Telangana: The headlines that stunned

1. The salary of the year
A few weeks after the demonetisation, Banjara Hills resident Banapuram Laxman Rao declared his income at Rs 10,000 crore, under the Income Declaration Scheme (IDS). That figure drew every tax sleuth from the country to Hyderabad. But the disclosure turned out to be fake and instead, it was revealed that Rao just had debts and was relying on “magic” (no, really) for money.

2. A navy plane goes missing
Eight persons from the Vizag Naval Armament Depot were among the 29 on board the IAF AN-32 that went missing on July 22, while it was on its way from Chennai to Port Blair. After the disappearance, the Indian Navy carried out its biggest-ever maritime search operation to trace the missing plane — deploying several hundred personnel and many ships. But not a single trace of the missing aircraft has been found.  All the 29, including the eight people from Vizag, are now presumed dead by the Indian Navy.

3. The 93-year-old athlete
He has been an inspiration for all. The 93-year-old Commodore V. Sriramulu (retired), a Naval veteran settled in Vizag was adjudged this year as the Athlete of Asia, 2016, for being the first athlete from the Asian countries to score three gold medals at the World Masters Athletics Championship held at Perth, Australia — from October 26 to November 6. He started racing in international events from 2004 and so far, has brought 19 medals, including 12 medals at the Asian Master Athletics meet and seven in the world competitions.

4. The big gold heist
A total of 40 kilos of gold is believed to have been looted from a Muthoot finance outlet in the city. It was an op straight of the movies — fake CBI officers, the destruction off CCTV and a clear escape route.

5. Verdict of the year
Yaseen Bhatkal and his terror company will never, ever kill again. Five members of his Indian Mujahideen were handed the death sentence for their involvement in the 2013 Dilsukhnagar blasts.

6. The massive Eamcet leak
The Eamcet-2 paper leak brought about huge embarrassment for the state’s education machinery. Assisted by brokers, students from well-to-do families spent lakhs sourcing the question papers and even receiving training from the touts. A total of 49 people have been arrested for their involvement in the scandal.

7. The deadly fire stunt
Nineteen-year-old Md. Jalaluddin was convinced he could do what a contestant on India’s Got Talent had done. But for him, the stunt went horribly wrong. Jalaluddin died from 60 per cent burns.

8. The dumbest move of the year
On May 23, a 35-year-old Mukesh jumped into the enclosure holding African Lions at the Hyderabad zoo. When he was asked why, he replied saying, “shaking hands with lions had been a life-long dream”. He was promptly arrested. Mukesh, a native of Rajasthan, emerged from the enclosure with no injuries and officials said an alert zookeeper was to thank.

9. Mining for trouble
Mining baron and former BJP Minister Gali Janardhan Reddy daughter’s wedding in Bengaluru cost Rs 100 crore. Around 50,000 guests are believed to have responded to a wedding card design that actually went viral. Interestingly, not a day in planning was skipped due to the demonetisation.

10. A suicide that moved a nation
17-year-old Rekha, was a college student in Nalgonda. Her suicide, because of the shame she was forced to endure due to the lack of a toilet in her home, left the entire country shocked.