Lightning kills 10 in Bihar

Patna, Sep 18 (IANS) At least 10 people, including women and children, have been killed after being struck by lightning in Bihar's Purnia district Tuesday, an official said.

The deaths took place in villages of Dhamdaha, Banmankhi, Kasba and Gulabbagh police stations in Purnia.

The cabinet also sanctioned Rs 1081.69 crore towards payment of salaries, pension and dearness allowance to the employees of nine universities of Bihar.

The fund will meet the requirement for salaries, pensions and DA of the teaching and non-teaching staffers of nine state universities from March 2012 to February 2013.

Ravikant said the state government sanctioned Rs 29 crore for setting up state project facilitation unit for upgradation of the engineering colleges under the centrally-sponsored technical education reforms scheme phase-2.

An amount of Rs 362.13 crore was approved for arrangement of clean water in 145 tolas (hamlets) in arsenic-affected Bhojpur district.