Family in India welcomes first baby Girl after 52 years

At least eight workers were killed and five others were reported missing after toxic gas leaked from a vessel at a shipbreaking yard in Bangladesh on Friday. The incident occurred at the Ferdous Steel Shipbreaking Yard and Recycling Factory in Chittagong, a major hub for ship dismantling on the country’s southeastern coast. Witnesses said they heard cries from inside the facility before fellow workers rushed several affected employees to nearby hospitals. Police said eight people had died while a search operation was underway for those still unaccounted for. Authorities have formed an investigation committee to determine the cause of the accident and ordered a safety audit of the shipbreaking facility. Officials said the vessel involved had previously been used to transport liquefied natural gas. Although the yard was reportedly classified as a compliant facility, fire service officials raised concerns about whether proper safety procedures had been followed before dismantling work began. According to fire service officials, vessels must be completely cleared of hazardous gases before workers begin cutting them apart. They said workers who were closest to the gas leak died, while others farther from the affected area survived. Firefighters recovered three bodies from the site and rescued several workers who were found unconscious. The injured were transported to hospitals for treatment. The shipbreaking industry along Chittagong’s coast stretches for around 25 kilometres and provides employment to tens of thousands of people. Bangladesh is one of the world’s major shipbreaking centres, but the industry has repeatedly faced criticism over workplace safety, labour conditions and environmental risks. One of the workers killed in the accident was identified as Palash Jaladas. His family was left devastated by the tragedy, with relatives saying his wife, Bhoumika Jaladas, is eight months pregnant.

A group of New York City homeowners has taken legal action against Mayor Zohran Mamdani and the city’s finance authorities over the rollout of a new pied-à-terre tax, arguing that the administration wrongly identified some primary residences as potential second homes. The lawsuit was filed on Friday by homeowners Simon Hedley, Rachel O’Brien and Carmine Morano. The plaintiffs are not challenging the legality of the tax itself. Instead, their case focuses on how city officials identified properties and made information about potentially affected homeowners publicly available. The dispute follows the publication of a city property tax roll containing the names and addresses of more than 900,000 property owners. Although most of those properties are not subject to the new surcharge, nearly 17,000 homeowners received notices warning that their properties could potentially fall under the tax. The homeowners allege that the city’s process has incorrectly flagged primary residences and unnecessarily exposed private information. O’Brien said her family’s permanent home was identified as a possible second residence despite records indicating that the property was their primary residence. She described the situation as unreasonable and questioned why homeowners were publicly listed when their properties might not ultimately be subject to the tax. The plaintiffs have asked the court to declare the notices and the publicly released property information unlawful. They are also seeking restrictions on public access to the list. In addition, the homeowners want the city to suspend response requirements and halt enforcement measures while the legal proceedings are underway. A spokesperson for Mayor Mamdani said the administration was committed to ensuring that the tax process remained clear and accessible. The spokesperson added that the city’s Law Department was prepared to defend the administration against the lawsuit. The pied-à-terre tax targets qualifying non-primary residences valued at more than $5 million, along with certain cooperative apartments valued at $1 million or above. The surcharge was included in Mamdani’s fiscal 2027 budget as part of efforts to address New York City’s budget shortfall. The rollout has triggered significant criticism from affected homeowners. In response, Mamdani extended the deadline for property owners to demonstrate that their homes are their primary residences by four weeks. The new deadline is now September 18, giving homeowners additional time to challenge their classification and provide documentation to city authorities.