Kuwait fire tragedy: External Affairs Ministry did good job to help injured Indians, says Gopi
Kochi(PTI): Union Minister of State Suresh Gopi on Friday said that the External Affairs Ministry did a "wonderful" job in coordinating the efforts to ensure treatment of the Indians injured in the Kuwait fire tragedy which claimed atleast 49 lives.
The Minister of State for Tourism and Petroleum also said that he has cancelled his other programmes for the day and would be going to the international airport here to receive the bodies of the Malayalees who died in the Kuwait fire tragedy.
Meanwhile, Kerala Revenue Minister K Rajan told reporters here that the bodies of 23 Malayalees, 7 Tamilians and one person from Karnataka would be received here, before the flight carrying the mortal remains of the other Indians who died in the fire goes to Delhi.
Rajan said that arrangements have been made for public display of the mortal remains at the airport and thereafter, they would be sent to the families by ambulances that have been arranged by the Department of Non-Resident Keralites' Affairs (NORKA).
He said that if extra ambulances for transporting the bodies of the Tamil Nadu and Karnataka natives were required, the Health Department was ready to arrange it.
"We have also arranged a pilot vehicle for each of the ambulances," he said.
Rajan also said that Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and other state ministers would be arriving at the airport here.
Earlier, while speaking to reporters, Gopi said that the External Affairs Ministry was "pressed into service" to intervene diplomatically and ensure proper treatment of the injured Indians and repatriation of the mortal remains of those who died in the incident.
"They are doing it wonderfully," he added.
Officials had said that 49 people were killed in the fire in the Al-Mangaf building on June 12 and 42 of them were Indians; the remaining were Pakistani, Filipino, Egyptian and Nepali nationals.
The building in southern Kuwait's Mangaf area housed around 195 migrant workers.
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Miscreants decamp with 70 kg silver articles from jewellery shop in Bengaluru
Bengaluru (PTI): Unidentified miscreants allegedly broke into a jewellery shop here and decamped with approximately 70 kg of silver articles worth crores of rupees, police said on Friday.
The incident was reported at a jewellery shop near 8th Mile, Havanur, on April 28, they said.
According to police, the accused are suspected to have entered the premises from the rear after breaking open the lock and drilling a hole through the wall of the shop.
The incident came to light at around 7 am on April 28 when shop staff opened the premises and discovered signs of forced entry and extensive damage to the rear section of the building, following which they alerted police authorities.
Preliminary estimates indicate that around 70 kg of silver articles, worth crores, were stolen. Most of the silver items displayed in the cupboards were taken, while valuables kept in the locker remained intact, a senior police officer said.
Police said CCTV cameras inside the shop were not functioning. Efforts are underway to identify the suspects using footage from cameras installed in the vicinity.
The miscreants also allegedly took away the Digital Video Recorder (of CCTV) of an adjacent shop, the officer added.
Investigators are also examining the tools and techniques used to gain access to the shop, suspecting the involvement of a professional gang with prior knowledge of the store layout.
A case has been registered at Bagalagunte Police Station, and further investigation is underway to identify and apprehend the accused, police said.
