Gayathri Kallukaran is a Junior Journalist with Eastern Eye. She has a Master’s degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from St. Paul’s College, Bengaluru, and brings over five years of experience in content creation, including two years in digital journalism. She covers stories across culture, lifestyle, travel, health, and technology, with a creative yet fact-driven approach to reporting. Known for her sensitivity towards human interest narratives, Gayathri’s storytelling often aims to inform, inspire, and empower. Her journey began as a layout designer and reporter for her college’s daily newsletter, where she also contributed short films and editorial features. Since then, she has worked with platforms like FWD Media, Pepper Content, and Petrons.com, where several of her interviews and features have gained spotlight recognition. Fluent in English, Malayalam, Tamil, and Hindi, she writes in English and Malayalam, continuing to explore inclusive, people-focused storytelling in the digital space.
The European Union (EU) has advised its 450 million citizens to stockpile essential items, including food and water, to prepare for potential emergencies. This call to action is part of a broader strategy to improve disaster preparedness across the 27-nation bloc, as it faces increasing risks from war, cyberattacks, climate change, and public health crises.
The EU’s recommendation comes in light of recent global developments that have raised concerns about security and stability. Citizens are encouraged to have enough food, water, medicine, and other essential supplies to last at least 72 hours during a crisis.
Why the call for preparedness?
The EU has faced significant challenges in recent years, including the Covid-19 pandemic, geopolitical tensions with Russia, and ongoing concerns about energy security. These events have exposed vulnerabilities in the bloc’s ability to respond to emergencies, prompting the need for better crisis management.
The European Union’s Commissioner for Preparedness and Crisis Management, Hadja Lahbib, highlighted the importance of having a personal stockpile of food and supplies during emergencies. “It is crucial for citizens to have essential items for at least 72 hours to ensure their safety in a crisis,” she said during the announcement of the EU’s new strategy for disaster preparedness.
This push for citizens to stockpile food and other essentials aligns with similar measures already in place in countries like France, Finland, and Sweden, which have longstanding systems for civil preparedness. Sweden, for example, updated its Cold War-era emergency advice in 2024 to better reflect today’s security challenges, such as how to respond to a nuclear attack.
Rising security concerns
The EU’s call to action comes at a time when Europe faces growing threats. The ongoing conflict in Ukraine has sparked concerns about potential Russian military aggression, with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte warning of the possibility of an attack in Europe by 2030. The EU has also been grappling with the effects of climate change, cyberattacks, and public health crises like the Covid-19 pandemic.
As these threats grow more interconnected and complex, the European Union is urging its member states and citizens to take proactive measures. Lahbib emphasised the need for a well-prepared population, saying, “Today’s threats are more complicated than ever, and it is essential that we are ready to face them.”
Stockpiling for safety
The EU has outlined several items citizens should consider including in their stockpile: food, water, flashlights, medication, and identification documents. In addition, shortwave radios are recommended as a vital communication tool in the event of a cyberattack or infrastructure failure.
While the EU’s preparedness strategy encourages individual responsibility, it is also looking to build up its own strategic reserves of critical resources. These include firefighting equipment, medical supplies, and assets designed to combat chemical, biological, and nuclear threats. By doing so, the EU aims to support member states during large-scale crises and ensure that resources are available when needed most.
Coordinating preparedness across the bloc
Not all EU countries currently have the same level of preparedness, and Lahbib has called for better coordination between member states. The EU’s new disaster management strategy seeks to unify emergency responses and ensure that countries work together to provide aid and resources during emergencies.
“We cannot rely on reactive measures alone,” Lahbib stated. “We must have a coordinated plan in place to deal with crises before they happen.”
By encouraging citizens to stockpile food and supplies, the European Union is taking a proactive approach to disaster management. The goal is to reduce the pressure on emergency services during the initial stages of a crisis and ensure that individuals and families can protect themselves until help arrives.
Lessons from other countries
The EU’s plan to encourage stockpiling of food and essential supplies mirrors strategies already in place in several member countries. For example, France and Finland have long advised their citizens to be prepared for emergencies by having a stockpile of basic necessities. Sweden’s updated guidance includes instructions for how to act during a nuclear event, a reflection of the current global security situation.
By learning from these countries, the EU hopes to create a more resilient population that is better equipped to face crises. Stockpiling food and supplies for 72 hours is a small but significant step in ensuring that citizens are prepared to weather emergencies.
Challenges ahead
As Europe faces growing risks from geopolitical tensions, climate disasters, and cyberattacks, the EU’s call to action is a reminder of the importance of preparedness. By urging citizens to stockpile food and essential supplies, the European Union is encouraging a culture of readiness that will help mitigate the impact of future crises.
With the world becoming increasingly unpredictable, the EU’s focus on disaster preparedness aims to protect both individuals and communities, ensuring that Europe remains resilient in the face of whatever challenges lie ahead.
A FORMER West Yorkshire Police officer has been sentenced to two years and three months in prison after being convicted of misconduct in a public office.
Wasim Bashir, 55, who worked as a detective constable in Bradford District, was found guilty of one count of misconduct in a public office for forming a sexual relationship with a female victim of crime. He was sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court on Friday, 29 August.
Bashir retired from the force while under investigation but will still face misconduct proceedings.
The charge related to an incident of abuse of position for a sexual purpose, with Bashir engaging in a sexual relationship with a woman who had reported to West Yorkshire Police that she had been the victim of a sexual offence. He was involved in investigating her case.
The conviction followed an investigation by West Yorkshire Police’s Counter Corruption Unit under the direction of the Independent Office for Police Conduct. During the trial, the judge directed the jury to find Bashir not guilty of a second count of misconduct in a public office.
Detective Superintendent Natalie Dawson, Deputy Head of West Yorkshire Police’s Professional Standards Directorate, said: “For a police officer to pursue a sexual relationship with a vulnerable woman who had come forward to report being victim of a sexual offence is nothing short of abhorrent.
“I want to reassure victims of crime and the wider public that this former officer is not representative of our organisation. One of the Force’s key purposes is to protect vulnerable people, and our officers and staff work tirelessly to protect people from harm and to safeguard victims.
“Former DC Bashir has retired from the organisation, but we will still continue with misconduct proceedings with a view to him being banned from gaining any further employment in the policing profession.”
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Protesters calling for the closure of The Bell Hotel, which was housing asylum seekers, gather outside the council offices in Epping on August 8, 2025. (Photo: Getty Images)
Court of Appeal has overturned injunction blocking use of Epping hotel for asylum seekers.
Judges say human rights obligations outweigh local safety concerns.
At least 13 councils preparing legal action despite ruling.
Protests outside the Bell Hotel lead to arrests and police injuries.
MORE than a dozen councils are moving ahead with legal challenges against the use of hotels for asylum seekers despite the Home Office winning an appeal in the Court of Appeal.
Judges ruled that meeting the human rights of asylum seekers by providing accommodation outweighed local safety concerns.
The injunction was secured by Epping Forest District Council after protests following the alleged sexual assault of a 14-year-old girl by an Ethiopian asylum seeker.
The man has been charged and denies wrongdoing. A full hearing on the planning dispute over the Bell Hotel will take place in October.
At least 13 councils are preparing similar legal action, The Times reported, including Labour-run Wirral, Stevenage, Tamworth and Rushmoor. Epping Forest Council said it may appeal to the Supreme Court.
Asylum minister Dame Angela Eagle said the government remained committed to ending hotel use by 2029 and argued the appeal was needed to move migrants “in a controlled and orderly way”.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch criticised the government for prioritising “the rights of illegal immigrants above the rights of British people” and urged councils to continue legal action.
Reform leader Nigel Farage said the government had used the European Convention on Human Rights “against the people of Epping”.
Councils including Broxbourne and Spelthorne confirmed they were pressing ahead with enforcement action on planning grounds.
Protests outside the Bell Hotel on Friday led to the arrest of three men, while two police officers sustained minor injuries.
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Protesters from the group Save Our Future & Our Kids Future demonstrate against uncontrolled immigration outside the Cladhan Hotel on August 16, 2025 in Falkirk, Scotland. (Photo: Getty Images)
UK appeals court overturns ruling blocking hotel use for asylum seekers
Judges call earlier High Court decision “seriously flawed”
138 asylum seekers will not need to be relocated by September 12
Full hearing scheduled at the Court of Appeal in October
A UK appeals court has overturned a lower court order that had temporarily blocked the use of a hotel in Epping, northeast of London, to house asylum seekers.
A three-judge panel said the High Court ruling that set a September 12 deadline to move migrants from the Bell Hotel contained "a number of errors".
The case followed protests outside the hotel after a resident was charged with sexually assaulting a local girl. Demonstrations have continued for weeks and at times turned violent, triggering debate on immigration policy.
The Court of Appeal said the earlier ruling was "seriously flawed in principle" and could act as an "impetus or incentive for further protests". It added that it failed to consider the "obvious consequence that the closure of one site means capacity needs to be identified elsewhere in the system".
The government will now not be required to relocate 138 asylum seekers from the hotel by September 12. The decision also weakens local efforts to challenge the use of other hotels to house asylum seekers.
The Home Office is legally required under a 1999 law to house "all destitute asylum seekers whilst their asylum claims are being decided".
The case will return for a full hearing at the Court of Appeal in October. Both the Home Office and the hotel’s owner, Somani Hotels, are opposing Epping Forest District Council’s bid to prevent the hotel being used for asylum accommodation.
The council argued that the hotel posed a public safety risk and that its use breached planning rules.
The hotel became the focus of national attention after resident Hadush Kebatu was accused of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl. He has denied the charges, which include sexual assault, attempted sexual assault, and harassment without violence. His trial began this week.
Protests in Epping have since spread to other parts of Britain, as small boat arrivals across the Channel continue.
(With inputs from agencies)
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The Department of Health said the rollout would reduce missed days at nursery and school, cut time parents take off work, and save the NHS about £15 million a year. (Representational image: iStock)
CHILDREN in England will be offered a free chickenpox vaccine for the first time from January 2026, the government has announced.
GP practices will give eligible children a combined vaccine for measles, mumps, rubella and varicella (MMRV) as part of the routine childhood vaccination schedule. Around half a million children each year are expected to be protected.
The Department of Health said the rollout would reduce missed days at nursery and school, cut time parents take off work, and save the NHS about £15 million a year. Research estimates chickenpox in childhood leads to £24 million in lost income and productivity annually.
Minister of State for Care, Stephen Kinnock, said: “We’re giving parents the power to protect their children from chickenpox and its serious complications, while keeping them in nursery or the classroom where they belong and preventing parents from scrambling for childcare or having to miss work. This vaccine puts children’s health first and gives working families the support they deserve. As part of our Plan for Change, we want to give every child the best possible start in life, and this rollout will help to do exactly that.”
Dr Gayatri Amirthalingam, Deputy Director of Immunisation at the UK Health Security Agency, said: “Most parents probably consider chickenpox to be a common and mild illness, but for some babies, young children and even adults, chickenpox can be very serious, leading to hospital admission and tragically, while rare, it can be fatal. It is excellent news that from next January we will be introducing a vaccine to protect against chickenpox into the NHS routine childhood vaccination programme – helping prevent what is for most a nasty illness and for those who develop severe symptoms, it could be a life saver.”
Amanda Doyle, National Director for Primary Care and Community Services at NHS England, said: “This is a hugely positive moment for families as the NHS gets ready to roll out a vaccine to protect children against chickenpox for the first time, adding to the arsenal of other routine jabs that safeguard against serious illness.”
The eligibility criteria will be set out in clinical guidance, and parents will be contacted by their GP surgery if their child is eligible.
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People demonstrate near the Bell Hotel on July 20, 2025 in Epping, England. (Photo: Getty Images)
Government appeals against injunction blocking asylum housing at Bell Hotel in Epping
More than 32,000 asylum seekers currently housed in UK hotels
Labour pledges to end hotel use for asylum seekers before 2029 election
THE UK government on Thursday asked the Court of Appeal to lift a ban on housing asylum seekers at a hotel that has faced protests, warning the order could set "a precedent".
The Home Office is seeking to overturn a high court injunction issued earlier this month that requires authorities to remove migrants from the Bell Hotel in Epping, northeast London, by September 12.
The decision was a setback for prime minister Keir Starmer's Labour government, which is already accommodating 32,345 asylum seekers in hotels across the UK as of the end of March.
Protests began in July outside the Bell Hotel after an asylum seeker staying there was accused of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl. Ethiopian national Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu has denied charges of sexual assault, attempted sexual assault, and harassment without violence.
Some of the protests turned violent and spread to other parts of the country. Epping Forest district council then took legal action against the ministry, arguing that the hotel had become a public safety risk and breached planning rules.
Other councils have suggested they may take similar steps, creating difficulties for the government, which is legally obliged under a 1999 law to house "all destitute asylum seekers whilst their asylum claims are being decided".
The Bell Hotel’s owner, Somani Hotels, and the Home Office argued that the site had previously housed asylum seekers between 2020-2021 and 2022-2024, and said the Epping protests were not linked to planning concerns.
Government official Becca Jones told the court that losing 152 spaces at the Bell Hotel would be "significant" for the limited accommodation pool.
"Granting the interim injunction ... risks setting a precedent which would have a serious impact on the secretary of state's ability to house vulnerable people," Jones said.
She added that the order could also encourage local councils looking to block asylum housing and "those who seek to target asylum accommodation in acts of public disorder."
Three senior Appeal Court judges said they would deliver their ruling at 2pm on Friday.
Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, said councils run by his party would also pursue legal action against asylum housing.
Since Keir Starmer took office in July 2024, more than 50,000 migrants have crossed from northern France to the UK in small boats, adding pressure on the government and fuelling criticism from far-right politicians.
Labour has pledged to end the use of hotels for asylum seekers before the next election, expected in 2029, to cut government spending.