ASR District Tops in Pension Distribution

Visakhapatnam: The ASR district has topped the state in pension distribution for the third consecutive month, earning district collector AS Dinesh Kumar accolades for achieving this hat-trick.

An official release on Sunday stated that a sum of Rs.51,79,56,000 was sanctioned to distribute pensions to 1,24,354 beneficiaries in the district, with Rs.51,52,75,500 successfully reaching 1,23,706 beneficiaries.

The collector praised the efforts of drda project director V. Murali for his intensive fieldwork in ensuring pensions reached all recipients.

Lorry catches fire at petrol bunk

Kakinada: A major fire accident was averted at a petrol bunk near Diwancheruvu in Rajanagaram, East Godavari District, on Sunday. According to bommuru circle inspector Kasi Viswanath, flames erupted from a lorry cabin as petrol bunk staff were filling the vehicle with diesel, spreading dangerously close to the diesel tanker.

Reacting swiftly, the petrol bunk personnel deployed 20 fire extinguishers to control the flames until the fire department arrived. Fire personnel then used foam and water to fully extinguish the fire, which had produced thick smoke. Officials remarked that if the fire had reached the petrol tank, it could have led to a serious accident.

Afterwards, the lorry driver indicated that a short circuit in the cabin likely caused the fire. bommuru ci Kasi Viswanath confirmed that a case was registered following the fire department's report.

Six persons arrested in theft cases

Kakinada: Police in Eluru district have arrested six individuals under three police stations—Chatrai, Nuzvid, and Pedavegi—on charges of breaking into houses and stealing gold and silver ornaments. Authorities recovered 590 grams of gold, 1,630 grams of silver valued at Rs.44.20 lakh, three motorbikes, Rs.60,000 in cash, and a mobile phone from the suspects.

West Godavari district superintendent of police K Pratap Siva Kishore informed the media that the suspects were involved in 29 burglary cases across Eluru, NTR district, and Vemsuru mandal of Khammam district in Telangana. A special team was formed, consisting of sub-inspector N Lakshman Babu from Nuzvid rural police station, sub-inspector Ramakrishan from Chatrai, and Pedavegi sub-inspector Ramakrishna, along with other staff members, to apprehend the criminals.

This is reportedly the first instance of such a substantial gold recovery in Eluru district. The superintendent of police noted that the arrested individuals had developed habits of substance abuse, funding their addictions through burglaries. Their strategy involved targeting locked homes in nearby villages during the daytime. After carefully surveying the surroundings to ensure no one was present, they used iron rods to break doors, locks, and cupboards, stealing cash and valuable gold and silver ornaments.