Man who landed at Bengaluru airport admitted with suspected coronavirus infection

Coronavirus

Though the man had not travelled to China, he returned to India from a COVID-19 affected country.

TNM Staff

Representative Image

A passenger who arrived at the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru on Saturday has been admitted to the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases after thermal scanning found that his temperature had increased. While the man had not travelled to China, he had returned from a country that reported positive cases of the novel coronavirus or COVID-2019. According to numbers issued by the Karnataka State Health Department, 1,216 individuals had undergone thermal scanning at the airport between Saturday and Sunday, of whom only one man has been taken for further examination. In the two days, a total of six individuals were returning from a region where coronavirus had been detected and identified. “He was admitted for further examination. His samples have been sent for testing and the results are awaited,” stated an official from the hospital. The state has taken strict measures to ensure that any potential threats of spreading the disease are caught. “The state of Karnataka has strengthened all surveillance and control measures against the disease. Till date, 246 travellers from COVID-2019 affected countries have been identified and 215 are under home isolation. Four Chinese passengers have left the country, and one is admitted at isolation (ward) in a hospital. Till date, 163 samples of symptomatic patients are sent for testing, out of which, 158 samples will be sent for testing and 151 samples are reported as negative. A total of 26 passengers have completed 28 days of observation,” read the daily bulletin issued by the state health department on Sunday evening. There were three positive cases confirmed in Kerala. Two were later tested negative on retests. Two patients have been discharged from the hospital after making a full recovery. The Kerala health officials swung into action against the virus to curb its spread. The new strain of coronavirus caused COVID-19 or coronavirus disease. It belongs to the same family of viruses that caused the 2003 SARS outbreak and the sporadic MERS cases in 2012. There is no confirmed cure or vaccine yet. The treatment has been largely to give supportive measures and relieve symptoms, in combination with anti-viral drugs.

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Karnataka BJP braces for Opposition onslaught as Assembly session begins on Monday

Politics

"We are ready to counter the opposition parties on any issue they want to raise or discuss, keeping in view the spirit of fairness in a democratic set-up," party's spokesman said.

IANS

A combative ruling BJP is bracing to face the onslaught of the opposition Congress and the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) in the year's first legislature session beginning on Monday. "We are ready to counter the opposition parties on any issue they want to raise or discuss, keeping in view the spirit of fairness in a democratic set-up, as we have the numbers to provide a stable government," party's state unit spokesman G. Madhusudhana told IANS here. Ahead of the 3-day session, the BJP's legislature party met here under the leadership of Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa to chalk out its strategy to address issues, move bills and present the state budget for fiscal 2020-21. "We hope the Congress and JD-S members will allow Governor Vajubhai Vala to address the joint session of the legislature on Monday and not disrupt his speech or walkout of the House before he concludes to maintain the dignity of his office," Madhusudhana said after the BJP meeting at a private hotel over dinner. The legislature will resume the month-long budget session on March 2 with a special discussion for two days on the Constitution, markings the 70th year of its adoption and enforcement. About 100 legislators, including the three Deputy Chief Ministers, the newly sworn-in cabinet ministers, council members and party's state unit members participated in the 2-hour long meeting. "Yediyurappa, who also holds the Finance portfolio, will present the state budget for fiscal 2020-21 on March 5, which will be the fifth time as the fourth Chief Minister in over a decade," the official said. Both the Houses will deliberate on the budget proposals and pass it by March 31. In the 225-member Assembly, including one nominated, the ruling BJP has 117, opposition Congress 68, Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) 34, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) one, Independents 2 and vacant 2. Buoyed up by winning 12 of the 15 seats in the December 5 assembly by-elections, the party is confident of passing the finance and other bills, as it has the support of 119 members, including 2 Independents in the lower House. "There is no threat to our government, which will complete the remaining 3-year term of the Assembly till May 2023. Yediyurappa has already won the majority test on July 29, 2019, three days after he took office for the fourth time," Madhusudhana said. The Congress, however, asserted that it would raise the alleged misuse of police against the opposition members, anti-CAA protestors and minorities. "We will question the morality of the government in making a tainted legislator like Anand Singh a forest minister when a dozen illegal mining cases are pending in the courts," a Congress official told IANS.

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Kashmiri students arrested on sedition charges in Karnataka released due to lack of evidence

Sedition

The Bajrang Dal however opposed the release and protested outside the station.

TNM Staff

File photo

Three Kashmiri engineering students in Hubli, who were arrested by the police under seditious charges, and on allegations of disturbing communal harmony, have been released for lack of evidence. The Commissioner of Hubli said that the students were let off under section 169 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (Release of accused due to lack of evidence). As part of the terms of their release, the students were made to sign a bond. In the bond, they have agreed to appear before the police when they are summoned. Shortly after they were released, the Bajrang Dal, began sloganeering outside the Gokul police station in Hubli, where the boys had been held. The right wing group objected to the release of the students. The Bajrang dal is the youth wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), a political outfit. TNM had previously reported that the members of Bajrang dal had intimated the police about the contentious video, following which the police took up the case. Read: 3 engineering students from Kashmir arrested on sedition charges in Karnataka  The three engineering college students had shared a selfie video of themselves on Saturday. The video, which went viral showed the three of them shouting " Azaadi" and saying "Pakistan" and then "Zindabad" after a few beats. All this was as a song played in the background, which was purportedly used by the Pakistani military media wing. Recently, the Karnataka police had received much flak for arresting a teacher and the parent of a school pupil for a play that was enacted in the school in Bidar against NRC. The school and the two individuals had been charged with sedition and the women had to spend two weeks in jail before they were released.   

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Karnataka man gets trapped in sand while digging a well, rescued two hours later

Accident

A well-digger was trapped neck-high in beach sand, but tragedy was averted as fire officials rushed to his aid.

Alithea Stephanie Mounika

A 35-year-old man, who was helping dig a well for a company near the sea, was trapped when the mud surrounding the well suddenly collapsed, leaving him covered in fine white beach sand. The incident took place in Kundapur taluk in Udupi district, with comes under the Gangolli police station limits. Rohit Kharve and four others were working on making the final water pipe connection when he was sucked into the earth in a matter of seconds. However, alert bystanders contacted the police, who rushed to the spot and called in the fire brigade. Police said that water was found just 20 meters below the surface, as the spot is right next to the sea. After the labourers struck water, they were trying to lay a pipe when the ground below him gave way. The incident occurred at around 12.30 pm on Sunday. Rohit was trapped in mud for two hours before he was rescued.   A rescue mission in Kundapura taluk where a man was lifted out of a well with a crane. All's well that ends well! Watch pic.twitter.com/W5NC9lVMJk — Alithea Stephanie Mounika//ಅಲಿತ್ಯ ಮೌನಿಕಾ (@alitheasm) February 16, 2020   Fire marshals arrived at the spot, bringing a JCB crane to help pull him out. However, this didn’t work as the man was almost completely buried in the sand, with only his neck visible. The crane, which was trying to shift the sand ended up exacerbating the problem as it covered the man with more sand, thereby burying him. Officials had to think quickly for an alternative. They finally hit on the solution of using smaller tools to move the sand. They then extended a rope to the man with the crane, so that he could be lifted out. Police said that the man is in a fit condition and could easily pull himself out with help from the crane, and was thus finally pulled out of the pit. Officials said that the man was taken to hospital, where doctors declared him healthy. While the pipe connection was laid, the well has now been covered up with sand.  

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Karnataka: Savadi poised to win MLC election, will remain as Deputy CM

Politics

Savadi in all likelihood will take up the seat vacated by outgoing member Rizwan Arshad.

TNM Staff

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister Laxman Savadi is likely to retain his ministerial status with the BJP leader election as a Member of Legislative Council on Monday now becoming a mere formality. This as the only rival candidate for his MLC election unofficially walked out of the race, according to multiple reports. Former Congress leader BR Anil Kumar supported by a section of JD(S) leaders was to give Savadi a contest but a lack of consensus among the Congress leadership and paucity of numbers paved his walkout. However since he failed to officially withdraw his candidature by February 10, an official election will still be held. Savadi in all likelihood will take up the seat vacated by outgoing Congress member Rizwan Arshad who had won the recently conducted byepolls from Shivajinagar constituency in Bengaluru.  "He will win without any effort and there will be no change in his position," S Prakash, spokesperson of the BJP told TNM. The leader from north Karnataka who was sworn in as the Deputy CM and holds the portfolio of Transport had to be elected in the upper house of the state’s legislature before February 19 as every minister has to be a member of the House within six months of swearing-in. He had incidentally lost the Assembly elections held in 2018 at the hands of then Congress and now BJP MLA Mahesh Kumathalli.  The Dy CM’s another claim to fame was he had resigned as a minister for watching porn on his mobile phone in the Assembly in 2012. In that contentious incident in February 2012, Laxman was caught by cameramen inside the Assembly watching a pornographic video with the then Women and Child Development Minister CC Patil on the mobile handset of fellow MLA Krishna Palemar.   While Laxman and CC Patil claimed that they were watching footage of a rave party held in Udupi and not a pornographic clip, they resigned within a week to prevent embarrassment to the ruling BJP. 

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Bengaluru, Mysuru to get eight 16-car suburban trains, to run all seven days

Transport

With the additional rakes, these trains will be able to ferry around 4,900 passengers at a time

TNM Staff

Representational image/ ICF

In a boost for public transport for Bengaluru and Mysuru, eight suburban trains running in the Bengaluru division will be doubled from eight-car trains to 16-car trains from Monday. Moreover, these trains will also run all days of the week, compared to the earlier schedule when they would run six days of the week. These trains are: 06575 Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna railway station (SBC)- Mysuru (MYS) MEMU (Mainline Electric Multiple Unit), 06576 MYS-SBC MEMU, 66535 SBC-RMGM (Ramanagaram) MEMU, 66536 RMGM-SBC MEMU, 66541 WFD (Whitefield)-SBC MEMU, 66542 SBC-WFD MEMU, 66543 KPN  (Kuppam) -SBC MEMU, 66545 SBC-KPN MEMU. The new trains will have four motor cars and twelve trailing cars. According to rail officials, the motor cars can carry 226 passengers – 155 sitting and 121 standing – and the trailing cars can carry 325 passengers.  these trains will be able to ferry around 4,900 passengers at a time.  The Railways said all these trains will have state of the art 3-phase MEMU rakes produced by ICF (Integral Coach Factory). The additional capacity will make daily commuting for many commuters much more comfortable and also encourage casual travellers to use rail as opposed to roadways and as a result, decongest the traffic gridlock including in the busy Bengaluru-Mysuru Highway. The development was also tweeted by Mysore-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha as he seemingly pushed for the same owing to requests from a user. As a response to the same, rail user collective — Mysuru Rail Users thanked the MP and Minister of State, Railways Suresh Angadi. 06575/76 #Bengaluru - #Mysuru 8car MEMU with other 3 pairs of Blr MEMUs gets 16car from 17.2.2020 Sir, @mepratap @SureshAngadi_ thank you very much. Passengers can now travel with great comfort due to your efforts to improve Mysuru Bengaluru mobility @drmsbc @DrmMys @SWRRLY pic.twitter.com/90458xmTGz — Mysuru Railway Users (@MysuruRailUsers) February 14, 2020 With the upgrade of these services, rail activists have further demanded a similar increase in services in the Yeshwantpur-Hosur routes as well.  The announcement has incidentally drawn criticism for Bengaluru MPs for failing to draw the Centre’s attention over not getting a green light for an exclusive suburban rail body for Bengaluru from the Cabinet Committee of Economic Affairs. The decades-long wait for a dedicated suburban rail authority is ensuing even after the Extended Railway Board (ERB) of the Indian Railways had already cleared it on November 4. If one really works at it, the government will listen. For that, we need our representatives to represent our need & requirement. What is holding our representatives back in Bangalore? Why are we talking, nay begging, demanding for THIRTY SEVEN years. https://t.co/zCassNlJAU — Whitefield Rising (@WFRising) February 15, 2020

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Nine killed as private bus hits massive boulder in Karnataka’s Udupi

Accident

The driver of the bus, going from Mangaluru from Sringeri, was trying to manoeuvre a turn while travelling on a ghat road when he reportedly lost control of the vehicle.

TNM Staff

Nine people were killed after a private bus collided with a large roadside boulder in Udupi district in Karnataka on Saturday, the police said. The accident took place on Saturday evening, at around 5.45 pm, on the Mulnur Ghat at Abbas Kattingeri in Mala village, while the bus was on its way to Mangaluru from Sringeri, reported the Times of India. The bus, which was reportedly carrying around 35 passengers, was trying to manoeuvre a turn while travelling on a ghat road when the driver allegedly lost control of the vehicle. The vehicle hit a massive boulder and the impact caused seven people to die on the spot.  Two others passed away while they were on the way to the hospital, according to the Hindu. The deceased passengers have been identified as Radha Ravi, Yogendra, Preetham Gowda, Basavaraju, Angana, Sharul and Ranjitha. The cleaner of the bus was also killed in the accident.  According to reports, the passengers in the bus were mostly in their early 20s and were employees of Vital Records Private Limited near JCK Industrial Park. Century Vital Records is a data security company which works in the Hebbal Industrial Mysuru. The group was visiting Udupi, Hornadu and Kudremukh, TOI reported.  While some of the injured persons were rushed to Manipal hospital, others were taken to the Karkala city government hospital, police told the Hindu. The police have said that rash and negligent driving by the driver is likely to have caused the accident. A case has been registered at the Karkala Rural Police Station, the police told The Hindu. Last month, three persons were killed and four others were injured after a fatal collision between a van and a bus near Bengaluru. Both the vehicles caught fire after the impact, but while passengers of the bus, travelling from Bengaluru to Shivamogga, managed to escape, the three passengers who were trapped in the van could not escape and were charred to death. (With PTI inputs)

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