After death of two Russians, another goes missing in Odisha
Bhubaneswar, Dec 31: After the mystery surrounding the deaths of two Russians, including a lawmaker, in a hotel in Odisha recently, the state police are searching for another man from the same country, a self-proclaimed anti-Ukraine war activist, who has gone missing.
The Russian MP was a critic of President Vladimir Putin while the missing man, who used to stay in Puri, was also on the same page, having been sighted earlier on in Odisha's capital holding placards with anti-war and anti-Putin slogans, seeking financial assistance.
About a month ago, the man was seen in the Bhubaneswar railway station holding a placard that read: " I am Russian Refugee, I am against War, I am against Putin, I am Homeless, Please Help me".
The photo of the man holding that placard, clicked by some passenger, has gone viral after the death of his compatriots - lawmaker and businessman Pavel Antov and his fellow traveller Vladimir Bidenov in a hotel in Rayagada district.
Antov died after allegedly falling from the hotel's third floor on December 24 while Bidenov was found dead in his room on December 22.
GRP officials in Bhubaneswar railway station talked to the man holding that poster around a month ago.
"On being informed by some commuters, I went to him and inquired about him. He was loitering on the railway platform, carrying a placard. I had inspected his passport and visa and found the documents to be OK," said the GRP inspector in charge Jayadev Biswajit.
As he was not conversant in English, not much details could be collected from him, he said.
"The GRP has contacted us. We have provided immediate assistance," Puri SP Kanwar Vishal Singh said.
The police are now looking for him.
"The police had no cause to suspect any wrong-doing linked to his disappearance at that time, as the Rayagada incident happened thereafter," a senior railway police official told PTI.
The two deceased Russians were cremated and the CID is investigating their deaths.
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Hospital wall collapse: CM orders suspension of executive engineer; kin of victims get solatium
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday ordered the immediate suspension of an executive engineer for the Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital wall collapse that claimed the lives of seven people, during a high-level review meeting at Vidhana Soudha.
A compensation of Rs 5 lakh, as announced by the CM Siddaramaiah, was distributed to the families of seven victims who lost their lives in the tragedy on Wednesday evening, which occurred due to heavy downpour with gusty winds and hailstorm.
The meeting of municipal commissioners of the five corporations, chaired by the chief minister and attended by Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, focused on fixing accountability and examining lapses that led to the tragedy.
"Why was soil dumped in a way that damaged the wall? Why did you not monitor this?" Siddaramaiah asked, pulling up hospital authorities during the meeting.
A statement from the chief minister's office said that the CM ordered the immediate suspension of the executive engineer of the Karnataka Health Systems Development Project (KHSDP).
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He also questioned the hospital authorities, asking why they failed to monitor the dumping of soil that weakened the structure.
The chief minister directed that a notice be issued to the head of the Hospital.
During the meeting, Siddaramaiah said the rains had caused extensive damage in the city, with over 250 trees uprooted.
The Chief Minister instructed officials to take necessary measures before the onset of the monsoon to avoid untoward incidents.
Commissioners of all five municipal zones in Bengaluru have been asked to take precautionary steps, including trimming dry and dangerous tree branches, the CMO said.
Siddaramaiah also directed them to get the silt cleared from stormwater drains to prevent flooding, and that immediate action be taken to remove debris and fallen branches from roads.
Further, he instructed that barricades be placed at underpasses where water stagnates and restricts public movement.
The Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) Chief Commissioner M Maheshwar Rao said in a statement that Shivajinagar MLA Rizwan Arshad distributed compensation cheques of Rs 5 lakh each to the families of the deceased on Thursday.
Seven people, including a six-year-old girl, were killed and seven others injured when the compound wall collapsed amid heavy rain, strong winds and a hailstorm on Wednesday evening.
Police said the victims, comprising three from Bengaluru, two from Kerala on a study tour and one each from Uttar Pradesh and Assam, had taken shelter near the wall when it suddenly gave way, trapping them under the debris.
The chief minister questioned officials over the dumping of soil near the wall despite knowing it could weaken the structure, and directed that a notice be issued to the head of Bowring Hospital.
Siddaramaiah, who had visited the spot soon after the incident along with senior officials, reviewed the situation and ordered a detailed probe into the collapse.
