Justice Katju SIMI encounter was fake, demands death penalty for cops

Bengaluru, Apr 19: A recent government order prohibiting congregations, Ramadan prayers is discriminatory and needs to be withdrawn, JD(S) MLC B M Farookh has demanded.

In a letter to the chief secretary, Farookh pointed out that the order contained certain conditions such as restriction of the use of public address system and delivering Azan in low decibels, which had nothing to do with the prevention of Covid-19 disease.

“These days, Azan includes a call for the community to pray at home and does not offer namaz at mosque. The order also prohibits preparation and distribution of porridge, which has always been taken up in the interest of the poor. The High Court has noted that the relief distribution by NGOs or individuals should not be prevented and the state machinery has to coordinate the same by ensuring social distancing. The ban on distribution of porridge by mosques amounts to discrimination. The order needs to be withdrawn or revisited,” he wrote in his letter.

Further, observing that a religious fair was conducted in Kalaburagi recently, in violation of the government’s social distancing norms, Farookh sought the government to ensure that social distancing norms are enforced with regard to festivals of all communities without discrimination.

Bengaluru, Feb 9: The Karnataka Health and Family Welfare Services Department has kept 138 persons across the state under observation in the wake of novel coronavirus (nCov) scare, a health official said on Saturday.

"We are observing 138 people across the state, including in Bengaluru," the department's Communicable Diseases Wing Joint Director Prakash Kumar told news agency.

Though no coronavirus-positive case has been reported from Karnataka so far, four persons have been admitted in a state hospital under medical observation, Kumar confirmed.

Of the 104 samples sent for testing from the state, 85 have, so far, been declared negative. As many as 130 persons in the state were kept under home-isolation observation.

Four Karnataka districts bordering Kerala — Kodagu, Mangluru, Chamarajanagar and Mysuru — continue to be under surveillance after three positive coronavirus cases were reported in Kerala.

On Saturday, it was reported that three persons from Udupi were isolated at the Ajjarkad Government Hospital. Two of them had travelled to China while the other had returned to Udupi from Japan.

From January 20 till Saturday, 14,153 passengers underwent thermal screening at the Kempegowda International Airport, including three who had a history of visiting China’s Wuhan, the epicenter of the nCoV outbreak.

The '104 Arogya Sahayavani' call centre, which people can call for guidance on coronavirus, has clocked 1,792 calls so far.

"In case people with recent travel history to China and other affected countries develop any symptoms, they are requested to call 104 or health authorities and provide all necessary details in order to take necessary measures and are requested to be quarantined at home," reiterated the department.

Three confirmed cases of coronavirus were earlier reported in Kerala and over 722 deaths were confirmed around the world, mostly in mainland China.

Bengaluru, Apr 28: There are a total of 523 COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed in the state, Department of Health and Family Welfare of Karnataka informed on Tuesday.
It informed that there are 295 active COVID-19 cases in Karnataka presently, while 207 patients have been discharged, 20 deaths have been reported.

According to a district-wise breakup, a maximum of 131 cases were reported from Bengaluru urban, followed by Mysuru with 87 cases and Belagavi with 52 cases.

India's total number of coronavirus positive cases rises to 29,974 (including 22010 active cases, 7027 cured/discharged/migrated and 937 deaths), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said on Tuesday.