Black flag protests in Tamil Nadu against PM's Madurai visit

Alappuzha, Apr 5: Coming to the rescue of a toddler in need of crucial treatment for cancer, the Kerala health department scrambled its resources for transporting a toddler from here to Hyderabad on Sunday.

In a co-ordinated action, the department arranged for an ambulance and necessary travel permits for the nearly 16-hour 1,100 km inter-state journey that started at 7.15 am from Cherthala in this district with the entire cost to be borne by the state government.

Health Minister K K Shailaja on Saturday said all steps have been taken to facilitate the travel of the toddler and her family members to Hyderabad after local media reports highlighted the plight of the child.

The state Chief Secretary had discussed the matter with his counterparts of other states en route to ensure a smooth journey,the Health Ministry said.

"The travel permit and directions to other states through which the ambulance has to pass were issued from the police headquarters. All district police chiefs were given instructions from the headquarters to arrange for passage of the ambulance," it said in a release.

The journey started at 7.15 am and they are expected to reach Hyderabad at 11 pm.

"The state government will bear the expenses incurred for the journey. The ambulance will remain in Hyderabad and will return with the family," it said.

The first phase of treatment was done at the L V Prasad Hospital in Hyderabad and the family was supposed to travel again within 21 days for the next phase of treatment.

As the family could not undertake the journey in view of the nation-wide lockdown to check coronavirus scare, the state government swung into action to help the child.

The number of confirmed novel coronavirus cases in the country climbed to 3,374 on Sunday while the death toll rose to 77, according to Union Health Ministry data.

New Delhi, Jul 22: With a spike of 37,724 cases and 648 deaths reported in the last 24 hours, the total number of COVID-19 cases in India stands at 11,92,915, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

The total number of cases includes 4,11,133 active cases, 7,53,050 cured/discharged/migrated and 28,732 deaths, the Health Ministry informed.

Maharashtra remains the worst affected state with 3,27,031 cases and 12,276 deaths.
The second worst-hit state, Tamil Nadu has reported 1,80,643 COVID-19 cases so far while Delhi has reported 1,25,096 cases, according to the Ministry.

Other states that have witnessed a higher number of COVID-19 positive cases include, Andhra Pradesh with 58,668 cases, Karnataka with 71,069 while Telangana has reported 47,705 COVID-19 positive cases.

Meanwhile, as per the information provided by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the total number of samples tested up to July 21 is 1,47,24, 546 including 3,43,243 samples tested yesterday.

Lucknow, Jul 15: As many as 122 alleged criminals were killed in over 6,000 encounters in Uttar Pradesh in the past three years, while 13 policemen also lost their lives during this period, a senior police official said.

He also said over 2,000 criminals were injured in police action, while over 13,000 of them have been arrested.

"Thirteen policemen have been killed in action in as many as 6,126 encounters (in UP), while as many as 122 criminals have been gunned down," Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Prashant Kumar said while sharing details of police encounters from March 20, 2017, to July 10, 2020.

As many as 13,361 criminals have been arrested, while 2,296 criminals were injured in police encounters, he said, adding 909 policemen were also injured in these incidents.

Referring to the Kanpur ambush in which eight policemen were killed, Kumar said, "Of the 21 named accused in the incident, six have been killed and four arrested so far. A hunt is on to nab the 11 other accused."

Eight police personnel, including a DSP, were gunned down by the henchmen of gangster Vikas Dubey in Bikru village of Kanpur on July 3.

Seven others, including a civilian, were injured in the attack after the police team entered the village past July 2 midnight to arrest the gangster.

Dubey was later killed in an encounter on July 10 after police claimed that he tried to escape from the spot in the Bhauti area where the vehicle carrying him from Ujjain to Kanpur met with an accident.

Kumar said overall there has been a decline in the crime rate in the state this year compared to the last year.

"A total of 579 instances of loot took place in the state from January 1, 2020, to June 15, 2020. This is 44.17 per cent less compared to the crimes committed in the same period in 2019, the ADG (Law and Order) said.

He said 33 incidents of dacoity have been reported in the state this year so far. It is 37.74 per cent less compared to the crimes committed in the same period in 2019 .

Similarly, 2,604 instances of burglary have taken this year so far and is 30.97 per cent less compared to the crimes committed in the same period last year, Kumar added.

He said 1,019 dowry-related deaths have taken place this year, registering a 6.34 per cent decline compared to the previous year.

As many as 913 incidents of rape have been reported this year so far, a decline of 25.41 per cent compared to the last year, Kumar said.