Indonesia earthquake, tsunami toll reaches 1,407
Palu (Indonesia), Oct 3 : Indonesian authorities on Wednesday raised to 1,407 the number of deaths caused by the 7.5 magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami that struck Sulawesi Island.
In a televised press conference in Jakarta, National Agency for Disaster Management spokesperson Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said the figure was expected to continue rising as search and rescue operations were underway with more rescuers and equipment joining in the mission.
Most deaths were recorded in Palu, the worst affected city on Sulawesi Island, while the rest of the casualties were in the neighbouring Donggala district and parts of Sigi and Parigi Moutong, Sutopo said.
An estimated 2.4 million people were affected by the twin disasters. A total of 70,821 people fled their homes and took shelter in camps or under tarpaulins in 141 spots. So far, not all of the basic needs have been provided, Sutopo was cited as saying by Efe news.
The number of people admitted to hospitals went up to 2,549 and those missing to 113. About 65,733 houses were damaged or destroyed.
The catastrophe began on Friday with a 6.1 magnitude earthquake that killed one person. It was followed by the 7.5 magnitude earthquake and then a tsunami.
Sutopo said that 63 per cent of Indonesians in the Sulawesi region hit by the quake and tsunami failed to hear the warning sirens.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Wednesday made his second visit to the devastated areas in Palu and Donggala. He later tweeted that a rapid response was the most important thing after the tragedy.
Widodo said that aid had started arriving and that US President Donald Trump had called him to offer assistance, state news agency Antara reported.
His visit came as electricity was being restored to around 30 per cent of Palu -- a city of 350,000 inhabitants - Sarjan Mokodomgan, an employee of the state-owned electricity company, told Efe news.
Gasoline distribution began on Wednesday after at least a dozen tanker trunks arrived with fuel.
Indonesian authorities and various local and international organizations were working to bring humanitarian aid and medical assistance to those affected.
Meanwhile, the Soputan volcano located on the Sulawesi Island erupted on Wednesday, prompting authorities to raise the alert in the area to the second highest level.
Sotupan emitted a column of smoke and ash 4,000 metres high and authorities established a safety radius of 4 km around the crater.
Sotupan's activity coincided with that of the Anak Krakatau volcano located in the Sunda Strait, between the islands of Sumatra and Java, which in recent weeks recorded dozens of eruptions.
Officials said that the condition of Anak Krakatau was safe, and beyond the safety perimetre established within a radius of 2 km around the crater.
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Supreme Court rejects plea for reverting to ballots in elections
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed a petition seeking to revert to ballot paper voting in elections in the country.
"What happens is, when you win the election, EVMs (electronic voting machine) are not tampered. When you lose the election, EVMs are tampered (with)," remarked a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and P B Varale.
Apart from ballot paper voting, the plea sought several directions including a directive to the Election Commission to disqualify candidates for a minimum of five years if found guilty of distributing money, liquor or other material inducement to the voters during polls.
When petitioner-in-person K A Paul said he filed the PIL, the bench said, "You have interesting PILs. How do you get these brilliant ideas?".
The petitioner said he is the president of an organisation which has rescued over three lakh orphans and 40 lakh widows.
"Why are you getting into this political arena? Your area of work is very different," the bench retorted.
After Paul revealed he had been to over 150 countries, the bench asked him whether each of the nations had ballot paper voting or used electronic voting.
The petitioner said foreign countries had adopted ballot paper voting and India should follow suit.
"Why you don't want to be different from the rest of the world?" asked the bench.
There was corruption and this year (2024) in June, the Election Commission announced they had seized Rs 9,000 crore, Paul responded.
"But how does that make your relief which you are claiming here relevant?" asked the bench, adding "if you shift back to physical ballot, will there be no corruption?".
Paul claimed CEO and co-founder of Tesla, Elon Musk, stated that EVMs could be tampered with and added TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu, the current chief minister of Andhra Pradesh, and former state chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy had claimed EVMs could be tampered with.
"When Chandrababu Naidu lost, he said EVMs can be tampered with. Now this time, Jagan Mohan Reddy lost, he said EVMs can be tampered with," noted the bench.
When the petitioner said everybody knew money was distributed in elections, the bench remarked, "We never received any money for any elections."
The petitioner said another prayer in his plea was the formulation of a comprehensive framework to regulate the use of money and liquor during election campaigns and ensuring such practices were prohibited and punishable under the law.
The plea further sought a direction to mandate an extensive voter education campaign to raise awareness and importance of informed decision making.
"Today, 32 per cent educated people are not casting their votes. What a tragedy. If democracy will be dying like this and we will not be able to do anything then what will happen in the years to come in future," the petitioner said.
