Tag: India

More bodies found in flooded Kerala as toll hits 357

  by Bhuvan Bagga Agence France Presse THRISSUR, India (AFP) — Rescuers waded into submerged villages in southern India on Sunday in a desperate search for survivors cut off for days by floods that have already killed more than 350 people. Entire villages in Kerala have been swept away in the state’s worst floods in a century, and emergency responders fear the death toll will rise as they reach areas almost entirely underwater. In Thrissur, […]

Flood death toll in India’s Kerala jumps to 164

KOCHI, India (AFP)–The death toll from major floods in India’s tourist hotspot Kerala has jumped to 164, state chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said Friday, issuing a fresh heavy rainfall warning for the battered region. Kerala’s government has described the crisis — one of the worst in decades — as “extremely grave” and rescue operations are underway to help thousands who remain trapped by floodwaters. “The chief minister has confirmed 164 deaths. Around 100 people died […]

India flood toll hits 86 in ‘extremely grave’ crisis

KONCHI, India (AFP)–The official death toll from major floods in India’s tourist hotspot of Kerala hit 86 on Thursday with media reporting even higher numbers amid warnings of more torrential rainfall. With a major rescue operation launched to help thousands of people trapped by the floods, Kerala’s chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the state now faces an “extremely grave” crisis. Kerala, famed for its pristine palm-lined beaches and tea plantations, is battered by the monsoon […]

India warns of ‘extremely grave’ crisis as flood toll rises

KOCHI, India (AFP) – Hundreds of troops led a desperate operation to rescue families trapped by mounting floods in India’s Kerala state Thursday as the death toll reached 106 with nearly 150,000 left homeless. Helicopters airlifted stranded victims from rooftops and dam gates were thrown open as incessant torrential rain brought fresh havoc to the southern state that is a major international tourist draw. Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the state now faces an […]

India’s three-time prime minister Vajpayee dies aged 93

NEW DELHI, India (AFP) – Three-time Indian prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee died Thursday, sparking tributes from across the political spectrum as current leader Narendra Modi mourned the “irreplaceable loss” of the respected statesman. The 93-year-old had battled poor health for years but his condition deteriorated sharply in recent days, with doctors placing him on life support. The sudden turn sparked a flurry of visits from top dignitaries, including Modi, who credited Vajpayee with laying […]

Troops called to India’s Kerala as flood toll rises

  KOCHI, India (AFP) — Helicopters airlifted stranded families from rooftops and dam gates were thrown open as incessant torrential rain brought fresh havoc Thursday to the Indian state of Kerala where about 100 people are feared dead. Hundreds of extra troops were deployed in the southern state, a major tourist hotspot, as the government issued a “red alert” over the region’s worst floods in decades. State authorities said the confirmed death toll was 72 […]

Flash floods after heavy monsoon rains kill 37 in India’s tourist hotspot Kerala

  NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — Flash floods in Kerala have killed 37 people and displaced around 36,000, Indian officials said Saturday, after heavy monsoons led to landslides and overflowing reservoirs across the southern state. Kerala, famed for its pristine palm-lined beaches and tea plantations, is battered by the monsoon every year but the rains have been particularly severe this season. Those forced from their homes “have moved to 350 relief camps across the state”, […]

Flash floods kill 27 in south India, prompting US travel alert

NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — Flash floods have claimed at least 27 lives in the southern Indian state of Kerala, officials said Friday, prompting the US to advise its citizens to stay away from the tourist hotspot. The coastal state, famed for its pristine palm-lined beaches and tea plantations, is battered by the annual monsoon every year but the rains have been particularly severe this season. Nationwide, more than 700 people have been killed in […]

Death toll from India building collapse hits nine

NEW DELHI, India (AFP) – The death toll from a collapsed apartment block outside Delhi rose to nine on Thursday as emergency workers pulled four more bodies from a huge pile of rubble and metal, India’s fire brigade said. The six-storey building caved in late Tuesday and crashed into a neighboring building, trapping more than a dozen people, including laborers and two families in Greater Noida, a satellite city east of Indian capital. Five bodies […]

At least two dead in building collapse outside Indian capital

NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — At least two people were killed and more are feared trapped after an under-construction building collapsed onto a residential complex outside Delhi, officials said Wednesday. Emergency workers sifting through piles of iron and concrete overnight pulled out two bodies Wednesday morning from the site in Greater Noida, a satellite town east of the Indian capital. “We have no concrete evidence on the number of people present in the buildings at […]

WhatsApp offers tips to spot fake news after India murders

NEW DELHI, India (AFP)–WhatsApp took out full-page advertisements in Indian newspapers Tuesday offering “easy tips” to identify fact from fiction after a slew of recent murders spurred by hoaxes shared on its platform. The Facebook-owned messaging service has been under immense pressure to curb the spread of misinformation in India after the lynching of more than 20 people accused of child abduction in the last two months. Most recently a mob surrounded and killed five men […]

Ten family members found hanged in Delhi home – police

Indian police launched an investigation Sunday after a family of 11 was found dead inside their home in New Delhi. Police have cordoned off the home in Burari in the north of the capital where the bodies of seven women and four men were discovered Sunday. “10 of the 11 family members were found hanging when we reached the house. The last, a 75-year-old female, was dead on the floor,” a Delhi police official told […]