency situations.


On Tuesday, NDRF teams deployed in Idukki, Kottayam, and Pathanamthitta evacuated 122 persons. Besides, they distributed relief materials in the flood-affected areas of Alappuzha and Pathanamthitta.


In addition, the NDRF also provided medical assistance to the sick persons in inundated areas of Kerala. Medical teams have been set up in Alappuzha and Thrissur where so far aid has been provided to 104 people.


Ever since the beginning of the crisis, the NDRF has rescued 535 lives, evacuated 24,616 marooned people, rescued 119 livestock and provided pre-hospital treatment to the 4908 people.

Rajiv Kumar, the vice chairman of NITI Aayog, on Tuesday said depreciation of the Indian Rupee will not result in inflation of prices and that it does not symbolise a slump in India's reputation in international markets.


"It is wrong to say that a fall in rupee value symbolises depreciating reputation in the market. Value of a country falls or rises depending on the success rate of the country, number of poor people and the growth of employment in the country," Kumar said.


"Value of rupee is like temperature in thermometer that falls and rises based on certain parameters. It's wrong to say that a fall in rupee value will lead to inflation. Value of rupee is just a price, depending on supply and demand," he added.


Meanwhile, informed sources in the Finance Ministry said that the Rupee is on the same level as was in 2013, adding that it has not depreciation in the last four year.


"Look at all the emerging market currency in 2013 and 2018, you will find the difference. All the currencies against the dollar are depreciating. There will be short-term pressure on current account deficit due to the rupee's depreciation. We are in a comfortable position as far as forex reserves are concerned," the source said.


On Tuesday, the Indian Rupee hit a record low of 70.08 against the dollar, following which it further depreciated to 70.22 on Thursday. The economic crisis in Turkey, which has seen a plunge in the value of the Turkish Lira, is being cited as the primary cause for the depreciation of the Indian currency. -- ANI

Pranab Mukherjee @CitiznMukherjee condoles Gurudas Kamat's death. "Shocked and pained at the sudden and untimely demise of Shri Gurudas Kamat. A colleague in the Government and the party for many years, his passing away at such young age is tragic."

Aam Aadmi Party leader Ashish Khetan on Wednesday said that he is not involved in active politics at the moment and is "completely focused" on his legal practices.


Khetan's comments come after rumours of him leaving the AAP surfaced, following Ashutosh's exit from the party.


"I am completely focussed on my legal practice and not involved in active politics at the moment. Rest is all extrapolation," Khetan wrote on Twitter.


In another tweet, he wrote, "I had resigned from DDC (Delhi Dialogue and Development Commission) in April, to join the legal profession. That is all. Not interested in rumours."


Last week, Ashutosh had announced his resignation from the party citing personal reasons. "Every journey has an end. My association with AAP which was beautiful/revolutionary has also an end. I have resigned from the PARTY/requested PAC to accept the same. It is purely from a very very personal reason. Thanks to party/all of them who supported me throughout. Thanks," Ashutosh had tweeted.


However, Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal had refused to accept Ashutosh's resignation.


Kejriwal tweeted, "How can we ever accept your resignation? No, not in this birth."In 2014, Ashutosh had left TV journalism to join AAP. He contested in Lok Sabha elections from Chandni Chowk constituency the same year and lost to Bhartiya Janta Party's Dr Harsh Vardhan. -- ANI

Sonia Gandhi arrives at Primus Hospital where senior Congress leader Gurudas Kamat passed away this morning.

A Bharatiya Janata Party affiliate, Shabir Ahmed Bhat, was shot dead by terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district in the early hours of Wednesday. Bhat was shot dead by the terrorists at his home in Pulwama's Rakh-e-litter village. Further details in the matter are awaited.