Latest news with #Soham
Indian Express
2 days ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
One Pune Metro train set leased to Patna Metro, Congress says ‘politically motivated' move
The Maha Metro Rail Corporation has leased a reserve train set of the Pune Metro to the Patna Metro Rail Corporation for a period of three years. The train set has been leased to Patna at a cost of Rs 14.85 crore, including transport and other charges, informed Maha Metro spokesperson Hemant Sonawane. The train set left from Pune to Patna on July 11-12 by road. The Maharashtra Pradesh Youth Congress Youth Congress has termed this move as a 'politically motivated diversion of resources' from Maharashtra to Bihar, allegedly for electoral gains ahead of the upcoming Bihar assembly elections. However, Maha Metro officials denied these allegations by saying that 9 more spare train sets are available with Pune. They also said that such transfers were routine, and Pune Metro itself had received a train set from Hyderabad during its initial days. Prathamesh Abnave, General Secretary of the Maharashtra Pradesh Youth Congress, said, 'Commuters in Pune are struggling with long wait times and overcrowded trains. Diverting the city's only reserved metro rake to another state without public or political consultation is unacceptable.' He alleged that the move is politically timed to ensure Patna Metro's symbolic launch before Bihar's elections, aiming to gain mileage for the ruling parties. Abnave questioned whether Pune's MP, MLAs, or the Guardian Minister were informed or consulted prior to this transfer. He also said that if the decision was not reversed, the Congress would protest at the Maha Metro office in Pune. Shravan Hardikar, Managing Director of Maha Metro, denied allegations that the move was politically motivated. He told The Indian Express, 'Nothing is politically motivated. It is basically putting the resources at proper value. We are supplying an adequate number of trains to the citizens of Pune. We are also working on increasing the frequency in Pune. One train per-se does not add to any additional frequency.' Pune Metro has ordered a total of 34 train sets, out of which 33 have been delivered by the manufacturer. With 1 train set being sent to Patna Metro, Pune Metro is left with 32 train sets, out of which 23 are used in daily operations and 9 are spare. A statement shared by Sonawane said, 'At present at peak-time trains are occupied with 60% of its total capacity. With the spare fleet Pune Metro can run services at every 6 min without affecting spare train sets and train sets kept for maintenance. Further efforts are on to reduce headway to 5 min. Pune Metro spared 1 train set to Patna Metro to earn from leasing. Had it been put into service it would have earned less than we are getting, besides its maintenance cost.' Soham is a Correspondent with the Indian Express in Pune. A journalism graduate, he was a fact-checker before joining the Express. Soham currently covers education and is also interested in civic issues, health, human rights, and politics. ... Read More
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Daily Mail
Soham killer Ian Huntley 'makes vile jibe about his 10-year-old victims' by wearing number 10 Man United-style shirt similar to the ones the two little girls he murdered were wearing when he attacked them
Child killer Ian Huntley has sparked fury by reportedly wearing a number 10 Manchester United-style shirt in an apparent vile taunt about his ten-year-old victims. The 51-year-old school caretaker murdered Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells at his home in Soham, Cambridgeshire, in August 2002, in a case that shocked Britain. They were both wearing matching red United football tops when they went missing after leaving a family barbecue to buy sweets. Huntley, who lured the girls into his house and murdered them before dumping their bodies in a ditch, is serving a life sentence at HMP Frankland, County Durham. A source told The Sun: 'He's been seen strutting about in the shirt as if it's funny. It is vile.' He was reportedly called a 'sick b****d' by fellow inmates for wearing the football top - but responded with a thumbs up. It is thought Huntley ordered the red number 10 shirt from Sports Direct, despite prisoners being barred from wearing tops of the football teams they support. The insider said: 'Huntley has made it as close to a Man U top as he can — and it is sick.' 'Everyone thinks he is doing it to satisfy his own sick mind, rather than for football reasons,' they added. Huntley reportedly started wearing the shirt earlier this year and has been seen in it walking to the gym and health centre. Inmates at HMP Frankland complained about the football-style shirt in May but nothing was done, according to The Sun's report. It is understood that because it is not an actual football shirt, Huntley has not broken any prison rules by wearing it. The move was criticised by Robert Jenrick who said Huntley should not be 'swanning around' in jail insulting the memory of his victims. The Tory shadow justice secretary said it should be 'ripped off his back' by prison guards. An image of both girls wearing matching Man Utd tops was one of the last haunting images of them before they went missing. They were later discovered by police burned and dumped in a bin. Despite being responsible for the murders, Huntley gave TV interviews and joined in searches while his then-girlfriend Maxine Carr gave him a false alibi. Carr even showed off an end-of-term card the girls had sent her, covered in loving comments and kisses. Huntley, meanwhile, repeatedly spoke of how he was the last person to see the girls before their apparent disappearance. He also helped organised community events to help the search effort. The truth was that Huntley had lured the girls into the home he shared with Carr, as they passed by. He has never fully revealed what took place there, but within an hour both girls were dead. Then he hid their bodies near RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk, six miles away, and later returned to set fire to them. When he was in court, Huntley lamely claimed that both schoolgirls had died accidently. He said Holly drowned in his bath and that he inadvertently suffocated Jessica while trying to stifle her screams. But in 2018 he confessed to deliberately killing Jessica to stop her from raising the alarm. He continued to insist that Holly's death was an accident. Huntley was jailed for life in 2005. Carr was jailed for perverting the course of justice and was released in 2004 with a new identity.
Indian Express
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Maharashtra state board to have bridge course for students transitioning to new curriculum
As the Maharashtra State Board plans a complete shift to a new curriculum based on NCERT textbooks in a phased manner till 2029, students being taught the new curriculum for the first time will also undergo a bridge course. The corrected version of the withdrawn April 16 government resolution (GR) released on Monday reiterates that the bridge course will be developed by the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) and will be used in all grades. The GR states, 'With the new curriculum being implemented for the first time, a bridge course for all grades should be prepared by the State Council of Educational Research and Training and used as necessary in all grades.' The state board has decided to formulate a new curriculum based on NCERT textbooks keeping in mind educational requirements of the state. This new curriculum will be prepared by the SCERT and introduced for Class 1 from this year (academic year 2025-26) onwards. In the next year (AY 2026-27), the new syllabus will be implemented for classes 2, 3, 4 and 6. Following that in AY 2027-28 the new syllabus will be introduced for classes 5, 7, 9, and 11. In the last year AY 2028-29, the new syllabus will be introduced for classes 8, 10, and 12. Mahendra Ganpule, former head of Maharashtra School Principals' Association, said, 'The objective of the bridge course is to help students cover any changes between the old curriculum and the new curriculum. To remove any backlog. The GR just notified that there will be such a course, no other details have been provided yet.' Ganpule also agrees that there is a gap between the current state board syllabus and the NCERT syllabus that would need to be bridged as the curriculum change is brought about. The GR also states that according to the New Education Policy 2020, the 10+2 structure of school education would be changed to a 5+3+3+4 structure in the state as well. The first stage will be the Foundational Stage consisting of three years of Balvatika and class 1 and 2. The next will be the Preparatory Stage consisting of classes 3 to 5. Following will be the Pre-Secondary stage consisting of classes 6 to 8 and the last stage will be the Secondary Stage consisting of classes 9 to 12. SCERT director Rahul Rekhawar, who is currently on an educational tour to Germany, did not respond to Whatsapp messages for comments on the bridge course. Soham is a Correspondent with the Indian Express in Pune. A journalism graduate, he was a fact-checker before joining the Express. Soham currently covers education and is also interested in civic issues, health, human rights, and politics. ... Read More
BBC News
13-07-2025
- Climate
- BBC News
Soham homes lose water supply during heatwave
Some residents have reported being left without water after supply issues in a Cambridgeshire Water, which is responsible for providing water to parts of the East of England, said it was aware of issues affecting Soham and surrounding areas.A spokesperson said its engineers were investigating the UK is experiencing its third heatwave of the year and the mercury is forecast to reach 26C in Soham. A spokesperson said: "We've had a few reports about the water supply in this area. "Don't worry – our engineers are investigating what might be behind it." Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Indian Express
09-07-2025
- General
- Indian Express
103 students appear for state open board Marathi exam in USA, Canada, Denmark
For the first time, 103 students from the US, Canada, and Denmark appeared for Class 1 to Class 8 Marathi language exam through the Maharashtra State Board of Open Schooling this year on May 18, the results of which were declared on Wednesday. The exam was conducted by the Maharashtra education department in collaboration with the Brihanmaharashtra Mandal North America. Marathi being awarded the Classical Language status in October last year spurred organisations to conduct this examination. The students were admitted across 60 Marathi schools/centres across the three countries and were provided Marathi textbooks published by state board publisher Balbharti. While the maximum (37) students were from the USA, 22 students were from Canada and 14 from Denmark. A healthy gender ratio was also observed as 53 of these students were male and 50 female. Milind Joshi, president of Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan, said, 'This is an extremely welcome step. People are taking care of their language, culture, and traditions after going to foreign lands. We should do the same here.' Soham is a Correspondent with the Indian Express in Pune. A journalism graduate, he was a fact-checker before joining the Express. Soham currently covers education and is also interested in civic issues, health, human rights, and politics. ... Read More
