Four Indian-origin Sikh men drown in sewage tank in Italy
Rome, Sep 13: Four Indian-origin Sikh men drowned in a sewage tank on a cattle farm in northern Italy due to the carbon dioxide fumes coming out from the cow manure, according to media reports.
The incident happened on Thursday at a cattle farm in Arena Po near Pavia, a city in south Milan, ANSA news agency reported on Thursday.
Out of the deceased, two were brothers- Prem, 48, and Tarsem Singh, 45- who were running the farm. The duo registered their farm in 2017.
The other two were workers, identified as Arminder Singh, 29, and Manjinder Singh, 28.
Initial investigations reveal that the three men jumped to rescue a worker who was emptying the tank to use the manure as a fertiliser on the farm's fields, the BBC reported.
Investigators suspect that the four died due to the carbon dioxide fumes coming from the cow manure, the report said.
The victims' wives raised the alarm when the men failed to turn up for lunch.
They rushed to the scene and spotted one body in the sewage.
The women then called in the firefighters, who donned masks and emptied the tank to recover all the bodies, the report said.
Italian media reported that the farm, which produces milk and veal cattle, is one of the biggest in the Pavia region.
The Italian Agriculture Minister Teresa Bellanova in a tweet condoled the deaths, saying "safety at work is an inalienable right and we must make every effort to ensure it is respected". She was a farm labourer herself as a teenager.
Italy's public broadcaster Rai said the Arena Po tragedy brings to 486 the total of deaths in work accidents in Italy this year - the highest toll since 2016, the BBC report said.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
