Surat, July 2: The Surat City Police facilitated the return of Rs 2.52 crore to 61 victims of cyber fraud during the first six months of 2026, while broader recovery efforts have secured court orders for refunds totalling Rs 13.38 crore for 1,824 applicants, highlighting the growing use of legal mechanisms to recover money lost in online financial scams.

The recoveries were made under the ‘Tera Tujhko Arpan’ programme, through which 15 beneficiaries were symbolically presented refund cheques by Surat Police Commissioner Anupam Singh Gahlaut on Wednesday.

According to Surat City Police, the recoveries relate to cyber fraud complaints registered between January 1 and June 30.

Following complaints lodged through the National Cyber Crime Helpline 1930, the Surat City Cyber Crime Cell, along with all police stations in the city, coordinated with banks across several states to freeze suspect accounts and initiate the refund process.

“The Cyber Crime Cell worked in coordination with courts, Lok Adalats and banks across the country under the guidance of Police Commissioner Anupam Singh Gahlaut and Additional Police Commissioner (Crime) Karanraj Vaghela, with the process being directly supervised by Deputy Commissioner of Police (Cyber Cell) Bishakha Jain,” officials said.

During the six-month period, Surat City Police obtained court orders through Lok Adalats to facilitate the return of approximately Rs 13.38 crore to 1,824 applicants.

Police also stated that refund applications worth around Rs 7 crore involving 1,690 applicants have been submitted before the Lok Adalat scheduled for July 11.

Once court orders are received, the amounts will be credited to the respective beneficiaries’ bank accounts after completion of the required procedures.

Appealing to the public to report cyber fraud without delay, Surat City Police said victims should immediately call the helpline, as prompt reporting increases the likelihood of freezing fraudulent transactions before funds are withdrawn.

Police also advised citizens not to download unknown applications or APK files received through suspicious links or messages sent in the name of RTO challans, and warned against clicking on suspicious SMS or email links.

They urged the public to remain cautious of social media groups and advertisements promising unusually high returns through online share market investments.

“Victims of sextortion, morphed photographs, nude video calls, digital arrest scams or any other form of cyber crime were asked to report incidents immediately through the helpline or the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal,” officials added.

New Delhi, July 2: The West Asia crisis is transforming Indians’ travel preferences with a hastened shift to electric vehicles (EV) and EV penetration could save Rs 1 lakh crore of import bill with a 20 per cent adoption rate by 2030 from the current 10 per cent, an SBI Research report said on Thursday.

With the onset of the US-Iran war on February 28, the registration of EVs have jumped significantly in India. From average 1.3 lakh registration in 2025, the March-June period exhibited average 2.3 lakh registrations — a whopping 1 lakh more compared to 2025 average.

“At the current rate, we believe, total EV registrations may cross 25 lakh mark in 2026,” said the report.

The penetration of pure EV is continuously rising in overall registration. From merely less than 2 per cent share in 2024, the registration share of pure EV has reached more than 8 per cent share in 2026 to date. In some states, the penetration of pure EV has crossed more than 10 per cent share

India has 29,151 charging stations. Two states (Karnataka and Maharashtra) accounted for 35 per cent of overall charging stations, said the report.

As per new EV policy, the Delhi government plans to install 32,000 charging points infrastructure within the next four years.

“The success of EV will largely depend upon the availability of charging stations,” said the report.

From the current level of 2.86 crore vehicle registered in India (2025), “our projections indicate that by 2030, 4 crore vehicles are going to register. We also estimate that out of these 4 crore vehicles, 20 per cent are EVs (80 lakh from the 2025 level of 15.7 lakh),” the report projected.

“Our estimate indicate that during the four-year period of 2027-2030, 35 lakh more EVs are expected to replace the petrol vehicles (as compared to current BAU scenario),” it added.

In this regard, Delhi’s new EV policy is commendable.

A purchase incentive will be provided to two-wheeler vehicles in the first three years (cumulative: Rs 60,000). For three wheelers, the incentives are Rs 1,20,000 cumulatively. N1 commercial trucks will be provided with a subsidy of Rs 1 lakh in the first year. Delhi also offers 100 per cent waiver on road tax and one-time registration fees for eligible EVs.

At least seven migrant labourers from Bihar were feared dead after a massive boulder collapsed at a stone quarry in Bengaluru South taluk early on Thursday morning. Several others were injured, while rescue teams fear that more workers remain trapped beneath the debris. The death toll is likely to go up.

The incident occurred at around 5 a.m. at the Kaveri Crusher unit in Madapatna village, within the jurisdiction of the Tavarekere Police Station.

According to preliminary information, around 20 labourers were working at the quarry when a huge rock suddenly gave way and crashed on them. The workers were reportedly carrying out quarrying operations about 40 feet below the surface after blasting work had been undertaken at the site a day earlier.

Police said seven labourers are feared dead, though the identities of the deceased are yet to be established. The victims are believed to be migrant workers from Bihar, while a few injured workers are reportedly from Karnataka.

Five labourers sustained serious injuries and were shifted to RR Hospital for treatment. Officials said several heavy boulders also crushed excavation machinery, including earthmoving equipment, during the collapse.

Eyewitnesses said the workers had no warning before the boulder suddenly collapsed.

“The incident took place at around 5 a.m. when more than 15 to 16 workers were on duty. Some managed to run to safety, some were injured, and others were trapped beneath the boulder. It did not appear that the boulder fell because of the blasting itself; it collapsed suddenly while the workers were carrying out their routine work,” an eyewitness said.

Vinod, another worker who witnessed the tragedy, said that the victims had just taken over from the night shift when the incident occurred.

“When the boulder collapsed, many workers were trapped beneath it. Some lost their legs, while others lost their hands. We could do nothing to rescue them. I was operating a Hitachi excavator and was about 10 metres away from the spot. The victims were drilling at the quarry and did not notice the boulder above them,” he said.

Rescue operations are underway as police and emergency personnel continue clearing the debris in search of trapped workers. Officials said the bodies of the deceased are yet to be recovered from beneath the boulders.

Senior police officers and district administration officials have rushed to the spot and are supervising the rescue operation.

Officials said the quarry management had obtained the necessary permissions, including the lease and licences required for quarrying and the use of explosives. However, the exact cause of the collapse is yet to be determined.

Police have registered a case and launched an investigation into the incident. More details are awaited as rescue efforts continue.