Kolkata, Feb 7: At least four persons were killed and several others have been injured following a blast at a firecracker factory at Kalyani in West Bengal’s Nadia district on Friday afternoon.

Sources from the district police said that so far, four charred bodies have been recovered from the spot of the blast and of the four, two are women. The administration has yet to reveal the identities of these four deceased individuals. It is perceived that the four individuals killed in the blast were workers at the said factory.

Local eyewitnesses said that the impact of the blast was such that the entire factory shade was blown off and the entire structure came tumbling down.

Local people also suspect that the administration’s figure of four deaths till now is not accurate and the number of casualties will be much higher. The conditions of some of those who had been injured are so critical that it is doubtful that they may survive.

A huge police contingent and personnel from the state fire services and the disaster management departments have already reached the spot and started the rescue operations. The rescue teams are trying to locate whether there are more bodies trapped under the debris.

Now questions are being raised on how permission for running such a hazardous factory was given in that area which is heavily crowded. At the same time, the police have started an investigation to track whether the firecracker factory had the requisite license or not.

For the last couple of years, West Bengal has been in the national headlines because of unfortunate deaths because of illegal firecracker factory or warehouse blasts.

In 2023, as many as nine persons were killed in a similar blast at an illegal firecracker factory at Egra in East Midnapore district. There were similar blasts at Budge Budge in South 24 Parganas and Duttapukur in North 24 Parganas districts during the last couple of years killing several people.

Every time after the blast the administration cautions of strong actions against such illegal firecracker entities. Police raids continue for some time and fade away.

Los Angeles, Feb 6: The two largest wildfires that recently ravaged Los Angeles County may have caused total property and capital losses of as much as 164 billion US dollars, according to a new report.

The report published on Tuesday by the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) suggests total property and capital losses caused by the Palisades and Eaton fires could range between 95 billion dollars and 164 billion dollars, with insured losses estimated at 75 billion dollars.

The report, authored by UCLA Anderson Forecast economists Zhiyun Li and William Yu, predicts a 0.48-percent loss in county-level GDP for 2025, amounting to approximately 4.6 billion dollars, and a total wage loss of 297 million dollars for local businesses and employees in the affected areas.

“Without substantial and effective wildfire mitigation efforts and investments, Californians will face increasingly higher insurance premiums and growing health risks from wildfire-related pollution,” said the report, adding that Los Angeles housing markets, “in particular for rental units, will become increasingly unaffordable.”

UCLA Anderson Forecast is one of the most widely watched and often-cited economic outlooks for California and the nation, according to UCLA Anderson School of Management’s website.

Last month, Los Angeles County, the most populated county in the United States, experienced the most catastrophic wildfires in its history. The two deadly major wildfires killed at least 28 people and destroyed over 16,000 structures. The Palisades and Eaton fires scorched over 23,700 acres (95.9 square km) and 14,000 acres (56.7 square km), respectively.

Additionally, the devastating wildfires that began sweeping through Southern California on January 7 have left the region’s education system reeling, with over a dozen schools severely damaged or destroyed.

As school officials begin the daunting task of rebuilding, they face an estimated cost of hundreds of millions of US dollars, with recovery expected to take years.

At least 12 schools in Los Angeles County have suffered significant damage, with five campuses destroyed, according to CalMatters, a nonprofit news organisation focusing on local agendas in California. Los Angeles Unified School District, the nation’s second-largest school system, lost two elementary schools in Pacific Palisades, while Palisades Charter High School was heavily damaged. In Pasadena and Altadena, three additional elementary schools were destroyed.

New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Hema Malini on Tuesday made an insensitive remark on the stampede during the Maha Kumbh 2025 in which 30 people were lost their lives while 60 others were injured. The actor-turned-politician said that the stampede that took place on January 29 during the Maha Kumbh was not a “big” incident.

Malini said that the Opposition exaggerated the incident. She also lauded the Uttar Pradesh government for arrangements at the Maha Kumbh. While replying to a question on Akhilesh Yadav targeting the BJP government at the Centre and in Uttar Pradesh over the stampede, the Lok Sabha MP said, “His job is to speak wrongly. We went to Kumbh, we had a very nice bath. It is right that an incident took place, but it was not a very big incident. “

“It is being exaggerated…It was very well-managed, and everything was done very well…So many people are coming, it is very difficult to manage but we are doing our best,” she added.

Congress’s Reaction:

Malini’s statement stirred a political controversy. The Congress hit back at the BJP over its MP’s statement. The grand old party called the remark “shameful”. “Due to the incompetence of the BJP government, a large number of people lost their lives in Kumbh.On this extremely sad incident, BJP MP Hema Malini said- ‘This was not such a big incident, it is being blown out of proportion’ This statement is shameful; it is the height of insensitivity,” the Congress said in its X post.

“From the very first day, the BJP government and the entire government machinery have been trying to cover up this incident. Till now it has not been revealed how many people have lost their lives. The victims’ families have been left to fend for themselves and all efforts are being made to suppress the incident,” it added.

What Opposition Said On Maha Kumbh Stampede:

Several opposition leaders raised concerns over the government’s handling of the stampede during the Mauni Amavasya bathing ritual.

Earlier today, Yadav demanded transparency regarding the fatalities at the Maha Kumbh stampede, urging the government to present accurate figures on the deaths, treatment of the injured, and arrangements made for the event.

Participating in the debate on the motion of thanks on the President’s Address, Akhilesh called for an all-party meeting to clarify the situation and recommended that disaster management and the lost and found centre be handed over to the Army.

The SP chief also pressed for strict punitive action against those responsible for the tragedy and those who concealed the facts, questioning the government’s decision to suppress the numbers.

“For the Maha Kumbh tragedy, there should be strict punitive action against those responsible and those who have hidden the truth should be punished. We ask the double-engine government, if there was no guilt, then why were the figures suppressed, hidden and erased?” he added.

“Log punye kamane aaye the aur apno ke shav lekar gaye hai (People came to earn merit, but they left with the bodies of their loved ones)” the SP Chief said.