Bus rams into gas tanker after its driver averts collision with school van

Bengaluru, May 4: Former Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy on Sunday said that the health of the migrants who have been allowed to move, should not be jeopardized and appropriate tests must be conducted.

"The task was to send the workers to their places. However, their health should not be jeopardized. This decision made for their benefit should not be a travesty for them. There will also be physical interference on the buses and appropriate tests must be done," said Kumaraswamy.

"The lockdown, which was implemented without any prerequisites, is now loosened without warning. The state government, which has allowed migrant workers to move to the city, has mobilized large numbers of people. By this, the government is playing with their health," he added.

He continued saying that the government should not lose out on an unscientific move that resulted in the loss of thousands of crores of rupees from a custodial lockdown.

"Workers and villages must be sober. The government must take all necessary precautions in this regard," he added.

Mumbai, June 7: As the Maharashtra government has given green signal for outdoor physical activities under 'Mission Begin Again' despite amidst growing cases of covid-19,  thousands of Mumbaikars flocked to Marine Drive for 'morning walks' on Sunday.

People were seen wearing masks as a precaution from the novel coronavirus pandemic, however, from the viral photo, it seems that no social distancing norms were followed what so ever.

"Better call it marne waalon ka drive," said a Twitter user. "Still people have no sense of responsibility," said another Twitter user.

After nearly 80 days of lockdown, Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra revved back to life on Friday. 

Most markets, market areas, commercial and trading areas - barring malls or market complexes - reopened for business even as Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray reiterated that "people should tread cautiously while beginning a 'new life' from today".

Meanwhile, of the total 82,968 cases in Maharashtra, Mumbai now accounts for 47,354 cases and 1,577 deaths.

On Saturday, Maharashtra reported 120 deaths, including 58 in Mumbai, due to COVID-19, taking the overall number of fatalities to 2,969, state Health department said.

The recovery rate in the state stands at 45.06 per cent and the fatality rate at 3.57 per cent, an official statement said.

Bengaluru, jul 6: With coronavirus cases surging and hospitals saturated with patients, the Karnataka government is setting up intensive care units (ICUs) at COVID Care Centres (CCC) in the state for severe cases needing oxygen, Deputy Chief Minister C N Ashwath Narayan said on Sunday.

Covid Care Centres are usually meant for patients who are asymptomatic or have mild symptoms.

"Initially, 10 ICUs will be set up at every CCC in Bengaluru and in other cities and towns across the state subsequently," Narayan said in a statement in Bengaluru.

The state government has set up CCCs at the GKVK campus, the Haj Bhavan and the Art of Living Foundation campus in the city so far. The government has also set up a more than 10,000 bed CCC facility in BIEC, on Tumkur road, on the outskirts of the city.

"About 100 ICUs will be set up soon at the new CCCs opened at the Bangalore International Exhibition Centre (BIEC), Ayurveda College, and Koramangala Indoor Stadium," said Narayan.

The sprawling BEIC in the city's northwest will soon have 10,100 beds for treating Covid patients and asymptomatic cases from state-run hospitals.

The state government has also relieved all Health Department employees from administrative and non-medical duties to depute them at the CCCs.

On complaints about the poor quality of food served to Covid patients and the medical staff, Narayan warned the vendors of cancelling their contracts if they did not supply good quality food as per the guidelines.

The minister also directed the Health Department to ensure adequate supply of drugs and medical equipment to all CCCs and state-run hospitals for treating Covid patients.

With a record 1,925 new cases reported on Sunday, the state's tally touched 23,474, including 13,251 active after 9,847 were discharged (including 603 on Sunday), while 372 succumbed to the infection since March 9, with 37 more deaths on Sunday.

Of the total cases across the state, Bengaluru accounted for 1,235, taking its tally to 9,580, including 8,167 while 145 died so far.