As cases of violence against women in child locked cabs and taxis continue to rise, the Central Motor Vehicles Rules’ Technical Standing Committee (CMVR-TSC) is planning a crucial move to make these commercial vehicles safe for women passengers.

According to a report in The Times of India, the government’s automobile standard making panel is looking forward to removing the child lock system in commercial vehicles.

As per the minutes of the meeting held by the CMVR-TSC, the automobile industry will develop a new latch for these vehicles without child locks in the next one year. These new latches will be installed at the dealer’s end since it can be difficult for the car manufacturers to determine what vehicles will be used for commercial purposes.

Speaking to the publication, an automobile expert who attended this meeting added that the feature would only be available in taxis and cabs.

“While all new vehicles will get them, there will be a provision for replacing the existing child lock in already registered vehicles. The regional transport office (RTO) concerned, which registers vehicles, will be responsible to see that such (commercial) vehicles don’t have child lock,” he added.

And before you think that the removal of child locks in cabs can be a concern to ensure the safety of children, it is important to note that the decision has been made on the assumption that children always travel with an adult, who can ensure their safety.

If the safety of children in your private car concerns you, do note that the rule is not applicable to private cars.

Read More: Alert Bengaluru Lady Foils Cabbie’s Kidnap Attempt: 5 Ways to Protect Yourself

RTOs can ensure that commercial vehicles remove child locks when they come for their annual fitness renewal certificate by denying permissions to those that have not done away with the child lock and fixed the new latch.

The move may finally come as a sigh of relief after several gory instances of crimes against women in cabs have came to light in the last one year.

Recently, a Bengaluru woman showed exemplary courage after she foiled an Ola cabbie’s attempt at kidnapping her. You can read her story plus take a look at additional safety measures for women passengers travelling alone in cabs here.

(Edited by Shruti Singhal)

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He has an amazing voice, but for years it languished. Thankfully, Uttar Pradesh’s Kaushal Nishad is slowly but surely getting his due. The youth, who spent dreamless nights, wondered whether singing could solve it–much to the annoyance of his sleepy neighbours. Well, it is that singing that has fulfilled his life’s important aspiration-he has now become a YouTube sensation, with around 5 lakh viewers, reports The Times of India.

Not bad for a 22-year old Class VII dropout, who sells eggs for a living. Kaushal runs his business off a small cart in the middle of the road, and shot to fame after his brother, Anil Nishad, a Class XII student, uploaded videos of his songs in February this year, earning him a large fan base which calls him the ‘poor man’s Mohammed Rafi’.

Incidentally, it was the songs of Rafi and Sanu, which inspired Kaushal. He jokingly told the publication how his egg business grew because of his growing popularity. Kaushal is now a popular performer and has lent his voice to local events including weddings and jagrans.

By his own admission, Kaushal struggled the fair bit.

He would wash dishes at a small hotel for Rs 20 a day. Now, thanks to internet exposure, he even has a channel called ‘Nishad Music Bhojpuri’ today. He thanks God for his new-found success.

Every day, Kaushal earns Rs 300-Rs 600 selling eggs, and any time he sings at an event, he brings in Rs 1,000-Rs 2,000.

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For the tech-savvy younger brother, Anil, broadcasting Kaushal’s talent is a way of thanking him for buying him a second-hand Android phone. With the power of the internet, Anil went about making his brother famous. Thanks to his efforts, they receive calls from different parts of the country and abroad, for Kaushal’s amazing voice.

(Edited by Shruti Singhal)

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Planning to go somewhere during the next long weekend? Well, according to this NDTV report, booking a round-trip makes sense because you’ll get the ticket and that too at a reasonable rate, thanks to circular journey tickets—a new facility introduced by IRCTC —which can be purchased for all booking classes.

By booking circular tickets, you will save time, and avoid the repeat effort of booking the ticket for each leg of the journey.

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The Indian Railways offers tourists the facility of booking standard circular journey tickets that cover popular destinations, for their convenience. As a passenger, here are five things you should know.

1. A circular journey ticket is charged as two single journeys, where the length of every single journey is calculated as half the total distance.

2. Approach the Divisional Commercial Manager (DCM) of the journey commencement station, once your itinerary is finalised. The DCM or the station authorities will calculate the ticket-cost based on your itinerary, and inform the Station Manager.

3. Purchase circular journey tickets by presenting this form at the Booking Office of the journey-commencement station. After purchasing the circular journey ticket, approach the Reservation Office to reserve accommodation for various laps of your journey. You will then receive the reserved ticket for the journey.

4. The Southern Railways only issue non-standard circular journey tickets.

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5. Male and female senior citizens get a 40% and 50% concession on fares, respectively, when travelling a minimum distance of 1000 kms.

So, the next time you travel, ensure you save time and benefit from the reduced rates of these circular journey tickets, courtesy IRCTC.

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

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It is common knowledge that VIP convoys on the road are always given top priority, which means that no vehicle gets the clearance to move until the convoy has passed, and this sadly includes ambulances with patients as well.

However, things in Karnataka are changing, thanks to the intervention of Dr G Parameshwara, the Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister of the state.

Henceforth, ambulances across Karnataka, especially those that are rushing to hospitals carrying patients who are in a critical state, will not have to wait until a VIP convoy passes.

“As per the orders passed from the state police chief Neelamani N Raju, the traffic police in the city and across the state will make way for the ambulances to pass through to get the patients to hospitals in time, even if there is VIP movement on the route,” Bengaluru Police Commissioner T Suneel Kumar told IANS.

The move was instated after Parameshwara had written to the police chief about the issue of ambulances being held up as a result of passing VIP convoys and directed the latter to make sure that the state’s traffic police gives preference to ambulances irrespective of any VIP convoy movement.

“I have observed that ambulances are sometimes stopped to make way for my convoy. Nothing is more important than rescuing a person in need of immediate medical help. Going forward, no ambulances will be stopped during movement of VIP convoys,” Parameshwara said in a tweet.

I have observed that ambulances are sometimes stopped to make way for my convoy. Nothing is more important than rescuing a person in need of immediate medical help. Going forward, no ambulances will be stopped during movement of VIP convoys. pic.twitter.com/S70V2WkC0g

— Dr. G Parameshwara (@DrParameshwara) July 8, 2018

It has been reported that last month, an ambulance was made to wait for 15 minutes in Bengaluru and the cause of delay had been the convoy movement of the Deputy CM.

Sometimes if an ambulance arrives on time, even a minor delay due to vehicular traffic can end up costing a life. Keeping that in mind, this is a welcome move by the Karnataka government.

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

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With a burst of special flavours that will give you a distinct warm feeling, bamboo biryani is a treat for the senses. And now, the rest of Andhra Pradesh will be lucky to sample this dish, that hails from the Araku Valley region near Vishakapatnam, reports The Hindu.

So what is this biryani, and why is it so special?

Well, for that you must understand the region. Araku Valley is a vast, natural expanse of beauty nestled in the Eastern Ghats, surrounded by lush forests that are rich in wildlife, and indigenous tribes that have influenced the region’s cuisine via their cultures.

This delectable dish is made by stuffing rice, chicken and select spices into a bamboo log. The log is placed over a natural fire and cooked till the outer layer turns to charcoal. Every few minutes, the log is turned so that the food inside cooks evenly.

The taste is remarkably different from the regular biryani as the bamboo burns very slowly, allowing the ingredients to cook to perfection and the flavours to emerge, and interact with each other. The ends of the bamboo are stuffed, so the steam does not escape, and cooks the food to slow perfection.

The result is a burst of unique flavours, presented aptly on a bamboo leaf, ready to be devoured. This dish is a true treat to the senses.

Himanshu Shukla, CEO, AP Tourism, has asked officials to popularise this authentic dish, and hope to make bamboo biryani for Andhra Pradesh, what biryani is for Hyderabad, and noodles for China.

For those of you who wish to sample this dish, just travel to Andhra Pradesh, where food festivals and culinary competitions across 13 districts will showcase traditional dishes.

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The Tourism Department is also trying to get Geographical Indications for three traditional dishes–Putharakelu and Kakinada Khaja, two varieties of sweets, and Ulavacharu, a type of soup.

If you’re planning to go on a culinary adventure, Andhra Pradesh is the place to be.

Edited By :- Shruti Singhal

Featured Image Credit:-Broadway Restaurant

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As torrential rains marred the city almost bringing it to a halt, some public servants set an exceptional example by putting their duty first.

One such woman is Mumbai cop, Rajni Jabre.

As train services continued to be disrupted and streets submerged under water, the Mumbai cop did not fail to report to her duty at 8 am, sharp.

As many locals in Hindmata wade of Mumbai’s Parel region struggled to wade through knee-deep water, she decided to help them in every way she could.

Armed with only an umbrella, she took it upon herself to help people cross clogged roads safely.

Watch her in action here

While most of her male colleagues decided to keep a safe distance by giving orders to locals to be careful, Jabre decided to walk through the waterlogged streets, choosing duty over her safety.

Speaking to Zee News, the diligent Mumbai cop said, “What to do, this is my duty, and I have to help people. I reported for duty at 8 in the morning and have been here since.”

Every year, hundreds of people get sucked into open sewers in waterlogged streets and suffer injuries due to potholes, electric wires etc. Many of these victims happen to be senior citizens and children who need special assistance.

And while some may claim that the Mumbai cop was only doing her duty, it is important to note that she could have done it without risking her well-being. But she went the extra mile to help people navigate through submerged streets and reach safer roads while covering them with her umbrella.

Watch More: Video: Mumbai Dentist’s Humble Gift Transforms Lives of Kids in Remote Village!

It is dedicated cops like Rajni Jabre who make Mumbaikars feel safe about stepping out of their homes even in the heaviest of rains. Hats off to undaunted heroes like her who keep the city running, no matter how grey the skies may seem!

If you liked this story, you may also want to read our small tribute to 5 Unsung Heroes Who Define The Spirit of Mumbai Even in the Heaviest of Rains here.

(Edited by Shruti Singhal)

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Earlier this week, the Supreme court made its position clear on religious customs that have a debilitating effect on the bodily integrity of women, according to this Times of India report.

“Why should the bodily integrity of woman be subject to religious practice,” the court asked.

In reference to the Bohra ritual of female genital cutting called ‘khatna’ or ‘khafd,’ a bench consisting of Chief Justice Dipak Misra, Justice AM Khanwalkar and Justice DY Chandrachud, said, “Such a religious practice is covered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act,” which explicitly states that touching the genitals of a girl under 18 is an offence.

Representing the Centre, which supports a complete ban on religious practices that sanction female genital mutilation or circumcision, Attorney General KK Venugopal argued that while male circumcision has some potential health benefits, including reducing the risk of contracting sexually transmitted disease, the same couldn’t be said for women.

“It is a crime in the US, the UK, Australia, France and 27 African countries,” he said. Meanwhile, human rights lawyer Indira Jaising supported the Centre’s move arguing that girls undergoing such religious practices often suffered from an intense trauma that carried on into their adulthood.

Making a case for the Dawoodi Bohra Women’s Association, however, lawyer Abhishek Singhvi argued that practices like ‘khatna’ and ‘khafd’ date back thousands of years and were as harmless as male circumcision.

He appealed for the matter to be heard by a five-judge Constitution Bench since the case entailed a discussion on the fundamental right to religion and religious practices.

Also Read: No More Khatna: Meet the Five Women Standing against the Ritual of Female Circumcision in India

“Unlike male circumcision, genital mutilation on a female leads to serious vaginal and uterine complications. Moreover, the fundamental right to religion and religious practice is always subject to public health and morality,” countered Venugopal.

The Supreme Court, however, was seemingly weighing in favour of the AG’s argument. “Why should anyone have the power based on religious practices to touch the genitals of a girl?”

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

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Poverty demands that all hands in the family work tirelessly so that by the end of the day, no one has to sleep hungry; even if the hands are young children who should ideally be learning in schools and playing outdoors.

It’s not an uncommon sight to see young children begging, selling toys or cleaning vehicles for a few rupees. Often, they even eat their meals on the roadside, as traffic goes by.

This is a daily routine for many children across India, but one woman in Lucknow decided to make a difference, and turn the lives of a few children around.

Seema Gupta, the wife of IAS officer Jitendra Kumar, lives in a lavish bungalow with many amenities, thanks to her husband’s post.

When Seema watched the movie, Hichki—that not only sheds light on Tourette syndrome (you can read more about the disorder here) but also on the social divide between the children belonging to wealthy and underprivileged families, respectively, she was inspired to do something, and decided to foster children who come from a disadvantaged background.

So, if you visit Seema’s home in Lucknow, you might meet about 25 children studying, eating their meals or playing around.

Speaking to the Navbharat Times, Seema says that she does not only welcome the kids in her home but gives them good clothes to wear, serves them healthy food and conducts classes in her garden.

Seema also adds that Jitendra lets her borrow his private car and driver to pick up the children from their homes and drop them back at the end of the day.

Aditya, one of the children who is fostered, told Navbharat Times that ‘madam’ is not just a teacher to him, but also a motherly figure.

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Seema has also requested her husband to help her get these children admitted into a good school so they can secure their future. Seema, who says that she doesn’t believe in doing social service just for the sake of it, wants her initiative not only to be a temporary residence for the kids, but a means to better the lives of 25 families!

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

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For the longest time, the villagers of Shahbajpur Istmurar in the Rewari district of Haryana battled scorching heat and torrential rains to board buses. Reason? The village which is home to over 2,000 people had no bus stand.

And so, in the rough weather, with no shelter in place, the women, children and especially, senior citizens would wait long hours under the open skies. Many times, these pedestrians would become victims of road accidents.

When the villagers urged the panchayat and related authorities to build a bus stand to avoid such instances, their petitions fell on deaf ears.

And while the apathy of the administrators was disappointing, the villagers failed to be bogged down. When authorities failed, they decided to take the matter into their own hands. They started collecting funds from the villagers and built the bus stand themselves.

Today, this village with a population of about 2,000 has become an exceptional example of citizen proactiveness.

Speaking to Navbharat Times, the village sarpanch, Atar Singh, revealed how he tried to escalate the grievances of the villagers to the development authorities. But they failed to pay heed. So two villagers, namely Mangturam and Krishna, mobilised the community to fund the construction of the bus stand.

The villagers extended their unconditional support and pooled in Rs 50,000 to arrange for electricity, water and tin sheets, to build the structure. Everyone who passed by this bus stand did not fail to marvel at the handiwork of the villagers.

Mangturam, who is now retired, has also taken up the responsibility of the maintenance and repair work of the bus stand. The villagers have also beautified the space by planting saplings.

Read more: Save Money With IRCTC’s Circular Ticket Scheme: Charges, Concessions & More!

The idea to build the bus stand was also credited to the youth who made sure that they did not take a penny from the panchayat and crowdfunded the entire project.

While it is unfortunate that those bound to cater to the needs of these villagers failed at their duty, it is delightful to see a rural community being passionate about bringing in change and development, despite resistance from external factors!

Kudos to these villagers who proved that a village could be more self-sufficient than most cities and spark change.

(Edited by Shruti Singhal)

Feature image in-set credit: Navbharat Times

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According to a Times of India report, cities across the country will compete for the 15 best projects across four areas including sustainable mobility,public open spaces, urban governance, and organisational innovation, in low-income settlements.

The stakes? Around Rs 800 crores! This scheme comes from the Centre, which also announced in New Delhi on Monday, that a grant of Rs 2 crore assistance each will be given to 25 cities and more than half a dozen state capitals for planned urban expansion.

Hardeep Singh Puri, the Housing and Urban Affairs Minister, told the publication that AFD, a French lending agency, will be providing around 100 million euros (approximately Rs 800 crore), for the 15 projects as a grant.

Both the Central Government in New Delhi and the respective State Governments will share the principal and interest amount. Each awarded project will receive a grant, ranging from Rs 20 crores to Rs 80 crores, according to an official release.

The project will go on for a duration of three years, and it is the first time any urban project will be selected through the ‘challenge mode’. The minister also mentioned that the government would provide Smart Cities fellowships and internship programmes, thus opening up various opportunities for youth to experience the gamut of urban planning and governance.

The optimistic minister has urged intelligent students from Indian and foreign universities to avail this opportunity and come out with landmark innovations. There is also the Digital Payment Award, which will be given to cities which promote ease of urban living by pushing digital payments, encourage smart cities and advocate innovative digital payment initiatives.

Puri also announced the names of the cities, which will receive central assistance worth Rs 2 crore to develop a Local Area Plan (LAP), and a Town Planning Scheme (TPS). The cities covered include Dehradun, Srinagar, Patna, Bhubaneshwar, Vadodara, Varanasi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Shimla, Faridabad and Indore, and the focus of this assistance is as follows:

1. The development of infrastructure in the already-developed Brownfield areas.

2. The development of the Greenfield areas—mostly on the periphery of the cities. These are the areas prone to haphazard growth and development.

The LAPs will be prepared for the existing areas or brownfield zones, for redevelopment, while Town Planning Schemes will be implemented for planned urban expansion in the peripheral greenfield areas.

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The ministry said that urban infrastructure would be prioritised based on the formulation of the LAPs and TPS by the concerned cities, and the plans will be completed in a year.

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

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WhatsApp forwards can be quite annoying. No one likes to receive random “good morning” messages or pictures of motivational quotes, and yet, we know that these are all harmless.

However, there is another category of WhatsApp forwards—false and fake news.

This category of “news” is the trigger for disaster, and has led to many untoward incidents. Well, NDTV reports that in a bid to combat the rampant spread of misinformation, WhatsApp has introduced a feature which will allow users to know which message(s) in their inbox are direct forwards from others.

The Facebook-owned company wants to clamp down on the circulation of spam and fake news on its platform, that has billions of users active worldwide, and more than 200 active users in India.

The new feature was shown to Android beta users last month, who noticed that the new WhatsApp forward feature adds a ‘forwarded’ label to all forwarded WhatsApp messages. This will show you whether the content is from the sender or if it is just a forward.

WhatsApp also released a statement announcing the new feature, adding that user safety is paramount, and here’s what you should know about it:

1. Update the app to its latest version.

2. Check for the forwarded label, which sits on top of sent messages to highlight that they haven’t been created afresh for you.

3. There is no disabling option for this label, from your side or the sender’s side.

4. Both Android and iOS users will have this feature.

5. While the feature indeed helps in cases of mass forwards, it does not prevent a user from copy-pasting the content n the message, and sending it as a new message, ensuring no ‘forwarded’ label is there in that case.

To test out this feature, select any message and forward to another WhatsApp chat thread.

The damage fake WhatsApp forwards can cause, is out for all to see. Mob lynchings have happened solely due to hearsay forwarded on the messaging app.

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After the IT Ministry asked WhatsApp to curb the circulation of fake news on its platform, the app has been doing a lot to ensure users do not misuse the platform. It published ads in Indian newspapers, to make people aware of ways to understand fake news, and took the help of local experts, to fight the spread of misinformation.

This step is a welcome addition to the fight against the spread of fake news.

(Gayatri Mishra)

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The spread of rumours on social media platforms like Facebook and WhatsApp have resulted in a spate of mob lynchings during the past few months. As argued earlier, the problem isn’t necessarily with the medium as much as the people who have access to these online platforms, and the inability of the police to deal with rumours that find their way there.

In Madhya Pradesh, however, the police force has used these platforms to track down their prime suspect in the horrific Mandsaur child rape case, which was reported all over the national media.

The incident brought the entire town to a standstill with residents coming out in the streets demanding justice. The seven-year-old rape survivor from Mandsaur town also suffered other grievous injuries like stab wounds and is currently recovering from her injuries at a local hospital.

When the case first came to light, the police had little to no leads. The CCTV cameras at her school weren’t functional, and no witnesses came forward. The survivor, meanwhile, was in no position to give any statement, given the trauma she had suffered.

The task ahead was difficult, and public pressure was making it harder. So, what the police did first was to ask the shopkeepers in and around the school for their CCTV footage.

After assessing nearly 400 hours of footage, the police narrowed it down to three different clips of the girl with a young and frail man. The man, police believe, had offered the girl some sweets and taken her away with him. Confirmation of the girl’s identity in those clips came from the parents. Unfortunately, there was another obstacle—the man’s face wasn’t clearly visible. Nonetheless, what the police noticed was a particular brand of shoes he had worn on the day.

Despite the risks associated with sharing photos of rape suspects on social media following recent incidents of mob lynching where innocents were killed, the police shared the three CCTV clips on WhatsApp hoping someone would recognise the suspect.

The risk was even greater in a communally-sensitive town of Mandsaur. Initially, fears that such clips may incite rumours about the religious identity of both the victim and suspect came to light. Rumours that the victim had died of her injuries also began to spread. In a bid to control events, the police reached out to local politicians, community leaders and resident associations about the facts of the case and requested them to help by not spreading unwarranted rumours.

Also Read: When Public Servants Stand Up For You: 5 Ways They Are Battling Fake News

Considering the gravity of the case, the locals complied and began working with the police to identify the suspect. “We felt this was a criminal case and should not be given a religious colour. It could happen to anyone’s daughter,” said a local leader of a Hindu fringe group, to the BBC.

After receiving multiple tips from residents, the police narrowed down their list of suspects to seven. The police then began sifting through the Facebook profiles of all seven suspects, and finally zeroed on one who was found wearing the same brand of shoes identified from the CCTV footage. The police identified Irfan and Asif, both residents of Madarpura in Mandsaur town, as the accused.

Manoj Singh, the Mandsaur police chief, knew that circulating the clips on social media was a risk that could have gone very wrong. “I didn’t sleep the whole night after we began circulating the CCTV footage on WhatsApp groups,” Singh told the BBC.

Nonetheless, it’s essential to reassert that these social media platforms aren’t really the problem. In this case, they helped assist the police in capturing their suspect. Good old-fashioned policing with the aid of social media and local residents is what finally helped the police bring calm to a restive town.

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

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The Rubik’s cube has forever confounded me and thanks to my sheer lack of patience, the maximum that I could accomplish out of the elusive puzzle has been getting one face of the cube in the same colour.

But across the world, there have been people who can easily crack one like child’s play and have been setting world records.

Entering this club is 20-year-old Krishna Sai from Chennai, who broke the past world record in June by solving 2,474 cubes in 24 hours and that too, using only one hand! Hyderabad-based Krishnam Raju Gadiraju had set the previous record in 2014.

Krishna is currently waiting to hear from the Guinness World Records team for the recognition of his effort, but the story behind his journey of averaging between 30-40 seconds per cube to 10 seconds per cube that broke the record, is quite interesting.

Krishna is a ‘cuber’, and his journey began in Class 8 with little help and guidance from a few friends. However, he halted all puzzle solving activities for a while before taking it up seriously in 2014, and since then, he has not looked back.

Krishna began spending almost all of his time fiddling with the cube and even followed the tutorials of ‘speedcubing’ masters on YouTube, to better his technique.

While participating in competitions and meeting people from the cubing community in Tamil Nadu, Krishna came across something that was about to change his fate—one-handed cube solving!

After observing a player cracking the cube with one hand during one of these competitions, he took the method up as a challenge and found it invigorating enough to make it his signature style. Not only did it help with his viewing angle, but the method also helped bring down his previous best timing of 40 seconds to 25-30 seconds through relentless practice.

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Finally, when time had come to apply for the Guinness World Record, Krishna knew he had exactly three months to prepare and because of his one-hand method, not only was he able to break the previous record by 22.5 hours, he also spent the remaining hours to set a new one with few breaks!

“I want my record to stay for at least two more years. There are so many good cubers in the country. So I really needed to set a high target”, said Krishna to The Hindu.

You can watch Krishna Sai setting the new record here:

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

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The wonderful news about the Thai Cave rescue was circulated on Tuesday, 10 July. After nearly three weeks of being stuck in the dangerous caves, all the 12 boys and their football coach were finally rescued.

In the last 18 days, a local search for the missing people turned into a complex rescue mission, with help pouring in from all over the world.

Getting to the boys and bringing them back safely, certainly wasn’t an easy task. Thailand’s Navy SEALs, volunteer professional divers and even medics were all part of the team that worked hard to get the boys out of the flooded caves. However, the perpetual heavy rains did not help their cause and the team needed to pump the flooded water out so they could reach the stranded boys.

This is where Thailand approached Kirloskar Brothers Limited—a pump manufacturing company.

Among the seven-member team from Kirloskar deployed in Thailand on July 5, were Prasad Kulkarni from Sangli and Shyam Shukla, an engineer from Pune.

Their duty was to pump out water from the 4-km-long cave even as it rained and kept the water levels high throughout the operation.

Speaking to Mumbai Mirror, Kulkarni said, “Our work was to remove water from the cave, which has sharp 90 degree turns. The incessant rainfall posed a huge problem as the water level just couldn’t recede. The generator-based power supply was erratic. So, we had to use smaller pumps. The cave is in a 20 sq km hill, which was dark and damp. Its topography is such that even scuba divers could not help at times.”

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This is why pumping out water from the treacherous caves was necessary. Lower levels of water could mean a more extensive space for the divers to get to the boys.

The image below would better explain why pumping out water was important in this operation.

Shukla too elaborates on this, saying “Reaching the boys was a difficult task. The cave is very narrow and is not a plain terrain. But we managed to pump out the water from the cave.”

After the mission was completed, Thailand’s ambassador to India, Chutintorn Gongsakdi, tweeted the country’s gratitude.

“While in diplomacy, as in life, following your heart & taking the path of least resistance, is often the preferred choice; the less familiar &the more difficult path, maybe the intellectual choice that you have to make in the interest of your country.

Thailand, go for India!” he said.

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

Feature image source: Twitter/ Ali Shaikh.

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On Tuesday, the 10th of July, Mumbai recorded 184 mm rainfall, the highest 24-hr rainfall in four years. A strong repercussion of this was disruption of all train services between its suburbs Virar-Nalasopara, as the tracks lay submerged under water. Passengers waded through chest-deep water to seek shelter.

But the worst hit among all were the passengers of the trains coming into the city from outside who were stranded at Virar, Vasai and Nalasopara.

Over 450 passengers of the Vadodara Express were stuck in the floods at Nalasopara station since 3.40 a.m on Tuesday. According to a report in The Hindu, the express train with over 1,000 passengers left Vadodara the previous night and was scheduled to reach Mumbai Central at 4.45 a.m. But couldn’t, due to severe waterlogging.

At 1.30 pm, these passengers were rescued by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the Railway Protection Force (RPF). The two forces also arranged 11 buses to ferry the passengers from the station to Naigaon, where they had arranged food.

Despite the relief efforts, many stranded came forward to express disappointment saying that they did not receive any help from the authorities until their plight was highlighted on social media.

Fiza Jafreen, who boarded the train in Surat along with her brothers, said many passengers climbed down and walked on the tracks.

“There were several women, children and senior citizens in our coach and on this train. However, we received no help from the authorities until 11 a.m., when they gave us food and water,” she told the publication.

While the local railway officials cleared the air saying the distribution of food and water was delayed because RPF staff had to wade through water on the tracks and distribute it by hand, a few volunteers were up and running as early as 6 am to help people.

Read More: 5 Unsung Heroes Who Define The Spirit of Mumbai Even in the Heaviest of Rains!

About 50 members of the Shri Virar Kutchi Visa Oswal Jain Seva Samaj helped a host of passengers stuck in Vasai, Virar, Nalasopara and Dahanu with water, tea and food.

One of the volunteers, Tarun Vora, told The Times of India that the relief efforts revealed how the volunteers were out all day on Monday, distributing food to people whose homes were flooded.

He said, “On Tuesday, 50 of us headed out at 6 am, providing food and water to passengers of Vadodara Express, Bhuj Bandra Express, Lokshakti Express and Bhavnagar-Bandra-Jamnagar Express among other trains.”

“Our women have been busy preparing theplas, poha, puri, rotis and tea for stranded people,” added another volunteer, Pankit Shah.

While it would have been easy for those 50 volunteers to have stayed safe in their homes, they decided to selflessly wade through chest-deep waters to provide relief to complete strangers in distress. #GoMumbai

(Edited by Shruti Singhal)

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Nearly a year after the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NMC) launched its Rs 10 per thali kiosks in the Shalimar Bagh area on a pilot basis, news is coming in that they plan to develop 500 more such kiosks across parts of the city that come under their jurisdiction.

“We started from Shalimar Bagh ward on a pilot basis. The thali will be available for Rs 10, and we have decided to keep aloo-puri and kadhi-chawal on the menu. The vendor will be given advertisement rights to ensure that any shortfall from the scheme is compensated with the help of advertisements. The facility will be open from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.,” said Tilak Raj Kataria, a high-ranking municipal officer working with NMC, to Times of India.

As per the NMC’s proposal, each municipal ward will have five such kiosks. The NMC’s thali project, announced in the last civic polls, is an extension of the Jan Aahar scheme launched by former CM Sheila Dikshit.

All councillors are expected to identify space for the development of five kiosks in their wards. By December 2018, NDMC believes that these 500 kiosks would serve the poor across 104 municipal wards. The pilot thali project, meanwhile, was launched on December 25 (former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s birthday) last year under the Centre’s Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Antyodaya Yojana.

A similar project was undertaken by the South Delhi Municipal Corporation as well.

This week’s announcement by the NMC follows the Delhi government’s plans to deliver rations to the doorstep of its poorest residents. According to the Aam Aadmi Party government, although the public distribution system targets 20 lakh beneficiaries, rampant corruption in the system prevents those who really need subsidised rations from procuring it.

Also Read: Kochi Aims to Eradicate Hunger in the City with This New Free Meal Scheme

In a bid to address these concerns, the Delhi cabinet approved the ‘doorstep delivery of rations’ to beneficiaries on a timely basis. However, many are still not clear about the full contours of this policy.

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

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The Rajya Sabha has decided to promote linguistic diversity among its members, and will now allow them to speak in any of the 22 scheduled languages. According to The Hindu, this will be incorporated from the monsoon session of the Parliament, beginning on July 18th.

The Secretariat is also pursuing simultaneous interpretation for five more languages-Dogri, Kashmiri, Konkani, Santhali and Sindhi, and for that purpose, is consulting with universities, missions of respective states in Delhi, and various welfare associations.

On Tuesday, Vice-President and Rajya Sabha Chairman, M Venkaiah Naidu, inducted a panel of new interpreters, awarding them certificates of completion for training and eligibility. The Vice President told The Times of India that he has always felt that the mother tongue is the best way to convey feelings and thoughts, without any retention. He is of the opinion that the Parliament, being a multilingual setting, should not deter members from speaking due to language constraints.

The Vice-President was keen to have simultaneous interpretation facility for all the 22 scheduled languages. This was a promise he had made after assuming office and is glad it is becoming a reality from the coming Monsoon Session Parliament.

Of the 22 scheduled languages, 12 had simultaneous interpretation – Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odiya, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu. For five languages namely Bodo, Maithili, Manipuri, Marathi and Nepali, Lok Sabha interpreters were deployed.

You may also like:- How Is a Rajya Sabha Member Elected? 10 Things You Need to Know

Well, our country has a multitude of languages, so it is great on the part of the Rajya Sabha to introduce all languages and encourage people to speak in their mother tongues.

(Edited by Shruti Singhal)

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Decades ago, when Gurugram consisted of villages, it had some bunds which were constructed to control floodwater and help water management. But as it turned into a leading metropolis, and with villages being replaced by urban settlements, these bunds lost their purpose and turned into garbage dumps and hideouts for open defecation.

But one citizen initiative by ‘I am Gurgaon’ kicked off in 2015, backed by the Haryana Forest Department and a few corporates has managed to transform and restore a 5.2-km corridor stretching from Phase 1 Metro station to Sector 56.

These efforts, over the last three years, have resulted in the defunct bund being transformed into a linear park with tracks for walking and cycling, which connect the city’s residential neighbourhoods.

It is also universally accessible for people on wheelchairs, strollers with ramps, for walkers, crutches and has tactile tiles for the visually impaired.

The pavement is permeable and allows water to percolate into the ground just like the stormwater drain constructed alongside the bund to hold run-off water with porous sides and base. In addition, the park uses sustainable energy lighting solutions and has a host of native and indigenous tree species.

Latika Thukral of ‘I am Gurgaon’ in a Hindustan Times report writes how sewage disposal from surrounding villages and residential colonies had been polluting the bund for the last many years.

And the restoration was anything but easy.

“When the restoration of the drain started, it was frightening to see how much garbage has been dumped in the middle of the city, simply hidden by metal sheets. The place was stinking, pipes were all choked up, pigs were feasting, and every inch of the drain was filled with plastic. With help from the administration, our first step was to take out the plastic and toxic waste from the drain and send it to the designated landfill site,” she writes.

While cleaning the drain was a task they mastered, the challenge was to ensure it remained clean. And so, they fenced the areas to prevent large-scale dumping by residents. This was met with resistance as the locals were losing parking spaces to garbage.

Read More: Watch how Mahim Park Transformed from a Garbage Dump to a Mangrove Forest

But the green heroes stood their ground and continued their struggle for a year. Today, the drain channels are clean.

The trees, shrubs, herbs and grass are now attracting biodiverse life forms like birds, insects and other mammals.

And while they have ensured restoration is a maximum area, they have another two km of the bund left for cleaning and restoration. The next plan of action is to clear out the garbage in the remaining area and divert the sewage. The citizens are also trying alternatives to ensure clean water seeps into the ground and is used for irrigation.

“The restoration of neglected spaces helps in energising urban landscapes and creates a healthy environment for outdoor movement for city dwellers. We can now proudly say that the bund is no different from Highline Park in New York City, where a disused rail line was converted into a 2.33 km long aerial greenway for the city,” adds Latika.

In a Facebook post, ‘I am Gurgaon’ revealed how this project titled ‘Eco-Restoration of Wazirabad Bundh’ won an Outstanding Award by IFLA (International Federation of Landscape Architects) for Resilience by Design. The award was bestowed upon VSPB Associates who are the architects for this project.

Isn’t it wonderful to see how residents, backed by the government managed to restore a dying city bund and transform it into something beautiful?

(Edited by Shruti Singhal)

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Having led the investigation into the brutal December 2012 gangrape case in the national capital, Inspector Anil Sharma of the Delhi Police today can heave a sigh of relief after the Supreme Court upheld the death sentences of all four gangrape-murder convicts.

In the six years since the case went to court, Sharma didn’t miss a single court hearing and worked on the case round the clock, despite losing both his father and brother during that period.

“The trial is as important as the investigation in the case. This was a case we took ownership of, so we had to take it to its conclusion. There are a lot of things to taken care of in court. Sometimes, there are case properties that would not come on time, then the public prosecutor is not assisted properly, there are clarifications that the court needs,” 39-year-old Sharma told The Print.

For the cop from Rajasthan, resolving the case was of prime importance, even if it meant not losing focus following the untimely deaths of his brother and father.

“During that time, my brother passed away after he met with an accident at home. I remember while I was giving a bath to his dead body, the very next minute I was updating my senior officer about the case,” Sharma tells The Print. Following his brother’s death, Sharma lost his father to a serious illness. He was working so tirelessly on the Nirbhaya case that he missed his father’s last hours.

For the two and a half weeks that followed the brutal gangrape, Sharma and his team were tirelessly gathering evidence and recording statements. In the midst of all this hustle, however, Sharma also made it a point to spend time with the victim in her last days, comforting her with stories.

“As a police officer you are expected to be totally professional, concentrating on the investigation, but this was one of the cases that got us emotionally involved,” he told the publication.

Also Read: Nirbhaya Case Verdict: How Delhi Cops Hunted down the Rapists in a Record 72 Hours

One major lesson he learnt from the case is how the police must conduct thorough investigations based on substantial evidence. “If you do your work properly, you will get strong evidence, and then it is impossible for the criminal to get away. Like in this case, we relied heavily on scientific and orthodontic evidence that helped our case immensely,” he told the publication.

As the SHO of the Kirti Nagar area in Delhi for the past year, Inspector Sharma has made great progress. It was awarded the best police station in the country by the Quality Council of India. Getting CCTV cameras installed across critical areas that come under his jurisdiction, including slums, Sharma and his team have managed to successfully bring the crime rate down in the area.

However, in the interest of full clarity, he has been accused of sexually abusing a woman while leading a raid in the Old Delhi area in April 2015. Inspector Sharma has denied all charges, claiming that he has been framed in the case.

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

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With the FIFA World Cup 2018 winding down to a close, the numerous plastic flex hoardings will be rendered quite useless. Well, fan clubs all over pay homage to their favourite teams via these huge flex boards, and understandably so. In Kerala’s Kozhikode, the scene is no different, and roadsides, pavements, terraces and any other available open spaces are full of huge flex hoardings, of their favourite teams and players.

With Germany, Spain, Argentina and Brazil, the lion’s share of flex boards is effectively ‘orphaned’, with no purpose left to serve.

Two organisations have joined together to put to use a large number of boards all over the city, reports The New Indian Express.

Blood Donors Kerala (BDK), a statewide non-profit organisation that arranges blood for patients and accident victims, has asked football fans to give them fading flexes, to make cheap house roofing for the needy. The Kozhikode district unit is pioneering this campaign.

The intention?

To help residents of the district’s slums have a leak-proof monsoon.

Amjad, an executive member of the BDK, who is in charge of the programme, told The New Indian Express that many fan clubs had contacted the BDK, promising to bring the hoardings to the collection point, at Gujarati Street, Kozhikode, Kerala. The aim now is to make this a pan-Kerala campaign.

BDK has decided to target the tribal colonies of Wayanad and the Nilambur area of Malappuram district, for the second stage of the campaign.

Regional clubs have been contacting the BDK with questions on how to coordinate similar campaigns in their respective areas. This trend has surpassed football, with college authorities contacting them to know if their seminar banners will be accepted. Even fan associations of film stars have pledged to contribute.

The Flex Bank is an initiative by the Alappuzha district committee of the Kerala Sastra Sahitya Parishad (KSSP), and its volunteers are aiming to collect as many vinyl flexes as possible.

The FIFA World Cup is the ideal time for these flexes to be rounded up for good use. PVC, which is used in flexes, cannot be recycled, only burned or dumped. It doesn’t even degrade easily, and if buried, leaches harmful chemicals into the soil and groundwater.

You may also like:- Ultimate Football Fan? Kerala Man Cycles 4000 km to Watch FIFA World Cup!

Well, hopefully, this Kozhikode initiative will spread through Kerala and the rest of the country, wherever the needy require a cheap roof over their heads.

(Edited by Shruti Singhal)

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