6 killed, several injured in collisions due to fog across UP
Unnao/Baghpat (UP) (PTI): At least six people were killed and several others injured in separate road collisions in various parts of the state due to a heavy fog the previous night and Wednesday morning.
In Bareilly district's Hafizganj, two women were killed and a man injured when the motorcycle they were travelling on was hit by a tractor.
"Sunita Devi (35) and Prabha Devi (36) were killed and Rajyapal was injured when the motorcycle they were travelling on was hit by a tractor on Wednesday morning," said Superintendent of Police (rural) Mukesh Chandra Mishra.
"The driver of the tractor could not see the motorcycle in the thick fog. The driver has been detained we are in the process of lodging an FIR regarding the matter," the SP added.
In Unnao, adjoining the state capital, a man was killed and at least 15 others injured in a pile-up of three buses, one container truck, and two cars on the Agra-Lucknow expressway last night.
Bangarmau Police Station SHO Gyanendra Singh said, "a bus collided with a container truck from behind due to low visibility caused by a heavy fog. Two other buses later collided with the bus followed by two cars leading to a pileup.
According to police, the victim of the collision was 50-year-old Vijay Kumar, and the 15 injured were all from the buses. They have been admitted to a hospital.
In Baghpat district of Western UP, two women were killed and 11 others injured when the van they were travelling in hit a truck in an area under the Khekra Police Station.
"A passenger van collided with a truck on the Eastern Peripheral Expressway during the wee hours of Wednesday," SHO Rajiv Singh said.
Seema, 44, and Mandeep, 38, were killed in the accident. The injured were rushed to a hospital.
"It appears that the accident occurred because the van driver failed to notice the truck due to fog," the SHO said.
In Agra, around a dozen vehicles piled-up on a national highway, leading to the death of one person and injuries to six others, who were admitted to the SN Medical College for treatment, according to police.
The incident took place around 3 am on the Shahdara Bridge in the Trans-Yamuna Police Station area due to fog, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Agra City) Suraj Kumar Rai said.
"Of the seven victims, one died and four are still undergoing treatment at the hospital. All damaged vehicles have been removed from the road except for one whose axle broke down and needs to be repaired. Normal traffic has resumed on the stretch," Rai said.
Among the vehicles which crashed in the Agra pile-up was a pickup truck carrying roosters. A video purported to be of the site showed locals running away with roosters.
The police officer said there is no complaint yet in that matter.
In Etawah, three people were injured after being hit by a truck on the Agra-Kanpur National Highway under Jaswantnagar area of the district Wednesday morning.
According to police, the three were standing on a roadside when they were hit by a truck.
They were admitted to a hospital, where one of them is said to be in a critical state.
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Marxism will remain relevant despite Left electoral's losses, says general secretary M A Baby
New Delhi (PTI): CPI(M) General Secretary M A Baby on Thursday asserted that the Left movement would remain relevant despite not being in power in any state, saying the ideology would continue to endure as long as social and economic inequalities persist.
Hitting back at BJP leader Rajeev Chandrasekhar over his reported remarks that Marxism had become irrelevant, Baby, in an interview with PTI Videos, said, "So long as there is division in society, so long as there is exploitation of the majority of workers, peasants and ordinary masses by a handful of billionaires, Marxism will remain relevant."
"That perhaps Mr Rajeev Chandrasekhar may not be able to understand, but this is the fact of the matter," he said.
Baby acknowledged that the CPI(M)-led Left was currently without an elected government in any state, but maintained that electoral setbacks would not diminish the movement's role.
"We may not have an elected government in any state. There were occasions when we didn't have a government. But the red flag and the commitment to organise and struggle for the rights of the dispossessed, marginalised and exploited will always be upheld by CPI(M) and the Left movement," he said.
He said the Left continued to enjoy support among workers, peasants, agricultural labourers, youth, students and women, and argued that the movement remained necessary because "oppression and assault" continued in society.
"So long as such problems exist in society, the red flag and the working class movement will continue to work among the masses," the Left leader said.
Exuding confidence on the Left's revival, Baby said the party would reflect on the reasons behind its electoral loss.
"We may be rejected in one election, but we will stage our comeback by understanding what went wrong with us," he said, adding, "We will listen to people and we will come back with higher strength."
Baby also criticised the Congress over reported factional tensions in Kerala after the Congress-led United Democratic Front's victory in the state.
"The way they are behaving is being watched by the people of Kerala," he said, referring to infighting within the Congress.
"Those who have given a massive majority to Congress and UDF would be watching all this," he added, while urging party leaders to "settle the problem in an amicable, democratic manner".
Referring to West Bengal, Baby alleged that violence had escalated following the BJP's victory in the state assembly polls.
"It is quite unfortunate that the moment BJP snatched a massive victory in West Bengal, violence has also started on a big scale," he said.
He also accused the Trinamool Congress of being "notorious for violent activities" and alleged that the "RSS-controlled BJP" had "unleashed violence in many places" after the election results.
"This is not good for Bengal, not good for the country. We wish and hope that normalcy would be restored as soon as possible," he said.
Baby said the CPI(M) and the Left in West Bengal would continue efforts to "pacify people" and avoid violence and confrontation.
Asked about former Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan not reacting publicly to the election results, Baby said Vijayan would respond "at an appropriate time".
