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Time of India
05-07-2025
- General
- Time of India
Another Gaur Killed on Ballarshah-Gondia Railway Track
Chandrapur: A fully grown Indian Gaur was killed after being hit by a passenger train on the Ballarshah-Gondia route on Friday evening. The accident occurred in Compartment No 474 under Junona range when train number 68816, travelling from Gondia to Ballarshah, collided with the animal. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now According to wildlife activists of Habitat Conservation Society, who visited the spot, the impact was so intense that the train dragged the gaur for nearly 120 metres, dismembering the body and scattering flesh and horns across the tracks. The train was reportedly briefly halted before it resumed its journey towards Chandrapur after remains of the Gaur were cleared of the track. This is the second such incident in recent months. A similar accident had occurred in February in Compartment No. 413, raising serious concerns over the safety of wildlife in the area. A few days back a pregnant Sambar was killed in similar collision with the speeding train on the same railway track. The Ballarshah-Gondia railway line passes through areas adjoining the Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve and is a critical wildlife corridor connecting Kanhargaon Sanctuary, Kawal Sanctuary, and Umred-Karhandla Wildlife Sanctuary to Tadoba. Conservationists note that the track connects ahead to the Balaghat-Nainpur section in Madhya Pradesh, where effective mitigation structures like underpasses and overpasses have been installed, however this track through Maharashtra lacks effective mitigation measures. Experts and environmental groups are urging the railway authorities in Maharashtra to adopt similar measures to prevent further loss of wildlife. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now While recommendations have been made to restrict train speeds to 50–60 kmph between 7 pm and 7 am in forested stretches, its implementation remains inconsistent. "Concrete action is the need of the hour. Mere proposals or committee discussions won't help unless they lead to on-ground changes," said president of Habitat Conservation Society, Dinesh Khate, Khate along with Kiran Bavaskar and Amit Deshmukh, visited the site and informed Junona Forest Range officials. Forest guard Gajanan Lute and other forest workers later visited the spot to complete the formalities.
Time of India
12-05-2025
- Time of India
5 cases in 4 months: Caregivers rob and cheat elderly in Pune, police urge caution
1 2 Pune: Over the weekend, the city woke up to another report of a serious crime that was allegedly committed by caregivers hired by elderly residents. In a police complaint, the elderly couple in this case - residents of Pashan - said they lost over Rs 30 lakh after their two caregivers misused their ATM cards. One would step out to withdraw the money while the other stayed home to delete the cash withdrawal alerts from the phone of the victim, who has mobility case, police said, was the fifth in the last four months in Pune, involving caregivers either stealing money or jewellery belonging to their elderly wards. In the complaint filed by the Pashan couple, they said both their caretakers were hired from a verified agency."It was an alarming report," said Hadapsar resident Amit Shetty, about the Pashan incident. "Who can we trust now? I have a father in someone else's care. I do worry," he said they are responding to the problem. "Security of senior citizens, especially those living alone, is of prime importance," said deputy commissioner of police (Crime) Nikhil Pingale. Just last week, Pingale said, crime branch officials held a meeting with elderly residents in the Aundh-Baner area to discuss personal security and how to hire caregivers ."We told them to ensure the caregivers come from reputed and verified agencies. And if they're hiring individuals, they have to be verified and registered at the local police station," Pingale told TOI, adding that the elderly care sector was still largely unorganised. "Some of these agencies are reputed while many others are not. Given this scenario, citizens should ensure the local police know about the people they've hired," he also urged residents to install CCTV in their homes. "They make for good deterrence. Any suspicious behaviour by caregivers can be reported to cops. We're here to help. Elderly residents of an area could even form local WhatsApp groups to talk to each other, and even report suspicious activity. This is something we said during the Aundh-Baner meeting too. More of these awareness camps are being planned, wherever there are a large number of elderly," he running elderly care services advised people to personally visit the agencies before hiring employees. "Avoid checking credentials online," said Angad Khate, from the Model Colony-based Uday Nursing Bureau. "I would also ask for references from previous customers. All this is important because, remember, this is a stranger who will be in your house 24x7," Khate said, adding his agency only hires "locals known to him".He said: "We have their records with us. And before giving them a full-time job, the caregivers are sent as replacements. If they're found to be good, they're picked for full-time services."Khate added that police verification has proven difficult for agencies. "That's because employees can quit the job at any point," he said. Arif Pathan, manager of Indian Nursing Bureau & Home Healthcare Services, said: "We generally try to provide only local health caregivers to our customers as character verification is easy. For some from other states, this step can take a while."Pathan said counselling sessions are also held with clients. "We request them to lock up valuables. We also train the elderly in how to communicate with the caregivers, to avoid instances of abuse," he said.
