Nepal to send special souvenirs
Kathmandu, Dec 24: Nepal will send special souvenirs consisting of various types of jewellery, utensils, clothes and sweets for the Ram Mandir’s inauguration ceremony in Ayodhya next month, according to a media report on Sunday. A Janakpurdham-Ayodhyadham journey will be carried out to deliver the souvenirs, My Republica newspaper reported. The journey, scheduled to start on January 18, will culminate in Ayodhya on January 20 and the souvenirs will be handed over to the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Ram Mandir Trust on the same day, said joint Mahanta of Janaki Temple Ramroshan Das Vaishnav. The installation ceremony will take place on January 22. The journey from Janakpurdham will pass through Jaleshwar Nath, Malangwa, Simraungadh, Gadhimai, Birgunj to Betiya, Kushinagar, Siddharthnagar, Gorakhpur and reach Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh. Earlier, Shaligram stones collected from the Kaligandaki riverbank in Nepal were sent to Ayodhya to make the statue of Lord Ram, which will be installed in the temple temple on the inauguration day, the paper said. (PTI)
Roof collapse kills 9 members of family in NWFP
Peshawar, Dec 24: A woman and her eight children were killed when the roof of their mud house collapsed due to fire caused by a short-circuit in northwest Pakistan on Sunday, officials said. According to rescue officials, the incident occurred at Tahari village in Abbotabad district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. A woman and her eight children, including four daughters, were killed in the incident, they said, adding that the locals recovered the nine dead bodies from the rubble of the collapsed structure. The age of the victims were not known. Efforts to manage the situation were immediately set into motion, with rescue officials, backed by three ambulances and the assistance of local residents, working tirelessly to extinguish the blaze. Caretaker Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Arshad Hussain, expressed grief and sorrow over the incident and extended prayers for the eternal peace of the departed souls. (PTI)
One killed in shooting at Florida mall
Washington, Dec 24: A man died and a woman was injured after a shooting inside a central Florida shopping mall on Saturday, according to local police. The authorities indicated that the victim was deliberately singled out in the attack. Ocala Police Chief Mike Balken said that police received 911 calls about multiple shots fired inside the Paddock Mall. He added the call came in describing an “active shooter” scenario, so they responded with a heavy police presence, CNN reported. “Officers immediately made entry into the mall and ultimately discovered this was not an active shooter situation,” Balken said. Police instead characterised the shooting incident as a targeted act of violence, he said. Paddock Mall in Ocala was evacuated and there is no longer a threat, police said in a Facebook post. The Police chief confirmed one adult male was found dead inside the mall from gunshot wounds. Balken said one woman suffered a gunshot wound to her leg. He said she was transported to a hospital, adding she is expected to survive. (IANS)