March 7—Top news at 1 pm  

Four injured in blast in Bhopal-Ujjain passenger train

At least four persons were today injured in a blast in the Bhopal-Ujjain passenger train near Jabdi station in Shajapur district, a railway official said. The blast occurred in a general coach of the train between 9.30 and 10 am when it was on its way to Ujjain from Bhopal, Railway PRO, Indore, Jitendra Kumar Jayant told PTI. The injured have been admitted to a hospital in Kalapipal town of the district, he said. The glass panes of the windows in the general coach were damaged because of the blast, which occurred when the train was about to reach Jabdi Station. Following the blast, the train came to a halt. Smoke engulfed the general coach, causing panic among the passengers who rushed out to save themselves A probe is on to ascertain the cause of the blast, the PRO said, adding that a relief train is on its way to the mishap site.

Further details are awaited.

Two-thirds Indians have to pay bribe, highest in Asia-Pacific: Survey

India has got the dubious distinction of having the highest bribery rate in the Asia Pacific, with a survey showing today that more than two-thirds of Indians had to pay 'tea money' or fork out other forms of bribe to get public services. The survey, conducted by international anti-graft rights group Transparency International, found 69% in India as saying they had to pay a bribe, followed by 65% in Vietnam. China was much lower at 26% while the same for Pakistan was 40%. Japan had the lowest incidence of bribery—at 0.2%. South Korea also fared well at a mere 3%. However, it is China which seems to have seen the highest increase, with 73% in the survey saying the bribery has gone up in their country over the past year while India comes in at seventh place (41%)—higher than countries like Pakistan, Australia, Japan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

The results show that lawmakers across the region need to do much more to support whistleblowers and governments must keep promises to combat corruption, including their commitments to meet the Sustainable Development Goals, Transparency International said.

NIA seizes fake notes in Malda, West Bengal

The National Investigation Agency has recovered counterfeit notes with the face value of ₹3.90 lakh from two persons here, police said. The fake notes, in the denomination of ₹2,000, were seized from the duo during a search in Kanir More locality of the town yesterday. Both the persons, hailing from Baisnabnagar area in Malda district, were suspected to have links with a fake note racket in Bangladesh, police officials said, and have been arrested.

32 fishermen from Tamil Nadu, Kerala stray into Diego Garcia, detained

As many as 32 fishermen from Tamil Nadu and Kerala, who reportedly went missing, have strayed into Diego Garcia of British Indian Ocean Territory, fisheries official said today. President of the Society Jose Biblin said two deep sea fishing boats carrying 32 fishermen are feared to have been detained by authorities at Diego Garcia from March 1. The fishers belong to Thoothoor coastal hamlet in Kanyakumari district and Poonthurai, Vizhinjam and Ernakulam in Kerala. He said the families of the fishermen had received information that they had been detained by naval personnel in Diego Garcia. The boats that had ventured into the sea last month for fishing were expected to return by March 1, but they did not. The families have sought the assistance of the officials to ensure their return, he added.