Tag: Gujarat

  • Monsoon spells to be unleashed all over country

    Monsoon spells to be unleashed all over country

    The meteorological department has predicted rain in different cities today.

    Rain may occur in some parts of Karachi, Islamabad, Lahore, Gujarat, Faisalabad, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa today, as per the weather department.

    Battered with heat, Karachi is expected to receive rain this evening. Drizzling is expected in other areas of Sindh, such as Umarkot, Tharparkar, Mirpurkhas, Mithi, Sanghar, Thatta, Badin, and Sjawal are also likely.

    The Meteorological Department reported that the highest rainfall was recorded yesterday (Sunday)at Old Airport, around 20 mm, while 11 mm was recorded at Sarjani Town and 9.4 mm at Jinnah Terminal. Ten mm of rain was recorded on University Road, 7 mm on Shaara Faisal, 6.5 mm on Hassan Square, 2.5 mm on PAF Base Masrur, and 0.8 mm on North Karachi.

    Rain is also likely to descend in Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir today.

    The Provincial Disaster Management Authority has predicted the fourth spell of monsoon to start in Punjab from today, while south Punjab is likely to experience cloudy skies from tomorrow.

  • No India: Anant Ambani, Radhika Merchant set to marry in London

    No India: Anant Ambani, Radhika Merchant set to marry in London

    The pre-wedding celebrations of Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant in Jamnagar, Gujarat, caught the world’s attention, and some couldn’t believe that it wasn’t the actual wedding. Now, all eyes are on what the Ambanis will do next. But unexpectedly, throwing a curveball to India, the Ambanis have decided to have the marriage in England instead of their home country.

    According to recent reports, the couple will tie the knot at the Stoke Park estate in London. While some festivities might still happen in Mumbai, the main ‘I do’s’ will happen in The King’s land.
    With Nita Ambani overseeing every detail, preparations are in full swing. Invitations have already been sent out to Bollywood stars, ensuring a star-studded celebration.
    Like the extravagant pre-wedding celebrations in Jamnagar, guests can expect luxurious arrangements and a strict dress code for the London ceremony.

  • ‘Pakistan was prepared but largely spared the full force of Cyclone Biparjoy’: Senator Sherry Rehman

    ‘Pakistan was prepared but largely spared the full force of Cyclone Biparjoy’: Senator Sherry Rehman

    Cyclone Biparjoy made landfall in India’s Gujarat on Thursday, largely sparing the coastal areas of Sindh in Pakistan. Due to swift evacuations ordered by Senator Sherry Rehman and executed by army forces, the inundated areas saw no loss of human lives.

    Forecasted to be hit hardest by the storm was the fishing port of Keti Bandar. According to an official from the Sindh provincial irrigation department, Keti Bandar suffered “zero damage”. Some shops have reopened in the city as intruding seawater has started receding. Fishermen have gradually started returning to Keti Bandar, anxious to make up for the several days of lost income.

    Biparjoy made landfall as a Category 1 cyclone, after weakening from its initial Category 3 status while it was in the Arabian Sea. Biparjoy further weakened into a cyclonic storm and was expected to become a depression by Friday evening, according to the Pakistan Meteorological Department.

    Life in Sindh is returning to normal, said Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah. Shops and markets have gradually reopened in Thatta and Karachi Commissioner ordered the resumption of examinations and other education-related activities from June 17.

    The authorities also lifted the ban on going out into the sea.

    However, fishermen were advised to refrain from venturing out into the open sea until the system ends on Saturday (today).

  • Cyclone Biparjoy makes landfall in Gujarat, 125km from Keti Bandar

    Cyclone Biparjoy makes landfall in Gujarat, 125km from Keti Bandar

    The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has said that Cyclone Biparjoy made landfall at 7pm on Thursday evening along the coast of western Indian state Gujarat, 125km southwest of Sindhi port Keti Bandar.

    According to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center, Biparjoy was equivalent to a strong tropical storm with winds of 100 kph at landfall.

    However the storm has weakened from a ‘very severe’ category to ‘severe’ as it moved northward in the early hours of Friday. The dangers of winds and storm surge are expected to diminish.

    Experts worry flooding will become the most significant factor for millions of people over the next 48 hours. The Pakistani meteorological department warned of widespread dust storms and thunderstorms in the southern Sindh province, with some very heavy rain and winds of 80-100 kph.

    The Impact of Biparjoy:

    India and Pakistan evacuated more than 170, 000 people along the coast in fear of Biparjoy. No cyclone-related deaths have been reported as yet.

    However, there has been a trail of destruction left behind in the wake of heavy wind and rain. In Gujarat, more than 500 trees have been uprooted and nearly 3500 electric poles collapsed due to Biparjoy.

    The storm is expected to weaken first to a cyclonic storm and then to a depression over Southern Rajasthan by today’s evening.

  • ‘Give me back my right to live,’ Indian Muslim woman Bilkis Bano fearful after release of 11 men who gang-raped her

    ‘Give me back my right to live,’ Indian Muslim woman Bilkis Bano fearful after release of 11 men who gang-raped her

    Bilkis Bano, an Indian Muslim woman who was gang-raped in the 2002 Gujarat riots, said that her peace has been taken away after the Gujarat government released her 11 rapists on Monday. Her rapists were released on August 15, i.e. Independence Day of India. They were convicted in 2008.

    https://twitter.com/Huda_asiana/status/1559476323852099584

    She has requested the government to reverse the decision.

    “How can justice for any woman end like this? I trusted the highest courts in our land. I trusted the system, and I was learning slowly to live with my trauma. The release of these convicts has taken from me my peace and shaken my faith in justice,” said Bilkis in her statement.

    “My sorrow and my wavering faith are not for myself alone but for every woman who is struggling for justice in courts,” she added.

    “No one enquired about my safety and well-being, before taking such a big and unjust decision… Give me back my right to live without fear and in peace. Please ensure that my family and I are kept safe.”

    What happened with Bilkis Bano?

    At the age of 21, Bilkis Bano was five months pregnant when she was brutally gang-raped in 2002 in Gujarat.

    The 2002 Gujarata riots are considered one of the worst anti-Muslim riots in India that saw nearly 2,000 people — mostly Muslims — killed.

    On March 3, 2002, Bilkis and her family members were attacked by about 30 people armed with sickles, swords, and sticks. Among the attackers were the 11 accused men.

    Bilkis, her mother, and three other women were raped and brutally assaulted. Seven members of Bilkis Bano’s family, including her three-year-old daughter, were also murdered.

    Bilkis is now in her 40s.

  • Gang caught running fake IPL to scam Russian gamblers

    Gang caught running fake IPL to scam Russian gamblers

    In a betting fraud similar to the 1973 movie The Sting, a gang staged a phony “Indian Premier League” competition with farmers serving as the participants.

    Before Indian police broke the scheme, the so-called “Indian Premier Cricket League” advanced to the quarterfinal round.

    Police claim that the tournament started three weeks after the original IPL ended in May, but that did not stop the gang, which they claim rented a secluded farm in the western state of Gujarat.

    According to Insp. Bhavesh Rathod, they set up a cricket field replete with “boundary lines and halogen lamps.” In addition, the accused had mounted high-definition cameras to the ground and employed computer-generated graphics to show results on a live-streaming screen.

    The group allegedly paid unemployed youth and labourers Rs1,054 (£4.20) per game to broadcast the matches live on the “IPL” YouTube channel.

    According to the authorities, players followed the orders of the “Russia-based mastermind” and alternately wore the jerseys of the Gujarat Titans, Mumbai Indians, and Chennai Super Kings.

    To give the competition an authentic feel, crowd noise sound effects were downloaded from the internet and a speaker with a talent for impersonating an Indian commentator from the real IPL was employed, according to Fox Sports.

    The cameraman simultaneously made cautious not to show the full field, beaming close-ups of the players instead.

    Russian gamblers were duped into placing bets on a Telegram channel the gang had set up, and the group would then use walkie-talkies to warn the phony umpire on the field.

    According to Rathod, the fictitious official “would signal the bowler and batsman to strike a six, four, or get out.”

    The policeman said, “We got a tip-off and we busted the racket while a ‘quarter-final’ match was being played.

    In the first instalment, the Russian gamblers gave the accused more than 300,000 rupees, according to Rathod.

    A gangster is duped by a bunch of con artists who set up a fictitious betting enterprise in the movie The Sting with Paul Newman and Robert Redford.

  • Hindutva activists attack, terrorize Muslims during Ramazan

    A mob of Hindutva activists has been attacking and terrorizing the Muslim community in different parts of India during the holy month of Ramazan.

    Disturbing videos have been shared on the Microblogging site, Twitter in which extremist Hindus are making hate speeches against the Muslim community in Hyderabad, Gujarat, Karnataka, Goa, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, and Bengal.

    On the occasion of the Hindu festival, Ram Navami in Hyderabad, a rally was taken out in which the Hindu extremists were singing a hatred song against Muslims, which says, ” Saare Bharat ko Hindu Rashtra banana hai ( We need to turn India into a Hindu country)” which goes on, “Jo Ram ka naam na le usko Bharat se bhagana hai (Whoever do not take RAM name, they have to go from India”. The song was targetting minorities, especially the Muslim community living in India.

    In Himmat Nagar, Gujarat, the miscreants involved in the Ram Navami procession targeted mosques, dargahs, and shops.

    In Goa, a Hindu mob tried to enter a mosque who were intended to attack Muslims. The Hindu mob accused Muslims that someone from the mosque threw stones at the Ram Navmi procession.

    Communal violence also erupted in Bengal, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, and Karnataka, during the Hindu festival of Ram Navmi procession and the police have banned large gatherings in some areas.

    Riots during Ram Navami procession in Khargone, MP. The Ram Navami procession entered the Muslim locality Kazipura and raised slogans, stone-pelting.

    A bangle shop of a Muslim family was set on fire by the Hindutva activists during the celebration of Ram Navami.

  • Indian court sentences 38 Muslims to death for 2008 bomb blasts

    Indian court sentences 38 Muslims to death for 2008 bomb blasts

    An Indian court sentenced to death 38 Muslims on Friday who were allegedly involved in the Ahmedabad serial bomb blasts, which took place in 2008. The court has ordered ‘prison in life’ to the other 11 convicts as well. Ahmedabad city is the commercial hub of the Indian state, Gujarat.

    Judge A R Patel announced the verdict and described the incident as a “rarest of rare case” in which innocent people were killed.

    More than 50 people were killed and 200 wounded in the deadly bomb blasts in 2008.

    Around 20 bombs were exploded within one hour across various public places including residential areas, market places, public transport, and hospitals in Ahmedabad.

    An Indian Muslim group, Indian Mujahideen, had claimed responsibility for the attacks on July 26, 2008.

    However, a defence lawyer said, “We had sought lenient sentences for the convicts as they have already spent more than 13 years in prison. But the court awarded death to the majority of them. We will definitely go for appeal.”

    The Ahmedabad attacks were said to be in retaliation to the religious riots in which thousands of Muslims were brutally killed in 2002 in Gujarat state. Narendra Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat.

  • Married 45 years with no child, 70-year-old woman gives birth

    Married 45 years with no child, 70-year-old woman gives birth

    A 70-year-old woman in Indian Gujarat has given birth to a baby boy after conceiving through In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) treatment.

    As per reports, Jivuben Valabhai does not have any ID to prove her age, but she said that she has seen 65-70 summers till now. The couple had been married for 45-years but could not have children.

    They approached Dr Naresh Bhanushali, who runs the Harsh IVF Centre in the area, after finding out about the procedure through relatives.

    “The couple came to me a year ago. Initially, we were reluctant to do this because of the woman’s age. But they were anxious to have a child, so we decided to go ahead,” Bhanushali told Anadolu Agency.

    “Her blood pressure was high and we had to deliver the child via C-section in the eighth month of the gestation period,” Dr Bhanushali added.

    “We had a team of doctors including a cardiologist, a physician on standby — anything could have gone wrong because of her age but she was fine and gave birth to a healthy baby.”

    The woman might get an entry into the Guinness book of world records for being the oldest woman to give birth to a healthy baby.

  • Indian man travels 1200 kilometres to meet girlfriend in Pakistan

    Indian man travels 1200 kilometres to meet girlfriend in Pakistan

    An Indian man hailing from Maharashtra, Siddiqui Mohammad Zishan, travelled nearly 1200 kilometres to meet a girl from Shah Faisal town in Karachi, Pakistan. According to details, Zishan, who is an engineering student, befriended the girl on Facebook and had been communicating with her over social media including Facebook and Whatsapp. Zishan wanted to cross the border and come to Pakistan using Google Maps.

    However, the 20-year-old’s plans were cut short when the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) caught him in Gujarat’s Rann of Kutch while he was trying to cross over to the other side of the border on foot. The young man revealed that he had travelled nearly 1200-odd kilometres to meet his friend.

    According to reports, he was found by BSF personnel in a dehydrated condition and had fainted.  An ATM card and other documents like Aadhaar card helped security officials identify him.

    During the search operation, the BSF also found a bike that the youth had abandoned when he reached close to the border. He had used the bike to travel from his hometown in Maharashtra. The young man was caught about 1.5 kilometres away from the Indo-Pakistan international border based on information shared by the Crime Branch of Maharashtra Police. The police added that Zishan had started walking towards Pakistan after his motorcycle got stuck in the sand.

    The Maharashtra Police had informed the Gujarat Police about a missing complaint that had been filed by the parents of the man. The Gujarat Police with the help of the Border Security Force personnel traced the young man by tracking his mobile phone.

    The BSF has handed over the young man to the police for further investigation and so that his story can be verified.