MP: More than 100 hospitalised, mostly children, from use of calcium carbide guns during Diwali
Bhopal, (PTI): More than 100 persons, most of them children aged between 8 and 14, were hospitalised in Bhopal and neighbouring Vidisha district in Madhya Pradesh due to injuries sustained after using calcium carbide guns on Diwali, officials said on Thursday.
While 60 are admitted in government hospitals in the state capital, 50 are recuperating in facilities in Vidisha, including five with eye injuries, they added.
"These crude guns, made using a gas lighter, a plastic pipe, and calcium carbide, are in vogue this Diwali. The calcium carbide in the gun produces acetylene gas when it meets water and explodes upon contact with a spark," an official explained.
Small plastic fragments ejected from the pipe, like shrapnel, cause serious injuries and damage to various parts, especially the eyes, face, and skin, he said.
Bhopal’s Chief Medical Health Officer (CMHO) Manish Sharma told PTI Videos, “Carbide pipe guns are very dangerous. The 60 people injured by the use of these guns are still being treated in hospitals in the state capital. All are safe.”
Five persons are being treated at Seva Sadan Hospital, while others are admitted to Hamidia Hospital, JP Hospital, and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), he added.
More than 150 cases were reported across Bhopal the day after Diwali, though many were discharged after first aid, another official said.
"Doctors at AIIMS are trying to restore the eyesight of a 12-year-old. Similar treatment is underway for two children in Hamidia Hospital, which has 10 children admitted at present," he added.
R K Sahu, head of ophthalmology department at Vidisha District Hospital, said 50 people were injured in the district due to carbide gun fire, and efforts are underway to restore the vision of five of them.
He added that 10 patients have been admitted to the district hospital in the past two days.
Dr. S C L Chandravanshi, head of the ophthalmology department at Vidisha Medical College, said 17 patients were admitted to the medical college on Tuesday and three on Wednesday, and all are undergoing treatment.
"One child underwent eye surgery due to serious injuries. Efforts are being made to restore the child's vision," he said, adding remaining patients are admitted to various private hospitals in the district.
Rupali Jain, an ophthalmologist at a private hospital, said 20 patients have been admitted to her hospital for treatment in the past two days.
Talking to PTI Videos, the families of 14-year-old Hemant Panthi and 15-year-old Aris, who are receiving care at Hamidia Hospital, blamed the administration for the availability of carbide guns.
"Such guns should not be sold in the market in the first place. Strict action should be taken against those who manufacture and sell these guns. Compensation should be provided to cover the children’s medical expenses," said Aris’ father Sarikh Khan.
CMHO Sharma said the administration is continuously taking action against those who manufacture and sell carbide guns.
Vidisha Superintendent of Police Rohit Kashwani said 228 plastic carbide guns and 102 carbide packets were seized and a dozen people were detained and were being interrogated.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, in a meeting with officials on October 18, had instructed district magistrates and police officers to ensure carbide pipe guns are not sold. However, they were sold rampantly in the markets, sources admitted.
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Odisha: Normalcy returns to violence-hit Malkangiri; internet services fully restored
Malkangiri (PTI): Normalcy returned to Odisha’s Malkangiri district on Monday, nearly a week after around 200 villages were damaged in violent clashes in a village, with the district administration fully restoring internet services, a senior official said.
Additional District Magistrate Bedabar Pradhan said internet services, suspended across the district on December 8 to curb the spread of rumours and misinformation following the clashes, were restored after the situation improved.
The suspension had been extended in phases till 12 noon on Monday.
The administration also withdrew prohibitory orders imposed under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita within a 10-km radius of MV-26 village, where arson incidents were reported on December 7 and December 8.
Though the violence was confined to two villages, tension had gripped the entire district, as the incident took the form of a clash between local tribals and Bengali settlers following the recovery of a headless body of a woman on December 4, officials said.
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The violence broke out after residents of Rakhelguda village allegedly set ablaze several houses belonging to Bengali residents, forcing hundreds to flee. The headless body of Lake Podiami (51), a woman from the Koya tribe, was recovered from the banks of the Poteru river on December 4, while her head was found six days later at a location about 15 km away.
Officials said the district administration held several rounds of discussions with representatives of the tribal and Bengali communities, following which both sides agreed to maintain peace.
Relief and rehabilitation work has since been launched at MV-26 village, with preliminary assessment pegging property damage at around Rs 3.8 crore.
A two-member ministerial team headed by Deputy Chief Minister K V Singh Deo visited the affected village, interacted with officials and locals, and submitted a report to the chief minister.
So far, 18 people have been arrested in connection with the violence, the officials said, adding that despite the withdrawal of prohibitory orders and restoration of internet services, security forces, including BSF and CRPF personnel, continue to be deployed to prevent any untoward incident.
On Sunday, Nabarangpur MP Balabhadra Majhi visited MV-26 and neighbouring Rakhelguda villages, and held discussions with members of both communities as part of efforts to rebuild confidence and restore peace.
More than two lakh Bengali-speaking Bangladeshis were rehabilitated by the Centre in Malkangiri and Nabarangpur districts in 1968, and they currently reside in 124 villages of Malkangiri.
