Woman driver nearly causes a train wreck
Compiled by BENJAMIN LEE, ALLISON LAI and R. ARAVINTHAN
At least 15 trains were halted or forced to return to their stations after a woman was found driving her car directly on railway tracks near a station in India's Telangana state, as reported by Makkal Osai.
Authorities, with the quick assistance of railway workers and the public, pursued the vehicle, successfully stopping it and pulling the female driver out.
While her identity hasn't been released, it's understood she hails from the northern state of Uttar Pradesh.
Police have launched an investigation to determine the circumstances leading to the incident, specifically looking into whether the driver was under the influence of alcohol or experiencing any other incapacitating issues that may could have led to this dangerous act.
Railway officers managed to stop an express train travelling from Bengaluru to Hyderabad just in time, averting a major disaster on the very same track.
The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a, it denotes a separate news item.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
14 hours ago
- The Star
‘Serious violations': Former head of major Chinese airline under graft investigation
Liu Shaoyong, who headed China Eastern Airlines from 2009 until 2022, is being investigated for 'serious violations of discipline and law'. -- PHOTO: AFP BEIJING (AFP): The former head of China Eastern Airlines is under investigation over corruption allegations, two Chinese anti-graft bodies said Saturday. Liu Shaoyong, who headed the airline from 2009 until his resignation in 2022, is being investigated for "serious violations of discipline and law", the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission said in a statement. The Shanghai-based airline, primarily owned by the Chinese government through its parent company, is one of the three largest Chinese airlines. Liu was credited with turning the carrier around after it posted record losses before he was appointed. China Eastern Airlines under his leadership merged with Shanghai Airlines and joined the SkyTeam airline alliance, strengthening its position in domestic and international markets. Liu also led another one of China's major airlines, China Southern, before taking the reins of China Eastern. Chinese President Xi Jinping has waged an unrelenting crackdown on corruption since coming to power over a decade ago. Proponents say the policy promotes clean governance but others say it also serves as a means for Xi to purge political rivals. - AFP
The Star
17 hours ago
- The Star
Organised crime groups behind in-flight theft cases, says Singapore Police Force
SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/ANN): A spike in cabin theft cases in Asia has been blamed on members of organised crime groups, who catch short-transit flights – including trips to Singapore – to steal small items from passengers. Hong Kong has been one of the worst hit, with 169 cases of in-flight theft involving HK$4.32 million ($700,000) in valuables recorded in the first 10 months of 2024 – a 75 per cent increase from the same period the previous year. In an interview with The Straits Times, Assistant Commissioner M Malathi, who is commander of the Airport Police Division (APD), said that in-flight theft cases are difficult to detect and investigate. She said syndicate members, who work in pairs to steal from unsuspecting passengers, often catch a flight out of Singapore soon after landing at Changi Airport. 'They will only take some cash and maybe one or two cards. They won't take your whole wallet, because if they do, it is easier to notice,' said AC Malathi, who added that the authorities have a short lead time before the suspects leave on an outbound flight. 'A timely report is important for our officers to quickly track and trace the suspects and intercept them before they catch their next flight,' she said, adding that passengers should always keep their valuables on them and remain vigilant. The International Air Transport Association (Iata), which represents about 300 airlines, had flagged concerns on June 3 after members indicated a spike in in-flight theft cases over the last 12 to 18 months. Many of the routes were in Asia. According to reports, Malaysia saw a significant increase in onboard theft cases, with the authorities receiving 146 reports in the first 10 months of 2024, compared with 88 in the previous year and 33 in 2022. The authorities in Vietnam reported that criminals often purchase last-minute tickets, avoid checked baggage, and switch between domestic and international flights and different carriers to avoid detection. Singapore Airlines (SIA) declined to share statistics and information regarding theft cases on board, but said the cabin crew are trained to be vigilant and alert the authorities of any suspicious behaviour on flights. 'Should there be a suspected theft case, SIA and Scoot will assist the affected customer, and will cooperate fully with the authorities in their investigations,' a spokesman for the SIA Group told The Straits Times. At its general meeting in India, Iata said that many of the theft cases appear to be organised from China. The police in Singapore declined to reveal where the syndicates operate from, but checks by ST showed that four out of five people who were charged in 2025 over cabin theft were Chinese nationals. AC Malathi said in-flight theft picked up around the time air travel started to recover after the Covid-19 pandemic. 'We see more of these syndicates working as air travel picks up. Singapore is not the only location. This is happening worldwide,' she said. Between January and May, three people were charged in Singapore for theft on board an aircraft. Only one person was charged in the same period in 2024. More recently, two Chinese nationals were arrested and charged in court on June 4 after being accused of stealing from passengers while on a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore. Liu Xitang, 35, and Wang Wei, 40, are accused of taking $169 in cash and two debit cards from another passenger. In May, Chinese national Zhang Kun, 51, pleaded guilty to stealing a credit card and more than $200 in cash from a passenger on a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore in March. The Airport Division said it tries to identify potential syndicate members by looking out for a common trend of behaviour, including frequent travel and transit flights, often with just a two- or three-hour transit period. 'We use data analytics in general to identify these people that could be of interest coming into Singapore, and to aid our investigation process,' said AC Malathi, who added that criminals operate across all classes of travel. Another area of concern she flagged during the interview is shop theft in transit areas in Changi Airport, which saw 37 cases between January and May. There were a total of 109 cases in 2024, and 129 cases the year before. 'These crimes are very opportunistic. Some travellers walk into the shops and take what they want and walk off. 'Some of them get emboldened if they get away the first time,' said AC Malathi. To help address it, the APD has used robots since 2023 to patrol the airport, as a way to beef up police presence. The robots are equipped with sensors and cameras that can capture footage and allow the public to communicate with officers. AC Malathi said a new patrol robot called Gibson, which will be equipped to transport an officer, will be launched later in 2025. More details on its latest fleet will be revealed at a later date. - The Straits Times/ANN
Malaysian Reserve
18 hours ago
- Malaysian Reserve
Fahmi: Only platform providers can block social media content and accounts
KUALA LUMPUR — The act of blocking or removing social media content or accounts can only be carried out by the platform providers themselves, said Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil. He said the government has no authority to instruct social media platform providers to take such actions, which are only carried out if the content or account is found to have violated the law. 'When a piece of content or an account is taken down or blocked, it means the platform acknowledges and complies with existing laws and believes that the content has breached those laws,' he said at a press conference after launching the Nadi Aspirasi Nasional Bersama Anak Muda (NANBA) programme here today. Also present were Community Communications Department (J-KOM) director-general Datuk Ismail Yusop and Batu MP P. Prabakaran, who is also chairman of the Special Task Force Committee for the Indian Community Transformation Unit (MITRA). Earlier, in his speech, Fahmi said 173,642 pieces of content had been taken down by social media platform providers from Jan 1 until yesterday. Fahmi, who is also Lembah Pantai MP, said 51 per cent, or more than 90,000, of the total involved online gambling, while over 43,000 were scam-related, with the remainder linked to other criminal activities. He said Facebook was identified as the platform with the highest number of online gambling and scam advertisements, followed by TikTok, while Telegram was found to be the weakest in managing scam-related issues. 'Of the content requested for removal on Telegram, half were scams, but the platform did not take down all of them. So we need to be firm with these platforms. 'Telegram representatives will be in Kuala Lumpur this week to continue discussions with MCMC (Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission), covering, among others, scams, online gambling, child sexual abuse material, prostitution content, and copyrighted films or TV episodes previously accessible via various Telegram channels,' he said. However, Fahmi noted that Telegram operates with limited human resources — around 50 personnel — despite having more than one billion user accounts worldwide. Meanwhile, the NANBA programme, inspired by the Tamil word for 'friend', is a strategic J-KOM initiative that reflects the MADANI government's commitment to strengthening ties with the Indian community, particularly youth, while expanding the inclusive and effective delivery of government information. The programme also serves as an effective two-way communication platform to enhance public access to information related to policies, initiatives and various opportunities offered by the government, in addition to showcasing ongoing efforts to deliver services and information directly to the people. — BERNAMA
