Disabled Orissa MLA shot dead by suspected Maoists

Jagabandhu Majhi (39), ruling BJD MLA from Umarkote assembly seat in Nabarangpur district of Orissa, was shot dead on Saturday by three masked men at a public function. The assailants, who came in a motorcycle, also killed Majhi’s personal security officer (PSO) PK Patro, police said.

 

The incident occurred at about 1 pm when Majhi, a tribal leader, had gone to Gona village – 80 km from Nabarangpur district headquarter and more than 500 km southwest of Bhubaneswar – to distribute land pattas to landless tribals.

As the forested village is near the border of Chhatisgarh and affected by Maoist activities, Maoist hand is suspected in their murder, but police did not rule out past personal enmity either. “He had been attacked earlier also. A clear picture would emerge after a detailed inquiry,” said YB Khurania, IG (operations).

Orissa chief minister Naveen Patnaik ordered a crime branch (CB) probe into the incident few hours after the incident. “I am deeply shocked. He (Majhi) used to move around in a wheel chair. I have put the CB on the job of investigation,” Patnaik said.

Majhi became wheel chair bound after he was shot in the waist just before 2004 assembly elections. Though he lost the 2004 election, he won the Umarkote seat in 2009 assembly election for the first time.

Source: Hindustan Times

Link: http://www.hindustantimes.com/Disabled-Orissa-MLA-shot-dead-by-suspected-Maoists/Article1-749581.aspx

Shourya missile launch successful

India’s hypersonic missile, Shourya, was successfully test-fired from the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur, Orissa, on Saturday, in its final configuration. The missile flew at 7.5 Mach, that is, 7.5 times the speed of sound and covered its full range of 700 km in 500 seconds. 

This was the third successful launch of Shourya, a surface-to-surface missile and it paves the way for its production and induction into the Navy. It can carry both nuclear and conventional warheads. Shourya is the land-variant of the K-15 underwater missile that is being fitted into India’s nuclear-powered submarine, Arihant. So Shourya can be used by both the Navy and the Army. It can carry both nuclear and conventional warheads.

The missile rose from a canister fixed on the ground “on the dot” at 2.30 p.m., climbed to an altitude of 40 km and traversed 700 km at 7.5 times the speed of sound.

It performed a terminable manoeuvre and closed in on the pre-designated impact point in the Bay of Bengal with a high degree of accuracy. The missile was designed and developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).

Avinash Chander, Chief Controller (Missiles and Strategic Systems), DRDO, said “the flight went off absolutely perfectly” and it met all the mission objectives. The radars located at the ITR, Chandipur and at Damra, also in Orissa, electro-optical and telemetry systems and two ships located near the impact point tracked the missile’s entire flight. They reported on “the excellent performance” of the missile.

“It gave us full confidence for the production of this class of systems. The launch was to certify the production process and offer the missile for further production,” he said.

Asked what was the altitude at which Shourya flew, Mr. Chander said it “was an entirely atmospheric flight” at a height of 40 km.

V.G. Sekaran, Director, Advanced Systems Laboratory (ASL), Hyderabad, called it “a good flight” and he was confident that the production of Shourya would go on as per plan because the missile this time was picked up from the production lot. “We achieved the full range for the ground launch configuration,” he said.

The ASL had developed the rocket motors for the two-stage missile and built the canister from which it took off, Dr. Sekaran said. Both the stages use solid propellants. The missile is 10 metres long, 74 cm in diameter and weighs 6.2 tonnes.

It was ejected from the canister fixed on the ground, by means of a gas generator developed by the High Energy Materials Research Laboratory, Pune and the ASL, both DRDO laboratories.

Source:The Hindu

Link: http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/article2482010.ece?homepage=true

Orissa flood: 41 die, many villages submerged

Dipannita Das,TNN | Sep 24, 2011, 10.42PM IST

PUNE: The International Fund for Animal Welfare in partnership with the Wildlife Trust of India has initiated relief operations in the state of Orissa, an area that has borne the brunt of the incessant rains of recent weeks.

The heavy monsoon rains that have battered South Asia for weeks have caused widespread flooding and left millions of people and animals displaced. “Thousands of animals have been left out in the open under the rain or scorching sun with no help at all. our main goal right now is to get food into the hardest-hit areas as quickly as possible,” said Dick Green IFAW Manager for Disasters.

The floods in Orissa have already claimed at least 41 human lives. About 4897 villages have been submerged across 19 districts and 2.2 million people are still marooned in coastal areas. 1667 livestock including cattle, goats and poultry is dead. With continuing rain forecasted, the disaster will likely linger for several weeks.

“The flood relief team is reaching out to remote and cut off villages in the most affected areas. Most of the animals brought to the veterinarians are very weak, they have lost their body condition to starvation. High incidents of respiratory ailments and diarrhea are being reported,” said N V K Ashraf, Chief Veterinarian, WTI.

Working with local partners APOWA (Action for Protection of Wild Animals) and AMRF (Arupa Mission Research Foundation) through a collaborative Emergency Relief Network (ERN), a relief project has been initiated that is distributing feed and providing veterinary assistance to thousands of impacted animals.
Five veterinarians and more than 20 volunteers are spread across the districts of Puri and Kendrapara attending to these animals besides visiting homes and advising people on hygiene. 9.5 metric tonnes of animal feed has been distributed. Health camps are being organised and shelters built in places where the situation in grave.