ROME: At least 59 migrants, including a baby just a few months old, died after their overloaded boat sank early on Sunday in stormy seas off Italy’s southern Calabria region, officials said.

“As of a few minutes ago, the number of confirmed victims was 59,” Vincenzo Voce, mayor of the coastal city of Crotone, told TV channel Sky TG-24 on Sunday afternoon.

Earlier, the coastguard service said “43 bodies” had been found along the coast and “80 people recovered alive, including some who managed to reach the shore after the sinking”.

The overloaded vessel broke up in violent waves off Crotone at dawn, according to Italian media.

AGI news agency quoted a rescue worker as saying an infant of just a few months old was among the victims.

Rescue workers told AFP that the vessel was carrying “more than 200 people”.

“Dozens and dozens of people drowned, including children. Lots missing. Calabria is in mourning after this terrible tragedy,” regional governor Roberto Occhiuto said.

Far-right Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, the leader of the post-fascist Brothers of Italy party, won power in October vowing to stem the flow of migrants reaching Italian shores.

“The government is committed to preventing (migrant boat) departures and, with them, this type of tragedy,” she said on Sunday.

President Sergio Mattarella said: “A large number of these migrants came from Afghanistan and Iran, fleeing very harsh conditions.”

He urged the international community “to make a strong commitment to eradicate the causes of these migrations — wars, persecution, terrorism, poverty.”

The government in Rome has accused its European Union partners of not taking in sufficient numbers of migrants seeking to enter the bloc, even though many who arrive in Italy then travel on to other EU states.

This week Meloni’s hard-right coalition government pushed through parliament a controversial new law that forces migrant aid charities to perform only one life-saving rescue mission at a time.

Critics say the measure violates international law and, by cutting the number of rescue ships able to operate, will result in more people drowning in the central Mediterranean, which is considered the most dangerous crossing for people seeking asylum in Europe.

On Sunday the United Nations and the European Commission chief urged countries to agree fairly on ways to share out responsibility for people fleeing conflict and poverty for what they hope will be a better life in Europe.

“Time for states to stop arguing and to agree on just, effective, shared measures to avoid more tragedies,” UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said of Sunday’s “terrible shipwreck”.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called for progress on a stalled reform of EU rules on providing asylum for those in need.

“We must redouble our efforts on the (EU) Pact on Migration and Asylum and on the Action Plan on the Central Mediterranean,” she said.

Meloni said it was “criminal to put a boat of barely 20 metres (66 feet) to sea with 200 people onboard and a bad weather forecast”.

She demanded collaboration from migrants’ home countries and states from where they embark on their perilous sea crossings.

A large proportion of people seeking to reach European shores cross the Mediterranean from Africa to Italy.

According to the interior ministry, nearly 14,000 migrants have arrived in Italy by sea so far this year, up from 5,200 over the same period last year.

Charities rescuing people in danger at sea bring only a fraction of migrants ashore.

Most of those who are rescued are plucked from the dangerous waters by Italian coastguards or the navy.

Despite this, Meloni’s government has accused rescue charities of encouraging migrants to attempt the crossing and boosting the fortunes of human traffickers.

On Thursday, Italian authorities impounded a migrant rescue vessel belonging to medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) for allegedly breaking the new law on life-saving missions in the Mediterranean.

“It’s unacceptable to be punished for saving lives,” MSF said, adding that it was considering a possible legal challenge.

“People in difficulty at sea should be rescued, whatever the cost, without penalising those trying to help them,” centrist former economy minister Carlo Calenda said on Sunday.

NEW DELHI: The Delhi Deputy Chief Minister, Manish Sisodia, was arrested on Sunday evening by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) at the agency headquarters where he was called for questioning over the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22. 

paying homage to Mahatma Gandhi at Raj Ghat, officials said.

The excise policy was an alleged scam wherein an “erroneous policy was enforced by the AAP Government that caused losses to the exchequer to the tune of Rs 2873 crores and benefitted liquor traders through a planned conspiracy.” 

The AAP leader, accused number one in the CBI FIR, was earlier questioned on October 17, a month before the agency filed its charge sheet on November 25.

The CBI had not named Sisodia in the charge sheet as the central probe agency kept the probe open against him and other suspects and accused, they said.

Meanwhile, Police on Sunday including AAP MP Sanjay Singh and minister Gopal Rai, protesting near the CBI office where Sisodia was being questioned. Police said section 144 CrPC was imposed in the area.

Sisodia was arrested after his deposition appeared incoherent with respect to the evidence and information gathered by the agency during the preliminary probe and statements of witnesses and accused (including government officials) who deposed in the case so far. In a statement issued post his arrest, the CBI claimed, “He gave evasive replies and did not co-operate the investigation despite being confronted with evidence to the contrary.”

As non-cooperation in the investigations has been cited as the prime reason for his arrest, the agency will produce Sisodia in the special court at Rouse Avenue in Delhi, on Monday where his custodial remand would be sought for a thorough investigation into the matter.

Sources said that during questioning Sisodia was also asked about the changing of 7 mobile phones and destroying about 170 SIM cards and mobile handsets along with other accused to which no satisfactory answer was received. Sisodia was also confronted by two Delhi government officers during interrogation at the CBI headquarters on Sunday.

On February 19, Sisodia skipped CBI summon for questioning apprehending arrest and had sought more time from the agency, citing that he was in the midst of finalising the budget for Delhi and the draft is at a very crucial stage.

“Accepting his request, he was reissued the notice under 41A Cr.P.C for attending the investigation today (on 26.02.2023) for answering various questions evaded by him during his examination on October 17, 2022, and further questions relating to his incriminating role based on evidence collected during the investigation of the case,” the CBI said

Amidst fresh apprehensions that he might get arrested, Sisodia reached the headquarters of the CBI in New Delhi around 11.15 am on Sunday to answer questions of the federal agency which is probing the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22 scam.

He also told reporters on Sunday before heading to CBI headquarters that he doesn’t care if he has to stay in jail for a few months. In his tweet, the Delhi Deputy CM said “Going to the CBI today again. Will cooperate fully in the entire investigation. The love of lakhs of children and the blessings of crores of countrymen are with us. I don’t care if I have to stay in jail for a few months.”

This was the second occasion that the CBI has asked Sisodia to make himself available at the agency’s headquarters in New Delhi to answer queries related to the Delhi excise scam. He was summoned last year (2022) on October 17.  During this, he was questioned for almost 9 hours. The CBI sleuth also paid a recent visit to Sisodia’s office at Delhi Secretariat on January 14, “to gather certain information.”   

The CBI registered the Delhi Excise scam case in August last year against Sisodia and 14 others under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 477A (falsification of records), and section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

The FIR was lodged after Delhi Lt Governor VK Saxena recommended a CBI probe into the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22. Sisodia, in charge of the excise department at the relevant period when the policy was formulated and implemented.

It was alleged that the policy, which was brought into effect in November 2021, was influenced at the formulation stage to benefit certain businessmen, liquor distributors and traders. Following the registration of the case the Delhi government had withdrawn the policy with effect from 31 July 2022.

So far the CBI has filed one chargesheet in the case on November 25, 2022, and named seven accused, including two officials of the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) and five persons were named in relation to the alleged irregularities in the framing and implementation of the excise policy.

Those named are Vijay Nair, Abhishek Boinpally, Arun R Pillai, Mootha Gautham, Sameer Mahendru, Kuldeep Singh, who was the then deputy commissioner, Excise and Narender Singh, the then asst. commissioner of Delhi’s Excise Department.

Gopal Rai, the environment minister in the Delhi government, said the police were taking him away in his car. In a tweet in Hindi, Rai said, “Modi ji’s hooliganism at its peak. I cannot walk without someone’s help but police surrounded my car from all sides and forcefully made the person accompanying me get down. Policemen barged inside my car and are taking me. This is the height of hooliganism but neither will we be scared nor will we bow down.”

Several AAP leaders, meanwhile, also claimed that some of their councillors have been put under house arrest to prevent them from visiting Raj Ghat.

Sisodia says allegations false, not afraid of going to jail

Sisodia said he does not care if he has to go to jail over “false allegations”. “I can go to jail a number of times and I am not afraid. When I left my job as a journalist, my wife supported me and even today, my family is standing by my side. My workers will take care of my family if I get arrested,” Sisodia told reporters at Raj Ghat before going to the CBI headquarters.

Sisodia, who also holds the education and finance portfolio in the Delhi government, said, “I want to tell the students that they should continue to work hard and study well. Even if I go to jail, I will keep a tab on the performance of the students,” he said.

Earlier in a tweet in Hindi, Sisodia said he will fully cooperate with the probe. “Today, I am going to the CBI. Will fully cooperate in the probe. I have the love of lakhs of children and crores of countrymen with me. Even if I have to go to jail for a few months, I do not care. We are followers of Bhagat Singh. Bhagat Singh died for the country. If I have to go to jail over such false allegations, it is a small thing,” he said.

Kasargod: The principal of a government college was dismissed from her post after she locked up more than 15 students in her chamber for complaining about impurities of drinking water in Kasargod.

The incident took place on February 20 and the students alleged that, when they approached Principal M Rema with a complaint about drinking water, she spoke inappropriately and insulted them by locking them in her chamber

“SFI activists visited the principal to complain about the drinking water from the water purifier. On hearing us, she said that she had no time to address the issue. She asked us to continue drinking the impure water. However, the students refused to leave the chamber without a solution. The principal locked over 15 students in her chamber following this,” students said.

Students have filed a complaint against Rema with the Human Rights Commission and the Higher Education Minister.

On the basis of the complaint filed by students, the principal has been removed from her post, said R Bindu, Kerala’s Higher Education Minister, reports ANI. The minister also said that Dr A N Ananthapadmanabha, senior faculty under the Geology Department, was appointed as the stand-in principal.

Pune: A farmer from Maharashtra’s Solapur was in for a rude shock when he got to know that he has earned a profit of merely Rs 2.49 against the sale of his 512 kg onions to a trader in the district.

The farmer, 63-year-old Rajendra Chavan who resides in Barshi tehsil of Solapur, said his onion yield fetched a price of Rs 1 per kg at the Solapur market yard and after all the deductions he received this paltry sum as his net profit last week.

Talking to PTI, Chavan said, “I had sent 10 bags of onions weighing more than five quintals to an onion trader in Solapur for sale. But after deducting charges towards loading, transport, labour and others, I received a net profit of just Rs 2.49 from him.”

The rate the trader offered to me was Rs 100 per quintal. The overall weight of the crop was 512 kg and the total price he got for the produce was Rs 512, he said.

“After deductions worth Rs 509.51 against labour, weighing, transportation and other charges, I received a net profit of Rs 2.49. This is an insult to me and other onion-growers in the state. If we get such returns, how will we survive?” he asked.

He said the onion farmers need to get a good price for the crop and the affected farmers get compensation.

While Chavan claimed that the produce was of good quality, the trader said it was low grade.

“The farmer had brought only 10 bags and the produce was also of low grade. That is why, he got Rs 100 per quintal rate. So after all the deductions, he got Rs 2 as net profit,” the trader said.

He added that the same farmer had received good returns in the recent past by selling more than 400 bags to me. “This time he brought the remaining produce that was hardly 10 bags and since the prices have gone down, he got this rate,” he said.

Speaking to PTI, farmers leader and former MP Raju Shetti said that the onion hitting the market now is a ‘kharip’ produce and cannot be stored for a long time and that is why the shelf life of the product is short.

“This onion needs to be sold in the market immediately and exported out. But due to glut, the prices of onions have nosedived in the market,” he said.

He added that this onion is not being purchased by NAFED, so the only option is that the government should make the market available for this ‘kharif’ onion.

“The government’s export and import policy regarding onions is not consistent. We had two permanent markets – Pakistan and Bangladesh, but they preferred buying onions from Iran instead of us due to the inconsistent policy of the government. The third market is Sri Lanka, but everyone knows their situation and no one is taking risks to send their produce,” he said.

He added that the government should buy this onion or give subsidies to farmers.