Islamabad plane crash – 100 killed, several injured.

Intermittent rains continue across country

KARACHI: An irregular spate of rains caused by fresh winds of monsoon are continuing to lash almost all parts of country including Sindh, Balochistan, Punjab provinces and northern areas, Geo News reported. As usual, the cruel downpours have sent people in misery, as there is no electricity and no water in many areas, paralyzing the routine of daily life. All the low-lying areas in Balochistan’s industrial areas namely Hub and Gadani have submerged under water whereas drains, meant for rainwater, have been flooded. Incessant downpours have largely affected traffic on RCD Road, which links Quetta to Karachi. At least two persons have died of electricity shocks due to rain in Karachi, police said. Electricity failure has been reported in many parts in Hyderabad following spree of intermittent rains, which remained continued since Monday evening while low-lying areas are in flood. The spate of monsoon rains is also continued in Badin, Dadu, Golarchi, Matli, Tandobago, Talhar and in all the rural and urbane areas located in upper Sindh. Rains have also left electricity system suspended in Jamshoro district. Pleasant showers have been reported in many areas in Punjab including Bahawalpur, Gujranwala, Kohat, Dera Ghazi Khan, Manserah, Bala Kot and Ogi.

Unique elephant festival held in Kerala

NEW DELHI: ‘Gajamela’, a unique elephant festival was organised for the first time in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, as part of the National Live Stock Show. The event witnessed a huge gathering of foreign tourists as well as the local people on Sunday. The ‘Gajamela’ began with the feeding of different varieties of fruits and rice balls to all the elephants. An elephant pageant was also conducted during the festival in which about 15 elephants participated. The international tourists said that the show was an exceptional experience for them. “It was very exciting because in Germany you see them only at the zoo and from far away. So it was very special for me to touch and feed an elephant,” said Rekina Tessmar, a German tourist. “I have seen elephants only in zoo and circus but it’s the first time that I see them in such a procession,” said Jacques Aodres, a tourist from Switzerland. An elephant named ‘Guruji Anandapadmanabhan’ won the pageant at ‘Gajamela’ and was selected the tallest among the participating elephants.

British band recorded 43-minute long track

LONDON: British band The Hoosiers are hoping to make the history books when they release their single Choices. The band thinks it will be the longest pop song ever to be released as a single in the UK and longest downloaded single in history. Fans have submitted verses for the 43-minute long track, although they will have to wait until the record is out on August 1st, to see if their lyrics made the final selection. According to the band's manager, chosen fans will all be given writing credit on the song, but no royalties.

Two weekly offs, early shops closure to continue till Oct 31

ISLAMABAD: A meeting on energy conservation presided over by Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani on Tuesday decided to keep the practice of observing two weekly offs and closure of shops by 8 pm for another three months till October 31. The Prime Minsiter told the meeting held here at PM Secretariat that 1500 MW electricity was saved by closure of shops by 8 PM while two weekly offs further helped in conserving 500 MW power. He said 150 million dollars were saved as a result of reduction in operational cost. He directed that no load-shedding be undertaken during Sehr and Iftar in the holy month of Ramazan. The Premier said 1708 MW electricity has so far been added to the national grid during the current year while 2000 MW more will be brought on line by the year end. He pointed out that a number of challenges are being faced in bridging the demand-supply gap. Our economy suffered huge losses due to energy crisis in the country while the people had to endure torture of prolonged load-shedding, he added.