Cyclone Fani claims 3 lives; 3 militants killed in encounter in Shopian

Cyclone Fani expected to trigger heavy rains; claims 3 lives

As cyclone Fani is expected to trigger heavy rains in the northeast after hitting West Bengal, the Assam government on Friday (May 3) directed all district deputy commissioners and agencies concerned to be on alert and take necessary measures to deal with the situation. The Central Water Commission, in a bulletin, has forecast high rainfall in west and central Assam districts on May 4 and 5. According to a release by the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), state disaster response force (SDRF) personnel have been deployed in 40 locations across the state. Three people were killed in separate incidents as cyclone Fani battered the Odisha coast Friday, officials said. The extremely severe cyclonic storm made landfall at around 8 am in Puri but thanks to enough advance warning, about 11 lakh people had already been evacuated from vulnerable and low-lying areas of at least 11 coastal districts of Odisha by Thursday (May 2). The Union Health Ministry on Friday (May 3) announced cancellation of Bhubaneswar as a centre for the AIIMS PG 2019 examination due to cyclone Fani. According to sources, a part of the roof of a building at AIIMS Bhubaneswar was also ripped off in the cyclonic storm, but all students, staff and patients were learnt to be safe. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said over ₹1,000 crore had been released in advance for the states affected by cyclone Fani.

Cong-JD(S) imposing “emergency like situation” in Karnataka: BJP

Accusing the Karnataka government of imposing an “emergency” like situation in the state, the opposition BJP has asked it to focus on governance, instead of randomly arresting people in the name of some “ridiculed strange act.””Dear Karnataka government, random arrest of people in the name of some ridiculed strange act, won’t help you. Please focus on governance. And do the needful. #EmergencyInKarnataka” Karnataka BJP said in a tweet. The BJP’s attack on the government is seen as a reaction to the arrest of a journalist of a web portal and another person here for allegedly circulating fake news and a morphed photo of Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy and a Kannada actress.

Three militants killed in encounter in Shopian

Three unidentified militants were on Friday (May 3) killed in an encounter with security forces in poll-bound Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir, the Army said. An encounter broke out between militants and security forces in the Imam Sahib area of Shopian following a cordon and search operation in the early hours, an Army official said. He said initially a brief exchange of firing took place between the two sides, prompting the security forces to strengthen the cordon to prevent the militants from escaping.

TN govt orders ‘pujas’ in temples to get rain

An ensemble of mellifluous ragas like Amrithavarshini, Meghavarshini, Kedar, Ananda Bhairavi, and Rupa Kalyani seems to be a curated list for a Carnatic concert. But make no mistake, the Tamil Nadu government is all out to propitiate the gods with mellifluous music and more to get some precious rain. The principal secretary, HR&CE Department, Tamil Nadu Government, has sent out a circular, dated April 26, to all temples under it to conduct pujas and other rituals to the accompaniment of music to get rain.

Fire breaks out on sets of Chiranjeevi’s film, none injured

A fire broke out on the sets of actor Chiranjeevi’s upcoming historical Telugu movie Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy here on Friday (May 3) but no one was injured, officials said. Fire department personnel brought the blaze under control. A set resembling a fort, built near Gandipet Lake, was gutted, they said, adding that no one was present at the spot at the time. “We received a call at around 5.30 am, nobody was injured in the accident. Loss of damage has not yet been estimated,” a fire department official said.

Delhi-based photojournalist covering Sri Lanka blasts held for trespassing

An India-based photo journalist, who was in Sri Lanka to cover the aftermath of Easter Sunday bombings, was arrested by Sri Lankan police for alleged unauthorised entry into a school. Siddiqui Ahamad Danish, who works for Reuters news agency and is based in New Delhi, was arrested when he allegedly attempted to forcibly enter a school in Negombo city to speak to its authorities. He was arrested on the charges of unauthorised entry and was later remanded by the Negombo magistrate till May 15, police said.

Actor Peter Mayhew, Chewbacca in Star Wars saga, dead at 74

Actor Peter Mayhew, who won over fans worldwide as the Wookiee warrior Chewbacca in the blockbuster Star Wars movies, has died at the age of 74, his family announced on Thursday (May 2). Mayhew died on Tuesday (May 1) at his home in Texas, surrounded by loved ones, the family said in a statement released on the actors Twitter account.