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Time of India
4 days ago
- Time of India
Over 2.5 tonnes of explosives looted by Maoists recovered by security forces
File photo BHUBANESWAR: Security forces on Monday recovered over 2.5 tonnes of explosive materials looted by Maoists in Odisha's Sundergarh district, a senior police officer said. The security personnel of the state's Special Operation Group (SOG), CRPF, Jharkhand's elite Jaguar force and Sundergarh's District Voluntary Force (DVF) during a joint operation in Odisha-Jharkhand border, recovered more than 2.5 tonnes of explosives which was looted by Maoists from K Balang area of Sundergarh district on May 27, the officer told PTI over phone. "While some of the explosives were buried under the earth, others could be located from underneath rocks," the officer engaged in the operation said, adding that the search operation was continuing since May 28, a day after the Maoists looted the explosives when they were being transported to a stone quarry for blasting purpose. Though the officer refused to disclose the exact location of the explosive recovery in the jungle, he said the place was part of the Saranda forest and in Jharkhand and some distance from the Odisha border. Earlier on Friday, the security personnel had recovered some amount of the explosives looted by Maoists following a fierce gun battle with the red rebels. Around 200 packets of explosives, amounting to about 4 tonnes, mostly gelatin sticks, were looted by Maoists at gun-point in the K Balang area. Sources, however, said that the explosives were found at Tirilposh, located close to Saranda forest, on the Odisha-Jharkhand inter-state boundary. According to the police, around 30 armed Maoists from Jharkhand hijacked the gelatin sticks-laden truck by holding the driver of the vehicle at gunpoint. A day after the looting incident, Odisha DGP Y B Khurania and other senior police officers visited the spot and an NIA team started investigating the matter. Odisha Police have also constituted an SIT (Special Investigation Team) to probe into the incident.
New Indian Express
4 days ago
- General
- New Indian Express
NTCA seeks reply from Forest department on tourism projects in Satkosia TR
BHUBANESWAR: The state government's move to set up tourism establishments in Satkosia has come under National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) scanner with the apex tiger conservation body seeking a response from the Forest department over alleged violation of eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) norms to allow projects in the tiger reserve. Sources said, the NTCA has sought a clarification from the Forest department on the basis of a petition filed by the 'Satkosia Abhayaranya O Praja Suraksha Samiti'. The field director of Satkosia tiger reserve has been instructed to submit the response to the PCCF (wildlife)-cum-chief wildlife warden for moving it to the NTCA. The petition was filed citing The New Indian Express' reports on how two critical points of Satkosia - Athamallik NAC segment and Baliput-Orasingha segment - have been left with zero eco-sensitive zone in the draft ESZ plan of the reserve, leaving the tiger habitat vulnerable to unrestrained development activities on its immediate boundary. It had also published a report on the Forest department's direction to its Tourism counterpart to rework the Rs 174 crore development plan of Satkosia under SACCI in which the latter had proposed tourist facilities in three zones - Pampasar-Tikarpada hub, Baliput-Badmul hub and Kusanga-Sitalpani hub - of the tiger reserve.
Time of India
29-05-2025
- Health
- Time of India
1 dead, 7 hospitalized during home guard recruitment test in Odisha
Physical fitness test for home guard recruitment turned tragic in Odisha BHUBANESWAR: A physical fitness test for home guard recruitment turned tragic in Odisha's Gajapati district on Thursday when one candidate died and seven others were hospitalized during a mandatory running event. The deceased, Sulant Mishal from Parisal village, collapsed while participating in the 2-km running test at the district headquarters in Paralakhemundi. Seven other candidates who fell ill during the exercise were rushed to the district headquarters hospital, where two remain unconscious. The others are reported to be in stable condition, though all showed swelling in their lower limbs. The candidates were required to complete the 2-km run between Padampur and Ranipentha within 10 minutes to qualify. "Five of us had come from our village for the test. After the girls' test was complete, boys took part. Sulant qualified but collapsed. We then saw an ambulance coming and later discovered he had died," said Sasmita Mali, a co-villager of the deceased. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi expressed deep grief over the incident and announced a compensation of Rs 4 lakh from the Chief Minister's Relief Fund for Mishal's family. The government has ordered a probe into the incident, and further recruitment tests have been temporarily suspended. This incident follows a similar tragedy earlier in March when two engineering graduates died during a forest department recruitment test. Byomkesh Naik (28) from Keonjhar district and Prabin Kumar Panda (29) from Sundargarh district collapsed during a 25-km walking test on March 4. Both were employed professionals seeking better prospects in the forest department. The recent deaths during government recruitment physical tests have raised concerns about the safety protocols and testing conditions during such events in the state.
New Indian Express
29-05-2025
- Health
- New Indian Express
Odisha government to appoint Ombudsman in five zones to monitor spread of HIV; set to notify state-specific rules
BHUBANESWAR: Eight years after the Central Act mandated state-specific rules and appointment of Ombudsman to control the spread of HIV and address grievances of patients, the Odisha government has finally decided to appoint Ombudsman in five zones and notify the rules. As per the decision taken at a high-level meeting recently, the special secretary (medical services) of Health and Family Welfare department will be the Ombudsman to monitor and oversee the activities at the state-level while chief district medical and public health officers (CDM&PHOs) of Balasore, Ganjam, Koraput, Sambalpur and Khurda will function as zonal ombudsmen. During discussions, though representatives from Utkal Sevak Samaj, Karnataka Network for People Living with HIV/AIDS (KNP+) and South 24 PG Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS (SNP+) sought inclusion of civil society and people living with HIV community members for the appointment of Ombudsman, source said, their demands were struck down. Elucidating clarity on the appointment of Ombudsman, project director of Odisha State AIDS Control Society (OSACS) Dr Santosh Swain said there are certain provisions in the Central Act regarding the qualification and experience of the Ombudsman and the appointments will be made accordingly.
New Indian Express
27-05-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
UN human rights body flags relocation of tribal dwellers from tiger reserves
BHUBANESWAR : The relocation of forest-dwelling tribals from the tiger reserves in Odisha and 17 other states has been flagged by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD), one of UN Human Rights Treaty Bodies. Odisha is one among the 18 states where tribals are being displaced from tiger reserves, the allegations of which have been received by CERD under its 'early warning and urgent action procedure' with regard to the situation of tribal and forest-dwelling indigenous people in India. The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) had in June last year, asked the then chief wildlife warden to look into relocation of villages from the core/critical tiger habitat areas of the two tiger reserves in the state under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. The law mandates that core or critical tiger habitat areas of national parks and sanctuaries are kept inviolate for tiger conservation. NTCA had also pointed out that the village relocation process has been very slow. Odisha has two tiger reserves - Satkosia and Similipal. As per the NTCA reports, the number of villages in the core areas in Satkosia was five (having 157 families) and nine in Similipal (311 families), as on May 27, 2024. The number of villages relocated from the core area since the inception of Project Tiger is one (78 families) in Satkosia and four (247 families) in Similipal. The number of villages remaining in the core areas of both the reserves is 9 and families is 143.
