26 who helped passengers of crashed plane contract COVID-19
Malappuram, (Kerala): As many as 26 volunteers who reached the Air-India Express plane crash site in Kozhikode, 48 km from here, and evacuated the injured passengers on August 7, have tested positive for COVID-19.
"As far as my information from the airport sources goes, as many as 26 local people, involved in the rescue operations, have tested positive for the virus so far and are now under medical care," the Malappuram District Medical Officer Dr K Sakeena told PTI.
District Collector K Gopalakrishnan, Superintendent of Police U Abdul Kareem and 21 officials, including police and fire force personnel, also involved in the rescue operations, had also tested positive.
Nineteen people, including the pilot andco-pilot, were killed and several injured when the flight with 190 people on board overshot the table-top runway and fell into a valley and broke into pieces.
The youngsters, who all stay around the airport area, had rushed to the accident site braving the heavy rains and COVID-19 fears and taken the injured to the various hospitals, drawing praise from various quarters, including Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
The volunteers had been asked by the Health Minister K K Shailaja to go on quarantine after one of the deceased passengers tested positive for the pathogen.
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Meghalaya: Interstate ATM theft racket busted, 6 arrested
Shillong (PTI): An interstate racket involved in ATM thefts across several states has been busted, with the arrest of six persons in connection with a break-in at an electronic banking outlet in Meghalaya's Ri-Bhoi district, police said on Wednesday.
The accused were allegedly involved in breaking into an ATM of the Meghalaya Cooperative Apex Bank on April 5, 2024, they said.
Three of the accused were arrested from Barpeta in Assam, while the remaining were apprehended from Haryana, police said.
Ri-Bhoi SP Giri Prasad M said a special police team was constituted to investigate the case.
"With coordinated efforts and assistance from Assam and Haryana Police, we were able to apprehend the accused involved in the ATM break-in," he told PTI.
The case was registered at Umiam police station under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
According to police, the gang used gas cutters to break open the ATM safe and fled with the cash within minutes.
"The group is part of a larger network involved in similar ATM thefts across different states. Further investigation is underway to dismantle the entire network," the SP added.
