NDTV Ground Report: No Land, Papers, Dharali Villagers Stare At Bleak Reality

Still reeling from the trauma of losing her home in Tuesday's flash floods, Sushila silently cooks for 150 others at a relief camp at Someshwar temple in Uttarakhand's Dharali village. "We have no house, no land, no clothes. We are speechless," she said, while urging the government to provide them with housing.

At the temple's relief camp, all those staying have lost all they had when a cloudburst led to a flash flood, sweeping through Dharali, burying homes, vehicles and even a legendary temple under metres of debris. Four died, while many are missing. Multiple authorities as well as the Indian Army are working together to conduct search and rescue operations.

Balvinder Singh Pawar's escape from the cascading sheet of debris was caught in viral videos, where he was in a visibly injured condition but fighting the flood's strong current to crawl out of rubble. "I saw death and I didn't think I would come alive. The only two scenarios in front of me were getting trapped under one of the collapsing houses or getting swept by the debris rolling towards me at great speed," he told NDTV.

Mr Pawar does not know what happened to the two people he saw stuck in the current as he struggled towards safety. he escaped with bruises and injuries, a prominent one on his eye. He remembered the Kalp Kedar temple, a Shiva temple where he prayed every day, which was now part of the debris. "I don't think the village will be the same again. We are out of the energy and courage. We have nothing left. People who have lost their young children haven't even been able to deal with the trauma yet," he said.

On a personal mission is Sushil, a boy who came from Nepal, to look for his father and six other family members who were in Dharali at the time of the disaster. "He called me and said 'save me, son. I am drowning in debris'. The phone disconnected after that and I was unable to connect with him," he recalled.

Under the thousands of tons of debris are also the many hotels in the village. NDTV's visit to the flash flood-affected area found that only marsh, mud and boulders remained where buildings once stood.

As the search and rescue operations continue with full momentum, forces have deployed sniffer dogs and drones to aid their efforts. Over 500 people have been rescued so far. According to residents of nearby villages, like Mukhba, who witnessed the disaster, the number of missing is likely to be higher as locals and labourers from Bihar and Nepal were working at under-construction hotels and there were guests in about two dozen big hotels in Dharali when the disaster struck.

Dharali is the main stopover on the way to Gangotri, from where the Ganga originates, abounding in hotels, homestays, restaurants and guest houses.

from NDTV News- Special https://ift.tt/CYd12mW

Pakistan Cricketer Arrested In UK Over Rape Allegations, Later Released On Bail

Pakistan cricket slumped to a new low with a young player, Haider Ali, who was on a tour of the United Kingdom with the country's 'A' team -- Pakistan Shaheen, was arrested by the Greater Manchester Police with sources confirming it was over a complaint by a girl, alleging rape. Haider Ali has been provisionally suspended by Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), said a report. Haider was arrested by Greater Manchester Police at the Beckenham ground where Pakistan Shaheens was playing against MCSAC on August 3, reports Telecom Asia Sports. "It's apparently a rape case against a girl of Pakistani origin," a source was quoted as saying in the report.

The sources confirmed that the Greater Manchester Police had seized Haider's passport but released him on bail.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said it will cooperate with the investigations and will give support to Haider to fight the case. In the meantime, the PCB has suspended Haider Ali till his name is cleared.

"We were told about this case and investigation. We have suspended Haider until the investigation is completed and will conduct our own inquiry in the UK," a PCB spokesman told www.telecomasia.net.

"Haider was in tears after he was arrested from the ground and pleaded not guilty during the investigation," said sources.

Pakistan Shaheens were on a tour of the UK from July 17 to August 6 and played two three-day games, which were both drawn, a three-match One-day series that they won 2-1.

Most of the players, except captain Saud Shakeel and Haider, returned from the UK on Wednesday. Shakeel stayed back in Dubai for personal reasons.

The 24-year-old Haider is a talented player who played two ODIs and 35 Twenty20 internationals for Pakistan, the last in the Asian Games two years ago. He played the Under-19 World Cup for Pakistan in 2020 in South Africa, from where India's Yashasvi Jaiswal also emerged.

Haider was also suspended by the PCB for breaching Covid restrictions during the 2021 Pakistan Super League in Abu Dhabi, and as a punishment withdrawn from the team to England and the West Indies in 2021.

Sources said Haider was in the good books of newly recruited Pakistan white-ball head coach Mike Hesson, who was about to include him in the Pakistan team for the T20 tri-series in Sharjah later this month.

Pakistan has a history of players' misbehaviour in the past. Three top players -- Salman Butt, the then test skipper, Mohammad Amir, and Mohammad Asif were arrested on charges of spot fixing on the team's tour of England in 2010. All three were jailed and banned for five years.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

from NDTV News- Special https://ift.tt/PAfakSo

India Seeks Global Code Of Conduct To Prevent Pilot Poaching: Report

India wants countries to agree on a new code of conduct on hiring each other's airline staff after raising concerns that its fast-growing aviation system is being stifled by the poaching of Indian pilots and cabin crew without adequate notice.

India, one of the world's fastest-growing aviation markets, is wrestling with a shortage of experienced pilots, denting the aspiration of developing a job-creating global aviation hub. The recent crash of an Air India jetliner has sparked tighter scrutiny of the sector.

But foreign airlines are repeatedly hiring skilled staff from Indian airlines, "adversely impacting India's ability to develop its civil aviation sector in an orderly manner," India said in an August 1 working paper submitted to the UN's aviation agency, the International Civil Aviation Organization.

"Airlines from other countries tend to recruit experienced pilots, engineers, technicians, and cabin crew from Indian carriers, preventing India's civil aviation sector from achieving planned and orderly growth," India wrote in the paper, without identifying any foreign airline by name.

"This practice creates a vicious cycle where Indian carriers are forced to continuously recruit and train replacement personnel by diverting resources from expansion activities and operational improvements."

The paper was released on the ICAO website ahead of its triennial assembly. It has not previously been reported.

The Civil Aviation Ministry was not immediately available for comment.

The government said in April that the country would need 30,000 pilots over the next 15-20 years, up from the current 6,000-7,000, as airlines collectively had more than 1,700 aircraft on order.

India's domestic aviation sector is led by IndiGo and Air India, while all major international airlines, from Emirates to British Airways to Lufthansa, operate regular flights. In 2023, Air India exchanged barbs with Akasa Air over the poaching of pilots domestically.

The working paper asks for the creation of a code of conduct on the movement of skilled aviation workers among ICAO's member countries.

It doesn't specify how the code of conduct would work.

"These challenges cause economic losses that affect Indian carriers' ability to compete in international markets ... and achieve their ambitious target of 300 million domestic passengers by 2030," the paper said.

ICAO, which seeks to use consensus to set standards on everything from runways to seat belts, was created after the United States invited more than 50 allies to agree in 1944 to a common air navigation system.

from NDTV News- Special https://ift.tt/4nLyJac

Saiyaara Casting Director On Ahaan Refusing To Meet Her At 19: "He Thought..."

Ahaan Panday's debut film Saiyaara continues to rock at the box office. The film crossed the Rs 300-crore mark at the domestic box office within three weeks of its release. 

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter India, Yash Raj Films' casting director Shanoo Sharma revealed that she first approached the actor when he was just 19.

“Ahaan's been alongside me for nearly nine years,” she mentioned.

Shanoo added, "He was 19 when we met, but he looked 15! I spotted a post of him doing something quirky online, found him intriguing and asked to meet. But he actually refused at first, he thought we'd reject him because he was tanned and didn't fit the usual mould but the day we finally met, I just knew that he and I are going to be working together.”

After the first meeting, Ahaan Panday became an unofficial member of the YRF family long before Saiyaara's release.

“He was so enthusiastic about learning, so unrefined yet so ambitious. He had this knack for achieving his desires in the most endearing manner. And he was passionate about YRF - he would often say, ‘I'm going to be here every single day,'” Shanoo recalled. 

In a previous interview with NDTV, Saiyaara director Mohit Suri shared Ahaan and Aneet Padda's reaction to their film's success. The filmmaker stated that he speaks to both the actors every day.

“Once in the morning, once at night. They keep sending me videos. They're so happy, they're getting recognised. For them, every day is new, and they want to share it with me. They keep asking, 'Why aren't you here?' It's very sweet,” Mohit Suri said.

"Ahaan and Aneet don't yet know what's coming next but they're soaking it all in," Mohit added. 

Ahaan Panday has turned out to be the most successful debutant in Bollywood in recent times.

from NDTV News- Special https://ift.tt/RX5lW0i