Another NRI arrested from airport in 2006 Kerala twin blasts case

Kozhikode, Jun 14: A mosque in Kuttichira of Kozhikode has found a unique way to avoid crowding amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The committee that runs the mosque has started issuing smart cards to people for offering prayers and simultaneously encouraging social distancing.

"The committee has given smart cards with numbers to the people in the surroundings of the Masjid. One who enters the mosque premises has to rub their hands with sanitizers. They also have to tell their identity on camera. The automatic system has been put in place to save the address and phone number. Next time onwards they have to say their smart card number only so that other details will be automatically filled," said Muhammad Sajjad, who is part of the Mosque committee.

"The door of the mosque will open automatically after swiping the card. We have fit in a sensor on the doors. We have also made marks inside the mosque area so that people can abide by social distancing norm," he added.

A couple of days back the Kerala government has rolled out an order allowing the opening of places of worship, malls and restaurants from June 9 in strict accordance with guidelines and social distancing norms. As per the guidelines, pregnant women and those with co-morbidities should not visit any places of worship. Those with symptoms should not be allowed.

Mangaluru, Jan 7: Kasturba Medical College Mangaluru, a constituent unit of Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), in association with Pai Family Endowment (in memory of Shri Suhas Gopal Pai) as its social initiative opens a newborn hearing assessment centre at Govt Lady Goshen Hospital on Tuesday.

Dr M Venkatraya Prabhu, Dean of KMC Mangaluru addressing the media persons said that the project is made possible by the generous philanthropic contribution of Mrs Anuradha (Shanthi)Gopal Pai and will be inaugurated by her in Presence of Dr H Vinod Bhat, Vice-Chancellor of MAHE.

Dr Deepak Madi, Deputy Medical Superintendent KMC Hospital Attavar explained that the facility will be managed by the departments from Audiology, ENT and Paediatrics of Kasturba Medical College, Mangaluru. The Centre aims to screen all the babies born in the hospital for hearing loss.

This is the maiden initiative of the MAHE-Pai Family endowment which has been set up to find solutions for the numerous challenges faced by the hearing handicapped in & around Dakshina Kannada district.

Kochi, Apr 18: The Centre on Friday informed the Kerala High Court that there was no immediate plan to bring back the Indian citizens stranded in the Gulf countries due to the novel coronavirus outbreak and that the expatriates had been granted visa extension.

The counsel for the central government made the submission before a division bench comprising justices Rajavijayaraghavan and T R Ravi during the hearing of a plea seeking a direction to bring back Indians stranded in the UAE.

Permission of the Gulf countries was required to send medical teams there to carry out medical examination of the stranded Indians, the counsel said when the court sought to know the Centre's view on Kerala government sending medical teams to the Gulf countries to deal with the issue of COVID-19 disease among Malayalees there.

The court posted the plea for April 21 for consideration after the Central government informed that a similar petition is under consideration of the Supreme Court.

In its plea, Kerala Muslim Cultural Centre (KMCC) in Dubai, the organisation for non-resident Indians from Kerala, sought directions to the Ministries of External Affairs and Civil Aviation to provide exemptions in the international air travel ban to bring back Indians stranded in the UAE.

The petitioners noted that those who return could be kept in quarantine as per the protocol of the World Health Organisation (WHO).