UP: 6 of family killed in oxygen cylinder blast in Bulandshahr house
Bulandshahr (UP) (PTI): Six people died and three were injured following an oxygen cylinder blast which led to a partial house collapse in the Sikandrabad area of Bulandshahr district, officials said on Tuesday.
District Magistrate of Bulandshahr Chandra Prakash Singh said the incident occurred on Monday evening in the house of one Riyazuddin in which around 19 people, including women and children, were living.
Riyazuddin was involved in shuttering work -- the process of giving support and stability to concrete during construction work before it becomes solid.
The initial death toll was five which increased to six in the early hours of Tuesday. City Magistrate Chandra Prakash Priyadarshi said six bodies -- three male and three female -- were brought to the district hospital.
According to officials, those dead were identified as Riyazuddin alias Raju (50), his wife Rukhsana (45), Salman (16), Tamanna (24), Hivja (3) and Aas Mohammed (26).
DM Singh said, "A cylinder blast occurred in the Ashapuri colony of Sikandrabad between 8.30 pm and 9 pm leading to the collapse of the entire house." He said eight residents were taken to the hospital while others were safe.
Additional Director General of Police, Meerut Zone, Dhruva Kant Thakur said information about the casualties was received, after which rescue and relief operations were launched immediately.
Personnel of the NDRF, fire brigade, police, medical and the local administration were involved in the rescue work, he said.
"Chief Minister (Yogi Adityanath) took immediate cognisance of the incident. We were sent to the spot and directions were issued that good quality treatment should be given to the injured persons," the DM said.
About the rescue operation, he said the iron beams of the roof of the house had to be pried open using gas cutters. At the same time, an excavator was pressed into action to clear the debris.
On Tuesday morning, Senior Superintendent of Police of Bulandshahr Shlok Kumar told PTI that the rescue operation had been completed at the site.
Although the surviving family members have said that no one was trapped under the debris anymore, the rescue teams took all precautions while carrying out their work, he added.
"A total of six persons have died and another three suffered injuries in the blast because of which the front portion of the double-storey house collapsed," Kumar said.
The wife of Riyazuddin was undergoing treatment for an ailment at a hospital and was recently brought back to the home, where the family had brought an oxygen cylinder along with its accessories to help in the post hospitalisation care, the SSP said.
"This oxygen cylinder exploded. The cylinder, its nozzle, etc have been recovered from the debris," the district police chief told PTI.
The bodies have been sent for post-mortem and further legal proceedings in the matter are underway, he added.
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
