17 killed as wall collapses in Tamil Nadu village following rains
Coimbatore (TN): In a major rain-related incident in Tamil Nadu, at least 17 people, including ten women and two children, were killed in their sleep when a wall collapsed on a row of houses in a village near here on Monday, police said.
A portion of the 15-foot tall private compound wall, totally wet due to heavy rains lashing the area for the past few days, fell on the adjoining tiled-roof houses in Nadur village, over 50 kms from here, around 5 am, burying alive the inmates.
Villagers said the wall built abutting the houses had been an issue.
The Fire and Rescue services personnel with the assistance of locals and police retrieved the bodies from the debris and the operations were continuing, police said.
In Chennai, Chief Minister K Palaniswami condoled the deaths in the wall collapse and announced a relief of Rs 4 lakh each to their families from the State Disaster Relief Fund.
Coimbatore District Collector K Rajamani and Superintendent of Police Sujit Kumar visited the spot.
The Collector told reporters that the villagers informed him about the issue over the construction of the compound wall. If found illegal, the wall would be demolished, he said.
The district administration will review suggestions by the villagers to prevent such incidents in future and will send a detailed report to the state government for follow up action, including providing relief measures, Rajamani said.
He also said facilities at the Mettupalayam government hospital would be upgraded to ensure locals did not need to travel to the district headquarters here.
Several parts of the state have been lashed by incessant North East monsoon rains for the past few days.
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CJI Surya Kant clarifies 'parasites' remarks, says 'pained' over media reports
New Delhi (PTI): Chief Justice of India Surya Kant on Saturday issued a strongly worded clarification on his 'parasites' remarks, saying he was "pained" by media reports that suggested he criticised youth.
"I am pained to read how a section of the media has misquoted my oral observations made during the hearing of a frivolous case yesterday," the CJI said in a statement.
Kant emphasised that his remarks were specifically directed at individuals entering the legal profession through "fake and bogus degrees" and were "misquoted by a section of the media."
The clarification follows a controversy during a hearing on Friday, when the CJI used words like "parasites" and "cockroaches" while pulling up a lawyer for his plea seeking senior designation.
"What I had specifically criticised were those who have entered professions like the Bar (legal profession) with the aid of fake and bogus degrees. Similar persons have sneaked into the media, social media, and other noble professions as well, and hence, they are like parasites.
"It is totally baseless to suggest that I criticised the youth of our nation. Not only am I proud of our present and future human resource, but every youth of India inspires me. It is not an exaggeration to say that Indian youth have great regard and respect for me, and I too see them as the pillars of a developed India," the chief justice said about his remarks.
