Sports
Indian train kills at least 37 crossing track, triggers protest
Indian train kills at least 37 crossing track, triggers protest (Agencies) / 19 August 2013 At least 37 pilgrims were killed and over a dozen injured on Monday when they were run over by a speeding train in Bihar’s Khagaria district. Angry locals and pilgrims set ablaze six bogies of the train, brutally assaulted its driver and took several railway officials hostage. Additional Director General of Police S.K. Bhardwaj confirmed the death of 35 pilgrims (Kanwariyas) when the Rajya Rani Express train mowed them down while they were trying to cross the rail track at the Dhamara railway station on the Saharsa-Mansi route of the East Central Railway (ECR). The death toll may increase because detailed information is yet to come from the accident site, he said. The train was travelling from Saharsa to Patna when the accident took place between 8 a.m. and 8.30 a.m. The express train does not have a scheduled stop at Dhamara station. ”The accident took place when pilgrims were trying to cross the railway track after alighting from a local train,” he said. Soon after the incident, angry pilgrims and locals set ablaze six bogies, including one AC coach, of the train and attacked railway officials. ”Some angry people attacked the train driver and seriously injured him. They beat him up mercilessly. Besides, some railway officials have been held hostage by them,” a police official said. Bhardwaj said top officials of the district administration have been asked to rush to the accident site. Chief Public Relations Officer of ECR, Amitabh Prabhakar said over telephone from Hajipur, the railway headquarters near Patna, that the situation went nearly out of control at the railway station following the incident as hundreds of angry people began agitating. ”The railway officials are not in a position to visit the accident site,” he said, adding that there was a lot of “confusion”. ”It is difficult to say any thing exact for now. It will take another one or two hours to say anything concrete after security forces are mobilised to clear the agitating people,” he added. In the month of July-August, thousands of pilgrims visit a temple in Deoghar, Jharkhand, where they offer holy water from the Ganga river to Lord Shiva at an ancient temple. After offering the holy water, they return to their native places in vehicles or trains. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar expressed grief at the incident and asked railway officials to launch rescue operations and arrange proper treatment for the injured. Continue reading
11,000 private school seats by 2015-16
11,000 more seats in Abu Dhabi schools by 2015-16 (Wam) / 19 August 2013 To meet the growing demand for private education facilities in the Capital, more than 11,000 school seats, located in very attractive locations for private investors, are due to operate by the academic year 2015-2016. The efforts taken by Abu Dhabi Education Council’s (Adec’s) will see the new seats open up in areas including Khalifa A, Al Wathba and Al Fallah. This is the second land Request for Proposal (RfP) to be issued by Adec’s Private Schools and Quality Assurance (PSQA) sector, which offers a huge opportunity for an establishment and operating of a long-term school building. The new schools will offer the most demanded curriculum’s in the private school sector, namely: Indian, American, British and Ministry of Education curriculums. “One of the main pillars of Adec’s strategy for developing education in Abu Dhabi is to provide equal opportunities for all students to enjoy quality education at an affordable cost. This land RfP is part of Adec’s plan to cope with the annual demand and increase of five per cent for more private schools across the emirate. We will continue to work on attracting and supporting committed investors in order to help build new private schools in order to achieve Adec’s vision,” said, Adec’s PSQA executive director Engineer Hamad Al Dhaheri. He added: “Providing this land RfP is part of Adec’s strategy plan to offer high quality affordable education across the private school sector and to increase the supply of school seats in populous areas in Abu Dhabi. For that reason, Adec is reaching out to qualified investors on a local, federal and regional level, who have excellent educational experience, strong financial capabilities and a proven record of managing schools.” In order to ease the process for committed investors, Adec’s PSQA sector will provide all the incentives and support, from business development expertise to obtaining the necessary licences and approvals from the government entities. When asked why the new land plots are located in Khalifa A, Al Wathba and Al Fallah, Engineer Al Dhaheri explained that there are no more lands available in the city. “The island of Abu Dhabi is saturated; in addition these areas are growing by the day and are attractive for many families who chose to relocate there. In addition to the fact that they become not far out from the island of Abu Dhabi at all.” “Currently there is a demand to provide 201,744 private schools seats and supply is 175,441. By the 2015/2016 academic school year we expect this demand to rise to 225,521”, said Engineer Tareq Al Ameri, Business Development Division Manager for PSQA. Once applications for the land RfP are submitted by committed investors who prove to have a strong track record of handling long-term school projects, Adec will provide them with a fast-track service to help obtain the necessary approvals to get started in constructing their schools. Further details for potential investors will be released in an advertisement, which is expected to be published in September. Continue reading
Egypt’s El Sisi thanks UAE for its support
Egypt’s El Sisi thanks UAE for its support (Wam) / 19 August 2013 General Abdel Fattah El Sisi, First Deputy Prime Minister, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces and Minister of Defence and Military Production of Egypt, has hailed the support of the UAE to Egypt. He also commended Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Jordan and Bahrain for their support. In a live speech on Sunday, General El Sisi reiterated that the Egyptian people would not forget the backing from those countries. He noted that the Egyptian people have a free will to elect whom they want to rule them, adding that the armed forces and police will safeguard the right of people to elect their leaders. “The higher national interest necessitates putting the interest of Egypt and its security above all”. El Sisi added, “Whether army or police, we are loyal to Egypt. We will not betray it. The procedures we have undertaken are transparent and clear because they reflect full understanding about the repercussions of events on the national security.” He added that the call he made for the Egyptian people to mandate the armed forces to deal with the terrorism, was a message to the world, which denied the freedom of millions of Egyptians and their ardent interest for change. “The size of political, economic and security challenges being experienced by Egypt may be large than the ability of Egypt as a state, but not larger compared to the ability of Egyptians as people, because Egypt is a trust for all people of Egypt. Therefore, as army and police, we will protect that trust,” General El Sisi said. Continue reading
