One more dies in Kerala temple fire accident; toll rises to five
Kasaragod (Kerala) (PTI): One more person died on Saturday from the burns suffered in the recent fireworks accident at a temple near Neeleswaram in this district, raising the death toll to five, officials said.
Rajith, who had been receiving treatment for severe burns at a private hospital in Mangaluru, died in the morning, officials said.
"He had suffered over 50 per cent burns," one of the officials said.
Earlier, four persons had died from burns sustained in the accident.
According to the Kasaragod district administration, 154 people were injured in the accident and of them, 100 were admitted in various hospitals initially.
As of November 8, of the 100, 63 were undergoing treatment in various hospitals and out of them nine were in the ICU, the district administration said.
The incident occurred late on October 28 night at Anjoottanbalam Veererkavu temple near Neeleswaram when firecrackers stored in the vicinity exploded.
Three persons including two temple committee officials have been arrested in connection with the incident after a case was registered under the Explosive Substance Act and various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
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41 lakh illicit liquor seized, 1.84 lakh arrested in major drive: K'taka Minister tells Assembly
Belagavi (Karnataka) (PTI): The Karnataka Excise Department has conducted a statewide crackdown on illegal liquor trade over the last two years, resulting in arrests and seizures of alcohol, Karnataka Excise Minister R B Timmapur said on Tuesday.
As many as 1,09,017 people were arrested, and seizures included 13.66 lakh litres of liquor and 27.19 lakh litres of beer, he said in a written reply to a starred question by Harihar BJP MLA B P Harish in the Karnataka Assembly.
The Minister said the enforcement drive covered the financial year 2023–24, 2024–25 up to June, and 2025–26 from July to October, targeting unauthorised liquor manufacture, storage, sale and transportation across the State.
"During this period, statewide enforcement drives resulted in a total of 1,84,570 raids against illegal liquor sales,” Timmapur said.
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He noted that 9,179 non-bailable cases and 91,968 bailable and compoundable cases under Section 15(A) of the Karnataka Excise Act, 1965, were registered during the same period.
According to him, there have been no reports indicating that students have become addicted to alcohol due to illegal liquor sales.
The sale of alcohol to minors is strictly prohibited under the Karnataka Excise Act, 1965, and the department has issued periodic instructions to initiate legal action against violators, with strict enforcement and investigation measures in place, the Minister said.
Excise officials are carrying out regular road and night patrols, collecting intelligence, monitoring habitual offenders and conducting raids to identify illicit distillation units, unauthorised liquor outlets and spurious liquor manufacturing centres, he said, adding the department is also enforcing the law to prevent the production, storage, sale and transport of spurious, non-duty-paid and unauthorised liquor.
Regular patrols are being conducted on national and state highways, with suspicious vehicles being subjected to checks.
At the district level, standing committee meetings are held under the chairmanship of Deputy Commissioners, and joint operations are carried out with the police and forest departments to curb excise-related offences.
The department is also conducting awareness programmes through Gram Sabhas and in schools and colleges to educate the public and students about the physical, mental and social health hazards associated with alcohol addiction and substance abuse, Timmapur added.
