Flood-like situation in Vadodara, over 1,000 evacuated
Ahmedabad/Vadodara: Vadodara city in central Gujarat received nearly 500 mm rainfall in 24 hours ending 8 am on Thursday, which created a flood-like situation in the city and disrupted the normal life.
The fire brigade, Army and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) evacuated around 1,000 people from the city and surrounding villages using boats and tractors, and shifted them to safer places, an official press release said.
The torrential rains inundated majority of the areas and roads in the city.
While the Vadodara airport has been shut since Wednesday, several trains have also been cancelled or diverted due to heavy waterlogging on tracks.
Water of the Vishwamitri river, which passes through the Vadodara, entered low-lying areas of the city after Ajwa dam overflowed, officials said, adding that people living in these areas are being evacuated.
As per the figures provided by the state government, Vadodara city received a staggering 499 mm of rainfall in 24 hours ending 8 am on Thursday.
Of this, 286 mm downpour battered the city in just four hours between 4 pm and 8 pm on Wednesday, the release said.
On Wednesday evening, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani had called a meeting to review the situation in Vadodara, and asked IAS officers Vinod Rao and Lochan Sehra to rush to the city to provide guidance to the local administration in tackling the situation.
Rupani requested people living in low-lying areas around the river to cooperate with the administration and shift to higher areas. State Meteorological (MeT) Department Director Jayanta Sarkar said this is a record rainfall received in Vadodara city.
He said the state is likely to receive heavy rains in the next three days.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
