16-Year-Old Boy Dies During Ganesh Idol Immersion At Mumbai's Juhu Beach

Amid the beating of drums and chants of 'Ganpati Bappa Morya', various Ganesh mandals in Mumbai on Thursday started processions to immerse the idols of the deity, marking the culmination of the 10-day festival. By 6 pm, a total of 7,950 idols had been immersed, comprising 7,513 household ones, 329 'sarvajanik' or public idols and 108 of goddess Gauri, a Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation official said.

He said a 16-year-old boy identified as Hasan Yusuf Shaikh was rescued from the sea at Juhu by lifeguards amid the immersions and rushed to nearby Cooper Hospital, where doctors declared him dead on arrival.

There was no report of any other untoward incident during the immersions across the metropolis till evening, the BMC official added.

As per civic data, 2,199 of 7,950 idols were immersed in artificial ponds set up by the civic body.

The 2,199 idols comprise 2,096 household idols, 63 'sarvajanik' ones and 40 of goddess Gauri, the official added.

Since early in the day, huge crowds gathered at various places in the city to catch a glimpse of their favourite deity, as decked up idols of Lord Ganesh in various forms and sizes were taken out of pandals for their final journey, accompanied by music, dance and prayers.

The festival, which began with 'Ganesh Chaturthi' on September 19, concludes on the 'Anant Chaturdashi' on Thursday with the immersion of idols in the Arabian Sea and other water bodies here.

In Mumbai's Lalbaug area, famous for celebrating the festival with grandeur, the procession of idols of Tejukaya and Ganesh Gully mandals started with chants of 'Ganapati Bappa Morya, Pudhchya Varshi Lavkar Ya' (come soon next year Lord).

The procession of the famous Lalbaugcha Raja idol, that attracts maximum number of devotees during the 10-day festival, started at around 11.30 am.

A large number of people were seen waiting on both sides of roads for the final 'darshan' of the idol.

Thousands of people gathered on the streets of Lalbaug and other major procession routes of Ganesh idols to bid farewell to the deity with heartfelt prayers and witness the vibrant processions being taken out with music, dance and sprinkling of 'gulal' (vermillion powder).

There was also a large gathering of people at Lalbaug's Shroff building to witness 'pushpavrusti' (showering of flowers) on the Ganesh idols.

Crowds also assembled on the main road leading to Girgaon in south Mumbai, from where the maximum number of processions pass. These include the processions of Ganesh idols from Fort, Girgaon, Mazgaon, Byculla, Dadar, Matunga, Sion, Chembur and other areas.

According to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, as many as 1,65,964 idols, including several household idols, 'sarvajanik' (public) ones and idols of Goddess Gauri, were immersed in various water bodies here including artificial ponds till the seventh day of the festival.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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Young India Will Turn Into Rapidly Ageing Society In Coming Decades: UN

Elderly population in India is expanding at an unprecedented rate and could surpass the children's population by mid-century, a new UNFPA report said, underlining that the young India will turn into a rapidly ageing society in the coming decades.

India has one of the highest populations of adolescents and young people in the world.

At the national level, the share of the elderly (60+ years) population is projected to increase from 10.1 per cent in 2021 to 15 per cent in 2036 and 20.8 per cent in 2050, according to the UNFPA's 'India Ageing Report 2023'.

"By the end of the century, the elderly will constitute over 36 per cent of the total population of the country. Sharp growth in the elderly population is observed from 2010 onwards along with a decline in the age group of below 15 years, indicating rapidity of ageing in India," the report said.

The report noted that the elderly population in India is expanding at an unprecedented rate and may be expected to surpass the children's population by mid-century.

"Four years before 2050, the population size of the elderly in India will be higher than the population size of children aged 0-14 years. By that time, the population share of 15-59 years will also see a dip. Undoubtedly, the relatively young India today will turn into a rapidly ageing society in the coming decades," it said.

A distinguishing feature of ageing in India is the significant interstate variation in absolute levels and growth (and hence, share) of the elderly population, given the varying stages and pace of demographic transition across states.

Consequently, there are considerable variations in the age structure of the population, including the ageing experience.

Most of the states in the southern region and select northern states such as Himachal Pradesh and Punjab reported a higher share of the elderly population than the national average in 2021, a gap that is expected to widen by 2036, the report said.

While states reporting higher fertility rates and lagging in demographic transition, such as Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, expect to see an increase in the share of the elderly population between 2021 and 2036, the level will remain lower than the Indian average, the report said.

The report pointed out that India has witnessed moderate to high pace of decadal growth in elderly population since 1961 and evidently, the pace was slower before 2001 but is expected to increase sharply in coming decades.

"The decadal growth of the elderly population in India declined slightly from 32 per cent between 1961 and 1971 to 31 per cent in 1981-1991. Growth picked up pace during 1991-2001 (35 per cent) and is projected to shoot to 41 per cent between 2021 and 2031," the report said.

The report said that there are 39 older persons per 100 children in India, according to 2021 population estimates.

The states with a higher share of the elderly population (such as those in southern India) also show a higher score for an ageing index, indicative of a decline in fertility leading to a rising number of older persons as compared to children.

"Compared to southern and western India, central and north-eastern regions have the younger group of states as indicated by the ageing index," it said.

The ageing index measures the number of elderly (60+ years) per 100 children population (below 15 years) and the index score increases as the population ages.

The UNFPA said the population projections indicate that in 2021, there were 16 older persons per 100 working-age persons in India, with significant variations across regions.

"In line with the findings regarding the ageing index, in the southern region, the old-age dependency ratio was higher than the national average at around 20 as is true of western India at 17. Overall, Union Territories (13) and the north-eastern region (13) reflected lower old age dependency ratios," it said.

The old-age dependency ratio of a population represents the number of persons aged 60+ years per 100 persons in the 15-59 years (or working-age) group. The higher the ratio, the greater the old age-related dependency, reflecting higher levels of demand for care from immediate family.

Andrea. M. Wojnar, UNFPA India Representative and Country Director Bhutan, said the report is a valuable resource for scholars, policymakers, programme managers, and all stakeholders involved in elder care.

"Older persons have contributed significantly to society, and they deserve nothing less than our best efforts to ensure their well-being," Wojnar said. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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"Not Living In British Era": Nitish Kumar On Library Signboard In English

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday voiced his extreme displeasure over the signboard of a government school's library bearing the inscription in English.

Mr Kumar was in Banka district, about 250 km from the state capital, where he reached after inspection of a bridge in the adjoining Jamui which got damaged after heavy rainfall last week.

In Banka, Mr Kumar inaugurated a newly constructed hospital and inspected a recently renovated indoor stadium before visiting a high school and got upset upon seeing the signboard stating it was a "digital library".

"Why is this not in Hindi? We are not living in the British era," he told the District Magistrate, Anshul Kumar, who was present there.

"Look, I have nothing against English. It was the medium of my instruction while I was studying engineering. Many of my speeches in Parliament, too, were in that language", said the longest-serving chief minister of Bihar.

He added, "But, at one point of time, I decided to promote the use of Hindi. I therefore gave up putting on my signature in English. Please get this signboard changed, at the earliest".

The DM assured Mr Kumar that the needful would be done "today itself".

The septuagenarian, who owes his passionate advocacy for Hindi to his ideological devotion towards late socialist stalwart Ram Manohar Lohia, has voiced displeasure, in public, over the use of English on more than one occasion.

In February, he reprimanded an agricultural entrepreneur for making a presentation that contained "too many English words".

A month later, inside the state legislative council, he chided Chairman Devesh Chandra Thakur, who belongs to his party Janata Dal (United), upon seeing words like "honourable" and "speaking time" on the electronic display board.

The chief minister was accompanied by cabinet colleagues and top government officials during his tour of the two districts. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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"Justin Trudeau In Turmoil, Looking For Some Kind Of Out": Ex Canada MLA

In a series of hard-hitting statements against Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his Liberal Party, a former minister of a province in the country has said the allegations on India's involvement in the killing of the Khalistani terrorist were made "ahead of time and without clear facts" and that the PM is using a serious crime to get out of the "political mud" he is in

Speaking exclusively to NDTV, Kash Heed - who is a Richmond City Councillor, a former minister, member of legislative assembly and solicitor general of British Columbia, as well as a former police chief - also spoke against using such killings for political grandstanding.

To a question on India asking Canada for evidence in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar and providing its own evidence against terrorists operating out of Canadian soil, Mr Heed said, "We have been raising the issue of groups involved in it to make money, whether it is for illicit activities such as terrorism or things like that across Canada. You have to remember, given the political situation that we are in right now, you have a governing party of Canada that's in a crisis right now."

"Whether it's having to deal with this situation, which they went out, in my opinion, ahead of time on without the clear facts, or whether they are dealing with the speaker of the House that has to resign because of recognising people that fought for the Nazis," he said.

"He (Trudeau) is in turmoil right now, he is looking for some kind of out. This is not the out that he should be utilising, trying to bring back his political credibility, because what has happened is that political credibility is waning at a very rapid pace," the former minister added. 

'Wrong Political Calculation'

Asked whether Mr Trudeau was making the allegations on India's involvement in Nijjar's Killing because of his minority government's dependence on Jagmeet Singh's New Democratic Party, Mr Heed said, "I believe it is a domestic political calculation, I believe it is the wrong political calculation, because you can't pull the wool over the elector in Canada. This prime minister, his party is in significant trouble right now, but you cannot use a very serious crime like this to try and get out of the political mud you're in right now."

"I have total disdain for politicians that are using the death of someone for their own benefit," he remarked.

Investigation, Interference

On whether the investigation into the death of Nijjar, who was shot dead outside a gurudwara in Surrey, British Columbia, in June, was botched from the beginning, Mr Heed said he does not think the investigators are doing anything wrong and that the politicians were speaking out of line. 

"That's caused a lot of confusion, internationally, as to what is taking place. The investigators are investigating this as a normal homicide. We are used to doing such types of investigation because it has been so prevalent here in British Columbia, especially in Surrey. They are trying to put together the case that has sufficient evidence, hopefully to lead to charges against individuals," he said.

Pointing to the role of politicians, the city councillor said, "But when we have this political interference that's taking place where you've got politicians grandstanding on an issue which will not necessarily be true, or the evidence will lead in that direction, is the complicated matter that we are facing right now."

Conspiracy Theories?

To a question on Mr Trudeau's allegations and the evidence backing it up, Mr Heed said, "You have to question what that evidence is. Whether it is substantial evidence that can lead to accusations that have been made by the head of our state, the Prime Minister of Canada, or whether it's just intelligence, rhetoric, information that comes in."

Speaking from his experience as part of the police force, Mr Heed said that when you are dealing with such high-profile killings, you get a lot of information that comes in. 

"That's not necessarily true. You've got conspiracy theories that are developed, you've got those that need to be looked at. You've got significant evidence that you are dealing with. You need to take an inductive approach here and that the evidence leads to whatever the accusations or charges could be. And, if others are involved through some sort of conspiracy, let's look at that," he said.

The former police chief said the Nijjar investigation is in its infancy stages and the police officers should be allowed to do their job, without political rhetoric. 

Web Of Khalistani Terror

Kash Heed said there are organised crime groups and terrorist groups operating in Canada and it has been a long-standing issue. To a question on a web of Khalistani terror in the country, he said it is not limited to South Asian groups, but other ethnic groups as well. 

"It's prevalent, whether you want to identify it as a Khalistani group or as other Asian-based organised groups, it's quite prevalent in Canada. They are making a lot of money, and it's mainly because of the sale of drugs and weapons," he said. 

On dossiers shared by India on Khalistani terrorists and the action taken by Canada so far, Mr Heed said, "I have to question that too...If you're ignoring the fact that this is taking place on our sovereign soil, and now all of a sudden you are bringing this up for your own political gain, that's very, very questionable. These types of activities have been taking place in Canada and they are not comprehensively dealt with by our political systems and policy makers."

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Girl Stabbed To Death On Way To School In Latest Knife Attack In London

London police said they had arrested a teenager after a 15-year-old girl was stabbed to death on her way to school on Wednesday, stoking fresh concern about the scale of knife crime in the UK.

Emergency services including an air ambulance were called to the scene in Croydon, south London, at around 8.30 am (0730 GMT) following reports of a stabbing.

Paramedics battled to save the girl but she was pronounced dead at the scene 50 minutes later, police said, adding that a 17-year-old boy was later arrested.

London mayor Sadiq Khan said he was "heartbroken" by the fatal incident and pledged to "continue working day and night to end the scourge of knife crime in our city".  

According to official figures, 99 people under the age of 25 were killed in England and Wales with a knife or sharp object in the year to March 2023. Of those 13 were under the age of 16.

The deaths were among 50,000 stabbing incidents in the year to March 2023, a five percent increase on the previous year and a 75 percent increase on a decade ago, the figures from the Office for National Statistics showed. 

Police said the suspect in custody was being questioned by detectives.

"Our immediate thoughts are with this young girl's family who are facing the most tragic of news. Our officers are with the girl's family to support them," said Chief Superintendent Andy Brittain of the Metropolitan Police.

Victor Azare, a 50-year-old security guard on his way home after a night shift, said he and others chased a boy in a school blazer after seeing him stab the girl in the neck with a knife that was "black, thin, and about a foot (30 centimeters) long".

"We tried to catch him and a lot of people tried to save the girl. I was so shocked, I was shaken. It's somebody's daughter," he told British media.

Media reports said the girl had just got off a bus at the time and appeared to have been having an argument with a boy who then attacked her.

The girl, whose identity has not yet been released, was a pupil at Old Palace of John Whitgift School, a private girls' school in Croydon.

"We are deeply shocked by the senseless and tragic death of our much-loved and valued friend and pupil," the school said in a statement.

"It will take some time for the Old Palace community to come to terms with this terrible news.

"Above all, we send our love and deepest sympathies to the girl's family at this unimaginably distressing time," it added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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Bear Gatecrashes Family Picnic In Mexico, Gorges On Enchiladas And Tacos

A picnic party at Mexico's Chipinque Ecological Park turned into a heart-stopping encounter for a family when a hungry black bear decided to join their celebrations. In a video that has gone viral on social media, the bear is seen gorging on enchiladas, salsa, tacos, and french fries laid out on a picnic table in the park. 

The incident happened when Silvia Macias of Mexico City was celebrating the 15th birthday of her son, Santiago, who has Down's syndrome at the park, as per BBC. Suddenly, a bear showed up out of nowhere, jumped onto the table, and devoured the picnic snacks. The mother-son, meanwhile, sat frozen in silence, as the woman covered the boy's face and held him tight. When there was no more food, the bear leaped off the table and left.

The video was filmed by Ms. Macias' friend, Angela Chapa, and later went viral across several social media platforms. 

Watch the video here:

A family was stunned when an intruding bear hopped onto their table to devour their food. The eldest daughter captured the scene as the bear continued munching away in Parque Ecológico Chipinque in San Pedro, Mexico 🇲🇽. The mother, as seen in the video, remained calm, shielding… pic.twitter.com/o47OkJQsNr

— Voyage Feelings (@VoyageFeelings) September 27, 2023

The video has gone viral, and many said that they were terrified watching the clip. Many also lauded the woman's bravery and presence of mind. One user wrote, ''I think the mum was the real bear here protecting her young.''

Another commented, ''This bear in Mexico going to town on tacos and enchiladas while people just remain calm is something to behold.'' A third wrote, ''Mom was amazingly cool and obviously well-versed in how to behave in the situation.''

A fourth said, ''If you are ever encountered by a bear, the most important thing is to stay calm. Do not run away, as this may trigger the bear's chase instinct. Instead, back away slowly and make yourself look as big as possible. If the bear charges, curl up into a ball and protect your head and neck.''

According to a BBC report, the park's website warned visitors that encounters with black bears have increased in the Monterrey metropolitan area and have been seen prowling in parks, neighbourhoods, and streets near the mountains increasing the risk to people and to the bears.

The park also advised visitors to "never try to photograph a bear up close".

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Protesters, Cops Clash In Imphal Over Killing Of 2 Teens, Curfew Reimposed

Protests against the killing of two students in Manipur intensified on Wednesday morning, leading to demonstrators clashing with police personnel in Imphal. Police baton-charged the protesters and fired tear gas shells to bring the situation under control.

Curfew has been reimposed in the state capital with immediate effect following the clashes. 

Two photos of the girl and the boy, who went missing in July, emerged on Monday. The first photo shows the two teenagers - both of whom are 17 years old - sitting on the grass in what appears to be a jungle camp of an armed group. Two men with guns can be seen standing behind them. The next photo shows both of them dead, with their bodies lying on the ground.

Massive protests against the killings, led mainly by students, broke out on Tuesday night. The demonstrators attempted to march towards the residence of Chief Minister Biren Singh, but were stopped. 

The protest continued near Kangla Fort, close to the chief minister's residence, on Wednesday morning. Clashes broke out between the protesters and the police and, when attempts to control the situation failed, the police personnel resorted to a baton charge and firing tear gas shells at the protesters.

Initial reports point to several protesters being injured, some of them grievously.

CBI Investigation

Chief Minister Biren Singh has announced a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the deaths of the two students. A team led by a special director of the agency reached Imphal this morning.

The prompt CBI investigation into the deaths of the students has sparked protests from members of the other community, who have accused the Biren Singh government of being partial ever since the ethnic violence broke out in the state on May 3. 

The reimposition of the curfew in Imphal comes a day after the ban on mobile internet was put in place in the state again. The mobile internet ban had been lifted only on September 23, almost five months after it had been imposed. It was reimposed on Tuesday following protests over the killings of the two students. 

AFSPA Extended

On Wednesday, the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) was extended by another six months in Manipur. The areas that have been kept out of the purview of the controversial Act include 19 police stations falling under the Imphal valley and an area that shares its boundary with Assam.

The notification issued by the state home department states, "The Governor of Manipur is of the opinion that the violent activities of various extremist/insurgent groups warrant the use of Armed Forces in aid of civil administration in the entire State of Manipur except the areas falling under the jurisdiction of 19 Police Stations." 

The police station areas where the Disturbed Areas Act will not be in force are Imphal, Lamphel, City, Singjamei, Sekmai, Lamsang, Patsoi, Wangoi, Porompat, Heingang, Lamlai, Irilbung, Leimakhong, Thoubal, Bishnupur, Nambol, Moirang, Kakching and Jiribam.

Over 180 people have lost their lives and more than 3,000 have been injured in the ethnic violence in Manipur, which began on May 3, when a 'Tribal Solidarity March' was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe status. 

More than 60,000 people remain displaced and property worth thousands of crores has been destroyed.

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