Kabeer killing: Withdraw murder case against ANF personnel, says C T Ravi

Thiruvanathapuram, Mar 27: The state is heading for its worst ever crisis with coronavirus cases increasing rapidly and Kasargod district the worst hit. On Friday alone 39 positive cases were reported in the state of which 34 are from Kasargod.

Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the situation is grave and Kasargod has been the worst hit. More than the positive cases reported in the district, the worrying factor is that many people have come into contact with these positive cases.

The chief minister warned that the government will be forced to declare the names of the people who are defying the quarantine guidelines in the district. More people have been put under risk in the district and the district administration is much concerned since the results of 215 samples are yet to come.

There is no other way but to tighten the restrictions imposed in the district against the people coming out of their houses. The government has decided to provide more facilities to the hospitals in Kasargod and Kannur to meet an emergency.

The medical college hospital in Kannur will be converted into a coronavirus hospital with 200 bed strength. Steps have been taken to equip the medical college hospital with more facilities. The Central University at kasargood will be converted into as a temporary coronavirus treatment centre. 

The state has also requested permission from ICMR to begin the testing facility here, said the chief minister.

The total number of positive cases reported in the state have now become 176 of which 12 have been discharged after testing negative. At present 164 positive people are admitted in several hospitals of the state.

On Friday of the 39 positive cases, two are from Kannur and one each from Thrissur, Kollam and Kozhikode. With this all the districts in the state have been now affected with coronavirus.

Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 7: Kerala government led by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday has come under the spotlight for depicting the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi on the cover of the state finance budget 2020-21 document.

Issuing clarification on the same, Issac justified that it is a political statement.

"Definitely, it is a political statement, the cover of my budget speech. It is a painting by a Malayalam artist of Mahatma Gandhi's murder scene. We are sending out a message that we will not forget who murdered Gandhi."

He also alleged that history is being re-written and National Register of Citizens (NRC) is being used to divide the country on communal lines.

"This is important at the times when history is being re-written. There is an attempt to erase some popular memories and use NRC to divide the population on communal lines. Kerala will stand united."

NRC is an official record of those people who are legal citizens of India. The dossier includes demographic information about all those individuals who qualify as citizens of India as per the Citizenship Act, 1955.

The register was first prepared after the 1951 Census of India and since then it has not been updated until recently.

Mangaluru, Apr 22: Iftar parties, Taraweeh and weekly Friday prayers in mosques have been banned in the district during Ramadan amid Coronavirus theat, Dakshina Kannada Deputy Commissioner Sindhu B Rupesh said here on Wednesday.

In a release issued here, she said, “As per the guidelines issued by the State government and Wakf Board, arranging Iftar gathering, and offering Taraveeh Namaz and Friday Namaz at mosques or dargas during the month of Ramadan has been prohibited as a precaution measure to prevent the spread of coronavirus. Therefore, offer prayers at homes instead of going to mosques," the DC said.

“No one can perform Namaz in the mosques except the muezzin and the Pesh imam and the staff of the mosque. Also, gathering neighbors and offering collective prayers at anybody's home is also not allowed. Masjid administration committees must follow the directives of the government, Wakf Board and the District Administration”, the DC urged.