StateScape

5 killed in police encounter in Assam

GUWAHATI: Five persons, including two ULFA militants, have been killed in Meghalaya8217;s east Garo hills district in an encounter with police. A senior police official said over phone from Meghalaya on Tuesday that the militants, who had gone to Mendipathar in Meghalaya in search of a surrendered ULFA activist, exchanged fire with a state police team on Sunday, after being challenged. While two militants died on the spot, three by-standers were also killed in the crossfire.

One dead, 34 hurt in road mishap

SILIGURI: A Home Guard was killedand 34 others, all security personnel, were injured when a bus fell into a gorge at Kalimpong in Darjeeling district on Monday night, police said. The Home Guard, returning after poll duties, succumbed to his injuries at the hospital on Tuesday morning, Superintendent of Police Vicek Sahai said. The 34 injured, including some policemen, were hospitalised. Break failure was suspected to be the reason behind the tragedy.

11 houses destroyed in clashes

CALCUTTA: At least 11 houses were destroyed in post-poll clashes between CPM and Trinamool Congress supporters at Natagachi in South 24 Parganas district late on Monday night, police said here on Tuesday. All the houses destroyed belonged to Trinamool supporters, the police said. No one was so far arrested in connection with the incident.

Man arrested selling skulls

CHENNAI: In a bizarre incident, the Tirunelveli police have arrested a 40-year-old man who was washing two skulls and a heap of bones dug out from a nearby cremation ground at theTamiraparani river. According to reports received here, the man, Kannan, had been selling skulls and bones to students of the Government Medical College Hospital at Palayamkottai. He had confessed that he had dug out the skulls and bones from the Vellakkoil cremation ground. Investigations are on.

Elephants damage plant collection

BHUBANESWAR: A herd of wild elephants have severely damaged the unique collection of palm and bamboo at the Regional Plant Resource Centre RPRC here, according to its director, Dr. Premananda Dash. The elephants, which are in three family groups, had come from the adjacent Chandka Wildlife Sanctuary and had virtually made the sprawling RPRC campus their home for the last few days, Dash said on Tuesday. The RPRC authorities, who had collected diverse groups of plants, particularly 108 species of palms from all over the world, were facing a tough time.