Mahatma Gandhi's statue found vandalised in Odisha school
Balasore (Odisha): A statue of Mahatma Gandhi was found vandalised inside the premises of a government-run school in Sovarampur area in Odisha's Balasore town, police said on Monday.
A room christened 'Bapuji Kakhya' in the school as a mark of honour to the 'father of the nation' was also found ransacked, with cigarette butts and empty liquor bottles strewn around, a police officer said.
The matter came to light when some locals entered the school premises on Sunday, after noticing that a couple of trees planted inside the compound had been felled, he said.
Upon entering the compound, they found the room open and the head of the statue lying on the ground, the officer said.
The incident is suspected to have taken place on June 14, and could be the handiwork of some anti-social elements as the upper primary school was shut for the summer vacation, Inspector In-Charge of Sahadevkhunta Police Station, Subhransu Sekhar Nayak said.
Nayak, however, ruled out any political angle to the episode. A case has been registered and investigation is in progress to identify those involved in the incident, he added.
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Odisha: Two girls drown while bathing in village pond
Berhampur (Odisha) (PTI): Two girls drowned while bathing in a village pond in Odisha's Ganjam district on Tuesday, police said.
The deceased were identified as Pranjali Dora (11), a class 6 student, and Manini Dora (12), a student of class 7, both residents of Patanda village in Digapahandi police station area, a police officer said.
After returning home from school, they went to the village pond to take a bath like every other day. However, they slipped and fell into deep waters. Locals noticed them drowning and tried to rescue them but failed, he said.
Fire brigade personnel from Digapahandi retrieved the girls after a two-hour search and they were rushed to a nearby community health centre, where doctors declared them dead, Digapahandi police station officer-in-charge Kishor Kumar Samal said.
He said the bodies have been handed over to the respective families after conducting post-mortem examinations at MKCG Medical College and Hospital here.
He said unnatural death cases have been registered and an investigation launched.
