Woman official shot dead during demolition drive in Himachal
Shimla, May 1: A woman Assistant Town and Country Planner was shot dead and a labourer injured on Tuesday in Himachal Pradesh's Solan district by a guest house owner over the demolition of an illegal structure, police said.
Narayani Guest House owner Vijay Kumar allegedly fired two rounds in the air as employees began the demolition drive in Dharampur area following Supreme Court orders.
A stray bullet hit Shail Bala, killing her on the spot, a police official told IANS. Labourer Gulab Singh received a gunshot injury in the abdomen.
Sanjya Negi, a Sub-Divisional Officer of the Electricity Department, had a narrow escape.
The district administration officials were removing illegal structures in 13 hotels and resorts in Kasauli area when the crime was committed.
Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur mourned the official's killing and said the culprit would be arrested soon and acted against as per the law. "The law and order will be maintained at all costs in the state."
The Supreme Court on April 17 ordered the demolition of illegal constructions at several hotels and resorts, saying the life of people cannot be endangered for making money.
The court observed that the illegal constructions had put the city in danger, causing landslides, and ordered the demolition of such constructions.
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Pakistan reports two more polio cases; Total tally now 52
ISLAMABAD: At least two more cases of poliovirus were reported in Pakistan, taking the number of infections to 52 so far this year, a report said on Friday.
“The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health has confirmed the detection of two more wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) cases in Pakistan," an official statement said.
The fresh infections — a boy and a girl — were reported from the Dera Ismail Khan district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.
“Genetic sequencing of the samples collected from the children is underway," the statement read. Dera Ismail Khan, one of the seven polio-endemic districts of southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, has reported five polio cases so far this year.
Of the 52 cases in the country this year, 24 are from Balochistan, 13 from Sindh, 13 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and one each from Punjab and Islamabad.
There is no cure for polio. Only multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine and completion of the routine vaccination schedule for all children under the age of five can keep them protected.
