Activist Trupti Desai says will visit Sabarimala soon

Agencies
October 13, 2018

Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 13: Thousands of Lord Ayyappa devotees on Saturday took to the streets in Kochi against the implementation of the Supreme Court verdict allowing women of all age groups into Sabarimala temple, even as activist Trupti Desai announced plans to visit the hill shrine soon.

The Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) government, which decided to implement the ruling, held a meeting in Thiruvananthapuram to evaluate the preparations carried out for pilgrims arriving at the temple which will open for monthly poojas on October 17 evening.

Though the government has not reacted to Desai's planned trip to the temple yet, it has evoked sharp reactions from Ayyappa devotees and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which is campaigning against the entry of women into the hill shrine.

Padalam royal family member, Sasikumar Varma criticised Desai and urged the social activist to refrain from making any "provocative' move.

He also asked the Left government to take steps to prevent any law and order situation.

Desai, the 'Bhumata Brigade' leader, said in Mumbai that she along with a group of women would visit the temple "shortly" to offer prayers.

"We will visit Sabarimala shortly. The ongoing agitation by devotees is the violation of the Supreme Court verdict. I appeal the agitating devotees to welcome those women who come for worship at the hill shrine," she told Malayalam TV channels.

"I want to ask the Congress and the BJP whether they are against the fundamental rights of women. The parties should also explain their stand on this," Desai said.

Holding placards bearing pictures of Lord Ayyappa and chanting his hymns, the protesters marched through the busy roads of Kochi, the state's commercial hub, after launching the stir from the famed Shiva temple there.

The faithful, a large number of them women, urged both the Central and the state governments to intervene in the matter to protect the sanctity of the centuries-old rituals and traditions of the hill shrine.

Meanwhile, the 'Long March' led by BJP-headed National Democratic Alliance (NDA) reached Kollam district on Saturday.

Party state president, P S Sreedharan Pillai, who lead the rally, said Desai was visiting Sabarimala as she perceived it to be a challenge rather than a pilgrimage.

"It is a dangerous approach. She should desist from visiting the shrine and should not make Sabarimala a tension zone," he said.

"I do not know whether she is a devotee or not. But she is coming to add fuel to the fire," Pillai added.

Claiming that the NDA rally was getting tremendous support from all sections of people, the leader said the march would reach the state capital on October 15.

It was because of the success of the NDA long march that the ruling CPI(M)-led LDF was forced to launch counter-campaigns and family get-togethers to explain the Left government's stand on the Sabarimala issue, Pillai added.

Activist Rahul Easwar, who already announced hunger strike at Sabarimala during the five-day monthly pooja period, said they would stop Trupti Desai if she attempts to visit the Lord Ayyappa Temple.

"Ours will be a Gandhian mode of protest. Hundreds of devotees will lay down on roads leading to Sabarimala if Trupti Desai attempts to visit the shrine," he said.

Kerala has been witnessing a series of agitations by various devotee groups and Hindu outfits against the Pinarayi Vijayan government's decision to implement the apex court order without going for any review petition.

Besides BJP, the opposition Congress was also against the government's decision not to go for a review and extended support to the devotee's stir.

On September 28, a five-judge Constitution bench, headed by the then chief justice Dipak Misra, lifted the ban on the entry of women of menstrual age into the shrine.

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News Network
March 28,2020

Mumbai, Mar 28: Doctors in Mumbai have not been spared by the novel coronavirus. As Mumbai’s count for Covid-19 cases went up to 58, an octogenarian doctor from Saifee Hospital passed away on Friday. He was a suspected case of coronavirus with co-morbid conditions like diabetes and had a pacemaker implanted, said a press release from the state health department.

As per a statement from Saifee Hospital, he underwent a CT scan at Saifee Hospital and was diagnosed positive for Covid-19. The surgeon was transferred to the special isolation facility at PD Hinduja Hospital where he subsequently died. Behranwala’s close relatives had come down from England and were under quarantine.

In a statement, Saifee Hospital, where Behranwala underwent CT scan, said, "All containment and surveillance measures have been implemented to ensure the safety of our staff patients and visitors. Saifee Hospital reiterates that the Hospital is fully operational," said Dr Vernon Desa, Director (Medical governance and clinical compliance) Saifee Hospital.

In the second case, an Andheri-based doctor, aged 53, has been tested positive along with his 43-year-old wife and 20-year-old daughter. The family doesn’t have a travel history. The doctor reportedly came in contact with the virus through a patient. MCGM has taken samples of 60 patients who came in contact with the doctor. "As of now, no patient from his contact has tested positive," Assistant Commissioner, Vishwas Mote.

Another doctor who practiced at Vakola tested positive after he came in contact with a person having travel history to Italy, later tested positive. The doctor has been admitted at Raheja hospital and samples of his close contact have been taken.

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Agencies
March 15,2020

New Delhi, Mar 15: The number of novel coronavirus cases in the country rose to 107 on Sunday, with 12 fresh cases in Maharashtra, the Union Health Ministry said.

The number of cases include two persons who died in Delhi and Karnataka.

While a 76-year-old man from Kalaburagi who had recently returned from Saudi Arabia died on Thursday, a 68-year-old woman in Delhi who had tested positive for coronavirus passed away at the Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital on Friday night.

Delhi has reported seven positive cases and Uttar Pradesh 11 so far. Karnataka has six coronavirus patients while Maharashtra 31, Ladakh three and Jammu and Kashmir 2. Telangana reported three cases.

Besides, Rajasthan also reported two cases. Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Punjab have reported one case each.

Kerala has recorded 22 cases, including three patients who were discharged last month after they recovered from the contagious infection with flu-like symptoms.

The total number of confirmed cases includes 17 foreigners -- 16 Italian tourists and a Canadian, the ministry officials said

Amid rising coronavirus cases in India, the government has asked people not to panic, saying no community transmission of the virus has been observed and there has only been a few cases of local transmission so far and that it is "not a health emergency" in India at present.

With the World Health Organisation (WHO) declaring COVID-19 a pandemic, a Health Ministry official said over 4,000 people who had come in contact with the 93 positive cases have been identified through contact tracing and were being tracked while 42,000 people across the country are under community surveillance.

He said all essential facilities like community surveillance, quarantine, isolation wards, adequate personal protective equipment (PPEs), trained manpower, rapid response teams are being strengthened further in all states and union territories.

The government on Wednesday suspended all visas, barring a few categories like diplomatic and employment, in an attempt to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

It has asked Indian nationals to avoid all non-essential travel abroad.

All incoming international passengers returning to India should self-monitor their health and follow the required do's and dont's as detailed by the government.

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News Network
June 5,2020

Jun 5: Underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and his wife Mahzabeen have tested positive for COVID-19, a top government source told CNN News 18. They were admitted to the Army Hospital in Karachi.

Some of Dawood's personal staff and guards have also been quarantined, the report said on Friday.

Dawood was the mastermind of the 1993 Mumbai blasts and is one of the most-wanted gangsters by India. He has allegedly been living in Pakistan but the neighbouring country has always refusing to accept it.

Earlier in the day, a senior diplomat of the American embassy in Pakistan has tested positive for the novel coronavirus, a media report said.

In a statement, the embassy's spokesman said that while maintaining the privacy, the name of the citizen would not be disclosed.

The US State Department is responsible to protect its citizens, wherever they are, the spokesman added. In coordination with the Pakistani authorities, the consulate is working to enforce the coronavirus protocol in order to stem its spread. The spokesman added that isolation wards, contact tracing and quarantine facility are part of such protocols.

Meanwhile, Pakistan has 89,249 COVID-19 cases and the death toll is 1,838.

 

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