Row sparked as Lord Swaminarayan idol is dressed up in RSS uniform

Bengaluru, Jul 27: Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka crossed the grim milestone of one lakh Covid-19 cases while Tamil Nadu logged nearly 7,000 fresh infections for the third straight day on Monday as the sharp spike in recent weeks continued unabated in the southern states.

Kerala's tally inched toward the 20,000-mark and Telangana saw the total infection count beach the 55,000-mark while the cumulative cases rose to 2,872 in the tiny union territory of Puducherry as the six together added 20,629 fresh cases and their aggregate shot to 5.02 lakh.

A total of 291 deaths were reported on Monday from these states with Tamil Nadu accounting for the maximum of 77 closely followed by Karnataka with 74 fatalities, according to bulletins issued by respective states.

The cases have been rising in the region since last month when the lockdown norms were eased and thousands of people returned even as testing had been given a push.

The worst-hit was Andhra Pradesh where the Covid-19 count doubled in just eight days as the day's 6,051 cases pushed the tally to 1,02,349. It had crossed the 50,000-mark on July 20.

East Godavari district registered a high of 1,210 cases. After 16,86,446 tests were completed on Monday, the Covid-19 positivity rate in the state shot past the 6 per cent mark, a record high.

From 15,252 confirmed cases on July 1, the number swelled to the current level as every district in the state has been witnessing a severe surge in the pandemic.

The toll rose to 1,090 with 49 fresh deaths. The state now has 51,701 active cases after a total of 49,558 patients had recovered, a bulletin said.

Covid-19 cases in Karnataka spiralled to 1,01,465 as the state reported the biggest single-day spike of 5,324 new infections and 75 fatalities, taking the death toll to 1,953, the health department said.

The day also saw 1,847 patients getting discharged, taking the cumulative recoveries to 37,685.

Tamil Nadu reported highest single-day spike of 6,993 cases, taking the tally to 2,20,716 while 77 deaths propelled the toll to 3,571.

The state has added 45,038 cases since last Monday while the active cases stood at 54,896 and recoveries touched 1,62,249, including 5,723 people discharged today.

Chennai accounted for 95,857 cases of the state's tally.

In Kerala, at least 43 health workers were among the 702 people who tested positive while 745 others recovered, as the state's total infection tally touched 19,727.

The death toll climbed to 63 with two more fatalities from Kozhikode and Kottayam districts, while 9,611 people were presently under treatment, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said.

A total of 10,054 patients have recovered so far and over 1.55 lakh people were under observation, he told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram.

Telangana's total infection count rose to 55,532 with the addition of 1,473 cases, including 506 from Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) areas, a government bulletin said on Monday, providing data as of 8 pm on Sunday.

With eight more deaths, the Covid-19 toll in the state rose to 471. The death rate was 0.85 per cent as against 2.3 per cent in the country, it said.

As many as 42,106 people have recovered from the infection so far, while 12,955 were under treatment.

Puducherry logged 86 new cases, pushing the overall tally to 2,872 and the toll increased to 43 with three more deaths. It has 1,109 active cases, an official statement said.

Bengaluru, Jul 29: Karnataka Congress President DK Shivakumar on Tuesday criticised BJP-led Karnataka government for limiting or omitting various topics including chapters on 18th century Mysore ruler Tipu Sultan and his father Hyder Ali.

Speaking to media here at Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) office, Shivakumar said Congress will not allow BJP government in Karnataka to "divert history".

"Tipu Sultan does not belong to one caste or a class. He is part of the history of this country. BJP government has removed chapters related to him for its political advantage. It is their decision whether they celebrate Tipu Sultan Jayanti or not, but he is part of our history. 

The President of this country Ramnath Kovind came to the Vidhan Sabha and praised Tipu's patriotism during a joint session," Shivakumar said.

"The BJP government has come to power today. Our history should not change. We will not let these people to covert or dilute history. This is the stand of the Congress party. Our experts will study the pros and cons of this decision," he added.

Shivakumar further said many countries around the world have praised the Constitution, Indian history and expressed their willingness to "adapt it".

"But the BJP is trying to curtail this. We need to educate our children. Our team will also study this and we will not let this happen," he said.
The Karnataka government, in a bid to reduce the syllabus for state board schools by 30 per cent, has limited or omitted various topics including chapters on Mysuru rulers Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan from the class 7 social science textbook.

The reduction in syllabus comes as schools are closed to prevent the spread of coronavirus in the state, and classes have been moved online.
The Department of Public Instruction of the Karnataka government also limited or removed various other topics from the syllabus of class 6 to 10 as they were repeated or can be alternatively taught.

Earlier, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) had revised the syllabus for the classes IX to XII for the academic session 2020-21 in a "one-time measure" owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.