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Indian rescuers hurried in sub-zero temperatures Sunday to dig out four missing workers presumed buried by an avalanche in a remote border area, with snowfall increasing the risk of more sliding snow.More than 50 workers were submerged by snow and debris after the avalanche hit a construction camp on Friday near the border with Tibet in the northern Himalayan state of Uttarakhand, according to officials.Relief teams have managed to rescue 50 workers, but among them four later died of their injuries.State authorities late Saturday revised down the number of people missing after the avalanche from five to four after one worker, previously believed to be buried, was found to have safely made his way home.Officials did not provide details or say whether the man had been buried in the avalanche on Friday.The state disaster relief team said that all steel containers that the workers were staying in at the time of the avalanche had been found but there were no people inside. Rescuers have employed military helicopters, drones and sniffer dogs in their efforts, and soldiers were set to use ground-penetrating radar to help locate the four workers believed to be missing.State chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami had directed officials to move other workers from high-risk areas to safer locations due to continuous snowfall, the Times of India newspaper reported Sunday. At an altitude of more than 3,200 metres (10,500 feet), minimum temperatures at the area where the avalanche hit were down to minus 12 degrees Celsius (10 degrees Fahrenheit). Avalanches and landslides are common in the upper reaches of the Himalayas, especially during the winter season.Scientists have said climate change is making weather events more severe, while the increased pace of development in the fragile Himalayan regions has also heightened fears about the fallout from deforestation and construction.In 2021, nearly 100 people died in Uttarakhand after a huge glacier chunk fell into a river, triggering flash floods.And devastating monsoon floods and landslides in 2013 killed 6,000 people and led to calls for a review of development projects in the state.

At least four people died from their injuries after an avalanche hit a remote border area in India, officials said Saturday, as rescuers battled sub-zero temperatures in their search for five others missing. A total of 55 workers were buried under snow and debris after the avalanche hit a construction camp on Friday near Mana village on the border with Tibet in the northern Himalayan state of Uttarakhand.In a statement issued Saturday, the Indian army said 50 people were initially rescued, but among them four succumbed to their injuries. Five workers were still missing, the army said, adding that six choppers had been deployed into rescue efforts as the “roads are blocked”.Sniffer dogs were also pressed into service and the armed forces were set to use ground penetration radar to locate the missing workers. At an altitude of over 3,200 metres (10,500 feet), minimum temperatures at the area where the avalanche struck were down to minus 12 degrees Celsius (10 degrees Fahrenheit). Rescue workers were still trying to remove snow from the roads as well as from a military helipad close to the site of the disaster, state disaster relief official Riddhim Agarwal said. Dhan Singh Bisht said his son and nephew, who were among those rescued, were alive only because of the prompt action by the relief teams. “I am grateful to them,” an overwhelmed Bisht told AFP by phone. Uttarakhand state chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said the rescue teams were “continuously engaged in relief efforts”. “The government is fully committed to providing all possible assistance to those affected in this hour of crisis,” he said in a post on X. Mana village, which shares a border with Tibet, was deserted after residents moved to lower altitudes to escape the extreme weather, The Indian Express newspaper reported. Avalanches and landslides are common in the upper reaches of the Himalayas, especially during the winter season.Scientists have said climate change was making weather events more severe, while the increased pace of development in the fragile Himalayan regions has also heightened fears about the fallout from deforestation and construction.In 2021, nearly 100 people died in Uttarakhand after a huge glacier chunk fell into a river, triggering flash floods.And devastating monsoon floods and landslides in 2013 killed 6,000 people and led to calls for a review of development projects in the state.

Cars more than 15 years old will soon be barred from refuelling in New Delhi, the city’s government said Saturday, as part of measures to reduce the Indian capital’s hazardous pollution levels.New Delhi is regularly ranked as one of the most polluted cities in the world and is blanketed in acrid smog each year.The pollution is primarily blamed on agricultural burning by nearby farmers to clear their fields for ploughing, as well as factories and traffic fumes.Cooler temperatures and slow-moving winds worsen the situation by trapping deadly pollutants each winter.Diesel and petrol cars older than 10 and 15 years respectively are not allowed to ply on Delhi roads but many have been found flouting the rules. Delhi’s environment minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa told reporters Saturday that the decision to stop fuel for the old cars was made at a “marathon meeting” on air pollution to “find out the diseases and its remedies”.”We have decided to stop giving fuel to vehicles more than 15 years old after March 31, 2025,” he said. He said “gadgets” would be installed at petrol pumps to identify such vehicles. Sirsa said other decisions taken include turning barren land into “new forests” and getting university students involved in planting.He also said the government would make it mandatory for high rises, hotels and Delhi airport to install anti-smog guns and gadgets to control pollution.The public health crisis has grown steadily worse over the years and weeks-long school closures across the capital, aimed at shielding vulnerable children from the harmful air, are now an annual occurrence.At the peak of the smog, levels of PM2.5 pollutants — dangerous cancer-causing microparticles small enought to enter the bloodstream through the lungs — surged to more than 60 times the World Health Organization’s recommended daily maximum.Piecemeal government initiatives, such as partial restrictions on fossil fuel-powered transport and water trucks spraying mist to clear particulate matter from the air, have failed to make a noticeable impact. 

At least four people died from their injuries in India after an avalanche hit a remote border area, officials said Saturday, as rescuers deployed helicopters to search for the remaining five missing. A total of 55 workers were buried under snow and debris after the avalanche hit a construction camp on Friday near Mana village on the border with Tibet in the northern Himalayan state of Uttarakhand.In a statement issued Saturday, the Indian army said 50 people were initially rescued, but among them four succumbed to their injuries. “Unfortunately, four injured persons have been confirmed as fatal casualty,” they said. Five workers were still missing, the army said, adding that six choppers had been deployed into rescue efforts as the “roads are blocked”.Uttarakhand state chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said the rescue teams were “continuously engaged in relief efforts”. “The government is fully committed to providing all possible assistance to those affected in this hour of crisis,” he said in a post on X. Mana village, which shares a border with Tibet, was deserted after residents moved to lower altitudes to escape the extreme weather, The Indian Express newspaper reported. Avalanches and landslides are common in the upper reaches of the Himalayas, especially during the winter season.Scientists have said climate change was making weather events more severe, while the increased pace of development in the fragile Himalayan regions has also heightened fears about the fallout from deforestation and construction.In 2021, nearly 100 people died in Uttarakhand after a huge glacier chunk fell into a river, triggering flash floods.And devastating monsoon floods and landslides in 2013 killed 6,000 people and led to calls for a review of development projects in the state.

Virat Kohli is set for his 300th ODI on Sunday in the latest landmark for the Indian batting great after silencing doubts over his form and future with a match-winning Champions Trophy century.India face New Zealand in their last group match in Dubai with both teams already into the semi-finals of the 50-over tournament.Called “King Kohli” for his prolific run-scoring, the batsman went through an extended lean patch with speculation swirling that he and skipper Rohit Sharma could soon retire. They have already quit T20Is.But Kohli roared back with an unbeaten 100 in their win over arch-rivals Pakistan to take them to the brink of the semi-finals, which they reached after a New Zealand win.Kohli, 36, rolled back the years with his first ODI century since November 2023 as he took his time before bossing the opposition bowlers.Teammate KL Rahul said the veteran has still a lot left in the tank.”That (300) is a lot of ODI games and a lot of international games and he’s been… I mean words fall short to express how good a player he’s been and what a great servant of Indian cricket he’s been,” Rahul told reporters on Friday in Dubai.”Really happy to see that he got the 100 last game as well and he’s been batting really well.”For a player of his calibre it was about time that he scores that big century and a match-winning century.”Rahul added: “Virat and Rohit, they are the senior players and you are always looking up to them to step up and score when the big games come. “Hopefully there’s many more hundreds left for him (Kohli) and many more games of international cricket.”Both Kohli and Rohit retired from T20 internationals after India’s triumph in the World Cup last year.Kohli went past 14,000 ODI runs early in his innings against Pakistan, becoming only the third batsman to achieve the milestone after Sachin Tendulkar and Kumar Sangakkara.The knock was Kohli’s 51st ODI ton in 299 matches since his debut in 2008. He has 82 hundreds across the three international formats.- ‘Amazing’ Kohli -Kohli is the 22nd player in history and seventh Indian to enter the 300 club. Tendulkar tops the list with 463 ODIs.”I think that’s obviously a massive achievement,” New Zealand all-rounder Michael Bracewell said of Kohli’s longevity.”Three hundred games across a career is very impressive and then to put that in just one format is amazing.”I think it’s a testament to the way that he’s gone about his career.”Bracewell played with Kohli at Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Indian Premier League and said he was looking forward to facing him on Sunday.”I saw it first hand at RCB how he sort of prepared for each match and it’s very impressive,” said Bracewell.”He’s one of a number of class players in the Indian line-up and they’ve all played a lot of cricket now.”Kohli has endured plenty of bumps along the way.He won the 2011 ODI World Cup under M.S. Dhoni and then took over as captain.Kohli helped India get back to the top of the Test rankings but he was unable to deliver the cricket-crazy nation a global title.That drought, combined with his runs drying up, saw Kohli removed as ODI captain after giving up the T20 job.Kohli gave up leading the Test side too and later talked about his mental struggles during his dry phase, including how he had been “snappy” around wife Anushka Sharma.Known to wear his heart on his sleeve, Kohli has never shied away from a battle on the field and despite the odd controversy, is a hero to Indian fans.Supporters invading the pitch to touch his feet and take selfies are regular occurences at Indian venues.

UK international development minister Anneliese Dodds said on Friday she was resigning from the Labour government over cuts to overseas aid ordered by Prime Minister Keir Starmer to boost defence spending.”Ultimately these cuts will remove food and healthcare from desperate people,” Dodds said in a letter to Starmer posted on X.On Tuesday, Starmer pledged to raise UK defence spending to 2.5 percent of GDP by 2027 but ordered the overseas development budget to be cut from 0.5 percent to 0.3 percent of gross national income to pay for it.Dodds said while she believed defence spending needed to be increased as “the post-war global order has come crashing down”, she had hoped for a collective discussion on finding the funding.”Instead, the tactical decision was taken for ODA to absorb the entire burden,” she said, referring to overseas development assistance.Starmer admitted in a reply to her letter that cutting aid funding was “a difficult and painful decision”. “However, protecting our national security must always be the first duty of any government,” he added.Starmer later announced that long-time ally Jenny Chapman would now fill the role of international development minister.- Deep cuts -Dodds voiced fears that plans to help the people of Gaza, Ukraine and Sudan, as well as support climate change and vaccination programmes, would now fall by the wayside.”It will be impossible to maintain these priorities given the depth of the cuts,” Dodds warned.And she said it would “likely lead to a UK pull-out from numerous African, Caribbean and Western Balkan nations”.Starmer sought to allay her concerns, saying his government would “continue to protect vital programmes, including in the world’s worst conflict zones”.Dodds is the fourth minister to leave Starmer’s cabinet since his Labour party swept to victory in last year’s elections, ending 14 years of Conservative rule.Earlier this month, the UK leader sacked junior health minister Andrew Gwynne for making anti-Semitic, racist and sexist remarks in a WhatsApp chat.In January, anti-corruption minister Tulip Siddiq resigned after being named in probes in Bangladesh into graft accusations.And in November, Louise Haigh stepped down as transport secretary after revelations that she pleaded guilty to a criminal offence before becoming a member of parliament.

Australia qualified for the Champions Trophy semi-finals on Friday after their Group B match against Afghanistan ended without a result in persistent rain in Lahore on Friday.Chasing 274 for victory at Gaddafi Stadium, Australia were 109-1 in 12.5 overs when rain stopped play, giving them four points in their three games.Afghanistan, who have three points from two games, need England to beat South Africa by a big margin in Karachi on Saturday to sneak into the last four on net run-rate.Afghanistan’s -0.99 net run-rate is inferior to South Africa’s 2.14 despite beating former world champions England by eight runs in Lahore on Wednesday.Australia were well placed to chase down the target with opener Travis Head 59 not out.Steve Smith was unbeaten on 19 after Matthew Short was dismissed for 20.Heavy rain stopped play and as water pooled in the outfield, the umpires ended the match at 20:55 local time (1555 GMT).Afghanistan had made 273 all out in 50 overs after winning the toss and batting first. Sediqullah Atal hit 85 and all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai 67 as they sought a win to seal a semi-final berth themselves.”It’s a good result, and, that’s what we were after at the start of the tournament,” said Australia captain Smith.”To finish in the top two and heading to the semis. It’s satisfying so far.”Smith said opener Matthew Short was an injury doubt for next week’s semi-final.”I think he (Short) was struggling, wasn’t moving well. I think he’ll be struggling with the short gap between games,” said Smith of Short who suffered a thigh injury and will be assessed.India meet New Zealand in Dubai on Sunday which will decide the semi-final line-up, with the top team in Group A playing the second-placed team in Group B.However, wherever India finish they will play the first semi-final in Dubai on March 4. The second semi-final will be in Lahore a day later.Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi said he still hoped England could do his team a favour by thrashing South Africa. “You never know. We still have hopes and we are waiting for that next game, hopefully England win big! Anything can happen in cricket,” said Shahidi.In overcast conditions, Afghanistan lost opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz for nought in the first over to Spencer Johnson.Ibrahim Zadran, hero of Afghanistan’s win over England in the first match with the highest-ever Champions trophy score of 177, added 67 for the second wicket with Atal before he fell for 22 to spinner Adam Zampa.Atal and Shahidi (20) put on 68 for the fourth wicket before Australia fought back with four wickets for just 40 runs.Atal’s 95-ball innings included six fours and three sixes.At 199-7 Afghanistan were in danger of being dismissed for a below-par total, but Omarzai held the innings together, smashing five sixes in a 63-ball knock and adding an invaluable 74 runs with the last three wickets.Rashid Khan chipped in with a 17-ball 19 with two boundaries.Ben Dwarshuis was the best Australian bowler with 3-47. Zampa took 2-48 and Johnson finished with 2-49.

Australia qualified for the Champions Trophy semi-finals on Friday after their Group B match against Afghanistan ended without a result in persistent rain in Lahore on Friday.Chasing 274 for victory at Gaddafi Stadium, Australia were 109-1 in 12.5 overs when rain stopped play, giving them four points in their three games.Afghanistan, who have three points from two games, need England to beat South Africa by a big margin in Karachi on Saturday to sneak into the last four on net run-rate.Afghanistan’s -0.99 net run-rate is inferior to South Africa’s 2.14 despite beating former world champions England by eight runs in Lahore on Wednesday.  Australia were well placed to chase down the target with opener Travis Head not out after a 40-ball 59 not out spiced with nine boundaries and a six.Steve Smith was unbeaten on 19 after Matthew Short was dismissed for 20.Heavy rain stopped play and as water pooled in the stadium the umpires ended the match  at 20:55 (1555 GMT)Afghanistan had totalled 273 all out in 50 overs  after they winning the toss and batting. Sediqullah Atal hit 85 and all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai 67 as they sought a win to seal a semi-final berth.In overcast conditions, Afghanistan lost opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz for nought in the first over to Spencer Johnson.Ibrahim Zadran, hero of Afghanistan’s win over England in the first match with the highest-ever Champions trophy score of 177, added 67 for the second wicket with Atal before he fell for 22 to spinner Adam Zampa.Atal and skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi (20) put on 68 for the fourth wicket before Australia fought back with four wickets for just 40 runs.Atal’s 95-ball innings included six fours and three sixes.At 199-7 Afghanistan were in danger of being dismissed for a below-par total, but Omarzai held the innings together, smashing five sixes in a 63-ball knock and adding an invaluable 74 runs with the last three wickets.Rashid Khan chipped in with a 17-ball 19 with two boundaries.Ben Dwarshuis was the best Australian bowler with 3-47. Zampa took 2-48 and Johnson finished with 2-49.

India will finalise a “mutually beneficial” free trade deal with the European Union by the end of this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Friday after meeting with EU chief Ursula von der Leyen.”We have asked our teams to work out a mutually beneficial bilateral free trade agreement by the end of this year,” Modi said in New Delhi.Von der Leyen, who is on a two-day visit to India with her college of commissioners, is seeking to hedge against her bloc’s souring relations with the United States and said they were “expecting a lot from our trade negotiators”.Deeper access to India’s rapidly expanding market was at the top of the delegation’s agenda, and the EU chief looked visibly pleased after her meeting with Modi and his ministers.The EU is already India’s largest trading partner, accounting for 124 billion euros ($130 billion) worth of trade in goods in 2023 — more than 12 percent of total Indian trade, according to Brussels.The Indian market offers many opportunities for sectors ranging from defence to agriculture, cars and clean energy. Yet, protected by high tariffs, it currently accounts for only 2.2 percent of EU trade in goods.”We have tasked our teams to build on this momentum and finalise our FTA before the end of the year,” von der Leyen said in a statement after the meeting.Standing beside Modi, the EU chief added: “We told them they should surprise us”. The bloc is pushing for a trade deal that lowers entry barriers for its cars, spirits, wines and other products.India meanwhile hopes for higher EU investments in areas such as clean energy, urban infrastructure and water management.New Delhi is also pushing for easier mobility for its skilled workforce and higher investments for ventures in India.Von der Leyen’s visit, billed as the first of its kind to the world’s fifth-largest economy, comes days after US President Donald Trump announced a slew of tariffs against both friends and foes.- ‘Blueprint’ for the future -The EU also hopes to find common ground with India on their shared concerns over China’s growing influence in the Asia-Pacific, building resilient supply chains, and the governance of new technologies including artificial intelligence.”I can announce that we are exploring a future Security and Defence Partnership with India in the mould of the partnerships we have with Japan and South Korea,” von der Leyen said on Friday before meeting Modi. “This will help us step up our work to counter common threats, whether on cross-border terrorism, maritime security threats, cyber-attacks or the new phenomenon we see: attacks on our critical infrastructure.”New Delhi hopes to gain from coordinated efforts towards building resilient supply chains by wooing businesses looking to move out of China with tax breaks, simplified investment laws, better infrastructure and access to its massive domestic market.Creating enough jobs for millions of workers in the world’s most populous country is one of the biggest challenges for Modi’s government.A joint statement late Friday said that the two leaders also discussed international issues, such as the conflict in the Middle-East and the war in Ukraine.”They expressed support for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine based on respect for international law, principles of the UN charter and territorial integrity and sovereignty,” it said. India has resisted Western pressure to distance itself from Moscow, its traditional supplier of military hardware, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.Indian officials said that the two sides discussed expanding defence exchanges, naval exercises, and cooperating on Indian efforts to diversify and localise its military hardware manufacturing.Their joint statement added that they’d also “further deepen” engagement on semiconductor ecosystems, trusted telecommunications, high-performance computing, recycling of batteries for electric vehicles and marine plastic litter.India and the EU “have a shared view on peace, security, stability and prosperity” of the Asia-Pacific region, Modi said after the meeting.This visit “is unprecedented… and we have taken many important decisions on trade, technology, innovation, green growth, security, skilling, and mobility — a blueprint (for future) has been prepared,” he added. 

Rescuers were racing against time to search for more than 20 construction workers missing after an avalanche in India’s Himalayan state of Uttarakhand on Friday following heavy snowfall, the army said.Disaster relief teams dug for hours through heavy snow after the avalanche hit a construction camp in Chamoli district, burying the workers under snow and debris. “The avalanche rescue operation of the Army continues unabated despite harsh weather conditions and continuing snow,” the Indian Army said in a statement on X.Fifty-seven workers were initially trapped, but 22 managed to escape to the nearby temple town of Badrinath while 10 were rescued, it said, leaving 25 still unaccounted for. Army doctors at the site performed life-saving surgeries on those critically injured in the incident, the army added. But the bad weather was hampering the rescue operations, Deepam Seth, the state’s top police officer, said.”It has been snowing with strong winds… The roads are completely blocked. We have deployed snow cutters to open the road,” he told broadcaster NDTV.Ridhim Agarwal of the state disaster relief force said high-altitude rescue teams will be deployed by helicopter to the scene once the weather conditions improve.Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said he was “saddened” by the incident and was monitoring the rescue operations.Avalanches and landslides are common in the upper reaches of the Himalayas, especially during the winter season.Scientists have said that climate change spurred by humans burning fossil fuels is making weather events more severe, super-charged by warmer oceans.The increased pace of development in the fragile Himalayan regions has also heightened fears about the fallout from deforestation and construction.In 2021, nearly 100 people died in Uttarakhand after a huge glacier chunk fell into a river, triggering flash floods.And devastating monsoon floods and landslides in 2013 killed 6,000 people and led to calls for a review of development projects in the state.