Tag: Odisha

Mobile thief caught in Bhubaneswar, beaten up

Bhubaneswar: A man has been caught in Bhubaneswar on Saturday for stealing mobile phones late at night from various houses, said reliable reports.

He used to steal mobile phone on a regular basis sometimes through windows and sometimes through the terrace.

The local people overpowered a young man who was trying to rob a mobile phone. They tied him to an electric pole an beat him black and blue.

The incident took place in Nayapalli area in Bhubaneswar.

It is worth mentioning that as many as six mobiles have been seized from him at the scene of the incident. He confessed that he stole 20 mobiles and sold them elsewhere.

The locals immediately informed the Nayapalli police. The police arrived and took the accused to the police station.

The Nayapalli police further informed that that he was not the member of a gang, but a solo operating robber.

June 10, 2023
Yet again, goods train catches fire in Odisha!

Balasore: A fire broke out in a goods train yet again in Odisha. A fire broke out in Jaleshwar under Balasore district of Odisha on Saturday.

This incident has been reported from Rupsa station of South Eastern Railway. A fire allegedly broke out while the coal-laden goods wagon was standing at the station.

While the cause of the fire is unclear, the Balasore Fire Department has reached the spot and is trying to douse the fire.

An investigation has been started by the railways as to how the fire started.

The passengers of the Durg-Puri Express were left panic-stricken near Khariar Road Station of Odisha’s Nuapada district on June 9, 2023 evening after a minor fire was reported in the train.

According to sources, the brake pads of the AC coach of Puri-Durg Express caught fire due to certain glitches in the brake shoe.

Trouble seems to have been mounting on the railway department as accidents in trains seem to have become frequent with each passing day.

The recent tragic three-train mishap i Bahanaga station of balasore district in Odisha still haunts people. It is worth mentioning that the incident that took place on June 2, 2023 (Friday) was gut wrenching and as many as 288 people lost their lives, more than 1000 were injured.

June 10, 2023
Man kills minor son after family dispute in Rourkela

Rourkela: In a shocking incident, a man allegedly killed his son following a family dispute in Odisha’s Sundargarh district. The incident has come to the fore from Sitalpada Basti of Rourkela in the district.

According to sources, the man had a quarrel with his wife, following which his wife left the house. In a fit of rage, he allegedly killed his 5-year-old son and hanged his body.

The locals spotted the body of the minor and immediately informed the police about it.

After receiving information about the matter, police reached the spot, recovered the body, and sent it for autopsy. They also detained the accused and are interrogating him presently.

Further detailed reports related to the case are awaited.

June 10, 2023
Bhubaneswar records 30 Degrees at 5:30 am

Bhubaneswar: Unbearable heat has affected normal life in the capital city of Odisha. On Saturday, Bhubaneswar recorded 30.2 degrees Celsius at 5.30 am. The humidity touched 96% at the same time.
On the other hand, the regional center of the Indian Meteorological Department in Bhubaneswar has issued a heatwave alert for nine districts of Odisha.The nine districts including Balangir, Boudh, Jharsuguda, Sambalpur, Bargarh, Sonepur, Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj, and Sundargarh will experience a peak in mercury levels. The temperature in these districts is likely to go above 40 degrees Celcius.

Southwest Monsoon has set in over Kerala on June 8, 2023, likely to reach Odisha by June 12, 2023, informed the MeT Department.

Southwest Monsoon has advanced into the remaining parts of the south Arabian Sea and some parts of the central Arabian Sea, the entire Lakshadweep area, most parts of Kerala, most parts of south Tamil Nadu, the remaining parts of Comorin area, Gulf of Mannar and some more parts of southwest, central and northeast Bay of Bengal on that is June 8, 2023.

Thus, Southwest Monsoon has set in over Kerala today, June 8, 2023, against the normal date of June 1. During the past 24 hours, clouding has increased over the Southeast Arabian Sea. The depth of westerly winds over the Southeast Arabian Sea extends up to middle tropospheric levels. The strength of Westerly winds in the lower levels has increased and is about 19 knots.

June 10, 2023
Odisha train mishap: Rescue team battling possible PTSD

Bhubaneswar: The rescue teams from NDRF, ODRAF, and Fire Services encountered horrific scenes of blood, headless bodies, and bodies without limbs while undertaking one of the most critical rescue operations after the deadly train mishap at Bahanaga in Balasore.

The incident was so heart-wrenching that it left even the firefighters in trauma. This horrific rescue operation tested their mental strength.

“The scenes of that night when we reached the accident spot still haunt me. I usually dream of dead bodies and a lady’s body which did not have limbs below her torso. I could not sleep the whole night,” said Anand Patra, a firefighter.

“I am afraid to go into the dark now. The horrific scenes of that night make me weary of the darkness. I even smell the blood and see the headless bodies in my sleep. I am sleeping with lights on in the night,” said another firefighter.

“These things get stuck in our minds which make us uneasy later. This is an occupational hazard. We have to deal with it. So, these people need to take counseling after such a horrific mission,” said Rasa Bihari Mohanty, Former Fire Officer.

Following this, a Psychiatrist said, “If the rescuers are seeing flashbacks of blood, severed head and limbs on a regular basis and are getting unusually anxious, then it can be Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). If they are diagnosed with PTSD then they need to get immediate medical counseling.”

June 10, 2023
Odisha CM Drops Higher Education Minister, Shifts Secretary

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Friday dropped higher education minister Rohit Pujari from the council of ministers and shifted department secretary Bishnupada Sethi to an inconsequential post, sources in the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said on Friday.

Officials said that Patnaik assigned Pujari’s department to food and supplies minister Atanu S Nayak.

Hours after dropping Pujari, the government also transferred Bishnupoada Sethi, IAS, from the post of secretary for higher education and posted him as an Officer of Special Duty (OSD) in the General Administration department, considered a not so important job.

Sethi, was also removed from his additional charge as chairman of the Odisha Hydro Power Corporation (OHPC). He was replaced by another IAS officer Aravind Aagrwal.

The action against the minister and the department secretary, sources, said was mainly due to non-performance of the higher education department. Patnaik, who reviewed the performance of all the departments from May 22 to June 2, found higher education department to be the worst performer.

Pujari, a two-time MLA, said, “I have given my best for the improvement of the higher education department. I do not know, the government might be expecting more. I will do whatever work is assigned to me by the party.”

The MLA, a prominent leader from the state’s western region, was recently in the news after he said politicians above 60 years should remain away from politics.

A lawmaker from Rairakhol, Pujari was inducted in June last year.

Earlier in May this year during a minor reshuffle, the chief minister had asked school and mass education minister Samir Ranjan Dash and labour minister Srikant Sahoo to resign. Two new ministers, Sudam Marndi and Sarada Prasad Nayak, were inducted in place of Dash and Sahoo.

B K Arukha, who had resigned from the post of Speaker, was also inducted in the Cabinet and given finance portfolio.

With Pujari being dropped, the ministry’s strength now stands at 21 including the chief minister.

-With PTI Input

June 9, 2023
2 Home Guards, Gram Rakhi Among Five Arrested For Looting Rs 1.15 Lakh In Odisha

Bhubaneswar: Two home guards and a ‘gram rakhi’ are among the five arrested for allegedly looting Rs 1.15 lakh cash from two persons, hailing from Andhra Pradesh, in Odisha’s Koraput district.

The incident took place on Thursday when the two persons, Kamedi TT Babu and Bisoyi Bhimdhar, from Andhra Pradesh were reportedly on their way to Jeypore to buy a power tiller. Due to excess heat, they decided to make a halt at a rest shed. As they were resting, the five accused reached the spot in a car, assaulted them and snatched all their money. The accused also tried to run the vehicle over the duo as they made efforts to stop them, sources said.

“This was definitely a challenging task and very saddening at the same time. Of the five accused, three are our staff. The two other accused are local criminals who were previously involved in ganja smuggling, extortion and loots,” Nandapur SDPO Sanjay Mahapatra told the media.

He said that the entry and exit points were blocked and the five were nabbed after a chase. Three mobile phones and Rs 80,000 were seized from them, he added.

The accused home guards, Damrudhan Majhi and Arjun Pangi, are currently deployed at Padua police station in Koraput district. The gram rakhi has been identified as Nilakantha Pangi.

The mastermind of the gang is a former samiti member, sources added.

June 9, 2023
Casting Couch Slur Rocks Odisha Film Industry As Producer Sanjay Nayak & Actresses Prakruti & Jasmine Trade Charges; Check Chats

Bhubaneswar: Ghost of the casting couch returned to haunt Ollywood after WhatsApp conversations between actresses Prakruti Mishra, Jasmine Rath and other artists, in which they accused producer Sanjay Nayak aka Tutu Nayak of exploiting newcomers, went viral on Friday.

Sharing her experience, Jasmine told the media that she was thrown out of a project for refusing to meet Tutu Nayak at a club in Bhubaneswar. “I had a professional meeting with him about 4-6 months and he was worried how I would be able to manage dates since I was doing a serial and was under contract. They then asked me to join at a club. Since it was already 10 pm and I was shooting for Manoj Mishra’s ‘Hi Krushan’, I declined. My friend, who is also his relative, called to assure him that there would be no problem. He was also the associate producer of the show I was doing and was therefore managing my dates,” she said while responding to the producer’s press brief in which he alleged that she lacked professionalism and asked her boyfriend to contact him on dates.

Jasmine further alleged that this had hurt his ego and he went on a character assassination drive against her because of which she lost some more movies for which discussions were on.

June 9, 2023
Odisha Train Tragedy: School Doubling Up As Morgue To Be Reconstructed Under 5T Initiative

Bhubaneswar: The 65-year-old Bahanaga High School in Odisha’s Balasore district, where bodies of train accident victims were kept, will be completely demolished and reconstructed under the 5T initiative of the Odisha government, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik announced on Friday.

The decision was taken after Chief Secretary Pradeep Jena, 5T Secretary VK Pandian, and other concerned officials held meeting with Balasore Collector Dattatraya Bhausaheb Shinde, members of the school managing committee, panchayat representatives, teachers and students via videoconferencing to seek their opinion in this regard.

The demolition work started this morning in the presence of school managing committee members and Works Department authorities.

Students and teachers had expressed reluctance to attend school, where classrooms and the hall were used to line up the bodies, many of them disfigured, despite those being cleaned and sanitised by Fire Service personnel with memories of nightmarish experience of the tragedy deeply entrenched in their minds. With locals alleging that the rooms still had bloodstains at some places, the authorities feared that the school might see zero attendance once it reopened after summer vacation.

“Considering children’s mental health, a decision was taken in the meeting to demolish Bahanga Bazar High School and the primary and elementary schools in its vicinity. It will be developed into a model school under 5T initiative,” Pandian said.

Awareness programmes will also be conducted for the students to eradicate their fear regarding the building.

Notably, bodies of Bahanaga Bazar train accident victims were shifted to the school immediately after being retrieved from the mangled coaches. Those were later were relocated to a spacious building on the outskirts of Balasore town. Later the unidentified corpses were shifted to morgues in Bhubaneswar-based hospitals.

June 9, 2023
Salluja Is Odisha Cong Disciplinary Panel Chairman; Meenakshi Bahinipati Removed As Koraput Dist Chief

Bhubaneswar: Ahead of the twins poll, the Congress on Friday removed Meenakshi Bahinipati, wife of Jeypore MLA Tara Prasad Bahinipati, as president of Koraput district Congress committee.

Durga Sankar Sahu, who would replace her, is among the 10 new districts presidents appointed by the grand old party.

DCC PRESIDENTS

1. Nuapada – Suresh Kumar Ajad
2. Keonjhar – Mohan Parida
3. Puri – Jairam Pattanaik
4. Bhadrak – Ashok Das
5. Angul – Sangram Mishra
6. Sambalpur – Asif Ali Khan
7. Sundargarh – Danardan Dehury
8. Koraput – Durga Sankar Sahu
9. Rayagada – Bijoy Kumar Gomango
10. Deogarh – Sem Hembram

Last month, 12 zilla parishad members, block Congress presidents and the chairman of Jeypore municipality met state Congress president Sarat Pattanayak in Bhubaneswar, opposing any move to replace Meenakshi Bahinipati, stating that it could harm the party’s prospects in the upcoming Lok Sabha and assembly elections, which are less than a year away.

Notably, reports of cracks in the Koraput unit of the Congress have been doing the rounds for quite some time. The alleged rift between the 4-time Jeypore MLA and debutant Koraput MP Saptagiri Sankar Ulaka came to the fore again when the former recently expressed his displeasure over his wife being inducted as a PCC secretary, as it suggested her removal from the post of district Congress president, and hinted at Ulaka’s role in it.

The Congress president also approved the proposal for appointment of Chairpersons of various committees, and constitution of the Disciplinary Action Committee of Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee, said a release issued by All India Congress Committee.

AICC Programme Implementation Committee
Jagneswar Babu – Chairman

Publicity and Publication Committee
Sanjay Tripathy – Chairman

Manifesto Committee
Panchanan Kanungo – Chairman

Disciplinary Action Committee
Santosh Singh Salluja – Chairman
Janaki Ballav Pattanaik – Convenor
Bhujabala Majhi – Member
Rajendra Chhatria – Member
Debendra Sahoo – Member
Pratima Mallik – Member

June 9, 2023