Amidst protests foundation stone laid for Koosamma Shetty Haji Abdulla hospital

Panaji, Feb 6: Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Wednesday told the Legislative Assembly that neighbouring Karnataka has diverted the Mahadayi river water, due to which its flow in the state has taken a hit.

He was speaking during a debate on the motion of thanks to Governor Satya Pal Malik for his address.

Goa and Karnataka are locked in a dispute over sharing of the Mahadayi river water. Goa is strongly opposing the Kalasa Banduri project proposed to be built by Karnataka on the river, which is aimed at providing drinking water to three north Karnataka districts by diverting the Mahadayi water into the Malaprabha river.

Speaking in the House, Sawant said that the flow of Mahadayi river has reduced due to the diversion of water by Karnataka.

"I am admitting that they (Karnataka) have diverted the water. We have brought it to the notice of the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change," he said.

The Goa government has explained to the Centre that the water which flows into the state is "not wasted".

"We have told them that the perennial flow of water is necessary for Goa's wildlife," he said.

Sawant said that his government was serious on the issue of Mahadayi.

"Mahadayi is more than a mother to me. We have not compromised anywhere on the issue. I have been associated with the Mahadayi agitation since 2000," the chief minister said.

He said the issue would be fought before the Supreme Court, where special leave petition has been filed by the state.

Udupi, Jun 28: The Padubidri police have booked cases against two patients of Novel Coronavirus for not revealing their primary contacts and hiding their travel history.

According to DHO Sudhirchandra Sooda, two siblings from Hejamadi in Padubidri had tested positive for COVID-19 recently. After shifting to the hospital, when the officials asked them about their primary contacts and travel history, the patients furnished false information.

When the officials collected information from various sources, they realised that the duo had travelled to Bantwal, Kasargod, Ullal and other places in Dakshina Kannada, said Dr Sooda. Hence, the district administration decided to file cases against them, he added.

Bengaluru, Apr 6: The Covid-19 Task Force aims to conduct 80,000 throat swab and blood tests over the next three weeks here.

According to Task Force Nodal Officer C N Manjunath an order for one lakh anti-body test kits has been placed, and was expected to arrive on April 12.

"From January 20 to March 23, more than 1.2 lakh people arrived at international airports from abroad. Of these, we have kept 37,358 under observation. The Health officials and personnel in fever clinics and hospitals are being trained to conduct the tests. There is no necessity to obtain a clearance to test people with suspected infection. Only laboratories need to get permission to test their blood and throat swab samples."