Always opposed terrorism; Ready to face any probe: Dr Zakir Naik

Dubai: The father of a 16-year old girl who came on a visit visa to the UAE to visit him is desperate for help as she has been hospitalised, even as he has been rendered jobless.

On February 6, Amber D’Couto flew into Dubai from Mangaluru, India, along with her older sister, Alison, 19. The girls wanted to visit their dad Vivian D’Couto who was working in an automobile company at Jebel Ali.

The father was overjoyed to meet his girls until things took an ugly turn.

Two months into her stay, Amber fell seriously ill, even as D’Couto was served a termination letter by his company.

D’Couto said his daughter, a Grade 10 student, was perfectly healthly but suddenly developed high fever and began vomiting. She was rushed to a private hospital in Qusais which could not accommodate her because of the ongoing COVID-19 situation.

On April 30, she was admitted to another private hospital in the same area. After testing negative for COVID-19 thrice, she was diagnosed with acute pancreatis and Rheumatoid fever.

While the girl remains in hospital, the bill has spiralled to over Dh50,000, D’Couto said, adding that without a job now, he had no means to pay the huge amount.

“Amber is a very sweet child and a very bright student. She was living a very healthy life prior to coming to Dubai. But she is so ill now and under round-the-clock vigil in the ICU. The treatment for her condition is very specific and costly.”

A worried man, he said: “My daughter was on a visit visa and she had no insurance. We appeal to compassionate people to help us out in this difficult hour. Due to the current situation, I have lost my job and I am unable to pay for her medical expenses. Her condition has not stabilised yet and I am taking each day as it comes. I trust the doctors to help her recover, and we hope to be repatriated to India at the earliest so she can get further medical care.”

Mangaluru, May 5: Even though India is all set to bring back Indian nationals stranded abroad through special commercial flights, no flights have been arranged for the repatriation Kannadigas stuck in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the first phase (May 7 to May 14). However a few flights will fly from Saudi to Kerala and Delhi.

The government is likely to introduce flights from Saudi Arabia to Karnataka (Bengaluru and Mangaluru Airports) in second or third phase.

Fill the Form

All Indian nationals in Saudi Arabia who seek repatriation are supposed to fill form in the following link: https://t.co/K5Hbmr4cFP 

Meanwhile, the Indian Embassy in Riyadh has clarified that the purpose is only to collect data and no decision has been taken yet regarding resumption of flights.

High airfare

Even though some GCC governments paid the ticket fares to bring back their citizens, the government of India has clarified that it will not pay the ticket fares of Indian nationals stranded abroad. It is predicted that tickets on repatriation flights from Saudi Arabia to India could be costlier than regular airfare.

Only asymptomatic can travel 

As per Standard Operating Protocol, medical screening of passengers would be done before taking the flight. Only asymptomatic passengers would be allowed to travel. During the journey, all these passengers would have to follow the protocols, such as the health protocols, issued by the ministry of health and the ministry of civil aviation," it said in a statement.

Mandatory quarantine

The govt has made elaborate arrangements to conduct medical test on arrival at the Airports. As per plan, based on medical check-up, passengers will be categorised as group A/B/C. Later, they will be quarantined for the mandated days

Respective district administrations have taken steps to quarantine people returning from outside India. Marriages halls, general halls and hostels are being identified for the quarantine.

Bengaluru, May 17: At least 54 new COVID-19 positive cases have emerged since last evening, raising Karnataka's tally to 1,146, a health official said today.

Among the 1,146 cases, 611 are active and isolated in designated hospitals across the state, 497 patients got discharged and 37 died of the virus.

Of the new cases, Mandya district alone reported 22 cases, followed by 10 in Kalaburgi, 6 in Hassan, 4 in Dharward, 3 each in Kolar and Yadgir, 2 each in Dakshina Kannada and Shivamogga and 1 each in Udupi and Shivamogga.

New Cases Reported: 54
Total Active Cases: 611
Total Discharges: 497
Total Covid Deaths: 37
Death of Covid +ve patient due to Non-Covid cause: 1
Total Positive Cases: 1146