'My girl lay soaked in blood but no one stopped to help,' recalls Janakpuri accident victim
New Delhi (PTI): No one stopped to help her while she desperately pleaded for help as her granddaughter lay soaked in blood after a car rammed into their e-rickshaw, recalled the elderly woman after the horrific accident in West Delhi's Janakpuri.
The woman was taking her six-year-old granddaughter to school on the morning of February 17 when the tragedy struck.
"The e-rickshaw driver was driving very gently. Suddenly, a speeding white car collided with our e-rickshaw, and the three of us fell. I begged the car driver to take my baby to the hospital in his car. But he ran away," said Mercy Xavier, the girl's maternal grandmother.
The girl's mother said she got a call from a hospital staffer informing her about the accident and her mother's fervent pleas for help on the road that fell on deaf ears.
"She stopped three to four vehicles and asked for help, but no one stopped," the mother said. It was a nurse who rushed her daughter to the hospital with the help of another person.
"If help had come sooner, maybe things would have been different," the mother said, adding that the car was speeding.
Neighbours described the child as cheerful.
"Her grandmother would drop her off at school and pick her up. We've seen her -- she was very cheerful. She has an older sister and they live with their parents and grandparents," said Georgina, a neighbour.
The victim and her grandmother, residents of Lajwanti Garden, were initially taken to Mata Chanan Devi Hospital. They were later shifted to an advanced facility in Dwarka.
The girl succumbed during treatment.
Mercy Xavier told police that around 7.40 am, she was travelling in an e-rickshaw with her granddaughter when, near the Janakpuri Fire Station, a car rammed into their vehicle, sending it toppling and throwing both of them onto the road.
The police later seized the car and apprehended its driver, who they identified as Sanjeev.
"The accused driver was apprehended on Wednesday. Statements of witnesses are being recorded, and CCTV footage from cameras installed near the fire station and surrounding areas is being examined to reconstruct the sequence of events," an officer said.
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Some glitches can happen at any large event: Tharoor praises AI Summit
New Delhi (PTI): Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Thursday praised the AI Impact Summit, saying the first couple of days had gone "extremely well" and "some glitches" can happen at any "large event".
He said what has been impressive is the attendance of presidents, prime ministers, and world leaders who have come with a strong message of wanting to see a newly integrated world in artificial intelligence development.
While noting that the first couple of days went “extremely well” at the summit, Tharoor said there have been “some glitches” but such issues can happen at big events.
His remarks come a day after former Congress president Rahul Gandhi dubbed the ongoing AI Summit in Delhi a "disorganised PR spectacle" and alleged that Chinese products were being showcased there.
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Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and other senior party leaders have also criticised the event, saying alleged mismanagement has resulted in "embarrassment" for the country.
Responding to a reporter's question after the launch event of his new book on Narayana Guru, Tharoor said, "Though I have not had the chance to go to the summit, I am speaking there tomorrow. From what I understand, these first couple of days have gone extremely well. There have been some glitches, some organisational things, these things happen in a large event."
"But by and large what has been impressive is the attendance... a number of presidents, prime ministers, and world leaders are here, and they've come with a strong message of wanting to see a newly integrated world in AI development, where the impact upon society would be the principle," Tharoor said.
"Preoccupation in India has clearly led the drive in this area," he added.
Asked about French President Emanuel Macron's remarks about procurement of Rafale jets by India and the Make in India component of the deal, Tharoor said as far as the French Rafale is concerned, parts of it are being manufactured in India.
That is a very important aspect of the deal because it is part of strengthening defence, but also increasing our self-reliance in the defence sector, he said.
"Defence is important for India not because we want to go to war, but because we don't want others to think that we are so weak that they can be tempted to go to war. It is a defensive defence literally, and that is what we are working for and I support the government on that,” he said.
On the upcoming film Kerala Story 2, Tharoor said the first film, Kerala Story, was a “hate-mongering film”.
“They were saying that thousands of people were converted, which is not true. I think there were around 30 such cases over a number of years. Ours is a very big country. If a case occurs here and there, it doesn't mean you should turn it into a big story and use it as propaganda,” Tharoor said.
“In our childhood, films like Amar Akbar Antony used to get entertainment tax exemptions,” he added.
