In pics | Uphaar cinema fire: The tragedy that claimed 59 lives

The Supreme Court on Thursday awarded one year imprisonment for real estate builder Gopal Ansal who with his elder brother, Sushil, owned a south Delhi cinema hall where a fire killed 59 people 20 years ago.
The tragedy dates back to June 13, 1997 when a fire broke out at Uphaar Cinema in Delhi’s Green Park area during the screening of Bollywood blockbuster ‘Border’. Fifty nine people died and over 100 were injured due to suffocation in the ensuing stampede as the escape routes were blocked by illegally-fixed extra chairs.






In November 2007, a trial court had sentenced the Uphaar owners – the Ansal brothers — to two-year rigorous imprisonment. But in December 2008, the Delhi high court reduced their sentence to one-year jail term. While Sushil Ansal spent 5 months and 20 days in jail, Gopal remained in jail for four months and 20 days.
On August 19, 2015, the SC upheld the brothers’ conviction in the case. However, considering their age and the period already spent by them in prison, it decided not to send them back to jail. It asked the Ansal brothers to pay a fine of Rs 30 crore each in lieu of a jail term.



-
PSPCL meets record demand of 14,000 MW amid peak paddy season
With paddy sowing in full swing in Punjab, Punjab State Power Corporation Ltd. on Monday for the first time met the record maximum power demand of 14,070 MW in the state without any shortage. It's almost 1,000 MW more than the last year's peak demand. Last year, PSPCL had successfully met the demand of 13,148 MW during the paddy season in the month of July.
-
Books launched on Prime Minister Narendra Modi; CU chancellor calls him illustrious leader
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has encouraged the entire India to dream big and has shown the world that dreams can be achieved if pursued with determination and persistence, said Indian Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, at the international launch of two books on Prime Minister Narendra Modi at 'Vishwa Sadbhavana' event organised by the NID Foundation at the City of Chicago, the United States of America.
-
SGPC urges MEA to facilitate visit to Afghanistan
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee has urged the Centre to facilitate the visit of a delegation of the top gurdwara committee to Afghanistan in July to ascertain the situation of the Sikh community in the war-ravaged country. SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami said that it is equally important to ascertain the condition of historical places in Afghanistan and their required renovation and maintenance.
-
Seeking implementation of 7th pay panel, NHM employees suspend work for 3 days
At least 700 employees of the National Health Mission engaged with the health department suspended work for three days starting Monday. Most of the NHM employees of the Ambala district protested under the banner of the Swasthya Karmachari Sangh, affiliated to the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, outside the office of the civil surgeon. The BMS is a trade union affiliated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
-
One killed as two Bihar students clash at birthday party in Jalandhar
A student from Bihar was killed and another critically injured when they fell from the third storey of a hostel building at DAV Institute of Engineering and Technology here following a clash between them at a birthday party, police said. While fighting, the two students fell from the third floor when the railing broke.