Midnight earthquake kills 116, injures nearly 400 in northwest China
Beijing/Jishishan (PTI): At least 116 people were killed and nearly 400 others injured when a powerful 6.2-magnitude earthquake struck a remote mountainous region in northwest China just before midnight, the local earthquake relief headquarters said on Tuesday.
According to the China Earthquake Networks Centre, the shallow quake jolted Gansu and Qinghai provinces at 11:59 p.m. on Monday, with a focal depth of 10 kilometres.
The epicentre of the earthquake Liugou township is about 8 kilometres from the county seat of Jishishan Bao'an, Dongxiang, Sala autonomous county in Linxia Hui autonomous prefecture in Gansu.
Experts say shallow quakes cause heavy damage to infrastructure.
Qinghai province is adjacent to the Tibet Himalayan region which is prone to frequent earthquakes due to shifting of continental plates.
A second quake struck the neighbouring Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region hours later on Tuesday.
The Atux City of Kizilsu Kirgiz Autonomous Prefecture in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, was struck by the earthquake at 9:46 a.m. loacal time on Tuesday, the CENC said.
The epicentre, with a depth of 10 km, was monitored at 40.02 degrees north latitude and 77.86 degrees east longitude, the CENC said.
Gansu and Qinghai also experienced aftershocks.
While 105 people were killed in Gansu, 11 others died in Qinghai due to the quake, according to official media reports.
So far 397 people have been reported injured in the quake-hit areas, officials said.
The quake has damaged 6,381 houses in Jishishan.
So far 32 aftershocks were recorded, with the largest registering a magnitude of 4.0, said Han Shujun, a spokesperson for the provincial emergency management department, at the press conference.
The quake has destroyed some rural roads, leading to power outages and telecommunication failures. The maintenance crew has been working overnight to repair the damaged infrastructure.
Several villages suffered power failures and disruption of water.
The Ministry of Transport, which monitors the operation of roads, said on Tuesday morning that a bridge across the Yellow River had cracked because of the quake.
According to local meteorological authorities, the daily low temperature in Jishishan is reported to climb minus 10 degrees Celsius on Tuesday.
The provincial fire and rescue department sent 580 rescuers aided with 88 fire engines, 12 search and rescue dogs, and more than 10,000 sets of equipment to the disaster area.
The railway authority has suspended passenger and cargo trains passing through the quake zone and ordered a safety check of railway tracks.
Hu Changsheng, the ruling Communist Party chief of Gansu, and Ren Zhenhe, the governor of Gansu, have rushed to the disaster-hit area to command rescue and relief efforts.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang have ordered all-out rescue efforts to minimise casualties after the earthquake.
Xi asked local authorities to rescue and treat the injured people promptly, and closely monitor the earthquake situation and weather changes to prevent secondary disasters.
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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.
