Kolkata Apr 23 PTI As many as 19 crude bombs were seized from an abandoned auto-rickshaw near a childrens home in Kolkatas Haridevpur area prompting the police to investigate whether the explosives were a part of a terror plot a senior officer said on Saturday Acting on a tip-off law enforcers conducted a raid on Friday night and found three abandoned auto-rickshaws on a ground near a childrens home in 41 Pally locality in Haridevpur police station area he said As many as 19 crude bombs one country-made pistol and two cartridges were found in one of the auto-rickshaws which was operational on the Chakraberia-Bijoygarh route We are checking CCTV footages of the area the officer said An investigation is underway to ascertain whether the bombs were a part of a terror plot A manhunt to trace the owner of the auto-rickshaw has been launched he said adding no arrests have been made so far PTI SCH ACD ACD

Kolkata Apr 20 PTI A four-and-half-year-old girl has been allegedly molested by her maternal uncle in South Kolkatas Tollygunge area following which the accused has been arrested police said on Wednesday As per an FIR the accused had lured the survivor to play a game in the absence of her family members and molested her a senior officer of Tollygunge Womens Police Station said The family members later saw the girl crying and upon enquiry found about the incident and lodged a complaint with us she said The accused has been arrested and a case under POCSO Act registered against him she added PTI SCH ACD ACD

Kolkata Apr 19 PTI Two persons were injured in a gunfight on Tuesday due to rivalry over a construction work in Kolkatas Bansdroni area police saidThe incident took place a day after eight people were injured in a clash between two groups over taking control of a construction work near the residence of TMC MP Sougata Roy in Lake Gardens area The shootout took place around noon when one person identified as Biswanath Singh alias Bachchu barged into the office of local businessman Malay Dutta in Brahmapur locality and opened fire at him an officer saidDuttas men returned fire at Singh in which he was injured Both are undergoing treatment at a hospital he said adding that four people have been arrestedPreliminary investigation revealed that the firing was a result of a rivalry over a construction work in the area PTI SCH ACD ACD

Kolkata Jan 26 PTI With an aim to reduce the number of road accidents the West Bengal government has decided to increase traffic violation fines as per the Motor Vehicles Act a notification has said The Centre had increased the fines in 2019 but the West Bengal government had not imposed them so far considering the difficulties faced by the common man A person driving a car without a licence will have to shell out Rs 5000 up from the previous fine of Rs 500 Similarly one driving recklessly with have to pay a fine of up to Rs 4000 which was Rs 400 earlier the notification issued by the state Transport Department on Tuesday said One has to pay an amount between Rs 500 and Rs 1000 for violating driving rules on the road while Rs 2000 will be slapped for lapsed car insurance and Rs 5000 for racing on the road A fine of Rs 10000 will be slapped if any vehicle plies sans road permit and Rs 5000 if its not registered A biker will have to pay Rs 1000 for riding without a helmet One will be fined between Rs 2000 and Rs 4000 for honking in a silent zone it said According to the notification fines have been increased for a total of 26 traffic violations The new guideline will come into effect soon Traffic police personnel and motor vehicle inspectors can collect the fines The hike will on one hand increase revenue of the government and on the other lead people to follow rules he said PTI SCH ACD ACD

Kolkata Dec 19 PTI As many as 72 people were arrested for allegedly disturbing law and order during Kolkata Municipal Corporation KMC elections on Sunday police said One person was arrested for allegedly hurling bombs in Sealdah area in which three voters were injured of whom one was in serious condition a senior police officer said Seventy-two people have been arrested so far for disturbing law and order in the city where civic elections are underway One person has been arrested in connection with the hurling of bombs Others involved in the incident have been identified and they will be arrested soon Joint Commissioner of Police Headquarters Subhankar Sinha Sarkar said Crude bombs were hurled in front of Taki school in ward number 36 in which three voters of the area were injured A large police contingent has been deployed in the area and the State Election Commission has sought a report from the police on the matter Sarkar said that four people have been arrested in connection with an altercation between two contesting candidates on Hare Street Polling is being held peacefully there at the moment he said The IPS officer however dismissed reports that a policeman was also injured PTI SCH ACD ACD

Kolkata Dec 19 PTI Three voters were injured one of whom is in a serious condition after bombs were lobbed in Sealdah area of Kolkata during the ongoing KMC elections on Sunday police said One of the injured persons has lost his leg while the other two are also undergoing treatment at the hospital an officer said The incident took place around 11 AM in front of Taki School in ward number 36 during polling he said adding that the three persons are voters of the area Two bombs were hurled and we are scrutinising CCTV footages to identify the culprits the officer said A large police contingent has been deployed in the area and the State Election Commission has sought a report from the police on the matter another official said PTI SCH ACD ACD

Kolkata Dec 19 PTI A voter turnout of 1086 per cent was recorded in the Kolkata Municipal Corporation KMC elections till 9 AM on a chilly Sunday morning A senior official of the State Election Commission told PTI that the polling process has been absolutely peaceful and no untoward incident has been reported from any of the 144 wards of the KMC Voting began at 7 AM in 4949 polling centres with strict adherence to COVID-19 protocols amid tight security and it will continue till 5 PM he said The low turnout in the early hours is primarily because the weather was very chilly in the morning the official said adding that the polling percentage is expected to increase as the day progresses A total of 4048357 voters are eligible to exercise their franchise to seal the fate of 950 candidates in the fray The SEC has declared 1139 of the 4949 polling centres as sensitive State Election Commission Secretary Nilanjan Sandilya has said that all necessary measures have been taken to ensure free and fair elections A total of 23500 Kolkata Police personnel have been deployed across the city and route marches and area domination exercises conducted in various parts of the metropolis an officer of the force said More than 200 police pickets have also been set up at crucial points across the city he said The ruling Trinamool Congress is fighting to retain the civic board for the third consecutive term while the BJP will contest CPIM to secure the second position The TMC had swept all the 16 assembly segments in the metropolis in this years assembly elections The counting of votes will take place on December 21 PTI SCH SUS ACD ACD

Kolkata Nov 23 PTI The West Bengal government has decided to do away with the age-old post of Resident Medical Officer RMO and instead start appointing doctors as assistant professors a senior official said on Tuesday Recruitment to such posts would be done through the West Bengal Medical Education Services he said adding that the post of RMO cum Clinical Tutor or Demonstrator would be made obsolete he told PTI But the doctors who are currently RMOs would continue serving in the post he said We have decided to do away with the post of RMO But those who are currently in the post will continue to serve as such We will further not recruit any doctor as RMO In case those continuing as RMO possess the required qualification they will be promoted For the existing RMOs there will be no change in the service rules the official of the state health department said The state government however has given one condition for recruitment to the newly created post of assistant professor he said A Doctor of Medicine MD or Master of Surgery MS will have to serve at least one year as a senior resident SR to fulfill the criteria and become eligible to sit for the recruitment process he said In the National Medical Commission NMC the RMO post is non-existent and instead there are two posts -- teachers or faculty and resident doctors Resident doctors are categorised into senior residents SRs and junior residents JRs To date in West Bengal SR posts were under bond services for a period of three years and in case the bond was flouted the doctor concerned had to pay the state an amount of Rs 10 lakh Hiralal Konar a senior doctor said This was overdue as the NMC had done away with the post of RMO long back This post does not exist anywhere else in the country But it is not yet clear whether the state will appoint an equal number of assistant professors in place of the RMOs The state however is yet to decide on the other eligibility criterion for the recruitment of assistant professors We are working on it and once it is decided we will issue a notification detailing the criterion on the eligibility for the post the official said PTI SCH ACD ACD

Kolkata Nov 17 PTI The body of an unidentified man was found hanging from an advertising billboard in Kolkatas Pragati Maidan area on Wednesday police said Locals spotted the body hanging by a dupatta scarf from an advertising billboard off the E M Bypass in the morning and informed the local police station an officer said Doctors declared him brought dead when taken to NRS Medical College and Hospital he said The identity of the person is yet to be established We cannot say as of now whether he committed suicide or was murdered in some other place and brought here An investigation is underway the officer added PTI SCH ACD ACD

Kolkata Sep 21 PTI At least four people including three of a family were electrocuted to death in West Bengals North 24 Parganas district on Tuesday as large parts of the state remained inundated due to heavy rain an official said A 15-year-old boy was electrocuted to death while returning home from tuition in Titagarh he said A man his wife and son died in a government housing complex in Khardah The man was electrocuted to death after coming in contact with the inundated floor of his flat which was electrified by open wires and his wife and son also died while trying to save him the state Disaster Management Department official said Only the younger son only four-years-old survived the incident He shouted for help from neighbours who rushed the trio to the hospital where doctors declared them brought dead PTI SCH ACD ACD