1400 HRS.

20th July, 2013

THE HEADLINES:

• Flood situation in several districts of Andhra Pradesh grim; A central team to arrive in Kerala to assess the damage caused by heavy rain.

• Situation in Srinagar and other towns of the Kashmir valley peaceful, no relaxation in curfew.

• Three killed in Egypt as pro and anti- Morsi protest marches continue across the country.

• UN and EU hail resumption of talks between Israel and Palestine.

• South Asian Junior Table Tennis Championship gets underway in New Delhi.

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The flood situation in several districts of Andhra Pradesh continues to be grim for the second day today following the overflowing of streams and rivulets due to incessant rain during the last three days. Our correspondent reports that the river Godavari is in spate in Khammam district where 130 villages have been marooned with flood waters.

Incessant rains continued to lash several parts of Andhra Pradesh posing threat of floods to hundreds of villages abutting the river Godavari and its tributaries. Danger signal three has been hoisted at Bhadrachalam in Khamma district as water levels in Godavari rose to 56 meters and danger signal two has been displayed at Dhavaleswaram. Its tributaries like Sabari and Pranahita also in spate keeping the authorities on tenterhooks. The authorities are not leaving any stone unturned to tackle with any eventuality while a total eight teams of the National Disaster Response Force and two Helicopters have been kept ready at different places to carryout rescue and relief operations. A total 2 hundred 22 villages in 9 districts were affected while nearly 1900 houses damaged and crops in about 90 thousand hectare inundated. The district authorities are evacuating people from low laying areas.- Lakshmi, AIR news, Hyderabad

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The South Central Railway (SCR) today said, some trains were diverted due to breaches in the Railway track on Nagpur-Wardha section of Central Railway. An SCR release in Hyderabad said, trains going towards North were diverted at Wardha via Bhusawal instead of via Nagpur. The release also said trains coming from North towards SCR such as Andhra Pradesh Express, AP Sampark Kranti and Patna Expresses were running late.

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A seven-member central team headed by a Joint Secretary, in the Ministry of Home Affairs, V Vumlungmang is arriving in Kochi today to hold discussions with state government officials on the rain havoc in Kerala. Later, the team will form two groups and visit the districts of Alappuzha, Kottayam, Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam, Thrissur and Kozhikode. The team is also likely to visit the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. The state government has sought central assistance to the tune of 481 crore rupees for relief operations and payment of compensation. 131 persons have lost their lives in monsoon related incidents so far. 891 villages have been flooded and over two lakh people moved to relief camps. 549 houses were destroyed and 9499 houses damaged. Crops in 8480 hectares worth more than 150 crore rupees have been lost.

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Most of the sub Himalayan Terai region of Uttar Pradesh has been reeling under flood since the past month. All the rivers are flowing either above the danger mark getting close to it. River Sharda is above the danger mark in Paliakalan while Ghaghra is flowing above the red mark at Elgin Bridge at Barabanki, Ayodhya and Turtipar in Ballia. A report:-

The Met department has predicted heavy to very heavy rainfall at many places in the next 24 hours in the state which may worsen the flood conditions here . In the last one month, Sharda and Ghaghra have demolished more than one thousand houses in Lakhimpur Kheri and the devastation is still going on. In Bahraich, Ghaghra has eroded away 16 houses in the last 24 hours only, where nearly 600 houses have already been washed away in the floods. The relief and rescue teams are tirelessly engaged in providing help to the flood victims. Merajuddin, AIR NEWS, Lucknow.

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In Uttarakhand, the Rishikesh-Gangotri national highway has been blocked at several places due to landslides and incessant rainfall in Tehri and Uttarkashi districts. The Rishikesh-Badrinath national highway has also been blocked near Pipalkoti in Chamoli district. The Jawans of BRO have been pressed into service to clear the road. More from our correspondent:

Rishikesh-Gangotri national highway has been blocked at Tachla near Tehri, Chinyalisaud and Nalupani in Uttarkashi district. In Kumaon, munsyari region of Pithoragarh district 100 mt road was washed away by the river Gori near Badheli. The water level of all rivers in State is on the rise. The weather department has alerted moderate to heavy rainfall in next 24 hours in some part of the hilly regions including plains. Meanwhile, the movement of helicopters for supplying ration and other essential commodities has been affected due to poor weather conditions. Sanjeev Sundriyal, AIR News, Dehradun.

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The National Capital witnessed heavy rainfall today with water logging reported at several places. The downpour brings respite from humid weather conditions. The minimum temperature recorded was normal at 22 degrees Celsius and the maximum temperature is expected to be around 33 degrees Celsius. Our Correspondent reports, that though the mercury had been staying within bearable limits, high humidity had been giving a harrowing time to the people in the capital.

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The Assam government has distributed solar lantern to flood affected people in remote areas. Official sources said that so far around 20 thousand solar lanterns have been distributed among flood affected families in remote areas. Apart from this, the state power department has taken a slew of measures to promote non conventional source of energy. Our correspondent has filed this report:

Two thousand 200 remote villages which cannot be electrified through grid, are being provided Solar Home Lighting System. Also, steps are being taken to distribute 70 thousand solar lanterns to the students of weaker sections of the societies. The Assam government has also earmarked an additional 10 crore rupees in 2013-2014 for electrification through non conventional means. Manas Pratim Sarma, AIR News, Guwahati.

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In the Kashmir valley, the situation in curfew bound Srinagar city and other major towns is calm. Curfew was imposed in many parts of the Kashmir Valley due to the firing incident in Gool area of Ramban. Our correspondent reports, there has been no relaxation in curfew any where since yesterday morning.

The situation by and large is peaceful today. There is no report of any untoward incident so far. Police and paramilitary contingents are deployed in strength to strictly enforce curfew. Traffic on Srinagar Jammu National Highway continues to be suspended. Amarnath yatris returning after darshan are continued to Baltal and Pahalgam base camps due to the restrictions on vehicular movement. Tantary/AIR News/Srinagar.

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The CPI(M) has demanded immediate action against the BSF personnel who fired upon protestors in Ramban. In a statement, the party condemned the killing of four people in Gool. It urged the Centre to act without any further delay.

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In Jammu and Kashmir, the annual Amarnath yatra remained suspended for the second day today in view of the curfew in many parts of the Kashmir Valley. According to official sources, no fresh batch of pilgrims was allowed to proceed towards Kashmir from the Bhaghwati Nagar base camp in Jammu. An official spokesman said the decision to suspend the yatra was taken as a precautionary measure. Over 2.50 lakh pilgrims have so far performed the darshan of the naturally-formed ice lingam at the Amarnath cave in south Kashmir Himalayas. Meanwhile, traffic on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway remained suspended for the third day today due to the tension prevailing across the curfew-bound areas.

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Two persons were injured in a bomb blast near the Orient Hotel in Hatta under Porompat Police Station in Imphal East District this morning. Police sources said, the blast took place at around 11 this morning. Two persons got injured in the incident. Police cordoned off the area just after the incident and conducted search operations. However, there is no report of any arrest in connection with the blast. The condition of the injured persons is out of danger.

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In Uttar Pradesh, five persons including a police inspector have been arrested in connection with the murder of former Bahujan Samaj Party MLA Sarvesh Singh alias Sipu Singh in Azamgarh district. BSP leader was assassinated by two unidentified assailants’ yesterday morning at his residence at Jiyanpur under Sagadi tehsil on Gorakhpur road.

Our Allahabad correspondent reports that the, District Magistrate has initiated a probe into the incident. He will also probe into the violence that erupted just after the murder and police firing on agitated protesters.

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In Tamil Nadu, BJP Secretary of Salem district V.Ramesh was hacked to death by an unidentified gang at his office in Maraveneri Salem late last night. Police said, Ramesh was found dead in a pool of blood by neighbours. Ramesh was a chartered accountant. He served as RSS State Secretary between 1987 and 1992. Security has been stepped up in the area as party cadres blocked a road and pelted stones at two buses .

The State BJP President Mr. Pon Radhakrishnan has demanded an inquiry into the violent attack on V. Ramesh. Business establishments at Tiruppur Salem and Erode remained closed in protest against the incident.

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The Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh has condoled the death of Khurshed Alam Khan, who held many important portfolios as a member of the Union Council of Ministers. In his message, the Prime Minister said, Khurshed Alam Khan's leadership in Foreign Policy, the Education system and legislative affairs contributed immensely to the country’s modern, liberal and democratic polity. Dr. Singh said, in the passing away of Khurshed Alam Khan, India has lost a true son and servant of the nation. The veteran Congress leader Khurshed Alam Khan passed away in New Delhi last night at the age of 94 .

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The United Nations and the European Union have hailed John Kerry's announcement about the resumption of the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians. However Gaza based Hamas has slammed the move saying Mahmoud Abbas has no right to represent the Palestinian people. The statements follow an announcement by the visiting US secretary of State John Kerry in Amman yesterday that an agreement has been reached on the basis on which Israeli-Palestinian talks will resume. More from our West Asia Correspondent -

United Nations said that the resumption of the stalled peace process in the Middle East is a positive development and urged both sides to show leadership, courage, and responsibility towards achieving the two-state vision. European Union Foreign policy chief Catherine Marie Ashton said that Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas have demonstrated courage and EU will ensure that the efforts succeed. Israel’s chief negotiator and the Justice Minister Tzipi Livni said that it is the right thing for Israel’s future, its security and economy. She wrote on her social network website page that the negotiation is not going to be easy and she would keep the security and national interests of Israel as a Jewish and a democratic country. Livni would be holding preliminary round of talks with her Palestinian counterpart ,Saab Erakat in Washington next week to discuss further details on the negotiations. Atul K Tiwary, AIR News,

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In Egypt, three persons including a child were killed in clashes between the supporters and the opponents of the deposed President Mursi in the Mansora area of the Nile delta. The rival protesters were trying to outpace each other during their rallies. There has been a wave of protest marches by the rival camps across the country. Police used tear gas at many places to disperse the agitating crowd as thousands of protesters poured into the streets after Friday prayers. The Islamists had given a call for a " Breaking the Coup" rally demanding the release and reinstatement of Mursi. The Rebel Tamarod Movement called for a nationwide protest to protect the gains of revolution and against those who are out to thwart the ouster of Mursi. Both the camps incidentally also claimed that they were staging marches to highlight Egypt’s victory in 1973 war against Israel during ramadan.

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The South Asian Junior Table Tennis Championship began at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi today. Indian paddlers start as favourites, as they will be eyeing a clean sweep of all the 10 Gold medals for the second successive year. In the last edition held at Shillong, the hosts not only won the Gold in team and individual events of all the four sections - Cadet Boys, Junior Boys, Cadet Girls and Junior Girls - but also claimed four Silver medals in the Singles events. Abhishek Yadav, Utkarsh Gupta, Sudhanshu Grover, Suthirtha Mukherjee, Reeth Rishya and Manika Batra are among the Indian paddlers who are participating in the competition.

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In Ashes Cricket, hosts England will resume their second innings at the overnight score of 31 for 3 against Australia, on Day 3 of the second test at Lord's, in London today. Joe Root on 18 and night watchman Tim Bresnan, who is yet to open his account, were at the crease, when stumps were drawn yesterday, with England having a second innings lead of 264 runs.

Earlier, England resumed their first innings at 289 for 7, before they were bundled out for 361. Ian Bell top scored with a superb 109, while Jonny Bairstow and Jonathan Trott made half centuries. In reply, the Aussies, from 50 for 2 at one stage, were dismissed for a paltry 128, courtesy an exceptional bowling display by Off Spinner Graeme Swann. He bagged 5 wickets. England batsmen, who were again at the centre for the second time in a day, looked a little vulnerable, as they lost 3 wickets in quick succession at the score of just 30. Medium Pacer Peter Siddle claimed all the 3 English wickets. England is currently leading the 5-match series, 1-0.