Liquor shops to open across country from May 4th, except in containment zones

Coronavirus

Earlier, there was confusion over whether liquor stores will be allowed to open in red zones.

TNM Staff

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The central government has clarified that liquor stores will open in red, orange and green zones in the country starting on May 4. Though the guidelines issued on Friday did not mention zones, a clarification was given later that liquor shops will be allowed to open in red, orange and green zones. Earlier, there was confusion over whether liquor stores will be allowed to open in red zones. It has been clarified that they will be allowed to open in red zones.  However they are prohibited from opening in containment zones in the country.  Liquor shops will be allowed to open in these areas with certain rules in place. “Sale of liquor, paan, tobacco to be allowed after ensuring minimum six-feet social distancing; not more than five persons at one time at shop,” guidelines issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs stated. Major cities like Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad are red zones, and in these cities, liquor stores will open except in containment zones. "All standalone liquor stores will be allowed to open except those in containment zones and in marketplaces and malls. Only parcels will be allowed and social distancing will have to be maintained," Karnataka Excise Minister H Nagesh told TNM about the situation in the state.  An order from the Excise Department in Bengaluru confirmed that liquor shops with  CL-2 and CL-11 licenses will be allowed to remain open between 9 am and 7 pm starting Monday.   The guidelines for opening of liquor stores in restricted areas was issued as part of the guidelines for the extension of the lockdown period in India for two more weeks starting from May 4.

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Liquor shops to open across country from May 4th, except in containment zones

Coronavirus

Earlier, there was confusion over whether liquor stores will be allowed to open in red zones.

TNM Staff

Image for representation

The central government has clarified that liquor stores will open in red, orange and green zones in the country starting on May 4. Though the guidelines issued on Friday did not mention zones, a clarification was given later that liquor shops will be allowed to open in red, orange and green zones. Earlier, there was confusion over whether liquor stores will be allowed to open in red zones. It has been clarified that they will be allowed to open in red zones.  However they are prohibited from opening in containment zones in the country.  Liquor shops will be allowed to open in these areas with certain rules in place. “Sale of liquor, paan, tobacco to be allowed after ensuring minimum six-feet social distancing; not more than five persons at one time at shop,” guidelines issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs stated. Major cities like Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad are red zones, and in these cities, liquor stores will open except in containment zones. "All standalone liquor stores will be allowed to open except those in containment zones and in marketplaces and malls. Only parcels will be allowed and social distancing will have to be maintained," Karnataka Excise Minister H Nagesh told TNM about the situation in the state.  An order from the Excise Department in Bengaluru confirmed that liquor shops with  CL-2 and CL-11 licenses will be allowed to remain open between 9 am and 7 pm starting Monday.   The guidelines for opening of liquor stores in restricted areas was issued as part of the guidelines for the extension of the lockdown period in India for two more weeks starting from May 4.

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4 new coronavirus cases reported in Bengaluru, state total at 601

Coronavirus

The state health department also reported the death of a coronavirus patient in the city.

TNM Staff

Four new coronavirus cases and the death of a patient who earlier tested positive for the virus was reported in Bengaluru on Saturday.  A 63-year-old man from Bengaluru with a history of diabetes, hypertension, hypothyroidism and renal failure succumbed to death.  He was also receiving dialysis treatment and chemotherapy for multiple myeloma.  Four new cases were reported in the city, Among the cases is a 32-year-old woman who is a contact of a patient who earlier tested positive (patient-444). P-444 was the contact of patient number 252, a 65-year-old man from Bengaluru with a history of SARI (Severe Acute Respiratory Infection). He died on April 14 and following his death, several of his contacts have been infected.    Bengaluru also has three new cases traced to the same contact - patient 565. She is a 64-year-old female from Bengaluru, who had a case of Influenza-like illness.  Apart from the cases in Bengaluru, eight other cases were reported in Karnataka. This takes the total number of cases in the state to 601. Two cases each were reported from Tumakuru and Vijayapura, and one case each from Belagavi, Chikkaballapura, and Bagalkote. This takes the total number of deaths in the state to 25 while 271 people have made a full recovery from the disease.  The central government has classified three red zone districts in Karnataka - Mysuru, Bengaluru Urban and Bengaluru Rural, The state government is writing to the centre to classify Bengaluru Rural district as an orange zone.  The district with the highest number of cases in Karnataka is Bengaluru Urban district with 145 cases reported. It is followed by Mysuru where 88 cases were reported.   

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4 new coronavirus cases reported in Bengaluru, state total at 601

Coronavirus

The state health department also reported the death of a coronavirus patient in the city.

TNM Staff

Four new coronavirus cases and the death of a patient who earlier tested positive for the virus was reported in Bengaluru on Saturday.  A 63-year-old man from Bengaluru with a history of diabetes, hypertension, hypothyroidism and renal failure succumbed to death.  He was also receiving dialysis treatment and chemotherapy for multiple myeloma.  Four new cases were reported in the city, Among the cases is a 32-year-old woman who is a contact of a patient who earlier tested positive (patient-444). P-444 was the contact of patient number 252, a 65-year-old man from Bengaluru with a history of SARI (Severe Acute Respiratory Infection). He died on April 14 and following his death, several of his contacts have been infected.    Bengaluru also has three new cases traced to the same contact - patient 565. She is a 64-year-old female from Bengaluru, who had a case of Influenza-like illness.  Apart from the cases in Bengaluru, eight other cases were reported in Karnataka. This takes the total number of cases in the state to 601. Two cases each were reported from Tumakuru and Vijayapura, and one case each from Belagavi, Chikkaballapura, and Bagalkote. This takes the total number of deaths in the state to 25 while 271 people have made a full recovery from the disease.  The central government has classified three red zone districts in Karnataka - Mysuru, Bengaluru Urban and Bengaluru Rural, The state government is writing to the centre to classify Bengaluru Rural district as an orange zone.  The district with the highest number of cases in Karnataka is Bengaluru Urban district with 145 cases reported. It is followed by Mysuru where 88 cases were reported.   

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At Bengaluru’s bus stand, migrant workers have to pay exorbitant fares to get home

Coronavirus

Those who wish to return home also have to find 30 travellers to the same destination for the bus to make the journey.

Prajwal Bhat

“Hubballi Hubballi,” Santosh yells through his make-shift mask as he makes his way through a crowd of people inside the third terminal of the Majestic Bus Stand in Bengaluru. “Is anyone here going to Hubballi?” he asks, scrutinising the faces staring back at him hoping to find someone travelling to his hometown. Forty-three-year-old Santosh, who works at a shop in Bengaluru, is desperate to find two more people headed to Hubballi, 413 km away from the city. “I had come here (to the bus stand) yesterday (Friday) but I could not go home. Only if we find 30 people willing to pay for a ticket to Hubballi, the officials will allow the bus to leave the bus stand,” says Santosh, referring to the red and white Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) bus parked in the bus stand.  Santosh (pictured left) speaks to a fellow traveller at the Majestic Bus Stand, Bengaluru “Normally, it takes around 400 rupees but today we have paid Rs 1239. The prices are three times higher than the normal price but do we have any other choice? We are desperate and we want to go home,” says Santosh pointing to a group of people who are with him. Hundreds like Santosh turned up at the Majestic Bus Stand in Bengaluru on Saturday morning hoping to find buses to take them home. There were construction workers, students, electricians and carpenters, among those looking for a ticket home. Many of the workers were left without work ever since the start of the lockdown period over the coronavirus outbreak on March 25. On a sheet of paper stuck to the wall at the entrance of the terminal, the charges for dropping people to different towns in Karnataka were listed.  “We are booking a bus as per the specific request. We are arranging buses for a group of 30 people on a contract basis at Rs 39 per kilometre. We are not issuing individual tickets to passengers," Prabhakar Reddy, Divisional Controller, Bengaluru Central (KSRTC) told TNM. Prices listed by KSRTC for transporting people “The prices are three times higher because the buses are taking only 30 people even though there are 55 seats. We are charging the minimum fare of Rs 39 per kilometre and we are also counting the fare for the return trip the bus has to take to come back to Bengaluru,” KL Manjunath, a KSRTC official told TNM.  But the decision to charge a high amount to transport people was met with anger by hundreds of migrant workers who lined up at the bus stand on Saturday.  Thirty-eight-year-old Nirmala, a construction worker at Chickpet in Bengaluru, had walked to the Majestic Bus Stand in the hope of finding a bus to take her and her family of four to Yadgir district. But she was taken aback when she found out that she had to pay Rs 1411 per person for taking the bus. She also had to wait till 30 people enlisted to go to Yadgir. Nirmala (pictured right) at the Majestic Bus Stand, Bengaluru “There is no drinking water facility here and the ladies washroom is in a poor condition. All my money is also spent in arranging transport for my family. Shouldn’t the state government bear the expenses of sending us back home?,” Nirmala asks. A migrant worker from Yadgir says the government is charging exorbitant prices to go home when they are struggling for food and water. "When we have no money why are they charging us double the amount?". pic.twitter.com/EWRRQBb3nn — Prajwal (@prajwalmanipal) May 2, 2020 The workers also pointed out that there was no physical distancing followed at the bus stand. “How can we follow physical distancing when we have to find people who are going to the same place as us? The officials are unresponsive and are not taking the step of arranging the transport for us,” asks Praveen, a student at University Visvesvaraya College of Engineering (UVCE) who was looking to go to Hubballi.  The buses were arranged only for those who wanted to travel home in Karnataka and not for those who are from other states. Even though 28 towns were listed as destinations, buses were only going to a few towns in Karnataka if 30 people signed up to go. “We are not arranging buses to places like Mysuru which is a red zone. We are also not arranging buses to places where there are only 10-20 people looking to go. We will be giving preference to the places where a large number of people are going,” says KL Manjunath, a KSRTC official.   After the appeals of the workers were shared with the state government, Karnataka Education Minister S Suresh Kumar clarified that only ‘single fare’ will be charged for workers seeking to go home. But by the time, the clarification was issued, multiple buses had already left Bengaluru for Kalaburagi and Yadgir with workers who had paid exorbitant prices for the transport.  Over 14,000 migrant workers were transported between April 24 and 30 for free after the district administrations paid for the fares of the workers. It is in the last two days that workers are being charged Rs. 39 per km and toll charges along the way. The issue was also highlighted by Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) President DK Shivakumar on Friday. “It is a shame they are asked to pay for travel and food. We will be compelled to protest against the government if poor people are troubled,” he said in a social media post.  Karnataka Government should take complete responsibility and bear the full costs of travel of all migrant workers who belong to Karnataka. It is a shame they are asked to pay for travel and food. We will be compelled to protest against the government if poor people are troubled. pic.twitter.com/SuSgzFtX3p — DK Shivakumar (@DKShivakumar) May 1, 2020 Activists working in Bengaluru called for the state government to ensure that workers are sent home without charging them. “We demand that the state government pay for free travel and food for all migrant workers and not use the workers funds anymore or collect money from them,” Vinay Sreenivasa, a Bengaluru-based activist told TNM.   

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At Bengaluru’s bus stand, migrant workers have to pay exorbitant fares to get home

Coronavirus

Those who wish to return home also have to find 30 other travellers to the same destination for the bus to make the journey.

Prajwal Bhat

“Hubballi Hubballi,” Santosh yells through his make-shift mask as he makes his way through a crowd of people inside the third terminal of the Majestic Bus Stand in Bengaluru. “Is anyone here going to Hubballi?” he asks, scrutinising the faces staring back at him hoping to find someone travelling to his hometown. Forty-three-year-old Santosh, who works at a shop in Bengaluru, is desperate to find two more people headed to Hubballi, 413 km away from the city. “I had come here yesterday (Friday) but I could not go home. Only if we find 30 people willing to pay for a ticket to Hubballi, the officials will allow the bus to leave the bus stand,” says Santosh, referring to the red and white Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) bus parked in the bus stand.  Santosh (pictured left) speaks to a fellow traveller at the Majestic Bus Stand, Bengaluru “Normally, it takes around 400 rupees but today we have paid Rs 1239. The prices are three times higher than the normal price but do we have any other choice? We are desperate and we want to go home,” says Santosh pointing to a group of people who are with him. Hundreds like Santosh turned up at the Majestic Bus Stand in Bengaluru on Saturday morning hoping to find buses to take them home. There were construction workers, students, electricians and carpenters, among those looking for a ticket home. Many of the workers were left without work ever since the start of the lockdown period over the coronavirus outbreak on March 25. On a sheet of paper stuck to the wall at the entrance of the terminal, the charges for dropping people to different towns in Karnataka were listed.  “We are booking a bus as per the specific request. We are arranging buses for a group of 30 people on a contract basis at Rs 39 per kilometre. We are not issuing individual tickets to passengers," Prabhakar Reddy, Divisional Controller, Bengaluru Central (KSRTC) told TNM. Prices listed by KSRTC for transporting people “The prices are three times higher because the buses are taking only 30 people even though there are 55 seats. We are charging the minimum fare of Rs 39 per kilometre and we are also counting the fare for the return trip the bus has to take to come back to Bengaluru,” KL Manjunath, a KSRTC official told TNM.  But the decision to charge a high amount to transport people was met with anger by hundreds of migrant workers who lined up at the bus stand on Saturday.  Thirty-eight-year-old Nirmala, a construction worker at Chickpet in Bengaluru, had walked to the Majestic Bus Stand in the hope of finding a bus to take her and her family of four to Yadgir district. But she was taken aback when she found out that she had to pay Rs 1411 per person for taking the bus. She also had to wait till 30 people enlisted to go to Yadgir. Nirmala (pictured right) at the Majestic Bus Stand, Bengaluru “There is no drinking water facility here and the ladies washroom is in a poor condition. All my money is also spent in arranging transport for my family. Shouldn’t the state government bear the expenses of sending us back home?,” Nirmala asks. A migrant worker from Yadgir says the government is charging exorbitant prices to go home when they are struggling for food and water. "When we have no money why are they charging us double the amount?". pic.twitter.com/EWRRQBb3nn — Prajwal (@prajwalmanipal) May 2, 2020 The workers also pointed out that there was no physical distancing followed at the bus stand. “How can we follow physical distancing when we have to find people who are going to the same place as us? The officials are unresponsive and are not taking the step of arranging the transport for us,” asks Praveen, a student at University Visvesvaraya College of Engineering (UVCE) who was looking to go to Hubballi.  The buses were arranged only for those who wanted to travel home in Karnataka and not for those who are from other states. Even though 28 towns were listed as destinations, buses were only going to a few towns in Karnataka if 30 people signed up to go. “We are not arranging buses to places like Mysuru which is a red zone. We are also not arranging buses to places where there are only 10-20 people looking to go. We will be giving preference to the places where a large number of people are going,” says KL Manjunath, a KSRTC official.   After the appeals of the workers were shared with the state government, Karnataka Education Minister S Suresh Kumar clarified that only ‘single fare’ will be charged for workers seeking to go home. But by the time, the clarification was issued, multiple buses had already left Bengaluru for Kalaburagi and Yadgir with workers who had paid exorbitant prices for the transport.  Over 14,000 migrant workers were transported between April 24 and 30 for free after the district administrations paid for the fares of the workers. It is in the last two days that workers are being charged Rs. 39 per km and toll charges along the way. The issue was also highlighted by Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) President DK Shivakumar on Friday. “It is a shame they are asked to pay for travel and food. We will be compelled to protest against the government if poor people are troubled,” he said in a social media post.  Karnataka Government should take complete responsibility and bear the full costs of travel of all migrant workers who belong to Karnataka. It is a shame they are asked to pay for travel and food. We will be compelled to protest against the government if poor people are troubled. pic.twitter.com/SuSgzFtX3p — DK Shivakumar (@DKShivakumar) May 1, 2020 Activists working in Bengaluru called for the state government to ensure that workers are sent home without charging them. “We demand that the state government pay for free travel and food for all migrant workers and not use the workers funds anymore or collect money from them,” Vinay Sreenivasa, a Bengaluru-based activist told TNM.   

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Karnataka IAS officer gets show cause notice for his tweet on 'Godi media'

Controversy

Confirming that he has received the show cause notice, Mohsin told TNM that he will be sending a reply as per the rules, shortly.

The Karnataka government on Friday issued a show cause notice to an IAS officer over his recent tweet praising Tablighi Jamaat members who have recovered from COVID-19 for donating plasma for treatment of other patients. "More than 300 Tablighi Heroes are donating their plasma to serve the country in New Delhi only. What about? #Godi Media? They will not show the works of humanity done by these heroes," Mohammad Mohsin, currently serving as a secretary in the Backward Class Welfare Department, said in a now deleted tweet on April 27. A 1996 batch IAS officer from Karnataka cadre hailing from Bihar, he was also in the news last year after the Election Commission suspended him for trying to inspect Prime Minister Narendra Modi's helicopter during his visit to Odisha in April. Moshin was deployed as a poll observer. Confirming that he has received the show cause notice, Mohsin told TNM that he will be sending a reply as per the rules, shortly. The show cause notice seems to have been issued to the officer, presumably for using ‘godi media’, a phrase used to refer to pro-government and pro-PM Modi media coverage. "The adverse coverage this tweet has got in the media has been taken note of seriously by the government, given the serious nature of COVID-19 and the sensitivities involved," the notice stated. The government has sought a written explanation from the officer within five days for violating the All India Services (Conduct) Rules, 1968. It warned of action against Mohsin as per the All India Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1969 if he fails to submit his reply before the deadline. A senior state official said the action of sending a show cause notice showed that Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa is not willing to compromise on any remarks by officials which have communal overtones. "The Karnataka government has made it clear that it would not hesitate to act even against powerful functionaries if their actions are damaging to the harmony in the state at a time when all are united in fighting COVID-19," a senior state bureaucrat told PTI. The Tablighi Jamaat was in news after thousands of its members who attended a congregation in south Delhi's Nizamuddin area in March, tested positive for COVID-19. After attending the event, the group's members happened to travel to various parts of the country, resulting in widespread transmission. PTI inputs

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