Pioneer in short

1 dead in Tatanagar-Ernakulum train Fire

One person was killed after two compartments of the Tatanagar-Ernakulam Express caught fire at Yalamanchili, about 66 km from Visakhapatnam, on Monday midnight. Police received information about the fire at 12:45 am. A police official told the media that there were 82 passengers in one of the affected coaches and 76 in another when the train caught fire. “Unfortunately, a dead body was found in the B1 coach,” the official added. Initial investigations indicated that the fire did not originate from the electrical panel side of the coach, which is usually the case, but from the linen storage area, officials said, adding that further investigation is underway, said a Press release from the Vijayawada Division of the South Central Railway (SCR). While all passengers deboarded, one passenger, Chandrasekhar Sundar, aged 70 years, could not deboard and died due to fire, said the press release. The SCR said that ex gratia would be paid to the family of the deceased. Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) of the South Central Circle will hold a detailed inquiry into the fire incident, it said.  

ICC rates MCG pitch unsatisfactory

The ICC on Monday rated the pitch used in Melbourne for the fourth Ashes Test between England and Australia as unsatisfactory and handed the venue one demerit point after it was deemed to be “too much in favour of the bowlers” in match referee Jeff Crowe’s assessment report. Twenty wickets fell on the opening day of the Test which England eventually won by four wickets inside two days. “The pitch at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), the venue for the fourth Ashes Test, has been deemed ‘Unsatisfactory’ with the venue handed one demerit point under the ICC Pitch and Outfield Monitoring Process,” read a statement from the ICC. Accumulation of six demerit points leads to a 12-month ban on the venue.