19 dead in road accident in Telangana
Hyderabad (PTI): At least 19 people were killed and four others suffered injuries when a tipper lorry carrying gravel collided head-on with a public transport bus in Ranga Reddy district of Telangana on Monday, police said.
The tipper collided with the Telangana Road Transport Corporation (RTC) vehicle near Chevella on Monday morning, resulting in the gravel falling on the bus.
The 19 deceased, included 10 women, a police official told PTI.
The driver of the bus, travelling to Hyderabad from Tandur, was among the dead.
The total of passengers travelling in the bus could not be ascertained immediately, he said.
The injured persons were in trauma and they could not provide information on the number of passengers in the bus.
With the gravel falling on the bus, several passengers got stuck inside the vehicle and officials carried out relief measures using earthmovers.
The passengers of the bus were brought out of it, the police official added.
Expressing anguish over the accident, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy directed Chief Secretary K Ramakrishna Rao and DGP Shivadhar Reddy to carry out relief measures on a war footing, an official release said.
The CM also asked some ministers to rush to the accident site, it said.
He told the officials to rush the injured passengers to Hyderabad to provide advanced treatment.
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No unannounced load shedding in Kerala, outages due to overload, says Minister
Palakkad (PTI): Kerala Electricity Minister K Krishnankutty on Saturday said there was no unannounced load shedding in the state, attributing recent power interruptions to temporary overload caused by high consumption.
Clarifying concerns raised from various parts of the state, the minister said the disruptions are not deliberate but occur when demand peaks, particularly between 10 pm and 11 pm.
"It is not being done intentionally. Power consumption has risen sharply, and when there is excessive and indiscriminate usage, the system experiences overload, leading to natural supply interruptions," he told reporters here.
His remarks come amid complaints that several areas have been witnessing frequent power cuts, often lasting around 15 minutes and occurring multiple times during the night.
Krishnankutty said the state's power demand has crossed 6,195 MW, putting pressure on the supply system. He added that around 70 per cent of Kerala's electricity is procured from outside, and existing power banking arrangements have been exhausted.
"We have approached the Regulatory Commission seeking permission to purchase more power. However, this will come at a higher cost," he said.
The minister said the government is trying to avoid increasing electricity tariffs and urged consumers to exercise restraint in usage to help manage the situation.
Responding to opposition criticism over the ruling LDF's earlier claims of a decade without power cuts, he said the current situation is not unique to Kerala.
A power crisis is emerging across the country, he said, and sarcastically asked the Opposition to take note of the role of natural factors in this.
Krishnankutty expressed confidence that the situation would improve within two days, while cautioning that long-term energy security would depend on enhancing in-state power generation.
He also warned that future generations could face serious challenges if adequate electricity production capacity is not developed within Kerala.
