78 students withfake marks cards' barred from degree exams

Bengaluru, Apr 16: The Karnataka government on Wednesday identified 14 departments as essential and asked all its employees to attend work during the extended period of lockdown to check coronavirus spread in the state.

According to a circular issued by Chief Secretary TM Vijay Bhaskar, all classes of officials/employees in these departments must attend to their work.

The departments are: Health and Family Welfare, Medical Education, Home, Revenue, Rural Development and Panchayat Raj, Urban Development, Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs, Information and Public Relations, Transport, Energy, Personnel and Administrative Reforms (e-Governance), Finance (including treasuries), Animal Husbandry and Fisheries and Forest, Ecology and Environment.

In all other departments, only Group-A officers have been directed to report for duty.

However, those visually-impaired or physically-

handicapped are exempt from work, the circular said, adding that this norms will be valid till April 19.

Bidar, Apr 2: Karnataka Health Minister B Sriramulu on Thursday confirmed that 11 people out of 27 in Bidar, who had participated in Tablighi Jamaat at Delhi's Nizamuddin Markat have been tested positive for COVID-19.

Speaking to news agency, Karnataka Health Minister said, "We are monitoring 362 people who had attended Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi. Out of 27 people from Bidar who had attended, 11 have tested positive for COVID-19, while results of 16 others are awaited. Total positive cases in the state are 121."
Meanwhile, Tablighi Jamaat's Maulana Saad has stated that he will fully support the government in its fight against the coronavirus.

This comes soon after an FIR was registered against him in connection with the religious gathering organised in Markaz Nizamuddin area of the national capital.

A huge religious gathering was held at the Markaz building in Nizamuddin between March 13-15, the event came into the spotlight after multiple coronavirus cases were confirmed amongst those who attended the event held in mid-March.

An FIR has been registered against Tablighi Jamaat head Maulana Saad and others under the Epidemic Disease Act 1897 in Delhi.
A total of 2,361 people were brought out from the Markaz in a joint operation by authorities which lasted for over 36 hours, following which the South Delhi Municipal Corporation had carried out a sanitisation of the premises and nearby area.

Bengaluru, Jun 30: To instill confidence among its commuters, the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) has decided to put stamp on hand of all passengers before they are allowed to board the buses.

In a statement issued here on Tuesday, The decision was taken in the wake of a sudden jump in the number of COVID-19 cases reported from Bengaluru.

The round stamp is, however, different from 'home-quarantine' stamp applied to infected and they were not allowed to travel. Officials said that the measure is aimed at reassuring passengers that those travelling with them do not have symptoms. The left hand will be stamped with an ink which can be washed away by the time they reach home.