1. 26/11 Lesson: Fishermen Told to Stay Away From ‘Strangers at Sea’
Fishermen on Tuesday, 26 February were advised by the Indian Coast Guard to not venture near the international maritime boundary line (IMBL) in the Arabian Sea in the wake of the pre-dawn strikes on terrors camps in Pakistan by the Indian Air Force.
Coast Guard DIG Iqbal Singh Chauhan convened a meeting of fishermen leaders and officers of state Fisheries Department in Porbandar Tuesday morning to sensitise them of the situation in the wake of the IAF’s aerial strikes.
After the meeting, Vishal Gohel, Assistant Director of Fisheries Department in Porbandar issued an advisory to fishermen asking them to not approach any patrolling vessels of security forces as “they had the liberty to open fire on any suspicious boat approaching them”.
(Source: Indian Express)
2. Strike on Terror Camps: Gujarat on ‘High Alert’, Drone Shot Down
‘High alert’ was sounded in Gujarat and security beefed up at several places, including Statue of Unity and Somnath Temple, on Tuesday as news broke of the pre-dawn strike on terror camps in Pakistan by the Indian Air Force (IAF).
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was also shot down near Nundhatal village in Abdasa taluka of border district Kutch on Tuesday.
Chief Minister Vijay Rupani chaired a high-level meeting to review the security situation as the state shares both land and sea border with the neighbouring country. “The Army, IAF, BSF, Coast Guard, local police and all security establishments are coordinating with each other. They are on vigil and all arrangements have been made (for security)… We are ready to counter any situation,” he said.
(Source: The Indian Express)
3. 3 Swine Flu Patients Die, 92 More Cases Reported in Gujarat
Swine flu death toll in the state rose to 91 in the current season on Tuesday with three more patients succumbing to the H1N1 virus.
The state health department said in a release that 92 swine flu cases were reported in the state today. With these, the number of swine flu cases confirmed in the state since 1 January, rose to 2,818.
The release said that 32 swine flu cases were reported in Ahmedabad city. With this, the number of cases in the city rose to 857, of which 644 have been reported in February alone.
(Source: DNA Ahmedabad)
4. Tiger Found Dead in Mahisagar, Probe on to Find Cause of Death
Nearly two weeks after a tiger was reportedly spotted in Mahisagar forest range, a tiger’s carcass was found at Kantar village in the area on Tuesday, 26 February.
According to Forest officials, the tiger had died at least three to four days ago. They, however, did not confirm whether it was the same tiger that was captured by a teacher on his phone camera and later by camera traps in Mahisagar forest range.
The possibility that this tiger may be the same one spotted in camera traps is, however, high since there have been no tangible evidence of the presence of any other tiger in the area. It is to be noted that the last tiger sighting in the state was reported in 1985 in Dangs.
(Source: The Indian Express)
5. To Improve Air Quality, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation to Place 100 Purifiers Near Pirana
With the aim of improving air quality in the city and decreasing air pollution levels, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has decided to place 100 pollution cleaning machines near the Pirana landfill site.
Recently, the civic body had submitted a detailed plan before the Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) to improve the air quality in the city. With immediate effect, 100 such air purifiers will be placed near Pirana.
"With the help of air quality monitoring units, we are receiving real-time air pollution data of Ahmedabad city. One such machine has been placed at Pirana which shows the highest pollution level, more than any of the other centres," said a senior AMC official.
(Source: DNA Ahmedabad)
6. Mercury Dips by 20c in City, Light Rain at Few Places in Gujarat
With the sudden change in weather, there was a drop of two degrees in the maximum temperature. The change was felt because of two consecutive western disturbances which has affected northern and eastern part of India.
An induced cyclonic circulation is located at Rajasthan. Another branch of a cyclonic circulation is extending up to the northeast Arabian Sea across Gujarat. And, a trough line extending across north MP and Chhattisgarh resulted in isolated rains in the state.
The Kutch region had been getting rains with lightning since midnight on Tuesday and some of the northern parts of Gujarat received light rain. By evening, Chandkheda locality in Gujarat had also received light rain.
(Source: DNA Ahmedabad)
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