Youth thrashed, arrested, hospitalised after he attacks policemen at Melkar

Abu Dhabi-based NMC Healthcare has reportedly received bids to sell its distribution unit and will soon be selling it to different parties.

The development comes over three months after NMC Healthcare’s founder and then-chairman B R Shetty stepped down amid allegations of massive fraud. 

The company, which recently laid off hundreds of workers, is offloading stake in the subsidiary as it is considered non-core and requires substantially high working capital to run the operations. In addition, this stake sale will help the company pay off some of its debt

"There are parties who have strong interest in the distribution business. NMC will be offloading the unit soon and that also to different parties," a source said.

"The company is in the process of exploring options for NMC Trading, the group's distribution business, which it has determined to be non-core and requiring substantial levels of working capital. The process should not materially adversely impact distributors' activities, nor NMC Trading's customers," an NMC Healthcare spokeswoman said.

The UK-court has appointed Alvarez & Marsal as administrator to oversee the operations of the debt-ridden hospital operator. The healthcare firm has been caught in a whirlpool of $6.6 billion debt while its senior former high management team is under investigation for financial irregularities.

The UAE Central Bank has direct local banks to freeze all bank accounts of NMC founder BR Shetty and his family members as well as accounts of those companies where he has a stake. The Central Bank move is subsequent to a criminal complaint filed by Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, which has the largest exposure to NMC Healthcare, amounting Dh3 billion.

As the company faces financial difficulties, Reuters reported that NMC Health delayed May staff salaries and now expects to complete making payments by the first week of June.

The spokeswoman said: "The company has been in regular dialogue with its creditor constituencies through various creditor committees, including the direct bank lenders to its NMC Trading businesses."

Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 24: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday said that there is no community spread or the expected phase three spread of coronavirus in the state so far but the threat continues.

Speaking to media persons here on Thursday, Vijayan said that Kasargod, Kannur, Kozhikode, and Malappuram districts will be in the red zone with full restrictions.

"All the other ten districts in the State will be in the orange zone. With the detection of new cases today, the status of Kottayam and Idukki districts have been changed from green to orange. The district administration will decide on the hotspot areas to be closed," he said.

He said there would be an increase in the number of random tests in the red zones.

"In an effort to confirm that there is no community spread in the State, random antibody tests would be conducted among health workers, police personnel, home delivery persons, volunteers and migrant labourers," he added.

The Chief Minister said that COVID-19 labs set up at the Pariyaram Government Medical College at Kannur and the Kottayam Medical College have got the approval from the ICMR for coronavirus testing. The lab at Kannur Medical College will start functioning from Friday.

The UV sterilised lab, spread over 2,200 sq ft is equipped with four real-time PCR machines. In the first phase, this lab will be able to do 15 tests per day, which will be gradually increased to conduct 60 tests in the next phase.

"With the opening of these two new labs, tests to detect COVID-19 will be conducted in 14 government labs in Kerala. Apart from this, there are two private labs also in Kerala which are doing these tests. Since the number of coronavirus cases is again increasing in the State, the government has decided to procure ten real-time PCR machines to ramp up testing," he added.

Bengaluru, Apr 20: Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Monday came down heavily on Congress legislator BZ Zameer Ahmed Khan over the Padarayanapura vandalism that saw a mob run amok against efforts to quarantine suspected COVID-19 persons late on Sunday evening. 

Khan, who represents the Chamarajpet constituency where Padarayanapura is located, said that authorities should have gone to the area during day time.

“Who is he to say that? What does he have to do with this? Why should we ask him? Should we get his permission to carry out government work? Instead of saying that action should be taken, he is speaking like this. Should we then think that he incited the mob? This is the height of being irresponsible,” Yediyurappa said. 

Following the violence, the police have arrested 54 persons and “five more will be arrested,” Yediyurappa said.

Khan clarified that he did not defend those who indulged in vandalism. “I condemn the incident and action should be taken. I’m not saying officials shouldn’t have gone. My point is that they should’ve gone during the day and by creating awareness beforehand that people need to be quarantined,” he said, adding that the BBMP had identified 57 people to be quarantined in Padarayanapura. 

“People in this area are poor, uneducated and are mostly coolie workers and daily wagers. But whatever happened was wrong,” Khan said. He also pointed out that he was the one who arranged for 80 people to be quarantined in Tipu Nagar. 

Yediyurappa said the Padarayanapura incident was unprecedented. “In the entire state, never had such incidents taken place. Everybody agrees this is unacceptable,” the CM said. “Whoever breaks the law - Hindu, Muslim, Christian or anyone - should face action,” he said.