10 Naxals killed in Chhattisgarh encounter
Raipur : Ten Naxals were killed in an encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh Thursday, police said.
The face-off took place in forests under Bhairamgarh police station area of Bijapur district when a joint team of security personnel was out on an anti-Naxal operation, state Director General of Police D M Awasthi told reporters here.
"Police received a specific input about the presence of Maoist Divisional Committee members Rajman Mandavi and Sukhlal with 50-60 cadres in the interiors of Bhairamgarh forest. They were reportedly conducting a training camp for the lower-rung cadres there," he said.
Acting on the tip-off, around 200 members of the combined squad of the Special Task Force and the District Reserve Guard launched the operation Wednesday night, he said.
"When the patrolling team was in the forest near Borga village, around 450 km from the state capital Raipur, at around 11 am on Thursday, the Naxals opened fire on them that led to the gun-battle," he said.
"The intermittent firing lasted for two-and-a-half hours. When the exchange of fire ended, bodies of 10 uniform- clad Naxals were recovered from the spot along with 11 muzzle loading guns and a 315 bore revolver," Awasthi said.
A large cache of explosives was also recovered from the spot, he said. Terming it as a successful intelligence-based operation in the beginning of 2019, Awasthi said such operations will continue.
Reinforcement has been rushed to the spot to assist the patrolling team to evacuate the bodies, he said.
"The identity of the killed Naxals and other details will be known once the security forces return," he added.
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Philippines president declares national energy emergency amid global fuel supply risks
Manila: Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr has declared a national energy emergency, citing the “imminent danger” to the country’s fuel supply due to global disruptions linked to the ongoing conflict involving the US, Israel, and Iran, Al Jazeera reported.
“The declaration of a state of national energy emergency will enable the government… to implement responsive and coordinated measures under existing laws to address the risks posed by disruptions in the global energy supply and the domestic economy,” Al Jazeera quoted Marcos Jr as saying.
As part of the emergency response, a committee has been formed to ensure the orderly movement, supply, distribution and availability of fuel, food, medicine, agricultural products and other essential goods, he said.
The emergency declaration, which will remain in force for one year, allows the government to procure fuel in advance and take action against hoarding and profiteering.
Authorities are also empowered to take action against the hoarding, profiteering and manipulation of petroleum product supplies.
Energy Secretary Sharon Garin said the country currently has about 45 days of fuel supply based on current consumption. She added that the government is working to procure 1 million barrels of oil from countries within and outside Southeast Asia to build a buffer stock, though uncertainties remain.
Meanwhile, Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez said the government is in talks with Washington to secure exemptions that would allow for the purchase of oil from countries under US sanctions.
The announcement comes amid rising public discontent. Transport workers, commuters, and consumer groups have planned a two-day strike to protest fuel price hikes and what they call inadequate government response.
Piston, a federation of public transport associations, described the declaration of a national energy emergency as a “superficial band-aid that deliberately ignores the structural roots of the fuel crisis”.
“If the government genuinely intends to protect transport workers and commuters from this geopolitical crisis, it would immediately suspend the Excise Tax and Value-Added Tax on petroleum products to drastically lower prices overnight,” Al Jazeera quoted Piston as saying.
Renato Reyes Jr, of the progressive civil society coalition Bayan, said the declaration “does not address the basic problem of runaway oil prices and [their] effects on the mass transport system and other sectors in the country”.
As part of the government’s mitigation measures, students and workers in some cities are being given free access to bus rides, and the government has started to provide a 5,000 peso subsidy for public transport workers, including motorcycle taxi drivers, to help them cope with rising fuel costs.
