EV battery explodes, killing 1 and injuring 3 in Andhra Pradesh
Amaravati(PTI): A 40-year-old man was killed when the battery of his new electric bike exploded causing fire in his bedroom in Vijayawada city in the early hours of Saturday.
His wife suffered burns and was in a critical condition in hospital, police said. Their two children also suffered from asphyxiation but were stable, the police added.
The incident was similar to the one that happened three days ago in Nizamabad town in neighbouring Telangana where an electric vehicle battery exploded killing an 80-year-old man.
These were the two major incidents involving EV batteries in the two Telugu states, while similar mishaps were reported from other states like Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu in recent days.
The victim K Siva Kumar, who was a self-employed DTP worker, purchased the electric bike only on Friday.
The detachable battery of the vehicle was kept on charging in his bedroom on Friday night and it suddenly exploded in the early hours when all were fast asleep, Suryaraopet Inspector of Police V Janaki Ramaiah said.
The explosion caused a minor fire in the house gutting the air-conditioning machine and some household articles.
Neighbours who saw smoke billowing out of the house broke the doors open and pulled out the family trapped inside. Sivakumar died while being shifted to hospital in an ambulance.
His wife was admitted to a private hospital for treatment, where she was kept under 48-hour observation, police added.
"The exact cause of the explosion is not known. Fire services personnel also visited the scene to determine the cause. We have also spoken to the EV company to check whether electric short circuit could be the reason for the battery explosion," the Inspector said. A case has been registered and investigation taken up.
Incidentally, government think tank Niti Aayog had two days ago come out with a draft battery swapping policy for electric vehicles and suggested incentives as well as a rigorous testing protocol for swappable batteries.
It came amid rising concerns over safety issues around the electric vehicles.
Further, Union minister Nitin Gadkari had on Thursday said companies found negligent will be penalised and a recall of all defective EVs will be ordered after receiving the report of an expert panel that has been formed to enquire into the matter.
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'Go back to your own country': Indian-origin taxi driver attacked in Dublin
London, Aug 5 (PTI): An Indian-origin taxi driver based in Ireland for over 23 years has become the latest to be targeted in an unprovoked attack in the capital Dublin, with local police (Gardai) launching an investigation into the violent assault.
Lakhvir Singh, in his 40s, told local media that he picked up two young men in their 20s on Friday night and dropped them at Poppintree, in the Ballymun suburb of Dublin.
Upon arriving at the destination, the men are said to have opened the vehicle door and struck him twice on the head with a bottle. As the suspects fled, they reportedly shouted: "Go back to your own country".
"In 10 years I've never seen anything like this happen," Singh told ‘Dublin Live’.
"I'm really scared now and I'm off the road at the moment. It will be very hard to go back. My children are really scared," he said.
A Dublin police spokesperson said Singh was taken to the city's Beaumont Hospital with injuries determined as not life-threatening.
"Gardaí are investigating an assault reported to have occurred in Poppintree, Ballymun, Dublin 11 at approximately 11:45 pm on Friday, 1st August 2025. A man, aged in his 40s, was brought to Beaumont Hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injury. Investigations are ongoing," the spokesperson said.
The incident followed an Indian Embassy advisory, also issued on Friday, expressing safety concerns following recent attacks in and around the capital Dublin and urging Indian citizens to take safety precautions.
"There has been an increase in the instances of physical attacks reported against Indian citizens in Ireland recently,” states the advisory.
“The embassy is in touch with the authorities concerned in Ireland in this regard. At the same time, all Indian citizens in Ireland are advised to take reasonable precautions for their personal security and avoid deserted areas, especially at odd hours," the statement reads, adding emergency embassy contact details as 0899423734 and cons.dublin@mea.gov.in.
It came in the wake of a brutal attack on a 40-year-old Indian man at Parkhill Road in the Tallaght suburb of Dublin on July 19, described as “mindless, racist violence” by locals.
The Gardai had opened an investigation into the case and Indian Ambassador to Ireland Akhilesh Mishra was among those who took to social media to express shock over the attack.
“Regarding the recent incident of physical attack on an Indian national that happened in Tallaght, Dublin, the embassy is in touch with the victim and his family. All the requisite assistance is being offered. The embassy is also in touch with the relevant Irish authorities in this regard,” the embassy said in a social media post days after the incident.
A Stand Against Racism protest was also held by the local community in condemnation of what was described as a "vicious racist attack" and to express solidarity with migrants.
Last week, Dr Santosh Yadav took to LinkedIn to post details of a “brutal, unprovoked racist attack”.
The entrepreneur and AI expert stressed that it was not an isolated incident and called for “concrete measures” from the governments of Ireland and India to ensure Indians feel safe to walk the streets of Dublin.
His post revealed that a group of six teenagers attacked him from behind as he walked to his apartment in Dublin.
“This is not an isolated incident. Racist attacks on Indian men and other minorities are surging across Dublin — on buses, in housing estates, and on public streets. Yet, the government is silent. There is no action being taken against these perpetrators. They run free and are emboldened to attack again,” reads Yadav's post.
Fine Gael party Councillor for Tallaght South, Baby Pereppadan, was among those who expressed concern following last month’s attack.
“People need to understand that many Indian people moving to Ireland are here on work permits, to study and work in the healthcare sector or in IT and so on, providing critical skills,” he said.
Another violent anti-Indian attack in Ireland
— Journalist V (@OnTheNewsBeat) August 5, 2025
Taxi driver Lakhvir Singh was attacked with glass bottles while doing his job pic.twitter.com/mtkwhLWISx
