Leopard kills woman
Gopeshwar: A woman was killed in a leopard attack in Joshimath town in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district prompting locals to lay siege to the office of the Forest Department demanding declaring of the wild beast as maneater. Sulochana Devi, aged 36, had gone to nearby jungles to fetch fodder for her cattle yesterday when she was attacked by the leopard in Kumad Mohalla area, officials said adding she died immediately. As the news of her death spread, locals gathered at the office of the Deputy Divisional Forest Officer of the Nanda Devi National Park. They gheraoed him demanding the animal be declared as maneater. On a written assurance by the Forest Department, the locals lifted the siege, the officials said. The residents alleged the Forest Department did pay heed to their repeated pleas to declare the leopard as a maneater. The animal had injured five people in the past, they said. (PTI)
Govt officials suspended for gambling
Bundi: Two government officials were suspended after being allegedly caught gambling, police said on Tuesday. “Vinod Sharma, Patwari at Ramgang Balaji was caught gambling with playing cards at his residence at Rajagrah colony with Lokesh Bharadwaj, another Patwari posted at Mangal village and three others late on Sunday night,” a police official said. Police has also recovered cash of around Rs 75,000 from their possession. Taking serious note of the matter, District Collector Aarti Dogera has suspended the two Patwaris involved and put them under Awaiting Posting Order. The accused have been released on bail. (PTI)
4 of family commit suicide
Pune: Four members of a family, including three children, committed suicide by hanging themselves from the ceiling of their house at Baner area of the city on Tuesday. According to police, the father along with his three minor children hanged themselves with help of a nylon rope. he initially hanged his three children between 3 and 9 years of age and later hung himself, police said. The names of the deceased and other details are yet to be disclosed by police. The Chaturshringi Police have registered a case of suicide and were still investigating the details and exact motive behind the extreme step. Police, however, said the bodies of four have been sent to Aundh Hospital for post-morten. (UNI)
Sex racket busted in Goa
Panaji: The Crime branch of Goa police has busted an inter-state sex racket with the arrest of nine pimps from a club house at Calangute. The 14 girls, who were rescued, were brought to the state with a promise of providing jobs but later pushed into prostitution against their will, police said on Tuesday. All the girls had been sent to a protective home at Merces yesterday. Out of the 14 rescued, eight girls were from Nepal, and others from Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. The pimps were arrested under section 3,4 and 5 of Immoral Trafficking (prevention) act 1956. They brought the girls to Club Virgin at Gaurawado, Calangute, on the pretext of providing jobs and later forced them into prostitution activities against their will. They managed the club and lived on the earnings of the prostitution racket, police said. (UNI)