Indian culture, Ayurveda bring this Russian actress to Udupi

Bengaluru, May 4: A total of 37 new COVID-19 cases have been reported in the last 24 hours in Karnataka taking the total number to 651, State Health Department said on Monday.

"Thirty seven new coronavirus positive cases have been confirmed in Karnataka from 5 pm yesterday to 5 pm today. The total number of cases in the state stands at 651," the department said.

The total number of cases includes 27 deaths and 321 persons who have been discharged. Of the remaining 302 cases, 296 patients are in isolation in designated hospitals and six patients are in ICU.

India has registered 2,553 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours and the total number of cases now stands at 44,532.

Bengaluru, Feb 13: Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Thursday said the government had initiated measures to implement the Sarojini Mahishi report as the 12-hour Karnataka bandh call by several pro-Kannada organisations under the banner of Karnataka Sanghatanegala Okkoota began on Thursday.

“Government always stood for Kannada and Kannadigas and initiated measures to implement the Sarojini Mahishi report,” Yediyurappa said. Meanwhile, in Bengaluru, Ola, Uber and auto services were affected even though buses were plying as usual. Security has also been beefed up in Bengaluru after stones were pelted at a Tirupati-Mangaluru bus in Farangipet, though no one was injured.

Bangalore University has postponed all postgraduate (PG) exams scheduled for today. A pro-Kannada activist, Praveen Shetty, was kept under house arrest and police have detained a few people, including those involved in Cauvery protests and other bandh cases.

The organisations are demanding the implementation of a report by former union minister Sarojini Mahishi that recommends a certain percentage of jobs to Kannadigas in public sector undertakings, private companies, and multinational companies. The report was submitted in 1984 but is yet to be implemented.

In a shocking incident, a pharmacist-cum-production manager of an Ayurvedic product company in Chennai’s T.Nagar died after drinking a chemical preparation he reportedly formulated for tackling the Coronavirus.

The managing director of the company, who is an ophthamologist by qualification, was hospitalised after he fainted soon after he ingested the chemical component.

The deceased, K.Sivanesan, 47, of Perungudi, was with Chennai-based Sujatha Biotech, an Ayurvedic and herbal products company which was founded 30 years ago. It has a plant in Kashipur, Uttarakhand, where Sivanesan was working. Sivanesan had devised formulas of various products and used to visit his managing director Dr. Rajkumar frequently in the city.

Due to the lockdown, Sivanesan came to Chennai and stayed with his family in Perungudi. On Thursday morning, he procured the chemical component from a market in Parry’s Corner.

First he gave a small amount powder he derived from the chemical to 67 years-old Rajkumar who fainted after tasting it.

Even as he was being resuscitated, Sivanesan went into the kitchen of the house and gulped it in liquid form after adding water to it. He could not be revived.

Deputy Commissioner of Police, T.Nagar, Ashok Kumar, said, “Our investigation revealed that Sivanesan died after drinking the preparation he claimed would help COVID-19 patients. His managing director fainted after tasting it initially. Further investigation is on.”

Sivanesan was rushed to a private hospital in T.Nagar and declared dead by the doctors there. Later his body was shifted to Government Royapettah Hospital for post-mortem. Teynampet police registered a case under section 174 of Criminal Procedure Code for unnatural death.

N.S.Vasan, designer-cum-media manager of the company said, “Due to the lockdown, Sivanesan stayed in the city and one day told us he heard of some medicine from U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent speech for curing Coronavirus. He said it would bring more immunity and help to prevent COVID-19. Deciding to test the effect of the medicine, he went to Parry’s Corner and bought the powder.” He added that Sivanesan must have taken a heavy dosage of the ‘drug’ and he was killed instantly.