News India Times

www.newsindiatimes.com – that’s all you need to know News India Times (May 16, 2026 - May 22, 2026) May 22, 2026 12 India A violent storm bringing rain and hail scythed across India’s most populous state of Uttar Pradesh, killing more than 100 people, rescue officials said on Thursday, as the chief minister ordered relief funds to be distributed within 24 hours. Storms are common in the northern state during the hot season fromMarch to June before monsoon rains bring respite, butWednesday’s storm injured 59 people, damaged 87 homes, and killed 114 livestock, authorities said. At least 104 people died in about a dozen districts, the worst hit being the area around the Hindu pilgrimage city of Prayagraj, the office of the state’s relief commissioner, Hrishikesh Bhaskar Yashod, told Reuters. “The entire area where we live turned black for around half an hour,” said Ashok Rai, who lives in the coal-rich industrial town of Obra in the state’s Sonbhadra district. “Strong winds lifted hoardings and signboards and thick coal dust from the ground and hurled them around,” he added. Television images showed uprooted trees and bill- boards swept onto cars in the aftermath of the storm, which also knocked down wooden furniture at roadside stalls. Strong winds hurled into the air a man ripped from a tin structure to which he was clinging, a video clip showed on television, which said he was injured but sur- vived his ordeal in the district of Bareilly. Falling trees and collapsing walls also claimed some lives, a state relief official told Reuters. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath of the state, governed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, told officials to help survivors and distribute finan- cial aid within 24 hours, authorities said. -Reuters By Jatindra Dash and Saurabh Sharma Violent Storm Tears Through India’s Most Populous State, Killing Over 100 India Condemns Sinking Of Cargo Vessel Off Oman After Suspected Attack I ndia said on Thursday that an Indian- flagged wooden cargo vessel had sunk while sailing through Omani waters following a fire from a suspected drone or missile strike. The vessel is the second to have been sunk in the region since the Iran conflict began on February 28. The war has left hundreds of ships stranded and 20,000 seafarers unable to leave the Strait of Hormuz waterway that leads out into the Gulf of Oman. The attack on the dhow – a vessel built of wood – happened while it was sailing to the United Arab Emirates from Somalia in the early hours ofWednesday, India’s ship- ping ministry said in a statement. That caused a fire on board and eventually led to its sinking, the statement said. All 14 crew were rescued by the Omani coast guard and moved to Diba port, the ministry added. India did not specify the nature of the attack or who was behind it, but Brit- ish maritime risk management group Vanguard said it involved a suspected explosion believed to have been caused by a drone or missile strike. The vessel was carrying a cargo of livestock, it said. Maritime security sources separately assessed that it was likely to have been a drone attack. INDIA DEPLORES TARGETING OF COMMERCIAL SHIPPING “The attack on an Indian-flagged ship off the coast of Oman yesterday is unac- ceptable and we deplore the fact that commercial shipping and civilian mari- ners continue to be targeted,” the Indian foreign ministry said in a statement. “India reiterates that targeting com- mercial shipping and endangering inno- cent civilian crew members, or otherwise impeding freedom of navigation and com- merce, should be avoided,” it said. The vessel was named by Indian ship- ping ministry officials as the Haji Ali. It last reported its position off the coast of Muscat on May 11, ship tracking data on the MarineTraffic platform showed. Its operators could not be reached for com- ment. At least two other Indian-flagged ships have been attacked since the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran erupted on February 28. India last month summoned the Ira- nian envoy to New Delhi and flagged its “deep concern” over the incidents. The Iran war has sharply increased risks for commercial shipping in the Gulf, particularly around the Strait of Hormuz, a vital energy transit route, with multiple vessels attacked or damaged since the conflict began. The latest Indian statement came as foreign ministers of the BRICS grouping, including from Iran, gathered in New Delhi for their annual meeting under the shadow of the war, testing the bloc’s abil- ity to reach a unified position and produce a joint statement. -Reuters PHOTOS:REUTERS/STRINGER People remove a tree fallen over a car, during a heavy storm, in Prayagraj, in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Relatives wait outside of a mortuary at Swaroop Rani Nehru (SRN) Hospital to receive dead bodies of those who lost their lives in heavy storm, in Prayagraj, northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India, May 14, 2026.