KATHMANDU, NEPAL, July 3, 2018 (Times of India): Over 100 Indian pilgrims were evacuated from Simikot in Nepal on Tuesday as rescue work intensified to bring back safely more than 1,500 Indians who have been stranded in Nepal’s mountainous region due to heavy rain while returning from the Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage in Tibet. ”So far 104 pilgrims have been rescued from the site. Seven commercial flights have so far been operated for the rescue work,” an Indian Embassy official told PTI. Four embassy staff, two each in Simikot and Tibet, have been deployed with necessary facilities so that the stranded pilgrims could contact with their home in India, the official said. Meanwhile, two Indian pilgrims — Narayanam Leela, 56, of Kerela and Satya Laxmi of Andra Pradesh — have died, Humla district police office said.
Earlier, the Indian embassy here said in a statement that there are about 525 Indian pilgrims stranded in Simikot in Humla district, 550 in Hilsa and other 500 on the Tibet side. The embassy is continuously monitoring the situation along Nepalganj-Simikot-Hilsa route of Kailash Mansarovar Yatra (through Nepal), the statement said, as the weather remains inclement. The embassy said it has placed its representatives in Nepalganj and Simikot, who are personally in touch with every stranded pilgrim. They are ensuring that proper food and lodging facilities are available to the pilgrims.
INDIA, July 4, 2018 (Economic Times): The Amarnath Yatra in south Kashmir Himalayas was suspended today from both Pahalgam and Baltal routes due to landslides even as the death toll during this year’s yatra rose to 11, an official spokesperson said. He said, however, limited helicopter services functioned from both the routes. ”On the 7th day of the ongoing Shri Amarnathji Yatra, 5,919 yatris paid obeisance at the holy cave. Till date, 60,752 yatris had darshan of the Shivling at the holy Cave,” the spokesperson said. Meanwhile, the death toll during this year’s yatra reached 11 today as a woman pilgrim died after getting hit by a falling rock at Brarimarg along the Baltal route, a police official said. The pilgrimage began on June 28 and is scheduled to conclude on August 26, coinciding with Raksha Bandhan.
LONDON, U.K., July 4, 2018 (Asian Voice): The Swaminarayan School in Brent has decided to extend its notice period before it closes the doors to students, after considering the concerns of parents and students. The school sent a letter to all parents on 25 June 2018, explaining the closure is related to lack of funding, recruitment of right staff and falling number of students. However, they have now decided to keep both schools fully open for another year, until July 2020, giving everyone in the Prep School and Senior School two full years to find suitable places for their children for the academic year beginning in September 2020. If circumstances permit, the trust is also planning to keep the Prep School running for a third year, if feasible, provided there are sufficient pupil numbers.
Jitu Patel, Chairman of Akshar Educational Trust told Asian Voice exclusively, ”Over the past few years, student numbers have been falling – from a peak of 515 in 2012 to 377 expected in September 2018. This downward trend is expected to continue. We recognize that the location of the School is not ideal since the catchment area of the majority of its students is some distance away.” The parent body strongly feels that by working together, the school can still continue, but for this to happen, the trustees and governors need to start an open dialogue with parents, which has not been happening over the years. Parents have also said that they are more than happy to consider taking over the running of the school by appointing new teams who will give due consideration to the communities and families that are being disrupted by this announcement, but ideally prefer working with the existing trustees and governors to resolve the concerns.
It is far easier to conquer others than to conquer oneself, because the former can be attained by recourse to outside means, while the latter can be achieved only with one’s own mind.
— Mahatma Gandhi(1869-1948)
