Army to rebuild battered roads in Karnataka's Kodagu
Bengaluru, Aug 23 : The Indian Army's engineering task force will help the district administration in restoring the severely battered roads in flood-hit Kodagu district, an official said on Thursday.
"About 75 Army engineering task force personnel will be assisting the district officials in restoring the critical roads of Kodagu," the state Relief Commissioner Gangaram Baderiya said in a statement.
The heavy rains leading to flash floods and landslips in the coffee-growing district, about 270km from the state capital, have claimed 16 lives in 10 days from August 14, Baderiya said.
As the intensity of rainfall in the district reduced since Sunday, about 50 Dogra Regiment soldiers, 12 Navy divers, 62 National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) officials, Air Force officials and other state disaster response agencies are screening all the houses in affected areas.
About 5,000 people are currently sheltered in 51 relief camps across the district.
"The state is working on constructing temporary structures using aluminium to house around 10,000 homeless people displaced due to the landslides," Baderia said.
Kodagu district officials have been asked by the state to identify land for long-term rehabilitation of the homeless.
"Housing and Revenue Departments will construct the houses within a specific timeframe," the IAS officer said.
The district officials are giving Rs 3,800 of interim relief per family as per the Karnataka government's decision to allot Rs 2.2 crore to benefit 5,800 people affected due to the floods.
In addition, the families can also receive rice, oil, sugar, salt and dal as ration.
The state has released Rs 30-crore so far for relief and restoration work.
Several schools reopened across the district on Thursday and children were seen assisting in cleaning up their classrooms.
About 60 schools in the worst affected villages and towns will, however, remain shut till Saturday for restoration.
"Water, dry food and rations have been airdropped in inaccessible villages through choppers," the statement added.
Air Force officials have been transporting relief material to Kodagu from neighbouring Mysuru district through military aircraft.
The village administrations and city municipal bodies in the district have been given Rs 50,000 each to sanitise water bodies, which have been polluted by the rains and landslides.
Under the national rural employment scheme, the district officials said they will find employment opportunities for the displaced, including involving them in clearing the debris.
The district will soon have common service centres that will issue duplicate identity cards, certificates and documents, which people may have lost in the heavy rains and floods.
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EAM Jaishankar holds talks with EU counterparts in Brussels, discusses Iran conflict
New Delhi (PTI): External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met with his counterparts from the 27 member states of the European Union (EU) in Brussels focusing on global flashpoints in Ukraine and West Asia as well as ways to deepen India's relations with Europe.
Jaishankar is on a two-day visit to the Belgian capital at the invitation of EU Foreign and Security Policy Chief Kaja Kallas to attend a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council of the bloc.
It is the first high-level visit from India to Brussels headquartered EU after the two sides firmed up a landmark Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in January.
The external affairs minister held separate meetings with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and his counterparts from Germany, Greece and Belgium.
"A new chapter in India-EU ties has opened up in 2026," Jaishankar said in an apparent reference to the outcomes reached by the two sides in their summit meeting in January in New Delhi.
"The Foreign Ministers coordinate translating the various agreements into outcomes. Our conversation today therefore covered trade, investment, technology, mobility and defence in particular," he said on social media.
"The stronger convergence between India and EU in a multipolar world is also expressed in closer consultations. Discussed the West Asia conflict, the Ukraine situation and the Indo-Pacific in today's gathering," he said.
Apart from the FTA, the India-EU summit produced a plethora of other outcomes including a security and defence partnership and a comprehensive framework for cooperation on mobility.
The Foreign Affairs Council discussed how to better protect shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, including possible contributions by the EU's naval mission Aspides, and a European security strategy, Kallas told reporters.
Global oil and gas prices have surged after Iran has virtually blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow shipping lane between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman that handles roughly 20 per cent of global oil and LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas).
The West Asia region has been a major source of India's energy procurement.
The closure of the strait is hurting the global economy and it is helping Moscow fund its war, Kallas said, days after the US temporarily lifted sanctions on procurement of Russian crude oil.
She said the focus on the Middle East should not take the focus away from the war in Ukraine, and the easing of US sanctions on Russian oil sets a "dangerous precedent".
Following his meeting with Von der Leyen, Jaishankar said her highly successful state visit to India in January marked a "turning point" in India-EU ties. "We are following up vigorously on it."
Von der Leyen said that the two sides had concluded a free trade agreement, "the mother of all deals", and signed the Security and Defence Partnership.
"Now we are focused on efficient implementation, to deliver for the people of Europe and India as soon as possible," she said.
"We also discussed developments in the Middle East and in Ukraine. De-escalation, stability and energy security are our shared objectives," she added.
After his talks with German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, Jaishankar said they exchanged notes on the conflict in West Asia.
"A valuable exchange of notes on the conflict in West Asia. Also took stock of the progress of our bilateral relations following the State visit of @bundeskanzler Friedrich Merz to India," he said.
