Week before Ganeshotsav, petrol flares up to Rs 88.77 in Maharashtra
Mumbai, Sep 6 : Barely a week before the state's biggest public festival Ganeshotsav, petrol-diesel prices in Maharashtra's Parbhani shot up to Rs 88.77, perhaps the highest in the country, an official said.
Parbhani District Petroleum Dealers Association President Sanjay Deshmukh said that even diesel prices are on a sharp upswing and stood at Rs 76.59 on Thursday, hitting the commoners hard.
Federation of All Maharashtra Petroleum Dealers Association (FAMPEDA) President Uday Lodh said that Amravati follows at Rs 88.25 and Aurangabad at Rs 87.96 per litre.
Next is Nagpur at Rs 87.39, Mumbai at Rs 86.91 and Pune at Rs 86.71 per litre for petrol, he said.
All India Petrol Dealers Association spokesperson Ali Daruwala said the average rates of petrol in Maharashtra was at Rs 86.80, diesel Rs 74.69, with plus/minus Rs 0.25, depending on local variations.
He attributed the current upswing to crude oil prices touching $77 per barrel and INR depreciating to almost Rs 72 per dollar.
Besides other international politico-economic factors like Iran and OPEC not increasing its output, Daruwala said that every single dollar hike in global crude prices can lead to increase of Rs 1.50 per litre petrol in India.
The officials pointed out that the masses have stoically borne the burden of the spiraling rates of petrol and diesel without complaining, but it has had a cascading effect on other sectors of the economy.
For instance, the prices of essentials, vegetables and other commodities have shot up by 20-25 per cent in major cities.
This is directly attributed to increased transportation costs on account of the fuel price hikes, dealing a blow to the upcoming 10-day Ganeshotsav festivities, and the price rise trends expected to continue.
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Man chased, brutally stabbed inside public toilet in northwest Delhi; one arrested; juvenile held
New Delhi (PTI): An alleged road rage incident took a fatal turn when a 27-year-old factory worker was chased down by assailants and stabbed multiple times inside a public toilet in northwest Delhi's Ashok Vihar area, police said on Thursday.
According to police, the incident took place on Wednesday night, when witnesses saw the victim, Santosh Kumar, running into a public toilet in a desperate bid to save his life, with his attackers hot on his heels.
"A PCR call was received at 6:23 pm on April 8 regarding a man being stabbed inside the compound of a Sulabh Sauchalaya located at the fish market in Wazirpur Industrial Area," a senior police officer said.
A police team rushed to the spot and found the victim lying in a pool of blood inside the toilet premises. The victim, originally from Nepal, was residing in Macchi Market area, the official said.
Preliminary inquiry revealed that the incident stemmed from an altercation between the victim and a motorcycle rider. The verbal spat soon escalated into a physical scuffle, during which the accused, along with an associate, allegedly attacked Santosh with a knife.
Police sources said in a desperate attempt to save himself, the injured victim ran towards the nearby public toilet and tried to latch the door from inside. Eyewitness accounts suggest he tried to take refuge inside the public toilet and shut the door to prevent his attackers from entering. However, he was chased down, overpowered, and stabbed multiple times.
Santosh collapsed on the spot, where he later succumbed to his injuries, police said.
A case under sections 103(1) (murder) and 3(5) (common intentions) was registered at Ashok Vihar police station and an investigation was taken up.
During the probe, police arrested one accused identified as Tanish (19), a resident of CSA Colony in Macchi Market area, and apprehended a juvenile allegedly involved in the incident.
Police said the motorcycle used by the accused, which they had abandoned while fleeing after the attack, was recovered near the crime scene.
Family members and acquaintances of the deceased expressed shock over the killing. Santosh's uncle, who reached the spot after being informed, recounted the scene.
"When I came here, I saw him lying on the floor, dead. I noticed that he had been stabbed twice. I am not aware of what exactly happened. He was just 27 years old and used to work in a steel company with me. I don't know how many people were involved in the attack. We are from Nepal, and I have been working here for 15 years. I think he was stabbed outside and later came inside the toilet to save himself. There was a bike outside which I think belonged to the attackers," he said.
Police said the motive behind the crime appears to be road rage -- a sudden and heated altercation on the road that spiralled into a violent assault resulting in the victim's death.
Efforts are underway to identify and apprehend any other persons involved in the attack. Police teams are analysing CCTV footage from the surrounding area and examining local witnesses to piece together the sequence of events.
