Supreme Court of Delhi announced that&nbsp;politician from Bihar state, Mohammed Shahabuddin, is to be shifted from Siwan Jail to Tihar Jail, Delhi in a week from today.

The verdict passed by Justices Dipak Misra and Mitava&nbsp;Roy was a result of two petitions filed against Shahabuddin - one lodged for the murder of journalist&nbsp;Rajdeo Ranjan by his wife, Asha Ranjan and the other by Chandrakeshwar Prasad, who accused him for murdering his three sons.

Asha had pleaded for transfer of the alleged murderer of her partner from Bihar to Delhi,&nbsp;on the ground that the trial in the accused&#39;s home state would be&nbsp;manipulated due to Shahabuddin&#39;s influence on the authorities.

Asha Ranjan&#39;s case was presented by Senior Advocate&nbsp;Dushyant Dave&nbsp;and Advocate&nbsp;Kislay Pandey while&nbsp;Prashant Bhushan stood in defense of Chandrakeshwar Prasad. Senior Advocate&nbsp;Shekhar Naphade has been fighting in defence of Shahabuddin.

The Bench also consented Prashant Bhushan&rsquo;s appeal to conduct hearing by video conference.

Under Article 142, court&nbsp;has ruled that the alleged could not be allowed to drop the &lsquo;fundamentals&rsquo; of criminal trial under the pretense of fair trial.

The court will hear the plea of the petitioner on March 21. He alleges that despite having named Shahabuddin as a key conspirator in her husband&rsquo;s murder, the police in Bihar had declined to file an FIR.&nbsp;

Criminal turned politician Mohammad Shahabuddin has been elected as a Member of Parliament four times&nbsp;from Siwan, Bihar, with the Rashtriya Janata Dal party of Lalu Prasad Yadav.

Shahabuddin has a&nbsp;voluminous criminal record, majorly at the Hussain Ganj police station in Bihar.&nbsp;In May 2007, Shahabuddin was sentenced to&nbsp;life imprisonment&nbsp;in a case of &quot;abducting with intent to murder&quot;.

Controversial leader has been alleged murder of four in two petitions

Supreme Court of Delhi announced that politician from Bihar state, Mohammed Shahabuddin, is to be shifted from Siwan Jail to Tihar Jail, Delhi in a week from today. The verdict passed by Justices Dipak Misra and Mitava Roy was a result of two petitions filed against Shahabuddin - one lodged for the murder of journalist Rajdeo Ranjan by his wife, Asha Ranjan and the other by Chandrakeshwar Prasad, who accused him for murdering his three sons. Asha had pleaded for transfer of the alleged murderer of her partner from Bihar to Delhi, on the ground that the trial in the accused's home state would be manipulated due to Shahabuddin's influence on the authorities. Asha Ranjan's case was presented by Senior Advocate Dushyant Dave and Advocate Kislay Pandey while Prashant Bhushan stood in defense of Chandrakeshwar Prasad. Senior Advocate Shekhar Naphade has been fighting in defence of Shahabuddin. The Bench also consented Prashant Bhushan’s appeal to conduct hearing by video conference. Under Article 142, court has ruled that the alleged could not be allowed to drop the ‘fundamentals’ of criminal trial under the pretense of fair trial. The court will hear the plea of the petitioner on March 21. He alleges that despite having named Shahabuddin as a key conspirator in her husband’s murder, the police in Bihar had declined to file an FIR. Criminal turned politician Mohammad Shahabuddin has been elected as a Member of Parliament four times from Siwan, Bihar, with the Rashtriya Janata Dal party of Lalu Prasad Yadav. Shahabuddin has a voluminous criminal record, majorly at the Hussain Ganj police station in Bihar. In May 2007, Shahabuddin was sentenced to life imprisonment in a case of "abducting with intent to murder".

Supreme Court orders shift of Mohammed Shahabuddin to Tihar Jail from Bihar

In a tragic incident, a boat capsized in the Ganga river near Patna in the northern Indian state of Bihar, According to ANI, at least 20 people have died in the accident.The accident took place when the boat,was about to reach the river bank. The boat was returning from a kite festival on the occasion of Makar Sankranti, a harvest festival. Meanwhile, the state police have launched a search operation for the missing people. The State government has announced compensation of Rs 4 lakh for the deceased.

Some persons swam to safety, while some families were complaining of missing members, the SP said adding, a search operation is on. District magistrate Sanjay Kumar Aggarwal and the SP have reached the spot.

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has expressed grief over the boat tragedy and ordered a probe.

The CM instructed principal secretary of Health R K Mahajan and the Patna district magistrate to ensure proper treatment of the victims of the boat tragedy. Kumar has also instructed Principal Secretary of Disaster Management Pratyay Amrit and deputy inspector general&nbsp;Shalin to supervise relief and rescue operations and has ordered Patna district administration to provide ex-gratia to the family of the deceased.

According to eye-witnesses, at least 50-60 people were aboard the small boat, which drowned only a few metres away from the bank. &ldquo;The incident took place just before sunset. While few people swam their way across to the bank, several were feared trapped under the boat,&rdquo; he said.

The toll figures were likely to rise as several people were still missing, till the time of filing the report. An eye-witness said around 4pm, the sandbar jetty, from where people were boarding the boats, got damaged because of which several people were stranded across the river.

About 10 injured were admitted to the Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) for treatment.

It may be mentioned that the Bihar government had organised a kite festival on the occasion of Makar Sankranti at the Sabbalpur bank off the NIT Ghat on Saturday. Such fests are being organised for the last several years by the state government at the venue.

Senior officials reached the spot for the rescue operations. Three NDRF teams of 130 personnel in all were also dispatched for the rescue ops late evening.

&nbsp;

(This report first appeared in DNA)

The boat was returning from a kite festival on the occasion of Makar Sankranti, a harvest festival

In a tragic incident, a boat capsized in the Ganga river near Patna in the northern Indian state of Bihar, According to ANI, at least 20 people have died in the accident.The accident took place when the boat,was about to reach the river bank. The boat was returning from a kite festival on the occasion of Makar Sankranti, a harvest festival. Meanwhile, the state police have launched a search operation for the missing people. The State government has announced compensation of Rs 4 lakh for the deceased. Some persons swam to safety, while some families were complaining of missing members, the SP said adding, a search operation is on. District magistrate Sanjay Kumar Aggarwal and the SP have reached the spot. Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has expressed grief over the boat tragedy and ordered a probe. The CM instructed principal secretary of Health R K Mahajan and the Patna district magistrate to ensure proper treatment of the victims of the boat tragedy. Kumar has also instructed Principal Secretary of Disaster Management Pratyay Amrit and deputy inspector general Shalin to supervise relief and rescue operations and has ordered Patna district administration to provide ex-gratia to the family of the deceased. According to eye-witnesses, at least 50-60 people were aboard the small boat, which drowned only a few metres away from the bank. “The incident took place just before sunset. While few people swam their way across to the bank, several were feared trapped under the boat,” he said. The toll figures were likely to rise as several people were still missing, till the time of filing the report. An eye-witness said around 4pm, the sandbar jetty, from where people were boarding the boats, got damaged because of which several people were stranded across the river. About 10 injured were admitted to the Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) for treatment. It may be mentioned that the Bihar government had organised a kite festival on the occasion of Makar Sankranti at the Sabbalpur bank off the NIT Ghat on Saturday. Such fests are being organised for the last several years by the state government at the venue. Senior officials reached the spot for the rescue operations. Three NDRF teams of 130 personnel in all were also dispatched for the rescue ops late evening. (This report first appeared in DNA)

India: At least 20 dead as boat capsizes in Ganga river near Patna

Having a face in the assembly elections in India is a basic necessity. Without this&nbsp;it becomes difficult for any political party to fight elections properly.

The BJP is repeating the mistake they made in Bihar&nbsp;by not projecting a chief ministerial candidate in Uttar Pradesh. Barring elections in Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand post 2014, where candidate projection was not done, all other state elections were a referendum on the working ability of a face backed by fine ticket distribution and solid social base. Even the three states mentioned above saw massive caste consolidation because of long anti-incumbency, which allowed BJP to canvass without an overarching face.

In Maharashtra it became a case of Maratha versus&nbsp;non Maratha, in Haryana it was a case of Jat versus&nbsp;non Jat, and in Jharkhand tribal versus&nbsp;non tribal was the ruling sentiment allowing Punjabi-Khatri, ML Khattar to become chief minister in Haryana, Fadnavis, a Brahmin and Raghubar Das a non-tribal to becomes chief minister of Maharashtra and Jharkhand respectively. In Delhi, BJP did give a face but outsourced it from the opponent hence losing the upper hand against Arvind Kejriwal of AAP who looked far more credible.

Coming back to Uttar Pradesh, BJP has decided not to project a particular face despite RSS wanting one. The reason is simple. BJP after Kalyan Singh has not been able to produce a big OBC leader who could carry along upper caste with traditional BJP voters.

Despite the fact that Samajwadi Party is going through an existential crisis where father and son are fighting each other to control the party, Akhilesh Yadav has emerged as a popular face. BJP has faces in UP, but none enough to be projected as prospective candidate. BJP doesn&rsquo;t trust Varun Gandhi, and Home Minister Rajnath Singh has not been sent keeping in mind the OBC clout in the north Indian politics.

Despite remaining committed to soft Hindutva by sporting issues like exodus of majority community from villages and beef controversy, BJP neither has a pan UP face nor a substantive issue around which to&nbsp;consolidate&nbsp;different social segments. Same is the case with the Congress, which is a junior player in Uttar Pradesh.

This leaves Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav in the fray who can associate governance with a face. Mayawati despite being a mascot of fine law and order, has remained aloof from UP politics, hence not been able to generate the&nbsp;verve&nbsp;necessary before&nbsp;elections. But she cannot be ruled out. Her campaign style remains different from that of BJP, Congress and SP. Her silent campaign was a surprise for many naysayers, even in 2007.

Akhilesh Yadav on the other hand got rid of his anti-incumbency by&nbsp;taking a stand&nbsp;on the issues of governance and induction of tainted leaders against his father and uncle&rsquo;s wish. &nbsp;

Even the bitter critics of Samajwadi Party would concede that Akhilesh today is being perceived as a leader rather than a mere inheritor. Even Indira Gandhi could only establish her leadership in the party after asserting herself electorally and organisationally.

Many argue that BJP could repeat 2014 by harnessing a majority vote to make the Muslim vote irrelevant in the elections. There lies the difference. It was a mandate for the challenger Narendra Modi who had captured people&rsquo;s imagination as a righteous leader. UP voted for a person who would rule India, hence caste lines broke under the euphoria. The assembly election in Uttar Pradesh will be constrained by caste equations and alliances if possible in the remaining time.

Even during Ram Temple agitation, Kalyan Singh, a Lodh remained an important face of BJP in the state. So for the BJP in Uttar Pradesh and AAP in Punjab to campaign without a face is a high gamble. All elections in India at regional levels are being fought on faces. Whether it was Jaya or presently, Nitish, Mamta, Karunanidhi, Chandra Shekhar Rao, Shivraj Chauhan or Raman Singh, faces provide a connect with the masses.

The face as a marker of policy has evolved further because instead of ideology the face becomes the&nbsp;brand dominating the whole political discourse. This is one hard reality BJP will not be able to escape in Uttar Pradesh. People would like to know as to who will stay with them.&nbsp;This is the reason why Uttar Pradesh will see a direct fight between high profile Akhilesh Yadav, with or without a cycle against a low profile campaign of Mayawati.

People will vote the face they can trust, and Uttar Pradesh will decide that face very soon.

(WION)

A face becomes more than a marker of a politician's policy, it becomes the?brand dominating the whole political discourse

Having a face in the assembly elections in India is a basic necessity. Without this it becomes difficult for any political party to fight elections properly. The BJP is repeating the mistake they made in Bihar by not projecting a chief ministerial candidate in Uttar Pradesh. Barring elections in Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand post 2014, where candidate projection was not done, all other state elections were a referendum on the working ability of a face backed by fine ticket distribution and solid social base. Even the three states mentioned above saw massive caste consolidation because of long anti-incumbency, which allowed BJP to canvass without an overarching face. In Maharashtra it became a case of Maratha versus non Maratha, in Haryana it was a case of Jat versus non Jat, and in Jharkhand tribal versus non tribal was the ruling sentiment allowing Punjabi-Khatri, ML Khattar to become chief minister in Haryana, Fadnavis, a Brahmin and Raghubar Das a non-tribal to becomes chief minister of Maharashtra and Jharkhand respectively. In Delhi, BJP did give a face but outsourced it from the opponent hence losing the upper hand against Arvind Kejriwal of AAP who looked far more credible. Coming back to Uttar Pradesh, BJP has decided not to project a particular face despite RSS wanting one. The reason is simple. BJP after Kalyan Singh has not been able to produce a big OBC leader who could carry along upper caste with traditional BJP voters. Despite the fact that Samajwadi Party is going through an existential crisis where father and son are fighting each other to control the party, Akhilesh Yadav has emerged as a popular face. BJP has faces in UP, but none enough to be projected as prospective candidate. BJP doesn’t trust Varun Gandhi, and Home Minister Rajnath Singh has not been sent keeping in mind the OBC clout in the north Indian politics. Despite remaining committed to soft Hindutva by sporting issues like exodus of majority community from villages and beef controversy, BJP neither has a pan UP face nor a substantive issue around which to consolidate different social segments. Same is the case with the Congress, which is a junior player in Uttar Pradesh. This leaves Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav in the fray who can associate governance with a face. Mayawati despite being a mascot of fine law and order, has remained aloof from UP politics, hence not been able to generate the verve necessary before elections. But she cannot be ruled out. Her campaign style remains different from that of BJP, Congress and SP. Her silent campaign was a surprise for many naysayers, even in 2007. Akhilesh Yadav on the other hand got rid of his anti-incumbency by taking a stand on the issues of governance and induction of tainted leaders against his father and uncle’s wish. Even the bitter critics of Samajwadi Party would concede that Akhilesh today is being perceived as a leader rather than a mere inheritor. Even Indira Gandhi could only establish her leadership in the party after asserting herself electorally and organisationally. Many argue that BJP could repeat 2014 by harnessing a majority vote to make the Muslim vote irrelevant in the elections. There lies the difference. It was a mandate for the challenger Narendra Modi who had captured people’s imagination as a righteous leader. UP voted for a person who would rule India, hence caste lines broke under the euphoria. The assembly election in Uttar Pradesh will be constrained by caste equations and alliances if possible in the remaining time. Even during Ram Temple agitation, Kalyan Singh, a Lodh remained an important face of BJP in the state. So for the BJP in Uttar Pradesh and AAP in Punjab to campaign without a face is a high gamble. All elections in India at regional levels are being fought on faces. Whether it was Jaya or presently, Nitish, Mamta, Karunanidhi, Chandra Shekhar Rao, Shivraj Chauhan or Raman Singh, faces provide a connect with the masses. The face as a marker of policy has evolved further because instead of ideology the face becomes the brand dominating the whole political discourse. This is one hard reality BJP will not be able to escape in Uttar Pradesh. People would like to know as to who will stay with them. This is the reason why Uttar Pradesh will see a direct fight between high profile Akhilesh Yadav, with or without a cycle against a low profile campaign of Mayawati. People will vote the face they can trust, and Uttar Pradesh will decide that face very soon. (WION)

In Indian politics, face matters

Preparations for a Buddhist ceremony, the 34th Kalachakra (Wheel of Time) ritual, have slacked due to a cash crunch in the holy city of Gaya in India&#39;s eastern Bihar province following the federal government&#39;s shock demonetisation move.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi`s sudden move to outlaw 86 per cent of cash in circulation on November 8 has caused huge disruptions to daily life, as well as affecting donations offered at various holy places.

The Kalachakra ritual, an esoteric but very important Buddhist rite for activating dormant enlightenment, is scheduled to take place from January 3-14. To mitigate the plight of cash strapped believers, the administration said it planned to take the help of banks.

&quot;As the prayers have not yet begun, so it is difficult to say. But whatever problem is faced due to the cash crunch, we can handle it. We have contacted the banks and I think we will be able to find a reasonable solution to it,&quot; said Gaya District Magistrate, Kumar Ravi on Tuesday.

Shopkeepers, however, have been disappointed by the forecast of a slump in business.

&quot;I think not even 20 per cent of the crowd which we were expecting will come for the Kalachakra prayer,&quot; said leader of Foothpath Shopkeepers Association, Noushad Alam.

Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, will begin the ceremony at the Mahabodhi temple followed by prayers.

With the cash economy estimated to account for a fifth of India&#39;s $2 trillion gross domestic product, Modi&#39;s demonetisation decision has disrupted the daily lives of hundreds of millions of Indians.

The move to demonetise the large bills was originally said to be&nbsp;designed to bring billions of dollars&#39;&nbsp;worth of cash in unaccounted wealth into the mainstream economy, as well as dent the finances of Islamist militants who target India and are suspected of using fake 500 rupee notes to fund operations.&nbsp;

Many now say demonetisation is an&nbsp;attempt to digitize India and help make it a<a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/banking/finance/banking/demonetisation-modi-govt-is-betting-its-future-on-digital-india-will-it-bear-good-results/articleshow/55969340.cms"> cashless economy.</a>

(Reuters)

The 34th Kalachakra ritual in the holy city of Gaya in India's eastern Bihar province has been impacted by the government's shocking move

Preparations for a Buddhist ceremony, the 34th Kalachakra (Wheel of Time) ritual, have slacked due to a cash crunch in the holy city of Gaya in India's eastern Bihar province following the federal government's shock demonetisation move. Prime Minister Narendra Modi`s sudden move to outlaw 86 per cent of cash in circulation on November 8 has caused huge disruptions to daily life, as well as affecting donations offered at various holy places. The Kalachakra ritual, an esoteric but very important Buddhist rite for activating dormant enlightenment, is scheduled to take place from January 3-14. To mitigate the plight of cash strapped believers, the administration said it planned to take the help of banks. "As the prayers have not yet begun, so it is difficult to say. But whatever problem is faced due to the cash crunch, we can handle it. We have contacted the banks and I think we will be able to find a reasonable solution to it," said Gaya District Magistrate, Kumar Ravi on Tuesday. Shopkeepers, however, have been disappointed by the forecast of a slump in business. "I think not even 20 per cent of the crowd which we were expecting will come for the Kalachakra prayer," said leader of Foothpath Shopkeepers Association, Noushad Alam. Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, will begin the ceremony at the Mahabodhi temple followed by prayers. With the cash economy estimated to account for a fifth of India's $2 trillion gross domestic product, Modi's demonetisation decision has disrupted the daily lives of hundreds of millions of Indians. The move to demonetise the large bills was originally said to be designed to bring billions of dollars' worth of cash in unaccounted wealth into the mainstream economy, as well as dent the finances of Islamist militants who target India and are suspected of using fake 500 rupee notes to fund operations. Many now say demonetisation is an attempt to digitize India and help make it a cashless economy. (Reuters)

Demonetisation: Cash crunch disrupts Buddhist ceremony

The Patna High Court in India&#39;s Bihar has struck down the Bihar Excise Amendment Act, which bans the sale of liquor across the eastern Indian state, calling it &#39;illegal&#39;, Indian news agency ANI reported today.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The Bihar government had instituted the Act to prevent the consumption of liquor in the state in April this year. The prohibition on country-made liquor was imposed on April 5, but it was later extended to Indian-made foreign liquor.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Nitish-Kumar led government further amended the law to allow action against people if liquor was found in their homes, irrespective of who consumed it. &nbsp;

&nbsp;

After Kerala, Gujarat and Nagaland, Bihar is the fourth Indian state to have&nbsp;imposed prohibition.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

India&#39;s top court dismissed the Bhartiya Janta Party (India&#39;s ruling party) leader&#39;s plea who sought for a blanket ban on access of liquor across the nation after finding &#39;no merit&#39; in his plea.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

(WION with inputs from ANI)

The court called the act, which banned the sale of liquor across the state and allowed action against people possessing it, 'illegal'

The Patna High Court in India's Bihar has struck down the Bihar Excise Amendment Act, which bans the sale of liquor across the eastern Indian state, calling it 'illegal', Indian news agency ANI reported today. The Bihar government had instituted the Act to prevent the consumption of liquor in the state in April this year. The prohibition on country-made liquor was imposed on April 5, but it was later extended to Indian-made foreign liquor. Nitish-Kumar led government further amended the law to allow action against people if liquor was found in their homes, irrespective of who consumed it. After Kerala, Gujarat and Nagaland, Bihar is the fourth Indian state to have imposed prohibition. India's top court dismissed the Bhartiya Janta Party (India's ruling party) leader's plea who sought for a blanket ban on access of liquor across the nation after finding 'no merit' in his plea. (WION with inputs from ANI)

India: Court strikes down anti-liquor act in Bihar

Eight more deaths were reported from the flooded region of India&#39;s&nbsp;Bihar, even as the waters from major rivers in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh are&nbsp;receding. 
 
One person died in West Bengal&#39;s Malda and another in Uttarakhand&#39;s&nbsp;Uttarkashi district due to the deluge. 
 
The death toll in Bihas has now touched 37, with 12 from Bhojpur district&nbsp;alone. 
 
The Ganga, Sone, Punpun, Burhi Gandak, Ghaghra, Kosi and other rivers have&nbsp;been overflowing for the last many days, affecting 31.33 lakh people in 1,934&nbsp;villages across 12 districts. 
 
Around 3.44 lakh people have been rescued so far, an official statement said. 
 
A Central Water Commission report said that relatively less amount of rainfall&nbsp;has made the situation slightly better now. 
 
Both the Ganga and Yamuna are seeing receding water levels in several&nbsp;districts now but they are still above the danger mark. 
 
The capital region of Delhi is experiencing light to heavy showers with high&nbsp;humidity. 
 
The flood waters have disrupted vehicular traffic and communication across&nbsp;several regions in the country. Boats were being pressed into service in the&nbsp;submerged areas to ferry the stranded people. 
 
(WION with inputs from agencies)

While river water levels in some regions is receding, they are still above the danger mark

Eight more deaths were reported from the flooded region of India's Bihar, even as the waters from major rivers in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh are receding. One person died in West Bengal's Malda and another in Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi district due to the deluge. The death toll in Bihas has now touched 37, with 12 from Bhojpur district alone. The Ganga, Sone, Punpun, Burhi Gandak, Ghaghra, Kosi and other rivers have been overflowing for the last many days, affecting 31.33 lakh people in 1,934 villages across 12 districts. Around 3.44 lakh people have been rescued so far, an official statement said. A Central Water Commission report said that relatively less amount of rainfall has made the situation slightly better now. Both the Ganga and Yamuna are seeing receding water levels in several districts now but they are still above the danger mark. The capital region of Delhi is experiencing light to heavy showers with high humidity. The flood waters have disrupted vehicular traffic and communication across several regions in the country. Boats were being pressed into service in the submerged areas to ferry the stranded people. (WION with inputs from agencies)

Floods claim 8 more lives in India's Bihar, water receding in some parts

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday assured his support&nbsp;in the rescue and relief operations in the flood-hit states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan and&nbsp;Madhya Pradesh. &quot;I pray for the safety and wellbeing of those in areas affected by floods in parts Uttar&nbsp;Pradesh, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh,&quot; the Prime Minister&#39;s Office tweeted. 
 
Prime&nbsp;Minister Modi said Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh is closely monitoring the situation, adding the latter&nbsp;has spoken to the Chief Ministers and taken stock of the rescue and relief operations. &quot;Centre assures total&nbsp;support in the rescue and relief operations. I hope the situation in the affected areas normalises at the earliest,&quot;&nbsp;he added.In Bihar, waters from various rivers were reported to be spreading to new areas in Bhojpur, Buxar,&nbsp;Munger, Bhagalpur and Khagaria districts.The low-lying areas of Patna, Vaishali and Saran districts are also&nbsp;reportedly under water. 
 
The flood-affected people have taken shelter in schools in Patna. The movement of&nbsp;trains has been stopped between Chapra and Balia because of submerged railway tracks at many places.The&nbsp;surging water of the Rivers Sone and Punpun has spread to the low lying areas of Jahanabad and Arwal&nbsp;districts.In Uttar Pradesh, the flood situation in the eastern parts is grim. River Ganga is rising in many places,&nbsp;including Allahabad and Varanasi.The army has been kept on standby to assist in the rescue and rehabilitation&nbsp;efforts in Allahabad.Both the Ganga and Yamuna Rivers are rising continuously in the district and the people&nbsp;have been told to vacate their homes and move to safer places.Over 100 villages are facing a critical flood&nbsp;situation in the district. So far, about 10,000 people have taken shelter in relief camps. 
 
The National Disaster&nbsp;Response Force (NDRF) is also engaged in Ballai and Banda districts after receiving information on rising&nbsp;water levels.Besides Allahabad, the water of river Ganga is reportedly rising in Varanasi, Ballia and Mirzapur&nbsp;districts, while the water of the Yamuna are rising trend in Banda, Mathura and Allahabad.After the release of&nbsp;water from the dam, the Betwa River is also on spate in Hamirpur district.Water levels are rising between two&nbsp;to three centimetres per hour.In Rajasthan, incessant rains in the south eastern districts have affected normal&nbsp;life. Several over bridges have been submerged in water, bringing road traffic on these routes to a grinding 
halt. 
 
A maximum of 26 centimetres of rainfall has been recorded at the Jakham Dam in the state&#39;s Pratapgarh&nbsp;district.Places like Nimbaheda, Badi Sadri and Bhadesar have received 22 centimeters of rainfall in the last 24&nbsp;hours.The districts of Chittorgarh, Baran, Dungarpur, Banswara and Jhalawar have also experienced good&nbsp;rainfall. 
 
An alert has been sounded in nearby areas of Chambal river in Karauli following an increase in water&nbsp;levels.In Madhya Pradesh, torrential rains have lashed western parts even as relief works have gained&nbsp;momentum in Bundelkhand and Vindhya regions.Normal life has been affected in Guna, Rajgarh, Shivpuri,&nbsp;Mandsour, Ujjain and other parts of western Madhya Pradesh. 
 
(ANI)

Rescue and relief operations have begun in the flood-hit states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan and?Madhya Pradesh

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday assured his support in the rescue and relief operations in the flood-hit states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. "I pray for the safety and wellbeing of those in areas affected by floods in parts Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh," the Prime Minister's Office tweeted. Prime Minister Modi said Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh is closely monitoring the situation, adding the latter has spoken to the Chief Ministers and taken stock of the rescue and relief operations. "Centre assures total support in the rescue and relief operations. I hope the situation in the affected areas normalises at the earliest," he added.In Bihar, waters from various rivers were reported to be spreading to new areas in Bhojpur, Buxar, Munger, Bhagalpur and Khagaria districts.The low-lying areas of Patna, Vaishali and Saran districts are also reportedly under water. The flood-affected people have taken shelter in schools in Patna. The movement of trains has been stopped between Chapra and Balia because of submerged railway tracks at many places.The surging water of the Rivers Sone and Punpun has spread to the low lying areas of Jahanabad and Arwal districts.In Uttar Pradesh, the flood situation in the eastern parts is grim. River Ganga is rising in many places, including Allahabad and Varanasi.The army has been kept on standby to assist in the rescue and rehabilitation efforts in Allahabad.Both the Ganga and Yamuna Rivers are rising continuously in the district and the people have been told to vacate their homes and move to safer places.Over 100 villages are facing a critical flood situation in the district. So far, about 10,000 people have taken shelter in relief camps. The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) is also engaged in Ballai and Banda districts after receiving information on rising water levels.Besides Allahabad, the water of river Ganga is reportedly rising in Varanasi, Ballia and Mirzapur districts, while the water of the Yamuna are rising trend in Banda, Mathura and Allahabad.After the release of water from the dam, the Betwa River is also on spate in Hamirpur district.Water levels are rising between two to three centimetres per hour.In Rajasthan, incessant rains in the south eastern districts have affected normal life. Several over bridges have been submerged in water, bringing road traffic on these routes to a grinding halt. A maximum of 26 centimetres of rainfall has been recorded at the Jakham Dam in the state's Pratapgarh district.Places like Nimbaheda, Badi Sadri and Bhadesar have received 22 centimeters of rainfall in the last 24 hours.The districts of Chittorgarh, Baran, Dungarpur, Banswara and Jhalawar have also experienced good rainfall. An alert has been sounded in nearby areas of Chambal river in Karauli following an increase in water levels.In Madhya Pradesh, torrential rains have lashed western parts even as relief works have gained momentum in Bundelkhand and Vindhya regions.Normal life has been affected in Guna, Rajgarh, Shivpuri, Mandsour, Ujjain and other parts of western Madhya Pradesh. (ANI)

Indian Prime Minister Modi assures Centre's support to flood-hit regions

Persistent rains inundated several villages and settlements in parts of India, leaving hundreds of people stranded in the deluge. 
 
In Allahabad city of northern Uttar Pradesh state, increased water levels of the Ganga river submerged several settlements on Sunday (August 21), forcing people to stay indoors. 
 
Hundreds of people remained stranded in the affected areas even as rescue officials tried to reach out to them through boats. 
 
Locals rued that local administration arrangements were not enough as they were now hit by food and water scarcity. 
 
&quot;Water levels are increasing rapidly and gradually residents are also getting worried and are not coming out of their houses. Many of the houses are submerged in water. People are stuck and so are animals, among whom many are dying. There are no arrangements here. Nothing much is happening. There are no arrangements. There are just boats ferrying people but there is no food or water here. There is no way to survive,&quot; said a local, Anuradha Tripathy. 
 
In Vadodara district of western Gujarat State, around 150 villages were inundated after officials released seawater from an upstream dam on Sunday. 
 
Officials have been closely monitoring the situation, keeping rescue teams on stand-by for carrying out evacuation operation, if the condition worsens. 
 
&quot;The water outflow from the Kadana dam is around 2.5-3 lakh cusecs. Water will keep receding. But based on the requirement we are still on alert in case a medical emergency surfaces in the Dabka village area, we will evacuate people from there,&quot; said a rescue official, Dharmendra Singh Rathod on Monday (August 22). 
 
State authorities had earlier asked the villagers to evacuate their houses before channeling seawater through the Kadana dam. People, however, refused to leave their houses, farmlands and animals, leaving them stranded. 
 
Flooding, an annual problem during the monsoon season, has been worsened by crumbling civic infrastructure, clogged drains and uncontrolled urban expansion in a country with a fast-growing population of 1.3 billion. 
 
The June-September monsoon has so far delivered at least four per cent higher rainfall than average. 
 
(Reuters)

Hundreds of people left stranded in the deluge are bracing for a food and water crisis

Persistent rains inundated several villages and settlements in parts of India, leaving hundreds of people stranded in the deluge. In Allahabad city of northern Uttar Pradesh state, increased water levels of the Ganga river submerged several settlements on Sunday (August 21), forcing people to stay indoors. Hundreds of people remained stranded in the affected areas even as rescue officials tried to reach out to them through boats. Locals rued that local administration arrangements were not enough as they were now hit by food and water scarcity. "Water levels are increasing rapidly and gradually residents are also getting worried and are not coming out of their houses. Many of the houses are submerged in water. People are stuck and so are animals, among whom many are dying. There are no arrangements here. Nothing much is happening. There are no arrangements. There are just boats ferrying people but there is no food or water here. There is no way to survive," said a local, Anuradha Tripathy. In Vadodara district of western Gujarat State, around 150 villages were inundated after officials released seawater from an upstream dam on Sunday. Officials have been closely monitoring the situation, keeping rescue teams on stand-by for carrying out evacuation operation, if the condition worsens. "The water outflow from the Kadana dam is around 2.5-3 lakh cusecs. Water will keep receding. But based on the requirement we are still on alert in case a medical emergency surfaces in the Dabka village area, we will evacuate people from there," said a rescue official, Dharmendra Singh Rathod on Monday (August 22). State authorities had earlier asked the villagers to evacuate their houses before channeling seawater through the Kadana dam. People, however, refused to leave their houses, farmlands and animals, leaving them stranded. Flooding, an annual problem during the monsoon season, has been worsened by crumbling civic infrastructure, clogged drains and uncontrolled urban expansion in a country with a fast-growing population of 1.3 billion. The June-September monsoon has so far delivered at least four per cent higher rainfall than average. (Reuters)

Incessant rains flood several parts of India

A woman from a community labelled as &quot;low-caste&quot; in India,&nbsp;was assaulted and forced to drink urine for allegedly practicing &#39;witchcraft&#39; by villagers in India&#39;s eastern&nbsp;Bihar&nbsp;state, police said on Saturday.

The incident took place on Thursday, when Aarti Devi was dragged out of her house and assaulted in Pipra village in Darbhanga district of the state by her neighbours. Two of her attackers also tried to force her drink their urine.

&quot;From (my) Chotapur &nbsp;house, I was dragged out. After that five people started beating me up. They dragged me out, beat me up for very long. Then Akhilesh and Santosh Yadav started forcing me to drink their urine, but I covered my mouth with my saree and kept it shut,&quot; Aarti Devi said on Saturday.

Police have registered a case against six members of a family and begun investigation.

&quot;On July 28 evening, a woman named Aarti Devi from Pipra village reported that she was tortured and beaten up for being a witch. In this incident, a case has been registered,&quot; said Benipur deputy superintendent of police, Anjani Kumar.

Scared for her life, Aarti has moved out of her village and has been living with her parents.&nbsp; 
 
The practice of witch-branding is common among tribal communities in India.&nbsp;Women can be accused of witchcraft following illnesses, deaths or poor crops.

Despite a slew of pro-poor policies, India&#39;s economic boom has largely bypassed its indigenous population, who make up more than eight&nbsp;per cent of the country&#39;s 1.2 billion population.&nbsp;Many inhabit remote villages, eking out a living from farming, cattle rearing and selling forest produce. 
 
(Reuters)

The practice of witch-branding is common among tribal communities in India, especially following illnesses, deaths or poor crops

A woman from a community labelled as "low-caste" in India, was assaulted and forced to drink urine for allegedly practicing 'witchcraft' by villagers in India's eastern Bihar state, police said on Saturday. The incident took place on Thursday, when Aarti Devi was dragged out of her house and assaulted in Pipra village in Darbhanga district of the state by her neighbours. Two of her attackers also tried to force her drink their urine. "From (my) Chotapur house, I was dragged out. After that five people started beating me up. They dragged me out, beat me up for very long. Then Akhilesh and Santosh Yadav started forcing me to drink their urine, but I covered my mouth with my saree and kept it shut," Aarti Devi said on Saturday. Police have registered a case against six members of a family and begun investigation. "On July 28 evening, a woman named Aarti Devi from Pipra village reported that she was tortured and beaten up for being a witch. In this incident, a case has been registered," said Benipur deputy superintendent of police, Anjani Kumar. Scared for her life, Aarti has moved out of her village and has been living with her parents. The practice of witch-branding is common among tribal communities in India. Women can be accused of witchcraft following illnesses, deaths or poor crops. Despite a slew of pro-poor policies, India's economic boom has largely bypassed its indigenous population, who make up more than eight per cent of the country's 1.2 billion population. Many inhabit remote villages, eking out a living from farming, cattle rearing and selling forest produce. (Reuters)

Woman branded 'witch' beaten up, forced to drink urine in Eastern India

Suspected Maoist rebels today killed 10 paramilitary commandos in the eastern Indian state of Bihar after ambushing their convoy in a forested area and setting off a series of bombs, in one of of the deadliest attacks this year. 
 
The Maoist rebels detonated homemade bombs on Monday afternoon as members of an elite police unit, the Central Reserve Police Force were conducting an anti-Maoist operation in the dense forests.&nbsp; 
 
The force was responding to a tip-off that a group of rebels had gathered at the top of a hill in the remote forest in Aurangabad district bordering Jharkhand state, when they found themselves trapped at lower ground.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;The police party had almost 100 troops. The first group got trapped in an area of land mines and there were serial blasts. The terrain is very difficult there and the extremists were on higher ground,&quot; detailed P.K. Thakur, the state&#39;s director general of police. 
 
The Maoists triggered improvised explosions were followed by a gun battle between the CRPF forces and the rebels that lasted well into the night.&nbsp; 
 
Thakur said eight police died on the spot in the ambush and two more men succumbed to their injuries on the way to hospital. The five wounded officers were evacuated by helicopter. 
 
The CRPF gunned down at least three rebels in the subsequent gunfight before the Maoists fled deeper into the forests.&nbsp; 
 
Police and paramilitary reinforcements were rushed to the area but the operation was later called off.&nbsp; 
&quot;We called off the operation late at night as we suspect more mines were planted in the area,&quot; Saurabh Kumar, deputy inspector general of police in the region told. 
 
Police were investigating whether the commandos were drawn into the forest by a false tipoff about Maoist movements in the area. 
 
State struggles&nbsp;with decades of insurgency&nbsp; 
 
In December 2014, Maoists killed 13 police and wounded another 12 in an ambush in a remote part of Chhattisgarh. The troops were carrying out an operation deep in a forest when the gunmen attacked. 
 
Maoist insurgents seeking the violent overthrow of the Indian state have been fighting for decades, launching hit-and-run attacks against security forces from jungle camps across swathes of poor and rural central and eastern India. 
 
Tens of thousands of paramilitary troops and police are stationed in central and eastern India, fighting thousands of armed insurgents. 
 
The number of attacks has fallen in recent years but the Maoists, who say they are fighting to free the poor and landless from exploitation of their land, continue to enjoy some support among the poor and violence remains common. 
 
According to the South Asia Terrorism Portal, left-wing extremist violence has left 236 people dead this year, almost the same as for the whole of 2015. Almost half of the dead have been killed in mineral-rich Chhattisgarh. 
 
The Maoist rebels claim to be fighting for jobs, land and other rights for mainly tribal minorities who suffer grinding poverty. 
 
The rebels regularly launch attacks on security personnel in dozens of districts in the so-called &quot;Red Corridor&quot; which stretches through the country. 
 
The insurgency has claimed thousands of lives, and the government describes it as the country&#39;s most serious internal security threat.&nbsp; 
 
(AFP)

The country's Maoist insurgency has claimed thousands of lives and the government describes it as the most serious internal security threat

Suspected Maoist rebels today killed 10 paramilitary commandos in the eastern Indian state of Bihar after ambushing their convoy in a forested area and setting off a series of bombs, in one of of the deadliest attacks this year. The Maoist rebels detonated homemade bombs on Monday afternoon as members of an elite police unit, the Central Reserve Police Force were conducting an anti-Maoist operation in the dense forests. The force was responding to a tip-off that a group of rebels had gathered at the top of a hill in the remote forest in Aurangabad district bordering Jharkhand state, when they found themselves trapped at lower ground. "The police party had almost 100 troops. The first group got trapped in an area of land mines and there were serial blasts. The terrain is very difficult there and the extremists were on higher ground," detailed P.K. Thakur, the state's director general of police. The Maoists triggered improvised explosions were followed by a gun battle between the CRPF forces and the rebels that lasted well into the night. Thakur said eight police died on the spot in the ambush and two more men succumbed to their injuries on the way to hospital. The five wounded officers were evacuated by helicopter. The CRPF gunned down at least three rebels in the subsequent gunfight before the Maoists fled deeper into the forests. Police and paramilitary reinforcements were rushed to the area but the operation was later called off. "We called off the operation late at night as we suspect more mines were planted in the area," Saurabh Kumar, deputy inspector general of police in the region told. Police were investigating whether the commandos were drawn into the forest by a false tipoff about Maoist movements in the area. State struggles with decades of insurgency In December 2014, Maoists killed 13 police and wounded another 12 in an ambush in a remote part of Chhattisgarh. The troops were carrying out an operation deep in a forest when the gunmen attacked. Maoist insurgents seeking the violent overthrow of the Indian state have been fighting for decades, launching hit-and-run attacks against security forces from jungle camps across swathes of poor and rural central and eastern India. Tens of thousands of paramilitary troops and police are stationed in central and eastern India, fighting thousands of armed insurgents. The number of attacks has fallen in recent years but the Maoists, who say they are fighting to free the poor and landless from exploitation of their land, continue to enjoy some support among the poor and violence remains common. According to the South Asia Terrorism Portal, left-wing extremist violence has left 236 people dead this year, almost the same as for the whole of 2015. Almost half of the dead have been killed in mineral-rich Chhattisgarh. The Maoist rebels claim to be fighting for jobs, land and other rights for mainly tribal minorities who suffer grinding poverty. The rebels regularly launch attacks on security personnel in dozens of districts in the so-called "Red Corridor" which stretches through the country. The insurgency has claimed thousands of lives, and the government describes it as the country's most serious internal security threat. (AFP)

Maoist ambush in east India kills 10 police commandos

At least 67 people have been killed by lightning in India over the past two days, disaster management officials said today, as the annual monsoon rains sweep the country. 
 
Lightning strikes are relatively common in India during the June-October monsoon, which hit the southern coast earlier this month, but this week&#39;s toll is particularly high. 
 
An overnight storm in the eastern Indian state of Bihar killed at least 47 people and injured another 22, mostly in rural areas. 
 
&quot;We have confirmation of 47 deaths and fear the toll may go up as reports are pouring in from other districts,&quot; Anirudh Kumar, a senior official at Bihar`s diaster management agency, told AFP.&nbsp; 
 
Authorities in the neighbouring state of Uttar Pradesh said 20 people were killed over two days. 
 
Lightning kills thousands of Indians every year, most of them farmers working in the fields. 
 
More than 2,500 people were killed by lightning in India in 2014 according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), the most recent figures available. 
 
(AFP)

Over two days at least 47 have died in the Indian state of Bihar and 20 in Uttar Pradesh

At least 67 people have been killed by lightning in India over the past two days, disaster management officials said today, as the annual monsoon rains sweep the country. Lightning strikes are relatively common in India during the June-October monsoon, which hit the southern coast earlier this month, but this week's toll is particularly high. An overnight storm in the eastern Indian state of Bihar killed at least 47 people and injured another 22, mostly in rural areas. "We have confirmation of 47 deaths and fear the toll may go up as reports are pouring in from other districts," Anirudh Kumar, a senior official at Bihar`s diaster management agency, told AFP. Authorities in the neighbouring state of Uttar Pradesh said 20 people were killed over two days. Lightning kills thousands of Indians every year, most of them farmers working in the fields. More than 2,500 people were killed by lightning in India in 2014 according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), the most recent figures available. (AFP)

Lightning strikes kill at least 67 as monsoon sweeps India

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