No religious angle linked to lynchings: Venkaiah Naidu

Bengaluru, Jul 24: A government doctor who was turned away by three private hospitals because he could not produce a coronavirus test result passed away today in Bengaluru. Dr Manjunath, who was a frontline COVID-19 doctor, was allegedly turned away by hospitals when he was extremely ill and struggling to breathe.

Dr Manjunath worked in the state Health and Family Welfare department and was based in Ramanagara district, around 50 km from Bengaluru.

D Randeep, a Special Officer with the Bengaluru municipal body BBMP, said that the hospitals that had refused to admit Dr Manjunath would be reported to the health department.

In June-end, Dr Manjunath went to Rajashekhar Hospital in JP Nagar, BGS Global Hospital in Kengeri and Sagar hospital in Kumaraswamy Layout. All three demanded to see his COVID-19 test result but those were still not in at the time, according to his family. His brother-in-law Nagendra is also a doctor with BBMP and in charge of allotting hospital beds, yet he was completely helpless when it came to his own relative.

He was finally admitted to Sagar hospital on June 25 when his family sat in protest on the footpath outside the Dayananda Sagar campus. He was placed on ventilator and later shifted to the Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute, where he died earlier today. The hospital says Dr Manjunath was discharged on July 9 because he wanted plasma therapy.

Six members of his family, including a 14-year-old, tested COVID-19 positive. Most of them have recovered.

Bengaluru has seen several cases of patients being turned away from hospitals in the city. Hospitals say they need Covid test results to know whether to admit patients in the coronavirus ICU or in the general section and to understand treatment protocol.

Mr Randeep said hospitals have been instructed to admit patients even without such a certificate. Notices have been sent to hospitals that fail to comply. The OPD of two private hospitals was sealed for 48 hours when they refused to admit a patient.

Bengaluru, May 1: Karnataka government has assigned State Nodal Officers after the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) order regarding the inter-state movement of stranded migrant workers, tourists, pilgrims and students during the lockdown period.

The Nodal officers have also been appointed for coordination with 11 different states.

In an order issued on Thursday, Karnataka Government wrote, "To facilitate smooth and orderly movement of persons across State borders as per SOPs, the undersigned, in the exercise of powers conferred under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, and in the capacity as Chairman, State Executive Committee, hereby appoint the following officers as Nodal officers to coordinate with Nodal Officers of States/Union Territories (UTs) mentioned against their names."

Dr Rajkumar Khatri, IAS and Arun Jeji Chakravarthy, IPS will be overall in charge of the movement of stranded people from outside States/UTs to Karnataka.

N Manjunatha Prasad, IAS and P S Sandhu, IPS will be overall in charge of the movement of stranded people from Karnataka to other States/UTs.

The decision of the Indian government to ease the coronavirus-linked global travel restrictions imposed on those having OCI cards has given a big relief to many stranded overseas citizens of India across the world.

OCI card is issued to people of Indian origin globally which gives them almost all the privileges of an Indian national except for the right to vote, government service and buying agricultural land. The OCI card gives them a visa-free travel to India.

On Friday, the central government allowed certain categories of OCI card holders, who are stranded abroad, to come to the country. Earlier, according to the regulations issued by the Indian government in April, visas of foreign nationals and OCI cards were suspended as part of the new international travel restrictions following the COVID-19 pandemic.

This privilege of visa free travel to India was causing distress among a large number of people of Indian-origin and Indian citizens in countries like the US whose children were OCI card holders as they were born in this country.

Many Indian parents, several of whom lost their jobs as a result of the economic crisis due to coronavirus pandemic, but were not allowed to take the special evacuation flights of Air India from various US cities, took to social media and urged the Indian leaders to allow them to travel to India.

“This is a big relief for the OCI card holders. It was a humanitarian crisis in the making. I am pleased that the Indian Government listened to their voices,” said social activist Prem Bhandari, chairman of Jaipur Foot USA, who has been taking up the cause of the OCI card holders.

Dr Arathi Krishna, former deputy chairperson of NRI Forum of Karnataka government, who had been demanding this relaxation, many of the thousands of stranded OCI card holders in defferent parts of the world were in pursuading her to exert pressure on the authorities concerned for this much needed relaxation.

The restrictions on traveling of OCI card holders to India was issued by govt of India on March 13 in the wake of global outbreak of coronavirus pandemic. 

She said: "Many parents who are Indian nationals could not travel for emergency purpose to India after repatriation flights started due to their minor children being OCI card holders. Many children who were OCI card holders could not travel to India to perform last rites when there was death in their family due to these restrictions"

"I was constantly pressurising and bringing these issues to the attention of ministry officials in External Affairs and Home Affairs departments. I was following up with Mr Dammu Ravi who is heading the COVID task force  task firce in the ministry of overseas Indian affairs who took interest in solving this problem through his consistent efforts with MHA. Iam thankful to Fireign Secretary too for his efforts and concern and to MHA for making it easier now for OCI card holders to travel in repatriation flights with emergency reasons," she said.