Blast triggered by mining explosives
More than 100 people were killed and at least 150 injured in a blast in the town of Petlawad in Madhya Pradesh on Saturday. The blast, triggered by mining explosives, took place in a godown where gelatine sticks were being stored. Witnesses said that the blast tore through the storage area as well as a nearby restaurant and bus stop. Dozens of people were reported to have been buried beneath the debris.
India, Pakistan to stop ceasefire violations
India and Pakistan on Saturday agreed to stop violating the ceasefire agreement between the two countries. Following talks between India’s Border Security Force and the Pakistan Rangers, the two sides also agreed to resolve issues such as cross-border infiltration by exchanging information and “enhanced communication via multiple modes at possible levels”. The four-day discussions between the border forces took place nearly a month after Islamabad cancelled National Security Adviser-level talks between the two countries.
Stand-off between Indian, Chinese troops in Ladakh
Indian and Chinese troops were involved in a stand-off along the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh, with the two sides having sent reinforcements to the area, reports said on Saturday. Indian officials said that the stand-off began after a joint patrol of the Indian Army and and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police observed the People’s Liberation Army building a watchtower close to the mutually accepted “border patrolling line” near Burtse. Additional troops were rushed by both sides to the area after the Indian patrol dismantled the structure. The officials said that the Indian Army had so far not received a response to its request for a flag meeting with the PLA. The Burtse area is one of the main disputed stretches of territory along the un-demarcated LAC between India and China.
Politics preventing national-language status for Hindi: Rajnath
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday said that “regional political compulsions” were preventing Hindi from being made the national language of India. Singh said that Hindi was not being given national-language status despite being the “connecting language” of India. The Home Minister called on the United Nations to include Hindi as an official language for its proceedings. He also dismissed arguments that English was the language that connected various parts of India, saying that Hindi was “understood by over three-fourths of the country’s population.
Patidar leader calls off rally
Patidar community leader Hardik Patel on Saturday called off his protest march for reservations for the community for the second time in a week. At a late-night press conference, Hardik said that the march from Dandi to Ahmedabad in Gujarat had been cancelled as the state government had invited his organisation for talks on the issue of reservations for the community under the Other Backward Class category. The community leader’s statements came hours after he said that the agitation would go on “at any cost” despite the state government refusing to grant him permission for a second time.
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More than 100 people were killed and at least 150 injured in a blast in the town of Petlawad in Madhya Pradesh on Saturday. The blast, triggered by mining explosives, took place in a godown where gelatine sticks were being stored. Witnesses said that the blast tore through the storage area as well as a nearby restaurant and bus stop. Dozens of people were reported to have been buried beneath the debris.
India, Pakistan to stop ceasefire violations
India and Pakistan on Saturday agreed to stop violating the ceasefire agreement between the two countries. Following talks between India’s Border Security Force and the Pakistan Rangers, the two sides also agreed to resolve issues such as cross-border infiltration by exchanging information and “enhanced communication via multiple modes at possible levels”. The four-day discussions between the border forces took place nearly a month after Islamabad cancelled National Security Adviser-level talks between the two countries.
Stand-off between Indian, Chinese troops in Ladakh
Indian and Chinese troops were involved in a stand-off along the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh, with the two sides having sent reinforcements to the area, reports said on Saturday. Indian officials said that the stand-off began after a joint patrol of the Indian Army and and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police observed the People’s Liberation Army building a watchtower close to the mutually accepted “border patrolling line” near Burtse. Additional troops were rushed by both sides to the area after the Indian patrol dismantled the structure. The officials said that the Indian Army had so far not received a response to its request for a flag meeting with the PLA. The Burtse area is one of the main disputed stretches of territory along the un-demarcated LAC between India and China.
Politics preventing national-language status for Hindi: Rajnath
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday said that “regional political compulsions” were preventing Hindi from being made the national language of India. Singh said that Hindi was not being given national-language status despite being the “connecting language” of India. The Home Minister called on the United Nations to include Hindi as an official language for its proceedings. He also dismissed arguments that English was the language that connected various parts of India, saying that Hindi was “understood by over three-fourths of the country’s population.
Patidar leader calls off rally
Patidar community leader Hardik Patel on Saturday called off his protest march for reservations for the community for the second time in a week. At a late-night press conference, Hardik said that the march from Dandi to Ahmedabad in Gujarat had been cancelled as the state government had invited his organisation for talks on the issue of reservations for the community under the Other Backward Class category. The community leader’s statements came hours after he said that the agitation would go on “at any cost” despite the state government refusing to grant him permission for a second time.
