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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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Tension in Kanhan over WCL guard firing at mob

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By Dheeraj Fartode
Sensation prevailed in Western Coalfields Limited (WCL) area in Kanhan when a security guard of WCL opened fire at an attacking mob and stabbed six persons with sharp-edged weapons on Friday night. Two persons were injured seriously while six others sustained minor injuries. Later, the angry mob set ablaze a patrolling vehicle of WCL.

According to information, Raja Dhurve, Anil Markam and Vicky Varma were heading towards their home from Khadan No 4 area after attending Garba event on Friday late night. WCL’s security guards Premshankar Raut and Ajay Chauhan stopped the trio to enquire about their presence in the mine-area.
The patrolling jeep of WCL that was set
ablaze by locals on Friday night.

Chauhan suspected that the youngsters were involved in diesel theft in the area, and started beating the youths after which Anil and Vicky ran away. The guards allegedly beat Raja, who was in their custody, black and blue. Meanwhile, Anil and Vicky returned to the spot with 10-12 people more from nearby locality.

There was a heated exchange of words between the mob and the guards. The mob turned violent and started thrashing Chauhan. Another guard Raut took out sharp-edged weapons and charged at the mob and injured six persons. Chauhan also opened fire at mob with 12 bore rifle.

Pramod Karamsingh sustained bullet injuries on his hand. Angry over this, the mob set ablaze a patrolling jeep (MH-40/Y-6004) at the spot. Security guard Raut also sustained grievous injuries in the attack. Injured guards were shifted to Military Hospital while other injured persons were rushed to Indira Gandhi Government Medical College and Hospital (IGGMCH), Nagpur. The injured persons were identified as Jagdish Bharti, Sachin Dhurve, Budhram Vishwakarma, Shivkumar Vishwakarma, Ashok Tekam, and Pramod Singh Chauhan.

Kanhan Police booked the security guards of WCL under sections 307, 34 of Indian Penal Code read with section 3/25 of Indian Arms Act. Acting on a counter complaint, the police booked the youths under sections 147, 148, 149, 324 and 435 of IPC.

On Saturday morning, a mob of the locality gheraod Kanhan Police Station demanding immediate release of the arrested youths. Congress leader and former MLC S Q Zama met the injured youths and inquired about their health.
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