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

  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,...

Power outages in West Nagpur


In yet another instance, an underground power cable got damaged near Ambazari lake on Friday after which residents of Ravi Nagar, Ram Nagar, Hill Top and nearby areas faced almost one hour power break-down during scorching summer. The culprit this time was contractor of Nagpur Municipal Corporation. 
A JCB engaged by the contractor hit the 11 KV power cable disrupting power supply of Gokulpeth feeder. More than 5,000 households of the area were plunged in darkness at around 9.30 pm. It was torturous time for the people during scorching summer. Staff of MSEDCL from Congress Nagar immediately swung into action and backfeeded the area within 51 minutes. 

An official of MSEDCL said that development works in city continuos to spell trouble for power utilities as contractors engaged in various development works continue to throw caution to wind.
As if the summer scorch was not enough, the repeated incidents of damages to power utilities indicates that instructions of even Guardian Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule are being ignored. Damages to underground power cables is now becoming almost a daily affair in city. 

“We have submitted a complaint at Ambazari Police Station however, the police have not registered the case. Top officials of MSEDCL will meet Commissioner of Police in this regard,” the official said.

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