Kerala’s success in handling Covid-19 could prove instructive to entire country: Washington Post

Sangod, May 1: Claiming that "drinking alcohol will surely remove coronavirus from the throat", Congress MLA from Sangod, Bharat Singh Kundanpur, has in a letter to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot urged the reopening of liquor stores in the state, which have been closed in the wake of nationwide lockdown.

"When coronavirus can be removed by washing hands with alcohol, then drinking alcohol will surely remove virus from the throat," Kundanpur wrote in his letter dated April 30.

He also alleged that the sale of illegal liquor and bootlegging had become rampant in the state due to the closure of liquor stores during the lockdown.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on March 24 announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown as a precautionary measure to contain the spread of COVID-19. The lockdown was later extended till May 3.

As many as 2,617 COVID-19 cases have been reported in Rajasthan, as per the latest update by the state Health Department.

New Delhi, Jul 11: Poll strategist Prashant Kishor took a swipe at Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday, saying this is time to fight the coronavirus not elections and that he should not endanger people's lives in a "hurry" to hold the assembly polls.

"The coronavirus situation in Bihar is worsening like it is in many other states of the country. But a big part of government machinery and resources are busy making preparation for the polls.

"Nitish Kumar ji, this isn't time to fight elections but the coronavirus. Don't endanger people's lives in this hurry to hold the polls," he tweeted.

Kishor, once a confidant of the JD(U) president before he turned a critic and was expelled from the party, joins leaders like LJP chief Chirag Paswan and RJD's Tejashwi Yadav in suggesting that the Bihar assembly polls should be deferred due to the pandemic.

Polls in Bihar are due in October-November but the Election Commission has so far not made any official announcement about its schedule.

The BJP and the JD(U) have been holding organisational meetings and said that they are ready for the elections.

Jan 27: Bidders for Air India Ltd. will need to absorb $3.26 billion of its debt, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration tries once again to sell the national carrier.

The entire company will be sold but effective control needs to stay with Indian nationals, according to preliminary terms published Monday. Bids are invited by March 17 with Ernst & Young LLP India as transaction adviser.

Air India, which started in 1932 as a mail carrier before winning commercial popularity, saw its fortunes fade with the emergence of cutthroat low-cost competition. The state-run airline has been unprofitable for over a decade and is saddled with more than $8 billion in debt.

Indian regulations allow a foreign airline to buy as much as 49% of a local carrier, while overseas investors other than airlines can buy an entire carrier. The government didn’t find a single bidder when it tried to sell Air India in 2018.