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Hello Jammu News at 12:16:00 PM 0


Nusa Dua (Indonesia), Oct 11 (AFP) Central bank rate hikes were a "necessary development", International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde said Thursday, a day after Donald Trump sent global markets tumbling by calling Fed increases "crazy".

 "It is clearly a necessary development for those economies that are showing much improved growth, inflation that is picking up... unemployment that is extremely low," Lagarde told a press briefing at the IMF's annual meeting in Bali.

"It's inevitable that central banks make the decisions that they make." Trump's comments Wednesday triggered a sell-off on Wall Street, with Asian markets opening sharply lower on Thursday in response.

"I think the Fed is making a mistake. It's so tight. I think the Fed has gone crazy," the US president said.

But Lagarde added that uncoordinated developed-country rate hikes were contributing to destabilising capital outflows from emerging markets.

The financial outlook, combined with global uncertainty over trade tensions between Washington and trading partners like China, has created "a bit of an unprecedented situation" for the world economy, said Lagarde.

"Clearly as a result of (rate hikes)... we see and we will continue to see capital flow movements," she added.

"The fact that large central banks of advanced economies are not exactly all moving at the same pace is also probably accelerating that phenomenon." (AFP) MRJ

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Hello Jammu News at 5:45:00 PM 0


Palu, Oct 6 (AFP) Rescuers picking through the grim aftermath of Indonesia's quake-tsunami issued a fresh public health warning Saturday as more decaying corpses were unearthed from beneath the ruined city of Palu.

Officials said Saturday the death toll had climbed to 1,649 with more than a thousand maybe still missing in the seaside city on Sulawesi island, after the region was hit by a powerful quake and a wall of water.

Hopes of finding anyone alive a full eight days since the disaster have all but faded, though the search has not been officially called off.

There are fears that vast numbers of decomposing bodies could still be buried beneath Petobo and Balaroa -- two areas virtually wiped off the map.

"Most of the bodies we have found are not intact, and that poses a danger for the rescuers. We have to be very careful to avoid contamination," Yusuf Latif, a spokesman for Indonesia's search and rescue effort, told AFP from Palu.

"We have vaccinated our teams, but we need to be extra cautious." 

Security minister Wiranto, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, said eventually the worst-hit areas would have to be declared mass graves and left untouched.

"We have to make a decision as to when the search for the dead will end. Then, we later must decide when the area will be designated a mass grave," he told reporters late Friday.

At the massive Balaroa government housing complex, where the sheer force of the quake turned the earth temporarily to mush, soldiers wearing masks to ward off the stench of death clambered over the giant mounds of mud, brick and cement.

The troops peeking under collapsed walls and peeling back corrugated sheets did not have to look hard.

Sergeant Syafaruddin, from an army unit in Makassar south of Palu, asked for a body bag to be brought to a spot near where the remnants of an Islamic school now stands.

Two of his soldiers emerge from the ditch with the bag sagging in the middle but looking too light to be a corpse -- they said they had found the heads of two adults and one child.

"There are no survivors here. We just find bodies, every day," said Syafaruddin.

At the flattened Hotel Roa-Roa -- where early optimism that survivors might be found faded as the days wore on -- rescuers reviewed CCTV footage to get a sense of where the doomed guests could be buried.

Thousands of survivors continued to stream out of Palu to nearby cities in the aftermath of the disaster.

Hospitals remain overstretched and short on staff and supplies.

In Karawana village, nurse Iyong Lamatowa can offer little more than antibiotics and pain killers to treat those flocking to a makeshift clinic with badly-infected wounds.

Project HOPE, a medical NGO, said only two of its 82 staff in Palu had reported for duty since the quake.

"We still don't know the fate of the clinic doctors, nurses and technicians who usually staff the clinic," the organisation said in a statement.

A floating hospital run by the Indonesian navy and docked in Palu has already assisted with the delivery of four babies, local media reported.

Survivors have ransacked shops and supply trucks in the hunt for basic necessities, prompting security forces to round up dozens of suspected looters and warn that they will open fire on thieves.

Hundreds of people Saturday rushed a truck carrying gas cylinders for cooking, with long and desperate queues quickly forming.

One supermarket that opened its doors refused to allow people inside, instead passing goods through the door as armed troops stood watch.

A convoy of five hundred trucks laden with donated food, cooking oil and other essentials was on its way to Palu, agriculture minister Amran Sulaiman said in the devastated city on Saturday.

"Palu's ordeal is the grief for all of us and that's why everyone is lending a hand to help," he said.

The United Nations said Friday it was seeking USD 50.5 million "for immediate relief" to help victims of the devastating quake and tsunami in Indonesia.

After days of delays, international aid is slowly making its way to the disaster zone, where the UN says almost 200,000 people need humanitarian assistance.

Getting vital supplies to the affected areas has proved hugely challenging, with the number of flights able to land at Palu's small airport still limited, leaving aid workers facing gruelling overland journeys.

Oxfam had sent water treatment units and purification kits to Palu and Swiss aid teams on the ground were providing drinking water and emergency shelter, both said in statements Saturday.

Indonesia sits along the world's most tectonically active region, and its 260 million people are vulnerable to earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions. (AFP)
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Hello Jammu News at 1:38:00 PM 0

Palu, Oct 5: Search teams made desperate last-ditch efforts Friday to find survivors, a week on from Indonesia's devastating quake-tsunami, as the death toll from the disaster rose above 1,500.

The city of Palu on Sulawesi island has been left in ruins after being hit by a 7.5 magnitude quake and a wall of water, which flattened homes, ripped up trees and overturned cars.

After days of delays, international aid has finally started to arrive in the disaster zone, where the UN says almost 200,000 people are in need of humanitarian assistance.

Survivors have ransacked shops and supply trucks in the hunt for basic necessities, prompting security forces to round up dozens of suspected looters and warn that they will fire on thieves.

Authorities previously set a tentative deadline of Friday for finding anyone trapped under ruined buildings, although chances of pulling survivors alive from the rubble at such a late stage are almost zero.

Local military spokesman Muhammad Thohir said that the death toll had risen to 1,558, up about 100 from the previous official figure.

Over 100 people are still unaccounted for, while hundreds of bodies have been buried in mass graves in a bid to avert a disease outbreak from corpses rotting in the tropical sun.

Search efforts focused on eight key locations Friday, including a beach and the Balaroa area where the sheer force of the quake turned the earth temporarily to mush.

"We have to use heavy equipment now because it is very difficult to sift through the rubble by hand," Yusuf Latif, a spokesman for Indonesia's search and rescue agency, told AFP.

At the badly damaged Mercure hotel on Palu's waterfront, there was growing frustration among a French and Indonesian search team.

The rescuers, using sniffer dogs and scanners, had detected what they believed was a person under mounds of rubble the previous evening but when they resumed the hunt early Friday, any signs of life had disappeared.

"Yesterday we had a heart beat and sign of breathing, there were no other movements so it means it was someone who was motionless, confined," said Philippe Besson, president of the International Emergency Firefighters.

"Today we have no signal."

A week on from the disaster, some roads in the area remain impassable, detritus from the tsunami is scattered everywhere while terrified people are sleeping outside for fear of further quakes.

Improvised white flags -- a pillow case or duvet cover -- fly outside many homes, signifying a death in the family.

Nevertheless there were signs of life returning to normal, with children playing in the streets, radios blaring out music, and electricity back up and running in most places.

"Things are improving," Azhari Samad, a 56-year-old insurance salesman, told AFP at a mosque in Palu.

But for the area to recover fully from the disaster "will take years", he added.

"The first six months will be traumatic, maybe in one year we have some progress. The government will help, people will help from all over the country. Indonesians have a big heart." Samad spoke to AFP ahead of Friday prayers in the world's biggest Muslim majority country.

Sulawesi is also home to a large Christian minority.

About 20 planes carrying vital supplies such as tarpaulins, medical equipment and generators are now heading from all over the world to the disaster zone after a long delay.

Indonesia was initially reluctant to accept outside help, insisting its own military could handle the response, but as the scale of the devastation became clear President Joko Widodo agreed to allow in foreign aid.

Governments from Australia to Britain are flying in supplies, the United Nations has pledged 15 million to the relief effort, and aid groups including Save the Children and the Red Cross are also on the ground.

Indonesia sits along the Pacific "Ring of Fire", the world's most tectonically active region, and its 260 million people are vulnerable to earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions. (AFP)
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Hello Jammu News at 3:45:00 PM 0

Wani, Oct 3: The death toll in Indonesia's twin quake-tsunami disaster rose to nearly 1,400 Wednesday, with time running out to rescue survivors and the UN warning of "vast" unmet needs.

Authorities set a tentative deadline of Friday to find anyone still trapped under rubble, at which point -- a week after this devastating double disaster -- the chances of finding survivors will dwindle to almost zero.

Government rescue workers are focusing on half a dozen key sites around the ravaged seaside city of Palu -- the Hotel Roa-Roa where up to 60 people are still believed buried, a shopping mall, a restaurant and the Balaroa area where the sheer force of the quake turned the earth temporarily to mush.

Almost 200,000 people need urgent help, the UN's humanitarian office said, among them tens of thousands of children, with an estimated 66,000 homes destroyed or damaged by the 7.5-magnitude quake and the tsunami it spawned.

Despite the Indonesian government urging foreign rescue teams to "stand down" because the crisis was in hand, residents in hard-hit, remote villages like Wani in Donggala province say little help has arrived and hope is fading.

"Twelve people in this area haven't yet been found," Mohammad Thahir Talib told AFP.

"In the area to the south, because there hasn't been an evacuation we don't know if there are bodies. It's possible there are more," the 39-year-old said.

In Geneva, the United Nations expressed frustration at the slow pace of the response.

"There are still large areas of what might be the worst-affected areas that haven't been properly reached, but the teams are pushing, they are doing what they can," Jens Laerke, from the UN's humanitarian office, told reporters late Tuesday.

The World Health Organisation has estimated that across Donggala, some 310,000 people have been affected by the disaster.

Survivors are battling thirst and hunger, with food and clean water in short supply, and local hospitals are overwhelmed by the number of injured.

Officials on the ground said that while the government was now inviting offers of help, there is still no "mechanism for this to be implemented".

Landing slots at Palu airport are snapped up by the Indonesian military, although it was expected to be open to commercial flights from 7:59am on Thursday.

Palu's port, a key transit point for aid, has been damaged.

Signs of desperation are growing, with police officers forced to fire warning shots and teargas on Tuesday to ward off people ransacking shops.

Six of the Indonesian social affairs ministry's trucks laden with supplies were reportedly looted enroute to Palu.

In the main route north out of the city, an AFP journalist saw youths blocking the road and ask for "donations" to clear the way.

Widodo, who faces reelection next year, insisted the military and the police were in full control. "There is no such thing as looting," he said on a visit to Palu.

As survivors pick through the shattered remains of their neighbourhoods, the death toll continues to rise.

"The death toll is now 1,374, 113 missing," Willem Rampangilei, head of Indonesia's national disaster agency, told reporters in Palu on Tuesday.

"And there are still a few bodies trapped under the rubble. We don't know how many. Our priority is still to find and save people," he added.

The Indonesia-based ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance said that more body bags were "urgently" needed as fears grow that decomposing corpses could provide a breeding ground for deadly diseases.

Rescue efforts have been hampered by a lack of heavy machinery, severed transport links and the scale of the damage.

In yet another reminder of Indonesia's vulnerability to natural disasters, the Soputan Volcano in Sulawesi erupted Wednesday, spewing volcanic ash up to 4,000 metres above the crater.

The state disaster agency warned people to stay at least four kilometres (two and a half miles) away, but said there was no need to evacuate for the time being.

International aid offers have picked up since Jakarta's belated request for help, with the UN's Central Emergency Response Fund announcing late Tuesday that it was releasing USD 15 million in aid.

On Wednesday, Australia said it was sending a medical team to the disaster zone and providing an additional USD 5 million in aid.

With power returning to some parts of Palu late Tuesday and phone networks back up and running, there were some signs of things getting back to normal.

But for most, daily life has changed beyond all recognition.

Palu residents crowded around daisy-chained power strips at the few buildings with electricity, or queued for water, cash or petrol being brought in via armed police convoy.

Queues to get a few litres of petrol lasted more than 24 hours in some places.

Sanitation is also a growing problem. "People everywhere want to go to the toilet but there's no toilet. So we do it along the road at night," said 50-year-old Armawati Yarmin.

Indonesia sits along the Pacific "Ring of Fire", the world's most tectonically active region, and its 260 million people remain hugely vulnerable to earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions. (AFP)
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Hello Jammu News at 2:08:00 PM 0

Wani (Indonesia), Oct 3: He survived the earthquake and tsunami, yet days have passed since. Taking refuge on the shaded porch of an empty house, Darjan didn't feel relief as he looked out at the mix of broken concrete and shattered lumber that littered the narrow street cutting through his village.

"No help has come at all," he seethed.

Residents of smaller villages suffering from the lack of food, medical attention, fuel and shelter are angry that aid hasn't arrived in the days since Friday's earthquake and tsunami. Indonesia's government has struggled to help those who need it after such a large-scale disaster, and relief efforts have focused on the city of Palu, the provincial capital. For days authorities acknowledged they had little idea about the plight of those in three outlying regencies, home to some 1.2 million people.

In the fishing village of Wani, 33-year-old Darjan, who uses one name, said he and his family were safe, but they had lost their home.

"This banana is all we have left," he said Tuesday, nodding at the half-eaten piece of fruit in his hand.

As information from Donggala, Sigi and Parigi Muntong regencies has started to trickle in, residents in their cutoff townships and villages many closer to the quake's epicenter are pleading for help and saying they are being overlooked by rescuers focusing their efforts on the city.

"Pay attention to Donggala, Mr. Jokowi. Pay attention to Donggala," one resident in Donggala town yelled in footage broadcast on local television, referring to Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo. "There are still a lot of unattended villages here, not only Palu. There are lots of villages in Donggala." Yet even in Palu there was desperation, with signs propped along roads reading "We Need Food" and "We Need Support" and children begging in the streets.

Overwhelmed by the crisis, Jokowi has authorized for the country to accept international help. The government said it has nearly 6,400 rescue personnel taking part in the operation and said it still needs time to take care of all of the problems.

Donggala is a sprawling regency that sits on both sides of a narrow bay, where the shores were devastated by tsunami waves as high as 6 meters (almost 20 feet). Officials have said that assessing the damage there has been made difficult by downed communication lines and impassable roads.

In Wani, villagers said the seawater receded after the earthquake and was quickly followed by an "extraordinary wave" that hit the shore. Buildings along the coast appeared to have either disappeared, with their tin roofs flattened to the ground, or been obliterated into ruins.

The waves washed fishing boats ashore and a large passenger ship sits on dry land pinned against a building. A green-roofed mosque stands intact, surrounded by wreckage from destroyed homes.

Darjan estimated at least 30 people in Wani have died. The official toll of at least 1,234 dead is acknowledged to be low and not yet include those from the outlying, harder-to-reach localities.

He said there was an urgent need for food and medicine in Wani, to which another resident, Muhamad Tofik agreed, saying many children were hungry and sick because there was no milk or medicine. (AP)
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Hello Jammu News at 2:16:00 PM 0

Palu, Oct 2: The bodies of dozens of students have been pulled from their landslide-swamped church in Sulawesi, officials said Tuesday, as an international effort to help nearly 200,000 Indonesia quake-tsunami victims ground into gear.

The discovery adds to the already-high death toll from Friday's disaster, when a powerful earthquake sent a devastating tsunami smashing into the seaside city of Palu.

At least 844 people are already known to have died, but officials say that number is certain to rise -- perhaps into the thousands -- as isolated communities are reached and the scale of the disaster becomes clearer.

Survivors are battling thirst and hunger, with food and clean water in short supply, and local hospitals are overwhelmed by the number of injured.

Rescue efforts have been hampered by a lack of heavy machinery, severed transport links and the scale of the damage.

As if to remind the world of the tectonic fragility of Indonesia, a series of quakes rocked the country on Tuesday morning, albeit hundreds of kilometres from Palu.

The Indonesian military is leading the rescue effort, but following an appeal for international help by the president, NGOs also have teams on the ground in Palu.

At a church in central Sulawesi that had been hit by a landslide, the Red Cross made a grim discovery.

"A total of 34 bodies were found by the team," Indonesia Red Cross spokeswoman Aulia Arriani told AFP, adding that 86 students had initially been reported missing from a Bible camp at the Jonooge Church Training Centre. Arriani said rescuers faced an arduous trek to reach the mudslide and retrieve the victims.

"The most challenging problem is travelling in the mud as much as 1.5 hours by foot while carrying the bodies to an ambulance," she said.

Mountainous Sigi Biromaru district is one of those more remote regions, lying to the southeast of Palu city.

Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim-majority nation but there are small pockets of religious minorities, including Christians, across the archipelago.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs warned Monday that there were 191,000 people in urgent need of help after the quake-tsunami, among them 46,000 children and 14,000 elderly -- many in areas that aren't the focus of government recovery efforts.

The dead -- many yet uncounted, their bodies still trapped in the rubble of collapsed buildings -- are also a source of concern for authorities.

In Indonesia's hot, equatorial climate, bodies quickly begin to rot and provide a breeding ground for fatal diseases.

At Poboya -- in the hills above the devastated seaside city of Palu -- volunteers have begun to fill a vast grave with the dead, with instructions to prepare for 1,300 victims to be laid to rest.

Trucks stacked with corpses wrapped in orange, yellow and black bags are bringing their load to the site, where the corpses are dragged into the grave as excavators pour soil on top.

In Balaroa, a Palu suburb once home to a housing complex, flattened trees, shards of concrete, twisted metal roofing, door frames and mangled furniture stretched out into the distance.

Dazed groups of people ambled over the wreckage, unclear where or how to start digging. Among them were three men looking for their younger brother.

Rescuers are racing against the clock and a lack of equipment to save those still trapped in the rubble, with up to 60 people feared to be underneath one Palu hotel alone.

Two people have been plucked from the 80-room Hotel Roa-Roa, Indonesia's search and rescue agency said, and there could still be more alive.

Desperate survivors have turned to looting shops for basics like food, water and fuel as police look on, unwilling or unable to intervene.

"The government, the President have come here, but what we really need is food and water." Burhanuddin Aid Masse, 48, told AFP.

Many survivors have spent the last days desperately searching for loved ones while dealing with the trauma of the disaster.

One survivor, Adi, was hugging his wife by the beach when the tsunami struck on Friday. He has no idea where she is now, or whether she is alive.

"When the wave came, I lost her," he said. "I was carried about 50 metres. I couldn't hold anything," he said.

Others have centred their search for loved ones around open-air morgues, where the dead lay in the baking sun -- waiting to be claimed, waiting to be named.

The International Committee of the Red Cross said it was working to reunite families who had become separated during the disaster and was providing "forensic services" to those carrying out the grim task of identifying victims. (AFP)
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Hello Jammu News at 2:08:00 PM 0

Jakarta, Oct 2: A shallow 5.9-magnitude earthquake struck off the southern coast of Indonesia's Sumba island on Tuesday morning, the US Geological Survey said.

The quake hit at a shallow depth of 10 kilometres around 40 kilometres off Sumba, an island of some 750,000 people.

Sumba lies some 1,600 kilometres to the south of Sulawesi island which was struck by a devastating quake and tsunami on Friday which killed more than 800 people. (AFP)
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Hello Jammu News at 3:11:00 PM 0

Jakarta, Sep 29: At least 48 people were killed by a quake-tsunami in an Indonesian city, the country's disaster agency said Saturday, announcing its first official death toll.


The agency added that another 356 people were injured in Palu on Sulawesi island where waves as high as 1.5 metres (five feet) slammed into the city of about 350,000 people. (AFP)
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Hello Jammu News at 2:59:00 PM 0

Jakarta, Sep 29: Thirty bodies are lying at one Indonesian hospital after a quake and tsunami struck Sulawesi island, smashing into a city of 350,000 people, a hospital official told a TV station.

"There are 30 dead at our hospital. And cases where we need to operate or need specialists to handle 12, head trauma nine," Komang Adi Sujendra told Metro TV. (AFP)
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Hello Jammu News at 6:36:00 PM 0

Kupang, Aug 28: A strong 6.2 magnitude earthquake struck eastern Indonesia today, the US Geological Survey said, but there was no tsunami warning or immediate reports of damage.

The offshore tremor struck at a shallow depth of eight kilometres (five miles), about 100 kilometres southeast of Kupang on the Indonesian portion of Timor island, the USGS said.

It was followed by a shallow 5.6 magnitude quake nearby.

Witnesses described a powerful jolt from the first tremor which lasted a few seconds.

"I was on the second floor of my office and suddenly everybody ran outside because of the earthquake," said an AFP reporter in Kupang.

"All the chairs were shaking... we were traumatised by all the earthquakes in Lombok." A string of deadly earthquakes that rocked Lombok island this summer killed some 555 people.

Indonesia's disaster agency said things had quickly returned to normal.

"Local disaster mitigation agency officials are still monitoring the impact of the earthquake," agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said in a statement.

"There are no victims or damage."

Indonesia, one of the most disaster-prone nations on earth, straddles the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire", where tectonic plates collide and many of the world's volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur.

In 2004 a tsunami triggered by a magnitude 9.3 undersea earthquake off the coast of Sumatra in western Indonesia killed 220,000 people in countries around the Indian Ocean, including 168,000 Indonesians. (AFP)
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Hello Jammu News at 2:43:00 PM 0

Mataram(Indonesia), Aug 11: An earthquake on the Indonesian island of Lombok has killed 387 people, authorities said today, adding hundreds of thousands of displaced people were still short of clean water, food and medicine nearly a week on.

The shallow 6.9-magnitude quake Sunday levelled tens of thousands of homes, mosques and businesses across Lombok, just one week after another tremor surged through the island and killed 17.

"It's predicted the death toll will continue to grow because there are still victims who are suspected of being buried by landslides and under rubble, and there are victims that have not been recorded and reported to posts," national disaster agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said.

The number forced from their homes in the disaster has soared to 387,000, Nugroho said, with around 13,000 injured.

The hardest hit region of Lombok has been in the north, where 334 people have died and nearly 200,000 have been forced from their homes, according to latest official tolls.

Two people were also killed by the quake on the neighbouring tourist island of Bali.

Nugroho said the emergency response period has been extended another 14 days, which would allow authorities to deal with the "many problems" that still existed in the field.

Most of the displaced are sleeping under tents or tarpaulins near their ruined homes or in evacuation shelters, while makeshift medical facilities have been set up to treat the injured.

Six days after the quake hit some evacuees have still not received assistance, particularly in the mountainous north of the island.

"The main problem is the distribution of supplies to thousands of refugee points," Nugroho said.

"Most of the roads in North Lombok were damaged by the earthquake." Survivors of the quake have been shaken by hundreds of aftershocks, including a shallow 5.9-magnitude quake Thursday which caused people to flee evacuation shelters crying and screaming. (AFP)
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Hello Jammu News at 3:22:00 PM 0

Mataram, Aug 9: A strong aftershock struck Indonesia's Lombok today, the US Geological Survey reported, just four days after a devastating earthquake killed more than 160 on the holiday island.

The 5.9-magnitude quake struck at a shallow depth today, with its epicentre in the northwest of the island, the USGS said. (AFP)
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Hello Jammu News at 2:47:00 PM 0

Mataram (Indonesia), Aug 8: More than 70,000 people have been left homeless in the deadly earthquake that hit Lombok island, forced to sleep in makeshift shelters and lacking food, medicine and clean water, authorities said today.

The shallow 6.9-magnitude quake killed at least 105 people and triggered panic among locals and tourists on Lombok on Sunday, just a week after another tremor surged through the holiday island and killed 17.

Some 236 people have been severely injured in the latest quake, with tens of thousands of homes damaged, and authorities have appealed for more medical personnel and basic supplies.

"The efforts to evacuate people have been intensified but there are still a lot of problems on the ground," national disaster agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said today.

"The number of victims keep rising. More than 70,000 people have been evacuated and tens of thousands of houses have collapsed."

There are fears the death toll will rise as workers with heavy machinery claw through the rubble of homes, schools and mosques, with hopes of finding any survivors fading.

Muhammad Zainul Majdi, the governor of West Nusa Tenggara province which covers Lombok, said there was a dire need for medical staff, food and medicine in the worst-hit areas.

Hundreds of bloodied and bandaged victims have been treated outside damaged hospitals in the main city of Mataram and other badly affected areas.

"We have limited human resources. Some paramedics have to be at the shelters, some need to be mobile,"Majdi told AFP.

"The scale of this quake is massive for us here in West Nusa Tenggara, this is our first experience." - 'Destruction almost 100 per cent' -

Across much of the island, once-bustling villages have been turned into virtual ghost towns.

"In some villages we visited the destruction was almost 100 per cent, all houses collapsed, roads are cracked and bridges were broken," said Arifin Muhammad Hadi, a spokesman for the Indonesian Red Cross.

Makeshift encampments have popped up on the side of roads and rice fields, with many farmers reluctant to move far from their damaged homes and leave precious livestock behind.

"It's typical of earthquake victims in Indonesia, they want to stay close to their livelihood, they can't bring their livestock to the shelters,"Hadi said.

Local authorities, international relief groups and the central government have begun organising aid, but shattered roads have slowed efforts to reach survivors in the mountainous north and east of Lombok, which was hardest hit.

The Indonesian military said that three Hercules transporter planes packed with much-needed food, medication, blankets, tents and water tanks have now arrived in Lombok.

The tremor struck as evening prayers were being said across the Muslim-majority island and there are fears that one collapsed mosque in north Lombok had been filled with worshippers.

Crews using heavy equipment resumed the search today for survivors in the mosque, now reduced to pile of concrete and metal bars, with its towering green dome folded in on itself.

Rescuers have found three bodies and also managed to pull one man alive from the twisted wreckage.

"We estimate there are still more victims because we found many sandals in front of the mosque," Nugroho said yesterday.

Among other major buildings to collapse were a health clinic, government offices and other public facilities, he added.

Meanwhile, the evacuation of tourists from the Gili Islands, three tiny, coral-fringed tropical islands off the northwest coast of Lombok has finished, officials said.

"Most foreign tourists have been evacuated," Yusuf Latif, national search and rescue team spokesman, told AFP.

Lombok airport's general manager said airlines had laid on extra flights and his staff had been providing blankets and snacks. (AFP)
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Hello Jammu News at 3:43:00 PM 0

Lombok (Indonesia), Jul 30: More than 500 hikers and their guides remain stranded by landslides on an active volcano on Lombok, a day after a powerful earthquake struck the Indonesian holiday island, a national park official said today.

Helicopters and rescue teams on foot have been deployed to scour the slopes of Mount Rinjani, which is crisscrossed with hiking routes popular with tourists.

"There are still 560 people trapped. Five hundred are in Segara Anakan area, and 60 are in Batu Ceper,"said the head of Rinjani national park Sudiyono, who goes by one name.

Sixteen people were killed and hundreds of buildings were destroyed by the shallow 6.4-magnitude quake, which sent people running from their homes early in the morning yesterday.

The quake also dislodged tonnes of rock and mud on Mt. Rinjani, leaving people with no easy way down.

Rising some 3,726 metres (12,224 feet) above sea level, the peak is the second-tallest volcano in Indonesia and a favourite among sightseers keen to take in its expansive views.

Hiking trails on the mountain were closed following the quake due to fear of further landslides.

The epicentre of the earthquake was 50 km (30 miles) northeast of Lombok's main city Mataram, the United States Geological Survey said, far from the main tourist spots on the south and west of the island.

The initial tremor was followed by two strong secondary quakes and more than 100 aftershocks. (AFP)
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Hello Jammu News at 12:13:00 PM 0

Jakarta, July 4: Some 70 people are dead or missing after a ferry ran aground off the coast of Indonesia, according to an updated official toll today, the latest deadly maritime accident in the Southeast Asian archipelago.

The KM Lestari was carrying about 140 passengers and dozens of vehicles when the accident happened yesterday about 300 metres from shore near Sulawesi island, north of Indonesia's most populous island Java.

Images from the scene showed terrified passengers clinging to the side of the tipped over ferry, while others floated in the sea awaiting help.

Waves swamped the boat's deck, taking trucks and other vehicles into the sea, as rescuers battled high winds and rough seas to pluck victims from the water.

Indonesia's disaster agency said 29 people died in the accident while another 41 are still missing. Nearly 70 people have been rescued, it added.

The deadly incident came on the same day authorities officially called off the search for more than 160 people missing after another ferry sank on a volcanic lake in Sumatra two weeks ago.

The vessel was believed to be operating illegally with no manifest and not enough life jackets when it disappeared into the depths of Lake Toba, a picturesque tourist spot in Sumatra.

While some bodies have been recovered, many are believed to be trapped inside the sunken vessel at the bottom of one of the world's deepest lakes, which plunges 500 metres in spots.

In the latest accident, a fleet of smaller boats, including local fishing vessels, worked to save passengers as bad weather prevented larger craft from approaching the stricken ferry, the transportation ministry said earlier.

It added that most passengers had been wearing life jackets.

The 48-metre vessel was sailing from Sulawesi to nearby Selayar island when it ran into strong winds and high waves.

Deadly maritime accidents are not uncommon in Indonesia, where many people depend on boats to get around the 17,000 island nation despite lax safety standards.

More than 300 people are estimated to have drowned in 2009 when a ferry sank between Sulawesi and Borneo islands.  (AFP)
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Hello Jammu News at 12:23:00 PM 0
Singapore, Jun 1 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi today met his Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien Loong and discussed bilateral ties.

Modi, who arrived here yesterday on a three-day visit, also called on Singapore President Halimah Yacob. 

After his arrival at the presidential palace Istana, he was accorded a ceremonial welcome.

"Prime Minister Modi was accorded a ceremonial welcome on his arrival at Istana - Presidential Palace of Singapore. Millennia old ties now powered by partnership in innovation and technology," said Raveesh Kumar, Spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs.

Modi received a 'guard of honour' at the palace. 

During his talks with Singaporean leaders, Modi discussed ways to further strengthen bilateral ties. 

Modi is in Singapore on the last leg of his three-nation tour. He earlier visited Indonesia and Malaysia.PTI
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Hello Jammu News at 5:01:00 PM 0


Jakarta, Nov 28: Some 89,000 passengers have been affected following closure of the airports on the Indonesian tourist island of Bali for a second day on Tuesday due to the eruption of the Mount Agung volcano.
The shutdown has disrupted 445 flights covering 196 international and 249 domestic routes.
Secretary General of the Ministry of Transportation Sugiharjo said the airports would be shut down or kept open based on the direction of the wind carrying volcanic ash from Mount Agung, reports Antara news agency.
Maria Kristi Endah Murni, director of air transportation in the ministry, said the government would keep monitoring the situation as a larger eruption is feared. 
The authorities said dark smoke and ash have been billowing up to 3,400 metres above the mountain`s peak, thereby prompting officials to shut down Bali`s Ngurah Rai Airport from Monday until Tuesday evening.
Following the eruption, authorities have asked all villagers in the disaster-prone areas, tourists, and other individuals to evacuate and avoid any activities near the volcano and other regions within a 10-km radius from the volcano`s peak.
Some 30,000 people have already left the area. UNI
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Hello Jammu News at 11:21:00 AM 0

Manila, Nov 13: Stage is set for the beginning of the 31st ASEAN Summit here on Monday.Besides attending the multi-nation meeting, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also scheduled to have a crucial round of one-on-one meeting with the US President Donald Trump.
This year's theme - 'Partnering for Change, Engaging the World' best captures the geo-political situation in the region, while covers the complexities faced by ASEAN as a group and also by a few individual nations. The year 2017 also marks the 50th anniversary of the ASEAN. 
The 31st Summit will take place alongside related meetings and a special celebration of 'ASEAN@50'. The ten members of ASEAN include Brunei Darussalam,Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia,Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The occasion also coincides with the ASEAN-India Summit. PM Modi arrived here on Monday to a grand reception by Indian diaspora. "Enthusiastic welcome by Indian Diaspora. PM @narendramodi greeted by members of Diaspora, who form an important niche group of Filipino society," MEA spokesman Raveesh Kumar tweeted.  On the eve of his visit, Prime Minister Modi said, "My participation in the meet symbolizes India's commitment to continue deepening relationship with ASEAN Member States, in particular, and with the Indo-Pacific region, in general, within the framework of my Government's Act East Policy". The Ministry of External Affairs sources have confirmed Prime Minister's meeting the US President Donald Trump here on the sidelines of ASEAN meets on Monday.  Sources said the two leaders will hold one-on-one talks for over half-an-hour minute on Monday afternoon. Mr Trump arrived Manila as part of his five-nation Asia tour of Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam, and the Philippines. Both Mr Modi and the US President will discuss security scenario especially in Indo-Pacific region. Besides key bilateral meetings, including the one with the Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, Prime Minister Modi will visit International Rice Institute and Mahaveer Philippines Foundation. The world famous 'Jaipur Foot', made by Rajasthan based Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang  Sahayata Samiti, is to get a pat on its back from Prime Minister.   Mr Modi will meet members of the Indian community at a reception to be hosted by Indian envoy in Philippines. The International Rice Research Institute located at Los Banos near Manila, is a leading institute of global repute. 
Through scientific research and development, it has developed better quality of rice seed and helped the global community including Indian scientists in addressing issues of food security. 
A large number of Indian scientists are also working in the institute. The institute will also soon set up its South Asian Regional Centre in Varanasi, Mr Modi's parliamentary constituency. 
This will be the first center outside Philippines.  The Mahaveer Philippines Foundation is an associate centre of Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti based in Jaipur, which is famous for "Jaipur Foot'.  The philanthropic organization, which has been set up by eminent Filipinos and Indian expat community, has distributed free "Jaipur Foot' to needy amputees. 
Mr Modi will also address the ASEAN Business Investment Summit,while other meetings are also lined up either on Monday or Tuesday. Among them the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) will try to take a call on free trade and non-tarrif barriers.
The RCEP in effect comprises of 10-member, ASEAN members and also and six other countries that are India, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. Officials of 16 member nations met here at the margins of high profile ASEAN Summit and other meetings on Sunday.
UNI
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Hello Jammu News at 5:26:00 PM 0

Jakarta, Oct 26: An explosion at a firecracker factory near the Indonesian capital on Thursday killed at least 47 people and injured dozens, police said, adding that the fire spread after the explosion and as a result factory's roof also collapsed, the MetroTV reported. A Jakarta police official said the bodies were found piled at the rear of the building. The factory had more than 100 employees when the explosion took place. More than 40 injured workers were hospitalised for treatment. The fire began Thursday morning at the factory next to a residential area in Tangerang, a city in Banten province on the western outskirts of Jakarta. Indonesia's MetroTV said that although the factory had a permit, its proximity to a residential area was against regulations. UNI
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