New Delhi, May 12 (IANS) Two men were killed while three others sustained injuries after their car overturned in Delhi’s Aman Vihar on Sunday, police said.

The deceased were identified as Sanjay, 23, and Ashutosh, 22, both residents of Kishan Vihar.

Police said that at 12.30 p.m., a police control room (PCR) call regarding a car accident in Sector 22, Rohini was received at Aman Vihar Police Station.

A police team reaching the spot found the accident-struck vehicle and it was learnt that its five occupants had been shifted to the hospital, where two of them were declared dead by doctors and three are under treatment.

“The bodies of the deceased have been preserved at the hospital for post-mortem examination. The other three injured have been identified as Sahil, 20, Rashid,18, and Lokesh Singh, 23, residents of the same locality,” a senior police official said.

Initial enquiry revealed that the driver lost control, leading to the vehicle overturning.

“A case has been registered and further probe is on,” the official added.

–IANS

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Imphal, May 12 (IANS) Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh on Sunday said that due to illegal immigrants from Myanmar, a demographic imbalance is taking place in the state, and it is a big threat to the security of the nation as well as the indigenous people in the state.

The Chief Minister said that the influx of illegal migrants from Myanmar led to the emergence of 996 new villages in the state in the last 18 years.

He said that since 2006, massive deforestation occurred to establish settlements and carry out poppy plantations while these illegal immigrants started encroaching on the resources, job opportunities, land, and rights of the indigenous people.

“I am extremely happy that the National Green Tribunal has recently suo-moto taken up the case of deforestation in the northeastern states and also in Manipur,” Singh told the media.

He said that a three-member cabinet sub-committee headed by Tribal Affairs Minister Letpao Haokip had been constituted in February 2023 to detect the illegal migrants from Myanmar and the committee accompanied by officials detected 2,480 immigrants in Tengnoupal, Chandel, Churachandpur and Kamjong districts.

The other two ministers of the cabinet sub-committee were Water Resources Minister Awangbow Newmai and Education and Law Minister Basanta Kumar Singh.

The Chief Minister said that Haokip belongs to the Kuki community, Newmai Naga and Singh Meitei community.

He said that recently, 5,457 more illegal immigrants in Kamjong district were detected and out of 5,457, the biometric data of 5,173 such illegal immigrants have been collected.

So far, 379 migrants gone back to Myanmar voluntarily and 15 have died due to natural causes, the Chief Minister said, adding that as per reports received, the migrants are keen to go back to Myanmar as the cultivation season has started, but they have become hesitant due to bombing by the Myanmar army in the past few days.

He said that the illegal migrants would be deported back to Myanmar by the district administration, as and when the situation improves in Myanmar.

“We have come across certain news articles in the media that an NGO called International Committee of Jurists (ICJ) which has reportedly urged India to halt the deportation of Myanmar refugees. This organisation does not have a clear understanding of the ground reality in Manipur. They must understand that their work goes against the larger interest of the people of the state and nation. This is a matter of national security and justice will prevail,” the Chief Minister said.

A total of 7,937 Myanmar nationals fled to Manipur after the military junta seized power in the neighbouring country in 2021.

Since the military took over the administration in Myanmar, around 34,350 people have also taken shelter in the neighbouring state of Mizoram.

–IANS

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Jammu, May 12 (IANS) The Army on Saturday opened fire at a Pakistani drone after it hovered over Indian territory in J&K’s Rajouri district, driving it off, officials said.

“Troops opened fire on a suspected Pakistani drone near the Line of Control (LoC) in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir. However, the drone returned to the Pakistan side after briefly hovering over the Indian territory,” an official said.

The drone activity and subsequent firing of a few rounds by the army were reported from the Keri sector of Rajouri.

“A thorough search of the area was conducted but nothing suspicious was found on the ground. Anti-national elements are using drones to drop weapons and narcotics. The security forces are fully alert to frustrate their designs,” the official said.

Meanwhile, a flying object with blinking lights was also seen hovering briefly in the air near Allahpir area of Poonch district on the intervening night of Saturday and Sunday. Security forces searched the area but found nothing on the ground.

–IANS

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New Delhi, May 12 (IANS) Advancing to its midpoint, India’s electoral festival will, in its fourth phase on Monday, encompass 96 Lok Sabha constituencies across 10 states and a UT, spanning the heartland of Maharashtra to West Bengal’s industrial and cultural hubs, and the verdant mountains of Jammu and Kashmir to the varied topography of Andhra Pradesh.

Along with the parliamentary seats, elections will be held simultaneously to the Assemblies of Andhra Pradesh (all 175 seats), and Odisha (28 seats out of 147). While in Andhra, Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy faces the determined TDP-JSP-BJP coalition trying to wrest the state back from his YSRCP, in Odisha, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is trying to win the 6th consecutive election for his BJD against a combative BJP.

While voting in the parliamentary elections will continue in Uttar Pradesh (13 seats), Bihar (5), West Bengal (8), Maharashtra (11), Madhya Pradesh (8), and Jammu and Kashmir (1), the electoral process will kick off in Andhra Pradesh (all 25 seats), Telangana (all 17), Odisha (4), and Jharkhand (4).

A total of 17.7 crore electors (8.97 crore male, 8.73 crore female) will head to 1.92 lakh polling stations on Monday to decide the electoral fortune of 1,717 candidates in the fray.

Prominent among them are Union Ministers Arjun Munda (Khunti-ST, Jharkhand), Nityanand Rai (Ujiarpur, Bihar), and Ajay Mishra Teni (Kheri, Uttar Pradesh), Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury of the Congress, who faces former cricketer Yusuf Pathan (Trinamool Congress) in West Bengal’s Baharampur, and filmstar-turned politician Shatrughan Singh of the Trinamool in West Bengal’s Asansol.

Other key battlegrounds include Hyderabad, which is witnessing a significant showdown between the BJP’s Madhavi Latha and sitting MP Asaduddin Owaisi of AIMIM, West Bengal’s Krishnanagar, where expelled Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra faces the BJP’s Amrita Roy, Bihar’s Begusarai, where Union Minister Giriraj Singh competes against CPI candidate Awadhesh Rai, and Uttar Pradesh’s Kannauj, where Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav challenges sitting BJP MP Subrat Pathak.

Janata Dal-United leader Rajiv Ranjan Singh (Lalan Singh) faces RJD leader Anita Devi in Bihar’s Munger in what is being rated as another interesting fight, while National Conference’s Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi challenges PDP’s Waheed Para in Srinagar, and cricketer-turned-politician Kirti Azad (Trinamool) takes on BJP’s Dilip Ghosh in West Bengal’s Bardhaman-Durgapur.

In Mahashtra’s Beed, BJP’s Pankaja Munde, fielded in place of sitting MP and younger sister Pritam Munde, faces NCP-SP’s candidate Bajrang Sonawane, Andhra Pradesh Congress chief Y.S. Sharmila takes on cousin and sitting MP Avinash Reddy in Kadapa and her BJP counterpart D. Purandeshwari will contest from the state’s Rajahmundry, and in Madhya Pradesh’s Ratlam, veteran tribal leader and former Union Minister Kantilal Bhuria (Congress) takes on BJP’s Anita Chouhan, the wife of state Minister Nagar Singh Chouhan.

Another key contest will be Maharashtra’s Raver, where sitting MP Raksha Khadse — daughter-in-law of veteran leader Eknath Khadse, who is set to soon rejoin the BJP — faces an acid test to win for the third time, as she faces industrialist and NCP-SP nominee, Shriram Patil, and in the state’s Jalna, Union Minister Raosaheb Danve, expecting a win for the sixth consecutive term, is pitted against Congress’ Kalyanrao Kale.

As per an IMD forecast, there is no significant concern regarding hot weather conditions for the polling in this phase. Poll authorities have ensured assured minimum facilities like drinking water, sheds for shade from the sun, toilets, ramps, volunteers, and wheelchairs to ensure that every voter, including the elderly and persons with disabilities, can cast their vote with ease.

With this phase, elections to decide 379 MPs will be over and also conclude in Madhya Pradesh, as well as Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

The first three phases have already decided the fate of 284 MPs concluded for all constituencies in several states including Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Meghalaya, Assam, Manipur, Karnataka, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tripura, as well as the UTs of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Lakshadweep, and Puducherry.

The upcoming phases will continue to shape the political landscape which will now move northwards too, with the fifth phase (49 seats) on May 20, followed by the sixth on May 25 (58 seats), and the final phase on June 1 (57 seats). Counting will take place on June 4.

–IANS

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New Delhi, May 12 (IANS) Reiterating that the progress of women always leads to empowerment of the nation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday that he remains committed to taking forward this journey of empowerment of women’s power at a fast pace.

“Empowerment of women remains my commitment. I took a lead on women-led development even during the G20 Summit, and we have to keep on creating opportunities for that. Women have a major role to play, much beyond the traditional ones that they perform,” PM Modi told NDTV in an interview on the sidelines of his massive road show in Patna.

Having placed ‘Nari Shakti’ at the forefront of its agenda over the past 10 years, PM Modi detailed the various initiatives his government has taken to empower women through a women-led development approach.

“We launched Drone Didi in villages, opened the doors of the Army for women, recruited them as pilots in the Air Force and now our daughters are also guarding the borders, including at Siachen. I have been successful in bringing about this psychological change. Women power will become an additional power in India’s developmental journey and will ultimately speed it up,” he said.

Even during the ongoing election campaign, PM Modi has been highlighting how the ‘Amrit Stambh’ of women power will play an important role in building a developed India.

On Saturday, during his visit to Odisha, he bowed down to Padma awardee Purnamasi Jani in an act of respect and humility while saluting the strength, courage, and resilience of ‘Nari Shakti’ and their accomplishments in diverse fields.

“When women prosper, the world prospers. Their economic empowerment fuels growth. Their access to education drives global progress. Their leadership fosters inclusivity. And their voices inspire positive change. The most effective way to empower women is through a women-led development approach. India is making strides in this direction,” said PM Modi at the G20 Ministerial Conference on Women Empowerment, last August.

–IANS

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