Yoga not part of any religion: Kerala CM; Nitish skips event in Bihar

Agencies
June 21, 2018

Thiruvananthapuram/Patna, Jun 21: As millions of yoga enthusiasts stretched and twisted their bodies today, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said yoga should not be seen as part of any religious practice while key BJP ally and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar skipped the International Yoga Day event yet again.

Speaking at the state-level celebrations in Thiruvananthapuram, Vijayan, a CPI-M veteran, however lauded the greatness and benefits of yoga.

Yoga can be practised by all, irrespective of caste and religion, he said, adding it should be done with a 'free and secular' mind. Vijayan said the LDF government has taken steps to set up a yoga and naturopathy centre of international standards in the state.

Stating that yoga was an exercise and not part of any ritual, Vijayan lamented that attempts were being made by some groups to "hijack" it in the name of religion.

"This kind of false propaganda will only keep common people away from yoga and reduce its popularity," he said.

Terming yoga as a 'good exercise' for the body and mind, the chief minister said, "though there may be many other forms of exercises in the world, there is nothing as good as yoga especially for the mental health and well-being." 

In Bihar, Nitish Kumar did not participate in the main Yoga Day event in Patna which set tongues wagging. The event was inaugurated by Governor Satya Pal Malik and attended by top BJP leaders including union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi.

However, both the ruling allies--JD(U) and BJP-- sought to play down the issue.

The JD(U) said Kumar has been practising yoga daily even before it was declared as an International Day by the United Nations in 2015 and "it would be wrong to attach any political meaning to personal decisions." 

When asked about Kumar's absence at the event, both Prasad and Modi insisted that what was important was that people practised yoga regularly, wherever they chose, and that the presence or absence of a public figure must not be politicized .

Nitish Kumar, who himself is a regular yoga practitioner and is said to have learnt the ancient practice from noted exponents at the renowned Bihar School of Yoga at Munger, has been critical of the mass yoga drill organized on June 21 every year since 2015.

Speculation was rife that Kumar might take part in the celebrations this year following his return to the BJP-led NDA in August last which he had left in 2013. But, he was conspicuous by his absence at the mega event held at Patliputra sports complex.

We know that Nitish Kumar is a yoga enthusiast. And that is what is important. Please do not politicize the issue , Union Law minister Ravishankar Prasad, who had arrived from New Delhi to attend the celebrations, told reporters in Patna.

Sushil Modi on his part asked, "why do you want to make an issue out of Nitish Kumar's absence?" 

"There are many BJP leaders who could not make it to the function. There may be many leaders, not just in JD(U) but even in opposition parties like the RJD, who practice yoga regularly. Would you try to derive a political meaning out of that? 

JD(U) spokesman Rajiv Ranjan Prasad said the party leaders including Nitish Kumar begin their day with yoga.

"We did so today also. We have been practicing yoga since much before the International Yoga Day came into being...There is no party stand, as such, with regard to taking part in the celebrations. Hence, it would be wrong to attach any political meaning to personal decisions .

Opposition RJD latched on to Kumar's absence to take a dig at him.

In a statement, RJD national vice-president Shivanand Tiwary said it was "part of the old strategy of Nitish to appear different from his allies and then make a volte face." Tiwary is a former associate of the chief minister.

In Kolkata, BJP national secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya asked by newsmen if there is lack of enthusiasm in celebrating the Yoga day in West Bengal, said it was a matter of regret the Mamata Banerjee government was finding politics in everything.

"Yoga Day is also being celebrated in Islamic countries of the world, but the West Bengal government is politicising everything," he said.

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Mr Frank
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Friday, 22 Jun 2018

The only punishment for this kind of killing is natural disaster sooner or later they will regret for their crime.

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Agencies
June 19,2020

Kota, Jun 19: In a shocking incident, a COVID-19 patient in Rajasthan's Kota district died after his family disconnected the ventilator to plug in the air cooler to combat the scorching heat.

The incident happened on June 15 in the Maharao Bhimsingh Hospital (MBS) hospital.

A committee was formed soon after the death was reported, which will submit its report on Friday at 4 p.m., hospital Medical Superintendent Naveen Saxena told media persons.

He said, "We have set up the committee to investigate the incident based on the primary information. The committee includes deputy superintendent of the hospital, nursing superintendent and CMO. We will look into the matter and then shall explore further action for a need to go to the police."

The family members of the COVID-19 patient, who came to meet him in the MBS hospital unplugged the ventilator and had put on the cooler switch which they had brought from outside. The ventilator worked for some time on the battery but later it collapsed and the patient turned critical.

The doctors were reported of the patient's critical condition who came rushing and did all they could do to save his life, but the result was unfavourable and the patient died.

The doctors were reported of the patient's critical condition who came rushing and did all they could do to save his life, but the result was unfavourable and the patient died.

The relatives, on the other hand, attacked the resident doctors after the patient died.

Doctor Varun, on duty, submitted a written complaint to the officials, alleging that the patients' relatives misbehaved with the staff. Other resident doctors also supported him and boycotted work very briefly, but then later resumed work.

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Agencies
January 9,2020

The World Bank says that a lack of credit and drop in private consumption have led to a gloomy growth outlook for India with a steep cut in growth rate for the current fiscal year and only a modest gain projected for the next year.

India's growth rate is forecast to be only 5 per cent for the current fiscal year, weighed down by a growth of only 4.5 per cent in the July-September quarter, according to the 2020 Global Economic Prospects report released on Wednesday.

"In India, [economic] activity was constrained by insufficient credit availability, as well as by subdued private consumption," the Bank said.

The growth rate is forecast by the Bank to pick up to 5.8 per cent in the next fiscal year and to 6.1 per cent in 2021-22.

India's growth rate was 6.8 per cent in 2018-19.

The 5 per cent growth rate projection for the current financial year is a sharp cut of 2.5 per cent from the 7.5 per cent forecast made by the Bank in January last year, toppling it from the rank of the world's fastest growing economy.

India's performance follows a global trend of lowered growth weighed down by developed economies.

The report estimated world economic growth rate to be only 2.4 per cent last year and forecast it to edge up 0.1 per cent to 2.5 per cent in the current year.

Even with the lower growth rate of 5 per cent in the current fiscal year and 5.8 per cent forecast for the next, India holds the second rank among large economies, behind only China with an estimated growth rate of 6.1 per cent for 2019 and 5.9 per cent this year.

The report blamed "weak confidence, liquidity issues in the financial sector" and "weakness in credit from non-bank financial companies" for India's slowdown.

The Bank predicated India's recovery to 5.8 per cent in the coming financial year for India but "on the monetary policy stance remaining accommodative" and the assumption that "the stimulative fiscal and structural measures already taken will begin to pay off."

It also warned that sharper-than-expected slowdown in major external markets such as United States and Europe, would affect South Asia through trade, financial, and confidence channels, especially for countries with strong trade links to these economies."

The Bank said that the growth of advanced economies was 1.6 per cent last year and "is anticipated to slip to 1.4 per cent in 2020 in part due to continued softness in manufacturing."

In contrast the growth of emerging market and developing countries is expected to accelerate from 3.5 per cent last year to 4.1 per cent this year, the report said.

In South Asia, Bangladesh is estimated to have the highest growth rate of 7.2 per cent in the current fiscal year, although down from 8.1 per cent last fiscal year.

But its higher regional growth rates are coming off a lower base with a per capital gross domestic product of $1,698 compared to $2,010 for India.

Bangladesh is expected to grow by 7.3 per cent in the next financial year.

Pakistan's growth rate is estimated at only 2.4 per cent in the current fiscal year and is projected to rise to 3 per cent in the next, according to the Bank.

The Bank blamed monetary tightening in Pakistan for a sharp deceleration in fixed investment and a considerable softening in private consumption for the fall in growth rate from 3.3 per cent in the 2018-19 fiscal year.

Sri Lanka's growth rate was estimated to be 2.7 per cent last year and forecast to grow to 3.3 per cent this year.

Nepal grew by an estimated 6.4 per cent in the current fiscal year and will rise to 6.5 per cent in the next.

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News Network
June 17,2020

New Delhi, Jun 17: With an increase of 10,974 new cases and 2,003 deaths in the last 24 hours, India's COVID-19 count reached 3,54,065 on Wednesday while the toll due to the virus stands at 11,903.

This includes 1,55,227 active cases and 1,86,935 cured, discharged and migrated patients, according to the Union Health Ministry.

While the spike in the number of cases has stayed below the 11-thousand mark, the death toll has increased manifold today as compared to the 380 death reported on Tuesday.

Maharashtra with 1,13,445 cases continues to be the worst-affected state in the country with 50,057 active cases while 57,851 patients have been cured and discharged in the state so far. The toll due to COVID-19 has crossed the five thousand mark and reached 5,537 in the state.

It is followed by Tamil Nadu with 48,019 and the national capital with 44,688 confirmed cases.

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