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A Village Burnt Overnight: Tears, Loss and Survival in Dhamangaon Blaze

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  Sitting amid the blackened remains of his home, 32-year-old Nikesh Gawali carefully broke open a half-melted plastic box with a screwdriver. His hands shook slightly, not out of fear, but out of hope. “I’m trying to find my daughter Aarti’s gold earrings,” he said quietly, still focused on the box. “She’s just five. I got them made recently after months of labour work.” The plastic box, warped and blackened by heat, was one of the few things left from his two-room house on the outskirts of Dhamangaon village . All around him lay ash, broken tin sheets and charred wooden beams. The walls had cracked under the heat and the front room’s tin roof had caved in completely. What remained was a blackened debris all around - almost nothing to suggest a home once stood there. Nikesh earns his living as an agricultural labourer, like many in the village. Work is uncertain and depends on the season. Those earrings weren’t just jewellery - they were a small dream, a reward for his hard work,...
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Winter Olympics snowboarding 2014: schedule announced

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The 2014 Winter Olympics, officially the XXII Olympic Winter Games, or the 22nd Winter Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event being held in Sochi, Russia.
Snowboarding's Saturday schedule will see the medal for Men's Slopestyle awarded.

February 8


12:30 a.m. ET: Men's Slopestyle Semifinals
3:45 a.m.: Men's Slopestyle Finals


White pulled out of the slopestyle event due to injury, and Canada's Max Parrot has become the favorite in this event as a result. Parrot won the gold at the X-Games and finished first in the qualifying run with a score of 97.5. This event allows snowboarders to do a bit of everything as they make their way down the course and may be the most entertaining of the snowboarding events.

On Thursday, eight snowboarders qualified directly for the finals and will not need to compete in the semifinals. Four participants will advance from the semifinals to the finals. Here is the complete snowboarding schedule after Saturday's events (all times Eastern):

February 9

1:30 a.m.: Ladies' Slopestyle Semifinals
4:15 a.m.: Ladies' Slopestyle Finals

February 11

5 a.m.: Men's Halfpipe Qualification
10 a.m.: Men's Halfpipe Semifinals
12:30 p.m.: Men's Halfpipe Finals
8 p.m.: Ladies' Halfpipe Qualification

The halfpipe is when the world will finally get a look at Shaun White, who will be representing the United States for the third time at the Winter Olympics.

February 12

10 a.m.: Ladies' Halfpipe Semifinals 

12:30 p.m.: Ladies' Halfpipe Finals

February 16

2 a.m.: Ladies' Snowboard Cross Seeding 4:15 a.m.: Ladies' Snowboard Cross Quarterfinals 4:30 a.m.: Ladies' Snowboard Cross Semifinals 4:45 a.m.: Ladies' Snowboard Cross Finals

February 17

2 a.m.: Men's Snowboard Cross Seeding 4:30 a.m.: Men's Snowboard Cross 1/8 Finals 5:01 a.m.: Men's Snowboard Cross Quarterfinals 5:13 a.m.: Men's Snowboard Cross Semifinals 5:20 a.m.: Men's Snowboard Cross Finals

February 19

12:15 a.m.: Ladies' Parallel Giant Slalom Qualification 12:40 a.m.: Men's Parallel Giant Slalom Qualification 4 a.m.: Ladies' Parallel Giant Slalom 1/8 Finals 4:32 a.m.: Ladies' Parallel Giant Slalom Quarterfinals 4:48 a.m.: Ladies' Parallel Giant Slalom Semifinals 4:52 a.m.: Ladies' Parallel Giant Slalom Finals 5 a.m.: Men's Parallel Giant Slalom 1/8 Finals 5:34 a.m.: Men's Parallel Giant Slalom Quarterfinals 5:42 a.m.: Men's Parallel Giant Slalom Semifinals 5:55 a.m.: Men's Parallel Giant Slalom Finals


Injuries have kept Justin Reiter from competing in the last two Olympic Games, but he has come out of retirement to take one last shot at gold for the United States. He will complete in the men's parallel giant slalom on Wednesday Feb. 19.

February 22

12:15 a.m.: Ladies' Parallel Slalom Qualification 12:40 a.m.: Men's Parallel Slalom Qualification 4:15 a.m.: Ladies' Parallel Slalom 1/8 Finals 4:15 a.m.: Men's Parallel Slalom 1/8 Finals 5:08 a.m.: Ladies' Parallel Slalom Quarterfinals 5:28 a.m.: Men's Parallel Slalom Quarterfinals 5:40 a.m.: Ladies' Parallel Slalom Semifinals 5:52 a.m.: Men's Parallel Slalom Semifinals 6 a.m.: Ladies' Parallel Slalom Finals 6:15 a.m.: Men's Parallel Slalom Finals


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