23 killed in truck mishap

BHOPAL: Twenty-three people were killed and 38 injured when a truck they were travelling in fell into a ditch in Madhya Pradesh on Saturday. The accident took place at around 4 am in Dimni village of Morena district, Additional District Magistrate MK Agarwal said. The driver was unable to negotiate a sharp turn resulting in the truck tipping into the ditch, he said. — HNS

Bengal mishaps kill 11

KOLKATA: Two separate road accidents in West Bengal within a span of two hours in the same district claimed 11 lives on Saturday. Police said at least seven people were killed and 45 injured when a crowded bus overturned near Ketugram in Bardhaman district in southern West Bengal. In another incident, four people were killed and three injured in Bardhaman town when a stationary truck was hit by a van. — HNS

Rail workers suspended

AHMEDABAD: Four railroad workers were suspended after a passenger train collided with a cargo train in western India two days ago, killing 24 people and injuring nearly 100 others, a railway spokesman said. The four suspended workers would likely be charged with negligent homicide by police, the spokesman said. If convicted, they could be jailed up to six years. — AP

UP town peaceful

LUCKNOW: The situation was under control in Bareilly town of Uttar Pradesh on Saturday, a day after a man was killed in police firing following a communal flare-up, even as five cops have been suspended. Trouble was sparked off when some people objected to the loud music accompanying a religious procession for Barawafat, the birth anniversary of Prophet Mohammed. — HNS

Rampage by Karen rebels

YANGON: Ethnic Karen rebels have destroyed a utility tower in central Myanmar, a state-run newspaper reported on Saturday. The guerrillas from the Karenni National Progressive Party, or KNPP, blew up the tower with a land mine, disrupting the electrical power grid in the area, the Myanma Ahlin reported. The tower held a cable linking the Lawpita power station, 350 km north of Yangon and the northern Toungoo town. — AP

$2m worth heroin seized

KABUL: Afghan police and forces from the US-led military coalition seized $2 million worth of heroin and detained seven suspected smugglers, the American military said on Saturday. The security forces netted the 479 kgs of heroin last Sunday near Afghanistan’s northwestern frontier, which borders Iran and Turkmenistan, the military said in a statement. — AP

Oppn leader’s campaign

HONG KONG: An opposition leader kicked off a campaign on Saturday to become Hong Kong’s next chief executive — an effort likely to be thwarted by pro-China allies. Lee Wing-tat, head of the Democratic Party, formally announced he will run for the top post left vacant by former leader Tung Chee-hwa, who resigned last month citing ill health. — AP